Tiberius Claudius Candidus (died c. 198 CE) was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...

general and

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. He played an important role supporting

Septimius Severus Lucius Septimius Severus (; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa (Roman province), Africa. As a young man he advanced thro ...

in the struggle for succession following the assassination of the

emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

Pertinax Publius Helvius Pertinax (; 1 August 126 – 28 March 193) was Roman emperor for the first three months of 193. He succeeded Commodus to become the first emperor during the tumultuous Year of the Five Emperors. Born the son of a freed slave ...

in 193 CE.

Early Career and the War Against Pescennius Niger

A member of the

equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or Riding in British English) Examples of this are: *Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes in ...

Mennen, p.197

gens In ancient Rome, a gens ( or , ; plural: ''gentes'' ) was a family consisting of individuals who shared the same Roman naming conventions#Nomen, nomen and who claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens was called a ''stirps'' (p ...

Claudia, Candidus began his career in the

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

, eventually serving as ''praepositus copiarum'' (or supply officer) in the emperor

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 ...

’s second expedition against the Germans in 178/9 CE. Then during the reign of

Commodus Commodus (; 31 August 161 – 31 December 192) was a Roman emperor who ruled from 177 to 192. He served jointly with his father Marcus Aurelius from 176 until the latter's death in 180, and thereafter he reigned alone until his assassination. ...

, he was elevated to the rank of

Praetor Praetor ( , ), also pretor, was the title granted by the government of Ancient Rome to a man acting in one of two official capacities: (i) the commander of an army, and (ii) as an elected '' magistratus'' (magistrate), assigned to discharge vario ...

through the imperial '' adlectio'', thereby making him a member of the Roman Senate. His career continued in the east of the empire, where Candidus served as an assistant to the Roman Governor of the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

before being appointed ''curator'' of

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 Diocletia ...

and

Ephesus Ephesus (; grc-gre, Ἔφεσος, Éphesos; tr, Efes; may ultimately derive from hit, 𒀀𒉺𒊭, Apaša) was a city in ancient Greece on the coast of Ionia, southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in t ...

. He was either serving in the east, or was ''

Legatus legionis A ''legatus'' (; anglicised as legate) was a high-ranking Roman military officer in the Roman Army, equivalent to a modern high-ranking general officer. Initially used to delegate power, the term became formalised under Augustus as the officer ...

'' of one of the

Pannonian Pannonia may refer to: In geography: * Basin of Pannonia, a geomorphological region (plain) in Central Europe * Sea of Pannonia, an ancient (former) sea in Central Europe * Steppe of Pannonia, a grassland ecosystem in the Pannonian Plain In h ...

legions when

, then governor of

Pannonia Superior Pannonia Superior, lit. Upper Pannonia, was a province of the Roman Empire. Its capital was Carnuntum. It was one on the border provinces on the Danube. It was formed in the year 103 AD by Emperor Trajan who divided the former province of Pannon ...

, declared himself emperor in 193 CE following the murder of

and the elevation of

Didius Julianus Marcus Didius Julianus (; 29 January 133 or 137 – 2 June 193) was Roman emperor for nine weeks from March to June 193, during the Year of the Five Emperors. Julianus had a promising political career, governing several provinces, including Dal ...

. In preparation for the ''Expeditio Asiana'' against Severus's rival

Pescennius Niger Gaius Pescennius Niger (c. 135 – 194) was Roman Emperor from 193 to 194 during the Year of the Five Emperors. He claimed the imperial throne in response to the murder of Pertinax and the elevation of Didius Julianus, but was defeated by a riva ...

in the eastern provinces, Severus had a special elite force assembled from the Pannonian legions, the ''exercitus Illyricus'', and placed Candidus in command, giving him the title '' dux exercitus Illyrici''. While the emperor was stationed at

Perinthus Perinthus or Perinthos ( grc, ἡ Πέρινθος) was a great and flourishing town of ancient Thrace, situated on the Propontis. According to John Tzetzes, it bore at an early period the name of Mygdonia (Μυγδονία). It lay 22 miles west ...

, Candidus took his troops and crossed the

Propontis The Sea of Marmara,; grc, Προποντίς, Προποντίδα, Propontís, Propontída also known as the Marmara Sea, is an inland sea located entirely within the borders of Turkey. It connects the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea via the ...

, meeting and defeating Niger's forces (under the command of Asellius Aemilianus) at the

Battle of Cyzicus The naval Battle of Cyzicus (Greek: ) took place in May or June 410 BC during the Peloponnesian War. During the battle, an Athenian fleet commanded by Alcibiades, Thrasybulus, and Theramenes routed and destroyed a Spartan fleet commanded by Minda ...

. In the aftermath, Aemilianus was captured and brought before Candidus, who had him executed. Niger himself arrived to take command of his troops at

Nicaea Nicaea, also known as Nicea or Nikaia (; ; grc-gre, Νίκαια, ) was an ancient Greek city in Bithynia, where located in northwestern Anatolia and is primarily known as the site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea (the first and seve ...

