Antoninus Pius Emperor of the Roman Empire

Bust of Antoninus Pius, at Glyptothek, Munich Reign 11 July 138 – 7 March 161 Full name Titus Aurelius Fulvus Boionius Arrius Antoninus (from birth to adoption by Hadrian); Titus Aelius Caesar Antoninus (from adoption to accession); Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pius (as emperor) Born 19 September 86(86-09-19) Birthplace near Lanuvium Died 7 March 161(161-03-07) (aged 74) Place of death Lorium Buried Hadrian's Mausoleum Predecessor Hadrian Successor Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus Consort to Faustina Offspring Faustina the Younger, one other daughter and two sons, all died before 138 (natural); Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus (adoptive) Royal House Antonine Father Titus Aurelius Fulvus (natural); Hadrian (adoptive, from 25 Feb. 138) Mother Arria Fadilla Roman imperial dynasties Antonine Dynasty Antoninus Pius Children

  Natural - Faustina the Younger, also one other daughter and two sons, all died before 138 

  Adoptive - Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus  Marcus Aurelius with Lucius Verus  Marcus Aurelius alone  Children 

  Natural - 13, including Commodus and Lucilla  Commodus 

Titus Aurelius Fulvus Boionius Arrius Antoninus[1] (19 September 86 – 7 March 161), commonly known as Antoninus or Antoninus Pius, was Roman Emperor from 138 to 161. He was a member of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty and the Aurelii.[2] He did not possess the sobriquet "Pius" until after his accession to the throne. Almost certainly, he earned the name "Pius" because he compelled the Senate to deify his adoptive father Hadrian;[3] the Historia Augusta, however, suggests that he may have earned the name by saving senators sentenced to death by Hadrian in his later years.[4]

Contents [hide] 1 Early life 1.1 Childhood and family 1.2 Marriage and children 1.3 Favor with Hadrian 2 Emperor 3 Historiography 3.1 In later scholarship 4 Sources 4.1 Primary sources 4.2 Secondary sources 5 References 6 External links

[edit] Early life[edit] Childhood and familyHe was the son and only child of Titus Aurelius Fulvus, consul in 89[2] whose family came from Nemausus (modern Nîmes).[5] He was born near Lanuvium[6] and his mother was Arria Fadilla. Antoninus’ father and paternal grandfather died when he was young and he was raised by Gnaeus Arrius Antoninus,[2] his maternal grandfather, reputed by contemporaries to be a man of integrity and culture and a friend of Pliny the Younger. His mother married to Publius Julius Lupus (a man of consular rank) suffect consul in 98, and bore him two daughters Arria Lupula and Julia Fadilla.[7]

[edit] Marriage and childrenAs a private citizen between 110 and 115, he married Annia Galeria Faustina the Elder.[1] They are believed to have enjoyed a happy marriage. Faustina was the daughter of consul Marcus Annius Verus[2] and Rupilia Faustina (a half-sister to Roman Empress Vibia Sabina). Faustina was a beautiful woman, renowned for her wisdom. She spent her whole life caring for the poor and assisting the most disadvantaged Romans.

Faustina bore Antoninus four children, two sons and two daughters.[8] They were:

Marcus Aurelius Fulvus Antoninus (died before 138); his sepulchral inscription has been found at the Mausoleum of Hadrian in Rome.[9] Marcus Galerius Aurelius Antoninus (died before 138); his sepulchral inscription has been found at the Mausoleum of Hadrian in Rome.[9] His name appears on a Greek Imperial coin. Aurelia Fadilla (died in 135); she married Lucius Lamia Silvanus, consul 145. She appeared to have no children with her husband and her sepulchral inscription has been found in Italy.[10] Annia Galeria Faustina Minor or Faustina the Younger (between 125–130–175), a future Roman Empress, married her maternal cousin, future Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius in 146.[5] When Faustina died in 141, Antoninus was greatly bereaved.[11] In honor of her memory, Antoninus asked the Senate to deify her as a goddess, and he authorised the construction of a temple to be built in the Roman Forum in her name, with priestesses serving in her temple.[12] He had various coins with her portrait struck in her honor. These coins were scripted ‘DIVAE FAUSTINA’ and were elaborately decorated. He further created a charity which he founded and called it Puellae Faustinianae or Girls of Faustina, which assisted orphaned girls.[1] Finally, Antoninus created a new alimenta (see Grain supply to the city of Rome).

[edit] Favor with HadrianHaving filled with more than usual success the offices of quaestor and praetor,[13] he obtained the consulship in 120;[1] he was next appointed by the Emperor Hadrian as one of the four proconsuls to administer Italia,[14] then greatly increased his reputation by his conduct as proconsul of Asia, probably during 134-135.[14] He acquired much favor with the Emperor Hadrian, who adopted him as his son and successor on 25 February 138,[15] after the death of his first adopted son Lucius Aelius,[16] on the condition that Antoninus would in turn adopt Marcus Annius Verus, the son of his wife's brother, and Lucius, son of Aelius Verus, who afterwards became the emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus.[1]

[edit] Emperor Aureus of Antoninus Pius. The Roman Empire during the reign of Antoninus Pius. Another version of the standardised imperial portrait; from the house of Jason Magnus at Cyrene, North Africa (British Museum)On his accession, Antoninus' name became "Imperator Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pontifex Maximus". One of his first acts as Emperor was to persuade the Senate to grant divine honours to Hadrian, which they had at first refused;[17] his efforts to persuade the Senate to grant these honours is the most likely reason given for his title of Pius (dutiful in affection; compare pietas).[18] Two other reasons for this title are that he would support his aged father-in-law with his hand at Senate meetings, and that he had saved those men that Hadrian, during his period of ill-health, had condemned to death.[5] He built temples, theaters, and mausoleums, promoted the arts and sciences, and bestowed honours and financial rewards upon the teachers of rhetoric and philosophy.[1] Antoninus made few initial changes when he became emperor, leaving intact as far as possible the arrangements instituted by Hadrian.[17]

There are no records of any military related acts in his time in which he participated. One modern scholar has written "It is almost certain not only that at no time in his life did he ever see, let alone command, a Roman army, but that, throughout the twenty-three years of his reign, he never went within five hundred miles of a legion".[19] His reign was the most peaceful in the entire history of the Principate;[20] while there were several military disturbances throughout the Empire in his time, in Mauretania, Iudaea, and amongst the Brigantes in Britannia, none of them are considered serious.[20] It was however in Britain that Antoninus decided to follow a new, more aggressive path, with the appointment of a new governor in 139, Quintus Lollius Urbicus.[17] Under instructions from the emperor, he undertook an invasion of southern Scotland, winning some significant victories, and constructing the Antonine Wall[21] from the Firth of Forth to the Firth of Clyde, although it was soon abandoned for reasons that are still not quite clear.[22] There were also some troubles in Dacia Inferior which required the granting of additional powers to the procurator governor and the dispatchment of additional soldiers to the province.[22] Also during his reign the governor of Upper Germany, probably Caius Popillius Carus Pedo, built new fortifications in the Agri Decumates, advancing the Limes Germanicus fifteen miles forward in his province and neighboring Raetia.[23]

