Mr rnddude (talk | contribs) →Domestic Roman policy: Baths of Caracalla, updates, section rewrite, de-weasling of words, etc Tag: Visual edit |
Mr rnddude (talk | contribs) →Domestic Roman policy: Affiliation with the army, smaller and more compact but reliably sourced Tags: nowiki added Visual edit |
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Caracalla's father, [[Septimius Severus]], died on 4 February 211 at [[Eboracum]] (now [[York]]) while on campaign in northern Britain.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|title=How Rome Fell: death of a superpower|last=Goldsworthy|first=Adrian|publisher=New Haven: Yale University Press|year=2009|isbn=9780300164268|location=|pages=68-69}}</ref> Caracalla and his brother, [[Publius Septimius Geta|Publius Septimius Antoninus Geta]], jointly inherited the throne upon their father's death.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4">{{Cite book|title=Ancient Rome|last=Dunstan|first=William, E.|publisher=Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield|year=2011|isbn=9780742568327|location=|pages=210}}</ref> Caracalla and Geta ended the [[Roman invasion of Caledonia 208-210|campaign in Caledonia]] after concluding a peace with the [[Caledonians]] which returned the border of Rome back to [[Hadrian's Wall]].<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite book|title=How Rome Fell: death of a superpower|last=Goldsworthy|first=Adrian|publisher=New Haven: Yale University Press|year=2009|isbn=9780300164268|location=|pages=70}}</ref> After concluding the peace with the Caledonians, Caracalla and his brother journeyed back to Rome with their father's ashes, during the journey the two continuously argued with one another making relations between them increasingly hostile.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5" /> When they tried to rule the Empire jointly, they considered dividing it in halves with Caracalla ruling the west and Geta ruling the east with the [[Bosphorus]] as the border between the two, but were persuaded not to do so by their mother.<ref name=":5" /> |
Caracalla's father, [[Septimius Severus]], died on 4 February 211 at [[Eboracum]] (now [[York]]) while on campaign in northern Britain.<ref name=":3">{{Cite book|title=How Rome Fell: death of a superpower|last=Goldsworthy|first=Adrian|publisher=New Haven: Yale University Press|year=2009|isbn=9780300164268|location=|pages=68-69}}</ref> Caracalla and his brother, [[Publius Septimius Geta|Publius Septimius Antoninus Geta]], jointly inherited the throne upon their father's death.<ref name=":3" /><ref name=":4">{{Cite book|title=Ancient Rome|last=Dunstan|first=William, E.|publisher=Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield|year=2011|isbn=9780742568327|location=|pages=210}}</ref> Caracalla and Geta ended the [[Roman invasion of Caledonia 208-210|campaign in Caledonia]] after concluding a peace with the [[Caledonians]] which returned the border of Rome back to [[Hadrian's Wall]].<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5">{{Cite book|title=How Rome Fell: death of a superpower|last=Goldsworthy|first=Adrian|publisher=New Haven: Yale University Press|year=2009|isbn=9780300164268|location=|pages=70}}</ref> After concluding the peace with the Caledonians, Caracalla and his brother journeyed back to Rome with their father's ashes, during the journey the two continuously argued with one another making relations between them increasingly hostile.<ref name=":4" /><ref name=":5" /> When they tried to rule the Empire jointly, they considered dividing it in halves with Caracalla ruling the west and Geta ruling the east with the [[Bosphorus]] as the border between the two, but were persuaded not to do so by their mother.<ref name=":5" /> |
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Then on 26 December 211 at a reconciliation meeting arranged by their mother [[Julia Domna]], Caracalla had Geta assassinated by members of the Praetorian Guard loyal to himself, leading to Geta dying in his mother's arms.<ref name=":3" /> Caracalla then persecuted and executed most of Geta's supporters and ordered a ''[[damnatio memoriae]]'' pronounced by the Senate against his brother's memory.<ref>{{Cite book|title=How Rome Fell: death of a superpower|last=Goldsworthy|first=Adrian|publisher=New Haven: Yale University Press|year=2009|isbn=9780300164268|location=|pages=70-71}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|title=Ancient Rome|last=Dunstan|first=William, E.|publisher=Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield|year=2011|isbn=9780742568327|location=|pages=210-211}}</ref> |
