11a: Introduction

Most important of Rome's legacies to the Western world is the Pax Romana: two and a half centuries of peace and prosperity in the Mediterranean world from 30 BC to 235 AD. Once Augustus Caesar brought lasting peace to Italy, Roman manpower and resources could be used to stabilize the borders. With the borders stabilized the Romans made their empire stronger, not through force but through good government. Despite the wide range of peoples and cultures in the Roman Empire, the Pax Romana was nearly a win-win situation for everyone: Romans, Italians, and provincials alike. The basis, in turn, of the Pax Romana was a groundbreaking style of government called the Principate.

In segment 11b: Augustus and the Principate, we trace the rise of young Gaius Octavius - later known as Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus and best known as Imperator Augustus Caesar. Rome's second founder was not squeamish about the methods he used to achieve supreme power. But the result was stability at home and peace throughout the empire. Augustus's great invention was the Principate - rule by the princeps, or "first man." This style of government paid lip service to the values of the mos maiorum and the Republican constitution while keeping all power in Augustus's hands. Augustus's concept of the Principate relied on two factors for its success. First, all the levers of power were in Augustus's hand - especially the army. Second was Augustus's charismatic personality and high prestige. The first of these could be handed down to his successor as princeps. The second could not.

Segment 11c: Roman Propaganda shows how Augustus enhanced the success of the Principate by skillful propaganda. Examining some of this propaganda, we will see how Augustus himself saw Roman virtues and how he envisioned Rome's mission to the world. We will also see the two sides of Augustus's personality at home practicing the ways of the mos maiorum, and as worshiped around the Empire by the "emperor cult." Repellent and absurd as it seems to modern tastes, some ancient peoples wanted and expected to be ruled by a divine king. There is little doubt that Augustus himself found it repellent and absurd.  But if it would help him maintain the Principate and maintain the Pax Romana, Augustus considered it his duty to play along.

In segment 11d: The Twelve Caesars, we meet Augustus's successors. Some were good, some better than good, and some genuinely awful. Although the system of the Principate solved the Roman Empire's greatest problems, it still didn't ensure a smooth transition of power from the Princeps to a worthy successor. There was also the problem of how to remove an incompetent Princeps - the solution usually involved the Princeps's bodyguard - the Praetorian Guard. The Praetorians provided a quick solution by murdering the Princeps in question, but in so doing they set  a bad precedent. The Year of Four Emperors (68-69 AD) was the only major breach of the Pax Romana, but it was more Nero's fault than that of Augustus's system. At least it was quickly resolved and resulted in the accession of another very capable emperor, Vespasian (69-79 AD) who was able to restore the Roman world to its pre-Nero footings.