In what year did Claudius II reign?

Originally Illyrian. During his reign, he successfully fought with the barbarian tribe of the Alemanni, as well as with the Goths, over whom he won a convincing victory at the Battle of Nis, for which he received the nickname “Gothic”. However, despite the fact that Claudius laid the foundation for the restoration of the power of the Roman Empire, his reign was very short: in 270 he died of the plague.

Early life and career

Only a few sources have survived about the short period of Claudius's reign. It is impossible to say with certainty about his origin, place of birth or name of his father, nor about his career before he became emperor. Of his family, only his brother Quintillus is known, who ascended the throne after the sudden death of his brother in the fall of 270.

The future emperor Marcus Aurelius Valerius Claudius was born on May 10, 213 in Dardania (sometimes a later year is indicated - 219 or 220, but this date does not have much support among historians). He apparently came from Illyria. The History of the Augustans, a source full of errors and falsifications, says that Claudius “descends from the ancestor of the Trojans, Ilus, and from Dardanus himself”. The life of Claudius in the “History of the Augustans” is presented only by a few facts from the life of the emperor.

Before coming to power, Claudius served in the Roman army, where he made a good career and achieved appointment to the highest military positions of the empire. Under Decius Trajan, he was a tribune (he was sent to defend Thermopylae, in connection with which the governor of Achaea was given the order to send Claudius two hundred Dardanian soldiers, sixty horsemen, sixty Cretan archers and a thousand well-armed recruits), and under Valerian, he was again a tribune of a certain V Mars. legion (however, the V Legion of Mars is unknown; the IV Legion of Mars, founded, apparently, by Aurelian, stood in Arabia at the beginning of the 5th century), as well as the dux of Illyricum (its subordination included all military units located in the province of Thrace, two Moesia, Dalmatia, Pannonia and Dacia), until Emperor Gallienus made him commander of the cavalry. The biography of Claudius in the History of the Augustans also includes, undoubtedly, false letters attributed to the emperors Decius, Valerian and Gallienus, and presenting him in an exclusively favorable light. At the same time, perhaps they contain some grain of truth.

Ascension to the throne

There is some evidence that Claudius was wounded during Gallienus's campaign to suppress the rebellion of the usurper Ingenuis and that he later served with Aureolus during the war with Postumus.

According to Aurelius Victor, at the end of August or beginning of September 268, Claudius was appointed tribune of the auxiliary detachment stationed at Ticinus. His task was to guard this city from a possible invasion by the Gallic emperor Postumus. There the troops proclaimed Claudius emperor.

There is an assumption that he participated in a conspiracy against Gallienus and that before his death he sent Claudius the imperial insignia. However, the deceased emperor still had relatives in Rome who had the right to inherit the throne, namely his half-brother Licinius Valerian and his son Marinian, so it can be assumed that the version of the appointment of Claudius and sending him signs of imperial dignity was only a propaganda fiction in order to justify the seizure of power by Claudius.

After Claudius was proclaimed emperor, the senators immediately began to destroy Gallienus' friends and relatives, but Claudius did not support them and even forced them to deify their predecessor. On his orders, money was also paid to soldiers outraged by the death of Gallienus. Neither the Senate nor the people expressed their protest against Claudius's accession to the throne.

Appearance and personal qualities

The most complete description of Claudius was left by the author of his biography in the collection of imperial biographies “History of the Augustans”:

“Claudius himself is remarkable for his strict morals, remarkable for his extraordinary way of life and exceptional chastity. Abstinent in drinking wine, he was a hunter of food; He had a tall stature, a fiery gaze, a wide and full face and such strong fingers that he often knocked out the teeth of horses and mules with one blow of his fist.” .

Governing body

Coins issued during the reign of Claudius II provide some, albeit limited, insight into his reign. In addition to the standard images embodying the virtues of the princeps, which are common to most emperors of the 2nd and 3rd centuries, coins were issued proclaiming the security of the empire (lat. SECVRITAS PERPETVA, PAX AETERNA), loyalty to the army (lat. FIDES MILITVM) and military victories over the Germans and Goths (lat. VICTORIA GERMAN and VICTORIAE GOTHIC). In addition, the mints of Claudius the Gotha produced some other interesting and unusual coins.

