ABSTRACT
The Nika riot was both typical and atypical of popular disturbances in the capital in 532 period. It began routinely enough with demands for the release of partisans, and then for the dismissal of officials. If one take the case of the Nika riot as paradigm for faction rising against the authorities, it will be possible to illustrate both how it was similar to and different from other such riots; it will be seen how typical the actions of both sides were, and how in the end they led to such atypically large effusion of blood. Central to the interpretation of the riot is the conduct of the emperor. A few emperors ventured to refuse popular demands, doing so by having their herald silence the crowd; no further violence appears to have been needed. But most emperors were more receptive to the will of the people: they could be prevailed upon either to spare criminal or to execute hated official.
