Septimius Antiochus
Encyclopedia
Septimius Antiochus was a Roman usurper
in Syria
during the 3rd century
.
In 272 AD Emperor Aurelian
had defeated the breakaway Kingdom of Palmyra
: Vaballathus
and his mother Zenobia
were under Roman captivity. In 273 AD another rebellion against Roman rule broke out in Palmyra. The rebels first approached Aurelian's governor Marcellianus
to become emperor, but he pretended to consider the offer as he sent a letter to Aurelian warning of the rebellion. While the rebels were waiting they decided to elevate Septimius Antiochus, the reputed son of Zenobia, to the purple. Receiving Marcellinus's letter, the Emperor reacted quickly, and in the spring of 273 the city was brought back under Roman rule. Aurelian punished the city heavily, but allegedly spared Antiochus.
Roman usurper
Usurpers are individuals or groups of individuals who obtain and maintain the power or rights of another by force and without legal authority. Usurpation was endemic during roman imperial era, especially from the crisis of the third century onwards, when political instability became the rule.The...
in Syria
Syria (Roman province)
Syria was a Roman province, annexed in 64 BC by Pompey, as a consequence of his military presence after pursuing victory in the Third Mithridatic War. It remained under Roman, and subsequently Byzantine, rule for seven centuries, until 637 when it fell to the Islamic conquests.- Principate :The...
during the 3rd century
Crisis of the Third Century
The Crisis of the Third Century was a period in which the Roman Empire nearly collapsed under the combined pressures of invasion, civil war, plague, and economic depression...
.
In 272 AD Emperor Aurelian
Aurelian
Aurelian , was Roman Emperor from 270 to 275. During his reign, he defeated the Alamanni after a devastating war. He also defeated the Goths, Vandals, Juthungi, Sarmatians, and Carpi. Aurelian restored the Empire's eastern provinces after his conquest of the Palmyrene Empire in 273. The following...
had defeated the breakaway Kingdom of Palmyra
Palmyrene Empire
The Palmyrene Empire was a splinter empire, that broke off of the Roman Empire during the Crisis of the Third Century. It encompassed the Roman provinces of Syria Palaestina, Egypt and large parts of Asia Minor....
: Vaballathus
Vaballathus
Lucius Iulius Aurelius Septimius Vabalathus Athenodorus was a king of the Palmyrene Empire. Vabalathus is the Latinized form of his name in the Arabic language, Wahb Allat or gift of the Goddess...
and his mother Zenobia
Zenobia
Zenobia was a 3rd-century Queen of the Palmyrene Empire in Roman Syria. She led a famous revolt against the Roman Empire. The second wife of King Septimius Odaenathus, Zenobia became queen of the Palmyrene Empire following Odaenathus' death in 267...
were under Roman captivity. In 273 AD another rebellion against Roman rule broke out in Palmyra. The rebels first approached Aurelian's governor Marcellianus
Marcellinus (consul 275)
Marcellinus was a Roman military commander who was consul of the Roman Empire in 275 AD.-Career:A man of equestrian origin who was adlected into the Senate, Marcellinus was probably appointed the dux ducenarius by the emperor Gallienus and put in charge of fortifying Verona in 265 AD.Marcellinus...
to become emperor, but he pretended to consider the offer as he sent a letter to Aurelian warning of the rebellion. While the rebels were waiting they decided to elevate Septimius Antiochus, the reputed son of Zenobia, to the purple. Receiving Marcellinus's letter, the Emperor reacted quickly, and in the spring of 273 the city was brought back under Roman rule. Aurelian punished the city heavily, but allegedly spared Antiochus.