Roman Emperor

  • The Roman Emperor ruled Ancient Rome by removing all power from the Roman Republic but keeping its institutions. The Republic was never abolished.
  • Between 27 -23 BCE, the Roman Senate transferred all the High Offices of State of the Roman Republic to the Emperor giving him monarchical power.

The Men who changed the Roman Republic

  • Sulla (138-78 BCE)
    • Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix was a Roman General and Statesman who was made Dictator and Consul of Rome. In 82 BCE Sulla was made Dictator, however, not for the usual six months as had always been the case, but for an indefinite period. This was the beginning of the end for the Roman Republic. It set the precedent for Julius Caesar, thirty years later in 49 BCE, to become Dictator for life.
  • Marius (157-86 BCE)
    • Gaius Marius was a Roman General and Statesman who helped transform the Roman Republic into the Empire, and is considered to be the ‘Third Founder of Rome’.
    • Marius was never made Dictator, but was Consul seven times, between 107 BCE and 85 BCE.
  • Julius Caesar (100-44 BCE)
    • In 49 BCE, Julius Caesar was a Roman general and Statesman who became Dictator for life, and started to change the Roman Republic. However, he was assassinated before he could become Emperor.

Top Five Roman Emperors

  • Augustus (27BCE-14 CE)
    • He was the First Roman Emperor and Founder of the Roman Empire, and he also annexed Egypt.
  • Trajan (98-117 CE)
    • He expanded the Empire to its greatest extant.
  • Hadrian (117-138 CE)
    • He consolidated the Roman Empire
  • Diocletian (284-305 CE)
    • After a period of Civil Wars, he Re-established the Roman Empire by introducing The Tetrarchy dividing The Empire into East (Greek Speaking) and West (Latin Speaking)
  • Constantine I (306-337 CE)

Augustus and the Transfer of Legal Powers and Duties from the Roman Republic

  • The Roman Republic was never abolished (and the Roman Senate survived until 604 CE.)
  • In 27 BCE, the Roman Senate conferred upon Augustus various Offices and Powers under the First Settlement and again in the Second Settlement in 23 BCE.
  • The Roman Emperor’s Legal Authority was granted by the Senate from the following Laws and Offices of State:
    1. Tribunicia Potestas
      • Tribunician Powers: which gave him ‘Sacrosanctitas’ (Inviolability), the Right to Veto any Magistrates decision and to arrest a Magistrate, and enforce Capital Punishment.
    2. Imperium
      • Imperium Proconsulare Maius conferred the power of Imperium, to be Supreme Commander of the Legions and the highest Legal Authority in the State.
    3. Sole Imperium of the City of Rome
      • formerly under the Imperium of Consuls and Prefects.
    4. Princeps Senatus
      • The Leader of the Roman senate, who was formerly a senior senator voted in for five years.
    5. Censor
      • A Magistrate whose power was absolute and could not be overuled.
    6. Pontifex Maximus
      • The Head of the Roman Church, a title still held today by the Pope.

Roman Emperor Titles

  • The power of the Offices of State held by Augustus was reflected in the Titles awarded to him by the Senate. Subsequent Emperors used the same or similar Titles. For example, Augustus’ Title was:
    • ‘Imperator Caesar Divi Filius Augustus’ and also ‘Invictus, Princeps Civitatis, Pater Patriae, Pontifex Maximus’.
      • Imperator (reflected the Legal Power to Command)
      • Caesar, (in honour of Julius Caesar)
      • Divi Filius (Divine Son of God)
      • Augustus (Majestic)
      • Invictus (Unconquered)
      • Princeps Civitatis (The First Citizen)
      • Pontifex Maximus (Head of the Church)
      • Pater Patriae (Father of the Country)

Augustus: the First Emperor

    • Augustus (27 BCE-14 CE) refused to be named as a King, but ruled as a ‘Leader’ of the Roman Republic, assuming the title ‘Princeps’ and ‘Imperator’.
    • Augustus was careful to claim to have recreated the Roman Republic.
    • By taking over the Leading Offices of the Roman State, he had acquired monarchical powers.
    • Later, Diocletian (284-305 CE) dropped the title ‘Princeps’ (First) replacing it with ‘Dominus’ (Lord) and was open about ruling as a Monarch.
    • No Roman Emperors ever referred to themselves as Kings.
    • The Institutions of the Republic were maintained, such as the Cursus Honorum.
    • The Republic was never abolished.

Chief in Command of the Roman Army

    • The Emperor selected the Commanders of the Legions:
      • The Legatus Legionis from the Senatorial Class, usually with military experience gained by being a Tribunus.
    • He selected the Prefect of the Praetorian Guard:
    • The Oath of Allegiance to the Emperor:
      • the ‘Sacramentum Militare‘ or ‘Militum’: was sworn by all new recruits to the Legion and later became an Oath sworn annually on the 3rd January. Penalties for Disobedience were severe.

