LacusCurtius • Colonatus (Smith's Dictionary, 1875) 2/20/18 11:01 PM

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Colonatus

Article.by.George.Long,.M.A.,.Fellow.of.Trinity.College.
on.pp311>313.of

William.Smith,.D.C.L.,.LL.D.:.
A.Dictionary.of.Greek.and.Roman.Antiquities,.John.Murray,.London,.1875.

COLONA′TUS,. COLONI.. The& Coloni& of& the& later& Imperial& period& formed& a& class& of
agriculturists,&whose&condition&has&been&the&subject&of&elaborate&investigation.

These& Coloni& were& designated& by& the& various& names& of& Coloni,& Rustici,& Originarii,
Adscriptitii,&Inquilini,&Tributarii,&Censiti.&A&person&might&become&a&Colonus& by& birth,& with
reference&to&which&the&term&Originarius&was&used.&When&both&the&parents&were&Coloni&and
belonged&to&the&same&master,&the&children&were&Coloni.&If&the&father&was&a&Colonus&and&the
mother& a& slave,& or& conversely,& the& children& followed& the& condition& of& the& mother.& If& the
father& was& free& and& the& mother& a& Colona,& the& children& were& Coloni& and& belonged& to& the
master&of&the&mother.&If&the&father&was&a&Colonus&and&the&mother&free,&the&children&before
the&time&of&Justinian&followed&the&condition&of&the&father:&afterwards&Justinian&declared&such
children&to&be&free,&but&finally&he&reduced&them&to&the&condition&of&Coloni.&If&both&parents
were&Coloni&and&belonged&to&different&masters,&it&was&finally&settled&that&the&masters&should
divide&the&children&between&them,&and&if&there&was&an&odd&one,&it&should&go&to&the&owner&of &p312&
the&mother.&If&a&man&lived&for&thirty&years&as&a&Colonus,&he&became&the&Colonus&of&the&owner
of&the&land&on&which&he&lived;&and&though&he&was&still&free,&he&could&not&leave&the&land:&and
a& man& who& had& possessed& for& thirty& years& a& colonus& belonging& to& another,& could& defend
himself& against& the& claims& of& the& former& owner& by& the& Praescriptio& triginta& annorum.
A& constitution& of& Valentinian& III& declared& how& free& persons& might& become& Coloni& by
agreement;& and& though& there& is& neither& this& nor& any& similar& recognition& in& the& Code& of
Justinian,&there&is&a&passage&which&apparently&recognizes&that&persons&might&become&Coloni
by&such&agreement&(Cod.&XI.&tit.&47&s22).

The& Coloni& were& not& slaves,& though& their& condition& in& certain& respects& was& assimilated& to
that& of& slaves;& a& circumstance& which& will& explain& their& being& called& servi& terrae,& and
sometimes& being& contrasted& with& liberi.& They& had,& however,& connubium,& which& alone& is& a
characteristic& that& distinguished& them& clearly& from& slaves& (Cod.& XI.& tit.& 47& s24).& But,& like
slaves,&they&were&liable&to&corporal&punishment,&and&they&had&no&right&of&action&against&their
master,&whose&relation&to&them&was&expressed&by&the&term&Patronus&(Cod.&Theod.&V.&tit.&11).
The&colonus&was&attached&to&the&soil,&and&he&could&not&be&permanently&separated&from&it&by
his&own&act,&or&by&that&of&his&patronus&or&by&the&consent&of&the&two.&The&patronus&could&sell
the&estate&with&the&coloni,&but&neither&of&them&without&the&other&(Cod.&XI.&tit.&47&s2.&7).& He
could,& however,& transfer& superabundant& coloni& from& one& to& another& of& his& own& estates.
When&an&estate&held&in&common&was&divided,&married&persons&and&relations&were&not&to&be
separated.&The&ground&of&there&being&no&legal&power&of&separating&the&coloni&and&the&estate
was& the& opinion& that& such& an& arrangement& was& favourable& to& agriculture,& and& there& were
also&financial&reasons&for&this&rule&of&law,&as&will&presently&appear.&The&only&case&in&which

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the& colonus& could& be& separated& from& the& land& was& that& of& his& becoming& a& soldier,& which
must& be& considered& to& be& done& with& the& patronUs& consent,& as& the& burden& of& recruiting& the
army&was&imposed&on&him,&and&in&this&instance&the&state&dispensed&with&a&general&rule&for
reasons&of&public&convenience.

The&colonus&paid&a&certain&yearly&rent&for&the&land&on&which&he&lived:&the&amount&was&fixed
by& custom& and& could& not& be& raised;& but& as& the& landowner& might& attempt& to& raise& it,& the
colonus& had& in& such& case& for& his& protection& a& right& of& action& against& him,& which& was& an
exception&to&the&general&rule&above&stated&(Cod.&XI.&tit.&47&s5).&There&were,&however,&cases&in
which&the&rent&was&fixed&by&agreement.