For example, Claudius is one of the very few emperors who issued coins with a portrait of the patron of blacksmithing, Hephaestus. They depicted a standing god with a hammer and tongs, and also contained a unique inscription “ REGI ARTIS"(Russian: Tsar of Art). Coins with the sea god Neptune are also rare. Images of the Invincible Sun on some coins indicate interest in this deity, whose cult would become dominant in the Roman Empire a few years later. In addition, Claudius was the first emperor to have a portrait of the Egyptian goddess Isis appear on his coins.

During his short reign, Claudius did not have the opportunity to deal with the dire economic problems of the empire: for example, the quality of Antoninian became even worse, which adversely affected the already rapid rise in prices.

Wars with barbarians

After ascending the throne, Claudius found that he was faced with many problems that required immediate solutions. The most urgent of these was the invasion of Illyricum and Pannonia by the Goths, although Gallienus had already caused some damage to them at the Battle of Nestus. At this time, the siege of Mediolan, where the usurper Avreolus was located, was still ongoing. Having learned about the change of ruler, Avreol tried to come to a peace agreement, but when his entourage opposed this, he decided to surrender to Claudius, apparently on the condition that his life would be spared. However, he was soon killed - the soldiers were outraged that he had betrayed Gallienus.

A short time after the murder of Avreol, the emperor moved his army towards the Gothic army. The Gothic army, according to some reports, reached 320 thousand. It included the following peoples: Grutungi, Austrogoths, Tervingi, Visas, Gipedi (all Gothic tribes), Peucians, as well as Celts and Heruli. With 2 thousand ships they attacked Moesia from the Black Sea. Before this, Claudius sent Aurelian, led by cavalry, to Macedonia to protect Illyria from attack, while with the main forces he went to the enemy. At the Battle of the Moesian city of Naissus, Claudius and his legions utterly defeated a large Gothic army. Under Claudius and the cavalry commander, the future Emperor Aurelian, the Romans captured thousands of Goths and completely destroyed the enemy camp. Up to 50 thousand enemy soldiers died. As a result of this victory, the Goths were expelled from the Roman Empire, and Claudius received the nickname “Gothic,” by which he is known to this day. This success was marked by the release of coins (Latin VICTORIAE GOTHICAE - “Gothic victory”). The Gothic War was won. The Goths did not cross the borders of the empire for almost a hundred years. In the area of Dober and Lake Doiran, the Goths lost 3 thousand soldiers in a battle with Aurelian's cavalry.

At the same time, new detachments of Goths crossed the Danube to assist their fellow tribesmen, but they achieved little success; another part of them tried to make their way to the cities on the Aegean coast on the ships of the Heruls, but also met resistance and was defeated by the Roman fleet led by the governor of Egypt, Tenaginon Probus. Many Germans captured during various wars were enlisted in the Roman army or settled in the north of the Balkan Peninsula as coloni. Intense road construction in this area is evidenced by surviving mile stones. The victory over the Goths made a significant contribution to the restoration of the Roman Empire. This was a significant step, leading to the subsequent successes of Aurelian and the reforms of Diocletian and Constantine. The main factors in the defeat of the Goths were their lack of food, which led to famine, as well as various diseases that affected the soldiers, especially the plague.

Thus, the main theater of military operations was the Roman provinces of Upper and Lower Moesia, as well as Thrace. Numerous battles took place near Marcianople, Byzantium and Thessalonica (the latter was captured by the barbarians in the absence of Claudius). It should be noted that during this period the armed forces present in Roman Dacia were very few in number. Therefore, when Aurelian came to the throne, he disbanded this province between 271 and 274.

