Relationships Between Emperors and Their Guard
| Emperor | Year | Relationship with the Guard |
|---|---|---|
| Augustus | 27 BC–AD 14 | Created the Praetorian Guard, commanded their complete loyalty. |
| Tiberius | 14–37 | Made Sejanus the sole Guard prefect (as opposed to having the usual two) allowed him to concentrate the guard in a single camp. Tiberius later had him executed and replaced with Macro. |
| Gaius Caligula | 37–41 | Accession smoothed by popularity with Macro, the Praetorian Prefect he later had executed. Murdered by the Guard. |
| Claudius | 41–54 | Proclaimed emperor by the Guard and defended by them when in difficulty (e.g., Messalina and Gaius Silius' attempted coup). Began the process of formalised accession donatives on a large scale and his coinage reflects the fact with coin captioned imper.recep i.e. "position of emperor received from" with a picture of the Praetorian camp on. |
| Nero | 54–68 | Eventually deserted by the Guard |
| Galba | 68–69 | Murdered by the Guard whose accession donative, promised on his behalf by Tigellinus and Otho, he refused to pay. |
| Otho | 69 | Elevated by the Guard who fought ferociously for him at Cremona before he committed suicide. |
| Vitellius | 69 | Deposed by the Guard then executed. |
| Vespasian | 69–79 | Reduced the size of the Guard after victory in 69 |
| Titus | 79–81 | Served as Praetorian prefect, then as emperor. |
| Domitian | 81–96 | His election was supported by the Guard who remained fiercely loyal to him, especially as he increased the army's pay. Killed by influential palace freedmen. |
| Nerva | 96–98 | Forced by a rebelling guard to adopt Marcus Ulpius Traianus as his successor. |
| Trajan | 98–117 | Had the Guard officers who led the rebellion against Nerva executed upon his succession. |
| Hadrian | 117–138 | Founded the Frumentarii. |
| Antoninus Pius | 138–161 | |
| Marcus Aurelius | 161–180 | Commanded the Guard in his war against the Germanian Tribes. |
| Lucius Verus | 161–169 | |
| Commodus | 180–192 | Retained the loyalty of the Guard. |
| Pertinax | 193 | Assassinated by the Guard. |
| Didius Julianus | 193 | Scandalously 'purchased' the Empire from the Guard and was soon deserted by them. |
| Septimius Severus | 193–211 | Disbanded the Guard and created a new one from the Danubian Legions. |
| Caracalla | 211–217 | Murdered in a plot by the Praetorian Prefect Macrinus. |
| Macrinus | 217–218 | |
| Elagabalus | 218–222 | Murdered in the Castra Praetoria by the Guard. |
| Alexander Severus | 222–235 | Elevated by the Guard. |
| Maximinus Thrax | 235–238 | |
| Gordian I | 238 | |
| Gordian II | 238 | |
| Balbinus | 238 | Murdered by the Guard. |
| Pupienus | 238 | Murdered by the Guard. |
| Gordian III | 238–244 | Proclaimed emperor by the Guard but killed by his Prefect, Philip the Arab. |
| Philip the Arab | 244–249 | |
| Decius | 249–251 | |
| Herennius Etruscus | 251 | |
| Hostilian | 251 | |
| Trebonianus Gallus | 251–253 | |
| Aemilianus | 253 | |
| Publius Licinius Valerianus | 253–260 | |
| Gallienus | 260-268 | |
| Claudius II | 268–270 | |
| Quintillus | 270 | |
| Aurelian | 270–275 | The Praetorians accompanied Aurelian on an expedition against Palmyra. Subsequently he was murdered by the Guard |
| Marcus Claudius Tacitus | 275–276 | |
| Florianus | 276 | |
| Marcus Aurelius Probus | 276–282 | Murdered by Praetorian troops after a revolt. |
| Carus | 282–283 | |
| Carinus | 283–285 | |
| Numerian | 283–284 | |
| Diocletian | 284–305 | Dismantled the political power of the Praetorians through sweeping reforms of the Imperial system. Reported to have reduced the size of the Guard. |
| Maximian | 286–305, 307–308 | Praetorians accompanied Maximian to Africa in 297. |
| Galerius | 305–311 | |
| Constantius Chlorus | 305–306 | |
| Flavius Valerius Severus | 306–307 | |
| Maxentius | 306–312 | Last emperor to command the guard. |
| Constantine I | 306–337 | Disbanded the Guard and destroyed the Castra Praetoria. |
Read more about this topic: Praetorian Guard
Famous quotes containing the words emperors and/or guard:
“How does Nature deify us with a few and cheap elements! Give me health and a day, and I will make the pomp of emperors ridiculous. The dawn is my Assyria; the sun-set and moon-rise my Paphos, and unimaginable realms of faerie; broad noon shall be my England of the senses and the understanding; the night shall be my Germany of mystic philosophy and dreams.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“Most of us are aware of and pretend to detest the barefaced instances of that hypocrisy by which men deceive others, but few of us are upon our guard or see that more fatal hypocrisy by which we deceive and over-reach our own hearts.”
—Laurence Sterne (1713–1768)