Triumvirate

A triumvirate is rule by three men or a political alliance of three people. In Roman history the term most often refers to two late Republican coalitions: the unofficial First Triumvirate of Caesar, Pompey and Crassus, and the official Second Triumvirate of Octavian, Mark Antony and Lepidus.

In brief:

• triumvirate literally means an association of three men;
• the First Triumvirate was a private political agreement, not a magistracy;
• the Second Triumvirate was created by law and received extraordinary powers;
• both alliances show the crisis of the late Roman Republic, when personal armies, client networks and wealth became more decisive than ordinary Republican procedures.

First and Second Triumvirates

The main difference between the two triumvirates was legal status.

The First Triumvirate formed around 60 BCE as a private alliance of three powerful politicians. Gaius Julius Caesar gained support for his consulship and his later command in Gaul, Gnaeus Pompey the Great sought ratification of his eastern settlement and land for his veterans, and Marcus Licinius Crassus defended the interests of his clients and equestrian tax contractors. The alliance broke down after the death of Julia and Crassus' defeat at Carrhae.

The Second Triumvirate was created in 43 BCE after Caesar's assassination. Its members were Octavian Augustus, Mark Antony and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus. Unlike the first alliance, it received legal extraordinary powers, carried out proscriptions and fought Caesar's assassins. The internal conflict between the triumvirs ended with Octavian's victory and the creation of the Principate.

Why triumvirates became possible

The triumvirates were not the result of a single intrigue but of a systemic Republican crisis. The Senate could no longer reliably balance the interests of commanders, veterans, provinces, equestrians and the urban plebs. Victorious generals returned with armies, prestige and clients, while political decisions were increasingly forced through street pressure, popular assemblies and military power.

The First Triumvirate showed that a private coalition could paralyse senatorial opposition. The Second Triumvirate went further: it turned a temporary alliance of three leaders into a legal emergency regime. For that reason the topic matters not only for the biographies of Caesar or Octavian, but also for understanding the transition from Republic to Empire.

Topic navigation

I. Late Republic

• Roman Republic
• Political system of the Roman Republic
• Domestic politics in Republican Rome

II. First Triumvirate

• First Triumvirate
• Gaius Julius Caesar
• Gnaeus Pompey the Great
• Marcus Licinius Crassus

III. Second Triumvirate

• Second Triumvirate
• Octavian Augustus
• Mark Antony
• Marcus Aemilius Lepidus

Literature

Ancient sources

1. Plutarch. Parallel Lives. Caesar, Pompey, Crassus, Antony. 2. Appian. The Civil Wars. 3. Suetonius. The Divine Julius; Augustus. 4. Cassius Dio. Roman History.

Modern studies

1. Erich S. Gruen. The Last Generation of the Roman Republic. 2. Ronald Syme. The Roman Revolution. 3. Christian Meier. Caesar.

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