Weakening of the Gallic Empire

In the unification of the Roman state, Claudius was greatly helped by the weakening of the Gallic Empire. In the spring of 269, Ulpius Cornelius Lellian, one of the subordinates of the Gallic emperor Postumus, declared himself emperor in Upper Germany. Postumus defeated the usurper, but at the same time refused to allow his soldiers to plunder Mogontiak, which served as Lellian's headquarters. This turned out to be the reason for his downfall. The enraged legionnaires rebelled and killed Postumus. Marcus Aurelius Marius, chosen by the troops, became the new emperor of Gaul. Marius did not rule for long, and was soon overthrown by the praetorian prefect Victorinus. Having ascended the throne, Victorinus saw that his state was in a difficult situation.

During his reign, Spain and the southern coast of Narbonese Gaul seceded from the Gallic Empire and returned back to the Roman Empire after the Vigil prefect Julius Placidianus stationed himself with a small force at Cularon and established contact with them. Fortunately for the Gallic emperor, it was there that Placidianus stopped and Victorinus's position stabilized.

Relations with the Palmyra Kingdom

Sources report that relations between the Roman Empire and Palmyra gradually weakened during the year 270. From the “History of the Augusti” it is known that under Gallienus an army was sent under the command of Aurelius Heraclian to the East, but it was destroyed by the troops of Zenobia. However, since Heraclian was not actually in the East in 268 (at which time he was actively involved in the conspiracy against Gallienus), we see that this report is not entirely correct. It is quite possible that, out of a desire to blame Gallienus for all the troubles, the ancient historian deliberately transferred the events of Claudius’s reign into Gallienus’ biography.

Claudius and the Senate

Under Claudius, propaganda of the power of the empire was carried out using coins with the inscriptions “ PAX AETERNA, FIDES MILITVM"("Eternal peace, loyalty to the army"). Another inscription - “ GENIVS SENATVS"("Genius of the Senate") - according to Andreas Alfodi, indicates an improvement in relations between the emperor and the Senate, as well as an increase in the authority of this government body. According to Zonaras, Claudius even left it to the Senate to declare war on both the Goths and Posthumus.

Despite the fact that under Claudius the influence of statesmen and military leaders of Balkan origin, as well as foreigners, increased, the government continued to rely on representatives of the Roman nobility, such as the proconsul of Africa Aspasius Paternus, the city prefects Flavius Antiochian and Virius Orphitus, the princeps of the Senate Pomponius Bassus and the consul Junius Veldumnian. Claudius apparently did not make any major changes in the Roman army, unlike his predecessor Gallienus; Apparently, this is explained by the short duration of his reign.

During the reign of Claudius, according to the History of the Augustans, there was only one usurper - Censorinus, but he was most likely fictitious.

Religious politics

According to Aurelius Victor, Claudius consulted the Sibylline Books even before his campaign against the Goths.

Death

While the emperor was busy besieging the Goths on Mount Gem, he received reports that the Yutung tribe (English) Russian, which until then had been content with the money paid by Rome, has crossed the Danube and is threatening Raetia and Noricus, while the Vandal tribe is preparing to invade Pannonia. Therefore, Claudius, entrusting the fight against the Goths to Aurelian, hurried with his troops to Sirmium to inspect the new theater of military operations. But his army was struck by plague, and around January - March 270, Claudius himself fell victim to it.

There is a more dramatic version of Claudius' death. According to legend, he actually sacrificed himself, since there was a prediction in the Sibylline books that only his death would help win the Gothic War. Surprisingly, the author of the History of the Augustans completely ignores this assumption and says that Claudius simply died of the plague.

Relationship with the Constantine dynasty

At the direction of Constantine (before 310), his father’s relationship with the “divine Claudius” was “restored.” Probably all this was a fiction, which contributed to the fact that the life of Claudius, however without an accurate description of the relationship of the emperors, turned into an enthusiastic panegyric, first mentioned in 310.

According to the History of the Augusti, Claudius had a brother, Crispus, who had a daughter, Claudia. It was Claudia, according to legend, who was the mother of Constantius Chlorus. This claim was widely disseminated by Constantine the Great, who minted coins with the inscription DIVO CLAVDIO OPT IMP, MEMORIAE AETERNAE(“To the Divine Claudius, the best emperor, eternal memory”).

