The Return of the King?
The Return of the King?
Tacitus on the Principate of Augustus
Abstract
Tacitus opens the Annals with a succinct sketch of the constitutional history of Rome from the kings to Augustus (1.1.1). The common interpretation holds that Tacitus adopts a cyclical view of this history which identifies the supremacy of Augustus with kingship, and chooses his vocabulary of power primarily with stylistic variation in mind. The terms employed, princeps and imperium, are also held to announce a major interpretative preoccupation of the Annals, the gap between the ‘appearance’ and the ‘reality’ of power under the principate. This essay will demonstrate that these interpretations of the structure and language of the preface are misleading. Tacitus offers a sequential view of Roman constitutional history that casts Augustus as a pivot between the tradition stretching back to the foundation of the city and a new phase which he identifies in its own terms, not as a reversion to kingship. The introduction of the motif of ‘appearance v. reality’ comes not with the language of princeps and imperium, but at 1.2.1. An appendix analyses the use of the term principatus in Velleius Paterculus and Tacitus.
Keywords
Tacitus | Augustus | princeps | Imperium | principatus
References
- 1. Arena, V. / Prag, J. R. W. (eds) (forthcoming)
A companion to the Roman Republic - 2. Bach, N. (1834)
Cornelii Taciti operum quae supersunt . Leipzig - 3. Badian, E. (1986) ‘The young Betti and the practice of history’, in Crifò (1986) 73-96
- 4. Bardt, C. (1894) ‘Die Ersten Saetze der Annalen des Tacitus’,
Hermes 29: 451-57 - 5. Béranger, J. (1953)
Recherches sur l’Aspect Idéologique du Principat . Basel - 6. Bleicken, J. (2015)
Augustus: the biography . Trans. A. Bell. London - 7. Borgo, A. (1986) ‘Augusto e l’istituzione del principato: osservazioni a Tacito,
Ann . 1,1-10’,Vichiana 15: 74-97 - 8. Börm, H. / Havener, W. (2012), ‘Octavians Rechtsstellung im Januar 27 v. Chr. und das Problem der “Übertragung” der
Res Publica ’,Historia 61: 202-20 - 9. Bowman, A. K. / Champlin, E. / Lintott, A. (eds.) (1996)
The Cambridge ancient history. 2nd edn. Volume 10:The Augustan empire, 43 B. C.-A. D. 69 . Cambridge - 10. Bringmann, K. (1971) ‘Tacitus, Ann. 4, 33, 2 über den Scheinkonstitutionalismus?’,
Historia 20: 376-79 - 11. Brunt, P. A. (1977) ‘Lex de imperio Vespasiani’,
JRS 67: 95-116 - 12. Brunt, P. A. (1982) ‘“Augustus” e la “respublica”’, in Heuss (1982) 236-44
- 13. Brunt, P. A. / Moore, J. M. (1973)
Res gestae divi Augusti: the achievements of the divine Augustus . Corrected edn. Oxford - 14. Buongiovanni, C. (2003) ‘Il lessico della storiografia: dominatio da Sallustio a Tacito’, in Viparelli (2003) 15-49 = Buongiovanni (2005) 27-58
- 15. Buongiovanni, C. (2005)
Sei studi su Tacito . Naples - 16. Cameron, Averil (ed.) (1989)
History as text: the writing of ancient history . London - 17. Chilver, G. E. F. (1979)
A historical commentary on Tacitus’ Histories I and II . Oxford - 18. Cooley, A. E. (2009)
Res gestae divi Augusti: text, translation, and commentary . Cambridge - 19. Cooley, A. E. (2019) ‘From the Augustan principate to the invention of the age of Augustus’,
JRS 109: 71-87 - 20. Crifò, G. (ed.) (1986)
