In the annals of Roman history, emperors are often remembered for their military prowess and leadership skills, like Augustus, Trajan, and Vespasian. However, some are remembered for their descent into madness and tyranny, such as Caligula and Nero. Marcus Aurelius, a revered emperor, was known for his wisdom and strength, and many expected his son, Commodus, to follow in his footsteps. Unfortunately, Commodus’s reign was marked by a stark departure from his father’s legacy.
Commodus was born on August 31, 161 A.D., in Lanuvium, near Rome. As the son of Marcus Aurelius and Faustina the Younger, he was the first Roman emperor born “in the purple,” meaning during his father’s reign. Despite this auspicious beginning, historian Cassius Dio described Commodus as lacking cunning, characterized by cowardice and ignorance. At just five years old, he was named Caesar, marking him as the heir to the throne. After the death of his brother Annius Verus, Commodus became the sole heir, breaking the tradition of adopting successors established by the Five Good Emperors.
Marcus Aurelius invested heavily in Commodus’s education, hoping to mold him into a great ruler. He even made Commodus co-emperor in 177 A.D. However, when Marcus Aurelius died in 180 A.D., Commodus, then 18, inherited the throne amidst the Marcomannic Wars. Instead of listening to his father’s trusted advisors, Commodus chose to ignore them, influenced by sycophants who filled his head with tales of luxury and pleasure.
Commodus quickly decided to end the Marcomannic Wars, not for Rome’s benefit but to return to a life of luxury. Despite Rome’s advantage, he negotiated a peace that was favorable but less advantageous than it could have been. Back in Rome, he celebrated with games and feasts, maintaining popularity with the common people through lavish spending.
Commodus’s reign was rife with plots against him. In 182 A.D., his sister Lucilla conspired to assassinate him, feeling slighted by the loss of her imperial status. The plot failed, leading to executions, including Lucilla’s. Another notable plot involved Sextus Quinctilius Condianus, who faked his death to escape Commodus’s wrath.
As Commodus distanced himself from governance, power shifted to his inner circle. Tigidius Perennis, the Praetorian Prefect, became a de facto ruler, eliminating threats to his authority. However, Marcus Aurelius Cleander, another influential figure, eventually orchestrated Perennis’s downfall. Cleander’s greed and corruption led to his own demise in 190 A.D., after a famine and plague incited riots in Rome.
In the latter years of his reign, Commodus indulged in egomania, declaring himself the reincarnation of Romulus and Hercules. He renamed Rome and its citizens after himself and even renamed the months. Commodus’s obsession with gladiatorial combat led him to participate in the arena, a first for a Roman emperor.
Despite a 12-year reign, Commodus’s legacy is marked by neglect of administrative duties and a focus on personal indulgence. His reign saw brief conflicts in Dacia and Britain, resolved by his generals. Ultimately, Commodus’s rule is remembered for its extravagance, plots, and his descent into madness, leaving a lasting impression on Roman history.
Engage in a role-playing debate where you assume the roles of historical figures from Commodus’s time, such as Marcus Aurelius, Lucilla, or a Roman senator. Debate the effectiveness and impact of Commodus’s leadership on the Roman Empire. This activity will help you understand the different perspectives and motivations of those around Commodus.
Conduct research on the significance of gladiatorial games in Roman culture and Commodus’s unique participation as an emperor. Prepare a presentation that explores how this obsession reflected his personality and affected his reign. This will deepen your understanding of the cultural and political implications of his actions.
Write a fictional diary entry from the perspective of a Roman citizen during Commodus’s reign. Describe daily life, the political climate, and personal opinions about Commodus’s rule. This exercise will help you empathize with the people living under his reign and explore the societal impact of his leadership.
Participate in a group discussion about the legacy of Commodus. Consider questions such as: How did his reign compare to his predecessors? What lessons can modern leaders learn from his rule? This discussion will encourage critical thinking about historical leadership and its relevance today.
Watch a documentary about Commodus and his time as emperor. After viewing, analyze the documentary’s portrayal of Commodus and discuss its accuracy and bias with your peers. This activity will enhance your ability to critically evaluate historical sources and media representations.
