Legal Definitions - feuda pecuniae

Feuda Pecuniae

Feuda pecuniae refers to a historical legal concept where a person or family held a heritable right to receive a specific sum or stream of money.

Unlike a traditional feudal grant of land, this right specifically concerned monetary payments that would pass down through generations, often as a perpetual entitlement.

Here are some examples to illustrate this concept:

• Royal Annuity for Service: Imagine a medieval king, grateful for a noble family's exceptional military service, grants them a perpetual annual payment of 1,000 gold coins from the royal treasury. This payment is not tied to a specific piece of land but is a direct monetary entitlement, legally established to pass down to the family's eldest heir for all future generations.

  This demonstrates feuda pecuniae because the family holds a right to a specific amount of money (1,000 gold coins) that is heritable, meaning it is passed down through their lineage rather than expiring with the original recipient.

• Hereditary Market Tolls: Consider a powerful lord in the 14th century who grants a local merchant family the exclusive and hereditary right to collect all tolls from the weekly market held in his town. In exchange for this privilege, the merchant family might provide certain services or a one-time payment. This right ensures a steady, predictable income for the merchant family, passed from one generation to the next, as long as the market operates.

  This illustrates feuda pecuniae as the merchant family possesses a heritable right to a stream of money (the market tolls) that is distinct from owning the market land itself, and this right is legally transferable to their descendants.

• Perpetual Endowment Payment: In the 16th century, a wealthy philanthropic family donates a significant estate to a newly established university. As part of the endowment agreement, the university is legally bound to pay a fixed annual sum to the head of the donor family, generation after generation, to support their ongoing charitable initiatives. This payment is a condition of the original grant and continues indefinitely.

  This is an example of feuda pecuniae because it represents a legally binding, heritable right for the donor family to receive a recurring monetary payment from the university, ensuring a perpetual income stream for their lineage.