What were the motives, members, successes, and failures of the Second Triumvirate?

Members: Octavian, Antony and Lepidus.

Motives: -

• A joint dictatorship of these three men, each backed by armed forces. It was constitutionally legalized by the Lex Titia in November, 43 BC.

• The shared idea of the Triumvirs was to stabilize and harmonize the Caesarian faction, so that they would not fight amongst themselves, but combine their control over the Western half of the Roman Empire, and build strength to deal with their mutual enemies in the East.

Successes: -

• The Triumvirs’ first successful action was to get funds for their treasury. They did this by “proscription” – condemning to death or banishment those who opposed them, and seizing their assets. Their most famous victim was the orator Cicero.

• Their second success was to attack Caesar’s murderers, Brutus and Cassius, who had seized control of most of the Eastern provinces of the Empire. The combined forces of Antony and Octavian defeated Brutus and Cassius at Philippi in 42 BC.

• This victory allowed the Triumvirs to divide the Empire between them into three parcels: Octavian got the Western provinces; Antony took the Eastern; and Lepidus got Africa.

Failures: -

• The problem with the Triumvirate was that, once their common enemies were defeated, they could resume the rivalry that had existed between them before they formed their partnership. In other words, they fell out with one another.

• Lepidus, the weakest of the three, was the first to fall. He tried to double-cross Octavian. Octavian unilaterally expelled Lepidus from the partnership.

• Octavian then outmaneuvered Antony within political circles in Rome, getting the Senate to declare war on Antony.

• The final outcome was Octavian’s victory over Antony and Cleopatra at Actium (31 BC), leaving Octavian as the sole ruler of the Empire. He then went on to establish the Principate. The Republic was now dead.