Latest / Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History / Marcus Aurelius and the Antonine Plague
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- Lucas: So we've spent a lot of time on Marcus Aurelius and the wars on the Danube, but there's another crisis that was running alongside all of that, and it might have had an even bigger impact on the empire. I'm talking about the Antonine Plague. Luna: That's the one that hit during his reign, right? I've heard it mentioned, but I don't think we've ever talked about it in detail. Lucas: Right, and it's a huge topic. The plague really shaped Marcus's reign, and it's one of those things that historians still debate a lot. But first, if you're enjoying these conversations and want to help keep them going, you can support us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It's a small gesture, but it means a lot. Luna: Yeah, and it genuinely helps. Now, tell me about the plague. What was it exactly? Lucas: Well, we don't know for sure. The symptoms that the ancient sources describe, especially Galen who was there, point to something like smallpox or maybe measles. But there's a lot of uncertainty. What we do know is that it broke out around 165 AD, right when Lucius Verus was campaigning in the East against the Parthians. Lucas: The soldiers brought it back with them, and it spread like wildfire through the cities of the empire. Cassius Dio, who wrote about it, said that at its peak it killed two thousand people a day in Rome itself. That number might be exaggerated, but it gives you a sense of the scale. Luna: Two thousand a day? That's brutal. How did people even cope with something like that? Lucas: Well, for Marcus, it was a test of his Stoic principles. He believed in accepting what you can't control and focusing on your own actions. So he did what he could: he ordered public funds for burial, he encouraged people to help each other, and he even sold off imperial treasures to raise money for the relief efforts. That's something we have from the Historia Augusta, though it's not always the most reliable source. Lucas: But the plague also had strategic consequences. It devastated the army. The Marcomannic Wars were already straining Rome's resources, and now you had legions that were undermanned and sick. That's one reason Marcus had to recruit new legions, like Legio II Italica, which we talked about in a previous episode. Luna: So the plague made the wars even harder? Lucas: Exactly. And it didn't just affect the military. The economy took a hit because so many people died, and trade routes were disrupted. The plague probably contributed to the labor shortages that we see in the later empire, and it may have even paved the way for the crises of the third century. Lucas: There's also a personal angle. Marcus's co-emperor, Lucius Verus, died in 169, and some ancient sources hint that he was a victim of the plague, though others say it was a stroke. And Marcus himself fell ill later, though he survived that time. Luna: Did people understand what was causing it? Did they have any kind of public health response? Lucas: Not really. There was no concept of germs or contagion in the way we think of it today. Some doctors, like Galen, recognized that it spread from person to person, but there was no quarantine or sanitation protocol. People turned to religion and magic, which is why you have sacrifices and rituals happening all over the empire, trying to appease the gods. Lucas: Galen actually left Rome because of the plague, which is a bit ironic because he's our best source for what it was like. He described symptoms like fever, diarrhea, and a rash that could turn into sores. He called it the 'plague of the long outbreak' or something like that. His clinical observations are still studied today. Lucas: Historians have tried to estimate the death toll. Some say it could have been ten percent of the empire's population, which would be around five million people. Others are more conservative, but even the lower estimates are staggering. Luna: That's a huge loss. Did the plague change Marcus's thinking at all? I mean, he was already a Stoic, but did it make him more pessimistic? Lucas: That's a really good question. In the Meditations, he writes a lot about death and impermanence, but I don't think it's just abstract philosophy. He's facing the reality of people dying around him every day. He says things like 'Alexander the Great and his mule driver both died, and the same thing happened to them.' It's a way of putting things in perspective, but you can feel the weight of it. Lucas: There's also a passage where he talks about the plague as a fact of nature, and he reminds himself that it's not in his power to change it. So he focuses on what he can do, which is to rule justly and keep the empire together. Luna: It's kind of amazing that he managed to keep going, honestly. With wars and plague on top of each other. Lucas: Yeah, and he did keep going. He stayed on the Danube front for years, even though the plague was running through the army. He contracted it himself in 172 and was laid up for a while, but he recovered. That's one of those things that makes you wonder if the stories about his resilience are true, but they're pretty consistent across sources. Lucas: The plague also had a darker side in terms of how the Romans dealt with it. There were reports of people being abandoned, even by family members. That's something you see in many epidemics, but it's stark in the accounts from Rome. Luna: That's heartbreaking. Did Marcus try to address that, like with the burial funds you mentioned? Lucas: Yes, he did. He made sure that the dead were buried, even if their families couldn't afford it. He also encouraged people to look after each other, but there's only so much an emperor can do. He couldn't stop the disease, and he couldn't force people to be compassionate. But he did set an example by continuing to work, even when he was sick. Lucas: There's also a debate about whether the plague was actually smallpox or something else. Some researchers have looked at skeletal evidence from the period and found signs that might be consistent with smallpox, but it's not conclusive. Others have suggested measles or even a strain of typhus. The truth is, we may never know for sure. Luna: So we're stuck with a mystery. But what about the long-term impact? You mentioned the third-century crisis. How direct was that link? Lucas: It's not a direct cause and effect, but the plague weakened the empire at a critical time. It reduced the population, which meant fewer taxpayers and fewer soldiers. That put pressure on the treasury, and it made it harder to defend the frontiers. The crises that followed, like the assassination of emperors and the barbarian invasions, were made worse by that demographic shock. Lucas: So in a way, the Antonine Plague is one of those events that historians use to explain the turning point from the Pax Romana to the more unstable late empire. It's not the only factor, but it's a big one. Luna: It's crazy to think that a disease could change the course of an empire like that. Lucas: It's a reminder that human history isn't just about kings and battles, but also about the invisible forces that shape our lives. And for Marcus, it was another thing he had to endure with equanimity, as he tried to do everything he could. Lucas: I think if you read the Meditations with the plague in mind, it adds another layer. He's not just thinking about death abstractly; he's facing it constantly. And yet he still writes about doing what's right and not being bitter. That's a pretty powerful lesson, even today. Luna: Yeah, that does make you see him differently. I guess we often think of him as a philosopher first, but he was also a ruler dealing with a real crisis. Lucas: Exactly. And that's what makes him so interesting. He's not just a thinker; he's a man in the middle of history's chaos, trying to hold it together with reason and courage.