Saloninus
Young Roman emperor killed by Postumus in 260.
Publius Licinius Cornelius Saloninus Valerianus, known as Saloninus, was a young Roman nobleman who briefly held the imperial title in 260. He was appointed caesar in 258 to strengthen the Licinian dynasty during the Crisis of the Third Century, but his reign ended when he was killed by the future Gallic emperor Postumus.
Quick Facts
- Full name
- Publius Licinius Cornelius Saloninus Valerianus
- Reign
- July (?) 260 (briefly); 258–260
- Reign type
- Augustus; Caesar
- Predecessor
- Gallienus
- Successor
- Postumus as Gallic Emperor
- Dynasty
- Valerian
- Mother
- Cornelia Salonina
- Died
- 260
Facts from the source article.
Early life
Saloninus was the son of emperor Gallienus and Cornelia Salonina, a Greek from Bithynia. In 258 he was appointed Caesar by his father and sent to Gaul, with his main seat in Cologne. He was placed under the protection of the praetorian prefect Silvanus (also called Albanus), following the pattern set by his older brother Valerian II.
Reign
Saloninus's appointment as Caesar may have been instigated by his grandfather Valerian I, who sought to secure the succession and establish a lasting imperial dynasty. Silvanus, as Saloninus's guardian, appears to have exercised real authority in Gaul. In 260, Silvanus ordered Postumus to hand over booty seized from a German warband. Postumus's troops objected violently, forcing Saloninus and Silvanus to flee to Cologne. Postumus was then acclaimed emperor by his army and besieged Cologne. Gallienus, occupied on the middle Danube, could not aid his son.
Death
Saloninus's desperate troops proclaimed him emperor, hoping to sway Postumus's army, but the siege continued. After about a month, the citizens of Colonia Agrippina handed Saloninus and Silvanus over to Postumus. Postumus may have been unable to prevent his army from murdering them, and despite public regret, he likely made no serious effort to stop it. Gallienus, after Saloninus's death, never elevated his third son Egnatius Marinianus to the purple.
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