Julian ( la, Flavius Claudius Julianus; grc-gre, Ἰουλιανός ; 331 – 26 June 363) was Roman emperor from 361 to 363, as well as a notable philosopher and author in Greek. His rejection of
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
, and his promotion of
Neoplatonic
Neoplatonism is a strand of Platonic philosophy that emerged in the 3rd century AD against the background of Hellenistic philosophy and religion. The term does not encapsulate a set of ideas as much as a chain of thinkers. But there are some id ...
Hellenism in its place, caused him to be remembered as Julian the Apostate in Christian tradition.
A nephew of
Constantine
Constantine most often refers to:
* Constantine the Great, Roman emperor from 306 to 337, also known as Constantine I
*Constantine, Algeria, a city in Algeria
Constantine may also refer to:
People
* Constantine (name), a masculine given name ...
, Julian was one of few in the imperial family to survive the purges and civil wars during the reign of
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 Germanic ...
, his cousin. Julian became an orphan as a child after his father was executed in 337, and spent much of his life under Constantius's close supervision.''Oxford Dictionary of Late Antiquity'', "Julian the Apostate", p. 839 However, the emperor allowed Julian to freely pursue an education in the Greek-speaking east, with the result that Julian became unusually cultured for an emperor of his time. In 355, Constantius II summoned Julian to court and appointed him to rule
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 ...
. Despite his inexperience, Julian showed unexpected success in his new capacity, defeating and counterattacking Germanic raids across the
and encouraging the ravaged provinces' return to prosperity. In 360, he was proclaimed emperor by his soldiers at
Lutetia
The Gallo-Roman town of ''Lutetia'' (''Lutetia Parisiorum'' in Latin, in French ''Lutèce'') was the predecessor of the modern-day city of Paris. It was founded in about the middle of the 3rd century BCE by the Parisii, a Gallic tribe. Trac ...
(Paris), sparking a civil war with Constantius. However, Constantius died before the two could face each other in battle, and named Julian as his successor.
In 363, Julian embarked on an ambitious campaign against the Sasanian Empire. The campaign was initially successful, securing a victory outside Ctesiphon in
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...
. However, he did not attempt to besiege the capital. Julian instead moved into Persia's heartland, but he soon faced supply problems and was forced to retreat northwards while being ceaselessly harassed by Persian skirmishes. During the Battle of Samarra, Julian was mortally wounded under mysterious circumstances. He was succeeded by
Jovian
Jovian is the adjectival form of Jupiter and may refer to:
* Jovian (emperor) (Flavius Iovianus Augustus), Roman emperor (363–364 AD)
* Jovians and Herculians, Roman imperial guard corps
* Jovian (lemur), a Coquerel's sifaka known for ''Zoboomafo ...
, a senior officer in the imperial guard, who was obliged to cede territory, including
Nisibis
Nusaybin (; '; ar, نُصَيْبِيْن, translit=Nuṣaybīn; syr, ܢܨܝܒܝܢ, translit=Nṣībīn), historically known as Nisibis () or Nesbin, is a city in Mardin Province, Turkey. The population of the city is 83,832 as of 2009 and is ...
, in order to save the trapped Roman forces.
Julian was a man of unusually complex character: he was "the military commander, the theosophist, the social reformer, and the man of letters". He was the last non-Christian ruler of the Roman Empire, and he believed that it was necessary to restore the Empire's ancient Roman values and traditions in order to save it from dissolution. He purged the top-heavy state bureaucracy, and attempted to revive traditional Roman religious practices at the expense of
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
. His attempt to build a
Third Temple
The "Third Temple" ( he, , , ) refers to a hypothetical rebuilt Temple in Jerusalem. It would succeed Solomon's Temple and the Second Temple, the former having been destroyed during the Babylonian siege of Jerusalem in and the latter havin ...
in
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
was probably intended to harm Christianity rather than please
Jews
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
. Julian also forbade Christians from teaching and learning classical texts.
Early life
Julian, whose full name was Flavius Claudius Julianus, was born at
, probably in 331, into the family of the reigning emperor, Constantine I. His father was
Julius Constantius
Julius Constantius (died September 337 AD) was a politician of the Roman Empire and a member of the Constantinian dynasty, being a son of Emperor Constantius Chlorus and his second wife Flavia Maximiana Theodora, a younger half-brother of Emperor ...
, Constantine's younger half-brother, and his mother was a Bithynian noble named
Basilina
Basilina ( gr, Βασιλίνα; died 332/333) was the wife of Julius Constantius and the mother of the Roman emperor Julian (r. 361–363) who in her honour gave the name ''Basilinopolis'' to a city in Bithynia (modern Pazarköy near Gemlik, i ...
, daughter of a high-ranking bureaucrat, Julianus, who had served as praetorian prefect and head of government under the late emperor
Licinius
Valerius Licinianus Licinius (c. 265 – 325) was Roman emperor from 308 to 324. For most of his reign he was the colleague and rival of Constantine I, with whom he co-authored the Edict of Milan, AD 313, that granted official toleration to C ...
. Julian's mother died shortly after he was born, and he spent his childhood in Constantinople, for which he always felt attached. Julian was probably raised with Greek as his first language, and, being the nephew of Rome's first Christian emperor, he was brought up under the Christian faith.
In the turmoil after the death of Constantine in 337, in order to establish himself and his brothers, Julian's cousin
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 Germanic ...
appears to have led a massacre of most of Julian's close relatives. Constantius II allegedly ordered the murders of many descendants from the second marriage of Constantius Chlorus and Theodora, leaving only Constantius and his brothers Constantine II and
Constans I
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 ...
, and their cousins, Julian and
Constantius Gallus
Flavius Claudius Constantius Gallus (326–354) was a statesman and ruler in the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire from 351 to 354, as ''Caesar'' under emperor Constantius II (), his cousin. A grandson of emperor Constantius Chlorus () and ...
(Julian's half-brother), as the surviving males related to Emperor Constantine. Constantius II, Constans I, and Constantine II were proclaimed joint emperors, each ruling a portion of Roman territory. Julian and Gallus were excluded from public life, were strictly guarded in their youth, and given a Christian education. They were likely saved by their youth. If Julian's later writings are to be believed, Constantius would later be tormented with guilt at the massacre of 337.
Initially growing up in Bithynia, raised by his maternal grandmother, at the age of seven Julian was under the guardianship of
Eusebius
Eusebius of Caesarea (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος ; 260/265 – 30 May 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilus (from the grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμφίλου), was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Chris ...
, the semi-Arian Christian Bishop of Nicomedia, and taught by Mardonius, a
Gothic
Gothic or Gothics may refer to:
People and languages
*Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes
**Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths
**Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...
eunuch
A eunuch ( ) is a male who has been castrated. Throughout history, castration often served a specific social function.
The earliest records for intentional castration to produce eunuchs are from the Sumerian city of Lagash in the 2nd millenni ...
, about whom he later wrote warmly. After Eusebius died in 342, both Julian and Gallus were transferred to the
imperial estate
An Imperial State or Imperial Estate ( la, Status Imperii; german: Reichsstand, plural: ') was a part of the Holy Roman Empire with representation and the right to vote in the Imperial Diet ('). Rulers of these Estates were able to exercise si ...
of Macellum in
Cappadocia
Cappadocia or Capadocia (; tr, Kapadokya), is a historical region in Central Anatolia, Turkey. It largely is in the provinces Nevşehir, Kayseri, Aksaray, Kırşehir, Sivas and Niğde.
According to Herodotus, in the time of the Ionian Re ...
. Here Julian met the Christian bishop
George of Cappadocia
George of Cappadocia (Greek: Γεώργιος ό Καππάδοκης) died 24 December 361) was the intruding Arian bishop of Alexandria from 356 until his martyrdom.
George was born, according to Ammianus Marcellinus, at Epiphania in Cilicia ...
, who lent him books from the classical tradition. At the age of 18, the exile was lifted and he dwelt briefly in Constantinople and
Nicomedia
Nicomedia (; el, Νικομήδεια, ''Nikomedeia''; modern İzmit) was an ancient Greek city located in what is now Turkey. In 286, Nicomedia became the eastern and most senior capital city of the Roman Empire (chosen by the emperor Diocleti ...
. He became a
lector
Lector is Latin for one who reads, whether aloud or not. In modern languages it takes various forms, as either a development or a loan, such as french: lecteur, en, lector, pl, lektor and russian: лектор. It has various specialized uses.
...
, a minor office in the Christian church, and his later writings show a detailed knowledge of the Bible, likely acquired in his early life.
Julian's conversion from Christianity to paganism happened at around the age of 20. Looking back on his life in 362, Julian wrote that he had spent twenty years in the way of Christianity and twelve in the true way, i.e., the way of Helios. Julian began his study of
Neoplatonism
Neoplatonism is a strand of Platonic philosophy that emerged in the 3rd century AD against the background of Hellenistic philosophy and religion. The term does not encapsulate a set of ideas as much as a chain of thinkers. But there are some i ...
in Asia Minor in 351, at first under
Aedesius
Aedesius ( grc-gre, Αἰδέσιος, died 355 AD) was a Neoplatonist philosopher and mystic born of a noble Cappadocian family.
Career
Aedesius was born into a wealthy Cappadocian family, but he moved to Syria, where he was apprenticed to Iamb ...
, the philosopher, and then Aedesius' student
Eusebius of Myndus Eusebius of Myndus ( grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος) was a 4th-century philosopher, a distinguished Neoplatonist. He is described by Eunapius as one of the links in the "Golden Chain" of Neoplatonism.
He was a pupil of Aedesius of Pergamum. He devoted ...
. It was from Eusebius that Julian learned of the teachings of
Maximus of Ephesus
Maximus of Ephesus ( grc-gre, Μάξιμος ὁ Ἐφέσιος; c. 310 – 372 AD) was a Neoplatonist philosopher. He is said to have come from a rich family, and exercised great influence over the emperor Julian, who was commended to him by Ae ...
, whom Eusebius criticized for his more mystical form of Neoplatonic
theurgy
Theurgy (; ) describes the practice of rituals, sometimes seen as magical in nature, performed with the intention of invoking the action or evoking the presence of one or more deities, especially with the goal of achieving henosis (uniting w ...
