Civis Romanus Sum

[Alasdair Baxter]

These words were spoken by the apostle Paul when he ran into a spot of
bother and the bother promptly disappeared. What intrigues me is how
would such a person prove his Roman citizenship since anyone could say
"Civis Romanus Sum"?

Did Roman citizens in the first century AD carry ID papers or
passports or was there a central registry of Roman citizens held at
various locations throughout the empire to which reference could be
made?

--

Alasdair Baxter, Nottingham, UK.Tel [phone]; Fax [phone]

"It's not what you say that matters but how you say it.
It's not what you do that matters but how you do it"

[B.T. Raven]

Post by Alasdair Baxter
These words were spoken by the apostle Paul when he ran into a spot of
bother and the bother promptly disappeared. What intrigues me is how
would such a person prove his Roman citizenship since anyone could say
"Civis Romanus Sum"?
Did Roman citizens in the first century AD carry ID papers or
passports or was there a central registry of Roman citizens held at
various locations throughout the empire to which reference could be
made?

Probably something closer to the latter although a central registry
would not be needed. At every place in the Empire it was the business of
the powers that be to know the civil status of everyone nearby. By
virtue of the angaria, couriers could transmit information at a velocity
of between 50 and 100 miles per day. Since the penalty for abusing the
cursus publicus was death, a person falsely claiming citizenship could
only live as long as letters were en route.

http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/secondary/SMIGRA*/Anga
ria.html
http://www.bathpostalmuseum.org/hop2.html

St. Paul's claim echos the earlier one by Ganius being whipped to death
by Verres in Sicily as recounted by Cicero in In Verrem.

Eduardus