Taxes of the Ancient Rome

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The next chapter in the history of taxation is dedicated to the ancient Rome.

BASIC CONCEPTS

Budget, tithe, indirect tax, direct tax, portorium, publicans, stipendium, fiscus, census.

The ancient Roman civilization left the world many great inventions, including Roman law, which has become the basis for current legal relations. And its tax law is no less valuable. It was in Rome that many concepts and principles used in existing tax practices originated.

SOCIAL STRUCTURE

The empire’s future center started as a small settlement on the banks of the Tiber River and on adjacent lands. City governance had minimal needs that were covered by the personal funds of the elected experts, who worked for free as a token of gratitude for the vote of confidence.

Funds were needed mainly to maintain troops. The first form of payment by Roman citizens to the public treasury was rent for the use of public land. It was charged in kind as 1/10 of the harvest. In addition, merchants arriving in the city paid portorium, a customs duty of 2 to 5% of the value of goods.

The development of taxation is related to a reform by Servius Tullius (578–535 BCE), who divided the territory of Rome into districts or tribes (Latin: tribus, tribuo, i.e., “I divide”). Tribes had previously been formed based on clan relations. Each tribe had one vote in popular assemblies.

Servius Tullius split Rome’s territory into four urban and 26 rural tribes. In the new system, the tribes included patricians, all people from the original Roman families who lived in the relevant area, and plebeians, free landowners among newcomers, who did not participate in Rome’s political life.

TRIBUTUM

All residents of the tribes were grouped into five classes based on a census of citizens and their property. According to this classification, people were assigned obligations to provide a certain number of soldiers and the amount of the tributum, a tax collected as needed for waging wars.

If needed, an extraordinary tributum (tributum temerarium) was collected. Its amount also depended on the wealth of the payers. For example, it was collected after the destruction of Rome by the Gauls (390 BCE) and the defeat at Cannae in the battle against Hannibal’s army (216 BCE).

The tributum was paid by adsidui, Roman citizens who were eligible for military service but were not conscripted.

The tributum was not formally a tax. It was more like a loan that did not necessarily have to be repaid, but sometimes it was compensated with trophies. At times, when military victories allowed Rome to save enough funds in the public treasury, citizens were exempted from the tributum.

Women were freed from the tributum, but sometimes they paid it voluntarily, for example, during the Second Punic War with Hannibal (218–201 BCE).

The tributum was calculated based on a self-assessment (a kind of income declaration) conducted every five years. At a general meeting, Roman citizens made public statements about their family composition and property. Public opinion and special officials validated the self-assessment—censors.

Some citizens tried to overestimate their capabilities to gain a higher social status. One of the tasks of the censors was to prevent such attempts, since they could result in mediocre performance on socially significant assignments that citizens fulfilled at their own expense. Another duty of the censors was to discourage citizens’ profligacy. As the censors had the right to punish the guilty, they had to make decisions together (in groups of two) to avoid the abuse of power.

As a rule, the tributum was paid in the amount of one as (asses or assarius) for every thousand asses and, if necessary, could be increased to two or three asses. The tributum was levied on citizens until 168 BCE, after which Rome began to receive the necessary funds from its provinces.

Aerarii, Roman citizens not included in the 30 tribes, had to pay a poll tax (tributum in capita) whose amount was set by the censor. Aerarii were residents of conquered cities, former citizens who faced civil degradation due to their occupation (for example, performing artists), as well as citizens who committed dishonorable acts and were convicted of certain crimes. They did not have the right to vote and could not hold positions in Roman magistracies or serve in the army.

SOCIAL CLASSES

he introduction of the census system finalized the division of citizens into classes. The rights and obligations of each class were determined by their ability to perform public duties at their own expense. The descendants of ancient families that accumulated wealth for many generations constituted the upper classes—senators and equites (horsemen). However, rapid wealth accumulation was stigmatized and did not guarantee social rights.

