Maximinus Thrax
| Maximinus Thrax | |
| Emperor of the Roman Empire | |
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| Bust of Maximinus Thrax | |
| Reign | 20 March 235 - April 238 |
| Full name | Gaius Julius Verus Maximinus (from birth to accession); Caesar Gaius Julius Verus Maximinus Augustus (as emperor) |
| Born | c. 173 |
| Birthplace | Thrace or Moesia |
| Died | April 238 |
| Place of death | Aquileia |
| Predecessor | Alexander Severus |
| Successor | Pupienus and Balbinus |
| Consort to | Caecilia Paulina |
| Offspring | Gaius Julius Verus Maximus |
| Father | A Goth (?) |
| Mother | An Alan (?) |
Gaius Iulius Verus Maximinus (c. 173–238), also known as Maximinus Thrax (i.e. Maximinus the Thracian) and Maximinus I, was a Roman Emperor (235–238).
Maximinus is described by several ancient sources (none of which, except for Herodian's Roman History, was actually contemporary with Maximinus) as the first barbarian who wore the imperial purple and the first emperor never to set foot in Rome. He was the first of the so-called barracks emperors of the 3rd century; his rule is often considered to mark the beginning of the Crisis of the Third Century.
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Rise to power
According to the notoriously unreliable Historia Augusta (Augustan History), Maximinus was born in Thrace or Moesia to a Gothic father and an Alanic mother; however, the supposed parentage is highly unlikely, as the presence of the Goths in the Danubian area is first attested after the beginning of the Crisis of the Third Century. Sir Ronald Syme, writing that "the word 'Gothia' should have sufficed for condemnation" of the passage in the Augustan History, felt that the burden of evidence from Herodian, Syncellus and elsewhere pointed to Maximinus having been born in Moesia.[1] Most likely he was a Thraco-Roman provincial of low birth who, similarly to later emperors of the 3rd century, would elevate himself, via a military career, from the condition of a soldier in one of the Roman legions to the foremost positions of political power. He joined the army during the reign of Septimius Severus, but did not rise to a powerful position until promoted by Alexander Severus. Maximinus was in command of the recruits from Pannonia, who were angered by Alexander's payments to the Alemanni and his avoidance of war. The troops, among which Legio XXII Primigenia, elected the stern Maximinus, killing young Alexander and his mother at Moguntiacum, also a site where many Christians were martyred (Mainz) in 235. The Praetorian Guard acclaimed him emperor, and their choice was grudgingly confirmed by the Senate, who were displeased to have a peasant as emperor. His son Maximus became caesar.
[H]e was conscious that his mean and barbarian origin, his savage appearance, and his total ignorance of the arts and institutions of civil life, formed a very unfavourable contrast with the amiable manners of the unhappy Alexander. He remembered that, in his humbler fortune, he had often waited before the doors of the haughty nobles of Rome, and had been denied admittance by the insolence of their slaves. He recollected too the friendship of a few who had relieved his poverty, and assisted his rising hopes. But those who had spurned, and those who had protected, the Thracian, were guilty of the same crime, the knowledge of his original obscurity. For this crime many were put to death; and by the execution of several of his benefactors Maximin published, in characters of blood, the indelible history of his baseness and ingratitude.[2]
Rule
Consolidating his power
Maximinus hated the nobility and was ruthless towards those he suspected of plotting against him. He began by eliminating the close advisors of Alexander. His suspicions may have been justified; two plots against Maximinus were foiled. The first was during a campaign across the Rhine, during which a group of officers, supported by influential senators, plotted the destruction of a bridge across the river, to leave Maximinus stranded on the other side. Afterwards they planned to elect senator Magnus emperor; however the plot was discovered and the conspirators executed. The second plot involved Mesopotamian archers who were loyal to Alexander. They planned to elevate Quartinus, but their leader Macedo changed sides and murdered Quartinus instead, although this was not enough to save his own life.
Crisis of the Third Century
The Crisis of the Third Century (also known as the "Military Anarchy" or the "Imperial Crisis") is a commonly applied name for the crumbling and near collapse of the Roman Empire between 235 and 284 caused by three simultaneous crises: external invasion, internal civil war, and economic collapse.
Defending the frontiers
Maximinus' first campaign was against the Alamanni, whom Maximinus defeated despite heavy Roman casualties in a swamp near what is today Baden-Württemberg. After the victory, Maximinus took the title Germanicus Maximus, raised his son Maximus to the rank of Caesar and Prince of Youths, and deified his late wife Paulina. Securing the German frontier, at least for a while, Maximinus then set up a winter encampment at Sirmium in Pannonia, and from that supply base fought the Dacians and the Sarmatians during the winter of 235–236.
Gordian I and Gordian II
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Early in 238, in the province of Africa, a treasury official's extortions through false judgments in corrupt courts against some local landowners ignited a full-scale revolt in the province. The landowners armed their clients and their agricultural workers and entered Thysdrus (modern El Djem), where they murdered the offending official and his bodyguards and proclaimed the aged governor of the province, Marcus Antonius Gordianus Sempronianus (Gordian I), and his son, Gordian II, as co-emperors. The senate in Rome switched allegiance, gave both Gordian and Gordian II the title of Augustus, and set about rousing the provinces in support of the pair. Maximinus immediately assembled his army and advanced on Rome, the Pannonian legions leading the way.
