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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Curtisimo, post: 24777953, member: 83845&quot;]The boring part is often the most important part. Arguably, the most important part of Augustus’s reign wasn’t the dramatic civil wars, but the methodological ordering of affairs over the next “boring” 40+ years. If Augustus had died in 29 BC their would have been a return to chaos.</p><p><br /></p><p>Antoninus Pius did not need to fight dramatic wars or make big changes because the two emperors before him were competent and left the state in good order. Instead he provided almost a quarter century of stability. If Marcus Aurelius is to be believed, Antoninus Pius was a very conscientious ruler who took his job seriously. High praise from MA.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Caracalla was really only in charge for 6 years after his fathers death. Even if we set aside all the ancient sources as biased in their condemnation, it is hard for me to see how Caracalla should be considered effective. He created a financial crisis by raising the pay of the soldiers to unsustainable levels. He responded by issuing a coin (the Antoninianus) that was valued at 2x a denarius but was only intrinsically worth 1.5x. This accelerated inflationary pressure. So he was economically ineffective in my view.</p><p><br /></p><p>On the military front he had mixed success. He stabilized the Danube region but overextended himself into Parthia with little benefit. The army was in a bad situation upon his assassination.</p><p><br /></p><p>On the social front, he sacked his own city of Alexandria for making fun of him. He also murdered the only viable candidate to succeed him in the case of his death, Geta. This meant that the state was thrown into uncertainty after he was killed. Would Macrinus have dared to plan his assassination if he knew a grown and popular successor was ready to avenge the act? For me this inability to think long term keeps him squarely out of the effective category.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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