A large land grant by a ruler to a member of his family. Usually not hereditary. Holder usually had rights of internal administration and local tax revenue but owed military service to his superior and was allowed no independence in foreign affairs. (Fine, John V.A. Jr. The Late Medieval Balkans, 621) Related terms: Apange

The portion of land assigned by a sovereign prince for the subsistence of his younger sons.

A dependency; a dependent territory.

a grant (by a sovereign or a legislative body) of resources to maintain a dependent member of a ruling family; "bishoprics were received as appanages for the younger sons of great families"

The word apanage or appanage stems from the Late Latin apanare meaning "to give bread" (panem, compare the French court title Grand panetier), a pars pro toto for food and other necessities, hence for a "subsistence" income, notably in kind, as from assigned land. The system of appanage has greatly influenced the territorial construction of France and explains the flag of many provinces of France.