Autobiography of Vespasian

By Andrew Fortugno

I was born November 17th 9 A.D. in Falacrina, in the Sabine country near Reate. My father, Titus Flavius Sabinus, was an equestrian who worked as a custom official in the province of Asia and a money lender in Aventicum, where I lived for some time. My mother, Vespasia Polla, was the sister of a Senator and she prompted me to follow my older brother, who was also Titus Flavius Sabinus into public life. I served in the army as military tribune in Thrace in 36 A.D. and in the next year was elected quaestor serving in Crete and Cyrene. I rose through the ranks of Roman pubic office, elected aedile on my second in 39 A.D. then praetor on my first attempt in 40 A.D. while becoming acquainted with the Emperor Caligula. During this time I married Domitilla the Elder, the daughter of a Flavius Liberalis from Ferentium. We had two sons, Titus Flavius Vespasianus, Titus Flavius Domitianus, and a daughter Domitilla. When Claudius became emperor in 41 A.D., I was appointed legate of Legio II Augusta, stationed in Germania. In 43 A.D. with the II Augusta I participated in the Roman invasion of Britain, where I distinguished myself under the overall command of Aulus Plautius. My successes in Britain earned me triumphal regalia on my return to Rome. I was then elected consul for the last two months of 51 A.D., and afterwards I temporarily withdrew from public life. Coming out of retirement in 63 A.D., I was sent to the Africa Province as governor. While usually governorships were seen by ex-consuls as opportunities to extort huge amounts of money to regain their wealth they had spent on previous political campaigns, I used my time wisely in North Africa and mad friends instead of money which would be of value in years to come. However during my time in North Africa I had financial difficulties and was forced to mortgage my estates to my brother. I revived my fortune by turning to the mule trade and gained the nickname Mulio. After returning from Africa I toured Greece in Nero’s retinue, but lost Imperial favor after falling asleep during one of his lyre recitals, and was left in political wilderness. In 66 A.D., I was appointed to conduct the war in Judea and I had my elder son Titus serve on my staff. The revolt there had killed the previous governor. To restore control in Judea, thousands of Jews were killed and many towns destroyed. Jerusalem was taken in 70 A.D. and I was remembered by the Jews as a fair and humane official compared to the notorious Herod the Great. After the death of Nero in 68 A.D., there was a succession of short lived emperors and a year of civil wars. Galba was murdered by Otho, who was then defeated by Vitellius and Otho’s supporters then gave support to me. I was declared by the senate emperor while I was in Egypt in the December of 69A.D. After cleaning up the aftermath of the civil wars I came to Rome in mid-70 A.D. and began efforts to stay in power and prevent future revolts. I made significant attempts to control the public perception of my rule. I increased the amount of propaganda during my reign, such as stories of a supernatural emperor who was destined to rule the empire. I also gave financial rewards to writers who gave me good reports while condemning those before me. During my reign I ordered the construction of several buildings in Rome. I helped rebuild Rome after the civil war. I constructed a Temple of Peace to celebrate the victory in Jerusalem and to hold the relics recovered from there. I completed the temple to the Defied Claudius begun by Agrippa and then unfinished because of the construction of Nero’s Golden House. In 75 A.D., I altered Nero’s colossal statue of himself by adding a sun-ray crown to become a statue of Apollo. The Great Fire under Nero that cleared the space for his Golden House took a lot of land away from the people of Rome. I gave this land back to the people by constructing the Flavian Amphitheatre, which held up to fifty thousand spectators for gladiatorial events and public spectacles. The amphitheatre was also a monument glorifying Rome for the victory in Jerusalem. On the 23rd of June 79 A.D., I was on my deathbed and deteriorating, I requested help to stand as I believed an emperor should die on his feet. I died from intestinal inflammation that led to excessive diarrhea. My last words were, “Damn, I am already becoming a god!”

Septimius Severus

By Daniel Peters

Septimius Severus

On April 11, 145 A.D., the greatest emperor Rome would ever have was born. This great emperor was me, Septimius Severus. I had a magnificent childhood, having been born and raised in Leptis Magna, but the most significant events in my life happened later. At the young age of 25, I began my journey to becoming a consul through the Cursus Honorem by being made a Quaestor. After a long 20 years of hard work and moving up the ranks, I became Consul. Within 3 years I was made emperor due to untimely deaths of my opponents.

