Augustus was more concerned with self preservation than the advancement of the senate, the armies and his citizens. He rejected absolute power, but had an ulterior motive. With the fate of Julius Caesar in his mind, Augustus was well aware of the dangers of absolute power. So he saw dispersing power as a means to offset those potential threats to his lift. I have used the primary sources such as Tacitus, The Annals of Imperial Rome by Tacitus, The Deeds of the Divine Augustus by Augustus and The Divine Augustus by Suetonius for the examination of my hypothesis and to compare how each of them portrayed Augustus.
During his reign Augustus refused dictatorship and consulship on several occasions and instead created the Principate. In the Deeds of the Divine Augustus, he mentions many positions that he rejected and portrays himself as a modest leader that had little interest in dominating the state. Both Tacitus and Suetonius mention his rejection of dictatorship in their works. Suetonius also portrays Augustus as a modest leader and according to Suetonius, when offered dictatorship, Augustus bent down on one knee, with his toga thrown over his shoulders, and his breast exposed to view, begging to be excused and not wishing to have the position. Tacitus on the other hand believed that the creation of a Principate and the Pax Romana were merely pretexts and that his real motive was lust for power.
As we all know, Augustus’s Uncle, Julius Caesar was murdered by his own senate. He held the position of dictatorship and consul for many years and his cunning fight for domination saw his end at only 56 years old. Dictatorship was always regarded a temporary position but in 44 BC, Caesar took it for life. Caesars domination alienated th...
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...bout him was a lot less praiseful than it appears to be. He explains some Augustus’ less dignified moments in his life and many of his cruel acts as emperor.
Tacitus, the Annals of Imperial Rome by Tacitus portrays a very different image of Augustus. He praises Augustus on occasion however, he also mentions his less dignified moments and insinuates that his motive was a lust for power rather than the progression of Rome.
Tacitus also gives reference to Augustus’ achievements and he also expresses that he was not always callous and had brilliant tactics in leading Rome.
Whether Augustus played an important role in the advancement of Rome or not, he was still very self-absorbed and the states elevation came after his own prosperity. On the other hand, that may have been the type of character one needed to survive as a leader in such a ruthless society.
From ages past, the actions of conquerors, kings and tyrants had brought the Roman Republic to a stance that opposed any idea of a singular leader, of a single man that held total power over the entirety of the state. Their rejection of the various ruthless Etruscan rulers that had previously dictated them brought the Republic to existence in 509 BC , and as a republic their prominence throughout the provinces of the world exponentially expanded. Throughout these years, the traditions of the Romans changed to varying degrees, most noticeably as a result of the cultural influence that its subject nations had upon the republic, as well as the ever-changing nature of Roman society in relation to then-current events. However, it was not until the rise of Augustus, the first of a long line of succeeding emperors, that many core aspects of the Republic were greatly changed. These were collectively known as the “Augustan Reforms”, and consisted of largely a variety of revisions to the social, religious, political, legal and administrative aspects of the republic’s infrastructure. Through Augustus, who revelled in the old traditional ways of the past, the immoral, unrestraint society that Rome was gradually falling to being was converted to a society where infidelities and corruption was harshly looked upon and judged. The Roman historian Suetonius states, “He corrected many ill practices, which, to the detriment of the public, had either survived the licentious habits of the late civil wars, or else originated in the long peace” . Through Augustus and his reforms, the Republic was transformed into an Empire, and through this transformation, Rome experienced one of its greatest and stabl...
During the Republic, the people of Rome had a major disinclination towards any sort of Royalty, which is why when Caesar attempted to lead undemocratically indefinitely, he disrupted one of the core stances that romans shared communally. Caesar over indulged in power when he retitled himself as ‘dictator in perpetuo’. “And as Caesar was coming down from Alba into the city they ventured to hail him as king. But at this the people were confounded, and Caesar, disturbed in mind, said that his name was not King, but Caesar, and seeing that his words produced an universal silence, he passed on with no very cheerful or contented looks…..But the most open and deadly hatred towards him was produced by his passion for the royal power.” Caesars egotism and self-importance made him uncherished by members of the senate. “Everybody knew that Caesar's ego would never allow him to play second fiddle to another senator, and it was equally well-known that another famous military leader, Pompey the Great, had similar ambitions. In January 49, more or less at...
Augustus Caesar was very ambitious leader. He is best known for bringing peace to Rome. Augustus was considered the first great roman emperor, because He didn’t care about wealth and fortune. Augustus cared about the people of Rome. He was a great military leader and was successful in most of his missions. He showed people that being a good ruler requires a lot of hard work and dedication. He was a very generous man. Augustus was greatly admired by the Roman people.
Tiberius is remembered as a tightfisted and paranoid emperor. Tacitus goes against this view of Tiberius by giving examples of extreme generosity. However Tacitus doesn 't present Tiberius as a perfect emperor and his portrayal of Tiberius isn 't just propaganda. When it comes to military affairs Tacitus paints a very unflattering picture of Tiberius turning his back on the frontier while Romans are killed. Tacitus stated that his accounts on the Julio Claudian emperors was made without prejudice and the fact that he highlights both positive and negative aspects of Tiberius ' rule indicates that he was probably telling the truth.
