The German jurist Friedrich Karl von Savigny (1779-1861) advocated the doctrine of historical continuity, according to which historical rather than natural rights and actual historical facts rather than legal theory were the bases for legal systems.

Friedrich Karl von Savigny was born on Feb. 21, 1779, in Frankfurt am Main, one of 13 children. By the time he reached the age of 13, he had lost all his brothers and sisters and his parents.

In 1795 Savigny entered the University of Marburg, and in 1800 he received his doctor of laws degree. He began a teaching career as privatdozent (unpaid lecturer) the same year. His first major work, Das Recht des Besitzes (1803; The Law of Possession), was well received by other jurists.

In 1804 Savigny married Kunigunde Brentano, the sister of Clemens Brentano, the poet, and the young couple set out on an extended study tour through France and southern Germany to collect legal materials...