Login

Publications  •  Project Statistics

Glossary  •  Schools  •  Disciplines
People Search: 
   
Title/Abstract Search: 

Dissertation Information for Walter Eugene Roberts

NAME:
- Walter Eugene Roberts

DEGREE:
- Ph.D.

DISCIPLINE:
- History

SCHOOL:
- Emory University (USA) (2003)

ADVISORS:
- Thomas S. Burns

COMMITTEE MEMBERS:
- Stephen D. White
- David F. Bright

MPACT Status: Fully Complete

Title: A study of concordia: Changing conceptions of imperial power and responsibility in Late Antiquity

Abstract: This dissertation deals with changing conceptions of imperial power from the first through the fourth centuries A.D. The first chapter traces the development of Augustan consensus , which was broad and inclusive, attempting to establish a direct link between emperors and all members of society. The expansion of the Roman Empire from the death of Augustus (A.D. 14) through the third century eroded the foundations of consensus . In an effort to restore faith in the office of the emperor, the emperor Constantine (306-337) narrowed the scope of Augustan consensus . The emperorship was now based upon an interrelationship between the emperors and societal elites. In the sources for the reign of Constantine, there is a shift from consensus to concordia . In order to legitimize imperial power, Constantine concentrated on attaining the support of societal elites such as Christian bishops, the senatorial aristocracy, the curiales , and the military leadership. These trends continued under the emperors Constantius II and Julian.

Chapters 4 through 7 focus on the period from 364 to 395. The emperors from Valentinian I to Theodosius I used the tenets of concordia to legitimize their power, but the sources for this era also show how the reliance of concordia on the intercession of societal elites was its Achilles' heel. There are separate chapters on relations between the emperors of this period and Christian bishops, the senatorial aristocracy, the curiales , and the military elite. The emperors for this period used negotiation, or in the case of the military their power of command, to forge reciprocal relationships with these various elites, providing traditional honors and power in return for acknowledgement of the legitimacy of imperial authority.

The final chapter examines the consequences of concordia . After the death of Theodosius in 395, his sons returned to an ideology of consensus . In the West, however, the military commanders and the Christian bishops had gained so much power from concordia , that the office of the emperor became superfluous by the end of the fifth century. In the East the emperors retained their power, supported by the imperial bureaucracy, the army, and the Christian bishops.

MPACT Scores for Walter Eugene Roberts

A = 0
C = 0
A+C = 0
T = 0
G = 0
W = 0
TD = 0
TA = 0
calculated 2008-01-31 06:33:50

Advisors and Advisees Graph

generating graph, please reload

Students under Walter Eugene Roberts

ADVISEES:
- None

COMMITTEESHIPS:
- None