Questions: What Were Augustus Accomplishments?

In both readings we receive a picture of Rome that the writers paint for us. Augustus provides for us a very biased view on Rome. In “ The Deeds of the Divine Augustus”, Augustus makes a point that Rome is superior to all other places. He takes pride in Rome, so much so that he does not point out the faults in Rome, rather he praises it for all its glory. In contrast, Juvenal’s “Satires”, takes a more realistic approach and explains to us the downfalls of Rome. He explains the good and the bad of Rome and writes with sense of truth. He explains to us that Rome is not perfect by any means. Through his writings, Juvenal is hoping to help the citizens realize their faults and return to their traditional Roman values, through this we can come to an understanding of the true Rome.

Augustus had constantly gained control over Rome and the Empire. Through his political moving around & misleading and tricking. According to Tacitus, senator and history expert of the Roman Empire. This source points to show the

Augustus first came to power after many years of bloodshed and civil war, and the Roman people longed for peace and the stabilization of society. It will be shown that Augustus achieved this goal through a series of religious, moral, and political reforms, and in doing so, legitimized and strengthened his own position in the transition from republic to empire.

To what extent was Augustus ' achievement of power a continuation of the phenomenon we have been examining throughout this course? How was Augustus different? By the time of his death in AD 14, what had changed since the epoch of Scipio Aemilianus?

In ancient history there have been many great leaders who had saved the Roman Empire from destruction and demise. The leaders and heroes of the Roman Empire are countless, but one leader stands out from all the rest. Augustus Caesar’s contributions to Roman history helped make Rome the dominant empire we know of today. Augustus Caesar was without a question the greatest political leader in the history of the Roman Empire.

In the year 63 B.C Augustus became the first emperor of Rome, after the assassination of his adoptive father Julius Caesar in 44 B.C. Augustus raised an army at the age of 19 to overthrow the tyrant leader Mark Antony, whom gained power of Rome after the assassination of Julius Caesar. After overthrowing the tyrannical system, Augustus liberated his father, and was offered dictatorship by the people of Rome. Augustus rejected the title of dictator on more than one occasion; he instead titled himself princeps civitatis: the first among citizens. In his reign Augustus completed many building projects, including the repair and rebuilding of aqueducts, roads, and sewers that had been neglected over time. The expansion of the Roman Empire under Augustus was extensive, stretching from Egypt to Spain including

Augustus is known to be the first Roman emperor, and the founder of Rome, known for politically transforming the Roman republic to the early Roman Empire. During his rule his influence on artwork and architecture illustrated a classical style, and often they was a reflection of the “public image” of his rule, as well as his “new agenda”. (115) Augustus was quickly seen as a restorer of Rome. Augustus commissioned many large scale building projects such as the Campus Martius, as well as elaborate pieces of portraiture that illustrate his power and the peace of the new Rome under his rule. Augustus acknowledged his power and wealth but at the same time never formally declared himself emperor in order to maintain his citizenship. Although he was keen on denying title of emperor, he emphasized that he was a descendant of the great Julius Caesar considering himself his adopted son and his predecessor, in which he reinforces in some of the temples he commissioned. Overall Augustus was seen as a man of change and power, the one who brought prosperity to Rome when it became shaken by the assassination of Julius Caesar. The age of Augustus brought forth a classical style, influenced by Greeks, and the usage of marble and concrete to create complex buildings and sculptures. This was important because as a result of Augustus’ reign Rome obtained a very classical style, in which would later be reintroduced in order to mimic his greatness by other Emperors.

The major problems with most of the sources in the book are the sources themselves, because most are writers, or biographers, that were hired and paid to follow Augustus by Augustus. Although some were Augustus ' own biographers, some are also opponents of Augustus and his entitlement and takeover of the Roman Republic/Empire. These sources are also the only real documented information about Augustus that have been found or retrieved, and unknown to be based on facts, or just opinion and conjecture, or promoted by Augustus himself.

