He was awkward and had some strange ticks, such as holding his head at a weird angle. On the other hand, a lot of the sources we have from this period were written by Christians, whose accounts of the heathen emperor can hardly be trusted. There is probably at least some truth in this unflattering portrait.
While he was in Antioch pushing for paganism, his subjects appear to have been unamused, insulted, and deeply unenthusiastic about his impenetrable brand of esoteric philosophy. Riots ensued and somehow the offending temple burnt to the ground. Several people died in the chaos and the Christians got more martyrs — something Julian had been trying to avoid. We can only speculate as to what would have happened if Julian had lived longer, with religious tensions already boiling over, but Julian would soon die while at war against Persia.
It seems very likely that had Julian lived a long time, European history might have been completely different, or at least bumpier in its route to Christian orthodoxy. Julian was Caesar for six years and sole emperor for just two. In spite of this fact, his life is extremely well documented, and we have a detailed picture of him, from both his own writings and the writings of others. His actual impact on history was negligible. Instead, his legacy has been a symbol for people of various religious and political stripes.
He was turned into a hero by many writers who have held anti-Christian views. He remained a villain to the Church, and later apocryphal stories about him would paint him as a monster. The great American writer Gore Vidal would write a novel about him in the 60s , which served as a meditation on religion and the decline of Roman culture.
Although Julian is frequently mocked and considered a failure by many, it is easy to feel sorry for him as a person. His writings do not reveal him to be a brilliant thinker or a masterful politician, but many people are touched by his sincere devotion to various classical ideals which were fading fast. She is a contributing writer and editor and is particularly passionate about the promotion and protection of historical and archaeological knowledge.
In her spare time, she can be found wandering the woods or lurking around ancient monuments, taking photographs. Are you enjoying this article? Sign up to our Free Weekly Newsletter. Please check your inbox to activate your subscription Thank you! Read more by Alice Bennett.
In early April , , Roman troops had crossed the frontier and marched eastwards through Mesopotamia. The campaign was a disaster, dogged by bad luck, incompetence and a failure to appreciate either the difficulties of the terrain or the strength of the enemy. A demoralised Roman army, dangerously short of supplies and with Persian forces moving ever nearer, began a slow retreat in the searing summer heat. On 26 June at Samarra fifty miles north of modern Baghdad the rear of the Roman marching column, then straggling over four miles, was suddenly attacked.
Julian rushed to bring reinforcements. In his haste he did not stop to strap on full body armour. The assailant was never identified. That night — still deep in enemy territory — Julian died of his wounds.
The powerful now professed allegiance to Christ; the elites of the Mediterranean world soon followed; cathedrals were built in cities across the empire; bishops consolidated their authority over the Church; orthodoxy was disputed and defined; heretics were discovered and condemned.
Strong imperial support for the new religion — whether cynically or spiritually motivated— was a bold and remarkable choice. To many nervous contemporaries, converting to Christianity must have seemed risky.
Certainly, no one at the beginning of the fourth century could have predicted that Constantine had taken the first steps towards the establishment of Christendom. Julian was the only Roman emperor after Constantine to reject Christianity.
Like all members of the imperial family, he was raised a Christian. Perhaps it was as a bored teenager in rural Turkey that he first strayed from Christianity, or perhaps as a student excited by the philosophy of Plato and its later elaborations.
Julian was later to claim that he had faked his Christianity long after he chose to seek spiritual fulfilment in the worship of the old Greek and Roman gods. Certainly, in his undergraduate days he liked to think of himself as a closet pagan. To affirm his philosophical credentials he grew a beard.
But the lapse was not so well known, even by his family — or perhaps not taken so seriously — that it prevented the uncompromisingly Christian Constantius from appointing Julian now clean-shaven his deputy in the western half of the empire, where he was in charge of successful campaigns along the Rhine frontier.
For the twenty months of his reign, the emperor actively opposed Christianity. The righteous always knew that God was on their side. The stray spear that killed the emperor at Samarra was further evidence of providential intervention in Roman history.
