Gaius Silius (died AD 24) was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

senator who achieved successes as a general over German barbarians following the disaster of the

Battle of the Teutoburg Forest The Battle of the Teutoburg Forest, described as the Varian Disaster () by Roman historians, took place at modern Kalkriese in AD 9, when an alliance of Germanic peoples ambushed Roman legions and their auxiliaries, led by Publius Quinctilius ...

. For this achievement he was appointed

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throug ...

in AD 13 with Lucius Munatius Plancus as his colleague. However, years later Silius became entangled in machinations of the ambitious Praetorian prefect

Sejanus Lucius Aelius Sejanus (c. 20 BC – 18 October AD 31), commonly known as Sejanus (), was a Roman soldier, friend and confidant of the Roman Emperor Tiberius. Of the Equites class by birth, Sejanus rose to power as prefect of the Praetorian ...

and was forced to commit suicide. Due to an ambiguity in the '' Fasti Capitolini'', experts such as Mommsen and

Attilio Degrassi Attilio Degrassi (Trieste, 21 June 1887 – Rome, 1 June 1969) was an archeologist and pioneering Italian scholar of Latin epigraphy. Degrassi taught at the University of Padova where he trained, among others, the epigraphist Silvio Panciera, ...

believed Silius' full name was Gaius Silius Aulus Caecina Largus. However,

Arthur Arthur is a common male given name of Brythonic origin. Its popularity derives from it being the name of the legendary hero King Arthur. The etymology is disputed. It may derive from the Celtic ''Artos'' meaning “Bear”. Another theory, more w ...

and Joyce Gordon pointed out that the form of this name, known as polyonymy, was unusual, preceding any other known example by fifty years, and suggested, based on admittedly less reliable sources, that this entry was more accurately read as two names: Gaius Silius, and

Aulus Caecina Largus The gens Caecinia was a plebeian family of Etruscan origin at ancient Rome. Members of this gens are first mentioned in the time of Cicero, and they remained prominent through the first century of the Empire, before fading into obscurity in the ...

, the latter an otherwise unknown senator. Although this reading was endorsed by Ronald Syme, it was considered as only a possibility until Diana Gorostidi Pi showed an inscription she called ''Fasti consulares Tusculani'' proved these were two distinct individuals.

Biography

Silius was probably a son of

Publius Silius Nerva Publius Silius Nerva was a Roman senator and general, who flourished under the reign of Augustus. He was consul in 20 BC as the colleague of Marcus Appuleius. Biography Nerva was the son of a senator who had achieved the rank of propraetor. A par ...

. In AD 13, Silius was elected consul alongside Lucius Munatius Plancus. At the end of his tenure in office, he was appointed imperial legate of

Germania Superior Germania Superior ("Upper Germania") was an imperial province of the Roman Empire. It comprised an area of today's western Switzerland, the French Jura and Alsace regions, and southwestern Germany. Important cities were Besançon ('' Vesontio ...

, under the overall command of Germanicus, and was the officer in charge of the four upper Rhine legions which did not mutiny upon the death of the emperor

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

. Once the mutiny was suppressed, Silius continued to serve loyally under Germanicus, participating in the Roman retaliation campaign (between AD 14 and 16) against a Germanic alliance in the aftermath of the disaster at the

. His successes earned him an honorary triumph in AD 15.Smith, p. 823 The following year, Germanicus sent Silius against the

Chatti The Chatti (also Chatthi or Catti) were an ancient Germanic tribe whose homeland was near the upper Weser (''Visurgis''). They lived in central and northern Hesse and southern Lower Saxony, along the upper reaches of that river and in the valle ...

with 30,000 infantry and 3,000 cavalry, defeating them in the process, after which Tiberius appointed him as a taxation auditor in Gaul. He continued in his role as governor of Upper Germany until 21, during which year he suppressed a revolt in Gaul. A faction of

Treveri The Trēverī (Gaulish: *''Trēueroi'') were a Celtic tribe of the Belgae group who inhabited the lower valley of the Moselle from around 150 BCE, if not earlier, until their displacement by the Franks. Their domain lay within the southern fring ...

, led by Julius Florus and allied with the

Aeduan The Aedui or Haedui (Gaulish: *''Aiduoi'', 'the Ardent'; grc, Aἴδουοι) were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the modern Burgundy region during the Iron Age and the Roman period. The Aedui had an ambiguous relationship with the Roman Republic ...

Julius Sacrovir, led a rebellion of Gaulish debtors against the Romans. With two legions Silius defeated Sacrovir's rebel forces (numbering 40,000), twelve miles outside of Augustodunum. Upon his return to Rome later that same year, Silius was soon caught in the political machinations at court as part of Germanicus' faction. Through Silius's wife, Sosia Galla, the couple had become friends with Tiberius’ daughter-in-law

Agrippina the Elder Agrippina "the Elder" (also, in Latin, , "Germanicus's Agrippina"; – AD 33) was a prominent member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. She was the daughter of Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (a close supporter of the first Roman emperor, Augustus) and ...

. Due to their friendship with Agrippina they became innocent victims of

' schemes. In the Senate, Lucius Visellius Varro (consul in 24) accused Silius of being complicit in Sacrovir's revolt, and of misappropriating money from the provincial government in Gaul. Refusing to submit a plea or to defend himself, Silius declared that had he not personally kept the legions on the Rhine from avenging the murder of Germanicus, Tiberius would have lost his position as Princeps. Faced with false witnesses swearing that he had robbed the Gallic provinces, Silius committed suicide in 24, and afterwards Galla was exiled. Galla's property was confiscated by the Senate and a portion was given to her children.Jasper Burns, ''Great women of Imperial Rome: mothers and wives of the Caesars'' (2007), pg. 52 Silius had at least one son, also named Gaius Silius.

References

Sources

* Smith, William, ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', Vol III (1849). {{DEFAULTSORT:Silius, Gaius 24 deaths Year of birth unknown Imperial Roman consuls Roman governors of Germania Superior Ancient Romans who committed suicide Silii

Biography

See also

References

Sources