After Augustus established the principate, the Emperor himself was the direct governor of Rome's most important provinces (called imperial provinces) and even in the provinces he did not directly govern, was senior to other provincial governors through holding imperium maius, or supreme imperium. In imperial provinces, the Emperor would appoint legates to govern in his name. The Emperor had sole say in the appointing of these legates, who were lower in rank than other provincial governors, as officially they were only representatives of the province's true governor, the Emperor.