Meet Diocletian – the Roman emperor who retired to grow cabbages

Very few Roman emperors died natural deaths. Most were assassinated, some died in battle and one was even struck by lightning. Some emperors sensed the danger and got out of Rome altogether.

But only one laid down his power and retired.

Diocletian, who ruled for 20 years in the late third and early fourth centuries CE, went back to his home town to grow cabbages.

A dangerous job

In a highly militaristic and competitive society, it is perhaps no surprise Rome’s rulers sometimes met violent ends. Eccentricity, military failures and economic problems saw their allies abandon them.

Caligula (37–41 CE), Domitian (81–96 CE) and Caracalla (who was sole emperor from 211–217 CE) were killed in conspiracies hatched by their bodyguards.

Severus Alexander (222–235 CE) and Gallienus (253–268 CE) were killed by senior military officers.

Some emperors met untimely ends at the hands of foreign enemies. Gordian III (238–244 CE) died in battle against the Persians. Decius (249–251 CE) and Valens (364–378 CE) died fighting the Goths (a Germanic people that conducted frequent raids on Roman territories).

Some unusual examples include Carus (282–283 CE) who was reportedly struck by lightning, Claudius II (268–270 CE) who died of plague, and Nero (54–68 CE) who took his own life.

The emperor Tiberius (14–37 CE) decided to quit Rome in 26 CE because he feared assassination. He ruled the empire from the island of Capri near Naples until his death 11 years later. The remains of Villa Jovis, where he lived, can still be seen.

Some emperors died in office of age-related illnesses, including Constantine in 337 CE and Marcus Aurelius in 180 CE. Both were around 60, which might not seem so old today but it was an advanced age in antiquity.

So when Diocletian declared he would abdicate and retire in May 305 CE, it was a highly unusual development.

Rise of the tetrarchy

Diocletian hailed from the province of Dalmatia in modern Croatia.

He came from a humble background and rose through the ranks of the Roman army. A number of third-century emperors came from similar backgrounds.

The many crises Rome faced during this period saw seasoned military men become emperor.

Diocletian held a range of senior military positions before becoming emperor in November 284 CE. He commanded the army in the important border province of Moesia (modern Serbia and Bulgaria). He was commander of the short-reigning emperor Numerian’s bodyguard when the latter was killed; Diocletian became emperor in his place soon after.

Diocletian is traditionally seen as a reformer, making significant administrative, economic and military changes. These reforms tried to address the many problems emperors of the third century faced before him.

As emperor, Diocletian introduced a system known as the tetrarchy, which divided the rule of the empire between four emperors. Two were senior (Augusti) and two were junior (Caesars). This limited the possibility of internal revolts and made fighting foreign enemies easier.

Scholars now think Diocletian wasn’t quite so innovative; he may have drawn more on reforms developed by his predecessors than was previously thought.

But he had clearly been busy over the 20 years he was in power.

So, in 305 CE he decided, at around age 60, to hand in his notice and retire.

Illness – or divine retribution?

As with most ancient stories, it probably wasn’t as simple as that.