Aeneid

Aeneid

Virgil’s Aeneid is arguably the most influential and celebrated work of Latin literature. Written in the epic meter, dactylic hexameter, the Aeneid follows the journey of Aeneas, son of Venus, after the fall of Troy. According to an ancient mythical tradition, Aeneas fled the burning city and landed in Italy, where he established a line of descendants who would become the Roman people.

Virgil (70–19 b.c.e.) draws on the works of numerous authors, such as Lucretius, Ennius, Apollonius of Rhodes, and, especially, Homer. Virgil consistently adopts Homeric style and diction (a good example of this is the first line of the poem: “I sing of arms and a man ...”).

He also re-creates entire scenes from the Iliad and the Odyssey. Books 1 to 6 of the Aeneid show such close parallels to the Homeric epics that they are often called the “Virgilian Odyssey.”


Books 7 to 12, meanwhile, closely echo the Iliad. Virgil’s use of Homeric elements goes beyond mere imitation. Virgil often places Aeneas in situations identical to those of Odysseus or Achilles, allowing Aeneas’s response to those situations to differentiate him from (and sometimes surpass) his Homeric counterparts.

Virgil constructs his epic in relation to the Roman people and their cultural ideals. He defines Aeneas by the ethical quality of piety, a concept of particular importance for Rome at the time of the Aeneid’s composition. The Aeneid also contains several etiological stories of interest to the Roman people, most notably that of Dido and the origin of the strife between the Romans and the Carthaginians.

The Dido episode is one of the most famous vignettes of the Aeneid. Dido, the queen of Carthage—also known by her Phoenician name, Elyssa—aids Aeneas and his shipwrecked Trojans in Book 1. Through Venus’s intervention, Dido falls desperately in love with Aeneas and wants him and his men to remain in Carthage.

But a message from Jove reminds Aeneas that his fated land is in Italy. Immediately, he orders his men to depart. Dido is heartbroken over Aeneas’s leaving: She builds a pyre out of Aeneas’s gifts and commits suicide on it, prophesying the coming of Hannibal before she dies. When Aeneas descends to the Underworld in Book 4, Dido’s shade refuses to speak with him.

Dido’s character shows a great deal of complexity. She appears first as an amalgam of Alcinous and Arete as she hospitably receives her Trojan guests but soon becomes a Medea figure, well acquainted with magic and arcane knowledge.

Aeneid and the sibyl

Dido is a sympathetic character throughout the epic, though much of how Virgil describes her would have brought to the Roman reader’s mind the Egyptian queen Cleopatra (associated with Mark Antony and the civil war).

Interpretations of the Aeneid are numerous and far from unanimous. The Aeneid’s composition coincides with the end of the civil wars and the beginning of Augustus’s regime. Virgil ostensibly endorses the new princeps by referring to him as the man who will usher in another golden age.

Yet several elements of the epic might suggest that Virgil did not wholeheartedly support Augustus. Much of the debate centers on the war in Italy that occupies the second half of the epic, in which some scholars see a reference to the Battle of Perusia in 41 b.c.e., an event Augustus would have preferred to forget.


Scholars also point to the end of the Aeneid, where Aeneas kills Turnus as he pleads for his life, as unambiguously criticizing the new leadership. This anti-Augustan view of the Aeneid has, however, met with opposition.

Many scholars find more evidence of the Iliad than of Augustus’s campaign in the latter half of the Aeneid. Others suggest that in killing Turnus, Aeneas acted appropriately for his cultural circumstances.

The Aeneid has also been proposed to represent, not Virgil’s view of Augustus, but rather the condition of the Roman people. Virgil seems to offer conflicting evidence for his perspective on Augustan Rome and may intentionally leave the matter ambiguous so that the reader may decide for him- or herself.

The Aeneid was highly anticipated even before publication and has since enjoyed immense popularity. Quintilian regarded Virgil as nearly equal to Homer and credits him with having the more difficult task. Latin epic writers after Virgil looked to the Aeneid as their model. Statius even acknowledges that his epic, the The baid, cannot surpass that of Virgil.

The Aeneid became a standard school text of the ancient world and was a critical part of a good education. Virgil, however, considered the work unfinished. At the time of his death he famously called for the Aeneid to be burned rather than published. Augustus saved the Aeneid from the flames and ordered its publication.

