Severus Alexander succeeded his slain cousin Elagabalus as Roman emperor in 222. At age 13, he was the youngest person to ever become emperor and lasted 13 years, the longest of a sole emperor since Antoninus Pius. His full birth name was Marcus Aurelius Severus Alexander and he was born in Phoenicia in 208. Alexander's mother was Julia Mamaea, his father was unknown. As Elagabalus had become unpopular due to his religious policies, Mamaea conspired to overthrow and have him assassinated so her son could be emperor instead.
Alexander was proclaimed emperor on March 13, 222 and confirmed by the Senate. Due to his young age, he was heavily influenced by his mother and grandmother Julie Maesa. The army eventually admired the youth for his simple lifestyle and good morals in contrast to Elagabalus. He improved government in Rome and cut down on lavish court festivities. Alexander also revalued the currency, reduced taxes, and promoted art and science. Loan offices were created for the people's benefit, handing out loans at moderate interest.The emperor was tolerant and open-minded on religious matters. He allowed the Jews to construct a synagogue in Rome and gifted it a Torah scroll known as the Severus Scroll. Alexander also passed several beneficial measures for the army, allowing soldiers to name anyone as a heir in their will and allowed them to free slaves in their wills. He protected their property rights while on campaign and forbade anyone else to claim a soldier's property while he was on campaign.
Despite this, the army's discipline lapsed considerably during his reign. In 228 the Praetorian prefect Ulpian was murdered and Alexander had the ringleader banished to a post in Egypt and then Crete. The soldiers then ransacked Rome for three days and the looting only ended after several parts of the city were set on fire. Cassius Dio claimed the soldiers had low morale and considered Alexander little more than a beardless boy completely under his mother's control, and that they had failed to win any significant victories on the battlefield. However, Herodian thought it was more because Alexander did not pay the army sufficient bonuses.The empire as a whole was prospering for much of his reign. In the east, the Parthian dynasty in Persia was replaced by the more nationalistic Sassanids, who went on the offensive. The Persian ruler Ardashir invaded the eastern provinces in 231, conquering Mesopotamia and possibly reaching as far as Syria. Alexander was forced to respond. Herodian claims the Roman legions lost several battles but the Historia Augusta and Alexander's own message to the Senate claimed he won every battle. Based in Antioch, he launched an invasion of the Sassanid Empire in 233 with three armies. One, which he commanded in person, marched on northern Mesopotamia, the second crossed through Armenia into Media, and the third advanced from the south in the direction of Babylon.
The northern army achieved some successes in the mountainous Armenian terrain, where the legions had an advantage, but the southern army was surrounded and destroyed by Persian cavalry, and Alexander's own command failed to accomplish anything and had to retreat due to poor discipline and an outbreak of disease. The northern army also suffered from winter weather late in the season. Nonetheless, Mesopotamia was taken and Ardashir could not extend his conquests, although his son Shapur would achieve success later on. The Roman army had nonetheless performed poorly and the Syrian legion mutinied in 232, proclaiming Taurinus emperor. Alexander suppressed the mutiny and Taurinus drowned trying to flee across the Euphrates. The emperor returned to Rome and celebrated a triumph in 233.In 234, hordes of barbarian tribes crossed the Rhine and Danube, causing panic as far as Rome. The soldiers were upset when their homes were destroyed by the invaders. Alexander prepared to meet this threat, even building a fleet of ships to transport the army across the Danube. Alexander, only 23, was not yet a skilled general and hoped the mere sight of his armies would intimidate the invaders. He tried to tighten army discipline, which provoked a large-scale mutiny in the ranks. At his mother's advice, he decided to offer the Germanic tribes a bribe. The army decided Alexander was a coward and unworthy to lead them. They rallied around Gaius Maximinus, a Thracian soldier who was well-liked and working hard to advance his military status.
In March 235, while Alexander was meeting with his generals at Mainz, the Legio XXII Primigenia mutinied and killed him along with his mother. The Senate deified him.
>>18766311Disclaimer: not saying I am proving anything, or that you are proving anything about the existence of God. However, *I* interpret things and God interprets things and you interpret things. And I interpret them to be in full support of my faith.Thanks, I read pretty much all of it. As a Christian, this stuff is so obviously extreme. It’s in the name. Rome. Like the term Ron means power, so did Rome mean strength, or power. In the computer game Elden Ring, the Redmanes serve Radahn, a General and a Demigod who is also the most powerful of all demigods. It was all about posturing just like the recent news about Trump being lured into war with Iran by Netanyahu when all we wanted was America first. And it reminds me of the british empire doing all of its posturing back in its day about who can control the Middle East so that white countries in Europe and now America can have peaceful homes without Demi humans invading by breeding and sending alien attack waves. I’m glad as a Christian I don’t have to think about murdering the president so that I can be the president and take action to procure my next family tree, but by believing in God through Jesus Christ, that is already blessed and received and it’s the girl who promised to marry me twice thirty three years apart.
>>18766311he tried, but the empire's problems were too much for him to deal with
>>18766313>he emperor was tolerant and open-minded on religious matters. He allowed the Jews to construct a synagogue in Rome and gifted it a Torah scroll known as the Severus Scrollhhhhhhere we go..
