Marcus Piavonius VictorinusSome of the inscriptions record his name as M. Piavvonius Victorinus, as does the first release of coins from the Colonia mint. A mosaic from Augusta Treverorum (Trier) lists him as Piaonius. was emperor in the Gallic provinces from 268 to 270Martindale, p. 965 or 269 to 271,Polfer, ''Victorinus'' following the brief reign of Marius. He was murdered by a jealous husband whose wife he had tried to seduce.

Reign

Hailing from

Gaul Gaul () was a region of Western Europe first clearly described by the Roman people, Romans, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, and parts of Switzerland, the Netherlands, Germany, and Northern Italy. It covered an area of . Ac ...

, Victorinus was born into a Gallic family of great wealth, and was a soldier under

Postumus Marcus Cassianius Latinius Postumus ( 259–269) was a Roman commander of Batavian origin, who ruled as emperor of the splinter state of the Roman Empire known to modern historians as the Gallic Empire. The Roman army in Gaul threw off its al ...

, the first of the so-called Gallic emperors. He showed considerable ability, as he held the title of tribunus praetorianorum (tribune of the praetorians) in 266/267, and rose swiftly to become co-

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states thro ...

with Postumus in 268.Southern, p. 118 It is also possible that Postumus then elevated him to the post of

praetorian prefect The praetorian prefect (; ) was a high office in the Roman Empire. Originating as the commander of the Praetorian Guard, the office gradually acquired extensive legal and administrative functions, with its holders becoming the Emperor's chief ai ...

.Potter, p. 266 Shortly after putting down a rebellion by

Laelianus Laelian (; ),Martindale, pg. 492 also incorrectly referred to as ''Lollianus'' and ''Aelianus'',Polfer, ''Laelianus'' was a usurper against Postumus, the emperor of the Gallic Empire. His revolt lasted from approximately late February to early ...

in 269, Postumus was murdered by his own troops, who appointed Marius as emperor in his place. After engineering the death of Marius, Victorinus was declared emperor by the troops located at

Augusta Treverorum Augusta Treverorum (Latin for "City of Augustus in the Land of the Treveri") was a Ancient Rome, Roman city on the Moselle River, from which modern Trier emerged. The date of the city's founding is placed between the construction of the first Rom ...

(

Trier Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...

) in the fall of 269. His principal concern was to prevent the western provinces from submitting to the central authority of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

, a fact made clear to him from the first few weeks when only the provinces of

Germania Germania ( ; ), also more specifically called Magna Germania (English: ''Great Germania''), Germania Libera (English: ''Free Germania''), or Germanic Barbaricum to distinguish it from the Roman provinces of Germania Inferior and Germania Superio ...

and

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

recognised him.

Hispania Hispania was the Ancient Rome, Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula. Under the Roman Republic, Hispania was divided into two Roman province, provinces: Hispania Citerior and Hispania Ulterior. During the Principate, Hispania Ulterior was divide ...

deserted the Gallic Empire and declared its loyalty to

Claudius Gothicus Marcus Aurelius Claudius "Gothicus" (10 May 214 – August/September 270), also known as Claudius II, was Roman emperor from 268 to 270. During his reign he fought successfully against the Alemanni and decisively defeated the Goths at the Batt ...

. Claudius then sent his trusted general

Placidianus Julius Placidianus ( 269–273) was a Roman general of the 3rd century. He was a professional soldier who advanced his career under Gallienus and survived into the age of Claudius II and Aurelian. Placidianus was consul in the year 273 as the poste ...

to south-east Gaul with instructions to bring over as many of the wavering cities as he could. Very quickly Placidianus captured

Cularo Cularo was the name of the Gallic city which evolved into modern Grenoble. It was renamed Gratianopolis in 381 to honor Roman emperor Gratian. The first remaining reference to what is now Grenoble dates back to a July 43 BC letter by Munatius ...

(

Grenoble Grenoble ( ; ; or ; or ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of the Isère Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region ...

), but did not proceed any further. The presence of Placidianus inspired the city of Augustodunum Haeduorum (

Autun Autun () is a Subprefectures in France, subprefecture of the Saône-et-Loire Departments of France, department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté Regions of France, region of central-eastern France. It was founded during the Principate era of the e ...

