Alan Zhang’s Definitive Subjectively Objective Roman Emperor Rankings
For years, I have considered myself an avid fan of Roman history. Now, I will try to
impart some of my hot takes on the subject with you in this Roman emperor ranking! To make
this, I have totally correctly (and, admittedly, somewhat arbitrarily) scored the emperors based
on domestic affairs, foreign affairs, personal character, overall impact, and historical legacy.
N.B.: You may notice some of your favorite emperors, like Didius Julianus, Pupienus,
and Romulus Augustulus, missing. To keep this list from being too excessively long, I have only
included the most exciting emperors!
Rank
Emperor
1
Trajan
Years
Trajan famously expanded Rome to its greatest extent, but he also led several
98 – 117 popular building projects at home, in addition to being an all-around good dude. The
CE
first of the Five Good Emperors and, in my opinion, the best of all emperors.
2
Augustus
Comments
27 BCE -
14 CE
He began the principate, ended the Civil Wars, and instituted the Pax Romana...
among everything else he did. Although his reign was not perfect - Augustus made
sure of that – he accomplished more than any other Roman emperor.
Theodosius I 379 – 395 Having defeated usurpers, Theodosius was the last ruler of a combined emperor: in
CE
his reign, he banned paganism, officially converting Rome to Christianity.
Aurelian Called "Manus CE Ferrum" for his harsh discipline, both the "Restitutor Orientis"
270 – 275 and the "Restitutor Orbis," Aurelian exhibited so much power that he was killed by
CE
officials out of their fear.
Claudius Claudius' rationality was a huge relief after Caligula's madness; he proved that not
41 – 54 CE all Roman emperors would be insane: he also had a lot of great accomplishments!
3
4
5
6
Constantine
7
306 – 337
CE
Constantine the Great, the Christian emperor who moved the capital to Byzantium
(a.k.a. Constantinople). He had a profound impact on the state of the empire.
Vespasian The first major non-Julio-Claudian emperor as well as the survivor of the chaotic
Year of Four Emperors: Vespasian proved the potential for stability of the Roman
69 – 79 CE
Empire.
Diocletian 284 – 305 Diocletian, the renowned founder of the Tetrarchy, was not perfect: he reignited the
CE
persecution of Christians and did not do much as for foreign affairs.
8
9
Hadrian
117 – 138
CE
Hadrian was a great proponent for culture in the Roman empire but had some
controversies during his reign.
OJCL Fall Torch page 2