1.
Western Roman Empire
–
Theodosius I divided the Empire upon his death between his two sons. As the Roman Republic expanded, it reached a point where the government in Rome could not effectively rule the distant provinces. Communications and transportation were especially problematic given the vast extent of the Empire, for this reason, provincial governors had de facto rule in the name of the Roman Republic. Antony received the provinces in the East, Achaea, Macedonia and Epirus, Bithynia, Pontus and Asia, Syria, Cyprus and these lands had previously been conquered by Alexander the Great, thus, much of the aristocracy was of Greek origin. The whole region, especially the cities, had been largely assimilated into Greek culture. Octavian obtained the Roman provinces of the West, Italia, Gaul, Gallia Belgica and these lands also included Greek and Carthaginian colonies in the coastal areas, though Celtic tribes such as Gauls and Celtiberians were culturally dominant. Lepidus received the province of Africa. Octavian soon took Africa from Lepidus, while adding Sicilia to his holdings, upon the defeat of Mark Antony, a victorious Octavian controlled a united Roman Empire. While the Roman Empire featured many distinct cultures, all were often said to experience gradual Romanization, minor rebellions and uprisings were fairly common events throughout the Empire. Conquered tribes or cities would revolt, and the legions would be detached to crush the rebellion, while this process was simple in peacetime, it could be considerably more complicated in wartime, as for example in the Great Jewish Revolt. In a full-blown military campaign, the legions, under such as Vespasian, were far more numerous. To ensure a commanders loyalty, an emperor might hold some members of the generals family hostage. To this end, Nero effectively held Domitian and Quintus Petillius Cerialis, governor of Ostia, the rule of Nero ended only with the revolt of the Praetorian Guard, who had been bribed in the name of Galba. The Praetorian Guard, a sword of Damocles, were often perceived as being of dubious loyalty. Following their example, the legions at the increased participation in the civil wars. The main enemy in the West was arguably the Germanic tribes behind the rivers Rhine, Augustus had tried to conquer them but ultimately pulled back after the Teutoburg reversal. The Parthian Empire, in the East, on the hand, was too remote. Those distant territories were forsaken to prevent unrest and also to ensure a more healthy, the Parthians were followed by the Sasanian Empire, which continued hostilities with the Roman Empire
2.
Roman emperor
–
The Roman emperor was the ruler of the Roman Empire during the imperial period. The emperors used a variety of different titles throughout history, often when a given Roman is described as becoming emperor in English, it reflects his taking of the title Augustus or Caesar. Another title often used was imperator, originally a military honorific, early Emperors also used the title princeps. Emperors frequently amassed republican titles, notably Princeps Senatus, Consul, the first emperors reigned alone, later emperors would sometimes rule with co-Emperors and divide administration of the Empire between them. The Romans considered the office of emperor to be distinct from that of a king, the first emperor, Augustus, resolutely refused recognition as a monarch. Although Augustus could claim that his power was authentically republican, his successor, Tiberius, nonetheless, for the first three hundred years of Roman Emperors, from Augustus until Diocletian, a great effort was made to emphasize that the Emperors were the leaders of a Republic. Elements of the Republican institutional framework were preserved until the end of the Western Empire. The Eastern emperors ultimately adopted the title of Basileus, which had meant king in Greek, but became a title reserved solely for the Roman emperor, other kings were then referred to as rēgas. In addition to their office, some emperors were given divine status after death. The Western Roman Empire collapsed in the late 5th century, Romulus Augustulus is often considered to be the last emperor of the west after his forced abdication in 476, although Julius Nepos maintained a claim to the title until his death in 480. Constantine XI was the last Byzantine Roman emperor in Constantinople, dying in the Fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans in 1453, a Byzantine group of claimant Roman Emperors existed in the Empire of Trebizond until its conquest by the Ottomans in 1461. In western Europe the title of Roman Emperor was revived by Germanic rulers, the Holy Roman Emperors, in 800, at the end of the Roman Republic no new, and certainly no single, title indicated the individual who held supreme power. Insofar as emperor could be seen as the English translation of imperator, then Julius Caesar had been an emperor, however, Julius Caesar, unlike those after him, did so without the Senates vote and approval. Julius Caesar held the Republican offices of four times and dictator five times, was appointed dictator in perpetuity in 45 BC and had been pontifex maximus for a long period. He gained these positions by senatorial consent, by the time of his assassination, he was the most powerful man in the Roman world. In his will, Caesar appointed his adopted son Octavian as his heir, a decade after Caesars death, Octavians victory over his erstwhile ally Mark Antony at Actium put an end to any effective opposition and confirmed Octavians supremacy. His restoration of powers to the Senate and the people of Rome was a demonstration of his auctoritas, some later historians such as Tacitus would say that even at Augustus death, the true restoration of the Republic might have been possible. Instead, Augustus actively prepared his adopted son Tiberius to be his successor, the Senate disputed the issue but eventually confirmed Tiberius as princeps
3.
Italy
–
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate and Mediterranean climate. Due to its shape, it is referred to in Italy as lo Stivale. With 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth most populous EU member state, the Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated other nearby civilisations. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity. The Renaissance began in Italy and spread to the rest of Europe, bringing a renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration, Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. The weakened sovereigns soon fell victim to conquest by European powers such as France, Spain and Austria. Despite being one of the victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in defeat, economic destruction. Today, Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and it has a very high level of human development and is ranked sixth in the world for life expectancy. The country plays a prominent role in regional and global economic, military, cultural and diplomatic affairs, as a reflection of its cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is the fifth most visited country. The assumptions on the etymology of the name Italia are very numerous, according to one of the more common explanations, the term Italia, from Latin, Italia, was borrowed through Greek from the Oscan Víteliú, meaning land of young cattle. The bull was a symbol of the southern Italic tribes and was often depicted goring the Roman wolf as a defiant symbol of free Italy during the Social War. Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus states this account together with the legend that Italy was named after Italus, mentioned also by Aristotle and Thucydides. The name Italia originally applied only to a part of what is now Southern Italy – according to Antiochus of Syracuse, but by his time Oenotria and Italy had become synonymous, and the name also applied to most of Lucania as well. The Greeks gradually came to apply the name Italia to a larger region, excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence dating back to the Palaeolithic period, some 200,000 years ago, modern Humans arrived about 40,000 years ago. Other ancient Italian peoples of undetermined language families but of possible origins include the Rhaetian people and Cammuni. Also the Phoenicians established colonies on the coasts of Sardinia and Sicily, the Roman legacy has deeply influenced the Western civilisation, shaping most of the modern world
4.
Dalmatia (Roman province)
–
Its name is probably derived from the name of an Illyrian tribe called the Dalmatae which lived in the central area of the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea. Originally this region was called Illyria or Illyricum, when it became one of the two parts of the Roman province of Illyricum it was renamed Dalmatia, its counterpart province being Pannonia. Later the province of Illyricum was dissolved and replaced by two provinces, Dalmatia and Pannonia. It is not clear when this happened, but plausibly it occurred during the reign of the emperor Vespasian, the region which run along the coast of the Adriatic Sea and extended inland on the Dinaric Alps was called Illyria by the Greeks. Originally the Romans also called it Illyria, the Romans fought three Illyrian Wars mainly against the kingdom of the Ardiaei in the south of the region. In 168 BC they abolished this kingdom, divided it into three republics, the area became a Roman protectorate. The central and northern area of the region engaged in piracy, in response to this, Octavian conducted a series of campaigns in Illyricum. The area became the Roman province of Illyricum probably in 27 BC, due to troubles in the northern part of the region in 16-10 BC, it became an imperial province. The administrative organisation of Illyricum was carried out late in the reign of Augustus, due to Octavian having subdued the more inland region of Pannonia, the Romans changed the name of the coastal area to Dalmatia. Illyricum was composed of Dalmatia and Pannonia, in 6-9 AD there was a large scale rebellion in the province of Illyricum, the Bellum Batonianum. The province of Illyricum was eventually dissolved and replaced by two provinces, Dalmatia and Pannonia. It is unclear when this happened, some other diplomas attest the same. This was during the reign of Nero, therefore, Šašel-Kos supports the notion that the province was dissolved during the reign of Vespasian. In 337, when Constantine the Great died, the Roman Empire was partitioned among his sons, the empire was divided into three praetorian prefectures, the Galliae, Italia, Africa et Illyricum and Oriens. The size of the provinces had been decreased and their number doubled by Diocletian, the provinces were also grouped in dioceses. Dalmatia became one of the seven provinces of the diocese of Pannonia, initially, it was under the praetorian preacture of Italy, Africa and Illyricum. Sirmium, the capital of the praetorian prefecture of Illyricum, was the birthplace of the Roman Emperor Diocletian. After he abdicated, he built Diocletians Palace in Salona, german historian Theodore Mommsen wrote that coastal Dalmatia and its islands were fully romanized and Latin-speaking by the 4th century
5.
Glycerius
–
Glycerius was a Western Roman Emperor from 473 to 474. Elevated by his Magister militum Gundobad, Glycerius was rejected by the court at Constantinople and he later served as the bishop of Salona. Sources on Glycerius are scarce and scanty and it is known that at the time of his elevation to the throne he was the comes domesticorum, the commander of the Imperial guard of the court at Ravenna. Previous to this posting, he had been the commander in Dalmatia. In 472, the Western Roman Empire was plagued by a war between Emperor Anthemius and his Magister militum, Ricimer. Ricimer killed the Emperor and put Olybrius on the throne, little is known about the short reign of Glycerius. A single law issued by Glycerius survives, concerning simony, dated 11 March 473 and addressed to Himilco, ralph Mathisen speculates that Glycerius tried to stay on good terms with the Eastern Roman Empire. For most of his rule, Glycerius lived in Northern Italy, evidenced by the fact that the coins issued in his name bear the mintmarks of Milan. In 473, Euric, King of the Visigoths, ordered the invasion of Italy, despite the victorious defence of Italy, Glycerius could do nothing to prevent the Visigoths from conquering Arelate and Marseille, in Gaul. At the same time, the Ostrogoths led by King Widimir began marching to Italy, the possibility that the two Gothic armies would merge was disastrous. While this strategy prevented Vincentius from receiving reinforcements, it led to the convergence of both Gothic armies against Gaul. Therefore, Leo chose a candidate on his own, Julius Nepos, Magister militum in Dalmatia, the election was delayed, however, so Julius Nepos could not leave immediately, as the ports were closed for the winter. Leo I died in January 474 and was succeeded by his grandson, the young Leo II, Zeno continued the official position of Constantinople to deny any recognition of Glycerius, whom the court continued to view as a usurper. Regardless, Glycerius tried to reconcile with the Eastern court or, at least, for example, he did not choose a second Consul in order to allow Leo II to be Consul alone for the year 474. In spring 474, the ports re-opened and Julius Nepos crossed the Adriatic Sea to Italy to depose Glycerius. Glycerius probably left Ravenna for Rome to resist the invader, he had a coin minted in Rome, claiming himself as Emperor together with Leo II and Zeno. However, Julius Nepos disembarked at Portus in July 474 AD, Glycerius was sent to Dalmatia as Bishop of Salona, serving a religious life until his death. Glycerius deposition was thus without any bloodshed, and historians investigated the reasons why the Western Emperor
6.
