Died 100 AD Children Trajan, Ulpia Marciana | Spouse Marcus Ulpius Traianus Siblings Marcia Furnilla | |
Parents Quintus Marcius Barea Sura, Antonia Furnilla Similar Trajan, Ulpia Marciana, Salonia Matidia, Pompeia Plotina, Nerva | ||
Marcia (about 33-before 100) was an ancient Roman noblewoman and the mother of the emperor Trajan.
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Family
Marcia came from a noble and politically influential family, the plebeian gens Marcia, which claimed to be descended from the Roman King Ancus Marcius. Marcia was a daughter of the Roman Senator Quintus Marcius Barea Sura and Antonia Furnilla. Quintus Marcius Barea Sura was a friend to future Roman Emperor Vespasian. Her younger sister Marcia Furnilla was the second wife of future Roman Emperor Titus. Marcia was a maternal aunt to Furnilla’s and Titus’ daughter Julia Flavia or Flavia Julia Titi.
Marcia’s paternal uncle was the Roman Senator Quintus Marcius Barea Soranus, while her paternal cousin was the noble woman Marcia Servilia Sorana. Marcia’s paternal grandfather was Quintus Marcius Barea, who was Suffect Consul in 26 and was twice Proconsul of the Africa Province, while her maternal grandfather could have been Aulus Antonius Rufus, a Suffect Consul either in 44 or 45. The family of Marcia was connected to the opponents of Roman Emperor Nero. In 65 after the failure of the Pisonian conspiracy, her family was disfavored by Nero.
Life
Marcia was born and raised in Rome. During the reign of Roman Emperor Claudius (41-54), Marcia married a Spanish Roman general and senator called Marcus Ulpius Traianus. Traianus originally came from Italica (near modern Seville, Spain) in the Roman Province of Hispania Baetica. After Marcia married Traianus, for a time they lived in Italica.
Marcia bore Traianus two children:
Marcia owned clay-bearing estates called the Figlinae Marcianae, which was located in North Italy. When Marcia died, Trajan inherited these estates from his mother. It is unknown if Marcia lived long enough to see Trajan become Emperor.
Legacy
Around 100, her son Trajan founded a colony in North Africa which was called Colonia Marciana Ulpia Traiana Thamugadi (modern Timgad, Algeria). Her son named this town in honor of her, her late husband and her daughter. The colony’s name is also a tribute in honoring her family.