Events in Timeline of the Roman Empire
- 0753-04-21 BC Romulus and Remus found Rome (traditional date)
- 0752-03-01 BC Romulus, first king of Rome, celebrates the first Roman triumph after his victory over the Caeninenses, following the Rape of the Sabine Women
- 0509-09-13 BC The temple of Jupiter on Rome's Capitoline Hill is dedicated on the ides of September
- 0390-07-18 BC Roman-Gaulish Wars: Battle of the Allia - Roman army is defeated by raiding Gauls, leads to subsequent sacking of Rome
- 0293-08-18 BC The oldest known Roman temple to Venus is founded, starting the institution of Vinalia Rustica (grape harvest festival)
- 0241-03-10 BC First Punic War: Battle of the Aegates Islands - The Romans sink the Carthaginian fleet bringing the First Punic War to an end
- 0218-12-18 BC Second Punic War: Battle of the Trebia - Hannibal's Carthaginian army heavily defeat Roman forces on Italian soil
- 0216-08-02 BC Second Punic War: Battle of Cannae - Carthaginian army lead by Hannibal defeats numerically superior Roman army under command consuls Lucius Aemilius Paullus and Gaius Terentius Varro
- 0215-04-23 BC A temple dedicated to Venus Erycina is built on Capitoline Hill to commemorate the Roman defeat at Lake Trasimene
- 0202-10-19 BC Battle of Zama: Hannibal Barca and the Carthaginian army are defeated by Roman legions under Scipio Africanus, ending 2nd Punic War
- 0168-06-22 BC Battle of Pydna: Romans under Lucius Aemilius Paullus defeat and capture Macedonian King Perseus, ending the Third Macedonian War
- 0153-01-01 BC Roman consuls begin their year in office
- 0105-10-06 BC Battle of Arausio: The Cimbri inflict the heaviest defeat on the Roman army of Gnaeus Mallius Maximus.
Battle of Vercellae Ends Cimbri Threat
0101-07-30 BC Battle of Vercellae: Roman army under Gaius Marius defeats the Cimbri in Cisalpine Gaul, ending the Celto-Germanic threat on Italy's border with over 100,000 Cimbri killed
- 0086-03-01 BC Lucius Cornelius Sulla, at the head of a Roman Republic army, enters Athens, removing the tyrant Aristion who was supported by troops of Mithridates VI of Pontus
Battle of Alesia
0052-10-03 BC Vercingetorix, leader of the Gauls, surrenders to the Romans under Julius Caesar, ending the siege and battle of Alesia
Julius Caesar Crosses the Rubicon
0049-01-10 BC Julius Caesar defies the Roman Senate and crosses the Rubicon, uttering "alea iacta est" (the die is cast), signaling the start of civil war and his appointment as Roman dictator for life
- 0046-09-21 BC Julius Caesar celebrates first of four triumphal processions in Rome - over Gaul, Egypt, Pontus and Africa with leader of the Gauls Vercingetorix led in chains
Julius Caesar Assassinated
0044-03-15 BC Julius Caesar is stabbed to death by Brutus, Cassius and several other Roman senators on the Ides of March in Rome
Assassination of Cicero
0043-12-07 BC Marcus Tullius Cicero, Roman orator and politician is assassinated in Formiae by soldiers under the command of Marc Antony
Second Triumvirate
0043-11-26 BC Second Triumvirate alliance of Roman leader Octavian (later Caesar Augustus), Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, and Mark Antony formed
- 0043-11-26 BC Second Triumvirate alliance of Roman leader Octavian (later Caesar Augustus), Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, and Mark Antony formed
- 0043-08-19 BC Octavian, later known as Augustus, compels the Roman Senate to elect him Consul
- 0042-10-23 BC Roman Republican civil wars: Second Battle of Philippi - Brutus's army is decisively defeated by Mark Antony and Octavian. Brutus commits suicide.
