By all accounts, Marcus Aurelius truly embodied the principles he embraced, and he proved his faithful devotion to virtue throughout his rule by his actions. The Historia Augusta described him as “devoted to philosophy as long as he lived and pre-eminent among emperors in purity of life.” Cassius Dio stated that Marcus Aurelius “refrained from all offences and did nothing amiss whether voluntarily or involuntarily,” and the historian Herodian wrote that “Alone of the emperors, he gave proof of his learning not by mere words or knowledge of philosophical doctrines but by his blameless character and temperate way of life.” Even the Christian author Melito called him “the philosopher,” and described him as more philanthropic and philosophic than both Antoninus and Hadrian. His only real failure was that he produced a son, thereby ending the line of emperors adopted for suitability rather than family name.

Love of Learning

Marcus dedicated himself to intellectual pursuits quite early in his life, and he maintained a deep affection for his teachers even as he rose to the heights of power. In fact, he used his powers as emperor to confer many honors upon his tutors, particularly one Marcus Cornelius Fronto, who remained a close friend and correspondent.

A collection of letters between Marcus Aurelius and Cornelius Fronto have been found and published. Soon after Marcus rose to power, Fronto wrote to express his pride in his pupil, telling him “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.”

Even as the emperor of Rome, Marcus continued to receive instruction in Stoic philosophy at the home of Apollonius. Furthermore, Marcus commissioned statues of all of his most influential teachers, which he kept in his bedroom. When one of them died, he would make frequent visits to the tomb to personally bring flowers and perform sacrifices.

The Syrian Revolt

Following the death of Lucius, Marcus received an opportunity to also demonstrate his leniency when Roman general Avidius Cassius unexpectedly became the leader of a rebellion in the province of Syria. Cassius Dio asserts that the rebellion was actually a mistake instigated by Marcus’s wife, Faustina the Younger. Marcus had long been in poor health, and Faustina apparently feared that he would die before their son Commodus was old enough to take the throne. She subsequently reached out to Cassius, offering him regency over the empire until Commodus came of age and her own hand in marriage should Marcus Aurelius pass unexpectedly.

It was reasonable enough to plan for such an eventuality, but unfortunately, sometime after the plan was in place, a false rumor circulated claiming that Marcus was dead. Not waiting for confirmation, Cassius declared that his soldiers had proclaimed him emperor, and prepared to fight for the throne. When he learned that Marcus was still very much alive, he ultimately decided to proceed with his bid for power, even though Marcus pleaded with him to agree to peace terms, lamenting the fact that he was to be forced into war with someone he still considered to be a dear friend. He even asserted that he would hand over the empire to Cassius if the general would just agree to a diplomatic end to the violence, but he knew, correctly as it would turn out, that Cassius would never trust that assurance enough to come to Rome. Though many foreign soldiers offered their assistance to Marcus in the campaign, he refused them all, insisting that Roman matters should remain between Romans.

A Merciful Ruler

In an address to his soldiers, Marcus told them that he feared only one thing, “that either [Cassius] will kill himself…or that someone else will do so upon learning that I am to come. For then I should be deprived of a great prize both of war and of victory, a prize such as no human being has ever yet obtained: To forgive a man who has wronged one, to remain a friend to one who has transgressed friendship, to continue faithful to one who has broken faith… that would be the one profit I could derive from our present ills, if I could settle this affair well and show to all mankind that there is a right way to deal even with civil wars.”

Marcus’s fears proved true, for upon learning that Marcus was not dead; Cassius’s own soldiers turned on him and killed him. They triumphantly brought the head to Marcus, but he refused to even look at it, instead mourning the loss and ordering the head to be buried with all honors and respect. He would not punish the province, or even any of the Senators that had declared for Cassius. He burned all papers that might implicate them and resolved to leave the trials entirely in the hands of the Senate.

Yet even if he was not directly responsible, he abhorred the thought of more death, and instead wrote to the Senate and begged them, as a personal favor, not to execute any of the Senators convicted as traitors. “May it never happen,” he continued, “that any one of you should be slain during my reign either by my vote or by yours.”

Death at Vindobona

About this same time, Faustina the Younger died, though historians debate whether it was due to natural illness or whether she committed suicide rather than be implicated in the plot against her husband. If the latter, it was almost certainly not known by her contemporaries, for the Senate decreed that silver images of Marcus and Faustina be placed in the temple of Venus and Rome, and that a golden statue be made of Faustina to sit beside Marcus any time he attended the theatre. This statue became the gathering place of all the most influential women in Rome.

Marcus was devastated by his wife’s death, but he had little time to mourn. The Germanic tribes to the north began another rebellion. Without Lucius, Marcus went himself to oversee the campaign. Though the army was largely successful, Marcus’s health was failing rapidly. On March 17^th of 180 A.D., in the military camp at Vindobona, Marcus commended the care of his son Commodus to his soldiers and assigned the watchword for the day: “Go to the rising sun; I am already setting,” before closing his eyes for the last time.

