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173-700: Hadrian ( / ˈ h eɪ d r i ən / HAY -dree-ən ; Latin : Publius Aelius Hadrianus [(h)adriˈjaːnus] ; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. Hadrian was born in Italica , close to modern Seville in Spain, an Italic settlement in Hispania Baetica ; his branch of the Aelia gens , the Aeli Hadriani , came from the town of Hadria in eastern Italy. He

346-894: A classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages . Latin was originally spoken by the Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio ), the lower Tiber area around Rome , Italy. Through the expansion of the Roman Republic it became the dominant language in the Italian Peninsula and subsequently throughout the Roman Empire . By the late Roman Republic , Old Latin had evolved into standardized Classical Latin . Vulgar Latin refers to

519-615: A hero and composing an epigraph for the tomb. As Pompey was universally acknowledged as responsible for establishing Rome's power in the east, this restoration was probably linked to a need to reaffirm Roman Eastern hegemony following social unrest there during Trajan's late reign. Hadrian and Antinous held a lion hunt in the Libyan desert; a poem on the subject by the Greek Pankrates is the earliest evidence that they travelled together. While Hadrian and his entourage were sailing on

692-465: A capacity for both great personal generosity and extreme cruelty and driven by insatiable curiosity, conceit, and ambition. Publius Aelius Hadrianus was born on 24 January 76, in Italica (modern Santiponce , near Seville ), a Roman town founded by Italic settlers in the province of Hispania Baetica during the Second Punic War at the initiative of Scipio Africanus ; Hadrian's branch of

865-622: A city within Mysia, Hadrianutherae , after a successful boar hunt. At about this time, plans to complete the Temple of Zeus in Cyzicus , begun by the kings of Pergamon , were put into practice. The temple received a colossal statue of Hadrian. Cyzicus, Pergamon , Smyrna , Ephesus and Sardes were promoted as regional centres for the imperial cult ( neocoros ). Hadrian arrived in Greece during

1038-416: A commonwealth of civilised peoples and a common Hellenic culture under Roman supervision. He supported the creation of provincial towns ( municipia ), semi-autonomous urban communities with their own customs and laws, rather than the imposition of new Roman colonies with Roman constitutions. A cosmopolitan, ecumenical intent is evident in coin issues of Hadrian's later reign, showing the emperor "raising up"

1211-578: A decline in the Senate's power, which began following the reforms of the tribunes Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus . After the transition of the Republic into the Principate , the Senate lost much of its political power as well as its prestige. Following the constitutional reforms of Emperor Diocletian , the Senate became politically irrelevant. When the seat of government was transferred out of Rome,

1384-580: A distinguished Roman senatorial family based in Gades ( Cádiz ). His only sibling was an elder sister, Aelia Domitia Paulina . His wet nurse was the slave Germana, probably of Germanic origin, to whom he was devoted throughout his life. She was later freed by him and ultimately outlived him, as shown by her funerary inscription, which was found at Hadrian's Villa at Tivoli . Hadrian's great-nephew, Gnaeus Pedanius Fuscus Salinator , from Barcino (Barcelona) would become Hadrian's colleague as co-consul in 118. As

1557-526: A faster pace. It is characterised by greater use of prepositions, and word order that is closer to modern Romance languages, for example, while grammatically retaining more or less the same formal rules as Classical Latin. Ultimately, Latin diverged into a distinct written form, where the commonly spoken form was perceived as a separate language, for instance early French or Italian dialects, that could be transcribed differently. It took some time for these to be viewed as wholly different from Latin however. After

1730-743: A few in German , Dutch , Norwegian , Danish and Swedish . Latin is still spoken in Vatican City, a city-state situated in Rome that is the seat of the Catholic Church . The works of several hundred ancient authors who wrote in Latin have survived in whole or in part, in substantial works or in fragments to be analyzed in philology . They are in part the subject matter of the field of classics . Their works were published in manuscript form before

1903-404: A few. Famous and well regarded writers included Petrarch, Erasmus, Salutati , Celtis , George Buchanan and Thomas More . Non fiction works were long produced in many subjects, including the sciences, law, philosophy, historiography and theology. Famous examples include Isaac Newton 's Principia . Latin was also used as a convenient medium for translations of important works first written in

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2076-431: A further 100 senators. They were chosen from the minor leading families, and were accordingly called the patres minorum gentium . Rome's seventh and final king, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus , executed many of the leading men in the senate, and did not replace them, thereby diminishing their number. However, in 509 BC Rome's first and third consuls , Lucius Junius Brutus and Publius Valerius Publicola chose from amongst

2249-400: A grand league of all Greek cities. Successful applications for membership involved mythologised or fabricated claims to Greek origins, and affirmations of loyalty to imperial Rome, to satisfy Hadrian's personal, idealised notions of Hellenism. Hadrian saw himself as protector of Greek culture and the "liberties" of Greece – in this case, urban self-government. It allowed Hadrian to appear as

2422-517: A law ( lex ) that was passed by an assembly , the law overrode the senatus consultum because the senatus consultum had its authority based on precedent and not in law. A senatus consultum , however, could serve to interpret a law. Through these decrees, the senate directed the magistrates , especially the Roman Consuls (the chief magistrates), in their prosecution of military conflicts. The senate also had an enormous degree of power over

2595-421: A legitimate heir may have come too late to dissuade other potential claimants. Hadrian's greatest rivals were Trajan's closest friends, the most experienced and senior members of the imperial council; any of them might have been a legitimate competitor for the imperial office ( capaces imperii ); and any of them might have supported Trajan's expansionist policies, which Hadrian intended to change. One of their number

2768-594: A local dispute between producers of olive oil and the Athenian Assembly and Council , who had imposed production quotas on oil producers; yet he granted an imperial subsidy for the Athenian grain supply. Hadrian created two foundations to fund Athens' public games, festivals and competitions if no citizen proved wealthy or willing enough to sponsor them as a Gymnasiarch or Agonothetes . Generally Hadrian preferred that Greek notables, including priests of

2941-473: A longer period. Senators were entitled to wear a toga with a broad purple stripe, maroon shoes, and an iron (later gold) ring. The Senate of the Roman Republic passed decrees called senatus consulta , which in form constituted "advice" from the senate to a magistrate. While these decrees did not hold legal force, they usually were obeyed in practice. If a senatus consultum conflicted with

3114-504: A lower cost than a massed border army, and controlled cross-border trade and immigration. A shrine was erected in York to Britannia as the divine personification of Britain ; coins were struck, bearing her image, identified as Britannia. By the end of 122, Hadrian had concluded his visit to Britannia. He never saw the finished wall that bears his name . Hadrian appears to have continued through southern Gaul. At Nemausus , he may have overseen

3287-459: A magisterial office without the emperor's approval, senators usually did not vote against bills that had been presented by the emperor. If a senator disapproved of a bill, he usually showed his disapproval by not attending the senate meeting on the day that the bill was to be voted on. While the Roman assemblies continued to meet after the founding of the empire, their powers were all transferred to

3460-560: A native language, Medieval Latin was used across Western and Catholic Europe during the Middle Ages as a working and literary language from the 9th century to the Renaissance , which then developed a classicizing form, called Renaissance Latin . This was the basis for Neo-Latin which evolved during the early modern period . In these periods Latin was used productively and generally taught to be written and spoken, at least until

3633-457: A place on either side of the chamber. Senate membership was controlled by the censors . By the time of Augustus , ownership of property worth at least one million sesterces was required for membership. The ethical requirements of senators were significant. In contrast to members of the Equestrian order , senators could not engage in banking or any form of public contract. They could not own

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3806-491: A pretext to remove him from office. Hadrian spent the winter of 122/123 at Tarraco , in Spain, where he restored the Temple of Augustus . In 123, Hadrian crossed the Mediterranean to Mauretania , where he personally led a minor campaign against local rebels. The visit was cut short by reports of war preparations by Parthia; Hadrian quickly headed eastwards. At some point, he visited Cyrene , where he personally funded

