On January 2, 69, the Rhine legions acclaimed Aulus Vitellius as emperor and marched for Italy. Their winter trumpets answered the Praetorian blades in Rome. Between the Alps and the Po, two roads—and two claims—were now on a collision course [19].
What Happened
While Rome argued over donatives and decrees, the frontier moved. On January 2, 69, the Rhine legions raised Aulus Vitellius, their commander, on shields and proclaimed him imperator [19]. In snow-hushed winter camps along the Rhine’s dark water, horns sounded and standards dipped.
Vitellius’s strength lay not in the Senate House, but in 30,000 hardened troops willing to cross the Alps. Columns set out through Gaul toward the passes, their wagon trains creaking, their eagles glinting dull gold. Every milestone toward Mediolanum and Cremona was a step toward Rome’s decision.
This was not a debate. It was a march. The Po valley—and the road near Bedriacum—would be the anvil. Otho, newly recognized in Rome, sent his own forces north. The Via Aemilia, the Via Postumia, and the causeways over the Po would channel two armies into one plain [19].
Inside Rome, the news hit the Capitoline like a dropped shield. Senators looked from the Palatine toward the north and calculated days: ten to the plains, perhaps forty to the city. Otho’s coin dies began to ring in the mint, promising Pax and Securitas in bright metal. But on the Rhine, the language was iron.
Vitellius’s choice to move in January mattered. Surprise, cold, and the sheer momentum of a frontier host carried his bid toward Italy ahead of the spring campaigning season. And his legions believed they, not the Praetorians, had earned the right to crown a ruler.
Why This Matters
The Rhine acclamation converted a provincial commander into a rival emperor and shifted the center of gravity from the Forum to the Po valley. It forced Otho to abandon purely urban politics and meet a field army in Cisalpine Gaul [19].
This event exemplifies “Armies Crown, Senate Legitimizes.” Vitellius needed no senatorial vote to begin; he needed a battlefield victory to end. His soldiers’ will, measured in miles and casualties, would test Rome’s ability to dictate from afar.
The march also established the geography of decision in 69. Control of the Alpine passes, bridgeheads over the Po, and the crossroads at Bedriacum became the practical hinge of the empire’s future. The next emperor would be chosen at Cremona, then announced at the Curia.
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