The Birth of the Roman Empire
to characterise achievements of Julius Caesar and Octavian Augustus;
to describe what was the principateprincipate
to describe how did the Roman RepublicRepublic become an empireempire;
to characterise how did the birth of one of the largest empiresempires of the world come about.
The victories against Carthage and the conquest of the Greek world cemented the might of Rome. It became the largest empireempire of the basin of the Mediterranean Sea, with time making it, as the Romans would call it, “mare nostrum” – “our sea”. The conquests and expansion of the Roman world, however, brought many problems and threats to the RepublicRepublic as well. The vast riches of a narrow group of patricians, combined with the rising poverty of the plebeians, contributed to severe social conflict. Rome could not handle its new reality. The large, remote territories hundreds of kilometers from the city of Rome, governed by deputies and defended by commanders caused the soldiers to be more faithful to their commanders than to the country itself. Its future and position, after all, depended on them. In those circumstances, the highest position of authority (that of consul) was acquired by the later victor of the Gaul campaign – Gaius Julius Caesar. The rise of his power and the staunch loyalty of his divisions quickly caused discomfort to the people who were hitherto his political allies. They accused Caesar of treason, demanding his immediate appearance before the SenateSenate in Rome. Thus, he headed to Italy, along with the forces loyal to him, starting a civil war. By defeating his main adversary, Pompey, in the Battle of Pharsalus, he managed to obtain full power in Rome, becoming a dictatordictator. Fearing the loss of their position, the Roman aristocrats staged a conspiracy against him, leading to his death on 15 March 44 BC. However, the assassins, thinking the death of the dictator would bring the RepublicRepublic back, failed to foresee one thing. The numerous supporters of Caesar were not willing to give up without putting up a fight. The civil war that lasted as long as until 30 BC ended with the victory of Gaius Octavian, the grandson of Caesar’s sister whom he adopted and designated as his main heir. Thus, he assumed indivisible power over Rome. The Senate’s act of conferring upon him the sobriquet of “Augustus” (“full of divine power”) marks the symbolic end of the RepublicRepublic, ushering in the Roman EmpireEmpire. In order to maintain a republican facade, Augustus named himself the first among the officials (princeps), fulfilling his tasks in line with the republican tradition. This title became the origin of the name of the system that would exist in the Roman EmpireEmpire until the end of the third century CE – “principate”.
Augustus sought to keep expanding the Roman territory, attempting to conquer the territories beyond the Rhine. However, he was stopped by the Germanic forces in the great Battle of the Teutoburg Forest in 9 CE. The Romans’ defeat put a stop to the conquests in Europe; from then on, the EmpireEmpire would merely seek to defend its existing borders. Thus began the period called the “[Pax Romana]”Pax Romana, or the period of peace both within and outside the EmpireEmpire, contributing to its strengthening and prosperity. Augustus died in 14 CE, after over four decades of rule, leaving the EmpireEmpire at the peak of its might. For the next decades (until the second century), his successors supported the idea of “Pax Romana”, concentrating on the development of the conquered provincsprovincs and maintaining safety on the borders.
Why do you think the conspirators decided to murder Caesar?
- They had been bribed by the Parthian King.
- They considered themselves to be the defenders of the Republic – they feared Caesar would soon declare himself King.
- They wanted revenge for the conquest of Gaul.
Listen to the recording carefully, then think about the characteristics of the principate and the rule of Emperor Augustus.
Roman history. A period of splendor of the Roman Empire (From Augustus to Diocletian)The Roman EmpireEmpire during the principate era
Thus, the entire authority vested in the people and in the SenateSenate passed onto Augustus; his rule marked the beginning of full‑fledged autocracy. [...] The title of Autocrat itself was widely hated by the Roman people; they would not call their Emperors “dictators” or “kings”. There is, however, no reason to say that the Roman EmpireEmpire was not a monarchy, as it was the Emperor who possessed the highest authority. Even though the officials, except for the censors, are appointed according to the old law, the management and ways of processing affairs of their offices are determined by the Emperor exclusively. However, in order to maintain a facade of legality, the Emperors kept in their hands every office that used to be of decisive significance prior (except for that of the dictator, of course), as consented to by the people, while maintaining the names those offices bore hitherto. Oftentimes, an Emperor uses the title of consulconsul, and his proconsuls take his place whenever he leaves the premises of the city. The title of “Imperator” is assumed not only by those who earned victories, but also by those who wish to emphasize their unlimited authority, so as to avoid using the title of “king” or “dictator”. [...] They introduce conscription, collect taxes, declare war, make peace, rule over every province and citizen, and, within the city’s walls, they may even punish knights and senators with death. [...] As censors, they supervise our ways of life and our customs, they conduct the population census, admit people into the knight and senator classes, excluding those whom they see unfit as they please. As they are members of all of the priestly colleges, and, furthermore, even when there are two or three Emperors ruling at the same time, one of them possesses the title of the head priest, they appoint their members as they please. Thus, the Emperors possess all lay and sacerdotal authority. The authority of the tribune of the plebs, present in the republican times, gives them the right to protest against any decision of the SenateSenate that they dislike; the very same authority gives them inviolability, and thus they can sentence to death anyone who opposed them with words or actions even in the lighest of manners, without the involvement of any law or court. [...] They also use this office to count their years in power, as if their authority as tribunes were renewed every year.
