Valentinian III, Western Roman Emperor

Valentinian III (425-455 A.D)

Ralph W. Mathisen University of South Carolina

Valentinian's Early Years

Placidus Valentinianus, later the emperor Valentinian III, was born in 419, the son of the emperor Honorius' sister Galla Placidia and the patrician, later emperor, Constantius . He was the brother of Justa Grata Honoria . In the early 420s he was proclaimed Most Noble (Nobilissimus ) by his uncle Honorius , but neither this title nor his father's emperorship were initially recognized in the east. After his mother's falling out with Honorius , the young Valentinian accompanied her and his sister to exile at the court of his cousin Theodosius II (402-450) at Constantinople. The eastern attitude toward Valentinian changed in 423, when the usurper Johannes seized power in the west. Valentinian was first reaffirmed as Nobilissimus in 423/424, and then was named Caesar (junior emperor) in 424. In the same year he was betrothed to his cousin Licinia Eudoxia , the daughter of Theodosius II . In 425 he was proclaimed Augustus at Rome after the defeat of Johannes , and in 437 he returned to Constantinople for his marriage. A partially extant poem in honor of the nuptials was written by the poet Merobaudes.

Valentinian's Reign

In the early years of his reign, Valentinian was overshadowed by his mother. After his marriage in 437, moreover, much of the real authority lay in the hands of the Patrician and Master of Soldiers Aetius. Nor does Valentinian seem to have had much of an aptitude for rule. He is described as spoiled, pleasure-loving, and influenced by sorcerers and astrologers. He divided his time primarily between Rome and Ravenna. Like his mother, Valentinian was devoted to religion. He contributed to churches of St. Laurence in both Rome and Ravenna. He also oversaw the accumulation of ecclesiastical authority in the hands of the bishop of Rome as he granted ever greater authority and prestige to pope Leo the Great (440-461) in particular.

Valentinian's Death

Valentinian's reign saw the continued dissolution of the western empire. By 439, nearly all of North Africa was effectively lost to the Vandals; Valentinian did attempt to neutralize that threat by betrothing his sister Placidia to the Vandal prince Huneric. In Spain, the Suevi controlled the northwest, and much of Gaul was to all intents and purposes controlled by groups of Visigoths, Burgundians, Franks, and Alans. In 454, Valentinian murdered his supreme general Aetius, presumably in an attempt to rule in his own right. But in the next year, he himself was murdered by two members of his bodyguard, ex-partisans of Aetius.

Although Valentinian was ineffectual as a ruler, his legitimate status and connection to the old ruling dynasty provided a last vestige of unity for the increasingly fragmented Roman empire. After his death, the decay of the west accelerated. The different regions of the west went their own way, and the last several western emperors, the so-called "Shadow" or "Puppet" Emperors, not only were usually overshadowed by one barbarian general or other, but also were limited primarily to Italy.

Bibliography:

Editions:

Primary sources: For legislation issued by Valentinian, see the Constitutiones sirmondinianae and the Novella Valentiniani published in the Codex Theodosianus , see also the Codex Justinianus .

Critical Studies:

Barnes, Timothy D. "Patricii Under Valentinian III." Phoenix 29(1975): 155-170

Ensslin, Wilhelm "Valentinians III. Novellen XVII und VIII von 445." Zeitschrift der Savigny-Stiftung für Rechtsgeschichte, Römanistische Abteilung 57(1937): 367-378

Musumeci, Anna Maria, "La politica ecclesiastica di Valentiniano III." Siculorum gymnasium 30 ns(1977): 431-481.

Selb, Walter, "Episcopalis audientia von der Zeit Konstantins bis zur Nov. XXXV Valentinians III." Zeitschrift der Savigny-Stiftung für Rechtsgeschichte, Römanistische Abteilung 84(1967): 162-217.

Copyright (C) 1996, Ralph W. Mathisen. This file may be copied on the condition that the entire contents,including the header and this copyright notice, remain intact. Spouses

1Eudoxia Birth422 Deathabt 462, Constantinople FatherTheodosius II Emperor of Constantinople (401-450) MotherAnthenais Eudocia (401-460) ChildrenEudoxia (~450-484)

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Flavius Placidus Valentinianus (July 2, 419 – March 16, 455), known in English as Valentinian III, was among the last Western Roman Emperors (425-455).

Valentinian was born in the western capital of Ravenna in 419. He was the only son of Galla Placidia and Flavius Constantius. The former was the younger half-sister of the western emperor Honorius, and the latter was at the time Patrician and the power behind the throne.

