A statue of Marcus had stood atop the column but disappeared during the Middle Ages. [152] 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. [189], The early days of Marcus's reign were the happiest of Fronto's life: Marcus was beloved by the people of Rome, an excellent emperor, a fond pupil, and perhaps most importantly, as eloquent as could be wished. „If it is not right, do not do it, if it is not true, do not say it. Ctesiphon was taken and its royal palace set to flame. [59], 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. If it is not right do not do it; if it is not true do not say it. However, the night before the speech, he grew ill and died of a hemorrhage later in the day. His reign is commonly considered to mark the end of the golden period of peace in the history of the Roman Empire known as the Pax Romana.. [249] The Parthians retreated to Nisibis, but this too was besieged and captured. AKA Caesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus. It would have been clear to the public which emperor was the more senior. “You boarded, you set sail, you’ve made the passage. [62] His remains were buried quietly at Puteoli. In. Barnes, 'Hadrian and Lucius Verus', p. 66. Born: 26 April 121. 58 (1968): 32–50. [123][304] One son and four daughters outlived their father. In 161, the. He wrote one of the biggest works of philosophy, Meditations, a collection of his thoughts and notes on life based on his Stoic beliefs. He modified the silver purity of the Roman currency, the denarius. Marcus Aurelius, Meditations. His father, Marcus Annius Verus III was a politician and a nobleman. He was too anxious to relax. Perhaps with this, I am really judging the translation because it was a pretty hard read even when I’m someone who is actually used to reading hard, academic books. Marcus Aurelius, through decades of training in Stoicism, in other words, had taught himself to face death with the steady calm of someone who … Just one thing prevented him from being completely happy, namely, that after rearing and educating his son in the best possible way he was vastly disappointed in him. He found it difficult to keep himself upright without stays. [83] Coins were issued with the heads of the couple, and Antoninus, as Pontifex Maximus, would have officiated. [214] Marcus could not take Fronto's advice. [78], On 1 January 145, Marcus was made consul a second time. This is an inspirational quote by Marcus … Marcus probably would have opted for travel and further education instead. It was replaced with a statue of Saint Paul in 1589 by Pope Sixtus V.[321] The column of Marcus and the column of Trajan are often compared by scholars given how they are both Doric in style, had a pedestal at the base, had sculpted friezes depicting their respective military victories, and a statue on top.[322]. He would criticize himself in the Meditations for 'abusing court life' in front of company. Marcus Aurelius' death is often held to have been the end of the Pax Romana and the beginning of the decline of the Roman Empire. Barnes, Timothy D. 'Some Persons in the Historia Augusta', Birley, Anthony R. 'Hadrian to the Antonines'. His son Commodus later became co-ruler in 177, only three years before Aurelius died on March 17, 180. Marcus and Lucius nominated their father for deification. [33][note 2] Though he can hardly have known his father, Marcus wrote in his Meditations that he had learnt 'modesty and manliness' from his memories of his father and the man's posthumous reputation. His downfall came during the Franco-Prussian War, when his efforts to defeat Otto Von Bismarck ended in his capture. Yü, Ying-shih. [180] Marcus told Fronto of his reading – Coelius and a little Cicero – and his family. Meditations is still revered as a literary monument to a government of service and duty. [177] The tutor was immensely proud of his students. How is it between you and me? Convalescent in his villa at Tivoli, he selected Lucius Ceionius Commodus, Marcus's intended father-in-law, as his successor and adopted son,[50] according to the biographer 'against the wishes of everyone'. like unto them are the children of men. [5] Marcus's own Meditations offer a window on his inner life, but are largely undateable and make few specific references to worldly affairs. the wind scatters some on the face of the ground; leaves, Marcus defeated the Marcomanni, Quadi, and Sarmatian Iazyges in the Marcomannic Wars; however, these and other Germanic peoples began to represent a troubling reality for the Empire. Like youth and old age. [112], 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'. The preponderance of Greek tutors indicates the importance of the Greek language to the aristocracy of Rome. [136][note 8] He did not marry until 164. Iain King explains that Marcus's legacy was tragic: "[The emperor's] Stoic philosophy – which is about self-restraint, duty, and respect for others – was so abjectly abandoned by the imperial line he anointed on his death. [49], In late 136, Hadrian almost died from a hemorrhage. Pulleyblank, Leslie and Gardiner, pp. His first consulship was in 161, so he was probably in his early thirties,[208] and as a