Emperors

    

 Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus ( 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was the second Roman emperor. He reigned from AD 14 until 37, succeeding his stepfather, the first Roman emperor Augustus. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC. His father was the politician Tiberius Claudius Nero and his mother was Livia Drusilla, who would eventually divorce his father, and marry the future-emperor Augustus in 38 BC. Following the untimely deaths of Augustus' two grandsons and adopted heirs, Gaius and Lucius Caesar, Tiberius was designated Augustus' successor. Prior to this, Tiberius had proved himself an able diplomat, and one of the most successful Roman generals: his conquests of Pannonia, Dalmatia, Raetia, and (temporarily) parts of Germania laid the foundations for the empire's northern frontier. 

Tiberius Claudius Nero 'Caesar Augustus', 2nd Emperor of Rome aka 'Tiberius': 3rd cousin 63 generations removed  |  Tiberius

  

 Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (31 August 12 – 24 January 41), better known by his nickname Caligula, was the third Roman emperor, ruling from 37 to 41. He was the son of the popular Roman general Germanicus and Augustus' granddaughter Agrippina the Elder. Caligula was born into the first ruling family of the Roman Empire, conventionally known as the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Germanicus' uncle and adoptive father, Tiberius, succeeded Augustus as emperor of Rome in AD 14. 

Gaius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, 3rd Emperor of Rome aka 'Caligula': 1st cousin, 61 generations removed  |  Caligula

   

 Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) was the fourth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Drusus and Antonia Minor at Lugdunum in Roman Gaul, where his father was stationed as a military legate. He was the first Roman emperor to be born outside Italy. Nonetheless, Claudius was an Italian of Sabine origins. 

Tiberius Claudius Nero 'Caesar Augustus Germanicus', 4th Emperor of Rome aka 'Claudius': 1st cousin, 62 generations removed  |  Claudius

   

 Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 until his death in AD 68. He was adopted by the Roman emperor Claudius at the age of 13 and succeeded him on the throne. Nero was popular with the members of his Praetorian Guard and lower-class commoners in Rome and its provinces, but he was deeply resented by the Roman aristocracy. Most contemporary sources describe him as tyrannical, self-indulgent, and debauched. After being declared a public enemy by the Roman Senate, he committed suicide at age 30. 

Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus 'Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus', 5th Emperor of Rome aka 'Nero': 2nd cousin, 60 generations removed  |  Nero

   

 Galba; born Servius Sulpicius Galba; 24 December 3 BC – 15 January AD 69) was the sixth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 68 to 69. After his adoption by his stepmother, and before becoming emperor, he was known as Livius Ocella Sulpicius Galba. He was the first emperor in the Year of the Four Emperors and assumed the throne following Emperor Nero's suicide. 

Lucius Livius Ocella Sulpicius Galba 'Servius Galba Caesar Augustus', 6th Emperor of Rome aka 'Galba': Husband of 3rd cousin, 61 generations removed  |  Galba

 

 Marcus Otho; born Marcus Salvius Otho; 28 April 32 – 16 April 69) was the seventh Roman emperor, ruling for three months from 15 January to 16 April 69. He was the second emperor of the Year of the Four Emperors. 

Imperator Marcus 'Salvius' Otho Caesar Augustus, Senator, Governor of Lusitania, 7th Emperor of Rome aka 'Otho': Husband of wife of 2nd cousin, 60 generations removed  |  Otho

   

 Aulus Vitellius (24 September 15 – 20 December 69) was Roman emperor for eight months, from 19 April to 20 December AD 69. Vitellius was proclaimed emperor following the quick succession of the previous emperors Galba and Otho, in a year of civil war known as the Year of the Four Emperors. Vitellius was the first to add the honorific cognomen Germanicus to his name instead of Caesar upon his accession. Like his direct predecessor, Otho, Vitellius attempted to rally public support to his cause by honoring and imitating Nero who remained widely popular in the empire. 

