Constantius II

Constantius II
Emperor of the Roman Empire
Bust of Constantius II
Reign	324 (November 13) - 337 (May 22): Caesar under his father 337 - 340: co-Augustus (ruled Asian provinces & Egypt) with Constans and Constantine II 340 - 350: co-Augustus (ruled Asian provinces & Egypt) with Constans 350 - 361 (November 3): Roman Emperor of entire Empire
Full name	Flavius Iulius Constantius
Born	7 August 317(317-08-07)
Birthplace	Sirmium (Sremska Mitrovica, Serbia)
Died	3 November 361 (aged 44)
Place of death	Mopsuestia in Cicilia
Predecessor	Constantine the Great
Successor	Julian
Wives	1) Daughter of Julius Constantius 2) Eusebia 3) Faustina
Offspring	by 3) Flavia Maxima Constantia, who later married Gratian
Dynasty	Constantinian
Father	Constantine I
Mother	Fausta

Flavius Iulius Constantius, known in English as Constantius II (7 August 317 – November 3, 361) was a Roman Emperor (337-361) of the Constantinian dynasty.

Early life

Flavius Iulius Constantius was born at Sirmium (now Sremska Mitrovica in Serbia) in province of Pannonia, the third son of Constantine the Great, and second by his second wife Fausta, the daughter of Maximian. Constantius was made Caesar by his father on 13 November 324^[1].

Death of Constantine I and Aftermath

When the elder Constantine died at Constantinople on 22 May 337, Constantius was nearest of his sons to that city, and despite being on campaign in the eastern provinces, immediately returned to the city to oversee his father's funeral^[2].

The Massacre of 337

The role of Constantius in the massacre of his relatives (those descended from the second marriage of his paternal grandfather Constantius Chlorus and Theodora) is unclear^[3]. Zosimus, writing 498-518 claims that Constantius “caused”^[4] the soldiers to murder his relatives, as opposed to actually ordering the action. Eutropius, writing between 350 and 370, writes that Constantius merely sanctioned “the act, rather than commanding it”^[5]. However, it must be noted that both of these sources are hostile to Constantius - Zosimus being a pagan, Eutropius a friend of Julian, Constantius’ cousin and, ultimately, his enemy.

Whatever the case, Constantius himself, his older brother Constantine II, his younger brother Constans and three cousins, Gallus, his half-brother Julian and Nepotianus, son of Eutropia, were left as the only surviving males related to Constantine.

Division of the Empire

Meeting at Sirmium not long after the massacre, the three brothers proceeded to divide the Roman Empire among them, according to their father's will. Constantine II received Britannia, Gaul and Hispania; Constans (initially under the supervision of Constantine II) Italia, Africa, Illyricum, Thrace, Macedon and Achaea; and Constantius the East^[6].

Reign in the East

Constantius II coin, celebrating the 15th year of his reign.

There are few details of the early years of Constantius' sole reign in the East. He seems to have spent most of his time defending the eastern border against invasions by the aggressive Sassanid Empire under Shapur II. These conflicts seem to have been mainly limited to Sassanid sieges of the various fortresses (Nisibis, Singara, Constantia and Amida) of Roman Mesopotamia, which achieved little for either side^[7]. Although Shapur II seems to have been victorious in most of the confrontations^[8] - except the Battle of Narasara, where one of Shapur II's brothers, Narses, was killed^[9][10] - the overall result must be considered a victory for Constantius because Shapur failed to make any significant gains^[11].

In the meantime, Constantine II's desire to retain control of Constans' realm had lead Constantius' two surviving brothers into open conflict; resulting in the death of the elder in 340^[12]. As a result, Constans took control of his deceased elder brother’s realms and became sole ruler of the Western two-thirds of the Empire. This division lasted until 350, when Constans was killed in battle by forces loyal to the usurper Magnentius^[13][14].

War against Magnentius

Vetranio was proclaimed Emperor by the Danubian legions after the death of Constans. He later resigned his position in favour of Constantius.

This new state of affairs proved unacceptable to Constantius, who felt that, as the only surviving son of Constantine the Great, the position of Emperor was his alone^[15]. As such, he determined to march west to enforce his claims. However, feeling that the east still required some sort of imperial control, he elevated his cousin Constantius Gallus to Caesar of the East. As an extra measure to ensure the loyalty of his cousin, he married the elder of his two sisters, Constantina, to Gallus^[16].

