| Johannes |
| After the death of Honorius on August 15, 423, his closest male relative was Valentinian, son of Galla Placidia. Valentinian was currently at Constantinople. This power vacuum allowed Ioannes, the primicerius notariorum (chief notary) to seize power in the west. Virtually nothing is known of Ioannes himself, though he was said to have had a mild character. He was supported by the magister militum Castinus and by Aetius, son of the magister militum Gaudentius. After his acclamation at Rome, Ioannes transferred his capital to Ravenna. Ioannes' rule was accepted in Gaul, Spain and Italy, but not in Africa. Ioannes' attempts to negotiate with the eastern emperor Theodosius II were unsuccessful. He seems not to have had a firm grasp of power and this encouraged eastern intervention. In 425, Theodosius II sent an expedition under the command of Ardabur the Elder to install Valentinian as emperor in the west. Ardabur was captured, but treated well, as Ioannes still hoped to be able to negotiate with Theodosius. Ardabur, however, persuaded some of Ioannes' officials to betray him. After his capture, Ioannes was taken to Aquileia where he was mutilated, then executed. Three days after Ioannes's execution, one of his generals, Aetius, arrived in Italy with a large force of Huns. Rather than continue the war, Valentinian bought off the Huns with gold and Aetius with the office of comes. |
Colección :
Roman Personalities
