Elites and Provinces in the Theodosian Age

This paper analyses the power exercised during the Theodosian Age in the capitals by the emperors and the imperial courts, and in the provinces by local elites. I first report how the authority of the imperial court reached the provinces, and how this has been examined in previous studies. I then outline three case studies on typical issues of the Theodosian Age. I highlight that ineffective imperial authority sometimes made the self-defence of the provincial population against enemies unavoidable in the Theodosian Age. I also show that in Late Antiquity and especially in the Theodosian Age, coalitions of people from the same province sometimes gained great power at court with the emperors giving their military functions up and focusing instead on maintaining the loyalty of their subjects by means of dynastic charisma.