When Constantine the Great became the ruler of the entire Roman Empire in 324 CE, most of his relatives probably thought they would be set for life in positions of power and luxury. Actually, when Constantine died in 337, only a few people in the royal family benefited. The large empire was divided between Constantine’s legitimate sons, Constantine II, Canstans I and Canstantius II. These three brothers each adopted the title of emperor and ruled their own domains. Unfortunately for all of the other relatives and cousins who were not direct, legitimate heirs of Constantine the Great, their fate was very different. Instead of being seen as allies and kin, the three new emperors saw most of their family as rivals and enemies.
(Collage of Constantine (front), Constantius II (left), Constantine II
(middle) and Constans (right), via Creative Commons, pixabay.com and the
Classical Numismatic Group, Inc)
In 337, the year of
Constantine’s death, the brothers carried out a great purge of relatives and
rivals. One child named Julian was particularly affected by the bloodshed. He
was born around 331, making him well shy of ten when Constantine the Great
died. Julian’s mother, Basilina, had died shortly after the boy’s birth, so
young Julian became an orphan when his father, Julius Constantius (a half-brother
of Constantine the Great), was murdered on the orders of the new emperors. The
deaths among Julians’ family did not end there—at least one of his older
brothers was also executed in 341. After the initial purge, Julian and his
brother, Gallus, were the only known male survivors left in their branch of the
Constantinian family.
(Sketch of a Roman statue depicting a priest of Sarapis, often used to
represent Julian the Apostate, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)
While Julian was studying,
the three emperors began to dwindle in number. Constantine II died in an ambush
in 340, after he invaded Constans’ domain in Italy. Emperor Constans, himself,
was executed a decade later, in 350, by a rebel named Magnentius. With the
deaths of Constantine II and Constans, Constantius II became the sole ruler of
the Roman Empire.
Even though Constantius II
was now in control of the entire Roman Empire, he still wanted some help in
overseeing his vast lands. This was especially needed because of all the
rebellions breaking out in Gaul and around the Danube, as well as an ever-present
threat from the Persian king of kings, Shapur II. To help manage the empire
while he dealt with rebellions, Constantius II appointed Julian’s surviving
brother, Gallus, as a caesar in charge of protecting the eastern provinces of
the empire. Unfortunately, for Gallus, he ultimately did not impress either the
men under his command or the emperor, and Constantius II had Gallus executed in
354.
With the death of Gallus,
Constantius II had been involved in the deaths of Julian’s father and at least
two brothers. Nevertheless, Constantius II must have felt he could control the
young man, for he promoted Julian as his next caesar in 355. As the story goes,
Julian arrived for his new position as caesar while still wearing his academic
attire. Nevertheless, he transitioned well from the scholarly world into the
role of military leadership. Julian quickly boosted his popularity by winning
victories against the Alemanni and the Frankish people, located adjacent to
Roman territory along the Rhine River. Meanwhile, Emperor Constantius II was
busying himself with wars against the Sarmatians, Suebi and Quadi, along the
Danube River, as well as his long-term rival, Persia.
(Coin of Constantius II, c. 350-361, [Public Domain] via Creative
Commons)
(Julian the Apostate presiding at a conference of sectarians, c. 1875,
painted by Edward Armitage (1817–1896), [Public Domain] via Creative Commons)
Even though he was an emperor
who was initially brought up as a Christian, Julian the Apostate arguably
turned into the most effective critic of Christianity in the Roman Empire. The
highly educated Julian was an avid writer, and in his texts such as Against the Galilaeans, he used his
knowledge of the Bible to attack Christianity’s most vulnerable spots. Some of
his favorite tactics included highlighting inconsistencies in the different
books of the Bible, and attacking Christianity’s ties to Judaism, labeling them
as a Jewish heresy and not a fulfillment of prophecy.
Yet, the emperor’s reign was
coming to a close. Along with his grudge against the Christians, Julian had
another vice that was common to most Roman Emperors—he had a passion for war. Julian
marched against King Shapur II of the Sassanians, leading possibly the largest
Roman army ever fielded against Persia. He managed to push his way to the city
of Ctesiphon, near modern Baghdad, but was defeated by the city’s defenses. In
363, while he and his army fled from the city, Emperor Julian was pierced by a
spear or javelin and died from the wound. At the time of his death, Emperor
Julian was still in his early thirties.
Written by C. Keith Hansley.
Top picture attribution: (Depiction of Emperor Julian (r. 360–363) on metal, cropped
and modified, [Public Domain] via Creative Commons).
- The Christians as the Romans Saw Them, by Robert Louis Wilken. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1984.
- The Byzantine Art of War by Michael J. Decker. Pennsylvania: Westholme Publishing, 2013.
- https://www.britannica.com/biography/Constantius-II
- https://www.britannica.com/biography/Constantine-I-Roman-emperor
- https://www.britannica.com/biography/Magnentius
- https://www.britannica.com/biography/Julian-Roman-emperor
- https://www.britannica.com/biography/Constantine-II-Roman-emperor
- https://www.britannica.com/biography/Constans-I
Great! Thank you .
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