Diocletian began to reign A.D. 284, and once more revived the vigor of the declining empire, which now seemed more than ever to depend for its existence upon the qualities of a single ruler. It seems, indeed, to have required an intellect of no common order to preserve the unity of the empire, composed of so many different nations, of territories separated by such vast distances, and threatened on every side by innumerable foes; but, of all his contemporaries, Diocletian was best suited to this task. His parents had been the slaves of a Roman Senator, and he had himself risen from this low station to the highest positions in the army. He acted with generosity toward the servants of the former emperor, not only suffering them to remain in safety under his rule, but even to retain It gives us, indeed, a clear view of the immense extent of the Roman power when we reflect that its commanders were, almost at the same moment, struggling successfully against its enemies in Africa, Britain, Germany, and the East. A war with Persia now arose, in which Galerius was at first defeated, A.D. 296. But the The two emperors returned to Rome and celebrated their triumph November 20, A.D. 303, the last spectacle of that kind which the world has witnessed. Romulus, more than a thousand years before, had ascended the Capitoline Mount on foot, bearing in his arms the spoil of Acron, and his example had been followed by a long line of Roman heroes. In the last triumph, the two emperors were attended by the spoils of Africa and Britain, of the East and the West. During this reign also occurred the last persecution of the Christians, who were soon to become the masters of the empire. It began A.D. 303, and continued for ten years; and such multitudes of the Christians perished that the emperors boasted that they had wholly extirpated the sect! Diocletian introduced an Eastern pomp into his court, assumed the titles of "Lord and Emperor," and wore a diadem set with pearls. His robes were of silk and gold. He required his subjects to prostrate themselves before him, and to adore him as a divinity. In A.D. 305, like Charles V., he resolved to abdicate his power, having persuaded his colleague Maximian to do the same: he lived in retirement for nine years, and amused himself cultivating his garden. "I wish you would come to Salona" (Spalatro), he wrote to Maximian, who sought to draw him from his retirement, "and see the cabbages I have planted: you would never again mention to me the name of empire." But the close of his life was embittered by the ingratitude of Constantine and Licinius, and the dangers of the empire. It is not known whether he died by disease or by his own hand. Upon the abdication of Diocletian and his colleague, the two CÆsars, Constantius and Galerius, assumed the title of Augustus. Constantius retained his former provinces, Gaul, Spain, and Britain. He was moderate, amiable, and lived with Roman simplicity. Galerius, on the other hand, was haughty, severe, and ambitious. He This prince, afterward Constantine the Great, was the son of Constantius and Helena, who was said to have been the daughter of an inn-keeper. When Constantius became CÆsar he divorced Helena, and her son was, in a measure, neglected. Constantine, however, soon distinguished himself as a soldier, and won the affection of the army. In appearance he was tall, dignified, and pleasing; he excelled in all military exercises, was modest, prudent, and well informed. He soon attracted the jealousy of Galerius, who would have put him to death had he not escaped to his father in Britain; and now Galerius refused to allow him any higher title than that of CÆsar. Maxentius, the son of the abdicated emperor Maximian, was also proclaimed Augustus by his soldiers, and prevailed upon his father once more to ascend the throne. Severus, who marched against them, was defeated and put to death; and Constantine now married Fausta, the daughter of Maximian. Galerius led a large army from the East, but was repulsed from Rome and retreated, leaving Maximian and his son masters of the capital. Galerius next asso In A.D. 310, however, Maximian, having conspired against the life of Constantine, was put to death; Galerius died the next year; in A.D. 312 Maxentius fell before the arms of Constantine, and was drowned in the Tiber while attempting to make his escape. It was during this campaign that Constantine is said to have seen the miraculous cross in the heavens. The Roman Senate paid unusual honors to Constantine; games and festivals were instituted in memory of his victory over Maxentius, and a triumphal arch was erected, whose imperfect architecture shows the decline of ancient taste. The Arch of Trajan was stripped of its ornaments to adorn that of Constantine. The new emperor introduced good order into the administration of the West, revived the authority of the Senate, and disbanded the PrÆtorian Guards; he revoked the edicts against the Christians, and paid unusual deference to the bishops and saints of the Church. The Emperor Licinius, who had married his sister, in A.D. 313 defeated and put to death Maximin, so that the empire was now shared between Constantine and Licinius. The former now summoned a council of bishops at Arles to suppress the heresy of the Donatists, but, before it met, was forced to march against Licinius, who had conspired against him. Licinius was defeated in two battles, and forced to give up a large part of his dominions to his conqueror. Constantine next defeated the At the famous Council of Nice, which met in A.D. 325, the doctrine of the Trinity was established, Arianism condemned, and at the same time the emperor was, in effect, acknowledged to be the spiritual head of the Church. But an event now occurred which must have destroyed forever the happiness of Constantine. He was induced to put to death his virtuous son Crispus, through the false accusations of his wife Fausta, and when afterward he discovered the falseness of the charges made against Crispus, he directed Fausta and her accomplices to be slain. Rome, which had so long been the capital of the world, was now to descend from that proud position and become a provincial city. When Constantine