Gloria Romanorum: A Roman Timeline
- Thread starter Romulus Augustus
- Start date
Bmao: Lol He does seem less methodical and more impulsive than in my first TL. The betrayal scene reminds me of a similar scene, more or less, in the 1981 film Excalibur. In the beginning, Uther Pendragon forms an alliance with Gorlois, the Duke of Cornwall. Everything seems to be going well between the two, until the latter shows off his wife Igrayne, whose beauty causes Uther to ruin the alliance with his blatant lust for her.
However, Romulus manages to conceal his interest in Leontia until he kills Marcian, unlike Uther’s reaction to Igrayne. But like Uther, who seemed to get along well enough with his new ally at first, Romulus did not initially intend to betray a “friend” over a woman and was going to follow his uncle’s plan until he met Leontia.
Ironically though, I saw the movie shortly after I came up with the AD 479 update so I can honestly say that most of it was pretty much mine. The Excalibur scene just helped me to visualize it better.
The Roman princess Leontina was born within a year of the marriage of Romulus Augustus and Leontia Porphyrogenita. Like her mother, she was born with a claim to the title porphyrogenita (“born to the purple”), notwithstanding Constantinople’s refusal to recognize her father as anything other than a pretender to the throne. Nevertheless, Leontina was a direct descendant of Leo I, and therefore a member of the House of Leo by blood. While not as grand as the House of Theodosius, forging a blood bond with a reigning Roman dynasty did much to reinforce the theory that Romulus’ claim to the throne was valid beyond dispute, when in fact it was not given the ongoing lack of recognition by the eastern court. However, the fact was unimportant; what mattered was the belief.
In the aftermath of Marcian’s death by Romulus’ hand, the imperial government’s propaganda wing worked tirelessly to promote the public’s perception of their emperor as a moral leader, a devoted husband and now as a proud father. His behavior in private told a different story. Romulus was furious that his firstborn was a girl. A woman would never wear the imperial diadem and, in lacking a male heir, the only viable candidate was the one-year old Anthemius whose father he killed in order to marry the mother. His disappointment, taken with the pressure of being emperor and his absolute terror of assassination, caused Romulus to become more and more of a drinker. He soon found that large quantities of wine dulled the edge of what his life had become. As a drunkard, he began to regularly beat Leontia. In his rush to produce a son, he no longer bothered with niceties of consent. All the while his uncle, Paulus kept him isolated and far removed from the levers of power, more so now because of the brutality he displayed in the Castellum Lucullanum. Bereft of any real responsibility, Romulus distracted himself with a harem of whores and wild, but private debaucheries that "would make Caligula proud" according to the Roman historian Zosimus.
By now Symmachus was utterly disgusted by—and equally disappointed in—his protégé. Like Paulus, he hoped to shape Romulus into an ideal leader who would lead the Romans out of a long and dark age of political upheaval, economic decline, and widespread suffering. But what he witnessed in the castellum, both the slaughter and the debaucheries that followed over the past year, contributed to his disillusionment with the emperor and the court. He now believed himself to be in the company of a charlatan, demagogue, and ultimately the “devil incarnate.” However, his loyalty to the state and the fear of reprisal prevented him from giving credence to the gossip that began to spread about the emperor’s vices. Instead he merely removed himself from Romulus’ retinue, leaving the emperor surrounded by sluts and sycophants.
Having witnessed firsthand the decadence and intrigue that became the emperor’s environment, as well as the politicking and self interest that pervaded the imperial court in Rome, Symmachus all but shut himself away at his family estate. He was now free to pursue his interests in history, theology and writing, all of which contributed to his desire to publish various works for the benefit of his fellow Romans and Catholic Christians.
Despite his fallout with the emperor, Symmachus maintained an amicable relationship with Paulus, the true ruler of the western Romans, as demonstrated by the latter’s consideration of the aristocrat for the post of magister officiorum (“master of offices”). Symmachus declined however, preferring to live as a private citizen and writer. His interest in authoring pieces dedicated to the defense and promotion of the Nicene Creed—and by extension, the Chalcedonian Definition—allowed Symmachus to cultivate a friendship with Pope Simplicius, the leading church father in the West and an ardent defender of the Council of Chalcedon.
Unfortunately for Paulus, recent setbacks—such as the failure to aid Julius Nepos in time and the brutal death of Marcian—worsened his controversial reputation from the viewpoint of the senatorial aristocracy. Although he maintained a good relationship with some members of the Roman Senate, some more than others, a group of conspirators felt confident that the time had come for a regime change. Therefore, when Paulus departed to the south with a small army, attempting to restore order to the areas that descended into a state of near anarchy ever since the garrisons were depleted by Odoacer, the senators finally made their move. The combination of their influence and bribery swayed the majority of their peers to the cause, as well as many soldiers whose first loyalty was to coin instead of country. With Paulus and most of his troops away from the capital, his supporters were rendered vulnerable. In an effort to secure Rome, the conspirators drew up a long proscription list containing the names of all known supporters of Paulus. As well, the more opportunistic elements among the conspiracy seized the opportunity to add a few innocent names to the list, mainly to settle unrelated grudges and to seize the estates of wealthy rivals.
It was with great irony that the champion they chose to lead the execution of their conspiracy was Ovida; a Roman general who originally served Julius Nepos until the latter’s death a year earlier, he survived the failed campaign to reclaim Italia Annonaria unlike his fallen master. After Ovida assumed control of Dalmatia, he was approached by the brothers Basilius and Decius—two of Paulus’ supposed “allies” who, in fact were members of the senatorial conspiracy—with an offer to seize the regency of the West by eliminating Paulus. By the time Rome fell under the control of the Senate, Ovida sailed across the Adriatic Sea with remnants of Nepos’ army and marched on the eternal city. To the horror of Paulus, not only had he been outmaneuvered by his enemies—whose loyalty had been bought, or so the magister militum thought—he unwittingly played into their hands in a way that not even they would have expected.
