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128-509: The village lies at an elevation of 132 metres (433 ft) and covers an area of 23.501 km² (9.074 mi²). In historical records the village was first mentioned in 1135 written as Byn. Earlier the Romans built a fortress here and in 173 emperor Marcus Aurelius wrote his famous diary in this region during the wars against quadi in the Marcomannic Wars . Later, after the foundation of

256-576: A royal progress . At Athens he stayed with Herodes Atticus , and joined the Eleusinian Mysteries . During sacrifice, a falling star was observed in the sky, shooting west to east. He stopped in Ephesus , where he is attested at the estate of the local aristocrat Publius Vedius Antoninus , and made an unexpected stopover at Erythrae , where an elegiac poem in the voice of the local sibyl alludes to his visit. The journey continued by ship through

384-452: A 'favour', not to attack Atticus; he had already asked Atticus to refrain from making the first blows. Fronto replied that he was surprised to discover Marcus counted Atticus as a friend (perhaps Atticus was not yet Marcus's tutor), and allowed that Marcus might be correct, but nonetheless affirmed his intent to win the case by any means necessary: '[T]he charges are frightful and must be spoken of as frightful. Those in particular that refer to

512-516: A Caesar; do not be dipped into the purple dye – for that can happen'. At the senate's request, Marcus joined all the priestly colleges ( pontifices , augures , quindecimviri sacris faciundis , septemviri epulonum , etc.); direct evidence for membership, however, is available only for the Arval Brethren . Antoninus demanded that Marcus reside in the House of Tiberius, the imperial palace on

640-489: A goddess, which frightened her—she did not want to become the next Cassiopeia . She had power, too. She made Lucius shave his beard for her. The Syrians mocked him for this, as they did for much else. Critics declaimed Lucius' luxurious lifestyle. He had taken to gambling, they said; he would "dice the whole night through". He enjoyed the company of actors. He made a special request for dispatches from Rome, to keep him updated on how his chariot teams were doing. He brought

768-623: A golden statue of the Greens' horse Volucer around with him, as a token of his team spirit. Fronto defended his pupil against some of these claims: the Roman people needed Lucius' bread and circuses to keep them in check. This, at least, is how the biographer has it. The whole section of the vita dealing with Lucius' debaucheries ( HA Verus 4.4–6.6) is an insertion into a narrative otherwise entirely cribbed from an earlier source. Some few passages seem genuine; others take and elaborate something from

896-432: A hope of recovery. The diarrhea has stopped, the little attacks of fever have been driven away. But the emaciation is still extreme and there is still quite a bit of coughing'. He and Faustina, Marcus wrote, had been 'pretty occupied' with the girl's care. Domitia would die in 151. In 149, Faustina gave birth again, to twin sons. Contemporary coinage commemorates the event, with crossed cornucopiae beneath portrait busts of

1024-527: A lieutenant obeys a proconsul or a governor obeys the emperor". Immediately after their Senate confirmation, the emperors proceeded to the Castra Praetoria , the camp of the Praetorian Guard . Lucius addressed the assembled troops, which then acclaimed the pair as imperatores . Then, like every new emperor since Claudius , Lucius promised the troops a special donativum . This donative , however,

1152-508: A markedly different personality from Marcus: he enjoyed sports of all kinds, but especially hunting and wrestling; he took obvious pleasure in the circus games and gladiatorial fights. He did not marry until 164. In 156, Antoninus turned 70. He found it difficult to keep himself upright without stays . He started nibbling on dry bread to give him the strength to stay awake through his morning receptions. As Antoninus aged, Marcus would take on more administrative duties, more still when he became

1280-744: A painting master, proved particularly influential; he seems to have introduced Marcus Aurelius to the philosophic way of life. In April 132, at the behest of Diognetus, Marcus took up the dress and habits of the philosopher: he studied while wearing a rough Greek cloak , and would sleep on the ground until his mother persuaded him to sleep on a bed. A new set of tutors – the Homeric scholar Alexander of Cotiaeum along with Trosius Aper and Tuticius Proculus , teachers of Latin – took over Marcus's education in about 132 or 133. Marcus thanks Alexander for his training in literary styling. Alexander's influence – an emphasis on matter over style and careful wording, with

1408-509: A palace beside the Lateran , where he would spend much of his childhood. Marcus thanks his grandfather for teaching him 'good character and avoidance of bad temper'. He was less fond of the mistress his grandfather took and lived with after the death of his wife Rupilia. Marcus was grateful that he did not have to live with her longer than he did. From a young age, Marcus displayed enthusiasm for wrestling and boxing . He trained in wrestling as

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1536-548: A palace' – but he found it difficult nonetheless. He would criticize himself in the Meditations for 'abusing court life' in front of company. As quaestor, Marcus would have had little real administrative work to do. He would read imperial letters to the senate when Antoninus was absent and would do secretarial work for the senators. But he felt drowned in paperwork and complained to his tutor, Marcus Cornelius Fronto: 'I am so out of breath from dictating nearly thirty letters'. He

1664-496: A seaside resort on the Campanian coast. His condition did not improve, and he abandoned the diet prescribed by his doctors, indulging himself in food and drink. He sent for Antoninus, who was at his side when he died on 10 July 138. His remains were buried quietly at Puteoli . The succession to Antoninus was peaceful and stable: Antoninus kept Hadrian's nominees in office and appeased the senate, respecting its privileges and commuting

1792-464: A selection of reading material, including Cicero's pro lege Manilia , in which the orator had argued in favor of Pompey taking supreme command in the Mithridatic War . It was an apt reference (Pompey's war had taken him to Armenia), and may have had some impact on the decision to send Lucius to the eastern front. "You will find in it many chapters aptly suited to your present counsels, concerning

1920-579: A shortage of supplies and the effects of a plague , contracted in Seleucia, made it back to Roman territory safely. Iunius Maximus, a young tribunus laticlavius serving in III Gallica under Cassius, took the news of the victory to Rome. Maximus received a generous cash bounty ( dona ) for bringing the good news, and immediate promotion to the quaestorship . Lucius took the title Parthicus Maximus , and he and Marcus were hailed as imperatores again, earning

2048-424: A town south-west of Edessa. There was little movement in 164; most of the year was spent on preparations for a renewed assault on Parthian territory. In 165, Roman forces, perhaps led by Martius Verus and the V Macedonica , moved on Mesopotamia. Edessa was re-occupied, Mannus re-installed. His coinage resumed, too: 'Ma'nu the king' (Syriac: M'NW MLK') or Antonine dynasts on the obverse, and 'King Mannos, friend of

