as before. No mention is made of any confirmation by the popular assembly of the grant of the Senate; but it cannot be assumed that there was no such formal confirmation of it. The power of the Tribunes under the Republic is an important element in the Roman constitution, and the possession of this office by Augustus gave him a civil power which, combined with his Imperium and Proconsular authority, was more than any constitutional king in Europe possesses. His person was thus declared inviolable; and he could, according to the old constitutional forms, obstruct any measures in the Senate or prevent the enactment of any lex or plebiscitum by the popular assemblies. By accepting the Tribunitian power Augustus declared himself the guardian of the popular part of the constitution, and the conservator of the rights of the Plebs. The assumption of the title was a measure of sound policy in his position, and his successor Tiberius found it so at the commencement of his administration, when his power was still uncertain. The title of Tribunitian Power henceforth appears on the medals of Augustus and his successors.

In B.C. 12, on the death of Lepidus, Augustus was made Pontifex Maximus, and probably was elected by the popular assembly, to whom the choice of the Pontifex Maximus had been restored B.c. 63. The functions of the Pontifex Maximus, or the head of religion, may be collected from many instances under the old constitution. The title of Pontifex Maximus is from this time commemorated on the medals of Augustus, and on those of his successors. It is only necessary, to form an adequate conception of the form of administration in the republican period, to understand what power Augustus possessed. He held no new office, and he had no new name; he did not even acquire the title of Dictator. His title, as Tacitus says, was "Princeps," a term familiar in the Republic (Princeps Senatus): Tacitus takes no notice of "Imperator" as a title, though Dion particularly dwells on it. But it was not by names or titles, it was by the accumulation of powers and offices in his own person, and by his prudent management, that Augustus was in effect the administrator of the Roman state, while all the old forms were maintained. Tacitus, who must have been a competent judge, observes" that all the names of magistrates were retained:" the form of the Republic was preserved. If all the various functions that Augustus discharged had been distributed among different persons, as they were in the Republic, the Republic, such as it was, would still have existed. The union of many of these functions in one person, and the permanent exercise of these powers, constituted the change, which was in effect a greater change than if he had assumed the title of king. The effect

VOL. IV.

of the union of so much power, military and civil, in one person, was what Tacitus has briefly characterized: he gradually assumed "the functions of the Senate, of the Magistrates, and of the Laws." This literal version of the words of the historian requires a short explanation.

The Senate was the administrator of the Roman state. The popular assemblies were neither in form nor in fact excluded entirely from administration; but a limited body like the Senate could always act more efficiently than a popular assembly; and in the development of the Roman constitution the Senate had acquired all the substantial administrative power before the time of the Dictatorship of Cæsar. The skilful management of this body was therefore equivalent to administering the state; and the policy which was begun by Augustus was continued by his successors, under whom the authority of the Senate varied in some degree with the character of the emperor. Augustus, as already observed, had purged the Senate once, and he made a complete reform eleven years afterwards, B.C. 18. The regular days of meeting of the Senate were limited to two a month, on the kalends and the ides; an arrangement which appears to have been continued, for it is confirmed by an old Roman kalendar, drawn up long after the time of Augustus. (Suetonius, Aug. 35, and Boxhorn's note.) In the months of September and October only a certain number, chosen by lot, were required to be present to give their sanction to what was done : under the old constitution a larger number, perhaps four hundred, was necessary. Augustus also had a council appointed by lot, every six months, which consisted of fifteen senators, with whom he deliberated on matters which were to be proposed to the Senate. By this arrangement it seems probable that the Senate lost all power of originating any measure. Augustus also kept the proceedings (acta) of the Senate secret, which, under Julius Cæsar, had been published. To give employment to many persons, and thus make them feel that they had some share in the administration, he made a great variety of commissioners (curatores) such as commissioners of public works, commissioners of roads, commissioners for the supply of water, commissioners for cleaning the bed of the Tiber, commissioners for supplying the people with grain; and so on. The Præfecture of the city, which was not a new office, became one of great importance under Augustus and his successors.

The expression of Tacitus as to Augustus assuming the functions of the laws is not quite clear. It is easy to show that the Comitia were held for elections and for legislation to the close of his life. In the reign of Tiberius, as Tacitus remarks, the Comitia were transferred from the Campus Martius to the

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Senate, an expression which only refers to the elections, and not to legislation. Many leges were amended or passed in the time of Augustus: Suetonius enumerates sumptuary laws, and laws concerning adultery, bribery, and marriage. These leges are well known under the general head of "Julia Leges:" the several leges are distinguished by a word which has reference to their object. But though the Comitia ratified these laws in the usual way, it is easy to conceive that Augustus easily exercised a great influence over the Comitia, through the Senate, which was managed by him. Still the law on marriage, as subsequently modified under the name of the Lex Julia et Papia Poppæa, was not carried without a good deal of trouble.

