Monday, March 21, 2011

Why do many historians consider Hadrian to have been the "best emperor"?

Hadrian was born in January 76 A.D to a well off family and was Roman Emperor from 117 to 138, until he died. Hadrian is most commonly known for the Hadrian Wall and is most notable for that. The Hadrian wall basically marks the most north part of the Roman Empire.  Trajan was the Roman Empire before Hadrian and Trajan named Hadrian emperor right before his death. Hadrian spent a lot of time with his military and wore military clothing most of the time. Hadrian trained his army to be the best and even gave them false alerts to make sure they’re on track. He did not really have natural military skill, but his knowledge of the army and his skill of leadership show his strategic talent.
When Hadrian was named Emperor, Hadrian did not at first go to Rome; he stayed out in the East to slow down the Jewish revolt that had broken out under Trajan. Also when he was Emperor, he surrendered Trajan's conquests in Mesopotamia, considering the Mesopotamians to be indefensible. There was almost a war with Parthia, but Hadrian succeeded in negotiating a peace. This shows that we can think Hadrian as a peace maker and thinking about more of the people than himself. Hadrian also liked to demonstrate his knowledge and moreover loved art. Above all Roman Emperors, Hadrian had the most love for arts. Hadrian's Villa at Tibur was the greatest Roman example of an Alexandrian garden. People believe Hadrian to be the best Roman emperor because of his difference in personality and interests and his love to satisfy the people of the Roman Empire.
            

1 comment:

  1. Very good detail used in this post. I like how you talked about what we can learn from Hadrian's life. Good attributes used for Hadrian. Here is a good link: http://library.thinkquest.org/26907/emperors/hadrian.htm

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