Through his mother, Valentinian was a descendent both of Theodosius I, who was his maternal grandfather, and of Valentinian I, who was the father of his maternal grandmother. It was also through his maternal side that he was the nephew of Honorius and first cousin to Theodosius II, who was eastern emperor throughout Valentianian's entire life; Theodosius II was the son of Honorius' brother Arcadius. Valentinian had a full sister, Justa Grata Honoria, who was probably born in 417 or 418 (the history of Paul the Deacon mentions her first when mentioning the children of the marriage, suggesting she was the eldest[1]). His mother had previously been married to Ataulf of the Visigoths, and had borne a son, Theodosius, in Barcelona in 414; but the child had died early in the following year, thus eliminating an opportunity for a Romano-Visigothic line.[2][3]

When Valentinian was less than two years old, Honorius appointed Constantius co-emperor, a dignity he would hold until his death seven months later. As a result of all these family ties, Valentinian was the son, grandson, great-grandson, cousin, and nephew (twice over) of Roman Emperors. [edit] Reign

After the death of his father in 421, Valentinian followed his mother and his sister (Justa Grata Honoria) to Constantinople, when Galla Placidia broke with her half-brother, Emperor Honorius, and went to live at the court of Theodosius II.

In 423, Honorius died, and the usurper Joannes took the power in Rome. To counter this menace, Theodosius nominated Valentinian Caesar of the west (October 23, 424), and betrothed him to his own daughter Licinia Eudoxia (Valentinian would marry her in 437). In 425, after Joannes had been defeated in war, Valentinian was installed Western Emperor in Rome, on October 23, at the age of six.

Given his minority, the new Augustus ruled under the control first of his mother, and then, after 433, of the Magister militum Flavius Aëtius. Valentinian's reign is marked by the dismemberment of the Western Empire; the conquest of the province of Africa by the Vandals in 439; the loss of great portions of Spain and Gaul, in which the barbarians had established themselves; and the ravaging of Sicily and of the western coasts of the Mediterranean Sea by the fleets of Geiseric.

As an off-set against these calamities, there was the great victory of Roman general Aëtius over Attila the Hun in 451 near Chalons. Aëtius had also campaigned successfully against the Visigoths in southern Gaul (426, 429, 436), and against various invaders on the Rhine and Danube (428-431).

The burden of taxation became more and more intolerable as the power of Rome decreased, and the loyalty of its remaining provinces was seriously impaired in consequence. Ravenna was Valentinian's usual residence; but he fled to Rome on the approach of Attila, who, after ravaging the north of Italy, died in the following year (453).

In 454 Aëtius, whose son had married a daughter of the emperor, was treacherously murdered by Valentinian. On March 16 of the following year, however, the emperor himself was assassinated in Rome, by two of the barbarian followers of Aëtius. These retainers may have been put up to the act by Petronius Maximus, a wealthy senator who the following day March 17 had himself proclaimed emperor by the remnants of the Western Roman army after the paying of a large donative. He was not as prepared as he thought to take over and restabilize the depleted empire, however; after a reign of eleven weeks, Maximus was murdered by a Roman mob. King Gaiseric and his Vandals captured Rome a few days later and sacked it for two weeks.

Valentinian not only lacked the ability to govern the empire in a time of crisis, but aggravated its dangers by his self-indulgence and vindictiveness. [edit] In literature

Valentinian III was dramatized by John Fletcher in his play Valentinian, c. 1612 (published 1647).

He also appears in Handel's 1731 opera Ezio, based on a libretto by Metastasio. [edit] References

  1. ^ Profile of Constantius III in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley

  2. ^ Profile of Ataulf in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley

  3. ^ Ralph W. Mathisen, "Galla Placidia"

[edit] Primary sources

   * Prosper Chronicles

   * Jordanes, Gothic History

   * Sidonius Apollinaris

Secondary sources

   * Oost, Galla Placidia Augusta, University Press, Chicago, 1968.

   * Jones, A.H.M., The Later Roman Empire A.D. 284-602, Volume One. Johns Hopkins University Press, Baltimore, 1986.

   * Elia, Fibronia, Valentiniano III, CULC, Catania, 1999.

   * This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

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Valentinian's Early Years

Placidus Valentinianus, later the emperor Valentinian III, was born in 419, the son of the emperor Honorius' sister Galla Placidia and the patrician, later emperor, Constantius . He was the brother of Justa Grata Honoria . In the early 420s he was proclaimed Most Noble (Nobilissimus ) by his uncle Honorius , but neither this title nor his father's emperorship were initially recognized in the east. After his mother's falling out with Honorius , the young Valentinian accompanied her and his sister to exile at the court of his cousin Theodosius II (402-450) at Constantinople. The eastern attitude toward Valentinian changed in 423, when the usurper Johannes seized power in the west. Valentinian was first reaffirmed as Nobilissimus in 423/424, and then was named Caesar (junior emperor) in 424. In the same year he was betrothed to his cousin Licinia Eudoxia , the daughter of Theodosius II . In 425 he was proclaimed Augustus at Rome after the defeat of Johannes , and in 437 he returned to Constantinople for his marriage. A partially extant poem in honor of the nuptials was written by the poet Merobaudes.

