Lecture 2 from Later Roman Empire module at University of Liverpool.

1. Third Century Crisis
CLAH266 – The Later Roman Empire
Lecture 2, 5th October 2012
Dr Jamie Wood

2. Today‟s lecture: aims
 Provide a narrative of the third
century „crisis‟ in the Roman
Empire
 Provide an overview of the key
themes during the period
 Think about problems relating to
1. Source material for the period
2. Historiography of the period

3. Today‟s lecture: structure
 Early third century
 The year of 6 emperors (238 CE) and immediate
aftermath
 Group work: reviewing De Blois reading
 Break
 The „crisis‟ (235-284): key themes and effects
 Historiography
 Some effects of the crisis: e.g. Bureaucracy
 Conclusions

4. Things to bear in mind
 The „crisis‟ lasts for less than 50 years (235-
284 CE)
 NOT the entire century
 AND some parts of the 50 years are peaceful
(or at least not in crisis)
 IT (whatever „it‟ is!) effects some geographical
areas more than others
 The „crisis‟ is a historiographical construct
 TODAY we are going to try to explore the
historical events and processes that led to the
construction of the idea of „crisis‟
 THEN think about whether „crisis‟ is a fair
descriptor for the period

5. Some key points from last week
 Continuity of emperors – or at least the image of
it
 Gibbon‟s golden age – social conservatism of
Antonines best way of keeping stability
 Look after the army and you‟ll be ok
 Succession – co-emperorship
 Provincial emperors throughout period – cities in
provinces had money poured back into them
 Shift from philosopher to soldier in representation
 Good emperors followed by bad ones (sources)

6. Cassius Dio, Roman History, Epitome of Book 74.11
(auction of the emperorship in praetorian camp in 193)
 When the fate of Pertinax was noised about, some ran to their homes and others to those of
the soldiers, all taking thought for their own safety. But Sulpicianus, who had been sent by
Pertinax to the camp to set matters in order there, remained on the spot, and intrigued to
get himself appointed emperor. Meanwhile Didius Julianus, at once an insatiate money-
getter and a wanton spendthrift, who was always eager for revolution and hence had been
exiled by Commodus to his native city of Mediolanum [= Milan], now, when he heard of the
death of Pertinax, hastily made his way to the camp, and, standing at the gates of the
enclosure, made bids to the soldiers for the rule over the Romans. Then ensued a most
disgraceful business and one unworthy of Rome. For, just as if it had been in some market or
auction-room, both the City and its entire empire were auctioned off. The sellers were the
ones who had slain their emperor, and the would-be buyers were Sulpicianus and Julianus,
who vied to outbid each other, one from the inside, the other from the outside. They
gradually raised their bids up to twenty thousand sesterces per soldier. Some of the soldiers
would carry word to Julianus, ‘Sulpicianus offers so much; how much more do you make it?’
And to Sulpicianus in turn, ‘Julianus promises so much; how much do you raise him?’
Sulpicianus would have won the day, being inside and being prefect of the city and also the
first to name the figure twenty thousand, had not Julianus raised his bid no longer by a small
amount but by five thousand at one time, both shouting it in a loud voice and also indicating
the amount with his fingers. So the soldiers, captivated by this excessive bid and at the same
time fearing that Sulpicianus might avenge Pertinax (an idea that Julianus put into their
heads), received Julianus inside and declared him emperor.

7. Septimius Severus (d. 211) -
deathbed advice to his sons
 “Be
harmonious,
enrich the
soldiers and
scorn all other
men.”
(Cassius Dio, Roman
History, epitome of
book 77.15)

8. Severus Alexander (222-235)

9. Who was Severus Alexander?
 Cousin of Elagabalus (218-222); Syrian origin
 Shares consulship and is given title of Caesar in
221; heir apparent
 Their grandmother Julia Maesa plotted to have SA
take over
 Elagabalus sees that SA is (more) popular with the
army and tries to eliminate him; Elagabalus is
assassinated instead in 222
 Only 13 years old when he replaces Elagabalus
 26th Roman Emperor

10.  Government under the influence of his mother, Julia
Mamaea, and jurist Ulpian (praetorian prefect)
 Building programme in Rome (last until Diocletian)
 Alienation of troops due to lack of funds – numerous
mutinies
 Pressure from Sassanid Persians in east and Germans in
west
 Sassanid threat fought off; note raising of Taurinus as
emperor by Syrian legions in 232
Aqua Alexandrina aqueduct, R
The Reign of SA
 Failure to deal militarily with German threat (diplomacy/
bribery used instead) caused his downfall
“Alexander showed no
honourable intention to pursue
the war and preferred a life of
ease, when he should have
marched out to punish the
Germans for their previous

11. Maximinus Thrax (235-238)
 Career soldier who had
come up through the
ranks; Thracian origin
 Declared emperor; troops
mutiny and SA and his
mother are killed
 Stressed his military skill
from the start
 MT‟s reign: protracted
warfare along Rhine and
Danube frontiers

