Gaius Caesonius Macer Rufinianus (c. AD 157 – c. AD 237) 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 ...

military officer and

senator 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 el ...

who was appointed suffect consul in around AD 197 or 198. He was the first member of ''gens'' Caesonia to hold a consulship.

Biography

Caesonius Macer, the son of Gaius, was a member of the second century '' gens Caesonia'', a family which originated from

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

, possibly hailing from Antium. Possibly of

equestrian The word equestrian is a reference to equestrianism, or horseback riding, derived from Latin ' and ', "horse". Horseback riding (or Riding in British English) Examples of this are: *Equestrian sports *Equestrian order, one of the upper classes in ...

origin, he began his career probably towards the end of the reign of

Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (Latin: áːɾkus̠ auɾέːli.us̠ antɔ́ːni.us̠ English: ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 AD and a Stoic philosopher. He was the last of the rulers known as the Five Good E ...

as a member of the '' vigintiviri'' where, as a ''triumvir capitalis'', he managed the prisons in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. Sometime between AD 178 and 180, Caesonius Macer was commissioned military tribune of the Legio I Adiutrix which was stationed at Brigetio in

Pannonia Superior Pannonia Superior, lit. Upper Pannonia, was a province of the Roman Empire. Its capital was Carnuntum. It was one on the border provinces on the Danube. It was formed in the year 103 AD by Emperor Trajan who divided the former province of P ...

. Here he fought under Marcus Aurelius in the Second Marcomannic War, during which time his unit was awarded '' dona militaria'' (or military honours) by the

emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( ...

. His next posting was as

quaestor A ( , , ; "investigator") was a public official in Ancient Rome. There were various types of quaestors, with the title used to describe greatly different offices at different times. In the Roman Republic, quaestors were elected officials who ...

in the

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...

Gallia Narbonensis Gallia Narbonensis (Latin for "Gaul of Narbonne", from its chief settlement) was a Roman province located in what is now Languedoc and Provence, in Southern France. It was also known as Provincia Nostra ("Our Province"), because it was th ...

, after which he returned to Rome to serve as plebeian tribune, probably under the new emperor

Commodus Commodus (; 31 August 161 – 31 December 192) was a Roman emperor who ruled from 177 to 192. He served jointly with his father Marcus Aurelius from 176 until the latter's death in 180, and thereafter he reigned alone until his assassination. ...

. In around AD 185, Caesonius Macer continued his climb up 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 ''c ...

'' with his appointment as ''

legatus proconsulis A ''legatus'' (; anglicised as legate) was a high-ranking Roman military officer in the Roman Army, equivalent to a modern high-ranking general officer. Initially used to delegate power, the term became formalised under Augustus as the officer ...

'', where he assisted the

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Hispania Baetica Hispania Baetica, often abbreviated Baetica, was one of three Roman provinces in Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula). Baetica was bordered to the west by Lusitania, and to the northeast by Hispania Tarraconensis. Baetica remained one of the basic di ...

in his duties. Then in around AD 187, he was back in Rome where he was elected

praetor Praetor ( , ), also pretor, was the title granted by the government of Ancient Rome to a man acting in one of two official capacities: (i) the commander of an army, and (ii) as an elected '' magistratus'' (magistrate), assigned to discharge vari ...

. His somewhat lengthy propraetorian career began with being once again selected ''legatus proconsulis'', this time assisting the governor of

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

. Next, he served as ''Curator rei publicae Asculanorum'' (or an officer overseeing financial issues in Asculum). Sometime around AD 187–190, Caesonius Macer was appointed ''

legatus legionis A ''legatus'' (; anglicised as legate) was a high-ranking Roman military officer in the Roman Army, equivalent to a modern high-ranking general officer. Initially used to delegate power, the term became formalised under Augustus as the office ...

'' of the Legio VII Claudia, where he was posted to Viminacium in

Moesia Superior Moesia (; Latin: ''Moesia''; el, Μοισία, Moisía) was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans south of the Danube River, which included most of the territory of modern eastern Serbia, Kosovo, north-eastern Alban ...

. Then around AD 192, he was appointed the

proconsul A proconsul was an official of ancient Rome who acted on behalf of a consul. A proconsul was typically a former consul. The term is also used in recent history for officials with delegated authority. In the Roman Republic, military command, or ' ...

ar governor of Achaea, a province that was usually reserved for the junior senators of praetorian rank. Returning to Italy, Caesonius Macer was next appointed ''Curator rei publicae Tarracinensiumca'' in around AD 193, either during the end of Commodus’ reign, or early in

Pertinax Publius Helvius Pertinax (; 1 August 126 – 28 March 193) was Roman emperor for the first three months of 193. He succeeded Commodus to become the first emperor during the tumultuous Year of the Five Emperors. Born the son of a freed slav ...

