Legal Definitions - marcatus

Marcatus is a historical legal term that refers to the annual payment made for the use of a specific piece of land. Essentially, it was the yearly rent or income derived from a particular tract of property, especially within historical land tenure systems.

Here are some examples to illustrate this concept:

• Imagine a medieval manor where a tenant farmer cultivates a designated plot of the lord's land. The recurring annual sum that this farmer was obligated to pay to the lord for the right to farm that specific tract of land would be considered the marcatus. This payment represented the yearly rent for the agricultural parcel.

• Consider a bustling market town in the 14th century. A merchant might lease a particular parcel of land within the town's boundaries to establish a permanent shop or a small workshop. The annual fee paid to the landowner (which could be a wealthy noble, a guild, or the town council) for the continuous use of that specific plot of land would have been its marcatus.

• In the 12th century, a monastery owned extensive lands. To generate income, it leased out portions of these lands to local villagers for grazing livestock or growing crops. The fixed yearly amount that each villager paid to the monastery for the privilege of using their assigned parcel of land constituted the marcatus for that particular tract.