WEBVTT 00:00:04.599 --> 00:00:10.779 At the height of Rome’s period of anarchy during the third century, with the empire 00:00:10.779 --> 00:00:15.959 on the very brink of total collapse, a group of tough soldier emperors took the throne 00:00:15.960 --> 00:00:20.429 for themselves and set about restoring what had been lost. 00:00:20.429 --> 00:00:25.789 One of these formidable men, Aurelian, took the Roman Empire with an iron grip, glued 00:00:25.789 --> 00:00:31.950 together its crumbling domain, and set the stage for another two centuries of dominance. 00:00:31.949 --> 00:00:34.769 Welcome to our video on the Restorer of the World. 00:00:34.770 --> 00:00:39.480 We are not saying that the Roman Empire fell because they never used the sponsor of this 00:00:39.479 --> 00:00:44.279 video NordVPN, but we are using it, and doing really well. 00:00:44.280 --> 00:00:48.760 Fact: NordVPN is indispensable for the modern internet user. 00:00:48.759 --> 00:00:53.998 It is not only a VPN service 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--> 00:01:36.810 money-back guarantee! 00:01:36.810 --> 00:01:40.368 And most impressively, you can get all that for 3.49$ per month! 00:01:40.368 --> 00:01:42.560 So, what are you waiting for? 00:01:42.560 --> 00:01:49.620 Support us, get a free month of premium VPN and Save 70% nordvpn.com/KingsandGenerals 00:01:49.620 --> 00:01:52.040 or the link in the description! 00:01:52.040 --> 00:01:56.649 Don’t forget to use the coupon code KingsAndGenerals! 00:01:56.649 --> 00:02:02.780 One evening in early September of the year 268, Emperor Gallienus ate supper in his army’s 00:02:02.780 --> 00:02:05.890 camp near Mediolanum, which was under siege. 00:02:05.890 --> 00:02:10.849 He was there to deal with a treacherous general named Aureolus, but that would not have been 00:02:10.849 --> 00:02:12.759 all on his mind. 00:02:12.759 --> 00:02:15.280 Rome was in total crisis. 00:02:15.280 --> 00:02:20.560 Almost a decade earlier, the empire had been ripped into three pieces by Postumus’ revolt 00:02:20.560 --> 00:02:25.069 in the west, and a withering Sassanian assault in the east. 00:02:25.069 --> 00:02:31.150 Moreover, barbarian attacks from across the northern frontier were steadily getting worse. 00:02:31.150 --> 00:02:36.000 In the midst of his meal, Cecropius - one of Gallienus’ commanders - brought word 00:02:36.000 --> 00:02:39.229 that their besieged enemy was readying a sortie. 00:02:39.229 --> 00:02:43.389 The emperor immediately got to his feet and rushed off to deal with them. 00:02:43.389 --> 00:02:49.339 Suspecting nothing, Gallienus departed without his personal guard and was quickly beset and 00:02:49.340 --> 00:02:54.590 killed by assassins from within his own ranks, Cecropius among them. 00:02:54.590 --> 00:02:59.580 The perpetrators were a group of military commanders from Illyria who had seen considerable 00:02:59.580 --> 00:03:04.440 advancement under the now-dead emperor and his father Valerian. 00:03:04.439 --> 00:03:08.590 One of them was raised to the throne as Claudius II. 00:03:08.590 --> 00:03:14.629 Also among the conspirators was the subject of our video - Lucius Domitius Aurelianus. 00:03:14.629 --> 00:03:20.759 He had been born near Serdica on September 9th of either 214 or 215. 00:03:20.759 --> 00:03:25.729 After joining the army at about the age of 20, he rose through the ranks with astounding 00:03:25.729 --> 00:03:27.090 success. 00:03:27.090 --> 00:03:33.120 By 268 Aurelian was in his early fifties and had risen to be a high ranking officer who 00:03:33.120 --> 00:03:36.000 was incredibly popular with the troops. 