Emperors of Rome

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Marcian (/ˈmɑːrʃən/; Latin: Flavius Marcianus Augustus; Greek: Μαρκιανός; c. 392 – 26 January 457) was the Eastern Roman Emperor from 450 to 457. Very little of his life before becoming emperor is known, other than that he was a domesticus (personal assistant) who served under Ardabur and his son Aspar for fifteen years. After the death of Emperor Theodosius II on 28 July 450, Marcian was made a candidate for the throne by Aspar, who held much influence because of his military power. After a month of negotiations Pulcheria, Theodosius' sister, agreed to marry Marcian. Flavius Zeno, a military leader whose influence was similar to Aspar's, agreed to help Marcian to become emperor in exchange for the rank of patrician. Marcian was elected and inaugurated on 25 August 450.

Marcian reversed many of the actions of his predecessor, Theodosius II, in religious matters and the Eastern Roman Empire's relationship with the Huns under Attila. Marcian almost immediately revoked all treaties with Attila, ending all subsidy payments to him. In 452, while Attila was raiding Italy, then a part of the Western Roman Empire, Marcian launched expeditions across the Danube into the Hungarian plain, defeating the Huns in their own heartland. This action, accompanied by the famine and plague that broke out in northern Italy, allowed Marcian to bribe Attila into retreating from the Italian peninsula.

After Attila's death in 453, Marcian took advantage of the resulting fragmentation of the Hunnic confederation, settling numerous tribes within Eastern Roman lands as foederati (subject tribes providing military service in exchange for benefits). Marcian also convened the Council of Chalcedon, which reversed the outcome of the earlier Second Council of Ephesus and declared that Jesus had two natures, divine and human. Marcian died on 26 January 457, leaving the Eastern Roman Empire with a treasury surplus of seven million solidi. After his death, Aspar had Leo I elected as Eastern Roman Emperor.