Profile for Emperor: Caracalla - A guide to the coins of the Roman Empire

Caracalla

Reece Period attributed: Period 10

Member of the The Severans dynasty.

Coins for this issuer were issued from 198 until 217.

Marcus Aurelius Antoninus was born in AD 188, the elder son of Septimius Severus and Julia Domna. He quarrelled bitterly with his younger brother, Geta, throughout his youth. In 198, Severus gave Caracalla the title of Augustus. As Severus ailed, Caracalla angled to succeed him. Julia Domna, however, thwarted his plans, and the brothers became dual emperors when Severus died.

Caracalla and Geta didn’t share the power well, and built up opposing factions. Both had a reputation for cruelty and lack of scruples. After ten months of co-rule, Caracalla murdered his brother, but told the Senate that he did it in self-defence because Geta was trying to poison him. The Senate didn’t really believe him, and when Caracalla began killing off Geta’s supporters, they were further estranged.

Caracalla got his nickname from his preference for a certain type of garment, the caracullus, of German or Celtic origin. This was a close-fitting hooded garment made of many small pieces of cloth. He is also remembered for his immense bathing complex, the remains of which still stand in Rome.

This emperor shed plenty of unnecessary blood, from Geta’s supporters to a massacre of Alexandrians and a surprise attack on the Parthians. While Caracalla was in the East, a plot for his assassination was hatched; the commander of troops in Rome tried to warn the emperor, but Julia Domna intercepted the letter. He was murdered while pulling down his trousers to relieve himself.

View all coins recorded by the scheme attributed to Caracalla.

Wikipedia derived information

Caracalla, was Roman emperor from 209 to 217.

The eldest son of Septimius Severus, he ruled jointly with his younger brother Geta until he murdered the latter in 211. Caracalla is remembered as one of the most notorious and unpleasant emperors because of the massacres and persecutions he authorized throughout the empire. Caracalla's reign was also notable for the Constitutio Antoniniana, granting Roman citizenship to all freemen throughout the Roman Empire for the purpose of increasing tax revenue, according to historian Cassius Dio.

He also debased the Roman coinage to increase the pay of the legions. He is also one of the emperors who commissioned a large public bath-house in Rome. The remains of the Baths of Caracalla are one of the major attractions of the Italian capital..

Wikipedia page: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caracalla
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