Marcus Antonius Primus
Marcus Antonius Primus | |
|---|---|
 Terracotta bust by Marc Arcis | |
| Born | Tolosa (Toulouse) |
| Criminal charge | fraud[1] |
Marcus Antonius Primus (born between 20 AD and 35 AD[2] – died after 81 AD) was a senator and general of the Roman Empire.
Biography
Early life
Primus was born at Tolosa (Toulouse) in Gaul. Possibly he was descended from Gauls who had been enfranchised by Mark Antony during his Gallic campaign. He was nicknamed Beccus ("Beaky"), likely due to his physique.[2]
Career
During the reign of Nero, he was resident in Rome and a member of the Senate, from which he was expelled for conspiring to forge a will with Valerius Fabianus, and was banished from the city. He was subsequently reinstated by Galba, and placed in command of the Legio VII Galbiana in Pannonia.[3]
During the civil war, Primus was one of
Primus must have been alive during the reign of Domitian, since four epigrams of Martial are addressed to him.[5] Tacitus describes him as brave in action, ready of speech, clever at bringing others into odium, powerful in times of civil war and rebellion, greedy, extravagant, in peace a bad citizen, in war an ally not to be despised.
References
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Primus, Marcus Antonius". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 22 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 342.
Citations
- ISBN 978-0-140-44964-8.
- ^ ISBN 9781134562275.
- ISBN 978-0-19-510233-8.
- ^ "The Second Battle of Cremona: The Histories by Cornelius Tacitus".
- ^ The Epigrams of Martial, translated into English prose. Bohn's classical library. London: Bell & Sons. 1888.
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