Costituzione Romana e crisi della Repubblica: atti del convegno su Emilio Betti . Perugia - 21. Crook, J. A. (1996) ‘Augustus: power, authority, achievement’, in Bowman et al. (1996) 113-46
- 22. Damon, C. (2003)
Tacitus: Histories book I . Cambridge - 23. Deroux, C. (ed.) (1986)
Studies in Latin literature and Roman history IV . Brussels - 24. Drexler, H. (1959) ‘Potentia’,
RhM 102: 50-95 - 25. Eder, W. (1990) ‘Augustus and the power of tradition: the Augustan principate as binding link between Republic and Empire’, in Rauflaub and Toher (1990) 71-122
- 26. Eder, W. (2005) ‘Augustus and the power of tradition’, in Galinsky (2005) 13-32
- 27. Edmondson, J. (ed.) (2009)
Augustus . Edinburgh - 28. Ferrary, J.-L. (2001) ‘À propos des pouvoirs d’Auguste’,
Cahiers du Centre Gustave Glotz 12: 101-54 = Edmondson (2009) 90-136 (a partial translation) - 29. Ferrettus, A. (1541)
In Cornelii Taciti Annalium libros Aemylii Ferretti iurisconsulti annotatiunculae . Lyon - 30. Furneaux, H. (1884)
The Annals of Tacitus . Volume I: books I-VI. Oxford - 31. Galinsky, K. (ed.) (2005)
The Cambridge companion to the age of Augustus . Cambridge - 32. Geisthardt, J. / Gildenhard, I. (2019) ‘Trojan plots: conceptions of history in Catullus, Virgil and Tacitus’, in Gildenhard et al. (2019) 241-82
- 33. Gerber, A. / Greef, A. (1903)
Lexicon Taciteum . Leipzig - 34. Gildenhard, I. / Gotter, U. / Havener, W. / Hodgson, L. (eds) (2019)
Augustus and the destruction of history: the politics of the past in early imperial Rome . Cambridge - 35. Goodyear, F. R. D. (1970) ‘Cyclical development in history: a note on Tac.
Ann . 3.55.5’,BICS 17: 101-06 = (1992) 143-48 - 36. Goodyear, F. R. D. (1972)
The Annals of Tacitus, books 1-6 . Volume I:Annals 1.1-54. Cambridge - 37. Goodyear, F. R. D. (1992)
Papers on Latin literature . Selected and edited by K. M. Coleman, J. Diggle, J. B. Hall, and H. D. Jocelyn. London - 38. Gotter, U. (2008) ‘Cultural differences and cross-cultural contact: Greek and Roman concepts of power’,
HSCPh 104: 179-230 - 39. Gruen, E. S. (2005) ‘Augustus and the making of the principate’, in Galinsky (2005) 33-51
- 40. Häussler, R. (1965)
Tacitus und das historische Bewusstsein . Heidelberg - 41. Haverfield, F. (1912) ‘Four notes on Tacitus’,
JRS 2: 195-200 - 42. Herbert-Brown, G. (1994)
Ovid and the Fasti: an historical study . Oxford - 43. Heubner, H. (1963)
P. Cornelius Tacitus: die Historien . Band I: Erstes Buch. Heidelberg - 44. Heuss, A. (ed.) (1982)
La rivoluzione romana: inchiesta tra gli antichisti . Naples - 45. Horsfall, N. (1989)
Cornelius Nepos: a selection, including the lives of Cato and Atticus . Oxford - 46. Irvine, A. L. (1952)
Tacitus: Histories books I & II . London - 47. Jenkyns, R. (2013)
God, space, and city in the Roman imagination . Oxford - 48. Jens, W. (1956) ‘Libertas bei Tacitus’,
Hermes 84: 331-52 - 49. Klingner, F. (1953) ‘Tacitus über Augustus and Tiberius: Interpretationen zum Eingang der Annalen’,
Sitzungsberichte der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften 7: 3-45 - 50. Koestermann, E. (1937) ‘“Status” als politischer Terminus in der Antike’,
RhM 86: 225-240 - 51. Koestermann, E. (1961) ‘Der Eingang der Annalen des Tacitus’,
Historia 10: 330-55 - 52. Koestermann, E. (1963)
Cornelius Tacitus: Annalen . Band I: Buch 1-3. Heidelberg - 53. Kraus, C. S. / Marincola, J. / Pelling, C. (eds) (2010)
