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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Magnus Maximus, post: 2504820, member: 73473&quot;]In 387 a large army crossed the Italian Alps and moved to capture Mediolanum, they did not encounter any resistance. The army was led by Flavius Magnus Clemens Maximus who was hellbent on capturing Valentinian II and the rest of the Western Roman Empire. Young Valentinian II and his mother barley managed to escape the fleets and armies of Maximus, and made their way to Thessaloniki to meet the Eastern Emperor Theodosius I for help. Maximus meanwhile celebrated a triumph in Milan over the bloodless ousting of Valentinian, he then proceeded to set up his court there and govern his newly acquired provinces of Italy, Illyricum, and Africa. The Senate of Rome travelled to Milan to congratulate him on his victory and wrote panegyrics praising his rule and character. Sadly this would be the high point of Maximus&#039;s career.</p><p>When news of the upcoming war with Theodosius reached him, he marched to Sisca with a large army to meet him in battle. The forces of Maximus and Theodosius fought three bloody battles in Illyria. The first battle almost went in Maximus favor, his men had defeated the main body Theodosius&#039;s infantry, but hunnic mercenaries turned the tide at the end. The second battle, the Save, was the bloodiest of the three battles. Maximus&#039;s army managed to inflict very heavy loses on Theodosius&#039;s army but was again defeated. At the last battle, Emona,&nbsp; Magnus Maximus again managed to inflict horrid losses on the army of Theodosius but lost a large chunk of his own army and retreated. The commanders of Maximus&#039;s armies in these battles were his Magister Militum Andragathius, his brother, and himself.</p><p>After the loss at Emona, Maximus fled to Aquileia with the remains of his army. Theodosius surrounded the city and Maximus surrendered to him without a fight. Magnus Maximus was executed on the 28th of August 388 CE, he was around 54 years old and had ruled most of the Western Empire for five years.</p><p>The reign of Magnus Maximus is a tipping point in Roman history, after his defeat, Theodosius would strip the Western Roman army of its best units. Coupled with the high losses in 388, the Western Roman army rapidly lost its combat ability. In 388 before the battles in Illyria, Maximus was able to raise 50,000 men without stripping the Rhine of most of its troops. Compare this to Stilicho&#039;s campaign against a barbarian invasion of Italy in 405, where the general had to strip the Rhine of men, enroll slaves in the army and recruit huns and alans. This motley semi Roman army only numbered around 30,000 men, oh how the mighty have fallen!</p><p>Maximus was the last strong ruler in the Western Roman Empire and last Emperor to pay any deal of attention to the Rhine frontier. With his death came a power vacuum in northern Gaul that was never really filled by his successors.</p><p><br /></p><p>Magnus Maximus</p><p>AR Siliqua</p><p>387-388 CE</p><p>1.84 Grams</p><p>Mediolanum mint</p><p>[ATTACH=full]532017[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]532019[/ATTACH]</p><p>These are not very common compared to his coins from Trier as he only had about 18 months to strike them.</p><p><br /></p><p>The Imperial palace at Milan where Maximus stayed at.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]532020[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Ancient Milan</p><p>[ATTACH=full]532021[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>The entire Western Roman Empire(in green and gray) which Magnus Maximus briefly gained control of.</p><p>[ATTACH=full]532025[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Though Maximus has been dead for well over 1600 years he hasn&#039;t been forgotten! He continues to live on in the Welsh folklore and tradition as the founder of Wales. I think the ambitious Spanish General would probably be happy that over a millennia later people are still talking about him and collecting his coins.</p><p>[MEDIA=youtube]XSiU1HrVjUw[/MEDIA][/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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