Before facing Magnentius, Constantius first came to terms with Vetranio, a loyal Constantian general, who had previously accepted the position of Augustus in order to retain the loyalty of his troops, and probably to stop Magnentius from gaining more support. This action may have been carried out at the urging of Constantius’ own sister, Constantina, who had since traveled east to marry Gallus. Constantius for his own part had previously sent Vetranio the imperial diadem and acknowledged the general‘s new position. However, when Constantius arrived, Vetranio willingly and gladly resigned his position and accepted Constantius’ offer of a comfortable retirement in Bithynia^[17].

The defeat of Magnentius in 353 left Constantius as sole Roman Emperor.

The following year, Constantius finally met Magnentius in the Battle of Mursa Major^{[18][19][20][21]}, one of the bloodiest battles in Roman history. The result was a defeat for the usurper, who withdrew back to his Gaulish domains. As a result, the cities of Italy switched their allegiance to Constantius and ejected all of Magnentius’ garrisons. Constantius spent the early months of 352 on a campaign against the Sarmatians, before moving on to invade Italy^[22].

When Constantius and Magnentius finally met again, at the Battle of Mons Seleucus in southern Gaul, Constantius once again emerged the victor^[23]. Soon after, Magnentius, realising the futility of continuing his revolt, committed suicide 10 August, 353^[24].

Sole Ruler of the Roman Empire

Constantius spent much of the rest of 353 and early 354 on campaign against the Alemanni on the Danubian borders. The exact details of this campaign are uncertain, though it seems to have ended with victory for Constantius.

The Downfall of Gallus

In the meantime, Constantius had been receiving some disturbing reports regarding the actions of his cousin, Gallus^[25]. Possibly as a result of these reports, Constantius concluded a peace with the Alemanni, and withdrew to Milan^[26].

Constantius Gallus was a paternal cousin of Constantius. In 350, he was made Caesar by Constantius and was married to the Emperor's sister, Constantina. However, his mismanagement of the eastern provinces led to his downfall and death in 354.

Once there, he decided to first call Ursicinus, Gallus’ magister equitum, to Milan for reasons that remain unclear^[27]. Constantius then requested the presence of Gallus and Constantina^[28]. Although at first Gallus and Constantina complied with this order, when Constantina died in Bithynia^[29], Gallus begun to hesitate. However, after some convincing by one of Constantius’ agents^[30], Gallus continued his journey west, passing through Constantinople and Thrace to Petobio in the province of Noricum^[31][32].

It was there that Gallus was arrested by the soldiers of Constantius under the command of Barbatio^[33]. He was then moved to Pola, and interrogated. Once there, Gallus claimed that it was Constantina who was to blame for all the trouble that had been caused while he was in charge of the east^[34]. Apparently, at first, this so greatly angered Constantius that he immediately ordered the death of Gallus^[35]. However, soon after, he changed his mind, and recanted his execution order^[36][37]. Unfortunately for Gallus, this order was delayed by Eusebius, one of Constantius‘ eunuchs, and, as a result, Gallus was executed^[38].

More Usurpers and Julian Caesar

On 11 August 355, the magister militum Claudius Silvanus revolted in Gaul. Silvanus had surrendered to Constantius after the battle of Mursa Major. Constantius had made him magister militum in 353, with the purpose of blocking the German threats, a feat that Silvanus achieved by bribing the German tribes with the money he had collected. A plot organized by members of Constantius' court led the emperor to recall Silvanus. After Silvanus revolted, he received a letter by Constantius that recalled him to Milan, but which made no reference to the revolt. Ursicinus, who was meant to replace Silvanus, bribed some troops, and Silvanus was killed.

However, Constantius realised that too many threats still faced the Empire, and he could not possibly handle all of them by himself, so on 6 November 355^[39], he elevated his last remaining relative, Julian, to the rank of Caesar^[40]. A few days later, Julian was married to Helena, the last surviving sister of Constantius^[41]. Not long after Constantius sent Julian off to Gaul^[42].

Constantius in the West and Return to the East

Missorium depicting Constantius II on horseback with spear, preceded by a victory and accompanied by a guardsman.

Constantius spent the next few years overseeing affairs in the western part of the Empire primarily from his base at Milan. However, he also visited Rome^[43] - for the first and only time in his life - in 357, and, in that same year, he forced Sarmatian and Quadi invaders out of Pannonia and Moesia Inferior, then led a successful campaign across the Danube against the Sarmatians and the Germanic Quadi tribe^[44].

Around 357/8, Constantius received ambassadors from Shapur II, who demanded that Constantius restore the lands surrendered by Narseh^[45][46]. Despite rejecting these terms^[47][48], Constantius still tried to avert war with the Sassanid Empire by sending two embassies to Shapur II^[49][50][51].

As a result of Constantius' rejection of his terms, Shapur II launched another invasion of Roman Mesopotamia. When news reached Constantius that Shapur II had not only invaded Roman territory, but taken Amida^[52], destroyed Singara^[53] and taken Bezabde^[54] he decided to return to there to face this re-emergent threat in 360.

