Claudius Gothicus
Claudius Gothicus | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Roman emperor | |||||||||
Reign | 268–270 | ||||||||
Predecessor | Gallienus | ||||||||
Successor | Quintillus | ||||||||
Born | 10 May 214 | ||||||||
Died | c. August (?) 270 (aged 55) Sirmium, Pannonia Inferior (modern-day Sremska Mitrovica, Serbia) | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Dynasty | Gordian? | ||||||||
Father | Unknown, possibly Gordian II | ||||||||
Mother | Unknown |
Marcus Aurelius Claudius "Gothicus" (10 May 214 – August/September 270), also known as Claudius II, was Roman emperor from 268 to 270. During his reign he fought successfully against the Alemanni and decisively defeated the Goths at the Battle of Naissus. He died after succumbing to a "pestilence", possibly the Plague of Cyprian that had ravaged the provinces of the Empire.
Early life and origin
The most significant source for Claudius II is the collection of imperial biographies called the Historia Augusta. However, his story, like the rest of the Historia Augusta, is riddled with fabrications and obsequious praises. In 4th century, Claudius was declared a relative of Constantine the Great's father, Constantius Chlorus, and, consequently, of the ruling dynasty. The Historia Augusta should be used with extreme caution and supplemented with information from other sources: the works of Aurelius Victor, Pseudo-Aurelius Victor, Eutropius, Orosius, Joannes Zonaras, and Zosimus, as well as coins and inscriptions.[2]
The future emperor Marcus Aurelius Claudius was born on 10 May 214.
According to the fourth-century Epitome de Caesaribus, he was thought to be a bastard son of Gordian II,[6] although this is doubted by some historians.[7]
The Historia Augusta refers to him as a member of the
Rise to power
Before coming to power, Claudius served with the Roman army, where he had a successful career and secured appointments to the highest military posts. During the reign of Decius (249–251) he served as a military tribune.[9] In this post, Claudius was sent to defend Thermopylae, in connection with which the governor of Achaea was ordered to send him 200 Dardanian soldiers, 60 horsemen, 60 Cretan archers, and a thousand well-armed recruits. However, there is no evidence that the Goths who invaded at that time threatened the region, since their invasion did not extend beyond the middle Balkans. Most likely the message of the "History of the Augustus" is an anachronism, since it is known that the garrison at Thermopylae appeared in 254. Historian François Pashau suggests that this passage was invented in order to contrast the successful pagan commander Claudius with the unlucky Christian generals who allowed the ruin of Greece by the Gothic leader Alaric I in 396.[10] In addition, Trebellius Pollio reveals that Decius rewarded Claudius after he demonstrated his strength while fighting another soldier at the Games of Mars.[11]
His troops then proclaimed him emperor[12] amid charges, never proven, that he murdered his predecessor Gallienus.[2] However, he soon showed himself to be less than bloodthirsty, as he asked the Roman Senate to spare the lives of Gallienus's family and supporters. He was less magnanimous toward Rome's enemies and it was to this that he owed his popularity.[13]
It is possible Claudius gained his position and the respect of the soldiers by being physically strong and especially cruel. A legend tells of Claudius knocking out a horse's teeth with one punch. When Claudius performed as a wrestler in the 250s, he supposedly knocked out the teeth of his opponent when his genitalia had been grabbed in the match.[14]
Claudius, like
Downfall of Gallienus
During the 260s, the breakup of the Roman Empire into three distinct governing entities (the core Roman Empire, the Gallic Empire and the Palmyrene Empire) placed the whole Roman imperium in a precarious position. Gallienus was seriously weakened by his failure to defeat Postumus in the West, and his acceptance of Odaenathus ruling a de facto independent kingdom within the Roman Empire in the East. By 268, this situation had changed, as Odaenathus was assassinated, most likely due to court intrigue, and Gallienus fell victim to a mutiny in his own ranks. Upon the death of Odaenathus, power fell to his younger son, who was dominated by his mother, Zenobia.[17]
