Codex Holmiensis is the manuscript of the Danish Code of Jutland, codified under Valdemar II of Denmark. The code covered Funen and Jutland down to the Eider River.
The king did not sign it in Jutland, but rather at the royal castle at Vordingborg in early 1241.

"With law shall land [i.e. the nation] be built" begins the famous preamble. "And if all men would keep [or "be content with"] what is theirs, and let others enjoy the same rights, there would be no need of [a] law. [...] If the land had no law, then he would have the most who could grab the most." "Grab" should be taken to mean "obtain by force".

"The law," states the codex, "must be honest, just, reasonable, and according to the ways of the people. It must meet their needs, and speak plainly so that all men may know and understand what the law is. It is not to be made in any man's favor, but for the needs of all them who live in the land."
That is its purpose, and "no man shall judge [condemn] the law which the King has given and the country chosen; neither shall he [the King] take it back without the will of the people."

Up to this day the Code is sometimes drawn upon by German courts north of the Eider river despite the fact that there is a German law code.

See also

Category:1241 booksCategory:Danish chroniclesCategory:Law booksCategory:13th-century manuscriptsCategory:Political charters

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