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Jovinuswas aGallo-Romansenatorand claimed to beRoman Emperor(411–413 AD).
| Jovinus | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Usurperof theWestern Roman Empire | |||||||||
 Siliquaof Jovinus celebrating the "victories of the emperor" | |||||||||
| Reign | 411–412 (alone); 412–413 (co-emperor withSebastianus) | ||||||||
| Predecessor | Constantine III | ||||||||
| Successor | Honorius | ||||||||
| Born | Gaul | ||||||||
| Died | 413 Narbonne | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Following the defeat of theusurperknown asConstantine III,Jovinus was proclaimed emperor atMainzin 411, a puppet supported byGundahar,king of theBurgundians,andGoar,king of theAlans.Jovinus kept his position in Gaul for two years, long enough to issue coinage that showed him wearing the imperialdiadem.He was supported by a number of local Gallo-Roman nobles who had survived Constantine's defeat.
Under the pretext of Jovinus' imperial authority, Gundahar and his Burgundians established themselves on the left bank of the Rhine (the Roman side) between the riverLauterand theNahe.Here they founded a kingdom with the old Romanized Gaulish settlement of Borbetomagus (Worms) as its capital.
Jovinus' end came after theVisigothsunderAtaulfleft Italy (atPriscus Attalus' advice), ostensibly to join him, carrying with them as hostages the ex-emperor Attalus andGalla Placidia,Honorius' half-sister. Then Ataulf attacked and killedSarus,who had also come to support Jovinus. Jovinus, offended at this act, then failed to consult Ataulf when he elevated his brotherSebastianusas co-emperor. Insulted, Ataulf allied his Visigoths withHonorius,and they defeated Jovinus' troops. Sebastianus was executed. Jovinus fled for his life, but was besieged and captured in Valentia (Valence, Drôme) and taken to Narbo (Narbonne), whereCaius Posthumus Dardanus,thepraetorian prefect(governor) in Gaul, who had remained loyal to Honorius, had him executed. Jovinus' and Sebastianus' heads were afterwards sent to Honorius and mounted on the walls ofRavenna(before being passed on toCarthage,where they were put on permanent display with the heads of four other usurpers).
References
edit- Ralf Scharf:Iovinus – Kaiser in Gallien,in:Francia20(1993), pp. 1–13.
- Drinkwater, J. F., "The Usurpers Constantine III (407-411) and Jovinus (411-413)",Britannia,29(1998), p. 269-298
External links
edit
Media related toJovinusat Wikimedia Commons
