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The new system of government created by Augustus, often referred to as the Principate, preserved the outward forms of the Roman Republic while establishing a de facto monarchy. Augustus understood that Romans, wary after years of civil war and the legacy of Julius Caesar’s assassination, remained deeply attached to the ideals of the Republic. Rather than openly abolishing Republican institutions, he skillfully maintained their appearance while consolidating real authority under his own control.

In 27 BCE, Augustus theatrically "restored" the Republic by resigning his extraordinary powers back to the Senate and people of Rome. However, in reality, he retained imperium maius—superior command over all provinces and armies—and tribunicia potestas, the powers of a tribune, which gave him the ability to propose legislation and veto actions across Rome. These powers, although Republican in origin, were never meant to be concentrated permanently in a single individual. Augustus’s control of the military, the treasury, and political appointments ensured that all major decisions ultimately depended on his will.

Republican offices such as the consulship, Senate, and assemblies continued to function, but increasingly, they served ceremonial purposes. The Senate still debated and issued decrees, but it was packed with Augustus’s supporters and carefully managed. Elections were held, but Augustus's recommendations determined who held office. The illusion of Republican governance allowed Augustus to present himself as the "first among equals" (*princeps*), rather than as a king—a title the Romans abhorred. However, the essence of the Republic—shared authority, accountability, and competitive politics—had disappeared.

Over time, the Principate evolved into a more openly autocratic system under Augustus’s successors. Later emperors like Tiberius and Domitian exercised even greater personal control without feeling the need to maintain Republican appearances as carefully. Augustus's creation, therefore, was not a revival of the Republic, but rather its transformation into a monarchy masked by Republican traditions. His genius lay in understanding that Romans needed to believe they had preserved their Republic, even as true power had irrevocably shifted.

In conclusion, Augustus’s government preserved the forms of the Republic but utterly changed its substance. The Principate marked the beginning of imperial rule in Rome, cloaked in the familiar trappings of the old Republican state to make the transition palatable to a weary and divided population.

Augustus’s “Res Gestae Divi Augusti” & The Principate  

The rule of Augustus is significant to the history of Rome for many reasons, perhaps the most significant being the peace and restoration he brought to the Roman Empire during his reign. Following the assassination of his uncle Gaius Julius Caesar in 44 BC, Gaius Octavius, Caesar’s adopted heir, ascended to power in 27 BC. Octavius claimed the title of Imperator while the senate granted him the name and title of “Augustus”. Under the newfound title of “Augustus” and the imperial powers that followed, Augustus rid Rome of the Republican system and established the empire of Rome. In establishing the Principate, Augustus asserts that he reinstated the Roman Republic following the unstable period that predeceased his reign. However, this claim directly contradicts Augustus’s claim of complete power over the senate and the Roman Empire. During his rule, Augustus sought to restore Rome as a source of significant power in the Mediterranean and accounts for the actions he took to achieve this dream in his autobiographical work: “Res Gestae Divi Augusti” or “The Achievements of the Divine Augusti”. In writing “Res Gestae Divi Augusti”, Augustus reveals through the careful language he uses to uphold the propaganda surrounding his reign to claim that he succeeded in restoring Rome to a Republic. Augustus uses “Res Gestae Divi Augusti” as a source to recite how his rule restored the Roman Republic by reforming both the Roman political and public spheres and in doing so Augustus justifies his imperial power. 

In “Res Gestae Divi Augusti”, Augustus attempts to humbly present his power through his relationship with the senate and Roman people through his political reforms that mirror the traditional customs of the Republic. In the document's opening line Augustus sets the tone, “...I restored freedom to the state which was oppressed by the power of a clique…” (Augustus, in Mellor, p. 178). Augustus then claims that due to this “restoration” the senate then granted him the consulship and the power of imperium, within the first few lines of “Res Gestae Divi Augusti” Augustus has established a pattern in which he will continue throughout the entire work. The propagandistic formula Augustus’ implements consistently involves him listing an “achievement”, often a usurpation of power not congruent with the typical role of a consul under the Roman Republic, to be followed by the senate’s supposed endorsement of such power. Augustus also makes a point of humbly turning down certain positions of power such as his claim that “... I refused any office offered to me that was contrary to the customs of our ancestors…” (Augustus, in Mellor, p. 178). In referencing the traditional roles of predecessors under the Roman Republic, Augustus is able to provide the facade that he does not hold sole power over Rome and does not intend to. Perhaps the most apparent example comes when Augustus asserts “...the people and the Senate, both offered me the dictatorship, both in my absence and when I was at Rome, but I refused it…” (Augustus, in Mellor, p. 178). This particular line is significant seeing as not only does Augustus denounce dictatorial powers, but he directly references both the Roman senate and people as those who want him to take on the role of dictator. The role of the senate and the people in this quote is crucial to Augustus’s illusion of a Republic, in which the power customarily lies with such parties. During his seventh consulship, at the end of which he would be declared Imperator, Augustus claims “...with the consent of all I was in complete control of affairs, I transferred the republic from my power to the authority of the Senate and the Roman people…” (Augustus, in Mellor, p. 182). In stating that he had the “consent of all” to be in complete control while attempting to end the civil war in Rome, Augustus is justifying his power over Rome as something he possesses under the authority of the senate and the people. Once again, Augustus is emphasizing his “transfer” of power to the Senate and the people of Rome. Another way in which Augustus further propelled the image of the republic was by administering his power through simultaneously holding several official positions associated with the Republic. For instance, Augustus states that “...it was enacted by law that my person should be forever inviolable and that I should hold the tribunician power as long as I live…” (Augustus, in Mellor, p. 179). Here Augustus justifies his lifelong power as that held traditionally by a tribune, Augustus therefore holds both consul and tribunal powers. Enacting his role as consul, Augustus is able to justify his military campaigns as those endorsed by the people seeing as he was able to distinguish the civil unrest that followed the assassination of Julius Caesar, broaden the borders of Rome and establish peaceful relations with bordering lands thus resulting in the period of “Pax Romana” or Roman Peace.  Overall, it is through this carefully organized language in the “Res Gestae Divi Augusti” that harkens back to the traditional roles of the Roman Republic that Augustus is able to justify the extent of his imperial power. 

