Parents: Flavius Varronianus
Date of Birth: 331
Spouse: Charito, daughter of Lucillianus
Reign: 363 – 364
Predecessor: Julian
Summary: Flavius Jovianus was the last of the breed of Constantine, though he was not a member of the family. He was born near modern-day Belgrade, Serbia, the son of a commander in Constantius II's bodyguard. He himself joined the guards and had risen to the same rank by the time of his elevation to emperor. He accompanied Emperor Julian on his campaigns against Emperor Shapur II of Persia but the army was forced to retreat and Julian was mortally wounded. Saturninius Secundas Salutius, a praetorian prefect of Asia, was nominated to replace the emperor, but he declined. Jovian was the next logical choice. There is a high likelihood that Jovian was never meant to be emperor. When his name was put forward, it is highly possible that the army misheard the name and either thought that a different Jovian was being referred to or that Julian had recovered. In any case, Jovian became emperor by popular acclamation on 27 June 363.
Julian was often known as "the Apostate" because he had turned away from the Christian faith. Jovian returned Rome to Christianity. He revoked edicts condemning Christians and restored the Chi-Rho Labarum of Constantine I. Yet Jovian went further. He ordered the pagan Library of Antioch to be burned to the ground and made the worshipping of ancestral gods a capital crime. By the end of the year, even participating in a pagan ceremony could earn the death penalty. His intolerance of non-Christians became standard from his reign all the way to the nineteenth century. Julian was the last non-Christian emperor of Rome and Jovian established what became the standard Christian realm that all other kingdoms were held up to. And while not all of Europe was Christianized by 364, other non-Christian religions were in decline. Meanwhile, Jovian had to make a hasty retreat from Sassanid Persia, ceding five large provinces to Persia as well as the protection of the Kingdom of Armenia. Such a retreat lost Jovian all of his popularity. He rushed to Constantinople from Antioch to consolidate his power, but it was too late already. Luckily for Jovian, he died probably by accident during his flight. He was found dead, only eight months into his reign, due to bad mushrooms or CO2 poisoning from a charcoal fire.
Julian was often known as "the Apostate" because he had turned away from the Christian faith. Jovian returned Rome to Christianity. He revoked edicts condemning Christians and restored the Chi-Rho Labarum of Constantine I. Yet Jovian went further. He ordered the pagan Library of Antioch to be burned to the ground and made the worshipping of ancestral gods a capital crime. By the end of the year, even participating in a pagan ceremony could earn the death penalty. His intolerance of non-Christians became standard from his reign all the way to the nineteenth century. Julian was the last non-Christian emperor of Rome and Jovian established what became the standard Christian realm that all other kingdoms were held up to. And while not all of Europe was Christianized by 364, other non-Christian religions were in decline. Meanwhile, Jovian had to make a hasty retreat from Sassanid Persia, ceding five large provinces to Persia as well as the protection of the Kingdom of Armenia. Such a retreat lost Jovian all of his popularity. He rushed to Constantinople from Antioch to consolidate his power, but it was too late already. Luckily for Jovian, he died probably by accident during his flight. He was found dead, only eight months into his reign, due to bad mushrooms or CO2 poisoning from a charcoal fire.
Date of Death: 17 February 364
Successor: Valentinian I
Other Monarchs Who Died Today:
- Otto, duke of Austria (1339)
- Ivan Alexander, tsar of Bulgaria (1371)
- Ferdinando I, grand duke of Tuscany (1609)
- Albert I, king of Belgium (1934)
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