Julia Domna

Roman empress

• Born: c. 167
• Birthplace: Emesa, Syria
• Died: 217
• Place of death: Antioch, Asia Minor (now in Turkey)

Julia Domna helped two emperors rule the Roman Empire. As patron, she promoted learning and helped preserve classical culture.

Early Life

Julia Domna (JEWL-yuh DAHM-nuh) was born in Emesa, a city that had been a petty princedom before being absorbed into the Roman province of Syria. Her father, Julius Bassianus, was a high priest of the cult of Elagabal, a dominant religion in the area. Although Bassianus was classified as a plebeian, he came from a royal line, and he had impressive family connections. Four years before Julia’s birth, one of his relatives, formerly a Roman senator and consul, had been crowned king of Armenia. Clearly, Julia Domna and her younger sister, Julia Maesa, expected to marry men of high rank.

Julia Domna had a privileged childhood. Because Emesa was a wealthy city, surrounded by productive farmland and on an important trade route, she was certainly exposed to the best that civilization had to offer. The people of Emesa were bilingual, speaking both Greek and Aramaic. As a member of the ruling class, Julia Domna may well have known Latin, too.

It is likely that during Julia Domna’s youth, her future husband, Septimius Severus, who was a native of Roman Africa, visited the great temple at Emesa. On that occasion, he would have become acquainted with the high priest, but it is not known whether he met Bassianus’s young daughters.

Shortly after Septimius was appointed governor of Gaul, his wife died, leaving him without heirs. Septimius, who was already over forty, needed to remarry as soon as possible. He began his quest by looking into the horoscopes of prospective brides. In Syria, he heard, there was a woman whose horoscope predicted that she would marry a king. She was Julia Domna. Because he was still at Lugdunum in Gaul, Septimius first approached her father through friends, then sent him a letter proposing marriage. The proposal was accepted, and in the summer of 187 Septimius and Julia Domna were married. Septimius found his bride to be not only beautiful but also gifted with good judgment and a high degree of intelligence.

Life’s Work

A son was born on April 4, 188, at Lugdunum. His first name is not known, but he was given the cognomen, or family name, of his grandfather Bassianus; at seven, he would be renamed Marcus Aurelius Antoninus. Early in 189, Julia Domna had a second son. He was given the name of Septimius’s father and brother, Publius Septimius Geta. When Septimius rose to the rank of proconsul, the family relocated in Sicily.

Septimius’s next appointment, as governor of a province just north of Italy, put three legions at his disposal. Rome was in turmoil. Two emperors had been assassinated within less than three months, and none of those proposed as their successors seemed equipped to take over. Septimius waited long enough to make sure that Julia and his sons were safe, then gathered his forces and marched on Rome. After taking the city without bloodshed, he seized power and moved into the palace. Within a month, he had organized matters well enough so that he felt he could leave on the first of many military campaigns against either rivals or rebels.

Julia Domna, who now had the title augusta, or empress, accompanied her husband as an adviser, as she would often do during his reign. Septimius recognized her contributions to his success by giving her the title mater castrorum, or “Mother of the Camp,” at a ceremony on April 14, 195. Another important member of his entourage was his wife’s brother-in-law, the husband of Julia Maesa, who was very close to her sister.

However, Fulvius Plautianus, a relative of Septimius, was also along on that first expedition. Already he had begun intriguing to replace Julia Domna as Septimius’s primary counselor. On campaigns or in Rome, Plautianus seldom left the emperor’s side. In public, he treated Julia Domna with contempt. In private, he spread rumors about her conduct and reported her supposed infidelities to the emperor. Evidently Septimius discounted or ignored what Plautianus said about Julia Domna. The emperor continued to take her with him on his expeditions, such as a trip to Egypt; at other times, he displayed his trust in her by leaving her in Rome to administer the Empire on his behalf. He had assessed Julia Domna correctly: She was both intelligent and capable. Moreover, both she and her sister had a political shrewdness and a steely resolve that enabled them to survive at times when one misstep could be disastrous.

As the emperor’s favorite, Plautianus was now recognized as one of the most powerful men in Rome. He murdered his enemies at will. He tortured noble women in order to gather evidence against Julia Domna, whom he considered his primary enemy. He even arranged to have her son Antoninus, the emperor’s heir, marry his daughter, though the boy loathed his bride as much as he detested her father.

About 200 c.e., when Plautianus was at the height of his power, Julia Domna found a refuge from his malice by studying philosophy and rhetoric. Most of what is known about her informal “circle” of scholars comes from the works of the sophist Philostratus. It was at her request, he notes, that he wrote a biography of the legendary miracle worker Apollonius of Tyana; probably she intended to have pagans worship him instead of Christ. At the gatherings of her circle, which included sophists, philosophers, and geometricians, Julia Domna evidently participated as an equal in discussions on such subjects as the relative merits of philosophy and rhetoric. She also commissioned works to be written on subjects that interested her. Moreover, as a patron, she was able to arrange rewards for her scholarly friends, such as a chair of rhetoric in Athens that one sophist obtained during the reign of her son Antoninus, who is often referred to by his nickname, Caracalla. Julia Domna’s interest in intellectual matters and her involvement on behalf of her learned friends continued until her death.

