Laelian (; ),Martindale, pg. 492 also incorrectly referred to as Lollianus and Aelianus,Polfer, Laelianus was a usurper against Postumus, the emperor of the Gallic Empire. His revolt lasted from approximately late February to early June 269.Polfer, Laelianus
Origins Little is known about Laelian. He shares the same nomen as a prominent Hispano-Roman family, the Ulpii, that included Trajan among its members, and may have been a relative.Polfer, Laelianus This is supported by the strong allusion to Hispania on an aureus he struck, which featured a reclining personification of Hispania with a rabbit at her side. If he indeed was a relative, this may be the reason Hispania allied itself with Claudius II, after the death of Laelian, seemingly without a struggle.
Rule Laelian declared himself emperor at Moguntiacum (modern-day Mainz in Germany) in February/March 269,Polfer, Laelianus; Potter, pg. 265 after repulsing a Germanic invasion.Polfer, Laelianus Although his exact position is unknown, he is believed to have been a senior officer under Postumus,Potter, pg. 265 either the legatus of Germania Superior or the commander of Legio XXII Primigenia.Polfer, Laelianus Laelian represented a strong danger to Postumus because of the two legions he commanded (Primigenia in Moguntiacum and VIII Augusta in Argentoratum);Polfer, Laelianus Despite this, his rebellion lasted only about two months before he was executed,Polfer, Laelianus reputedly by his own soldiers, or by Postumus' troops after a siege of Laelian's capital.Martindale, pg. 492 The siege of Moguntiacum was also fatal for Postumus; it is said he was slain when he refused to allow his troops to plunder the city following its capture.Southern, pg. 118
Laelian (under the Latin name Lollianus) is listed among the Thirty Tyrants in the Historia Augusta.
See also Ulpia gens List of Roman usurpers
References
Sources Primary sources Aurelius Victor, Liber de Caesaribus Eutropius, Brevarium, Book 9 Historia Augusta, The Thirty Tyrants
Secondary sources Southern, Pat. The Roman Empire from Severus to Constantine, Routledge, 2001 Potter, David Stone, The Roman Empire at Bay, AD 180-395, Routledge, 2004 Jones, A.H.M., Martindale, J.R. The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire, Vol. I: AD260-395, Cambridge University Press, 1971 Michel Polfer, "Laelianus (A.D. 269)", De Imperatoribus Romanis] (1999)
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