I would expect the biggest threat to come from the Visigoths. Before the Vandal invasion of Africa they were the ones who dealt more damage to Rome and the ones with the biggest ambitions, so it's worth keeping an eye on them.
Romes Last Dynasty
- Thread starter StevenIronside
- Start date
They definitely have reasons to hate Majorian, even though many fight in his armies, to Majorian they lost Hispania, and suffered a great defeat, and in otl they get another king who has even bigger Ambitions, Euric.
Euric is definitely a threat to the empire. But maybe that can be used against the Visigoths. If the Romans can work behind the scenes to get him to rebel it could weaken the Visigoths.
12 The beginnings of War
Chapter 7
462 AD
In September Bishop of Rome, Hilarius met with Emperor Majorianus. Baby Theodosius was a month old and was healthy and growing, but unrest had followed Majorians restoration of the Altar of Victory. Seen as a pagan symbol, the papacy had condemned the action, and many christians were now in opposition of Majorian.
"My good Bishop Hilarius, you have in recent times stood against me, your Emperor. Tell me why?"
"Well Augustus Majorianus, you have restored a pagan symbol this will only embolden the Pagans this is unacceptable to Christ, and you have even given Pagans positions in the Empire."
"Bishop, you will understand that from this point forward, i only work for the Empire not for the Papacy. I would happily delay your fears of a Pagan Emperor i will openly give your church a donative worth 100 Solidii, come to your next mass, as well i will consent to the building of one of the churches you wish built, this church will be funded half by me and half by your sources. But from now on my Empire will be tolerant and will do what is best for the Empire wether it involves pagans or not. Unless you want the barbarian creed to rule the world."
"At least the Barbarians are christians."
"As am i, but without the Empire, your faith will faulter, without the pagans your faith wouldn't have spread, without Rome to shelter it and spread it your faith would be nothing. Your faith has its place but has degraded the Empire. We must work together for the better of the people."
"I will listen Augustus Majorianus, but understand i stand for my Faith, i will not tolerate you restoring anymore pagan symbols."
Majorian nodded. "I will not restore anything else, but nor will you destroy, i know you are not a tolerant man, but you will be tolerant of Pagans, for the Empire. If you do this i will support you, and you me."
The Bishop of Rome nodded, "For Christ i will support an Augustus who supports us."
"There is only one more thing, i need you to stop degrading the army. My administration can only do so much, your calls against the army have degraded the armies that support the Empire and by that protect your faith."
Hilarius Bishop of Rome and arguably the most influential and powerful Bishop in the west, nodded. "For the faith i will stop the degradation of your army, know that i do not like sending good Christians to such bloody work, but if the army protects the work of Christ and his people, then it is important."
The two men though in somewhat reluctant agreement left their meeting at that. The Emperor would not spread Pagan symbols and would be baptized, and importantly the Bishop would stand beside the Emperor.
463AD
By the beginning of the new year Majorians standing had been restored by the Pope, his baptism dismissed fears of a Pagan Emperor, but in the north Ricimer had used the immediate cries against the Emperor to greatly increase his army which grew from 16000 to 22000. Gennadius Avienus fell in beside Ricimer, who with the definite second largest army in the Empire had regained some Influence.
In the beginning of February Majorian announced his wife Empress Eudocia was pregnant with their second child. Shortly after he would discover that Ricimers army had grown to an army now as large as as his with 24,000 men.
Now concerned with Ricimers loyalty he sent for Ricimer to come to Rome. Ricimer arrived just before the Ides of March. To Majorians questions he repeatedly proffessed his Loyalty. His main excuse was that his army had grown in case the Emperor needed it to fight rebels. Happy with Ricimers awnsers Ricimer was let go to go back to his command, but with orders that he would send 6,000 men to Gaul for Aegidius.
But as Ricimer retreated north, a messenger was coming east. In 462, when the cries against Majorian had grown, Ricimer had sent a messenger to the Visigoths and Burgundians. The Burgundian King Gundioc had replied he would await future events to unfold before acting. But the Visigoth messenger was just on his way, and with major news.
Arriving in Auquatania in Early September 462,he had given his message to Theodoric II king of the Visigoths. Theodoric had not given him an awnser still reeling from his defeat several years prior. A state of Civil unrest had ensued as his brother Euricus demanded he acted, as had many of his nobles. Finally relenting Theodoric gathered his army and as many men as he could. Only for his brother Euricus to murder him in a Kingdom wide coup.
