Ascanium Massacre
| Coup d'état of 12 April 1945 | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Social War | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
 Praetorian Guard |
 Latin Social Republic | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Constantine XIX  Damianos Tornikes † | Orestes Cotta | ||||||
| Units involved | |||||||
| Praetorian Guard | Voluntarius Militia National Obequio | ||||||
The Coup of 12 April 1945 was a violent overthrow of Latin Emperor Constantine XIX by Consul Orestes Cotta and the Voluntarius Militia National Obequio. The coup is seen as the start of the Social War and resulted in the deaths of not only Emperor Constantine, but his two young sons, numerous courtiers and allies of the Emperor, and eventually Empress consort Marie Christine.
Background
Relationship of Constantine XIX and Cotta
The Coup
Imperial Palace
At around 2:00 am local time, the paramilitary wing of Consul Orestes Cotta National Social Workers Movement, the Voluntarius Militia National Obequio, ambushed the Imperial and Praetorian Guard patrolling outside the Imperial Palace in Alexandria. The guards were quickly overrun by the Obequio and sleeper agents within the guards, allowing Cotta nearly unimpeded access to the building. Sources say that Cotta walked into the throne room of the palace, where the Obequio brought Constantine XIX and all of his family, except his two daughters who were not in the capital. Cotta ordered the execution of Constantine XIX, his two sons, and a number of important courtiers including Stephen Bellienus, 1st Lord of Durocortorum, Prince Albert of Ghant, 1st Duke of Ravenna, among others.
Senate
Since his first term as Consul, worked to significantly marginalize his opposition in the Senate through any means necessary. Most often this was by temporary arrest of his opponents or to use archaic laws to expand the number of seats in the Senate without Imperial Assent, always filling the new seats with members of his NSWMP.
Following the execution of Emperor Constantine XIX and his sons, Cotta ordered the arrest of all Senators who had spoken against him in support of the Emperor since he took office. Over 500 members of the Obequio entered the building to make the arrests. As many as 100 Senators were killed in the Senate chamber for resisting arrest. Cotta was unable to apprehend one of his most vocal opponents, [[Jason Claudius, 36th Duke of Adrianople, who was censured in the weeks preceding for allegedly threatening to cut off Cotta's hands and remove his tongue during a speech on the Senate floor. Adrianople would later lead the war effort against Cotta and the republicans.
Aftermath
Cotta declares himself Sustentet
During his televised speech, Consul Cotta dissolved the monarchy and proclaimed the reformation of the state into the Latin Social State. He assumed the title of Sustentet, which translates roughly to " the one who guides". The position effectively placed total control of government capabilities into a single position.
Failure to capture Princess Diana
Many historians point to the failure to capture Emperor Constantine's daughters as the largest oversight in the coup. At the time, princesses Diana and Zoe were traveling to Alexandria from a visit to their great-grandmothers in southern Latium, a fact that was not known to Cotta. Once Princess Diana and her supporters met with other Cotta detractors including Jason Claudius, 36th Duke of Adrianople, the Imperial war effort was largely believed to overpower Cotta within two years.