Time to announce the new monthly topic! Its that thing we sometimes resort to when we wonder what else to talk about! :D[Poll #1675790] (Feel free to suggest more).
I think that the Meditations are pretty good writing insofar as a Roman Emperor is concerned. His political record, OTOH, includes the Marcomannic Wars and bequeathing to the Roman Empire Commodus, after which it turned to shit.
Yeah, he also sold royal property to pay for wars and asked the Senate for permission on spending which he didn't have to do. IMO his main flaw was his shitty wife.
Actually his main flaw was the idiot who came after him because he felt his son should succeed him just because he was in fact his son. Letting Commodus take control of the Empire like that pretty much soured anything of his actual legacy.
While I confess I've read much more of his philosophical works than about his actual imperial rule, I'd confess I would be surprised if you could demonstrate that claim.
The Meditations were a great writing of Stoic philosophy. Even his critics should give him that much. Before the discovery of germ theory plagues were unexplainable and impossible for anyone to handle. However with the Marcomannic Wars he failed to defeat a people who were just organized enough that a competent leader could have pulled it off. His decision to go to hereditary monarchy instead of adoptive/appointive left the Emperor with an assclown not too different from today's ruler of Uzbekistan. And after Commodus took over the Empire went to shit.
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