[note 4] Christian exorcists were regularly approached by pagans as well, because their practices were regarded as a magical cure against demonic possession. [27] With the emergence of the militant Sasanian Empire, Rome ceased to be the sole great power in the Near East. Ammianus Marcellinus is often considered to be the last Roman historian of any merit. Ammianus was born of a noble Greek family and served in the army of Constantius II in Gaul and Persia under the general Ursicinus, who was dismissed after he allowed the Persians to capture the city of . New World Encyclopedia writers and editors rewrote and completed the Wikipedia article The tetrarchy addressed this issue by allocating a separate field army to each emperor. He was aware, though, that many of the freedoms that had been enjoyed had been curtailed, describing at length the reigns of terror instituted by successive emperors and by the deplorable crew of secret police, spies and informers who surrounded them.[23] He also deplored the decent of the nobility into pointless pursuits, commenting that when intellectuals were expelled from Rome, thousands of dancing-girls received permission to stay.[24] He appears to have believed that a moral and cultural revival would save the city, The City is glorious and eternal but its current manifestations, seen in high and low society alike, are vile and call imperatively for the moral recovery which will save the empire.[25] He associated Rome with liberty and believed that moral renewal would revive a system that was not, itself, at fault. The Pope acknowledged their orthodoxy, but they were declared heretics by 90eastern bishops at a new synod. Porphyry of Tyre praised their piety, an Egyptian group using the name Hermes Trismegistus promoted the adoption of allegedly Egyptian priestly traditions, and Porphyry's pupil Iamblichus completed a coherent polytheist theological system under the Egyptian pseudonym, Abammon. [159], Christianity, as historian Peter Heather underlines, was "in some senses a democratizing and equalizing force". They were known as Donatists for their bishop of Carthage, Donatus Magnus. [74], On TheodosiusI's death the Roman Empire was divided between his two sons: the eighteen-year-old Arcadius succeeded him in the east and the ten-year-old Honorius in the west. [157] Constantine made lavish donations to the Christian church, including 10.5tons of silver, 2,335pounds of gold and 34,255gold solidi according to a list preserved in the Liber Pontificalis. Comments: In the context of troubles in the East of the Roman empire in the mid-fourth century reigns of Constantius and Gallus, Ammianus Marcellinus characterizes the Isaurians, a people living in Pisidia and neighbourying Pamphylia. [3] In contrast with classical literature, Hagiographic works regularly presented women as leading characters. 2 The title of Augustus was lawfully held only by the reigning emperor, or emperors. [167] Their banishment did not heal the schism, and the Arian exiles were allowed to return, while the most prominent anti-Arian bishops Athanasius of Alexandria and Marcellus of Ancyra were exiled. [160] According to Emperor Julian, Christianity owed its success primarily to the Christians' generous acts of charity, their special care for the dead and their attempt to live a virtuous life, because all these features were of particular importance for the impoverished masses of Roman society. The document on the Huns is from Ammianus Marcellinus' book called Res Gestae. He spoke of leaving out what was trivial or not appropriate to history, so he was aware that a judgment has to be made here. [Ammianus Marcellinus; Walter Hamilton; Andrew Wallace-Hadrill] -- A history of Rome during the reigns of Constantius, Julian, Jovian, Valentinian and Valens, by a fourth century army officer. The Later Roman Empire chronicles a period of twenty-five years during Marcellinus' own lifetime, covering the reigns of Constantius, Julian, Jovian, Valentinian I, and Valens, and providing eyewitness accounts of significant military events including the Battle of Strasbourg and . New York: Methuen, London, AMS Press, 1974. Following the example of Herodotus he often digressed to describe the geography, people and whatever he found curious, such as geese which make no sound when they are crossing the Taurus and the fact that Constantius never ate fruit. [15] Ammianus was aware that writing about contemporary, including events to which he was a witness, raised questions about impartiality. 