By its original form, the liburnian was similar to the penteconter. It had one bench with 25 oars on each side, while in the late Roman Republic, it was equipped with two banks of oars (a bireme), remaining faster, lighter, and more agile than triremes. The liburnian design was adopted by the Romans and became a key part of Ancient Rome's navy, most possibly by mediation of the Macedonian navy in the 2nd half of the 1st century BC. Liburnians played a key role in the battle of Actium in Greece, which saw the establishment of Augustus as the undisputed ruler of the Roman world.