As for the opposite pole of this social hierarchy, there were proletarii, the poorest citizens who were not included in the census lists and whose property amounted to less than 1,500 asses. They did not pay tributum and did not serve in the army. The only value of their existence for the state was an increase in population.

The year after the defeat by Hannibal in 216 BCE, the authorities passed the Lex Oppia, a law against excessive luxury, which forbade women from wearing more than half an ounce of gold as jewelry, putting on a multi-colored garment, riding in an animal-drawn vehicle in the city and within 1,000 steps of its surroundings, except during state religious ceremonies. This law was repealed in 195 BCE, but in 184 BCE luxury items worth more than 1,500 denarii were valued tenfold and taxed accordingly.

STIPENDIUM

At first, Roman warriors had to provide themselves with weapons, while rations were financed using funds collected from citizens. During the reign of Marcus Furius Camillus (446–365 BCE), they were paid a stipendium, an allowance from the same funds (Latin: stips—small coin, pendere—to pay). The stipendium was given once a year or six months for time spent in military campaigns.

“…that the soldiers should receive pay out of the public treasury, whereas up to that period every one had discharged that duty at his own expense.”

From the Foundation of the City by Titus Livius, Roman historian.^[4]

In the 3rd century BCE, it amounted to 1/3 of a denarius for legionaries, 2/3 of a denarius for centurions, and 1 denarius for riders per day. The cost of food and uniforms was deducted from this amount. In the 2nd century BCE, the stipendium for legionaries was equal to 1 denarius.

Later, the word “stipendium” was used for a tax that the conquered population of the provinces began to pay for the maintenance of the Roman legions located in their territories.

TAXES AND CIVIL RIGHTS

In Rome, the obligation to pay taxes was associated with civil equality. Deficient performance of public duties and neglect in land cultivation were punished by the infringement of certain rights. For example, such citizens were not included in the census and had to pay a poll tax instead of tributum. When fighting with the patricians, the plebians required, among other things, equality in the payment of taxes.

If a master granted freedom and, hence, the rights of a free person to a slave, then he also had to pay a five percent tax on the value of the slave. The acquisition of inheritance rights was also accompanied by the payment of a five percent tax, which was first levied in the 2nd century BCE.

“The administration should also put forth every effort to prevent the levying of a property tax, and to this end precautions should be taken long in advance. Such a tax was often levied in the times of our forefathers on account of the depleted state of their treasury and their incessant wars. But, if any state (I say ‘any,’ for I would rather speakin general terms than forebode evils to our own, however, I am not discussing our own state but states in general)—if any state ever has to face a crisis requiring the imposition of such a burden, every effort must be made to let all the people realize that they must bow to the inevitable, if they wish to be saved.”

Cicero, Roman politician, and philosopher^[6]

ROMAN REPUBLIC

In the republican period (509–27 BCE), the tax system changed significantly. The conquest of vast territories led to the Roman model of the world divided into two parts: the “Eternal City” of Rome, which became the center of the universe, and the surrounding provinces.

Managing the empire required considerable resources. Most expenditures were related to the maintenance of the army and navy, Rome’s city economy, city residents, as well as civil servants and slaves. In addition, funds were needed for repair and construction work, maintenance of the postal service, and various public events.

In fact, Rome was maintained using resources from conquered territories. This led to a division of the tributum into civil and provincial ones.

CIVIL TRIBUTUM

All Roman citizens, including those living in the provinces, paid the civil tributum. This tax was levied on any immovable property: land plots, buildings, agricultural implements, and slaves.

Although slaves were taxed and considered part of immovable property, they could be set free and receive the rights of Roman citizens. In this, they differed from provincials, who, although they were free, did not have the status of citizens of Rome.

In the heyday of the Roman state, when it was possible to collect huge resources from conquered peoples, no civil tributum was levied (for example, in 167–43 BCE).

