Publius Septimius Geta Information
Publius Septimius Geta (7 February 189 – 29 December 211) was a Roman Emperor co-ruling with his father Septimius Severus and his older brother Caracalla from 209 to his death.
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Early life
Head of young Geta at Glyptothek, MunichGeta was the younger son of Septimius Severus by his second wife Julia Domna. Geta was born in Rome, at a time when his father was only a provincial governor at the service of emperor Commodus.
Geta was always in a place close to his older brother Lucius, the heir known as Caracalla. Perhaps due to this, the relations between the two were difficult from their early years. Conflicts were constant and often required the mediation of their mother. To appease his youngest son, Septimius Severus gave Geta the title of Augustus in 209. During the campaign against the Britons of the early 3rd century, the imperial propaganda publicized a happy family that shared the responsibilities of rule. Caracalla was his father's second in command, Julia Domna the trusted counsellor and Geta had administrative and bureaucratic duties. Truth was that the rivalry and antipathy between the brothers was far from being improved.
Joint Emperor
When Septimius Severus died in Eboracum in the beginning of 211, Caracalla and Geta were proclaimed joint emperors and returned to Rome.
A denarius of Publius Septimius GetaRegardless, the shared throne was not a success: the brothers argued about every decision, from law to political appointments. Later sources speculate about the desire of the two of splitting the empire in two halves. By the end of the year, the situation was unbearable. Caracalla tried to murder Geta during the festival of Saturnalia without success. Later in December he arranged a meeting with his brother in his mother's apartments, and had him murdered in her arms by centurions.
| Roman imperial dynasties | |||
| Severan dynasty | |||
| The Severan Tondo | |||
| Chronology | |||
| Septimius Severus | 193 – 198 | ||
| -with Caracalla | 198 – 209 | ||
| -with Caracalla and Geta | 209 – 211 | ||
| Caracalla and Geta | 211 – 211 | ||
| Caracalla | 211 – 217 | ||
| Interlude: Macrinus | 217 – 218 | ||
| Elagabalus | 218 – 222 | ||
| Alexander Severus | 222 – 235 | ||
| Dynasty | |||
| Severan dynasty family tree Category:Severan Dynasty | |||
| Succession | |||
| Preceded by Year of the Five Emperors | Followed by Crisis of the Third Century | ||
Following Geta's assassination, Caracalla damned his memory and ordered his name to be removed from all inscriptions. The now sole emperor also took the opportunity to get rid of his political enemies, on the grounds of conspiracy with the deceased. Cassius Dio [1] stated that around 20,000 persons of both sexes were killed and/or proscribed during this time.
See also
Notes
- ^ Cassius Dio, Roman History [1]
References
- Dio Cassius lxxvii; Herodian iv. I.
External links
- Media related to Publius Septimius Geta at Wikimedia Commons
- *Life of Geta (Historia Augusta at LacusCurtius: Latin text and English translation)
| Preceded by Lucius of Britain | Mythical British Kings | Succeeded by Interregnum, then Lucius Septimius Bassianus |
| Publius Septimius Geta Severan dynasty Born: 7 March 189 Died: 26 December 211 | ||
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Septimius Severus | Roman Emperor 209–211 With: Septimius Severus and Caracalla | Succeeded by Caracalla (as Bessianus in Britain) |
| Vacant Interregnum Title last held by Lucius | Legendary Kings of Britain | |
| Political offices | ||
| Preceded by Lucius Fabius Cilo , Marcus Annius Flavius Libo | Consul of the Roman Empire 205 with Caracalla | Succeeded by Marcus Nummius Umbrius Primus Senecio Albinus, Lucius Fulvius Gavius Numisius Petronius Aemilianus |
| Preceded by Lucius Annius Maximus , Gaius Septimius Severus Aper | Consul of the Roman Empire 208 with Caracalla | Succeeded by Lucius Aurelius Commodus Pompeianus, Quintus Hedius Lollianus Plautius Avitus |
| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| Name | Geta, Publius Septimius |
| Alternative names | |
| Short description | |
| Date of birth | 7 March 0189 |
| Place of birth | Rome |
| Date of death | 19 December 0211 |
| Place of death | |
Categories: 189 births | 211 deaths | Berber people | 3rd-century Roman emperors | Imperial Roman consuls | Severan Dynasty | Septimii | People from Rome (city) | British traditional history | Murdered Roman emperors | Deified Roman emperors | Roman emperors to suffer posthumous denigration or damnatio memoriae | People from Homs
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