Vetranio (died c. 356) was a Roman soldier, statesman and co-Emperor, a native of the province of

Moesia Moesia (; Latin: ''Moesia''; el, Μοισία, Moisía) was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans south of the Danube River, which included most of the territory of modern eastern Serbia, Kosovo, north-eastern Alban ...

(in modern

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia ( Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hu ...

Life and career

Early life

Vetranio was born in the Roman province of

to low-born parents, sometime in the late 3rd century. His early professions are unknown, but it is evident that very early in his youth he joined the army. Though unlettered, Vetranio rose rapidly through the ranks from obscurity, being ultimately elevated by

Constans 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 ...

to the governor of

Illyria In classical antiquity, Illyria (; grc, Ἰλλυρία, ''Illyría'' or , ''Illyrís''; la, Illyria, ''Illyricum'') was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by numerous tribes of people collectively known as the Illyr ...

. He held this command for a very long period of time, and by the time of Constans' death (January 350) was considered an officer of both popularity and experience. After the murder of

by 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 ...

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 Grea ...

, Constans' sister and the daughter of

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 convert to Christianity. Born in Naissus, Dacia Mediterran ...

asked the aged Vetranio to assume the purple, which he did on 1 March. She most likely thought Vetranio could protect her family and herself against the usurper, and merely hoped to secure his fidelity, though

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, i ...

credits her notoriously unscrupulous ambition for the scheme, suggesting interested motives on her part. In any case,

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 ...

was then embroiled in a dangerous struggle with

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 reign ...

, the king of the

Sasanian Empire 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 ...

. Constantina may have doubted her brother's resolution.

Emperor

Vetranio accepted the purple, and coins were minted in his name, showing the title of

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 ...

(full emperor), rather than Caesar, and the coins indicated that he expected to rule for five years, and hoped for ten. Constantius was not initially disinclined to accept the election of the Illyrian emperor, but the latter soon joined himself to the cause of Magnentius, and the two presented a united front against Constantius II in their embassy to his court at Heraclea in Thrace, where he had arrived from the Persian war. They offered him the senior title in the Empire, and Magnentius proposed to wed his daughter to Constantius, himself to marry Constantia the emperor's sister. But they required that the emperor lay down his arms and ratify their claims to the western provinces. Constantius, supposedly inspired by his father Constantine in a nocturnal vision, indignantly declined the offer. Constantius, however, designed to conceal his enmity to Vetranio, and, while disdaining negotiation with Magnentius, speciously conceded his (Vetranio's) claims and title, wishing to reconcile him to his cause for the war against Magnentius. According to

Philostorgius Philostorgius ( grc-gre, Φιλοστόργιος; 368 – c. 439 AD) was an Anomoean Church historian of the 4th and 5th centuries. Very little information about his life is available. He was born in Borissus, Cappadocia to Eulampia and Car ...

, Constantius sent Vetranio a

diadem A diadem is a type of crown, specifically an ornamental headband worn by monarchs and others as a badge of royalty. Overview The word derives from the Greek διάδημα ''diádēma'', "band" or "fillet", from διαδέω ''diadéō'', " ...

, thus recognizing his status as emperor. The vacillating Illyrian accepted the rapprochement, again uniting himself to the house of Constantine. Constantius met with Vetranio either at Naissus, or

Sirmium Sirmium was a city in the Roman province of Pannonia, located on the Sava river, on the site of modern Sremska Mitrovica in the Vojvodina autonomous provice of Serbia. First mentioned in the 4th century BC and originally inhabited by Illyria ...

, or at

Serdica Serdika or Serdica ( Bulgarian: ) is the historical Roman name of Sofia, now the capital of Bulgaria. Currently, Serdika is the name of a district located in the city. It includes four neighbourhoods: "Fondovi zhilishta"; "Banishora", "Orlandov ...

, to unite their strength for the war.

Sardica

Constantius presently threw off the disguise. On 25 December, in a scene contrived by officers in Vetranio's army well-disposed towards Constantius, the two emperors mounted a tribunal to address the assembled legions; Constantius succeeded, by means of a strong speech, in which he invoked the glories of the house of

Constantine I 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 convert to Christianity. Born in Naissus, Dacia Mediterran ...

, to have the Illyrian legions acclaim him sole emperor. Vetranio threw himself on the ground and begged Constantius' clemency. The emperor gently raised the aged general by the hand, honoring him with the name of father, and gave him instant pardon.

Later life and death

Later he was dismissed in peace. Though dismissed from his command, he was allowed to live the remainder of his years as a private citizen on a state pension in Prusa ad Olympum,

Bithynia Bithynia (; Koine Greek: , ''Bithynía'') was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor (present-day Turkey), adjoining the Sea of Marmara, the Bosporus, and the Black Sea. It bordered Mysia to the southwe ...

. He lived a further six years, dying in simple happiness. He is said to have recommended to Constantius as his friend, during his happy retirement in Brusa, that peace could only be obtained in a private station.Gibbon, p. 592

References

External links

* Vetranio's profile in the

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 ...

, "Vetranio (350 A.D.)", in ''DIR'' (1996).

Most complete internet database of known coin types of Vetranio
{{Roman Emperors 356 deaths Year of birth unknown 4th-century Roman emperors 4th-century Roman usurpers Monarchs who abdicated