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Emperor Alexander Severus: Rome's Age of Insurrection, AD 222-235
Alexander Severus' is full of controversy and contradictions. He came to the throne through the brutal murder of his cousin, Elagabalus, and was ultimately assassinated himself. The years between were filled with regular uprisings and rebellions, court intrigue (the Praetorian Guard slew their commander at the Emperor's feet) and foreign invasion. Yet the ancient sources generally present his reign as a golden age of just government, prosperity and religious tolerance
Not yet fourteen when he became emperor, Alexander was dominated by his mother, Julia Mammaea and advisors like the historian, Cassius Dio. In the military field, he successfully checked the aggressive Sassanid Persians but some sources see his Persian campaign as a costly failure marked by mutiny and reverses that weakened the army. When Germanic and Sarmatian tribes crossed the Rhine and Danube frontiers in 234, Alexander took the field against them but when he attempted to negotiate to buy time, his soldiers perceived him as weak, assassinated him and replaced him with the soldier Maximinus Thrax. John McHugh reassesses this fascinating emperor in detail.
Not yet fourteen when he became emperor, Alexander was dominated by his mother, Julia Mammaea and advisors like the historian, Cassius Dio. In the military field, he successfully checked the aggressive Sassanid Persians but some sources see his Persian campaign as a costly failure marked by mutiny and reverses that weakened the army. When Germanic and Sarmatian tribes crossed the Rhine and Danube frontiers in 234, Alexander took the field against them but when he attempted to negotiate to buy time, his soldiers perceived him as weak, assassinated him and replaced him with the soldier Maximinus Thrax. John McHugh reassesses this fascinating emperor in detail.
335 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
December 26, 2021
A grudging two stars.
This book suffers from all the faults of the author's work on Commodus (The Emperor Commodus: God and Gladiator): Poor editing, incoherent argument, inability to distinguish wheat from chaff.
Just not to quite the same degree; I finished this one.
Can't recommend this.
This book suffers from all the faults of the author's work on Commodus (The Emperor Commodus: God and Gladiator): Poor editing, incoherent argument, inability to distinguish wheat from chaff.
Just not to quite the same degree; I finished this one.
Can't recommend this.
November 14, 2023
This was a very nice biography of a quite unknown and forgotten Roman emperor, Alexander Severus. Becoming emperor in 222 AD at just 14, he relied on advisors to make decisions. Including his mother, Julia Mamaea, who had a significant amount of influence over him. This became a big point of critique on him, as women with power and influence were always looked at with contempt by Roman society. Alexander's reign was built on a shaky foundation, with his legitimacy being questionable and his relationship with the Roman army being unstable. An emperor's relationship with the army, the aristocracy and the Roman populace has always been very interesting to me, and Alexander's reign is a perfect example of how one can fail in this difficult balancing act. He had good relations with the senate, which was not too hard after having endured the terrible reigns of emperors such as Elagabalus and Caracalla. It was his terrible relationship with the army however, that would lead to his assassination.
The first part of his reign was relatively prosperous, in peacetime, there was political stability, trade developed and Alexander Severus commissioned several construction projects, both in Rome and in the provinces, while also rebuilding many buildings in Rome including the Colosseum and the Baths of Nero. As he grew older, he also became more independent, he still listened to his advisors but the final decision made was his. His reign was tolerant of different religions, including the Christians. The times, however, were changing, as was the world Alexander lived in. A new enemy rose in the East, as the more belligerent Sassanids overthrew the Parthians, invading the Roman East in 231, eliciting a response from the emperor. This response was slow, mostly because the Roman legions were understrength and lacked sufficient troops for a large campaign. When Alexander finally arrived in the East, he managed to check the Sassanids and relieve some of the cities, while also suffering military setbacks and mutinies. Many troops died on both sides and while Alexander had managed to restore what was lost, the result of the war was inconclusive.
As the campaign in the East dwindled down, Alexander received the news that several Germanic tribes had crossed the Rhine and had pillaged the land, as the frontiers were left understrength for the campaign against the Sassanids. When Alexander arrived, he tried to engage in diplomacy and bribery to stop the war. This was the final straw for the Roman army, which was extremely unsatisfied with his lack of military experience, his mistakes during the campaigns and now with him trying to make peace with the tribes. The army had found someone that they thought would respect them, Maximinus Thrax. Alexander Severus was abandoned by his troops and murdered together with his mother in 235 AD. His death marks the beginning of the Crisis of the Third Century, which would end in 284.
This is one of the only books about Alexander Severus that I could find in English, and basically the only one that I could get my hands on. John McHugh did a very good job at writing this book, especially since there are not that many (reliable) sources on his reign. The book was enjoyable and readable, I must admit that there are many names of senators and equestrians thrown around the book that make it a bit harder to follow, but it did not bother me too much. McHugh's arguments are satisfactory and his reasoning for using some sources and discrediting others at different times was very reasonable to me. I have learned a lot from this book and can easily give it four stars!
The first part of his reign was relatively prosperous, in peacetime, there was political stability, trade developed and Alexander Severus commissioned several construction projects, both in Rome and in the provinces, while also rebuilding many buildings in Rome including the Colosseum and the Baths of Nero. As he grew older, he also became more independent, he still listened to his advisors but the final decision made was his. His reign was tolerant of different religions, including the Christians. The times, however, were changing, as was the world Alexander lived in. A new enemy rose in the East, as the more belligerent Sassanids overthrew the Parthians, invading the Roman East in 231, eliciting a response from the emperor. This response was slow, mostly because the Roman legions were understrength and lacked sufficient troops for a large campaign. When Alexander finally arrived in the East, he managed to check the Sassanids and relieve some of the cities, while also suffering military setbacks and mutinies. Many troops died on both sides and while Alexander had managed to restore what was lost, the result of the war was inconclusive.
As the campaign in the East dwindled down, Alexander received the news that several Germanic tribes had crossed the Rhine and had pillaged the land, as the frontiers were left understrength for the campaign against the Sassanids. When Alexander arrived, he tried to engage in diplomacy and bribery to stop the war. This was the final straw for the Roman army, which was extremely unsatisfied with his lack of military experience, his mistakes during the campaigns and now with him trying to make peace with the tribes. The army had found someone that they thought would respect them, Maximinus Thrax. Alexander Severus was abandoned by his troops and murdered together with his mother in 235 AD. His death marks the beginning of the Crisis of the Third Century, which would end in 284.
This is one of the only books about Alexander Severus that I could find in English, and basically the only one that I could get my hands on. John McHugh did a very good job at writing this book, especially since there are not that many (reliable) sources on his reign. The book was enjoyable and readable, I must admit that there are many names of senators and equestrians thrown around the book that make it a bit harder to follow, but it did not bother me too much. McHugh's arguments are satisfactory and his reasoning for using some sources and discrediting others at different times was very reasonable to me. I have learned a lot from this book and can easily give it four stars!
November 14, 2019
This appeared to be well researched and was well written. Most of the time the read was interesting. I enjoyed seeing how being a "mama's boy" adversely affected Alexander's reign. There are still moments of sleep inducing listing of Roman names but this is well nigh unavoidable when dealing with the time period. All in all, it was an excellent history of Alexander Severus.
May 14, 2021
Finished at last! This book has been a real trial. This is really difficult time in Roman history, as the title suggests the period of insurrections is beginning and anyone can be Emporer with an army behind them. Sadly the writer's response to the complexity of his subject is to plough through, the detail is endless, this was an endurance exercise, still not sure why I bothered to finish it.....
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews