Cover -- Marcus Aurelius: A Biography -- Copyright -- Contents -- List of Illustrations -- Preface -- 1. The Age of the Antonines -- 2. Family and Early Years -- 3. Aurelius Caesar -- 4. The Education of an Heir Apparent -- 5. The Stoic Prince -- 6. The First Years as Emperor -- 7. Triumph and Crisis -- 8. The Northern Wars -- 9. The Last Years -- 10. Marcus to Himself -- 11. Epilogue -- Appendices -- 1. Sources -- 2.The Antonine Dynasty -- 3. The Marcommanic Wars -- 4. Christianity -- 5. The Illustrations -- References and Notes -- Abbreviations and Bibliography -- Addenda to Bibliography -- Index.

Marcus Aurelius, the philosopher-emperor who ruled the Roman Empire between AD 161 and 180, is one of the best recorded individuals from antiquity. Even his face became more than usually familiar: the imperial coinage displayed his portrait for over 40 years, from the clean-shaven young heir of Antonius to the war-weary, heavily bearded ruler who died at his post in his late fifties. His correspondence with his tutor Fronto, and even more the private notebook he kept for his last ten years, the Meditations, provides a unique series of vivid and revealing glimpses into the character and peoccupations of this emporer who spent many years in terrible wars against northern tribes. In this accessible and scholarly study, Professor Birley paints a portrait of an emporer who was human and just - an embodiment of the pagan virtues of Rome.

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Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, Michigan : ProQuest Ebook Central, 2018. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ProQuest Ebook Central affiliated libraries.