Year of the Six Emperors
Encyclopedia
The Year of the Six Emperors refers to the year 238, during which six people were recognised as emperors of Rome
.
The emperor at the beginning of the year was Maximinus Thrax
, who had ruled since 235. Later sources claim he was a cruel tyrant, and in January 238 a revolt erupted in North Africa. The Historia Augusta
states:
Some young aristocrats murdered the imperial tax-collector and then approached the regional governor, Gordian, and insisted that he proclaim himself emperor. Gordian agreed reluctantly, but as he was 80 years old he decided to make his son joint emperor with equal power. The senate
recognised father and son as emperors Gordian I
and Gordian II
respectively.
Their reign lasted for only 20 days. Capelianus
, the governor of the neighbouring province of Numidia
, held a grudge against the Gordians. He led an army to fight them at Carthage
, and defeated them decisively. Gordian II was killed in the battle, and on hearing this news Gordian I hanged himself.
Meanwhile Maximinus, now declared a public enemy, had already begun to march on Rome
with another army. The senate's previous candidates, the Gordians, had failed to defeat him, and knowing that they stood to die if he succeeded, the senate
needed a new emperor to defeat him. With no other candidates in view, on 22 April 238 they elected two elderly senators Pupienus
and Balbinus
(who had both been part of a special senatorial commission to deal with Maximinus) as joint emperors. This choice was not popular with the people however, and mobs threw stones and sticks at the new emperors. Therefore Marcus Antonius Gordianus Pius
, the thirteen-year-old grandson of Gordian I
, was nominated as emperor, holding power only nominally in order to appease the population of the capital, which was still loyal to the Gordian family.
Pupienus was sent at the head of an army to face Maximinus, and Balbinus stayed in Rome. Meanwhile, Maximinus was also having problems. In early February he reached the city of Aquileia
to find that it had declared for his three enemies. Maximinus besieged the city, but without success. By April, discontent due to this failure, the lack of success in the campaign in general, lack of supplies and the strong opposition of the senate, forced his legionaries
to rethink their allegiance. Soldiers of the II Parthica
killed the usurper in his tent, along with his son Maximus (who had been appointed deputy emperor in 236), and surrendered to Pupienus in the end of June. Maximinus and his son's corpses were decapitated and their heads carried to Rome. For saving Rome from a public enemy the soldiers were pardoned and sent back to their provinces.
The co-emperor then returned to Rome, only to find the city in riot. Balbinus had not managed to control the situation and the city had burned in a fire resulting in mutiny. With both emperors present, the situation calmed down but the unease remained.
Coins from their short reign show one of them on one side and two clasped hands on the other to show their joint power, yet their relationship had been clouded with suspicion from the start, with both fearing an assassination from the other. They were planning an enormous double campaign, Pupienus against the Parthians and Balbinus against the Carpians
(Grant says against Goths
and Persians respectively), but they quarrelled frequently and could not agree or trust each other. It was during one of these heavy discussions, in May or on July 29, that the Praetorian guard
decided to intervene. They stormed into the room containing the emperors, seized them both, stripping them, dragging them naked through the streets, torturing and eventually murdering them. On the same day Gordian III was proclaimed sole emperor (238-244), though in reality his advisors exercised most of his power. Together Pupienus and Balbinus had ruled for only 99 days.
Gordians I and II were deified by the senate.
Roman Emperor
The Roman emperor was the ruler of the Roman State during the imperial period . The Romans had no single term for the office although at any given time, a given title was associated with the emperor...
.
The emperor at the beginning of the year was Maximinus Thrax
Maximinus Thrax
Maximinus Thrax , also known as Maximinus I, was Roman Emperor from 235 to 238.Maximinus is described by several ancient sources, though none are contemporary except Herodian's Roman History. Maximinus was the first emperor never to set foot in Rome...
, who had ruled since 235. Later sources claim he was a cruel tyrant, and in January 238 a revolt erupted in North Africa. The Historia Augusta
Augustan History
The Augustan History is a late Roman collection of biographies, in Latin, of the Roman Emperors, their junior colleagues and usurpers of the period 117 to 284...
states:
"The Romans could bear his barbarities no longer — the way in which he called up informers and incited accusers, invented false offences, killed innocent men, condemned all whoever came to trial, reduced the richest men to utter poverty and never sought money anywhere save in some other's ruin, put many generals and many men of consular rank to death for no offence, carried others about in waggons without food and drink, and kept others in confinement, in short neglected nothing which he thought might prove effectual for cruelty — and, unable to suffer these things longer, they rose against him in revolt." http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Historia_Augusta/Maximini_duo*.html
Some young aristocrats murdered the imperial tax-collector and then approached the regional governor, Gordian, and insisted that he proclaim himself emperor. Gordian agreed reluctantly, but as he was 80 years old he decided to make his son joint emperor with equal power. The senate
Roman Senate
The Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...
recognised father and son as emperors Gordian I
Gordian I
Gordian I , was Roman Emperor for one month with his son Gordian II in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. Caught up in a rebellion against the Emperor Maximinus Thrax, he was defeated by forces loyal to Maximinus before committing suicide.-Early life:...
and Gordian II
Gordian II
Gordian II , was Roman Emperor for one month with his father Gordian I in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. Seeking to overthrow the Emperor Maximinus Thrax, he died in battle outside of Carthage.-Early career:...
respectively.
Their reign lasted for only 20 days. Capelianus
Capelianus
Capelianus was a Roman governor of the province of Numidia in the third century, and commander of the army that defeated and killed Gordian II in 238, the year of the six emperors....