00:03:36.000 --> 00:03:41.539 He had earned so much renown for bravery and talent that the nickname of manu ad ferrum 00:03:41.539 --> 00:03:44.620 - ‘hand on sword’ - became his. 00:03:44.620 --> 00:03:50.460 Upon taking the Roman throne, Claudius immediately granted Aurelian a high cavalry command and 00:03:50.460 --> 00:03:53.320 effectively made him his right hand man. 00:03:53.319 --> 00:03:57.259 Together, they took up where Gallienus left off. 00:03:57.259 --> 00:04:03.039 After quickly executing Aureolus, Claudius II, with manu ad ferrum at his side, marched 00:04:03.039 --> 00:04:08.060 to Northern Italy and smashed an Alamanni invasion at Lake Garda. 00:04:08.060 --> 00:04:13.069 The Romans then turned southeast and advanced into the Balkans, where they managed to defeat 00:04:13.069 --> 00:04:18.149 a Gothic incursion into the Balkans at Naissus in 269. 00:04:18.149 --> 00:04:22.839 In both of these triumphs and whilst mopping up afterwards, Aurelian is said to have played 00:04:22.839 --> 00:04:25.349 a decisive role. 00:04:25.350 --> 00:04:30.620 Before Claudius Gothicus Maximus had a chance to celebrate these victories, he died of plague 00:04:30.620 --> 00:04:35.780 in early 270, triggering yet another power struggle. 00:04:35.779 --> 00:04:39.989 Quintilius - the late emperor’s brother and commander of the troops in Italy - claimed 00:04:39.990 --> 00:04:41.189 the throne. 00:04:41.189 --> 00:04:47.240 However Aurelian, by far the most respected and feared figure in the empire, was simultaneously 00:04:47.240 --> 00:04:50.530 acclaimed emperor by the legions who were with him. 00:04:50.529 --> 00:04:55.739 Though Quintilius marshalled his forces at Aquileia, it was not enough. 00:04:55.740 --> 00:05:01.100 By the time Aurelian and his legions neared Italy, Quintilius’ troops had faltered, 00:05:01.100 --> 00:05:07.620 killed their commander, and confirmed the ascension of Aurelian in September of 270. 00:05:07.620 --> 00:05:12.879 After deifying his short-lived predecessor, Aurelian marched back to Pannonia, which was 00:05:12.879 --> 00:05:15.649 being threatened by a Vandal horde. 00:05:15.649 --> 00:05:20.959 The emperor first waged a war of attrition against them, denying them food and supplies, 00:05:20.959 --> 00:05:24.969 then smashed the weakened barbarians in battle. 00:05:24.970 --> 00:05:31.060 As soon as Aurelian had repelled that Vandal threat, he received word that a united Juthungi-Alamanni 00:05:31.060 --> 00:05:36.300 army had cut through Raetia and was making a beeline for Italy. 00:05:36.300 --> 00:05:41.879 Rushing to protect the home province, Aurelian’s forces caught up with the Germans near Placentia. 00:05:41.879 --> 00:05:47.329 However, the emperor had not been careful enough, and his exhausted forces were ambushed 00:05:47.329 --> 00:05:50.609 near the city, resulting in a terrible defeat. 00:05:50.610 --> 00:05:56.580 Rumours of the humiliation sent Rome itself into a panic, but Aurelian continued on as 00:05:56.579 --> 00:06:01.019 though nothing had happened, recovering from a setback that would have been the end of 00:06:01.019 --> 00:06:02.719 lesser leaders. 00:06:02.720 --> 00:06:08.040 The emperor regrouped his army, pursued the invaders south for a second time, and managed 00:06:08.040 --> 00:06:12.470 to defeat them by pinning their army against the Metaurus river. 00:06:12.470 --> 00:06:17.700 Despite its losses, the Juthungi-Alamanni coalition was still strong, but Aurelian was 00:06:17.699 --> 00:06:22.550 not willing to allow the enemy to retreat with any Roman spoils. 