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Posted by Shogun 144 on November 18 2005, 04:26 PM
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Trajan was one of the greatest Roman emperors. The second of “The Five Good Emperors” (Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius) and the emperor who brought Rome to her greatest height in territory, Trajan is still regarded highly today.
Trajan’s birth was unusual for one who would become Emperor. Trajan was born on September 18, 53 AD in the town of Italica in Hispania Baetica (modern Andalusia). His father was M. Ulpius Traianus and his was mother was Marica. His birth name was Marcus Ulpius Traianus. Due to scarcity of sources not much is known of Trajan’s early life except that he had ambition to follow in his father’s footsteps as a senator and received an education in Rome. For this reason young Trajan probably spent most of his adolescent years serving as a staff tribune for Legio X, which his father commanded.
It was in the 70s AD that Trajan’s career really took off. Around 75 AD when his father was governor of Syria Trajan became a legate for one of the legions and met Pompeia Plotina, a noblewoman from Gallia Narbonensis, whom he married. In 78 Trajan started on the cursus honorum and was elected quaestor. Then in 84 he was made a praetor and during this time was appointed as a guardian for his little cousin who would later become Hadrian. In 89 AD his holding a praetorship qualified Trajan for command of a legion, Legio VII Gemina. Trajan had barely just arrived at the headquarters of his new command in Hispania Tarraconensis when news arrived from Rome that the Emperor Domitian had ordered him to assist in the crushing of the rebellion of Antoninus Saturninus, governor of Upper Germania. It is probable that Saturninus was already crushed by the time Legio VII and Trajan arrived but they stayed at the Rhine anyway and participated the campaigns of Domitian against the Germanic tribes to the north. It was during these campaigns that Trajan would gain and hone the skills that made him such a legendary commander. In 91 Trajan became Consul for the first time and Domitian, who had grown to like Trajan in this time, rewarded him with the governorship of Moesia Inferior. Trajan did not spend long in Moesia for Domitian soon decided to make him governor of Upper Germania with his headquarters at Moguntiacum (modern Mainz). On September 18, 96 AD, Trajan’s 43rd birthday, Domitian was assassinated and the elderly Nerva was put forth as the new emperor. The Senate, having put up with the autocratic Domitian long enough, eagerly accepted Nerva as emperor. Nerva realized very soon that he was not popular with the army, and the emperor who did not have the support of the army was bound to be a dead one real soon. So in October, 97 AD Nerva adopted Trajan as his son and successor, prompting a name change to Caesar Nerva Traianus Germanicus. News reached Trajan of his adoption by way of Hadrian. The Senate had no problems with Trajan and accepted, the army was overjoyed at the choice of their most popular commander for Caesar. On January 1, 98 AD Trajan, who was still in Germania, was made Consul alongside Nerva and invested with the powers of tribunicia potestas making Trajan joint emperor with Nerva. However Nerva’s reign would not last long, on January 29, 98 AD he died unexpectedly in his sleep. Almost immediately the Senate accepted Trajan as Emperor and the Army universally acclaimed him in what was probably the smoothest transition of power in Roman history. The Senate bestowed upon the absent Trajan the new name Caesar Divi Nervae Filius Nerva Traianus Augustus.
Trajan’s ascension marked a fresh beginning for Rome. Despite being made Emperor Trajan did not leave his post in Germania upon receiving the news. Instead he remained in Germania for the entire year of 98 AD overseeing the finalization of the defenses (the famous limes) the settling in of the military garrisons. He did send orders to Rome however for the execution of the Praetorians who forced Nerva to kill Domitian’s killers. Trajan finally left Germania in 99 and on his way to Rome he made a detour into the provinces of Moesia and Pannonia and during his time there made preparations for a campaign against the Dacians, whose actions had gone unpunished long enough. Finally Trajan arrived in Rome, marching on foot as a sign of his humility, to the cheers of adoring crowds and the applause of the Senators, a rare warm reception in Roman history. One of Trajan’s first acts was to give a generous gift of cash and grain to the poor people in Rome and lower the tax rate as well. Trajan also instituted (although this often is erroneously attributed to Nerva) the alimenta, an state institution that appropriated public funds to the support of the poor children of the Italian peninsula. Trajan did not forget his other duties and saw to the state honoring of Nerva and the reversal of the harsh policies of Domitian, freeing and restoring to rank several falsely accused individuals. The people loved Trajan for his actions and began, even though his reign had barely begun, to call him Optimus (Latin: The Best), and before long this appeared in his name, even though it would be several years before the Senate bestowed the title on him officially. It was during this time (100 AD) that Hadrian, in order to strengthen ties to his cousin married Sabina, Trajan’s favorite niece. However Trajan’s thoughts were constantly on the Dacians, they had shamed Rome during the reign of Domitian and Trajan was determined to erase that shame at all costs by subduing Dacia. To further preparations Trajan began moving a total of thirteen legions from Germania and Britannia to Moesia and Pannonia; he also established two new legions for the campaign: Legio II Traiana and Legio XXX Ulpia. Incidentally this brought the total number of legions up to thirty and the number dedicated to the campaign up to fifteen, meaning that Trajan was concentrating half of Rome’s military might on Dacia.
