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74-793: The Roman Imperial and later the Byzantine presence manifested in a series of evolving but defined administrative provinces. In the late Republic (starting in the mid-2nd century BC) through the Principate and the Crisis of the Third Century , these were: After Diocletian's formation of the Tetrarchy , the Diocese of Africa was the overarching imperial administration of North Africa, excluding Mauretania Tingitana. Byzantine North Africa (AD 533 through ca. 698/700)

148-468: A check on the power of any one individual, in accordance with the republican belief that the powers of the former kings of Rome should be spread out into multiple offices. To that end, each consul could veto the actions of the other consul. After the establishment of the Empire (27 BC), the consuls became mere symbolic representatives of Rome's republican heritage and held very little power and authority, with

222-434: A consul could inflict any punishment he saw fit on any soldier, officer, citizen, or ally. Each consul commanded an army, usually two legions strong, with the help of military tribunes and a quaestor who had financial duties. In the rare case that both consuls marched together, each one held the command for a day respectively. A typical consular army was about 20,000 men and consisted of two citizen and two allied legions. In

296-399: A law, the lex curiata de imperio . If a consul died during his term (not uncommon when consuls were in the forefront of battle) or was removed from office, another would be elected by the comitia centuriata to serve the remainder of the term as consul suffectus ("suffect consul"). A consul elected to start the year—called a consul ordinarius ("ordinary consul")—held more prestige than

370-659: A part of the rite of proclamation of a new emperor from Justin II (r. 565–578) on, and is last attested in the proclamation of the future Constans II (r. 641–668) as consul in 632. In the late 9th century, Emperor Leo the Wise (r. 886–912) finally abolished the office in Novel 94 of his Basilika . By that time, the Greek titles for consul and ex-consul, " hypatos " and " apo hypaton ", had been transformed to relatively lowly honorary dignities. In

444-479: A paternalistic ideology , presenting the princeps as the very incarnation of all virtues attributed to the ideal ruler (much like a Greek tyrannos earlier), such as clemency and justice, and military leadership, obliging the princeps to play this designated role within Roman society, as his political insurance as well as a moral duty. What specifically was expected of the princeps seems to have varied according to

518-474: A suffect consul, partly because the year would be named for ordinary consuls (see consular dating ). According to tradition, the consulship was initially reserved for patricians and only in 367 BC did plebeians win the right to stand for this supreme office, when the Licinio-Sextian rogations provided that at least one consul each year should be plebeian. The first plebeian consul, Lucius Sextius ,

592-413: Is most likely a later gloss of the term, which probably derives—in view of the joint nature of the office—from con- and sal- , "get together" or from con- and sell-/sedl- , "sit down together with" or "next to". In Greek , the title was originally rendered as στρατηγὸς ὕπατος , strategos hypatos ("the supreme general"), and later simply as ὕπατος ( hypatos ). The consulship was believed by

666-576: The cursus honorum —an ascending sequence of public offices to which politicians aspired—after that of the censor , which was reserved for former consuls. Each year, the Centuriate Assembly elected two consuls to serve jointly for a one-year term. The consuls alternated each month holding fasces (taking turns leading) when both were in Rome. A consul's imperium (military power) extended over Rome and all its provinces . Having two consuls created

740-594: The Antonine dynasty , it was standard for the Emperor to appoint a successful and politically promising individual as his successor. In modern historical analysis, this is treated by many authors as an "ideal" situation: the individual who was most capable was promoted to the position of princeps. Of the Antonine dynasty, Edward Gibbon famously wrote that this was the happiest and most productive period in human history , and credited

814-638: The Emperor acting as the supreme authority. The practice of dual leaders ( diarchy ) continues to this day in San Marino and is directly derived from the customs of the Roman Republic. Equivalent to the consuls of ancient Rome, the Captains Regent serve as dual leaders of the country. They are however not heads of government, but only heads of state without executive power. According to Roman tradition, after

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888-532: The Latin word princeps , meaning chief or first , and therefore represents the political regime dominated by such a political leader, whether or not he is formally head of state or head of government . This reflects the principate emperors' assertion that they were merely " first among equals " among the citizens of Rome. Under the Republic, the princeps senatus , traditionally the oldest or most honored member of

