The Sodales or Sacerdotes Augustales (''singular'' Sodalis or Sacerdos Augustalis), or simply Augustales,
[Tacitus, ''Annales'' 1.54] were an order (''
sodalitas'') of
Roman priests originally instituted by
Tiberius
Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus (; 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was the second Roman emperor. He reigned from AD 14 until 37, succeeding his stepfather, the first Roman emperor Augustus. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC. His father ...
to attend to the maintenance of the cult of
Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...
and the
Julii
The gens Julia (''gēns Iūlia'', ) was one of the most prominent patrician families in ancient Rome. Members of the gens attained the highest dignities of the state in the earliest times of the Republic. The first of the family to obtain the ...
. Their establishment in 14 A.D. was described by
Tacitus
Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars.
The surviving portions of his two major works—the ...
in his first book of the ''
Annales
Annals are a concise form of historical writing which record events chronologically, year by year. The equivalent word in Latin and French is ''annales'', which is used untranslated in English in various contexts.
List of works with titles contai ...
''.
Augustales or ''seviri Augustales'' became institutions throughout the cities of the western Roman empire and were usually selected by the town councillors. Up to 95% of Augustales were freedmen as has been attested in inscriptions. They were rich and acted as benefactors, funding public entertainments and new buildings.
In Rome the ''sodales'' were chosen by lot among the principal persons of Rome, and were twenty one in number, to which were added Tiberius,
Drusus
Drusus may refer to:
* Claudius (Tiberius Claudius Drusus) (10 BC–AD 54), Roman emperor from 41 to 54
* Drusus Caesar (AD 8–33), adoptive grandson of Roman emperor Tiberius
* Drusus Julius Caesar (14 BC–AD 23), son of Roman emperor Tiberiu ...
,
Claudius, and
Germanicus, as members of the imperial family.
Women might be appointed priestesses of Augustus, a practice probably originating in the appointment of
Livia by a decree of the
Senate as priestess to her deceased husband. A
flamen
A (plural ''flamens'' or ''flamines'') was a priest of the ancient Roman religion who was assigned to one of eighteen deities with official cults during the Roman Republic. The most important of these were the three (or "major priests"), who ser ...
could also be a member of the Augustales.
These senatorial ''sodales Augustales'' were different from the municipal ''
seviri Augustales
The Sodales or Sacerdotes Augustales (''singular'' Sodalis or Sacerdos Augustalis), or simply Augustales,Tacitus, ''Annales'' 1.54 were an order ('' sodalitas'') of Roman priests originally instituted by Tiberius to attend to the maintenance of t ...
'', as Linderski put it: “two vastly dissimilar organizations sharing a similar name”.
Related to the ''sodales Augustales'' were lesser known priesthoods that maintained other imperial cults, which included the ''
sodales Flaviales
The vocabulary of ancient Roman religion was highly specialized. Its study affords important information about the religion, traditions and beliefs of the ancient Romans. This legacy is conspicuous in European cultural history in its influence o ...
'', the ''
sodales Hadrianales
The vocabulary of ancient Roman religion was highly specialized. Its study affords important information about the religion, traditions and beliefs of the ancient Romans. This legacy is conspicuous in European cultural history in its influence o ...
'', and the ''
sodales Antoniani Veriani
The vocabulary of ancient Roman religion was highly specialized. Its study affords important information about the religion, traditions and beliefs of the ancient Romans. This legacy is conspicuous in European cultural history in its influence on ...
''.
See also
*
Titii
The ''Titii'' (or ''Titii sodales'', later ''Titienses'', ''Sacerdotes Titiales Flaviales'') was a college ('' sodalitas'') of Roman priests.
Origins
There are two versions of how the college was established. One credits Titus Tatius with creati ...
*
Sodalitas
Notes
Priests of the Roman Empire
Augustus
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