Chapters
| Name | Marcus Ulpius Traianus |
|---|---|
| Ruled as | Imperator Caesar Divi Nervae Filius Nerva Traianus Germanicus Augustus |
| Reign | 28 January 98 – 9 August 117 CE |
| Born | 18 September 53 CE |
| Died | 9 August 117 CE |
Trajan was born on September 18, 53 CE in Italica, Spain, in an old Roman colony, under the name of Marcus Ulpius Traianus. Trajan was a Roman emperor from 98-117 CE. He was one of the so-called five good emperors. A brilliant reformer, military commander, and good governor.
Family and political career
He was the son of Marcus Ulpius Traianus, a Roman commander and a supporter of Vespasian in the civil war of 69 CE, later governor of Syria, and his wife Marcia. He had one sister – Ulpia Marciana. Trajan’s wife was Plotinus, their marriage remained childless.
Initially, like his father, he ruled over Syria, and then he took command of the Rhine legions. In 97 CE he was adopted by Nerva as his successor, and after his death in 98 CE to independently rule the Roman Empire. He was the first ruler of provincial origin due to the rapidly advancing Romanization in the oldest provinces.
The family of Trajan came from Spain. It was a relatively young family. Only his father reached the consulate. The wealthy and earthly family of Trajan lived for generations in the city of Italica near today’s Seville. His father served in the army and suppressed a Jewish uprising in Palestine as a legion commander. For these services, Emperor Vespasian made him a consulate, made him a patrician and entrusted him with the governorship of the provinces – first of Syria, then of Asia.
As a young man, he grew up during the war campaigns, basing his political career on the military. When his father became governor of the province of Syria in 76-77 CE, Trajan assumed the role of a legionary tribune. In 91 CE he became consul, and around that year he brought the great architect Apollodorus of Damascus to Rome, later Trajan’s personal constructor.
Trajan was involved in many battles along the Rhine during Domitian’s campaign, as well as the soldier’s disliked Nerves. The latter, realizing his weak position, decided to better appear in the eyes of the legions and to secure the throne after his death. To this end, in October 97 CE he proclaimed Trajan his son and co-regent. It is believed that Nerva’s decision was largely due to his adviser, a relative of Trajan.
The future emperor learned about his adoption, and later about the death of Nerva (he died in January 98 CE) during the strengthening of the border on the Rhine and Danube. However, instead of arriving in the capital and officially adopting the imperial insignia, he decided to continue the hostilities on the Rhine. Only in the summer of 99 CE did Trajan come to Rome.
Reign
Trajan pursued a clearly expansive policy, setting himself the goal of expanding the Roman Empire by the territories of Dacia with the capital in Sarmizegethus, rich in gold ores, and the territories of the Parthian state, which had large ore resources due to trade with the Far East. The war in Dacia (101 – 102 and 105 – 106 CE) won Trajan and the creation of a new province – Dacia, which romanized quickly and steadily. It was dictated mainly by the desire to avert the threat of the Daks invasion of Pannonia and Moesia, as well as the acquisition of the aforementioned gold deposits. As a result of mobilization, the legions’ troops then numbered about 80,000 people. After defeating the leader of the Daks – Decebal, Trajan transported a total of 50,000 prisoners to Italy, where he had made slaves.
The military operations that Trajan conducted against the Parthians, where the situation was changing after the reign of Nero, was of greater importance. In 106 CE, Trajan’s troops captured Petra – the “door” to the Red Sea. At the turn of 106 and 107 CE, Cornelius Palma as the governor of Syria (in the years 104/5- 108 CE) conquered and organized the province of