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224 8. administration and politics in the cities
lofty senatorial titles surely were the descendants of decurions or owners
of curial land. But there still were individuals described as decurions (i.e.
bouleutai, politeuomenoi) who continued to play some public role, even if it is
not clear how they fitted into the system. 131
In spite of a seeming abundance of material, the picture of civic government
remains extremely fragmentary. How were the various appointments
made, and how were the various activities co-ordinated? It may be that
assignement to ‘houses’ rather than individuals meant that fewer elections
and appointments were needed. But somebody must have drawn up the
rotas and supervised the working of the administration. At Antaiopolis, 132
and at Arsinoe, Herakleopolis and Oxyrhynchus, politics seem to have been
dominated by the heads of a handful of great houses. These families, of
whom the Apions are much the best known, regularly filled not only the
pagarchate but also the civic executive offices of logistes, pater or proedros. 133
Sometimes the same individual held all three. 134 It is likely that if any
serious problem arose at Oxyrhynchus or Arsinoe, the Apions would have
had the last word.
7. The factions and the games
It will be seen that the ‘late late Roman’ arrangements for municipal
government had no constitutional procedure for compelling the oligarchy
of notables to admit colleagues whom they did not want to admit – unless
the imperial administration could be induced to intervene, or the oligarchs
could be impressed with the strength of public opinion. Both objectives
were achieved most effectively by demonstrations. The best-documented
example of a campaign of demonstrations against a local magnate is that
orchestrated against bishop Ibas of Edessa by a group of mainly clerical or
monastic opponents, who were successful in winning the emperor’s
support for the deposition of the bishop. 135 We hear of a comparable but
unsuccessful campaign waged against the patriarch Gregory of Antioch. 136
We have no information about any comparable campaign against a secular
urban magnate. But then the historical sources at no period concern themselves
with the municipal politics of provincial cities. However, the role of
the factions in the troubles in Egypt in the reign of Phocas suggests that
these organizations, whose duty it was to lead acclamations in theatre and
hippodrome, had become deeply involved in local conflicts. 137 This is precisely
what one would expect in a political situation where demonstrations,
more or less violent, were the only procedure for bringing about change.
In late antiquity, civic shows underwent important changes. There were
131 Geremek (1981), (1990). 132 E.g. PLRE iii.830: the various Fl. Mariani . . . Gabrielii . . .
133 Gascou (1985) 61–71. 134 P.Oxy. 2780.7–11; SB xii.11079.7–8; Sijpesteijn (1986) 113–7.
135 Flemming and Hoffmann (1917) 15–55. 136 Evagr. HE vi.7. 137 See p. 228 below.
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