Other matters, connected with the accumulation of offices and powers in the person of Augustus, and the discussion of the socalled Lex Regia, are here purposely omitted. Enough has been said to show the general character of the Imperial system at its commencement: the development of this subject is a matter of history.

The great events of the period of Augustus belong to the history of Rome, and they need only be briefly mentioned in chronological order. They show his activity in the administration of the state, and enable us to form a better estimate of his character. In B.C. 27 he set out for Gaul, intending or pretending that he would visit Britain; but from Gaul be passed into Spain, in which he established order. The following year Cornelius Gallus, præfect of Egypt, was tried by the senate for maladministration and other offences committed during his government and convicted, on which he put an end to his life. Augustus spent the years 26 and 25 in Spain, where he was engaged in a war with the Astures and Cantabri, the warlike inhabitants of the Asturias and the north-west of Spain. The successful conclusion of the war was signalised by the temple of Janus being closed a second time by Augustus, and by the settlement of veterans in the colony of Emerita Augusta (Merida) on the Guadiana. In the year 24 he returned to Rome from Spain. This year is memorable for the expedition against Arabia Felix of Ælius Gallus, who was then governor of Egypt: a notice of his campaign is preserved by Strabo (p. 819, ed. Casaub.). The next year (B.c. 23), that in which Augustus received the Tribunitian power for life, and his eleventh consulship, brought a domestic calamity, the death of young Marcellus, the son of his sister Octavia, and the husband of his daughter Julia. His peace was also disturbed by conspiracies: that in which Murena was engaged, or alleged to be engaged, belongs to the year 22. In B.C. 21 Augustus again left Rome for the purpose of settling the eastern part of the empire. He first visited Sicily, and while he was there

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great disturbances occurred at Rome during the election of the consuls, for the old forms of election were still maintained, as they were during the lifetime of Augustus. The disturbance required his interference, but he did not return to Rome: he appointed Agrippa to the administration of the city in his absence, and gave him his daughter Julia in marriage. [AGRIPPA, M. V.] From Sicily Augustus passed over into Greece, and thence to the island of Samos, where he spent the winter. The year B.C. 20 is memorable for the restoration by the Parthians of the standards which they had taken from Crassus and M. Antonius, and of the captive soldiers, an event which the flatterers of Augustus have often commemorated, and also for the birth of Julia's son by Agrippa, Cæsar, as he was afterwards called, in consequence of being adopted by his grandfather. Augustus spent another winter at Samos, where he received ambassadors from the Scythians and the Indians. The Indians brought presents, and among them some tigers, which the Romans had never seen before. From Samos Augustus passed over to Athens, where one of the Indians who accompanied him burnt himself alive. From Athens Augustus returned to Rome in the following year, B.C. 19. The Cantabri had revolted in B.C. 22, and were finally subdued in this year (B.c. 19) by Agrippa, who after sustaining several reverses nearly annihilated all the Cantabrian warriors. In the year 18 the ten years had expired for which Augustus had undertaken the administration, but the period was renewed for five years, and Agrippa was associated with Augustus in the Tribunitian power for the same period. Agrippa's alliance with Augustus, and his talents for war and administration, rendered it prudent to associate him in the administration of the empire. With the aid of Agrippa, he made another revision of the senate. In this year Virgil died, on his return from Athens, where he had seen Augustus. The carrying of the Lex Julia De Maritandis Ordinibus, the object of which was to compel people to marry under penalties, belongs to the year B.C. 18: it is alluded to in the "Carmen Sæculare" of Horace, which was written in the following year, that of the celebration of the Ludi Sæculares. This law of marriage was subsequently modified, and formed the foundation of the Lex Julia et Papia Poppæa, which is so often mentioned by the Roman writers, and particularly the jurists. In this year Julia bore another son, Lucius, who, together with his brother Caius, was immediately adopted by Augustus, and both of these youths are henceforth called Caius Cæsar and Lucius Cæsar. Agrippa, with his wife Julia, set out for Syria, being intrusted with the general administration of affairs in those parts. In B.C. 16 Augustus left Rome for Gaul. Various reasons are assigned by

