page_title: Severan dynasty
section_title: Septimius Severus (193–211)
hierarchical_section_title: Severan dynasty / History / Septimius Severus (193–211)
caption_attribution_description: English: Head of Roman Emperor Septimius Severus (193-211 CE) of the Serapis type. Greek marble (head) and green alabaster (bust, does not belong), probably posthumous. Français&#160;: Buste en armure avec paludamentum de Septime Sévère, empereur romain (193-211 ap. J.-C.), type de Sérapis. Marbre grec (tête) et albâtre vert (buste, n'appartient pas à la tête), probablement posthume.
context_page_description: The Severan dynasty was a Roman imperial dynasty, which ruled the Roman Empire between 193 and 235. The dynasty was founded by the general Septimius Severus, who rose to power as the victor of the Civil War of 193–197.
  Although Septimius Severus successfully restored peace following the upheaval of the late 2nd century, the dynasty was disturbed by highly unstable family relationships, as well as constant political turmoil foreshadowing the imminent Crisis of the Third Century.
  It was one of the last lineages of the Principate founded by Augustus.
context_section_description: Lucius Septimius Severus was born to a family of Phoenicia equestrian rank in Leptis Magna, the Roman province of Africa proconsularis, in modern-day Libya. He rose through military service to consular rank under the later Antonines. He married Syrian noblewoman Julia Domna and had two children with her, Caracalla and Geta. He was subsequently proclaimed emperor in 193 by his legionaries in Noricum during the political unrest that followed the death of Commodus, he secured sole rule over the empire in 197 after defeating his last rival, Clodius Albinus, at the Battle of Lugdunum.
  Severus fought a successful war against the Parthians and campaigned with success against barbarian incursions in Roman Britain, rebuilding Hadrian's Wall. In Rome, his relations with the Senate were poor, but he was popular with the commoners, as with his soldiers, whose salary he raised. Starting in 197, his Praetorian prefect Gaius Fulvius Plautianus was a negative influence, and he would be executed in 205. One of Plautianus's successors was the jurist Papinian. Severus continued official persecution of Christians and Jews, as they were the only two groups who would not assimilate their beliefs to the official syncretistic creed.
  Severus died while campaigning in Britain. He was succeeded by his sons Caracalla and Geta, who reigned under the influence of their mother, Julia Domna.
caption: The Libyan Emperor Septimius Severus, the founder of the Severan dynasty
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