That army was now marching east to Italia, War was upon the Empire.
462 AD
In September Bishop of Rome, Hilarius met with Emperor Majorianus. Baby Theodosius was a month old and was healthy and growing, but unrest had followed Majorians restoration of the Altar of Victory. Seen as a pagan symbol, the papacy had condemned the action, and many christians were now in opposition of Majorian.
"My good Bishop Hilarius, you have in recent times stood against me, your Emperor. Tell me why?"
"Well Augustus Majorianus, you have restored a pagan symbol this will only embolden the Pagans this is unacceptable to Christ, and you have even given Pagans positions in the Empire."
"Bishop, you will understand that from this point forward, i only work for the Empire not for the Papacy. I would happily delay your fears of a Pagan Emperor i will openly give your church a donative worth 100 Solidii, come to your next mass, as well i will consent to the building of one of the churches you wish built, this church will be funded half by me and half by your sources. But from now on my Empire will be tolerant and will do what is best for the Empire wether it involves pagans or not. Unless you want the barbarian creed to rule the world."
"At least the Barbarians are christians."
"As am i, but without the Empire, your faith will faulter, without the pagans your faith wouldn't have spread, without Rome to shelter it and spread it your faith would be nothing. Your faith has its place but has degraded the Empire. We must work together for the better of the people."
"I will listen Augustus Majorianus, but understand i stand for my Faith, i will not tolerate you restoring anymore pagan symbols."
Majorian nodded. "I will not restore anything else, but nor will you destroy, i know you are not a tolerant man, but you will be tolerant of Pagans, for the Empire. If you do this i will support you, and you me."
The Bishop of Rome nodded, "For Christ i will support an Augustus who supports us."
"There is only one more thing, i need you to stop degrading the army. My administration can only do so much, your calls against the army have degraded the armies that support the Empire and by that protect your faith."
Hilarius Bishop of Rome and arguably the most influential and powerful Bishop in the west, nodded. "For the faith i will stop the degradation of your army, know that i do not like sending good Christians to such bloody work, but if the army protects the work of Christ and his people, then it is important."
The two men though in somewhat reluctant agreement left their meeting at that. The Emperor would not spread Pagan symbols and would be baptized, and importantly the Bishop would stand beside the Emperor.
463AD
By the beginning of the new year Majorians standing had been restored by the Pope, his baptism dismissed fears of a Pagan Emperor, but in the north Ricimer had used the immediate cries against the Emperor to greatly increase his army which grew from 16000 to 22000. Gennadius Avienus fell in beside Ricimer, who with the definite second largest army in the Empire had regained some Influence.
In the beginning of February Majorian announced his wife Empress Eudocia was pregnant with their second child. Shortly after he would discover that Ricimers army had grown to an army now as large as as his with 24,000 men.
Now concerned with Ricimers loyalty he sent for Ricimer to come to Rome. Ricimer arrived just before the Ides of March. To Majorians questions he repeatedly proffessed his Loyalty. His main excuse was that his army had grown in case the Emperor needed it to fight rebels. Happy with Ricimers awnsers Ricimer was let go to go back to his command, but with orders that he would send 6,000 men to Gaul for Aegidius.
But as Ricimer retreated north, a messenger was coming east. In 462, when the cries against Majorian had grown, Ricimer had sent a messenger to the Visigoths and Burgundians. The Burgundian King Gundioc had replied he would await future events to unfold before acting. But the Visigoth messenger was just on his way, and with major news.
Arriving in Auquatania in Early September 462,he had given his message to Theodoric II king of the Visigoths. Theodoric had not given him an awnser still reeling from his defeat several years prior. A state of Civil unrest had ensued as his brother Euricus demanded he acted, as had many of his nobles. Finally relenting Theodoric gathered his army and as many men as he could. Only for his brother Euricus to murder him in a Kingdom wide coup.
That army was now marching east to Italia, War was upon the Empire.
