Books by Wilfried (Humboldt-Universitat zu Berlin) Nippel

Ancient and Modern Democracy is a comprehensive account of Athenian democracy as a subject of criticism, admiration and scholarly debate for 2,500 years, covering the features of Athenian democracy, its importance for the English, American and French revolutions and for the debates on democracy and political liberty from the nineteenth century to the present. Discussions were always in the context of contemporary constitutional problems. Time and again they made a connection with a long-established tradition, involving both dialogue with ancient sources and with earlier phases of the reception of Antiquity. They refer either to a common cultural legacy or to specific national traditions; they often involve a mixture of political and scholarly arguments. This book elucidates the complexity of considering and constructing systems of popular self-rule.

This is a critical study of the system of law and order in ancient Rome in both Republican and Imperial periods. Wilfried Nippel identifies the mechanisms of self-regulation which operated as a stabilising force within Roman society, and considers the issue of the absence of a professional police force in the city of Rome, before and after the collapse of the Republic.