Constantine II ( la, Flavius Claudius Constantinus; February 316 – 340) was
Roman emperor from 337 to 340. Son of
Constantine the Great
Constantine I ( , ; la, Flavius Valerius Constantinus, ; ; 27 February 22 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337, the first one to Constantine the Great and Christianity, convert to Christiani ...
and co-emperor alongside his brothers, his attempt to exert his perceived rights of
primogeniture
Primogeniture ( ) is the right, by law or custom, of the firstborn legitimate child to inherit the parent's entire or main estate in preference to shared inheritance among all or some children, any illegitimate child or any collateral relativ ...
led to his death in a failed invasion of Italy in 340.
Career
The eldest son of Constantine the Great and
Fausta, Constantine II was born in
Arles
Arles (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Arle ; Classical la, Arelate) is a coastal city and commune in the South of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province of ...
in February 316 and raised as a Christian.
Caesar
On 1 March 317, he was made
Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caes ...
. In 323, at the age of seven, he took part in his father's campaign against the
Sarmatia
The Sarmatians (; grc, Σαρμαται, Sarmatai; Latin: ) were a large confederation of ancient Eastern Iranian equestrian nomadic peoples of classical antiquity who dominated the Pontic steppe from about the 3rd century BC to the 4th c ...
ns.
[ At age ten, he became commander of ]Gaul
Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...
, following the death of his half-brother Crispus
Flavius Julius Crispus (; 300 – 326) was the eldest son of the Roman emperor Constantine I, as well as his junior colleague ( ''caesar'') from March 317 until his execution by his father in 326. The grandson of the ''augustus'' Constantius I ...
. An inscription dating to 330 records the title of ''Alamannicus'', so it is probable that his generals won a victory over the Alamanni
The Alemanni or Alamanni, were a confederation of Germanic tribes
*
*
*
on the Upper Rhine River. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Caracalla of 213, the Alemanni captured the in 260, and later expanded into pres ...
.[ His military career continued when Constantine I made him field commander during the 332 campaign against the ]Goths
The Goths ( got, 𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰, translit=''Gutþiuda''; la, Gothi, grc-gre, Γότθοι, Gótthoi) were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Europe ...
.
Augustus
Following the death of his father in 337, Constantine II initially became emperor jointly with his brothers Constantius II
Constantius II (Latin: ''Flavius Julius Constantius''; grc-gre, Κωνστάντιος; 7 August 317 – 3 November 361) was Roman emperor from 337 to 361. His reign saw constant warfare on the borders against the Sasanian Empire and Germani ...
and Constans
Flavius Julius Constans ( 323 – 350), sometimes called Constans I, was Roman emperor from 337 to 350. He held the imperial rank of '' caesar'' from 333, and was the youngest son of Constantine the Great.
After his father's death, he was mad ...
,[Eutropius, 10:9] with the empire divided between them and their cousins, the ''caesars'' Dalmatius :''This article deals with the Caesar (335-337). For the censor Flavius Dalmatius, father of the caesar, see Flavius Dalmatius. For saints with this name, see Saint Dalmatius (disambiguation).''
Flavius Dalmatius Caesar (his name is often spell ...
and Hannibalianus __NOTOC__
Flavius Hannibalianus (also Hanniballianus; died September 337) was a member of the Constantinian dynasty, which ruled over the Roman Empire in the 4th century AD.
Hannibalianus was the son of Flavius Dalmatius, and thus nephew of Cons ...
. This arrangement barely survived Constantine I's death, as his sons arranged the slaughter of most of the rest of the family by the army.[Gibbon, Ch. 18] As a result, the three brothers gathered together in Pannonia
Pannonia (, ) was a province of the Roman Empire bounded on the north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia. Pannonia was located in the territory that is now wes ...
[ and there, on 9 September 337,] divided the Roman world among themselves. Constantine, proclaimed ''Augustus
Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...
'' by the troops received Gaul, Britannia
Britannia () is the national personification of Britain as a helmeted female warrior holding a trident and shield. An image first used in classical antiquity, the Latin ''Britannia'' was the name variously applied to the British Isles, Great ...
and Hispania
Hispania ( la, Hispānia , ; nearly identically pronounced in Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, and Italian) was the Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula and its provinces. Under the Roman Republic, Hispania was divided into two provinces: Hispania ...
.
He was soon involved in the struggle between factions rupturing the unity of the Christian Church.[ The Western portion of the empire, under the influence of the ]Popes
The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
in Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
, favoured Nicene Christianity
The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is ...
over Arianism
Arianism ( grc-x-koine, Ἀρειανισμός, ) is a Christological doctrine first attributed to Arius (), a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt. Arian theology holds that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who was begotten by God ...
, and through their intercession they convinced Constantine to free Athanasius
Athanasius I of Alexandria, ; cop, ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲡⲓⲁⲡⲟⲥⲧⲟⲗⲓⲕⲟⲥ or Ⲡⲁⲡⲁ ⲁⲑⲁⲛⲁⲥⲓⲟⲩ ⲁ̅; (c. 296–298 – 2 May 373), also called Athanasius the Great, ...
