Julian the Apostate

:For other meanings of Julian, see Julian (disambiguation).

Death

In 362 Julian started his campaign against the Persians, moving from Constantinople. One year later, on 26 June 363, Julian died in the victorious but inconclusive battle of Ctesiphon; he was so confident of victory ?or merely eager and forgetful? that he was not wearing armour, and received a fatal wound from a dart or a spear. Libanius states that Julian was killed by one of his own soldiers, a Christian who resented his beliefs; this charge is not corroborated by Ammianus Marcellinus or other contemporary historians.

Related Topics:
362 - Persians - 26 June - 363 - Battle of Ctesiphon - Libanius

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Considered apocryphal is the report that his dying words were "Vicisti, Galilæe" ("Thou has conquered, Galilean"), supposedly expressing his recognition that, with his death, Christianity would become the Empire's state religion. The phrase introduces the 1866 poem "Hymn to Proserpine", which was Algernon Swinburne's elaboration of what Julian might have felt at the triumph of Christianity. Julian's life inspired both the play "Emperor and Galilean" by Henrik Ibsen, the historical novel Julian, by Gore Vidal (1964) and "Gods and Legions" by Michael Curtis Ford (2002)

Related Topics:
Hymn to Proserpine - Algernon Swinburne - Henrik Ibsen - Gore Vidal - Michael Curtis Ford

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