CANCELED Lecture - Augusto, Re di Roma

Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian Augustus (63 b.c. - 14 a.d.), was the first Roman emperor who brought the Empire to its full glory. His reign coincided with a period of peace, economic prosperity and great cultural flourishing, it was known as the Augustan age. He was not tall and, unlike Julius Caesar, he was never at the forefront of battles. Romans viewed him as the perfect family father but it seems that he did not scorn the young ladies company, besides the one of his wife. However, due to adultery he had his daughter Giulia sentenced to exile. These elements are enough to understand how controversial was Octavian Augustus’personality, a skilled strategist and a great politician. Beyond any ethical judgment about his behavior, we can only note that we are faced with a winner, the emperor who was able to transform Rome "from a city of bricks to a city of marble", therefore, as the Latins would say: ubi maior, minor cessat.