Trajan (53 – 117), also known as Caesar Nerva Traianus, served as the Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Born and raised in Italica near present-day Seville, Spain, Trajan hailed from the Ulpia gens, specifically the Ulpii Traiani branch originating from Tuder, Umbria in Italy. His father, Marcus Ulpius Traianus, was a senator and also from Italica. Recognized by the Senate as optimus princeps ("best ruler"), Trajan is renowned for his successful military campaigns that expanded the Roman Empire to its greatest territorial extent. His rule was marked by philanthropy, characterized by extensive public construction projects and social welfare policies. Trajan is counted among the Five Good Emperors of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty, a period of peace and prosperity known as Pax Romana that prevailed throughout the Mediterranean world. During the reign of Emperor Domitian, Trajan rose to prominence as a legatus legionis in Hispania Tarraconensis. In 89, he supported Domitian against a revolt led by Antonius Saturninus on the Rhine. Following Domitian's death in September 96, the elderly and childless Nerva succeeded him but faced disapproval from the army. After a revolt by the Praetorian Guard, Nerva chose Trajan as his popular heir and successor. Trajan annexed Nabataea and Dacia, and his military campaign against the Parthian Empire resulted in the incorporation of Armenia, Mesopotamia, and Assyria. However, during his return to Rome in August 117, Trajan fell ill and died from a stroke in the city of Selinus. The Senate deified him, and his cousin and successor Hadrian assumed the throne. According to historical tradition, Trajan's ashes were interred in a small chamber beneath Trajan's Column.

Trajan - Wikipedia