The Roman Imperial Court in the Principate and Late Antiquity

The Roman Imperial Court in the Principate and Late Antiquity examines the Roman imperial court as a social and political institution in both the Principate and Late Antiquity. By analysing these two periods, which are usually treated separately in studies of the Roman court, it considers continuities, changes, and connections in the six hundred years between the reigns of Augustus and Justinian. Thirteen case studies are presented. Some take a thematic approach, analysing specific aspects such as the appointment of jurists, the role of guard units, or stories told about the court, over several centuries. Others concentrate on specific periods, individuals, or office holders, like the role of women and generals in the fifth century AD, while paying attention to their wider historical significance. The volume concludes with a chapter placing the evolution of the Roman imperial court in comparative perspective using insights from scholarship on other Eurasian monarchical courts. It shows that the long-term transformation of the Roman imperial court did not follow a straightforward and linear course, but came about as the result of negotiation, experimentation, and adaptation. Cover 1 The Roman Imperial Court in the Principate and Late Antiquity 4 Copyright 5 Dedication 6 Acknowledgements 8 Table of Contents 10 List of Figures 12 Abbreviations 14 Contributors 16 Introduction: Connecting Courts 18 1. Introduction 18 2. What Is a Court? 21 3. The Scholarly Context 24 4. Ritual and Spatial Dynamics 28 5. Individual and Community at Court 37 6. The Politics of Access 48 PART I: RITUAL AND SPATIAL DYNAMICS 56 1: Great King or Civilis Princeps?: Monarchical Ideals and Daily Interaction in the Reign of Antoninus Pius 58 1. Introduction 58 2. Pius as a Civilis Princeps 60 3. Fronto as Courtier and Friend of the Princeps 64 4. A New Type of Convivium in the Reign of Antoninus Pius? 68 5. Conclusion 71 2: Changing the Guard: Guard Units and Roman State Ceremonial from the First to the Fourth Century 73 1. Introduction 73 2. Rituals of Accession 76 3. Triumph and Adventus 81 4. Imperial Funerals 86 5. Conclusion 90 3: Cities, Palaces, and the Tetrarchic Imperial Courts 92 1. Introduction 92 2. Tetrarchic Principal Residences 94 3. Courts and Communities 102 4. Palaces and Ceremonial 107 5. Maxentius in Rome 114 6. Epilogue: The City of Constantine 119 4: The Court in Constantinople Facing the Death of the Emperor 122 1. Introduction 122 2. The Court Facing the Death of Constantine: Waiting for the Heir(s) 124 3. The Court Facing the Death of Zeno: Trying to Avoid Chaos 128 4. The Court Facing the Death of Anastasius: Unrest Breaks Out 131 5. The Court Facing the Death of Justinian: Learning from Previous Mistakes 133 6. Conclusion 134 PART II: INDIVIDUAL AND COMMUNITY AT COURT 136 5: Was the Roman Imperial Court an ‘Emotional Community’? 138 1. Introduction 138 2. The Emotionally Dysfunctional Court: Tacitus, Suetonius, and Pliny on the First Century 140 3. Expressing Love at the Second-Century Court 144 4. The Fourth-Century Court as an Emotional Community 149 5. Conclusion 157 6: Jurists as Courtiers from Augustus to Justinian 159 1. Introduction 159 2. Negotiation: The Early Principate 161 3. Consilium Principis 162 4. Cooperation: Papinian and Ulpian 165 5. Coming from the Outside 168 6. Assimilation: The Imperial Quaestor in Late Antiquity 169 7. Conclusion 172 7: Court Construction and Regime Change in the Mid-Fourth Century 173 1. Introduction 173 2. Traditions of Court Construction 173 3. Julian: A Study in Change 177 4. Jovian: A Study in Conciliation 182 5. Conclusion 187 8: Sharing the Imperial Limelight: The Age of the Magister Militum 189 1. Introduction 189 2. Why Were Generals So Dominant? 190 3. How Was Their Power Articulated? Magistri Militum at Court 195 (i) Panegyrics 196 (ii) Adventus and Accession Ceremonial 199 (iii) Consular Celebrations 200 (iv) Other Ceremonial Occasions: Marriages and Birthdays 203 4. Public Acknowledgements 205 (i) Statues to Generals 205 (ii) Official and Semi-Official Titles, Public Acclamations, and Acknowledgements 207 (iii) Intermarriage 210 5. The Politics of Consensus? 212 6. The End of the Age of the Magister Militum 215 7. Conclusion 218 9: Representatives and Co-Rulers: Imperial Women and the Court in Late Antiquity 220 1. Introduction 220 2. Imperial Women from the Tetrarchs to the Valentinians 221 3. Theodosian Women and the Imperial Insignia 223 4. Dynastic Potential: Fertile Wives and Virgin Sisters 225 5. From Representation to Participation 228 6. Making the Emperor: The ‘New Helena’ 232 PART III: THE POLITICS OF ACCESS 236 10: Beyond the Veil: Athanasius at the Court of Constans 238 1. Introduction 238 2. Constans, Constantius II, and Athanasius 239 3. Apologia ad Constantium Imperatorem 241 4. Audiences with Constans 241 (i) Time and Place 242 (ii) Initiative 243 (iii) Witnesses 244 (iv) Ceremony 247 (v) Discussions with the Emperor 251 5. Alternative Narratives 252 6. Conclusion 254 11: Dynamics of Power: The Nestorian Controversy, the Council of Ephesus of 431, and the Eastern Imperial Court 257 1. Introduction 257 2. Methodological Considerations 258 3. The Key Players 261 4. Cyril and Nestorius in Search of Support: Alliances, Patronage, and Accessibility 265 5. The Council of Ephesus (431) 269 6. Courting Favour 273 7. Conclusion 277 12: Splendid Isolation: Secluded Emperors and the Spectre of Oriental Despotism 279 1. Introduction 279 2. Imperial Visibility and Oriental Seclusion 280 3. The Invisible Kings of the East 282 4. Secluded Emperors in the Principate 285 5. Secluded Emperors in Late Antiquity 289 6. Conclusion 294 13: Envisioning Audiences at the Roman Imperial Court 295 1. Introduction 295 2. Stars and Storytellers 297 3. Discussion and Dialogue 301 4. Persuasion and Punishment 305 5. Atmosphere and Access 313 6. Conclusion 321 PART IV: COMPARATIVE PERSPECTIVES 324 14: The Evolution of the Roman Imperial Court in Historical Context 326 1. Introduction 326 2. There and Back Again 328 3. The Sun in Splendour 340 4. All the King’s Men 354 6. Final Thoughts 373 Bibliography 376 Index 418