Emperors And Emperorship In Late Antiquity

In this volume, nine contributions deal with the ways in which imperial power was exercised in the fourth century AD, paying particular attention to how it was articulated and manipulated by means of literary strategies and iconographic programmes.

Imagining Emperors in the Later Roman Empire offers new critical analysis of the textual depictions of a series of emperors in the fourth century within overlapping historical, religious and literary contexts.

In this book, McEvoy explodes the myth that the remarkable phenomenon of the late Roman child-emperor reflected mere dynastic sentiment or historical accident. Tracing the course of the frequently tumultuous, but nevertheless lengthy, reigns of young western emperors in the years AD 367-455, she looks at the way in which the sophistication of the Roman system made their accessions and survival possible. The book highlights how these reigns allowed for individual generals to dominate the Roman state and in what manner the crucial role of Christianity, together with the vested interests of various factions within the imperial elite, contributed to a transformation of the imperial image - enabling and facilitating the adaptation of existing imperial ideology to portray boys as young as six as viable rulers. It also analyses the struggles which ensued upon a child-emperor reaching adulthood and seeking to take up functions which had long been delegated during his childhood. Through the phenomenon of child-emperor rule, McEvoy demonstrates the major changes taking place in the nature of the imperial office in late antiquity, which had significant long-term impacts upon the way the Roman state came to be ruled and, in turn, the nature of rulership in the early medieval and Byzantine worlds to follow.

The volume Gaining and Losing Imperial Favour in Late Antiquity studies fundamental dynamics of the political culture of the Later Roman Empire (4th and 5th centuries A.D.) by examining how people rose in and fell from the emperor’s favour.

The Roman Emperor ran the Empire through contentious committee meetings at which civil, military and religious policies were debated.

This book is about the reinvention of the Roman Empire during the eighty years between the accession of Diocletian and the death of Julian. How had it changed? The emperors were still warriors and expected to take the field. Rome was still the capital, at least symbolically. There was still a Roman senate, though with new rules brought in by Constantine. There were still provincial governors, but more now and with fewer duties in smaller areas; and military command was increasingly separated from civil jurisdiction and administration. The neighbours in Persia, Germania and on the Danube were more assertive and better organised, which had a knock-on effect on Roman institutions. The achievement of Diocletian and his successors down to Julian was to create a viable apparatus of control which allowed a large and at times unstable area to be policed, defended and exploited. The book offers a different perspective on the development often taken to be the distinctive feature of these years, namely the rise of Christianity. Imperial endorsement and patronage of the Christian god and the expanded social role of the Church are a significant prelude to the Byzantine state. The author argues that the reigns of the Christian-supporting Constantine and his sons were a foretaste of what was to come, but not a complete or coherent statement of how Church and State were to react with each other.

In 11 in-depth essays and over 500 encyclopedia entries, a cast of experts provides fresh perspectives on an era marked by the rise of two world religions, unprecedented upheavals, and the creation of art of enduring glory. 79 illustrations, 16 in color.

"This book is the first modern scholarly monograph on the emperor Jovian (363-364). It offers a new assessment of his reign and argues that Jovian's reign was of more importance than assumed by most (ancient and modern) historians. This study argues that Jovian restored the Roman empire after the failed reign of Julian by returning to the policies of Constantius II and Constantine the Great. Jovian's general strategies were directed to get the Roman empire on its feet again militarily, administratively and religiously after the failed reign of his predecessor Julian (361-363) as well as to establish more peaceful relations with the Sasanid empire. For an emperor who ruled only eight months Jovian had an unexpected and surprising afterlife. The rarely studied and largely unknown Syriac Julian Romance offers a surprising and different perspective on person and reign of Jovian. In the Romance Jovian is presented as the ideal Christian emperor and a new Constantine. But the Romance is also an important source for Roman-Persian relations and the positioning of Syriac Christianity in the late antique world of Christendom"--