Justice in the Middle Ages

Torturer beating the Martyrs

Two devils strangling the Roman official, Lampadius

      The Medieval legal system was “committed to the view that breaches might be restored, wrongs righted, feuds resolved, and sins atoned”.[1]  This is depicted with the devils punishing Lampadius while Christ is sending down a divine light onto the Martyrs.  The Church itself was not only viewed as an institution of faith, but also as embodying the virtue of justice.[2]

      In the Middle Ages, there was a strong link between justice and the law.[3]  If someone was punished for a wrong-doing, then justice was being carried out.  In the case of the Martyrs, Roman law seen as was wrong and therefore Lampadius was punished by the divine.  The Martyrs were simply following God by refusing to carve pagan images.  In Michael Foucault’s Discipline & Punishment, he states that “It is ugly to be punishable, but there is no glory in punishing”.[4]  This is clearly illustrated in the panel of the Martyrs.  The issues connected with punishing is why punishment, which had traditionally been a public spectacle, eventually became private.[5]  When punishment was a spectacle, the emphasis was on control of the body.[6]  Punishment will address either the body or soul, depending on how the punishment conducted.[7]  The Martyrs may have been constrained physically, but spiritually they were not restrained, as seen by their connection to Christ.  Their haloes further emphasize that the Martyrs are just, despite being treated unjustly. 

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