The Cult of the Emperor

When was the first Roman ruler deified?

The Romans began the practice of deifying their dead rulers with Julius Caesar. Before he died, Caesar received the right to have a flamen for a cult in his honour, to mark his house like a temple and to place his ‘imago’ in the procession of the gods that featured in Roman parades and festivals.

After he died, the Senate passed a decree formally deifying Caesar and altars and temples were erected to him.

A ‘flamen’ was a priestwith the responsibilityfor the worship of a god or goddess in Roman religion

Why did the Romans accept the deification of Caesar so easily?Although the deification of their

ruler would certainly have seemed novel to the inhabitants of Rome, his assimilation to divine status would have seemed quite normal to the peoples of the eastern empire who had always regarded their kings and rulers as divine, and were equally ready to pay divine honours to the Roman emperors.

The fact that he was deified after his death would have meant that Romans would have not felt directly threatened by such an action.

“The peoples in the Eastern Roman empire had always thought of their rulers as divine, so it seemed natural to worship the Roman emperor as god”.

Source material 7.3.1

In what way was Augustus so skillful in exploiting the cult of the emperor?

Augustus was brilliant in the way he aligned religious authority with political: while Augustus allowed himself to be associated with numerous rites and cult activities e.g., his membership of the various colleges of priests’, there was no single ceremony such as a coronation where he was the dominant actor.

Indeed, Augustus never personally claimed divine status during his lifetime.

How did Augustus use the goddess ‘Roma’ to enhance the power of the empire?

‘ROMA’ was the deity personifying the Roman state.

Augustus, however, encouraged the worship of Roma in the provinces (although she did later on gain a temple in Rome itself).

Many temples were built in the provinces in her honour, often as a ‘Temple of Rome and Augustus’ to make the imperial cult and emperor worship more palatable.

Thus, outside of Italy, worship of the emperor was usually linked to the worship of the goddess ‘ Roma’.

This coin, struck in an eastern province, has on the reverse a temple devoted to the goddess ‘Roma’.

What was the ‘genius’?

The Romans believed that every living being had a ‘genius’ or protecting spirit.

People in the provinces were encouraged to worship the ‘genius’ of the emperor, linked with the goddess ‘Roma’ - another method of promoting emperor worship.

Detail of the ‘Genius (spirit) ofthe Paterfamilias flanked by 2 laresLararium in the house of theVettii in Pompeii

What was the ‘numen’?

The nod that Juppiter gave assenting to an action was called his ‘numen’.

It thus became to signify divine will or the power of a deity.

Augustus organised public worship of his ‘numen’ which represented the godhead or divine power of a living emperor - another example of emperor worship.

Bust of the Juppiter, theFather of the gods

Why did Augustus never explicitly say that he was a god?

The Roman political system did not approve of a living emperor declaring himself a god (no doubt as a result of their dislike of an all powerful head of state).

The emperor Caligula made the mistake of claiming to be a god during his lifetime. This action was described by contemporary historians as an example of his dementia.

This is why Augustus was careful to never explicitly to declare himself a god although he walked a very fine line in this respect.

Bust of the EmperorCaligula

Why did Romans encourage the worship of emperors as gods?

• People were more likely to submit to Roman rule if they regarded the supreme ruler as a god

• It reduced, as a result, the chances of uprisings

• It gave many people in the provinces a sense that they belonged to one great empire

• It was very popular amongst the upper and middle classes who looked to Rome to promote their careers

Augustus as ‘Pontifex Maximus’

Did this cult of the Emperor always have the desired effect?

The temple at Colchester dedicated to the deified emperor Claudius was regarded by the Britons as a symbol of eternal oppression, and the priests used religion as an excuse to waste British money.

Boudicca raised this temple to the ground when she rebelled against Roman occupation

This is a model of the temple of the deified emperor