Head of State, the Roman Civil Service and the Provinces

  • Being awarded the following Offices or their Powers gave the Emperor Legal Authority over the State, the Cursus Honorum:
    1. ‘Tribunicia Potestas’ and ‘Imperium Proconsulare Maius’
      • The power of these offices gave the Roman Emperor Legal Authority.
    2. Princeps Senatus
      • Leader of the Senate and all the Powers that went with that Office.
    3. Tribune of the Plebs (Tribuicia Potestas)
      • As a Patrician he could not legally hold that Office, but its powers were conferred to him.
    4. Imperium (Imperium Proconsulare Maius)
      • The Power of Imperium meant he could legally overrule the Power of the Provincial Governors.
    5. Censor
      • Acquiring the powers of censor enabled him to supervise Public morals, censor laws if they were not in the public interest, hold a Census and accept members to the Senate or expel them.
    6. Patronage
      • Although the Appointment of Candidates for the Cursus Honorum was by Elections, the appointment of the Legates of Imperial Provinces was made by the Emperor.
    7. Princeps
      • Augustus went to great effort to still maintain the traditions of the Republic and the Senate by being called ‘Princeps’ or Primus inter Pares (First amongst Equals) and not referring to himself as Emperor.

 Imperium granted over the City of Rome

    • Under the Roman Republic, the City of Rome was under the Imperium of Consuls and Prefects.
    • Augustus was granted sole Imperium of the City of Rome.
    • The Emperor himself now became the Supreme Ruler of the City, its Chief Judge and Administrator.

Diplomatic Relations with Foreign Nations

    • The Emperor was made the Princeps Senatus whose duties involved leading the Senate by deciding the timing, order, agenda and content of the Debates. He summoned and dismissed the sessions of the Senate, and on their behalf, wrote Letters.
    • One of the tasks of this Office was to meet with Ambassadors of Foreign Nations and conduct Treaties with them, in the name of the Senate. And also to send Legati (Legates) to act as Ambassadors to those Foreign Nations.

The Power to Declare War and Peace

    • Under the Republic, only the Comitia Centuriata (The Century assembly or Army Assembly) had the Right to Declare War.
    • Augustus Transferred its Powers to the Roman Senate in 27 CE. And in his role as Leader of the Senate, the Princeps Senatus, the Emperor was then legally able to declare War.

 The Pontifex Maximus

    • Collegium Pontificum was the College of Priests.
    • The Emperor was awarded the Title of Pontifex Maximus, meaning he was the Head of the College and therefore the Head of the Roman State Religion.

Roman Provincial Government

  • The Provinces were divided into Imperial Provinces and Senatorial Provinces. Augustus decreed that there should always be ten Provinces governed by the Senate. The remainder were controlled by the Emperor.
  • The Provinces paid taxes to Rome, but the Emperor was a remote figure who very rarely left the City.
  • To compensate for this, Augustus created the Cult of the Roman Emperor, and Claudius consolidated it, so that the Emperor was worshipped as a God in the Provinces and eventually superseding the local cults.
  • The Pax Romana was a period of peace with prosperity right across the Mediterranean World, where wars had become a distant memory. The Roman Emperor, as head of the Empire, was seen as the final arbiter in Legal disputes or as saviour in a crisis. Many Provinces did not even have a resident Legion, unless they were on the Frontier.
  • The Emperor could intervene personally in response to a request or major calamity in the Empire:
    • The Emperor could provide relief after a City had experienced a Famine or an Earthquake.
    • The Emperor could free a City of Taxes. (Claudius freed the City of Troy from Taxes.)
    • The Emperor could ban a religious practice.
    • The Emperor could settle a dispute between rival individuals or whole communities. (Claudius‘ letter to the Alexandrians, in Egypt, where he resolved the conflict between Jews and Greeks.)
    • The Emperor could endow a City with a Building or with defensive Walls.

The Imperial Secretariat

The ‘Familia Caesaris’ meant ‘Family of the Emperor’ and was divided into two categories:

    1. The Imperial Household Staff:
      • Roman Emperor's Slaves conducted the business of running the Palaces.
      • Imperial Slaves were different from other Slaves in that they could expect Emancipation and continue their career as an Imperial Freedman.
    2. The Imperial Administrative Staff:
      • Since the Roman Patrician Class only entered Military or Political Office, the Administration of the Empire was left to be done by Slaves and Freedmen who acted as clerks, managers and technicians.
      • They administered the Roman Civil Service.
      • They administered the Roman Military Services. But were forbidden to enroll either in the Legions or the Navy on punishment of Death. However, they acted as Quartermasters for both Services.
    3. Claudius (41-54 CE) created Four Secretariats of State administered by the Imperial Freedmen.

Imperial Income and Provincial Possessions

  • Fiscus
    • Under Augustus, the Tax Revenues of the Imperial Provinces went to the Fiscus, the Emperor’s personal Treasury. Therefore, the Revenues of Egypt, the Empire’s wealthiest Province, all went to the Emperor. No Senators were permitted to visit Egypt.
  • Aerarium
    • The Tax Revenues of the Senatorial Provinces continued to be sent to the Aerarium (The State Treasury) which was controlled by the Senate.
  • As a result, the Emperor was wealthier than the Senate. This enabled the Emperor to pay for the Legions himself without having to consult the Senate, meaning he commanded the loyalty of the Legions.