MILITARY SERVICE

Citizens living in the provinces also had public duties, including military service. These duties were recorded on special lists, munera (Latin: munus, i.e., service, position, assignment).

With the strengthening of the Roman Republic and the growth of its wealth at the expense of the provinces, the economic role of the civil tributum decreased. Public duties were assigned not to individual citizens, but to associations of individuals—collegia and corporations. The Roman legions were maintained through provincial taxes.

By the 1st century BCE, citizens of Rome were freed from conscription. Those who joined the army were deprived of their civil status. Upon retirement, they regained this status and obtained possession over a land plot.

PROVINCIAL TRIBUTUM

The system of provincial taxes was based, specifically, on phoroi, allied fees paid by members of numerous coalitions that the early Roman Republic joined in the struggle for dominance within the Mediterranean.

Conquests of new territories gave the Romans unlimited rights to the land, property, and even freedom of the defeated. Representatives of the conquered side could buy all this back from the victors through indemnity. This is how the practice of imposing tributum on the population of the Roman Republic’s provinces developed.

The provincial tributum was divided into poll and land taxes. The poll tax (tributum capitis) followed a uniform principle: it was levied on property. The land tax (tributum soli) was paid by the owners of land in the provinces. It was a kind of rent. Rome transferred conquered lands to their former owners, who became payers of the land tributum. The amount of the land tax was determined based on an assessment of the land and, possibly, the equipment used for its cultivation. For this purpose, information about the population and lands was recorded. As a rule, the land tax rate was 10% of the harvest but, in some cases, could be influenced by local farming traditions, the conditions of conquest, and the population’s resistance to the Romans. Thus, there was no unified taxation system in the provinces.

PROVINCES

The provinces were part of Rome. In all their vast territories, Roman laws and customs were observed, except that the inhabitants of the provinces were considered peregrini (from Latin peregrinus, i.e., stranger, wanderer). They were free subjects of the empire but did not have the rights that Roman citizens had.

For each province, the Senate established borders, taxes, and duties, as well as judicial, administrative, and other regulations and obligations to Rome. There were no uniform conditions for all provinces, including uniform taxes and tax rates. Tax treatment could differ even in neighboring communities. Some could be completely exempt from taxes. Others could be taxed at increased rates. For example, African provinces paid 25% of the harvest, compared to the usual 10%, but they did not pay a poll tax.

The first Roman province, Sicily, was the most privileged. It became the “breadbasket of the Great City.” Sicilian bread was essential to the population of Rome, most of the cities of Italy, as well as to the army. As for the land tax, it was a traditional tithe of the harvest in this province. The “second tithe” was added to it as “purchased bread.” This part was bought at fixed prices and was called annona (the annual harvest of grain, as well as the price of bread in Latin).

The amounts of the tithe and the annona were determined in advance, before sowing, and did not depend on the actual harvest. The quality of the grain supplied had to meet the state standard, otherwise farmers were obliged to provide money to buy grain.

Tax payments from Sicily totaled about 1 million sesterces.

TAX FARMING SYSTEM

The provincial tributum was collected through tax farming. The Roman tax farming system originated from the practice of the Greek colonies in Italy and Sicily. Tax farmers were mainly the richest riders. They were called publicans (Latin: publicum, i.e., public property).

The Senate auctioned the right to collect taxes from communities. The initial bid at the auction was set at the level of the taxes collected in the previous year or depended on current needs. The winner was the one who offered the largest amount. The winner contributed his own funds, equal to the amount of tax, to the treasury and was then compensated for his expenses by collecting payments from taxpayers (usually with a large margin).

“However, to such a resolution and deliberate policy on your part the great obstacle are the publicani: for, if we oppose them, we shall alienate from ourselves and from the Republic an order which has done us most excellent service, and which has been brought into sympathy with the Republic by our means; if, on the other hand, we comply with them in every case, we shall allow the complete ruin of those whose interests, to say nothing of their preservation, we are bound to consult.”