962-496: The Second Celtiberian War , from 153 BC onwards the consuls took office on 1 January. The practice of dating years ab urbe condita (from the supposed foundation date of Rome) was less frequently used. In Latin, the ablative absolute construction is frequently used to express the date, such as " M. Messalla et M. Pupio Pisone consulibus ", translated literally as "With Marcus Messalla and Marcus Pupius Piso (being)

1036-455: The Senate , had the right to be heard first on any debate. Scipio Aemilianus and his circle had fostered the (quasi-Platonic) idea that authority should be invested in the worthiest citizen ( princeps ), who would beneficently guide his peers, an ideal of the patriot statesman later taken up by Cicero . In a more limited and precise chronological sense, the term Principate is applied either to

1110-534: The executive power of the state and headed the government of the Republic. Initially, the consuls held vast executive and judicial power. In the gradual development of the Roman legal system, however, some important functions were detached from the consulship and assigned to new officers. Thus, in 443 BC, the responsibility to conduct the Census was taken from the consuls and given to the censors . The second function taken from

1184-485: The expulsion of the last king, Tarquin Superbus , the powers and authority of the king were given to the newly instituted consulship. Originally, consuls were called praetors ("leader"), referring to their duties as the chief military commanders. By at least 300 BC the title of consul became commonly used. Ancient writers usually derive the title consul from the Latin verb consulere , "to take counsel", but this

1258-532: The head of government , and all the other magistrates, with the exception of the tribune of the plebs , were subordinate to them, but retained independence of office. The internal machinery of the Republic was under the consuls' supervision. In order to allow the consuls greater authority in executing laws, the consuls had the right of summons and arrest, which was limited only by the right of appeal from their judgement. This power of punishment even extended to inferior magistrates. As part of their executive functions,

1332-450: The 3rd century onwards. However, the imperial consuls maintained the right to preside at meetings of the Senate. They could also administer matters of justice, and organize games ( ludi ) and all public solemnities at their own expense. Roman dates were customarily kept according to the names of the two consuls who took office that year, much like a regnal year in a monarchy. For instance,

1406-487: The 3rd century, holding an ordinary consulate was occasionally left out of the cursus inscriptions, while suffect consulships were hardly ever recorded by the first decades of the 4th century. One of the reforms of Constantine I (r. 306–337) was to assign one of the consuls to the city of Rome , and the other to Constantinople . Therefore, when the Empire was divided into two halves on the death of Theodosius I (r. 379–395),

1480-469: The Romans to date back to the traditional establishment of the Republic in 509 BC, but the succession of consuls was not continuous in the 5th century BC, when the consulship was supposedly replaced with a board of consular tribunes , which was elected whenever the military needs of the state were significant enough to warrant the election of more than the usual two consuls. These remained in place until

1554-410: The Senate and foreign states. The consuls could convene the Senate, and presided over its meetings. The consuls served as president of the Senate, one at a time, alternating every month. They could also summon any of the three Roman assemblies (Curiate, Centuriate, and Tribal) and presided over them. Thus, the consuls conducted the elections and put legislative measures to the vote. When neither consul

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1628-405: The Senate's selections. The emperor did not assume the consulship of every year of his reign, but did nominate himself multiple times; Augustus was consul 13 times, Domitian 17, and Theodosius II 18. The proliferation of suffect consuls through this process, and the allocation of this office to homines novi tended, over time, to devalue the office. However, the high regard placed upon

1702-401: The axes from the fasces to show that a citizen could not be executed without a trial. Upon entering the comitia centuriata , the lictors would lower the fasces to show that the powers of the consuls derive from the people. Outside the walls of Rome, the powers of the consuls were far more extensive in their role as commanders-in-chief of all Roman legions . It was in this function that

1776-458: The campaign with spoils. If the consul won an overwhelming victory, he was hailed as imperator by his troops, and could request to be granted a triumph . The consul could conduct the campaign as he saw fit, and had unlimited powers. However, after the campaign, he could be prosecuted for his misdeeds (for example for abusing the provinces, or wasting public money, as Scipio Africanus was accused by Cato in 205 BC). Abuse of power by consuls

1850-410: The celebrations attending it—above all the chariot races —had come to involve considerable expense; part of the expense had to be covered by the state. At times the consulship was given to teenagers or even children, as in the cases of Varronianus , Valentinianus Galates , Olybrius Junior , and the children of the emperor. In the 6th century, the consulship was increasingly sparsely given, until it