Prior to discovering the aristocracy’s betrayal, Paulus had grown concerned for his nephew’s safety as the state of disorder worsened in the south. When the provisional governor of Campania was lynched in Neapolis by an angry mob, the magister militum ordered that Romulus and his family be removed from the Castellum Lucullanum and transferred to the safety of Rome. By the time he learned of the Senate's betrayal and decision to throw in with Ovida, it was too late to act. He had sent the imperial family—arguably his most valuable possession—straight into the lion’s den where Ovida and his allies graciously accepted such an unexpected, but welcomed “gift.”
The Debauchery of Romulus Augustus
By Ebulo de Vannario, 17th Century AD
However, Romulus manages to conceal his interest in Leontia until he kills Marcian, unlike Uther’s reaction to Igrayne. But like Uther, who seemed to get along well enough with his new ally at first, Romulus did not initially intend to betray a “friend” over a woman and was going to follow his uncle’s plan until he met Leontia.
Ironically though, I saw the movie shortly after I came up with the AD 479 update so I can honestly say that most of it was pretty much mine. The Excalibur scene just helped me to visualize it better.
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Part 5: AD 480
A Debauched Lifestyle
A Debauched Lifestyle
The Roman princess Leontina was born within a year of the marriage of Romulus Augustus and Leontia Porphyrogenita. Like her mother, she was born with a claim to the title porphyrogenita (“born to the purple”), notwithstanding Constantinople’s refusal to recognize her father as anything other than a pretender to the throne. Nevertheless, Leontina was a direct descendant of Leo I, and therefore a member of the House of Leo by blood. While not as grand as the House of Theodosius, forging a blood bond with a reigning Roman dynasty did much to reinforce the theory that Romulus’ claim to the throne was valid beyond dispute, when in fact it was not given the ongoing lack of recognition by the eastern court. However, the fact was unimportant; what mattered was the belief.
In the aftermath of Marcian’s death by Romulus’ hand, the imperial government’s propaganda wing worked tirelessly to promote the public’s perception of their emperor as a moral leader, a devoted husband and now as a proud father. His behavior in private told a different story. Romulus was furious that his firstborn was a girl. A woman would never wear the imperial diadem and, in lacking a male heir, the only viable candidate was the one-year old Anthemius whose father he killed in order to marry the mother. His disappointment, taken with the pressure of being emperor and his absolute terror of assassination, caused Romulus to become more and more of a drinker. He soon found that large quantities of wine dulled the edge of what his life had become. As a drunkard, he began to regularly beat Leontia. In his rush to produce a son, he no longer bothered with niceties of consent. All the while his uncle, Paulus kept him isolated and far removed from the levers of power, more so now because of the brutality he displayed in the Castellum Lucullanum. Bereft of any real responsibility, Romulus distracted himself with a harem of whores and wild, but private debaucheries that "would make Caligula proud" according to the Roman historian Zosimus.
By now Symmachus was utterly disgusted by—and equally disappointed in—his protégé. Like Paulus, he hoped to shape Romulus into an ideal leader who would lead the Romans out of a long and dark age of political upheaval, economic decline, and widespread suffering. But what he witnessed in the castellum, both the slaughter and the debaucheries that followed over the past year, contributed to his disillusionment with the emperor and the court. He now believed himself to be in the company of a charlatan, demagogue, and ultimately the “devil incarnate.” However, his loyalty to the state and the fear of reprisal prevented him from giving credence to the gossip that began to spread about the emperor’s vices. Instead he merely removed himself from Romulus’ retinue, leaving the emperor surrounded by sluts and sycophants.
Having witnessed firsthand the decadence and intrigue that became the emperor’s environment, as well as the politicking and self interest that pervaded the imperial court in Rome, Symmachus all but shut himself away at his family estate. He was now free to pursue his interests in history, theology and writing, all of which contributed to his desire to publish various works for the benefit of his fellow Romans and Catholic Christians.
Despite his fallout with the emperor, Symmachus maintained an amicable relationship with Paulus, the true ruler of the western Romans, as demonstrated by the latter’s consideration of the aristocrat for the post of magister officiorum (“master of offices”). Symmachus declined however, preferring to live as a private citizen and writer. His interest in authoring pieces dedicated to the defense and promotion of the Nicene Creed—and by extension, the Chalcedonian Definition—allowed Symmachus to cultivate a friendship with Pope Simplicius, the leading church father in the West and an ardent defender of the Council of Chalcedon.
Unfortunately for Paulus, recent setbacks—such as the failure to aid Julius Nepos in time and the brutal death of Marcian—worsened his controversial reputation from the viewpoint of the senatorial aristocracy. Although he maintained a good relationship with some members of the Roman Senate, some more than others, a group of conspirators felt confident that the time had come for a regime change. Therefore, when Paulus departed to the south with a small army, attempting to restore order to the areas that descended into a state of near anarchy ever since the garrisons were depleted by Odoacer, the senators finally made their move. The combination of their influence and bribery swayed the majority of their peers to the cause, as well as many soldiers whose first loyalty was to coin instead of country. With Paulus and most of his troops away from the capital, his supporters were rendered vulnerable. In an effort to secure Rome, the conspirators drew up a long proscription list containing the names of all known supporters of Paulus. As well, the more opportunistic elements among the conspiracy seized the opportunity to add a few innocent names to the list, mainly to settle unrelated grudges and to seize the estates of wealthy rivals.