Then on 26 December 211 at a reconciliation meeting arranged by their mother [[Julia Domna]], Caracalla had Geta assassinated by members of the Praetorian Guard loyal to himself, leading to Geta dying in his mother's arms.<ref name=":3" /> Caracalla then persecuted and executed most of Geta's supporters and ordered a ''[[damnatio memoriae]]'' pronounced by the Senate against his brother's memory.<ref>{{Cite book|title=How Rome Fell: death of a superpower|last=Goldsworthy|first=Adrian|publisher=New Haven: Yale University Press|year=2009|isbn=9780300164268|location=|pages=70-71}}</ref><ref name=":15">{{Cite book|title=Ancient Rome|last=Dunstan|first=William, E.|publisher=Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield|year=2011|isbn=9780742568327|location=|pages=210-211}}</ref> |
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Geta's image was simply removed from all coinage, paintings and statues, leaving a blank space next to Caracalla's. Among those executed were his former cousin-wife [[Fulvia Plautilla]], his unnamed daughter with Plautilla along with her brother and other members of the family of his former father-in-law [[Gaius Fulvius Plautianus]]. Plautianus had already been executed for alleged treachery against emperor Severus in 205.{{Citation needed|date=July 2016}} |
Geta's image was simply removed from all coinage, paintings and statues, leaving a blank space next to Caracalla's. Among those executed were his former cousin-wife [[Fulvia Plautilla]], his unnamed daughter with Plautilla along with her brother and other members of the family of his former father-in-law [[Gaius Fulvius Plautianus]]. Plautianus had already been executed for alleged treachery against emperor Severus in 205.{{Citation needed|date=July 2016}} |
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[[Edward Gibbon|Gibbon]] in his work describes Caracalla as "the common enemy of mankind". Caracalla left the capital in 213, about a year after the murder of Geta, and spent the rest of his reign in the provinces, particularly those of the East.<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":8">{{Cite book|title=The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire|last=Gibbon|first=Edward|publisher=|year=1776|isbn=|location=|pages=174}}</ref> The Senate and other wealthy families were kept in check by forcing them to construct, at their own expense, palaces, theaters, and places of entertainment throughout the periphery.<ref name=":8" /> New and heavy taxes were levied against the bulk of the population, with additional fees and confiscations targeted at the wealthiest families.<ref name=":8" /> |
[[Edward Gibbon|Gibbon]] in his work describes Caracalla as "the common enemy of mankind". Caracalla left the capital in 213, about a year after the murder of Geta, and spent the rest of his reign in the provinces, particularly those of the East.<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":8">{{Cite book|title=The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire|last=Gibbon|first=Edward|publisher=|year=1776|isbn=|location=|pages=174}}</ref> The Senate and other wealthy families were kept in check by forcing them to construct, at their own expense, palaces, theaters, and places of entertainment throughout the periphery.<ref name=":8" /> New and heavy taxes were levied against the bulk of the population, with additional fees and confiscations targeted at the wealthiest families.<ref name=":8" /> |
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After Caracalla concluded his campaign against the Alamanni it became evident that he was inordinately preoccupied with the Greek-Macedonian general and conqueror, Alexander the Great.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":9">{{Cite book|title=The Decadent Emperors: Power and Depravity in Third-Century Rome|last=Brauer|first=G.|publisher=|year=1967|isbn=|location=|pages=75}}</ref> He began openly mimicking Alexander in his personal style. In planning his invasion of the Parthian Empire, Caracalla decided to equip |