’s reign. Following this Caesonius Macer was appointed '' legatus augusti pro praetore'' (or imperial governor) of the province of

Lusitania Lusitania (; ) was an ancient Iberian Roman province located where modern Portugal (south of the Douro river) and a portion of western Spain (the present Extremadura and the province of Salamanca) lie. It was named after the Lusitani or Lu ...

, which he possibly held from AD 193/194 to 197. He was either appointed just prior to the accession of

Septimius Severus Lucius Septimius Severus (; 11 April 145 – 4 February 211) was Roman emperor from 193 to 211. He was born in Leptis Magna (present-day Al-Khums, Libya) in the Roman province of Africa. As a young man he advanced through the customary suc ...

, or he may have been Severus’ own appointment; in any event, he probably retained his command until he was appointed suffect consul in around AD 197 or 198. This may have been Caesonius Macer's reward for suppressing the revolt of the governor of

Hispania Citerior Hispania Citerior (English: "Hither Iberia", or "Nearer Iberia") was a Roman province in Hispania during the Roman Republic. It was on the eastern coast of Iberia down to the town of Cartago Nova, today's Cartagena in the autonomous community of ...

, Lucius Novius Rufus, who was a supporter of Septimius Severus’ rival,

Clodius Albinus Decimus Clodius Albinus ( 150 – 19 February 197) was a Roman imperial pretender between 193 and 197. He was proclaimed emperor by the legions in Britain and Hispania (the Iberian Peninsula, comprising modern Spain and Portugal) after the murd ...

. Following his consulship, he was appointed ''Curator rei publicae Teanensiumca'' (around AD 197); this was followed by another curatorship, this time as '' curator alvei Tiberis'' (or the official responsible for looking after the banks and channels of the

Tiber River The Tiber ( ; it, Tevere ; la, Tiberis) is the third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the Ri ...

), around AD 198–200. Caesonius Macer's political career under Septimius Severus continued with his first appointment to a consular governorship; he was made ''legatus augusti pro praetore'' of Germania Superior, a position he probably held from AD 200 to 203. Returning to Italy, he was given the role of ''

Curator aquarum et Miniciae A curator (from la, cura, meaning "to take care") is a manager or overseer. When working with cultural organizations, a curator is typically a "collections curator" or an "exhibitions curator", and has multifaceted tasks dependent on the parti ...

'' (or curator of the aqueducts and grain supply for Rome). The date and duration of this posting is uncertain; he may have held it any time between AD 203 and 213, with 204 being the most probable date. Next, he was appointed governor to one of the most prestigious and economically important proconsular provinces – Africa Proconsularis. Again, it is unclear exactly when he held this proconsular command – he may have held it under

Caracalla Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (born Lucius Septimius Bassianus, 4 April 188 – 8 April 217), better known by his nickname "Caracalla" () was Roman emperor from 198 to 217. He was a member of the Severan dynasty, the elder son of Emperor ...

sometime between AD 213–215, but he may also have held it sometime during Elagabalus’ reign, between AD 218–222. Either before or after his proconsular governorship, Caesonius Macer was again appointed as a curator, this time as ''curator rei publicae Lanivinorum'', an office he filled on two occasions sometime during the later years of Caracalla's reign. A member of the sodales Augustales, he was made the '' comes'' of the emperor

Alexander Severus Marcus Aurelius Severus Alexander (1 October 208 – 21/22 March 235) was a Roman emperor, who reigned from 222 until 235. He was the last emperor from the Severan dynasty. He succeeded his slain cousin Elagabalus in 222. Alexander himself wa ...

during the emperor's Persian campaign of 231–233. Given that Caesonius Macer was around seventy years of age by this time, it has been conjectured that he did not actually accompany the emperor to the east, and that the title was now beginning to be used as an honorific to indicate an individual who was connected to the imperial court.

Family

Caesonius Macer was married to Manilia Lucilla, who was related to Tiberius Manilius Fuscus, who was

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 ...

twice. They had at least one child,

Lucius Caesonius Lucillus Macer Rufinianus Lucius Caesonius Lucillus Macer Rufinianus () was a Roman military officer and senator who was appointed suffect consul probably between AD 225 and 229. Much of what we know about him comes from an inscription found on the base of a statute near ...

, who was suffect consul possibly between AD 225 and 230.Mennen, pg. 92

References

Sources

* Mennen, Inge, ''Power and Status in the Roman Empire, AD 193-284'' (2011) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Caesonius Macer Rufinianus, Gaius 150s births 230s deaths Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain 2nd-century Romans 3rd-century Romans Suffect consuls of Imperial Rome Roman governors of Achaia Roman governors of Africa Roman governors of Germania Superior Roman governors of Lusitania Macer Rufinianus, Gaius