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Reign of Marcus Aurelius - Exam
Contributed by: Holloway
  • 1. Who was the predecessor of Marcus Aurelius as Emperor of Rome?
A) Julius Caesar
B) Augustus
C) Nero
D) Antoninus Pius
  • 2. What philosophical school did Marcus Aurelius follow?
A) Epicureanism
B) Stoicism
C) Aristotelianism
D) Platonism
  • 3. Marcus Aurelius is known for his collection of personal reflections known as what?
A) Meditations
B) Marcus's Musings
C) Reflections of a Roman Emperor
D) Thoughts of a Philosopher-King
  • 4. Which of Marcus Aurelius' sons eventually became his successor as Emperor?
A) Maximus
B) Lucius Verus
C) Octavius
D) Commodus
  • 5. In which year did Marcus Aurelius become Emperor?
A) 50 AD
B) 100 AD
C) 161 AD
D) 200 AD
  • 6. Who served as Marcus Aurelius' co-emperor and adoptive brother?
A) Julius Caesar
B) Nero
C) Lucius Verus
D) Constantine
  • 7. Which Roman province was the primary theater of operations during the Marcomannic Wars?
A) Pannonia
B) Britannia
C) Achaia
D) Dacia
  • 8. What was Marcus Aurelius' birth name?
A) Julius Cassius Augustus
B) Marcus Annius Verus
C) Lucius Aurelius Maximus
D) Titus Vespasianus Flavius
  • 9. Marcus Aurelius wrote his Meditations in which language?
A) Arabic
B) Spanish
C) Greek
D) Latin
  • 10. Marcus Aurelius was known for his policy of promoting individuals based on what rather than social status?
A) Military service
B) Merit
C) Noble birth
D) Wealth
  • 11. What catastrophic event struck the Roman Empire during Marcus Aurelius' rule?
A) Barbarian Invasions
B) Vesuvius Eruption
C) Great Fire of Rome
D) Antonine Plague
  • 12. Who was Marcus Aurelius' wife and Empress of Rome?
A) Livia
B) Agrippina
C) Faustina the Younger
D) Octavia
  • 13. Marcus Aurelius is often considered the last of the?
A) Five Good Emperors
B) Constantinian Emperors
C) Julio-Claudian Emperors
D) Flavian Emperors
  • 14. Which ancient historian referred to Marcus Aurelius as the last of the Five Good Emperors?
A) Tacitus
B) Suetonius
C) Plutarch
D) Cassius Dio
  • 15. What does the title 'Augustus' mean in Roman context?
A) Honored
B) Majestic
C) Noble
D) Wise
  • 16. When did Lucius Verus die, ending the joint rule with Marcus Aurelius?
A) 177
B) 180
C) 169
D) 161
  • 17. Which war did Rome fight under Marcus Aurelius from 161 to 166?
A) The Gallic Wars
B) The Punic Wars
C) The Roman–Parthian War
D) The Gothic Wars
  • 18. What title was Marcus Aurelius granted by the senate after Antoninus Pius's death?
A) Augustus
B) Pontifex Maximus
C) Imperator
D) Caesar
  • 19. What was the size of the special donative promised to the Praetorian Guard by Marcus and Lucius?
A) 20,000 sesterces per capita
B) 30,000 sesterces per capita
C) 5,000 denarii per capita
D) 10,000 sesterces per capita
  • 20. Where were the remains of Antoninus Pius laid to rest?
A) The Pantheon
B) Hadrian's mausoleum
C) Forum Romanum
D) Colosseum
  • 21. What did Marcus and Lucius nominate their father for after his death?
A) Cremation without honor
B) Burial in a common grave
C) Exile
D) Deification
  • 22. What did Marcus Aurelius transfer to his nephew Ummius Quadratus?
A) Part of his mother's estate
B) The imperial treasury
C) Lucius Verus’s inheritance
D) His entire fortune
  • 23. Where did Faustina give birth to her twins?
