political

Elagabalus Adopts Alexander Severus as Caesar

Date

221

Part of

political

In 221, facing army discontent, Elagabalus adopted his cousin Alexianus as Caesar—renaming him Alexander Severus. Herodian presents it as a concession wrung from a court at odds with its soldiers.

What Happened

Elagabalus’ court dazzled and disturbed. Herodian’s narrative, hostile and vivid, lingers on ritual, robes, and the emperor’s preference for Emesa’s god over Jupiter’s rites. The Praetorians and frontier legions, accustomed to Severan austerity leavened with pay, looked on with a mixture of curiosity and contempt. The drums of Emesa beat too loud in Rome’s ears [5][22].

To steady the ranks, Julia Maesa intervened again. She pushed for the elevation of another grandson, Marcus Julius Gessius Alexianus, a youth with fewer religious entanglements and a name that could be refashioned for Roman palates. In 221, Elagabalus adopted him and raised him as Caesar, conferring the name Alexander Severus. Herodian notes the formalities—appointment, confirmation, and the relief murmuring through the barracks [20].

The adoption was not a complete solution. It created a hinge in the regime, a second locus of hope for soldiers who wanted sobriety and a symbol of continuities with Septimius Severus. The sound inside the Praetorian camp softened; the sound inside Elagabalus’ private chapels did not. Tension remained, braided now with a succession plan [20].

Alexander’s image began to appear in public, on coins and in ceremonies, a teenager cast as reassurance. Elagabalus tolerated the arrangement because he had to; the army tolerated Elagabalus because Alexander existed. It was a truce without trust.

Why This Matters

The adoption created an alternative around which disaffected soldiers could rally. It provided the army with a familiar Severan name and demeanor, counterbalancing the emperor’s religiously charged persona [20][5].

It exemplifies “Military Pay as Political Power.” Adoption was not only familial—it was a policy to secure the legions’ goodwill. The Caesar became a political instrument in a military marketplace of loyalty.

Within a year, the truce broke. The Praetorians killed Elagabalus and acclaimed Alexander, confirming that, in the Severan system, the Guard’s blades remained the final arbiter of succession.