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Hadrianus

Hadrianus

Publius Aelius Traianus Hadrianus (January 24 76–July 10 138), known as Hadrian in English, was Roman emperor from 117–138, and a member of the gens Aelia. Hadrian was the third of the "Five Good Emperors". Hadrian was born in Italica, Baetica (originally Hispania Ulterior), to a well-established settler family which had originated in Picenum in Italy. He was a distant relative by marriage of his predecessor Trajan. Trajan never officially designated a successor, but, according to his wife, Trajan named Hadrian emperor immediately before his death. However, Trajan's wife was well-disposed toward Hadrian, and he may well have owed his succession to her.

Early life

Hadrian was born in Italica, Baetica, which today is near modern Seville, Spain. He was the son of the prominent Baetican Publius Hadrianus Afer. His mother was Domitia Paulina of Gades. After his father died (probably in 85) Hadrian became the ward of Acilius Attianus and the future Emperor Trajan. Hadrian was schooled in various subjects particular to young aristocrats of the day, and was so fond of learning Greek literature that he was nicknamed Graeculus ("Little Greek"). Hadrian enlisted in the army sometime in the reign of Domitian. His first service was as a tribune of the Legio II Adiutrix. Later, he was to be transferred to the Legio I Minervia in Germany. When Nerva died in 98, Hadrian rushed to inform Trajan personally. He later became legate of a legion in Upper Pannonia and eventually governor of said province. He was also archon in Athens for a brief time, and was elected an Athenian citizen. Hadrian was active in the wars against the Dacians (as legate of the V Macedonica) and reputedly won awards from Trajan for his successes. Due to an absence of military action in his reign, Hadrian's military skill is not well attested, however his keen interest and knowledge of the army and his demonstrated skill of administration show possible strategic talent. Hadrian joined Trajan's expedition against Parthia as a legate on Trajan’s staff. Neither during the initial victorious phase, nor during the second phase of the war when rebellion swept Mesopotamia did Hadrian do anything of note. However when the governor of Syria had to be sent to sort out renewed troubles in Dacia, Hadrian was appointed as a replacement, giving him an independent command. By now Trajan was seriously ill and he decided to return to Rome while Hadrian remained in Syria to guard the Roman rear. Trajan only got as far as Selinus before he became too ill to go further. Hadrian, however much he was the obvious successor had still not been adopted as Trajan's heir. As Trajan lay dying, nursed by his wife and supporter of Hadrian, Plotina, he at last adopted Hadrian as heir. Then he died. Allegations that the order of events was the other way round have never quite been resolved.

Securing power

Hadrian quickly secured the support of the legions - one potential opponent, Lusius Quietus, was instantly dismissed. The Senate's endorsement followed when possibly falsified papers of adoption from Trajan were presented. Nevertheless, this rumor of a falsified document of adoption carried little weight. The real source of Hadrian's legitimacy arose from the endorsement of the armies of Syria and the Senate ratification. It is speculated that Trajan's wife Plotina forged the papers as historical documents show she was quite fond of Hadrian. Hadrian did not at first go to Rome. He had his hands tied sorting out the East and supressing the Jewish revolt that had broken out under Trajan--then moving to sort out the Danube frontier. Instead, Attianus, Hadrian's former guardian, was put in charge in Rome. There he "discovered" a plot involving four leading Senators including Lusius Quietus and demanded of the Senate their deaths. There was no question of a trial-- they were hunted down and killed out of hand. Because Hadrian was not in Rome at the time, he was able to claim that Attianus had acted on his own initiative. According to Elizabeth Speller the real reason for their deaths was that they were Trajan's men.

Hadrian and the military

Elizabeth Speller Despite his own excellence as a military administrator, Hadrian's reign was marked by a general lack of major military conflicts. He surrendered Trajan's conquests in Mesopotamia, considering them to be indefensible. There was almost a war with Parthia around 121, but the threat was averted when Hadrian succeeded in negotiating a peace. Hadrian's army crushed a massive Jewish uprising in Judea (132-135) led by Bar Kokhba. The peace policy was strengthened by the erection of permanent fortifications along the empire's borders (limites, sl. limes). The most famous of these is the massive Hadrian's Wall in Britain, and the Danube and Rhine borders were strengthened with a series of mostly wooden fortifications, forts, outposts and watchtowers, the latter specifically improving communications and local area security. To maintain morale and keep the troops from getting restive, Hadrian established intensive drill routines, and personally inspected the armies. And his coins showed military images almost as often as peaceful ones, Hadrian's policy was peace through strength, even threat.

Cultural pursuits and patronage

watchtower.]] Above all Hadrian patronized the arts: Hadrian's Villa at Tibur (Tivoli) was the greatest Roman example of an Alexandrian garden, recreating a sacred landscape, lost now in large part to the despoliation of the ruins by the Cardinal d'Este who had much of the marble removed to build his gardens. In Rome, the Pantheon, Rome built by Agrippa was enriched under Hadrian and took the form in which it remains to this day. Hadrian was a humanist and deeply Hellenophile in all his tastes. While visiting Greece in 125 he attempted to create a kind of provincial parliament to bind all the semi-autonomous former city states across all Greece and Ionia (in Asia Minor). This parliament, known as the Panhellenion, failed despite spirited efforts to instill cooperation among the Hellenes. Hadrian was especially famous for his relationship with a Greek youth, Antinous. While touring Egypt, Antinous mysteriously drowned in the Nile in 130. Very sad, Hadrian founded the Egyptian city of Antinopolis. Hadrian drew the whole Empire into his mourning, making Antinous the last new god of antiquity. Hadrian died at his villa in Baiae. He was buried in a mausoleum on the western bank of the Tiber, in Rome, a building later transformed into a fortress, Castel Sant'Angelo. A fragment from the Roman History of Dio Cassius as translated by Earnest Cary in 1925: :"After Hadrian's death there was erected to him a huge equestrian statue representing him with a four-horse chariot. It was so large that the bulkiest man could walk through the eye of each horse, yet because of the extreme height of the foundation persons passing along on the ground below believe that the horses themselves as well as Hadrian are very small."

Hadrian's travels

Much of Hadrian's reign was spent traveling. Even prior to becoming Emperor, he had travelled abroad with the Roman military, giving him much experience in the matter. More than half his reign was spent outside of Italy. Other emperors often left Rome to simply go to war, returning soon after conflicts concluded. A previous Emperor, Nero, once traveled through Greece and was condemned for his self indulgence. Hadrian, by contrast, traveled as a fundamental part of his governing, and made this clear to the Roman senate and the people. He was able to do this because at Rome he possessed a loyal supporter within the upper echelons of Roman society, a military veteran by the name of Marcius Turbo. Also, there are hints within certain sources that he also employed a secret police force, the frumentarii, to exert control and influence incase anything should go wrong while he journeyed abroad. Hadrian's visits were marked by handouts which often contained instructions for the construction of new public buildings. Indeed, Hadrian was willful of strengthening the Empire from within through improved infrastructure, as opposed to conquering or annexing perceived enemies. This was often the purpose of his journeys; commissioning new structures and projects and settlements. His almost evangelical belief in Greek culture strengthened his views : like many Emperors before him, Hadrian's will was almost always obeyed. His traveling court was large, including administrators and likely architects and builders. The burden on the areas he passed through were sometimes great. While his arrival usually brought some benefits it is possible that those who had to carry the burden were of different class to those who reaped the benefits. For example, huge amounts of provisions were requisitioned during his visit to Egypt, this suggests that the burden on the mainly subsistence farmers must have been intolerable, causing some measure of starvation and hardship. Hadrian's first tour came in 121 and was initially aimed at covering his back to allow himself the freedom to concern himself with his general cultural aims. He travelled north, towards Germania and inspected the Rhine-Danube frontier, allocating funds to improve the defenses. However it was to the Empire's very frontiers that represented his perhaps most significant visit, hearing of a recent revolt, he headed across the sea to Britannia. Germania

