Agriculture of ancient Rome

The Agriculture of the ancient Rome, as for the other civilization of the Antiquity, is the most important branch of industry of the Roman economy. If it evolved/moved considerably in terms of landscape and agricultural structure, it evolved/moved little in technical term of . With the increase in the town of Rome, the food supply will become a question of security and also a to be able stake, the popular free food distributions multiplying.

Place de l' agriculture in the history of Rome

Economy under the royal period

Archeology noted since X E a slow development of agriculture in all the zone of the Latium with the establishment of many villages, whose Rome is only one among others (Ardée, Lavinium, Alba Long the, etc). The area formed by the Latium consists of vast semi-arid plates by place, intersected with furrows deep and subjected to the marine winds. The forest pushes spontaneously in mountain. This area is very indicated for the breeding. The cereal culture was made possible with operations of drainages during the prehistoric period, the channels of drainages were already less better maintained to see out of use to creation of Rome. Latin and thus the Romans cultivate poor cereals (German wheat or far and Orge), Vigne (the vitis will vinifera is attested in the tombs of the Roman Forum), the olive-tree and the Figuier is known.
Each house has its garden, including in the perimeter of Rome, producing cabbages, turnips, broad beans, lentilles.
The breeding is an important activity, symbol of richness (Latin pecunia has the two directions, cattle and richness). The Romans raise Mouton S and Chèvre S for the meat and cheese, Bœuf S, Ane S and Chevaux like draft animals. The poultry does not seem pratiquée.
In the lagoons with the mouths of the the Tiber one collects the salt, produced exported towards the mountains by the way which will become the Via Salaria, while the coastal forests provide in abundance wood. Many agrarian divinities testify to the agricultural activity: Liber for the vine, Pomone for the fruit trees, Terminus for the terminals limiting the fields, etc

In the beginning, the grounds were had by the clans of the people , the ground were divided between a zone divided between the members of the clans and other batches smaller, the heredium , on which the owner could have his house and could cultivate. The hortus is the name of the garden family, cultivated by the women.

Under the Republic

As of fourth century BC, the Roman Sénat creates the loads of the municipal officials then Préfet of the annone to regulate the supply of Rome. The private properties (not to be confused with the public grounds which is part of the territory of overcome which belongs to the Roman people and which are under the authority of the Senate) without increase to reach very important surfaces. To the II E, Rome dominates the Italian peninsula, and the agricultural and social structures change. The conquest of the Grande Greece will allow the introduction of intensive Carthaginian and Greek agricultural techniques which consist of the exploitation of vine and fruit trees like the olive-tree. This agriculture makes it possible to exceed the stage of the car subsistence to become exporting. The culture of cereals, unfavorable and to poor yield, it, is forsaken. It is compensated by the cereal importation Siciliennes, less expensive than local cereals.

The small farmers, often obliged by the ruin to go to enlarge the urban plebs, desert the campaigns. To the small-scale farmings of mixed-farming, exploitations based on greater fields to hand of servile work, the Latifundia is added. The grounds taken with the enemy arrive firstly at the rich person Patriciens, and whereas many peasants are without ground, and that there remain grounds without peasants.

The ideal of the " Roman moyen" will become a veteran become owner of a small field. Colonies besides will be established, with more or less success, on this model in all the controlled areas.

The cereal municipal officials created by Jules César regulate for a time the supply of Rome, but they are insufficient.

Under the Empire

Thus in -23 a famine bursts with Rome, proof of the maladjustment of the curatores frumendi with the importance of their task. The Senate and the people make pressure on Auguste so that it agrees to deal with the corn supply of the city, which it accepts. It is the first competence which it withdraws with the republican magistrates.

It thus takes the control of the supply, or cleaned annonae . Initially, it is satisfied to extremely modestly hold the capacity and not the title related to this capacity. It thus makes draw with the fate among the highest senators in the hierarchy from the Sénat two curatores frumenti (in the singular curator ) who bear the same name as the officials republican in charge of this task, appointed for one year - what respects the principles of collegial structure and yearly recurrence. They lay out civils servant to assist them ( scribae , præcones , accensi ) and if they are consular, of Licteurs. Auguste seeks to compare them to the true magistrates of the Roman République. But in the year 8 of our era a famine bursts, proof of the maladjustment of the curatores frumendi to the importance of their task, Auguste reforms the function of Préfet of the annone.

The conditions of the rural slaves soften at the beginning of the Empire, following the servile Guerres. At the 1st century, Italy had approximately 5 million cultivable ha, shared in 600.000 farms. On a population estimated at 6,5 million, 2,5 million anybody worked in this sector including 1 million farmers. 15% of the active men were necessary to produce cereals. Later, much of owners note that too vast grounds are too expensive to make cultivate and do not pay enough, up to 6% according to certain agronomists.

