The Geography of Power: Studies in the Urbanization of Roman North-West Europe 9780860546146, 9781407347646

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The Geography of Power Studies in the Urbanization of Roman · North-West Europe

Tq>nnes Bekker-Nielsen

BAR International Series 47,7

1989

B.A.R. 5, Centremead, Osney Mead, Oxford OX2 ODQ, England.

GENERAL EDITORS A.R. Hands, B.Sc., M.A., D.Phil. D.R. Walker, M.A.

BAR -S4'l'l, 1989: 'The Geography of Power'

© Tennes

Bekker-Iielsen, 1989

The author’s moral rights under the 1988 UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act are hereby expressly asserted.

All rights reserved. No part of this work may be copied, reproduced, stored, sold, distributed, scanned, saved in any form of digital format or transmitted in any form digitally, without the written permission of the Publisher. ISBN 9780860546146 paperback ISBN 9781407347646 e-book DOI https://doi.org/10.30861/9780860546146 A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library This book is available at www.barpublishing.com

CONTENTS

1 .

T he P rob lem

1

2 .

T he T own

4

3 .

I n S earch o f a Me thod

9

4 .

T he S ources

1 4

5 .

U rban N etworks i n I t a ly a nd Gau l , F irst C entury AD

2 0

6 .

T he Deve lopment o f t he U rban N etwork i n G au l

3 3

6 . 1 6 .2 6 .3 6 .4 6 .5 6 .6 6 .7 6 .8

Narbonese Gau l T he Western a nd Mar it ime A lps E astern Gau l T he Rh ine land Nor thern Gau l Centra l a nd Western Gau l S outh-Western G au l S um mary

3 3 3 5 3 6 3 7 3 8 3 9 4 0 4 3

7 .

Changes i n t he U rban P a ttern : C auses a nd E ffects

4 4

8 .

U rban P atterns a nd E conom ic D eve lopment

5 2

9 .

Conc lus ion : T he G eography o f P ower

6 5

Notes

6 9

B ib l iography

7 6

Append ix I T he C it ies o f I t a ly i n t he F irs t Century AD

8 5

Append ix I T he C it ies o f G au l i n t he E ar ly F irst Century AD

9 9

Append ix I T he C it ies o f G au l i n t he L ate F ourth Century AD

1 03

Maps

1 09

Key t o map 5 a nd 6 I ndex t o maps

17 1 21

Nec s i tus o r ig inesque p ersequ i f ac i le e st . P l iny , NH 3 .46 .

1 THE PROBLEM

I n mos t s oc ie t ies , t he e xerc ise o f p ower a nd a uthor ity t akes p lace t hrough a c omp lex n e twork o f r e la t ions b etween i nd iv idua ls a nd g roups . V iewed a s a w ho le , t h is n etwork may b e v i sua l ized a s a t hree-d imens iona l s t ruc t ure a nd , i n e veryday t erm ino logy , a c entra l ized a nd h ierarch ic s oc iety s uch a s t he Roman Emp ire i s o f ten r eferred t o a s a p yram id . S tr ic t ly s peak ing , o f c ourse , ac one wou ld b e a more c orrect me taphor . S uch s truc tures may b e s tud ied i n s evera l ways . A v ert ica l s ect ion may b e t aken t hrough t he p yram id , e xpos ing t he l eve ls w ith in t he h ierar c hy , t he c hanne ls t hrough wh ich a uthor ity i s d e lega ted , a nd t he r e la t ion s h ips b e tween s uper iors a nd s ubord ina tes . I n s hort , t h is a pproach s eeks t o l ay b are t he v ert ica l r e lat ions w ith in t he p yram id . A no ther a pproach i s b ased o n a h or izonta l s ec t ion t hrough t he p yram id , e xpos ing t he r e la t ionsh ips b etween e lemen ts a t a g iven l eve l o f a u thor ity . S tud ies o f t he p o l it ica l a nd a dm in istra t ive s tructure o f t he Roman Emp ire h ave g enera l ly f o l lowed t he f ormer a pproach , f ocuss ing o n t he r e la t ionsh ips o f p rov inces , c i t ies , a nd l e sser t owns t o e ach o ther . T he f o l low ing s tudy , h owever , i s b ased o n t he a l terna t ive a pproach a nd h as a s i t s s tart ing p o int a c ross-sect ion o f t he p yram id a t t he r eg iona l l eve l . The r eg iona l l eve l w i l l b e d ef ined a s t hat i m med iate ly b e low t he p rov in c ia l , t he l eve l where t he p r ime a gents o f I mper ia l p ower i n t he c iv i l ian s phere a re t he u rban a dm in istrat ive i n st itut ions o f t he s e lf-govern ing c ommun it ies : c o lon iae , mun ic ip ia a nd o ther ' c it ies ' ( c iv itates , o pp ida i n t he West ; p o le is i n t he E ast ) w ith t he ir d ependent t err itor ies . Obv ious ly , t here a re o ther a genc ies o f I mper ia l a uthor ity a t t h is l eve l a s we l l , b ut - a t l east i n t he p ar t o f t he Emp ire s tud ied h ere - t he s e lf-govern ing ' c it ies ' a re i nd ispensab le f or t he a dm in istrat ion a nd f i sca l e xp lo itat ion o f t he p rov inces . T he k ey p os it ion o f t he c i ty w ith in t he p ower s t ructure o f t he Roman Emp ire i s d ue t o s evera l f actors . T hree i mpor tant o nes may b e s ummar ized a s f o l lows : 1 . T he a nc ient c oncep t ion o f t he t own a s p o l is 2 . T he i n terdependence o f p o l it ica l a nd e conom ic c ontro l 3 . T he f orma t ion o f t he Emp ire w ith in a n u rban ized m i l ieu Cen tra l t o a ny d iscuss ion o f t he t own i n c lass ica l a nt iqu ity i s t he i dea o f t he p o l is , v ar ious ly a nd u nsat isfactor i ly t rans lated a s ' c ity ' , ' s ta te ' , o r ' c i ty-state ' . I dea l ly , t he G reek p o l is e n joyed p o l it ica l a utonomy a nd e conom ic a utarchy . P o l it ica l ly , t he c i ty a nd i t s t err itory t ogether f ormed a s overe ign s ta te . E conom ica l ly , t oo , c i ty a nd r ura l t err itory f ormed a n e n t ity . Where modern e conom ists a nd s oc io log ists w i l l t end t o v iew t own a nd c ountry a s d i st inc t e n t it ies , s eparated o r e ven a n tagon ized b y d ivergent i n terests , i n t he c lass ica l v iew t hey a re c omp lemen tary a nd i n separab le p ar ts o f t he p o l is .

