The Development of Power in the Roman Empire (Part 1 of 3)

Introduction

The creation of the Roman Empire was one of the greatest displays of power manipulation seen in global history. At its height (117 AD), the Roman Empire spread across three continents ruled by one central government in Rome. Brutal power plays were made by officials throughout the reign of the Roman Empire which resulted in creation, development and inevitable destruction. The struggle for power ultimately resulted in the creation of this empire and through research, we found a lot of what happened through this period applies to the modern world two-thousand years later.

Three Major Influences on the Roman Empire

The Early Emperors of Rome

Civilization in the Roman Empire was based on social hierarchy. To understand how this vast empire was created, we must look at what happened at the top of the hierarchy and how it influenced the people below.

The Roman Empire was officially established in 27 BC, when Augustus Caesar united the Roman people by reforming laws, securing boarders and initiating major capital development projects. By the end of his reign, he has introduced the Pax Romana (Roman Peace agreement) which lasted for 200 years across the empire. Many believe that this peace agreement was the center force responsible for growing the empire as their attention was focused on trading and economic development. Through his life, Augustus Caesar utilized his referent and expert power to further establish the legitimate power in the Roman hierarchy. As his reign resulted in stability for the empire, he became an icon of power in the eyes of the Romans. (Mark, 2018)

While Augustus established a new internal infrastructure for the Roman Empire, his heir Tiberius continued many of the new policies despite lacking the leadership and charisma of Augustus. The same can be said for the following three heirs: Caligula, Claudius, and Nero. Through this era, the empire continued to grow however, this came to a halt when Nero’s suicide in 68 AD resulted in the first period of unrest since the ruling of Julius Caesar before Augustus. During this period, there was a major struggle for power within the Roman Empire known as The Year of the Four Emperors. (Ancient History Encyclopedia, 2018)

The Year of the Four Emperors resulted in a House of Cards style struggle for power which saw two murders and a suicide of Roman Emperors within twelve months. This struggle for power amongst the top of the hierarchy began to shake the foundation of the Roman civilization below them. This topic will be discussed in-depth in part II of The Roman Empire.

The Roman Army

The prestige and status of a Roman Caesar would be worth very little if it wasn’t for the source of Roman power, the Roman army. Any Caesar in power knew that the Roman army was what kept the Roman Empire alive. By investing the empire’s resources into it, they could conquer new cities, defend boarders and maintain peace among the region – all of which crucial in order for the Roman Empire to survive.

Under Augustus’s rule, the Imperial Roman Army was divided up into 28 legions of 5,000 men each (125,000 men). He put in place a long term growth strategy to further expand the army after his rule (Visualized, 2016). The Roman army was not only the largest army of its time, it was also the most advanced. The soldiers were very well trained with the best armour, weapons and soilders were expected to serve for at minimum 25 years. In 61 AD, 10,000 Roman troops invaded Brittan outnumbered by nearly 10:1. The advanced Roman army with carefully planned battle tactics lead an onslaught of 80,000 British warriors, later referred to as The Battle of Watling Street (Ermatinger). This again serves an example of expert and informational power, Raven’s later 6th base of power. The cultivation of this dominant Roman army was driven by the Roman culture and ways of life. (Bitesize, 2018)

Culture and Trading within the Roman Empire

For an empire to sustain an army of such size, the Romans required more than money. A major cornerstone of the Roman way of life was centered around ritualized violence such as gladiator fighting. For the first time under Augustus’s Rule, the Roman army no longer required mandatory enlistment as Rome’s combat culture created enough demand from volunteers alone. Propaganda techniques were used as the Empire offered free farmland (known as ‘colonia towns’) to old soldiers who survived their service in the army.

Life within the Roman Empire, particularly in Rome, was considered a wealthy one. What made empires so great were the many cities which produced taxable income. This income established a stable environment where craftsmen and artisans were encouraged for developing creative ideas. In order to increase these taxable incomes, the Roman Empire needed to expand to new rich territories to establish trading routes. Europe proved to be unattractive for such an expansion, where to Romans began to look East. Rome’s success first starts with the seizure of Egypt, where the land of the Nile River produced vast amounts of grain (Frankopan). The mass imports of grain from the river Nile to Rome decreased the overall price of grain, which resulted in the interest rates dropping from 12 – 4% in Rome. The low interest rates created a huge surge in capital development across Rome. The Roman Empire proceeded to develop new trading routes to new territories across eastern Asia. The taxable income produced from these new developments was sent back to the city of Rome, to where its patrons enjoyed it. At this time, with a happy populous amongst the empire, Rome remained to be one of the most powerful states seen throughout our history books.

Conclusion

Today we may not see the same brutalist attitudes found in medieval Roman culture however, there are some very important strategies that can be learned from. Perhaps the most prevalent strategy that grew the Roman empire was due to their expansion to Egypt. With the wealth created from their new source of grain produce, the Roman economy soared solidifying their dominance in the early centuries. Even with officials fighting for the Emperor title at the top of the hierarchy, the infrastructure of the established empire allowed it to survive.

If we look to Nations across the world today, countries and organizations are all scurrying to find and capture resources as valuable as Egypt was to Rome. I believe that information is now the modern ‘grain’ that the Romans once profited off. Companies such as Google gather huge masses of information which help the organization predict many things. All we know for certain is, like the Roman Empire, that nothing lasts forever.