Romulus Augustulus
–
Romulus Augustus was a Roman emperor and alleged usurper who ruled the Western Roman Empire from 31 October AD475 until 4 September AD476. His deposition by Odoacer traditionally marks the end of the Roman Empire in the West, the fall of ancient Rome, and he is mostly known by his nickname Romulus Augustulus, though he ruled officially as Romulus Augustus. The Latin suffix -ulus is a diminutive, hence, Augustulus effectively means Little Augustus, the historical record contains few details of Romuluss life. He was proclaimed as emperor by his father Orestes, the magister militum of the Roman army after forcing Emperor Julius Nepos to leave Italy, Romulus, little more than a child, acted as a figurehead for his fathers rule and reigned for only ten months. His legitimacy and authority were disputed beyond Italy and Romulus was soon deposed by Odoacer, Odoacer sent Romulus to live in the Castellum Lucullanum in Campania, after which he disappears from the historical record. Romulus father Orestes was a Roman citizen, originally from Pannonia, the future emperor was named Romulus after his maternal grandfather, a nobleman from Poetovio in Noricum. Many historians have noted the coincidence that the last western emperor bore the names of both Romulus, the founder and first king of Rome, and Augustus, the first emperor. Orestes was appointed Magister militum by Julius Nepos in 475, shortly after his appointment, Orestes launched a rebellion and captured Ravenna, the capital of the Western Roman Empire since 402, on 28 August 475. Nepos fled to Dalmatia, where his uncle had ruled a state in the 460s. Orestes, however, refused to become emperor, from some secret motive, instead, he installed his son on the throne on 31 October 475. The empire Augustus ruled was a shadow of its self and had shrunk significantly over the previous 80 years. Imperial authority had retreated to the Italian borders and parts of southern Gaul, Italia and Gallia Narbonensis, the Eastern Roman Empire treated its western counterpart as a client state. The Eastern Emperor Leo, who died in 474, had appointed the western emperors Anthemius and Julius Nepos, neither Zeno nor Basiliscus, the two generals fighting for the eastern throne at the time of Romulus accession, accepted him as ruler. As a proxy for his father, Romulus made no decisions and left no monuments, though coins bearing his name were minted in Rome, Milan, Ravenna, and Gaul. Several months after Orestes took power, a coalition of Heruli, Scirian, when Orestes refused, the tribes revolted under the leadership of the Scirian chieftain Odoacer. Orestes was captured near Piacenza on 28 August 476 and swiftly executed, Odoacer advanced on Ravenna, capturing the city and the young emperor. Romulus was compelled to abdicate the throne on 4 September 476 and this act has been cited as the end of the Western Roman Empire, although Romulus deposition did not cause any significant disruption at the time. Rome had already lost its hegemony over the provinces, Germans dominated the Roman army, Italy would suffer far greater devastation in the next century when Emperor Justinian I reconquered it
7.
Zeno (emperor)
–
Zeno the Isaurian, originally named Tarasis Kodisa Rousombladadiotes /ˈtærəsᵻs/, was Eastern Roman Emperor from 474 to 475 and again from 476 to 491. Domestic revolts and religious dissension plagued his reign, which succeeded to some extent in foreign issues. His reign saw the end of the Western Roman Empire under Romulus Augustus, Zenos original name was Tarasis, and more accurately Tarasikodissa in his native Isaurian language. Tarasis was born in Isauria, at Rusumblada, later renamed Zenonopolis in Zenos honour and his father was called Kodisa, his mother Lallis, his brother Longinus. Tarasis had a wife, Arcadia, whose name indicates a relationship with the Constantinopolitan aristocracy, the Isaurians were a people who lived inland from the Mediterranean coast of Anatolia, in the core of the Taurus Mountains. Like most borderland tribes, they were looked upon as barbarians by the Romans even though they had been Roman subjects for more than five centuries. However, being Orthodox Christians rather than Arians, as the Goths and other Germanic tribes were, they were not formally barred from the throne. According to some scholars, in the mid-460s, Eastern Roman Emperor Leo I wanted to balance the weight of the Germanic component of the army and he thought that Tarasis and his Isaurians could be that counterweight, and called him, with many Isaurians, to Constantinople. This interpretation, however, has been contested, by mid-460s, Arcadia and Zeno had been living at Constantinople for some time, where also Lallis and Longinus lived, the latter married to a Valeria, possibly a woman of aristocrat rank. Through these letters, which Tarasis gave to Leo, the Emperor could dismiss Ardabur, as reward for his loyalty, which Leo praised with Daniel the Stylite, Tarasis was appointed comes domesticorum, an office of great influence and prestige. This appointment could mean that Tarasis had been a protector domesticus, either at Leos court in Constantinople, or attached at Ardaburs staff in Antioch. In 465, Leo and Aspar quarreled about the appointment of consuls for the year, it was on this occasion that Tarasis position was strengthened, as he became friend. To make himself acceptable to the Roman hierarchy and the population of Constantinople, Tarasis adopted the Greek name of Zeno. In mid-late 466, Zeno married Ariadne, elder daughter of Leo I and Verina, as there is no reference to a divorce with Arcadia, she should have died in those years. Zeno, however, was not present at the birth of his son, as in 467, Zeno, as member of the protectores domestici, did not take part in the disastrous expedition against the Vandals, led in 468 by Leos brother-in-law Basiliscus. The following year, during which he held the honour of the consulate, he was appointed magister militum per Thracias, the sources do not clearly state what enemy he fought there, and historians had proposed either Goths or Huns, or the rebels of Anagastes. What happened was that Leo sent some of his soldiers with Zeno to protect him. Zeno was informed of their intention and fled to Serdica, and because of this episode, after the attack, Zeno did not return to Constantinople, where Aspar and Ardabur were and had still considerable power
8.
Byzantine Emperor
–
This is a list of the Byzantine emperors from the foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD, which marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, to its fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Emperors listed below up to Theodosius I in 395 were sole or joint rulers of the entire Roman Empire, the Byzantine Empire was the direct legal continuation of the eastern half of the Roman Empire following the division of the Roman Empire in 395. All Byzantine emperors considered themselves to be the rightful Roman emperor in direct succession from Augustus, the title of all Emperors preceding Heraclius was officially Augustus, although other titles such as Dominus were also used. Their names were preceded by Imperator Caesar and followed by Augustus, following Heraclius, the title commonly became the Greek Basileus, which had formerly meant sovereign but was then used in place of Augustus. Following the establishment of the rival Holy Roman Empire in Western Europe, in later centuries, the Emperor could be referred to by Western Christians as the Emperor of the Greeks. Towards the end of the Empire, the standard formula of the Byzantine ruler was in Christ, Emperor. For Roman emperors before Constantine I, see List of Roman emperors, family tree of the Byzantine emperors List of Roman emperors List of Roman usurpers List of Byzantine usurpers List of Roman and Byzantine empresses
9.
Basiliscus
–
Basiliscus was Byzantine Emperor from 475 to 476. A member of the House of Leo, he came to power when Emperor Zeno had been forced out of Constantinople by a revolt, Basiliscus was the brother of Empress Aelia Verina, who was the wife of Emperor Leo I. Basiliscus succeeded in seizing power in 475, exploiting the unpopularity of Emperor Zeno, the successor to Leo. Also, his policy of securing his power through the appointment of men to key roles antagonised many important figures in the imperial court. So, when Zeno tried to regain his empire, he found no opposition, triumphantly entering Constantinople. The struggle between Basiliscus and Zeno impeded the Eastern Roman Empires ability to intervene in the fall of the Western Roman Empire, likely of Balkan origin, Basiliscus was the brother of Aelia Verina, wife of Leo I. It has been argued that Basiliscus was uncle to the chieftain of the Heruli and this link is based on the interpretation of a fragment by John of Antioch, which states that Odoacer and Armatus, Basiliscus nephew, were brothers. However, not all accept this interpretation, since sources do not say anything about the foreign origin of Basiliscus. It is known that Basiliscus had a wife, Zenonis, and at least one son, Basiliscus military career started under Leo I. The Emperor conferred upon his brother-in-law the dignities of dux, or commander-in-chief, in this country Basiliscus led a successful military campaign against the Bulgars in 463. He succeeded Rusticius as magister militum per Thracias, and had several successes against the Goths, basiliscuss value rose in Leos consideration. Verinas intercession in favour of her brother helped Basiliscus military and political career, with the conferral of the consulship in 465, however, his rise was soon to meet a serious reversal. In 468, Leo chose Basiliscus as leader of the military expedition against Carthage. The plan was concerted between Eastern Emperor Leo, Western Emperor Anthemius, and General Marcellinus, who enjoyed independence in Illyricum and it appears that the combined forces met in Sicily, whence the three fleets moved at different periods. Ancient and modern historians provided different estimations for the number of ships and troops under the command of Basiliscus, the most conservative estimation for expedition expenses is of 64,000 pounds of gold, a sum that exceeded a whole years revenue. Sardinia and Libya were already conquered by Marcellinus and Heraclius, when Basiliscus cast anchor off the Promontorium Mercurii, now Cap Bon, opposite Sicily, Geiseric requested Basiliscus to allow him five days to draw up the conditions of a peace. During the negotiations, Geiseric gathered his ships and suddenly attacked the Roman fleet, the Vandals had filled many vessels with combustible materials. During the night, these ships were propelled against the unguarded
10.
