Emperor Hadrian is a man and a politician. Emperor Hadrian and his reign Hadrian Wiki

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He received tribune power 22 times (in 117 twice: on August 11 and December 10, then annually on December 10).

He was proclaimed emperor twice: on August 11, 117, and the second time in 135. He was consul in 108, in 118 and in 119.

Before coming to power

Hadrian was the son of the Roman senator Publius Aelius Aferus, whose ancestors in the time of Scipio had crossed from Adria to Picenum in Italy, and of Domitia Paulina.

Hadrian's father reached in his career the position of praetor in Rome. When the future emperor was ten years old, he lost his father.

Adrian was brought up under the tutelage of his cousin, Emperor Trajan, whose sister's granddaughter he married in 100. It was Adrian who first informed Trajan, who was in the Colony of Agrippina (modern Cologne), about the death of Nerva.

He participated in the wars with Decebalus. He was twice awarded for courage and was elected to the Senate. During the second campaign against the Dacians, Adrian fought with the Transdanubian Sarmatians.

In 108 he became consul. A few years later he fought in Armenia and Mesopotamia.

In 117, he was made governor of Syria, in Antioch, where he was proclaimed emperor.

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Adrian learned about Trajan's death in the Cilician city of Selinus on September 11, 117. The Syrian legions proclaimed him emperor, but Adrian was forced to stay in Syria, which was required by the difficult situation that had arisen there.

Appearance and personality

"History of the Augusts":

“(1) He was tall, distinguished by external grace, curled his hair with a comb, let go of his beard to hide the natural flaws of his face, had a strong physique. (2) He rode and walked a great deal, always doing exercises with weapons and spears. (3) While hunting, he very often killed lions with his own hands. On the hunt, he broke his collarbone and rib.

Governing body

Hadrian's policy was very different from the conquering principles pursued by Trajan.

First of all, Hadrian abandoned Assyria and Mesopotamia, returning them to the Parthians. Armenia also withdrew from the provinces and was considered only a protectorate of Rome.

Having solved all the problems in the East, the emperor left Antioch in the autumn of 117. But he did not go to Rome, but to the lower reaches of the Danube, where it was necessary to curb the claims of the Roxolans, who violated the borders of Dacia.

Messengers from the capital arrived here with the message that a conspiracy led by Lucius Quiet and Trajan's associates had been uncovered in Italy. Quiet himself was soon executed. But fears that Adrian would rule in the spirit of Nero or Caligula did not come true.

Hadrian appeared in Rome in the summer of 118. He was greeted with great pomp. In addition to traditional magnificent spectacles, they also arranged a posthumous entry for Trajan, whose statue stood on a chariot.

Trips

Adrian stayed in the capital for three years. After that, he went on his first journey - to Gaul and the provinces along the upper Rhine and Danube. In the triangle between these rivers, the emperor strengthened the system of fortifications.

The next year he went to Britain, where work began on the construction of Hadrian's Wall. In 122 the emperor returned to Gaul. In the south at Nemaus, he erected a temple in honor of Empress Plotina Pompeii, who had recently died.

Winter 122/123. Adrian spent in Spain, from where he went to Africa, to Mauretania. There he received news of the war that threatened Rome with Parthia, and he hurried to the scene. Hadrian managed to defuse the situation through negotiations, but he remained there until 124.

He visited Antioch and Palmyra. In 124 the emperor toured the Balkan provinces of Rome. They founded the city of Adrianople in Thrace. In the winter of 124/125. Adrian decided to spend time in Athens. The following year he received initiation into the Eleusinian mysteries. Adrian returned to Italy through Sicily, where he climbed Mount Etna, from where he admired the sunset.

In Rome, the emperor stayed until the summer of 128, and then again went to Africa. In Numidia, he inspected the military camp and observed the exercises of the infantry and cavalry.

Then through Asia Minor he went to Syria, where he climbed Mount Cassius, from where he again admired the sunset. In 130, Adrian visited, who was lying.

Adrian decided to build a city on this site called Colonia Aelia Capitolina, and on the site of Solomon's temple to build a temple in honor of Capitoline Jupiter.

Unknown, GNU 1.2

Then the emperor's path lay in Egypt, where his favorite Antinous drowned in the Nile.

On November 21, 130, Hadrian visited the monument to the singing Memnon. The way back ran through Syria and Asia Minor. And when Adrian was about to leave Athens for Rome, he received news of a new one, which was suppressed with great difficulty.

Construction

The new emperor gave the main attention to the economic development of the provinces. Theaters, libraries were built all over the country, cities were decorated with many statues.

