After Julius Caesar's coup of the Roman Republic, Caesar sought to solidify his claim as king of the Romans. Caesar claimed his family was the descendants of Venus and Jupiter. On his tour in Egypt, Caesar saw the marvelous statues dedicated to the kings of Egypt. The kings of Egypt were worshipped as gods and they ruled with a divine right. This imperial cult gave the king legitimacy to rule. Caesar needed a legitimate reason to rule Rome, but he would take slow steps before he became "dictator for life." But Caesar would not become the legitimate king of Rome, it would be his adopted son who would secure the Imperial Cult of Rome and seize the throne as the first Emperor of the Roman Empire.

Two years before Caesar’s victory in Egypt, he made a pact with Venus Victrix at Pharsalus. Caesar promised to build a temple in her honor if he was victorious. After his victory, he built the temple; however, he did not dedicate it to Venus Victrix, rather he dedicated it to Venus Genetrix, the ancestral Venus of the Julian family. The temple represented Venus as the mother of Caesar and the mother of all Romans. "The significance of the new cult was brought home by the splendor of the temple and the magnificence of the ceremonies with which it was dedicated." [1]

Before Caesar had returned from Egypt, the Senate voted to place Caesar's war chariot in front of the statue of Jupiter in Rome. An inscription on the chariot claimed Caesar as a demigod, but he had it removed. It was possible Caesar saw this as too big of a step to make just yet.

In 45 B.C.E., Caesar's first big honor came after his victory at Munda. When news reached Rome the day before the festival of the founding of the city (Parilia), it was decided that the games be held in Caesar's honor the next day. This honor made Caesar synonymous with the founder of Rome. He was also given the title Liberator in that same session. A statue of Caesar was erected in the Temple of Quirnius with the inscription Deo Invicto, "to the unconquered god." Caesar was also given a house at the public's expense, which had the same roof as the temples. His image was also placed among the gods at the Circus Maximus and on coins. It was the first time that a living man's image was placed on coins.

At the beginning of 44 B.C.E., Caesar was given the title of parens patriae, another title like pontifix maximus, which declared him as the father of the state. It was also laid out that everyone should swear by Caesar's Genius. This was a common practice in the Hellenistic East. Statues of Caesar were placed in cities and temples all over Italy. Like the golden chairs and crowns of the gods, Caesar's was brought out before games. It was believed that the souls of great men became stars, and on the day of Caesar's games, a comet appeared. The Senate even changed the name of the month Quinctilis to Iulius. A temple to him and his Clementia was ordered and a priesthood in his honor began, with Anthony as head priest. Only the higher gods of the Roman pantheon where given priesthoods, thus establishing Caesar as a god. This is the same year that Caesar declared himself "dictator for life."

Octavian, Julius Caesar's adopted son and nephew, wanted to make sure Caesar was deified after his death to establish himself, along with Mark Anthony and Lepidus, to have divine authority. On January 1st, 42 B.C.E., Julius Caesar was officially deified, again. Octavian commissioned a temple to be built in Rome to Divus Julius, "deified Julius," since the previous temple had never been completed.

Now, Rome could have a legitimate king come to power and rule with a divine right, however there was a problem. There are two candidates who want to rule Rome, Anthony and Octavian. Both candidates had legitimate claims to the throne. Octavian was the adopted son of Caesar and had taken the title divi filius, "son of a god." Likewise, Anthony was the head priest of the Cult of Caesar and had worked hard on securing Caesar's divinity since the beginning.

There is also a third person who uses Caesar's deification to her advantage, Queen Cleopatra of Egypt. She was co-ruler of Egypt with her brother/husband Ptolemy. She poisoned her brother and had Caesar's son, Caesarion, take his place. Cleopatra wanted to legitimize her son as the king of Egypt and she did so by using the wealth of Egypt and four Roman legions which Caesar had left in Alexandria. Octavian finally recognized her son as king, probably because he did not want her to aid Brutus and Cassius. Octavian and Anthony announced they were going to build a temple to Isis and Sarapis, which was reversed by the Senate.

Because the appeal of Octavian to the throne seemed more powerful, since he was the son of a god, Anthony had genealogists trace his origins back to Anton, the son of Hercules. However, Anthony promoted his ancestry to Dionysus instead. Octavian began to associate himself with Apollo at that point, but Anthony was granted divine honors before Octavian.

Anthony was then granted the hand of Octavia, the sister of Octavian, which brought him into the Julian family, in order to secure their alliance. They had made an alliance to take care of their enemies first, settling their dispute for the throne between themselves later. Meanwhile, Cleopatra continued her determination for power. Both the wives of Octavian and Anthony had bore sons. Cleopatra had given birth to twins, a boy and a girl, and Anthony was the father. Instead of giving the boy the traditional name of Ptolemy, she named him Alexander Helios after the great conquer and the sun. A few years later, it became inevitable that Anthony would never have the power he sought, so he decided he would ally himself with Cleopatra and rule the Roman Empire from Egypt.