Aulus Vitellius Germanicus Imperator Augustus, 8th Emperor of Rome aka 'Vitellius': 62nd great-grandfather  |  Vitellius

   

 Titus Caesar Vespasianus (30 December 39 – 13 September 81 AD) was Roman emperor from 79 to 81. A member of the Flavian dynasty, Titus succeeded his father Vespasian upon his death. Before becoming emperor, Titus gained renown as a military commander, serving under his father in Judea during the First Jewish–Roman War. The campaign came to a brief halt with the death of emperor Nero in 68, launching Vespasian's bid for the imperial power during the Year of the Four Emperors. When Vespasian was declared Emperor on 1 July 69, Titus was left in charge of ending the Jewish rebellion. In 70, he besieged and captured Jerusalem, and destroyed the city and the Second Temple. For this achievement Titus was awarded a triumph; the Arch of Titus commemorates his victory to this day. 

Titus Caesar Vespasianus 'Augustus', 10th Emperor of Rome aka 'Titus': Husband of Marcia Furnilla, 60th great-grandaunt  |  Titus

    

 Vespasian (17 November AD 9 – 23/24 June 79) was a Roman emperor who reigned from AD 69 to 79. The fourth and last emperor who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors, he founded the Flavian dynasty that ruled the Empire for 27 years. His fiscal reforms and consolidation of the empire generated political stability and a vast Roman building program. 

Titus Flavius Vespasianus 'Imperator Caesar Vespasianus Augustus', 9th Emperor of Rome aka 'Vespasian': Father-in-law of 4th cousin, 58 generations removed  |  Vespasian

    

 Domitian (24 October 51 – 18 September 96) was a Roman emperor who reigned from 81 to 96. The son of Vespasian and the younger brother of Titus, his two predecessors on the throne, he was the last member of the Flavian dynasty. Described as "a ruthless but efficient autocrat", his authoritarian style of ruling put him at sharp odds with the Senate, whose powers he drastically curtailed. 

Titus Flavius Domitianus 'Imperator Caesar Domitianus Augustus', 11th Emperor of Rome aka 'Domitian': Husband of Domitia Longina, 4th cousin 58 generations removed  |  Domitian

     

 Nerva (originally Marcus Cocceius Nerva; 8 November 30 – 27 January 98) was Roman emperor from 96 to 98. Nerva became emperor when aged almost 66, after a lifetime of imperial service under Nero and the rulers of the Flavian dynasty. Under Nero, he was a member of the imperial entourage and played a vital part in exposing the Pisonian conspiracy of 65. Later, as a loyalist to the Flavians, he attained consulships in 71 and 90 during the reigns of Vespasian and Domitian, respectively. On 18 September 96, Domitian was assassinated in a palace conspiracy involving members of the Praetorian Guard and several of his freedmen. On the same day, Nerva was declared emperor by the Roman Senate. As the new ruler of the Roman Empire, he vowed to restore liberties which had been curtailed during the autocratic government of Domitian. 

Marcus Cocceius Nerva 'Caesar Augustus', 12th Emperor of Rome aka 'Nerva': 60th great-grandfather  |  Nerva

     

 Trajan (Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 53 – 9/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared optimus princeps ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presided over one of the greatest military expansions in Roman history and led the empire to attain its greatest territorial extent by the time of his death. He is also known for his philanthropic rule, overseeing extensive public building programs and implementing social welfare policies, which earned him his enduring reputation as the second of the Five Good Emperors who presided over an era of peace within the Empire and prosperity in the Mediterranean world. 

Marcus Ulpius Traianus 'Imperator Caesar Nerva Traianus Augustus', Optimus Princeps, 13th Emperor of Rome aka 'Trajan': 59th great-grandfather  |  Trajan

    

 Hadrian (24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. He was born in Italica (close to modern Santiponce in Spain), a Roman colony of Italic settlers in Hispania Baetica; his family, the Aelii Hadriani, came from the Italian city of Atri in Picenum and were either among the original founders of Italica or moved there at a later time between the third century BC and the first century AD. His father was of senatorial rank and was a first cousin of Emperor Trajan. Hadrian married Trajan's grand-niece Vibia Sabina early in his career, before Trajan became emperor and possibly at the behest of Trajan's wife Pompeia Plotina. Plotina and Trajan's close friend and adviser Lucius Licinius Sura were well disposed towards Hadrian. When Trajan died, his widow claimed that he had nominated Hadrian as emperor immediately before his death. 

Publius Aelius Hadrianus 'Imperator Caesar Traianus Hadrianus Augustus', 14th Emperor of Rome aka 'Hadrian': 58th great-grandfather  |  Hadrian

     

 Antoninus Pius (Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Pius; 19 September 86 – 7 March 161) was Roman emperor from 138 to 161. He was the fourth of the Five Good Emperors from the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. Born into a senatorial family, Antoninus held various offices during the reign of Emperor Hadrian. He married Hadrian's niece Faustina, and Hadrian adopted him as his son and successor shortly before his death. Antoninus acquired the cognomen Pius after his accession to the throne, either because he compelled the Senate to deify his adoptive father, or because he had saved senators sentenced to death by Hadrian in his later years. His reign is notable for the peaceful state of the Empire, with no major revolts or military incursions during this time. A successful military campaign in southern Scotland early in his reign resulted in the construction of the Antonine Wall. 

Imperator Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pius, 15th Emperor of Rome aka 'Antoninus Pius': 58th great-grandfather  |  Antoninus Pius

     

 Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a Stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good Emperors (a term coined some 13 centuries later by Niccolò Machiavelli), and the last emperor of the Pax Romana, an age of relative peace and stability for the Roman Empire lasting from 27 BC to 180 AD. He served as Roman consul in 140, 145, and 161. Marcus Aurelius was born during the reign of Hadrian to the emperor's nephew, the praetor Marcus Annius Verus, and the heiress Domitia Calvilla. His father died when he was three, and his mother and grandfather raised him. After Hadrian's adoptive son, Aelius Caesar, died in 138, the emperor adopted Marcus's uncle Antoninus Pius as his new heir. In turn, Antoninus adopted Marcus and Lucius, the son of Aelius. Hadrian died that year, and Antoninus became emperor. Now heir to the throne, Marcus studied Greek and Latin under tutors such as Herodes Atticus and Marcus Cornelius Fronto. He married Antoninus's daughter Faustina in 145. 

Imperator Caesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus, 16th Emperor of Rome aka 'Marcus Aurelius': 58th great-grandfather  |  Marcus Aurelius

   

 Lucius Aurelius Verus (15 December 130 – January/February 169) was Roman emperor from 161 until his death in 169, alongside his adoptive brother Marcus Aurelius. He was a member of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty. Verus' succession together with Marcus Aurelius marked the first time that the Roman Empire was ruled by multiple emperors, an increasingly common occurrence in the later history of the Empire. 

Imperator Caesar Lucius Aurelius Verus Augustus, 17th Emperor of Rome aka 'Lucius Verus': 57th great-grandfather  |  Lucius Verus

   

 Commodus (31 August 161 – 31 December 192) was a Roman emperor who ruled from 177 to 192. He served jointly with his father Marcus Aurelius from 176 until the latter's death in 180, and thereafter he reigned alone until his assassination. His reign is commonly thought of as marking the end of a golden period of peace in the history of the Roman Empire, known as the Pax Romana. 

Marcus Aurelius Commodus Antoninus, 18th Emperor of Rome aka 'Commodus': 57th great-granduncle  |  Commodus

 

 Marcus Didius Julianus (29 January 133 or 137 – 2 June 193) was Roman emperor for nine weeks from March to June 193, during the Year of the Five Emperors. Julianus had a promising political career, governing several provinces, including Dalmatia and Germania Inferior, and defeated the Chauci and Chatti, two invading Germanic tribes. He was even appointed to the consulship in 175 along with Pertinax as a reward, before being demoted by Commodus. After this demotion, his early, promising political career languished. 

Imperator Caesar Marcus Didius Severus Julianus Augustus, 20th Emperor of Rome aka 'Didius Julianus': 58th great-granduncle  |  Didius Julianus

  

 Gordian I (Latin: Marcus Antonius Gordianus Sempronianus Romanus; c. 158 – April 238 AD) was Roman emperor for 22 days with his son Gordian II in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. Caught up in a rebellion against the Emperor Maximinus Thrax, he was defeated by forces loyal to Maximinus, and he committed suicide after the death of his son. 

