ammianus marcellinus the later roman empire summary

Roman citizens could approach the emperor directly for seeking his opinion on specific points of law. Diocletian grouped the provinces into 12new territorial units, known as dioceses. The council declared that only preceded by the Bishops of Rome, the bishops of Constantinople would hold the second highest position in church hierarchy. Reportedly, he sacrificed so many animals while making preparations for his Persian campaign that people worried about a shortage of cattle. Bonifatius defeated Aetius at Rimini in 432, but was mortally wounded during the battle. A new high-ranking official, the magister officiorum, was first mentioned in 320. He appears to have consciously begun where Tacitus . (ed. narrow margins, tight binding, half of second fold-out map is missing from physical book. [118] To promote the development of his new capital, he granted Anatolian estates to all senators who built a private house in Constantinople. Ideas about a single supreme god who governs the universe were widespread. Typically born into families of long military tradition, the "barracks emperors" were mainly extremely conservatives, but they did not hesitate to overturn traditional principles of state administration for practical considerations. [116], Constantine removed the praetorian prefects' most military functions, although they remained responsible for recruitment and supply of armies. Cassius' words obviously reflect the Roman senators' aversion to the Severan emperors, because other written sources and archaeological evidence indicate that the empire recovered during their reign between 193 and 235. He returned to Italy with Ursicinus, when he was recalled by Constantius, and accompanied him on the expedition against Silvanus the Frank, who had been forced by the allegedly unjust accusations of his enemies into proclaiming himself emperor in Gaul. In late 406, masses of Vandals, Alans, Suebi and other peoples stormed into Western Roman territory across the Rhine. Regarding themselves as the apostles' successors, the bishops of Rome, Alexandria and Antioch claimed the right to guide all Christians. Stilicho's foreign troops and their families were massacred and those who escaped sought Alaric's protection. Official meetings began with acclamations in their honor emphasizing the divinely sanctioned nature of their rule. The author expresses himself in the obscure and labored Latin typical of the late empire. He almost certainly regarded history as a tool to help understand the past in order to shape the present and to influence the future. [63] He appointed his cousin Gallus to rule the eastern provinces as Caesar, but Gallus' despotic measures caused massive discontent. Traditional imperial titulature was expanded with titles like dominus ("lord"), and Jovius or Herculius (in reference to the gods Jupiter and Hercules, respectively). [85] Honorius was planning to assume authority in Constantinople, but Stilicho prevented his travel. [144], Another widespread myth is that the successor of Theophilus, Cyril of Alexandria, ordered the murder of Hypatia, in reality Hypatia was assassinated not for religious reasons, but for political ones, as she belonged to one of the multi-confessional factions that disputed control of the city. [107], The tetrarchs ruled the empire as members of an undivided "imperial college", but they rarely met in person. Though he was born in Antioch, Syria to a wealthy Syrian Greek family, Ammianus wrote in Latin. The establishment of a new Senate at Constantinople further increased the number of senators. [86][87] A Hunnic leader Uldin raided Thrace and captured Castra Martis, but Anthemius forced him to abandon the campaign by paying off his deputies. To prevent further plundering raids, he agreed to pay a yearly tribute of 25,200nomismata to the Huns. . Julian had concealed his pagan Neoplatonic sympathies, but after his ascension he openly renounced Christianity. [153], The peaceful period came to an abrupt end with the Great Persecution under Diocletian. New border fortresses were built along the Danube and a selective settlement program was introduced, allowing some Carpians to move from their north-Danubian homeland to Pannonia and Moesia. According to Ammianus they took part in raids on the province of Britain in ad 365, and two years later joined with other enemies of Rome in the . [92] Maximus attacked Constantine in Gaul and the two usurpers' conflict gave Honorius' general Constantius the opportunity to intervene. Aside from the loss of the first thirteen books, the remaining eighteen are in many places corrupt with sections missing. Table of Contents. His generals proclaimed his younger son Valentinian II Gratian's co-emperor, likely to prevent each other from claiming the throne. Ancient authors: Ammianus Marcellinus (late fourth century CE), Roman Antiquities / Res Gestae 14.4 (link to Latin text and full translation). Their conflict enabled an ambitious Gothic leader Alaric I to take control of the western Balkans. [175][176] The Goths and most other barbarians who settled in the empire remained Arians and their strong position in the imperial army secured the survival of Arianism. [158] For clerical privileges increased other citizens' burdens, town magistrates tended to ignore them. [120] As a sign of the growing importance of Christianity, Constantine authorized the bishops to make judgement in civil cases between Christian litigants. Aetius regularly hired them to fight against the Burgundians, Visigoths and the rebellious Bagaudae of Gaul. [104] The