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Firmus (died 375) was a
Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Places * Berber, Sudan, a town on the Nile People with the surname * Ady Berber (1913–19 ...
Numidian Numidia (Berber: ''Inumiden''; 202–40 BC) was the ancient kingdom of the Numidians located in northwest Africa, initially comprising the territory that now makes up modern-day Algeria, but later expanding across what is today known as Tunisi ...
prince and
Roman usurper Roman usurpers were individuals or groups of individuals who obtained or tried to obtain power by force and without legitimate legal authority. Usurpation was endemic during the Roman imperial era, especially from the crisis of the third cent ...
under
Valentinian I Valentinian I ( la, Valentinianus; 32117 November 375), sometimes called Valentinian the Great, was Roman emperor from 364 to 375. Upon becoming emperor, he made his brother Valens his co-emperor, giving him rule of the eastern provinces. Val ...
. Firmus was the son of the Berber Jubaleni prince Nubel, a powerful Roman military officer, as well as a wealthy Christian. When Nubel died, Firmus killed his half-brother Zammac, who had illegitimately appropriated Nubel's wealth, and became successor to his father. Between 372 and 375, Firmus revolted against the ''
comes Africae ''Comes'' ( ), plural ''comites'' ( ), was a Roman title or office, and the origin Latin form of the medieval and modern title "count". Before becoming a word for various types of title or office, the word originally meant "companion", either i ...
'' Romanus, who was a supporter of Zammac. The misbehaviour of Romanus, who had neglected protection from African tribes to Roman cities that had refused the payment of bribes, had worsened the situation in Africa Province in the 360s. The revolt of Firmus against Romanus forced Valentinian to take action against both his officer and the African rebel. When Valentinian sent
Count Theodosius Flavius Theodosius (died 376), also known as Count Theodosius ( la, Theodosius comes) or Theodosius the Elder ( la, Theodosius Major), was a senior military officer serving Valentinian I () and the western Roman empire during Late Antiquity. U ...
(father of
Theodosius I Theodosius I ( grc-gre, Θεοδόσιος ; 11 January 347 – 17 January 395), also called Theodosius the Great, was Roman emperor from 379 to 395. During his reign, he succeeded in a crucial war against the Goths, as well as in two ...
) to depose Romanus, Firmus initially professed his willingness to compromise, and appeared on the verge of reaching an honorable settlement with Valentinian's capable general, but a plot to assassinate Theodosius and carry on the revolt was discovered by the
tribune Tribune () was the title of various elected officials in ancient Rome. The two most important were the tribunes of the plebs and the military tribunes. For most of Roman history, a college of ten tribunes of the plebs acted as a check on th ...
Mollius Tener and Firmus was forced to flee. Quickly obtaining support from the Berber tribes, Firmus presented Theodosius with the prospect of a protracted guerilla war against the elusive barbarians of the Numidian desert, such as
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 ...
had faced against Jugurtha and Tacfarinas in preceding centuries. However, Theodosius pursued the war with rapidity and success, advancing into the desert with a mobile column of light infantry, and forcing Firmus to flee from one tribe to another as all successively surrendered to the Romans. Ultimately, Igmazen, king of the Isaflenses, was induced by fear or defeat to surrender Firmus to the Romans. However, the usurper managed to strangle himself before Theodosius could secure him, disappointing the Romans of a proper revenge. His body was transported, allegedly on the back of a camel, on Theodosius' return to Sitifi, as proof of the end of the revolt. Firmus supported the
Donatist Donatism was a Christian sect leading to a schism in the Church, in the region of the Church of Carthage, from the fourth to the sixth centuries. Donatists argued that Christian clergy must be faultless for their ministry to be effective and the ...
s against the Nicene faith. Firmus ordered the killing of the Nicene inhabitants of
Rusuccuru Dellys ( ar, دلّس, Berber: Delles) is a small Mediterranean town in northern Algeria's coastal Boumerdès Province, almost due north of Tizi-Ouzou and just east of the Sebaou River. It is the district seat of the daïra of Dellys. The town ...
, and after his death, Valentinian issued laws against the Donatists. It is also possible that this Firmus was the basis on which the author of ''
Historia Augusta The ''Historia Augusta'' (English: ''Augustan History'') is a late Roman collection of biographies, written in Latin, of the Roman emperors, their junior colleagues, designated heirs and usurpers from 117 to 284. Supposedly modeled on the si ...
'' modeled the improbable
Firmus According to the ''Historia Augusta'', Firmus (died 273) was a usurper during the reign of Aurelian. The contradictory accounts of his life and the man himself are considered to be a complete fabrication, perhaps based on the later Firmus. His ...
, usurper against
Aurelian Aurelian ( la, Lucius Domitius Aurelianus; 9 September 214 October 275) was a Roman emperor, who reigned during the Crisis of the Third Century, from 270 to 275. As emperor, he won an unprecedented series of military victories which reunited ...
. Firmus also appears in the hagiographic 'Passio sanctae Salsae' in which, while besieging the city of Tipasa, he tries to secure the support of the local martyr St Salsa only to be rejected and eventually defeated.Piredda 2015: 234-267


References

{{Reflist
Roberts, Walter, "Firmus (ca.372-ca.375 A.D.)"
''De Imperatoribus Romanis'' site * Piredda, A.M.G.(2015). "Passio sanctae Salsae" in Fialon, S. and Meyers, J. La Passio sanctae Salsae (BHL 7467) : Recherches sur une passion tardive d’Afrique du Nord. Ausonius (Bordeaux). pp.234-267. 375 deaths 4th-century Berber people 4th-century Roman usurpers Ancient Romans who committed suicide Kabyle people People from Boumerdès Province People from Thénia People from Thénia District Year of birth unknown