Marcus Aurelius owes much of him becoming Augustus to Hadrian who groomed him from childhood for the post. He became Caesar shortly after Hadrian died and the political grooming continued under Antoninus Pius. He had to wait another twenty years or so to become Augustus himself in the year 161. No sooner did this happen than he was thrust in a series of wars that would eat up the rest of his time in office. He died while fighting the ever-harassing tribes of the Germanic region and power then passed to his son Commodus.
During his lengthy reign he is remembered as being among the noblest and most even-keeled of emperors. He preferred to use the considerable power of his post to pursue a period of enlightenment out of character not only for his age but clear across time to our very own. Gibbon summarizes that he "was severe to himself, indulgent to the imperfections of others, just and beneficent to all mankind."
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