Shortly after the death of Roman emperor Constantius II, his successor Julian held a tribunal at the city of Chalcedon, which was then a suburb of Constantinople. Saturninius Secundus Salutius, who was raised to the rank of Praetorian Prefect was given the chief oversight and with him were associated Claudius Mamertinus (another civilian), and four military commanders, Arbitio, Agilo, Nevitta and Jovinus. The first two were ex-officers of Constantius, while the other two had served with Julian. [1]
At this tribunal a large part of Constantius's ministers were brought to trial. In charge of the daily inquisitions was Arbitio, "while the others were present merely for show" according to historian Ammianus Marcellinus. Palladius, Taurus, Euagrius, Saturninus and Cyrinus are known to have been exiled. Florentius, Ursulus and Eusebius were condemned to death. Apodemius and Paulus Catena were even burned alive. Another Florentius was imprisoned on a Dalmatian island. Constantius II died on 3 November 361, so all this must have happened in late 361 and early 362. [2]
Ammianus Marcellinus, occasionally anglicised as Ammian, was a Roman soldier and historian who wrote the penultimate major historical account surviving from antiquity. Written in Latin and known as the Res gestae, his work chronicled the history of Rome from the accession of the Emperor Nerva in 96 to the death of Valens at the Battle of Adrianople in 378. Only the sections covering the period 353 to 378 survive.
Constantius II was Roman emperor from 337 to 361. His reign saw constant warfare on the borders against the Sasanian Empire and Germanic peoples, while internally the Roman Empire went through repeated civil wars, court intrigues, and usurpations. His religious policies inflamed domestic conflicts that would continue after his death.
Julian was the Caesar of the West from 355 to 360 and Roman emperor from 361 to 363, as well as a notable philosopher and author in Greek. His rejection of Christianity, and his promotion of Neoplatonic Hellenism in its place, caused him to be remembered as Julian the Apostate in Christian tradition. He is sometimes referred to as Julian the Philosopher.
Year 355 (CCCLV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Arbitio and Maesius. The denomination 355 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.
Jovian was Roman emperor from June 363 to February 364. As part of the imperial bodyguard, he accompanied Julian on his campaign against the Sasanian Empire. Julian was killed in battle, and the exhausted and ill-provisioned army declared Jovian his successor. Unable to cross the Tigris, Jovian made peace with the Sasanids on humiliating terms. He spent the rest of his seven-month reign traveling back to Constantinople. After his arrival at Edessa, Jovian was petitioned by bishops over doctrinal issues concerning Christianity. Albeit the last emperor to rule the whole Empire during his entire reign, he died at Dadastana, never having reached the capital.
Flavius Claudius Constantius Gallus was a statesman and ruler in the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire from 351 to 354, as Caesar under emperor Constantius II, his cousin. A grandson of emperor Constantius Chlorus and empress Flavia Maximiana Theodora, and a son of Julius Constantius and Galla, he belonged to the Constantinian dynasty. Born during the reign of his uncle Constantine the Great, he was among the few male members of the imperial family to survive the purge that followed Constantine's death. Under Constantius II, Gallus served as deputy emperor, based in Antioch and married to Constantius' sister Constantina. He dealt with a Jewish revolt in the years 351-352. Gallus ultimately fell out of favor with Constantius and was executed, being replaced as Caesar by his younger half-brother Julian.
Paulus Catena was a senior Roman public official who served as an investigator and notary for Constantius II during the mid-fourth century. He is principally known through the writings of Ammianus Marcellinus, though he is also present in the works of Libanius and Julian the Apostate. Marcellinus describes him as infamously cruel, and a skilled fabricator of false accusations.
Claudius Mamertinus was an official in the Roman Empire. In late 361 he took part in the Chalcedon tribunal to condemn the ministers of Constantius II, and in 362, he was made consul as a reward by the new Emperor Julian; on January 1 of that year he delivered a panegyric in Constantinople by way of thanks to the Emperor. The text of this is extant, preserved in the Panegyrici Latini. Claudius Mamertinus later went on to become praetorian prefect of Italy, Africa, and Illyria before being removed from public office in 368 for embezzlement.
Silvanus was a Roman general and usurper of Frankish descent. He revolted in Gaul against Emperor Constantius II, claiming the imperial title for 28 days in AD 355.
Ursicinus was a Roman senior military officer, holding the rank of Magister Equitum per Orientem and even Magister Peditum Praesentalis in the later Roman Empire c. 349–359. He was a citizen of Antioch and was well connected in the Eastern part of the Roman Empire.
Barbatio was a Roman general of the infantry under the command of Constantius II. Previously he was a commander of the household troops under Gallus Caesar, but he arrested Gallus under the instruction of Constantius, thereby ensuring his promotion on the death of Claudius Silvanus. In 359, both he and his wife Assyria were arrested and beheaded for treason against Constantius, possibly as part of a plot by Arbitio, a senior cavalry commander, and another exponent of the forms of scheming and political intrigue that became such a part of the later Roman Empire.
Flavius Arbitio was a Roman general and Consul who lived in the middle of the 4th century AD.
Faustina was a Roman empress as the third wife of the emperor Constantius II. The main source for her biography is the account of historian Ammianus Marcellinus. Her origins and other names are unknown.
Charito was a Roman Empress, consort of Jovian, Roman Emperor. Some historians doubt whether Charito was granted the title of Augusta as no archaeological evidence as yet confirms it.
Apodemius was an officer of the Roman Empire, a courtier of Emperor Constantius II, involved in the deaths of Constantius Gallus and Claudius Silvanus.
Pentadius was an officer of the Roman Empire.
Eusebius was a high-ranking officer of the Roman Empire, holding the position of praepositus sacri cubiculi during the rule of Emperor Constantius II (337-361).
Florentius was a Roman praetorian prefect under the Caesar Julian and later a consul, before falling from grace when Julian became emperor.
Nevitta was a military leader and official in the Roman Empire. His career is closely linked to that of Flavius Claudius Julianus, the Emperor Julian. He was master of the cavalry and in 362 served as consul.
Flavius Arintheus was a Roman army officer who started his career in the middle ranks and rose to senior political and military positions. He served the emperors Constantius II, Julian, Jovian and Valens. In 372 he was appointed consul, alongside Domitius Modestus.