Honorius: Barbarians, Usurpers and the Sack of Rome
563Honorius, usually remembered as the emperor during the sack of Rome by the Visigoths and the loss of Britain, was not treated kindly by posterity with Procopius writing that he was more concerned with his fowl Rome than the actual city. However, by examining the long reign of this child-emperor what contemporary sources show is that the situation was far more nuanced and that perhaps even Honorius had some decent qualities.
Chapters:
00:00 Introduction
01:08 Prince Honorius
02:01 The Regency of Stilicho
04:14 The Gildonic War
10:33 A Peaceful Interlude
15:24 The Invasions of Alaric and Radagaisus
25:28 The Crossing of the Rhine
27:10 The Downfall of Stilicho
36:28 The Seven Emperors and the Fall of Britain
44:10 The Sack of Rome
46:52 The Empire Struck Back
50:56 Honorius' Domestic and Church Reforms
57:16 Constantius Visigothicus
01:01:25 The Visigothic Settlement and the Battle For Spain
01:07:23 Emperor Constantius III
01:09:13 Honorius' Final Years
01:13:41 Conclusion
Predecessor: Theodosius I
Successor: John the Tyrant (West) and Theodosius II (East)
Bibliography:
Primary Sources
Gallic Chronicle of AD452, Edition by R. W. Burgess, (2001).
Claudian, Works, Edited and Translated by M. Platnauer, (1922).
Eunapius, History to Continue Dexippus, Edited and Translated by R. C. Blockley, (1983).
Frigeridus, Histories, Edited and Translated by L. Van Hoof, and P. Van Nuffelen, (2020).
Hydatius, Chronicle, Edited and Translated by R. W. Burgess, (1993).
Jerome, Letters, translated by W. H. Fremantle, G. Lewis and W. G. Martley, (1893).
Narrative on the Emperors of the House of the Valentinians and Theodosians,
Edited by T. Mommsen. (1892).
Olympiodorus, History, Edited and Translated by R. C. Blockley, (1983).
Orosius, Seven Books of History Against the Pagans, Translated by A. T. Fear, (2010).
Philostorgius, Church History, Translated by P. R. Amidon (2007).
Procopius, History of the Wars, Revised edition by A. Kaldellis (2014).
Prosper, Chronicle, edited and translated by D. Brook, (2014).
Sozomen, Ecclesiastical History, translated by C. D. Hartranft, (1890)
Theodoret of Cyrus, Ecclesiastical History, Translated by B. Jackson, (1892).
The Theodosian Code and Novels, and the Sirmondian Constitutions,
Translated by C. Pharr (1952).
Zosimus, New History, Translated by R. T. Ridley, (1986).
Scholarship
Doyle, C. (2019) Honorius: The Fight for the Roman West AD 395-423, Routledge.
Drinkwater, J. F. (1998) 'The Usurpers Constantine III (407-411) and Jovinus (411-413)' in Britannia 29, 269-298.
Halsall, G. (2007) Barbarian Migrations and the Roman West, 376-568, Cambridge.
Heather, P. (2005) The Fall of the Roman Empire, A New History, London.
Kulikowski, M. (2000), 'Barbarians in Gaul, Usurpers in Britain' in Britannia 31, 325-345.
Kulikowski, M. (2000), 'The Career of the 'Comes Hispaniarum' Asterius', in Pheonix 54, 123-141.
Maynard, D. R. F., (2022) 'The Development of Usurpers and Usurpation from Procopius to Leontius and Their Political and Cultural Impact,'. MPhil Thesis.
McEvoy, M. A. (2013) Child Emperor Rule in the Late Roman West, AD 367-455, Oxford.
Ward-Perkins, B. (2005) The Fall of Rome and the End of Civilisation, Oxford.
Wijnendaele, J. W. P. (2018), ''Dagali altari alla polvere.' Alaric, Constantine III, and the Downfall of Stilicho' in Journal of Ancient History 6, 260-277.
Wijnendaele, J. W. P. (2017), 'The Manufacture of Heraclianus' Usurpation (413 CE)' in Pheonix 71, 138-156.
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