Decebalus of Dacia

Decebalus was the last king of Dacia and fought Rome for fifteen years before killing himself. He came to the throne in AD 87, and his name appears to be a title rather than a birth name, meaning something like the strong one. Dacia, north of the Danube in modern Romania, was rich in gold and salt and had been raiding across the river. Domitian sent an army under Cornelius Fuscus, which Decebalus destroyed in AD 87, capturing its standards and siege engines. A second Roman force won at Tapae in AD 88, but Domitian, facing trouble on the Rhine and Danube elsewhere, made peace on terms that were widely regarded in Rome as humiliating: Decebalus was recognised as a client king and received an annual subsidy along with Roman engineers and craftsmen — whom he used to fortify his kingdom. Trajan came to the throne determined to reverse it. He built a bridge over the Danube designed by Apollodorus of Damascus, over a kilometre long, and invaded in AD 101. Decebalus was defeated at Tapae and accepted terms in AD 102, surrendering territory, weapons and engineers. He rearmed anyway, and Trajan invaded again in AD 105, took the capital Sarmizegetusa in AD 106 after cutting its water supply, and annexed the kingdom. Decebalus fled north with a cavalry escort. Cornered by Roman scouts, he cut his own throat; the scene is carved on Trajan's Column, and the tombstone of the cavalryman who reached him survives. The Dacian gold funded Trajan's building programme and months of games.

• Lived: 45 CE – 106 CE
• Nationality: Dacian
• Roles: king