Roman dictator

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Roman dictator

Dictator was a political office of the Roman Republic

Roman Republic

The Roman Republic was the phase of the Ancient Rome characterized by a republican form of government; a period which began with the overthrow of the Roman Roman Kingdom, c....
. The dictator was above the three branches of government in the constitution of the Roman Republic

Constitution of the Roman Republic

The Constitution of the Roman Republic or also known as mos maiorum was an unwritten set of guidelines and principles passed down mainly through precedent....
as no other body or officer could check his power.

A legal innovation of the Roman Republic

Roman Republic

Latin

Latin is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Through the Military history of the Roman Empire, Latin spread throughout the Mediterranean and a large part of Europe....
for "one who dictates (orders)") — officially known as the Magister Populi ("Master of the People"), the Praetor Maximus ("The supreme Praetor

Praetor

Praetor was a Title#Titles_for_heads_of_state granted by the government of Ancient Rome to men acting in one of two official capacities: the commander of an army, either before it was mustered or more typically in the field, or an elected Magistratus assigned duties that varied depending on the historical period....
"), and the Magister Peditum ("Master of the Infantry") — was an extraordinary magistrate (magistratus extraordinarius) whose function was to perform extraordinary tasks exceeding the authority of any of the ordinary magistrates.

The Roman Senate

Roman Senate

Consul

Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Roman Empire. The title was also used in other city states, and revived in modern states, notably French Republic before the Napoleon I of Franceic counter-revolution....
s to nominate a dictator, who was the sole exception to the Roman legal principles of collegiality
Collegiality

Collegiality is the relationship between colleagues....
(multiple tenants of the same office) and responsibility (being legally able to be held to answer for actions in office); there could never be more than one dictator at any one time for any reason, and no dictator could ever be held legally responsible for any action during his time in office for any reason.

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Establishment and history

On the establishment of the Roman republic the government of the state was entrusted to two consuls, that the citizens might be the better protected against the tyrannical exercise of the supreme power. But it was soon felt that circumstances might arise in which it was important for the safety of the state that the government should be vested in the hands of a single person, who should possess absolute power for a short time, and from whose decisions there should be no appeal to any other body. Thus it came to pass that in 501 BC, nine years after the expulsion of the kings

Roman Kingdom

The Roman Kingdom was the monarchy government of the city of Rome and its territories. Little is certain about the history of the Roman Kingdom, as no written records from that time survive, and the histories about it were written during the Roman Republic and Roman Empire and are largely based on legend....
, the dictatorship (dictatura) was instituted.

By the original law respecting the appointment of a dictator (lex de dictatore creando) no one was eligible for this office, unless he had previously been consul. There are, however, a few instances in which this law was not observed. When a dictator was considered necessary, the Senate

Roman Senate

The 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....
passed a senatus consultum that one of the consuls should nominate a dictator; and without a previous decree of the senate, the consuls did not have the power of naming a dictator. The nomination of the dictator by the consul was necessary in all cases. It was always made by the consul, probably without any witnesses, between midnight and morning.

The senate seems to have usually mentioned in their decree the name of the person whom the consul was to nominate but that the consul was not absolutely bound to nominate the person whom the senate had named, is evident from the cases in which the consuls appointed persons in opposition to the wishes of the senate. In later times the senate usually entrusted the office of dictator to the consul who was nearest at hand. The nomination took place at Rome, as a general rule; and if the consuls were absent, one of them was recalled to the city, whenever it was practicable; but if this could not be done, a senatus consultum authorizing the appointment was sent to the consul, who thereupon made the nomination in the camp. Nevertheless, the rule was maintained that the nomination could not take place outside Italy. Originally the dictator was reserved for a patrician

Patrician

The term "patrician" originally referred to a group of elitism citizens in ancient Rome, including both their natural and adopted members. In the late Roman empire, the class was broadened to include high council officials, and after the fall of the Western Empire became a term for Byzantine Imperial governors in the West....
. The first plebeian dictator was Gaius Marcius Rutilus, nominated in 356 BC by the plebeian consul Marcus Popillius Laenas.

Powers and abilities

The dictatorship was limited to six months, and no instances occur in which a person held this office for a longer time, save for the dictatorships of Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix and Gaius Julius Caesar

Gaius Julius Caesar

Gaius Julius Caesar most commonly refers to:* Gaius Julius Caesar , conqueror of Gaul, dictatorGaius Julius Caesar may also refer to:* Gaius Julius Caesar , a fictionalized version of the above in the HBO/BBC2 series Rome, played by Ciar?n Hinds...
. On the contrary, though a dictator was appointed for six months, he often resigned his office immediately after he had dispatched the business for which he had been appointed.

