Lucius Junius Quintus Vibius Crispus, sometimes known as Quintus Vibius Crispus was a witty and an influential Roman Politician

Roman Senate

The Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...

 that lived in the 1st century. Crispus came from a family of Roman Equestrian order and by birth he was of the Vibius

Vibius

Vibius was the nomen of the Roman gens Vibia . Various members of this family include:-Men of the Gens:* Gaius Vibius Pansa Caetronianus - Politician of the Roman Republic* Aulius Vibius Habitus - Suffect consul of 8...

 gens

Gens

In ancient Rome, a gens , plural gentes, referred to a family, consisting of all those individuals who shared the same nomen and claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens was called a stirps . The gens was an important social structure at Rome and throughout Italy during the...

. His mother was a Roman noblewoman called Junia, who came from the Junius (gens)

Junius (gens)

The gens Junia was one of the most celebrated families in Rome. The gens may originally have been patrician. The family was already prominent in the last days of the Roman monarchy...

. Crispus’ brother was Quintus Vibius Secundus

Quintus Vibius Secundus

Quintus Vibius Secundus was a Roman Politician that lived in the 1st century and the 2nd century. Secundus came from a family of Roman Equestrian order and by birth he was of the Vibius gens. His mother was a Roman noblewoman called Junia, who came from the Junius . Secundus’ brother was the...

. Crispus was born and raised in Rome

Rome

Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...

. There is a possibility; Crispus could be related to suffect consul Lucius Vibius Sabinus

Lucius Vibius Sabinus

Lucius Vibius Sabinus was a Roman Senator that lived in the 1st century. Little is known on his family however Sabinus originally came from a family of consular rank. There is a possibility, Sabinus was related to Lucius Junius Quintus Vibius Crispus and his brother Quintus Vibius Secundus...

, father of the Roman Empress Vibia Sabina

Vibia Sabina

Vibia Sabina was a Roman Empress, wife and second cousin, once removed, to Roman Emperor Hadrian. She was the daughter to Salonina Matidia , and suffect consul Lucius Vibius Sabinus...

.

In late 59, Crispus’ brother was convicted for extortion on a charge brought by the Mauretania

Mauretania

Mauretania is a part of the historical Ancient Libyan land in North Africa. It corresponds to present day Morocco and a part of western Algeria...

ns and was expelled from Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

. Crispus through his influence in the Roman Senate, manage to save his brother from a worse sentence.

Crispus served as a Legatus

Legatus

A legatus was a general in the Roman army, equivalent to a modern general officer. Being of senatorial rank, his immediate superior was the dux, and he outranked all military tribunes...

 in Hispania Citerior

Hispania Citerior

During the Roman Republic, Hispania Citerior was a region of Hispania roughly occupying the northeastern coast and the Ebro Valley of what is now Spain. Hispania Ulterior was located west of Hispania Citerior—that is, farther away from Rome.-External links:*...

 and was three times suffect consul during the reigns of Roman Emperor

Roman Emperor

The Roman emperor was the ruler of the Roman State during the imperial period . The Romans had no single term for the office although at any given time, a given title was associated with the emperor...

s Nero

Nero

Nero , was Roman Emperor from 54 to 68, and the last in the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Nero was adopted by his great-uncle Claudius to become his heir and successor, and succeeded to the throne in 54 following Claudius' death....

 54-68, Vespasian

Vespasian

Vespasian , was Roman Emperor from 69 AD to 79 AD. Vespasian was the founder of the Flavian dynasty, which ruled the Empire for a quarter century. Vespasian was descended from a family of equestrians, who rose into the senatorial rank under the Emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty...

 69-79 and Domitian

Domitian

Domitian was Roman Emperor from 81 to 96. Domitian was the third and last emperor of the Flavian dynasty.Domitian's youth and early career were largely spent in the shadow of his brother Titus, who gained military renown during the First Jewish-Roman War...

 81-96. During the reign of Domitian, one had asked Crispus if anyone was closeted with the Emperor, Crispus wittily answered No, not even a fly.

Sources

• Suetonius
  Suetonius
  Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus, commonly known as Suetonius , was a Roman historian belonging to the equestrian order in the early Imperial era....
  
  , The Twelve Caesars - Domitian
• Tacitus
  Tacitus
  Publius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
  
  - The Annals of Imperial Rome
• Marcus Aurelius: a biography By Anthony Richard Birley Edition: 2, revised, illustrated Published by Routledge, 2000 ISBN 0415171253, 9780415171250
• Trajan: Optimus Princeps : a Life and Times, By Julian Bennett, Edition: illustrated published by Routledge, 1997 ISBN 0415165245, 9780415165242