197
Encyclopedia
Year 197 was a common year starting on Saturday
(link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar
. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Magius and Rufinus (or, less frequently, year 950 Ab urbe condita
). The denomination 197 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
calendar era
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Common year starting on Saturday
This is the calendar for any common year starting on Saturday, January 1 . Examples: Gregorian years 1994, 2005, 2011 and 2022...
(link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar
Julian calendar
The Julian calendar began in 45 BC as a reform of the Roman calendar by Julius Caesar. It was chosen after consultation with the astronomer Sosigenes of Alexandria and was probably designed to approximate the tropical year .The Julian calendar has a regular year of 365 days divided into 12 months...
. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Magius and Rufinus (or, less frequently, year 950 Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita
Ab urbe condita is Latin for "from the founding of the City ", traditionally set in 753 BC. AUC is a year-numbering system used by some ancient Roman historians to identify particular Roman years...
). The denomination 197 for this year has been used since the early medieval period, when the Anno Domini
Anno Domini
and Before Christ are designations used to label or number years used with the Julian and Gregorian calendars....
calendar era
Calendar era
A calendar era is the year numbering system used by a calendar. For example, the Gregorian calendar numbers its years in the Western Christian era . The instant, date, or year from which time is marked is called the epoch of the era...
became the prevalent method in Europe for naming years.
Roman Empire
- February 19 – Battle of LugdunumBattle of LugdunumThe Battle of Lugdunum, also called the Battle of Lyon, was fought on 19 February 197 at Lugdunum , between the armies of the Roman Emperor Septimius Severus and of the Roman usurper Clodius Albinus...
: EmperorEmperorAn emperor is a monarch, usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife or a woman who rules in her own right...
Septimius SeverusSeptimius SeverusSeptimius Severus , also known as Severus, was Roman Emperor from 193 to 211. Severus was born in Leptis Magna in the province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through the customary succession of offices under the reigns of Marcus Aurelius and Commodus. Severus seized power after the death of...
defeats the self-proclaimed emperor Decimus Clodius AlbinusClodius AlbinusClodius Albinus was a Roman usurper proclaimed emperor by the legions in Britain and Hispania upon the murder of Pertinax in 193.-Life:...
at LugdunumLugdunumColonia Copia Claudia Augusta Lugdunum was an important Roman city in Gaul. The city was founded in 43 BC by Lucius Munatius Plancus. It served as the capital of the Roman province Gallia Lugdunensis. To 300 years after its foundation Lugdunum was the most important city to the west part of Roman...
(modern LyonLyonLyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
). Albinus commits suicideSuicideSuicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
, legionaries sack the town. - Septimius Severus returns to RomeAncient RomeAncient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
and has about 30 of Albinus's supporters in the SenateRoman SenateThe Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...
executed. After his victory he declares himself the adopted son of the late Marcus Aurelius. - Septimius Severus forms new navalRoman NavyThe Roman Navy comprised the naval forces of the Ancient Roman state. Although the navy was instrumental in the Roman conquest of the Mediterranean basin, it never enjoyed the prestige of the Roman legions...
units, manning all the triremeTriremeA trireme was a type of galley, a Hellenistic-era warship that was used by the ancient maritime civilizations of the Mediterranean, especially the Phoenicians, ancient Greeks and Romans.The trireme derives its name from its three rows of oars on each side, manned with one man per oar...
s in ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
with heavily armed troops for war in the East. Soldiers embarked on an artificial canalCanalCanals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
between the TigrisTigrisThe Tigris River is the eastern member of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, the other being the Euphrates. The river flows south from the mountains of southeastern Turkey through Iraq.-Geography:...
and EuphratesEuphratesThe Euphrates is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia...
. - Legio ILegio I ParthicaLegio prima Parthica was a Roman legion levied in 197 by the emperor Septimius Severus. The legion presence in the Middle East is recorded until the early 5th century....
, IILegio II ParthicaLegio secunda Parthica was a Roman legion levied by Emperor Septimius Severus in 197, for his campaign against the Parthian Empire, hence the cognomen Parthica. The legion was still active in the beginning of the 5th century...
, and III ParthicaLegio III ParthicaLegio tertia Parthica was a Roman legion levied by Emperor Septimius Severus in 197, for his campaign against the Parthian Empire, hence the cognomen Parthica. The legion was still active in the Eastern provinces in the early 5th century...
are levied by Septimius Severus for his ParthiaParthiaParthia is a region of north-eastern Iran, best known for having been the political and cultural base of the Arsacid dynasty, rulers of the Parthian Empire....
n campaign. - The Roman armyRoman armyThe Roman army is the generic term for the terrestrial armed forces deployed by the kingdom of Rome , the Roman Republic , the Roman Empire and its successor, the Byzantine empire...
marched east to repel a Parthian invasion of MesopotamiaMesopotamiaMesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
, they loot the royal palace at CtesiphonCtesiphonCtesiphon, the imperial capital of the Parthian Arsacids and of the Persian Sassanids, was one of the great cities of ancient Mesopotamia.The ruins of the city are located on the east bank of the Tigris, across the river from the Hellenistic city of Seleucia...
and capture an enormous number of its inhabitants as slavesSlaverySlavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
. - Septimius Severus reconstitutes the Province of MesopotamiaMesopotamiaMesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
under an equestrian governorGovernorA governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
commanding two legionsRoman legionA Roman legion normally indicates the basic ancient Roman army unit recruited specifically from Roman citizens. The organization of legions varied greatly over time but they were typically composed of perhaps 5,000 soldiers, divided into maniples and later into "cohorts"...
