Commodus would also slay exotic animals, such as lions, ostriches, hippos, elephants, and giraffes. Maximus is a powerful Roman general, loved by the people and the aging Emperor, Marcus Aurelius. This horrified the Roman people. His family is murdered, and he becomes a slave, and then sold off to become a gladiator. A bust of Commodus as a youth. Ridley Scott's Gladiator famously kills off Maximus (Russell Crowe) at the end, but the original plan for the ending was very different. In 166, at the age of five, Commodus was made Caesar, along with his younger brother Marcus Annius Verus. Commodus never killed his gladiatorial adversaries, instead accepting their surrenders. The real Commodus was also taken out by a Senate plot, although less publicly: After a few unsuccessful attempts, he was strangled to death in his bathroom by a professional wrestler moonlighting as an assassin. Roman Artwork. But it didnt take long for him to delegate his leadership responsibilities to others so that he could engage in activities in which he enjoyed. Far from celebrating his descent from Marcus Aurelius, the actual source of his power, he stressed his own personal uniqueness as the bringer of a new order, seeking to re-cast the empire in his own image. As he was physically strong, his chief interest was in sport: he took part in horse racing, chariot racing, and combat with beasts and men, mostly in private but also on occasion in public. The first attempt used poisoned meat, but Commodus vomited it up. Crowe toldEmpire magazinein 2020 that originally, Maximus survived: Crowe said he used to joke that his character would "end up running a f****** pizzeria by the Colosseum." To help answer that question, here are five of the key elements of the story and their historical precedents. Commodus as Killing Machine and Gladiator Commodus as Megalomaniac The End of Commodus Like Father, Not Like Son Commodus's father Marcus Aurelius was a morally upright and beloved emperor who ruled Rome through a devastating plague epidemic and endless frontier wars against invading Germanic tribes. ( Public Domain ). This biographical article related to crime is a stub. The long line of ancient Roman emperors is marked by a strange pattern: Almost every exceptionally brilliant emperor was succeeded by an exceptionally mad one. When Marcia found a list of people Commodus intended to have executed, she discovered that she, the prefect Laetus and Eclectus were on it. 180-192 AD. Maximus is given a very clear ending, but what about the rest of Rome? [38] Cassius Dio claimed that citizens of Rome who were missing their feet through accident or illness were taken to the arena, where they were tethered together for Commodus to club to death while pretending they were giants. Are the Misty Peaks of the Azores Remnants of the Legendary Atlantis? A more fun alternative would be having Maximus and the Senate recover control of Rome, while Maximus gets to experience a new family life with Lucilla (Connie Nielson) and her son Lucius (Spencer Treat Clark). The legions were renamed Commodianae, the fleet which imported grain from Africa was termed Alexandria Commodiana Togata, the Senate was entitled the Commodian Fortunate Senate, his palace and the Roman people themselves were all given the name Commodianus, and the day on which these reforms were decreed was to be called Dies Commodianus. "De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and Their Families", Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, "Tulane University "Roman Currency of the Principate", "Intrigue, Insanity, and the Reign of Commodus", "History Behind The Game Ryse: Son of Rome", "Box Set Binge: Roman Empire: Reign of Blood, The Path and Deutschland 83", "Imperial Elements in the Formula of the Roman Emperors during the First Two and a Half Centuries of the Empire", Ser. Wikimedia CommonsAn illustration of the murder of Commmodus. Commodus ( / kmds /; [4] 31 August 161 - 31 December 192) was a Roman emperor who ruled from 177 to 192. Commodus was succeeded by Pertinax, whose reign was short-lived; he would become the first claimant to be usurped during the Year of the Five Emperors. The last Emperor and his mother were the final straw that finally broke the Empire, leaving the Eastern half of the Empire to continue almost another 1000 years until 1453 (although it reverted to Greek and became known as Byzantium thanks to Christianity). Commodus murders his father (Richard Harris) to gain power, orders the death of war hero Maximus (Russell Crowe) in order to circumvent any possible challenge to his rule, puts the moves on his. [27] Another event, as recorded by the historian Aelius Lampridius, took place at the Roman baths at Terme Taurine, where the emperor had an attendant thrown into an oven after he had found his bathwater to be lukewarm. And while some people may seem content with the story as it stands, our view is that there existcountless mysteries, scientific anomalies and surprising artifacts thathave yet to be discovered and explained. [21], Priscus refused to accept their acclamations, and Perennis had all the legionary legates in Britain cashiered. He is based in the UK and studied English at Kings College London. Commodus was a spoiled, narcissistic young man who was something of an embarrassment to his father. 37 Dirty Medieval Manuscripts That Prove People In The Middle Ages Weren't So Prudish After All, Inside The Little-Known Story Of Laura Bullion, The 'Thorny Rose' Of The Wild Bunch, What Stephen Hawking Thinks Threatens Humankind The Most, 27 Raw Images Of When Punk Ruled New York, Join The All That's Interesting Weekly Dispatch. In the view of Dio Cassius, his accession marked the descent "from a kingdom of gold to one of iron and rust".