After Caracalla concluded his campaign against the Alamanni it became evident that he was inordinately preoccupied with the Greek-Macedonian general and conqueror, Alexander the Great.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":9">{{Cite book|title=The Decadent Emperors: Power and Depravity in Third-Century Rome|last=Brauer|first=G.|publisher=|year=1967|isbn=|location=|pages=75}}</ref> He began openly mimicking Alexander in his personal style. In planning his invasion of the Parthian Empire, Caracalla decided to equip the men of his army as Macedonian style phalanxes, despite the Roman army having made the Phalanx an obsolete tactical formation.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":9" /> This mania for Alexander went so far in that Caracalla visited Alexandria while preparing for his Persian invasion and persecuted philosophers of the Aristotelian school based on a legend that Aristotle had poisoned Alexander. This was a sign that Caracalla was behaving in an erratic manner. But this mania for Alexander, strange as it was, was overshadowed by subsequent events in Alexandria.<ref name=":9" /> |
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When the inhabitants of [[Alexandria, Egypt|Alexandria]] heard Caracalla's claims that he had killed Geta in self-defense, they produced a satire mocking this as well as Caracalla's other pretensions.<ref name=":10">{{Cite book|title=Faiths Across Time: 5000 Years of Religious History|last=Melton|first=Gordon, J.|publisher=|year=2014|isbn=|location=|pages=338}}</ref> In 215, Caracalla savagely responded to this insult by slaughtering the deputation of leading citizens who had unsuspectingly assembled before the city to greet his arrival, and then unleashed his troops for several days of looting and plunder in Alexandria.<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":10" /> Following the massacre at Alexandria, Caracalla moved east onto [[Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity)|Armenia]] and by 216 he had pushed through Armenia and south into Parthia.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Romans, from village to empire|last=Boatwright, Mary Taliaferro; Gargola, Daniel J; Talbert|first=Richard J. A.|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2004|isbn=0195118758|location=|pages=413-414}}</ref> |
When the inhabitants of [[Alexandria, Egypt|Alexandria]] heard Caracalla's claims that he had killed Geta in self-defense, they produced a satire mocking this as well as Caracalla's other pretensions.<ref name=":10">{{Cite book|title=Faiths Across Time: 5000 Years of Religious History|last=Melton|first=Gordon, J.|publisher=|year=2014|isbn=|location=|pages=338}}</ref> In 215, Caracalla savagely responded to this insult by slaughtering the deputation of leading citizens who had unsuspectingly assembled before the city to greet his arrival, and then unleashed his troops for several days of looting and plunder in Alexandria.<ref name=":6" /><ref name=":10" /> Following the massacre at Alexandria, Caracalla moved east onto [[Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity)|Armenia]] and by 216 he had pushed through Armenia and south into Parthia.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Romans, from village to empire|last=Boatwright, Mary Taliaferro; Gargola, Daniel J; Talbert|first=Richard J. A.|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2004|isbn=0195118758|location=|pages=413-414}}</ref> |
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===Influence of Julia Domna === |
===Influence of Julia Domna === |
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While Caracalla was mustering and training troops for his planned Persian invasion, Julia remained in Rome, administering the empire. Julia’s growing influence in state affairs was the beginning of a trend of Emperors’ mothers having influence, which continued throughout the Severan dynasty.<ref> |
While Caracalla was mustering and training troops for his planned Persian invasion, Julia remained in Rome, administering the empire. Julia’s growing influence in state affairs was the beginning of a trend of Emperors’ mothers having influence, which continued throughout the Severan dynasty.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Severans: the Changed Roman Empire|last=Grant|first=Michael|publisher=Psychology Press|year=1996|isbn=|location=|pages=46}}</ref> |
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== Domestic Roman policy == |
== Domestic Roman policy == |
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=== Affiliation with the army === |
=== Affiliation with the army === |
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During his reign as emperor, Caracalla raised the annual pay of an average legionary |
