Assessment Task #3: Year
11 Ancient HistoryHistorical Investigation
Teacher: Mr Hendry
Class: Year 11 Ancient History
By Benjamin French
Essay Question: “Outline the perceived issues facing the Roman Empire during the
Crisis of the Third Century and assess the effectiveness of Diocletian’s response.”
The Crisis of the Third century, also known as the “Military Anarchy” or the
“Imperial Crisis” refers to the stagnation, decline, and near collapse of the Roman
Empire between 235 and 285 AD. Primarily caused by three contemporary crises,
internal civil war, external invasion, and economic turmoil, there were abrupt changes
brought about as a direct result of the disorder, greatly affecting a number of the
Roman world’s core institutions, including society, economic life, religion and
ultimately lifestyle foundations. In this short period of time, relative to the length to
which they had survived almost unrivalled beforehand, the transformations were so
significant that it is widely accepted in historical periodization that the crisis is a
fundamental marking point in identifying the progression from classical to late
antiquity, and essentially the conclusion of the Crisis with the accession of Diocletian
is seen as the division between these two epochs in ancient history.
Although Aurelian had been succesful in restoring the empire’s borders and resisting
foreign threats, problems that rested at the heart of Roman civilization continued to
surface. In particular, the right of succession had never been clearly articulated,
resulting in incessant civil unrest regarding incoming and outgoing Emperors, and
being responsible for much of the underlying instability which had plagued the empire
for centuries. Also, the sheer size of the Roman Empire, which spanned an immense
portion of settled land, made it considerably difficult for a sole autocratic leader to
administer threats emanating from multiple cities and provinces at one given time.
These concerns, among several others, would be drastically addressed by Diocletian,
allowing the Empire to survive in the West for another century, and in the East for
another 1000 years1.
The situation faced by Rome became ominous when, in 235, Emperor Alexander
Severus, the last Roman Emperor of the Severan dynasty and who had ruled for over a
decade, was assassinated by his own legions following a failed campaign against
Germanic peoples2. Recognized as almost the last straw in the long-running principate
system initiated by Augustus3, the assassination of Severus ignited the chaotic
beginnings of the Crisis, with the direct aftermath seeing Roman army generals
fighting each other for control of the empire, thus neglecting their military duties in
preventing foreign invaders, which had long been a defining strength of Roman
defence. Eventually, the ruling of the empire became calamitous, with imperial power
being held by roughly 20 to 25 individuals comprised mainly of high ranking
generals, who were only to lose it a few years later as a result of, primarily, defeat in
battle and murder. Provinces soon became victims of repeated raids by foreign tribes,
who quickly took their opportunity to take up Roman territory, such as the Carpians,
Goths, and Vandals along the Rhine and Danube River in the western part of the
empire, in addition to the attacks from the Sassanids in the eastern sects. With
external borders on a constant threat, by 258 internal division set in, with the empire
1
His reforms completely saved the East, and gave the West another good 100 years. (Diocletian and the Roman
Recovery, by Stephen Williams)
2
He therefore hoped that the threat of war alone might be enough to bring the Germans to accept peace. It worked indeed
and the Germans agreed to sue for peace, given that they would be paid subsidies. However, for the Roman army this was
the final straw. They felt humiliated at the idea of buying the barbarians off. Alexander and Julia Mamaea were both
murdered by their own troops (March AD 235). http://www.roman-empire.net/decline/alex-severus.html
3
Early phase of Imperial Roman government http://www.unrv.com/early-empire/principate.php
seperating into three competing states in order to survive; Gaul, Britain and Hispania
broke off to form the Gallic Empire4, and two years later in 260, the eastern provinces
of Syria, Palestine and Aegyptus turned independent in the form of the Palmyrene
Empire (with Sassanid patronage), leaving the remaining Italian-centered Roman
empire stranded without support in the middle.
