The problem of Armenia's integration into the Roman world in the post-Armenian period

Abstract

The object of the study is the buffer zone of the Roman Empire, located between the ancient civilization and the barbarian world. The subject of the study is the history of Armenia during the reign of the Roman emperors Hadrian and Antoninus Pius (117–161), as well as during the Roman-Parthian war of 161–166. Based on the comparative-historical method of research, the authors examine in detail such aspects of the topic as Hadrian's refusal of further conquests and the transition to a defensive strategy of the state. At the same time, special attention is paid to Hadrian's pan-Hellenic project of creating a Hellenic commonwealth uniting all Greeks of the ancient world. The article also focuses on the consistency and calculation of the emperors' actions towards Armenia, which does not fit well with the view of the transition of the empire under Hadrian to the strategic defense of the perimeter of the Roman borders. The main conclusions of this study are that, starting with Hadrian, Roman expansion was not actually stopped, but took other forms (economic and cultural), which actually had to prepare the peaceful entry of this or that buffer territory into the empire. It is possible that in the Caucasus, and in particular in Armenia, the Romans planned to carry out this process in the form of Hellenization, based on the previous experience of adapting Greek culture to local traditions. This, in the end, inevitably led to the perception of already Roman gods by the alien population, familiarity with which was ensured by this Hellenization. The novelty of the study is that the authors considered Hadrian's Panhellenic project in the context of the above-mentioned processes and as an essential component of both internal and external policy towards the buffer dependent states.