List of Roman Consuls

This is a list of consuls known to have held office, from the beginning of the Roman Republic to the latest use of the title in Imperial times, together with those magistrates of the Republic who were appointed in place of consuls, or who superseded consular authority for a limited period.

From the establishment of the Republic to the time of Augustus, the consuls were the chief magistrates of the Roman state, and in theory there were always two, so that the executive power of the state was not vested in a single individual, as it had been under the kings. As other ancient societies dated historical events according to the reigns of their kings, it became customary at Rome to date events by the names of the consuls in office when the events occurred, rather than by counting the number of years since the foundation of the city (although that method could also be used). If a consul died during his year of office, another was elected to replace him. Although his imperium was the same as his predecessor's, he was termed consul suffectus, in order to distinguish him from the consul ordinarius whom he replaced; but the eponymous magistrates for each year were normally the consules ordinarii.

Because of this method of dating events, it was important to keep records of each year's eponymous magistrates. Many such lists have survived, either in the form of monumental inscriptions, conventionally referred to as fasti, or indirectly through the ancient historians, who had access to linen rolls recording the names of magistrates. Although these lists account for the entire period of the Republic, and most of Imperial time, there are discrepancies due to gaps and disagreement in different sources. Many no doubt arose as simple copying errors, especially those that involved the substitution of a familiar name for a less common one. Others may represent later attempts to edit the lists in order to explain deficiencies in the record, to reconcile conflicting traditions, or to ascribe particular actions or events to the time of a particular individual.

Occasionally, the authority of the consuls was temporarily superseded by the appointment of a dictator, who held greater imperium than that of the consuls. By tradition, these dictators laid down their office upon the completion of the task for which they were nominated, or after a maximum period of six months, and did not continue in office longer than the year for which the nominating consul had been elected. However, in four years at the end of the fourth century BC, dictators are said to have continued in office the year following their nomination in place of consuls. Modern scholarship is skeptical of these years, which might represent one example of later editing to the lists of magistrates in order to fill a gap. All known dictators have been included in this table.

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