4 La figure du bon prince dans les inscriptions d’Achaïe : le prince « philhellène » ?
In: The Emperor’s Qualities and Virtues in the Inscriptions from Augustus to the Beginning of Constantine's Reign: “Mirrors for prince”?Purchase instant access (PDF download and unlimited online access):
Abstract
The Hellenistic model of the “good king” is marked by a benevolent attitude which is rewarded on behalf of the cities by a certain number of tributes including the titles and epicleseis often borrowed from the gods and above all from Zeus. Among the signs of recognition we find the title of euergetes and that of philhellene, and also a number of epiclesis such as “Olympian”. We examine through inscriptions how, under the Empire, this tradition was perpetuated and in priority which princes it concerns (Nero and Hadrian in Greece). The profile of the good prince is also the one who made it possible to fight Persians/Parthians and to perpetuate memory of the Persian Wars, therefore also consequently, the cohesion of the Greeks in the face of the enemy. The “liberating” prince is a federator and supports Pan-Hellenism and, therefore, even if this figure is partly modeled by the central Roman power, the populations of the cities of Greece are sensitive to it.