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Sulla-Imperatorial
82BC |
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ANCIENT - ROMAN IMPERATORIAL (1st CENT BC) ROMAN IMPERATORIAL Sulla, d.79 BC |
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AR Denarius 82 BC. L.Man. Torquatus. |
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NGC VF |
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Owner Comments
Although dictator 30 years prior to Caesar crossing the Rubicon, it was Sulla who set in motion the downfall of the Rupublic. To understand him is to understand what occurred later:
Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix[4] (138–78 BC), commonly known simply as Sulla, was a Roman general and statesman who won the first large-scale civil war in Roman history and became the first man of the Republic to seize power through force. He had the distinction of holding the office of consul twice, as well as reviving the dictatorship. Sulla was a gifted and innovative general, achieving numerous successes in wars against different opponents, both foreign and domestic. Sulla rose to prominence during the war against the Numidian king Jugurtha, whom he captured through betrayal, although his superior Gaius Marius took credit for ending the war. He then fought successfully against Germanic tribes during the Cimbrian War, and Italic tribes during the Social War. He was even awarded the Grass Crown for his command in the latter war.
Sulla played an important role in the long political struggle between the Optimates and Populares factions at Rome. He was a leader of the former, which sought to maintain the Senatorial supremacy against the social reforms advocated by the latter, headed by Marius. In a dispute over the command of the war against Mithridates, initially awarded to Sulla by the Senate but withdrawn as a result of Marius's intrigues, Sulla marched on Rome in an unprecedented act and defeated Marius in battle. The Populares nonetheless seized power once he left with his army to Asia. He returned victorious from the East in 82 BC, marched a second time on Rome, and crushed the Populares and their Italian allies at the Battle of the Colline Gate. He then revived the office of dictator, which had been inactive since the Second Punic War over a century before. He used his powers to purge his opponents, and reform Roman constitutional laws, in order to restore the primacy of the Senate and limit the power of the tribunes of the plebs. Resigning his dictatorship in 79 BC, Sulla retired to private life and died the following year.
Sulla's military coup—ironically enabled by Marius' military reforms that bound the army's loyalty with the general rather than to the Republic—permanently destabilized the Roman power structure. Later political leaders like Julius Caesar would follow his precedent in attaining political power through force.
At the end of 82 BC or the beginning of 81 BC, the Senate appointed Sulla dictator legibus faciendis et reipublicae constituendae causa ("dictator for the making of laws and for the settling of the constitution"). The "Assembly of the People" subsequently ratified the decision, with no limit set on his time in office. Sulla had total control of the city and republic of Rome, except for Hispania (which Marius's general Quintus Sertorius had established as an independent state). This unusual appointment (used hitherto only in times of extreme danger to the city, such as during the Second Punic War, and then only for 6-month periods) represented an exception to Rome's policy of not giving total power to a single individual. Sulla can be seen as setting the precedent for Julius Caesar's dictatorship, and for the eventual end of the Republic under Augustus.
In total control of the city and its affairs, Sulla instituted a series of proscriptions (a program of executing those whom he perceived as enemies of the state and confiscating their property). Plutarch states in his "Life" of Sulla (XXXI): "Sulla now began to make blood flow, and he filled the city with deaths without number or limit", further alleging that many of the murdered victims had nothing to do with Sulla, though Sulla killed them to "please his adherents".
The proscriptions are widely perceived as a response to similar killings which Marius and Cinna had implemented while they controlled the Republic during Sulla's absence. Proscribing or outlawing every one of those whom he perceived to have acted against the best interests of the Republic while he was in the East, Sulla ordered some 1,500 nobles (i.e., senators and equites) executed, although it is estimated that as many as 9,000 people were killed. The purge went on for several months. Helping or sheltering a proscribed person was punishable by death, while killing a proscribed person was rewarded with two talents. Family members of the proscribed were not excluded from punishment, and slaves were not excluded from rewards. As a result, "husbands were butchered in the arms of their wives, sons in the arms of their mothers". The majority of the proscribed had not been enemies of Sulla, but instead were killed for their property, which was confiscated and auctioned off. The proceeds from auctioned property more than made up for the cost of rewarding those who killed the proscribed, filling the treasury. Possibly to protect himself from future political retribution, Sulla had the sons and grandsons of the proscribed banned from running for political office, a restriction not removed for over 30 years.
The young Gaius Julius Caesar, as Cinna's son-in-law, became one of Sulla's targets and fled the city. He was saved through the efforts of his relatives, many of whom were Sulla's supporters, but Sulla noted in his memoirs that he regretted sparing Caesar's life, because of the young man's notorious ambition. The historian Suetonius records that when agreeing to spare Caesar, Sulla warned those who were pleading his case that he would become a danger to them in the future, saying: "In this Caesar there are many Mariuses."
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M. Aem. Lepidus Paullus-Republic
c. 62BC
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ANCIENT - ROMAN REPUBLIC (4th CENT BC - 1st CENT BC) ROMAN REPUBLIC L.Aem.Lep.Paullus c.62 BC |
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AR Denarius Brother of Triumvir Allly of Caesar Consul in 50BC |
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NGC Ch VF |
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Lucius Aemilius Paullus was a Roman politician. He was the brother of triumvir Marcus Aemilius Lepidus.
Paullus supported Cicero during the Catiline Conspiracy. He never supported Pompey, probably because he held a grudge against him for betraying his father in 77. Paullus was quaestor in 59 BC, aedile in 55, praetor in 53 and consul in 50.
During Paullus' consulship, Julius Caesar bribed him for his support. He reconstructed the Basilica Aemilia in Rome, with part of his bribery money.
Paullus opposed the second triumvirate of Octavian, Mark Antony and Paullus' own brother, Marcus Lepidus. He supported Cicero in condemning its members. The triumvirs included him in their proscriptions. However, according to Cassius Dio, his brother allowed him to escape. Lepidus' soldiers left him unhindered. Paullus joined the political rebel Marcus Junius Brutus. When Brutus died in 42, Paullus was pardoned and lived his remaining years at Miletus.
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Lepidus-Republic
61-58BC |
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ANCIENT - ROMAN REPUBLIC (4th CENT BC - 1st CENT BC) ROMAN REPUBLIC M.Aem. Lepidus, 61/58 BC |
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Member of second Triumvirate Ally of Caesar |
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AR Denarius AR Denarius Member of Third Triumvirate |
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NGC VG |
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Lepidus joined the College of Pontiffs as a child. He started his cursus honorum as triumvir monetalis, overseeing the minting of coins, from c. 62–58 BC. Lepidus soon became one of Julius Caesar's greatest supporters. He was appointed as a praetor in 49 BC, being placed in charge of Rome while Caesar defeated Pompey in Greece. He secured Caesar's appointment as dictator, a position Caesar used to get himself elected as consul, resigning the dictatorship after eleven days. Lepidus was rewarded with the position of proconsul in the Spanish province of Hispania Citerior.
While in Spain Lepidus was called upon to act to quell a rebellion against Quintus Cassius Longinus, governor of neighbouring Hispania Ulterior. Lepidus refused to support Cassius, who had created opposition to Caesar's regime by his corruption and avarice. He negotiated a deal with the rebel leader, the quaestor Marcellus, and helped defeat an attack by the Mauretanian king Bogud. Cassius and his supporters were allowed to leave and order was restored. Caesar and the Senate were sufficiently impressed by Lepdius's judicial mixture of negotiation and surgical military action that they granted him a triumph.