Cicero’s letter to his brother Quintus.^[8]

A sesterce (sestertius) is an ancient Roman coin equal to a quarter of a denarius.

The scope of the provincial tributum and the related profits were so appealing that almost an entire class of riders became tax collectors and speculators. They merged into joint-stock companies of a kind, with their own corporate laws.

The state also benefited, as it received the entire amount at once and quite far in advance, usually 5 years. In addition, the state did not need to have its own staff of tax collectors. Tax farming practices covered various taxes, such as tithes from bread produced and fruits harvested, duties for the use of state pastures, trade duties, and lease payments from salt works and mines.

The tax farming system caused tyranny and corruption at the local level. One example is the case of Gaius Verres, Sicily’s governor who sold tax farming positions to his friends and received a share of the profits from them. Cicero was the prosecutor at his trial. The governor was sentenced to pay 40 million sesterces and sent into exile.

The publicans were widely engaged in collecting in-kind land payments that provided the republic’s population with food. Food for the Romans was supplied by the provincial administrations, while provincial legions were provisioned by their commanders. This led to the merging of tax farming corporations with civil and military administrations. They created customs districts with their own taxation policy, so they played a special role in collecting customs duties.

“Where the publicani are, there is no respect for public law and no freedom for the allies.”

Titus Livius. ^[10]

INDIRECT TAXES

In addition to direct taxes levied on income and property, which included the tributum, inheritance tax, and land tax, there were indirect taxes imposed as surcharges on the price of goods and services in ancient Rome.

The primary indirect taxes were the vectigal and portorium, a customs duty.

In Roman law, the term “vectigal” means any income in a broad sense and indirect taxes in a narrow sense.

The vectigal included various fees related to the transit of goods across borders, as well as a duty on freeing slaves (5% of their market value), taxes on the slave trade turnover (4%) and on salt, and excise duty on domestic consumption (goods turnover tax of 1%). In the empire’s fiscal system, there was also an excise duty for trading at auction (1% of the value of the goods).

An excise duty is an indirect tax that is included in the cost of goods and actually paid by the consumer.

Preserved since ancient times, the portorium was levied on imported and exported goods at the borders of the empire and within the state when trading between provinces. It was often farmed, and its rate varied between provinces from 2.5% to 12.5%. Rome’s authorities abolished the portorium from time to time, but then reintroduced it. This duty was levied on all goods, except for the property of the travelers, as well as the treasury or troops.

Rome fought its enemies not only militarily but also economically. For example, to punish the island of Rhodes (the largest port center at that time) for refusing to support the Romans in the war against the Macedonians, Rome organized the first tax haven in the history of humankind—a duty-free port on the island of Delos. This destroyed the economy of Rhodes. Merchants from Rhodes, where there were Greek taxes and a port duty of 2% of the value of the cargo, transferred their trade operations to Delos, where payments were not taken.

STATE CONTROL

In the 1st century BCE, the Roman Republic faced a political and economic crisis related to corruption and abuse of power.

In 88 BCE, Mithridates VI, the ruler of the Kingdom of Pontus in Asia Minor, raised a revolt that swept most of the cities of Greece and Asia. The riot was sparked by discontent with the actions of Roman publicans and usurers. During the uprising, about 80,000 Romans were killed. This mass murder was called the Asiatic Vespers (also Ephesian Vespers).

To remedy the situation, Gaius Julius Caesar (100–44 BCE) conducted a tax reform. He reduced the number of taxes, restricted the activities of publicans, and established state control over taxation. Some provinces began to pay taxes on their own, without tax farmers.

WOMEN AND TAXES

After the end of the civil war in the Roman Republic in 42 BCE, to pay for the legionaries, the ruling triumvirate (Mark Anthony, Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, and Augustus) decided to increase taxes for Rome’s rich citizens, including 1,400 of the richest women. Hortensia spoke against this decision on behalf of angry women at the Roman Forum. After her speech, the number of women obliged to pay the tax was reduced to 400.