Britannia

Prior to Hadrian's arrival in Britain there had been a major revolt in Britannia, spanning roughly two years (119-121). It was here he initiated the building of Hadrian's Wall during 122. The wall was built chiefly to safeguard the frontier province of Britain, by preventing future possible invasions from the northern country of Caledonia (now modern day Scotland). Caledonia was inhabited by tribes collectively known as the Picts. Hadrian realized that the Picts would refuse to adapt to Roman life, that they were essentially barbarians for the time being. He also was aware that although Caledonia was conquerable, the harsh terrain and highlands made the venture a costly and unprofitable one for the Empire at large. Thus, he instead decided on building a wall. Hadrian is perhaps most famous for the construction of this wall which to date bears his name, furthermore its ruins still span many miles today. In many ways it represents Hadrian's will to consolidate and enforce within the Empire, rather than waging wars and conquering without. By the end of 122 he had concluded his visit to Britannia, and from there headed south by sea to Mauretania.

Parthia and Asia Minor

In 123 he arrived in Mauretania where he personally led a campaign against local rebels. However this visit was to be short, as reports came through that the Eastern nation of Parthia was again preparing for war, as a result Hadrian quickly headed eastwards. On his journey east it is known that at some point he visited Cyrene during which he personally made available funds for the training of the young men of well bred families for the Roman military. This might well have been a stop off during his journey East. Cyrene had already benefited from his generosity when he in 119 had provided funds for the rebuilding of public buildings destroyed in the recent Jewish revolt. When Hadrian arrived on the Euphrates, he characteristically solved the problem through a negotiated settlement with the Parthian king (probably Chosroes). He then proceeded to check the Roman defenses before setting off West along the coast of the Black Sea. He probably spent the winter in Nicomedia, the main city of Bithynia. As Nicomedia had been hit by an earthquake only shortly prior to his stay, Hadrian was generous in providing funds for rebuilding. Indeed, thanks to his generosity he was acclaimed as the chief restorer of the province as a whole. It is more than possible that Hadrian visited Claudiopolis and there espied the beautiful Antinous. Sources say nothing about when Hadrian met Antinous, however, there is one depiction of Antinous that shows him as a young man of 20 or so. As this was shortly before Antinous's drowning in 130 Antinous would more likely have been a youth of 13 or 14. Many historians favour this early date as the time when Antinous left home but it is unlikely that they immediately became lovers. Hadrian's friendships usually burnt themselves out quickly, casting doubt on whether Hadrian would have sustained his passion up to 130. It is possible that Antinuous may have been sent to Rome to be trained as page to serve the Emperor and only gradually did he rise to the status of imperial favorite. After meeting Antinuous, Hadrian traveled through Anatolia. The route he took is uncertain. Various incidents are described such as his founding of a city within Mysia, Hadrianutherae, after a successful boar hunt. (The building of the city was probably little more than a mere whim - lowly populated wooden areas such as the location of the new city were already ripe for development). Some historians dispute whether Hadrian did infact commission the city's construction at all. At about this time, plans to build a temple in Asia minor were written up. The new temple would be dedicated to Trajan and Hadrian and built with dazzling white marble.

Greece

Hadrianutherae The climax of this tour was indeed the destination that the helenophile Hadrian must all along have had in mind, Greece. He arrived in the autumn of 124 in time to participate in the Eleusinian Mysteries. By tradition at one stage in the ceremony the initiates were supposed to carry arms but this was waived to avoid any risk to the emperor among them. At the Athenians request he conducted a revision of their constitution - among other things a new phylae (tribe) was added bearing his name. During the winter he toured the Peloponese. His exact route is uncertain, however there are some tell tale signs such as reports of Pausanias of temples built by Hadrian and the statue built of him by the grateful citizens of Epidaurus as thanks to their "restorer". He was especially generous to Mantinea which supports the theory that Antinous was infact already Hadrian's lover because of the strong link between Mantinea and Antinous's home in Bithynia. By March of 125 Hadrian had reached Athens presiding over the festival of Dionysia. The building program that Hadrian initiated was substantial. Various rulers had done work on building a temple to Olympian Zeus - it was Hadrian who ensured that the job would be finished. He also initiated the construction of several public buildings on his own whim and even organized the building of an aqueduct.

Return to Italy

Zeus On his return to Italy, Hadrian made a detour to Sicily. Coins celebrate him as the restorer of the island though there is no record of what he did to earn this accolade. Back in Rome he was able to see for himself the completed work of rebuilding the Pantheon. Also completed by then was Hadrian's villa nearby at Tibur - a pleasant retreat by the Sabine Hills for when Rome got too much for him. At the beginning of March 127 Hadrian set off for a tour of Italy. Once again it is mainly by records of his hand outs that allows us to reconstruct his route rather than the historical records. For instance, in that year he restored the Picentine earth goddess Cupra in the town of Cupra Maritima. Less welcome than such largess was his decision to divide Italy into 4 regions under imperial legates with consular rank. Being effectively reduced to the status of mere provinces did not go down well and this innovation did not long outlive Hadrian. It was around then that Hadrian first fell sick. Whatever the illness was, it did not stop him from setting off in the spring of 128 to visit Africa. His arrival began with the good omen of rain ending a drought. Along with his usual role as benefactor and restorer he found time to inspect the troops and his speech to the troops survives to this day. Hadrian returned to Italy in the summer of 128 but his stay was brief before setting off on a tour that would last three years. That tour was to be the most significant not to say fateful of his reign.

Greece and Asia

In September of 128 Hadrian again attended the Eleusian mysteries. This time his visit to Greece seems to have concentrated on Athens and Sparta - the two ancient rivals for dominance of Greece. Hadrian had played with the idea of focusing his Greek revival round Amphictyonic League based in Delphi but he by now had decided on something far grander. His new Panhellenion was going to be a council that would bring together Greek cities wherever they might be found. The meeting place was to the new temple to Zeus in Athens. Having set in motion the preparations - deciding whose claim to be a Greek city was genuine would in itself take time - Hadrian set off for Ephesus.