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In Rome, the mausoleum of Hadrian, the so-called Castle of the Holy Angel, was built, the famous villa was built in Tibur, a canal was built from Stimfalo to Corinth. Hadrian highly valued Greek culture, encouraging the arts, poetry, and philosophy. The emperor adorned his beloved city of Athens with many magnificent buildings, among which, for example, the temple of Olympian Zeus. He also took care of strengthening the southwestern borders of Germany and Britain, where he erected the so-called Hadrian's Wall (in 122) and improved the troops.

In Italy, Adrian completed the project of draining Lake Futsin, begun by Claudius. He created a council in his person. Italy was divided into 4 parts with four imperial consuls, only Romans were appointed to government posts.

Hadrian's last major undertaking was the codification of Roman law, carried out jointly with the jurist Salvius Julian.

In 138, the emperor became very ill, suffering from an illness, he took a strong dose of medicine and died in Baiae on July 10, 138, leaving Antoninus Pius, adopted by him, as heir. Before his death, he wrote an epitaph for himself:

Trembling soul, gentle wanderer
Guest and friend in the human body,
Where are you wandering now
Weakened, chilled, defenseless,
Unable to play like before?

Photo gallery

Years of life: 24 January 76, Italica near present-day Seville, Spain - 10 July 138, Bailly near Naples

Helpful information

Publius Aelius Trajan Hadrian, better known as Hadrian
lat. Publius Aelius Traianus Hadrianus
Full title at the time of death: Emperor Caesar Trajan Adrian Augustus, Great Pontiff, endowed with the power of tribune of the people 22 times, Emperor 2 times, Consul 3 times, Father of the Fatherland
lat. Imperator Caesar Traianus Hadrianus Augustus, Pontifex Maximus, Tribuniciae potestatis XXII, Imperator II, Consul III, Pater Patriae

Personal life

Adrian's greatest love was undoubtedly the young man Antinous. Hadrian met Antinous in 124 when he was traveling through the province of Bithynia in northeast Asia Minor. Since 128, the young man was relentlessly with the emperor. In 130, while they were in Egypt, Antinous drowned in the Nile. The circumstances of the tragedy were mysterious and gave rise to many rumors. It is known for certain that Adrian's grief was inconsolable and he ordered the priests to deify Antinous.

On the site of the death of his favorite, Adrian founded the city of Antinupolis (Antinoipolis), where games were held every year in honor of the young god. The cult of Antinous spread throughout the empire; he was the last god of the ancient world, who deserved many curses from the early Christians. Countless statues displayed his sensual, melancholic beauty - about five thousand such statues have survived to this day, which the emperor erected in honor of his favorite in many cities, and many of his sculptural portraits were also made. The scale of his memorialization was exceptional - more images of Antinous have come down to us than very many other famous (and much more prominent) Romans. Court astronomers singled out the constellation Antinous in the sky, sometimes used until the 19th century, but now canceled.

Hadrian was the first Roman emperor to grow a beard.
According to Cassius Dio, when Apollodorus criticized Hadrian's architectural plans for the Temple of Venus, Hadrian had Apollodorus executed.
It was Adrian, according to Christian tradition, who initiated the martyrdom of the Christian saints Faith, Hope, Love and their mother Sophia.

Adrian in literature

Adrian is dedicated to the novel by the Belgian-French writer Marguerite Yoursenar "Notes of Adrian" ("Memoirs of Adrian") (fr. Mémoires d "Hadrien), written on behalf of the emperor, as well as the novel by the outstanding German Egyptologist Georg Ebers (1837-1898) "Emperor" ( 1881) (German Der Kaiser), describing Adrian's visit to Egypt and one of the versions of the death of Antinous.It is also mentioned in the play "Riding the Lion" by Leonid Alexandrovich Matsikh.

Publius Aelius Hadrian was born on January 24, 76 in Rome. His father was Trajan's cousin. At the age of ten, Adrian was left an orphan; Trajan, who had no children, began to take care of his upbringing and, over the years, introduced him to state activities, both military and civilian. Adrian was smart, educated and combined the qualities of a good warrior with the talent of an administrator.

Adrian. Marble. London. British museum

Having become emperor, Adrian resolutely and irrevocably abandoned the policy of military aggression and resigned himself to the fact that Parthia and Armenia regained their independence.

