Shows / Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius is remembered as Rome's philosopher-king, but his reign (161–180 CE) was anything but serene. Lucas and Luna explore the life of the last of the 'Five Good Emperors,' a Stoic scholar forced to wage endless war on the Danube frontier. From the Parthian campaign that brought back plague to the Marcomannic Wars that strained the empire's resources, this show examines how Aurelius balanced governance, military crisis, and personal philosophy. They delve into his 'Meditations' — a…
Episodes
Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo HistoryMarcus Aurelius and the Syrian Sun
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore one of the most surprising religious moments of Marcus Aurelius's reign: his commission of the Syrian sun god…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Temple of the Sun
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Marcus Aurelius's lesser-known building projects in Rome, focusing on his restoration of the Temple of the Sun…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Imperial Cult
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the imperial cult under Marcus Aurelius, focusing on the Arval Brethren, the deification of Faustina the Younger, and…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Philosopher King's Bodyguard: The Equites Singulares
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the elite cavalry unit that protected Marcus Aurelius: the equites singulares Augusti. They discuss the unit's…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Equestrian Statue's Hidden Politics
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius on Rome's Capitoline Hill not just as a masterpiece of bronze casting but…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Antonine Plague
In this episode of Fexingo History, Lucas and Luna explore the Antonine Plague, the mysterious disease that swept through the Roman Empire during Marcus…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Sacred Games of the Circus
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Marcus Aurelius's little-known relationship with the Circus Maximus and the ludi circenses — the chariot races…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Philosopher King's Final Frontier: Rome's Eastern Question
In this episode of Fexingo's Marcus Aurelius series, Lucas and Luna explore the emperor's final years and his unfinished business in the East. With…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Antonine Constitution
In this episode of Fexingo History, Lucas and Luna explore Marcus Aurelius's often-overlooked legal reforms. Beyond the Danube frontier and the…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Quadi Grant: Rome's Buffer State on the Danube
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore how Marcus Aurelius, during the Marcomannic Wars, created a buffer state for the Quadi tribe on the Danube frontier…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Legio II Italica and the Danube's Forgotten Fortress
In this episode of Fexingo, hosts Lucas and Luna explore the story of Legio II Italica, the legion Marcus Aurelius raised for the Marcomannic Wars, and the…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Rain Miracle
In the heat of the Marcomannic Wars, the Roman army found itself trapped, parched, and surrounded by Quadi warriors. Then the sky opened. In this episode…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Philosopher King's Praetorian Prefect
Marcus Aurelius is remembered as the philosopher emperor, but who guarded his life and wielded his power? In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the role of…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Philosopher King's Correspondence with His Tutor Fronto
Before Marcus Aurelius became the stoic emperor of the Marcomannic Wars, he was a young student learning rhetoric from one of Rome's most famous orators…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the God of War: Mars in the Marcomannic Wars
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore how the emperor Marcus Aurelius, despite his Stoic philosophy and personal aversion to bloodshed, invoked Mars — the…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Ep 200: Marcus Aurelius and the Danube Fleet
In this two-hundredth episode of the Fexingo History podcast, Lucas and Luna explore an overlooked arm of Marcus Aurelius' Marcomannic Wars: the Roman…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Column's Spiral: War Stories in Stone
In this episode, Lucas and Luna take a closer look at the spiral reliefs of the Column of Marcus Aurelius in Rome, moving beyond the familiar Rain Miracle to…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Pantheon: Marcus Aurelius and the Temple of All Gods
In this episode of Fexingo History, Lucas and Luna step away from the Danube front and into the heart of Rome to explore a building that still stands after…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Quadi King's Oath: Diplomacy on the Danube
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore a pivotal moment in the Marcomannic Wars: the oath sworn by the Quadi king Furtius in 172 CE. They unpack the fragile…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Marcomanni: The Quadi King's Oath
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the diplomatic front of Marcus Aurelius' Marcomannic Wars—specifically the oath sworn by the Quadi king Furtius…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Haruspex: Divination on the Danube
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore a largely overlooked aspect of Marcus Aurelius's reign: his reliance on Roman state divination during the…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Stoic Emperor's Dream of Lost Provinces
In this episode, Lucas and Luna dig into one of the most tantalizing what-ifs of Marcus Aurelius's reign: his plan to annex Marcomannia and Sarmatia…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Marcomannic War's Bloody Climax
In this episode, Lucas and Luna revisit the brutal climax of Marcus Aurelius' Marcomannic Wars, focusing on the desperate winter of 170 AD when the…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius: Bronze, Power, and Survival
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the only surviving bronze equestrian statue of a Roman emperor — the magnificent gilded bronze of Marcus Aurelius on…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Equestrian Statue
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the story behind one of the most iconic images of Roman power: the gilded bronze equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius: The Emperor's War on the Danube
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Marcus Aurelius's relentless campaigns along the Danube frontier during the Marcomannic Wars. They discuss the…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Plague Doctor Galen
In this episode of Fexingo History, Lucas and Luna explore the intersection of medicine, empire, and Stoic philosophy through the lens of Galen, the physician…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius: The Emperor's Private Grief
In this episode of Fexingo History, Lucas and Luna explore the deeply personal losses of Marcus Aurelius. The philosopher-king fathered at least 13 children…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Death of Marcus Aurelius: His Final Days and Legacy
