Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus
Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus | |
---|---|
Quintus Caecilius Metellus Celer | |
Succeeded by | Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus and Aulus Gabinius |
Personal details | |
Born | c. 102 BC |
Died | 48 BC |
Spouse(s) | 1 Unknown 2 Porcia |
Children | By first wife: Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus Gaius Calpurnius Bibulus Lucius Calpurnius Bibulus Calpurnia[1] By Porcia: (Gaius) Calpurnius Bibulus Calpurnia[2] |
Military service | |
Allegiance | Roman Republic |
Commands | Governor of Syria Commander of the Adriatic Fleet |
Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus (c. 102 – 48 BC) was a politician of the Roman Republic. He was a conservative and upholder of the established social order who served in several magisterial positions alongside Julius Caesar and conceived a lifelong enmity towards him. In 59 BC, he was consul alongside Julius Caesar. Their partnership was contentious to the extent that Caesar's supporters assaulted Bibulus in Rome's main forum on the eve of an important vote. Bibulus withdrew from public politics for the rest of his term.
Between 51 and 50 BC, he was governor of
Early years
Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus was a member of the
He has been described as "earnest and somewhat plodding".
Bibulus was firmly in the camp of the self-described
Consul
Caesar began his term as consul by "presenting a moderate and carefully reasoned bill"
The following day, Bibulus entered the Senate where he made a formal complaint about the treatment which he had suffered, and appealed to the Senate to annul the law, but this was not acted upon.
By the middle of his consulship Caesar's popularity began to wane, whilst Bibulus's popularity was, according to Cicero, on the rise, mostly due to his vitriolic attacks on Caesar.[26] Seeking to further cause trouble for Caesar and Pompey, in July he directed that the consular elections for 58 BC were to be postponed until 18 October.[27][28] However, in August Lucius Vettius accused Bibulus and one of the consular candidates for 58 BC, Lucius Cornelius Lentulus Crus, of being involved in a plot to assassinate Pompey. Bibulus responded by declaring that he had warned Pompey of the possibility of an assassination attempt on 13 May.[29] Vettius was then murdered the day before Bibulus was to be questioned about his alleged involvement in the plot.[30] Lentulus was unsuccessful when the delayed elections finally took place.[31] Aulus Gabinius and Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesoninus won the election.
Bibulus attempted to block Caesar's five-year appointment as governor of the provinces of
Senator and governor
Throughout the 50s Bibulus continued to attack Pompey in the Senate, blaming him for the fighting between Publius Clodius and Titus Annius Milo in 56 BC,[34] to the point that Pompey was convinced that Bibulus was in league with plotters who were intent on assassinating him.[35] He also voted against Pompey being granted permission to go to Egypt in person to restore Ptolemy XII Auletes to his throne.[36] Nevertheless, by the end of the 50s, Pompey had been cynically embraced by the boni, who saw in him a champion to bring down Caesar. In 52 BC as a consular senator Bibulus proposed an unconstitutional and illegal resolution, which the Senate accepted, allowing Pompey to serve as sole consul to deal with the breakdown of order in Rome after the murder of Publius Clodius.[37][38]
As a result of a law passed by Pompey during his sole consulship, proscribing that governorships could not be held by persons who had served as
Civil war and death
Completing his governorship, Bibulus returned to the west in 49 BC to find that
Bibulus was caught by surprise when on the evening of 6 November Caesar and his fleet successfully crossed the Adriatic, landing at Palaeste. Although Bibulus was stationed only 50 miles (80 km) south of Palaeste, he had not sent out scouts and his ships were not ready to put to sea to intercept Caesar's transports.[45] When he heard of Caesar's crossing, he ordered his crews to return to their ships, and sailed northward, hoping to capture the ships carrying Caesar's reinforcements. Again too slow, he only managed to arrive for their return journey to Italy, capturing and burning 30 of Caesar's transports.[46] He then maneuvered to prevent any further ships crossing to reinforce or supply Caesar. He only captured one transport, which had been chartered by some private individuals and had refused to obey Bibulus's orders. Enraged, he ordered the entire crew killed.[47]
Bibulus then blockaded all the harbors along the coast, hoping to prevent any further crossings from Italy, and leaving Caesar stranded in Epirus. He found that he could not resupply his ships without abandoning the blockade, and so he attempted to bluff Caesar's legates at Oricum into persuading Caesar to agree to a temporary truce so that he could resupply. When Bibulus refused to guarantee the safety of the envoys Caesar wished to send to discuss a peaceful settlement with Pompey, Caesar realised it was a ploy and pulled out of negotiations.[48] Determined to continue with the blockade, Bibulus pushed himself too hard; he fell ill in early 48 BC and died near Corcyra before the end of winter.[49]
Family
Bibulus was the son of Gaius Calpurnius. Bibulus married twice. From his first marriage he had three sons, including the later statesman
Notes
References
- ISBN 978-0-674-37939-8.