Nevertheless, Antoninus was virtually unique among emperors in that he dealt with these crises without leaving Italy once during his reign,[24] but instead dealt with provincial matters of war and peace through their governors or through imperial letters to the cities such as Ephesus (of which some were publicly displayed). This style of government was highly praised by his contemporaries and by later generations.[25]

Of the public transactions of this period there is only the scantiest of information, but, to judge by what is extant, those twenty-two years were not remarkably eventful in comparison to those before and after his reign. However, he did take a great interest in the revision and practice of the law throughout the empire.[26] Although he was not an innovator, he would not follow the absolute letter of the law; rather he was driven by concerns over humanity and equality, and introduced into Roman law many important new principles based upon this notion.[26] In this, the emperor was assisted by five chief lawyers: L. Fulvius Aburnius Valens, an author of legal treatises; L. Volusius Maecianus, chosen to conduct the legal studies of Marcus Aurelius, and author of a large work on Fidei Commissa (Testamentary Trusts); L. Ulpius Marcellus, a prolific writer; and two others.[26] His reign saw the appearance of the Institutes of Gaius, an elementary legal manual for beginners (see Gaius (jurist)).[26]

Antoninus passed measures to facilitate the enfranchisement of slaves.[27] In criminal law, Antoninus introduced the important principle that accused persons are not to be treated as guilty before trial.[27] He also asserted the principle, that the trial was to be held, and the punishment inflicted, in the place where the crime had been committed. He mitigated the use of torture in examining slaves by certain limitations. Thus he prohibited the application of torture to children under fourteen years, though this rule had exceptions.[27]

One highlight during his reign occurred in 148, with the nine-hundredth anniversary of the foundation of Rome being celebrated by the hosting of magnificent games in Rome.[28] It lasted a number of days, and a host of exotic animals were killed, including elephants, giraffes, tigers, rhinoceroses, crocodiles and hippopotami. While this increased Antoninus’s popularity, the frugal emperor had to temporarily debase the silver coinage by 5 percent to help pay for the festivities.[22]

Scholars place Antoninus Pius as the leading candidate for fulfilling the role as a friend of Rabbi Judah the Prince. According to the Talmud (Avodah Zarah 10a-b), Rabbi Judah was very wealthy and greatly revered in Rome. He had a close friendship with "Antoninus", possibly Antoninus Pius,[29] who would consult Rabbi Judah on various worldly and spiritual matters.

Temple of Antoninus and Faustina in the Roman forum (now the church of San Lorenzo in Miranda). The emperor and his Augusta were deified after their death by Marcus Aurelius.After the longest reign since Augustus (surpassing Tiberius by a couple of months), Antoninus died of fever at Lorium in Etruria,[30] about twelve miles (19 km) from Rome, on 7 March 161,[31] giving the keynote to his life in the last word that he uttered when the tribune of the night-watch came to ask the password—"aequanimitas" (equanimity).[32] His body was placed in Hadrian's mausoleum, a column was dedicated to him on the Campus Martius,[1] and the temple he had built in the Forum in 141 to his deified wife Faustina was rededicated to the deified Faustina and the deified Antoninus.[32]

[edit] HistoriographyThe only account of his life handed down to us is that of the Augustan History, an unreliable and mostly fabricated work. Nevertheless, it still contains information that is considered reasonably sound – for instance, it is the only source that mentions the erection of the Antonine Wall in Britain.[33] Antoninus is unique among Roman emperors in that he has no other biographies. Historians have therefore turned to public records for what details we know.

[edit] In later scholarshipAntoninus in many ways was the ideal of the landed gentleman praised not only by ancient Romans, but also by later scholars of classical history, such as Edward Gibbon or the author of the article on Antoninus Pius in the ninth edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica:

A few months afterwards, on Hadrian's death, he was enthusiastically welcomed to the throne by the Roman people, who, for once, were not disappointed in their anticipation of a happy reign. For Antoninus came to his new office with simple tastes, kindly disposition, extensive experience, a well-trained intelligence and the sincerest desire for the welfare of his subjects. Instead of plundering to support his prodigality, he emptied his private treasury to assist distressed provinces and cities, and everywhere exercised rigid economy (hence the nickname κυμινοπριστης "cummin-splitter"). Instead of exaggerating into treason whatever was susceptible of unfavorable interpretation, he turned the very conspiracies that were formed against him into opportunities for demonstrating his clemency. Instead of stirring up persecution against the Christians, he extended to them the strong hand of his protection throughout the empire. Rather than give occasion to that oppression which he regarded as inseparable from an emperor's progress through his dominions, he was content to spend all the years of his reign in Rome, or its neighbourhood. Later historians had a more nuanced view of his reign. According to the historian J. B. Bury,

however estimable the man, Antoninus was hardly a great statesman. The rest which the Empire enjoyed under his auspices had been rendered possible through Hadrian’s activity, and was not due to his own exertions; on the other hand, he carried the policy of peace at any price too far, and so entailed calamities on the state after his death. He not only had no originality or power of initiative, but he had not even the insight or boldness to work further on the new lines marked out by Hadrian.[34] Inevitably, the surviving evidence is not complete enough to determine whether one should interpret, with older scholars, that he wisely curtailed the activities of the Roman Empire to a careful minimum, or perhaps that he was uninterested in events away from Rome and Italy and his inaction contributed to the pressing troubles that faced not only Marcus Aurelius but also the emperors of the third century. German historian Ernst Kornemann has had it in his Römische Geschichte [2 vols., ed. by H. Bengtson, Stuttgart 1954] that the reign of Antoninus comprised "a succession of grossly wasted opportunities," given the upheavals that were to come. There is more to this argument, given that the Parthians in the East were themselves soon to make no small amount of mischief after Antoninus' passing. Kornemann's brief is that Antoninus might have waged preventive wars to head off these outsiders.

[edit] Sources[edit] Primary sourcesHistoria Augusta, The Life of Antoninus Pius, English version of Historia Augusta Cassius Dio, Roman History, Book 70, [1] Aurelius Victor, "Epitome de Caesaribus", English version of Epitome de Caesaribus [edit] Secondary sourcesWeigel, Richard D., "Antoninus Pius (A.D. 138-161)", De Imperatoribus Romanis Bowman, Alan K. The Cambridge Ancient History: The High Empire, A.D. 70-192. Cambridge University Press, 2000 Birley, Anthony, Marcus Aurelius, Routledge, 2000 Canduci, Alexander (2010), Triumph & Tragedy: The Rise and Fall of Rome's Immortal Emperors, Pier 9, ISBN 978-1741965988 Bury, J. B. A History of the Roman Empire from its Foundation to the Death of Marcus Aurelius (1893) Bossart-Mueller, Zur Geschichte des Kaisers A. (1868) Bryant, The Reign of Antonine (Cambridge Historical Essays, 1895) Hüttl, W. Antoninus Pius vol. I & II, Prag 1933 & 1936. Lacour-Gayet, A. le Pieux et son Temps (1888) Watson, P. B. Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (London, 1884), chap. ii.

