Caillan Davenport
Biographic Data
| ID | 3874529 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Caillan Davenport |
| GIVEN NAMES | Caillan |
| FAMILY NAME | Davenport |
| SIGNATURE | DAVENPORT C |
| AFFILIATIONS | Macquarie University |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-2294-6855 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 30 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 23 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 27 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 3 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2010 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Behind Caesar's Back: Rumor, Gossip, and the Making of the Roman Emperors
A thrilling exploration of what Romans thought about their emperors, and how rumors and gossip—ranging from new taxes to rulers’ sex lives—shaped leadership Traversing more than seven hundred years of Roman history, this book explores how everyday Romans swapped gossip, spread rumors, told jokes, and chanted protests about their emperors—activity that amounted to much more than idle chatter. Caillan Davenport uses ancient evidence, including lett…
Marcus Aurelius: The Man and the Meditations
This chapter sets Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations in the wider historical context of the emperor’s life and reign. It considers his family, upbringing, and route to the imperial purple, as well as his principal philosophical and intellectual influences. Marcus’ attitudes to proper imperial conduct are explored through his description of his adoptive father Antoninus Pius. Special attention is paid to comparing and contrasting Marcus’ own views in th…
Representing Rome's Emperors: Historical and Cultural Perspectives Through Time
The Roman Imperial Court in the Principate and Late Antiquity
The volume examines the Roman imperial court as a social and cultural institution across six centuries between the reigns of Augustus (27 bc–ad 14) and Justinian (ad 527–65). The Principate (the early Roman Empire) and Late Antiquity (the late Roman Empire) are usually examined separately by scholars who specialize in one period or the other. This book brings together scholars of both phases of Roman history to analyse continuities and changes ac…
Rituals and Ceremonial
The texts and images in this chapter illustrate events involving the Roman imperial court that can be regarded as rituals. These included regular occurrences that took place on a daily or near-daily basis, such as the salutatio , dinners, and religious sacrifices. They also included special occasions like festivals, diplomatic receptions, lavish banquets, and the acclamation of a new emperor. Some of these events occurred in court spaces, and inv…
Administration, Finances, and the Court
This chapter examines the place within the court of the imperial secretaries and the workers in their bureaux. It first considers social connections between the servile workers in the bureaux and court domestic staff. Following this, the major imperial secretaryships are examined: the offices of ab epistulis , a libellis , a cognitionibus , a commentariis , a memoria , a studiis , a censibus , and a rationibus , as well as their late third-centur…
News, Rumour, and the Political Culture of the Roman Imperial Monarchy in the Roman History
In 53.19, Dio discusses the impact that the transition of Rome’s system of government from a Republic to a monarchy under Augustus had for the flow of accurate political news and information. This programmatic section of the Roman History has often been discussed for the insight it provides into Dio’s historical methodology. This chapter takes a complementary perspective on 53.19, examining Dio’s view that the new monarchical government led to th…
Cassius Dio: The Senator and His Caesars
This chapter begins by contextualizing Cassius Dio’s Roman History in the political and literary culture of Severan Rome. From there, it introduces the major themes of this volume, namely the idea of Roman political culture under the Principate, Cassius Dio’s understanding of this culture, and the reception of Dio’s construction of Roman imperial culture after antiquity.