2176-609: A troubling reality for the Empire. He reduced the silver purity of the Roman currency , the denarius . The persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire appears to have increased during his reign, but his involvement in this is unlikely since there is no record of early Christians in the 2nd century calling him a persecutor, and Tertullian even called Marcus a "protector of Christians". The Antonine Plague broke out in 165 or 166 and devastated

2304-486: A youth and into his teenage years, learned to fight in armour and joined the Salii , an order of priests dedicated to the god Mars that were responsible for the sacred shields, called Ancilia , and possibly for heralding war season's beginning and end. Marcus was educated at home, in line with contemporary aristocratic trends; he thanks Catilius Severus for encouraging him to avoid public schools. One of his teachers, Diognetus,

2432-455: Is concerned, I am beginning to get it back; and there is no trace of the pain in my chest. But that ulcer [...] I am having treatment and taking care not to do anything that interferes with it'. Never particularly healthy or strong, Marcus was praised by Cassius Dio, writing of his later years, for behaving dutifully in spite of his various illnesses. In April 145, Marcus married Faustina, legally his sister, as had been planned since 138. Little

2560-472: Is it between you and me? I love you and you are not here' in their correspondence. Marcus spent time with Fronto's wife and daughter, both named Cratia, and they enjoyed light conversation. He wrote Fronto a letter on his birthday, claiming to love him as he loved himself, and calling on the gods to ensure that every word he learnt of literature, he would learn 'from the lips of Fronto'. His prayers for Fronto's health were more than conventional, because Fronto

2688-651: Is specifically known of the ceremony, but the biographer calls it 'noteworthy'. Coins were issued with the heads of the couple, and Antoninus, as Pontifex Maximus , would have officiated. Marcus makes no apparent reference to the marriage in his surviving letters, and only sparing references to Faustina. After taking the toga virilis in 136, Marcus probably began his training in oratory . He had three tutors in Greek (Aninus Macer, Caninius Celer, and Herodes Atticus ) and one in Latin ( Marcus Cornelius Fronto ). The latter two were

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2816-485: The Iliad what he called the "briefest and most familiar saying [...] enough to dispel sorrow and fear": leaves, the wind scatters some on the face of the ground; like unto them are the children of men. Another daughter was born on 7 March 150, Annia Aurelia Galeria Lucilla . At some time between 155 and 161, probably soon after 155, Marcus's mother Domitia Lucilla died. Faustina probably had another daughter in 151, but

2944-570: The First Vienna Award . From 1945 until the Velvet Divorce , it was part of Czechoslovakia . Since then it has been part of Slovakia. It has a population of about 1464 people. According to last census in Slovakia 2011 it has 82.72% Hungarian , 13.11% Slovak and 0.48% Romani . The village has a public library and football pitch . The records for genealogical research are available at

3072-599: The Five Good Emperors and the last emperor of the Pax Romana , an age of relative peace, calm, and stability for the Roman Empire lasting from 27 BC to 180 AD. He served as Roman consul in 140, 145, and 161. Marcus Aurelius was the son of the praetor Marcus Annius Verus and his wife, Domitia Calvilla . He was related through marriage to the emperors Trajan and Hadrian . Marcus was three when his father died, and

3200-510: The Orontes . Because the river breaks across a cliff before reaching the city, Lucius ordered that a new canal be dug. After the project was completed, the Orontes' old riverbed dried up, exposing massive bones—the bones of a giant . Pausanias says they were from a beast "more than eleven cubits " tall; Philostratus says that it was "thirty cubits" tall. The oracle at Claros declared that they were

3328-494: The Roman currency . He decreased the silver purity of the denarius from 83.5% to 79% – the silver weight dropping from 2.68 g (0.095 oz) to 2.57 g (0.091 oz). Antoninus's funeral ceremonies were, in the words of the biographer, 'elaborate'. If his funeral followed those of his predecessors, his body would have been cremated on a pyre at the Campus Martius , and his spirit would have been seen as ascending to

3456-569: The Temple of Antoninus and Faustina . It survives as the church of San Lorenzo in Miranda. In accordance with his will, Antoninus's fortune passed on to Faustina. (Marcus had little need of his wife's fortune. Indeed, at his accession, Marcus transferred part of his mother's estate to his nephew, Ummius Quadratus . ) Faustina was three months pregnant at her husband's accession. During the pregnancy she dreamed of giving birth to two serpents, one fiercer than

3584-550: The population of the Roman Empire , causing the deaths of five to ten million people. Lucius Verus may have died from the plague in 169. When Marcus himself died in 180, he was succeeded by his son Commodus . Commodus's succession after Marcus has been a subject of debate among both contemporary and modern historians. The Column of Marcus Aurelius and Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius still stand in Rome, where they were erected in celebration of his military victories. Meditations ,

3712-506: The praetorian prefect (an office that was as much secretarial as military) when Marcus Gavius Maximus died in 156 or 157. In 160, Marcus and Lucius were designated joint consuls for the following year. Antoninus may have already been ill. Two days before his death, the biographer reports, Antoninus was at his ancestral estate at Lorium , in Etruria , about 19 kilometres (12 mi) from Rome. He ate Alpine cheese at dinner quite greedily. In

3840-479: The tribunician power and the imperium – authority over the armies and provinces of the emperor. As tribune, he had the right to bring one measure before the senate after the four Antoninus could introduce. His tribunician powers would be renewed with Antoninus's on 10 December 147. The first mention of Domitia in Marcus's letters reveals her as a sickly infant. 'Caesar to Fronto. If the gods are willing we seem to have

3968-604: The Aegean and the southern coasts of Asia Minor, lingering in the famed pleasure resorts of Pamphylia and Cilicia , before arriving in Antioch . It is not known how long Verus' journey east took; he might not have arrived in Antioch until after 162. Statius Priscus, meanwhile, must have already arrived in Cappadocia; he would earn fame in 163 for successful generalship. Lucius spent most of

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4096-816: The Antonine elite, the orations of Aelius Aristides on the temper of the times, and the constitutions preserved in the Digest and Codex Justinianeus on Marcus's legal work. Inscriptions and coin finds supplement the literary sources. Marcus was born in Rome on 26 April 121. His birth name is sometimes given as Marcus Annius Verus, but sources assign this name to him upon his father's death and unofficial adoption by his grandfather, upon his coming of age. He may have been known as "Marcus Annius Catilius Severus", at birth or some point in his youth, or "Marcus Catilius Severus Annius Verus". Upon his adoption by Antoninus as heir to