Split, Croatia
–
Split is the second-largest city of Croatia and the largest city of the region of Dalmatia. It lies on the shore of the Adriatic Sea, centered on the Roman Palace of the Emperor Diocletian. Spread over a peninsula and its surroundings, Splits greater area includes the neighboring seaside towns as well. An intraregional transport hub and popular tourist destination, the city is a link to numerous Adriatic islands, Split is one of the oldest cities in the area. Split became a Byzantine city, to gradually drift into the sphere of the Byzantine vassal, the Republic of Venice. For much of the High and Late Middle Ages, Split enjoyed autonomy as a free city, Venice eventually prevailed and during the early modern period Split remained a Venetian city, a heavily fortified outpost surrounded by Ottoman territory. Eventually, its hinterland was won from the Ottomans in the Morean War of 1699, and in 1797, as Venice fell to Napoleon, the Treaty of Campo Formio rendered the city to the Habsburg Monarchy. In 1805, the Peace of Pressburg added it to the Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy, during World War II, the city was annexed by Italy, then liberated by the Partisans after the Italian capitulation in 1943. It was then re-occupied by Germany, which granted it to its puppet Independent State of Croatia, the city was liberated again by the Partisans in 1944, and was included in the post-war Federal Yugoslavia, as part of its republic of Croatia. In 1991 Croatia seceded from Yugoslavia amid the Croatian War of Independence, the city draws its name from the spiny broom, a common shrub in the area, after which the Greek colony of Aspálathos or Spálathos was named. The Serbo-Croatian term became Split or Spljet, while the Italian-language version, Spalato, in the late 19th century, the Croatian name increasingly came to prominence, and officially replaced Spalato in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia after World War I. For a significant period, the origin of the name was thought to be related to the Latin word for palace. Various theories were developed, such as the notion that the name derives from S. Palatium, the erroneous palace etymologies were notably due to Byzantine Emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus, and were later mentioned by Thomas the Archdeacon. The city, however, is several centuries older than the palace and it was a colony of the polis of Issa, the modern-day town of Vis on the island of the same name. Issa, itself a colony of the Sicilian city of Syracuse, had acquired sovereignty and started founding its own colonies in 367 BCE, the exact year the city was founded is not known, but its estimated to have been in the 3rd or 2nd century BCE. The Greek settlement lived off trade with the surrounding Illyrian tribes, in time, the Roman Republic became the dominant power in the region, conquering the Illyrians in the Illyrian Wars of 229 and 219 BCE. Upon establishing permanent rule, the Romans founded the Province of Dalmatia, the city of Salona, only a short distance from Spálathos, became the capital of the province and evolved into a significant city in the Roman state. The history of Spálathos becomes obscure for a while at this point, being overshadowed by that of nearby Salona, the Roman Emperor Diocletian reformed the government in the late Roman Empire and established the Tetrarchy
11.
Odoacer
–
Flavius Odoacer, also known as Flavius Odovacer, was a soldier who in 476 became the first King of Italy. His reign is seen as marking the end of the Western Roman Empire. Though the real power in Italy was in his hands, he represented himself as the client of Julius Nepos and, after Nepos death in 480, Odoacer introduced few important changes into the administrative system of Italy. He had the support of the Roman Senate and was able to land to his followers without much opposition. Unrest among his warriors led to violence in 477–478, but no such disturbances occurred during the period of his reign. Although Odoacer was an Arian Christian, he intervened in the affairs of the orthodox. Probably of Scirian descent, Odoacer was a leader in Italy who led the revolt of Herulian, Rugian. With the backing of the Roman Senate, Odoacer thenceforth ruled Italy autonomously, paying lip service to the authority of Julius Nepos, the last Western emperor, and Zeno, upon Nepos murder in 480 Odoacer invaded Dalmatia, to punish the murderers. He did so, executing the conspirators, but within two years also conquered the region and incorporated it into his domain. When Illus, master of soldiers of the Eastern Empire, asked for Odoacer’s help in 484 in his struggle to depose Zeno, the emperor responded first by inciting the Rugi of present-day Austria to attack Italy. During the winter of 487–488 Odoacer crossed the Danube and defeated the Rugi in their own territory, Zeno also appointed the Ostrogoth Theoderic the Great who was menacing the borders of the Eastern Empire, to be king of Italy, turning one troublesome, nominal vassal against another. Theoderic invaded Italy in 489 and by August 490 had captured almost the entire peninsula, the city surrendered on 5 March 493, Theoderic invited Odoacer to a banquet of reconciliation and there killed him. Odoacer is the earliest ruler of Italy for whom an autograph of any of his legal acts has survived to the current day. The larger portion of a record of Odoacer granting properties in Sicily, except for the fact that he was not considered Roman, Odoacers ethnic origins are not completely known. Both the Anonymus Valesianus and John of Antioch state his fathers name was Edeko, since Sebastian Tillemont in the 17th century, all three have been considered to be the same person. In his Getica, Jordanes describes Odoacer as king of the Turcilingi, however, in his Romana, the same author defines him as a member of the Rugii. The Consularia Italica calls him king of the Heruli, while Theophanes appears to be guessing when he calls him a Goth, marcellinus Comes calls him the king of the Goths. One of these is that his name, Odoacer, for which an etymology in Germanic languages had not been found, could be a form of the Turkish Ot-toghar
12.
Leo I the Thracian
–
Leo I was an Eastern Roman Emperor from 457 to 474. A native of Dacia Aureliana near historic Thrace, he was known as Leo the Thracian, ruling the Eastern Empire for nearly 20 years, Leo proved to be a capable ruler. He oversaw many ambitious political and military plans, aimed mostly for the aid of the faltering Western Roman Empire and he is notable for being the first Eastern Emperor to legislate in Greek rather than Latin. He is commemorated as a Saint in the Orthodox Church, with his feast day on January 20 and he was born Leo Marcellus in Thracia or in Dacia Aureliana province in the year 401 to a Thraco-Roman family. His Dacian origin is mentioned by Candidus Isaurus, while John Malalas believes that he was of Bessian stock and he served in the Roman army, rising to the rank of comes. Leo was the last of a series of emperors placed on the throne by Aspar, the Alan serving as commander-in-chief of the army, instead, Leo became more and more independent from Aspar, causing tension that would culminate in the assassination of the latter. Leos coronation as emperor on 7 February 457, was the first known to involve the Patriarch of Constantinople, Leo I made an alliance with the Isaurians and was thus able to eliminate Aspar. The price of the alliance was the marriage of Leos daughter to Tarasicodissa, leader of the Isaurians who, as Zeno, in 469, Aspar attempted to assassinate Zeno and very nearly succeeded. Finally, in 471, Aspars son Ardabur was implicated in a plot against Leo, Leo overestimated his capacities and he made some errors that menaced the internal order of the Empire. There were also some raids by the Huns, Leos reign was also noteworthy for his influence in the Western Roman Empire, marked by his appointment of Anthemius as Western Roman Emperor in 467. He attempted to build on this achievement with an expedition against the Vandals in 468. This disaster drained the Empire of men and money, the expedition, which cost 130,000 pounds of gold and 700 pounds of silver, consisted of 1,113 ships carrying 100,000 men, but in the end lost 600 ships. After this defeat, Vandals raided Greek coasts until a peace agreement was signed between Leo and Genseric. Leo became very unpopular in his last days as Emperor for abolishing any non-religious celebration or event on Sundays, Leo died of dysentery at the age of 73 on 18 January 474. Leo and Verina had three children and their eldest daughter Ariadne was born prior to the death of Marcian. Ariadne had a sister, Leontia. Leontia was first betrothed to Patricius, a son of Aspar, Leontia then married Marcian, a son of Emperor Anthemius and Marcia Euphemia. The couple led a revolt against Zeno in 478–479
13.
Marcellinus (magister militum)
–
Marcellinus was a Roman general and patrician who ruled over the region of Dalmatia in the Western Roman Empire and held sway with the army there from 454 until his death. Marcellinus was said to have been of good birth and character and who had an education, he was also a devout pagan. He was also a patron of culture and a friend of the philosopher Sallustius and he was in Dalmatia at the time and it is believed to have held the title of Comes rei militaris according to the fasti. He was powerful enough to control of Dalmatia for himself and was presumably able to do this because he was commander of the troops there. He appears to have remained ruler of Dalmatia down to 468 and to have preserved his independence except for briefly accepting the authority of the Emperors Majorian, sources claim he ruled justly and well and kept Dalmatia independent of the emperor and of barbarian rulers. This forced Marcellinus to leave Sicily and return to Dalmatia where he would work closely with the Eastern Emperor Leo I, Leo recognized Marcellinus as magister militum but not by Ricimer and his new puppet emperor Libius Severus in the West. His title seems to have changed around this time to that of magister militum Dalmatiae though it is not for certain, only that his nephew who took over for him after held this title. During this time his power seems to have grown and it was possible he could attack Italy, but at the request of the Italians, the eastern court sent an envoy to him and he agreed not to attack. In the spring of 467 he was one of the comites who accompanied the new emperor of the West, Anthemius, in 468 we see him with the title of patrician which was given to him by Anthemius. In 468, Leo organized a campaign against the Vandals in Africa in which the East and West would commit substantial forces. Marcellinus was given command of the forces from the western empire, Marcellinus by this time had expelled the Vandals from Sicily and had also retaken Sardinia and was to be taken by fleet to Africa. Marcellinus was supposed to have a command of some 10,000 to 20,000 troops, Marcellinus was murdered in Sicily that same year, possibly by Ricimers order. After his death, his nephew, Julius Nepos inherited his uncles control over Dalmatia and was recorded as having the title magister militum Dalmatiae, a topic of much debate concerns Marcellinus source of power, mainly the forces under his command. This aspect becomes important in understanding his role as a player in the political, a noteworthy comment on his army is that his troops were said to have always been well-equipped, to say that in an age when the armies in the west were declining this becomes especially important. As the comes rei militaris Dalmatiae Marcellinus had a fleet at his disposal which was based at Salona. As for his forces, we know for certain he had Hunnic troops. But it is not clear if these were federate forces or mercenaries, regardless of which one they are, it not surprising he had Huns in his army since break up of the Hunnic Empire came in 454. He also had manpower to draw on from north of the Sava River, nothing, however, suggests that he himself favored the idea
14.
