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Crisis Of The Third Century Essay

2553 Words11 Pages

ABSTRACT The Crisis of the Third Century has seen a new period of interest due to the rise in popularity of emperors of the era such as Aurelian and Claudius Gothicus. This paper presents an analysis of emperor Probus’s military career as the Roman emperor, such as his campaigns against invading barbarians and against usurpers, as well as how his actions played a role in defining the reigns of his successors. This paper argues that Probus deserves more attention than he gets, as he played a crucial role in ending the Crisis of the Third Century, and his actions can lead to a better understanding of the crisis.

Keywords: Probus, Roman Empire, Crisis of the Third Century, campaigns against barbarians

CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION …show more content…

What comes into mind when events of the Crisis of the Third Century are discussed? One would be the actions of Aurelian both as a general under previous Roman emperors and as Roman emperor himself. After all, it was said he was such a prominent figure during the time of emperor Claudius Gothicus that after the latter’s death and his brother Quintillus’s death, he became the sole ruler of what remained of the Roman Empire, and would later triumph over the Goths, killing their leader Cannabas, as well as the Palmyrenes [1]. What is not really paid attention to, however, is the reign of the emperor Probus. Probus tends to be ignored in the typical discussion on the Crisis of the Third Century, as he is often overshadowed in popularity by other emperors of the era such as Aurelian, Claudius Gothicus, and Gallienus. Considering how little attention Probus receives, what was his importance during the Crisis of the Third Century? What became the result of his military career? Probus is an emperor who deserves more attention, as it was through his outstanding military career which Probus helped stabilize the empire, which contributed to the end of the crisis, and some of the military generals who served under him would later be crucial figures in continuing his work in ending the Crisis of the Third

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