Results of the board

Despite the fact that Claudius reigned for just under two years, his death was sincerely mourned by both soldiers and senators, and his deification followed immediately after news of his death was received. The author of the biography of Claudius in the History of the Augustans writes that “they loved him so much that it can be said quite definitely that neither Trajan, nor the Antonines, nor any other of the sovereigns were so loved”. The emperor's armor was delivered to the curia, and a golden equestrian statue of the deified Claudius was erected on the Capitol in front of the Temple of Jupiter (given the economic situation of the empire at that time, most likely the statue was actually cast from bronze and then gilded). Cyrene was renamed Claudiopolis in his honor.

There is no doubt that he was an outstanding military leader who showed an excellent example of military art and valor, to which the Roman Empire owes its preservation and the beginning of its recovery from a protracted crisis. Ancient authors left positive reviews about Claudius and his reign. This is due, firstly, to hatred of Claudius' predecessor Gallienus, and secondly, to the legend of his death. Overall, Claudius of Gotha gave a strong impetus to the restoration of the Roman Empire.

Comments

Notes

Lendering, Jona. Historia Augusta (undefined) . Livius.org. Retrieved October 30, 2013.
, XI. 9.
, 34. 1.
, p. 90.
, XVI. 1.
, 33. 28.
Pavel Orozy. History against the pagans. VII. 23.1.
, IX. 11.1.
, I. 41.
Lyubzhin, A. B. Notes // Lords of Rome. - M., 1992. - P. 364.
Parker, H. A. History of the Roman World A.D. 138 to 337. - P. 176.
, Herkunft, Jugend & Karriere.
, XIII. 5.
, IX. 1.
, 34. 2.
, Einleitung .
Gibbon, Edward. Decline & Fall of the Roman Empire. - Ch. eleven.
, p. 109.
, p. 110.
Paul Deacon. Roman history. IX. eleven.
, pp. 52-54.
Watson, Alaric. Aurelian and the Third Century. - P. 43.
History of the Augustans. Divine Claudius. Note 19.
, pp. 62-75.
, pp. 54-61.
, p. 55.
, IX. 8.
Watson, Alaric. Aurelian and the Third Century. - P. 155-157.
Polfer, Michel. Postumus (A.D. 260-269) (undefined) . De Imperatoribus Romanis (200-03-06). Retrieved December 6, 2013.
Polfer, Michel. Marius (A.D. 269) (undefined) . De Imperatoribus Romanis (24 June 1999). Retrieved October 30, 2013.

During his reign, he successfully fought with the barbarian tribe of the Alemanni, as well as with the Goths, over whom he won a convincing victory in the battle of Nis, for which he received the nickname “Gothic”. However, despite the fact that Claudius laid the foundation for the restoration of the power of the Roman Empire, his reign was very short: in 270 he died of the plague.

Claudius bore the following victorious titles: “Germanic Greatest” - from 269, “Gothic Greatest” - from 269, “Parthian Greatest” - from 270. He received the power of the people's tribune 3 times: in 268 (twice: in March and December 10) and in 269.

Early life and career

According to Aurelius Victor, Claudius was the illegitimate son of Gordian II. But, most likely, he was a barbarian by origin, perhaps from a Romanized family.

Ascension to the throne

According to Aurelius Victor, at the end of August or beginning of September 268, Claudius was appointed tribune of the auxiliary detachment stationed at Ticinus. His task was to protect this city from a possible invasion by the Gallic emperor Postumus. There the troops proclaimed Claudius emperor.

Paul Orosius has an interesting indication, which is absent, however, in all other sources known to us, that Claudius took power at the request of the Senate. But this contradicts the reports of other ancient authors, who claim that Claudius became emperor at the initiative of the army.

There is an assumption that he participated in a conspiracy against Gallienus and that before his death he sent Claudius the imperial insignia. However, the deceased emperor still had relatives in Rome who had the right to inherit the throne, namely his half-brother Licinius Valerian and his son Marinian, so it can be assumed that the version of the appointment of Claudius and sending him signs of imperial dignity was only a propaganda invention in order to justify the seizure of power by Claudius.