4224-589: The Aurelii Fulvi, a branch of the Aurelii settled in the colony of Nemausus in Roman Gaul . Marcus's sister, Annia Cornificia Faustina , was probably born in 122 or 123. His father probably died in 125 or 126 when Marcus was three years old during his praetorship. Though he can hardly have known his father, Marcus wrote in his Meditations that he had learned 'modesty and manliness' from his memories of his father and

4352-461: The Palatine, and take up the habits of his new station, the aulicum fastigium or 'pomp of the court', against Marcus's objections. Marcus would struggle to reconcile the life of the court with his philosophic yearnings. He told himself it was an attainable goal – 'Where life is possible, then it is possible to live the right life; life is possible in a palace, so it is possible to live the right life in

4480-486: The Parthian War ). There had been reverses in Rome's past, Fronto writes, at Allia , at Caudium , at Cannae , at Numantia , Cirta , and Carrhae ; under Trajan , Hadrian , and Pius; but, in the end, Romans had always prevailed over their enemies: "always and everywhere [Mars] has changed our troubles into successes and our terrors into triumphs". Over the winter of 161–62, as more bad news arrived—a rebellion

4608-520: The Parthian capital. On his deathbed in the spring of 161, Emperor Antoninus Pius had spoken of nothing but the state and the foreign kings who had wronged him. One of those kings, Vologases IV of Parthia , made his move in late summer or early autumn 161. Vologases entered the Kingdom of Armenia (then a Roman client state), expelled its king and installed his own— Pacorus , an Arsacid like himself. At

4736-615: The Parthians easily, and win glory for himself. Severianus led a legion (perhaps the IX Hispana ) into Armenia, but was trapped by the great Parthian general Chosrhoes at Elegeia , a town just beyond the Cappadocian frontiers, past the headwaters of the Euphrates . Severianus made some attempt to fight Chosrhoes, but soon realized the futility of his campaign, and committed suicide. His legion

4864-533: The Parthians still held the southern, Roman bank of the Euphrates (in Syria) as late as 163 (he refers to a battle at Sura, which is on the southern side of the river). Before the end of the year, however, Roman forces had moved north to occupy Dausara and Nicephorium on the northern, Parthian bank. Soon after the conquest of the north bank of the Euphrates, other Roman forces moved on Osroene from Armenia, taking Anthemusia,

4992-689: The Parthians, and retreated in disarray. Reinforcements were dispatched for the Parthian frontier. Publius Julius Geminius Marcianus , an African senator commanding X Gemina at Vindobona ( Vienna ), left for Cappadocia with vexillations from the Danubian legions. Three full legions were also sent east: I Minervia from Bonn in Upper Germany, II Adiutrix from Aquincum , and V Macedonica from Troesmis . The northern frontiers were strategically weakened; frontier governors were told to avoid conflict wherever possible. Attidius Cornelianus himself

5120-490: The Roman granaries. Parthian war of Lucius Verus Roman–Sasanian wars Byzantine–Sasanian Wars The Roman–Parthian War of 161–166 (also called the Parthian War of Lucius Verus ) was fought between the Roman and Parthian Empires over Armenia and Upper Mesopotamia . It concluded in 166 after the Romans made successful campaigns into Lower Mesopotamia and Media and sacked Ctesiphon ,

5248-508: The Romans' (Greek: Basileus Mannos Philorōmaios ) on the reverse. The Parthians retreated to Nisibis , but this too was besieged and captured. The Parthian army dispersed in the Tigris; their general Chosrhoes swam down the river and made his hideout in a cave. A second force, under Avidius Cassius and the III Gallica , moved down the Euphrates, and fought a major battle at Dura-Europos . By

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5376-409: The beating and robbing I will describe so that they savour of gall and bile. If I happen to call him an uneducated little Greek it will not mean war to the death'. The outcome of the trial is unknown. By the age of twenty-five (between April 146 and April 147), Marcus had grown disaffected with his studies in jurisprudence , and showed some signs of general malaise . His master, he writes to Fronto,

5504-429: The biographer writes that he was 'compelled' to take imperial power. This may have been a genuine horror imperii , 'fear of imperial power'. Marcus, with his preference for the philosophic life, found the imperial office unappealing. His training as a Stoic however, had made the choice clear to him that it was his duty. Although Marcus showed no personal affection for Hadrian (significantly, he does not thank him in

5632-578: The biographies contained in the Historia Augusta , claimed to be written by a group of authors at the turn of the 4th century AD, but it is believed they were in fact written by a single author (referred to here as 'the biographer') from about 395. The later biographies and the biographies of subordinate emperors and usurpers are unreliable, but the earlier biographies, derived primarily from now-lost earlier sources ( Marius Maximus or Ignotus), are considered to be more accurate. For Marcus's life and rule,

5760-493: The biographies of Hadrian , Antoninus , Marcus, and Lucius are largely reliable, but those of Aelius Verus and Avidius Cassius are not. A body of correspondence between Marcus's tutor Fronto and various Antonine officials survives in a series of patchy manuscripts, covering the period from c. 138 to 166. Marcus's own Meditations offer a window on his inner life, but are largely undateable and make few specific references to worldly affairs. The main narrative source for

5888-497: The bones of the river's spirit. In the middle of the war, perhaps in autumn 163 or early 164, Lucius made a trip to Ephesus to be married to Marcus' daughter Lucilla . Lucilla's thirteenth birthday was in March 163; whatever the date of her marriage, she was not yet fifteen. Marcus had moved up the date: perhaps stories of Panthea had disturbed him. Lucilla was accompanied by her mother Faustina and Marcus Vettulenus Civica Barbarus ,

6016-556: The campaign in Antioch, though he wintered at Laodicea and summered at Daphne , a resort just outside Antioch. He took up a mistress named Panthea, from Smyrna . The biographer calls her a "low-born girl-friend", but she is probably closer to Lucian 's "woman of perfect beauty", more beautiful than any of Phidias and Praxiteles ' statues. Polite, caring, humble, she sang to the lyre perfectly and spoke clear Ionic Greek , spiced with Attic wit. Panthea read Lucian's first draft, and criticized him for flattery. He had compared her to

6144-543: The ceremony may have taken place in Antioch, or even Ephesus. Sohaemus was hailed on the imperial coinage of 164 under the legend Rex armeniis Datus : Verus sat on a throne with his staff while Sohamenus stood before him, saluting the emperor. In 163, while Statius Priscus was occupied in Armenia, the Parthians intervened in Osroene , a Roman client in upper Mesopotamia, just east of Syria, with its capital at Edessa . They deposed

