Evaluate the achievements of Augustus
The achievements of Augustus are numerous and span across many different contexts; social, political, and military. For the purpose of this essay, the phases of Augustus ' life will serve as the basis of his achievements. Augustus was born in September 63 BC in an era of the Roman Republic that was rife with civil unrest and political instability, and over his 76 years he "...found Rome a city of bricks and left it a city of marble." (Suetonius and Carter 1982). Although he achieved many things from his early life as the heir of Caesar to the rise of the principate, arguably his most important achievement was the establishment of the Roman Empire as it set up the foundations for a 200 year empire that
…show more content…
These combined forces led Antony to flee from Italy to Gaul, and at Mutina, Antony was beaten in conflict by Augustus, but the two consuls who fought alongside Augustus had fallen in battle (Eck 2007). This victory led Augustus to demand he be appointed as consul despite being too young.
Being the heir of Caesar is quite a status in itself, but the fact that Augustus had built up and led his own private army into battle against Mark Antony at the age of 19 and had come out successful meant that Augustus was a force to be reckoned with. The successful outcome of his battle with Antony, meant he had accumulated a large public following and an even larger amount of respect (Crook 1996) (Eck 2007). In addition to this, Antony 's defeat cleared the way for Augustus to fulfill the will of Caesar and gain full access to Caesar 's wealth and political and military legacy (Crook 1996). At this point in time, he had enough power, support, and momentum to demand a consul position, which set up his rise to absolute power (Crook 1996). This series of events were quite important in relation to the creation of the Roman Empire as they served as an outlet for Augustus ' plans for Rome.
Over the years, Augustus continued to build up his military and political power, which was met with contention by Antony. Although Antony and Augustus appeared to be friendly, especially with
Augustus as the adopted son of Julius Caesar, which gave or given him a stable foundation for a sudden rush of power. Elected as triumvr along with Lepidus and Mark Antony in a promise of revenge upon the killers of his father, Augustus then granted the great auctoritas (authority), being supported only by his group of colleagues. Reelected of a country until 27BC, Augustus had gained further agreeing with, or related to, the Constitution power at age 23, going beyond his fellow colleagues within the senate.
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
Gaius Octavius Thurinus, also known as Augustus, was the first Emperor and founder of the Roman Empire ruling from 27 B.C.E. until his death in 14 C.E. He succeeded Julius Caesar after his death in 44 B.C.E. and changed Rome from a Republic to an Empire. Quite arguably Augustus was one of the greatest Roman rulers in history. He was responsible for changing the structure of government by controlling elections and saw to it that promising young men, whatever their origin, served the state as administrators and provincial Governors.
Emperor Augustus was the most influential emperor in the history of the Roman Empire. He was also the first emperor of the Roman Empire. His real name was Octavian, but he was given the name Augustus when he took over as emperor. From early on in his life, he was an established leader. He began wearing a toga at just age sixteen, which is the Roman sign of manhood. He began to take on the responsibilities associated with his family’s connections. His uncle was Julius Caesar, who was leader of Rome before he became emperor. Octavian fought along his uncle in battle. From early on in his life, Octavian had the qualities of an impressive leader, and he showed these qualities later in his life.
While Octavius became popular with the populace, Antony was falling back into destation. Morey (1901), stated that Octavius did not do anything but bided his time waiting for Antony to slip up. Romans have suspected that Antony was making treasonable acts with his army and frequent visits to Egypt meeting Cleopatra. This was deemed true as the Romans saw this as treason and demanded Octavius to war with Antony. Octavius appealed to the Romans that they should war against Cleopatra than Antony. Instead of the foreign war against Egypt, this was a civil war against Antony. Antony knew what this war was directed at, so he separated himself from Octavius and declared himself an enemy of Rome (Morey, 1901).
