The former Jin general Yao Xiang, who,…

The Arian controversy, the continuation of which has been aided by the conflicting politics of the empire after the death of Constantine, has emerged as three distinct types by the mid-fourth century.

Radical Arianism holds that the Son was "dissimilar" to the Father; homoeanism maintains that the Son was similar to the Father; and semi-Arianism veers off into orthodoxy in its position that the Son was similar yet distinct from the Father.

Constantius passes laws against paganism, and pagans as well as orthodox Nicaeans (Homoiousians) and extremist Arians (Anomoeans) are persecuted, for in 356-357 several edicts proscribe magic, divination, and sacrifices and order that the temples be closed.

The homoean party scores an initial success in 357, after which the semi-Arians join the orthodox ranks.

From 353 to 356 Bishop Hosius, who had been ecclesiastical advisor to Constantius’s father, the emperor Constantine, has strongly resisted the efforts of Constantius to have Athanasius condemned by the Western bishops and in a famous letter reproves the Arian emperor for intruding into ecclesiastical matters.

Summoned to Sirmium in 356 and detained at court for a year, after threats and physical violence, Hosius signs the Arian formula of Sirmium in 357.

Hosius retracts his signature, however, before he dies in Córdoba late in the year.

Constantius has ordered the closure of all pagan temples throughout the Empire and banned the veneration of non-Christian images, but when the emperor visits Rome for the first time to celebrate his victory over Magnentius and to address the Senate and the people in 357, he is so struck by its pagan grandeur—the historian Ammianus Marcellinus portrays him as deeply moved—that he apparently suspends the application of these measures.

Julian’s Triumph at the Battle of Strasbourg (Argentoratum) and His Rise in Gaul (357 CE)

By 357 CE, Julian had established himself as a resolute and highly effective military commander, successfully evicting barbarian invaders from Gaul and restoring the defensive line of forts along the Rhine, which had been largely destroyed during the civil war of 350–353 CE.

His greatest victory came at the Battle of Strasbourg (Argentoratum) in 357 CE, the climax of his campaigns to restore Roman control in Gaul.

1. The Battle of Strasbourg: A Decisive Roman Victory

• Julian’s army, though smaller in number, faced a large force of Alamanni led by their king, Chnodomar.
• Despite being outnumbered, the Roman infantry fought with superior discipline and tactics, turning the tide of battle.
• The Roman cavalry initially performed poorly, but Julian managed to rally his forces, leading to a resounding Roman victory.
• The Alamanni were driven beyond the Rhine, suffering heavy losses, while Roman casualties were minimal.

2. The Aftermath: Julian Restores Roman Gaul

• Julian restored approximately seventy plundered villages, reinforcing Roman control over the devastated province.
• With this victory, Gaul was largely secured, and the Rhine frontier was reestablished as the northern boundary of the empire.
• His military leadership and restoration of order made him immensely popular with both his troops and the Gallic population.

3. Julian Gains Supreme Command in Gaul

• After his successes in battle, Emperor Constantius II officially granted Julian supreme command over all military operations in Gaul.
• Despite this, relations between Constantius and Julian remained tense, as the emperor feared Julian’s growing popularity.
• Julian’s practice of distributing pay ex manubiis (from the spoils of war) further endeared him to the legions, increasing concerns that he might become a rival for the throne.

4. The Army Hails Julian as Augustus: The Seeds of Civil War (357 CE)

• After his famous victory at Strasbourg, Julian’s troops attempted to proclaim him Augustus, elevating him to equal status with Constantius II.
• Julian refused the title, avoiding an immediate break with Constantius, but the event foreshadowed a looming civil war.
• As Julian’s reputation as a military leader grew, Constantius’ suspicions deepened, setting the stage for an eventual confrontation.

5. Conclusion: Julian’s Rise and the Unraveling of the Empire

• The Battle of Strasbourg was a turning point in Julian’s career, solidifying his reputation as a brilliant general.
• His successful campaigns in Gaul secured Rome’s northern frontier, but also made him a political threat to Constantius II.
• Although civil war was temporarily averted, tensions between the two rulers would continue to escalate, eventually leading to Julian’s proclamation as Augustus in 360 CE and the final struggle for control of the empire.

Julian’s meteoric rise as a commander in Gaul ultimately set the stage for his later claim to the throne, as the empire teetered on the brink of another internal war.

Constantius defeats the Quadi and the Goths on the Danube in 357-358, but court intrigues, Magnentius' usurpation, and the interminable war against the Persians have allowed the barbarians to wreak great havoc in Pannonia.

Persian power peaks under the long reign of Sassanid king Shapur II, who has recaptured Mesopotamia from Rome and subdued the Kushans in present Afghanistan to annex their kingdom.

After a long campaign against the Chionites (353-358), Shapur is ready for a second encounter with Rome and sends an ambassador to Constantius, bearing presents and a letter wrapped in white silk.

This letter reads, in part, “I Sapor, king of kings, partner of the stars, brother of the sun and the moon, to Constantius Caesar my brother send much greeting … Because … the language of truth ought to be unrestrained and free, and because men in the highest rank ought only to say what they mean, I will reduce my propositions into a few words … Even your own ancient records bear witness that my ancestors possessed all the country up to the Strymon and the frontier of Macedonia.

And these lands it is fitting that I who (not to speak arrogantly) am superior to those ancient kings in magnificence, and in all eminent virtues, should now reclaim.

But I am at all times thoughtful to remember that, from my earliest youth, I have never done anything to repent of.”

When Constantius politely refuses to hand over these lands, …

…Shapur marches into northern Mesopotamia, this time with marked success.

Athanasius, who has suffered several periods of exile since 335, had written of early monasticism in his Life of St. Antony, produced around 356, and defends Nicene orthodoxy in three Discourses against the Arians, issued about two years later.

The Franks—the Salians, Ripuarians, and Chatti, or Hessians—had begun penetrating the Roman frontier around Mainz in the mid-fourth century.

The Salian Franks capitulate to Julian, whose abandonment in 358 of the district of Toxandria, roughly equivalent to modern Belgium, to its barbarian squatters on condition of their defending it against other invaders, is no doubt a realistic decision.

Constantius returns east to fight Shapur, who has renewed his attacks on the eastern frontier.

Amid(a), also known by various names throughout its long history, had been established as an Assyrian settlement, circa the third millennium BCE.

The oldest artifact from Amida (modern Diyarbakir, Turkey) is the famous stele of king Naram-Sin, also believed to be from third millennia BCE.

The name Amida first appears in the writings of Assyrian King Adad Nirari who ruled the city from about 1310 to 1281 BCE as a part of the Assyrian homeland, of which Amida had remained an important region throughout the reign of king Tiglath-Pileser-I (1114–1076 BCE).

The name Amida appeared in the annals of Assyrian rulers until 705 BCE, and also appears in the archives of Armenian king Tiridates II in 305, and the Roman historian Ammianus Marcellinus (325–391).

Constantius II has enlarged and strengthened this city on the upper Tigris.

Marcellinus narrates vividly the episode of Shapur’s capture of Amida with the aid of Xionite auxiliaries.