238
Encyclopedia
Year 238 was a common year starting on Monday
Common year starting on Monday
This is the calendar for any common year starting on Monday, January 1 . Examples: Gregorian year 1990, 2001, 2007 and 2018or Julian year 1918 ....

 (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar
Julian calendar
The Julian calendar began in 45 BC as a reform of the Roman calendar by Julius Caesar. It was chosen after consultation with the astronomer Sosigenes of Alexandria and was probably designed to approximate the tropical year .The Julian calendar has a regular year of 365 days divided into 12 months...

. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Pius and Pontianus (or, less frequently, year 991 Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita is Latin for "from the founding of the City ", traditionally set in 753 BC. AUC is a year-numbering system used by some ancient Roman historians to identify particular Roman years...

). The denomination 238 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
Anno Domini
and Before Christ are designations used to label or number years used with the Julian and Gregorian calendars....

 calendar era
Calendar era
A calendar era is the year numbering system used by a calendar. For example, the Gregorian calendar numbers its years in the Western Christian era . The instant, date, or year from which time is marked is called the epoch of the era...

 became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.

Roman Empire

  • Emperor Maximinus Thrax
    Maximinus Thrax
    Maximinus Thrax , also known as Maximinus I, was Roman Emperor from 235 to 238.Maximinus is described by several ancient sources, though none are contemporary except Herodian's Roman History. Maximinus was the first emperor never to set foot in Rome...

     campaigns against the Carpians
    Carpi (people)
    The Carpi or Carpiani were an ancient people that resided, between not later than ca. AD 140 and until at least AD 318, in the former Principality of Moldavia ....

     on the Danube
    Danube
    The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....

     in Moesia
    Moesia
    Moesia was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans, along the south bank of the Danube River. It included territories of modern-day Southern Serbia , Northern Republic of Macedonia, Northern Bulgaria, Romanian Dobrudja, Southern Moldova, and Budjak .-History:In ancient...

     (Balkans
    Balkans
    The Balkans is a geopolitical and cultural region of southeastern Europe...

    ). In spite of the payment of a tribute
    Tribute
    A tribute is wealth, often in kind, that one party gives to another as a sign of respect or, as was often the case in historical contexts, of submission or allegiance. Various ancient states, which could be called suzerains, exacted tribute from areas they had conquered or threatened to conquer...

    , the Romans fail to persuade the Goths
    Goths
    The Goths were an East Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin whose two branches, the Visigoths and the Ostrogoths, played an important role in the fall of the Roman Empire and the emergence of Medieval Europe....

     and the Germanic tribes.
  • March 7 – Roman subjects in Africa revolt against Maximinus and elect Marcus Antonius Gordianus (Africanus)
    Gordian I
    Gordian I , was Roman Emperor for one month with his son Gordian II in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. Caught up in a rebellion against the Emperor Maximinus Thrax, he was defeated by forces loyal to Maximinus before committing suicide.-Early life:...

     as emperor. He is a rich descendant of the Gracchi
    Gracchi
    The Gracchi brothers, Tiberius and Gaius, were Roman Plebian nobiles who both served as tribunes in 2nd century BC. They attempted to pass land reform legislation that would redistribute the major patrician landholdings among the plebeians. For this legislation and their membership in the...

     and the late emperor Trajan
    Trajan
    Trajan , was Roman Emperor from 98 to 117 AD. Born into a non-patrician family in the province of Hispania Baetica, in Spain Trajan rose to prominence during the reign of emperor Domitian. Serving as a legatus legionis in Hispania Tarraconensis, in Spain, in 89 Trajan supported the emperor against...

    . Gordianus yields to public demand that he succeed Maximinus and rules jointly with his 46-year old son Gordian II
    Gordian II
    Gordian II , was Roman Emperor for one month with his father Gordian I in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. Seeking to overthrow the Emperor Maximinus Thrax, he died in battle outside of Carthage.-Early career:...

    .
  • April 12 – Battle of Carthage
    Battle of Carthage (238)
    The Battle of Carthage was fought in 238 between a Roman army loyal to Emperor Maximinus Thrax and the forces of Emperors Gordian I and Gordian II....

    : Numidia
    Numidia
    Numidia was an ancient Berber kingdom in part of present-day Eastern Algeria and Western Tunisia in North Africa. It is known today as the Chawi-land, the land of the Chawi people , the direct descendants of the historical Numidians or the Massyles The kingdom began as a sovereign state and later...

    n forces loyal to Maximinus invade Africa with support of Legio III Augusta
    Legio III Augusta
    Legio tertia Augusta was raised in the year 43 BCE most likely by the consul Gaius Vibius Pansa and the emperor Augustus who served the Roman Empire in North Africa until at least the late 4th century CE. It is possible that it fought in the battle of Philippi against the murderers of Caesar...

    . Gordian II is killed and after a siege
    Siege
    A siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit". Generally speaking, siege warfare is a form of constant, low intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static...

     of 36 days, Gordian I commits suicide
    Suicide
    Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...

     by hanging himself with his belt
    Belt (clothing)
    A belt is a flexible band or strap, typically made of leather or heavy cloth, and worn around the waist. A belt supports trousers or other articles of clothing.-History:...

