什麼是馬可.奧勒利烏斯

Marcus Aurelius

全名Caesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus，原名Marcus Annius Verus。

羅馬皇帝（161～180）。出生於富貴之家，哈德良安排由未來的皇帝安東尼.庇護收養他和韋魯斯。皇帝撫育馬可成人，並指定其爲自己的繼承人。馬可就職後，仍然和同朝皇帝其義弟分掌大權，儘管大多數情況下由他定奪。在他統治期間，戰亂不斷，所有的邊界都受到外來侵略的威脅。反抗安息（162～166）的戰爭取得勝利，但是回來的軍隊帶給羅馬毀滅性的瘟疫。同時日耳曼人也開始入侵，羅馬人士氣低落；日耳曼人被擊退，但韋魯斯戰死沙場（169）。177年馬可立自己的兒子康茂德爲同朝皇帝。儘管他性格溫和，博學多才，馬克反對基督教，並迫害基督教徒。其關於斯多噶哲學的《沈思錄》被看作是人類最重要的書籍之一，闡述了他自己的全部宗教觀和道德價值。其統治時期成爲羅馬黃金時代的標誌。

121～180年

Marcus Aurelius

Roman emperor (161-80). He was born into a wealthy and prominent family, and Hadrian arranged that he and Lucius Verus be adopted by the designated future emperor Antoninus Pius, who dutifully groomed Marcus as his heir. On his accession, Marcus nevertheless shared power with his adoptive brother as coemperor, though he himself remained the more dominant. His reign was marked by numerous military crises, all the major frontiers being threatened by invasion. Struggles against the Parthians (162-66) were successful, but returning troops brought a devastating plague to Rome. With a concurrent German invasion, Roman morale declined; the Germans were repulsed, but Verus died during the campaign (169). Marcus made his son Commodus coemperor in 177. Though a man of gentle character and wide learning, Marcus opposed Christianity and supported persecution of its adherents. His Meditations on Stoicism, considered one of the great books of all times, gives a full picture of his religious and moral values. His reign is often thought to mark the Golden Age of Rome.