1924-430: The consuls prior to Sextius had plebeian, not patrician, names. It is possible that only the chronology has been distorted, but it seems that one of the first consuls, Lucius Junius Brutus , came from a plebeian family. Another possible explanation is that during the 5th-century social struggles, the office of consul was gradually monopolized by a patrician elite. During times of war, the primary qualification for consul

1998-416: The consuls was subordinate to the dictator. After Augustus became the first Roman emperor in 27 BC with the establishment of the Principate , the consuls lost most of their powers and responsibilities. Though still officially the highest office of the state, they were merely a symbol of Rome's republican heritage. One of the two consular positions was often occupied by emperors themselves, especially from

2072-439: The consuls were responsible for carrying into effect the decrees of the Senate and the laws of the assemblies . Sometimes, in great emergencies, they might act on their own authority and responsibility. The consuls also served as the chief diplomats of the Roman state. Before any foreign ambassadors reached the Senate, they met with the consuls. The consul would introduce ambassadors to the Senate, and they alone negotiated between

2146-516: The consuls were vested with full imperium . When legions were ordered by a decree of the Senate, the consuls conducted the levy in the Campus Martius . Upon entering the army, all soldiers had to take their oath of allegiance to the consuls. The consuls also oversaw the gathering of troops provided by Rome's allies. Within the city a consul could punish and arrest a citizen, but had no power to inflict capital punishment. When on campaign, however,

2220-453: The consuls", with 'being' implied, as it appears in Caesar's De Bello Gallico . Consular Dating Key In Roman inscriptions, the word consul was abbreviated cos . The disappearance of the ⟨N⟩ was based on the classical Latin pronunciation of the word as /kõːsul/ or [ko:sul] since an /n/ sound before a fricative was omitted or solely nasalized the previous vowel instead. The word

2294-446: The consulship and the office of rex sacrorum . While the rex sacrorum inherited the kings' position as royal priest and various religious functions were handed off to the pontiffs , the consuls were given the remaining civil and military responsibilities. To prevent abuse of the kingly power, this authority was shared by two consuls, each of whom could veto the other's actions, with short annual terms. The consuls were invested with

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2368-412: The consulship was their judicial power . Their position as chief judges was transferred to the praetors in 366 BC. After this time, the consul would only serve as judges in extraordinary criminal cases and only when called upon by decree of the Senate. For the most part, power was divided between civil and military spheres. As long as the consuls were in the pomerium (the city of Rome), they were at

2442-530: The division by the Augustan Principate of the provinces between imperial provinces and senatorial provinces . Lawyers developed a theory of the total delegation of authority into the hands of the emperor. Roman consul A consul was the highest elected public official of the Roman Republic ( c.  509 BC to 27 BC). Romans considered the consulship the second-highest level of

2516-515: The early years of the Republic, Rome's enemies were located in central Italy, so campaigns lasted a few months. As Rome's frontiers expanded, in the 2nd century BC, the campaigns became more lengthy. Rome was a warlike society and very seldom did not wage war. So the consul upon entering office was expected by the Senate and the People to march his army against Rome's enemies, and expand the Roman frontiers. His soldiers expected to return to their homes after

2590-456: The emperor of each half acquired the right of appointing one of the consuls—although on occasion an emperor did allow his colleague to appoint both consuls for various reasons. In the Western Empire , some Eastern consuls were never recognized by the emperor, who became a puppet of powerful generals such as Stilicho . The consulship, bereft of any real power, continued to be a great honor, but

2664-436: The end of his consulship. Transferring his consular imperium to proconsular imperium , the consul would become a proconsul and governor of one (or several) of Rome's many provinces. As a proconsul, his imperium was limited to only a specified province and not the entire Republic. Any exercise of proconsular imperium in any other province was illegal. Also, a proconsul was not allowed to leave his province before his term

2738-412: The end of the 3rd century, much had changed. The loss of many pre-consular functions and the gradual encroachment of the equites into the traditional senatorial administrative and military functions, meant that senatorial careers virtually vanished prior to their appointment as consuls. This had the effect of seeing a suffect consulship granted at an earlier age, to the point that by the 4th century, it