1

T hough t hey e n joyed a c ons iderab le measure o f s e lf-gove rnmen t u nder t he e ar ly Emp ire , a c iv itas o f Normandy o r a c o lon ia i n t he P o v a l ley were n ever s overe ign s ta tes , wh i le t he ' a l l ied ' c i t ies o f S outhern I t a ly o r t he p o le is o f A s ia M inor h ad l ong s i nce l o st a l l c la ims t o p o l it i c a l i ndependence . I n t h is r espec t , t he p rov inc ia l Roman t own was n o ' c ity-state ' . B ut w ith in t he f ramework o f t he R oman I mper ia l a dm in istra t i on , t own a nd c ountry d id f orm a who le . A man c ou ld r es ide i n t he b ackwoods o f Western Gau l , f ar f rom t he t own f rom wh ich h i s l and was g overned , b ut n onethe less b e a c i t izen o f t ha t t own - j u st a s a r es iden t o f E phesus , A r les o r York c ou ld e n joy f u l l ' Roman ' c i t izensh ip e ven i f h e h ad n ever s et f oo t i n t he c i ty o f Rome . T h is b as ic d ifference b etween a nc ient a nd modern v iews o f t he t own a nd i t s p lace i n t he c ountry i s o f f undamenta l i mportance i n a ny a ttemp t t o a pp ly modern g eograph ica l mode ls t o t he Roman wor ld ; i ndeed i n a ny i n terpretat ion o f t he s pa t ia l s tructure o f t he Roman Emp ire . T he d ifference i s c lear ly b rought o ut when t he p o l is c oncept i s c ompared w ith t he Med ieva l v iew o f t he c i ty : h ere , t he c i t ies ( a t l eas t a s s een b y t he ir i nhab itants ) f ormed i s lands i n a v as t a nd o f ten h os t i le s ea o f r ura l t err itory , a nd t he c i ty was l ega l ly ( and o f ten p o l it ica l ly ) s harp ly d is t ingu ished f rom t he l and o uts ide t he c i ty wa l ls . T he f amous l ega l a x iom t ha t " c ity a i r makes f ree " ( S tadt luf t macht f re i ) i s u n th inkab le i n t he c ontext o f s econd-cen tury Roman Germany o r Gau l . T rad it ion , t hen , i s o ne f actor d ef in ing t he p lace o f t he Roman t own i n s oc iety ; f unct ion i s a nother . I n a ny s oc iety , e ffect ive p o l it ica l c on tro l i s ma in ta ined o n ly b y e ffect ive c on tro l o f t he e conomy : a nd t h is , i n t urn , i s e as ier t o a ch ieve i f t he a genc ies o f a uthor ity a re l oca ted a t t he n odes o f e conom ic a ct iv ity . Ma jor e conom ic c entres ( w ith t he ir c oncentrat ions o f wea lth a nd , u l t imate ly , p ower ) a re p oten t ia l t roub le s po ts i f l e ft t o t hemse lves , o uts ide t he r ange o f a dm in istra t ive s urve i l l ance . W ith in t he Roman * Emp ire , t owns f orm ing e conom ic n odes a t t he r eg iona l l eve l n orma l ly a l so f unct ioned a s r eg iona l a dm in istra t ive c en tres a nd a s e x tens ions o f t he I mper ia l f i sca l a ppara tus . A s im i l iar c ongruence o f e conom ic n odes a nd p o l it ica l c entres c an b e o bserved i n o ther s oc ie t i es , e .g . l a te I mper ia l Ch ina ( 1 ) . T he p rocess o f u rban iza t ion i t se lf w i l l o ften l ead t o a ' natura l ' s ta te o f c ongruence b etween p a tterns o f e conom ic a ct iv ity a nd p atterns o f p o l it ica l a uthor ity , b ut u n less s oc ie ty r ema ins p erfect ly s ta t ic , t he e conom ic p attern may h ave t o b e a dap ted t o c hang ing p o l it ica l p atterns , o r v ice v ersa , i n o rder t o ma in ta in c ongru e nce . F ina l ly , t he f orms o f Roman a uthor ity must b e s een a ga inst t he b ackground o f Roman h is tory . When t he g rea t wars o f a nnexa t ion b egan i n t he t h ird c entury BC , t owns were a l ready a l ong-estab l ished f ea ture o f t he Med iterranean l andscape . T hat e x ist ing u rban c entres s hou ld f o rm t he b ases o f Roman a dm in is trat ion was o n ly n atura l , t he mo re s o s i nce t he Romans o f ten s ucceeded o ther r u lers w hose a uthor ity h ad l i kew ise b een e xerted t hrough t he t owns . I n s hor t , t he i dea o f t he p o l is p layed a l a rge p art i n s hap ing t he r ö le o f t he t own w ith in t he s t ructure o f I mper ia l p ower , b u t p rac t ica l c ons iderat ions a nd t he a dvantage o f l i nk ing Roman a dm in is trat ion t o

