March 17

Marcus Aurelius co-ruled with Lucius Verus before becoming sole emperor and overseeing the eastern and northern frontiers of the Roman Empire. He faced wars against Parthians and Germanic tribes while maintaining stability during the Pax Romana. A devoted Stoic, he wrote Meditations as a guide to self-discipline and virtue. His philosophical work became a cornerstone of Stoicism and influenced thinkers for centuries. Marcus Aurelius's reign blended intellectual rigor with practical leadership, leaving a lasting legacy on both philosophy and governance.

Franz Brentano (1838–1917) was a German philosopher and psychologist best known for reintroducing the concept of intentionality to modern philosophy. His 1874 work 'Psychology from an Empirical Standpoint' laid the foundations for the study of mental phenomena and influenced thinkers such as Edmund Husserl and Sigmund Freud. Brentano held academic positions at the Universities of Würzburg, Vienna and Munich, where he challenged prevailing ideas in psychology and ethics. His ideas on descriptive psychology and empirical methods shaped the development of phenomenology and analytic philosophy. Brentano's legacy endures in contemporary debates on mind, consciousness, and moral philosophy.