Hadrian

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General Notes

Hadrian (in Latin, Publius Aelius Hadrianus) (ad76-138), emperor of Rome (117-138), who declared an end to the expansion of the empire and drew back to the limits established by Augustus. One of the most cultured of the emperors, he was a patron of virtually all the arts.

Hadrian was born January 24, 76, either in Itálica, near Seville, Spain, or in Rome. When his father died in 85, he became the ward of a relative, the future emperor Trajan. Educated in Rome, Hadrian held various civil and military posts until Trajan became emperor in 98. He then served with distinction in military campaigns with Trajan on the Danube frontier and was made consul several times. As archon of Athens (112) he immersed himself in Greek culture, for which he demonstrated an abiding attachment. When Trajan died in 117, Hadrian was proclaimed emperor by the army, and his appointment was then ratified by the Roman Senate.

The Roman Empire at the time was repeatedly threatened by the revolts of subject peoples and by barbarian invasions. Recognizing the need for consolidation, Hadrian resolved to abandon the outlying provinces. He established a series of defense fortifications, including the famous Hadrian's Wall, that historically marked the end of Roman territorial expansion. At Rome he strengthened his position by liberalism toward the people, by support of poor children, and by a considerate attitude toward the Senate. In several extended tours he visited nearly every Roman province, setting local political, military, and economic affairs in order and strengthening loyalty to Rome. His favorite, Antinoüs, traveled with him; when the youth drowned, Hadrian deified him. In 134-35 the emperor revisited Judea, where he put down a lengthy insurrection of the Jews at a reported cost to them of half a million lives. Hadrian spent the closing years of his life partly in Rome and partly at his palatial villa at Tibur (modern Tivoli). He died at Baiae (modern Baia) on July 10, 138, and was succeeded as emperor by Antoninus Pius.

A highly cultivated man, Hadrian surrounded himself with poets, philosophers, and scholars. He wrote verse and prose in Latin and Greek with notable skill. Passionately interested in architecture, he erected in Rome such magnificent buildings as the Athenaeum (an academy for the promotion of learning), the Temple of Venus and Roma, the Pantheon (rebuilt), and his massive mausoleum (Castel Sant'Angelo), and, in Athens, many other buildings. Hadrian's villa was actually an entire town, with splendid buildings recalling the best he had seen in his travels and some of the finest statuary of ancient times.

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