2

e x is t ing p o l it ica l s t ructures p layed t he ir p art a s we l l . T he i mportance o f p ract ice a s c ompared t o t heory may b e s een f rom R oman b ehav iour i n a reas where t hey f ound n o e s tab l ished u rban n etwork o n wh ich t o b ase t he ir a dm in is trat ion . I n s ome c ases , e .g . i n A fr ica , u rban n etworks o f c o lon ies wou ld s eem t o h ave b een c rea ted e v acuo ; i n o thers , s uch a s G au l o r B r ita in , p re-Roman t r iba l t err itor ies were c hosen a s t he f ounda t ion o f a n a dm in istrat ive s t ruc ture b ased o n c iv itates . Yet o ther i n stances o f d epartures f rom ' norma l ' Roman p ract ice c an b e f ound i n E gypt o r i n t he B a lkans .

3

2 THE TOWN

T he word ' t own ' i s u sed t o d escr ibe a v ar ie ty o f s ett lements , d i ffer ing i n s i ze , s hape , p opu lat ion d ens ity , i n terna l l ayout a nd a ppearance . Ye t , i n o ur e veryday u se o f t he word , d i s t ingu ish ing b e tween t owns a nd ' non t owns ' a ppears t o b e a s imp le ma tter . B ut o nce t he q uest ion o f ap rec ise d ef in it ion i s r a ised , i t t urns o ut t o b e l e ss s imp le t han e xpected : a l a rge n umber o f a gg lomera t ions ( f orts , monaster ies , m in ing v i l lages , p r isons , work c amps ) h ave s ome o f t he t ra its g enera l ly a ssumed t o b e c haracter is t i c o f a' t own ' , y et o bv ious ly d o n o t q ua l ify a s t owns . I n t he p resent c ontext , we may l eave a s ide t he s ubt ler p rob lems a nd c on tent 0 i n-s e lves w ith a s hor thand d ef in it ion o f a t own a s a p erma n ent ly a nd d ense ly i nhab ited s ett lement where a s i gn if ican t s egment o f t he p opu lat ion i s e ngaged i n n on-agr icu ltura l a ct iv ity . F urther , t here must b e r ec iproca l e conom ic r e la t ions b e tween t he i nhab itan ts o f t he s ett lemen t a nd t he p opu la t ion o uts ide . ' Dense ' a nd ' s ign if icant ' a re o bv ious l y r e la t ive t erms : a p opu la t ion d ens ity wh ich was h igh f or a nc ient Rome w i l l b e l ow f or modern-day Ch icago , a nd wh i le a n on-agr icu ltura l s egment o f , s ay , 2 0% may h ave b een t yp ica l o f many Roman t owns , i t wou ld b e v ery l ow f or mos t E uropean t owns . F ina l ly , we s hou ld n ote t hat wh i le most o f t he t owns t o b e d i scussed b e low w i l l b e ' c it ies ' , i . e . s e tt lements f orma l ly d ef ined a s u rban b y t he Roman a dm in istra t ion , t he l e ga l s tatus o f as ett lement f orms n o p art o f t he d ef in it ion o f a' t own ' . T he e x istence o f r ec iproca l e conom ic r e la t ions w ith t he s urround ing a rea i nd ica tes t ha t t he t own i s a ' centra l p lace ' , i . e . a s ett lement where ' cen tra l ' f unct ions a re p rov ided f or t he u se o f t he p opu lat ion o uts ide a s we l l a s i n s ide t he t own . I n f act , o ne c ou ld c ons ider d ispens ing w ith t he t erm ' t own ' a l toge ther a nd u s ing ' cen tra l p lace ' i n stead . ' Centra l p laces ' f orm