Lucius Minucius Esquilinus Augurinus ( 458 – 439 BC) was a Roman politician 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 thro ...

in 458 BC and decemvir in 450 BC.

Family

Brother of Quintus Minucius Esquilinus Augurinus, consul in 457 BC, he was a member of the ''Minucii Augurini'' branch of the ''

gens In ancient Rome, a gens ( or , ; : gentes ) was a family consisting of individuals who shared the same ''nomen gentilicium'' and who claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens, sometimes identified by a distinct cognomen, was cal ...

Minucia''. Lucius was the son of a Publius Minucius and grandson of a Marcus Minucius. His complete name is ''Lucius Minucius P.f. M.n. Esquilinus Augurinus''.

Career

Consulship

In 458 BC, he was consul with

Gaius Nautius Rutilus Gaius Nautius Rutilus ( 475 – 457 BC) was a Roman politician who was consul of the Roman Republic from 475 BC until 474 BC and from 458 BC until 457 BC. Biography Nautius was probably the brother, or perhaps the son of Spurius Nautius Ruti ...

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding i ...

Dionysius of Halicarnassus Dionysius of Halicarnassus (, ; – after 7 BC) was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Emperor Augustus. His literary style was ''atticistic'' – imitating Classical Attic Greek in its prime. ...

, and

Diodorus Siculus Diodorus Siculus or Diodorus of Sicily (; 1st century BC) was an ancient Greece, ancient Greek historian from Sicily. He is known for writing the monumental Universal history (genre), universal history ''Bibliotheca historica'', in forty ...

called him consul ''ordinarius'', but according to the ''

Fasti Capitolini The ''Fasti Capitolini'', or Capitoline Fasti, are a list of the chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, extending from the early fifth century BC down to the reign of Augustus, the first Roman emperor. Together with similar lists found at Rom ...

'', he was the consul suffect, replacing a certain Carvetus who died at the beginning of his term. This year, Rome had faced an assault by the

Aequi 300px, Location of the Aequi (Equi) in central Italy, 5th century BC. The Aequi were an Italic tribe on a stretch of the Apennine Mountains to the east of Latium in central Italy who appear in the early history of ancient Rome. After a long stru ...

whose treaty had expired the year before and Roman territory was pillaged by the

Sabines The Sabines (, , , ; ) were an Italic people who lived in the central Apennine Mountains (see Sabina) of the ancient Italian Peninsula, also inhabiting Latium north of the Anio before the founding of Rome. The Sabines divided int ...

, reaching as far as the city walls. The consuls levied two armies, Augurinus alongside the

dictator A dictator is a political leader who possesses absolute Power (social and political), power. A dictatorship is a state ruled by one dictator or by a polity. The word originated as the title of a Roman dictator elected by the Roman Senate to r ...

Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus () was a Ancient Rome, Roman patrician (ancient Rome), patrician, Roman Senate, statesman, and Roman army, military leader of the early Roman Republic who became a famous model of Virtus (virtue), Roman virtue—parti ...

, named by consul Rutilus, who relinquished command of the army once the mission was accomplished, and returned power to the Senate. Once back in Rome, Augurinus abdicated and command of his army was given to the ''praefectus Urbi'', Quintus Fabius Vibulanus.

''Decemvirate''

In 450 BC, Lucius was elected as member of the Second ''Decemvirate'' against more qualified candidates thanks to the supportive actions of

Appius Claudius Crassus Appius Claudius Crassus Inregillensis (or Crassinus Regillensis) Sabinus ( 471–451 BC) was a Roman senator during the early Republic, most notable as the leading member of the ten-man board (the Decemvirate) which drew up the Twelve Tables of ...

, who had been decemvir the year before. This commission achieved the writing of the

Law of the Twelve Tables The Laws of the Twelve Tables () was the legislation that stood at the foundation of Roman law. Formally promulgated in 449 BC, the Tables consolidated earlier traditions into an enduring set of laws.Crawford, M.H. 'Twelve Tables' in Simon Hornbl ...

, but under the influence of Crassus, they despotically maintained power after the end of their mission. In 449 BC, the decemvirs, led by Crassus, illegally kept their power, against the will 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 ...

and the people. The invasion of the Sabines and the

had consequently dispersed the decemvirs. Quintus Fabius Vibulanus, Manius Rabuleius, and Quintus Poetelius Libo met the Sabines in battle while Lucius Minucius accompanied

Marcus Cornelius Maluginensis Marcus Cornelius Maluginensis was a Roman politician and member of the Second Decemvirate in 450 and 449 BC. Family He was part of the ''Cornelii Maluginenses'', patrician branch of the ''gens Cornelia''. He was grandson of Servius Cornelius Ma ...

