Hadrian – the Emperor who took a different path Emperor Hadrian ruled the Roman Empire between 117-138 AD. His reign is of great interest to scholars as he seems to have sought to establish a more equal relationship between Romans and conquered peoples in the Empire. Why did Hadrian do this? Was it for idealistic or pragmatic reasons? This question lies at the heart of Dr Felix K Maier’s research in a new DFG-backed project. Publius Aelius Hadrianus was emperor of the Roman Empire between 117-138 AD, and he travelled widely during his reign to the outer reaches of the realm, visiting almost every province. While many of his predecessors also travelled to different parts of the Empire, they typically did so if there was a need for their presence during times of conflict; Hadrian had a different approach. “He visited nearly all the regions of the Empire, even during times of peace,” says Dr Felix K Maier, an assistant professor at the University of Würzburg. But Hadrian’s travel record was not the only thing that distinguished him. This Roman Emperor also differed from his predecessors in several other ways, for example in the coins that he commissioned during his reign. “Roman Emperors usually made coins that made it very clear to the viewer that the Romans were the victors, and that the defeated people had been conquered,” explains Dr Maier. “Hadrian broke with this tradition of promoting a clear hierarchy between Rome and the conquered provinces. On his coins, he shakes hands with the conquered people or he is shown raising up a female personification of a province.”
Hadrian’s approach to architecture also differed from previous Roman Emperors. While victory in the Dacian wars under his immediate predecessor Trajan was commemorated in Rome with a monumental column mainly showing the Romans inflicting violence and pain on the conquered peoples, Hadrian came up with a completely different iconography. “He continues to promote the idea that the conquered populations are other people and ‘barbarians’, but he softens the message. The message now is: ‘We are all living in the Empire and we are different people, but our relationship is not mainly characterised by war’,” outlines Dr Maier. This transformation is reflected in the monuments and buildings that were erected during Hadrian’s reign. “Take for example the common reliefs which depict the conquered provinces with the usual female personifications. In contrast to the traditional representation which portrayed conquered people in a mourning or miserable gesture, in Hadrian’s reign, the non-Romans are shown in a relaxed posture, and indeed they sometimes have weapons in their hands. Such a depiction does not show a deep-rooted antagonism,
but rather conveys to the audience that the provinces are defending the Empire as well,” says Dr Maier. “The conquered non-Roman inhabitants of the Empire do not appear – as was usually the case – as fierce, brutal and detestable enemies. They are still considered barbarians but their relationship to the Empire is now different to what previous generations thought of them.” In line with this, Hadrian also made hybrid complexes, combining Greek, Roman and Egyptian styles in temples for example. Although architectural styles had been mixed before, Hadrian pushed this hybridity to a much greater extent than his predecessors.
The Romans and the conquered The question then is: why did Hadrian adopt this approach? Why did he want to establish a more equal relationship between Romans and the conquered peoples within the Empire? And why – through his travels and the other measures he took – was he so keen on showing that the Empire was a hybrid community? Dr Maier is investigating this fascinating problem in a new DFG-funded project. In his research, Dr Maier is looking at the underlying motivations behind Hadrian’s approach to the conquered peoples within the Empire. “From an idealistic point of view, it might be argued that Hadrian wanted to promote the idea of a universal empire which is a place for everyone, and that everyone should feel Ruins from the ancient Roman town Palmyra (picture from 2010), a hybrid spot in the Roman Empire with Roman, Greek and Near Eastern cultural influences.
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