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (Eleventh ed.). Cambridge University Press.  [edit] References1.^ a b c d e f g Weigel, Antoninus Pius 2.^ a b c d Bowman, pg. 150 3.^ Birley, pg. 54; Dio, 70:1:2 4.^ Birley, pg. 55; Historia Augusta, Life of Hadrian 24.4 5.^ a b c Bury, pg. 523 6.^ Harvey, Paul B., Religion in republican Italy, Cambridge University Press, 2006, pg. 134; Canduci, pg. 39 7.^ Birley, pg. 242; Historia Augusta, Life of Antoninus Pius 1:6 8.^ Birley, pg. 34; Historia Augusta, Life of Antoninus Pius 1:7 9.^ a b Magie, David, Historia Augusta (1921), Life of Antoninus Pius, Note 6 10.^ Magie, David, Historia Augusta (1921), Life of Antoninus Pius, Note 7 11.^ Bury, pg. 528 12.^ Birley, pg. 77; Historia Augusta, Life of Antoninus Pius 6:7 13.^ Traver, Andrew G., From polis to empire, the ancient world, c. 800 B.C.-A.D. 500, (2002) pg. 33; Historia Augusta, Life of Antoninus Pius 2:9 14.^ a b Bowman, pg. 149 15.^ Bowman,pg. 148 16.^ Bury, pg. 517 17.^ a b c Bowman, pg. 151 18.^ Birley, pg. 55; Canduci, pg. 39 19.^ J. J. Wilkes, The Journal of Roman Studies, Volume LXXV 1985, ISSN 0075-4358, p. 242. 20.^ a b Bury, pg. 525 21.^ Bowman, pg. 152 22.^ a b c Bowman, pg. 155 23.^ Birley, pg. 113 24.^ Speidel, Michael P., Riding for Caesar: The Roman Emperors' Horse Guards, Harvard University Press, 1997, pg. 50; Canduci, pg. 40 25.^ See Victor, 15:3 26.^ a b c d Bury, pg. 526 27.^ a b c Bury, pg. 527 28.^ Bowman, pg, 154 29.^ A. Mischcon, Abodah Zara, p.10a Soncino, 1988. Mischcon cites various sources, "SJ Rappaport... is of opinion that our Antoninus is Antoninus Pius." Other opinions cited suggest "Antoninus" was Caracalla, Lucius Verus or Alexander Severus. 30.^ Bowman, pg. 156; Victor, 15:7 31.^ Bowman, pg. 156 32.^ a b Bury, pg. 532 33.^ Historia Augusta, Life of Antoninus Pius 5:4 34.^ Bury, pg. 524 [edit] External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Antoninus Pius  Antoninus Pius Antonine dynasty Cadet branch of the Nervan-Antonian Dynasty Born: 19 September 86 Died: 7 March 161  Regnal titles  Preceded by Hadrian Roman Emperor 138–161 Succeeded by Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus  Political offices  Preceded by Hadrian and Publius Dasumius Rusticus Consul of the Roman Empire 120 Succeeded by Marcus Annius Verus and Cnaeus Arrius Augur  Preceded by Kanus Iunius Niger and Gaius Pomponius Camerinus Consul of the Roman Empire 139–140 Succeeded by Titus Hoenius Severus and Marcus Peducaeus Stloga Priscinus  Preceded by Lollianus and Titus Statilius Maximus Consul of the Roman Empire 145 Succeeded by Sextus Erucius Clarus and Gnaeus Claudius Severus Arabianus  [show]v • d • eWestern and Eastern Roman emperors 

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Persondata Name Pius, Antoninus Alternative names Short description Date of birth 86-9-19 Place of birth near Lanuvium Date of death 7 March 0161 Place of death Lorium

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Antoninus Pius

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Antoninus Pius

Kejsaren av det romerska imperiet

Byst av Antoninus Pius , på Glyptothek , München

Reign 11 juli 138 ? 7 mars 161

Fullständigt namn Titus Aurelius fulvus Boionius Arrius Antoninus (från födsel till antagande av Hadrian );

Titus Aelius Caesar Antoninus ( från antagandet att anslutningen );

Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pius ( som kejsare )

Född 19 September 86 ( 86-09-19 )

Birthplace nära Lanuvium

Död 7 mars 161 (i åldern 74 )

Dödsplats Lorium

Buried Hadrianus Mausoleum

Föregångare Hadrianus

Efterträdare Marcus Aurelius och Lucius Verus

Gemål till Faustina

Offspring Faustina den yngre, en annan dotter och två söner, alla dog före 138 ( naturliga ), Marcus Aurelius

och Lucius Verus ( adoptiv )

Royal House Antonine

Fader Titus Aurelius fulvus (naturliga );

Hadrianus ( adoptiv , från 25 februari 138)

Mor Arria Fadilla

Romerska kejserliga dynastierna

Antonine Dynasty Antoninus Pius

Barn

Naturligt - Faustina den yngre, också en annan dotter och två söner, alla dog före 138

Adoptiv - Marcus Aurelius och Lucius Verus

Marcus Aurelius med Lucius Verus

Marcus Aurelius ensam

Barn

Naturligt - 13 , inklusive Commodus och Lucilla

Commodus

Titus Aurelius fulvus Boionius Arrius Antoninus (19 september 86 ? 7 mars 161 ) , allmänt känd på engelska som Antoninus Pius var femtonde romersk kejsare 138-161 . Han var den fjärde av de fem goda kejsarna och en medlem av Aurelii . Han ville inte ha den fick öknamnet " Pius " förrän efter hans trontillträde . Nästan säkert tog han namnet " Pius "eftersom han tvingade senaten att avguda sin adoptivfar Hadrianus , den Historia Augusta, dock tyder på att han kan ha tjänat namn genom att spara senatorer dömts till döden av Hadrian i hans senare år.

Uppväxt

Barndom och familj

Han var son och enda barn Titus Aurelius fulvus , konsul i 89 vars familj kom från Nemausus ( moderna Nîmes ) och föddes nära Lanuvium och hans mor var Arria Fadilla . Antoninus ? far och farfar dog när han var ung och han uppfostrades av Gnaeus Arrius Antoninus , sin morfar , en man med integritet och kultur och en vän till Plinius den yngre . Hans mor gifte sig Publius Julius Lupus ( en man med konsulär rang ) suffect konsuln i 98 , och födde honom två döttrar Arria Lupula och Julia Fadilla .

Äktenskap och barn

Som en privatperson mellan 110 och 115 gifte han Annia Galeria Faustina den äldre. De hade ett mycket lyckligt äktenskap. Hon var dotter till konsuln Marcus Annius Verus och Rupilia Faustina ( en halv - syster till romersk kejsarinna Vibia Sabina ). Faustina var en vacker kvinna, känd för sin visdom. Hon tillbringade hela sitt liv att ta hand om de fattiga och hjälpa de mest missgynnade romarna.

Faustina födde Antoninus fyra barn, två söner och två döttrar. De var :

Marcus Aurelius fulvus Antoninus (död före 138), hans GRAVLIK inskrift har hittats på mausoleum Hadrianus i Rom.

Marcus Galerius Aurelius Antoninus (död före 138), hans GRAVLIK inskrift har hittats på mausoleum Hadrianus i Rom. Hans namn finns med på en grekisk Imperial mynt.

Aurelia Fadilla (död 135) , hon gifte sig med Lucius Lamia Silvanus , konsul 145 . Hon verkade inte ha några barn med sin man och sin GRAVLIK inskrift har upptäckts i Italien.