Huns had established their new center of power in the plains along the river Tisza in Central Europe. Quite paradoxically, even Honorius, characterized as the "most unwarlike emperor" by historian Thomas S. Burns, was depicted as a conqueror of enemy forces on his coins. [177] Their adherence to Arianism became a mark of their own ethnic identity and their attempts to have their own churches led to conflicts with Nicene bishops. [137] He revived the system of provincial high priests and appointed a chief priest for each city. Later he retired to Rome, where he wrote his history . [55] He established a new city on the site of the ancient Greek polis of Byzantium on the Bosporus. [19], Archaeological finds also abound, although "they remain understudied" (as Mitchell emphasizes it in 2015). The project failed because an earthquake destroyed the building site. N c l tng l ngn ng chnh ti cc vng Dacia, Moesia v ln cn. Civil wars could ruin the defense system, talented barbarian chieftains could launch successful invasions deep into the empire, and catastrophic events could cause mass migrations towards the borderlands. By the size of the Roman army is meant the changes (increases and reductions) in the number of its contingents: legions, auxiliaries, Praetorian cohorts, Urban cohorts, vigiles, and naval forces over the course of twelve centuries - from 753 BC to AD 476 (the Fall of the Western Roman Empire).. Regal period (753 - 509 BC) After the founding of Rome, legend has it that the first king . [5][6] Orosius was the first scholar to integrate elements of classical and church history in the 420s. Edward Gibbon judged Ammianus "an accurate and faithful guide, who composed the history of his own times without indulging the prejudices and passions which usually affect the mind of a contemporary. Under the new system, civil and military hierarchies were separated. [115] The maintenance of two separate hierarchies of equestrian and senatorial offices became obsolete by the end of the 3rdcentury. [99] When Honorius died in August 423, his courtiers proclaimed one of their number John emperor, but Theodosius acknowledged Galla Placidia's six-year-old son by Constantius, Valentinian III as Honorius' lawful successor. In June the commander of the Roman troops in Britain Magnus Maximus assumed the title of Augustus and seized Gaul. [47] To restore internal peace, Diocletian, Galerius and Maximian held a conference at Carnuntum in 308. [15], The systematic collection of legal texts commenced in the Late Roman period. [151] By the end of the 3rdcentury, clerical hierarchy had stabilized and the bishops emerged as the paramount leaders of the local Christian communities. [160] According to Emperor Julian, Christianity owed its success primarily to the Christians' generous acts of charity, their special care for the dead and their attempt to live a virtuous life, because all these features were of particular importance for the impoverished masses of Roman society. A Roman historian chronicles Rome on the brink of collapse. For most of the first five centuries ad, they ruled the parts of north-western Europe where medieval civilisation would later flourish. [79][80] Both migrations were probably triggered by the Huns' westward expansion. domesticus in the Roman army from about 350 c.e. At that time, the Gaels of Dalriada controlled what is now Argyll as part of a kingdom that stretched across the sea between Britain and Ireland. After retiring from a successful military career, he wrote a history of the Roman Empire as a sequel to that of Tacitus, his model. The Code of Theodosius contains about 2,500 entries and covers the period between 335 and 437. The Roman History of Ammianus Marcellinus During the Reigns of the Emperors Constantius, Julian, Jovianus, Valentinian, and Valens . Paulinus of Nola, Melania the Elder and a few other thinkers were more critical and denied that Rome represented an ideal civilization under God's special protection. [180], Jews lived in most cities in the Roman Empire. Elephants and the Later Roman Empire, Iranica Antiqua 42, 301-346. He does refer to Sallust and allusion to Tacitus, Livy, and Herodotus can be identified in his text. [30] In the west, a rebel provincial governor, Postumus ruled a "Gallic Empire" from 259; in the east, Queen Zenobia established an independent Palmyrene Empire in 267. Maximus withdrew to Hispania and Constantius captured Constantine at Arles. He set himself the task of continuing the histories of Tacitus from A.D. 96 down to his own day. 325-ca. Book 20 returns to his focus on Ursicinus, describing what Ammianus sees as his unfair dismissal and Constantius attempt to remove Julian from his post in Gaul, which resulted in the troops hailing Julian as emperor (360). The plundering of the Eternal City shocked the Romans although the Goths quickly abandoned it. andrea@archive.org As Maximus quickly took control of Hispania and Africa, Valentinian could only keep Italy. [121], Roman citizens regarded the defense of their homeland as the emperors' prime duty. [42] The tetrarchs repelled pillaging raids by the neighboring tribes and launched offensive campaigns against them. The Later Roman Empire chronicles a period of twenty-five years during Marcellinus' own lifetime, covering the reigns of Constantius, Julian, Jovian, Valentinian I, and Valens, and providing eyewitness accounts of significant . [62] A period of anarchy followed the coup in the west, lasting until Constantius overcame Magnentius and reunited the empire in 353. 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