ABSTRACT
The Gothic threat was not Theodosius’ only immediate concern. As a new emperor, he now had to build his administration from scratch. His task was made harder by the fact that as a westerner and outsider he could not simply rely on his predecessor’s officials. There are only three individuals among Theodosius’ civilian officials who are usually considered as ‘fellow Spaniards’, and even then a question mark hangs over the origins of the most prominent among them. Apart from the ‘Spanish contingent’ people find a number of other western figures from the Gallic and Italian aristocracy in the new regime. There was then a ‘western bedrock’ to Theodosius’ administration, particularly in the early years of his reign. But while some of these figures were no doubt products of his family’s strong links throughout the western hierarchy, people must also consider whether Gratian sought to impose his own partisan supporters on Theodosius’ regime.