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A few nitpicks. The term "pope" to designate only the Bishop of Rome became predominant much later, in the IX-X century, and it seems unlikely to be used by Majorian in a one-to-one encounter. At the same time, by this time Majorian would be addressed as Augustus (the fact that he was acclaimed "Imperator" by the troops was, if I am not mistaken, a prudent choice as well as a revival of an ancient title). The second baptism looks a little bit of a stretch, and sounds as a weirdly heretic thing to do, so I would say it is fairly implausible. A compromise could be the the re-dedication of the Altar of Victory, although I am not sure if that would work and how it could work (I was thinking of the Altar of Christus Victor Mortis, but I believe it would be too "modern").
I edited my last post, the man formally referred to as Pope Hilarius is now Bishop Hilarius of Rome, it is an odd thing to do having an additional baptism, but i think by doing this Majorian can allay fears of being Pagan, and those that see him as a pagan will see he is now a christian at any case. As for the Altar of Victory Majorianus will not be rededicating it to Christ, as by restoring the Altar he has brought Pagans to his side. Though at some point it could be converted. After this chapter the story will for the most part keep religion out of the timeline/story, as i am not as knowledgeable in it, and the timeline will overall be taking in a more militaristic and Administrative look at the empire, dealing more with politics and Wars.
The problem is that a second Baptism is not just odd, is pure heresy from a Catholic point of view, typical (AFAIK) only of the Donatists up to that point, which were strong in Northern Africa (Saint Augustin being one of their fiercest opponents). Besides, the Imperial power officially always opposed Donatism, and with Norten Africa just reclaimed from the Vandals... This second baptism is bordering ASB IMHO. There are a lot more concrete things Majorian could have done for the Pope to show allegiance (donations for Saint Peter's Basilica?), but as always, it is just my opinion.
I changed it again lol this time there is no baptism, i value everyones comments and value especially the advise of those who know more than me so keep commenting thanks for the support
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13 The Die is Cast
Chapter 8
463AD
It was the 20th of March when it happened. Two men of Ricimers personal guard broke into the Imperial Palace, they killed several guards and were almost upon Majorians sleeping quarters when the alarm was sounded as a body was found. Majorian who slept with a sword beside his bed, had been forced to defend himself and his wife for brief moments being injured several times before his guards arrived. Under torture the surviving Assasin had caved and given up the name of the man who sent them though Majorian had his suspicions by that point.
With Ricimer in the north probably with his army already, it seemed civil war was on the way. Majorian also had no doubt who had tried to poison him after his African campaign. While he had campaigned across the old empire his once freind had been losing his influence with every victory of Majorians. Ricimer must have been hoping to make Majorian a puppet but Majorian had surpassed everyones expectations. Another notion would come to Majorian, it had been assumed Genseric had been behind the fleets near mutiny in Hispania, but at this point it wasnt a stretch to assume a power hungry Ricimer was truly the mastermind.
"I want messages sent to Dalmatia, and Africa. Every spare soldier is to be sent to Rome, there is no telling who Ricimer will bring into this to keep power."
In the North Ricimer recieved his courier from Auquatania, which delivered the events in the Visigothic Kingdom, and detailed how an army 10,000 Strong was being sent to support Ricimer. This of course wasnt all the Visigoth strength, Euric was definitely keeping men to lead an offense after Ricimers Victory. There was no word of the Burgundians though, this vexed him as their King was Gondioc his brother in law.
"Send messages to Gundioc tell him of our situation and the Visigoths stance. Also send one to the Alemanni and Franks, they could be valuable at keeping Aegidius away from the fight."
It was April 5th when Majorian began his advance. He could not give Ricimer the time to gather more forces. With 24,000 he set out from Rome, Augustus Majorianus and Julius Nepos general of Majorians personal army would lead the first forces north. Within a week they expected to be followed by Flavius Serverinus who would lead approximately another 10,000 men, a legion from Africa and the rest from Dalmatia.
To the North Ricimer was just recieving his messages. Gundioc would bring another army to his aid, and was to expect anywhere from five to ten thousand from the Burgundians within weeks. The Visigoths were still over a month away.
Ricimer had not recieved word off Majorians death and could only assume the worst had happened and the Augustus had lived. Even if the assassination had been successful, Julius Nepos would have gathered forces from Dalmatia from his uncle and still attacked Ricimer, Ricimer for once wished he hadnt been so hungry for power.
