I am Domitian

by John Garrett

I am Domitian, and I was born October 24, 51 AD. Unfortunately I was assassinated on September 18, 96 AD, but let’s not talk about that right now. I reigned from 81 AD until my death in 96. I had a father and a brother. My father was the start of the Flavian Dynasty. His name was Vespasian, and he ruled from 69 to 79 AD. Then Titus succeeded him in 79. My father Vespasian tried to match me up with Julia Flavia, but I refused because I had a lot of love for Domitia Longa, who I then married. He was my brother and I loved him so much that I built the Arch of Titus in memory of him. Once he died in 81 AD, I then succeeded him the following day, and I was the last of the Flavian Dynasty. I had the longest reign as the 11th Emperor with fifteen years until some Emperors reigned longer after me. As a younger man, I looked up to my brother a lot because he entertained me very much. Even though Titus got the privilege of being co-emperor during Vespasian’s rule, I only was left with honors but no responsibilities. Because Titus died unexpectedly, I had to be ready to rule Rome very well. When I was emperor I wanted to strengthen the economy so I made the Roman Coinage popular again. There were the aureas, gold coins, denarius, silver coins, sesterius, bronze, and as, the copper coin. I also ordered a massive building program to improve Rome. My government showed a totalitarian quality, and I really thought that I was like Augustus. As in military, I felt like I wanted to be more of a defensive army. I created the Limes Germanicus which made way for more roads. I also made forts and watchtowers that I decided to place along the Rhine River. Regarding religion, I just followed the regular roman religion, and I also thought that some of morals and customs were observed during my reign. Other than my religion and economy, I built some entertainment complexes. They were right next to each other because I was all about the entertainment. I also named them after myself. The Stadium of Domitian was the one with the games, and the Odeum of Domitian was the one with poetry recitations, musical concerts, and other entertaining ideas. Also like I said, I built an arch for my brother Titus called the Arch of Titus. I really admired him so I did indeed dedicate the arch to him. As Emperor, I tried my best to improve the economy and military even if I failed at some of the efforts