Annia Aurelia Fadilla, most commonly known as Fadilla (c. 159 – after 211) was one of the daughters born to Marcus Aurelius and his wife Faustina the Younger. She was a sister to Lucilla and Commodus. Fadilla was named in honor of her late maternal aunt Aurelia Fadilla. The cognomen Fadilla, was the cognomen of the mother and a half-sister of Antoninus Pius. Her maternal grandparents were Antoninus Pius and Faustina the Elder and her paternal grandparents were Domitia Lucilla and praetor Marcus Annius Verus.

Life

Fadilla was born and raised in Rome. During the reign of her father, she married Marcus Peducaeus Plautius Quintillus, a Roman senator who later served twice as consul and as Augur, and who was a nephew of Roman emperor Lucius Verus (who had co-ruled with her father from 161 to 169 and through adoption was her uncle). The mother of Plautius Quintillus was Ceionia Fabia, sister of Lucius Verus. Fadilla bore Marcus Peducaeus Plautius Quintillus two children: a son, (Plautius) Quintillus, and a daughter, Plautia Servilla.

When her father died in 180, her remaining brother Commodus succeeded him as Roman emperor. During Commodus' reign, Fadilla and her family lived in a private palace on Capitoline Hill in Rome which was later bestowed by the later Roman emperor Elagabalus (218–222) as one of his mother's favorite residences. Her husband became one of Commodus' main advisers.

According to Herodian (History of the Roman Empire 1.13.1), Fadilla warned Commodus about Marcus Aurelius Cleander, a Praetorian prefect, who was becoming too powerful. With the help from one of her sisters, she uncovered and revealed a palace conspiracy aimed at the removal of Commodus in 189.

