and rose to many military grades and finally to the centurionship as the reward of his active service. Yet afterwards, when Macrinus A.D. 217-218Macrinus became Emperor, he refused military service for almost three years, and though he held the office of tribune, he never came into the presence of Macrinus, thinking his rule shameful because he had won it by committing a crime. 88Then he returned to Antoninus Elagabalus A.D. 218-222Eliogabalus, believing him to be the son of Antoninus, and entered upon his tribuneship. After his reign, he fought with marvellous success against the Parthians, under Alexander A.D. 222-235Alexander the son of Mama. When he was slain in an uprising of the soldiers at Mogontiacum, Maximinus himself was made Emperor by a vote of the army, without a decree of the senate. But Maximinus A.D. 235-238he marred all his good deeds by persecuting the Christians in accordance with an evil vow and, being slain by Pupienus A.D. 238Pupienus at Aquileia, left the kingdom to Philip. These matters we have borrowed from the history of Symmachus for this our little book, in order to show that the race of which we speak attained to the very highest station in the Roman Empire. But our subject requires us to return in due order to the point whence we digressed.
89King Ostrogotha wars with PhilipXVI Now the Gothic race gained great fame in the 89 region where they were then dwelling, that is in the Scythian land on the shore of Pontus, holding undisputed sway over great stretches of country, many arms of the sea and many river courses. By their strong right arm the Vandals were often laid low, the Marcomanni held their footing by paying tribute and the princes of the Quadi were reduced to slavery. Now when the aforesaid Philip pater A.D. 244-249 "The Arabian"]Philip—who, with his son Philip, was the only Christian emperor before Constantine—ruled over the Romans, in the second year of his reign Rome completed its one28