Notes

# Beloved And God: Royston Lambert pp 31,32 # Hadrian the Restless Emperor:Anthony Birley p68 # Anthony Birley p75 # Elizabeth Speller p26 # Royston Lambert # Elizabeth Speller # Elizabeth Speller p69 # Elizabeth Speller pp74-81 # Royston Lambert pp41-42 # Anthony Birley pp151-2 # Anthony Birley pp153-5 # Anthony Birley pp157-8 # Royston Lambert pp60-61 # Anthony Birley pp164-167 # Anthony Birley pp175-7 # Anthony Birley pp177-180 # Anthony Birley pp182-4 # Anthony Birley pp 189-90 # Anthony Birley pp 191-200 # Royston Lambert p71 # Royston Lambert p71-72 # Anthony Birley pp 213-214 # Anthony Birley pp 215-20

References


- Anthony R. Birley: Hadrian. The restless emperor, Routledge, London 1997, ISBN 0-415-16544-X.
- Royston Lambert: Beloved and God : the story of Hadrian and Antinous, Phoenix Giants, London, 1997 (första upplagan publicerad 1984), ISBN 1-85799-944-4
- Elizabeth Speller: Following Hadrian : a second-century journey through the Roman Empire , Review, London, 2003, ISBN 0-7472-6662-X

External links


- [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Historia_Augusta/Hadrian/1
- .html Historia Augusta: Life of Hadrian]
- [http://www.wildwinds.com/coins/ric/hadrian/t.html Hadrian coinage]
- [http://www.britishtours.com/rome/piazza_di_pietra.html Temple of Hadrian] Quicktime VR, Rome Category:76 births Category:138 deaths Category:Ancient Jewish Roman history Category:Nerva-Antonine Dynasty Category:Roman emperors Category:Adoptive parents ko:하드리아누스 ja:ハドリアヌス

January 24

January 24 is the 24th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. There are 341 days remaining (342 in leap years).

Events


- 41 - Roman Emperor Gaius Caesar (Caligula), known for his eccentricity and cruel despotism, was assassinated by his disgruntled Praetorian Guards.
- 1438 - Pope Eugenius IV was suspended by the Council of Basel.
- 1458 - Matthias I Corvinus becomes king of Hungary.
- 1624 - Alfonso Mendez, appointed by Pope Gregory XV as Prelate of Ethiopia, arrives at Massawa from Goa.
- 1679 - King Charles II of England disbands Parliament.
- 1742 - Charles VII Albert becomes Holy Roman Emperor.
- 1848 - California gold rush: James W. Marshall finds gold at Sutter's Mill near Sacramento.
- 1888 - Jacob L. Wortman patents the typewriter ribbon.
- 1908 - Robert Baden-Powell begins the Boy Scout movement.
- 1916 - In Brushaber v. Union Pacific Railroad, the Supreme Court of the United States declares the federal income tax constitutional.
- 1918 - A decree of the Council of People's Commissars, introducing the Gregorian calendar in Russia since February 1, issued
- 1922 - Christian K. Nelson patents the Eskimo Pie.
- 1924 - St. Petersburg, Russia is renamed Leningrad.
- 1927 - Young director Alfred Hitchcock released his first film, The Pleasure Garden, in England.
- 1936 - Albert Sarraut becomes Prime Minister of France
- 1943 - World War II: Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill conclude a conference in Casablanca.
- 1945 - Auschwitz, Concentration Camp in Poland is Liberated by Soviet Troops.
- 1952 - Vincent Massey sworn in as first Canada-born Governor-General of Canada.
- 1962 - Brian Epstein signs to manage The Beatles.
- 1966 - An Air India Boeing 707 jet crashes on Mont Blanc, on the border between France and Italy, killing 117
- 1972 - Shoichi Yokoi, a Japanese soldier, is discovered on Guam.
- 1982 - Super Bowl XVI: San Francisco 49ers defeat the Cincinnati Bengals, 26-21 in the first Super Bowl played north of the Mason-Dixon line
- 1984 - The first Apple Macintosh goes on sale.
- 1986 - Voyager 2 passes within 50,679 miles of Uranus.
- 1987 - In Lebanon, gunmen kidnap Alann Steen, Jesse Turner, Robert Polhill and Mitheleshwar Singh.
- 1989 - Serial killer Ted Bundy is executed in Florida's electric chair.
- 1995 - The prosecution delivers its opening statement in the O. J. Simpson murder trial.
- 1996 - Polish Premier Jozef Oleksy resigns amid charge he spied for Moscow.
- 2001 - The last two of the Texas 7 are taken into custody in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
- 2002 - Enron Congressional hearings begin.
- 2002 - Terrorist suspect John Walker Lindh's hearing begins.
- 2002 - The United States Department of Justice indicts Robert Nicholas Angleton for conspiring to murder his wife, Doris Angleton, along with his brother Roger.
- 2003 - The United States Department of Homeland Security officially begins operation.

Births


- 76 - Hadrian, Roman Emperor (d. 138)
- 1287 - Richard Aungerville, English bishop and writer (d. 1345)
- 1444 - Galeazzo Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan (d. 1476)
- 1540 - Edmund Campion, English Jesuit (d. 1581)
- 1638 - Charles Sackville, 6th Earl of Dorset, English poet and courtier (d. 1706)
- 1670 - William Congreve, English playwright (d. 1729)
- 1674 - Thomas Tanner, English bishop and antiquarian (d. 1735)
- 1679 - Christian Wolff, German philosopher (d. 1754)
- 1705 - Farinelli, Italian castrato (d. 1782)
- 1712 - King Frederick II of Prussia (d. 1786)
- 1724 - Frances Brooke, English writer (d. 1789)
- 1732 - Pierre-Augustin Caron de Beaumarchais, French playwright (d. 1799)
- 1752 - Muzio Clementi, Italian composer (d. 1832)
- 1776 - E.T.A. Hoffmann, German writer, composer, and painter (d. 1822)
- 1862 - Edith Wharton, American writer (d. 1937)
- 1888 - Vicki Baum, Austrian writer (d. 1960)
- 1888 - Ernst Heinkel, German aircraft designer (d. 1958)
- 1895 - Eugen Roth, German writer (d. 1976)
- 1902 - E. A. Speiser, American Bible scholar (d. 1965)
- 1909 - Martin Lings, English Islamic scholar (d. 2005)
- 1913 - Norman Dello Joio, American composer
- 1915 - Robert Motherwell, American painter (d. 1991)
- 1916 - Jack Brickhouse, American sports broadcaster (d. 1998)
- 1917 - Ernest Borgnine, American actor
- 1918 - Oral Roberts, American evangelist
- 1925 - Maria Tallchief, American ballerina
- 1928 - Desmond Morris, British anthropologist and writer
- 1934 - Stanisław Grochowiak, Polish poet and dramatist (d. 1976)
- 1936 - Doug Kershaw, American musician
- 1939 - Ray Stevens, American musician
- 1941 - Neil Diamond, American singer
- 1941 - Aaron Neville, American singer
- 1943 - Sharon Tate, American actress (d. 1969)
- 1944 - Klaus Nomi, German singer (d. 1983)
- 1946 - Michael Ontkean, Canadian actor
- 1947 - Warren Zevon, American musician and songwriter (d. 2003)
- 1949 - John Belushi, American actor (d. 1982)
- 1951 - Yakov Smirnoff, Russian comedian
- 1958 - Jools Holland, British musician
- 1959 - Nastassja Kinski, German-born actress
- 1959 - Vic Reeves, English comedian
- 1963 - Arnold Vanderlyde, Dutch boxer
- 1968 - Mary Lou Retton, American gymnast
- 1970 - Matthew Lillard, American actor
- 1979 - Tatyana Ali, American actress
- 1986 - Mischa Barton, English-born actress
- 1986 - Ricky Ullman, American actor

