Land Management in 11-12th Century Byzantium

In the 11th century, Leon Kephalas was given some land by Emperor Alexios I for his great merits of the Norman War. Part of the land was inherited by one of his sons, Nikephoros Kephalas, who donated a portion of his possession to the Great Lavra Monastery on Mount Athos. Lavra, who had the same status as a modern legal personality, managed the land through negotiations with the emperor and local officials while dealing with conflicts with neighboring secular landlords and Cumans. In this context, this article will combine previous research and analyze the socio-economic history of the relevant economic entities and lands, while attempting to compare the different management strategies of the secular owners (the Kephalas family) and the ecclesiastical owners (the Lavra Monastery) for these lands.