Septimius Severus Wins Battle of Lugdunum
After defeating Pescennius Niger in the east, Septimius Severus moved against Clodius Albinus, his remaining rival for control of the Roman Empire. Albinus drew support from forces based in Britain and Gaul and established himself at Lugdunum, modern Lyon. On February 19, 197, their large armies fought a destructive civil battle near the city. Ancient accounts describe hard fighting and reversals before Severus's forces prevailed; Albinus died after the defeat. The victory left Severus as the empire's sole ruler and brought severe reprisals against prominent senatorial supporters of his rival.
Why it matters: Lugdunum concluded the civil wars that followed Commodus's death and secured the Severan dynasty. It also exposed the scale on which Roman provincial armies could fight one another for imperial power, weakening frontier defenses and foreshadowing the recurring military successions of the third-century crisis that nearly fragmented the empire.