The land question

The land question or the distribution between the public grounds and the private grounds poisoned the policy during all the republic. Contrary to others Civilization S, the ground can become private property ( heredium ). The municipal officials control also the use of the public grounds ( Ager publicus ), and they can impose fines with people using pastures of the State illegally. Many small farmers are ruined because of the problems whereas the Latifundia thrive. The agrarian problem is one of the causes of the fall of the Republic.

The Decemviri Agris Dandis Adsignandis was the college of magistrate specialized in the control and the distribution of the ager publicus .

Agricultural innovations

Production

The base of the food is the Orge, durum Wheat, less often millet or common Wheat. The term traditionally translated by “French corn”, can in makes indicate all kinds of cereals: actually, 90% of the cereal grounds are devoted to the barley. If the Old ones are quite conscious of the best nutritional contribution of corn, the barley is less demanding and offers a higher output.

The surpluses of agricultural production, as well for the Italy and as for the provinces, must be delivered to Rome without conditions fixed by the law. The production, except exception, must be delivered in kind. The sale of corn represents a monopoly, thanks to which it State does not have to fear the competition of the private individuals. Trading and manufacturer, it sells the whole of the food products it has, to the bakers if it is about corn, with the other tradesmen of detail ( suarii , pecuarii and the vinarii ) for the other products (respectively Porc, Bœuf, Vin). Practical Romans the farming Rotation.

In Italy

The breeding and the Transhumance (because of the mountainous areas) are reserved to the land great landowners who employs many slaves. The high animals were the bovines (for leather, the meat and work), the horses (for the army, transport), the asses (for transport), the sheep (for milk and wool), only the pig is high for butchery. The Pisciculture and ostreiculture appear only to the II E. The Apiculture is marginal.

Under Tibère, while referring to certain handbooks, the agricultural production is evaluated with:

15% of Cereal S, the most important sector of the Roman economy
6% of Wine
6% of Olive oil
13% of another rural activity.

Recent estimates estimate that the farm surpluses for cereals were from approximately 30 to 50% per unit of area what made it possible to nourish the urban population. The firm average was of approximately centuria is approximately 50 ha on which worked 6 plowmen and 2 assistants. She could produce 0,433 m ³ per ha, that is to say 833 m ³ on average on the whole, on which 104 used like seed. The remainder of harvest was sold and finally a small portion stored in safety. This output again could be reached only as from the 18th century.

The farms with vineyard, smaller than the farms with cereal, make it possible to obtain approximately 30 Amphore S of wine per ha. In the whole of the Italian peninsula, it is necessary to distinguish the areas which are obligations to deliver corn, cattle and wine of certain areas of expressly indicated Italy of the South: pig for the Campania and the Samnium, pig and wine for the Lucanie, wine and ox for the Bruttium. These four areas are placed under the direct authority of the Préfet of the City. Only the areas obligations with the wine delivery, can provide the equivalent in currency.

Provinces

Certain provinces are obligations with the deliveries by name in kind, for example the Egypt for corn to the foundation of Constantinople, date on which its deliveries will be exclusively reserved for the second capital, the Africa for the whole of corn and oil, the Hispanie and the Corsican-Sardinia for corn. Certain provinces are brought to deliver only in the event of insufficient provisioning, for example Gaulle and the Germanic one for corn.

Ancient sources

The Roman, to profit as well as possible from the resources that gave them their lately acquired colonies, very early sought to optimize their agriculture by adopting more productive techniques. The authors Scriptores rei rusticae , with the support of the State, largely contributed to the diffusion of more effective methods for agriculture and the breeding.

Works: Géorgiques of Virgile, Of agri will cultura of Caton Old the, the Natural history of Pline Old the
Compilations on agriculture by several Roman authors: Libri of Re rustica
Authors: Columelle, Cassius Dionysius, Decimus Silanus, Diophane de Nicée, Magon the Carthaginian, Marcus Terentius Varro, Palladius, Vindonius Anatolius

The Geoponici (the Latinized shape of the Γεωπονικοι Greek) is a term which gathers the Greek or Roman authors on the breeding and agriculture. Many works and compilations (Géoponiques) aim to the improvement of the techniques and are regarded by the Greeks as treaties of economy.

The Histoire of the Animals of Aristote is also a possible source (Greek. Περὶ τα ζωα ιστοριαι) 545a; 573a-b, 595a.

Religion and mythology

Romulus was a shepherd
Hercules and the oxen of Evandre
Légende of Cincinnatus

Principal God Cérès

Another Divinities of the Roman religion:

Horta, Etruscan goddess of the gardening.

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