6272-474: The child, Annia Galeria Aurelia Faustina , might not have been born until 153. Another son, Tiberius Aelius Antoninus, was born in 152. A coin issue celebrates fecunditati Augustae , 'to Augusta's fertility', depicting two girls and an infant. The boy did not survive long, as evidenced by coins from 156, only depicting the two girls. He might have died in 152, the same year as Marcus's sister Cornificia. By 28 March 158, when Marcus replied, another of his children

6400-411: The choice of army commanders, the interests of allies, the protection of provinces, the discipline of the soldiers, the qualifications required for commanders in the field and elsewhere [...] " To settle his unease over the course of the Parthian war, Fronto wrote Marcus a long and considered letter, full of historical references. In modern editions of Fronto's works, it is labeled De bello Parthico ( On

6528-409: The city "demanded the presence of an emperor". Titus Furius Victorinus , one of the two praetorian prefects , was sent with Lucius, as were a pair of senators, Marcus Pontius Laelianus Larcius Sabinus and Marcus Iallius Bassus , and a detachment of the Praetorian Guard . Victorinus had previously served as procurator of Galatia , giving him some experience with eastern affairs. Moreover, he

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6656-505: The coming years. Lucilla became Lucilla Augusta. The Legions I Minervia , commanded by M. Claudius Fronto and V Macedonica , commanded by P. Martius Verus , served under Marcus Statius Priscus in Armenia, achieving success during the campaign season of 163, culminating with the capture of the Armenian capital Artaxata . At the end of the year, Verus took the title Armeniacus , despite having never seen combat; Marcus declined to accept

6784-452: The commissariat of the expeditionary force. The fleet of Misenum was charged with transporting the emperor and general communications and transport. Lucius left in the summer of 162 to take a ship from Brundisium ; Marcus followed him as far as Capua . Lucius feasted himself in the country houses along his route, and hunted at Apulia . He fell ill at Canosa , probably afflicted with a mild stroke, and took to bed. Marcus made prayers to

6912-449: The consul for 139. Marcus's adoption diverted him from the typical career path of his class. If not for his adoption, he probably would have become triumvir monetalis , a highly regarded post involving token administration of the state mint; after that, he could have served as tribune with a legion , becoming the legion's nominal second-in-command. Marcus probably would have opted for travel and further education instead. As it was, Marcus

7040-428: The consulships for 166. After their consulships, they were made governors: Cassius, of Syria; Martius Verus, of Cappadocia. On the return from the campaign, Lucius was awarded with a triumph ; the parade was unusual because it included the two emperors, their sons and unmarried daughters as a big family celebration. Marcus Aurelius' two sons, Commodus five years old and Marcus Annius Verus of three, were elevated to

7168-403: The country's leader, Mannus, and replaced him with their own nominee, who would remain in office until 165. (The Edessene coinage record actually begins at this point, with issues showing Vologases IV on the obverse and "Wael the king" ( Syriac : W'L MLK') on the reverse. ) In response, Roman forces were moved downstream, to cross the Euphrates at a more southerly point. On the evidence of Lucian,

7296-571: The death sentences of men charged in Hadrian's last days. For his dutiful behaviour, Antoninus was asked to accept the name 'Pius'. Immediately after Hadrian's death, Antoninus approached Marcus and requested that his marriage arrangements be amended: Marcus's betrothal to Ceionia Fabia would be annulled, and he would be betrothed to Faustina , Antoninus's daughter, instead. Faustina's betrothal to Ceionia's brother Lucius Commodus would also have to be annulled. Marcus consented to Antoninus's proposal. He

7424-418: The east had a deleterious effect on his character. Alexander of Abonutichus , a prophet who carried a snake named Glycon around with him, had enraptured Severianus, as he had many others. Father-in-law to the respected senator Publius Mummius Sisenna Rutilianus , then-proconsul of Asia , Abonutichus was friends with many members of the east Roman elite. Alexander convinced Severianus that he could defeat

7552-463: The eastern army and military strategy on the frontiers. He was made comes Augustorum ("companion of the emperors") for his service. Laelianus was, in the words of Fronto, "a serious man and an old-fashioned disciplinarian". Bassus had been governor of Lower Moesia , and was also made comes . Lucius selected his favorite freedmen, including Geminus, Agaclytus, Coedes, Eclectus, and Nicomedes, who gave up his duties as praefectus vehiculorum to run

7680-514: The end of 165, Cassius' army had reached the twin metropolises of Mesopotamia: Seleucia on the right bank of the Tigris and Ctesiphon on the left. Ctesiphon was taken and its royal palace set to flame. The citizens of Seleucia, still largely Greek (the city had been commissioned and settled as a capital of the Seleucid Empire , one of Alexander the Great 's successor kingdoms ), opened its gates to

7808-500: The end of the felicitas temporum ('happy times') that the coinage of 161 had proclaimed. In either autumn 161 or spring 162, the Tiber overflowed its banks, flooding much of Rome. It drowned many animals, leaving the city in famine. Marcus and Lucius gave the crisis their personal attention. In other times of famine, the emperors are said to have provided for the Italian communities out of

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7936-438: The fact that the comedy writer Marullus was able to criticize them without suffering retribution. As the biographer wrote, "No one missed the lenient ways of Pius". Marcus replaced a number of the empire's major officials. The ab epistulis Sextus Caecilius Crescens Volusianus, in charge of the imperial correspondence, was replaced with Titus Varius Clemens. Clemens was from the frontier province of Pannonia and had served in

8064-436: The fashion of the young, tired of boring work', Marcus had turned to philosophy to escape the constant exercises of oratorical training. Marcus kept in close touch with Fronto, but would ignore Fronto's scruples. Apollonius may have introduced Marcus to Stoic philosophy, but Quintus Junius Rusticus would have the strongest influence on the boy. He was the man Fronto recognized as having 'wooed Marcus away' from oratory. He

8192-614: The first book of his Meditations ), he presumably believed it his duty to enact the man's succession plans. Thus, although the Senate planned to confirm Marcus alone, he refused to take office unless Lucius received equal powers. The Senate accepted, granting Lucius the imperium , the tribunician power, and the title Augustus . Marcus became, in official titulature, Imperator Caesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus; Lucius, forgoing his name Commodus and taking Marcus's family name Verus, became Imperator Caesar Lucius Aurelius Verus Augustus. It

