Die Senatsaristokratie des oströmischen Reiches, ca. 457-518
Prosopographische und sozialgeschichtliche Untersuchungen
von Christoph BegassIm Zuge der Gründung Konstantinopels erhielt die neue Hauptstadt – nach dem Vorbild Roms
– auch einen Senat. Von Beginn an rekrutierten sich dessen Mitglieder in erster Linie aus den
städtischen Oberschichten des oströmischen Reiches. In der vorliegenden Studie werden der
Senat Konstantinopels und seine Mitglieder erstmals Gegenstand einer systematischen
Untersuchung. Zunächst werden die sich wandelnden Bedingungen einer Mitgliedschaft im
Senat herausgearbeitet. Eine Prosopographie bietet Biographien von mehr als 220 Senatoren
unter den Kaisern Leo, Zeno und Anastasius. Anschließend werden auf Basis dieser
Prosopographie vier Familien exemplarisch in den Blick genommen, bevor Herkunft und
Ausbildung, religiöse Orientierung und Karriereverläufe der Senatoren sowie ihre
wirtschaftlichen Hintergründe und die Repräsentation von senatorischem Status untersucht
werden. Da sich die Kaiser im Untersuchungszeitraum immer wieder von senatorischen
Usurpatoren herausgefordert sahen, ergriffen sie zahlreiche Maßnahmen, um diesem
Phänomen Herr zu werden. Diese Schritte bedeuteten für den Senat und die Struktur seiner
Mitglieder tiefgreifende Veränderungen und gaben ihm eine Form, die für die nächsten
Jahrhunderte prägend sein sollte.
Following the model of Rome, Constantine established a second senate in his newly founded capital of Constantinople. From the very beginning, its members were recruited first and foremost from the municipal aristocracy of the Eastern Roman Empire. The aim of the present study is to investigate systematically the senate of Constantinople and its members. After a discussion of the altering criteria for membership, the author provides a prosopographical study on over 220 senators under the emperors Leo, Zeno, and Anastasius. Four illustrious families are then selected for a more thorough study. The following chapter focuses on different topics, such as the senators’ social and economic background, education, religious orientation, career patterns as well as the representation of their status in public. Being challenged by different usurpers of senatorial rank, the emperors took several measures to overcome such difficulties. As a result, the senate and its structure underwent significant changes and were shaped in a way which was typical for the centuries to come.
Following the model of Rome, Constantine established a second senate in his newly founded capital of Constantinople. From the very beginning, its members were recruited first and foremost from the municipal aristocracy of the Eastern Roman Empire. The aim of the present study is to investigate systematically the senate of Constantinople and its members. After a discussion of the altering criteria for membership, the author provides a prosopographical study on over 220 senators under the emperors Leo, Zeno, and Anastasius. Four illustrious families are then selected for a more thorough study. The following chapter focuses on different topics, such as the senators’ social and economic background, education, religious orientation, career patterns as well as the representation of their status in public. Being challenged by different usurpers of senatorial rank, the emperors took several measures to overcome such difficulties. As a result, the senate and its structure underwent significant changes and were shaped in a way which was typical for the centuries to come.