1990s. And go from well-read to best read with book recs, deals and more in your inbox every week. Aetius fled to the Huns and hired Hunnic mercenaries. Episcopal elections became controlled by the aristocracy and the local communities could no more freely elect their bishops. Download full paper File format: .doc, available for editing. Aetius who had spent years among the Huns as a hostage returned to Italy accompanied by Hunnic troops but by that time Ardabur had captured John. [11] On the other hand, the Visigoths and Huns were no better than wild animals, and should be treated as such. Only six leaves of M survive; however, the printed edition of Gelenius (G) is considered to be based on M, making it an important witness to the textual tradition of the Res Gestae. On the other hand, a persistent belief in the existence of myriads of demons is well documented. The rest of the field army remained under the emperor's direct command and the imperial field army was divided into two units on the division of the empire between ValentinianI and Valens in 364. Ammianus Marcellinus was the last great Roman historian, and his writings rank alongside those of Livy and Tacitus. Grant suggests that this was in the main because he wanted to live up to Tacitus.[28] Recent studies have, however, shown the rhetoric power in his histories, which may have been written for the purposes of recitation. EmperorsRomeHistory. [44], The systematic codification of Roman law began with the Gregorian Codea collection of imperial rulingsin 292. Book 14 (the earliest to survive) starts from 353 (the sixteenth year of Constantius IIs reign) and ends with Deputy emperor Gallus' execution for misgovernment in 354. [116], Constantine removed the praetorian prefects' most military functions, although they remained responsible for recruitment and supply of armies. Some maintain that his style is harsh, often pompous and extremely obscure, occasionally even journalistic in tone, due the author's foreign origin and his military life and training. Paperback, 9780140444063, 0140444068 The later Roman Empire (A.D. 354-378) by Ammianus Marcellinus First published in 1986 1 edition in 1 language 1 previewable The provincial governors were no more responsible for military affairs, although they were occasionally ordered to lead a military campaign or build a fort. [93] A Gallic aristocrat Jovinus secured the support of a coalition of Burgundians, Alans and other peoples and had himself proclaimed Augustus in Mainz. [58][59] For Constantius believed that Dalmatius and Hannibalianus wanted to get rid of him and his brothers, he had them and their suspected supporters executed. The recorded Pictish history begins in the early Middle Ages. [179], Ascetics like Pachomius and Anthony who settled in remote places in the Egyptian desert originated Christian monasticism in the late 3rdcentury. Ammianus was at times very detailed in his descriptions of events but at other times he expressed reluctance to get caught up in what he called insignificant details, such as what one emperor said at table, or left out the reasons why the common soldiers were led before the standards for punishment.[20] This was perhaps related to his awareness that proximity to events provided on the one hand an opportunity to draw on personal observation, and to include autobiographical content while on the other he could offend powerful people by omission as well as by inclusion. [120] As a sign of the growing importance of Christianity, Constantine authorized the bishops to make judgement in civil cases between Christian litigants. He and his closest disciplines were executed at Trier in 383. The Code of Theodosius cites a number of cases when the system was misused through the falsification of imperial responses. The Later Roman EmpirePrefaceIntroductionFurther ReadingFamily Tree of Constantine the GreatIntroductory Note, The Later Roman EmpireBook 14Book 15Book 16Book 17Book 18Book 19Book 20Book 21Book 22Book 23Book 24Book 25Book 26Book 27Book 28Book 29Book 30Book 31, Notes on the TextNote on Officials and their TitlesNotes on PersonsDates of EmperorsGeographical keyMapsGeneral MapMonuments of RomeMap A: Gaul, Germany, and the RhineMap B: The Danube, Italy and ThraceMap C: The East and PersiaMap D: Asia Minor, Sign up for news about books, authors, and more from Penguin Random House, Visit other sites in the Penguin Random House Network. Fearing of a new succession crisis, the soldiers persuaded Valentinian to appoint a co-emperor. Routledge . He death has been dated as between 391 and 395. His edits ordered the destruction of Christian churches and literature and the confiscation of church property. The first thirteen of his thirty-one books are lost; the remainder describe a period of only twenty-five years (A.D. 354-378) and the reigns of the emperors Constantis, Julian, Jovian, Valentinian and Valens, for which he is a prime authority. It highlights the administrative, fiscal and diplomatic experience. Typically born into families of long military tradition, the "barracks emperors" were mainly extremely conservatives, but they did not hesitate to overturn traditional principles of state administration for practical considerations. His son-in-law Sebastianus succeeded him as supreme commander. [83] Alaric resumed the attacks against northern Italy and Noricum and demanded 4,000pounds of gold for a peace treaty. In June the commander of the Roman troops in Britain Magnus Maximus assumed the title of Augustus and seized Gaul. The lis t corroborates Ammianus Marcellinus ' com- plaints