A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

22' GALLIENUS. GALLIENUS.
and the legend GALLIENAE AUGUTSTAE; on the Sapor made himself master of'Armenia' recovered
reverse Victory in a biga, with the words UBIQUE Mesopotamia, and, passing the Euphrates, pursued
TAX. The other exhibits precisely the same obverse his career of victory through Syria, until Antioch
with the former, on the reverse the emperor, clad yielded to his arms.
in military robes, crowned by Victory, who stands Nor were the population and resources of the
behind, with the words VICTORIA AUG. Of the empire exhausted by the direct ravages of war alone.
numerous hypotheses which have been proposed to The ravages of the barbarians were followed by a
explain the origin of these pieces, two only are de- long protracted famine, which in its turn gave
serving of notice. energy to the frightful plague, first imported from
1. That of Vaillant, who supposes that they the East by the soldiers of Verus, and which having
Wvere minted in some of the rebellious provinces, for a time lain dormant now burst forth with terrific'for the purpose of holding up to scorn the effemi- violence. At the period when the virulence of the
nacy of Gallienus, whose brows are therefore orna- epidemic attained its greatest height, five thousand
mented with the garland appropriated to females sick are said to have perished daily at Rome; and,
instead of the warrior's laurel. after the scourge had passed away, it was found that
2. That of Eckhel, who'thinks it possible that the inhabitants of Alexandria were diminished
they may be intended to commemorate some wild by nearly two thirds.
freak of Gallienus, who may have thought fit to Paradoxical as the assertion may appear, general
assume the attributes of the goddess Ceres, just as anarchy and a complete dissolution of the political
Nero and Commodus chose to be represented as fabric were averted mainly by a series of internal
*divinities, the former as Apollo, the latter as Her- rebellions. In every district able officers sprung
cules. (Eckhel, vol. vii. p. 411.) [W. R.] up, who, disdaining the feeble sceptre of the emGALLIE'NUS, with his full name, P. LIClN1US peror, asserted and strove to maintain the dignity
VALERIANUS EGNATIUS GALLIENUS, Roman em- of independent princes. The armies levied by
peror A. D. 260-268. When Valerian, upon the these usurpers, who are commonly distinguished by
death of Aemilianus, was raised to the throne the fanciful designation of The T/hirty Tyrants [see
(A. D. 253), he immediately assumed his eldest AUREOLUS], in many cases arrested the progress of
son Gallienus as an associate in the purple, and the invaders, until the strong arm and vigorous inemployed him, under the care of the experienced tellect of a Claudius, an Aurelian, and a Probus colPostumus, governor of Gaul, to check- the incur- lected and bound together once more the scattered'sions of the barbarian Franks and Alemanni upon fragments into one strong and well-compacted whole.
-the Upper Danube and the Rhine. Could we The character of Gallienus himself is one of the
repose any faith in the testimony of medals and most contemptible presented in history. So long
inscriptions, the oft-repeated title of Germanicus, as he remained subject to his parent, he maintained
the legends Victoria: Germanica, Victoria Angus- a fair and decent reputation, but no sooner was he
torum, Restitutor Galliarum, accompanied by re- released from this control than he at once gave way
presentations of the great rivers of the West to his natural propensities. The accounts of his
crouching as suppliants at the feet of the prince, father's capture were. received with evident pleawould indicate a long series of glorious achiev- sure, and not a single effort was made to procure
rents. But the records of this epoch, imperfect as the release of the imprisoned emperor. Sinking at
they are, tell a very different tale, and prove that once, into indolence, he passed his life in a succesthese pompous manifestations of triumph were sion of puerile and profligate indulgences, totally:weak frauds, intended to minister to vanity, or to indifferent to the public welfare. At the same
conceal for a moment defeat and dishonour.'Our time, he was not deficient in talents and accom.
authorities are so imperfect, that it is impossible to plishments. He possessed skill and grace as a
describe with distinctness, even in outline, the rhetorician and a poet, several of his bons mots
events Which occurred during the reign of Valerian, which have been preserved possess considerable
from his accession in A. D. 253 until his capture by neatness and point, he displayed great skill in the
the Persians in A. D. 260, or during the eight art of dress, and was deeply versed in the science
following years, while Gallienus alone enjoyed the of good eating. But, amidst all his follies, we find
title of Augustus. It is certain that towards the traces of nobler impulses and of darker passions.
close of this period the Roman dominion, which for When fairly roused by the approach of unavoida quarter of a century had sustained a succession able danger, he showed no want of courage and
of shocks, which seemed to threaten its dissolution, military prudence, all of which were evinced in the
reached its lowest' point of weakness. So nu- victory gained over the Goths in Thrace, and in
merous were the foes by which'it was on every his campaign against Postumus, although on this
side assailed from without, and so completely were'last occasion he probably owed much to the expeits powers of resistance paralysed by the incapacity rienced valour of his generals Aureolus and Clauof its rulers, that it is hard to comprehend how it dius. On the other hand, the latent treachery
escaped complete dismemberment, became again and cruelty of his temper were manifested in the
united and victorious, and recovered some portion at massacre of the mutinous soldiers at Byzantium,
least of'its ancient glory. During this period the who had surrendered under the express stipulation
Franks ravaged Gaul and Spain, and even sailed of an amnesty, and in the curious letter preserved
over the straits to Africa; the Alemanni devas- by the Augustan historian, in which Celer Veriatated unceasingly the provinces of the Upper Da- nus is earnestly enjoined to mutilate, slay, and cut
nube; the Goths pillaged the cities of Asia'on to pieces (lacera, occide, concide) all who had
the southern shores of the Euxine, gained pos- favoured the pretensions of the usurper Ingenuus,
session of Byzantium, and diffused dismay through- old and young, without distinction. (Trebell. Poll.
out Greece by the capture of Athens; the Sarma- Ingen. inter Trig. Tyrann.)
tians swept all Dacia, and the fertile valley of Gallienus appears to have set out for Greece in
Moesia, to the base of Mount Haemus; while A. D. 267, in order to oppose the Goths and Iteruli,