1. EARLY SIGNS OF DECLINE IN THE ADEQUATE REIGN of TIBERIUS, Agustusus’ successor as Princeps, 14-37 CE
By: Ms. G
British Museum, Portrait Head (Tiberius), accessed April 11, 2013,
Tiberius

2. The Law of Treason (Maiestas)
Tiberius continued to use treason trials to punish his enemies. Augustus had started the trend of extending the definition of treason from crimes against the state to crimes such as ‘slander’ and using astrology to make predictions (that certain emperors didn’t like). This did not make Tiberius popular.
Allen M. Ward, et al., A History of the Roman People, 4th ed. (Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Prentice Hall, 2003), 306.

3. relationship with the senate
As princeps, Tiberius tried to work well with the Senate and even gave it some new powers. However, Senators were very suspicious of him because they thought by giving them free speech he was trying to trap them into being convicted of treason. His poor relationship toward the Senate was an early sign of the deteriorating relationship that played an underlying long-term role in Rome’s eventual downfall.
One Roman historian says Tiberius called senators “men fit to be slaves”.
Ward, et al., A History of the Roman People, 4th ed., 307.

4. Dealing with the early Legions’ revolts
“Wretched Pay, Long Terms of Service, and Brutal Disciplinary Enforcement.”
Even from an early time (14-16 CE), legions were not always loyally following their emperor. This became a long-term cause of decline.
Revolt of legions in Hungary 
Danube revolt put down by Drusus and Sejanus. Germanicus put down German revolt.
Wikimedia Commons, Pannonia, accessed November 5, 2011,

5. FOREIGN POLICY: maintain frontiers
Tiberius avoided war with the powerful Parthians. By the end of the Roman Empire in the west another powerful empire will rise in Iran, so Tiberius can’t be blamed for this factor that contributed to Rome’s decline.
History World International, A History of the Parthians, accessed April 11, 2013,

6. A Citizen’s Rights Decline
1. “Tiberius tried to limit free speech in Rome; a citizen’s right.”
Normal men, those of working (plebeian) class, were about to be denied their right to speak freely. Here Tiberius can take some blame for the long, slow erosion of respect for and rights of plebeians which contributed to Rome`s decline.
Plebeians, in a relief from the first century.
Michael Burgan, Empire of Ancient Rome (New York: Shoreline Publishing, 2005), p 56.
PBS, The Roman Empire in the First Century, Plebeians, accessed Nov. 8, 2018,

7. taking care of rome’s wealth
Like other emperors before and after, Tiberius built a palace on the Palatine Hill in Rome. However, his excesses were not equal to future emperors. He was known as a good administrator and even encouraged trade and collected taxes in a less cruel way. He did not contribute much to a drain on the treasury that eventually contributed to Rome’s fall.
The site of Tiberius’s palace on the Palatine Hill in Rome.
Ian Brown, Google Sightseeing, Ancient Rome, accessed April 11, 2013,

8. Body guards as potential assassins
To assist his treason trials he built permanent barracks for the Praetorian Guard (the emperor’s personal body guards) just outside Rome. It wasn’t the building that contributed to decline, in this case, but the fact that he was giving more responsibility to the Praetorian Guard; in turn, the Praetorian Guard`s strength eventually became a factor in weakening the empire because assassination was always lurking, leading to political instability.
Marble relief of Praetorian Guard
Vroma (Virtual Community for Teaching and Learning Classics), Praetorian Guard, accessed April 11, 2013,

9. Tiberius Overall
Overall, Tiberius’ contributions to the decline of the Roman Empire were …