Flavius Afranius Syagrius
Encyclopedia
Flavius Afranius Syagrius (floruit 369-382) was a Roman politician and administrator.
. In the same years in which Afranius lived, another Syagrius is attested (he was consul in 381), but it is not always possible to distinguish the career of the two Syagri.
In 369 he is attested as notarius: in that year the Roman Emperor Valentinian I
removed him from his office after a failed military operation, and Afranius dedicated himself to private life.
He continued his career under Emperor Gratian
, possibly because of his friendship with the poet Ausonius
. Afranius was magister memoriae in 379, when some Theodorus succeeded him. However, that same year he became Proconsul
of Africa
. Between June 18, 380, and the Spring of 382 he is attested as Praetorian prefect of Italy. In 381 he was also praefectus urbi
of Rome and Consul in 382 .
Life
Afranius' father was Clodoreius; it is unknown who his mother was. Afranius was also a member of the Gallic-Roman aristocratic family of the Syagrii, which originated in LyonLyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
. In the same years in which Afranius lived, another Syagrius is attested (he was consul in 381), but it is not always possible to distinguish the career of the two Syagri.
In 369 he is attested as notarius: in that year the Roman Emperor Valentinian I
Valentinian I
Valentinian I , also known as Valentinian the Great, was Roman emperor from 364 to 375. Upon becoming emperor he made his brother Valens his co-emperor, giving him rule of the eastern provinces while Valentinian retained the west....
removed him from his office after a failed military operation, and Afranius dedicated himself to private life.
He continued his career under Emperor Gratian
Gratian
Gratian was Roman Emperor from 375 to 383.The eldest son of Valentinian I, during his youth Gratian accompanied his father on several campaigns along the Rhine and Danube frontiers. Upon the death of Valentinian in 375, Gratian's brother Valentinian II was declared emperor by his father's soldiers...
, possibly because of his friendship with the poet Ausonius
Ausonius
Decimius Magnus Ausonius was a Latin poet and rhetorician, born at Burdigala .-Biography:Decimius Magnus Ausonius was born in Bordeaux in ca. 310. His father was a noted physician of Greek ancestry and his mother was descended on both sides from long-established aristocratic Gallo-Roman families...
. Afranius was magister memoriae in 379, when some Theodorus succeeded him. However, that same year he became Proconsul
Proconsul
A proconsul was a governor of a province in the Roman Republic appointed for one year by the senate. In modern usage, the title has been used for a person from one country ruling another country or bluntly interfering in another country's internal affairs.-Ancient Rome:In the Roman Republic, a...
of Africa
Africa Province
The Roman province of Africa was established after the Romans defeated Carthage in the Third Punic War. It roughly comprised the territory of present-day northern Tunisia, and the small Mediterranean coast of modern-day western Libya along the Syrtis Minor...
. Between June 18, 380, and the Spring of 382 he is attested as Praetorian prefect of Italy. In 381 he was also praefectus urbi
Praefectus urbi
The praefectus urbanus or praefectus urbi, in English the urban prefect, was prefect of the city of Rome, and later also of Constantinople. The office originated under the Roman kings, continued during the Republic and Empire, and held high importance in late Antiquity...
of Rome and Consul in 382 .
Sources
- Potter, David Stone, The Roman Empire at Bay: Ad 180-395, Routledge, 2004, ISBN 0-415-10057-7, pp. 545–546.