Gaius Fannius (fl. 2nd century BC) was a Roman republican politician who was elected

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 ...

in 122 BC, and was one of the principal opponents of

Gaius Gracchus Gaius Sempronius Gracchus ( – 121 BC) was a reformist Roman politician and soldier who lived during the 2nd century BC. He is most famous for his tribunate for the years 123 and 122 BC, in which he proposed a wide set of laws, i ...

. He was a member of the Scipionic Circle.

Career

Gaius Fannius was the son of Marcus Fannius (whose brother was probably

Gaius Fannius Strabo Gaius Fannius Strabo was a Roman politician in the second century BC. Family He was a member of the gens Fannia. His father and grandfather both bore the praenomen ''Gaius''. His nephew was Gaius Fannius, consul in 122 BC. Career Strabo served ...

, the consul of 161 BC),.There has been a long-standing debate over whether this Gaius Fannius was the historian who served under

Scipio Aemilianus Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus Aemilianus (185 BC – 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 durin ...

during the

Third Punic War The Third Punic War (149–146 BC) was the third and last of the Punic Wars fought between Carthage and Rome. The war was fought entirely within Carthaginian territory, in what is now northern Tunisia. When the Second Punic War ended in 20 ...

, and together with

Tiberius Gracchus Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus (; 163 – 133 BC) was a Roman politician best known for his agrarian reform law entailing the transfer of land from the Roman state and wealthy landowners to poorer citizens. He had also served in the ...

were the first to mount the walls of Carthage on the capture of the city.

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, orator, writer and Academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises tha ...

, from whose letters much of this is derived, was incorrect in identifying Fannius the consul as the son of Gaius; inscriptions clearly reveal that his father was Marcus Fannius. It is now generally accepted that Cicero, although mistaken about some of the details, was probably not mistaken when he distinguished between Gaius Fannius, the Consul of 122 BC and Gaius Fannius, the historian who served under Scipio Aemilianus. See Cornell, T. J. ''The Fragments of the Roman Historians'' (2013), pp. 244-247 for a detailed analysis of the evidence. On the assumption that this Gaius Fannius was not the historian who fought in the

, in 146 BC he was a member of

Quintus Caecilius Metellus Macedonicus Quintus Caecilius Metellus Macedonicus (c. 188 BC – 116 BC/115 BC) was a statesman and general of the Roman Republic during the second century BC. He was praetor in 148 BC, consul in 143 BC, the Proconsul of Hispania Citerior in 142 BC an ...

’s staff in

Macedonia Macedonia (, , , ), most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a former administr ...

, who sent him as part of an embassy to the

Achaean League The Achaean League () was a Hellenistic period, Hellenistic-era confederation of polis, Greek city-states on the northern and central Peloponnese. The league was named after the region of Achaea (ancient region), Achaea in the northwestern Pelopon ...

to convince them not to enter the war against Rome. After the embassy was insulted and their warnings disregarded, Fannius left and went to

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

. Fannius next appears in 141 BC, serving with distinction as a

military tribune A military tribune () 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 tribunes as a stepping stone to the Senate. The should not be confused with the ...

Hispania Ulterior Hispania Ulterior (English: "Further Hispania", or occasionally "Thither Hispania") was a Roman province located in Hispania (on the Iberian Peninsula) during the Roman Republic, roughly located in Baetica and in the Guadalquivir valley of moder ...

under Quintus Fabius Maximus Servilianus in his war against

Viriathus Viriathus (also spelled Viriatus; known as Viriato in Portuguese language, Portuguese and Spanish language, Spanish; died 139 Anno Domini, BC) was the most important leader of the Lusitanians, Lusitanian people that resisted Roman Republic, Roma ...

. It is assumed that sometime after 139 BC (possibly 137 BC), Fannius was elected as

Plebeian Tribune Tribune of the plebs, tribune of the people or plebeian tribune () was the first office of the Roman state that was open to the plebeians, and was, throughout the history of the Republic, the most important check on the power of the Roman Senate ...

. Then probably around 127/6 BC, he was elected to the office of

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 disch ...

, during which time he was mentioned in a decree responding to the request for Roman assistance by

John Hyrcanus John Hyrcanus (; ; ) was a Hasmonean (Maccabee, Maccabean) leader and Jewish High Priest of Israel of the 2nd century BCE (born 164 BCE, reigned from 134 BCE until he died in 104 BCE). In rabbinic literature he is often referred to as ''Yoḥana ...

, the ruler of the

Hasmonean Kingdom The Hasmonean dynasty (; ''Ḥašmōnāʾīm''; ) was a ruling dynasty of Judea and surrounding regions during the Hellenistic times of the Second Temple period (part of classical antiquity), from BC to 37 BC. Between and BC the dynasty rule ...

. In 122 BC, with the support of the Tribune of the Plebs

, Fannius was elected

, serving alongside Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus. However, once he was in office, he turned against Gracchus, opposing his reforming measures and supporting the traditional senatorial group who were against any reforms which impacted upon their wealth and status. During his consulship he obeyed the Senate's directive and issued a proclamation commanding all of the Italian allies to leave Rome. He also spoke against Gracchus' proposal to extend the franchise to the

Latins The term Latins has been used throughout history to refer to various peoples, ethnicities and religious groups using Latin or the Latin-derived Romance languages, as part of the legacy of the Roman Empire. In the Ancient World, it referred to th ...

. Fannius' speech was regarded as an oratorical masterpiece in

's time, and was widely read.

Family

Gaius Fannius married Laelia, the daughter of

Gaius Laelius Sapiens Gaius Laelius Sapiens (born c. 188 BC), was a Roman statesman, best known for his friendship with the Roman general and statesman Scipio Aemilianus (Scipio the Younger) (d. 129 BC). He was consul of 140 BC, elected with the help of his friend, b ...

. On the advice of his father-in-law, Fannius attended the lectures of the

Stoic Stoic may refer to: * An adherent of Stoicism Stoicism is a school of Hellenistic philosophy that flourished in ancient Greece and Rome. The Stoics believed that the universe operated according to reason, ''i.e.'' by a God which is immersed i ...

philosopher,

Panaetius Panaetius (; ; – ) of Rhodes was an ancient Greek Stoic philosopher. He was a pupil of Diogenes of Babylon and Antipater of Tarsus in Athens, before moving to Rome where he did much to introduce Stoic doctrines to the city, thanks to the patro ...

, at

Rhodes Rhodes (; ) is the largest of the Dodecanese islands of Greece and is their historical capital; it is the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, ninth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Administratively, the island forms a separ ...

.Smith III, pg. 922

Footnotes

References

Sources

* Broughton, T. Robert S., ''The Magistrates of the Roman Republic'', Vol I (1952) * Broughton, T. Robert S., ''The Magistrates of the Roman Republic'', Vol III (1986) * Cornell, T. J. ''The Fragments of the Roman Historians'' (2013) * Smith, William, ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', Vol II (1867) * Smith, William, ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', Vol III (1867) {{DEFAULTSORT:Fannius, Gaius 2nd-century BC Roman augurs 2nd-century BC Roman consuls

Gaius Gaius, sometimes spelled Caius, was a common Latin praenomen; see Gaius (praenomen). People * Gaius (biblical figure) (1st century AD) *Gaius (jurist) (), Roman jurist * Gaius Acilius * Gaius Antonius * Gaius Antonius Hybrida * Gaius Asinius Gal ...

Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown