Lucius Aelius
Encyclopedia
Lucius Aelius Caesar became the adopted son and intended successor, of Roman Emperor Hadrian
(January 24, 76 – July 10, 138), but never attained the throne.
Aelius was born with the name Lucius Ceionius Commodus, and later called Lucius Aelius Caesar. He was of the gens
Ceionia. His father Lucius Ceionius Commodus (the author of the Augustan History
adds the cognomen Verus) was consul in 106 and his paternal grandfather of the same name was consul in 78. His paternal ancestors were from Etruria
and were of consular rank. His mother was a Roman woman called Aelia or Fundania Plautia. Augustan History
states that his maternal grandfather and his maternal ancestors were of consular rank. He is often mistakenly referred to as Lucius Aelius Verus, though this name is not attested outside the Augusatan History and probably arose as a manuscript error.
Before 130, Aelius married Avidia Plautia
, a well-connected Roman Noblewoman who was the daughter of the Roman Senator Gaius Avidius Nigrinus
. Plautia bore Aelius, two sons and two daughters, who were:
Aelius was adopted by an aging and ailing Hadrian in 136 and named successor to the throne, although he had no military experience; he had served as a senator. He had powerful political connections, but was in poor health. His tastes were luxurious and his life extravagant. He is said to have had Ovid
's erotic poetry and "a book about Apicius
" (presumably Apion
's On the Luxury of Apicius) as bedside reading, and to have personally invented the luxury dish tetrapharmacum
.
Aelius himself was never to become emperor, dying shortly before Hadrian. After Aelius' death, Hadrian adopted Antoninus Pius
(September 19, 86 – March 7, 161) on the condition that Antoninus Pius adopt the younger Lucius Verus (properly called Lucius Ceionius Commodus the Younger; he did not take the cognomen Verus until his accession after the death of Pius) and Hadrian's great-nephew by marriage, Marcus Aurelius (April 26, 121 – March 17, 180). Marcus Aurelius later co-ruled with Lucius Verus as joint Roman Emperors, until Lucius Verus died in 169. After Marcus Aurelius was sole ruler until his own death in 180. Aelius is a major character in Marguerite Yourcenar
's Memoirs of Hadrian
.
Hadrian
Hadrian , was Roman Emperor from 117 to 138. He is best known for building Hadrian's Wall, which marked the northern limit of Roman Britain. In Rome, he re-built the Pantheon and constructed the Temple of Venus and Roma. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian was a humanist and was philhellene in...
(January 24, 76 – July 10, 138), but never attained the throne.
Aelius was born with the name Lucius Ceionius Commodus, and later called Lucius Aelius Caesar. He was of the gens
Gens
In ancient Rome, a gens , plural gentes, referred to a family, consisting of all those individuals who shared the same nomen and claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens was called a stirps . The gens was an important social structure at Rome and throughout Italy during the...
Ceionia. His father Lucius Ceionius Commodus (the author of the Augustan History
Augustan History
The Augustan History is a late Roman collection of biographies, in Latin, of the Roman Emperors, their junior colleagues and usurpers of the period 117 to 284...
adds the cognomen Verus) was consul in 106 and his paternal grandfather of the same name was consul in 78. His paternal ancestors were from Etruria
Etruria
Etruria—usually referred to in Greek and Latin source texts as Tyrrhenia—was a region of Central Italy, an area that covered part of what now are Tuscany, Latium, Emilia-Romagna, and Umbria. A particularly noteworthy work dealing with Etruscan locations is D. H...
and were of consular rank. His mother was a Roman woman called Aelia or Fundania Plautia. Augustan History
Augustan History
The Augustan History is a late Roman collection of biographies, in Latin, of the Roman Emperors, their junior colleagues and usurpers of the period 117 to 284...
states that his maternal grandfather and his maternal ancestors were of consular rank. He is often mistakenly referred to as Lucius Aelius Verus, though this name is not attested outside the Augusatan History and probably arose as a manuscript error.
Before 130, Aelius married Avidia Plautia
Avidia Plautia
Avidia Plautia Nigrini or most commonly known as Avidia Plautia , was a well-connected noble Roman woman. She is among the lesser known members of the ruling Nerva–Antonine dynasty of the Roman Empire....
, a well-connected Roman Noblewoman who was the daughter of the Roman Senator Gaius Avidius Nigrinus
Gaius Avidius Nigrinus
Gaius Avidius Nigrinus was a Roman that lived between the 1st and 2nd centuries.Nigrinus’ paternal and maternal ancestors were Romans of the highest political rank. He was the son of an elder Gaius Avidius Nigrinus by an unnamed mother, his brother was the consul Titus Avidius Quietus and his...
. Plautia bore Aelius, two sons and two daughters, who were:
- Lucius VerusLucius VerusLucius Verus , was Roman co-emperor with Marcus Aurelius, from 161 until his death.-Early life and career:Lucius Verus was the first born son to Avidia Plautia and Lucius Aelius Verus Caesar, the first adopted son and heir of Roman Emperor Hadrian . He was born and raised in Rome...
