ABSTRACT
Following the death of Augustus in 14 CE, several legions on the frontiers mutinied. The mutiny in Germany was such a serious problem for the stability of the Empire that Tiberius’s adopted son Germanicus was sent to resolve the situation personally. The mutiny was only resolved when Germanicus paraded his own wife and children before the soldiers. 1 This event clearly demonstrates the position of the imperial family as a symbol of empire and the importance of the army’s loyalty to the imperial family to ensure the continued peace and prosperity of the Empire. As Tacitus makes clear when he has the soldiers claim:
In their hands lay the Roman cause, by their victories was the res publica expanded, theirs the nomenclature which commanders adopted. 2
The army played a crucial role in Rome’s success. How then, could their continued loyalty be secured?
