Vespasian Latin in full CAESAR VESPASIANUS AUGUSTUS, original name TITUS FLAVIUS VESPASIANUS (b. Nov. 17?, AD 9, Reate [Rieti], Latium--d. June 24, 79), Roman emperor (AD 69-79) who, though of humble birth, became the founder of the Flavian dynasty after the civil wars that followed Nero's death in 68. His fiscal reforms and consolidation of the empire generated political stability and a vast Roman building program. (see also Index: Roman Republic and Empire) Early life. Vespasian was the son of Flavius Sabinus, a Roman knight who had been a tax collector. His mother, Vespasia Polla, also belonged to the equestrian