The
Roman emperor was the ruler of the
Roman StateThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean. The term is used to describe the Roman state during and after the time of the first emperor,...
during the imperial period (starting at about 27 BC). The Romans had no single term for the office: Latin titles such as
imperatorThe Latin word Imperator was a title originally roughly equivalent to commander during the period of the Roman Republic. It later went on to become a part of the titulature of the Roman Emperors as part of their cognomen...
(from which English
emperorAn emperor is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress is the female equivalent. As a title, "empress" may indicate the wife of an emperor or a woman who rules in her own right...
ultimately derives),
augustus, caesarCaesar , Latin: Caesar , is a title of imperial character. It derives from the cognomen of Julius Caesar, the Roman dictator...
and
princepsPrinceps is a Latin word meaning "first in time or order; the first, chief, the most eminent, distinguished, or noble; the first man, first person."...
were all associated with it. In practice, the emperor was supreme ruler of Rome and supreme commander of the
Roman legionThe Roman legion is a term that can apply both as a translation of legio to the entire Roman army and also, more narrowly , to the heavy infantry that was the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army in the period of the late Roman Republic and the...
s. In theory, however, Rome remained
a republicThe Roman Republic was the phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by a republican form of government. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, c...
, the
res publicaRes publica is a Latin phrase, literally meaning "public issue" or "public matter". It is the origin of the word 'republic', though translations vary widely according to the context.-Res publica in Ancient Rome:...
, and the emperor's status was merely that of
primus inter paresPrimus inter pares , the first among equals, or first among peers is a phrase which indicates that a person is the most senior of a group of people sharing the same rank or office....
—first among equals. This
legal fictionLegal fictions are facts or situations assumed or created by courts which are then used to resolve matters before them. Legal fictions are mostly encountered under common law systems....
became increasingly meaningless as the emperors consolidated their power. However, it was maintained at least to a ceremonial degree until the very end of the Roman Empire. The
Western Roman EmpireThe Western Roman Empire was the western half of the Roman Empire, from its division by Diocletian in 285; the other half of the Roman Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire, today widely known as the Byzantine Empire....
met its end in 476 and the Eastern Roman Empire in 1453.
Overview
There was no constitutional office of "Roman Emperor" (the first person actually to bear that title was Michael I Rhangabes in the early 9th century, who was styled
BasileusBasileus , signifies "sovereign" or "king". It is perhaps best known in English as a title used by Byzantine emperors, but also has a longer history of use for persons of authority in ancient Greece, as well as for the kings of modern Greece.-Etymology:The etymology of basileus is unclear...
Rhomaiôn, "Emperor of the Romans"—if appreciating that by that time the meaning of "Basileus" had changed from "
SovereignA monarch is the person who heads a monarchy, a form of government in which the country or entity usually ruled or controlled by an individual who usually rules for life or until abdication...
" to "Emperor"), nor any title or rank directly analogous to the title of "Emperor"; all the titles traditionally associated with the emperor had pre-existing, Republican meanings. "Roman Emperor" is a convenient shorthand used by historians to express the much more complicated nature of being the "First Citizen" in the Roman state, and as a result there are many differing opinions as to precisely who was emperor when, and how many emperors there were.
The emperor's legal authority derived from the extraordinary concentration of individual powers and offices extant in the Republic rather than from a new political office (emperors regularly had themselves elected to the
consul-Ancient Rome:During the time of ancient Rome as a Republic, the consuls were the highest civil and military magistrates, serving as the heads of government for the Republic. New consuls were elected every year. There were two consuls, and they ruled together...
ship and the
censorThe position of the censor was responsible for maintaining the census, supervising public morality, and overseeing certain aspects of the government's finances....
ate); the emperor actually held the non-"
imperialImperium in a broad sense translates as 'power'. In ancient Rome the concept applied to people and meant something like 'power status' or 'authority' or could be used with a geographical connotation and meant something like 'territory'...
" offices of
princeps senatusThe princeps senatus was the first member by precedence of the Roman Senate. Although officially out of the cursus honorum and owning no imperium, this office brought enormous prestige to the senator holding it.-Overview:...
(parliamentary leader of the Senate) and
pontifex maximusThe Pontifex Maximus was the high priest of the Ancient Roman College of Pontiffs. This was the most important position in the ancient Roman religion, open only to patricians until 254 BC, when a plebeian first occupied this post...
(chief priest of the Roman state
religionThe term Roman religion may refer to:*Ancient Roman religion*religions of the Roman Empire period **Imperial cult *** Sol Invictus**Mithraism**Early Christianity**Gnosticism*Roman Catholicism*Roman neopaganism...
, literally "greatest bridge-maker"), both of which had existed for hundreds of years before the Empire. (
GratianFlavius Gratianus , known usually by the anglicised name Gratian, was a Western Roman Emperor from 375 to 383....
was the last emperor to be
pontifex maximus; he surrendered the pontificate
maximus in 382 to
St. SiriciusPope Saint Siricius, Bishop of Rome from December 384 until his death on 26 November 399, was successor to Damasus I and was himself succeeded by Anastasius I....
and it permanently became an auxiliary honor of the
Bishop of RomeThe pope is the Bishop of Rome and, as such, is leader of the worldwide Catholic Church...
.)
However, these offices only provided great
dignitas (personal prestige); the emperor's powers derived from the fact that he held
auctoritasAuctoritas is a Latin word and is the origin of English "authority." While historically its use in English was restricted to discussions of the political history of Rome, the beginning of phenomenological philosophy in the twentieth century changed the use of the word substantially.In ancient Rome,...
: he had,
ad personam (i.e. without holding office), both
imperium maiusImperium in a broad sense translates as 'power'. In ancient Rome the concept applied to people and meant something like 'power status' or 'authority' or could be used with a geographical connotation and meant something like 'territory'...
(greater power or command) and
tribunicia potestasTribune was a title shared by 10 elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it. Also, the tribune could summon the Senate and lay proposals before it...
(tribunician power). As a result, he formally outranked the provincial governors and the ordinary magistrates (
magistratus ordinarii), had the right to enact capital punishment, could command obedience of private citizens (
privati), enjoyed personal inviolability (
sacrosanctitas), could rescue any plebeian from the hands of any patrician magistrate (
ius auxiliandi), and interpose his
vetoA veto, Latin for "I forbid", is used to denote that a certain party has the right to stop unilaterally a piece of legislation. In practice, the veto can be absolute A veto, Latin for "I forbid", is used to denote that a certain party has the right to stop unilaterally a piece of legislation....
on any act or proposal of any magistrate, including the
tribunes of the peopleTribune was a title shared by 10 elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it. Also, the tribune could summon the Senate and lay proposals before it...
(
ius intercedendi or
ius intercessionis).
"Emperor" was not a magistracy or office of state (note that there was no formally prescribed "uniform" such as those of magistrates, senators, and knights; later emperors were distinguished by wearing
togaThe toga, a distinctive garment of Ancient Rome, was a cloth of perhaps twenty feet in length which was wrapped around the body and was generally worn over a tunic. The toga was invariably made of wool, and the tunic under it often was made of linen...
e purpurae, purple togas; hence the phrase "to don the purple" for the assumption of imperial dignity), nor was there even a regular title until the 3rd century. The titles customarily associated with the imperial dignity are
imperatorThe Latin word Imperator was a title originally roughly equivalent to commander during the period of the Roman Republic. It later went on to become a part of the titulature of the Roman Emperors as part of their cognomen...
("commander", lit. "one who prepares against"), which emphasizes the emperor's military supremacy and is the source of the English word
emperor;
caesarCaesar , Latin: Caesar , is a title of imperial character. It derives from the cognomen of Julius Caesar, the Roman dictator...
, which was originally a name but came to be used to refer to the designated heir (as
Nobilissimus Caesar, "Most Noble Caesar") and was retained upon accession; and
augustusGaius Julius Caesar Augustus was the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in AD 14.
[These are the contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian after 45 BC...]
("majestic" or "venerable"), which was adopted upon accession (the three titles were rendered in
GreekGreek , an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, is the language of the Greeks. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical...
as
autokratôrAutokratōr is a Greek epithet applied to an individual who exercises absolute power, unrestrained by superiors. In a historical context, it has been applied to military commanders-in-chief, and to Roman and Byzantine emperors as the translation of the Latin title imperator...