Lepidus was rewarded with the consulship in 46 after the defeat of the Pompeians in the East. Caesar also made Lepidus magister equitum ("Master of the Horse"), effectively his deputy. Caesar appears to have had greater confidence in Lepidus than in Mark Antony to keep order in Rome, after Antony's inflammatory actions led to disturbances in 47. Lepidus appears to have been genuinely shocked when Antony provocatively offered Caesar a crown at the Lupercalia festival, an act that helped to precipitate the conspiracy to kill Caesar.
When in February 44 Caesar was elected dictator for life by the Senate, he made Lepidus magister equitum for the second time. The brief alliance in power of Caesar and Lepidus came to a sudden end when Caesar was assassinated on March 15, 44 (the Ides of March). Caesar had dined at Lepidus' house the night before his murder. One of the ringleaders of the conspiracy, Gaius Cassius Longinus, had argued for the killing of Lepidus and Mark Antony as well, but Marcus Junius Brutus had overruled him, saying the action was an execution and not a political coup.
As soon as Lepidus learned of Caesar's murder, he acted decisively to maintain order by moving troops to the Campus Martius. He proposed using his army to punish Caesar's killers, but was dissuaded by Antony and Aulus Hirtius. Lepidus and Antony both spoke in the Senate the following day, accepting an amnesty for the assassins in return for preservation of their offices and Caesar's reforms. Lepidus also obtained the post of Pontifex Maximus.
At this point Pompey's surviving son Sextus Pompey tried to take advantage of the turmoil to threaten Spain. Lepidus was sent to negotiate with him. Lepidus successfully negotiated an agreement with Sextus that maintained the peace. The senate voted him a public thanksgiving festival. Lepidus thereafter administered both Hispania and Narbonese Gaul.
When Antony attempted to take control of Cisalpine Gaul (northern Italy) by force and displace Decimus Brutus, the Senate, led by Cicero, called on Lepidus to support Brutus – one of Caesar's killers. Lepidus prevaricated, recommending negotiation with Antony. After Antony's defeat at the Battle of Mutina, the Senate sent word that Lepidus' troops were no longer needed. Antony, however, marched towards Lepidus's province with his remaining forces. Lepidus continued to assure the Senate of his loyalty, but engaged in negotiations with Antony. When the two armies met, large portions of Lepidus's forces joined up with Antony. Lepidus negotiated an agreement with him, while claiming to the Senate that he had no choice. It is unclear whether Lepidus' troops forced him to join with Antony, whether that was always Lepidus's plan, or whether he arranged matters to gauge the situation and make the best deal.
Antony and Lepidus now had to deal with Octavian Caesar, Caesar's great-nephew and who had been adopted by Caesar in Caesar's will. Octavian was the only surviving commander of the forces that had defeated Antony at Mutina (modern Modena). The Senate instructed Octavian to hand over control of the troops to Decimus Brutus, but he refused. Antony and Lepidus met with Octavian on an island in a river, possibly near Mutina but more likely near Bologna, their armies lined along opposite banks. They formed the Second Triumvirate, legalized with the name of Triumvirs for Confirming the Republic with Consular Power (Triumviri Rei Publicae Constituendae Consulari Potestate) by the Lex Titia of 43. With the triumvirs in possession of overwhelming numerical superiority, Decimus Brutus' remaining forces melted away, leaving the triumvirs in complete control of the western provinces.
Unlike the First Triumvirate of Caesar, Pompey, and Crassus, this one was formally constituted. In effect, it sidelined the consuls and the Senate and signalled the death of the Republic. The triumvirate's legal lifespan was for five years. At the beginning Lepidus was confirmed in possession of both the provinces of Hispania, along with Narbonese Gaul, but also agreed to hand over seven of his legions to Octavian and Antony to continue the struggle against Brutus and Cassius, who controlled the eastern part of Roman territory. In the event of a defeat, Lepidus' territories would provide a fall-back position. Lepidus was to become consul and was confirmed as Pontifex Maximus. He would assume control of Rome while they were away.
After the pacification of the east and the defeat of the assassins' faction in the Battle of Philippi, during which he remained in Rome, Antony and Octavian took over most of Lepidus' territories, but granted him rights in the provinces of Numidia and Africa. For a while he managed to distance himself from the frequent quarrels between his colleagues Antony and Octavian. When the Perusine War broke out in 41, Octavian tasked Lepidus with the defence of Rome against Lucius Antonius, Mark Antony's brother. Lucius, with superior forces, easily took the city. Lepidus was forced to flee to Octavian's camp. Lucius soon withdrew from Rome and Octavian retook the city. After this Lepidus was given six of Antony's legions to govern Africa. In 37 BC the treaty of Tarentum formally renewed the Triumvirate for another five years.
During Lepidus' governorship of Africa he promoted the distribution of land to veterans, possibly in order to build up a network of clients. He appears to have encouraged the Romanisation of Thibilis in Numidia and to have demolished illicit extensions to Carthage so that the formally cursed area of the old city, destroyed after the Third Punic War, was not built upon.
Fall from power
In 36, during the Sicilian revolt, Lepidus raised a large army of 14 legions to help subdue Sextus Pompey. However, this was to lead to an ill-judged political move that gave Octavian the excuse he needed to remove Lepidus from power. After the defeat of Sextus Pompey, Lepidus had stationed his legions in Sicily and a dispute arose over whether he or Octavian had authority on the island. Lepidus had been the first to land troops in Sicily and had captured several of the main towns. However, he felt that Octavian was treating him as a subordinate rather than an equal. He asserted that Sicily should be absorbed into his sphere of influence. After negotiation, he suggested an alternative: Octavian could have Sicily and Africa, if he agreed to give Lepidus back his old territories in Spain and Gaul, which should legally have been his according to the Lex Titia. Octavian accused Lepidus of attempting to usurp power and fomenting rebellion. Humiliatingly, Lepidus' legions in Sicily defected to Octavian and Lepidus himself was forced to submit to him.
On 22 September 36, Lepidus was stripped of all his offices except that of Pontifex Maximus; Octavian then sent him into exile in Circeii. After the defeat of Antony in 30, Lepidus' son Lepidus the Younger became involved in a conspiracy to assassinate Octavian, but the plot was discovered by Gaius Maecenas. The younger Lepidus was executed, but the former triumvir himself was left unmolested. His wife Junia was, however, implicated. Lepidus had to plead with his former enemy Lucius Saenius Balbinus to grant her bail.
Spending the rest of his life in obscurity, Lepidus was apparently allowed to return to Rome periodically to participate in Senatorial business. Octavian, now known as "Augustus", is said to have belittled him by always asking for his vote last. Lepidus died peacefully in late 13 or early 12, upon which Augustus assumed the position of Pontifex Maximus for himself; afterwards, the chief priest’s office was moved from the Regia to Augustus' palace, located on the Palatine Hill in Rome.