Valentinian's Reign

In the early years of his reign, Valentinian was overshadowed by his mother. After his marriage in 437, moreover, much of the real authority lay in the hands of the Patrician and Master of Soldiers Aetius. Nor does Valentinian seem to have had much of an aptitude for rule. He is described as spoiled, pleasure-loving, and influenced by sorcerers and astrologers. He divided his time primarily between Rome and Ravenna. Like his mother, Valentinian was devoted to religion. He contributed to churches of St. Laurence in both Rome and Ravenna. He also oversaw the accumulation of ecclesiastical authority in the hands of the bishop of Rome as he granted ever greater authority and prestige to pope Leo the Great (440-461) in particular.

Valentinian's Death

Valentinian's reign saw the continued dissolution of the western empire. By 439, nearly all of North Africa was effectively lost to the Vandals; Valentinian did attempt to neutralize that threat by betrothing his sister Placidia to the Vandal prince Huneric. In Spain, the Suevi controlled the northwest, and much of Gaul was to all intents and purposes controlled by groups of Visigoths, Burgundians, Franks, and Alans. In 454, Valentinian murdered his supreme general Aetius, presumably in an attempt to rule in his own right. But in the next year, he himself was murdered by two members of his bodyguard, ex-partisans of Aetius.

Although Valentinian was ineffectual as a ruler, his legitimate status and connection to the old ruling dynasty provided a last vestige of unity for the increasingly fragmented Roman empire. After his death, the decay of the west accelerated. The different regions of the west went their own way, and the last several western emperors, the so-called "Shadow" or "Puppet" Emperors, not only were usually overshadowed by one barbarian general or other, but also were limited primarily to Italy.

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ID: I11600 Name: Flavius Valentinian III of Rome Prefix: Emperor Given Name: Flavius Valentinian III Surname: of Rome Sex: M _UID: D43E33CA201FD811BE490080C8C142CC55EE Change Date: 18 Oct 2005 Note: Valentinian III (419-455), Western Roman emperor (425-455). He was put on the throne under the regency of his mother by Theodosius II, Roman emperor of the East. Valentinian was weak; from 433 to 454 his general Flavius Aetius was the actual ruler. During his reign, much of the Western Empire was ravaged by invaders; Africa was seized (429) by Gaiseric, king of the Vandals, and the Danubian provinces, Gaul, and Italy were overrun (441) by Attila, king of the Huns. Aetius won a great victory over Attila in 451 at Châlons-sur-Marne (modern Châlons-en-Champagne), Gaul. Valentinian killed Aetius in 454 but was murdered the following year by two of the general's supporters.

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Valentinian III (July 2, 419, Ravenna - March 16, 455, Rome), Roman emperor (424 to 455). He was born as the only son of Constantius and Placidia, daughter of the great Theodosius. He was elevated as Caesar on October 23, 424 in Constantinople, and after a brief war in Italy, was installed as Emperor of the West in Rome on October 23, 425.

He was only six years of age when he received the title of Augustus, and during his minority the conduct of affairs was in the hands of first his mother, then after 433, Aetius. His reign is marked by the dismemberment of the Western Empire; the conquest of the province of Africa by the Vandals in 439; the final abandonment of Britain in 446; the loss of great portions of Spain and Gaul, in which the barbarians had established themselves; and the ravaging of Sicily and of the western coasts of the Mediterranean by the fleets of Genseric.

As a set-off against these calamities there was the great victory of Aetius over Attila in 451 near Chalons, and his successful campaigns against the Visigoths in southern Gaul (426, 429, 436), and against various invaders on the Rhine and Danube (428-31).

The burden of taxation became more and more intolerable as the power of Rome decreased, and the loyalty of her remaining provinces was seriously impaired in consequence. Ravenna was Valentinian's usual residence; but he fled to Rome on the approach of Attila, who, after ravaging the north of Italy, died in the following year (453).

In 454 Aetius, between whose son and a daughter of the emperor a marriage had been arranged, was treacherously murdered by Valentinian. On March 16 of the following year, however, the emperor himself was assassinated by two of the barbarian followers of Aetius. He not merely lacked the ability to govern the empire in a time of crisis, but aggravated its dangers by his self-indulgence and vindictiveness.

Our chief original sources for the reign of Valentinian III are Prosper's Chronicles, Jordanes whose Gothic History was written in the 6th century, and the poet Sidonius Apollinaris. Birth: 2 JUL 419 in Ravenna, Italy Death: of murdered 16 MAR 454/55 in Campus Martius, Rome, Italy

Father: Constantine III Gratianus of Rome b: ABT 361 Mother: Galla Placida of Rome b: ABT 363

Marriage 1 Lucinia Eudoxia of Constantinople b: ABT 422 in Constantinople, Byzantine Empire Married: 29 OCT 437 in Constantinople, Byzantine Empire Children

Lucina Eudoxia b: 440

Placidia of Rome b: ABT 440

Forrás / Source: http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=jdp-fam&i...

