List of claims to the title of the Roman Empire

This is a list of claims to the Roman Republic (509 BCE - 27 BCE), Roman Empire (27 BCE - 395 CE), and its successor states such as the Eastern Roman Empire (commonly known as Byzantium or the Byzantine Empire) or Western Roman Empire.

Information

The Coronation of Napoleon - Jacques-Louis David

Qualification

For a claim to qualify, there must be some sense to the claim, like a popular, governmental, personal, hierarchical or indirect (mostly implied) claim, these we shall will break down simply:

• Popular: A population has a cultural link or claim to the Roman Empire, such as the people of Fascist Italy under Mussolini, who widely embraced the idea that their nation was the rightful heir to Rome, using Roman symbolism, rhetoric, and imperial ambitions to justify their regime.
• Governmental: A singular government claims to be the heir to the Roman Empire, such as the Eastern Roman Empire, which directly continued the Roman state and governance.
• Personal: A singular person has a (often self-proclaimed) claim to the title of Roman Emperor and/or the lands of the Roman Empire, such as Napoleon Bonaparte, who styled himself as the successor to Rome through his coronation as Emperor and revival of imperial institutions.
• Hierarchical: A singular person or group of people claim to be the direct descendant(s) of a Roman politician, usually a well-known one, such as Julius Caesar.
• Indirect: An unofficial, however implied claim, like the Sultanate of Rum using the Turkish name for the Eastern Roman people as its own.

If there is both, for example, a popular and governmental claim from the same nation, they should be listed separately. In the case of a popular claim, the endorser of the claim can (though in a case like the Eastern Roman Empire, where its popular claim lasted over many rulers, should simply not be listed) be listed instead of a claimant, this can be marked with ^(E), this can also be used in special cases like the concept of Russia being Third Rome.

To be added to the list of claims made by parties unaffiliated with their subject, a claim must have been purported externally and never endorsed or encouraged by the supposed claimant. For example, the Kingdom of Soissons, despite its ruler Syagrius never having claimed the title, was sometimes referred to as the Kingdom of the Romans and him as the King of the Romans by outsiders.

List

Self-proclaimed claimants

Original Claimant	Claimant's primary titles or popular claim location	Claim	Initial Claim Date	Type	Supported by papacy	Further Information
Benito Mussolini	Kingdom of Italy, Italian Empire	Roman Empire(see info)	1936 CE	Popular (cultural)		While not a direct claim to the Roman Empire, Benito Mussolini would often portray the Italian Empire as a successor to the Roman Empire, this can be seen in the "Mostra Augustea della romanità" propaganda.
Constantine The Great	Eastern Roman Empire	Roman Empire	330 CE	Popular (cultural)	Until the Great Schism	The people of the Eastern Roman Empire often identified as Romaioi, or Romans. [1]
Constantine The Great	Eastern Roman Empire	Roman Empire	330 CE	Governmental	Until the Great Schism	The Eastern Romans practiced many elements of the original Roman government, such as a centralized imperial authority and the title "Emperor of the Romans." While the Senate's power weakened, the emperor retained control over civil and military matters, continuing Roman legal and imperial traditions.
Otto I	Holy Roman Empire	Emperor of the Romans	962 CE	Governmental	Yes	Otto I inherited the title of Emperor of the Romans in 962, inheiriting it from the Empire of Francia which had fallen. [2]
Vasily III, Philotheus of Pskov (E)	Tsardom of Russia	Moscow, Third Rome	1510 CE	Governmental	No	In 1510, Philotheus of Pskov addressed Vasily III as "Tsar" or "Emperor", saying "Two Romes have Fallen, but the third stands, and a fourth there will not be.", this is interpreted to mean that Rome was heretical, Constantinople being under rule of the Ottoman Empire, and therefore Moscow being the new Rome. [3]
Honorius	Western Roman Empire	Roman Empire	395 CE	Popular (cultural)		Again, similar to the Eastern and Holy Roman Empire, the people of the Western Roman Empire often called themselves Roman.
Suleiman ibn Qutalmish	Sultanate of Rum	The name "Rome" in Turkish	1071 CE	Indirect	No	While not a direct claim to Rome, "Rum" was (and still is in modern Turkish) a synonym for the Eastern Roman Empire and its citizens. [4]
Charlemagne	Francia	Emperor of the Romans	800 CE	Governmental	Yes	Charlemagne was crowned Imperator Romanorum or Emperor of the Romans on Christmas in 800. [5]
Mehmed II	Ottoman Empire	Emperor of the Romans	1453 CE	Popular (cultural)	No	Following the conquest of Constantinople in 1453, Mehmed II adopted the title "Emperor of the Romans" and claimed the Byzantine Empire's legacy. The Ottomans saw themselves as heirs to the Eastern Roman Empire.
Napoleon Bonaparte	First French Empire	Emperor of the Romans	1804 CE	Governmental	Yes	Claimed succession to the Empire of Francia and crowned himself Emperor of the French with support from Pope Pius VII. [6]
Alexios I	Empire of Trebizond	Basileus of the Eastern Roman Empire	1204 CE	Governmental	No	Claimed the Roman Imperial title after the Sack of Constantinople in 1204 CE during the Fourth Crusade. [7]
Theodore I Laskaris	Empire of Nicaea	Basileus of the Eastern Roman Empire	1205 CE	Governmental	No	Following the Sack of Constantinople in 1204, Theodore I Laskaris established the Empire of Nicaea as a Byzantine successor state and declared himself Emperor. Unlike Trebizond, Nicaea maintained the strongest claim to the Roman throne and was widely recognized by the Eastern Orthodox Church. The Nicene Empire ultimately reclaimed Constantinople in 1261, restoring the Byzantine Empire under Michael VIII Palaiologos. [8]
Simeon I	First Bulgarian Empire	Emperor and Autocrat of all Bulgarians and Romans	913 CE	Personal	No	At the beginning of the Byzantine-Bulgarian war of 913-927, Simeon marched south largely unopposed on Constantinople where he was crowned Emperor and Autocrat of all Bulgarians and Romans by Nicholas Mystikos, the Imperial regent and Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople. The Byzantines would continue to resist the claim and after careful negotiations Simeon’s title was reduced to ‘Emperor of the Bulgarians’ in 924 CE, with the Byzantine emperor reclaiming the title of Emperor of the Romans. [9]