Deaths


- 41 - Caligula, Emperor of Rome (assassinated) (b. 12)
- 772 - Pope Stephen IV (b. 720)
- 1125 - King David IV of Georgia (b. 1073)
- 1366 - King Alfonso IV of Aragon (b. 1299)
- 1376 - Richard FitzAlan, 10th Earl of Arundel, English military leader
- 1473 - Conrad Paumann, German composer
- 1595 - Archduke Ferdinand II of Austria (b. 1529)
- 1626 - Samuel Argall, English adventurer and naval officer (b. 1580)
- 1639 - Georg Jenatsch, Swiss politician (b. 1596)
- 1666 - Johann Andreas Herbst, German composer (b. 1588)
- 1709 - George Rooke, English admiral (b. 1650)
- 1856 - Rabbi Yechezkel of Kuzmir, Polish Hasidic leader (b. 1775)
- 1877 - Johann Christian Poggendorff, German physicist (b. 1796)
- 1882 - Levi Boone, Mayor of Chicago (b. 1808)
- 1883 - Friedrich von Flotow, German composer (b. 1812)
- 1920 - Amedeo Modigliani, Italian painter and sculptor (b. 1884)
- 1924 - Marie-Adélaïde, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg (b. 1894)
- 1932 - Sir Alfred Yarrow, English shipbuilder (b. 1842)
- 1939 - Maximilian Bircher-Benner, Swiss physician and nutritionist (b. 1867)
- 1943 - John Burns, English politician (b. 1858)
- 1955 - Ira Hayes, American World War II hero (b. 1923)
- 1960 - Edwin Fischer, Swiss pianist and conductor (b. 1886)
- 1961 - Alfred Carlton Gilbert, American swimmer and inventor (b. 1884)
- 1965 - Winston Churchill, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Literature (b. 1874)
- 1971 - Bill W., American co-founder of Alcoholics Anonymous (b. 1895)
- 1973 - J. Carrol Naish, American actor (b. 1897)
- 1975 - Larry Fine, American actor and comedian (b. 1902)
- 1983 - George Cukor, American film director (b. 1899)
- 1986 - L. Ron Hubbard, American writer and founder of Scientology (b. 1911)
- 1986 - Flo Hyman, American volleyball player (b. 1954)
- 1986 - Gordon MacRae, American actor and singer (b. 1921)
- 1986 - Vincente Minnelli, American film director (b. 1903)
- 1989 - Ted Bundy, American serial killer (executed) (b. 1946)
- 1990 - Madge Bellamy, American actress (b. 1899)
- 1991 - John M. Kelly, Irish politician and academic (b. 1931)
- 1993 - Thurgood Marshall, U.S. Supreme Court Justice (b. 1908)
- 1998 - Walter D. Edmonds, American author (b. 1903)
- 2003 - Gianni Agnelli, Italian auto executive (b. 1921)
- 2004 - Leônidas da Silva, Brazilian footballer (b. 1913)
- 2005 - June Bronhill, Australian singer (b. 1929)
- 2005 - Vladimir Savchenko, Ukrainian writer (b. 1933)
- 2005 - Chalkie White, English rugby coach (b. 1929)

Holidays and observances


- Roman Empire - first day of the Sementivae in honor of Ceres and Terra
- Roman Catholic Church - Feasts of St. Francis de Sales and Our Lady of Peace

External links


- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/january/24 BBC: On This Day] ---- See Also: January 23 - January 25 - December 24 - February 24 — listing of all days ko:1월 24일 ms:24 Januari ja:1月24日 simple:January 24 th:24 มกราคม

July 10

July 10 is the 191st day (192nd in leap years) of the year in the Gregorian Calendar, with 174 days remaining.

Events


- 48 BC - Battle of Dyrrhachium, Caesar barely avoids a catastrophic defeat to Pompey in Macedonia.
- 1584 - William I of Orange was assassinated in his home in Delft, Holland by Balthasar Gérard.
- 1778 - American Revolution: Louis XVI of France declares war on the Kingdom of Great Britain.
- 1789 - Alexander Mackenzie reaches Mackenzie River Delta.
- 1821 - The United States takes possession of its newly-bought territory of Florida from Spain.
- 1832 - President Andrew Jackson vetoes a bill that would re-charter the Second Bank of the United States.
- 1850 - Millard Fillmore is inaugurated as the 13th President of the United States.
- 1890 - Wyoming is admitted as the 44th U.S. state.
- 1913 - Death Valley, California hits 134 °F (~56.7 °C), which is the highest temperature recorded in the United States (as of 2003).
- 1925 - The Telegraph Agency of the Soviet Union (TASS), the official news agency of the Soviet Union , is established.
- 1925 - Scopes Trial: In Dayton, Tennessee, the so-called "Monkey Trial" begins with John T. Scopes, a young high school science teacher, accused of teaching evolution in violation of a Tennessee state law.
- 1938 - Howard Hughes sets a new record by completing a 91 hour airplane flight around the world.
- 1940 - World War II: Vichy France government established.
- 1940 - World War II: Battle of Britain - The German Luftwaffe begin to hit British convoys in the English Channel thus starting the battle (this start date is contested, though).
- 1943 - World War II: The launching of Operation Husky begins the Italian Campaign.
- 1951 - Korean War: At Kaesong, armistice negotiations begin.
- 1951 - Randy Turpin becomes the middleweight boxing champion after defeating Sugar Ray Robinson.
- 1962 - Telstar, the world's first communications satellite, is launched into orbit.
- 1967 - Uruguay becomes a member of the Berne Convention copyright treaty.
- 1968 - Maurice Couve de Murville becomes Prime Minister of France
- 1973 - The Bahamas gain full independence within the British Commonwealth.
- 1978 - ABC News World News Tonight premieres.
- 1985 - Greenpeace vessel Rainbow Warrior is bombed and sunk in Auckland, New Zealand Harbor by French DGSE agents.
- 1985 - In response to market demand, Coca-Cola re-introduces it's old formula cola as "Coca-Cola Classic" (see New Coke).
- 1991 - Boris Yeltsin begins his 5-year term as the first elected President of Russia.
- 1992 - In Miami, Florida, former Panamanian leader Manuel Noriega is sentenced to 40 years in prison for drug and racketeering violations.
- 1997 - London, scientists report their DNA analysis findings from a Neandertal skeleton which support the out of Africa theory of human evolution placing an "African Eve" at 100,000 to 200,000 years ago.
- 1998 - The remains of United States Air Force 1st Lt. Michael Joseph Blassie are returned to his family in St. Louis, Missouri from the Tomb of the Unknowns upon identification through DNA analysis. The remains had been in the first tomb since 1984.
- 1998 - Catholic priests' sex abuse scandal: The Diocese of Dallas agrees to pay $23.4 million to nine former altar boys who claimed they were sexually abused by former priest Rudolph Kos.
- 2000 - A leaking southern Nigerian petroleum pipeline explodes, killing about 250 villagers scavenging gasoline.
- 2000 - EADS, the world's second largest aerospace group is formed by the merger of Aérospatiale-Matra, DASA, and CASA.
- 2002 - At a Sotheby's auction, Peter Paul Rubens' painting "The Massacre of the Innocents" is sold for £49.5million (US$76.2 million) to Lord Kenneth Thomson.
- 2003 - A Neoplan bus, owned by Kowloon Motor Bus, collides with a truck, falls off a bridge on Tuen Mun Road, Hong Kong, and plunges into the underlying valley, killing 21 people. This is the deadliest bus accident to date in Hong Kong.