. Eusebius related his meeting with Maximus, in which the theurgist invited him into the temple of
Hecate
Hecate or Hekate, , ; grc-dor, Ἑκάτᾱ, Hekátā, ; la, Hecatē or . is a goddess in ancient Greek religion and mythology, most often shown holding a pair of torches, a key, snakes, or accompanied by dogs, and in later periods depict ...
and, chanting a hymn, caused a statue of the goddess to smile and laugh, and her torches to ignite. Eusebius reportedly told Julian that he "must not marvel at any of these things, even as I marvel not, but rather believe that the thing of the highest importance is that purification of the soul which is attained by reason." In spite of Eusebius' warnings regarding the "impostures of witchcraft and magic that cheat the senses" and "the works of conjurers who are insane men led astray into the exercise of earthly and material powers", Julian was intrigued, and sought out Maximus as his new mentor. According to the historian
Eunapius
Eunapius ( el, Εὐνάπιος; fl. 4th–5th century AD) was a Greek sophist and historian of the 4th century AD. His principal surviving work is the ''Lives of Philosophers and Sophists'' ( grc-gre, Βίοι Φιλοσόφων καὶ Σο ...
, when Julian left Eusebius, he told his former teacher "farewell, and devote yourself to your books. You have shown me the man I was in search of."
Constantine II died in 340 when he attacked his brother Constans. Constans in turn fell in 350 in the war against the usurper
Magnentius
Magnus Magnentius ( 303 – 11 August 353) was a Roman general and usurper against Constantius II from 350 to 353. Of Germanic descent, Magnentius served with distinction in Gaul under the Western emperor Constans. On 18 January 350 Magnentius ...
. This left Constantius II as the sole remaining emperor. In need of support, in 351 he made Julian's half-brother, Gallus,
caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a 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 a civil war, an ...
of the East, while Constantius II himself turned his attention westward to Magnentius, whom he defeated decisively that year. In 354 Gallus, who had imposed a rule of terror over the territories under his command, was executed. Julian was summoned to Constantius' court in
Mediolanum
Mediolanum, the ancient city where Milan now stands, was originally an Insubrian city, but afterwards became an important Roman city in northern Italy. The city was settled by the Insubres around 600 BC, conquered by the Romans in 222 BC, and ...
(
Milan
Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
) in 354, and held for a year, under suspicion of treasonable intrigue, first with his brother and then with
Claudius Silvanus
Silvanus (died 7 September 355) was a Ancient Rome, Roman general of Franks, Frankish descent, Roman usurper, usurper in Gaul against Emperor Constantius II for 28 days in AD 355.
Origin and career
Silvanus was born in Gaul, the son of Bonitus ...
; he was cleared, in part because
Empress Eusebia
Eusebia (Ancient Greek, Greek: Εύσεβία, died 360) was the second wife of Roman emperor Constantius II. The main sources for the knowledge about her life are Julian (emperor), Julian's panegyric "Speech of Thanks to the Empress Eusebia", ...
intervened on his behalf, and he was permitted to study in Athens (Julian expresses his gratitude to the empress in his third oration). While there, Julian became acquainted with two men who later became both bishops and saints:
Gregory of Nazianzus
Gregory of Nazianzus ( el, Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, ''Grēgorios ho Nazianzēnos''; ''Liturgy of the Hours'' Volume I, Proper of Saints, 2 January. – 25 January 390,), also known as Gregory the Theologian or Gregory N ...
and
Basil the Great
Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great ( grc, Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, ''Hágios Basíleios ho Mégas''; cop, Ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲃⲁⲥⲓⲗⲓⲟⲥ; 330 – January 1 or 2, 379), was a bishop of Cae ...
. In the same period, Julian was also initiated into the
Eleusinian Mysteries
The Eleusinian Mysteries ( el, Ἐλευσίνια Μυστήρια, Eleusínia Mystḗria) were initiations held every year for the cult of Demeter and Persephone based at the Panhellenic Sanctuary of Elefsina in ancient Greece. They are th ...
, which he would later try to restore.
Caesar in Gaul
After dealing with the rebellions of Magnentius and Silvanus, Constantius felt he needed a permanent representative in
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 ...
. In 355, Julian was summoned to appear before the emperor in Mediolanum and on 6 November was made ''
Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a 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 a civil war, an ...
'' of the West, marrying Constantius' sister, Helena. Constantius, after his experience with Gallus, intended his representative to be more a figurehead than an active participant in events, so he packed Julian off to Gaul with a small retinue, assuming his prefects in Gaul would keep Julian in check. At first reluctant to trade his scholarly life for war and politics, Julian eventually took every opportunity to involve himself in the affairs of Gaul. In the following years he learned how to lead and then run an army, through a series of campaigns against the
Germanic tribes
The Germanic peoples were historical groups of people that once occupied Central Europe and Scandinavia during antiquity and into the early Middle Ages. Since the 19th century, they have traditionally been defined by the use of ancient and e ...
During his first campaign in 356, Julian led an army to the Rhine, where he engaged the inhabitants and recovered several towns that had fallen into
Frankish
Frankish may refer to:
* Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture
** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages
* Francia, a post-Roman state in France and Germany
* East Francia, the successor state to Francia in Germany ...
hands, including
Colonia Agrippina
Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensium was the Roman colony in the Rhineland from which the city of Cologne, now in Germany, developed.
It was usually called ''Colonia'' (colony) and was the capital of the Roman province of Germania Inferior and t ...
(
Cologne
Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...
). With success under his belt he withdrew for the winter to Gaul, distributing his forces to protect various towns, and choosing the small town of Senon near
Verdun
Verdun (, , , ; official name before 1970 ''Verdun-sur-Meuse'') is a large city in the Meuse department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department.
Verdun is the biggest city in Meuse, although the capital ...
to await the spring. This turned out to be a tactical error, for he was left with insufficient forces to defend himself when a large contingent of Franks besieged the town and Julian was virtually held captive there for several months, until his general Marcellus deigned to lift the siege. Relations between Julian and Marcellus seem to have been poor. Constantius accepted Julian's report of events and Marcellus was replaced as '' magister equitum'' by Severus.
The following year saw a combined operation planned by Constantius to regain control of the Rhine from the Germanic peoples who had spilt across the river onto the west bank. From the south his ''
magister peditum
(Latin for "master of soldiers", plural ) was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine the Great. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, ...
''
Barbatio
Barbatio (died AD 359) was a Roman general of the infantry (Magister Peditum = Master of Foot) under the command of Constantius II. Previously he was a commander of the household troops (''protectores domestici'') under Gallus Caesar, but he arres ...
was to come from Milan and amass forces at
Augst
Augst ( Swiss German: ''Augscht'') is a municipality in the district of Liestal in the canton of Basel-Country in Switzerland. It was known as Augusta Raurica in Roman times.
History
Augst is first mentioned in 615 as ''Augustodunensem prae ...
(near the Rhine bend), then set off north with 25,000 soldiers; Julian with 13,000 troops would move east from
Durocortorum
Durocortorum was the name of the city Reims during the Roman era. It was the capital of the Remi tribe and the second largest city in Roman Gaul.
Before the Roman conquest of northern Gaul, the city was founded circa 80 BC, served as the cap ...
(
Rheims
Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne.
Founded by ...
). However, while Julian was in transit, a group of
Laeti
Laeti , the plural form of laetus , was a term used in the late Roman Empire to denote communities of ''barbari'' (" barbarians"), i.e. foreigners, or people from outside the Empire, permitted to settle on, and granted land in, imperial territory ...
attacked
Lugdunum
Lugdunum (also spelled Lugudunum, ; modern Lyon, France) was an important Roman city in Gaul, established on the current site of Lyon. The Roman city was founded in 43 BC by Lucius Munatius Plancus, but continued an existing Gallic settle ...
(
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...
) and Julian was delayed in order to deal with them. This left Barbatio unsupported and deep in Alamanni territory, so he felt obliged to withdraw, retracing his steps. Thus ended the coordinated operation against the Germanic peoples.
With Barbatio safely out of the picture, King
Chnodomarius
Chnodomar (Latinized Chnodomarius) was the king of an Alamannic canton in what is now south-west Germany, near the Rhine from sometime before 352 till 357. He seems to have had a recognized position among the other Alamanni.
Early career
Chnod ...
led a confederation of Alamanni forces against Julian and Severus at the
Battle of Argentoratum
The Battle of Strasbourg, also known as the Battle of Argentoratum, was fought in 357 between the Western Roman army under the ''Caesar'' (deputy emperor) Julian and the Alamanni tribal confederation led by the joint paramount King Chnodomar. ...
. The Romans were heavily outnumbered and during the heat of battle a group of 600 horsemen on the right wing deserted, yet, taking full advantage of the limitations of the terrain, the Romans were overwhelmingly victorious. The enemy was routed and driven into the river. King Chnodomarius was captured and later sent to Constantius in
Mediolanum
Mediolanum, the ancient city where Milan now stands, was originally an Insubrian city, but afterwards became an important Roman city in northern Italy. The city was settled by the Insubres around 600 BC, conquered by the Romans in 222 BC, and ...
.Cambridge Ancient History, v.13, p. 51.
Ammianus
Ammianus Marcellinus (occasionally anglicised as Ammian) (born , died 400) was a Roman soldier and historian who wrote the penultimate major historical account surviving from antiquity (preceding Procopius). His work, known as the ''Res Gest ...
, who was a participant in the battle, portrays Julian in charge of events on the battlefield and describes how the soldiers, because of this success, acclaimed Julian attempting to make him
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 Pr ...
, an acclamation he rejected, rebuking them. He later rewarded them for their valor.
Rather than chase the routed enemy across the Rhine, Julian now proceeded to follow the Rhine north, the route he followed the previous year on his way back to Gaul. At Moguntiacum (
Mainz
Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.
Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-west, with Ma ...
), however, he crossed the Rhine in an expedition that penetrated deep into what is today Germany, and forced three local kingdoms to submit. This action showed the Alamanni that Rome was once again present and active in the area. On his way back to winter quarters in Paris he dealt with a band of Franks who had taken control of some abandoned forts along the river
Meuse
The Meuse ( , , , ; wa, Moûze ) or Maas ( , ; li, Maos or ) is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a t ...
.