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ID: I11608 Name: Flavius Julius II Given Name: Flavius Julius II Sex: M _UID: DC3E33CA201FD811BE490080C8C142CC5D6E Change Date: 3 Dec 2005 Death: Y Father: Constantine III Gratianus of Rome b: ABT 361 Mother: Galla Placida of Rome b: ABT 363

Forrás / Source: http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=jdp-fam&i...

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentinian_III

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Valentinian III From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search Valentinian III Emperor of the Western Roman Empire

Solidus minted in Thessalonica to celebrate Valentinian III's marriage to Licinia Eudoxia, daughter of the Eastern Emperor Theodosius II. On the reverse, the three of them in their wedding costume. Reign 423-424 (Caesar in the west); 425 - 16 March 455 (emperor in the west) Full name Flavius Placidius Valentinianus Born 2 July 419(419-07-02)

Ravenna  Died 16 March 455 (aged 35)  Predecessor Honorius  Successor Petronius Maximus  Wife/wives Licinia Eudoxia  Issue Two daughters, Eudocia and Placidia, married to Huneric and Olybrius  Dynasty Valentinian  Father Constantius III  Mother Galla Placidia  Flavius Placidius Valentinianus (July 2, 419 – March 16, 455), known in English as Valentinian III, was among the last Western Roman Emperors (425-455).

Contents [hide] 1 Life 2 In literature 3 References 3.1 Primary sources 3.2 Secondary sources 4 External links

[edit] Life Born in the western capital of Ravenna, Valentinian was the only son of later Emperor Constantius III and Galla Placidia, daughter of the Emperor Theodosius I and granddaughter of Emperor Valentinian I. After the death of his father (421), he followed his mother and his sister (Justa Grata Honoria) to Constantinople, when Galla broke with her brother, Emperor Honorius, and went to live at the court of Theodosius II.

In 423, Honorius died, and the usurper Joannes took the power in Rome. To counter this menace, Theodosius nominated Valentinian Caesar of the west (October 23, 424), and betrothed him to his own daughter Licinia Eudoxia (Valentinian would marry her in 437). In 425, after Joannes had been defeated in war, Valentinian was installed Western Emperor in Rome, on October 23, at the age of six.

Given his minority, the new Augustus ruled under the control first of his mother, and then, after 433, of the Magister militum Flavius Aëtius. Valentinian's reign is marked by the dismemberment of the Western Empire; the conquest of the province of Africa by the Vandals in 439; the final abandonment of Britain in 446; the loss of great portions of Spain and Gaul, in which the barbarians had established themselves; and the ravaging of Sicily and of the western coasts of the Mediterranean Sea by the fleets of Gaiseric.

As an off-set against these calamities, there was the great victory of Aëtius over Attila the Hun in 451 near Chalons, and his successful campaigns against the Visigoths in southern Gaul (426, 429, 436), and against various invaders on the Rhine and Danube (428-431).

The burden of taxation became more and more intolerable as the power of Rome decreased, and the loyalty of its remaining provinces was seriously impaired in consequence. Ravenna was Valentinian's usual residence; but he fled to Rome on the approach of Attila, who, after ravaging the north of Italy, died in the following year (453).

In 454 Aëtius, whose son had married a daughter of the emperor, was treacherously murdered by Valentinian. On March 16 of the following year, however, the emperor himself was assassinated in Rome, by two of the barbarian followers of Aëtius. These retainers may have been put up to the act by Petronius Maximus, a wealthy senator who the following day March 17 had himself proclaimed emperor by the remnants of the Western Roman army after the paying of a large donative. He was not as prepared as he thought to take over and restabilize the depleted empire, however; after a reign of eleven weeks, Maximus was murdered by a Roman mob. King Gaiseric and his Vandals captured Rome a few days later and sacked it for two weeks.

Valentinian not only lacked the ability to govern the empire in a time of crisis, but aggravated its dangers by his self-indulgence and vindictiveness.

[edit] In literature Valentinian III was dramatized by John Fletcher in his play Valentinian, c. 1612 (published 1647).

[edit] References

[edit] Primary sources Prosper Chronicles Jordanes, Gothic History Sidonius Apollinaris

[edit] Secondary sources Mathisen, Ralph, "Valentinian III", De Imperatoribus Romanis. Oost, Galla Placidia Augusta, University Press, Chicago, 1968. Jones, A.H.M., The Later Roman Empire A.D. 284-602, Volume One. Johns Hopkins Unbiversity Press, Baltimore, 1986. This article incorporates text from the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition, a publication now in the public domain.