Ambrose - Bishop and Theologian

Ambrose - Bishop and Theologian

Ambrose, bishop of Milan, was born in Trier of the noble Aurelian family. His mother moved the family to Rome after the death of his father. Educated in rhetoric and law, Ambrose was first employed in Sirmium and then in c. 370 c.e. as governor of Milan.

After the death of the Arian bishop of Milan, a violent conflict broke out in the city over whether the next bishop would be a Catholic or an Arian. Ambrose intervened to restore peace and was so admired by all that both sides accepted him as a candidate for bishop, although he was not even baptized at the time. He was baptized and consecrated a bishop within a week.

He immediately gave his wealth to the poor and devoted himself to the study of scripture and the Greek fathers of the church. As a bishop, he was famous for his preaching, which was partly responsible for the conversion of the great theologian Augustine of Hippo, whom Ambrose baptized at Easter in 387.


Ambrose’s career was heavily involved with politics. He was continually defending the position of the Catholic Church against the power of the various Roman emperors during his episcopate: Gratian, Maximus, Justina (pro-Arian mother of Valentinian II), and Theodosius I.

He was able to maintain the independence of the church against the civil power in his conflicts with paganism and Arianism. Regarding the former, Ambrose battled with Symmachus, magistrate of Rome, over the Altar of Victory in the Senate: The emperor Gratian had removed the altar in 382, and after Gratian’s death Symmachus petitioned Valentinian II for its restoration. Under Ambrose’s influence, the request was denied.

Arianism received a blow when Ambrose refused to surrender a church for the use of the Arians. His decision was taken as sanctioned by heaven when—in the midst of the controversy—the bodies of the martyrs Gervasius and Protasius were discovered in the church. Ambrose further strengthened the church’s authority before the state in two incidents in which he took a firm stand against the emperor Theodosius I.

One incident involved the rebuilding of the synagogue at Callinicum in 388; the other had to do with the emperor’s rash order that resulted in the massacre of thousands of innocent people at Thessalonica in the summer of 390. Ambrose refused to allow Theodosius to receive the sacraments until he had performed public penance for this atrocity. The reconciliation took place at Christmas 390.

One reason for Ambrose’s influence over Theodosius was that, unlike most Christian emperors who delayed their reception into the church until their deathbed, he had been baptized and so fell under the authority of the church in his private life.

Ambrose’s knowledge of Greek enabled him to introduce much Eastern theology into the West. His works include hymns, letters, sermons, treatises on the moral life, and commentaries on scripture and on the sacraments. He was also a strong supporter of the monastic life in northern Italy.

Antonine Emperors

Antonine Emperors

The four Antonine emperors of Rome—Antoninus Pius (r. 138–161 c.e.), Marcus Aurelius (r. 161–180 c.e.), Lucius Verus (r. 161–169 c.e.), and Commodus (r. 180–192 c.e.)—ruled over a time extending from the height of the Pax Romana to one where the Roman Empire was having increasing difficulty carrying its many burdens.

The founder of the dynasty, Antoninus Pius, was born to a family that already numbered several consuls among its members. He served for many years in the Senate and as Roman official before being adopted as successor to the emperor Hadrian in 138 c.e. Part of the arrangement was that Antoninus would in turn adopt two boys as his heirs. One was the nephew of his wife, Annia Galeria Faustina.

This was Marcus Antoninus, the future Marcus Aurelius. The other was Lucius Verus, the son of Hadrian’s previous choice as successor, Lucius Aelius Caesar. When Hadrian died the same year, Antoninus succeeded peacefully. Antoninus was more than 50 when he became emperor.


The reign of Antoninus was marked by peace and by an emphasis on Italy and Roman tradition that broke with the practices of the globetrotting philhellene Hadrian. His dedication to traditionalism was one of the qualities for which the Senate gave him the title of “Pius.” Antoninus also cut back on the heavy spending on public works that had marked Hadrian’s reign.

Antoninus spent most of his time in Rome, by some accounts never leaving Italy during his reign. The 900th anniversary of the city’s legendary founding took place in 147 c.e., and a series of coins and medallions with new designs stressing Rome’s ancient roots were issued to commemorate the occasion. In foreign policy Antoninus preferred peace to war and did not lead armies himself, but the empire waged war successfully on some of its borders.

Antoninus’s death was followed by a dual succession, the first in Roman history. Lucius Verus and Marcus Aurelius became co-emperors, although Marcus was clearly the dominant partner in the relationship. The new emperors faced many challenges. In the east, the king of Parthia hoped to take advantage of the inexperienced new rulers with an intervention in the buffer state of Armenia.

