Roman dictatorship

The Roman dictatorship was an extraordinary magistracy that temporarily concentrated public authority in one appointed official, usually for a specific emergency or task.

Roman dictator: A magistrate appointed in ancient Rome with extraordinary authority for a limited term. The office centered on this single magistrate, appointed to address a specified crisis or task.
Roman Kingdom: The period of Roman history traditionally dated from the city's founding to the establishment of the Republic. Accounts of the dictatorship's origins connect its powers to Rome's earlier kingship.
Roman consulship: The annual joint chief magistracy of the Roman Republic, normally held by two consuls. Unlike dictatorship, consulship divided authority between colleagues and renewed it annually.
Julius Caesar: A Roman general and politician whose dictatorship ended with his assassination in 44 BCE. His dictatorship intensified fears that the office could become permanent personal rule.
Roman consul: One of the annually elected chief magistrates of the Roman Republic. Consuls normally nominated dictators and yielded precedence to their authority.
Roman Republic: The system of government in Rome from the end of kingship to the establishment of the Principate. The dictatorship belonged to the Republic's constitutional framework.
Roman monarchy: The period of kingship in Rome before the traditional establishment of the Republic. Dictators held concentrated command temporarily, while kingship represented permanent sovereign rule.
Assassination of Julius Caesar: The killing of Julius Caesar by conspirators in the Roman Senate on 15 March 44 BCE. The conspirators justified Caesar's murder partly as a defense against kingship-like power.
Senate of the Roman Republic: The Republic's council of former magistrates, influential in policy, finance, and public appointments. The Senate commonly advised that a dictator be appointed during an emergency.
Livy: A Roman historian who wrote a large-scale history of Rome from its origins to his own era. His narrative preserves many foundational stories about early dictators and their appointments.

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