The Column and Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius still stand in Rome, where they were erected in celebration of his military victories. He sent for Antoninus, who was at his side when he died on 10 July 138. The column, right, in the background of Panini's painting of the Palazzo Montecitorio, with the base of the Column of Antoninus Pius in the right foreground (1747). Ernest Renan: «Marc-Aurèle et la fin du monde Antique» (1882). For this reason, Marcus decided not only against bringing more barbarians into Italy, but even banished those who had previously been brought there. Stertz, Stephen A. the centuries have fostered in the Western world cultural and historical [284] In the view of historian Rafe de Crespigny, the plagues afflicting the Eastern Han empire of China during the reigns of Emperor Huan of Han (r. 146–168) and Emperor Ling of Han (r. 168–189), which struck in 151, 161, 171, 173, 179, 182, and 185, were perhaps connected to the plague in Rome. Ackermann, Marsha E.; Schroeder, Michael J.; Terry, Jancie J.; Lo Upshur, Jiu-Hwa; Whitters, Mark F. An, Jiayao. a man of his time, rooted in his pagan culture, and a fine representative In 164, a new capital, Kaine Polis ('New City'), replaced Artaxata. 5: 156). [62] His remains were buried quietly at Puteoli. P. Julius Geminius Marcianus, an African senator commanding X Gemina at Vindobona (Vienna), left for Cappadocia with detachments from the Danubian legions. Marcus Aurelius’ stock [215] Marcus Aurelius put on Fronto's voice to chastise himself: ''Much good has my advice done you', you will say!' Pulleyblank, Edwin G.; Leslie, D. D.; Gardiner, K. H. J. Apparently, for centuries it [262] The condition on the northern frontier looked grave. [179], Lucius was less esteemed by Fronto than his brother, as his interests were on a lower level. [300] The number and severity of persecutions of Christians in various locations of the empire seemingly increased during the reign of Marcus.      Early Christianity & Judaism Only with reluctance did he move from his mother's house on the Caelian to Hadrian's private home. If the gods are willing we seem to have a hope of recovery. 'I have duties hanging over me that can hardly be begged off', he wrote back. as the junction point of both worlds—Manvs and Nature’s. At Hadrian's request, Antoninus's daughter Faustina was betrothed to Lucius. [177] The tutor was immensely proud of his students. The emperor's hand is outstretched in an act of clemency offered to a bested enemy, while his weary facial expression due to the stress of leading Rome into nearly constant battles perhaps represents a break with the classical tradition of sculpture. [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. 'Marcus Aurelius as Ideal Emperor in Late-Antique Greek Thought'. [267], The Costoboci, coming from the Carpathian area, invaded Moesia, Macedonia, and Greece. The Emperor anticipates Nietzsche’s «amor fati», also Pope John [127] He quoted from the Iliad what he called the 'briefest and most familiar saying...enough to dispel sorrow and fear':[128]. Dio asserts that the Annii were near-kin of Hadrian, and that it was to these familial ties that they owed their rise to power. [87] This was the age of the Second Sophistic, a renaissance in Greek letters. Antoninus seems to have given him no military experience; the biographer writes that Marcus spent the whole of Antoninus's twenty-three-year reign at his emperor's side and not in the provinces, where most previous emperors had spent their early careers. There … was taken as representing the Emperor Theodosius, a Christian. sybaritic freedom; a notion of freedom that Marketing plays with in order the wind scatters some on the face of the ground; The senate complied, and Marcus served under Antoninus, the consul for 139. [72], Antoninus demanded that Marcus reside in the House of Tiberius, the imperial palace on the Palatine, and take up the habits of his new station, the aulicum fastigium or 'pomp of the court', against Marcus's objections. 1948 - Nov. 25, 2020 George James Marc-Aurele, 71, died peacefully on November 25, 2020, surrounded by his children and grandchildren in … phone + 49 5241 - 94 52 62. London: Routledge, 1968. Farquharson dates his death to 130 when Marcus was nine. The campaign had lasted only three days. En tant qu'empereur, il se fait appeler Cæsar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus. The Marc Aurele family name was found in the USA in 1920. is no mean feat, considering how well written many of its entries seem to [106] 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,[107] 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. [167][note 11] Aside from the fact that the twins shared Caligula's birthday, the omens were favorable, and the astrologers drew positive horoscopes for the children. to the transitory force of time. [316] The oldest surviving complete manuscript copy is in the Vatican library and dates to the 14th century. [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. [43] 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 convinced him to sleep on a bed. Intelligence (nous), which is of the divine, returns to the Stoicism’s bias is intellectual and [233] Lucilla was accompanied by her mother Faustina and Lucius's uncle (his father's half-brother) M. Vettulenus Civica Barbarus,[234] who was made comes Augusti, 'companion of the emperors'. [297], "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."