Victor (consul 369)
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Victor ( 362–383) was a Roman military officer and politician, who served the emperors Constantius II,
Julian Julian may refer to: People * Julian (emperor) (331–363), Roman emperor from 361 to 363 * Julian (Rome), referring to the Roman gens Julia, with imperial dynasty offshoots * Saint Julian (disambiguation), several Christian saints * Julian (give ...
,
Jovian Jovian is the adjectival form of Jupiter and may refer to: * Jovian (emperor) (Flavius Iovianus Augustus), Roman emperor (363–364 AD) * Jovians and Herculians, Roman imperial guard corps * Jovian (lemur), a Coquerel's sifaka known for ''Zoboomafo ...
and Valens. He was appointed consul in AD 369, alongside Valentinianus Galates.


Early career and Julian's Persian campaign

Born into a Sarmatian family, Victor served at the court of the emperor Constantius II as a palace official. Under
Julian the Apostate Julian ( la, Flavius Claudius Julianus; grc-gre, Ἰουλιανός ; 331 – 26 June 363) was Roman emperor from 361 to 363, as well as a notable philosopher and author in Greek. His rejection of Christianity, and his promotion of Neoplato ...
, Victor was appointed ''
Comes rei militaris ''Comes'' ( ), plural ''comites'' ( ), was a Roman title or office, and the origin Latin form of the medieval and modern title "count". Before becoming a word for various types of title or office, the word originally meant "companion", either i ...
'', a position he held from AD 362 – 363. In anticipation of the campaign against the
Sassanid 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 ...
, Julian had Victor march the Roman army from Constantinople to Antioch. When Julian arrived to take command of the expedition, Victor was placed in charge of the rearguard. On the road to
Ctesiphon Ctesiphon ( ; Middle Persian: 𐭲𐭩𐭮𐭯𐭥𐭭 ''tyspwn'' or ''tysfwn''; fa, تیسفون; grc-gre, Κτησιφῶν, ; syr, ܩܛܝܣܦܘܢThomas A. Carlson et al., “Ctesiphon — ܩܛܝܣܦܘܢ ” in The Syriac Gazetteer last modi ...
, he scouted ahead to ensure there were no traps laid by the Persians, and at the Battle of Ctesiphon, he led the vanguard across the river, scattering a force of Persians led by the son of king Shapur II. Victor and his fellow generals then tried to convince Julian not to cross the canal, but Julian ordered him to cross and to engage the enemy, whereupon Victor was forced to pull back after meeting stiff resistance. A second engagement forced the Persians back to the walls of Ctesiphon, during which Victor was wounded in the shoulder. He prevented his soldiers from entering the city in pursuit of the retreating Persians. After Julian's death following the
Battle of Samarra The Battle of Samarra took place in June 363, during the invasion of the Sasanian Empire by the Roman Emperor Julian. After marching his army to the gates of Ctesiphon and failing to take the city, Julian, realizing his army was low on provisio ...
, Victor and a number of other court officials who had served under Constantius began looking among their number for a replacement, but were opposed by Julian's Gallic officers. Eventually Victor and the rest agreed to the elevation of Salutius, who refused the nomination, and they were forced to accept the elevation of
Jovian Jovian is the adjectival form of Jupiter and may refer to: * Jovian (emperor) (Flavius Iovianus Augustus), Roman emperor (363–364 AD) * Jovians and Herculians, Roman imperial guard corps * Jovian (lemur), a Coquerel's sifaka known for ''Zoboomafo ...
. Jovian promoted Victor to the rank of ''
Magister equitum The , in English Master of the Horse or Master of the Cavalry, was a Roman magistrate appointed as lieutenant to a dictator. His nominal function was to serve as commander of the Roman cavalry in time of war, but just as a dictator could be nomi ...
'' in AD 363, a post he held until AD 379.


Career under Valens

With the death of Jovian, Valentinian I was elected as the new emperor, and eventually Victor was assigned to the eastern court of Valentinian's brother and co-emperor Valens. In AD 366/7, Valens sent him to question the Goths who had supported the rebellion of the usurper Procopius, while at the same time assess the accuracy of reports of their restlessness and their war readiness. In AD 369, he was sent together with
Arintheus Flavius Arintheus (or Arinthaeus; died AD 378) was a Roman army officer who started his career as a middle-ranking officer and rose to senior political and military positions. He served the emperors Constantius II, Julian, Jovian and Valens. ...
to negotiate a peace with the Goths to end Valens’ first Gothic War. That same year, Valens rewarded Victor for his services by appointing him consul alongside Valens' three-year-old son, Valentinianus Galates. In AD 377, Victor was dispatched to Persia by Valens to negotiate with the Sassanids over the disputed territory of Armenia. These discussions were abruptly called off when Victor was recalled as a result of the outbreak of the new
Gothic War Gothic War may refer to: *Gothic War (248–253), battles and plundering carried out by the Goths and their allies in the Roman Empire. *Gothic War (367–369), a war of Thervingi against the Eastern Roman Empire in which the Goths retreated to Mont ...
, and the Gothic incursions into Thrace. Joining Valens, he advised the emperor to wait for reinforcements from his imperial colleague, Gratian, before proceeding to the Battle of Adrianople, but his advice was ignored. During the battle, he attempted unsuccessfully to rescue Valens, who died on the battlefield. Victor, however, did manage to withdraw his troops intact, and after the battle he crossed from
Macedonia Macedonia most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a traditional geographic reg ...
to
Pannonia Pannonia (, ) was a province of the Roman Empire bounded on the north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia. Pannonia was located in the territory that is now wes ...
, to bring news of the defeat to the emperor Gratian. By AD 380/1 Victor had retired from public life and was residing at Constantinople, where he owned a property in the suburb of Psamathea, and he was still alive in AD 382/3. Victor was a staunch supporter of Catholicism, and reputedly confronted the
Arian Arianism ( grc-x-koine, Ἀρειανισμός, ) is a Christological doctrine first attributed to Arius (), a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt. Arian theology holds that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who was begotten by God t ...
emperor Valens prior to his campaign at Adrianople, declaring that the emperor was incurring God's wrath by his persecution of Catholics. He probably interceded on behalf of
Basil of Caesarea Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great ( grc, Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας, ''Hágios Basíleios ho Mégas''; cop, Ⲡⲓⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲃⲁⲥⲓⲗⲓⲟⲥ; 330 – January 1 or 2, 379), was a bishop of Ca ...
, whom Valens had prepared orders to banish, but in the end never issued them. Victor was also instrumental in limiting Valens' push to bring the province of Cappadocia into the Arian fold.Irfan Shahîd, ''Byzantium and the Arabs in the Fourth Century'' (1984), pgs. 166-167 Victor was married to Chasidat or Khasidat, the daughter of the Arab Queen Mavia of the Arab Tanukh. He was also an acquaintance of the rhetorician Libanius.


Sources

* Martindale, J. R.; Jones, A. H. M, ''The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire'', Vol. I AD 260–395, Cambridge University Press (1971)


References

{{DISPLAYTITLE:Victor (''magister equitum'') 4th-century Christians 4th-century Romans 4th-century Roman consuls Comites rei militaris Imperial Roman consuls Magistri equitum (Roman Empire) Romans from unknown gentes Sarmatian people