Notary History Part 1
In the world today, there are three major, distinctly different notarial systems, each associated with a different type of Notary: the Civil Law Notary system of the Latin nations, the Common Law Notary system of the English-speaking nations, and the Notary system of the United States of America, which is derived from the English Common Law system but quite different. The following selective historical accounts provide illuminating background information on the evolution of the three modern systems of notarization.
Ancient Egypt: Old Kingdom: 2750-2250 B.C. Ancient Egyptian "sesh," or "scribes," were established in the Old Kingdom and were the earliest known chroniclers of official communications in recorded history. The tools of their craft were pigments, water pots and writing implements, which they often carried over their shoulders. Scribes made up an entire level of ancient bureaucracy and were the only citizens who were aware of almost every noteworthy event in the empire. Personal letters, diplomatic communications, wills and other legal documents, official proclamations, tax records, administrative, economic, and religious documents, and other documents all went through their hands. The closing phrase of their ancient letters, "May you be well when you hear this," implies that the scribes not only wrote but also read communications between two people. The recording of events was so highly valued that Pharaoh Tutankhamen even included writing equipment among the necessities he had with him for the afterlife. Today, there are preserved copies of the efforts of some scribal apprentices whose works have been corrected in red by their masters.
Roman Empire, Corpus Juris Civilis of Emperor Justinian: A.D. 535 The true ancestors of Notaries were born in the Roman Empire. Many regard history's first Notary to be a Roman slave named Tiro, who developed a shorthand system which he called notae for taking down the speeches of famed orator Cicero. Other witnessing stenographers came to be known as notarii and scribae. Their historical development was shaped by Roman Private Law which, in AD 535, culminated in the Corpus Juris Civilis of Emperor Justinian. Part of his new law was novella 44, the first Notaries Act. Six hundred years later, the glossarists of the law school of Bologna rediscovered the "novels" of Justinian, and adapted them for the use of a new class of medieval legal officers: the international Notaries. As literacy was not widespread, the Notary, or "Notarius" as they were called, served to prepare contracts, wills, and other important documents for a fee. As the Roman Empire grew and literacy increased, demand for the Notary also increased. Soon, Notaries were being used in the empire provinces of what are now England, France, and Spain.
Order of the Knights Templar: 1099-1307 The Poor Fellow Soldiers of Christ and the Temple of Solomon, more commonly known as the Knights Templar, were a monastic military order formed at the end of the First Crusade with the mandate of protecting Christian pilgrims on route to the Holy Land. From humble beginnings of poverty when the order relied on alms from the traveling pilgrims, the Order would go on to have the backing of the Holy See and the collective European monarchies. Within two centuries they had become powerful enough to defy all but the Papal throne, and created the modern system of banking, mortgages and loans. The Clergy of the Order were highly educated and became the critically important Notaries for all Templar business, official documents, orders and proclamations. The Templars had grown rich and powerful, and amid unsubstantiated rumors of heretical practices, King Philip the Fair of France saw an opportunity to fill his own coffers at their expense. He had all the Templars in France arrested and pressured Pope Clement V to suppress the order. Clement V ordered one of the Order's Notaries to record the coerced confessions of scores of Order members. On Friday, October 13th, 1307, King Philip had all the Templars arrested on the grounds of heresy, since this was the only charge that would allow the seizing of their money and assets. With the forced notarized confessions used as key evidence, many Templars were tortured, banished or burned at the stake. Ever since then, the superstitious have considered Friday the 13th a day of bad luck.
Notary Publics in England: 13th and 14th Centuries Notaries were not introduced into England until later in the 13th and 14th centuries as English common law developed free from most of the influences of Roman law. Notaries were often appointed by the Papal Legate or the Archbishop of Canterbury, and in those early days many were members of the clergy. Over the course of time members of the clergy ceased to involve themselves in secular business, thus the laymen in towns and trading centers began to assume the official character and functions of a modern Notary. Then in 1533 the enactment of the Ecclesiastical Licenses Act -- also known as the "Peters Pence and Dispensations Act" -- terminated the power of the Pope to appoint Notaries and vested that power in the King. Traditionally, Notaries recorded matters of judicial importance as well as private transactions or events where an officially authenticated record or a document drawn up with professional skill or knowledge was required. In the Middle Ages, Notaries were sometimes asked to witness the consummation of marriages involving royalty. The other emphasis on notarial acts was the importance of the Deed. In Roman law countries only Court judgments carried any special force, but, as Notaries ceased to be dependent on judicial authorities more and more force was given to their Authentic Acts, as they are called. It was Louis XIV of France who abolished the last vestiges of the ancient dependence on judicial authority and granted to each Notary a seal with the Royal Arms. The modern Notary must still employ his seal, but that is now for him to design personally and to guard carefully.
Visit the National Notary Association for the complete Notary History and information on Notary Courses.
Michael Brightener is an article and blog writer from Austin, Texas. For information on becoming a notary, visit the National Notary Association, an educational resource for Notary Courses.
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