Some claimed it had been thrown by a Christian fighting for the Persians, or perhaps by a renegade Roman soldier. Others believed God had taken no chances. I call you … all you powers of heaven, all angels whose work is the fall of the tyrant and who have defeated the dragon, the Apostate … the common adversary and enemy of all. His repudiation of his childhood faith was a defining fall from Grace.
The Last Pagan Emperor examines the accounts of Christians martyred after confrontations with the emperor.
Some of these stories are known only from versions circulating centuries later. The emperor spurred on by the devil , during a heated altercation with this pious Christian, is said to have instructed him to choose his burial place.
Elophius indicated a nearby hillside; Julian ordered him decapitated on the spot. Elophius then picked up his head and walked over to his grave. He naturally gave preference to pagans in his own service; and his numerous celebrations of religious sacrifices provided quantities of meat for the soldiers, who seem to have enjoyed this turn of affairs.
By protecting the Jews and by allowing freedom of expression to the various heretical Christian groups, he weakened the Church, for the Christians were thereby encouraged to destroy themselves with their interminable theological squabbles. In Julian amassed an army of 65, with which to continue the Persian War.
In March he marched down the Euphrates to the Persian capital of Ctesiphon and defeated the Persian army. But the victory was not decisive, and the enemy harassed his troops as he marched north to join a supporting force.
In one of these battles, on June 26, , he was mortally wounded. Julian was a prolific writer, and 8 of his orations, 73 genuine letters, a criticism of the emperors from Caesar onward, a satire on the people of Antioch, and various fragments and epigrams are extant. Julian's style is somewhat pedantic, but his letters are interesting, for they reveal the ideal condition toward which he was trying to direct the pagan church.
Julian was far superior to his contemporaries as an emperor and as a man. His rule was just and humane. What the effect on the Christian Church would have been had he enjoyed a long reign is disputed. But contemporaries noted that many gladly returned to paganism, especially those who had recently converted for political purposes.
Lola confused, asked why that mattered as they were both rich. Julien agreed, and the matter seemed to be dropped. A couple days later, Julien arrived in his bedchambers with Lola and tried to kiss her, but was turned away.
He was surprised she had already grown angry with him, less than a week into their marriage. Lola said she simply wasn't feeling well, as it was her nerves and she felt nervous, and scared about something, but not sure what.
Julien tried to calm her, but she wanting to know about his past and asked if there were any secrets she should know. He reassured her there was not, and her feelings were only because they had gotten married so quickly. Months had passed and it was now winter, Lola, Kenna , Sebastian and Julien all decide to brave the winter cold, and go out to have a little fun. Sebastian and Kenna began kicking around an old ball, and Julien joined in soon after.
Lola stayed on the sidelines due to her growing belly. However, the game was quickly interrupted when she began experiencing some pain. They all decided to go back in and put Lola on bed rest. The couple immediately found a midwife to determine what was going on. She told them it was nothing, as a bit of spotting was normal, and all she needed was rest. Once again Lola brought up how thankful she was for having her husband, as she doesn't know what she would have done without him.
Realizing that moments like this, had it not been for him she would've been surrounded by nuns at a convent. Julien was happy he was a step up from a nun but confessed it was hard getting sleep with her and the growing baby bump Julien suggested perhaps he sleep in his own quarters, but Lola quickly shut that idea down as she wished him by her side.
She also did wish to have him by her side doing birth, but the idea seemed to make him uncomfortable and he declined. Later Julien revealed he wanted to go on a hunting trip, and had already packed supplies and was ready to go.
However, before he left, he paid a final visit to his wife, to tell her the preparations were all in order. Lola then asked him not to go and asked him to stay with her. She told him; all she wanted was for them to be together, and she didn't need much, and he could keep her for much less than he'd imagined.
Julien brushed off her remarks and told her she was priceless. That night when Julien was getting ready to leave, he thought about his wife's words on how she said she could live on less, and maybe it would be enough. Against his better judgment, Julien went back to his wife. He found her in a room and confessed he hadn't been playing cards and he'd wanted to leave her, but her words stopped him. Believing that maybe they could live on less.
He confessed he had fallen out of sorts with his family, and he was close to penniless as someone in his position could be. Lola asked if that's why he had agreed to marry her, knowing she was carrying another man's child.
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