Philosopher King and Religious Icon: The Legacy of Emperor Julian in the Eyes of Ammianus Marcellinus
To Ammianus Marcellinus, Emperor Julian was many things: a military leader, an honorable leader, a traditionalist, and a well-educated hellenophile. But most importantly, he considered Julian an inspiration. It was his ability to inspire that Ammianus believed would be his greatest legacy. It was of his opinion that after his death, Julian should serve as an example to the future leaders of Rome, as he exemplified several of the traits that Ammianus valued in a leader: self-discipline, a deep admiration for traditional ideals, a dedication to his studies, and morals in line with many admirable leaders from Rome and Greece’s history.
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He also praised Julian’s actions to imitate Alexander the Great, specifically the way he divided his night up into three sections so that he could balance sleep with academic study and his business as a military and political leader. As a result of Julian’s strict observance of self-discipline against luxuries, he led an austere life, one which he prided himself in living, as evident when he boasted such in response to Antiochenes’ claims that he acted “boorish and uncivilized” (Bowersock, 13). However, such a life could not have been an easy one, especially not for a soldier and political leader, as well as a philosopher. It wasn’t just Julian’s self-discipline and choice to refuse indulgences that Ammianus admired; Julian’s ability to lead under the large amount of stress he was surely under, thanks to his high rank, whilst refusing to allow himself to be distracted by the luxuries that would have been available for him. Ammianus, on a number of occasions, complimented him on his ability to “carry on his shoulders, as they say, the burden of a spate of wars, and to divide his attention between a number of problems,” (Ammianus,