Cold Open

It’s September 46 BCE in the Field of Mars, a parade ground in the heart of the city of Rome.

On the back of a magnificent white horse, 17-year-old Roman nobleman Octavian rides past ranks of soldiers in gleaming armor to salute the day’s guest of honor: the 54-year-old Roman General and Octavian’s great uncle, Julius Caesar.

With a blast of a horn, thousands of soldiers begin marching away from the parade ground and onto the streets of Rome. Octavian nudges his horse forward to follow.

Three years ago, after conquering Gaul, Julius Caesar ordered his army south. Crossing the Rubicon River, he entered Italy with his army and plunged the Roman Republic into civil war. Since then, Caesar has defeated almost all his rivals and had himself appointed dictator by the Senate. It seems that the old Roman Republic is dying and giving way to the rule of a single man. And now, Caesar’s arranged for a triumphal procession through Rome to demonstrate his power—and his great-nephew Octavian is part of the festivities.

Octavian guides his horse along the side of the marching column, but it’s not easy to maneuver in the packed streets. Thousands of Romans have turned out to cheer their leader.

Octavian passes a group of soldiers carrying chests bursting with ornate jewels and coins. This loot will fund free food and entertainment for the people of Rome.

Next, Octavian encounters monkeys in cages from the far-off lands that Roman armies have conquered.

And finally, Octavian catches up with a filthy, barefoot man walking with his hands chained together. Vercingetorix was the leader of Gaul who was defeated by Caesar six years ago. Since then, he's been kept in prison—but not for much longer. Octavian knows that the culmination of this triumphal procession will see Vercingetorix publicly executed at the Temple of Jupiter.

Caesar has waited for the perfect moment to kill his enemy. Not only will Vercingetorix’s death symbolize Caesar’s conquest of Gaul, it’ll also show what happens to anyone who dares get in his way.

This triumphal procession shows to all the world that Julius Caesar is the most powerful figure in Rome. But he won’t remain so for long. Within only two years, Caesar will be stabbed to death on the Senate floor. His assassination won’t restore the Roman Republic as his killers hoped, however. Instead, it will give Caesar’s great-nephew Octavian the chance to seize power for himself, beginning a rise to dominance that will effectively see the end of the Roman Republic when Octavian is named Emperor Augustus on January 16th, 27 BCE.

Introduction

From Noiser and Airship, I’m Lindsay Graham and this is History Daily.

History is made every day. On this podcast—every day—we tell the true stories of the people and events that shaped our world.

Today is January 16th, 27 BCE: The End of the Roman Republic.

Act One: His Father Before Him

It’s March 44 BCE, at the School of Philosophy in Apollonia, on the coast of modern Albania, 18 months after Julius Caesar’s triumphal procession through Rome.

Now 18 years old, the Roman nobleman Octavian stares out of the window as a lecturer drones on about the legend of Rome’s founding. It’s a story that Octavian and his fellow students have heard many times before, but that doesn’t stop the old professor launching into a lengthy explanation of the tale’s meaning.

Octavian and the other students droop in their seats with boredom. But Octavian jumps to attention when the head of the school snaps open the door, interrupting the lecturer. He catches Octavian’s eye and asks him to step outside. Octavian’s classmates whisper as he leaves, but Octavian ignores them. He’s used to being paid special attention thanks to his famous relative.

Fourteen years ago, Octavian’s father died. This loss had a big impact on Octavian’s upbringing. After his mother remarried a few months later, Octavian was sent to live with his grandmother. But Octavian’s grandmother was no ordinary woman—she was the sister of Julius Caesar, one of the most powerful politicians in Rome.

Caesar took a remarkable interest in his great-nephew, and over the years that followed, the two became close. Since Caesar had no children of his own, he eventually decided to adopt Octavian and make him his heir. And now that Caesar has been declared dictator of Rome, Octavian is being groomed for the high command himself—he’s expected to take control of a legion in the Roman Army as soon as his schooling is over.

But all of those plans are about to change. As Octavian steps outside the lecture hall, the head of the school turns to him with a sympathetic look. Octavian’s adopted father, Julius Caesar is dead—and his death was not a natural one. Caesar was murdered on the floor of the Senate by a group of powerful noblemen. Some of the assassins were men Caesar had thought were his allies and friends. But they had turned against him because they believed Caesar intended to dissolve the Republic and declare himself king of Rome.

Octavian’s stomach lurches. Before today, his close relationship with Caesar promised him a lifetime of power, wealth, and privilege. Now, it leaves him in peril. Octavian faces a difficult and potentially dangerous decision. He can return to Rome to claim his inheritance as Caesar’s heir—but that may put him in danger of violence at the hands of the conspirators who murdered his adopted father. On the other hand, he could lie low in Apollonia and forsake the legacy Caesar left for him.