After Claudius was proclaimed emperor, the senators immediately began to destroy Gallienus' friends and relatives, but Claudius did not support them and even forced them to deify their predecessor. On his orders, money was also paid to soldiers outraged by Gallienus' death. Neither the Senate nor the people expressed their protest against Claudius's accession to the throne.

Appearance and personal qualities

The most complete description of Claudius was left by the author of the “History of the Augustans”:

Eutropius says that Claudius is “a thrifty, meek, fair man, worthy of leading the state, but died in the second year of his reign from illness.” Aurelius Victor characterizes Claudius as a very fair and active person, working for the good of the state. The few sculptural images of Claudius depict a typical officer of the Roman Empire: his cheeks are roughly shaved, his forehead is wrinkled, expressing tension, and his hair is cut short.

Governing body

After the murder of Avreol, the emperor moved his army towards the Gothic army. At the Battle of Niš, Claudius and his legions utterly defeated the large Gothic army. Under the command of Claudius and the cavalry commander, the future Emperor Aurelian, the Romans captured thousands of Goths and completely destroyed the enemy camp. As a result of this victory, the Goths were expelled from the Roman Empire, and Claudius received the nickname “Gothic,” by which he is known to this day. This success was marked by the release of coins (Latin VICTORIAE GOTHICAE - “Gothic victory”). The Gothic War was won. The Goths did not cross the borders of the empire for almost another hundred years.

After this, in 269, either at the instigation of the usurper Avreol, or because the Roman garrison in the province of Raetia was quite small, since its units were pulled towards Mediolan, the Alamanni easily broke through the Brenner Pass and reached Lake Benac. The emperor reacted very quickly and inflicted such a heavy defeat on the barbarians that barely half of their original number returned to the north. The 8th century historian Paul the Deacon reports that the number of Alamanni reached three hundred thousand. After this, he fired some irresponsible officials and soldiers. At the same time, new detachments of Goths crossed the Danube to help their fellow tribesmen, but they did not achieve much success; another part of them tried to make their way to the cities on the Aegean coast on the ships of the Heruls, but also met resistance and was defeated by the Roman fleet led by the governor of Egypt, Tenaginon Probus. Many Germans who were captured during various wars were enlisted in the Roman army or settled in the north of the Balkan Peninsula as colons. Intensive road construction in this area is evidenced by preserved mile stones.

In the unification of the Roman state, Claudius was greatly helped by the weakening of the Gallic Empire. When the Gallic official Lellian declared himself emperor, Postumus defeated his army, but was soon killed himself because he forbade the plunder of Mogunciak (now Mainz). The army elected Marius as emperor, but a short time later he was overthrown by the praetorian prefect Victorinus. During his reign, Spain and the southern coast of Narbonese Gaul seceded from the Gallic Empire and returned to the Roman Empire after the Vigil prefect Julius Placidianus arrived there with a small force. A year later, Augustodunum voluntarily went over to the side of Rome, and then Victorinus besieged him. However, Claudius did nothing to support the city, so Augustodunum fell and was sacked. It is still unknown why Claudius did nothing to help Augustodunum.

According to the historian Zosimus, during the reign of Claudius, the Palmyreneans under the command of Timagenes captured Egypt and left a garrison there, but the governor of this province, Tenaginon Probus (not to be confused with Emperor Probus), drove them out of there. Then Timagenes gathered a new army and defeated Probus, who, having been captured, committed suicide. Egypt again went to the Palmyra kingdom. From that time on, grain supplies to Rome ceased until Aurelian crushed the Palmyra kingdom.

In the same year, Claudius takes the title "Parthian Great", but the reason why he did this is unknown. Damerau suggests that in fact the Palmyreans defeated the Parthians, and Claudius appropriated their victory.