Ancient historiography and its contexts: studies in honour of A. J. Woodman . Oxford - 54. Kühner, R. / Stegmann, C. (1976)
Ausführliche Grammatik der lateinischen Sprache . Zweiter Teil: Satzlehre. 5th edn. Hannover - 55. Lacey, W. K. (1996)
Augustus and the principate: the evolution of the system . Leeds - 56. Last, H. M. (1950) Review of A. Magdelain,
Auctoritas principis ,JRS 40: 119-23 - 57. Le Doze, P. (2015) ‘Res publica restituta: réflexions sur la restauration Augustéenne’,
Cahiers du centre Gustave Glotz 26: 79-108 - 58. Leeman, A. D. (1973) ‘Structure and meaning in the prologues of Tacitus’
YCS 23: 169-208 - 59. Leo, F. (1896) ‘Die staatsrechtlichen Excurse in Tacitus’
Annalen ’,Nachrichten der Göttinger Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften, Philol.-hist. Klasse (1896) 191-208 = (1960) 299-317 - 60. Leo, F. (1960)
Ausgewählte kleine Schriften . Zweiter Band. Ed. E. Fraenkel. Rome - 61. Levene, D. (2010) ‘Pompeius Trogus in Tacitus’
Annals ’, in Kraus et al. (2010) 294-311 - 62. Liebeschuetz, J. H. W. G. (1986) ‘The settlement of 27 B. C.’, in Deroux (1986) 345-65
- 63. Lipsius, J. (1607)
C. Cornelii Taciti opera quae exstant . ‘postremum recensuit’. Antwerp - 64. Lord, L. E. (1927) ‘Note on Tacitus’ summary of the reign of Augustus: Tac.
Ann . I. 9-10’,CR 41: 121-22 - 65. Malloch, S. J. V. (2013)
The Annals of Tacitus, book 11 . Cambridge - 66. Malloch, S. J. V. (2020)
The Tabula Lugdunensis . Cambridge - 67. Marincola, J. (1999) ‘Tacitus’ prefaces and the decline of imperial historiography’,
Latomus 58: 391-404 - 68. Millar, F. (1973) ‘Triumvirate and Principate’,
JRS 63 (1973) 50-67 = (2002) 241-70 - 69. Millar, F. (2002)
Rome, the Greek world, and the East . Volume 1: the Roman Republic and the Augustan revolution. Ed. H. M. Cotton and G. M. Rogers. Chapel Hill-London - 70. Miller, N. P. (1959)
Tacitus: Annals book I . London - 71. Mommsen, T. (1887-8)
Römisches Staatsrecht . 3rd edn. Leipzig - 72. Ogilvie, R. M. (1965)
A commentary on Livy books 1-5 . Oxford - 73. Pelham, H. F. (1879) ‘Princeps or princeps senatus?’,
Journal of Philology 8: 323-33 = (1911) 49-60 - 74. Pelham, H. F. (1888) ‘On some disputed points connected with the “imperium” of Augustus and his successors’,
Journal of Philology 17: 27-52 = (1911) 60-88 - 75. Pelham, H. F. (1911)
Essays . Ed. F. Haverfield. Oxford - 76. Pelling, C. (2010) ‘The spur of fame:
Annals 4.37-8’, in Kraus et al. (2010) 364-84 - 77. Pigoń, J. (ed.) (2008)
The children of Herodotus: Greek and Roman historiography and related genres . Newcastle upon Tyne - 78. Pluygers, W. G. (1860) ‘Observationes criticae in Cornelii Taciti libros’,
Mnemosyne 9: 49-67 - 79. Raaflaub, K. A. (2008) ‘The truth about tyranny: Tacitus and the historian’s responsibility in early imperial Rome’, in Pigoń (2008) 253-70
- 80. Raaflaub, K. A. / Toher, M. (eds) (1990a)
Between republic and empire: interpretations of Augustus and his principate . Berkeley-Los Angeles-London - 81. Raaflaub, K. A. (1990b) ‘Editors’ preface’, in Rauflaub and Toher (1990a) xi-xxi
- 82. Reid, J. S. (1921) ‘Tacitus as a historian’,
JRS 11: 191-99 - 83. Rich, J. (1989) ‘Dio on Augustus’, in Cameron (1989) 86-110
- 84. Rich, J. (2012) ‘Making the emergency permanent:
auctoritas ,potestas , and the evolution of the principate of Augustus’, in Rivière (2012) 37-121 - 85. (forthcoming) ‘Appian, Cassius Dio and the Roman Republic’, in Arena and Prag (forthcoming)
