The Roman world, 44 BC-AD 180

433 Pages·2012·9.287 MB·English

by  Goodman, Martin

The Roman World
The Roman World 44 BC–AD 180 deals with the transformation of the
Mediterranean region, northern Europe and the Near East by the military
autocrats who ruled Rome during this period. The book traces the impact of
imperial politics on life in the city of Rome itself and in the rest of the empire,
arguing that, despite long periods of apparent peace, this was a society
controlled as much by fear of state violence as by consent.
Martin Goodman examines the reliance of Roman emperors on a huge
military establishment and the threat of force. He analyses the extent to
which the empire functioned as a single political, economic and cultural unit
and discusses, region by region, how much the various indigenous cultures
and societies were affected by Roman rule. There is a long section devoted to
the momentous religious changes in this period, which witnessed the
popularity and spread of a series of elective cults and the emergence of
Rabbinic Judaism and Christianity from the complex world of fi rst-century
Judaea. This book provides a critical assessment of the signifi cance of Roman
rule for inhabitants of the empire, and introduces readers to many of the main
issues currently faced by historians of the early empire.
This new edition, incorporating the fi nds of recent scholarship, includes a
fuller narrative history, expanded sections on the history of women and slaves
and on cultural life in the city of Rome, many new illustrations, an updated
section of bibliographical notes, and other improvements designed to make
the volume as useful as possible to students as well as the general reader.
Martin Goodman is Professor of Jewish Studies at Oxford. He is a Fellow of
Wolfson College, Oxford, and a Fellow of the British Academy. He has
written numerous books, including The Ruling Class of Judaea (1987) and
Rome and Jerusalem: the clash of ancient civilizations (2007).
ROUTLEDGE HISTORY OF
THE ANCIENT WORLD
Series Editor: Fergus Millar
The Mediterranean World in Late Antiquity 395–700 AD
Second Edition
Averil Cameron
Greece in the Making 1200–479 BC
Second Edition
Robin Osborne
The Greek World 479–323 BC
Fourth Edition
Simon Hornblower
The Roman Empire at Bay, AD 180–395
David S. Potter
The Greek World After Alexander 323–30 BC
Graham Shipley
The Ancient Near East c.3000–330 BC
Amélie Kuhrt
The Beginnings of Rome
Italy and Rome from the Bronze Age to the Punic Wars (c. 1000–264 BC)
Tim Cornell
Forthcoming:
The Roman Republic 264–44 BC
Edward Bispham
T H E R O M A N W O R L D
44 bc–ad 180
Second Edition
Martin Goodman
First published 1997.
This second edition published 2012
by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 1997, 2012 Martin Goodman.
The right of Martin Goodman to be identifi ed as author of this work has been
asserted by him/her in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright,
Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised
in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or
hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information
storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered
trademarks, and are used only for identifi cation and explanation without
intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data
Goodman, Martin, 1953-
The Roman world, 44 BC-AD 180 / Martin Goodman. -- 2nd ed.
p. cm. -- (Routledge history of the ancient world)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
1. Rome--Civilization. 2. Rome--History--Republic, 265-30 B.C. 3. Rome--
History--Empire, 30 B.C.-284 A.D. I. Title.
DG254.G66 2011
937’.07--dc23
2011025444
ISBN: 978-0-415-55978-2 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-0-415-55979-9 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-0-203-14688-0 (ebk)
Typeset in Garamond
by Saxon Graphics Ltd, Derby DE21 4SZ
CONTENTS
List of Figures xi
List of Maps xii
List of Dates xiii
List of Abbreviations xv
Preface xvii
PART I INTRODUCTION 1
1 SOURCES AND PROBLEMS 3
The evidence 4
