Search Results: Otho

Otho was Roman emperor from January to April 69 CE. Immediately after the assassination of Galba, Otho, the governor of Lusitania, was proclaimed emperor by the army. However, the unrest that existed in the short reign of Galba would spell...

Galba was Roman emperor from June 68 to January 69 CE. With the death of Emperor Nero on June 9, 68 CE, the Julio-Claudian dynasty officially ended, leaving the Roman Empire without a clear successor to the throne. With the assistance of...

Poppaea Sabina (30-65 CE) was the wife of Praetorian prefect Rufrius Crispinius and then Marcus Salvius Otho (r. 69 CE) before she became the second wife of Roman emperor Nero (r. 54-68 CE). Considered by ancient sources both attractive and...

Legio I Adiutrix was a legion of the Roman army formed from veteran sailors after the death of Roman emperor Nero (r. 54-68 CE). During its long career, the legion accompanied Trajan (r. 98-117 CE) on his Dacian and Parthian campaigns, fought...

Vitellius was Roman emperor from April to December 69 CE. Vitellius was the third of the four emperors who ruled the Roman Empire in the year 69 CE. One of his predecessors, Galba, who had replaced the fallen Emperor Nero, was murdered by...

Legio XXI Rapax was a legion of the Roman army whose name name "Rapax" means "rapacious" or "greedy". It is not clear when the legion assumed this name; it may or may not be the same 21st legion Julius Caesar (100-44 BCE) formed before his...

The Roman Empire, at its height (c. 117), was the most extensive political and social structure in western civilization. Building upon the foundation laid by the Roman Republic, the empire became the largest and most powerful political and...

During the Year of the Four Emperors (69 CE), the fight between Vitellius and Vespasian would ultimately bring about the demise of four legions, the XV Primigenia, I Germanica, IIII Macedonica, and XVI Gallia. All four of these legions had...

Vespasian was Roman emperor from 69 to 79 CE. Vespasian was the last of the four emperors who governed the Roman Empire in the year 69 CE. The previous three had died either by murder or suicide. Unlike Galba, Otho and Vitellius, Vespasian...

Legio I Germanica was a Roman legion that won acclaim early under Augustus (27 BCE - 14 CE) but was stripped of its title for cowardice. Stationed on the Lower Rhine, the legion mutinied in 14 CE and then faced disgrace when it turned traitor...