As soon as the dictator was appointed, he became the chief executive and supreme military commander

Commander-in-Chief

A commander-in-chief is the commander of a nation's military forces or significant element of those forces. In the latter case, the force element may be defined as those forces within a particular region or those forces which are associated by function....
of the Republic. The regular magistrates - with the exception of the Tribune of the Plebs - became subject to the higher imperium of the dictator. They continued to discharge the duties of their various offices under the dictator, but they were no longer independent officers and were obliged to obey his orders in every circumstance. Failure to do so could result in the dictator forcing the magistrate out of office.

The superiority of the dictator's power to that of the consuls consisted chiefly of greater independence from the Senate, more extensive power of punishment without a trial by the people, and complete immunity from being held accountable for his actions. However, what gave the dictator such great control over Rome was his lack of a colleague to counter him. Unlike the Consuls, which were required to cooperate with the Senate, the Dictator could act on his own authority without the Senate, though the dictator would usually act in unison with the Senate all the same. There was no appeal from the sentence of the dictator (unless the dictator changed his mind), and accordingly the lictor

Lictor

Fasces

Fasces symbolize summary power and jurisdiction, and/or "strength through unity".The traditional ancient Rome fasces consisted of a bundle of white birch rods, tied together with a red leather ribbon into a cylinder, and often including a bronze axe amongst the rods, with the blade on the side, projecting from the bundle....
before them even in the city, as a symbol of their absolute power over the lives of the citizens.

The dictator's imperium granted him the powers to rule by decree

Rule by decree

Rule by decree is a style of governance allowing quick, unchallenged creation of law by a single person or group, and is used primarily by dictators and absolute monarchs, although philosophers such as Giorgio Agamben have argued that it has been generalized since World War I in all modern states, including representative democracies....
and to change any Roman law as he saw fit, and these changes lasted as long as the dictator remained in power. He could introduce new laws into the Roman constitution which did not require ratification by any of the Roman assemblies

Roman assemblies

The 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 Roman laws, the carrying out of capital punishment, the declaration of war and peace...
, but were often put to a vote all the same. An example would be Sulla's introduction of the dreaded proscription

Proscription

Proscription is the public identification and official condemnation of enemy of the state. It is defined by the Oxford English Dictionary as a "decree of condemnation to death or banishment" and is a heavily politically-charged word frequently used to refer to state-approved murder or persecution....
. Likewise, a dictator could act as a supreme judge, with no appeal for his decisions. These judicial powers made the dictator the supreme authority in both military and civil affairs.

The relationship between the Dictator and the Tribunes of the Plebs is not entirely certain. The Tribune was the only magistrate to continue their independence of office during a dictatorship while the other magistates served the dictator as officers. However, there is no reason to believe that they had any control over a dictator, or could hamper his proceedings by their power to veto, as they could in the case of the Consuls. This is believed to be explained by the fact that the law that created the dictatorship was passed before the institution of the Tribune of the Plebs, and consequently made no mention of it.

Any magistrate owning imperium was not accountable for his actions as long as they continued to serve in an office that owned imperium. However, once a magistrate left office, he could face trial for their illegal deeds after the imperium had expired. This was not the case with the Dictator. The dictator was untouchable during his time in office, but was also not liable to be called to account for any of his official acts, illegal or otherwise, after his abdication of office. The dictator's actions were treated as though they never occurred (at least legally).

It was in consequence of the unstoppable, untouchable imperium possessed by the dictatorship that we find it frequently compared with the power of monarch, from which it only differed in being held for a limited time. There were, however, a few limits to the power of the dictator. The most important was that the period of his office was only six months. He had no power over the public treasury, but could only make use of the money which was granted to him by the senate. He was not allowed to leave Italy, since he might in that case easily become dangerous to the republic; though the case of Atilius Calatinus in the first Punic war

First Punic War

The First Punic War was the first of Punic Wars fought between Carthage and the Roman Republic. For 23 years, the two powers struggled for supremacy in the western Mediterranean Sea....
forms an exception to this rule. He was not allowed to ride on horseback in Rome, without previously obtaining the permission of the people (a regulation adopted that he might not bear too great a resemblance to the kings).