00:06:22.550 --> 00:06:28.020 After hard, uncompromising negotiations, and without any further fighting, the barbarians 00:06:28.019 --> 00:06:31.180 eventually departed empty-handed. 00:06:31.180 --> 00:06:36.680 Having dealt with all of this external pressure in a mere nine months, Aurelian was also keen 00:06:36.680 --> 00:06:39.430 to deal with corruption at home. 00:06:39.430 --> 00:06:44.668 When the corrupt rationalis - or chief financial minister of the Roman mint - was confronted 00:06:44.668 --> 00:06:51.180 about his own underhanded operations, he incited his workers, who feared Aurelian’s retribution, 00:06:51.180 --> 00:06:53.040 to riot. 00:06:53.040 --> 00:06:57.870 Quintilius-sympathising senators, disruption of the grain supply from now Palmyrene-controlled 00:06:57.870 --> 00:07:03.168 Egypt and the prior months’ invasion scare ratcheted up the tension to the point that 00:07:03.168 --> 00:07:07.109 the riot turned into small-scale pitched battles. 00:07:07.110 --> 00:07:12.920 Up to 7,000 were dead by the time Aurelian subdued the city with an iron fist. 00:07:12.920 --> 00:07:17.720 Ringleaders, including senators, were summarily rounded up and executed. 00:07:17.720 --> 00:07:22.880 However, along with this punitive solution, the emperor also took measures to prevent 00:07:22.879 --> 00:07:24.699 future unrest. 00:07:24.699 --> 00:07:29.969 Beginning in 271 and continuing throughout the rest of his reign, Aurelian attempted 00:07:29.970 --> 00:07:34.910 to stabilise the coinage and harshly deal with corruption. 00:07:34.910 --> 00:07:40.430 Most notable of his financial reforms however, was the strategic relocation of mints away 00:07:40.430 --> 00:07:46.870 from Rome, instead favouring strategic locations, such as Milan and Siscia, where pay could 00:07:46.870 --> 00:07:49.870 more easily be transported to the armies. 00:07:49.870 --> 00:07:55.329 It was also clear to Aurelian that Rome’s legions and age-old frontier defences were 00:07:55.329 --> 00:08:01.168 no longer sufficient to protect the empire’s heartland; individual cities now needed their 00:08:01.168 --> 00:08:02.729 own fortifications. 00:08:02.730 --> 00:08:08.750 So, the construction of a series of practical, non-aesthetic defensive walls began around 00:08:08.750 --> 00:08:14.000 Rome, which still remain in the modern day - the Aurelian walls. 00:08:14.000 --> 00:08:20.139 Having done this, Aurelian marshaled the legions and moved to meet a Gothic raid in the Balkans. 00:08:20.139 --> 00:08:26.449 He arrived during the autumn of 271 and quickly pushed them back across the river Danube. 00:08:26.449 --> 00:08:32.889 Not content to let the barbarians off so easily, the emperor crossed the river into enemy territory, 00:08:32.889 --> 00:08:37.549 defeated the Goths decisively, and killed their king - Cannabaudes. 00:08:37.549 --> 00:08:42.870 It is possible that this Gothic ruler was the same individual as Cniva, the raider who 00:08:42.870 --> 00:08:47.339 had defeated Decius at Abritus two decades earlier. 00:08:47.339 --> 00:08:52.430 In the wake of this last conflict, Aurelian acknowledged that the province of Dacia, which 00:08:52.429 --> 00:08:58.969 was beyond the Danube frontier, was a pointless exertion of imperial resources and a vulnerable 00:08:58.970 --> 00:09:01.180 gateway into the empire. 00:09:01.179 --> 00:09:06.519 To remedy this, Aurelian ordered that all legionary forces and citizens withdraw from 00:09:06.519 --> 00:09:10.068 the region, effectively abandoning the province. 