Marcus Claudius Tacitus
| Marcus Claudius Tacitus | |
|---|---|
| Roman Emperor | |
 Bust of Marcus Claudius Tacitus. | |
| Reign | |
| 25 September 275 - June 276 (~ 9 months) | |
| Period | Illyrian emperors |
| Predecessor (s) | Aurelian |
| Successor (s) | Florien |
| Biography | |
| Birth | c. 200 - Interamna ( Italy ) |
| Original Name | Marcus Claudius Tacitus |
| Deaths | June 276 (~ 76 years) Tyana ( Cappadocia ) |
| List of Roman Emperors | |
Marcus Claudius Tacitus (c. 200 - 276 ) was Roman emperor from 275 to 276.
Summary |
Biography
Its origins
Tacitus was born around 200 , a senatorial family originally from Terni , in Umbria. He said off the historian Tacitus , which seems a boast on his part. In his career we know only that he is consul in 273 , and is a senator very rich.
His rise to power
The sudden assassination of Aurelian 's army left in limbo. The most prominent generals as Probus are on a mission, the office of the emperor is a serious and dangerous liability, as evidenced by the plight of previous emperors. For six months, the soldiers found no candidate. They eventually ask the Roman Senate the appointment of an emperor , as the senators have done in 98 with Nerva. The Senate thus offers the imperial title to its chairman, the princeps senatus , Tacitus in September 275.
His reign
Tacitus makes vote by the Senate, the deification of his predecessor Aurelian , and the custom grant donativum the army. To replenish the coffers, he transfers his entire personal fortune of 280 million sesterces according to sources.
Tacitus also restores some powers which Gallienus ( emperor from 260 to 268 ) had deprived the senators: and they regain the right to govern as proconsul, an imperial province and thus command the troops living there (this flashback narrated by Aurelius Victor is disputed by the historian Paul Little ).
In late 275 or early 276 , Tacitus promotes Probus army commander of the East (dux East), to ensure the protection of Syria and of Egypt. Despite his advanced age, Tacitus sets off for Asia Minor , attacked by the Goths of the Black Sea , which have reached Cilicia. He appoints Florien praetorian prefect , one of his parents or his brother, with command of troops in the West. The Goths were defeated, but the return Tacitus died at Tyana in Cappadocia , in June 276.
The end
The versions of the ancient historians differ on the causes of death of Tacitus:
- Eutropius and Aurelius Victor speak of an infection with fever;
- Zosimus recounts a convoluted crime: after murdering Maximin, governor of Syria and a relative of Tacitus, who had made him odious in its function, the killers then allegedly killed the emperor to avoid revenge.
Anyway, the advanced age of Tacitus does not promise a long reign. Florien tries to succeed him, but the power comes back logically to Probus.
Names successive
- To 200 , born Marcus Aurelius Claudius
- September 275 , accesses the Empire: Imperator Caesar Marcus Claudius Tacitus Pius Felix Augustus
- 276 , Titulature to his death: Imperator Caesar Marcus Claudius Tacitus Pius Felix Augustus, Pontifex Maximus, Tribuniciae potestatis II Imperator I, II Consul
See also
Bibliography
- Book of the Caesars, of Aurelius Victor ;
- The Emperors Roman, Francois Zosso and Christian Zingg , 1995 , Wandering Publishing , ( ISBN 2877722260 );
- General History of the Roman Empire, Paul Little , 1974 , Editions du Seuil , ( ISBN 2020026775 ).
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