Annia Galeria Faustina Mindre eller Faustina dy (mellan 125 ? 130 ? 175), en framtida romersk kejsarinna , gift med hennes mors kusin , framtida romerske kejsaren Marcus Aurelius.

När Faustina dog 141 , var han i full sorg och gjorde följande till minne av sin hustru :

Gudsförklarad henne som en gudinna.

Hade ett tempel byggdes på Forum Romanum i hennes namn , med prästinnor i templet.

Hade olika mynt med hennes porträtt slog till hennes ära. Dessa mynt var manus ? DIVAE Faustina ? och var omsorgsfullt inredda.

Han skapade en välgörenhetsorganisation som han grundade och kallade det Puellae Faustinianae eller Flickorna i Faustina , som bistod föräldralösa flickor.

Skapat ett nytt Alimenta (se Grain leverans till staden Rom ).

Förmån med Hadrian

Efter att ha fyllt med mer än vanligt framgång kontor kvestorn och praetor fick han konsulatet i 120 , han var nästa utses av kejsar Hadrianus som en av de fyra proconsuls att administrera Italia , då kraftigt ökade hans rykte genom sina handlingar som prokonsuln Asien. Han fick mycket positiv med kejsaren Hadrianus , som antog honom som hans son och efterträdare den 25 februari , 138 , efter att hans antogs första son Lucius Aelius , på villkor att Antoninus i sin tur skulle anta Marcus Annius Verus , son till sin hustrus bror , och Lucius , son till Aelius Verus , som senare blev kejsarna Marcus Aurelius och Lucius Verus .

Kejsare

På sin anslutning , blev Antoninus " namn " Imperator Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pontifex Maximus " . En av hans första åtgärder som kejsare var att övertyga senaten att ge gudomlig ära till Hadrianus , som de först hade vägrat , hans ansträngningar att övertyga senaten att bevilja dessa utmärkelser är den mest sannolika skäl till sin titel av Pius ( plikttrogen i kärlek , jämför pietas ). Två andra skäl för denna avdelning är att han skulle stödja hans åldriga svärfar med handen på senaten möten , och att han hade räddat de män som Hadrianus , under sin period av ohälsa, hade dömts till döden. Han byggde tempel, teatrar och mausoleer , främjas för konsten och vetenskapen , och gett utmärkelser och ekonomisk belöning på lärare i retorik och filosofi.

Det finns inga uppgifter om någon militär anknytning som uppträder i sin tid. En modern forskare har skrivit " Det är nästan säkert inte bara att vid något tillfälle i sitt liv fick han någonsin sett , än mindre kommando , en romersk armé , men att hela tjugotre år av sin regeringstid , han gick aldrig inom fem hundra miles av en legion " . Hans regeringstid var den lugnaste i hela historia principatet , medan det fanns flera militära oroligheter i hela riket i sin tid, i Mauretanien , Iudaea och bland de Brigantes i Britannia, ingen av dem anses allvarliga. Oroligheterna i Britannia tros ha lett till att byggandet av Antonine Wall från Firth of Forth till Firth of Clyde , även om det ganska snart. Han var nästan unik bland kejsare i att han behandlade dessa kriser utan att lämna Italien gång under sin regeringstid , men i stället behandlas regionala frågor om krig och fred genom deras guvernörer eller genom kejserliga brev till de städer som Efesos (varav några var offentligt visas). Denna stil av regeringen fick mycket beröm av sin samtid och av senare generationer.

Av det offentliga transaktioner av denna period har vi knapphändig information , men att döma av vad vi har, var de tjugotvå år inte påfallande händelserikt i förhållande till dem före och efter hans regering , den efterlevande bevis inte är komplett nog för att avgöra om vi skall tolka , med äldre forskare, att han förkortas klokt verksamhet av det romerska imperiet till en försiktig minimum, eller kanske att han var ointresserad av händelser från Rom och Italien och hans passivitet bidrog till att trycka på problem som möter inte bara Marcus Aurelius utan även kejsare av det tredje århundradet . Den tyske historikern Ernst Kornemann har haft det i sitt Römische Geschichte [ 2 vols. , ed. genom H. Bengtson, Stuttgart 1954 ] att regeringstid Antoninus bestod " en rad grovt slöseri med möjligheter ", med tanke på de omvälvningar som skulle komma. Det finns mer att detta argument , med tanke på att partherna i öster själva var snart att inte göra någon liten mängd rackartyg efter Antoninus " passerar. Kornemann korta är att Antoninus kan ha fört förebyggande krig för att avvärja dessa utomstående.

Forskare plats Antoninus Pius som ledande kandidat för att uppfylla rollen som en vän till Rabbi Juda Prince . Enligt Talmud ( Avodah Zarah 10a -b ), var rabbi Juda mycket rika och mycket vördade i Rom. Han hade en nära vänskap med " Antoninus " , möjligen Antoninus Pius , [ 4 ] som skulle samråda Rabbi Judah på olika världsliga och andliga frågor .

Efter den längsta regeringstid sedan Augustus ( överträffar Tiberius av ett par månader ), död Antoninus av feber vid Lorium i Etrurien , cirka tolv miles ( 19 km) från Rom, den 7 mars 161 , som ger grundtonen för sitt liv på sista ordet att han yttrade när tribunen i natten -watch kom för att be lösenordet ? aequanimitas " ( jämnmod ). Hans kropp var placerad i Hadrianus mausoleum , var en kolumn tillägnad honom på Marsfältet , och templet han hade byggt i forumet i 141 till sin gudsförklarad hustru Faustina omdedicerades till gudsförklarad Faustina och gudsförklarad Antoninus .

Historieskrivning

Den enda grund av hans liv som avkunnats för oss är att de Augustan historia, en opålitlig och oftast påhittade arbete. Antoninus är unik bland romerska kejsare i att han inte har några andra biografier . Historiker har därför vänt sig till offentliga register för vilka uppgifter som vi vet.

I senare stipendium

Antoninus på många sätt den ideala av godsägare berömde inte bara av gamla romarna , men också av senare forskare klassisk historia, såsom Edward Gibbon eller författaren av artikeln om Antoninus Pius i nionde upplagan av Encyclopedia Britannica :

Några månader därefter, den Hadrianus död var han entusiastiskt välkomnade till tronen av det romerska folket, som för en gångs skull inte var besvikna i sin väntan på en lycklig regeringstid. För Antoninus kom till sitt nya kontor med enkla smaker, vänligt sinnelag , lång erfarenhet , en välutbildad intelligens och den ärligaste vilja för välfärd för sina undersåtar . I stället för att plundra för att stödja hans slöseri , tömde han sin privata kassa för att bistå nödställda provinser och städer , och överallt utövas styv ekonomi (därav smeknamnet ????????????? " kummin -split "). I stället för att överdriva i förräderi oavsett var mottagliga för ogynnsam tolkning, föraktade han själva konspirationer som bildades mot honom till möjligheter att bevisa sina nåd. I stället för att väcka förföljelse mot de kristna , utökade han till dem en stark hand av hans skydd i hela riket . Hellre än att ge tillfälle till det förtryck som han anses vara omöjliga att en kejsare framsteg genom sitt rike , nöjde han sig att spendera alla de år av sin regeringstid i Rom, eller dess närhet.

