ABSTRACT
The victory at Actium ushered in a long period of prosperity and internal peace. In 27 there took place a radical reform of the constitution. Octavian ceased to rely on powers irregularly acquired during the Civil War. Instead he agreed to accept, at the hands of the Senate, a large ‘province’ consisting of Gaul, Spain and Syria. It was not his intention necessarily to go out as proconsul, but following the precedent set by Pompey in Spain, he would rule through legates responsible and loyal to himself. As Gaul, Spain and Syria contained the bulk of the Empire’s military forces, he effectively retained control over the army. At the same time he took a fresh title Augustus, ‘the revered one’, by which he was subsequently known; it was a new name for a new era. Augustus was to remain in control at Rome for a further 40 years.