The Roman Emperor's Slaves

  • The Roman Emperor's Slaves were called the ‘Familia Caesaris’ meaning ‘Family of the Emperor’. Imperial Slaves were different from other Slaves in that they could expect Emancipation and continue their career as an Imperial Freedman. They were divided into two categories:
    1. The Imperial Administrative Staff: who operated a civil service administering the State.
    2. The Imperial Household Staff: who conducted the business of administering the Palaces.
  • The Palace would include the Emperor’s immediate family (wives and children) and members of his extended Family, such as grandparents, cousins etc.

Imperial Horse Guard

  • Also known as the Imperial German Bodyguard or the ‘Batavi’, they were housed in a separate barracks from the Praetorian Guard.
  • They were a personal bodyguard for the Emperor, whose duties covered daily Palace Guard duties, Ceremonial duties, State Events and delivering communications across the Empire by horse.

The Praetorian Guard

  • The Praetorian Guard was the Emperor’s personal elite Legion based in a Castra Praetoria in Rome and loyal only to the Emperor.
  • The Cohors Togata was a cohort of the Praetorian Guard who wore the Roman Toga instead of a uniform. They accompanied the Emperor around the city of Rome within the Pomerium where under Roman Law no arms could be carried. Nonetheless, they carried a sword under their Toga.

The Imperial Palaces and Villas

The Cult of the Roman Emperor

  • This marked a break from Roman Republican values
  • A deceased Emperor could be voted a Divus (Divinity) by the Senate, along with the State Divinities. The Emperors then positioned themselves within the State Religion. Loyalty sworn to the Emperor was part of Religious practice. The rise of Christianity, which didn’t accept the State Gods nor therefore, the Emperor as Divine, posed a threat to the Roman State when they refused to take the Oath of Loyalty. Eventually this was resolved when the Emperors themselves became Christian after the accession of Constantine I.
  • The Cult of the Ruler was a Greek tradition, imported to the western Roman Empire.
  • Every City in each Province had an Altar in the city centre dedicated to the Emperor, either in a specially built Temple or within an existing Temple.
  • Provincial Assemblies had Festivals celebrating the Imperial Cult often accompanied by Games, with the effect of combining Provincial Government with loyalty to the Emperor and the City of Rome. The Provincial Elite were made part of the Provincial Cursus Honorum (Roman Civil Service) swearing oaths of loyalty to the Emperor each year.
  • A good example is the Council of the Three Gauls at Lugdunum (Lyons), Capital of Gallia Lugdunensis.

Roman National Anthem

  • Introduced by Augustus, the National Anthem of Ancient Rome was called the Carmen saeculare meaning ‘Secular Hymn’.
  •  It was a celebration of the greatness of Rome and of the Emperor, and was a prayer to the Gods that Rome would remain The Eternal City.

The Purple Toga

  • The Toga Trabea was coloured completely in Purple.
  • The purple dye was made from Murex, and was the most expensive dye having the same value as gold. The Sumptuary Laws dictated that only the Emperor could wear a Purple Toga.
  • For Funerals, the Emperor wore a completely black Toga Pulla.

The Imperial Flag

  • This was the same as the Flag of The Roman Republic, which was red with SPQR written in gold diagonally across it.
  • The Vexillum, the Flag on the Standard of the Legion, was red with a gold fringe below and the number of the legion in gold.

The Imperial Flagship

  • The Hexareme was used by the Emperor when travelling to the Provinces.
  • Hexaremes were only used as Flagships by the Roman Navy after Augustus. The Fleets now consisted mainly of Biremes and Triremes.
  • One Hexareme is known from the Naval Base at Misenum. It was called the ‘Ops’ (meaning ‘the power to help’).
  • Hex means six in Latin, possibly meaning that a Hexareme had six banks of oarsmen.

The Imperial Laurel Wreath

  • The First Emperors wore the Laurel Wreath on Religious Occasions to identify themselves with the Senators.
  • This was to avoid making a connection with the bad memories of the Kings of Ancient Rome, who used to wear the Diadem. This was a symbolic Ribbon worn around the Head, and was the symbol of Royal Power worn by the Kings of Rome.
  • Later Emperors however, wore a Crown with Jewels.
  • The Corona Civica (Civic Crown) made from oak, was also given to Augustus to place on his door. It was originally held above a General’s head during a General’s ‘Triumph’.

The Imperial Carriage

  • This would have been a highly ornamented version of the Carruca, a four wheeled covered Carriage, decorated with Gold and Jewels, probably pulled by four horses abreast.
  • Suetonius states that Nero took one thousand carriages with him on his trips abroad. There were many types of Roman Vehicles.

The Imperial Succession

  • A succession of Families became Hereditary Emperors, starting with the Julio-Claudian Dynasty.
  • Under Roman Inheritance Law an Heir had to be named, and if he had no direct descendant, then he could legally adopt a successor.
  • However, as the succession had to be approved by the Senate, it was not technically a Hereditary Office.

Cremation and Burial

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