Referenser

Bossart - Mueller, Zur Geschichte des Kaisers A. (1868)

Bryant, regeringstid Antonine (Cambridge historiska essäer , 1895)

Hüttl , W. Antoninus Pius vol. I & II , Prag 1933 och 1936 .

Lacour - Gayet , A. le Pieux et son Temps (1888)

Watson, PB Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (London, 1884) , kap. ii .

Denna artikel är helt text från Encyclopædia Britannica , elfte upplagan, en publikation nu i det offentliga rummet

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Consul de Rome -

Consul van Rome -

Consul of Rome

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From:

http://genealogy.richardremme.com/tng/getperson.php?personID=I11105...

Mild-mannered and capable, he was the fourth of the “five good emperors” who guided the empire through an 84-year period (96–180) of internal peace and prosperity. His family originated in Gaul, and his father and grandfathers had all been consuls.

    After serving as consul in 120, Antoninus was assigned by the emperor Hadrian (ruled 117–138) to assist with judicial administration in Italy. He governed the province of Asia (c. 134) and then became an adviser to the Emperor. In 138 Antoninus was adopted by Hadrian and designated as his successor. Hadrian specified that two men—the future emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus—were to succeed Antoninus. Upon acceding to power, Antoninus persuaded a reluctant Senate to offer the customary divine honours to Hadrian. For this, and possibly other such dutiful acts, he was given the surname Pius by the Senate. When his wife, Faustina, died in late 140 or early 141 he founded in her memory the Puellae Faustinianae, a charitable institution for the daughters of the poor.

References to Antoninus in 2nd-century literature are exceptionally scanty; it is certain that few striking events occurred during his 23-year reign. A rebellion in Roman Britain was suppressed, and in 142 a 36-mile (58-kilometre) garrisoned barrier—called the Antonine Wall—was built to extend the Roman frontier some 100 miles north of Hadrian's Wall (q.v.). Antoninus' armies contained revolts in Mauretania, Germany, Dacia, and Egypt.
The feeling of well-being that pervaded the empire under Antoninus is reflected in the celebrated panegyric by the orator Aelius Aristides in 143–144. After Antoninus' death, however, the empire suffered invasion by hostile tribes, followed by severe civil strife.

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http://ancienthistory.about.com/od/emperors/a/imperialdates.htm

Rome was originally the capital of the Roman emperor. Later, it moved to Milan, and then Ravenna (A.D. 402-476). After the fall of Romulus Augustulus, in A.D. 476, Rome continued to have an emperor for almost another millennium, but that Roman emperor ruled from the East.

Julio-Claudians

(31 or) 27 B.C. - 14 A.D. Augustus 14 - 37 Tiberius 37 - 41 Caligula 41 - 54 Claudius 54 - 68 Nero Year of the 4 Emperors

(ends with Vespasian) 68 - 69 Galba 69 Otho 69 Vitellius

Flavian Dynasty

69 - 79 Vespasian 79 - 81 Titus 81 - 96 Domitian 5 Good Emperors

96 - 98 Nerva 98 - 117 Trajan 117 - 138 Hadrian 138 - 161 Antoninus Pius 161 - 180 Marcus Aurelius (161 - 169 Lucius Verus)

(The next cluster of emperors is not part of a specific dynasty or other common grouping, but includes 4 from the year of the 5 emperors, 193.) 177/180 - 192 Commodus 193 Pertinax 193 Didius Julianus 193 - 194 Pescennius Niger 193 - 197 Clodius Albinus

Severans

193 - 211 Septimius Severus 198/212 - 217 Caracalla 217 - 218 Macrinus 218 - 222 Elagabalus 222 - 235 Severus Alexander (More emperors without a dynastic label, although it includes the year of the 6 emperors, 238.) For more on this age of chaos, read Brian Campbell's excellent synopsis in The Romans and Their World.

235 - 238 Maximinus 238 Gordian I and II 238 Balbinus and Pupienus 238 - 244 Gordian III 244 - 249 Philip the Arab 249 - 251 Decius 251 - 253 Gallus 253 - 260 Valerian 254 - 268 Gallienus 268 - 270 Claudius Gothicus 270 - 275 Aurelian 275 - 276 Tacitus 276 - 282 Probus 282 - 285 Carus Carinus Numerian

Tetrarchy

285-ca.310 Diocletian 295 L. Domitius Domitianus 297-298 Aurelius Achilleus 303 Eugenius 285-ca.310 Maximianus Herculius 285 Amandus 285 Aelianus Iulianus 286?-297? British Emperors 286/7-293 Carausius 293-296/7 Allectus

293-306 Constantius I Chlorus Dynasty of Constantine

293-311 Galerius 305-313 Maximinus Daia 305-307 Severus II 306-312 Maxentius 308-309 L. Domitius Alexander 308-324 Licinius 314? Valens 324 Martinianus 306-337 Constantinus I 333/334 Calocaerus 337-340 Constantinus II 337-350 Constans I 337-361 Constantius II 350-353 Magnentius 350 Nepotian 350 Vetranio 355 Silvanus 361-363 Julianus 363-364 Jovianus

(More emperors without a dynastic label) 364-375 Valentinianus I 375 Firmus 364-378 Valens 365-366 Procopius 366 Marcellus 367-383 Gratian 375-392 Valentinianus II 378-395 Theodosius I 383-388 Magnus Maximus 384-388 Flavius Victor 392-394 Eugenius

[See: Table of Eastern and Western Emperors]

395-423 Honorius [Division of the Empire - Honorius' brother Arcadius ruled the East 395-408] 407-411 Constantine III usurper 421 Constantius III 423-425 Johannes 425-455 Valentinian III 455 Petronius Maximus 455-456 Avitus 457-461 Majorian 461-465 Libius Severus 467-472 Anthemius 468 Arvandus 470 Romanus 472 Olybrius 473-474 Glycerius 474-475 Julius Nepos 475-476 Romulus Augustulus

Table of Eastern and Western Emperors

Print Resources Chris Scarre: Chronicle of the Roman Emperors Adkins and Adkins: Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome

Rome and Roman Empire Maps Related Articles

Roman Battles Here's Why These Are the Most Important People in Ancient History How Taxes Led to the Fall of Rome Dates of the Roman Emperors A Timeline of the 5 Eras of Ancient Roman History Age at Accession of the Roman Emperors Our Expert Recommends

Emperors Age At Accession Roman Emperors Names and Dates from Diocletian to A.D. 476. Second Century Timeline of the Roman Emperors Roman Emperors Timeline of the Third Century Roman Emperors Timeline of the 4th Century DIR An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Emperors Fifth Century Roman Timeline Byzantine Emperors Other Third Century Chaos Emperors

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Antoninus Pius

Antoninus Pius (Latin: Titus Fulvus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pius; 19 September, 86-7 March, 161), also known as Antoninus, was Roman Emperor from 138 to 161. He was one of the Five Good Emperors in the Nerva–Antonine dynasty and the Aurelii.

He acquired the name Pius after his accession to the throne, either because he compelled the Senate to deify his adoptive father Hadrian,[4] or because he had saved senators sentenced to death by Hadrian in his later years.