3979-567: A result, the list has variants, as well as alternative names. In addition to the historical phases, Ecclesiastical Latin refers to the styles used by the writers of the Roman Catholic Church from late antiquity onward, as well as by Protestant scholars. The earliest known form of Latin is Old Latin, also called Archaic or Early Latin, which was spoken from the Roman Kingdom , traditionally founded in 753 BC, through

4152-399: A sacrifice to the gods was made, and a search for divine omens (the auspices ) was taken. The senate was only allowed to assemble in places dedicated to the gods. Meetings usually began at dawn, and a magistrate who wished to summon the senate had to issue a compulsory order. The senate meetings were public and directed by a presiding magistrate (usually a consul ). While in session,

4325-433: A senator, Hadrian's father would have spent much of his time in Rome. In terms of his later career, Hadrian's most significant family connection was to Trajan , his father's first cousin , who was also of senatorial stock and a native of Italica. Although they were considered to be, in the words of Aurelius Victor , advenae ("aliens", people "from the outside"), both Trajan and Hadrian were of Italic lineage and belonged to

4498-430: A senator. Under the first method, the emperor manually granted that individual the authority to stand for election to the quaestorship, while under the second method, the emperor appointed that individual to the senate by issuing a decree. Under the empire, the power that the emperor held over the senate was absolute. The two consuls were a part of the senate, but had more power than the senators. During senate meetings,

4671-453: A senatorial career. He then served as a military tribune , first with the Legio   II Adiutrix in 95, then with the Legio V Macedonica . During Hadrian's second stint as tribune, the frail and aged reigning emperor Nerva adopted Trajan as his heir; Hadrian was dispatched to give Trajan the news – or most probably was one of many emissaries charged with this same commission. Then Hadrian

4844-407: A separate language, existing more or less in parallel with the literary or educated Latin, but this is now widely dismissed. The term 'Vulgar Latin' remains difficult to define, referring both to informal speech at any time within the history of Latin, and the kind of informal Latin that had begun to move away from the written language significantly in the post-Imperial period, that led ultimately to

5017-536: A ship that was large enough to participate in foreign commerce, they could not leave Italy without permission from the rest of the senate and they were not paid a salary. Election to magisterial office resulted in automatic senate membership. After the fall of the Roman Republic , the constitutional balance of power shifted from the Roman senate to the Roman Emperor . Though retaining its legal position as under

5190-709: A small number of Latin services held in the Anglican church. These include an annual service in Oxford, delivered with a Latin sermon; a relic from the period when Latin was the normal spoken language of the university. In the Western world, many organizations, governments and schools use Latin for their mottos due to its association with formality, tradition, and the roots of Western culture . Canada's motto A mari usque ad mare ("from sea to sea") and most provincial mottos are also in Latin. The Canadian Victoria Cross

5363-429: A sort of informal language academy dedicated to maintaining and perpetuating educated speech. Philological analysis of Archaic Latin works, such as those of Plautus , which contain fragments of everyday speech, gives evidence of an informal register of the language, Vulgar Latin (termed sermo vulgi , "the speech of the masses", by Cicero ). Some linguists, particularly in the nineteenth century, believed this to be

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5536-572: A spoken and written language by the scholarship by the Renaissance humanists . Petrarch and others began to change their usage of Latin as they explored the texts of the Classical Latin world. Skills of textual criticism evolved to create much more accurate versions of extant texts through the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, and some important texts were rediscovered. Comprehensive versions of authors' works were published by Isaac Casaubon , Joseph Scaliger and others. Nevertheless, despite

5709-561: A state visit and was given the civic name Hadriana Palmyra. Hadrian also bestowed honours on various Palmyrene magnates, among them one Soados, who had done much to protect Palmyrene trade between the Roman Empire and Parthia. Hadrian had spent the winter of 131–32 in Athens, where he dedicated the now-completed Temple of Olympian Zeus , At some time in 132, he headed East, to Judaea. In Roman Judaea , Hadrian visited Jerusalem , which

5882-432: A strictly left-to-right script. During the late republic and into the first years of the empire, from about 75 BC to AD 200, a new Classical Latin arose, a conscious creation of the orators, poets, historians and other literate men, who wrote the great works of classical literature , which were taught in grammar and rhetoric schools. Today's instructional grammars trace their roots to such schools , which served as

6055-425: A succession of competing claimants – a civil war. Too early a nomination could be seen as an abdication and reduce the chance for an orderly transmission of power. As Trajan lay dying, nursed by his wife, Plotina, and closely watched by Prefect Attianus, he could have lawfully adopted Hadrian as heir by means of a simple deathbed wish, expressed before witnesses; but when an adoption document was eventually presented, it

6228-431: A successor, on condition that Antoninus adopt Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus as his own heirs. Hadrian died the same year at Baiae , and Antoninus had him deified, despite opposition from the Senate. Later historians counted him as one of Rome's so-called " Five Good Emperors ", and as a " benevolent dictator ". His own Senate found him remote and authoritarian. He has been described as enigmatic and contradictory, with

6401-693: A vernacular, such as those of Descartes . Latin education underwent a process of reform to classicise written and spoken Latin. Schooling remained largely Latin medium until approximately 1700. Until the end of the 17th century, the majority of books and almost all diplomatic documents were written in Latin. Afterwards, most diplomatic documents were written in French (a Romance language ) and later native or other languages. Education methods gradually shifted towards written Latin, and eventually concentrating solely on reading skills. The decline of Latin education took several centuries and proceeded much more slowly than

6574-417: A vote could be held, and since all meetings had to end by nightfall, a dedicated group or even a single senator could talk a proposal to death (a filibuster or diem consumere ). When it was time to call a vote, the presiding magistrate could bring up whatever proposals he wished, and every vote was between a proposal and its negative. Despite dictators holding nominal power, the senate could veto any of

6747-415: A young Roman aristocrat . Hadrian's enthusiasm for Greek literature and culture earned him the nickname Graeculus ("Greekling"), intended as a form of "mild mockery". Hadrian's first official post in Rome was as a member of the decemviri stlitibus judicandis , one among many vigintivirate offices at the lowest level of the cursus honorum ("course of honours") that could lead to higher office and

6920-406: A youth of 13 or 14. It is also possible that Antinous was sent to Rome to be trained as a page to serve the emperor and only gradually rose to the status of imperial favourite. The actual historical detail of their relationship is mostly unknown. With or without Antinous, Hadrian travelled through Anatolia . Various traditions suggest his presence at particular locations and allege his foundation of

7093-411: Is Veritas ("truth"). Veritas was the goddess of truth, a daughter of Saturn, and the mother of Virtue. Switzerland has adopted the country's Latin short name Helvetia on coins and stamps, since there is no room to use all of the nation's four official languages . For a similar reason, it adopted the international vehicle and internet code CH , which stands for Confoederatio Helvetica ,

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7266-640: Is a reversal of the original phrase Non terrae plus ultra ("No land further beyond", "No further!"). According to legend , this phrase was inscribed as a warning on the Pillars of Hercules , the rocks on both sides of the Strait of Gibraltar and the western end of the known, Mediterranean world. Charles adopted the motto following the discovery of the New World by Columbus, and it also has metaphorical suggestions of taking risks and striving for excellence. In

7439-552: Is found in any widespread language, the languages of Spain, France, Portugal, and Italy have retained a remarkable unity in phonological forms and developments, bolstered by the stabilising influence of their common Christian (Roman Catholic) culture. It was not until the Muslim conquest of Spain in 711, cutting off communications between the major Romance regions, that the languages began to diverge seriously. The spoken Latin that would later become Romanian diverged somewhat more from

7612-689: Is modelled after the British Victoria Cross which has the inscription "For Valour". Because Canada is officially bilingual, the Canadian medal has replaced the English inscription with the Latin Pro Valore . Spain's motto Plus ultra , meaning "even further", or figuratively "Further!", is also Latin in origin. It is taken from the personal motto of Charles V , Holy Roman Emperor and King of Spain (as Charles I), and

