Licinia Eudoxia (;

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

: Λικινία, 422 – c. 493) was a Roman Empress, daughter of Eastern Roman Emperor

Theodosius II Theodosius II ( grc-gre, Θεοδόσιος, Theodosios; 10 April 401 – 28 July 450) was Roman emperor for most of his life, proclaimed ''augustus'' as an infant in 402 and ruling as the eastern Empire's sole emperor after the death of his ...

. Her husbands included the Western Roman Emperors

Valentinian III Valentinian III ( la, Placidus Valentinianus; 2 July 41916 March 455) was Roman emperor in the West from 425 to 455. Made emperor in childhood, his reign over the Roman Empire was one of the longest, but was dominated by powerful generals vying ...

and Petronius Maximus.

Family

Eudoxia was born in 422, the daughter of

Eastern Roman Emperor This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, to its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as le ...

and his consort Aelia Eudocia, a woman of

origin. Her only known siblings, Arcadius and Flacilla, predeceased their parents. Their paternal grandparents were

Arcadius Arcadius ( grc-gre, Ἀρκάδιος ; 377 – 1 May 408) was Roman emperor from 383 to 408. He was the eldest son of the ''Augustus'' Theodosius I () and his first wife Aelia Flaccilla, and the brother of Honorius (). Arcadius ruled the e ...

and

Aelia Eudoxia Aelia Eudoxia (; ; died 6 October 404) was a Roman empress consort by marriage to the Roman emperor Arcadius. The marriage was the source of some controversy, as it was arranged by Eutropius, one of the eunuch court officials, who was attemp ...

. Their maternal grandfather was Leontius, a

sophist A sophist ( el, σοφιστής, sophistes) was a teacher in ancient Greece in the fifth and fourth centuries BC. Sophists specialized in one or more subject areas, such as philosophy, rhetoric, music, athletics, and mathematics. They taught ...

from

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh List ...

. The identity of her maternal grandfather was first given by

Socrates of Constantinople 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 ...

John Malalas John Malalas ( el, , ''Iōánnēs Malálas''; – 578) was a Byzantine chronicler from Antioch (now Antakya, Turkey). Life Malalas was of Syrian descent, and he was a native speaker of Syriac who learned how to write in Greek later ...

later gave a more detailed account of her mother Eudocia's history, which is also summarised in

The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire ''The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire'' is a six-volume work by the English historian Edward Gibbon. It traces Western civilization (as well as the Islamic and Mongolian conquests) from the height of the Roman Empire to t ...

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 ...

. The identity of Eudoxia's maternal grandmother is not recorded.

First marriage

In 424, Eudoxia was betrothed to

, her first cousin, once removed. The year of their betrothal was recorded by Marcellinus Comes. At the time of their betrothal, Valentinian was approximately four years old, Eudoxia only two.Ralph W. Mathisen, "Valentinian III (425–455 A.D)"
/ref> Gibbon attributes the betrothal to "the agreement of the three females who governed the Roman world", meaning

Galla Placidia Galla Placidia (388–89/392–93 – 27 November 450), daughter of the Roman emperor Theodosius I, was a mother, tutor, and advisor to emperor Valentinian III, and a major force in Roman politics for most of her life. She was queen consort t ...

, her niece Pulcheria, and Pulcheria's sister-in-law Eudocia. Galla Placidia was Valentinian III's mother and a younger, paternal half-sister of Arcadius. Valentinian III was at the time being prepared to claim the throne of the

Western Roman Empire The Western Roman Empire comprised the western provinces of the Roman Empire at any time during which they were administered by a separate independent Imperial court; in particular, this term is used in historiography to describe the period fr ...

, which was held by

Joannes Joannes or John ( la, Iohannes; died 425) was western Roman emperor from 423 to 425. On the death of the Emperor Honorius (15 August 423), Theodosius II, the remaining ruler of the House of Theodosius, hesitated in announcing his uncle's d ...

. The latter was not a member of the

Theodosian dynasty The Theodosian dynasty was a Roman imperial family that produced five Roman emperors during Late Antiquity, reigning over the Roman Empire from 379 to 457. The dynasty's patriarch was Theodosius the Elder, whose son Theodosius the Great was ma ...

and thus regarded a

usurper A usurper is an illegitimate or controversial claimant to power, often but not always in a monarchy. In other words, one who takes the power of a country, city A city is a human settlement of notable size.Goodall, B. (1987) ''The Penguin D ...

by the Eastern court. Within 424, Valentinian was proclaimed a

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 ...

in the Eastern court. The following year, Joannes was defeated and executed. Valentinian replaced him as

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 ...

of the West. Eudoxia and Valentinian III married on 29 October 437, in Thessalonike, their marriage marking the reunion of the two halves of the House of Theodosius. The marriage was recorded by

, the Chronicon Paschale and Marcellinus Comes.

Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire ''Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire'' (abbreviated as ''PLRE'') is a work of Roman prosopography published in a set of three volumes collectively describing many of the people attested to have lived in the Roman Empire from AD 260, the date ...

, vol. 2 In 439, Eudoxia was granted the title of ''Augusta'', with the birth of their first daughter Eudocia. They also had a second daughter,

Placidia Placidia () was a daughter of Valentinian III, Roman emperor of the West from 425 to 455, and from 454/455 the wife of Olybrius, who became western Roman emperor in 472. She was one of the last imperial spouses in the Roman west, during the Fall ...

.Ralph W. Mathisen, "Licinia Eudoxia"
/ref> The births and eventual fates of the two daughters were recorded by Priscus,

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 ge ...

and the Chronicon Paschale. On 16 March 455, Valentinian III was killed in the

Campus Martius The Campus Martius (Latin for the "Field of Mars", Italian ''Campo Marzio'') was a publicly owned area of ancient Rome about in extent. In the Middle Ages, it was the most populous area of Rome. The IV rione of Rome, Campo Marzio, which cov ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

by Optila and Thraustila. According to the fragmentary chronicle of John of Antioch, a 7th-century monk tentatively identified with

John of the Sedre John III of the Sedre ( syr, ܝܘܚܢܢ ܕܣܕܪ̈ܘܗܝ, ar, يوحنا ابو السدرات) was the Patriarch of Antioch and head of the Syriac Orthodox Church from 631 until his death in 648. He is commemorated as a saint by the Syriac Or ...

, Syrian Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch from 641 to 648 "Maximus, failing in both his hopes, was bitterly angry. He summoned Optila and Thraustila, brave

Scythians The Scythians or Scyths, and sometimes also referred to as the Classical Scythians and the Pontic Scythians, were an ancient Eastern * : "In modern scholarship the name 'Sakas' is reserved for the ancient tribes of northern and eastern Cent ...

who had campaigned with Aëtius and had been assigned to attend on Valentinian, and talked to them. He gave and received guarantees, put the blame for Aëtius' murder on the Emperor, and urged that the better course would be to take revenge on them. Those who avenged the fallen man, he said, would justly have the greatest blessings. Not many days later, Valentinian rode in the Field of Ares with a few bodyguards and the followers of Optila and Thraustila. When he had dismounted from his horse and proceeded to archery, Optila and his friends attacked him. Optila struck Valentinian on his temple and when turned around to see the striker he dealt him a second blow on the face and felled him, and Thraustila slew Heraclius. Taking the Emperor's diadem and horse, they hastened to Maximus... "(John of Antioch fr.201.4–5: Gordon trans., pp. 52–53). Heraclius is identified as "a eunuch who had the greatest influence with the emperor" and his associate in murdering Aetius.Ralph W. Mathisen, Petronius Maximus (17 March 455 – 22 May 455)
/ref>

Second marriage

Valentinian had no male descendants and had never designated an heir. Several candidates claimed the throne. Petronius Maximus, who was the highest-ranking of all Roman senators, was among them. A second candidate was Maximianus, son of Domninus. Domninus was a merchant from

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Med ...

who had earned a considerable fortune. Maximianus had served as a domesticus, member of an elite guard unit of the late Roman Empire, under Aetius. Eudoxia promoted her own candidate, in the person of

Majorian Majorian ( la, Iulius Valerius Maiorianus; died 7 August 461) was the western Roman emperor from 457 to 461. A prominent general of the Roman army, Majorian deposed Emperor Avitus in 457 and succeeded him. Majorian was the last emperor to make ...