about conflicting imperial edicts found in his discussion of the late Roman advocate, the ' most violen t and rapacio us type of men . [40] He was proclaimed emperor at a meeting of senior officers at Nicomedia in November 284. [79][80] Both migrations were probably triggered by the Huns' westward expansion. He summarizes his true views of Justinian and Justinian's inner circle in the Secret History, describing him as a wicked and unscrupulous figure surrounded by intrigues and scandals. [172][173], Julian allowed the bishops who had been exiled during ConstantiusII's reign to return to their original position, allegedly because he wanted to create instability in the Christian church. Aetius regularly hired them to fight against the Burgundians, Visigoths and the rebellious Bagaudae of Gaul. Roman citizens could approach the emperor directly for seeking his opinion on specific points of law. [188] Their asceticism and dualism were particularly attractive to young intellectuals, among them Augustine who adhered to their faith before his conversion to Christianity around 382. One of their candidates to emperorship ConstantineIII consolidated his position and crossed the Channel into Gaul where he recruited new troops from among the invaders. [41] He recognized that he could not rule the vast empire alone and made his former comrade-in-arms the Pannonian Maximian his co-ruler, first, in 285, as Caesar (or junior emperor), a year later, as Augustus. Although collective ovations for dignitaries were still regularly commemorated in public places, in this period they were made mainly in honor of imperial officials instead of local leaders as it had been common in the previous centuries. He traveled widely in the East of the empire. The local deities were associated with the gods of the Roman pantheon, but elements of the local cults survived. He may have feared sanctions, since in writing about the period that followed he had to chronicle the story of bloody deeds.[7] He appears to have lived again in Antioch (363 to 378). A Roman historian chronicles Rome on the brink of collapse. [166] Anxious about church unity, Constantine summoned the bishops to the first ecumenical council to Nicaea in May 325. For Arius and his supporters, known as Arians, did not accept the Nicene Creed, Constantine exiled them. [63] He appointed his cousin Gallus to rule the eastern provinces as Caesar, but Gallus' despotic measures caused massive discontent. Contemporaneous observers did not consider it more than a new division of responsibilitieson this occasion between two leading figures of the two emperors' courts, the Western Roman general Stilicho and the Eastern Roman praetorian prefect Rufinus. [107], The tetrarchs ruled the empire as members of an undivided "imperial college", but they rarely met in person. He did not persecute Christians, but failed to punish those who persecuted them. The head of the large Diocese of the East bore the title of Comes Orientis, while the provinces Africa and Asia remained under the rule of proconsuls who reported directly to the emperors. Ammianus Marcellinus was the last great Roman historian, and his writings rank alongside those of Livy and Tacitus. Ammianus Marcellinus (c. 330 - after 391) is the preeminent historian of the Late Roman Empire, whose extant work forms the most important narrative we possess on the Fourth Century A.D. Born of genteel extraction in a Greek-speaking part of the empire, Ammianus served in the army in campaigns ranging form Gaul to Persia before settling in Rome and beginning his literary carreer. A year later, Galerius and the retired Diocletian died, leaving Constantine, Licinius, Maxentius and Maximinus on the scene. However, his description of the Empire, the exhaustion produced by excessive taxation, the financial ruin of the middle classes, the progressive decline in the morale of the army provides an explanation for sack of Rome by the Visigoths only twenty years after his death. According to Ammianus they took part in raids on the province of Britain in ad 365, and two years later joined with other enemies of Rome in the . St Jerome, in particular, accused them of cannibalism. Theodosius could pacify the Goths only through an unprecedented compromise in 382. In early 340, he attacked Constans to seize Italy, but died in an encounter and Constans took control of his territory. [4], With his Church History, Eusebius originated another new literary genre with the focus on Christian missionaries, church leaders, martyrs and heretics. [178] Ambrose also came into conflict with Theodosius. The Council of Serdica ordered the restoration of Paul to Constantinople and Athanasius to Alexandria, but the conflict continued because Constantius refused the Nicene creeds and rival Christian communities continued to co-exist in the eastern provinces. The First Council of Constantinople reaffirmed the Nicene Creed, complementing it with a statement about the full divinity of the Holy Spirit in the Trinity. [52], Constantine was not baptised until his