Octavian’s lecturers all advise him to stay away from Rome. The capital city has been wracked with mob violence since the assassination, and the unstable political situation seems to shift by the hour. His lecturers in Apollonia all seem to believe that the young inexperienced Octavian won’t survive more than a few weeks if he goes to Rome. But despite their pleas, Octavian decides to return home. He’s determined to live up to his great-uncle’s name.

And when he arrives in Italy, Octavian discovers that Rome is on the cusp of another civil war. At the center of the turmoil is Mark Antony, Caesar’s chief lieutenant. Mark Antony is serving as Consul, one of the most powerful offices in the Republic. And he believes that makes him the man who’s best positioned to take charge and prevent Rome from falling into further anarchy. But Mark Antony is a divisive figure and not everyone wants to see him take charge. Octavian’s arrival in Italy gives those who supported Caesar a new figurehead to rally around.

Before he died, Julius Caesar had been preparing for another military campaign overseas, and he’d gathered many of his best troops in Italy to join him. So now, Octavian sets to work persuading these men to pledge their loyalty to him. Caesar was a brilliant general and a popular commander, so his soldiers are happy to serve under his chosen heir—especially when Octavian promises to pay them handsomely. So by the time Octavian reaches Rome, he has more than 3,000 experienced soldiers already at his back.

That makes him a new power in the capital city—and immediately brings him into conflict with Mark Antony.

But at first, Mark Antony is dismissive of the newcomer. He considers himself the true heir to Julius Caesar. Mark Antony is also 20 years older than Octavian and sees him as little more than a boy. But Octavian quickly proves that his youth is no obstacle. Over the next eighteen months, he repeatedly outthinks and outmaneuvers Mark Antony.

By now, Caesar’s assassins have all fled Rome to raise armies for the civil war everyone believes is coming. Eventually, the former allies of Julius Caesar realize that they must band together to survive. So after talks in northern Italy, Mark Antony, Octavian, and a third nobleman named Lepidus form a power-sharing agreement. This triumvirate, as it’s known, will rule Rome together while taking the fight to the traitors who murdered Julius Caesar.

But the uneasy truce between them won’t last long. All three men are ambitious, and after dealing with their common enemies, they’ll turn on each other. Rome won’t be at peace until there’s only one left standing.

Act Two: Son of a God

It’s September 22nd, 36 BCE, in Sicily, eight years after the murder of Julius Caesar.

25-year-old Octavian holds his head high as he walks past thousands of Roman soldiers. The massed ranks stand rigidly to attention. They’ve been assembled here to watch Octavian decide the fate of the prisoner who’s now being held firmly by each arm by two legionaries, one of the triumvirate, Lepidus.

For the past seven years, Octavian, Lepidus, and Mark Antony have each commanded armies in the field and fought against their common enemies. The men who murdered Julius Caesar have been hunted down and their armies defeated one by one.

But now that the three men are victorious, there is nothing to stop the triumvirate from quarreling with each other. Officially, they’ve split the Roman world between them. Octavian has the West. Mark Antony the East. And Lepidus the South. But each man dreams of usurping the others and ruling alone.

But still, there is power in numbers. Only a few days ago, Octavian and Lepidus put aside their differences to fight side-by-side again. A Roman general had risen up against the triumvirate, and Octavian and Lepidus joined forces to crush the rebellion. The battle on the island of Sicily was a long and bloody one, but Octavian and Lepidus emerged victorious.

The rebels’ surrender though, didn’t end the fighting. When the dust settled, Octavian and Lepidus argued over who should take control of Sicily. Lepidus threatened to have his troops seize the island by force. But Octavian recognized that this dispute also gave him the opportunity to remove the weakest member of the triumvirate. Octavian accused Lepidus of attempting to break the triumvirate, and he ordered his soldiers to apprehend his fellow ruler. Now, Octavian must decide what to do with his former compatriot.

The soldiers holding Lepidus force him to his knees, expecting Octavian to order his execution. Octavian glances at the thousands of soldiers watching on. Many of them fought under Lepidus’s command, and Octavian isn’t sure how they’ll react to their general being killed in front of them. So as Octavian ponders Lepidus’s fate, Lepidus trembles and begs for mercy. And with that moment of weakness, Octavian realizes that Lepidus is no longer a threat to him. He pulls Lepidus to his feet and embraces him, and the soldiers cheer Octavian’s show of mercy.

