Augustus - Roman Emperor: 27 B.C. - 14 A.D.
Bronze As 25mm Ascinius Gallus moneyer Struck 16 B.C. at the mint of Rome
Reference: RIC 373, Cohen 369, BMC 161
CAESAR AVGVSTVS TRIBVNIC POTEST, bare head right.
C ASINIVS GALLVS IIVIR AAAFF around large SC.
Years after serving as moneyer, Ascinius Gallus married
Vipsania, the daughter of Agrippa, after Tiberius divorced her, by order of
Augustus, to marry his daughter Julia, widow of Agrippa. He was an important
senator. On the death of Augustus, briefly, he was offered as a possible
alternate to the throne, instead of Tiberius. As husband of Tiberius' ex-wife,
he became the step-father of Drusus Caesar, heir to Tiberius. Soon, he became a
confirmed and outspoken political foe of Tiberius, known for his wit. After the
death of Vipsania, he was also an ally of Agrippina Senior, and the "leak green
party," a possible plot against the throne identified by Sejanus. He was
executed for treason by Tiberius during the Praetorian Prefect's nominal rule of
the capital.
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Augustus
(Latin:
IMPERATOR·CAESAR·DIVI·FILIVS·AVGVSTVS;[note
1] 23 September 63 BC – 19 August
AD 14[note
2]), born Gaius Octavius Thurinus, was
adopted by
his great-uncle
Julius Caesar in 44 BC, and between then and 27 BC was officially named
Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus. After 27 BC, he was named Gaius Julius
Caesar Augustus. Because of the various names he bore, it is common to call
him Octavius when referring to events between 63 and 44 BC, Octavian
(or Octavianus) when referring to events between 44 and 27 BC, and
Augustus when referring to events after 27 BC.
He became the first
emperor of the
Roman
Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. The young
Octavius came into his inheritance after Caesar's assassination in 44 BC. In 43
BC, Octavian joined forces with
Mark
Antony and
Marcus Aemilius Lepidus in a
military dictatorship known as the
Second Triumvirate. As a
triumvir, Octavian ruled Rome and many of its provinces[note
3] as an
autocrat, seizing consular power after the deaths of the consuls
Hirtius and
Pansa and having himself perpetually re-elected. The triumvirate was
eventually torn apart under the competing ambitions of its rulers: Lepidus was
driven into exile, and Antony committed suicide following his defeat at the
Battle of Actium by the fleet of Octavian commanded by
Agrippa in 31 BC.
After the demise of the Second Triumvirate, Octavian restored
the outward facade of the
Roman Republic, with governmental power vested in the
Roman
Senate, but in practice retained his autocratic power. It took several years
to work out the exact framework by which a formally republican state could be
led by a sole ruler; the result became known as the
Roman
Empire. The emperorship was never an office like the
Roman dictatorship which Caesar and
Sulla had held before him; indeed, he declined it when the Roman populace
"entreated him to take on the dictatorship".[1]
By law, Augustus held a collection of powers granted to him for life by the
Senate, including those of
tribune of
the plebs and
censor.
He was
consul until 23 BC.[2]
His substantive power stemmed from financial success and resources gained in
conquest, the building of patronage relationships throughout the Empire, the
loyalty of many military soldiers and veterans, the authority of the many honors
granted by the Senate,[3]
and the respect of the people. Augustus' control over the majority of Rome's
legions
established an armed threat that could be used against the Senate, allowing him
to coerce the Senate's decisions. With his ability to eliminate senatorial
opposition by means of arms, the Senate became docile towards his paramount
position. His rule through patronage, military power, and accumulation of the
offices of the defunct Republic became the model for all later imperial
government.
The rule of Augustus initiated an era of relative peace known as the
Pax Romana,
or Roman peace. Despite continuous frontier wars, and one
year-long civil war over the imperial succession, the Mediterranean world
remained at peace for more than two centuries. Augustus expanded the Roman
Empire, secured its boundaries with
client
states, and made peace with
Parthia
through diplomacy. He reformed the Roman system of taxation, developed
networks
of roads with an official
courier
system, established a standing army (and a small navy), established the
Praetorian Guard, and created official police and fire-fighting forces for
Rome. Much of the city was rebuilt under Augustus; and he wrote a record of his
own accomplishments, known as the
Res Gestae Divi Augusti, which has survived. Upon his death in AD 14,
Augustus was declared a god by the Senate, to be worshipped by the Romans.[4]
His names Augustus and Caesar were adopted by every subsequent emperor, and the
month of
Sextilis was officially renamed August in his honour. He was succeeded by
his stepson and son-in-law,
Tiberius.
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