During his reign as emperor, Caracalla raised the annual pay of an average legionary from 2000 [[Sestertius|''sesterces'']]<nowiki/>t(500 ''[[denarii]]'') to 3000 ''sesterces'' (675 ''denarii'') and lavished many benefits on the army which he both feared and admired, as instructed by his father Septimius Severus who had told both him and his brother Geta on his deathbed always to mind the soldiers and ignore everyone else.<ref name=":15" /><ref name=":7" /> Caracalla needed to gain and keep the trust of the military, and did so with generous pay raises and popular gestures.<ref>{{Cite book|title=The Severans: the Changed Roman Empire|last=Grant|first=Michael|publisher=Psychology Press|year=1996|isbn=|location=|pages=42}}</ref> Caracalla, spent much of his time with the soldiers, so much so that the began to imitate their dress and had the manners of a common soldier.<ref name=":15" /><ref>{{Cite book|title=The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire|last=Gibbon|first=Edward|publisher=|year=1776|isbn=|location=|pages=176}}</ref> |
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With the soldiers, "He forgot even the proper dignity of his rank, encouraging their insolent familiarity," according to Gibbon.<ref name="Gibbon">Gibbon, Edward, ''The Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire'', Vol. 1. [http://www.ccel.org/g/gibbon/decline/volume1/chap6.htm Chapter 6].</ref> "The vigour of the army, instead of being confirmed by the severe discipline of the camps, melted away in the luxury of the cities." |
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=== Baths of Caracalla === |
=== Baths of Caracalla === |
Revision as of 01:23, 5 July 2016
Caracalla | |||||
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Joint 22nd Emperor of the Roman Empire | |||||
Reign | 198 – 8 April 217 | ||||
Predecessor | Septimius Severus | ||||
Successor | Macrinus | ||||
Co-emperors | Septimius Severus (198–211) Geta (209–211) | ||||
Born | Lugdunum | 4 April 188||||
Died | 8 April 217 On the road between Edessa and Carrhae | (aged 29)||||
Wife | |||||
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Dynasty | Severan | ||||
Father | Septimius Severus | ||||
Mother | Julia Domna |
Roman imperial dynasties | ||
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Severan dynasty | ||
Chronology | ||
193–211 |
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with Caracalla 198–211 |
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with Geta 209–211 |
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211–217 |
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211 |
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Macrinus' usurpation 217–218 |
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with Diadumenian 218 |
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218–222 |
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222–235 |
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Dynasty | ||
Severan dynasty family tree | ||
All biographies |
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Succession | ||
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Caracalla (/ˌkærəˈkælə/) was the popular nickname of Marcus Aurelius Severus Antoninus Augustus[1] (4 April AD 188 – 8 April AD 217), Roman emperor (AD 198–217). The eldest son of Septimius Severus, Caracalla reigned jointly with his father from 198 until Severus' death in 211. For a short time Caracalla then ruled jointly with his younger brother Geta until Caracalla had Geta murdered later in 211. Caracalla is remembered as one of the most notorious and unpleasant of emperors (according to the literate elite) because of the massacres and persecutions he authorized and instigated throughout the Empire.[2][3]
Caracalla's reign was also notable for the Constitutio Antoniniana (also called the Edict of Caracalla or the Antonine Constitution), granting Roman citizenship to all freemen throughout the Roman Empire, which according to the hostile historian Cassius Dio, was done for the purposes of raising tax revenue. This gave all the enfranchised men the two first names of Caracalla "Marcus Aurelius". Caracalla also commissioned a large public bath-house (thermae) project in Rome, and the remains of the Baths of Caracalla are still one of the major tourist attractions of the Italian capital.
Early life
Caracalla, of mixed descent (Italian, Punic, and perhaps Libyan, on his father's side, and Syrian Arab on his mother's side), was born Lucius Septimius Bassianus in Lugdunum, Gaul (now Lyon, France), to the later Emperor Septimius Severus and Julia Domna. At the age of seven, his name was changed to Marcus Aurelius Septimius Bassianus Antoninus to create a connection to the family of the philosopher emperor Marcus Aurelius. He was later given the nickname Caracalla, which referred to the Gallic hooded tunic he habitually wore and which he made fashionable.