,
kaisar, and
augustos or
sebastos respectively). After
DiocletianGaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus , born Diocles and commonly known as Diocletian , was Roman Emperor from 20 November 284 to 1 May 305. Born to a Dalmatian family of low status, he rose through the ranks of the military to become cavalry commander to the emperor Carus...
established the
TetrarchyThe term Tetrarchy describes any system of government where power is divided among four individuals, but usually refers to the tetrarchy instituted by Roman Emperor Diocletian in 293, marking the end of the Crisis of the Third Century and the recovery of the Roman Empire...
,
caesar designated the two junior sub-emperors and
augustus the two senior emperors.
The emperors of the first lineages are rather to be considered as quasi-
head of stateHead of state is the generic term for the individual or collective office that serves as the chief public representative of a monarchy, republic, federation, commonwealth or other kind of state...
. As
princeps senatusThe princeps senatus was the first member by precedence of the Roman Senate. Although officially out of the cursus honorum and owning no imperium, this office brought enormous prestige to the senator holding it.-Overview:...
(lit., "first man of the senate"), the emperor could receive foreign embassies to
RomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated municipality , with over 2.7 million residents in , while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat to be 3.46 million. The metropolitan area of Rome is estimated by OECD to have a population of 3.7 million...
(but for example
TiberiusTiberius Julius Caesar Augustus, born Tiberius Claudius Nero , was the second Roman Emperor, from the death of Augustus in AD 14 until his own death in 37. Tiberius was by birth a Claudian, son of Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia Drusilla...
saw that as a typical task for any group of senators not including himself). All in all, by analogy, in modern terms these early emperors would tend to be identified as chiefs of state. The office of
princeps senatus, however, was not a magistracy and did not own
imperiumImperium in a broad sense translates as 'power'. In ancient Rome the concept applied to people and meant something like 'power status' or 'authority' or could be used with a geographical connotation and meant something like 'territory'...
; in terms of the modern
Westminster systemThe Westminster system is a democratic parliamentary system of government modelled after the politics of the United Kingdom. This term comes from the Palace of Westminster, the seat of the Parliament of the United Kingdom....
, this is approximately comparable to diplomatic agents being accredited to the Leader of the House (the
consul-Ancient Rome:During the time of ancient Rome as a Republic, the consuls were the highest civil and military magistrates, serving as the heads of government for the Republic. New consuls were elected every year. There were two consuls, and they ruled together...
s functioned as a sort of hybrid between the Speaker of the House and the Prime Minister). At some points in the Empire's history, the emperor's power was only nominal; powerful
praetorian prefectPraetorian prefect was the title of a high office in the Roman Empire. Originating as the commander of the Praetorian Guard, the office gradually acquired extensive legal and administrative functions, with its holders becoming the Emperor's chief aides...
s and
masters of the soldiersMagister militum was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine. Used alone, the term referred to the senior military officer of the Empire...
(and even at one point Imperial mothers and grandmothers) occasionally acted as the
true source of powerThe phrase power behind the throne refers to a person or group that informally exercises the real power of an office. In politics, it most commonly refers to a spouse, aide, or advisor of a political leader who serves as de facto leader, setting policy through influence or manipulation.The...
(also called "emperors who weren't").
Imperator
The title
imperator dates back to the
Roman RepublicThe Roman Republic was the phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by a republican form of government. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, c...
. One of the most single marks of distinction which a commander could receive was being hailed
imperator in the field by his victorious troops. This honor awarded the general a
triumphThe Roman triumph was a civil ceremony and religious rite of ancient Rome. Its origins and development remain obscure: ancient Roman historians placed the first triumph in the mythical past...
and the commander then assumed the title after his name until the end of his magistry. Sometimes the
SenateThe Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic. According to the Greek historian Polybius, our principal source on the Constitution of the Roman Republic, the Roman Senate was the predominant branch of government...
seems to have given or confirmed the title. The first certainly attested
imperator is Aemilius Paulus in 189 BC. It was a title held with great pride:
PompeyGnaeus Pompeius Magnus, also known as Pompey /'pɑmpi/, Pompey the Great or Pompey the Triumvir , was a military and political leader of the late Roman Republic...
emphasised that he was hailed
imperator more than once, as did Sulla, but it was
Julius CaesarGaius Julius Caesar , , was a Roman military and political leader. He played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
who first used it permanently. It is now thought doubtful that he received the title from the Senate or that he inherited it, as Cassius Dio asserts.
In 38 BC Agrippa refused a triumph for his victories under
OctavianGaius Julius Caesar Augustus was the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in AD 14.
[These are the contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian after 45 BC...]
's command and this precedent established the rule that the
princeps should assume both the salutation and title of
imperator. It seems that from then on Octavian (later first emperor Augustus) used imperator as a praenomen (
Imperator Caesar not
Caesar imperator). From this the title came to denote the supreme power and was commonly used in that sense.
OthoFor other uses, see Otho .Marcus Salvius Otho , also called Marcus Salvius Otho Caesar Augustus, was Roman Emperor from 15 January to 16 April 69, the second emperor of the Year of the four emperors....
was the first to imitate Augustus but only with
VespasianTitus Flavius Vespasianus, commonly known as Vespasian , was a Roman Emperor who reigned from 69 AD until his death in 79 AD...
did
imperator (emperor) become the official title by which the ruler of the
Roman EmpireThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean. The term is used to describe the Roman state during and after the time of the first emperor,...
was known.
Princeps
The word
princeps (plu.
Principes), meaning "first", was a republican term used to denote the leading citizen(s) of the state. It was a purely honorific title with no attached duties or powers. It was the title most preferred by Caesar Augustus as its use implies only primacy, as opposed to another of his titles,
imperatorThe Latin word Imperator was a title originally roughly equivalent to commander during the period of the Roman Republic. It later went on to become a part of the titulature of the Roman Emperors as part of their cognomen...
which implies dominance.
Princeps, because of its republican connotation, was most commonly used to refer to the emperor in
LatinLatin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Roman conquest, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe...
(although the emperor's actual constitutional position was essentially "pontifex maximus with tribunician power and
imperium superseding all others") as it was in keeping with the facade of the restored republic; the
GreekGreek , an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages, is the language of the Greeks. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. In its ancient form, it is the language of classical...
word
basileus ("king") was modified to be synonymous with emperor (and primarily came into favour after the reign of
HeracliusFlavius Heraclius was a Byzantine Emperor of Armenian origin, who ruled the Eastern Roman Empire for over thirty years, from October 5, 610 to February 11, 641...
) as the Greeks had no republican sensibility and openly viewed the emperor as a monarch. In the era of Diocletian and beyond,
princeps fell into disuse and was replaced with
dominus ("lord"); later emperors used the formula
Imperator Caesar NN. Pius Felix (Invictus) Augustus. NN representing the individual's personal name, Pius Felix, meaning "Pious and Blest", and Invictus meaning "Undefeated". The use of
princeps and
dominus broadly symbolise the differences in the Empire's government, giving rise to the era designations "
PrincipateThe Principate is the first period of the Roman Empire, extending from the beginning of the reign of Caesar Augustus to the Crisis of the Third Century, after which it was replaced with the Dominate. The Principate is characterized by a concerted effort on the part of the Emperors to preserve the...
" and "
DominateThe Dominate was the 'despotic' latter phase of government in the ancient Roman Empire from the conclusion of the Third Century Crisis of 235–284 until the formal date of the collapse of the Western Empire in AD 476. It followed the period known as the Principate...
".
First Roman emperor
In the discussion of who was the first Roman emperor one has to understand that at the end of the
Roman RepublicThe Roman Republic was the phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by a republican form of government. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, c...
there was no new, and certainly not a
single, title created with which to indicate the individual who had the supreme power as a
monarchA monarch is the person who heads a monarchy, a form of government in which the country or entity usually ruled or controlled by an individual who usually rules for life or until abdication...
. Insofar as
emperor could be seen as the English translation of
imperatorThe Latin word Imperator was a title originally roughly equivalent to commander during the period of the Roman Republic. It later went on to become a part of the titulature of the Roman Emperors as part of their cognomen...