2812-511: The entire Empire (in the sense of the post-Republican Roman state), or specifically to the earlier of the two phases of Imperial government in the ancient Roman Empire before Rome's military collapse in the West ( fall of Rome ) in 476 left the Byzantine Empire as sole heir. This early Principate phase began when Augustus claimed auctoritas for himself as princeps , and continued (depending on

2886-431: The exhausting civil wars by a de facto dictatorial regime within the constitutional framework of the Roman Republic – what Gibbon called "an absolute monarchy disguised by the forms of a commonwealth" – as a more acceptable alternative to, for example, the early Roman Kingdom . Although dynastic pretenses crept in from the start, formalizing this in a monarchic style remained politically perilous; and Octavian

2960-420: The field. Two consuls were elected each year, serving together, each with veto power over the other's actions, a normal principle for magistracies. They were elected by the comitia centuriata , which also elected praetors and censors . However, they formally assumed powers only after the ratification of their election in the older comitia curiata , which granted the consuls their imperium by enacting

3034-466: The office was abolished in 367 BC and the consulship was reintroduced. Consuls had extensive powers in peacetime (administrative, legislative, and judicial), and in wartime often held the highest military command. Additional religious duties included certain rites which, as a sign of their formal importance, could only be carried out by the highest state officials. Consuls also read auguries , an essential religious ritual, before leading armies into

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3108-454: The office's duties every month and could act without direct interference. In the next month, the consuls would switch roles with one another. This would continue until the end of the consular term. Another point which acted as a check against consuls was the certainty that after the end of their term they would be called to account for their actions while in office. There were also three other restrictions on consular power. Their term in office

3182-463: The ordinary consulate remained intact, as it was one of the few offices that one could share with the emperor, and during this period it was filled mostly by patricians or by individuals who had consular ancestors. If they were especially skilled or valued, they may even have achieved a second (or rarely, a third) consulate. Prior to achieving the consulate, these individuals already had a significant career behind them, and would expect to continue serving

3256-426: The political period of the 'uncrowned' Roman Republic (509 BC–27 BC) under the motto Senatus Populusque Romanus ("The Senate and people of Rome") or SPQR . Initially, the theory implied the 'first citizen' had to earn his extraordinary position ( de facto evolving to nearly absolute monarchy) by merit in the style that Augustus himself had gained the position of auctoritas . Imperial propaganda developed

3330-430: The proconsuls of Africa and Asia, or the urban prefect of Rome. It was a post that would be occupied by a man halfway through his career, in his early thirties for a patrician, or in his early forties for most others. Emperors frequently appointed themselves, or their protégés or relatives, as consuls, even without regard to the age requirements. Caligula once said that he would appoint his horse Incitatus consul, which

3404-402: The province of senators—the automatic awarding of a suffect consulship to the equestrian praetorian prefects (who were given the ornamenta consularia upon achieving their office) allowed them to style themselves cos. II when they were later granted an ordinary consulship by the emperor. All this had the effect of further devaluing the office of consul, to the point that by the final years of

3478-599: The public and charitable institutions also served as popularity boosters, while the construction of public works provided paid employment for the poor. With the fall of the Julio-Claudian dynasty in AD 68, the principate became more formalized under the Emperor Vespasian from AD 69 onwards. The position of princeps became a distinct entity within the broader – formally still republican – Roman constitution . While many of

3552-545: The purposes of the consular elections, there came to be just a single "assembly of the people" which elected all the magisterial positions of the state, while the consuls continued to be nominated by the princeps. The imperial consulate during the Principate (until the 3rd century) was an important position, albeit as the method through which the Roman aristocracy could progress through to the higher levels of imperial administration—only former consuls could become consular legates,

3626-468: The reign of Augustus in 27 BC to the end of the Crisis of the Third Century in AD 284, after which it evolved into the Dominate . The principate was characterized by the reign of a single emperor ( princeps ) and an effort on the part of the early emperors, at least, to preserve the illusion of the formal continuance, in some aspects, of the Roman Republic . 'Principate' is etymologically derived from

3700-513: The same cultural and political expectations remained, the civilian aspect of the Augustan ideal of the princeps gradually gave way to the military role of the imperator. Rule was no longer a position (even notionally) extended on the basis of merit, or auctoritas , but on a firmer basis, allowing Vespasian and future emperors to designate their own heir without those heirs having to earn the position through years of success and public favor. Under