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Brutus-Imperatorial
c. 54BC |
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ANCIENT - ROMAN IMPERATORIAL (1st CENT BC) ROMAN IMPERATORIAL Brutus, d.42 BC |
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AR Denarius AR Denarius c. 54 BC ancestors Brutus & Ahala issue as Moneyer, c.54 BC |
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NGC Ch XF Strike: 4/5 Surface: 2/5 |
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Owner Comments
Brutus was close to General Julius Caesar, the leader of the Populis faction. However, Caesar's attempts to assume greater power for himself put him at greater odds with the Roman elite and members of the Senate. Brutus eventually came to oppose Caesar and fought on the side of the Optimate faction, led by Pompey the Great, against Caesar's forces in Caesar's Civil War. Pompey was defeated at the Battle of Pharsalus in 48 B.C., after which Brutus surrendered to Caesar, who granted him amnesty.
However, the underlying political tensions that led to the war had not been resolved. Due to Caesar's increasingly monarchical behavior, several senators, calling themselves "Liberators", plotted to assassinate him. They recruited Brutus, who took a leading role in the assassination, which was carried out successfully on March 15, 44 B.C. The Senate, at the request of the Consul Mark Antony, granted amnesty to the assassins. However, a populist uprising forced Brutus and his brother-in-law, fellow assassin Gaius Cassius Longinus, to leave the City of Rome. In 43 B.C., Caesar's grandnephew, Consul Octavian, by then also formally known as Gaius Julius Caesar, immediately after taking office passed a resolution declaring the conspirators, including Brutus, murderers. This led to the Liberators' civil war, pitting the erstwhile supporters of Caesar, under the Second Triumvirate, wishing both to gain power for themselves and avenge his death, against those who opposed him. Octavian combined his troops with those of Antony, and together they decisively defeated the outnumbered armies of Brutus and Cassius at the Battle of Philippi in October 42 B.C. After the battle, Brutus committed suicide.
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Vercingetorix-Imperatorial
48BC |
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ANCIENT - ROMAN IMPERATORIAL (1st CENT BC) ROMAN IMPERATORIAL L.Hostil. Saserna, 48 BC |
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AR Denarius The Werner Collection Vercingetorix(?)/biga |
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NGC Ch XF Strike: 3/5 Surface: 3/5 |
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Owner Comments
This coin, although somewhat controversial, is believed to portray Vercingetorix. The image is consistent with a Gallic warrior and there is a precedent of Romans placing conquered leaders on coins, so it is very conceivable that this image is indeed Vercingetorix.
Vercingetorix (82 BC – 46 BC) was a king and chieftain of the Arverni tribe who united the Gauls in a failed revolt against Roman forces during the last phase of Julius Caesar's Gallic Wars. Despite having willingly surrendered to Caesar, he was executed in Rome.
Vercingetorix was the son of Celtillus the Arvernian, leader of the Gallic tribes. Vercingetorix came to power after his formal designation as chieftain of the Arverni at the oppidum Gergovia in 52 BC. He immediately established an alliance with other Gallic tribes, took command, combined all forces and led them in the Celts' most significant revolt against Roman power. He won the Battle of Gergovia against Julius Caesar in which several thousand Romans and their allies were killed and the Roman legions withdrew. Caesar had been able to exploit Gaulish internal divisions, easily to subjugate the country and Vercingetorix's attempt to unite the Gauls against Roman invasion came too late. At the Battle of Alesia, also in 52 BC, the Romans besieged and defeated his forces; to save as many of his men as possible, he gave himself to the Romans. He was held prisoner for five years. In 46 BC, as part of Caesar's triumph, he was paraded through the streets of Rome and then executed by strangulation. Vercingetorix is primarily known through Caesar's Commentarii de Bello Gallico (Commentaries on the Gallic War). To this day, he is considered a folk hero in Auvergne, his native region.
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Lentulus & Marcellus-Imperatorial
49BC |
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IRAN |
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TOMAN AH1224(1809) QAJAR - FATH 'ALI SHAH KASHAN The Werner Collection edge chips |
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NGC Ch VF Strike: 5/5 Surface: 1/5 |
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Owner Comments
Lentulus and Marcellus were the Consuls when Caesar crosses the Rubicon and were staunch Pompien’s and enemies of Caesar. The biographies of each are listed below. This coin was minted by a military mint in Asia moving with Pompey.
Lucius Cornelius Lentulus Crus (before 97 BC – 48 BC) was Consul of the Roman Republic in 49 BC, an opponent of Caesar and supporter of Pompeius in the Civil War during 49 to 48 BC.
Family and political career
Born sometime before 97 BC, son of a Publius Lentulus, his origins are otherwise unknown, though he was most likely a member of the patrician Cornelii Lentuli branch of the gens Cornelia.
Details of Crus' younger years are not known. In 72 BC, Caesar's man Balbus acquired his Roman citizenship for service under Pompeius against Quintus Sertorius in Spain. On the basis of the Roman names he took – Lucius Cornelius Balbus – and on the basis of later letters to Cicero, it is possible[5] that both Balbus major and minor obtained citizenship with the sponsorship of L. Cornelius Lentulus Crus, who may then have been serving with Pompeius as a legate (Pompeius was there 76 BC to 71 BC; had Crus been born c. 98 BC, he would have been between the ages of 22 and 27 at the time).
In 61 BC he was the chief prosecutor of Publius Clodius Pulcher at a quaestio extraordinaria over the latter's violation of the mysteries of the Bona Dea, along with two other Cornelii Lentuli, in which he failed to secure a conviction due in large part to the bribes which Clodius spread amongst the jurors.
Lentulus' rise through the cursus honorum of political office is not now known prior to his election, during the consulship of Caesar and Bibulus, as Praetor for 58 BC.[10] During his term of office Clodius, now a tribune of the people, moved against his enemy Cicero on the basis that the latter, as consul of 63 BC, had put Roman citizens to death without trial. Cicero hoped for Lentulus' aid against Clodius; although the praetor did, with other senior figures, attempt to persuade Pompeius to act to protect Cicero, this failed, as Pompeius refused to act against an elected tribune on his own authority.
In 51 BC he stood for election to the prestigious priestly board of fifteen men in charge of the Sibylline Books (Quindecimviri sacris faciundis),[13] but was defeated by Publius Cornelius Dolabella (to the amusement of Cicero's correspondent, Marcus Caelius Rufus.
In 50 BC he was elected consul for the following year alongside G. Claudius Marcellus, as opponents to Caesar, and was an active and vocal participant in the increasingly hysterical scenes in the senate in late 50 and January 49 as Caesar sought to secure a safe consulship whilst a reactionary group of senators sought to have him stripped of command. Finally, on 7 January 49 BC, the senate under Lentulus and Marcellus passed the “final decree” (senatus consultum ultimum);[18] the tribunes Mark Antony and Cassius fled with Caesar's envoy, the younger Curio, from Rome to meet Caesar at Ravenna. On the 10th, Caesar famously crossed the Rubicon, starting the Civil War.
Civil War
Initially Lentulus remained in Rome but left, with many senators, ahead of Caesar's advancing forces. He recruited troops for Pompeius in Capua (even gladiators at one stage, before thinking better of this[20]). Caesar sent his agent, the younger Balbus, on a mission to win over Lentulus[21] – possibly Crus was patronus to the Cornelii Balbi, uncle and nephew, if he had been their sponsor when they were granted Roman citizenship under Pompeius in 72, and Caesar hoped that Balbus would have some influence with the consul. However, by 3 March Cicero reported[22] to Atticus that the Consuls had crossed over from Brundisium to the shore of Greece.