Aside from capitalizing off of the nostalgia of separated powers in the Roman Republic to exert his rule, Augustus also uses the “Res Gestae Divi Augusti” to appeal to the orthodox values of the Roman state. One of the main ways Augustus went about doing so was through serving as a religious leader: “I am High Priest, augur, member of the religious board of 15, board of seven for religious feasts, Arval brother, sodalis Titius, Fetial priest” (Augustus, in Mellor, p. 178). As a result of taking on these positions Augustus is thus able to further justify his claim of power by aligning himself with traditional Roman religion. Augustus also makes several mentions of honoring the gods through restoring religious structures, “I restored 82 temples of the gods in the city on the authority of the Senate, neglecting none that needed repair at the time” (Augustus, in Mellor, p. 180). Through such actions Augustus is able to present himself as not only a powerful ruler capable of undertaking such a large task but also as a ruler who finds value in traditional Roman culture and religion. Another way that Augustus both legitimizes his rule and incorporates a religious element is through his connection with Julius Caesar, who he later deified. It is important to note this detail because the deification of Caesar and Augustus’s role as his chosen heir further perpetuates the idea that Augustus’s rule was divine and therefore morally justified. This is made all the clearer in “Res Gestae Divi Augusti” where Augustus states that: “The senate decreed that every fifth year the consuls and priests should undertake vows for my health” (Augustus, in Mellor, p. 179). He continues, saying: “...all the citizens, individually and on behalf of their towns, have unanimously and continuously offered sacrifices for my health at all the seats of the gods…” (Augustus, in Mellor, p. 179). In both of these quotes Augustus is once again identifying the senate and the Roman people as supportive of his reign, except in this context it is tied to the concept of his divinity and integrity. In an attempt to establish a stable line of succession, Augustus states that the senate and Roman people designated his sons Gaius and Lucius Caesar to follow a similar pattern of holding power as Augustus did. Augustus specifically claims that the senate and Roman people made this decision “to honor” him, promoting himself and his heirs as inherently divine and therefore worthy of holding such great power. Augustus also proves his dedication to improving Roman public life through a series of good deeds that either economically supported the Roman population with donations from his own personal treasury or entertained them with gladiatorial games. Augustus recites every instance in which he donated to Roman populus claiming that: “These grants of mine never reached fewer than 250,000 persons” (Augustus, in Mellor, p. 179). Here Augustus is able to build on the image of himself as a giving ruler who is selfless by supporting the Roman people with his own money. As for entertainment, he claims that: “...I presented three gladiatorial games in my own name and five in the name of my sons or grandsons…” (Augustus, in Mellor, p. 180). In doing so, Augustus is able to once again emphasize the divinity of his family line and also demonstrates his wealth in being able to conduct these games. Augustus also mentions distributing land to his soldiers, returning a large sum of slaves to their masters and presenting a naval show for the Roman people. All of these acts Augustus presents as done of his own accord to honor himself and the people of Rome, often under the implied authority of the Roman Senate. Ultimately, Augustus uses the “Res Gestae Divi Augusti” to account for the divinity of his rule, charity on behalf of the Roman populus and thus legitimize his reign. 

In his autobiographical work “Res Gestae Divi Augusti” Augustus utilizes the document to recite his good works during his reign, justify his power and overall corroborate his legacy. The way that Augustus goes about recounting his achievements while in the role of Imperator is through his political and public reforms that provided the impression of a Republican system in Rome. Augustus presents this fallacy by comparing his actions to those of ancestors, assigning himself into traditional Republican positions of power and emphasizing his relationship with the Roman Senate and people. Augustus further justifies his rule and that of his chosen successors by deifying his predecessor Julius Caesar and therefore establishing his reign and ancestral line as divine. By restoring religious temples, bringing peace to the borders of Rome and donating to Roman citizens and soldiers Augustus is able to solidify himself as a generous leader thus deserving of holding such imperial power. The “Res Gestae Divi Augusti” serves as Augustus’s way of affirming and immortalizing his rule as one that benefited every facet of the Roman world.