Gratian, 367 – 383 Solidus, Treveri 373-374, AV 4.45 g.

Gratian, 367 – 383
Solidus, Treveri 373-374, AV 4.45 g. D N GRATIANVS P F AVG Pearl and rosette-diademed, draped and cuirassed bust r. Rev. VICTOR – IA AVGG Two emperors seated facing, together holding globe; behind and between them, the upper part of Victory with outspread wings. Below on exergual line, palm branch; in exergue, TROBT. C 38. RIC 17g. Depeyrot 43/3.

Good extremely fine



Gratian's rise to prominence began early in 366, when at age six or seven he was named one of the year's consuls. In the summer of 367 he was proclaimed co-emperor of the West by his father, whose health was then failing. This extraordinary event was intended to calm rough political waters amid the uncertainty of Valentinian's health, which had given rise to friction between the military leader Severus and the Gallic nobleman Rusticus Julianus.

Valentinian survived his health crisis and over the next eight years was able to school Gratian in the arts of war and politics, both in the courts of Trier and on the battlefield. Gratian's education began immediately in the campaign season of 368, when he joined his father on a dangerous offensive against the Alemanni. The Romans crossed the Rhine and defeated the enemy in a terrifying battle at Schwetzingen, at which Valentinian was nearly killed.

In the following year the Romans suffered a setback when the Alemanni destroyed a fort that Valentinian had begun to build north of the Rhine, near modern Heidelberg. In the midst of its construction the fort was attacked, with all of the Romans in attendance being killed. Valentinian's desire for an immediate response, however, was tempered by the need to deal with the Saxon raids of 370 into northern Gaul.

In addition to learning first hand about military campaigns, Gratian also gained an appreciation for political strategy as he observed how his father approached the Burgundians – Germanic enemies of the Alemanni – with an offer of alliance. The mere prospect of such an alliance caused the Alemanni to scatter, and it allowed a Roman raid through Rhaetia to succeed. A large number of prisoners were taken and re-settled in the Po River valley, where they became a productive part of the Roman world.

What few years that remained of Gratian's tutelage under his father were spent dealing with the complex military and political situations on the northern and western fronts: keeping the Alemannic chieftain Macrianus in check, managing threats in Britain, and opposing the aggressions of Frankish and Saxon pirates.

Toward the end of Valentinian's life further complications arose, including a serious uprising in North Africa and a devastating invasion of Illyricum by the Quadi and Sarmatians. The latter conflict was especially intense, causing Valentinian to die of a stroke in a moment of piqued anger before a deputation of the Quadi. Thus, in November of 375 authority over the Western Roman Empire passed to 16-year-old Gratian, who a few days later would raise his four-year-old half-brother Valentinian II to the rank of emperor to quell yet another power struggle among the military elite.

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