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Admin moved page How did Emperor Septimius Severus change the Roman Empire? to How did Emperor Septimius Severus change the Roman Empire
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[[File: Septimius Severus Glyptothek Munich 357.jpg|200px210px|thumbthumbnail|left|Bust of Septimius]]
Emperor Septimius Severus (145-211 AD), while not one of the better known Roman Emperors, was one of the most important in the history of Rome. He was a very capable man, a successful administrator, and an excelent general. He reformed the government of Rome and was extremely successful on the battlefield. Under Severus, the Roman Empire reached its greatest extent and he successfully founded a dynasty. Despite these very real achievements, many regard Septimius Severus as fatally undermining Rome.
==== Life and Reign of Septimius Severus====
[[File: Septimus Severus one.jpg|270px250px|thumbthumbnail|left|Ruins of the defensive works built by Septimius in North Africa]]
Septimius Severus was born in, Leptis Magna, Tripolitania (now in Libya). He was the son of a knight or a member of the equestrian order and he was of Punic or Carthaginian descent. Severus first language was Punic, and he remained proud of his Carthaginian heritage.<ref>Birley, Anthony R., <i>Septimius Severus: The African Emperor</i> (London: Routledge, 1999), p. 15</ref> He entered the Senate about 173 AD, he was very young to become a senator but his way was eased because so many members of the elite had died in a great plague the previous year.
====Severus and the Senate====
Severus raised the status and influence of the army. However, he ignored and even persecuted members of the old senatorial order. Septimius was aware that he had seized power and was not a constitutional monarch. He knew that the Senate disliked him and saw him as a usurper.<ref> <i>Life of Septimius Severus</i>, x </ref> He marginalized both the Senate and the Italian aristocracy that had traditionally played an essential role in the government of the Empire. Severus ended this tradition. He would often appoint commoners and non-Italians to high offices and governorships. This shift infuriated the Senatorial class. However, Severus did not tolerate any opposition and he either executed or exiled several Senators.
The reign of the first African Emperor was to see a rapid decline in the prestige and the influence of the Senate. Real power no longer lay with the Senate but with the bureaucracy and the army. Severus dismantled the long-established system that was established by Augustus where the Emperor would share power with the Senate and the Italian aristocracy. Instead, Septimius Severus reign was one that has been characterized as a ‘military monarchy.’<ref> Hekster, Oliver, <i>Rome and its Empire, AD 193–284</i> (Edinburgh, Archer Press, 2008), p. 201</ref> Severus legitimacy did not come from any political institution but the army.
In subsequent periods, any general with the support of the legions could claim the Imperial throne leading to endemic instability. The development of a ‘military monarchy’ was one of the main reasons for the so-called ‘Crisis of the Third Century.’<ref> Hekster, p. 232</ref>
Severus raised the status and influence of the army. However, he ignored and even persecuted members of the old senatorial order. Septimius was aware that he had seized power and was not a constitutional monarch. He knew that the Senate disliked him and saw him as a usurper.<ref> <i>Life of Septimius Severus</i>, x </ref> He marginalized both the Senate and the Italian aristocracy that had traditionally played an important role in the government of the Empire. Severus ended this tradition. He would often appoint commoners and non-Italians to high offices and governorships. This infuriated the Senatorial class. However, Severus did not tolerate any opposition and he either executed or exiled several Senators.
* Grant, Michael., <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0415127726/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0415127726&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=52f8a4125e2f391fdddeddb02e162abe The Severans: The Changed Roman Empire]</i> (Routledge, London, 1996)
* Hekster, Oliver, <i>[https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0748623043/ref=as_li_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=0748623043&linkCode=as2&tag=dailyh0c-20&linkId=9ad188f31259f2e53d559c0d52b91aba Rome and its Empire, AD 193–284]</i> (Edinburgh, Archer Press, 2008)
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