The Novus Homo ‘New Man’ The Romans Chapter 2 Case Study The Romans Chapter 2 Case Study

Cursus Honorum From The number of men who held lesser magistracies increased over time (especially under Sulla) but this did not create more opportunities in the higher offices. In fact, it created a bottleneck as more men were put on a track that only a few would be able to complete. To prevent people rising too quickly, caps were also put on ages to attain offices (see next slide), but many exceptions were made.

Lex Villia Annalis (180 BC) Minimum two-year interval between offices Tribunate and aedilship facultative Consulship (42 years) Praetorship (39 years) Quaestorship (25 years?)

Homines Novi: Case Studies In the following three historical examples, consider the following questions: How did a novus homo come to power? How long did it take to attain these offices? Were they able to establish roles for their offspring, as aristocratic families did? Each case study will include a comparison with a contemporary aristocrat.

Novus Homo: Gaius Marcius Rutilus, mid-4 th century BC (Livy) Elected consul in 357 (plebeian) Elected dictator in 356 for a war with the Etruscans; the Senate tried to stop his triumph Elected consul again in 352 Ran for censor in 351 with heavy opposition from the Senate but won anyway Legacy: his son (same name) was elected tribune of the plebs in 311, consul in 310 and censor in 294 BC.

Aristocrat: Appius Claudius Caecus, late 4 th century BC Son of a prestigious family, with an ancestor who was a decemvir (i.e. wrote the Twelve Tables) Caecus was elected censor in 312 before he was elected consul Elected consul 307 and 296 Elected dictator twice, 292 and 285 Legacy: his grandson was a consul who began the Punic Wars; his descendants were in-laws of the Gracchi brothers and friends of Cicero and the Julio-Claudian emperors (Tiberius, Claudius and Nero).

Novus Homo: Gaius Duilius, mid-3 rd century BC Little is known of his family or early career due to his humble origins Elected consul in 260 BC with Gaius Cornelius Scipio Asina Had a massive victory at Mylae after his co- consul was defeated Elected censor in 258 (with Lucius Cornelius Scipio) and was allowed a rostral column in the Forum Romanum and a victory temple to Janus in the Forum Holitorium Elected dictator in 231 BC Legacy: little is known of his progeny.

Aristocrat: Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus ( BC) His father (L. Corn. Scipio) was censor with Duilius; his grandfather was Scipio Barbatus, censor 280 BC, among other things Elected quaestor in 213 when 22 years old; the tribunes objected, but were overruled Elected proconsul (Spain) in 211, when 25 Elected consul in 205 BC, when 31 Given agnomen Africanus in 201 BC Elected censor in 199 BC, when 37; technically still too young to run for consul Legacy: both sons became praetors in 174, but carried on no further; adopted heir Scipio Aemilianus Africanus. His descendants include Cornelia, the mother of the Gracchi and Marc Antony’s third wife, Fulvia, and Scipio Nascia, who was part of the defence in the trial of Verrem (cf. Cicero’s In Verrem).

Novus Homo: Gaius Marius ( BC) From Arpinum, a town that was given full citizenship rights only in 188 BC Serves militarily under P. Corn. Scipio Aemilianus Elected military tribune at BC Elected quaestor, age BC Elected Plebeian tribune, age 37 Loses aedile election, age BC Elected praetor, age BC Asks his Metelli patron for permission to run for consul and is told to wait and run with Metellus’ son (who was 20, so in 20 years’ time, when Marius would be 69); elected as commander for campaign in Numidia by the people, age Runs for consul without support and is elected, age BC Successively re-elected consul five times, mid-50s 86 BC Re-elected consul, rules for only 17 days, age 71 Legacy: his son is elected consul in 82 BC, age 27/8; his nephew is Julius Caesar.

Aristocrat: Lucius Cornelius Sulla, BC From presitigous but poor branch of the Cornelia gens 107 BC nominated as quaestor for the Metelli family (to replace Marius), age BC Serves as tribunus militum (104 BC) and legatus 97 BC Elected urban praetor, age BC Elected pro consul, age BC Elected consul, age BC Engaged in a number of successful military campaigns 82/81 BC Appointed dictator by the Senate, age BC Elected consul Legacy: Sulla fundamentally restructured the government with the help of the Senate and tarnished the title of dictator. One day, having been elected dictator for life, he simply retired and left no heir to his powers. His grandson minted a series of coins.

Conclusions The rules set out for attaining office were well conceived, but they were not consistently applied. While it was useful to be able to empower successful individuals in a time of need, such as P. Cornelius Scipio Africanus, this set a pattern of behaviour that was difficult to break. The homines novi do not tend to be given exceptional powers until the rise of Marius, who had already followed the cursus honorum. You couldn’t keep a good man down in Rome, but equally you had trouble getting rid of a bad one. And the legacies of all but one of the new men are not impressive. The rise of a novus homo was usually turbulent, fraught with opposition and divided loyalties to the aristocratic classes, be they patrician or optimate (the Metelli, for example, were a plebeian gens, but this made no difference to Marius or Sulla). Passing down one’s glory to one’s family was equally, if not more, difficult. As happy as one may be to see a meritocracy in action, it is equally clear that, for these brave underdogs, the cards were always stacked against them.