Gennadius Avienus would burst inti Ricimers quarters. "You have seriously cocked up this whole situation, instead of a silent coup which i have been slowly building you needed to do things the barbarian way, the brute way. Do you not think he would notice you gathering forces. Now we are entering a civil war which could have been avoided! I should have known not to trust you, i intended to name myself Emperor after a quick coup but instead you decide wasting thousands of lifes is better!"
Ricimer only looked at Avienus quizzically, "you had wished to been Emperor? And how would you hold your position with Aegidius, Marcellinus, Nepotianus and Aurelianus bearing down on you? Me! Ha i would try and make myself Rex Italia before putting you on the throne!" Avienus would become incensed and try to bribe Ricimers troops later that day, only for his head to fall from his shoulders, the would be Usurper Avienus was gone before it happened, but instead of him Majorian would face the power hungry Ricimer.
By April 12th Ricimer would hear of Majorians advancing army, and would mobilize his own army. May 1st was a day of decisions for Majorian, now south of Florentia he would either have to go northwest to Genua and then east to Placentia, or northeast through to Bononia. Genua was the longer route, but if Ricimer was getting trooos from the Visigoths or Burgundians it would be his fastest route to pick them up, while the route threw Bononia and north was the most open and had more suitable ground for battle.
"Send scouts out i want them to find Ricimer. From there we will decide our course, perhaps we can end this with as little blood shed as possible and we may send for a diplomatic end to this.
It was a fateful decision to halt at Florentia, one that would either save or end the Empires future.
The Die was Cast
One only hoped it came up
Majorianus Victrix
463AD
It was the 20th of March when it happened. Two men of Ricimers personal guard broke into the Imperial Palace, they killed several guards and were almost upon Majorians sleeping quarters when the alarm was sounded as a body was found. Majorian who slept with a sword beside his bed, had been forced to defend himself and his wife for brief moments being injured several times before his guards arrived. Under torture the surviving Assasin had caved and given up the name of the man who sent them though Majorian had his suspicions by that point.
With Ricimer in the north probably with his army already, it seemed civil war was on the way. Majorian also had no doubt who had tried to poison him after his African campaign. While he had campaigned across the old empire his once freind had been losing his influence with every victory of Majorians. Ricimer must have been hoping to make Majorian a puppet but Majorian had surpassed everyones expectations. Another notion would come to Majorian, it had been assumed Genseric had been behind the fleets near mutiny in Hispania, but at this point it wasnt a stretch to assume a power hungry Ricimer was truly the mastermind.
"I want messages sent to Dalmatia, and Africa. Every spare soldier is to be sent to Rome, there is no telling who Ricimer will bring into this to keep power."
In the North Ricimer recieved his courier from Auquatania, which delivered the events in the Visigothic Kingdom, and detailed how an army 10,000 Strong was being sent to support Ricimer. This of course wasnt all the Visigoth strength, Euric was definitely keeping men to lead an offense after Ricimers Victory. There was no word of the Burgundians though, this vexed him as their King was Gondioc his brother in law.
"Send messages to Gundioc tell him of our situation and the Visigoths stance. Also send one to the Alemanni and Franks, they could be valuable at keeping Aegidius away from the fight."
It was April 5th when Majorian began his advance. He could not give Ricimer the time to gather more forces. With 24,000 he set out from Rome, Augustus Majorianus and Julius Nepos general of Majorians personal army would lead the first forces north. Within a week they expected to be followed by Flavius Serverinus who would lead approximately another 10,000 men, a legion from Africa and the rest from Dalmatia.
To the North Ricimer was just recieving his messages. Gundioc would bring another army to his aid, and was to expect anywhere from five to ten thousand from the Burgundians within weeks. The Visigoths were still over a month away.
Ricimer had not recieved word off Majorians death and could only assume the worst had happened and the Augustus had lived. Even if the assassination had been successful, Julius Nepos would have gathered forces from Dalmatia from his uncle and still attacked Ricimer, Ricimer for once wished he hadnt been so hungry for power.
Gennadius Avienus would burst inti Ricimers quarters. "You have seriously cocked up this whole situation, instead of a silent coup which i have been slowly building you needed to do things the barbarian way, the brute way. Do you not think he would notice you gathering forces. Now we are entering a civil war which could have been avoided! I should have known not to trust you, i intended to name myself Emperor after a quick coup but instead you decide wasting thousands of lifes is better!"
