Roman Empire Arcadius 383-408AD Bronze

A compelling numismatic narrative, chronicling the decline and eventual collapse of a oncemighty superpower, we are delighted to present you the ‘Arcadius (383-408AD) Bronze Half Centenionalis Coin’.

Flavius Arcadius was born on New Year’s Day 377AD. Arcadius’ father – Theodosius, also known as Theodosius the Great – was one of the Roman Empire’s leading military commanders. He became emperor in 379AD, and was the last man to rule the western and eastern parts of the Roman Empire at the same time. Threatened by usurpers within the empire, and plagued by barbarian invaders, Theodosius ruled with strength, diplomacy and wisdom. Theodosius knew all too well that the Roman Empire was too big for one man to handle, and upon his death in 395AD, he bequeathed the east of the empire to Arcadius, with his brother Honorius taking the west. Unfortunately, neither man seem to have inherited any of their father’s abilities.

Perhaps understanding that he was no military man, Arcadius never sought to portray himself as the heroic soldier-emperor his father had been. Instead, he decided to carry on his father’s work in attaining the predominance of Christianity, passing a swathe of laws against pagans and heretics in the early days of his reign. Indeed, it is as a deeply pious Christian emperor that Arcadius is best remembered.

His lack of interest in ruling the empire – or lack of ability to do so – created a power vacuum at court in Constantinople. Such a vacuum was eagerly filled, and Arcadius was dominated by a series of ministers and other members of court throughout his 13-year reign. Rufinus the Praetorian Prefect, Eutropius the Eunuch, Gainas the Goth, the Empress Eudoxia, Anthemius the Praetorian Prefect…all wielded influence over the seemingly powerless ruler of the east during his time in power.

Although eschewing public life, and despite being widely condemned by historians as fragile and ineffectual, it could well be said that the reign of Arcadius was more important than the man himself. It was during his time in power that the division between the Western Roman Empire and the Eastern Roman Empire became firmly entrenched. The west was left to deal with its own problems, whilst the east avoided the political and military tempests that left the west teetering on the brink of destruction. In addition, major building projects undertaken during the reign of Arcadius had expanded and beautified the city of Constantinople, with the eastern capital rising to become ‘the second city of the Empire’.

Furthermore, Arcadius contributed significantly to a feature that would underpin the eastern Byzantine Empire for the next 1,000 years – the importance of the Christian faith of the emperor. Arcadius’ obsession with piety contributed substantially to this phenomenon, and to the symbolic separation of the emperor from his subjects. The ‘semi-divine’ nature of the emperor would become a key element of the Byzantine monarchy in the centuries after Arcadius’ death.

As to that death, we know very little about Arcadius’ passing. It seems he just faded away. No romantic death defending the Empire in battle; no treacherous plot leading to his assassination; no falling victim to the ravages of the plague – Arcadius simply disappears from history, with the change in emperor creating no controversy. It is a telling illustration of his relative personal insignificance in the history of the Roman Empire that even the nature of his demise is left unrecorded.