Reign
Murder of brother (211)
Caracalla's father, Septimius Severus, died on 4 February 211 at Eboracum (now York) while on campaign in northern Britain.[4] Caracalla and his brother, Publius Septimius Antoninus Geta, jointly inherited the throne upon their father's death.[4][5] Caracalla and Geta ended the campaign in Caledonia after concluding a peace with the Caledonians which returned the border of Rome back to Hadrian's Wall.[5][6] After concluding the peace with the Caledonians, Caracalla and his brother journeyed back to Rome with their father's ashes, during the journey the two continuously argued with one another making relations between them increasingly hostile.[5][6] When they tried to rule the Empire jointly, they considered dividing it in halves with Caracalla ruling the west and Geta ruling the east with the Bosphorus as the border between the two, but were persuaded not to do so by their mother.[6]
Then on 26 December 211 at a reconciliation meeting arranged by their mother Julia Domna, Caracalla had Geta assassinated by members of the Praetorian Guard loyal to himself, leading to Geta dying in his mother's arms.[4] Caracalla then persecuted and executed most of Geta's supporters and ordered a damnatio memoriae pronounced by the Senate against his brother's memory.[7][8]
Geta's image was simply removed from all coinage, paintings and statues, leaving a blank space next to Caracalla's. Among those executed were his former cousin-wife Fulvia Plautilla, his unnamed daughter with Plautilla along with her brother and other members of the family of his former father-in-law Gaius Fulvius Plautianus. Plautianus had already been executed for alleged treachery against emperor Severus in 205.[citation needed]
About the time of his accession, he ordered the Roman currency devalued, the silver purity of the denarius was decreased from 56.5% to 51.5%, the actual silver weight dropping from 1.81 grams to 1.66 grams – though the overall weight slightly increased. In 215 he introduced the antoninianus, a "double denarius" weighing 5.1 grams and containing 2.6 grams of silver – a purity of 52%.[9]
In the Roman provinces
In 213, Caracalla went north to the German frontier to deal with the Alamanni and Goths tribesmen, a confederation of migrating Germanic tribes who had broken through the limes in Raetia.[10][11] During the campaign of 213-214, Caracalla would successfully defeat some of the Germanic tribes while settling other difficulties through diplomacy.[11] While there, Caracalla strengthened the frontier fortifications of Raetia and Germania Superior, collectively known as the Agri Decumates, such that it would be able to withstand further barbarian invasions for twenty years.[10] In 215, Caracalla traveled to Alexandria, and to the east where he would remain for the rest of his life.[12]
Gibbon in his work describes Caracalla as "the common enemy of mankind". Caracalla left the capital in 213, about a year after the murder of Geta, and spent the rest of his reign in the provinces, particularly those of the East.[10][13] The Senate and other wealthy families were kept in check by forcing them to construct, at their own expense, palaces, theaters, and places of entertainment throughout the periphery.[13] New and heavy taxes were levied against the bulk of the population, with additional fees and confiscations targeted at the wealthiest families.[13]
After Caracalla concluded his campaign against the Alamanni it became evident that he was inordinately preoccupied with the Greek-Macedonian general and conqueror, Alexander the Great.[12][14] He began openly mimicking Alexander in his personal style. In planning his invasion of the Parthian Empire, Caracalla decided to equip the men of his army as Macedonian style phalanxes, despite the Roman army having made the Phalanx an obsolete tactical formation.[12][14] This mania for Alexander went so far in that Caracalla visited Alexandria while preparing for his Persian invasion and persecuted philosophers of the Aristotelian school based on a legend that Aristotle had poisoned Alexander. This was a sign that Caracalla was behaving in an erratic manner. But this mania for Alexander, strange as it was, was overshadowed by subsequent events in Alexandria.[14]
When the inhabitants of Alexandria heard Caracalla's claims that he had killed Geta in self-defense, they produced a satire mocking this as well as Caracalla's other pretensions.[15] In 215, Caracalla savagely responded to this insult by slaughtering the deputation of leading citizens who had unsuspectingly assembled before the city to greet his arrival, and then unleashed his troops for several days of looting and plunder in Alexandria.[10][15] Following the massacre at Alexandria, Caracalla moved east onto Armenia and by 216 he had pushed through Armenia and south into Parthia.[16]
Influence of Julia Domna
While Caracalla was mustering and training troops for his planned Persian invasion, Julia remained in Rome, administering the empire. Julia’s growing influence in state affairs was the beginning of a trend of Emperors’ mothers having influence, which continued throughout the Severan dynasty.[17]
Domestic Roman policy
Affiliation with the army