In 358, Julian gained victories over the
Salian Franks
The Salian Franks, also called the Salians (Latin: ''Salii''; Greek: Σάλιοι, ''Salioi''), were a northwestern subgroup of the early Franks who appear in the historical record in the fourth and fifth centuries. They lived west of the Low ...
on the
Lower Rhine
The Lower Rhine (german: Niederrhein; kilometres 660 to 1,033 of the river Rhine) flows from Bonn, Germany, to the North Sea at Hook of Holland, Netherlands (including the Nederrijn or "Nether Rhine" within the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta); al ...
, settling them in
Toxandria
Texandria (also Toxiandria; later Toxandria, Taxandria), is a region mentioned in the 4th century AD and during the Middle Ages. It was situated in the southern part of the modern Netherlands and in the northern part of present-day Belgium, current ...
in the Roman Empire, north of today's city of
Tongeren
Tongeren (; french: Tongres ; german: Tongern ; li, Tóngere ) is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg, in the southeastern corner of the Flemish region of Belgium. Tongeren is the oldest town in Belgium, as the onl ...
, and over the Chamavi, who were expelled back to
Hamaland
Hamaland (also Hameland) was a medieval Carolingian vassal county in the east of the modern-day Netherlands. Its name originated from the former Chamavi inhabitants that merged into the newly formed confederation of Franks. It is located east of ...
.
Taxation and administration
At the end of 357 Julian, with the prestige of his victory over the Alamanni to give him confidence, prevented a tax increase by the Gallic praetorian prefect Florentius and personally took charge of the province of ''
Belgica Secunda
Gallia Belgica ("Belgic Gaul") was a province of the Roman Empire located in the north-eastern part of Roman Gaul, in what is today primarily northern France, Belgium, and Luxembourg, along with parts of the Netherlands and Germany.
In 50 BC, af ...
''. This was Julian's first experience with civil administration, where his views were influenced by his liberal education in Greece. Properly it was a role that belonged to the praetorian prefect. However, Florentius and Julian often clashed over the administration of Gaul. Julian's first priority, as ''
Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a 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 a civil war, an ...
'' and nominal ranking commander in Gaul, was to drive out the barbarians who had breached the
frontier. He sought to win over the support of the civil population, which was necessary for his operations in Gaul, and also to show his largely Germanic army the benefits of Imperial rule. Julian therefore felt it was necessary to rebuild stable and peaceful conditions in the devastated cities and countryside. For this reason, Julian clashed with Florentius over the latter's support of tax increases, as mentioned above, and Florentius's own corruption in the bureaucracy.
Constantius attempted to maintain some modicum of control over his ''Caesar'', which explains his removal of Julian's close adviser Saturninius Secundus Salutius from Gaul. His departure stimulated the writing of Julian's oration, "Consolation Upon the Departure of Salutius".Athanassiadi, p. 69.
Rebellion in Paris
In the fourth year of Julian's stay in Gaul, the Sassanid emperor,
Shapur II
Shapur II ( pal, 𐭱𐭧𐭯𐭥𐭧𐭥𐭩 ; New Persian: , ''Šāpur'', 309 – 379), also known as Shapur the Great, was the tenth Sasanian King of Kings (Shahanshah) of Iran. The longest-reigning monarch in Iranian history, he reigne ...
, invaded Mesopotamia and took the city of Amida after a 73-day siege. In February 360, Constantius II ordered more than half of Julian's Gallic troops to join his eastern army, the order by-passing Julian and going directly to the military commanders. Although Julian at first attempted to expedite the order, it provoked an insurrection by troops of the ''
Petulantes
''Petulantes'' was an ''auxilia palatina'' of the Late Roman army.
History
It is possible they fought in the Battle of the Milvian Bridge for Emperor Constantine I (312). This assumption is based on the fact that Constantine had possibly had th ...
'', who had no desire to leave Gaul. According to the historian
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 ...
, the army officers were those responsible for distributing an anonymous tract expressing complaints against Constantius as well as fearing for Julian's ultimate fate. Notably absent at the time was the prefect Florentius, who was seldom far from Julian's side, though now he was kept busy organizing supplies in Vienne and away from any strife that the order could cause. Julian would later blame him for the arrival of the order from Constantius. Ammianus Marcellinus even suggested that the fear of Julian gaining more popularity than himself caused Constantius to send the order on the urging of Florentius.
The troops proclaimed Julian ''
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 Pr ...
'' in
Paris
Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
, and this in turn led to a very swift military effort to secure or win the allegiance of others. Although the full details are unclear, there is evidence to suggest that Julian may have at least partially stimulated the insurrection. If so, he went back to business as usual in Gaul, for, from June to August of that year, Julian led a successful campaign against the Attuarian Franks. In November, Julian began openly using the title ''Augustus,'' even issuing coins with the title, sometimes with Constantius, sometimes without. He celebrated his fifth year in Gaul with a big show of games.
In the spring of 361, Julian led his army into the territory of the Alamanni, where he captured their king,
Vadomarius
Vadomarius (german: Vadomar) was an Alemannic king and Roman general, who shared power with his brother Gundomadus. After instigating an indecisive campaign in Gaul against the Romans, Vadomarius and his brother signed a treaty with the Roman empe ...
. Julian claimed that Vadomarius had been in league with Constantius, encouraging him to raid the borders of
Raetia
Raetia ( ; ; also spelled Rhaetia) was a province of the Roman Empire, named after the Rhaetian people. It bordered on the west with the country of the Helvetii, on the east with Noricum, on the north with Vindelicia, on the south-west ...
. Julian then divided his forces, sending one column to Raetia, one to northern Italy and the third he led down the Danube on boats. His forces claimed control of Illyricum and his general, Nevitta, secured the pass of Succi into Thrace. He was now well out of his comfort zone and on the road to civil war. (Julian would state in late November that he set off down this road "because, having been declared a public enemy, I meant to frighten him onstantiusmerely, and that our quarrel should result in intercourse on more friendly terms...")
However, in June, forces loyal to Constantius captured the city of Aquileia on the north Adriatic coast, an event that threatened to cut Julian off from the rest of his forces, while Constantius's troops marched towards him from the east. Aquileia was subsequently besieged by 23,000 men loyal to Julian.J. Norwich, ''Byzantium: The Early Centuries'', 89 All Julian could do was sit it out in Naissus, the city of Constantine's birth, waiting for news and writing letters to various cities in Greece justifying his actions (of which only the letter to the Athenians has survived in its entirety).''Cambridge Ancient History'' v. 13, p. 60. Civil war was avoided only by the death on 3 November of Constantius, who, in his last will, is alleged by some sources to have recognized Julian as his rightful successor.
Empire and administration
On 11 December 361, Julian entered Constantinople as sole emperor and, despite his rejection of Christianity, his first political act was to preside over Constantius' Christian burial, escorting the body to the Church of the Apostles, where it was placed alongside that of Constantine. This act was a demonstration of his lawful right to the throne. He is also now thought to have been responsible for the building of
Santa Costanza
Santa Costanza is a 4th-century church in Rome, Italy, on the Via Nomentana, which runs north-east out of the city. It is a round building with well preserved original layout and mosaics. It has been built adjacent to a horseshoe-shaped church, n ...
on a Christian site just outside Rome as a mausoleum for his wife Helena and sister-in-law
Constantina
Flavia Valeria Constantina (also sometimes called ''Constantia'' and ''Constantiana''; el, Κωνσταντίνα; b. after 307/before 317 – d. 354), later known as Saint Constance, was the eldest daughter of Roman emperor Constantine the Great ...
.
The new Emperor rejected the style of administration of his immediate predecessors. He blamed Constantine for the state of the administration and for having abandoned the traditions of the past. He made no attempt to restore the tetrarchal system begun under Diocletian, nor did he seek to rule as an absolute autocrat. His own philosophic notions led him to idealize the reigns of Hadrian and
Marcus Aurelius
Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (Latin: áːɾkus̠ auɾέːli.us̠ antɔ́ːni.us̠ English: ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 AD and a Stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good ...
. In his first panegyric to Constantius, Julian described the ideal ruler as being essentially '' primus inter pares'' ("first among equals"), operating under the same laws as his subjects. While in Constantinople, therefore, it was not strange to see Julian frequently active in the Senate, participating in debates and making speeches, placing himself at the level of the other members of the Senate.
He viewed the royal court of his predecessors as inefficient, corrupt and expensive. Thousands of servants, eunuchs and superfluous officials were therefore summarily dismissed. He set up the
Chalcedon tribunal Shortly after the death of Roman emperor Constantius II, his successor Julian held a tribunal at the city of Chalcedon, which was then a suburb of Constantinople. Saturninius Secundus Salutius, who was raised to the rank of Praetorian Prefect was g ...
to deal with the corruption of the previous administration under the supervision of ''
magister militum
(Latin for "master of soldiers", plural ) was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine the Great. The term referred to the senior military officer (equivalent to a war theatre commander, ...
''
Arbitio
Flavius Arbitio ( fl. 354–366 AD) was a Roman general and Consul who lived in the middle of the 4th century AD.
In the Reign of Constantius II
Arbitio was a general of Constantine I. Under Constantius II, the son and successor of Constantine ...
. Several high-ranking officials under Constantius, including the chamberlain Eusebius, were found guilty and executed. (Julian was conspicuously absent from the proceedings, perhaps signalling his displeasure at their necessity.) He continually sought to reduce what he saw as a burdensome and corrupt bureaucracy within the Imperial administration whether it involved civic officials, secret agents or the imperial postal service.
Another effect of Julian's political philosophy was that the authority of the cities was expanded at the expense of the imperial bureaucracy as Julian sought to reduce direct imperial involvement in urban affairs. For example, city land owned by the imperial government was returned to the cities, city council members were compelled to resume civic authority, often against their will, and the tribute in gold by the cities called the ''aurum coronarium'' was made voluntary rather than a compulsory tax. Additionally, arrears of land taxes were cancelled. This was a key reform reducing the power of corrupt imperial officials, as the unpaid taxes on land were often hard to calculate or higher than the value of the land itself. Forgiving back taxes both made Julian more popular and allowed him to increase collections of current taxes.
While he ceded much of the authority of the imperial government to the cities, Julian also took more direct control himself. For example, new taxes and
corvée
Corvée () is a form of unpaid, forced labour, that is intermittent in nature lasting for limited periods of time: typically for only a certain number of days' work each year.
