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Article: The Legacy of a "GOOD EMPEROR".(Hadrian )
- Article from:
- Calliope
- Article date:
- December 1, 1999
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1999 Carus Publishing Co. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius succeeded one another as ruler of the Roman Empire. History refers to these men as the "Five Good Emperors" because the Roman world enjoyed a golden age of relative peace and stability during their reigns.
When Hadrian died in A.D. 138, he left a legacy of military, administrative, and artistic accomplishments. The task of ruling had not been an easy one, for his was a huge, multi-racial, multi-cultural empire. Yet, Hadrian had assessed the needs of his empire and its people well. The Christian writer Tertullian, who wrote some 60 years later, described Hadrian as omnium curiositatus explorator ("an explorer ...