9 Interesting Antoninus Pius Facts, Quotes, And Accomplishments

Antoninus Pius headed the Roman Empire from 138-161 AD; his reign is distinguished from the other rulers of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty owing to how peaceful it was.

The full name of Antoninus Pius is Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Pius, who was born on September 19, 86. Of the seven Roman emperors that belonged to the Nerva-Antonine dynasty, Antoninus Pius was the fourth ruler and he ruled for 23 years (138-161), longer than any of the other rulers of the same dynasty.

Antoninus Pius succeeded Emperor Hadrian as the ruler of the Roman Empire. During Antoninus' reign, Rome was believed to have reached its epitome of peace and prosperity.

Historians state that during this reign, there were no significant revolts or any major military incursions. By nature, Antoninus was believed to be an honest and just man who was respected not only by his family and the cabinet but the entire population of his empire.

Several historical accounts say that there never previously had been a more peaceful reign in Roman history. Several previously demolished Italian cities were reconstructed and new buildings rose.

The most unique and distinguishing fact about Antoninus Pius was that he never left Italy during his entire reign. He had trust in his commanders to settle any and every overseas dispute such as those in the lands of Germany, Egypt.

He was also among the only 'Five Good Emperors' that belonged to the Nerva-Antonine dynasty. Let us now take a closer look at the reign of Antoninus Pius and how Rome enjoyed unparalleled prosperity during his reign.

Antoninus Pius Reign

Antoninus Pius took over the reign of Rome from Hadrian on July 11, 138. Before taking over as the Roman emperor, Antoninus held a number of offices during the reign of Hadrian.

It was on February 25, 138 that Antoninus was adopted as a son by the then emperor Hadrian following the death of his first adopted son, Lucius Aelius.

Although he was adopted and would go on to become the next Roman emperor only if he would choose Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Aelius to succeed Antoninus. Antoninus kept his words and the Roman cities were then ruled by Marcus Aurelius as well as Lucius Verus.

The reign of Antoninus Pius was quite different from the former emperor, Hadrian.

One of the first acts of Antoninus as the emperor involved Hadrian who had been refused divine honors following his death largely because he had sentenced to death a number of Senate members during his time.

However, Antoninus Pius convinced the members to provide divine honors to Hadrian. The rule of Antoninus in ancient Rome is regarded as that of stability as there was hardly a moment where he had to command the Roman Army, the city developed on all other fronts.

The most unique part of Antoninus' rule was that he never left Italy during his reign; for dealing with provincial matters, he would employ imperial letters or assign governors to take care of the matter.

There was a lot of construction that took place during the reign of Antoninus Pius as he rebuilt various key landmarks in ancient Rome including the likes of the Pons Sublicius, Historia Augusta.

The most iconic architectural marvel of Antoninus' period was the temple of Antoninus and Faustina built in Forum Romanum. Although, it was later used as the Church of San Lorenzo by the Catholic Church in Miranda.

Antoninus' rule was quite peaceful as there were no foreign wars or any other external threats to the empire.

On the economic front, Antoninus had suspended tax collection from cities that had suffered blows due to natural disasters.

He also extended financial aid to many Greek cities which dealt with great material damage during two earthquakes. Despite all the construction and financial aid, Antoninus had left a surplus in the imperial treasury when he died and stepped down as the emperor.

As a fact, writers like Aurelius Victor who lived during the times of Antoninus Pius have mentioned in their accounts that the people of ancient Rome looked towards Antoninus as a parent rather than an emperor.

Despite the fact that Antoninus was regarded as a peaceful emperor, he built the Antonine Wall and also pushed back the imperial frontier, beyond the previously existing Hadrian's Wall.

Moreover, it was during the rule of emperor Antoninus that a diplomatic mission was sent from Rome to China, the first of its kind. Accounts in the 'Book of the Later Han' claim that a group of people arrived in China in the court of Emperor Huan and claimed to have been sent from Rome.

Additionally, Roman coins were found in China signifying that there was contact between the Romans and the Chinese.

Did You Know...