Births


- 1419 - Emperor Go-Hanazono of Japan (d. 1471)
- 1452 - King James III of Scotland (d. 1488)
- 1509 - John Calvin, French religious reformer (d. 1564)
- 1592 - Pierre d'Hozier, French historian (d. 1660)
- 1614 - Arthur Annesley, 1st Earl of Anglesey, English royalist statesman (d. 1686)
- 1625 - Jean Herauld Gourville, French adventurer (d. 1703)
- 1638 - David Teniers III, Flemish painter (d. 1685)
- 1666 - John Ernest Grabe, German-born Anglican theologian (d. 1711)
- 1682 - Roger Cotes, English mathematician (d. 1716)
- 1723 - William Blackstone, English jurist (d. 1780)
- 1830 - Camille Pissarro, French painter (d. 1903)
- 1832 - Alvan Graham Clark, American telescope maker and astronomer (d. 1897)
- 1834 - James McNeil Whistler, American painter (d. 1903)
- 1835 - Henryk Wieniawski, Polish composer (d. 1880)
- 1842 - Adolphus Busch, German-born brewer (d. 1913)
- 1856 - Nikola Tesla, Croatian physicist (d. 1943)
- 1871 - Marcel Proust, French writer (d. 1922)
- 1888 - Giorgio de Chirico, Italian painter (d. 1978)
- 1895 - Carl Orff, German composer (d. 1982)
- 1899 - John Gilbert, American actor (d. 1936)
- 1902 - Kurt Alder, German chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1958)
- 1903 - John Wyndham, British author (d. 1969)
- 1914 - Joe Shuster, Canadian-born cartoonist
- 1920 - David Brinkley, American television reporter (d. 2003)
- 1920 - Owen Chamberlain, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1921 - Harvey Ball, American inventor (d. 2001)
- 1921 - Jake LaMotta, American boxer
- 1921 - Eunice Kennedy Shriver, American activist
- 1923 - Earl Hamner Jr., American author and television producer
- 1923 - Jean Kerr, American author (d. 2003)
- 1925 - Mahathir bin Mohamad, Malaysian fourth Prime Minister
- 1926 - Fred Gwynne, American actor (d. 1993)
- 1928 - Moshe Greenberg, American-Israeli Bible scholar
- 1931 - Nick Adams, American actor (d. 1968)
- 1931 - Alice Munro, Canadian writer
- 1934 - Olga Sebenik, Slovenian economist
- 1938 - Paul Andreu, French architect
- 1939 - Ahmet Taner Kışlalı, Turkish politician, journalist, and educator (d. 1999)
- 1940 - Helen Donath, American soprano
- 1942 - Ronnie James Dio, American musician
- 1942 - Pyotr Klimuk, cosmonaut
- 1943 - Arthur Ashe, American tennis player (d. 1993)
- 1945 - Virginia Wade, British tennis player
- 1946 - Sue Lyon, American actress
- 1947 - Arlo Guthrie, American musician
- 1951 - Cheryl Wheeler, American singer and songwriter
- 1954 - Neil Tennant, British musician
- 1959 - Janet Julian, American actress
- 1968 - Hassiba Boulmerka, Algerian athlete
- 1969 - Gale Harold, American actor
- 1980 - Thomas Ian Nicholas, American actor
- 1980 - Adam Petty, American race car driver (d. 2000)
- 1980 - Jessica Simpson, American singer
- 1982 - Alex Arrowsmith, American musician

Deaths


- 138 - Hadrian, Roman Emperor (b. 76)
- 1099 - El Cid, of Castile (b. 1044)
- 1103 - King Eric I of Denmark
- 1298 - King Ladislaus IV of Hungary (b. 1262)
- 1460 - Humphrey Stafford, 1st Duke of Buckingham, English military leader (b. 1402)
- 1480 - King René I of Naples (b. 1410)
- 1559 - King Henry II of France (b. 1519)
- 1584 - William I of Orange (b. 1533)
- 1590 - Archduke Charles II of Austria (b. 1540)
- 1594 - Paolo Bellasio, Italian composer (b. 1554)
- 1621 - Karel Bonaventura Buquoy, French soldier (b. 1571)
- 1653 - Gabriel Naudé, French librarian and scholar (b. 1600)
- 1680 - Louis Moréri, French encyclopedist (b. 1643)
- 1683 - François-Eudes de Mézeray, French historian (b. 1610)
- 1686 - John Fell, English churchman (b. 1625)
- 1776 - Richard Peters, English-born clergyman (b. 1704)
- 1806 - George Stubbs, British painter (b. 1724)
- 1884 - Paul Morphy, American chess player (b. 1837)
- 1908 - Phoebe Knapp, American hymn writer (b. 1839)
- 1920 - Jackie Fisher, British admiral (b. 1841)
- 1941 - Jelly Roll Morton, American musician (b. 1890)
- 1978 - John D Rockefeller III, American businessman (b. 1906)
- 1978 - Joe Davis, English snooker player (b. 1901)
- 1979 - Arthur Fiedler, American conductor (b. 1894)
- 1987 - John Hammond, American record producer (b. 1910)
- 1989 - Mel Blanc, American voice actor (b. 1908)
- 2003 - Winston Graham, English writer (b. 1908)
- 2003 - Hartley Shawcross, British prosecutor at the Nuremberg Trials (b. 1902)
- 2005 - A.J. Quinnell, English writer (b. 1940)
- 2005 - Freda Wright-Sorce, American radio performer (b. 1955)
- 2005 - Freddy Soto, American comedian and actor (b. 1970)

Holidays and observances


- Bahamas - Independence Day
- Silence Day - celebrated by followers of Meher Baba
- Mauritania - Armed Forces Day
- Ancient Latvia - Septinu Bralu Diena observed
- New Zealand - Rainbow Warrior Commemmoration

External links


- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/july/10 BBC: On This Day] ---- July 9 - July 11 - June 10 - August 10 -- listing of all days ko:7월 10일 ms:10 Julai ja:7月10日 simple:July 10 th:10 กรกฎาคม

138

Events


- February 25 - Roman emperor Hadrian adopted Antoninus Pius on condition that Antonius would adopt Marcus Annius Aurelius Verus.
- July 10 - Antoninus Pius succeeds Hadrian as Roman emperor
- Zhi becomes emperor of the Han Dynasty in China.

