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Crispus

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For other uses, seeCrispus (disambiguation).
Crispus
Caesar(1 March 317 - 326)
Solidusof Crispus marked:
fl·iul·crispusnob·caes·
Bornc. 300
Pola,Istria
Died326 AD (aged c. 26)
Pola,Istria
SpouseHelena[1]
Issue1
Names
Flavius Julius Crispus[2]
DynastyConstantinian
FatherConstantine I
MotherMinervina
ReligionGreco-Roman religion

Flavius Julius Crispus(/ˈkrɪspəs/;c.300 – 326) was the eldest son of theRoman emperorConstantine I,as well as his junior colleague (caesar) from March 317 until his execution by his father in 326. The grandson of theaugustusConstantius I,Crispus was the elder half-brother of the futureaugustusConstantine IIand became co-caesarwith him and with his cousinLicinius IIatSerdica,part of the settlement ending theCibalensean Warbetween Constantine and his father's rivalLicinius I.Crispus ruled fromAugusta Treverorum(Trier) inRoman Gaulbetween 318 and 323 and defeated the navy of Licinius I at theBattle of the Hellespontin 324, which with the landBattle of Chrysopoliswon by Constantine forced the resignation ofLiciniusand his son, leaving Constantine the soleaugustusand theConstantinian dynastyin control of the entire empire. It is unclear what the legal status of the relationship Crispus's motherMinervinahad with Constantine was; Crispus may have been anillegitimateson.

Crispus'stutorinrhetoricwas theLate Latinhistorian ofEarly ChristianityLactantius.After his elevation to imperial rank, at which point he was also entitledprinceps iuventutis( "Prince of Youth" ), the Latin rhetoricianNazariuscomposed apanegyricpreserved in thePanegyrici Latini,which honoured Crispus's military victories over theFranksinc. 319.Crispus was three timesRoman consul,for the years 318, 321, and 324.

According to the Latin histories ofAmmianus MarcellinusandAurelius Victor,after a trial whose real circumstances are mysterious, Constantine executed Crispus at Pola (Pula) in 326. His stepmotherFaustawas also put to death, and theLate GreekhistorianZosimusand theByzantine GreekwriterJoannes Zonaraswrote that Constantine had accused Crispus ofincestwith her. After his death, Crispus was subjected todamnatio memoriae.

Early life[edit]

While Crispus’ year of birth is nowhere outright stated, he must have been born before 307.[3]By that time, his motherMinervinawas either dead or set aside, as his father Constantine was married toMaximian’s daughterFausta.

Constantine entrusted his eldest son’s education toLactantius,one of the most important Christian teachers of that time.[3]

Reverse of asolidusof Crispus, marked:SECVRITAS REIPVBLICAE( "the security of the Republic")

Career[edit]

By 313, there were two remainingaugustiin control of the Roman Empire—Constantine in the west and his brother-in-lawLiciniusin the east. On 1 March 317, the two co-reigningaugustijointly proclaimed three newcaesares:Crispus, alongside his younger half-brotherConstantine II,and his first cousinLicinius Iunior.[4]Constantine appointed Crispus as Commander of Gaul.[5]The newcaesarsoon held residence in Augusta Treverorum (modernTrier), regional capital ofGermania.

By October 322, Crispus was already married to a woman named Helena, as she bore him a child in that month. TheCodex Theodosianusrecorded Constantine’s celebration of the event.[3]

Crispus was leader in victorious military operations against theFranksand theAlamanniin 318, 320 and 323.[5]Thus he secured the continued Roman presence in the areas of Gaul and Germania. The soldiers adored him thanks to his strategic abilities and the victories to which he had led theRoman legions.

Crispus spent the following years assisting Constantine in the war against by then hostile Licinius. In 324, Constantine appointed Crispus as the commander of his fleet which left the port ofPiraeusto confront Licinius' fleet. The subsequentBattle of the Hellespontwas fought at the straits ofBosporus.The 200 ships under the command of Crispus managed to decisively defeat the enemy forces, which were at least double in number. Thus Crispus achieved his most important and difficult victory which further established his reputation as a brilliant general.[6]

Following his navy activities, Crispus was assigned part of the legions loyal to his father. The other part was commanded by Constantine himself. Crispus led the legions assigned to him in another victoriousbattle outside Chrysopolisagainst the armies of Licinius.

