Pomponius Secundus
Encyclopedia
Publius Pomponius Secundus was a distinguished statesman and poet in the reigns of Tiberius
, Caligula
, and Claudius
. He was on intimate terms with the elder Plinius
, who wrote a biography of him, now lost.
, who by other marriages was the mother of Publius Suillius Rufus and the general Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo
. Pomponius' brother, Quintus Pomponius Secundus, was involved in various intrigues during the reigns of Tiberius and Claudius. Quintus tried to protect his brother from Tiberius' displeasure.
seven years before the accession of Caligula; that is, circa A.D. 30; but his name does not appear in the consular fasti
. He was one of the friends of Sejanus
, who was consul in 31, and on the latter's fall in October of that year, Pomponius was thrown into prison, where he remained until 37. Caligula released him, and raised him to the consulship in A.D. 41.
In the time of Claudius, Pomponius was appointed the emperor's legatus
in Germania
. In A.D. 50, a group of Chatti
invaded Germania Superior
. Pomponius sent two columns against them, supported by cavalry. One group of raiders was surprised and entrapped, and the Roman troops discovered amongst them several survivors of the defeat of Varus, who had been pressed into slavery forty years earlier. The other column engaged the main body of the raiders, and inflicted heavy losses. Rather than attacking Pomponius' army, which now held the high ground, the Chatti sued for peace, and Pomponius received the honor of a triumph
.
, and the younger Plinius
, and were read even in a much later age, as one of them is quoted by the grammarian Charisius
. These tragedies were first put on the stage in the time of Claudius. Quintilian asserts that he was far superior to any writer of tragedies he had known, and Tacitus
expresses a high opinion of his literary abilities.
Secundus devoted much attention to the niceties of grammar and style, on which he was recognized as an authority. His subject matter was Greek, with one known exception, a praetexta
called Aeneas. Tragedians in the Julio-Claudian
and Flavian
periods typically were men of relatively high social status, and their works often expressed their political views under an insufficient veil of fiction. Only a few lines of his work remain, some of which belong to Aeneas.
of Pomponius Secundus is doubtful. In one passage Tacitus calls him Publius, and in another Lucius, while Cassius Dio names him Quintus. Tacitus, however, calls his brother Quintus. An inscription appears to assign him the name of "[Calv]isius Sabinus Pomponius Secundus", but the nature of his connection with the family of the Calvisii Sabini, if any, is unknown.
Tiberius
Tiberius , was Roman Emperor from 14 AD to 37 AD. Tiberius was by birth a Claudian, son of Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia Drusilla. His mother divorced Nero and married Augustus in 39 BC, making him a step-son of Octavian...
, Caligula
Caligula
Caligula , also known as Gaius, was Roman Emperor from 37 AD to 41 AD. Caligula was a member of the house of rulers conventionally known as the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Caligula's father Germanicus, the nephew and adopted son of Emperor Tiberius, was a very successful general and one of Rome's most...
, and Claudius
Claudius
Claudius , was Roman Emperor from 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, he was the son of Drusus and Antonia Minor. He was born at Lugdunum in Gaul and was the first Roman Emperor to be born outside Italy...
. He was on intimate terms with the elder Plinius
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
, who wrote a biography of him, now lost.
Family
Pomponius' mother was VistiliaVistilia
Vistilia was a Roman woman who lived in the 1st century and came from a family that held the praetorship. Her brother was probably Sextus Vistilius, a former praetor, who was a former close friend to late Roman General Nero Claudius Drusus. Nero Claudius Drusus was the younger brother to Roman...
, who by other marriages was the mother of Publius Suillius Rufus and the general Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo
Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo
Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo was a Roman general and a brother-in-law of the emperor Caligula.-Descent:Corbulo was born in Italy into a senatorial family...
. Pomponius' brother, Quintus Pomponius Secundus, was involved in various intrigues during the reigns of Tiberius and Claudius. Quintus tried to protect his brother from Tiberius' displeasure.
Political career
Cassius Dio says that Pomponius was consulRoman 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...
seven years before the accession of Caligula; that is, circa A.D. 30; but his name does not appear in the consular fasti
Fasti
In ancient Rome, the fasti were chronological or calendar-based lists, or other diachronic records or plans of official and religiously sanctioned events...
