Commodus
Templat:Antonine dynasty Commodus (Marcus Aurelius Comodus Antonius Augustus[1]; 31 Agustus 161 M - 31 Desember 192 M) adalah seorang Penguasa Roma sejak 180 M hingga 192 M. Dia juga menjadi wakil penguasa dengan ayahnya (Marcus Aurelius) pada 177 M hingga kematian ayahnya pada 180 M.
| Commodus | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Kaisar ke-18 dari Kekaisaran Romawi | |||||
| Berkuasa | 177 – 31 December 192 | ||||
| Pendahulu | Marcus Aurelius, ayah | ||||
| Penerus | Pertinax | ||||
| Co-emperor | Marcus Aurelius (177–180) | ||||
Informasi pribadi | |||||
| Kelahiran | 31 Agustus 161 Lanuvium, dekat Roma | ||||
| Kematian | 31 Desember 192 (usia 31) Roma | ||||
| Pemakaman | Roma | ||||
| |||||
| Ayah | Marcus Aurelius | ||||
| Ibu | Faustina | ||||
| Istri | |||||
Commodus mati dibunuh pada tahun 192 M. Dio Cassius, a first-hand witness, describes him as "not naturally wicked but, on the contrary, as guileless as any man that ever lived. His great simplicity, however, together with his cowardice, made him the slave of his companions, and it was through them that he at first, out of ignorance, missed the better life and then was led on into lustful and cruel habits, which soon became second nature."[2]
His recorded actions do tend to show a rejection of his father’s policies, his father’s advisers, and especially his father’s austere lifestyle, and an alienation from the surviving members of his family. It seems likely that he was brought up in an atmosphere of Stoic asceticism, which he rejected entirely upon his accession to sole rule. After repeated attempts on Commodus' life, Roman citizens were often killed for making him angry. One such notable event was the attempted extermination of the house of the Quinctilii. Condianus and Maximus were executed on the pretext that, while they were not implicated in any plots, their wealth and talent would make them unhappy with the current state of affairs.[3]
Changes of name
On his accession as sole ruler, Commodus added the name Antoninus to his official nomenclature. In October 180 he changed his praenomen from Lucius to Marcus, presumably in honour of his father. He later took the title of Felix in 185. In 191 he restored his praenomen to Lucius and added the family name Aelius, apparently linking himself to Hadrian and Hadrian's adopted son Lucius Aelius Caesar, whose original name was also Commodus.
Later that year he dropped Antoninus and adopted as his full style Lucius Aelius Aurelius Commodus Augustus Herculeus Romanus Exsuperatorius Amazonius Invictus Felix Pius (the order of some of these titles varies in the sources). "Exsuperatorius" (the supreme) was a title given to Jupiter, and "Amazonius" identified him again with Hercules.
An inscribed altar from Dura-Europos on the Euphrates shows that Commodus' titles and the renaming of the months were disseminated to the furthest reaches of the Empire; moreover, that even auxiliary military units received the title Commodiana, and that Commodus claimed two additional titles: Pacator Orbis (pacifier of the world) and Dominus Noster (Our Lord). The latter eventually would be used as a conventional title by Roman emperors, starting about a century later, but Commodus seems to have been the first to assume it.[4]
Commodus and Hercules
Disdaining the more philosophic inclinations of his father, Commodus was extremely proud of his physical prowess. The historian Herodian, a contemporary, described Commodus as an extremely handsome man.[5] As mentioned above, he ordered many statues to be made showing him dressed as Hercules with a lion's hide and a club. He thought of himself as the reincarnation of Hercules, frequently emulating the legendary hero's feats by appearing in the arena to fight a variety of wild animals. He was left-handed, and very proud of the fact. [6] Cassius Dio and the writers of the Augustan History say that Commodus was a skilled archer, who could shoot the heads off ostriches in full gallop, and kill a panther as it attacked a victim in the arena.
