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The Danubian commander Constantius III had enjoyed a stellar career by the time he undertook a naval blockade of Spain and Gaul in 415, which caused the murder of the Visigothic king Athaulf. Not to be confused with Constantine III, the usurper in Britain of AD 407, Constantius III served as a general under Honorius, rising to prominence as magister militum by 411.
He was dispatched to put down the revolt of Constantine III, who he compelled to surrender, imprisoned and beheaded during his return to Ravenna. Constantius further initiated a campaign against the Visigoths in Northern Hispania, and starving them into submission accepted the surrender of their king Wallia, in the process securing the return of the emperor's half-sister Galla Placidia, who had been captured by Alaric around the time of the sack of Rome years earlier, and forced into marriage with Athaulf, successor to Alaric.
In recognition Honorius bestowed many honours on him, appointing him consul three times and arranging for him to marry his rescued sister Galla Placidia: riding the tide of his triumph, Constantius pressed for a royal marriage with the rescued empress, which occurred on January 1, 417, when he also assumed his second consulship. Slightly more than four years passed before Constantius gained enough prestige at court that Honorius reluctantly declared him co-emperor. This elevation was well-received in the West, where the soldiers were relieved to have a proven soldier sharing the throne, but it was not acknowledged by the Eastern emperor Theodosius II. The spectre of civil war loomed for seven months until the stalemate was finally resolved by Constantius' death, seemingly of natural causes, on September 2, 421. Due in part to the brevity of his reign, only gold solidi and tremisses from Ravenna were struck in Constantius' name. Beyond coinage, his other lasting legacy was his son Valentinian III, by Galla Placidia, who eventually ruled the Western Roman Empire, albeit impotently, for thirty yeras.
He was dispatched to put down the revolt of Constantine III, who he compelled to surrender, imprisoned and beheaded during his return to Ravenna. Constantius further initiated a campaign against the Visigoths in Northern Hispania, and starving them into submission accepted the surrender of their king Wallia, in the process securing the return of the emperor's half-sister Galla Placidia, who had been captured by Alaric around the time of the sack of Rome years earlier, and forced into marriage with Athaulf, successor to Alaric.
In recognition Honorius bestowed many honours on him, appointing him consul three times and arranging for him to marry his rescued sister Galla Placidia: riding the tide of his triumph, Constantius pressed for a royal marriage with the rescued empress, which occurred on January 1, 417, when he also assumed his second consulship. Slightly more than four years passed before Constantius gained enough prestige at court that Honorius reluctantly declared him co-emperor. This elevation was well-received in the West, where the soldiers were relieved to have a proven soldier sharing the throne, but it was not acknowledged by the Eastern emperor Theodosius II. The spectre of civil war loomed for seven months until the stalemate was finally resolved by Constantius' death, seemingly of natural causes, on September 2, 421. Due in part to the brevity of his reign, only gold solidi and tremisses from Ravenna were struck in Constantius' name. Beyond coinage, his other lasting legacy was his son Valentinian III, by Galla Placidia, who eventually ruled the Western Roman Empire, albeit impotently, for thirty yeras.