The History of Rome

Hadrian's relationship with the teenage boy Antinous raised eyebrows even in permissive Ancient Rome. His relationship with the Jews raises eyebrows even today.

Hadrian's reign got off to a rough start following the political murders of four ex-consuls. The new Emperor would eventually settle in though and set out on his first grand tour of the Empire in 121.

Though Hadrian's career had long been guided by Trajan, when the Emperor died in 117 he still had not named Hadrian heir.

Trajan greatly improved the infrastructure of the Empire and finished his reign by conquering much of the Middle East.

After Trajan ascended to the throne in 98 AD he fought two wars against the Dacians, finally annexing the country in 106 AD.

Nerva's brief reign was stormy, but his choice of Trajan as heir was inspired.

After Saturninus's revolt in 89 AD, Domitian's paranoia increased. In 96 AD court officials afraid for their lives conspired to have the Emperor killed.

Domitian attempted to emulate Augustus, but his heavy-handed treatment of the Senate earned him many enemies. Meanwhile, his focus on frontier defense brought charges of cowardice and his treaty with the Dacians was seen as a humiliation.

Domitian had spent his life in the background, but in 81 AD he found himself Emperor and soon demonstrated that he had very strong ideas about how to wield power.

Titus succeeded his father to the throne in 79 AD, but ruled for only two years before dying of a sudden infection in 81. Throughout the reign of the Flavians, Agricola campaigned in Britain to Romanize the island.

Vespasian served as Emperor from 69-79 AD, stabilizing the Empire after a year of Civil War.

Vitellius's reign was underminned by internal squabbling, allowing Vespasian's army to sieze Rome in December 69 AD.

After murdering Galba, Otho ascended to the throne in January 69 AD. He immediately had to deal with Vitellius revolt and after suffering a defeat at Bedriacum in April, Otho committed suicide having served as Emperor for just three months

Galba's refusal to pay off the Praetorian Guard came back to haunt him when Otho looked for accomplices to aid in his assassination plot early in 69 AD.

Marriage was one of the key institutions of Roman culture and many of the traditions surrounding weddings persist today.

The personalities of each of the men who vied for the throne in 69 AD had a major impact on how events unfolded.

In 66 AD the Great Revolt broke out in Judaea, leading Nero to appoint Vespasian to crush the uprising. But the Emperor did not live to see the end of the conflict- in 68 AD he committed suicide after a palace coup.

Nero's popularity with the people began to wane in the early 60s AD. Things got so bad that after the Great Fire of Rome swept through the city, many held Nero responsible.

Between 58 and 63 AD Rome dealt with a major conflict over the Kingdom of Armenia and a revolt in Britain led by the warrior Queen Boudica.

After Nero came to power he was dominated by Agrippina. But it didn't take long before the 16-year-old Emperor got tired of his mother telling him what to do.

Claudius turned out to be one of the more successful Emperors in Roman history, but unfortunately in 54 AD he was assassinated to make way for one of the worst.

Though Claudius had great success in his public life, his private life was a different story. Each of his marriages ended in either divorce or execution.

Claudius became Emperor after the assassination of Caligula in 41 AD. Far from a bumbling fool, Claudius turned out to be capable and dedicated ruler.

Caligula was insane. Luckily for the Romans, he wielded absolute power.

After the death of Tiberius's son Drusus, Praetorian Prefect Lucius Sejanus's influence grew exponentially. Sejanus was the defacto ruler of Rome from 26 AD until his fall from power 5 years later.

Tiberius's final years were consumed with treason trials and private licentiousness. After he died in 37 AD, the infamous Caligula ascended to the throne.

The early years of Tiberius's reign were defined by his growing jealousy of his nephew/adopted son Germanicus. After winning victories on the far side of the Rhine, Germanicus was sent east, where in 19 AD he died under mysterious circumstances.

The Julio-Claudian family was rife with conflict, but nothing compared to the battle fought against the Germans in the Teutoburg Forest.

Augustus promoted his steps sons Tiberius and Drusus to high office long before they were technically eligible. He hoped they would share power with him until Gaius and Lucius Caesar came of age, but Drusus died young and Tiberius went into self-imposed exile.

After attaining power, Augustus set about reforming the Empire.

The Senate bestowed upon Octavian the title Caesar Augustus during the constitutional settlement of 27 BC. Four years later Augustus and the Senate altered their power sharing agreement.

On Sept 2, 31 BC Octavian defeated Antony at the Battle of Actium. Antony and Cleopatra fled back to Alexandria where they committed suicide the next year, following Octavian's invasion of Egypt.

After Antony failed to conquer Parthia, the Triumvirate partnership broke down, leading to a declaration of war.

After winning the Battle of Philippi Antony and Octavian divided the empire into two halves. Antony took control of the east where he formed an alliance with Cleopatra, while Octavian commanded the west.

In 43 BC Marc Antony, Octavian and Marcus Lepidus formed the Second Triumvirate. After initiating proscriptions to raise funds and purge their enemies, the Triumvirs headed east, where they defeated Brutus and Cassius at Philippi.

Caesar posthumously adopted his great nephew Gaius Octavius and the 19-year-old was thrust into the center of Roman politics. In the months following the assassination Octavian and Mark Antony vied for the support of the legions.

In the last months of his life, rumors swirled about Caesar's monarchical ambitions. On the Ides of March 44 BC, a group of Senators put the issue to rest by assassinating Caesar during a session of the Senate.

Caesar took the overland route back from Egypt back to Rome and along the way pacified what little resistance he came across. After a brief stay in Italy he sailed for North Africa where he defeated the regrouped Republican army. Having emerged from the Civil War triumphant he returned to Rome and began his ambitious reform programs.

Following a setback at Dyrrachium, Caesar decisively won the Battle of Pharsalus in 48 BC. After defeating Pompey, Caesar sailed for Alexandria, where settled a civil war by placing Cleopatra on the throne.

In 49 BC Caesar led a single legion across the Rubicon River, sparking a civil war that would lead to the death of the Roman Republic.

While Caesar was fighting the Gallic Wars, events in Rome and beyond exacerbated the political tensions that would eventually lead to Civil War.

From 57-52 BC Caesar slowly conquered Gaul. Along the way he crossed into Germania twice and led the first Roman expedition to Britain. Finally, the last Gallic army was forced to surrender at Alesia.

After beginning his proconsulship of Cisalpine Gaul in 58 BC Caesar was asked to halt the advance of a migrating Celtic tribe. He managed to turn them around, but was immediately called to face an even deadlier threat at the banks of the Rhine River.

In 59 BC Julius Caesar served a controversial year in the consulship. He pressed for land and administrative reforms the conservative Senate opposed.

Julius Caesar had an eventful career on his way up the Cursus Honorum. He won the Civic Crown in Asia, was captured by pirates on his way to Rhodes, and served as Governor of Hispania Ulterior.

In 63 BC an embittered two-time consular candidate named Catiline conspired to overthrow the Roman government. He was stopped by Rome's greatest politician and orator, Marcus Tullius Cicero.

After clearing the Mediterranean of pirates in 67 BC Pompey was put in charge of the war with Mithridates. He promptly conquered his way to Jerusalem.

From 73-71 BC a gladiator named Spartacus led a slave revolt in southern Italy. Despite defeating the Romans on numerous occasions, the slave army was eventually defeated by Marcus Crassus (with an unsolicited assist from Pompey).

After Sulla's death two men emerged as the vanguard of Rome's new political generation: Marcus Crassus who would become Rome's richest man and Pompey the Great, who would become Rome's greatest general. In a few years these two men would join forces with Julius Caesar to form the first Triumvirate.