Code Civil (Civ3)/Civilopedia

Before the Revolution, France was awash in legal inconsistencies. Hundreds of codes of law were
practiced: The northern part of the country practiced a form of Common Law, while the south practiced
Roman Law. When Napoleon came to power, he quickly moved to consolidate and codify these laws, and by
1804, the consolidation was ratified and put into practice.
The Code Napoleon (later renamed to Civil Code), was a mix of liberal and conservative philosophy,
in which many basic rights guaranteed before the Revolution –- civil equality, freedom of religion and
the abolition of feudalism –- were retained. The Code also guaranteed property rights and reinforced
patriarchal power by giving full household authority to the husband. After Napoleon's fall in 1815,
the Code was retained almost in its entirety by the Bourbons and is, to this day, the modus operandi
for many legal systems throughout the world.