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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;dougsmit, post: 2381322, member: 19463&quot;]They were half brothers and, I believe more importantly, on opposite sides of the Christian controversy.&nbsp; Gratian was an Orthodox Christian but the young (4?) Valentinian&#039;s mother and the generals who supported him were Arian.&nbsp; At that time the two sects were harder on each other than they were on Pagans.&nbsp; It is also said that Gratian was not considered much of a military man but I tend to suspect that the generals involved saw a path to rule through the young kid.&nbsp; Gratian promoted the capable and Orthodox Christian Theodosius I and effectively ended the future for Arians as emperor.&nbsp; In the next century, several of the strongmen were Arian but ruled through Orthodox puppets.&nbsp; I have not studied the fine points of this time in history but warn you need to read with a view on the religious beliefs of the writer.&nbsp; It is not easy to find fair assessments of character or ability when going across the Arian/Orthodox divide.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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