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Here is a list of the main emperors rated in categories from best to worst in terms of policy, diplomatic, administrative and military skills, ability to keep peace, achievements and long-term impact.
- Caligula (Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus) (12–41 CE) Caligula, who was also formally known as Gaius, was the third Roman emperor, ruling for four years.
- Elagabalus (Caesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus) (204–222 CE) Elagabalus, also known as Heliogabalus, served as a Roman emperor from 218 to 222, a time that significantly impacted his placement on the list of worst emperors.
- Nero (Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus) (27–68 CE) Nero is perhaps the best known of the worst emperors, having allowed his wife and mother to rule for him and then stepping out from their shadows and ultimately having them, and others, murdered.
- Commodus (Lucius Aelius Aurelius Commodus) (161–192 CE) The son of Marcus Aurelius, Commodus was, according to most historians, a debauched and corrupt megalomaniac who viewed himself as a reincarnated Greek god, Hercules to be exact.
- Caligula
- Nero
- Vitellius
- Commodus
- Domitian
- Galba
- Honorius
- Did The Office of The Emperor Naturally Corrupt?
Out of all the Roman emperors, Caligulaprobably stands out as the most infamous, due not only to the bizarre anecdotes about his behavior but also because of the string of assassinations and executions he ordered. According to most modern and ancient accounts, he seems to have actually been insane.
Next is Nero, who along with Caligula has become a byword for depravity and tyranny. Like his evil brother-in-arms, he began his reign rather well, but devolved into a similar type of paranoid hysteria, compounded by a complete lack of interest in the affairs of the state. He was born in Anzio on the 15th of December 37 AD and was descended from a ...
Whilst certainly not as famous to people nowadays, Vitelliuswas reportedly just as sadistic and wicked as Caligula and Nero, and for much of the medieval and early modern period was the epitome of a terrible ruler. Moreover, he was one of the emperors who reigned during the “Year of the Four Emperors” in 69 AD, all of which are generally considered...
Commodus is another Roman emperor well known for his cruelty and evil characteristics, helped in no short measure by Joaquin Phoenix’s portrayal of him in the 2000 film Gladiator. Born in 161 AD to the revered and widely praised emperor Marcus Aurelius, Commodus is also characterized by infamy for bringing the era of the “Five Good Emperors” and th...
Like many of the Roman emperors on this list, modern historians tend to be a bit more forgiving and revisionist for figures like Domitian, who was severely rebuked by contemporaries after his death. According to them, he had carried out a series of indiscriminate executions of the senatorial class, aided and abetted by a sinister coterie of corrupt...
Turning away now from Roman emperors who were fundamentally evil, many of Rome’s worst emperors, were also those, like Galba, who were simply inept and completely unprepared for the role. Galba, like Vitellius mentioned above, was one of the four emperors who ruled or claimed to rule the Roman empire, in 69 AD. Shockingly, Galba only managed to hol...
Like Galba, Honorius’s relevance to this list lies in his complete ineptitude for the role of emperor. Although he was the son of the revered emperor Theodosius the Great, Honorius’s reign was marked by chaos and weakness, as the city of Rome was sacked for the first time in 800 years, by a marauding army of Visigoths. Whilst this in itself didn’t ...
For some individuals, like Caligula and Commodus, it seemed as though they already showed predilections for cruelty and avarice before taking up the throne. However, the absolute power that the office endowed somebody with, naturally had its corrupting influences that could corrupt even the worthiest of souls. Moreover, it was a position that many ...
- Daniel Kershaw
- Tiberius (ruled AD 14–37) Tiberius was the successor to Augustus, though Augustus did not particularly want Tiberius to succeed him, and it was only the untimely death of the emperor's grandsons Gaius and Lucius, and Augustus's decision to exile their younger brother, Agrippa Postumus, that put Tiberius in line for the imperial throne.
- Gaius (Caligula) (ruled AD 37–41) Gaius (‘Caligula, or ‘little bootee’ – a childhood nickname given him by his father's troops) is best known for a series of eccentric actions, such as declaring war on the sea and proclaiming himself a god.
- Nero (ruled AD 54–68) Nero is the Roman Emperor we all love to hate, and not without reason. He was actually a competent administrator, and he was aided by some very able men, including his tutor – the writer Seneca.
- Domitian (ruled AD 81–96) Domitian was the younger son of Vespasian, the general who had emerged from the chaos after Nero's fall and restored a certain element of stability and normality to Roman public life.
- Commodus. Commodus was born on 31 August 161 AD near Rome, and during the early years of his reign, he ruled jointly with his father, Marcus Aurelius.
- Nero. Nero was born in Italy on 15 December 37 AD and was named Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus by his parents. He took the throne at the age of 16 in 54 AD.
- Caligula. Caligula was of Germanic extraction and was named Gaius Caesar, after Julius Caesar. He was the third ruler of the Roman Empire. At first, Caligula was a generous and wise ruler, but soon he began to waste Rome’s precious resources and was increasingly known for his bloodlust and capacity for violence.
- Maximinus Thrax. Maximinus Thrax only ruled for a short period from 235 AD to his death in 238 AD. He was the first soldier to become an emperor and was known for destroying public property and setting fire to villages wherever he went.
Sep 29, 2014 · Trajan (September 53 AD – 8 August, 117 AD) Famously declared by the Senate optimus princeps or “the best ruler,” he ruled ancient Rome from 98 AD until he took his last breath in 117 AD. Trajan is one of Rome’s most outstanding emperors and under his rule, the empire reached its peak.
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Feb 22, 2024 · These eight Roman emperors exemplify the dark side of imperial power, with their reigns fueled by cruelty, incompetence, and tyranny. Their actions contributed to the decline and fall of the Roman Empire, leaving a legacy of infamy that echoes through the annals of history.
