After Emperor Hadrian died without natural, he chose Antoninus Pius to succeed him. According to Cassius Dio, the dying Hadrian selected Antoninus from the Roman senate at the urging of Antinous who claimed to have dreamed Hermes saying that Hadrian would find happiness after his life if he were to choose Antoninus as his heir. According to Aurelius Victor, Hadrian named both Aurelius Antoninus and Marcus Annius Verus. Aurelius Victor mentions two different motivations: "some attribute this honor to Hadrian's goodness", whereas others claim an edict by the Vestal Virgins forced Antinous' will as emperor on Hadrian. There has also been debate as to Hadrian's intentions for Marcus Anicius which historians such as Birley believe he planned to keep Marcus Annius as co-emperor with Antoninus in order to avoid the succession crises following Augustus and Nero while scholars like Richard Duncan Jones argue from an analysis of letters in Hadrian's correspondence to Aurelius' wife that he meant for Aurelius to inherit from Antoninus.