Roman Empire Certamen

January 16, 27 BC

Empire begins. Octavian returns power to Senate, they name him Augustus; he is given provinces of Egypt, Gaul, Syria.

Julio-Claudian Emperors

Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius, Nero

Augustus

27 BC to AD 14. family values; set up good administration. Found Rome brick and left it marble.

Scribonia

1st Wife of Augustus

Livia

2nd Wife of Augustus

Julia

Daughter of Augustus, exiled for adultery.

Battle of Teutoberg Forest

Roman defeat under Varus against Arminius. 3 legions lost.

Tiberius

AD 14 to AD 37. Son of Livia, married to Augustus’ daughter Julia, uncle of Germanicus; in exile first to Rhodes, then later in life, he retired to Capri.

Caligula

AD 37 – 41. (Gaius – Caligula means little boots – he is son of Germanicus who kept him at army camp); killed by Praetorian guard

Sejanus

prefect of the Praetorian Guard under Tiberius who basically ran the empire.

Naevius Sutorius Macro

Succeeded Sejanus as Praetorian Prefect.

Claudius

AD 41 – 54; brother of Germanicus, had a limp and a tic and pretended to be stupid; chosen by Praetorian Guard; conquered Britain. Married to Messalina (mother of Britannicus and Octavia) and Agrippina the younger, his own niece (mother of Nero).

Nero

AD 54 – 68; real name – Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus. step son of Claudius (mom =Agrippina the younger); married Claudius’ daughter Octavia; became emperor around age 16 – his tutors were Seneca (stoic philosopher) and Burrus (military man); great fire in AD 64 enabled him to build domus aurea (he blamed the Christians); revolt in Britain by Queen Boudicca; committed suicide

Galba

First emperor of AD 68-69.

Julius Vindex

governor of Gallia that backed Galba vs. Nero

Otho

2nd emperor of AD 68-69. named princeps by praetorian guard, Rome.

Aulus Vitellius

3rd in 69 AD. named princeps by armies in Lower Rhine (Germany); Vitellius defeated Otho at Cremona.

battle of cremona

vitellius defeats otho.

Vespasian

AD 69 – 79; named princeps by armies in Near East. First Flavian Emperor. started building of Colosseum in AD 72; pay toilets.

Flavian Emperors

Vespasian, Titus, Domitian.

Titus

AD 79 – 81 – son of Vespasian (captured Jerusalem in AD 70 -- built a triumphal arch); Colosseum dedicated in AD 80; Mt. Vesuvius erupts – August 24, AD 79 – destroys Pompeii, Herculaneum, Stabiae.

Domitian

AD 81 – 96 – son of Vespasian – cruel; called “dominus et deus”

Five Good Emperors

Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius.

Nerva

AD 96 – 98; elderly senator – adopted Trajan

Trajan

AD 96 –117 – fought Dacia (built column to commemorate it), Empire at largest extent in 117. Born in Spain. Adopted Hadrian.

Hadrian

AD 117 – 138 – loved travel, architecture and Greek things. Reduced Italy to an imperial province. Built a wall between Britain and Scotland. Adopted Antoninus Pius. Beard guy.

Antoninus Pius

AD 138 – 161; 900th anniversary of Rome; Adopted M. Aurelius and L. Verus to be co-emperors.

Marcus Aurelius

AD 161 – 180 – co-ruled with Verus from 161 to 169; stoic philosopher. Wrote “Meditations.”

Commodus

AD 180 – 192 – son of Marcus Aurelius; dressed like Hercules; cruel

Narcissus

a Roman wrestler, strangled Commodus to death in an assassination plot.

Marcia

Commodus’ mistress, led the plan to kill Commodus.

Pertinax

AD 193 Emperor. Proclaimed by senate, killed later by soldiers.

Didius Julianus

AD 193 – bought Empire at auction – beat out Sulpicianus (the father-in-law of Pertinax). Killed by soldier.

Severan dynasty

AD 193 – 235. Septimius Severus, Caracalla (+ Geta), Elagabalus, Severus Alexander.