8320-504: The gods for his safety in front of the senate, and hurried south to see him. Fronto was upset at the news, but was reassured when Lucius sent him a letter describing his treatment and recovery. In his reply, Fronto urged his pupil to moderate his desires, and recommended a few days of quiet bedrest. Lucius was better after three days' fasting and a bloodletting. It was probably only a mild stroke. Verus continued eastward via Corinth and Athens , accompanied by musicians and singers as if in

8448-553: The gods' home in the heavens. Marcus and Lucius nominated their father for deification. In contrast to their behaviour during Antoninus's campaign to deify Hadrian, the Senate did not oppose the emperors' wishes. A flamen , or cultic priest, was appointed to minister the cult of the deified Divus Antoninus. Antoninus's remains were laid to rest in Hadrian's mausoleum , beside the remains of Marcus's children and of Hadrian himself. The temple he had dedicated to his wife, Diva Faustina, became

8576-465: The half-brother of Lucius' father. Marcus may have planned to accompany them all the way to Smyrna (the biographer says he told the senate he would); this did not happen. Marcus only accompanied the group as far as Brundisium, where they boarded a ship for the east. Marcus returned to Rome immediately thereafter, and sent out special instructions to his proconsuls not to give the group any official reception. Lucilla would bear three of Lucius' children in

8704-436: The influence of Atticus, Marcus would later become a Stoic. He would not mention Herodes at all in his Meditations , in spite of the fact that they would come into contact many times over the following decades. Fronto was highly esteemed: in the self-consciously antiquarian world of Latin letters, he was thought of as second only to Cicero , perhaps even an alternative to him. He did not care much for Atticus, though Marcus

8832-794: The intention of devoting yourself to games, joking and complete leisure for four whole days?" He encouraged Marcus to rest, calling on the example of his predecessors (Pius had enjoyed exercise in the palaestra , fishing, and comedy), going so far as to write up a fable about the gods' division of the day between morning and evening—Marcus had apparently been spending most of his evenings on judicial matters instead of leisure. Marcus could not take Fronto's advice. "I have duties hanging over me that can hardly be begged off," he wrote back. Marcus put on Fronto's voice to chastise himself: "'Much good has my advice done you', you will say!" He had rested, and would rest often, but "—this devotion to duty! Who knows better than you how demanding it is!" Fronto sent Marcus

8960-517: The invaders. The city got sacked nonetheless, leaving a black mark on Lucius' reputation. Excuses were sought, or invented: the official version (promulgated, according to the Historia Augusta , by Asinius Quadratus ) had it that the Seleuceni broke faith first. Whatever the case, the sacking marks a particularly destructive chapter in Seleucia's long decline. During the sacking, Roman troops stole

9088-409: The joy". Lucius did not want Fronto to suffer the anxieties that had kept him up day and night. One reason for Lucius' reticence may have been the collapse of Parthian negotiations after the Roman conquest of Armenia. Lucius' presentation of terms was seen as cowardice. The Parthians were not in the mood for peace. Lucius needed to make extensive imports into Antioch, so he opened a sailing route up

9216-420: The longest reign since Augustus, surpassing Tiberius by a couple of months. After Antoninus died in 161, Marcus was effectively sole ruler of the Empire. The formalities of the position would follow. The Senate would soon grant him the name Augustus and the title imperator , and he would soon be formally elected as pontifex maximus , chief priest of the official cults. Marcus made some show of resistance:

9344-406: The man's posthumous reputation. His mother Lucilla did not remarry and, following prevailing aristocratic customs, probably did not spend much time with her son. Instead, Marcus was in the care of 'nurses', and was raised after his father's death by his grandfather Marcus Annius Verus (II), who had always retained the legal authority of patria potestas over his son and grandson. Technically this

9472-522: The most esteemed orators of their time, but probably did not become his tutors until his adoption by Antoninus in 138. The preponderance of Greek tutors indicates the importance of the Greek language to the aristocracy of Rome. This was the age of the Second Sophistic , a renaissance in Greek letters. Although educated in Rome, in his Meditations Marcus would write his inmost thoughts in Greek. Atticus

9600-525: The night before the scheduled speech, he grew ill and died of a hemorrhage later in the day. On 24 January 138, Hadrian selected Aurelius Antoninus, the husband of Marcus's aunt Faustina the Elder , as his new successor. As part of Hadrian's terms, Antoninus, in turn, adopted Marcus and Lucius Commodus, the son of Lucius Aelius. Marcus became M. Aelius Aurelius Verus, and Lucius became L. Aelius Aurelius Commodus. At Hadrian's request, Antoninus's daughter Faustina

9728-409: The night he vomited; he had a fever the next day. The day after that, 7 March 161, he summoned the imperial council, and passed the state and his daughter to Marcus. The emperor gave the keynote to his life in the last word that he uttered when the tribune of the night-watch came to ask the password – 'aequanimitas' (equanimity). He then turned over, as if going to sleep, and died. His death closed out

9856-413: The occasional Homeric quotation – has been detected in Marcus's Meditations . In late 136, Hadrian almost died from a hemorrhage . Convalescent in his villa at Tivoli , he selected Lucius Ceionius Commodus, Marcus's intended father-in-law, as his successor and adopted son , according to the biographer 'against the wishes of everyone'. While his motives are not certain, it would appear that his goal

9984-549: The original. The rest is by the biographer himself, relying on nothing better than his own imagination. Lucius faced quite a task. Fronto described the scene in terms recalling Corbulo 's arrival one hundred years before. The Syrian army had turned soft during the east's long peace. They spent more time at the city's open-air bars than in their quarters. Under Lucius, training was stepped up. Pontius Laelianus ordered that their saddles be stripped of their padding. Gambling and drinking were sternly policed. Fronto wrote that Lucius

10112-421: The other. On 31 August, she gave birth at Lanuvium to twins: T. Aurelius Fulvus Antoninus and Lucius Aurelius Commodus. Aside from the fact that the twins shared Caligula 's birthday, the omens were favorable, and the astrologers drew positive horoscopes for the children. The births were celebrated on the imperial coinage. Soon after the emperor's accession, Marcus's eleven-year-old daughter, Annia Lucilla,

10240-639: The outskirts of Rome – a profitable enterprise in an era when the city was experiencing a construction boom – and the Horti Domitia Calvillae (or Lucillae ), a villa on the Caelian hill of Rome. Marcus himself was born and raised in the Horti and referred to the Caelian hill as 'My Caelian'. The adoptive family of Marcus was the gens Aurelia , an old Roman gens. His adoptive father Antoninus Pius came from

