page_title: History of Roman-era Tunisia
section_title: Emperors from Africa
hierarchical_section_title: History of Roman-era Tunisia / Roman Province of Africa / Emperors from Africa
caption_attribution_description: English: Septimius Severus, 193-211 AD. Aureus (7.23 gm). Struck 193 AD to celebrate the legion that proclamed him emperor. IMP CAE L SEP SE-V PERT AVG, laureate head right LEG XIIII GEM M V, TR P COS in exergue, legionary eagle between two standards. RIC IV 14; BMCRE 18; Cohen 271. Good VF.
context_page_description: The history of Roman-era Tunisia begins with the history of the Roman Africa Province. Rome took control of Carthage after the Third Punic War. There was a period of Berber kings allied with Rome. Lands surrounding Carthage were annexed and reorganized, and the city of Carthage rebuilt, becoming the third city of the Empire. A long period of prosperity ensued; a cosmopolitan culture evolved. Trade quickened, the fields yielded their fruits. Settlers from across the Empire migrated here, forming a Latin-speaking ethnic mix. The Carthaginian society made up of native Phoenician-speaking Libyans and Phoenicians, as well as Berber-speaking Libyans, was becoming gradually romanized, some native Libyans like Apuleius and Septimus Severus became great figures of the Roman empire. Christianity became gradually spread among the Northwest Africans, offering to the Roman Catholicism three of its Popes, as well as Augustine of Hippo. During the eclipse of the Roman Empire, several prominent Libyans revolted. A generation later the Vandals, a Germanic tribe, arrived in Tunisia with the help of the Maurii and reigned over the Roman province for nearly a century.
caption: Aureus, minted in 193: obverse, Septimius Severus; reverse, Legion insignia of XIIII Gemina Martia Victrix.
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