HĒRES

—(1) Greek. To obtain the right of inheritance as well as citizenship at Athens ( ἀγχιστεία and πολιτεία ), legitimacy was a nece ary qualification. When an A then i an died leaving legitimate sons, they shared the inheritance, like our heirs in gavelkind; the only advantage po e ed by the eldest son being the first choice in the division. Every man of full age and sound mind, not under durance or improper influence, was competent to make a will; but if he had a son he could not disinherit him, although his will might take effect in case the son did not complete his seventeenth year. If there was but one son, he took the whole estate; but if he had sisters, it was incumbent on him to provide for them, and give them suitable marriage portions; they were then called ἐπίπροικοι . On failure of sons and their i ue, daughters and daughters’ children succeeded, and there seems to have been no limit to the succe ion in the descending line. It will a ist the student to be informed, that ἀνεψιός signifies a first cousin. Ἀνεψιαδοῦς is a first cousin’s son; formed in the same manner as ἀδελφιδοῦς from ἀδελφός , and θυγατριδοῦς from θυγατήρ . Κλῆρος is the subject-matter of inheritance, or (in one sense of the word) the inheritance; κληρόνομος the heir. Ἀγχιστεία , proximity of blood in reference to succe ion, and sometimes right of succe ion. Συγγένεια , natural consanguinity. Συγγενεῖς , collateral relations, are opposed to ἔκγονοι , lineal descendants.—(2) Roman. A person might become an heres by being named as such ( institutus , script us , fact us ) in a will executed by a competent person, according to the forms required by law [ Test amentum ]. The testator might either name one person as heres, or he might name several heredes ( cohere des ), and he might divide the here ditas among them as he pleased. The shares of the heredes were generally expre ed by reference to the divisions of the As: thus, “ heres ex a e ” is heres to the whole property; “ heres ex dodrante ,” heres to three-fourths; “ heres ex semuncia ,” heir to one twenty-fourth. If there were several heredes named, without any definite shares being given to them, the property belonged to them in equal shares. As a general rule, only Roman citizens could be named as heredes in the will of a Roman citizen; but a slave could also be named heres, though he had no power to make a will, and a filius-familias could also be named heres, though he was under the same incapacity. Persons, not Roman citizens, who had received the commercium, could take her edit ates, legata and fideicommi a by testament.—Heredes were either Nece arii, Sui et Nece arii, or Extranei. The heres nece arius was a slave of the testator, who was made an heres and liber at the same time; and he was called nece arius, because of the nece ity that he was under of accepting the here ditas. The heredes sui et nece arii were sons and daughters, and the sons and daughters of a son, who were in the power of a testator. These heredes sui were called nece arii, because of the nece ity that they were under, according to the civil law, of taking the here ditas with its incumbrances. But the praetor permitted such persons to refuse the here ditas ( abstinere se ab her edit ate ), and to allow the property to be sold to pay the testator’s debts; and he gave the same privilege to a mancipated son ( qui in causa mancipii est ). All other heredes are called extranei, and comprehend all persons who are not in the power of a testator, such as emancipated children. A certain time was allowed to extranei for the cretio her edit at is , that is, for them to determine whether they would take the here ditas or not: hence the phrase, “ cernere hereditatem .”—If a man died intestate, the here ditas came to the heredes sui, and was then called legitim a here ditas . If an intestate had no sui heredes, the Twelve Tables gave the here ditas to the agnati [ Cognati ], and if there were no agnati, to the gentiles. If a man had a son in his power, he was bound either to make him heres, or to exheredate ( exheredare ) him expre ly ( nomina tim ). If he pa ed him over in silence ( silentio praetericrit ), the will was altogether void ( inutile , non jure factum ). Other liber i could be pa ed over, and the will would still be a valid will; but the liber i so pa ed over took a certain portion of the here ditas adcrescendo , as it was termed, or jure adcrescendi . It was nece ary either to institute as heredes, or to exheredate posthumous children nomina tim , otherwise the will, which was originally valid, became invalid ( ruptum ); and the will became invalid by the birth either of a posthumous son or daughter, or, as the phrase was, adgnascendo rumpitur test amentum . The heres represented the testator and intestate, and had not only a claim to all his property and all that was due to him, but was bound by all his obligations. He succeeded to the sacra privata, and was bound to maintain them, but only in respect of the property, for the obligation of the sacra privata was attached to property and to the heres only as the owner of it. Hence the expre ion “ sine sacris here ditas ” meant an here ditas unencumbered with sacra.