An imperial estate (''patrimonium'' or ''res privata'')
in the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...
it was the "personal property of members of the imperial family, as distinct from property belonging to the Roman state" (''ager publicus''). On the
Emperor's death, these properties passed to his successor, and not to his private heirs.
Imperial estates were not only farming estates, or ''
latifundia
A ''latifundium'' (Latin: ''latus'', "spacious", and ''fundus'', "farm", "estate") was originally the term used by ancient Romans for great landed estates specialising in agriculture destined for sale: grain, olive oil, or wine. They were charac ...
'', but also
pasture
Pasture (from the Latin ''pastus'', past participle of ''pascere'', "to feed") is land used for grazing.
Types of pasture
Pasture lands in the narrow sense are enclosed tracts of farmland, grazed by domesticated livestock, such as horses, c ...
s (''saltus'') and
mines (''metalla''). Management of imperial estates within a
province
A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
was the responsibility of a
procurator who, in turn, reported to the ''procurator patrimonii'' in Rome.
The procurator leased the estate to a ''conductor'', a contractor, or administrator. On small estates, the conductor might farm the land himself. On larger tracts, the conductor sub-let the land to ''
coloni'',
tenant-farmers. Coloni were free men, and not bound to the land like later serfs. The coloni paid the conductor in shares of their crops, and were also obliged to perform other services a few days a year.
"At one period or another there seem to have been estates in most provinces of the empire." Estates were acquired in various ways: by "confiscation, acquisition by conquest and inheritance." Imperial estates might be disposed of through sales or given as gifts, to individuals, to temples, and later to Christian churches. Land which remained imperial property was usually leased out.
It is difficult to estimate how much land was directly owned by the emperor. In North Africa in the fifth century, land registers show that he owned around 15–18%.
See also
*
Lex Manciana
*
Villa Magna
Villa Magna is a large imperial ancient Roman villa near the modern town of Anagni, in Lazio, central Italy. The site lies in the Valle del Sacco some 65 km south of Rome, at the foot of the Monti Lepini, directly under the peak known as Mon ...
References
External links
Vagnari Roman Imperial Estate
Ancient Rome
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