Category:Domitian (subject)
Titus Flavius Domitianus (51 – 96 CE), was the third and last ruler of the Flavian dinasty, from 86 to 96 CE.
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Overview
Domitian, son of Vespasian, succeeded to his brother Titus as emperor from 81 till 96 CE as the third and last ruler of the Flavian dynasty. During Domitian’s rule the Imperial government became more and more despotic, thus many scholars see in his reign the passage from principatus to dominatus. Domitian was murdered in 96 C.E.
Early Career
Domitian was born in Rome in 51 CE, the son of Vespasian and his wife Domitilla. In 69 CE, the young Domitian was at Rome. Left undisturbed by the successive rulers, Galba and Otho, he was placed under house arrest by Vitellius. Later he had to flee disguised as a worshipper of Isis, while his uncle Flavius Sabinus was executed. He was the most important member of the Flavian family, prior to Vespasian’ arrival in Rome and he received from the Senate the title of Caesar. Domitian was also appointed praetor with consular power. However, as soon as Vespasian entered in Rome, his power was curtailed in favor of Mucianus. In 70 CE, Domitian married Domitia Longina, the daughter of Corbulo, and the wife of Lucius Aelius Lama, who had to divorce his wife. They had a son in 71 CE and a daughter in 74 CE, but both died young. As a second son, Domitian was spared from responsibilities. He held several honorary consulships and several priesthoods but no office with imperium. During the reign of his brother Titus, his situation remained the same. When Titus died in 81 CE, Domitian was chosen as his successor with the support of the praetorians.
Imperial Succession
The main characteristic of Domitian’s rule was his despotic government, which marked the passage from principatus to dominatus. Domitian promoted in the administration of the Empire the equestrian order at the expenses of the Senate. In fact Domitian enjoyed a negative relationship with the Senate, from which he withdraw any decisional power. Moreover Domitian over the year developed a fear of persecution that induced him to execute several members of the senatorial and equestrian orders, including Domitia Longina's former husband Lucius Aelius Lamia and three of Domitian's own family members, Titus Flavius Sabinus, Titus Flavius Clemens and Marcus Arrecinus Clemens, who were executed as early as 83 or 85 CE. His rule was also characterized by the persecution of the philosophers in 93 C.E. Domitian’s rule in the administration was characterized by the tendency to replace freedmen by equites in secretarial and financial works, a policy continued by latter emperors, most notably Hadrian. During his rule was created the task of iuridicus, a new official, who relieved the governors in some of the larger imperial provinces of their jurisdiction among civilians. Domitian reconstructed and embellished Rome, which still bear the scars of the fire of 64 CE and of the civil war in 69 CE. Although his most important building project was the imperial palace erected on the Palatine by the architect Rabirius, Domitian repaired and erected no less than fifty buildings including the Temple of Jupiter on the Capitoline Hill. Domitian also inaugurated in 86 CE the Capitoline Games to be held every four years. He erected in the Campus Martium a stadium, in the site where today stands Piazza Navona. During his rule, the economy received a setback, and once more, after the rule of Nero, the denarius was devalued heavily. Thus heavy taxes were raised, and various fiscal abuses resulted, most notably in the collection of the Fiscus Iudaicus. However, Domitian’s foreign policy, mainly in Germany, was quite successful. In 83 C.E., Domitian did lead a series of successful campaigns on the Rhine against the Chatti that resulted in the construction of the Rhine limes. In 89 CE, the governor of Germania Superior, Lucius Antonius Saturninus revolted against Domitian with the aid of the Chatti, but his rebellion was soon quashed. The Roman army under the command of Agricola also advanced in Britannia, where in 84 CE the Caledonians under the leadership of Calgus were defeated. Next year in 85 CE, Agricola was called back. In Dacia, however, Domitian policy was less successful. As the Dacians, under the leadership of Decebalus harassed and sacked Roman settlement along the Danube, killing the governor of Moesia, Oppius Sabinus, Domitian mounted personally an expedition against the Dacians in 85 CE, driving the Barbarians back across the Danube. However Cornelius Fuscus, the praetorian prefect was defeated and killed in 86 CE during an ill-fated expedition at the first battle of Tapae. Once more Domitian led an expedition against the Dacians, who were defeated in 88 CE. However in the following peace, Domitian agreed to pay to Decebalus an annual subsidy. According to Christian apologetic literature, under Domitian, Christians were persecuted. The execution of Flavius Clemens and his wife Domitilla, accused of atheism, had been seen as a proof that the latter were converted or sympathizers of Judaism, or Christianity. Domitian personal life was seen in a negative light. In 83 CE he divorced and exiled his wife Domitia Longina, after she was caught with the mime Paris, who was executed. However in 91 C.E. she was called back as empress, but not as wife. In the meanwhile, his passion for Julia Titi, daughter of Titus, ended in the latter death in 91 C.E. Domitian was murdered in 96, in a plot organized by members of the Senate, Stephanus, the personal servant of the deceased Julia Flavia, members of the Praetorian Guard and the empress Domitia Longina. He was succeeded by Nerva.
Domitian, the Jews and Judaea
It is difficult to evaluate Domitian’s policy towards the Jews, if there was such policy. Soon after his accession to the throne, the mint of Rome ceased abruptly to issue the Judaea Capta series. However provincial coinage, including that of Agrippa II, continued to strike coins depicting the Roman triumph on Judaea. Suetonius complains of a series of abuses connected to the levy of the Fiscus Iudaicus. It is unclear if the victims of these abuses were only Jews, who “assimilated” in the surrounding world, and thus denied a Jewish identity, or Romans, who owned Jewish slaves and were obliged to pay the tax for their Jewish slaves. On the other side, apparently, Josephus, who lived in Rome, is not negative on Domitian. On the contrary, it was under Domitian’s rule that Josephus could publish, apparently unhindered, the Jewish Antiquities, Against Apion, an apology of Judaism, and his Life. Moreover it seems that Domitian extended the reign of Agrippa II, who reigned till the end of the century. No rebellion is recorded in Judaea under his rule. In fact the Senatorial province minted various coins, some of which, bear Jewish symbols. Less fortunate was Rabban Gamaliel II of Yavneh, who according to Rabbinic literature, went together with various Rabbis to Rome to meet the Emperor and have his leadership recognized.
Domitian in ancient sources
- Domitian (sources) -- survey of ancient sources
Domitian in literature & the arts
- Domitian (arts) -- survey of fictional works
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Pages in category "Domitian (subject)"
The following 5 pages are in this category, out of 5 total.