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This thesis examines the establishment and development of the worship of the emperor and his family members in the Latin West, tracing specifically the cult of those who were officially deified at Rome and received the title of divus or diva. It seeks to answer three questions: 1. Does uniformity of cult practices and priestly titles increase or decrease over time 2. What prompted change in cult practice (reflected in priestly titles) and how was this change managed? 3. What factors influenced the choices made by communities throughout the Latin West concerning these cults? It addresses these questions through a number of specific case studies. It begins with a study of how the practice of deification (consecratio) was established and how it developed within the city of Rome. It then examines priestly titles associated with the cult of the divi/divae in three groups of provinces: the Gauls, the Spains, and the provinces of North Africa. Finally, it discusses the spread of the worship of the divi/divae throughout the empire by examining the Augustales (and other variations on this title) and the priests responsible for overseeing cult to individual divi/divae. The evidence discussed is primarily epigraphical but is supplemented with numismatic, archaeological and literary evidence where it is available. This thesis addresses a number of hypotheses concerning Rome’s role in the development of cult in the Latin West, principally, that cult was imposed on communities in the provinces by the centre, that the establishment of cult was based on a series of models and adopted in similar ways throughout the provinces, and that the coloniae were responsible for bringing Roman culture and religion to the peregrine communities. It argues that even though some provincial cults were established through direct intervention from members of the imperial family, it was still up to the communities themselves to oversee cult practice and finance the cult. In the case of civic cult, there is little to no evidence of involvement from the centre. Civic cult was established by local initiative and did not originate in the coloniae and spread to other communities. Instead, it tended to arise in peregrine communities (and municipia) from the earliest development of this cult (as well as some coloniae) as individual communities sought to forge a connection with the imperial family and find their place within, and in connection to, the Roman Empire.

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This thesis explores the life and reign of Julian the Apostate the man who ruled over the Roman Empire from A.D. 361-363. The study of Julian the Apostate’s reign has historically been eclipsed due to his clash with Christianity. After the murder of his family in 337 by his Christian cousin Constantius, Julian was sent into exile. These emotional experiences would impact his view of the Christian religion for the remainder of his life. Julian did have conflict with the Christians but his main goal in the end was the revival of ancient paganism and the restoration of the Empire back to her glory. The purpose of this study is to trace the education and experiences that Julian had undergone and the effects they it had on his reign. Julian was able to have both a Christian and pagan education that would have a lifelong influence on his reign. Julian’s career was a short but significant one. Julian restored the cities of the empire and made beneficial reforms to the legal, educational, political and religious institutions throughout the Empire. The pagan historians praised him for his public services to the empire while the Christians have focused on his apostasy and “persecution” of their faith. With his untimely death in Persia, Julian’s successor Jovian, reversed most of his previous reforms and as such left Julian as the last pagan emperor of the Roman Empire.