Emperor Maxentius: The Last Great Roman

Maxentius, Rome’s last pagan emperor, is examined through his reign, battles, building projects, and legacy.

This is a biography of the last man who can truly be considered a ‘Roman’ emperor. Maxentius was the last pagan emperor to rule in Rome itself, the last emperor to reside on the Palatine, the last emperor with a Praetorian Guard. He was a prolific builder, popular with the people and armies of Rome, and surprisingly successful against impressive odds, fighting off two opposing emperors, until felled by disaster at the Battle of the Milvian Bridge.

Simon Turney examines his background (he was the son of Emperor Maximian) and describes the context of the imperial situation of the Tetrarchy leading to his rise. He sifts all the evidence, architectural, numismatic and inscriptive, attempting to identify where Christian (and Constantinian) bias has warped the truth. He narrates Maxentius’ six year reign during a tumultuous time of civil wars, culminating in the dramatic battle of the Milvian Bridge, where he fell. He peels back the later vilification by Christian sources and reveals a capable emperor, a great builder (with a legacy of monuments still visible) and, ironically, a tolerant ruler who ended the Great Persecution of Christians in his territories years before Constantine followed suit.