CROSSWORD Three Roman Emperors

Roman Emperors: Augustus, Julius Caesar, and Nero

Consolidate your understanding of the provided source material on three prominent Roman Emperors: Augustus, Julius Caesar, and Nero.

I. Julius Caesar rise to Power

• Early Life and Rise to Power: Born into the Patrician Julian family, claiming descent from Venus.
• Influenced by his uncle, Gaius Marius.
• Began ascent with military campaigns in Asia and as a prosecutor of corruption.
• Formed the First Triumvirate with Pompey the Great and Marcus Licinius Crassus in 60 BC.
• Military Campaigns and Expansion:Appointed governor of Gaul in 58 BC, leading a decade-long conquest (Gallic Wars).
• Expanded Roman territories to the Atlantic, bringing immense wealth.
• Victory at the Battle of Alesia (52 BC) cemented his reputation.
• Used military innovation, political cunning, and psychological tactics (divide and conquer, siege warfare, rapid mobilization, winter campaigns, naval innovation).
• Authored Commentarii de Bello Gallico for propaganda.
• Crossing the Rubicon and Civil War:Tensions with Pompey escalated after Crassus’s death.
• Ordered by the Senate to disband his army; instead, crossed the Rubicon River in 49 BC (act of insurrection).
• Defeated Pompey at the Battle of Pharsalus (48 BC).
• Dictatorship and Reforms:Appointed dictator perpetuo (dictator for life) in 44 BC.
• Initiated reforms, including the Julian calendar (precursor to Gregorian calendar).
• Centralization of power alarmed many senators.
• Assassination and Legacy:Assassinated on the Ides of March (March 15, 44 BC) by senators, including Brutus and Cassius.
• Assassination led to further civil wars and the rise of Octavian/Augustus.
• Legacy: Expanded Rome, laid groundwork for Empire, influence on Roman culture, politics, and military strategy. His name became synonymous with imperial rule (Kaiser, Tsar).

II. Augustus (Octavian) used his power to rule

• Early Life and Connection to Caesar: Born Gaius Octavius on September 23, 63 BC, on the Palatine Hill.
• Plebeian family, later patrician due to Caesar’s connections.
• Mother, Atia, was Julius Caesar’s niece (making Caesar his great-uncle).
• Father died when he was 4; raised with formal aristocratic training.
• Caught Caesar’s attention with a funeral oration; appointed prefect of Rome at 15.
• Nominated by Caesar to be Master of the Horse (second most powerful position).
• Inheritance and Ascent to Power:Caesar’s will adopted Octavian as his son and heir (44 BC).
• Changed his name to Gaius Julius Caesar, claimed Caesar’s funds, and raised a private army (many Caesar’s veterans) at age 19.
• Initially sided with the Senate against Mark Antony (Battle of Mutina, 43 BC), but then marched on Rome demanding consulship.
• Formed the Second Triumvirate with Mark Antony and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus.
• Implemented proscriptions (labeling enemies as outlaws, confiscating possessions for funds).
• Caesar elevated to a god; Octavian added “Divi Filius” (Son of God) to his name.
• Defeat of Rivals:Defeated Caesar’s assassins (Brutus and Cassius) at the Battle of Philippi (42 BC).
• Provinces divided: Octavian (West), Antony (East), Lepidus (North Africa).
• Lepidus expelled from Triumvirate after a conflict in Sicily (36 BC).
• Conflict with Mark Antony escalated due to Antony’s relationship with Cleopatra; Octavian used propaganda.
• Senate declared war on Cleopatra’s regime (effectively Antony) in 32 BC.
• Defeated Antony and Cleopatra at the Battle of Actium (31 BC); they committed suicide.
• Consolidation of Power and the Principate:Did not immediately become dictator; obtained power “piecemeal” through First and Second Settlements.
• Consolidated power under the “Principate” (dictatorship preserving illusions of a republic).
• Styled himself as princeps civitatis (first citizen).
• Changed name to Imperator Caesar Divi Filius Augustus (19 BC, received Imperium Maius – supreme power).
• His reign was 41 years (27 BC – 14 AD), longest of Roman Emperors.
• Augustus’s Reign: The Pax Romana:Ushered in a “golden age” and the Pax Romana (Roman Peace, lasting 200+ years).
• Economy, arts, agriculture flourished.
• Empire expansion (Portugal, Syria, Spain, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Albania, Croatia, Hungary, Serbia).
• Negotiated temporary peace with Parthia.
• Created institutionalized police and firefighting forces, Praetorian Guard.
• Tax reforms (stabilized rates, increased treasury).
• Passed laws to raise birth rates (adultery illegal, tax incentives for large families, penalties for childless marriages); exiled his own daughter for adultery.
• Major construction projects: Temple of Caesar, Baths of Agrippa, Forum of Augustus, supported Pantheon construction; claimed to restore 82 temples in one year.
• Changed the name of the eighth month to “August.”
• Personality and Death:Described as ambitious, intelligent, cruel during ascent, but wise and fair later.
• Suetonius: unusually handsome, graceful, calm, mild expression, short but well-proportioned.
• Cruelty attributed to political necessity after Caesar’s assassination.
• Died August 19, 14 AD, in Nola, Italy, at 75.
• Variations on death: natural causes, poisoned by wife Livia, assisted suicide for smooth transition to Tiberius.
• Last words (public): “I found Rome a city of bricks and left her a city of marble.” (Real): “Have I played the part well? Then applaud as I exit.”
• Legacy: stable, peaceful, prosperous Empire; set foundations for civilization.

