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