Battle of Actium
0031-09-02 BC Battle of Actium: decisive naval battle that effectively ends the Roman Republic. Octavian's forces defeat those under Mark Antony and Cleopatra off the western coast of Greece.
- 0030-08-01 BC Octavian (later known as Augustus) enters Alexandria, Egypt, bringing it under the control of the Roman Republic
- 0027-01-16 BC The title Augustus is bestowed upon Gaius Julius Caesar Octavian by the Roman Senate
Tiberius Defeats Dalmatians
0008-08-03 Roman Empire general Tiberius defeats Dalmatians on the river Bathinus
- 0013-11-16 General Tiberius' (later Emperor) triumphant procession through Rome after siege of Germany
- 0028-06-12 Roman General Gaius Carrinas' triumphant procession through Rome, awarded for fighting in Gaul
- 0030-04-07 Scholars' estimate for Jesus' crucifixion by Roman troops in Jerusalem [or April 3]
Emperor Caligula
0037-03-18 Roman Senate annuls Tiberius' will and proclaims Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (aka Caligula = Little Boots) emperor
- 0037-03-28 Roman Emperor Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, better known as Caligula (which means "little soldier's boots"), accepts the titles of the Principate, entitled to him by the Senate
Claudius Succeeds Caligula
0041-01-24 Claudius succeeds his nephew Caligula as Roman Emperor after the latter's assassination by officers of the Praetorian Guard
- 0041-01-25 After a night of negotiation, Claudius is accepted as Roman Emperor by the Senate
Nero princeps iuventutis
0051-03-04 Nero, later to become Roman Emperor, is given the title princeps iuventutis (head of the youth)
- 0054-10-13 Nero succeeds Claudius as Roman Emperor
- 0055-02-11 Tiberius Claudius Caesar Britannicus, heir to the Roman Emperorship, dies under mysterious circumstances in Rome. This clears the way for Nero to become Emperor.
- 0064-07-18 Great Fire of Rome begins under the Emperor Nero
- 0064-07-19 Circus Maximus in Rome catches fire
- 0065-06-08 Jews revolt against Rome, capturing fortress of Antonia in Jerusalem
- 0068-06-08 Roman Senate accepts Emperor Galba
- 0068-06-09 Roman Emperor Nero commits suicide, imploring his secretary Epaphroditos to slit his throat to evade a Senate-imposed death by flogging
Great Jewish Revolt
0068-06-21 Roman General Vespasian conquers Jericho during the Great Jewish Revolt
- 0069-01-01 Roman garrison of Mainz uprising
- 0069-01-02 Roman Lower Rhine army proclaims its commander, Vitellius, Emperor
- 0069-01-10 Roman emperor Galba adopts Marcus Piso Licinianus as Caesar
- 0069-01-15 Otho seizes power in Rome, proclaiming himself Emperor, only rules for three months before committing suicide
- 0069-07-01 Roman General Vespasian is first proclaimed Emperor by troops in Egypt, during year of the four emperors
- 0069-12-20 General Vespasian's troops occupy Rome after defeating the Emperor Vitellius
- 0070-05-31 Rome captures 1st wall of the city of Jerusalem
Romans Take Jerusalem
0070-06-05 Titus and his Roman legions breach the middle wall of Jerusalem
- 0070-07-01 Roman General Titus and his forces set up battering rams to assault the walls of Jerusalem
- 0070-08-08 Tower of Antonia destroyed by Romans
- 0070-08-10 Second Temple in Jerusalem set on fire by Roman army under Titus during the capture of the city (approx)
- 0070-09-07 Roman army under General Titus occupies and plunders Jerusalem
- 0070-09-27 Walls of upper city of Jerusalem battered down by Roman army
- 0073-04-16 Masada, a Jewish fortress, falls to the Romans after several months of siege, ending the Jewish Revolt
Eruption of Vesuvius
0079-08-23 Mount Vesuvius begins stirring, on feast day of Vulcan, Roman god of fire (goes on to destroy Pompeii) [approx date] [1] [2]
Emperor Domitian
0081-09-14 Domitian becomes Emperor of the Roman Empire upon the death of his brother Titus
- 0089-01-01 Governor Lucius Antonius Saturninus of Germany becomes emperor of Rome
Domitian Assassinated
0096-09-18 Nerva is proclaimed Roman Emperor after Domitian is assassinated
Trajan Roman Emperor
0098-01-27 Trajan becomes Roman Emperor after the death of Nerva.
