Latest / Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History / Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic's Road to the Rhine
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- Lucas: So we've talked a lot about Marcus Aurelius as emperor — the plague, the wars, the philosophy. But one thing we haven't really touched on is his early career, before he ever wore the purple. Luna: You mean when he was still just a young senator learning the ropes? Lucas: Exactly. Specifically, around 140 CE, when he was about nineteen years old, he was appointed consul for the first time. That part's well known. But what's less known is that right after that consulship, he was sent to the Rhine frontier — to Germania Superior — as a military tribune or perhaps as a legate. The sources are a bit vague, but the Historia Augusta says he spent time in the province of Upper Germany. Luna: So the philosopher emperor got his hands dirty on the frontier? Lucas: He did. And it's fascinating because this is the period when he would have first encountered real military life — the camps, the logistics, the discipline. He was there during a time of relative calm, but there were still raids by the Chatti, a Germanic tribe that lived east of the Rhine, in what's now Hesse and Thuringia. Lucas: The Chatti had been a thorn in Rome's side since the 1st century. Tacitus describes them as having a more organized military than other Germans — they used iron weapons, had a chain of command, even kept a headquarters. So this wasn't just a sleepy border posting. Luna: And this is where Marcus first learned about command? Lucas: Partly. But also, crucially, this is where he deepened his Stoic studies. While on the Rhine, he corresponded with his rhetoric tutor Fronto, and more importantly, he began studying with Junius Rusticus. Rusticus was a Stoic philosopher who later became a close advisor, and he introduced Marcus to the works of Epictetus. Luna: Epictetus — the former slave who taught Stoicism in Nicopolis. Lucas: Yes. And Marcus's early exposure to Epictetus's Discourses is what shaped so much of the Meditations. There's a famous passage in the Meditations where Marcus writes, 'When you wake up in the morning, tell yourself: the people I deal with today will be meddling, ungrateful, arrogant, dishonest, jealous, and surly...' That's pure Epictetus. But he wrote that later, as emperor. On the Rhine, he was living the practical side of Stoicism — sleeping in tents, enduring cold, dealing with soldiers. Luna: Which must have been a shock for a young aristocrat raised in Rome's palaces. Lucas: Absolutely. And there's an interesting archaeological clue. In Mogontiacum — modern Mainz — which was the capital of Germania Superior, there's a column base dedicated to Jupiter Optimus Maximus by the Legio XXII Primigenia. That legion was stationed there, and Marcus would have interacted with its officers. We know from inscriptions that the legion was active in building fortifications along the Taunus Limes during this period. Luna: So he saw the actual construction of the frontier? Lucas: He did. And it's not just walls and watchtowers — it's about supply lines, diplomacy with client kings, and the daily grind of keeping a border. Marcus later wrote in the Meditations about the importance of focusing on what's in front of you, doing your duty without complaint. I think that lesson came straight from the Rhine. Lucas: There's also the question of how much actual combat he saw. The Historia Augusta claims he was 'attentive to military affairs' but doesn't mention battles. Cassius Dio is similarly vague. But we know the Chatti made a significant raid in 162 CE, long after Marcus left, so the threat was real. Still, his time there was probably more about administration and observation than leading charges. Luna: So the Stoic emperor wasn't a warrior king in the style of Trajan or Hadrian. Lucas: No, and that's a key distinction. Marcus's military experience was limited compared to his predecessors. But it taught him something perhaps more valuable: the reality of war's cost. In the Meditations, he writes, 'A spider is proud when it catches a fly, but a man is proud when he catches a hare, or a fish in a net, or a boar, or a bear — these are not philosophers, but robbers.' That's a strikingly critical view of martial glory. Luna: It sounds like he saw hunting and war as essentially the same — killing for gain. Lucas: Exactly. And yet, as emperor, he spent most of his reign on campaign. That tension between Stoic ideals of peace and the brutal necessities of empire is what makes him so compelling. The Rhine posting was his first taste of that contradiction. Lucas: One more thing — his tutor Rusticus. It's said that Rusticus gave Marcus a copy of Epictetus's Discourses, and Marcus carried it with him everywhere. On the Rhine, he would have had time to read and reflect. That personal copy, passed down, is what eventually became the basis for the Meditations, though the text we have was compiled after his death. Luna: So a book he read as a young man on the frontier shaped his entire reign. Lucas: It really did. And you know, that's part of why we do this show — to uncover those personal, human moments behind the grand narrative. We spend hours digging through ancient sources and modern scholarship to bring you these stories, and we do it without any ads or sponsors. It's a labor of love. Luna: Yeah, and we love that we can keep it that way — just us talking history, no commercials. Lucas: If you want to help us keep it ad-free, there's a simple way. You can support the show at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. That's all lowercase, buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Every little bit helps us keep researching and recording. Luna: And we really appreciate it. Now, back to the Rhine — did Marcus ever face the Chatti in battle, or was it all patrols and diplomacy? Lucas: As I said, the sources are silent on actual combat. But his later writings suggest he respected the soldiers' hardship. He writes about enduring the 'skinny rations and hard beds' of camp life. That's firsthand. There's a letter from Fronto to Marcus where Fronto worries about his health in the cold German winter. So it wasn't all philosophy — it was real discomfort. Lucas: And there's a telling moment in the Meditations: 'The art of living is more like wrestling than dancing.' That's a metaphor from the arena, but it applies to frontier life — you have to be ready for sudden moves, to adapt. Marcus learned that on the Rhine. Luna: Wrestling, not dancing. I like that. Lucas: So when we think of Marcus Aurelius, we often picture the weary emperor at Carnuntum, writing his meditations by lamplight. But before that, there was a young man on the Rhine, learning what it meant to command, to endure, and to think. That's the foundation of everything that followed.