Meanwhile, Julia Domna’s archenemy had finally been exposed and eliminated. In 205, Caracalla, who in 198 had been named “augustus,” or coemperor, arranged for evidence to be presented to Septimius that Plautianus was plotting to kill both emperors. When Plautianus arrived to defend himself, Antoninus started to kill him but, when his father protested, had a retainer finish him off instead. Julia, who was in the next room, did not know what was going on. However, it is reported that when she was taking some hairs from Plautianus’s beard to prove that he was indeed dead, she was clearly delighted.

Antoninus and Geta had now progressed from being rivals in outrageous acts to bitter personal enmity. Hoping that military action might take their minds off their hatred of each other, in 208 Septimius embarked for Britain, taking with him his sons and their mother. Because of crippling gout or arthritis, Septimius did most of his traveling by litter. In the winter of 210, he became much worse. He died at Eboracum (now York) on February 4, 211.

Although their father had told his sons that he wished them to rule together, for years Antoninus had been planning his brother’s death and perhaps even that of his father. Before they left Britain, Julia Domna tried to reconcile the brothers. On their return to Rome, however, they remained apart, while their followers were rallying supporters. In February, 212, after Antoninus convinced his mother that he was ready for a reconciliation, Julia Domna summoned Geta to her apartment in the Imperial palace. Antoninus had Geta stabbed to death in his mother’s arms. He then issued an order forbidding anyone to grieve for Geta. Subsequently, he had thousands of Geta’s followers killed.

Although he was popular with his soldiers, Antoninus, or Caracalla, has gone down in history as one of the most bloodthirsty tyrants ever to rule Rome. However, even if he was mentally ill, as some believe, he was shrewd enough to rely on the advice of Julia Domna. In fact, her name appeared along with his in letters to the senate. Like his father, Caracalla left Julia Domna to administer the Empire when he was absent from Rome. However, she was in Antioch in April, 217, when her son, then fighting the Parthians, was assassinated by an army officer. Caracalla’s successor, Macrinus, had undoubtedly planned the murder.

Julia Domna may already have been ill with breast cancer. In any case, she is believed to have been so devastated by the report of her son’s assassination that she decided on suicide. It is said that she starved herself to death. However, Julia Maesa, who had been at her sister’s side throughout all those years in Rome, was not yet ready to give up. Withdrawing to Emesa, she plotted the downfall of Macrinus and even participated in the battle near Antioch in which he was defeated. After the execution of Macrinus, Julia Maesa arranged for her older grandson to become emperor. When he was killed three years later, she had him replaced immediately by her younger grandson. Both sisters were deified after death.

Significance

For more than two decades, Julia Domna was one of the most influential women in Rome. Two emperors, one her husband, the other her son, relied on her for advice. During their lengthy absences, she administered a vast empire. She remained resolute even when she was attacked by her enemies, even when she saw her sons turning on their father and on each other. Julia Domna is also admired for her love of learning, which led her not only to expand her own knowledge but also to inspire and to aid the scholars she gathered around her. As their patron, she is credited with having done much to preserve her culture.

Bibliography

Birley, Anthony R. Septimius Severus: The African Emperor. Rev. ed. New Haven, Conn.: Yale University Press, 1989. In this definitive biography of Septimius Severus, his relationship with Julia Domna is explored at length, and the significance of her role as a patron is discussed. Also contains information about her family background. Includes maps, photographs, genealogical chart, bibliographies, and index.

Birley, Anthony R., trans. Lives of the Later Caesars: The First Part of the Augustan History, with Newly Compiled Lives of Nerva and Trajan. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin, 1976. A work of unknown authorship, almost certainly written in the fourth century c.e. and considered an important source of factual material. Footnotes by the translator point out the occasional fictions. Includes charts, maps, and index.

Hemelrijk, Emily A. Matrona Docta: Educated Women in the Roman Élite from Cornelia to Julia Domna. London: Routledge, 1999. Julia Domna and the various theories as to her circle are discussed at length in a chapter on “patronesses of literature and learning.” Illustrations, voluminous notes, extensive bibliography, and index.

Oliver, J. H. “Julia Domna as Athena Polias.” In Athenian Studies, Presented to William Scott Ferguson. New York: Arno Press, 1973. After she intervened with her husband on their behalf, Athenians identified Julia Domna as an incarnation of their goddess Athena and honored her accordingly. An interesting example of her historical importance.