Recusatio imperii

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As recusatio imperil ( rejection of the rule ) is the process when a person to whom the rule is offered, demonstratively refuses to accept this. This practice was particularly widespread in the Roman and Chinese empires .

In principle, a recusatio can only occur if the succession in a sole rulership is not automated, for example through primogeniture , but rather through election or acclamation . Basically, a distinction can be made between “successful” and “failed” recusatio : In the first case the candidate sticks to his refusal, in the second he gives in and becomes ruler.

Many cases are known, especially from the Roman Empire , in which a general or politician was offered the imperial power, in some cases allegedly even under massive threats of violence, without giving in to the pressure. However, no example has survived in which the unwilling candidate was actually injured or killed as a result. This, in turn, suggests that the cases in which men allegedly allowed themselves to be urged to accept the purple were a mere staging or a political ritual : Obviously, one could not, in truth, be forced to to be made emperor. However, since a good ruler was expected to be humble and not want to rise above his fellow men, this was staged as part of his elevation. It was about creating legitimacy for the new ruler.

In the context of ancient literature, recusatio denotes a rhetorical figure or a topos of modesty, whereby the poet pretends to have initially refused the writing of a work because he is not worthy of the task, see also captatio benevolentiae .

literature