, then Julius Caesar had been an emperor, like several Roman
generalA general officer is an officer of high military rank. The term or equivalent is used by nearly every country in the world. General can be used as a generic term for all grades of general officer, or it can specifically refer to a single rank that is simply called general.-All general officer...
s before him. Instead, by the end of the civil wars in which
Julius CaesarGaius Julius Caesar , , was a Roman military and political leader. He played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
had led his armies, it became clear on the one hand that there was certainly no consensus to return to the old-style monarchy, and that on the other hand the situation where several officials, bestowed with equal power by the senate, fought one another had to come to an end.
Julius Caesar—and a few years later Octavian in an even more subtle and gradual way—worked towards several goals: accumulating offices and titles that were of the highest importance in the Republic; making the power attached to these offices permanent; and preventing anyone with similar aspirations from accumulating or maintaining power for themselves. However, Julius Caesar, unlike those after him, did so
without the Senate's vote and approval.
Julius Caesar had gone a considerable part of the road: he held the Republican offices of
consul-Ancient Rome:During the time of ancient Rome as a Republic, the consuls were the highest civil and military magistrates, serving as the heads of government for the Republic. New consuls were elected every year. There were two consuls, and they ruled together...
four times and
dictatorIn the Roman Republic, the dictator , was an extraordinary magistrate with the absolute authority to perform tasks beyond the authority of the ordinary magistrate . The office of dictator was a legal innovation originally named Magister Populi , i.e...
five times, was appointed dictator in perpetuity (
dictator perpetuoDictator perpetuo , also called dictator in perpetuum or incorrectly dictator perpetuus, was the office held by Julius Caesar from January 26 or February 15 of the year 44 BCE until his death...
) in 45 BC, had been "pontifex maximus" for several decades and had handsomely prepared for his deification (see
Imperial cultAn Imperial cult is a form of state religion in which an emperor, or a dynasty of emperors , are worshiped as messiahs, demigods or deities. "Cult" here is used to mean "worship," not in the modern pejorative sense...
); again he did not gain these positions without the majority of a vote by the people and senate. Technically, he was an "appointed" dictator (as was Sulla), and while he was the last dictator of the Republic that was appointed by the Senate (guidelines provided for such if the country was in disarray such as civil war), Julius Caesar died several years before the final collapse of the traditional Republican system, to be replaced by the system modern historians call the Principate. Many historians theorize that the fall of the Roman Republic began at the assassination of Julius Caesar, thereby putting in motion events that would forever change the operations of the Republic.
By the time of his
assassinationAn Assassination is the targeted killing of a public figure.Assassinations may be prompted by ideological, political, or military reasons. Additionally, assassins may be motivated by financial gain, revenge, personal public recognition, or mental illness....
in 44 BC Julius Caesar was the most powerful man in
RomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated municipality , with over 2.7 million residents in , while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat to be 3.46 million. The metropolitan area of Rome is estimated by OECD to have a population of 3.7 million...
. But if being "princeps" is seen as the determining office he should have held in order for modern historians to call him emperor, then he was not emperor. Still, he realized something that only a monarch could achieve, but what would only become evident many decades after his death: he had made his high power in the republic
hereditary, by his will, in which he had appointed Octavian as his only heir as his adopted son. But not until over a decade after Caesar's death did Octavian achieve supreme power, after the civil wars first avenging Caesar's murder, then the step-by-step process of neutralizing his fellow
triumvirsThe Second Triumvirate is the name historians give to the official political alliance of Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus , Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, and Mark Antony, formed on 26 November 43 BC with the enactment of the Lex Titia, the adoption of which marked the end of the Roman Republic...
, culminating in his victory over
Mark AntonyMarcus Antonius , known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and General. He was an important supporter and the loyal friend of Gaius Julius Caesar as a military commander and administrator, being Caesar's second cousin, once removed, by his mother Julia Antonia...
and
CleopatraCleopatra VII Philopator was the last effective pharaoh of Egypt's Ptolemaic dynasty. She originally shared power with her father Ptolemy XII and later with her brothers Ptolemy XIII and Ptolemy XIV, whom she also married, but eventually gained sole rule...
.
In 27 BC, following the second triumvirate, Octavian appeared before the Senate and expressed a desire to retire. The Senate requested he remain and Octavian stayed in office till his death. Most more recent history books, however, noting that immediately after the assassination of Julius Caesar, the Roman State had in all respects returned to the republic and that the second
Triumvirate could hardly be called a
monarchy, see Augustus as the first "emperor" in the proper sense and (somewhat arbitrarily) say he became emperor when he "restored" power to the Senate and the people, an act which in itself was a demonstration of his
auctoritasAuctoritas is a Latin word and is the origin of English "authority." While historically its use in English was restricted to discussions of the political history of Rome, the beginning of phenomenological philosophy in the twentieth century changed the use of the word substantially.In ancient Rome,...
and was given the name Augustus in 27 BC by the Senate to refer to all things godly.
Even at Augustus' death, some later historians like
TacitusPublius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
would say, it might have been possible to return to the republic properly, without even needing to change anything, if there had been a real will to accomplish that (that is, by not allowing Tiberius to accumulate the same powers, which he did, however, very quickly). Even Tiberius continued to go to great lengths to keep the forms of "republican" government untouched.
The historians of the first centuries saw the continuity in the first place: if a hereditary monarchy-not-by-kings existed after the republic, it had started with Julius Caesar. In this sense
SuetoniusDe vita Caesarum commonly known as The Twelve Caesars, is a set of twelve biographies of Julius Caesar and the first 11 emperors of the Roman Empire written by Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus.The work, written in 121 during the reign of the emperor Hadrian, was the most popular work of Suetonius, at...
wrote of
The Twelve Caesars, meaning the emperors from Julius Caesar to the Flavians included (where, after Nero, the
inherited name had turned into a
title).
Fall of the West
By the end of the Third century, taking a few steps, the Roman Empire was split in a Western and an Eastern part, each with their own
augusti (and/or
caesares). In the West, which included Rome, the succession of emperors had ended in the year 476 when the last Western emperor,
Romulus AugustusRomulus Augustus , more known by his nickname Romulus Augustulus , was the last Western Roman Emperor reigning from the 31 October 475 until his deposition on the 4 September 476...
, was deposed by the Germanic King
OdoacerOdoacer , also known as Odovacer, was a Germanic foederati general and the first non-Roman ruler of Italy after AD 476. He deposed the last Western Roman Emperor, Romulus Augustus on 4 September of that year, but continued to rule first as a nominal client of Julius Nepos and, after Nepos' death in...
, although many maintain that
Julius NeposJulius Nepos was a Roman Emperor of the West during the final stage of the Western Roman Empire. Some historians consider him to be the last de jure Western Emperor, others consider the western line to have ended with Romulus Augustus in 476...
was the last emperor and that the Eastern emperor Zeno decided not to appoint a new emperor in the West. This is generally accepted to be the end of Antiquity and the beginning the Early Middle Ages also known as the
Dark AgesThe Dark Ages is a term in historiography referring to a perceived period of cultural decline or societal collapse that took place in Western Europe between the fall of Rome and the eventual recovery of learning. Increased understanding of the accomplishments of the Middle Ages in the 19th century...
. However, Roman rule had disintegrated somewhat earlier in the century as a result of Germanic invasions which had overrun all of the territory that had belonged to the western half of the
Roman EmpireThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean. The term is used to describe the Roman state during and after the time of the first emperor,...
. In the east however, the Eastern Roman Empire survived until 1453. Although the Greek speaking inhabitants thought of themselves as
Romaoi, many in Western Europe referred to the political entity as the "Greek Empire". Today it is known as the
Byzantine EmpireThe Byzantine Empire or Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered on the capital of Constantinople, and ruled by Emperors in direct and de jure succession to the ancient Roman Emperors...
, as its capital was once the city of Byzantium, which had been massively expanded and re-named Constantinople in honour of the emperor
Constantine the GreatCaesar Flavius Valerius Aurelius Constantinus Augustus , commonly known in English as Constantine I, Constantine the Great, or Saint Constantine , was Roman emperor from 306, and the sole holder of that office from 324 until his death in...