My family was wealthy and educated. Some even say that I was eager for more education than I actually received. I can only thank my parents, Publius Septimius Geta and Fulvia Pia, for giving me such great opportunities. In fact, without my father’s family’s distinguished equestrian rank, I may not have been able to become a Quaestor. At the age of thirty, I married my first wife named Paccia Marciana. She too was from Leptis Magna. She died after 11 years of marriage for some reason still unknown to me. I was eager to remarry and had heard of a woman from Syria who had been foretold to marry a king, so I sought her as my wife. Her name was Julia Domna, and she gave birth to my two most notable children, Caracalla and Geta. I loved them so much that I made them co-emperors with me, and I chose them to succeed me in holding the position as emperor They were very noble me, and they even accompanied me on conquests up to my death.

Some of my greatest accomplishments were my military expansions and buildings. In 197 A.D., I waged war against the Parthian Empire as an act of retaliation. To reward myself for this grand first victory, I created the Arch of Septimius Severus when I returned to Rome. I campaigned in Scotland and reconstructed Hadrian’s Wall for fortification purposes. My conquests were very successful, especially since I replaced the whole Praetorian Guard with thousands of my bravest and strongest men. The new army I created was a great one, and because of their great work, I raised their annual wages from 300 to 500 denarii. Because of all this military expansion, the Roman Senate did not like me. When I became emperor, I had them all executed for conspiring to kill me. I knew Rome would not be peaceful without a senate, so I replaced the old senate with some of my favorite men.

I did not like the Christians, for they had given me many problems. Initially I did not make any new laws about persecuting Christians, and I let the persecutions continue, but too many Romans were converting to Christianity so I proposed and passed a law forbidding anyone in my empire to convert to Christianity. I was less violent about the persecutions than some of my predecessors, so it’s not like I was the first to kill Christians.

I was an avid builder. Sometimes I did not even have a reason to build such magnificent structures like the Septizodium. The Septizodium was a massive fountain located right in the Roman Forum near the Circus Maximus for all to see. It was an enormous and magnificent structure with no real purpose. The citizens of Rome loved me and adored my great buildings. For this reason, I built many things for them. I even built arches and banks for the people of my hometown, Leptis Magna. Although I was the greatest emperor, my reign had to end due to an unforeseen death by disease while on a military conquest in Eboracum in 211 A.D..

Trajan

by Wilson Johnson

Trajan Autobiography

I, Marcus Ulpuis Nerva Trainus, commonly known as Trajan, was born on September 18, 53 AD. I was born into a non-patrician family in the province of Hispania Baetica, today known as Spain. I seized power and respect from the public while Domitian was emperor. I was the general in the Roman army but I was succeeded by Marcus Cocceuis Nerva on September 18, 96 AD. I was adopted as ehir to Nerva by the Praetorian Guard. Nerva died on January 27, 98 AD, and I took over. I am best known for my building program in Rome, making it bigger and more elegant with art. I reshaped the city of Rome. I made the Trajan’s Forum in 100 AD. They type of structure is known as the imperial fora. My forum is located on the Quirinal and Capitoline hills. Many excavations were made for escape routes for military officers in case of troubled times. My forum was also built from a stoa-lines piazza that measures 660 by 390 feetl. There were two exedrae on each side, and there were also libraries> I also made a market known as Trajan’s market. My market is consisted of complex ruins within Rome found on the Via dei Fori Imperiali. This was on the opposite side of the Colosseum. I built this around 100-110 AD. ON the bottom floor were markets and places to sell items which also had two extensively big hallways. These hallways were used for parties and concerst put on. On the top story there were offices and rooms used by people that had military positions. I also made a Column for myself and my wife for when we died. My column is located near the Quirinal Hill which is north of the Roman Forum. My column was completed in 113 AD. My column is 125 feet in height, which contains a staircase with 185 stairs within the column leading up to the top with my statue. Both my wife’s ashes and my ashes are buried under this huge column of mine. I was big on extending the Roman empire and activities related to buildings. My adopted heir was Hadrian, who is best known for his enormous pleasure palace. I did not die from an assassin, nor did I kill myself. I died of a stork while I was trying to spread out the Roman empire. My health collapsed so suddenly. I died on August 8, 117 AD. I died a well successful emperor.