Statute labour is a corvée imposed by a state for the purposes of ...
s had to be approved by him directly rather than left to the judgement of the bureaucratic apparatus. Julian certainly had a clear idea of what he wanted Roman society to be, both in political as well as religious terms. The terrible and violent dislocation of the 3rd century meant that the Eastern Mediterranean had become the economic locus of the Empire. If the cities were treated as relatively autonomous local administrative areas, it would simplify the problems of imperial administration, which as far as Julian was concerned, should be focused on the administration of the law and defense of the empire's vast frontiers.
In replacing Constantius's political and civil appointees, Julian drew heavily from the intellectual and professional classes, or kept reliable holdovers, such as the rhetorician
Themistius
Themistius ( grc-gre, Θεμίστιος ; 317 – c. 388 AD), nicknamed Euphrades, (eloquent), was a statesman, rhetorician, and philosopher. He flourished in the reigns of Constantius II, Julian, Jovian, Valens, Gratian, and Theodosius I; ...
. His choice of consuls for the year 362 was more controversial. One was the very acceptable
Claudius Mamertinus Claudius Mamertinus (fl. mid-late 4th century AD) was an official in the Roman Empire. In late 361 he took part in the Chalcedon tribunal to condemn the ministers of Constantius II, and in 362, he was made consul as a reward by the new Emperor Juli ...
Nevitta Nevitta ( 357–363) was a Roman military leader and official in the Roman Empire. His career is closely linked to that of the emperor Julian. He was master of the cavalry and in 362 served as consul.
Life
Nevitta is first mentioned regarding a b ...
, Julian's trusted
Frankish
Frankish may refer to:
* Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture
** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages
* Francia, a post-Roman state in France and Germany
* East Francia, the successor state to Francia in Germany ...
general. This latter appointment made overt the fact that an emperor's authority depended on the power of the army. Julian's choice of Nevitta appears to have been aimed at maintaining the support of the Western army which had acclaimed him.
Clash with the Antiochenes
After five months of dealings at the capital, Julian left Constantinople in May and moved to
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ ...
, arriving in mid-July and staying there for nine months before launching his fateful campaign against Persia in March 363. Antioch was a city favored by splendid temples along with a famous oracle of Apollo in nearby Daphne, which may have been one reason for his choosing to reside there. It had also been used in the past as a staging place for amassing troops, a purpose which Julian intended to follow.
His arrival on 18 July was well received by the Antiochenes, though it coincided with the celebration of the
Adonia
The Adonia (Greek: ) was a festival celebrated annually by women in ancient Greece to mourn the death of Adonis, the consort of Aphrodite. It is best attested in classical Athens, though other sources provide evidence for the ritual mourning of ...
, a festival which marked the death of
Adonis
In Greek mythology, Adonis, ; derived from the Canaanite word ''ʼadōn'', meaning "lord". R. S. P. Beekes, ''Etymological Dictionary of Greek'', Brill, 2009, p. 23. was the mortal lover of the goddess Aphrodite.
One day, Adonis was gored by ...
, so there was wailing and moaning in the streets—not a good omen for an arrival.Bowersock, p. 96.
Julian soon discovered that wealthy merchants were causing food problems, apparently by hoarding food and selling it at high prices. He hoped that the curia would deal with the issue for the situation was headed for a famine. When the curia did nothing, he spoke to the city's leading citizens, trying to persuade them to take action. Thinking that they would do the job, he turned his attention to religious matters.
He tried to resurrect the ancient oracular spring of
Castalia
Castalia ( grc, Κασταλία), in Greek mythology, was a naiad-nymph, a daughter of Achelous who inhabited the Castalian spring in Delphi. In older traditions, Castalian spring already existed by the time Apollo came to Delphi searching f ...
at the temple of Apollo at Delphi. After being advised that the bones of 3rd-century bishop Babylas were suppressing the god, he made a public-relations mistake in ordering the removal of the bones from the vicinity of the temple. The result was a massive Christian procession. Shortly after that, when the temple was destroyed by fire, Julian suspected the Christians and ordered stricter investigations than usual. He also shut up the chief Christian church of the city, before the investigations proved that the fire was the result of an accident.
When the curia still took no substantial action in regards to the food shortage, Julian intervened, fixing the prices for grain and importing more from Egypt. Then landholders refused to sell theirs, claiming that the harvest was so bad that they had to be compensated with fair prices. Julian accused them of
price gouging
Price gouging is a pejorative term used to describe the situation when a seller increases the prices of goods, services, or commodities to a level much higher than is considered reasonable or fair. Usually, this event occurs after a demand or ...
and forced them to sell. Various parts of Libanius' orations may suggest that both sides were justified to some extent; while Ammianus blames Julian for "a mere thirst for popularity".
Julian's ascetic lifestyle was not popular either, since his subjects were accustomed to the idea of an all-powerful Emperor who placed himself well above them. Nor did he improve his dignity with his own participation in the ceremonial of bloody sacrifices.
David Stone Potter said after nearly two millennia:
He then tried to address public criticism and mocking of him by issuing a satire ostensibly on himself, called Misopogon or "Beard Hater". There he blames the people of Antioch for preferring that their ruler have his virtues in the face rather than in the soul.
Julian's fellow pagans were of a divided mind about this habit of talking to his subjects on an equal footing: Ammianus Marcellinus saw in that only the foolish vanity of someone "excessively anxious for empty distinction", whose "desire for popularity often led him to converse with unworthy persons".
On leaving Antioch he appointed Alexander of Heliopolis as governor, a violent and cruel man whom the Antiochene
Libanius
Libanius ( grc-gre, Λιβάνιος, Libanios; ) was a teacher of rhetoric of the Sophist school in the Eastern Roman Empire. His prolific writings make him one of the best documented teachers of higher education in the ancient world and a criti ...
, a friend of the emperor, admits on first thought was a "dishonourable" appointment. Julian himself described the man as "undeserving" of the position, but appropriate "for the avaricious and rebellious people of Antioch".
Persian campaign
Julian's rise to ''Augustus'' was the result of military insurrection eased by Constantius's sudden death. This meant that, while he could count on the wholehearted support of the Western army which had aided his rise, the Eastern army was an unknown quantity originally loyal to the Emperor he had risen against, and he had tried to woo it through the
Chalcedon tribunal Shortly after the death of Roman emperor Constantius II, his successor Julian held a tribunal at the city of Chalcedon, which was then a suburb of Constantinople. Saturninius Secundus Salutius, who was raised to the rank of Praetorian Prefect was g ...
. However, to solidify his position in the eyes of the eastern army, he needed to lead its soldiers to victory and a campaign against the
Sassanid Persians
The Sasanian () or Sassanid Empire, officially known as the Empire of Iranians (, ) and also referred to by historians as the Neo-Persian Empire, was the last Iranian empire before the early Muslim conquests of the 7th-8th centuries AD. Named ...
offered such an opportunity.
An audacious plan was formulated whose goal was to lay siege on the Sassanid capital city of Ctesiphon and definitively secure the eastern border. Yet the full motivation for this ambitious operation is, at best, unclear. There was no direct necessity for an invasion, as the Sassanids sent envoys in the hope of settling matters peacefully. Julian rejected this offer. Ammianus states that Julian longed for revenge on the Persians and that a certain desire for combat and glory also played a role in his decision to go to war.
Into enemy territory
On 5 March 363, despite a series of omens against the campaign, Julian departed from Antioch with about 65,000–83,000, or 80,000–90,000 men (the traditional number accepted by Gibbon is 95,000 effectives total), and headed north toward the
Euphrates
The Euphrates () is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia ( ''the land between the rivers''). Originating in Turkey, the Eup ...
. En route he was met by embassies from various small powers offering assistance, none of which he accepted. He did order the Armenian King
Arsaces Arsaces or Arsakes (, , Graecized form of Old Persian ) is the eponymous Greek form of the dynastic name of the Parthian Empire of Iran adopted by all epigraphically attested rulers of the Arsacid dynasties. The indigenous Parthian and Armenian f ...
to muster an army and await instructions. He crossed the Euphrates near Hierapolis and moved eastward to Carrhae, giving the impression that his chosen route into Persian territory was down the
Tigris
The Tigris () is the easternmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, the other being the Euphrates. The river flows south from the mountains of the Armenian Highlands through the Syrian and Arabian Deserts, and empties into the ...
. For this reason it seems he sent a force of 30,000 soldiers under
Procopius
Procopius of Caesarea ( grc-gre, Προκόπιος ὁ Καισαρεύς ''Prokópios ho Kaisareús''; la, Procopius Caesariensis; – after 565) was a prominent late antique Greek scholar from Caesarea Maritima. Accompanying the Roman gen ...
and Sebastianus further eastward to devastate
Media
Media may refer to:
Communication
* Media (communication), tools used to deliver information or data
** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising
** Broadcast media, communications delivered over mass e ...
in conjunction with Armenian forces.Bowersock, ''Julian the Apostate'', p. 110. This was where two earlier Roman campaigns had concentrated and where the main Persian forces were soon directed.David S, Potter, ''The Roman Empire at Bay'', p. 517. Julian's strategy lay elsewhere, however. He had had a fleet built of over 1,000 ships at
Samosata
Samsat ( ku, Samîsad), formerly Samosata ( grc, Σαμόσατα) is a small town in the Adıyaman Province of Turkey, situated on the upper Euphrates river. It is the seat of Samsat District. Julian's ultimate aim seems to have been "regime change" by replacing king
Shapur II
Shapur II ( pal, 𐭱𐭧𐭯𐭥𐭧𐭥𐭩 ; New Persian: , ''Šāpur'', 309 – 379), also known as Shapur the Great, was the tenth Sasanian King of Kings (Shahanshah) of Iran. The longest-reigning monarch in Iranian history, he reigne ...
with his brother Hormisdas.
After feigning a march further eastward, Julian's army turned south to Circesium at the confluence of the
Abora
Abora is the name of an ancestral solar deity of La Palma ( Canary Islands) and a traditional god of the Guanches.
Supreme being
Abora (Ibru) is the name of the supreme being of the religion of the Guanches on the island of La Palma. In G ...
(Khabur) and the Euphrates arriving at the beginning of April. Passing Dura on 6 April, the army made good progress, bypassing towns after negotiations or besieging those which chose to oppose him. At the end of April the Romans captured the fortress of Pirisabora, which guarded the canal approach from the Euphrates to Ctesiphon on the Tigris. As the army marched toward the Persian capital, the Sassanids broke the dikes which crossed the land, turning it into
marshland
A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...