“Under Hadrian, there were no major military campaigns at all; wars also ended almost silently. He was very loved by the soldiers for his exceptional care of the army and for the fact that he was very generous towards them. With the Parthians, he was always on friendly terms, because he removed from them the king whom Trajan had given them. He allowed the Armenians to have their own king, while under Trajan they had a Roman legate. From the inhabitants of Mesopotamia, he did not demand the tribute that Trajan imposed on them. In the Albanians (who lived on the territory of modern Azerbaijan) and Iberians (Georgians), he had true friends, since he generously endowed their kings, although they refused to come to visit him” (AZHA, Adr. XXI).

Antinous. Marble. Saint Petersburg. Hermitage

However, Dio Cassius writes that later, however, Farasman, the king of the Iberians, visited Rome with his family, was received with great honor, and his equestrian statue was even erected on the Field of Mars (Dion Kass. 69, 15).

Adrian began to take in the legions not only Roman citizens, but also residents of the provinces, which contributed to the barbarization of the army.

Adrian always dealt with affairs very carefully and perfectly knew all the state accounts from memory.

He tried to get along with various social groups: he respected the senate, took care of the plebs, continuing the traditional policy of providing him with "bread and circuses", raised the social importance of the equestrian estate, transferring to him leadership positions in the imperial office (previously they were occupied by imperial freedmen) and thereby putting the beginning of the formation of a large bureaucracy from full citizens.

“Hadrian forbade masters to kill slaves and ordered that judges (and not masters) pass judgments of conviction if the slaves deserved it. He forbade the sale without explanation of a slave or a slave to a pimp or owner of a gladiatorial school. He abolished working prisons for slaves and free people. According to his instructions, if the master was killed in his house, the investigation was carried out not about all the slaves, but only about those who, being nearby, could hear something ”(AZHA, Adr. XVIII).

The beginning of his reign, Adrian marked a truly unprecedented generosity in Roman history. His biographer writes: “Without losing sight of anything that could bring him the favor of the people, he forgave the private debtors of the imperial treasury, both in Rome and in Italy, the incalculable sums that were due from them, and in the provinces also the huge sums of remaining arrears, and in order to further strengthen the general calm, he ordered that IOUs be burned in the forum of the divine Trajan. He forbade taking the property of the convicts to his private treasury, crediting all amounts to the state treasury.

For the boys and girls, whom Trajan had already determined the sums for food, he made generous allowances. The fortunes of senators who were bankrupt through no fault of their own, he replenished to the size due to senators, in accordance with the number of their children, and to very many he issued funds without delay in such a way that they would be enough for the rest of their lives. Not only to his friends, but also to a large number of people from wide circles, his generosity opened the way to the execution of honorary positions ”(AZHA, Adr. VII).

At the beginning of the XIX century. in Rome, on the territory of the Forum of Trajan, fragments of a stone slab with an honorary inscription in honor of Hadrian, made in 118, were found:

“The Senate and the People of the Roman Emperor Caesar Trajan Adrian Augustus, son of the divine Trajan of Parthia, grandson of the divine Nerva, great pontiff, twice tribune of the people, twice consul, who is the first and only of all emperors, having canceled the debt to the imperial treasury in the amount of 900 million sesterces, surpassed not only his contemporaries, but also their descendants, who will live in peace thanks to this generosity ”(LN, 198).

Hadrian possessed all the qualities of an excellent warrior and was distinguished by the same physical endurance as Trajan. Adrian knew how to wield even gladiatorial weapons, and on the hunt he often killed lions with his own hands. An excellent warrior and intelligent administrator, Adrian was also a subtle intellectual. Since childhood, he knew and loved Greek culture so well that he was jokingly nicknamed the Greek.

Even before he became emperor, Hadrian was the ruler of Athens, and later showed great concern for this intellectual capital of the ancient world. Hadrian's time was a truly golden age for Athens. In Athens, Hadrian erected a giant temple of Olympian Zeus, the height of the columns of which reached almost 20 meters.

Adrian stood out from all the emperors with a genuine passion for art. In all five centuries of the existence of the Roman Empire, none of the emperors knew how to enjoy art as much as Hadrian.

A kind of tribute to the love of Greek art was Adrian's benevolence towards his Greek slave Antinous, a youth of striking beauty; for the aesthete emperor, he was the living embodiment of the ideal of pure harmony.

The fate of Antinous was not happy: he drowned in the Nile at a very young age.

Grieving for the dead, Adrian officially proclaimed him a god. Many images of Antinous have survived to our time.

Adrian was an avid traveler. No emperor has visited so many countries and seen as many sights as he managed to see.

