Client kingdoms in ancient Rome
A client kingdom or people in ancient Rome meant a kingdom or ancient people that was in the condition of "appearing" still independent, but in the "sphere of influence" and thus dependence of the neighboring Roman Empire. It was a form of modern protectorate, where the kingdom or territory in question was controlled by a stronger one.
Political and military role
The Romans realized that the task of ruling and assimilating a large number of peoples at once was almost impossible, and that a plan of gradual annexation would be simpler, leaving the provisional organization in the hands of princes born and raised in the country of origin. Thus arose the figure of client kings, whose function was to promote the political and economic development of their kingdoms, fostering their civilization and economy. In this way, when kingdoms reached an acceptable level of development, they could be incorporated as new provinces or parts of them. The conditions of vassal-client status were, therefore, transitory in nature.A "client king," recognized by the Roman Senate as amicus populi Romani, was usually nothing more than an instrument of control first in the hands of the Republic, and then of the Roman Empire. This concerned not only foreign and defensive policy, where the client king was entrusted with the task of assuming the burden of ensuring along his borders security against "low-intensity" infiltration and dangers, but also internal dynastic matters, within the imperial security system. Sometimes such serious unrest occurred in some of the "client kingdoms" that the very borders of adjacent provinces were threatened, so much so that it was necessary to intervene directly with Roman armies: for instance, during the Tacfarinas revolt in Africa, where it was necessary to send a second legion, the IX Hispana.
However, the kingdoms or client peoples could do little against "high-intensity" dangers such as provincial-scale invasions. They could help by slowing the enemy advance with their own, limited forces, at least until the Roman ally arrived: in other words, they could provide some "geographic depth," but nothing more. Clearly, the damage caused by the invaders, before direct Roman intervention, could be extensive before they were repelled. For these reasons, in order to reduce such risks to an absolute minimum, it was deemed more appropriate in some cases to "encompass" these Kingdoms, building along their borders a linear defense system, manned by numerous Roman military posts and capable of repelling external enemy invasions immediately.
History
Republican era
Second half of the 3rd century BC
The ongoing conflict that had seen Massalia and the Carthaginians vying for the best markets in the western Mediterranean since the 6th century BC, put the Greek colony in the position of asking Rome for help, around 236 BC, a decade before the Treaty of Ebro, concluded between Rome and Carthage. This would be the first example of "popolus cliens" of the Romans, outside Roman Italy.A few years later, some Greek colonies in the eastern Adriatic Sea, being attacked by the Illyrian pirates of Queen Teuta, also decided to come in fidem of Rome, asking for its direct military intervention. The Senate, after learning that one of the ambassadors sent to negotiate with the Illyrian queen had been killed under unclear circumstances, voted in favor of war. The clashes were short-lived, for as early as 228 BC Queen Teuta was forced to sign the peace and leave present-day Albania, while Rome became to all intents and purposes the patron state of the cities of Apollonia, in Kerkyra, Epidamnos and Issa, as well as Oricus, Dimale and the "client" king Demetrius of Pharos. The subsequent Roman ambassadorship of Postumius to Aetolia, Achaea and Corinth allowed Rome to take part in the Isthmian Games of 228 BC, thus opening the doors of Hellenic civilization to the Romans.
During the Second Punic War, in the summer of 210 BC, the king of Numidia Syphax sent ambassadors to Rome to report the favorable outcome of the battles the king had fought against the Carthaginians. They assured the assembled Senate that their king was totally adverse toward Carthage, while in Rome he acknowledged his friendship. They recalled that in the past Syphax had sent ambassadors to Spain to the Roman generals Gnaeus and Publius Cornelius, and that now more than ever he wished to win the friendship of the Roman people by addressing the Senate itself. The Senate not only agreed to the request of the Numidian king, but sent to him as ambassadors Lucius Genucius, Publius Petelius, and Publius Popilius so that they could bring him gifts, including a purple toga and tunic, a curule seat of ivory, and a five-pound golden cup. The senate ambassadors were also instructed to go, soon after, to the other African kings, bringing them as gifts praetorian togas and golden cups weighing three pounds each. Marcus Atilius Regulus and Manius Acilius were sent as ambassadors, also in 210 B.C, to Alexandria, Egypt, to rulers Ptolemy IV and Cleopatra, to renew friendship with the Roman people. Gifts were also brought to them: to the king a toga, a purple tunic and an ivory curule seat; to the queen a rich embroidered robe together with a purple cloak.