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the final days of Marcus Aurelius, Rome's philosopher emperor. They discuss his death at Vindobona (modern Vienna)…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Faustina the Younger: The Empress Behind Marcus Aurelius
Episode 186 of Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King turns the spotlight on Annia Galeria Faustina Minor — the emperor's wife, mother of his…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Coinage Crisis: How Marcus Aurelius Devalued Rome's Silver
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the economic pressures that forced the philosopher emperor Marcus Aurelius to debase the Roman silver coinage. Faced…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Parthian War of Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus
When Marcus Aurelius became emperor in 161 AD, he faced an immediate crisis: the Parthian king Vologases IV invaded Armenia. The young co-emperor Lucius Verus…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
How the Antonine Plague Shaped Marcus Aurelius
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the Antonine Plague, the pandemic that struck the Roman Empire from 165 to 180 AD during the reign of Marcus Aurelius…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Iazyges: Rome's Sarmatian War
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore a lesser-known but pivotal chapter of the Marcomannic Wars: the conflict with the Sarmatian Iazyges. These steppe…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Rain Miracle of Marcus Aurelius
In the summer of 172 AD, during a desperate battle against the Quadi along the Danube, a sudden thunderstorm turned the tide for the Roman army—but was it…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Column of Marcus Aurelius: A Stone Chronicle of War
In this episode, Lucas and Luna examine the Column of Marcus Aurelius, a towering marble monument in Rome that chronicles the Marcomannic Wars through its…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Revolt of Avidius Cassius against Marcus Aurelius
In 175 AD, a rumor swept the Roman Empire: Marcus Aurelius, the philosopher-emperor, was dead. In Syria, the ambitious governor Avidius Cassius seized the…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Stoic Teachers of Marcus Aurelius
In this episode of Fexingo History, Lucas and Luna explore the philosophers who shaped Marcus Aurelius as a Stoic emperor. Drawing on Book One of the…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Christians
In the summer of 177 AD, as Marcus Aurelius campaigned along the Danube, a brutal persecution erupted in the Roman city of Lugdunum—modern Lyon—that would…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Egyptian Grain Ship
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore a lesser-known but crucial aspect of Marcus Aurelius's reign: his intervention in the Egyptian grain trade during…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Letter to Fronto
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the intimate correspondence between Marcus Aurelius and his rhetoric tutor, Marcus Cornelius Fronto. Drawing on the…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Legal Legacy
In this episode of Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King, Lucas and Luna explore the Stoic emperor's profound impact on Roman law. Discover how…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
The Stoic Emperor and the First Germanic Invasions
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the early military campaigns of Marcus Aurelius, focusing on the first major Germanic invasions of the Marcomannic…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Gladiator Decree
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Marcus Aurelius's surprisingly strict regulations on gladiatorial combat. Despite being a philosopher-king who…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Legal Reforms
In this episode, we explore Marcus Aurelius's impact on Roman law, focusing on his reforms to family law, slavery, and inheritance. Drawing from the…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Diet
In this episode of Fexingo History, Lucas and Luna explore the surprisingly simple diet of Marcus Aurelius, Rome's philosopher-emperor. Drawing on his…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Commodus and the Fall of the Philosopher's Dynasty
Marcus Aurelius broke with the adoptive succession system that had served Rome for nearly a century, choosing his biological son Commodus as heir. This episode…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Equestrian Statue Survival
How did a bronze equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius survive sixteen centuries when nearly all other ancient Roman bronzes were melted down? In this episode…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Adoption
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Marcus Aurelius's adoption by Antoninus Pius, a pivotal event that set him on the path to becoming emperor. They…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Dream Journal
We all know Marcus Aurelius wrote the Meditations — but where did the notebook come from? And what did Romans actually think about recording dreams? In this…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Philosopher Friend
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Marcus Aurelius's deep friendship with Herodes Atticus, the wealthiest and most famous orator of the second…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic's Forgotten Wife
Everyone knows Marcus Aurelius as the philosopher emperor, but behind his Meditations stood a woman who shaped his reign: Faustina the Younger. In this…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Slave Policy
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Marcus Aurelius's policies regarding slavery, drawing on legal reforms, stoic philosophy, and specific cases like…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Antonine Plague's Toll
Episode 162 of Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King takes a deep dive into the Antonine Plague, the devastating pandemic that swept the Roman Empire…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Succession Dilemma
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore one of the most controversial decisions of Marcus Aurelius's reign: his choice of successor. Despite being a model…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Rain Miracle of the Thundering Legion
In this episode of Fexingo History, Lucas and Luna explore one of the most dramatic and controversial events of Marcus Aurelius' reign: the so-called rain…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Equestrian Statue
The gilded bronze equestrian statue of Marcus Aurelius on the Capitoline Hill is the only surviving Roman imperial equestrian statue from antiquity. But how…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Cynic Encounter
In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Marcus Aurelius's surprising engagement with Cynicism, a rival philosophy to his own Stoicism. They focus on the…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Cynic Encounter
In this episode, Lucas and Luna revisit a curious episode from the reign of Marcus Aurelius: his encounter with the Cynic philosopher Demonax of Cyprus. While…
- Marcus Aurelius: Rome's Philosopher King — Fexingo History
Marcus Aurelius and the Stoic Emperor's Sarmatian War
In this episode of Fexingo History, Lucas and Luna explore Marcus Aurelius's brutal and often overlooked campaign against the Sarmatians during the…