Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume II.djvu/127

AUGUSTUS 115 the war by an overwhelming defeat of Pompey, who fled to Asia (36). Lepidus, the pnly one of the triumvirs who had actually succeeded in landing in Sicily, now aspired to the govern- ment of that island ; but Octavius won over his troops, and he suffered himself to be called to Rome and consigned to submissive quiet by the appointment of pontifex maximus. Octa- vius now divided among his soldiers the lands taken from his enemies. He was received with the greatest honors at Rome, but, with his wonted hypocrisy, assumed a modest and lib- eral mien; he improved the city, and even talked of fully restoring the republican forms. But while gaining for himself the favor of the people, he steadily undermined the influence of his only remaining rival, Antony, whom he pretended to support. Much of his time in the two years that followed (35-34) was occupied in the suppression of revolts in various parts of the Roman provinces. The repudiation by Antony of his wife Octavia served to widen the breach between the triumvirs ; and soon afterward the arrogant and dangerous assump- tions of Cleopatra, who now held Antony as her complete slave, afforded Octavius the pre- text he desired. Convincing the people of the dangerous designs of the Egyptian queen, he brought about a declaration of war, defeated her and Antony in the battle of Actiutn in September, 81, rapidly followed up this vic- tory, and by the succeeding events, ending in the death of this only remaining opponent (30), he was left sole ruler of Rome, and celebrated his victories by a three days' triumph. He had some thought of laying aside his power, but in counsel with his friends Agrippa and Maecenas, the advice of the latter prevailed, probably coinciding more nearly with his own wishes, and he kept his rulership. Rome was now in complete peace. Octavius, although himself supreme, reestablished many of the old repub- lican forms, and benefited the city by numer- ous wise measures. In his seventh consulship (27), he astonished the senate by proposing to lay down the chief power and to restore en- tirely the old order of things. The senators begged him to retain his position, and he, pre- tending great reluctance, consented. This ruse was several times repeated during his life. On Jan. 16, 27, he received from the Roman people and the senate the name Augustus (the venerated or sanctified), and by this title he was generally known from this time forth. Within the next few years the powers of tri- bune, pontifex maximus, and of many other magistrates, were gradually assumed by Augus- tus, with the consent of the senate, and he be- came finally the absolute ruler of the empire. In 26 and 25 he established order in Spain, defeating the rebellious Astures and Can- tabri, who, however, afterward revolted, and were not finally subdued till 19. In 21, after four years spent at Rome, during which sev- eral conspiracies had been discovered against his life, he visited Sicily and the eastern part of the empire, establishing order everywhere. He left Agrippa, who married his daughter Ju- lia, as governor of Rome in his absence. Dur- ing this journey he visited Athens and Samos. In 20 he made a treaty with the Parthians, by which they peacefully restored standards and captives taken from Crassus (53) and Antony (36). In 16 he went to Gaul, where he re- mained three years, and established many colo- nies. Agrippa died in 12, leaving two sons, who had been adopted by Augustus and called Caius and Lucius Csesar. Within the year Julia was married again to her stepbrother Tiberius, the son of the crafty Livia, who in this year also was sent against the Pannonians and de- feated them. In 10 Augustus went again to Gaul, and at the same time sent his step- son Drusus, the younger brother of Tiberius, against the western German tribes. Drusus conquered them, but was killed by an acci- dent, and Augustus pronounced his funeral ora- tion in the senate (9). In 8 B. C. the senate flattered Augustus on his victories by nam- ing after him the month of August, before called Sextilis. A short time after this Au- gustus sent into exile his daughter Julia, whose dissolute life had become an open scandal. Her two sons had now assumed the toga viri- lis, and were looked upon as the heirs of the emperor. But Lucius died at Massilia in A. D. 2, and Caius in Lycia in 4 ; and Augustus, upon whom these family misfortunes made a deep impression, adopted Tiberius, thus fulfil- ling the desire of Livia, and sent him to con- duct a campaign against the Germans. Tibe- rius was victorious, but in the year 9 the overwhelming defeat of the Roman general Varus by Arminius lessened the value of these conquests. A period of peace now followed, and Augustus turned his attention to the af- fairs of the city, which he administered wisely and with the popular favor. In 14 his health suddenly declined, and just after taking the census, the third during his administration, he died at Nola, whither he had gone on ac- count of his illness. The period of Augustus is one of the most important in Roman history. In it flourished those men who have caused it to be named the "Augustan age of litera- ture " Catullus, Cicero, Virgil, Horace, Ovid, Tibullus, the great patron of art and letters Maecenas, and others. Augustus himself wrote several works, of which only fragments re- main. These have been collected, and a good edition of them was published by Weichert (Grimma, 1841). The emperor's rule was most beneficial to the city. He boasted that he had found it of brick and left it of marble. He encouraged all useful arts, and his laws in matters of municipal government were gen- erally admirable. In person Augustus was of middle height, with a well knit and fine fig- ure, and a quiet face, with much dignity and firmness of expression. His hair was light, his eyes large and clear. In his character tho crafty traits predominated, but he displayed in