Latin
–
Latin is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. The Latin alphabet is derived from the Etruscan and Greek alphabets, Latin was originally spoken in Latium, in the Italian Peninsula. Through the power of the Roman Republic, it became the dominant language, Vulgar Latin developed into the Romance languages, such as Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, French, and Romanian. Latin, Italian and French have contributed many words to the English language, Latin and Ancient Greek roots are used in theology, biology, and medicine. By the late Roman Republic, Old Latin had been standardised into Classical Latin, Vulgar Latin was the colloquial form spoken during the same time and attested in inscriptions and the works of comic playwrights like Plautus and Terence. Late Latin is the language from the 3rd century. Later, Early Modern Latin and Modern Latin evolved, Latin was used as the language of international communication, scholarship, and science until well into the 18th century, when it began to be supplanted by vernaculars. Ecclesiastical Latin remains the language of the Holy See and the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church. Today, many students, scholars and members of the Catholic clergy speak Latin fluently and it is taught in primary, secondary and postsecondary educational institutions around the world. The language has been passed down through various forms, some inscriptions have been published in an internationally agreed, monumental, multivolume series, the Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum. Authors and publishers vary, but the format is about the same, volumes detailing inscriptions with a critical apparatus stating the provenance, the reading and interpretation of these inscriptions is the subject matter of the field of epigraphy. The works of several hundred ancient authors who wrote in Latin have survived in whole or in part and they are in part the subject matter of the field of classics. The Cat in the Hat, and a book of fairy tales, additional resources include phrasebooks and resources for rendering everyday phrases and concepts into Latin, such as Meissners Latin Phrasebook. The Latin influence in English has been significant at all stages of its insular development. From the 16th to the 18th centuries, English writers cobbled together huge numbers of new words from Latin and Greek words, dubbed inkhorn terms, as if they had spilled from a pot of ink. Many of these words were used once by the author and then forgotten, many of the most common polysyllabic English words are of Latin origin through the medium of Old French. Romance words make respectively 59%, 20% and 14% of English, German and those figures can rise dramatically when only non-compound and non-derived words are included. Accordingly, Romance words make roughly 35% of the vocabulary of Dutch, Roman engineering had the same effect on scientific terminology as a whole
15.
Deposition of Romulus Augustulus
–
The widow of the emperors Valentinian III and Petronius Maximus, Licinia, was herself taken to Carthage, where her daughter was married to Genserics son. Rome not only lost a portion of its population during the Vandal rampage – a fairly large amount of its treasures was plundered by the barbarians and this loot was later recovered by the Byzantines. At the time, however, its loss was a blow to the Western Empire. After Romes weaknesses were exposed by the Vandals invasion, the tribes of Gaul, once a secure province loyal to the Empire. The Ravenna-based emperors now began to lose the respect of many of their subjects, among the more successful of these commanders, the most senior of whom were called magistri militum, were Avitus, who would eventually be crowned emperor, and Ricimer. Ricimer grew so powerful that he was able to choose and depose weak emperors almost at will. In 475, the Western emperor, Julius Nepos, was overthrown by his magister militum, the aristocratic Flavius Orestes, who had once been an official of Attila. Rather than take the throne himself, Orestes had his son, Romulus Augustulus. Orestes, who ruled in his sons name, found an enemy in the persons of his non-Roman mercenary-soldiers, when, led by an auxiliary general called Odoacer, they demanded estates and were refused, they swept into Italy. Barbarian soldiers in Italian cities and garrisons flocked to the audacious generals standard, Odoacer laid siege to Pavia, which fell in due course. The bishop of that city, Epiphanius, managed to ransom many of the captives taken during this invasion, but was unable to save Orestes, orestess brother was killed near Ravenna by Odoacers forces, who entered the imperial capital soon afterward. The young monarch Romulus Augustulus was, on September 4, compelled to abdicate before the Senate and that body requested that the Eastern Roman Emperor, Zeno, reunite his realm with the West, with Odoacer as his governor. The auxiliary commander, now master of Ravenna, encouraged the senators in this effort, the hapless ex-emperor, Romulus Augustulus, was still present in Ravenna, and Odoacer rid himself of the boy by exiling him. In 480, the second of Odoacers Roman rivals, Nepos, was assassinated by retainers, until Neposs murder, even the confirmation of Odoacers patrician rank and authority had been undermined by the presence of Zenos nephew. Odoacer now proclaimed himself king of Italy, and formed alliances with other barbarians, despite possessing these qualities, Odoacer was unable to defeat the Ostrogoths and their monarch, Theodoric the Great, who invaded the Kingdom of Italy and overcame the forces that defended it. After four years of fighting, Odoacer, with pressure from his citizens and his soldiers, decided in 493 that it would be useless to continue fighting. The conqueror of the Western Roman Empire was himself conquered, and, unlike Romulus Augustulus, while enjoying a banquet, he was murdered by an Ostrogoth, who may have been Theodoric himself. When the Ostrogothic queen Amalasuntha, a Byzantine ally, was executed by her chosen successor Theodahad in 535, under the command of the general Belisarius, an army landed in Sicily and subdued that island before invading Italy proper
16.
Byzantine Empire
–
It survived the fragmentation and fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD and continued to exist for an additional thousand years until it fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1453. During most of its existence, the empire was the most powerful economic, cultural, several signal events from the 4th to 6th centuries mark the period of transition during which the Roman Empires Greek East and Latin West divided. Constantine I reorganised the empire, made Constantinople the new capital, under Theodosius I, Christianity became the Empires official state religion and other religious practices were proscribed. Finally, under the reign of Heraclius, the Empires military, the borders of the Empire evolved significantly over its existence, as it went through several cycles of decline and recovery. During the reign of Maurice, the Empires eastern frontier was expanded, in a matter of years the Empire lost its richest provinces, Egypt and Syria, to the Arabs. This battle opened the way for the Turks to settle in Anatolia, the Empire recovered again during the Komnenian restoration, such that by the 12th century Constantinople was the largest and wealthiest European city. Despite the eventual recovery of Constantinople in 1261, the Byzantine Empire remained only one of several small states in the area for the final two centuries of its existence. Its remaining territories were annexed by the Ottomans over the 15th century. The Fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 finally ended the Byzantine Empire, the term comes from Byzantium, the name of the city of Constantinople before it became Constantines capital. This older name of the city would rarely be used from this point onward except in historical or poetic contexts. The publication in 1648 of the Byzantine du Louvre, and in 1680 of Du Canges Historia Byzantina further popularised the use of Byzantine among French authors, however, it was not until the mid-19th century that the term came into general use in the Western world. The Byzantine Empire was known to its inhabitants as the Roman Empire, the Empire of the Romans, Romania, the Roman Republic, Graikia, and also as Rhōmais. The inhabitants called themselves Romaioi and Graikoi, and even as late as the 19th century Greeks typically referred to modern Greek as Romaika and Graikika. The authority of the Byzantine emperor as the legitimate Roman emperor was challenged by the coronation of Charlemagne as Imperator Augustus by Pope Leo III in the year 800. No such distinction existed in the Islamic and Slavic worlds, where the Empire was more seen as the continuation of the Roman Empire. In the Islamic world, the Roman Empire was known primarily as Rûm, the Roman army succeeded in conquering many territories covering the entire Mediterranean region and coastal regions in southwestern Europe and north Africa. These territories were home to different cultural groups, both urban populations and rural populations. The West also suffered heavily from the instability of the 3rd century AD
17.
Solidus (coin)
–
The solidus, nomisma, or bezant was originally a relatively pure gold coin issued in the Late Roman Empire. Under Constantine, who introduced it on a scale, it had a weight of about 4.5 grams. The Byzantine solidus also inspired the originally slightly less pure Arabian dinar, in late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, the solidus also functioned as a unit of weight equal to 1/72 of a pound. The solidus was introduced by Diocletian in AD301 as a replacement of the aureus, composed of solid gold. His minting was on a scale, however, and the coin only entered widespread circulation under Constantine I after AD312. Constantines solidus was struck at a rate of 72 to a Roman pound of gold, each coin weighed 24 Greco-Roman carats. By this time, the solidus was worth 275,000 increasingly debased denarii, with the exception of the early issues of Constantine the Great and the odd usurpers the Solidus today is a much more affordable Gold Roman Coin to collect compared to the Older Aureus. Especially those of Valens Honorius and later Byzantine issues, the solidus was maintained essentially unaltered in weight, dimensions and purity until the 10th century. During the 6th and 7th centuries lightweight solidi of 20,22 or 23 siliquae were struck along with the weight issues. Many of these coins have been found in Europe, Russia and Georgia. The lightweight solidi were distinguished by different markings on the coin, usually in the exergue for the 20 and 22 siliquae coins and by stars in the field for the 23 siliquae coins. In theory the solidus was struck from pure gold, but because of the limits of refining techniques, in the Greek-speaking world during the Roman period, and then in the Byzantine economy, the solidus was known as the νόμισμα nomisma. Initially it was difficult to distinguish the two coins, as they had the design, dimensions and purity, and there were no marks of value to distinguish the denominations. The only difference was the weight, the tetarteron nomisma was a lighter coin, about 4.05 grams, but the histamenon nomisma maintained the traditional weight of 4.5 grams. To eliminate confusion between the two, from the reign of Basil II the solidus was struck as a coin with a larger diameter. From the middle of the 11th century the larger diameter histamenon nomisma was struck on a concave flan, former money changer Michael IV the Paphlagonian assumed the throne of Byzantium in 1034 and began the slow process of debasing both the tetarteron nomisma and the histamenon nomisma. Alexius reformed the coinage in 1092 and eliminated the solidus altogether, in its place he introduced a new gold coin called the hyperpyron nomisma at about 20. 5k fine. The weight, dimensions and purity of the hyperpyron nomisma remained stable until the fall of Constantinople to the Crusaders in 1204, after that time the exiled Empire of Nicea continued to strike a debased hyperpyron nomisma
18.
