Peregrine Cities: An Overview Of Status And Rights Options

[Spurius]

At the start of the empire, and despite efforts toward uniformity of administration, most provincial cities could be divided into one of three types:

1) Those that paid a tribute to Rome (stipendium ) and were subject to the legal control of the provincial governor over all of their legal affairs. The majority of cities fell into this category.

2) Autonomous cities who ruled their affairs and judiciary apart from the control of the province and the provincial governor. This was usually a case of Rome granting this status to them…as opposed to being brought into the Roman sphere with this status from the beginning. A sizeable number of these cities did not have to pay stipendium, though the majority did. This relative boon became uncommon in the late empire.

3) Treaty cities as defined by a small number of autonomous cities who had signed treaties with Rome granting them equal legal footing with Rome.

These cities remained peregrine because while under roman rule (or heavily influenced by proximity) they preserved their laws and customs. The native inhabitants were not given Roman or Latin rights, though groups of Roman citizens did live there. The status of these cities did not remain static however…

Some of them asked to become colonies of Rome. The standard path of a colony was to be founded as a new town with colonists, usually on lands recently conquered or acquired by Rome. In the case of an already established city, the colony would be constructed by legally and religiously severing it from the original city, seizing property and moving in colonists. The title could also be given as an honor to the entire city, thus ridding the need for colonists. In either case, the colony would be granted Italic rights (ius Italicum) and granted the same rights as Italian soil…exemption from land tax.

There was another option for a pre-existing city to achieve more rights, becoming a municipium. This status superseded whatever status the city had before (though some aspects might still remain the same) and granted it either Roman or Latin rights. Which rights it received primarily depended on when it was under Roman rule. After the conquest of Italy, Rome was fairly free in granting Roman rights to the new municipia. The last recorded award of this type was in 47 CE (by Claudius) to the city of Volubilis. Throughout this period, and after Claudius, there were municipia who were granted Latin rights instead.

Latin rights, while not all details are known about what rights this status entitled, did give the inhabitants of the city methodologies for acquiring Roman rights. If they served as a municipal office holder, then Roman citizenship was extended to them. The emperor could award them citizenship. Or, finally, they could petition and become an honorary colony as listed above.

So peregrine cities would try to become municipia, the municipia aspired (individually or as a petitioning group) to Roman rights. This process, under Vespasian, became fairly standardized…but the older cities held on to their various statuses well into the later empire.

And you thought state verses federal rights was a political minefield…

-The primary source material for this post comes from "A History of Rome" by Glay, Voisin, Bohec and a variety of on-line resources including this site.

[M. Porcius Cato]

Thanks for that valuable post! Aside from Volubilis (where there was an excellent bust of my namesake found btw), do we know the status of many of the cities of the Roman world? I'd love to be able to find a map that's color-coded with these.

[Pantagathus]

do we know the status of many of the cities of the Roman world? I'd love to be able to find a map that's color-coded with these.

If you are interested in particular cities, the entries in Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854), Edited by William Smith usually indicate what rights they held & when. There are a few places you can find that resource online.

Massilia is a great example of #3

[M. Porcius Cato]

If you are interested in particular cities, the entries in Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854), Edited by William Smith usually indicate what rights they held & when. There are a few places you can find that resource online.
Massilia is a great example of #3

Ummm--is that still in print?

[Pantagathus]

If you are interested in particular cities, the entries in Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854), Edited by William Smith usually indicate what rights they held & when. There are a few places you can find that resource online.
Massilia is a great example of #3

Ummm--is that still in print?

It's about to be again and can be yours for $598!

[M. Porcius Cato]

If you are interested in particular cities, the entries in Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography (1854), Edited by William Smith usually indicate what rights they held & when. There are a few places you can find that resource online.
Massilia is a great example of #3

Ummm--is that still in print?

It's about to be again and can be yours for $598!

I think I'll stick to the version on perseus.tufts.edu.

[Pantagathus]

I think I'll stick to the version on perseus.tufts.edu.

As do I...

But someday I'd love to have a copy in the home library. But seriously for those interested: Preorder on Amazon

This post has been edited by Viggen: Dec 21 2005, 07:28 AM

[FLavius Valerius...]

2391 pages.
Well, no wonder its so expensive. 2391 pages of maps of all sorts of types is pretty much a pain to put together.

[Primus Pilus]

If it were available now it would probably be a wonderful compliment to the Barrington Atlas that we are relying heavily on to develop our wallmap update. The 'Smith Geography' may appear a bit expensive but if it is even half as good as Smith's Dictionary of Antiquities, it will probably be an invaluable investment.

[Pantagathus]

The 'Smith Geography' may appear a bit expensive but if it is even half as good as Smith's Dictionary of Antiquities, it will probably be an invaluable investment.

It is of the exact same caliber. In fact, I've found it to be item for item vastly superior to Harry Thurston Peck's Harper's Dictionary of Classical Literature and Antiquities

Don't let the 1854 publishing date decieve you. It's not only the most thoroughly researched resource I've come across, the theories that they venture to speculate on certain unsolved issues are often more sound than many modern ones...

But to bring it back home, I apologize to Spurius in regards to steering his fine thread off topic.

[Spurius]

Nothing wrong with a discussion of atlases and compendiums in a geography based thread. It's always good to find out about other source material I've never seen or used.

I hope to use the information on city status in a larger post following the political career of a famous roman. By getting it, and other posts I'm working on, in here I hope to show all of you what I do in my spare time to aid teachers and lecturerers with their students.

(all within this site of course, no hot linking to here or elsewhere Viggen )

[Onasander]

I might just be able to afford this in march.