last illness but Christian ethics influenced his legislation especially in cases when Christian values corroborated tendencies that had already existed in Roman law. Non-compliant Christians were executed or forced into exile and the purge continued until Emperor Gallienus put an end to it in 260. The pagan panegyrist Themistius praised his religious policy for encouraging competition among people of diverse religious background. ]died 395, Rome [Italy]), last major Roman historian, whose work continued the history of the later Roman Empire to 378. Ammianus Marcellinus: The Later Roman Empire. Grant suggests that a disappointing aspect of his work is that, given that he was not a member of the inner aristocratic circle, we might expect more insight into the psyche of the Roman masses but the fact is that he feels the strongest distaste for the enormous unprivileged sections of society, who he thinks fail to rally around the State as they should.[36] Ammianuss moralizing tendency, reminiscent of Sallust suggests that he wanted people to learn from history so that past mistakes would not be repeated. [124], A late source with access to official records, John the Lydian asserts that during Diocletian's reign 389,704troops served in the field army and 45,562sailors in the navy. Alaric decided to conquer Roman Africa, but he died before the end of the year. Ammianus Marcellinus (c. 330 - after 391) is the preeminent historian of the Late Roman Empire, whose extant work forms the most important narrative we possess on the Fourth Century A.D. Born of genteel extraction in a Greek-speaking part of the empire, Ammianus served in the army in campaigns ranging form Gaul to Persia before settling in Rome and beginning his literary carreer. Publication date 1935 Topics Rome -- History Empire, 284-476 Publisher London W. Heinemann Collection robarts; toronto Digitizing sponsor Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Contributor Robarts - University of Toronto Language English Volume 1. As almost all provinces were split into two under Diocletian, the early-4th-century Laterculus Veronensis already listed almost 100provinces. Ammianus Marcellinus (born c. 330, died c. 391 - 400) was a Roman soldier and historian who wrote the penultimate major historical account surviving from antiquity (preceding Procopius).His work, known as the Res Gestae, chronicled in Latin the history of Rome from the accession of the Emperor Nerva in 96 to the death of Valens at the Battle of Adrianople in 378, although only the sections . Ammianus Marcellinus was a fourth-century Roman historian and his work the "Res Gestae", known in English as "The Later Roman Empire", is one of the most important historical accounts to have survived from ancient Rome. Reinforced by fresh troops from the Danubian provinces, Galerius defeated Narseh in Armenia and sacked the Persian capital Ctesiphon. [68][69] Facing the new military crisis, Gratian reactivated a previously dismissed Hispanian general Theodosius, and appointed him as his co-emperor in January 379. Although the rules changed time to time, slaves, men less than 1.65 metres (5.4 feet), heretics and urban magistrates were excluded from military service. The ascetic Jerome was the spiritual instructor of a circle of wealthy Roman women, including Paula and her daughter Blaesilla. The Later Roman Empire chronicles a period of twenty-five years during Marcellinus' own lifetime, covering the reigns of Constantius, Julian, Jovian, Valentinian I, and Valens, and providing eyewitness accounts of significant military events including the Battle of Strasbourg and . The Later Roman Empire chronicles a period of twenty-five years during Marcellinus' own lifetime, covering the reigns of Constantius, Julian, Jovian, Valentinian I, and Valens, and providing eyewitness accounts of . RomeHistoryEmpire, 284-476Historiography. His major work, simply titled Res Gestae Divi Augustae , appeared after 390 or 391 and consisted originally of . A new high-ranking official, the magister officiorum, was first mentioned in 320. The more radical, mainly rular clergy believed that traditores should be rebaptized. The Later Roman Empire (A.D. 354-378) by Ammianus Marcellinus, Walter Hamilton, Andrew Wallace-Hadrill. Church hierarchy followed the patterns of state administration: the bishops of the provincial capitals, known as metropolitan bishops, became the superior of other bishops in the province. At the wedding, he reportedly declared the renewal of the Roman Empire "by the might of the Goths" as his main purpose, but a year later, in 415, he was murdered by a retainer. Quite paradoxically, even Honorius, characterized as the "most unwarlike emperor" by historian Thomas S. Burns, was depicted as a conqueror of enemy forces on his coins. As Valentinian was only four, Gratian became the sole ruler of their father's part of the empire. In this magisterial depiction of the closing decades of the Roman Empire, we can see the seeds of events that were to lead to the fall of the city, just twenty years after Marcellinus death.