Y12 Roman/Julio-Claudians Points Test 8 – Tiberius Religion Orders and Succession Flashcards
How did Tiberius deal with religion in Rome/Italy/Provinces in general? (any relevant point for 3 marks).
- In general religious policy, Tiberius keen to enforce a respect for tradition – Tacitus annals 2.49 (restoration of temples)
- To increase dignity of priestly office and encourage candidates, a gift of 20,000 sesterces was decreed to Cornelia, a newly appointed Vestal
- When Asinius Gallus proposed that Sibylline books should be consulted in connection with the Tiber floods of 15, Tiberius rejected the suggestion – Tiberius very much against unnecessary use of religion
- In 16, following trial of Libo Drusus, astrologers expelled from Italy by decree of senate, while 2 astrologers (L. Pituanius and P. Marcius), who had advised Libo, were executed
- Consultation of haruspices (who observed entrails of beasts) was banned except in presence of witnesses
- In 19, Jews and worshippers of Egyptian goddess Isis were expelled; apostasy was offered to Jews as an alternative which supports Dio’s assertion that principle motive was concern at growth of proselytism in Rome; 4,000 able-bodied Jews of freedman stock shipped off to Sardinia to be employed in suppression of brigandage
- At an unknown date, perhaps after Gallic revolt of 21, Tiberius suppresses Druidism, which might serve as a focal point for nationalist feeling.
What was Tiberius’ attitude to the Imperial Cult? (any relevant point for 4 marks).
- Tiberius repeatedly refused divine honours for himself at the start of his reign: by his accession, both Julius Caesar and Augustus had been deified and so the imperial cult was now part of the religious life of the empire.
- Various cities competed to worship Tiberius, presumably to signify allegiance.
- As with Augustus, there is evidence that aspects of this worship were tolerated in Rome (see the genius of Tiberius Inscription, L6 Lactor Tiberius).
- We also have an inscription from the Greek city of Gytheion in the Peloponnese from 15AD, asking permission to offer divine honours to Tiberius and the imperial family.
- Tiberius is quite firm in his rejection of such honours.
- Tiberius and leading members of family feature prominently in cult of Augustus: new college of sod ales Augustales comprised 21 senators chosen by lot, together with Tiberius, Drusus, Germanicus, and Claudius
- Worship of Augustus actively encouraged in provinces – 15 AD Tarraco in Spain given permission to build temple to dead princeps
- 25 AD – Cyzicus loses freedom because shrine of Augustus that the city had begun to build had not been completed and Roman citizens had been imprisoned
- Tiberius refused temples, priests, and statues at Rome
- Gaul most prolific in dedications
- In lifetime of Augustus, Tiberius included in imperial cult at Lugdunum
- Altar to Augustus and Tiberius in Vienna
- Tiberius linked with Jupiter in Aquitania
- Dedication from Nasicum in Belgica honours not only Tiberius but also the ‘divine house’
- Numerous inscriptions from Greece and Asia Minor honour him as a god – lots of dedications in the east
- Germanicus, Agrippina, Drusus and his wife and sons, Livia all worshipped too across the empire
- Tiberius could do little to reduce this worship.
What was Tiberius’ attitude to the Senate in general? (any relevant point for 4 marks).
- It is clear Tiberius did not enjoy particularly good relations with any ranks of society.
- Despite efforts to work with the Senate, from the very outset the relationship was full of difficulty.
- Tacitus (Annals, 3.65) remarks that Tiberius viewed them as ‘Men primed for slavery!’.
- The Senate as a body seemed Sycophantic (Annals, 4.74), but ultimately of limited political significance.
- Tiberius had sought collegiality, but either through unwillingness or inability, the Senate had failed to deliver.
- His exasperation with them as a group becomes clear throughout his reign.
Why did Tiberius seek the support of Senate at the start of his reign? (any relevant point for 3 marks).
- If Augustus’ Principate was to continue to appear legitimate, it was necessary for Tiberius to rule with the full co-operation of the Senate.
- R. Syme maintains that he was genuine when he professed, at the beginning of his reign, his intention to govern as a true princeps.
- Tiberius needed the Senate’s help. Running the empire was an enormous task; it was not until the time of Claudius that a centralised bureaucracy handled most of the business of the empire.
- Also, Tiberius preferred to have an independent body helping him, since he appeared to have been genuinely hesitant about the responsibility.
