Imperator - Imperator As An Imperial Title

Imperator As An Imperial Title

After Augustus established the Roman Empire, the title imperator was generally restricted to the emperor, though in the early years of the empire it would occasionally be granted to a member of his family. As a permanent title, imperator was used as a praenomen by the Roman emperors and was taken on accession. After the reign of Tiberius, the act of being proclaimed imperator was transformed into the act of imperial accession. In fact, if a general was acclaimed by his troops as imperator, it would be tantamount to a declaration of rebellion against the ruling emperor. At first the term continued to be used in the Republican sense as a victory title but attached to the de facto monarch and head of state, rather than the actual military commander. The title followed the emperor's name along with the number of times he was acclaimed as such, for example IMP V ("imperator five times"). In time it became the title of the de facto monarch, pronounced upon (and synonymous with) their assumption.

As a title imperator was generally translated into Greek as autokrator ("one who rules himself," also sometimes used as a translation for Roman dictators.) This was necessarily imprecise as it lost the nuances of Latin political thought contrasting imperium with other forms of public authority. Nevertheless, this title (along with sebastos for augustus) was used in Greek-language texts for Roman emperors from the establishment of the empire. In 629 CE Emperor Heraclius, having changed the official language to Greek nine years earlier, adopted the title of basileus, previously used by Alexander the Great as a translations for emperor and it is thereafter used interchangeably (and often in conjunction with) autokrator in the Byzantine Empire.