They kept all of the republican offices in their previous forms and under their old names in order to pretend that they did not receive any of them without the consent of their citizens.
Apart from that, they were able to obtain a further right that had never been conferred upon anyone else in Rome before, using which they could exercise the rights mentioned above, as well as others. Namely, they are not bound by any laws, i.e. they are not required to comply with any written norms. Thus, they concentrated all of the power that previously belonged to the people in their hands, effectively becoming kings without bearing this hated title. The titles of Caesar and Augustus do not give them any particular powers – on the one hand, they determine inheritance and succession, and, on the other, the splendor of their office. The title inherited from their fathers gives them, as one could think, the sort of power that fathers exercise over their sons. It has, however, a different significance, for it was conferred upon them to commemorate them and encourage them to love their subjects as if they were their children, and to encourage the subjects to obey and revere the Emperors as if they were fathers.
Source: Cassius Dio, Roman history. A period of splendor of the Roman Empire (From Augustus to Diocletian).
The reign of Emperor Augustus were called a “comedy of a republic” Why do you think it was viewed this way?
- Augustus ordered frequent comedy plays in the theaters.
- The republican system was merely a facade – the Emperor wielded absolute power.
- Augustus joked frequently, driving everyone to tears.
Order chronologically the events that took place in Rome during the reign of Julius Caesar and Octavian Augustus.
- Octavian’s assumption of the title of Augustus
- Death of Augustus
- The crossing of the Rubicon
- Caesar’s murder
- Battle of Actium
Fill the gaps, then read the text aloud.
Octavian, civil war, Caesar’s, Brutus, military, murdered, Anthony, principate, Rhine, senators, commanders, dictator, Gaius Julius Caesar, peace, Augustus, crisis, princeps
In the first century CE, the Roman Republic suffered from an inner ....................................... It was taken advantage of by ambitious ...................................... who sought to seize the power in the state using ...................................... forces. This caused the beginning of a ....................................... It was won by ....................................... He defeated his adversaries and became a ....................................... Soon after, however, he was ...................................... by a group of ...................................... who opposed him. The conspiracy was spearheaded by ......................................, a friend of his. ...................................... death was avenged by his friends and collaborators, headed by Mark ...................................... and Octavian. Soon after, war erupted between them, with ...................................... emerging victorious. He seized full power in Rome and assumed the title of ....................................... As he was the first among the citizens, or the ......................................, the political system of Rome that he created was called the ....................................... The borders of Rome in Europe were based on two rivers, the ...................................... and the Danube. The long-awaited ...................................... finally settled in the Mediterranean world.
Keywords
Rome, empire, principate, Augustus, Caesar
Glossary
Republika – dosłownie rzecz publiczna, ustrój polityczny, w którym władza sprawowana jest przez obywateli poprzez wybory. W starożytnym Rzymie była to niemonarchiczne sprawowanie władzy przez posiadających prawa polityczne obywateli.
Senat – instytucja polityczna w starożytnym Rzymie ustanowiona zgodnie z legendą przez Romulusa. Był obdarzony znacznym autorytetem pełnił funkcję doradczą i opiniował projekty ustaw.
Konsul – w starożytnym Rzymie jeden z dwóch najwyższych urzędników w państwie zajmujący się sprawami wojskowymi i polityką zagraniczną.
Dyktator – w republice rzymskiej urząd, który skupiał pełnię władzy. Był powoływany na 6 miesięcy w okresach największego zagrożenia państwa. Nie można było odwołać się od jego decyzji.
Cesarstwo – forma ustroju państwa – monarchii – w której panujący obdarzony jest tytułem cezara. Cesarstwo rzymskie zostało zapoczątkowane przez Oktawiana Augusta.
Legion – podstawowa jednostka taktyczna rzymskiej armii złożona przede wszystkim z ciężkozbrojnej piechoty (legionistów).
Prowincja – jednostka administracyjna w starożytnym Rzymie utworzona na podbitym terenie, poza Italią. Zarządzana byłą przez namiestników.
Limes – umocnienia i fortyfikacje na granicach cesarstwa rzymskiego.
Pax Romana – określenie czasów od panowania Oktawiana Augusta w 27 r. p.n.e. do śmierci Aleksandra Sewera w 235 r. n.e. Opisywał okres pokoju wewnątrz i na zewnątrz imperium rzymskiego.
Pryncypat – forma rządów w Cesarstwie Rzymskim wprowadzona przez Oktawiana Augusta, polegająca na koncentracji władzy w rękach jednej osoby przy zachowaniu pozorów ustroju republiki.