The insignia of the Dictator were nearly the same as those of the kings in earlier times; and of the Consuls subsequently. Instead however of having only twelve lictors, as was the case with the consuls, he was preceded by twenty-four bearing the secures as well as the fasces. The Curule chair

Curule chair

Toga

The toga, a distinctive garment of Ancient Rome, was a cloth of perhaps twenty feet in length which was wrapped around the body and generally was worn over a tunic....
also belonged to the Dictator.

Magister Equitum

Along with the Dictator there was always a Magister Equitum ("Master of the Horse

Master of the Horse

The Master of the Horse was a historical position of varying importance in several European nations....
"), to serve as the Dictator's most senior official. The appointment of the Magister Equitum was left to the choice of the Dictator, unless the senatus consultum specified, as was sometimes the case, the name of the person who was to be appointed. The Dictator could not be without a Magister Equitum to assist him, and, consequently, if the first Magister Equitum died during the six months of the dictatorship, another had to be nominated in his stead. The Magister Equitum was granted Praetorian imperium, thus was subject to the imperium of the Dictator, but in the Dictator’s absence, he became his representative, and exercised the same powers as the Dictator. The imperium of the Magister Equitum was not regarded as superior to that of a Consul, but rather a par with a Praetor

Praetor

Praetor was a Title#Titles_for_heads_of_state granted by the government of Ancient Rome to men acting in one of two official capacities: the commander of an army, either before it was mustered or more typically in the field, or an elected Magistratus assigned duties that varied depending on the historical period....
. It was usually considered necessary that the person who was to be nominated Magister Equitum should previously have been Praetor, but this was not regularly followed. Accordingly, the Magister Equitum had the insignia of a praetor: the toga praetexta

Toga

The toga, a distinctive garment of Ancient Rome, was a cloth of perhaps twenty feet in length which was wrapped around the body and generally was worn over a tunic....
and an escort of six lictors. The Magister Equitum was originally, as his name implies, the commander of the cavalry, while the Dictator was at the head of the legions: the infantry. When the dictator left office, the office of master of the horse immediately ceased to exist.

Replacement of the dictatorate

Dictators were only appointed so long as the Romans had to carry on wars in Italy. A solitary instance occurs in the first Punic war of the nomination of a dictator for the purpose of carrying on war out of Italy; but this was never repeated, because it was feared that so great a power might become dangerous at a distance from Rome. But after the Battle of Trasimene in 217 BC, when Rome itself was threatened by Hannibal, a Dictator was again needed, and Fabius Maximus

Fabius Maximus

Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Cunctator , was a Roman politician and general, born in Rome around 280 BC and died in Rome in 203 BC. He was Roman Consul five times and was twice Roman Dictator in 221 and again in 217 BC....
was appointed to the office. In the next year, 216 BC, after the battle of Cannae

Battle of Cannae

The Battle of Cannae was a major battle of the Second Punic War, taking place on August 2, 216 BC near the town of Cannae in Apulia in southeast Italy....
, Marcus Junius Pera was also nominated Dictator, but this was the last time of the appointment of a Dictator rei gerundae causa. From 202 BC on, the dictatorship disappears altogether. It was replaced by the Senatus consultum ultimum

Senatus consultum ultimum

Senatus consultum ultimum , more properly senatus consultum de re publica defendenda is the modern term given to a decree of the Roman Senate during the late Roman Republic passed in times of emergency....
, an emergency act of the Senate that authorized the two consuls to take whatever actions were needed to defend the Republic. The best known dictatores rei gerundae causa were Cincinnatus

Cincinnatus

Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus was an ancient Rome political figure, serving as consul in 460 BC and Roman dictator in 458 BC and 439 BC.Cincinnatus was regarded by the Romans as one of the heroes of early Rome and as a model of Roman virtue and simplicity....
and Fabius Maximus

Fabius Maximus

Second Punic War

The Second Punic War lasted from 218 BC to 201 BC and involved combatants in the western and eastern Mediterranean. It was the second of three major wars between Carthage and the Roman Republic....
).