Marcus Antonius Gordianus Sempronianus Romanus 'L'Africain Usurpateur', Legat of Britain, Emperor of Rome aka 'Gordian I': 55th great-grandfather  |  Gordian I

  

 Gordian II (Latin: Marcus Antonius Gordianus Sempronianus Romanus; c. 192 – April 238) was Roman emperor with his father Gordian I in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. Seeking to overthrow Maximinus Thrax, he died in battle outside Carthage. Since he died before his father, Gordian II had the shortest reign of any Roman emperor, at 22 days. 

Caesar Marcus Antonius Gordianus Sempronianus Romanus Africanus Augustus, Emperor of Rome aka 'Gordian II': 54th great-granduncle  |  Gordian II

   

 Gordian III (Latin: Marcus Antonius Gordianus; 20 January 225 – c. February 244) was Roman emperor from 238 to 244. At the age of 13, he became the youngest sole emperor up to that point (until Honorius in 395). Gordian was the grandson of Antonia Gordiana; he was son of Marcus Aurelius Claudius Crispus and Aurelia Pompeiana, who died before 238. Antonia Gordiana was the daughter of Emperor Gordian I and younger sister of Emperor Gordian II. Very little is known of his early life before his acclamation. Gordian had assumed the name of his maternal grandfather in 238. In 235, following the murder of Emperor Alexander Severus in Moguntiacum (modern Mainz), the capital of the Roman province Germania Superior, Maximinus Thrax was acclaimed emperor. In the following years, there was a growing opposition against Maximinus in the Roman Senate and amongst the majority of the population of Rome. In 238, a rebellion broke out in the Africa Province, where Gordian's grandfather and uncle, Gordian I and II, were proclaimed joint emperors. This revolt was suppressed within a month by Cappellianus, governor of Numidia and a loyal supporter of Maximinus Thrax. After a time Maximinus was killed by his own army and the unpopular senators (now co-emperors) Pupienus and Balbinus were also killed by their Praetorian Guard and Gordian proclaimed sole emperor. 

Caesar Marcus Antonius Gordianus Augustus, Emperor of Rome aka 'Gordian III': 53rd great-grandfather  |  Gordian III

  

 Valerian (Latin: Publius Licinius Valerianus; c. 199 – 260 or 264) was Roman emperor from 253 to spring 260 AD. He persecuted Christians and was later taken captive by the Persian emperor Shapur I after the Battle of Edessa, becoming the first Roman emperor to be captured as a prisoner of war, causing shock and instability throughout the Roman Empire. The unprecedented event and the unknown fate of the captured emperor generated a variety of different reactions and "new narratives about the Roman Empire in diverse contexts". 

Publius Licinius Valerianus, Emperor of Rome aka 'Valerian': Father-in-law of 54th great-grandaunt  |  Valerian

   

 Publius Licinius Egnatius Gallienus (c. 218 – September 268) was Roman emperor with his father Valerian from 253 to 260 and alone from 260 to 268. He ruled during the Crisis of the Third Century that nearly caused the collapse of the empire. He won a number of military victories against usurpers and Germanic tribes, but was unable to prevent the secession of important provinces. His 15-year reign was the longest in half a century. 

Publius Licinius Egranius Gallenus, Co-Emperor of Rome aka 'Gallienus': Husband of Julia Cornelia Salonina de Roma, 54th great-grandaunt  |  Gallienus

    

 Marcus Aurelius Probus (230-235 – September 282) was Roman emperor from 276 to 282. Probus was an active and successful general as well as a conscientious administrator, and in his reign of six years he secured prosperity for the inner provinces while withstanding repeated invasions of barbarian tribes on almost every sector of the frontier. 

Marcus Aurelius Probus, General of the Roman Legion, Emperor of Rome aka 'Probus': 52nd great-grandfather  |  Probus