The usurpation of Julian and Problems in the East

In the meantime, Julian had won some victories against the Alemanni tribe, who had once again invaded Roman Gaul. As such, Constantius requested reinforcements from Julian for his own campaign against Shapur II. However, when he requested reinforcements from Julian’s Gaulish army, the Gaulish legions revolted and proclaimed Julian Augustus^{[55][56][57][58]}.

However, on account of the immediate Sassanid threat, Constantius was unable to directly respond to his cousin’s usurpation other than by sending missives by which he tried to convince Julian to resign the title of Augustus and be satisfied with that of Caesar.

By 361, Constantius saw no alternative but to face the usurper with violent force; and yet the threat of the Sassanids remained. Constantius had already spent part of early 361 unsuccessfully attempting to take the fortress of Bezabde^[59]. After a time, he had withdrawn to Antioch to regroup, and prepare for a confrontation with Shapur II^[60]. However, as it turned out, the campaigns of the previous year had inflicted such heavy losses on the Sassanids that they did not attempt another round of engagements in 361. This allowed Constantius to turn his full attention to facing the usurpation of Julian^[61].

Death

As such, Constantius immediately gathered his forces and set off west. However, by the time he reached Mopsuestia in Cicilia, it was clear that he was fatally ill and would not survive to face Julian. Apparently, realising his death was near, Constantius had himself baptised by Euzoius, the Semi-Arian bishop of Antioch, and then declared that Julian was his rightful successor^[62]. Constantius II died of fever on 3 November 361^[63].

Marriages and Children

Constantius II was married three times:

First to a daughter of his half-uncle Julius Constantius, whose name is unknown. She was a full-sister of Gallus and a half-sister of Julian. She died c. 352/3.

Second, to Eusebia, a woman of Macedonian origin from the city of Thessaloniki, whom he married before Constantius' defeat of Magnentius in 353. She died in 360.

Third and lastly, in 360, to Faustina (empress), who gave birth to Constantius' only child, a posthumous daughter named Flavia Maxima Constantia, who later married Emperor Gratian.

Religious Issues

Constantius seems to have had a particular interest in the religious state of the Roman Empire. As a Christian Roman Emperor, Constantius made a concerted effort to promote Christianity at the expense of Roman polytheism (‘paganism’). As such, over the course of his reign, he issued a number of different edicts designed specifically to carry out this agenda (see below). Constantius also took an active part in attempting to shape the Christian church.

Paganism under Constantius

In spite of the some of the edicts issued by Constantius, it should be recognised that he was not fanatically anti-pagan - he never made any attempt to disband the various Roman priestly colleges or the Vestal Virgins^[64], he never acted against the various pagan schools, and, at times, he actually even made some effort to protect paganism^[65]. Also, most notably, he remained pontifex maximus until his death, and was actually deified by the Roman Senate after his death. The relative moderation of Constantius' actions toward paganism is reflected by the fact that it was not until over 20 years after Constantius' death, during the reign of Gratian, that any pagan senators protested their religion's treatment^[66].

Christianity under Constantius

Although often considered an Arian^[67], Constantius ultimately preferred a third, compromise version that lay somewhere in between Arianism and the Nicaean Creed, retrospectively called Semi-Arianism^[68][69]. As such, during his reign, Constantius made a concerted attempt to mold the Christian church to follow this compromise position, and to this end, he convened several Christian councils during his reign, the most notable of which were one at Rimini and its twin at Seleuca, which met in 359 and 360 respectively. "Unfortunately for his memory the theologians whose advice he took were ultimately discredited and the malcontents whom he pressed to conform emerged victorious," writes the historian A.H.M. Jones. "The great councils of 359-60 are therefore not reckoned ecumenical in the tradition of the church, and Constantius II is not remembered as a restorer of unity, but as a heretic who arbitrarily imposed his will on the church."^[70]

Judaism under Constantius

Judaism faced some severe restrictions under Constantius, who seems to have followed an anti-Jewish policy in line with that of his father^[71]. Early in his reign, Constantius issued a double edict in concert with his brothers limiting the ownership of slaves by Jewish people^[72] and banning marriages between Jews and Christian women^[73]. A later edict (issued by Constantius after becoming sole Emperor) decreed that a person who was proven to have converted from Christianity to Judaism would have their entire property confiscated by the state^[74]. However, it should be noted that Constantius' actions in this regard may not have been so much to do with Jewish religion as Jewish business; apparently, it was often the case that privately-owned Jewish businesses were in competition with state-owned businesses. As such, Constantius may have sought to provide as much of an advantage to the state-owned businesses as possible by limiting the skilled workers and the slaves available to the Jewish businesses^[75].