Commodus the gladiator
Commodus also had a passion for gladiatorial combat, which he took so far as to take to the arena himself, dressed as a gladiator. The Romans found Commodus' naked gladiatorial combats to be scandalous and disgraceful.[7] It was rumoured that he was actually the son, not of Marcus Aurelius, but of a gladiator whom his mother Faustina had taken as a lover at the coastal resort of Caieta.[8]
In the arena, Commodus always won since his opponents always submitted to the emperor. Thus, these public fights would not end in death. Privately, it was his custom to slay his practice opponents.[9] For each appearance in the arena, he charged the city of Rome a million sesterces, straining the Roman economy.
Commodus raised the ire of many military officials in Rome for his Hercules persona in the arena. Often, wounded soldiers and amputees would be placed in the arena for Commodus to slay with a sword. Citizens of Rome missing their feet through accident or illness were taken to the arena, where they were tethered together for Commodus to club to death while pretending they were giants.[10] These acts may have contributed to his assassination.
Commodus was also known for fighting exotic animals in the arena, often to the horror of the Roman people. According to Gibbon, Commodus once killed 100 lions in a single day.[11] Later, he decapitated a running ostrich with a specially designed dart[12] and afterwards carried the bleeding head of the dead bird and his sword over to the section where the Senators sat and gesticulated as though they were next.[13] Dio notes that the targeted senators actually found this more ridiculous than frightening, and chewed on laurel leaves to conceal their laughter.[14] On another occasion, Commodus killed three elephants on the floor of the arena by himself.[15] Finally, Commodus killed a giraffe, which was considered to be a strange and helpless beast.[16]
Dalam film
- In 1964's The Fall of the Roman Empire, a fictionalized Commodus who serves as the main antagonist of the film, is portrayed by Christopher Plummer.
- In 2000's Academy Award–winner for Best Picture, Gladiator, a fictionalized Commodus serves as the main antagonist of the film. He is played by Joaquin Phoenix.[17]
Leluhur
Referensi
- ^ Dalam tulisan klasik Latin, nama Commodus ditulis sebagai MARCVS AVRELIVS COMMODVS ANTONINVS AVGVSTVS.
- ^ Dio Cassius 73.1.2, Loeb edition translated E. Cary
- ^ Dio Cassius 73.5.3, Loeb edition translated E. Cary
- ^ Spiedel, M. P (1993). "Commodus the God-Emperor and the Army". Journal of Roman Studies. 83: 109–114. doi:10.2307/300981. JSTOR 300981.
- ^ Grant, Michael. The Roman Emperors (1985)pp 99.
- ^ Dio, Cassius. Roman History: Epitome of Book LXXIII pp 111.
- ^ Herodian's Roman History F.L. Muller Edition 1.15.7
- ^ Historia Augusta, Life of Marcus Aurelius, XIX. The film The Fall of the Roman Empire makes use of this story: one of the characters is an old gladiator who eventually reveals himself to be Commodus' real father.
- ^ Dio Cassius 73.10.3
- ^ Dio Cassius 73.20.3, Loeb edition translated E. Cary
- ^ Gibbon pg 106 "disgorged at once a hundred lions; a hundred darts"
- ^ Gibbon, Edward The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire: Volume I Everyman's Library (Knopf) New York. 1910. pg 106 "with arrows whose point was shaped in the form of a crescent"
- ^ Lane Fox, Robin The Classical World: An Epic History from Homer to Hadrian Basic Books. 2006 pg 446 "brandishing a sword in one hand and bloodied neck...He gesticulated at the Senate."
- ^ http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Cassius_Dio/73*.html
- ^ Scullard, H. H The Elephant in the Greek and Roman World Thames and Hudson. 1974 pg 252
- ^ Gibbon pg 107 "*1 Commodus killed a camelopardalis or giraffe ... the most useless of the quadrupeds".
- ^ IMDb Commodus (Character) from Gladiator (2000) Retrieved October 2012
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