Elagabalus Loyalty Of The Soldiers

An incredibly unlikely emperor of no proven ability or wisdom, Elagabalus' rise to power was due to the persistence of his vengeful grandmother, Julia Maesa, sister to Julia Domna and sister in law to Septimius Severus. Having been exiled to Syria with her children and grandchildren by Macrinus in order that they not cause trouble at his accession, she plotted to have him assassinated and promote Elagabalus to the throne in revenge for the murder of Caracalla and the usurpation of the Severan line.

Using her wealth and influence, and in combination with a public statement that Elagabalus was Caracalla's illegitimate child, she gained the backing of various Senators and soldiers who were loyal to the deceased emperor. Having achieved the allegiance of the Third Legion at Raphana, it took but little encouragement for Elagabalus to be declared emperor by the army in AD 218. Accepting the purple at the tender age of fourteen, Elagabalus took the formal name of Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, reaffirming the fabricated story that he was the illegitimate son of Caracalla and thus the true heir.

This reverse type was used to further secure Elagabalus' position as Emperor, calling as it does for 'the loyalty of the soldiers', but the strong military type seen here was struck before the young emperor had shown his real character traits of religious fanaticism and sexual perversion, interests which only surfaced after his arrival in Rome. The ancient sources spare no detail in their descriptions of life in the Imperial palace of Elagabalus, aspects of which become evident on his later coinage. FIDES MILITVM - Fides Militum:Loyalty Of The Soldiers.