Kingdom of Burgundy
–
Kingdom of Burgundy was a name given to various states located in Western Europe during the Middle Ages. The historical Burgundy correlates with the area of France, Italy and Switzerland and includes the major modern cities of Geneva. As a political entity, Burgundy has existed in a number of forms with different boundaries, notably, two of these entities — the first around the 6th century, the second around the 11th century — have been called the Kingdom of Burgundy. At other times there existed Kingdom of Provence, Duchy of Burgundy, Burgundy is named after a Germanic tribe of Burgundians who originated in mainland Scandinavia, then settled on the island of Bornholm, whose name in Old Norse was Burgundarholmr. From there they migrated south through Germanic lands into Roman Gaul and settled in the part of the Alps and Rhône valley. The first documented, though not historically verified King of the Burgundians was Gjúki, in the course of the Crossing of the Rhine in 406 the Burgundians settled as foederati in the Roman province of Germania Secunda along the Middle Rhine. The remaining Burgundians from 443 onwards settled in the Sapaudia region and their efforts to enlarge their kingdom down the Rhône river brought them into conflict with the Visigothic Kingdom in the south. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476, king Gundobad allied with the powerful Frank king Clovis I against the threat of Theoderic the Great and he was then able to organize the Burgundian acquisitions based on the Lex Burgundionum, an Early Germanic law code. The decline of the Kingdom began when they came under attack from their former Frank allies, in 523 the sons of Clovis I campaigned in the Burgundian lands, instigated by their mother Clotilde, whose father king Chilperic II of Burgundy had been killed by Gundobad. In 532 the Burgundians were decisively defeated by the Franks at Autun, whereafter king Godomar was killed and Burgundian lands was annexed by the Frankish Empire in 534. While there no longer was an independent Burgundian kingdom, between 561 and 584 and between 639 and 737 several rulers of the Frankish Merovingian dynasty used the title of King of Burgundy. Partitions of Charlemagnes empire by his immediate Carolingian heirs led to a kingdom of Middle Francia. It included lands from North Sea to southern Italy and was ruled by emperor Lothair I, the northwestern part of the former Burgundian lands as Duchy of Burgundy was included in the kingdom of West Francia. This partition created more conflicts, as older Carolingians who ruled West Francia, as Charles of Provence was too young to rule, the actual power was held by regent, count Girart II of Vienne whose wife was the sister-in-law of emperor Lothar I. Girart was a regent, defending the kingdom from Vikings. Charles uncle, Charles the Bald of West Francia, attempted to intervene in Provence in 861 after receiving an appeal for intervention from the Count of Arles and he invaded Provence as far as Mâcon before being restrained by Hincmar of Rheims. Already in 858 count Girart arranged that should Charles of Provence die without heirs, Upper Burgundy remained under the influence of the East Frankish king Charles the Fat. From 887 these northern territories formed the Kingdom of Upper Burgundy, proclaimed by the Welf noble Rudolph I of Burgundy at Saint-Maurice and it was one of the three kingdoms within the medieval Empire, the others being the Kingdom of Germany and the Kingdom of Italy
19.
Magister militum
–
Magister militum was a top-level military command used in the later Roman Empire, dating from the reign of Constantine. Used alone, the referred to the senior military officer of the Empire. In Greek sources, the term is translated either as strategos or as stratelates, the title of magister militum was created in the 4th century, when Emperor Constantine the Great deprived the praetorian prefects of their military functions. Initially two posts were created, one as head of the troops, as the magister peditum, and one for the more prestigious horse troops. The latter title had existed since Republican times, as the second-in-command to a Roman dictator, on occasion, the offices would be combined under a single person, then styled magister equitum et peditum or magister utriusque militiae. As such they were directly in command of the mobile field army of the comitatenses, composed mostly of cavalry. Other magistri remained at the disposal of the Emperors, and were termed in praesenti. By the late 4th century, the commanders were termed simply magister militum. In the Western Roman Empire, a commander-in-chief evolved with the title of magister utriusque militiae and this powerful office was often the power behind the throne and was held by Stilicho, Flavius Aetius, Ricimer, and others. In the East, there were two generals, who were each appointed to the office of magister militum praesentalis. In the course of the 6th century, internal and external crises in the provinces often necessitated the temporary union of the regional civil authority with the office of the magister militum. In the establishment of the exarchates of Ravenna and Carthage in 584, indeed, after the loss of the eastern provinces to the Muslim conquest in the 640s, the surviving field armies and their commanders formed the first themata. Supreme military commanders sometimes also took this title in early medieval Italy, for example in the Papal States and in Venice, whose Doge claimed to be the successor to the Exarch of Ravenna. 383-385/8, Flavius Bauto, magister militum under Valentinian II 385/8-394, Arbogast, magister militum under Valentinian II and Eugenius 383–388, Andragathius after 383-408, –419, Flavius Gaudentius 425–433, Flavius Aetius 435-439, Litorius 452–456, Agrippinus 456–461, Aegidius 461/462, Agrippinus. 468–474, Julius Nepos 477–479, Onoulphus 479–481, Sabinianus Magnus 528, Ascum 529–530/1, Mundus 532–536,550, John 568–569/70, Bonus 581–582, Theognis c. 503–505, Areobindus Dagalaiphus Areobindus 505–506, Pharesmanes. 516-.518,554, Artabanes 588, Priscus 593, Priscus 593–594, Peter 594–ca. Justinian 528, Leontius 528-529, Phocas 520-538/9, Sittas 536, Germanus 536, Maxentianus 546–548, Artabanes 548/9–552, Suartuas 562, Constantinianus 582, Germanus 585–ca. In the Gesta Herwardi, the hero is several times described as magister militum by the man who translated the original Early English account into Latin
20.
Ravenna
–
Ravenna is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the city of the Western Roman Empire from 402 until that empire collapsed in 476. It then served as the capital of the Kingdom of the Ostrogoths until it was re-conquered in 540 by the Eastern Roman Empire. Afterwards, the city formed the centre of the Byzantine Exarchate of Ravenna until the invasion of the Lombards in 751, although an inland city, Ravenna is connected to the Adriatic Sea by the Candiano Canal. It is known for its well-preserved late Roman and Byzantine architecture, the origin of the name Ravenna is unclear, although it is believed the name is Etruscan. Some have speculated that ravenna is related to Rasenna, the term that the Etruscans used for themselves, the origins of Ravenna are uncertain. Ravenna consisted of houses built on piles on a series of islands in a marshy lagoon – a situation similar to Venice several centuries later. The Romans ignored it during their conquest of the Po River Delta, in 49 BC, it was the location where Julius Caesar gathered his forces before crossing the Rubicon. Later, after his battle against Mark Antony in 31 BC and this harbor, protected at first by its own walls, was an important station of the Roman Imperial Fleet. Nowadays the city is landlocked, but Ravenna remained an important seaport on the Adriatic until the early Middle Ages, during the German campaigns, Thusnelda, widow of Arminius, and Marbod, King of the Marcomanni, were confined at Ravenna. Ravenna greatly prospered under Roman rule, Emperor Trajan built a 70 km long aqueduct at the beginning of the 2nd century. During the Marcomannic Wars, Germanic settlers in Ravenna revolted and managed to seize possession of the city, for this reason, Marcus Aurelius decided not only against bringing more barbarians into Italy, but even banished those who had previously been brought there. In AD402, Emperor Honorius transferred the capital of the Western Roman Empire from Milan to Ravenna, at that time it was home to 50,000 people. However, in 409, King Alaric I of the Visigoths simply bypassed Ravenna, after many vicissitudes, Galla Placidia returned to Ravenna with her son, Emperor Valentinian III and the support of her nephew Theodosius II. The late 5th century saw the dissolution of Roman authority in the west, Odoacer ruled as King of Italy for 13 years, but in 489 the Eastern Emperor Zeno sent the Ostrogoth King Theoderic the Great to re-take the Italian peninsula. After losing the Battle of Verona, Odoacer retreated to Ravenna, Theoderic took Ravenna in 493, supposedly slew Odoacer with his own hands, and Ravenna became the capital of the Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy. Both Odoacer and Theoderic and their followers were Arian Christians, but co-existed peacefully with the Latins, Ravennas Orthodox bishops carried out notable building projects, of which the sole surviving one is the Capella Arcivescovile. Theoderic allowed Roman citizens within his kingdom to be subject to Roman law, the Goths, meanwhile, lived under their own laws and customs
21.
Emperor
–
An emperor is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the equivalent, may indicate an emperors wife, mother. Emperors are generally recognized to be of an honour and rank than kings. The Emperor of Japan is the currently reigning monarch whose title is translated into English as Emperor. Both kings and emperors are monarchs, but emperor and empress are considered the higher monarchical titles. In as much as there is a definition of emperor, it is that an emperor has no relations implying the superiority of any other ruler. Thus a king might be obliged to pay tribute to another ruler, or be restrained in his actions in some unequal fashion, although initially ruling much of Central Europe and northern Italy, by the 19th century the Emperor exercised little power beyond the German speaking states. In Eastern Europe the rulers of the Russian Empire also used translatio imperii to wield authority as successors to the Eastern Roman Empire. Their title of Emperor was officially recognised by the Holy Roman Emperor in 1514, in practice the Russian Emperors are often known by their Russian-language title Tsar, which may also used to refer to rulers equivalent to a king. Historians have liberally used emperor and empire anachronistically and out of its Roman and European context to any large state from the past or the present. Such pre-Roman titles as Great King or King of Kings, used by the Kings of Persia, however such empires did not need to be headed by an emperor. Empire became identified instead with vast territorial holdings rather than the title of its ruler by the mid-18th century, outside the European context, emperor was the translation given to holders of titles who were accorded the same precedence as European emperors in diplomatic terms. In reciprocity, these rulers might accredit equal titles in their languages to their European peers. Through centuries of international convention, this has become the dominant rule to identifying an emperor in the modern era, also the name of the position split in several branches of Western tradition, see below. Later new symbols of worldly and/or spiritual power, like the orb, rules for indicating successors also varied, there was a tendency towards male inheritance of the supreme office, but as well election by noblemen, as ruling empresses are known. Ruling monarchs could additionally steer the succession by adoption, as occurred in the two first centuries of Imperial Rome. Of course, intrigue, murder and military force could also mingle in for appointing successors, probably the epoch best known for this part of the imperial tradition is Romes third century rule. When Republican Rome turned into a de facto monarchy in the half of the 1st century BC
22.
Salona
–
Salona was an ancient city and the capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia. The name Salona preserves the language of the inhabitants of this area whom the Romans called Dalmatae. Salona is situated in town of Solin, right next to Split. In the first millennium BC the Greeks set up an emporion there, after the conquest by the Romans, Salona became the capital of the Roman province of Dalmatia. Colonia Martia Iulia Salona was founded probably after the Roman civil wars under Julius Caesar, the early trapezoidal shape of the city was transformed by eastern and western expansion of the city. The city quickly acquired Roman characteristics, walls, a forum, a theatre, an amphitheatre – the most conspicuous above-ground remains today, public baths, and an aqueduct. Many inscriptions in both Latin and Greek have been found both inside the walls and in the cemeteries outside, since Romans forbade burials inside the city boundaries, a number of fine marble sarcophagi from those cemeteries are now in the Archaeological Museum of Split. All this archaeological evidence attests to the prosperity and integration into the Roman Empire. Salona had a mint that was connected with the mint in Sirmium, when the Roman Emperor Diocletian retired, he erected a monumental palace nearby. This massive structure, known as Diocletians Palace, became the core of the city of Split. These have made it a site for studying the development of Christian sacred architecture. Salona was largely destroyed in the invasions of the Avars and Slavs in the sixth and seventh centuries CE, refugees from Salona settled inside the remains of Diocletians Palace. The construction of the Salonitan city walls took several centuries, the earliest part of the city was surrounded by walls as early as the second century BC. During the Pax Romana the city expanded to both east and west, during the reign of Emperor Marcus Aurelius around 170 A. D. under constant threat of Germanic tribes the east and west suburbs were included in the walls which were fortified with at least 90 towers. Some parts of existing buildings were used in the extensions to the walls making them an integral part. Total circumference of the shape of the walls was approximately 4 km. During the reign of Emperor Theodosius II in the fifth century all the towers were reconstructed. Furthermore, in the first half of the century, in order to improve citys security and defence system
23.