- ^ JSTOR 311404.
- ^ a b Tullius Cicero, Marcus (1965). Shackleton Bailey, David Roy (ed.). Letters to Atticus: 68-59 B.C. 1-45 (Books 1-2). University of Michigan: University Press. p. 329.
- ISBN 978-0-520-20153-8.
- ^ Holland, pg. 224
- ^ Broughton, pg. 158
- ^ Broughton, pg. 173
- ^ Holland, pg. 226
- ^ Syme, pg. 24
- ^ Holland, pg. 225
- ^ Syme, pg. 34
- ^ Holmes I, pg. 308
- ^ Holmes I, pg. 309
- ^ Holland, pg. 226
- ^ Holland, pg. 226
- ^ Broughton, pg. 187
- ^ Bringmann, pg. 232
- ^ Holmes I, pg. 313
- ^ Holland, pg. 227–8
- ^ Plutarch, Life of Pompey, 48.1; Life of Cato, 32.2.
- ^ Holland, pg. 227–8
- ^ Holmes I, pg. 314
- ^ Bringmann, pg. 234
- ^ Suetonius, Life of Julius Caesar, 20:2
- ^ Holmes I, pg. 315
- ^ Holmes I, pgs. 320–321
- ^ Bringmann, pg. 235
- ^ Holmes I, pg. 322
- ^ Holmes I, pg. 323
- ^ Appian, Civil Wars, Book 2, 12:44–45
- ^ Holmes I, pgs. 323–324
- ^ Holmes I, pg. 325
- ^ Holmes I, pg. 329
- ^ Holland, pg. 256
- ^ Holmes II, pg. 69
- ^ Smith, pgs. 487–488
- ^ Holland, pg. 291
- ^ Holmes II, pg. 168
- ^ Syme, pg. 39; Smith, pg. 488
- ^ Morrell pg. 184
- ^ Broughton, pg. 242; Smith, pg. 488
- ^ Smith, pg. 488
- ^ Broughton, pg. 261
- ^ Holmes III, pg. 116
- ^ Holmes III, pg. 118
- ^ Holmes III, pg. 123
- ^ Holmes III, pg. 124
- ^ Holmes III, pgs. 125–126
- ^ Holmes III, pg. 126
- ^ Smith, pg. 488
- ^ Holland, pg. 339
- ISBN 978-0-674-37939-8.
- ISBN 978-3-88849-304-1.
- ^ Cicero, Brutus, 77. 94
Sources
Ancient
- Appian (1913) [2nd century AD]. Civil Wars. Loeb Classical Library. Translated by White, Horace. Cambridge – via LacusCurtius.
{{cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - Plutarch (1919). "Life of Cato the Younger". Plutarch Lives. Loeb Classical Library. Vol. 8. Translated by Perrin, Bernadotte – via LacusCurtius.
- Plutarch (1917) [2nd century AD]. "Life of Pompey". Parallel Lives. Loeb Classical Library. Vol. 5. Translated by Perrin, Bernadotte. OCLC 40115288– via LacusCurtius.
- Suetonius (1913–14). "Life of Caesar". Lives of the Twelve Caesars. Loeb Classical Library. Translated by Rolfe, J C. Cambridge: Harvard University Press – via LacusCurtius.
Modern
- Bringmann, Klaus, A History of the Roman Republic (2007) Cambridge, UK ; Malden, MA: Polity OCLC 318972410
- Broughton, T. Robert S., The Magistrates of the Roman Republic, Vol II (1952) New York : American Philological Association. OCLC 868514975
- Holland, Tom, Rubicon: The Triumph and Tragedy of the Roman Republic (2004) London: Abacus. ISBN 978-0-349-11563-4
- Holmes, T. Rice, The Roman Republic and the Founder of the Empire, Vol. I (1923) Cambridge: The Clarendon Press. OCLC 2845034
- Holmes, T. Rice, The Roman Republic and the Founder of the Empire, Vol. II (1923) Cambridge: The Clarendon Press. OCLC 163400823
- Holmes, T. Rice, The Roman Republic and the Founder of the Empire, Vol. III (1923) Cambridge: The Clarendon Press. OCLC 889250448
- Morrell, Kit, Pompey, Cato, and the Governance of the Roman Empire (2017) Oxford: Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-875514-2
- Smith, William, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, Vol I (1867). London: J. Murray. OCLC 490058450
- Syme, Ronald, The Roman Revolution (1939) Oxford: Clarendon OCLC 185188894