A ROMAN MARBLE PORTRAIT HEAD OF EMPEROR SEPTIMIUS SEVERUS

193 A.D. is known in Roman history as the "Year of the Five Emperors." After the murder of Marcus Aurelius' son Commodus, five different claimants emerged for the title of the next emperor. Lucius Septimius Severus (reigned 193-211 A.D.) emerged victorious and became the 20th emperor of Rome. Born in Leptis Magna, North Africa, and a veteran of several campaigns along the frontier of the empire, he sought to solidify his power within Rome by linking his family and future dynasty with that of the Antonines. In 196 A.D. he had himself retroactively adopted into the Antonine family. He then had his young son, Caracalla, declared Caesar in order to ensure his succession, founding the Severan dynasty that would rule the empire for the next 30 years.