, Lucius Sergius Esquilinus, and Titus Antonius Merenda in their fight with the

. However, the army had revolted against the decemvirs, and the

plebeians In ancient Rome, the plebeians or plebs were the general body of free Roman citizens who were not Patrician (ancient Rome), patricians, as determined by the Capite censi, census, or in other words "commoners". Both classes were hereditary. Et ...

had left the city ''en masse'' for

Aventine Hill The Aventine Hill (; ; ) is one of the Seven Hills on which ancient Rome was built. It belongs to Ripa, the modern twelfth ''rione'', or ward, of Rome. Location and boundaries The Aventine Hill is the southernmost of Rome's seven hills. I ...

. Lucius Minucius and his colleagues acquiesced and gave up their power - some left in exile. Their goods were confiscated.

Prefect of the grain-market

In 440 BC, a great famine had reached Rome. Given the urgency of the situation, the consuls had quickly elected a ''praefectus annonae'' ("Prefect of the Grain-market"), some sort of manager of the Republic's grain supply, whose purpose it was to secure the grain supply. It was probably this year that the aedile of the plebs, Manius Marcius, organized a distribution of grain for the plebs, where each individual was given one-third of a Roman bushel (''modius''). The example of Manius Marcius was soon followed by

Spurius Maelius Spurius Maelius (died 439 BC) was a wealthy Roman plebeian who was slain because he was suspected of intending to make himself king. Biography During a severe famine, Spurius Maelius bought up a large amount of wheat and sold it at a low price to ...

, a rich member of the

Equestrian order The (; , though sometimes referred to as " knights" in English) constituted the second of the property/social-based classes of ancient Rome, ranking below the senatorial class. A member of the equestrian order was known as an (). Descript ...

, who had acquired great quantities of fresh wheat in

Etruria Etruria ( ) was a region of Central Italy delimited by the rivers Arno and Tiber, an area that covered what is now most of Tuscany, northern Lazio, and north-western Umbria. It was inhabited by the Etruscans, an ancient civilization that f ...

, and then distributed it to the people for free. His popularity became such that the

Patricians The patricians (from ) were originally a group of ruling class families in ancient Rome. The distinction was highly significant in the Roman Kingdom and the early Republic, but its relevance waned after the Conflict of the Orders (494 BC to 287 B ...

were convinced that he was only trying to gain support in order to become king. He had already taken measures for a coup. In the meantime, Lucius Minucius had informed

Titus Quinctius Capitolinus Barbatus Titus Quinctius Capitolinus Barbatus (513 BCafter 423 BC) was a Roman statesman and general who served as consul six times. Titus Quinctius was a member of the gens Quinctia, one of the oldest patrician families in Rome. He was the son of L ...

, and

Agrippa Menenius Lanatus Agrippa Menenius Lanatus (died 493 BC) was a consul of the Roman Republic in 503 BC, with Publius Postumius Tubertus. He was victorious over the Sabines and was awarded a triumph which he celebrated on 4 April 503 BC. According to Livy, he a ...

, who were elected consuls for the year 439 BC, and named

dictator at the start of their term. Cincinnatus had Spurius Maelius assassinated by his ''

magister equitum The , in English Master of the Horse or Master of the Cavalry, was a Roman magistrate appointed as lieutenant to a dictator. His nominal function was to serve as commander of the Roman cavalry in time of war, but just as a dictator could be n ...

'',

Gaius Servilius Ahala Gaius Servilius Ahala ( 439 BC) was a 5th-century BC politician of ancient Rome, considered by many later writers to have been a hero. His fame rested on the contention that he saved Rome from Spurius Maelius in 439 BC by killing him with a dagg ...

. According to ancient authors, Lucius Minucius was rewarded with the erection of a statue for having alerted the patricians to the danger that Spurius Maelius posed.

, ''Roman Antiquities'', XII. 1-2

References

Bibliography

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Michael Crawford Michael Patrick Smith (born 19 January 1942), known professionally as Michael Crawford, is an English actor, comedian and singer. Crawford is best known for playing the hapless Frank Spencer in the sitcom '' Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em'', Cornel ...

, ''Roman Republican Coinage'', Cambridge University Press, 1974. {{DEFAULTSORT:Minucius Esquilinus Augurinus, Lucius 5th-century BC Roman consuls Esquilinus, Lucius Ancient Roman decemvirs