Between 101 and 106 AD, the Emperor Trajan led two military campaigns to conquer Dacia (roughly modern Romania), defeating King Decebalus and annexing territories rich in gold and silver. The wars' narrative was commemorated in Trajan's Column in Rome, a helical relief sculpture still standing today. The vast wealth flowing into Rome funded public building programmes and the literary patronage culture that sustained poets and historians of the early second century.

The Dacian Wars under Trajan in 101 led to the creation of triumphant monuments and panegyrics, celebrating imperial expansion. Poets like Statius and Martial crafted verses that immortalized military victories, intertwining themes of glory and power, while also reflecting on the human cost of conquest and the complexities of imperial ambition.