The Roman Empire – understanding of the state, administration and communication channels in ancient times

From today’s perspective, the Roman Empire is often considered a “state” in the modern sense. But this view falls short because ancient reality was more complex and differentiated. In today’s political science, the term “state” describes a clearly defined territorial dominion in which a central institution has the monopoly on legitimatePhysical violence claimed and defended. These include a trained bureaucracy, a functioning legal system and a well-organized administration that structures public life. However, the development into a real monopoly on the use of force as we know it today was only completed in the absolutism of the early modern period. In ancient Rome, on the other hand, the institutionalization ofRules of Domination A continuous, never completely completed process that lasted until late antiquity, without ever reaching the level of modern states.

Institutionalization of domination and monopoly on the use of force

Even in the 4th and 5th centuries AD, when the Empire had long since reached an impressive expansion, there was no sole state monopoly on the use of force in the present sense. Rather, the Empire was a complex network of personal loyalty ties, patronage relationships and networks stabilized by social relationships and mutual commitments. theRule was based less on abstract institutions and more on individual ties and a large number of actors, each of whom brought in independent power resources. The Roman Empire was not a homogeneous territorial state, but a network held together by personal relationships, clientelism and ad hoc structures.

Lack of modern state attributes

Although it would be inappropriate to fully deny Rome’s quality of a “state”, it remains to be noted that, from today’s perspective, statehood in ancient Rome had considerable deficits. There was no centralized police in the modern sense; Only the Cohortes Urbani, an urban guard force under the direction of the city prefect, took over rudimentary in the imperial capitalpolice tasks. They were supported by the Vigiles, who primarily acted as fire brigades, but also took on police functions. A central law enforcement authority, bailiffs or a unified prison system did not exist, and a comprehensive code of criminal proceedings were also missing. Nevertheless, the Reich had a sophisticated and constantly evolving legal system, inwhose framework the magistrates, including the emperor, acted.

Social care and administration

State services of general interest in the sense of public social benefits, a healthcare system or a general educational system were not available. What there were were so-called “beneficials” (Beneficial), which gave rich citizens or the Kaiser to the population in the form of food donations, gifts or vouchers. However, these were less of an institutionalized expressionwelfare, but served to strengthen personal loyalties. The administration was also poorly developed. In the republic, the magistrates changed every year, were entrusted with broad-based tasks and had to pay their few assistants out of their own pockets. The Emperor resorted to slaves, freedmen and later on professional lawyers to organize the administration.The provincial governors had to be content with small staffs, mostly recruited from the military garrison.

Diplomacy and Communication

There was no professional diplomatic representation, such as embassies or a separate service for foreign affairs, in the Roman Empire. Instead, ad hoc envoys were deployed for diplomatic missions, who often didn’t even have to be Roman citizens. Diplomacy was thus situational and little institutionalized. In the midst of this rudimentaryHowever, state structures existed an institution that developed a high degree of professionalism early on: the Roman military.

The military as a professional organization

The Roman army was not only a powerful combat unit, but also a versatile business and administrative officer. It had its own hospitals, surveyors, livestock farms, construction crews, engineers and weapons factories. The legions had specialized units for espionage, education and quick news transmission. With that, the military was often theactual carrier of organization and innovation in the Empire. The ability to obtain and forward information quickly was crucial for the empire’s power to be held.

Communication challenges over long distances

A central problem of all pre-modern societies was slow communication. In the vast Roman Empire, this meant that important news often took days or even weeks to get from one border to the other, especially when transporting overland had to take place. The Persian empire had already demonstrated how through a sophisticated road network andA system of post stations that could be accelerated.

Roman Infrastructure: Roads and Postal Services

From the 4th century BC, the Romans built an extensive network of roads – especially for military purposes. The so-called Cursus publicus, a state-organized promotion system, was created under Emperor Augustus. The inhabitants of the provinces were obliged to provide horses, draft animals and carriages. A network of relay stations called mutations, enabled the fastChange of horses and offered travelers accommodation. Increasingly, special hostels (mansiones) were created along the main roads. The Emperor himself decided who was given access to the Cursus publicus and issued appropriate certificates of entitlement. Administrative personnel and soldiers primarily used the system, but civilians were also able to make use of it in exceptional cases -if they had sufficient influence.

Mobility in the Empire: speed and ways

The Empire was a space with different mobility patterns. Speed and travel comfort depend on the season, the status and the respective purpose of the trip. For the route from Rome to Burdigala (Bordeaux) – 1425 kilometers – a team of oxen needed 121 days, i.e. around four months. However, goods were usually not transported exclusively by land, butIf possible by ship, which significantly shortened the travel time. A slow ship covered the Ostia-Narbo (Narbonne) route in a good 24 days, a rider with a fast ship would only have needed a little over 12 days. It was even faster with the Cursus Publicus: Thanks to the relay stations, a courier only needed around 6.3 days for the same distance.

The Cursus Publicus and the Empire’s Controllability

Although the Cursus publicus did not abolish the distances in the Roman Empire, he made it manageable. The average transport times of Rome to the main empire cities were surprisingly short for a private traveler with a fast horse in the summer: Aquilia was reached in 2.8 days, Carthage in 4 days, Serdica (Sofia) in 5.2 days, Athens in 5.8 days,Constantinople in 7.2 days, Emerita Augusta (Mérida) in 9.8 days, Eburacum (York) in 10.6 days, Alexandreia in 11.4 days and Antiocheia in 12.4 days. As a result, the Cursus publicus accelerated mobility in the Empire at least twice, in many cases even more strongly – and thus contributed significantly to the stability and integration of the empire.

The misunderstanding of the “state”: Modern concepts and ancient reality

The Roman Empire was far from a modern state with a centralized monopoly on the use of force, organized administration and comprehensive state services of general interest. Rather, it was a complex network of personal relationships based on loyalty, patronage and flexible structures. Nevertheless, the Romans succeeded in building effective communication channels and a highdeveloped a huge empire together and control over centuries. The infrastructure and postal system were decisive factors in the functionality and stability of the ancient empire, although it never reached the modern state in many areas.