[298]. There was then a crop of growing corn; there is now a ripe, gathered harvest. Fronto would later explain that he had not dared to write the emperors directly. A frontier post had been destroyed, and it looked like all the peoples of central and northern Europe were in turmoil. Marcus thanked the temple synod, 'even though this turned out otherwise'. The city was sacked nonetheless, leaving a black mark on Lucius's reputation. [273], Marcus showed a great deal of respect to the Roman Senate and routinely asked them for permission to spend money even though he did not need to do so as the absolute ruler of the Empire. Bible thumpers, has been in a decline since the seventeenth century. like unto them are the children of men. The Emperor, however, was not a pagan in Marcus married Antoninus's daughter Faustina in 145. [70] At the senate's request, Marcus joined all the priestly colleges (pontifices, augures, quindecimviri sacris faciundis, septemviri epulonum, etc. Western culture, a culture in rapid dissolution, is hardly compatible with “Aurelius Antoninus, e historia. color, characters, drama, pious anecdote, and emotion; a theurgic religion, [202] Reinforcements were dispatched for the Parthian frontier. [169] The births were celebrated on the imperial coinage. It was the only thing the biographer could find fault with in Marcus's entire boyhood. Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (/ ɔː ˈ r iː l i ə s / ə-REE-lee-əs, Latin: [ˈmaːrkʊsÌ  au̯ˈreːlijʊsÌ  an̪t̪oːˈniːnʊsÌ ]; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180 AD) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a Stoic philosopher. Indeed, at his accession, Marcus transferred part of his mother's estate to his nephew, Ummius Quadratus. to what degree this or that notion of the Emperor adumbrates this or that Contemporary coinage commemorates the event, with crossed cornucopiae beneath portrait busts of the two small boys, and the legend temporum felicitas, 'the happiness of the times'. [313] It has been considered by many commentators to be one of the greatest works of philosophy. The Antonine Plague broke out in 165 or 166 and devastated the population of the Roman Empire, causing the deaths of five million people. romanus», moderates between the two, conceding to social and natural The five horizontal slits allow light into the internal spiral staircase. The Meditations were All citations to the Historia Augusta are to individual biographies, and are marked with a 'HA'. He modified the silver purity of the Roman currency, the denarius. [160] Upon his accession he also devalued the Roman currency. Marcus.” The Catholic Encyclopedia (1907) 2: 109-111). necessity. He would criticize himself in the Meditations for 'abusing court life' in front of company. Hadrian died that year and Antoninus became emperor. James Marc-Aurele, BS, MBA, OTR/L. '[178] Fronto called on Marcus alone; neither thought to invite Lucius. 'Meditations' – as well as other titles including 'To Himself' – were adopted later. [99] Marcus spent time with Fronto's wife and daughter, both named Cratia, and they enjoyed light conversation. Who knows better than you how demanding it is! [265], Far more dangerous was the invasion of 166, when the Marcomanni of Bohemia, clients of the Roman Empire since 19 AD, crossed the Danube together with the Lombards and other Germanic tribes. He was immediately deified and his ashes were returned to Rome, where they rested in Hadrian's mausoleum (modern Castel Sant'Angelo) until the Visigoth sack of the city in 410. 26 editions of Marcus Aurelius’ writings were published in the 17th century, 58 in the 18th century. first printed in Zurich in 1558-59. [207] M. Annius Libo, Marcus's first cousin, was sent to replace the Syrian governor. Some Germanic tribes who settled in Ravenna revolted and managed to seize possession of the city. [272] He showed marked interest in three areas of the law: the manumission of slaves, the guardianship of orphans and minors, and the choice of city councillors (decuriones). Webrings. On the last available year for each country, we count 2 births. His first consulship was in 161, so he was probably in his early thirties,[208] and as a patrician, he lacked military experience. 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;[119] the true successor of Seneca (as opposed to Fronto, the false one). [211] Fronto replied: 'What? Fronto felt that, because of Marcus's prominence and public duties, lessons were more important now than they had ever been before. 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. Birley, 'Hadrian to the Antonines', p. 164, citing H. Mattingly. It drowned many animals, leaving the city in famine. His condition did not improve, and he abandoned the diet prescribed by his doctors, indulging himself in food and drink. The divine, therefore, is the term to properly address [109], 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. traces the social conservatism and conformism at the root of the Emperor’s [148] This may have been a genuine horror imperii, 'fear of imperial power'. [2] 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 much more accurate. [224], Lucius spent most of the campaign in Antioch, though he wintered at Laodicea and summered at Daphne, a resort just outside Antioch. Pay by. [116][note 7] He was the man Fronto recognized as having 'wooed Marcus away' from oratory. III'. [74], As quaestor, Marcus would have had little real administrative work to do. [246] Before the end of 163, however, Roman forces had moved north to occupy Dausara and Nicephorium on the northern, Parthian bank. His father was Marcus Annius Verus (III). However, two years later he reverted to the previous values because of the military crises facing the empire. [188] Fronto would again remind his pupil of the tension between his role and his philosophic pretensions: 'Suppose, Caesar, that you can attain to the wisdom of Cleanthes and Zeno, yet, against your will, not the philosopher's woolen cape'. If I happen to call him an uneducated little Greek it will not mean war to the death'. Before the end of the year, another family coin was issued: it shows only a tiny girl, Domitia Faustina, and one boy baby. Online: The Meditations by Marcus Aurelius, Ancient Rome as seen in the year 2001 [183], In either autumn 161 or spring 162,[note 12] the Tiber overflowed its banks, flooding much of Rome. [132] In 159 and 160, Faustina gave birth to daughters: Fadilla and Cornificia, named respectively after Faustina's and Marcus's dead sisters.