PosterCo Ltd

Ceasar Augustus - Jean Duchesne Aine - Kingfisher Publishing - Framed Print - 16"H x 12"W

£39.99

Augustus was the founder of the Roman Empire and its first Emperor, ruling from 27 BC until his death in AD 14.

He was born Gaius Octavius into an old and wealthy branch of the Octavii family. His maternal great-uncle Julius Caesar, and Octavius was named in Caesar's will as his adopted son and heir, then known as Octavianus. He, Mark Antony, and Marcus Lepidus formed the Second Triumvirate to defeat the assassins of Caesar.

The Triumvirate was eventually torn apart under the competing ambitions of its members.

After the demise of the Second Triumvirate, Augustus restored the outward facade of the free Republic, with governmental power vested in the Roman Senate . In reality and by law, Augustus held a collection of powers granted to him for life by the Senate, including supreme military command, and those of tribune and censor. It took several years for Augustus to develop the framework within which a formally republican state could be led under his sole rule. He called himself Princeps Civitatis ("First Citizen of the State").

The reign of Augustus initiated an era of relative peace known as the Pax Romana (The Roman Peace). The Roman world was largely free from large-scale conflict for more than two centuries. Augustus dramatically enlarged the Empire, annexing Egypt, Dalmatia, Pannonia, Noricum, and Raetia; expanding possessions in Africa; expanding into Germania; and completing the conquest of Hispania.

Beyond the frontiers, he secured the Empire with a buffer region of client states and made peace with the Parthian Empire through diplomacy.

He reformed the Roman system of taxation, developed networks of roads with an official courier system, established a standing army, established the Praetorian Guard, created official police and fire-fighting services for Rome, and rebuilt much of the city during his reign.

Augustus died in AD 14 at the age of 75.