History of The Constitution of The Roman Empire

The History of the Constitution of the Roman Empire is a study of the ancient Roman Empire that traces the progression of Roman political development from the founding of the Roman Empire in 27 BC until the abolishment of the Roman Principate around 300 AD. In the year 88 BC, Lucius Cornelius Sulla was elected Consul of the Roman Republic, and began a civil war. While it ended within a decade, it was the first in a series civil wars that wouldn't end until the year 30 BC. The general who won the last civil war of the Roman Republic, Gaius Octavian, became the master of the state. Octavian was the adopted son and heir of Julius Caesar. In the years after 30 BC, Octavian set out to reform the Roman constitution. The ultimate consequence of these reforms was the abolition of the republic, and the founding of the "Roman Empire". Octavian was given the name "Augustus" by the "Roman Senate", and became known to history as the first "Roman Emperor". While it is true that Octavian sought power for himself, it is also true that the old constitution had ceased to function properly. This simple fact had caused much of the turmoil of the prior century. Octavian's reforms did not, at the time, seem drastic, since they did nothing more than reorganize the constitution. The old offices and institutions were not altered in any other way. The reorganization was revolutionary, however, because the ultimate result was that Octavian ended up with control over the entire constitution. During the reigns of future emperors, the constitution that Octavian had left behind transitioned into outright monarchy.