Flavius Nevitta (''fl.'' 357-363) was a military leader and official in the Roman Empire. His career is closely linked to that of
Flavius Claudius Julianus
Julian (; ; 331 – 26 June 363) was the Caesar of the West from 355 to 360 and Roman emperor from 361 to 363, as well as a notable philosopher and author in Greek. His rejection of Christianity, and his promotion of Neoplatonic Hellenism i ...
, the Emperor Julian. He was
master of the cavalry and in
362 served as consul.
Life
An officer of Frankish ancestry, Nevitta is first mentioned regarding a battle against the Alamanni who had been pillaging the region of
Raetia
Raetia or Rhaetia ( , ) was a province of the Roman Empire named after the Rhaetian people. It bordered on the west with the country of the Helvetii, on the east with Noricum, on the north with Vindelicia, on the south-west with Transalpine ...
in 357. The Romans were led by
Barbatio and
Ammianus Marcellinus
Ammianus Marcellinus, occasionally anglicized as Ammian ( Greek: Αμμιανός Μαρκελλίνος; born , died 400), was a Greek and Roman soldier and historian who wrote the penultimate major historical account surviving from antiquit ...
writes that "Nevitta, commander of a troop of cavalry and afterwards consul, was present and conducted himself manfully." In 361 Julian promoted Nevitta to the rank of ''
magister equitum
The , in English Master of the Horse or Master of the Cavalry, was a Roman magistrate appointed as lieutenant to a dictator. His nominal function was to serve as commander of the Roman cavalry in time of war, but just as a dictator could be n ...
''.
When Julian decided to move against
Constantius Constantius may refer to:
__NOTOC__ Roman people
* Constantius I "Chlorus" (–306), Western Roman emperor from 305 to 306
* Julius Constantius (died 337), consul in 335, son of Constantius I
* Constantius Gallus (325–354), ''caesar'' from 351 to ...
in a bid for power, Nevitta was one of his two generals, the other being Jovinus. The bulk of Julian's force was divided between these two. It was Nevitta's task to lead his army through Raetia and then guard the pass of Succi, thus protecting Julian's rear as the Caesar moved on to
Constantinople
Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...
. Ammianus took the opportunity to describe Nevitta at this point in his career: "a man neither in high birth, experience nor renown comparable with those on whom Constantius conferred the highest magistracy, but on the contrary somewhat boorish, and (what was more intolerable) cruel in his high office."
When the emperor Julian set up a
tribunal at Chalcedon to try those involved in the excesses of the previous government, Nevitta was appointed as one of the judges. In January 362 he was appointed as consul along with
Claudius Mamertinus
Claudius Mamertinus () was an official in the Roman Empire. In late 361 he took part in the Chalcedon tribunal to condemn the ministers of Constantius II, and in 362, he was made consul as a reward by the new Emperor Julian; on January 1 of that ...
.
[Ammianus Marcellinus, XXII.7.1] The following year Nevitta accompanied Julian on his Parthian expedition. With the death of his emperor no further mention is found of Nevitta.
Notes
Sources
* Jones A.H.M., Martindale J.R., Morris J. The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire: Volume I A.D. 260—395. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, 1971. ''Flavius Nevitta''.
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Ancient Roman generals
Magistri militum
Imperial Roman consuls
category:4th-century Romans
Year of birth unknown