Naturally, this disorder on both frontiers paved the way for regional rebellions,
frequent usurpations of power5 and, consequently, profound economic hysteria and
collapse. The empire was already at risk of astronomical hyperinflation due to
generations of coin devaluation, which had started during the earlier part of the
Severan dynasty – as each of the short-lived members took reign, they saw the need to
raise funds quickly to account for the military’s “accession bonus” and the simplest
path to take was to reduce the amount of silver in coins and compensate with far
cheaper metals6. As a result, inflation soared and the currency was rendered almost
incapable of sustaining value and trade was by barter, not money7; through this, every
aspect of Roman lifestyle had been severely impacted upon.
Perhaps the most destabilizing effect of the Crisis from an economical viewpoint was
the disconnection of Rome’s extensive internal trade network. Ever since Roman
peace8, Imperial Rome’s economy relied heavily on trade between the Mediterranean
ports and across Rome’s vast road system. Merchants were able to safely travel from
either end of the Empire within a few weeks, transporting agricultural goods produced
in the provinces, and manufactured goods generated by the larger cities of the East 9.
4
At around the same time, the western provinces of Gaul (modern France) and Germany set up their own Gallic Empire
(Imperium Galliarum) under their chosen emperor, Postumus.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/thirdcenturycrisis_article_04.shtml
5
After the assassination of Severus Alexander in 235 AD, the soldiers in various parts of the empire proclaimed fifty
emperors in about the same number of years.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/romans/thirdcenturycrisis_article_04.shtml
No emperor could be secure on the throne, and during the 50-year period from A.D. 235 to 284 there were approximately
35 emperors, of whom only one died a natural death. Emperors had to spend most of their time fighting would-be
usurpers. http://isthmia.osu.edu/teg/50501/4.htm
6
Predictably, this caused rising inflation and by the time the Crisis cooled, the old coinage infrastructure had nearly
disintegrated. Certain taxes were paid in kind and values were often estimated in bronze or bullion coinage. Meanwhile,
true values continued to be represented by gold coinage, but the almost purely solid silver coin, the denarius, which had
been used for 300 years had disappeared and been replaced by the antoninianus, a double denarius that rapidly became
debased to bronze and reduced in size. http://www.romanorum.com.au/Info/Articles/Tables.htm
7
The third century witnessed a tremendous inflation and the currency collapsed; the empire nearly reverted to a "natural
economy" (based on barter, with no coinage used). http://isthmia.osu.edu/teg/50501/4.htm
8
Pax Romana http://www.unrv.com/early-empire/pax-romana.php
9
The historian Henry Moss describes the situation as it stood before the Crisis:
Along these roads passed an ever-increasing traffic, not only of troops and officials, but of traders, merchandize and even
tourists. An interchange of goods between the various provinces rapidly developed, which soon reached a scale
unprecedented in previous history and not repeated until a few centuries ago. Metals mined in the uplands of Western
Europe, hides, fleeces, and livestock from the pastoral districts of Britain, Spain, and the shores of the Black Sea, wine
and oil from Provence and Aquitaine, timber, pitch and wax from South Russia and northern Anatolia, dried fruits from
Syria, marble from the Aegean coasts, and – most important of all – grain from the wheat-growing districts of North
Africa, Egypt, and the Danube valley for the needs of the great cities; all these commodities, under the influence of a
highly organized system of transport and marketing, moved freely from one corner of the Empire to the other.
H. St. L. B. Moss, The Birth of the Middle Ages (Clarendon Press, 1935, reprint Oxford University Press, January, 2000)
With the Crisis, however, this systematic trade structure soon crumbled, as civil
unrest rendered it no longer a safe and viable means for merchants to travel as they
once had, not to mention the financial turmoil at the centre of the conflict. These
complications, in many ways, saw major changes in lifestyle that foreshadowed the
coming of the Middle-Ages with regards to the self-sufficient house economy and the
prototype for serfdom which took on a central role in the feudal class system.