During his reign as emperor, Caracalla raised the annual pay of an average legionary from 2000 sestercest(500 denarii) to 3000 sesterces (675 denarii) and lavished many benefits on the army which he both feared and admired, as instructed by his father Septimius Severus who had told both him and his brother Geta on his deathbed always to mind the soldiers and ignore everyone else.[8][11] Caracalla needed to gain and keep the trust of the military, and did so with generous pay raises and popular gestures.[18] Caracalla, spent much of his time with the soldiers, so much so that the began to imitate their dress and had the manners of a common soldier.[8][19]
Baths of Caracalla
O: laureate head of Caracalla | R: Sol holding globe, rising hand |
silver denarius struck in Rome 216 AD; ref.: RIC 281b, C 359 |
The Baths of Caracalla were under construction from 211 to 216, when a partial inauguration of the baths took place, the outer perimeter of the baths would not be completed until the reign of Severus Alexander.[20] These large baths were typical of Roman practice of building complexes for social and state activities in large densely populated cities.[20] The baths covered around 50 acres (or 202,000 square meters) of land and could accommodate 1,600 bathers at any one time.[20] They were the second largest public baths built in ancient Rome and were complete with swimming pools, exercise yards, a stadium, steam rooms, libraries, meeting rooms, fountains and other amenities, all of which were enclosed formal gardens.[20][21] Internally it was lavishly decorated with colourful marble floors, columns, mosaics and colossal statuary.[22]
Caracalla also erected a temple on Quirinal Hill in 212, dedicating it to the Egyptian deity Serapis.[15]
Edict of Caracalla (212)
The Constitutio Antoniniana (lit. "Constitution of Antoninus" - also called "Edict of Caracalla" or "Antonine Constitution") was an edict issued in 212 by Caracalla which declared that all free men in the Roman Empire were to be given full Roman citizenship[23] with the exception of the dediticii, who were people who had become subject to Rome through surrender in war, and also, certain people who were freed slaves.[24]
Before 212, for the most part only inhabitants of Italia held full Roman citizenship. Colonies of Romans established in other provinces, Romans (or their descendants) living in provinces, the inhabitants of various cities throughout the Empire, and small numbers of local nobles (such as kings of client countries) held full citizenship also. Provincials, on the other hand, were usually non-citizens, although many held the Latin Right.
One purpose for Caracalla issuing the edict is contended to have been the desire to increase state revenue; at the time Rome was in a difficult financial situation and needed to pay for the new pay raises and benefits conferred on the military.[25] The edict widened the obligation for public service and gave increased revenue through the inheritance and emancipation taxes which, at the time, only had to be paid by Roman citizens.[10] The provincials also benefited from this edict because they were now able to think of themselves as equal partners to the Romans in the empire.[10] However, few of those that gained citizenship would have been wealthy, and while Rome was is a difficult financial situation due to the spending of Caracalla and his father on the army, this could not have been the sole purpose of the edict.[25]
Another purpose for issuing the edict, as described within the papyrus upon which part of the edict was inscribed, was to appease the gods who had delivered Caracalla from conspiracy.[26] The conspiracy in question was in response to Caracalla's murder of Geta and the subsequent slaughter of his followers, fratricide could only be condoned if the brother had been a monster.[27] The damnatio memoriae against Geta and the large payments Caracalla had made to his own supporters were to protect himself from repercussion, this had succeeded and Caracalla felt the need to repay the gods of Rome by returning their favour to the people through a similarly grand gesture, and this was done through the granting of the citizenship.[27]
Other purposes to issuing the edict include, boosting the Roman identity since nearly all of the subjects of Rome were now true Romans, making a statement at the beginning of his reign that cost little in return for substantial sums through tax, the fact that the periphery of the empire was now becoming central to it existence and/or possibly the outcome logical outcome of Rome's continued expansion of citizenship rights.[28]
War with Parthia
In 216, Caracalla pursued a series of aggressive campaigns in the east against the Parthians, designed to bring more territory under direct Roman control. He offered the king of Parthia, Artabanus V of Parthia, a marriage proposal between himself and the king's daughter.[12][29] Artabanus refused the offer, realizing that the proposal was merely an attempt to unite the kingdom of Parthia under the control of Rome.[29] In response, Caracalla used the opportunity to start a campaign against the Parthians and in the summer Caracalla began to attack the countryside east of the Tigris in the Parthian war of Caracalla.[29] In the winter, Caracalla retired to Edessa, modern Şanlıurfa in south-east Turkey and began making preparations to renew the campaign by spring.[29]
Assassination (217)