00:09:10.068 --> 00:09:15.159 The border was consolidated and shortened on the near side of the river, and a deal 00:09:15.159 --> 00:09:21.379 was negotiated with a tribe of friendly Germans to settle in the abandoned area as a buffer. 00:09:21.379 --> 00:09:26.860 It must have been a big step for the conservative Romans to voluntarily and pragmatically admit 00:09:26.860 --> 00:09:32.649 to this, and it is a sign of Aurelian’s adaptable and charismatic nature. 00:09:32.649 --> 00:09:37.708 With his central section of the empire safe for the time being, Aurelian set about mustering 00:09:37.708 --> 00:09:43.469 one of the greatest armies of the third century throughout the winter months of 271. 00:09:43.470 --> 00:09:48.199 It was made up of some of the most veteran military units in the empire, including a 00:09:48.198 --> 00:09:52.588 core of legions from Pannonia, Raetia, Noricum and Moesia. 00:09:52.589 --> 00:09:57.839 To supplement that, Aurelian also brought along some loyal, elite vexillationes which 00:09:57.839 --> 00:10:02.660 had been with him since the beginning, along with contingents of Dalmatian and Mauritanian 00:10:02.659 --> 00:10:07.028 cavalry who had proven their worth in the Gothic war. 00:10:07.028 --> 00:10:13.369 When spring of 272 was near, the emperor ferried his great invading force across the Hellespont 00:10:13.369 --> 00:10:17.059 and began a steady march across Asia Minor. 00:10:17.058 --> 00:10:22.289 His ultimate aim was an ambitious one - to reclaim the eastern empire from the de facto 00:10:22.289 --> 00:10:28.750 Palmyrene ruler, Zenobia, who ruled on behalf of her young son Vaballathus. 00:10:28.750 --> 00:10:34.539 As Aurelian rode at the head of the main field army, he also sent a naval taskforce to reclaim 00:10:34.539 --> 00:10:36.269 Egypt in May. 00:10:36.269 --> 00:10:42.089 It was possibly, but not certainly, under the command of future emperor Probus. 00:10:42.089 --> 00:10:46.920 Very little detail is known of the campaign, but the recently captured Palmyrene possession 00:10:46.919 --> 00:10:52.219 was weakly held, and the Romans recaptured it by midsummer. 00:10:52.220 --> 00:10:57.089 Meanwhile to the north, Aurelian’s advance was almost totally unopposed until he reached 00:10:57.089 --> 00:11:02.350 the Cappadocian city of Tyana, which refused to admit the emperor. 00:11:02.350 --> 00:11:08.269 He was so infuriated by this defiance that he pledged not to leave even a dog alive once 00:11:08.269 --> 00:11:10.139 the city fell to his armies. 00:11:10.139 --> 00:11:15.178 However, the relatively short siege cooled Aurelian’s temper and he came to realise 00:11:15.178 --> 00:11:20.039 that leniency would be a more prudent course of action in the long term. 00:11:20.039 --> 00:11:25.009 To that end, he ordered that his triumphant army spare the citizens rather than slaying 00:11:25.009 --> 00:11:26.009 them. 00:11:26.009 --> 00:11:31.778 He was to be a liberator of these Roman lands, rather than a vicious foreign conqueror. 00:11:31.778 --> 00:11:36.778 News of this angered the soldiers, who were denied their opportunity to sack Tyana. 00:11:36.778 --> 00:11:42.078 They reminded Aurelian of the pledge he had made, but the emperor was not intimidated, 00:11:42.078 --> 00:11:46.659 replying that “I did indeed decree that no dog should be allowed to live. 00:11:46.659 --> 00:11:49.659 Well then, kill all the dogs!” 00:11:49.659 --> 00:11:54.269 The angry soldiers were pleased with the joke and set about carrying out their ruler’s 00:11:54.269 --> 00:11:57.028 orders with calmed tempers. 00:11:57.028 --> 00:12:00.338 Such clemency proved to be a wise strategy. 