Under threat of invasion in the Balkans by multiple Germanic tribes, Gallienus's troubles primarily lay with Postumus, whom he could not attack because his attention was required in dealing with an insurrection led by Macrianus and the threats created by the invading Scythians. After four years of delay, Postumus had established some control over the Empire. In 265, when Gallienus and his men crossed the Alps, they defeated and besieged Postumus in an (unnamed) Gallic city. When victory appeared to be near, Gallienus made the mistake of approaching the city walls too closely and was gravely injured, compelling him to cease his campaign against Postumus. Over the next three years, Gallienus's troubles only got worse. The Scythians successfully invaded the Balkans in the early months of 268, and Aureolus, a commander of the Roman cavalry based in Milan, declared himself an ally of Postumus and went so far as to claim the imperial throne for himself.[17]
At this time, another invasion was taking place. In 268, a tribe or grouping called the
The death of Gallienus was surrounded by conspiracy and betrayal, as were many emperors' deaths. Different accounts of the incident have been recorded, but they agree that senior officials wanted Gallienus dead. According to two accounts, the prime conspirator was
Whichever story is true, Gallienus was killed in the summer of 268, probably between July and October,[20][21][5] and Claudius was chosen by the army outside of Milan to succeed him. Accounts tell of people hearing the news of the new emperor, and reacting by murdering Gallienus's family members until Claudius declared he would respect the memory of his predecessor. Claudius had the deceased emperor deified and buried in a family tomb on the Appian Way. The traitor Aureolus was not treated with the same reverence, as he was killed by his besiegers after a failed attempt to surrender.[19]
Reign
At the time of Claudius's accession, the Roman Empire was in serious danger from several incursions, both inside and outside its borders. The most pressing of these was an invasion of Illyricum and Pannonia by the Goths.[13] Although Gallienus had already inflicted some damage on them at the Battle of Nestus,[22] Claudius, not long after being named emperor, followed this up by winning his greatest victory, and one of the greatest in the history of Roman arms.[18]
At the
Around the same time, the
Government and foreign affairs
Claudius was not the only man to reap the benefits of holding high office after the death of
Although their influence was weakened, there were still a number of men with influence from the older aristocracy. Claudius assumed the consulship in 269 with Paternus, a member of the prominent senatorial family, the Paterni, who had supplied consuls and urban prefects throughout Gallienus's reign, and thus were quite influential. In addition, Flavius Antiochianus, one of the consuls of 270, who was an urban prefect the year before, would continue to hold his office for the following year. A colleague of Antiochianus, Virius Orfitus, also the descendant of a powerful family, would continue to hold influence during his father's term as prefect. Aurelian's colleague as consul was another such man, Pomponius Bassus, a member of one of the oldest senatorial families, as was one of the consuls in 272, Junius Veldumnianus.[26]
In his first full year of power, Claudius was greatly assisted by the sudden destruction of the imperium Galliarum. When Ulpius Cornelius Laelianus, a high official under
It is still unknown why Claudius did nothing to help the city of Autun, but sources tell us his relations with
The victories of Claudius over the
Although it is not proven that the invasion of Gaul was the breaking point between Claudius and Zenobia, the sequence of events point to the siege as an important factor. The issue at hand was the position that Odaenathus held as corrector totius orientis (imparting overall command of the Roman armies and authority over the Roman provincial governors in the designated region). Vaballathus, the son of Zenobia, was given this title when Zenobia claimed it for him. From then on, tension between the two empires would only get worse. Aurelius Heraclianus's fabled arrival might have been an effort to reassert central control after the death of Odaenathus, but, if so, it failed. Although coins were never minted with the face of Odaenathus,[29] soon after his death coins were made with image of his son[30] – outstripping his authority under the emperor.[31]
Under
Generally, when a Roman commander is killed it is taken as a sign that a state of war is in existence, and if we can associate the death of
Death