7785-1011: Is taught at many high schools, especially in Europe and the Americas. It is most common in British public schools and grammar schools, the Italian liceo classico and liceo scientifico , the German Humanistisches Gymnasium and the Dutch gymnasium . Occasionally, some media outlets, targeting enthusiasts, broadcast in Latin. Notable examples include Radio Bremen in Germany, YLE radio in Finland (the Nuntii Latini broadcast from 1989 until it

7958-543: The Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum (CIL). Authors and publishers vary, but the format is about the same: volumes detailing inscriptions with a critical apparatus stating the provenance and relevant information. The reading and interpretation of these inscriptions is the subject matter of the field of epigraphy . About 270,000 inscriptions are known. The Latin influence in English has been significant at all stages of its insular development. In

8131-536: The Amphictyonic League based in Delphi, but by now he had decided on something far grander. His new Panhellenion was going to be a council that would bring Greek cities together. Having set in motion the preparations – deciding whose claim to be a Greek city was genuine would take time – Hadrian set off for Ephesus. From Greece, Hadrian proceeded by way of Asia to Egypt, probably conveyed across

8304-640: The Commune of Rome attempted to establish a new senate in opposition to the temporal power of the nobles and the pope ; as part of this plan, the Commune constructed a new senate house (the Palazzo Senatorio  [ it ] ) on the Capitoline Hill (apparently in the mistaken belief that this was the site of the ancient senate house). Most sources state that there were 56 senators in

8477-664: The Fayyum at the beginning of December. Hadrian's movements after his journey down the Nile are uncertain. Whether or not he returned to Rome, he travelled in the East during 130–131, to organise and inaugurate his new Panhellenion , which was to be focused on the Athenian Temple to Olympian Zeus . As local conflicts had led to the failure of the previous scheme for a Hellenic association centered on Delphi, Hadrian decided instead for

8650-530: The First Temple had been after the Babylonian exile . A massive anti-Hellenistic and anti-Roman Jewish uprising broke out, led by Simon bar Kokhba . Given the fragmentary nature of the existing evidence, it is impossible to ascertain an exact date for the beginning of the uprising. It probably began between summer and fall of 132. The Roman governor Tineius (Tynius) Rufus asked for an army to crush

8823-548: The Historia Augusta suggests that the revolt was spurred by Hadrian's abolition of circumcision ( brit milah ); which as a Hellenist he viewed as mutilation . The scholar Peter Schäfer maintains that there is no evidence for this claim, given the notoriously problematical nature of the Historia Augusta as a source, the "tomfoolery" shown by the writer in the relevant passage, and the fact that contemporary Roman legislation on "genital mutilation" seems to address

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8996-583: The Holy See , the primary language of its public journal , the Acta Apostolicae Sedis , and the working language of the Roman Rota . Vatican City is also home to the world's only automatic teller machine that gives instructions in Latin. In the pontifical universities postgraduate courses of Canon law are taught in Latin, and papers are written in the same language. There are

9169-574: The Middle Ages , borrowing from Latin occurred from ecclesiastical usage established by Saint Augustine of Canterbury in the 6th century or indirectly after the Norman Conquest , through the Anglo-Norman language . From the 16th to the 18th centuries, English writers cobbled together huge numbers of new words from Latin and Greek words, dubbed " inkhorn terms ", as if they had spilled from a pot of ink. Many of these words were used once by

9342-587: The Nile , Antinous drowned. The exact circumstances surrounding his death are unknown, and accident, suicide, murder and religious sacrifice have all been postulated. Historia Augusta offers the following account: During a journey on the Nile he lost Antinous, his favourite, and for this youth he wept like a woman. Concerning this incident there are varying rumours; for some claim that he had devoted himself to death for Hadrian, and others – what both his beauty and Hadrian's sensuality suggest. But however this may be,

9515-642: The Peloponnese . His exact route is uncertain, but it took in Epidaurus ; Pausanias describes temples built there by Hadrian, and his statue – in heroic nudity  – erected by its citizens in thanks to their "restorer". Antinous and Hadrian may have already been lovers at this time; Hadrian showed particular generosity to Mantinea , which shared ancient, mythic, politically useful links with Antinous' home at Bithynia. He restored Mantinea's Temple of Poseidon Hippios , and according to Pausanias, restored

9688-576: The Roman Rite of the Catholic Church at the Vatican City . The church continues to adapt concepts from modern languages to Ecclesiastical Latin of the Latin language. Contemporary Latin is more often studied to be read rather than spoken or actively used. Latin has greatly influenced the English language , along with a large number of others, and historically contributed many words to

9861-569: The Romance languages . During the Classical period, informal language was rarely written, so philologists have been left with only individual words and phrases cited by classical authors, inscriptions such as Curse tablets and those found as graffiti . In the Late Latin period, language changes reflecting spoken (non-classical) norms tend to be found in greater quantities in texts. As it

10034-628: The Sarmatians ". Between 107 and 108, Hadrian defeated an invasion of Roman-controlled Banat and Oltenia by the Iazyges . The exact terms of the peace treaty are not known. It is believed the Romans kept Oltenia in exchange for some form of concession, likely involving a one-time tribute payment. The Iazyges also took possession of Banat around this time, which may have been part of the treaty. Now in his mid-thirties, Hadrian travelled to Greece; he

10207-636: The Western Roman Empire fell in 476 and Germanic kingdoms took its place, the Germanic people adopted Latin as a language more suitable for legal and other, more formal uses. While the written form of Latin was increasingly standardized into a fixed form, the spoken forms began to diverge more greatly. Currently, the five most widely spoken Romance languages by number of native speakers are Spanish , Portuguese , French , Italian , and Romanian . Despite dialectal variation, which

10380-433: The 3rd century BC the senate also played a pivotal role in cases of emergency. It could call for the appointment of a dictator (a right resting with each consul with or without the senate's involvement). However, after 202 BC, the office of dictator fell out of use (and was revived only two more times) and was replaced with the senatus consultum ultimum ("ultimate decree of the senate"), a senatorial decree that authorised

10553-410: The Aegean with his entourage by an Ephesian merchant, Lucius Erastus. Hadrian later sent a letter to the Council of Ephesus, supporting Erastus as a worthy candidate for town councillor and offering to pay the requisite fee. Hadrian arrived in Egypt before the Egyptian New Year on 29 August 130. He opened his stay in Egypt by restoring Pompey the Great 's tomb at Pelusium , offering sacrifice to him as

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10726-451: The British Crown. The motto is featured on all presently minted coinage and has been featured in most coinage throughout the nation's history. Several states of the United States have Latin mottos , such as: Many military organizations today have Latin mottos, such as: Some law governing bodies in the Philippines have Latin mottos, such as: Some colleges and universities have adopted Latin mottos, for example Harvard University 's motto

10899-447: The Empire, and indulged a preference for direct intervention in imperial and provincial affairs, especially building projects. He is particularly known for building Hadrian's Wall , which marked the northern limit of Britannia . In Rome itself, he rebuilt the Pantheon and constructed the vast Temple of Venus and Roma . In Egypt, he may have rebuilt the Serapeum of Alexandria . As an ardent admirer of Greek culture, he promoted Athens as

11072-486: The English lexicon , particularly after the Christianization of the Anglo-Saxons and the Norman Conquest . Latin and Ancient Greek roots are heavily used in English vocabulary in theology , the sciences , medicine , and law . A number of phases of the language have been recognized, each distinguished by subtle differences in vocabulary, usage, spelling, and syntax. There are no hard and fast rules of classification; different scholars emphasize different features. As

11245-467: The Greeks deified him at Hadrian's request, and declared that oracles were given through his agency, but these, it is commonly asserted, were composed by Hadrian himself. Hadrian founded the city of Antinoöpolis in Antinous' honour on 30 October 130. He then continued down the Nile to Thebes , where his visit to the Colossi of Memnon on 20 and 21 November was commemorated by four epigrams inscribed by Julia Balbilla . After that, he headed north, reaching

