The association between mental disorder and crime during the Byzantine Empire

From a social, administrative and political point of view, the Byzantine Empire was a direct continuation of the Greco-Roman world, with the Greek-Orthodox Church playing an important role in the formation of the Byzantium's unique identity. This continuity is obvious when one studies the legislation of the Empire. This legislation had specific provisions for insane offenders with regard to their legal and social handling. In this article we review these laws and present some interesting legal, psychiatric and social issues.