Philip Atkins

Research Topic

My thesis is a political history of the eastern Roman empire of Theodosius I (r. 379–395 AD). What drives my research is an eagerness to figure out what kinds of political action were available to the emperor, to those serving in his administration, and to the east Roman elite in this period. I study this by looking—above all—at the several hundred (surviving) laws that Theodosius issued over the course of his reign. I also explore the letters written by eastern notables, the speeches of praise, advice, and condemnation given by eastern rhetoricians, and the inscriptions set up in towns and cities across the Roman east from this time.

Supervisor: Dr Neil McLynn

Background

I did my undergraduate degree in History at Newcastle University and did my master's degree here at Oxford in Late Antique and Byzantine Studies.

Papers Presented

• 'Theodosius I at Thessalonica, 379–380', Oxford Late Roman Seminar, 24 October 2019
• 'Priscian of Caesarea and the 'Two' Emperors', 21st Oxford University Byzantine Society International Graduate Conference (Contested Heritage: Adaptation, Restoration and Innovation in the Late Antique and Byzantine World), 22 February 2019