The siege of Segusio () or siege of Susa was the first clash of the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

between the Roman emperors

Constantine the Great Constantine I ( , ; la, Flavius Valerius Constantinus, ; ; 27 February 22 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337, the first one to Constantine the Great and Christianity, convert to Christiani ...

() and

Maxentius Marcus Aurelius Valerius Maxentius (c. 283 – 28 October 312) was a Roman emperor, who reigned from 306 until his death in 312. Despite ruling in Italy and North Africa, and having the recognition of the Senate in Rome, he was not recognized ...

() in the spring of 312. In that year,

had declared war on

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 ...

, claiming to intend to avenge the death of his father

Maximian Maximian ( la, Marcus Aurelius Valerius Maximianus; c. 250 – c. July 310), nicknamed ''Herculius'', was Roman emperor from 286 to 305. He was ''Caesar'' from 285 to 286, then ''Augustus'' from 286 to 305. He shared the latter title with his ...

(), who had committed suicide after being defeated by him.

would respond with an invasion of northern Italy. The siege of Segusio was the first of many battles that took place in the Italian peninsula, in all of them

was victorious. With the capture of the city after subjecting it to a siege, the victorious emperor was able to continue his march through the interior of the peninsula until he reached

Augusta Taurinorum Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

, where he fought the

Battle of Turin The siege of Turin took place from June to September 1706, during the War of the Spanish Succession, when a French army led by Louis de la Feuillade besieged the Savoyard capital of Turin. The campaign by Prince Eugene of Savoy that led to i ...

against the forces of

Background

At the end of the

3rd century The 3rd century was the period from 201 ( CCI) to 300 (CCC) Anno Domini (AD) or Common Era (CE) in the Julian calendar.. In this century, the Roman Empire saw a crisis, starting with the assassination of the Roman Emperor Severus Alexander ...

, the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediterr ...

was divided into East and West, and each part was ruled by an

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

, or major emperor, and a

Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caes ...

, or minor emperor. After the

of the East,

Galerius Gaius Galerius Valerius Maximianus (; 258 – May 311) was Roman emperor from 305 to 311. During his reign he campaigned, aided by Diocletian, against the Sasanian Empire, sacking their capital Ctesiphon in 299. He also campaigned across the D ...

, bestowed the dignity of

(), son of Emperor Maximian Herculius (), he married

' daughter,

Valeria Maximilla Valeria Maximilla () was the Empress of the Romans and wife of Emperor Maxentius. Life She was the daughter of Emperor Galerius and his first wife, whose name is unknown. She married Maxentius around 293 (the exact date is unknown) in what was ...

. On October 28,

306 __NOTOC__ Year 306 ( CCCVI) was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Constantius and Valerius (or, less frequently, year 105 ...

proclaimed himself ''

princeps ''Princeps'' (plural: ''principes'') is a Latin word meaning "first in time or order; the first, foremost, chief, the most eminent, distinguished, or noble; the first man, first person". As a title, ''princeps'' originated in the Roman Republic w ...

''. The following year, the young emperor assumed the title of

, forcing his father

to ratify it to give his rule the appearance of legitimacy. As soon as

heard of his son-in-law's actions, he sent Emperor

Flavius Severus Flavius Valerius Severus (died September 307), also called Severus II, was a Roman emperor from 306 to 307. After failing to besiege Rome, he fled to Ravenna. It is thought that he was killed there or executed near Rome. Background and early ...

to put down the rebellion.

, with the help of a ruse by his father

, managed to take

Severus Severus is the name of various historical and fictional figures, including: ;Emperors of the Roman empire *Septimius Severus (145–211), Roman emperor from 193 to 211 (rarely known as ''Severus I.'') *Severus Caracalla (188–217), Roman emperor f ...

prisoner. When

died,

invaded Italy to try to avenge his death, but realizing that

would be trying to win over his army, he chose not to trust his own troops and withdrew. Between 308 and 310,

tried to assume all power, to the detriment of his son

, without achieving his goal. He then tried to win

to his cause, but this plan also failed, then he tried to win

Diocletian Diocletian (; la, Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus, grc, Διοκλητιανός, Diokletianós; c. 242/245 – 311/312), nicknamed ''Iovius'', was Roman emperor from 284 until his abdication in 305. He was born Gaius Valerius Diocles ...

to his side at

Carnuntum Carnuntum ( according to Ptolemy) was a Roman legionary fortress ( la, castra legionis) and headquarters of the Roman navy, Pannonian fleet from 50 AD. After the 1st century, it was capital of the Pannonia Superior province. It also became ...

