[1][2] Born in Emesa, Syria (modern day Homs), to an Arab family of priests of the deity Elagabalus, Maesa and her sister Domna were the daughters of Julius Bassianus.

[7][3] Julia Maesa was born on 7 May[7] before 160 AD, the elder daughter of the priest Julius Bassianus in Emesa, Syria, modern day Homs,[8] as part of the Emesan dynasty.

[11] Although no written account describing her appearance survives, her sharp and formidable features, which contradict the soft and sensitive ones of her sister,[12] are well displayed on the coins minted during the reign of her grandchildren.

[14] During their time in Rome, Maesa and her family amassed great wealth and fortune,[15] and rose to high positions in the Roman government and court of Septimius Severus and later, his son and successor, Caracalla.

[16] In 217 AD, after the murder of emperor Caracalla and the usurpation of the throne by Macrinus, Maesa's sister Domna, now suffering from breast cancer and bereft of the power and influence she had held during the reigns of her husband and her son, having lost both of her children, chose to commit suicide by starvation.

Being located in Emesa, she was close to a military base where many soldiers still held the Severans in high esteem and were loyal to the dynasty.

[4] The soldiers were also discontented with Macrinus' peace with the Parthians,[17] making Emesa an excellent location to launch a coup to restore her family to power.

[4] Julia Soaemias had a 14-year-old son, Varius Avitus Bassianus, who was the hereditary priest of the Emesan sun god Elagabalus.

[4] He had begun attracting the soldiers of the Legio III Gallica stationed near Emesa, who would visit the city's temple occasionally to view what they considered to be the extravagant yet amusing religious rituals of Bassianus.

[20] Julia Maesa began offering to distribute her great wealth and fortune to the Roman soldiers based in Emesa in exchange for their support.

[19] Maesa, her daughter and Bassianus were taken into the army camp at night where the 14-year-old boy was immediately acknowledged and hailed as emperor by the soldiers and clad in imperial purple.

In response to the growing threat, Macrinus sent out a cavalry force under the command of Ulpius Julianus to try to regain control of the rebel soldiers.

These actions effectively ended the retreat with the troops resuming the assault with renewed morale, thus turning the tide of battle.

[37] Maesa allegedly urged him to enter the capital draped in Roman clothes, but instead, he had a painting of him made as a priest making offerings to the Emesene deity El-Gabal.

[38] Both Maesa and her daughter Soaemias are featured heavily in all literary accounts of his reign, and are credited with having a significant influence over the young emperor.

[39] Julia Maesa was honoured with the titles of 'Augusta, mater castrorum et senatus' (Augusta, mother of the camp and the senate) and 'avia Augusti' (grandmother of the emperor).

[44] A traditionally held belief is that while Elagabalus was mainly involved in religious matters, Julia Maesa and her daughter were the ones effectively running the state.

[39] This claim has been treated with caution by contemporary historians such as Barabara Levick, as in ancient Rome, politics and religion were intertwined and the rule of Elagabalus and the supremacy of his particular deity broke this relationship.

[46] Alexander ascended the throne at the age of around 14, and he was kept in check by his mother and grandmother who were determined to erase the negative impression left by Elagabalus' rule.

[46] The changes introduced by Maesa and her daughter included selecting a council of sixteen chosen for their moderation and experience to control the affairs of the administration and provide advice to the young emperor, restoring an aristocratic and non-tyrannical form of government.

[7] In the Feriale Duranum, the list of religious observances of the Cohors XX Palmyrenorum, dating to c. 227 AD,[50] Maesa is subject to a supplication on her birthday (7 May).

The coins are undated, but she also appears deified on the Acta Fratrum Arvalium of 7 November 224, which lists the number of gods and goddesses the Arval Brethren made sacrifices to on that certain date.