The Julio-Claudian Emperors, 31 BC–AD 68

What The Julio-Claudian Emperors, 31 BC–AD 68 covers

The Julio-Claudian Emperors, 31 BC–AD 68 is examined in Component Group 2, Roman period study and Roman depth study. It covers Actium and the presentation of Augustus' victory, the constitutional settlements of 27 BC and 23 BC, the Res Gestae and the debate over the restored Republic, Augustus' military achievements and the frontiers of the empire, the administration of Rome and the provinces under Augustus, religion, moral revival and the Imperial Cult under Augustus, the image of Augustus in poetry, coinage and the building programme, the imperial family, conspiracies and the succession, Tiberius and the views of the classical authors, Tiberius, Germanicus and Sejanus, mutinies, revolts and the treason trials under Tiberius, Tiberius, religion and the government of Rome, the presentation of Gaius' character by the ancient sources, Gaius, religion and the Imperial Cult, Gaius' rule in Rome and the assassination of AD 41, the accession of Claudius in AD 41, the invasion of Britain in AD 43, Claudius' wives, freedmen and the government of Rome, Nero, Britannicus and the death of Claudius, the presentation of Nero's character by the ancient sources, Nero's early reign and the changing role of Agrippina, Nero's wives and the imperial household, the Great Fire of AD 64 and the Pisonian conspiracy, Nero, religion and the government of Rome and Corbulo, the revolt of Vindex and the fall of Nero.

The 25 subtopics

Each one has its own page.