It was with great irony that the champion they chose to lead the execution of their conspiracy was Ovida; a Roman general who originally served Julius Nepos until the latter’s death a year earlier, he survived the failed campaign to reclaim Italia Annonaria unlike his fallen master. After Ovida assumed control of Dalmatia, he was approached by the brothers Basilius and Decius—two of Paulus’ supposed “allies” who, in fact were members of the senatorial conspiracy—with an offer to seize the regency of the West by eliminating Paulus. By the time Rome fell under the control of the Senate, Ovida sailed across the Adriatic Sea with remnants of Nepos’ army and marched on the eternal city. To the horror of Paulus, not only had he been outmaneuvered by his enemies—whose loyalty had been bought, or so the magister militum thought—he unwittingly played into their hands in a way that not even they would have expected.
Prior to discovering the aristocracy’s betrayal, Paulus had grown concerned for his nephew’s safety as the state of disorder worsened in the south. When the provisional governor of Campania was lynched in Neapolis by an angry mob, the magister militum ordered that Romulus and his family be removed from the Castellum Lucullanum and transferred to the safety of Rome. By the time he learned of the Senate's betrayal and decision to throw in with Ovida, it was too late to act. He had sent the imperial family—arguably his most valuable possession—straight into the lion’s den where Ovida and his allies graciously accepted such an unexpected, but welcomed “gift.”
The Debauchery of Romulus Augustus
By Ebulo de Vannario, 17th Century AD
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Ick...
The way its shaping so far, if I had no knowledge of what was to come, I'd say that Romulus was headed for disaster and that his death could not come soon enough for Rome. He's shaping up to be one of the worst Roman Emperors, and indeed, possibly its last; as Romulus of TTL has not managed to build any sort of power base for himself, and the only man who is willing to stick up for him, Paulus, is finding himself increasingly isolated politically because of Romulus' outrageous actions. The church is also against Romulus for his clearly terrible behavior against his wife, and also his orgies - this is not the same man known for yes, being cruel and cunning, but being able to exercise self control when needed, instead, this behavior is impulsive, poorly thought out and reckless, and I'm not sure how short of a miracle this Romulus' behavior might change.
The way its shaping so far, if I had no knowledge of what was to come, I'd say that Romulus was headed for disaster and that his death could not come soon enough for Rome. He's shaping up to be one of the worst Roman Emperors, and indeed, possibly its last; as Romulus of TTL has not managed to build any sort of power base for himself, and the only man who is willing to stick up for him, Paulus, is finding himself increasingly isolated politically because of Romulus' outrageous actions. The church is also against Romulus for his clearly terrible behavior against his wife, and also his orgies - this is not the same man known for yes, being cruel and cunning, but being able to exercise self control when needed, instead, this behavior is impulsive, poorly thought out and reckless, and I'm not sure how short of a miracle this Romulus' behavior might change.
Responses
*The next update will be ready soon. I just wanted to take some time to add more depth to my responses concerning the latest comments.
I think people in general tend to mellow out as they got older, or they get crazier as the years go by lol. Romulus is still young at this point, as you mentioned earlier, and he doesn't have much to do with his time besides serving as the poster boy for someone else's regime. Still, there's a lot of privilege to take advantage of in an emperor's free time. Though bereft of real power, he is still technically a Roman sovereign, and a young one at that. As such, he's testing the extent of the privileges that come with his station, and he is finding that there's not very much he can't do, with exception to stepping on the toes of his regent, of course. Ironically, this is pretty much how I wanted to develop his character, more or less, in my first timeline but I never found a way to work it into the story. I dropped hints here and there, showed signs of the more malignant side of his personality, but the overall story came to encompass way more material than I ever intended (ex: the arc about the eastern Romans and Justinian's war with the Sassanians). I'm still going to delve into the effects that this alternate timeline has on the "western" Romans' neighbors (i.e. "eastern" Romans, Visigoths, Franks, Vandals, etc) but only to the extent that it directly affects the West, which is where I want to keep the focus of this story. Also, as much as I like writing this new version of Romulus' reign, I'm actually looking forward even more to writing about his successors. So far, the last few updates were the most important in the timeline because now we can see the beginning of the new dynasty that is forming under his reign.
Right now, I don't think there's a particular method or purpose to the things he's doing. He cares about staying alive, and so he has yet to break the hold his regent has over him. At the same time, this leaves him with very few actual responsibilities, if any at all, but a lot of privilege that comes with his station. While his antics would certainly offend the conventional morality of Christian/Roman society, he has kept these debaucheries private, or at least to the extent of not parading his vices out in public. This is why there are only rumors and gossip about what goes on in his private residences, rather than actual confirmation. Of course, they are true. I want the readers to know that. But for the average Roman living in this time period, they are either unaware of it, or have only heard rumors about it.
Lol Well, Orestes has been dead for several years now. Paulus is more of a regent than a father figure to Romulus Augustus. He was more concerned with leading the western Romans, and therefore used his nephew as a figurehead in order to prop up his administration. That's not to say he was like, "I'm in charge but you can do whatever you want, just don't get caught." I think Paulus had a lot on his plate, and not enough time to focus on guiding Romulus which is why he sent Symmachus to serve as the emperor's mentor. By then, however, Romulus was already testing the boundaries of his station and found that, while bereft of any real power, he could pretty much do whatever he wanted, so long as he didn't cross the line by interfering with his uncle's leadership of the western Romans. He did end up doing this by killing Marcian and taking Leontia as his own wife, but by then Paulus couldn't do much except to keep Romulus under house arrest in the Castellum Lucullanum. Ironically enough, the incident with Marcian has led to the beginning of the dynasty of Romulus Augustus. While his new wife has yet to provide him with an heir of his own blood, he does have a stepson named Anthemius, who hails from a far more prestigious background than Romulus. However, that can be as dangerous as it is beneficial to Romulus' rule. On one hand, the succession is more secure if he has an heir presumptive, especially one whose pedigree includes the House of Leo and more importantly, the House of Theodosius. However, this theoretically gives him an even greater claim to the throne than Romulus himself, whose family background is in Pannonia.
Edit: Romulus Augustus' stepson, Anthemius (who, again is unique to TTL and doesn't have an OTL counterpart) is connected to the House of Theodosius via marriage rather than bloodline. His father, Marcian was the son of a western emperor, also named Anthemius, and Marcia Euphemia, who was the daughter of an eastern emperor also named Marcian. Marcia was born prior to the accession of her father, who married Pulcheria (sister of Theodosius II) which did much to secure his position as the new emperor in the East. Therefore, the younger Anthemius possesses an artificial, female-based connection to the Theodosian dynasty, but that's still more than what Romulus had going into his own reign.
*The next update will be ready soon. I just wanted to take some time to add more depth to my responses concerning the latest comments.
I think people in general tend to mellow out as they got older, or they get crazier as the years go by lol. Romulus is still young at this point, as you mentioned earlier, and he doesn't have much to do with his time besides serving as the poster boy for someone else's regime. Still, there's a lot of privilege to take advantage of in an emperor's free time. Though bereft of real power, he is still technically a Roman sovereign, and a young one at that. As such, he's testing the extent of the privileges that come with his station, and he is finding that there's not very much he can't do, with exception to stepping on the toes of his regent, of course. Ironically, this is pretty much how I wanted to develop his character, more or less, in my first timeline but I never found a way to work it into the story. I dropped hints here and there, showed signs of the more malignant side of his personality, but the overall story came to encompass way more material than I ever intended (ex: the arc about the eastern Romans and Justinian's war with the Sassanians). I'm still going to delve into the effects that this alternate timeline has on the "western" Romans' neighbors (i.e. "eastern" Romans, Visigoths, Franks, Vandals, etc) but only to the extent that it directly affects the West, which is where I want to keep the focus of this story. Also, as much as I like writing this new version of Romulus' reign, I'm actually looking forward even more to writing about his successors. So far, the last few updates were the most important in the timeline because now we can see the beginning of the new dynasty that is forming under his reign.
He's taken something away from their short time together as mentor–protege, which I will get into in a future update at some point as this experience will tie in to new developments in the timeline. Something to think about is "how" he interpreted Symmachus' teachings. His mentor intended to mold Romulus into something approaching a benign ruler, but the emperor could have taken those lessons in a different way, especially if he factored them into his overall objective which is to secure his own survival at any cost.
Right now, I don't think there's a particular method or purpose to the things he's doing. He cares about staying alive, and so he has yet to break the hold his regent has over him. At the same time, this leaves him with very few actual responsibilities, if any at all, but a lot of privilege that comes with his station. While his antics would certainly offend the conventional morality of Christian/Roman society, he has kept these debaucheries private, or at least to the extent of not parading his vices out in public. This is why there are only rumors and gossip about what goes on in his private residences, rather than actual confirmation. Of course, they are true. I want the readers to know that. But for the average Roman living in this time period, they are either unaware of it, or have only heard rumors about it.
Lol Well, Orestes has been dead for several years now. Paulus is more of a regent than a father figure to Romulus Augustus. He was more concerned with leading the western Romans, and therefore used his nephew as a figurehead in order to prop up his administration. That's not to say he was like, "I'm in charge but you can do whatever you want, just don't get caught." I think Paulus had a lot on his plate, and not enough time to focus on guiding Romulus which is why he sent Symmachus to serve as the emperor's mentor. By then, however, Romulus was already testing the boundaries of his station and found that, while bereft of any real power, he could pretty much do whatever he wanted, so long as he didn't cross the line by interfering with his uncle's leadership of the western Romans. He did end up doing this by killing Marcian and taking Leontia as his own wife, but by then Paulus couldn't do much except to keep Romulus under house arrest in the Castellum Lucullanum. Ironically enough, the incident with Marcian has led to the beginning of the dynasty of Romulus Augustus. While his new wife has yet to provide him with an heir of his own blood, he does have a stepson named Anthemius, who hails from a far more prestigious background than Romulus. However, that can be as dangerous as it is beneficial to Romulus' rule. On one hand, the succession is more secure if he has an heir presumptive, especially one whose pedigree includes the House of Leo and more importantly, the House of Theodosius. However, this theoretically gives him an even greater claim to the throne than Romulus himself, whose family background is in Pannonia.
Edit: Romulus Augustus' stepson, Anthemius (who, again is unique to TTL and doesn't have an OTL counterpart) is connected to the House of Theodosius via marriage rather than bloodline. His father, Marcian was the son of a western emperor, also named Anthemius, and Marcia Euphemia, who was the daughter of an eastern emperor also named Marcian. Marcia was born prior to the accession of her father, who married Pulcheria (sister of Theodosius II) which did much to secure his position as the new emperor in the East. Therefore, the younger Anthemius possesses an artificial, female-based connection to the Theodosian dynasty, but that's still more than what Romulus had going into his own reign.
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Part 6A: AD 481
The Fall of Paulus
The Fall of Paulus
With both Rome and the imperial family secured, Ovida claimed the titles of patrician and magister militum with the backing of the Roman Senate. Combining his own troops from Dalmatia with the soldiers who renounced their allegiance to Paulus, the former holder of the titles that now belonged to Odiva, the supreme commander departed the capital and moved southward at the head of a sizeable force, intending to destroy the emperor’s uncle and his remaining followers before they could form an effective resistance against the new regime. Paulus, for his part, had no intention of running, despite the advice of his officers. He had worked too hard to become Rome’s de facto king, and would not give it all up to Ovida.
The two armies confronted each other in two major engagements during this short but bloody civil war. The first battle occurred near the River Volturno, resulting in the Battle of the Volturnus where Ovida gained the upper hand by utilizing a superior force of heavy cavalry to break through the defenses of Paulus’ flanks before forcing the entire army into full retreat with a final frontal assault. Galvanized by the momentum of their first victory, they pursued Paulus and the remnants of his army to Nola, the Roman city where the first emperor, Augustus died almost five hundred years prior.