- 0104-01-01 Triumphal procession for the Roman General Gaius Marius with the defeated Numidian King Jugurtha led in chains though Rome
Emperor Antoninus Pius
0138-07-11 Antoninus Pius succeeds Hadrian as Emperor of Rome
- 0161-03-07 Roman Emperor Antoninus Pius dies and is succeeded by co-Emperors Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus, an unprecedented political arrangement in the Roman Empire
Marcus Aurelius and Commodus
0176-11-27 Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius grants his son Commodus aged 15 the rank of Imperator
- 0177-01-01 Commodus, son of Emperor Marcus Aurelius becomes consul for the first time - at 15 then youngest ever in Roman history
- 0180-03-17 Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius dies leaving his son Commodus aged 18 as sole emperor
- 0192-12-31 Roman Emperor Commodus survives poisoning attempt by his mistress only to be strangled in the bath in assassination plot
- 0193-03-28 Roman Emperor Pertinax is assassinated by his Praetorian Guards, who then sell the throne in an auction to Didius Julianus
Septimius Severus Emperor
0193-04-09 Septimius Severus is proclaimed Roman Emperor by the army in Illyricum
- 0193-04-14 Lucius Septimius Severus crowned Emperor of Rome
- 0193-06-02 Roman Emperor Didius Julianus is assassinated 66 days into his reign
- 0211-02-04 Roman Emperor Septimius Severus dies in Eboracum (York) in England, leaving the Roman Empire in the hands of his two quarrelsome sons, Caracalla and Geta
Assassination of Caracalla
0217-04-08 Roman Emperor Caracalla is assassinated (and succeeded) by his Praetorian Guard prefect, Marcus Opellius Macrinus
Emperor Elagabalus
0218-06-08 Elagabalus becomes the emperor of Rome
- 0235-09-28 Pope Pontian becomes the first Pope to abdicate from the role, for St. Anterus
- 0238-03-22 Gordian I and his son Gordian II are proclaimed Roman emperor
- 0251-07-01 The Battle of Abrittus in the Balkans won by the Goths against the Romans. Roman Emperors Decius and Herennius Etruscus are killed
- 0258-08-06 Pope St Sixtus II beheaded in Rome under persecutions by Roman Emperor Valerian
- 0268-12-26 Saint Dionysius, Roman Pope (259-260), dies
Temple to Sol Invictus
0274-12-25 Roman Emperor Aurelian dedicates a temple to Sol Invictus in Rome, on supposed day of the winter solstice, fulfilling vow made during campaign in Palmyra
Diocletian Proclaimed Emperor
0284-11-20 Roman general Diocletian proclaimed Emperor by armies of the east and west after the death of Carinus at the Battle of the Margus
- 0293-03-01 Roman emperor Maximianus introduces tetrarchy (rule of four people) elevating Galerius and Constantius Chlorus to Caesar
- 0303-02-22 First official Roman edict for persecution of Christians issued by Emperor Diocletian at Nicomedia, ordering all churches to be closed and scriptures burnt
- 0305-05-01 Diocletian and Maximian retire from the office of Roman Emperor
Emperor Constantine I
0306-07-25 Constantine I is proclaimed Roman Emperor by his troops
Emperor Maxentius
0306-10-28 Maxentius proclaimed Emperor of Rome
- 0308-11-11 The Congress of Carnuntum: Attempting to keep peace within the Roman Empire, the leaders of the Tetrarchy declare Maxentius and Licinius to be Augusti, while rival contender Constantine I is declared Caesar of Britain and Gaul.