Now having completed his preparations Trajan set his eyes on his prize. On March 25th, 101 AD Rome went to war with Dacia for the third time, this time around Trajan was in command. Trajan had in his employ the famed architect Apollodorus of Damascus, whose skills were to be put to the test in the Dacian campaign. Early on Apollodorus builds a sixty tier bridge over the Danube to allow the massive army into Dacia. Decebalus, the king of Dacia, sought to stop the Romans by adopting a scorched earth policy and concentrating his army at the Iron Gates. But Trajan had foreseen the possibility and had a huge supply train to feed his troops with as they rapidly advanced across Dacia. At the Iron Gates the Romans faced off with the Dacians for the first time and during the hard fighting Apollodorus pulled off his greatest feat yet, constructing a roadway that cantilevered up the sheer rock face. After a huge bloody battle Decebalus and his army retreated, Trajan had won his way through the gateway into Dacia. In the winter months of 101 AD Trajan would spend most of his time chasing Decebalus across Moesia. In the spring of 102 Trajan renewed his assault on Dacia with startling swiftness; nothing the Dacians could do was capable of stopping the determined Trajan, not even a last ditch defense in the mountains. After crashing through the Carpathian Mountains Trajan divides the Roman army in two, in order to overwhelm the Dacians and after the taking of Sarmizegetusa (the Dacian capital) Trajan accepts a frantic peace delegation from Decebalus. Trajan had an ulterior motive for this: The Roman troops are growing weary because of the swift pace that Trajan set, he needed a respite. At the meeting with Decebalus Trajan dictates his terms: The ceding of a large chunk of Dacian land, the disarmament of the Dacian army and lastly Decebalus had to accept Trajan as his overlord. Decebalus accepts and Trajan goes home to Rome where he finds that the Senate has bestowed a triumph upon him and seen fit to add the title Dacius (Latin: Conqueror of Dacia) to his name. Trajan accepts the accolades of victory and rests, but it will not last long.
Despite his victory Trajan is forced to return to Dacia to finish them off after three years of peace. In 105 AD the Dacians launch a surprise attack on the Roman garrisons in the lands gained in the last war, slaughtering them to a man and retaking the territory. This stirs up the Iazyges to the north and when news reaches Trajan of this he is furious and sets out to deal with Decebalus once and for all. 11 legions are moved to the Dacian frontier and in the summer Trajan arrives after recovering from a Dacian attempt on his life in Rome. For the rest of 105 Trajan fends off a mass attack on his army by the Dacians, and even though the fighting is fierce the Romans survive. In 106 AD Trajan orders a counterattack and this time around takes his time to destroy the Dacians completely. In everyplace there is resistance the Romans completely destroy it and massacre the population, in this way Trajan hopes to convey that he is not playing nice. After the Romans once again break through the last defense in the Carpathians Decebalus calls on every Dacian warrior to come to Sarmizegetusa for protection. Trajan notices this and decides to send his best legions to attack Sarmizegetusa: Legio II “Adriutix”, Legio IV “Flavia Felix”, and a vexillatio (Latin: detachment) from Legio VI “Ferrata”. The first assault Trajan made against Sarmizegetusa failed miserably, and this made Trajan realize this would be a long siege unless he did something. When the water supply was discovered Trajan had it cut so that the garrison would die of thirst. To speed things up Trajan ordered all catapults to start firing flaming rocks over the walls and into the city, this flaming bombardment would kill Venzia the high priest. When the Romans entered the city they found that Decebalus and some of his men had escaped. However news soon reached Trajan that some soldiers had discovered a cave with the entire Dacian treasury inside (which is estimated to have weighed 165,500 kilos in gold and 331,000 in silver). This find was a great boon to Trajan since the Roman treasury was small due to the fact that he refused to levy heavy taxes on the people. Following on the heels of discovery was the news that Decebalus was hiding at Porolissum. Moving fast Trajan was able to keep the Dacians boxed in and he defeated them for the last time. But Decebalus once again fled, but Trajan sent cavalry after him. In the wilds of Dacia the rouge king committed suicide ending the war. At long last the war with Dacia was over, Rome had won. Dacia would be reorganized by Trajan into a Roman province and colony and the gold and silver mines would enrich Roman coffers for centuries to come. When Trajan returned to Rome he celebrated a magnificent triumph that would last 123 days. Now with a treasury that held more money then he knew how to deal with Trajan looked forward to a peaceful period of rest, which he got.
