Definition: Foedus was a treaty between Rome and another state that bound at least one side to come to the assistance of the other in case of war. If the foedus were an equal treaty (foedus aequum) both sides were obligated to come to the assistance of the other, but if iniquum, the obligation was one-sided.
A foedus was a treaty of friendship and alliance, but was not a truce.
The plural of foedus is foedera, which is seen in the word federation.
References:
- A. N. Sherwin-White , Tim J. Cornell "foedus" The Oxford Classical Dictionary. © Oxford University Press 1949, 1970, 1996, 2005.
- "Encyclopedic Dictionary of Roman Law," by Adolf Berger; Transactions of the American Philosophical Society, New Series, Vol. 43, No. 2 (1953), pp. 333-809.