“You have already deprived us of our fathers, our sons, our husbands, and our brothers, whom you accused of having wronged you; … ‘Why should we pay taxes when we have no part in the honours, the commands, the state-craft, for which you contend against each other with such harmful results? ‘Because this is a time of war,’ do you say? When have there not been wars, and when have taxes ever been imposed on women, who are exempted by their sex among all mankind?”

The Civil Wars by Appian, Roman historian.^[11]

FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT

Taxes and spoils of war were delivered to Rome and stored in the aerarium (it is believed that the name came from the Latin word aeris, i.e., copper), a vault located under the Temple of Saturn. Finance was managed by the Senate, and all payments were made based on Senate decrees.

The Senate was the highest state authority, consisting of noble Roman citizens. Its functions included the adoption of laws, the resolution of foreign policy issues, appointment to public posts, financial activities, etc.

IMPERIAL FISCUS

The republican period in the history of Rome ended in 27 BCE when Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (63 BCE–14 CE) accepted the title of Augustus (Emperor).

Augustus conducted a financial reform, which led to a gradual move away from the tributum and full replacement of the census system.

Initially, the fiscus was the military coffers of the legion commander, which he managed on his own. It included trophies and public funds for the maintenance of the legion. The fiscus was replenished through successful military campaigns, and its size was determined by spending behavior. Legionaries were paid from the fiscus, and the fairness and amount of these payments depended on the commander’s personality.

Augustus used his own fiscus to win the civil war and then considered the provinces of his opponents as his spoils of war. Taxes from these territories began to flow into his personal treasury, which eventually led to the merging of the fiscus and the aerarium into a single monetary fund.

Subsequently, all the treasures of the empire, including precious metals, passed into the control of the emperor, who also secured the right to mint coins.

The fiscus was maintained by imperial slaves or formerly enslaved people, who, to protect public funds, were forbidden from owning private property.

The formation of the imperial fiscus administration ended with the establishment of the financial procurator’s office. In each province, tax-related actions were controlled by a procurator as a proxy of the emperor. His duties included the setting of the total amount of taxes and monitoring their payment to the fiscus.

TAX REFORMS OF AUGUSTUS

To assess the tax potential of the provinces, Augustus recorded information about the population and property, compiled a detailed land cadaster, and established financial institutions controlling taxation. The collection of poll and land taxes became regular.

Discontent with the poll tax caused numerous uprisings in the provinces. One of the most famous of them is the revolt of the Zealots (representatives of the radical Jewish party) in 66. Besides heavy taxation, they were outraged by the seizure of temple silver by the Roman procurator. The Zealots lost, the Second Temple in Jerusalem was destroyed, and in 70 CE Rome imposed an additional poll tax of two denarii from every Jew in the empire (fiscus judaicus).

“…But indeed lands burdened with tribute are of less value; men under the assessment of a poll-tax are less noble; for these things are the marks of servitude.”

Apologeticus by Tertullian, Roman theologist.^[14]

For the land tax, the general principles of collection were unified, although the rates varied between the provinces. New customs duties were introduced on imported and exported goods (on average 5% of the cost of goods). Tax farming remained, but its share significantly decreased.

Legend has it that the famous phrase “money does not stink” (Latin “Pecunia non olet”) was uttered by Emperor Vespasian (9–79), who introduced a tax on public toilets.

EXPANSION OF ROMAN CITIZENSHIP

The elimination of differences between civil and provincial tributa marked a new stage of imperial taxation. In 212, the emperor Marcus Aurelius (188–217) granted Roman citizenship to peregrini, free inhabitants of the empire. Until then, only residents of Italy and some cities in the provinces were Roman citizens.

“He claims that he made all his subjects Romans to do them a favor, but, in fact, he did that to get more [taxes], since the peregrini do not pay most of them.”