11418-416: The Grinch Stole Christmas! , The Cat in the Hat , and a book of fairy tales, " fabulae mirabiles ", are intended to garner popular interest in the language. Additional resources include phrasebooks and resources for rendering everyday phrases and concepts into Latin, such as Meissner's Latin Phrasebook . Some inscriptions have been published in an internationally agreed, monumental, multivolume series,

11591-459: The Ostrogothic leader Theodahad found himself at war with Emperor Justinian I and took the senators as hostages. Several senators were executed in 552 as revenge for the death of the Ostrogothic king, Totila . After Rome was recaptured by the imperial ( Byzantine ) army, the senate was restored, but the institution (like classical Rome itself) had been mortally weakened by the long war. Many senators had been killed and many of those who had fled to

11764-537: The Roman army during both the 66 and 132 rebellions. It has been speculated that Hadrian intended to assimilate the Jewish Temple to the traditional Roman civic-religious imperial cult ; such assimilations had long been commonplace practice in Greece and in other provinces, and on the whole, had been successful. The neighbouring Samaritans had already integrated their religious rites with Hellenistic ones. Strict Jewish monotheism proved more resistant to imperial cajoling, and then to imperial demands. A tradition based on

11937-627: The Roman defences, then set off westwards, along the Black Sea coast. He probably wintered in Nicomedia , the main city of Bithynia . Nicomedia had been hit by an earthquake only shortly before his stay; Hadrian provided funds for its rebuilding and was acclaimed as restorer of the province. It is possible that Hadrian visited Claudiopolis and saw the beautiful Antinous , a young man of humble birth who became Hadrian's lover. Literary and epigraphic sources say nothing of when or where they met; depictions of Antinous show him aged 20 or so, shortly before his death in 130. In 123 he would most likely have been

12110-401: The Roman imperial order. Inscriptions make it clear that in 133, Hadrian took to the field with his armies against the rebels. He then returned to Rome, probably in that year and almost certainly – judging from inscriptions – via Illyricum . Latin language Latin ( lingua Latina , pronounced [ˈlɪŋɡʷa ɫaˈtiːna] , or Latinum [ɫaˈtiːnʊ̃] ) is

12283-506: The Roman senate was not a de jure legislative body. The senate was a political institution in the ancient Roman Kingdom . The word senate derives from the Latin word senex , which means "old man"; the word thus means "assembly of elders". The prehistoric Indo-Europeans who settled Italy in the centuries before the founding of Rome in 753 BC were structured into tribal communities, and these communities often included an aristocratic board of tribal elders. The early Roman family

12456-459: The Senate of Constantinople was made up of all current or former holders of senior ranks and official positions, plus their descendants. At its height during the 6th and 7th centuries, the Senate represented the collective wealth and power of the Empire, on occasion nominating and dominating individual emperors. In the second half of the 10th century a new office, proedros ( Greek : πρόεδρος ),

12629-608: The Senate was reduced to a purely municipal body. That decline in status was reinforced when Constantine the Great created an additional senate in Constantinople . After Romulus Augustulus was deposed in 476, the Senate in the Western Empire functioned under the rule of Odoacer (476–489) and during Ostrogothic rule (489–535). It was restored to its official status after the reconquest of Italy by Justinian I but

12802-739: The Senate, alongside the Athenian grandee Herodes Atticus the Elder . The two aristocrats would be the first from "Old Greece" to enter the Roman Senate, as representatives of Sparta and Athens, traditional rivals and "great powers" of the Classical Age. This was an important step in overcoming Greek notables' reluctance to take part in Roman political life. In March 125, Hadrian presided at the Athenian festival of Dionysia , wearing Athenian dress. The Temple of Olympian Zeus had been under construction for more than five centuries; Hadrian committed

12975-530: The United States the unofficial national motto until 1956 was E pluribus unum meaning "Out of many, one". The motto continues to be featured on the Great Seal . It also appears on the flags and seals of both houses of congress and the flags of the states of Michigan, North Dakota, New York, and Wisconsin. The motto's 13 letters symbolically represent the original Thirteen Colonies which revolted from

13148-563: The University of Kentucky, the University of Oxford and also Princeton University. There are many websites and forums maintained in Latin by enthusiasts. The Latin Misplaced Pages has more than 130,000 articles. Italian , French , Portuguese , Spanish , Romanian , Catalan , Romansh , Sardinian and other Romance languages are direct descendants of Latin. There are also many Latin borrowings in English and Albanian , as well as

13321-616: The Western Senate ultimately disappeared after 603, the date of its last recorded public act. Some Roman aristocrats in the Middle Ages bore the title senator , but it was by this point a purely honorific title and does not reflect the continued existence of the classical Senate. The Eastern Senate survived in Constantinople through the 14th century. The Roman Senate was not the ancestor or predecessor of modern parliamentarism and senates of our time in any sense, because

13494-470: The Younger and (briefly) Governor of Dacia at the start of Hadrian's reign. He was probably Hadrian's chief rival for the throne; a senator of the highest rank, breeding, and connections; according to the Historia Augusta , Hadrian had considered making Nigrinus his heir apparent before deciding to get rid of him. Soon after, in 125, Hadrian appointed Quintus Marcius Turbo as his Praetorian Prefect. Turbo

13667-605: The Younger , mother of Nero , had been listening to Senate proceedings, concealed behind a curtain, according to Tacitus ( Annales , 13.5). After the fall of the Western Roman Empire , the senate continued to function under the Germanic chieftain Odoacer , and then under Ostrogothic rule. The authority of the senate rose considerably under barbarian leaders, who sought to protect the institution. This period

13840-422: The appointment; Trajan might simply have wanted him out of the way. The Historia Augusta describes Trajan's gift to Hadrian of a diamond ring that Trajan himself had received from Nerva , which "encouraged [Hadrian's] hopes of succeeding to the throne". While Trajan actively promoted Hadrian's advancement, he did so with caution. Failure to nominate an heir could invite chaotic, destructive wresting of power by

14013-427: The author and then forgotten, but some useful ones survived, such as 'imbibe' and 'extrapolate'. Many of the most common polysyllabic English words are of Latin origin through the medium of Old French . Romance words make respectively 59%, 20% and 14% of English, German and Dutch vocabularies. Those figures can rise dramatically when only non-compound and non-derived words are included. Roman Senate During

14186-546: The autumn of 124 and participated in the Eleusinian Mysteries . He had a particular commitment to Athens, which had previously granted him citizenship and an archonate ; at the Athenians' request, he revised their constitution – among other things, he added a new phyle (tribe), which was named after him. Hadrian combined active, hands-on interventions with cautious restraint. He refused to intervene in

14359-425: The benefit of those who do not understand Latin. There are also songs written with Latin lyrics . The libretto for the opera-oratorio Oedipus rex by Igor Stravinsky is in Latin. Parts of Carl Orff 's Carmina Burana are written in Latin. Enya has recorded several tracks with Latin lyrics. The continued instruction of Latin is seen by some as a highly valuable component of a liberal arts education. Latin

14532-411: The building of a basilica dedicated to his patroness Plotina, who had recently died in Rome and had been deified at Hadrian's request. At around this time, Hadrian dismissed his secretary ab epistulis , the biographer Suetonius , for "excessive familiarity" towards the empress. Marcius Turbo's colleague as praetorian prefect, Gaius Septicius Clarus , was dismissed for the same alleged reason, perhaps

14705-409: The careful work of Petrarch, Politian and others, first the demand for manuscripts, and then the rush to bring works into print, led to the circulation of inaccurate copies for several centuries following. Neo-Latin literature was extensive and prolific, but less well known or understood today. Works covered poetry, prose stories and early novels, occasional pieces and collections of letters, to name

14878-622: The case of Eugenius , who was later defeated by forces loyal to Theodosius I . The senate remained the last stronghold of the traditional Roman religion in the face of the spreading Christianity, and several times attempted to facilitate the return of the Altar of Victory (first removed by Constantius II ) to the senatorial curia. According to the Historia Augusta ( Elagabalus 4.2 and 12.3) emperor Elagabalus had his mother or grandmother take part in Senate proceedings. "And Elagabalus

