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Augustus also had to bare in mind that Marius going over the Tribunes heads had caused political downfall when he went instead to the Plebeian council. Augustus had accounted for this by ensuring that elections to public office were rigged so that only the best candidates could fill the role. This allowed many of the lower classes into politics. A shrewd move as it meant that he could both appease one large section of the populous by providing them with the opportunity to run for office, as well as giving him the chance to introduce reforms that were not as conservative in nature as the senate were used to, although Augustus himself was a conservative in outlook.
In 36 B. C Octavian (as Augustus was then known was granted the personal inviolability of the a Plebeian tribune, Sulla's reforms had shown that when make constitutional changes the tribunes could not be overlooked, Augustus knew this and took this into account. He satisfied the Patricians before when he passed the Lex Santa, which empowered him to create new Patrician families Whilst Augustus did embrace the lower class he also recognized that he had to satisfy the needs of the senatorial oligarchy. Augustus realized this in 23 B. C; he also realized that a senators ultimate ambition was to become a consul. Augustus realized that his perpetual consulship was agitating the Senate.
In 23 B. C. he resigned and arranged for republicans to become consuls for what remained. In doing this he created an opportunity for ambitious senators to take control of the consulship.
Augustus realized that in order to make the complex situation he was now in work he would have to make sacrifices to the Senate, as they were his partners in his Diarchy. Without the backing of the Senate he could just be another Caesar. When Augustus came to power he used the Arts as a way to reach out to the people. He embarked on a vast project of building and patronage of the arts which seen the era become one of the greatest cultural periods in the history of Rome (The architect Suetonias once said I found Rome built of bricks, I leave her clothed in marble) The period became known as the Golden age of Roman literature. During this time Augustus himself patronized the poets and artists. The three greatest poets of the time were Vergil, Horace and Ovid.
Vergil's Eclogues were often political in nature. In them he criticized Augustus policies of granting agricultural land to soldiers since these land grants displaced the farmers already living there. Despite this in his 4 th Eclogue he wrote a prophecy poem about the birth of Augustus the savior of the world, Vergil also wrote the Aeneid, a story which is essentially about the greatness of Rome, the Augustan age and Roman values. The Aeneid is about a Trojan named Aeneas who sets aside his personal safety in order to escort others safely out of the conflict. The message is that good Romans should sacrifice themselves for the greater good of their people and history.
Horace wrote poems that glorified the Empire and the family of Augustus. The historian Live was also patronized, as he was a proprietor of the traditional Roman values. Augustus knew that at the time it would be important to utilize upon the work of the artists of the time. He appointed Maecanus to select those worthy of patronizing, knowing that having the best and most individual artists he could use these as propaganda. These Literati could help him with one of the issues he wished to resolve, the return of traditional moral values to Rome. Traditional values like romania and virtus (patriotism and valor), both of which are on display in the Aeneid.
He knew that he could tap into the successful cultural scene in order to encourage Romans to believe that what he was doing was best for the Republic, and therefore best for their wishes. Syme, however provides us with a cautionary word before we draw conclusions, When the rule of Augustus was established, men of letters, a class whose habit it had been to attack the dominant or individual faction, appear to have been fervently on the side of the government It does not follow that the poets and historians who lent their talents to the glorification of the new order were merely the paid and compliant apologists of despotism. Although this, when considering Vergil's shift of opinion on Augustus does seem to be a likely explanation at the time it had little effect on the popularity of Augustus. Augustus also believed in the Roman value of pietas (loyalty to your family) and this became clear when he decided to appoint his favorite to succeed him.
He wanted someone from the Julian family, his family. He also used family links that he had developed to strengthen his position at the head of the army.
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