Dynasties of the Roman Republic and Age of Augustus

Despite significant continuity, there are serious impediments to envisaging noble dynasties of the Republic as precursors to the autocratic dynasty that developed under Augustus. The main aims of this paper, therefore, are (i) to describe leading features of the aristocratic dynasties of the Republic, (ii) to discuss reasons why these aristocratic dynasties were by no means simple forerunners to the autocratic dynasty established by Augustus, and (iii) to highlight several extraordinary developments that were needed to achieve the transformation from multiple noble dynasties to a single imperial dynasty. It emerges that there were significant limits to the power and influence of noble dynasties under the Republic, including (inter alia) antipathy to kingship, the sovereignty of the Roman people, the checks on republican magistracies, the fluidity of composition of the nobility, and the absence of anything resembling an office of state or throne.