Explanation: Emperor Nerva, the nominal founder of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty of the Roman Empire, and considered the first of the “Five Good Emperors”, 5 consecutive rulers who were well-remembered by their contemporaries, was an old man who was elected by the Senate after the assassination of the tyrannical Emperor Domitian. He engaged in some minor fiscal and judicial reforms, and respected the supremacy of the Senate. He only ruled for two years before dying, but adopted a successor and heir in Trajan.

Emperor Trajan brought the Roman Empire to its greatest extent after wars with Dacia (Romania) and Persia. Despite being a military man well-beloved by the troops for being ’one of the boys’, drinking camp fare and sleeping in the same miserable conditions they did, Trajan was also noted as a cultured man who gave the utmost respect to the Senate and to the notion of the Roman Empire as remaining a republic. Considering some of the sycophantic responses to his letters, it was probably a bit late for that, but I respect the attempt! He was known by the Senate as Optimus Princeps for his attitude - “The Best Emperor”! He adopted Hadrian as his successor.

Emperor Hadrian surrendered the Persian territorial gains (booo!) for reasons of ‘defensibility’ or some lame, un-Roman nonsense like that. Hadrian is generally considered a good Emperor by the histories, but is also acknowledged as being notoriously short-tempered and dictatorial, in contrast to the cooperative and comparatively patient Trajan. He managed to earn the everlasting enmity of the Jewish ethnoreligion by his… very vicious response in the Third Jewish-Roman War (or revolt), which happened immediately after his Greek boytoy died in sudden and unexpected circumstances. Roman losses are uncertain, but high. Jewish losses were likely over half-a-million. He adopted Antoninus Pius as his heir on account of Antoninus’s reputation as competent, honest, hardworking, and humble.

Emperor Antoninus Pius ruled for some 23 years, presiding over no major crisis, and causing none. He is noted for his mildness, his love of justice, his legal reforms, public charity, fiscal responsibility, and investment in public infrastructure. I once saw his reign memetically described as “Did nothing for 20 years, but did it excellently”, and as far as ancient rulers go, that’s a pretty fair assessment. One of my favorite Emperors, just seems like the rare instance of a half-decent human being lucking into power and doing something good with it. He adopted Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus as his heirs.

Emperor Marcus Aurelius remains famous as a philosopher in the modern day, with his Meditations still widely read and considered a classic of Stoic thought. He was a workaholic who was constant pestered by his mentor to take a break from his obsessive and dutiful attention to affairs of state, going so far as to spend long nights filling out paperwork by candlelight. Aurelius acknowledged the legitimacy of his mentor’s arguments, but always put off taking a break anyway. Despite being a man of peace, Aurelius was forced into two wars which consumed all of his reign, one against the Persians, and one against invading Germanic tribes.

Emperor Lucius Verus reigned alongside Marcus Aurelius, as his adoptive brother. Verus was something of a charismatic partyboy, though he seemed popular amongst the troops and people of Rome. Part of that may be his enthusiasm for the sport of chariot-racing, which was wildly popular. ONE OF US, ONE OF US! While the Senatorial aristocracy did not like him, they apparently also could not name any particular fault with him other than that he was a partyboy during his off-hours. He died during Aurelius’s reign from illness.

Emperor Commodus was the only son of Aurelius to survive childhood, and the Roman Empire would have been better off had he just died and forced Aurelius to adopt like the other Five Good Emperors. He was obsessed with gladiators, going so far as to fight in the arena himself - always with odds stacked in his favor so he would never actually be at risk. His reign was characterized by massive corruption, neglect of affairs of state, and utter disdain for the Senate. He believed himself to be the incarnation of the divine Hercules on earth, and demanded the respect due to a Graeco-Roman god. As his reign wore on, he became more and more unstable, culminating in attempting to rename the Roman Empire and Roman people into the Commodian Empire and Commodian People. Just normal, everyday megalomaniacal stuff! He was assassinated by his close companions, with the consent of the Senate, ending the Nerva-Antonine Dynasty.