202 Decades of Western History
@202Decades
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A series capturing the beat of Western History, one decade each episode, from 1 AD to the present day.
Joined December 2022
268 AD: Gallienus intercepts the Goths, as they head back north after sacking Athens in one of their (or was it the Heruli tribe?) sea raids. At the Nestos River on the Macedonian border he catches them and defeats them. But they are not destroyed. He tries to pursue them but
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267 AD: Odenathus is raiding deep into Persia again when he receives news of Gothic raids on the Black Sea and Aegean coasts of Anatolia. He abandons the Persian campaign and rushes northwest. It’s his chance to be a hero yet again. But en route, he and his eldest son are
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266 AD: Gallienus grants Odenathus formal command of a Roman army and sends him east. Odenathus succeeds again. For a second time he raids Persia, right up to the walls of Ctesiphon itself. He doesn’t have the number s to put the city under siege but the campaign is a humiliation
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265 AD: Gallienus is finally ready to rein in Postumus and his breakaway Gallic Empire. He crosses the Alps and marches into Gaul, defeating Postumus in two battles. Postumus retreats to a fortified city. Gallienus besieges it. Then an arrow strikes him. The wounded Emperor is
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264 AD: Shapur I has had enough of constant defeat to Odenathus the Palmyrene King. He sues for peace, and all Roman territory lost since 252 is restored. Gallienus, who had basically nothing to do with any of this, holds a triumph in Rome and takes the title Persicus Maximus.
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263 AD: Gallienus is finally ready to take on Postumus and his breakaway Gallic Empire. He crosses the Alps and marches deep into Gaul, defeating Postumus in two battles. Postumus retreats to a fortified city and digs in. Gallienus besieges it. Then an arrow strikes him. The
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If you’re enjoying this series on the Crisis of the Third Century, you owe it to yourself to check out the podcast: 202 Decades of Western History. https://t.co/2ROdlrpXWt Available on your favorite podcast app or on Patreon. And subscribe here on X if you’ve made it this far!
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Podcast · 202 Decades · A series making sense of the past 202 decades of Western History. Each episode examines a single decade of history, from 1 AD to the present day.
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262 AD: Odenathus is on a roll. The king of Palmyra pushes into Mesopotamia, retaking the cities of Carrhae and Nisibis from Persia. Both had fallen out of Roman control in recent years. Odenathus doesn't stop there. He launches repeated raids into Persian territory, winning
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261 AD: Remember those two Syrian officers who declared themselves emperors after Valerian was captured? They are Macrianus and his son. They march west to oust Gallienus but they don't make it. In Thrace, they're defeated and killed by Aureolus, Gallienus' cavalry commander. In
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**this is a big one 260 AD: Shapur decides to take another bite out of Rome and he puts Edessa under siege. This time, Valerian marches out to meet him. Outside Edessa, the Roman army is surrounded and destroyed. Valerian attempts to negotiate but he is seized and hauled off,
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259 AD: The Alemanni cross the Alps and push into northern Italy, reaching Mediolanum, modern Milan. All the metaphorical alarm bells are ringing. Rome is not far away. And the city has no walls to hide behind. Gallienus is busy on the Danube, putting down yet another usurper,
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258 AD: Valerian doubles down on his Christian persecution. He issues a second edict. Clergy are to be executed, senators and equestrians who are Christians lose their rank and property, imperial staff face slavery. The Bishop of Carthage, Cyprian, who the plague is named after,
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257 AD: The Goths saw the success of the sea raids by their neighbors, the Borani. If a smaller tribe can commandeer ships and plunder Roman cities, why not them too? They launch a major expedition. Land and sea forces move together down the coast, and force local fishermen
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256 AD: Sassanid King of Kings Shapur I invades Syria. He cuts through Roman territory, sacking cities as he goes. Then he reaches Antioch, the third largest city in the empire. Antioch falls. Sacked. Many residents flee to the theater. There they’re cut down. The city is
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255 AD: Valerian and his son Gallienus divide the empire between them. Gallienus takes the west, Valerian takes the east. This is a solution to a persistent problem - the emperor has to be too many places at once. War with Persia AND German invasion on the Rhine? The emperor
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254 AD: It’s spring and with Aemilian gone, the Goths assault the empire anew. They pour into Thrace and Macedonia, destroying anything undefended, plundering whatever they can grab. They assault the large city of Thessalonica, but its walls hold. Repulsed but not defeated,
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253 AD: Gallus promised to pay the Goths their tribute, but failed to follow through in just the second year. Now King Cniva and his Goths are back for vengeance, invading Thrace and Moesia. Unlike 2 years prior when the Goths raided freely, this time they run into the army of
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252 AD: Emperor Gallus is reasonably popular thanks to organizing burials for plague victims. The Plague of Cyprian is killing thousands a day in Rome alone. It has been spreading since 249 and now it's hitting the legions hard. Frontier garrisons are crippled. King of Kings
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