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Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo (c. 135 – 87 BC) was a Roman general and politician, who served as
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 throu ...
in 89 BC. He is often referred to in English as Pompey Strabo, to distinguish him from his son, the famous
Pompey the Great Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a leading Roman general and statesman. He played a significant role in the transformation of ...
, or from Strabo the geographer. Strabo's
cognomen A ''cognomen'' (; plural ''cognomina''; from ''con-'' "together with" and ''(g)nomen'' "name") was the third name of a citizen of ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. Initially, it was a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became here ...
means "cross eyed". He lived in the
Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman K ...
and was born and raised into a noble family in
Picenum Picenum was a region of ancient Italy. The name is an exonym assigned by the Romans, who conquered and incorporated it into the Roman Republic. Picenum was ''Regio V'' in the Augustan territorial organization of Roman Italy. Picenum was also ...
(in the south and the north of the modern regions of
Marche Marche ( , ) is one of the twenty regions of Italy. In English, the region is sometimes referred to as The Marches ( ). The region is located in the central area of the country, bordered by Emilia-Romagna and the republic of San Marino to the ...
and
Abruzzo , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1 ...
respectively) in Central Italy, on the
Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to the ...
Coast. Strabo's mother was called Lucilia. Lucilia's family originated from Suessa Aurunca (modern
Sessa Aurunca Sessa Aurunca is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy. It is located on the south west slope of the extinct volcano of Roccamonfina, by rail west north west of Caserta and east of Formia. It is situated o ...
) and she was a sister of satiric poet
Gaius Lucilius Gaius Lucilius (180, 168 or 148 BC – 103 BC) was the earliest Roman satirist, of whose writings only fragments remain. A Roman citizen of the equestrian class, he was born at Suessa Aurunca in Campania, and was a member of the Scip ...
. Lucilius was a friend of Roman general
Scipio Aemilianus Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus Aemilianus (185–129 BC), known as Scipio Aemilianus or Scipio Africanus the Younger, was a Roman general and statesman noted for his military exploits in the Third Punic War against Carthage and during the ...
. Strabo's paternal grandfather was Gnaeus Pompeius, while his father was Sextus Pompeius. His elder brother was
Sextus Pompeius Sextus Pompeius Magnus Pius ( 67 – 35 BC), also known in English as Sextus Pompey, was a Roman military leader who, throughout his life, upheld the cause of his father, Pompey the Great, against Julius Caesar and his supporters during the last ...
and his sister was Pompeia.


Early career

Strabo was a prominent member of the
Pompeii Pompeii (, ) was an ancient city located in what is now the ''comune'' of Pompei near Naples in the Campania region of Italy. Pompeii, along with Herculaneum and many villas in the surrounding area (e.g. at Boscoreale, Stabiae), was buried ...
, a noble family in
Picenum Picenum was a region of ancient Italy. The name is an exonym assigned by the Romans, who conquered and incorporated it into the Roman Republic. Picenum was ''Regio V'' in the Augustan territorial organization of Roman Italy. Picenum was also ...
, in the north-east of Italy. The Pompeii had become the richest and most prominent family of the region, and had a large
clientele In sales, commerce, and economics, a customer (sometimes known as a client, buyer, or purchaser) is the recipient of a good, service, product or an idea - obtained from a seller, vendor, or supplier via a financial transaction or exchange for ...
and a lot of influence in Picenum and Rome. Despite the anti-rural prejudice of the
Roman Senate The Roman Senate ( la, Senātus Rōmānus) was a governing and advisory assembly in ancient Rome. It was one of the most enduring institutions in Roman history, being established in the first days of the city of Rome (traditionally founded in ...
, the Pompeii could not be ignored. After serving in the military, probably as a
military tribune A military tribune (Latin ''tribunus militum'', "tribune of the soldiers") was an officer of the Roman army who ranked below the legate and above the centurion. Young men of Equestrian rank often served as military tribune as a stepping stone t ...
, Strabo climbed the ''
cursus honorum The ''cursus honorum'' (; , or more colloquially 'ladder of offices') was the sequential order of public offices held by aspiring politicians in the Roman Republic and the early Roman Empire. It was designed for men of senatorial rank. The '' ...
'' and became
promagistrate In ancient Rome a promagistrate ( la, pro magistratu) was an ex-consul or ex-praetor whose ''imperium'' (the power to command an army) was extended at the end of his annual term of office or later. They were called proconsuls and propraetors. Thi ...
in Sicily 93 BC and
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 throu ...
in the year 89 BC, in the midst of the Social War.


