Consuls     It is not typical of this archive to review magistrates or non-monarchic rulers, but there are some exceptions, and the Roman Consulate is perhaps the most significant. The Consuls were the chief executives of the Republic. In them were vested broad powers to arbitrate, legislate adjudicate, and govern. They were the chief military officers, they represented Rome in foreign matters, and they led the Senate. The limits on their authority were few, but important: there were two consuls per year, each acting as a watch on the other. They were elected by popular assembly, and they served for a period of one year (although they could be re-elected). They were constrained by a system of Tribunes and Censors who could block their actions. And finally, their power might be overshadowed by appointed Dictators, who could take action in emergencies without recourse to committee or Consular approval (but on the other hand, the Dictators were appointed by the Consuls, and normally served only six-month terms -- the Dictators are also listed in this file). The Consulate survived the change from Republic to Empire, and the Imperial Consuls are also listed here. It is common to regard the Imperial Consuls as mere decoration, holders of a sinecure with much trapping and no substance. To a certain extent this is accurate -- in late times the office was primarily responsible for producing the spectacles and games so beloved by the Roman populace. Even so, a glance at the list will reveal a more complex situation. During most of the Empire, the Emperors were often Consuls themselves, and thus the office remained within the central focus of the power of the Roman government.      The list is organized somewhat at variance from my normal practice. Each entry begins with a year, and works it's way forward from that. Color codes are standard, except that red indicates common names for Emperors. Special comments and symbols are as follows:  --- = Indicates a missing portion of a name. [CSC] = Consul without colleague; one who held the office alone. [suff.] = Suffect Consul, one selected to replace, supercede, or otherwise augment one of the two primary Consuls. [a number] = The term of office for those who held it more than once. [a number cos] = The Consular term, for those who were both Consuls and Dictators. [a number dct] = The Dictatorial term, for those who were both Dictators and Consuls. [a number mtb] = The term of office for Military Tribunes who held that more than once. a year, divided into a and b (and in one case c) = Competing versions of the list. The sequential numbers in brown tint occuring every four years are the Olympiadic cycles, a common dating system in the ancient world,     Finally, a note on accuracy. This list is inaccurate to an extensive degree, especially before 300 BCE. That inaccuracy is a consequence of the fact that this list was compiled from a number of ancient authors, each of whom had varying sources and varying biases, and in the attempt to blend these traditional roll-calls together some data was inevitably muddled. It is known, for instance, that the claim by the list that no Consuls were elected between 375 to 371 BCE is very likely wrong, and stated thus merely to pull previous names into consistent order. Likewise, the claim that several years (333, 324, 301) saw only dictators but no Consuls is also quite dubious. Note as well several cases in which divurgent names are given for the same year. Why, then, present this clearly doubtful information? Because it is what was given in ancient times, and since these names formed the way in which Romans refered to earlier years (such-and-such occured within the Consulate of L. Caecilius Metellus and C. Furius Pacilus... i.e. 251 BCE), the traditional listing has strong value for students of Roman chronology. Aside from that, any errors are my own, and I earnestly ask for correction.  This is a very long list, were you looking for information within a particular time period? 400's BCE, 300's BCE, 200's BCE, 100's BCE, 000's BCE, 000's CE, 100's CE, 200's CE, 300's CE, 400's CE, 500's CE, 6-800's CE.

In 475, the Western Emperor Julius Nepos was deposed by the Magister Militum, Orestes, and fled to Salona, Dalmatia (modern Split, Croatia). Orestes placed his young son, Romulus Augustulus, on the throne, and ruled Italy in his name for the next year. In August of 476, Orestes was killed in a mutiny, and Romulus was retired to Campania (his life spared owing to his youth) by Odoacer, leader of the German troops, who thereafter governed Italy without appointing another Western Emperor. This is commonly seen as the demise of the Western Empire, though in fact Julius Nepos continued to be recognized in parts of Gaul and by the Eastern Emperor as ruler until his own murder in 480. The succession of Consuls continued, nevertheless, into the 6th Century...