How did Tiberius try to treat the Senate well and act with humility towards them? (any relevant point for 3 marks).
• Like Augustus, Tiberius attempted to uphold the traditional rights of the Senate, as well as treat it with dignity as a partner in the running of the empire. Even Tacitus admits that this was the case before the death of Drusus in 23BC.
• Tiberius sought the Senate for advice even in matters that were not its concern.
• Tiberius showed courtesy and respect when addressing not only individual senators but the House as a whole, and stood in the presence of the consuls… “Tiberius made a habit of always allowing the consuls the initiative, as though the Republic still existed.”
• Any titles which the nobility might have found offensive, such as ‘imperator’ or ‘Father of the Country’ were rejected.
• He refused to have a month called after him, and he refused to have any temples constructed for him, and he refused all flattery.
“He vetoed all bills for the dedication of temples and priests to his divinity, and reserved the right to sanction even the setting up of his statues and busts…such was his hatred of flatterers that he refused the let senators approach his litter, whether in greeting or in business…and if anyone, either in conversation or in a speech, spoke of him in too fulsome terms, Tiberius would interrupt and sternly correct the phrase.”(Suetonius, Tiberius 26-27).
How did Tiberius increase the power of the Senate? (any relevant point for 4 marks).
- He enlarged and developed some of the senate’s duties. Under him the Senate became practically the only legislative body after AD14, as he transferred the election of magistrates to it from the people’s assemblies.
- Although he followed Augustus’ example of commending candidates for election, he did it on a smaller scale and competition in the senate for official positions became a real contest, without the opportunity for electoral bribery that had occurred in the assembly.
- Tiberius never overrode the normal electoral system.
- Under Tiberius the Senate became the chief criminal court, particularly for treason trials. In theory it retained wide powers over the provinces and the state treasury, and it had increased administrative duties.
- He was anxious to retain worthy men in the Senate, and if any of them had fallen on hard times he was inclined to help them financially as in the case of Celer, to whom he awarded 1 million secterces.
- He didn’t assist those whose poverty was due to their own extravagance.
Describe instances where Tiberius clashed with the Senate? (any relevant point for 4 marks).
• He objected strongly when a young nobleman, Marcus Hortensius, who had been given 1 million secterces by Augustus to marry and have a family, asked for assistance from the floor of the Senate.
“If every poor man is to come here…and start requesting money for his children, the applicants will never be satisfied and and the nation’s finances will collapse. When our ancestors authorised senators to digress sometimes from their subject-mater and raise matters of public importance when it was their turn to speak, this was not to enable us to promote our own private interests and personal finances.” (Annals).
• When this speech was received in silence, Tiberius announced that he would give each of Hortensius’ children 200,000 secterces each.
• Tiberius invited the senate to discuss provincial petitions from delegations of Ephesians and Magnesians, and from many other cities.
• Tacitus points out, however, and “the extensive material and local rivalries proved wearisome”, and the Senate asked the consuls to carry out investigations for them and then to report back.
• Tiberius also sent a letter to the senators “blaming them (by implication) for referring all their difficulties to him”, referring to the indecision of choosing a governor of Africa.
• They had requested Tiberius to make the choice: when he chose two names, Lepidus and Blaesus, the senate (according to Tacitus) chose Blaesus as he was Sejanus’ uncle.
• He encouraged the Senate to be independent, and on a few occasions it did overrule him.
• Suetonius says “if decrees were passed in defiance of his wishes, he abstained from complaint”, and once, when a motion was being voted on, “he went into a minority lobby and not a soul followed him.” (Tiberius, 31).
Why was the Senate subservient to Tiberius and why did this irritate him? (any relevant point for 4 marks).
- However, generally the senators were subservient. Tacitus had complained that in Augustus’ reign “opposition did not exist” and that the senate was filled with men “who found that slavish obedience was the way to succeed politically.” This servility increased under Tiberius.
- According to Tacitus, all ex-consuls, most ex-praetors and even many junior senators competed with each other’s offensively sycophantic proposals.
- Tiberius complained every time he left the Senate House that the senators were “men fit to be slaves.”
- Syme maintains that Tiberius was thirty years out of touch in his expectations of an independent Senate, “for he had seldom seen the senate since his praetorship in 16BC and forgot (or tried to forget) how far that body had been corrupted and debased by Caesar Augustus.”