Marcus sent Lucius, accompanied by a number of Rome’s best generals, to deal with the Parthians. The Parthian war was successful but followed by a devastating plague and pressure from the Germanic peoples across the Danube as the Marcomanni and Quadi actually made it as far as northern Italy.

Map of Roman Empire during Antonine dynasty

The relationship between the emperors was troubled, as Marcus’s austere dedication to duty clashed with Lucius’s sometimes irresponsible hedonism. Lucius died on campaign against the Germans, however, before any open break could occur, and Marcus referred to him fondly in his Meditations.

Marcus’s long campaigns against the Germans were successful, but he died before he could organize the conquered territories into Roman provinces, and his son and successor Commodus (who received the title of emperor in 177) quickly abandoned his father’s conquests, returning to Rome in order to enjoy the perquisites of empire. Commodus was the first son to succeed his natural father, rather than to be adopted by an emperor, since Domitian.

The hedonistic and exhibitionistic Commodus contrasted with his grim, duty-bound father. His policy of generosity made him popular among Rome’s ordinary people, particularly in the early part of his reign, but the Senate despised him.


Commodus was extraordinarily arrogant, renaming the months, the Senate, the Roman people, and even Rome after himself. Unlike Marcus, Commodus had little interest in persecuting Christians, and subsequent Christian historians remembered his reign as a golden age.

In 192 he was removed in the traditional fashion for “bad emperors,” through an assassination plot—the first emperor since Domitian to be assassinated. Commodus left no heirs, and his death marked the end of the Antonine dynasty.

Armenia

Armenia

Located at the flashpoint between the Roman and Persian Empires, “Fortress Armenia” stretched through eastern Anatolia to the Zagros Mountains. Armenia was a kingdom established during the decline of Seleucid control.

Its independence ended with its incorporation into the Roman Empire in the third century c.e. The region was inhabited after the Neolithic Period, and evidence of high culture is evident from the Early Bronze Age. Urartu was an important regional power in the eighth to the sixth centuries b.c.e.

The Indo-Europeans arrived from western Anatolia in this period and formed a new civilization that was Armenian-speaking and based on the local culture. The conversion of Armenia to Christianity is associated with a number of stages or traditions. The most important one was the work of Gregory Luzavorich, the “Illuminator” (d. 325 c.e.). Armenians greatly treasure their heritage as the first nation that converted officially to the Christian faith.


Syriac Christianity first influenced Armenia: The Armenian version of the Abgar legend makes Abgar an Armenian king, and the evangelization of Addai is described as a mission to southern Armenia. The influence of Syriac literature and liturgy on Armenia remained strong even after the Greek influence, primarily from Cappadocia, and increased in the third century c.e.

The Greek tradition states that Bartholomew was the apostle to the Armenians. The Abgar/Addai legend is earlier than that of Bartholomew. The traditions of the female missionaries and martyrs Rhipsime and Gaiane are among the earliest accounts of the conversion of Armenia. Tertullian (c. 200 c.e.) also mentions that there were Christians in Armenia.

Armenia map

The conversion of the royal house of Armenia dates officially to 301 c.e., predating the conversion of the Georgian king Gorgasali and the Ethiopian Menelik by a generation. In that year Gregory the Iluminator persuaded King Tiridates III (Trdat the Great, 252–330) to be baptized.

Gregory is identified as the founder of the Christian Armenian nation and as the organizer of the Armenian Church. Gregory founded Ejmiatsin, the mother cathedral of the Armenian Church, after an apparition by Jesus Christ who descended from heaven at the site of a significant pagan temple (Ejmiatsin means “The Only-begotten Descended”). Gregory’s original church was at Vagharshapat.

The revelation to found the church at Ejmiatsin coincided with changing political circumstances. Politically, Armenians were always at the mercy of the great powers of Persia and Rome, and in 387 the Roman emperor Theodosius I and the Persian emperor Shapur agreed to partition Armenia, thus ending its independence.


As the site of a dominical apparition, the place of Gregory’s Episcopal see, the residence of Armenian Catholicoi, and the most important administrative center of the Armenian Church, Ejmiatsin is for Armenians a holy site on a par with the Church of the Anastasis (Resurrection) in Jerusalem or the Basilica of Bethlehem, where Jesus (Christ) of Nazareth was born.

