Lucius Antonius (20 BC – AD 25) was the son of

Iullus Antonius Iullus Antonius (43–2 BC) was a Roman magnate and poet. A son of Mark Antony and Fulvia, he was spared by the emperor Augustus after the civil wars of the Republic, and was married to the emperor's niece. He was later condemned as one of the lo ...

(son of

Mark Antony Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman people, Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the Crisis of the Roman Republic, transformation of the Roman Republic ...

) and

Claudia Marcella Major Claudia Marcella Major ('' PIR2'' C 1102; born some time before 40 BC) was the senior niece of Roman emperor Augustus, being the eldest daughter of his sister Octavia the Younger and her first husband Gaius Claudius Marcellus. She became the se ...

(niece of emperor

Augustus Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian (), was the founder of the Roman Empire, who reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in A ...

Biography

Early life

From his mother’s earlier marriage to

Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (; BC – 12 BC) was a Roman general, statesman and architect who was a close friend, son-in-law and lieutenant to the Roman emperor Augustus. Agrippa is well known for his important military victories, notably the B ...

he had two older attested siblings, two half-sisters named Vipsania Marcella and Vipsania Marcellina. Some epigraphic evidence suggests he had a sister named

Iulla Antonia Iulla Antonia or Antonia Iulla is thought to be a daughter of Roman consul of 10 BCE Iullus Antonius (son of Mark Antony) and Claudia Marcella Major (niece of emperor Augustus). The only direct evidence of her existence that has been found is a ...

and a brother named Iullus. Around 1 BC he had probably already been betrothed to a girl of high birth. In 2 BC his father was charged with adultery with

Julia Julia may refer to: People *Julia (given name), including a list of people with the name *Julia (surname), including a list of people with the name *Julia gens, a patrician family of Ancient Rome *Julia (clairvoyant) (fl. 1689), lady's maid of Qu ...

(daughter of

) and was forced to commit suicide. Lucius was sent to

Marseille Marseille (; ; see #Name, below) is a city in southern France, the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Bouches-du-Rhône and of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region. Situated in the ...

as a result of his father's indiscretion. Lucius was described as a ''adulescentulus'' at the time, meaning that he was quite young. He was sent there under the pretence of "studying", and it was not an official exile but was in practise the same as one. Once there he studied law.

Later life

G. V. Sumner proposed that Lucius may have been a progenitor of a

Junius Blaesus Quintus Junius Blaesus (died AD 31) was a Roman politician who lived during the reigns of Augustus and Tiberius. He was the maternal uncle of Lucius Aelius Sejanus, the Praetorian Prefect of Emperor Tiberius. Career Almost nothing is known of ...

who was descended from Marcus Antonius.

Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars. Tacitus’ two major historical works, ''Annals'' ( ...

records his death in AD 25 at ''Ann.'' 4.44.4-5. Despite his father's actions the senate decreed that he should be honoured with a burial at the Tomb of the Octavii, which was the tomb of his maternal grandmother

Octavia Minor Octavia the Younger (; 69 BC – 11 BC) was the elder sister of the first Roman emperor, Augustus (known also as Octavian), the half-sister of Octavia the Elder, and the fourth wife of Mark Antony. She was also the great-grandmother of the Empe ...

. This was likely done at the request of a relative (or relatives) in the imperial family, possibly his mother Marcella if she was still alive at the time.

Cultural depictions

A boy on the

Ara Pacis The (Latin, "Altar of Augustan Peace"; commonly shortened to ) is an altar in Rome dedicated to the Pax Romana. The monument was commissioned by the Roman Senate on July 4, 13 BC to honour the return of Augustus to Rome after three years in Hisp ...

has been identified by some to possibly be Lucius.

Notes

References

Sources

- The Annals of Imperial Rome *

Suetonius Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (), commonly referred to as Suetonius ( ; – after AD 122), was a Roman historian who wrote during the early Imperial era of the Roman Empire. His most important surviving work is ''De vita Caesarum'', common ...

- The Twelve Caesars {{DEFAULTSORT:Antonius, Lucius

Lucius Lucius is a masculine given name derived from Lucius (Latin ; ), abbreviated L., one of the small group of common Latin forenames () found in the culture of ancient Rome. Lucius probably derives from Latin word ( gen. ), meaning "light" (<

Julio-Claudian dynasty Imperial Roman praetors 20 BC births 25 deaths 1st-century BC Romans 1st-century Romans