| Glycerius | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Roman emperor in theWest (unrecognized in theEast) | |
| Reign | 3/5 March 473 – 24 June 474 |
| Predecessor | Olybrius |
| Successor | Julius Nepos |
| Eastern emperors | Leo I (473–474) Leo II (474) |
| Died | After 474 (possibly 480)[1] Dalmatia |
| Religion | Chalcedonian Christianity |
Glycerius (died after 474) wasRoman emperor of theWest from 473 to 474. He served ascomes domesticorum (commander of the palace guard) during the reign ofOlybrius (r. 472), until Olybrius died in November 472. After a four-monthinterregnum, Glycerius was proclaimed as emperor in March 473 byGundobad, themagister militum (master of soldiers) andpower behind the throne. Very few of the events of his reign are known other than that an attempted invasion ofItaly by theVisigoths was repelled by local commanders, diverting them toGaul. Glycerius also prevented an invasion by theOstrogoths through diplomacy, including a gift of 2,000solidi.
Glycerius was not recognized by theEastern Roman emperorLeo I (r. 457–474), who instead nominatedJulius Nepos (r. 474–475/480) as Western Emperor and sent him with an army to invade the Western Empire. Glycerius was without allies because Gundobad had abandoned him, and therefore was forced toabdicate on 24 June 474, and was succeeded by Nepos. He was appointedBishop of Salona, which position he held until his death. He died, possibly in 480, and a nearly contemporaneous source blames him for the assassination of Nepos, but the records for this event are muddled.
The historianPenny MacGeorge states that "almost nothing is known of Glycerius".[2] While MacGeorge wrote that he was "presumably" an upper-class Italian,[2] his family is unknown, and may not have been aristocratic.[3] He rose to the office ofcomes domesticorum (commander of the palace guard), and likely served as such during the reign ofWestern Roman EmperorOlybrius (r. 472).[4][5] TheGermanicmagister militum (master of soldiers)Ricimer had deposed the Western Roman EmperorMajorian (r. 457–461) in 461, and thereafter installed a series of Western Roman emperors aspuppets:Libius Severus (r. 461–465),Anthemius (r. 467–472), and Olybrius, enthroned in July 472, after Ricimer overthrew Anthemius.[6][7] Ricimer died on 18 August 472, forty days after deposing Anthemius, and was succeeded asmagister militum and kingmaker by hisBurgundian nephewGundobad.[7][8] Olybrius died shortly thereafter, on 2 November 472, and aninterregnum ensued for nearly four months, before Gundobad convinced Glycerius to assume the throne, and proclaimed him as emperor atRavenna: theFasti vindobonenses, a record ofconsular years, states that it was on 5 March 473, however, thePaschale campanum, also a consular record, asserts it was on the 3rd.[2][9][10][11]
Few events of Glycerius's reign are known.[2][12] Glycerius is known from a few fragmented references in what historianRalph Mathisen calls "jejune chronicles", such as theAnnales ofMarcellinus Comes, theGallic Chronicle of 511, and theChronicle of Saragossa, as well as some small references provided by the 6th-century writerJordanes and the bishopEnnodius.[4] Under Glycerius, invasions by both theVisigoths and theOstrogoths were repelled, through a mixture of diplomatic and military activities.[2][4][12] The Visigoths and Ostrogoths wereGermanic groups that were settled inGallia Aquitania, andPannonia Prima andValeria, respectively, asfoederati.[13][14][15][16] In 473, the Visigothic kingEuric (r. 466–484) ordered an invasion ofItaly, but for reasons we don't know Euric chose instead to invadeGaul, occupying bothArles andMarseille. The Ostrogothic kingVidemir (r. 469–474) proposed to invade Italy,[2][4][12] but Glycerius was able to dissuade Videmir through the gift of 2,000solidi (high-value gold coins),[17][18][a] and diverted them from Italy to Gaul, where surrounding groups, described by Jordanes as "various peoples", later attacked them.[2][4][12] Mathisen comments that these actions to defend the empire may be the reason that Glycerius receives a generally favorable reception in Roman and Byzantine sources. The 9th-century historianTheophanes describes him only as a "not despicable man", but Ennodius, the bishop of Pavia, describes him more thoroughly in hisVita St. Epiphanius:[4]
After Olybrius, Glycerius ascended to the rule. With regard to whom I summarize, in my desire for brevity, the numerous things he did for the well being of many people. For, when the blessed man [BishopEpiphanius of Pavia] interceded, he pardoned the injury done to his mother by some men under his authority.[4]
