Marcus Aurelius "I am the loyal servant to the TRUE emperor, Marcus Aurelius" - Maximus Decimus Meridius, Gladiator. Marcus Aurelius, 'the philosopher', was the Emperor of Rome from 161 AD until his death on March 17th 180 AD. Marcus is the last of the "Five good emperors". He was a highly influential and respected philosophical emperor, well known for his lifetime military campaign against the Germanic tribes in the Marcommanic wars and his stoic philosophical writings in his text the 'Meditations'. Through an overview of Marcus Aurelius's life and his contribution to Roman society; the analysis of the written sources, Cassius Dio's 'History of Rome', 'Historia Augusta' and Marcus Aurelius's 'Meditations'; the analysis of the artefacts 'the columns of Marcus Aurelius', 'equestrian of Marcus Aurelius' and the site, 'Carnuntum', we can observe the historical significance of Marcus Aurelius's life and the events which he was involved. Marcus Aurelius was born on the 26th April 121 AD in Rome, Italy. He was adopted by Emperor Titus Aurelius Antonius or Pius Antonius, with his new brother Lucius Verus Augustus. However Marcus married Antonius' daughter Faustina making him the senior heir. In 161 AD Marcus Aurelius was made Emperor of Rome, when Antonius died, and his brother was his co-ruler. When Marcus Aurelius became Emperor the Roman Empire spanned from Britain in the west to Syria in the East, it bordered Germania in the North and they controlled Egypt in the South. The Roman military had over 400,000 soldiers and the estimated population of Rome was 50 million people. In 162 AD the Parthians invaded Armenia and attacked Roman Garrisons in Syria. Marcus Aurelius sent Roman Legionary forces, led by the experienced general Avidius Cassius, to the eastern front in Syria. The Legion acquired astounding victories over the Parthians and by 165 AD they had conquered the them reaching their capital and securing Parthia for the Eastern Empire. Whilst in Parthia the soldiers contracted a deadly disease, most likely thought to be the bubonic plague from which they bring back to Rome. This plague would heavily effect the Roman Empire throughout Aurelius's reign, killing an estimated ten to twenty-five percent of the Roman population and heavily depleting the strength of the army, already weakened by the War in Parthia. This lead to reduced defences in the north, leaving Rome vulnerable to attack. 6000 Germanic barbarians crossed the Danube river in 167 AD ravaging the northern Roman province of Pannonia. Roman legionaries attacked the Germans causing them to retreat and sign a peace treaty. Bravos Mavius, from the Germanic 'MarcoManni' tribe signed the treaty representing his tribe and ten others. This was a new threat for Marcus Aurelius as it proved the Germanic tribes were united, causing him to initiate a new campaign in the north, for which he decided to lead, as he believed it would bring about more Military activity and provide himself with more legitimacy in Rome. Verus Augustus, his brother, also joined the campaign, however died of plague in 167 AD before they had reached the north. The campaign was halted by the exhaustion of the Royal treasury, and the small size of the legion. Marcus Aurelius led a campaign to raise money for the war effort and rebuild the Roman forces. He sold nearly all the Royal families treasures , to encourage the Empire to make a personal sacrifice, also attributing to his growing respect as an emperor. The call to arms however failed. Despite this in 169 AD Marcus lead the legions north to fight Germanic barbarians on the Danube. This lead to huge massacres of the Roman legions and in the Spring of 170 AD the Marcomanni tribe slaughtered 20 000 Romans, the worst Roman defeat in a century. Marcus countered the butchery with a series of military attacks on the most powerful Germanic tribes, "Marcomanni", "Quadi" and "Samatians". He also reorganised the Roman army and its tactics, forming smaller and more mobile units, called vexellations, which would use ambush tactics. This allowed the army to have greater manoeuvrability through the forest environment of Germania. Marcus was finally claiming victories over Germanic tribes, and began to erect a line of garrisons along the Marcomanni and Quadi territory. In 172 AD the Germanic tribes responded aggressively against the new garrisons, in a series of co-ordinated attacks. Marcus Aurelius defeated the Germanic tribes, and was now hailed, "Germanicus, conqueror of the Germans". The German campaign would continue for another 7 years. In 174 AD, Egypt was in revolt against the Romans so, Marcus Aurelius sent Avidius Cassius, to crush the rebellion, which they did with ease. In 175 AD Marcus Aurelius fell ill in Germania. With death appearing imminent, Faustina offered her hand and the Roman Empire to Avidius Cassius, which he accepted declaring himself Emperor. However Marcus Aurelius recovers and looked to crush rebellion, yet they discover that Avidius' troops have killed him, in hope to avoid a true emperors revenge, ending the rebellion. Marcus now made Commodus, his son, his heir, and in 178 AD began to concentrate once again on the North, taking the Marcomanni and the Samatian's land for the empire. In 180 AD Marcus Aurelius died of plague ending his 19 year rule, and the 13 year war against the Germanic tribes. According to Cassius Dio it is the beginning of the end for Rome, "Our history now descends from a kingdom of gold and silver, to one of iron and rust." Marcus Aurelius was a significant Emperor of Rome as he lead the Parthian and Marcomannic wars, extending the borders of Rome and he initiated new warfare techniques. Through the analysis of the written source, Cassius Dio's 'History of Rome', the significance of Marcus Aurelius can be established. 