Draconian \Dra*co"ni*an\, a. Pertaining to Draco, a famous lawgiver of Athens, 621 b. c.

Draconian code, or Draconian laws, a code of laws made by Draco. Their measures were so severe that they were said to be written in letters of blood; hence, any laws of excessive rigor.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)