Andragathius

Last updated

Andragathius was the Magister equitum of Magnus Maximus. He captured and murdered the Roman Emperor Gratian in 383, between Lyons and Grenoble. Andragathius threw himself into the ocean following the defeat of Maximus. [1] 'Dux' contends that Andragathius' position under Maximus was like that of Arbogast in his service to Eugenius. [2]

Maximus sent Andragathius to search for the mother of Valentinian when he learned that she was crossing the Ionian Sea with her children. Andragathius failed to locate her, though he sailed with a number of fast ships in every direction. The woman and her companions had beaten them to the Ionian Strait, which they crossed. Andragathius brought together a competent navy which sailed the adjacent coasts, in anticipation of an attack by Theodosius. [3]

Prior to killing Gratian, Andragathius hid himself in a litter which looked similar to a couch. The litter was carried by mules. He ordered his guards to send out a report that the litter contained the wife of Gratian. [4]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theodosius I</span> Roman emperor from 379 to 395

Theodosius I, also called Theodosius the Great, was Roman emperor from 379 to 395. During his reign, he succeeded in a crucial war against the Goths, as well as in two civil wars, and was instrumental in establishing the creed of Nicaea as the orthodox doctrine for Christianity. Theodosius was the last emperor to rule the entire Roman Empire before its administration was permanently split between two separate courts.

The 380s decade ran from January 1, 380, to December 31, 389.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Magnus Maximus</span> Roman emperor from 383 to 388

Magnus Maximus was Roman emperor of the Western Roman Empire from 383 to 388. He usurped the throne from emperor Gratian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gratian</span> Roman emperor from 367 to 383

Gratian was emperor of the Western Roman Empire from 367 to 383. The eldest son of Valentinian I, Gratian accompanied his father on several campaigns along the Rhine and Danube frontiers and was raised to the rank of Augustus in 367. Upon the death of Valentinian in 375, Gratian took over government of the west while his half-brother Valentinian II was also acclaimed emperor in Pannonia. Gratian governed the western provinces of the empire, while his uncle Valens was already the emperor over the east.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valentinian II</span> Roman emperor from 375 to 392

Valentinian II was a Roman emperor in the western part of the Roman empire between AD 375 and 392. He was at first junior co-ruler of his brother, was then sidelined by a usurper, and only after 388 sole ruler, albeit with limited de facto powers.

<i>Pontifex maximus</i> Chief high priest in ancient Rome

The pontifex maximus was the chief high priest of the College of Pontiffs in ancient Rome. This was the most important position in the ancient Roman religion, open only to patricians until 254 BC, when a plebeian first occupied this post. Although in fact the most powerful office in the Roman priesthood, the pontifex maximus was officially ranked fifth in the ranking of the highest Roman priests, behind the rex sacrorum and the flamines maiores.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arrian</span> 2nd century Greek historian, official and philosopher

Arrian of Nicomedia was a Greek historian, public servant, military commander, and philosopher of the Roman period.

Maximus, also known as Maximus I or Maximus the Cynic was the intrusive archbishop of Constantinople in 380, where he became a rival of Gregory Nazianzus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Quintus Aurelius Symmachus</span> Roman senator, orator and author (345–402 CE)

Quintus Aurelius Symmachus signo Eusebius was a Roman statesman, orator, and man of letters. He held the offices of governor of proconsular Africa in 373, urban prefect of Rome in 384 and 385, and consul in 391. Symmachus sought to preserve the traditional religions of Rome at a time when the aristocracy was converting to Christianity, and led an unsuccessful delegation of protest against Emperor Gratian's order to remove the Altar of Victory from the curia, the principal meeting place of the Roman Senate in the Forum Romanum. Two years later he made a famous appeal to Gratian's successor, Valentinian II, in a dispatch that was rebutted by Ambrose, the bishop of Milan. Symmachus's career was temporarily derailed when he supported the short-lived usurper Magnus Maximus, but he was rehabilitated and three years later appointed consul. After the death of Theodosius I, he became an ally of Stilicho, the guardian of emperor Honorius. In collaboration with Stilicho he was able to restore some of the legislative powers of the Senate. Much of his writing has survived: nine books of letters; a collection of Relationes or official dispatches; and fragments of various orations.

