罗马帝国行省体系中的皇帝——以罗马不列颠为例

皇帝处于罗马帝国政治体系的核心。即使在不列颠这样的偏远行省,通过一定的途径,皇帝仍使自己的权力在居民中实现了合法化。遇到紧急军事情况,皇帝会出巡行省。但了解行省要求更日常的途径是批复来自行省的申诉。在希腊罗马文化中,人与神之间的区别仅仅在于后者是不死的和强大的,皇帝的所作所为容易突破这条含糊的界限,把皇帝的地位从人上升到人神之间。广泛流行的帝王崇拜集中体现了臣民对皇帝权力合法性的认可。但皇帝统治主要满足于对来自下层的压力和要求做出反应,具有被动性的特点。

Emperor in the Province: with Roman Britain as a Sample

As the center of Roman Empire, Roman emperor exerted his authority to as far as Britain. The emperor would secure the peace and order of the provinces through imperial visit when urgent military situation therein demanded and, during the peaceful time, through his responses to the petitions from the provinces. The only difference between Human and the Divine in Greco-Roman cultural context lies in the immortality and the omnipotence of the latter. The emperor tended to go beyond the ambiguous distinction, and promoted himself to a position between Human and the Divine. The popular imperial cult was a recognition of his rule on the part of the provincials. But the imperial regime, being content with response to the pressures from the subordinate, was passive in essence.