Lentulus recruited two legions in the province of Asia for Pompeius[23] - a decree of his in July 49 BC exempted the Jews of Asia Minor from military service.[24] He was with Pompeius, as Proconsul, in his defeat at the Battle of Pharsalus on 9 August 48 BC,[25] where he commanded the Pompeian left wing.[26] On his flight from the battlefield Lentulus was denied refuge in Antioch[27] and instead followed Pompeius to Egypt. He was taken prisoner on 4 September by the order of King Ptolemy XIII and executed whilst in prison.[28]
Caesar himself placed a great deal of blame on Lentulus for the events of late 50/early 49 which brought about the civil war, commenting on the magnitude of Lentulus' debts and his hopes for control of an army and rich provinces, and going so far as to claim that the Consul was aiming to make himself master of Rome, a second Sulla.[29] He was also seen as duplicitous, warning the senate in the debates of January 49 that if they did not declare against Caesar then he, Lentulus, had his own means of regaining Caesar's favour. Cicero, in a characteristically cutting remark, described Lentulus as being averse to the trouble of thinking.[30] Writing of the private interests and personal ambitions of Pompeius' followers, he seems to give support to Caesar's claims,[31] and his later acerbic comments that Lentulus promised himself Hortensius' town house, Caesar's suburban villa, and an estate at Baiae as spoils of the civil war do bear out Lentulus' reputation for avarice.
Gaius Claudius Marcellus (before 91 BC – c. 48 BC) was a Consul of the Roman Republic in 49 BC.[1]
This article is about the consul in 49 BC. For his cousin and consul of 50 BC, see Gaius Claudius Marcellus (consul 50 BC).
Family and political career
The Claudii Marcelli were a plebeian family, members of the nobiles with a long history of consulships throughout the history of the Republic. Following a century without the family reaching the consulship, three Claudii Marcelli were Consuls in succession: in 51 BC Marcus Claudius Marcellus (the brother of Gaius Marcellus); in 50 BC Gaius Claudius Marcellus Minor (their cousin); and in 49 BC Gaius Marcellus himself.
Gaius Marcellus was born sometime before 91 BC.[2] His father was M. Claudius Marcellus, curule aedile of 91;[3] his great-grandfather was M. Claudius Marcellus who was three times consul, and whose own grandfather – also a M. Claudius Marcellus – was five times consul and fought against Hannibal in Italy.
Nothing is known of his earlier life, any military service, or his quaestorship and entry to the Senate, although he may have been the candidate in opposition to Clodius for the curule aedileship of 56 BC of whom, on 23 November, Cicero wrote "The candidate Marcellus is snoring so loud that I can hear him next door" [4] (although the other two contemporary Claudii Marcelli are also possibilities).
Marcellus must have held the praetorship at the latest in 52 BC,[5] but he could have held the office some years before – there is no mention of this in the historical record.
In 50 BC Marcellus was elected consul for the following year[6] alongside Lentulus Crus, as opponents to Caesar.[7] Both his brother Marcus and cousin Gaius (Minor) had strongly opposed Caesar during their own consulships,[8] working to have his proconsulship of Gaul terminated and to prevent Caesar from standing for election as consul of 48 BC in absentia. Caesar had blocked Marcus by working with the tribunes and the other consul, Servius Sulpicius Rufus, and then Gaius (Minor) by heavily bribing his consular colleague, Lucius Aemilius Lepidus Paullus,[9] but had not yet been able to secure election to a second consulship without having to stand as a candidate in Rome and without relinquishing his proconsular command (which would expose him to prosecution[10] for illegalities in his first consulship). The election of Marcellus and Lentulus as consuls for 49 BC was within the normal framework of family connections and influences,[11] but also a snub to Caesar through his own candidate, Servius Sulpicius Galba.[12] Gaius Marcellus and Lentulus Crus continued the policy of the Claudii Marcelli in their opposition to Caesar.[13]
Civil War
Late in 50 BC, with much of the Senate wanting peace and unwilling to act against Caesar,[14] the consul Gaius Marcellus (Minor) took matters into his own hands and led a coup, without the backing of the Senate and directed against Caesar, aiming to put control of an army[15] into the hands of Pompeius.[16] Lentulus, as consul-elect certainly joined with him in this,[17] possibly Gaius Marcellus Major too.[18] Neither the Claudii Marcelli or Lentulus were particular adherents of Pompeius, a powerful magnate and general, but saw him as a tool to use against Caesar.[19]
On the Kalends 1 January 49 BC, Marcellus and Lentulus entered office, and were presented at once with letters from Caesar, the tenor of which was claimed to be a declaration of war: Caesar would stand his legions down provided Pompey did as well;[20] otherwise, he intended to retain them and "move quickly" to avenge the wrongs done against him—presumably against Rome.[21] The Senate's response was an ultimatum: Caesar was to disband his legions or be declared a public enemy.[22] After a week of angry exchanges, on 7 January 49 BC, the senate under Lentulus and Marcellus passed the "final decree" (senatus consultum ultimum);[23] the tribunes Antonius and Cassius fled with Caesar's envoy, the younger Gaius Scribonius Curio, from Rome to meet Caesar at Ravenna. Whilst Lentulus is recorded as the more vehement of the consuls in instigating the action that caused the tribunes to flee,[24] Marcellus does not seem to have been aloof.[25] On 10 January, Caesar famously crossed the Rubicon,[26] starting the Civil War.
Initially Marcellus remained in Rome, with the consuls opposing any accommodation with Caesar,[27] maintaining an anti-Caesarian hysteria, and pressuring Pompeius to cross Italy and raise troops.[28] On 17 January both Marcellus and his colleague followed Pompeius in leaving Rome ahead of Caesar's advancing forces,[29] scandalously without even making the usual sacrifices before departure.[30]
They went south to Teanum where, on 22 January, Lucius Julius Caesar, a kinsman serving with Caesar, brought conciliatory proposals from the proconsul.[31] On 25 January Cicero (whose letters provide the details of these events) met with Marcellus and Lentulus in Capua, along with many other senators who had fled Rome. Cicero reported to his correspondent, Atticus, that all were anxious that Caesar should stand by his offer and they had sent messages back to him.[32] However, within a few days Cicero was reporting to Atticus that the consuls did not care for peace.[33] Lentulus was even reported to have tried to recruit gladiators at one stage, but thought better of this when criticized.[34]
The whereabouts of Marcellus was not known, even by 7 February, when he was two days late for a meeting with Lentulus and Cicero. The latter despaired, writing in frustration that the consuls were of no use and that no recruiting was being done.[35] Pompeius himself wrote from Luceria on 17 February to Marcellus and Lentulus urging them to collect all the troops they could and join him at Brundisium.[36] By 20 February the consuls had done so.[37]
In late February Caesar sent his agent, Cornelius Balbus (the younger) on a secret mission to win over the consul Lentulus with the bribe of a lucrative province;[38] there is no hint that he made any similar offers to Marcellus, which may be an indication of the latter's comparative honesty or, perhaps more likely, his comparative insignificance in Roman politics. Balbus was too late in any case: Pompeius had sent both consuls and their forces on ahead of him to Dyrrhachium[39] and he followed with the remainder by 4 March, narrowly evading Caesar.[40] Cicero condemned this, as it destroyed the negotiations for peace which he claimed to be mediating.[41]
Very little is known specifically about Marcellus after crossing to Dyrrachium, though he is addressed by the Goddess Discordia in Petronius' Satyricon, urged to hold fast to the decree which commanded Caesar to resign his proconsulship,[42] the senatus consultum of 7 January 49 BC.