In the vicinity of Rome, in Tibur (modern Tivoli), Hadrian built for himself a grandiose villa, where he reproduced various architectural styles and recreated the corners of different countries. “In order not to miss anything, he even made an underground kingdom there” (AZHA, Adr. XXVI). Hadrian launched a wide construction activity also in Rome. But at the same time, he showed great modesty and did not write his name on the facades of buildings.

Under Hadrian, the Pantheon was rebuilt, because the old building built by Agrippa, an associate of Augustus, fell into a very poor condition. The existing powerful temple with a unique dome is actually a completely new building, but Adrian tactfully kept the name of its first builder on the facade: “Marcus Agrippa, son of Lucius, consul for the third time, built” (LE, p. 203).

The Pantheon turned out to be the happiest temple of ancient Rome; it is the only ancient building in Rome that has not fallen into ruins and has not been rebuilt. It is believed that its author was the famous architect Apollodorus from Damascus.

Hadrian himself also acted as an architect, and a grandiose temple of Venus and Roma (the goddess of the city of Rome) was built according to his project, but Apollodorus of Damascus criticized this building for its unfortunate proportions.

Adrian was a man of complex psychology. His character was capricious, his wit was evil, sometimes he was suspicious and cruel. A wide / gamut of psychological shades of Hadrian's personality was noted by ancient writers:

“He was serious and cheerful, affable and formidable, unbridled and prudent, stingy and generous, frank and hypocritical, cruel and merciful; always in all manifestations of his nature he was changeable ”(AZHA, Adr. XIV).

“Despite his tendency to criticize musicians, tragedians, comedians, grammarians, rhetoricians, orators, he honored all specialists with high honors and made them rich, although he embarrassed them with his questions. Scientists who obviously did not correspond to their profession, he made rich and honored, but removed them from professional studies ”(AZHA, Adr. XVI).

“Adrian was so eager for loud fame that he handed over books about his own life, written by himself, to his educated freedmen so that they would publish them in their own name” (AZHA, Adr. XVI).

Adrian had no children. He hesitated for a long time, choosing his successor. “Finally, he hated everyone to whom he thought to transfer power as future emperors. However, he restrained all the force of his natural cruelty until he fell seriously ill ”(AZHA, Adr. XXIII). Then, in bitterness, he killed many people from his entourage, thereby incurring universal hatred.

First, Adrian adopted Aelius Verus, and after his early death, Antoninus, to whom power passed.

Hadrian died on July 10, 138, and was buried in Rome in a grandiose round mausoleum on the banks of the Tiber, which he built for himself during his lifetime.

Antoninus, despite the fact that many were embittered against Hadrian, made his deification from the senate; for such a worthy attitude to the memory of his adoptive father, Antonin began to be called Pius, which means "pious".

In 141, by order of Antoninus Pius, the temple of the divine Hadrian was built in Rome, from which the northern wall and 11 marble columns have been preserved.

The mausoleum of Hadrian stood unshakably during the dark but stormy millennium of the Roman Middle Ages and, although it was badly battered by barbarism and rebuilt, became, as it were, a symbol of eternity and indestructibility of Rome; the popes turned the mausoleum into their fortress, and it became known as the Castel Sant'Angelo.

The symptoms of decline are already noticeable, as we have said, under Trajan. The last campaigns of Trajan to the East, devastating for the population, did not give positive results, caused a wave of discontent and uprisings. As a result, Trajan's successor Aelius Adrian, the hero of the novel The Emperor, first of all had to restore order and shift all attention to the internal organization of the state shattered by war and uprisings.

Aelius Hadrian (117-138), the third member of the Antonine dynasty, was born in Rome in January 76 AD. Hadrian's father, Aelius Adrian Aphrus, died with the rank of praetor when the future emperor was only ten years old. Hadrian's guardians were the Roman horseman Caelius Tatian and the emperor Trajan. In 100, Adrian married the emperor's niece Julia Sabina, and just before Trajan's death he was adopted by the Roman emperor.

At the time of Hadrian's accession to power, the state of affairs in the empire was highly disturbing and tense. Dacia and the eastern regions were threatened with secession, uprisings took place in Egypt, a real revolution began in Palestine, alarming news came from Lycia, Libya and Africa. Britain did not recognize the authority of the Roman governor.

In such a situation, the new emperor had no choice but to abandon an energetic foreign policy, try to keep only possible ones from the conquered regions, and move from the offensive to the defensive. This is exactly what Adrian did, who was at that time in the East. By his order, the Roman troops left Armenia and Mesopotamia. The Euphrates was recognized as the military border of the Roman Empire. On the Danube front, they managed to defend Dacia, but, in order to avoid the raids of the Dacians, they had to destroy the wonderful bridge over the Danube, which was considered a miracle of the building art of antiquity, built by Trajan.