. - Septimius Severus, who had spared the Senate at the beginning of his reign, now excludes it from controlling the Roman empireRoman EmpireThe Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
by declaring a military dictatorshipDictatorshipA dictatorship is defined as an autocratic form of government in which the government is ruled by an individual, the dictator. It has three possible meanings:...
.
Arts and sciences
- Galen'sGalenAelius Galenus or Claudius Galenus , better known as Galen of Pergamon , was a prominent Roman physician, surgeon and philosopher...
major work on medicines, Pharmacologia, is published.
Religion
- A ChristianChristianityChristianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
council is held in EdessaEdessa, MesopotamiaEdessa is the Greek name of an Aramaic town in northern Mesopotamia, as refounded by Seleucus I Nicator. For the modern history of the city, see Şanlıurfa.-Names:...
.
Deaths
- February 19 – Clodius AlbinusClodius AlbinusClodius Albinus was a Roman usurper proclaimed emperor by the legions in Britain and Hispania upon the murder of Pertinax in 193.-Life:...
, rival for Roman Emperor (b. 150150Year 150 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Squilla and Vetus...
) - Cao AngCao AngCao Ang was the eldest son of the late Han Dynasty warlord Cao Cao. He was killed during the Battle of Wancheng after giving up his horse to his father during their escape.-Biography:Cao Ang was born to Cao Cao and Lady Liu...
, first son of Cao Cao (b. 175175Year 175 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Piso and Iulianus...
) - Cao AnminCao AnminCao Anmin was the nephew of the warlord Cao Cao, who lived during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history.In 197, Cao Anmin followed Cao Cao on a campaign to conquer Jing Province . Zhang Xiu, a minor warlord who occupied Wancheng , surrendered to Cao Cao...
, nephew of Cao Cao - Dian WeiDian WeiDian Wei was a military general serving under the warlord Cao Cao during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. Famed for his enormous strength, Dian Wei excelled in wielding dual halberds, each of which was said to weigh 40 jin...
, bodyguard to Chinese warlord Cao CaoCao CaoCao Cao was a warlord and the penultimate chancellor of the Eastern Han Dynasty who rose to great power during the dynasty's final years. As one of the central figures of the Three Kingdoms period, he laid the foundations for what was to become the state of Cao Wei and was posthumously titled... - Guo SiGuo SiGuo Si , also known as Guo Duo , was a general serving under the warlord Dong Zhuo during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He assisted Dong in his many campaigns, and was placed under Dong's son-in-law after Dong relocate the imperial capital to Chang'an...
, general under Dong ZhuoDong ZhuoDong Zhuo was a politician and warlord during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He seized control of the capital city Luoyang in 189 when it was in a state of turmoil following the death of Emperor Ling and a clash between the eunuch faction and some court officials led by...
(b. 146146Year 146 was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Clarus ans Severus...
) - Hu Che ErHu Che ErHuche'er was a general serving under the warlord Zhang Xiu during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He was not of Chinese origin, and some historians believe he may have come from a Slavic background, although others assert it is much more probable that he was of Magyar, Jewish, Hun...
, general under Zhang Xiu - Li Jue, general during the Three KingdomsThree KingdomsThe Three Kingdoms period was a period in Chinese history, part of an era of disunity called the "Six Dynasties" following immediately the loss of de facto power of the Han Dynasty rulers. In a strict academic sense it refers to the period between the foundation of the state of Wei in 220 and the...
- Liang GangLiang GangLiang Gang was a military general serving under the warlord Yuan Shu during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. He suffered a great loss as army director when Yuan Shu attacked Lü Bu. Liang then tried to resist a certain attack by Cao Cao by holding up in Shouchun, but ended up being...
, general under Yuan ShuYuan ShuYuan Shu was a warlord during the late Han Dynasty era of Chinese history. He rose to prominence following the collapse of the imperial court in 189. He was said to be a younger cousin of the warlord Yuan Shao, but was actually Yuan Shao's younger half-brother... - Qiao RuiQiao RuiQiao Rui was an official serving under the warlord Yuan Shu during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. Qiao was commander of Yuan's second army during his campaign against Lü Bu, but lost when Han Xian and Yang Feng deserted to Lü's army. When Cao Cao attacked Yuan Shu, Qiao led a...
, general during the Han DynastyHan DynastyThe Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang... - Yue JiuYue JiuYue Jiu was a military general serving under the warlord Yuan Shu during the late Han Dynasty period of Chinese history. In 197, when Yuan Shu was attacking Chen , the warlord Cao Cao led a campaign against Yuan Shu...
, general during the Han Dynasty