Avidius Cassius

Avidius Cassius
Usurper of the Roman Empire
Reign April to July 175 AD
Born c. 130 AD
Cyrrhus, Syria
Died July 175 AD
Egypt / Syria
Spouse Volusia Vettia Maeciana
Issue Avidius Heliodorus, Avidius Maecianus, Avidia Alexandra
Full name

Gaius Avidius Cassius
(from birth to accession);
Imperator Caesar Gaius Avidius Cassius Augustus
(as emperor)

[1]
Father Gaius Avidius Heliodorus
Mother Julia Cassia Alexandra

Gaius Avidius Cassius (c. 130 – July 175 AD) was a Roman general and usurper who briefly ruled Egypt and Syria in 175.

Background

Gaius Avidius Cassius was the son of Gaius Avidius Heliodorus and Julia Cassia Alexandra. Heliodorus was a noted orator who also served as augustal prefect of Egypt from 137 to 142 AD under Hadrian.[2][3] Julia Cassia was the great-granddaughter of Junia Lepida, who was herself a great-great-granddaughter of the first Roman emperor Augustus. In addition to Augustus, Cassius' mother was also a descendant of Herod the Great through her father, Gaius Julius Alexander Berenicianus.

Cassius was born in the town of Cyrrhus in Syria,[4] although he once called Alexandria his 'paternal city'.[5] Though his parents were Roman citizens, Avidius Cassius was a descendant of the Roman client-king Antiochus IV Epiphanes of Commagene, who had been dethroned half a century before.[4][6] Thus, he counted inheritance from the Seleucid dynasty, which once ruled many eastern Roman provinces.

Early career

It is assumed that Cassius began his career during the reign of Antoninus Pius.[7] Possibly adlected as a quaestor in 154 AD,[8] it is assumed that the young vir militaris[9] was stationed in the final years of Pius’s reign as a legatus in one of the legions stationed along the Danube in Moesia Inferior, watching over the Sarmatians.[10] Certainly by 161 AD, he is noted as a legatus in the legions.[11]

He quickly came to prominence around 164 AD under the emperor Lucius Verus during the Parthian War, as the legatus of Legio III Gallica.[4] A strict disciplinarian,[12] in 165 he marched down the Euphrates and defeated the Parthians at Dura-Europos. By year’s end, Cassius had travelled to the south and crossed Mesopotamia at its narrowest point and proceeded to attack the twin Parthian cities on the Tigris river, Seleucia on the right bank, and Ctesiphon, the Parthian capital, on the left.[13] He captured Ctesiphon and burnt the palace of Vologases, and although Seleucia had opened its gates to the Romans, he destroyed it as well, claiming that the local population had broken their agreement.[13]

In dire need of supplies, and with his soldiers showing the first signs of having contracted the plague at Seleucia, he marched back to Syria with the spoils of the campaign. Sending details of his achievements to Rome, he was rewarded with elevation to the Senate, though the campaign's success was credited largely to his commander-in-chief, emperor Lucius Verus. The emperor, for his own part, is reported to have been an excellent commander, without fear of delegating military tasks to more competent generals.[14]

In May of 166 AD, Cassius was made suffect consul, a position he held outside of Rome.[15] During that year, he and Verus launched a new campaign against the Parthians, this time across the northern Tigris river, and into Media. There, rumours (ultimately false) reached Rome that Cassius had crossed the Indus River along with the Third Syrian legion.[16] By the end of 166, Cassius had been made imperial legate of the Roman province of Syria.[17]

In 172, Cassius suppressed a revolt of the Bucoli (or herdsmen) in Egypt that had broken out and was centered in the area of the Pentapolis of Middle Egypt due to an explosion in grain prices at the time.[2] His strategy was to divide the various tribespeople, but before he could enter Egypt, he had to be given special powers which gave him imperium over all the provinces of the east.[18]

Usurper

In 175 Cassius was proclaimed Roman emperor after the erroneous news of the death of Marcus Aurelius;[19][20] the sources also indicate he was encouraged by Marcus's wife Faustina, who was concerned about her husband's ill health, believing him to be on the verge of death, and felt the need for Cassius to act as a protector in this event, since her son Commodus, aged 13, was still young.[19][21] She also wanted someone who would act as a counter-weight to the claims of Tiberius Claudius Pompeianus, who was in a strong position to take the office of Princeps in the event of Marcus’s death.[22] The evidence, including Marcus's own Meditations, supports the idea that Marcus was indeed quite ill,[22] but by the time Marcus recovered, Cassius was already fully acclaimed by the Egyptian legion of II Traiana Fortis.