Roman Gaul
–
Roman Gaul refers to Gaul under provincial rule in the Roman Empire from the 1st century BC to the 5th century AD. The Roman Republic began its takeover of Celtic Gaul in 121 BC, julius Caesar significantly advanced the task by defeating the Celtic tribes in the Gallic Wars of 58-51 BC. In 22 BC, imperial administration of Gaul was reorganized, establishing the provinces of Gallia Aquitania, Gallia Belgica, parts of eastern Gaul were incorporated into the provinces Raetia and Germania Superior. During Late Antiquity, Gaulish and Roman culture amalgamated into a hybrid Gallo-Roman culture, the Gaulish language was marginalized and eventually extinct, being replaced by regional forms of Late Latin which in the medieval period developed into the group of Gallo-Romance languages. Roman control over the provinces deteriorated in the 4th and 5th centuries, the last vestiges of any Roman control over parts of Gaul were effaced with the defeat of Syagrius at the Battle of Soissons. Gaul had three divisions, one of which was divided into multiple Roman provinces, Gallia Cisalpina or Gaul this side of the Alps. Gallia Narbonensis, formerly Gallia Transalpina or Gaul across the Alps was originally conquered and annexed in 121 BC in an attempt to solidify communications between Rome and the Iberian peninsula. It comprised the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte dAzur, most of Languedoc-Roussillon. Gallia Comata, or long haired Gaul, encompassed the remainder of present-day France, Belgium, and westernmost Germany, gauls continued writing some inscriptions in the Gaulish language, but switched from the Greek alphabet to the Latin alphabet during the Roman period. The Roman influence was most apparent in the areas of religion and administration. The Druidic religion was suppressed by Emperor Claudius I, and in later centuries Christianity was introduced, the prohibition of Druids and the syncretic nature of the Roman religion led to disappearance of the Celtic religion. It remains to this day poorly understood, current knowledge of the Celtic religion is based on archeology and via literary sources from several isolated areas such as Ireland, the Romans easily imposed their administrative, economic, artistic and literary culture. They wore the Roman tunic instead of their traditional clothing, the Romano-Gauls generally lived in the vici, small villages similar to those in Italy, or in villae, for the richest. Surviving Celtic influences also infiltrated back into the Roman Imperial culture in the 3rd century, for example, the Gaulish tunic—which gave Emperor Caracalla his surname—had not been replaced by Roman fashion. Similarly, certain Gaulish artisan techniques, such as the barrel, the Celtic heritage also continued in the spoken language. Gaulish spelling and pronunciation of Latin are apparent in several 5th century poets, the last pockets of Gaulish speakers appear to have lingered until the 6th or 7th century. Germanic placenames were first attested in border areas settled by Germanic colonizers, from the 4th to 5th centuries, the Franks settled in northern France and Belgium, the Alemanni in Alsace and Switzerland, and the Burgundians in Savoie. The Roman administration finally collapsed as remaining Roman troops withdrew southeast to protect Italy, between 455 and 476 the Visigoths, the Burgundians, and the Franks assumed control in Gaul
24.
Campania
–
Campania is a region in Southern Italy. Located on the Italian Peninsula, with the Mediterranean Sea to the west, it includes the small Phlegraean Islands, Campania was colonised by Ancient Greeks and was part of Magna Græcia. During the Roman era, the area maintained a Greco-Roman culture, the capital city of Campania is Naples. Campania is rich in culture, especially in regard to gastronomy, music, architecture, archeological and ancient sites such as Pompeii, Herculaneum, Paestum and Velia. The name of Campania itself is derived from Latin, as the Romans knew the region as Campania felix, the rich natural sights of Campania make it highly important in the tourism industry, especially along the Amalfi Coast, Mount Vesuvius and the island of Capri. During the 8th century BC, people from Euboea in Greece, known as Cumaeans, another Oscan tribe, the Samnites, moved down from central Italy into Campania. The Roman consul Quintus Publilius Filo recaptured Neapolis by 326 BC, the Second Samnite War ended with the Romans controlling southern Campania and additional regions further to the south. Campania was a part of the Roman Republic by the end of the 4th century BC, valued for its pastures. Its Greek language and customs made it a centre of Hellenistic civilization, during the Pyrrhic War the battle took place in Campania at Maleventum in which the Romans, led by consul Curius Dentatus, were victorious. They renamed the city Beneventum, which grew in stature until it was only to Capua in southern Italy. During the Second Punic War in 216 BC, Capua, in a bid for equality with Rome, the rebellious Capuans were isolated from the rest of Campania, which remained allies of Rome. Naples resisted Hannibal due to the imposing walls, Capua was eventually starved into submission in the Roman retaking of 211 BC, and the Romans were victorious. The rest of Campania, with the exception of Naples, adopted the Latin language as official and was Romanised. As part of the Roman Empire, Campania, with Latium, Roman Emperors chose Campania as a holiday destination, among them Claudius and Tiberius, the latter of whom is infamously linked to the island of Capri. It was also during this period that Christianity came to Campania, Two of the apostles, St. Peter and St. Paul, are said to have preached in the city of Naples, and there were also several martyrs during this time. Unfortunately, the period of calm was violently interrupted by the epic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 which buried the cities of Pompeii. The area had many duchies and principalities during the Middle Ages, in the hands of the Byzantine Empire, under the Normans, the smaller independent states were brought together as part of the Kingdom of Sicily, before the mainland broke away to form the Kingdom of Naples. It was during this period elements of Spanish, French
25.
Roman Senate
–
The Roman Senate was a political institution in ancient Rome. It was one of the most enduring institutions in Roman history, during the days of the kingdom, it was little more than an advisory council to the king. The last king of Rome, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, was following a coup détat led by Lucius Junius Brutus. During the early Republic, the Senate was politically weak, while the executive magistrates were quite powerful, since the transition from monarchy to constitutional rule was most likely gradual, it took several generations before the Senate was able to assert itself over the executive magistrates. By the middle Republic, the Senate had reached the apex of its republican power, the late Republic saw a decline in the Senates power, which began following the reforms of the tribunes Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus. After the transition of the Republic into the Principate, the Senate lost much of its power as well as its prestige. Following the constitutional reforms of the Emperor Diocletian, the Senate became politically irrelevant, when the seat of government was transferred out of Rome, the Senate was reduced to a municipal body. This decline in status was reinforced when the emperor Constantine the Great created an additional senate in Constantinople, the Senate in Rome ultimately disappeared at some point after AD603, although the title senator was still used well into the Middle Ages as a largely meaningless honorific. However, the Eastern Senate survived in Constantinople, until the ancient institution finally vanished there c. 14th century, the senate was a political institution in the ancient Roman kingdom. The word senate derives from the Latin word senex, which means old man, the early Roman family was called a gens or clan, and each clan was an aggregation of families under a common living male patriarch, called a pater. When the early Roman gentes were aggregating to form a common community, over time, the patres came to recognize the need for a single leader, and so they elected a king, and vested in him their sovereign power. When the king died, that power naturally reverted to the patres. The senate is said to have created by Romes first king, Romulus. The descendants of those 100 men subsequently became the patrician class, Romes fifth king, Lucius Tarquinius Priscus, chose a further 100 senators. They were chosen from the leading families, and were accordingly called the patres minorum gentium. Romes seventh and final king, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, executed many of the men in the senate. During the years of the monarchy, the senates most important function was to new kings. While the king was elected by the people, it was actually the senate who chose each new king
26.
King of Italy
–
King of Italy was the title given to the ruler of the Kingdom of Italy after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. The first to take the title was Odoacer, a military leader, in the late 5th century. With the Frankish conquest of Italy in the 8th century, the Carolingians assumed the title, the last Emperor to claim the title was Charles V in the 16th century. During this period, the holders of the title were crowned with the Iron Crown of Lombardy, although Napoleon I used the title from 1805 to 1814, it was not until the Unification of Italy in the 1860s that a Kingdom of Italy was restored. From 1861 the House of Savoy held the title as monarchs of the peninsula until the last King of Italy, Umberto II. After the deposition of the last Western Emperor in 476, Heruli leader Odoacer was appointed Dux Italiae by the reigning Byzantine Emperor Zeno. Later, the Germanic foederati, the Scirians and the Heruli, as well as a segment of the Italic Roman army. In 493, the Ostrogothic king Theoderic the Great killed Odoacer, Ostrogothic rule ended when Italy was reconquered by the Byzantine Empire in 552. In the 8th century, estrangement between the Italians and the Byzantines allowed the Lombards to capture the remaining Roman enclaves in northern Italy. However, in 774, they were defeated by the Franks under Charlemagne, after the death of Charles III the Fat in 887, Italy fell into instability and a number of kings attempted to establish themselves as independent Italian monarchs. During this period, known as the Feudal Anarchy, the title Rex Italicorum was introduced, after the breakup of the Frankish empire, Otto I added Italy to the Holy Roman Empire and continued the use of the title Rex Italicorum. The last to use this title was Henry II, subsequent emperors used the title king of Italy until Charles V. At first they were crowned in Pavia, later Milan, in 1805, Napoleon I was crowned with the Iron Crown of Lombardy at the Milan Cathedral. The next year, Holy Roman Emperor Francis II abdicated his imperial title, from the deposition of Napoleon I until the Italian Unification, there was no Italian monarch claiming the overarching title. The Risorgimento successfully established a dynasty, the House of Savoy, over the peninsula, uniting the kingdoms of Sardinia. The monarchy was superseded by the Italian Republic, after a referendum was held on 2 June 1946 after the World War II. The Italian monarchy formally ended on 12 June of that year, Guy of Spoleto opponent of Berengar, ruled most of Italy but was deposed by Arnulf. Lambert of Spoleto subking of his father Guy before 894, reduced to Spoleto 894–895, Arnulf of Carinthia Ratold In 896, Arnulf and Ratold lost control of Italy, which was divided between Berengar and Lambert, Berengar I seized Lamberts portion upon the latters death in 898
27.