- 0311-04-30 Roman Emperor Galerius issues Edict of Toleration, ending persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire
Vision of the Cross
0312-10-27 Roman Emperor Constantine the Great is said to have received his famous Vision of the Cross
- 0313-01-01 Start of Roman (Pontifical) Indiction
- 0314-10-08 Battle at Cibalae: Roman emperor in the west Constantine the Great beats emperor in the east Licinius
- 0317-03-01 Crispus and Constantine II, sons of Roman Emperor Constantine I, and Licinius the younger, son of Emperor Licinius, raised to rank of Caesar
- 0321-03-07 Roman Emperor Constantine I decrees that the dies Solis Invicti (sun-day) is the day of rest in the Empire
- 0324-07-03 Battle of Adrianople: Roman Emperor Constantine I defeats his co-emperor Licinius, who flees to Byzantium
- 0324-12-19 Licinius abdicates his position as Roman Emperor.
- 0326-11-18 Old St. Peter's Basilica consecrated in Rome (stood 4th - 16th century), later replaced by current Basilica
- 0330-05-11 Newly built city of Constantinople (Byzantium) dedicated to Emperor Constantine the Great, becomes the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire
- 0335-10-21 Roman Emperor Constantine the Great rules that Jews are not allowed to purchase and circumcise Christian slaves
- 0350-01-18 Roman Emperor Constans is assassinated and the general Magnentius proclaims himself the new Emperor
- 0350-06-03 Roman usurper Nepotianus, of the Constantinian dynasty, proclaims himself Roman Emperor, entering Rome at the head of a group of gladiators.
- 0350-06-30 Roman usurper Nepotianus, of the Constantinian dynasty, is defeated and killed by troops of the usurper Magnentius, in Rome
Gallus Controls Eastern Empire
0351-03-15 Constantius II elevates his cousin Gallus to Caesar, and puts him in charge of the Eastern part of the Roman Empire.
- 0354-10-10 Roman Emperor Constantius gives grand circus and theater shows to mark 30th year of his reign as Caesar in Arles
- 0355-08-11 Claudius Silvanus, accused of treason, proclaims himself Roman Emperor against Constantius II in Colonia Agrippina (modern Cologne)
- 0363-03-05 Roman Emperor Julian moves from Antioch with an army of 90,000 to attack the Sassanid Empire, in a campaign that brings about his own death
- 0363-05-29 Roman Emperor Julian defeats the Sassanid army in the Battle of Ctesiphon, under the walls of the Sassanid capital, but is unable to take the city
- 0363-06-26 Roman Emperor Julian is killed during retreat from the Sassanid Empire. General Jovian is proclaimed Emperor by troops on the battlefield.
- 0364-02-26 Valentinian I is proclaimed Roman Emperor
- 0364-02-28 Valentinian I becomes Roman Emperor (rules till 375)
- 0364-03-28 Roman Emperor Valentinian I appoints his brother Flavius Valens co-emperor
- 0365-09-28 Roman usurper Procopius bribes two legions passing by Constantinople, and proclaims himself Roman emperor
- 0366-01-02 The Alamanni cross the frozen Rhine River in large numbers, invading the Roman Empire
- 0378-08-09 Battle of Adrianople: Goth army defeats Roman forces under Emperor Valens, who is killed
- 0380-11-24 Theodosius I makes his adventus, or first formal entry, into Constantinople
- 0385-02-11 Siricius, bishop of Tarragona, elected as Bishop of Rome; first to style himself Pope
- 0390-12-25 Roman emperor Theodosius admits debt on mass murder in Thessalonica
- 0392-08-22 Arbogast has Eugenius elected Western Roman Emperor.
