Roman imperial postal system (cursus publicus)

What it is

A network of relay stations (mutationes) and inns (mansiones) along the roads with horses and vehicles for official mail, covering 80 km a day. The administrative nervous system of the Empire.

The Persian angareion of Darius I (6th century BCE) is the direct precedent, praised by Herodotus.

What it led to

• Centralised government of a territory of 5 million km2
• Timely military and fiscal information
• Itineraries and route maps (Tabula Peutingeriana)
• A model for the Byzantine, Arab (barid) and Mongol (yam) postal systems

Built on

• Persian Royal Road and relay postc. 500 BCE
• Roman paved road312 BCE
• Professional standing army (Marian legion)107 BCE
• Nailed iron horseshoec. 450 CE
• Persian royal post (angarion)

Made possible

• Barid (Umayyad and Abbasid relay post)c. 690
• Mongol relay postal system (yam / örtöö)c. 1234
• Antonine Itinerary
• Medieval postal service
• Postal diplomas

Links