III. Nero he misused the power of am Emperor

• Early Life and Accession: Born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus on December 15, 37 AD, in Antium.
• Father described as loathsome and brutal; mother Agrippina the Younger (Caligula’s sister) ambitious and cruel.
• Father died when Nero was 3; family exiled by Caligula.
• Returned to Rome after Caligula’s assassination (41 AD); Claudius became emperor.
• Agrippina married Claudius (49 AD) and persuaded him to adopt Nero (50 AD).
• Nero Claudius Caesar Drusus Germanicus (new name).
• Began public life at 13; married Claudius’s daughter, Claudia Octavia, at 16.
• Claudius died in 54 AD (rumored poisoned by Agrippina); Nero became emperor at 16.
• Early Reign and Popularity:Initially a “golden age” under advisors Seneca (tutor/philosopher) and Burrus (Praetorian Guard head).
• Kind, approachable, encouraged adulation.
• Arts flourished; Rome experienced peace and prosperity.
• Tax reductions in provinces, restored some Senate power.
• Arranged lavish games, plays, concerts, chariot races, gladiatorial fights; instituted “Neronian Games.”
• Decline and Controversial Actions:Relationship with Agrippina became toxic; she tried to manipulate him.
• Nero distanced himself, removed her from palace (55 AD).
• Poisoned his stepbrother Britannicus (son of Claudius) at a dinner party (55 AD) to remove rival and warn mother.
• Multiple attempts to kill Agrippina (rigged boat, collapsing ceiling), finally succeeded by Anicetus (Fleet Commander) in 59 AD; spun as suicide.
• Divorced popular wife Octavia (accused of unfaithfulness) to marry Poppaea Sabina (already married to Otho, whom Nero exiled); Octavia later murdered (62 AD).
• Kicked pregnant Poppaea to death in a fit of rage (65 AD), or she died in childbirth (sources vary).
• The Great Fire of Rome (64 AD) and Aftermath:Massive fire burned for 10 days, destroying 10 of 14 districts.
• Rumors he started it to clear land for his Domus Aurea (Golden House) and played the lyre while it burned (fiddle anachronism).
• Tacitus suggests he assisted relief efforts, but rumors persisted.
• Blamed Christians as scapegoats, leading to severe persecution (thrown to beasts, crucified, burned as human torches).
• Rebuilt Rome with wider streets, fire-resistant materials, firebreaks, improved water supply.
• Constructed extravagant Domus Aurea (over 100 hectares, artificial lakes, rotating ceiling, huge statue of himself – Colossus Neronis).
• Funded rebuilding and palace by raising taxes, recalling gifts, stealing from temples.
• Engaged in obscenities and public marriages (e.g., to former slave Doryphorus, castrated boy Sporus).
• Later Reign and Downfall:Tour of Greece (66-67 AD) to compete in Olympic Games (chariot racing, music, poetry, acting) and ensure his victories.
• Lavish lifestyle bankrupted Rome.
• Piso’s conspiracy (65 AD) discovered; conspirators executed, including Seneca (ordered to commit suicide).
• Revolts by governors Vindex (Gaul) and Galba (Spain) in 68 AD.
• Senate declared him a public enemy; Praetorian Guard abandoned him.
• Fled Rome in disguise; tried to commit suicide but failed; ordered servant to finish the job.
• Died June 9, 68 AD, at 30 years old, ending the Julio-Claudian Dynasty.
• His death led to the “Year of the Four Emperors” (Galba, Otho, Vitellius, Vespasian).
• Legacy and Historical Perception:Remembered as cruel, depraved, tyrannical, and extravagant.
• Modern forensic psychiatrist suggests potential bias in ancient sources (written by later dynasties vilifying him).
• Some argue he was a “typical Roman Emperor corrupted by absolute power.”
• His Domus Aurea was dismantled, and the Colosseum was built on its site.