Pompeius placed much emphasis on his fleets to prevent Caesar from crossing from Italy. One fleet, that from Rhodes, was jointly commanded by Marcellus in association with Gaius Coponius.[43] Other than this, nothing is known of Marcellus' involvement in the Civil War. The command of the Rhodian fleet at Dyrrachium was later mentioned as being under the command of Quintus Coponius[44] and was wrecked in a storm.[45] It is speculated [46] that Marcellus was a casualty of the war – at least, he was not alive a few years later when Cicero was writing or delivering his Philippics[47] (March 43 BC). Marcellus is not mentioned further.
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Pompey Magnus-Imperatorial
48BC |
| Origin/Country: |
ANCIENT - ROMAN IMPERATORIAL (1st CENT BC) ROMAN IMPERATORIAL Pompey Magnus, d.48 BC |
| Design Description: |
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| Item Description: |
AR Denarius posthumous issue 42-38 BC |
| Grade: |
NGC VG |
| Research: |
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Owner Comments
Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC, or Pompey the Great, was a military and political leader of the late Roman Republic. He came from a wealthy Italian provincial background, and his father had been the first to establish the family among the Roman nobility. Pompey's immense success as a general while still very young enabled him to advance directly to his first consulship without meeting the normal requirements for office. His success as a military commander in Sulla's second civil war resulted in Sulla bestowing the nickname Magnus, "the Great", upon him. He was consul three times and celebrated three triumphs.
In mid-60 BC, Pompey joined Marcus Licinius Crassus and Gaius Julius Caesar in the unofficial military-political alliance known as the First Triumvirate, which Pompey's marriage to Caesar's daughter Julia helped secure. After the deaths of Julia and Crassus, Pompey sided with the optimates, the conservative faction of the Roman Senate. Pompey and Caesar then contended for the leadership of the Roman state, leading to a civil war. When Pompey was defeated at the Battle of Pharsalus in 48 BC, he sought refuge in Egypt, where he was assassinated. His career and defeat are significant in Rome's subsequent transformation from Republic to Empire.
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Brutus Albinus-Imperatorial
c. 48BC |
| Origin/Country: |
ANCIENT - ROMAN IMPERATORIAL (1st CENT BC) ROMAN IMPERATORIAL Albinus Bruti f., c.48 BC |
| Design Description: |
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| Item Description: |
AR Denarius obv Pietas. rv caduceus |
| Grade: |
NGC VF Strike: 4/5 Surface: 3/5 Strike: 4/5 Surface: 3/5 |
| Research: |
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Owner Comments
Decimus Junius Brutus Albinus (born April 27, ca. 85–81 BC, died 43 BC) was a Roman politician and general of the 1st century BC and one of the leading instigators of Julius Caesar's assassination.
For other people with similar names, see Decimus Junius Brutus (disambiguation).
Early life
He was the son of Decimus Junius Brutus, who was consul in 77 BC. His mother was possibly Sempronia, who was the wife of Decimus father in all surviving records, but historian Ronald Syme has propossed that Decimus father may have been married to another woman before Sempronia, a Postumia who could have been a sistser of the wife of Servius Sulpicius Rufus, since Decimus and Rufus's son were described as cousins.
Decimus was adopted by Aulus Postumius Albinus, but kept his own family name, only adding his adoptive father's cognomen Albinus. Syme felt this supports his assertment that Decimus mother was a previous wife of his father and not Sempronia, as having kinship with the Postumia gens would have made it logical for Aulus Postumius Albinus to adopt him.
On several occasions Julius Caesar expressed how he loved Decimus Brutus like a son. Ronald Syme argued that if a Brutus was the natural son of Caesar, Decimus was more likely than Marcus Brutus. Decimus was named an heir in the second degree in Caesar's will and was designated to become guardian of any child Caesar would have. Roman historian Appian interpeted this as being an adoption of Decimus by Caesar.
Decimus Brutus spent his youth mainly in the company of Publius Clodius Pulcher, Gaius Scribonius Curio, and Marcus Antonius.
During the Wars
He served in Caesar's army during the Gallic wars and was given the command of the fleet in the war against the Veneti in 56 BC. In a decisive sea battle, Decimus Brutus succeeded in destroying the Veneti's fleet. Using sickle-like hooks fitted on long poles, Decimus Brutus attacked the enemy's sails, leaving them immobilized and easy prey to Roman boarding parties. He also served against Vercingetorix in 52 BC.
When the Republican Civil War broke out, Decimus Brutus sided with his commander, Caesar, and was entrusted once again with fleet operations. Richard Billows argued that Caesar loved Decimus Brutus almost as a son. In 50BC he married a woman whos family was anti-Caesar.
The Greek city of Massilia (present-day Marseille) sided with Pompey the Great, and Caesar, hastening to reach Hispania and cut Pompey off from his legions, left Decimus Brutus in charge of the naval blockade of Massilia. Within thirty days, Decimus Brutus built a fleet from scratch, defeated the Massilian fleet twice, and together with Gaius Trebonius (who commanded the siege) secured the capitulation of Massilia.
Ides of March and its aftermath
When Caesar returned to Rome as dictator after the final defeat of the Republican faction in the Battle of Munda (45 BC), Marcus Brutus joined the conspiracy against Caesar, after being convinced by Cassius and Decimus. In 44 BC, Decimus was made Praetor Peregrinus by personal appointment of Caesar and was designated to be the governor of Cisalpine Gaul in the following year.
On the Ides of March (March 15), when Caesar decided not to attend the Senate meeting in the curia at the theatre of Pompey due to the concerns of his wife, he was persuaded to attend by Decimus Brutus, who escorted him to the senate house, and neatly evaded Mark Antony, who wished to tell Caesar of the assassination plot. After Caesar was attacked by the first assassin, Servilius Casca, Decimus and the rest of the conspirators attacked and killed him. In all, Caesar suffered approximately 23 stab wounds. According to Nicolaus of Damascus, Decimus struck him through the thigh.
The assassins received an amnesty the next day, issued by the senate at the instigation of Mark Antony, Caesar's fellow consul. But the situation was not peaceful; Rome's population and Caesar's legionaries wanted to see the conspirators punished. The group decided to lie low, and Decimus used his office of Praetor Peregrinus to stay away from Rome. Decimus was named an heir in the second degree in Caesar's will.
Battle of Mutina
The climate of reconciliation soon passed and slowly the conspirators were starting to feel the strain of the assassination. Thus, at the beginning of 43 BC, Decimus Brutus hurried to Gallia Cisalpina, the province assigned to him as propraetor, and started to levy his own troops. He was ordered by the Senate to surrender his province to Antony but refused. This was the act of provocation to which Antony was only too happy to respond. With his own political situation on the verge of disaster and himself declared public enemy, defeating Decimus Brutus was a way for Antony to regain his ascendancy and get control of the strategically important Italian Gaul.