The second most important event of the formative period of Armenian history was Mesrob Mashtots’s (c. 400) invention of the Armenian alphabet, which resulted in the translation of the Bible and the liturgy into Armenian and a rapid introduction of Christian and classical works, translated from Greek and Syriac into Armenian.

During the Christological controversies of the fifth and sixth centuries, the Armenian Apostolic Church rejected the decisions of the Council of Chalcedon (451) and remains to this day one of the non-Chalcedonian churches that adhere to the strict interpretation of Cyril of Alexandria’s “one nature of the incarnate Logos” formula. For this reason, Armenians are often erroneously and polemically labeled “Monophysites.”

Armenian army

Marcus Aurelius

Marcus Aurelius distributing bread

Marcus Aurelius was the only Roman philosopher king, author of Meditations and last of the “good” emperors. The Pax Romana began its slow collapse during his reign. Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus was born on April 26 in 121 c.e.

His father, praetor Marcus Annius Verus, died when Aurelius was only three months old, and his mother, Lucilla, inherited great family wealth. Emperor Hadrian felt great empathy toward Aurelius, and Hadrian became his mentor. He made Aurelius a priest of the Salian order in 128.

By age 12 Aurelius began to practice Stoicism and became extremely ascetic, scarcely sleeping and eating. Hadrian controlled his education, having Rome’s brightest citizens tutor Aurelius. He studied rhetoric and literature under M. Cornelius Fronto, who taught him Latin and remained a mentor for life. In 136 Aurelius met Apollonius the Stoic.


Hadrian adopted Aurelius in 138, and he was given the title caesar in 139. Realizing his death was approaching, Hadrian arranged for the future emperor Antoninus Pius (86–161 c.e.) to adopt Aurelius along with Lucius Verus (130–169 c.e.), who became Aurelius’s adoptive brother, making them joint heirs to succession.

Aurelius was betrothed in 135 to Annia Galeria Faustina, the younger daughter of Antoninus Pius and Annia Galeria Faustina the Elder. They married in 141 and had 14 children in 28 years of marriage. Only five of their children, one son, the weak and unstable Commodus (161–192), and four daughters would survive to adulthood.

By 147 Aurelius gained the power of tribunicia potestas, and he shared these powers with Pius. Aurelius was admitted to the Senate and held consulships in 140, 145, and 161 c.e., a rare honor for a private citizen. Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus became co-emperors on March 7, 161.

As co-emperors, Verus conducted battles in the east while Aurelius concentrated on fighting the ever-increasing threat from the German tribes in the north. Aurelius spent the majority of his reign fighting against the encroachment of the formidable German tribes that opposed Roman rule. Aurelius fought the Marcomanni and the Quadi, who settled in northern Italy, and the Parthenians, who moved into the east of the Roman Empire.

Marcus Aurelius statue

Marcus Aurelius instituted positive reform in various elements of Roman society, including changes to Roman civil law. Upon the advice of the revered jurist Quintus Ceridius Scaevola he abolished inhumane criminal laws and severe sentencing. In family law he alleviated the absolute patriarchy fathers held over their children.

Aurelius granted women equal property rights and the right to receive property on behalf of children. He created the equivalent of modern-day trust companies enabled to distribute parental/family legacies at the age of majority. Realizing the value of children in Roman society, Aurelius endowed orphanages and hospitals.

In the military he allowed promotion only through merit. During the numerous economic crises of his reign Aurelius refused to raise taxes and used his own wealth many times to cover the financial stress caused by continuous warfare. He also debased the silver coinage several times.

Returning legions serving under the command of Verus (who died in 169) brought plague to Rome from the East. Excessive and repeated flooding destroyed the granaries, leading to starvation. Avidius Cassius (130–175), believing Aurelius was dead, unsuccessfully attempted to seize the throne in 175.

He had little support once people realized Aurelius was still alive. His own men murdered him. Realizing the tragedy of Cassius’s error, Aurelius would allow no harm to come to Cassius’s family. The troops that Cassius had commanded once again brought plague back from the East.

During his campaigns Aurelius wrote his 12 books of Meditations in Greek, detailing his reflections of life. His wife Faustina died in 175 at age 45. By 177 he allowed the self-indulgent Commodus full participation in his government. Aurelius died on March 17, 180 c.e., in Vindobona, present-day Vienna, at age 58.