, and now known as the Turkish city of Istanbul.
Survival of the Roman Empire in the East
The line of Roman emperors in the Eastern Roman Empire continued unbroken until the fall of
ConstantinopleConstantinople was the imperial capital of the Roman Empire , the Byzantine/Eastern Roman Empire , the Latin Empire , and the Ottoman Empire...
in 1453 under Constantine XI Palaiologos. These emperors eventually normalized the imperial dignity into the modern conception of an emperor, incorporated it into the constitutions of the state, and adopted the aforementioned title
Basileus kai autokratōrAutokratōr is a Greek epithet applied to an individual who exercises absolute power, unrestrained by superiors. In a historical context, it has been applied to military commanders-in-chief, and to Roman and Byzantine emperors as the translation of the Latin title imperator...
Rhomaiōn ("Emperor and Autocrat of the Romans"). These emperors ceased to use Latin as the language of state after
HeracliusFlavius Heraclius was a Byzantine Emperor of Armenian origin, who ruled the Eastern Roman Empire for over thirty years, from October 5, 610 to February 11, 641...
. Historians have customarily treated the state of these later Eastern emperors under the name "
Byzantine EmpireThe Byzantine Empire or Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered on the capital of Constantinople, and ruled by Emperors in direct and de jure succession to the ancient Roman Emperors...
", though
Byzantine is not a term that the Byzantines ever used to describe themselves.
Last Roman emperor
Constantine XI Palaiologos was the last reigning Roman emperor. A member of the
Palaiologos dynastyPalaiologos , alternatively Palaeologus, was a Greek noble family, which produced the last ruling dynasty of the Byzantine Empire. After the Fourth Crusade, members of the family escaped to the Empire of Nicaea, where Michael VIII Palaiologos became co-emperor in 1259, recaptured Constantinople and...
, he ruled the Roman Empire from 1449 until his death in 1453 defending the capital of the Roman Empire,
ConstantinopleConstantinople was the imperial capital of the Roman Empire , the Byzantine/Eastern Roman Empire , the Latin Empire , and the Ottoman Empire...
.
He was born in
MystraMystras, also Mistra, Mystra and Mistras was a fortified town in Morea , on Mt. Taygetos, near ancient Sparta. In the 14th and 15th centuries, it served as the capital of the Byzantine Despotate of the Morea, experiencing a period of prosperity and cultural flowering...
as the eighth of ten children of
Manuel II PalaiologosManuel II Palaiologos or Palaeologus was Byzantine emperor from 1391 to 1425.-Life:...
and
Helena DragašHelena Dragases Jelena Dejanović Dragaš , or Augusta Helen Palaiologos , was the Empress consort of Manuel II Palaiologos.-Family:She was a daughter of Constantine Dragaš, a regional semi-independent lord in the fragmenting Serbian realm...
, the daughter of the
SerbianSerbs are a South Slavic people living in the Central Europe and the Balkans , between the Balkan- and Carpathian mountains in the east and the Adriatic sea in the west. They are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia-Herzegovina, and, to a lesser extent, in Croatia...
prince
Constantine DragašConstantine Dragaš was a regional semi-independent lord in the fragmenting Serbian realm centered at Velbăžd from 1355 until his death at the battle of Rovine on May 17, 1395.-Life:...
of
KumanovoKumanovo is thе third largest city in the Republic of Macedonia and is the seat of Kumanovo Municipality which is the largest municipality in the country...
. He spent most of his childhood in Constantinople under the supervision of his parents. During the absence of his
older brotherJohn VIII Palaiologos or Palaeologus , was Byzantine Emperor from 1425 to 1448.-Life:...
in
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
, Constantine was regent in Constantinople from 1437-1440.
Before the beginning of the
siegeThe Fall of Constantinople was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire which occurred after a siege laid by the Ottoman Empire, under the command of Sultan Mehmed II. The siege lasted from Thursday, 5 April, 1453 until Tuesday, 29 May, 1453 , when the city fell to the Ottomans...
,
Mehmed IIMehmet II , was Sultan of the Ottoman Empire for a short time from 1444 to September 1446,...
made an offer to Constantine XI. In exchange for the surrender of Constantinople, the emperor's life would be spared and he would continue to rule in Mystra. Constantine refused this offer. Instead he led the defense of the city and took an active part in the fighting along the
land wallsThe Walls of Constantinople are a series of stone walls that have surrounded and protected the city of Constantinople since its founding as the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire by Constantine the Great...
. At the same time, he used his diplomatic skills to maintain the necessary unity between the Genovese, Venetian, and Greek troops. As the city fell on May 29, 1453, Constantine is said to have remarked:
"The city is fallen but I am alive." Realizing that the end had come, he reportedly discarded his purple cloak and led his remaining soldiers into a
final chargeLast stand is a loose military term used to describe a body of troops holding a defensive position in the face of overwhelming odds where the plurality of soldiers is killed...
, in which he was killed.
New Western lineage
The concept of the Roman Empire was renewed in the West with the coronation of the king of the Franks,
CharlemagneCharlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 to his death. He expanded the Frankish kingdoms into a Frankish Empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe...
, as Roman emperor by the
PopeThe pope is the Bishop of Rome and, as such, is leader of the worldwide Catholic Church...
on
Christmas DayChristmas , also referred to as Christmas Day, is an annual holiday celebrated on December 25 that commemorates the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. The day marks the beginning of the larger season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days. The nativity of Jesus, which is the basis for the anno Domini...
, 800. This line of Roman emperors was actually generally
GermanicThe Germanic peoples are a historical ethno-linguistic group, originating in Northern Europe and identified by their use of the Indo-European Germanic languages which diversified out of Common Germanic in the course of the Pre-Roman Iron Age...
rather than Roman, but maintained their Roman-ness as a matter of principle. These emperors used a variety of titles (most frequently "
Imperator Augustus") before finally settling on
Imperator Romanus Electus ("Elected Roman Emperor"). Historians customarily assign them the title "Holy Roman Emperor", which has a basis in actual historical usage, and treat their "
Holy Roman EmpireThe Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period under a Holy Roman Emperor. The first emperor of the Holy Roman Empire was Otto I, crowned in 962. The last was Francis II, who abdicated and dissolved the Empire in 1806 during...
" as a separate institution. To Latin Christians, however, at that time especially the pope was supreme temporal authority as well as spiritual, and as Bishop of Rome was recognized as having the power to crown a new Roman emperor. The title of Western Roman "Emperor" was further legitimized when the Eastern Roman emperor at Constantinople recognized Charlemagne as basileus of the west. It lasted until 1806 when Francis II dissolved the Empire during the
Napoleonic WarsThe Napoleonic Wars were a series of conflicts declared against Napoleon's French Empire and changing sets of European allies by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionized European armies and played...
. Despite the existence of later potentates styling themselves "Emperor", such as the Napoleons and the
heads of the German ReichThe German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871 to 1918, when it became a German republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of Wilhelm II .The term Second Reich...
, this marked the end of the Western Empire. Although there is a living heir to the Habsburg dynasty, as well as a pope and pretenders to the positions of the electors, and although all the medieval coronation regalia are still preserved in Austria, the legal abolition of all aristocratic prerogatives of the former electors and the imposition of republican constitutions in Germany and Austria removed the potential for a revival of the Holy Roman Empire.
New Eastern lineage
The "seat" of the eastern lineage was claimed in Russia by the Byzantine-born grandmother of Ivan IV (The Terrible) who would become the first 'Tsar' or 'Czar' the Russian title for 'Caesar.' He called Russia the third Rome (The capital of the Roman Empire moved to
ByzantiumByzantium was an ancient Greek city, which was founded by Greek colonists from Megara in 667 BC and named after their king Byzas or Byzantas . The name "Byzantium" is a Latinization of the original name Byzantion...
by Constantine I, first called '
Nova RomaNova Roma is an international Roman revivalist movement created in 1998 by Joseph Bloch and William Bradford, later incorporated in Maine as a non-profit organization with an educational and religious mission. Nova Roma is dedicated "to the restoration of classical Roman religion, culture and...
' and then Constantinople) where some of the relics of the Eastern Orthodox Church and from the Roman Empire were brought.
