According to what I’ve heard, US President Donald Trump may adore being a Roman king. It would be seductive to follow the myth of unbridled power and sycophants doing his will.
However, Roman emperors were severely reliant on organisations, the business, and public opinion. Yes, some people challenged and marginalized the establishments of their day, but this frequently sparked a strong reaction.
I’ve just been asked which Roman prince resembled Donald Trump the most in terms of my years of study of Ancient Rome. He resembles a number of Roman rulers in some ways.
Julius Caesar
Of training, Julius Caesar was not emperor. When the Roman Republic was in its final years, he was a military head and legislator.
Some people have compared Trump to Caesar despite the lack of his martial service. The allure of this comparison is explained by English historian Mary Beard for both Trump’s supporters and foes.
The Roman Republic was conceived as a system of shared social power at the beginning. The electorate, the electorate, and the Senate all had one voice. However, effective and personable figures gained more and more traction in the first century BC. The previous power-sharing provisions were broken.
Caesar was one of these characters who had the most significance. He overthrew the traditional means of Democrat government, becoming the best political. Caesar completely broke the system according to his defense victories, great fortune, and huge popular appeal.
Caesar accelerated the growth of executive power in a single individual. The Roman Republic itself would never recover from this.
Trump has even diminished important corporations and expanded the authority of a singular executive branch. The seat of the Federal Reserve and the harassing judges are additional instances of meddling.
Trump relies on famous charm to avoid having negative consequences for these deeds. His TV job, political rallies, and dominance of the media cycle all contribute to a cult of personality.
Caesar apologised for concentrating executive authority solely on himself. He was fatally stabbed by a group of enraged lawmakers. Nevertheless, the state was beyond saving.
Trump and America were distinct from Caesar and the Roman Republic. Trump is not a blue-blooded aristocratic like Caesar was. While America is in decline, Rome had its most potent centuries before it.
Augustus: the transformation of Octavian
Caesar failed to make the transition from the nation to the monarchy. Octavian, his brother, did that, according to him. Following Caesar’s murder in 44 BCE, there were more than ten civil wars that followed, and Octavian eventually became Augustus ( 27 BCE–14 CE ) or emperor.
Augustus lacked the most powerful person in the world, over the troops, social institutions, and courts, despite his claim to recover the republic. He completed the process that Caesar and another began, dominating the Senate and previously powerful jobs like consulships.
Similar comparisons can be drawn between Trump and Augustus ‘ dominance of the entire political system. Trump is compared to Augustus by some spectators. They observe Trump’s institutional coercion, including that of the courts and media, that places restrictions on political power.
A cult of personality developed by Augustus, which is a hallmark of Trump’s increase.
Nero: from a nationalist to a pariah
Nero, a vibrant successor to Augustus, used advisors without political backgrounds ( 54–68 CE). For instance, Epaphroditus, a past slaves, was Nero’s minister. He managed the flow of information between the king and himself. He became extremely powerful and devoted a lot to Nero.
Trump has displayed related instincts. Consider the numerous authority to slash government spending that Elon Musk and his lackadaisical staff have been given.
Like Trump, Nero has a talent for entertaining. He sang and recited poetry in public, which past emperors did not do. The populace as a whole loved it, but the leaders detested it. Additionally, Naro hosted beautiful banquets at the castle.
However, by the time he died by suicide at the age of 30, Nero had completely isolated all.
Trump is overly simplistic to call him a Nero, as other people have done, nevertheless. Trump’s victory in the presidential poll shows that he still has a huge support base.
Roman kings were constrained by laws.
The institutions of state were also enshrined by Roman emperors despite their dominance. Some people had shameful consequences because of the army, the most significant state institution.
The unhappy emperor Caracalla was killed while attempting to rest himself in 217 CE.
Severus Alexander, the Emperor, was killed by his own army in 235 CE while he was clutching his family’s hand.
Some people think that the US troops might intervene to defend Trump’s constitutional rights. However, the military’s relation with the US government is more complicated than that of Rome’s.
Some rulers lost appeal to the public because of their haughty behavior toward the Senate, judge officials, and their own lieutenants.
Domitian was killed in a court chancellor crime in 96 CE. Some people praised his dying for displaying his authoritarian behavior.
Additionally, in 192 CE, Emperor Commodus was murdered by a champion boxer despite being well-known for his eccentric antics and open games. His girlfriend, the court chamberlain, and the prefect of the Praetorian orchestrated it. Commodus was labeled a “public opponent” by the Senate.
The sluggish influence of professional power
Trump’s subsequent expression is likely to be defined by the excessive use of executive power. However, he cannot overlook some restrictions. Some of the most effective people have operations abroad. A significant indication of this is China, the second-largest nation in terms of debt-holders.
The Trump trend may be dead before the end of the world is reached. I sincerely hope it doesn’t come to an end with the cruelty some of the kings experienced.
Important institutions may be threatened forever by executive overreach and harassment, which could permanently damage America’s reputation. We are aware of the benefits in the case of old Rome. What will come second in America is a great mystery.
Peter Edwell is Macquarie University’s associate professor of historical past.
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