A new dictatorate and abolition

In 82 BC, after a 120-year lapse, and the end of the civil war between the forces of Marius

Gaius Marius the Younger

"Gaius Marius Minor , also known as Younger Marius or Marius the Younger . Marius was born in Rome between 110 BC. His father Gaius Marius was seven times consul, and a famous military commander, and his mother Julia Caesaris was paternal aunt to dictator Julius Caesar....
and Sulla, the latter was appointed by the Senate to an entirely new office, dictator legibus faciendis et rei publicae
Res publica

Res 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....
constituendae ("dictator for the making of laws and for the settling of the constitution"). This new office was functionally identical to the dictatorate rei gerundae causa except that it lacked any set time limit. Sulla held this office for about a year before he abdicated and retired from public life.

Gaius Julius Caesar

Julius Caesar

'Gaius Julius Caesar' , July 13, 100 BC ? March 15, 44 BC,) was a Roman Republic military and political leader. He played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
subsequently resurrected the dictatorate rei gerundae causa in his first dictatorship, then modified it to a full year term. He was appointed dictator rei gerundae causa for a full year in 46 BC and then designated for nine consecutive one-year terms in that office thereafter, functionally becoming dictator for ten years. A year later, this pretense was discarded altogether and the Senate voted to make him Dictator perpetuus
Dictator perpetuus

Dictator 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....
(usually rendered in English as "dictator for life", but properly meaning "dictator in perpetuity"). Neither the magistrate who nominated Sulla, nor the time for which he was appointed, nor the extent or the exercise of his power was in accordance with the ancient laws and precedents, as is the case with the dictatorship of Caesar.

After Caesar's murder on the Ides of March, his consular colleague Mark Antony

Mark Antony

Marcus Antonius , known in English as Marc Antony, was a Roman Republic politician and General. He was an important supporter and the best friend of Julius Caesar as a military commander and administrator, being Caesar's second cousin, once removed, by his mother Julia Antonia....
introduced the lex Antonia
Lex Antonia

Lex Antonia was a law established in ancient Rome in 44 BC.It was proposed by Mark Antony and passed by the Roman Senate, following the assassination of Julius Caesar....
which abolished the dictatorship. The office was later offered to Augustus, who declined it, and opted instead for tribunician power and consul
Consul

Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Roman Empire. The title was also used in other city states, and revived in modern states, notably French Republic before the Napoleon I of Franceic counter-revolution....
ar imperium
Imperium

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'....
without holding any magisterial office other than imperator
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....
and princeps Senatus
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....
— a politic arrangement which left him as functional dictator without having to hold the controversial title. This novel - though not unconstitutional - arrangement of offices and powers would in time evolve into the office of Roman emperor

Roman Emperor

The Roman Emperor was the ruler of the Roman Empire during the imperial period . The Romans had no single term for the office: Latin language titles such as imperator , Augustus , Caesar and princeps were all associated with it....
. Thus, dictatorship, as defined by the republican institution, was not a feature of the principate

Principate

The 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....
or dominate

Dominate

The Dominate was the 'despotism' latter phase of government in the ancient Roman Empire from the conclusion of the Crisis of the Third Century of 235?284 until the formal date of the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in AD 476....
.

Other dictatorates

Other types of dictators were occasionally appointed for more mundane reasons: comitiorum habendorum causa (for summoning the comitia for elections), clavi figendi causa (for fixing the clavus annalis in the temple of Jupiter), feriarum constituendarum causa (for appointing holidays), ludorum faciendorum causa (for officiating at public games), quaestionibus exercendis (for holding certain trials), and legendo senatui (for filling vacancies in the Senate).

List of Roman dictators

All dates and names are given as they appear in Magistrates of the Roman Republic by T.R.S. Broughton.

501 BC: Titus Larcius Flavus. Rei gerundae causa.
501 BC: Manius Valerius. Rei gerundae causa.
499 BC: Aulus Postumius Albus Regillensis. Rei gerundae causa.
494 BC: Manius Valerius Maximus. Rei gerundae causa.
463 BC: Gaius Aemilius Mamercus? Clavi figendi causa? (possibly interrex
Interrex

Interrex or "inter-rex" was literally a ruler "between kings." He was in effect a short-term regent....
, not dictator).
458 BC: Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus
Cincinnatus

Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus was an ancient Rome political figure, serving as consul in 460 BC and Roman dictator in 458 BC and 439 BC.Cincinnatus was regarded by the Romans as one of the heroes of early Rome and as a model of Roman virtue and simplicity....
(first term). Rei gerundae causa.
439 BC: Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus
Cincinnatus

Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus was an ancient Rome political figure, serving as consul in 460 BC and Roman dictator in 458 BC and 439 BC.Cincinnatus was regarded by the Romans as one of the heroes of early Rome and as a model of Roman virtue and simplicity....
(second term). Rei gerundae causa or seditionis sedandae causa.
437 BC: Mamercus Aemilius Mamercinus (first term). Rei gerundae causa.
435 BC: Quintus Servilius Priscus Fidenas (first term). Rei gerundae causa.
434 BC: Mamercus Aemilius Mamercinus (second term). Rei gerundae causa.
431 BC: Aulus Postumius Tubertus. Rei gerundae causa.
426 BC: Mamercus Aemilius Mamercinus (third term). Rei gerundae causa.
418 BC: Quintus Servilius Priscus Fidenas (second term). Rei gerundae causa.
408 BC: Publius Cornelius Rutilus Cossus. Rei gerundae causa.
396 BC: Marcus Furius Camillus
Marcus Furius Camillus

Marcus Furius Camillus was a Roman soldier and statesman of plebian descent. According to Livy and Plutarch, Camillus Roman Triumph four times, was five times Roman dictator, and was honoured with the title of Second Founder of Rome....
(first term). Rei gerundae causa.
390 BC: Marcus Furius Camillus
Marcus Furius Camillus

Marcus Furius Camillus was a Roman soldier and statesman of plebian descent. According to Livy and Plutarch, Camillus Roman Triumph four times, was five times Roman dictator, and was honoured with the title of Second Founder of Rome....
(second term). Rei gerundae causa.
389 BC: Marcus Furius Camillus
Marcus Furius Camillus

Marcus Furius Camillus was a Roman soldier and statesman of plebian descent. According to Livy and Plutarch, Camillus Roman Triumph four times, was five times Roman dictator, and was honoured with the title of Second Founder of Rome....
(third term). Rei gerundae causa.
385 BC: Aulus Cornelius Cossus. Rei gerundae causa.
380 BC: Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus Capitolinus. Rei gerundae et seditionis sedandae causa.
368 BC: Marcus Furius Camillus
Marcus Furius Camillus

Marcus Furius Camillus was a Roman soldier and statesman of plebian descent. According to Livy and Plutarch, Camillus Roman Triumph four times, was five times Roman dictator, and was honoured with the title of Second Founder of Rome....
(fourth term). Rei gerundae causa.
368 BC: Publius Manlius Capitolinus. Seditionis sedandae et rei gerundae causa.
367 BC: Marcus Furius Camillus
Marcus Furius Camillus

Marcus Furius Camillus was a Roman soldier and statesman of plebian descent. According to Livy and Plutarch, Camillus Roman Triumph four times, was five times Roman dictator, and was honoured with the title of Second Founder of Rome....
(fifth term). Rei gerundae causa.
363 BC: Lucius Manlius Capitolinus Imperiosus. Clavi figendi causa.
362 BC: Appius Claudius Crassus Inregillensis. Rei gerundae causa.
361 BC: Titus Quinctius Poenus Capitolinus Crispinus. Rei gerundae causa.
360 BC: Quintus Servilius Ahala. Rei gerundae causa.
358 BC: Gaius Sulpicius Peticus. Rei gerundae causa.
356 BC: Gaius Marcius Rutilus. Rei gerundae causa.
353 BC: Titus Manlius Imperiosus Torquatus (first term). Rei gerundae causa.
352 BC: Gaius Julius Iullus. Rei gerundae et comitiorum habendorum causa.
351 BC: Marcus Fabius Ambustus. Comitiorum habendorum causa.
350 BC: Lucius Furius Camillus (first term). Comitiorum habendorum causa.
349 BC: Titus Manlius Imperiosus Torquatus (second term). Comitiorum habendorum causa.
345 BC: Lucius Furius Camillus (second term). Rei gerundae causa.
344 BC: Publius Valerius Publicola. Feriarum constituendarum causa.
342 BC: Marcus Valerius Corvus
Marcus Valerius Corvus

Marcus Valerius Corvus was a Rome hero of the 4th century BC, characterized as a farmer who lived to be one hundred.His list of accomplishments is suspiciously long; Valerius Antias is considered to have been responsible for some of the exaggeration....
(first term). Seditionis sedandae causa or rei gerundae causa.
340 BC: Lucius Papirius Crassus. Rei gerundae causa.
339 BC: Quintus Publilius Philo. Non military; carried out certain legal reforms.
335 BC: Lucius Aemilius Mamercinus Privernas. Comitiorum habendorum causa.
333 BC: Publius Cornelius Rufinus
Publius Cornelius Rufinus