- 86. (forthcoming) / Williams, J. H. C. (1999) ‘
Leges et iura p. R. restituit : a new aureus of Octavian and the settlement of 28-27 BC’,Numismatic Chronicle 159: 169-213 - 87. Richardson, J. (2008)
The language of empire: Rome and the idea of empire from the third century BC to the second century AD . Cambridge - 88. Rivière, Y. (ed.) (2012)
Des réformes augustéennes . Rome - 89. Sage, M. M. (1991) ‘The treatment in Tacitus of Roman republican history and antiquarian matters’,
ANRW (1991) II 33.5 3385-419 - 90. Schillinger-Häfele, U. (1966) ‘Zum Annalenproömium des Tacitus’,
Hermes 94: 496-500 - 91. Schoenfeld, G. (1884)
De Taciti Studiis Sallustiani. Leipzig - 92. Shipley, F. W. (1924)
Velleius Paterculus: compendium of Roman history; Res gestae divi Augusti. Cambridge, Mass.-London - 93. Shotter, D. C. A. (1967) ‘The debate on Augustus (Tacitus, “Annals” I 9-10)’,
Mnemosyne 20: 171-74 - 94. Snyder, W. F. (1940) ‘Public anniversaries in the Roman empire: the epigraphic evidence for their observance during the first three centuries’,
YCS 7: 223-317 - 95. Syme, R. (1939)
The Roman revolution . Oxford - 96. Syme, R. (1958)
Tacitus . Oxford - 97. Vervaet, F. (2010) ‘The secret history: the official position of imperator Caesar Divi filius from 31 to 27 BCE’,
Ancient Society 40: 79-152 - 98. Viparelli, V. (ed.) (2003)
Tra Strategie retoriche e generi letterari: dieci studi di letteratura latina . Naples - 99. Vogt, J. (1936) ‘Tacitus und die Unparteilichkeit des Historikers’,
Würzburger Studien 9: 1-20 - 100. Walbank, F. W. (1957-79)
A historical commentary on Polybius . Oxford - 101. Walker, B. (1960)
The Annals of Tacitus: a study in the writing of history . 2nd edn. Manchester - 102. Wallace-Hadrill, A. (1982) ‘Civilis princeps: between citizen and king’,
JRS 72: 32-48 - 103. Wardle, D. (2005) ‘Suetonius and Augustus’ “programmatic edict”’,
RhM 148: 181-201 - 104. Wardle, D. (2014)
Suetonius: Life of Augustus: Vita divi Augusti . Oxford - 105. Wimmel, W. (1961) ‘Roms Schicksal im Eingang der taciteischen Annalen’,
AuA 10: 35-52 - 106. Wirszubski, C. (1950)
Libertas as a political idea at Rome during the late republic and early principate . Cambridge - 107. Witte, B. (1963)
Tacitus über Augustus . Münster - 108. Wiseman, T. P. (2019)
The house of Augustus: a historical detective story . Princeton-Oxford - 109. Wölfflin, E. (1868) ‘II. Jahresberichte. 32a. Tacitus. Ausgaben und Erläuterungen. Zweiter Artikel’,
Philologus 26: 92-166 - 110. Woodman, A. J. (1983)
Velleius Paterculus: the Caesarian and Augustan narrative (2.41-93) . Cambridge - 111. Woodman, A. J. (2004)
Tacitus: the Annals. Translated with an introduction and notes. Indianapolis-Cambridge - 112. Woodman, A. J. (2017)
The Annals of Tacitus, books 5 and 6 . Cambridge - 113. Woodman, A. J. (2018)
The Annals of Tacitus, book 4 . Cambridge - 114. Woodman, A. J. / Kraus, C. S. (2014)
Tacitus: Agricola . Cambridge - 115. Woodman, A. J. / Martin, R. H. (1996)
The Annals of Tacitus, book 3 . Cambridge - 116. Yardley, J. C. / Barrett, A. A. (2011)
Velleius Paterculus: the Roman history from Romulus and the foundation of Rome to the reign of the emperor Tiberius . Indianapolis-Cambridge - 117. Zetzel, J. E. G. (1995)
Cicero De re publica: selections . Cambridge