Any potential biographer of Magnentius
find themselves indebted to Caesar Decentius for the meticulous
documents he ordered his secretary to keep during his brother's
reign. In fact, this is an actual diary of events in this little
chronicled reign. Whatever the truth about his age, Magnentius
liked to astonish people that a man of his age could eat, drink
and whore about town with impunity. Being fifty years old allowed
the emperor the respect of a mature statesman. But people often
said he looked much younger than his avowed age, the compliment
spoiling Magnentius' intended affectation.
Little is known of Magnentius' boyhood
and adolescent years as he had many civic records pertaining to
himself destroyed. Did the emperor have something to hide?
Many people have thought it strange he did not create false records
instead. Perhaps there were portions of his past that the emperor
felt were undignified and wanted the incidents buried altogether.
Be that as it may, Magnentius did not succeed in destroying everything.
Forgotten achives have recently been discovered that shed much
light on the emperor and his reign. We also have contributions
of several generals and officials who wrote their memories.
Rumors abound concerning Magnentius but I have always remembered
that there is at least a little truth in sarcasm. What the biographer
can discover and piece together through these writings is related
below in all truth and modesty.
2) The future emperor was born in Gaul
(some historians claim Britain was the place) of a Frankish mother.
Decentius was born two years later. The emperor's mother was
spoken of as an attractive woman, perhaps a laundress or seamstress
by trade. With all of the evil propaganda spread about Magnentius
his mother came to be portrayed as a practitioner of the oldest
trade and his father as a half-wit. We can assume she lived an
uneventful life and, certainly, she died before her son became
emperor.
Information concerning Magnentius' father
is also scarce. He was from Britain and was a soldier for many
years before receiving an honorable discharge and settling down
to farm. A popular story has it that Magnentius' father, as a
soldier in camp on the Rhine, became involved with a camp-follower.
He was tricked into marrying her when the unsuspecting soldier
was fed a love potion. Colorful as this story may be, the emperor's
secretary relates that Decentius informed him that his father
and mother met on a market day in a small frontier town not long
before his discharge. Suspicion has been that Magnentius' mother
was pregnant before a marriage was celebrated.
That Magnentius' father obtained a certain
amount of prosperity is evidenced by a document listing various
properties that belonged to him. Magnentius liked to recount
a childhood of extreme poverty, especially when he had drunk a
lot of wine, so he could claim to be self-made. No doubt the
future emperor received a good education but his irascible nature
would not permit too much learning. More propaganda is at the
source of the story that the future emperor was sold to the great
emperor Constantine. Magnentius' father had become so angry with
his son (speculation has it that he was involved in a robbery
or seduced a married woman) that he pronounced the ultimate punishment
by selling him into slavery. This was more fortunate than it
seems for it had a salutary effect on the future emperor. Talent
can emerge in anyone, if only the correct circumstances are found.
After his unproductive yeas as an adolescent, Magnentius realized
his potential as a soldier. He caught the eye of Constantine,
slave or not, who appreciated Magnentius' latent talent, and he
became a favorite with promotion assured.
During his boyhood Magnentius displayed
an ability at games and an interest in weapons. It is difficult
to say what his intellectual capabilities were but I have heard
it said that Decentius commented one evening at a banquet that
his brother was the most dim-witted and gullable man he had known.
We can be fairly certain that such a comment was never uttered
as witnessed by Decentius' continued health. Besides, as will
be seen later, Magnentius had an appreciation of poetry and he
was a great reader of history, especially the Commentaries
of Caesar and the Stratagems of Frontinus.
3) The stories of Magnentius having
been the village bully were widespread during his reign and are
truthful in that Magnentius was spoiling for trouble as a youth
and inadvertently caused himself harm each time he started an
incident. It is easy to picture the future emperor as the leader
of a gang of boys, in light of his future qualities of leadership,
and how their high spirits could lead to outrageous practical
jokes, even an occasional robbery. But it can be doubted that
he regularly burned houses down, other claims to the contrary.
Yet, whatever indolence he knew as a boy, once in the army Magnentius
found his niche. He rose quickly through the ranks until he was
considered one of the most important and capable generals of the
empire.
His brother, Decentius, was more of
an opportunist. He became a merchant-at-large, his largest customer
being the army. He supplied weapons, grain, wine, and, so it
was rumored, women of the lowest kind. In hard times he even
put some time in as a soldier, but these were rare occurrences.
