THE DEATH PENALTY IN THE HISTORY OF UKRAINIAN CRIMINAL LAW IN THE FIFTEENTH AND SIXTEENTH CENTURIES

Abstract

The problem of the article is the need to clarify the characteristics and main features of the death penalty, and also to identify the achievements of legal thought of the fifteenth – sixteenth centuries in the criminal law area, and the level of legal awareness of the legislator. The purpose of the article is to identify the main features of the death penalty, the grounds for its classification in the Ukrainian criminal law of the fifteenth – sixteenth centuries, and to clarify the factors which were characteristic of the Middle Ages and influenced the content of the death penalty. The methodological basis of the study is formed by the methods of philosophical dialectic, analysis, synthesis, generalisation, systemic, functional, comparative historical, comparative legal, formal legal methods. The reasons for the emergence and spread of the death penalty in the legal monuments of the period under study were the development of state-building and economic processes, vassalage relations, peculiarities of the political and social situation of the privileged segments of the population in the State, the influence of foreign law, and the need to implement intimidation as a purpose of punishment. The death penalty in the fifteenth and early sixteenth centuries was not significant, but during the sixteenth century its importance increased, which was reflected in the increase in the number of rules on the imposition of the death penalty, which referred to the imposition of simple and qualified death penalty, and the diversification of terminology. The simple death penalty was provided for grave crimes, and the qualified death penalty was imposed for particularly grave state, military, official crimes, crimes against justice, person or property, religion and morality. The research made it possible to identify general grounds for the death penalty, such as causing significant damage to the state, disrespect for the monarch, breaking the oath, intent, significant property damage to a person, mutilation, and shamefulness of the act. Specific grounds included the particular danger of the act, damage to the state, motive, cunning and shamefulness of the crime, the commission of an unacceptable sin, the possibility of mass death, kinship or family ties, and vassalage relations. A special place among the grounds was occupied by the social status of the murdered and the offender, and the death penalty was provided for by the feudal status principle of the right of privilege.