Cethegus
Encyclopedia
Cethegus is the name of a Roman patrician family of the Cornelian gen
s. Like the younger Cato
its members kept up the old Roman fashion of dispensing with the tunic and leaving the arms bare (Horace
, Ars Poetica, 50; Lucan
, Pharsalia, ii. 543). The following individuals are of some importance:
Other ancient sources: Livy
xxv.2, 41, xxvii.II, xxix.ii, xxx.18.
Ancient sources: Sallust
, Catilina, 46-55; Cicero, In Cat. iii.5-i; Appian
, Bell. Civ. ii.2-5.
Gen
Gen may refer to:* Gen , 2006 Turkish horror film directed by Togan Gökbakar* Gen language, the language of Togo* Gen , a video game character from the Street Fighter series...
s. Like the younger Cato
Cato the Younger
Marcus Porcius Cato Uticensis , commonly known as Cato the Younger to distinguish him from his great-grandfather , was a politician and statesman in the late Roman Republic, and a follower of the Stoic philosophy...
its members kept up the old Roman fashion of dispensing with the tunic and leaving the arms bare (Horace
Horace
Quintus Horatius Flaccus , known in the English-speaking world as Horace, was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus.-Life:...
, Ars Poetica, 50; Lucan
Marcus Annaeus Lucanus
Marcus Annaeus Lucanus , better known in English as Lucan, was a Roman poet, born in Corduba , in the Hispania Baetica. Despite his short life, he is regarded as one of the outstanding figures of the Imperial Latin period...
, Pharsalia, ii. 543). The following individuals are of some importance:
- Marcus Cornelius CethegusMarcus Cornelius CethegusMarcus Cornelius Cethegus was a Roman Republican consul and censor during the Second Punic War, best known as a political ally of his kinsman Scipio Africanus.-Political career:...
, curule aedileAedileAedile was an office of the Roman Republic. Based in Rome, the aediles were responsible for maintenance of public buildings and regulation of public festivals. They also had powers to enforce public order. There were two pairs of aediles. Two aediles were from the ranks of plebeians and the other...
, 213 BC213 BCYear 213 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Maximus and Gracchus...
. In 211 BC, as praetorPraetorPraetor was a title granted by the government of Ancient Rome to men acting in one of two official capacities: the commander of an army, usually in the field, or the named commander before mustering the army; and an elected magistratus assigned varied duties...
, he had charge of ApuliaApuliaApulia is a region in Southern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its most southern portion, known as Salento peninsula, forms a high heel on the "boot" of Italy. The region comprises , and...
; later, he was sent to SicilySicilySicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...
, where he proved a successful administrator. In 209 BC he was censorCensor (ancient Rome)The censor was an officer in ancient Rome who was responsible for maintaining the census, supervising public morality, and overseeing certain aspects of the government's finances....
, and in 204 BC consulConsulConsul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...
. In 203 BC he was proconsulProconsulA proconsul was a governor of a province in the Roman Republic appointed for one year by the senate. In modern usage, the title has been used for a person from one country ruling another country or bluntly interfering in another country's internal affairs.-Ancient Rome:In the Roman Republic, a...
in Upper Italy, where, in conjunction with the praetor P. Quintilius Varus, he gained a hard-won victory over Mago BarcaMago BarcaMago, son of Hamilcar Barca, also spelled Magon, Phoenician MGN, "God sent" , was a member of the Barcid family, and played an important role in the Second Punic War, leading forces of Carthage against the Roman Republic in Hispania, Gallia Cisalpina and Italy...
, Hannibal's brother, in Insubrian territory, and obliged him to leave Italy. He died in 196 BC196 BCYear 196 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Purpureo and Marcellus...
. He had a great reputation as an orator, and is characterized by EnniusEnniusQuintus Ennius was a writer during the period of the Roman Republic, and is often considered the father of Roman poetry. He was of Calabrian descent...
as the quintessence of persuasiveness (suadae medulla). Horace (Ars Poet. 50; Epistles, ii.2.117) calls him an authority on the use of Latin words.
Other ancient sources: Livy
Livy
Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
xxv.2, 41, xxvii.II, xxix.ii, xxx.18.
