The cullagium (also ''culagium''; , from Latin ''colligāre'', "to collect")
was a tax first imposed in England and France around the pontificate of
Urban II
Pope Urban II (; – 29 July 1099), otherwise known as Odo of Châtillon or Otho de Lagery, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 March 1088 to his death. He is best known for convening the Council of Clermon ...
(ca. 1042 – 29 July 1099) and thereafter as part of a drive towards
clerical celibacy
Clerical celibacy is the requirement in certain religions that some or all members of the clergy be unmarried. Clerical celibacy also requires abstention from deliberately indulging in sexual thoughts and behavior outside of marriage, because thes ...
.
It was a tax levied by the state on mistresses kept by clergymen.
This was ostensibly to discourage the keeping of such mistresses, a practice officially condemned by both Church and state, but became a convenient source of revenue to the latter.
[{{cite web , title=The Manly Priest: Clerical Celibacy, Masculinity, and Reform in England and Normandy , publisher=University of Pennsylvania Press , date=2015 , author=Jennifer D. Thibodeaux , pages=76]
References
See also
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Sin tax
A sin tax (also known as a sumptuary tax, or vice tax) is an excise tax specifically levied on certain goods deemed harmful to society and individuals, such as Alcohol tax, alcohol, tobacco tax, tobacco, drugs, candy, soft drinks, fast foods, c ...
Tax law
History of taxation
Clerical celibacy