At first, according to Cassius Dio, Marcus, who was on campaign against tribes in the north, tried to keep the rebellion a secret from his soldiers,[23] but after the news had spread among them, he addressed them. In this speech that Dio attributes to Marcus, he laments the disloyalty of "a dearest friend", while at the same time expressing his hope that Cassius would not be killed or commit suicide, so that he could show mercy.[21] In the meantime, the Senate declared Cassius a public enemy.[22][20]

At the start of his rebellion, he was in a reasonable position. In his native Syria, and more broadly throughout the eastern provinces he had a good number of followers. They were inspired by a combination of his royal descent and his victories in the Parthian wars, as well as his suppression of the revolt of the Bucoli.[22] He also had ties through marriage to a large group of Lycian nobles. In terms of military resources, he had around seven legions – his three Syrian legions, plus two in Palestine, one in Arabia and one in Egypt, with the Prefect, Calvisius Statianus, joining his revolt.[12] It was in Egypt that Cassius made his base of operations, and it is known that Cassius was recognized as Emperor there by May 3, since a document of that date is recorded as being in the first year of Cassius's reign.[12] However, there is sufficient evidence to suggest that the beginning of his rebellion may well have been in April 175, or possibly even March.[12]

Although he seized control of some of the most vital parts of the Roman East — Egypt being an important source of grain for the city of Rome — Cassius failed to find widespread support for his rebellion.[12] The governor of Cappadocia, Publius Martius Verus, remained loyal to Marcus Aurelius, while Herodes Atticus was reported to have sent him a letter, containing one Greek word: emanes (‘you are mad’).[23] Rome was panicked by the news, forcing the Emperor to send Gaius Vettius Sabinianus Julius Hospes, the governor of Pannonia Inferior with a force to secure the city.[23] Yet it was soon clear that Marcus Aurelius was in a stronger position, with many more legions available to him than were available to Cassius.[24] "After a dream of empire lasting three months and six days", Cassius was murdered by a centurion;[25] his head was sent to Marcus Aurelius, who refused to see it and ordered it buried.[21] Egypt recognized Marcus as emperor again by July 28, 175.[25]

Marriage and children

Cassius was married to Volusia Vettia or Volusia Maeciana (c. 135 – aft. 175), daughter of Lucius Volusius Maecianus,[3] and had at least three children (the Historia Augusta implies he may have had more):[26]

Nerva–Antonine family tree

Nerva–Antonine family tree
Q. Marcius Barea SoranusQ. Marcius Barea SuraAntonia FurnillaM. Cocceius NervaSergia PlautillaP. Aelius Hadrianus
Titus
(r. 79–81)		Marcia FurnillaMarciaTrajanus PaterNerva
(r. 96–98)		Ulpia[lower-roman 1]Aelius Hadrianus Marullinus
Julia Flavia[lower-roman 2]Marciana[lower-roman 3]C. Salonius Matidius[lower-roman 4]Trajan
(r. 98–117)		PlotinaP. Acilius AttianusP. Aelius Afer[lower-roman 5]Paulina Major[lower-roman 6]
Lucius Mindius
(2)		Libo Rupilius Frugi
(3)		Matidia[lower-roman 7]L. Vibius Sabinus
(1)[lower-roman 8]
Paulina Minor[lower-roman 6]L. Julius Ursus Servianus[lower-roman 9]
Matidia Minor[lower-roman 7]Suetonius?[lower-roman 10]Sabina[lower-roman 3]Hadrian[lower-roman 5][lower-roman 11][lower-roman 6] (r. 117–138)Antinous[lower-roman 12]
Julia Balbilla?[lower-roman 13]C. Fuscus Salinator IJulia Serviana Paulina
M. Annius Verus[lower-roman 14]Rupilia Faustina[lower-roman 15]Boionia ProcillaCn. Arrius Antoninus
L. Ceionius CommodusAppia SeveraC. Fuscus Salinator II
L. Caesennius PaetusArria AntoninaArria Fadilla[lower-roman 16]T. Aurelius Fulvus
L. Caesennius AntoninusL. CommodusFundania Plautiaignota[lower-roman 17]C. Avidius Nigrinus
M. Annius Verus[lower-roman 15]Domitia Lucilla[lower-roman 18]Fundania[lower-roman 19]M. Annius Libo[lower-roman 15]FAUSTINA[lower-roman 16]Antoninus Pius
(r. 138–161)[lower-roman 16]		L. Aelius Caesar[lower-roman 17]Avidia Plautia[lower-roman 17]
Cornificia[lower-roman 15]MARCUS AURELIUS
(r. 161–180)[lower-roman 20]		FAUSTINA Minor[lower-roman 20]C. Avidius CassiusAurelia Fadilla[lower-roman 16]LUCIUS VERUS
(r. 161–169)[lower-roman 17]
(1)		Ceionia Fabia[lower-roman 17]Plautius Quintillus[lower-roman 21]Q. Servilius PudensCeionia Plautia[lower-roman 17]
Cornificia Minor[lower-roman 22]M. Petronius SuraCOMMODUS
(r. 177–192)[lower-roman 20]		Fadilla[lower-roman 22]M. Annius Verus Caesar[lower-roman 20]Ti. Claudius Pompeianus
(2)		Lucilla[lower-roman 20]M. Plautius Quintillus[lower-roman 17]Junius Licinius BalbusServilia Ceionia
Petronius AntoninusL. Aurelius Agaclytus
(2)		Aurelia Sabina[lower-roman 22]L. Antistius Burrus
(1)		Plautius QuintillusPlautia ServillaC. Furius Sabinus TimesitheusAntonia GordianaJunius Licinius Balbus
Furia Sabina TranquillinaGORDIAN III
(r. 238–244)
  • (1) = 1st spouse
  • (2) = 2nd spouse
  • (3) = 3rd spouse
  • Reddish purple indicates emperor of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty;
    lighter purple indicates designated imperial heir of said dynasty who never reigned;
    grey indicates unsuccessful imperial aspirants;
    bluish purple indicates emperors of other dynasties
  • dashed lines indicate adoption; dotted lines indicate love affairs/unmarried relationships
  • small caps = posthumously deified (Augusti, Augustae, or other)
Notes:

