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Gordian III
–
Roman Emperor
: 238-244 A.D. –
Bronze Sestertius 30mm (18.41 grams) Struck in the Roman colony of Viminacium, 240 A.D. –
the 2nd year of it’s founding (=AN II) 1in the province of Moesia Inferior.
IMP CAES M ANT GORDIANVS AVG, Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right
P M S C OL VIM, City goddess standing, bull and lion at sides, AN II in exergue.
Viminacium was a major city of the Roman province of Moesia (today’s Serbia),
and the capital of Moesia Superior. Viminacium was the base camp of Legio VII
Claudia, and hosted for some time the IIII Flavia Felix. It was destroyed in 440
by the Huns.
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Legio septima Claudia Pia Fidelis (Seventh Claudian
Legion) was a
Roman legion
. Its emblem, as well as of all
Caesar’s legions, was the bull, together with the lion.[
neededcitation]
The 7th, along with the
6th
,
8th
&
9th
were all founded by Pompey in Spain in 65
BC.[1]
They[
neededcitation] were ordered to
Cisalpine Gaul
around 58 BC by
Julius Caesar
, and marched with him throughout
the entire Gallic Wars.
Legio VII was one of the two legions used in
Caesar’s invasions of Britain
, and played a
crucial role in The
Battle of Pharsalus
in 48 BC, and it existed at
least until the end of the 4th century, guarding middle
Danube
.
Tiberius Claudius Maximus
the Roman soldier who
brought the head of
Decebalus
to emperor
Trajan
was serving in Legio VII Claudia.
Map of the Roman empire in AD 125, under emperor
HadrianLegio VII Claudia, stationed on
the river
Danube
at
Viminacium
(Kostolac, Serbia), in
Moesia Superior
province, from AD
58 until the 4th century
Viminacium (VIMINACIVM) was a major city (provincial
capital) and military camp of the
Roman
province of
Moesia
(today’s
Serbia
), and the capital of
Moesia Superior
. The site is located 12 km
from the modern town of
Kostolac
in Eastern Serbia. The city dates back
to the 1st century AD, and at its peak it is believed to have had 40.000
inhabitants, making it one of the biggest cities of that time. It lies on the
Roman road
Via Militaris
. Viminacium was devastated by
Huns in the 5th century, but was later rebuilt by
Justinian
. It was completely destroyed with the
arrival
of
Slavs
in the 6th century. Today, the
archeological site occupies a total of 450 hectares, and contains remains of
temples, streets, squares, amphitheatres, palaces, hippodromes and Roman baths.
History
A XXV the scene of the
Trajan’s Column
, which may have
been accounted for “headquarters” of the Roman Emperor: Viminacium.
The remains of Viminacium, the capital of the Roman province of
Moesia Superior
, are located on territories of
the villages of Stari Kostolac and Drmno, about 12 km from the town of
Kostolac
and about 90 miles southeast of
Belgrade
. Viminacium was one of the most
important Roman cities and military camps in the period from 1st to 4th
centuries. Its exceptional strategic importance was reflected both in the
defense of the northern border of the Roman empire and in turn of communications
and commercial transactions. No less appealing to the Romans was the hinterland
of the Mlava
river valley, which is rich in ore and
grains. In Roman times, the town on the northern side of relying directly on the
branch of the Danube
, while the western side, touching the
walls Mlava rivers. Only in the later period, Viminacium spread to the left bank
of Mlava. Thanks to the location, land and waterways, Viminacium represented one
of those areas where the encounter of cultures between East and West was
inevitable. Although these roads were the primary military and strategic
function, they are taking place throughout antiquity very lively traffic and
certainly contributed to the very Viminacium become prosperous and an important
trading and business headquarters. In Viminacium,
Roman legion VII Claudia
was stationed, and a
nearby civilian settlement emerged from the military camp. In 117 during the
reign of Hadrian
it received city status. In the camp,
6.000 soldiers were stationed, and 30-40.000 lived nearby. In the first half of
the 3rd century the city was in full development, as evidenced by the fact that
at that time it acquired the status of a Roman colony, and the right to coin
local money. Here, in 211,
Septimius Severus
was proclaimed emperor by his
son Caracalla
. In the mausoleum and the excavated
tombs, the Roman emperor
Hostilian
, who died in 251, was buried.