15051-660: The city", since he was related to him by marriage. Hadrian is said to have placed the city's main Forum at the junction of the main Cardo and Decumanus Maximus , now the location for the (smaller) Muristan . After the suppression of the Jewish revolt, Hadrian provided the Samaritans with a temple dedicated to Zeus Hypsistos ("Highest Zeus") on Mount Gerizim . The bloody repression of the revolt ended Jewish political independence from

15224-744: The city's original, classical name. It had been renamed Antigoneia since Hellenistic times, after the Macedonian King Antigonus III Doson . Hadrian also rebuilt the ancient shrines of Abae and Megara , and the Heraion of Argos . During his tour of the Peloponnese, Hadrian persuaded the Spartan grandee Eurycles Herculanus – leader of the Euryclid family that had ruled Sparta since Augustus' day – to enter

15397-403: The civil government in Rome. This was especially the case with regard to its management of state finances, as only it could authorize the disbursal of public funds from the treasury. As the Roman Republic grew, the senate also supervised the administration of the provinces, which were governed by former consuls and praetors , in that it decided which magistrate should govern which province. Since

15570-415: The classicised Latin that followed through to the present are often grouped together as Neo-Latin , or New Latin, which have in recent decades become a focus of renewed study , given their importance for the development of European culture, religion and science. The vast majority of written Latin belongs to this period, but its full extent is unknown. The Renaissance reinforced the position of Latin as

15743-451: The construction of a wall "to separate Romans from barbarians". The idea that the wall was built in order to deal with an actual threat or its resurgence, however, is probable but nevertheless conjectural. A general desire to cease the Empire's extension may have been the determining motive. Reduction of defence costs may also have played a role, as the Wall deterred attacks on Roman territory at

15916-406: The consuls to employ any means necessary to solve the crisis. While senate meetings could take place either inside or outside the formal boundary of the city (the pomerium ), no meeting could take place more than a mile (in the Roman system of measurement, now approx. 1.48 km) outside it. The senate operated while under various religious restrictions. For example, before any meeting could begin,

16089-465: The country's full Latin name. Some film and television in ancient settings, such as Sebastiane , The Passion of the Christ and Barbarians (2020 TV series) , have been made with dialogue in Latin. Occasionally, Latin dialogue is used because of its association with religion or philosophy, in such film/television series as The Exorcist and Lost (" Jughead "). Subtitles are usually shown for

16262-572: The cultural capital of the Empire. His intense relationship with Greek youth Antinous and the latter's untimely death led Hadrian to establish a widespread, popular cult. Late in Hadrian's reign, he suppressed the Bar Kokhba revolt ; he saw this rebellion as a failure of his panhellenic ideal. Hadrian's last years were marred by chronic illness. His marriage had been both unhappy and childless. In 138 he adopted Antoninus Pius and nominated him as

16435-421: The days of the Roman Kingdom , the Senate was generally little more than an advisory council to the king. However, as Rome was an electoral monarchy , the Senate also elected new Roman kings . The last king of Rome, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus , was overthrown following a coup d'état led by Lucius Junius Brutus , who founded the Roman Republic . During the early Republic, the Senate was politically weak, while

16608-503: The decline in written Latin output. Despite having no native speakers, Latin is still used for a variety of purposes in the contemporary world. The largest organisation that retains Latin in official and quasi-official contexts is the Catholic Church . The Catholic Church required that Mass be carried out in Latin until the Second Vatican Council of 1962–1965 , which permitted the use of the vernacular . Latin remains

16781-502: The decline of the prestigious institution, suggesting that by this date, the senate had officially ceased to function as a body. Although the Gregorian register of 603 mentions the senate in reference to the acclamation of new statues of Emperor Phocas and Empress Leontia , scholars such as Ernst Stein and André Chastagnol have argued that this mention was likely nothing more than a ceremonial flourish. In 630, any remnants of

16954-418: The dictator's decisions. At any point before a motion passed, the proposed motion could be vetoed, usually by a tribune . If there was no veto, and the matter was of minor importance, it could be put to either a voice vote or a show of hands. If there was no veto and no obvious majority, and the matter was of a significant nature, there was usually a physical division of the house, with senators voting by taking

17127-527: The early 7th century, when Rome was under the dominion of the Exarchate of Ravenna . Records that in both 578 and 580, the politically-impotent senate of Rome sent envoys to Constantinople along with pleas for help against the Lombards , who had invaded Italy ten years earlier. Later, in 593, Pope Gregory I would give a sermon in which he bemoaned the almost complete disappearance of the senatorial order and

17300-535: The east chose to remain there, thanks to favorable legislation passed by Emperor Justinian, who, however, abolished virtually all senatorial offices in Italy. The importance of the Roman senate thus declined rapidly, and it likely ceased to function as an institution with any real legislative power shortly after this time. It is not known exactly when the Roman senate disappeared in the West, but it appears to have been in

17473-605: The east for a while, suppressing the Jewish revolt that had broken out under Trajan . He relieved Judea's governor, the outstanding Moorish general Lusius Quietus , of his personal guard of Moorish auxiliaries; then he moved on to quell disturbances along the Danube frontier. In Rome, Hadrian's former guardian and current praetorian prefect , Attianus, claimed to have uncovered a conspiracy involving Lusius Quietus and three other leading senators, Lucius Publilius Celsus, Aulus Cornelius Palma Frontonianus and Gaius Avidius Nigrinus. There

17646-491: The eastern provinces, and to some extent in the west, Nero had enjoyed popular support; claims of his imminent return or rebirth emerged almost immediately after his death. Hadrian may have consciously exploited these positive, popular connections during his own travels. In the Historia Augusta , Hadrian is described as "a little too much Greek", too cosmopolitan for a Roman emperor. Prior to Hadrian's arrival in Britannia ,

17819-472: The educated and official world, Latin continued without its natural spoken base. Moreover, this Latin spread into lands that had never spoken Latin, such as the Germanic and Slavic nations. It became useful for international communication between the member states of the Holy Roman Empire and its allies. Without the institutions of the Roman Empire that had supported its uniformity, Medieval Latin

17992-432: The emperor sat between the two consuls, and usually acted as the presiding officer. Senators of the early empire could ask extraneous questions or request that a certain action be taken by the senate. Higher ranking senators spoke before those of lower rank, although the emperor could speak at any time. Besides the emperor, consuls and praetors could also preside over the senate. Since no senator could stand for election to

18165-600: The fictive heir to Pericles , who supposedly had convened a previous Panhellenic Congress – such a Congress is mentioned only in Pericles' biography by Plutarch , who respected Rome's imperial order. Epigraphical evidence suggests that the prospect of applying to the Panhellenion held little attraction to the wealthier, Hellenised cities of Asia Minor, which were jealous of Athenian and European Greek preeminence within Hadrian's scheme. Hadrian's notion of Hellenism

18338-418: The general issue of castration of slaves by their masters. Other issues could have contributed to the outbreak: a heavy-handed, culturally insensitive Roman administration; tensions between the landless poor and incoming Roman colonists privileged with land-grants; and a strong undercurrent of messianism, predicated on Jeremiah 's prophecy that the Temple would be rebuilt seventy years after its destruction, as

18511-582: The gens Aelia came from Hadria (modern Atri ), an ancient town in the Picenum region of Italia, the source of the name Hadrianus . One Roman biographer claims instead that Hadrian was born in Rome , but this view is held by a minority of scholars. Hadrian's father was Publius Aelius Hadrianus Afer , a senator of praetorian rank, born and raised in Italica. Hadrian's mother was Domitia Paulina , daughter of

18684-541: The idea of the Roman Empire as a commonwealth with an underlying Hellenic culture. If Hadrian were to be appointed Trajan's successor, Plotina and her extended family could retain their social profile and political influence after Trajan's death. Hadrian could also count on the support of his mother-in-law, Salonia Matidia , who was the daughter of Trajan's beloved sister Ulpia Marciana . When Ulpia Marciana died in 112, Trajan had her deified , and made Salonia Matidia an Augusta . Hadrian's personal relationship with Trajan