Mathisten states that the aforementioned injuries to Glycerius's mother may have been in reaction to his bribery of Videmir, but remarks that "such measures were a regular part of imperial policy", and speculates that the attackers may have been soldiers, explaining their lack of punishment.[4] Glycerius seems to have primarily reigned in northern Italy, as all the coins found from his reign but one were minted in either Ravenna orMilan. The only law enacted by Glycerius which has survived was dated 11 March 473, and issued toHimilco, thePraetorian prefect of Italy, and later reissued to thePraetorian prefects of Illyricum,the East,and Gaul, regardingsimony (the selling of church offices). It was adopted not just by the prefects of Italy and Gaul, who were a part of the Western Roman Empire, but also by the prefects of Illyricum and the East, despite the fact that he did not have the authority to issue laws to them. The law was designed to grant Glycerius the support of the clergy,[4] but would likely also have appealed to thesenatorial class, who were concerned about increasingly violent elections, as well as the use of church funds by clergy for personal reasons.[19] This law was also the last known one issued by a Western Roman emperor.[20]
It is possible that Glycerius attempted reconciliation with theEastern Roman Empire, evidenced by the fact that Glycerius did not nominate aconsul for 474, and instead accepted the eastern consul, the infant EmperorLeo II (r. 473–474).[4] Despite this, the Eastern Roman Emperor,Leo I (r. 457–474), refused to recognize Glycerius as emperor because he was merely a puppet of Gundobad. Emperor Leo instead chose to recognize one of his own men,Julius Nepos (r. 474–475/480), and sent him with a fleet to invade the Western Empire.[12] The 7th-century historianJohn of Antioch states that Leo made the decision to remove Glycerius after hearing that he had assumed the throne of the Western Roman Empire, but Mathisen comments that Leo must have hesitated for some time, as the actual invasion was delayed by the onset of winter, and Julius Nepos was forced to wait until the beginning of spring to launch his invasion.[21]
Glycerius was without allies, as Gundobad seemingly abandoned him, leaving him with no option but to surrender. After Nepos landed atOstia in June 474, Glycerius abdicated on 24 June 474, in Ravenna, and Nepos assumed the throne.[12][22][23] The historianJohn Michael O'Flynn states that the "circumstances surrounding this speedy overthrow are obscure and, at first sight, puzzling", noting that while the forces of Nepos were likely small, Gundobad made no moves to counter them, but rather "disappeared entirely from the Italian scene." He speculates that, while Gundobad could have put up stiff resistance, rather than attempting to oppose the imperial legitimacy of Leo, he accepted Leo's authority to reject Glycerius as an imperial colleague and to install one of his own choosing. Additionally, Glycerius seems to never have attracted the favor of theRoman Senate or theGallo-Roman aristocracy, which would make the decision to back him, and therefore alienate both, far less palatable for Gundobad.[24] Notably, as king ofBurgundy, Gundobad (r. 473/474–516) enjoyed warm relations with the Eastern Roman Empire, which he served as afoederatus (treaty subject).[22][23] Mathisen suggests the alternatives that Gundobad was attempting to raise further troops in Gaul, or that he left to ensure he received his inheritance after the death of his father, KingGondioc (r. 437–473).[4]
After being deposed, Glycerius was promptly ordained asBishop of Salona inDalmatia.[12] According to the 5th-century Byzantine historianMalchus, Glycerius had some part in organizing the assassination of Julius Nepos in 480, after Nepos had been forced to flee Italy and wasruling in exile in Dalmatia, although the historical records for the assassination are muddled.[4][5][25] Glycerius died sometime after 474, possibly in 480.[12][5] He has sometimes been identified with aGlycerius who wasArchbishop of Milan by KingOdoacer (r. 476–493), but this is likely incorrect.[4][5] The source for the promotion of Glycerius to archbishop is an obscure line written by Ennodius, in which he praises an archbishop named Glycerius, among other archbishops of Milan, however, this section seems to have been either corrupted or added later, to identify the archbishop Glycerius with the emperor Glycerius.[5]
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| Preceded by | WesternRoman emperor 473–474 | Succeeded by |
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