Arguably the single most important figure in the history of the Roman Empire was Octavian Augustus Caesar. In the course of his extensive and spectacular career, he put an end to the advancing decay of the Republic and in doing so established a new basis for Roman government that was to stand for three centuries. The emperors succeeding him entitled the Julio-Claudian Emperors in particular Nero and Caligula destabilised the political balance of the Roman Empire.

In order to understand the outstanding achievements of Augustus it is necessary to discuss the nature of the Roman republic, the Roman revolution and Julius Caesar's place in it. The Roman Republic at the time had no written constitution but was instead it was a system of agreed-upon procedures cemented by tradition this was known as the mos maiorum or the way of our ancestors. Precedent prescribed procedure and...