Publius Aelius Hadrianus is one of the greatest emperors of Roman antiquity: he is remembered for his culture, his love of the arts, and the extraordinary buildings he left, including the Pantheon, Hadrian's Villa, and his Mausoleum (now Castel Sant'Angelo).
Along with Nerva, Trajan, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius, he is one of the "five good emperors," who reigned from 98 to 180 AD during the empire's goden age.
Before ascending the throne, Hadrian started his political and military career, becoming one of the best officers of Trajan, whose wars of conquest expanded the empire to encompass the entire Mediterranean.
Born in Italica in Hispania Baetica on January 24, 76 AD (1,950 years ago), Publius Aelius Hadrianus lost his father at the age of ten and was entrusted to Trajan (his father's cousin) and Acilius Attianus (whom he would appoint as Praetorian Prefect upon ascending the throne). He moved to Rome to complete his education and start his long career, which would lead to his becoming emperor in 117 AD.
In 95 AD, at just nineteen years old, he became military tribune of Legio II Adiutrix, which had been stationed in the province of Moesia Inferior by Emperor Domitian, after the Dacians had defeated and killed its governor Gaius Oppius Sabinus in 86 AD.
Domitian defeated the Dacians in 88 AD in Tapae, but he had to make a peace agreement with their leader Decebalus because he was under pressure from usurpations and attacks in Pannonia by the Quadi, Marcomanni, and Iazyges. Decebalus thus became a client king of Rome, receiving donatives; but he did not keep his promises and was therefore attacked and finally defeated by Trajan in 101 AD.
During that first assignment in Moesia, Hadrian knew firsthand the harsh discipline of the army and experienced the strategic importance of the Danube: it was the natural border between the provinces of Moesia and Pannonia, and had always suffered incursions and raids by the barbarian tribes of the Goths, Marcomanni, Quadi, and Sarmatians. That experience would have a great impact on his policy of strengthening the borders when he became emperor.
Having established himself as one of Trajan's most trusted aides, he personally delivered the news of Nerva's death and his appointment as emperor in 97 AD.
In 100 AD, he married Vibia Sabina, Trajan's great-niece, strengthening family ties, probably thanks to Empress Plotina, who protected and favored him on several occasions.
In 101-102 AD, Hadrian followed Trajan in his first campaign against Dacia as a simple officer (comes). During the Second Dacian War (105-106 AD), he played a more important role, since Trajan entrusted him with command of the Legio I Minerva, and he faced Decebalus's Dacians in several battles.
After the Dacian Wars ended, in 107 AD, Trajan appointed him governor of Lower Pannonia, to repress the incursions of the Sarmatian and Iazyges tribes, who were particularly skilled at fighting on horseback. The Sarmatian cataphract horsemen are depicted in the reliefs of Trajan's Column fighting the Romans alongside the Dacians.
His political career continued at the same time: he became consul in 108 AD and then eponymous archon in Athens in 112 AD, a prestigious position that confirmed Hadrian's great passion for Greek culture, hence his nickname "graeculus."
Once he had conquered Dacia, Trajan (the soldier-emperor) continued his policy of territorial expansion. The Parthians had been Rome's historic enemies since the days of the Republic, when Marcus Licinius Crassus had been soundly defeated at Carrhae in 53 BC.
In 113 AD, Trajan started a new war against the Parthian king Osroes I, who had invaded Armenia and deposed Tiridates I, a Roman client king since the time of Nero, and wanted to dominate that territory again.
Trajan invaded Armenia, and then Mesopotamia, capturing Dura-Europos (now in Syria). Finally, he reached the capital Ctesiphon (in modern-day Iraq), from which the king Osroes I had fled, abandoning his treasures, including his golden throne. One of the king's daughters was among the considerable spoils.
With the (temporary) defeat of the Parthians, the territory of the Roman Empire reached the shores of the Persian Gulf; according to Cassius Dio, Trajan said that if he had still been young, he would have emulated the deeds of Alexander the Great by conquering India as well.
Trajan assumed the title of Particus on the coins minted on that occasion, and chose Hadrian as governor of the province of Syria. On the way back to Rome, he suddenly died, and Hadrian received news of his appointment as emperor while he was in Antioch. Empress Plotina worked to promote his succession to her husband, who adopted Hadrian on his deathbed.
At the beginning of his reign, Hadrian proved to be a shrewd administrator, promoting important economic, legal, and military reforms, which we will see in the next chapter.
Hadrian's architectural masterpieces are described and explained in the books by Marina De Franceschini published by Rirella Editrice: «Villa Adriana. Architettura Celeste» (italian edition only). «Pantheon. Architecture and Light» and «Castel Sant'Angelo. Hadrian's Mausoleum. Architecture and Light» (English edition available for both).