Academic Journal
Gaj Julije Avit Aleksijan - namjesnik rimske provincije Dalmacije ; Gaius Julius Avitus Alexianus - governor of the Roman province of Dalmatia
| Title: | Gaj Julije Avit Aleksijan - namjesnik rimske provincije Dalmacije ; Gaius Julius Avitus Alexianus - governor of the Roman province of Dalmatia |
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| Authors: | Matijević, Ivan |
| Superior Title: | Tusculum : časopis za solinske teme; Vol.9 No.1; ISSN 1846-9469 (Print); ISSN 1849-0417 (Online) |
| Publisher Information: | TUSCULUM |
| Publication Year: | 2016 |
| Collection: | Hrčak - Portal of scientific journals of Croatia / Portal znanstvenih časopisa Republike Hrvatske |
| Subject Terms: | Salona, natpis, vitez, senator, namjesnik, dinastija Severâ, car, Septimije Sever, Geta, Karakala, Recija, Britanija, Dalmacija, Azija, Cipar, Parti, Aleksandar Sever, Elagabal, inscription, equestrian, governor, Severan dynasty, Septimius Severus, Caracalla, Raetia, Britannia, Dalmatia, Asia, Cyprus, Parthians |
| Description: | Gaj Julije Avit Aleksijan, rodom iz grada Emese u Siriji, s dinastijom Severâ izravno je povezan preko svoje supruge Julije Meze, sestre Julije Domne koja je bila žena cara Septimija Severa. Njihova kći Julija Soemida u braku s Varijem Marcelom dobila je sina Varija Avita Basijana, a druga kći Julija Mameja je sa svojim drugim mužem Gesijem Marcijanom imala sina Gesija Aleksijana Basijana. Obojica Aleksijanovih unuka poslije su postali rimski carevi i povijest ih češće pamti pod drugačijim imenima. Prvi je bio Elagabal (218. - 222.), a drugi Aleksandar Sever (222. - 235). Aleksijanova vrlo bogata karijera može se u cijelosti rekonstruirati zahvaljujući ulomku njegova počasnog natpisa iz Salone, zatim natpisa koji je on osobno posvetio kao namjesnik provincije Recije i jednome navodu Diona Kasija u djelu Rimska povijest. Nekoliko znanstvenika bavilo se pokušajem usklađivanja ovih povijesnih izvora u čemu daleko najviše zasluga ima H. Halfmann čije su zaključke uz minorne izmjene prihvatili i svi kasniji autori. Dakle, Aleksijanova se karijera sastoji od četiri viteška dužnosništva nakon kojih je zahvaljujući povezanosti s carem Septimijem Severom postao član Senata. Nakon toga je bio pretor, član senatorskoga kolegija koji je vodio kult cara Tita, zatim zapovjednik legije Četvrta Flavia felix, namjesnik Recije, pratitelj cara Septimija Severa i cara Karakale u vojnom pohodu na Britaniju, prefekt alimente u Rimu, Karakalin pratitelj u ratu protiv Germana, drugi put prefekt alimente u Rimu, namjesnik Dalmacije, namjesnik Azije, pratitelj cara Karakale u ratu protiv Parta i pred smrt savjetnik namjesnika Cipra. ; Gaius Julius Avitus Alexianus came from the Syrian Emesa. He was connected with the Severan dynasty directly through his wife, Julia Maesa, a sister of Julia Domna, who was the wife of Septimius Severus. Their daughter, Julia Soaemias, married Varius Marcellus of the Syrian Apamea, their son being the later emperor Elagabalus (218-222). Their second daughter, Julia Mamaea, with her second husband, Gessius Marcianus, of the Syrian Arca, also had a son, the Elagabalus' successor Alexander Severus (222-235). The Alexianus’ entire rich career can be reconstructed from the fragment of his honorary inscription from Salona, as well as the inscription that he himself dedicated during his office in Raetia, and the writing of Cassius Dio in his work Roman History. Several scientists tried harmonising these historic sources, but the greatest merits by far go to H. Halfmann, whose conclusions, with some minor changes, were accepted by all subsequent authors. He dated the Alexianus' office in Asia to the years 215 or 216, that enabled him a chronological reconstruction of the course of all other offices and their placing into a wider context. Alexianus started his military-political career as an equestrian in his early twenties, as a praefectus of one of the six Petraeorum cohorts that were, except for one, situated in Syria and Palaestina. The other militiae he performed till around the year 190, where after he moved to Rome where, in his last equestrian office, he was subrogated to the prefect of annona. He was in this office in the year 193 when, after the death of the emperor Pertinax, the throne was succeeded by Septimius Severus. Alexianus belonged to a circle of very influential people of his trust, and he, most probably, by adequate managing food supplies facilitated Septimius' taking the capital. The new emperor very soon enforced positions of his allies, so that his cousins acquired the status of senators too, including, of course, Alexianus, whose career went powerfully upwards. The very next year he was awarded the rank of a praetor, and in Rome he became a member of the Senate collegium that led the cult of the divined emperor Titus, where after he commanded the Fourth Legion Flavia felix in Singidunum in Upper Moesia. In the years 196 or 197 he was appointed the governor of the province Raetia, that coincided with the Severus' return from the east where he defeated Pescennius Niger and won the First Parthian War. It was becoming clear that the emperor would have to fight his until recently ally, Clodius Albinus, who proclaimed himself