Roman History and Historiography

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Article

acclamation  

Ernst Badian

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography
Vocal expressions of approval and good wishes in ritual form were an important part of Roman life, both private (e.g. at weddings) and public (for actors and the presiding magistrate at public performances, and above all at a *triumph). The title of *imperator was based on the soldiers' acclamation. A magistrate leaving for his province was escorted by crowds shouting ritual acclamations, and his return was received in a corresponding way. (see provincia §2.) Under the empire, these rituals were magnified, but confined to the emperor and approved members of his family. They were also ritually greeted at public appearances, especially at games and on their birthdays. By the 4th cent. ce such greetings had been made mandatory for certain high officials (Cod. Theod. 1. 6. 6, 6. 9. 2). By the late republic, rhythmical shouting at games, sometimes organized, expressed approval or disapproval of politicians. Cicero takes it very seriously, as expressions of public opinion (which of course counted only in the city of Rome), and P.

Article

Achaean Confederacy, Roman  

Antony Spawforth

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography
Permitted to reform after 146 bce, at first on a local basis only, the confederacy survived until at least the mid-3rd cent. ce, chiefly as a vehicle (from c.ce 50) for a federal *ruler-cult based at Corinth. For some of the 1st cent. ce, in temporary union with other regional confederacies (Boeotian, Euboean, etc. ), it formed early-imperial *Achaia's nearest equivalent to a provincial *concilium.

Article

Acilius, Gaius, Roman senator and historian  

Alexander Hugh McDonald

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
07 March 2016
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography

Acilius, Gaius Romansenator and historian, who interpreted for *Carneades, *Diogenes (3), and *Critolaus in the senate in 155 bce, wrote a history of Rome, in Greek, from early Italian times to his own age, certainly to 184 bce (Dion. Hal. Ant. Rom. 3. 67. 5); it appeared c.142 (Livy, Per. 53: reading C. Acilius). His senatorial tradition is seen in the anecdote of P. *Cornelius Scipio Africanus and *Hannibal (Livy 35. 14. 5). His work was reproduced in Latin by a Claudius, probably *Claudius Quadrigarius, who would then have incorporated it in his annalistic form.

Article

Acilius Attianus, Publius  

Anthony R. Birley

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
07 March 2016
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography
Acilius Attianus, Publius, from Italica, fellow townsman of *Hadrian, whose guardian he became in ce 85 (SHAHadr. 1. 4, where Caelium is a scribal error). Nothing more is known of his career before 117, when as *praefectus praetorio at *Trajan's death he helped to ensure Hadrian's position: returning rapidly to Rome he arranged the execution of four ex-consuls (118) who had allegedly plotted against Hadrian.

Article

Acilius Glabrio, Manius (1), Roman consul, 191 BCE  

John Briscoe

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography
Acilius, Manius, a *novus homo, was tribune of the plebs 201 bce when he supported peace with Carthage on the terms agreed with *Scipio Africanus. Praetor 196, he suppressed a slave revolt in Etruria. He was consul 191, defeating *Antiochus (3) III at Thermopylae and beginning operations against the Aetolians. In a famous scene he made it clear to the latter that deditio (see dediticii) to Rome precluded negotiations about terms. He was assisted by *Philip (3) V, whom he ordered to desist from the siege of Lamia (2), but allowed to appropriate territory in northern Greece. He embarked on the siege of *Naupactus, but was persuaded by *Flamininus to grant the Aetolians a truce to allow them to send ambassadors to Rome. He triumphed in 190 and in 189 stood for the censorship; accused of embezzlement during his command in Greece, he abandoned his candidacy. As consul he had carried the lex Acilia de intercalando (Acilian law on intercalation), necessitated by the fact that the Roman *calendar had become four months ahead of the seasons.

Article

Acilius Glabrio, Manius (2), Roman tribune, 122 BCE  

Ernst Badian

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography
Acilius, Manius, grandson of (1), son-in-law of a Scaevola (probably Q. *Mucius Scaevola (1)), as tribune 122 bce passed a *repetundae law providing for *equites as jurors and making procedure more severe (Cic. 1 In Verr. 51 f.). He died soon after. The law, almost certainly part of C.