Antoninus Pius was one of the most widely known Roman emperors ever owing to the fact that his reign is widely recognized as potentially the most peaceful one ever. Now there are several facts about Antoninus Pius that you might perhaps not know, let us take a look at some of the most interesting ones.

For starters, hardly anyone knows that Antoninus Pius' father, Titus Aurelius Fulvus was a consul during AD 89 and had a family history of supporting the right in imperialistic politics.

Did you know, Antoninus Pius wasn't Hadrian's first pick as the successor of the throne?

We all know that the two of them had a pretty sound relationship but Hadrian had chosen Lucius Aelius as the successor to the throne rather than Antoninus Pius. It was Lucius Aelius' untimely death that led to Antoninus being chosen as the successor to the throne following the demise of Hadrian.

Moreover, we all know Antoninus Pius to be a peaceful man during whose reign there were no military engagements but there are experts that regard him as a 'shrewd political operator'.

Antoninus Pius Family

Antonius was born on September 19, 86 to Titus Aurelius Fulvus and Arria Fadilla in Lanunvium which is currently identified as Lanuvio. Antoninus' father passed away sometime after his birth and he was largely raised by Gnaeus Arrius Antoninus, the maternal grandfather of Antoninus Pius.

Antoninus went on to marry Annia Galeria Faustina the Elder and she was the daughter of Marcus Annius Verus. The couple married sometime between 110 and 115 and had a total of four children, Marcus Aurelius Fulvus Antoninus, Aurelia Fadilla, Annia Galeria Faustina Minor, and Marcus Galerius Aurelius Antoninus.

Faustina the Younger went on to marry her cousin Marcus Aurelius who was the last of the 'Five Good Emperors'. Faustina passed away in 141 which greatly affected Antoninus Pius.

In her loving memory, Antoninus pursued the Senate to honor the memory of his wife and deified Faustina as a goddess.

He then constructed a temple in her name in Roman Forum which was served only by priestesses. Antoninus was also the adoptive father of Marcus Aurelius, as well as Lucius Verus who eventually went on to rule the Roman Empire following Antoninus' death.

What was Antoninus Pius known for?

Antoninus Pius' reign was one of the most peaceful and productive ones for Rome as there were no foreign wars and peace prevailed throughout the kingdom. He was included in the 'Five Good Emperors'.

His primary attributes were intelligence, honesty, and dutifulness.

Antoninus became the emperor of Rome following the death of his adoptive father, Hadrian. As a fact, it was during Antoninus' rule that the initial contact was established with Han Dynasty in China where it is believed that Romans were interested in the luxury products such as silk.

In his early life, Antoninus was raised by his grandfather, Gnaeus Arrius Antoninus who was regarded as a cultured man and exhibited traits of integrity.

Antoninus held several offices from a very young age and gained experience, rose to fame in his journey. Like most of the other noble young men of Rome, Antoninus served as a quaestor, as well as a praetor but the success he achieved was believed to be more than usual with which he started turning some heads.

He then went on to be appointed as proconsul in order to administer Italia by the then emperor Hadrian.

He also administered the district of Etruria which was important for the estates that Hadrian had there. Eventually, Antoninus was appointed as the proconsul of Asia from 134-135, owing to which his reputation greatly rose.

After becoming a Roman emperor following Hadrian's death, Antoninus, first of all, worked on granting divine honors to Hadrian which had initially been refused by the Senate.

By nature, Antoninus was a man who loved art, during his reign, he promoted art and culture in his kingdom and established various temples, mausoleums, theatres.

At the same time, he also rewarded the teachers of philosophy and rhetoric in the form of financial rewards and some other honors too.

An astonishing fact about Antoninus' rule is that there is no military-related record of his time where he was known to have participated.

Although there were some internal conflicts at times, none of them turned out to be serious and there was no foreign influence or threat at any point in time, signifying the peace that prevailed during Antoninus' reign.

Owing to his intelligence, Antoninus was great at problem-solving.

As a fact, there is a copy of a letter in the British Museum, London which shows how the then Roman emperor resolved a dispute between Smyrna and Ephesus, two Roman cities.