[edit] External links

Media related to Valentinian III from the Wikimedia Commons.  Preceded by Honorius Western Roman Emperor 425–455 Succeeded by Petronius Maximus 

Reference: http://familytrees.genopro.com/318186/jarleslekt/default.htm?page=t...

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    Born in the western capital of Ravenna, Valentinian was the only son of later Emperor Constantius III and Galla Placidia. He had an older, maternal half-brother by the first marriage of Placidia to Ataulf of the Visigoths. Theodosius, his half-brother, was born in Barcelona by the end of 414. Theodosius died early in the following year, thus eliminating an opportunity for a Romano-Visigothic lineValentinian also had a full sister, Justa Grata Honoria. She was probably born in 417 or 418. The history of Paul the Deacon mentions her first when mentioning the children of the marriage, suggesting she was the eldest.

Placidia was the daughter of Roman Emperor Theodosius I and his second wife Galla. Her older brother Gratian died young. Her mother died in childbirth in 394, giving birth to John, who died with their mother. Placidia was a younger, paternal half-sister of Emperors Arcadius and Honorius. Her older half-sister Pulcheria predeceased her parents as mentioned in the writings of Gregory of Nyssa, placing the death of Pulcheria prior to the death of Aelia Flaccilla, first wife of Theodosius I, in 385.Her paternal grandparents were Count Theodosius and his wife Thermantia, as mentioned in the "Historia Romana" by Paul the Deacon. Her maternal grandparents were Valentinian I and his second wife Justina, as mentioned by Jordanes
After the death of his father (421), he followed his mother and his sister (Justa Grata Honoria) to Constantinople, when Galla broke with her half-brother, Emperor Honorius, and went to live at the court of Theodosius II.
In 423, Honorius died, and the usurper Joannes took the power in Rome. To counter this menace, Theodosius nominated Valentinian Caesar of the west (October 23, 424), and betrothed him to his own daughter Licinia Eudoxia (Valentinian would marry her in 437). In 425, after Joannes had been defeated in war, Valentinian was installed Western Emperor in Rome, on October 23, at the age of six.
Given his minority, the new Augustus ruled under the control first of his mother, and then, after 433, of the Magister militum Flavius Aëtius. Valentinian's reign is marked by the dismemberment of the Western Empire; the conquest of the province of Africa by the Vandals in 439; the final abandonment of Britain in 446; the loss of great portions of Spain and Gaul, in which the barbarians had established themselves; and the ravaging of Sicily and of the western coasts of the Mediterranean Sea by the fleets of Geiseric.
As an off-set against these calamities, there was the great victory of Roman general Aëtius over Attila the Hun in 451 near Chalons. Aëtius had also campaigned successfully against the Visigoths in southern Gaul (426, 429, 436), and against various invaders on the Rhine and Danube (428-431).
The burden of taxation became more and more intolerable as the power of Rome decreased, and the loyalty of its remaining provinces was seriously impaired in consequence. Ravenna was Valentinian's usual residence; but he fled to Rome on the approach of Attila, who, after ravaging the north of Italy, died in the following year (453).
In 454 Aëtius, whose son had married a daughter of the emperor, was treacherously murdered by Valentinian. On March 16 of the following year, however, the emperor himself was assassinated in Rome, by two of the barbarian followers of Aëtius. These retainers may have been put up to the act by Petronius Maximus, a wealthy senator who the following day March 17 had himself proclaimed emperor by the remnants of the Western Roman army after the paying of a large donative. He was not as prepared as he thought to take over and restabilize the depleted empire, however; after a reign of eleven weeks, Maximus was murdered by a Roman mob. King Gaiseric and his Vandals captured Rome a few days later and sacked it for two weeks.
Valentinian not only lacked the ability to govern the empire in a time of crisis, but aggravated its dangers by his self-indulgence and vindictiveness.

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Western Roman Emperor 425-455

In 425, Valentinian was placed on the Western imperial throne under the regency of his mother by the Eastern Roman Emperor Theodosius II. Valentinian was a weak ruler, at first controlled by his mother and later by the powerful general Flavius Ætius. During his reign, the Western Empire was ravaged: in Africa by the Vandal king Genseric in 429, and in the Danubian provinces, Gaul, and Italy, by Attila, King of the Huns in 441. In 451, Ætius won a major victory over Attila at Chalons-sur-Marne, Gaul. In 454, Valentinian had Ætius killed, however 2 of the generals supporters killed Valentinian the next year.

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http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~pmcbride/james/f005.htm#I326X1

Valentinian III was clothed with imperial robes in Ravenna in 425. He died in 455. He fought against and bribed Attila, the Hun. He married as her first husband Licinia Eudoxia, daughter of Theodosius II., Emperor of the east (408-450) and his wife, Eudocia, who died in 454. Vanentinian and Eudoxia had two daughters as follows:

* 1. Eudoxia. See below.
* 2. Placida, married Anicius Olybrius, Emperor (472).

