Marcus Aurelius Severus Alexandrus (October 1, 208- March 18?, 235), commonly called Alexander Severus, Roman emperor from 222 to 235, was born at Arca Caesarea in Palestine. His father, Gessius Marcianus, held office more than once as an imperial procurator; his mother, Julia Mamaea, was the daughter of Julia Maesa and the aunt of Elagabalus (also called "Heliogabalus"). His original name was Bassianus, but he changed it in 221 when his grandmother, Maesa, persuaded the emperor Elagabalus to adopt his cousin as successo ...

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• Alexander Severus - External link

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Elagabalus or Heliogabalus (c. 203–March 11, 222), born Varius Avitus Bassus and also known as Varius Avitus Bassianus Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, was a Roman emperor of the Severan dynasty who reigned from 218 to 222. Elagabalus was and is one of the most controversial Roman emperors. During his reign he showed a disregard for Roman religious traditions and sexual taboos. Elagabalus' name is a Latinized form of the Semitic deity El-Gabal, a manifestation of the Semitic deity Ēl. He replaced Jupiter, head of the ...

Including:

• Elagabalus - Family
• Elagabalus - Rise to power
• Elagabalus - Imperial power
• Elagabalus - Religious controversy
• Elagabalus - Sex/gender controversy
• Elagabalus - Fall from power
• Elagabalus - After death
• Elagabalus - Biased historical sources
• Elagabalus - Cultural influence
• Elagabalus - Note

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Caracalla (April 4, 186–April 8, 217) was emperor of the Roman Empire from AD 211–217. Born in Lugdunum in the province of Gaul in 186, he was the son of the future emperor Septimius Severus and Julia Domna. His given name was Marcus Aurelius Antoninus but he was later given the nickname Caracalla, which referred to the Gallic hooded tunic he habitually wore and which he made fashionable. Severus, who had taken the imperial throne in 193, died in 211 while visiting Eboracum (York), and Caracalla was pro ...

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• Caracalla - Mythical king of Britain

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Elagabalus and his entourage spent the winter of 218 in Bithynia at Nicomedia. It was at Nicomedia that Elagabalus' religious beliefs first manifested as a problem. The local Roman citizens were disturbed by his practices and Gannys was killed while trying to suppress the ensuing riots. To help Romans adjust to the idea of having an oriental priest as emperor, Julia Maesa had a painting of Elagabalus in priestly robes sent to Rome and hung over a statue of the goddess Victoria in the Senate House. This placed Senators in the awkward position of having to make offerings to Elagaba ...

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Elagabalus, Elagabalus - Family, Elagabalus - Rise to power, Elagabalus - Imperial power, Elagabalus - Religious controversy, Elagabalus - Sex/gender controversy, Elagabalus - Fall from power, Elagabalus - After death, Elagabalus - Biased historical sources, Elagabalus - Cultural influence, Elagabalus - Note

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Elagabalus - Biased historical sources. After his death, Elagabalus' religious edicts were reversed and El-Gabal was returned to Emesa. Women were barred from ever attending meetings of the Senate, and a policy of damnatio memoriae — condemning a person by erasing him or her from recorded existence — was instituted. A black propaganda campaign against Elagabalus, traditionally attributed to Julia Avitus Mamaea, was also instituted. Many denigrating and false stories were circulated about him, and his e ...

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Elagabalus, Elagabalus - Family, Elagabalus - Rise to power, Elagabalus - Imperial power, Elagabalus - Religious controversy, Elagabalus - Sex/gender controversy, Elagabalus - Fall from power, Elagabalus - After death, Elagabalus - Biased historical sources, Elagabalus - Cultural influence, Elagabalus - Note

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When the Emperor Macrinus came to power he exiled Julia Maesa, her two daughters, and her eldest grandson, Elagabalus, to her estate at Emesa in Syria. She began a plot, with her eunuch advisor and Elagabalus' tutor Gannys, to overthrow Macrinus almost upon arrival in Syria. She decided to elevate the fourteen year old Elagabalus as emperor. Elagabalus and his mother readily complied and announced, falsely, that he was the illegitimate son of Caracalla. After Julia Maesa displayed her wealth to the III Gallica at Raphaneae they swore ...

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Elagabalus, Elagabalus - Family, Elagabalus - Rise to power, Elagabalus - Imperial power, Elagabalus - Religious controversy, Elagabalus - Sex/gender controversy, Elagabalus - Fall from power, Elagabalus - After death, Elagabalus - Biased historical sources, Elagabalus - Cultural influence, Elagabalus - Note

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Elagabalus was the son of Sextus Varius Marcellus and Julia Soaemias Bassiana. His father was initially a member of the equites class but was later elevated to the rank of senator. His grandmother Julia Maesa was the widow of the Consul Julius Avitus, the sister of Julia Domna, and the wife of Emperor Septimius Severus. Julia Soaemias was a cousin of Caracalla. Other relatives included his aunt Julia Avita Mamaea and uncle Gessius Marcianus and their son Severus Alexander. Elagabalus' family held hereditary rights to the priesthood of the sun god El-Gabal, of whom Elagabalus was the high pr ...