Ricimer only looked at Avienus quizzically, "you had wished to been Emperor? And how would you hold your position with Aegidius, Marcellinus, Nepotianus and Aurelianus bearing down on you? Me! Ha i would try and make myself Rex Italia before putting you on the throne!" Avienus would become incensed and try to bribe Ricimers troops later that day, only for his head to fall from his shoulders, the would be Usurper Avienus was gone before it happened, but instead of him Majorian would face the power hungry Ricimer.
By April 12th Ricimer would hear of Majorians advancing army, and would mobilize his own army. May 1st was a day of decisions for Majorian, now south of Florentia he would either have to go northwest to Genua and then east to Placentia, or northeast through to Bononia. Genua was the longer route, but if Ricimer was getting trooos from the Visigoths or Burgundians it would be his fastest route to pick them up, while the route threw Bononia and north was the most open and had more suitable ground for battle.
"Send scouts out i want them to find Ricimer. From there we will decide our course, perhaps we can end this with as little blood shed as possible and we may send for a diplomatic end to this.
It was a fateful decision to halt at Florentia, one that would either save or end the Empires future.
The Die was Cast
One only hoped it came up
Majorianus Victrix
The Christians are the majority population here which is something that Majorian needs support from. This makes no sense from a PR perspective. The Italian elite who dominate the Senate hates Majorian for taking away their privileges and ending corruption. Majorians real power base was the Gallo-Roman elite and the common people which encompassed traders, peasants, and soldiers since the empire is now taking a direct approach to solving the problem of the Migration Era. The Barbarian incursions have devastated towns and the collapse of the Roman monetary system withered away the Roman garrisons mean to protect the frontier, trade routes, and cities which serve as centers for commerce. These garrisons likely resort to banditry or a proto form of feudalism to gain some form of sustenance and income. This was the basis for the rise of mannoralism in Europe and the collapse of the Roman social order. The Barbarian Kings who converted to Christianity did so in order to gain some legitimacy with the Romans that they ruled over. They also adopted Roman customs, laws, and dress as well and this eventually earned them the support of the Roman population. Major examples of these are the Visigothic Kingdom, the Ostrogothic Kingdom, the Frankish Kingdom, etc. Pagans are essentially too few and the more pious aristocracy and common man would be pissed about this.
There are some major problems with this. First is that there was no real concept of separation of Church and State with the Romans. In fact religion was treated as another part of Roman state and society. The office of Pontifex Maximus was both a religious title and a position of the state. Emperor Augustus in his youth and later as Emperor held the title to have the power of state and spiritual authority over his Roman subjects. The title of Pontifex Maximus eventually went to the Bishop of Rome. That's something that would be alien to them and something that Roman society would find vexing. The idea of Separation of Church and state only really developed in the centuries after Rome fell. Mostly during the Investiture Controversy between the Holy Roman Emperor and the Pope. The Pope argued that as the religious head of the Church he had more authority over the Kings who handled the lower secular matters of the Church. The Pope won this struggle but exhausted much of its political capital doing so. Other Kings saw this and later asserted themselves over the Pope. The French did this to great effect where they used Free Investiture and the Idea of the National Church. Thus this concept only became a reality to make sure that their Kingdoms and royal authority didn't become weakened when the Pope denounced the monarch or disagreed with him.
Paganism has also been a dead force for quite a while now. "Tolerance" of Pagans which very likely will be interpreted as open endorsement of Paganism is likely to anger the Eastern Empire and the Roman elite and common people. Roman Emperors in their propaganda (coinage) began to display themselves as more pious and devout emperors to gain legitimacy in the eyes of the public. Christianity was rapidly spreading thanks to it being a missionary religion that appealed directly to the poor. Religious fervor was definitely on the rise. Even during the time of Julian the Apostate Paganism was being lambasted by contemporary philosophers. When he tried to recreate a reformed Roman pagan system in response to Christianity, it failed spectacularly with it pissing off both the traditional Hellenistic Pagans and the Christians. To the more zealous and devout of the Christians, not persecuting the Pagans is one thing, but to openly restore and thus connect the state to Pagan symbols is a bad sign. The Church would question how devout the Emperor was as would many of the elites, commoners, and more pious soldiers. The Roman aristocracy even began going celibate and donated their estates and property to the Church. This was actually a big problem in regards to the taxation system since the Church wasn't taxed. Majorian pissing these people off would spell bad news for his reign as emperor.
It also seems like the Emperor is ordering around the Bishop of Rome. This is something that he can't just do without consequences. The precedent of the Emperor prostrating himself to religious authority had already been established with St. Ambrose. Theodosius I was excommunicated and this wasn't something he could ignore as his army and government were Christian. This was a huge threat to his legitimacy, and he being a pious man relented. This could also be used by other ambitious men to rally support for themselves or other potential usurpers to move against the Emperor. They can decry him as illegitimate as "he's violating the sacred rights of the Bishop of Rome."
Also openly supporting or even being interpreted as doing so would incur the attention and perhaps the Wrath of the East. The Eastern Emperor would be pissed and would now have pretext to send an army to depose Majorian and appoint an Eastern puppet. The East is completely intact with its armies not degrading into foederati and low morale conscripts like the Western Armies. In a pitched battle between West an East the odds would be in favor of the East. In fact this was what Theodosius I counted on as many Western soldiers simply defected to him from Eugenius's side when he marched with the army of the East.
Someone like Ricimer who had the support of the Italian Elite would easily be able to spin this into his favor. He'd easily be able to raise his own more pious and devout Roman Emperor decrying Majorian as a illegitimate debauched Pagan. The East would take this seriously and would likely support Ricimer.
The idea that Christianity eroded the foundations of the Roman Empire is a myth perpetrated by people like Gibbon. Gibbon was notorious for his anti-Christian bias and his work is considered outdated and inaccurate by modern scholarship. This very idea is also considered outdated and incorrect simply by the fact the Christian Eastern Empire outlived the Western Empire and the Pagan Roman Empire. It survived for a millennium after the fall of the West. It didn't degrade the empire and if anything helped the empire survive longer than it did. Rome was a vast empire ruling many disparate peoples. Now there was the unifying identity that they were all Christian in addition to having Roman law bind them together. For example, during the Arab Invasions where Egypt, Persia, North Africa, Hispania, and the Levant were conquered, only the Eastern Empire remained as the universal Empire. When the fleets of the East retook Rhodes and sailed to Syria the local Christian populations which supported Rome rebelled and defected to the East. This helped save the Empire and gave it breathing room as the Rashidun Caliphate signed a peace treaty with it and a symbolic reparations which helped to alleviate the bankrupt Roman treasury. The idea of One law, one faith, and one Empire popularized by Constantine and later Roman Emperors served to help the Empire in times of trouble as it presented itself as the Universal Empire bound to rule all people. This idea was also used in the West with the later Holy Roman Empire. The Holy Roman Empire presented itself as the Universal Christian Empire in the West and after it was reconstituted under Otto the Great, it served as a bastion of stability that dominated European history until the 18th century.
Also I noticed that Majorian says you people and refers to Christianity as "your faith" when talking to the Bishop of Rome. This is a huge faux pas as it implies that Majorian isn't a Christian and is actually a Pagan which Majorian actually wasn't (He used Christian symbols on his coinage alongside the Laurel Wreath showing his Imperial Authority tied to Christendom). This is a huge issue that the Bishop of Rome could easily use against him. He could write to the Eastern Emperor about this whe If anything Majorian needs reassure the Pope and by extension the Christians that he's a devout and pious Emperor looking for the benefit of the Empire as a whole. This precedent was set by St. Ambrose who famously excommunicated Emperor Theodosius I from communion after he massacred the people in Theodosiopolis. Theodosius relented and offered penance which earned him the support of the religious elite. In fact he was the one who solidified Christianity as the official state religion. Under him many Pagan temples were closed down or converted to Churches. In fact by this era Christianity is the dominant urban religion now rapidly taking over the rural regions.
The Fall of the Western Roman Empire was due to largely political and economic circumstances rather than it adopting Christianity. The economic system of the West collapsed which necessitated that the West start employing foederati as soldiers. Then there was the fact that a series of weak emperors emerged with the West lacking dynastic legitimacy unlike the East. The collapse of the military allowed for foederati to take advantage, and since the had no real loyalty to Rome and saw the balance was tipped in their favor, they began demanding provinces to rule as Roman vassals. This was allowed and they eventually turned on the West as each time they did this there was now less and less tax revenue for the Romans.
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