Roman Emperors used letters to respond to a variety of questions that could reach them, amongst other ways, in the form of suggestions, consultations or relationes of officials; personally delivered petitions of individuals without connections at court; but also letters sent by well-connected private individuals. Most imperial letters in reply to such private letters have been lost, but some have left traces in the epistolary collections of individuals that have been conserved in greater numbers from Late Antiquity than from any preceding time period.

During my research stay in Tübingen, I will focus on the letter collection of the Antiochene professor of Greek rhetoric Libanius (AD 314-393) to examine how imperial letters could be elicited, received, and used by fourth-century elite individuals. Libanius, whose letter collection is the most extensive epistolary collection to have been transmitted to us from classical Antiquity, is an interesting case study for this topic, as he not only exchanged letters with various fourth-century emperors himself, but also refers to imperial letters received by other people.

First, I will analyse how Libanius approached the emperors Constantius II, Julian, Jovian and Theodosius, and what role letters played in his relations with these emperors: on what occasions did Libanius receive imperial letters? Which of these imperial letters did he elicit himself? How does he communicate about these letters? And in what ways does he use them? After this, I will compare Libanius’ own imperial correspondence with imperial letters to at least half a dozen other individuals which he refers to. An analysis of these references will allow to complement the in-depth information we have on Libanius’ own imperial correspondence with a broader view of imperial letters to private individuals: what kind of individuals received imperial letters? What were these letters about? And how were they put to use?

The double attention for imperial letters received both by Libanius himself and by others will not only put into perspective Libanius – one of the best documented individuals of Late Antiquity, but, it should not be forgotten, not an average one –, but will also allow to assess how imperial letters to private individuals were elicited, received and used in actual practice.