Attitudes to Roman Imperialism

It is argued that Romano-British studies have been influenced by the existence and organisation of Britain’s own empire. A positive conception of Roman imperialism is still current and this indicates that many Romanists have yet to escape from moral precepts derived from our own imperial past. In recent years a number of authors have criticised the use of pro-imperialist models, but reviews of models outlined by members of the post- imperial generations should be equally critical. One influential model outlines the nature of the Roman Empire as a gigantic ‘common market’; it will be argued that the Common Market/European Community also forms an inappropriate model for the study of the Roman Empire