Septimius Herodianus

Septimius Herodianus ( Herodian ), also Haeranes ( Aramaic Ḥairân ) and Herodes , incorrectly Herennianus (* before 226 probably in Palmyra ; † 267 in Heraclea Pontica or [less likely] in Emesa ), was the son and co-regent of Odaenathus , the king of Palmyra and Roman imperial representative in the Orient.

Life

Herodianus was born before 226 as the son of Odaenathus and his first (not known by name) wife, presumably in Palmyra, and was chosen as his successor early on by his father . In 251 he held the title of senator and exarch together with Odaenathus , and he also received the honorary title of King of Kings from his father after his father's victory in 263 (see also Imperial Crisis of the 3rd Century ).

In Heraclea Pontica (after Zosimos in Emesa ) Herodianus was murdered with his father under unclear circumstances, probably at the end of 267. John Zonaras could access the lost on today sources, called a cousin Maeonius as murderers (but little reliable, especially with regard to the 3rd century) Historia Augusta also Zenobia , the second wife of Odaenathus as instigator. Perhaps, however, Emperor Gallienus himself organized the murder of the too powerful general and his son. In the Historia Augusta he is called Herod , in other literary sources he is not mentioned by name.

literature

• Thorsten Fleck: The special empire of Palmyra. Its history as reflected in Roman coinage . In: Geldgeschichtliche Nachrichten 199 (September 2000), pp. 245-252.
• Udo Hartmann : The Palmyrene Partial Kingdom ( Oriens et Occidens 2) . Stuttgart 2001.
• Ted Kaizer: Odaenathus of Palmyra . In: Michael Sommer (ed.): Political murders. From ancient times to the present . Darmstadt 2005, pp. 73-79.