Augustus Ascendant Part 4

There was no mystery as to why his governorship of the also newly minted "province" of Gaul, Spain and Syria put him in command of twenty legions. These legions did indeed have a reason to be amassed in these areas: the northern of the two Spanish provinces hadn't completely submitted to Rome yet; Gaul continued to have uprisings now and then; and Syria was next to the unreliable Parthians. In contrast, the "senatorial" provinces, to be governed by proconsuls in the old fashion, were tranquil places; only three of them required armies, and in total, they commanded five or six legions. In this way, by far most of the empire's military might remained under command of Augustus, and as long as they and their commanders remained loyal, he was safely ensconced in power.

Patronage was another important part of Augustus' rule. He had inherited Julius Caesar's clientela, of which were stretched out over the whole empire. Augustus had greatly enlarged this group of people even before the Battle of Actium, after which he inherited Mark Antony's clientela also. Augustus had a command and authority throughout the empire that was excercised by an intricate web of personal contacts and loyalties that no other Roman could even remotely hope for. In communities large and small, leading men who were loyal to him were usually rewarded with citizenship.

A quote from Anthony Everitt's Augustus from pages 210 to 211: "Augustus was pleased to boast: "When I had put an end to the civil wars, having acquired supreme power over the empire with universal consent, I transformed the Republic from my control into that of the Senate and People of Rome." That was literally correct-the machinery of constitutional government came creakily back into operation-but for anyone with eyes to see, the truth of the matter was obvious. The princeps admitted it himself, stating baldly: "After this time, I exceeded everybody in authority."

"This was acceptable because Augustus held no unconsititutional or novel office. Broadly speaking, he was acting without precedent. Also, he gave back to the political class its glittering prizes. Once more it became worthwhile to compete for political office (even though the princeps tended to select the candidates). The ambitious and the able could win glory on the floor of the Senate or in the outposts of the empire."

"It would be wrong to suppose that Romans failed to understand what was going on. They were not deceived. They could see that Augustus' power ultimately rested on force. However, his consitutional settlement gave him legitimacy and signaled a return to the rule of law. For this most people were sincerely greatful."

"Augustus' "restored Republic" was a towering achievement, for it transformed a bankrupt and imcompetent polity into a system of government that delivered the rule of law, wide participation by the ruling class, and, at the same time, strong central control. It installed an autocracy with the consent of Rome's -and indeed of Italy's independent-minded elites. Some Roman historians, among them Tacitus a century or so later, mourned the death of liberty, but at the same time politicians, citizens, and subjects of the empire recognized that the new consitutional arrangements would bring stability and the promise of fair and effective public administration."

"If Julius Caesar had lived he would probably have desired a far more radical scheme, imposing a brutally abrupt transition from a republican past to an imperial future. Augustus may have been less brilliant than his adoptive father, but he was wiser. He understood that if his new system was to last, it should be seen to grow out of what came before. Rather than insist on a chasm, he built a bridge."

The image is a painting of Maecenas presenting the Liberal Arts to the Emperor Augustus by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo, 1696-1770. Thanks again to Jon, human being and anyone else following or commenting on this blog-I appreciate it so much! I hope to post again here soon-all the best to anyone stopping by!