10368-402: The period is Cassius Dio , a Greek senator from Bithynian Nicaea who wrote a history of Rome from its founding to 229 in eighty books. Dio is vital for the military history of the period, but his senatorial prejudices and strong opposition to imperial expansion obscure his perspective. Some other literary sources provide specific details: the writings of the physician Galen on the habits of

10496-448: The philosopher to learn what I do not yet know.' And Lucius, raising his hand to heaven, said, ' O Zeus, the king of the Romans in his old age takes up his tablets and goes to school.' On 30 November 147, Faustina gave birth to a girl named Domitia Faustina. She was the first of at least thirteen children (including two sets of twins) that Faustina would bear over the next twenty-three years. The next day, 1 December, Antoninus gave Marcus

10624-499: The small colony of Ucubi (Colonia Claritas Iulia Ucubi) south-east of Córdoba in Iberian Baetica (modern Andalusia , Spain); the gens had legendary claims of descendance from Numa Pompilius . The Annii Veri rose to prominence in Rome in the late 1st century AD. Marcus's great-grandfather Marcus Annius Verus (I) was a senator and (according to the Historia Augusta ) ex- praetor ; his grandfather Marcus Annius Verus (II)

10752-434: The speech he had written on taking his consulship in 143, when he had praised the young Marcus, Fronto was ebullient: "There was then an outstanding natural ability in you; there is now perfected excellence. There was then a crop of growing corn; there is now a ripe, gathered harvest. What I was hoping for then, I have now. The hope has become a reality". Fronto called on Marcus alone; neither thought to invite Lucius. Lucius

10880-521: The state archive "Statny Archiv in Nitra, Slovakia" Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus ( Latin: [ˈmaːrkʊs au̯ˈreːliʊs antoːˈniːnʊs] ; English: / ɔː ˈ r iː l i ə s / or- EE -lee-əs ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a Stoic philosopher. He was a member of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty , the last of the rulers later known as

11008-462: The statue of Apollo Comaeus from its temple and brought it back to Rome, where it was installed at the temple of the Palatine Apollo . This blasphemy may have been on Marcus' mind when he called a lectisternium , a great meal offered to the gods, at the beginning of the Marcomannic Wars ( ca . 167) to ward off the evils then being visited on the state. Cassius' army, although suffering from

11136-463: The status of Caesar for the occasion. A statue base survives in Sardis to commemorate Lucius' victory (the emperor had presumably visited the city on his return to Rome). The wealthy sophist T. Flavius Damianus also hosted the emperor and his army during their return trip. Nisibis on the upper Euphrates remained in Roman hands for several decades after the end of the war. By the mid-3rd century, when it

11264-619: The throne alongside his adoptive brother, who took the regnal name Lucius Aurelius Verus. Under the reign of Marcus Aurelius , the Roman Empire witnessed much military conflict. In the East, the Romans fought the Parthian war of Lucius Verus with a revitalized Parthian Empire and the rebel Kingdom of Armenia . Marcus defeated the Marcomanni , Quadi , and Sarmatian Iazyges in the Marcomannic Wars . These and other Germanic peoples began to represent

11392-434: The throne, he was known as "Marcus Aelius Aurelius Verus Caesar" and, upon his ascension, he was "Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus" until his death; Epiphanius of Salamis , in his chronology of the Roman emperors included in his On Weights and Measures , calls him Marcus Aurelius Verus . The father of Marcus Aurelius was Marcus Annius Verus (III) . His gens Annia was of Italic origin, but settled at some point in

11520-416: The time of the invasion, the governor of Syria was Lucius Attidius Cornelianus . Attidius had been retained as governor even though his term had ended in 161, presumably to avoid giving the Parthians the chance to wrong-foot his replacement. The governor of Cappadocia , the front-line in all Armenian conflicts, was Marcus Sedatius Severianus , a Gaul with much experience in military matters. But living in

11648-611: The title Imp. III . Cassius' army returned to the field in 166, crossing over the Tigris into Media . Lucius took the title Medicus , and the emperors were again hailed as imperatores , becoming Imp. IV in imperial titulature. Marcus too took the Parthicus Maximus now, after another tactful delay. Most of the credit for the war's success must be ascribed to subordinate generals. The forces that advanced on Osroene were led by M. Claudius Fronto, an Asian provincial of Greek descent who had led I Minervia in Armenia under Priscus. He

11776-483: The title until the following year. When Lucius was hailed as imperator again, however, Marcus did not hesitate to take the title Imperator II with him. The army of Syria was reinforced by II Adiutrix and Danubian legions under X Gemina' s legate Geminius Marcianus. Occupied Armenia was reconstructed on Roman terms. In 164, a new capital, Kaine Polis ("New City" in Greek), replaced Artaxata. On Birley's reckoning, it

11904-628: The two small boys, and the legend temporum felicitas , 'the happiness of the times'. They did not survive long. Before the end of the year, another family coin was issued: it shows only a tiny girl, Domitia Faustina, and one boy baby. Then another: the girl alone. The infants were buried in the Mausoleum of Hadrian , where their epitaphs survive. They were called Titus Aurelius Antoninus and Tiberius Aelius Aurelius. Marcus steadied himself: 'One man prays: 'How I may not lose my little child', but you must pray: 'How I may not be afraid to lose him'. He quoted from

12032-613: The two tower abbey church. The patrocinium of the rotunda is The 12 Apostles . Such patrocinium of a rotunda was at village Apostag at the Danube . After the Austro-Hungarian army disintegrated in November 1918, Czechoslovak troops occupied the area, later acknowledged internationally by the Treaty of Trianon . Between 1938 and 1945 Bíňa once more became part of Miklós Horthy 's Hungary through

12160-483: The war in Mauretania . Recently, he had served as procurator of five provinces. He was a man suited for a time of military crisis. Lucius Volusius Maecianus, Marcus's former tutor, had been prefectural governor of Egypt at Marcus's accession. Maecianus was recalled, made senator, and appointed prefect of the treasury ( aerarium Saturni ). He was made consul soon after. Fronto's son-in-law, Gaius Aufidius Victorinus ,

12288-451: The whole of Pius' twenty-three-year reign at the emperor's side—and not in the provinces , where most previous emperors had spent their early careers. Marcus made the necessary appointments: Marcus Statius Priscus , the governor of Britain, was sent to replace Severianus as governor of Cappadocia, and was in turn replaced by Sextus Calpurnius Agricola . More bad news arrived: Attidius Cornelianus' army had been defeated in battle against

12416-422: The writings of "the philosopher" – as contemporary biographers called Marcus – are a significant source of the modern understanding of ancient Stoic philosophy. These writings have been praised by fellow writers, philosophers, monarchs, and politicians centuries after his death. The major sources depicting the life and rule of Marcus Aurelius are patchy and frequently unreliable. The most important group of sources,