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Elagabalus, Elagabalus - Family, Elagabalus - Rise to power, Elagabalus - Imperial power, Elagabalus - Religious controversy, Elagabalus - Sex/gender controversy, Elagabalus - Fall from power, Elagabalus - After death, Elagabalus - Biased historical sources, Elagabalus - Cultural influence, Elagabalus - Note

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The Julio-Claudian dynasty was composed of the Iulii Caesares and the Claudii Nerones, two distinguished patrician families in the waning days of the old Republic. The Iulii Caesares rose to absolute power in the Roman state in the person of the paterfamilias, Julius Caesar himself; upon his murder in 44 BC, the majority of his estate passed to his posthumously adopted son, Octavian, the grandson of Caesar's sister Julia. Octavian emerged from a series of civil wars as the sole master of the Roman world, and in January 27 BC was appoi ...

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Roman Emperor Principate, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Year of the Four Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - From Domitian to Severus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Macrinus and Diadumenianus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty Restored, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships

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There was no constitutional office of "Roman Emperor" (the first person actually to bear that title was Michael I Rhangabes in the early 9th Century, who was styled Basileys Rhomaiôn, "Emperor of the Romans"—if appreciating that by that time the meaning of "Basileys" had moved from "King" to "Emperor"), nor any title or rank directly analogous to the title of "Emperor"; all the titles traditionally associated with the Emperor had pre-existing, Republican meanings. "Roman Emperor" is a convenient shorthand used by historians to expr ...

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Roman Emperor, Roman Emperor - Overview, Roman Emperor - The first Roman Emperor, Roman Emperor - The Fall of the West, Roman Emperor - Eastern lineage, Roman Emperor - New Western lineage, Roman Emperor - Titles and Positions, Roman Emperor - Powers, Roman Emperor - The lineages and epochs, Roman Emperor - The Principate, Roman Emperor - The Crisis of the Third Century, Roman Emperor - The Dominate, Roman Emperor - The Late Empire

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The Severan dynasty spanned the reigns of (who were Emperor and/or Caesar): Severan dynasty - Septimius Severus 193–211. Severan dynasty - Caracalla 198–217. Severan dynasty - Publius Septimius Geta 209–211. Severan dynasty - Intermezzo: Macrinus Emperor 217–218 and Diadumenian Caesar 217–218. M.M. Opelius Macrinus was born in 164 at Caesarea. Although coming from a humble background ...

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Severan dynasty, Severan dynasty - Emperors and Caesars, Severan dynasty - Septimius Severus 193–211, Severan dynasty - Caracalla 198–217, Severan dynasty - Publius Septimius Geta 209–211, Severan dynasty - Intermezzo: Macrinus Emperor 217–218 and Diadumenian Caesar 217–218, Severan dynasty - Elagabalus 218–222, Severan dynasty - Alexander Severus 222–235, Severan dynasty - Women of the Severan Dynasty

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The short-lived Severan dynasty came into the purple primarily not by vote of the Senate like the Julio-Claudii but rather by the point of the sword like the Flavii. The founder of the dynasty, Lucius Septimius Severus, was descended from a provincial family from North Africa and is reputed to have kept his African accent until his death. To help bolster his hold on power, Septimius Severus identified himself with the cause of the late Pertinax (and incorporated this into his name), and was called by some "the Punic Sulla", a slur simultaneo ...

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Roman Emperor Principate, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Year of the Four Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - From Domitian to Severus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Macrinus and Diadumenianus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty Restored, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships

Read more here: » Roman Emperor Principate: Encyclopedia II - Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty

Macrinus came from an equestrian family; Dio Cassius writes that he was a Moor from Caesarea. Note that he did not style himself "Caesar", but did add "Severus" to his name and inserted Pius Felix before the title "Augustus". He raised his son Diadumenianus to be co-Emperor with him. Macrinus ("Imp. M. Opellius Severus Macrinus P.F. Augustus"; b. M. Opellius Macrinus), 217 – 218 Diadumenianus ("Imp. Caesar M. Opellius Antoninus Dia ...

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Roman Emperor Principate, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Year of the Four Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - From Domitian to Severus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Macrinus and Diadumenianus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty Restored, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships

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In March 193, the Imperial dignity was quite literally and quite openly auctioned off by the mutinous Praetorian Guard, with Titus Flavius Sulpicianus (father-in-law of the slain Emperor) and Marcus Didius Julianus bidding for the Guard's support for the purple. Pertinax ("Imp. Caesar P. Helvius Pertinax Aug."; b. P. Helvius Pertinax), 193 Didius Julianus ("Imp. Caesar M. Didius Severus Iulianus Aug."; b. M. Didius Iulianus), 193 Commodus's murder on December 31, 192 was immediately followed the next day b ...

