Pater Patriae
Pater Patriae (plural Patres Patriae) was an
The title was granted by the Roman Senate. During the Roman Republic, it was given only two times: to Camillus and Cicero. Under the Roman Empire, it was exclusively granted to the Roman emperor, usually after many years of successful rule. Not all emperors were offered the title, while others were offered it but refused to accept. A total of 23 emperors received the title.
During the
Roman history
The honor of being called pater patriae was conferred by the Roman Senate. It was first awarded to Roman general Marcus Furius Camillus in 386 BC, for his role in liberating the city after the Gallic sack of Rome. It reflected the popular view that Camillus was effectively a second founder of the city, after Romulus, who was retrospectively considered to be pater patriae.
Three centuries later, it was awarded to the orator and statesman
The title could be declined. According to the historian Suetonius, Augustus' successor Tiberius was offered this title, but refused it as premature and inappropriate.[2] The following emperor, Caligula, did accept the title, as did his successor Claudius. The next emperor, Nero, declined when it was offered by the Senate during the first year of his reign, on the basis that he was too young for such a title. The Senate offered it again the following year, which Nero accepted.
It thereafter became usual for the Senate to convey the title on emperors only after many years of successful rule. As a result, many emperors with short reigns never received the title. In some cases (such as Nerva) it was granted rapidly, if the new emperor was particularly esteemed by the senators when they acceded. As a sign of humility, several emperors deferred their use of the title for some time even after it was conferred by the Senate. For example, Hadrian deferred it for eleven years.[3]
The title fell out of use in the fourth century AD, during the
Chronological list of holders
Year | Holder | Reference or notes | |
---|---|---|---|
BC | 753 | Romulus | Legendary founder of Rome |
386 | Marcus Furius Camillus | for liberating the city after the Gallic sack of Rome | |
63 | Marcus Tullius Cicero | for suppressing the Catilinarian conspiracy | |
45 | Gaius Julius Caesar | for ending his civil wars | |
2 | Augustus | ||
AD | 37 | Caligula | |
42 | Claudius | ||
55 | Nero | ||
70 | Vespasian | ||
79 | Titus | ||
81 | Domitian | ||
96 | Nerva | ||
98 | Trajan | ||
128 | Hadrian | ||
139 | Antoninus Pius | ||
166 | Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus | ||
177 | Commodus | ||
193 | Septimius Severus | ||
199 | Caracalla | ||
217 | Macrinus | ||
218 | Elagabalus | ||
238 | Gordian III | ||
276 | Probus
|
||
284 | Diocletian | ||
286 | Maximian | ||
307 | Constantine I
|
||
361 | Julian | [ii] |
Later use by other countries
The Latin honorific was later used for several national leaders during the
The Latin title has since fallen into disuse, being replaced by the title
See also
Notes
- ^ Such as imperator, caesar, augustus, princeps senatus, pontifex maximus and tribunicia potestas, which were granted to all new emperors
- ^ Julian's coin issued in 361 CE reads: FL CL IVLIA NVS P P AVG (Flavius Claudius Julianus Pater Patriae Augustus)
References
- S2CID 140903086.
- ^ "Suetonius • Life of Tiberius". penelope.uchicago.edu.
- ^ Anthony Birley. Marcus Aurelius: A Biography. Yale University Press: New Haven, CT, 1987, p. 57.