Manius Laberius Maximus
Encyclopedia
Manius Laberius Maximus was a Roman who lived in the 1st and 2nd centuries. Maximus was a significant Roman Senator and military figure in the reigns of Roman Emperor
s Domitian
and Trajan
.
He was a member of a family that originated in Lanuvium
, where his presumed grandfather, Lucius Laberius Maximus, was a magistrate. His father, also Lucius Laberius Maximus
, was a high equestrian official who was successively praefectus annonae, Prefect
of Egypt
and Praetorian prefect
in the years 80
-84
. His mother is unknown. Lucius' achievements enabled his son to be adlected to the senatorial order.
Maximus was a suffect consul (see Roman consul
) in 89
and is believed to have been Legatus
of Numidia
before becoming governor of Moesia
Inferior in 100
-101
. (While in Moesia a slave of his, Callidromus, was captured by the Dacia
ns: this man was interviewed in Bithynia
in 111
by Pliny the Younger
- see Pliny, Ep., X, 74). Maximus was a general in Trajan's Dacian Wars of 101
and 102
and according to Cassius Dio particularly distinguished himself in the latter campaign. He was rewarded for his services with a second consulship in 103
as colleague to the Emperor himself, a sign of high favour. The favour did not last. According to Augustan History
(Hadrian, V, 5) on the accession of emperor Hadrian
in 117
Maximus was 'in exile on an island under suspicion of designs on the throne'. Nothing more is known of these suspected designs, but they prompted Hadrian's guard prefect Publius Acilius Attianus
to recommend Maximus be put to death. The sequel is not known, but Hadrian was tiring of Attianus and it is more likely that Maximus was pardoned.
The identity of Maximus’ wife is unknown. His only known child was a daughter, Laberia Hostilia Crispina
. After his death, Crispina became the heiress to his fortune. Crispina became the second wife of Roman consul and senator Caius Bruttius Praesens
Lucius Fulvius Rusticus. Crispina bore Praesens a son, the future consul Lucius Fulvius Gaius Bruttius Praesens
Laberius Maximus 'Polyonymus'. Through his grandchild, Maximus was the great-grandfather of the consul Lucius Bruttius Quintius Crispinus
and the Roman empress Bruttia Crispina
, who married the Roman Emperor
Commodus
. Through Lucius Bruttius Quintius Crispinus
, he had further descendants who would become consuls.
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 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...
and Trajan
Trajan
Trajan , was Roman Emperor from 98 to 117 AD. Born into a non-patrician family in the province of Hispania Baetica, in Spain Trajan rose to prominence during the reign of emperor Domitian. Serving as a legatus legionis in Hispania Tarraconensis, in Spain, in 89 Trajan supported the emperor against...
.
He was a member of a family that originated in Lanuvium
Lanuvium
Lanuvium is an ancient city of Latium , some 32 km southeast of Rome, a little southwest of the Via Appia....
, where his presumed grandfather, Lucius Laberius Maximus, was a magistrate. His father, also Lucius Laberius Maximus
Lucius Laberius Maximus
Lucius Laberius Maximus was a Roman governor of the Egypt province in 83, and prefect of the imperial bodyguard, known as the Praetorian Guard, during the reign of Roman Emperor Domitian, in 84...
, was a high equestrian official who was successively praefectus annonae, Prefect
Prefect
Prefect is a magisterial title of varying definition....
of Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
and Praetorian prefect
Praetorian prefect
Praetorian prefect was the title of a high office in the Roman Empire. Originating as the commander of the Praetorian Guard, the office gradually acquired extensive legal and administrative functions, with its holders becoming the Emperor's chief aides...
in the years 80
80
Year 80 was a leap year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Augustus and Domitianus...
-84
84
Year 84 was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Augustus and Sabinus...
. His mother is unknown. Lucius' achievements enabled his son to be adlected to the senatorial order.
Maximus was a suffect consul (see Roman consul
Roman consul
A consul served in the highest elected political office of the Roman Republic.Each year, two consuls were elected together, to serve for a one-year term. Each consul was given veto power over his colleague and the officials would alternate each month...
) in 89
89
Year 89 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Fulvus and Atratinus...
and is believed to have been 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...
of Numidia
Numidia
Numidia was an ancient Berber kingdom in part of present-day Eastern Algeria and Western Tunisia in North Africa. It is known today as the Chawi-land, the land of the Chawi people , the direct descendants of the historical Numidians or the Massyles The kingdom began as a sovereign state and later...
before becoming governor of Moesia
Moesia
Moesia was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans, along the south bank of the Danube River. It included territories of modern-day Southern Serbia , Northern Republic of Macedonia, Northern Bulgaria, Romanian Dobrudja, Southern Moldova, and Budjak .-History:In ancient...
Inferior in 100
100
Year 100 was a leap year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Traianus and Frontinus...
-101
101
Year 101 was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Traianus and Paetus...