The Battle of Nola would mark the last stand of Paulus, who replenished his depleted army by conscripting every able-bodied male from the city’s population. Unable to outright conquer the city, Ovida’s army laid siege to Nola for the better part of the year until the enemy’s supplies dwindled and starvation set in. Fearing capture and ultimately death, Paulus snuck out of the city in order to save his own life. As a result, his remaining soldiers surrendered to Ovida. In a final act of desperation to reclaim his power, Paulus attempted to flee to the kingdom of the Vandals in Africa across the Mediterranean Sea, where he ultimately sought to gain economic and military support from Huneric, son of Genseric and king of the Vandals. However, several sailors aboard his ship recognized the ex-magister militum, who disguised himself as a commoner, having previously served at the Battle of Ravenna.
By then, word of Paulus’ desertion had spread across the south of Italy, along with a substantial reward for his capture. Owing no real allegiance to the man, who was now painted as a coward by imperial propaganda, the veterans apprehended their former captain and transported him to Rome where Ovida and his aristocratic patrons gleefully received their high-value target. By now, Paulus was abandoned by everyone. Turning the people against him was not a particularly challenging task, due to the instability that continued to pervade Roman Italy at the time. Despite his efforts to restore order, the overall situation worsened under his leadership, and as such the blame was already laid at his door. Even the noblemen whom he enriched with prestigious titles and positions of influence turned away from his plight, having no intention of being dragged down and executed with him. The only one who came the closest to defending him was Symmachus, who beseeched his colleagues to only banish Paulus into permanent exile.
To Paulus, however, the greatest betrayal came from his own kin; his brother’s son, the emperor Romulus Augustus. Though he and his family had been kept under house arrest in the Imperial Palace, a vast complex of multiple imperial palaces located on the Palatine Hill, the emperor gradually gained favor with Ovida and was permitted to speak at Paulus’ trial. Like an actor on a theater stage, he played the part of emperor well, appearing strong and authoritative while delivering a speech to praise Ovida and the Senate before ultimately condemning his uncle as a coward and traitor to the state. He asserted that Paulus “usurped” the leadership of the Romans which rightfully belonged to Romulus once he came of age. By now, the emperor had aged past the extent of his minority reign, but Paulus ultimately chose to continue in his capacity as regent to a now adult monarch. Without hesitation, Romulus added this fact in his condemnation of his uncle. In addition, bribery was used to corrupt Paulus’ captors, who claimed—in accordance with the emperor’s instructions—that the now ex-magister militum was responsible for killing his own brother, Orestes, the emperor’s father. As a result, fratricide was added to Paulus’ list of alleged crimes against the state.
When asked how the traitor should die, the emperor replied that his uncle should suffer the shame of being thrown to his death from the Tarpeian Rock; and afterward, his body should be mutilated, torn apart and thrown into the River Tiber. Moved by the emperor’s apparent show of Roman virtue and patriotism, the senators themselves swarmed the prisoner and dragged him out of the Curia Julia and through the streets of Rome until they reached the southern summit of the Capitoline Hill. Along the way, the people cheered and chanted for his death, with some civilians going so far as to throw horse dung at him. Ovida merely signaled his men to stand aside and allow the execution to unfold, which commenced even before the trial was properly concluded.
The death of Paulus ultimately cemented the new alliance between Ovida and Romulus. Although the former initially considered the possibility of either killing or sending the emperor to Constantinople, and appointing a new figurehead in his place, he gained a newfound respect for the ruthlessness and tenacity displayed by a young man whom many continued to dismiss as a mere “boy-emperor;” Augustulus (Little Augustus), or so they had taken to calling him. Nevertheless, Ovida also knew to remain vigilant around him. Romulus had shown himself to be more clever and devious than he let on, and was clearly motivated by self-preservation instead of genuine loyalty to another, but could also be trusted to stay out of the true ruler’s way like an obedient figurehead, so long as the “power behind the throne” remained in control. If he should fall, the emperor would not hesitate to abandon him in order to save himself. Ovida understood this, and so did Romulus, who knew that the general would desert him if it ever became convenient to do so. Hence, their alliance was based not on trust or loyalty, but the mutual understanding that they would support each other insofar as it remained mutually beneficial. In any case, Ovida had missed the opportunity to send Romulus to Zeno due to certain new developments in the eastern empire of the Romans.
Paulus, the emperor’s fallen regent, was thrown to his death from the steep cliff of the southern summit of the Capitoline Hill, known as the Tarpeian Rock, to the delight of the Roman mob as well as the Senate. In ancient times, this method of execution was reserved for the most disgraced traitors to the state.
* * * * *
Notes- Due to some significant things happening in the eastern empire of the Romans, the AD 481 post will be a two-part update with the second half dedicated to a major event in the East. I was hoping to keep each update specific to one year, but I may try this again if I feel the eastern half requires a little more attention as some of things happening there affect the West to some degree or another.
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Part 6B: AD 481
The Second Fall of Zeno
The Second Fall of Zeno
Procopius, brother of the late Marcian, escaped from his prison in Caesarea, Cappadocia and fled to Greece where he fell under the protection of the Thracian Goths led by Theodoric Strabo. By then, the Gothic chieftain had defeated the Bulgars after Zeno convinced them to attack the Thracian Goths. Though infuriated by the emperor’s betrayal, he was unable to march on Constantinople due to logistical issues. As a result, he led his army to the south and established his headquarters in Greece where Procopius beseeched him to support his bid for the throne, just as he done for Marcian, whose death allowed Procopius to press his own claim. In addition, his other brother, Romulus was killed while also trying to escape from Caesarea, leaving Procopius with the strongest claim in his family—a relic of the House of Theodosius.
