Download Caesar Augustus (Octavian)

Caesar Augustus (Octavian)
Born 63 BCE—Died 14 CE
Ruled 30 BCE-14 CE
The rise of Gaius Octavius to Caesar Augustus began
by him being adopted by Julius Caesar, his great uncle,
when he was 18. When Caesar was assassinated a year
later, the 19 year old had enough political power to be
appointed consul of Rome. After the initial chaos at the
death of Caesar, he joined Marc Antony and Lepidus to
form the Second Triumvirate to rule Rome. This gave the
trio power to remove any others that might oppose their
own ambition—which they did.
With the death of Brutus and Cassius at Philippi,
Octavian, Antony, and Lepidus divided the empire. Lepidus
became the governor of (Northern) Africa. Antony ruled
Egypt and Octavian held Italy. Octavian increased his
popularity by living a simple life, honoring the republican
values of the average Roman citizen and the traditional Roman gods. In contrast,
Antony lived in public opulence in Egypt. The first to fall was Lepidus, who was
removed as governor because of campaigns to take Sicily. This set the stage for the
final conflict between the two remaining powers, Octavian and Antony.
The political stage within the Roman world set Octavian and his naval
strategist, Marcus Agrippa, against Antony and Cleopatra VII. Each camp had their
lesser powers hoping to share in their benefactor’s victory. Such was the case in
Judea and Galilee. Earlier, the Romans had sought political alliance against the
Parthians, who controlled Judea through their appointment of Antigonus as king.
They found that ally in Herod, son of Antipater, ruler of Galilee. Cleopatra opposed
Herod and thus brought him into favor when she and Antony were defeated. That
defeat came in 31 BCE, when Marcus Agrippa defeated the Egyptian navy and
Octavian conquered the land.
Octavian continued in public office for only four additional years, but
continued to rule through his control of the army and the acquisition of a religious
authority by receiving the title “Augustus,” son of Caesar—who had earlier been
declared a god. Thus he was “the eminent one, the son of a god.” Though he did not
rule directly in his remaining years, he reshaped the Roman state through his edicts
which were ratified by the Senate. For Caesar Augustus, who ran a totalitarian state,
tranquility was more important than justice. Though he controlled Rome’s army, he
left the military planning to professionals, such as Marcus Agrippa and Tiberius, his
stepson. The “peace of Rome” allowed him to centralize the economy, develop
Rome’s road system, and shape the empire in a way that would impact western
civilization.
Personally, he had a sad life in many ways. He had no sons and his grandsons
died before he did, thus he adopted his wife’s son, Tiberius, as his heir, though he
personally disliked him. Family relationships were a mess and included murder,
shameless public perversion, and incest. In his final years, power was transferred to
Tiberius, who was installed as his successor in 13 CE. He died peacefully at Nola on
August 19, 14 CE.
The primary source for the above information and the following bibliography was
provided by Mahlon H. Smith , Associate Professor, Rutgers University. For primary
sources & more details see:
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Deeds of the Divine Augustus - emperor's autobiographical Res Gestae
composed shortly before his death in 14 CE for posting on public monuments
(from Internet Classics Archive at MIT).
Augustus: Images of Power - Mark Morford's illustrated commentary on
monuments to the imperial cult covers the emperor's Mausoleum, the Altar of
Peace, a statue of Augustus from his wife's villa & a cameo portraying him as
Jupiter (U of Virginia).
Mausoleum of Augustus & the Res Gestae - Latin texts (some with English
translation) posted by J. P. Adams (Cal State U - Northridge).
Life of Augustus by Nicolaus of Damascus - English translation of fragment from
early 1st c. Greek historian (Cal State U - Northridge).
Suetonius: the Divine Augustus - glowing biography by 2nd c. Roman historian
from Paul Halsall's Internet Ancient History Sourcebook (Fordham U).
Augustus - Garrett Fagan's favorable assessment in the inter-academic
historical encyclopedia De Imperatoribus Romanis.
Augustus & Triberius: Historical Background - illustrated chronology of the lives
of the first two Roman emperors & the woman who influenced them both in
Barbara McManus' Rome: Republic to Empire (College of New Rochelle).
Augustus - 1996 lecture by David Silverman offers a critical assessment of the
sources & Octavian's place in political history (Reed College).
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