A legion may have been stationed here as early as Augustus (27 BC-14 AD). In
33/34 AD a road was built, linking Viminacium and
Ratiaria
.
Claudius
(41-54) garrisoned Viminacium,
Oescus
and
Novae
as camps for the Moesian legions.
The first legion attested at Viminacium was the VII Claudia that came from
Dalmatia in 52 AD .
Emperor Trajan
(98-117) was headquartered here
during the
Dacian Wars
. It became a colonia with
minting privilege in 239 AD during the rule of
Gordian III
(238-244) and housed the Legion VII
and Legion IV.
Emperor Hostilian
was the son of the emperor
Decius
, who was killed in the ambush near the
ancient city of Abrutus located in present day Bulgaria. According to the old
manuscript, emperor Hostilian and his mother came to Viminacium to supervise the
organization of defense of northern borders, but both of them died of the
plague. Because of the distance and the fear of spreading the plague, he was
buried with all honors in Viminacium
Viminacium was the provincial capital of
Moesia Superior
. In the late spring of 293-294,
Diocletian
journeyed through his realm and he
re-organized Viminacium as the capital of the new province of Moesia Superior
Margensis. He registered that the people wrote in Latin, as opposed to Greek
in the southern provinces. Viminacium was the base camp of
ClaudiaLegio VII
,
and hosted for some time the
Flavia FelixIIII
.
It had a Roman amphitheatre with room for 12,000 people.
In 382 the city was the meeting place between
Theodosius
and
Gratian
amidst the
Gothic Wars
.
Viminacium was destroyed in 441 by the
Attila the Hun
, but rebuilt by
Justinian I
. During
Maurice’s Balkan campaigns
, Viminacium saw
destruction by the
Avars
in 582 and a
crushing defeat
of Avar forces on the northern
Danube bank in 599, destroying Avar reputation for invincibility.[3]
Location and
excavation
Valerian
AD 253-260. AR
Antoninianus. Viminacium mint. 1st emission, 1st phase, AD 253.
Viminacium is located in
Stari Kostolac
(Old
Kostolac
) a
Serbian
town on the
Danube
river, east of
Belgrade
. Viminacium is the location of the
first archaeological excavation in Serbia, which started in 1882, by
Mihailo Valtrović
, an architect by profession
and the first professor of archeology at the college in
Belgrade
. The only help he received was from 12
prisoners, because the state did not have enough resources to provide him with a
better work force. His research was continued by
Miloje Vasić
, in the 1970s[clarification
needed]. It has intensified in the last ten years in
the area of the Roman city of the Roman legionary camps and cemeteries. Many
studies suggest that the military camp at Viminacium had a rectangular plan,
measuring 442 x 385 meters, and that is not far from its western wall of
civilian settlement in an area of approximately 72 acres. Legionary camp in
Viminacium is now in a layer of arable land, so that wealth Viminacium easily
accessible to researchers, but, unfortunately, and the robbers.The National
Museum in Belgrade
and
Požarevac
kept some 40,000 items found in
Viminacium, of which over 700 made of gold and silver. Among them are many
objects that represent the European and world rarities invaluable.
It has been discovered and more than 13,500 graves. Tombstones and sarcophagi
are often decorated with relief representations of scenes from mythology or
daily life. We have found numerous grave masonry construction. Especially
interesting are the frescoes of the 4th-century tombs.
Fresco
with the notion of young women in
artistic value of the extreme range of late antique art. During the excavation,
an amphitheater, which with its 12,000 seats was one of the largest in the
Balkans
.
