During the
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...
, the governor of Roman Egypt ''(praefectus Aegypti)'' was a
prefect
Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area.
A prefect's ...
who administered the
Roman province of Egypt with the delegated authority ''(
imperium)'' of the
emperor
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( ...
.
Egypt was established as a Roman province in consequence of the
Battle of Actium, where
Cleopatra as the last independent ruler of Egypt and her Roman ally
Mark Antony
Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the au ...
were defeated by
Octavian, the adopted heir of the assassinated
Roman dictator
A Roman dictator was an extraordinary magistrate in the Roman Republic endowed with full authority to resolve some specific problem to which he had been assigned. He received the full powers of the state, subordinating the other magistrates, con ...
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, an ...
. Octavian then rose to supreme power with the title
Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...
, ending the era of the
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...
and installing himself as ''
princeps'', the so-called "leading citizen" of Rome who in fact acted as an
autocratic ruler. Although
senators continued to serve as
governors of most other provinces (the
senatorial province
A senatorial province ( la, provincia populi Romani, province of the Roman people) was a Roman province during the Principate where the Roman Senate had the right to appoint the governor ( proconsul). These provinces were away from the outer ...
s), especially those annexed under the Republic, the role of Egypt during the civil war with Antony and its strategic and economic importance prompted Augustus to ensure that no rival could secure ''Aegyptus'' as an asset. He thus established Egypt as an
imperial province
An imperial province was a Roman province during the Principate where the Roman Emperor had the sole right to appoint the governor (''legatus Augusti pro praetore''). These provinces were often the strategically located border provinces.
The pr ...
, to be governed by a prefect he appointed from men of the
equestrian order.
As Egypt was a special imperial domain, a rich and strategic granary, where the Emperor enjoyed an almost
pharaonic position unlike any other province or diocese, its head was styled uniquely ''Praefectus Augustalis'', indicating that he governed in the personal name of the emperor, the "Augustus". The ''praefectus Aegypti'' was considered to hold the highest ranking equestrian post during the early empire. Later, the post would fall second to that of the praetorian command, but its position remained highly prestigious.
A prefect of Egypt usually held the office for three or four years.
[Alan K. Bowman, ''Egypt After the Pharaohs 332 BC-AD 642: From Alexander to the Arab Conquest'' (University of California Press, 1986, 1996), p. 66.] An equestrian appointed to the office received no specialized training, and seems to have been chosen for his
military experience and knowledge of
Roman law
Roman law is the legal system of ancient Rome, including the legal developments spanning over a thousand years of jurisprudence, from the Twelve Tables (c. 449 BC), to the '' Corpus Juris Civilis'' (AD 529) ordered by Eastern Roman emperor J ...
and administration.
[ Any knowledge he might have of Egypt and its arcane traditions of politics and bureaucracy—which Philo of Alexandria described as "intricate and diversified, hardly grasped even by those who have made a business of studying them from their earliest years"—was incidental to his record of Roman service and the emperor's favor.][
]
Prefects during the Principate
Unless otherwise noted, governors from 30 BC to AD 299 are taken from Guido Bastianini
a al 299p"">"Lista dei prefetti d'Egitto dal 30a al 299p"
'' Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik'', 17 (1975), pp. 263-321, 323-328
Later Roman Diocese (330 – 395)
Prefects of the province of Egypt. Names and dates taken from the '' Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire'', vol. 1, pp. 1084–1085.
First Byzantine Period (395 – 616)
Names and dates taken from John Stewart's ''African States and Rulers'' (2006).
Titles:
#Prefect
Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area.
A prefect's ...
(395 - 539)
# Dux (539 - 616)
Sassanian Occupation
Second Byzantine Period (628-642)
References
Further reading
* Heinz Hübner: ''Der Praefectus Aegypti von Diokletian bis zum Ende der römischen Herrschaft''. Filser, München-Pasing 1952.
* Oscar William Reinmuth: ''The Prefect of Egypt from Augustus to Diocletian''. Leipzig 1935.
* Arthur Stein Arthur Stein may refer to:
* Arthur Stein (political scientist)
* Arthur Stein (historian)
* Arthur Stein (activist)
{{hndis, Stein, Arthur ...
: ''Die Präfekten von Ägypten in der römischen Kaiserzeit''. Francke, Bern 1950.
{{Roman Governors
Roman Egypt
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...
Roman governors
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning the North Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via a land bridg ...
Byzantine Egypt