the emperor and with his forces entered Gallia. Alexianus most certainly participated in this conflict, however it is unclear whether he did this as the legate of the Fourth Legion Flavia felix, or as the governor of Raetia. From the period of his governorship comes the colossal altar of Augsburg, that he dedicated to Elagabalus, the Sun deity, particularly worshiped in his native Emesa. The end of his governorship in Raetia and the consulate probably took place between the years 198 and 200. The Alexianus took his next office in 208, this raising the question of what happened about him in the past eight years. The answer is in the behaviour of the praetorian prefect, Fulvius Plautianus, whose influence became so large that he was deciding on senators advancements. He had a very bad relation with the empress Julia Domna that extended also to her sister and, thus, Alexianus and his son-in-law, Varius Marcellus, in whose career can also be proven similar lack of offices. Following the assassination of Plautianus, both of them were rehabilitated: Alexianus between 208 and 211 was a comes of the emperors Septimius Severus and Caracalla in their military campaign in Britannia, that was placed under the rule of Varius Marcellus. The warfare against the Caledonians, north of the Hadrian and the Antonine walls, was successful. However, Septimius Severus, before his death in 211 proclaimed Geta augustus, thus equalling him with Caracalla, that additionally incensed animosities between the brothers. Solving the problem was attempted by the mother Julia Domna together with the comites, meaning Alexianus' participation as well. The peace making failed, Caracalla in the meantime ceased further military activities and all of them went for Rome where, at the end of 211, he had his brother assassinated. Alexianus enjoyed Caracalla's trust and in Rome was put in charge of providing food to children and destitutes, whereas, at the same time his son-in-law Marcellus in his hands held command over all the troops in the city. This office did not hold him in Rome for long, because once again he became the emperor's comes during his military operations in Pannonia against the Marcomanni and the Quadi in the summer and autumn of 213. The relationship between the Empire an the Germans was peaceful at the time, although Rome used to interfere in their interior matters, thus stirring up discontent in order to maintaining stability at the border. The Quadi king Gaiobomarus was assassinated and the border between the two Pannonias was moved, afterwards the emperor returned to Rome where Alexianus became a prefect of the alimenta once again. It is unclear whether there is a particular reason of this repeated appointment. During the next year and a half he was the governor in Dalmatia, not a particularly demanding task, because at that time the province was peaceful and it was of no strategic military significance, as it had been at the time of the Quadi and Marcomanni wars fifty years ago. He had a very well established office, its staff consisting of the legionaries from the legions stationed in Pannonia and Moesia and from Dalmatian auxiliaries. Besides a few legionary detachments of unknown strength, the military crew was made of members of five auxiliary units, totalling to 4,000 - 4,500 soldiers. It is quite likely that during his governorship in the city stayed a detachment of the First Legion Italica, the commander of which in 193 was Marius Maximus, one of the Severus' supporters. The legion proved loyal to the new dynasty, wherefore a part of it was certainly sent to Salona to subject this important port city at the eastern shores of the Adriatic to a firmer control. In 215 Alexianus left Salona to take the office of the governor of the province of Asia, when the commander of a Dalmatian cohort erected the inscription in his honour in Salona. After the end of this the third governorship of his, he once again became a Caracalla's comes, this time, however, in the war against the Parthians in early 216. After probably having spent the following winter with the emperor Edessa, he was sent to Cyprus to advise the governor, although his mission, because of proximity of this island to military operations, could have something to do with organisation and logistics, for which matters at the time the emperor obviously had no person more prominent than Alexianus. This had been going on before Macrinus had Caracalla murdered on 8 April 217. Cassius Dio wrote that Alexianus had died on Cyprus as an ill old man. He did not live to see another rise of the Emesa clan that with the efforts from Julia Maesa in the summer of 218 managed to proclaim his grandson Elagabalus the new emperor. This meant the restoration of the Severan dynasty, whose reign was ended by another Alexianus’ grandson, the emperor Alexander Severus. |
| Document Type: | article in journal/newspaper |
| File Description: | application/pdf |
| Language: | Croatian |
| Relation: | http://hrcak.srce.hr/169760 |
| Availability: | http://hrcak.srce.hr/169760 http://hrcak.srce.hr/file/250469 |
| Rights: | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
| Accession Number: | edsbas.E1A2024A |
| Database: | BASE |
| Description not available. |