Claims by external parties not associated with their subject

Claimant figure, nation or people group	Claim	Claim basis	Further Information
Syagrius, Kingdom of Soissons	King of the Romans, Kingdom of the Romans	Last remaining rump state of the Western Roman Empire	After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 CE, Syagrius, the magister militum per Gallias, continued to administer a portion of land in what is today northern France. [10] Although he assumed the title of dux (provincial governor), his realm’s status as the last remnant of Rome in the west led nearby barbarians to erroneously refer to him as Rex Romanorum (King of the Romans). The historian Gregory of Tours coined the term ‘Kingdom of the Romans’ for Syagrius’ realm in his writings in the 6th century CE. [11]

See also

• Succession of the Roman Empire
• Roman Empire
• List of Roman emperors
• Fall of the Western Roman Empire

References

1. Teall, John L., Nicol, Donald MacGillivray. "Byzantine Empire". Encyclopedia Britannica, 17 Feb. 2025, https://www.britannica.com/place/Byzantine-Empire. Accessed 26 February 2025.
2. Barraclough, Geoffrey, Sullivan, Richard E., Raikar, Sanat Pai. "Holy Roman emperor". Encyclopedia Britannica, 15 Aug. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Holy-Roman-emperor. Accessed 3 March 2025.
3. Meyendorff, John. "Eastern Orthodoxy". Encyclopedia Britannica, 17 Feb. 2025, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Eastern-Orthodoxy. Accessed 25 February 2025.
4. Wittek, Paul; Heywood, Colin (2013). Rise of the Ottoman Empire. Royal Asiatic Society Books. Hoboken: Taylor and Francis. p. 81. ISBN   978-1-136-51319-0.
5. Barraclough, Geoffrey. "Holy Roman Empire". Encyclopedia Britannica, 20 Dec. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/place/Holy-Roman-Empire. Accessed 26 February 2025.
6. Zelazko, Alicja. "The Coronation of Napoleon". Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Mar. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/topic/The-Coronation-of-Napoleon. Accessed 3 March 2025.
7. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. "Trabzon". Encyclopedia Britannica, 8 Nov. 2024, https://www.britannica.com/place/Trabzon-Turkey. Accessed 26 February 2025.
8. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica. "empire of Nicaea". Encyclopedia Britannica, 28 Mar. 2016, https://www.britannica.com/place/empire-of-Nicaea. Accessed 26 February 2025.
9. "A Rome Away From Rome: The First Bulgarian Empire". Tullio Pontecorvo.
10. "Domain of Soissons (Roman empire)".
11. "Kingdom of Soissons, the Last Roman Stronghold in Gaul that Survived Ten Years after the Fall of the Western Empire". Antonio García.