EM'PEROII, was originally merely the title of a Roman general ; but, on the fall of the republic it was particularly ap plied to the head of the state. The au thority of the Roman emperors was form ed principally by the combination of the chief offices of the old republic in a single person ; besides which, some extraordi nary powers were conferred. Thus, 0e tavius held the titles of emperor, procon sul, and tribune, pont ifea mitxim us or high priest ; and was invested with perpetual consular authority, and also that of the censorship. Besides this, he was termed prince of the senate, and Augustus, which designation descended to his successors; but lie was much more moderate in his use of titular dignities than his successors, contenting himself with substantial pow er. The provinces of the empire were divided between the senate and emperor, who appointed their governors, distin guished by the respective titles of procon sul and proprwtor ; but this division threw all the armies into the hands of the latter, as he took for his share the fron tier provinces. The emperors appointed their own successors, who were dignified with the title of Cresol., and in later times
enjoyed a share in the government. Dio clesian first divided the care of the em pire with a second Augustus in the per son of Maximian, and each of these col leagues associated with himself a Caesar. After the court was removed to Constan tinople, the old titles and forms of the re public vanished by degrees, and the em perors assumed the style of oriental princes —Charlemagne assumed the title of emperor after his coronation at Rome; amt from his time this title (in German kaiser) was elaimel exclusively, in west ern Europe, by the rulers of Germany. On the dissolution of the Corm:in empire in 1803, the title passed to the emperor of Austria, and, in the same year, Napo leon assumed it in France ; the czars of Russia claimed it in the reign of Alex ander.
El'PlIASIS, in rhetoric, a particular stress of utterance, or force of the voice and action, given to such ports or words of an oration, as the speaker intends to impress specially upon his audience.