The Twelve Caesars : What Makes A Good Leader?

In this paper I will compare and contrast four Roman leaders and their leadership styles. Caesar in my opinion was the worst being a dictator, and ultimately bringing Rome to its demise, Whereas Numa brought great prosperity to Rome for many years. I will compare these four leader’s military leadership, civil leadership and their ethics.

Augustus Caesar demonstrated military leadership skills, both in battle and in non-war related military matters. In The

Suetonius tried to give his readers insights into the characters of individual Caesars through a wide variety of means, including, for instance, descriptions of their physical appearance which was thought by ancient people to be a clear index of a person's character. That brings about the question of if Suetonius is a credible source for the lives of the Caesars. People could say that it has nothing to do with how the Caesars worked as Caesars and the material he gives is of unimportance to us, therefore being a weakness in his works. The Romans did care of how the Caesars lived in their personal lives though because that was of great importance to them. This to the people of Rome is a great strength is Suetonius works.

Julius Caesar a man who made history, and a man who should get credit for the incredible things he’s done. I believe, Julius Caesar, should get the statue because he was an active leader by expanding the Roman Empire, he accomplished things that others wouldn’t dare to do and he also ruled many lands.

Julius Caesar was and still is considered to be one of the greatest military generals in history. His combination of leadership skills, military genius, and speaking ability propelled him to the forefront of Roman society. Born on June 12/13 100 B.C., Caesar was born into an ancient aristocratic family. Around the age of 16 after his father had died, Caesar had joined the military. It was apparent from this time onward that Caesar was especially gifted in the arts of strategy and warfare. By the age of 30 Caesar had begun making political strides in his perpetual quest for glory and prominence. During this time he would work closely with his friend and future mortal enemy, Pompey. In the next ten years, Caesar would become governor of Spain and ascend to the position of consul. His partnership with Marcus Licinius Crassus further increased Caesar’s rise to power, as Crassus himself was a powerful politician and general, who was arguably the wealthiest man in all of Rome. Along with Pompey, the three men formed what came to be known as the First Triumvirate. Although Caesar was aligned with Pompey, he never ceased to find ways outmaneuver him, qualities that would eventually precipitate Rome’s civil war. Continuing his military conquests, Caesar would become the governor of Gaul, which is now modern day Belgium and France. After ascending to this position, he’d engage in a near decade-long conquest of Gaul known as the Gallic War. Probably his most successful battle and

The Roman military was one of the most powerful and successful militaries of all time because they trained stronger troops, created superior weaponry and had better leadership than any other military in their time-period. The Roman military’s leadership was a crucial factor in the Roman’s success as demonstrated by military general Julius Caesar. Julius Caesar was one of the better generals of his time-period because his troops appreciated him more, mostly because Caesar allowed them to have a large share of whatever they plundered. With Caesar allowing his troops to have a large portion of whatever they seize, he could get his army to follow his every command no matter what the situation was, even if it was considered illegal in Roman law. Caesar broke Roman law, when he ordered his troops to cross the Rubicon, which is the point where no general could take his armies past and because of this, Caesar continued pursing his conquest of Gaul. Gaul is one of the largest areas of the Roman area, known today as France After the Roman Empire collapsed, Caesar became a member of the ruling “Triumvirate,” as well as Crassus and Pompey. Caesar then set out to eliminate the other members and when he took out Pompey, Caesar appointed himself dictator for life. Caesar was an important leader to the Roman success because he was able to control his troops no matter if the situation was legal or illegal and if food was scarce, his troops followed his every command, which made them a

One of the sympathetic sources towards Augustus was, Suetonius, who thought Augustus was a great leader and honorable man in his position as emperor. According to Mellor in, “Augustus and the Creation of the Roman Empire," Document 14 explains how Suetonius was a biographer for Augustus and a Roman historical writer, that was much different from the “subjective judgments” taken from Tacticus. In Mellor, Document 14, Suetonius says, “… (Augustus) he would not allow himself to be called “Sire” even by his children or his grandchildren either in jest or earnest and he forbade them to use such flattering terms even among themselves" (Mellor 92). An example of Augustus’ modesty and relationship with his own family and his respect for his commoners. Suetonius gives us the impression that Augustus is a religious man of the people, who wants unity for his countrymen and divinity for himself. Suetonius relays the message of "his expression," and

This major event sparked the transition of the Roman Republic to the Roman Empire; however, Plutarch, Suetonius, and Caesar each depict different aspects of this monumental event to show its importance. In Plutarch’s, Roman Lives, Caesar is described through personal anecdotes that show both a ruthless and extremely ambitious side of the political leader, and a humble, more caring side of the soldier. Suetonius portrays Caesar as a manipulative politician, motivated by a need for power. While Caesar himself takes a more militaristic viewpoint of the events. While these authors may have opposing perspectives, it is clear that their depictions describe one of the most important events in history, and that each was written in an attempt to describe the motivations and actions of Julius Caesar which lead to the Roman Civil

