COMMODUS, LUCIUS AELIUS AURELIUS 06'– 192), also called Marcus Antoninus, emperor of Rome, son of Marcus Aurelius and Faustina, was born at Lanuvium on Aug. 31, 161. At the age of is he was associated by his father in the government. On the death of Aurelius, whom he had accompanied in the war against the Quadi and Marcomanni, he hastily con cluded peace and hurried back to Rome (r8o). In 183 he was attacked by an assassin at the instigation of his sister Lucilla and many senators, and from this time be became tyrannical. Many distinguished Romans were put to death as implicated in the con spiracy, and others were executed for no reason at all. The treas ury was exhausted by lavish expenditure on *gladiatorial and wild beast combats and on the soldiery, and the property of the wealthy was confiscated. Plots against his life naturally began to spring up. That of his favourite Perennis, praefect of the praetorian guard, was discovered in time. The next danger was from the people, who were infuriated by the dearth of corn. The mob repelled the praetorian guard, but the execution of the hated minister Cleander quieted the tumult. The attempt also of the daring highwayman Maternus to seize the empire was betrayed; but at last Eclectus the chamberlain, Laetus the praefect of the praetorians, and the emperor's mistress Marcia, finding their names on the list of those doomed to death, had the emperor murdered on Dec. 31, 192. During his reign the frontier of Dacia was successfully defended against the Scythians and Sarmatians, and a tract of territory reconquered in north Britain. In 1874 a statue of Commodus was dug up at Rome, in which he is repre sented as Hercules—a lion's skin on his head, a club in his right and the apples of the Hesperides in his left hand.
See Aelius Lampridius, Herodian, and fragments in Dio Cassius ; H. Schiller, Geschichte der romischen Kaiserzeit; J. Ziircher, "Com modus" (1868, in Biidinger's Untersuchungen zur romischen Kaiser geschichte, a criticism of Herodian's account) ; Pauly-Wissowa, Real encyklopiidie, ii. 2,464 ff. (von Rohden) ; Heer, "Der historische Wert des Vita Commodi" (Philologus, Supplementband, ix.).