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Why was Julian sent to govern Roman Gaul?

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Julian Julian the Apostate, detail of a marble statue; in the Louvre, Paris.

Julian was sent to govern Gaul in 355 because the emperor Constantius II was in need of a caesar—a coadjutor and designated successor—from his own house.1

Following the execution of his previous caesar, Gallus, in 354, Constantius II summoned Julian from Greece to fill the vacancy. Upon his appointment as caesar on November 6, 355, Julian was immediately dispatched to Gaul, where he served as a military commander and administrator.1