Latest / Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History / Commodus and the Fall of the Philosopher's Dynasty
Transcript
- Lucas: So we've talked a lot about Marcus Aurelius as the philosopher-emperor, the Stoic sage writing his Meditations on campaign. But today I want to look at the decision that arguably undid everything he built: his choice of successor. Luna: You mean handing the empire to his son Commodus? Lucas: Exactly. Commodus is famous now — thanks to Gladiator — as the deranged emperor who fought as a gladiator. But the historical reality is even stranger. And the big question is: why did Marcus, a man who wrote constantly about rationality and duty, pick him? The adoptive system had given Rome a string of excellent emperors — Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, then Marcus himself. They all adopted their successors. Marcus broke that pattern. He was the first emperor since Vespasian to pass power to a biological son. Luna: Was Commodus really that bad from the start? Lucas: According to the sources — Cassius Dio, Herodian, the Historia Augusta — Commodus showed signs of trouble early. He was given the title Caesar at age five, co-emperor at sixteen, and Marcus took him on the Marcomannic campaigns to groom him. But Commodus apparently preferred pleasure to duty. Dio says he was 'utterly corrupted by flattery and luxury.' Marcus had other options, too. He had adopted a son, Marcus Annius Verus, but that boy died young. There were talented generals like Pertinax, who would later become emperor briefly. But Marcus stuck with his bloodline. Luna: So it was about family loyalty? Lucas: That's the standard explanation. Marcus was deeply devoted to his family — we see that in his letters to Fronto, in his grief for his wife Faustina. And Stoicism teaches that you have duties to your kin. But it's also possible Marcus misjudged Commodus' character, or thought he could be guided by advisors. The philosopher-emperor may have overestimated the power of education. And remember, the system of adoptive emperors wasn't a formal rule — it was a custom. Marcus may not have seen himself as breaking a sacred tradition. Luna: What happened once Commodus took sole power? Lucas: He made peace with the northern tribes on terms that many saw as a retreat — though some historians now argue it was pragmatic. Then he rushed back to Rome, abandoned the frontier wars Marcus had fought for years, and plunged into a lifestyle that shocked even jaded Romans. He fought in the arena as a gladiator, dressed as Hercules with a lion skin and club, and renamed Rome 'Colonia Commodiana' — the Colony of Commodus. He also renamed the months after himself: August became Commodus, and so on. He saw conspiracies everywhere — his sister Lucilla was exiled and later executed for a plot against him. His favourite, the chamberlain Cleander, effectively ran the empire for a while, even selling public offices. Luna: And yet he lasted twelve years as sole emperor. Lucas: That's the strange part. From 180 to 192 CE. The praetorian guard, the army — they were bought off with donatives. The plebs were entertained by his spectacles. But eventually, even his inner circle couldn't take it. On New Year's Eve 192, his mistress Marcia and his chamberlain Eclectus poisoned him. When that didn't work fast enough, they had a wrestler named Narcissus strangle him in his bath. The senate immediately declared damnatio memoriae — they tried to erase his memory, tearing down his statues, removing his name from inscriptions. Luna: But that damnatio didn't stick either, did it? Lucas: Not entirely. The Colosseum — originally the Flavian Amphitheatre — was actually renamed the 'Colosseum' because of a colossal statue of Nero nearby. But Commodus' own colossal statue of himself as Hercules was melted down. Still, enough survived for historians to write about him. And his death triggered the Year of the Five Emperors — a chaotic civil war in 193 CE where Pertinax, Didius Julianus, Pescennius Niger, Clodius Albinus, and Septimius Severus all claimed power. Severus eventually won, and he actually rehabilitated Commodus' memory, deifying him to legitimise his own claim as the successor of the Antonines. Luna: So Marcus' decision had consequences for decades. Lucas: Absolutely. The stable adoptive system was broken. The precedent was set: emperors could pass power to sons, no matter how unfit. The Severan dynasty that followed was built on military might, not adoption or merit. Some historians trace the Crisis of the Third Century — fifty years of chaos, civil war, and economic collapse — partly to the end of the adoptive system. Marcus may have been a great philosopher, but his choice of heir was a political catastrophe. Lucas: And you know, it makes me think about how even the wisest people can have blind spots when it comes to family. Marcus wrote about seeing things as they are, but maybe he couldn't see his own son clearly. Luna: That's a very human angle. It's easy to judge from two thousand years away. Lucas: If these conversations about history — the tough choices, the unintended consequences — are something you value, and you'd like to help us keep doing this ad-free, you can support the show at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. No pressure, just a way for listeners who enjoy it to help us keep going. Luna: Yeah, it's a small way to be part of keeping this kind of deep-dive history available. Lucas: So back to Commodus — one of the more bizarre episodes in Roman history. What stands out to me is that after his death, the senate tried so hard to erase him, but the people had loved his games. There's a tension there between elite disapproval and popular support that runs through Roman history. Luna: Was there any real attempt to reform after him? Lucas: Pertinax, who succeeded him briefly, tried to restore discipline and economy. He lasted only three months before the praetorians murdered him. So no, not really. The damage was done. And in a way, Commodus' reign exposed the weakness of the imperial system: everything depended on the character of one man. Marcus had written that the universe is change, and life is opinion. Commodus' opinion of himself was that he was a god. And that opinion nearly destroyed Rome.