Despite numerous attempts to salvage it, the Roman economy never adequately
recovered, with the ongoing political and military crisis compunding the problems, as
the state often did not have the finances to cover expenses. 10 Nonetheless, the reign
of Aurelian (270-275) unified the empire in its entirety, following decades of
widespread internal revolt, the loss of two-thirds of its territory to break-away empires
and large scale barbarian invasion. He turned his attention to these immediate
problems faced by the empire after securing his power base and the support of the
people, and his achievements signaled the beginning of the end for the Crisis. In a
sense, his reformatory mindset, inspired by the efforts of Gallienus11 (253-68), lay the
perfect foundation for Diocletian, one of the greatest of Rome’s later emperors (reign
from 284-305), additionally settling many important inner workings of the imperial
landscape, such as the economy, religious allegiances, administration of food reserves
and directing punishment for the transgression of many public officers and high
ranking generals. From this, Diocletian set about his own work.
Hailed emperor on 20 November, 284 AD, he realized the empire’s crucial
weaknesses in the indecisive manner by which the armies made and deposed
emperors, and its need to establish concrete principles regarding succession12.
Although Rome had long been a formidable presence throughout Europe and around
the Mediterranean, with revolutionary military, economic and social structures, it had
suffered considerably on an internal level as a result of the autocratic nature of ruling
and succession, resulting in numerous assassination plots and civil unrest. Moreover,
its vastness of territory had led to complications with previous emperors who ruled
the entire empire from one central point; so, too the surprise of most at the time13,
Diocletian addressed this by appointing his fellow soldier, Maximian, as Caesar14,
thus dividing the empire so that Diocletian could give his full and urgent attention to
the issues on the Danubian borders and have someone he could trust to oversee
government. Following several years of hard, energetic and successful campaigning
as a shared unit, in 293 Diocletian adopted Galerius as his eastern Caesar15, while
Maximam did the same with Constantius I in the west, thus establishing an innovative
quadruple administration (in which a Caesar was to overtake his Augustus16 in the
10
The political and military crisis heightened the economic problem; and the economic problem contributed to the
political and military difficulties since the state frequently did not have the money to cover expenses.
http://isthmia.osu.edu/teg/50501/4.htm
11
Although his reign saw chunks of the empire break away, Gallienus is now seen to have laid the reforms for its
subsequent recovery (Nigel Rodgers, The Rise and Fall of Rome, pg 72, Lorenz Books, Anness Publishing Ltd 2004)
12
Nigel Rodgers, The Rise and Fall of Rome, pg 73, Lorenz Books, Anness Publishing Ltd 2004
Then, much to everyone's surprise, Diocletian, in November AD 285 appointed his own comrade Maximian as Caesar
and granted him control over the western provinces. http://www.roman-empire.net/decline/diocletian.html
14
Was eventually promoted to the rank of Augustus because of his achievements, although Diocletian remained senior
ruler, holding a veto over any edicts made by Maximan (Ibid)
15
Junior emperor/heir (Ibid)
16
A Caesar was to succeed his Augustus in this Tetrarchy [The Rise and Fall of Rome (Op. Cit)]
13
event of their death/retirement) which become known as the Tetrarchy. It was a
sysematic division, with each tetrarch holding their respective capital cities in a
territory under their control- Triar and Milan in the west, Thessalonica and Nicomedi
(north Turkey) in the east.The theory was that by shaping a system by which heirs to
the throne were appointed by merit, they could gain invaluable experience as Caesars
long before they assumed the vacant position of Augustus17. Importantly, in order to
sustain unity, the tetrarchy did not “split” the empire into separate parts as such, but
was just ruled by four men to increase the effectiveness of authority to both remote
and central areas. Rather than having military commanders, there were expert jurists
and adminstrators in charge of imperial affairs, leading to a far more efficient
infrastructure18 and in doing so he reduced the power of the senate19. To address the
problem of revolt and assassination, Diocletian elaborated the imperial court greatly
and initiated a semi-divine style pattern of worship for emperors; with palaces,
basilicas, monuments and rituals such as kneeling before the emperor and kissing the
robe20
Another major reform which came about through Diocletian was the adoption of a
two-tier administrative system; he doubled the amount of provinces (which were
overseen by twelve dioceses21), thus making them significantly smaller and reducing
their power to rebel, as well as expanded and re-arranged the army, firstly by reintroducing conscription for Roman citizens and then creating a fixed set of frontier
troops and Palatini22directly at the disposal of the emperor. This proved beneficial,
contributing to victory over the Persians and extension of the frontier further into the
east by 297 AD- furthermore, Britian had been re-instated to the empire by
Constantius during this time.
