Diocletian
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Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletian (
245-
313), born
Diocles, was
Roman Emperor from
November 20,
284 to
May 1,
305.
An
Illyrian of low birth, Diocles rose through the ranks to the
consulship. He was chosen by the Army on
November 20,
284 to replace
Numerian and after the assassination of
Carinus in
July,
285 became sole ruler of the
Roman Empire. He changed his name to
Diocletian upon his ascension.
Diocletian felt that the system of Roman imperial government was unsustainable in the face of internal pressures and a military threat on two fronts. He gave
Maximian the title of
Caesar, which was the traditional form in which an emperor (
Augustus) designated a successor. However, Diocletian soon made Maximian an Augustus as well. The imperial power was now divided between two people. Diocletian's sphere of influence was the east, and Maximian's the west.
The two men established separate capitals, neither of which was at Rome. The ancient capital was too far removed from the places where the empire's fate was decided by force of arms. While improving the ability of the two emperors to rule the empire, the division of power further marginalized the
Senate, which remained in Rome.
In
292, Diocletian and Maximian each appointed a Caesar (
Galerius and
Constantius, respectively). However, these were not merely successors - each was given authority over roughly a quarter of the empire. This form of government is known to historians as the
Tetrarchy.
Considering that during the half-century preceding Diocletian's ascension the empire had been in a constant state of simmering civil war, with (according to one scholar) a new emperor every two and a half years on average, it is remarkable that the Tetrarchy did not immediately fall apart due to the greed of any one of the four emperors. The opportunistic nature of Roman imperial politics did eventually cause the disintegration of the Tetrarchy and the reinstitution of one-man rule, but this was not until the
320s.
In
301, Diocletian attempted to curb the rampant
inflation of the
3rd century, and issued his
Edict on Maximum Prices. This Edict fixed prices for over a thousand goods, fixed wages, and threatened the death penalty to merchants who overcharged. It was unable to stop the inflation and was eventually ignored, but it is an important document for an understanding of Roman economics.
In
303, the last and greatest
persecution of Christians by the Roman Empire began, although Galerius carried it out more avidly than Diocletian himself. This wave of persecution lasted until
311.
In
305, Diocletian retired to his palace near the administrative center of
Salona on the
Adriatic Sea. The palace later became the seed of modern
Split,
Croatia. He was the only Roman emperor to remove himself from office; all of the others either died of natural causes or were removed by force.
\nDioceses of Diocletian\n\n| \nName\n | \n\nTerritories\n | \n
\n\n| EAST | \n
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\n| Oriens | Libya, Egypt, Palestine, Syria, and Cilicia | \n
\n\n| Pontus | Cappadocia, Armenia Minor, Galatia, Bithynia | \n
\n\n| Asia (Asiana) | Asia, Phrygia, Pisidia, Lycia, Lydia, Caria | \n
\n\n| Thrace Moesiae | Moesia Inferior, Thrace | \n
\n\n| Moesia | Moesia Superior, Dacia, Epirus, Macedonia, Thessaly, Achaea, Dardania | \n
\n\n| WEST | \n
\n\n| Africa | Tripolitana, Africa Proconsularis, Numidia, part of Mauretania | \n
\n\n| Hispania | Mauretania Tingitana, Baetica, Lusitania, Tarraconensis | \n
\n\n| Prov. Viennensis | Narbonensis, Aquitania, Viennensis, Alpes Maritimae | \n
\n\n| Gallia | Lugdunensis, Germania Superior, Germania Inferior, Belgica | \n
\n\n| Britannia | Britannia, Caesariensis | \n
\n\n| Italia | Liguria, Venetia, Alpes Cottiae, Alpes Graiae, Raetia | \n
\n\n| Pannonia | Pannonia Inferior, Pannonia Superior, Noricum, Dalmatia | \n
\n\n| Suburbicaria | Umbria, Campania, Sicilia, Corsica, Sardinia | \n
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