THE FIRST ROMAN EMPEROR The illustrious / The Sacred - (Augustus) Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus aka: Octavian *** Octavian (his original name) was replaced with Augustus, given to him by the Roman Senate as a symbol of his new imperial status. In ancient Rome, deification was a common practice for emperors, where they were granted divine honors and worshiped as gods, but not necessarily believed to possess supernatural powers. Augustus, as the adopted son and heir of Julius Caesar, inherited Ca