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The Emperors

4/30/2020

No King!

 Romans struggled and wove their way through all kinds of political adjustments, but the one thing that almost all agreed upon was “No King.” So, how did they end up with an emperor?

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Please Read!

● The Grachi brothers ● Marius ● Sulla But we aren’t going to talk about them today.

The First Triumvirate

 Pompey and Crassus serve as consul in 70 BC  Julius Caesar serves as consul in 59 BC  Seemed to be powerful and influential, but…………..

 Couldn’t get anything they wanted through the Senate ▪ Crassus – low life ▪ Julius Caesar – family was broke ▪ Pompey – great general who had reshaped the world, Dangerfield 4/30/2020 but was like Rodney

Successful, Until it is not

 Crassus killed fighting Parthians  Julius Caesar recalled from Gaul  Pompey enlisted to defend Rome against Caesar ▪ The Triumvirate had been an alliance of convenience – it was no longer so  Julius chases Pompey down to Egypt 4/30/2020

Pompey killed by the Egyptians but Julius Caesar found other things in Egypt that interested him.

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The Senate’s Caesar Problem

 Declares himself dictator for life in 44 BC  Love affair with Cleopatra and attachment to Egypt  Does he think he is a God? [descendent of Venus]  “Et tu Brute?” 4/30/2020

2nd Triumvirate

 Octavius – adopted son of Caesar  Caesar’s two lieutenants  Marc Antony  Lepidus Issues: Heir, Money, Power, Influence, Manipulation, Egypt 4/30/2020

Caesar Augustus (31 BC – 14 AD)

 A return to the Republic was neither possible, nor desirable  Empire had become too big  Someone had to control the armies  After consolidating his power he went through motions of reinstating the republic  Senate made him consul, imperator (head of the army), and princeps (first citizen), Augustus  It was all a façade, but he ruled well 4/30/2020

What is “ruling well”

● ● ● ● ● ● ● Act in a fiscally responsible way both in terms of financial income and expenditure.

Are militarily conservative in terms of land grabbing.

Are fair with provincials, providing military support and minimizing the tax burden.

Balance the interests of the military, Senate, and plebs.

Act as a model for all Roman citizens.

Act in a decisive and timely way.

Establish a secure succession to prevent civil war after their deaths [list borrowed from Francis Tichener]

Julio -Claudians

 Julius  Octavius  Tiberius  Gaius [aka. Caligula]  Claudius  Nero Remember Virgil’s Aeneid 4/30/2020

Tiberius

● Not Octavius first choice ● Son of Livia by a previous marriage ● Able administrator ● Passed reigns of leadership to his great nephew Gaius [Caligula]

Caligula – “little boots”

 Assassinated opposition  Seized property  Ordered all temples and shrines to include emperor worship  Delayed in Judea  Claimed to be Jupiter  Increasing madness until the Praetorian Guard terminated and installed his uncle Claudius 4/30/2020

Claudius (A.D. 41-54)

 Never sought to rule  Uncle of Caligula, nephew of Tiberius  Liked to read books and hang out with family, friends, and scholars  Expelled Jews from Rome in 49 AD because they rioted over “Chrestus”  This may have been when Aquila and Priscella left Rome and moved to Corinth (Acts 18:1-3) 4/30/2020

Claudius had woman problems

 Married four times  Messina was a mess  Agrippina manipulated her son Nero into a favorable position for succession, then killed Claudius with poisoned mushrooms 4/30/2020

Nero (AD 54-68)

 Always manipulative and violent, but was controlled early when he let Seneca and mother, Agrappina, influence him  Considered himself an aesthete  Sing for twelve hours at a time  Wrote poetry  Played the lyre  Loved chariot racing – reputed to have won 1700+ races in one year 4/30/2020

Naughty Nero

 Tries to kill mother  Orders death of Seneca  The Roman fire of 64 – Did he start it?

 Christian persecution  Tacitus says “an immense multitude” was put to death  Deposed and kills himself (kind of)

The Year of Four Emperors (AD 69)

 Galba  Otho  Vitellius  Vespasian (AD 69-79) 4/30/2020

Vespasian (AD 69-79)

 Fighting Jewish rebels  Joins with prefects of Syria and Egypt and uses his Mediterranean armies to seize power  Restores order to Empire, strengthens it  Instigates building projects  “I think I feel myself becoming a god….”  Begins the Flavian dynasty

Titus (79-81 AD)

 Assumed command in Judea when Vespasian became emperor  Destroys the temple in AD 70  The first “natural” son to succeed his father as emperor  Everyone dies (sometimes with the help of others) 4/30/2020

Domitian (AD 81-96)

 Somewhat able administrator, but not well liked  Made his officials call him “Lord and God”  Facilitated persecution of Jews and Christians  John on Patmos  Revelation 1-3  He started killing important Romans so they killed him back.

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The preceding emperors cover the period of the Scriptures.

The following emperors cover the period of the Early Church, and will be dealt with in the course “Church and Empires” 4/30/2020

The Five Good Emperors

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Nerva (no, not this guy)



Trajan

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Hadrian

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Antoninus Pius

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Lucius Verus

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Marcus Aurelius



Commodus of “The Gladiator” only slightly

Skipping Forward

 Diocletian (AD 284-305)  Doesn’t like cults of any kind (including Christianity)  Splits the empire Reunited (for awhile) under Constantine 4/30/2020