War and Peace: Imperial Leadership in Dio’s Second-Century Narrative
Dio’s account of the second century AD, the ‘Antonine period’ broadly construed, has not received the same attention when compared with the better-preserved Julio-Claudian books or the exciting contemporary narrative of the Severan age. This chapter examines Dio’s portrayal of five second-century emperors: Trajan, Hadrian, Marcus Aurelius, Commodus and Pertinax. It focuses particularly on the role that military qualities (or lack thereof) played …
Emperors and Political Culture in Cassius Dio's Roman History
The Roman History of Cassius Dio provides one of the most important continuous narratives of the early Roman empire, spanning the inception of the Principate under Augustus to the turbulent years of the Severan Dynasty. It has been a major influence on how scholars have thought about Roman imperial history, from the Byzantine period down to the present day, as well as being a work of considerable literary sophistication and merit. This book, the …
Epigraphy, Imperial Latin
Dying for Justice: Narratives of Roman Judicial Authority in the High Empire
This chapter examines how different cultural and religious groups constructed narratives of Roman justice between the late first and late third century, and assesses the interactions and connections between these narratives. It focuses on three case studies: (i) the Acta Alexandrinorum , accounts of embassies and trial scenes between Alexandrian Greeks and emperors; (ii) Christian texts, chiefly the apocryphal acts featuring encounters between ap…
Roman Emperors, Conquest, and Violence: Images from the Eastern Provinces
This chapter examines monuments and objects depicting the Roman emperor as a violent agent of conquest which were produced in the eastern provinces during the first and second centuries CE. Imagery of the emperor subjugating and enslaving peoples and provinces could be found on large public buildings, such as the Sebasteion at Aphrodisias, as well as on statues, coins, and terracotta votives. The creators and patrons of these imperial representat…
The Dynamics of Imperial Government: Collegiality and Regionalism
Herodian and the Crisis of Emperorship, 235-238 AD
This article examines Herodian’s portrayal of the rise and fall of Roman emperors and usurpers in Books 7 and 8 of his History (covering the years 235-238 AD ). Herodian’s narrative provides its readers with a perceptive account of the challenges faced by Rome’s rulers during the middle decades of the third century AD. Emperors had to defend the frontiers while cultivating the support of the army, the senate, and the people of Rome and the provin…
A History of the Roman Equestrian Order
In the Roman social hierarchy, the equestrian order stood second only to the senatorial aristocracy in status and prestige. Throughout more than a thousand years of Roman history, equestrians played prominent roles in the Roman government, army, and society as cavalrymen, officers, businessmen, tax collectors, jurors, administrators, and writers. This book offers the first comprehensive history of the equestrian order, covering the period from th…
Cursus and Vita (II): Administrators
History of the Roman Equestrian Order
The Sexual Habits of Caracalla: Rumour, Gossip, and Historiography
This paper examines two divergent traditions in Roman historiography about the sexual relationships of the emperor Caracalla. The first is that he had an affair with his mother, Julia Domna; the second is that he became impotent and indulged his desires with men. This article locates these two traditions in contemporary rumour and gossip about Caracalla, a young emperor who remained unmarried and childless throughout his sole reign. It ascribes t…
Rome and the rhythms of imperial life from the Antonines to Constantine
Cet article s’intéresse aux relations que les empereurs ont entretenues avec la ville de Rome, entre la seconde moitié du iie jusqu’au début du ive siècle. Durant cette période en effet, ces derniers ont été obligés de rester de plus en plus longtemps sur les frontières, pour les défendre contre les invasions étrangères ou pour réprimer les rébellions de leurs propres gouverneurs et généraux. Ils n’en étaient pas moins censés être présents à Rome…
Medieval power
Fashioning a Soldier Emperor: Maximian, Pannonia, and the Panegyrics of 289 and 291
This article examines the techniques used to praise the emperor Maximian, a former soldier of low birth, in two speeches delivered in 289 and 291. The panegyrics transform Maximian's Pannonian origin, which was not publicised in official media at the time, into a 'statement of his imperial suitability
Dexippus and the Gothic Invasions: Interpreting the New Vienna Fragment ( Codex Vindobonensis Hist. gr. 73, ff. 192 v –193 r )
