Editing Sejanus (section)

=== Praetorian prefect ===

It is likely that Sejanus's father Strabo came to the attention of [[Augustus]] through his father's connection with Maecenas. Sometime after 2 BC,<ref>According to the Bingham dissertation, while the Guard had been formally established by Augustus in 27 BC, the first prefects were not appointed until 2 BC. See Bingham, p. 39.</ref> Strabo was appointed [[Praetorian prefect|prefect of the Praetorian Guard]], one of the two most powerful positions a Roman knight could attain in the Empire. This office he carried on dutifully and without incident until the death of Augustus in AD 14. Little is known about the life Sejanus led prior to this date, but according to Tacitus, he accompanied [[Gaius Caesar]], adopted son of Augustus, during his campaigns in [[Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity)|Armenia]] in 1 BC.<ref name="tacitus-annals-iv-1"/> Upon the accession of [[Tiberius]] in AD 14, Sejanus was appointed prefect of the Praetorian Guard as the colleague of his father Strabo, and began his rise to prominence.

The Praetorian Guard was an elite unit of the [[Roman army]] formed by Augustus in 27 BC, with the specific function to serve as a bodyguard to the emperor and members of the imperial family.<ref>Bingham, p. 30.</ref> Much more than a guard however, the Praetorians also managed the day-to-day care of the city, such as general security and civil administration.<ref>Bingham, p. 238.</ref> Furthermore, their presence served as a constant reminder to the people and the Senate of the substantial armed force which served as the basis for the imperial power.<ref>Bingham, p. 232.</ref> Augustus was careful however to uphold the [[Roman Republic|republican]] veneer of this regime, and only allowed nine [[Cohort (military unit)|cohorts]] to be formed (one fewer than in a normal [[Roman legion]]), which were inconspicuously scattered across various lodging houses in the city, and commanded by two prefects.<ref>Bingham, pp. 231, 40.</ref>

When Strabo was assigned to the [[Roman governor|governorship]] of [[Ægyptus|Egypt]] in AD 15, Sejanus became the sole commander of the Praetorians and instigated reforms that helped shape the guard into a powerful tool of the [[principate]].<ref name="dio-history-lvii-19">Cassius Dio, ''Roman History'' [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/57*.html#19 LVII.19]</ref><ref>Bingham, p. 43.</ref> In AD 20 the scattered encampments inside the city were centralized into [[Castra Praetoria|a single garrison]] just outside Rome<ref name="tacitus-annals-iv-2">Tacitus, ''Annals'' [[wikisource:The Annals (Tacitus)/Book 4#2|IV.2]]</ref><ref>Syme believes Tacitus delayed mention of these reforms until the year 23 for stylistic reasons. The actual date the Castra Praetoria was founded may have been AD 20. See {{cite book | author = Syme, Ronald  | year = 1958 | title = Tacitus | volume = 1 | page = 424 | location = Oxford, UK | publisher = Oxford University Press | isbn = 0198143273}}</ref> and the number of cohorts was increased from nine to twelve,<ref>Bingham, p. 50.</ref> one of which now held the daily guard at the palace. The practice of joint leadership between two prefects was abandoned, and Sejanus himself appointed the [[centurion]]s and [[Tribunus Militum|tribunes]].<ref name="tacitus-annals-iv-2"/> With these changes in effect, Sejanus now commanded the complete loyalty of a force of around 12,000 soldiers, all of which were at his immediate disposal. The facade of Augustus was no longer maintained, and Tiberius openly displayed the strength of the guard at parades.<ref>Cassius Dio, ''Roman History'' [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/57*.html#22 LVII.22]</ref>