Dion for his leaving the city, but the main | object was to superintend warlike operations against the Germans, who had defeated Marcus Lollius. Statilius was the governor of Rome and Italy in his absence. The Rhæti, an Alpine people, were subdued by Tiberius and Drusus, the stepsons of Augustus: and many colonies were established or restored in Gaul and Spain. These were principally military colonies, and the lands were given to satisfy the claims of the old soldiers, who were continually asking for grants. Augustus returned from Gaul in the year 13, and gave to the senate a written account of his proceedings. In this year, according to Dion, Augustus dedicated the theatre of Marcellus, and games were celebrated, in which six hundred wild beasts from Africa were slaughtered. The year 12 is that in which Lepidus died, and Augustus succeeded him as Pontifex Maximus: Agrippa also died in this year, and in the following year his widow Julia was married to Tiberius, the stepson of Augustus. Tiberius was obliged by Augustus to put away his wife Vipsania Agrippina, the daughter of Agrippa by a former marriage, though she had borne him a son and was with child at the time, and though he was much attached to her. Augustus compelled him to take Julia, for reasons of policy, though Tiberius disliked her, and was already aware of her profligate habits. The new bridegroom was sent off to fight against the Pannonians, whom he defeated, and the marriage was solemnized on his return. In this year Octavia, the sister of Augustus, died, a woman whose life was free from reproach, and whose virtues entitle her to be ranked among the illustrious Roman mothers. It is a pleasing feature in the mingled character of Augustus that he loved his sister.

In B.C. 10 Augustus was again in Gaul with his stepson and son-in-law Tiberius. Drusus also prosecuted the war against the Germans in this and the following year. He advanced as far as the Elbe, but his career was cut short by a fall from his horse, which occasioned his death. His body was carried to Rome, and Augustus pronounced his funeral oration in the Circus Flaminius: he also wrote an epitaph for his tomb and composed a memoir of his life. In the year 8 the second term of ten years expired: Augustus, with a show of unwillingness, accepted the administration again; and this year is recorded as that in which the month Sextilis received the name of Augustus, which it retains. In this year also a census was taken. Tiberius now conducted the military operations on the Rhine. Two more of the friends of Augustus died this year, Maecenas and the poet Horace. Mæcenas had for many years been his faithful friend and adviser, and had been intrusted with the important office of Præfectus Urbi. It was believed in Rome that Augustus,

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among his other amours, had an adulterous commerce with Terentia, the wife of Mæcenas, which caused her husband some vexation, but it never made him break with Augustus, and he left him the bulk of his immense fortune. Tiberius received the title of Imperator for his German victories, and in the year 6 he received the Tribunitian power for five years; but instead of staying at Rome, he retired to Rhodes, where he resided seven years, mainly perhaps through jealousy of Caius and Lucius Cæsar, the adopted sons of Augustus, who conducted themselves in a haughty and insolent manner; perhaps too to get rid of his wife, for he certainly left her behind.

In the year B.C. 4, or according to perhaps the best authorities, in the year B.C. 3, Jesus Christ was born at Bethlehem in Judæa. Some chronologists place this event in the year B.C. 2.

The year B.C. 2 was the thirteenth consulship of Augustus, and in this year L. Cæsar received the toga virilis: Caius, the elder, had taken it in B.C. 5. Thus Augustus had now two grandsons, his sons by adoption, who had attained the age of puberty, and he had a prospect of securing in his family the succession to a greater power than any man had ever yet acquired. But his happiness was marred by the conduct of his daughter Julia, the mother of his adopted sons. In the lifetime of Agrippa she had perhaps not been a faithful wife, but now in the thirty-eighth year of her age she had broken through all the bounds of decency and prudence. Her indignant father could hardly restrain himself when he ascertained the extent of her degradation. Many of her lovers were put to death, and among them Antonius Iulus, a son of M. Antonius by Fulvia. Julia was banished to the small island of Pandataria, on the coast of Campania, and afterwards to Rhegium, where she lived a life of misery, and yet survived her father. Her mother Scribonia, the long-divorced wife of Augustus, voluntarily accompanied Julia in her exile. This matter is often spoken of in such terms as would lead a reader to suppose that Augustus in these and like cases acted according to his pleasure; whereas that would be entirely inconsistent with the administration of justice at that period. Julia and some of her paramours and accomplices came within the penalties of the Lex Julia on adultery, which was passed about B.C. 18 or 17, and probably before the "Carmen Sæculare" of Horace was written. They were accordingly banished. Those who were put to death suffered on the additional charge of a treasonable design, as shown by their cohabiting with a member of the family of Augustus; probably a mere pretext to get rid of them, but enough to prove that the forms of law were observed.. Julia, the grand-daughter of Augustus, his daughter's daughter, who was married to L.

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