Diocletian
–
Diocletian, born Diocles, was a Roman emperor from 284 to 305. Born to a family of low status in the Roman province of Dalmatia, after the deaths of Carus and his son Numerian on campaign in Persia, Diocletian was proclaimed emperor. The title was claimed by Carus other surviving son, Carinus. Diocletians reign stabilized the empire and marks the end of the Crisis of the Third Century and he appointed fellow officer Maximian as Augustus, co-emperor, in 286. Diocletian delegated further on 1 March 293, appointing Galerius and Constantius as Caesars, under this tetrarchy, or rule of four, each emperor would rule over a quarter-division of the empire. Diocletian secured the borders and purged it of all threats to his power. He defeated the Sarmatians and Carpi during several campaigns between 285 and 299, the Alamanni in 288, and usurpers in Egypt between 297 and 298, Galerius, aided by Diocletian, campaigned successfully against Sassanid Persia, the empires traditional enemy. In 299 he sacked their capital, Ctesiphon, Diocletian led the subsequent negotiations and achieved a lasting and favorable peace. He established new centres in Nicomedia, Mediolanum, Antioch. Building on third-century trends towards absolutism, he styled himself an autocrat, elevating himself above the masses with imposing forms of court ceremonies. Bureaucratic and military growth, constant campaigning, and construction increased the states expenditures. From at least 297 on, imperial taxation was standardized, made more equitable, not all of Diocletians plans were successful, the Edict on Maximum Prices, his attempt to curb inflation via price controls, was counterproductive and quickly ignored. Weakened by illness, Diocletian left the office on 1 May 305. He lived out his retirement in his palace on the Dalmatian coast and his palace eventually became the core of the modern-day city of Split in Croatia. Diocletian was born near Salona in Dalmatia, some time around 244 and his parents gave him the Greek name Diocles, or possibly Diocles Valerius. The modern historian Timothy Barnes takes his official birthday,22 December, other historians are not so certain. Diocles parents were of low status, and writers critical of him claimed that his father was a scribe or a freedman of the senator Anullinus, the first forty years of his life are mostly obscure. The Byzantine chronicler Joannes Zonaras states that he was Dux Moesiae, the often-unreliable Historia Augusta states that he served in Gaul, but this account is not corroborated by other sources and is ignored by modern historians of the period
28.
Diocletian's Palace
–
Diocletians Palace is an ancient palace built by the Roman Emperor Diocletian at the turn of the fourth century AD, that today forms about half the old town and city center of Split, in Croatia. Diocletian built the palace in preparation for his retirement on 1 May 305 AD. It lies in a bay on the side of a short peninsula running out from the Dalmatian coast, four miles from Salona. The terrain slopes gently seaward and is typical karst, consisting of low ridges running east to west with marl in the clefts between them. After the Romans abandoned the site, the Palace remained empty for several centuries, in the 7th century, nearby residents fled to the walled palace in an effort to escape invading Croats. Since then the palace has been occupied, with making their homes and businesses within the palace basement. Today many restaurants and shops, and some homes, can still be found within the walls, a few decades later, in 1782, the French painter Louis-François Cassas created drawings of the palace, published by Joseph Lavallée in 1802 in the chronicles of his voyages. This palace is today, with all the most important historical buildings, Diocletians Palace far transcends local importance because of its degree of preservation. The Palace is one of the most famous and complete architectural and cultural features on the Croatian Adriatic coast, as the worlds most complete remains of a Roman palace, it holds an outstanding place in Mediterranean, European and world heritage. In November 2006 the City Council decided to permit over twenty new buildings within the palace and it is said that this decision was politically motivated and largely due to lobbying by local property developers. Once the public in 2007 came aware of the project, they petitioned against the decision and won, no new buildings, shopping center or the underground garage was built. The World Monuments Fund has been working on a project at the palace, including surveying structural integrity and cleaning and restoring the stone. The palace is depicted on the reverse of the Croatian 500 kuna banknote, the ground plan of the palace is an irregular rectangle with towers projecting from the western, northern, and eastern facades. It combines qualities of a villa with those of a military camp, with its huge gates. The palace is enclosed by walls, and at times, it housed over 9000 people, subterranean portions of the palace feature barrel vaulted stonework. Only the southern facade, which rose directly from, or very near to, the elaborate architectural composition of the arcaded gallery on its upper floor differs from the more severe treatment of the three shore facades. A monumental gate in the middle of each of these led to an enclosed courtyard. The design is derived from both villa and castrum types, and this duality is also evident in the arrangement of the interior, the transverse road linking the eastern gate and western gate divided the complex into two-halves
29.
Comes
–
Comes derives from com- and ire. Comes was an epithet or title that was added to the name of a hero or god in order to denote relation with another god. The coinage of Roman Emperor Constantine I declared him comes to Sol Invictus qua god, historically more significant, Comes became a secular title granted to trusted officials of the Imperial Curia, present or former, and others as sign of Imperial confidence. Thus the title was retained when the titulary was appointed, often promoted, to an away from court. Subsequently, it was logical to connect the title to specific offices that demanded an incumbent official of high dignity. As the Imperial Roman Curia increased in number and assimilated all political power and this had been done elsewhere, e. g. regarding the Prefect of the Praetorian Guard and the Amici Principis. As Imperial administration expanded, however, new offices became necessary, the result was the institution of the rank of Comes. The Comites, often translated counts, though they were neither feudal nor hereditary and they held offices of all kinds from the army to the civil service, while retaining their direct accesses to the Emperor. The Comites were fully enumerated as early as the beginning of the AD 5th century in the Notitia Dignitatum, the following sections describe examples of the kinds of Comites. Several of the departments of the Imperial Curia and household had a principal official who was styled Comes. Comes Domesticorum, A vir illustris who was principal of the Domestici, there were two of these comital commanders, the Comes Domesticorum Equitum for the equestrian knights and the Comes Domesticorum Peditum for the foot soldiers. Comes Privatae Largitionis, The custodian of the purse, who answered and was subordinate to the Comes Rerum Privatarum. Comes Rerum Privatarum, A powerful Imperial official responsible for the estates and holdings of the Emperor. Comes Sacrarum Largitionum, A vir illustris who was custodian of the Sacrarum Largitionum of the Emperor, Comes Sacrae Vestis, The master of the wardrobe of the Emperor. The 3 Comites Largitionum, The regional financial administrators of Italy, Africa, Comes Metallorum per Illyricum, The official responsible for that regions gold mines. Exceptionally, a position was styled Comes. G. tribunes of cohorts, Alae, Numeri, and in the Eastern Empire even legions, Comes Africae, Official responsible for the defense of Roman Africa. Comes Argentoratensis, Official responsible for the defense of part of Gallia, Comes Avernorum, Official responsible for the defense of the other part of Gallia
30.
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Split-Makarska
–
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Split-Makarska is a Metropolitan archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic church in Croatia and Montenegro. The diocese was established in the 3rd century AD and was made an archdiocese, the modern diocese was erected in 1828, when the historical archdiocese of Salona was combined with the Diocese of Makarska. It was elevated as an archdiocese and metropolitan see in 1969, restoring the status of the archdiocese of Split. The diocese was known as Spalato-Macarsca. The current archbishop is Marin Barišić, the see was founded in or before 300 AD as Diocese of Salona. Eastern Roman Emperor Leo I appointed Glycerius as Bishop of Salona in 474, around 500 AD it was promoted to a Metropolitan archdiocese. The Archbishopric of Spalathon or Spalatum was a Christian archbishopric with seat in Salona and it recognized the supremacy of the Patriarch of Constantinople rather than the Roman Pope. In 590 the Salona archdiocese gained territory from the suppressed Roman Catholic Diocese of Makarska, Salona was ravaged by the South Slavs in 614, but in its place, Spalatum subsequently emerged. In 639 the city was razed by the Slavs, and in 647 the city was rebuilt, in 647 the city of Spalato began to arise from the ruins of Salona, and after an interregnum of eleven years its archbishops took over the territory of the archbishops of Salona. In 639 Salona was destroyed by the Slavs, during the rule of Vladislav of Croatia, all of Croatia except the Archdiocese of Nin became subject to the Patriarchate of Constantinople, under the jurisdiction of the Archbishopric of Spalatum. It lost territory in 1144 to establish the Diocese of Hvar, with the death of Archbishop Laelius Cippico began another interregnum which lasted twenty-three years. Paul Miossich was appointed first bishop of the new diocese in 1830 and it also absorbed the suppressed Tragurium. On 27 July 1969, it was promoted again as Metropolitan Archdiocese It enjoyed a visit from Pope John Paul II in October 1998. Its cathedral episcopal see is the Cathedral of Saint Domnius, in Split, the city also has the co-cathedral of Saint Peter Apostle. There are former cathedrals in three former sees aborbed in the archdiocese, World Heritage Site, Katedrala sv, lovre, in Trogir, formerly Trau or Tragurium World Heritage Site, Crkva sv. Ivan Krstitelj, also in Trogir Katedrala sv, marka, in Makarska Its suffragans are the Diocese of Dubrovnik, Diocese of Hvar-Brac e Vis, Diocese of Kotor and the Diocese of Šibenik. Bishops of Salona Known bishops of Salona include, Saint Domnius is patron saint of both the Archidiocese and the city of Split. Hesychius III is mentioned in the book of St. Augustine of Hippos De Civitate Dei Glycerius,474 an epistle from Pope Gelasius I is addressed to bishop Honorius. R. S
31.