Births

Deaths


- July 10 - Hadrian, Roman emperor, died at Baiae
- Zenobius - Greek sophist who taught rhetoric at Rome 138 is a number commonly associated with the punk band The Misfits. It comes from their song "We Are 138". Many of their fans have merchandise and tattoos that depict the number. Rumors about as to is origin. Some say it was Jerry Only and Glenn Danzig's union local number. Others that it's related to the sci-fi classic THX-1138, a somewhat likely source considering the Misfits' love of B Movies and sci-fi. Category:138 ko:138년

Roman Empire

:For other uses, see Roman Empire (disambiguation) The Roman Empire is the term conventionally used to describe the Ancient Roman polity in the centuries following its reorganization under the leadership of Octavian (better known as Caesar Augustus), until its radical reformation in what was later to be known as the Byzantine Empire. Roman Empire is also used as translation of the expression Imperium Romanum, probably the best known Latin expression where the word "imperium" is used in the meaning of a territory, the "Roman Empire", as that part of the world where Rome ruled. The expansion of this Roman territory beyond the borders of the initial city-state of Rome had started long before the state organisation turned into an Empire. One of the first historians to describe this expansion of the Roman territory was the Greek Polybius, writing in the Epoch of the Roman Republic. In the centuries before the autocracy of Augustus, Rome had already accumulated a collection of tribute-states beyond the Italian Peninsula, including former Mediterranean competitors Syracuse and Carthage. In the late Republic Augustus (then still "Octavian") added Egypt definitively to the Imperium Romanum. The remainder of this article treats the Roman Empire as Imperial state (see Roman Kingdom and Roman Republic for development of the territory in earlier times). Augustus' reforms turning the Roman state into an Empire survived mostly unchanged until the Diocletian reform at end of the 3rd century, which turned the empire into a tetrarchy. While the political form given by Diocletian was short-lived, it led to the division of the Empire into two halves. This allowed Roman rule to continue for two more centuries over the whole empire, although divided into the Eastern and the Western Roman Empire. The end of the Western Empire is traditionally set in 476, when Odovacar deposed the last Emperor and sent the Imperial insignia to Constantinople; henceforth he nominally ruled as dux on behalf of Constantinople. After another millennium, in 1453, the Eastern Empire, better known as the Byzantine Empire, fell to the Ottoman Turks. From Augustus to the Fall of the Western Empire Rome dominated the region of Western Eurasia, comprising over half its population. The Roman Empire's influence on government, law, military, and monumental architecture, as well as many other aspects of Western life remains inescapable. The Greeks adopted the Roman name in the Middle Ages and were known as Romans, a trend that survives until today in Greece, a result of their cultural position (see Names of the Greeks). Roman titles of power were adopted by successor states and other entities with imperial pretensions, including the Frankish kingdom, the Holy Roman Empire, the first and second Bulgarian empires, the Russian/Kiev dynasties, and the German Empire. See also Roman culture.

Historians' viewpoints on the evolution of Imperial Rome

Because the empire of Rome lasted for such a long period of time (31 BC–1453), there are certain alternative names used by historians to distinguish various semantic periods or eras. Such names include Byzantine Empire, Eastern Roman Empire and Western Roman Empire, which are used interchangeably throughout this article to mean the same as Roman Empire (or the Western or Eastern part thereof). For many years historians made a distinction between the Principate, the period from Augustus until the Crisis of the Third Century, and the Dominate, the period from Diocletian until the end of the Empire in the West. According to this theory, during the Principate (from the Latin word princeps, meaning "first citizen", the only title Augustus would permit himself) the realities of dictatorship were concealed behind Republican forms; while during the Dominate (from the word dominus, meaning "Master") imperial power showed its naked face, with golden crowns and ornate imperial ritual. More recently historians established that the situation was far more nuanced: certain historical forms continued until the Byzantine period, more than one thousand years after they were created, and displays of imperial majesty were common from the earliest days of the Empire.

Age of Augustus (31 BC–AD 14)

Political developments

Latin As a matter of convenience, the Roman Empire is held to have begun with the constitutional settlement following the Battle of Actium in 31 BC. In fact the Republican institutions at Rome had been destroyed over the preceding century and Rome had been in continuous crisis with periods of dictatorial rule since Sulla. The long, peaceful and consensual reign of Augustus greatly changed the view toward hereditary monarchy. Rome–the city that had not too long before assassinated its leader, Julius Caesar, when his ambitions seemed to threaten the republic–now placidly accepted one man rule. Augustus' reign was notable for several long-lasting achievements that would define the Empire:
- Creation of an hereditary office, which we refer to as Emperor of Rome.
- Fixation of the payscale. Duration of Roman military service marked the final step in the evolution of the Roman Army from a citizen army to a professional one.
- Creation of the Praetorian Guard, which would make and unmake emperors for centuries.
- Expansion to the natural borders of the Empire. The borders reached upon Augustus' death remained the limits of Empire, with minimal exceptions, for the next four hundred years.
- Development of trade links with regions as far as India and China.
- Creation of a civil service outside of the Senatorial structure, leading to a continuous weakening of Senatorial authority.
- Enactment of the lex Julia of 18 BC and the lex Papia Poppaea of AD 9, which rewarded childbearing and penalized celibacy.
- Promulgation of the cult of the Deified Julius Caesar throughout the Empire. This tradition of deifying the Emperor upon his death lasted until the time of Constantine, who was made both a Roman god and "the Thirteenth Apostle" upon his death.

Cultural developments

:Main article: Roman culture The Augustan period saw a tremendous outpouring of cultural achievement in the areas of poetry, history, sculpture and architecture. At the same time, a tremendous outpouring of energy in founding colonies and municipia, unrivalled in Rome before or after, succeeded in Romanizing extensive territories in the East, in Africa, in Hispania and Gaul, beyond those areas that were traditionally within the Roman sphere of influence.

Sources

The Age of Augustus is paradoxically far more poorly documented than the Late Republican period that preceded it. While Livy wrote his magisterial history during Augustus' reign and his work covered all of Roman history through 9 BC, only epitomes survive of his coverage of the Late Republican and Augustan periods. Our important primary sources for this period include the:
- Res Gestae Divi Augusti, Augustus' highly partisan autobiography,
- Historiae Romanae by Velleius Paterculus, a disorganized work which remains the best annals of the Augustan period, and
- Controversiae and Suasoriae of Seneca the Elder. Though primary accounts of this period are few, works of poetry, legislation and engineering from this period provide important insights into Roman life. Archeology, including maritime archeology, aerial surveys, epigraphic inscriptions on buildings, and Augustan coinage, has also provided valuable evidence about economic, social and military conditions. Secondary sources on the Augustan Age include Tacitus, Dio Cassius, Plutarch and Suetonius. Josephus' Jewish Antiquities is the important source for Judea in this period, which became a province during Augustus' reign.

Julio-Claudian dynasty: Augustus' heirs

Augustus, leaving no sons, was succeeded by his stepson Tiberius, the son of his wife Livia from her first marriage. Augustus was a scion of the gens Julia (the Julian family), one of the most ancient patrician clans of Rome, while Tiberius was a scion of the gens Claudia, only slightly less ancient than the Julians. Their three immediate successors were all descended both from the gens Claudia, through Tiberius' brother Nero Claudius Drusus, and from gens Julia, either through Julia Caesaris, Augustus' daughter from his first marriage (Caligula and Nero), or through Augustus' sister Octavia (Claudius). Historians thus refer to their dynasty as "Julio-Claudian".

