Elagabalus

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Elagabalus
Emperor of the Roman Empire

Bust of Elagabalus,
from the Capitoline Museums
Reign 218–222
Full name Varius Avitus Bassianus
(from birth to accession);
Caesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus
(as emperor)
Born ca. 203
Died 11 March 222
Predecessor Macrinus
Successor Alexander Severus
Wives Julia Cornelia Paula
Julia Aquilia Severa
Annia Faustina
Julia Aquilia Severa
Hierocles
Offspring Alexander Severus (adoptive)
Father Sextus Varius Marcellus
Mother Julia Soaemias Bassiana
For the deity with the same name see Elagabalus (deity)

Elagabalus (c. 203 – March 11, 222), also known as Heliogabalus or Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, was a Roman Emperor of the Severan dynasty who reigned from 218 to 222. Born Varius Avitus Bassianus, he was a Syrian by birth, the son of Julia Soaemias and Sextus Varius Marcellus, and in his early youth he served as a priest of the god El-Gabal at his hometown, Emesa.

In 217, the emperor Caracalla was murdered and replaced by his Praetorian prefect, Marcus Opellius Macrinus. Caracalla's maternal aunt, Julia Maesa, successfully instigated a revolt among the Third Legion to have her eldest grandson, Elagabalus, declared as emperor in his place. Macrinus was defeated on June 8, 218, at the Battle of Antioch, upon which Elagabalus, barely fourteen years old, ascended to the imperial power and began a reign that was marred by controversies.

During his rule, Elagabalus showed a disregard for Roman religious traditions and sexual taboos. He was married as many as five times and is reported to have prostituted himself in the imperial palace. Elagabalus replaced Jupiter, head of the Roman pantheon, with a new god, Deus Sol Invictus, and forced leading members of Rome's government to participate in religious rites celebrating this deity, which he personally led.

Amidst growing opposition, Elagabalus, only 18 years old, was assassinated and replaced by his cousin Severus Alexander on March 11, 222, in a plot formed by his grandmother, Julia Maesa, and members of the Praetorian Guard. Elagabalus developed a reputation among his contemporaries for eccentricity, decadence, and zealotry which was likely exaggerated by his successors and political rivals.[1] This propaganda was passed on and, as a result, he was one of the most reviled Roman emperors to early historians. For example, Edward Gibbon wrote that Elagabalus "abandoned himself to the grossest pleasures and ungoverned fury."[2] "The name Elagabalus is branded in history above all others" because of his "unspeakably disgusting life," wrote B.G. Niebuhr.[3]

Family

Further information: Severan dynasty family tree Roman imperial dynasties
Severan dynasty
Chronology
Septimius Severus 193 – 198
-with Caracalla 198 – 209
-with Caracalla and Geta 209 – 211
Caracalla and Geta 211 – 211
Caracalla 211 – 217
Interlude: Macrinus 217 – 218
Elagabalus 218 – 222
Alexander Severus 222 – 235
Dynasty
Severan dynasty family tree
Category:Severan Dynasty

Succession
Preceded by
Year of the Five Emperors Followed by
Crisis of the Third Century

Elagabalus was born in 203[4] as Varius Avitus Bassianus to the family of Sextus Varius Marcellus and Julia Soaemias Bassiana. His father was initially a member of the equestrian class, but was later elevated to the rank of senator. His grandmother Julia Maesa was the widow of the Consul Julius Avitus, the sister of Julia Domna, and the sister-in-law of emperor Septimius Severus.[5] Julia Soaemias was a cousin of Roman emperor Caracalla. Other relatives included his aunt Julia Avita Mamaea and uncle Marcus Julius Gessius Marcianus and their son Alexander Severus. Elagabalus's family held hereditary rights to the priesthood of the sun god El-Gabal, of whom Elagabalus was the high priest at Emesa (modern Homs) in Syria.[4]

The name El-Gabal originally referred to the patron deity of the emperor's birthplace, Emesa.[6] El refers to the chief Semitic deity, while Gabal, meaning mountain (compare with the Hebrew gevul and Arabic jebel), is his Emesene manifestation.[7] The god was later imported and assimilated with the Roman sun god, who was known as Sol Indiges in republican times, and later Sol Invictus during the 2nd and 3rd centuries.[8] Avitus adopted the name of the god, being styled Elagabalus.[9]

Rise to power

When the emperor Macrinus came to power he suppressed the threat against his reign by the family of his assassinated predecessor, Caracalla, by exiling them—Julia Maesa, her two daughters, and her eldest grandson Elagabalus—to their estate at Emesa in Syria.[4] Almost upon arrival in Syria she began a plot, with her eunuch advisor and Elagabalus' tutor Gannys, to overthrow Macrinus and elevate the fourteen-year-old Elagabalus as emperor.[4] Elagabalus and his mother readily complied and announced, falsely, that he was the illegitimate son of Caracalla, therefore due the loyalties of Roman soldiers and senators who had sworn allegiance to Caracalla.[4] After Julia Maesa displayed her wealth to the Third Legion at Raphana they swore allegiance to Elagabalus. At sunrise on May 16, 218, Publius Valerius Comazon Eutychianus, commander of the legion, declared him emperor.[10] To strengthen his legitimacy through further propaganda, Elagabalus assumed Caracalla's names, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus.[11]

In response Macrinus dispatched his Praetorian prefect Ulpius Julianus to the region with a contingent of troops he considered strong enough the crush the rebellion. However this force soon joined the faction of Elagabalus when, during the battle, they turned on their own commanders. The officers were killed and Julianus' head was sent back to the emperor.[12] Macrinus now sent letters to the Senate denouncing Elagabalus as the False Antoninus and claiming he was insane.[13] Both consuls and other high ranking members of Rome's leadership condemned him, and the Senate subsequently declared war on both Elagabalus and Julia Maesa.[14]

Macrinus and his son, weakened by the desertion of the Second Legion due to bribes and promises circulated by Julia Maesa, were defeated on June 8, 218 at the Battle of Antioch by troops commanded by Gannys.[12] Macrinus fled toward Italy, disguised as a courier, but was later intercepted near Chalcedon and executed in Cappadocia.[12] His son Diadumenianus, sent for safety to the Parthian court, was captured at Zeugma and also put to death.[12]

Elagabalus declared the date of the victory at Antioch to be the beginning of his reign and assumed the imperial titles without prior Senatorial approval,[15] which violated tradition but was a common practice among third-century emperors nonetheless. Letters of reconciliation were dispatched to Rome extending amnesty to the Senate and recognizing the laws, while also condemning the administration of Macrinus and his son.[16] The Senators responded by acknowledging Elagabalus as emperor and accepting his claim to be the son of Caracalla.[17] Caracalla and Julia Domna were both deified by the Senate, both Julia Maesa and Julia Soaemias were elevated to the rank of Augustae,[18] and the memory of Macrinus and Diadumenianus was condemned and vilified by the Senate.[15] The former commander of the Third Legion, Comazon, was appointed to be commander of the Praetorian Guard.[19]

Emperor

First year

Elagabalus and his entourage spent the winter of 218 in Bithynia at Nicomedia,[17] where the emperor's religious beliefs first manifested themselves as a problem. The contemporary historian Cassius Dio suggests that Gannys was in fact killed by the new emperor because he was forcing Elagabalus to live "temperately and prudently."[20] To help Romans adjust to the idea of having an oriental priest as emperor, Julia Maesa had a painting of Elagabalus in priestly robes sent to Rome and hung over a statue of the goddess Victoria in the Senate House.[17] This placed Senators in the awkward position of having to make offerings to Elagabalus whenever they made offerings to Victoria.