13. Maximinus Thrax:
Military emperor or enemy of the Senate?
 SA: traditionally judged a pro-senatorial emperor
 MT: eventually deposed by rebels with the support of the
senate
 So, often seen as very anti-Senate
 MT: military origins; raised from the army, by the army
 Financial policy: MT accused of greed by his enemies (e.g.
Herodian); it is more likely that he tried to find new sources of
income because he needed to fund the military
 Even if MT was a military emperor „there is no reason to fully
accept the strong accusation that he was especially anti-
senatorial‟ (K. Haegemans, Imperial authority and dissent: the
Roman empire in AD 235-238, Leuven: 2010, p. 110)
 235-8 CE was not a period of discontinuity, but fitted with
patterns which had been taking place since the end of the 2nd
century

14. 238 CE: A year of many
emperors
[Maximinus Thrax –> Gordian I & Gordian II –> Pupienus & Balbinus –
> Gordian III]
 Revolt in Africa: proclamation of Gordian I and his son,
Gordian II, as emperors.
 Probably pre-planned to attract support at Rome and
elsewhere rapidly
 NOT a general „senatorial conspiracy‟ or a rebellion by
African „nationalists‟
 Senate raises Pupienus and Balbinus after Maximinus‟
forces defeat the Gordians (I and II)
 Maximinus tries to move his army from the Danube to
Italy
 Turning point: resistance at Aquileia, which leads troops to
kill Maximinus

15. Gordian III (238-244)
 Acceptable to both Senate and army
 Young (13 years old)
 Gordian I and II and his grandfather
and uncle respectively
 Starts as Caesar under B and P
 Rules under influence of his father-in-
law, Timesitheus (Praetorian Prefect)
 Campaigns with some success
against the Germans and the Persian
Sassanids (where he dies and is
replaced by Philip the Arab, the new
Praetorian Prefect)

16. 235-238 – some thoughts
 Rather than initiating the „crisis‟ of
the third century, the events of these
3 years illustrate processes which
were already underway and which
were to occur more frequently and
with greater impact later in the
century
 Intersection of private patronage
relationships and expanding
government networks had important
impact on course and success of the
insurrection against MT
 i.e. expansion of government

17. Group work
 In groups of 4 or 5
 Discuss the following questions, based on
your reading of De Blois (2002), “The Crisis
of the Third Century A.D. in the Roman
Empire: A Modern Myth?”:
1. What are the key points that DB is trying to
make?
2. What scholarly trends is DB reacting against?
3. What model(s) does DB propose in their place?
 You have 15 minutes, at which point you will

18. 1. What key points is DB trying to
make?
 Not one key reason for crisis – smaller factors
add up
 Was it a crisis? Exaggeration?
 Historiographical – many areas not affected.
Depends where you are
 Idea of crisis comes from senators – rather than
average Romans
 Not massively tumultuous period for everyone –
continuity with Severans

19. 2. What scholarly trends is DB
reacting against?
 People who say it is a general crisis
 Historians – this is convenient start/ end point –
convenience
 Potter – crisis ascribed to Dio and Herodian –
depends on sources

20. 3. What model(s) does DB propose
in their place?
 Not big crisis
 Geography – some areas more than others
 Where military conflict happens – bigger crisis
 E.g. Frontier zones
 Long term = bigger impact

22. Key themes in the third century
crisis: an overview
 Politics
 Military and external affairs
 Economy
 Social change
 Religion

23. Politics
 Lack of means of securing the
succession (evident throughout
imperial history)
 3rd century: usurpations, civil wars
and breakaways became
commonplace
 235-284: more emperors than in
previous 250 years
 Separate empires emerge in Gaul
and Palmyra, questioning the unity
of the empire
 Emperors spent much of their time
fighting usurpers, increasing their
reliance on the military
 Need to pay, supply and reward the

24. Maximinus ‘Thrax’ (the Thracian) 235-8
Gordian I 238
Gordian II (co-emp. with Gordian I) 238
Pupienus and Balbinus 238 Emperors of
Gordian III (Caesar to P. and B. 238)
238-44
the third
Philip 244- century crisis
49
Decius 249-
51
Gallus 251-
53
Aemilianus 253 Claudius II Gothicus 268-
Valerian 253- 70
60 (Vaballathus – ruler of Palmyrene Empire
Gallienus (co-emp. with V. 253-60) 253- 269-71)
68 Aurelian
270-75
(Postumus - ruler of Gallic Empire 260-8) Tacitus 275-
(Odenathus - ruler of Palmyrene Empire 76
260-69) Probus 276-

26. Military and external affairs
 Frequent/ constant civil war
 Empire already under
pressure from Germans/
Sassanids; but internal
strife provides further
opportunities
 Germans:
 Gothic invasions into Balkans,
Greece and Asia Minor, in mid-
century
 Abandonment of Dacia in 265
 Sassanid Persians:
persistent and serious threat
in the East: e.g. Valerian
(253-260) captured