Augustus Caesar

Augustus Caesar

Augustus was a title given to Octavian when he became the first emperor of the Roman Empire and established the institutional framework that would serve Romans for 300 years.

Octavian was the adopted son and heir of Julius Caesar. His rule initiated the Pax Romana, a 200-year period of peace, which ended a century of Roman civil wars.

His reign as emperor brought forth a new cultural period, which became known as the golden age of Latin literature and saw many new buildings erected in Rome. This period marked the end of the Roman Republic and the beginning of imperial Rome.


Octavian was born Gaius Octavius on September 23, 63 b.c.e., in Rome. His father was Gaius Octavius, and his mother, Atia, was the niece of Julius Caesar. His grandmother Julia was Caesar’s elder sister.

The Second Triumvirate

The First Triumvirate was initially a secret, unofficial political alliance to rule Rome. It consisted of Gaius Julius Caesar (Julius Caesar); Marcus Licinius Crassus, who had suppressed the slave revolt led by Spartacus; and Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (Pompey).

Julius Caesar was assassinated on March 15, 44 b.c.e., the Ides of March. Julius Caesar’s will revealed that Octavian was his adopted son, the heir of his name, and heir of his considerable estate. Octavian became known as Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus.

Upon his return to Rome Octavian discovered that Mark Antony had taken charge. They formed an alliance of three along with Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, one of Caesar’s most trusted allies. This Second Triumvirate was officially supported by the Roman government and was given special powers for five years.

Augustus Caesar statue

As Suetonius wrote, “the underlying motive of every campaign [after he returned to Rome] was that Augustus [Octavian] felt it his duty, above all, to avenge Caesar.” The Triumvirate’s first task was to draw up a list of those who had taken part in the conspiracy to kill Julius Caesar. Hundreds of people were arrested and executed, or jailed and their property declared forfeit.

This removed all potential enemies. It also hugely enriched the members of the Triumvirate with money for a large army to search for two major conspirators, Cassius and Brutus. These two were defeated at the Battle of Philippi in Macedonia and committed suicide.

The Triumvirate then divided the Roman Empire among them. Lepidus moved to Africa to rule. The western part of the empire, including Italy, was in the hands of Octavian, who controlled Rome. The eastern part, which included Egypt, was under Mark Antony’s control.

Mark Antony had been smitten by Cleopatra, the queen of Egypt, and sailed to Egypt, becoming her lover and fathering three children with her. Needing a proper Roman wife, Mark Antony married Octavian’s sister Octavia Minor in 40 b.c.e. and had two daughters, both named Antonia. Three years later, in 37 b.c.e., he deserted Octavia and lived openly with Cleopatra.


Octavian, in the meantime, was building up important alliances in Rome and consolidating his power base. Mark Antony was becoming a troublesome rival to Octavian. However, to the public, Mark Antony was clearly linked with Julius Caesar’s triumphs and was an important Roman military figure.

Octavian allowed rumors to be spread that Mark Antony was becoming more and more an Egyptian and less a Roman. Mark Antony spread rumors that alleged that Julius Caesar had seduced Octavian. The situation became extremely nasty as Mark Antony sent many letters undermining Octavian to key Roman figures.

The Battle of Actium

Octavian felt it necessary to do away with his rival, yet he and the Roman government did not wish it to be viewed as another civil war. The Senate officially declared war on Cleopatra in 32 b.c.e. and officially stripped Mark Antony of his title as triumvir.

Mark Antony and Cleopatra were anxious to prevent Octavian from reaching Egypt and moved with their forces and fleet to the west coast of Greece, in what was clearly a preparation to invade Italy itself. Octavian led his legions and fleet to Greece as well, and on September 2, 31 b.c.e., the issue was decided at the Battle of Actium.

The Battle of Actium

It was a massive naval battle with a total of more than 400 vessels. Agrippa, in charge of Octavian’s navy, formed his fleet into a center and two wings of equal strength. Mark Antony drew up his ships in the same formation, but left 60 vessels under Cleopatra in reserve.

As the two fleets clashed, Mark Antony’s center panicked and fled, along with his left wing. Mark Antony realized the battle was lost and signaled to Cleopatra to escape, and he followed. Antony’s entire fleet was destroyed and upon seeing this, his land legions fled in the face of Octavian’s armies.

