Hadrian

Hadrian (76 A.D. - 138 A.D.) was Emperor of Rome following Trajan, the second in the series of Second Century emperors whose collective reign was described by Gibbon as mankind's greatest era. As Perowne relates, he was the first emperor to sport a beard, and one of the first to promote Hellenic (Greek-speaking) culture. He also had one of the worst marriages of any princeps, clearly preferring to spend his time with this Armenian (male) lover. His famous Wall erected in Britain was emblematic of his new, defensive posture, preferring to fix the boundaries where they were and not to conquer any fresh territories. Perowne gives an insightful account of life in the Second Century, particularly the philosophical and religious undercurrents of the age. (Perowne is a noted expert on Christian history and the early saints.) He is also very strong on architecte. I am not sure how this compares with Birley's new "The Restless Emperor" but, having read Birley's two sequels on Marcus Aurelius and Septimius Severus, my guess is that Perowne's book is more or less in the same league. I have, however, debited a point as a penalty: though Perowne admittedly wrote this book some time ago, some of his observations on Judaism are, to put it charitably, sadly anachronistic (or, less charitably, offensive).