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Valentinian III (425-455 A.D)

Ralph W. Mathisen

University of South Carolina

Valentinian's Early Years

Placidus Valentinianus, later the emperor Valentinian III, was born in 419, the son of the emperor Honorius' sister Galla Placidia and the patrician, later emperor, Constantius . He was the brother of Justa Grata Honoria . In the early 420s he was proclaimed Most Noble (Nobilissimus ) by his uncle Honorius , but neither this title nor his father's emperorship were initially recognized in the east. After his mother's falling out with Honorius , the young Valentinian accompanied her and his sister to exile at the court of his cousin Theodosius II (402-450) at Constantinople. The eastern attitude toward Valentinian changed in 423, when the usurper Johannes seized power in the west. Valentinian was first reaffirmed as Nobilissimus in 423/424, and then was named Caesar (junior emperor) in 424. In the same year he was betrothed to his cousin Licinia Eudoxia , the daughter of Theodosius II . In 425 he was proclaimed Augustus at Rome after the defeat of Johannes , and in 437 he returned to Constantinople for his marriage. A partially extant poem in honor of the nuptials was written by the poet Merobaudes.

Valentinian's Reign

In the early years of his reign, Valentinian was overshadowed by his mother. After his marriage in 437, moreover, much of the real authority lay in the hands of the Patrician and Master of Soldiers Aetius. Nor does Valentinian seem to have had much of an aptitude for rule. He is described as spoiled, pleasure-loving, and influenced by sorcerers and astrologers. He divided his time primarily between Rome and Ravenna. Like his mother, Valentinian was devoted to religion. He contributed to churches of St. Laurence in both Rome and Ravenna. He also oversaw the accumulation of ecclesiastical authority in the hands of the bishop of Rome as he granted ever greater authority and prestige to pope Leo the Great (440-461) in particular.

Valentinian's Death

Valentinian's reign saw the continued dissolution of the western empire. By 439, nearly all of North Africa was effectively lost to the Vandals; Valentinian did attempt to neutralize that threat by betrothing his sister Placidia to the Vandal prince Huneric. In Spain, the Suevi controlled the northwest, and much of Gaul was to all intents and purposes controlled by groups of Visigoths, Burgundians, Franks, and Alans. In 454, Valentinian murdered his supreme general Aetius, presumably in an attempt to rule in his own right. But in the next year, he himself was murdered by two members of his bodyguard, ex-partisans of Aetius.

Although Valentinian was ineffectual as a ruler, his legitimate status and connection to the old ruling dynasty provided a last vestige of unity for the increasingly fragmented Roman empire. After his death, the decay of the west accelerated. The different regions of the west went their own way, and the last several western emperors, the so-called "Shadow" or "Puppet" Emperors, not only were usually overshadowed by one barbarian general or other, but also were limited primarily to Italy.

Bibliography:

Editions:

Primary sources: For legislation issued by Valentinian, see the Constitutiones sirmondinianae and the Novella Valentiniani published in the Codex Theodosianus , see also the Codex Justinianus .

Critical Studies:

Barnes, Timothy D. "Patricii Under Valentinian III." Phoenix 29(1975): 155-170

Ensslin, Wilhelm "Valentinians III. Novellen XVII und VIII von 445." Zeitschrift der Savigny-Stiftung für Rechtsgeschichte, Römanistische Abteilung 57(1937): 367-378

Musumeci, Anna Maria, "La politica ecclesiastica di Valentiniano III." Siculorum gymnasium 30 ns(1977): 431-481.

Selb, Walter, "Episcopalis audientia von der Zeit Konstantins bis zur Nov. XXXV Valentinians III." Zeitschrift der Savigny-Stiftung für Rechtsgeschichte, Römanistische Abteilung 84(1967): 162-217.

Copyright (C) 1996, Ralph W. Mathisen. This file may be copied on the condition that the entire contents,including the header and this copyright notice, remain intact.

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BIOGRAPHY: b. July 2, 419, Ravenna

d. March 16, 455, Rome

Latin in full FLAVIUS PLACIDIUS VALENTINIANUS , Roman emperor from 425 to 455. At no time in his long reign were the affairs of state personally managed by Valentinian. He was the son of the patrician Flavius Constantius (who ruled as Constantius III in 421) and Galla Placidia. When his uncle, the emperor Honorius, died in 423, the usurper John ruled for two years before he was deposed. Then Placidia controlled the West in her young son's name until 437, although the powerful patrician Aetius became the effective ruler toward the end of this regency. The most important political event of these years was the landing of the Vandals in Africa in 429; 10 years later they threw off the overlordship of Valentinian's government.