    .
  • April 22 – Year of the Six Emperors
    Year of the Six Emperors
    The Year of the Six Emperors refers to the year 238, during which six people were recognised as emperors of Rome.The emperor at the beginning of the year was Maximinus Thrax, who had ruled since 235. Later sources claim he was a cruel tyrant, and in January 238 a revolt erupted in North Africa...

    : The Senate outlaws Maximinus for his bloodthirsty proscriptions in Rome
    Ancient Rome
    Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....

     and nominates two of its members, Pupienus and Balbinus
    Pupienus and Balbinus
    Marcus Clodius Pupienus Maximus and Decimus Caelius Calvinus Balbinus were two Roman co-emperors elected by the Roman senate on April 22, 238 after the failure of Gordian I and Gordian II to defeat the usurper Maximinus Thrax.- Pupienus :Pupienus, born about 178, was an example of ascension in the...

    , to the throne
    Throne
    A throne is the official chair or seat upon which a monarch is seated on state or ceremonial occasions. "Throne" in an abstract sense can also refer to the monarchy or the Crown itself, an instance of metonymy, and is also used in many expressions such as "the power behind the...

    .
  • Maximinus advances to the town Aquileia
    Aquileia
    Aquileia is an ancient Roman city in what is now Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about 10 km from the sea, on the river Natiso , the course of which has changed somewhat since Roman times...

     in northern Italy
    Italy
    Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

    , his army suffers from famine
    Famine
    A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several factors including crop failure, overpopulation, or government policies. This phenomenon is usually accompanied or followed by regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased mortality. Every continent in the world has...

     and disease
    Disease
    A disease is an abnormal condition affecting the body of an organism. It is often construed to be a medical condition associated with specific symptoms and signs. It may be caused by external factors, such as infectious disease, or it may be caused by internal dysfunctions, such as autoimmune...

    , while the city is besieged. Soldiers of Legio II Parthica
    Legio II Parthica
    Legio secunda Parthica was a Roman legion levied by Emperor Septimius Severus in 197, for his campaign against the Parthian Empire, hence the cognomen Parthica. The legion was still active in the beginning of the 5th century...

     killed him in his tent, along with his son Maximinus (who is appointed co-emperor
    Caesar (title)
    Caesar is a title of imperial character. It derives from the cognomen of Julius Caesar, the Roman dictator...

    ). Their corpses are decapitated
    Decapitation
    Decapitation is the separation of the head from the body. Beheading typically refers to the act of intentional decapitation, e.g., as a means of murder or execution; it may be accomplished, for example, with an axe, sword, knife, wire, or by other more sophisticated means such as a guillotine...

     and their heads carried to Rome.
  • July 29 – The Praetorian Guard
    Praetorian Guard
    The Praetorian Guard was a force of bodyguards used by Roman Emperors. The title was already used during the Roman Republic for the guards of Roman generals, at least since the rise to prominence of the Scipio family around 275 BC...

     stormed the palace and capture Pupienus and Balbinus. They are dragged naked through the streets of Rome and executed. On the same day Gordian III
    Gordian III
    Gordian III , was Roman Emperor from 238 to 244. Gordian was the son of Antonia Gordiana and 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 his acclamation...

    , age 13, is proclaimed new emperor. Timesitheus
    Gaius Furius Sabinius Aquila Timesitheus
    Gaius Furius Sabinius Aquila Timesitheus was a Roman knight who lived in the 3rd century and was the most important advisor to Roman Emperor Gordian III. Very little is known on his origins. Timesitheus was a Roman of equestrian rank.-Life:...

     becomes his tutor and advisor.
  • Future Roman Emperor
    Roman Emperor
    The Roman emperor was the ruler of the Roman State during the imperial period . The Romans had no single term for the office although at any given time, a given title was associated with the emperor...

     Valerian
    Valerian (emperor)
    Valerian , also known as Valerian the Elder, was Roman Emperor from 253 to 260. He was taken captive by Persian king Shapur I after the Battle of Edessa, becoming the only Roman Emperor who was captured as a prisoner of war, resulting in wide-ranging instability across the Empire.-Origins and rise...

     becomes princeps senatus
    Princeps senatus
    The princeps senatus was the first member by precedence of the Roman Senate. Although officially out of the cursus honorum and owning no imperium, this office brought enormous prestige to the senator holding it.-Overview:...

    .
  • The Colosseum
    Colosseum
    The Colosseum, or the Coliseum, originally the Flavian Amphitheatre , is an elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire...

     is restored after being damaged.
  • The Goths, coming from Ukraine
    Ukraine
    Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...

    , cross the Danube and devastate the Roman Empire
    Roman Empire
    The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....

     up to the border with Anatolia
    Anatolia
    Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...

    .
  • In North Africa
    North Africa
    North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...

    , Legio III Augusta, is dissolved. Until its reconstitution in 253
    253
    Year 253 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Volusianus and Claudius...

