Was there a ruler? Reflections on certain Aspects of the Career and Politics of the Triumvir M. Antony

Abstract

The article is devoted to the consideration of the nature of the policy and political goals of the triumvir M. Antony. First of all, it is noted that he came from a family that did not have any political influence, or connections, whose members were involved in a number of scandals. Until Caesar's death, Antony was only the executor of his orders. After the death of the dictator, he became one of the leaders of the Caesarians, but he had no other support than the army. In 42–30 BC. he was closely associated with the eastern provinces of the Roman Republic. Despite this, the main direction of his policy has always remained Western, although after 36 BC. its dependence on eastern resources has increased dramatically. However, this does not give grounds for saying that his activities were deeply influenced by the political practice of Hellenistic monarchies. The analysis of numismatic data - the issues of coins of Antony, relating to his time in the East, inscriptions in his honor, data on his religious policy testifies that in general he remained within the framework of Roman political traditions. There are no serious grounds for talking about his “monarchism”, he was just as a Roman traditionalist as the other leaders of the Roman political groups of the time.

Keywords

• mark antony
• caesar
• octavian
• cleopatra
• nobility
• political career
• cesarians
• hellenistic monarchy
• coinage
• roman political traditions