Here’s a sanitized version of the provided transcript:
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When it comes to being a Roman emperor, if you want to be remembered, there seem to be two surefire ways of doing it. One is to be a capable ruler and a strong military leader; men like Augustus, Trajan, and Vespasian come to mind. The other is to go completely mad with power, like Caligula and Nero. For better or worse, history does seem to love a bloodthirsty, deranged ruler. Marcus Aurelius, an emperor we’ve already covered, was firmly placed in the first camp. Therefore, it wasn’t unusual to expect his son, Commodus, to follow in his footsteps. But he didn’t. In fact, Commodus was about as far removed from his father’s legacy as one could imagine.
Commodus was born on August 31, 161 A.D. in Lanuvium, the modern-day city of Lanuvio, about 20 miles southeast of Rome. He was the son of Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius and his wife, Faustina the Younger. Commodus was born “in the purple,” meaning that he was born during his father’s reign. He was the 17th Roman emperor but the first to be born under these conditions. As Commodus himself said in a speech, he never knew the touch of common cloth; the purple received him as soon as he came forth into the world.
You might think this set him up for great things, but historian Cassius Dio described Commodus as being guileless, characterizing him by cowardice, ignorance, and great simplicity. In 166, the five-year-old Commodus was named Caesar by his father, which was a dynastic title meant to designate him as the heir to the throne. Marcus Aurelius also appointed another one of his sons, Annius Verus, as Caesar, showing that he intended for the two brothers to rule jointly. However, Annius Verus died in 169 A.D., and for whatever reason, his father decided against appointing another Caesar and kept Commodus as sole heir. In doing so, he broke with the tradition established by the past five Roman rulers, known as the Five Good Emperors, where each one selected his successor and adopted him instead.
Marcus Aurelius hoped that he could mold his own flesh and blood into becoming a great ruler. He provided Commodus with the best education that money could buy, paying large fees for scholars to come live in Rome and tutor his son. He took Commodus alongside him during military campaigns, even when he was young, so that he could learn how to command an army. In 177 A.D., Marcus Aurelius granted the title of Augustus to Commodus, thus equaling his own status and making his son co-ruler. Even so, he realized that the new emperor was still impatient and immature. In the last years of his life, Marcus Aurelius appointed many of his most trusted generals and companions to serve as advisors to Commodus. Then, in 180 A.D., while engaged in the Marcomannic Wars, he died, leaving his son as the new sole emperor of Rome.
Commodus was 18 years old when he took over the throne in the middle of a war. He could have been a good ruler if he had been inclined to listen to the many guardians that his father had provided for him. Instead, it did not take long for him to start ignoring them completely to pursue his own whims or, even worse, the ideas of his sycophantic entourage. It was these people that Cassius Dio blamed for the initial corruption of Commodus. He called the young emperor the “slave of his companions,” and Greek historian Herodian agreed that these courtiers took advantage of the naive ruler and filled his head with tales of pleasures and delights awaiting him back in Rome.
Commodus soon made up his mind that he wanted the war to end—not because of the bloodshed or because it was best for Rome, but because he wanted to return to his palace and start living the lavish life of an emperor. At this point in the war, Rome had the clear advantage; by pressing on, they could have neutralized enemies who had been causing problems for 15 years. Against the advice of all of his generals, Commodus told them to negotiate peace as soon as possible, and so the Marcomannic Wars ended in 180 with terms favorable to Rome, of course, but still mild compared to what they could have been.
Back in the capital of the empire, Commodus threw a celebration in his honor called a triumph, with games, music, feasts, and handouts to the Roman populace to win over the people. In fact, Commodus managed to retain his popularity with the common man throughout most of his 12-year solo reign, mainly because he was often willing to open the royal coffers and spend money on lavish spectacles. Even so, it did not take long before those around him started to plot against the emperor.
In 182 A.D., Commodus earned the ire of his older sister, Lucilla, who was married to Claudius Pompeianus, one of the most distinguished generals under Marcus Aurelius, who now mostly served as an ignored advisor to the new emperor. Before this, Lucilla had also been married to Lucius Verus, Marcus Aurelius’s brother and co-emperor. Therefore, Lucilla had been granted the title of Augusta and all the imperial honors that came with it. When Commodus became emperor, though, he married Brudia Crispina, and all of a sudden, all of the privileges of being Rome’s highest-ranking woman were afforded to her, which Lucilla considered a great insult.
