THE TWO TYPES OF VILLAS

The historian Pliny the Elder wrote extensively about the villa. He said there were two kinds of villas. The first, called the villa urbana, was essentially a vacation home for the very wealthy nobility. They were not very far from main cities like Rome, and could usually be reached within a day’s journey by horse. Next to the villa urbana was the villa rustica, which was considered to be the servant’s quarters. Here lived the people who worked for the nobleman as caretakers of the estate. While the villa urbana was only occupied for some weeks of the year, the villa rustica was a permanent or country home, and was generally quite simple in comparison to the luxurious vacation home.

Many of the mperial villas were located near the Bay of Naples, particularly the Isle of Capri, at Monte Circeo on the coast and at Antium (Anzio). It was in these comfortable regions that the very affluent Romans sought refudge from the heat, especially in the hills surrounding the capital, Rome. Cicero is thought to have owned around seven villas, the oldest of which was inherited. It was found near Arpinum, which he inherited.

Pliny the Younger had three or four villas, one known to be found near Laurentium, and was prominently written about in his works.

THE EVOLUTION OF THE VILLA

Roman writers would often talk about how the villas were self sufficient, and the residents were often responsible for cultivating their own food, making their own wine and even pressing their own oil. This was thought to be a general indication of the increasing economic fragmentation of the Roman empire.

These self sufficient villas evolved into the monasteries, especially when they were given up to the control of the Christian church. The monks turned these villas into spiritual retreats, and found spiritual satisfaction in the rhythm and serenity of day to day work. An outstanding example of such a villa-turned-monastery was Monte Cassino.

VILLAS ALL OVER THE WORLD

Numerousvillas have been found in England, Russia, Spain and a number of other European countries. However some things remain the same. They often involved working agrarian societies of fields and vinyards, perhaps even tileworks or quarries, centered around baths and gardens. Some were simple, others were palatial, especially during the height of the Empire’s wealth.

Some villa buildings had independent structures connected their enclosed courtyards. Some rooms were made of timber which were carefully fitted with mortices and tenons and dowelled together but the more important rooms were made of stone. There are remnants of window glass which have been found as well as ironwork window grilles.

After the Roman empire the villa became a term for any self sufficient home in the rural area typically fortified and independently run. It was only in the 15th century that it became associated once more with country retreats, rather than communities. Many of them became famous for their beautiful gardens, fine architecture, and other emblems of affluence. Others, while simpler, were still surrounded by forests and rolling acres of land, making them a paradise of nature. It is to these villas that people now escape and find refuge from the ravages of city life.