Frigidus, Badr, Diu—Obscure Turning Points ...................................

Lecture 14

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his lecture considers three unrelated battles involving very different
participants and spanning more than 1,100 years. What links these
battles is that each had important effects—in some cases, changing
the course of global history—but information about the battles themselves is
especially scanty or uncertain. This, then, is a lecture about decisive battles
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little is known about the course of the battle itself.

The Battle of the Frigidus River (394)
x In 312, Constantine defeated his rival Maxentius at the Battle of the
Milvian Bridge to become emperor of the Roman world. Following
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emperor to convert to Christianity.

x Throughout the 4th century, many Romans, especially senators,

continued to worship pagan gods and to urge the return to

polytheism, causing dissension between the eastern and western

halves of the empire. The emperor of the eastern half was

Theodosius, a fervent proponent of Christianity. The western

empire was ruled by Valentinian II.

x When Valentinian was found dead under mysterious circumstances,

the western empire passed into the control of a Frankish general

named Arbogast, who appointed a new emperor, Eugenius.

x Eugenius was a well-known sympathizer with the Roman

aristocrats who favored paganism, appointing a number of them to

key government posts. Pagan shrines were restored, and it seemed

that a pagan revival was underway.

x Theodosius was determined to quash this development; when

diplomatic efforts failed, he organized his army for an invasion of