ABSTRACT
This book is not a biography. The conditions for the construction of a coherent and meaningful biography do not, in this case, exist. We have none of the writings of Galerius, nor evidence of the kind of person he was, or of his reflections upon the events and personalities of his time. Rather, the principal focus of this book is what the life and career of Galerius can tell us about the events of his lifetime and, in particular, the nature and course of imperial politics. This is not a social history, nor does it (other than in passing) analyse the spiritual and economic crises of the period. The focus here is on imperial politics, not in some slavish adherence to a “great man” view, but because of a basic view that politics is important. Political history is a study of the ways in which individuals in positions of authority interact with contemporary social movements and, through that interaction, change their world. The Roman world was a very different place after Diocletian's abdication than before his accession. That is a reflection of the way in which he had affected his world.
