caesar

CAESARa title of the Roman emperors, was originally a family name of the Julia gens; it was assumed by Octavianus as the adopted son of the great dictator, C. Julius Caesar, and was by him handed down to his adopted son Tiberius. It continued to be used by Caligula, Claudius, and Nero, as members either by adoption or female descent of Caesar's family; but though the family became extinct with Nero, succeeding emperors still retained the name as part of their titles, and it was the practice to prefix it to their own names, as, for instance, Imperator Caesar Domitianus Augustus. When Hadrian adopted Aelius Verus, he allowed the latter to take the title of Caesar (Spart. Ael. Ver. 1; Aur. Vict. Caes. 13.12); and from this time, though the title of Augustus continued to be confined to the reigning emperor, that of Caesar was also granted the second person in the state and the heir presumptive to the throne. (Eckhel, vol. 8. p. 367, &c.) [AUGUSTUS]