She knew that her husband, Pompeianus, would not take part in a plot to assassinate Commodus, so instead, she turned to a young nobleman named Marcus Ormidius Quadratus, who was also rumored to be her lover. Quadratus enlisted the help of a senator named Quintianus, who agreed to attack the emperor in the entrance of an amphitheater under the shroud of darkness. According to historian Herodian, Quintianus had the opportunity to slay Commodus but made the mistake of delivering a little speech beforehand, telling him that the Senate wanted him dead. The time he wasted was enough for the emperor’s bodyguards to pounce on him and kill the would-be assassin, thus foiling the first plot on Commodus’s life.
Afterwards came an investigation, and everyone suspected of taking part in the plot was put to death. This included Quadratus and even the emperor’s sister Lucilla, but curiously enough, Pompeianus was spared. Maybe Commodus genuinely believed that the general played no part in the matter, or maybe he still felt some kind of deference for one of his father’s closest allies. Either way, Claudius Pompeianus was allowed to quietly retire away from Rome and live on an estate in the country, citing his old age as an excuse.
Cassius Dio gave an interesting account of a man named Sextus Quinctilius Condianus, who managed to fake his death and evade the wrath of Commodus. His family had been implicated in the assassination plot, and his father and uncle had already been executed. When he heard that he too had been condemned to death, Condianus took a hare, killed it, and drank its blood but kept it in his mouth instead of swallowing. He then rode his horse and fell on purpose, vomiting up the blood. Those around him thought that he had been gravely injured and took him to his bed, believing that he was at death’s door. Nobody questioned when news spread that he had died, but by that point, he had already disappeared, instructing his servants to place a ram’s body in his coffin and burn it.
Commodus eventually learned of the deception and scoured the empire looking for the man, but he was allegedly never found, and his ultimate fate remains a mystery. The attempt on his life had a major impact on Commodus’s behavior. He took the words of Quintianus to heart and from then on considered the Senate his enemy. Throughout his whole reign, Commodus looked for new ways of curtailing the power of senators and other wealthy officials, including having them executed and their property confiscated. After all, the money that he spent on his lavish lifestyle had to come from somewhere.
Whenever a power vacuum is created, someone new always steps up to try and fill that void. As the senators lost their authority and influence, other people from Commodus’s inner circle rose up to improve their station. One of these was Tigidius Perennis, who was elevated to the position of Praetorian Prefect at the beginning of Commodus’s reign and steadily gained more power. For a time, he was even considered the de facto ruler of Rome. He was more than happy to let the emperor engage in his whims while Perennis took on more administrative duties. He also turned the emperor against anyone he perceived to be a threat to his authority by convincing Commodus that they were plotting against him.
This is how he got rid of the other Praetorian Prefect, Publius Tarantinius Paternus. He implicated him in a plot to assassinate the emperor. Also, according to Herodian, Perennis targeted the wealthiest senators, and by confiscating their properties, made himself the richest man of his time. Understandably, Perennis sent himself a lot of enemies, some because of his actions and others who were simply envious of his privileged position. But as it turned out, he could not convince Commodus to have them all executed, as there were other people apart from him who were in the emperor’s good graces.
One of them was Marcus Aurelius Cleander, a freedman born in Phrygia, a region which is today part of Turkey. Cleander had also risen through the ranks by being a part of Commodus’s inner circle. Cassius Dio said that he possessed the greatest influence after Perennis, which is perhaps more impressive as Cleander had originally been brought to Rome as a slave to serve as a pack carrier. However, by 182 A.D., he was working inside the imperial household. After the assassination plot, Cleander killed Commodus’s chamberlain, Sayatirus, who allegedly was part of the conspiracy, and assumed his position, thus entering into the emperor’s close confidence.
Because Perennis and Cleander were both vying for the same position at the emperor’s most trusted side, they hated each other and were always looking for ways to get rid of one another. In the end, it was Cleander who triumphed, if only for a little while. In 185 A.D., a curious scene unfolded during the Capitoline Games celebrating Jupiter. As the crowd filled the theater and Commodus took his seat on the imperial chair, an old man, apparently dressed like a philosopher, ran out into the center of the stage. He said to the emperor that the sword of Perennis was at his throat and warned that the Praetorian Prefect was raising an army to oppose Commodus, who was sure to face death if he did not deal with the threat immediately. For his efforts, the old man was seized on the orders of Perennis and burned to death.