00:12:00.339 --> 00:12:05.769 After Tyana no city in Asia Minor resisted Aurelian’s march, and he emerged from the 00:12:05.769 --> 00:12:11.440 Cilician gates into Syria, ready to confront the Palmyrenes in their home territory. 00:12:11.440 --> 00:12:17.660 Zenobia’s greatest general Zabdas placed his army in between Aurelian and Antioch. 00:12:17.659 --> 00:12:22.259 Instead of attacking the great city from the north, where the tactical incentive lay with 00:12:22.259 --> 00:12:27.739 Zabdas, Aurelian instead shifted his forces to outflank him from the east. 00:12:27.739 --> 00:12:32.720 Worrying that this would move the clash into unfavourable terrain and onto his own line 00:12:32.720 --> 00:12:38.550 of retreat, the Palmyrene general sent most of his cavalry to intercept Aurelian on the 00:12:38.549 --> 00:12:41.109 eastern shores of Lake Antioch. 00:12:41.110 --> 00:12:46.019 Rather than risking his infantry against Zabdas’ cataphracts, the Roman emperor sent out his 00:12:46.019 --> 00:12:49.360 horsemen to bait the enemy into a trap. 00:12:49.360 --> 00:12:54.449 When the Palmyrene heavy cavalry charged, the lighter armoured and armed Roman units 00:12:54.448 --> 00:13:00.299 fled at the first contact, fleeing several kilometres towards the town of Immae. 00:13:00.299 --> 00:13:05.258 When the overburdened cataphracts and their horses began to slow down from exhaustion, 00:13:05.259 --> 00:13:10.899 Aurelian’s cavalry turned and countercharged them, scattering the Palmyrene forces, winning 00:13:10.899 --> 00:13:16.058 a decisive victory and allowing the emperor to sit on the enemy’s line of retreat. 00:13:16.058 --> 00:13:22.899 Zenobia and Zabdas’ defeat led them to abandon Antioch and retreat south to Emesa, where 00:13:22.899 --> 00:13:29.458 it is said that 60,000 of Aurelian’s men faced 70,000 of Zenobia and Zabdas. 00:13:29.458 --> 00:13:34.708 Aurelian once again tried to lure the Palmyrene cataphractarii into a similar trap. 00:13:34.708 --> 00:13:39.948 But this time the maneuver went wrong and the emperor’s cavalry caught the brunt of 00:13:39.948 --> 00:13:44.769 the enemy’s charge, resulting in massive losses and a near-rout. 00:13:44.769 --> 00:13:49.060 The veteran legions of Aurelian were still fighting however, and they managed to break 00:13:49.059 --> 00:13:52.018 the Palmyrene infantry in front of them. 00:13:52.019 --> 00:13:57.649 On the flanks, Zenobia’s cataphracts charged too far, and were themselves cut to pieces 00:13:57.649 --> 00:14:02.100 when the Roman infantry pivoted to the wings and smashed into them. 00:14:02.100 --> 00:14:06.980 The queen fled Emesa to Palmyra, leaving so quickly that there was not even enough time 00:14:06.980 --> 00:14:10.709 to transport the treasury away from danger. 00:14:10.708 --> 00:14:15.998 As the sweltering high summer approached, Aurelian wasted no time and embarked on a 00:14:15.999 --> 00:14:21.600 grueling march east through the desert, putting the enemy capital under siege whilst also 00:14:21.600 --> 00:14:26.028 securing a deal with local bedouins to receive food. 00:14:26.028 --> 00:14:31.818 Realising that her only hope for aid now was a personal appeal to the Sassanian king, Zenobia 00:14:31.818 --> 00:14:37.750 snuck through the Roman siege lines and attempted to flee into Persian territory on a camel. 00:14:37.750 --> 00:14:43.360 However when the alarm was quickly raised, the Palmyrene ruler was captured by Aurelian’s 00:14:43.360 --> 00:14:46.350 outriders and brought to the emperor. 00:14:46.350 --> 00:14:52.769 The besieged oasis’ population was divided, but the emperor ended any uncertainty by ordering 00:14:52.769 --> 00:14:55.470 those who wished for peace to come out and surrender. 