) to abandon Victorinus and declare its intention to declare for

. This forced Victorinus to march south and besiege it, where it fell after seven months, after which Victorinus’ troops plundered and destroyed the city. Victorinus returned to

Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium was the Roman colony in the Rhineland from which the city of Cologne, now in Germany, developed. It was usually called ''Colonia'' (colony) and was the capital of the Roman province of Germania Inferior and ...

(

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

) in triumph. It remains a mystery just why Claudius did not authorise Placidianus to go to the relief of Augustodunum; however, it is speculated that Claudius, who was fully engaged either in Italy against the

Alamanni The Alemanni or Alamanni were a confederation of Germanic tribes * * * on the Upper Rhine River during the first millennium. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Roman emperor Caracalla of 213 CE, the Alemanni c ...

or in the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

against the

Goths The Goths were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Europe. They were first reported by Graeco-Roman authors in the 3rd century AD, living north of the Danube in what is ...

, did not wish to open a second theatre of operations in Gaul, which would not only have involved a major military effort, but would also have required Claudius to assume responsibility for the defense of the Rhine frontier had he been successful. There is evidence to suggest that Claudius was having some difficulties in the East, which also occupied his attention. Victorinus was murdered at Colonia in early 271 by Attitianus, one of his officers, whose wife Victorinus had supposedly seduced.Southern, p. 119 Since the motive was personal and not political, Victorinus' mother,

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

(or Vitruvia), was able to continue to hold power after the death of Victorinus and she arranged for his deification and, after considerable payment to the troops, the appointment of

Tetricus I Gaius Pius Esuvius Tetricus was a Gallo-Roman culture, Gallo-Roman nobleman who ruled as Augustus, emperor of the Gallic Empire from 271 to 274 AD. He was originally the (provincial governor) of Gallia Aquitania and became emperor after the murd ...

as his successor. Another military commander appears to have been proclaimed as the emperor Domitianus II, but was soon eliminated. Victorinus is listed among the

Thirty Tyrants The Thirty Tyrants (, ''hoi triákonta týrannoi'') were an oligarchy that briefly ruled Classical Athens, Athens from 404 BC, 404 BCE to 403 BC, 403 BCE. Installed into power by the Sparta, Spartans after the Athenian surrender in the Peloponnesian ...

in the ''

Historia Augusta The ''Historia Augusta'' (English: ''Augustan History'') is a late Roman collection of biographies, written in Latin, of the Roman emperors, their junior colleagues, Caesar (title), designated heirs and Roman usurper, usurpers from 117 to 284. S ...

''. The dubious ''Historia Augusta'' equally has a short description of

Victorinus Junior Victorinus Junior (supposedly died 271) was a fictional Roman usurper, usurper who was claimed to have risen up against the Roman Emperor Aurelian, according to the ''Historia Augusta''. He is included in the list of the Thirty Tyrants (Roman), T ...

, allegedly the son of Victorinus, who was appointed emperor by his family the day his father was murdered, and would have been killed immediately afterwards by the troops. The ''Historia Augusta'' also says that both father and son were buried near Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium in marble tombs.Historia Augusta, ''Tyranni Triginta'', 7:1

Notes

References

Sources

Primary sources

Aurelius Victor Sextus Aurelius Victor ( 320 – 390) was a historian and politician of the Roman Empire. Victor was the author of a now-lost monumental history of imperial Rome covering the period from Augustus to Constantius II. Under the emperor Julian (361 ...

''Epitome de Caesaribus''
* Aurelius Victor

* Eutropius
''Brevarium'', Book 9
*

''The Thirty Tyrants''

Secondary sources

* * * * * J. F. Drinkwater, ''The Gallic Empire: Separatism and Continuity in the North-western Provinces of the Roman Empire A.D. 260–274'' (Stuttgart 1987) * Richard Abdy, "The Domitian II coin from Chalgrove: a Gallic emperor returns to history". Antiquity. 83 (321), 2009: 751–757.

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Victorinus Gallic emperors Thirty Tyrants (Roman) 3rd-century Roman consuls 3rd-century monarchs in Europe 3rd-century murdered monarchs Piavonii Year of birth unknown 270s deaths Year of death uncertain Gallic consuls