Undergraduate History Major, Charlotte Crabtree will be presenting her paper, “A New Perspective on Roman Dictators” at the 13th Northwest Undergraduate Conference on the Ancient World (NUCAW 2018), Saturday April 21, 2018 in Kremer Board Room (Ford Hall 102), at Willamette University.

ABSTRACT:

In Ancient Rome, the dictatorship was an emergency command position. Although we are unsure of when the office originated, dictators were used regularly from the Republic’s earliest years through the third century BCE. After centuries of consistent appointments (501-202 BCE), it is usually noted that, “the post fell into disuse” until Sulla revived the dictatorship in 82 BCE. In a final appearance, the title of dictator was used by Caesar. These last two dictators, however, marked a departure from the dictatorships of the Early and Middle Republic. In response to a crisis, one of Rome’s leading officials, a consul, appointed a dictator. The dictator usually acted as a military commander with nearly complete and incontestable authority. Besides leading the army, a dictator also had a master or horse to act as his second-in-command. While this was considerable amount of power for one man, the dictator’s term was tightly restricted to six-months.

Scholars often discuss famous military dictators like Camillus or Cincinnatus, who were appointed in response to enemy attacks. In reality, dictators were also appointed to calm internal rioting, hold elections, or to complete religious duties. By discussing only the most celebrated dictators, it is easy misunderstand or simplify the office. I attempt to approach the dictatorship more holistically, examining illustrious generals alongside those who completed more mundane tasks within the city. Livy provided a detailed narrative of the early and middle Republic, a time for which the dictatorship was, in his own words, “the usual practice in times of crisis.” In examining Livy’s dictators, we can look at the actual circumstances in which a dictator was appointed, leading to a more accurate understanding of the institution’s flexible role.