477...Flavius Basiliscus
.........Armati
478...[CSC] Hellus or Illus
479...[CSC] Flavius Zeno (Imp. Orient. 474-476, 477-491) [3]
480...Flavius Zeno (Imp. Orient. 474-476, 477-491) [4]
.........Decius Maximus Basilius Caecina
481...[CSC] Placidus
482...Trocondus
.........Severinus
483...[CSC] Faustus
484...Theodoric I (Rex Italia 493-526) [1]
.........Decius Marius Venatius
485...Theodoric I (Rex Italia 493-526) [2]
.........Quintus Aurelius Memmius Symmachus
486...Decius Manortius Basilius Caecina
.........Flavius Longinus [1]
487...[CSC] Boetius
488...Claudius Julius Ecclesius Dynamius
.........Rufius Achilius Sifidius
489...Petronius Probinus
.........Eusebius [1]
490...Flavius Faustus
.........Flavius Longinus [2]
491...[CSC] Flavius Olybrius
492...Anastasius I (Imp. Orient. 491-518) [1]
.........Flavius Rufus
493...Eusebius
.........Albinus
494...Turcius Rufius Apronianus Asterius
.........Flavius Praesidius
495...[CSC] Viator
496...[CSC] Paulus
497...[CSC] Anastasius I (Imp. Orient. 491-518) [2]
498...Iohannes Scytha
.........Paulinus
499...Iohannes Giblus
500...Flavius Hypatius
.........Patricius
501...Rufus Magnus Faustus Avienus
.........Flavius Pompeius
502...Flavius Avienus
.........Probus
503...Desicrates
.........Volusianus
504...[CSC] Cethegus
505...Sabinianus
.........Theodorus
506...Areobindus
.........Messalla
507...[CSC] Anastasius I (Imp. Orient. 491-518) [3]
508...[CSC] Celerus Venantius
509...[CSC] Importunus
510...[CSC] Anicius Manlius Severinus Boetius
511...Secundinus
.........Felix
512...Paullus
.........Muscianus OR Muxianus
513...Probus
.........Flavius Taurus Clementinus Armonius Clementinus
514...[CSC] Magnus Aurelius Cassiodorus Senator
515...Anthemius
.........Florentinus OR Florentius
516...[CSC] Flavius Petrus
517...Flavius Anastasius Paulus Probus Sabinianus Pompeius Anastasius
.........Flavius Agapetus
518...[CSC] Magnus
519...[CSC] Flavius Justin I (Imp. Orient. 518-527) [1]
.........Flavius Eutharicus Cilliga
520...Flavius Vitalianus
.........Flavius Rusticus or Rusticius
521...Flavius Anicius Justinian I (Imp. Orient. 527-565) [1]
.........Flavius Valerius
522...Flavius Symmachus
.........Flavius Boetius
523...[CSC] Flavius Anicius Maximus
524...Flavius Justin I (Imp. Orient. 518-527) [2]
.........Venantius Opilio
525...Flavius Theodorus Philoxenus
.........Anicius Probus
526...[CSC] Flauius Anicius Olybrius
527...[CSC] Vettius Agorius Basilius Mavortius
528...[CSC] Flavius Anicius Justinian I (Imp. Orient. 527-565) [2]
529...[CSC] Flavius Decius
530...Flavius Lampadius [1]
.........Flavius Rufius Gennadius Probus Orestes [1]
531...Flavius Lampadius [2]
.........Flavius Rufius Gennadius Probus Orestes [2]
532...Flavius Lampadius [3]
.........Flavius Rufius Gennadius Probus Orestes [3]
533...[CSC] Flavius Anicius Justinian I (Imp. Orient. 527-565) [3]
534...Flavius Anicius Justinian I (Imp. Orient. 527-565) [4]
.........Decius Flavius Theodorus Paulinus [1]
535...Flavius Belisarius [1]
.........Decius Flavius Theodorus Paulinus [2]
536...Flavius Belisarius [2]
.........Decius Flavius Theodorus Paulinus [3]
537...Flavius Belisarius [3]
.........Decius Flavius Theodorus Paulinus [4]
538...[CSC] Flavius Iohannes
539...Flavius Strategius Apion
.........Decius Flavius Theodorus Paulinus [5]
540...[CSC] Flavius Petrus Theodorus Valentinus Rusticius Boraides Germanus Justinus
541...[CSC] Anicius Faustus Albinus Basilius
542-566...Vacant
In 541 the Emperor Justinian abolished the office of Consul as a ruinously expensive and irrelevant sinecure. Nevertheless, the office continued a kind of mummified existence after his death, as successive Byzantine Emperors over the next 300 years utilized the title in the year of their accession to celebrate coronation festivities.
565/6...[CSC] Flavius Justin II (Imp. Orient. 565-578)
578/9...[CSC] Flavius Tiberius II Constantinus (Imp. Orient. 578-582)
582/3...[CSC] Mauricius Flavius Tiberius (Imp. Orient. 582-590)
602/3...[CSC] Phocas (Imp. Orient. 602-610)
610/1...[CSC] Heraclius (Imp. Orient. 610-641)
642......[CSC] Constans II Pogonatus (Imp. Orient. 641-668)
668/9...[CSC] Constantine IV (Imp. Orient. 668-685)
685/6...[CSC] Justinian II Rhinotmetus (Imp. Orient. 685-695, 702-711)
695/6...[CSC] Leontius (Imp. Orient. 695-698)
698/9...[CSC] Tiberius III Apsimar (Imp. Orient. 698-702)
711/2...[CSC] Philippicus Bardanes (Imp. Orient. 711-713)
713/4...[CSC] Anastasius II (Imp. Orient. 713-715)
715/6...[CSC] Theodosius III (Imp. Orient. 715-717)
717/8...[CSC] Leo III (Imp. Orient. 717-741)
741/2...[CSC] Constantine V Copronymus (Imp. Orient. 741-775)
775/6...[CSC] Leo IV "the Khazar" (Imp. Orient. 775-780)
780/1...[CSC] Constantine VI (Imp. Orient. 780-797)
802/3...[CSC] Nicephorus I (Imp. Orient. 802-811)
811/2...[CSC] Michael I (Imp. Orient. 811-813)
813/4...[CSC] Leo V (Imp. Orient. 813-820)
820/1...[CSC] Michael II (Imp. Orient. 820-829)
829/30.[CSC] Theophilus (Imp. Orient. 829-842)
842/3...[CSC] Michael III (Imp. Orient. 842-866)
866/7...[CSC] Basil I (Imp. Orient. 866-886)
886/7...[CSC] Leo VI Philosophus (Imp. Orient. 886-912)
The Emperor Leo VI, in the course of his complete reform of Byzantine law, once more abolished the office and it's ceremonial usage, and this time no further Eastern Emperors utilized the title. Thus, it's full course as a Republican dignity and an Imperial appanage extended over some 1395 years. Nevertheless, even in this the office did not vanish entirely. Over the course of several hundred years after the 880's, various secular authorities in the City of Rome itself once more used the title, albeit in a somewhat haphazard fashion. For administrators of the City, see that article.