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Course A107: From Late Antiquity to Byzantium

The Roman Empire in the third century

MAP

Dates

193 Septimius Severus

197 Severus sole ruler

211 Caracalla becomes emperor after murdering his brother Geta

212 Edict of Caracalla

213 Alamanni are defeated

217 Caracalla is murdered by Macrinus and Macrinus becomes emperor

218 Macrinus' son Diadumenianus is elevated to "augustus"; both he and his father are murdered, Elagabalus becomes emperor

222 Elagabalus and his mother are murdered; Severus Alexander becomes emperor

230 Ardashir, the Persian king attacks Mesopotamia

235 Severus Alexander is murdered in the Balkans by Maximinus Thrax

238 Uprising in Africa of Gordian I , Gordian II ,
Senatorial commission led by Balbinus and Pupienus Maximus ,
Maximus is killed at the siege of Aquileia
Balbinus and Pupienus Maximus are killed by the praetorians
Gordian III (only 13) becomes emperor

241: Shapur I becomes king of Sassanian Persia:

244 Gordian III is murdered by his protector Philip the Arab from Syria

249 After rebellions in the East and on the Danube, the senator Decius is chosen as emperor by the troops in the Balkans. Philip is defeated in battle.
General persecution of Christians

251 Decius is killed in battle During the next period the northern frontier is destroyed, barbarians enter Italy, Gaul and Spain; Persians over-run Mesopotamia and Syria
There is a quick succession of emperors including:
Trebonianus Gallus, Volusianus

253 Aemilianus, Valentinian, Valerian (captured by the Persians in 260: see the relief)

257-258 Persecution of the Christians

260 Gallienus
Britain, Spain and Gaul are lost; in the east, Palmyra is lost; the Alamanni threaten Italy.

268 Claudius II Gothicus - successful military rule but no time for administration

270 Quintillus
Aurelian - defeats Zenobia, Queen of Palmyra. See relief, British Museum

Started building defensive walls around Rome, tried to restore the economy

272 Alexandrian civil war

275 Tacitus

276 Florianus, Probus

282 Carus

283 Numerian, Carinus

284 Diocletian

Bibliography

• F. Millar, The Roman Empire and its Neighbours² (London, 1981) esp. Chapter 13
• R. MacMullen, Roman Government's Response to Crisis (New Haven, 1976)
  • Corruption and the Decline of Rome (New Haven,1988), ch. 1
• G. Alfoldy, The Social History of Rome (Routledge,1988), chs. 6-7
• C. G. Starr, The Roman Empire 27 BC - AD 476, chs.7-8
• R. Lane-Fox, Pagans and Christians (London, 1986)
• M. I. Rostovtzeff, Social and Economic History of the Roman Empire² (Oxford, 1957) chs. 10-12
• J. H. W. G. Liebeschuetz, Change and Continuity in Roman Religion (Oxford, 1979)
• Alaric Watson, Aurelian and the third century (London, 1999)
• Jean-Michel Carrié, Aline Rousselle, L'Empire romain en mutation des Sevères à Constantin, 192-337 (Paris, 1999). 
• The Cambridge Ancient History (2nd Edition) Volume 12, The Crisis of Empire, AD 193–337 Edited by Alan Bowman, Averil Cameron, Peter Garnsey(September, 2005)

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Modified December 1, 2009