Though suspicion of conspiracy and murder later arose, rumors that formed the plot of the movie Gladiator, there is little evidence to support these. Commodus had been named Caesar and the presumptive heir to Marcus as far back as 166 A.D., and had been serving for years in the capacity of Marcus’s subordinate co-emperor, as Marcus had with Antoninus Pius.

A Venerable Legacy

Generous, lenient, merciful, gentle, frugal, intelligent, and a skilled administrator, all ancient historians remember Marcus as an excellent ruler of Rome. Cassius Dio named him the greatest emperor in Roman history. “Such love for him was manifested on the day of the imperial funeral that none thought that men should lament him, since all were sure that he had been lent by the gods and had now returned to them. Finally, before his funeral was held, so many say, the senate and people, not in separate places but sitting together, as was never done before or after, hailed him as a gracious god.” The Senate commissioned a golden statue of Marcus that they erected in their meeting hall.

Unfortunately, Marcus’s son Commodus proved an erratic and irresponsible emperor, to the point that he was assassinated in a conspiracy by his own Praetorian Guard after only twelve years of rule, and Rome descended “from a kingdom of gold to one of iron and rust.”

What to See in Vindobona now ?

Unfortunately not much of Vindobona is extant above the surface. Its location under Vienna has made much of the site completely inaccessible to archaeologists and extensive excavations impossible to conduct. As mentioned previously, the best evidence for the original outline, is to be found in the modern street layout which follows what would have been the camp’s exterior walls. Whilst it is impossible to gain a complete understanding of the interior of Vindobona, Roman military camps usually followed a uniform pattern, allowing Archaeologists to compare data from other similar sites and work out the probable location of several buildings.

It is possible for visitors to view the foundations of several small buildings from the civilian settlement, probably the residences of soldier’s families. These were discovered whilst excavating in the Michaelerplatz and have been left on permanent display. Although it is not possible to view much of Vienna’s Roman archaeology in situ, there are several museums with excellent Roman collections. These include the Wien Museum and the Romermuseum, which includes the remnants of two tribunes’s houses amongst its collection.

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Author: Marian Vermeulen for Timetravelrome

Header image: Marcus Aurelius Statue. Picture by Erik Drost, licensed under CC BY 2.0.

– Marcus Aurelius

Article written by Marian Vermeulen

Father and Son

With a shared love of philosophy, intellect, virtue, and kindness, Marcus Aurelius and Antoninus Pius were an excellent match as father and son and as emperor and heir. Marcus married Antoninus’s daughter, Faustina the Younger, and further tightened their familial ties. The new emperor also made Marcus his consular partner on a number of occasions, granted him the title of Caesar, made him one of six commanders of the equestrian order, and gave him a high position in the priesthood.

Marcus genuinely adored his adopted father, and praises him at great length in his Meditations, enumerating countless virtuous qualities. Marcus gave Antoninus his unswerving loyalty, and over the next twenty-three years, “he conducted himself in his father’s home in such a manner that [Antoninus] Pius felt more affection for him day by day, and never in all these years, save for two nights on different occasions, remained away from him.”

As the years passed and Antoninus began to slow down, Marcus took on even greater responsibility and served ostensibly as Antoninus’s co-emperor, though not named as such. Marcus was already nominally in charge of the government by March of 161 A.D. when Antoninus contracted a fever at his favorite family estate in Lorium. Marcus rushed to be at his side. He charged Marcus with the care of both his daughter Faustina and of Rome, asked his attendants to move his golden statue of Fortune from his bedside to Marcus’s, and then rolled over as if to sleep and quietly died, ending a reign of unprecedented peace in the Roman Empire.

Co-Emperors

The Senate quickly hailed Marcus as imperator, Augustus, and Pontifex Maximus, but Marcus laid out a single, imperative condition to his taking the position: his adopted brother Lucius Verus, now also betrothed to his daughter Lucilla and his future son-in-law, must be named co-emperor. It was a first for imperial Rome, but the Senate eventually agreed. It was a wise and practical decision. The Empire had grown to be a huge responsibility for a single man to manage. Additionally, Marcus had long been less active and prone to illness, and rarely traveled outside of Rome.

Yet his intelligence and character, combined with years of experience and a deep understanding of Roman politics, made him an ideal administrative and political leader. His brother was the opposite, younger, stronger, and preferring action to thought. Though he still deferred to Marcus as the senior ruler, he was perfectly suited to be the supreme commander of the Roman legions, and to coordinate Roman military endeavors far afield. Their joint rule allowed them to succeed in all arenas, and to maintain a constant imperial presence both at home and in conflicted provinces.

One Glorious Year

Having ruled alongside Antoninus for so many years, Marcus took imperial rule with experience and knowledge of his duties and of Rome that many previous emperors did not enjoy. Therefore, while Lucius energetically organized the military, Marcus earned great goodwill for his early reforms politically. He added court days to the calendar, overseeing many of the cases personally, and showing a particular interest in laws managing the protection of orphans and children, the manumission of slaves, and the choosing of city officials. He showed immense respect for the Senate, asking their opinion in may matters, coming to them personally if he wished to make a proposal, and attending every meeting if he was in Rome, even staying late into the night when elections ran long.  