, allowing him to return to Alexandria
Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...
. This action aggravated Constantius II, who was a committed supporter of Arianism.
Constantine was initially the guardian of his younger brother Constans, whose portion of the empire was Italia
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
and Illyricum. Constantine soon complained that he had not received the amount of territory that was his due as the eldest son. Annoyed that Constans had received Thrace
Thrace (; el, Θράκη, Thráki; bg, Тракия, Trakiya; tr, Trakya) or Thrake is a geographical and historical region in Southeast Europe, now split among Bulgaria, Greece, and Turkey, which is bounded by the Balkan Mountains to t ...
and Macedonia after the death of Dalmatius, Constantine demanded that Constans hand over the African provinces, to which he agreed in order to maintain a fragile peace.[Victor, 41:21] Soon, however, they began quarreling over which parts of the African provinces belonged to Carthage
Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classi ...
, and thus Constantine, and which belonged to Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
, and therefore Constans.[Zosimus, 2:41–42]
Further complications arose when Constans came of age and Constantine, who had grown accustomed to dominating his younger brother, would not relinquish the guardianship. In 340 Constantine marched into Italy at the head of his troops to claim territory from Constans.[ Constans, at that time in ]Dacia
Dacia (, ; ) was the land inhabited by the Dacians, its core in Transylvania, stretching to the Danube in the south, the Black Sea in the east, and the Tisza in the west. The Carpathian Mountains were located in the middle of Dacia. It thus r ...
, detached and sent a select and disciplined body of his Illyrian troops, stating that he would follow them in person with the remainder of his forces. Constantine was engaged in military operations and was killed by Constans's generals in an ambush outside Aquileia
Aquileia / / / / ;Bilingual name of ''Aquileja – Oglej'' in: vec, Aquiłeja / ; Slovenian: ''Oglej''), group=pron is an ancient Roman city in Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about from the sea, on the river N ...
. Constans then took control of his deceased brother's realm.
Family tree
Emperors are shown with a rounded-corner border with their dates as Augusti, names with a thicker border appear in both sections
1: Constantine's parents and half-siblings
2: Constantine's children
Gallery
File:INC-2046-a_Ауреус._Константин_II._Ок._337—340_гг._(аверс).png , Coin of Constantine II as ''caesar'', marked: ("''Our Lord Flavius Claudius Constantine, Noblest Caesar''")
File:Solidus_Constantine_II-heraclea_RIC_vII_101.jpg , ''Solidus'' of Constantine II as ''caesar'', marked: on the obverse ("''Constantine Junior, Noblest Caesar''") and ("''the Victory
The term victory (from Latin ''victoria'') originally applied to warfare, and denotes success achieved in personal combat, after military operations in general or, by extension, in any competition. Success in a military campaign constitutes ...
of Our Caesars''")
File:Constantineii90010167.jpg , ''Aureus'' of Constantine II as ''caesar'', marked: ("''Constantine Junior, Noblest Caesar''") on the obverse and ("''the Virtue of Our Caesar''") on the reverse
File:Impero_Romano_da_maggio_a_settembre_337.png , Division of the Roman Empire among the Caesars appointed by Constantine I: from west to east, the territories of Constantine II, Constans I, Dalmatius :''This article deals with the Caesar (335-337). For the censor Flavius Dalmatius, father of the caesar, see Flavius Dalmatius. For saints with this name, see Saint Dalmatius (disambiguation).''
Flavius Dalmatius Caesar (his name is often spell ...
and Constantius II.
References
Sources
Primary sources
* Zosimus Zosimus, Zosimos, Zosima or Zosimas may refer to:
People
*
* Rufus and Zosimus (died 107), Christian saints
* Zosimus (martyr) (died 110), Christian martyr who was executed in Umbria, Italy
* Zosimos of Panopolis, also known as ''Zosimus Alchem ...
, ''Historia Nova'', Book
Historia Nova
* Aurelius Victor
Sextus Aurelius Victor (c. 320 – c. 390) was a historian and politician of the Roman Empire. Victor was the author of a short history of imperial Rome, entitled ''De Caesaribus'' and covering the period from Augustus to Constantius II. The work w ...
Epitome de Caesaribus
* Eutropius
Breviarium ab urbe condita
Secondary sources
*
* Gibbon, Edward. ''Decline & Fall of the Roman Empire'' (1888)
* Lewis, William (2020), "Constantine II and His Brothers: The Civil War of AD 340", in Nicholas Baker-Brian and Shaun Tougher (eds.), ''The Sons of Constantine, AD 337–361: In the Shadows of Constantine and Julian''. Palgrave Macmillan. Cham. .
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Constantine 02
316 births
340 deaths
4th-century Roman emperors
Imperial Roman consuls
Constantinian dynasty
Claudii
Flavii
Roman emperors killed in battle
Tetrarchy
Sons of Roman emperors