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Geta - Roman Caesar: 198-209 - Emperor: 209-211
A.D.
Buy ancient coins of Geta - Roman Caesar
Publius Septimius Geta was a Roman Emperor co-ruling with his father
Septimius Severus and his older brother
Caracalla from 209 to his death.
Publius Septimius Geta (March
7,
189December
26,
211), was a
Roman Emperor co-ruling with his father
Septimius Severus and his older brother
Caracalla from 209 to his death.
Geta was the younger son of Septimius Severus by his second wife
Julia Domna. Geta was born in
Rome, at a time when his father was
only a provincial governor at the service of emperor
Commodus.
Geta was always in a place secondary to his older brother Lucius, the
heir known as Caracalla. Perhaps due to this, the relations between the
two were difficult from their early years. Conflicts were constant and
often required the mediation of their mother. To appease his youngest
son, Septimius Severus gave Geta the title of Augustus in 209.
During the campaign against the Britons of the early 3rd century, the
imperial propaganda publicized a happy family that shared the
responsibilities of rule. Caracalla was his father's second in command,
Julia Domna the trusted counsellor and Geta had administrative and
bureaucratic duties. Truth was that the rivalry and antipathy between
the brothers was far from being improved.
Joint Emperor
When Septimius Severus died in
Eboracum in the beginning of 211,
Caracalla and Geta were proclaimed joint emperors and returned to Rome.
Regardless, the shared throne was not a success: the brothers argued
about every decision, from law to political appointments. Later sources
speculate about the desire of the two of splitting the empire in two
halves. By the end of the year, the situation was unbearable. Caracalla
tried to murder Geta during the festival of
Saturnalia without success. Later in
December he arranged a meeting with his brother in his mother's
apartments, and had him murdered in her arms by
centurions.
Following Geta's assassination, Caracalla
damned his memoryy and ordered his name
to be removed from all inscriptions. The now sole emperor also took the
opportunity to get rid of his political enemies, on the grounds of
conspiracy with the deceased.
Cassius Dio stated that around 20,000
persons of both sexes were killed and/or proscribed during this time. | 