18857-645: The imperial cult, focus on more essential and durable provisions, especially munera such as aqueducts and public fountains ( nymphaea ). Athens was given two nymphaea ; one brought water from Mount Parnes to the Athenia Agora via a complex, challenging and ambitious system of aqueduct tunnels and reservoirs, to be constructed over several years. Several were given to Argos, to remedy a water-shortage so severe and so long-standing that "thirsty Argos" featured in Homeric epic. During that winter, Hadrian toured

19030-779: The imperial retinue, when he joined Trajan's expedition against Parthia as a legate. When the governor of Syria was sent to deal with renewed troubles in Dacia, Hadrian was appointed his replacement, with independent command. Trajan became seriously ill, and took ship for Rome, while Hadrian remained in Syria, de facto general commander of the Eastern Roman army. Trajan got as far as the coastal city of Selinus , in Cilicia , and died there on 8 August 117; he would be regarded as one of Rome's most admired, popular and best emperors. Around

19203-703: The invention of printing and are now published in carefully annotated printed editions, such as the Loeb Classical Library , published by Harvard University Press , or the Oxford Classical Texts , published by Oxford University Press . Latin translations of modern literature such as: The Hobbit , Treasure Island , Robinson Crusoe , Paddington Bear , Winnie the Pooh , The Adventures of Tintin , Asterix , Harry Potter , Le Petit Prince , Max and Moritz , How

19376-414: The king could make new laws, although he often involved both the senate and the curiate assembly (the popular assembly) in the process. When the Republic began, the Senate functioned as an advisory council. It consisted of 300–500 senators who served for life. Only patricians were members in the early period, but plebeians were also admitted before long, although they were denied the senior magistracies for

19549-704: The language of the Roman Rite . The Tridentine Mass (also known as the Extraordinary Form or Traditional Latin Mass) is celebrated in Latin. Although the Mass of Paul VI (also known as the Ordinary Form or the Novus Ordo) is usually celebrated in the local vernacular language, it can be and often is said in Latin, in part or in whole, especially at multilingual gatherings. It is the official language of

19722-440: The large areas where it had come to be natively spoken. However, even after the fall of Western Rome , Latin remained the common language of international communication , science, scholarship and academia in Europe until well into the early 19th century, by which time modern languages had supplanted it in common academic and political usage. Late Latin is the literary language from the 3rd century AD onward. No longer spoken as

19895-467: The late seventeenth century, when spoken skills began to erode. It then became increasingly taught only to be read. Latin grammar is highly fusional , with classes of inflections for case , number , person , gender , tense , mood , voice , and aspect . The Latin alphabet is directly derived from the Etruscan and Greek alphabets . Latin remains the official language of the Holy See and

20068-431: The later part of the Roman Republic , up to 75 BC, i.e. before the age of Classical Latin . It is attested both in inscriptions and in some of the earliest extant Latin literary works, such as the comedies of Plautus and Terence . The Latin alphabet was devised from the Etruscan alphabet . The writing later changed from what was initially either a right-to-left or a boustrophedon script to what ultimately became

20241-401: The leading equites new men for the senate, these being called conscripti , and thus increased the size of the senate to 300. The senate of the Roman Kingdom held three principal responsibilities: It functioned as the ultimate repository for the executive power, it served as the king's council, and it functioned as a legislative body in concert with the people of Rome . During the years of

20414-420: The legitimacy of Hadrian's adoption: Cassius Dio saw it as bogus and the Historia Augusta writer as genuine. An aureus minted early in Hadrian's reign represents the official position; it presents Hadrian as Trajan's " Caesar " (Trajan's heir designate). According to the Historia Augusta , Hadrian informed the Senate of his accession in a letter as a fait accompli , explaining that "the unseemly haste of

20587-421: The less prestigious colloquial registers , attested in inscriptions and some literary works such as those of the comic playwrights Plautus and Terence and the author Petronius . While often called a "dead language" , Latin did not undergo language death . By the 6th to 9th centuries, natural language change eventually resulted in Latin as a vernacular language evolving into distinct Romance languages in

20760-464: The monarchy, the senate's most important function was to elect new kings. While the king was nominally elected by the people, it was actually the senate who chose each new king. The period between the death of one king and the election of a new king was called the interregnum , during which time the Interrex nominated a candidate to replace the king. After the senate gave its initial approval to

20933-439: The most part, relied on the reports of their imperial representatives around the Empire, Hadrian wished to see things for himself. Previous emperors had often left Rome for long periods, but mostly to go to war, returning once the conflict was settled. Hadrian's near-incessant travels may represent a calculated break with traditions and attitudes in which the empire was a purely Roman hegemony. Hadrian sought to include provincials in

21106-427: The need for a single leader, and so they elected a king ( rex ), and vested in him their sovereign power. When the king died, that sovereign power naturally reverted to the patres . The senate is said to have been created by Rome's first king, Romulus , initially consisting of 100 men. The descendants of those 100 men subsequently became the patrician class. Rome's fifth king, Lucius Tarquinius Priscus , chose

21279-456: The nominee, he was then formally elected by the people, and then received the senate's final approval. At least one king, Servius Tullius , was elected by the senate alone, and not by the people. The senate's most significant task, outside regal elections, was to function as the king's council, and while the king could ignore any advice it offered, its growing prestige helped make the advice that it offered increasingly difficult to ignore. Only

21452-413: The other varieties, as it was largely separated from the unifying influences in the western part of the Empire. Spoken Latin began to diverge into distinct languages by the 9th century at the latest, when the earliest extant Romance writings begin to appear. They were, throughout the period, confined to everyday speech, as Medieval Latin was used for writing. For many Italians using Latin, though, there

21625-760: The papacy and the Holy Roman Emperor during the second half of the twelfth century. From 1192 onward, the popes succeeded in reducing the 56-strong senate down to a single individual, styled Summus Senator , who subsequently became the head of the civil government of Rome under the pope's aegis. Although the 56-member senate would be restored soon thereafter in 1197, the institution would come to be composed largely of nobles. The senate continued to exist in Constantinople, although it evolved into an institution that differed in some fundamental forms from its predecessor. Designated in Greek as synkletos , or assembly,

21798-437: The personifications of various provinces. Aelius Aristides would later write that Hadrian "extended over his subjects a protecting hand, raising them as one helps fallen men on their feet". All this did not go well with Roman traditionalists. The self-indulgent emperor Nero had enjoyed a prolonged and peaceful tour of Greece and had been criticised by the Roman elite for abandoning his fundamental responsibilities as emperor. In

21971-456: The population was enslaved. The extent of punitive measures against the Jewish population remains a matter of debate. Hadrian renamed Judea province Syria Palaestina . He renamed Jerusalem Aelia Capitolina after himself and Jupiter Capitolinus and had the city rebuilt in Greek style. According to Epiphanius, Hadrian appointed Aquila from Sinope in Pontus as "overseer of the work of building

22144-463: The province had suffered a major rebellion from 119 to 121. Inscriptions tell of an expeditio Britannica that involved major troop movements, including the dispatch of a detachment ( vexillatio ), comprising some 3,000 soldiers. Fronto writes about military losses in Britannia at the time. Coin legends of 119–120 attest that Quintus Pompeius Falco was sent to restore order. In 122 Hadrian initiated

22317-415: The republic, in practice the actual authority of the imperial senate was negligible, and the emperor held the true power in the state. As such, membership in the senate came to be sought after by individuals seeking prestige and social standing, rather than actual authority. During the reigns of the first emperors, legislative, judicial, and electoral powers were all transferred from the Roman assemblies to

22490-608: The resistance; bar Kokhba punished any Jew who refused to join his ranks. According to Justin Martyr and Eusebius , that had to do mostly with Christian converts, who opposed bar Kokhba's messianic claims. The Romans were overwhelmed by the organised ferocity of the uprising. Hadrian called his general Sextus Julius Severus from Britain and brought troops in from as far as the Danube. Roman losses were heavy; an entire legion or its numeric equivalent of around 4,000. Hadrian's report on