When
Mehmed IIMehmet II , was Sultan of the Ottoman Empire for a short time from 1444 to September 1446,...
conquered
ConstantinopleConstantinople was the imperial capital of the Roman Empire , the Byzantine/Eastern Roman Empire , the Latin Empire , and the Ottoman Empire...
on 29 May 1453, he claimed the title Emperor of the Roman Empire (Kayser-i-Rûm) and protector of the
Eastern Orthodox ChurchThe Orthodox Church, also officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to in English speaking countries as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the world's second largest Christian communion, estimated to number 225 million members...
. Here, the Caesar title should not be understood as the minor title it had become, but as the glorious title of the emperors of the past, a connotation that had been preserved in Persian and Arabic. The adoption of the title also implied that the Ottoman state considered itself the continuation, by absorption, of the Roman Empire, a view not shared in the West. Acting in his capacity as Caesar of the Roman Empire, Mehmed reinstated the defunct Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople. He appointed the
Patriarch of Constantinople-Current Ecumenical Patriarch:The current Ecumenical Patriarch is His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I of Constantinople.-General Introduction:...
Gennadius Scholarius, whom he protected and whose stature he elevated into leader of all the
Eastern OrthodoxThe Orthodox Church, also officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to in English speaking countries as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the world's second largest Christian communion, estimated to number 225 million members...
ChristianA Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who Christians believe was the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, and the Son of God.The term "Christian" is also used adjectivally to...
s. As emperor of the Romans he laid claim to all Roman territories, which at the time before the
Fall of ConstantinopleThe Fall of Constantinople was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire which occurred after a siege laid by the Ottoman Empire, under the command of Sultan Mehmed II. The siege lasted from Thursday, 5 April, 1453 until Tuesday, 29 May, 1453 , when the city fell to the Ottomans...
, however, extended to little more than the city itself, plus some areas in
MoreaThe Morea was the name of the Peloponnese peninsula in southern Greece during the Middle Ages and the early modern period...
(
PeloponneseThe Peloponnese or Peloponnesus is a large peninsula and region in southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth...
) and the
Empire of TrebizondThe Empire of Trebizond, founded in April 1204, was one of three Byzantine successor states of the Byzantine Empire. However, the creation of the Empire of Trebizond was not directly related to the capture of Constantinople by the Fourth Crusade, rather it had broken away from the Byzantine Empire...
. At least partly to bolster his claim to the title and reunite the Roman Empire, Mehmed II planned, but couldn't accomplish due to his death, to conquer the city of Rome in 1480. The title was added to the long list of titles claimed by the Ottoman sultans.
Titles and positions
Although these are the most common offices, titles, and positions, one should note that not all Roman emperors used them, nor were all of them used at the same time in history. The consular and censorial offices especially were not an integral part of the Imperial dignity, and were usually held by persons other than the reigning Emperor.
- Augustus
Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus was the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in AD 14.
[These are the contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian after 45 BC...]
(also "" or ""), "Majestic" or "Venerable"; an honorific cognomenThe cognomen was the third name of a citizen of Ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. The cognomen started as a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became hereditary...
exclusive to the emperor, AutokratorAutokratōr is a Greek epithet applied to an individual who exercises absolute power, unrestrained by superiors. In a historical context, it has been applied to military commanders-in-chief, and to Roman and Byzantine emperors as the translation of the Latin title imperator...
(lit. "Self-ruler"); Greek title equivalent to imperator i.e. Commander-in-Chief (BasileusBasileus , signifies "sovereign" or "king". It is perhaps best known in English as a title used by Byzantine emperors, but also has a longer history of use for persons of authority in ancient Greece, as well as for the kings of modern Greece.-Etymology:The etymology of basileus is unclear...
) , Greek for KingKing may be a title for a head of state.King may also refer to:-Places:* King, Ontario, Canada* King, Indiana, United States* King, North Carolina, United States* King, Lincoln County, Wisconsin, United States...
, popularly used in the east to refer to the emperor; a formal title of the Roman emperor beginning with HeracliusFlavius Heraclius was a Byzantine Emperor of Armenian origin, who ruled the Eastern Roman Empire for over thirty years, from October 5, 610 to February 11, 641...
- Caesar
Caesar , Latin: Caesar , is a title of imperial character. It derives from the cognomen of Julius Caesar, the Roman dictator...
(also "" or "NobilissimusNobilissimus , in Byzantine Greek nōbelissimos was one of the highest imperial titles in the late Roman and Byzantine empires....
Caesar"), "Caesar" or "Most Noble Caesar"; an honorific name later used to identify an Emperor-designate
- Censor
The position of the censor was responsible for maintaining the census, supervising public morality, and overseeing certain aspects of the government's finances....
, a Republican office with a five year term and one coequal officeholder
- Consul
-Ancient Rome:During the time of ancient Rome as a Republic, the consuls were the highest civil and military magistrates, serving as the heads of government for the Republic. New consuls were elected every year. There were two consuls, and they ruled together...
, the highest magistracy of the Roman republic with a one year term and one coequal officeholder
- Dominus, "Lord" or "Master"; an honorific title popular in the Empire's middle history
- Imperator
The Latin word Imperator was a title originally roughly equivalent to commander during the period of the Roman Republic. It later went on to become a part of the titulature of the Roman Emperors as part of their cognomen...
, "Commander" or "Commander-in-Chief"; a victory title taken on accession to the purple and after a major military victory; the praenomenIn Roman naming conventions, the praenomen was the only name in which parents had some choice, roughly equivalent to the given name of today. It was a personal appellation given to a male infant on his day of lustration. As a rule only the immediate family would call a person by his praenomen...
of most Roman emperors
- Imperator Destinatus, "Destined to be Emperor"; heir apparent, used by Septimius Severus
Lucius Septimius Severus was a Roman Emperor who reigned from 14 April, 193 until his death in 211. Severus was the first emperor of the troubled Severan dynasty, the last imperial dynasty of the Roman principate before the Crisis of the Third Century...
for CaracallaCaracalla , born Lucius Septimius Bassianus and later called Marcus Aurelius Antoninus and Marcus Aurelius Severus Antoninus, was the eldest son of Septimius Severus and Roman Emperor from 211 to 217. He was one of the most nefarious of Roman emperors...
.
- Imperium maius
Imperium in a broad sense translates as 'power'. In ancient Rome the concept applied to people and meant something like 'power status' or 'authority' or could be used with a geographical connotation and meant something like 'territory'...
, "greater imperium"; absolute power to a degree greater than any other, including power of enacting capital punishment
- Invictus, "Unconquered"; an honorific title
- Pater Patriae
Pater Patriae , also seen as Parens Patriae, is a Latin honorific meaning "Father of the Country," or more literally, "Father of the Fatherland".- Roman history :...
, "Father of the Fatherland"; an honorific title
- Pius Felix, "Pious and Blessed" an honorific title
- Pontifex Maximus
The Pontifex Maximus was the high priest of the Ancient Roman College of Pontiffs. This was the most important position in the ancient Roman religion, open only to patricians until 254 BC, when a plebeian first occupied this post...
, "Supreme Pontiff" or "Chief Priest" (lit. "Greatest Bridgemaker"); a title and office of Republican origin—could not be used by "Catholic" Emperors, while by that time only the popeThe pope is the Bishop of Rome and, as such, is leader of the worldwide Catholic Church...
had a claim on the title of highest religious authority.
- Princeps
Princeps is a Latin word meaning "first in time or order; the first, chief, the most eminent, distinguished, or noble; the first man, first person."...
, "First Citizen" or "Leading Citizen"; an honorific title denoting the status of the emperor as first among equalsPrimus inter pares , the first among equals, or first among peers is a phrase which indicates that a person is the most senior of a group of people sharing the same rank or office....
- Princeps Iuventutis, "Prince of Youth"; an honorific title awarded to a presumptive Emperor-designate
- Princeps Senatus
The princeps senatus was the first member by precedence of the Roman Senate. Although officially out of the cursus honorum and owning no imperium, this office brought enormous prestige to the senator holding it.-Overview:...
, "First Man of the Senate" a Republican office with a five year term
- Tribunitia potestas
Tribune was a title shared by 10 elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it. Also, the tribune could summon the Senate and lay proposals before it...