, slowing the progress of the Roman army.
Ctesiphon
By mid-May, the army had reached the vicinity of the heavily fortified Persian capital, Ctesiphon, where Julian partially unloaded some of the fleet and had his troops ferried across the Tigris by night. The Romans gained a tactical victory over the Persians before the gates of the city, driving them back into the city.Cambridge Ancient History, p. 75. However, the Persian capital was not taken. Concerned with the risk of becoming encircled and trapped within the city's walls, master-general
Victor
The name Victor or Viktor may refer to:
* Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname
Arts and entertainment
Film
* ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film
* ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...
ordered his soldiers not to enter the open gates of the city in pursuit of the defeated Persians. Resultantly, the main Persian army was still at large and approaching, while the Romans lacked a clear strategic objective. In the council of war which followed, Julian's generals persuaded him not to mount a
siege
A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characteriz ...
against the city, given the impregnability of its defences and the fact that Shapur would soon arrive with a large force. Julian, not wanting to give up what he had gained and probably still hoping for the arrival of the column under Procopius and Sebastianus, set off east into the Persian interior, ordering the destruction of the fleet. This proved to be a hasty decision, for they were on the wrong side of the Tigris with no clear means of retreat and the Persians had begun to harass them from a distance, burning any food in the Romans' path. Julian had not brought adequate siege equipment, so there was nothing he could do when he found that the Persians had flooded the area behind him, forcing him to withdraw. A second council of war on 16 June 363 decided that the best course of action was to lead the army back to the safety of Roman borders, not through
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...
, but northward to Corduene.Dodgeon & Lieu, ''The Roman Eastern Frontier and the Persian Wars'', p. 205.
Death
During the withdrawal, Julian's forces suffered several attacks from Sassanid forces. In one such engagement on 26 June 363, the indecisive Battle of Samarra near Maranga, Julian was wounded when the Sassanid army raided his column. In the haste of pursuing the retreating enemy, Julian chose speed rather than caution, taking only his sword and leaving his coat of mail. He received a wound from a spear that reportedly pierced the lower lobe of his liver and intestines. The wound was not immediately deadly. Julian was treated by his personal physician,
Oribasius
Oribasius or Oreibasius ( el, Ὀρειβάσιος; c. 320 – 403) was a Greek medical writer and the personal physician of the Roman emperor Julian. He studied at Alexandria under physician Zeno of Cyprus before joining Julian's retinue. He ...
of Pergamum, who seems to have made every attempt to treat the wound. This probably included the irrigation of the wound with a dark
wine
Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...
, and a procedure known as ''gastrorrhaphy'', the suturing of the damaged intestine. On the third day a major hemorrhage occurred and the emperor died during the night. As Julian wished, his body was buried outside Tarsus, though it was later moved to Constantinople.
In 364, Libanius stated that Julian was assassinated by a Christian who was one of his own soldiers; this charge is not corroborated by
Ammianus Marcellinus
Ammianus Marcellinus (occasionally anglicised as Ammian) (born , died 400) was a Roman soldier and historian who wrote the penultimate major historical account surviving from antiquity (preceding Procopius). His work, known as the ''Res Gestae ...
or other contemporary historians. John Malalas reports that the supposed assassination was commanded by Basil of Caesarea. Fourteen years later, Libanius said that Julian was killed by a
Saracen
upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens
Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek and Latin writings, to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Romans as Arabia Pe ...
(
Lakhmid
The Lakhmids ( ar, اللخميون, translit=al-Laḫmiyyūn) referred to in Arabic as al-Manādhirah (, romanized as: ) or Banu Lakhm (, romanized as: ) was an Arab kingdom in Southern Iraq and Eastern Arabia, with al-Hirah as their capital ...
) and this may have been confirmed by Julian's doctor Oribasius who, having examined the wound, said that it was from a spear used by a group of Lakhmid auxiliaries in Persian service. Later Christian historians propagated the tradition that Julian was killed by
Saint Mercurius
Mercurius ( el, Ἅγιος Μερκούριος, cop, Ⲫⲓⲗⲟⲡⲁⲧⲏⲣ Ⲙⲉⲣⲕⲟⲩⲣⲓⲟⲥ; 224/225 – 250 AD) was a Saracen soldier who became a Christian saint and martyr. He was born in the city of Eskentos in Cappado ...
.
Legacy
Julian was succeeded by the short-lived Emperor
Jovian
Jovian is the adjectival form of Jupiter and may refer to:
* Jovian (emperor) (Flavius Iovianus Augustus), Roman emperor (363–364 AD)
* Jovians and Herculians, Roman imperial guard corps
* Jovian (lemur), a Coquerel's sifaka known for ''Zoboomafo ...
who reestablished Christianity's privileged position throughout the Empire.
Libanius says in his epitaph of the deceased emperor (18.304) that "I have mentioned representations (of Julian); many cities have set him beside the images of the gods and honour him as they do the gods. Already a blessing has been besought of him in prayer, and it was not in vain. To such an extent has he literally ascended to the gods and received a share of their power from him themselves." However, no similar action was taken by the Roman central government, which would be more and more dominated by Christians in the ensuing decades.
Considered apocryphal is the report that his dying words were , or ("You have won,
Galilean
Generically, a Galilean (; he, גלילי; grc, Γαλιλαίων; la, Galilaeos) is an inhabitant of Galilee, a region of Israel surrounding the Sea of Galilee (Kinneret). The New Testament notes that the Apostle Peter's accent gave him ...
"), supposedly expressing his recognition that, with his death,
Christianity
Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global pop ...
would become the Empire's state religion. The phrase introduces the 1866 poem " Hymn to Proserpine", which was Algernon Charles Swinburne's elaboration of what a philosophic pagan might have felt at the triumph of Christianity. It also ends the Polish Romantic play ''
The Undivine Comedy
''The Undivine Comedy'' or ''The Un-divine Comedy'' ( pl, Nie Boska komedia or ''Nie-boska komedia''), is a play written by Polish Romantic poet Zygmunt Krasiński in 1833, published anonymously in 1835. Its main theme is sociopolitical conf ...
'' written in 1833 by
Zygmunt Krasiński
Napoleon Stanisław Adam Feliks Zygmunt Krasiński (; 19 February 1812 – 23 February 1859) was a Polish poet traditionally ranked after Adam Mickiewicz and Juliusz Słowacki as one of Poland's Three Bards – the Romantic poets who influence ...
.
Tomb
As he had requested, Julian's body was buried in Tarsus. It lay in a tomb outside the city, across a road from that of Maximinus Daia.
However, chronicler
Zonaras
Joannes or John Zonaras ( grc-gre, Ἰωάννης Ζωναρᾶς ; 1070 – 1140) was a Byzantine Greek historian, chronicler and theologian who lived in Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul, Turkey). Under Emperor Alexios I Komnenos he held th ...
says that at some "later" date his body was exhumed and reburied in or near the
Church of the Holy Apostles
The Church of the Holy Apostles ( el, , ''Agioi Apostoloi''; tr, Havariyyun Kilisesi), also known as the ''Imperial Polyándreion'' (imperial cemetery), was a Byzantine Eastern Orthodox church in Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman E ...
in Constantinople, where Constantine and the rest of his family lay. His sarcophagus is listed as standing in a "stoa" there by
Constantine Porphyrogenitus
Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus (; 17 May 905 – 9 November 959) was the fourth Emperor of the Macedonian dynasty of the Byzantine Empire, reigning from 6 June 913 to 9 November 959. He was the son of Emperor Leo VI and his fourth wife, Zoe Ka ...
. The church was demolished by the Ottomans after the fall of Constantinople in 1453. Today a sarcophagus of porphyry, believed by Jean Ebersolt to be Julian's, stands in the grounds of the Archaeological Museum in Istanbul.
Religious issues
Beliefs
Julian's personal religion was both pagan and philosophical; he viewed the traditional myths as allegories, in which the ancient gods were aspects of a philosophical divinity. The chief surviving sources are his works ''To King Helios'' and ''To the Mother of the Gods'', which were written as panegyrics, not theological treatises.
As the last pagan ruler of the Roman Empire, Julian's beliefs are of great interest for historians, but they are not in complete agreement. He learned
theurgy
Theurgy (; ) describes the practice of rituals, sometimes seen as magical in nature, performed with the intention of invoking the action or evoking the presence of one or more deities, especially with the goal of achieving henosis (uniting w ...
from
Maximus of Ephesus
Maximus of Ephesus ( grc-gre, Μάξιμος ὁ Ἐφέσιος; c. 310 – 372 AD) was a Neoplatonist philosopher. He is said to have come from a rich family, and exercised great influence over the emperor Julian, who was commended to him by Ae ...
, a student of Iamblichus; his system bears some resemblance to the Neoplatonism of
Plotinus
Plotinus (; grc-gre, Πλωτῖνος, ''Plōtînos''; – 270 CE) was a philosopher in the Hellenistic tradition, born and raised in Roman Egypt. Plotinus is regarded by modern scholarship as the founder of Neoplatonism. His teacher wa ...
; Polymnia Athanassiadi has brought new attention to his relations with Mithraism, although whether he was initiated into it remains debatable; and certain aspects of his thought (such as his reorganization of paganism under High Priests, and his fundamental
monotheism
Monotheism is the belief that there is only one deity, an all-supreme being that is universally referred to as God. Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A., eds. (1974). "Monotheism". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxfo ...
) may show Christian influence. Some of these potential sources have not come down to us, and all of them influenced each other, which adds to the difficulties.
According to one theory (that of
Glen Bowersock
Glen Warren Bowersock (born January 12, 1936 in Providence, Rhode Island) is a historian of ancient Greece, Rome and the Near East, and former Chairman of Harvard’s classics department.
Early life
Bowersock was born in Providence, Rhode Island a ...
in particular), Julian's paganism was highly eccentric and atypical because it was heavily influenced by an esoteric approach to Platonic philosophy sometimes identified as ''theurgy'' and also ''Neoplatonism''. Others (Rowland Smith, in particular) have argued that Julian's philosophical perspective was nothing unusual for a "cultured" pagan of his time, and, at any rate, that Julian's paganism was not limited to philosophy alone, and that he was deeply devoted to the same gods and goddesses as other pagans of his day.