- Gaius Cornelius CethegusGaius Cornelius CethegusGaius Cornelius Cethegus was a consul of the Roman Republic in 197 BC, from the Cethegus branch of the gens Cornelia .He became proconsul in Spain in 200 BC and was elected aedile in absentia. In this office he arranged magnificent plays...
became proconsul in Spain in 200 BC200 BCYear 200 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Maximus and Cotta...
and was elected aedile in absentia. In this office he arranged magnificent plays. During his consulate in 197 BC197 BCYear 197 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Cethegus and Rufus...
he fought successfully in Gallia Cisalpina against the InsubriaInsubriaInsubria is a historical-geographical region which corresponds to the area inhabited in Classical antiquity by the Insubres. Secondarily the name can refer to the Duchy of Milan...
ns and Cenomanes and received a triumph. He was elected censor in 194 BC194 BCYear 194 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Africanus and Longus...
. Along with Scipio AfricanusScipio AfricanusPublius Cornelius Scipio Africanus , also known as Scipio Africanus and Scipio the Elder, was a general in the Second Punic War and statesman of the Roman Republic...
and Marcus Minucius Rufus in 193 BC193 BCYear 193 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Merula and Thermus...
, he went as a commissioner to mediate an end to the war between MasinissaMasinissaMasinissa — also spelled Massinissa and Massena — was the first King of Numidia, an ancient North African nation of ancient Libyan tribes. As a successful general, Masinissa fought in the Second Punic War , first against the Romans as an ally of Carthage an later switching sides when he saw which...
and CarthageCarthageCarthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
.
- Publius Cornelius CethegusPublius Cornelius Cethegus (consul 181 BC)Publius Cornelius Cethegus, Roman statesman, was a member of the gens Cornelia of the branch with the cognomen Cethegus.Cethegus was elected curule aedile in 187 BC, praetor in 185 BC and consul in 181 BC. During his consulship, the grave of the legendary Roman king Numa Pompilius was discovered...
, consul in 181 BC
- Publius Cornelius CethegusPublius Cornelius CethegusPublius Cornelius Cethegus, was a member of the gens Cornelia of the branch with the cognomen Cethegus.Cethegus was first a supporter of Gaius Marius but when Lucius Cornelius Sulla returned from the East after having beaten Mithridates Eupator, Cethegus deserted the cause of the populares and...
- Gaius Cornelius CethegusGaius Cornelius CethegusGaius Cornelius Cethegus was a consul of the Roman Republic in 197 BC, from the Cethegus branch of the gens Cornelia .He became proconsul in Spain in 200 BC and was elected aedile in absentia. In this office he arranged magnificent plays...
, the boldest and most dangerous of CatilineCatilineLucius Sergius Catilina , known in English as Catiline, was a Roman politician of the 1st century BC who is best known for the Catiline conspiracy, an attempt to overthrow the Roman Republic, and in particular the power of the aristocratic Senate.-Family background:Catiline was born in 108 BC to...
's associates. Like many other youthful profligates, he joined the conspiracy in the hope of getting his debts cancelled. When Catiline left Rome in 63 BC63 BCYear 63 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Cicero and Hibrida...
, after CiceroCiceroMarcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
's first speech, Cethegus remained behind as leader of the conspirators with Lentulus SuraPublius Cornelius Lentulus (Sura)Publius Cornelius Lentulus, nicknamed Sura, was one of the chief figures in the Catiline conspiracy and also a stepfather of Mark Antony....
. He himself undertook to murder Cicero and other prominent men, but was hampered by the dilatoriness of Sura, whose age and rank entitled him to the chief consideration. The discovery of arms in Cethegus's house, and of the letter which he had given to the ambassadors of the AllobrogesAllobrogesThe Allobroges were a Celtic tribe of ancient Gaul, located between the Rhône River and the Lake of Geneva in what later became Savoy, Dauphiné, and Vivarais. Their cities were in the areas of modern-day Annecy, Chambéry and Grenoble, the modern of Isère, and modern Switzerland...
, who had been invited to cooperate, led to his arrest. He was condemned to death, and executed, with Sura and others, on the night of 5 December.
Ancient sources: Sallust
Sallust
Gaius Sallustius Crispus, generally known simply as Sallust , a Roman historian, belonged to a well-known plebeian family, and was born at Amiternum in the country of the Sabines...
, Catilina, 46-55; Cicero, In Cat. iii.5-i; Appian
Appian
Appian of Alexandria was a Roman historian of Greek ethnicity who flourished during the reigns of Trajan, Hadrian, and Antoninus Pius.He was born ca. 95 in Alexandria. He tells us that, after having filled the chief offices in the province of Egypt, he went to Rome ca. 120, where he practised as...
, Bell. Civ. ii.2-5.