Augustus cares about his people or that is how he portrays himself in his personal account of his life. He references things such as the money he gives to multiple causes, as well as his service to the people, and the positions they awarded him. He also portrays himself as being a just leader. For example he says “those who assassinated my father I drove into exile, avenging their crime by due process of the law”, he fairly punished them for their crime. Augustus also shows that he is in favor of true justice by saying that he would prefer to let someone live instead of killing them. Augustus’ name was important to him as was his history, and his traditions he mentions refusing offices that
Now whether the change that this time period brought about followed the evolutionary line or a rapid outright contingent revolution can be debated for many time to come. To the political contemporaries of Augustus the transition of political pole from oligarchy to autocracy seemed almost smooth and predictable [2]- [4] Now this obviousness of Augustus’ rise of power was not due to intelligence of his political comtemporaries as such. The eminence of Augustus during the early principate evolved in due time with due measure. A situation is worthwhile to consider: After the Actium war, the final war o Roman Republic, which was against Mark Antony, Augustus (then known as Octavian) became the unprecedented head of Roman empire. He had control over sheering number of five hundred thousand legionaries [3]- [5]. And the recent seizure of Ptolemaic treasure trove. The total situation compelled Tacitus (one of the bitterest commentator of Augustus) to say- ‘Opposition did not
Philosopher A: In the Republic, the Senate was the primary branch of the Roman government and held the majority of the political power. It controlled funds, administration and foreign policy, and had significant influence of the everyday life of the Roman people. When Augustus came to power, he kept the Senate and they retained their legal position. The Emperor’s rule was legitimized by the senate as he needed the senators experience to serve as administrators, diplomats and generals. Although technically the most authoritative individual in Rome, Augustus strived to embody Republican values. He wanted to relate and connect to all parts of society including Plebeians. Through generosity and less extravagance, Augustus achieved a connection with the common people.
For thousands of years people have been talking about the great powerful Caesar. He is one of the greatest known dictators known to people today mostly because of all of the things he was able to accomplish during his rein as emperor. After reading primary sources about Caesar, it has given me a better understanding of what other people thought of him during this time period. It’s safe to say that Caesar was obsessed with power and respect from other people that would explain his thirst for war and land, which is one of his greatest strengths and helped in making Rome a great empire.
Augustus created the office of emperor with the Augustan Principate, which was “to have no institutionalized authoritarian power, no perpetual dictatorship such as Julius Caesar had had himself voted early in 44, or anything like it (Stockton, 124).” Despite his wishes the people of Rome ended up giving Augustus eternal office, and powers to control the Senate with the rights to dictate agendas and veto (Stockton, 128). The people of Rome had created a position of absolute power, the exact thing Augustus was attempting to prevent. At the time the people of Rome could not have realized what they were creating in the office of emperor, for Augustus was a great man whose leadership created a great shadow over the shoulder of any future emperor.
...the Pax Romana, a time of peace and prosperity in Roman history that lasted over 200 years. He did however, fool the people of Rome. He ruled as type of despot, hiding behind the illusion of a false republic. Augustus was careful to not raise the eyebrows of the citizens. With the senate was still intact, Augustus seemed to have somebody to prevent him from becoming too powerful. However, the power of the senate was weak compared to his, and he had the power to do what he wanted. This type of power, placed in the hands of an individual, would be passed on to other emperors after Augustus, some of whom would abuse that power. Rome would see the repeat of many of its former problems, and much blood would be spilled trying to prevent one person from having too much power; the Roman were back to back to where they started before 509 B.C., only they weren’t aware of it.
...4 AD, one month away from his 76th birthday. Augustus’s ultimate legacy was the peace and prosperity the empire was to enjoy for the next two centuries under the system he started. Augustus’s patience and his tact all played a part in re-establishing Rome and directing the future of the empire down many lasting paths.
In the Res Gestae, he often speaks of being offered positions of power and turning them down. He also speaks of how he donated his own money to the Roman people and building projects. However, some of his actions before he became emperor often went against that image. Augustus also chooses to omit the fact that he had immense power as emperor. Following the assassination of Julius Caesar, Augustus was named as his heir and began a rivalry with Marc Antony for power. He engaged in many deceitful acts, such as slandering Marc Antony and Cleopatra to turn the Roman people against them. In the end Marc Antony and Cleopatra committed suicide. Augustus doesn’t discuss the events from this period of time in detail. Augustus wanted to be seen as humble. He often spoke of turning down positions of power that he was offered by the people and the senate. However, he chooses to omit the fact that he was given Mauis Imperium in 23 BC which gave him immense power. This gave him the power to command any official in the empire. Augustus also wanted to present the image of being well-liked and respected. In the Res Gestae, he often mentions honors and positions he was offered due to the senate and people being so impressed with his accomplishments. However, not everyone was always impressed with Augustus or liked him. He completely omits any mention of the Perusine War. The Perusine War took place in 40 BC. Aristocrats opposed
Forsyth, Fiona. The First Emperor: Augustus. New York: Rosen Central, 2003. Print. Leaders of Ancient Rome.
...tablish the principate, where he established several legates to help govern the expanding empire. The system allowed the Emperor to remain in control, but also step away and allow others to take the lead if need be. Had Augustus not set this new form of government into play, Rome would have been torn apart several years before the fall of the Empire. His form of government proved strong enough to support the likes of Caligula and Tiberius, who was more concerned with his special interest museum than being Emperor.
Fife, S. (2012, January 18). Caesar As Dictator: His Impact on the City of Rome. Ancient History Encyclopedia. Retrieved February 14, 2014, from http://www.ancient.eu.com/article/112/http://www.ancient.eu.com/article/112/