‘The Senators preferred the safety of the present to the dangers of the past’. The time of emergency measures was over and there was no one left to challenge Augustus, he continued to be re-elected as consul from 31BCE to 23BCE setting the foundations of his powerful status. Although he “had resigned the title of Triumvir, [...] it might have been contended that he continued inconspicuously to exercise the dictatorial powers of that office, has the question been of concern to men at the time.” The extent of his powers was of no concern to most of the Senators. Augustus’ immense authority provided him with a more elevated status than his legal position. As Tacitus points out, opposition was non – existent and the Emperor was able to concentrate the functions of the Senate, the magistrates and the laws in himself, because so many of the bold spirits had died during the past battles and proscriptions.
Of Augustus’ rise to power and the means by which he achieved his ends of Empirical glory, different views have been taken. While some
Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian hereinafter referred to “Augustus”, was given the title of imperium by age of 19, to gain this, he amassed a private army and marched on the Senate in Revenge for his adopted father’s murder. Augustus developed a peaceful and cultural Ancient Rome . In contrast, both Caesar and Sulla before him, were appointed to dictator under the Lex Valeria (Valerian law) , both had ultimate goals of monarchy, but where Caesar, used the people to ascertain if this would be accepted , Sulla ruled with an iron fist.
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.
Augustus raised a force of 3000 men from his “Father’s” veterans. But among the supporters of Caesar, Octavian also had a natural opponent - Mark Antony, the dictator's trusted lieutenant. Mark Antony was not at all like Octavian. He was a lot more attractive and physically stronger. Octavian had called upon Antony for help and support but was disappointed to find that he was jealous because Octavian had been named heir rather than himself.
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 received the tribuncian power for life and assumed the role of protector of the Roman people. He also received the right to intervene in those provinces administered by the Senate. The backbone of Augustus’ power came from being Imperium of the military. It was of great importantance
At the time of Alexander the Great, the Roman Empire was no more than a little patch of land in the heart of Italy, and Rome was just a small city of twisting streets within strong walls. However, Rome’s inhabitants were proud people. The Romans loved telling stories of the greatness of their past and were convinced of a virtuous future. The Romans constantly told stories of the glorious past of their small city, and with these stories came even more tales of kings and their wars with neighboring cities. By 27 BC the Romans definitely received their long anticipated supremacy when Augustus was titled the first emperor of Rome. Augustus added numerous territories to Rome, but the most famous conqueror was no doubt Julius Caesar. He conquered
Julius Caesar was a Roman statesman who lost it all to foolishly becoming a dictator with king like qualities. Caesars great-nephew, Augustus (then Gaius Julius Caesar) inherited through his late great-uncle, a civil-war torn, distressed country. Throughout the next 40 years from the beginning of Augustus’ reign in 27 BCE to his death in 14 AD, he transformed Rome into a place of great peace. Peace in Rome lasted from 27 BCE to 180 AD, long after Augustus’ death because of the development of the Principate, the reconstruction and social reform of Rome and the Pax Romana. Augustus’ Empire was undoubtedly the most important Empire in Roman history and the peace Augustus created was his greatest achievement during his reign.
Augustus used his military system to conquer surrounding cities. He drew strength through the army he led (Lyons, 2017), and used his military to conquer, expand the empire (Holt, 2003). His military system brought him to power and without the strong military that he had, Augustus wouldn't have been able to gain he vast empire that he ruled (Corbishley, 1989). Augustus was first known as Octavian but was given his famous name by the Senate (Holt, 2003). In the beginning, Augustus and the Senate declared war on Mark Antony for falling in love and having an affair with Cleopatra (Corbishley, 1989). Rome helped Augustus defeat Antony and they chose him to control all Roman territories (Augustus, 2017). Years of war doubled the size of Rome (Nice, 2017), and helped the empire grow closer to his goal of ruling the entire known world. Augustus held many military campaigns to pacify Spain and gain its control (Lyons, 2017). In the end, Augustus brought all of Spain under Roman control and brought the empire’s frontier all the way