Why Is Marcus Aurelius Considered The Wisest Roman Emperor?
To get a measure of Marcus Aurelius beyond his writings, we can look to his actual tenure as emperor. Right off the bat, Aurelius refused to be elevated to the post unless his brother, Lucius Verus, became co-emperor with him (via World History). Verus, like Aurelius, had been raised by their mutual mentor, Antoninus Pius.
According to "Historia Augusta" (via World History), Verus had a penchant for absurdly lavish parties, including one bash where he gave away "gold, silver, and gemmed bowls ... golden vases in the shape of perfume boxes ... carriages with silver harnesses," and more. The whole thing cost around $60 million in modern currency. To this, Aurelius "groaned and wept for the fate of the world," per "Daily Life in Ancient Rome." And yet, the emperors worked together to institute programs to help the poor, encourage free speech, the arts, and education, and increase the Roman army's pay. Rome saw its economy flourish, and the people loved their two emperors.
For his part, Aurelius lived the same pared-down life as always. When the Parthian kingdom invaded in the east, Aurelius convinced Verus to go instead of him (some say to curb Verus' parties), and Aurelius stayed behind to work on Roman legislation and court cases. Verus died in 169 C.E., and Aurelius was dragged into ongoing campaigns in Germania. His son, Commodus, was a dismal failure in comparison to his father, but unlike the movie "Gladiator" (2000), he didn't assassinate Aurelius. To the end, Marcus Aurelius remained a philosopher first and stayed as good as his word.
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