A) Antioch
B) Rome
C) Athens
D) Lanuvium
  • 24. What was the birthday shared by Marcus Aurelius's twin sons?
A) Caligula’s birthday
B) Nero’s birthday
C) Julius Caesar’s birthday
D) Augustus’s birthday
  • 25. At what age was Marcus Aurelius' daughter, Annia Lucilla, betrothed to Verus?
A) Thirteen
B) Nine
C) Eleven
D) Fifteen
  • 26. Who replaced Sextus Caecilius Crescens Volusianus as in charge of the imperial correspondence?
A) Aufidius Victorinus
B) Charilas
C) Lucius Volusius Maecianus
D) Titus Varius Clemens
  • 27. Who was appointed governor of Upper Germany?
A) Aufidius Victorinus
B) Lucius Volusius Maecianus
C) Charilas
D) Titus Varius Clemens
  • 28. On what date did Fronto return to his Roman townhouse?
A) 28 March
B) 10 January
C) 15 April
D) 5 February
  • 29. Who urged Marcus Aurelius to push the family's case regarding Matidia's will?
A) Martius Verus
B) Heliodorus
C) C. Avidius Cassius
D) Fronto
  • 30. Which Roman client state did the Parthians intervene in during 163?
A) Media
B) Osroene
C) Armenia
D) Seleucia
  • 31. Who first published 'Meditations' in 1558?
A) Erasmus of Rotterdam
B) Thomas More
C) Wilhelm Xylander
D) Martin Luther
  • 32. Where was Severianus trapped by Chosrhoes?
A) Alsium
B) Elegeia
C) Cappadocia
D) Vienna
  • 33. What was the original title of 'Meditations' if it had one?
A) Personal Reflections
B) To Himself
C) Unknown
D) Philosophical Thoughts
  • 34. What position did Heliodorus hold under Emperor Hadrian?
A) Ab epistulis
B) Governor of Syria
C) Commander of III Gallica
D) Prefect of Egypt
  • 35. Where did Marcus Aurelius die?
A) Antioch
B) Alexandria
C) Vindobona (modern Vienna)
D) Rome
  • 36. What was Marcus' attitude towards free speech during his early reign?
A) He ignored all forms of criticism
B) He permitted it, allowing criticism without retribution
C) He encouraged only positive feedback
D) He strictly controlled and punished any dissent
  • 37. What was C. Iulius Sohaemus' descent?
A) Parthian
B) Roman
C) Greek
D) Arsacid
  • 38. To whom did Fronto send a note upon returning to Rome?
A) The imperial freedman Charilas
B) Marcus Aurelius
C) Titus Varius Clemens
D) Lucius Verus
  • 39. Which ancient port city is possibly identified as Kattigara?
A) A city near Guangzhou along the South China Sea
B) A city in northern India
C) A city in southern Spain
D) A city on the Nile River
  • 40. Where did Marcus Aurelius take a holiday during the war?
A) Vienna
B) Armenia
C) Cappadocia
D) Alsium, in Etruria
  • 41. Who was installed as king in Armenia by Vologases IV?
A) Severianus
B) Marcus Aurelius
C) Pacorus
D) Chosrhoes
  • 42. Which modern figure is an admirer of 'Meditations'?
A) George W. Bush
B) Donald Trump
C) Bill Clinton
D) Barack Obama
  • 43. Which city did some Germanic tribes seize possession of?
A) Ravenna
B) Rome
C) Antioch
D) Alexandria
  • 44. Which philosophy is represented in Marcus Aurelius' notes?
A) Epicurean
B) Stoic
C) Cynic
D) Socratic
  • 45. Which city was the first publication of 'Meditations' in 1558?
A) London
B) Paris
C) Rome
D) Zurich
  • 46. Where did Lucius spend most of his time during the campaign?
A) Daphne
B) Rome
C) Antioch
D) Laodicea
  • 47. What was the capital of Osroene?
A) Edessa
B) Nisibis
C) Artaxata
D) Dura
  • 48. Who was re-installed as king of Osroene after the Parthians were driven out?