Article

Acilius Glabrio, Manius (3), Roman consul, 67 BCE  

Ernst Badian

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography
Acilius, Manius, son of (2), as praetor repetundarum (70 bce) presided over *Verres' trial. Consul 67, he fought ineffectually against *Mithradates VI until superseded by *Pompey. ‘Lazy and negligent’ (Cic. Brut.239), but well connected, he was a *pontifex and possibly *censor 64 (Broughton, MRR 3.

Article

Acilius Glabrio, Manius (4), Roman consul, 91 CE  

Arnaldo Momigliano and Barbara Levick

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
07 March 2016
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography

Acilius, Manius, patrician and member of *Domitian's consilium (council of advisers); as consul in ce 91 he had to fight in the arena at Domitian's Alban estate (see alba longa) and was exiled. The cause is uncertain; Dio alleges jealousy of his prowess. His execution in 95 for plotting revolution contributed to Domitian's assassination the following year. The *catacomb to which his name is attached may belong to the end of the 2nd cent.

Article

Actium  

W. M. Murray

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Ancient Geography
  2. Roman History and Historiography
Actium (Ἄκτιον), a flat sandy promontory at the entrance to the Ambracian Gulf, forming part of the territory of Anactorium, as well as the NW extremity of *Acarnania. A cult of Apollo was located here as early as the 6th cent. bce to judge from the torsos of two archaic kouroi found on the cape in 1867. At this time, or soon thereafter, a temple stood on a low hill near the tip of the promontory where games were celebrated in honour of the god as late as the end of the 3rd cent. bce. In 31 bce the cape was the site of M. *Antonius (2)'s camp, and gave its name to the naval battle, fought just outside the gulf, in which he was defeated by *Octavian (2 September). A few years later, when Octavian founded *Nicopolis (3) on the opposite (northern) side of the strait, he took care to enlarge Apollo's sanctuary at Actium by rebuilding the old temple and adding a monumental naval trophy (not to be confused with the naval trophy he dedicated at Nicopolis). In ship-sheds constructed in the sacred grove at the base of the hill, he dedicated a set of ten captured warships, one from each of the ten classes that had fought in the battle (Strabo 7. 7. 6). Although the ships and their ship-sheds were gone (destroyed by fire) by the time Strabo composed his account, recent excavations have located the site where the kouroi were found in 1867 and have confirmed the location of the temple, obscured for many years.

Article

Aedui  

John Frederick Drinkwater

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
07 March 2016
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography
Aedui, a highly developed *Celtic people who occupied most of modern Burgundy. They appealed to Rome against the *Arverni and *Allobroges (121 bce) and received the title of fratres consanguineique. During the Gallic War they gave valuable though not whole-hearted support to Caesar, and when they finally joined *Vercingetorix in 52 bce their support was lukewarm.

Article

Aelius Gallus  

Ronald Syme and Barbara Levick

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography

Aelius Gallus, prefect of Egypt after C. *Cornelius Gallus and before C. Petronius (see egypt (Roman)). Influenced by prevalent and exaggerated reports of the wealth of Arabia Felix, *Augustus instructed him to invade it. The expedition, which lasted two years (26–25 or 25–24 bce), failed; blame was conveniently laid upon the treachery of the Nabataean Syllaeus. Aelius Gallus wrote on medical topics and was a friend of *Strabo the geographer. He very probably adopted the son of the distinguished Roman knight L. Seius Strabo (see aelius seianus, l.).

Article

Aelius Promotus, physician  

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography

From Alexandria (1), probably belonging to the period between Hadrian and Pertinax (ce 138–93). He wrote a book on curative methods called Potency (Δυναμερόν), sections of which remain, largely unedited.

Article

Aelius Seianus, Lucius, d. 31 CE  

John Percy Vyvian Dacre Balsdon and Barbara Levick

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography
Aelius d. ce 31, of *Volsinii (mod. Bolsena). Sejanus' father was an eques, L. Seius Strabo, his mother the sister of Q. *Iunius Blaesus, suffect consul ce 10, and connected with Aelii Tuberones and Cassii Longini. Sejanus, who had attended Augustus' grandson C. *Iulius Caesar (3) in the east, was made Strabo's colleague as prefect of the guard by *Tiberius in ce 14, and soon, on his father's appointment as prefect of Egypt, became sole commander; by 23 he had concentrated the guard in barracks near the porta Viminalis. After the death of Tiberius' son Drusus *Iulius Caesar (1) in 23 (murder was later imputed) his influence was paramount; a succession of prosecutions eliminated opponents (chiefly adherents of the elder Agrippina (see vipsania agrippina (2)). Tiberius allegedly refused to allow a marriage with Drusus' widow *Livia Iulia (25), but retired from Rome in 26, further increasing Sejanus' influence (he allegedly encouraged the move); honours and oaths were offered to him as to Tiberius.