00:14:55.470 --> 00:15:01.759 At first people were slow to do so, but when they witnessed Aurelian’s mercy to the initial 00:15:01.759 --> 00:15:08.369 few, more and more came and submitted, giving him gifts and tribute in return for pardon. 00:15:08.369 --> 00:15:13.879 Without any further shedding of blood, Aurelian entered the city of Palmyra in total victory. 00:15:13.879 --> 00:15:19.570 Whilst present there, he trialed and executed some of the main enemy leaders, including 00:15:19.570 --> 00:15:25.009 Zabdas, imposed a garrison upon the city, and distributed much of its wealth to the 00:15:25.009 --> 00:15:26.009 soldiers. 00:15:26.009 --> 00:15:31.600 He also received an ambassador from the Sassanian Empire who brought the shah’s congratulations 00:15:31.600 --> 00:15:33.470 on the great victory. 00:15:33.470 --> 00:15:38.910 His own realm was riven by internal strife and could not risk a war against Aurelian’s 00:15:38.909 --> 00:15:43.019 power, even if the prize was such a great one as Palmyra. 00:15:43.019 --> 00:15:46.970 The emperor’s most treasured prize was Zenobia herself. 00:15:46.970 --> 00:15:51.490 She was spared, but suffered the indignity of being paraded through Syria’s cities 00:15:51.490 --> 00:15:52.778 chained to a camel. 00:15:52.778 --> 00:15:58.278 This, and rumours of her cowardice in the face of defeat, were designed to snuff out 00:15:58.278 --> 00:16:02.189 any lingering support the queen may have had. 00:16:02.190 --> 00:16:06.769 As he marched back to the city of Byzantium, Aurelian assumed the title for which he is 00:16:06.769 --> 00:16:11.499 most well-known, restitutor orbis - ‘restorer of the world’. 00:16:11.499 --> 00:16:14.189 Still, he had much to do. 00:16:14.188 --> 00:16:19.338 Upon his arrival in Europe, Aurelian crushed yet another barbarian incursion into Moesia, 00:16:19.339 --> 00:16:25.319 but was then forced to return to Palmyra in early 273 upon receiving intelligence from 00:16:25.318 --> 00:16:30.938 a loyal subordinate in the area that the city’s leaders intended to betray him. 00:16:30.938 --> 00:16:36.399 For the second time in less than a year, the presumably furious emperor approached Palmyra 00:16:36.399 --> 00:16:41.528 after a lightning quick march which took the rebel leaders totally by surprise. 00:16:41.528 --> 00:16:47.239 There was no time to prepare proper defences, and Aurelian took the city swiftly. 00:16:47.239 --> 00:16:50.420 Again he showed remarkable restraint in his vengeance. 00:16:50.419 --> 00:16:55.278 The ringleaders were immediately slain, but the citizens were permitted to leave. 00:16:55.278 --> 00:16:58.769 The city of Palmyra itself was not so lucky. 00:16:58.769 --> 00:17:03.730 Aurelian allowed his troops to ravage the troublesome enemy capital; much of its wealth 00:17:03.730 --> 00:17:07.930 was plundered and many of its great structures razed. 00:17:07.930 --> 00:17:13.939 After this second siege, Palmyra never again regained its once-held importance and grandeur, 00:17:13.939 --> 00:17:19.310 becoming yet another irrelevant provincial town on the Roman frontier. 00:17:19.309 --> 00:17:24.250 Before he returned to the west, Aurelian had to march on Egypt and subdue a revolt there, 00:17:24.250 --> 00:17:26.778 securing Rome’s grain supplies. 00:17:26.778 --> 00:17:31.869 With all business in the east taken care of, the emperor and his field army returned to 00:17:31.869 --> 00:17:38.129 the capital and set about preparing an expedition to finally put an end to the Gallic Empire, 00:17:38.130 --> 00:17:41.910 which was at that point under the control of Tetricus. 