Septimius Severus and the Roman Army

by Michael Sage

Overview

This is a new survey of Severus reign with particular emphasis on his military campaigns against the Parthians and the Garamantes in North Africa.

The assassination of Emperor Commodus in 192 sparked a civil war. Septimius Severus emerged as the eventual victor and his dynasty (the Severans) ruled until 235. He fought numerous campaigns, against both internal rivals and external enemies, extending the Empire to the east (adding Mesopotamia), the south (in Africa) and the north (beyond Hadrian's Wall). The military aspects of his reign, including his reforms of the army, are the main focus of this new study.

After discussing his early career and governorship of Pannonia, Michael Sage narrates his war with Pescennius Niger, the siege of Byzantium, and the campaign in northern Mesopotamia that added it as a province. The much more difficult campaign against Clodius Albinus in Gaul is also studied in detail, as is that in North Africa. The narrative concludes with an account of the last campaign in Britain and Severus’ death. The final chapters analyze Septimius’ reforms of the army and assess their impact on events of the next seventy years until the accession of Diocletian.

His greatest weakness was his love for his family. Like Marcus Aurelius, he loved his children too much. They failed to maintain what he had bequeathed them.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781526702418
Publisher:	Pen and Sword
Publication date:	09/10/2020
Pages:	224
Sales rank:	1,090,094
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.20(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Michael Sage is an emeritus professor and former head of the Department of Classics at the University of Cincinnati. He has also taught at the University of Waterloo in Canada and at the University of California at San Diego. He received his B. A. in anthropology and M.A. in history from the University of Michigan and his Ph.D. in Classics from the University of Toronto. He has published numerous articles and encyclopedia articles on many aspects of ancient history, including Roman imperial history and biography as well as ancient military history. He has also published books on St. Cyprian, the third century AD bishop of Carthage, on the Roman historian Tacitus and on Greek as well as on Greek and Roman warfare.

Table of Contents

Map ix

Introduction xi

Chapter 1 Sources 1

Chapter 2 Prelude 13

Chapter 3 Things Fall Apart 33

Chapter 4 The Civil Wars: Act 1 51

Chapter 5 The Civil Wars: Act 2 69

Chapter 6 Encore: War in the East and Sightseeing in Egypt 77

Chapter 7 Rome and Africa 95

Chapter 8 The Return to Rome 105

Chapter 9 The Last Act 123

Appendix: Severus and the Roman Army 141

Bibliography 155

Notes 167

Index 205