Roman Emperor Mix Trivia

1. Several Roman emperors are said to be "born to the purple", that is, born while his father held the rank of emperor. Which one of the four men mentioned below was the first to be born into an imperial household?

From Quiz First Times for Emperors!

Answer: Commodus

While all of these were sons of emperors who themselves ascended the throne, only Commodus and Caracalla were born to the purple, with Commodus reigning 20 years before Caracalla. Titus was born while his father Vespasian was just a praetor, and Volusianus was 21 when his father Gallus was proclaimed emperor.

From Quiz Roman Emperor: Life and reign of Elagabalus

Answer: Julia Soaemias Bassiana

Julia Soaemias Bassiana (180 AD-222 AD) was born in Emesa (modern day city of Homs) in Syria. From a well-connected noble family, her father was Gaius Julius Avitus Alexianus, a Syrian noble and military man. Her mother was Julia Maesa, who was the older sister of Roman Emperor Septimus Severus' wife, Julia Domna. Julia Soaemias Bassiana would have two children with Sextus Varius Marcellus, one whose identity has been lost to history, and the other would later become Roman Emperor Elagabalus, born sometime around 204 AD. It has been a consistent debate between historians whether Elagabalus was born in Emesa, where his mother was born, or in Rome. However, as there is evidence that Marcellus was active in Rome during the time of Elagabalus' birth, this lends credit to the theory that he was not born in Emesa.

From Quiz Roman Emperor: Life and Reign of Antoninus Pius

Answer: Lanuvium

Born in Lanuvium in 86 AD, Antoninus Pius was from a rich and well-connected family, with his mother's side being from Nemausus (modern day Nîmes) in the south of France. His mother was Arria Fadilla, the daughter of a consul. Lanuvium was just south-east of Rome, and is now modern day Lanuvio, a commune of Italy.

From Quiz Roman Emperor: Life and Reign of Otho

Answer: Ferentium

Named Marcus Salvius Otho, Otho was born in Ferentium, an ancient town located near the modern city of Viterbo, Lazio, Italy, around 55 miles (90 km) north-west of Rome. Ferentium was prosperous around the time of Augustus' reign, and Otho's family sepulcher was found in the area in 1921.

From Quiz Roman Emperor: Life and Reign of Domitian

Answer: Domitilla the Elder

Domitian was born in 51 AD in Rome. He was the youngest son of the family, and was never intended to be Roman emperor. Vespasian had come to power somewhat accidentally as well, taking advantage of the political vacuum caused be Nero's suicide in 68 AD, and the civil war that came as a result of this. Born in Sabratha, Libya, (birth date unclear) Domitilla the Elder was a part of the colonial venture that had moved to Libya during the time of Augustus being Roman emperor. Despite being mother to two who would later become Roman emperors, and being married to a future Roman emperor herself, Domitilla the Elder never experienced being a Roman empress. She died before her husband Vespasian made it to the Roman throne, and never lived to see her sons follow in his footsteps.

From Quiz Roman Emperor: Life and Reign of Commodus

Answer: Lanuvium

Born Caesar Marcus Aurelius Commodus Antoninus Augustus, Commodus was born in Lanuvium (modern day Lanuvio, which is a commune of Rome) located around 20 miles (30 km) away from the city. Commodus was a twin, having an older brother named Titus Aurelius Fulvus Antoninus who died in 165 AD.

From Quiz Roman Emperor: Life and Reign of Galba

Answer: Terracina

Galba was born Servius Sulpicius Galba on 24 December 3 BC. Born into a wealthy and well-connected family, his father was Gaius Sulpicius Galba, a consul, and his mother was Mummia Achaica, the granddaughter of Quintus Lutatius Catulus (a Roman politician) and the great-great granddaughter of Lucius Mummius Achaicus, who was a Roman statesman and general. He had an elder brother who committed suicide when he was young, because he had spent all of his fortune frivolously, and had angered Roman emperor Tiberius.

From Quiz Roman Emperor: Life and Reign of Trajan

Answer: Italica

Italica was the first Roman settlement of Spain, and was located just north of the modern day town of Santiponce, and around 6 miles north-west of the modern day city of Seville. It was founded by Scipio Africanus, a Roman general in around 206 BC. As more and more Roman citizens settled in their new area, Trajan was born there in 53 AD. The ruins of the Roman amphitheatre of Italica is situated in Santiponce. It was once the third largest Roman amphitheatre the Romans had built at the time, being constructed between 117-138 AD, during Hadrian's reign as Roman Emperor.

From Quiz Roman Emperor: Life and Reign of Titus

Answer: Domitilla the Elder

Also known as Flavia Domitilla Major, Domitilla the Elder was born in Sabratha, which is now part of the Zawiya District of Libya. Her birth year is unclear. Her family were colonists who had moved there during the reign of Emperor Augustus, and her father was Flavius Liberalis, a man from Ferentium (now part of Italy's Lazio region). She married Vespasian in around 38 AD. It is recorded that she died either in 69 AD, or before that - before Vespasian became emperor.

From Quiz Which Roman Emperor am I? Part II

Answer: Caligula

Caligula is known for being one of the most insane Roman emperors, though his terrible childhood might have been an excuse: many of his family members were murdered on the orders of his uncle Tiberius, and when he was summoned to Tiberius' palace in Capri, he found himself a prisoner of Tiberius, and decided to play along, working his way up to becoming Tiberius' favourite. It is debated if Caligula had a hand in Tiberius' death, but what is sure is that he quickly took sole power. He ruled 4 years, from 37 AD until 41 AD. Contrary to popular belief, he never made his horse Incitatus consul. He did however appoint the horse as priest.