With the Dacian Wars concluded Trajan now focused on domestic matters in the Empire. At the outset of his new domestic period Trajan had Apollodorus create a huge forum (now known Trajan’s Forum) with as the center piece a magnificent sculpted column that told the history of the Dacian Wars. Trajan’s Column, as it is now known, remains a wealth of information for us. While his forum and column were under construction Trajan learned that Rabbel Soter, King of Nabatea, had died and left his realm to Trajan. Nabatea would become the new province of Arabia Petraea, and Trajan’s popularity continued to soar due to amazement at this. Following this Trajan created a new administrative post, the post of curator. These curators were responsible for overseeing the financial affairs of the provinces. The most well known curator was Pliny the Younger whose letters with Trajan are famous as an insight into the mind of the Emperor. Trajan also began using more men from the equestrian class in the imperial ministries and less freedmen, a trend that culminated under Hadrian. Trajan also saw to the expansion of the alimenta, wanting to make sure that all orphans were fed and clothed. An Arch dedicated to Trajan in Beneventum (modern Benevento) highlights this in its reliefs. Trajan did not neglect beautifying the cities of the empire, especially Rome and his native Spanish cities. As mentioned above Trajan began building his forum almost as soon as the celebrations over the Dacian victory were over. Trajan’s Forum was to prove to be the largest and grandest of all the Roman forums and it was also Apollodorus’ masterpiece contruction. The centerpiece of Trajan’s Forum was the Basilica Ulpia, the largest building under a wooden roof in Roman history. The massive courtyard of the forum contained a mounted statue of Trajan, the famous Trajan’s Column, and two libraries one on each side of the courtyard, one for Latin scrolls and the other for Greek (Hadrian later added a temple). To the north of the forum were Trajan’s Markets, which served as a ancient shopping mall and headquarters for the agency responsible for grain distribution to the poor. The last significant building project in Rome itself was Trajan’s Baths, the first of the huge bath complexes. Trajan also built extensively outside of Rome, Trajan’s Arch, mentioned above, was the beginning point of the Via Traiana (Latin: Trajan’s Way) a road that went from Beneventum on down to Brundisium that replaced the old Via Appia (Latin: Appian’s Way). Trajan also added to the harbors of Italy with his contruction. A new hexagonal harbor complex at Ostia made that city Italy’s premier harbor, replacing the old harbor at Puteoli. The harbors of Terracina and Anacona also profited from Trajan’s building spree. The last of these harbor projects was at Centumcellae (modern Civitavecchia) whose new harbor made the city a vacation spot from Roman nobles, including the Emperor. Trajan’s last great building project was the beautification of his home land of Hispania. Not much of Trajan’s work in Spain survives except for a great bridge at Alcantara and a triumphal arch in Merida.
Trajan could not stay in domestic affairs forever, being a soldier at heart, and in 113 AD things picked up again. Around 113 AD Osroes I of Parthia, one of two rival kings, invaded Armenia and put his nephew Exedares on the throne. This move unsettled the careful balance of power in the Middle East that had been in place for fifty years, since Nero, and Trajan was not going to put up with it. He ordered a mobilization of Roman forces and ordered them to concentrate at Antioch in Syria. Osroes tried to please the Romans by putting his brother Parthamasiris on the throne, but Trajan would not be appeased and as soon as he arrived in Antioch the Romans invaded Armenia and overran the kingdom, killing Parthamasiris and annexing the land to Rome. Trajan then turned to invade Parthia itself in 114, invading from Armenia. Over the next three years Trajan trounced Osroes thoroughly, taking the key cities of Babylon and Seleukeia with ease. Despite numerous pleas from Osroes and a determined defense from the Parthians to defend their home the Romans bulldozed through, culminating the fall of the Parthian capital of Ctesiphon (modern Baghdad) in early 116. Osroes was summarily dethroned and Trajan placed the captured son of Osroes, Parthamaspates on the Parthian throne as a client king. For this Trajan received the title of Parthicus (Latin: Conqueror of Parthia) from the Senate, Trajan also learned that in 114 the senate had voted to give Trajan the title “Optimus Princeps” (Latin: Best First Citizen) to add to his name. Meanwhile along the Persian Gulf Mirthadates IV, brother of Osroes, declared himself King. To Trajan this was unacceptable and he marched to deal with Mirthadates, crushing him. At this point ancient sources say Trajan wept because he was too old now to match Alexander’s legacy of conquest. Nevertheless Trajan did lead an expedition through the Khuzestan Mountains and captured Susa. Troubles now arose, the city of Hatra back to the west was still holding out against a Roman siege despite its position and when Trajan traveled to Hatra to deal with the problem himself he suffered from a heat stroke and was forced to command from the rear, in the city of Selinus. Revolts then broke out in the newly declared province of Mesopotamia and Judea towards year’s end and Trajan was able to coordinate from Selinus the crushing of these rebellions. However as the new year of 117 dawned Trajan’s health began to decline fast, as his last command Trajan appointed Hadrian as commander-in-chief in the east. On August 19, 117 AD Trajan died at Selinus of edema, so passed Trajan one of the greatest emperors of all Roman history at the age of 64.
Trajan’s legacy would have a long effect on Rome. In the immediate aftermath of Trajan’s death Hadrian became the next emperor, although Trajan had never named him heir. It is commonly believed that Hadrian became heir only due to the favor of Trajan’s wife Pompeia Plotina, who outlasted her husband by three years. In the more far reaching aftermath Trajan's accomplishments were so great that even into the Byzantine era each new reign was opened in the Senate with the prayer: “Felicior Augusto, Melior Traiano” (Latin: May he be luckier then Augustus and better then Trajan). Perhaps most interestingly enough is that Trajan is one of those rare individuals whose reputation had remained untarnished by time for 1,900 years.
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