Flavius Decius was a politician of the Eastern Roman Empire. A member of the Decia gens

Decius (gens)

Decius is an ancient Roman nomen; notable individuals of the gens Decia include:**Publius Decius Mus , son of Quintus, consul in 340 BC, fought the Battle of Vesuvius...

, he was appointed Consul Ordinarius for 529 without colleague.

Decius was the son of Basilius Venantius

Basilius Venantius

Basilius Venantius iunior was a politician of the Eastern Roman Empire.- Biography :He was probably the son of Decius Marius Venantius Basilius, consul in 484. Venantius had several sons who became consuls, among whom Decius, consul in 529, and Decius Paulinus, consul in 534.Basilius Venantius...

 (consul in 508), and brother of Decius Paulinus (consul in 534); according to Alan Cameron and Diane Schauer, Decius had at least further brother who was appointed to the consulate.

In December 546 Decius is attested as patricius in Rome. That same month, when the King of the Ostrogoths Totila

Totila

Totila, original name Baduila was King of the Ostrogoths from 541 to 552 AD. A skilled military and political leader, Totila reversed the tide of Gothic War, recovering by 543 almost all the territories in Italy that the Eastern Roman Empire had captured from his Kingdom in 540.A relative of...

 overcame the Byzantine

Byzantine Empire

The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...

 defences and entered the city, Decius along with Rufius Petronius Nicomachus Cethegus

Rufius Petronius Nicomachus Cethegus

Rufius Petronius Nicomachus Cethegus was a politician of the Western Roman Empire. He was appointed consul for 504, and held the post without a colleague...

, the president of the Senate

Roman Senate

The 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...

, and Anicius Faustus Albinus Basilius

Anicius Faustus Albinus Basilius

Anicius Faustus Albinus Basilius was a high official of the Eastern Roman Empire and the last consul of Roman history, holding the office in 541.- Biography :...

 fled Rome with general Bessas.

Further reading

• Martindale, John, "Decius 1", Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire, Volume 3, Cambridge University Press, 1992, p. 391.