Quintus Servilius Caepio
Encyclopedia
Quintus Servilius Caepio the Elder was a Roman
statesman and general, consul
in 106 BC
, and proconsul
of Cisalpine Gaul
in 105 BC
. He was the father of Quintus Servilius Caepio the Younger
and the grandfather of Servilia Caepionis
.
During his year of office as consul, he brought forward a law by which the jurymen were again to be chosen from the senators instead of the equites (Tacitus, Ann. xii. 60)
In the Battle of Arausio
in 105 BC, Caepio led one of the two forces against the Germanic tribes (the Teutones, the Cimbri
, and Tigurini
/Marcomanni
/Cherusci
) along with the consul Gnaeus Mallius Maximus
.
While marching to Arausio (modern-day Orange
) Caepio plundered the temples of the town of Tolosa, ancient Tolouse, finding over 50,000 fifteen-pound bars of gold and 10,000 fifteen-pound bars of silver. Strabo
reports a story told in his time of this semi-legendary treasure, the aurum Tolosanum, supposed to have been the "cursed gold" looted during the sack of Delphi
during the Gallic invasion of the Balkans
in 279 BC. The riches of Tolosa were shipped back to Rome, but only the silver made it; the gold was stolen by a band of marauders, who were believed to have been hired by Caepio himself. The Gold of Tolosa
was never found, and was said to have been passed all the way down to the last heir of the Servilii Caepiones, Marcus Junius Brutus
.
At the Battle of Arausio
, Caepio refused to co-operate with his superior officer, the consul Gnaeus Mallius Maximus
, who was a new man
, not a member of the Roman elite
. Caepio refused even to camp with Maximus and his troops; when it appeared that Maximus was going to reach a treaty and take the glory for the resolution, Caepio ordered his men to engage the Germans, and the battle that ensued saw the complete destruction of the Roman army.
Upon his return to Rome, Caepio was tried for "the loss of his army" by a tribune of the plebs, Gaius Norbanus
. Caepio was convicted, and was given the harshest sentence allowable: he was stripped of his citizenship, forbidden fire and water within eight hundred miles of Rome, nominally fined 15,000 talents
(about 825,000 lb) of gold, and forbidden to see or speak to his friends or family until he had left for exile
. (The huge fine—which greatly exceeded the Treasury of Rome—was never collected.)
Caepio spent the rest of his life in exile in Smyrna
in Asia Minor
.
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
statesman and general, consul
Consul
Consul 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 106 BC
106 BC
Year 106 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Caepio and Serranus...
, and proconsul
Proconsul
A 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...
of Cisalpine Gaul
Cisalpine Gaul
Cisalpine Gaul, in Latin: Gallia Cisalpina or Citerior, also called Gallia Togata, was a Roman province until 41 BC when it was merged into Roman Italy.It bore the name Gallia, because the great body of its inhabitants, after the expulsion of the Etruscans, consisted of Gauls or Celts...
in 105 BC
105 BC
Year 105 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Rufus and Maximus...
. He was the father of Quintus Servilius Caepio the Younger
Quintus Servilius Caepio the Younger
Quintus Servilius Caepio the Younger was a Roman soldier and statesman. He was elected praetor in 91 BC, and fought for Rome during the Marsic Wars of the Italian Rebellion against Rome. His father was Quintus Servilius Caepio the Elder....
and the grandfather of Servilia Caepionis
Servilia Caepionis
Servilia Caepionis was the mistress of Julius Caesar, mother of one of Caesar's assassins, Brutus, mother-in-law of another Caesar assassin, Cassius, and half-sister of Cato the Younger.-Life:...
.
During his year of office as consul, he brought forward a law by which the jurymen were again to be chosen from the senators instead of the equites (Tacitus, Ann. xii. 60)
In the Battle of Arausio
Battle of Arausio
The Battle of Arausio took place on October 6, 105 BC, at a site between the town of Arausio and the Rhône River. Ranged against the migratory tribes of the Cimbri under Boiorix and the Teutoni were two Roman armies, commanded by the proconsul Quintus Servilius Caepio and consul Gnaeus Mallius...
in 105 BC, Caepio led one of the two forces against the Germanic tribes (the Teutones, the Cimbri
Cimbri
The Cimbri were a tribe from Northern Europe, who, together with the Teutones and the Ambrones threatened the Roman Republic in the late 2nd century BC. The Cimbri were probably Germanic, though some believe them to be of Celtic origin...
, and Tigurini
Tigurini
The Tigurini were a pagus of the Celtic Helvetii. They crossed the Rhine together with the Helvetii to invade Gaul in 109 BCE...
/Marcomanni
Marcomanni
The Marcomanni were a Germanic tribe, probably related to the Buri, Suebi or Suevi.-Origin:Scholars believe their name derives possibly from Proto-Germanic forms of "march" and "men"....
/Cherusci
Cherusci
The Cherusci were a Germanic tribe that inhabited parts of the northern Rhine valley and the plains and forests of northwestern Germany, in the area between present-day Osnabrück and Hanover, during the 1st century BC and 1st century AD...
