For centuries, Roman emperors ruled a vast empire. Yet, at least officially, the emperor did not exist. No one knew exactly what titles he possessed, how he could be portrayed, what exactly he had to do, or how the succession was organised. Everyone knew, however, that the emperor held ultimate power over the empire. There were also expectations about what he should do and be, although these varied throughout the empire and also evolved over time. How did these expectations develop and change? To what degree could an emperor deviate from prevailing norms? And what role did major developments in Roman society - such as the rise of Christianity or the choice of Constantinople as the new capital - play in the ways in which emperors could exercise their rule? This ambitious and engaging book describes the surprising stability of the Roman Empire over more than six centuries of history.
For centuries, Roman emperors ruled a vast empire. Yet, at least officially, the emperor did not exist. No one knew exactly what titles he possessed, how he could be portrayed, what exactly he had to do, or how the succession was organised. Everyone knew, however, that the emperor held ultimate power over the empire. There were also expectations about what he should do and be, although these varied throughout the empire and also evolved over time. How did these expectations develop and change? To what degree could an emperor deviate from prevailing norms? And what role did major developments in Roman society - such as the rise of Christianity or the choice of Constantinople as the new capital - play in the ways in which emperors could exercise their rule? This ambitious and engaging book describes the surprising stability of the Roman Empire over more than six centuries of history.
Introduction: Emperors and expectations; 1. Portraying the Roman Emperor; 2. Playing imperial roles; 3. Being around the emperor; 4. The emperor in capital and provinces; Conclusions: Emperors in a changing world.
A riveting portrayal of what the inhabitants of the Roman Empire expected of their ruler and their feelings about him.
OLIVIER HEKSTER is Professor of Ancient History at the Radboud Institute for Culture and History, Radboud University Nijmegen. He is chair of the international network 'Impact of Empire', and a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Academia Europaea. His publications include Emperors and Ancestors. Roman Power and the Constraints of Tradition (2015).
'Hekster's magisterial survey of Roman emperorship puts the
subject on a new footing. Drawing on a wide range of literary,
documentary, and visual evidence, it provides a rich and
three-dimensional account of emperors in action and in the
imagination. It will be of interest not only to Roman historians,
but to all students of premodern rulership.' Carlos Noreña,
Associate Professor of Ancient History and Mediterranean
Archaeology, University of California, Berkeley
'The emperor was the single most unifying concept in the political
imagination of a population of incredible cultural, ethnic and
linguistic plurality. Furthermore, communicating the centrality of
the emperor to this audience required being attentive to an
historical landscape that changed dramatically over centuries.
Hekster's new book approaches this important issue with
intelligence and circumspection, noting the overdue need for a
return to traditional political history, while engaging with the
fruitful models of cultural and literary history. As a result,
Caesar Rules is a sensitive study that will be of interest to
historians, classicists and students of political science for many
years to come.' Shane Bjornlie, Professor of History, Claremont
McKenna College
'Pleasingly iconoclastic … this is not just another tired study of
the gap between representation and reality in ancient rulership.
Working pragmatically with a wide range of sources, Hekster
demonstrates how consistent imperial roles and attributes remained
over 600 years of Roman history, however variously they were
inflected.' Michael Kulikowski, Times Literary Supplement
'… Hekster does an admirable job of covering a truly impressive
range in almost every aspect of his subject matter, from the
materials consulted to the topics considered. As this volume
demonstrates, the most powerful office in the ancient world was
also its most ambiguous, its holder capable of both appearing and
behaving in utterly different ways to different constituencies at
different moments in imperial history.' Kevin Feeney, Bryn Mawr
Classical Review
'This excellent study of these 'men for all seasons' is highly
recommendable! It offers a very beautiful synthesis of a changing
world…' Stéphane Benoist, Sehepunkte
'An excellent book on a fascinating subject. … Recommended.' M. W.
Handis, CHOICE
'The wealth of material that [the author] adduces throughout the
book to argue his points allows readers to delve more deeply into
images and debates, whilst also allowing them to keep the main goal
of the emperor's multiplicity in focus - no mean feat.' Panayiotis
Christoforou, Polis: The Journal for Ancient Greek and Roman
Political Thought
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