Diplomats and Diplomacy in the Roman World

Download or read book Diplomats and Diplomacy in the Roman World written by Claude Eilers and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2009-02-28 with total page 268 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Roman world was fundamentally a face-to-face culture, where it was expected that communication and negotiations would be done in person. This can be seen in Rome’s contacts with other cities, states, and kingdoms — whether dependent, independent, friendly or hostile — and in the development of a diplomatic habit with its own rhythms and protocols that coalesced into a self-sustaining system of communication. This volume of papers offers ten perspectives on the way in which ambassadors, embassies, and the institutional apparatuses supporting them contributed to Roman rule. Understanding Roman diplomatic practices illuminates not only questions about Rome’s evolution as a Mediterranean power, but can also shed light on a wide variety of historical and cultural trends. Contributors are: Sheila L. Ager, Alexander Yakobson, Filippo Battistoni, James B. Rives, Jean-Louis Ferrary, Martin Jehne, T. Corey Brennan, Werner Eck, and Rudolf Haensch.