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. The Survival of Eastern Empire is written by Stephen Williams. web pages [8][9] A pagan Greek officer, Ammianus Marcellinus "has a claim to be the finest Latin historian of any period", according to historian Stephen Mitchell, although only fragments of his Histories survived. Theodosius ordered the appointment of Nicene bishops to all eastern sees. Constans fell victim to a conspiracy by a military commander Magnentius who was proclaimed emperor early in 350. Their members often had the same ethnic or professional background. From these references, it has been deduced that he was born probably between 325 and 330 to an educated family of Greek descent, possibly in Antioch[3] This probability hinges on whether he was the recipient of a surviving letter to a Marcellinus from a contemporary, Libanius. Ammianus and the late Roman Army 93 ther.4 Constantine had fashioned a large central reserve distinct in . [148][146], The end of neoplatonism occurred during the reign of JustinianI. He died in prison in the Sassanian Empire, but his disciples spread his teaching and established Manichaean communities all over the Roman Empire. As Maximus quickly took control of Hispania and Africa, Valentinian could only keep Italy. While the date of his death is unknown, he lived very near to the end of the 4th century AD. They were organized into legions and auxiliary forces under the command of the provincial governors. He also criticized the emperors for interfering in what was originally a plain and simple religion by embroiling Christians in discussion about dogma rather than seriously trying to make them agree they caused controversy.[34]. [112], After the Christianization of the empire the Senatus no more rewarded deceased emperors with a divine status, but the emperors were regarded as God's representatives on Earth. A Roman historian chronicles Rome on the brink of collapseAmmianus Marcellinus was the last great Roman historian, and his writings rank alongside those of Livy and Tacitus. Rerum gestarum libri (Ammianus Marcellinus) Rome (Empire) Genre. In comparison with previous periods, studies on Later Roman history are based on diverse but mainly biased written sources. The history, in 31 books, covered the years from A.D. 96 to 378; only Books XIV-XXXI, covering the . [64] On his deathbed, he had allegedly named Julian as his sole heir. [47] To restore internal peace, Diocletian, Galerius and Maximian held a conference at Carnuntum in 308. Ammianus Marcellinus Ammianus Marcellinus (mns mrslns), c.330-c.400, Roman historian, b. Antioch. He sponsored the building of Christian churches in Rome, mainly in the suburbs, because he did not want to outrage the predominantly pagan Roman aristocracy. Their communities were divided into two groups: the ascetic Elects (who abstained from sex), and the Hearers (who lived a more ordinary life). It is a major source of information on the Roman world of the fourth century and one of the few sources on Roman Britain during this period. Credit is due under the terms of this license that can reference both the New World Encyclopedia contributors and the selfless volunteer contributors of the Wikimedia Foundation. Ammianus Marcellinus was the last great Roman historian, and his writings rank alongside those of Livy and Tacitus. [99] When Honorius died in August 423, his courtiers proclaimed one of their number John emperor, but Theodosius acknowledged Galla Placidia's six-year-old son by Constantius, Valentinian III as Honorius' lawful successor. He forbade the branding of slaves on the forehead, abolished penalties for celibacy, and offered financial support to poor parents to discourage infanticide. Jovian adopted a moderate approach and only repeated bans on magical practices. Examples include his ban on sacred prostitution and the demolition of pagan altars and sculptures near the Oak of Mamre where God had appeared to Abraham according to Biblical tradition. [154] Lactantius blames the haruspicespagan priests practicing divinationfor arousing Diocletian's anger against the Christians, and Galerius and his fanatically pagan mother for convincing him to take drastic measures. [26] His typical interest in education as the measure of the man is also very Greek. Much of this book focuses on Ammianus own commanding officer, Ursicinus. The plundering of the Eternal City shocked the Romans although the Goths quickly abandoned it. Interpreting Ammianus Marcellinus . Christian authors rarely recorded evidences of the survival of paganism. [2] Ammianuss moralizing tendency, reminiscent of Sallust suggests that he wanted people to learn from history so that past mistakes would not be repeated. Nevertheless, his treatment of Christianity is free from prejudice and his impartiality and good judgement have been generally acknowledged. p. xxiv. [38][39], The Illyrian Diocletian was a genuine representative of the soldier emperor's reformist zeal.
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