He was frugal with imperial funds, heavily reducing games and revising taxes, but investing instead in welfare programs to support the poor. He also required wealthy officials to invest some of their fortune back into the Roman Empire, shamed informers, and ignored attempts at bribery. He was equally temperate in his personal relationships, “at all times exceedingly reasonable both in restraining men from evil and in urging them to good, generous in rewarding and quick to forgive, thus making bad men good, and good men very good, and he even bore with unruffled temper the insolence of not a few.” Marcus and Lucius’s first year of rule was one of peace and prosperity, but misfortune waited around the corner.

Multitude of Disasters

In 162 A.D., heavy rains pushed the Tiber over its banks and flooded much of the city of Rome, causing immense damage to homes and property. The loss did not end there, however, for the flooding continued into the surrounding countryside, destroying agricultural estates, drowning numerous livestock, and plunging the city into famine. Though legislative details have not survived describing Marcus and Lucius’s actions, they are both highly praised in ancient sources for their personal investment in resolving the crisis, both in terms of their time and efforts, and large amounts of their own personal fortunes spent in mitigating the disaster.

At about the same time, the situation with the Parthians in Syria was becoming unmanageable, and Marcus sent Lucius to lead the campaign personally. It was exactly the reason for insisting on the co-emperorship in the first place, but Marcus may have had another reason. The Historia Augusta suggests that Lucius was becoming rather wild at home, and Marcus sent him to get him out of the public eye and in the hopes that he might learn some responsibility.

The Historia Augusta is prone to dramatics and this might be discounted as an embellishment except that other sources corroborate that Lucius’s behavior on route to Syria was disgraceful. He moved slowly through the provinces, enjoying their particular delights, all “while a legate was being slain, while legions were being slaughtered, while Syria meditated revolt, and the East was being devastated.” Despite his dalliances, and with the help of two excellent generals, the Parthians were defeated. The Senate granted both men high honors, and voted Lucius a triumph, which he insisted that Marcus share, the first ever triumph to honor two emperors together. 

A Grievous Loss

Yet the triumph was bittersweet, for the Roman soldiers returning to Rome brought with them a plague, probably either measles or smallpox, which killed around five million people. On top of this, Germanic incursions in the north required military intervention. Whether it seemed like an incident that required two commanders or whether Lucius’s behavior had caused Marcus to lose faith that he could trust his brother alone, this time, Marcus and Lucius set out together to command the legions. However, the matter was quickly resolved for the tribes sued for peace and the brothers accepted and turned for home.

While travelling through Pannonia, Lucius became ill and eventually died in the carriage with Marcus at his side. Though Cassius Dio hinted that there was suspicion that Lucius was killed for plotting against Marcus, the claim is unsupported and largely disbelieved. Marcus mourned Lucius deeply, despite all of their differences, the brothers seemed to still hold genuine affection for one another, and nothing indicates that Lucius would have sought to assassinate his brother, or that Marcus would have reacted by having him killed. In fact, Marcus was merciful on many occasions. Even the Historia Augusta labeled the death accidental. Many modern historians believe that Lucius likely fell victim to the Antonine Plague, which was still very active at the time.

After the devastating task of burying his brother, Marcus was soon called back to Germany to deal with the dangerous Macromanni Tribe. Wars with various Germanic tribes would continue through the remainder of Marcus’s reign, many of them depicted in the exquisite triumphal column of Marcus Aurelius which survives in Rome to this day. 

What to See Here now?

Towering above what at the time was the recently developed area of the Campus Martius that ran parallel to the Via Flaminia, the Column of Marcus Aurelius was erected sometime between the emperor’s death in 180 AD and the year 193 AD. The latter date provides a terminus ante quem because of an inscription found onsite which authorises the procurator responsible for the column’s construction to put the monument’s wooden scaffolding towards building his house.

In total, the monument stands at a height of just under 42 metres. The Doric column’s decorative relief programme is much simpler (and therefore much more legible) than Trajan’s. It begins with the Roman army’s crossing of the Danube before breaking off individual episodes of campaigns against the Germans. As is the case on Trajan’s Column, Victory appears halfway through—and halfway up—to divide the narrative between the earlier campaign (172 – 173) and the later campaign (174 -175). 

The column originally belied the modern street level by some three metres; its base decorated on three sides with festooned depictions of Victory. In all likelihood, it stood in the foreground of the Temple of the Divine Marcus Aurelius, erected by his son Commodus. Only traces of this presumably demolished temple survive. As with the case of Trajan’s Column, a spiral staircase was built into the shaft of the column, leading from the base right up to the top level.

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Author: Marian Vermeulen for Timetravelrome

Cassius Dio, Roman History; Marcus Aurelius, Meditations; Sextus Aurelius Victor, Epitome De Caesaribus; Historia Augusta, The Life of Antoninus Pius.

Header image: Detail from the Column of Marcus Aurelius in Rome. Photo by Barosaurus Lentus, licensed under CC BY 3.0.