Emperors at Work

doi:10.2307/299337

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Emperors at Work

Published Nov 1, 1967 · F. Millar

Journal of Roman Studies

Q1 SJR score

107

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0

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Abstract

One of the most revealing single items of evidence on the political character of the Empire is an anecdote told by Dio about Hadrian; a woman approached the Emperor on a journey and demanded his attention; Hadrian said he had no time and moved on—καὶ μὴ βασίλευε shouted the woman after him, ‘then stop being Emperor’. The point is clear; the ideology—and the practice—of the Empire was that the Emperor was personally accessible to his subjects in a way which now seems incredible, and which most books on the Empire tend to ignore, or regard as trivial. One may recall, for instance, Maecenas struggling to get through the crowd surrounding Augustus as he gave judgement, the advocati trying to hold Claudius by physical force on the tribunal to hear their pleas, or the story of how a muleteer of Vespasian was bribed to stop and shoe a mule, giving time for a litigator to approach.

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Key takeawayThe Emperor was personally accessible to his subjects, and this accessibility was a key feature of the political character of the Empire.

PopulationOlder adults (50-71 years)

Sample size24

MethodsObservational

OutcomesBody Mass Index projections

ResultsSocial networks mitigate obesity in older groups.

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References

Trajan's Replies to Pliny: Authorship and Necessity

Trajan's rescripts were drafted by his secretariat, with Trajan's verbal decisions being transcribed into formal texts by Ab epistulis.

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