Under Claudius, propaganda of the power of the empire was carried out, carried out with the help of coins with the inscriptions PAX AETERNA, FIDES MILITVM (Russian: Eternal peace, loyalty to the army). Another inscription - GENIVS SENATVS (Russian Genius of the Senate), according to Andreas Alfodi, indicates an improvement in relations between the emperor and the Senate, as well as the increasing authority of this government body. According to Zonaras, Claudius even left it to the Senate to declare war on both the Goths and Posthumus. Despite the fact that under Claudius the influence of statesmen and military leaders of Balkan origin, as well as foreigners, increased, the government continued to rely on representatives of the Roman nobility, such as the proconsul of Africa Aspasius Paternus, the city prefects Flavius Antiochian and Virius Orfitus, the princeps of the Senate Pomponius Bassus and the consul Junius Veldumnian. Claudius apparently did not make any major changes in the Roman army, unlike his predecessor Gallienus; Apparently, this is explained by the short duration of his reign.

During the reign of Claudius, according to the History of the Augustans, there was only one usurper - Censorinus, but he was most likely fictitious.

Religious politics

Although Eusebius of Caesarea and Sulpicius Severus portray the period between the reigns of Valerian and Diocletian as a pause in the persecution of Christians, according to the lives of the saints, several Christians were killed during the reign of Claudius II. Apparently, Saint Valentine also died under Claudius. The golden legend says that he refused to renounce Christ before the emperor, for which he was beheaded. According to Aurelius Victor, Claudius consulted the Sibylline Books even before his campaign against the Goths.

Relationship with the Constantine dynasty

According to the History of the Augusti, Claudius had a brother, Crispus, who had a daughter, Claudia. It was Claudia, according to legend, who was the mother of Constantius Chlorus. This statement was widely disseminated by Constantine the Great, who minted coins with the inscription DIVO CLAVDIO OPT IMP, MEMORIAE AETERNAE (Russian: To the Divine Claudius, the best emperor, eternal memory).

Results of the board

The emperor died in January-August 270 in Sirmium from the plague that broke out in the Balkans in the summer of that year. Although Claudius reigned for just under two years, his death was sincerely mourned by both soldiers and senators, and his deification followed immediately upon news of his death. The author of the biography of Claudius in the “History of the Augustans” writes that “they loved him so much that it can be said quite definitely that neither Trajan, nor the Antonines, nor any other of the sovereigns were so loved.” The emperor's armor was delivered to the curia, and a golden equestrian statue of the deified Claudius was erected on the Capitol in front of the Temple of Jupiter (given the economic situation of the empire at that time, most likely, the statue was actually cast from gilded bronze). In his honor, Cyrene was renamed Claudiopolis.

There is a more dramatic version of Claudius' death. According to legend, he actually sacrificed himself, since there was a prediction in the Sibylline books that only his death would help win the Gothic War. The author of the History of the Augustans completely ignores this assumption and says that Claudius simply died of the plague.

There is no doubt that he was an outstanding military leader who showed an excellent example of military art and valor, to which the Roman Empire owes its preservation and the beginning of its recovery from a protracted crisis. Ancient authors left positive reviews about Claudius and his reign. This is due, firstly, to hatred of Claudius’ predecessor Gallienus, and secondly, to the legend of his death.

CLAUDIUS II OF THE GOTHICS (268 - 270)

Claudius II of Goth (Marcus Aurelius Valerius Claudius) (268-270) was born around 214, probably in Dardania (Upper Moesia). IN Historia Augusta letters are cited showing that he served as a military tribune under Trajan Decius and Valerian, who appointed him commander-in-chief in Illyricum. These documents are fictitious, but perhaps the made-up messages contain some truth. During the murder of Gallienus in the vicinity of Mediolanus in 268, in which Claudius appears to have taken part, he served as deputy commander in this area. They chose a new emperor from two contenders: Claudius and another major military leader, Aurelian, who was also involved in the conspiracy. It is not known why the army chose Claudius, although Aurelian's reputation as a strict disciplinarian may have played a role. One way or another, the story was put into motion that the dying Gallienus had formally appointed Claudius as his successor.

