ABSTRACT
The Christian Roman state was structured as a hierarchy of administrative levels: at the top was the emperor, understood to be God’s representative, surrounded by a palace and household apparatus, the centre of imperial government and administration. Civil and fiscal government was delegated from the emperor to the praetorian prefects, whose prefectures were the largest territorial circumscriptions in the state; each prefecture was further divided into dioecesae or dioceses, which had a predominantly fiscal aspect; and each diocese was divided into provinciae or provinces, territorial units of fiscal and judicial administration. These were further divided into self-governing poleis or civitates, the cities, each with its territorium or hinterland (which might be more or less extensive, according to geographical, demographic and other factors). The Byzantine fortress of Charpete (Harput), rebuilt in later medieval times. (Author's collection) https://s3-euw1-ap-pe-df-pch-content-public-p.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/9780203494622/69ca8973-5eae-499f-bac6-94985e838b61/content/fig1_1_C.jpg" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"/>