. (While in Moesia a slave of his, Callidromus, was captured by the Dacia
Dacia
In ancient geography, especially in Roman sources, Dacia was the land inhabited by the Dacians or Getae as they were known by the Greeks—the branch of the Thracians north of the Haemus range...
ns: this man was interviewed in Bithynia
Bithynia
Bithynia was an ancient region, kingdom and Roman province in the northwest of Asia Minor, adjoining the Propontis, the Thracian Bosporus and the Euxine .-Description:...
in 111
111
Year 111 was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Piso and Bolanus...
by Pliny the Younger
Pliny the Younger
Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus, born Gaius Caecilius or Gaius Caecilius Cilo , better known as Pliny the Younger, was a lawyer, author, and magistrate of Ancient Rome. Pliny's uncle, Pliny the Elder, helped raise and educate him...
- see Pliny, Ep., X, 74). Maximus was a general in Trajan's Dacian Wars of 101
101
Year 101 was a common year starting on Friday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Traianus and Paetus...
and 102
102
Year 102 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Ursus and Sura...
and according to Cassius Dio particularly distinguished himself in the latter campaign. He was rewarded for his services with a second consulship in 103
103
Year 103 was a common year starting on Sunday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Traianus and Maximus...
as colleague to the Emperor himself, a sign of high favour. The favour did not last. According to Augustan History
Augustan History
The Augustan History is a late Roman collection of biographies, in Latin, of the Roman Emperors, their junior colleagues and usurpers of the period 117 to 284...
(Hadrian, V, 5) on the accession of emperor Hadrian
Hadrian
Hadrian , was Roman Emperor from 117 to 138. He is best known for building Hadrian's Wall, which marked the northern limit of Roman Britain. In Rome, he re-built the Pantheon and constructed the Temple of Venus and Roma. In addition to being emperor, Hadrian was a humanist and was philhellene in...
in 117
117
Year 117 was a common year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Niger and Apronianus...
Maximus was 'in exile on an island under suspicion of designs on the throne'. Nothing more is known of these suspected designs, but they prompted Hadrian's guard prefect Publius Acilius Attianus
Publius Acilius Attianus
Publius Acilius Attianus was a powerful Roman official who played a significant though obscure role in the transfer of the imperial power from Trajan to Hadrian. He was born in Italica, Hispania Baetica, which was also the birthplace of Publius Aelius Hadrianus Afer, the emperor Hadrian’s father...
to recommend Maximus be put to death. The sequel is not known, but Hadrian was tiring of Attianus and it is more likely that Maximus was pardoned.
The identity of Maximus’ wife is unknown. His only known child was a daughter, Laberia Hostilia Crispina
Laberia Hostilia Crispina
Laberia Hostilia Crispina or her full name Laberia Marcia Hostilia Crispina Moecia Cornelia was a noble Roman woman and heiress that lived between the second half of the 1st century and the first half of the 2nd century in the Roman Empire....
. After his death, Crispina became the heiress to his fortune. Crispina became the second wife of Roman consul and senator Caius Bruttius Praesens
Caius Bruttius Praesens
Caius or Gaius Bruttius Praesens Lucius Fulvius Rusticus was an important Roman senator of the reigns of Roman emperors Trajan, Hadrian and Antoninus Pius. A friend of Pliny the Younger and Hadrian, he was twice consul, governed provinces, commanded armies and ended his career as City Prefect of...
Lucius Fulvius Rusticus. Crispina bore Praesens a son, the future consul Lucius Fulvius Gaius Bruttius Praesens
Gaius Bruttius Praesens
Lucius Fulvius Gaius Bruttius Praesens Laberius Maximus Polyonymus was a prominent Roman senator and twice consul during the reigns of Roman emperors Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius and Commodus. His career is largely known from inscriptions...
Laberius Maximus 'Polyonymus'. Through his grandchild, Maximus was the great-grandfather of the consul Lucius Bruttius Quintius Crispinus
Lucius Bruttius Quintius Crispinus
Lucius Bruttius Quintius Crispinus was a Roman who lived in the 2nd century. His mother is unknown and his father was Roman consul Gaius Bruttius Praesens. Crispinus' paternal grandparents were consul and senator Caius Bruttius Praesens and rich heiress Laberia Hostilia Crispina, who was the...
and the Roman empress Bruttia Crispina
Bruttia Crispina
Bruttia Crispina was the Empress of Rome and wife of Roman Emperor Commodus.Crispina’s mother is unknown and her father was twice consul Gaius Bruttius Praesens. Crispina’s paternal grandparents were consul and senator Caius Bruttius Praesens and rich heiress Laberia Hostilia Crispina, who was the...
, who married the 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...
Commodus
Commodus
Commodus , was Roman Emperor from 180 to 192. He also ruled as co-emperor with his father Marcus Aurelius from 177 until his father's death in 180. His name changed throughout his reign; see changes of name for earlier and later forms. His accession as emperor was the first time a son had succeeded...
. Through Lucius Bruttius Quintius Crispinus
Lucius Bruttius Quintius Crispinus
Lucius Bruttius Quintius Crispinus was a Roman who lived in the 2nd century. His mother is unknown and his father was Roman consul Gaius Bruttius Praesens. Crispinus' paternal grandparents were consul and senator Caius Bruttius Praesens and rich heiress Laberia Hostilia Crispina, who was the...
, he had further descendants who would become consuls.