NUMERIAN (Marcus Aurelius Numerianus)

• Numerian was born around 253 at a place unknown and was the younger son of Carus.
• He was made Caesar on his father's accession in late 282. He was to rule the east with his father, while his elder brother, Carinus, ruled the west.
• In the spring of 283 Carus and Numerian fought successfully against Sarmatians and Quadi on the Danube.
• They then set out for a war on Persia. They advanced through Mesopotamia, capturing Ctesiphon, the Persian capital.
• On the banks of the Tigris, in his tent, Carus was killed by a bolt of lightning, allegedly.
• Numerian spent the winter of 283 in Syria, and the following year travelled across Asia Minor towards the Bosphorus.
• Numerian was murdered in the litter he was being transported in, allegedly by his father-in-law, and praetorian commander, Lucius Flavius Aper. The murder went undetected until the smell of Numerian's decaying body, revealed the crime, at Nicomedia, in November 284.
• Diocletian, commander of the bodyguard, was proclaimed emperor in place of Numerian, later conveniently doing away with Aper.