He made a claim that Cleopatra’s son, Caesarion, was the successor of the Empire, not his adopted son Octavian. After his expedition of Armenia, he gave Cleopatra the title of “dictator’s wife,” solidifying Caesarion’s claim as the legitimate son of Caesar. He also gave Cleopatra the title of “Queen of Kings” and gave Caesarion the title “King of Kings.” He divided the eastern provinces amongst the other children. However, like Julius Caesar, Anthony may have been declared a god by the easterners and had legitimate claims to descending from a god, but he was not yet a king of anything. Even though Cleopatra had a temple built to Anthony in Alexandria, the money printed in the East praised Cleopatra as the regina regum, but Anthony was portrayed as nothing more than the Roman triumvir.

Back in Italy, Octavian had become the unofficial ruler of Italy. Octavian had dropped the title of triumvir and assumed the title of Imperator Caesar divi filius. Even though Anthony and Octavian continued to prance around as gods, Anthony indulged himself in Egypt by impersonating his patron gods. In 36 B.C.E., Octavian was victorious in the war against Sextus Pompey and Lepidus. He was given many honorary decrees, but he turned some away. For example, he refused to assume the title pontifix maximus because he did not want to take it from Lepidus. He received many of the honors that were given to his father, including the laurel crown.

Octavian was solving problems in Italy while Anthony was living as a king in Egypt. Supposedly, Anthony had also turned Roman citizens into slaves in Egypt. Anthony declared that Cleopatra was his wife for nine years in a letter to Octavian in 33 B.C.E. Anthony fabricated a story that a man named Helvius Cinna died at Caesar’s funeral and he had a bill which stated that Caesar could have married anyone he wanted. Furthermore, Anthony appealed to Oppius, an associate of Caesar’s who knew that Caesarion was Caesar’s son; however, Oppius said it was not. In 32 B.C.E., the two consuls of Rome were unable to defend Anthony’s cause in the Senate. Eyewitness accounts of Anthony in Egypt strengthened the Senate’s belief that Anthony was a traitor to all Roman traditions. War was finally declared on Cleopatra. The Greeks allied themselves with countries of the East and were united by the New Isis and the New Dionysus. In order to rage war against these gods, Octavian knew he had to give up his claim as the son of a god for the time being.

After years of feuding, Octavian and Anthony went to war. Anthony chose the harbor of Actium to wage his war. Actium was the center of worship of Apollo, Octavian's patron god. It is said that Apollo called on the goddess Artemis to defend him against Anthony. Octavian was victorious and less than a year later, Anthony committed suicide in Alexandria, Egypt. Shortly after, Cleopatra killed herself because she did not want to be the trophy of Octavian's victory. Her son, Caesarion, was hunted down in Arabia, where he was hiding, and was killed. The divine rule of the Egyptian monarchy ended and Egypt was added to Rome. Octavian now stood alone and could claim the throne of his father without any competition.

In order for Octavian to become the ruler of the Roman world, he would have to secure his holdings in the East. Octavian took Egypt as his own kingdom, instead of setting it up as a province, and he took the title of Pharaoh, just like the Greeks before him. Statues were erected of the new Pharaoh all over Egypt. The Greeks in Egypt worshipped him in their own way, giving him he name Zeus Elsutherios. The temple which was being erected to Anthony in Alexandria was completed as a temple for the Pharaoh Octavian.

He was not only the god-king of Egypt, but he was also declared the "savior" by the peoples of the East. Octavian gave his permission to build temples in Asia and Bithynia so long as he was depicted with the goddess Roma. However, when asked by Romans in the East if they could build a temple in his honor, he gave them permission to build a temple to Roma and Divus Julius instead. Octavian allowed easterners to worship him as a god but westerners could only worship the genius of his father. Octavian secured his position as king in the East first.

In Italy, the anniversary of his victories over Anthony were celebrated as well as his birthday. His name was even included in the Salian hymm. Pouring of liberation to his genius was voted on in Rome, which would become the object of worship of the Imperial Cult of Rome, while he was in the East, but the sacrifices did not take place until he became pontifix maximus in 12 B.C.E. Octavian had also became the princeps civitatis and the princeps senatus, but he knew he could not be too greedy and maintain all the power given to him. He officially gave his extraordinary powers back to the Senate in order to restore the republic on January 13, 27 B.C.E. Three days later, it was suggested that he take the name Romulus, but he turned it down in favor of another name Augustus, a title that would remind people of Romulus but would not be so bold. Furthermore, the word augustus comes from the word augere which had the same root as the title auctoritas, the power of the Roman Senate. And also, the word was a synonym of sanctus and divinus, but it was a lesser expression of divinity. That same year, the Senate changed the name of the month Sextilis to Augustus.

Finally, the idea took root that Augustus would become a god after his death just like his father, Julius Caesar. Augustus would finish what Caesar started, the transition of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire with a god-king as the leader. Over the next hundred years, the emperors will come to have more and more power until they become the absolute authority in the Empire. They will continue to be worshipped as gods in the East and their genius will be prayed to in the West. The Roman Imperial Cult is established by Julius Caesar and fully carried out by his adopted son, Octavian, who would rise up and become the first emperor of the Roman Empire, Augustus Caesar.

FOOTNOTES

1. Lily Ross Taylor, The Divinity of the Roman Emperor, (Philadelphia: Procupine Press, 1975), 61.

WORKS CITED

Greener, Albert. The Roman Spirit: in Religion, Thought, and Art. New York: Cooper Square Publishers, 1970.

Taylor, Lily Ross. The Divinity of the Roman Emperor. Philadelphia: Procupine Press, 1975.