Upon learning of Procopius and Strabo’s renewed alliance, Zeno dispatched the general Leontius with an army to crush the Thracian Goths. In order to further ensure his success, a force of foederatus Ostrogoths would supplement the ranks of Leontius’ army. Despite the fact that this decision would pit Ostrogoths against each other, Zeno was confident that they would not join the enemy, for their commander was Theodoric the Amal, king of the Moesian and Pannonian Goths, as well as a bitter rival of Strabo. As much as Zeno looked forward to the death of the Thracian Goths' chieftain, he also hoped to see the enemy do as much damage to the Amal's army, and thereby neutralizing a potential threat down the road.
During the journey to Greece, however, Leontius was persuaded to switch sides by a group of envoys representing the interests of both Strabo and Procopius. This shift in allegiance caused the Amal to take his army back to Thracia; as much as he sought the death of his greatest rival, the Amal was unwilling to engage the combined forces of Strabo and Leontius; nor was he willing to support a regime change that would more likely benefit his enemy, who would almost certainly seize the opportunity to eliminate the Amal in order to gain full dominance over the Ostrogoths.
Having learned of Leontius’ treason, Zeno tasked a fellow Isaurian by the name of Illus with the responsibility of destroying the latest wave of insurgence against his rule. The Amal’s forces regrouped at Adrianople and to support Illus’ army, resulting in a formidable force to oppose the approaching insurgents. The two Romano-Gothic allied armies clashed at the Battle of Adrianople (not to be confused with the infamous battle of AD 378), which marked one of the bloodiest military confrontations in Roman history. Almost half of Strabo and Leontius’ troops were killed in the fighting, while their opponents sustained somewhat greater damage with two-thirds of their forces destroyed.
Taxed to his limit, the Amal decided that no more Gothic blood would be shed for the Romans and their wars. This would lead Strabo himself to brand the Amal a coward for withdrawing his army. Ironically, however, Illus’ soldiers were on the verge of defeating Leontius’ men by the time of the Amal’s retreat. The loss of their Ostrogothic allies forced him to break off from the fight after Strabo reinforced Leontius’ faltering lines. With defeat all but certain, Illus offered to join the insurgents’ cause if they allowed him to retain his rank in the military, as well as his influence in the imperial court.
Leontius and Strabo were willing to accept his conditions, but there was a complication. Procopius was dead; apparently he was thrown from the back of an unruly horse, causing him to fall on his neck which broke and subsequently led to his death via massive head trauma. The loss of a potential emperor with an esteemed family history was a setback for the rebellion; his blood connection to emperors such as Anthemius and Marcian could have gone a long way in propping up the new regime. But at this point, both generals had crossed the Rubicon. Leontius was committed out of fear; the fear that a vindictive, vengeful emperor like Zeno would eventually exact his retribution against the general who betrayed him. As for Strabo, Zeno’s decision to manipulate the Bulgars into attacking Strabo’s headquarters was the last straw for the Ostrogothic warlord.
In choosing to move forward and see their rebellion to its conclusion, the trio of generals had to decide whom they would support as emperor now that Procopius was no longer an option. The people of Constantinople loathed Zeno for his Isaurian blood—blood which the Romans deemed “foreign” and therefore unwanted—which naturally nullified any notion that Illus or Strabo could claim the throne. This left Leontius as their most viable candidate, despite the fact that his background was in Syria rather than Greece, Thracia or Italy. Seizing a golden opportunity, Leontius vowed to enrich his allies with both wealth, titles and positions of great import in the new administration. With their loyalties sufficiently bought, Leontius, Strabo and Illus marched on Constantinople with their remaining forces only to find that Zeno had by then fled across the Bosphorus.
Abandoned by the Amal and betrayed by Illus, Zeno lost all confidence in his ability to hold the capital, especially given the hatred that the Romans had for their emperor, who was neither Roman in their eyes, nor a Catholic Christian. Once more, he retreated into exile in the hopes of ultimately regaining his throne and punishing those who forced him from it in the first place. Before leaving, he ordered his supporters to take as much of the city’s treasury as they possibly could, in preparation for a future campaign against the insurgents.
Despite failing to capture or kill Zeno, Leontius took Constantinople with Strabo and Illus at his side. After securing the capital, the three leaders enticed the empress-dowager Verina (widow of Leo I) to join their cause. The greatest obstacle to acquiring her allegiance was Illus, however. The two shared a fierce rivalry that dated back to the failed insurgence of Procopius’ brother, whose attempt to overthrow Zeno was foiled by Illus’ betrayal and interference. Nevertheless, the empress-dowager hated Zeno more and agreed to legitimize Leontius by becoming his empress-consort via a marriage alliance. Upon joining the House of Leo, Leontius hoped to ease the tension between his new wife and Illus by deploying the latter eastward in pursuit of the fugitive Zeno.
The Battle of Adrianople in AD 481 was a bloody close victory for the insurgent army, but it caused Zeno to abandon Constantinople to the insurgents, who proclaimed Leontius emperor of the Romans in opposition to the Isaurian-bred exile.
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Notice: I will use the rest of the week to work on several new updates, and then post them every 24 hours like before. I prefer to have at least several updates on standby, as opposed to working on one the day before—or indeed, the exact day—I post it. In the meantime, I hope you guys like story so far. If you have any thoughts or questions, feel free to post them and I'll do my best to respond.
I hope this entire timeline isn't spent on just recovering Africa like the last timeline.
Must have missed the first iteration of this TL but I'm definitely looking forward to more!
