“He ran for pontifex maximus… Caesar won by a comfortable margin. As a result, Caesar’s political career left him heavily in debt” (Keko). After the bona dea scandal, Caesar was forced to divorce Pompeia (as mentioned before) to sustain his reputation he had built so far. Still in debt, Caesar aligned with Crassus to pay his debts in return for political support and securely “assumed the governorship of Spain”. Now at 60BC, Caesar, Crassus and Pompey had secured an uncomfortable alliance – the First Triumvirate - but was necessary for any future
Octavian gained victory and claimed the supreme rule of the Roman world. Upon his return from Egypt in 29BC, Octavian had full consulship powers and under counsel of his uncle’s death, refuted the appearance of acquisitioning too much power by ‘transferr(ing) the republic from my power to that domination of the senate and the people of Rome’. In return the senate conferred upon him proconsular imperium, whilst continuing to be elected consul every year. In a shrewd attempt for more power, Octavian decided to step down from his roles of power and show allegiance to the republican Rome. However in return the senate placed upon him more power
So, to achieve his end goal (the good of the state and not his own benefit), he courted the Senate and the people by upholding the republican traditions of Rome (to appear that he was not aspiring to monarchy), all while gradually increasing his power. He accepted partial control of the provinces of Rome by the Senate after feigning disinterest in having any control of the provinces. Shrewdly, he was able to acquire provinces that stationed the majority of the legions of Rome, while the Senate's control over the other Roman provinces helped maintain the illusion of a dual republican rule. Octavian was then given the titles Augustus (meaning 'the exalted') and Princeps (chief or leader) by the
On the other hand, some historians such as Worthington suggest that Sulla’s dictatorship was a critical turning point in the undermining of the roman republic based on the evidence that Sulla led a militaristic dictatorship and the significant fact that he was the first individual to march on Rome twice. Sulla’s dictatorship came to a more unexpected end. Whilst it seemed that he was aiming for monarchy which was implied through printing his face on the coin Sulla ended his term through retiring and reinstating the senate. This suggests to many historians that Sulla was trying to put the senate back in power and reinforce the senate. His actions beforehand strongly suggests this also as he increased the number of senators from three hundred to six hundred and restored many of their abilities as the senate.
While Diocletian was co-emperor, there was a general order and a quick response to military threats. However, these reforms encouraged ambition in the co-rulers and their generals. Therefore, when Diocletian retired from power in 305 C.E., those ambitions led to internal struggles and civil war. The man who emerged out of this Civil war as the victor was Constantine, son of one of the tetrarchs, who claimed the throne of the entire Roman Empire for himself in 306 C.E., reuniting the two districts of the empire after approximately 22 years of division into two districts. Defeating most of his enemies and opposition by 313 C.E., he overcame his last rival in 324 C.E.
He had won them over until Antony began his speech. Mark Antony started off with a dramatic entrance, he entered the pulpit carrying Caesars lifeless body. Antony then began his speech with a contradiction, he talked about not praising Caesar but throughout most of his speech that is exactly what he did. Not only did he praise Caesar but he also tore at Brutus and the other conspirators image by repetitively and sarcastically calling them “honorable men”. He began to turn the crowd against the conspirators by convincing them that there was nothing ambitious about Caesar and he loved Rome more than he did himself.
Given the size of the Roman Empire it was imperative that wherever possible peace should be maintained. This required both military might and social and political organization so as to keep the people ruled by the empire happy enough to prevent uprisings or other
Julius Caesar corruption may cause Rome’s downfall, which is the biggest empire at the time, due to his hunger for power and the Senate conspirators’ idealistic behaviors. Julius Caesar is seen as someone for the people but too many is corrupt for his hunger for power and dictatorship. Power, by definition, means the ability to act with force. Shakespeare introduces the characters and the situations. He makes us notice how powerful everyone is.
To answer this question, one must closely examine the corruption in the Roman political system and its effects on the republic. How does imperialism relate to personal power in the context of the Roman Republic? In the following pages, the Roman Republic and its fall will be discussed, followed by examples of individuals circumventing the law through imperialism and personal power, and an examination of its effects. Next, there will be an analysis of both arguments, and then a conclusion. The Roman Republic was the official constitutional government of Rome until Augustus Caesar took the mantle of emperor (Augustus, 94).
The military reforms of Gaius Marius resulted in soldiers often having more loyalty to their commander than to the city, and a powerful general could hold the city and Senate ransom. This led to civil war between Marius and his protegé Sulla, and culminated in Sulla's dictatorship of 81–79 BC. In the mid-1st century BC, three men, Julius Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus, formed a secret pact—the First Triumvirate—to control the Republic. After Caesar's conquest of Gaul, a stand-off between Caesar and the Senate led to civil war, with Pompey leading the Senate's forces. Caesar emerged victorious, and was made dictator for life.