Caracalla

The historical narrative continues with part one of Caracalla's biography:

"Lucius Septimius Bassianus was the elder of two sons of the emperor Septimius Severus. His cognomen Bassianus stems from his maternal grandfather, Gaius Julius Bassianus who was a priest of Heliogabalus, the patron god of Emesa, Syria. He was born in April AD 188, in the city of Lugdunum (Lyon, France) while his father (Severus) was governor of Gaul during the reign of Commodus. When his father won the civil war following the assassination of Commodus (c. 193), Bassianus was declared Caesar (heir) and renamed Marcus Aurelius Antoninus in order to establish the Severan reign as legitimate heirs to the popular and adoptive Antonine dynasty. The name Caracalla emerged from the style of cloak that he wore and later made popular throughout the empire. While it distinguishes his identity in a historical context, much like the name Caligula as a substitute for the third princeps Gaius, it should be considered little more than a nickname as it was not used in any official capacity..."

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