Maximinus thrax biography for kids
Maximinus Thrax
Roman emperor from 235 to 238
Gaius Julius Verus Maximinus "Thrax" (c. 173 – 238) was a Roman emperor from 235 to 238. Born of Thracian origin – given the nickname Thrax ("the Thracian") – he rose up through the military ranks, ultimately holding high command in the army of the Rhine under Emperor Severus Alexander. After Severus was murdered in 235, he was proclaimed emperor by the army, beginning the Crisis of the Third Century, a 50-year period of instability and civil war. He is often remembered for his unusual height, although the veracity of this is disputed.
His father was an accountant in the governor's office. Maximinus was the commander of the Legio IV Italica when Severus Alexander was assassinated by his own troops in 235. The Pannonian army then elected Maximinus emperor.
In 238 (which came to be known as the Year of the Six Emperors), a senatorial revolt broke out, leading to the successive proclamation of Gordian I, Gordian II, Pupienus, Balbinus, and Gordian III as emperors in opposition to Maximinus. Maximinus advanced on Rome to put down the revolt, but was halted at Aquileia, where he was assassinated by disaffected elements of the Legio II Parthica.
Maximinus is described by several ancient sources, though only Herodian's Roman History is contemporary. He was a so-called barracks emperor of the 3rd century; his rule is often considered to mark the beginning of the Crisis of the Third Century. Maximinus was the first emperor who hailed neither from the senatorial class nor from the equestrian class.
Background
The names "GaiusJulius" suggest that his family acquired Roman citizenship during the reign of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, as freedmen and newly integrated Romans always adopted the names of their former masters. His exact birth date is unknown, but the Chronicon Paschale and the epitome of Joannes Zonaras, both written centuries later, record that he This page is a stub. It will be expanded to a full-fledged article. Maximinus Thrax: emperor of the Roman world (r. 235-238). Names: Nickname: Thrax, "the Thracian" (not recorded before the fourth century) Successor of:Severus Alexander Relatives: Succeeded by:Pupienus and Balbinus This page was created in 2006; last modified on 13 October 2020. This page is a stub. It will be expanded to a full-fledged article. DIR Atlas The first of the "soldier-emperors," Gaius Julius Verus Maximinus spent all three years of his reign on campaign. Although Rome's senatorial elite was eventually able to bring about the downfall of this non-aristocratic emperor, the victory was only a temporary check on the rising importance of the military in the third century. Maximinus was born around the year 173 in a village in Thrace (roughly modern Bulgaria and the European portion of Turkey). Little reliable evidence exists about his early life, and attempts to locate the village or scholarly claims that he was born outside of Thrace are not convincing. Stories circulated among contemporaries that his family were peasants and that growing up he worked as a shepherd. He was physically imposing as a young man and embarked on a career in the Roman army. His names recall those of Gaius Julius Maximinus, who was governor of the nearby province of Dacia (modern Romania) in 208 and under whom the future emperor may have served as a soldier and been granted Roman citizenship. The future emperor's career seems to have been spent in a long series of relatively minor military appointments until Severus Alexander's campaigns against the Persians, when Maximinus began to be entrusted with important responsibilities. As fighting flared up against the Germans on Rome's northern frontier, Maximinus was placed in charge of raising and training recruits. These young soldiers were fiercely loyal to Maximinus, whose four decades of harsh military service placed him in stark contrast to the tender, indecisive, twentysomething Alexander. The troops were ready to revolt, and Maximinus was ready to lead them. The mutiny came in early March 235 at the military headquarters along the Rhine near Mainz. Maximinus was proclaimed emperor. Alexander found himself deserted by his troo Author: Marian Vermeulen / “He called up informers and incited accusers, invented false offences, killed innocent men, condemned all whoever came to trial, reduced the richest men to utter poverty and never sought money anywhere save in some other’s ruin, put many generals and many men of consular rank to death for no offence, carried others about in waggons without food and drink,and kept others in confinement, in short neglected nothing which he thought might prove effectual for cruelty.” – Historia Augusta For centuries in the ancient world, kings were also expected to be front line warriors, leading their men into battle and earning their loyalty through their prowess on the battlefield. Yet the Romans embraced a more measured style of battlefield command, and while several emperors remained active generals, they were also more careful to insure their own safety for tactical reasons. Yet Maximinus Thrax, the first barbarian emperor of Rome and a giant of a man, returned to the warrior roots of the ancient world. An exceptional commander, he unfortunately soon found that an emperor requires political tact in additional to military talents. Maximinus was born around 173 A.D. close to the border of Thrace to common, barbarian parents. As a young man, barely even able to speak Latin, he presented himself before the Emperor Septimius Severus, requesting permission to compete in the military games that the emperor was holding to honor his youngest son, Geta. He was an exceptionally large man, the Historia Augusta even records one report that claims he as eight feet and six inches tall, and that his thumb was so large that he wore his wife-‘s bracelet on it instead of a ring. Impressed by Maximinus’s size and presence, Severus offered him several opponents, and after defeating sixteen, he was appointed to serve in the army. Two days later, Severus again encountered Maximinus, and when th Maximinus Thrax
Early career
Main deeds
Links:
Literature
Maximinus Thrax (235-238 A.D.)
Ohio State University First Barbarian Emperor of Rome
Entering the Service