| Glycerius | |
|---|---|
| Emperor of the Western Roman Empire |
|
Solidus of Emperor Glycerius |
|
| Reign | c. March 3, 473 – June 474 |
| Full name | (Flavius) Glycerius[1] |
| Born | c. 420 |
| Died | After 480 (aged 60) |
| Predecessor | Olybrius |
| Successor | Julius Nepos |
Glycerius[2] (c. 420 – after 480) was a Western Roman Emperor from 473 to 474.[3] Elevated by his Magister militum, Gundobad, Glycerius’ elevation was rejected by the court at Constantinople,[4][5] and he was ousted by Julius Nepos. He later served as the bishop of Salona in the early Catholic Church.
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Sources on Glycerius are scarce and scanty. It is known that, at the time of his elevation to the throne, he was the comes domesticorum,[2] the commander of the Imperial guard of the court at Ravenna. Previous to this posting, he had been the military commander in Dalmatia.[6]
In 472, the Western Roman Empire was plagued by a civil war between Emperor Anthemius and his Magister militum (commander in chief of the army), Ricimer.[7] Ricimer killed the Emperor and put Olybrius on the throne, but in a short time both Ricimer and Olybrius were dead.[8] The Eastern Roman Emperor, Leo I the Thracian, tarried in choosing his successor, so the Germanic elements of the army, represented by the new Magister militum and Patrician, Gundobad (a nephew of Ricimer's), elected Glycerius Emperor on March 3 or 5, 473 in Ravenna.[9]
Little is known about the short reign of Glycerius. In his biography of St. Epiphanius, bishop of Pavia, Ennodius states Glycerius made "many measures for the public good", but mentions only that he pardoned "the injury done to his mother by certain of his subjects at the petition of bishop Epiphanius.[10] A single law of his has survived, dated 11 March 473, addressed to Himilco, the Praetorian Prefect of Italy; it concerns simony. Ralph Mathisen speculates that Glycerius tried to stay on good terms with the Eastern Roman Empire.[7] For most of his rule, Glycerius lived in Northern Italy, as testified by the fact that the only mints which issued in his name are Milan and Ravenna.[11]
In 473, the King of the Visigoths, Euric, ordered the invasion of Italy, but his commander Vincentius was defeated and killed by Glycerius' comites Alla and Sindila. Despite the victorious defence of Italy, Glycerius could do nothing to prevent the Visigoths from conquering Arelate and Marseille, in Gaul.[7]
At the same time, the Ostrogoths led by King Widimir began marching to Italy. The possibility that the two Gothic armies would merge was disastrous. Glycerius sent an envoy to Widimir and, through a combination of diplomacy and a bribe of 2,000 solidi,[11] convinced Widimir that the territories he wanted were already occupied by the Visigoths and that he should move to Gaul.[3] If this strategy prevented Vincentius from receiving reinforcements, it led to the convergence of both Gothic armies against Gaul.[7]
The Eastern Roman Emperor Leo I had not recognised Olybrius, and also did not recognise Glycerius, as his election had not been ratified by the Eastern court, and it was suspected that he was a puppet of Gundobad.[3] Therefore Leo chose a candidate on his own, Julius Nepos, Magister militum in Dalmatia and related to the Eastern Empress Verina.[9] Because his election came very late, however, Julius Nepos could not leave, as the ports were closed for the winter. In the mean-time, Leo I died in January 474 and was succeeded by his grandson, the young Leo, who chose his own father Zeno as co-emperor after a short time.[12] Zeno continued the official position of Constantinople to deny any recognition of Glycerius, whom they continued to view as a usurper.[7]
Regardless, Glycerius tried to be reconciled with the Eastern court or, at least, to cause as few conflicts as possible with it. For example, he did not choose a second Consul in order to allow Leo II to be Consul alone for the year 474.[7]
In spring 474, the ports were re-opened and Julius Nepos, the pretender to the Western throne, crossed the Adriatic Sea and arrived in Italy to depose Glycerius.[11] It is probable that Glycerius left Ravenna for Rome, probably to resist the invader; the clue is a silver coin minted in Rome, in which Glycerius claims to be Emperor together with other two Emperors (Leo II and Zeno), thus not recognising Julius Nepos.[7] However, Julius Nepos disembarked at Portus in July 474 and deposed Glycerius without a fight.[3] Glycerius was sent to Dalmatia as Bishop of Salona.[11]
Glycerius' deposition was thus without any bloodshed, and historians investigated the possible reasons why the Western Emperor, who had Gundobad and his army at his command did not try to resist. One possible reason is that Glycerius' elevation, not recognised by Eastern court, received the support of neither the Roman Senate nor the Gallic-Roman aristocracy; resisting Nepos without the support of the Senate would have been a bad choice for Gundobad.[13] It is possible that Gundobad, who was absent from Italy when Glycerius was deposed, had gone to Gaul to gather some more troops or to receive the legacy of his father Gundioc as King of the Burgundians, thus effectively leaving Glycerius alone.[4]
Glycerius took up residence at Salona, which in 475 saw the arrival of Julius Nepos, who had been deposed in turn by the Magister militum Orestes;[14] he was still in Salona when, in 476, the last Western Roman Emperor, Romulus Augustus, was deposed by Odoacer, King of the Heruli.[15] The historian Malchus maintains that in 480 Glycerius was a member of the conspiracy that led to Julius Nepos' death and thus sought the favour of Odoacer;[2] however, the news of Glycerius' appointment to the prestigious rank of Bishop of Milan, which would support the theory of the collaboration between Glycerius and Odoacer, is usually considered a rumor.[7] It is assumed that Glycerius died at Salona.[4]
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Olybrius |
Western Roman Emperor 473–474 |
Succeeded by Julius Nepos |