(8) SALONINUS –

NON-DYNASTIC / CRISIS OF THE THIRD CENTURY

(260 AD: 1 MONTH)

Somewhat similar to the emperors in my previous entry, Saloninus was briefly co-emperor as son of the reigning emperor Gallienus but was more notable than the previous entry in his brief reign. Gallienus had appointed him, not as co-emperor but as caesar – effectively crown prince or imperial heir – and sent him to Gaul to help shore up imperial authority there, under the protection of the praetorian prefect Silvanus.

The political intuition of Gallienus that his imperial authority needed shoring up in Gaul was spot on, his timing less so. Poor Saloninus and Silvanus walked pretty much straight into a simmering revolt by legions hostile to a distant emperor who seemed to be failing in his duty to protect the Gallic provinces from Germanic barbarian invasion. That revolt went from simmering to full boil, as the legions proclaimed their commander Postumus as emperor, who then led the western third of the empire to break away or secede as what history has called the Gallic Empire.

Silvanus and Saloninus had fled with what few loyal troops they had to the Roman city at Cologne (in the German marches), where they were besieged by the army of Postumus. It was during that siege that Saloninus’ soldiers desperately proclaimed him emperor, perhaps hoping to sway Postumus’ army to defect or desert to their side – if so, it didn’t work as the citizens of the city surrendered Saloninus and Silvanus to Postumus’ army after a month of siege. No prizes for guessing what happened to them at that point.

DID DOVAHHATTY DO RIGHT?

Like father, like son

RATING: 2 STARS**

X-TIER (WILD TIER)