2nd century BC
The kingdom of Pergamon entered the Roman sphere of its allied states, especially following the Treaty of Apamea in 188 BC, after which it obtained numerous possessions and territorial expansions. Its increasing dependence on Rome resulted, following the death of its ruler, Attalus III, in being bequeathed to the Roman Republic and consequently in the transformation of its territories into a Roman province.At the end of the Third Macedonian War, with the Roman victory at Pydna, the kingdom of Macedon was divided into four districts, resulting in all respects in a Roman protectorate, which a two decades later was transformed into the Roman province of Macedonia.
A few years later, this time in the West, when the allied and "client" people of the Romans, the Taurisci, asked for help against a Germanic invasion of Cimbri and Teutons, nomadic peoples originally from Jutland and Scania, the Romans, under the command of Consul Gnaeus Papirius Carbo, were unable to stop the enemy advance, resulting in a defeat near Noreia. The Germans continued to terrorize Rome for another decade, until Gaius Marius finally defeated them at Aquae Sextiae and the Campi Raudii.
First quarter of the first century BC
In 96 BC. Ptolemy Apion, belonging to the Ptolemaic dynasty, was the last Hellenic ruler of Cyrenaica, a longtime ally of the Romans. Upon his death he decided to bequeath his kingdom to Rome. However, the new territories were not organized into a province until 74 BC with the arrival of the first legate of praetorian rank, joined by a quaestor. It consisted of five cities, all of Greek origin, constituting the so-called Cyrenaic Pentapolis, namely: the capital Cyrene with its port of Apollonia, Teuchira-Arsinoe, Euesperides-Berenice and Barce-Ptolemais.In the time of Pompey and Caesar (70 - 44 BC)
During its heyday, from 95 BC to 66 BC, the kingdom of Armenia had control over parts of the Caucasus, present-day eastern Turkey, Lebanon and Syria. It came under the sphere of influence of the Romans in 66 BC, with the campaigns of Lucullus and Pompey. Because of this, the kingdom of Armenia was the scene of contention between Rome and the Parthian Empire. The Parthians forced the kingdom of Armenia into submission from 47 BC to 37 BC, when Rome lost control of the kingdom only briefly.In 63 BC with the end of the Third Mithridatic War, Pompey reorganized the entire Roman East and the alliances that gravitated around it. To Tigranes II he left Armenia; to Pharnaces the Bosporus; to Ariobarzanes Cappadocia and some neighboring territories; to Antiochus of Commagene he added Seleucia and parts of Mesopotamia that he had conquered; to Deiotarus, tetrarch of Galatia, he added the territories of Armenia Minor bordering Cappadocia; he made Attalus the prince of Paphlagonia and Aristarchus that of Colchis; he appointed Archelaus priest of the goddess worshipped at Comana; and finally he made Castor of Phanagoria a faithful ally and friend of the Roman people.
The Nabataean Kingdom of Arabia Petraea in 62 BC was forced to ask for peace from Marcus Aemilius Scaurus, who in order to lift the siege of the capital, Petra, accepted a payment of 300 talents. Having obtained peace, the Nabataean king Aretas retained his domains in full, including Damascus, but became a vassal of Rome.
On the western front, during 58 BC, the Gallic people of the Aedui had sent ambassadors to Rome to ask for help against their inconvenient Germanic neighbor. The Senate decided to intervene and persuaded Ariovistus to suspend his conquests in Gaul; in return it offered him, at the suggestion of Caesar, the title of rex atque amicus populi Romani. Ariovistus, however, continued to harass the neighboring Gauls with increasing cruelty and haughtiness, so much so that they asked Caesar for military aid, who was the only one who could prevent Ariovistus from having an even greater amount of Germans cross the Rhine, and above all could defend all of Gaul from the Germanic king's bullying.
Caesar believed that it would be dangerous in the future to continue to allow the Germans to cross the Rhine and enter Gaul in large numbers. He feared that once all of Gaul was occupied, the Germans might invade the Narbonese province and then Italy itself, as had happened in the past with the invasion of Cimbri and Teutons. For these reasons, after an initial period of negotiations, he was forced to face them in battle and beat them, expelling them permanently from the territories of Gaul. This was not the only episode of "patronage" in Gaul at the time of its conquest.
The beginnings of the Roman "patronage" system in Britain occurred with Caesar, who, having first landed on the island in 55 BC, put Mandubracius back on the throne of the Trinovantes after he had been ousted by Cassivellaunus. This gesture earned the proconsul help during the second Caesarian invasion of the island the following year. This system was developed over the next hundred years, starting with Augustus, but especially following the Roman conquest of Britain, desired in 43 AD by Emperor Claudius.