In 43 BC Decimus Brutus occupied Mutina, laying in provisions for a protracted siege. Antony obliged him, and blockaded Decimus Brutus' forces, intent on starving them out.
Nevertheless, the consuls of the year, Aulus Hirtius and Gaius Pansa, marched northward to raise the siege. Guided by Cicero (whose Philippics date from this time), the Senate was inclined to view Mark Antony as an enemy. Caesar Octavian, the nineteen-year-old heir of Caesar, and already raised to the rank of propraetor, accompanied Gaius Pansa north. The first confrontation occurred on April 14 at the battle of Forum Gallorum, where Antony hoped to deal with his opponents piecemeal. Antony defeated the forces of Gaius Pansa and Octavian, which resulted in Pansa suffering mortal wounds; however, Antony was then defeated by a surprise attack from Hirtius. A second battle on 21 April at Mutina resulted in a further defeat for Antony and Hirtius' death. Antony withdrew, unwilling to become the subject of a double circumvallation as Caesar had done to Vercingetorix at Alesia.
With the siege raised, Decimus Brutus cautiously thanked Octavian, now commander of the legions that had rescued him, from the other side of the river. Octavian coldly indicated he had come to oppose Antony, not aid Caesar's murderers. Decimus Brutus was given the command to wage war against Antony, but many of his soldiers deserted to Octavian.
Flight and death
His position deteriorating by the day, Decimus Brutus fled Italy, abandoning his legions. He attempted to reach Macedonia, where Marcus Junius Brutus and Gaius Cassius Longinus had stationed themselves but was executed en route by a Gallic chief loyal to Mark Antony.
Several letters written by Decimus Brutus during the last two years of his life are preserved among Cicero's collected correspondence.
Cultural depictions
Decimus legacy is not as notable as that of another Brutus who was among the conspirators, Marcus Brutus, whom he is often confused for, or merged with, in depictions.
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Pansa-Imperatorial
48BC |
| Origin/Country: |
ANCIENT - ROMAN IMPERATORIAL (1st CENT BC) ROMAN IMPERATORIAL C.Vib. Pansa Caetronianus |
| Design Description: |
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| Item Description: |
AR Denarius rv Jupiter Axurus std. c.48 BC. obv mask of Pan |
| Grade: |
NGC Ch F Strike: 4/5 Surface: 3/5 Strike: 4/5 Surface: 3/5 |
| Research: |
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Owner Comments
Gaius Vibius Pansa Caetronianus (died 22 April 43 BC) was consul of the Roman Republic in 43 BC. Although supporting Gaius Julius Caesar during the Civil War, he pushed for the restoration of the Republic upon Caesar’s death. He died of injuries sustained at the Battle of Forum Gallorum.
Early career
Pansa was the son of moneyer Gaius Vibius Caii filius Pansa. One of the first members of the gens Vibia to achieve political success, he was a Novus homo who rose through the cursus honorum as a result of his friendship with Julius Caesar, under whom he served in Gaul. Originally of Etruscan descent and hailing from Perusia (modern Perugia), and possibly from a family which had been proscribed under Lucius Cornelius Sulla, Pansa was elected Plebeian Tribune in 51 BC where he vetoed a number of anti-Caesarean resolutions of the Senate. During the civil war between Julius Caesar and Pompey, he actively supported the cause of the Caesareans. In 48 BC it is believed he was elected either as an aedile or as a praetor.
In 47 BC Pansa was appointed governor of Bithynia et Pontus, and returned to Rome sometime during 46 BC. In that same year, Caesar appointed Pansa as governor of Cisalpine Gaul to replace Marcus Junius Brutus, a post he took up on 15 March 45 BC. Around this time, he was also elected to the post of augur, one of the priests of Ancient Rome. In early 44 BC, Caesar designated him as the consul for the upcoming year (43 BC) and sometime before 21 April 44 BC, Pansa had returned from Cisalpine Gaul, and was based at Campania, waiting for the situation at Rome to settle down after the assassination of Julius Caesar on 15 March 44 BC.
Recognised as a moderate man and a supporter of peaceful compromise, upon his return to Rome, Pansa became the leader of the moderate Caesareans and one of the leading proponents for the return of the Republic, which put him on a collision course with Marcus Antonius, whom Pansa began to oppose by late 44 BC. He had also begun entering into discussions with Octavianus, Julius Caesar’s adopted son, who was also in Campania at the same time as Pansa. Nevertheless, Pansa was not totally hostile to Marcus Antonius, and while he wanted to limit Antonius’s power, he did not want to destroy him totally, nor was he willing to embrace the anti-Caesarean faction in the Senate and begin a new round of civil wars. Added to this was the fact that Pansa was married to Fufia, the daughter of Quintus Fufius Calenus, who was a key supporter of Antonius.
Consulship and death
On 1 January 43 BC, Pansa became consul along with Aulus Hirtius. They opened the debate in the Senate about what course of action was to be taken, if any, against Marcus Antonius. The discussion lasted four days; Pansa’s preference was to unite the Caesarean factions and restore harmony to the Republic, but to no avail. Octavianus refused to co-operate with Antonius, while Marcus Aemilius Lepidus and Lucius Munatius Plancus continued to support Antonius. The end result was the Senate legitimised the army of Octavianus, and assigned him to work alongside Pansa and Hirtius in their upcoming fight against Antonius. The Senate, rejecting Antonius’s compromises, directed the consuls to do whatever was necessary to preserve the security of the Republic and relieve Decimus Junius Brutus Albinus at Mutina. Although Pansa, along with Lucius Julius Caesar successfully prevented Antonius being declared an Enemy of the state, a state of war was declared.
When discussing the state of affairs in the east under Gaius Cassius Longinus and Marcus Junius Brutus, Pansa supported the motion to declare the Caesarean Publius Cornelius Dolabella a public enemy, but managed to deny Cicero’s proposal to grant Cassius extraordinary powers in the east to deal with Dolabella. He also legitimised Marcus Junius Brutus’s command in Macedonia, and gave official recognition to Sextus Pompey in Sicily. With the Senate revoking much of the Lex Antonia, especially the contentious Lex Antonia Agraria, Pansa was forced to push through measures which confirmed the colonies for Caesar’s veterans, as well as confirming many of Caesar’s acts and the abolition of the office of Dictator.
All this time Pansa was also responsible for raising fresh levies in order to deal with Antonius. By 19 March 43 BC, Pansa was marching north with four legions of recruits, seeking to join up with Octavianus and Hirtius who were attempting to pin Antonius at Mutina. Antonius, hearing of Pansa’s approach, intercepted him on 14 April 43 BC at the Forum Gallorum, some seven miles south-east of Mutina. Antonius crushed Pansa’s army, and Pansa was wounded during the battle. He only managed to escape when Hirtius’s army surprised Antonius on the battlefield, forcing Antonius to flee. For his actions, Pansa (along with Octavianus and Hirtius) was proclaimed imperator by the Senate.
It was soon clear that Pansa was dying. He lived long enough to hear of Antonius’s second defeat at Mutina on 21 April, and the death of his consular colleague Hirtius during the battle. In his last hours he advised Octavianus not to trust Cicero and the rest of the Senate, and that they would turn on him at the first available opportunity. Pansa transferred command of his troops over to his quaestor, Manlius Torquatus, who arrested Pansa’s doctor, Glyco, on suspicion of having poisoned Pansa. Pansa died on 23 April 43 BC and received a magnificent public burial.
