Patrician

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This article is about the social and political class in ancient Rome. For other uses of the term, see patrician (disambiguation).

Patrician originally referred to the elite of ancient Rome, the term was a specific title given to high court officials during the time of the late Roman Empire.

The term is derived from the Latin word patricius (plural patricii), which comes from patrēs, the plural of pater ("father"). Pater was the term applied to the original members of the Roman Senate. The word comes down in English as "patrician" from the Middle English patricion, from the Old French patrician. In modern English, the word patrician is generally used to denote a member of the upper class, often with connotations of inherited wealth, elitism, and a sense of noblesse oblige.

The patricians formed the upper class of Roman citizenship. Patricians have been referred to as the Senatorial class, but not all patricians held positions in the Roman Senate. The other classes of the period were the Equites, which formed the middle class, and the working class plebs.

Patricians were distinguished by a purple band on the white toga of adult males. A similar purple band was worn on the white togas of the tribuni militum and the minors of all classes.

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[edit] Patricians vs. Plebeians

The distinction between patricians and plebeians in ancient Rome is not clearly defined in the ancient historical sources. Patricians are often portrayed as the rich and powerful families who managed to secure power over the less fortunate plebeian families, though some historians argue that this is too simplistic a view. By the time of the late Republic the identification of the two groups had become less definite, as many plebeian families had attained wealth and power while traditionally patrician families had fallen into poverty and obscurity.

Historian Adrian Richard states that patrician families were initially those who held positions within the priesthoods, and that the ancient Senate, comprised of patricians, was a religious advisory body. The Senate, acting as a council of religious elders, had political power because it was necessary to have their assent on new laws. The priestly class would confirm that the new laws were in keeping with mos maiorum and would give their auctoritas to the measures that could then be enacted.

[edit] Patrician position

Patrician status still carried a degree of prestige at the time of the early Roman Empire, and Roman Emperors routinely elevated their supporters to the patrician caste en masse. The prestige and meaning of the status gradually degraded, and by the end of the third century crisis, patrician status, as it had been known in the Republic, ceased to have meaning in everyday life. The emperor Constantine reintroduced the term, and Patrician became an honorific title bestowed to those who demonstrated faithful service to the Empire. There were often only a few patricians in the Empire at any given time, and sometimes only one.

By the 5th century, the title generally denoted a man, commonly a general of the Roman army, who held the power behind the imperial throne. Patricians of this era included Stilicho, Constantius III, Aëtius, Boniface, and Ricimer; Constantius III would later become co-emperor. The patrician title was occasionally used in Western Europe after the end of the Roman Empire; for instance, Pope Stephen II granted the title "Patrician of the Romans" to the Frankish ruler Pippin III.

In the Eastern Empire, where the Emperors maintained their hold on power, the title retained its meaning as an honorific. The term fell out of use as the Greek language replaced Latin as the language of the court. A member of the plebeian class could be elevated by showing great support towards the Senate, by living a life of pure dedication, and having no criminal history with members of the groups. Patricians could be demoted to plebeian status if they failed to fulfill their duties as a husband, or by murdering another member of the patrician society.

[edit] Use in fiction

In the satirical fantasy series Discworld by English author Terry Pratchett, the city of Ankh-Morpork is run by a Presidential figure who is akin to the old Roman nobility. The ruler takes the title of Patrician, but is in all respects a tyrant. In most of the novels, the Patrician in office is named Havelock Vetinari and though he often puts up a democratic facade, he is a de facto dictator, albeit a relatively benign one.

In the science fiction 'Foundation' trilogy of Isaac Asimov, Ducem Barr is referred to as a Patrician of the Empire in 'Foundation and Empire' volume. Within the story it is an inherited noble title, clearly derived of the Roman Imperial definition, which was used as a model for Asimov's Galactic Empire.

[edit] List of definite and possible patrician families

[edit] Definite

[edit] Possible

  • Livia
  • Junia (later republic)
  • Cassia (later republic)
  • Domitia
  • Calpurnia
  • Caecilia
  • Scribonia
  • Cornelius Sulla

[edit] List of Patricii

[edit] See also

[edit] Reference

  • Kurt Raaflaub, ed. Social Struggles in Archaic Rome: New Perspectives on the Conflict of the Orders (Blackwell Publishing, 2005)
  • Gary Forsythe, 2005, A Critical History of Ancient Rome. University of California Press.
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