The following year, Adrian arrived in Rome, where he was solemnly received by the Senate and the people. The servile senate continued to arrange magnificent receptions in honor of Hadrian, which were intended for Trajan, but did not take place due to the death of the victor. Hadrian refused such a high honor, offering to arrange a solemn procession in honor of the image (statue) of the deceased emperor, which he agreed to carry during the triumph. Adrian also refused the title of "father of the fatherland", offered to him by the Senate. As the coins show, Adrian was satisfied this year with the title of "outstanding" (optimus), the conqueror of Dacia, Germany and Parthia - honorary titles granted at one time to Trajan.

Forced to give up his conquests, Hadrian with all the more vigor directed his attention to the internal organization of the state in order to maintain the prestige of the imperial power, ensure the rights of the population of the provinces and bring more order to the government of the country. So, for example, Hadrian made a set of orders of the former emperors, expanded and supplemented their management practices. The Roman state under Hadrian, as under previous emperors, remained an aristocratic slave state. The supreme state body - the Senate - now consisted of large landowners - officials who had risen in public service, for the most part owing their elevation to the emperor. Access to the senate was also open to the provincial aristocracy - members of local councils (curias) - curials, satisfying the corresponding property qualification. There has always been opposition to the absolutist policy of the princeps in relations between the senate and the emperor. Under Hadrian in 120, a serious conspiracy was uncovered, which set itself the goal of a coup d'état and a change in the ruling house. Among the conspirators were four persons who were very popular under Trajan - Cornelius Palma, Publicius Celsus, Domitius Nigrinus and Lucius Quist. All conspirators, real and imaginary, were convicted and executed. This created for Adrian an extremely unflattering reputation as a tyrant in the eyes of public opinion, i.e. mainly the senatorial circle. Adrian repented of the perfect act and, out of fear of public condemnation, blamed the praetorian prefect Titian. Titian himself also soon fell into disgrace due to suspicion of treason and an attempt to seize power.

The more deteriorated relations between Hadrian and the Senate, the more often he convened an intimate council of the emperor, which included the highest dignitaries of the state, who enjoyed special confidence and favor of the head of state. Here, draft laws were discussed and developed, which were then submitted for consideration, discussion and approval by the Senate. The laws were put into practice by a whole staff of officials (bureaucrats) of various ranks, who were under the jurisdiction of the emperor and paid from the cash sums of the imperial fiscus. To facilitate the work of officials (procurators) and to unify judicial practice, on the initiative of Adrian, a Collection of Judicial Rules, the so-called Permanent Edict, was compiled, which were to be guided in judicial and administrative practice. To speed up legal proceedings, Italy was divided into four judicial districts, a new distribution of provinces, a reform of provincial government, etc.

Thus, the autocratic-bureaucratic system of government, which began to take shape at the end of the republic, in the first centuries of the empire, in its main features reached its completion under Hadrian.

All these reforms were caused by two reasons: the objective need to centralize management and the subjective desire of Adrian, who craved activity and wanted to rule alone, not tolerating any restrictions on his authority.

Administrative affairs, especially the analysis of court cases, were Adrian's favorite pastime, flattering his ambition and dictated by his morbid suspicion and distrust of people. He personally dealt with a lot of court cases, if necessary, seeking advice from prominent lawyers of that time, demanding that order, form and unconditional obedience be observed in everything. Officials were required to appear in public places in the established clothes - a toga with a purple border - and strictly adhere to the accepted etiquette. Ordinary citizens, and even more so slaves, were ordered to respect officials in relation to officials and not to forget the difference in positions. One characteristic case of Adrian is known. Once, noticing through the window that one of his slaves was walking among the senators, Adrian ordered the slave to be slapped in the face and said: “My friend, do not be so impudent and do not mix with those whose slave you are.”

Adrian's love for etiquette knew no bounds and reached the observance of the smallest formalities. He looked at the state as if it were his own house, and the house, i.e. the emperor's palace was kept in exceptionally exemplary order. Adrian watched how the food was prepared and served, and was also interested in what was happening in other houses, especially influential and, for that very reason, suspicious people.

With special attention, the pupil of the "greatest" Trajan, the conqueror of the Dacian kingdom, treated military affairs. The army at all times served as the main support of the Roman Caesars. The first official of the state also wanted to be the first soldier. Adrian set an example of military discipline, endurance and conscientious attitude to service. He made difficult transitions through the harsh and cold places of Gaul and Germany and the hot sands of Africa. Adrian showed interest in literally all issues related to military affairs, weapons, military vehicles, the construction of fortifications (the famous Hadrian's ditches and ramparts), etc. In addition, he researched and studied the lifestyle, living conditions, food, clothing and psychology of the soldier and commander.

