en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valerian_(emperor)
1 correction found
When Valerian's son Gallienus became emperor in 260
Gallienus did not first become emperor in 260. He had already been emperor alongside Valerian from 253; 260 was the year he became sole emperor.
Full reasoning
This wording is chronologically wrong. Gallienus was elevated to imperial rank in 253, when Valerian took power, and ruled jointly with his father until 260. What changed in 260 was not that Gallienus became emperor, but that he became sole emperor after Valerian was captured by the Persians.
Two reference works state this explicitly:
- The Columbia Encyclopedia says Gallienus "ruled as the colleague (253-60) of his father, Valerian, and alone (260-68)."
- An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Emperors says the Senate accepted Gallienus as Augustus in 253, and describes Valerian and Gallienus as joint rulers from then on.
So the sentence should say that Gallienus became sole emperor in 260, not that he became emperor for the first time in 260.
2 sources
- Gallienus | Encyclopedia.com
He ruled as the colleague (253-60) of his father, Valerian, and alone (260-68).
- Roman Emperors - DIR valerian and gallienus
The Senate ... accepted his son and colleague, P. Licinius Egnatius Gallienus, as Augustus ... Valerian apparently realized the necessity of sharing power equally with his son.