However, the murder of Gallienus outraged the soldiers, and fermentation began in the troops, which could only be muffled by the traditional promise to pay an additional reward of twenty gold coins per person. For their part, the senators in Rome, outraged that Gallienus had removed them from government, welcomed his death. They immediately began to destroy his friends and relatives, including his brother and son Marian. Claudius called on the senators to show mercy, even insisting on deifying the late emperor and thereby calming the army.

After Claudius's ascension to the throne, the siege of Mediolanus with the rebel general Avreolus, waged by both Gallienus and his assassins, continued without interruption. Having learned about the change of ruler, Avreol tried to come to an agreement, but when his entourage opposed this, he decided to surrender to Claudius, apparently on the condition that his life would be spared. But he was soon killed - the soldiers were outraged that he had betrayed Gallienus. Despite the removal of this danger, Claudius was still forced to remain in northern Italy, since there was a serious threat from the Alamanni. Either at the instigation of Avreol, or because the garrison in Raetia was weakened, its units were pulled to Mediolan, but the Alemanni broke through the Brenner Pass and reached Lake Benac. Here Claudius met them and inflicted such a heavy defeat on the Alemanni that barely half of their original number returned to the north. Claudius appropriated the title “Germanic” to himself.

The breakaway Empire founded by Postumus in the west was falling on hard times, and Claudius, to further weaken it, sent a reconnaissance force under the command of Julius Placidianus into southern Gaul. He, settling down at Cularon, established contact with Spain and thereby returned it to the authority of the central government. Claudius himself did not lead this campaign, as he believed that first of all it was necessary to organize resistance to the honeycombs in the Balkans. In 268, Gallienus failed to achieve a final victory at Naissus, but his general Marcian continued to harass the invaders, and then Claudius himself arrived to complete the defeat. When the Goths, experiencing a lack of food, had to descend from the camp on Mount Hessax to Macedonia in search of food, Claudius fiercely attacked them, apparently not far from the city of Marcianople. This success was marked by the release of coins (VICTORIAE GOTHIC ae) and brought the emperor the title of “Gothic,” by which he has been known since then. New detachments of the Goths crossed the Danubium to help their fellow tribesmen, but they did not achieve much success; another part of them tried to make their way to the cities of the Aegean Sea on the ships of the Heruls, but also met resistance and was defeated by the Roman fleet led by Tenaginon Probus, the governor Egypt. Many Germans captured during various wars were enlisted in the Roman army or settled in the northern Balkans. Intensive road construction in this area is evidenced by preserved mile stones.

Claudius was still busy besieging the Goths on Mount Haemus when reports arrived that the Jutungi tribe, which had hitherto been content with the money paid by Rome, had crossed the Danubium in search of new lands and was threatening Raetia, while another tribe, the Vandals, was preparing to invade Pannonia. Therefore, Claudius, entrusting the fight against the Goths to Aurelian, hurried with his troops to Sirmium to inspect the new theater of military operations. But his army was struck by plague, and in January 270 Claudius himself fell victim to it.

Although he reigned for less than two years, his death was heartily mourned by both the soldiers and the senate, and his deification followed immediately. Moreover, his memory was subsequently resurrected again when Constantine the Great stated that his grandmother was Claudius’s daughter or niece. This statement was fictitious, but because of it, the lives of Claudius turned into enthusiastic eulogies. But nevertheless, the fact remains undoubted that he was an outstanding commander, who showed an excellent example of military art and valor, to which the Empire owes its preservation. But he had neither the time nor the opportunity to deal with difficult economic problems; for example, the quality of silver-plated bronze coins became even worse, which adversely affected the already rapid rise in prices. His coins depict a typical representative of the Danuvian military leaders of that time: short-haired, bearded and implacable.

(text based on the publication: M. Grant. Roman Emperors / translated from English by M. Gitt - M.; TERRA - Book Club, 1998)

Early life and career

According to Aurelius Victor, Claudius was the illegitimate son of Gordian II. But, most likely, he was a barbarian by origin, perhaps from a Romanized family.

Ascension to the throne

There is an assumption that he participated in a conspiracy against Gallienus and that before his death he sent Claudius the imperial insignia. However, the deceased emperor still had relatives in Rome who had the right to inherit the throne, namely his half-brother Licinius Valerian and his son Marinian, so it can be assumed that the version of the appointment of Claudius and sending him signs of imperial dignity was only a propaganda invention in order to justify the seizure of power by Claudius.

