Gaius Domitius Dexter (fl. 2nd century) 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 Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

who 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 thro ...

twice: firstly as suffect consul prior to AD 183, and secondly as ordinary consul in AD 196 with Lucius Valerius Messalla Thrasea Priscus as his colleague.

Biography

Domitius Dexter's origins are unknown. A member of 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 el ...

, he was appointed ''

consul suffectus The consuls were the highest elected public officials of the Roman Republic ( to 27 BC). Romans considered the consulship the second-highest level of the ''cursus honorum''an ascending sequence of public offices to which politicians aspire ...

'' sometime prior to AD 183, most probably during the last years of the reign of

Marcus Aurelius Marcus Aurelius Antoninus ( ; ; 26 April 121 – 17 March 180) was Roman emperor from 161 to 180 and a Stoicism, Stoic philosopher. He was a member of the Nerva–Antonine dynasty, the last of the rulers later known as the Five Good Emperors ...

. From 183 to 185, he was the

Proconsul A proconsul was an official of ancient Rome who acted on behalf of a Roman consul, 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 ...

ar imperial legate (governor) of

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

. It has been speculated that during this time he enjoyed a cordial relationship with the future

emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

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 cursus honorum, the ...

, who was posted as the ''

legatus legionis A legate (Latin: , ) was a high-ranking Roman military officer in the Roman army, equivalent to a high-ranking general officer of modern times. Initially used to delegate power, the term became formalised under Augustus as the officer in comman ...

'' or commander of the

Legio IV Scythica Legio IV Scythica ("Scythian Fourth Legion"), also written as Legio IIII ''Scythica'', was a legion of the Imperial Roman army founded in by the Roman general Mark Antony, for his campaign against the Parthian Empire, hence its other ''cogno ...

during his time as governor. Domitius Dexter was a key supporter of Severus’ bid for the imperial title after the murder of

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 to the son of a freed sl ...

. In gratitude for his support, Severus appointed Domitius Dexter as ''

praefectus urbi The ''praefectus urbanus'', also called ''praefectus urbi'' or urban prefect in English, was prefect of the city of Rome, and later also of Constantinople. The office originated under the Roman kings, continued during the Republic and Empire, an ...

'' of

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

in June 193. He held the post during an extended period when Severus was absent from Rome, having gone to the east to deal with his rival

Pescennius Niger Gaius Pescennius Niger (c. 135 – 194) was a Roman usurper from 193 to 194 during the Year of the Five Emperors. He claimed the imperial throne in response to the murder of Pertinax and the elevation of Didius Julianus, but was defeated by a ...

, reflecting the emperor's trust in his subordinate. Perhaps he was still in the office when he was elected ''consul prior'' alongside Lucius Valerius Messalla Thrasea Priscus in AD 196.Mennen, pg. 125

Sources

* Birley, Anthony, ''Septimius Severus: The African Emperor'' (1999) * Dąbrowa, Edward, ''The Governors of Roman Syria from Augustus to Septimius Severus'' (1998) * Mennen, Inge, ''Power and Status in the Roman Empire, AD 193-284'' (2011)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dexter, Gaius Domitius 2nd-century Roman consuls Urban prefects of Rome Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown