Augustus and the Principate Lecture Notes Review

Comprehensive practice flashcards covering the rise of Augustus, the First and Second Constitutional Settlements, his social and religious reforms, and the challenges of establishing a dynasty.

During what years did Augustus rule Rome?

$31\,BC$ to $AD\,14$

Which specific title and period established the model of government against which all subsequent emperors were judged?

His tenure as Rome’s first princeps from $27\,BC$ to $AD\,14$

What was the traditional name for the sequence of executive magistracies in the Roman Republic?

The cursus honorum

On what date did the Battle of Actium occur?

$$2^{nd}\,September\,31\,BC$$

Who were the primary opponents of Octavian at the Battle of Actium?

Mark Antony and Cleopatra

Which trusted friend of Octavian commanded his forces during the Battle of Actium?

Marcus Agrippa

In what year did Antony and Cleopatra commit suicide?

$$30\,BC$$

What was the name of the new town Octavian founded near the site of the Battle of Actium?

Nikopolis (Victory city)

To which god did Octavian dedicate a victory offering of ten ships near Actium?

Apollo

Which ancient author wrote 'Geography' and lived during the reign of Tiberius ($AD\,14-37$)?

Strabo

Which two poets were used to popularize the message that Actium was a victory over a foreign menace?

Virgil and Horace

What is the name of the catalogue of achievements Augustus had set up after his death?

The Res Gestae

According to section $25$ of the Res Gestae, what entity 'of its own accord' demanded Octavian as commander for the war against Actium?

The whole of Italy

Which historian wrote 'History of Rome' around $AD\,30$?

Velleius Paterculus

Augustus celebrated a triple triumph in $29\,BC$ for victories in which three locations?

Actium, Dalmatia, and Alexandria

What inscription was found on the triumphal arch built in Rome honoring Augustus?

The Senate and People of Rome (set this up) in honour of Imperator Caesar, son of the Deified, consul five times, designated consul for a sixth time, imperator seven times, to commemorate the preservation of the state

What was the Pax Augusta?

The period of peace and stability the Romans believed they were destined to maintain

How many times were the doors of the Temple of Janus Quirinus closed during Augustus' reign?

$3$ times

How many times had the doors of the Temple of Janus Quirinus been closed before Augustus was born?

$2$ times

What was the Ara Pacis Augustae?

The Altar of Augustan Peace

What defined the term 'auctoritas' in the context of Augustus' power?

The ability of an individual to affect socio-political circumstances without need for official power

What defined the term 'potestas' in the context of Augustus' power?

Official political power

In what year was the last Roman king expelled?

$$510\,BC$$

In what year was Julius Caesar murdered?

$$44\,BC$$

What year was the First Constitutional Settlement engineered?

$$27\,BC$$

Which ancient historian recorded Augustus' speech to Agrippa and detailed the transfer of power from the people to Augustus?

Dio

What does the title 'Augustus' mean?

Revered one

Which original Roman founder's name did Octavian consider using before 'Augustus'?

Romulus

According to the First Constitutional Settlement, what were the doorposts of Augustus' house decorated with?

Laurel

What was the 'Civic Crown' awarded to Augustus?

An honor for saving the lives of citizens

What were the four primary honors given to Augustus in the First Constitutional Settlement?

Laurel on doorposts, Civic Crown, Shield of Virtue, and recognition of his auctoritas

Which three territories made up the 'super province' given to Augustus in the FCS?

Spain, Gaul, and Syria

What specific reason did Dio give for Augustus taking control of certain provinces and troops?

That the senators should be unarmed and unprepared for war

What was the time limit initially placed on Augustus' authority in the FCS?

$$10\,years$$

What year was the Second Constitutional Settlement agreed upon?

$$23\,BC$$

What power reaffirmed Augustus as head of the Roman army and allowed him to overrule any provincial governor?

imperium proconsulare maius

What was 'tribunicia potestas'?

The power of a tribune, described by Tacitus as the expression of the supremacy of the emperor's position

Under the SCS, what right did tribunicia potestas give Augustus regarding the Senate?

The right to put forward senatorial points of debate and to veto legislation

Which historian claimed 'force was restored to the laws, authority to the courts, majesty to the Senate'?

Velleius Paterculus

According to Horace's Ode $3.6$, what state had Rome fallen into that required Augustus to restore it?

Corrupt and decadent

In the Aeneid, what does Virgil claim Augustus shall bring back to Latium?

The age of gold

What were the two primary Julian Laws passed in $18\,BC$ concerning morality?

Julian Law on the duties of husbands and Julian Law on constraining adultery

What was the primary goal of Augustus' Julian Laws regarding the upper classes?

To promote legitimate offspring and constrain licentious behavior (profligacy)

Which author of 'Fasti' ($AD\,17$) appeared to praise Augustus’ reforms?

Ovid

How many years had passed between the previous census and the first one carried out by Augustus?

$$42\,years$$

In which three years did Augustus complete the census lustra?

$28\,BC$, $8\,BC$, and $AD\,14$

What religious office did Augustus take in $12\,BC$ that elevated him to the moral authority of Rome?

Pontifex Maximus

How many volumes of prophetic verse did Augustus destroy upon becoming Pontifex Maximus?

$2,000$ volumes

Which religious books did Augustus edit to literally rewrite tradition?

The Sibylline Books

How many simultaneous priesthoods did Augustus hold according to the Res Gestae?

$$7$$

How many neglected temples does the Res Gestae claim Augustus restored?

$$82$$

What does Virgil claim is the number of temples Augustus restored in Aeneid $8.716$?

$$300$$

In which part of the empire was the living worship of Augustus (the Imperial Cult) primarily tolerated?

The East

What term refers to the divine aspect of a person that Romans permitted to be worshipped?

numen

Besides 'numen', what other 'spirit' of Augustus was worshipped?

His genius

Where in Gaul was an altar to the 'numen Augustus' found dating to $AD\,12-13$?

Narbo

Which historian criticized Augustus' worship, stating no honors were left for the gods?

Tacitus

How many districts did Augustus divide the city of Rome into?

$13$ districts

Who supervised the subdivisions (wards) within the districts of Rome?

Locally elected supervisors

How many senators were in the Senate under Julius Caesar?

$$1,000$$

In which three years did Augustus revise the senatorial role?

$29\,BC$, $18\,BC$, and $11\,BC$

To what total number did Augustus reduce the Senate by $18\,BC$?

$$600$$

What happened to senators who supported Antony in the civil war?

They were severely taxed

What was the property qualification required to be a senator under Augustus?

$$1,000,000\,sesterces$$

What was the previous property qualification for a senator before Augustus' increase?

$$400,000\,sesterces$$

What was the title of the newly created office for leading senators to serve as the city's head?

praefectus urbi (Prefect of the City)

How many praetors existed after Augustus increased the number?

$10$ (previously $8$)

What document indicates Augustus' control over provincial administration around $7/6\,BC$?

The Edicts of Cyrene

What famous quote from Suetonius describes Augustus' transformation of Rome's architecture?

Found a Rome built of bricks but left one 'clothed in marble'

What was the architectural centerpiece of Augustus' building project in Rome?

The Augustan Forum with its Temple of Mars Ultor

What did Augustus do with the names of original builders when he restored old buildings?

He left the original names and did not add his own

Which two methods did Augustus use to maintain the loyalty of the plebs?

Entertainment and largesse

What satirical phrase did Juvenal use to describe the needs of the Roman people?

Bread and circuses

What did the people demand Augustus be appointed as in $22\,BC$ due to a corn shortage?

Dictator

What was the 'congiaria'?

Money or tokens for corn hand-outs

How much money did Augustus hand out to individuals in $24\,BC$ according to the Res Gestae?

$400\,sesterces$ each

Which social class was promoted to political significance and given exclusive roles like Governor of Egypt?

The equestrians

How many senators remained who could remember the Republic by the time of Augustus' death?

Very few, as Tacitus noted most had not seen the old Republic

What was the name of the 'privy council' Augustus created to discuss issues before they reached the Senate?

consilium principis

What tax did Augustus impose on senators in $AD\,6$ to fund the military?

$5\%$ inheritance tax

Who were the two men involved in a conspiracy against Augustus around $23\,BC$?

Fannius Caepio and Varro Murena

Which individual conspired against Augustus in $16\,BC$ but was treated with mercy?

Cinna

Who advised Augustus to be merciful to Cinna?

His wife Livia

What was Tacitus' warning about contemporary accounts of Augustus?

They were all bound in flattery

Who was Julia's mother?

Scribonia (Augustus' second wife)

Who was Augustus' first choice for a successor, his nephew who died in $23\,BC$?

Marcellus

To whom was Julia married after the death of Marcellus?

Marcus Agrippa

Who were the three male heirs fathered by Marcus Agrippa?

Gaius, Lucius, and Agrippa Postumus

In what year was Julia exiled for adultery?

$$2\,BC$$

In which two years was Marcus Agrippa granted tribunician power?

$18\,BC$ and $13\,BC$

What title was given to Gaius and Lucius to signify their status as heirs?

princeps iuventutis (leader of the youth)

Who were Livia's sons from her first husband, Tiberius Claudius Nero?

Tiberius and Drusus

What year did Augustus marry Livia?

$$39\,BC$$

Which historian accused Livia of having a hand in the deaths of Gaius and Lucius?

Tacitus

To whom did Tiberius adopt in $AD\,4$ to create an ongoing line of succession?

His nephew Germanicus

How did Augustus' coinage always depict him, regardless of his actual age?

Youthful and vigorous

In which book of Suetonius' works are the last days of Augustus detailed?

Augustus $98-101$

According to Tacitus, why did Augustus really choose Tiberius as a successor?

Because he hoped the comparison of his own rule to Tiberius' arrogance and cruelty would increase his own glory

What was the 'Shield of Virtue'?

A golden shield awarded to Augustus during the First Constitutional Settlement

Which historian claimed the Republic was 'back' after the first settlement?

Velleius Paterculus