Having a brother who happened to be a general certainly helped
the future Caesar to make valuable contacts. Yet, it could be
said that Magnentius owed his rank to Decentius, because his brother
made so many good connections among the wealthy and powerful that
Magnentius could not help succeeding. Noble families, influential
generals, wealthy landowners and especially criminal types, all
owed Decentius favors at one time or another, so he put in a good
word for his brother. It was said he collected such obligations
as some men collect lovers. This is not to deny Magnentius his
talents as a soldier, which were many, but his sulky personality
and the sudden flaring of his temper, which happened too frequently,
tended to make people wary.
4) Among his troops Magnentius was popular.
He always looked after the welfare of the common soldier setting
himself up as a father figure; benevolent and wise, yet understanding
the common soldier's needs. Civilians, however, brought out the
future emperors distrust, which Decentius referred to as his brother's
"barbarian mentality." For Magnentius any civilian
who had not spent time in the army was a doubtful specimen of
humanity. If it had not been for Decentius, he would have refused
the assistance of some of the best minds at his disposal. It
took the emperor much time and nagging to overcome this prejudice.
As a military tactician Magnentius was
renown for his coolness when in the thick of battle; he possessed
the uncanny ability to read the mind of his opponent thereby sending
his forces to the enemies vulnerable spot. He was never rattled
by the shouts and shrieks of the enemy on attack. The sheer force
of his charges were legendary: his soldiers would run as fast
as possible into the enemy ranks letting out a piercing roar.
The enemy would be so unnerved that they threw down their weapons
and ran. His detractors referred to these charges as "barbarian
tactics" which is nothing more than sour grapes. The discipline
of these maneuvers was astonishing: several hundred men moved
and fought as one.
5) And so, we come to the fateful year
when Magnentius became emperor. He was living the happy life
of a prominent general: keeping the frontier safe, eating and
drinking too much and having any woman of his choice. Protecting
the frontiers can be lonely, boring work but the future emperoe
made sure he had compensation. Magnentius possessed a magnificent
house in Gaul, near Augustodunum. Next to the house was a small
baths built from stone with comfortable but not elaborate amenities.
The emperor loved his private baths. He was often there with
his friends: bathing, sitting in the steam baths, having a cold
lunch, being worked on by his masseur, and carrying on discussions
of the events of the day. If anyone was looking for Magnentius
the first place they went were the baths.
6) There are persistent stories that
Magnentius was a close companion (and paramour) of the emperor
Constans, the youngest son of Constantine (a beast born to a noble
father). This may be a viscous rumor but it is true that the
emperor advanced Magnentius to high office and honored him. A
relationship between them tends to give a tragic element to their
lives, not unlike Brutus and Caesar. Constans was weak and fond
of the excesses that his royal birth promised. He was ruled by
whoever happened to share his bed. As a consequence the government
was ineffective and his portion of the empire suffered from his
lack of interest: everything was in decline. The year Magnentius
became emperor, Constans had been co-emperor with his brother,
Constantius, for ten years. There was so much talk of what the
emperor should be doing that it was inevitable that when he did
nothing people thought of replacing him. The question was who
would be the first to try. This was a subject Decentius would
nag Magnentius with and he did this, of course, in the baths.
"Brother, you must take up arms
against the weakling emperor. We are all looking to you to be
our leader in these bad times when leadership is so rare."
"Why should I want to become emperor?
I am disgusted with that skinny nitwit as much as anyone, but
I don't want to take his place."
"My dear brother! Have you given
no thought to the rest of us? Besides, when the emperor is corrupt
the entire world becomes corrupt. Everyone is on the take. What
is needed is a return to morality, to domesticity, to good government.
What is needed is an emperor who is a leader of men, not a leader
of orgies. And then he only does that with boys!"
"You do have a turn of phrase.
But, I am not the man to lead you! I know nothing about good
government. Perhaps you should give it a try?"
"My dear brother! Do you think
I believe you can cure the government of its ills? I might be
able to stop a mutiny but to govern an empire! Nothing of the
kind! But let us begin with something simple to start things
rolling. All you have to do is write the emperor and list what's
wrong with the empire. That's a start! He may even listen to
you!"
"And, of course, that would be
the end of me; I would certainly be assassinated. Do you think
that these robbers, who have the emperor by the ear, would stand
for me to tell them what to do? Never! I will stay with the
quiet, slightly debauched life. Remember my chosen motto: Some
things in excess!"
"Very well. I have no choice but
to obey; I cannot move you. Oh, well, it is a loss to the empire."
7) It was not long after this that word
began to pass through the army that Magnentius was about to be
arrested for conspiring against Constans. Rumor had it that a
company of soldiers had departed from Rome bearing orders under
the emperor's seal to have the traitor executed immediately.