00:17:41.910 --> 00:17:47.519 By the time campaigning of 274 began, all preparations were complete. 00:17:47.519 --> 00:17:52.759 Aurelian marched across the Alps to his foothold in Gallia Narbonensis, then quickly took Lugdunum. 00:17:52.759 --> 00:18:00.569 The Gallic Empire was weak, but Tetricus nevertheless rallied his Rhine legions and met Aurelian 00:18:00.569 --> 00:18:03.609 near Chalons in late February. 00:18:03.609 --> 00:18:08.808 Historians debate what truly happened, but the contest was decided before the first pila 00:18:08.808 --> 00:18:10.450 was thrown. 00:18:10.450 --> 00:18:15.319 Either Aurelian’s superior generalship quickly gained him mastery of the battlefield, or 00:18:15.319 --> 00:18:20.589 Tetricus made a deal with the emperor to submit before any fighting was necessary. 00:18:20.589 --> 00:18:26.319 Whatever the case, the splinter empire in Gaul and Britannia was extinguished, its military 00:18:26.319 --> 00:18:31.288 units were reintegrated into the Roman army, and the empire was whole once again for the 00:18:31.288 --> 00:18:34.129 first time in fourteen years. 00:18:34.130 --> 00:18:39.740 With his victory now total, Aurelian went back to the capital with his spoils in tow 00:18:39.740 --> 00:18:45.349 and hosted what might have been one of the greatest triumphs in all of Roman history. 00:18:45.349 --> 00:18:49.678 Coming up first in the procession were vast eastern treasures gained from the conquest 00:18:49.679 --> 00:18:55.470 of Palmyra, most prominent among the hoard being three ornate royal chariots arrayed 00:18:55.470 --> 00:18:57.710 one behind the other. 00:18:57.710 --> 00:19:03.350 First among them was a fabulously crafted vehicle, ordained with silver, gold, and jewels 00:19:03.349 --> 00:19:08.209 which had belonged to Odenathus before his own death years before. 00:19:08.210 --> 00:19:13.659 The second was an equally masterful creation - a Persian chariot which had been granted 00:19:13.659 --> 00:19:17.559 to Aurelian as a gift from the Sassanian king. 00:19:17.558 --> 00:19:23.629 Finally came the true prize, the Palmyrene queen Zenobia herself, riding in a grand chariot 00:19:23.630 --> 00:19:27.110 that it is said she herself constructed. 00:19:27.109 --> 00:19:31.668 After this glorious display, vast amounts of exotic animals were exhibited before the 00:19:31.669 --> 00:19:37.740 awestruck population of Rome, such as elephants, tigers, giraffes, and elks. 00:19:37.740 --> 00:19:43.909 After them came rank upon rank of bound prisoners, prominent men from Palmyra and barbarian tribes 00:19:43.909 --> 00:19:49.130 in the region - including representations of the mythical amazons, who had been captured 00:19:49.130 --> 00:19:51.050 during the campaign. 00:19:51.049 --> 00:19:56.539 From his western conquest Aurelian’s highlight was Tetricus, self proclaimed ‘emperor’, 00:19:56.539 --> 00:20:01.889 clad in a scarlet imperial cloak, yellow tunic and Gallic trousers. 00:20:01.890 --> 00:20:06.950 Along with the western usurper was his son whom the former had acclaimed co-emperor the 00:20:06.950 --> 00:20:09.298 year before his defeat. 00:20:09.298 --> 00:20:14.990 When the grand procession came to an end, vast entertainments were held for days afterwards, 00:20:14.990 --> 00:20:20.669 including theatrical plays, chariot races in the circus, wild beast hunts, gladiator 00:20:20.669 --> 00:20:24.470 fights, and even a naval battle reenactment. 00:20:24.470 --> 00:20:30.740 After all of the celebrations were over, Aurelian still could not or would not rest on his laurels. 