Commodus did not know how to react. It was true that Perennis had convinced the emperor to place one of his sons in charge of the army in Lyricum, a Roman province, but his suspicions were not raised enough to act against his confidant—not yet, at least. But another event occurred a short while later which persuaded Commodus that Perennis had ambitions of overthrowing him. A group of soldiers arrived in Rome and, without Perennis’s knowledge, went straight to the emperor. They had come from the prefect’s son in Lyricum, where they had discovered that he had begun minting coins with the prefect’s portrait on it in anticipation of Perennis claiming the throne. This was enough proof for Commodus, who had Perennis arrested and beheaded, later having his son killed as well.
It is unclear whether or not this plot was actually real and whether Perennis was indeed planning a coup or if it was just a ruse to get rid of him, perhaps engineered by his most bitter enemy, Cleander. Herodian makes no claim or suggestion that Perennis had been the victim of a conspiracy, but Cassius Dio portrays the prefect in a positive light, saying that he lived a most incorruptible and temperate life and that he guarded Commodus in the imperial office. He also mentions that whenever something bad against Perennis occurred, Cleander was there to whisper in the emperor’s ear, and ultimately it was he who convinced Commodus to deal with the prefect permanently.
After the death of Perennis, Cleander was the most powerful man in the empire after Commodus, of course, and he refrained from no form of mischief, selling all privileges and indulging in wantonness and debauchery. The next attempted plot against Commodus actually came soon after this one in 187 A.D., but it was only mentioned by Herodian, so we aren’t sure how accurate it is. It concerns a soldier named Maternus, who deserted his legion and assembled a mob of outlaws to pillage towns and villages throughout the empire. It was a situation similar to that of Spartacus, where Maternus freed slaves, and his ever-increasing army became strong enough to attack and plunder cities. Eventually, the mob entered Italy itself, and Maternus set his sights on the grandest prize possible: the throne of Rome.
However, despite his army growing to a size he would never have expected, Maternus realized that it still wasn’t capable of standing toe to toe against the Praetorian Guard. Therefore, he reasoned that a cunning assassination plot would be preferable to an all-out battle. Maternus picked the perfect time for it; it was the beginning of spring, and the Romans were celebrating a festival honoring the goddess Cybele. Of course, it was a grand spectacle because if there was one thing Commodus was good at, it was throwing a party. During the revelry, it was customary for people to dress up, and on this occasion, no official or religious uniform was off-limits. Anyone could dress up as anyone else, so Maternus and his men donned the uniform of the Praetorian Guard, hoping that it would get them close to the emperor.
On paper, this sounded like a good plan, but it ended in failure as Maternus was betrayed by some of his men. He was captured and executed while Commodus escaped yet another attempt on his life. By this point, Commodus couldn’t help but notice that despite all his executions, there were always new people appearing who wanted him dead. He was never the most attentive emperor in the world, but these plots persuaded him to spend less and less time in public. He was out of Rome most of the time, preferring the remoteness and security of his private estates. This left the empire in the charge of others, mainly Cleander. Like Perennis before him, Cleander used his position to make himself the richest man in Rome. He sold governorships, military commands, senatorships, and even appointed 25 consuls in a single year, something which had never been done before. He was careful to send a large part of his money to Commodus so that the emperor would not feel slighted or ignored.
But of course, nothing lasts forever, and Cleander too had to fall. This happened in 190 A.D. In the previous year, Rome had been hit first by a plague, then a famine. The people were angry, and they blamed Cleander, as he became rather notorious for his greed. There was also the rumor, true or not, that the official had hoarded large supplies of grain because he thought this was the one way to control the masses. This had the opposite effect, though, and riots broke out as violent mobs demanded his death. Cleander tried to put an end to this; he sent out the imperial cavalry to chase down the rioters and gave the order to slaughter them all without mercy. But even this didn’t work, as people barricaded their houses, climbed on their roofs, and started pelting the riders with rocks and other projectiles.
