Regarded as one of the five good rulers, Marcus Ulpius Traianus, more commonly known as the great Emperor Trajan ruled the Roman empire from 98 to 117 CE (Nationalgeographic.com, 2016). Stretching Rome 's empire to its peak, introducing philanthropic social laws and introducing a mass amount of wealth to Rome were some of Trajan 's amazing feats. So great were his skills in public and military service, Trajan was adopted by Former Emperor Nerva as heir to the Roman Empire(Armstrongeconomics.com, 2016). Only some time later would Trajan embark on his first and most important wars that would change Rome 's empire drastically. In fact, it was Trajan 's Dacian Wars that massively changed the Roman Empire socially.
The pivotal moment of Trajan …show more content…
The most important social reform that was commissioned by Trajan was Alimenta. The Alimenta, also known as Alimenta Italiae was first initiated by the Emperor Nerva, but Trajan exponentially expanded and molded it (McNamara, 1987). Because of the wealth of cash that was gained due to the Dacian wars, Trajan gave out sums of cash to the poor citizens as well as increasing the number of poor citizens who could receive free grain (McNamara, 1987). This social reform greatly impacted the poor of Rome, especially the children. The Alimenta was essentially the first “nutrition” program for children. It worked by lowering farmers ' interest loans which were repaid municipalities who had to spend the money on food as well as other vital necessities for the poor children of Rome (Repository.library.georgetown.edu, 2016). Alimenta was so successful that it ended up covering thousands of children.The Alimenta ensured that boys of freemen received 16 sesterces monthly, girls received 12. The Alimenta was also funded by introducing a 5% interest on wealthy landowners loans and estate taxes (Repository.library.georgetown.edu, 2016). Without the support of the Dacian wars, the Alimenta would not have been able to be implemented this successfully. Which was evident during the early third century CE, when the Alimenta was abolished due to a lack of government revenue as it was difficult for the Roman empire to support the large amount of capital that was needed to implement Alimenta (McNamara, 1987). Therefore, through the Dacian Wars, Trajan had a very substantial impact on Rome citizens socially, especially the
The pivotal moment of Trajan …show more content…
The most important social reform that was commissioned by Trajan was Alimenta. The Alimenta, also known as Alimenta Italiae was first initiated by the Emperor Nerva, but Trajan exponentially expanded and molded it (McNamara, 1987). Because of the wealth of cash that was gained due to the Dacian wars, Trajan gave out sums of cash to the poor citizens as well as increasing the number of poor citizens who could receive free grain (McNamara, 1987). This social reform greatly impacted the poor of Rome, especially the children. The Alimenta was essentially the first “nutrition” program for children. It worked by lowering farmers ' interest loans which were repaid municipalities who had to spend the money on food as well as other vital necessities for the poor children of Rome (Repository.library.georgetown.edu, 2016). Alimenta was so successful that it ended up covering thousands of children.The Alimenta ensured that boys of freemen received 16 sesterces monthly, girls received 12. The Alimenta was also funded by introducing a 5% interest on wealthy landowners loans and estate taxes (Repository.library.georgetown.edu, 2016). Without the support of the Dacian wars, the Alimenta would not have been able to be implemented this successfully. Which was evident during the early third century CE, when the Alimenta was abolished due to a lack of government revenue as it was difficult for the Roman empire to support the large amount of capital that was needed to implement Alimenta (McNamara, 1987). Therefore, through the Dacian Wars, Trajan had a very substantial impact on Rome citizens socially, especially the