Mediolanum
–
Mediolanum, the ancient Milan, was originally an Insubrian city, but afterwards became an important Roman city in northern Italy. Mediolanum appears to have been founded around 600 BC by the Celtic Insubres, after whom this region of northern Italy was called Insubria. The Romans, led by consul Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Calvus, fought the Insubres and captured the city in 222 BC, Mediolanum was important for its location as a hub in the road network of northern Italy. Polybius describes the country as abounding in wine, and every kind of grain, herds of swine, both for public and private supply, were bred in its forests, and the people were well known for their generosity. During the Augustan age Mediolanum was famous for its schools, it possessed a theater, a large stone wall encircled the city in Caesars time, and later was expanded in the late third century AD, by Maximian. Mediolanum was made the seat of the prefect of Liguria by Hadrian, in the third century Mediolanum possessed a mint, a horreum and imperial mausoleum. In 259, Roman legions under the command of Emperor Gallienus soundly defeated the Alemanni in the Battle of Mediolanum, in 286 Diocletian moved the capital of the Western Roman Empire from Rome to Mediolanum. He chose to reside at Nicomedia in the Eastern Empire, leaving his colleague Maximian at Milan, Maximian increased the city area surrounded by a new, larger stone wall encompassing an area of 375 acres with many 24-sided towers. The monumental area had twin towers, one that was included in the convent of San Maurizio Maggiore remains 16, Constantine was in Milan to celebrate the wedding of his sister to the Eastern Emperor, Licinius. In the mid-fourth century, the Arian controversy divided the Christians of Mediolanum, Constantius supported Arian bishops, auxentius of Milan was a respected Arian theologian. At the time of the bishop St. Ambrose, who quelled the Arians, the city also possessed a number of basilicas, added in the late fourth century AD. These are San Simpliciano, San Nazaro, San Lorenzo and the chapel of San Vittore, in general, the Late Empire encouraged the development of the applied arts in Mediolanum, with ivory and silver work being common in public building projects. In the crypt of the Duomo survive ruins of the ancient church of Saint Tecla, in 402, the city was besieged by the Goths and the Imperial residence was moved to Ravenna. The Lombards took Ticinum as their capital, and Early Medieval Milan was left to be governed by its archbishops, the Colonne di San Lorenzo, a colonnade in front of the church of S. Lorenzo. Roman lapidary material in the Archi di Porta Nuova, the scant remains of a large amphitheatre, now in an archaeological park dedicated to their preservation. A tower of the circus, now inside the Convento di San Maurizio Maggiore, a bit of moenia and a tower with 24 sides the church of San Lorenzo and the San Aquilino chapel. Some ruins from the Baths of Hercules, further remains of ceilings, the body of St. Ambrose and those possibly of SS. Gervasius and Protasius — or at any rate, of earlier men, crypt of San Giovanni in Conca a bit of the moenia and some remnants of pavements in piazza Missori and in the namesake station of Milan Metro
32.
Charlemagne
–
Charlemagne or Charles the Great, numbered Charles I, was the King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774 and Emperor of the Romans from 800. He united much of Europe during the early Middle Ages and he was the first recognised emperor in western Europe since the fall of the Western Roman Empire three centuries earlier. The expanded Frankish state which Charlemagne founded was called the Carolingian Empire, Charlemagne was the oldest son of Pepin the Short and Bertrada of Laon. He became king in 768 following his fathers death, initially as co-ruler with his brother Carloman I, carlomans sudden death in 771 in unexplained circumstances left Charlemagne as the undisputed ruler of the Frankish Kingdom. He continued his fathers policy towards the papacy and became its protector, removing the Lombards from power in northern Italy and he campaigned against the Saxons to his east, Christianising them upon penalty of death and leading to events such as the Massacre of Verden. Charlemagne reached the height of his power in 800 when he was crowned Emperor of the Romans by Pope Leo III on Christmas Day at Old St. Peters Basilica. Charlemagne has been called the Father of Europe, as he united most of Western Europe for the first time since the Roman Empire and his rule spurred the Carolingian Renaissance, a period of energetic cultural and intellectual activity within the Western Church. All Holy Roman Emperors considered their kingdoms to be descendants of Charlemagnes empire, up to the last Emperor Francis II and these and other machinations led to the eventual split of Rome and Constantinople in the Great Schism of 1054. Charlemagne died in 814, having ruled as emperor for thirteen years and he was laid to rest in his imperial capital of Aachen in what is today Germany. He married at least four times and had three sons, but only his son Louis the Pious survived to succeed him. By the 6th century, the western Germanic Franks had been Christianised, Francia, ruled by the Merovingians, was the most powerful of the kingdoms that succeeded the Western Roman Empire. Following the Battle of Tertry the Merovingians declined into powerlessness, for which they have dubbed the rois fainéants. Almost all government powers were exercised by their chief officer, the mayor of the palace, in 687, Pepin of Herstal, mayor of the palace of Austrasia, ended the strife between various kings and their mayors with his victory at Tertry. He became the governor of the entire Frankish kingdom. Pepin was the grandson of two important figures of the Austrasian Kingdom, Saint Arnulf of Metz and Pepin of Landen, Pepin of Herstal was eventually succeeded by his illegitimate son Charles, later known as Charles Martel. After 737, Charles governed the Franks in lieu of a king, Charles was succeeded in 741 by his sons Carloman and Pepin the Short, the father of Charlemagne. In 743, the brothers placed Childeric III on the throne to curb separatism in the periphery and he was the last Merovingian king. Carloman resigned office in 746, preferring to enter the church as a monk, Pepin brought the question of the kingship before Pope Zachary, asking whether it was logical for a king to have no royal power
33.
Majorian
–
Flavius Julius Valerius Majorianus, usually known simply as Majorian, was the Western Roman Emperor from 457 to 461. A prominent general of the Late Roman army, Majorian deposed Emperor Avitus in 457, Majorian was the last emperor to make a concerted effort to restore the Western Roman Empire. Possessing little more than Italy, Dalmatia, and some territory in northern Gaul, Majorian was the last of the Western Roman Emperors who was able to try to recover the Western Empire with its own forces. His successors until the fall of the Empire, in 476/480, were actually instruments in the hands of their generals, or emperors chosen. After defeating a Vandal attack on Italy, Majorian launched a campaign against the Visigothic Kingdom in southern Gaul, defeating king Theodoric II at the Battle of Arelate, Majorian forced the Goths to abandon their possessions in Septimania and Hispania and return to federate status immediately. Majorian then attacked the Burgundian Kingdom, defeating them at the Siege of Lugdunum, expelling them from the Rhone valley, in 460, Majorian left Gaul to consolidate his hold on Hispania. His generals launched a campaign against the Suebic Kingdom in northwest Hispania, defeating them at the battles of Lucus Augusti and Scallabis and his fleet for his campaign to restore Africa to the empire from the Vandals was destroyed due to treachery. Majorian sought to reform the administration in order to make it more efficient. The powerful general Ricimer deposed and killed Majorian, who had become unpopular with the aristocracy because of his reforms. The life of Majorian and his reign are known than those of the other Western Emperors of the same period. The most important sources are the chronicles that cover the half of the 5th century — those of Hydatius and Marcellinus Comes, as well as the fragments of Priscus. The Gallo-Roman aristocrat and poet Sidonius Apollinaris was an acquaintance of the Emperor, Majorian was probably born after 420, as in 458 he is defined a iuvenis, a young man. He belonged to the aristocracy of the Roman Empire. His grandfather of the same name reached the rank of magister militum under Emperor Theodosius I and, the daughter of the magister militum then married an officer, probably called Donninus, who administered the finances of Aetius, the powerful magister militum of the West. The couple gave the name Maiorianus to their child in honour of his influential grandfather and it was under the same Aetius that Majorian started his military career. Majorian distinguished himself in the defence of the city of Turonensis and in a battle against the Franks of king Clodio, near Vicus Helena. was posted at the cross-roads while Majorian warred as a mounted man close to the bridge itself. Around 450, the Western Roman Emperor Valentinian III considered the possibility of marrying his daughter Placidia to Majorian, Valentinian had two daughters and no sons, and therefore no heir to the throne. Having Majorian as son-in-law would have strengthened Valentinian in the face of powerful generals
34.
Gaul
–
It covered an area of 190,800 sq mi. According to the testimony of Julius Caesar, Gaul was divided into three parts, Gallia Celtica, Belgica and Aquitania, during the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, Gaul fell under Roman rule, Gallia Cisalpina was conquered in 203 BC and Gallia Narbonensis in 123 BC. Gaul was invaded after 120 BC by the Cimbri and the Teutons, Gallia remains a name of France in modern Greek and modern Latin. The Greek and Latin names Galatia, and Gallia are ultimately derived from a Celtic ethnic term or clan Gal-to-. Galli of Gallia Celtica were reported to refer to themselves as Celtae by Caesar. Hellenistic folk etymology connected the name of the Galatians to the supposedly milk-white skin of the Gauls, modern researchers say it is related to Welsh gallu, Cornish galloes, capacity, power, thus meaning powerful people. The English Gaul is from French Gaule and is unrelated to Latin Gallia, as adjectives, English has the two variants, Gaulish and Gallic. The two adjectives are used synonymously, as pertaining to Gaul or the Gauls, although the Celtic language or languages spoken in Gaul is predominantly known as Gaulish. The Germanic w- is regularly rendered as gu- / g- in French, also unrelated in spite of superficial similarity is the name Gael. The Irish word gall did originally mean a Gaul, i. e. an inhabitant of Gaul, but its meaning was later widened to foreigner, to describe the Vikings, and later still the Normans. The dichotomic words gael and gall are sometimes used together for contrast, by 500 BC, there is strong Hallstatt influence throughout most of France. By the late 5th century BC, La Tène influence spreads rapidly across the territory of Gaul. The La Tène culture developed and flourished during the late Iron Age in France, Switzerland, Italy, Austria, southwest Germany, Bohemia, Moravia, Slovakia, farther north extended the contemporary pre-Roman Iron Age culture of northern Germany and Scandinavia. By the 2nd century BC, the Romans described Gallia Transalpina as distinct from Gallia Cisalpina, while some scholars believe the Belgae south of the Somme were a mixture of Celtic and Germanic elements, their ethnic affiliations have not been definitively resolved. One of the reasons is political interference upon the French historical interpretation during the 19th century, in addition to the Gauls, there were other peoples living in Gaul, such as the Greeks and Phoenicians who had established outposts such as Massilia along the Mediterranean coast. Also, along the southeastern Mediterranean coast, the Ligures had merged with the Celts to form a Celto-Ligurian culture, the prosperity of Mediterranean Gaul encouraged Rome to respond to pleas for assistance from the inhabitants of Massilia, who were under attack by a coalition of Ligures and Gauls. The Romans intervened in Gaul in 154 BC and again in 125 BC, whereas on the first occasion they came and went, on the second they stayed. Massilia was allowed to keep its lands, but Rome added to its territories the lands of the conquered tribes. The direct result of conquests was that by now, Rome controlled an area extending from the Pyrenees to the lower Rhône river
,_zecca_di_ravenna.JPG)
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Nepos, Julius". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "
Media related to Julius Nepos at Wikimedia Commons