However, with the major reforms in military and government- and indeed, official
attempts to control and stabilise all aspects of life-, there came an enormous financial
burden. Being unable to rekindle the old system by re-issuing defunct coinage, and
knowing of the strain that the tax rises were having on the general population, his
government administered a detailed taxation system which allowed for regional
variations of harvests and trade. This was almost a class-based implement- areas with
greater wealth and fertile soil were taxed harder than the poorer communities, thereby
making it more equitable23. With this, however, he was unable to check inflation, and
his attempt to curtail this, the Edict of Maximum Prices in 301 AD, tried to fix prices
and wages, but only managed to negate his earlier regional variations policy and,
17
if it worked like this in a cyclical motion then it was hoped that, in time, the problem of succession would soon be
resolved by the best possible man for the job being in power at all times.
18
The administration of government was largely left in the hands of the prefects. They were no longer really military
commanders, but far more they were expert jurists and administrators overseeing imperial administration.
http://www.roman-empire.net/decline/diocletian.html
19
Diocletian also expanded the policy of third-century emperors of restricting the entry of senators into high-ranking
governmental posts, especially military ones. http://www.roman-emperors.org/dioclet.htm
20
All this was no doubt introduced to yet further increase the authority of the imperial office. Under Diocletian the
emperor became a god-like creature, detached from worldly affairs of the lesser people around him. (Ibid)
21
Sources conflict over whether there was 12 or 13 dioceses
22
Mobile forces [The Rise and Fall of Rome (Op. Cit)]
23
Fairer, more proportioned system
additionally, take away goods from the markets24, keeping workers to their jobs like
serfs25.
Moreover, Diocletian’s religious policy was unsucccesful. Seeing the need to bolster
Roman traditions and return it to worship of the old deities with the ultimate goal of
using it as a unification medium,26 in 298 AD he set about persecuting Christians27,
who he regarded as blasphemers and followers of foreign cults, and grew more
ruthless in 303 AD, issuing an official edict that ordered the destruction of all
chruches and scripture documents within the empire. He also punished all within
Rome who refused to adhere to his revival of the Roman gods- even those within his
own administration, dismissing them immediately if they disobeyed his will28. In his
more Christianized east, several thousands were martyred from 303 AD to 311 AD,
six years after he was no longer Emperor, and many more renounced their faith
merely to stay alive.
Towards the end of his two-decade long reign, Diocletian outlined a plan to ensure
that Rome would survive sufficiently as a power after his time in charge. This
involved the identification of key roles and occupations that would have to be
performed, known as the “compulsory services”. 29 The need to instill these basic
positions signified the utter turmoil in which Rome had been embroiled for much of
the third century, and he made them of a hereditary nature, meaning people who grew
up in a family of a particular occupation were bound to that role, and they became
tired of the laws, suggesting that they were often ignored.30
On the first day of May, in 305 AD, tired by his long reign and recovering from a
serious illness, Diocletian abdicated office31 , persuading a relucant Maximian to
follow suit. He was also determined to see his plans for succession put into practice,
and Constantius and Galerius became the new Augusti, and two new Caesars were
selected, Maximinus (305-313) in the east and Severus (305- 307) in the west. He
retired to his palace in Dalmatia, returning only once to attempt to restore peace
among his quarrelling successors, for the principles of the Tetrarchy were not working
at all as intended- he died eight years later in his bed, by most accounts disappointed
at the way his plans were unfolding.