27. Valerian held captive by Shapur I (240/2-
270/2)
(Naghsh-e Rostam, Shiraz, Iran)

28. Lugo
York
Barcelona Aurelian Walls, Rome

29. City walls: a symptom of crisis?
 At first sight, these constructions clearly respond
to political and military troubles of mid 3rd century
 But maybe not...
1. Tendency to date archaeology according to the
historical record is problematic – are these city
walls all mid-3rd century in date?
 [e.g. M. Kulikowski, Late Roman Spain and its Cities
(Baltimore: 2004), pp. 39-64]
2. City walls serve other purposes than defence; e.g.
as a symbol of prestige and power
 [e.g. for an earlier period: W.E. Mierse, “Augustan city
walls in the west”, Journal of Roman Archaeology, 3
(1990), pp. 358-360]

30. Economy
 General collapse in 3rd century
 Population decline? Outbreak of
plague (251-66)
 Loss of agricultural productivity?
 Political and military instability?
 Very high inflation and currency
collapse; in places the empire
almost reverts to a „natural
economy‟ (barter; no coinage)
 Reduced taxation base
(breakaways and invasions)
 Need to pay/ reward/ bribe the
army to resist internal and external
threats = vicious circle
 State frequently does not have the
money to cover expenses = further
instability
 Evidentiary gain: instability means

31. Debasement of coinage (i):
weight

32. Debasement of coinage (ii):
precious metal content

33. Debasement of coinage (iii):
quality
 antoninian
us of
Caracalla
(217 CE)
 antoninian
us of
Tetricius I
(270-3
CE)

34. Social change and the epigraphic
habit
 Increased in 1st C BCE and 1st CE, peaking at turn of
2/3rd C
 About display and audience
 Collectively: shows that new provinces are part of the
empire: common culture; shows that local elites are
people to work with; part of process of „Romanization‟
 Individually: after grant of Roman citizenship it is a way
to differentiate yourself from people who don‟t have
citizenship
 Drastic decline in 3rd century
 A symptom of crisis?
 Or possible link to Constitutio Antoniniana in 212 CE –
citizenship for all free inhabitants of the empire; means it
is no longer necessary (or possible) to distinguish
yourself by epigraphy

35. Religion: a drive for
conformity
 Increasing move towards worship of
one dominant god within Roman
pantheon (e.g. worship of sol invictus)
 Disasters afflicting the empire (e.g.
Plague/ invasion) interpreted as sign
of divine displeasure = drive to re-
establish favour of the gods by
ensuring that the entire population
conforms
 E.g. Decian „persecution‟ (250)
 Libelli: certificates/ tickets of sacrifice
 Is this (a) a persecution targeted at
Christians OR (b) an administrative
process in which some Christians get John Rylands Library, Greek Papyrus 12,
certificate of Pagan Sacrifice, AD 250
caught up by accident?
 [Rives, J. B. „The Decree of Decius and the

36. The end of the crisis: factors
 Military
 Diocletian defeats his rivals
 Military reforms (field armies and frontier forces - limitanei)
 Invasions cease (or are defeated)
 Government
 Development of new system: the Tetrarchy (rule of 4)
 Sharing of power
 cf. earlier efforts to share power under Antonines and Severans (and
during „crisis‟)
 cf. regional empires during the „crisis‟
 Reorganisation of bureaucracy and administration (e.g. smaller
provinces)
 Economic reforms (e.g. price fixing; labour/ status laws)
 We will look at the emergence of the Tetrarchy, especially the

37. A note on historiography
 Decline, fall and 3rd century „crisis‟:
 Since Edward Gibbon, the enlightened despotism of
Marcus Aurelius et al. seen as golden age of Rome in
which philosophy and power were combined (see last
week‟s slides)
 Period afterwards seen as military dictatorship running
amok
 Both of these interpretations derive from the „senatorial‟ viewpoint of
Cassius Dio and others AND the „Enlightenment‟ viewpoint of
Gibbon
 i.e. they are the result of the preoccupations of our historical
sources and the historiographical tradition (see De Blois and
others on bibliography for revisionist opinions)
 But – very interesting that the empire survives the „crisis‟

38. Conclusions: Crisis or
Continuity?
 Depends what you mean by „crisis‟/
where you look (geographically and
structurally)
 3rd century extreme case that illustrates
problems with the imperial system:
 Lack of secure succession creates
opportunities for challenges
 Lack of military success (or financial
means to get military on-side) means
legitimacy of emperors is questioned
 Pressure from outside empire/ elites in
the provinces needs to be dealt with
(either by victory or co-operation)
 Related to earlier tendencies:
 Increasing military involvement in politics;
 Increased bureaucratisation (already
going on under Antonines and Severans)
 Paradox is that military/ bureaucratic
reforms are the solution to the 3rd C

39. Homework: historical sources for the
late 2nd and 3rd centuries
It‟s important that you have a grasp of the main sources for the
early part of the period, so this week I‟d like you to spend a
bit of time researching the following three sources (use
reputable sources like the Oxford Classical Dictionary; don‟t
use wikipedia etc. as anything other than a basic starting
point)
1. Cassius Dio‟s Roman History
2. Historia Augusta
3. Herodian
Here‟s the information I‟d like you to collect on each source:
 Date of composition (esp. in relation to events described)
 Author(s) (who they are, where they are from)
 What it‟s about (e.g. recurrent themes/ topics)
 Issues (e.g. viewpoint or biases of the author/ history of the