Dio Cassius, Roman consul, and historian.^[17]

The reform was determined by financial problems. To fill the empty treasury, it was decided to tax as many people as possible on equal terms. The new Romans began to pay the civil tributum, which was calculated based on an assessment of the profitability of their landholdings, the value of their slaves, and a self-assessment of their other property. They were also subject to all taxes previously levied only on the Romans, including the five percent inheritance tax raised by Marcus Aurelius to 10%. The provincial tributum, in the form of a poll tax, was preserved only for slaves.

In addition, new members of society could be conscripted into the army. Before that, only full Roman citizens had the right to serve in it.

DIOCLETIAN’S RISE TO POWER

Starting in 235, in half a century 29 emperors were proclaimed and deposed in the Roman Empire, and only one of them died of nonviolent causes—at an early age from the plague. Confrontations and civil wars between pretenders to the throne required significant funds, which were replenished with extraordinary taxes. As a result of the political and economic crisis, trade and handicrafts declined, and taxes began to be collected in kind due to the low content of precious metals in coins and high inflation.

In 284, after the death of another emperor, Diocletian was proclaimed emperor (244–311). He came from the lowest social class: his grandfather was a slave, while he was a simple soldier and commander of the imperial palace guard.

With his reforms, he restored peace, protected borders, and, according to his fellow rhetoricians, restored the golden age of Rome for 20 years. However, because taxes were mainly spent on the army as the guarantor of peace, which in turn made festivities and amusements rare and impoverished, the Roman plebeians, who were accustomed to entertainment, did not appreciate Diocletian’s efforts and mocked him.

To manage the empire, in 285 Diocletian approved a new system of four rulers: two Augusti (senior emperors) and two Caesars (junior emperors). After 20 years of rule, the Augusti had to abdicate in favor of Caesars, who became Augusti and appointed new Caesars, their successors. Diocletian designated a co-ruler and gave him the western part of the empire to manage and left the eastern part for himself. The new system did not reduce the intensity of the struggle for power but created the prerequisites for the division of the empire, which eventually happened.

GOVERNANCE REFORM

Diocletian began strengthening the empire with a consolidation of his own power: he ceased to share it with the Senate. To streamline taxation, he split the empire into 12 dioceses and the dioceses into around 100 provinces—almost twice as many as before. This doubled the number of officials who managed them but reduced the number of provincial officials, which did not lead to a meaningful change in the cost of maintaining the state apparatus.

The downsizing of the provinces had additional goals. Officials in smaller territories could more effectively organize tax collection and law enforcement but collected fewer funds, which mitigated the risk of power grabs in the provinces. In addition, power in the provinces was split between the governors, who were responsible for justice, tax collection, the maintenance of the postal service and order in the entrusted territory, and the dukes, i.e., military chiefs.

The primary expenses were related to the maintenance of the army, which was significantly enlarged with new legions, mainly in the border regions. The share of the adult male population who served in the army grew: one in 15 under Diocletian versus one in 25 before his rule. As a result, despite the increased tax burden, the official military allowance was low, paid irregularly and often in kind. Due to the collapse of trade, large financial associations that issued loans to both the population and the rulers went bankrupt. This forced Diocletian to develop a new system of taxation.

“There began to be fewer men who paid taxes than there were who received wages; so that the means of the husbandmen being exhausted by enormous impositions, the farms were abandoned, cultivated grounds became woodland, and universal dismay prevailed.”

Lactantius, Roman author.^[19]

TAXATION REFORM

To bring order to taxation, Diocletian conducted a reform, which finally established the fiscal system of tax collection. The reform standardized land cadasters containing information about land plots throughout the empire, and the land tax rate was set based on these records. In addition, the Diocletian abolished all privileges and tax exemptions.

Rome’s imperial cadasters were kept so carefully for several centuries that these documents became the basis for calculating taxes in many states in the Middle Ages.

In 297–298, the authorities announced an indiction (Latin: indictio, i.e., announcement), an extraordinary grain tax, which became annual. Its rate was determined once every five years based on the population census conducted once every 15 years. This fifteen-year period was later also called indiction and formed the basis of the calendar.