. John of Antioch reports that Maximus secured his own succession by buying the loyalties of palace officials and the local military. Eudoxia was forced to marry him or face execution. Their marriage secured the connection of Maximus to the Theodosian dynasty. Prosper of Aquitaine reports that Maximus befriended the murderers of Valentinian III instead of punishing them. Both Prosper and Victor of Tonnena place the marriage of Eudoxia to Maximus only days following the death of her first husband, commenting with disapproval that the empress was not given a period to grieve for Valentinian. John of Antioch mentions, but does not name, a previous wife of Maximus. She had reportedly been

rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...

d by Valentinian III, an event which the chronicle sees as the reason Maximus turned against his former master. The eventual fate of his first wife is not recorded. She may be presumed to have committed suicide, following the example of

Lucretia According to Roman tradition, Lucretia ( /luːˈkriːʃə/ ''loo-KREE-shə'', Classical Latin: ʊˈkreːtɪ.a died c. 510 BC), anglicized as Lucrece, was a noblewoman in ancient Rome, whose rape by Sextus Tarquinius (Tarquin) and subse ...

. Regardless, Maximus arranged the marriage of his son Palladius to his new stepdaughter Eudocia, the daughter of Eudoxia from her first marriage, again to secure a dynastic relation to the Theodosian dynasty. The historical study ''"Fifth-century Gaul: A Crisis of Identity?"'' (1992) by John Drinkwater and Hugh Elton considers it likely that the first wife of Maximus was also a sister to Avitus, his ''

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, ...

'' (Master of Soldiers). The writers have also suggested that

Flavius Magnus Magnus (died 475 AD) was a Roman senator of Narbonne (then ''Narbo''). He was appointed Roman consul in 460 by the Western emperor Majorian, at the same time Apollonius served in the East. Magnus also served as praetorian prefect of Gaul around t ...

was another son of Maximus from his first marriage, considering

Flavius Probus Flavius Probus (born c. 420, 430 or 435), a Roman Senator and a ''v. nob.'' (''vir nobilis'') of Narbonne, then ''Narbo'', was a man of literary taste and precocious ability. His father was Flavius Magnus, Consul of Rome in 460. He was a friend ...

to be a grandson. They also argue for placing the marriage of Placidia the Younger to

Olybrius Anicius Olybrius (died 2 November 472) was Roman emperor from July 472 until his death later that same year; his rule as ''Augustus'' in the western Roman Empire was not recognised as legitimate by the ruling ''Augustus'' in the eastern Roman ...

at this point, considering it to be the third marriage between a member of the Theodosian dynasty and a member of the extended Anicii family within the same year. They view Olybrius as a third son of Maximus, grandson through him of Anicius Probinus and grand-nephew of Anicius Hermogenianus Olybrius. However, considering the other possible filiation of Flavius Magnus given by

Christian Settipani Christian Settipani (born 31 January 1961) is a French genealogist, historian and IT professional, currently working as the Technical Director of a company in Paris. Biography Settipani holds a Master of Advanced Studies from the Paris-So ...

. ''Continuite Gentilice et Continuite Familiale Dans Les Familles Senatoriales Romaines A L'epoque Imperiale, Mythe et Realite'', Addenda I - III (juillet 2000- octobre 2002) (n.p.: Prosopographica et Genealogica, 2002). as well as the lack of the name of Flavius Probus' mother, it can be assumed that he was a grandson of Petronius Maximus but from his mother. Maximus appointed Avitus as his ''Magister militum praesentalis'' ("Master of Soldiers in Attendance") and send him to

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger Regions of France, region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania. The city is on t ...

. There Avitus was to try to secure the loyalty of Theodoric II of the

Visigoths The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is ...

to the new emperor. However his reign was to prove short. According to the chronicler Malchus, "Around this time, the empress Eudoxia, the widow of the emperor Valentinian and the daughter of the emperor Theodosius and Eudocia, remained unhappily at Rome and, enraged at the tyrant Maximus because of the murder of her spouse, she summoned the

Vandal The Vandals were a Germanic people who first inhabited what is now southern Poland. They established Vandal kingdoms on the Iberian Peninsula, Mediterranean islands, and North Africa in the fifth century. The Vandals migrated to the area bet ...