, "tribunician power"; the powers of a tribune of the people including sacrosanctity and the veto
Powers
When Augustus established the
Princeps, he turned down supreme authority in exchange for a collection of various powers and offices, which in itself was a demonstration of his
auctoritasAuctoritas is a Latin word and is the origin of English "authority." While historically its use in English was restricted to discussions of the political history of Rome, the beginning of phenomenological philosophy in the twentieth century changed the use of the word substantially.In ancient Rome,...
("authority"). As holding
princeps senatusThe princeps senatus was the first member by precedence of the Roman Senate. Although officially out of the cursus honorum and owning no imperium, this office brought enormous prestige to the senator holding it.-Overview:...
, the emperor declared the opening and closure of each Senate session, declared the Senate's agenda, imposed rules and regulation for the Senate to follow, and met with foreign ambassadors in the name of the Senate. Being
pontifex maximusThe Pontifex Maximus was the high priest of the Ancient Roman College of Pontiffs. This was the most important position in the ancient Roman religion, open only to patricians until 254 BC, when a plebeian first occupied this post...
made the emperor the chief administrator of religious affairs, granting him the power to conduct all religious ceremonies, consecrate temples, control the Roman calendar (adding or removing days as needed), appoint the
vestal virginIn Ancient Rome, the vestal virgins , were the virgin holy female priestesses of Vesta, the goddess of the hearth. Their primary task was to maintain the sacred fire of Vesta. The vestal duty brought great honor and afforded greater privileges to women who served in that role...
s and some
flamenA flamen was a name given to a priest assigned to a state-supported god or goddess in Roman religion. There were fifteen flamines in the Roman Republic. The most important three were the flamines maiores , who served the three chief Roman gods of the Archaic Triad...
s, lead the Collegium Pontificum, and summarize the
dogmaDogma is the established belief or doctrine held by a religion, ideology or any kind of organization: it is authoritative and not to be disputed, doubted or diverged from. The term derives from Greek "that which seems to one, opinion or belief" and that from , "to think, to suppose, to imagine"...
of the
Roman religionThe term Roman religion may refer to:*Ancient Roman religion*religions of the Roman Empire period **Imperial cult *** Sol Invictus**Mithraism**Early Christianity**Gnosticism*Roman Catholicism*Roman neopaganism...
.
While these powers granted the emperor a great deal of personal pride and influence, they did not include legal authority. In 23 BC, Augustus gave the emperorship its legal power. The first was
Tribunitia PotestasTribune was a title shared by 10 elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it. Also, the tribune could summon the Senate and lay proposals before it...
, or the power of the tribune without actually holding the office. This gave the emperor the ability of personal inviolability (sacrosanctity) and the ability to
pardonA pardon is the forgiveness of a crime and the penalty associated with it. It is granted by a head of state, such as a monarch or president, or by a competent church authority. Clemency is an associated term, meaning the lessening of the penalty of the crime without forgiving the crime itself. The...
any civilian for any act, criminal or otherwise. By holding the powers of the tribune, the emperor could prosecute anyone who interfered with the performance of his duties. The emperor's tribuneship granted him the right to convene the Senate at his will and lay proposals before it, as well as the ability to
vetoA veto, Latin for "I forbid", is used to denote that a certain party has the right to stop unilaterally a piece of legislation. In practice, the veto can be absolute A veto, Latin for "I forbid", is used to denote that a certain party has the right to stop unilaterally a piece of legislation....
any act or proposal by any magistrate, including the
tribuneTribune was a title shared by 10 elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it. Also, the tribune could summon the Senate and lay proposals before it...
of the plebians. Also, as holder of the tribune's power, the emperor would convoke the
Council of the PeopleThe Legislative Assemblies of the Roman Republic were political institutions in the ancient Roman Republic. According to the contemporary historian Polybius, it was the people who had the final say regarding the election of magistrates, the enactment of new statutes, the carrying out of capital...
, lay legislation before it, and served as the council's president. But his tribuneship only granted him power within Rome itself. He would need another power to veto the act of governors and that of the consuls while in the provinces.
To solve this problem, Augustus managed to have the emperor be given the right to hold two types of
imperiumImperium in a broad sense translates as 'power'. In ancient Rome the concept applied to people and meant something like 'power status' or 'authority' or could be used with a geographical connotation and meant something like 'territory'...
. The first being
consular imperium-Ancient Rome:During the time of ancient Rome as a Republic, the consuls were the highest civil and military magistrates, serving as the heads of government for the Republic. New consuls were elected every year. There were two consuls, and they ruled together...
while he was in Rome, and
imperium maiusImperium in a broad sense translates as 'power'. In ancient Rome the concept applied to people and meant something like 'power status' or 'authority' or could be used with a geographical connotation and meant something like 'territory'...
outside of Rome. While inside the walls of Rome, the reigning consuls and the emperor held equal authority, each being able to
vetoA veto, Latin for "I forbid", is used to denote that a certain party has the right to stop unilaterally a piece of legislation. In practice, the veto can be absolute A veto, Latin for "I forbid", is used to denote that a certain party has the right to stop unilaterally a piece of legislation....
each other's proposals and acts, with the Emperor holding all of the Consul's powers. But outside of Rome, the emperor outranked the consuls and could veto them without the same effects on himself. Imperium Maius also granted the emperor authority over all the
provincialIn Ancient Rome, a province was the basic, and until the Tetrarchy , largest territorial and administrative unit of the empire's territorial possessions outside of the Italian peninsula...
governorA Roman governor was an official either elected or appointed to be the chief administrator of Roman law throughout one or more of the many provinces constituting the Roman Empire...
s, making him the ultimate authority in provincial matters and gave him the supreme command of all of Rome's
legionThe Roman legion is a term that can apply both as a translation of legio to the entire Roman army and also, more narrowly , to the heavy infantry that was the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army in the period of the late Roman Republic and the...
s. With Imperium Maius, the emperor was also granted the power to appoint governors of imperial provinces without the interference of the Senate. Also, Imperium Maius granted the emperor the right to veto the governors of the provinces and even the reigning consul while in the provinces.
Lineages and epochs
In the listings of Roman emperors below, the common name is given first, followed by the more formal name adopted upon accession to the purple, the name given at birth, and the years of his reign. So-called victory titles and other titles not forming an integral part of the name (
Pontifex Maximus,
Princeps Senatus,
Pater PatriaePater Patriae , also seen as Parens Patriae, is a Latin honorific meaning "Father of the Country," or more literally, "Father of the Fatherland".- Roman history :...
, &c.) are not listed. Co-emperors are listed in inferior text, along with notes identifying senior emperors who had hitherto served as co-emperors. Following abbreviations are used:
- A.: Aulus
- Aug.: Augustus (as a title)
- C.: Gaius
- Germ.: Germanicus
- Imp.: Imperator
- L.: Lucius
- M.: Marcus
- Max.: Maximus
- Nob.: Nobilissimus
- P.: Publius
- P.F.: Pius Felix
- Princ. Iuv.: Princeps Iuventutis
- Q.: Quintus
- Ser.: Servius
- T.: Titus
- Ti.: Tiberius
Principate
The nature of the imperial office and the
PrincipateThe Principate is the first period of the Roman Empire, extending from the beginning of the reign of Caesar Augustus to the Crisis of the Third Century, after which it was replaced with the Dominate. The Principate is characterized by a concerted effort on the part of the Emperors to preserve the...
was established under
Julius CaesarGaius Julius Caesar , , was a Roman military and political leader. He played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
's heir and posthumously adopted son, Caesar Augustus, and his own heirs, the descendants of his wife
LiviaLivia Drusilla, after 14 AD called Julia Augusta was the wife of Augustus and one of the most powerful women in the Roman Empire, being Augustus' faithful advisor...
from her first marriage to a scion of the distinguished
ClaudianTiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus was the fourth Roman Emperor, a member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, ruling from 24 January AD 41 to his death in AD 54...
clan. This
Julio-Claudian dynastyThe Julio-Claudian dynasty normally refers to the first five Roman Emperors: Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula , Claudius, and Nero, or the family to which they belonged; they ruled the Roman Empire from its formation, in the second half of the first century BC, until AD 68, when the last of the line,...
came to an end when the emperor
NeroNero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus , born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, also called Nero Claudius Caesar Drusus Germanicus, was the fifth and last Roman emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Nero was adopted by his great uncle Claudius to become heir to the throne...