A) C. Iulius Sohaemus
B) Avidius Cassius
C) Lucius
D) Mannus
  • 49. What was the official reason given for the sacking of Seleucia?
A) A shortage of supplies
B) The Seleucids broke faith first
C) A plague contracted in Seleucia
D) An order from Marcus Aurelius
  • 50. In what year did Marcus Aurelius make Commodus co-emperor?
A) 172
B) 177
C) 179
D) 169
  • 51. Who among the following was not a known admirer of 'Meditations'?
A) Frederick the Great
B) Christina of Sweden
C) Goethe
D) John Stuart Mill
  • 52. In what year was the Armenian capital Artaxata captured?
A) 164
B) 165
C) 166
D) 163
  • 53. Who was a historical figure that admired 'Meditations' and was known as Julian the Apostate?
A) Theodosius I
B) Valens
C) Julian the Apostate
D) Constantine the Great
  • 54. What did Ptolemy describe as being visited by a Greek sailor named Alexander?
A) Kattigara, lying beyond the Golden Chersonese (Malay Peninsula)
B) The Euphrates River
C) The city of Rome
D) The Great Wall of China
  • 55. What did the coinage of 161 proclaim?
A) A new era of war
B) The end of peace
C) The greatness of Marcus and Lucius
D) Felicitas temporum (happy times)
  • 56. In which year did Roman forces re-occupy Edessa?
A) 163
B) 164
C) 165
D) 166
  • 57. Which century did Arethas of Caesarea live in when he referenced 'Meditations'?
A) 12th century
B) 10th century
C) 9th century
D) 11th century
  • 58. Who was installed as the new king of Armenia?
A) Mannus
B) C. Iulius Sohaemus
C) Lucius
D) Avidius Cassius
  • 59. What did Marcus request from Fronto for his reading?
A) Historical accounts of previous emperors
B) Eloquent reading matter, such as works by Cato, Cicero, Sallust, or a poet
C) Military manuals and strategies
D) Philosophical texts only
  • 60. What was the mortality rate of the Antonine Plague?
A) 10%
B) 75%
C) About 25%
D) 50%
  • 61. Who was credited with most of the success during the war?
A) Fronto
B) Lucius Verus
C) Subordinate generals
D) Marcus Aurelius
  • 62. Which city did Roman forces capture and set to flame?
A) Nisibis
B) Ctesiphon
C) Edessa
D) Dura
  • 63. What was the new capital of Armenia called after its reconstruction?
A) Artaxata
B) Edessa
C) Dausara
D) Kaine Polis ('New City')
  • 64. What was the legend on the imperial coinage of 164 regarding Sohaemus?
A) Rex armeniis Datus
B) Imp. III
C) Parthicus Maximus
D) Medicus
  • 65. What did Fronto feel was more important now than ever before during Marcus' early reign?
A) Public speeches
B) Philosophical debates
C) Lessons, due to Marcus' prominence and public duties
D) Military training
  • 66. What title did Verus take after the campaign in Media?
A) Imp. IV
B) 'Medicus'
C) Armeniacus
D) Parthicus Maximus
  • 67. What natural disaster struck Rome in the spring of 162?
A) A volcanic eruption
B) The Tiber flooded over its banks
C) A severe drought
D) An earthquake
  • 68. Where is the oldest surviving complete manuscript copy of 'Meditations' located?
A) Library of Alexandria
B) British Museum
C) Vatican Library
D) Bodleian Library
  • 69. Which legion was commanded by P. Julius Geminius Marcianus?
A) The Fifth Legion (Macedonica)
B) The Tenth Legion (Gemina)
C) The First Legion (Minervia)
D) The Ninth Legion of Hispania
  • 70. When was Commodus named Caesar by Marcus Aurelius?
A) 170
B) 175
C) 180
D) 166
  • 71. From where did the Costoboci invade Moesia, Macedonia, and Greece?
A) The Carpathian area
B) Asia Minor
C) North Africa
D) Scandinavia
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