the decline of the power of the aristocracy,

开始衰退的迹象
because they alone used to know

因为以前只有贵族知道法律
what the law was or claim to know it,

或者贵族们宣称他们知道什么是法律
and people would go to them and say what's the law,

如果人们向他们询问法律的内容
and they could administer it as they saw fit,

贵族可以按照自己的想法执行
which gave them extraordinary power, not to say prestige.

这给予了他们极大的权力和威望
Now, when it is possible,

现在当人们有可能认识法律
at least in some realms of the law, to know what that law is

那怕只是法律的一小部分
that has reduced the special place that the aristocrats have in society.

都会削弱贵族在社会中的特殊地位
Stories are told about the Code of Draco;

就像许多早期的法典那样
like most early law codes,

同样有很多关于《德拉古法典》的故事
and we can compare the Draconic Code

我们也可以把《德拉古法典》