Circa 240 C.E.-Circa 312 C.E.
Roman Emperor

Through the Ranks. Although little is known of his origins, Gaius Aurelius Valerius Diocletianus was probably born in Dalmatia. He served in the personal bodyguard of the Emperor Numericanus in Persia. After Numericanus was murdered by the prefect Apev, Diocletian was proclaimed emperor. He defeated several rivals and returned to Rome.

Trying to Stabilize the Empire. Diocletian rose to the position of emperor by 285 C.E. He hoped to stabilize the empire, then in chaos, by dividing the responsibilities first between two people (himself and Maximian) and then among four (the tetrarchy). He initiated many economic reforms. One was a new mechanism for assessing taxes based on production and labor rather than simple land area. His Currency Edict was meant to stabilize and unify the value of coinage. The Price Edict was supposed to bring inflation under control and...