At the beginning of 217, Caracalla was at Edessa with a large army preparing to start a new invasion of Parthia.[12] On 8 April 217, Caracalla was travelling to visit a temple near Carrhae, now Harran in southern Turkey, where in 53 B.C. the Romans had suffered a defeat at the hands of the Parthians.[12] After stopping briefly to urinate, Caracalla was approached by the soldier, Justin Martialis and stabbed to death.[12][30] Martialis had been incensed by Caracalla's refusal to grant him the position of Centurion, and the Praetorian Guard Prefect Macrinus, Caracalla's successor, saw the opportunity to use Martialis to end Caracalla's reign.[29] In the immediate aftermath of Caracalla's death, his murdered, Martialis was himself killed by one of the Scythian archers present.[12][30] After two or three days, Macrinus would declare himself emperor with the support of the Roman army.[31][32]
His nickname
According to Aurelius Victor in his Epitome de Caesaribus, the agnomen "Caracalla" refers to a Gallic cloak that Caracalla adopted as a personal fashion, which spread to his army and his court.[33] It may have been during Caracalla's campaigns in the Rhine and Danube that he took to wearing a Gallic hooded cloak which had given him his nickname.[12]
Portrait
His official portraiture as sole emperor marks a break with the detached images of the philosopher–emperors who preceded him: his close-cropped haircut is that of a soldier, his pugnacious scowl a realistic and threatening presence. This rugged soldier–emperor iconic archetype was adopted by most of the following emperors who depended on the support of the troops to rule, such as Maximinus Thrax.[34][35]
Herodian describes Caracalla as having preferred Northern European clothing, Caracalla being the name of the short Gaulish cloak that he made fashionable, and often wore a blond wig.[36] Cassius Dio mentions that Caracalla, at the time a boy, had a tendency to show an angry or even savage facial expression.[37]
The way Caracalla wanted to be portrayed to his people can be seen through the many surviving busts and coins. Images of the young Caracalla cannot be well distinguished from his younger brother Geta. On the coins Caracalla was shown with laureate since becoming Augustus in 197 while Geta is bareheaded until himself becoming Augustus in 209.[38] Between 209 and their father's death in February 211 both brothers are shown as mature young men, ready to take over the empire. Between the death of the father and the assassination of Geta towards the end of 211 Caracalla's portrait remains static with a short full beard, while Geta develops a long beard with hair strains like his father, a strong indicator for Geta's effort to be seen as the true successor to their father. The brutal murder of Geta, however, made this claim obsolete.[38]
Legendary king of Britain
Geoffrey of Monmouth's legendary History of the Kings of Britain makes Caracalla a king of Britain, referring to him by his actual name "Bassianus", rather than the nickname Caracalla. In the story, after Severus's death the Romans wanted to make Geta king of Britain, but the Britons preferred Bassianus because he had a British mother. The two brothers fought a battle in which Geta was killed and Bassianus succeeded to the throne. He ruled until he was betrayed by his Pictish allies and overthrown by Carausius, who, according to Geoffrey, was a Briton, rather than the historically much later Menapian Gaul that he actually was.[39]
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Notes:
Bibliography:
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See also
References
- ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). . Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
- ^ Hurley, P. (2011). Life of Caracalla at Ancient History Encyclopedia
- ^ "Caracalla" A Dictionary of British History. Ed. John Cannon. Oxford University Press, 2001. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press.
"Caracalla" World Encyclopedia. Philip's, 2005. Oxford Reference Online. Oxford University Press. - ^ a b c Goldsworthy, Adrian (2009). How Rome Fell: death of a superpower. New Haven: Yale University Press. pp. 68–69. ISBN 9780300164268.
- ^ a b c Dunstan, William, E. (2011). Ancient Rome. Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield. p. 210. ISBN 9780742568327.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c Goldsworthy, Adrian (2009). How Rome Fell: death of a superpower. New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 70. ISBN 9780300164268.
- ^ Goldsworthy, Adrian (2009). How Rome Fell: death of a superpower. New Haven: Yale University Press. pp. 70–71. ISBN 9780300164268.
- ^ a b c Dunstan, William, E. (2011). Ancient Rome. Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield. pp. 210–211. ISBN 9780742568327.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Tulane University "Roman Currency of the Principate"
- ^ a b c d e f Dunstan, William, E. (2011). Ancient Rome. Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield. p. 212. ISBN 9780742568327.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c Boatwright, Mary Taliaferro; Gargola, Daniel J; Talbert, Richard J. A. (2004). The Romans, from village to empire. Oxford University Press. p. 413. ISBN 0195118758.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c d e f g h i Goldsworthy, Adrian (2009). How Rome Fell: death of a superpower. New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 74. ISBN 9780300164268.