. He was one of the friends of Sejanus
Sejanus
Lucius Aelius Seianus , commonly known as Sejanus, was an ambitious soldier, friend and confidant of the Roman Emperor Tiberius...
, who was consul in 31, and on the latter's fall in October of that year, Pomponius was thrown into prison, where he remained until 37. Caligula released him, and raised him to the consulship in A.D. 41.
In the time of Claudius, Pomponius was appointed the emperor's 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 Germania
Germania
Germania was the Greek and Roman geographical term for the geographical regions inhabited by mainly by peoples considered to be Germani. It was most often used to refer especially to the east of the Rhine and north of the Danube...
. In A.D. 50, a group of Chatti
Chatti
The Chatti were an ancient Germanic tribe whose homeland was near the upper Weser. They settled in central and northern Hesse and southern Lower Saxony, along the upper reaches of the Weser River and in the valleys and mountains of the Eder, Fulda and Weser River regions, a district approximately...
invaded Germania Superior
Germania Superior
Germania Superior , so called for the reason that it lay upstream of Germania Inferior, was a province of the Roman Empire. It comprised an area of western Switzerland, the French Jura and Alsace regions, and southwestern Germany...
. Pomponius sent two columns against them, supported by cavalry. One group of raiders was surprised and entrapped, and the Roman troops discovered amongst them several survivors of the defeat of Varus, who had been pressed into slavery forty years earlier. The other column engaged the main body of the raiders, and inflicted heavy losses. Rather than attacking Pomponius' army, which now held the high ground, the Chatti sued for peace, and Pomponius received the honor of a triumph
Roman triumph
The Roman triumph was a civil ceremony and religious rite of ancient Rome, held to publicly celebrate and sanctify the military achievement of an army commander who had won great military successes, or originally and traditionally, one who had successfully completed a foreign war. In Republican...
.
Writings
It was by his tragedies that Secundus obtained the most celebrity. They are spoken of in the highest terms by Tacitus, QuintilianQuintilian
Marcus Fabius Quintilianus was a Roman rhetorician from Hispania, widely referred to in medieval schools of rhetoric and in Renaissance writing...
, and the younger Plinius
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...
, and were read even in a much later age, as one of them is quoted by the grammarian Charisius
Charisius
Flavius Sosipater Charisius was a Latin grammarian.He was probably an African by birth, summoned to Constantinople to take the place of Euanthius, a learned commentator on Terence...
. These tragedies were first put on the stage in the time of Claudius. Quintilian asserts that he was far superior to any writer of tragedies he had known, and 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...
expresses a high opinion of his literary abilities.
Secundus devoted much attention to the niceties of grammar and style, on which he was recognized as an authority. His subject matter was Greek, with one known exception, a praetexta
Praetexta
A Praetexta or Praetexta Fabula was a new genre of Roman tragedy innovated by Gnaeus Naevius, which dealt with the themes of historical Roman figures, instead of the conventional Greek myths. Subsequent writers of praetextae included Ennius, Pacuvius and Lucius Accius. The name refers to the toga...
called Aeneas. Tragedians in the Julio-Claudian
Julio-Claudian Dynasty
The Julio-Claudian dynasty normally refers to the first five Roman Emperors: Augustus, Tiberius, Caligula , Claudius, and Nero, or the family to which they belonged; they ruled the Roman Empire from its formation, in the second half of the 1st century BC, until AD 68, when the last of the line,...
and Flavian
Flavian dynasty
The Flavian dynasty was a Roman Imperial Dynasty, which ruled the Roman Empire between 69 and 96 AD, encompassing the reigns of Vespasian , and his two sons Titus and Domitian . The Flavians rose to power during the civil war of 69, known as the Year of the Four Emperors...
periods typically were men of relatively high social status, and their works often expressed their political views under an insufficient veil of fiction. Only a few lines of his work remain, some of which belong to Aeneas.
Name
The praenomenPraenomen
The praenomen was a personal name chosen by the parents of a Roman child. It was first bestowed on the dies lustricus , the eighth day after the birth of a girl, or the ninth day after the birth of a boy...
of Pomponius Secundus is doubtful. In one passage Tacitus calls him Publius, and in another Lucius, while Cassius Dio names him Quintus. Tacitus, however, calls his brother Quintus. An inscription appears to assign him the name of "[Calv]isius Sabinus Pomponius Secundus", but the nature of his connection with the family of the Calvisii Sabini, if any, is unknown.