<P> Lucius Septimius Severus was born to a family of Phoenician equestrian rank in the Roman province of Africa proconsularis . He rose through military service to consular rank under the later Antonines . Proclaimed emperor in 193 by his legionaries in Noricum during the political unrest that followed the death of Commodus, he secured sole rule over the empire in 197 after defeating his last rival, Clodius Albinus, at the Battle of Lugdunum . In securing his position as emperor, he founded the Severan dynasty . </P> <P> Severus fought a successful war against the Parthians and campaigned with success against barbarian incursions in Roman Britain, rebuilding Hadrian's Wall . In Rome, his relations with the Senate were poor, but he was popular with the commoners, as with his soldiers, whose salary he raised . Starting in 197, the influence of his Praetorian prefect Gaius Fulvius Plautianus was a negative influence; the latter was executed in 205 . One of Plautianus's successors was the jurist Aemilius Papinianus . Severus continued official persecution of Christians and Jews, as they were the only two groups who would not assimilate their beliefs to the official syncretistic creed . Severus died while campaigning in Britain . He was succeeded by his sons Caracalla and Geta, who reigned under the influence of their mother, Julia Domna . </P> <P> The eldest son of Severus, Caracalla was born Lucius Septimius Bassianus in Lugdunum, Gaul . "Caracalla" was a nickname referring to the Gallic hooded tunic he habitually wore even when he slept . Upon his father's death, Caracalla was proclaimed co-emperor with his brother Geta . Conflict between the two culminated in the assassination of the latter . </P> <P> Reigning alone, Caracalla was noted for lavish bribes to the legionaries and unprecedented cruelty, authorizing numerous assassinations of perceived enemies and rivals . He campaigned with indifferent success against the Alamanni . The Baths of Caracalla in Rome are the most enduring monument of his rule . His reign was also notable for the Antonine Constitution (Latin: Constitutio Antoniniana), also known as the Edict of Caracalla, which granted Roman citizenship to nearly all freemen throughout the Roman Empire . </P>

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