A& further& analogy& between& the& condition& of& Servi&and&Coloni& appears& from& the& fact& of& the
property& of& Coloni& being& called& their& Peculium.& It& is& however,& distinctly& stated& that& they
could& hold& property& (Cod.& Theod.& V.& tit.& 11);& and& the& expressions& which& declare& that& they
could& have& nothing& XpropriaX& (Cod.& XI.& tit.& 49& s2)& seem& merely& to& declare& that& it& was& not
propria&in&the&sense&of&their&having&power&to&alienate&it,&at&least&without&the&consent&of&their
patroni.&It&appears&that&a&colonus&could&make&a&will,&and&that&if&he&made&none,&his&property
went& to& his& next& of& kin;& for& if& a& bishop,& presbyter,& deacon,& &c.,& died& intestate& and& without
kin,&his&property&went&to&the&church&or&convent&to&which&he&belonged,&except&such&as&he&had
as&a&colonus,&which&went&to&his&patronus,&who&with&respect&to&his&ownership&of&the&land&is
called&Dominus&possessionis&(Cod.&Theod.&V&tit.&3).&Some&classes&of&Coloni&had&a&power&of
alienating&their&property&(Cod.&XI.&tit.&47&s23).

The&land\tax&due&in&respect&of&the&land&occupied&by&the&colonus&was&paid&by&the&dominus;
but& the& coloni& were& liable& to& the& payment& of& the& poll\tax,& though& it& was& paid& in& the& first
instance&by&the&dominus&who&recovered&it&from&the&colonus.&The&liability&of&the&colonus&to&a
poll\tax& explains& why& this& class& of& persons& was& so& important& to& the& state,& and& why& their
condition& could& not& be& changed& without& the& consent& of& the& state.& It& was& only& when& the
colonus& had& lived& as& a& free& man& for& thirty& years& that& he& could& maintain& his& freedom& by& a
praescriptio,&but&Justinian&abolished&this&praescriptio,&and&thus&empowered&the&dominus&to
assert&his&right&after&any&lapse&of&time&(Cod.&XI.&tit.&47&s23).&With&respect&to&their&liability&to
the& poll\tax,& the& coloni& were& called& tributarii,& censiti& or& censibus& obnoxii,& adscriptitii,
adscriptitiae& conditionis,& and& censibus& adscripti.& This& term& adscriptio& appears& to& have& no
reference&to&their&being&attached&to&the&land,&debate&it&refers&to&their&liability&to&the&poll\tax
as& being& rated& in& the& tax\books,& and& accordingly& we& find& that& the& Greek& term& for
Adscriptitius&is&Ἐναπόγραφος.

As&the&Coloni&were&not&servi,&and&as&the&class&of&Latini&and&peregrini&hardly& existed& in& the

later&ages&of&the&Empire,&we&must&consider&the&Coloni&to&have&had&the&Civitas,&such&as&it&then
was;& and& it& is& a& consequence& of& this& that& they& had& connubium& generally.& A& constitution& of
Justinian,& however& (Nov.& 22& c17),& declared& the& marriage& of& a& colonus,& who& belonged& to
another&person,&and&a&free&woman&to&be&void.&The&Constitution&does&not&seem&to&mean&any
thing& else& than& that& in& this& case& the& Emperor& took& away& the& Connubium,& whether& for& the
reasons& stated& by& Savigny,& or& for& other& reasons,& is& immaterial.& This& special& exception,
however,&proves&the&general&rule&as&to&Connubium.

The&origin&of&these&Coloni&is&uncertain.&They&appear&to&be&referred&to&in&one&passage&of&the
Digest&(Dig.&30&s112),&under&the&name&of&Inquilinus,&a&term&which&certainly&was&sometimes
applied&to&the&whole&class&of&Coloni.&The&passage&states,&that&if&a&man&bequeaths,&as&a&legacy,
the&inquilini&without&the&praedia&to&which&they&adhere&(sine&praediis&quibus&adhaerent),&it&is
a&void&legacy.&Savigny&conceives&that&this&passage&may&be&explained&without&considering&it
to&refer&to&the&Coloni&of&whom&we&are&speaking;&but&the&explanation&that&he&suggests,&seems
a&very&forced&one,&and&the&same&remark&applies&to&his&explanation&of&another&passage&in&the
Digest&(Dig.&50&tit.&15&s4).&The&condition&of&the&old&Clients&seems&to&bear&some&relation&to&that
of& the& Coloni,& but& all& historical& traces& of& one& class& growing& out& of& the& other& are& entirely
wanting.