The writing of history 8
From city to empire 9
2 THE ROMAN WORLD IN 50 bc 10
The Sphere of Roman Infl uence 10
The City of Rome in 50 BC 16
PART II ÉLITE POLITICS 19
3 THE POLITICAL LANGUAGE OF ROME 21
Political Power 21
Political Methods 24
4 CAESAR TO AUGUSTUS, 50 bc–ad 14 29
Last Years of Julius Caesar 29
Augustus 32
5 JULIO-CLAUDIANS, ad 14–68 48
Tiberius 48
Gaius 53
Claudius 54
Nero 58
v
CONTENTS
6 CIVIL WAR AND FLAVIANS, ad 68–96 62
Galba 62
Otho 63
Vitellius 64
Vespasian 65
Titus 68
Domitian 69
7 NERVA TO MARCUS AURELIUS, ad 96–180 72
Nerva 72
Trajan 73
Hadrian 75
Antoninus Pius 79
Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus 80
Commodus 86
PART III THE STATE 87
8 MILITARY AUTOCRACY 89
Power of the Army 89
The Praetorian Guard 92
State Terror 93
9 THE OPERATION OF THE STATE IN ROME 95
Imperial Bureaucracy 95
Urban Crowds 101
The Senate 101
Magistrates and the Courts 103
State Finances 106
10 THE OPERATION OF THE STATE IN THE PROVINCES 109
Taxes 109
Provincial Governors 111
Expansion of Frontiers 113
Administration 116
Client Kings 119
Beyond the Frontiers 121
11 THE ARMY IN SOCIETY 123
Professional Soldiers 123
Military Life and Pay 125
Soldiers and Civilians 130
vi
CONTENTS
12 THE IMAGE OF THE EMPEROR 133
Augustus: The Model Emperor 133
The Emperor as a God 139
The Creation of the Image 142
13 THE EXTENT OF POLITICAL UNITY 145
Allies or Subjects? 145
Roman Citizenship 146
Acceptance of Roman Rule? 147
Provincial Co-operation 148
The Emperor as Unifi er 150
14 THE EXTENT OF ECONOMIC UNITY 152
The Role of the State in Promoting Trade 153
Workforce 157
Agriculture 158
Industry and Technology 159
Local Economies and Connectivity 161
15 THE EXTENT OF CULTURAL UNITY 162
Urbanisation 162
Architecture and Art 163
Literary Culture 165
Dominance of Greek Culture in Second Century AD 168
PART IV SOCIETY 171
16 REACTIONS TO IMPERIAL RULE 173
Types of Evidence 174
Accommodation 174
Dissociation 176
Opponents of the State 177
Mass Insurrection 178
17 THE CITY OF ROME: SOCIAL ORGANIZATION 180
The Imperial Court 182
Senators 182
Equites 187
Populus 189
Women 191
Family 194
Slaves 197
vii
CONTENTS
18 THE CITY OF ROME: CULTURE AND LIFE 200
Literature 201
Painting, Sculpture and Architecture 206
Ordinary Tastes 210
19 ITALY AND SICILY 216
Italy 216
Sicily 221
20 THE IBERIAN PENINSULA AND THE ISLANDS OF THE
WESTERN MEDITERRANEAN 223
The Iberian Peninsula 223
Sardinia and Corsica 227
21 GAUL AND BRITAIN 229
Roman Conquest of Gaul 229
Celtic Society 232
Effects of Roman Conquest 233
Roman Conquest of Britain 234
Rebellion against Rome in Gaul and Britain 237
Urbanization of Gaul and Britain 238
Assimilation and Independence 239
Economic Prosperity under the Romans 241
22 THE RHINELAND AND THE BALKANS 243
The Rhineland 243
The Alps 247
The Danube and the Balkans 248
Dacia 252
23 GREECE AND THE AEGEAN COAST 254
Greek Attitudes to Roman Rule 254
Economic Malaise 256
Greek Élites and Greek Culture 257
City Life 260
24 CENTRAL AND EASTERN TURKEY 262
Galatia, Cappadocia and the Lycian Federation 263
Social and Cultural Effects of Roman Rule 264
Economic Effects of Roman Rule 265
25 THE NORTHERN LEVANT AND MESOPOTAMIA 267
The Northern Levant 267
Parthia 269
viii
CONTENTS
Mesopotamia 270
Syria 271
Cultural Change 272
26 THE SOUTHERN LEVANT 275
Judaea 278
Samaria 282
Arabia 283
27 EGYPT 285
The Ptolemaic Dynasty 287
Roman Rule in Egypt 288
Jews in Egypt 291
Egyptian Villages 293
28 NORTH AFRICA 298
Africa before 44 BC 298
Cyrenaica 300
Africa Proconsularis and Numidia 301
Mauretania 302
Effects of Roman Rule 303
PART V HUMANS AND GODS 307
29 RELIGION 309
Traditional Cult in the Early Empire 309
Religious Beliefs and Practices 311
The Imperial Cult 322
30 JUDAISM 326
Special Characteristics of Judaism 326
Interpretations of the Torah 329
Hopes and Speculations 330
Pharisees, Sadducees and Essenes 331
Philo 334
Destruction of the Jerusalem Temple 335
Rabbinic Judaism 336
31 CHRISTIANITY 338
Early History of Christianity 338
Jesus 340
Mission to the Gentiles 342
Organization of the Early Church 344
Opposition to the Church 348
ix