, and at the

Battle of Nicaea The Battle of Nicaea was fought in 193 between the forces of Septimius Severus and his eastern rival, Pescennius Niger. It took place at Nicaea in Asia Minor. Severus defeated his rival, and ended his bid for the Roman Empire the next year at I ...

fought against Severus's army under Candidus. Candidus was losing the battle before he managed to rally his troops and inflict another defeat on Niger, who fled the battle and proceeded 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� ...

. As Candidus marched towards the

Taurus Mountains The Taurus Mountains ( Turkish: ''Toros Dağları'' or ''Toroslar'') are a mountain complex in southern Turkey, separating the Mediterranean coastal region from the central Anatolian Plateau. The system extends along a curve from Lake Eğirdir ...

, he proceeded to fine those cities in Asia Minor who had decided to support Niger. It was during this period that Severus replaced Candidus as principal commander with

Publius Cornelius Anullinus Publius Cornelius Anullinus (or, occasionally, Anulinus) was one of the generals of the Roman emperor Septimius Severus. He was from the city of Iliberis (Granada, or identified by modern scholars as likely being in or near Albayzín), and, while ...

, possibly due to his failure to prevent the withdrawal of Niger's army at Nicaea. Nevertheless, Candidus remained with the army and fought at the Battle of Issus in 194 CE.

The Parthian Expedition and the War Against Clodius Albinus

With Niger's defeat at Issus and subsequent death, Candidus was appointed ''Dux adversus rebelles Asiae'', tasked with dealing with Niger's remaining supporters in the eastern provinces. Following this, Candidus rejoined Severus in his '' Expeditio Mesopotamena'' against the Parthians in 195 CE, where Candidus was once again appointed ''dux exercitus Illyrici''. After campaigning against Adiabene and Osroene, Candidus was sent back to the western provinces, as

Clodius Albinus Decimus Clodius Albinus ( 150 – 19 February 197) was a Roman imperial pretender between 193 and 197. He was proclaimed emperor by the legions in Britain and Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula, comprising modern Spain and Portugal) after the murder ...

declared himself Emperor in 196 and invaded the Gallic provinces. It was during this period (either 195 or 196) that Candidus was appointed

suffect consul A consul held the highest elected political office of the Roman Republic ( to 27 BC), and ancient Romans considered the consulship the second-highest level of the ''cursus honorum'' (an ascending sequence of public offices to which politic ...

''in absentia''. Arriving in

Noricum Noricum () is the Latin name for the Celts, Celtic kingdom or federation of tribes that included most of modern Austria and part of Slovenia. In the first century AD, it became a Roman province, province of the Roman Empire. Its borders were th ...

, he carried the title ''Dux adversus rebelles Noricae'', and was given the task of rounding up Albinus's supporters in the province. Following this, in 197 CE he returned to commanding the ''exercitus Illyricus'' and participated in the Battle of Lugdunum where Albinus was finally defeated. That same year (197 CE), Candidus was appointed governor of

Hispania Tarraconensis Hispania Tarraconensis was one of three Roman provinces in Hispania. It encompassed much of the northern, eastern and central territories of modern Spain along with modern northern Portugal. Southern Spain, the region now called Andalusia was the ...

, where he was again tasked with hunting down and executing the remaining supporters of Albinus within the province. Around 198 CE, he was subjected to a '' Damnatio memoriae'' and was executed. It is unclear as to why this occurred; however it may be linked to a plot against the emperor mentioned in the

Historia Augusta The ''Historia Augusta'' (English: ''Augustan History'') is a late Roman collection of biographies, written in Latin, of the Roman emperors, their junior colleagues, designated heirs and usurpers from 117 to 284. Supposedly modeled on the sim ...

, involving some friends of Severus who were put on trial after being accused of planning his death.Mennen, p. 206; Historia Augusta, ''Vita Serv.'', 15.4-6

Sources

* Kulikowski, Michael; ''Imperial Triumph: The Roman World from Hadrian to Constantine'' (2016) * Mennen, Inge, ''Power and Status in the Roman Empire, AD 193–284'' (2011) * Potter, David S. ''The Roman Empire at Bay AD 180–395'' (2004)

References

External links

Inscribed stone base for a statue (now lost) of Tiberius Claudius Candidus, with a Latin text of 24 lines describing his career. Erected after his death by his groom Silius Hospes, hastatus of Legion X ‘Gemina’, for "the finest governor". https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/G_1994-0122-2 {{DEFAULTSORT:Claudius Candidus, Tiberius Ancient Roman generals Suffect consuls of Imperial Rome Roman governors of Hispania Tarraconensis 190s deaths Year of birth unknown Generals of Marcus Aurelius Generals of Commodus Generals of Septimius Severus