Are they podcast listeners? A quick notice before we get started on today's podcast.

Today and for the next few episodes, we'll be joined by Kaelin Davenport and we'll be

hearing about the rule of Valerian. Valerian ruled in the middle of the 3rd century, right

during that very turbulent time of civil wars and high-amperate turnover. If you would

like to catch up on what's happened previously to this, then draw back through the podcast

archives you're looking for say around episode CLXIV. And so on that note, enjoy the

podcast. Are they and welcome to Emperors of Rome, a Roman history podcast from Latrobe University.

I'm your host Matt Smith and with me today is associate professor Kaelin Davenport,

head of the Centre for Classical Studies at the Australian National University.

This is episode CXCI, Empire Under siege. When Valerian became emperor in 253 CE,

Rome was fighting on all fronts. With Chapur and the Syrians taking territory in the east

and the Germanic tribes to the west and the north, the Empire was going to get messy for Valerian

and his newly established dynasty. Here's Kaelin Davenport.

DCS and his son, Horeneus Atruskas, were last seen riding a valently into battle at the

battle of Apertus against the Goths. After their death, one of the governors in the region,

a senator known as Trebonianus Gallus, was acclaimed emperor. And he made DCS's second son,

Osterlianus, part of his imperial college, along with his own son, Valucianus. So we have an

imperial college of three again. Osterlianus dies of the plague, not in suspicious circumstances,

because we talked about a so-called plague or Cyprian, which was raging throughout the empire.

However, Trebonianus Gallus himself didn't last very long, because in 253, one of his governors,

Emilius Emilianus, revolted against him. So we're having quite a regular turnover of

dynasties, due to soldiers acclaiming provincial governors as emperor, because they think they

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