Commodus and the Fall of Rome
The son of the last of the Five Good Emperors of Rome, Commodus became known for his reign that led Roman Empire to its decline. He was co-emperor of his father Marcus Aurelius and became the only ruler in the days of calmness; Commodus had no competitors and enemies he needed to punish. His character traits and policies resulted in dissipation of resources, the rise of corruption, and the lack of success in state affairs. The goal of this paper is to discuss how Commodus contributed to the end of the Roman prosperity and the following period of disruption.
Soon after Commodus became Emperor, his sister Lucilla planned to assassinate him; her plans were revealed but made Commodus afraid of the possibility of plots in the future. As the result, he became paranoiac, executed everybody who caused any suspicions, and repressed a lot of senators and even killed his wife and son. Moreover, he was far from the solution of state affairs as preferred leading leisure life and spending the treasury on entertainment. Commodus associated himself with the reincarnation of Hercules and ruled like a god; according to Historia Augusta, his status was even officially recognized by the senate. Varner highlights that he promoted such aspects of Hercules as hunting and athletic prowess; he took part in gladiator games and demonstrated his power defeating and killing wild animals. Gibbon writes that Commodus was wealthy and cruel and these qualities accompanied each other during his life. At the same time, Commodus lived in his imaginary world, and his refusal to solve political issues and paranoia resulted in the transfer of power to his minions and the rise of corruption.
Summing the reign of Commodus, the famous Roman historian Cassius Dio writes, “our history now descends from a kingdom of gold to one of iron and rust.” Commodus was a cruel but weak ruler who “had nothing to wish and everything to enjoy.” He placed entertainment and depravity above state affairs and wasted money and resources appreciated by his predecessors. As the result, the achievements of Five Good Emperors were destroyed, and the era of prosperity that required work and wisdom was on the wane. He had no descendants as murdered his son, and his death symbolized the end of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty and the beginning of the Year of Five Emperors who contributed to the decline of the Roman prosperity even more.
Works Cited
Dio, Cassius. Roman History: Epitome of Book LXXII. From Loeb Classic Library Edition, 1927. University of Chicago. Accessed 11 Jan 2017. http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/72*.html.
Gibbon, Edward. The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire: Volume I. New York, NY: Cosimo Inc., 2008.
Historia Augusta: Volume I. From Loeb Classic Library, 1921. Trans. by David Magie. University of Chicago. Accessed 11 Jan 2017. http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/e/roman/texts/historia_augusta/commodus*.html.
Varner, Eric R. Mutilation and Transformation: Damnatio Memoriae and Roman Imperial Portraiture. Leiden: Brill, 2004.
