Book contents
- Frontmatter
- 1 Egypt under Roman rule: the legacy of ancient Egypt
- 2 Egypt on the eve of the Muslim conquest
- 3 Egypt as a province in the Islamic caliphate, 641–868
- 4 Autonomous Egypt from Ibn Tūlūn to Kāfūr, 868–969
- 5 The Ismā‘īlī Da‘wa and the Fātimid caliphate
- 6 The Fātimid state, 969–1171
- 7 The non-Muslim communities: Christian communities
- 8 The non-Muslim communities: the Jewish community
- 9 The crusader era and the Ayyūbid dynasty
- 10 The Bahrī Mamlūk sultanate, 1250–1390
- 11 The regime of the Circassian Mamlūks
- 12 The monetary history of Egypt, 642–1517
- 13 Art and architecture in the medieval period
- 14 Culture and society during the late Middle Ages
- 15 Historiography of the Ayyūbid and Mamlūk epochs
- 16 Egypt in the world system of the later Middle Ages
- 17 The military institution and innovation in the late Mamlūk period
- 18 The Ottoman occupation
- The Rulers of Egypt, 254–922/868–1517
- Glossary
- Bibliography
- Index
- References
1 - Egypt under Roman rule: the legacy of ancient Egypt
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 28 March 2008
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Book contents
- Frontmatter
- 1 Egypt under Roman rule: the legacy of ancient Egypt
- 2 Egypt on the eve of the Muslim conquest
- 3 Egypt as a province in the Islamic caliphate, 641–868
- 4 Autonomous Egypt from Ibn Tūlūn to Kāfūr, 868–969
- 5 The Ismā‘īlī Da‘wa and the Fātimid caliphate
- 6 The Fātimid state, 969–1171
- 7 The non-Muslim communities: Christian communities
- 8 The non-Muslim communities: the Jewish community
- 9 The crusader era and the Ayyūbid dynasty
- 10 The Bahrī Mamlūk sultanate, 1250–1390
- 11 The regime of the Circassian Mamlūks
- 12 The monetary history of Egypt, 642–1517
- 13 Art and architecture in the medieval period
- 14 Culture and society during the late Middle Ages
- 15 Historiography of the Ayyūbid and Mamlūk epochs
- 16 Egypt in the world system of the later Middle Ages
- 17 The military institution and innovation in the late Mamlūk period
- 18 The Ottoman occupation
- The Rulers of Egypt, 254–922/868–1517
- Glossary
- Bibliography
- Index
- References
Summary
The death of Cleopatra the Great (VII) in 30 bc marked a pivotal moment in Egyptian history and indigenous culture. Long accustomed to foreign political domination after a succession of Libyan, Nubian, Assyrian, Persian and Macedonian rulers, Egyptian society had nonetheless proved remarkably resilient, assimilating its resident conquerors to varying degrees, while patiently enduring the brief ascendancy of those who ruled from a distance. When, however, the conquering Octavian “added Egypt to the empire of the Roman people,” Egypt was forever relegated to the periphery of political power, and pharaonic society could no longer command extraordinary accommodation from alien rulers. If the Ptolemies were compelled to mollify Egyptian sensibilities for fundamental reasons of national stability, the Romans might do so for mere political expediency.
Although there is now some dispute regarding the degree to which Egypt differed from other Roman provinces, certain unique features have long been noted. Octavian specifically excluded Egypt from customary senatorial control. Rather, he placed the province under the direct “dominion [kratēsis] of Caesar,” a phrase traditionally interpreted to indicate Egypt’s status as a “personal estate” of the emperor. Unlike other provinces, Egypt was administered by a prefect (Latin praefectus; Greek eparchos) of equestrian rank, accountable exclusively to the emperor, rather than by a proconsul of senatorial rank, with potentially divided loyalties. Indeed, senators or even prominent equestrians were formally prohibited from entering Egypt without the explicit approval of the emperor. As in the Ptolemaic regime, Egyptian currency remained a closed system, isolated within the empire. Until the reforms of Diocletian (AD 296), the export of Alexandrian coinage was prohibited, and the exchange of all foreign currency obligatory.
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- The Cambridge History of Egypt , pp. 1 - 33Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 1998
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