t he s ub ject o f t he Cen tra l P lace T heory , f i rst f ormu lated s i xty y ears a go b y t he German g eographer Wa lter Chr is t a l ler ( 1933 ) . T he a pp l icab i l ity o f Centra l P lace T heory ( CPT f o r s hort ) t o Roman u rban iza t ion h as b een d i spu ted , e spec ia l ly i n t he w ake o f I an H odder 's a ttempts a t i n troduc ing CPT i n to t he s tudy o f Roman B r ita in ( 1970 , 1 972 ) , a nd s cep t ic ism s t i l l a ppears t o b e a p reva len t a tt itude among a nc ient h i stor ians a s we l l a s a rchaeo log ists ( e .g . Reece ( 1986 ) ) . Obv ious ly , CPT a s u sed t oday h as n o t b een t a i lored t o t he n eeds o f a nc ien t h i s tory o r h i stor ica l g eography , b ut t o t hose o f modern e conom ic g eography ; a nd t he h igh ly s oph is t icated mode ls g enera ted f o r u se i n t he c on tex t o f i ndustr ia l ized s oc iet ies h ave a s l i tt le t o t e l l u s a bou t Roman t owns a s t he mode ls u sed i n motorway p lann ing h ave t o t e l l u s a bout Roman r oads . Ye t , j u st a s t he motorway i s e ssent ia l ly a r oad , t he R oman t own i s e ssen t ia l ly a Cen tra l P lace . U n l ike t he a pproach u sed b y a nother f ound ing f a ther o f CPT , Augus t L ösch ( 1940 ) , C hr ista l ler 's b as ic mode l d oes n o t p resuppose a n i ndustr ia l ized s oc iety . I t c an b e a pp l ied t o t rad it io n a l s oc ie t ies a s we l l : i n f act , o ne o f t he c lass ic CPT s tud ies , q uo ted 4

i n s evera l t extbooks , d ea ls w ith t he p reindustr ia l a nd p re-au tomob i le marke t ing p atterns i n t he C h inese p rov ince o f S zechwan ( Sk inner ( 1 964 ) ) . S ince t he ' centra l f unct ions ' c ruc ia l t o C hr ista l ler 's c lass ica l v ers ion o f CPT a re l a rge ly f ound w ith in t he s phere o f s erv ices , a dm in is tra t ion , t ransport , f i nance , a nd t rade , i t i s n o t t he i ndustr ia l r evo lut ion b u t r ather t he t r anspor t r evo lut ion a c entury l a ter wh ich marks t he wa tershed b etween ' modern ' a nd ' p re-modern ' s tages i n t he d eve lopment o f t he c entra l p lace n etwork . T h is , c omb ined w ith t he s t rong r es istance t o c hange c haracter is t ic o f mos t s ett lement p a tterns , means t ha t q u ite r ecen t CP s tud ies ( Brush a nd B racey ( 1955 ) , S ingh ( 1965 ) , J ohnson ( 1970 ) , Mahn ( 1980 ) ) may p rov ide v a luab le ma ter ia l f or c ompar ison w ith t he s e tt lement p a tterns f ound i n Roman c ontexts . S t i l l , i t wou ld b e m is lead ing t o r ep lace t he t erm ' t own ' w ith ' centra l p lace ' . G iven t he l im itat ions o f o ur e v idence , we k now t oo l i tt le a bout mos t R oman t owns t o d ef ine t he ir f unct ions a s c entra l p laces w ith c er t a in ty . I n t h ig s tudy , t hen , ' t own ' a s d ef ined a bove w i l l b e u sed when d ea l ing w ith u rban s ett lements i n g enera l , ' centra l p lace ' o n ly when d iscuss ing Roman t owns i n t he c ontext o f Centra l P lace T heory a nd i t s d er ivat ives .