    , Africa is defended by auxiliary
    Auxiliaries (Roman military)
    Auxiliaries formed the standing non-citizen corps of the Roman army of the Principate , alongside the citizen legions...

     forces only.

Asia

  • The Cao Wei
    Cao Wei
    Cao Wei was one of the states that competed for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period. With the capital at Luoyang, the state was established by Cao Pi in 220, based upon the foundations that his father Cao Cao laid...

     general Sima Yi
    Sima Yi
    Sima Yi was a general and politician of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms era of Chinese history. He is perhaps best known for defending Wei from Zhuge Liang's Northern Expeditions...

     destroys the outlying northeastern Chinese warlord Gongsun Yuan
    Gongsun Yuan
    Gongsun Yuan , style name Wenyi , was a warlord and vassal of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history.-Biography:...

     in his Liaodong campaign
    Sima Yi's Liaodong campaign
    Sima Yi's Liaodong campaign occurred in 238 during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. Sima Yi, a general of the state of Cao Wei, led a force of 40,000 troops to attack the warlord Gongsun Yuan, whose clan had ruled independently from the central government for three generations in the...

    .

Commerce

  • The silver
    Silver
    Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...

     content of the Roman denarius
    Denarius
    In the Roman currency system, the denarius was a small silver coin first minted in 211 BC. It was the most common coin produced for circulation but was slowly debased until its replacement by the antoninianus...

     falls to 28 percent under emperor Gordianus III, down from 35 percent under Alexander Severus
    Alexander Severus
    Severus Alexander was Roman Emperor from 222 to 235. Alexander was the last emperor of the Severan dynasty. He succeeded his cousin Elagabalus upon the latter's assassination in 222, and was ultimately assassinated himself, marking the epoch event for the Crisis of the Third Century — nearly fifty...

    .


Births

  • Empress Yang Yan
    Empress Yang Yan
    Empress Yang Yan , courtesy name Qiongzhi , formally Empress Wuyuan was an empress of Jin Dynasty . She was the first wife of Emperor Wu....

    , first wife of Emperor Wu
    Emperor Wu of Jìn
    Emperor Wu of Jin, , personal name Sima Yan , style name Anshi , was the grandson of Sima Yi and son of Sima Zhao. He became the first emperor of the Jin Dynasty after forcing Cao Huan, last ruler of the state of Cao Wei, to abdicate to him. He reigned from 265 to 290, and after conquering the...

     (d. 274
    274
    Year 274 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Aurelianus and Capitolinus...

    )
  • Wen Yang, general of the Kingdom of Wei
    Cao Wei
    Cao Wei was one of the states that competed for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period. With the capital at Luoyang, the state was established by Cao Pi in 220, based upon the foundations that his father Cao Cao laid...

     (d. 291
    291
    Year 291 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Tiberianus and Dio...

    )

Deaths

  • April 12 – Roman emperors Gordian I
    Gordian I
    Gordian I , was Roman Emperor for one month with his son Gordian II in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. Caught up in a rebellion against the Emperor Maximinus Thrax, he was defeated by forces loyal to Maximinus before committing suicide.-Early life:...

     (suicide
    Suicide
    Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...

    ) and Gordian II
    Gordian II
    Gordian II , was Roman Emperor for one month with his father Gordian I in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. Seeking to overthrow the Emperor Maximinus Thrax, he died in battle outside of Carthage.-Early career:...

     (killed in battle)
  • June 24 – Maximinus Thrax
    Maximinus Thrax
    Maximinus Thrax , also known as Maximinus I, was Roman Emperor from 235 to 238.Maximinus is described by several ancient sources, though none are contemporary except Herodian's Roman History. Maximinus was the first emperor never to set foot in Rome...

    , Roman Emperor
  • Maximinus the Younger, Roman Emperor
  • July 29 – Pupienus and Balbinus
    Pupienus and Balbinus
    Marcus Clodius Pupienus Maximus and Decimus Caelius Calvinus Balbinus were two Roman co-emperors elected by the Roman senate on April 22, 238 after the failure of Gordian I and Gordian II to defeat the usurper Maximinus Thrax.- Pupienus :Pupienus, born about 178, was an example of ascension in the...

    , Roman Emperors
  • Gongsun Yuan
    Gongsun Yuan
    Gongsun Yuan , style name Wenyi , was a warlord and vassal of the state of Cao Wei during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history.-Biography:...

    , warlord of Liaodong
  • Lun Zhi
    Lun Zhi
    Lun Zhi was an advisor to the warlord Gongsun Yuan during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. Lun ended up being executed for criticizing Gongsun Yuan's plan to rebel against the state of Cao Wei. Lun's descendants were granted titles of nobility by the Cao Wei general Sima Yi after he...

    , general of Liaodong
  • Jia Fan
    Jia Fan
    Jia Fan was a military general serving under the Liaodong warlord Gongsun Yuan during the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history. Jia Fan at one time incurred the wrath of his lord, and ended up being executed after his advice against Gongsun Yuan pretending to be the King of Yan...

    , advisor Liaodong
  • Chosroes I, King of Armenia (assassinated)
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