126 History of the English Landed Interest, 



and communities, were often anxious to bring into cultivation 

 large tracts of unprofitable land, over wliich tliey could not 

 themselves afford time for supervision or capital for cultivation. 

 These they granted to farmers, who enjoyed fixity of tenure 

 so long as they paid their " pensio " or annual rent. The new 

 tenant could assign or mortgage his property, and at his death 

 the estate passed into the hands of his heirs. He was, as it 

 were, an extra owner grafted on to the dominium. Save that 

 he had to pay a rent, and could not alienate without the con- 

 sent of his lord, it would be difficult to distinguish his proprie- 

 tary rights from actual ownership. This then was the famous 

 Emphyteusis system,^ which, as its name implies, was an inno- 

 vation of the Eastern Empire, not appearing in the pages of 

 legal codes until its constitution was settled by Justinian about 

 the beginning of the sixth centur3^ 



There does not seem much difference between the Emphy- 

 teuta and the Vavasour or mesne lord of the feudal system. 

 There is in fact no reason why subinfeudation, copyhold 

 tenures, and chief rents may not have subsequently been 

 evolved from this older Roman institution. 



We must not overlook the influence of the Church in a ques- 

 tion of this kind. She was the intermediary throughout 

 Europe between the dead past of the Roman polity and the 

 living entity of feudaUsm. The Emphyteusis system was at 

 first the monopoly of the emperors ; then the agri vectigales of 

 the municipia were allowed to come under this arrangement ; 

 and afterwards private owners were permitted to follow the 

 custom. The Church at an early date took up the system in 

 dealing with its territorial possessions, and to her agency we 

 may reasonably ascribe the transmission of the process to 

 feudalism. 



But the Roman element in the fresh invaders' constitutional 

 system, though exceedingly interesting and important to our 

 History of the English Landed Interest does not account for 



Palgrave derives the term Feud from an abbreviation of Emphj-- 

 teusis, pronounced Emphytefsis, then Phitef, Fitef, Fief, and Feud. — Rise, 

 and Progress of the English Commonivealth, p. ccv., and History of 

 Anglo-Saxons, p. 259. 