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Roman Emperor Principate, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Year of the Four Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - From Domitian to Severus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Macrinus and Diadumenianus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty Restored, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships

Read more here: » Roman Emperor Principate: Encyclopedia II - Roman Emperor Principate - From Domitian to Severus

The Severi, in addition to being the second dynasty d'épée, are also the first Roman dynasty to have been restored to the purple. The restoration, however, brought with it a decidedly bizarre character: the first of the restored Severan Emperors, a Syrian historically known as "Elagabalus" (also seen less correctly as "Heliogabalus") was already the hereditary high priest of an Oriental sun god, Elagabal. The restored Severi were also well-known for the autocratic power exercised by three Syrian princesses as the éminences grise ...

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Roman Emperor Principate, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Year of the Four Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - From Domitian to Severus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Macrinus and Diadumenianus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty Restored, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships

Read more here: » Roman Emperor Principate: Encyclopedia II - Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty Restored

Although these are the commonest offices, titles, and positions, one should note that not all Roman Emperors used them, nor were all of them used at the same time. The consular and censorial offices especially were not an integral part of the Imperial dignity, and were usually held by persons other than the reigning Emperor. Augustus (also "Αὔγουστος" or "Σεβαστός"), "Majestic" or "Venerable"; an ho ...

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Roman Emperor, Roman Emperor - Overview, Roman Emperor - The first Roman Emperor, Roman Emperor - The Fall of the West, Roman Emperor - Eastern lineage, Roman Emperor - New Western lineage, Roman Emperor - Titles and Positions, Roman Emperor - Powers, Roman Emperor - The lineages and epochs, Roman Emperor - The Principate, Roman Emperor - The Crisis of the Third Century, Roman Emperor - The Dominate, Roman Emperor - The Late Empire

Read more here: » Roman Emperor: Encyclopedia II - Roman Emperor - Titles and Positions

In the listings of Roman Emperors below, the common name is given first, followed by the more formal name adopted upon accession to the purple, the name given at birth, and the years of his reign. So-called victory titles and other titles not forming an integral part of the name (Pontifex Maximus, Princeps Senatus, Pater Patriae, &c.) are not listed. Co-Emperors are listed in inferior text, along with notes identifying senior Emperors who had hitherto served as co-Emperors. Following abbreviations are used: ...

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Roman Emperor, Roman Emperor - Overview, Roman Emperor - The first Roman Emperor, Roman Emperor - The Fall of the West, Roman Emperor - Eastern lineage, Roman Emperor - New Western lineage, Roman Emperor - Titles and Positions, Roman Emperor - Powers, Roman Emperor - The lineages and epochs, Roman Emperor - The Principate, Roman Emperor - The Crisis of the Third Century, Roman Emperor - The Dominate, Roman Emperor - The Late Empire

Read more here: » Roman Emperor: Encyclopedia II - Roman Emperor - The lineages and epochs

The year 69 is often called the "Year of the Four Emperors" because it saw four usurpers successively claim the purple. The fourth Emperor is listed in the next section due to dynastic considerations. Galba ("Ser. Galba Imp. Caesar Aug."; b. Ser. Sulpicius Galba), 68 – 69 Otho ("Imp. M. Otho Caesar Aug."; b. M. Salvius Otho), 69 Vitellius ("A. Vitellius Germ. Imp. Aug."; b. A. Vitellius), 69 Nero committed suicide on June 9, 68, to escape rebellious soldiers loyal to the disloyal Galba, g ...

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Roman Emperor Principate, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Year of the Four Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - From Domitian to Severus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Macrinus and Diadumenianus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty Restored, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships

Read more here: » Roman Emperor Principate: Encyclopedia II - Roman Emperor Principate - Year of the Four Emperors

The Flavian dynasty was composed of the Flavii Vespasiani, a middle-class family of plebeian stock. A relatively short-lived dynasty of 30 years, the Flavians confirmed the use of "Caesar" to confirm the hereditary nature of the Imperial dignity (Vespasian gave both his sons this rank, and is said to have informed the Senate that one of his sons would succeed him or no one would). Domitian made himself extremely unpopular by his autocratic manner, which was a departure from the traditional fiction that the Empero ...

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Roman Emperor Principate, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Year of the Four Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - From Domitian to Severus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Macrinus and Diadumenianus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty Restored, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships

Read more here: » Roman Emperor Principate: Encyclopedia II - Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Dynasty

The Nervan-Antonine dynasty was a largely artificial one, chiefly built out more of adoption than blood relations, as in the Julio-Claudian or Flavian dynasties (the first Emperor of this dynasty was an elderly, childless man, from the noble Cocceii Nervae). The Nervan-Antonine dynasty produced the famous "Five Good Emperors", and the first non-Italian Roman Emperors, the Spaniards Trajanus and Hadrianus. The Nervan-Antonine dynasty also marks the first time that an Emperor was depicted with a beard (Emperor Hadrianus), and one of the first ...

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Roman Emperor Principate, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Julio-Claudian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Year of the Four Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Flavian Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Emperors, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - From Domitian to Severus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships, Roman Emperor Principate - Macrinus and Diadumenianus, Roman Emperor Principate - Severan Dynasty Restored, Roman Emperor Principate - Dynastic Relationships

Read more here: » Roman Emperor Principate: Encyclopedia II - Roman Emperor Principate - Nervan-Antonine Dynasty