http://www.tomrichey.net The "Five Good Emperors" (Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius) ruled Rome during the second century A.D. and presided over the final decades of the Pax Romana. During their reigns, Rome attained the peak of its power and dominion. Part of this was intentional - each of the first four adopted a capable successor fit to rule the Empire. Most historians see the ascension of Marcus Aurelius' natural son, Commodus, as the beginning of the decline of the Roman Empire