The Augustan Revolution
is the clear expression of the unqualified right and determination of the
speakertodecideamatterwhichaffectedtherevenuesduetobepaidtothe
Romanstate;andtheefforttoexplaintheprinciplesuponwhichhisdecision
isbased.
Ishouldliketodwellonthispointforamoment.Intheevent,soIbe-
lieve, the reign of Augustus turned out to have inaugurated almost three
centuries of relatively passive and inert government, in which the central
powerpursuedfewpoliciesandwaslargelycontenttorespondtopressures
anddemandsfrombelow.^11 Inthis,therevolutionofconsciousnesstowhich
Ihavereferredplayedacrucialpart;thatistheconsciousnessthattherewas
anindividualruler,whosenameandimageappearedeverywhere(orevery-
wherethatwordswerewrittenorimagesmade)andtowhomappealcould
bemade.ThesteptakenbythefishermanofGyarosembodiesexactlythat
perception.ButinthereignofAugustusthereisalsosomethingelse,which
to me recalls not the relative torpor of the intervening centuries, but the
moralizing and reforming zeal of the tetrarchic period, of Diocletian and
Constantine.Fromtheemphasisonvictory,totheuseofmembersofanex-
tendedimperialfamilyinmilitaryandgovernmentalrolesindifferentparts
oftheempire,theobsessionwithlarge-scalebuildingprojects,thereform
ofthebasisoftaxation,orthelevelofmoralizingself-justificationaddressed
tothepeople,awholeseriesoffeaturesunitesthetwoperiods.Anotherfea-
ture,whichlooksforwardtotherestlessjourneyingsofthetetrarchiccourts,
istheactivemovementroundtheempirewhichdistinguishesthefirstpart
ofAugustus’reign;oftheeighteenyearsafterActiumhewasinRomefor
aboutseven.^12
Ononeofthesejourneys,inGaulin..,Augustustookacensusof
thepeople.Ourtotalevidenceonthisevent,theEpitomeofLivy()and
Dio(,,)hardlysaysmorethanthat;nordoeseithersourcemakeclear
thatnoprovincialcensus,numberingpersonsandrecordingproperty,hadever
beentakenbefore.ItisofcourseonlytheauthorofLuke’sGospelwhoactu-
allystatesboththattherewasauniversalcensusandthatitwaspromotedby
anedictfromAugustus:‘‘Ithappenedinthosedaysthatanedictwentout
fromCaesarAugustusthatalltheinhabitedworldshouldbecensused.This
wasthefirstwhichtookplace,whileQuiriniuswasgovernorofSyria’’(:).
As Professor Brunt has reminded us,we should not deduce from the scat-
. SeeF.Millar,The Emperor in the Roman World ( BC–AD )().
. ReturntoRome,..;GaulandSpain,–..;intheGreekEast,–..;
inGaul,–..