This article presents an English translation and analysis of a new historical fragment, probably from Dexippus’ Scythica , published by Gunther Martin and Jana Grusková in 2014. The fragment, preserved in a palimpsest in the Austrian National Library, describes a Gothic attack on Thessalonica and the subsequent preparations of the Greeks to repel the barbarian force as it moved south into Achaia. The new text provides several important details of…
Fronto: Selected Letters
M. Cornelius Fronto was a Roman senator from North Africa, and the foremost Latin orator and legal advocate of the mid-second century A.D. Fronto's talent and fame led to his appointment as tutor to Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus, the adoptive sons of the emperor Antoninus Pius, in the late 130s A.D. Fronto's extant correspondence, discovered in the early nineteenth century, consists of around two hundred letters extending over a period of more…
Hadrian’s Adoption Speech in Cassius Dio’s Roman History and the Problems of Imperial Succession
The adoption of Antoninus Pius provided Cassius Dio with the opportunity to insert into his narrative a speech delivered by Hadrian justifying the selection of his successor (69.20.1–5). This article examines the content of the speech and its relationship to Dio’s own thoughts on the mechanics of imperial succession expressed elsewhere in the Roman History . It is argued that the speech articulates Dio’s ideal mode of succession, which sees the p…
Cassius Dio and Caracalla
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
Hadrian’s Adoption Speech in Cassius Dio’s Roman History and the Problems of Imperial Succession
The adoption of Antoninus Pius provided Cassius Dio with the opportunity to insert into his narrative a speech delivered by Hadrian justifying the selection of his successor (69.20.1–5). This article examines the content of the speech and its relationship to Dio’s own thoughts on the mechanics of imperial succession expressed elsewhere in the Roman History . It is argued that the speech articulates Dio’s ideal mode of succession, which sees the p…
Rome and the rhythms of imperial life from the Antonines to Constantine
Cet article s’intéresse aux relations que les empereurs ont entretenues avec la ville de Rome, entre la seconde moitié du iie jusqu’au début du ive siècle. Durant cette période en effet, ces derniers ont été obligés de rester de plus en plus longtemps sur les frontières, pour les défendre contre les invasions étrangères ou pour réprimer les rébellions de leurs propres gouverneurs et généraux. Ils n’en étaient pas moins censés être présents à Rome…
The Sexual Habits of Caracalla: Rumour, Gossip, and Historiography
This paper examines two divergent traditions in Roman historiography about the sexual relationships of the emperor Caracalla. The first is that he had an affair with his mother, Julia Domna; the second is that he became impotent and indulged his desires with men. This article locates these two traditions in contemporary rumour and gossip about Caracalla, a young emperor who remained unmarried and childless throughout his sole reign. It ascribes t…
Dexippus and the Gothic Invasions: Interpreting the New Vienna Fragment ( Codex Vindobonensis Hist. gr. 73, ff. 192 v –193 r )
This article presents an English translation and analysis of a new historical fragment, probably from Dexippus’ Scythica , published by Gunther Martin and Jana Grusková in 2014. The fragment, preserved in a palimpsest in the Austrian National Library, describes a Gothic attack on Thessalonica and the subsequent preparations of the Greeks to repel the barbarian force as it moved south into Achaia. The new text provides several important details of…
The Roman Imperial Court in the Principate and Late Antiquity
The volume examines the Roman imperial court as a social and cultural institution across six centuries between the reigns of Augustus (27 bc–ad 14) and Justinian (ad 527–65). The Principate (the early Roman Empire) and Late Antiquity (the late Roman Empire) are usually examined separately by scholars who specialize in one period or the other. This book brings together scholars of both phases of Roman history to analyse continuities and changes ac…
The Conduct of Vitellius in Cassius Dio’s Roman History
This article offers an explanation as to why Cassius Dio praises aspects of Vitellius’ conduct as emperor in his Roman History (65.6-7). Although Dio preserves much of the standard invective against the emperor, he also acknowledges Vitellius’ clemency towards his predecessors’ supporters, his restrictions on aristocratic participation in gladiatorial combats, and his even-handed treatment of his fellow senators. It is argued that Dio chose to hi…
Soldiers and Equestrian Rank in the Third Century Ad