Tiberius (14–37)

The early years of Tiberius' reign were peaceful and relatively benign. Tiberius secured the power of Rome and enriched her treasury. However, Tiberius' reign soon became characterized by paranoia and slander. In 19, he was popularly blamed for the death of his nephew, the popular Germanicus. In 23 his own son Drusus died. More and more, Tiberius retreated into himself. He began a series of treason trials and executions. He left power in the hands of the commander of the guard, Aelius Sejanus. Tiberius himself retired to live at his villa on the island of Capri in 26, leaving administration in the hands of Sejanus, who carried on the persecutions with relish. Sejanus also began to consolidate his own power; in 31 he was named co-consul with Tiberius and married Livilla, the emperor's niece. At this point he was hoist by his own petard: the Emperor's paranoia, which he had so ably exploited for his own gain, was turned against him. Sejanus was put to death, along with many of his cronies, the same year. The persecutions continued until Tiberius' death in 37.

Caligula (37–41)

At the time of Tiberius' death most of the people who might have succeeded him had been brutally murdered. The logical successor (and Tiberius' own choice) was his grandnephew, Germanicus' son Gaius (better known as Caligula). Caligula started out well, by putting an end to the persecutions and burning his uncle's records. Unfortunately, he quickly lapsed into illness. The Caligula that emerged in late 37 may have suffered from epilepsy, and was probably insane. He ordered his soldiers to invade Britain, but changed his mind at the last minute and had them pick sea shells on the northern end of France instead. It is believed he carried on incestuous relations with his sisters. He had ordered a statue of himself to be erected in the Temple at Jerusalem, which would have undoubtedly led to revolt had he not been dissuaded. In 41, Caligula was assassinated by the commander of the guard Cassius Chaerea. The only member left of the imperial family to take charge was another nephew of Tiberius', Tiberius Claudius Drusus Nero Germanicus, better known as the emperor Claudius.

Claudius (41–54)

Claudius had long been considered a weakling and a fool by the rest of his family. He was, however, neither paranoid like his uncle Tiberius, nor insane like his nephew Caligula, and was therefore able to administer the empire with reasonable ability. He improved the bureaucracy and streamlined the citizenship and senatorial rolls. He also proceeded with the conquest and colonization of Britain (in 43), and incorporated more Eastern provinces into the empire. In Italy, he constructed a winter port at Ostia, thereby providing a place for grain from other parts of the Empire to be brought in inclement weather. On the home front, Claudius was less successful. His wife Messalina cuckolded him; when he found out, he had her executed and married his niece, Agrippina the younger. She, along with several of his freedmen, held an inordinate amount of power over him, and very probably killed him in 54. Claudius was deified later that year. The death of Claudius paved the way for Agrippina's own son, the 16-year-old Lucius Domitius, or, as he was known by this time, Nero.

Nero (54–69)

Initially, Nero left the rule of Rome to his mother and his tutors, particularly Lucius Annaeus Seneca. However, as he grew older, his desire for power increased; he had his mother and tutors executed. During Nero's reign, there were a series of riots and rebellions throughout the Empire: in Britain, Armenia, Parthia, and Judaea. Nero's inability to manage the rebellions and his basic incompetence became evident quickly and in 68, even the Imperial guard renounced him. Nero is best remembered by the rumour that he played the lyre and sang during the Great Fire of Rome, and hence "fiddled while Rome burned" (though the fiddle had yet to be invented). Nero is also remembered for his immense rebuilding of Rome following the fires. Nero committed suicide, and the year 69 (known as the Year of the Four Emperors) was a year of civil war, with the emperors Galba, Otho, Vitellius, and Vespasian ruling in quick succession. By the end of the year, Vespasian was able to solidify his power as emperor of Rome.

Flavian Dynasty

The Flavians, although a relatively short lived dynasty, helped restore stability in an empire on its knees. Although there are criticism of all three, especially based on their more centralized style of rule, it was through the reforms and good rule of the three that helped create a stable empire that would last well into the 3rd Century. However, their backgrounds as a military dynasty led to further irrelevancy of the senate, and the move from princeps, or first citizen, to imperator, or emperor, was finalized during their reign.

Vespasian (69–79)

Vespasian was a remarkably successful Roman general who had been given rule over much of the eastern part of the Roman Empire. He had supported the imperial claims of Galba; however, on his death, Vespasian became a major contender for the throne. After the suicide of Otho, Vespasian was able to hijack Rome's winter grain supply in Egypt, placing him in a good position to defeat his remaining rival, Vitellius. On December 20, 69, some of Vespasian's partisans were able to occupy Rome. Vitellius was murdered by his own troops, and the next day, Vespasian was confirmed as Emperor by the Senate. At the age of 60 and battle hardened he was hardly a charismatic emperor, but he turned out to be an excellent ruler none the less. Although Vespasian was considered quite the autocrat by the senate, he mostly continued the weakening of that body that had been going since the reign of Tiberius. This was typified by his dating his accession to power from July 1, when his troops proclaimed him emperor, instead of December 21, when the Senate confirmed his appointment. Another example was his assumption of the censorship in 73, giving him power over who exactly made up the senate. He used that power to expel dissident senators. At the same time, he increased the number of senators from 200, at that low level due to the actions of Nero and the year of crisis that followed, to 1000, most of the new senators coming not from Rome but from Italy and the urban centers within the western provinces. Vespasian was able to liberate Rome from the financial burdens placed upon it by Nero's excesses and the civil wars. To do this, he not only increased taxes, but created new forms of taxation. Also, through his power as censor he was able to carefully examine the fiscal status of every city and province, many paying taxes based upon information and structures more than a century old. Through this sound fiscal policy, he was able to build up a surplus in the treasury and embark on public works projects. It was he who first commissioned the Roman Colosseum; he also built a forum whose centerpiece was a temple to Peace. In addition, he alloted sizable subsidies to the arts, creating a chair of rhetoric at Rome. Vespasian was also an effective emperor for the provinces in his decades of office, having posts all across the empire, both east and west. In the west he gave considerable favoritism to Spain in which he granted Latin rights to over three hundred towns and cities, promoting a new era of urbanization throughout the western (i.e. formerly barbarian) provinces. Through the additions he made to the Senate he allowed greater influence of the provinces in the Senate, helping to promote unity in the empire. He also extended the borders of the empire on every front, most of which was done to help strengthen the frontier defenses, one of Vespasian's main goals. The crisis of 69 had wrought havoc on the army. One of the most marked problems had been the support lent by provincial legions to men who supposedly represented the best will of their province. This was mostly caused by the placement of native auxiliary units in the areas they were recruited in, a practice Vespasian stopped. He mixed auxiliary units with men from other areas of the empire or moved the units away from where they were recruited to help stop this. Also, to further reduce the chances of another military coup he broke up the legions, and instead of placing them in singular concentrations broke them up along the border. Perhaps the most important military reform he undertook was the extension of legion recruitment from exclusively Italy to Gaul and Spain, in line with the Romanization of those areas.

