The Dowry and Its Securing According to the Josephine Code of 1787

The study is dedicated to highlighting the provisions on the legal regime of dowry (the so-called marital property) and its security, enshrined in the third chapter "On the rights of spouses" of the first part "On personal law" of the Josephine Code of 1787, which regulated marital relations in the Habsburg monarchy. First of all, the author analyzed the state of scientific research of the specified problem both in the European science of the history of law, and in Ukrainian in particular. The main attention of the study is focused on the characteristics of the features of the legal regime of dowry, as well as the conditions for its securing according to the Josephine Code. The article sets out provisions on the persons obliged to provide dowry, on the type and size of dowry property, on the terms of its provision, on the procedure for using it, including the husband's right to usufruct, on compensation for damage caused to dowry property, on the conditions of return dowry, etc. Norms on the procedure and conditions for securing of dowry, on the persons obligated to such securing, on the terms of its securing, on the amount of such securing, etc. were also considered. In conclusion, the author substantiates the historical and legal significance of the Josephine Code. It was found that the provisions of the Josephine Code on dowry and its securing were the basis of the corresponding norms of the following civil codes of the Habsburg Monarchy – the Civil Code for Galicia of 1797 and the General Civil Code of the Austrian Empire of 1811.