Marcus Antonius Gordianus Pius (January
20, 225
–
February
11
, 244
),
known in
English
as Gordian III,
 was
Roman
Emperor
from 238 to 244. Gordian was the son of
Antonia Gordiana
and his father was an unnamed Roman Senator who died before
238. Antonia Gordiana was the daughter of Emperor
Gordian I
and younger sister of Emperor
Gordian II
.
Very little is known on his early life before becoming Roman Emperor. Gordian
had assumed the name of his maternal grandfather in 238.
Following the murder of emperor
Alexander Severus
in Moguntiacum (modern
Mainz
), the
capital of the
Roman province
Germania Inferior
,
Maximinus Thrax
was acclaimed emperor, despite strong opposition of the
Roman senate
and the majority of the population. In response to what was
considered in Rome as a rebellion, Gordian’s grandfather and uncle, Gordian I
and II, were proclaimed joint emperors in the
Africa Province
. Their revolt was suppressed within a month by Cappellianus,
governor of Numidia
and a loyal supporter of Maximinus Thrax. The elder Gordians died,
but public opinion cherished their memory as peace loving and literate men,
victims of Maximinus’ oppression.
Meanwhile, Maximinus was on the verge of marching on Rome and
the Senate elected
Pupienus
and Balbinus
as joint emperors. These senators were not popular men and the population of
Rome was still shocked by the elder Gordian’s fate, so that the Senate decided
to take the teenager Gordian, rename him Marcus Antonius Gordianus as his
grandfather, and raise him to the rank of
Caesar
and imperial heir.
Pupienus
and Balbinus
defeated Maximinus, mainly due to the defection of several
legions
,
namely the
Parthica II
who assassinated Maximinus. But their joint reign was
doomed from the start with popular riots, military discontent and even an
enormous fire that consumed Rome in June 238. On
July 29
,
Pupienus and Balbinus were killed by the
Praetorian guard
and Gordian proclaimed sole emperor.
Rule
Due to Gordian’s age, the imperial government was surrendered
to the aristocratic families, who controlled the affairs of Rome through the
senate. In 240,
Sabinianus
revolted in the African province, but the situation was dealt quickly. In 241,
Gordian was married to Furia Sabinia
Tranquillina
, daughter of the newly appointed praetorian prefect,
Timesitheus
. As chief of the Praetorian guard and father in law of the
emperor, Timesitheus quickly became the de facto ruler of the Roman
empire.
In the 3rd century, the Roman frontiers weakened against the
Germanic tribes across the
Rhine
and
Danube
, and the
Sassanid
kingdom across the
Euphrates
increased its own attacks. When the Persians under
Shapur I
invaded Mesopotamia
, the young emperor opened the doors of the
Temple of Janus
for the last time in Roman history, and sent a huge army to
the East. The Sassanids were driven back over the Euphrates and defeated in the
Battle of Resaena
(243). The campaign was a success and Gordian, who had
joined the army, was planning an invasion of the enemy’s territory, when his
father-in-law died in unclear circumstances. Without Timesitheus, the campaign,
and the emperor’s security, were at risk.
Marcus Julius Philippus, also known as
Philip the Arab
, stepped in at this moment as the new Praetorian Prefect and
the campaign proceeded. In the beginning of 244, the Persians counter-attacked.
Persian sources claim that a battle was fought (Battle
of Misiche) near modern
Fallujah
(Iraq)
and resulted in a major Roman defeat and the death of Gordian III[1].
Roman sources do not mention this battle and suggest that Gordian died far away,
upstream of the Euphrates. Although ancient sources often described Philip, who
succeeded Gordian as emperor, as having murdered Gordian at Zaitha (Qalat es
Salihiyah), the cause of Gordian’s death is unknown.
Gordian’s youth and good nature, along with the deaths of his
grandfather and uncle and his own tragic fate at the hands of another usurper,
granted him the everlasting esteem of the Romans. Despite the opposition of the
new emperor, Gordian was deified by the Senate after his death, in order to
appease the population and avoid riots.
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