On Oct. 29, 437, Valentinian married Licinia Eudoxia, the daughter of Theodosius II (Eastern emperor, 408-450) and Eudocia. Little is known of Valentinian in the years after his marriage. He spent his life in the pursuit of pleasure while Aetius controlled the government. In 444 Valentinian, acting in conjunction with Pope Leo I the Great, issued the famous Novel 17, which assigned to the bishop of Rome supremacy over the provincial churches. The most important political events of the closing years of his reign were the Hun invasions of Gaul (451) and of northern Italy (452), but it is not known whether Valentinian personally played any significant part in meeting these crises.

As a result of false information that made him doubt Aetius' loyalty, Valentinian murdered the great patrician with his own hands in the imperial palace at Rome on Sept. 21, 454. The following year, two barbarians, Optila and Thraustila, who had been retainers of Aetius, avenged their master by murdering the Emperor in the Campus Martius.

Copyright © 1994-2001 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

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Occupation: Emperor of Rome

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Empereur de Byzantium -

Keizer van Byzantium -

Emperor of Byzantium

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BIOGRAPHY: b. July 2, 419, Ravenna

d. March 16, 455, Rome

Latin in full FLAVIUS PLACIDIUS VALENTINIANUS , Roman emperor from 425 to 455. At no time in his long reign were the affairs of state personally managed by Valentinian. He was the son of the patrician Flavius Constantius (who ruled as Constantius III in 421) and Galla Placidia. When his uncle, the emperor Honorius, died in 423, the usurper John ruled for two years before he was deposed. Then Placidia controlled the West in her young son's name until 437, although the powerful patrician Aetius became the effective ruler toward the end of this regency. The most important political event of these years was the landing of the Vandals in Africa in 429; 10 years later they threw off the overlordship of Valentinian's government.

On Oct. 29, 437, Valentinian married Licinia Eudoxia, the daughter of Theodosius II (Eastern emperor, 408-450) and Eudocia. Little is known of Valentinian in the years after his marriage. He spent his life in the pursuit of pleasure while Aetius controlled the government. In 444 Valentinian, acting in conjunction with Pope Leo I the Great, issued the famous Novel 17, which assigned to the bishop of Rome supremacy over the provincial churches. The most important political events of the closing years of his reign were the Hun invasions of Gaul (451) and of northern Italy (452), but it is not known whether Valentinian personally played any significant part in meeting these crises.

As a result of false information that made him doubt Aetius' loyalty, Valentinian murdered the great patrician with his own hands in the imperial palace at Rome on Sept. 21, 454. The following year, two barbarians, Optila and Thraustila, who had been retainers of Aetius, avenged their master by murdering the Emperor in the Campus Martius.

Copyright © 1994-2001 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.

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Bio at WikipediaHe was put on the throne under the regency of his mother by Theodosius II, Roman emperor of the East (401-50). Valentinian was weak; from 433 to 454 his general Flavius Aetius (396?-454) was the actual ruler. During his reign, much of the Western Empire was ravaged by invaders; Africa was seized (429) by Gaiseric, king of the Vandals, and the Danubian provinces, Gaul, and Italy were overrun (441) by Attila, king of the Huns. Aetius won a great victory over Attila in 451 at Chalons-sur-Marne, Gaul. Valentinian killed Aetius in 454 but was murdered the following year by two of the general's supporters. --Other Fields Ref Number: + EVEN: Reigned Date: 425/455

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Valentinian III was born in AD 419, the son of Constantius III and Aelia Galla Placidia, who was the half-sister of Honorius.

With Honorius having no children of his own, he proclaimed Valentinian III his heir (AD 421 or shortly after). Though in AD 423, when Placidia fled from the court of Honorius due to his advances toward her, she took the young Valentinian III and her daughter with her. They took refuge at the court of Theodosius II at Constantinople.

Honorius died later in AD 423 and, with the heir apparent absent, his throne was usurped by John, a civil servant who was manoeuvered into position by Castinus, the powerful 'Master of Soldiers' of the west, who was an enemy of Placidia.

Theodosius II, opposed to the usurper, now belatedly recognized Constantius III (who had died in AD 421) as Augustus, in order to champion the cause of Valentinian III. The young Valentinian III, in preparation for his taking the western throne, was elevated to the rank of Caesar in Thessalonica in AD 424. A military expedition was then organized by the eastern emperor to conquer the western capital Ravenna and depose John. Placidia and her children sailed on the very fleet which set out to Italy.

The two generals Ardaburius and Aspar succeeded in conquering Ravenna and John was captured, sentenced to death by Placidia in Aquileia and executed in May or June AD 425.

Valentinian III was hailed Augustus in Rome in AD 425 at the age of six. Placidia became the regent of the western empire.

Valentinian III, like other emperors of that period (for example Honorius and Theodosius II) was a ruler, who left the governing of his empire to others. At first, during his childhood, he should have his mother Placidia to take care of government and later rule lay much in the hands of his military chief Aetius. While others governed Valentinian III chose far more to have a good time. He enjoyed physical activity, was said to have been a good runner, and a skilled horseman and archer. Further he liked the company of astrologers and magicians. And though his wife, Licinia Eudoxia, whom he married in AD 437, was famed for her ravishingly good looks, he is said to have repeatedly had affairs with married women.