. When his intrigues were frustrated, Maximian Herculius returned to the side of his son-in-law

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 ...

, where he died in 310 after being implicated in a plot against him. The following year,

, demanding revenge for the death of his father, declared war on

, who, in response, invaded northern

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, mobilizing 40,000 soldiers, according to some sources. According to the chronicles of 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 Constantinian forces consisted of 90,000 legionaries and 8,000 horsemen.

Battle and consequences

The first town

's army encountered on its way to

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 ...

was

Segusio Susa ( lat, Segusio, french: Suse, frp, Suisa) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Turin, Piedmont (Italy), Piedmont, Italy. In the middle of Susa Valley, it is situated on at the confluence of the Cenischia with the Dora Ripari ...

(present-day

Susa Susa ( ; Middle elx, 𒀸𒋗𒊺𒂗, translit=Šušen; Middle and Neo- elx, 𒋢𒋢𒌦, translit=Šušun; Neo-Elamite and Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼𒀭, translit=Šušán; Achaemenid elx, 𒀸𒋗𒐼, translit=Šušá; fa, شوش ...

), a city heavily walled during the refortification program of northern Italian cities the previous year. Rather than bow to the invading army, the

citizens Citizenship is a "relationship between an individual and a state to which the individual owes allegiance and in turn is entitled to its protection". Each state determines the conditions under which it will recognize persons as its citizens, and ...

closed their gates to

. The emperor then ordered his men to set fire to its great gates and scale its walls. The city was quickly taken, but

prevented his troops from sacking the city, preferring to continue his advance into the interior of

. With the conquest of

, the Constantinian army marched in the direction of

(present-day

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

), where an army composed mainly of

heavy cavalry Heavy cavalry was a class of cavalry intended to deliver a battlefield charge and also to act as a Military reserve, tactical reserve; they are also often termed ''shock cavalry''. Although their equipment differed greatly depending on the re ...

was encamped. In the vicinity of this city the

was fought, where

would obtain a new victory, which opened the way to the other important cities of the

Padan Plain The Po Valley, Po Plain, Plain of the Po, or Padan Plain ( it, Pianura Padana , or ''Val Padana'') is a major geographical feature of Northern Italy. It extends approximately in an east-west direction, with an area of including its Venetic ex ...

. Subsequently, a series of triumphs would follow, as in

Brescia Brescia (, locally ; lmo, link=no, label= Lombard, Brèsa ; lat, Brixia; vec, Bressa) is a city and ''comune'' in the region of Lombardy, Northern Italy. It is situated at the foot of the Alps, a few kilometers from the lakes Garda and Iseo. ...

and

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Northern Italy, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city Comune, municipality in the region and the ...

. The surrender of the latter city led to the unconditional submission of

Aquileia Aquileia / / / / ;Bilingual name of ''Aquileja – Oglej'' in: vec, Aquiłeja / ; Slovenian: ''Oglej''), group=pron is an ancient Roman city in Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about from the sea, on the river N ...

Mutina Modena (, , ; egl, label= Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. A town, and seat ...

(now

Modena Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...

) and

Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the cap ...

. Thus the road to Rome was open to

. The

Battle of the Milvian Bridge The Battle of the Milvian Bridge took place between the Roman Emperors Constantine I and Maxentius on 28 October 312. It takes its name from the Milvian Bridge, an important route over the Tiber. Constantine won the battle and started on the pa ...

was the last confrontation of the war between the two emperors.

died in battle and his head was paraded through Rome. Constantine thus became the only emperor of the western part of the

References

Bibliography

* Anonymous (3rd-4th centuries). ''

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 ...

.'' * * * * * * * * * * * {{Cite book , last=Ridley , first=Ronald T. , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MvA0DwAAQBAJ&q=Zosimus+-+R.+T.+Ridley%3A+Zosimus%2C+New+History , title=Zosimus, New History. A Translation with Commentary , publisher=

Brill Brill may refer to: Places * Brielle (sometimes "Den Briel"), a town in the western Netherlands * Brill, Buckinghamshire, a village in England * Brill, Cornwall, a small village to the west of Constantine, Cornwall, UK * Brill, Wisconsin, an un ...

, year=2017 , isbn=9780959362602 312 4th century in Italy 310s conflicts Battles involving the Roman Empire Battles of Constantine the Great 310s in the Roman Empire Sieges involving ancient Rome Battles in Piedmont Province of Turin Susa

Background

Battle and consequences

See also

References

Bibliography