Savigny& observes& that& he& does& not& perceive& any& historical& connection& between& the& villeins
(villani)& of& modern& Europe& and& the& Coloni,& though& there& is& a& strong& resemblance& between

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their&respective&conditions.&There&were,&however,&many&important&distinctions;&for&instance,
the& villein& services& due& to& the& lord& had& nothing& corresponding& to& them& in& the& case& of& the
Coloni,& so& far& as& we& know.& Some& modern& writers& would& hastily& infer& an& historical
connection& of& institutions& which& happen& to& have& resemblances.& LittletonUs& Tenures, &p313&
section&172,&&c.,&and&Bracton&(fol.&6.&24),&may&be&consulted&as&to&the&incidents&of&Villeinage.

This& view& of& the& condition& of& the& Coloni& is& from& SavignyUs& Essay& on& the& subject,& which& is
translated&in&the&Philological&Museum,&vol.&II.

The&question&of&the&origin&of&these&Coloni&is&examined&at&great&length&by&A.&W.&Zumpt,&Ueber
die- Entstehung- und- historische- Entwickelung- des- Colonats- (Rheinisches- Museum- für- Philologie,
Neue&Folge,&1845).&The&author&is&of&opinion&that&the&origin&of&the&institution&is&to&be&traced&to
the&settlement&of&Germanic&people&by&the&Roman&emperors&within&the&limits&of&the&empire.
The&earliest&mention&of&Coloni,&in&the&sense&in&which&his&essay&treats&of&them,&is,&as&he&states,
a&constitution&of&Constantine&A.D.&321&(Cod.&Theod.&9.&tit.&21&s1,&2)&which,&however,&gives&no
information& about& their& condition.& But& a& later& constitution& of& Constantine,& A.D.& 332
(Cod.& Theod.& 5.& tit.& 9,& de& fugitivis& colonis)& does& give& some& information.& The& condition& of
these&foreign&settlers&being&once&established,&the&author&supposes&that&poor&Roman&citizens
might&enter&into&this&condition,&partly&induced&by&the&advantage&of&getting&land,&and&partly,
as& he& states,& though& it& is& not& clearly& explained,& by& legal& compulsion.& A& constitution& of
Theodosius& the& Younger& (Cod.& Theod.& 5& tit.& 4,& de& bonis& militum,& s3,& ed.& Wenck),& contains
some&valuable&information&on&the&colonization&or&settlement&of&the&barbarians,&and&declares
them& to& belong& to& the& condition& expressed& by& the& term& Colonatus.& The& term& colonus& often
occurs&in&the&writers&who&are&excerpted&in&the&Digest&(41&tit.&2&s30&§5;&19&tit.&2&s3,&9&§3;&19&tit.&1
s13&§30,&and&elsewhere);&but&these&Coloni&are&supposed&to&be&merely&a&kind&of&tenants.&The
passage& in& the& Digest& (30& s112)& which& cites& a& constitution& of& Marcus& Aurelius& and
Commodus,& is& supposed,& by& Zumpt,& to& mean& ordinary& tenants& (miether,& pächter);& but& it
must&be&admitted,&that&it&is&rather&difficult&to&accept&this&explanation,&as&already&observed.
The&word&Colonatus,&it&is&stated,&does&not&occur&in&the&Digest;&but&that&negative&fact&proves
little.& The& most& probable& solution& of& the& question& is,& that& the& condition& of& the& Coloni
mentioned&in&the&Digest&was&the&model&of&the&condition&of&the&barbarians&who&were&settled
in&the&Roman&empire;&and&it&is&no&objection&to&this,&that&the&condition&of&the&barbarians&might
be&made&more&burdensome&and&less&free&than&that&of&the&Coloni,&who&already&existed.&Nor&is
it& against& this& supposition,& if& the& condition& of& the& barbarian& Coloni& gradually& became& the
condition& of& all& the& Coloni.& The& reasons& for& fixing& the& barbarian& settlers& to& the& soil& are
obvious& enough.& The& policy& of& the& emperors& was& to& people& the& country,& and& to& disperse
many& of& the& tribes& whose& union& would& have& been& dangerous.& If& the& results& of& ZumptUs
inquiry&cannot&be&admitted&to&their&full&extent,&it&must&be&allowed,&that&he&has&thrown&great
light& on& the& subject,& and& probably& approached& as& near& as& possible& to& the& solution& of& the
difficulty,&with&the&exception&of&his&hypothesis,&that&the&colonatus&originated&entirely&in&the
settlement&of&these&barbarians.&It&seems&much&more&probable&that&the&Romans&modelled&the
barbarian& settlements& upon& some& institution& that& already& existed,& though& this& existing
institution&might&not&be&precisely&the&same&as&that&subsequent&institution&to&which&the&term
Colonatus&was&peculiarly&applied.

A& simpler& overview& with& the& added& advantage& of

providing& the& general& social& and& agricultural& context& is
given&by&J.&B.&Bury,&History&of&the&Later&Roman&Empire,
Ch.&2.

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