Niger was the governor of Syria at the time of Pertinax's murder. When he heard what had happened he decided he was the right man for the job. His soldiers quickly fell in line and off they went to Rome. A little kink in their plans cropped up when news reached them that the army of Septimius Severus had the same plans. Niger judiciously figured that his chances of defeating Severus in the open field were not good so he retreated at once back to Syria to await Severus on his own turf. Although this made things a bit more difficult for Severus, however, he was still able to defeat his rival in separate battles and then executed.
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