Marcia Furnilla (c. 29 – before 100) was a Roman noblewoman and the mother of theRoman emperorTrajan.
Marcia came from anoble and politically influentialgens, theplebeiangensMarcia,[1] which claimed to be descended from the Roman kingAncus Marcius. Trajan owned some lands calledFiglinae Marcianae inAmeria, believed to be the place where Marcia's family was from. Marcia was a daughter of theRoman senatorQuintus Marcius Barea Sura and his wife Antonia Furnilla.[2] Quintus Marcius Barea Sura was a friend to emperorVespasian. Her younger sisterMarcia Furnilla was the second wife of emperorTitus.[3] Marcia was a maternal aunt to Furnilla's and Titus' daughter Flavia.
Marcia's paternal uncle was the senatorQuintus Marcius Barea Soranus, while her paternal cousin was the noblewomanMarcia Servilia Sorana. Marcia's paternal grandfather wasQuintus Marcius Barea, who was suffectconsul in 34 andProconsul of theAfrica Province in 41–43, while her maternal grandfather could have been Aulus Antonius Rufus, a suffect consul in 45.[4] Thegens of Marcia was connected to the opponents of emperorNero. In 65 after the failure of thePisonian conspiracy, her family was disfavored by Nero.
During the reign of emperorClaudius (r. 41–54), Marcia married the Roman general and senatorMarcus Ulpius Traianus. Traianus originally came fromItalica (near modernSeville,Spain) in the Roman province ofHispania Baetica. After Marcia married Traianus, for a time they lived in Italica.
Marcia bore Traianus two children:
Marcia owned clay-bearing estates called theFiglinae Marcianae, which was located in NorthItaly. When Marcia died, Trajan inherited these estates from his mother. It is unknown if Marcia lived long enough to see Trajan become emperor.
Around 100, her son Trajan founded a colony inNorth Africa which was calledColonia Marciana Ulpia Traiana Thamugadi (modernTimgad,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.
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| Notes: Except where otherwise noted, the notes below indicate that an individual's parentage is as shown in the above family tree.
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