—a great-great-grandson of Augustus through his daughter and of Livia through her son—was deposed in 68.
Nero was followed by a succession of
usurperUsurper is a derogatory term used to describe either an illegitimate or controversial claimant to the throne in a monarchy, or a person who succeeds in establishing himself as a monarch without inheriting the throne, or any other person exercising authority unconstitutionally...
s throughout 69, commonly called the "
Year of the Four EmperorsThe Year of the Four Emperors was a year in the history of the Roman Empire, AD 69, in which four emperors ruled in a remarkable succession. These four emperors were Galba, Otho, Vitellius, and Vespasian....
". The last of these,
VespasianTitus Flavius Vespasianus, commonly known as Vespasian , was a Roman Emperor who reigned from 69 AD until his death in 79 AD...
, established his own
Flavian dynastyThe Flavian dynasty was a Roman imperial dynasty, which ruled the Roman Empire between 69 and 96 CE, encompassing the reigns of Vespasian , and his two sons Titus and Domitian . The Flavians rose to power during the civil war of 69, known as the Year of the Four Emperors...
.
NervaMarcus Cocceius Nerva was a Roman Emperor who reigned from 96 until his death in 98. Nerva acceded to this position at the advanced age of 65, after a lifetime of imperial service under Nero and the rulers of the Flavian dynasty—Vespasian, Titus and Domitian...
, who replaced the last Flavian emperor, Vespasian's son
DomitianTitus Flavius Domitianus , known as Domitian, was a Roman Emperor who reigned from 14 September 81 until his death...
, in 96, was elderly and childless, and chose therefore to
adoptAdoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another who is not kin and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...
an heir,
TrajanMarcus Ulpius Nerva Traianus, commonly known as Trajan , was a Roman Emperor who reigned from A. D. 98 until his death in A. D. 117...
, from outside his family. When Trajan acceded to the purple he chose to follow his predecessor's example, adopting
HadrianPublius Aelius Hadrianus was emperor of Rome from AD 117 to 138, as well as a Stoic and Epicurean philosopher...
as his own heir, and the practise then became the customary manner of imperial succession for the next century, producing the "Five Good Emperors" and the Empire's period of greatest stability.
The last of the Good Emperors,
Marcus AureliusMarcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus was Roman emperor from 161 to his death in 180. He ruled with Lucius Verus as co-emperor from 161 until Lucius' death in 169...
, chose his natural son
CommodusLucius Aurelius Commodus Antoninus was a Roman Emperor who ruled from 180 to 192 . The name given here was his official name at his accession to sole rule; see Changes of name for earlier and later forms...
as his successor rather than adopting an heir. Commodus's misrule led to his murder on 31 December 192, following which a brief period of instability quickly gave way to
Septimius SeverusLucius Septimius Severus was a Roman Emperor who reigned from 14 April, 193 until his death in 211. Severus was the first emperor of the troubled Severan dynasty, the last imperial dynasty of the Roman principate before the Crisis of the Third Century...
, who established the
Severan dynastyThe Severan dynasty was a Roman imperial dynasty, which ruled the Roman Empire between 193 and 235. The dynasty was founded by the Roman general Septimius Severus, who rose to power during the civil war of 193, known as the Year of the Five Emperors....
which, except for an interruption in 217-218, held the purple until 235.
Crisis of the Third Century
The accession of
Maximinus ThraxGaius Iulius Verus Maximinus , also known as Maximinus Thrax and Maximinus I, was Roman Emperor from 235 to 238....
marks both the close and the opening of an era. It was one of the last attempts by the increasingly impotent
Roman SenateThe Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic. According to the Greek historian Polybius, our principal source on the Constitution of the Roman Republic, the Roman Senate was the predominant branch of government...
to influence the succession. Yet it was the second time that a man had achieved the purple while owing his advancement purely to his
militaryA military is an organization authorized by its nation to use force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or perceived threats. As an adjective the term "military" is also used to refer to any property or aspect of a military...
career; both
VespasianTitus Flavius Vespasianus, commonly known as Vespasian , was a Roman Emperor who reigned from 69 AD until his death in 79 AD...
and
Septimius SeverusLucius Septimius Severus was a Roman Emperor who reigned from 14 April, 193 until his death in 211. Severus was the first emperor of the troubled Severan dynasty, the last imperial dynasty of the Roman principate before the Crisis of the Third Century...
had come from noble or middle class families, while Thrax was born a commoner. He never visited the city of
RomeRome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated municipality , with over 2.7 million residents in , while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat to be 3.46 million. The metropolitan area of Rome is estimated by OECD to have a population of 3.7 million...
during his
reignA reign is the term used to describe the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office of monarch of a nation or of a people KwaZulu-Natal, Belgium. In most hereditary monarchies and some elective monarchies A reign is the term used to describe the period of a person's or dynasty's...
, which marks the beginning of a series of "
barracks emperorA Barracks emperor was a Roman Emperor who seized power by virtue of his command of the army. Barracks emperors were especially common in the period from 235 through 284, during the Crisis of the Third Century. There were approximately fourteen barracks emperors in 33 years, producing an average...
s" who came from the army. Between 235 and 285 over a dozen emperors achieved the purple, but only
ValerianPublius Licinius Valerianus , commonly known in English as Valerian or Valerian I, was the Roman Emperor from 253 to 260.-Origins and rise to power:...
and
CarusMarcus Aurelius Carus was a Roman Emperor . During his short reign, Carus tried to follow the path of restoration of the empire strength marked by Aurelian and Probus. His sons Carinus and Numerian formed, with Carus, a short lived dynasty, which granted further stability to a resurgent empire...
managed to secure their own sons' succession to the throne; both dynasties died out within two generations.
Dominate
The accession to the purple on 20 November 284, of
DiocletianGaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus , born Diocles and commonly known as Diocletian , was Roman Emperor from 20 November 284 to 1 May 305. Born to a Dalmatian family of low status, he rose through the ranks of the military to become cavalry commander to the emperor Carus...
, the lower-class, Greek-speaking
DalmatiaDalmatia , is a region on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea and is situated in modern Croatia. It spreads between the island of Rab in the northwest and the Bay of Kotor, in Montenegro, in the southeast...
n commander of Carus's and Numerian's household cavalry (
protectores domestici), marked a major departure from traditional Roman constitutional theory regarding the emperor, who was nominally first among equals; Diocletian introduced oriental despotism into the imperial dignity. Whereas before emperors had worn only a purple toga (
toga purpura) and been greeted with deference, Diocletian wore jewelled robes and shoes, and required those who greeted him to kneel and kiss the hem of his robe
(adoratio). In many ways, Diocletian was the first monarchical emperor, and this is symbolised by the fact that the word
dominus ("Lord") rapidly replaced
princeps as the favoured word for referring to the emperor. Significantly, neither Diocletian nor his co-emperor,
MaximianMarcus Aurelius Valerius Maximianus Herculius , commonly referred to as Maximian, was Caesar from July 285 and Augustus from April 1, 286 to May 1, 305. He shared the latter title with his co-emperor and superior, Diocletian, whose political brain complemented Maximian's military brawn...
, spent much time in Rome after 286, establishing their imperial capitals at
NicomediaNicomedia was founded by Nicomedes I of Bithynia at the head of the Gulf of Astacus which opens to the Propontis. The city was founded in 712/11 BC as a Megarian colony and, in early Antiquity, was called Astacus...
and
MediolanumMilan in Italy, is the capital of the region of Lombardia and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while the urban area is the fifth largest in the E.U. with an estimated population of 4.3 million...
(modern
MilanMilan in Italy, is the capital of the region of Lombardia and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while the urban area is the fifth largest in the E.U. with an estimated population of 4.3 million...
), respectively.
Diocletian established the
TetrarchyThe term Tetrarchy describes any system of government where power is divided among four individuals, but usually refers to the tetrarchy instituted by Roman Emperor Diocletian in 293, marking the end of the Crisis of the Third Century and the recovery of the Roman Empire...