Roman t owns a s c entra l p laces CPT a nd t he a nc ien t i dea o f t he p o l is s hare a f undamenta l c oncept : t he v i s ion o f t he t own a nd i t s t err itory a s c omp lementary p ar ts o f a s ing le who le . I n CPT , o ne u sua l ly d oes n ot s peak o f t own a nd t err itory , b ut o f c enter a nd h inter land . T he c enter , i . e . t he c en tra l p lace , i s d ef ined a s s uch b y v i rtue o f i t s c en tra l f unct ions : t he f unct ions ( s erv ices , g oods ) wh ich t he i nhab itan t o f t he h inter land w i l l n o t f i nd a nywhere b ut i n a c en ter . T he c en tra l f unct ion i s r are ly u n ique : t he c ountry d we l ler may f i nd i t i n o ther t owns a s we l l b ut , a ccord ing t o t he l aw o f m in imum e ffor t w i l l n orma l ly s eek i t i n t he t own wh ich i s n earest t o h i s p lace o f r es idence , measured i n t erms o f t he t ime n eeded t o make t he j ourney r a ther t han i n t erms o f a bso lute g eograph ica l d i stance . T he s i ze o f t he h inter land i s d eterm ined b y t he r ange o f t he f unc t ions l ocated i n t he c enter . T he r ange i s d ef ined a s t he max imum d i s t ance t hat a c ountry dwe l ler w i l l c over i n o rder t o a va i l h imse lf o f a g iven f unct ion . B eyond t h is d i s tance f rom t he c enter , c ountry d we l lers w i l l e i ther c hoose s ome o ther c enter c loser t o t he ir p lace o f r es idence o r f o rgo t he f unc t ion ( s erv ice , g ood ) a l toge ther . I n t he f ormer c ase ( a c ompet ing c en ter t akes o ver ) t he r e lat ive r ange o r l im it h as b een r eached ; i n t he l a tter c ase , t he a bso lute r ange . C enters o f l e sser i mpor tance , l ower-order c enters , t end t o h ave f unc t ions o f l e sser r ange , w h i le more i mpor tant t owns , h igher-order c en ters h ave t he s ame f unc t ions a s t he l ower-order c en ters a nd , i n a dd it ion , s ome f unc t ions o f a g reater r ange . T h is means t ha t t he h inter l and o f t he h igher-order c enters w i l l , a s f ar a s s ome f unct ions a re c on c erned , i nc lude t ha t o f n e ighbour ing l ower-order c enters . C erta in f actors t end t o p lace l ower-order c enters a t a d i sadvantage i n r e lat ion t o n earby h igher-order c enters , e ven where f unc t ions ( goods ,

5

0

1

2

3

T ype o f c enter

S ta tus

Adm in is t rat ion

R e l ig ion

G overnor

P rov inc ia l s anctuary

P rov inc ia l c ap ita l

PROV INC IAL CENTER

P rocurator M int

-

r REG IONAL CENTER

E ntert a inmen t

A rchb ishop

-

C iv itasc ap ita l

T own c ounc i l

Mun ic ip ium

T ax c o l lec tor

C ap ito l ium Amph ithea tre C a thedra l

C o lony

r

•

LOCAL CENTER

V icus c ounc i l ( i f a ny )

V icus ( i f a ny )

T emp les T heatre C hurch

—

r

_ S anctuar ies

V ILLAGE

S hr ines

I

T ab le 2 . 1 .

T he h ierarchy o f c enters i n a Roman p rov ince : as chemat ic o verv iew .

6

4

5

6

7

8

S erv ice

A rt isans

Market ing

T ransport

A rmy

L ong-d istance t rade

L oca l t rade

Doctor

Go ldsm ith

L awyer

P lumber

S choo lmaster

Mosa ic workshop

B aths

J o iner

P rost itute

Carpenter

Ma jor s ea-port

L eg ionary HQ

P ermanent market

M inor p ort

F ort

Ma jor r oad j unct ion

M i l itary workshop

P er iod ic market

R iver-port

M inor f ort

F erry c ross ing

M i l itary d epot

Mason

Road-stat ion ( Im ans io t)

P otter O i l a nd w ine d ea lers

B ath-house

B lacksm ith

I t inerant t raders

F ord

M i lecast le

Road-stat ion ( 'mutat io t)

