Balbinus

Balbinus was a wealthy Roman senator who became joint emperor with Pupienus during the crisis of AD 238. The senate selected the two men to oppose Maximinus Thrax after the deaths of Gordian I and Gordian II, but popular pressure forced them to accept the young Gordian III as heir. Balbinus and Pupienus mistrusted one another and failed to control the Praetorian Guard, which seized and murdered them after a reign of roughly three months.

Harry Sidebottom’s Throne of the Caesars series, beginning with Iron and Rust, fictionalises the violent succession struggles of 238 and includes Balbinus among the competing emperors. Such novels use his short reign to show how senatorial rank and administrative experience offered little protection once armies and guards controlled imperial legitimacy. He is generally portrayed as a cautious civilian trapped in a military emergency rather than as a ruler able to establish an independent programme.

In Harry Sidebottom’s Fire and Sword, after the defeat of the Gordians, the Senate appoints Pupienus and Balbinus, while Maximinus Thrax advances into Italy and the young Gordian III becomes the focus of popular and dynastic hopes. Harry Sidebottom’s Blood and Steel is set in AD 238 opposition to Maximinus Thrax turns into open revolt.