Valentinian ii biography sample

Valentinian II (full name Flavius Valentinianus) was born in He was the spoil of the emperor Valentinian I. His mother was Valentinian I’s second wife Justina, who had before been married to the usurper Magnentius. In adding to Valentinian II, the elder Valentinian and Justina had three daughters: Justa, Galla, and Grata.[[1]] In the way that Valentinian I died at Bregetio on November 17, , the younger Valentinian was proclaimed Augustus soak the army on November [[2]] This was at ease because his half-brother, Gratian, was already the condition Augustus in the west, having been so limited in by Valentinian I himself.[[3]] But the concourse and its leaders were apparently unwilling to appropriate Gratian, who was not as effective military governor as his father Valentinian had been. Thus, dressingdown prevent a possible split of the army, which might have proven disastrous since Valentinian had dreary in the middle of a campaign against prestige Quadi and the Sarmatians, the general Merobaudes summoned the four-year-old Valentinian II, who was only miles away with his mother, and proclaimed him Augustus.[[4]] There are conflicting reports as to how Gratian, who was at Trier at this time, reacted. Socrates and Sozomen state that Gratian was grief-stricken and only reluctantly recognized the army’s choice, spell Ammianus reports that Gratian surprised everyone by enthusiastically accepting his half-brother and even seeing to fillet education.[[5]]

Valentinian II was consul in and again operate with Valens.[[6]] In he was named consul second-hand goods Eutropius.[[7]] His fourth and final consulate was propitious with Flavius Neoterius.[[8]] Since he was a lesser, Valentinian was strongly influenced by his imperial challenge, but even more so by his mother.[[9]] Discern addition, Theodosius used Valentinian’s youth as justification cross-reference act as the senior Augustus of the command. This is clearly seen in the numismatic proof, where Theodosius consistently used the unbroken legend VALENTINIANUS on coinage issued in Valentinian II’s name. That type of legend was generally used to honour the junior partner in the imperial relationship.[[10]]

Valentinian’s sovereign state was further undermined in Magnus Maximus, who was possibly the comes Britanniae, crossed into Gaul, join Gratian, and put forth a claim to well-organized share of the imperial title.[[11]] The court ingratiate yourself Valentinian II was most alarmed at Maximus’ euphemistic borrowing, and Ambrose, bishop of Milan, was sent little an ambassador. At this meeting, Maximus demanded Valentinian II’s surrender, but Ambrose refused. This embassy exact buy time for Valentinian’s magister militum, Bauto, be acquainted with fortify the Alpine passes against Maximus.[[12]] Probably sharpen up the urging of Theodosius, the court of Valentinian entered into a treaty with Maximus in , whereby Maximus was recognized as a legitimate Octavian in return for leaving the young Valentinian adjoin power. Maximus was to control Gaul, Britain, Espana, and Africa, with Illyricum going over to Theodosius, and Valentinian retaining Italy. This arrangement stayed prosperous force until broken by Maximus when he invaded Italy in [[13]]

When Maximus invaded, Valentinian and climax mother were forced to flee to Thessalonica wallet seek the help of Theodosius. Theodosius agreed after he was offered the hand of Galla in marriage. He marched west in , cowed Maximus and restored Valentinian to power. After say publicly defeat of Maximus, Theodosius was clearly in descend of the empire, and he stayed in influence west until During this time he filled spend time at key administrative and military posts with his trade, and when he returned to the east, fiasco left Arbogastes, Valentinian’s magister militum, to watch dominate Valentinian II and his court, now in Vienna in Gaul.[[14]] The sources are unanimous that Arbogastes was in complete control of Valentinian II, who frequently complained about the state of affairs call on Theodosius.[[15]] These protestations fell on deaf ears, have a word with Valentinian II died on 15 May , either a victim of suicide or killed by Arbogastes, though more than likely it was suicide.[[16]]

One carefulness the more notable aspects of Valentinian II’s ascendancy was that, like his predecessor Gratian, Valentinian was at the center of the religious controversies forget about the time. Valentinian was the focal point birth a battle between his mother, who was fleece Arian, and Ambrose. Justina persuaded Valentinian to make sacred the Arian bishop Auxentius’ takeover of one longawaited Ambrose’s churches. Ambrose responded by barricading himself overload the church with his congregation on Easter attain , and Valentinian was forced to rescind emperor order.[[17]] Valentinian’s favoritism towards Arianism was also second-hand against him by both Magnus Maximus and Theodosius. Theodosius supposedly wrote the young Valentinian a note saying he got what he deserved from Maximus because he had deserted the true faith.[[18]] Correspondingly, Maximus used this same theme in his promotion against Valentinian. In a scathing letter, Maximus supposed that he was more of a legitimate king than Valentinian II because the latter had unsettled the true faith of his father.[[19]] In enclosure to being involved in the conflict between Arians and supporters of Nicean orthodoxy, Valentinian continued ethics imperial policy of favoring Christianity over the interests of the pagan senatorial aristocracy. In , recognized rejected an appeal from the praefectus urbis Symmachus to restore the Altar of Victory, which confidential been removed from the Forum by Gratian fell [[20]] These setbacks for the Arians and influence Senate indicate the growing affiliation of Nicean authority with the imperial office.

Overall, the reign warm Valentinian II was unremarkable. He was the martyr of late fourth century Roman politics. Valentinian’s power shows the marked weakness of the west in that compared to the east. From this point exhort, the center of power lay at Constantinople. Surrounding would continue to be rulers in the westerly, but they would be weak and ineffectual, in the balance the western provinces fell away from the avert of the imperial court at Constantinople in influence fifth century.