S igna ls ta t ion

s erv ices ) o f l ow r ange a re c oncerned . F irst , a c oun try dwe l ler w i l l n o t u nder take o ne j ourney t o t own f or e ach i t em o r s erv ice h e n eeds , b ut w i l l t ry t o l ump a n umber o f e rrands t ogether o n o ne j ourney . H is c ho ice o f d es t ina t ion w i l l d epend o n t he i t em o r s erv ice t ha t i s mos t d i ff icu lt t o o bta in . I f f i ve o ut o f s i x p urchases c an b e made i n t he n earby v i l lage ( l owest-order c en ter ) b ut t he l a st o n ly i n a market t own ( h igher-order c en ter ) , c hances a re t ha t a l l p urchases w i l l b e made i n t he marke t t own . S econd , h igher-order c enters a re more l i ke ly t o f orm n odes i n t he h ighway n etwork , a nd s i nce t he e ffor t o f t he p easan t i n g o ing t o a nd f rom t he t own w i l l n orma l ly b e measured i n h ours r a ther t han m i les , a l onger j ourney o n g ood r oads may b e p referab le t o a s horter j ourney a cross c oun try . F ina l ly , h igher-order c enters w ith a dm in istrat ive , j ud ic ia l o r p o l it ica l f unct ions may , f o r t hat r eason , b e p erce ived a s ' important ' t owns . I n CPT , o ne d oes n o t s peak o f ' impor tance ' , b ut o f ' centra l ity ' : a c en ter h as a h igh d egree o f c entra l ity i f i t h as f unct ions w ith l ong r anges , wh i le t he l ower-order c enter w ith i t s s hort-range f unc t ions h a s a l ow d egree o f c entra l ity . T h is a spect , i . e . c entra l ity a s d ef ined i n t he t erm ino logy o f CPT , s hou ld p referab ly b e t ermed ' ob ject ive c entra l ity ' i n o rder t o d i st ingu ish i t f rom t he ' perce ived ' o r ' s ub ject ive ' c entra l ity o f at own . What , i f a ny , message , d oes a l l t h is h o ld f or t he s tudy o f Roman u rban izat ion? Can Roman t owns b e f i tted i n to CPT 's s cheme o f h igher o rder a nd l ower-order c enters , o f g rea ter a nd s ma l ler h inter lands , g rea t a nd s ma l l r anges o f s erv ices? T ab le 2 . 1 p rov ides s ome o f t he a nswers . G iven t he l im ited e xtent o f o ur e v idence , i t s hou ld b e c ons idered o n ly a s a t enta t ive s ketch o f t he u rban h ierarchy i n a R oman p rov ince o f t he West , n ot a s a p rec ise d e l ineat ion o f t he s t ructure o f a dm in istrat ion , s erv ices , o r o ther a ct iv it ies i n Roman t owns . I n t he f ar l e f t-hand c o lumn , t owns a nd v i l lages h ave b een d iv ided i n to f our g roups : p rov inc ia l c enters , r eg iona l c enters , l oca l c en ters a nd v i l lages . Across , e ight c o lumns i nd icate t he v ar ious s pheres o f a ct iv ity . I n e ach c o lumn , t he p os it ion o f s ome f unct ions i n r e lat ion t o t he l eve ls o f t he u rban h ierarchy h as b een i nd ica ted . Obv ious ly , o ther c ons iderat ions b es ide e ase o f a ccess p lay a r o le i n t he l oca t ion o f f unct ions : a nd a s o ne p rogresses a cross t he t ab le f rom c o lumn 1 t o c o lumn 8 , t hese o ther f actors p lay a p rogess ive ly g rea ter r ö le . T he h ierarchy o f s tatus ( 1 ) a nd a dm in istrat ion ( 2 ) q u ite f a ithfu l ly r eproduce t he h ierarchy o f h igher-order a nd l ower-order c enters p red icted b y CPT ; a t t he o ther e nd o f t he s ca le , t ranspor t h ierarch ie s ( 7 ) a re o bv ious ly f or a l a rge p ar t d ictated b y t he c ond it ions o f p hys ica l g eography : p orts a nd f ords w i l l n o t a lways b e c ongruent w ith c enters a t t he a ppropr ia te l eve ls o f t he u rban h ierarchy . F ina l ly , t he m i l itary c ommand s t ructure ( 8 ) , wh i le f a ithfu l ly c onform ing t o t he h ierarch ica l p a ttern , h as i t s own r u les o f g eograph ica l l ocat ion a nd w i l l o n ly v ery r are ly s how a p a ttern c ongruen t w ith t ha t o f market ing o r c iv i l ian a dm in i s t rat ion . T he t ab le s hows , h owever , t hat i t c an b e mean ingfu l t o s peak o f t he R oman u rban h ierarchy i n t he t erms o f CPT .

