Spring AD 124 – Hadrian visits Thrace and founds Hadrianopolis (#Hadrian1900) FOLLOWING HADRIAN

After touring the province of Bithynia, the place Hadrian could have first encountered Antinous (see here), the Emperor crossed the Sea of Marmara to Thrace. Accompanying him was the famend sophist and trainer of rhetoric, Antonius Polemon. Polemon chronicled this journey in his Physiognomica, a physiognomy treatise later preserved in a 14th-century Arabic translation. In his writings, Polemon recollects, “I used to be a companion of the nice King, and on the journey from Thrace to Asia, this fellow joined himself to the troops and ships which have been escorting the King. We handed by many cities and got here to the ocean”. The itinerary and date of the visits recorded by Polemon stay in obscurity, however the passage matches Hadrian’s journey of AD 124.

Polemon, about ten years youthful than Hadrian, got here from a distinguished household with a historical past relationship again to the Late Republic. The household hailed from Laodicea on the Lycus, on the borders of Phrygia and Caria, and produced vital figures in successive generations, together with kings in Pontus and Thrace, ambassadors, and a minimum of one poet. Members of the family have been well-known to the residents of Asia, the emperors, and the Roman aristocrats. Trajan granted Polemon the privilege of unrestricted journey, a favour later prolonged by Hadrian. The sophist then turned an envoy to Hadrian and served on many missions for the Emperor.

Polemon’s appreciable wealth and status performed a major position within the “Greek Renaissance” of the 2nd century AD. His patronage and help of mental and cultural endeavours have been instrumental in this revival, leaving an enduring legacy on the period. Polemon spent a lot of his life in Smyrna, and when Hadrian’s favour shifted in the direction of Ephesus, Polemon satisfied him to deal with Smyrna as an alternative. In consequence, Hadrian granted ten million drachmas to town, which have been used to construct a corn market, a gymnasium, and a temple. An inscription from Smyrna lists what town obtained from Hadrian as a consequence of Polemon’s affect. Maybe essentially the most vital testomony to his affect was his supply of the panegyric speech on the inauguration of the Temple of Olympian Zeus in Athens in AD 132.

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The small print of the journey in Thrace are unclear and may solely be speculated upon (Birley, 1997). Apart from the account of his founding of Hadrianopolis, there aren’t any literary data of his actions there. Even the commemorative cash, represented by two sestertii of the adventus and exercitus varieties minted later in Hadrian’s reign, don’t present any clues. Nonetheless, inscriptions point out some Imperial exercise within the province.

The Thracian kingdom, established within the fifth century BC within the japanese area of the Balkan Peninsula, was annexed to the Roman Empire in AD 46 below Claudius after the demise of the Odrysian consumer king Rhoemetalkes III. Following Thrace’s integration into the Roman Empire, colonies have been established. The primary, Colonia Claudia Aprensis (Aprus), was based by Claudius on the By way of Egnatia, and the second, Colonia Flavia Pacis Deultensium (Deultum), was established by veterans of Legio VIII Augusta on the Black Sea below Vespasian. The province’s preliminary capital was Perinthus, situated on the By way of Egnatia on the north shore of the Sea of Marmara, the place the Roman governor resided.

After the second Dacian Battle, most likely round AD 107, Trajan made vital administrative modifications in Thrace and elevated it to the standing of a province with a governor of praetorian rank (legatus Augusti professional praetore). The provincial reorganisation below Trajan resulted in newly based cities organised as Greek poleis, together with Nicopolis advert Istrum and Trajanopolis, Augusta Traiana, Plotinopolis, and Marcianopolis, named after the Emperor and his household. A army camp was established in Cabyle, the place a cohort was stationed from the 2nd to the third centuries AD (AE 1991, 1402). Urbanisation began predominantly within the 2nd century AD, remodeling the previous Thracian parts into well-planned cities with smaller buying and selling centres (emporia) centered on commerce, crafts, and agricultural merchandise alongside important roads. Moreover, immigrants from Asia Minor additionally contributed to the expansion of city communities.

