ON THE NATURE OF AUGUSTUS’ EXPANSIONIST POLICY

In Raman history, no one has annexed more territory than Augustus. But why did Augustus conduct an imperial policy? Historians have developed different theories concerning this issue. Roughly, the theory of defensive imperialism holds that Augustus did not really have an intended aggressive foreign policy toward the rest of Rome’s neighbors and that all he wanted was to defend the Roman State against external threats. Contrary to this, offensive imperialism claims that Augustus desired to aggressively conquer and annex the entire known world. In this paper, I will try to defend the offensive interpretation of Augustan imperialism, and argue that Augustus was cruelly aggressive expansionist without stint. Additionally, it will be also suggested that the diplomatic settlement made with the Parthian Kingdom in 20 BC is consistent with offensive imperialism