Ancient history

9. Rise of the Great Roman Empire

Princeps Augustus Octavian Caesar

The assassination of Julius Caesar accelerated the pace of the fall of the Republic of Rome. Caesar's adopted son Augustus Octavian, the grandson of one of Caesar's brothers, and Julius Caesar's friend Mark Antony avenged Julius' murder. Cleopatra, living in Caesar's palace as his queen, tried to take over the rule of Rome, but Octavian revolted, due to which Cleopatra left Rome and went to Egypt.

Octavian was a member of the Roman Senate. He killed all the children of Julius Caesar, and a few years later forced himself to commit suicide by defeating another prominent member of the Senate, Mark Antony (Cleopatra's last husband). Then Octavian 'Augustus Caesar' He became the head of the Senate and practically became the sole monarch of the Roman Republic. With this the Great Republic of Rome went into the background of history and the monarchy emerged.

Octavian used the word Caesar with his name so that people would consider him to be part of Julius Caesar's own ruling tradition. Later on 'Caesar' Instead of a family surname, it was used as the title of the emperor. Thus, on January 16, 27 BC, Octavian became the first autocratic king of the Roman Empire.

The Senate continued to function but had no power to govern, and Rome moved from a republic to an empire. Initially he 'Principes Senatious' Bearing the title of which means 'First in the Senate.' After some time he got 'Princeps civitis' Took the title of which means 'first among citizens.'

After some time he 'Imperator He assumed the title of ', which means - 'Order.' Now he became the ruler of Rome under the name of 'Caesar Divi Filius Augustus'. He made his kingdom 'Kingdom' (State) saying no 'principate' Said but completely subdued the right to rule and became an autocratic king.

Augustus' father Julius Caesar never called himself 'King', in the same way, Augustus Caesar also did not call himself 'King' but the reasons behind not using this word were different. Julius Caesar hesitated to call himself 'King' due to the prevailing tradition of the Roman Republic, while August Caesar did not consider the position of 'King' as his worthy.

So he 'Imperator' i.e. 'Order' Took the title. The same word in the English language 'Emperor' became. Octavian ruled for 44 years. Historians and contemporary poets have called his reign the golden age of Rome's history. According to him, good people were rewarded and criminals were punished severely in his kingdom. During the reign of this Roman emperor, Jesus Christ was born in the city of Nazareth of the Roman Empire.

Civil war broke out in Rome due to the murder of Julius Caesar, followed by the murder of his enemies, the suicide of Mark Antony, the murder of all Julius's sons and daughters. Many Roman governors and kings located in other countries separated from Rome. Due to this the number of Roman provinces was reduced from 50 to only 28.

The emperor Augustus Caesar ordered his armies to attack the kingdoms of Illyria, Moesia, Pannonia and Germania. With his efforts the Roman Empire expanded again, and the Rhine and Danube rivers became the new frontier of the Roman Empire in the north.

He also conquered most of Europe, parts of North Africa and Western Asia. During Octavian's time, there were many famous Latin writers in Rome like Virgil, Avid, Horace, etc., who have praised Octavian's rule with free voice.

The reason for this is that in the Roman Republic before Octavian, there used to be deep conflicts and hateful conspiracies between the members of the Senate and the generals, which Octavian had completely conquered and established peace in the state. Due to this trade flourished in the Roman Empire and atrocities on the common man had reduced drastically.

Roman sheep give babies twice a year

Roman great poet 'Virgil' 'Enid' during the same period He composed a poem called, which is considered the national epic of Italy. Virgil has written in this epic praising the prosperity of Italy during this period-

Iran with its beautiful and dense forests,

Or the Ganges with its flooded waves,

Or the river Harmush, in whose particles gold is found,

None of these can equate Italy,

Italy where there is always spring,

Where sheep give cubs twice a year and

Where trees give fruit twice a year.

Imperator and Caesar engulfed the world

Octavian made himself so important in the Senate and among the subjects that he was established as a god among the subjects. He was worshiped during his lifetime itself. Because of this 'Imperator' Title of 'King' It was considered higher than that. After some time 'Imperator' The Word 'Emperor' and 'Caesar' to 'Emperor' Coming to be considered a synonym of.

Because of this, the kings of many countries of Europe started liking themselves to be called Emperor and Caesar. The word Caesar itself in Germany 'Kaiser' And in Russia 'Jar' became. Later, when the Roman Empire was partitioned and the Eastern Roman Empire went under the Muslim rule, the Muslim ruler of Kustantunia called himself 'Casere Room' Used to say 'Kaisre Hind' to Queen Victoria and Emperor George V of England was awarded the title.

Emperor Tiberius

Augustus Caesar died on 19 August 14 at the age of 75 and Tiberius became the Imperator of Rome. He was born of a first marriage, to the third wife of Augustus Caesar. That is, his father was not Augustus Caesar. The reign of Tiberius was relatively peaceful. During the reign of Tiberius, Jesus Christ was crucified in Jerusalem after being declared a rioter and anti-religion.