One famous quote “Veni, Vidi, Vici; I came, I saw, I conquered” (Julius Caesar) taken from Shakespeare’s, Julius Caesar, expresses his personal views of Rome. The patricians people described in Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar being a bad dictator. Which may have also leads to his assassination on the ides of March (March 15). The plebeians and some patricians such as Mark Antony, and his adoptive son Octavius Caesar, saw him as a good military leader. He won many wars, conquered lands, and expanded the roman republic. Julius Caesar was known for having the most advanced military mind in history.

Two of the more memorable emperors to the Romans were Augustus Caesar (27 BC to 14 AD), and Caligula (37 AD to 41 AD). Although only having ruled the empire by a separation of 23 years and belonging to the same family (through marriage and adoption), their empires couldn’t have been more different. It is possible to determine the impact of an emperor’s rule based on their many vices and virtues, as well as the choices that they make in relation to them. The author Suetonius expressed in his writings the many vices and virtues that put into perspective the kind of leaders that these emperors appeared as to their polis. As we explore the concept of vices and virtues, as well as what kind of ideals these two rulers represented, we will begin to be presented with a clearer picture of what an ideal emperor would have looked like. A vice can be described as an immoral or wicked behavior; while a virtue can be described as a behavior showing high moral standards. Suetonius and the Roman people had a high interpretation of the concept of virtue and vice, as well as their role in the ruler’s life.

Julius Caesar’s mindset influenced the history of his people. He was born July 12, 100 b.c in Rome as Gaius Julius Caesar, known today as Julius Caesar. He was a Praetor, Aedile, Consul, Pontifex Maximus, and dictator for life, and his greatest achievement is changing the Roman republic to the Roman empire. His life ended tragically when he was stabbed twenty three times by his political enemies. Creating the Roman empire changed the history of his people.

Suetonius wrote The Twelve Caesars as a biography about twelve Roman Caesars. This essay will compare and contrast two of them, Divus Julius and Nero. Even though the two men both became Emperors who ruled Rome, they could not have been more different. Both had certain authority and public powers during each of their reigns. Their lives were also scattered with times of virtue and scandal. This was a different time from today. Human behavior and morals played a significant role in those ruling over others. Some had them and some not so much. In the end, their stories will ultimately give the reader an illustration of these two men and what their stories tell us about the lives of Roman emperors in the first century.

Julius Caesar’s exceptional leadership skills begin with his victories in the Gallic Wars. The Gallic Wars were battles in Gaul with Caesar and his men fighting various rebelling Gallic tribes. These Gallic rebellions were caused by a population boom within the tribes of Gaul, causing them to leak into Roman territory (Gallic

A strong military leader, a great people pleaser, and an exceptional leader of his country; all of these things depict Julius Caesar. It is very demanding to be a strong, extravagant leader. In the play The tragedy of Julius Caesar, one of the main characters, Julius Caesar, was the leader of Rome. He had not been crowned yet but he would have been. He still ran Rome without a crown. Caesar had been off to battle, one in particular Pompey, and he was now home. Caesar was flawed but the people of Rome still loved him. They threw parties in his honor and would praise his name. This made him a bit arrogant. He would refer to himself in the third person often. Caesar had many considerate friends and a lovely

It is clear that Suetonius favored Augustus over the other Caesars, and in large part due this is due to his more thoughtful, and responsible use of his power and army. “Yet Augustus never wantonly invaded any country, and felt no temptation to increase the boundaries of the empire or enhance his military glory…” (Suetonius 53). Clearly Augustus was not greedy with his power and felt no urge or need to extend his power or to greater his military power, he valued and favored peace, fairness, and wisdom; which is clearly shown here,”Even when tribes rebelled frequently or showed particular ill faith, Augustus’ most severe punishment was to sell as slaves the prisoners he took…” (54). “The two faults in which we condemned most strongly in a military commander were haste and recklessness” (56). This thoughtfulness and wisdom earned Augustus high honor in Suetonius report in regard to his Military skills. In sharp contrast to Augustus; Caligula had an urge for war, a desire for it to happen if you may. “The prosperity of his own reign, he said, would lead to it 's being wholly forgotten, and he often prayed for a great military catastrophe..,”(162). He once, at the realization that the chance for war were slim to none for him, ordered a few German prisoners to be taken across the Rhine and hidden in the trees, after lunch his scouts