ABSTRACT

In this, the only biography of Septimius Severus in English, Anthony R. Birley explors how 'Roman' or otherwise this man was and examines his remarkable background and career.
Severus was descended from Phoenician settlers in Tripolitania, and his reign, AD 193-211, represents a key point in Roman history. Birley explores what was African and what was Roman in Septimius' background, given that he came from an African city. He asks whether Septimius was a 'typical cosmopolitan bureaucrat', a 'new Hannibal on the throne of Caesar' or 'principle author of the decline of the Roman Empire'?

chapter 1|7 pages

The Emporia

chapter 3|14 pages

Life in Roman Tripolitania

chapter 4|10 pages

The Broad Stripe

chapter 5|10 pages

Into the Emperor's Service

chapter 6|6 pages

A Caesar Born to the Purple

chapter 7|5 pages

The Great Marshal

chapter 8|13 pages

Julia Domna

chapter 9|8 pages

The Conspirators

chapter 10|19 pages

The Year 193

chapter 11|13 pages

The War Against Niger

chapter 12|8 pages

The War Against Albinus

chapter 13|17 pages

Parthia and Egypt

chapter 14|9 pages

Return to Africa

chapter 15|15 pages

The Years in Italy

chapter 17|13 pages

Aftermath and Assessment