Most of Adrian's life was spent traveling and hiking. Hadrian's travels have even become proverbial. Along with the subjective reasons that forced the emperor to change his place of residence frequently, there were also objective reasons: relations with the senate deteriorated after the incident of 121, military concerns, and, finally, family affairs. Neither the emperor himself nor his august wife were distinguished by great family virtues, and both had a large number of hobbies. Love stories in Adrian's biography take pride of place, and without them, many aspects of his life will remain incomprehensible. Relations with Yulia Sabina eventually deteriorated so much that Adrian ordered to poison his grouchy and capricious girlfriend of life.

Long journeys distracted the emperor from thoughts that were unpleasant for him and opened up wide scope for his ambitious and active nature. The head of the "circle of lands" has seen, observed and experienced a lot. In his campaigns, he reached the extreme limits of the East, was in Spain, Gaul, Germany, Britain, Greece and Egypt. The biggest, indelible impression was left by my stay in Egypt. In 132, Adrian visited Alexandria, talked with the sages of Alexandria and then experienced a difficult personal drama, having lost the person closest to him - the handsome Antinous, originally from Bithynia. By order of the emperor, Antinous was deified, temples in honor of the new god appeared in all provinces, several cities got their name from the imperial favorite, for example, Antinopol in Egypt.

Still more cities took their name from the name of the emperor himself, as the city of Adrianople in the Roman province of Thrace still testifies to this.

Hadrian's stay in the provinces was accompanied by festivities, the distribution of gifts, the release of debts, the construction of new buildings or the reconstruction of old ones. Athens, the ancient cultural center of the Hellenic world, owes a lot to Adrian. Temples, palaces, theaters, water pipelines, art galleries, etc. were built. The famous villa of Hadrian in Tivoli, a miracle of building art, gives an idea of the style of buildings. As conceived by the architect, the named villa was supposed to reproduce everything wonderful that was then available in the Roman world. Another example of architectural skill and richness of artistic fantasy is the temple of Zeus in Athens, the temple of Fortuna in Rome and much more.

Monuments of art, literature and science of the "happy period" testify to the high cultural level of Roman society. Adrian also strove to take the lead in this field. By nature, he had extraordinary abilities, an amazing memory, quickly mastered the subject and could simultaneously do many things. He was fluent in Latin and Greek, composed poetry, wrote historical treatises, studied medicine, geometry, sang, drew, sculpted and played various musical instruments. The head of state, Adrian believed, must know everything, be able to do everything, both with regard to war and that which concerns peace. His ideal was an "enlightened monarch", in every respect an example for his subjects.

From the writings of Hadrian, published under his own name and under the names of his closest collaborators, for example, the freedman Phlegon, the History of his time in several books, Description of Sicily, Roman Holidays, Collection of Speeches, Conversations with the philosopher Epictetus are known. ”, “Treatise on the disposition of troops during the battle” and many others. Studies in literature, philosophy and history at that time were considered an inalienable duty of every person of high society.

In this, as in all other respects, Adrian was, after all, a man of his circle and his time. He did what others did, but only wanted to be the first in everything. It was noted above that the general conditions under the Antonines were favorable for the flourishing of literature, science and art within the possible framework of the slave system. Such outstanding talents and minds as the Stoic philosopher Epictetus, Plutarch, the sophist Polemon, the historian Suetonius, the personal secretary of the emperor belong to the era of the Antonines.

Further, a contemporary of Adrian was the writer Flavius Arrion, the author of a number of large and small books about the campaigns of Alexander the Great, "The History of Bithynia" - the birthplace of Antinous, "The History of the Alans", "The History of Parthia" in seven books, etc. Then follows a whole galaxy of lawyers, creators of Roman law, architects, sculptors, decorators and painters.

Emperor Hadrian himself is one of the characteristic figures of that period, who embodied in his personality the ideals, aspirations, achievements, tastes, virtues and vices of his time. The multifaceted era of the Antonines is reflected in the equally multifaceted personality of Emperor Hadrian. The assessment of Adrian as a person can be very different, but one thing is indisputable, that this is one of the large, complex and highly controversial characters of world history. In one man, a strong political mind, spanning entire epochs, coexisted with the soul of a bureaucrat, a rich creative talent existed alongside petty envy and selfishness, the ideal of an enlightened politician in the Platonic style was combined with low suspicion and petty vanity, a clear and sober intellect coexisted with faith in magic and demons, inborn softness and tenderness - with wild cruelty and treachery, courage - with cowardice and cowardice, love - with refined debauchery, etc.