patrician, he lacked military experience. The diarrhea has stopped, the little attacks of fever have been driven away. Marcus Aurelius, Meditations. The object of life is not to be on the side of the majority, but to escape finding oneself in the ranks of … [61], After a series of suicide attempts, all thwarted by Antoninus, Hadrian left for Baiae, a seaside resort on the Campanian coast. According to McLaughlin, the disease caused 'irreparable' damage to the Roman maritime trade in the Indian Ocean as proven by the archaeological record spanning from Egypt to India, as well as significantly decreased Roman commercial activity in Southeast Asia. Recommend to friends. His Stoic philosophical writings are known as the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius, which were written in Greek.He was succeeded by his son the … [293], Marcus acquired the reputation of a philosopher king within his lifetime, and the title would remain after his death; both Dio and the biographer call him 'the philosopher'. He served as Roman consul in 140, 145, and 161. Although educated in Rome, in his Meditations, Marcus would write his inmost thoughts in Greek. His serious and hard-working nature was even noticed by Emperor Hadrian. Gaius Caesar, known as Caligula, succeeded Tiberius and served as Roman emperor from 37 to 41 A.D. As Roman emperor, Nero’s reign was lavish and tyrannical. Lower Moesia was filled by Pontius Laelianus's son. Galen, who was in Rome when the plague spread to the city in 166,[282] mentioned that 'fever, diarrhoea, and inflammation of the pharynx, along with dry or pustular eruptions of the skin after nine days' were among the symptoms. [9], Marcus was born in Rome on 26 April 121. [262] The condition on the northern frontier looked grave. [57] Marcus became M. Aelius Aurelius Verus, and Lucius became L. Aelius Aurelius Commodus. Marcus Aurelius, however, is not best remembered for the wars he waged, but for his contemplative nature and his rule driven by reason. His tribunician powers would be renewed with Antoninus's on 10 December 147. [116][note 7] He was the man Fronto recognized as having 'wooed Marcus away' from oratory. [80] 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. He might have died in 152, the same year as Marcus's sister Cornificia. Journal of Roman Studies, Vol. At some time between 155 and 161, probably soon after 155, Marcus's mother Domitia Lucilla died. Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (/ɔːˈriːliəs/ ə-REE-lee-əs,[1] Latin: [ˈmaːrkʊs̠ au̯ˈreːlijʊs̠ an̪t̪oːˈniːnʊs̠]; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180 AD) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a Stoic philosopher. Unlike some of his predecessors, Marcus chose not to adopt an heir. His son Commodus became emperor and soon ended the northern military efforts. The ab epistulis Sextus Caecilius Crescens Volusianus, in charge of the imperial correspondence, was replaced with Titus Varius Clemens. [40], Marcus was educated at home, in line with contemporary aristocratic trends;[41] he thanks Catilius Severus for encouraging him to avoid public schools. Haines's Loeb edition. But he did not have to fight Cassius as he was murdered by his own soldiers. Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II tried to strengthen the Habsburg empire with his enlightened reforms, but the changes he made were met with fierce opposition. He was the last of the Five Good Emperors, and is considered one of the most important Stoic philosophers.. Marcus Aurelius' work Meditations, written in Greek while on campaign between 170 and 180, is still revered. His brother was Lucius Aurelius Verus Augustus (usually referred to as Verus). As it was, Marcus was set apart from his fellow citizens. [190] Marcus had displayed rhetorical skill in his speech to the senate after an earthquake at Cyzicus. Upon his adoption by Antoninus as heir to the throne, he was known as Marcus Aelius Aurelius Verus Caesar and, upon his ascension, he was Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus until his death;[17] Epiphanius of Salamis, in his chronology of the Roman emperors On Weights and Measures, calls him Marcus Aurelius Verus. [170], Soon after the emperors' accession, Marcus's eleven-year-old daughter, Annia Lucilla, was betrothed to Lucius (in spite of the fact that he was, formally, her uncle). 'I have duties hanging over me that can hardly be begged off', he wrote back. Lucius addressed the assembled troops, which then acclaimed the pair as imperatores. They did not survive long. [222][note 15] Whatever the case, the senate gave its assent, and, in the summer of 162, Lucius left. Modern scholars have not offered as positive an assessment. The major sources depicting the life and rule of Marcus are patchy and frequently unreliable. Excuses were sought, or invented: the official version had it that the Seleucids broke faith first. Birley, 'Hadrian to the Antonines', p. 156. Vomited ; he had the right to bring one measure before the senate,... Was betrothed to Lucius, two years later he reverted to the Castra Praetoria, the Antonine started. 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