Papal state · The Papal State: the pope's own lands · as at first light, 1 January 1200

Sabina

The Roman Sabina is the hill country of olive groves and fortified villages on the left bank of the Tiber, north-east of Rome between Monterotondo and Magliano.

It is papal land, but its castles belong to Roman families and to the abbey of Farfa, which sits in its middle as a lordship of its own. Whoever holds the Sabina holds the road from Rome to Rieti and the Tiber crossings below the Umbrian towns.

Who holds it

Name
Innocent III
Title
Pope, lord of the Sabina [a rector of the Sabina is not attested for 1200 in the sources checked]
Since
1198 (part of the recovery of the Papal State)
Confidence
medium

The Sabina between the Tiber and the Sabine hills had been split since the Lombard age: the northern part went with the duchy of Spoleto, the southern part, the 'Roman Sabina', stayed with the duchy of Rome (it.wikipedia). The papal province of that name was formally set up only much later (1605, per it.wikipedia), so in 1200 the Sabina is a district of castles under papal lordship rather than a settled province. The cardinal-bishop of Sabina (Conrad of Wittelsbach, dean of the College) is its bishop, not its lord.

What it holds

  • Lordship over the castles of the lower Sabina between the Tiber and the Sabine and Lucretili hills [thin: castle by castle not pinned]
  • Magliano, Poggio Mirteto, Stimigliano and the Tiber-side villages
  • Palombara, Nerola, Montorio and the castles towards the Sabine hills, held by Roman baronial families under papal lordship [thin]
  • The abbey of Farfa and its castles (separate record: Farfa)

How it was acquired

Part of the old duchy of Rome and of the papal claims recognised by the Carolingians. The Roman commune also claimed the Sabina in the 12th century, and Innocent's control of the senate after 1198 brought it back under the pope [thin].

How things stand that morning

Papal lordship acknowledged; the castles in the hands of barons and of Farfa [thin].

Wealth

Olive oil and wine; the Tiber crossings and river traffic to Rome; the old Via Salaria to Rieti and the Abruzzi.

Threats

  • Roman families turning castles into private lordships
  • The commune of Rome's claims

Advocates and rivals

The commune of Rome, which treats the Sabina as part of its district; Roman baronial families who hold its castles; the abbey of Farfa; Rieti and the Umbrian communes to the north.

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: No source consulted here describes the Sabina's government in 1200 castle by castle; the outline follows the Roman Sabina of the later province.

On the map: The outline follows the Tiber, the Sabine hills and the edge of the Rieti basin as the later Roman Sabina did. Who held each castle in 1200 is not pinned; the drawing shows papal lordship, not papal possession.

Primary sources for Papal State

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

12 more in the sources library for Southern Italy and the Islands.

Sources and studies

  1. Sabina (it.wikipedia)
  2. F. Gregorovius, Storia della citta di Roma nel medio evo, vol. 5 (Project Gutenberg)
  3. Farfa (Treccani, Enciclopedia Italiana)

Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.