Modern historians however provide a more balanced perspective attributing the loss of the Senates power largely to their subservience rather than the tyrannical nature of the principate. Tiberius attempted to follow the Augustan ideal of a diarchy with the Senate; and was perhaps the most successful within the Julio-Claudian dynasty. PARAGRAPH 1 If Augustus’ principate was to continue to appear legitimate, it was paramount for Tiberius to rule with full co-operation of the Senate. R. Syme maintains that he was genuine when he professed his intention to govern as a true Princeps. Tiberius needed the help of the Senate, he was 55 years of age when he came to power and his rule would involve heavy responsibilities, if not dangers.
Rome`s government was organized into executive and legislative branches, both of these branches were under patrician control. The executive branch was headed by two patrician officials, called consuls, elected for one-year terms. The legislative branch consisted of the Assembly of Centuries and the Senate. However, the Senate had much more power because they advised the consuls. In my opinion, this government wasn’t very fair because not everyone had the chance to voice their opinion.
This came about as the Roman Empire spread, more cultures were taken over leading to the new ‘captives’ being discontented with Roman occupation. Peace for the provinces meant both the governing body in keeping peace, and the people of the provinces enjoying the benefits of peace. Augustus as the Princeps made many reforms to the military in order to enforce peace.This can be seen through Shotter, “It is clear that for stability to be re-established the role of the army and its relationship with its generals would have to undergo change.”(D. Shotter 1991, p.49). Augustus slowly transferred the loyalty and trust of the army and legions to himself rather then their generals. He did this by paying the legions himself from the Aerarium Militare.
Initially, Augustus embarked on establishing his power through the dissemination of propaganda, promises and bribes, which enabled him to raise his own forces and ascertain public support. After the murder of Julius Caesar in 44BC, Augustus, as adopted son and heir, was thrust into the subsequent political and military upheaval. Though, as Holland commented, “For the moment, Caesar’s heir was merely a nuisance, not a factor of much influence upon the policy of Antonius and the Senate.” In order to demonstrate that he undertook his inheritance seriously, Augustus obediently fulfilled Caesar’s legacy by granting 300 sesterces (75 denarii) to each Roman citizen, a generous act which required 75 million sesterces (18,750,000 denarii). However, Antonius had rebuffed Augustus’ claims to inheritance, “answering him with excuses and delays.”(Grant). As a result, Augustus was forced to auction his inherited ¾ of Caesar’s estates, as well as his own property, an action which ensured Augustus greater popularity and odium to be thrown towards Antonius.
Filibusters can bring the work of the Senate to a halt because of the lack of restrictions for debate on the floor of the Senate. Extreme Partisanship causes tension between the members of the Senate, bringing about little compromise. Although the Senate has problems, they can be fixed with more restrictions on the members. Interest groups have a big hold on the Senators. With the Senators looking to please their supporters, to gain money for campaigning and votes, this puts pressure on the Senators to vote with the interest groups when voting on important legislations.
Indeed, it could be argued that the intrigues and machinations of the imperial court were the defining characteristics of the Julio-Claudian period. This therefore explains why the discussions of motives behind decisions during the Julio-Claudian era have been so controversial. Due in part to his brother Germanicus being a highly regarded member of the soldiery, Claudius was bestowed the role of Emperor after the assassination of Caligula, despite his perceived feebleness and having limited military or any administrative experience at all. It is furthermore suggested that he was potentially intended to be a ‘puppet emperor’ for the Praetorian Guard’s benefit, “The Praetorian Guard sat at the very heart of Rome, and usually reported only to the emperor of Rome himself and it wasn't long before they started to abuse this power”. Initially considered too incompetent to rule, Claudius arose to the role of emperor in an admirable manner for his condition; he was always ill, and was said to have possessed neither natural dignity nor authority.
The Han dynasty also followed the tradition of the Sui dynasty and used civil service exams to appoint government officials which favored the poor and allowed them to move up in the world. There emperor ruled with extreme power and control and there dynasty prospered. The Roman Empire was a republic which relied on the judicial, executive, and a legislative branch just as our government does today. The most powerful governing body in ancient Rome was the Roman senate until the period in time in which Caesar Augustus came to power and became the first emperor of Rome. Rome used its strong military forces to govern its lands and the surrounding territories in which they captured.
; Solon, the man who encouraged trade and the popular assembly’s ratification of laws, creating an oligarchic plutocratic democracy in 594 B.C.E. ; Peisistratus, a military hero helped kick the noble class out in 560 B.C.E. ; and Cleisthenes, who helped the popular assembly to be capable of making laws in 507 B.C.E. After these changes, Hellenistic Athens simply ended up with what we usually classify as a “limited democracy.” Sparta, however, remained constant with a diarchy; one king specialized in the military issues, while the other king ruled the nation. After the kings, the greatest amounts of powers were given to the Five Ephers.
Octavian was given consular powers hoping to contain Antony and fix many of Rome’s problems. • To avoid another civil war, in 42BC Octavian met to sign an agreement forming
Several leading Liberal politicians were among those who voted to give Mussolini the emergency powers and many others of the political center and right welcomed the opportunity for a new start. Mussolini had managed to skillfully exploit the left-wing threat, despite this being negligible and the main threat to law and order coming from the Fascists themselves. This step was among the first and arguably one of the most important steps Mussolini took in order to secure his position as Prime Minister and in turn manage to consolidate the Fascist regime. Parliament had been relatively easily persuaded to accept Mussolini’s new powers, but establishing control of the Fascists squads seemed a much more difficult process. Mussolini needed to keep the