Gallienus


Gallienus

(Publius Licinius Valerianus Egnatius) (găl'īē`nəs), d. 268, Roman emperor. He ruled as the colleague (253–60) of his father, ValerianValerian
(Publius Licinius Valerianus) , d. after 260, Roman emperor (253–60). He held important posts, both civil and military, under the emperors Decius and Gallus. After the short reign of the former general Aemilianus, Valerian was proclaimed emperor.
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, and alone (260–68). When his father was in the East, Gallienus checked the Alemanni near Milan, and even after the capture of Valerian he was successful. Later, however, the provinces began to be too rebellious for his control. PostumusPostumus
(Marcus Cassianius Latinius Postumus) , d. 269?, Roman commander. Governor of Gaul under Gallienus, he revolted (257) and established an independent empire there.
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 had established his independence in Gaul, and in the East Odenathus, spreading the conquests of PalmyraPalmyra
, ancient city of central Syria. A small modern village known as Tudmor or Tadmor (the Syrian Arabic name of Palmyra) is nearby; residents were relocated from the ancient site in the early 1930s.
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, was being recognized. A force sent by Gallienus against ZenobiaZenobia
, d. after 272, queen of Palmyra. She was of Arab stock and was the wife of Septimius Odenathus. He was murdered, probably through her contrivance, and she obtained rule of his lands in the name of her son.
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 was defeated. Gallienus himself was murdered by his men at Milan, where he was resisting a revolt, which was eventually suppressed by his successor Claudius IIClaudius II
(Marcus Aurelius Claudius), d. 270, Roman emperor (268–70), called Gothicus. A successful general under Valerian, Claudius put down the revolt in which Gallienus was killed.
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. During his reign Gallienus had reversed his father's program of persecuting the Christians and had managed to bring the empire through a crucial period of history without complete disaster.