3774-535: The same time as that for the ordinary consuls. During reigns of the Flavian and Antonine emperors, the ordinary consuls tended to resign after a period of four months, and the elections were moved to 12 January of the year in which they were to hold office. Election of the consuls were transferred to the Senate during the Flavian or Antonine periods, although through to the 3rd century, the people were still called on to ratify

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3848-482: The servant of the Senate, and often of the whole citizen body". Thereafter, however, the role of princeps became more institutionalized: as Dio Cassius puts it, Caligula "took in one day all the honours which Augustus had with difficulty been induced to accept". Nevertheless, under this "Principate stricto sensu ", the political reality of autocratic rule by the Emperor was still scrupulously masked by forms and conventions of oligarchic self-rule inherited from

3922-436: The source) up to the rule of Commodus , of Maximinus Thrax , or of Diocletian . The title, in full, of princeps senatus / princeps civitatis ("first amongst the senators" / "first amongst the citizens") was first adopted by Octavian Caesar Augustus (27 BC–AD 14), the first Roman "emperor" who chose not to reintroduce a legal monarchy . Augustus likely intended to establish political stability desperately needed after

3996-442: The state, filling in the post upon which the state functioned. Consequently, holding the ordinary consulship was a great honor and the office was the major symbol of the still relatively republican constitution. Probably as part of seeking formal legitimacy, the break-away Gallic Empire had its own pairs of consuls during its existence (260–274). The list of consuls for this state is incomplete, drawn from inscriptions and coins. By

4070-494: The system of succession as the key factor. The autocratic elements in the Principate tended to increase over time. It was after the Crisis of the Third Century , which almost resulted in the Roman Empire's political collapse, that Diocletian firmly consolidated the trend to autocracy. He replaced the one-headed principate with the Tetrarchy ( c.  AD 300 , two Augusti ranking above two Caesares ), in which

4144-548: The times, and the observers: Tiberius , who amassed a huge surplus for the city of Rome , was criticized as a miser, while his successor Caligula was criticized for his lavish spending on games and spectacles. Generally speaking, it was expected of the Emperor to be generous but not frivolous, not just as a good ruler but also with his personal fortune (as in the proverbial "bread and circuses" – panem et circenses ) providing occasional public games, gladiators, chariot races and artistic shows. Large distributions of food for

4218-478: The troops upon their ascension and for special events; limiting senatorial control over the legions by way of controlling military provinces through "extraordinary military commands"; and using oaths to bind the military to the emperor personally. Tiberius , like Augustus , also acquired his powers piecemeal, and was proud to emphasize his place as first citizen: "a good and healthful princeps , whom you have invested with such great discretionary power, ought to be

4292-417: The vestigial pretense of the old republican forms was largely abandoned. The title of princeps disappeared, together with the concept of only one emperor. New forms of pomp and awe were deliberately used in an attempt to insulate the emperor(s) and the civil authority from the unbridled and mutinous soldiery of the mid-century. The political role of the Senate went into final eclipse, no more being heard of

4366-565: The west, the rank of consul was occasionally bestowed upon individuals by the Papacy. In 719, the title of Roman consul was offered by the Pope to Charles Martel , although he refused it. About 853, Alfred the Great , then a child aged four or five, was made a Roman consul by the Pope. Traditionally, after the expulsion of the kings, all the powers that had belonged to the kings were transferred to two offices:

4440-447: The year 59 BC in the modern calendar was called by the Romans "the consulship of Caesar and Bibulus", since the two colleagues in the consulship were Gaius Julius Caesar and Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus , although Caesar dominated the consulship so thoroughly that year that it was jokingly referred to as "the consulship of Julius and Caesar". The date the consuls took office varied: from 222 BC to 153 BC they took office 15 March, and due to

4514-457: Was allowed to lapse under Justinian I (r. 527–565): the western consulship lapsed in 534, with Decius Paulinus the last holder, and the consulship of the East in 541, with Anicius Faustus Albinus Basilius . Consular dating had already been abolished in 537, when Justinian introduced dating by the emperor's regnal year and the indiction . In the eastern court, the appointment to consulship became