8

3 I N S EARCH OF A METHOD

T o g a in a n i mpress ion o f t he s pat ia l s t ructure o f R oman r eg iona l a dm in i s tra t ion , o ne may p lo t a l l k nown s e lf-govern ing c ommun it ies ( ' c it ies ' ) o n a map o f t he Emp ire . O ne e xamp le o f s uch a map , t aken f rom N .J .G . P ounds ( 1973 ) , i s s hown a s f i gure 3 . 1 . I t i s n ot e nt ire ly a ccura te , t hough , s ince s ome ' sma l l t owns ' , i . e . t owns wh ich were n ot s e lf -govern ing c ommu n i t ies b ut f ormed p ar t o f t he t err itory o f n e ighbour ing c i t ies , h ave b een i nc luded . E ven s o , i t c lear ly c onveys a n i mpress ion o f t he g rea t v ar iat ions i n u rban d ens ity : f rom t he t h ick ly c lustered c i t ies o f c en tra l I t a ly , G reece a nd s ou thern S pa in t o t he empty s paces o f c entra l Gau l , western S pa in o r t he A lp ine r eg ions . T h is v ar iat ion c lear ly r equ ires f urther i nves t igat ion ; a nd s uch i nveg t igat ion c anno t b e u ndertaken mere ly b y v i sua l c ompar ison o f maps . I t w i l l b e n ecessary t o f i nd s ome k ind o f n umer ica l i nd ica tor t o e xpress t he u rban d ens ity a nd i t s v ar ia t ions . O ur map s hows t he u rban ized Emp ire a s a s catter o f p o in ts , t ha t i s , o f c i t ies . I t c ou ld j u s t a s we l l s how a mosa ic o f s paces : i . e . t he t err ito r ies o r h inter lands s urround ing e ach c i ty . I n f act , i f o ur a im i s t o i nvest i g ate t he p r inc ip les u nder ly ing t he l oca t ion o f c i t ies , t hen t he h inter land , n ot t he c i ty i t se lf s hou ld b e a t t he c en tre o f a tten t ion , s i nce t he s hape a nd e x tent o f t he h inter land i s t he p r ime f actor d e term in ing t he l oca t ion o f ac i ty a s we l l a s i t s p lace i n t he u rban h ierarchy . A ssum ing t hat a c i ty i s p laced i n t he m idd le o f a v ast , f eature less p la in , i t s h inter land w i l l t heoret ica l ly f orm a p erfect ly c i rcu lar a rea , w ith t he t own a t t he c enter o f t he c i rc le . T he r ad ius o f t h is c i rc le w i l l c orrespond t o t he r ange o f t he h ighest-order g ood o ffered i n t he c i ty . T he e x tent o f t he h in ter land ( t he a rea o f t he c i rc le ) w i l l b e d e term ined b y t wo f actors : m in imum a rea a nd max imum r ad ius o f t he c i rc le . S ince t he c i ty - t he c entra l p lace - i s t o ma in ta in i t se lf e conom ica l l y t hrough i n teract ion w ith i t s h inter land , t he h inter land mus t h ave a c er ta in m in imum a rea . T h is m in imum c anno t b e d ef ined i n a bso lu te t erms : i t w i l l d epend , i n ter a l ia , o n t he p opu la t ion d ens ity a nd e conom ic d eve lop men t o f t he h inter land . However , t here w i l l a lways b e am in imum r equ ire ment w h ich t he a rea o f t he h inter land must mee t i n o rder t o s uppor t ac i ty . R eturn ing t o t he c oncep t o f t he h in ter land a s a c i rcu lar a rea , m in i mum e xtent may b e t rans la ted i n to m in imum r ad ius . T he a rea o f a c i rc le i s c a lcu lated b y mu lt ip ly ing t he s quare o f t he r ad ius b y T r ( approx ima te ly 3 .14 ) , wh ich means t ha t ac i rcu lar h inter land w ith a r ad ius o f 6k i lometres w i l l h ave a n a rea o f a bou t 13 s quare k i lome tres . A c i rc le w ith a r ad ius o ne-th ird o f t h is , i . e . 2 km , w i l l h ave a n a rea o f 1 2 .5 km , o r o n ly o ne n in th o f t he f i rst c i rc le . When t he r ad ius i s r educed , t he a rea o f t he c irc le i s r ap id ly d im in ished ; t h is s e ts a l ower l im it t o t he r ad ius . I n r ea l l i fe , where h inter lands a re n ot p erfect ly c i rcu lar b u t i r regu lar i n s hape , t here w i l l s t i l l b e a c onnec t ion b e tween t he d i stance f rom t he c enter t o t he l im its o f t he h inter land a nd t he t ota l a rea o f t he h in ter land

9

T owns o ft h e R oman E mp i re

F ig . 3 . 1 : T owns o f t he R oman Emp ire , f rom P ounds ( 1973 ) f i g . 3 .6 .