Nerva–Antonine family tree

vteNerva–Antonine family tree
Q. Marcius Barea SoranusQ. Marcius Barea SuraAntonia FurnillaM. Cocceius NervaSergia PlautillaP. Aelius Hadrianus Titus (r. 79–81)Marcia FurnillaMarciaTrajanus PaterNerva (r. 96–98)UlpiaAelius Hadrianus Marullinus FlaviaMarcianaC. Salonius MatidiusTrajan (r. 98–117)PlotinaP. Acilius AttianusP. Aelius AferPaulina Major Lucius Mindius (2)Libo Rupilius Frugi (3)Salonia MatidiaL. Vibius Sabinus (1) Paulina MinorL. Julius Ursus Servianus Matidia MinorSabinaHadrian (r. 117–138)Antinous C. Fuscus Salinator IJulia Serviana Paulina M. Annius VerusRupilia FaustinaBoionia ProcillaCn. Arrius Antoninus L. Ceionius CommodusAppia SeveraC. Fuscus Salinator II L. Caesennius PaetusArria AntoninaArria FadillaT. Aurelius Fulvus L. Caesennius AntoninusL. CommodusPlautiaunknownC. Avidius Nigrinus M. Annius VerusCalvisia Domitia LucillaFundaniaM. Annius LiboFaustinaAntoninus Pius (r. 138–161)L. Aelius CaesarAvidia CornificiaMarcus Aurelius (r. 161–180)Faustina MinorC. Avidius Cassius[clarification needed]Aurelia FadillaLucius Verus (r. 161–169) (1)Ceionia FabiaPlautius QuintillusQ. Servilius PudensCeionia Plautia Cornificia MinorM. Petronius SuraCommodus (r. 177–192)FadillaM. Annius Verus CaesarTi. Claudius Pompeianus (2)LucillaM. Plautius QuintillusJunius Licinius BalbusServilia Ceionia Petronius AntoninusL. Aurelius Agaclytus (2)Aurelia SabinaL. Antistius Burrus (1)Plautius QuintillusPlautia ServillaC. Furius Sabinus TimesitheusMaecia FaustinaJunius Licinius Balbus? Furia Sabinia TranquillinaGordian III (r. 238–244)
Q. Marcius Barea SoranusQ. Marcius Barea SuraAntonia FurnillaM. Cocceius NervaSergia PlautillaP. Aelius Hadrianus
Titus (r. 79–81)Marcia FurnillaMarciaTrajanus PaterNerva (r. 96–98)UlpiaAelius Hadrianus Marullinus
FlaviaMarcianaC. Salonius MatidiusTrajan (r. 98–117)PlotinaP. Acilius AttianusP. Aelius AferPaulina Major
Lucius Mindius (2)Libo Rupilius Frugi (3)Salonia MatidiaL. Vibius Sabinus (1)
Paulina MinorL. Julius Ursus Servianus
Matidia MinorSabinaHadrian (r. 117–138)Antinous
C. Fuscus Salinator IJulia Serviana Paulina
M. Annius VerusRupilia FaustinaBoionia ProcillaCn. Arrius Antoninus
L. Ceionius CommodusAppia SeveraC. Fuscus Salinator II
L. Caesennius PaetusArria AntoninaArria FadillaT. Aurelius Fulvus
L. Caesennius AntoninusL. CommodusPlautiaunknownC. Avidius Nigrinus
M. Annius VerusCalvisia Domitia LucillaFundaniaM. Annius LiboFaustinaAntoninus Pius (r. 138–161)L. Aelius CaesarAvidia
CornificiaMarcus Aurelius (r. 161–180)Faustina MinorC. Avidius Cassius[clarification needed]Aurelia FadillaLucius Verus (r. 161–169) (1)Ceionia FabiaPlautius QuintillusQ. Servilius PudensCeionia Plautia
Cornificia MinorM. Petronius SuraCommodus (r. 177–192)FadillaM. Annius Verus CaesarTi. Claudius Pompeianus (2)LucillaM. Plautius QuintillusJunius Licinius BalbusServilia Ceionia
Petronius AntoninusL. Aurelius Agaclytus (2)Aurelia SabinaL. Antistius Burrus (1)Plautius QuintillusPlautia ServillaC. Furius Sabinus TimesitheusMaecia FaustinaJunius Licinius Balbus?
Furia Sabinia TranquillinaGordian III (r. 238–244)
(1) = 1st spouse (2) = 2nd spouse (3) = 3rd spouse Reddish-purple indicates emperor of the Nerva–Antonine dynastylighter purple indicates designated imperial heir of said dynasty who never reignedgrey indicates unsuccessful imperial aspirantsbluish-purple indicates emperors of other dynasties dashed lines indicate adoption; dotted lines indicate love affairs/unmarried relationships Small Caps = posthumously deified (Augusti, Augustae, or other)
(1) = 1st spouse (2) = 2nd spouse (3) = 3rd spouse Reddish-purple indicates emperor of the Nerva–Antonine dynastylighter purple indicates designated imperial heir of said dynasty who never reignedgrey indicates unsuccessful imperial aspirantsbluish-purple indicates emperors of other dynasties dashed lines indicate adoption; dotted lines indicate love affairs/unmarried relationships Small Caps = posthumously deified (Augusti, Augustae, or other)
Notes: Except where otherwise noted, the notes below indicate that an individual's parentage is as shown in the above family tree.
References: DIR contributors (2000). . Giacosa, Giorgio (1977). Women of the Caesars: Their Lives and Portraits on Coins. Translated by R. Ross Holloway. Milan: Edizioni Arte e Moneta. ISBN 0-8390-0193-2. Lambert, Royston (1984). Beloved and God: The Story of Hadrian and Antinous. New York: Viking. ISBN 0-670-15708-2. Levick, Barbara (2014). Faustina I and II: Imperial Women of the Golden Age. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-537941-9. Smith, William, ed. (1870). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology.

Sources

  • . A Bit of History.
  • Lendering, Jona (2007). . Jona Lendering. Livius.org.