This article considers a group of inscriptions, ranging in date from the late second to late third centuries ad , which indicates that low-ranked members of the Roman army gained access to equestrian rank in this period. The inscriptions attest two interrelated phenomena: (1) the promotion of soldiers to posts in the militiae equestres , a series of officer commands usually held by men from the ordo equester ; and (2) grants of equestrian status …
The building inscription from the fort at Udruh and Aelius Flavianus, tetrarchic praeses of Palaestina
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Rome Awards: New élites in Rome and Italy, AD 235–337
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
Soldiers and Equestrian Rank in the Third Century Ad
This article considers a group of inscriptions, ranging in date from the late second to late third centuries ad , which indicates that low-ranked members of the Roman army gained access to equestrian rank in this period. The inscriptions attest two interrelated phenomena: (1) the promotion of soldiers to posts in the militiae equestres , a series of officer commands usually held by men from the ordo equester ; and (2) grants of equestrian status …
Cassius Dio and Caracalla
An abstract is not available for this content so a preview has been provided. Please use the Get access link above for information on how to access this content
Fronto: Selected Letters
M. Cornelius Fronto was a Roman senator from North Africa, and the foremost Latin orator and legal advocate of the mid-second century A.D. Fronto's talent and fame led to his appointment as tutor to Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus, the adoptive sons of the emperor Antoninus Pius, in the late 130s A.D. Fronto's extant correspondence, discovered in the early nineteenth century, consists of around two hundred letters extending over a period of more…
Hadrian’s Adoption Speech in Cassius Dio’s Roman History and the Problems of Imperial Succession
The adoption of Antoninus Pius provided Cassius Dio with the opportunity to insert into his narrative a speech delivered by Hadrian justifying the selection of his successor (69.20.1–5). This article examines the content of the speech and its relationship to Dio’s own thoughts on the mechanics of imperial succession expressed elsewhere in the Roman History . It is argued that the speech articulates Dio’s ideal mode of succession, which sees the p…
The Conduct of Vitellius in Cassius Dio’s Roman History
This article offers an explanation as to why Cassius Dio praises aspects of Vitellius’ conduct as emperor in his Roman History (65.6-7). Although Dio preserves much of the standard invective against the emperor, he also acknowledges Vitellius’ clemency towards his predecessors’ supporters, his restrictions on aristocratic participation in gladiatorial combats, and his even-handed treatment of his fellow senators. It is argued that Dio chose to hi…
Dexippus and the Gothic Invasions: Interpreting the New Vienna Fragment ( Codex Vindobonensis Hist. gr. 73, ff. 192 v –193 r )
This article presents an English translation and analysis of a new historical fragment, probably from Dexippus’ Scythica , published by Gunther Martin and Jana Grusková in 2014. The fragment, preserved in a palimpsest in the Austrian National Library, describes a Gothic attack on Thessalonica and the subsequent preparations of the Greeks to repel the barbarian force as it moved south into Achaia. The new text provides several important details of…
Medieval power
Fashioning a Soldier Emperor: Maximian, Pannonia, and the Panegyrics of 289 and 291
This article examines the techniques used to praise the emperor Maximian, a former soldier of low birth, in two speeches delivered in 289 and 291. The panegyrics transform Maximian's Pannonian origin, which was not publicised in official media at the time, into a 'statement of his imperial suitability
The Sexual Habits of Caracalla: Rumour, Gossip, and Historiography
This paper examines two divergent traditions in Roman historiography about the sexual relationships of the emperor Caracalla. The first is that he had an affair with his mother, Julia Domna; the second is that he became impotent and indulged his desires with men. This article locates these two traditions in contemporary rumour and gossip about Caracalla, a young emperor who remained unmarried and childless throughout his sole reign. It ascribes t…
Rome and the rhythms of imperial life from the Antonines to Constantine
Cet article s’intéresse aux relations que les empereurs ont entretenues avec la ville de Rome, entre la seconde moitié du iie jusqu’au début du ive siècle. Durant cette période en effet, ces derniers ont été obligés de rester de plus en plus longtemps sur les frontières, pour les défendre contre les invasions étrangères ou pour réprimer les rébellions de leurs propres gouverneurs et généraux. Ils n’en étaient pas moins censés être présents à Rome…
A History of the Roman Equestrian Order
