<論説>フラウィウス朝の成立とローマ帝国東部 : ウェスパシアヌスはなぜ皇帝となりえたか

Abstract

ネロ帝死後の六九年、ローマ帝国は元首政史上初の内乱状態を迎えた。この混乱を終息させ新たにフラウィウス朝の祖となったのが、ウェスパシアヌスである。本稿は、彼の本来の支持基盤である帝国東部に焦点をあて、フラウィウス派(ウェスパシアヌスの党派) が出自の低い元老院議員たちの「連合」としての側面を持っただけでなく、東部に深く根づいたものでもあったことを明らかにした。当時、東部の軍団は徐々に駐留属州の文化的影響を受けるようになっており、また、アルメニア戦争を戦ったことで独自の連帯感を芽生えさせていた。これに加え、ウェスパシアヌスは東方の神々に選ばれた存在として、東部の軍団や属州民の「東部意識」に訴えかけた。さらに土着勢力とも緊密な関係を築き上げ、東部の諸勢力を統合することに成功したのである。これがフラウィウス朝の東方政策に引き継がれ、東部発展の契機となった。その一方で、ウェスパシアヌスは自らを伝統的ローマ人と喧伝することもでき、それがフラウィウス朝に安定をもたらしたのである。

The uniqueness of Vespasian is seen in the fact that he was the only emperor rising from the East in the first and second centuries. From this point of view, this paper examines the organization of the Flavian party in the East at the time of his accession. It is important to note the relation between Vespasian and the senators in the East, especially, C. Licinius Mucianus, the governor of Syria, and the legates of legions in Syria and Judaea. Mucianus had just lost his powerful patron, the Emperor Nero, at his death, and most of the legates, who were of relatively low origin, did not have good prospects of political advancement. Thus, their interests coincided: they chose as their representative Vespasian, who was also of low origin and had the traditional Roman attitude. Here, his low origin operated in his favor to gain their support. His accession was also aided by the fact that the murder of the Emperor Galba undermined the authority of an emperor and the value of high lineage. The other important elements of the rise of the Flavian party lay in the regional characteristic of the East. First, legionaries had keen awareness of being the "Eastern" army in 69 AD: some legions had been stationed there for long time since the Augustan period; and their contact with provincials and their culture was inevitable, if gradual. The practice of local recruitment was also essential in this regard. Moreover, the legionaries' participation in the Armenian War under Domitius Corbulo, led them to strengthen their sense of solidarity. Vespasian also unified the easternized army and the provincials by exploiting the oracles of eastern deities, such as Serapis and Baal. Secondly, Vespasian established close connections with powerful eastern people, helped by Agrippa II and Berenice from the Judaean royal family. The connections of these two included client kings and Ti. Iulius Alexander, the prefect of Egypt, whose officer was Ti. Iulius Celsus Polemaeanus, the elite from Sardis in Asia Minor. These connections become all the more significant, considering that two cities Berytus and Alexandra played crucial roles in Vespasian's rebellion. Berytus, where many eastern supporters of the Flavian cause gathered to plan their strategy, was deeply related to the Judean kings since the reign of Herod the Great. Alexandria, the capital of Egypt, was where, for the first time, they proclaimed Vespasian as Emperor and had general headquarters for more than half a year. The financial and military power of these places was equal to that of the legions in Syria and Judaea. Vespasian's re-organization of the East was the inception of the development of the area. There was a possibility that the senators in Rome might have been opposed to this eastern character, but since the person who directly organized the Flavian party was his eldest son Titus, Vespasian could just proclaim that he was the traditional Roman and had the mos maiorum. This lessened the opposition from the senators in Rome and stabilized his new dynasty.