24
A "Maximum Price Edict" issued in 301, intended to curb inflation, served only to make goods unprofitable to sell and
drive them onto the black market Ralph W. Mathisen, University of South Carolina http://www.romanemperors.org/dioclet.htm
25
His notorious Edict of Maximum Prices in AD301, which fixed prices and wages, merely meant that goods
disappeared from the markets, although workers were increasingly tied to their jobs like serfs. http://www.romanempire.net/decline/diocletian.html
26
But Diocletian, the great reformer of the empire, should also become known for a very harsh persecution of the
Christians. Trying to strengthen Roman traditions, he much revived worship of the old Roman gods (Ibid)
27
Encouraged by the Caesar Galerius, Diocletian in 303 issued a series of four increasingly harsh decrees designed to
compel Christians to take part in the imperial cult, the traditional means by which allegiance was pledged to the empire.
This began the so-called "Great Persecution." Ralph W. Mathisen, University of South Carolina http://www.romanemperors.org/dioclet.htm
28
All soldiers and administrators were ordered to make sacrifices to the gods. Anyone who refused to do so, was
immediately dismissed. (Ibid)
29
In order to assure the long-term survival of the empire, Diocletian identified certain occupations which he felt would
have to be performed. These were known as the "compulsory services." They included such occupations as soldiers,
bakers, members of town councils, and tenant farmers http://www.roman-emperors.org/dioclet.htm
30
The repetitious nature of these laws, however, suggests that they were not widely obeyed (Ibid)
31
The first emperor to voluntary resign from the post, which was an achievement in itself in not being either usurped or
assassinated [The Rise and Fall of Rome (Op. Cit)]
During the Crisis of the Third century (235-285), in which the Roman Empire was left
in a state of intense chaos due to the onset of internal civil war, external invasion, and
economic turmoil, there was significant change in all core institutions and facets of
life- perhaps rapid and panic driven, but necessary change nonetheless for the empire
was on the brink of collapse at every corner. Each Emperor was faced with the
immense challenge of keeping such a vast community together as one whilst dealing
with numerous imminent threats, with only some rising to the task. Gallienus (253-68)
laid the foundations, upon which Aurelian (270-275) immediately built, and finally
Diocletian began the long, tiresome process of reformation. His ideals were not
always met with great support, and his initiatives did not always work out, but the
sheer size of his campaign cannot be understated- a mere soldier he once was32,
Diocletian kept an entire empire united through his inspired vision during the whole
of his reign and went some way towards restoring it to normality. Perhaps Roman
civilization had run the primary length of its course, and thus was not ready, or able,
to bear the radical changes that he implemented across all boards, but still his efforts
were revolutionary and underpinned the whole later empire, as it survived in the west
for another century before it was separated, and in the east for another 100 years prior
to the capture of Constantinople by the Ottoman Turks. The influence that
Diocletian’s actual reforms as such had on these successes would have to be called
into question, as his ideals did not pan out as he intended, and with each new emperor
came a different vision. What cannot be denied, however, is the extent of his reforms
and their immediate impact value, but the intense nature of the changes over such a
short period of time proved to be unhealthy. His reforms in the areas of succession,
tetrarchy and the military seemed to be working, but as soon as he retired office failed
to come to fruition, with his other plans regarding religious unity, finance and
occupation struggling to find their feet even during his reign. They were effective in a
sense, but not quite close to the degree they were intended. This was through no fault
of his own as Rome was already in a wider state of literal disrepair, and he had very
little option as Emperor than to attempt these wholesale changes, much like other
rulers have tried and failed throughout the world before and after his era. Thus the old
adage remains universally true- history always repeats itself.
By Benjamin French
Diocletian was one of the greatest of Rome’s later emperors, recasting the empire in a bureaucratic,
half-oriental mode…an achievement for a man who remained, beneath his imperial splendour, a simple
Illyrian soldier. [The Rise and Fall of Rome (Op. Cit)]
32