, the governor of the neighbouring province of Numidia
Numidia
Numidia was an ancient Berber kingdom in part of present-day Eastern Algeria and Western Tunisia in North Africa. It is known today as the Chawi-land, the land of the Chawi people , the direct descendants of the historical Numidians or the Massyles The kingdom began as a sovereign state and later...
, held a grudge against the Gordians. He led an army to fight them at Carthage
Carthage
Carthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
, and defeated them decisively. Gordian II was killed in the battle, and on hearing this news Gordian I hanged himself.
Meanwhile Maximinus, now declared a public enemy, had already begun to march on Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
with another army. The senate's previous candidates, the Gordians, had failed to defeat him, and knowing that they stood to die if he succeeded, the senate
Roman Senate
The Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...
needed a new emperor to defeat him. With no other candidates in view, on 22 April 238 they elected two elderly senators Pupienus
Pupienus
Pupienus , also known as Pupienus Maximus, was Roman Emperor with Balbinus for three months in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. The sources for this period are scant, and thus knowledge of the emperor is limited...
and Balbinus
Balbinus
Balbinus , was Roman Emperor with Pupienus for three months in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors.- Origins and career :Not much is known about Balbinus before his elevation to emperor. It has been conjectured that he descended from Publius Coelius Balbinus Vibullius Pius, the consul ordinarius of...
(who had both been part of a special senatorial commission to deal with Maximinus) as joint emperors. This choice was not popular with the people however, and mobs threw stones and sticks at the new emperors. Therefore Marcus Antonius Gordianus Pius
Gordian III
Gordian III , was Roman Emperor from 238 to 244. Gordian was the son of Antonia Gordiana and an unnamed Roman Senator who died before 238. Antonia Gordiana was the daughter of Emperor Gordian I and younger sister of Emperor Gordian II. Very little is known on his early life before his acclamation...
, the thirteen-year-old grandson of Gordian I
Gordian I
Gordian I , was Roman Emperor for one month with his son Gordian II in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. Caught up in a rebellion against the Emperor Maximinus Thrax, he was defeated by forces loyal to Maximinus before committing suicide.-Early life:...
, was nominated as emperor, holding power only nominally in order to appease the population of the capital, which was still loyal to the Gordian family.
Pupienus was sent at the head of an army to face Maximinus, and Balbinus stayed in Rome. Meanwhile, Maximinus was also having problems. In early February he reached the city of Aquileia
Aquileia
Aquileia is an ancient Roman city in what is now Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about 10 km from the sea, on the river Natiso , the course of which has changed somewhat since Roman times...
to find that it had declared for his three enemies. Maximinus besieged the city, but without success. By April, discontent due to this failure, the lack of success in the campaign in general, lack of supplies and the strong opposition of the senate, forced his legionaries
Legionary
The Roman legionary was a professional soldier of the Roman army after the Marian reforms of 107 BC. Legionaries had to be Roman citizens under the age of 45. They enlisted in a legion for twenty-five years of service, a change from the early practice of enlisting only for a campaign...
to rethink their allegiance. Soldiers of the II Parthica
Legio II Parthica
Legio secunda Parthica was a Roman legion levied by Emperor Septimius Severus in 197, for his campaign against the Parthian Empire, hence the cognomen Parthica. The legion was still active in the beginning of the 5th century...
killed the usurper in his tent, along with his son Maximus (who had been appointed deputy emperor in 236), and surrendered to Pupienus in the end of June. Maximinus and his son's corpses were decapitated and their heads carried to Rome. For saving Rome from a public enemy the soldiers were pardoned and sent back to their provinces.
Coins from their short reign show one of them on one side and two clasped hands on the other to show their joint power, yet their relationship had been clouded with suspicion from the start, with both fearing an assassination from the other. They were planning an enormous double campaign, Pupienus against the Parthians and Balbinus against the Carpians
Carpians
The Carpi or Carpiani were an ancient people that resided, between not later than ca. AD 140 and until at least AD 318, in the former Principality of Moldavia ....
(Grant says against Goths
Goths
The Goths were an East Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin whose two branches, the Visigoths and the Ostrogoths, played an important role in the fall of the Roman Empire and the emergence of Medieval Europe....
and Persians respectively), but they quarrelled frequently and could not agree or trust each other. It was during one of these heavy discussions, in May or on July 29, that the Praetorian guard
Praetorian Guard
The Praetorian Guard was a force of bodyguards used by Roman Emperors. The title was already used during the Roman Republic for the guards of Roman generals, at least since the rise to prominence of the Scipio family around 275 BC...
decided to intervene. They stormed into the room containing the emperors, seized them both, stripping them, dragging them naked through the streets, torturing and eventually murdering them. On the same day Gordian III was proclaimed sole emperor (238-244), though in reality his advisors exercised most of his power. Together Pupienus and Balbinus had ruled for only 99 days.
Gordians I and II were deified by the senate.
Biography
- Historia Augusta
- HerodianHerodianHerodian or Herodianus of Syria was a minor Roman civil servant who wrote a colourful history in Greek titled History of the Empire from the Death of Marcus in eight books covering the years 180 to 238. His work is not entirely reliable although his relatively unbiased account of Elagabalus is...
- Michael GrantMichael Grant (author)Michael Grant was an English classicist, numismatist, and author of numerous popular books on ancient history. His 1956 translation of Tacitus’s Annals of Imperial Rome remains a standard of the work. Having studied and held a number of academic posts in the United Kingdom and the Middle East, he...
, The Roman Emperors (1985).
Modern scholarship
- Henning Börm: Die Herrschaft des Kaisers Maximinus Thrax und das Sechskaiserjahr 238. Der Beginn der "Reichskrise"?, in: Gymnasium 115, 2008, 69-86.