Tiberius Claudius Maximus
Encyclopedia
Legio VII Claudia
Legio septima Claudia Pia Fidelis was a Roman legion. Its emblem, like that of all Caesar's legions, was the bull, together with the lion....
in the Dacian Wars during the reign of emperor Domitian
Domitian
Domitian was Roman Emperor from 81 to 96. Domitian was the third and last emperor of the Flavian dynasty.Domitian's youth and early career were largely spent in the shadow of his brother Titus, who gained military renown during the First Jewish-Roman War...
and 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...
.
He was born in Greece
Roman Greece
Roman Greece is the period of Greek history following the Roman victory over the Corinthians at the Battle of Corinth in 146 BC until the reestablishment of the city of Byzantium and the naming of the city by the Emperor Constantine as the capital of the Roman Empire...
and joined the army
Roman army
The Roman army is the generic term for the terrestrial armed forces deployed by the kingdom of Rome , the Roman Republic , the Roman Empire and its successor, the Byzantine empire...
in 85 AD at a young age and served in Legio VII Claudia
Legio VII Claudia
Legio septima Claudia Pia Fidelis was a Roman legion. Its emblem, like that of all Caesar's legions, was the bull, together with the lion....
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...
. In 87 and 88 AD he fought as part of his legion in the First Battle of Tapae
First Battle of Tapae
The first battle of Tapae were fought in 87 between the Roman army and the Dacians. They were a consequence of Roman Emperor Domitian's campaign to protect the Roman province of Moesia, nearly two decades before the regional conquest during the Dacian Wars in Trajan's reign.-Background:In 86, the...
and Second Battle of Tapae
Second Battle of Tapae
The Battle of Tapae was the decisive battle of the first Dacian War, in which Roman Emperor Trajan defeated the Dacian King Decebalus's army. Other setbacks in the campaign delayed its completion until 102.-Background:...
.
Tiberius Claudius Maximus later become a cavalry
Roman cavalry
Roman cavalry refers to the horse mounted forces of the Roman army through the many centuries of its existence.- Early cavalry Roman cavalry (Latin: equites Romani) refers to the horse mounted forces of the Roman army through the many centuries of its existence.- Early cavalry Roman cavalry...
officer in his legion and standard-bearer
Standard-bearer
A standard-bearer is a person who bears an emblem called an ensign or standard, i.e. either a type of flag or an inflexible but mobile image, which is used as a formal, visual symbol of a state, prince, military unit, etc.This can either be an occasional duty, often seen as an honour , or a...
of the cavalry. He was decorated for bravery by the Emperor Domitian. Trajan promoted him to lead an Auxiliary
Auxiliaries (Roman military)
Auxiliaries formed the standing non-citizen corps of the Roman army of the Principate , alongside the citizen legions...
cavalry unit of Pannonia
Pannonia
Pannonia was an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia....
ns. In 106 AD, during the Dacian Wars, Tiberius Claudius Maximus, serving as a scout
Reconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
with his unit, was tasked to capture the escaping Dacian King Decebalus
Decebalus
Decebalus or "The Brave" was a king of Dacia and is famous for fighting three wars and negotiating two interregnums of peace without being eliminated against the Roman Empire under two emperors...
. Before Maximus was able to capture him, Decebalus committed suicide by cutting his own throat: this incident is shown on Trajan's Column, although it is likely, however, that in the process of dying Decebalus was captured as is claimed on the funerary stele discovered at Gramini in Greece. Maximus cut off the head and right arm of the Dacian king and took them to the emperor Trajan at Ranisstorum
Ranisstorum
Ranisstorum is the name of the Ancient Roman fortification located east of Sarmizegetusa, the former capital of the old kingdom of Dacia. The exact location of this fortification is now lost, but it is possible that it was the present location called Sub Cununi, near Gradistea de Munte.In 106 AD,...
who granted him a medal, his second one in his military career.
Tiberius Claudius Maximus later served in Trajan's Roman-Parthian Wars; having voluntarily served longer than his contracted period of service, he was eventually discharged in the province of Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
.
He died after 117 AD. While still alive, around 106, he raised a monument at Philippi
Philippi
Philippi was a city in eastern Macedonia, established by Philip II in 356 BC and abandoned in the 14th century after the Ottoman conquest...
in Greece (now in the museum at Drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
) which bears a representation of the two medals he received during his military career and also makes the claim that he had actually captured Decebalus.
Historical Sources
- SteleSteleA stele , also stela , is a stone or wooden slab, generally taller than it is wide, erected for funerals or commemorative purposes, most usually decorated with the names and titles of the deceased or living — inscribed, carved in relief , or painted onto the slab...
of Tiberius Claudius Maximus from Grammeni near PhilippiPhilippiPhilippi was a city in eastern Macedonia, established by Philip II in 356 BC and abandoned in the 14th century after the Ottoman conquest... - Trajan's ColumnTrajan's ColumnTrajan's Column is a Roman triumphal column in Rome, Italy, which commemorates Roman emperor Trajan's victory in the Dacian Wars. It was probably constructed under the supervision of the architect Apollodorus of Damascus at the order of the Roman Senate. It is located in Trajan's Forum, built near...