Law of the Innocents

The Law of the Innocents, or Lex Innocentium, is another name for a set of laws originally called the Cáin Adomnain. It is named after Saint Adomnán of Iona, the Irish abbot and statesman who promulgated the law. The Law of the Innocents was passed at the Synod of Birr in 697, and contained provisions that would guarantee the immunity of non-combatants (women, children and clergymen) during warfare.

Adomnán mac Ronain

Saint Adomnán was a renowned man in 7th century Ireland. Not only was he the leader of Iona, a monastery respected for its emphasis on learning, he was also the leader of a larger family of monasteries in both Scotland and Ireland. In addition, Adomnán was related to Loingsech mac Oengusso, the king of Tara. Thus, his religious authority was combined with a great deal of secular influence, putting him in an advantageous place for passing the Law of the Innocents.

The Life of Columba

Despite Adomnán's power, he developed a distinct reputation for caring about the powerless. In one of his early biographical writings (The Life of Columba), he details the life of his patron saint and the first abbot of Iona. He tells a story of Columba witnessing a young woman's murder at the hands of a "cruel persecutor of the innocents." The attacker kills the woman, Columba calls on God, and the murderer falls dead immediately. This story can be seen as proof of Adomnán's early concern with "the innocent," and it foreshadows the rhetoric he would later use in the Law of the Innocents.

Synod of Birr

In 697, Adomnán used his political and religious influence to amass a gathering of kings and bishops at Birr, a town in the midlands of Ireland. Birr was the site of a renowned monastery; it was also significantly located close to the boundary between the northern and the southern halves of Ireland. It was considered one of the few neutral spaces where men from the north and south could negotiate. A list of the guarantors of the Law of the Innocents is one of the few surviving documents from the time, and the Synod of Birr is remembered primarily as the summit where the Cáin Adomnain was signed.

Documentation

Although there is no original documentation of the Law of the Innocents itself, the surviving copy comes from the Book of Raphoe, a 9th century document. It is strongly worded, suggesting the passion behind the law's passing. For example, one section begins, "The enactment of the Cáin Adomnáin stands as an everlasting law for clergy and women, and for innocent children until they are capable of killing a man, until they have taken their place in the tribe and their first armed conflict be known."

Significance

The Law of the Innocents signifies the beginning of the enormous Christian movement to minimize social violence, a movement that has continued until the present day. It is important to note that Adomnán wrote the law to be upheld by both religious and secular leaders as well as across country lines, demonstrating his early commitment to the idea of international moral law. Many regard the Law of the Innocents to be a precursor to the Geneva Convention, an agreement that shows the considerable progress of international standards of justice in war.

References

• Adomnán's Law of the Innocents
• Early Christian Ireland; Charles-Edwards; 2000.
• Adomnán of Iona: Life of St. Columba; Sharpe; 1995.