Faustina II
Faustina II, also known as Annia Galeria Faustina, was a Roman empress and the daughter of Emperor Antoninus Pius. Born into a prominent family, she married Marcus Aurelius in 145 CE when she was about fifteen years old. Their union produced fourteen children, though only five survived to adulthood. Faustina II's reputation is complex; ancient historians like Dio Cassius and the Historia Augusta depict her as having a scandalous nature, with rumors suggesting infidelity and a controversial relationship with gladiators. She was also rumored to have committed suicide in 175 CE amid a political crisis involving her son and a coup d'état. Despite these narratives, her husband honored her legacy by bestowing upon her the title of mater castorum and establishing a charitable fund for impoverished girls in her name. Following her death, the town of Halala was renamed Faustinopolis, and her deification led to extensive posthumous coinage, marking her significant influence in Roman society.
Faustina II
Related civilization: Imperial Rome
Major role/position: Wife of emperor
Life
Faustina II (faw-STI-nuh; Annia Galeria Faustina) was the younger of two daughters born to Antoninus Pius and Annia Galeria Faustina, her namesake. After Hadrian’s death, Antoninus Pius broke off her betrothal to Lucius Verus and matched her with his wife’s nephew and his adopted son, Marcus Aurelius. The couple were married in 145 c.e.; the bride was about fifteen years old and the groom was twenty-four. A daughter born in November of 147 c.e. was followed by thirteen other children. Seven of these died in infancy. Only four daughters and one son survived their father. Historian Dio Cassius and the Historia Augusta (c. 325 c.e.; English translation, 1921-1932) provide unflattering reports concerning Faustina II’s lusty interest in sailors and gladiators. These include the rumor that her son, Lucius Aurelius Commodus was a gladiator’s bastard and that she actually had committed suicide in 175 c.e. in shame and fear over her involvement in Gaius Avidius Cassius’s attempted coup d’état. However, her husband remained unperturbed.
Influence
In 174 c.e., Faustina’s husband gave her the title mater castorum and followed Antoninus Pius in establishing an alimentary fund, the Novae Puellae Faustinianae, for poor girls. When she died in Halala, the Cappadocian town was renamed Faustinopolis. Her husband had her deified, and the posthumous coinage that was struck for her forms one of the most extensive memorial series in Imperial times.
Bibliography
Balsdon, J. P. V. D. Roman Women: Their History and Habits. London: Bodley Head, 1962.
Bauman, Richard A. Women and Politics in Ancient Rome. New York: Routledge, 1992.