Lucius Albinus, Max.  AEmilius AEmilianus. (A.D. 227 = a.u. 980 = Sixth of Alexander.)

T. Manilius Modestus, Ser.  Calpurnius Probus. (A.D. 228 = a.u. 981 = Seventh of Alexander.)

Alexander Aug. (III), Cassius Dio (II). (A.D. 229 = a.u. 982 = Eighth of Alexander.)

[Sidenote:  A.D. 222-229 (a.u. 975-982)] [Sidenote:—­1—­] Alexander became emperor immediately after him [and at once proclaimed Augusta, his own mother, Mammaea, who had in hand the administration of affairs and gathered wise men about her son, that by their guidance he might be duly trained in morals; and she chose out of the senate the better class of counselors, to whom she communicated everything that had to be done].  He entrusted to one Domitius Ulpianus the command of the Pretorians and the remaining business of the empire.—­These matters I have set down in detail, so far as I was able, in each case, but of the rest I have not found it feasible to give a detailed account, for the reason that for a long time I did not sojourn in Rome.  After going from Asia to Bithynia I fell sick, and from there I hurried to my duties as head of Africa.  On returning to Italy I was almost immediately sent to govern in Dalmatia and from there into Upper Pannonia.  After that I came back to Rome and on reaching Campania at once set out for home.

[Sidenote:—­2—­] For these reasons, then, I have not been able to compile an account of what follows similar to that which precedes.  I will narrate briefly, however, all the things that were done up to the time of my second consulship.

Ulpianus corrected many of the irregular practices instituted by Sardanapalus; but, after putting to death Flavianus and Chrestus, that he might succeed them, he was himself before long slain by the Pretorians, who attacked him in the night; and it availed nothing that ran to the palace and took refuge with the emperor himself and the latter’s mother.—­Even during his lifetime a great dispute had arisen between the populace and the Pretorians, from some small cause, with the result that they fought each other for three days, and many were lost by both sides.  The soldiers, on getting the worst of it, directed their efforts to firing the buildings, and so the populace, fearing that the whole city would be destroyed, reluctantly came to terms with them.  Besides these occurrences, Epagathus, who was believed to have been chiefly [Footnote:  Reading [Greek:  to pleon] (Reimar, Bekker, Boissevain).] responsible for the death of Ulpianus, was sent into Egypt, supposedly to govern it, but really to prevent any disturbance taking place in Rome when he met with punishment.  From there he was taken to Crete and executed. [Alexander’s mother, being a slave to money, gathered funds from all sources.  She also brought home for her son a spouse, whom she would not allow to be addressed as Augusta.  After a time, however, she separated her from her son and drove her away to Libya, in spite of the woman’s possessing his affections.  Alexander, however, could not oppose his mother, for she ruled him absolutely.]