The negative aspects of Adrian's character come out with the greatest sharpness in the last period of his life. The loss of mental balance observed in the last years of his life is explained by subjective and objective factors. In 138, the emperor fell dangerously ill, the disease completely upset his nervous system, increased suspicion and cruelty. Subjective reasons were joined by factors of an objective order - the beginning of the collapse of the empire, as discussed on the previous pages.

On the basis of the obsolete slave-owning system, the negative aspects of autocracy and bureaucracy were more strongly felt. The discontent of the provinces, suffering from high taxes and interference in the affairs of local government by imperial officials, was expressed in deep unrest and open rebellions, similar to the rebellion of Bar Kokhba (136-138) in Judea. Relations between the Emperor and the Senate also deteriorated more and more.

At the end of Adrian's life, the senatorial estate falls under the suspicion of Caesar, who lost his mental balance, the inevitable consequence of which was the mass executions of senators, which overshadowed the last years of Adrian's life.

The Senate's hatred of the emperor was expressed in the fact that he declared a curse on his name after the death of Hadrian, which followed in the 62nd year of his life in May 138.

Introduction

emperor hadrian politics

The history of the Roman Empire is very rich and instructive, and remains the subject of study by scientists to this day, as evidenced by numerous works and monographs. It is thanks to this state that we owe many features of our modern life, so it is worth considering who led this state. During the reign of the emperors, Rome reached the height of its military and territorial power, gaining control over most of the lands of Europe, North Africa and the Middle East. The biographies of Roman emperors show that all of them cannot be unequivocally assessed: many of them were wise rulers, while others were known as cruel tyrants, and some of them behaved simply like madmen.

Applicants for the imperial throne often quarreled among themselves and resolved their conflicts on the battlefield. At the same time, some of them achieved their cherished goal, but not all of them were able to stay on top of fame in the future. So, if some of them successfully ruled for more than 30 years, then others stayed on the throne for less than 2 months.

The short-sighted Emperor Nero was advised by doctors to look more at green to strengthen his eyesight. Nero began to wear green clothes, decorated his bedroom with chrysolite, covered the arena for gladiator fights with malachite, and looked at the fights themselves through a polished emerald.

The Romans could not come up with a clear system for the transfer of power. Therefore, some emperors appointed their sons as successors, i.e. power passed by inheritance, from father to son, and other emperors who did not have direct heirs chose candidates for the throne from their inner circle, which imposed serious responsibility on the applicants.

From the end of the 1st century, the Praetorian Guard began to have tremendous power, which allowed it to proclaim, overthrow and even kill emperors that were objectionable to it at its own discretion. By the 2nd century, there were several Roman armies in the empire, stationed in Britain, on the banks of the Rhine, on the Danube, in Syria, etc., and each of them chose its own emperor.

For 400 years, the Roman Empire was ruled by several dynasties of emperors. Of these, only two dynasties made the most significant contribution to the formation and development of the Roman Empire in the era of conquests: the Caesars and the Antonines.

Biography of Emperor Hadrian

ADRIAN Publius Elius (lat. Hadrianus) (01/24/76 - 07/10/138), Roman emperor from 08/11/117. Spain. Adrian himself, in books about his life, mentions that his ancestors, who came from Adria, settled in Italica during the time of the Scipios. Hadrian's father was Aelius Adrian, nicknamed the African, cousin of the emperor Trajan; his mother was Domitia Paulina, a native of Gad; sister, Paulina, married to Servian; wife - Sabina; the grandfather of his great-grandfather, Marillinus, who was the first senator of the Roman people in his family. Hadrian was born in Rome eight days before the February calends, on the seventh consulship of Vespasian and the fifth of Titus. Having lost his father in the tenth year of his life, he entered under the care of his cousin uncle, Ulpius Trajan, who was then among the former praetors, and then became emperor, and the Roman horseman Caelius Attian. He studied Greek literature so intensely and had such an addiction to it that some called him a Greek. (1)

He came from Italica (Southern Spain), like his relative Trajan, who was his guardian and in 100 married him to his great-niece Sabina. Adrian took part in the Dacian and Parthian wars of Trajan, in 108 he was consul and governor in Pannonia and Syria. Thanks to the influence of Plotina, before the death of Trajan, he was adopted and declared heir.