Believe me, I've given a lot of thought to this because I have no desire to leave the western empire in a state that is too similar to the one at the end of my first timeline. That's a waste of my time and the readers' as well. Like before, I want to develop this timeline in a way that's interesting to the reader while also remaining realistic. I don't want to give away any spoilers, but I hope you'll keep reading because if you are interested in a western empire that encompasses more than just Italy and Africa, then I believe you'll be pleased with the finished version of this timeline. Now mind you, I have to say that in all honesty I don't believe imperial authority is likely to spread across all the former lands of the western empire, not at this point or at least not at the point in history where I plan to finish this timeline, which again is somewhere around the early to mid-6th century AD. However, I don't think it's absolutely necessary for the western empire to control all of its territories directly through imperial power. What I mean by that will become more clear as the timeline develops, although it may take awhile before we get there.
Yeah, some people were surprised by the year I chose for the timeline's POD. I think it's ironic that the western empire fell when it did because the conditions of the early to mid 6th century were much better than what they were in the 5th; while not perfect, it was still a good time for the Romans to make their bid to regain the western territories. The Vandals were never again what they were after Genseric died. The Visigoths were also arguably enduring a decline, given their loss of most of southern Gaul to the Franks. The war with the Ostrogoths was not near as smooth as the African expedition, but even there the Romans were able to regain their ancestral homeland in its entirety albeit for a brief time. There were some major setbacks, such as the Ostrogothic resurgence and Justinian's plague, but the latter was an unforeseeable setback. Really bad timing, to say the least, but I don't blame Justinian for launching his campaign when he did. From the Romans' perspective, those lands (Italy, most of all) rightfully belonged to the empire, and it was the emperor's prerogative to take them back from those whom they probably viewed as interlopers.
Thank you! I am proud of my first timeline, but I have to admit that I like writing this one more, at least so far. To be honest, I consider the first timeline I wrote as my "training." In writing this one, I have a much more clear idea of where I want to go with this whereas with the first one, I was mostly just making it up as I went along. Looking back, it was at times a haphazard experience. This timeline flows better, or at least it does to me anyway. Again, I still hope to have at least several updates finished by next week so that's when I'll start updating again.
Does this mean a Franko-roman alliance is in the works? After all, both Rome and the franks have reason to fight the goths, and while I doubt the franks would see the WRE as anything more than a useful distraction for their enemies, considering how starved for allies the WRE is I could see them reaching out in desperation. Despite the distance between the two powers its cueently 481, which means Clovis I is king of the salien franks and has a dynastic tie to a christian power, namely the Burgundians, through his wife, clotilde. With Clovis' wife being a catholic, and the WRE still extant, I don't think an alliance (of desparation and convienince in the case of rome and frankia respectively) is out of the question.
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I don't think a Roman-Frankish alliance is out of the question either, which is why it happened in my first timeline. The drawback, I think, to a Frankish realm extending across most of Gaul is that it severely weakens the probability of a resurgence of Roman power in that region, which is still possible but less probable in a Frankish-ruled Gaul IMO. Still, I do think it's possible for the western empire to regain some of its lost northern lands and eventually forge an alliance with the Franks. It's tricky, but doable. There are various factors that would need to be in effect though; the Franks' conversion to Catholicism is important; a WRE-Frankish alliance is more sustainable if both sides are Catholic, as opposed to one side being Arian. It would also help if the Franks were gradually "Romanized" through osmosis, which could happen as Bmao suggested IIRC. That's not to say they'll suddenly stop being "Frankish" and start calling themselves "Romans", but as in my first timeline they gradually assimilated some aspects of Roman culture which is what appears to have happened in varying degrees to the OTL Vandals, Ostrogoths and Visigoths -- all of whom retained their ethnic identities, but lived more like "Romans" or at least more so than their forefathers.
Part 7: AD 482
The Romans in Gaul
The Romans in Gaul
Zeno’s second fall from power alleviated some of the political pressure that burdened the western empire of the Romans ever since the accession of Romulus Augustus, the emperor who came to power by way of insurrection. Under the late magister militum Paulus, the West acted with great caution to not overtly offend the eastern court, at least no more so than they already had by overthrowing the East’s imperial appointee Julius Nepos. Although both Romulus and even Paulus jeopardized this strategy—the emperor having killed Marcian in order to claim his wife, Leontia Porphyrogenita; and Paulus’ failure to assist Nepos’ campaign in Italia Annonaria—time continued to remain an ally of the West due to the ongoing threats that gradually eroded the security of Zeno’s reign, culminating in a second exile from his own capital.
With Leontius enthroned in Constantinople, the West became somewhat less fearful of the potential threat that their eastern countrymen posed to western security, now that the eastern empire of the Romans was technically ruled by a sovereign who also owed his diadem to a movement of insurgents. In addition, as long as Zeno remained alive and free, the civil war in the east would keep those Romans occupied and less focused on the affairs of their western counterparts.
At this point, imperial power in the West remained concentrated in the Italian peninsula but to the northwest there remained a remnant of imperial authority in Roman Gaul. For the most part the Romans maintained the official position that the western empire remained intact, and that parts of their domain were simply protected by various Germanic leaders who governed in the name of Rome. For their part, some of the Germans played along by acknowledging the “authority” of the Romans. Beyond that, they governed themselves as they saw fit. This became the de facto political reality throughout most of the western empire's territories. In northern Gaul, however, the “Gallo-Romans” (referred to as such by later historians) established a Roman rump state under the leadership of Aegidius, the magister militum of Gaul. Following Aegidius’ death in AD 464, Syagrius succeeded his father as the de facto leader of the Gallo-Roman enclave and assumed the title of dux.
After the fall and exile of Julius Nepos, Syagrius did not acknowledge Romulus Augustus as the legitimate Roman emperor in the West; yet nor did he attempt to claim the title for himself either. The death of Nepos removed an obstacle that stood between a formal relationship between Romulus’ government and the one in Gaul, but for reasons of his own—some say he feared to offend Constantinople; Zeno, in particular—Syagrius still refrained from acknowledging Romulus' imperial status.