[20]. However, just when the days of the mad emperors seemed long gone, Commodus brought the madness roaring back. The first, Sextus Tigidius Perennis, Commodus put to death after becoming convinced he was conspiring against him. Whereas the reign of Marcus Aurelius had been marked by almost continuous warfare, Commodus's rule was comparatively peaceful in the military sense, but was also characterised by political strife and the increasingly arbitrary and capricious behaviour of the emperor himself. Its protagonist, Maximus, is entirely fictitious. Our editors will review what youve submitted and determine whether to revise the article. [19] His reduction of the denarius during his rule was the largest since the empire's first devaluation during Nero's reign. Her motive is alleged to have been the envy of the Empress Crispina. [15], On 23 December 176, the two imperatores celebrated a joint triumph. In 187, one of the leaders of the deserters, Maternus, came from Gaul intending to assassinate Commodus at the Festival of the Great Goddess in March, but he was betrayed and executed. In the contest, Maximus is a victim of foul play as Commodus preemptively wounds him, then later produces a blade. Husband of Salonia Matidia: Levick (2014), p. 161. To "accept kinship with Commodus the bluntly pragmatic decision was taken to deify the former emperor, thus legitimizing Severus' seizure of power. He was the brother of Princess Lucilla, and uncle of Lucius. He wanted to avenge the deaths of his wife and son, as well as clear the way for the Senate to restore order in Rome. "Back!" he cried. [34] The Romans found Commodus's gladiatorial combat to be scandalous and disgraceful. One of the two praetorian prefects, Publius Tarrutenius Paternus, had actually been involved in the conspiracy but his involvement was not discovered until later on, and in the aftermath, he and his colleague, Sextus Tigidius Perennis, were able to arrange for the murder of Saoterus, the hated chamberlain. At the end of June, a mob demonstrated against Cleander during a horse race in the Circus Maximus: he sent the Praetorian Guard to put down the disturbances, but Pertinax, who was now City Prefect of Rome, dispatched the Vigiles Urbani to oppose them. He thought of himself as the reincarnation of Hercules, frequently emulating the legendary hero's feats by appearing in the arena to fight a variety of wild animals. [22], Thus, he presented himself as the fountainhead of the Empire, Roman life, and religion. www.alexanderdoddy.com. In the story of Gladiator, the Roman general Maximus is betrayed by the evil Emperor Commodus. Wikimedia CommonsEmperor Commodus lust for power is widely credited with bringing an end to the fabled Pax Romana. Intro: 0:00. Commodus was born on August 31, 161 AD in Lanuvium, 14 miles (22.5 km) southeast of Rome. He was very vain, and strongly believed himself to be the reincarnation of Hercules so much so that he ordered statues of himself be dressed like Hercules, and he ordered that people call him Hercules, son of Zeus. He also devalued Roman currency, reducing the weight of the denarius and reducing the purity of silver. Heinz, W. (1986). Commodus would enter the arena in the garb of Mercury and casting aside all his other garments, would begin his exhibition wearing only a tunic and unshod.. Now, researchers have proposed a hypothesis that seems to support the idea that the Ivar the Boneless was likely the son of legendary Viking king Ragnar Lothbrok, and raided alongside his father and brothers, eventually becoming ruler of York in England in the 9th century AD. Corrections? [25], Cassius Dio, a first-hand witness, describes him as "not naturally wicked but, on the contrary, as guileless as any man that ever lived. after executing a double-sword beheading on an unfortunate opponent, delivering an iconic moment in movie and internet history. The film portrays a fictionalized account of historical events, and it illuminates aspects of the culture of ancient Rome. Also, in Britain in 184, the governor Ulpius Marcellus re-advanced the Roman frontier northward to the Antonine Wall, but the legionaries revolted against his harsh discipline and acclaimed another legate, Priscus, as emperor. Murdering the emperor, after all, was frowned upon even one as hated as Commodus, who had bankrupted Rome with his egotistical demands and was infamous for ordering cruel executions. Available from: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/128108/Commodus, Lucius Aurelius Commodus Roman-Empire. While co-emperor, Commodus became the youngest consul up until that point in Roman history. Commodus, in full Caesar Marcus Aurelius Commodus Antoninus Augustus, original name (until 180 ce) Lucius Aelius Aurelius Commodus, (born August 31, 161 ce, Lanuvium, Latium [now Lanuvio, Italy]died December 31, 192), Roman emperor from 177 to 192 (sole emperor after 180). Roman Emperor Lucius Aurelius Commodus was a corrupt ruler who was not well-received by the Roman people during his reign. In April 175, Avidius Cassius, Governor of Syria, declared himself emperor following rumours that Marcus Aurelius had died. Cassius Dio recorded one incident where, after becoming tired out, Commodus ordered a cup of chilled wine to him and drank it at one gulp. In an amusing anecdote, Dio continued, At this both the populace and we senators all immediately shouted out the words so familiar at drinking-bouts, Long life to you!'. 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