Hadrian

76 - 138

Relationship	People
Children	Antoninus Pius
Associated	Marcus Aurelius, Plutarch

On the day after the death of Roman emperor Trajan, Publius Aelius Hadrianus was revealed to be his adopted son. Although Hadrian was related to Trajan on his father's side, and had been groomed for succession by Trajan in a number of military campaigns and civil posts, his accession was not universally approved. Dissent within the senate quickly led to the executions of four senators accused of plotting treason.

Trajan's reign of warfare and territorial expansion saw Rome grow to its greatest extent. In contrast, Hadrian's reign was one of peace and consolidation, with only one serious revolt in Judaea in 132 AD. Hadrian was a keen scholar and avid traveller, journeying all over the empire within his short lifetime. He also left behind him spectacular buildings such as the Pantheon in Rome and his villa at Tivoli. However his greatest legacy to the empire was the establishment of frontiers, marking a halt to imperial expansion. He built walls in Africa to control transhumance routes, and in Germany to delineate Roman control territory. In Britain he built the stone wall which bears his name, perhaps the most enduring of his frontier lines.

Hadrian died in 138 in his villa at Baiae, age 62. The cause of death is believed to have been heart failure.