12544-519: The Árpád age Hungary, king Stephen I of Hungary gave the region to Bény, son of Hont, the count of the county Hont. During the time of early Christianity every 10 villages was ordered to build a church. Several rotunda have been built in this time, among others the rotunda of Bény, too. In 1217 the Premontre Abbey monastery was founded in Bíňa in the romanesque style. An earlier built rotunda stands before

12672-739: Was C. Avidius Cassius , commander of III Gallica, one of the Syrian legions. Cassius was a young senator, the son of Gaius Avidius Heliodorus , a noted orator who was augustal prefect of Egypt from 137 to 142 AD under Hadrian, and wife Julia Cassia Alexandra. Cassius also, with no small sense of self-worth, claimed descent from the Seleucid kings and the Julio-Claudians through his mother Julia Cassia Alexandra , who descended (via Junia Lepida ) from Julia , daughter and only child of Augustus . Cassius and Martius Verus, still probably in their mid-thirties, took

12800-536: Was an old man, in the latter part of his reign, he studied under Sextus of Chaeronea : The Emperor Marcus was an eager disciple of Sextus the Boeotian philosopher, being often in his company and frequenting his house. Lucius, who had just come to Rome, asked the Emperor, whom he met on his way, where he was going to and on what errand, and Marcus answered, ' it is good even for an old man to learn; I am now on my way to Sextus

12928-545: Was an unpleasant blowhard, and had made 'a hit at' him: 'It is easy to sit yawning next to a judge, he says, but to be a judge is noble work'. Marcus had grown tired of his exercises, of taking positions in imaginary debates. When he criticized the insincerity of conventional language, Fronto took to defend it. In any case, Marcus's formal education was now over. He had kept his teachers on good terms, following them devotedly. It 'affected his health adversely', his biographer writes, to have devoted so much effort to his studies. It

13056-476: Was appointed governor of Germania Superior . Fronto returned to his Roman townhouse at dawn on 28 March, having left his home in Cirta as soon as news of his pupils' accession reached him. He sent a note to the imperial freedman Charilas, asking if he could call on the emperors. Fronto would later explain that he had not dared to write the emperors directly. The tutor was immensely proud of his students. Reflecting on

13184-485: Was being 'fitted for ruling the state', in the words of his biographer. He was required to make a speech to the assembled senators as well, making oratorical training essential for the job. On 1 January 145, Marcus was made consul a second time. Fronto urged him in a letter to have plenty of sleep 'so that you may come into the Senate with a good colour and read your speech with a strong voice'. Marcus had complained of an illness in an earlier letter: 'As far as my strength

13312-411: Was betrothed to Lucius (in spite of the fact that he was, formally, her uncle). At the ceremonies commemorating the event, new provisions were made for the support of poor children, along the lines of earlier imperial foundations. Marcus and Lucius proved popular with the people of Rome, who strongly approved of their civiliter ("lacking pomp") behaviour. The emperors permitted free speech, evidenced by

13440-459: Was betrothed to Lucius. Marcus reportedly greeted the news that Hadrian had become his adoptive grandfather with sadness, instead of joy. Only with reluctance did he move from his mother's house on the Caelian to Hadrian's private home. At some time in 138, Hadrian requested in the Senate that Marcus be exempt from the law barring him from becoming quaestor before his twenty-fourth birthday. The Senate complied, and Marcus served under Antoninus,

13568-560: Was brewing in Syria —it was decided that Lucius should direct the Parthian war in person. He was stronger and healthier than Marcus, the argument went, more suited to military activity. Lucius' biographer suggests ulterior motives: to restrain Lucius' debaucheries, to make him thrifty, to reform his morals by the terror of war, to realize that he was an emperor. Whatever the case, the senate gave its assent, and Lucius left. Marcus would remain in Rome;

13696-450: Was controversial: an enormously rich Athenian (probably the richest man in the eastern half of the empire), he was quick to anger and resented by his fellow Athenians for his patronizing manner. Atticus was an inveterate opponent of Stoicism and philosophic pretensions. He thought the Stoics' desire for apatheia was foolish: they would live a 'sluggish, enervated life', he said. In spite of

13824-449: Was dead. Marcus thanked the temple synod, 'even though this turned out otherwise'. The child's name is unknown. In 159 and 160, Faustina gave birth to daughters: Fadilla and Cornificia, named respectively after Faustina's and Marcus's dead sisters. Lucius started his political career as a quaestor in 153. He was consul in 154, and was consul again with Marcus in 161. Lucius had no other titles, except that of 'son of Augustus'. Lucius had

13952-452: Was eventually to put the pair on speaking terms. Fronto exercised a complete mastery of Latin, capable of tracing expressions through the literature, producing obscure synonyms , and challenging minor improprieties in word choice. A significant amount of the correspondence between Fronto and Marcus has survived. The pair were very close, using intimate language such as 'Farewell my Fronto, wherever you are, my most sweet love and delight. How

14080-528: Was far more qualified than his praetorian partner, Sextus Cornelius Repentinus , who was said to owe his office to the influence of Pius' mistress Galeria Lysistrate . Repentius had the rank of a senator, but no real access to senatorial circles—his was merely a decorative title. Since a prefect had to accompany the Guard, Victorinus was the clear choice. Laelianus had been governor of both Pannonias and governor of Syria in 153; hence he had first-hand knowledge of

14208-482: Was frequently ill; at times, he seems to be an almost constant invalid, always suffering – about one-quarter of the surviving letters deal with the man's sicknesses. Marcus asks that Fronto's pain be inflicted on himself, 'of my own accord with every kind of discomfort'. Fronto never became Marcus's full-time teacher and continued his career as an advocate. One notorious case brought him into conflict with Atticus. Marcus pleaded with Fronto, first with 'advice', then as

14336-406: Was less esteemed by Fronto than his brother, as his interests were on a lower level. Lucius asked Fronto to adjudicate in a dispute he and his friend Calpurnius were having on the relative merits of two actors. Marcus told Fronto of his reading – Coelius and a little Cicero – and his family. His daughters were in Rome with their great-great-aunt Matidia; Marcus thought the evening air of the country

14464-426: Was made consul for 140 with Antoninus as his colleague, and was appointed as a sevir , one of the knights ' six commanders, at the order's annual parade on 15 July 139. As the heir apparent, Marcus became princeps iuventutis , head of the equestrian order. He now took the name Marcus Aelius Aurelius Verus Caesar. Marcus would later caution himself against taking the name too seriously: 'See that you do not turn into

