Secolari disuguaglianze : Alcune osservazioni su filiazione illegittima e diritti successori tra medioevo ed età moderna = Centuries-old Inequalities : Reflections on Illegitimate Filiation and Inheritance Rights from the Middle Ages to the Early Modern Period

Historically the disparity between legitimate and illegitimate children has represented a long-standing social and legal inequality. Since ancient times, those not born from iustae nuptiae have been subject to different legal treatment and, in particular, to various restrictions concerning inheritance rights and maintenance from the paternal estate. This paper explores the key contribution of legal doctrine to the development of a legal framework which, starting with Justinianic legislation, systematically addressed the various forms of illegitimate filiation and their consequences for succession law. By retracing the thought of several medieval jurists, this paper examines the solutions developed within canon law to acknowledge the right of spurious children to receive maintenance. It then turns to a more specific focus on the inheritance rights of clerics’ offspring, analyzing how this issue was addressed across a broad range of legal sources.