Religious Edicts Issued by Constantius

Pagan-related edicts issued by Constantius (by himself or with others) included:

• The banning of sacrifices^[76];
• The closing of pagan temples^[77];
• Edicts against soothsayers and magicians^[78].

Christian-related edicts issued by Constantius (by himself or with others) included:

• Exemption from compulsory public service for the clergy^[79]; * Exemption from compulsory public service for the sons of clergy^[80];
• Tax exemptions for clergy and their servants^[81], also later for their family^[82];
• Clergy and the issue of private property^[83];
• Bishops exempted from being tried in secular courts^[84];
• Christian prostitutes only able to be bought by Christians^[85].

Jew-related edicts issued by Constantius (by himself or with others) included:

• Weaving women who moved from working for the government to working for Jews, must be restored to the government; Jews may not marry Christian women; Jews may not attempt to convert Christian women^[86];
• Any non-Jewish slave bought by a Jew will be confiscated by the state; if a Jew attempts to circumcise a non-Jewish slave, the slave will be freed and the Jew shall face capital punishment; any Christian slaves owned by a Jew will be taken away and freed^[87];
• A person who is proven to have converted from Christianity to Judaism shall have their property confiscated by the state^[88].

Reputation

Constantius II is a particularly difficult figure to judge properly, mainly as a result of the hostility of most every source that mentions him.

A.H.M Jones writes that Constantius "appears in the pages of Ammianus as a conscientious emperor but a vain and stupid man, an easy prey to flatterers. He was timid and suspicious, and interested persons could easily play on his fears for their own advantage."^[89]

However, Kent & M. and A. Hirmer suggest that Constantius "has suffered at the hands of unsympathetic authors, ecclesiastical and civil alike. To orthodox churchmen he was a bigoted supporter of the Arian heresy, to Julian the Apostate and the many who have subsequently taken his part he was a murderer, a tyrant and inept as a ruler"^[90]. They go on to add, "Most contemporaries seem in fact to have held him in high esteem, and he certainly inspired loyalty in a way his brother could not"^[91].

Ancestry

Footnotes

References

Primary Sources

• Ammianus Marcellinus, Res Gestae, Libri XIV-XXI
• Eunapius, Lives of the Sophists
• Eutropius, Historiae Romanae Breviarium
• Festus, Brevarium
• Julian the Apostate, Letter To The Senate And People of Athens
• Libanius, Orations XII & XVII
• Theophanes, Chronicle
• Zonaras, Extracts of History
• Zosimus, New History

Secondary Sources

• Banchich, T.M., 'DIR-Gallus' from De Imperatoribus Romanis [4]
• Dignas, B. & Winter, E., Rome and Persia in Late Antiquity (Cambridge University Press, 2007)
• DiMaio, M., and Frakes, R., 'DIR-Constantius II' from De Imperatoribus Romanis "Constantius II,".
• Gaddis, M., There is No Crime for Those who Have Christ (University of California Press, 2005)
• Jones, A.H.M, The Later Roman Empire, 284-602: a Social, Economic and Administrative Survey (Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University, 1986)
• Kent, J.P.C., Hirmer, M. & Hirmer, A. Roman Coins (Thames and Hudson, 1978)
• Odahl, C.M., Constantine and the Christian Empire (Routledge, 2004)
• Pelikan, J.J., The Christian Tradition (University of Chicago, 1989)
• Potter, D.S., The Roman Empire at Bay: AD 180-395 (Routledge, 2004)
• Salzman, M.R., The Making of a Christian Aristocracy: Social and Religious Change in the Western Roman Empire (Harvard University Press, 2002)
• Schäfer, P., The History of the Jews in the Greco-Roman World (Routledge, 2003)
• Vagi, D.L. & Coquand, T., Coinage and History of the Roman Empire (Taylor & Francis, 2001)
• Vasiliev, A.A., History of the Byzantine Empire 324-1453 (University of Wisconsin Press, 1958)

External links

• An 1886 translation of Eutropius' Historiae Romanae Breviarium by Watson can be found here.
• An 1814 translation of Zosimus' New History by Green & Chaplin can be found here.
• An 1862 translation of Ammianus Marcellinus' Res Gestae by Bohn can be found here. (Books 14-21 cover Constantius II's reign; books 1-13 may also have included mention of Constantius, but they are not extant).
• A 2001 translation of Festus' Brevarium by Banchich & Meka can be found here.
• This list of Roman laws of the fourth century shows laws passed by Constantius II relating to Christianity.
• Other likely portrait sculptures of Constantius II: [5], [6].

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Constantius II