Publius Cornelius Rufinus was a Roman dictator and consul. He was born in Italy during the time of the Roman Republic.He began his dictatorship in 333 BC. He renounced due to a defect in the religious procedures for his appointment....
. Rei gerundae causa?
332 BC: Marcus Papirius Crassus. Rei gerundae causa.
331 BC: Gnaeus Quinctius Capitolinus. Clavi figendi causa.
325 BC: Lucius Papirius Cursor
Lucius Papirius Cursor

Lucius Papirius Cursor was a Roman general, who was five times consul and twice dictator.In 325 BC he was appointed dictator to carry on the second Samnite War....
(first term). Rei gerundae causa.
324 BC: Lucius Papirius Cursor
Lucius Papirius Cursor

Lucius Papirius Cursor was a Roman general, who was five times consul and twice dictator.In 325 BC he was appointed dictator to carry on the second Samnite War....
(second term). Rei gerundae causa.
322 BC: Aulus Cornelius Cossus Arvina. Rei gerundae et ludorum faciendorum causa.
320 BC: Gaius Maenius (first term). Quaestionibus exercendis.
320 BC: Lucius Cornelius Lentulus. Rei gerundae causa?
320 BC: Titus Manlius Imperiosus Torquatus (third term). Comitiorum habendorum causa?
316 BC: Lucius Aemilius Mamercinus Privernas. Rei gerundae causa.
315 BC: Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus
Fabius Maximus Rullianus

Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus , son of Marcus Fabius Ambustus , of the patrician Fabii of ancient Rome, was five times consul and a hero of the Samnite Wars....
(first term). Rei gerundae causa.
314 BC: Gaius Maenius (second term). Rei gerundae causa.
313 BC: Gaius Poetelius Libo Visolus. Rei gerundae et clavi figendi causa.
313 BC: Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus
Fabius Maximus Rullianus

Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus , son of Marcus Fabius Ambustus , of the patrician Fabii of ancient Rome, was five times consul and a hero of the Samnite Wars....
(second term). Rei gerundae causa.
312 BC: Gaius Sulpicius Longus. Rei gerundae causa?
312 BC: Gaius Junius Bubulcus Brutus. Rei gerundae causa (possibly magister equitum, not dictator).
310 BC: Lucius Papirius Cursor
Lucius Papirius Cursor

Lucius Papirius Cursor was a Roman general, who was five times consul and twice dictator.In 325 BC he was appointed dictator to carry on the second Samnite War....
(third term). Rei gerundae causa.
309 BC: Lucius Papirius Cursor
Lucius Papirius Cursor

Lucius Papirius Cursor was a Roman general, who was five times consul and twice dictator.In 325 BC he was appointed dictator to carry on the second Samnite War....
(fourth term). Rei gerundae causa.
306 BC: Publius Cornelius Scipio Barbatus. Comitiorum habendorum causa.
302 BC: Gaius Junius Bubulcus Brutus (second term?). Rei gerundae causa.
302 BC: Marcus Valerius Corvus
Marcus Valerius Corvus

Marcus Valerius Corvus was a Rome hero of the 4th century BC, characterized as a farmer who lived to be one hundred.His list of accomplishments is suspiciously long; Valerius Antias is considered to have been responsible for some of the exaggeration....
(second term). Rei gerundae causa.
301 BC: Marcus Valerius Corvus
Marcus Valerius Corvus

Marcus Valerius Corvus was a Rome hero of the 4th century BC, characterized as a farmer who lived to be one hundred.His list of accomplishments is suspiciously long; Valerius Antias is considered to have been responsible for some of the exaggeration....
(third term). Rei gerundae causa.
Between 291 and 285: Marcus Aemilius Barbula. Rei gerundae causa?
Between 291 and 285: Appius Claudius Caecus
Appius Claudius Caecus

Appius Claudius Caecus was a Roman Republic politician from a wealthy patrician family. He was the son of Gaius Claudius Crassus, dictator in 337 BCE....
. Rei gerundae causa?
Between 291 and 285: Publius Cornelius Rufinus. Rei gerundae causa?
287 BC: Quintus Hortensius. Seditionis sedandae causa or rei gerundae causa.
280 BC: Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus. Comitiorum habendorum causa.
263 BC: Gnaeus Fulvius Maximus Centumalus. Clavi figendi causa.
257 BC: Quintus Ogulnius Gallus. Ludorum faciendorum causa.
249 BC: Marcus Claudius Glicia. Rei gerundae causa?
249 BC: Aulus Atilius Caiatinus. Rei gerundae causa.
246 BC: Tiberius Coruncanius
Tiberius Coruncanius