returned to Rome after the Council of Nice, he found himself assailed with insults and execrations. The Senate and the people of the capital saw with horror the destroyer of their national faith, and they looked upon Constantine as accursed by the gods. The execution of his wife and son soon after increased the ill feeling against the emperor, and Constantine probably resolved to abandon a city upon which he had bestowed so many favors, and which had repaid him with such ingratitude. He was conscious, too, that Rome, seated in the heart of Italy, was no longer a convenient capital for his empire, and he therefore resolved to build a new city on the site of ancient Byzantium. The Bosphorus, a narrow strait, connects the Black Sea and the Sea of Marmora; and here, on a triangular piece of ground, inclosing on one side an excellent harbor, Constantine laid the foundations of his capital. It was situated in the forty-first degree of latitude, possessed a temperate climate, and a fertile territory around it; while, being placed on the confines of both Europe and Asia, it commanded the two divisions of the empire. Constantinople was adorned with all the architectural elegance of the age, but the arts of sculpture and of decoration had so declined that Constantine was forced to rob the cities of Greece of their finest works in order to supply the deficiencies of his own artists: Athens and Asia were despoiled to adorn his semi-barbarous capital. The city was provided with a forum, in which was placed a column of porphyry upon a white marble base, in all one hundred and twenty feet high, upon which stood a bronze figure of Apollo. A hippodrome, or circus of great size, and the baths and pleasure- Having thus provided a capital, Constantine next began to form a new constitution for his empire; he established, therefore, a com The Roman Empire was divided into four great prÆfectures, which were themselves subdivided into dioceses and provinces. The prÆfectures were named that of the East, of Illyricum, of Italy, and of Gaul. A PrÆtorian PrÆfect had charge of each prÆfecture, and regulated its civil government; took care of the roads, ports, granaries, manufactures, coinage; was the supreme legal magistrate, from whose decision there was no appeal. Rome and Constantinople had their own PrÆfects, whose courts took the place of those of the ancient PrÆtors, while a considerable police force preserved the quiet of each city. The magistrates of the empire were divided into three classes, the Illustrissimi, or illustrious; the Spectabiles, or respectable; and the Clarissimi, or the honorable. Constantine also made Christianity the established religion of the state, and appropriated a large portion of the revenues of the cities to the support of the churches and the clergy. His standing army was very large, but the ranks were now filled chiefly by barbarians, the Roman youth having lost all taste for arms. It is said the young men of Italy were in the habit of cutting off the fingers of the right hand in order to unfit themselves for military service. In order to support this extensive system, Constantine was forced to impose heavy taxes upon his people. Every year the emperor subscribed with his own hand, in purple ink, the indiction, or tax levy of each diocese, which was set up in its principal city, and when this proved insufficient, an additional tax, or superindiction, was imposed. Lands, cattle, and slaves were all heavily taxed, and the declining agriculture of the empire was finally ruined by the exorbitant demands of the state. In Campania alone, once the most fertile part of Italy, one eighth of the whole province lay uncultivated, and the condition of Gaul seems to have been no better. Besides this, merchants, manufacturers, mechanics, and citizens were taxed beyond their power of endurance, while those who failed to pay were shut up in prison. Every fourth year these taxes on industry were levied, a period to which the people looked forward with terror and lamentation. Gifts were also demanded from the cities or provinces on various occasions, such as the accession of an emperor, the birth of an emperor's heir, the free gift of the Constantine in his old age adopted the luxury and pomp which Diocletian introduced from the East; he wore false hair of various colors carefully arranged, a diadem of costly gems, and a robe of silk embroidered with flowers of gold. His family, at an earlier period, consisted of Crispus, a son by his first wife Minervina, and the three sons of Fausta, Constantine, Constantius, and Constans. Besides these there were three daughters. Crispus, however, who was beloved by the people and the army, excited the jealousy of Fausta. Constantine was led to believe that his son was engaged in a conspiracy against his life, and Crispus was executed by his father's orders, together with CÆsar Licinius, the son of Constantine's favorite sister. Helena, the aged mother of Constantine, undertook to avenge her grandson. Fausta was finally proved to be unfaithful to her husband, and put to death, with many of her friends and followers. These fearful scenes within the palace recalled to the Roman people the memory of Nero and Caligula. The three sons of Fausta were now the heirs of the throne, and, with their two cousins, Dalmatius and Hannibalianus, were carefully instructed by Christian professors, Greek philosophers, and Roman jurisconsults, the emperor himself teaching them the science of government and of man. They also studied the art of war in defending the frontiers of the empire; but no important war disturbed the last fourteen years of this reign. Constantine reigned thirty years, the longest period of any since Augustus; and he died May 22, A.D. 337, at his palace at Nicomedia, aged sixty-four years. Constantine, although professing the Christian faith, was not baptized until a short time before his death, when he received that solemn rite with many professions of penitence, and of a desire to live in future according to the precepts of religion. He seems to have possessed many excellent qualities, was brave, active, and untiring, ruled with firmness, and gave a large portion of his time to the cares of state. |