- It is possible that in the early part of his reign Tiberius’ temperament and hesitant attitude unnerved senators, who never really knew what he was thinking. Tacitus often refers to his cryptic manner of speaking. Senators apparently preferring not to take chances by speaking their minds. In fact, Tiberius generally respected those who spoke openly and frankly but was unable to impart this to the Senate, because of his manner.
- Because there was no clear definition of the crime of treason, the distinction between it and free speech was unclear.
- Senators were not prepared to take up contentious issues as a result. As treason trials increased, so too did this.
Why did Tiberius’s relationship with the Senate worsen due to Sejanus after he left for Capri? (any relevant point for 3 marks).
- Senators refused the power wielded by Sejanus as commander of the PG, and his influence over Tiberius.
- When Tiberius retired to Capri, Sejanus interfered in public business, influencing the decisions of both Tiberius and the Senate. He also began a series of public prosecutions of any friends of Germanicus or his family. Senators, afraid for their own safety “sought relief in flattery. Though assembled to consider some unrelated business, they voted the erection of altars to Mercy and Friendship – the latter to be flanked by statues of Tiberius and Sejanus.”(annals).
- The once proud senators also begged Tiberius and Sejanus to come to Rome, and went down to Campania when this didn’t occur, waiting days for an audience, and only returned to Rome when this wasn’t granted.
- Even after Sejanus’ fall, Tiberius didn’t return to Rome, was impatient and disappointed at the Senate and increasingly irritated at their lack of independence.
Describe incidents when senators resisted Tiberius? (any relevant point for 3 marks).
- There had been some individual cases of independent behaviour in the senate, such as by the distinguished lawyer Marcus Antistius Labeo. However, this independence won him no imperial favour, and he never rose above the rank of praetor as a result.
- Aulua Cremutius Cordus also wasn’t afraid to say what he thought, accused of defending Brutus in his History and referring to Cassius as ‘the last of the Romans.’
- He defended himself bravely, pointing out that Julius Caesar and Augustus did not condemn writers for their words but “endured them and let them be.” However, when he finished and left the senate, he killed himself because his condemnation appeared certain, since the prosecutors were dependents of Sejanus and Tiberius’ face was grim as he listened to the defence.
- The Senate ordered Cremutius’ books to be burnt.
Describe Tiberius’ relations with the Plebeians? (any relevant point for 3 marks).
- Tiberius’ relationships with the plebs was never strong.
- A virtually reclusive princeps who was cautious with money did not sit well with a populace conditioned to the generosity of Augustus.
- Suetonius informs us that large-scale generosity was rare (Tiberius 47-48), while Tacitus notes that he took steps against Luxury (Annals 3.55).
- However, this meant that he had the funds to deal with the fires in Rome as well as provide earthquake relief and tax remission for the provinces of Asia.
- His successor Gaius inherited a cash surplus.
- Although Velleius Paterculus would have us believe Tiberius was very generous (2.129.3), the contemporary perception of him was not positive.
- Suetonius (75) records the unbridled joy when news of his death reached Rome, accompanied with shouts of ‘To the Tiber with Tiberius!’.
- However, Tiberius’ portrayal is perhaps unfairly biased. He probably was an unpopular emperor, but anyone who followed Augustus would have suffered by the comparison.
- Tiberius was a competent administrator and a careful financier. He even attempted to seem modest, such as through his refusal of the title ‘Father of the Fatherland’ (Tacitus, Annals 1.72).
- However, he suffered from his inability to play the role of princeps in the same way as Augustus.
Why was Tiberius’ succession difficult for him to arrange? (any relevant point for 3 marks).
- Tiberius has hesitated over making a decision about the succession, although within the imperial family there were three possible candidates: Tiberius Gemellus, Gaius and Claudius. Tacitus said that ‘Tiberius feared to nominate a successor outside the imperial house might bring contempt and humiliation upon Augustus’ memory.’
- Tiberius had made his grandson Tiberius Gemellus joint heir with his grandnephew Gaius.
- Gemellus, however, was still too young, although Tiberius may have hoped to live long enough for the boy to succeed him.
- On the other hand, Gaius (the last and youngest son of Germanicus) was in ‘the prime of early manhood’ and have been taken to live with Tiberius on Capri aged 19.
- Although given no formal or public training for being princeps, he had won the support of Macro, the new prefect of the PG.