Thrace, situated between the western and japanese halves of the Roman Empire, served as a bridge between Europe and Asia. Two necessary roads, the By way of Egnatia and the By way of Militaris (or By way of Diagonalis), performed essential roles in connecting Thrace to different areas. The older 2nd-century BC By way of Egnatia lower throughout the southern a part of Thrace, whereas the By way of Militaris, constructed within the 1st century AD, ran diagonally from Byzantium (later Constantinople) to Singidunum (Belgrade), serving as the first army street linking the legionary bases of the Center Danube. These have been the 2 important routes that Hadrian would have possible travelled throughout his tour of East Thrace.

Different prolonged roads run parallel to either side of the By way of Militaris. In AD 124, Hadrian repaired the street from Augusta Traiana by way of Cabyle to Anchialus and Mesambria on the Black Sea to the north. The Emperor additionally paved roads alongside the Black Sea to Tomis.

Whereas within the province, Hadrian refounded and renamed Orestias, present-day Edirne, Hadrianopolis (Birley, 1997). The Emperor, who delineated the extent of its new partitions on an present Greek settlement web site, developed town and adorned it with monuments. The creator of the Vita Heliogabali mentions the occasion, saying that Hadrian renamed the metropolis after he obtained an oracle, and provides a wierd anecdote about Hadrian’s insanity: “As for this metropolis of Oresta, Hadrian after he had begun to undergo from insanity, ordered that it must be known as after his personal identify — additionally performing in obedience to a divine response, for he had been advised to steal into the home or into the identify of some madman.” (HA Elagabalus 7.8).

The Greek metropolis of Orestias is believed to have been established on an earlier Thracian settlement known as Uskudama (“water city”), the primary Odrysian capital. In line with legend, Orestias was based by Orestes, the son of Agamemnon and Clytemnestra. The parable claims that Orestes established town of Orestias on the location the place he cleansed himself after killing his father. This basis fantasy was preserved till late antiquity and is depicted on the reverse of a bronze coin issued below Gordian, displaying Orestes, his sister Iphigeneia, his cousin Pylades and three reclining river gods at their ft (RPC VII.2, 666). Throughout his go to, Hadrian expanded the city, constructed a big castrum, and renamed it Hadrianopolis (Greek: Αδριανούπολις).

Orestias was chosen as the longer term Hadrianopolis for a number of causes. It had a strategic location on the By way of Militaris and was located on the confluence of three rivers, the Tonsus (trendy Tundzha), Arpessos (trendy Arda) and Hebros (trendy Evros/Maritsa) and rivers. The Hebros, the longest river in Thrace, was navigable by flat-bottomed barges and linked Hadrianopolis with the By way of Egnatia and the Aegean coast by way of the harbour metropolis of Ainos (trendy Enez), reverse the island of Samothrace (Herodotus, Historia e-book VII, 58-59). This allowed Hadrianopolis entry to the Aegean Sea, which was essential for its growth. It enabled town to have interaction in maritime commerce with out fully counting on land routes for transportation and supply of products. River transportation to the inland areas was essentially the most reasonably priced and environment friendly technique.

All three rivers are depicted as reclining river gods in a uncommon coin kind minted in Hadrianopolis (RPC IV.1, 10601). On different varieties, solely the primary river god Hebrus is portrayed (RPC IV.1, 10606), or mendacity on the ft of an enthroned and turreted metropolis goddess of Hadrianopolis (RPC IV.1, 9297). On the reverse of the cash, the identify of Hadrianopolis (ΑΔΡΙΑΝΟΠΟΛΕΙΤΩΝ) seems because the legend. The encircling space of Hadrianopolis was additionally splendid for agriculture. The area’s fertile soil resulted in its inhabitants rising to a excessive diploma of prosperity. They carried on intensive commerce and have been distinguished for his or her manufactures, particularly of arms.

Hadrian oversaw the development of a giant castrum close to the Tonsus River. It was surrounded by a six-metre-high defensive wall and had a format resembling a typical Roman fortress with round towers on the corners and gates and sq. turrets alongside the perimeters. The castrum measured roughly 600m x 700m, masking an space of about 400,000 sq. metres. Inside was a daily grid of streets intersecting at proper angles, and two important avenues, Cardo Maximus and Decumanus Maximus, divided the world into 4 elements. Evliya Çelebi, an Ottoman explorer who travelled by way of the territory of the Ottoman Empire and neighbouring lands throughout the empire’s cultural zenith, visited town in 1653 and talked about in his journey e-book known as the Seyahatnâme (“Ebook of Journey”) that Hadrian’s castrum was sq., had 4 spherical towers, one other twelve smaller rectangular formed towers between the primary towers and 9 gates, and was surrounded by a ditch filled with water. Town’s important gate is depicted on cash minted throughout Gordianus III’s reign (RPC VII.2, 695).

