Refine your search

The results of your search are listed below alongside the search terms you entered on the previous page. You can refine your search by amending any of the parameters in the form and resubmitting it.

Select all Deselect all Add selection to lightbox
Large Small
Thumbnails per page
Septimius Severus (145-211 CE) was born in the Roman province of Africa, and advanced steadily through the customary succession of offices (the 'cursus honorum') during the reigns of Marcus Aurelius and Commodus. He was governor of Pannonia Superior when word of Pertinax's murder and Didius Julianus' accession reached him in 193 CE.<br/><br/> In response to Julianus' controversial accession through buying the emperorship in an auction, many rivals rose up and declared themselves emperor, with Severus being one of them, beginning what was known as the Year of the Five Emperors. Hurrying to Rome, Severus executed Julianus, and then fought his rival claimants for control of the Empire. By 197 CE, he was the sole power in the Empire, and began once more waging war to expand the borders of the Empire.<br/><br/> Severus fell ill in late 210 CE, fatally so, and died in early 211 CE. He was succeeded by his sons Caracalla and Geta, founding the Severan dynasty, the last dynasty of the Roman Empire before the Crisis of the Third Century.
Pertinax (126 - 193 CE) was born the son of a freed slave, and worked as a teacher before becoming an officer in the army. Successful campaigns against the Parthians saw him rise in rank and prestige, with Pertinax eventually rising to become a member of the Senate.<br/><br/> Pertinax was declared emperor by the Praetorian Guard after the death of Commodus, where he immediately tried to institute several sweeping reforms. One of these reforms was the restoration of discipline amongst the pampered Praetorian Guard, making enemies that ultimately resulted in Pertinax's assassination by members of the Guard just under three months into his reign. After his death, the Praetorians auctioned off the imperial title, resulting in a brief civil war and the year 193 CE becoming known as the Year of the Five Emperors.<br/><br/> Pertinax was later deified by Septimius Severus, the emperor after Pertinax's successor, Didius Julianus. His reputation throughout history has largely been a positive one, though his short reign has made it difficult to dertermine what his rule would have truly been like.
Didius Julianus (133/137-193 CE) was raised by Domitia Lucilla, the mother of emperor Marcus Aurelius, and was groomed for public office and distinction. He served in the Roman army, and was raised to consulship alongside Pertinax in 175 CE for his successes against the Germanic tribes.<br/><br/> After the Praetorian Guard murdered Pertinax in March 193 CE, they put the imperial throne up for bidding, willing to sell it to whomever could pay the most. Julianus won the bidding war, and was declared as Caesar and emperor, with the Senate formalising the declaration under military threat. His controversial ascension immediately invoked widespread public anger and caused a civil war in protest, with multiple rival claimants to the throne rising up, causing the year to be known as the Year of the Five Emperors.<br/><br/> The Praetorian Guard had become an undisciplined and debauched lot by then, strangers to active military operations, and could not halt rival Septimius Severus' progress towards Rome, who was declared by all Italy as their rightful emperor. Eventually, Julianus was deserted by practically everyone of import, and he was executed after only nine weeks of rule.
Macrinus (165-218 CE) was a skilled lawyer serving under Emperor Septimius Severus, before Severus' son and successor Caracalla appointed him to prefect of the Praetorian Guard. He enjoyed the trust and protection of Caracalla, until a prophecy was told that claimed Macrinus would depose and succeed the emperor. Fearing for his life, Macrinus plotted to have Caracalla murdered before he himself was condemned to death.<br/><br/> Manipulating a soldier into murdering Caracalla, Macrinus became emperor in 217 CE, the first Roman emperor not to have hailed from the senatorial class, as well as being the first Mauretanian emperor. He ruled jointly with his young son Diadumenianus, and his first acts as emperor were to try and bring diplomatic and economic stability to an empire that had been dragged to war with several kingdoms by his predecessors. At a heavy cost to the Empire's coffers, Macrinus peacefully resolved many of the wars Rome was embroiled in, but the changes and monetary costs made him enemies in the Roman military.<br/><br/> Julia Maesa, sister in law to Septimius Severus and aunt to Caracalla, took advantage of the unrest to start a rebellion and had her fourteen-year-old grandson Elagabalus recognised as emperor. Macrinus was defeated and executed in 218 CE, with his son also captured and executed later in the year. He and his son were declared enemies of Rome by the Senate, their names struck from the records and their images destroyed.