• Actium and the presentation of Augustus' victoryRecall questions on the battle of Actium in 31 BC and Agrippa's command, the declaration of war on Cleopatra, the oath of 32 BC and Antony's will, how propaganda cast the two sides, Apollo's temple and Nicopolis, the deaths of Antony and Cleopatra, Egypt under its prefect, the triple triumph of 29 BC, the gates of Janus, Virgil's shield of Aeneas, and the crocodile coins.Open →
• The constitutional settlements of 27 BC and 23 BCRecall questions on what Octavian gave back in January 27 BC, the name Augustus and the golden shield, his ten-year provincial command and the division of the provinces, the continuous consulships and their resignation in 23 BC, greater proconsular power and tribunician power, the offices refused in 22 BC, chief priest and father of his country, and the meaning of princeps.Open →
• The Res Gestae and the debate over the restored RepublicRecall questions on the Res Gestae, its publication and the copy at Ancyra, its detailed spending, unnamed opponents and omissions such as Varus and Julia, its reliability and audience, the evidence for and against a genuinely restored Republic, Tacitus' explanation, auctoritas, the settlement as compromise, and the effect of the civil wars.Open →
• Augustus' military achievements and the frontiers of the empireRecall questions on the Cantabrian wars, the alpine conquests of Tiberius and Drusus and the trophy monument, Drusus on the Elbe, Varus and Arminius in the Teutoburg Forest and its consequences, the Parthian standards, the Pannonian revolt, the military treasury and new terms of legionary service, the praetorian guard, and the closing of Janus.Open →
• The administration of Rome and the provinces under AugustusRecall questions on the fourteen districts of Rome, the city prefect, the vigiles and the grain supply, the reformed Senate and its advisory council, the new equestrian posts, the treatment of the plebs, provincial taxation and redress, Strabo's Geography, what Rome's inhabitants gained and lost, and the Edicts of Cyrene.Open →
• Religion, moral revival and the Imperial Cult under AugustusRecall questions on the eighty-two restored temples, revived priesthoods such as the fetials and Arval Brethren, the Secular Games of 17 BC, the Lares Augusti, the marriage and adultery laws of 18 BC, Ovid's Fasti and exile, the imperial cult in East and West, the Altar of Augustan Peace, son of a god, Augustus' deification, and the altar at Narbo.Open →
• The image of Augustus in poetry, coinage and the building programmeRecall questions on Maecenas and the problem of patronised poetry, Virgil's Aeneid and Aeneas as a model, Horace's Odes and Cleopatra, coinage and the coins of Gaius and Lucius Caesar, Augustus' ageless portraits, the city of marble, the Forum of Augustus, Mausoleum and Palatine temple of Apollo, and Agrippa's building and water supply.Open →
• The imperial family, conspiracies and the successionRecall questions on Livia's marriage, privileges, public image and hostile portrayal, Agrippa's role and powers, Julia's marriages and banishment, Gaius and Lucius Caesar, Tiberius on Rhodes and his adoption, Germanicus and Agrippa Postumus, the conspiracies of Caepio and Murena and Egnatius Rufus, the problem of succession, Macrobius, and Seneca's story of Cinna.Open →
• Tiberius and the views of the classical authorsRecall questions on Tacitus' theme of concealment and his sources, Suetonius' arrangement of a life, the caution Velleius requires, the decree on Piso's trial, and the case for a good reign.Open →
• Tiberius, Germanicus and SejanusRecall questions on the Rhine mutiny and the German campaigns, the quarrel with Piso, the praetorian camp of AD 23, the withdrawal to Capri, and the fall of AD 31.Open →
• Mutinies, revolts and the treason trials under TiberiusRecall questions on the mutineers' demands in AD 14, the risings in Africa, Gaul and Frisia, the meaning of maiestas, the rewards paid to informers, and the case of Cremutius Cordus.Open →
• Tiberius, religion and the government of RomeRecall questions on the temple refused to Spain and allowed at Smyrna, the cult of Augustus and honours for Livia, the expulsions of AD 19, elections passing to the Senate, Tiberius and senators and equestrians, the Senate as a court, the financial crisis of AD 33, Fidenae, his unpopularity and the treasury at his death, and the Gytheion inscription.Open →
• The presentation of Gaius' character by the ancient sourcesRecall questions on the name Caligula and Gaius' popular accession, his early measures, the illness of AD 37 and Suetonius' monster, his sisters and the deification of Drusilla, the bridge of boats at Baiae, the horse Incitatus, the seashells of AD 40, Seneca's On Anger, and why the hostile picture may be distorted.Open →
• Gaius, religion and the Imperial CultRecall questions on Gaius accepting divine honours in Rome, Dio's temple and golden statue, the temple of Castor and Pollux as a palace entrance, dressing as gods, Drusilla's deification, the statue for the Jerusalem temple and Petronius and Agrippa I, the Alexandrian violence of AD 38, Josephus as a source, client kings, and the lasting effect.Open →
• Gaius' rule in Rome and the assassination of AD 41Recall questions on Gaius' return of elections and the public accounts, the taxes of AD 40 and his money troubles, his public works, the revived treason trials and the plot of Gaetulicus and Lepidus, his humiliation of senators and equestrians and favour with the people, Cassius Chaerea and the killing of AD 41, Caesonia, and the Senate's failed restoration of the Republic.Open →
• The accession of Claudius in AD 41Recall questions on Claudius' disabilities and scholarly years, his first consulship, how the sources present him, his discovery behind a curtain, the donative to the praetorian guard and its precedent, Agrippa I's part, the Senate's surrender, the praetorian coins, the revolt of Scribonianus, his titles, and the honours paid to his family.Open →
• The invasion of Britain in AD 43Recall questions on why Claudius needed a victory, Verica's appeal and the attractions of Britain, Aulus Plautius and the invasion army, Narcissus and the reluctant troops, the Medway battle, Claudius' sixteen days and Camulodunum, how the conquest was celebrated, Caratacus and his pardon, Vespasian's campaigns, and the veteran colony of AD 49.Open →
• Claudius' wives, freedmen and the government of RomeRecall questions on Messalina, Valerius Asiaticus and her fall with Silius, Agrippina's marriage and gains, Seneca and Burrus, the freedmen Narcissus, Pallas and Callistus and senatorial resentment, Claudius as censor, equestrian procurators, Gallic senators, Ostia and the aqueducts, the Fucine Lake, the grain trade, new provinces, the letter to the Alexandrians, and the harbour and pomerium inscriptions.Open →
• Nero, Britannicus and the death of ClaudiusRecall questions on Nero's birth as Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus, his adoption and honours as heir, his marriage to Octavia, the sidelining of Britannicus, the mushroom story of Claudius' death and doubts about it, how Nero's accession was managed, Claudius' deification and the satire on it, and the death of Britannicus in AD 55.Open →
• The presentation of Nero's character by the ancient sourcesRecall questions on Tacitus' shape for the reign and the lost end of the Annals, Suetonius' arrangement, Pliny the Elder as witness and critic, why no favourable account survives, evidence of popularity at Rome and in Greece, outrage at Nero's performances, the sources of the hostile tradition, the Christian memory of Nero, and how to judge him fairly.Open →
• Nero's early reign and the changing role of AgrippinaRecall questions on Nero's accession speech, Seneca and Burrus and the good first five years, the customs proposal of AD 58, Agrippina's early prominence and the Armenian envoys, the dismissal of Pallas and the affair with Acte, her fading coin portraits, her murder at Baiae in AD 59 and Nero's explanation, and the effect of Burrus' death.Open →
• Nero's wives and the imperial householdRecall questions on Octavia's importance, divorce, exile and death and the popular protest, Poppaea Sabina and her alleged part in Agrippina's fall, the deified infant Claudia Augusta, Poppaea's death and embalmed burial, Josephus on Poppaea, the marriage to Statilia Messalina, Acte, and the stories about Sporus.Open →
• The Great Fire of AD 64 and the Pisonian conspiracyRecall questions on where the fire of AD 64 began and how much it destroyed, Nero's relief measures and the singing rumour in Tacitus and Suetonius, the case against arson, the punishment of the Christians, the new building regulations, the Golden House and the cost of rebuilding, and the Pisonian conspiracy with Lucan, Epicharis, Subrius Flavus and its deaths.Open →
• Nero, religion and the government of RomeRecall questions on Nero's solar and Apolline imagery, the temple he refused, the crowning of Tiridates and the closing of Janus in AD 66, the Arval Brethren records, the freeing of Achaea and cults in Greece, the Neronia, his public works and coinage reform, relations with senators and equestrians, his popularity with the people, and the burden on the provinces.Open →
• Corbulo, the revolt of Vindex and the fall of NeroRecall questions on the Armenian question, Corbulo's training of his army and capture of Artaxata and Tigranocerta, Paetus at Rhandeia, the settlement with Tiridates, Corbulo's forced suicide, Vindex's revolt and defeat by Verginius Rufus at Vesontio, Galba's proclamation, the guard's desertion, Nero's death in AD 68, and its significance.Open →