- ^ a b c Gibbon, Edward (1776). The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. p. 174.
- ^ a b c Brauer, G. (1967). The Decadent Emperors: Power and Depravity in Third-Century Rome. p. 75.
- ^ a b c Melton, Gordon, J. (2014). Faiths Across Time: 5000 Years of Religious History. p. 338.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Boatwright, Mary Taliaferro; Gargola, Daniel J; Talbert, Richard J. A. (2004). The Romans, from village to empire. Oxford University Press. pp. 413–414. ISBN 0195118758.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Grant, Michael (1996). The Severans: the Changed Roman Empire. Psychology Press. p. 46.
- ^ Grant, Michael (1996). The Severans: the Changed Roman Empire. Psychology Press. p. 42.
- ^ Gibbon, Edward (1776). The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. p. 176.
- ^ a b c d Castex, Jean (2008). Architecture of Italy. Greenwood Press. p. 4. ISBN 0313320861.
- ^ Oetelaar, Taylor (2014). "Reconstructing the Baths of Caracalla". Digital Applications in Archaeology and Cultural Heritage.
- ^ Castex, Jean (2008). Architecture of Italy. Greenwood Press. pp. 5–6. ISBN 0313320861.
- ^ Lim, Richard (2010). The Edinburgh Companion to Ancient Greece and Rome: Late Antiquity. Edinburgh University Press. p. 114.
- ^ Hekster, Olivier; Zair, Nicholas (2008). Debates and Documents in Ancient History: Rome and its Empire, AD 193-284. EUP. p. 47. ISBN 9780748629923.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b Hekster Olivier; Zair, Nicholas (2008). Debates and Documents in Ancient History: Rome and its Empire, AD 193-284. EUP. pp. 47–48. ISBN 9780748629923.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Hekster Olivier; Zair, Nicholas (2004). Debates and Documents in Ancient History: Rome and its Empire, AD 193-284. EUP. p. 48. ISBN 9780748629923.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b Hekster Olivier; Zair, Nicholas (2008). Debates and Documents in Ancient History: Rome and its Empire, AD 193-284. EUP. pp. 48–49. ISBN 9780748629923.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Hekster, Olivier; Zair, Nicholas (2008). Debates and Documents in Ancient History: Rome and its Empire, AD 193-284. EUP. pp. 49–50. ISBN 9780748629923.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b c d e Dunstan, William, E. (2011). Ancient Rome. Lanham: Rowman and Littlefield. p. 213. ISBN 9780742568327.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ a b Gibbon, Edward (1776). The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. p. 177.
- ^ Goldsworthy, Adrian (2009). How Rome Fell: death of a superpower. New Haven: Yale University Press. p. 75. ISBN 9780300164268.
- ^ Gibbon, Edward (1776). The History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire. p. 178.
- ^ Aurelius Victor, Epitome de Caesaribus 21 (translation). For information on the caracallus garment, see William Smith Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities: "Caracalla"
- ^ Hekster, Olivier; Zair, Nicholas (2008). Debates and Documents in Ancient History: Rome and its Empire, AD 193-284. EUP. p. 59. ISBN 9780748629923.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Metropolitan Museum of Art: Portrait head of the Emperor Caracalla". acc. no. 40.11.1a
- ^ Herodian of Antioch. History of the Roman Empire. pp. 4.7.3.
- ^ Dio, Cassius (n.d.). Roman History. pp. 78.11.1.
- ^ a b Pangerl, Andreas (2013). Porträttypen des Caracalla und des Geta auf Römischen Reichsprägungen - Definition eines neuen Caesartyps des Caracalla und eines neuen Augustustyps des Geta. Archäologisches Korrespondenzblatt des RGZM Mainz 43. pp. 99–116.
- ^ Geoffrey of Monmouth, Historia Regum Britanniae 5.2–3
External links
- Life of Caracalla (Historia Augusta at LacusCurtius: Latin text and English translation)