Germanicus

Germanicus Julius Caesar was born on this day in 15 BC. He died 10 October AD 19. Germanicus was a Roman general and politician most famous for his campaigns against Arminius in Germania. He was the son of Nero Claudius Drusus and Antonia the Younger. Germanicus was added to his full name in 9 BC when it was posthumously awarded to his father in honor of his victories in Germania. In AD 4 he was adopted by his paternal uncle Tiberius. Ten years later, Tiberius succeeded Augustus as Roman emperor. Germanicus was the father of Caligula, the maternal grandfather of Nero, and the older brother of Claudius.

During the reign of Augustus, Germanicus enjoyed an accelerated political career. He entered the office of quaestor five years before the legal age in AD 7. He held that office until AD 9 where he was made praetor. He was elected consul for the first time in AD 12. The year after, he was made proconsul of Germania Inferior, Germania Superior, and all of Gaul. He commanded eight legions, one-third of the entire Roman army at the time. Germanicus avenged the Roman Empire's defeat in the Teutoburg Forest and retrieved two of the three legionary eagles that had been lost. In AD 17, he returned to Rome, where he received a triumph.

When Augustus' chosen successor, grandson Gaius Caesar, unexpectedly died in AD 4, he considered Germanicus as his heir. His wife Livia persuaded him to choose his stepson Tiberius instead. Many historians wonder what glory might have followed Germanicus and Rome had it not been for the machinations of Livia to put her offspring on the throne.

While in the eastern provinces, Germanicus came into conflict with the governor of Syria, Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso. Piso was a high ranking Roman aristocrat and senator. He opposed the First Triumvirate, and later Julius Caesar. He fought against Caesar in the Great Roman Civil War and against his adopted son, Octavian, in the War of the Second Triumvirate; both times finding himself on the losing side. During their feud, Germanicus became ill in Antioch and died on 10 October AD 19. His death has been attributed to poison by ancient sources, but it was never proven.