Changes

The movie begins with the ailing Marcus Aurelius, the emperor of Rome, watching Maximus leading a battle against a German tribe, where the battle is portrayed as crucial in bringing peace to the Roman Empire's northern frontier. The German tribe was shown wearing Neolithic period clothing, something that is inaccurate and the clothing would have been more complex in fashion. During the reign of Aurelius, there were prolonged wars in Germania. Wars there were largely inconclusive, although they were close to annexing Moravia and West Slovakia during his reign. The movie depicts the emperor being killed by his son Commodus, although in reality Commodus was already co-emperor. In fact, there is no certain evidence that Commodus had any difficult relationship with his father, although later authors did disparage Commodus. Furthermore, although Maximus is mostly a fictional character, it is not likely Marcus Aurelius would appoint a general as protector of the empire, as suggested in the movie where shortly before his death the fictional Marcus Aurelius asked Maximus to lead the empire. In fact, in the film a conflict in Marcus Aurlieus' mind was whether to return power to the Senate rather than have it mostly be with the emperor. This is unlikely as Marcus Aurlieus, although often considered a wise emperor and even called the "philosopher king," as suggested in the film, he still believed in holding power closely and even willingly passed power to his son, something a Roman Emperor had not done for about a century.<ref>For more on Marcus Aurelius, see: Birley, A. R. (2016). <i>Marcus aurelius: a biography.</i> Place of publication not identified: Routledge.</ref>

In fact, Marcus Aurlieus appointed his son as successor long before he died in 166 (he died in 180 CE), making it clear that Comodus was his choice all along. He also died in Vienna (ancient Vindobona), but the film showed him dying in Germania during the campaign. Some rumors and stories did circulate that Commodus did kill his father, but this could have been later stories created to malign the emperor Commodus since he was not well liked by the Senate, as suggested in the film. The appointment of Commodus was controversial, as shown in the film, as Commodus was considered erratic and may have had mental problems, as suggested in the film. From historical documents, mainly in the writings of Cassius Dio, there is indication that Marcus Aurlieus was disappointed in his son, suggesting he had some trepidation about him. HoweverCassius Dio indicates that Rome suffered as Commodus came to power, it but this could be part of later propaganda after the reign of Commodus. It is hard to tell what is exactly accurate as Commodus may have been more disliked by the upper classes, while some indication suggests he was actually popular with the armyor even lower classes as a sort of peoples' emperor.<ref>For more on Commodus and his life, see: Adams, G. W. (2013). <i>The Emperor Commodus: gladiator, Hercules or a tyrant?</i> Boca Raton: BrownWalker Press.</ref>