The Byzantines maintained the castrum partitions and added a second line of fortifications with new bastions on the 4 corners. Solely one of many 4 defensive towers, the so-called Macedonian Tower, has been preserved at present. The construction, about 16 m excessive on a spherical base, was inbuilt stonework masonry with brick bands. It was remodeled right into a clock tower in 1886.

Solely a really small a part of the Castrum wall exists at present, with traces of the fortification partitions about 150 metres lengthy. Excavations between 1999 and 2003 uncovered ovens used for ceramic manufacturing within the 1st century AD and constructions believed to have been used as grain warehouses. Quite a few tombs relationship to the Roman and Byzantine intervals have been additionally discovered on the outside of the Castrum partitions. One of many steles depicts a household who lived in Hadrianopolis.

Hadrianopolis was to change into well-known for the scene of a battle between Constantine and Licinius in 323 and the defeat of Valens by the Goths in 378. Fashionable harmful growth has left virtually nothing of the traditional metropolis. All through the ages, town maintained its significance due to its location on the intersection of economic rivers and vital roads. Throughout the Ottoman Empire, town was used as a serious base camp for army expeditions in the direction of Europe. Above all, town acted because the capital of the Ottoman Empire for about 100 years.

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Hadrian’s tour of Thrace actually included a go to to Perinthus (modern-day Ereğlisi). Perinthus was the headquarters of the provincial governor and Thrace’s administrative capital, situated alongside the coast of Thracian Propontis (Sea of Marmara) on the By way of Egnatia. A brand new legate, Quintus Tineius Rufus, had simply arrived (AD 124-128), maybe put in by Hadrian in particular person. Initially based as a Samian colony round 602 BC, Perinthus was an necessary port metropolis with two pure harbours and shortly turned a spot of nice commerce. The japanese harbour was used for business functions, whereas the western harbour served army capabilities. After the annexation of Thrace in AD 46, the Roman fleet named Classis Perinthia was established and stationed at Perinthus. This fleet was liable for the Propontis and the Straits.

Perinthus was constructed alongside the slope of a hill on a small peninsula. Excavation works, which started in 2022, are uncovering the traditional coastal metropolis, which covers an space 1.5 kilometres lengthy and 500 metres extensive. This consists of unearthing the theatre on the southeast slope of the Acropolis overlooking the ocean, which is believed to be the biggest within the Thrace area and measures 140 by 110 metres (roughly the dimensions of the Ephesus theatre). Though the seats have vanished after centuries of looting, the excavation trenches reveal traces of the steps between the seating rows and the stage constructing (see here). Different outstanding monuments of Perinthus comprise metropolis partitions, a shower complicated, and a stadium. Regardless of the restricted stays of the stadium, situated on the ft of the Acropolis between the port and the theatre, its general dimensions are estimated to have been 240 x 69 m.

The significance of Perinthus within the Roman interval is well-attested in literary sources and inscriptions. One Hadrianic inscription is of explicit significance. It’s a dedication by one Larcia Gepaipyris, who honoured Hadrian as Zeus Olympios and Eleutherios (this appellation is exclusive for Thrace) and his spouse Sabina as New Demeter (Perinthos-Herakleia 37). The inscription, an architrave fragment, is dated to AD 131-138 (after the Olympios appellation given to the Emperor) and mentions an unknown constructing lavishly embellished and full of imperial statues, most likely a temple devoted to Hadrian and Sabina (Sayar, 1998) or probably simply town’s theatre (Seure, 1898). The character of the constructing stays unclear, however it could belong to a kind of sanctuary, such because the Olympieion in Athens (Topalilov, 2020).

The inscription was discovered within the nineteenth century, reused as spolia in a Byzantine church situated on the southwestern slope of the Acropolis. Though fragmentary, the textual content is translated as follows (Raycheva, 2015; Topalilov, 2020):

‘To the Emperor Caesar, the son of the deified Trajan, Traianus Hadrianus Augustus, Zeus Olympios and Eleutherios and Sabina Augusta, the New Demeter (below the federal government of Publius… the praetorian legate of the emperor), Larcia Gepaipyris, daughter of Larcius Asiaticus, on the orders of and wholly on the expense of her father erected and consecrated (the sanctuary with the imperial cult picture) and different statues that are erected in it.’

