which roman emporers would be worth studying? - Historum

tedkaw · October 13th, 2006, 10:13 AM

Any suggestions?

fire_of_sekhmet · October 13th, 2006, 12:10 PM

All of them. Each empreor had their own personality and interesting reigns.

Princeps · October 18th, 2006, 07:24 AM

I wouldn't say all of them, not without context anyway. If you're desperate for knowledge and belive all life is spectacular, etc etc then a case could be made for all of them, but many were fairly unimportant (in a historical sense).

My favourites-

Caesar*
Augustus
Nero
Caligula
Germanicus
Tiberius
Nerva
Diocletian
Hadrian
Trajan
Justinian
Constantine (my favourite).

Maybe two dozen or so more. Search "Emperor list" (or similar) for a full list of options.

fire_of_sekhmet · October 18th, 2006, 09:46 AM

I would of also put Marcus Aurelius on on the list too..

Nikd · October 19th, 2006, 12:00 AM

Well the history of the Roman empire itself is a forum on it's own.
I can say my personal oppinion for the most intresting emperors :

Augustus, Marcus Aurelius, Nero, Constantine I.

dianamt54@hotmail.com · March 20th, 2008, 08:40 AM

There is a book called The Emperors of Rome by David Potter. It has some info on all the Emporors. This may help you decide who you would like to study. Enjoy!

landser1941 · March 20th, 2008, 09:11 AM

Julius Caesar,his commentaries are always worth a read.

Zenjamin · April 16th, 2008, 06:30 PM

not all.

the period right before the Byzantine empire (specifically, Diocletian's rule) emperors came and wend every couple of years, for the better part of a century.

But by far, my favorite is Julian the apostate.
Constantine was likely the most influential, but Julian's story is about as fascinating as it gets IMO.

motiv-8 · April 16th, 2008, 06:36 PM

I don't find anything particularly unique or interesting about Julian. He was a well-educated, borderline megalomaniac with delusions of grandeur. Jeez, like there aren't enough of those types in history.

I think Caesar Augustus is the most fascinating I've seen, followed by Constantine and Diocletian. Some of the later Byzantine emperors, such as John Tzimisces, Basil II, Alexios I, and various members of the Dukas clan are also rather fascinating in their abilities and/or vibrant personalities, though it's arguable that some of these figures are as (non-)unique as Julian. Sometimes, emperors take on the appearance of being interesting simply because there are more sources on them, whereas others are simply lacking information.

Machaon · November 23rd, 2008, 03:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zenjamin

but Julian's story is about as fascinating as it gets IMO.

Julian_The_Apostate
I agree... He was our last hope... but he was killed by a Christian...