, a system by which the
Roman EmpireThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean. The term is used to describe the Roman state during and after the time of the first emperor,...
was divided into East and West, with each having an
AugustusAugustus , Latin for "majestic," "the increaser," or "venerable", was an Ancient Roman title, which was first held by Caesar Augustus and subsequently came to be considered one of the titles of what are now known as the Roman Emperors...
to rule over it and a
CaesarCaesar , Latin: Caesar , is a title of imperial character. It derives from the cognomen of Julius Caesar, the Roman dictator...
to assist him. The Tetrarchy ultimately degenerated into civil war, but the eventual victor, Constantine the Great, restored Diocletian's system of dividing the Empire into East and West. He kept the East for himself and founded his city of
ConstantinopleConstantinople was the imperial capital of the Roman Empire , the Byzantine/Eastern Roman Empire , the Latin Empire , and the Ottoman Empire...
as its new capital.
The
dynastyA dynasty is a succession of people belonging to the same family, who, through various means and forms maintain power, influence or authority over the course of generations. Most commonly the term is used specifically in reference to royal houses and imperial dynasties — their authority manifests...
Constantine established was also soon swallowed up in civil war and court intrigue until it was replaced, briefly, by
Julian the ApostateFlavius Claudius Julianus, known also as Julian, Julian the Apostate or Julian the Philosopher , was Roman Emperor , last of the Constantinian dynasty...
's general
JovianFlavius Iovianus, anglicized to Jovian, was a soldier elected Roman Emperor by the army on 27 June 363 upon the death of Emperor Julian the Apostate during his Sassanid campaign...
and then, more permanently, by
Valentinian IFlavius Valentinianus, known in English as Valentinian I, was Roman Emperor from 364 until his death. Valentinian is often referred to as the "last great western emperor"...
and the dynasty he founded in 364. Though he was a soldier from a low middle class background, Valentinian was not a
barracks emperorA Barracks emperor was a Roman Emperor who seized power by virtue of his command of the army. Barracks emperors were especially common in the period from 235 through 284, during the Crisis of the Third Century. There were approximately fourteen barracks emperors in 33 years, producing an average...
; he was elevated to the purple by a conclave of senior generals and civil officials.
Late empire
Theodosius IFlavius Theodosius , also called Theodosius I and Theodosius the Great , was Roman Emperor from 379 to 395. Reuniting the eastern and western portions of the empire, Theodosius was the last emperor of both the Eastern and Western Roman Empire...
acceded to the purple in the East in 379 and in the West in 394. He outlawed
paganismPaganism is a word with several different meanings.In its broadest definition, pagan denotes all non-Abrahamic religions, that is to say it denotes all religions other than Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.Other usages are:*Paganism may mean Polytheism: The group so defined includes most of the...
and made
ChristianityChristianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented by the revelations in the New Testament....
the Empire's official religion. He was the last emperor to rule over a united empire; the distribution of the East to his son
ArcadiusFlavius Arcadius was Byzantine Emperor in the Eastern half of the Roman Empire from 395 until his death.-History:Arcadius was born in Hispania, the elder son of Theodosius I and Aelia Flaccilla, and brother of Honorius, who would become a Western Roman Emperor...
and the West to his son
HonoriusFlavius Honorius was Roman Emperor and then Western Roman Emperor from 395 until his death. He was the younger son of Theodosius I and his first wife Aelia Flaccilla, and brother of the Eastern Emperor Arcadius....
after his death in 395 represented a permanent division.
In the West, the office of emperor soon degenerated into being little more than a puppet of a succession of Germanic tribal
kingA monarch is the person who heads a monarchy, a form of government in which the country or entity usually ruled or controlled by an individual who usually rules for life or until abdication...
s, until finally the
HeruliThe Heruli were a nomadic Germanic people, who were subjugated by the Ostrogoths, Huns, and Byzantines in the 3rd to 5th centuries. The name is related to earl and was probably an honorific military title...
OdoacerOdoacer , also known as Odovacer, was a Germanic foederati general and the first non-Roman ruler of Italy after AD 476. He deposed the last Western Roman Emperor, Romulus Augustus on 4 September of that year, but continued to rule first as a nominal client of Julius Nepos and, after Nepos' death in...
simply overthrew the child-emperor Romulus Augustulus in 476, shipped the imperial regalia to the emperor
ZenoFlavius Zeno, original name Tarasicodissa or Trascalissaeus, Byzantine Emperor was one of the more prominent of the early Byzantine Emperors. Domestic revolts and religious dissension plagued his reign, which nevertheless succeeded to some extent in foreign issues...
in Constantinople and assumed the title "King of Italy". Though during his own lifetime Odoacer maintained the legal fiction that he was actually ruling Italy as the
viceroyA viceroy is a royal official who runs a country or province in the name of and as representative of the monarch. The term derives from the Latin prefix vice-, meaning "in the place of" and the French word roi, meaning king. His province or larger territory is called a viceroyalty. The relative...
of Zeno, historians mark 476 as the traditional date of the fall of the Roman Empire in the West. In the East, the Empire continued until the fall of
ConstantinopleConstantinople was the imperial capital of the Roman Empire , the Byzantine/Eastern Roman Empire , the Latin Empire , and the Ottoman Empire...
to the
OttomanThe Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State , also known by its contemporaries as the Turkish Empire or Turkey , was an empire that lasted from 1299 to November 1, 1922 The Ottoman Empire or Ottoman State (Ottoman Turkish: دَوْلَتِ عَلِیَّهِ عُثْمَانِیَّه Dawlet-il ʿAliyyat-il ʿOs̠māniyye, Modern Turkish:...
Turks in 1453. Although known as the
Byzantine EmpireThe Byzantine Empire or Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire during the Middle Ages, centered on the capital of Constantinople, and ruled by Emperors in direct and de jure succession to the ancient Roman Emperors...
by contemporary historians, the empire was simply known as the
Roman EmpireThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican phase of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean. The term is used to describe the Roman state during and after the time of the first emperor,...
to its citizens and neighboring countries.
- For rulers of Italy after Romulus "Augustulus" and Julius Nepos, see list of barbarian kings.
- For the Roman Emperors who ruled in the East after The Fall in the West, see List of Byzantine Emperors.
- For emperors of the HRE in in the West , see Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a Middle Ages ruler, who as German King had in addition received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope of the Holy Roman Church, and after the 16th century, the elected monarch governing the Holy Roman Empire, a Central...
.
See also
- Imperator
The Latin word Imperator was a title originally roughly equivalent to commander during the period of the Roman Republic. It later went on to become a part of the titulature of the Roman Emperors as part of their cognomen...
- Interregnum
An interregnum is a period of discontinuity of a government, organization, or social order. Archetypally, it was the period of time between the reign of one monarch and the next , and the concepts of interregnum and regency therefore overlap...
- Roman Emperors family tree
This is a family tree of the Roman Emperors, showing only the relationships between the emperors.- 27BC-AD192 :The emperors from Augustus to Commodus can be organised into one large family tree with one non-related emperor...
; also Julio-Claudian family treeThe Julio-Claudian dynasty of the early Roman Empire has a family tree complicated by multiple marriages between the members of the gens Julia and the gens Claudia.-Family tree:...
and Severan dynasty family treeThis is a family tree of the Severan dynasty of the Roman Empire....
- Justitium
Justitium is a concept of Roman law, equivalent to the declaration of the state of emergency. It was usually declared following a sovereign's death, during the troubled period of interregnum, but also in case of invasions...
- King of Rome
The King of Rome was the chief magistrate of the Roman Kingdom. The kings, excluding Romulus who held office by his virtue as the city's founder, were all elected by the people of Rome to serve for life, with none of the kings relying on military force to gain the throne...
- Byzantine Emperor
- Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a Middle Ages ruler, who as German King had in addition received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope of the Holy Roman Church, and after the 16th century, the elected monarch governing the Holy Roman Empire, a Central...
- List of Imperial Victory Titles
- List of Roman Emperors
- List of Roman usurpers
- Roman usurper
Usurpers are individuals or groups of individuals who obtain and maintain the power or rights of another by force and without legal authority. Usurpers were a common feature of the late Roman Empire, especially from the crisis of the third century onwards, when political instability became the...
External links