Luck or Piousness: Augustus and his Relations With the Gods
In Ancient Rome, gods and goddesses were essential to most people living under the Empire. The Roman Empire was first run by Augustus, formerly known as Gaius Octavius. Along with Mark Antony and Marcus Lepidus, he formed the Second Triumvirate in 43 CE. When that fell apart, Augustus came to power in 6 only six years. In Ancient Rome, leaders rose and fell swiftly. To ensure that Augustus kept his power, he made sure to take divine influences into consideration, like his adoptive father, Julius Caesar, who was declared a god. He also made a point to prove to his subjects that the gods loved him, by restoring 82 temples that had been falling apart or weren’t used. By doing this restoration, he gained
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He used them to his advantage by using superstition, restoring faith in them to gain popularity, and eventually claiming to be divine himself. Augustus used religion to uphold his auctoritas by using the power of myths, analysis of signs, and religious propaganda. When Augustus had first become imperator, Halley’s comet became apparent from Rome. Augustus used this sign to his advantage by saying it was Caesar’s soul ascending to heaven. “Early in his reign, Halley’s Comet passed over Rome. Augustus claimed it was the spirit of Julius Caesar entering heaven. If Caesar was a god then, as his heir, Augustus was the son of a god and he made sure that everybody knew it.” By using Halley’s comet in passing over Rome, enforcing that it was Julius Caesar’s spirit, he showed exactly how superstitious the Romans were. The Romans were so superstitious, they fell for this immediately. Augustus’ supposed analysis of Halley’s Comet helped his social standing with the Romans by verifying that he himself was also a god. In a Roman’s eyes, if he was a god, he would always be the proper leader. This comet was an analysis of a sign. Augustus used