Marcus Aurelius Severus Alexander, also known as Alexander Severus, was a Roman emperor, who reigned from 222 until 235. He was the last emperor from the Severan dynasty. He succeeded his slain cousin Elagabalus in 222. Alexander himself was eventually assassinated, and his death marked the beginning of the events of the Crisis of the Third Century, which included nearly fifty years of civil war, foreign invasion, and the collapse of the monetary economy.
The Severan dynasty was an Ancient Roman imperial dynasty that ruled the Roman Empire between 193 and 235, during the Roman imperial period. The dynasty was founded by the emperor Septimius Severus, who rose to power after the Year of the Five Emperors as the victor of the civil war of 193–197, and his wife, Julia Domna. After the short reigns and assassinations of their two sons, Caracalla and Geta, who succeeded their father in the government of the empire, Julia Domna's relatives themselves assumed power by raising Elagabalus and then Severus Alexander to the imperial office.
The 220s decade ran from January 1, 220, to December 31, 229.
Year 225 (CCXXV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Fuscus and Domitius. The denomination 225 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 227 (CCXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Senecio and Fulvius. The denomination 227 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.
Gordian I was Roman emperor for 22 days with his son Gordian II in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. Caught up in a rebellion against the Emperor Maximinus Thrax, he was defeated by forces loyal to Maximinus, and he committed suicide after the death of his son.
Julia Maesa was a member of the Severan dynasty of the Roman Empire who was the grandmother of emperors Elagabalus and Severus Alexander, elder sister of empress Julia Domna, and mother of Julia Soaemias and Julia Mamaea. She wielded influence during the reigns of her grandsons as Augusta of the Empire from 218 to her death, especially on their elevation to emperors.
Julia Avita Mamaea or Julia Mamaea was a Syrian noble woman and member of the Severan dynasty. She was the mother of Roman emperor Alexander Severus and remained one of his chief advisors throughout his reign. She was killed in 235 by rebel soldiers alongside her son.
Marcus Clodius Pupienus Maximus was Roman emperor with Balbinus for 99 days in 238, during the Year of the Six Emperors. The sources for this period are scant, and thus knowledge of the emperor is limited. In most contemporary texts he is referred to by his cognomen "Maximus" rather than by his second nomen Pupienus.
Gnaea Seia Herennia Sallustia Barbia Orbiana, usually known as Sallustia Orbiana, was a third century Roman empress, with the title of Augusta as the wife of Severus Alexander from AD 225 to 227. The emperor married her in late 225, following the death of his grandmother. Severus was around sixteen years of age at this time. She was known for her beauty, which was captured in multiple works of art. Possibly a victim of the jealousy of Julia Mamaea, the emperor's mother, Orbiana was divorced and exiled to Libya in 227.
Julius Paulus, often simply referred to as Paul in English, was one of the most influential and distinguished Roman jurists. He was also a praetorian prefect under the Roman Emperor Alexander Severus.
The names Sallustius/Saloustios and their vernacular variants Sallust(e) have been borne by many people:
Marcus Julius Gessius Marcianus also known as Gessius Marcianus was a Syrian Roman aristocrat. He was the second husband of Julia Avita Mamaea and step-father of the future emperor Severus Alexander.
Libius Severus, sometimes enumerated as Severus III, was emperor of the Western Roman Empire from 461 to his death in 465. A native of Lucania, Severus was the fourth of the so-called Shadow Emperors who followed the deposition of the Valentinianic dynasty in 455. He ruled for just under four years, attaining the throne after his predecessor, Majorian, was overthrown by his magister militum, Ricimer. Severus was the first of a series of emperors who were highly dependent on the general, and it is often presumed that Ricimer held most of the de facto power during Severus' reign
Gaius Betitius Pius was a Patronus of Canusium in 223.
Severan art is art production by the Roman Empire under the Severan dynasty, usually taken as running from 193 to 235, through the emperors Septimius Severus, Caracalla, Heliogabalus and Alexander Severus. Official Roman art of the military anarchy which followed, ending in 253 with Gallienus, has no character of its own and so can be seen as a continuation of Severan art, and so that art can be seen as running for the whole first half of the 3rd century.
The gens Septimia was a minor plebeian family at ancient Rome. The gens first appears in history towards the close of the Republic, and they did not achieve much importance until the latter half of the second century, when Lucius Septimius Severus obtained the imperial dignity.
The gens Sallustia, occasionally written Salustia, was a plebeian family at ancient Rome. Members of this gens are first mentioned in the time of Cicero, and from that time they attained particular distinction as statesmen and writers. The most illustrious of the family was the historian Gaius Sallustius Crispus, who wrote valuable works on the Jugurthine War and the Conspiracy of Catiline, which still exist.
The gens Seia was a minor plebeian family of equestrian rank at ancient Rome. Members of this gens are first mentioned in the time of Cicero, and a few of them held various magistracies under the late Republic and into imperial times.
