Cliquez pour ajouter un texte CITIZENSHIP IN THE ROMAN EMPIRE (I-III C. AD) Case Study : Roman Britain

Augustus (63 BC-14 AD)

Introduction  By ‘Roman Empire’, historians mean 2 things:  - a form of government in which an emperor holds all the powers in his hands  - a vast territory conquered by the Romans

The Emperor’s powers: Political power: -makes the laws -presides over the senate Religious power: Pontiff, head of the religion Military power: -Imperator - Controls the provinces Judicial power

 Between the 1rst century AD and the 3rd century AD, the Romans expanded their empire by conquest.  But, once conquered, few peoples rebelled.  How did the Romans maintain control of such a huge empire for so long?

I) A progressive integration of the elite and an open citizenship  A) The Roman conquest and integration of Gaul and Britain.  Gaul was conquered by Julius Caesar during the 1rst century BC; the same Caesar had attempted to invade Britain as well but he had failed.  Conquest was indeed a way to further a politician’s career.

Claudius (10 -54)

 In AD 43, Claudius sent 4 legions and auxiliary troops (about 40,000 men in all) to conquer the island. They met with stiff resistance from the Celtic Britons.  However, the Britons were eventually defeated and Claudius could enter the Catuvellaunian capital of Colchester in triumph.

 By AD 47 the Claudian armies occupied Britain as far as the Severn (= a river, South of Britain) and the work of organizing Britain as a regular roman province was now in progress.  The Claudian intention seems to have been to employ ‘client’ kings as far as possible,where they were reliable.

 Meanwhile, Claudius chose to extend the Senate to be a body with members of the entire empire (see Tacitus,Annals: speech delivered by Claudius in AD 48).  He did so in Gaul.  In his speech, he said that the Romans had always integrated the conquered peoples either by granting them citizenship or by making some of them senators.

 He then explained that the ruin of Sparta and Athens had happened because the citizen body was a closed political elite.  If the Roman Empire was to last, the defeated peoples it ruled had to become Romans.

Recap: Two different citizenships in Ancient Times:  Athens (5 th c. BC)  40,000 citizens  Direct democracy  Citizens involved in political life (assembly,council,courts)  Power to the people Rome (1rst c.AD) 6 Million citizens under Claudius Rights and duties Privileges and honors: no power

 Athens:  Only adult male citizens  Birth criterion of double descent: from an Athenian mother as well as father. Rome: Anyone in theory could be granted citizenship, without regard to - the place of residence - language - religion - parentage

 In admitting provincials in the Senate, Claudius mentioned, though,certain conditions which had to be fulfilled to become a senator: - that the province was subjugated a long time ago - that the province remained at peace - that the province had adopted roman ways - that aristocratic families had intermarried - that the province was rich enough.

How did the Britons react to their state of subjection?  B) Collaboration or resistance?  (see Tacitus in Life of Agricola)  The native aristocrats were given power, wealth, office and status on condition that they kept the peace and adopted the Roman ways; they became roman citizens because citizenship was not defined by nationality.

 However, in AD 60, a revolt broke out in Britain: at his death, the client king of the Iceni had left half his possessions to the emperor (Nero), expecting that this would protect his kingdom and family.  But the Romans confiscated the king’s property, nobles were expelled from their estates and taxation and conscription enforced.

 As the royal family resisted, Boudicca –the queen of the Iceni- was flogged and her daughters were raped.  The Iceni, feeling humiliated,rose up in revolt.  The Ninth legion was massacred and Colchester, London and Verulamium were razed to the ground.  When the Romans retaliated, Boudicca was defeated and committed suicide afterwards.

Boudicca inflicting devastating defeats on the Romans.

 Later, during the 2 nd century AD, walls were built for fear of barbarian incursion from outside: the emperor Hadrian marked out the boundaries with the Northern tribes (Picts and Scots) of what is now Scotland; Antoninus Pius,his successor, invaded southern Scotland but the Antonine Wall was soon lost and little remains of it.

Hadrian’s Wall

Bath house of a fortress located on the Antonine wall

II/The founding of cities spread romanity too  A) The roman army and the founding of cities.  When a legion (5,000 men) settled somewhere, it built a fortress and soon craftsmen and traders would settle nearby.  In northern Britain,there were few towns or villas but there were many forts, especially along the line of Hadrian’s Wall: that’s where rich residences, luwury bath-houses can be seen.  All those soldiers – from various countries: Batavians,Thracians, Sarmatians..- spoke latin,lived in a roman way.

Exeter,legionary fortress

 They were granted citizenship and a packet of land after their 25 years service.  They settled all over Britain, becoming naturalised british citizens of the Roman empire.  They concentrated in the small number of cities founded to take them: Colchester, Lincoln and Gloucester.

 B) Provincial cities as little Romes.  These cities had the same kind of monuments: - bath-houses - amphitheatres - temples. All this helped emerge a romanized society in Britain.

Amphitheatre at St Albans

Bathhouse at Bath

Mosaic floor in a roman palace

Milestone

A paved road of the roman network

CCL: Prior to the Romans, Britain was a disparate set of peoples with no sense of national identity beyond that of their local tribe. Rome brought a unity to Britain and throughout the centuries of its rule over the island, managed to establish wide foundations for its empire by granting citizenship and spreading its way of life.

Sources: Tacitus Annals, The Life of Agricola excerpts from 2003 movie on Boudicca: Warrior Queen