Meanwhile, in Africa, the revolt had not gone as planned. The province of Africa was bordered on the west by the province of Numidia, whose governor, Capellianus, nursed a long-standing grudge against the Gordians and controlled the only legionary unit (III Augusta) in the area. He marched on Carthage and easily overwhelmed the local militias defending the city. Gordian II was killed in the fighting and, on hearing this, Gordian I hanged himself with his belt.
Pupienus, Balbinus, and Gordian III
When the African revolt collapsed, the senate found itself in great jeopardy. Having shown clear support for the Gordians, they could expect no clemency from Maximinus when he reached Rome. In this predicament, they determined to defy Maximinus and elected two of their number, Pupienus and Balbinus, as co-emperors. When the Roman mob heard that the Senate had selected two men from the Patrician class, men whom the ordinary people held in no great regard, they protested, showering the imperial cortège with sticks and stones. A faction in Rome preferred Gordian's grandson (Gordian III), and there was severe street fighting. The emperors had no option but to compromise, and, sending for the grandson of the elder Gordian they appointed him Caesar.
Defeat and death of Maximinus
Maximinus marched on Rome, but at Aquileia Maximinus's troops, suffering from famine and disease, bogged down in an unexpected siege of the city, which had closed its gates when they approached, became disaffected. In April 238 Praetorian guards in his camp assassinated him, his son and his chief ministers. Their heads were cut off, placed on poles, and carried to Rome by cavalrymen.
The Senate elected the thirteen year-old Gordian III emperor.
Politics
Maximinus doubled the pay of soldiers; this act, along with virtually continuous warfare, required higher taxes. Tax-collectors began to resort to violent methods and illegal confiscations, further alienating the governing class. Ironically, the Eastern Roman Empire suffered similar hard lessons a full 1,000 years later.
Maximinus reversed Alexander's policy of clemency towards the Christians, who were viewed as unsupportive enemies of the state. He persecuted Christians ruthlessly, and the bishop of Rome, Pontian, as well as his successor, Anterus, are said to have been martyred.
Appearance
Maximinus is noted in the Historia Avgvsta as being significantly taller than his contemporaries; "He was of such size, so Cordus reports, that men said he was eight foot, six inches in height"[3]. It is likely however that this is one of the many 'tall tales' in the Historia Augusta, and is immediately suspect due to its citation of 'Cordus', one of the several fictitious authorities the work cites. However, due to his consistent portrayal as a man with a prominent brow, nose, and jaw, some researchers suspect he may have suffered from acromegaly.[4]
Bibliography
- A. Bellezza: Massimino il Trace, Geneva 1964.
- H. Börm: Die Herrschaft des Kaisers Maximinus Thrax und das Sechskaiserjahr 238. Der Beginn der Reichskrise?, in: Gymnasium 115, 2008.
- J. Burian: Maximinus Thrax. Sein Build bei Herodian und in der Historia Augusta, in: Philologus 132, 1988.
- L. de Blois: The onset of crisis in the first half of the third century A.D., in: K.-P. Johne et al. (eds.), Deleto paene imperio Romano, Stuttgart 2006.
- K. Dietz: Senatus contra principem. Untersuchungen zur senatorischen Opposition gegen Kaiser Maximinus Thrax, Munich 1980.
- F. Kolb: Der Aufstand der Provinz Africa Proconsularis im Jahr 238 n. Chr.: die wirtschaftlichen und sozialen Hintergründe, in: Historia 26, 1977.
- A. Lippold: Kommentar zur Vita Maximini Dua der Historia Augusta, Bonn 1991.
- X. Loriot: Les premières années de la grande crise du IIIe siècle: De l'avènement de Maximin le Thrace (235) à la mort de Gordien III (244), in: ANRW II/2, 1975.
References
- ↑ Syme, Emperors and Biography (Oxford University Press, 1971), pp. 182, 185-6.
- ↑ The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, vol. I, p. 215, Edward Gibbon (The Online Library of Liberty). [1].
- ↑ Historia Augusta • The Two Maximini
- ↑ Klawan, Harold, L. The Medicine of History from Paracelsus to Freud, Raven Press, 1982, New York, 3-15
External links
- English translation of Herodian
- Life of Maximinus (Historia Augusta at LacusCurtius: Latin text and English translation)
- "Roman Emperors": Maximinus Thrax
- Maximinus coinage
"Caius Julius Verus Maximinus Thrax". Catholic Encyclopedia. (1913). New York: Robert Appleton Company.
| Regnal titles | ||
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| Preceded by Alexander Severus |
Roman Emperor 235–238 Served alongside: Gordian I, Gordian II, Pupienus and Balbinus, Gordian III (all 238) |
Succeeded by Gordian III |
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| Persondata | |
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| NAME | Maximinus, Gaius Iulius Verus |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Thrax, Maximinus |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | Roman emperor and soldier |
| DATE OF BIRTH | 173 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Thrace or Moesia |
| DATE OF DEATH | 238 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | Aquileia |