Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus (consul 54 BC)
Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 98 BC |
| Died | 9 August 48 BC |
| Cause of death | Killed in battle |
| Nationality | Roman |
| Office | Curule Aedile (61 BC) Praetor (58 BC) Consul (54 BC) |
| Spouse | Porcia |
| Children | Gnaeus (consul 32 BC) |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance | Pompey |
| Rank | Proconsul[1] |
| Battles/wars |
|
Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus,
Biography
Ahenobarbus was born c. 98 BC as the son of consul
He is first mentioned in 70 BC by
He married
Ahenobarbus was praetor in 58. He was a candidate for the consulship of 55, and threatened that in his consulship he would carry out the measures he had proposed in his praetorship, and deprive Caesar of his province. He was defeated, however, by Pompey and Crassus, who also ran for the consulship, and was driven from the Campus Martius on the day of election by force of arms. He became a candidate again in the following year, and Caesar and Pompey, whose power was firmly established, did not oppose him. He was accordingly elected consul for 54 with Appius Claudius Pulcher, a relation of Pompey, so he was not able to effect anything against Caesar and Pompey. Both men were involved in an election scandal that year.[10] He did not go to a province at the expiration of his consulship; and as the friendship between Caesar and Pompey cooled, he became closely allied with the latter.
Ahenobarbus was the elected
The senate appointed him to succeed Caesar as governor of the province of further Gaul, and on the march of Caesar into Italy in 49, he was the only one of the aristocratic party who showed any energy or courage. He threw himself into Corfinium with about thirty cohorts, expecting to be supported by Pompey; but as the latter did nothing to assist him, his own troops compelled him to surrender to Caesar after a seven day siege.[11] Despairing of life, he ordered his doctor to give to him poison, but the latter gave him only a sleeping draught. His soldiers were incorporated into Caesar's army, but Ahenobarbus was dismissed by Caesar uninjured − an act of clemency which he did not expect, and which he would himself certainly not have shown had he instead been the victor.
Ahenobarbus' feelings against Caesar remained unaltered, but he was too deeply offended by the conduct of Pompey to join him immediately. He retired for a short time to
Ahenobarbus then proceeded east and joined Pompey in
The poet
He was the father of Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus, who served as consul in 32 BC.
See also
References
Citations
- ^ MRR ii, pp. 261, 277
- ^ Smith, William (1867), "Ahenobarbus (7), Lucius Domitius", in Smith, William (ed.), Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, vol. 1, Boston: Little, Brown and Company, p. 85
- ISBN 979-8-88644-771-2.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-009-38352-3.
- ^ Cassius Dio, xxxvii. 46
- ^ Pliny the Elder, Naturalis Historia viii. 54
- ^ Horace, Epistles 19. 47
- ISBN 978-84-1340-452-3.)
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link - ^ Smith, William (1867)
- ^ Badian, Ernst (1996), "Domitus Ahenobarbus, Lucius (1)", in Hornblower, Simon (ed.), Oxford Classical Dictionary, Oxford: Oxford University Press
- ^ John Leach, Pompey the Great, pp 178-183.
- ^ Lucan, Pharsalia, 7.219–220
- ^ Cicero, Philippics, 2.71
- ^ Suetonius, Nero 2
- ^ Cassius Dio, lib. xxxix. xli.
- ^ Julius Caesar, Commentarii de Bello Gallico
- ISBN 978-0-19-510233-8.
Bibliography
- Burns, Alfred (1966). "Pompey's Strategy and Domitius' Stand at Corfinium". JSTOR 4434912.
- Münzer, Friedrich, "Domitius 27", Realencyclopädie der classischen Altertumswissenschaft (RE, PW), volume V.1, columns 1334–1343 (Stuttgart, 1903).
Smith, William, ed. (1849). "Ahenobarbus". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. Vol. 1. London: John Murray. pp. 83–86.- Smith, William (1867), “Ahenobarbus (7), Lucius Domitius”, in Smith, William, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, 1, Boston: Little, Brown and Company, pp. 85