He preserved all of the traditional offices while slowly taking many of the offices for him self. He was both consul and tribune. Commander and chief of the military and the senate also gave him direct control of many provinces, these provinces supplied men for his armies and food for them also, not to the senate. Augustus knew the importance of religion in roman society, he then named himself pontifex maximus which means supreme priest. He encourages the construction of temples dedicated to Rome and Augustus. None of these innovations in his ruling method altered the Roman constitution. The laws he did change however were the laws of the provinces of Rome which made them more romanized, so Augustus could be open about his actions so the senate would not bring him down and be with him. The Romans had a strong sense of there traditions and were fascinated by there history they loved when they could point out how the gods operated in there empire and allowed them much conquest of the western world. Before Augustus it looked for the romans as if the gods had left them, for they killed each other in revolutions and civil wars. Augustus’s many military victories and expansion of the empire through land and a political sense, show that the gods where on his side. He glorified Rome by hiring painters, sculptures, architects, and painters to design and build beautiful structures. He has paved the way for future Roman emperors to come.

After a century of civil wars and wide-spread fear and chaos, a new and promising leader arose, who, despite his comparably humble origins was soon to be called Augustus, the revered one, by the Senators. This once, dominant body placed hope in this single man and bestowed numerable honours upon him, concentrating the power of patronage and promotion through which he eventually outranked all the other Senators in the state.

Suetonius was born around 68-9 AD, possibly in Hippo Regius (Suetonius xviii). His mentor described him as ‘scholarly and honorable’ and many held him in high regard (xix). Suetonius completed The Twelve Caesars sometime during the 120s during the peak of his career (xxiii). Suetonius conveys his opinion of each emperor indirectly through how he portrays their vices and virtues. According to Suetonius, a Roman leaders good and bad qualities included their military successes, relations with the citizens of Rome, mental stability, and private relationships. Suetonius believed that Augustus embodied many of the characteristics of a good leader.

Augustus, during his reign as emperor proved effective in ruling through the ideas he implemented to solidify his country. Tacitus stated “nullo adversante” which translates into English “Wholly unopposed” (http://janusquirinus.org/Quotes/QuotesHome.html) this identifies the effectiveness of his reign and the strength he had politically over Rome. Important actions such as the creation of religious and moral reforms, the constitutional agreement and the implementation of the building programme all succeeded in creating stability within the Roman Empire.

Augustus came into sole power after defeating Marc Antony and Cleopatra in the Battle of Actium. He exclaims that he wants to “retain the form but change the substance,” of the republic government. Some historians debate whether he was a power-hungry dictator or if he in fact had plans to work towards empowering and expanding the Roman empire. During his reign, he makes it so that he is the sole leader of Rome, and essentially assuming the role of an emperor but not technically an “emperor.” He removes the law that places a ten year waiting period between running for consul again, which we then see this lead to the senate giving him judicial power. For this reason, some people feel as though he was working for his personal ambition to achieve complete control.

When discussing Augustus and Caligula it is simple to bring up the subject of public works and law. Augustus had the most success with his many projects, including the Temple of Mars the Avenger, the Palatine Temple of Apollo, and the Temple of Jupiter the Thunderer on the Capitol. Many colonnade, basilica, and theater were erected and named after relatives. He urged many renowned

Firstly, Augustus rebuilt the buildings and added on, and build new roads across Rome. As Augustus famously says, “I found Rome brick and left it marble.” Augustus used wealth and transformed the buildings of Rome. Under his rule, a new network of excellent roads and buildings were constructed, (Hart). Augustus did not spend the wealth of Rome on himself, but he used it towards making the area of Rome even better after the war. Additionally, Augustus began a period of peace and prosperity in Rome. For example, under his rule, Rome had internal peace and prosperity, (Hart). Because of the civil wars prior to his rule, Augustus had to end it, and by resolving the wars, peace arose. This period lasted long after his rule, and was greatly beneficial. Furthermore, Augustus had a long term influence on Rome itself. For example, Augustus built for the future, thus having a long term influence on the times to come, (Hart). In fact, his influence lasted nearly 200 years, (World Book). Augustus carefully thought out all his plans for Rome, and his influence continued after he left. All of Augustus’s reforms greatly impacted the next generation of Rome. Lastly, Augustus began a new age of Roman architecture and literature. This was known as the Augustan Age,