Now that Zeno had fled the eastern capital, hence claimed by Leontius and his insurgents, Syagrius began exploring his options for establishing an official relationship with the imperial government in Italy. Though isolated from the center of Roman western power by the Visigoths and Burgundians to the south, Syagrius saw an opportunity to legitimize his own position as dux, which had yet to be confirmed by the new western court, which in turn had yet to be recognized by the eastern court. Around the same time, however, negotiations were underway between Romulus and Leontius, who were on the verge of recognizing each other in their mutual capacity as Roman emperor. It was a risk, given the continued existence of Zeno who, despite becoming an exile and fugitive, was still a banner around which the insurgents’ enemies could gather and challenge Leontius’ claim to the eastern throne.
But after several years of holding the western throne on a usurper’s claim, for the first time Romulus had an opportunity to gain political legitimacy from a Roman emperor in Constantinople—albeit one whose own legitimacy was in dispute—provided that the West offer its support to Leontius, thereby denouncing Zeno as illegitimate and an enemy of the state. Of course, the risk was that if Zeno restored the eastern empire under his control, he would be all the more likely to seek revenge against the West at the earliest opportunity. In a rare act of decisiveness, Romulus accepted Leontius’ terms and publicly announced his support for the new eastern emperor while simultaneously denouncing the “Isaurian” in exile. His motivation was self-preservation; the same as it had been when he abandoned Paulus in order to save himself.
For some time now, Romulus had grown increasingly fearful of Zeno, a fact well known to the members of his inner circle. His shocking decision to kill Marcian fueled the gossip that this betrayal had been committed in the hope of that Zeno would recognize Romulus as his western colleague in gratitude for slaying a major contender to the eastern throne. But if Zeno was pleased in private, he made no public show of it. If anything, Constantinople all but rebuked Romulus for his actions, for they would not excuse the death of a member of the House of Leo—though Marcian was a traitor—at the hands of a usurper who was enthroned on the whim of a rebellion against another member of the legitimate imperial family. For Romulus, there was no hope to be found with the Leonids or their vengeful, vindictive emperor.
Even Ovida, a former supporter of Nepos, stood by Romulus’ decision to bind his fate and that of the western government with the new regime in the East. By now, Ovida himself was a suspect in the assassination of Nepos. Thus, like his emperor, he had just as much to fear if Zeno returned to power. Under its new master, the eastern court henceforth confirmed Romulus Augustus in his capacity as Leontius’ western colleague, a move which Zeno denounced as false and treasonous from his temporary headquarters in Caesarea.
The shifting political landscape in the overall empire ultimately gave Syagrius the incentive to throw the weight of his support behind the now legitimate western emperor, in exchange for the latter’s confirmation of Syagrius in his self-styled role of dux. Romulus was not accustomed to haggling; in his mind, he should not have to bargain for the allegiance that every Roman on his side of the empire owed him. In the end, he was essentially pressured into accepting Syagrius’ offer by the members of his court as well as Ovida, who sought to make an ally rather than an enemy out of a powerful military leader who could potentially make his own claim on the western throne.
But just as it seemed that the most chaotic years in Romulus’ reign were behind him, he soon learned that Syagrius formed an alliance with Anicius Probus Faustus, one of the delegates sent from Rome to officiate the negotiations in the de facto Gallo-Roman capital of Noviodunum. In meeting Faustus, Syagrius saw an opportunity to gain more than just legal recognition for his status as dux and now magister militum in Gaul. Now he could also connect his family to a noble Roman family with a storied name and heritage by marrying a female member of his house to a scion of the Anicii. Faustus agreed to the match and with his new bride, the Anicii gained a powerful ally in Syagrius, whose own benefit was the considerable enhancement of his own personal prestige.
To say that this political “alliance” between Syagrius and Faustus was hardly to the liking of Romulus Augustus would be an understatement. It made the young emperor angry as all hell and more paranoid than usual. But he would neither openly approve or denounce Syagrius’ newly-formed connection to the Anicii for fear of making an enemy out of a man who now posed a danger to his claim on the throne. What more did Syagrius hope to gain from this union beyond the obvious, Romulus wondered. He could understand if Syagrius wanted to leech off of one of the most influential families of the Roman nobility. Romulus himself enhanced his own status by marrying into the House of Leo, albeit under extremely unusual—if not outrageous—circumstances. Nevertheless, he now pondered on the extent of Syagrius’ ambition and thought, would that man truly be content to rule in Gaul on the emperor’s behalf, when he already possessed the resources to make his own bid for the western throne, especially now that he had the right connections. These thoughts fueled Romulus’ paranoia first, and ultimately his anger.
Though the Romans of Gaul had long since fallen on hard times, an enclave of their community remained free of Germanic control under the leadership of Aegidius, whose son Syagrius assumed control upon his father’s death.
- Acacius was deposed as patriarch of Constantinople due to his heretical views and opposition to the Council of Chalcedon. In seeking to win over the population of Constantinople, Leontius supported Macedonius II—whose appointment and ardent commitment to the Chalcedonian Creed met with the personal approval of Pope Simplicius—as the city’s next patriarch.
- John the Scythian declared his allegiance to Zeno and led an army of reinforcement troops to aid the exiled emperor, forcing Illus to break off his siege of Caesarea. Fearing a potential setback, Leontius deployed Areobindus with an army to reinforce Illus’ soldiers in preparation for a longer war.
- The Ostrogoths of Theodoric the Amal—cut off from Zeno, and having abandoned his cause—seized advantage of the Roman civil war by turning to banditry and raiding throughout much of the diocese of Dacia. As a result, Leontius sent Theodoric Strabo and his Thracian Goths to intercept their kinsmen and end this barbarian blood feud between the two Theodorics.
After seizing control of Constantinople, Leontius’ soldiers elevated him upon a large shield to symbolize the army’s support for his claim on the imperial throne.
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Donald Reaver
Donor
Just found your new timeline, very glad to see you back writing. Will be following this of course.