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Course A107: From Late Antiquity to Byzantium

Julian

337 Constantine dies: Constantine II , Constans and Constantius II

340 Constantine II dies

350 Constans dies

351 Gallus Caesar

354 Gallus executed; Julian Caesar

360 Julian proclaimed

361 Constantius dies

363 Julian killed in battle; Jovian

Sources

S. C.Lieu, The Emperor Julian: panegyric and polemic² (Liverpool, 1989) A sourcebook, including John Chrysostom on Babylas

Julian's writings: very wide-ranging, including speeches, satires, letters
apologia to the Athenians , "Caesars", "Against the Galilaeans" Julian, Orations and essays, Loeb ed. Includes his Misopogon , 'Beard-hater'. See online Orations,

Ammianus Marcellinus (b.330, d. 395) - History books 15-25: monumental history of the Roman Empire in 31 books (1st 13 books lost) Online translation

Libanius of Antioch (b.314, d.393) - held the chair of rhetoric at Antioch - various works including a funeral oration for Julian ; Libanius, Orations, Loeb ed. I, see nos. 18 and 30;

Selected letters of Libanius : from the age of Constantine and Julian, translated with an introduction and notes by Scott Bradbury (Liverpool University Press, 2004)

Claudius Mamertinus - at his consulship 362, delivered a panegyric honouring Julian

Against Julian
the writings of Gregory, bishop of Nazianzus, Cappadocia: online
4 invectives of Ephrem of Nisibis

Mediaeval Sourcebook, Julian and the Jews

Studies

• R. Browning, The Emperor Julian (London, l976)
• G. Bowersock, Julian the Apostate (London, l978)
• Diana Bowder, The Age of Constantine and Julian (London, 1978)
• P. Brown, 'The Last Pagan Emperor', in his Society and the Holy in Late Antiquity (l982)
• P. Athanassiadi-Fowden, Julian² (London, l992)
• Rowland Smith, Julian's Gods. Religion and Philosophy in the Thought and Action of Julian the Apostate (London, 1995). BMCR review 97.3.22
• A. Murdoch, The last pagan : Julian the Apostate and the death of the ancient world (Stroud, 2003)

Ammianus Marcellinus :

• Latin text online
  
• Translations; Loeb online; Bohn online
• A.Momigliano, 'The Lonely Historian Ammianus Marcellinus', in Essays in Ancient and Modern Historiography.
• J.F. Matthews, The Roman Empire of Ammianus (London, 1989)
• C. W. Fornara, 'Julian's Persian expedition in Ammianus and Zosimus', JHS 91 (1991), 1-15
• T. D. Barnes, Ammianus Marcellinus and the representation of historical reality Cornell studies in classical philology v. 56. (Cornell University Press 1998)
• The late Roman world and its historian interpreting Ammianus Marcellinus edd. J. W. Drijvers & D. Hunt. (London, 1999).
  

Antioch

• J. H. W. G. Liebeschuetz, Antioch: City and Imperial Administration in the Later Roman Empire (l972)
• G. Downey, A History of Antioch in Syria
• Antioch as a centre of Hellenic culture as observed by Libaniu s translated with an introduction by A.F. Norman (TTH, Liverpool, 2000)
• Christine Kondoleon, Antioch the lost ancient city (Princeton, 2000). and see the exhibition pages
• I. Sandwell and J. Huskinson edd., Culture and society in later Roman Antioch (Oxford :Oxbow, 2004)
• Religious Identity in Late Antiquity : Greeks, Jews and Christians in Antioch, Isabella Sandwell (Cambridge, 2007)
  

  For coins see 1
  

The class handout follows below:

Sources

Pro - Julian

Ammianus Marcellinus (b.330, d. 395) - monumental history of the Roman Empire in 31 books (1st 13 books lost)
Libanius of Antioch (b.314, d.393) - held the chair of rhetoric at Antioch - various works including a funeral oration for Julian
Claudius Mamertinus - at his consulship 362, delivered a panegyric honouring Julian

Against Julian
the writings of Gregory, bishop of Nazianzus, Cappadocia
4 invectives of Ephrem of Nisibis

Theodosian Code

Julian's writings:
very wide-ranging, including speeches, satires, letters
apologia to the Athenians
"Caesars"
"Against the Galilaeans"
"Misopogon" (Beard-hater)

Key Dates and Events

337 murder of Julius Constantius (half brother of Constantine I and Julian's father), along with several other members of Julian's family
exile of Julian and his brother Gallus to Bithynia where they are educated by Eusebius and Mardonius

340 Constantine II is killed invading the territory of his brother Constans

342 exile of Julian and Gallus to Macellum in Cappadocia

348 Julian is released to continue studying in Constantinople, but later is sent to Nicomedia

350 Constans is killed in a palace coup by Magnentius
Constantius II appoints Gallus caesar and sets out to avenge Constans' murder

351 Julian, influenced by Maximus at Ephesus, converts to paganism, and continues his studies in Athens

353 Magnentius is defeated

354 Deposition and execution of Gallus Julian is summoned from Athens to the imperial court at Milan

Nov 355 Julian marries Constantius' sister Helena; is appointed caesar and sent to look after Gaul

356 Julian appointed consul

357 Battle of Strasbourg

358 Campaign against the Franks

Feb 360 Julian is proclaimed augustus at Paris by his troops

361 Julian moves through the Balkans to Italy

Nov. 361 Death of Constantius

11th Dec. Julian enters Constantinople in triumph

June 362 Julian leaves Constantinople for Antioch

Oct. 362 tries to revive the cult of Apollo at Daphne but it was destroyed by fire

March 363 Julian leaves Antioch for the Persian front

April 363 Julian enters Persian territory

June 363 Roman victory near Ctesiphon
Burning of the Roman fleet

16 June Beginning of Roman withdrawal

26 June Death of Julian
Army proclaims Jovian emperor

July 363 Jovian concludes humiliating peace with Persia

August 363 Procopius buries Julian at Tarsus

Key reforms

Trials of informers at Chalcedon
Dismissal of most of Constantius' large retinue
Restores the senate at Constantinople
Seeks to strengthen the councils of provincial towns; prohibits the exemption of clergy from curial duties
Reduces the cost of maintaining the imperial courier system
Attempts to reduce corruption/extortion of tax collectors
All remissions and impositions of old and new taxes are to be referred to Julian first

Religious and anti-Christian reforms
Initial general toleration for those of all religions
Pagan temples reopened and temple lands restored; pagan rites re-introduced at all public functions
Christians forbidden to teach in schools