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| Slot: |
Scipio-Imperatorial
c. 47-46BC |
| Origin/Country: |
ANCIENT - ROMAN IMPERATORIAL (1st CENT BC) ROMAN IMPERATORIAL Met.Pius Scipio,Imperator |
| Design Description: |
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| Item Description: |
AR Denarius obv Jupiter. rv elephant. North Africa, c.47-46 BC |
| Grade: |
NGC Ch VF Strike: 4/5 Surface: 5/5 |
| Research: |
View Coin |
Owner Comments
In January 49 BCE, Metellus Scipio persuaded the senate to issue the ultimatum to Caesar that made war inevitable. That same year, he became proconsul of the province of Syria. In Syria and in the province of Asia, where he took up winter quarters, he used often oppressive means to gather ships, troops, and money:
He put a per capita tax on slaves and children; he taxed columns, doors, grain, soldiers, weaponry, oarsmen, and machinery; if a name could be found for a thing, that was seen as sufficient for making money from it.
Scipio put to death Alexander of Judaea, and was acclaimed Imperator for "alleged" victories in the Amanus Mountains — as noted disparagingly by Caesar.
In 48 BCE, he brought his forces from Asia to Greece, where he manoeuvred against Gnaeus Domitius Calvinus and Lucius Cassius until the arrival of Pompeius. At the Battle of Pharsalus, he commanded the centre. After the optimates' defeat by Caesar, Metellus fled to Africa. With the support of his former rival-in-romance Cato, he wrested the chief command of Pompeius's forces from the loyal Attius Varus, probably in early 47 BCE. In 46 BCE, he held command at the Battle of Thapsus "without skill or success," and was defeated along with Cato. After the defeat, he tried to escape to the Iberian Peninsula to continue the fight, but was cornered by the fleet of Publius Sittius. He committed suicide by stabbing himself so he would not fall into the hands of his enemies.
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Cato-Imperatorial
47-46BC |
| Origin/Country: |
ANCIENT - ROMAN IMPERATORIAL (1st CENT BC) ROMAN IMPERATORIAL M.Porcius Cato, c.47/6 BC |
| Design Description: |
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| Item Description: |
AR Quinarius |
| Grade: |
NGC F |
| Research: |
View Coin |
Owner Comments
The triumvirate of Caesar, Pompey and Crassus was broken in 54 BC at the same time as Cato's election as praetor. Judging their enemy in trouble, Cato and the Optimates faction of the Senate spent the coming years trying to force a break between Pompey and Caesar. It was a time of political turmoil, when popular figures like Publius Clodius tried to advance the cause of the common people of Rome, going so far as abandoning his patrician status to become a plebeian. As a leading spokesman for the Optimate cause, Cato stood against them all in defense of the traditional privileges of the aristocracy.
The following year, in 52 BC, Cato unsuccessfully ran for the office of consul. Cato accepted the loss, but refused to run a second time.
In 49 BC, Cato called for the Senate to formally relieve Caesar of his proconsular command, which he viewed as having expired, and to order Caesar's return to Rome as a civilian and thus without proconsular legal immunity. Pompey had blocked all previous attempts at ordering Caesar back to Rome but had grown concerned with Caesar's growing political influence and popularity with the plebs. With the tacit support of Pompey, Cato successfully passed a resolution ending Caesar's proconsular command. Caesar made numerous attempts to negotiate, at one point even conceding to give up all but one of his provinces and legions, allowing him to retain his immunity while diminishing his authority. This concession satisfied Pompey, but Cato, along with the consul Lentulus, refused to back down. Faced with the alternatives of returning to Rome for the inevitable trial and retiring into voluntary exile, Caesar crossed into Italy with only one legion, implicitly declaring war on the Senate.
Caesar crossed the Rubicon accompanied by the XIII Legion to take power from the Senate in the same way that Sulla had done in the past. Formally declared an enemy of the state, Caesar pursued the Senatorial party, now led by Pompey, who abandoned the city to raise arms in Greece, with Cato among his companions. After first reducing Caesar's army at the battle of Dyrrhachium, where Cato commanded the port, the army led by Pompey was ultimately defeated by Caesar in the Battle of Pharsalus (Cato wasn't present during the battle, Pompey had left him in command of Dyrrhachium). Cato and Metellus Scipio, however, did not concede defeat and escaped to the province of Africa with fifteen cohorts to continue resistance from Utica. Caesar pursued Cato and Metellus Scipio after installing the queen Cleopatra VII on the throne of Egypt, and in February 46 BC the outnumbered Caesarian legions defeated the army led by Metellus Scipio at the Battle of Thapsus. Acting against his usual strategy of clemency, Caesar did not accept surrender of Scipio's troops, but had them all slaughtered.
Death
In Utica, Cato did not participate in the battle and, unwilling to live in a world led by Caesar and refusing even implicitly to grant Caesar the power to pardon him, he committed suicide in April 46 BC. According to Plutarch, Cato attempted to kill himself by stabbing himself with his own sword, but failed to do so due to an injured hand. Plutarch wrote:
Cato did not immediately die of the wound; but struggling, fell off the bed, and throwing down a little mathematical table that stood by, made such a noise that the servants, hearing it, cried out. And immediately his son and all his friends came into the chamber, where, seeing him lie weltering in his own blood, great part of his bowels out of his body, but himself still alive and able to look at them, they all stood in horror. The physician went to him, and would have put in his bowels, which were not pierced, and sewed up the wound; but Cato, recovering himself, and understanding the intention, thrust away the physician, plucked out his own bowels, and tearing open the wound, immediately expired.[8]
On hearing of his death in Utica, Plutarch wrote that Caesar commented, "Cato, I grudge you your death, as you would have grudged me the preservation of your life."
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Cnaeus Pompey Jr.-Imperatorial
46-45BC |
| Origin/Country: |
ANCIENT - ROMAN IMPERATORIAL (1st CENT BC) ROMAN IMPERATORIAL Pompey Jr., d.45 BC |
| Design Description: |
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| Item Description: |
AR Denarius The Werner Collection Spain, 46-45 BC |
| Grade: |
NGC XF Strike: 4/5 Surface: 4/5 Strike: 4/5 Surface: 4/5 |
| Research: |
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Owner Comments
Gnaeus Pompeius (ca. 75 BC – 12 April 45 BC), also known as Cnaeus Pompey or Pompey the Younger, was a Roman politician and general from the late Republic (1st century BC).
Cnaeus Pompeius was the elder son of Pompey the Great (Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus) by his third wife, Mucia Tertia. Both he and his younger brother Sextus Pompey grew up in the shadow of their father, one of Rome's best generals and not originally a conservative politician who drifted to the more traditional faction when Julius Caesar became a threat. When Caesar crossed the Rubicon in 49 BC, thus starting a civil war, Gnaeus followed his father in their escape to the East, as did most of the conservative senators. Pompey's army lost the Battle of Pharsalus in 48 BC, and Pompey himself had to run for his life, only to be murdered in Egypt on 29 September the same year.
