Trajan
53–117 CE · Roman (Italica, Hispania) · Roman Empire, Five Good Emperors
Known for: Expanded Rome to its greatest territorial extent—considered the best emperor by the Roman Senate
Trajan was the first Roman emperor born outside Italy and is considered the greatest military emperor. He conquered Dacia (modern Romania) and pushed Rome's borders to the Persian Gulf—the empire's maximum extent. His Column in Rome is a masterpiece of narrative sculpture.
He built Trajan's Forum, Trajan's Market, and expanded infrastructure across the empire. The Senate decreed that each new emperor should be 'more fortunate than Augustus and better than Trajan'—the ultimate Roman compliment.
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