Publius Licinius Egnatius Gallienus was Roman emperor with his father Valerian from 253 to 260 and alone from 260 to 268. He ruled during the Crisis of the Third Century that nearly caused the collapse of the empire. He won numerous military victories against usurpers and Germanic tribes, but was unable to prevent the secession of important provinces. His 15-year reign was the longest in half a century.
Year 251 (CCLI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, in the Roman Empire, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Traianus and Etruscus. The denomination 251 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Year 254 (CCLIV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Valerianus and Gallienus. The denomination 254 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Year 257 (CCLVII) was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Valerianus and Gallienus. The denomination 257 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
The 250s was a decade that ran from January 1, 250, to December 31, 259.
The 260s decade ran from January 1, 260, to December 31, 269.
Year 252 (CCLII) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Trebonianus and Volusianus. The denomination 252 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Year 265 (CCLXV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Valerianus and Lucillus. The denomination 265 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini calendar era became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Valerian was Roman emperor from 253 to spring 260 AD. Valerian is known as the first Roman emperor to have been taken captive in battle, captured by the Persian emperor Shapur I after the Battle of Edessa, causing shock and instability throughout the Roman Empire. The unprecedented event and his unknown fate generated a variety of different reactions and "new narratives about the Roman Empire in diverse contexts".
Pope Cornelius was the bishop of Rome from 6th or 13 March 251 until his martyrdom in June 253. He was pope during and following a period of persecution of the church, while a schism occurred over how repentant church members who had practiced pagan sacrifices to protect themselves could be readmitted to the church. He agreed with Cyprian of Carthage that those who had lapsed could be restored to communion after varying forms of Reinitiation and Penance. This position was in contrast to the Novatianists, who held that those who failed to maintain their confession of faith under persecution would not be received again into communion with the church. This resulted in a short-lived schism in the Church of Rome that spread as each side sought to gather support. Cornelius held a synod that confirmed his election and excommunicated Novatian, but the controversy regarding lapsed members continued for years.
Gaius Messius Quintus Trajanus Decius, known as Trajan Decius or simply Decius, was Roman emperor from 249 to 251.
Gaius Vibius Trebonianus Gallus was Roman emperor from June 251 to August 253, in a joint rule with his son Volusianus.
Marcus Aemilius Aemilianus, also known as Aemilian, was Roman emperor for three months in 253.
Quintus Herennius Etruscus Messius Decius, known simply as Herennius Etruscus, was briefly Roman emperor in 251, ruling jointly under his father Decius. His father was proclaimed emperor by his troops in September 249 while in Pannonia and Moesia, in opposition to Philip. Decius defeated Philip in battle, and was then proclaimed emperor by the Senate. Etruscus, still a child, was elevated to Caesar (heir) in 250, then further raised to Augustus (emperor) in May 251. When the Goths, under Cniva, invaded the Danubian provinces, he was sent with a vanguard, followed by the main body of Roman troops, led by Decius. They ambushed Cniva at the Battle of Nicopolis ad Istrum in 250, routing him, before being ambushed and routed themselves at the Battle of Beroe. Etruscus was killed in the Battle of Abritus the following year, alongside his father. After the deaths of both emperors, Trebonianus Gallus, who had been governor of Moesia, was elected emperor by the remaining Roman forces.
Hostilian was briefly Roman emperor in 251. Hostilian was born to Decius and Herennia Etruscilla at an unknown date and elevated to caesar in 250 by Decius. After Decius and Herennius Etruscus, Hostilian's brother, were killed at the Battle of Abritus, an ambush by the Goths, Trebonianus Gallus was proclaimed emperor by the legions. Almost immediately, he elevated Hostilian to co-emperor and his own son, Volusianus, to caesar. Hostilian died soon after, either due to plague or being murdered by Trebonianus Gallus.
Gaius Vibius Volusianus, commonly called Volusian, was a Roman emperor from 251 to 253, ruling with his father Trebonianus Gallus.
Lucius Petronius Taurus Volusianus was a Roman citizen, apparently of equestrian origins, whose career in the Imperial Service in the mid-Third Century AD carried him from a relatively modest station in life to the highest public offices and senatorial status in a very few years. He may have secured his first appointments before the Licinian Dynasty – – acceded to the Empire in 253 AD, but it was in the course of their reign that his upward progress achieved an almost unprecedented momentum and the second factor seems to have been a consequence of the first. The nature of his relationship to the Licinii is uncertain, but it seems likely that a common origin in the Etruscan region of central Italy at least predisposed Gallienus in his favour and he seems to have been that emperor's most trusted servant and adviser during the period of his sole reign - 260(?)-268 AD.
The Gothic War of 248–253 took place between the years 248 and 249, as well as in the year 253. Within this war, a series of battles occurred and plundering was carried out by the Goths and their allies in the eastern territory of the Roman Empire, specifically in the Balkans. With the cessation of the payment of tribute previously made by the Roman emperor Philip the Arab to the tribes beyond the Danube, the Goths and their allies, led by King Ostrogotha and his subcommanders Argedo and Gundericus, moved towards the Roman border and began a series of attacks, including against the fortified city of Marcianopolis in Thracia. After these actions, the Goths withdrew with their spoils of war.