Magnentius' soldiers were horrified that their general would fall
victim of the emperor-lecher and vowed to a man to defend their
commander with their lives. The thing to do was to march on the
emperor's pleasure palace and murder the upstart, drag his body
around and fling it into the nearest river! The soldiers informed
their centurions, who informed the tribunes of what was happening,
who, in turn, went to Decentius. He advised the tribunes to see
Magnentius himself.
8) Magnentius was, naturally, at the
baths occupied with his masseur having spent a relaxing time in
the steam room. He was on the verge of sleep when the tribunes
surrounded him. At once, Magnentius leapt to his feet.
"At least give me a sword so I
can die like a soldier!" he cried.
"Shall we give you a loin cloth,
too?" Decentius asked, reminding his brother that he was
naked.
"You traitor, Decentius. You shall
be the first to die."
"But General Magnentius, sir,"
one of the tribunes said weakly. "We have not come to kill
you, only to warn you."
"This is true? This is not some
trick?"
"Where are your clothes, brother?"
Decentius sighed, exasperated.
"Where they belong. In the changing
room."
"Then drape a cloth over yourself.
We are not that impressed by the family jewel."
9) Magnentius tied a cloth around himself
but continued to edge away from the tribunes.
"General Magnentius. We have learned
that a party of soldiers has been dispatched from Rome with a
warrant signed by the emperor to arrest and execute you on a charge
of treason."
"Why would the emperor do such
a thing? I have always been loyal, or is this some kind of stratagem
to test my loyalty? Perhaps you are just waiting to deliver the
first blow!"
"Brother! Be reasonable. If we
wanted to kill you why would we bother to tell you some idiotic
story."
"Still...why would the emperor
do such a thing? I have never given him cause."
"Because you are too popular.
The emperor knows you are a threat to him and wants you out of
the way. Does the emperor have to explain why he wants you dead?
All you must do is wait, the warrant will be delivered in a matter
of hours! Then, it will be all over and your ghost can pay us
a visit!"
10) Magnentius was thunderstruck; he
could not speak or think for several moments. Voices could be
heard in the distance chanting: "Magnentius Augustus!"
The tribunes saluted and bowed their heads; Decentius smiled.
"They are with you to a man. All
you must do is accept the throne."
Magnentius thought for a moment; an
expression of seriousness and determination lined his face. Then,
he looked at each of the tribunes as if he wanted to memorize
their faces.
"I shall go and dress now,"
he said.
Minutes later, Magnentius appeared before
his army in full military dress with a great purple mantle wrapped
around him. Each man went wild with joy saluting their commander
as the new emperor. The chant became a roaring shout as each
man conducted himself as two. Magnentius stood on top of a barrel
and proudly surveyed his beloved army.
"SOLDIERS! I am your emperor!"
Those were the only words Magnentius needed to speak. He was
lifted by his soldiers and paraded through their camp. Stories
that Magnentius invited Constans to a banquet where, throwing
a purple cloak around himself, struck the weakling-emperor down
where he sat are untrue. Magnentius knew his table-manners!
11) The emperor, who was at his spa
in Gaul, could not believe the defection of Magnentius. When
he asked why his trusted commander would have done such a thing
he was told that a rumor was circulating that orders had been
given for Magnentius' murder.
"Did I issue such an order?"
the emperor asked.
"No, Your Highness. It would seem
that no one issued the order."
"Then, it must have been God.
Perhaps I should issue the order myself to confirm His. Ah, well!
I will be sorry to see Magnentius dead, but what can we do with
these barbarians. They are like half-wild dogs: they eat out
of your hand but one day will bite it off! I showed him too much
affection. I always do. I'm too good-natured. Well, call the
soldiers together to attack the ungrateful brute. What is the
entertainment for this evening?"
Before Constans had time to gather his
troops Magnentius' army was upon him and in the ensuing combat
the forces of Constans were pulverized. The emperor escaped and
was running toward Rome when Magnentius' soldiers caught up with
him. Before Constans had time to explain he had not ordered Magnentius'
death he was beaten unconscious and run through several times.
The emperor's body was brought to Magnentius. There is no truth
to the rumor that Magnentius examined the dead emperor's genitals
remarking, "Not as big as I was told." The body was
returned to Rome for burial without incident, wrapped with a purple
robe.
Portrait busts of the new emperor were
produced for the purpose of coinage and display in prominent places.
It should be noted that the new emperor was never portrayed wearing
a diadem, although he wore them for ceremonies. Magnentius was
saluted by the dead emperor's troops as Augustus, which was followed
by three days of celebrations. After this, Magnentius journeyed
back to Augustodunum to await the reaction of Constantius, and
begin his glorious reign. He made immediate plans for turning
his villa into a palace.
© David A. Wend 1997