Valentinian III

  • Valentinian III (425-455 CE) was a Roman Emperor in the West.
  • During his rule, half of North Africa, most of Spain, Sardinia and Corsica, were lost to the Vandals.

1. BIOGRAPHICAL DETAILS

  • NAME:
  • VALENTINIAN III’ DATES OF REIGN AS EMPEROR:
    • 23 October 425 CE to 16 March 455 CE.
    • Co-Emperor with Theodosius II (425-450 CE) in the East.
    • Co-Emperor with Marcian (450-455 CE) in the East.
  • VALENTINIAN III’ DATE OF BIRTH AND DEATH:
    • Born 2 July 419 CE Died 16 March 455 CE.
  • PLACE OF BIRTH AND DEATH:
  • VALENTINIAN III’ PREDECESSOR:
  • VALENTINIAN III’ SUCCESSOR:
  • VALENTINIAN III’ RIGHT HAND MAN:
  • HEIR TO THE THRONE BECAUSE:
    • He was proclaimed Emperor at the age of five by Theodosius II, Emperor of the East.
  • DIED PEACEFULLY OR ASSASSINATED:
    • He was assassinated on 16 March 455 CE along with his Chamberlain Heraclius by two soldiers of Flavius Aetius (who he had assassinated himself on 21 September 454 CE).
  • WHERE BURIED:
    • Unknown.
  • VALENTINIAN III WAS FAMOUS BECAUSE:
    • During his rule, half of North Africa, most of Spain, Sardinia and Corsica, were lost to the Vandals.
    • Battle of Chalons (451 CE)
    • Valentinian III confirmed the authority of the Papacy on the 6 June 445 CE, when he issued an Edict, first recognising the supremacy of the Bishop of Rome over all the other Bishops, and second recognising only the Nicene Creed.

2. BRIEF SYNOPSIS

THE REGENCY OF GALLIA PLACIDIA (425-437 CE)

  • On 23 October 424 CE, Theodosius II proclaimed Valentinian III Caesar of the West.
  • In 425 CE, the Eastern Army and Navy invaded Italy, and executed the Usurper Joannes. Three days later Aetius. Joannes General, arrived with a Hunnic army.
  • On 23 October 425 CE, Valentinian III was proclaimed Emperor of the West aged six, under the regency of his mother, Gallia Placidia.
  • Gallia Placidia appointed Felix as Magister Militum in Italy and the Danube. She negotiated with Aetius to send his Hunnic army home, promoting him to become Magister Militum of Gaul and the Rhine. And Bonifacius in Africa remained the loyal Magister Militum controlling the Grain Fleet in North Africa.
  • 426-432 CE: Wars against the Germanic Tribes resulted in defeat for the Visigoths in Gaul during 427 CE and 430 CE, and for the Franks on the Rhine in 428 CE and 432 CE.
  • The Visigoths remained an independent state in southwestern Gaul, whilst the Vandals in Spain invaded North Africa.
  • The Empire was ruled by the three rival Generals, Aetius, Felix and Bonifacius. In 427 CE Felix tried to invade Africa and remove Bonifacius, but he was defeated. In 429 CE, Bonifacius invited Genseric to lead an invasion force of 80,000 Vandals to North Africa to help him against Felix. But in 431 CE, Genseric forced Bonifacius to flee to Ravenna.
  • In 429 CE, Aetius attacked Felix and defeated him, he was later executed. Gallia Placida became concerned about Aetius‘ growing power, dismissed him and promoted Bonifacius as Magister Militum.
  • In 432 CE, the two Generals met at the Battle of Rimini. Bonifacius won, but died in battle, and Aetius was forced to escape to the Huns.
  • In 434 CE, Aetius returned with a Hunnic army and was restored to his position of Magister Militum.
    In 437 CE Valentinian III was married in Constantinople. When he returned, Placidia had lost power to Aetius.

GENERAL AETIUS (437-455 CE)

  • Between 436-438 CE, Aetius campaigned in Gaul with varying success against the Goths, Franks and Burgundians. In 438 CE, he negotiated a peace with Suebi in Spain.
  • However, on the 19 October 439 CE, disaster struck when Carthage fell to the Vandals, ending the Grain supply and Taxes from North Africa.
  • By 440 CE, Sicily was being attacked by the Vandal Fleets. Aetius moved army units into Sicily, but was forced to withdraw them to the Danube, after repeated attacks by the Huns.
  • In 442 CE Aetius and Valentinian III were forced to acknowledge an independent Vandal State in North Africa and Numidia, in exchange for the return of Mauretania. Gaiseric soon invaded Mauretania as well as Corsica and Sardinia.
  • Meanwhile, Spain too had almost gone, with only Hispania Tarraconensis remaining a Roman Province.
  • The resultant loss of revenue to the Imperial Treasury meant there was no money to pay the Army.
  • In July 444 CE, Valentinian III had to enforce a Tax, making the Senators (including himself) pay for the army.

VALENTINIAN III’s POLICIES

  • Dominated initially by the Policies of his mother, the Regent Gallia Placidia, and then by General Aetius, who were both permanently distracted by Germanic Invasions. Nonetheless Valentinian III passed one significant Edict:
  • Valentinian III confirmed the authority of the Papacy when on the 6 June 445 CE he issued an Edict, first recognising the supremacy of the Bishop of Rome over all the other Bishops, and second recognising only the Nicene Creed.
  • Also during the 430’s, for reasons unknown, Valentinian III banned Jews from joining the Army, possibly because the Army was now Christian.
  • Valentinian III was also known to be strongly influenced by Sorcery and Astrology, which shocked his entourage who thought him corrupt.

Attila the Hun (449-453 CE)

  • Prior to 449 CE, Valentinian III made Attila the Hun the Magister Militum, but Attila had been preoccupied with the East.
  • After securing a peace with East, in 450 CE, Attila the Hun invaded Gaul and attacked the Visigoths.
  • In 451 CE, he crossed the Rhine and attacked Metz.
  • Aetius defeated Attila at the Battle of Chalons (20 June 451 CE), but Attila the Hun escaped.
  • In 452 CE, Attila the Hun invaded Italy, sacking various Italian cities including Aquileia, whilst Aetius having very few troops, could only observe and not challenge.
  • Valentinian III had already moved the capital from Ravenna to Rome, when Attila the Hun arrived. Negotiations started between Attila the Hun and Pope Leo I, Valentinian III’s representative.
  • However, Attila was suddenly recalled East when the Eastern Emperor, Marcian, invaded his homeland. Attila died in Pannonia in 453 CE.

ASSASSINATION OF AETIUS AND OF VALENTINIAN III (454-5 CE)

  • 21 September 454 CE, Valentinian III had Aetius assassinated, and openly boasted of his exploit, mistakenly believing he was now all powerful.
  • Throughout his life he had been protected, first by his powerful mother, the by the authority of a powerful General, Aetius. As soon as this protection was gone, he barely lasted six months.
  • On 16 March 455 CE, Valentinian III was himself assassinated by some of Aetius‘ supporters.
  • Petronius Maximus immediately proclaimed himself Emperor, but within three months had been stoned to death by a mob in Rome.
  • A few days later Gaiseric and the Vandal army arrived and started the Second Sack of Rome.

3. BIBLIOGRAPHY

4. FILM AND DVD

 

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