Questioning the appeal that brought Severus north

Herodian's story has the governor of Britain report destructive incursions and ask either for more troops or for the emperor himself. On that reading, Severus welcomed the opportunity to add a British victory to his eastern and western honors. The book tests this account against Herodian's use of rhetorical formulas, including similar letters that launch other imperial expeditions. One such letter describes events that had occurred years before the supposed appeal, giving historians reason to doubt whether the British letter existed in the form Herodian presents.