The Social War

Despite Strabo's provincial roots, he and his family were Roman citizens and therefore took up Rome's cause during the Civil War the Republic had to fight with its Italian Allies. He commanded his forces against the Italian rebels in the northern part of Italy. First he recruited three or four
legion Legion may refer to: Military * Roman legion, the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army * Spanish Legion, an elite military unit within the Spanish Army * Legion of the United States, a reorganization of the United States Army from 1 ...
s in his native Picenum then he marched them south against the rebels. In 90 BC, while marching his legions south through Picentum, he was suddenly attacked by a large force of
Picentes The name Picentes or Picentini refers to the population of Picenum, on the northern Adriatic coastal plain of ancient Italy. Their endonym, if any, is not known for certain. There is linguistic evidence that the Picentini comprised two different ...
,
Vestini () were an Italic tribe who occupied the area of the modern Abruzzo (central Italy), included between the Gran Sasso and the northern bank of the Aterno river. Their main centres were ''Pitinum ''(near modern L'Aquila), ''Aufinum ''( Ofena), '' ...
and
Marsi The Marsi were an Italic people of ancient Italy, whose chief centre was Marruvium, on the eastern shore of Lake Fucinus (which was drained for agricultural land in the late 19th century). The area in which they lived is now called Marsic ...
. Although the battle favoured neither side Strabo was heavily outnumbered and he decided to withdraw. Eventually he found himself blockaded in Picenum, but in the Autumn of 90 he launched two sorties that successfully caught his enemies in a pincer.Tom Holland, ''Rubicon'', p. 58. The remnants of the enemy army retreated to Asculum which Strabo decided to starve into submission. Through his successful counter-offensive he became very popular and he used his fame to get elected as one of the consuls for 89 BC, his consular partner being Lucius Porcius Cato. Strabo attacked and defeated a rebel column trying to march into Etruria killing 5,000 rebels. Another 5,000 died while trying to get back across the Apennines. Strabo's consular colleague Lucius Porcius Cato engaged the
Marsi The Marsi were an Italic people of ancient Italy, whose chief centre was Marruvium, on the eastern shore of Lake Fucinus (which was drained for agricultural land in the late 19th century). The area in which they lived is now called Marsic ...
in battle near Fucine Lake (close to Alba Fucensis), he died in an attempt to storm the enemy camp; this left Strabo as sole consul. The exact details of the siege of Asculum and the reduction of the neighbouring tribes are obscured by History. We hear of a huge Battle near Asculum, where Strabo defeated an Italian relief army of 60,000 men.John Leach, ''Pompey the Great'', p.15;
Velleius Paterculus Marcus Velleius Paterculus (; c. 19 BC – c. AD 31) was a Roman historian, soldier and senator. His Roman history, written in a highly rhetorical style, covered the period from the end of the Trojan War to AD 30, but is most useful for the per ...
, ''Historia Romana'', II. 21.
Soon after Asculum fell, Strabo had the rebel leaders whipped and executed and auctioned off all of their belongings. He kept the proceeds of these sales, a fact which might explain his reputation for greed. At the end of his term as consul, Strabo apparently sought a second immediate consulship for the year 88 BC – an act that was not illegal, as the case of Gaius Marius demonstrates in the late second century, but highly irregular nonetheless. Strabo evidently failed in his attempt, as
Lucius Cornelius Sulla Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (; 138–78 BC), commonly known as Sulla, was a Roman general and statesman. He won the first large-scale civil war in Roman history and became the first man of the Republic to seize power through force. Sulla ha ...
and Quintus Pompeius Rufus were elected consuls.


Triumph and Civil War

Strabo celebrated a triumph for his victories against the Italian Allies on 27 December 89. After his consulship expired a few days later, he retired to
Picenum Picenum was a region of ancient Italy. The name is an exonym assigned by the Romans, who conquered and incorporated it into the Roman Republic. Picenum was ''Regio V'' in the Augustan territorial organization of Roman Italy. Picenum was also ...
with all of his veteran soldiers. He did not disband his army but kept it in the field. The
Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the e ...
soon transferred command of his army to Quintus Pompeius Rufus, one of the new consuls. However, when Pompeius Rufus arrived, he was murdered by Strabo's soldiers. Strabo did not interfere when Sulla marched on and took Rome in 88 BC. He remained in Picenum until 87 BC, when he responded to the Senate's request for help against Gaius Marius and
Lucius Cornelius Cinna Lucius Cornelius Cinna (died 84 BC) was a four-time consul of the Roman Republic, serving four consecutive terms from 87 to 84 BC, and a member of the ancient Roman Cinna family of the Cornelia gens. Cinna's influence in Rome exacer ...
who were also marching their forces on Rome. Strabo took his army to Rome; he did, however, not decisively commit to either side, instead playing both against the other. For this,
Rutilius Rufus Publius Rutilius Rufus (158 BCafter 78 BC) was a Roman statesman, soldier, orator and historian of the Rutilia ''gens'', as well as a great-uncle of Gaius Julius Caesar (through his sister Rutilia, Caesar's maternal grandmother). He achieved the ...
referred to him as "the vilest man alive". When negotiations with the Cinna-Marian faction fell through he did, however, attack
Quintus Sertorius Quintus Sertorius (c. 126 – 73 BC) was a Roman general and statesman who led a large-scale rebellion against the Roman Senate on the Iberian peninsula. He had been a prominent member of the populist faction of Cinna and Marius. During the l ...
, one of Cinna's commanders, who was positioned north of the city, but the attack was without success.


Death

In 87 BC Strabo and his army encamped outside the Colline Gate. He kept an unhygienic camp which resulted in an outbreak of disease in his army. Strabo himself caught dysentery and died a few days later, still in his camp outside the Colline Gate. His avarice and cruelty had made him hated by the soldiers to such a degree that they tore his corpse from the bier and dragged it through the streets. Another story expounded by Plutarch claimed that the general died after being struck by lightning. His son, Pompey the Great, took the legions back to Picenum. He would use them to support Sulla a few years later. Strabo had at least two children: a son,
Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a leading Roman general and statesman. He played a significant role in the transformation of ...
, and a daughter, Pompeia, who married Gaius Memmius and then
Publius Cornelius Sulla Publius Cornelius Sulla (died 45 BC) was a politician of the late Roman Republic and the nephew of Lucius Cornelius Sulla. He was also a brother-in-law of Pompey, having married his sister Pompeia. Early life Publius Cornelius Sulla was the son ...
.Leach, ''Pompey'', family tree and p. 104 In his honour his name was given to the cities of '' Alba Pompeia'' and '' Laus Pompeia''.


References


Sources

* https://web.archive.org/web/20080503112904/http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-bio/1930.html * http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-bio/2808.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Pompeius Strabo, Gnaeus 130s BC births 87 BC deaths 1st-century BC Roman consuls Ancient Roman generals Picenum Strabo, Gnaeus