- 0392-11-08 Roman Emperor Theodosius declares Christian religion the state religion
- 0393-01-23 Roman Emperor Theodosius I proclaims his nine year old son Honorius co-emperor
Battle at Pollentia
0402-04-06 Battle at Pollentia: Roman army under Stilicho beats Visigoten
- 0404-01-01 Last gladiator competition in Rome
- 0406-08-23 Battle at Florence: Stilicho's Roman army beats Radagaisus' Barbarians
Alaric I Sacks Rome
0410-08-24 Rome overrun by Visigoths under Alaric I for the first time in nearly 800 years, seen as the fall of the Western Roman Empire
- 0415-10-17 Jewish autonomy in Palestine ended by the Romans and Raban Gamliel forced from office
- 0418-03-10 Jews are excluded from public office in the Roman Empire
- 0421-02-08 Flavius Constantine becomes Co-Emperor as Emperor Constantius III of the Western Roman Empire with Honorius
- 0425-10-23 Valentinian III is elevated to Roman Emperor, at the age of 6
Battle of the Catalaunian Plains
0451-06-20 Battle of the Catalaunian Plains: Roman and Visigoths forces defeat Attila the Hun in north east France, halting Hun invasion of Roman Gaul (exact date disputed)
- 0455-03-17 Roman senator Petronius Maximus proclaimed Emperor
- 0455-06-02 King Gaiseric and the Vandals sack Rome, looting continues for 14 days
- 0455-07-09 Roman military commander Avitus is proclaimed emperor of the Western Roman Empire
- 0456-10-16 Magister militum Ricimer defeats the Emperor Avitus at Piacenza and becomes master of the western Roman Empire
- 0467-04-12 Anthemius is elevated to Emperor of the Western Roman Empire by Leo I
- 0475-08-28 Roman general Orestes forces western Roman Emperor Julius Nepos to flee his capital city, Ravenna, now seen as the end of the Roman Empire in the West
End of the Western Roman Empire
0476-09-04 Romulus Augustulus, last Western Roman Emperor, abdicates after forces led by Odoacer invade Rome. Traditional end of the Western Roman Empire.
- 0536-12-09 Byzantine General Belisarius enters Rome while the Ostrogothic garrison peacefully leaves the city, returning the old capital to its empire
- 0537-03-11 Goths lay siege to Rome
- 0538-03-12 Witiges, King of the Ostrogoths, ends his siege of Rome, retreats to Ravenna, leaving the city in the hands of victorious Byzantine General Belisarius
- 0546-12-17 Gothic War (535-554): The Ostrogoths of King Totila conquer Rome by bribing the Byzantine garrison.
- 0550-01-16 Gothic War (535-552): The Ostrogoths, under King Totila, conquer Rome after a long siege, by bribing the Isaurian garrison
- 0609-05-13 Pope Boniface I turns the Pantheon in Rome into a Catholic church
- 1054-07-16 Beginning of the Great Schism between Western and Eastern churches when Roman Cardinal Humbert issues bull of excommunication against Cerularius, Patriarch of Constantinople, on the altar of the Hagia Sophia, Constantinople
- 1553-09-09 The Roman Inquisition burns all copies of the Talmud and other Jewish texts in Rome's Campo de Fiori
Edward Gibbon's Inspiration
1764-10-15 Edward Gibbon observes a group of friars singing in the ruined Temple of Jupiter in Rome, which inspires him to begin work on The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire
- 1776-02-17 1st volume of Edward Gibbon's seminal work "The Decline and Fall of Roman Empire" published
- 2021-03-16 Israeli researchers reveal re-discovery of 2,000 year-old Dead Sea Scrolls, 1st found in 60 years, left by Jews fleeing Romans in "Horror Cave", Israel
Famous Romans
Agrippina the Elder
Agrippina the Younger
Antoninus Pius
Augustus Caesar
Aurelia Cotta
Aurelian