Roman Emperor Caracella
Caracella was a Roman emperor of Berber and Arabic descent who reigned from 211 AD to 217 AD. He was born on April 4th, 186 AD to the future emperor Septimius Severus and his wife Julia Domna. Born in Lugdunum in Gaul, Caracella was given the full name Lucius Septimius Bassianus at birth.
This would later be changed to Marcus Aurelius Antoninus by the time he was seven years old. This was not an unusual custom in those days and was done primarily to strengthen and maintain good relations with the family of Marcus Aurelius. Caracella, which was the nickname given to him later on, actually referred to the hooded tunic of Gaelic origin, which he often wore in public.
His wearing of such a garment was in fact mostly responsible for the popularisation of said attire among people of the time. It must be said though that Caracella's reputation was not built on his fashion sense. He was in fact known as one of the Roman Empire's most feared and brutal leaders.
Caracella came into power in the year 211 AD upon the death of his father, Severus. Severus had been in power for almost two decades, having assumed control over the throne from the year 193 AD onwards. He met his subsequent end in Eboracum in York in a march on the northern territories.
Caracella's brother, Publius Septimius Antoninius Geta was proclaimed at the same time, as he and two others ruled as co-emperors for a time. Caracella however had grander ambitions than these and he sought to wrest sole control over the throne. Through a series of brutal and coldly efficient manoeuvrings, he managed to orchestrate the assassinations of not only Geta, but also his father-in-law Gaius Fulvius Plautianus and wife Fulvia Plautilla, who was also his paternal second cousin. He went further than the physical murder of his brother by petitioning the Roman senate to issue a damnatio memoriae against Geta.
Caracella made known in public that the death of Geta actually came about because he only sought to defend himself against his brother's attacks. The citizens of Alexandria were unanimous in their disbelief at these and Caracella's many other outlandish claims. They voiced their dissatisfaction by staging a satire that made a mockery of the emperor's assertions.
Caracella took this bit of insolence very badly indeed and when the citizens of the city gathered to meet him upon his arrival, he brutally ordered the death of the assembly of leading citizens. That was not the end of his retribution, for he then sent his troops free into the city to ravage and pillage for several days. When the massacre was over, it was estimated that over 20,000 people had been killed in the span of a few days.
As hated a ruler as Caracella was, he was somewhat well regarded by his troops, for he had previously given them pay increases along with many other benefits. Nevertheless, he would meet his end at the hands of one of his own soldiers in Harran where he was assassinated on April 8th, 217 AD.
Original Authors: Doods Pangburn
Edit Update Authors: M.A.Harris
Updated On: 22/07/2008
