jan 1, 621 BC - Draconian Laws are Established in Athens

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Greece’s Draconian laws still exert influence in the modern world, both in vernacular and, much more deeply, in the understanding of a need for written law codes. The laws were written by Draco, the first recorded legislator of Athens, in response to unjust rulings made from vague oral laws.

The need for written law was certainly true, but the laws Draco outlined imposed severe and even brutal penalties for almost any level of infraction, to such a degree that popular legend even claims that the laws were not written in ink, but in blood. To this day, calling a law “Draconian” is labeling it as unfairly severe.

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