What you need to know

Answer each one before you reveal it.

Take The Julio-Claudian Emperors, 31 BC–AD 68 further

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Commonly confused

Pairs that lose marks when they are blurred together.

• Greater proconsular power vs Tribunician power

  Greater proconsular power: a military authority outranking every provincial governor and not lapsing on entry into the city, so the armies could be commanded without holding a magistracy. Tribunician power: A civil authority held for life without the office itself, carrying the right to propose and to veto legislation, personal inviolability and the standing of a protector of ordinary citizens.

• Agrippina the Elder vs Agrippina the Younger

  Agrippina the Elder: Germanicus' widow, whose surviving family became the focus of opposition to Tiberius and who was herself broken by prosecution, exile and death in confinement. Agrippina the Younger: The sister of Gaius, wife of Claudius from AD 49 and mother of Nero, killed on her son's orders in AD 59.

• Messalina vs Statilia Messalina

  Messalina: Claudius' third wife, mother of Britannicus and Octavia, killed in AD 48 after going through a public wedding ceremony with the consul-designate Gaius Silius. Statilia Messalina: Nero's third wife, married in AD 66 after he had first required the death of her husband.

Questions from this topic

Each one with the model answer underneath.

1. 1

   State when and where the battle of Actium was fought.

   Model answer

   It was fought in 31 BC off the western coast of Greece, at the mouth of the Ambracian Gulf.

2. 2

   Who commanded Octavian's fleet at Actium?

   Model answer

   Marcus Agrippa commanded it, and his blockade of Antony's supply routes had already weakened the enemy before the fleets met.

3. 3

   Against whom did Octavian formally declare war in 32 BC, and why did the choice matter?

   Model answer

   He declared war on Cleopatra rather than on Antony, so that the campaign could be presented as a foreign war and not another round of civil war.

4. 4

   Describe the oath of loyalty sworn in 32 BC.

   Model answer

   Italy and the western provinces swore a personal oath of allegiance to Octavian, which he later cited as the moment the whole West chose him as its leader.

5. 5

   How did Octavian make use of Antony's will?

   Model answer

   He seized it from the Vestal Virgins and publicised clauses granting territory to Cleopatra's children and requesting burial in Alexandria, as evidence that Antony had abandoned Rome.

6. 6

   Explain how Octavian's propaganda characterised the two sides at Actium.

   Model answer

   It set a Roman West of traditional gods, discipline and duty against an eastern queen with animal-headed gods who had enslaved a Roman general.

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The Julio-Claudian Emperors, 31 BC–AD 68 revision questions

What does The Julio-Claudian Emperors, 31 BC–AD 68 cover in OCR A-Level Ancient History?

25 subtopics: actium and the presentation of augustus' victory, the constitutional settlements of 27 bc and 23 bc, the res gestae and the debate over the restored republic, augustus' military achievements and the frontiers of the empire, the administration of rome and the provinces under augustus, religion, moral revival and the imperial cult under augustus, the image of augustus in poetry, coinage and the building programme, the imperial family, conspiracies and the succession, tiberius and the views of the classical authors, tiberius, germanicus and sejanus, mutinies, revolts and the treason trials under tiberius, tiberius, religion and the government of rome, the presentation of gaius' character by the ancient sources, gaius, religion and the imperial cult, gaius' rule in rome and the assassination of ad 41, the accession of claudius in ad 41, the invasion of britain in ad 43, claudius' wives, freedmen and the government of rome, nero, britannicus and the death of claudius, the presentation of nero's character by the ancient sources, nero's early reign and the changing role of agrippina, nero's wives and the imperial household, the great fire of ad 64 and the pisonian conspiracy, nero, religion and the government of rome and corbulo, the revolt of vindex and the fall of nero. Each one has its own page with questions and model answers.

How is The Julio-Claudian Emperors, 31 BC–AD 68 organised?

By the OCR H407 specification, subtopic by subtopic, so it matches the order you are taught it in.