Titus Cornelius Celsus, supposedly a

Roman usurper Roman usurpers were individuals or groups of individuals who obtained or tried to obtain power by force and without legitimate legal authority. Usurpation was endemic during the Roman imperial era, especially from the crisis of the third cent ...

, who rebelled against

Gallienus Publius Licinius Egnatius Gallienus (; c. 218 – September 268) was Roman emperor with his father Valerian from 253 to 260 and alone from 260 to 268. He ruled during the Crisis of the Third Century that nearly caused the collapse of the empi ...

. He was one of the so-called Thirty Tyrants enumerated by Trebellius Pollio. His historicity is doubted by some scholars, who consider him an invention of the '' Historia Augusta''. According to the ''Historia Augusta'', in the twelfth year of

' reign (265), when usurpers were springing up in every quarter of the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

world, a certain Celsus, who had never risen higher in the service of the state than the rank of a military tribune, living quietly on his lands in

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

, in no way remarkable except as a man of upright life and commanding person, was suddenly proclaimed emperor by Vibius Passienus,

proconsul A proconsul was an official of ancient Rome who acted on behalf of a consul. A proconsul was typically a former consul. The term is also used in recent history for officials with delegated authority. In the Roman Republic, military command, or ...

of the province, and Fabius Pomponianus, general of the Libyan frontier. So sudden was the movement, that the appropriate trappings of dignity had not been provided, and the hands of Galliena, a cousin it is said of the lawful monarch, invested the new prince with a robe snatched from the statue of a goddess. The downfall of Celsus was not less rapid than his elevation: he was slain on the seventh day, his body was devoured by dogs, and the loyal inhabitants of Sicca testified their devotion to the reigning sovereign by devising an insult to the memory of his rival unheard-of before that time. The effigy of the traitor was raised high upon a cross, round which the rabble danced in triumph.Smith, W., ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', Vol. 1 (1870), p. 659

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Celsus 265 deaths Gallienus usurpers Thirty Tyrants (Roman) Year of birth unknown Cornelii

See also

References