Emperor and the Army in the Later Roman Empire, Ad 235-395

With The Emperor and the Army in the Later Roman Empire, AD 235-395 Mark Hebblewhite offers the first study solely dedicated to examining the nature of the relationship between the emperor and his army in the politically and militarily volatile later Roman Empire. Bringing together a wide range of available literary, epigraphic and numismatic evidence he demonstrates that emperors of the period considered the army to be the key institution they had to mollify in order to retain power and consequently employed a range of strategies to keep the troops loyal to their cause. Key to these efforts were imperial attempts to project the emperor as a worthy general (imperator) and a generous provider of military pay and benefits. Also important were the honorific and symbolic gestures each emperor made to the army in order to convince them that they and the empire could only prosper under his rule.

List of contents

List of Figures
Preface and Acknowledgements
Selected Roman Emperors and Usurpers
Abbreviations



Introduction


Fides, the Army and the Emperor

The Ancient Sources

Modern Perspectives



Chapter 1 - Dawn of the Warrior Emperor


Dynastic Rule Redefined?

A Dynastic Resurgence?

The Emperor as Commilito?



Chapter 2 -Advertising Military Success


Coinage and the Projection of Military Power


Virtus, Victoria and an empire in crisis


Virtus: The courage to lead


Victoria: An emperor's duty

Emperors Armed for battle

Diocletian to Theodosius the Great: new messages for a new age

Portraits of Power

The Titulature of Military Success

Projecting success in crisis

Tetrarchs and dynasts: the titulature of shared military success




Chapter 3 - Praemia Militiae


Praemia Militiae of the Republic and Early Empire

A Severan Mercenary Army?


Praemia Militiae 235-395


Donativa


Regular donativa

Irregular donativa

Ceremony and the donativum

Fides guaranteed?


Stipendium: A Dying Praemium?

The Annona Militaris: Dona


Praemia Veteranorum


The Economics of Praemia Militiae



Chapter 4 - The Emperor, The Law and Disciplina Militaris


Legal Benefits


The later empire


Soldiers and their families

Barbarians in a citizen army


Disciplina Militaris


Chapter 5 - Rituals of Identity


Acclamatio: The First Act of Fidelity?


Acclamatio in the age of the soldier emperors

Ceremonial legitimisation


Adlocutio: Pr

About the author

Mark Hebblewhite completed his PhD at Macquarie University, Australia, in 2012 and has taught widely in the field of Ancient History. His research interests centre on the ideology and politics of the later Roman Empire, with particular reference to the role of the army. He is currently an Adjunct Associate Lecturer at the University of New South Wales, Australia.

Summary

The army were the undisputed kingmakers in the tumultuous imperial politics of the later Roman Empire. The Emperor and the Army in the Later Roman Empire, AD 235-395 is the first study solely dedicated to understanding how the Roman emperor tried to maintain the loyalty he needed from his army to survive. It examines the military role the

Report

"Hebblewhite does an admirable job of presenting the ofttimes contradictory literary, epigraphic, and numismatic evidence (both inscriptional and iconographic), confronting the issues it raises, and coming to conclusions [...] The book is clearly written and well organized."
- R. T. Ingoglia, Saint Thomas Aquinas College, USA, CHOICE Reviews
 "This is a stimulating work that provides an easy-to-use catalogue of the coinage and legal sources showing the relationship between the Emperor and the Roman army [...] If they'd read Hebblewhite's book, many late Roman emperors might have been more successful."
- Hugh Elton, Trent University, Canada, Bryn Mawr Classical Review 2017
 "Au total, nous pensons que ce livre aura sa place dans toutes les bibliothèques bien composées."
-Yann Le Bohec, Paris-Sorbonne University, France, Sehepunkte Rezensionsjournal für die Geschichtswissenschaften 2017
"Hebblewhite made a masterful study, being able to bring together a wide range of literary, epigraphic, as well as numismatic evidence, and present us with a convincing and concise analysis of nature of the relationship between the emperor and the army in what was politically and militarily turbulent period for the Later Roman empire [...] Hebblewhite's book is a valuable contribution to the field that nicely complements Campbell's earlier work and provides us with a badly needed insight into the emperor's relationship with the military in the late antiquity. As such, it should be a mandatory addition to every university library"
- Vedran Bileta, De Re Militari, The Society for Medieval Military History
"....Hebblewhite's study is filled with new materials and original viewpoints, especially in the economic, monetary and numismatic spheres relating to the Roman army. It will surely be of value and importance to scholars and students of the period for many years to come."
- Haggai Olshanetsky, Scripta Classica Israelica
"As such, his book provides a useful introduction to this specific historiographical problem, a thought-provoking reading, and a good starting point for more nuanced and comprehensive analyses."
- Luisa Andriollo, Bamberg
"In this learned, clearly written, and visually pleasing monograph, Mark Hebblewhite explores the fraught relationship between the emperor and the soldiers he led."
- Byzantina Symmeitkta 28 (2018)
"This book offers a compact and source-oriented access to the relationship of emperor and army in the 3rd and 4th centuries."
- Christoph Begass, Univeristat Mannheim, Germany, Historische Zeitschrift vol. 308/1, 2019
 
"Questo studio dettagliato e bene argomentato esamina i modi in cui gli imperatori del periodo compreso fra l'ascesa al potere di Massimino il trace fino alla morte di Teodosio cercarono di rinsaldare la propria popolarità presso l'esercito"
- GNOMON, 7/91/2019

Product details

• Authors: Mark Hebblewhite, Hebblewhite Mark
• Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd.
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 12.12.2019
• EAN: 9780367880682
• ISBN: 978-0-367-88068-2
• No. of pages: 240
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > History > Antiquity; Non-fiction book > Philosophy, religion > Miscellaneous; HISTORY / Ancient / Egypt, Ancient History, Ancient history: to c 500 CE, Ancient Egypt