14592-578: Was made patrician in 73–74. Through his grandmother Rupilia Faustina , Marcus was related to the Nerva-Antonine dynasty ; Rupilla was the step-daughter of Salonia Matidia , who was the niece of the emperor Trajan . Marcus's mother, Domitia Lucilla Minor (also known as Domitia Calvilla), was the daughter of the Roman patrician P. Calvisius Tullus and inherited a great fortune (described at length in one of Pliny 's letters) from her parents and grandparents. Her inheritance included large brickworks on

14720-622: Was massacred. The campaign had only lasted three days. There was threat of war on other frontiers as well—in Britain , and in Raetia and Upper Germany , where the Chatti of the Taunus mountains had recently crossed over the limes . Marcus Aurelius , who had become emperor on Pius' death on 7 March 161, was unprepared. Pius seems to have given him no military experience; the biographer writes that Marcus spent

14848-461: Was not an adoption, the creation of a new and different patria potestas . Lucius Catilius Severus , described as Marcus's maternal great-grandfather, also participated in his upbringing; he was probably the elder Domitia Lucilla's stepfather. Marcus was raised in his parents' home on the Caelian Hill , an upscale area with few public buildings but many aristocratic villas. Marcus's grandfather owned

14976-589: Was older than Fronto and twenty years older than Marcus. As the grandson of Arulenus Rusticus , one of the martyrs to the tyranny of Domitian ( r . 81–96), he was heir to the tradition of ' Stoic Opposition ' to the 'bad emperors' of the 1st century; the true successor of Seneca (as opposed to Fronto, the false one). Marcus thanks Rusticus for teaching him 'not to be led astray into enthusiasm for rhetoric, for writing on speculative themes, for discoursing on moralizing texts.... To avoid oratory, poetry, and 'fine writing''. Philostratus describes how even when Marcus

15104-482: Was on foot at the head of his army as often as on horseback. He personally inspected soldiers in the field and at camp, including the sick bay. Lucius sent Fronto few messages at the beginning of the war. He sent Fronto a letter apologizing for his silence. He would not detail plans that could change within a day, he wrote. Moreover, there was little thus far to show for his work: "not even yet has anything been accomplished such as to make me wish to invite you to share in

15232-515: Was probably the first senator in his family. Fronto was consul for 165, probably in honor of the capture of Edessa. Claudius Fronto returned to Italy for his consulship; the governor of Syria , Gnaeus Julius Verus , also returned. Publius Martius Verus had led V Macedonica to the front, and also served under Priscus. Martius Verus was a westerner, whose patria was perhaps Tolosa in Gallia Narbonensis . The most prominent general, however,

15360-525: Was raised by his mother and paternal grandfather . After Hadrian's adoptive son, Aelius Caesar , died in 138, Hadrian adopted Marcus's uncle Antoninus Pius as his new heir. In turn, Antoninus adopted Marcus and Lucius , the son of Aelius. Hadrian died that year, and Antoninus became emperor. Now heir to the throne, Marcus studied Greek and Latin under tutors such as Herodes Atticus and Marcus Cornelius Fronto . He married Antoninus's daughter Faustina in 145. After Antoninus died in 161, Marcus acceded to

15488-616: Was replaced by M. Annius Libo, Marcus' first cousin. He was young—his first consulship was in 161, so he was probably in his early thirties —and, as a mere patrician, lacked military experience. Marcus had chosen a reliable man rather than a talented one. Marcus took a four-day public holiday at Alsium , a resort town on the Etrurian coast. He was too anxious to relax. Writing to his former tutor Marcus Cornelius Fronto , he declared that he would not speak about his holiday. Fronto replied ironically: "What? Do I not know that you went to Alsium with

15616-408: Was set apart from his fellow citizens. Nonetheless, his biographer attests that his character remained unaffected: 'He still showed the same respect to his relations as he had when he was an ordinary citizen, and he was as thrifty and careful of his possessions as he had been when he lived in a private household'. After a series of suicide attempts, all thwarted by Antoninus, Hadrian left for Baiae ,

15744-454: Was the first time that Rome was ruled by two emperors. In spite of their nominal equality, Marcus held more auctoritas , or 'authority', than Lucius. He had been consul once more than Lucius, he had shared in Antoninus's rule, and he alone was pontifex maximus . It would have been clear to the public which emperor was the more senior. As the biographer wrote: "Verus obeyed Marcus [...] as

15872-530: Was the only thing the biographer could find fault with in Marcus's entire boyhood. Fronto had warned Marcus against the study of philosophy early on: "It is better never to have touched the teaching of philosophy [...] than to have tasted it superficially, with the edge of the lips, as the saying is". He disdained philosophy and philosophers and looked down on Marcus's sessions with Apollonius of Chalcedon and others in this circle. Fronto put an uncharitable interpretation of Marcus's 'conversion to philosophy': 'In

16000-512: Was thirty miles closer to the Roman border. Detachments from Cappadocian legions are attested at Echmiadzin , beneath the southern face of Mount Ararat , 400 km east of Satala . It would have meant a march of twenty days or more, through mountainous terrain, from the Roman border; a "remarkable example of imperialism", in the words of Fergus Millar . A new king was installed: a Roman senator of consular rank and Arsacid descent, C. Iulius Sohaemus . He may not even have been crowned in Armenia;

16128-418: Was to eventually place the then-too-young Marcus on the throne. As part of his adoption, Commodus took the name, Lucius Aelius Caesar. His health was so poor that, during a ceremony to mark his becoming heir to the throne, he was too weak to lift a large shield on his own. After a brief stationing on the Danube frontier, Aelius returned to Rome to make an address to the Senate on the first day of 138. However,

16256-494: Was too cold for them. He asked Fronto for 'some particularly eloquent reading matter, something of your own, or Cato, or Cicero, or Sallust or Gracchus – or some poet, for I need distraction, especially in this kind of way, by reading something that will uplift and diffuse my pressing anxieties.' Marcus's early reign proceeded smoothly; he was able to give himself wholly to philosophy and the pursuit of popular affection. Soon, however, he would find he had many anxieties. It would mean

16384-425: Was twice the size of those past: 20,000 sesterces (5,000 denarii ) per capita, with more to officers. In return for this bounty, equivalent to several years' pay, the troops swore an oath to protect the emperors. The ceremony was perhaps not entirely necessary, given that Marcus's accession had been peaceful and unopposed, but it was good insurance against later military troubles. Upon his accession he also devalued

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