Except where otherwise noted, the notes below indicate that an individual's parentage is as shown in the above family tree.

  1. ↑ Sister of Trajan's father: Giacosa (1977), p. 7.
  2. ↑ Giacosa (1977), p. 8.
  3. 1 2 Levick (2014), p. 161.
  4. ↑ Husband of Ulpia Marciana: Levick (2014), p. 161.
  5. 1 2 Giacosa (1977), p. 7.
  6. 1 2 3 DIR contributor (Herbert W. Benario, 2000), "Hadrian".
  7. 1 2 Giacosa (1977), p. 9.
  8. ↑ Husband of Salonia Matidia: Levick (2014), p. 161.
  9. ↑ Smith (1870), "Julius Servianus".
  10. ↑ Suetonius a possible lover of Sabina: One interpretation of HA Hadrianus 11:3
  11. ↑ Smith (1870), "Hadrian", pp. 319–322.
  12. ↑ Lover of Hadrian: Lambert (1984), p. 99 and passim; deification: Lamber (1984), pp. 2-5, etc.
  13. ↑ Julia Balbilla a possible lover of Sabina: A. R. Birley (1997), Hadrian, the Restless Emperor, p. 251, cited in Levick (2014), p. 30, who is sceptical of this suggestion.
  14. ↑ Husband of Rupilia Faustina: Levick (2014), p. 163.
  15. 1 2 3 4 Levick (2014), p. 163.
  16. 1 2 3 4 Levick (2014), p. 162.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Levick (2014), p. 164.
  18. ↑ Wife of M. Annius Verus: Giacosa (1977), p. 10.
  19. ↑ Wife of M. Annius Libo: Levick (2014), p. 163.
  20. 1 2 3 4 5 Giacosa (1977), p. 10.
  21. ↑ Husband of Ceionia Fabia: Levick (2014), p. 164.
  22. 1 2 3 Levick (2014), p. 117.
References:

References

  1. ↑ Bowman, Alan K.; Peter Garnsey; Dominic Rathbone (2000). The Cambridge Ancient History: The High Empire, A.D. 70-192. Cambridge University Press. p. 177. ISBN 978-0521263351.
  2. 1 2 Smith 1870, p. 626.
  3. 1 2 Astarita 1983, p. 27.
  4. 1 2 3 Birley 2001, p. 130.
  5. ↑ Millar, Fergus (1995). The Roman Near East, 31 B.C.-A.D. 337. Harvard University Press. p. 116. ISBN 978-0-674-77886-3.
  6. ↑ Astarita 1983, p. 18.
  7. ↑ Astarita 1983, p. 31.
  8. ↑ Astarita 1983, p. 34.
  9. ↑ Astarita 1983, p. 33.
  10. ↑ Astarita 1983, p. 38.
  11. ↑ Astarita 1983, p. 32.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 Birley 2001, p. 186.
  13. 1 2 Birley 2001, p. 140.
  14. ↑ Birley 2001, p. 141.
  15. ↑ Birley 2001, p. 142.
  16. ↑ Birley 2001, p. 144.
  17. ↑ Birley 2001, p. 145.
  18. ↑ Birley 2001, p. 174.
  19. 1 2 Birley 2001, p. 184.
  20. 1 2 Canduci 2010, p. 44.
  21. 1 2 3 Smith 1870, p. 441.
  22. 1 2 3 4 Birley 2001, p. 185.
  23. 1 2 3 Birley 2001, p. 187.
  24. ↑ Birley 2001, p. 188.
  25. 1 2 Birley 2001, p. 189.
  26. ↑ Astarita 1983, p. 26.
  27. 1 2 3 Birley 2001, p. 191.

Sources

Ancient Sources

Modern Sources

External links

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