In Egypt, in 30 b.c.e., upon being told erroneously that Cleopatra had committed suicide, Mark Antony killed himself. Cleopatra was captured and told that she would be taken to Rome as a captive and taken through the streets in procession.

Rather than be taken captive she committed suicide. Octavian then annexed Egypt and returned to Rome in triumph. The eastern half of the empire, loyal to Mark Antony, swore allegiance to Rome and Octavian.

Even with no major rivals, Octavian was wary of his public image and the perception of his power. Octavian had inherited the support of the plebeians, the poor of Rome, who had been the mainstay of Julius Caesar’s power base in the city, and was careful to stay in the Senate’s good graces. At the instigation of the Senate he become proconsul in 27 b.c.e.

Later the same year the Senate invested him with the titles princeps and augustus, the latter of which he never used. In some ways the title was more a religious than a political one, whereas Princeps translated as “first citizen” and was used to signify a semi-imperial authority.

The Second Settlement

In 23 b.c.e. Octavian achieved what became known as the “Second Settlement,” an agreement between himself and the Senate. He was invested by the Senate with the powers of a tribune. This gave him the power to call the Senate at his will and to veto any decisions they made.

He had control of all soldiers in Rome and was the head of all Roman forces throughout the empire. He was also granted imperium proconsulare maius (“imperium over all the proconsuls”), which allowed him singly to act as he saw fit in any province and overturn the decisions of any provincial governor. In effect he now had dictatorial powers.

Octavian was still treading cautiously and using a thin veneer of legitimacy. Although the ruling class could see Octavian gaining too much power, many aspects of this Second Settlement were lost on the poor of Rome who still supported him as the “defender of the people.”

When Octavian did not stand for election as consul in 22 b.c.e., some plebeians felt that he was being forced from power by the Senate. As a result in 22 b.c.e. and in the next two years the people only elected one consul in order to leave the other position open for Octavian.

In 19 b.c.e. the Senate voted to allow Augustus to wear the insignia of a consul before them and in public. Six years later Marcus Aemilius Lepidus died. Octavian took the religious position of pontifex maximus, essentially as the high priest of the Roman religion.

Octavian's Rule

With Rome at peace Octavian instituted military reforms. He reduced the size of the army from 501,000 to 300,000. Legions were stationed at the frontiers of the empire, which kept commanders from interfering in Roman politics. He formed the Praetorian Guard, which consisted of 10 cohorts of 1,000 men.

The Praetorian Guard was garrisoned in Rome, provided protection for Octavian, and were the only soldiers allowed in Italy. With massive amounts of money flowing to the government coffers in Rome, Octavian was generous in paying the soldiers and in ensuring that veterans were able to have their own land.

Octavian overhauled the tax system to ensure as much revenue as possible. By 6 c.e. the treasury at the capital controlled the fiscal arrangements for the entire Roman Empire. He also ordered a tax census of every person in his empire.

In the Bible, Luke writes: “And it came to pass in those days, that there went out a decree from Caesar Augustus, that all the world be taxed” (Luke 2:1). This is the edict that caused Joseph and Mary to go to Bethlehem where Jesus (Christ) of Nazareth was born.

Money was channeled into the building of new roads throughout the empire, a system of mail delivery, and also a fire brigade and police force for Rome. In addition to his own actions, Octavian encouraged others to undertake public works. Octavian was later to boast that he “found Rome made of brick and left it in marble.”

As with so many other rulers, Octavian is accused of overtaxing agriculture and spending the money on grandiose projects and games. However, he did remarkably well given that Rome was no longer invading other countries and carting their treasuries home.

Octavian was a generous benefactor to the arts. He allocated much in commissions to sculptors and artists, poets and writers. This period was the golden age of Roman literature. Many epic works come to us from this time.

Virgil wrote the Aeneid about the founding of Rome by Aeneas. Later in his rule Octavian became a moralist, creating laws to try to change Roman society. He launched a morality crusade to restrict prostitution and homosexuality, as well as adultery, but in Rome this was not successful.

The Succession

One of the issues which overshadowed the latter part of Octavian’s reign was succession. Octavian had one child, his daughter Julia. Octavian died on August 19, 14 c.e., after adopting his stepson Tiberius Claudius, son of his third wife, Livia Drusilla.

Tiberius became the next emperor, named Tiberius Caesar Augustus. Octavian was proclaimed a god. In addition the sixth month of the year, then known as Sextilis, was renamed Augustus (August) after him.