The citizens of the Roman Empire were used to illness, plague and death. But the Empire had never seen a disease like the Antonine Plague that broke out in AD 165. In the decades before, Rome had risen to unprecedented heights, after the plague the Roman power began to decline - even if the decline could always be stopped for a short time.
Before the plague - presumably it was smallpox - the empire experienced a period of prosperity such as had only been seen during the long reign of the first emperor, the great Augustus. The then ruler, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, was the last of the "five good emperors". While all fought steadfastly on the Empire's outer borders, they maintained peace, security, and prosperity within Empire territory.
The course of the disease was precisely documented by the Greek doctor Galen. The victims suffered from fever, vomiting, thirst, coughing and a swollen throat for two weeks. Others got red and black pustules on their skin, bad breath and black diarrhea. One in four of those infected died, the rest recovered and became immune to the disease. Almost ten percent of the empire of 75 million people perished in multiple waves of the plague. But that's just an average. While some areas were hardly affected, the plague raged far more severely elsewhere. Above all in the big cities and especially in Rome, the number of dead was higher. "Like a wild beast," said a Roman, "the disease not only destroyed a few people, but ravaged entire cities and destroyed them."
What is certain is that the disease first appeared in the east of the empire at the turn of the year 165 to 166 AD during the siege of Seleucia. The disease originally came from China and spread along the Silk Road. The Roman legions then spread them further as far as Gaul and the Rhine. Administration and medicine were completely helpless in the face of the plague. The Romans knew a lot, but they understood nothing about the nature of the contagious disease.
Developing an antidote was out of the question. The whole realm ducked as the plague swept over them. Everywhere in the Reich, archaeologists are still finding amulets and worked stones from the time that were supposed to ward off the disease. The contemporary legend of its origin fits in with this: the Romans believed that they had been punished by the gods because the general Lucius Verus had a tomb broken open during the siege of Seleucia and thus evoked the dead man's curse.
The plague swept through the empire in waves. She filled the lives of entire generations with terror. It only reached its peak in 189, when 2000 people died every day in the city of Rome. Presumably because of herd immunity, the plague later disappeared, for the Romans this was just as inexplicable as its coming. The Empire faltered. It is astonishing that the administrative apparatus managed to hold the empire together despite the loss of population. To ensure the functioning of the empire, the Romans took radical measures. They tried to use pragmatic means to fill in the gaps left by the plague. The sons of freedmen occupied the orphaned magistrates. Slaves were turned into legionnaires. Marcus Aurelius invited foreign tribes to settle in the deserted regions.
The plague attacked the Empire in the places that were its strengths. Roads, metropolises and a "global" trade established the prosperity. But the disease was particularly rampant along the trade routes. The modernity of the empire pumped the plague into every corner. The legions that were instrumental in spreading the plague suffered particularly. 150,000 soldiers are said to have died, that was the majority of the professional soldiers. Emperor Marcus Aurelius recruited slaves and gladiators, who were thus able to gain freedom.
The empire clung tenaciously to its life and did not collapse in the crisis. But the plague weakened the empire enormously. The economic crisis hit the Reich in the most sensitive area: income. Unlike the tribal societies, Rome was a very collaborative society based on a money economy. With its legions, the empire protected the prosperous and fertile regions of the Mediterranean, but it depended on the constant influx of taxes and duties to maintain the infrastructure and ensure the protection of the borders. When taxes dried up, the emperor's power base also eroded.
The measures taken by Marc Aurel prevented the collapse, but the empire remained weakened. The newly replenished legions could not stand against the Germanic tribes that were overrunning the Rhine. Rome no longer had the strength to integrate the newly settled barbarians. A dangerous development. Gradually, large areas emerged in the empire that were only pro forma subordinate to the emperor. In addition, the empire created another enemy within. Christians were blamed for the outbreak of the plague because of their refusal to sacrifice to gods and emperors. They were severely persecuted.
But in many areas, the structures of their church survived the epidemic better than the state administration. The Christians were the only ones who helped the sick and convalescent. This increased their reputation and their share in the population. While the Roman structures were severely weakened, a kind of counter-state formed with the bishoprics of Christianity, which even survived the western part of the empire.
Perhaps the empire could have reigned after the Antonine plague, but other pandemics followed, further weakening the empire. There was a coincidence. The most fatal victim of the disease for Rome was the general Lucius Verus. He was co-emperor of Marc Aurel, when he died the blessed tradition of adoptive emperors ended. Marc Aurel's successor was his own son Commodus. Classical historiography put the peak of Rome's power here, after which it went downhill. Commodus became a symbol of cruelty, degeneration and Caesar mania. Joaquin Phoenix showed a reflection of him in the Hollywood film "Gladiator".
Sources: Gibbons, Smithsonian, Ancient History
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