Augustus was from a prosperous family, and his father was the first of the family to become a Roman senator and died in 59 BC. Augustus, during his rule, named himself Prince under the empire. According to Tacitus, Augustus was like a nice change of events, after all the improper and unjust rulers of Rome. “But the successes and reverses of the old Roman people have been recorded by famous historians; and fine intellects were not wanting to describe the times of Augustus, till growing sycophancy scared them away. The histories of Tiberius, Caius, Claudius, and Nero, while they were in power, were falsified through terror, and after their death were written under the irritation of a recent hatred. Hence my purpose is to relate a few facts about Augustus”(Crane, Gregory R.).
Augustus earned the trust of his military, and by doing so, he gained control of treaties, wars and relationships with other governments, so the people thought higher of him as a result. Although, in the words of Tacitus, “Augustus won over the soldiers with gifts, the populace with cheap corn, and all men with the sweets of repose, and so grew greater by degrees”(Crane, Gregory R.). Augustus had control of so much power that he could name his successor. Augustus also used his power to convince the people that he was the son of a God. He appointed himself chief priest in the Roman religion. “Augustus appointed himself as the chief priest – or Pontifex Maximus – and used the appearance of Halley’s Comet to claim that he was, himself, the son of a god.”
“Who fears the Parthian or the Scythian horde, Or the rank growth that German forests yield, While Caesar lives?”(Flaccus, Horatius). Horace gave an example of how much he (he representing the people) trusted in and depended on Augustus as a leader. Augustus did deeds and won wars to earn that trust. His connection between Augustus and his people is what gave him his true power.
The people also respected Augustus as their king, and Augustus used that respect and trust to grow his power over them (Naso, Ovidious). Ovid wrote in his Metamorphoses that the loyalty of his people were to be as servants to their master, “ You will stand outside Augustus’s doorposts, a faithful guardian, and keep watch over the crown of oak between them”(Naso, Ovidious). Augustus related himself with his people, he was not a man who would discriminate or shame another person because they were different, at least, that’s what he portrayed himself as. His power surmounted any other yet he had the self control to keep from abusing that power to harshly, and then gave up his power to the people. When he was consul, he had military, judicial and administrative power. His consulship gave him the highest military command and he could preside over the senate and propose laws. Augustus’s combined knowledge and prowess is what made him truly worthy of recognition.
Works Cited
- Crane, Gregory R. , Perseus Digital Library, Tufts University, http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/
- The Roman Empire, in the first century, http://www.pbs.org/empires/romans/empire/religion.html
- Flaccus, Horatius, Odes, The National Endowment for the Humanities provided support for entering this text, book 4, poem 5, http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0025%3Abook%3D4%3Apoem%3D5
- Roman Senate, Ara Pacis, 13 BCE, Ara Pacis Museum, Rome, Boundless.com, 10 February, 2017
- Augustus Prima Porta, 20 B.C., Vatican Museum, Rome, Khan Academy, 10 February, 2017
- Durand, Roman Emperors, 10 February, 2017
- Augustus Pontifex Maximus, 64 BC, National Museum Rome, Livius, 10 February, 2017
- Wasson, Donald L., Consul, Ancient History Encyclopedia, , Published 23 June, 2014, http://www.ancient.eu/Consul/
- Grant, Michael. “Augustus Roman Emperor.” Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, inc., 6 July 2016, www.britannica.com/biography/Augustus-Roman-emperor. Accessed 28 Feb. 2017.