Gracianus Municeps was a legendary King of the Britons, according to Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia regum Britanniae, a largely fictional account of British history. "Municeps" translates to "freedman", meaning this individual was Gracianus the freedman. After the death of Roman Emperor Magnus Maximus, Gracianus seized the throne of Britain upon receiving word of Maximus's demise, by whose orders he had been sent to defend the attacked island while Maximus was campaigning on the continent.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Victor (emperor)</span> Roman emperor from 384 or 387 to 388

Victor was a Western Roman emperor from either 383/384 or 387 to August 388. He was the son of the magister militum Magnus Maximus, who later became a usurper of the Western Roman Empire, in opposition to Gratian. Maximus rose up in 383, and was recognized as the legitimate emperor in the west by Theodosius I. Victor was elevated to augustus of the Western Roman Empire in either 383/384 or mid-387, making him co-emperor with his father. Maximus invaded Italy in 387, to depose Valentinian II, the brother and successor of the late Gratian. Because of Maximus' invasion, Theodosius invaded the Western Empire in 388. Theodosius defeated Maximus in two battles in Pannonia, before crushing his army at Aquilea, and capturing Maximus. Maximus was executed on 28 August 388. His death was followed quickly by that of Victor, who was executed in Trier by the Frankish general Arbogast.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Onesicritus</span>

Onesicritus, a Greek historical writer and Cynic philosopher, who accompanied Alexander the Great on his campaigns in Asia. He claimed to have been the commander of Alexander's fleet but was actually only a helmsman; Arrian and Nearchus often criticize him for this. When he returned home, he wrote a history of Alexander's campaigns. He is frequently cited by later authors, who also criticize him for his inaccuracies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Valentinianic dynasty</span> Roman imperial dynasty in Late Antiquity, r. 364–392 and 421–455

The Valentinianic or Valentinian dynasty was a ruling house of five generations of dynasts, including five Roman emperors during Late Antiquity, lasting nearly a hundred years from the mid fourth to the mid fifth century. They succeeded the Constantinian dynasty and reigned over the Roman Empire from 364 to 392 and from 425 to 455, with an interregnum (392–423), during which the Theodosian dynasty ruled and eventually succeeded them. The Theodosians, who intermarried into the Valentinian house, ruled concurrently in the east after 379.

Justina was a Roman empress. She was initially the wife of the rebel emperor Magnentius and was then married to Valentinian I, with whom she had four children, including the emperor Valentinian II and the empress Galla.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miltiades</span> Greek Athenian statesman and general (c.550–489 BC)

Miltiades, also known as Miltiades the Younger, was a Greek Athenian citizen known mostly for his role in the Battle of Marathon, as well as for his downfall afterwards. He was the son of Cimon Coalemos, a renowned Olympic chariot-racer, and the father of Cimon, the noted Athenian statesman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Save</span>

The Battle of the Save was fought in 388 between the forces of Roman usurper Magnus Maximus and the Eastern Roman Empire. Emperor Theodosius I defeated Magnus Maximus's army in battle. Later Maximus was captured and executed at Aquileia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Myndus</span> Ancient Dorian colony of Troezen

Myndus or Myndos was an ancient Dorian colony of Troezen, on the coast of Caria in Asia Minor, (Turkey), sited on the Bodrum Peninsula, a few miles northwest of Halicarnassus. The site is now occupied by the modern village of Gümüşlük.

Galla was a Roman empress as the second wife of Theodosius I. She was the daughter of Valentinian I and his second wife Justina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Constantia (wife of Gratian)</span> Augusta

Constantia (362–383) was the first empress consort of Gratian of the Western Roman Empire. According to Ammianus Marcellinus, Constantia was a posthumous child of Constantius II by his third wife Faustina. Her paternal grandparents were Constantine the Great and Fausta.

Flavius Merobaudes was a Roman army officer of Frankish origin. He was appointed magister peditum around 375, and consul twice in 377 and 383. Ancient sources record that he was put to death that year for his support of the imperial usurper Magnus Maximus, but an inscription records that he became consul a third time in 388.

References

  1. Andragathius, Universal Historical Dictionary, Volume 1, George Crabb, Baldwin and Craddock, 1833, pg. 76.
  2. Claudian as an historical authority, James Harold Edward Crees, University Press, 1908, pg. 49.
  3. Arrian's History of Alexander's expedition, Volume 2, Arrian, printed for R. Lea, 1814, pg. 123.
  4. A dictionary of Christian biography, literature, sects and doctrines, Sir William Smith, Henry Wace, Little, Brown and Company, 1880, pg. 724