Septimius Severus

AD 193 – 211 (born in Lepcis Magna = Libya) – marched on Rome from his post in Pannonia. Both Clodius Albinus and Pescennius Niger made claims to the title of emperor, but were defeated by 197. His wife was Julia Domna.

Julia Domna

Wife of Septimius Severus.

Caracalla

AD 211 -- 217 (killed brother Geta, co-emperor, in 212); Constitutio Antoniniana 212 -- gave citizenship to all free men in Empire.

Constitutio Antoniniana

gave citizenship to all free men in Empire.

Macrinus

AD 217-218 – Prefect of Praetorian Guard, killed Caracalla

Elagabalus

named for a Syrian sun god (his real name was Bassianus) – AD 218 – 222.

Severus Alexander

AD 222 – 235 – emperor when he was 13, so grandmother Julia Maesa (aunt of Caracalla, grandma of Elagabalus) was his regent and then his mother Julia Mamaea (with a 16 member council to help him rule).

Valerian

One of the Barracks Emperors. captured by Shapur I (about AD 260).

Zenobia

becomes queen of Palmyra at death of her husband Odenathus (AD 268)

Aurelian

captures Zenobia and her son Vabalathus at Battle of Palmyra in AD 273; Aurelian is given the title – Restitutor Orbis – restorer of the world (clearly not one of the barracks emperors).

Alamanni, the Goths, Vandals, Juthungi, Sarmatians, and Carpi.

Tribes Aurelain defeated.

Postumus

Establish Gallic Empire.

Battle of Châlons

Aurelian retakes the Gallic Empire.

Tetricus I

Last Emperor of the Gallic Empire. Defeated by Aurelian.

Diocletian

AD 284 – 305 – tetrarchy – 4 man rule = Diocletian and Maximianus were Augusti; Galerius and Constantius were Caesars. End of the Barracks Emperors.

Maximianus

Augustus of the West under Diocletian.

Galerius

Caesar of Diocletian.

Constantius

Caesar of Maximianus in the West.

Constantine I the Great

Beat Maxentius at Milvian Bridge AD 312 (he saw a vision – in hoc signo vinces); in AD 313, the Edict of Milan made Christianity legal; Constantine built and moved capital to Constantinople (Byzantium, now called Istanbul); became a Christian at his deathbed.

Edict of Milan

313 AD, made Christianity legal

Battle of Milvian Bridge

Constantine the Great defeats Maxentius.

Licinius

Declared Edict of Milan with Constantine the Great, later defeated by Constantine the Great.

Julian (called the Apostate)

Edict of toleration in AD 362 ordered reopening of pagan temples and recalling of exiled Christian Bishops.

Edict of “Toleration”

ordered reopening of pagan temples and recalling of exiled Christian Bishops

Valens

Defeated and killed by Goths.

Battle of Adrianople

Emperor Valens killed by Goths in AD 378.

Alaric

Visigoth who sacked Rome in AD 410.

Aetius

The Last Roman. Roman general who stopped Attila the Hun in AD 451in the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains.

Battle of the Catalaunian Plains

Aetius and the Roman Coalition defeat Atilla the Hun.

Stilicho

military commander in the Roman army who, for a time, became the most powerful man in the Western Roman Empire. He was partly of Vandal origins. Guardian for Honorius.

Honorius

Son of Theodosius I the Great. Horrible emperor (incompetent) in the West.

Theodosius I the Great

Won two civil wars and was instrumental in establishing the Nicene Creed as the orthodox doctrine for Nicene Christianity. last emperor to rule the entire Roman Empire before its administration was permanently split between the Western Roman Empire and the Eastern Roman Empire.

Edict of Thessalonica

Made Nicene Christianity the official religion of the Empire.

Romulus Augustulus

AD 476 – last Emperor in west. Son of Orestes.

Odoacer

becomes king of Italy in AD 476

Ricimer

Romanized Germanic general, who ruled the remaining territory of the Western Roman Empire. 456 to 472. magister militum of the Western Empire, Ricimer exercised political control through a series of puppet emperors.

Julius Nepos

Emperor of the West exiled from Italy.

Orestes

Magister militum of Julius Nepos who deposed the emperor and installed Romulus Augustulus.