The taxable unit was a plot that could be cultivated by one man and two women. The size of the unit varied between provinces and depended on the quality of the soil and the crops grown, but not on the status of the landowner. Coloni, i.e., tenant farmers, many of whom had previously been slaves and paid only a poll tax, began to pay land taxes.

The total tax was calculated based on the needs for the maintenance of the army, civil servants, and the population of the city of Rome. The tax amount was determined by dividing the total by the number of taxable units. This amount was published every year in the emperor’s decrees and was the first example of an annual budget.

A budget is an estimation of income and expenses for a certain period.

The poll tax was imposed based on a population census conducted every five years. The taxpayer age depended on local customs. For example, in Egypt, only men from 14 to 65 years old were counted, in Syria men from 14 years old and women from 12 years old. For rural residents, the poll tax was combined with the land tax, and urban residents paid it once every five years, with women paying half.

Thus, in the Roman Empire, the fiscal system was based on the land property and labor force estimations. Both land and labor force were traditionally designated as “immovable property,” which was considered the emperor’s property.

Diocletian’s tax system proved to be durable. It was used for more than a thousand years in Byzantium.

BINDING TO THE SOIL

Responsibility for the receipt of taxes was assigned to landowners and city councils. As Diocletian believed that the most dependable taxpayers were those who constantly lived in the same place, he was in fact bound villagers to the land. They had to stay on the plots where they had been at the time of the population census. This simplified the distribution of taxes, since the state was aware of how many people each landowner had, set the amount to be paid accordingly, and, hence, ensured a regular flow of income to the state treasury. This applied not only to dependent coloni that were attached to the owners’ lands, but also to free landowners, including their children.

Artisans and merchants paid taxes every four years and were bound to the collegia, which were jointly responsible for the tax obligations of their members. All the curiales, representatives of an urban hereditary class, including members of local councils from wealthy citizens, were attached to their curiae, since they were responsible with their property for tax receipts from citizens.

Teachers and doctors were exempt from income tax.

EDICT ON PRICES

In 301, Diocletian issued an edict on fixed prices and wages, which limited the amount of remuneration for employees, as well as determined prices for certain goods. The list of food products, basic commodities, and services of artisans contained about 1,000 items.

Compliance with the edict benefited not only the authorities, but also professional collegia of artisans and merchants, since this allowed them to purchase raw materials, goods, and food at low prices. The emperor was interested in stable prices, as they simplified the calculation of taxes.

However, it soon became clear that this policy was difficult to implement despite strict administrative measures to support it and threats of the death penalty against violators. Market prices varied according to region and season and had to be changed annually. After Diocletian’s abdication in 305, the edict was revoked.

Licinius, the Roman governor in ancient Gaul, divided the year into 14 months to collect taxes more often.

CONSTANTINE I THE GREAT

In 306, Constantine I (274–337) became one of the Western Empire’s Caesars—Diocletian had introduced these posts. The second Caesar was Maxentius (278–312), who took advantage of the Romans’s discontent with the authorities’ intention to collect a tax to cover the costs of building a huge bath complex (Baths of Diocletian).

In 312, Constantine opposed Maxentius and defeated him. The war was the result of Maxentius’s harsh tyranny and the unbearable taxes that he spent on lavish celebrations and large-scale construction. Later, in 314 and 324, Constantine beat Licinius, the ruler of the Eastern Empire, and as a result became the sole ruler of the Roman Empire—both its eastern and western parts.

Under Constantine, all the curiales were finally bound to their cities. They could not leave them even by order of the emperor, had to fulfill their duties for the rest of their lives, and pass them on as inheritance. Thus, citizens became bound taxpayers.

