How Did Augustus Influence Julius Caesar

Augustus Caesar was the first Roman emperor during a period called the first principate which went from 27 BC when Augustus began his reign as the Roman emperor to 248 AD. Augustus’s reign lasted from 27 BC to 14 BC when he died at Nola with his official last words being “I found Rome a city of clay but left it a city of marble” (Mark, 2010). To understand how Augustus was able to acquire this power and maintain it is important to understand what happened prior to Augustus with his great-uncle Julius Caesar as well as what Augustus did for the people and the views of the citizens of Rome. Because of Julius Caesar’s prior influence Augustus was able to obtain popularity amongst the citizens of Rome and due to the changing views of the people

When Augustus came into power he built and resorted many buildings and during this time Rome’s economy, arts and agriculture started to flourish as a result. Joshu J. Mark a freelance writer and scholar says that Augustus’s reign was a golden age with Augustus restoring peace causing the economy of Rome to flourish along with building programs with plans made by Julius Caesar and in Augustus’ Res Gestae which Augustus made over a period of time to be seen by the people he claims that he built or restored 82 temples in one year (Mark, 2010). Augustus in his Res Gestae goes on to say that he spared all citizens who sued for pardon and that 500,000 roman citizens bounded themselves to him by military oath 300,000 which he says he assigned lands or gained money (Augustus). Augustus is trying to make himself look like a great and merciful military leader as well as generous later on saying that he paid out three hundred sesterces per man in accordance with the will of his father Julius Caesar. But as Pamela Bradley an author and historian says her book Ancient Rome Using Sources the Res Gestae was intended to read in the senate after his death and to be engraved upon bronze tablets and claimed that his fame was because of the Roman people (Bradley). Because of this Augustus could have exaggerated the amount of different things

The people of Rome had lived as a republic for a long time and gave security to their freedom, however with what the people had experience and gained because of Julius Caesar and Augustus this might’ve changed. According to Suetonius who was the secretary to Emperor Hadrian that after the overthrow of Antony Augustus asked Agrippa a Roman consul, statesman, general and architect and Maecenas the political advisor to Augustus about restoring the republican with Agrippa in favour and Maecenas against. Suetonius says that Augustus at first sided with restoring the republican but then decides to usurp himself the entire dominion of the state. He mentions that as a result of the civil war and public calamities that the people were becoming less averse to the idea of an absolute government and that whilst the republican had flourished that it was incompatible with the state of Rome at the time (Suetonius). Although Suetonius was born a while after Augustus because of his position he would have had access to good information though some of it might be unreliable however he is very open on the idea between a republican or absolute government looking at both sides and the circumstance of Rome. Because of the changing views of the people and the circumstances of Rome, Augustus was able to obtain power as the emperor of Rome during the first