'Historia Romana' is a compilation of 80 texts. Books 71 and 72 focus on the reign of Marcus Aurelius and are the main narrative source for the period. The books cover Roman history for a period of approximately 1,400 years, beginning with the arrival of the legendary Aeneas in Italy (1200 BC) and ending in 229 AD. Until the first century BC, Dio provides only a summary of events; after that period, his accounts become more detailed. Marcus Aurelius is featured in four of Dio's texts, and in books 71 and 72 he is the main feature. Book 71 focuses on Marcus Aurelius becoming emperor and the war against Parthia and Book 72 focuses on the wars against the Germanic tribes during the Maromannic wars and the revolt of Cassius in Syria. For the greater part of his life, Dio was a member of the public service before becoming involved in the Roman Senate. He was a senator under Commodus and governor of Smyrna. Under Severus Alexander Dio was appointed Consul, a position he held until his death. The reliability of the texts on Marcus Aurelius is faulted by Dio's motives and perspective. Despite this the events that occur in the text have been proven to be true and are in detail, as Dio was alive during Marcus's reign, he was able to obtain accurate information and could view the events in person. However his senatorial prejudices obscure his perspective. From the time of Marcus, Dio is very circumspect and critical in his conveyance of the events that he witnessed. He portrays Aurelius as a great Emperor as he, " admires him" as through, "unusual and extraordinary difficulties he both survived himself and preserved the empire". Moreover the reliability is faulted by the sources motives. It is presumed that the books were written for the Emperor Severus Septimus, this could cause some bias in his writing, making Marcus Aurelius and his Roman Empire appear greater than they actually are. Overall the sources reliability, despite providing an adequately accurate account of Marcus's reign, is faulted by the perspective and motives of the source. The source is extremely useful for a historian studying the reign of Marcus Aurelius. The source is vital for the military history of Marcus Aurelius's reign, as he recounts in detail the war in Parthia and the Marcomannic wars, and the revolt of Avidius Cassius . The source also provides detail of Marcus Aurelius's rise to power as an Emperor, his vast education of Greek and Latin, and his death. The source implicitly provides historians details of the public's view of Marcus, as Dio was alive during his reign. Therefore the source is extremely useful for a historian studying Marcus Aurelius. Through the analysis of the source, Historia Augusta, the significance of Marcus Aurelius's time as emperor can be further established. Historia Augusta is a late Roman collection of biographies, in Latin, of the Roman Emperors and their and usurpers of the period 117 to 284. It presents itself as a compilation of works by six different authors called the Scriptores Historiae Augustae, written during the reigns of Diocletian and Constantine I, throughout the 3rd and 4th centuries. The section on Marcus Aurelius is named, "the life of Marcus Aurelius". The problem with the texts is that they present themselves as a fictitious novel, rather than a historical text, despite this, it is the principle Latin source for this century of Roman History, including Marcus Aurelius's reign. The Authors of Historia Augusta are unknown. However it is presumed that the texts use information, and exact extracts, from the predominantely lost works of historians Marius Maximus (160AD - 230AD), Ignotus, and Flavius Eutropius. The source was made to provide a continuous account of the period 117 to 284. It is written in the style of historical fiction and was created for the emperors Diocletian and Constantine the 1st. This degrades the reliability of the source as it is presumed it was written as a source of entertainment for the emperors, a popular genre of the time. Despite the text being overall considered unreliable, the section of Marcus Aurelius's reign has been justified by the modern historian 'Syme', as being, "rich in reliable information", as it uses Flavius Eutropius as its main source of content. This reliability is exemplified in the sources, accurate accounts of Marcus's campaigns and the revolt of Avidius Cassius, "Avidius Cassius, hearing the rumours of Marcus Aurelius' death, declares himself emperor". However its reliability is faulted in its style of historical fiction and that it was written for entertainment purposes, shown in, "standing his ground, Marcus prayed to the gods summoning a lightning bolt against the enemy". The source is useful for a historian studying Marcus Aurelius as it provides a biographical account of reign and his military campaigns. However the source lacks truthful historical details as it is told in a fictitious way, much of the content is therefore not useful. The source also lacks information of the political complications of the time, and does not provide the historian with the details of Marcus Aurelius's military tactics used in the wars. Overall the text is useful, despite being rather unreliable, as it contains a detailed account of Marcus Aurelius' life. Marcus Aurelius wrote a stoic philosophical series of 12 books called "Meditations" or "To myself" for his own guidance and self-improvement, providing himself with the name, "the philosopher". Through the analysis of the source Marcus Aurelius' significance can be further concluded. Stoic philosophy is the belief that destructive emotions are results from errors in judgment, and that a person of "moral and intellectual perfection," would not suffer such emotions. Stoicism is presented as a way of life, teaching you to improve, not what you say, but how you act. The series was written whilst Marcus was on campaign in Germanica, between 170AD