22663-406: The revived senate, and modern historians have therefore interpreted this to indicate that there were four senators for each of the fourteen regiones of Rome . These senators elected as their leader Giordano Pierleoni , son of the Roman consul Pier Leoni , with the title patrician , since the term consul had been deprecated as a noble styling. The Commune came under constant pressure from

22836-589: The security of his reign; this earned him the senate's lifelong enmity. He earned further disapproval by abandoning Trajan's expansionist policies and territorial gains in Mesopotamia , Assyria , Armenia , and parts of Dacia . Hadrian preferred to invest in the development of stable, defensible borders and the unification of the empire's disparate peoples as subjects of a panhellenic empire , led by Rome. Hadrian energetically pursued his own Imperial ideals and personal interests. He visited almost every province of

23009-477: The senate elected new magistrates, the approval of the emperor was always needed before an election could be finalized. Around 300 AD, the emperor Diocletian enacted a series of constitutional reforms. In one such reform, he asserted the right of the emperor to take power without the theoretical consent of the senate, thus depriving the senate of its status as the ultimate repository of supreme power. Diocletian's reforms also ended whatever illusion had remained that

23182-432: The senate had independent legislative, judicial, or electoral powers. The senate did, however, retain its legislative powers over public games in Rome, and over the senatorial order. The senate also retained the power to try treason cases, and to elect some magistrates, but only with the permission of the emperor. In the final years of the western empire, the senate would sometimes try to appoint their own emperor, such as in

23355-416: The senate had the power to act on its own, and even against the will of the presiding magistrate if it wished. The presiding magistrate began each meeting with a speech, then referred an issue to the senators, who would discuss it in order of seniority. Senators had several other ways in which they could influence (or frustrate) a presiding magistrate. For example, every senator was permitted to speak before

23528-430: The senate now held jurisdiction over criminal trials. In these cases, a consul presided, the senators constituted the jury, and the verdict was handed down in the form of a decree ( senatus consultum ), and, while a verdict could not be appealed, the emperor could pardon a convicted individual through a veto. The emperor Tiberius transferred all electoral powers from the assemblies to the senate, and, while theoretically

23701-460: The senate were swept away when the Curia Julia was converted into a church ( Sant'Adriano al Foro ) by Pope Honorius I . Subsequently, the word "senate" was used by the nobility of Rome to describe themselves as a collective class. This usage was not intended to link them institutionally with the ancient senate, but rather continued the long-standing Roman tradition that the city's nobility

23874-415: The senate, and so senatorial decrees ( senatus consulta ) acquired the full force of law. The legislative powers of the imperial senate were principally of a financial and an administrative nature, although the senate did retain a range of powers over the provinces. During the early Roman Empire, all judicial powers that had been held by the Roman assemblies were also transferred to the senate. For example,

24047-410: The senate. However, since the emperor held control over the senate, the senate acted as a vehicle through which he exercised his autocratic powers. The first emperor, Augustus , reduced the size of the senate from 900 members to 600, even though there were only about 100 to 200 active senators at one time. After this point, the size of the senate was never again drastically altered. Under the empire, as

24220-457: The senatorial nobility, but no particular distinction befitting an heir designate. Had Trajan wished it, he could have promoted his protege to patrician rank and its privileges, which included opportunities for a fast track to consulship without prior experience as tribune; he chose not to. While Hadrian seems to have been granted the office of tribune of the plebs a year or so younger than was customary, he had to leave Dacia, and Trajan, to take up

24393-523: The shrine of Cupra in Cupra Maritima and improved the drainage of the Fucine lake . Less welcome than such largesse was his decision in 127 to divide Italy into four regions under imperial legates with consular rank, acting as governors. They were given jurisdiction over all of Italy, excluding Rome itself, therefore shifting Italian cases from the courts of Rome. Having Italy effectively reduced to

24566-440: The status of a group of mere provinces did not go down well with the Roman Senate, and the innovation did not long outlive Hadrian's reign. Hadrian fell ill around this time; whatever the nature of his illness, it did not stop him from setting off in the spring of 128 to visit Africa. His arrival coincided with the good omen of rain, which ended a drought. Along with his usual role as benefactor and restorer, he found time to inspect

24739-463: The time of his quaestorship, in 100 or 101, Hadrian had married Trajan's seventeen- or eighteen-year-old grandniece, Vibia Sabina . Trajan himself seems to have been less than enthusiastic about the marriage, and with good reason, as the couple's relationship would prove to be scandalously poor. The marriage might have been arranged by Trajan's empress, Plotina. This highly cultured, influential woman shared many of Hadrian's values and interests, including

24912-552: The training of young men from well-bred families for the Roman military. Cyrene had benefited earlier in Hadrian's reign (in 119) from his restoration of public buildings destroyed during the earlier, Trajanic Jewish revolt. Birley describes this kind of investment as "characteristic of Hadrian". When Hadrian arrived on the Euphrates , he personally negotiated a settlement with the Parthian King Osroes I , inspected

25085-424: The troops in acclaiming him emperor was due to the belief that the state could not be without an emperor". The new emperor rewarded the legions' loyalty with the customary bonus , and the Senate endorsed the acclamation. Various public ceremonies were organised on Hadrian's behalf, celebrating his "divine election" by all the gods, whose community now included Trajan, deified at Hadrian's request. Hadrian remained in

25258-442: The troops; his speech to them survives. Hadrian returned to Italy in the summer of 128, but his stay was brief, as he set off on another tour that would last three years. In September 128, Hadrian attended the Eleusinian Mysteries again. This time his visit to Greece seems to have concentrated on Athens and Sparta – the two ancient rivals for dominance of Greece. Hadrian had played with the idea of focusing his Greek revival around

25431-451: The upper class of Roman society. One author has proposed to consider them part of the " Ulpio - Aelian dynasty". Hadrian's parents died in 86 when he was ten years old. He and his sister became wards of Trajan and Publius Acilius Attianus (who later became Trajan's Praetorian prefect ). Hadrian was physically active and enjoyed hunting; when he was 14, Trajan called him to Rome and arranged his further education in subjects appropriate to

25604-428: The various executive Roman magistrates who appointed the senators for life (or until expulsion by Roman censors ) were quite powerful. Since the transition from monarchy to constitutional rule was most likely gradual, it took several generations before the Senate was able to assert itself over the executive magistrates. By the middle Republic, the Senate had reached the apex of its republican power. The late Republic saw

25777-507: The vast resources at his command to ensure that the job would be finished. On his return to Italy, Hadrian made a detour to Sicily . Coins celebrate him as the restorer of the island. Back in Rome, he saw the rebuilt Pantheon and his completed villa at nearby Tibur , among the Sabine Hills . In early March 127 Hadrian set off on a tour of Italy; his route has been reconstructed through the evidence of his gifts and donations. He restored

25950-581: The war to the Roman Senate omitted the customary salutation, "If you and your children are in health, it is well; I and the legions are in health." The rebellion was quashed by 135. According to Cassius Dio . Beitar , a fortified city 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) southwest of Jerusalem, fell after a three-and-a-half-year siege. Roman war operations in Judea left some 580,000 Jews dead and 50 fortified towns and 985 villages razed. An unknown proportion of

26123-399: Was Aulus Cornelius Palma who as a former conqueror of Arabia Nabatea would have retained a stake in the East. The Historia Augusta describes Palma and a third executed senator, Lucius Publilius Celsus (consul for the second time in 113), as Hadrian's personal enemies, who had spoken in public against him. The fourth was Gaius Avidius Nigrinus , an ex-consul, intellectual, friend of Pliny

26296-464: Was a member of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty . Early in his political career, Hadrian married Vibia Sabina , grandniece of the ruling emperor, Trajan . The marriage and Hadrian's later succession as emperor were probably promoted by Trajan's wife Pompeia Plotina . Soon after his own succession, Hadrian had four leading senators unlawfully put to death, probably because they seemed to threaten