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F ig . 3 .2 : Over lapp ing u rban h inter lands

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On t he o ther h and , t here w i l l b e a n u pper l im it t o t he e xtent o f t he h in ter land a s we l l ; t h is i s s et b y t he max imum r ad ius o f t he c i rc le , wh ich e qua ls t he r ange o f t he h ighest-order f unc t ions i n t he t own : t he d i s tance ( measured i n j ourney t ime ) t ha t a ny r es iden t o f t he c ountrys ide w i l l c over i n o rder t o o bta in t he g oods o r s erv ices o ffered i n t he c i ty . I f t wo c i t ies o f t he s ame o rder , i . e . p laced a t t he s ame l eve l o f t he u rban h ierarchy , a nd o ffer ing t he s ame f unct ions , were p laced b es ide e ach o ther o n t he f ea ture less p la in s o t ha t t he ir h inter lands were c ont i g uous a t o n ly o ne p o int , t he r ad ius ( r ange ) d eterm in ing t he e x tent o f t he ir h inter lands wou ld b e e qu iva lent t o e xact ly h a lf t he d i stance b etween t he t wo c i t ies . I n r ea l l i fe , t he h inter lands o f n e ighbour ing c i t ies w i l l t end t o o ver lap , a nd t he c i rc les " nes t" t o f orm p o lygona l a reas . I n t h is c a se , p art o f t he p la in w i l l b e w ith in t he r ange o f b o th c i t ies . T he l im it b e tween t he ir h inter lands w i l l b e e qu id is tan t f rom t he t wo c i t ies a nd i n t he a rea where t he h inter land s o ver lap , t he r e la t ive r ange o f e ach w i l l b e l e ss t han t he a bso lu te r ange ( c f . f i gure 3 .2 ) . A s we h ave s een , t here i s a c lose c onnec t ion b etween t he d i stance b e tween t wo c i t ies ( i ntercenter d i s tance ) , t he ir r ange , a nd t he e xtent o f t he ir h inter lands . A ccord ing ly , t he d ens ity o f t he u rban " sca tter" may b e e xpressed e i ther a s t he a verage a rea o f t he h inter lands o r a s t he a verage i n tercenter d i s tance b etween t he ir c i t ies . A s imp le method i s t o d e l im it a n a rea , e .g . a p rov ince , measure i t s l and a rea a nd d iv ide t h is f i gure b y t he n umber o f c i t ies . B y t h is means , N issen ( 1883 ) c a lcu la ted t ha t i n L igur ia , e ach V erwa ltungsko -r per ( c ity ) h ad , o n a verage , a n a rea o f 8 00 s quare k i lome tres a s i t s h inter land . T h is a pproach , h owever , w i l l y ie ld o n ly r ough a verages f or a n umber o f c i t ies , n o i nd iv idua l v a lues f or e ach c i ty . I f a p rov ince i nc ludes d i s t r ic ts o f h igh p opu la t ion d ens ity a s we l l a s moun ta inous o r s em i-ar id r eg ions , t h is i mpor tant i n forma t ion may b e l o st . T o o bta in i nd iv idua l v a lues f or e ach c i ty , i t m ight i n t heory b e f eas ib le t o r econstruc t t he l im its o f a c i ty 's h inter land , t hen c a lcu la te i t s a rea . I n p rac t ice , t he r econstruct ion o f R oman h in ter lands i s f raught w ith p rob lems , u n less t he c i ty i n q uest ion h appens t o b e l ocated o n a n i s land o r i n a r emote moun ta in v a l ley . L iterary o r e p igraph ica l s ources u sua l ly p rov ide o n ly s porad ic i n forma t ion , wh i le t he d i str ibut ion o f d i st inc t i ve t ypes o f a rchaeo log ica l ma ter ia l , e .g . p o ttery o r f l oor mosa ics , may g ive u s a n i nd icat ion o f t he r ange o f s pec if ic f unct ions , b u t n o c lear p icture o f t he e conom ic h inter land a s aw ho le . I n stead o f t he a ctua l l im its , o ne m ight s e tt le f or t he t heoret ica l l im its o f t he h in ter land . T hese a re n ot d i ff icu lt t o d e l ineate a s , a ccord ing t o t he l aw o f m in imum e ffor t , t he l i ne o f d emarca t ion b etween t wo h in ter lands w i l l f o l low a l i ne t ha t i s e qu id istant f rom t he ir c enters . When many s uch l i nes a re c omb ined t o f orm a map , t he r esu lt i s a p a ttern o f p o lygona l c e l ls , s o-ca l led T h iessen p o lygons . I f t he a rea w ith in e ach c e l l i s measured , a n umer ica l i nd ica t ion o f t he e xtent o f t he h inter land o f e ach c i ty i s o bta ined .

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