– born as Lucius Ceionius Commodus. He would rule as co-Roman EmperorRoman EmperorThe Roman emperor was the ruler of the Roman State during the imperial period . The Romans had no single term for the office although at any given time, a given title was associated with the emperor...
with Marcus Aurelius from 161 until his death in 169. Lucius Verus would marry LucillaLucillaAnnia Aurelia Galeria Lucilla or Lucilla was the second daughter and third child of Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius and Roman Empress Faustina the Younger and an elder sister to future Roman Emperor Commodus....
, the second daughter of Marcus Aurelius and Faustina the YoungerFaustina the YoungerAnnia Galeria Faustina Minor , Faustina Minor or Faustina the Younger was a daughter of Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius and Roman Empress Faustina the Elder. She was a Roman Empress and wife to her maternal cousin Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius...
. - Gaius Avidius Ceionius Commodus – he is known from an inscription found in Rome.
- Ceionia FabiaCeionia FabiaCeionia Fabia was a noble Roman woman and a member of the ruling Nerva–Antonine dynasty of the Roman Empire.Fabia was the first born daughter to the Roman Senator Lucius Aelius Verus Caesar and Avidia Plautia. Her father from 136-138, was the first adopted heir and successor of the Roman Emperor...
– she was in 136 engaged to Marcus Aurelius. In 138, when Marcus Aurelius was adopted by Roman Emperor Antoninus PiusAntoninus PiusAntoninus Pius , also known as Antoninus, was Roman Emperor from 138 to 161. He was a member of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty and the Aurelii. He did not possess the sobriquet "Pius" until after his accession to the throne...
, Aurelius ended his engagement to Fabia. Aurelius became engaged to Antoninus Pius’ daughter Faustina the YoungerFaustina the YoungerAnnia Galeria Faustina Minor , Faustina Minor or Faustina the Younger was a daughter of Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius and Roman Empress Faustina the Elder. She was a Roman Empress and wife to her maternal cousin Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius...
, whom he later married. - Ceionia PlautiaCeionia PlautiaCeionia Plautia was a Roman noblewoman and is among the lesser known members of the ruling Nerva–Antonine dynasty of the Roman Empire....
Aelius was adopted by an aging and ailing Hadrian in 136 and named successor to the throne, although he had no military experience; he had served as a senator. He had powerful political connections, but was in poor health. His tastes were luxurious and his life extravagant. He is said to have had Ovid
Ovid
Publius Ovidius Naso , known as Ovid in the English-speaking world, was a Roman poet who is best known as the author of the three major collections of erotic poetry: Heroides, Amores, and Ars Amatoria...
's erotic poetry and "a book about Apicius
Marcus Gavius Apicius
Marcus Gavius Apicius is believed to have been a Roman gourmet and lover of luxury, who lived sometime in the 1st century AD, during the reign of Tiberius. The Roman cookbook Apicius is often, but incorrectly, attributed to him. He was the subject of On the Luxury of Apicius, a famous work, now...
" (presumably Apion
Apion
Apion , Graeco-Egyptian grammarian, sophist and commentator on Homer, was born at the Siwa Oasis, and flourished in the first half of the 1st century AD....
's On the Luxury of Apicius) as bedside reading, and to have personally invented the luxury dish tetrapharmacum
Tetrapharmacum
Latin tetrapharmacum, Greek tetrapharmakos - the "fourfold drug" was a pharmaceutical compound known in ancient Greek pharmacology, a mixture of wax, pine resin, pitch and animal fat, most often pork fat.The word tetrapharmakos has been used metaphorically by Epicurus and his disciples to refer...
.
Aelius himself was never to become emperor, dying shortly before Hadrian. After Aelius' death, Hadrian adopted Antoninus Pius
Antoninus Pius
Antoninus Pius , also known as Antoninus, was Roman Emperor from 138 to 161. He was a member of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty and the Aurelii. He did not possess the sobriquet "Pius" until after his accession to the throne...
(September 19, 86 – March 7, 161) on the condition that Antoninus Pius adopt the younger Lucius Verus (properly called Lucius Ceionius Commodus the Younger; he did not take the cognomen Verus until his accession after the death of Pius) and Hadrian's great-nephew by marriage, Marcus Aurelius (April 26, 121 – March 17, 180). Marcus Aurelius later co-ruled with Lucius Verus as joint Roman Emperors, until Lucius Verus died in 169. After Marcus Aurelius was sole ruler until his own death in 180. Aelius is a major character in Marguerite Yourcenar
Marguerite Yourcenar
Marguerite Yourcenar was a Belgian-born French novelist and essayist. Winner of the Prix Femina and the Erasmus Prize, she was the first woman elected to the Académie française, in 1980, and the seventeenth person to occupy Seat 3.-Biography:Yourcenar was born Marguerite Antoinette Jeanne Marie...
's Memoirs of Hadrian
Memoirs of Hadrian
Memoirs of Hadrian is a novel by the French writer Marguerite Yourcenar about the life and death of Roman Emperor Hadrian. The book was first published in France in French in 1951 as Mémoires d'Hadrien, and was an immediate success, meeting with enormous critical acclaim...
.