26469-698: Was as ab actis senatus , keeping the Senate's records. During the First Dacian War , Hadrian took the field as a member of Trajan's personal entourage, but was excused from his military post to take office in Rome as tribune of the plebs , in 105. After the war, he was probably elected praetor . During the Second Dacian War , Hadrian was in Trajan's personal service again. He was released to serve as legate of Legio I Minervia , then as governor of Lower Pannonia in 107, tasked with "holding back

26642-468: Was back in Rome; he was elected quaestor , then quaestor imperatoris Traiani , liaison officer between Emperor and the assembled Senate, to whom he read the Emperor's communiqués and speeches – which he possibly composed on the emperor's behalf. In his role as imperial ghostwriter , Hadrian took the place of the recently deceased Licinius Sura, Trajan's all-powerful friend and kingmaker. His next post

26815-409: Was called a gens or "clan", and each clan was an aggregation of families under a common living male patriarch, called a pater (the Latin word for "father"). When the early Roman gentes were aggregating to form a common community, the patres from the leading clans were selected for the confederated board of elders that would become the Roman senate. Over time, the patres came to recognize

26988-520: Was characterized by the rise of prominent Roman senatorial families, such as the Anicii , while the senate's leader, the princeps senatus , often served as the right hand of the barbarian leader. It is known that the senate successfully installed Laurentius as pope in 498, despite the fact that both King Theodoric and Emperor Anastasius supported the other candidate, Symmachus . The peaceful coexistence of senatorial and barbarian rule continued until

27161-419: Was complex and may have been difficult. Hadrian seems to have sought influence over Trajan, or Trajan's decisions, through cultivation of the latter's boy favourites; this gave rise to some unexplained quarrel, around the time of Hadrian's marriage to Sabina. Late in Trajan's reign, Hadrian failed to achieve a senior consulship, being only suffect consul for 108; this gave him parity of status with other members of

27334-583: Was created as head of the senate by Emperor Nicephorus Phocas . Up to the mid-11th century, only eunuchs could become proedros, but later this restriction was lifted and several proedri could be appointed, of which the senior proedrus, or protoproedrus ( Greek : πρωτοπρόεδρος ), served as the head of the senate. There were two types of meetings practised: silentium , in which only magistrates currently in office participated and conventus , in which all syncletics ( Greek : συγκλητικοί , senators) could participate. The Senate in Constantinople existed until at least

27507-488: Was equated to its senate. Occasionally in the Early Middle Ages , the title "senator" was used by those in positions of power—for instance, it was held by Crescentius the Younger (d. 998) and, in its feminine form ( senatrix ), by Marozia (d. 937)—but it appears to have been regarded at that time as simply a title of nobility. Usage of the "senator" title in a more traditional sense was revived in 1144, when

27680-413: Was free to develop on its own, there is no reason to suppose that the speech was uniform either diachronically or geographically. On the contrary, Romanised European populations developed their own dialects of the language, which eventually led to the differentiation of Romance languages . Late Latin is a kind of written Latin used in the 3rd to 6th centuries. This began to diverge from Classical forms at

27853-456: Was granted Athenian citizenship and was appointed eponymous archon of Athens for a brief time (in 112). The Athenians awarded him a statue with an inscription in the Theatre of Dionysus ( IG II2 3286) offering a detailed account of his cursus honorum thus far. Thereafter, no more is heard of him until Trajan's Parthian campaign . It is possible that he remained in Greece until his recall to

28026-457: Was his close friend, a leading figure of the equestrian order, a senior court judge and a procurator . As Hadrian also forbade equestrians to try cases against senators, the Senate retained full legal authority over its members; it also remained the highest court of appeal, and formal appeals to the emperor regarding its decisions were forbidden. If this was an attempt to repair the damage done by Attianus, with or without Hadrian's full knowledge, it

28199-496: Was much more liberal in its linguistic cohesion: for example, in classical Latin sum and eram are used as auxiliary verbs in the perfect and pluperfect passive, which are compound tenses. Medieval Latin might use fui and fueram instead. Furthermore, the meanings of many words were changed and new words were introduced, often under influence from the vernacular. Identifiable individual styles of classically incorrect Latin prevail. Renaissance Latin, 1300 to 1500, and

28372-497: Was narrow and deliberately archaising; he defined "Greekness" in terms of classical roots, rather than a broader, Hellenistic culture. Some cities with a dubious claim to Greekness, however – such as Side – were acknowledged as fully Hellenic. The German sociologist Georg Simmel remarked that the Panhellenion was based on "games, commemorations, preservation of an ideal, an entirely non-political Hellenism". Hadrian bestowed honorific titles on many regional centres. Palmyra received

28545-441: Was no complete separation between Italian and Latin, even into the beginning of the Renaissance . Petrarch for example saw Latin as a literary version of the spoken language. Medieval Latin is the written Latin in use during that portion of the post-classical period when no corresponding Latin vernacular existed, that is from around 700 to 1500 AD. The spoken language had developed into the various Romance languages; however, in

28718-466: Was no public trial for the four – they were tried in absentia , hunted down and killed. Hadrian claimed that Attianus had acted on his own initiative, and rewarded him with senatorial status and consular rank; then pensioned him off, no later than 120. Hadrian assured the senate that henceforth their ancient right to prosecute and judge their own would be respected. The reasons for these four executions remain obscure. Official recognition of Hadrian as

28891-421: Was not enough; Hadrian's reputation and relationship with his Senate were irredeemably soured, for the rest of his reign. Some sources describe Hadrian's occasional recourse to a network of informers, the frumentarii , to discreetly investigate persons of high social standing, including senators and his close friends. Hadrian was to spend more than half his reign outside Italy. Whereas previous emperors had, for

29064-482: Was shut down in June 2019), and Vatican Radio & Television, all of which broadcast news segments and other material in Latin. A variety of organisations, as well as informal Latin 'circuli' ('circles'), have been founded in more recent times to support the use of spoken Latin. Moreover, a number of university classics departments have begun incorporating communicative pedagogies in their Latin courses. These include

29237-458: Was signed not by Trajan but by Plotina. That Hadrian was still in Syria was a further irregularity, as Roman adoption law required the presence of both parties at the adoption ceremony. Rumours, doubts, and speculation attended Hadrian's adoption and succession. It has been suggested that Trajan's young manservant Phaedimus, who died very soon after Trajan, was killed (or killed himself) rather than face awkward questions. Ancient sources are divided on

29410-556: Was still in ruins after the First Roman–Jewish War of 66–73. He may have planned to rebuild Jerusalem as a Roman colony  – as Vespasian had done with Caesarea Maritima  – with various honorific and fiscal privileges. The non-Roman population would have no obligation to participate in Roman religious rituals but were expected to support the Roman imperial order; this is attested in Caesarea, where some Jews served in

29583-429: Was the case during the late republic, one could become a senator by being elected quaestor (a magistrate with financial duties), but only if one were already of senatorial rank. In addition to quaestors, elected officials holding a range of senior positions were routinely granted senatorial rank by virtue of the offices that they held. If an individual was not of senatorial rank, there were two ways for him to become

29756-440: Was the only one of all the emperors under whom a woman attended the senate like a man, just as though she belonged to the senatorial order" (David Magie's translation). According to the same work, Elagabalus also established a women's senate called the senaculum , which enacted rules to be applied to matrons regarding clothing, chariot riding, the wearing of jewelry, etc. ( Elagabalus 4.3 and Aurelian 49.6). Before this, Agrippina

29929-473: Was transferred to Legio XXII Primigenia and a third tribunate. Hadrian's three tribunates gave him some career advantage. Most scions of the older senatorial families might serve one, or at most two, military tribunates as a prerequisite to higher office. When Nerva died in 98, Hadrian is said to have hastened to Trajan, to inform him ahead of the official envoy sent by the governor, Hadrian's brother-in-law and rival Lucius Julius Ursus Servianus. In 101, Hadrian

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