Early life

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Childhood and family

He was born as the only child of Titus Aurelius Fulvus, consul in 89 whose family came from Nemausus (modern Nîmes). Titus Aurelius Fulvius was the son of a senator of the same name, who, as legate of Legio III Gallica, had supported Vespasian in his bid to the Imperial office and been rewarded with a suffect consulship, plus an ordinary one under Domitian in 85. The Aurelii Fulvii were therefore a relatively new senatorial family from Gallia Narbonensis whose rise to prominence was supported by the Flavians. The link between Antoninus' family and the their home province explains the increasing importance of the post of Proconsul of Gallia Narbonensis during the late Second Century.

Antoninus was born near Lanuvium[9] and his mother was Arria Fadilla. Antoninus’ father died shortly after his 89 ordinary consulship, his son being raised by his maternal grandfather Gnaeus Arrius Antoninus, reputed by contemporaries to be a man of integrity and culture and a friend of Pliny the Younger. The Arrii Antoninii were an older senatorial family from Italy, very influential during Nerva's reign. Arria Fadilla, Antoninus'mother, married afterwards Publius Julius Lupus, a man of consular rank, suffect consul in 98, and two daughters, Arria Lupula and Julia Fadilla, were born from that union.

Marriage and children

Some time between 110 and 115, Antoninus married Annia Galeria Faustina the Elder. They are believed to have enjoyed a happy marriage. Faustina was the daughter of consul Marcus Annius Verus and Rupilia Faustina (a half-sister to Roman Empress Vibia Sabina). Faustina was a beautiful woman, well known for her wisdom. She spent her whole life caring for the poor and assisting the most disadvantaged Romans.

Faustina bore Antoninus four children, two sons and two daughters. They were:

• Marcus Aurelius Fulvus Antoninus (died before 138); his sepulchral inscription has been found at the Mausoleum of Hadrian in Rome.
• Marcus Galerius Aurelius Antoninus (died before 138); his sepulchral inscription has been found at the Mausoleum of Hadrian in Rome.[12] His name appears on a Greek Imperial coin.
• Aurelia Fadilla (died in 135); she married Lucius Lamia Silvanus, consul 145. She appeared to have no children with her husband and her sepulchral inscription has been found in Italy.
• Annia Galeria Faustina Minor or Faustina the Younger (between 125–130–175), a future Roman Empress, married her maternal cousin, future Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius in 146.

When Faustina died in 141, Antoninus was greatly distressed. In honor of her memory, he asked the Senate to deify her as a goddess, and authorised the construction of a temple to be built in the Roman Forum in her name, with priestesses serving in her temple. He had various coins with her portrait struck in her honor. These coins were scripted ‘DIVA FAUSTINA’ and were elaborately decorated. He further created a charity which he founded and called it Puellae Faustinianae or Girls of Faustina, which assisted destitute girls of good family. Finally, Antoninus created a new alimenta (see Grain supply to the city of Rome).

Favor with Hadrian

Having filled the offices of quaestor and praetor with more than usual success, he obtained the consulship in 120. He was next appointed by the Emperor Hadrian as one of the four proconsuls to administer Italia, then greatly increased his reputation by his conduct as proconsul of Asia, probably during 134–135.

He acquired much favor with the Emperor Hadrian, who adopted him as his son and successor on 25 February 138, after the death of his first adopted son Lucius Aelius,[20] on the condition that Antoninus would in turn adopt Marcus Annius Verus, the son of his wife's brother, and Lucius, son of Lucius Aelius, who afterwards became the emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus.

By this scheme, Verus, who was already Hadrian's adoptive grandson through his natural father, remained Hadrian's adoptive son through his new father. The adoption of Marcus Aurelius was probably a suggestion of Antoninus himself, since the former was the nephew of the latter's wife and would be his favorite son.

Emperor

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On his accession, Antoninus' name became "Imperator Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pontifex Maximus". One of his first acts as Emperor was to persuade the Senate to grant divine honours to Hadrian, which they had at first refused; his efforts to persuade the Senate to grant these honours is the most likely reason given for his title of Pius (dutiful in affection; compare pietas). Two other reasons for this title are that he would support his aged father-in-law with his hand at Senate meetings, and that he had saved those men that Hadrian, during his period of ill-health, had condemned to death.

Immediately after Hadrian's death, Antoninus approached Marcus and requested that his marriage arrangements be amended: Marcus' betrothal to Ceionia Fabia would be annulled, and he would be betrothed to Faustina, Antoninus' daughter, instead. Faustina's betrothal to Ceionia's brother Lucius Commodus would also have to be annulled. Marcus consented to Antoninus' proposal.

Antoninus built temples, theaters, and mausoleums, promoted the arts and sciences, and bestowed honours and financial rewards upon the teachers of rhetoric and philosophy. Antoninus made few initial changes when he became emperor, leaving intact as far as possible the arrangements instituted by Hadrian. Epigraphical and prosopographical research has revealed tha Antoninus' imperial ruling team centered around a group of closely knit senatorial families, most of them members of the priestly congregation for the cult of Hadrian, the sodales Hadrianales. According to the German historian H.G. Pflaum, prosopographical research of Antoninus' ruling team allows us to grasp the deeply conservative character of the ruling senatorial caste.

A non-military reign

There are no records of any military related acts in his time in which he participated. One modern scholar has written "It is almost certain not only that at no time in his life did he ever see, let alone command, a Roman army, but that, throughout the twenty-three years of his reign, he never went within five hundred miles of a legion".

His reign was the most peaceful in the entire history of the Principate; notwithstanding the fact that there were several military disturbances throughout the Empire in his time. Such disturbances happened in Mauretania - where a senator was named as governor of Mauretania Tingitana in place of the usual equestrian procurator and cavalry reinforcements from Panonnia were brought in, towns such as Sala and Tipasa being fortified. Similar disturbances took place in Iudaea, and amongst the Brigantes in Britannia, none of them being considered serious. It was however in Britain that Antoninus decided to follow a new, more aggressive path, with the appointment of a new governor in 139, Quintus Lollius Urbicus a native of Numidia and previously governor of Germania Inferior.

Under instructions from the emperor, Lollius undertook an invasion of southern Scotland, winning some significant victories, and constructing the Antonine Wall from the Firth of Forth to the Firth of Clyde. The wall, however, was soon gradually decommissioned during the mid-150s and eventually abandoned late during the reign (early 160s), for reasons that are still not quite clear. Antonine's Wall is mentioned in just one literary source, Antoninus' biography in the Historia Augusta. Pausanias makes a brief and confused mention of a war in Britain. In one inscription honoring Antoninus, erected by Legio II Augusta, which participated in the building of the Wall, a relief showing four naked prisoners, one of them beheaded, seems to stand for some actual warfare.

Although Antonine's Wall was, in principle, much shorter and outwardly more defensible than Hadrian's Wall, the area included by it into the empire was barren, therefore straining supply lines and not worthy holding to on a cost benefit analysis. It has been therefore speculated that the invasion of Lowland Scotland and the building of the wall had to do mostly with internal politics, that is, offering Antoninus an opportunity to gain some modicum of necessary military prestige at the start of his reign. Actually, the campaign in Britannia was followed by an Imperial salutation - that is, by Antoninus formally taking for the second (and last) time the title of Imperator - in 142. The fact that around the same time coins were struck announcing a victory in Britain points to Antoninus' need to publicize his achievements. The orator Fronto was later to say that, although Antoninus bestowed the direction of the British campaign to others, he should be regarded as the helmsman who directed the voyage, whose glory, therefore, belonged to him.