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4588-404: Was being held by men in their early twenties, and possibly younger, without the significant political careers behind them that was normal previously. As time progressed, second consulates, usually ordinary, became far more common than had been the case during the first two centuries, while the first consulship was usually a suffect consulate. Also, the consulate during this period was no longer just

4662-412: Was complete or before the arrival of his successor. Exceptions were given only on special permission of the Senate. Most terms as governor lasted between one and five years. In times of crisis, when Rome's territory was in immediate danger, a dictator was appointed by the consuls for a period of no more than six months, after the proposition of the Senate. While the dictator held office, the imperium of

4736-515: Was due in part to their immense wealth, being named Pater Patriae or "father of the country " , and by having a monopoly on political power. To this, emperors would satisfy the senatorial class with appointments to the high offices and to the provinces, effectively removing threats to their power in Rome . As such, emperors went to great lengths to control and satisfy the needs of the army (their ultimate source of power) by proving gracious donatives to

4810-496: Was elected the following year. Nevertheless, the office remained largely in the hands of a few families, as only about fifteen novi homines ("new men" with no consular background) were elected to the consulship until the election of Cicero in 63 BC. Modern historians have questioned the traditional account of plebeian emancipation during the early Republic (see Conflict of the Orders ), noting for instance that about thirty percent of

4884-469: Was governed as: North Africa is particularly known for the abundance and quality of its Roman-era mosaics and for its influence on the intellectual development of Christianity in late antiquity through Carthaginian theologians such as Tertullian , Cyprian , and Augustine of Hippo . Principate The Principate was the form of imperial government of the Roman Empire from the beginning of

4958-520: Was later changed to 32 during the Empire. Beginning in the late Republic, after finishing a consular year, a former consul would usually serve a lucrative term as a proconsul , the Roman governor of one of the senatorial provinces . It would not be uncommon for the patrician consuls of the early Republic to intersperse public office with agricultural labor. In Cicero's words: in agris erant tum senatores, id est senes : 'In those days senators—that is, seniors—would live on their farms'. This practice

5032-420: Was military skill and reputation, but at all times the selection was politically charged. With the passage of time, the consulship became the normal endpoint of the cursus honorum , the sequence of offices pursued by the Roman who chose to pursue a political career. When Lucius Cornelius Sulla regulated the cursus by law, the minimum age of election to consul became 43 or 42 years of age. This age requirement

5106-401: Was obsolete by the 2nd century. Although throughout the early years of the Principate the consuls were still formally elected by the comitia centuriata , they were de facto nominated by the princeps . As the years progressed, the distinction between the comitia centuriata and the comitia populi tributa (which elected the lower magisterial positions) appears to have disappeared, and so for

5180-466: Was prevented with each consul given the power to veto his colleague consul. Therefore, except in the provinces as commanders-in-chief where each consul's power was supreme, the consuls could only act not against each other's determined will. Against the sentence of one consul, an appeal could be brought before his colleague, which, if successful, would see the sentence overturned. In order to avoid unnecessary conflicts, only one consul would actually perform

5254-481: Was probably a joke intended to belittle the Senate's authority. The need for a pool of men to fill the consular positions forced Augustus to remodel the suffect consulate, allowing more than the two elected for the ordinary consulate. During the reigns of the Julio-Claudians, the ordinary consuls who began the year usually relinquished their office mid-year, with the election for the suffect consuls occurring at

5328-412: Was short (one year); their duties were pre-decided by the Senate; and they could not stand again for election immediately after the end of their office. Usually a period of ten years was expected between consulships. After leaving office, the consuls were assigned by the Senate to a province to administer as governor . The provinces to which each consul was assigned were drawn by lot and determined before

5402-422: Was undoubtedly correct to work through established Republican forms to consolidate his power. He began with the powers of a Roman consul , combined with those of a Tribune of the plebs ; later added the role of the censor and finally became pontifex maximus as well. In addition to these legal powers, the principate was also characterized by the emperor being the " ultimate source of patronage ". This

5476-414: Was within the city, their civic duties were assumed by the praetor urbanus . Each consul was accompanied in every public appearance by twelve lictors , who displayed the magnificence of the office and served as his bodyguards. Each lictor held a fasces , a bundle of rods that contained an axe. The fasces symbolized the military power, or imperium . When inside the pomerium , the lictors removed

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