The Origin of Diocletian's New System of Taxation

Diocletian's new system of taxation lay in the way the army had come to rely on forced requisition to supply itself. As money had simply stopped being a functional medium of exchange, officers and soldiers were now paid in kind - with the goods themselves. When times got really tough and the money had become a joke, commanders no longer even bothered with the farce of compulsive transactions; they just took what they needed.