That this quest for some military achievement responded to an actual need, is proved by the fact that, although generally peaceful, Antoninus' reign was not free from attempts of usurpation: Historia Augusta mentions two, made by senators Cornelius Priscianus (by the way, Lollius Urbicus' successor as governor of Britain) and Atilius Rufius Titianus - both confirmed by the Fasti Ostienses as well as by the erasing of Priscianus' name on an inscription In both cases, Antoninus was not in formal charge of the ensuing repression: Priscianus committed suicide and Titianus was found guilty by the Senate, with Antoninus abstaining from sequestering their families' properties.

There were also some troubles in Dacia Inferior which required the granting of additional powers to the procurator governor and the dispatchment of additional soldiers to the province. On the Northern Black Sea coast, the Greek city of Olbia was held against the Scythians. Also during his reign the governor of Upper Germany, probably Caius Popillius Carus Pedo, built new fortifications in the Agri Decumates, advancing the Limes Germanicus fifteen miles forward in his province and neighboring Raetia. In the East, Roman suzerainity over Armenia was retained by the 140 choosing of Arsacid scion Sohaemus as client king.

Nevertheless, Antoninus was virtually unique among emperors in that he dealt with these crises without leaving Italy once during his reign, but instead dealt with provincial matters of war and peace through their governors or through imperial letters to the cities such as Ephesus (of which some were publicly displayed). This style of government was highly praised by his contemporaries and by later generations.

Economy and Administration

Antoninus was regarded as a skilled administrator and as a builder. In spite of an extensive building directive - the free access of the people of Rome to drinking water was expanded with the construction of aqueducts, not only in Rome but throughout the Empire, as well as bridges and roads -, the Emperor still managed to leave behind a sizable public treasure, of around two and a half million sesterzi.

The Emperor also famously suspended the collection of taxes from cities affected by natural disasters, such as when fires struck Rome and Narbona, and earthquakes affected Rhodes and the Province of Asia. He offered hefty financial grants for rebuilding and recovery of various Greek cities after two serious earthquakes: the first, circa 140, which affected mostly Rhodes and other islands; the second, in 152, which hit Cyzicus - where the huge and newly built Temple to Hadrian was destroyed - Ephesus and Smyrna. Antoninus' financial help earned him praise by Greek writers such as Aelius Aristides and Pausanias. These cities received from Antoninus the usual honorific accolades, such as when he commended that all governors of Asia should enter the province, when taking office, by way of Ephesus. Ephesus was specially favoured by Antoninus, who confirmed and upheld its first place in the list of imperial honor titles, as opposed to Smyrna and Pergamon.

In his dealings with Greek-speaking cities, Antoninus followed the policy adopted by Hadrian of ingratiating himself with local elites, specially with local intellectuals: philosophers, teachers of literature, rhetoricians and physicians were explicitly exempted from any duties envolving private spending for civic purposes - a privilege granted by Hadrian that Antoninus confirmed by means of an edict preserved in the Digest (27.1.6.8). Antoninus also created a chair for the teaching of rhetoric in Athens.

Antoninus was known as an avid observer of rites of religion and of formal celebrations - both Roman and foreign. He is known for having increasingly formalized the official cult offered to the Great Mother, which from his reign onwards included a bull sacrifice, a taurobolium, formerly only a private ritual, now being also performed for the sake of the Emperor's welfare. Antoninus also offered patronage to the worship of Mithra, to whom he erected a temple in Ostia. In 148, he presided over the celebrations of the 900th anniversary of the founding of Rome.

Legal reforms

Antoninus tried to portray himself as a magistrate of the res publica, no matter how extended and ill-defined his competences were: therefore the fact that he is credited with the splitting of the imperial treasure, the Fiscus. This splitting had to do with the division of Imperial properties into two parts: firstly, the fiscus itself-or patrimonium, meaning the properties of the "Crown", the hereditary properties of each succeeding person that sat on the throne, transmitted to his successors in office, regardless of their being members of the imperial family or not; secondly, the res privata, the "private" properties tied to the personal maintenance of the Emperor and his family. An anecdote in the Historia Augusta biography, where Antoninus replies to Faustina - who complained about his stingness - that "we have gained an empire [and] lost even what we had before" possibly relates to Antoninus' actual concerns at the creation of the res privata. While still a private citizen, Antoninus had increased his personal fortune greatly by mean of various legacies, the consequence - we are told - of his caring scrupulously for his relatives.

The res privata lands could be sold and/or given away, while the patrimonium properties were regarded as public. It was a way of pretending that the Imperial function - and most properties attached to it - was a public one, formally subject to the authority of the Senate and the Roman people. That the distinction played no part in subsequent political history - that the personal power of the princeps absorbed his role as office-holder - proves that the autocratic logic of the imperial order had already subsumed the old republican institutions.

Of the public transactions of this period there is only the scantiest of information, but, to judge by what is extant, those twenty-two years were not remarkably eventful in comparison to those before and after the reign. However, Antoninus did take a great interest in the revision and practice of the law throughout the empire. One of his chief concerns was to having local communities conform their legal procedures to existing Roman norms: in a case concerning repression of banditry by local police officers ("irenarchs") in Asia Minor, Antoninus ordered that these officers should not treat suspects as already condemned, and also keep a detailed copy of their interrogations,to be used in the possibility of an appeal to the Roman governor. Also, although Antoninus was not an innovator, he would not always follow the absolute letter of the law; rather he was driven by concerns over humanity and equality, and introduced into Roman law many important new principles based upon this notion.

In this, the emperor was assisted by five chief lawyers: L. Fulvius Aburnius Valens, an author of legal treatises; L. Ulpius Marcellus, a prolific writer; and three others. These last three included L. Volusius Maecianus, a former military officer turned by Antoninus into a civil procurator, and who, in view of his subsequent career (discovered on the basis of epigraphical and prosopographical research) was the Emperor's most important legal adviser. Maecianus would eventually be chosen to occupy various prefectures (see below) as well as to conduct the legal studies of Marcus Aurelius. He was also the author of a large work on Fidei Commissa (Testamentary Trusts). As a hallmark of the increased connection between jurists and the imperial government, Antoninus' reign also saw the appearance of the Institutes of Gaius, an elementary legal manual for beginners (see Gaius (jurist)).

Antoninus passed measures to facilitate the enfranchisement of slaves. Mostly, he favoured the principle of favor libertatis, giving the putative freedman the benefit of the doubt when the claim to freedom was not clearcut. Also, he punished the killing of a slave by his/her master without previous trial and determined that slaves could be forcibly sold to another master by a proconsul in cases of consistent mistreatment. Antoninus upheld the enforcement of contracts for selling of female slaves forbidding their further employment in prostitution. In criminal law, Antoninus introduced the important principle that accused persons are not to be treated as guilty before trial- as in the case of the irenarchs (see above).He also asserted the principle that the trial was to be held, and the punishment inflicted, in the place where the crime had been committed. He mitigated the use of torture in examining slaves by certain limitations. Thus he prohibited the application of torture to children under fourteen years, though this rule had exceptions. However, it must be stressed that Antoninus extended, by means of a rescript, the use of torture as a means of obtaining evidence to pecuniary cases, when it had been applied up until then only in criminal cases. Also, already at the time torture of free men of low status (humiliores) had become legal, as proved by the fact that Antoninus exempted town councillors expressly from it, and also free men of high rank (honestiores) in general.