) along with the consul Gnaeus Mallius Maximus
Gnaeus Mallius Maximus
Gnaeus Mallius Maximus was a Roman politician and general.He was a novus homo when he was elected to the consulship of the Roman Republic in 105 BC. He drew Gallia Transalpina as his province for the year. He was defeated by Cimbri at the battle of Arausio . He lost his sons in the battle and he...
.
While marching to Arausio (modern-day Orange
Orange, Vaucluse
Orange is a commune in the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.It has a primarily agricultural economy...
) Caepio plundered the temples of the town of Tolosa, ancient Tolouse, finding over 50,000 fifteen-pound bars of gold and 10,000 fifteen-pound bars of silver. Strabo
Strabo
Strabo, also written Strabon was a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher.-Life:Strabo was born to an affluent family from Amaseia in Pontus , a city which he said was situated the approximate equivalent of 75 km from the Black Sea...
reports a story told in his time of this semi-legendary treasure, the aurum Tolosanum, supposed to have been the "cursed gold" looted during the sack of Delphi
Delphi
Delphi is both an archaeological site and a modern town in Greece on the south-western spur of Mount Parnassus in the valley of Phocis.In Greek mythology, Delphi was the site of the Delphic oracle, the most important oracle in the classical Greek world, and a major site for the worship of the god...
during the Gallic invasion of the Balkans
Gallic invasion of the Balkans
Gallic groups, originating from the various La Tène chiefdoms, began a south-eastern movement into the Balkan peninsula from the 4th century BC. Although Celtic settlements were concentrated in the western half of the Carpathian basin, there were notable incursions, and settlements, within the...
in 279 BC. The riches of Tolosa were shipped back to Rome, but only the silver made it; the gold was stolen by a band of marauders, who were believed to have been hired by Caepio himself. The Gold of Tolosa
The Gold of Tolosa
The Gold of Tolosa existed as a hoard of treasures plundered from Greece in 279 BC by Gallic invaders of the Volcae...
was never found, and was said to have been passed all the way down to the last heir of the Servilii Caepiones, Marcus Junius Brutus
Marcus Junius Brutus
Marcus Junius Brutus , often referred to as Brutus, was a politician of the late Roman Republic. After being adopted by his uncle he used the name Quintus Servilius Caepio Brutus, but eventually returned to using his original name...
.
At the Battle of Arausio
Battle of Arausio
The Battle of Arausio took place on October 6, 105 BC, at a site between the town of Arausio and the Rhône River. Ranged against the migratory tribes of the Cimbri under Boiorix and the Teutoni were two Roman armies, commanded by the proconsul Quintus Servilius Caepio and consul Gnaeus Mallius...
, Caepio refused to co-operate with his superior officer, the consul Gnaeus Mallius Maximus
Gnaeus Mallius Maximus
Gnaeus Mallius Maximus was a Roman politician and general.He was a novus homo when he was elected to the consulship of the Roman Republic in 105 BC. He drew Gallia Transalpina as his province for the year. He was defeated by Cimbri at the battle of Arausio . He lost his sons in the battle and he...
, who was a new man
Novus homo
Homo novus was the term in ancient Rome for a man who was the first in his family to serve in the Roman Senate or, more specifically, to be elected as consul...
, not a member of the Roman elite
Optimates
The optimates were the traditionalist majority of the late Roman Republic. They wished to limit the power of the popular assemblies and the Tribunes of the Plebs, and to extend the power of the Senate, which was viewed as more dedicated to the interests of the aristocrats who held the reins of power...
. Caepio refused even to camp with Maximus and his troops; when it appeared that Maximus was going to reach a treaty and take the glory for the resolution, Caepio ordered his men to engage the Germans, and the battle that ensued saw the complete destruction of the Roman army.
Upon his return to Rome, Caepio was tried for "the loss of his army" by a tribune of the plebs, Gaius Norbanus
Gaius Norbanus
Gaius Norbanus surnamed Bulbus was a Roman politician.In 103 BC, when tribune of the people, he accused Quintus Servilius Caepio the Elder of having brought about the defeat of his army by the Cimbri through rashness, and also of having plundered the temple of Tolosa...
. Caepio was convicted, and was given the harshest sentence allowable: he was stripped of his citizenship, forbidden fire and water within eight hundred miles of Rome, nominally fined 15,000 talents
Talent (weight)
The "talent" was one of several ancient units of mass, as well as corresponding units of value equivalent to these masses of a precious metal. It was approximately the mass of water required to fill an amphora. A Greek, or Attic talent, was , a Roman talent was , an Egyptian talent was , and a...
(about 825,000 lb) of gold, and forbidden to see or speak to his friends or family until he had left for exile
Exile
Exile means to be away from one's home , while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened with imprisonment or death upon return...
. (The huge fine—which greatly exceeded the Treasury of Rome—was never collected.)
Caepio spent the rest of his life in exile in Smyrna
Smyrna
Smyrna was an ancient city located at a central and strategic point on the Aegean coast of Anatolia. Thanks to its advantageous port conditions, its ease of defence and its good inland connections, Smyrna rose to prominence. The ancient city is located at two sites within modern İzmir, Turkey...
in Asia Minor
Asia Minor
Asia Minor is a geographical location at the westernmost protrusion of Asia, also called Anatolia, and corresponds to the western two thirds of the Asian part of Turkey...
.