I believe that being a beloved leader has a huge effect on being a better ruler. In 44 B. C. Julius Caesar was assassinated by his senate chamber. Soon his nephew and adopted son, Gaius Octavian, would join forces with Mark Anthony and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus into a three-way dictatorship. This transformed Rome from being a Monarchy into being a dictatorship. Lepidus left Rome soon after Octavian began reign and went on to lead parts of Africa and Hispania. In 37 B. C. Mary Anthony met Cleopatra.
They fell in love and Mark followed her back to Egypt. Octavian took reign over Rome and obtained the name, Augustus Caesar. Mark Anthony and Augustus became enemies and war broke out between Rome and Egypt. This is one reason why I believe that Augustus was such a beloved leader. The main change that Augustus brought to Rome that made him so powerful was the change in government. He changed Rome from being the Roman Republic with a senate to a dictatorship with an Emperor. This form of government lasted for centuries.
He said: “May it be my privilege to have the happiness of establishing the commonwealth on a firm and secure basis and thus enjoy the reward which I desire, but only if I may be called the author of the best possible government; and bear with me the hope when I die that the foundations which I have laid for its future government, will stand firm and stable. ”— Augustus Caesar (http://janusquirinus. org/essays/Augustus1. html). But, Augustus was not perfect. Soon after entering into the emperor position, he faced four major problems.
He needed to secure the borders of Rome from attack, set up a stable and reliable senate, the army had grown too large, and urban farmers were having problems with their slaves wanting freedom. They were all tough and hard decisions for him, but Augustus was very knowledgeable and succeeded in finding solutions to all of these problems. He reduced the size of the army and provided money to the men who had served in war for more than twenty years. The Romans admired Augustus and saw him as a beloved leader.
Augustus was the first emperor of Rome and he began the Pax Romania. This is the time of peace during Rome. The citizens of Rome viewed Augustus as a hero, sometimes even as a god. He started the first standing army of Rome. For the military, he pushed territory into Germany and present-day France. He also built many incredible architectural buildings in Rome including aqueducts and coliseums. Augustus ruled the Roman Empire for 45 years until his death in 14B. C. Augustus was a peaceful leader of Rome unlike the fifth emperor, Emperor Nero.
Although he wasn’t known as a good ruler he did play an important role on the history of Rome. He was born into the imperial family of Rome. His mom began pushing high standers onto him as just a young child. It was her biggest dream for her son to someday become the emperor of all of Rome. His dad died when Nero was at the young age of four. He was raised by his mother Agrippina. Agrippina wanted her son to reign so badly that she seduced her uncle Claudius, the fourth emperor of Rome, and soon became his wife.
This gave Nero the possibility of becoming the next emperor. Agrippina poisoned her husband Claudius, and in no time Nero became the fifth emperor of Rome at the age of sixteen. As you can already tell Agrippina did not want her son on the -throne for any of the right reasons. When Nero became ruler he decided to share his power with his mother. History says that they began a relationship. I believe it’s because of her forcing it on him but who knows. Archeologists have found coins with a picture of both of them on it.
Nero became violent as he grew older and ended up killing his stepbrother and his own mother just to get the air of the throne! I believe that this would have made the people of Rome feel insincere about their safety. When he was older he abused his power over others and would abuse slaves. He developed an obsession for food and would overindulge during most of his meals. He would often hold shows in theaters and force people to watch him act and sing as he locked them in. Women gave birth during his shows and some people faked being dead just to be dragged out of it.
Some people even went as far as jumping off the ledge of the theater to their death. These plays would go on for several days without any breaks. He attempted to set fire to Rome just so he could rebuild the city. In my opinion, the action that Nero is most known for is for persecuting of Jews. Nero would crucify Jews for spreading Christianity throughout Rome. Nero was the persecutor of the apostle’s Paul and Peter. Nero was a violent leader and a leader who was definitely, not beloved. In conclusion, being a leader that is beloved has a huge effect on being a better leader.
For example, Augustus Caesar was so favored that his name was passed on through all the emperors all the way up to 476A. D. The roman citizen would hold festivals just in honor of Augustus. They loved Augustus which made Rome a happier place all in all. In the other hand, Nero made Rome become a dark and violent empire. I believe that good rulers always work their hardest to please their people and have positive influences on them. People want a leader who encourages them and is always striving to help the empire grow stronger.
