HADRIAN AND THE LIMITS TO POWER

Olivier Hekster

Abstract


Roman emperors were influenced by precedent and by the expectations of various groups in the Roman Empire that followed from precedent. Yet, imperial decisions by individual emperors influenced groups of Romans and changed their expectations for later emperors. This article analyses this process through the lens of the emperor Hadrian. It pays particular attention to Hadrian’s accession, and to the consequences that the way in which he came to power had for some of his imperial behaviour, noticeable the way in which the emperor dealt with the provinces. Both the constraints which Hadrian faced in his early reign because of the context in which he came to power, and the ways in which his mode of reign seems to have shifted expectations for later rulers are reflected in the way the emperor was (numismatically) represented.

Keywords


Hadrian; Roman emperorship; Roman provinces; Imperial roles; Imperial representation

Full Text: PDF

DOI: 10.14795/j.v7i1_SI.486

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