From Quiz Are Emperors Always Bad? The Five Good Emperors

Answer: Niccolò Machiavelli

Machiavelli was the first to refer to Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius collectively as "the Five Good Emperors" in "The Discourses on Livy." Some might consider this ironic considering Machiavelli's reputation for advocating ruthlessness rather than virtue for rulers in "The Prince." Nevertheless, he praised them for their ability to maintain the good will of the people they ruled through their wise governance. Machiavelli argued that those who succeeded to the throne by birth were all bad, while the Five Good Emperors were good because they were chosen on their merits rather than family connections.

From Quiz Rome Wasn't Built in a Day

Answer: a shepherd and his wife

Romulus and Remus are said to be the sons of the gods Rhea and Mars. There were plots against them, so their mother left them on Earth, floating down a river. After being raised by the shepherd, they decided they didn't want to raise sheep so decided to build a city. Unfortunately, they both wanted to be king, and in the end Romulus killed Remus and became Rome's first king.

From Quiz Roman Republic

Answer: Romulus Killed Remus

They both started building on different hills, and when Remus jumped over Romulus's wall the latter killed him. The Roman era begins from the founding of the city on 21 April 753 BC.

From Quiz The Roman Empire IX

Answer: Pacantius

Pacantius proclaimed himself emperor but was murdered by his own soldiers after realizing they stood no chance against Decius. The other three were also usurpers in the reign of Philip but only Pacantius met his doom at the hands of Decius. The existence of Silbannacus and Sponsianus is even questioned.

From Quiz The Roman Empire VIII

Answer: acromegaly

He was the first barbarian who wore the purple and never set foot in Rome. He is also the first of the so called 'barrack emperors' who were to mark this dark period.

From Quiz Commodus - Fact vs Fiction

Answer: 161 CE

Lucius Aurelius Commodus was born on August 31, 161 in Lanuvium, near Rome, the tenth child of his family. Over the course of his short life he undertook a number of name changes. In 180, he added Antoninus at the end; later that year he changed from Lucius to Marcus, presumably in honour of his recently-deceased father. In 191 he reverted to Lucius, dropped the Antoninus, and added Aelius. Along with other changes to reflect the image he wished to portray of his character, his final full name was Lucius Aelius Aurelius Commodus Augustus Herculeus Amazonius Invictus Felix Pius.

From Quiz Roman Emperors : Part B

Answer: Tiberius

Herod Agrippa was in trouble for a bad debt, but this matter was fairly well resolved. What really aroused Tiberius' rancor was an offhand remark Herod made to Gaius Caligula that Tiberius should pass on and leave the governing of Rome to Caligula.

From Quiz The Roman Empire VI

Answer: 87 days

He reigned from December 31, 192 until his death on March 28, 193. Although he ruled only very briefly, many historians regard him as one of the better emperors.

From Quiz Roman Emperors : Part A

Answer: Augustus

Augustus, despite the fact that he was the master of the Roman world, was known for the disarming, gentle demeanor of his face. This event occurred, of course, long before Augustus became emperor. Tiberius usually wore a dour, severe expression on his face, Caligula could not be described as having a "gentle countenance." Claudius, although he slobbered when he was angry, usually had an affable manner and a pleasant face, but he was never outside of Italy until his campaign in Britain.

From Quiz Know Your Roman Rulers

Answer: Nero

Nero wanted to be great artist, a singer. He used olive oil to improve his voice.

From Quiz The Roman Empire I

Answer: 2 BC

Getting the title "father of the country" was one of the greatest honours you could achieve in the Roman world. Due to all the things Augustus had done, he was the obvious choice for this title.

From Quiz The Journeys of Hadrian

Answer: 122

In 122 Hadrian stayed in the province of Britannia, where he commissioned the construction of the famous wall named after him in order to protect the Romans from the barbarians.

From Quiz The Life of Justinian I

Answer: Tauresium

Tauresium was a Thracian town that had been Romanized several centuries earlier. It's near Nish in modern Serbia.

From Quiz Rise and Fall of Ancient Rome

Answer: Aeneas

Romulus and Remus were, according to legend, reared by by a female wolf. Paris and Hector were indeed Princes of Troy, but at the time of the Trojan Wars with the Greek cities. Anchises was the father of Aeneas, his mother being the goddess Aphrodite. Aeneas was a brave Trojan hero who was the lover of Dido of Carthage.

From Quiz The Ancient Roman Emperors

Answer: Julius Caesar

Julius Caesar rose to power because of his great popularity among the common people.

From Quiz Trajan and the Conquest of Dacia

Answer: Spain

Trajan actually spent little time in Rome. Ancient historians lauded his disregard for the luxurious life of the palace, attributing his spartan lifestyle to his foreign roots.

From Quiz Julian the Apostate

Answer: 361-363 AD

He was Caesar some years before 361 AD while stationed in Gaul. However, his undisputed reign as Roman emperor was 361-363 AD. The other choices weren't even close.

From Quiz Roman Family Tree

Answer: Julia

Tiberius' mother was Livia, married to Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus (Octavian). Tiberius' adopted father was Octavian, who later became the first emperor of Rome, known as Augustus. Tiberius' natural father was Tiberius Claudius Nero.

From Quiz Early Roman Emperors

Answer: Vipsania

He had to divorce her against his will to marry Julia, Augustus' daughter.

From Quiz Julio-Claudian Emperors

Answer: Incitatus

Incitatus was Caligula's favorite horse. In fact, he did not actually name his horse as a consul or senator (as is also rumoured). He said he was so powerful that he could do so, were he so inclined, and this was deliberately distorted by propagandists.

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