The first crisis in Valentinian III's reign was soon to come, when general Aetius arrived with his relief force of Huns only to find that emperor John, whom he sought to save, had already been executed. Naturally the arrival of a man at the head of such a large army was a threat to the new government. And so Placidia made a deal with Aetius to regain control of this dangerous situation.

And so Flavius Aetius was made 'Master of Horse' and sent to Gaul, whilst his army of Huns was paid a large bribe to simply return home.

In Gaul Aetius should achieve remarkable successes against the Franks and Visigoths during AD 427-8. Though this should only make Placidia's yet more suspicions towards him. For she evidently feared he sought to usurp the throne. In spite of this, Aetius' successes forced her to promote him to 'Master of Soldiers' in AD 429.

In the same year AD 429 the Vandal leader Geiseric crossed from Spain to north Africa with his people. There he declared himself an independent king, free from Rome or any allegiance to Valentinian III, and set out to conquer Rome's African domains.

In AD 431 Geiseric's Vandals moving east heavily defeated the Romans in north Africa.

Meanwhile back in Europe Placidia hoped for her main army supporter, Bonifatius (Boniface), to rid her of Aetius. Bonifatius had returned from Africa to Italy in AD 429 and ever since war between him and Aetius had been brewing. The two finally clashed in AD 432. Bonifatius was defeated, wounded and later died.

Aetius went on to drive the Germans back behind the Upper Danube, put down revolts in Gaul and in AD 437 he smashed the Burgundians as they sought to invade Gaul. Considering the military difficulties of the time and the shortage of soldiers in the Roman army, these victories were outstanding achievements.

Yet the deterioration in north Africa continued. In AD 439 Geiseric conquered Carthage and in AD 441 once again heavily defeated a Roman force sent against him.

With the western empire suffering from an ever more desperate shortage of military manpower things only got worse.

Then, in AD 450, the eastern emperor Marcian cancelled the annual subsidy to the Huns.

Was this inevitably to encourage Hun aggression, then Justa Grata Honoria, the sister of Valentinian III, played a vital part in the way things should unfold.

For Valentinian III sought to arrange a marriage for her, a marriage to an elderly dignitary of which Honoria disapproved.

Hence she now took the drastic step of sending her signet ring to Attila, king of the Huns, urging him to come to her rescue.

Attila interpreted this as an offer of marriage and demanded no less than half the western empire as his dowry. Naturally this was rejected, which caused Attila to lead his terrifying Huns into Gaul. In AD 451 on the Catalaunian Plains (Châlons) Aetius, together with the Visigoths, met Attila's Huns who were reinforced by many German tribes.

The battle saw the death of the Visigoth king Theodoric I, but Attila was decisively beaten. Though instead of withdrawing into back into Germany, Attila in AD 452 moved into Italy, with Aetius unable to stop him.

The Huns captured and sacked Mediolanum (Milan), destroyed Aquileia and then marched on Rome. Aetius, without the Visigoths, could not possibly take on an army the size of Attila's and was forced to stand by as this happened. But as Rome lay helpless to the menacing Huns, pope Leo I somehow persuaded Attila to turn back and leave the ancient city unscathed.

Attila withdrew and in AD 453 died. His empire fell apart almost at once, the Hun menace to the empire disappearing as fast at it had arisen.

In AD 453 Aetius son was betrothed to the Valentinian III's daughter Placidia. Aetius thereafter was granted his fourth consulship in AD 454. He stood at the height of his power, having effectively ruled the western empire at the head of the military for two decades.

However, at court he had influential and deadly enemies, foremost among them, the former praetorian and city prefect Petronius Maximus and the emperor's chamberlain.

Having been threatened by Aetius they conspired with Valentinian III, who himself felt very intimidated by Aetius to murder him.

In September AD 454, while Aetius was delivering a financial account, Valentinian III and Heraclius attacked him in the throne room and stabbed him to death.

But with the powerful Aetius no longer in control, the court was gripped by intrigues.

With the death of Aetius, the powerful Petronius Maximus now hoped to take his place, but Heraclius prevented that, managing to persuade Valentinian III that this would be a dangerous appointment.

Angry, Maximus sought revenge. And so he found two Scythians (or Huns), called Optila and Thraustila, who whose loyalty still demanded vengeance for the murder of their master Aetius.

On 16 March AD 455, Optila and Thraustila were among the guards of the imperial entourage as the emperor practised archery on the Campus Martius at Rome. Everyone was taken by surprise as Thraustila stepped forward and murdered Heraclius and Optila struck the head of Valentinian III, causing wounds from which he died.

http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valentinian_III