The development of the constructing, initiated by Larcia Gepaipyris’ father, Larcius Asiaticus, is considered related to Hadrian’s second go to to town within the autumn of 131. The worship of Hadrian and Sabina might also be linked to the imperial determination to incorporate Perinthus within the Panhellenic League. The Panhellenion was established in Athens round AD 131/132 throughout Hadrian’s third go to to Athens, which he reached from Thrace.

Nonetheless, the temple’s building was not linked with the granting of neokoria (temple warden) to town by Hadrian. It was not till the time of the Severans that we discover the primary clear proof of imperial temples in Perinthus. Town was honoured with the title neokoros twice, first by Septimius Severus and his sons Caracalla and Geta, then by Elagabalus. This is obvious from town cash and inscriptions. A number of festivals linked to the neokoros standing held by town happened within the stadium. This title strongly indicated town’s prominence within the area, as Perinthus was the one different metropolis in Thrace with this neokoros standing. From the top of the third century AD, Perinthos was renamed Herakleia as a result of the Perinthians regarded Heracles (Hercules) because the founding father of their metropolis.

Perinthus produced numerous varieties of cash from the reigns of Claudius to Gallienus. Some cash bear the picture of Hadrian (see here) and Sabina (see here) with Heracles, the founder, on the reverse. Usually, town’s identify is displayed on the again of the coin, and from AD 107 onward, the governor’s identify can also be included. Maecilius Nepos is talked about on the cash of Hadrian minted in AD 117/19 (see here).

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One other Thracian metropolis that minted cash of Hadrian and Sabina was Bizye (modern-day Vize), on the street between Byzantium and Hadrianopolis. The minting of town’s bronze coinage started below Hadrian. A lot of the coin varieties present Bizye’s fortifications on the reverse. The names of the governors Maecilius Nepos and Quintus Tineius Rufus are proven on the reverse of some cash minted below Hadrian. The Roman fortifications of Bizye are nonetheless seen northwest of the city and are identified at present because the Vize Fortress. The fortress is believed to have been constructed initially in 72-76 BC and revived throughout the reign of Justinian I.

Coela on the Thracian Chersonesus (Gallipoli Peninsula) additionally began minting cash throughout Hadrian’s reign. Hadrian transformed the port metropolis right into a municipium, a privilege not often seen within the East. Aelia was added to its identify (AE 1924, 82), as seen on the cash with the Latin inscription AEL MVNICIPI COELANO (see here). The origins of Coela are obscure, however the city is thought to have been the headquarters of the imperial administration. It possible contained a considerable variety of imperial civil servants who, together with their households, would have been Roman residents. Coela additionally organised athletic video games, referred to as the Hadrianeia, in honour of the Emperor, more likely to commemorate his go to.

It has been recommended that Hadrian could have travelled as far north because the Danube throughout his tour. Whereas W. Weber, a German historian, argued that the Emperor visited the Moesian frontier and Pannonia, A. Birley believes this to be unlikely. After leaving Thrace, the imperial celebration crossed the Propontis and returned to Asia Minor with Antonius Polemo, this time to the province of Asia. Cyzicus was to be Hadrian’s first and maybe most necessary cease.

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References & sources:

• Birley A.R. (1997), Hadrian The Stressed Emperor, London, Roman Imperial Biographies pp. 162-166.
• Boatwright, M.T. (2000), Hadrian and the Cities of the Roman Empire, Princeton
• Yukdirim, Ş. (2021), Hadrianopolis, The Metropolis on the Intersection of the Rivers, Research on EDİRNE from Prehistory to Republic, Trakya Üniversitesi Yayın No: 269
• Miszczak, I. (2021) Edirne: Gateway to the Balkans. ASLAN Publishing Home
• Topalilov, I. (2020), On the Perinthos-Heraklea 37, Studia Antiqua et Archaeologica 26(1): 59–68 (link)
• Raycheva, M. (2015), The Imperial Cult in Perinthos, Archaeologia Bulgarica ХІХ, 2 (2015), 23-3 (link)