Titus (79–81)

Titus, the eldest son of Vespasian, had been groomed to rule. He had served as an effective general under his father, helping to secure the east and eventually taking over the command of Roman armies in Syria and Palestine, quelling the significant Jewish revolt going on at the time. Throughout his father's reign he had been tailored for rule, sharing the consul for several years with his father and receiving the best tutelage. Although there was some trepidation when he took office due to his known dealings with some of the less respectable elements of Roman society, he quickly proved his merit, even recalling many exiled by his father as a show of good faith. However, his short reign was marked by disaster: in 79, Vesuvius erupted in Pompeii, and in 80, a fire decimated much of Rome. His generosity in rebuilding after these tragedies made him very popular. Titus was very proud of his work on the vast amphitheater begun by his father. He held the opening ceremonies in the still unfinished edifice during the year 80, celebrating with a lavish show that featured 100 gladiators and lasted 100 days. Titus died in 81, at the age of 41 of what is presumed to be illness; it was rumored that his brother Domitian murdered him in order to become his successor, although these claims have little merit. Whatever the case, he was greatly mourned and missed.

Domitian (81–96)

The Flavians all had rather poor relations with the senate due to their more autocratic style, however Domitian was the only one who truly created significant problems. His continuous control as consul and censor throughout his rule, the former his father sharing in much the same way of his Julio-Claudian forerunners, the latter having difficulty even obtaining, were unheard of. In addition, he often appeared in full military regalia as an imperator, an affront to the idea of what the Principate-era emperor's power was based upon, the emperor as the princeps. His reputation in the Senate aside, he kept the people of Rome happy through various measures, including donations to every resident of Rome, wild spectacles in the newly finished Colosseum, and continuing the public works projects of his father and brother. He also apparently had the good fiscal sense of his father, because although he spent lavishly his successors came to power with a well endowed treasury. However, during the end of his reign Domitian became extremely paranoid which probably had its initial roots in the treatment he received by his father: although given significant responsibility, he was never trusted with anything important without supervision. This flowered into the severe and perhaps pathological repercussions following the short lived rebellion in 89 of Antonius Saturninus, a governor and commander in Germany. Domitian's paranoia led to a large number of arrests, executions, and seizure of property (which might help explain his ability to spend so lavishly). Eventually it got to the point where even his closest advisers and family members lived in fear, leading them to his murder in 96 orchestrated by his enemies in the Senate, Stephanus (the steward of the deceased Julia Flavia), members of the Pretorian Guard and empress Domitia Longina.

The Adoptive Emperors

"Five Good Emperors" (96–180)

180 The next century came to be known as the period of the "Five Good Emperors", in which the succession was peaceful though not dynastic and the Empire was prosperous. The emperors of the period were Nerva (96–98), Trajan (98–117), Hadrian (117–138), Antoninus Pius (138–161) and Marcus Aurelius (161–180), each being adopted by his predecessor as his successor during the latter's lifetime. While their respective choices of successor were based upon the merits of the individual men they selected, many argue the real reason for the lasting success of the adoptive scheme of succession lay more with the fact that none of them had a natural heir. Under Trajan, the Empire's borders briefly achieved their maximum extension with provinces created in Mesopotamia in 117. From 166, Roman embassies to China, first sent under the reign of Antonius Pius and probably traveling on the southern sea route, are recorded in Chinese historical sources such as the Later Han History.

Commodus (180–192)

192 world map, indicating "Sinae" (China) at the extreme right, beyond the island of "Trapobane" (Sri Lanka, oversized) and the "Aurea Chersonesus" (South-East Asian peninsula).]] The period of the "five good emperors" was brought to an end by the reign of Commodus from 180 to 192. Commodus was the son of Marcus Aurelius, making him the first direct successor in a century, breaking the scheme of adoptive successors that had turned out so well. He was co-emperor with his father from 177. When he became sole emperor upon the death of his father in 180, it was at first seen as a hopeful sign by the people of the Roman Empire. Nevertheless, as generous and magnanimous as his father was, Commodus turned out to be just the opposite. Commodus is often thought to have been insane, and he was certainly given to excess. He began his reign by making an unfavorable peace treaty with the Marcomanni, who had been at war with Marcus Aurelius. Commodus also had a passion for gladiatorial combat, which he took so far as to take to the arena himself, dressed as a gladiator. In 190, a part of the city of Rome burned, and Commodus took the opportunity to "re-found" the city of Rome in his own honor, as Colonia Commodiana. The months of the calendar were all renamed in his honor, and the senate was renamed as the Commodian Fortunate Senate. The army became known as the Commodian Army. Commodus was strangled in his sleep in 192, a day before he planned to march into the Senate dressed as a gladiator to take office as a consul. Upon his death, the Senate passed damnatio memoriae on him and restored the proper name to the city of Rome and its institutions. The popular movies The Fall of the Roman Empire (1964) and Gladiator (2000) were loosely based on the career of the emperor Commodus, although they should not be taken as an accurate historical depictions of his life.

Severan dynasty (193–235)

The Severan dynasty includes the increasingly troubled reigns of Septimius Severus (193–211), Caracalla (211–217), Macrinus (217–218), Elagabalus (218–222), and Alexander Severus (222–235). The founder of the dynasty, Lucius Septimius Severus, belonged to a leading native family of Leptis Magna in Africa who allied himself with a prominent Syrian family by his marriage to Julia Domna. Their provincial background and cosmopolitan alliance, eventually giving rise to imperial rulers of Syrian background, Elagabalus and Alexander Severus, testifies to the broad political franchise and economic development of the Roman empire that had been achieved under the Antonines. A generally successful ruler, Septimius Severus cultivated the army's support with substantial remuneration in return for total loyalty to the emperor and substituted equestrian officers for senators in key administrative positions. In this way, he successfully broadened the power base of the imperial administration throughout the empire. Abolishing the regular standing jury courts of Republican times, Septimius Severus was likewise able to transfer additional power to the executive branch of the government, of which he was decidedly the chief representative. Septimius Severus' son, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus — nicknamed Caracalla — removed all legal and political distinction between Italians and provincials, enacting the Constitutio Antoniniana in 212 which extended full Roman citizenship to all free inhabitants of the empire. Caracalla was also responsible for erecting the famous Baths of Caracalla in Rome, their design serving as an architectural model for many subsequent monumental public buildings. Increasingly unstable and autocratic, Caracalla was assassinated by the praetorian prefect Macrinus in 217, who succeeded him briefly as the first emperor not of senatorial rank. The imperial court, however, was dominated by formidable women who arranged the succession of Elagabalus in 218, and Alexander Severus, the last of the dynasty, in 222. In the last phase of the Severan principate, the power of the Senate was somewhat revived and a number of fiscal reforms were enacted. Despite early successes against the Sassanian Empire in the East, Alexander Severus' increasing inability to control the army led eventually to its mutiny and his assassination in 235. The death of Alexander Severus ushered in a subsequent period of soldier-emperors and almost a half-century of civil war and strife.

Crisis of the 3rd Century (235–284)

The Crisis of the 3rd Century is a commonly applied name for the crumbling and near collapse of the Roman Empire between 235 and 284. During this period, Rome was ruled by more than 35 individuals, most of them prominent generals who assumed Imperial power over all or part of the empire, only to lose it by defeat in battle, murder, or death. After nearly 50 years of external invasion, internal civil wars and economic collapse, the Empire was on the verge of ending. A series of tough soldier-emperors saved the empire, but in the process fundamentally changed the Roman Empire. The transitions of this period mark the beginnings of