Gaiseric, king of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

, against Maximus, who was ruling Rome. He came suddenly to Rome with his forces and captured the city, and having destroyed Maximus and all his forces, he took everything from the palace, even the bronze statues. He even led away as captives surviving senators, accompanied by their wives; along with them he also carried off to

Carthage Carthage was the capital city of Ancient Carthage, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the clas ...

in Africa the empress Eudoxia, who had summoned him; her daughter Placidia, the wife of the patrician Olybrius, who then was staying at Constantinople; and even the maiden Eudocia. After he had returned, Gaiseric gave the younger Eudocia, a maiden, the daughter of the empress Eudoxia, to his son

Huneric Huneric, Hunneric or Honeric (died December 23, 484) was King of the (North African) Vandal Kingdom (477–484) and the oldest son of Gaiseric. He abandoned the imperial politics of his father and concentrated mainly on internal affairs. He was ...

in marriage, and he held them both, the mother and the daughter, in great honor" (Chron. 366). Eudoxia was presumably following the example of her sister-in-law Justa Grata Honoria who had summoned

Attila the Hun Attila (, ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns from 434 until his death in March 453. He was also the leader of a tribal empire consisting of Huns, Ostrogoths, Alans, and Bulgars, among others, in Central and ...

for help against an unwanted marriage. According to Prosper, Maximus was in Rome when the Vandals arrived. He gave anyone who could permission to flee the city. He attempted to flee himself but was assassinated by the imperial slaves. He had reigned for seventy-seven days. His body was thrown into the

Tiber The Tiber ( ; it, Tevere ; la, Tiberis) is the third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the Ri ...

and never recovered. Victor of Tonnena agrees, adding the detail that

Pope Leo I Pope Leo I ( 400 – 10 November 461), also known as Leo the Great, was bishop of Rome from 29 September 440 until his death. Pope Benedict XVI said that Leo's papacy "was undoubtedly one of the most important in the Church's history." Leo was ...

negotiated with Geiseric for the security of the city's population. Hydatius attributes the assassination to revolting troops of the

Roman army The Roman army (Latin: ) was the armed forces deployed by the Romans throughout the duration of Ancient Rome, from the Roman Kingdom (c. 500 BC) to the Roman Republic (500–31 BC) and the Roman Empire (31 BC–395 AD), and its medieval contin ...

, enraged at Maximus' attempted flight. The Chronica Gallica of 511 attributes the assassination to a rioting crowd.

Jordanes Jordanes (), also written as Jordanis or Jornandes, was a 6th-century Eastern Roman bureaucrat widely believed to be of Gothic descent who became a historian later in life. Late in life he wrote two works, one on Roman history ('' Romana'') a ...

identifies a single assassin as "Ursus, a Roman soldier". Ursus is

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

for "

bear Bears are carnivoran mammals of the family Ursidae. They are classified as caniforms, or doglike carnivorans. Although only eight species of bears are extant, they are widespread, appearing in a wide variety of habitats throughout the N ...

Sidonius Apollinaris Gaius Sollius Modestus Apollinaris Sidonius, better known as Sidonius Apollinaris (5 November of an unknown year, 430 – 481/490 AD), was a poet, diplomat, and bishop. Sidonius is "the single most important surviving author from 5th-century Gaul ...

makes a cryptic comment regarding a

Burgundian Burgundian can refer to any of the following: *Someone or something from Burgundy. *Burgundians, an East Germanic tribe, who first appear in history in South East Europe. Later Burgundians colonised the area of Gaul that is now known as Burgundy (F ...

whose "traitorous leadership" led the crowd to panic and to the slaughter of the Emperor. His identity is unknown, presumably a general who failed to face the Vandals for one reason or the other. Later historians have suggested two high-ranking Burgundians as possible candidates,

Gondioc Gondioc (died 473), also called ''Gunderic'' and ''Gundowech'', was a King of the Burgundians, succeeding his putative father Gunther in 436. In 406, the Burgundians under King Gundahar (Gundihar, Guntiar) at Mainz had crossed the Rhine and ...

and his brother Chilperic. Both joined Theodoric II in invading

Hispania Hispania ( la, Hispānia , ; nearly identically pronounced in Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, and Italian) was the Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula and its provinces. Under the Roman Republic, Hispania was divided into two provinces: His ...

later in 455.

Widow

The three women stayed prisoners in

for seven years. In 462, Leo I, Eastern Roman Emperor paid a large ransom for Eudoxia and her daughter Placidia. Eudoxia returned to

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth ( Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

after an absence of twenty-five years, Placidia joining her. Eudocia stayed in Africa and took

as her husband. They were parents to Hilderic, king of the Vandals from 523 to 530.

References

Bibliography

* * ** , in
Genealogical profileValentinian III in the Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eudoxia, Licinia 422 births 493 deaths 5th-century Christians 5th-century Roman empresses Remarried royal consorts Theodosian dynasty Licinii Augustae Daughters of Byzantine emperors Valentinian III Theodosius II