| Numerian | |
|---|---|
| 50th Emperor of the Roman Empire | |
Bust of Numerian. |
|
| Reign | 282–83 (as Caesar under his father); December 283 – November 284 (alone) |
| Full name | Marcus Aurelius Numerius Numerianus (from birth to elevation to Caesar); Caesar Marcus Aurelius Numerius Numerianus (as Caesar); Caesar Marcus Aurelius Numerius Numerianus Augustus (as emperor) |
| Died | November 284 |
| Place of death | Emesa |
| Predecessor | Carus |
| Successor | Diocletian |
| Wife | Daughter of Arrius Aper |
Numerian (Latin: Marcus Aurelius Numerius Numerianus Augustus;[1] died November 284), was a Roman Emperor from 282 to 284 with his older brother Carinus. They were sons of Carus, a general raised to the office of praetorian prefect under Emperor Probus in 282.[2]
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In 282, the legions of the upper Danube in Raetia and Noricum proclaimed Numerian's father, the praetorian prefect Marcus Aurelius Carus, emperor, beginning a rebellion against the emperor Probus.[3] Probus' army, stationed in Sirmium (Sremska Mitrovica, Serbia), decided they did not wish to fight Carus, and assassinated Probus instead.[4] Carus, already sixty, wished to establish a dynasty;[5] and immediately elevated Carinus and Numerian to the rank of Caesar.[6]
In 283, Carus raised Carinus to the title Caesar,[7] left him in charge of the West, and moved with Numerian and his praetorian prefect Arrius Aper to the East, to wage war against the Sassanid Empire. (The Sassanids had been embroiled in a succession dispute since the death of Shapur, and were in no position to oppose Carus' advance.)[8] According to Zonaras, Eutropius, and Festus, Carus won a major victory against the Persians, taking Seleucia and the Sassanid capital of Ctesiphon (near modern Al-Mada'in, Iraq), cities on opposite banks of the Tigris.[9] In celebration, Numerian, Carus, and Carinus all took the title Persici maximi.[10] Carus died in July or early August,[2] reportedly due to a strike of lightning.[11]
Carus' death left Numerian and Carinus as the new Augusti. Carinus quickly made his way to Rome from Gaul, and arrived in January 284. Numerian lingered in the East.[12] The Roman retreat from Persia was orderly and unopposed, for the Persian King, Bahram II, was still struggling to establish his authority.[13] By March 284 Numerian had only reached Emesa (Homs) in Syria; by November, only Asia Minor.[14] In Emesa he was apparently still alive and in good health, as he issued the only extant rescript in his name there.[15] (Coins are issued in his name in Cyzicus at some time before the end of 284, but it is impossible to know whether he was still in the public eye by that point.)[16] After Emesa, Numerian's staff, including the prefect Aper, reported that Numerian suffered from an inflammation of the eyes, and had to travel in a closed coach.[17] When the army reached Bithynia,[12] some of Numerian's soldiers smelled an odor reminiscent of a decaying corpse emanating from the coach.[13] They opened its curtains. Inside, they found Numerian, dead.[18]
Aper officially broke the news in Nicomedia (İzmit) in November.[19] Numerian's generals and tribunes called a council for the succession, and chose Diocles, commander of the cavalry arm of the imperial bodyguard,[20] emperor,[21] in spite of Aper's attempts to garner support.[19] On November 20, 284, the army of the east gathered on a hill 5 km (3.1 mi) outside Nicomedia. The army unanimously saluted their new Augustus, and Diocles accepted the purple imperial vestments. He raised his sword to the light of the sun, and swore an oath denying responsibility for Numerian's death. He asserted that Aper had killed Numerian and concealed it.[22] In full view of the army, Diocles drew his blade and killed Aper.[23]
According to Historia Augusta, Numerian was a man of considerable literary attainments, remarkably amiable and known as a great orator and poet. However, no other sources, apart from the unreliable Historia, report anything about his personality.
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Carus |
Roman Emperor 283–284 Served alongside: Carinus |
Succeeded by Carinus (until 285) and Diocletian |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Carus , Carinus |
Consul of the Roman Empire 284 with Carinus |
Succeeded by Diocletian, Bassus |