The Reception of Marital Consent in the Medieval Legislation of Spain and Norway

The Castilian king Alphons X the Wise and the Norwegian king Haakon IV the Law-Mender were both eager legislators, pursuing to use law as a tool for political and legal unification of their kingdoms. They knew each other well and the family ties they created contributed even further to this. They were both fully aware of the canon-law doctrine of marital consent, and were willing to endorse and receive it in their kingdoms. However, while the Castilian bishops allowed Alphons the Wise to legislate canon-law matters, the main archbishop of Norway, Jon the Red, rejected the Norwegian king Magnusʼs involvement in ecclesiastical legislation, keeping him away from having to get into the doctrinal intricacies of canon law. This explains why the Magnus Code of 1274 did not contain any rule revolving around the celebration of marriage and merely covered the patrimonial and hereditary aspects connected to marital consent. The present article seeks to make a comparative analysis of a particular aspect of marriage - marital consent - in both codes, the Castilian Siete Partidas and the Norwegian Landslög. This topic will enable us to explore the influence of canon law in both legal texts. In doing so, references are made to other contemporary legal sources, both Castilian and Norwegian