He was left behind to act as physician to the imperial heir Commodus.

Galen was the physician to Commodus for much of the emperor ’ s life and treated his common illnesses.

In 180, Hadrian's Wall was breached by the Picts and the commanding officer or governor was killed there in what Dio Cassius described as the most serious war of the reign of Commodus.

Pertinax was attacked and left for dead, and asked to be recalled to Rome, where he briefly succeeded Commodus as emperor in 192.

He had grown close to Lucius Ceionius Commodus, husband of the daughter of Gaius Avidius Nigrinus, a dear friend of Trajan who was executed for attempting to overthrow Hadrian early in his reign.

Marcus was made prefect of the city during the feriae Latinae soon after ( he was probably appointed by Commodus ).

He was released with other Christians at the request of Hyacinthus, a eunuch presbyter, who represented Marcia, the favourite mistress of Emperor Commodus.

However, Commodus was assassinated the following year.

After the death of Commodus in the previous century the Roman Empire was plunged into a civil war.

At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Novius and Commodus ( or, less frequently, year 831 Ab urbe condita ).

At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Commodus and Civica ( or, less frequently, year 859 Ab urbe condita ).

At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Commodus and Civica ( or, less frequently, year 889 Ab urbe condita ).

* Nobles of Britain demand that Commodus rescind all power given to Tigidius Perennis who was eventually executed.

Her father's Roman name was Julius Aurelius Zenobius, with the gentilicium Aurelius showing that his paternal ancestors received Roman citizenship under either Antoninus Pius ( reigned 138 – 161 ), Marcus Aurelius ( reigned 161 – 180 ) or Commodus ( reigned 180 – 192 ).

* Pertinax is forced to reorganize the handling of finances, which was wrecked under Commodus, and to reestablish discipline in the Roman army.

At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Commodus and Plautius ( or, less frequently, year 930 Ab urbe condita ).

Commodus (; 31 August 161 – 31 December 192 ), was Roman Emperor from 180 to 192.

Commodus was the first ( and up until 337 the only ) emperor " born in the purple "; i. e., born during his father's reign.

Commodus was assassinated in 192.

Commodus was born on 31 August AD 161, as Commodus, in Lanuvium, near Rome.

On 12 October 166, Commodus was made Caesar together with his younger brother, Marcus Annius Verus.

He was looked after by his father's physician, Galen, in order to keep Commodus healthy and alive.

On 1 January 177, Commodus became consul for the first time, which made him, aged 15, the youngest consul in Roman history up to that time.

Her husband, Pompeianus, was not involved, but two men alleged to have been her lovers, Marcus Ummidius Quadratus Annianus ( the consul of 167, who was also her first cousin ) and Appius Claudius Quintianus, attempted to murder Commodus as he entered the theatre.

Although his adoptive paternal grandparents were the Roman Emperor Hadrian and Roman Empress Vibia Sabina, his biological paternal grandparents were the consul Lucius Ceionius Commodus and noblewoman Aelia or Fundania Plautia.

During the late 180s, Niger was elected as a Suffect consul, after which Commodus made him imperial legate of Syria in 191.

He was a senator under Commodus and governor of Smyrna following the death of Septimius Severus ; he became a suffect consul in approximately the year 205.

His father Lucius Ceionius Commodus ( the author of the Augustan History adds the cognomen Verus ) was consul in 106 and his paternal grandfather of the same name was consul in 78.

* Emperor Septimius Severus has the Senate deify Commodus in an attempt to gain favor with the family of Marcus Aurelius.

* Commodus is given the title Augustus and is made co-emperor with the same status as his father Marcus Aurelius.

The principal surviving literary sources are Dio Cassius ( a contemporary and sometimes first-hand observer, but for this reign, only transmitted in fragments and abbreviations ), Herodian and the Historia Augusta ( untrustworthy for its character as a work of literature rather than history, with elements of fiction embedded within its biographies ; in the case of Commodus, it may well be embroidering upon what the author found in reasonably good contemporary sources ).

Commodus remained with the Danube armies for only a short time before negotiating a peace treaty with the Danubian tribes.

Dissatisfaction with this state of affairs would lead to a series of conspiracies and attempted coups, which in turn eventually provoked Commodus to take charge of affairs, which he did in an increasingly dictatorial manner.

All the months of the year were renamed to correspond exactly with his ( now twelve ) names: Lucius, Aelius, Aurelius, Commodus, Augustus, Herculeus, Romanus, Exsuperatorius, Amazonius, Invictus, Felix, Pius.

Pax Romana, according to Gibbon, would have ended with Commodus himself, whose dispendious excesses and despotic misrule destabilised central Roman politics amidst the chaos of the Germanic invasions of the Rhine-Danube frontier.

The Lebor Gabála Érenn synchronises Art's reign with that of the Roman emperor Commodus ( 180-192 ).

It was around this time that he was charged with having conspired against the life of Commodus, but he had the good fortune to be acquitted and to witness the punishment of his accuser.

The guards immediately closed with the offer of Julianus, threw open the gates, saluted him by the name of Commodus, and proclaimed him emperor.

The Suda says only that he lived in the times of Marcus Aurelius, but the contempt with which he speaks of Commodus, who died in 192, shows that he survived that emperor.

He has earned positive reviews for his portrayals of various individuals: a troubled teen in Gus Van Sant's To Die For ( 1995 ) co-starring with Nicole Kidman, a small-town troublemaker in Oliver Stone's U Turn, Inventing the Abbotts ( 1997 ), the cruel Roman emperor Commodus in Ridley Scott's Gladiator ( 2000 ) ( for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor ), a conflicted priest in Quills ( 2000 ), a washed-up baseball player in M. Night Shyamalan's Signs ( 2002 ), the irresolute husband of a superstar-skater in the widely panned It's All About Love in 2003, a lovestruck farmer in Shyamalan's The Village ( 2004 ), a disillusioned cameraman in Terry George's Hotel Rwanda ( 2004 ), and heroic firefighter in Ladder 49 ( 2004 ).

By the reign of emperor Commodus Marcionism was divided into various opinions with various leaders ; among whom was Apelles, whom Rhodo describes as: "... priding himself on his manner of life and his age, acknowledges one principle, but says that the prophecies are from an opposing principle, being led to this view by the responses of a maiden by name Philumene, who was possessed by a demon ".

He supplies a series of dates, beginning with Adam and ending with Marcus Aurelius, who had died shortly before he wrote, thus dating this work to the years of the reign of Commodus, 180-92.

The story is most likely apocryphal however, with Herodian attributing a similar tale to the assassination of Commodus.

Livius has close connections with the imperial family, being the lover of Aurelius ' philosopher daughter Lucilla and a friend of her brother Commodus.

The discovery that his father has effectively disinherited him hurts Commodus immensely, and damages the almost brotherly relationship he had enjoyed with Livius.

Timonides wins the Germans ' trust by successfully undergoing an ordeal, having his hand thrust in a fire ; with his help, Livius decides to put Aurelius ' policy into effect despite disapproval from Commodus.

The two fight with javelins in the Roman Forum, and Livius eventually runs Commodus through.