One highlight during his reign occurred in 148, with the nine-hundredth anniversary of the foundation of Rome being celebrated by the hosting of magnificent games in Rome. It lasted a number of days, and a host of exotic animals were killed, including elephants, giraffes, tigers, rhinoceroses, crocodiles and hippopotami. While this increased Antoninus’s popularity, the frugal emperor had to debase the Roman currency. He decreased the silver purity of the denarius from 89% to 83.5% — the actual silver weight dropping from 2.88 grams to 2.68 grams.

Scholars place Antoninus Pius as the leading candidate for fulfilling the role as a friend of Rabbi Judah the Prince. According to the Talmud (Avodah Zarah 10a-b), Rabbi Judah was very wealthy and greatly revered in Rome. He had a close friendship with "Antoninus", possibly Antoninus Pius, who would consult Rabbi Judah on various worldly and spiritual matters.

Death

In 156, Antoninus Pius turned 70. He found it difficult to keep himself upright without stays. He started nibbling on dry bread to give him the strength to stay awake through his morning receptions.Marcus Aurelius had already been created consul with Antoninus in 140, receiving the title of Caesar - i.e., heir apparent. As Antoninus aged, Marcus would take on more administrative duties, more still after the death -in 156 or 157 - of one of Antoninus' most trusted advisers, Gavius Maximus, who had been praetorian prefect (an office that was as much secretarial as military) for twenty years. Gavius Maximus, who had been one of the most important members of Antoninus' "team" of long standing advisers, had been awarded with the consular insignia and to the honors due to a senator. He had left behind himself the reputation of being an strictly disciplinarian (vir severissimus, according to Historia Augusta) as well as some lasting grudges among fellow equestrian procurators- one of them, by predeceasing Gavius and vilifying him in his will, created a serious embarrassment to one of the heirs, the orator Fronto. Gavius Maximus' death offered the opportunity to a welcome change in the ruling team, and it has been speculated that it was the legal adviser Volusius Maecianus - who, after a brief spell as Praefect of Egypt, took the office of Praefectus annonae in Rome - who assumed the role of grey eminence precisely in order to prepare the incoming - and altogether new - joint succession. In 160, Marcus and Lucius were designated joint consuls for the following year. Perhaps Antoninus was already ill; in any case, he died before the year was out.

Two days before his death, the biographer reports, Antoninus was at his ancestral estate at Lorium, in Etruria, about twelve miles (19 km) from Rome. He ate Alpine cheese at dinner quite greedily. In the night he vomited; he had a fever the next day. The day after that, 7 March 161, he summoned the imperial council, and passed the state and his daughter to Marcus. The emperor gave the keynote to his life in the last word that he uttered when the tribune of the night-watch came to ask the password—"aequanimitas" (equanimity). He then turned over, as if going to sleep, and died. His death closed out the longest reign since Augustus (surpassing Tiberius by a couple of months).

Antoninus Pius' funeral ceremonies were, in the words of the biographer, "elaborate". If his funeral followed the pattern of past funerals, his body would have been incinerated on a pyre at the Campus Martius, while his spirit would rise to the gods' home in the heavens. However, it seems that this was not the case: according to his Historia Augusta biography (which seems to reproduce an earlier, detailed report) Antoninus' body (and not his ashes) was buried in Hadrian's mausoleum. After a seven-day interval (justitium) Marcus and Lucius nominated their father for deification. In contrast to their behavior during Antoninus' campaign to deify Hadrian, the senate did not oppose the emperors' wishes. A flamen, or cultic priest, was appointed to minister the cult of the deified Antoninus, now Divus Antoninus.

A column was dedicated to Antoninus on the Campus Martius, and the temple he had built in the Forum in 141 to his deified wife Faustina was rededicated to the deified Faustina and the deified Antoninus.[86] It survives as the church of San Lorenzo in Miranda.

Historiography

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The only account of his life handed down to us is that of the Augustan History, an unreliable and mostly fabricated work. Nevertheless, it still contains information that is considered reasonably sound – for instance, it is the only source that mentions the erection of the Antonine Wall in Britain. Antoninus is unique among Roman emperors in that he has no other biographies. Historians have therefore turned to public records for what details we know.

In later scholarship

Antoninus in many ways was the ideal of the landed gentleman praised not only by ancient Romans, but also by later scholars of classical history, such as Edward Gibbon or the author of the article on Antoninus Pius in the ninth edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica:

A few months afterwards, on Hadrian's death, he was enthusiastically welcomed to the throne by the Roman people, who, for once, were not disappointed in their anticipation of a happy reign. For Antoninus came to his new office with simple tastes, kindly disposition, extensive experience, a well-trained intelligence and the sincerest desire for the welfare of his subjects. Instead of plundering to support his prodigality, he emptied his private treasury to assist distressed provinces and cities, and everywhere exercised rigid economy (hence the nickname κυμινοπριστης "cummin-splitter"). Instead of exaggerating into treason whatever was susceptible of unfavorable interpretation, he turned the very conspiracies that were formed against him into opportunities for demonstrating his clemency. Instead of stirring up persecution against the Christians, he extended to them the strong hand of his protection throughout the empire. Rather than give occasion to that oppression which he regarded as inseparable from an emperor's progress through his dominions, he was content to spend all the years of his reign in Rome, or its neighbourhood.

Later historians had a more nuanced view of his reign. According to the historian J. B. Bury,

however estimable the man, Antoninus was hardly a great statesman. The rest which the Empire enjoyed under his auspices had been rendered possible through Hadrian’s activity, and was not due to his own exertions; on the other hand, he carried the policy of peace at any price too far, and so entailed calamities on the state after his death. He not only had no originality or power of initiative, but he had not even the insight or boldness to work further on the new lines marked out by Hadrian.

Inevitably, the surviving evidence is not complete enough to determine whether one should interpret, with older scholars, that he wisely curtailed the activities of the Roman Empire to a careful minimum, or perhaps that he was uninterested in events away from Rome and Italy and his inaction contributed to the pressing troubles that faced not only Marcus Aurelius but also the emperors of the third century. German historian Ernst Kornemann has had it in his Römische Geschichte [2 vols., ed. by H. Bengtson, Stuttgart 1954] that the reign of Antoninus comprised "a succession of grossly wasted opportunities," given the upheavals that were to come. There is more to this argument, given that the Parthians in the East were themselves soon to make no small amount of mischief after Antoninus' passing. Kornemann's brief is that Antoninus might have waged preventive wars to head off these outsiders.

Descendants

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Although only one of his four children survived to adulthood, Antoninus came to be ancestor to generations of prominent Roman statesmen and socialites, including at least one empress consort and as the maternal grandfather of the Emperor Commodus. The family of Antoninus Pius and Faustina the Elder also represents one of the few periods in ancient Roman history where the position of Emperor passed smoothly from father to son. Direct descendants of Antoninus and Faustina were confirmed to exist at least into the fifth century AD.

Source :

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antoninus_Pius