The Legal Status of the Greek Poleis in the Roman Empire

Roman political pragmatism is clearly revealed in the treatment of cities. For various reasons, the city represented a fundamental pawn in the administrative and economic structure of the empire, the pivot of its organization. Particularly in the Greek East, where the urban reality had a long tradition and was well established, Rome used cities as an intermediary between the local populations and the central government. Civic institutions were generally preserved, and communities continued to manage themselves autonomously, in some cases even obtaining a privileged status (freedom, immunity). All cities were, however, part of an empire, towards which they had obligations (primarily taxes) and on which their very existence depended.