Because of his Neoplatonist background Julian accepted the creation of humanity as described in
Plato
Plato ( ; grc-gre, Πλάτων ; 428/427 or 424/423 – 348/347 BC) was a Greek philosopher born in Athens during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. He founded the Platonist school of thought and the Academy, the first institution ...
's ''
Timaeus Timaeus (or Timaios) is a Greek name. It may refer to:
* ''Timaeus'' (dialogue), a Socratic dialogue by Plato
*Timaeus of Locri, 5th-century BC Pythagorean philosopher, appearing in Plato's dialogue
*Timaeus (historian) (c. 345 BC-c. 250 BC), Greek ...
''. Julian writes, "when Zeus was setting all things in order there fell from him drops of sacred blood, and from them, as they say, arose the race of men." Further he writes, "they who had the power to create one man and one woman only, were able to create many men and women at once..." His view contrasts with the Christian belief that humanity is derived from the one pair, Adam and Eve. Elsewhere he argues against the single pair origin, indicating his disbelief, noting for example, "how very different in their bodies are the Germans and Scythians from the Libyans and Ethiopians."
The Christian historian
Socrates Scholasticus
Socrates of Constantinople ( 380 – after 439), also known as Socrates Scholasticus ( grc-gre, Σωκράτης ὁ Σχολαστικός), was a 5th-century Greek Christian church historian, a contemporary of Sozomen and Theodoret.
He is th ...
was of the opinion that Julian believed himself to be
Alexander the Great
Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...
"in another body" via
transmigration of souls
Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrection is a ...
, "in accordance with the teachings of
Pythagoras
Pythagoras of Samos ( grc, Πυθαγόρας ὁ Σάμιος, Pythagóras ho Sámios, Pythagoras the Samian, or simply ; in Ionian Greek; ) was an ancient Ionian Greek philosopher and the eponymous founder of Pythagoreanism. His politi ...
and Plato".
The diet of Julian is said to have been predominantly vegetable-based.
Restoration of state paganism
After gaining the
purple
Purple is any of a variety of colors with hue between red and blue. In the RGB color model used in computer and television screens, purples are produced by mixing red and blue light. In the RYB color model historically used by painters, ...
, Julian started a religious reformation of the empire, which was intended to restore the lost strength of the Roman state. He supported the restoration of
Hellenistic
In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...
polytheism as the state religion. His laws tended to target wealthy and educated Christians, and his aim was not to destroy Christianity but to drive the religion out of "the governing classes of the empire—much as
Chinese Buddhism
Chinese Buddhism or Han Buddhism ( zh, s=汉传佛教, t=漢傳佛教, p=Hànchuán Fójiào) is a Chinese form of Mahayana Buddhism which has shaped Chinese culture in a wide variety of areas including art, politics, literature, philosophy, ...
was driven back into the lower classes by a revived
Confucian
Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, a way of governing, or ...
mandarinate in 13th century China."Brown, Peter, ''The World of Late Antiquity'', W. W. Norton, New York, 1971, p. 93.
He restored pagan temples which had been confiscated since Constantine's time, or simply appropriated by wealthy citizens; he repealed the stipends that Constantine had awarded to Christian bishops, and removed their other privileges, including a right to be consulted on appointments and to act as private courts. He also reversed some favors that had previously been given to Christians. For example, he reversed Constantine's declaration that
Majuma
Maiuma or Maiumas was an ancient town at the site of present-day Rimal near Gaza, Palestine.
History of Maiuma
In antiquity, Gaza port was the principal port on the Mediterranean serving the Incense Road. Strabo and Ptolemy referred to it as ' ...
city
A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin Dictionary of Human Geography''. London: Penguin.Kuper, A. and Kuper, J., eds (1996) ''The Social Science Encyclopedia''. 2nd edition. London: Routledge. It can be def ...
. Majuma had a large Christian congregation while Gaza was still predominantly pagan.
On 4 February 362, Julian promulgated an edict to guarantee freedom of religion. This edict proclaimed that all the religions were equal before the law, and that the Roman Empire had to return to its original religious eclecticism, according to which the Roman state did not impose any religion on its provinces. The edict was seen as an act of favor toward the Jews, in order to upset the Christians.
Since the
persecution of Christians
The persecution of Christians can be historically traced from the first century of the Christian era to the present day. Christian missionaries and converts to Christianity have both been targeted for persecution, sometimes to the point of ...
by past Roman Emperors had seemingly only strengthened Christianity, many of Julian's actions were designed to harass Christians and undermine their ability to organize resistance to the re-establishment of paganism in the empire.Julian, ''Epistulae'', 52.436A ff. Julian's preference for a non-Christian and non-philosophical view of Iamblichus' theurgy seems to have convinced him that it was right to outlaw the Christian liturgy and demand the suppression of the Christian Holy Mysteries ( Sacraments).
In his ''School Edict'' Julian required that all public teachers be approved by the Emperor; the state paid or supplemented much of their salaries. Ammianus Marcellinus explains this as intending to prevent Christian teachers from using pagan texts (such as the ''
Iliad
The ''Iliad'' (; grc, Ἰλιάς, Iliás, ; "a poem about Ilium") is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the '' Odys ...
'', which was widely regarded as divinely inspired) that formed the core of classical education: "If they want to learn literature, they have
Luke
People
*Luke (given name), a masculine given name (including a list of people and characters with the name)
*Luke (surname) (including a list of people and characters with the name)
*Luke the Evangelist, author of the Gospel of Luke. Also known as ...
and
Mark
Mark may refer to:
Currency
* Bosnia and Herzegovina convertible mark, the currency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
* East German mark, the currency of the German Democratic Republic
* Estonian mark, the currency of Estonia between 1918 and 1927
* F ...
: Let them go back to their churches and expound on them", the edict says. This was an attempt to remove some of the influence of the Christian schools which at that time and later used ancient Greek literature in their teachings in their effort to present the Christian religion as being superior to paganism. The edict also dealt a severe financial blow to many Christian scholars, tutors and teachers, as it deprived them of students.
In his ''Tolerance Edict'' of 362, Julian decreed the reopening of pagan temples, the restitution of confiscated temple properties, and the return from exile of "
heretical
Heresy is any belief or theory that is strongly at variance with established beliefs or customs, in particular the accepted beliefs of a church or religious organization. The term is usually used in reference to violations of important religi ...
" Christian bishops who had been censured or excommunicated by the
Church
Church may refer to:
Religion
* Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities
* Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination
* Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship
* C ...
. The latter was an instance of tolerance of different religious views, but it may also have been an attempt by Julian to foster schisms and divisions between his Christian rivals, since disputes over what constituted orthodox Catholic teaching could become quite fierce.
His care in the institution of a pagan hierarchy in opposition to that of the Church's hierarchy was due to his wish to create a society in which every aspect of the life of the citizens was to be connected, through layers of intermediate levels, to the consolidated figure of the Emperor—the final provider for all the needs of his people. Within this project, there was no place for a parallel institution, such as the Church's hierarchy or Christian charity.Se Roberts and DiMaio
Paganism's shift under Julian
Julian's popularity among the people and the army during his brief reign suggest that he might have brought paganism back to the fore of Roman public and private life. In fact, during his lifetime, neither pagan nor Christian ideology reigned supreme, and the greatest thinkers of the day argued about the merits and rationality of each religion. Most importantly for the pagan cause, though, Rome was still a predominantly pagan empire that had not wholly accepted Christianity.
Even so, Julian's short reign did not stem the tide of Christianity. The emperor's ultimate failure can arguably be attributed to the manifold religious traditions and deities that paganism promulgated. Most pagans sought religious affiliations that were unique to their culture and people, and they had internal divisions that prevented them from creating any one ‘pagan religion.’ Indeed, the term pagan was simply a convenient appellation for Christians to lump together the believers of a system they opposed. In truth, there was no Roman religion, as modern observers would recognize it.Jonathan Kirsch, God against the Gods (New York: Penguin Group, 2004), 9. Instead, paganism came from a system of observances that one historian has characterized as “no more than a spongy mass of tolerance and tradition.”
This system of tradition had already shifted dramatically by the time Julian came to power; gone were the days of massive sacrifices honoring the gods. The communal festivals that involved sacrifice and feasting, which once united communities, now tore them apart—Christian against pagan. Civic leaders did not even have the funds, much less the support, to hold religious festivals. Julian found the financial base that had supported these ventures (sacred temple funds) had been seized by his uncle Constantine to support the Christian Church.Scott Bradbury, "Julian's Pagan Revival and the Decline of Blood Sacrifice," Phoenix 49 (1995): 352. In all, Julian's short reign simply could not shift the feeling of inertia that had swept across the Empire. Christians had denounced sacrifice, stripped temples of their funds, and cut priests and magistrates off from the social prestige and financial benefits accompanying leading pagan positions in the past. Leading politicians and civic leaders had little motivation to rock the boat by reviving pagan festivals. Instead, they chose to adopt the middle ground by having ceremonies and mass entertainment that were religiously neutral.
After witnessing the reign of two emperors bent on supporting the Church and stamping out paganism, it is understandable that pagans simply did not embrace Julian's idea of proclaiming their devotion to polytheism and their rejection of Christianity. Many chose to adopt a practical approach and not support Julian's public reforms actively for fear of a Christian revival. However, this apathetic attitude forced the emperor to shift central aspects of pagan worship. Julian's attempts to reinvigorate the people shifted the focus of paganism from a system of tradition to a religion with some of the same characteristics that he opposed in Christianity. For example, Julian attempted to introduce a tighter organization for the priesthood, with greater qualifications of character and service. Classical paganism simply did not accept this idea of priests as model citizens. Priests were elites with social prestige and financial power who organized festivals and helped pay for them. Yet Julian's attempt to impose moral strictness on the civic position of priesthood only made paganism more in tune with Christian morality, drawing it further from paganism's system of tradition.
Indeed, this development of a pagan order created the foundations of a bridge of reconciliation over which paganism and Christianity could meet. Likewise, Julian's persecution of Christians, who by pagan standards were simply part of a different cult, was quite an un-pagan attitude that transformed paganism into a religion that accepted only one form of religious experience while excluding all others—such as Christianity. In trying to compete with Christianity in this manner, Julian fundamentally changed the nature of pagan worship. That is, he made paganism a religion, whereas it once had been only a system of tradition.