After the murder, Gnaeus and his brother Sextus joined the resistance against Caesar in the Africa Province. Together with Metellus Scipio, Cato the Younger and other senators, they prepared to oppose Caesar and his army to the end. Caesar defeated Metellus Scipio and Cato, who subsequently committed suicide, at the Battle of Thapsus in 46 BC. Gnaeus escaped, this time to the Balearic Islands, where he joined Sextus. Together with Titus Labienus, former general in Caesar's army, the Pompey brothers crossed over to Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula, comprising modern Spain and Portugal), where they raised yet another army.
Caesar soon followed and, on 17 March 45 BC, the armies met in the Battle of Munda. Both armies were large and led by able generals. The battle was closely fought, but eventually a cavalry charge by Caesar turned events to his side. In the battle and the panicked escape that followed, Titus Labienus and an estimated 30,000 men of the Pompeian side died. Gnaeus and Sextus managed to escape another time but supporters were difficult to find. It was by now clear Caesar had won the civil war. Within a few weeks, Gnaeus Pompeius was cornered and killed by Lucius Caesennius Lento. Sextus Pompeius was able to keep one step ahead of his enemies, and survived his brother for another decade.
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Cassius-Imperatorial
44-42BC |
| Origin/Country: |
ANCIENT - ROMAN IMPERATORIAL (1st CENT BC) ROMAN IMPERATORIAL Cassius, d.42 BC |
| Design Description: |
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| Item Description: |
AR Denarius The Werner Collection 42 BC. Legate L.Spinther. |
| Grade: |
NGC Ch XF Strike: 5/5 Surface: 4/5 Strike: 5/5 Surface: 4/5 |
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View Coin |
Owner Comments
Cassius was elected as a Tribune of the Plebs in 49 BC. He opposed Caesar, and he commanded a fleet against him during Caesar's Civil War: after Caesar defeated Pompey in the Battle of Pharsalus, Caesar overtook Cassius and forced him to surrender. After Caesar's death, Cassius fled to the East, where he amassed an army of twelve legions. He was supported and made Governor by the Senate. Though he and Brutus marched west against the allies of the Second Triumvirate, Cassius was defeated at the Battle of Phillippi and committed suicide.
He followed the teachings of the philosopher Epicurus, although scholars debate whether or not these beliefs affected his political life. Cassius is a main character in William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar that depicts the assassination of Caesar and its aftermath. He is also shown in the lowest circle of Hell in Dante's Inferno as punishment for betraying and killing Caesar.
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Sextus Pompey-Imperatorial
43-36BC |
| Origin/Country: |
ROMAN IMPERATORIAL Sextus Pompey, d.35 BC |
| Design Description: |
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| Item Description: |
AE As Sicilian mint, c.43-36 BC |
| Grade: |
NGC G |
| Research: |
View Coin |
Owner Comments
Sextus Pompeius was the youngest son of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (Pompey the Great). His elder brother was Gnaeus Pompeius. Both boys grew up in the shadow of their father, one of Rome's greatest generals and an originally non-conservative politician who drifted to the more traditional faction when Julius Caesar became a threat.
When Caesar crossed the Rubicon in 49 BC, thus starting a civil war, Sextus' older brother Gnaeus followed their father in his escape to the East, as did most of the conservative senators. Sextus stayed in Rome in the care of his stepmother, Cornelia Metella. Pompey's army lost the Battle of Pharsalus in 48 BC and Pompey himself had to run for his life. Cornelia and Sextus met him in the island of Lesbos and together they fled to Egypt. On the arrival, Sextus watched his father being killed by treachery on September 29 of the same year. After the murder, Cornelia returned to Rome; in the following years, Sextus joined the resistance against Caesar in the African provinces. Together with Metellus Scipio, Cato the Younger, his brother Gnaeus and other senators, they prepared to oppose Caesar and his army to the end.
Caesar won the first battle at Thapsus in 46 BC against Metellus Scipio and Cato, who committed suicide. In 45 BC, Caesar managed to defeat the Pompeius brothers in the Battle of Munda, in Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula, comprising modern Spain and Portugal). Gnaeus Pompeius was executed, but young Sextus escaped once more, this time to Sicily.
Back in Rome, Julius Caesar was killed on the Ides of March (March 15) 44 BC by a group of senators led by Cassius and Brutus. This incident did not lead to a return to normality, but provoked yet another civil war between Caesar's political heirs and his killers. The Second Triumvirate was formed by Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus, Marcus Antonius and Marcus Aemelius Lepidus, with the intention of avenging Caesar and subduing all opposition. Sextus Pompeius in Sicily was certainly a rebellious man, but the faction of Cassius and Brutus was the second triumvirate's first priority. Thus, with the whole island as his base, Sextus had the time and resources to develop an army and, even more importantly, a strong navy operated by Sicilian marines.
Brutus and Cassius lost the twin battles of Philippi and committed suicide in 42 BC. After this, the triumvirs turned their attentions to Sicily and Sextus.
However, by this time Sextus was prepared for strong resistance. In the following years, military confrontations failed to return a conclusive victory for either side, although in 40 BC Sextus' admiral, the freedman Menas, seized Sardinia from Octavian's governor Marcus Lurius. In 39 BC, Sextus and the triumvirs signed for peace in the Pact of Misenum. The reason for this peace treaty was to secure the West before the anticipated campaign against the Parthian Empire. Antony, the leader of Rome's eastern provinces, needed a large number of legions for the coming campaign, which would take his army (ostensibly) through Mesopotamia, Armenia, and Parthia. Thus, an armistice with Sextus' large forces on Sicily proved useful.
The peace did not last for long. In Antony's absence, Octavian renewed the conflict against Sextus. Sextus and Octavian accused one another of violating the terms of the Pact of Misenum, but the final straw was the betrayal of Sardinia to Octavian by Menas. Octavian was defeated in the naval battle of Messina (37 BC), so he now turned to his friends Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa and Titus Statilius Taurus, both very talented generals. In addition, the third triumvir, Marcus Aemilius Lepidus, raised 14 legions in his African provinces to help defeat Pompey.
Agrippa spent the winter training a navy on land and building a fleet near Lake Avernus. Agrippa fought Sextus at Mylae in August 36 BC, and again a month later, while Lepidus and Statilius Taurus invaded Sicily. In the Battle of Naulochus, Agrippa destroyed the remainder of Sextus' fleet. Sextus escaped to Asia Minor and, by abandoning Sicily, lost his only base of support.
Sextus Pompeius was caught in Miletus in 35 BC, and executed without trial by order of Antony via Marcus Titius, whom Sextus had once spared. Although Octavian later pretended the execution without a trial of Sextus was illegal because Sextus was a Roman citizen, Octavian himself had declared Sextus an outlaw without citizen rights.
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Lepidus & Octavian-Imperatorial
42BC
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| Origin/Country: |
ANCIENT - ROMAN IMPERATORIAL (1st CENT BC) ROMAN IMPERATORIAL Lepidus & Octavian |
| Design Description: |
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| Item Description: |
AR Denarius obv Lepidus. rv Octavian. Italian mint, 42 BC |
| Grade: |
NGC F Strike: 2/5 Surface: 5/5 Strike: 2/5 Surface: 5/5 |
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Owner Comments
Lepidus on obverse, Octavian on reverse, two of the three members of the second triumvirate. See individual biographies under each respective person. Tough coin with only 17 graded in all grades. Seldom comes up at auction.
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