The two victories were his contribution to the final triumph of his father over Licinius. Constantine was the onlyaugustusleft in the Empire. He honoured his son for his support and success by depicting his face in imperial coins, statues, mosaics, cameos, etc. Eusebius of Caesaria wrote for Crispus that he is "anImperatormost dear toGodand in all regards comparable to his father,” going as far as to compare their relationship to God the Father and God the Son.[7]

Execution[edit]

Reverse of asolidusmarked:dn··crispvs·nob·caes·

In 326, Crispus' life came to a sudden end. On his father's orders he was executed, apparently without trial, atPola,Istria,in the AugustanregioofVenetia et Histria.[8]According toSidonius ApollinarisandGregory of Tours,Crispus died through poison.[9][10]Soon afterwards, Constantine had his wifeFaustakilled also, according to several sources in a hot bath or bathroom.[11]Both Crispus and Fausta suffereddamnatio memoriae,their names being erased from inscriptions.[12]

The reason for these deaths remain unclear. The accounts ofZosimusandZonarassay that Crispus was executed due to suspicions that he was involved in an illicit relationship with Fausta,[13]but some scholars have been skeptical of this explanation. For instance, T. D. Barnes argues that as Crispus was based at Trier, and Fausta at Constantinople, they would not have had the opportunity to have an affair.[14]While Hans Pohlsander considers Barnes’ argument to be invalid on the basis that Crispus was in the East for long enough,[15]he suggests that the similarity of Zosimus' story to the myth ofPhaedraandHippolytusmakes its veracity doubtful.[14]He does, however, note that Constantine passed multiple laws on adultery in the same year, which may have been related to the deaths of Crispus and Fausta.[16]On the other hand, David Woods accepts the belief that the two were thought to have had a relationship, while suggesting that they were not actually executed. According to his theory, Crispus was exiled to Pola as a punishment for his adultery and committed suicide by poison there, and Fausta's death was caused by an attempt to induce abortion to get rid of an unwanted pregnancy that resulted from her affair.[17]

Pohlsander observed that Crispus “must have committed, or at least must have been suspected of having committed, some especially shocking offense to earn him a sentence of death from his own father.”[3]J. W. Drijvers concludes that the true explanation will never be known.[18]

In literature[edit]

Crispus became a popular tragic hero after the success of Bernardino Stefonio's neo-Latin tragedyCrispus,which was performed at theJesuit Collegio Romanoin 1597. Closely modelled onSeneca'sPhaedra,this became a model of Jesuit tragedy and one of the main bases forAlessandro Donati's 1631Ars Poeticand Tarquinio Galluzzi's 1633Defense of Crispus.The play was adapted for the French stage byFrançois de GrenailleasL'Innocent malhereux(1639) and byTristan l'HermiteasLa Morte de Chrispe ou les maleurs du grand Constantine(1645). It was performed as an opera in Rome (1720) and London (1721), where it was entitled,Crispo: drama,[19]not to mentionDonizetti's 1832 operaFausta.The story is also retold and embellished in chapter 31 ofSir Walter Scott's novelCount Robert of Paris.WhenEvelyn Waughreworks the story in his novelHelena(1950), Crispus is innocent.

References[edit]

Citations[edit]

  1. ^Jones, Martindale & Morris,p. 409.
  2. ^Jones, Martindale & Morris,p. 233.
  3. ^abcdHans Pohlsander,Crispus Caesar (317-326 A.D.)
  4. ^Pohlsander 1984,p. 86.
  5. ^abPohlsander 1984,p. 87.
  6. ^Pohlsander 1984,p. 88.
  7. ^Pohlsander 1984,p. 98.
  8. ^Guthrie 1966,p. 325.
  9. ^Pohlsander 1984,p. 100.
  10. ^Gregory of Tours,History of the FranksI.36
  11. ^Woods 1998,p. 71-72.
  12. ^Woods 1998,p. 72.
  13. ^Pohlsander 1984,p. 101.
  14. ^abWoods 1998,p. 73.
  15. ^Pohlsander 1984,p. 104.
  16. ^Pohlsander 1996,p. 53-54.
  17. ^Woods 1998,p. 78–80.
  18. ^Woods 1998,p. 74.
  19. ^Marc Fumaroli,Heros et orateurs. Rhetoriques et dramaturgie corneliennes,Geneva: Droz, 1996

Sources[edit]

  • Guthrie, Patrick (1966). "The Execution of Crispus".Phoenix.20(4): 325–331.doi:10.2307/1087057.JSTOR1087057.
  • Jones, A.H.M.;J.R. Martindale&J. Morris(1971).Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire.Vol. 1. Cambridge University Press.ISBN0-521-07233-6.
  • Pohlsander, Hans A. (1984). "Crispus: Brilliant Career and Tragic End".Historia: Zeitschrift für Alte Geschichte.33(1): 79–106.JSTOR4435872.
  • Pohlsander, Hans A. (1996).The Emperor Constantine.Routledge.ISBN0-415-31938-2.
  • Torino, Alessio (2008).Bernardinus Stephonius S.J. Crispus-tragoedia.Rome: Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei.
  • Woods, David (1998)."On the Death of the Empress Fausta".Greece & Rome.45(1): 70–86.doi:10.1093/gr/45.1.70.

External links[edit]

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Political offices
Preceded by Roman consul
318
withLicinius AugustusV 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Roman consul
321
withConstantine CaesarII 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Roman consul
324
withConstantine CaesarIII 		Succeeded by
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