- The other candidate Claudius was already middle-aged and ‘his weak-mindedness was an objection’ (Annals).
Describe Tiberius’ death? (any relevant point for 3 marks).
- When it appeared that Tiberius was dying, Macro organised the sending of messages to provincial governors and generals to notify them of Gaius’ accession.
- He was also supposed to have helped Gaius hasten the death of Tiberius by ordering him to be smothered.
- Tiberius died in March AD 37, aged 78.
Describe Tiberius’ legacy according to Tacitus? (any relevant point for 3 marks).
• Tacitus’ treatment of Tiberius is excessively harsh and he has often been criticised for ‘rewriting another tyrant’ because ‘he was unable to shake off the memory of the last years under Domitian.’ (Syme).
• However, Syme himself argues that this is too simple an explanation of his bias against Tiberius. The tradition which survives about Tiberius – reflected in Suetonius and Cassius Dio as well as Tacitus – is uniformly hostile. Syme maintains that Tacitus faithfully recorded the documentary evidence, but could not refrain from ‘adding his own commentary and reconstruction in generous measure in order to heighten the colours and shapes of the outlines.’ Tacitus’ Tiberius therefore appears to be…
“Composed of layers. [There is] the Tiberius of History…there is the Tiberius of the hostile senatorial tradition…this composite has been endowed by Tacitus with some of the features and colours of Domitian. As a further refinement it has been modelled on those archetypal tyrants to be found in the philosophers and tragic poets.” (Syme).
• Although there are discrepancies between the facts recorded by Tacitus and his interpretation of them, it is possible from a careful reading of the Annals and the other ancient sources to arrive at a more realistic picture of ‘The Republican Princeps to whom destiny awarded the inheritance of Caesar Augustus.’ (Syme).
• In building up his picture of Tiberius, Tacitus ‘disclosed more than he intended’ and ‘certain features of the Tacitean Tiberius, detestable on a superficial view, carried praise, not blame.’
• Tacitus believed, as did many of the ancients, that man’s nature never changed and that although it could be suppressed or disguised for a time, it would eventually come to the surface.
• Therefore, if Tiberius ended his life as an evil man, he must always have had evil tendencies.
• Tacitus outlined what he considered to have been the various stages through which Tiberius’ character was revealed…
“His character, too, had its different stages. While he was a private citizen or holding commands under Augustus, his life was blameless; and so was his reputation. While Germanicus and Drusus still lived, he concealed his real self, cunningly affecting virtuous qualities. However, until his mother died there was good in Tiberius as well as evil. Again, as long as he favoured (or feared) Sejanus, the cruelty of Tiberius was detested but his perversions unrevealed. Then fear vanished, and with it shame. Thereafter he expressed only his own personality – by unrestrained infamy.” (Annals)
• Tacitus has described Tiberius as cryptic, secretive, cloaking his thoughts, keeping his true motives hidden, repressing his feelings, deceptive, dissembling, hypocritical, insincere, crafty, resentful, cruel, grim, terrifying, arrogant, morose, hesitant and secretly sensual.
Why did Tiberius arguably find it difficult to be emperor/princeps? (any relevant point for 3 marks).
- It is important to remember the conditions under which Tiberius assumed, and then ruled, the Principate:
- Member of Patrician gens: political opportunists traditionally (e.g. Livia?).
- A general, rather than a politician (conservative in tastes, with respect for tradition).
- His father a republican, who had fought against Octavian (holding republican sympathies?).
- Father forced to give Livia up to Octavian: mother married to declared enemy of the aristocracy (bearing personal resentments from a young age?).
- Younger brother Drusus preferred by Augustus (aloof – feelings hidden?).
- Suffered the various dynastic arrangements made by Augustus – expected to serve Gaius and Lucius, for example (dutiful, yet perhaps resentful?).
- Forced to divorce his much-loved wife Vipsania to marry the adulterous Julia; voluntary retirement to Rhodes which Augustus resented (sense of duty; bitterness?).
- Eventually but unwillingly accepted as heir by Augustus, but adopted with Brutish Agrippa Posthumous: forced to adopt Germanicus (learned to hide feelings).
- Suffered death of his son Drusus, and the rivalries of the imperial women and the hostility of Agrippina and her friends, as well as the treachery of Sejanus, his most trusted partner (betrayed, suspicious, vindictive, morose, grim, suspicious?).
