Domitian and the court

Abstract

Imperial power, monarchie in its essence, moved with the emperor and his retinue. Under Domitian the palace on the Palatine achieved architectural plenitude and the imperial court (aula) played an essential part in the process. The court had its own characteristics (administration, etiquette, traditions, etc.) and moved with the emperor either in his military campaigns or at his Alban villa where a number of important political events took place. Barely sociable, Domitian owed to that defect his public image, an image which first took form within the aula. No wonder then if it was also from within the aula that the members of the conspiracy that set Domitian to death were recruited.