Tiberius Coruncanius was Roman republic consul, and military commander in 280 BC-279 BC, who was known for his military contests with Pyrrhus of Epirus ....
. Comitiorum habendorum causa.
231 BC: Gaius Duilius
Gaius Duilius

Gaius Duilius was a Roman Republic politician and admiral involved in the First Punic War.Not much is known about his family background or early career, since he was a novus homo, meaning not belonging to a traditional family of Roman aristocrats....
. Comitiorum habendorum causa.
224 BC: Lucius Caecilius Metellus. Comitiorum habendorum causa.
221 BC: Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Cunctator
Fabius Maximus

Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Cunctator , was a Roman politician and general, born in Rome around 280 BC and died in Rome in 203 BC. He was Roman Consul five times and was twice Roman Dictator in 221 and again in 217 BC....
(first term). Rei gerundae causa?
217 BC: Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Cunctator
Fabius Maximus

Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Cunctator , was a Roman politician and general, born in Rome around 280 BC and died in Rome in 203 BC. He was Roman Consul five times and was twice Roman Dictator in 221 and again in 217 BC....
(second term). Rei gerundae causa.
217 BC: Marcus Minucius Rufus
Marcus Minucius Rufus (consul 221 BC)

Marcus Minucius Rufus was a Roman consul in 221 BC. He was also Magister Equitum during dictatorship of Fabius Maximus known as Cunctator....
. Rei gerundae causa.
216 BC: Marcus Junius Pera
Marcus Junius Pera

Marcus Junius Pera was a Rome politician during the Second Punic War. He was consul in 230 BC and censor with Gaius Claudius Centho in 225 BC. He was appointed Roman dictator in 216 BC, rei garendae causa, for the purpose of repelling the Carthage forces under Hannibal from Italy....
. Rei gerundae causa.
216 BC: Marcus Fabius Buteo
Marcus Fabius Buteo

Marcus Fabius Buteo was a Rome politician during the 3rd century BC. He served as consul and as Censor , and in 216 BC, being the oldest living ex-censor, he was appointed Roman dictator, legendo senatui, for the purpose of filling vacancies in the senate after the Battle of Cannae....
. Legendo senatui.
213 BC: Gaius Claudius Centho. Comitiorum habendorum causa.
210 BC: Quintus Fulvius Flaccus. Comitiorum habendorum causa.
208 BC: Titus Manlius Torquatus. Comitiorum habendorum et ludorum faciendorum causa.
207 BC: Marcus Livius Salinator
Marcus Livius Salinator

Marcus Livius Salinator , the son of Marcus , was a Roman Republic consul who fought in both the Illyrian Wars and Second Punic War, most notably during the Battle of the Metaurus....
. Comitiorum habendorum causa.
205 BC: Quintus Caecilius Metellus. Comitiorum habendorum causa.
203 BC: Publius Sulpicius Galba Maximus
Publius Sulpicius Galba Maximus

Publius Sulpicius Galba Maximus was a consul of Rome in 211 BC, when he defended the city against the surprise attack by Hannibal.He was proconsul in Greece from 210 to 206, conducting the First Macedonian War against Philip V of Macedon....
. Comitiorum habendorum causa or rei gerundae causa.
202 BC: Gaius Servilius Geminus. Comitiorum habendorum causa
82/81 to 81: Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix Legibus faciendis et rei publicae constituendae causa.
49 to 45 BC: Gaius Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar

'Gaius Julius Caesar' , July 13, 100 BC ? March 15, 44 BC,) was a Roman Republic military and political leader. He played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
(first to fifth terms). Rei gerundae causa.
44 BC: Gaius Julius Caesar
Julius Caesar

'Gaius Julius Caesar' , July 13, 100 BC ? March 15, 44 BC,) was a Roman Republic military and political leader. He played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....
. Rei gerundae causa (fifth term), then perpetuus.

Roman dictator

Establishment and history

Powers and abilities

Magister Equitum

Replacement of the dictatorate

A new dictatorate and abolition

Other dictatorates

List of Roman dictators

See also