Flavius Antiochianus (died March 222) was a Roman ''

eques Eques, ''horseman'' or ''rider'' in Latin, may refer to: * Equites, a member of the Roman Equestrian order * the Latin word for a knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or ...

'' who flourished during the reign of the emperor Septimius Severus and his sons. He was appointed to a series of imperial offices, most importantly

praetorian prefect The praetorian prefect ( la, praefectus praetorio, el, ) was a high office in the Roman Empire. Originating as the commander of the Praetorian Guard, the office gradually acquired extensive legal and administrative functions, with its holders be ...

under the Roman emperor Elagabalus. Antiochianus served as a prefect of one auxiliary cohort in

Germania Superior Germania Superior ("Upper Germania") was an imperial province of the Roman Empire. It comprised an area of today's western Switzerland, the French Jura and Alsace regions, and southwestern Germany. Important cities were Besançon ('' Vesontio' ...

in 211, and subsequently of another in

Mauretania Caesariensis Mauretania Caesariensis (Latin for "Caesarean Mauretania") was a Roman province located in what is now Algeria in the Maghreb. The full name refers to its capital Caesarea Mauretaniae (modern Cherchell). The province had been part of the Kingd ...

. He returned to Rome to serve as a praetorian prefect before 222, the year Elagabalus was assassinated. According to 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 ...

'', Antiochianus defended Elagabalus against praetorians who were intent on killing him, confronting the soldiers searching for the emperor in the

Gardens of Spes Vetus A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...

, reminding them of their oath to the emperor and persuading them not to kill him. He may have been one of the associates of Elagabalus murdered in the wake of the emperor's death. Cassius Dio, ''Romaike Historia''
lxxx.21.1
/ref> His son, also called Flavius Antiochianus, was prominent during the reigns of several later Emperors.

References

Severan dynasty 2nd-century Romans 3rd-century Romans 222 deaths Praetorian prefects {{AncientRome-bio-stub