Marcus Aurelius Cleander (Greek: Μᾶρκος Αὐρήλιος Κλέανδρος; died 19 April 190), commonly known as Cleander, was a Roman freedman who gained extraordinary power as chamberlain and favourite of the emperor Commodus, rising to command the Praetorian Guard and bringing the principal offices of the Roman state into disrepute by selling them to the highest bidder. His career is narrated by Dio Cassius, Herodian and the Historia Augusta.
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👉 Marcus Aurelius Cleander in the context of Saoterus
Saoterus (Greek: Σαώτερος ὁ Νικομηδεύς; died 182) was a Bithynian Greek freedman from Nicomedia who served as the Roman Emperor Commodus's palace chamberlain (a cubiculo). His career is sketched by Herodian, Dio Cassius and the Historia Augusta. Commodus preferred to exercise his rule through palace officials and Saoterus was the first of these; Saoterus was seen as in the Emperor's favour at the outset of his reign, as he accompanied Commodus in his chariot when he made his ceremonial entry into Rome on 22 October 180. Commodus placed him in a high position in his government, resulting in resentment from noble senatorial families. The Historia Augusta, apparently drawing on the testimony of Marius Maximus, insinuates that Commodus had a homosexual infatuation with Saoterus. After the attempt on Commodus's life in 182, Saoterus was implicated in the plot by the praetorian prefect Tigidius Perennis, and was murdered by the freedman Cleander, who succeeded him as chamberlain.
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Marcus Aurelius Cleander in the context of Commodus
Commodus (/ˈkɒmədəs/; Latin: [ˈkɔmmɔdʊs]; 31 August 161 – 31 December 192) was Roman emperor from 177 to 192, first serving as nominal co-emperor under his father Marcus Aurelius and then ruling alone from 180. Commodus's sole reign is commonly thought to mark the end of the Pax Romana, a golden age of peace and prosperity in the history of the Roman Empire.
Commodus accompanied his father during the Marcomannic Wars in 172 and on a tour of the Eastern provinces in 176. The following year, he became the youngest emperor and consul up to that point, at the age of 16. His solo reign saw less military conflict than that of Marcus Aurelius, but internal intrigues and conspiracies abounded, goading Commodus to an increasingly dictatorial style of leadership. This culminated in his creating a deific personality cult, including his performances as a gladiator in the Colosseum. Throughout his reign, Commodus entrusted the management of affairs to his palace chamberlain and praetorian prefects, namely Saoterus, Perennis, and Cleander.
Marcus Aurelius Cleander in the context of Tigidius Perennis
Sextus Tigidius Perennis (died 185) served as Praetorian Prefect under the Roman emperor Commodus. Perennis exercised an outsized influence over Commodus and was the effective ruler of the Roman Empire. In 185, Perennis was implicated in a plot to overthrow the emperor by his political rival, Marcus Aurelius Cleander, and executed on the orders of Commodus.