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Jovian (331-364) was the son of Varronianus, the commander of Emperor Constantius II's imperial bodyguards. Jovian eventually rose to the same command as his father, serving under Emperor Julian against the Sassanid Empire. When Julian died from a mortal wound while fighting in 363, Jovian became emperor after others had declined to don the purple.<br/><br/> Jovian's hasty election and the situation he found himself in forced him to sign a humiliating peace treaty with the Sassanids, before heading back to the empire. He reestablished Christianity as the state religion, ending the paganism revival of his predecessor, issuing an edict of toleration. Christianity would remain the dominant religion of both halves of the empire until the Fall of Constantinople in 1453.<br/><br/> Jovian's popularity rapidly declined due to the provinces lost in the Sassanid peace treaty, and as he was rushing back to Constantinople to consolidate his power, he was found dead in his tent. His death has since been attributed to either carbon monoxide poisoning from the fumes of a charcoal warming fire or a surfeit of mushrooms.
Valens (328-378) was the brother of Valentinian, and lived in his brother's shadow for many years. When his brother was appointed emperor in 364 CE, he chose Valens to serve as co-emperor, obtaining the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire. Valens made Constantinople his capital.<br/><br/> Valens was soon presented with a usurper named Procopius in 365, a surviving relative of Emperor Julian who proclaimed himself emperor in Constantinople while Valens was away. He managed to defeat Procopius in the spring of 366, executing the usurper. He then warred against the revolting Goths, before heading back east to face the Sassanid Empire. A resurgent Gothic presence, alongside Huns and Alans, led to the commencement of the Gothic War, after an attempted resettlement of Goths had resulted in them revolting in 377.<br/><br/> Rather than wait for his nephew and co-emperor Gratian to arrive with reinforcements as advised by many, Valens marched out on his own. Valens was struck down during the decisive but avoidable Battle of Adrianople. He was known by some as the 'Last True Roman', and the battle that resulted in his death was considered the beginning of the collapse of the decaying Western Roman Empire.