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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Sallent, post: 2827877, member: 76194&quot;]The year was 268 CE, and a battered and disappointed Emperor Gallienus, the son of Roman aristocrat and former Emperor Valerian,&nbsp; was once again on campaign dealing with multiple Barbarian invasions, the loss of several key provinces in the west to what we now know as &quot;The Gallic Empire&quot;, and an aristocracy that was openly hostile to the emperor. Gallienus was not long for this world, for these were the turbulent times of the &quot;Crisis of the 3rd Century,&quot; where Emperors came and went at the blink of an eye, and turning your back on your subordinates for more than a few seconds was a death sentence to any emperor.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]665757[/ATTACH]</p><p>Gallienus</p><p>AE Tetradrachm</p><p>Alexandria Mint</p><p><br /></p><p>Sure enough, Gallienus left his tent unescorted and was seriously wounded by some of his own officers in a coup attempt. It is said that before he died, he named Claudius II as his successor, but other sources say he was elected by the army. Either way, the Senate did not oppose him as aristocrats were fed up with a series of bad or mediocre aristocratic emperors who has brought the empire to the brink of collapse.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]665767[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p><i><b>My new coin of Claudius II Gothicus:</b></i></p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]665765[/ATTACH]</p><p>Claudius II Gothicus, AD 268-270.</p><p>Æ Antoninianus, 17mm, 3.3g, 12h; Rome mint.</p><p>Obv.: IMP C CLAVDIVS AVG; Radiate and draped bust right.</p><p>Obv.: IOVI VICTORI; Jupiter standing left, holding thunderbolt and scepter.</p><p>Reference: RIC Va 54, p. 215</p><p>Ex: YOC Collection</p><p><br /></p><p>The first emperor of humble stock since Maximinus Thrax, Claudius II, unlike Maximinus proved a to be a capable emperor who could defend Rome and work with the nobles. Of military background, he was said to be a courageous and physically fit man. He was formerly a wrestler, and once knocked the teeth out of one of his opponents when the rival grabbed his genitals during a bout.</p><p><br /></p><p>Claudius II set about punishing Galienus&#039; murderers, and then proceeded to defeat a massive Gothic army that was threatening imperial territory. After this victory the Senate gave him the title Gothicus.</p><p><br /></p><p>Claudius also stopped a full scale invasion by the Alamanni, for which he received the title &quot;Germanicus Maximus,&quot; and then turned his attention towards the Gallic Empire.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]665769[/ATTACH]</p><p>Postumus</p><p>AR Antoninianus</p><p>Gallic Empire</p><p><br /></p><p>In the wake of the overthrow of Postumus, the first Emperor of the Gallic Empire, Claudius II Gothicus invaded Hispania&nbsp; and scored major victories, returning Iberia under the control of the Roman Empire, and seriously weakening the Gallic Empire by their loss of the Iberian silver mines.</p><p><br /></p><p>However, before he could plan further campaigns against the Gallic Empire, Claudius II Gothicus caught the plague and died, thus ending the short career of this brilliant military emperor. After him there would be 15 more years of chaos, but the subsequent military emperors that came after him proved equally as capable&nbsp; and slowly but surely pulled the empire out of chaos and the brink of collapse. Therefore, Caudius II Gothicus&#039; legacy cannot be underestimated.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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