Article

Aelius Tubero, Lucius  

Ernst Badian

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography
Aelius Tubero, Lucius, boyhood friend and relative by marriage of Cicero and legate of Q. *Tullius Cicero (1)61–58 bce. At some point (perhaps before this) he was praetor. Assigned Africa by the senate in 49, he was not admitted by Q. *Ligarius and P. *Attius Varus and, with his son (see next article) joined *Pompey.

Article

Aelius, Lucius  

R. A. Kaster

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography

(also called ‘Stilo’ and ‘Praeconinus’: Suet. Gram. 3; Plin. HN 33. 39, 37. 9), the first important Roman scholar, born at Lanuvium about 150 bce, of equestrian rank and a professed Stoic. His studies, which embraced Latin literature, antiquities, semasiology, and etymology, profoundly influenced contemporary and later scholars, including *Varro, *Cicero (cf. Brut. 205–7), and *Verrius Flaccus. His known endeavours include: an interpretation of the *Carmen Saliare; comments on sacral language and the usage of the *Twelve Tables; employment of critical signs (notae) in the study of literary texts; a tract on propositions (proloquia = ἀξιώματα: Gell.NA 16. 8. 2 f.), a topic of Stoic dialectic related to syntactic analysis; and a list (index) of the 25 genuine plays of *Plautus (Gell. NA 3. 3. 1, 12). Another noted Plautine scholar, Ser. Clodius, was his son-in-law. He also composed speeches for various Roman notables, though he was not an orator himself. All his works are lost.

Article

Aelius Antipater, Sophist  

Anthony R. Birley

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography

Aelius Antipater sophist, of Phrygian Hierapolis, ab epistulis Graecis (‘secretary for Greek correspondence’) of *Severus, teacher of the emperor's sons, was made a senator with consular rank and governed Bithynia. He wrote a history of Severus. Took his own life after the murder of *Geta.

Article

Aelius Caesar, Lucius  

Anthony R. Birley

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography

Aelius Caesar, Lucius, *Hadrian's first choice as successor, formerly L. Ceionius (RE 7) Commodus, son and grandson of the homonymous consuls of ce 78 and 106, was himself consul in 136, probably aged 32; in the same year he was adopted by Hadrian, given the tribunicia potestas, and sent to govern the two Pannonias with proconsular imperium, becoming consul for the second time in 137. After his sudden death on 1 January 138, his son (later called L. *Verus) and prospective son-in-law (the future *Marcus Aurelius) were adopted by Hadrian's second choice as heir, *Antoninus Pius.

Article

Aemilius Aemilianus, Marcus, Roman emperor, 253 CE  

John Frederick Drinkwater

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography

Against imperial policy, while governor of Moesia he dealt harshly with the *Goths, and was proclaimed emperor by his army. He marched on Italy, overthrew *Trebonianus Gallus, but was soon killed by his own troops, panicked by the approach of *Valerian. The civil strife of 253 exposed Greece to Gothic invasion.

Article

Aemilius Lepidus, Manius  

Theodore John Cadoux and Robin Seager

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography
Aemilius Lepidus, Manius, probably a grandson of M. *Aemilius Lepidus (3), the triumvir, and of Faustus *Cornelius Sulla and Pompeia, daughter of *Pompey, was consul ce 11, defended his sister Lepida in 20 and was appointed proconsul of Asia (21–2) despite objections on the score of his poverty and inactive disposition. His daughter Lepida married *Galba, the future emperor.

Article

Aemilius Regillus, Lucius, Roman praetor, 190 BCE  

John Briscoe

Article

Publication History:

Published online:
22 December 2015
Subjects:
  1. Roman History and Historiography

Aemilius Regillus, Lucius praetor in 190 BCE, defeated *Antiochus (3) III's fleet at Myonnesus; he celebrated a naval triumph in 189. During the battle he vowed a temple to the Lares permarini, which M. *Aemilius Lepidus (1) dedicated in 179; the text of the dedicatory tablet, badly corrupted, is preserved by Livy (40. 52).