The Epitome de Caesaribus is a 5th-century Latin historical work based on the Liber de Caesaribus (also known as Historiae abbreviatae) by Aurelius Victor.
It is a brief account of the reigns of the Roman emperors from Augustus to Theodosius the Great. It is often attributed to Aurelius Victor, but was written by an anonymous author who was very likely a pagan. The author used the so-called Enmannsche Kaisergeschichte and the (now lost) Annales of Virius Nicomachus Flavianus (a friend of Quintus Aurelius Symmachus). Although very brief in length and not always reliable, it also contains some useful information such as how the late Romans perceived the Sassanian wars and descriptions of the affairs of the Tetrarchy as well as anecdotes of various emperors. The work also shows numerous anachronisms and inaccuracies, such as referring to Caracalla as the father of the later emperor Elagabalus, a rumour perpetuated by the Severan dynasty.
Marcus Claudius Tacitus was Roman emperor from 275 to 276. During his short reign he campaigned against the Goths and the Heruli, for which he received the title Gothicus Maximus.
Marcus Aemilius Aemilianus, also known as Aemilian, was Roman emperor for three months in 253.
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.
Marcus Aurelius Claudius Quintillus was a short-lived Roman emperor. He was a brother of Emperor Claudius Gothicus, whom he succeeded after Claudius' death in 270. Quintillus' claim to be emperor was challenged by Aurelian, who was proclaimed emperor by the legions he commanded. Quintillus' reign only lasted a few weeks. Different sources report his cause of death as murder by his own soldiers, in battle with Aurelian, or by suicide.
Marcus Cassianius Latinius Postumus was a Roman commander of Batavian origin, who ruled as emperor of the splinter state of the Roman Empire known to modern historians as the Gallic Empire. The Roman army in Gaul threw off its allegiance to Gallienus around the year 260, and Postumus assumed the title and powers of Emperor in the provinces of Gaul, Germania, Britannia, and Hispania. He ruled for the better part of ten years before he was murdered by his own troops.
Marcus Aurelius Marius was emperor of the Gallic Empire in 269 following the assassination of Postumus.
Sextus Aurelius Victor was a historian and politician of the Roman Empire. Victor was the author of a short history of imperial Rome, entitled De Caesaribus and covering the period from Augustus to Constantius II. The work was published in 361. Under the emperor Julian (361-363), Victor served as governor of Pannonia Secunda; in 389 he became praefectus urbi, senior imperial official in Rome.
Marcus Piavonius Victorinus was emperor in the Gallic provinces from 268 to 270 or 269 to 271, following the brief reign of Marius. He was murdered by a jealous husband whose wife he had tried to seduce.
Julius Valens Licinianus, known as Licinian, was a Roman usurper in 250. Apparently, Licinian, who was a senator, had the support of the Roman Senate and parts of the population when he initiated an uprising against Decius, who was fighting the Goths. However, Valerian, who had been left in charge in Rome by Decius, had little trouble in suppressing the rebellion.
Valens is one of the Thirty Tyrants, a list of Roman usurpers compiled by the author(s) of the Historia Augusta.
Aurelius Valerius Valens, rarely enumerated as Valens I, was briefly Roman emperor from late 316 to early 317. He was proclaimed emperor by Licinius, emperor of the East, during his war against Constantine I, emperor of the West.
Philip II, also known as Philip the Younger, was the son and heir of the Roman emperor Philip the Arab by his wife Marcia Otacilia Severa.
Marcus Aurelius Sabinus Julianus, known in English as Julian of Pannonia was a Roman usurper against Emperor Carinus or Maximian. It is possible that up to four usurpers with a similar name rebelled in a timeframe of a decade, but at least one of them is known by numismatic evidence.
The Enmannsche Kaisergeschichte is a modern term for a hypothetical Latin historical work, written in the 4th century, but now lost.
Nerva was a Roman emperor from 96 to 98. Nerva became emperor when aged almost 66, after a lifetime of imperial service under Nero and the succeeding rulers of the Flavian dynasty. Under Nero, he was a member of the imperial entourage and played a vital part in exposing the Pisonian conspiracy of 65. Later, as a loyalist to the Flavians, he attained consulships in 71 and 90 during the reigns of Vespasian and Domitian, respectively. On 19 September 96, Domitian was assassinated in a palace conspiracy involving members of the Praetorian Guard and several of his freedmen. On the same day, Nerva was declared emperor by the Roman Senate. As the new ruler of the Roman Empire, he vowed to restore liberties which had been curtailed during the autocratic government of Domitian.
The gens Ulpia was a Roman family that rose to prominence during the first century AD. The gens is best known from the emperor Marcus Ulpius Trajanus, who reigned from AD 98 to 117. The Thirtieth Legion took its name, Ulpia, in his honor. The city of Serdica, modern day Sofia, was renamed as Ulpia Serdica.
The gens Messia was a plebeian family at Rome. The first person of this name to appear in history is Vettius Messius, a Volscian soldier whose courage inspired his comrades in a desperate battle against the Romans in 431 BC. It is not known when the Messii first obtained Roman citizenship. Members of the family appear in the lists of annual magistrates during the final decades of the Republic. In imperial times, some of the Messii achieved the highest offices of the Roman state.
The gens Opellia, also spelled Opelia and Opilia, was a minor family of imperial Rome, which briefly emerged from obscurity when Marcus Opellius Macrinus was proclaimed emperor following the murder of Caracalla in AD 217. The only members of this gens who appear in history are the emperor and his son, Marcus Opellius Diadumenianus, who ruled briefly as co-emperor in 218, but other Opellii are found in inscriptions, particularly from Dacia.
Three main sets of works are attributed to Florus : Virgilius orator an poeta, the Epitome of Roman History and a collection of 14 short poems. As to whether these were composed by the same person, or set of people, is unclear, but the works are variously attributed to:
Paccia Marciana was the first wife of Septimius Severus, who later became Roman emperor. They married around 175 and she died of natural causes around 186.