Claudius did not live long enough to fulfil his goal of reuniting all the lost territories of the empire. Late in 269 he had travelled to Sirmium[12] and was preparing to go to war against the Vandals, who were raiding in Pannonia.[23] However, he fell victim to the Plague of Cyprian (possibly smallpox), and died early in 270.[33] Before his death, he is thought to have named Aurelian as his successor, though Claudius's brother Quintillus briefly seized power.[13] The Senate immediately deified Claudius as "Divus Claudius Gothicus".[34]
Historians date Claudius's death in either January,[21] April,[20] August, or September.[5] These discrepancies are the result of the various conflicting sources. The Chronograph of 354 gives Claudius a reign of "1 year and 4 months",[35] Jerome and Aurelius Victor both give "1 year and 9 months".[36] Some Alexandrian coins have been dated to his third year, suggesting that he died in September 270 (the Coptic calendar began on 29 August).[37][20] Arthur Stein dated Claudius' death to April, citing a document of Aurelian that he dated to 25 May 270.[20][21] However, modern scholars believe this document to be dated to 271.[38][39] The date is strangely given as the "3rd" and "1st year", which most likely refers to the third year of Claudius and first of Aurelian (who dated his reign from Claudius' death).[40] The last confirmed document is dated to 20 September 270, although another undated papyri could be tentatively dated to October.[41]
Religion
A short history of imperial Rome, entitled De Caesaribus, written by Aurelius Victor in AD 361 states that Claudius consulted the Sibylline Books prior to his campaigns against the Goths. Hinting that Claudius "revived the tradition of the Decii", Victor illustrates the senatorial view, which saw Claudius's predecessor, Gallienus, as too relaxed when it came to religious policies.[42]
Links to the Constantinian dynasty
The unreliable
Saint Valentine
Claudius Gothicus has been linked to
The legend was retold in later texts, and in the Nuremberg Chronicle of 1493 AD, involved the Roman priest being martyred during a general persecution of Christians. The text states that St. Valentine was beaten with clubs and finally beheaded for giving aid to Christians in Rome.[46] The Golden Legend of 1260 AD recounts how St. Valentine refused to deny Christ before the "Emperor Claudius" in 270 AD and as a result was beheaded.[47] Since then, February 14 marks Valentine's Day, a day set aside by the Christian church in memory of the Roman priest and physician.[48]
See also
References
- ^ Henze 1896, col. 2458.
- ^ a b c d e f g Weigel, Richard D. (2001). "Claudius II Gothicus (268—270)". An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Emperors. Archived from the original on 30 August 2011.
- ^ a b Damerau 1934, s. 39.
- ^ Henze 1896, s. 2458.
- ^ a b c Kienast 2017, p. 222.
- ^ [1] "Many think this man was fathered by Gordian, when, as a youth, he was being prepared by a grown woman for a wife."
- ISBN 978-0-19-873682-0.
- ^ [2]Historia Augusta, The Life of Claudius
- alaof auxiliary cavalry. For Claudius to have been demoted to this level from the heights he had previously occupied (Hipparchos of the Cavalry and Deputy Commander-in-Chief of the Imperial Armies) would suggest a serious rift between himself and Gallienus. It is possible, but there is no evidence for it in any of the ancient sources; even Zosimus, who is notably cool towards Claudius, gives no hint of it. The most likely explanation for the suggestion is that the author of the Historia Augusta, writing in the Fourth Century AD after the Constantinian reform of the army, had no notion what the term 'tribune' denoted in the seventh decade of the previous century.
- ^ Paschoud 1992, p. 25—26.
- ^ Aurelius Victor, 33
- ^ a b PLRE, Vol 1, p. 209.
- ^ a b c Gibbon, Ch. 11
- ^ Meijer, pg. 98
- ^ Lightfoot, Christopher (October 2000). "The Roman empire (27 B.C.-393 A.D.)". Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
- ^ "What were the causes of the 3rd century crisis in the Roman Empire?". dailyhistory.org. 2018. Retrieved 2 August 2019.
- ^ a b Potter, pg. 263
- ^ ISBN 978-1-315-88256-7.
- ^ a b Potter, pg. 264
- ^ S2CID 161464046.
- ^ ISBN 0-684-18388-9.
- ^ a b Southern, pg. 109
- ^ a b Southern, pg. 110
- ISBN 978-1-4738-4569-5.
- ^ Christol, Michel (1976). "Une carrière équestre sous le règne de l'empereur Gallien". Latomus. 35: 866–74.
- ^ a b Potter, p. 265
- ^ a b Potter, p. 266
- ^ a b c Potter, p. 267
- ISBN 978-1-134-54793-7.
- ISBN 978-1-4411-4248-1.
- ^ Claes, Liesbeth (2015). "Coins with power" (PDF). No. 102. Jaarboek voor Munt. pp. 15–60.
