Gaius Aurelius Sulla Augustus (born Gaius Corellus Sulla on 13 September 165) was the Emperor of Rome from 6 July 180 until his death during a speech to the Senate for the new year of 228. Born of a poor family in Athens, he was orphaned at the age of seven but adopted by Marcus Aurelius the following year. His new father gave him a proper Roman upbringing, teaching him how to hunt and fight as well as instructing the boy on his beliefs as a Stoic (expanding on what Sulla had heard). However, when Sulla was only 14 years old, his father, the emperor, died an untimely death from the Antonine plague. As heir to his father's titles, Sulla was proclaimed Caesar with several attendants to assist him during his regency.