Eventually, word of the riot and the bloodshed reached Commodus, who lived blissfully ignorant of the problems of the Romans—Cleander made sure of that. After all, this time there was nothing he could do to save himself. Fearing that a civil war was ready to break out, the emperor had Cleander seized and beheaded, placing his head on a spear and sending it into the cheering crowd. Afterwards, Cleander’s sons were killed, as were all of his close associates, and their bodies were again turned over to the ravenous mobs so that they could desecrate and mutilate them to their hearts’ content.
As the situation quieted down, Commodus realized that once again he had evaded peril. He was angry once he understood just how much power Cleander had managed to attain, so he concluded that it was time for another series of executions and assassinations of the prominent men of Rome who could pose a threat to him.
You might have noticed by this point that we haven’t spent a lot of time talking about the things Commodus did as emperor. That’s mainly because, despite a lengthy 12-year reign, there isn’t much to talk about. A war did break out in Dacia and a revolt in Britain, but these were both solved relatively quickly. Plus, it’s not like Commodus played any part in them; it was his generals who acted, and all three of them would go on to have short reigns as emperor in the near future. For the majority of the reign, Commodus stayed completely detached from his administrative concerns. He was too busy playing games and having feasts to bother himself with trivial matters such as running an empire.
It wasn’t until the last few years after the death of Cleander that Commodus became more involved, and that is when he truly indulged his egomania and madness. For starters, he decided that he was the reincarnation of Romulus, the legendary founder of Rome. Therefore, this allowed him to found the city again and rename it Comediana. Indeed, the people were no longer Romans but Comedians. Not satisfied, Commodus also concluded that he was the reincarnation of Hercules and had statues erected of him where he was depicted dressed like the mythological hero, swinging a club and wearing the pelt of the Nemean lion.
He took on a few other names and titles, as evidenced by the official greeting to the Senate: “The Emperor Caesar Lucius Aelius Aurelius Commodus Augustus Pius Felix, Somaticus Germanicus Maximus Britannicus, Pacifier of the Whole Earth, Invincible, the Roman Hercules, Pontifex Maximus, Holder of the Tribunician Authority for the 18th time, Imperator for the 8th time, Consul for the 7th time, Father of His Country, to Consuls, Praises, Tribunes, and the Fortune of Comedy.” Commodus used these names to rename the months of the year in his honor because he saw himself as Hercules.
Commodus did something no other emperor had done before: he became a gladiator
Commodus – Commodus was a Roman Emperor known for his tyrannical rule and the decline of the Roman Empire during his reign. – The reign of Commodus is often cited as the beginning of the decline of the Roman Empire due to his erratic behavior and mismanagement.
Emperor – An emperor is a sovereign ruler of great power and rank, especially one ruling an empire. – Augustus was the first emperor of Rome, marking the transition from a republic to an imperial system.
History – History is the study of past events, particularly in human affairs. – Understanding the history of the Byzantine Empire provides insights into the cultural and political transformations of the medieval world.
Reign – Reign refers to the period during which a sovereign occupies the throne. – The reign of Queen Elizabeth I is often regarded as a golden age in English history, marked by flourishing arts and exploration.
Madness – Madness in historical contexts often refers to the state of being mentally ill, especially severely, and how it influenced leadership and decisions. – The madness of King George III had significant political implications, affecting his ability to rule effectively.
Luxury – Luxury refers to a state of great comfort or elegance, especially when involving great expense, often seen in historical contexts as a sign of wealth and power. – The luxury of the French court at Versailles was one of the factors that led to public discontent and the French Revolution.
Power – Power is the ability or capacity to influence the behavior of others or the course of events. – The power wielded by the Catholic Church during the Middle Ages was unmatched, influencing both spiritual and political realms.
Plots – Plots refer to secret plans or schemes to accomplish some purpose, especially a hostile, unlawful, or evil purpose. – The Gunpowder Plot of 1605 was a failed attempt by a group of English Catholics to assassinate King James I and blow up the Parliament.
Legacy – Legacy is something handed down by a predecessor, often referring to the lasting impact of historical figures or events. – The legacy of the Roman Empire is evident in modern legal systems, languages, and architectural styles.
Wars – Wars are conflicts between different nations or states or different groups within a nation or state. – The Peloponnesian Wars were a series of conflicts between Athens and Sparta that reshaped the ancient Greek world.