Juventinus and Maximus
Many of the Church fathers viewed the emperor with hostility, and told stories of his supposed wickedness after his death. A sermon by Saint
John Chrysostom
John Chrysostom (; gr, Ἰωάννης ὁ Χρυσόστομος; 14 September 407) was an important Early Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of ...
, entitled ''On Saints
Juventinus and Maximinus
Saints Juventinus (or Juventius) and Maximinus (died 29 January 363) were members of the imperial guard of Emperor Julian. Their feast day is 25 January.
Before starting his campaign against the Sassanid Empire, Julian issued an edict that prohi ...
,'' tells the story of two of Julian's soldiers at Antioch, who were overheard at a drinking party, criticizing the emperor's religious policies, and taken into custody. According to John, the emperor had made a deliberate effort to avoid creating martyrs of those who disagreed with his reforms; but Juventinus and Maximinus admitted to being Christians, and refused to moderate their stance. John asserts that the emperor forbade anyone from having contact with the men, but that nobody obeyed his orders; so he had the two men executed in the middle of the night. John urges his audience to visit the tomb of these martyrs.
Charity
The fact that Christian charities were open to all, including pagans, put this aspect of Roman citizens' lives out of the control of Imperial authority and under that of the Church. Thus Julian envisioned the institution of a Roman philanthropic system, and cared for the behaviour and the morality of the pagan priests, in the hope that it would mitigate the reliance of pagans on Christian charity, saying: ''"These impious Galileans not only feed their own poor, but ours also; welcoming them into their agapae, they attract them, as children are attracted, with cakes."''
Attempt to rebuild the Jewish Temple
In 363, not long before Julian left Antioch to launch his campaign against Persia, in keeping with his effort to oppose Christianity, he allowed Jews to rebuild their Temple. The point was that the rebuilding of the Temple would invalidate Jesus’ prophecy about its destruction in 70, which Christians had cited as proof of Jesus' truth. But fires broke out and stopped the project. A personal friend of his,
Ammianus Marcellinus
Ammianus Marcellinus (occasionally anglicised as Ammian) (born , died 400) was a Roman soldier and historian who wrote the penultimate major historical account surviving from antiquity (preceding Procopius). His work, known as the ''Res Gestae ...
, wrote this about the effort:
The failure to rebuild the Temple has been ascribed to the
Galilee earthquake of 363
The Galilee earthquake of 363 was a pair of severe earthquakes that shook the Galilee and nearby regions on May 18 and 19. The maximum perceived intensity for the events was estimated to be VII (''Very strong'') on the Medvedev–Sponheuer–Kar ...
. Although there is contemporary testimony for the miracle, in the Orations of St. Gregory Nazianzen,
Edward Gibbon
Edward Gibbon (; 8 May 173716 January 1794) was an English historian, writer, and member of parliament. His most important work, '' The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'', published in six volumes between 1776 and 1788, is ...
considered this to be unreliable. Other possibilities are accidental fire or deliberate sabotage. Divine intervention was for centuries a common view among Christian historians,
Se "Julian and the Jews 361–363 CE" (Fordham University, The Jesuit University of New York) an and it was seen as proof of Jesus’ divinity.
Julian's support of
Jews
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
caused Jews to call him "Julian the
Hellene
The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, oth ...
".
Works
Julian wrote several works in Greek, some of which have come down to us.
* Budé indicates the numbers used by Athanassiadi given in the Budé edition (1963 & 1964) of Julian's ''Opera''.
* Wright indicates the oration numbers provided in W.C.Wright's edition of Julian's works.
The religious works contain involved philosophical speculations, and the
panegyrics
A panegyric ( or ) is a formal public speech or written verse, delivered in high praise of a person or thing. The original panegyrics were speeches delivered at public events in ancient Athens.
Etymology
The word originated as a compound of grc ...
to Constantius are formulaic and elaborate in style.
The '' Misopogon'' (or "Beard Hater") is a light-hearted account of Julian's clash with the inhabitants of Antioch after he was mocked for his beard and generally scruffy appearance for an emperor. ''The Caesars'' is a humorous tale of a contest between notable Roman emperors:
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a 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 a civil war, ...
, Augustus,
Trajan
Trajan ( ; la, Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 539/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared ''optimus princeps'' ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presi ...
, Marcus Aurelius and Constantine, with the competition also including Alexander the Great. This was a satiric attack upon the recent Constantine, whose worth, both as a Christian and as the leader of the Roman Empire, Julian severely questions.
One of the most important of his lost works is his ''Against the Galileans'', intended to refute the Christian religion. The only parts of this work which survive are those excerpted by Cyril of Alexandria, who gives extracts from the three first books in his refutation of Julian, ''Contra Julianum''. These extracts do not give an adequate idea of the work: Cyril confesses that he had not ventured to copy several of the weightiest arguments.
Problems regarding authenticity
Julian's works have been edited and translated several times since the Renaissance, most often separately; but many are translated in the Loeb Classical Library edition of 1913, edited by
Wilmer Cave Wright
Emily Wilmer Cave Wright (, France; January 21, 1868 – November 16, 1951) was a British-born American classical philologist, and a contributor to the culture and history of medicine. She was a professor at Bryn Mawr College, where she taught Gree ...
. Wright mentions, however, that there are many problems surrounding Julian's vast collection of works, mainly the letters ascribed to Julian. The collections of letters existing today are the result of many smaller collections, which contained varying numbers of Julian's works in various combinations. For example, in Laurentianus 58.16, the largest collection of letters ascribed to Julian was found, containing 43 manuscripts. The origins of many letters in these collections are unclear.
Joseph Bidez and François Cumont compiled the different collections in 1922 and arrived at a total of 284 items. 157 of these were considered genuine, and 127 were regarded as spurious. This contrasts starkly with Wright's earlier mentioned collection, which contains only 73 items which are considered genuine, along with 10 apocryphal letters. Michael Trapp notes, however, that when comparing Bidez and Cumont's work with Wright's, Bidez and Cumont regard as many as sixteen of Wright's genuine letters as spurious. Which works can be ascribed to Julian is thus very much up to debate.
The problems surrounding a collection of Julian's works are exacerbated by the fact that Julian was a motivated writer, which means it is possible that many more letters could have circulated despite his short reign. Julian himself attests to the large number of letters he had to write in a letter that is itself likely to be genuine. Julian's religious agenda gave him even more work than the average emperor as he sought to instruct his newly styled pagan priests and dealt with discontented Christian leaders and communities. An example of him instructing his pagan priests is found in a fragment in the Vossianus MS., inserted in the Letter to Themistius.
Additionally, Julian's hostility towards the Christian faith inspired vicious counteractions by Christian authors, as in
Gregory of Nazianzus
Gregory of Nazianzus ( el, Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, ''Grēgorios ho Nazianzēnos''; ''Liturgy of the Hours'' Volume I, Proper of Saints, 2 January. – 25 January 390,), also known as Gregory the Theologian or Gregory N ...
' invectives against Julian. Christians no doubt suppressed some of Julian's works as well. This Christian influence is still visible in Wright's much smaller collection of Julian's letters. She comments that some letters are suddenly cut off when the contents become hostile towards Christians and believes this to be the result of Christian censorship. Notable examples appear in the ''Fragment of a letter to a Priest'' and the ''letter to High-Priest Theodorus.''
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
In popular culture
Literature
* The ''
Julian Romance
The ''Julian Romance'' is fictionalized prose account of the reign of the Roman emperor Julian the Apostate. It was written sometime between Julian's death in 363 and the copying of the oldest known manuscript in the sixth century. It does not s ...
'' is a late antique
Syriac Syriac may refer to:
*Syriac language, an ancient dialect of Middle Aramaic
*Sureth, one of the modern dialects of Syriac spoken in the Nineveh Plains region
* Syriac alphabet
** Syriac (Unicode block)
** Syriac Supplement
* Neo-Aramaic languages a ...
romance of Julian's reign from a hostile Christian perspective.
* In 1681 Lord Russell, an outspoken opponent of King Charles II of England and his brother
The Duke of York
Duke of York is a title of nobility in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of English (later British) monarchs. The equivalent title in the Scottish peerage was D ...
, got his chaplain to write a ''Life of Julian the Apostate''. This work made use of the Roman Emperor's life in order to address contemporary English political and theological debates – specifically, to reply to the conservative arguments of Dr Hickes's sermons, and defend the lawfulness of resistance in extreme cases.
* In 1847, the controversial German theologian
David Friedrich Strauss
David Friedrich Strauss (german: link=no, Strauß ; 27 January 1808 – 8 February 1874) was a German liberal Protestant theologian and writer, who influenced Christian Europe with his portrayal of the "historical Jesus", whose divine nature he ...
published in
Mannheim
Mannheim (; Palatine German: or ), officially the University City of Mannheim (german: Universitätsstadt Mannheim), is the second-largest city in the German state of Baden-Württemberg after the state capital of Stuttgart, and Germany's ...
the pamphlet ''Der Romantiker auf dem Thron der Cäsaren'' ("A Romantic on the Throne of the Caesars"), in which Julian was satirised as "an unworldly dreamer, a man who turned nostalgia for the ancients into a way of life and whose eyes were closed to the pressing needs of the present". In fact, this was a veiled criticism of the contemporary King Frederick William IV of Prussia, known for his romantic dreams of restoring the supposed glories of feudal Medieval society.
* Julian's life inspired the play ''
Emperor and Galilean
''Emperor and Galilean'' (in no, Kejser og Galilæer) is a play written by Henrik Ibsen. Although it is one of the writer's lesser known plays, on several occasions Henrik Ibsen called ''Emperor and Galilean'' his major work. ''Emperor and Gali ...
'' published in 1873 by Henrik Ibsen.
* The late nineteenth century English novelist
George Gissing
George Robert Gissing (; 22 November 1857 – 28 December 1903) was an English novelist, who published 23 novels between 1880 and 1903. His best-known works have reappeared in modern editions. They include '' The Nether World'' (1889), '' New Gr ...
read an English translation of Julian's work in 1891
* Julian's life and reign were the subject of the novel '' The Death of the Gods (Julian the Apostate)'' (1895) in the trilogy of historical novels entitled "Christ and Antichrist" (1895–1904) by the
Russian Symbolist
Russian symbolism was an intellectual and artistic movement predominant at the end of the 19th and beginning of the 20th century. It arose separately from European symbolism, emphasizing mysticism and ostranenie.