Octavian isn’t going to let Lepidus get away entirely, however. He whispers into Lepidus’s ear that he must go into exile far from Rome, and never threaten Octavian’s power again. Lepidus nods eagerly, thankful he’s escaping with his life. And with their general humiliated and exiled, Lepidus’s legionaries soon pledge allegiance to Octavian, giving him the largest army in Roman history.

The only thing now standing between him and total domination of Rome is the other man left in the triumvirate: Mark Antony.

Octavian knows that Mark Antony will be a more difficult opponent. He has a far larger army and far more support among the people and Senate of Rome than Lepidus did. But Octavian soon finds a way of undermining his rival. In the East, Mark Antony has taken the Egyptian queen Cleopatra as his lover, and he’s spending more and more time away from Rome. Octavian takes advantage of Mark Antony’s absence to spread rumors of his disloyalty and turn the people and the Senate against him.

His propaganda campaign works, and, with the Senate’s blessing, Octavian declares war on Mark Antony and Cleopatra. In September 31 BCE, the two sides engage in the naval battle off the coast of Greece. Several of Mark Antony’s ships are sunk, and Mark Antony himself flees to the Egyptian capital Alexandria. But Octavian isn’t willing to let Mark Antony get away. Octavian sails across the Mediterranean Sea himself with more than 40,000 legionaries and lays siege to Alexandria.

But although Octavian has more men under his command, Mark Antony has strong city walls to hide behind, so the Battle of Alexandria is a close-fought affair. Octavian’s army suffers many casualties as his legionaries launch attack after attack until finally, they make a breakthrough, and after fierce hand-to-hand fighting in Alexandria’s streets, they close in on Mark Antony. But he chooses suicide rather than surrender.

Fourteen years after the assassination of Julius Caesar, Octavian has replicated his great-uncle’s achievements and made himself the most powerful man in Rome. But at this moment of triumph, when absolute power was within his grasp, this is where Caesar fell. If Octavian is to have a different fate, then he will have to do it a different way.

Act Three: Sublime One

It’s January 16th, 27 BCE, in the Senate House in Rome, three years after the death of Mark Antony.

Octavian is now 35 years old and stands in the opulent chamber where Roman Senators meet to discuss the business of government. He’s been here many times to coax or threaten the senators to agree with his point of view. But today, after 17 years of power struggles, he’s finally emerged as Rome’s undisputed leader.

After defeating Mark Antony at the Battle of Alexandria, Octavian had no rivals to stop him from taking total control in Rome. But Octavian remembered that his great-uncle Julius Caesar had been in the same position when he was assassinated by a group of senators. So, Octavian decided to hide his ambitions. He agreed to another power-sharing agreement, this time with a more cooperative ally than Lepidus or Mark Antony. Then three days ago, Octavian officially gave up his military commands and resigned his various offices, claiming that he had succeeded in his aim of protecting the Roman Republic. But this was all an act. He had no intention of giving up power and, today, Octavian has been recalled by the Senate to accept a new title—the most prestigious that has ever been bestowed.

After the proceedings begin, one of the senators rises from his seat and reads a proclamation. From today, Octavian will be known as Augustus. This title means “illustrious one,” and signals that the Senate considers Octavian to be favored by the gods. He’s also named the “Princeps Senatus,” or “chief among senators.” So, there’s no longer any doubt—Octavian, or Augustus, is now the most powerful figure in Rome.

But even now, Augustus keeps up the pretense of working for the Roman Republic and not himself. One by one, the senators offer him a series of gifts: purple robes, a golden crown, a scepter. They’re all old symbols of monarchy—but in this carefully choreographed ceremony, Augustus raises his hand to decline them all. Instead, he claims that the Roman government will function just as it has before. But behind the scenes, every major decision in Rome will go through him. Despite his claims, Augustus rules Rome alone.

Over the next 41 years, Augustus will dramatically expand Roman territory. He’ll annex Egypt, conquer Spain, and expand into the Balkans. And when he dies in 14 CE, he’ll be succeeded by his adopted son Tiberius.

The handover of power to Augustus’s chosen heir will confirm that Rome is now effectively a monarchy—the Roman Republic is dead, having given way to the Roman Empire when Octavian was granted the title of Augustus on January 16th, 27 BCE.

Outro

Next on History Daily. January 17th, 1964. Roald Dahl’s classic children’s book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory hits stores for the first time.

From Noiser and Airship, this is History Daily, hosted, edited, and executive produced by me, Lindsay Graham.

Audio editing by Muhammad Shahzaib.

Sound design by Gabriel Gould.

Music by Thrumm.

This episode is written and researched by Owen Paul Nicholls.

Edited by Scott Reeves.

Managing producer Emily Burke.

Executive Producers are William Simpson for Airship, and Pascal Hughes for Noiser.