and 180AD in the cities of Aquincum, Granova and Carnuntum. The source is very reliable. It was written only for himself for his, "self-improvement", giving no reasons for it to be distorted or bias in any way. Marcus' own Meditations offer a window on his inner life, but are largely undateable, and make few specific references to worldly affairs. This makes the series rather useless for information concerning his military campaigns or government affairs. However it provides comprehensive insight into Marcus Aurelius' inner thoughts, emotions and beliefs, something that is specific to Marcus. It accounts for his thoughts during his military campaign, giving insight into his stressed and nervous character as he was menaced by what must have seemed an endless succession of threats and invasions along the frontiers. It shows his strong belief in "fate" and "forgiveness". Overall the source is moderately useless due to its lack of information, however it provides insight into Marcus' emotions and beliefs. The Column of Marcus Aurelius which stands in Piazza Colonna in Rome is thought to have been erected by Commodus in celebration and memory of his father either in 180AD after his death or sometime in the 170's during his successes in Germania. The columns brutal and gruesome visuals were created to encapsulate the severity of the Marcomannic wars and the grand sacrifice of the Emperor for the public's safety, glorifying his military achievements for the public. The column presently stands 39 metres tall but a further 7 metres of the base structure remains underground never having been excavated. It contains 21 spirals all depicting a certain battle or event during the campaign in Germania. The column of Marcus Aurelius Although the Column is of Roman perspective, it does not portray the war in a glorious manner, however rather inglorious, displaying the sacking of Germanic towns and the killing of Germans and Romans alike. Conversely the column displays Marcus Aurelius and his Generals in a glorified manner showing their triumph over Germania. Overall the source is reliable as its perspective does not hinder its overall quality. The source also portrays examples of logistics and engineering feats, including the creation of a new Roman bridge technique first used in the Marcomannic wars, such as one depiction of troops crossing a pontoon bridge, further cementing the reliability of the source. Moreover the source exaggerates the battles fought, as well as Marcus Aurelius' military involvement on the battlefield, to present him in a glorious light, thus degrading the reliability of the source and its overall quality. Despite this the source is reliable. The source is useful for a historian studying Marcus Aurelius, and his Marcomannic wars as it provides them with a visual representation of the war. It shows the brutality of the war on the battlefield, however also displays scenes such as the emperor addressing his troops and examples of Roman bridges. The source is not useful as it has an inadequacy of information, only showing visuals with no relevant written information and as it only depicts the war, fails to provide evidence of other parts of Marcus Aurelius' life. Overall the source is reliable and it is useful for the Marcomanni wars, nonetheless not the life of Marcus Aurelius. The Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius is an ancient Roman statue originally standing in Piazza del Campidoglio, Rome, Italy. It is made of bronze and stands 4.24 m tall. The original is now on display in the Capitoline Museums. The statue was erected in 175 CE, during Marcus Aurelius' campaign in Germania. Historians suggest that a fallen enemy may have been sculpted begging for mercy under the horse's raised hoof, based on medieval accounts, portraying the emperor as conquering. However he is shown without weapons or armour, portrayed as a bringer of peace. The creator of the statue is unknown, however it is created to emphasise Marcus Aurelius' victories in Germania, characterising him as a protector of the Roman Empire. The statue could be seen as propaganda, as it forces the public to see Marcus as Almighty and heroic, therefore the source can be seen as unreliable. The source is mostly useless as it provides insufficient details regarding the reign of Marcus Aurelius and his campaign against Germania. It is useful as it displays how Marcus would have wanted to be portrayed and how the public viewed Marcus Aurelius. However overall the source is not useful. By examining the historic site of Carnuntum the significance of Marcus Aurelius can be examined. The town is situated on the Danube and was first built in 6 AD, by Tiberius as he made it his home base of operations in his campaign against Maroboduus. It became the permanent quaters of Legion XIV Germina and the Capital of Upper Pannonia sector. Marcus Aurelius resided there with his legion for 3 years during the war against Macromanni between 172 and 175AD. It is also where he wrote book three of his meditations and the site of the final resting place for Marcus Aurelius. Unfortunately only 0.5 percent of the military camp has been excavated, however the site has evidence of Roman military materials , and gives an insight into the conditions that the soldiers of Rome lived in. However it is the significance of the events that took place throughout the sight that make it important. Marcus Aurelius is a significant personality of the Roman Empire, which is shown in his Military Campaigns against the Parthian Empire and the Germanic tribes and his stoic philosophical beliefs. His significance is exemplified through the written sources, Cassius Dio's 'History of Rome', 'Historia Augusta' and Marcus Aurelius's 'Meditations'; the artefacts 'the columns of Marcus Aurelius', an the 'equestrian of Marcus Aurelius' and the site, 'Carnuntum'.