Literature
Influences
Primary ...
poet, novelist and literary theoretician Dmitrii S. Merezhkovskii.
* The opera ''Der Apostat'' (1924) by the composer and conductor
Felix Weingartner
Paul Felix Weingartner, Edler von Münzberg (2 June 1863 – 7 May 1942) was an Austrian conductor, composer and pianist.
Life and career
Weingartner was born in Zara, Dalmatia, Austria-Hungary (now Zadar, Croatia), to Austrian parents. ...
is about Julian.
* In 1945,
Nikos Kazantzakis
Nikos Kazantzakis ( el, ; 2 March (Old Style and New Style dates, OS 18 February) 188326 October 1957) was a Greeks, Greek writer. Widely considered a giant of modern Greek literature, he was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature in ni ...
authored the tragedy ''Julian the Apostate'' in which the emperor is depicted as an existentialist hero committed to a struggle which he knows will be in vain. It was first staged in Paris in 1948.
* Julian was the subject of a novel, '' Julian'' (1964), by
Gore Vidal
Eugene Luther Gore Vidal (; born Eugene Louis Vidal, October 3, 1925 – July 31, 2012) was an American writer and public intellectual known for his epigrammatic wit, erudition, and patrician manner. Vidal was bisexual, and in his novels and e ...
, describing his life and times. It is notable for, among other things, its scathing critique of Christianity.
* Julian appeared in ''Gods and Legions'', by
Michael Curtis Ford
Michael Curtis Ford is an American historical novelist, writing novels about Ancient Rome and Ancient Greece. He has worked variously as a laborer, a ski patrolman, a musician, a consultant, a banker, a Latin teacher, and a translator. He holds d ...
(2002). Julian's tale was told by his closest companion, the Christian saint Caesarius, and accounts for the transition from a Christian philosophy student in Athens to a pagan Roman Augustus of the old nature.
* Julian's letters are an important part of the symbolism of
Michel Butor
Michel Butor (; 14 September 1926 – 24 August 2016) was a French poet, novelist, teacher, essayist, art critic and translator.
Life and work
Michel Marie François Butor was born in Mons-en-Barœul, a suburb of Lille, the third of seven childre ...
The Dragon Waiting
''The Dragon Waiting: A Masque of History'' is a 1983 fantasy novel by John M. Ford. It won the 1984 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel.
Plot summary
The novel is a fantasy alternate history combining vampires, the Medicis, and the convoluted ...
'' by
John M. Ford
John Milo "Mike" Ford (April 10, 1957 – September 25, 2006) was an American science fiction and fantasy writer, game designer, and poet.
A contributor to several online discussions, Ford composed poems, often improvised, in both complicated ...
, while set in the time of the
Wars of the Roses
The Wars of the Roses (1455–1487), known at the time and for more than a century after as the Civil Wars, were a series of civil wars fought over control of the English throne in the mid-to-late fifteenth century. These wars were fought bet ...
, uses the reign of Julian as its
point of divergence
Alternate history (also alternative history, althist, AH) is a genre of speculative fiction of stories in which one or more historical events occur and are resolved differently than in real life. As conjecture based upon historical fact, altern ...
. His reign not being cut short, he was successful in disestablishing Christianity and restoring a religiously eclectic societal order which survived the fall of Rome and into the
Renaissance
The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history
The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...
. Characters in the novel refer to him as "Julian the Wise".
*The dystopianspeculative fiction novel by Robert Charles Wilson, '' Julian Comstock: A Story of 22nd-Century America,'' parallels the life of Julian with the titular character as the hereditary president of an oligarchic future United States of America who tries to restore science and combat the fundamentalist Christianity that has taken over the country.
*A student paper by the narrator fills out the center of the 2022 novel ''Elizabeth Finch'' by
Julian Barnes
Julian Patrick Barnes (born 19 January 1946) is an English writer. He won the Man Booker Prize in 2011 with '' The Sense of an Ending'', having been shortlisted three times previously with '' Flaubert's Parrot'', ''England, England'', and '' A ...
.
* C.P. Cavafy wrote 6 poems about Julian in 1923-1935.
Film
* An Italian movie treatment of his life, '' Giuliano l'Apostata'', was released in 1919.
Street named
'Julian Way' is a main thoroughfare in
Jerusalem
Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...
named for the Emperor. It was given that name during the British Mandate period, and then changed to King David Street with the creation of the State of Israel.
Notes
References
Citations
Ancient sources
*
Ammianus Marcellinus
Ammianus Marcellinus (occasionally anglicised as Ammian) (born , died 400) was a Roman soldier and historian who wrote the penultimate major historical account surviving from antiquity (preceding Procopius). His work, known as the ''Res Gestae ...
Internet Archive
The Internet Archive is an American digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It provides free public access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, software applications/games, music, ...
*
Claudius Mamertinus Claudius Mamertinus (fl. mid-late 4th century AD) was an official in the Roman Empire. In late 361 he took part in the Chalcedon tribunal to condemn the ministers of Constantius II, and in 362, he was made consul as a reward by the new Emperor Juli ...
, "''Gratiarum actio Mamertini de consulato suo Iuliano Imperatori''", ''
Panegyrici Latini
' or ''Twelve Latin Panegyrics'' is the conventional title of a collection of twelve ancient Roman and late antique prose panegyric orations written in Latin.
The authors of most of the speeches in the collection are anonymous, but appear to hav ...
'', panegyric delivered in Constantinople in 362, also as a speech of thanks at his assumption of the office of consul of that year
*
Gregory Nazianzen
Gregory of Nazianzus ( el, Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, ''Grēgorios ho Nazianzēnos''; ''Liturgy of the Hours'' Volume I, Proper of Saints, 2 January. – 25 January 390,), also known as Gregory the Theologian or Gregory N ...
Libanius
Libanius ( grc-gre, Λιβάνιος, Libanios; ) was a teacher of rhetoric of the Sophist school in the Eastern Roman Empire. His prolific writings make him one of the best documented teachers of higher education in the ancient world and a criti ...
*
* Baker-Brian, Nicholas; Tougher, Shaun. (2012). ''Emperor and Author: The Writings of Julian the Apostate.'' The Classical Press of Wales. Swansea. . http://www.classicalpressofwales.co.uk/emperor_author.htm
*
*
*Dodgeon, Michael H. & Samuel N.C. Lieu, ''The Roman Eastern Frontier and the Persian Wars AD 226–363'', Routledge, London, 1991.
*Drinkwater, John F., ''The Alamanni and Rome 213–496 (Caracalla to Clovis)'', OUP Oxford 2007.
*Lascaratos, John and Dionysios Voros. 2000 Fatal Wounding of the Byzantine Emperor Julian the Apostate (361–363 A.D.): Approach to the Contribution of Ancient Surgery. ''World Journal of Surgery'' 24: 615–619
*Murdoch, Adrian. ''The Last Pagan: Julian the Apostate and the Death of the Ancient World'', Stroud, 2005,
*
*Potter, David S. ''The Roman Empire at Bay AD 180–395'', Routledge, New York, 2004.
*Ridley, R.T., "Notes on Julian's Persian Expedition (363)", ''Historia: Zeitschrift für Alte Geschichte'', Vol. 22, No. 2, 1973, pp. 317–330
*
*Smith, Rowland. ''Julian's gods: religion and philosophy in the thought and action of Julian the Apostate'', London, 1995.
*Veyne, Paul. ''L'Empire Gréco-Romain''. Seuil, Paris, 2005.
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Further reading
*
*García Ruiz, María Pilar, "Julian's Self-Representation in Coins and Texts." In ''Imagining Emperors in the Later Roman Empire'', Ed. D.W.P. Burgersdijk and A.J. Ross. Leiden. Brill. 2018. 204–233. .
*Gardner, Alice, ''Julian Philosopher and Emperor and the Last Struggle of Paganism Against Christianity,'' G.P. Putnam's Son, London, 1895. . Downloadable a Julian, philosopher and emperor
*Hunt, David. "Julian". In ''The Cambridge Ancient History'', Volume 13 (Averil Cameron & Peter Garnsey editors). CUP, Cambridge, 1998.
*
*Lenski, Noel Emmanuel ''Failure of Empire: Valens and the Roman State in the Fourth Century AD'' University of California Press: London, 2003
*Lieu, Samuel N.C. &
Dominic Montserrat
Dominic Alexander Sebastian Montserrat (2 January 1964 – 23 September 2004) was a British egyptologist and papyrologist.
Early life and education
Montserrat studied Egyptology at Durham University and received his PhD in Classics at Universit ...
: editors, ''From Constantine to Julian: A Source History'' Routledge: New York, 1996.
*Neander, August, ''The Emperor Julian and His Generation, An Historical Picture,'' translated by G.V. Cox, John W. Parker, London, 1859. . Downloadable a The Emperor Julian and his generation
*Rendall, Gerald Henry, ''The Emperor Julian: Paganism and Christianity with Genealogical, Chronological and Bibliographical Appendices,'' George Bell and Sons, London, 1879. . Downloadable a The Emperor Julian
*Rohrbacher, David. ''Historians of Late Antiquity''. Routledge: New York, 2002.
*Rosen, Klaus. ''Julian. Kaiser, Gott und Christenhasser''. Klett-Cotta, Stuttgart, 2006.
*Вус, Олег. Юлиан Апостат. Персидский поход и загадка битвы у Туммара 26 июня 363 г. // МАИАСП. 2019. Вып. 11. С. 271—299. ISSN 2219-8857 n Russian https://www.academia.edu/85590664/Julian_the_Apostate_The_Persian_campaign_and_the_riddle_of_battle_at_Tummar_on_June_26_363
Gerald Henry Rendall
Gerald Henry Rendall (1851–1945) was an English educator and college administrator, born at Harrow, where his father was assistant master. He was educated at Harrow and at Trinity College, Cambridge, graduating BA as 4th Classic in 1874.
He wa ...
Julian the Apostate why he was important, and his place in world history, by
Andrew Selkirk
Andrew Selkirk, FSA is Editor-in-chief of Current Publishing, and former Vice-President of the Royal Archaeological Institute.
Early life and education
Selkirk attended his very first dig aged 13 years old. He did his National Service in the ...
* ''Letters'' in ''Epistolographi graeci'', R. Hercher (ed.), Parisiis, editore Ambrosio Firmin Didot, 1873 pp. 337–391