| The Civil War of 193-197 was the second major civil war in the history of the Roman Empire.It marked the end of the Roman Empire’s heyday and was replaced by the Severus Dynasty.It was the beginning of the crisis of the third century and an important turning point in the transformation of Rome from strength to weakness.The study of the military causes of this civil war is of great academic importance.The whole paper consists of three parts: the introduction,the body and the conclusion.The introductory part includes the current status of domestic and international research,the significance of the chosen topic,the innovation,and the research methodology.The introductory part gives a brief overview of the research results related to the Civil War of 193-197,and the writing of the thesis is explained in the light of the relevant results.The first part of the main text briefly describes the background to the outbreak of the Civil War.The first half of the text provides a brief account of the emperor’s despotic rule under Commodus.Commodus did not reign for long,but the people of the empire were extremely discontented with his rule.Commodus died,and his successor,Pertinax,fell under the sword of the Praetorian Guard for having offended them.The Praetorians then sold the throne to Julianus in a farce of an “auction”.The actions of the Praetorians provoked the discontent of the provincial legions,and the three governors,led by Severus,rebelled.Each of the three governors was made emperor by his legion and soon became a battle for the throne.This section provides an in-depth analysis of the reasons for the outbreak of civil war.The military reasons is one of the most crucial reasons.The conflict between the Praetorians and the provincial legions,which were an important part of the Roman army,was a major cause of the outbreak of civil war.The internal problems of the legions were also crucial,and their disagreements led to the outbreak and expansion of civil war,which can also be called legionary warfare.In addition,the relationship between the emperor and the army was also an important factor,and the degree of control over the army was often an important factor in establishing the political situation.The second section discusses the parties and the process of the Civil War.The civil war was fought by three legions of provincial governors,all heavily armed and successively installed as emperors by their troops.After four years of civil war,Severus,the governor of Pannonia,was able to pacify Niger in the east and Albinus in the west of the empire,achieving the ultimate victory and establishing the Severus dynasty.The third part analyses the reasons for Severus’ victory.The reasons for Severus’ victory in the Civil war were both objective and subjective.From a subjective point of view,Severus’ geographical and military position was more favourable,and Severus made full use of his advantages,successfully dividing the two rivals and making them suspicious of each other.At the same time,the strategic tactics adopted by Severus in the civil war were more precise.The war was won by Severus’ excellent general outlook and the military skills of the generals in the battle.Objectively speaking,the disadvantages of the other two men were also significant and favoured Severus’ victory.The fourth section assesses the outcome of the Civil war.The establishment of the Severus dynasty marked the end of the civil war.In order to consolidate his rule,Severus embarked on reforms,the core of which were military reforms.The reforms had both positive and negative effects on the Empire.The decline of the Roman Empire began with the civil war and was a significant cause of the third-century crisis,which began the Empire’s decline. |