00:20:30.740 --> 00:20:36.109 As the fifth year of his reign dawned, the emperor went west to deal with a minor Alamanni 00:20:36.109 --> 00:20:41.209 invasion, and then marched east into Thrace in the summer. 00:20:41.210 --> 00:20:46.889 Because third century sources can be somewhat unreliable, it is not agreed as to why Aurelian 00:20:46.888 --> 00:20:48.349 moved east. 00:20:48.349 --> 00:20:52.869 However, most historians either believe that the emperor was in the Balkans to deal with 00:20:52.869 --> 00:20:57.989 a barbarian invasion, or to prepare for a great offensive against the civil war-ridden 00:20:57.990 --> 00:21:04.298 Sassanian Empire, whose capture and humiliation of Valerian had not been forgotten. 00:21:04.298 --> 00:21:10.269 Whatever the case, at some point in the middle of 275 Aurelian encamped at a waystation on 00:21:10.269 --> 00:21:15.509 the road to Byzantium called Caenophurium, which was next to the Sea of Marmara. 00:21:15.509 --> 00:21:18.940 It was to be his final resting place. 00:21:18.940 --> 00:21:24.220 While he was there, one of Aurelian’s administrators of secretaries - a slave or freedman known 00:21:24.220 --> 00:21:30.519 as Eros - did an unknown deed which would both be inevitably discovered and would inevitably 00:21:30.519 --> 00:21:35.140 bring the emperor’s notorious wrath upon him when it was discovered. 00:21:35.140 --> 00:21:39.600 To save himself, Eros came up with a desperate solution. 00:21:39.599 --> 00:21:45.648 Since the bureaucrat was able to imitate Aurelian’s writing style, he forged a series of documents 00:21:45.648 --> 00:21:51.609 accusing many senior army officers of crimes and misdeeds, and condemning those same men 00:21:51.609 --> 00:21:52.949 to death. 00:21:52.950 --> 00:21:58.500 When Eros showed the men this list, they were terrified and reacted too quickly, without 00:21:58.500 --> 00:21:59.500 thought. 00:21:59.500 --> 00:22:05.099 A group of desperate conspirators, led by a general known as Mucapor, waited until Aurelian 00:22:05.099 --> 00:22:09.230 dismissed his bodyguard, and then stabbed their emperor to death. 00:22:09.230 --> 00:22:13.028 Yet, the assassination was not a crime of hatred. 00:22:13.028 --> 00:22:18.119 When the reality of Eros’ deceit came to light, the officers who had murdered the emperor 00:22:18.119 --> 00:22:22.408 were filled with a combination of guilt, grief, and fury. 00:22:22.409 --> 00:22:27.990 It was all directed at the desperate secretary, who the Historia Augusta tells us was tied 00:22:27.990 --> 00:22:32.480 to a stake and savaged by ravenous wild beasts. 00:22:32.480 --> 00:22:37.420 Just like that, with a crude act of deception, the life of Aurelian came to an end in the 00:22:37.420 --> 00:22:42.350 middle of 275, only five years after he took the throne. 00:22:42.349 --> 00:22:47.028 Grief struck the entire empire when it learned of their great emperor’s passing. 00:22:47.028 --> 00:22:51.909 To indicate just what a significant occasion it really was, the senate and the army did 00:22:51.909 --> 00:22:54.860 not jostle to install the new emperor. 00:22:54.859 --> 00:22:59.949 Conversely, they even bestowed that right on the other party, aiming to push away the 00:22:59.950 --> 00:23:01.710 accusation of guilt. 00:23:01.710 --> 00:23:06.590 Eventually, Aurelian’s second in command Probus came to the throne, and after a few 00:23:06.589 --> 00:23:14.119 more tentative years, Diocletian inherited the Roman Empire and ended the crisis years. 00:23:14.119 --> 00:23:18.579 We will talk about Roman history more in the 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