- ^ "Claudius Gothicus". Virtuelles AntikenMuseum Goettingen. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
- ^ "Now when the war with the Goths was finished, there spread abroad a most grievous pestilence, and then Claudius himself was stricken by the disease, and, leaving mankind, he departed to heaven, an abode befitting his virtues." (Historia Augusta).
- ^ Bowman, The Cambridge Ancient History: The Crisis of Empire, A.D. 193-337, pg. 50
- Filocalus, Chronicle of the City of Rome.
- ^ Chronicon, s. 269; Epitome de Caesaribus s. 34
- ISBN 90-5063-034-0.
- ISBN 978-83-229-1638-4.
25 mai 270 considéré comme la date la plus ancienne d'Aurélien dans les papyrus doit être reporté à 271
- ISBN 978-3-05-008807-5.
- ISBN 978-0-85698-065-7.
- JSTOR 20186314.
- ^ Curran, pg. 15
- ^ Historia Augusta, Claudius, 13:2
- ^ Historia Augusta, Life of Claudius 1 (note 1). LacusCurtius.
- ISBN 978-0-19-105655-0.
- ^ a b c d e Jack Oruch, "St. Valentine, Chaucer, and Spring in February", Speculum 56.3 (July 1981 pp 534–565) p 535.
- ^ a b c Henry Kelly, Chaucer and the cult of Saint Valentine, pg. 49
- ^ Larue, pg. 1
Sources
Primary sources
- Aurelius Victor, Epitome de Caesaribus
- Eutropius, Breviarium ab urbe condita
- Historia Augusta, Life of Claudius The accuracy of this source has been questioned.
- Joannes Zonaras, Compendium of History extract: Zonaras: Alexander Severus to Diocletian: 222–284
- Zosimus, Historia Nova
Secondary sources
- Weigel, Richard D. "Claudius II Gothicus (268 -270)", De Imperatoribus Romanis, 2001
- ISBN 0-521-07233-6.
- Gibbon. Edward Decline & Fall of the Roman Empire (1888)
- Curran, John R. Pagan City and Christian Capital: Rome in the Fourth Century. Oxford: Clarendon, 2000. Print
- Larue, Gerald A. "There They Go Again!" The Humanist Sept. 1999: 1. Print.
- Meijer, Fik. Emperors Don't Die in Bed. London: Routledge, 2004. Print.
- Potter, David S. "Bryn Mawr Classical Review 2005.08.01." The Bryn Mawr Classical Review. 2004.
- Homo, L. (1903). De Claudio Gothico, Romanorum imperatore (268—270). Paris: H. Jouve.
- Damerau, P. (1934). Kaiser Claudius II. Goticus (268—270 n. Chr.). Leipzig: Dieterich.
- Henze, Walter, "Aurelius 82", Realencyclopädie der classischen Altertumswissenschaft, volume 4 (II.2), Metzlerscher Verlag (Stuttgart, 1896), columns 2458–2462.
- Kienast, D. (2017). Römische Kaisertabelle. Grundzüge einer römischen Kaiserchronologie. Darmstadt: Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft. ISBN 978-3-534-13289-8.
- Paschoud, F. (1992). "Claude II aux Thermopyles? A propos de HA, Claud. 16,1, Zosime 5,5 et Eunape, Vitae Soph. 7, 3, 4-5". Publications de l'École française de Rome. 159: 21–28.
- Kotula, T. (1994). "Autour de Claude II le Gothique: péripéties d'un mythe". Revue des Études Anciennes. 96 (3): 499–509. .
- Southern, Pat (2001). The Roman Empire from Severus to Constantine. London, New York: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-23943-1.
- Watson (2004). "A.". Aurelian and the Third Century. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-1-134-90815-8.
- Potter, D. S. (2004). The Roman Empire at Bay, AD 180—395. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-10058-8.
- Hartmann, U.; Gerhardt, T. (2008). Johne K.-P (ed.). Die Zeit der Soldatenkaiser: Krise und Transformation des Römischen Reiches im 3. Jahrhundert n. Chr. (235-284). Berlin: Walter de Gruyter. ISBN 978-3-05-008807-5.
External links
- Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.