Hadrian abandoned the aggressive policy of his predecessor, in 117 he ended the Parthian War, abandoning Armenia and Mesopotamia and limiting himself to protecting and securing his borders. In Northern Britain, in 122, he began the construction of Hadrian's Wall with 17 castellas and 80 gates on the Solvay-Tyne line. The Upper German border protection strip (limes) was expanded, the border on the Danube was fortified. On long trips, Hadrian inspected ("travels of the emperor") in 121-125. western and eastern provinces, in 128 Africa and in 128-132. again the eastern provinces. The last major uprising of the Jews under the leadership of Bar-Kochba was suppressed by Adrian with extreme cruelty (132-135).

In the domestic political sphere, Hadrian reduced the influence of the senate. In 118, he ordered the execution of four senators-generals of Trajan, in 136 - some other senators. The power of the emperor was strengthened by the creation of the bureaucracy. First of all, instead of freedmen, horsemen were involved in cooperation, incl. to the newly created Council of State (Consilium principis). The perpetual edict (Edictum perpetuum), thanks to unification, completed the development of praetor law (128). Along with legal and financial reforms, a reform of the army was carried out, which gave the soldiers the opportunity to rise to the estate of horsemen. The relaxation of taxes, the continuation of the operation of alimentary institutions, the care of colonies, the humanization of slave law should have led to the consolidation of the state. (1)

Adrian led an intensive construction activity. In Rome, the Pantheon was rebuilt and the mausoleum of the emperor was built, the modern castle of St. Angel. In his villa near Tibur (Tivoli), a monumental ensemble with palaces, libraries, theaters, thermae and palestra, there was a copy of Hadrian's favorite architectural building - the Athenian Stoa Poikile. Romanization was encouraged in the provinces, cities and colonies were founded, incl. Andrianopol. Adrian contributed to the development of art and philosophy, influenced archaism. Adrian's clearly expressed philhellenicism is noticeable against the backdrop of the developing Italo-Hellenistic state culture. Adrian ordered to decorate Athens with luxurious buildings, including the Olympeion begun by Pisistratus was completed and the Olympic idea was revived. Shortly before his death (in Baiae), the childless Adrian adopted his heir, Antoninus Pius. He died of illness on July 10, 138 in Baiae, was buried first in Puteoli, near Baie, then in the garden of Domitia in Rome, and, finally, the ashes were placed in the mausoleum of Hadrian. (1)

ADRIAN Publius Elius ( lat. Hadrianus) (01/24/76 - 07/10/138), Roman emperor from 08/11/117

He came from Italica (Southern Spain), like his relative Trajan, who was his guardian and in 100 married him to his great-niece Sabina. Hadrian took part in the Dacian and Parthian wars of Trajan, in 108 he was consul and governor in Pannonia and Syria. Thanks to the influence of Plotina, before the death of Trajan, he was adopted and declared heir.

Adrian led an intensive construction activity. In Rome, the Pantheon was rebuilt and the mausoleum of the emperor was built, the modern castle of St. Angel. In his villa near Tibur (Tivoli), a monumental ensemble with palaces, libraries, theaters, baths and palestra, there was a copy of Hadrian's favorite architectural structure - the Athenian Stoa Poikile. Romanization was encouraged in the provinces, cities and colonies were founded, incl. Andrianopol. Adrian contributed to the development of art and philosophy, influenced archaism. Adrian's clearly expressed philhellenicism is noticeable against the backdrop of the developing Italo-Hellenistic state culture. Adrian ordered to decorate Athens with luxurious buildings, including the Olympeion begun by Pisistratus was completed and the Olympic idea was revived. Shortly before his death (in Baiae), the childless Adrian adopted his heir, Antoninus Pius. Biography in the "History of the Augusts". Bust of Hadrian in the Pergamon Museum.

In 108 Hadrian was only a consul; he served as legate-propraetor of Pannonia Inferior c. 106-108, Syria - in 117 - Note. ed. site.

Dictionary of antiquity. Per. with him. - M.: Progress, 1989

tribune power received 22 times (in 117 twice: August 11 and December 10, then annually on December 10).
Emperor: I (August 11, 117), II (135).
Consul: I (108), II (118), III (119).

He died of illness on July 10, 138 in Baiae, was buried first in Puteoli, near Baie, then in the garden of Domitia in Rome, and, finally, the ashes were placed in the mausoleum of Hadrian.

Wife: Vibia Sabina.

Names, titles, relatives are given according to:
1995 Chris Scarre. Chronicle of the Roman Emperors. Thames & Hudson Ltd, London, 2002.