View source for Constitutiones Sanctæ Matris Ecclesiæ

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[[File:Aegidianae Constitutiones, 1571 - 002.tif|thumb|''Aegidianae Constitutiones'', 1571.]]
The '''Constitutiones Sanctæ Matris Ecclesiæ''' (English: ''Constitutions of the Holy Mother Church''), informally known as the '''Constitutiones Aegidianae''' (English: ''Egidian Constitutions'', {{langx|it|Costituzioni egidiane}}), were six books of law which formed the first historic [[constitution]] of the [[Papal States]]. They were redacted at [[Fano]] by [[Gil Álvarez Carrillo de Albornoz|Cardinal Albornoz]]<ref>{{Cite book|last=Daniel-Rops|first=Henri|url=http://archive.org/details/protestantreform0000unse|title=The Protestant Reformation|publisher=JM Dent & Sons|year=1961|location=London|pages=8|language=en}}</ref> between 29 April and 1 May 1357 at an assembly of all the [[vicar]]s of the pontifical territories.
The ''Constitutiones'' formed the highest law of a vast stretch of [[central Italy]], including the modern regions of [[Emilia-Romagna]], [[Marche]], [[Umbria]], and [[Lazio]], until 1816. Under the ''Constitutiones'', the Papal States were divided into five provinces: the [[Duchy of Spoleto]], [[March of Ancona]], [[Romagna]], [[Patrimony of Saint Peter]], and the [[Campagne and Maritime Province]]. Each province fell under the direction of a [[Rector (ecclesiastical)|rector]] appointed personally by the [[pope]]. Each rector was charged with the selection of a council of seven justices for his province. The purpose of the council was to counter corruption and each justice had to belong to a different province than the one to which he was appointed. The rector also had the power to name the chief of the armed forces of his province, but was barred from bestowing the office on one of his relatives.
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[[Category:1350s in law]]
[[Category:History of the papacy]]
[[Category:History of Catholicism in Italy]]
[[Category:Constitutions of former countries]]
[[Category:14th century in the Papal States]]
[[Category:Legal history of Italy]]
[[Category:1357 in Europe]]
[[Category:History of le Marche]]
[[Category:Legal history of Vatican City]]
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