In the Roman social hierarchy, the equestrian order stood second only to the senatorial aristocracy in status and prestige. Throughout more than a thousand years of Roman history, equestrians played prominent roles in the Roman government, army, and society as cavalrymen, officers, businessmen, tax collectors, jurors, administrators, and writers. This book offers the first comprehensive history of the equestrian order, covering the period from th…
Cursus and Vita (II): Administrators
History of the Roman Equestrian Order
Herodian and the Crisis of Emperorship, 235-238 AD
This article examines Herodian’s portrayal of the rise and fall of Roman emperors and usurpers in Books 7 and 8 of his History (covering the years 235-238 AD ). Herodian’s narrative provides its readers with a perceptive account of the challenges faced by Rome’s rulers during the middle decades of the third century AD. Emperors had to defend the frontiers while cultivating the support of the army, the senate, and the people of Rome and the provin…
Epigraphy, Imperial Latin
Dying for Justice: Narratives of Roman Judicial Authority in the High Empire
This chapter examines how different cultural and religious groups constructed narratives of Roman justice between the late first and late third century, and assesses the interactions and connections between these narratives. It focuses on three case studies: (i) the Acta Alexandrinorum , accounts of embassies and trial scenes between Alexandrian Greeks and emperors; (ii) Christian texts, chiefly the apocryphal acts featuring encounters between ap…
Roman Emperors, Conquest, and Violence: Images from the Eastern Provinces
This chapter examines monuments and objects depicting the Roman emperor as a violent agent of conquest which were produced in the eastern provinces during the first and second centuries CE. Imagery of the emperor subjugating and enslaving peoples and provinces could be found on large public buildings, such as the Sebasteion at Aphrodisias, as well as on statues, coins, and terracotta votives. The creators and patrons of these imperial representat…
The Dynamics of Imperial Government: Collegiality and Regionalism
News, Rumour, and the Political Culture of the Roman Imperial Monarchy in the Roman History
In 53.19, Dio discusses the impact that the transition of Rome’s system of government from a Republic to a monarchy under Augustus had for the flow of accurate political news and information. This programmatic section of the Roman History has often been discussed for the insight it provides into Dio’s historical methodology. This chapter takes a complementary perspective on 53.19, examining Dio’s view that the new monarchical government led to th…
Cassius Dio: The Senator and His Caesars
This chapter begins by contextualizing Cassius Dio’s Roman History in the political and literary culture of Severan Rome. From there, it introduces the major themes of this volume, namely the idea of Roman political culture under the Principate, Cassius Dio’s understanding of this culture, and the reception of Dio’s construction of Roman imperial culture after antiquity.
War and Peace: Imperial Leadership in Dio’s Second-Century Narrative
Dio’s account of the second century AD, the ‘Antonine period’ broadly construed, has not received the same attention when compared with the better-preserved Julio-Claudian books or the exciting contemporary narrative of the Severan age. This chapter examines Dio’s portrayal of five second-century emperors: Trajan, Hadrian, Marcus Aurelius, Commodus and Pertinax. It focuses particularly on the role that military qualities (or lack thereof) played …
Emperors and Political Culture in Cassius Dio's Roman History
The Roman History of Cassius Dio provides one of the most important continuous narratives of the early Roman empire, spanning the inception of the Principate under Augustus to the turbulent years of the Severan Dynasty. It has been a major influence on how scholars have thought about Roman imperial history, from the Byzantine period down to the present day, as well as being a work of considerable literary sophistication and merit. This book, the …
Rituals and Ceremonial
The texts and images in this chapter illustrate events involving the Roman imperial court that can be regarded as rituals. These included regular occurrences that took place on a daily or near-daily basis, such as the salutatio , dinners, and religious sacrifices. They also included special occasions like festivals, diplomatic receptions, lavish banquets, and the acclamation of a new emperor. Some of these events occurred in court spaces, and inv…
Classical Antiquity Studies (27 works) · History (20 works) · Art (18 works) · Ancient history (17 works) · Political science (16 works) · Law (12 works) · Emperor (10 works) · Politics (10 works) · Literature (9 works) · Classics (7 works)