Argumentative Essay: Why Antonius Pius was a Good Emperor for Rome

Antonius Pius was the fourth of the Five Good Emperors and was born to a rich Celtic family.(“Antoninus Pius”; Habler) His father died when he was young and he was raised by both of his grandfathers. He was appointed governor of Asia Minor and was also Consul. He was put in charge of Rome’s Legal system by his predecessor Emperor Harding. When Hardings heirs died his next choice, Marcus Araelius, was too young so he adopted Antonius as his heir only if he adopted Marcus Araelius as his heir. Pius agreed and became emperor. Antonius Pius was a good emperor in Rome because he left Rome with a surplus of money, used his own money to help the poor and repaired old buildings, and had one of the most peaceful reigns in history.

Antonius Pius was wise with money; he would be generous with his own money but would also manage the federal budget and find corruption. Anotnius was known to be generous. He came from a large rich family, this gave him a lot of money and well in office he was known to spend his own money to help the poor. When disasters hit cities he would spend his own money to rebuild those cities and pay the citizens for what they lost. One example is that during a famine he spent his own money to buy food for the citizens of Rome.​​ When he died he left the treasury with a surplus of Dinari. During his rule there was only one major event and did not build a lot of new buildings to save money.  He also cracked down on corruption making sure that tax collectors were fair and gave the money that they were supposed to. He also lound how to own money out at low interest rates encouraging economic growth. Anonius’s policies led to major economic growth in Rome. His generosity to the poor gave them opportunities to invest and grow their position leading to better lives for all. When sisters hit, his spending on those cities made it so they could rebound and only have a little economic impact. These policies encouraged growth but also managed the government budget leading to the government having a surplus of money at the time of his death. His generosity and his money saving measures led tomaney other opportunities for the poor.

Even with a strict budget he one the respect of the people with his generosity. With a strict budget and not much government spending he still was very successful as a government leader for the people. He accomplished this with his own money,  he was generous and through this one the respect of the plebeians. They have a hard time in Romeo and live in cramped living conditions with little money and bad living conditions. They had little to no chance of advancing in society. Antonius  helped them alot. When other emperors would encounter a famine they would hoard food for themselves but Antonius bought food for the people of Rome and gave it to them so they could outlast the famine. This was not the only example of his generosity; he also would give out his money at low interest rates and rapier damaged buildings with his own money. He also would help the poor in other ways by stopping corruption in the tax system and arresting people who were corrupt and damaging their provinces. His economic help to the people led them to prosper and his generosity let them grow. His loans let them get money to give their children a better life and not have to worry about repaying enormes sums of money. This was just one of the ways he made people prosper. He also gave them food in desperate situations and presented many needless deaths showing that he cared about the people which is a sign of a good emperor. He also did the same thing in natural disasters giving the citys a chance to become what they once were and helping thousands of people. He also stopped the exploitation of the people through taxes and giving them a better chance to grow. Generosity was one of Antonius best strengths and is what mode hime one of the best emperors.

Antonius was one of the most peaceful emperors in the history of Pax Romana. Anotnius was not a normal emperor in the fact that his family was not from Rome. His family was Gaul but were rich. During his life he never fought in the army; the closest he got to the army was as consul. This influenced his view as emperor; he did not ever visit a legion during his reign, mostly ruling from Rome and not leaving the city. He trusted his commanders and had only a few conflicts during his reign. At the beginning of his rule he had a few small uprisings in cities that were put down by his commanders. The only major military campaign was in southern Britain where he pushed past Hardens wall and established his own wall farther north. During his reign he still kept the respect of his troops and his commanders by not throwing them into unnecessary battles and giving them larger pieces of land after they left and giving them more money. His reign had little conflict and that was rare at the time and he won the respect of  neighboring kingdoms and rulers. Peace of this scale at the time was rare and how he managed it was as well. His anti-expansionist personality probably came from his close watch on the budget of the empire. This was probably his main reason for his peace. He only had one expansion that did not go that far which was low and his reign was long as well. This probably won the respect of his people with this and not throwing their friends and family members unecessarly into battles to expand the largest empire the world has ever seen. His peace in his reign was probably his greatest accomplishment and after his reign Romo started to decline in peace.

Antonius Pius was one of the best emperors for Romeo because when he died he left the Roman treasury with a surplus of money, he gave and helped the poor and ruled with peace. Anotnius Pius was good at managing money, He balanced the federal budget but also helped the people with his own money. He also took care of the poor and spent his own money to help them climb the ranks of society. Lastly he also ruled in peace leaving Rome with little war. Anonius Pius was one of the best emperors in Roman history and was good for Rome.

MLA Citations

“Antoninus Pius.” Ancient Rome History at UNRV.com, https://www.unrv.com/five-good-emperors/antoninus-pius.php.

“Antoninus Pius.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., https://www.britannica.com/biography/Antoninus-Pius. 

Haber, Katharine. "Antoninus Pius." World History: Ancient and Medieval Eras, ABC-CLIO, 2022, ancienthistory.abc-clio.com/Search/Display/574381. Accessed 3 Mar. 2022.

Wasson, Donald L. “Antoninus Pius.” World History Encyclopedia, World History Encyclopedia, 28 Feb. 2022, https://www.worldhistory.org/Antoninus_Pius/.