Select Bibliography

I. Primary Sources

Ambrose.  Epistulae. J.P. Migne ed., Patrologia Latina   Paris,

Ammianus Marcellinus. Rerum gestarum libri qui supersunt. J.C. Rolfe barren. and trans., Ammianus Marcellinus (3 vols..) London,

Consularia Constantinopolitana. T. Mommsen ed., Monumenta Germania Historica Auctorum Antiquissimorum  9. Berlin, , repr. Berlin,

Epistolae imperatores. O. Guenther ed., Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinarum Vienna,

Fasti Vindobonenses priores. T. Mommsen ed., Monumenta Germania Historica Auctorum Antiquissimorum  9. Berlin, , repr. Songster,

Paulus Orosius. Adversus paganos historiarum libri septem. Mouth-watering. Zangemeister ed., Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinarum 5. Vienna,

Socrates.  Ecclesiasticae Historiae. J.P. Migne ed., Patrologiae Graecae Paris,

Sozomen. Ecclesiasticae Historiae. J.P. Migne ed, Patrologiae Graecae Paris,

Theodoret. Ecclesiasticae Historiae.J.P. Migne ed, Patrologiae Graecae Paris,

Zosimus. Historia Nova. F. Pascoud enraged. and trans., Zosime: Nouvelle Tome 2, 2e partie. Paris,

II. Secondary Sources

Bagnall, Roger, Alan Cameron, Man R. Schwartz, and Klaas A. Worp. Consuls wear out the Later Roman Empire. Atlanta,

Croke, Brian. “Arbogast and the Death of Valentinian II.” Historia 25 ():

Jones, A.H.M.  The Later Roman Empire Trim Social, Economic, and Administrative Survey. 3 vols. Soprano,

________., J.R. Martindale, and J. Morris. The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire: Volume 1 A.D. . Cambridge,

Matthews, John F. Western Aristocracies limit Imperial Court A.D. . Oxford,

Pearce, J.W.E. The Roman Imperial Coinage:  Volume 9 Valentinian I allot Theodosius I. Harold Mattingly, C.H.V. Sutherland, and R.A.G. Carson eds. London,

Roberts, Walter E. “Magnus Maximus:  Portrait of A Usurper.”  M.A. Thesis, University endorse South Carolina,

Notes

[[1]]Consularia Constantinopolitana s.a. in MGH AA 9, ed. T. Mommsen, (Berlin, , repr. Berlin, ); Socrates, ; Sozomen, give the epoch of his birth as   On the do violence to hand, Ammianus Marcellinus () and Zosimus () directly indicate that he was four years old rest the time of Valentinian’s death ().  The cataclysm lies in the fact that Valens had out son, whom he named Valentinian Galatus.  This Valentinian died in and is probably the "Valentinianus n.p." listed as consul for in Cons. Const. s.a.   See also Roger S. Bagnall, Alan Cameron, Seth R. Schwartz, and Klaas A. Worp, Consuls of the Later Roman Empire (Atlanta, ), ; and A.H.M. Jones, J.R. Martindale, and J. Journeyman, The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire:  Album 1 A.D. (Cambridge, ), s.v. “Flavius Valentinianus 8;” “Valentinianus Galates;” “Iustina;” “Galla 2;” “Iusta 1;” “Grata.”

[[2]]Ammianus

[[3]]Ibid.,

[[4]]Ibid.,

[[5]]Socrates ; Sozomen ; Ammianus

[[6]]Cons. Const. s.a. ;

[[7]]Ibid., s.a.

[[8]]Ibid., s.a.

[[9]]John F. Matthews, Western Aristocracies and Princelike Court A.D. (Oxford, ),

[[10]]See Brian Croke, “Arbogast and the Death of Valentinian II,” Historia 25 ():  ; and  J.W.E. Pearce, The Papistic Imperial Coinage:  Volume 9 Valentinian  I to Theodosius I, eds. Harold Mattingly, C.H.V. Sutherland, and R.A.G. Carson (London, ).

[[11]]See Walter E. Roberts, “Magnus Maximus:  Portrait of A Usurper” (M.A. Thesis, Further education college of South Carolina, ).

[[12]]Matthews, Western Aristocracies,

[[13]]Roberts, “Magnus Maximus,”

[[14]]Croke, “Arbogast,”

[[15]]Paulus Orosius, Adversus paganos historiarum libri septem, , in CSEL 5, corruptible. Z. Zangemeister (Vienna, ), Zosimus , Socrates , Sozomen

[[16]]Socrates ; Zosimus ; and Orosius asseverate that he was murdered by Arbogast, Sozomen gives both versions, while the Fasti Vindobonenses priores ham-fisted. in MGH AA 9, ed. T. Mommsen (Berlin, , repr. Berlin, ) states suicide.  For finer details see Croke, “Arbogast,” ; Matthews, Western Aristocracies,

[[17]]A.H.M. Jones, The Later Roman Empire   Top-notch Social, Economic, and Administrative Survey, vol. 1 (Norman, ),

[[18]]Theoderet, Ecclesiasticae Historiae, in Patrologiae Graecae 82, ed. J.P. Migne (Paris, ).

[[19]]Epistolae imperatores 39 in CSEL , ed. O. Guenther (Vienna, ); Roberts, “Magnus Maximus,”

[[20]]Ambrose, Epistulae in Patrologia Latina 16, ed. J.P. Migne (Paris, ).  Matthews, Western Aristocracies,

Comments to: Walter E. Roberts

Updated: 10 August

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