After Claudius was proclaimed emperor, the senators immediately began to destroy Gallienus' friends and relatives, but Claudius did not support them and even forced them to deify their predecessor. On his orders, money was also paid to soldiers outraged by Gallienus' death. Neither the Senate nor the people expressed their protest against Claudius's accession to the throne.

Appearance and personal qualities

The most complete description of Claudius was left by the author of the “History of the Augustans”:

Governing body

And that time comes again. No, not New Year or even March 8th. And chocolate-heart-floral Valentine's Day, or Valentine's Day. And while love is in the air for everyone, we decided to dig up historical facts about this day that have little to do with falling in love and flowers.

The Roman Emperor Claudius II did not allow his soldiers to marry during the war, as he believed that love and marriage were in no way connected. According to the Golden Legend, a collection of Christian legends and lives of saints, it was under Claudius II that Saint Valentine was executed.

There are actually several legends about St. Valentine. One says that he secretly married lovers, was caught and executed by order of the emperor. According to another, Valentine tried to help Christians who were persecuted in those days escape from prison, and was discovered and captured. He fell in love with his jailer’s daughter and wrote her his first Valentine, signing “Your Valentine.” Be that as it may, Valentine was executed and Pope Julius II beatified him as a saint, presumably on February 14th.

Red roses were the favorite flowers of Venus, the Roman goddess of love. In general, each flower has its own meaning, so try not to give your girlfriend a bouquet of hatred made of yellow lilies, for example. © rexfeatures

It was King Henry VIII of England, famous for the fact that almost all of his six wives died tragically (he executed two himself, one died after childbirth), in 1537 made February 14 an official holiday for lovers.

The city of Verona still receives thousands of letters addressed to Juliet, Romeo's lover. The photo shows the statue of Juliet in Verona. © rexfeatures

It was only in the Middle Ages that Valentine's Day began to be associated with love, and only because, for example, in France and England, the mating season of birds began in February. © rexfeatures

Many historians suggest that February 14 was chosen not because of St. Valentine, but to replace the ancient Roman pagan fertility festival Lupercalia in honor of the god Faun, as well as the founders of the city, Romulus and Remus. During the celebration, goats and dogs were sacrificed, men took off their clothes, ran around the city and lashed everyone with animal skins, especially women, since the blow was considered a blessing. Then leaves with women's names were placed in a vessel, and the men thus chose a couple for a year, after which they got married.

Valentine cards appeared at the beginning of the 20th century, when printing became a less complicated process. At that time, it was not customary to openly express one’s feelings, so valentines came in handy.

In fact, in the 3rd century there lived several Christian martyrs with the name Valentin - the holy martyr Valentin, bishop of the city of Interamna, and the presbyter Valentin of Rome, as well as the martyr Valentin of Dorostolsky, a warrior who accepted death for the open profession of Christianity.

In the Roman church of Santa Maria in Cosmedin you can admire the skull of St. Valentine. Yes, this is one of the main attractions of the church. We hope that this is the skull of the “correct” Valentine. Not going to Rome anytime soon? Great, you can see the rest of his skeleton in the Czech Republic, Ireland, Scotland, Great Britain and France.

During the time of Queen Victoria in England, it was considered bad luck to sign Valentine's cards. This was probably explained by the fact that, again, it was not customary to openly declare one’s feelings, since one could compromise one’s beloved.

The oldest valentine with a poem has survived, which was sent in 1415 by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London. Unfortunately, his wife died before receiving the Duke's poem.

At the beginning of the 19th century, doctors actively encouraged people to eat chocolate to relieve longing for their loved ones. And at the end of the 19th century, Richard Cadbury released the world's first box of chocolates.

In the Middle Ages, most people were illiterate, so when they had to sign a document, they simply put an X in front of witnesses and then kissed their “signature” as a sign of the sincerity of their decision. Among these documents were marriage certificates.