Constantine granted religious freedom and made Christianity the state religion. In 313, the Christian Church’s clerics were exempted from all taxes and duties. In 319, churches and clergy were freed from taxes and public duties, and in 321, the law approved the right of churches to acquire and own real estate. Christian churches began to be built throughout the empire, and in 332, Constantine issued an edict on the destruction of pagan temples, but we do not know whether it was conducted. Constantine himself was baptized only shortly before his death.

In the 4th century, the city of Rome ceased to be the residence of the emperors, as the rulers preferred to move closer to the borders of the empire. In 330, Constantine placed his residence in the Greek city of Byzantium and named it New Rome. The city changed its name to Constantinople while the emperor was still alive.

ROME AND ROMAN TAX CULTURE

Modern historians claim that it was during the period of the Roman Empire that a theory of taxes and tax culture originated. The imperial government’s social policy was based on the fiscal system and its capabilities. This policy consisted of spending fiscus funds on events that strengthen the ideas of social equality, justice, and civil liberties in the minds of citizens. In extraordinary circumstances, part of the income was used to help citizens and compensate for their losses.

The Roman tax culture significantly influenced the subsequent development of taxes in Western and Eastern Europe, as well as the Middle East and North Africa. The key provisions of Roman tax law are still relevant.

[1] Image by Rijksmuseum. Public Domain Dedication (CC0 1.0, https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/). Cropped. URL: https://www.lookandlearn.com/history-images/YR0169101/Portrait-of-Servius-Tullius?t=1&q=Servius+Tullius&n=14. Accessed: July 19, 2024.

[2] Image by Classical Numismatic Group, Inc. http://www.cngcoins.com (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vecchi_051_-_transparent_background.PNG), „Vecchi 051 – transparent background,” https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/legalcode

[3] 4.5 Grams, Originally Equal to 10 Copper Asses; From About 141 BCE, due to the Decrease in the Weight of the As, the Denarius Became Equal to 16 Asses. Image by Classical Numismatic Group, Inc. http://www.cngcoins.com (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Publius_Porcius_Laeca_Denarius.jpg), „Publius Porcius Laeca Denarius,” https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/legalcode

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[5] Image by Acediscovery (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Titus-Livius-Austrian-Parliament-Building.jpg), Cropped, https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/legalcode

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[9] Image by Classical Numismatic Group, Inc. http://www.cngcoins.com (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:TRAIANUS_RIC_II_668-75001044.jpg), „TRAIANUS RIC II 668-75001044,” https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.5/legalcode

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[11] Cited in “The Histories of Appian.” Published by Bill Thayer from the Loeb Classical Library, 1913. URL: https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/e/roman/texts/appian/civil_wars/4*.html. Accessed; July 19, 2023.

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[13] Image by Joel Bellviure (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Augustus_of_Prima_Porta_(inv._2290).jpg), https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode

[14] Cited in “The Apology.” Tertullian.org. URL: https://www.tertullian.org/anf/anf03/anf03-05.htm. Accessed: July 19, 2023.

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[16] Image by Yair Haklai (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Portrait_of_Marcus_Aurelius-Uffizi.jpg), https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/legalcode

[17] Cited in Roman History by Cassius Dio. Loeb Classical Library Edition, 1927, Vol. IX, book LXXVIII, Chapter 9. URL: https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/78*.html. Accessed: July 19, 2023.

[18] Image by Jebulon (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Diocletien_Vaux1.jpg), „Diocletien Vaux1,” marked as public domain, more details on Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Template:PD-self

[19] Cited in “The Cambridge History of Greek and Roman Warfare.” Sabin, P. van Wees, H. Whitby, M. v. 2. 9780521782746. 2007, Cambridge University Press. p. 445. URL:https://books.google.am/books?id=4aX-W6AVNv8C. Accessed: July 19, 2023.

[20] Image by Marie-Lan Nguyen, Unknown Artist (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Constantine_Chiaramonti_Inv1749.jpg), „Constantine Chiaramonti Inv1749,” marked as public domain, more details on Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Template:PD-old