Marcus Junius Silanus Torquatus 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 ...

. He 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 AD 19, with

Lucius Norbanus Balbus Lucius Norbanus Balbus was a Roman senator during the Principate. He was consul in AD 19, as the colleague of Marcus Junius Silanus Torquatus. Balbus was the younger son of Gaius Norbanus Flaccus; his brother was the consul of AD 15, Gaius Norbanus ...

as his colleague.

Biography

Silanus was a descendant of the noble Roman house of the

Junii Silani The gens Junia or Iunia was one of the most celebrated families of ancient Rome. The gens may originally have been patrician, and was already prominent in the last days of the Roman monarchy. Lucius Junius Brutus was the nephew of Lucius Tar ...

. His grandfather was Marcus Junius Silanus, consul with the 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 ...

in 25 BC. His mother appears to have been Calpurnia Domitia Calvina, daughter of

Lucius Calpurnius Bibulus Lucius Calpurnius Bibulus (? – died around 32 B.C.) was a Roman statesman. He was the son of the consul Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus. Biography Lucius Bibulus was the son of Julius Caesar's implacable enemy Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus. His mother cou ...

and Domitia Calvina, daughter of

Gnaeus Domitius Calvinus Gnaeus Domitius Calvinus was a Roman general, senator and consul (both in 53 BC and 40 BC) who was a loyal partisan of Caesar and Octavianus. Biography Domitius Calvinus came from a noble family and was elected consul for 53 BC, despite a n ...

. Torquatus married

Aemilia Lepida Aemilia Lepida is a Latin feminine given name that was given to the daughters of various Aemilius Lepiduses (), men belonging to the Lepidus branch of the Aemilia (family) that was founded by the Marcus Aemilius Lepidus who served as consul i ...

, daughter of

Julia the Younger Vipsania Julia Agrippina (19 BC – c. AD 28), nicknamed Julia Minor (Classical Latin: IVLIA•MINOR) and called Julia the Younger by modern historians, was a Roman Empire, Roman noblewoman of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. She was emperor Augustus ...

, and great-granddaughter of Augustus. Consul for the whole year of AD 19, he and his colleague Norbanus brought forward the ''

lex Junia Norbana In Roman Law, the ''lex Iunia Norbana'' classified all freedmen into two classes according to their mode of enfranchisement: enfranchised citizens, (freedmen who enjoyed Roman citizenship) and enfranchised Latini (freedmen who had only Latin rights ...

'', which prevented

slaves Slavery is the ownership of a person as property, especially in regards to their labour. Slavery typically involves compulsory work, with the slave's location of work and residence dictated by the party that holds them in bondage. Enslavemen ...

manumitted by

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 ...

s from receiving the franchise, and precluding their descendants from inheritance.

Freedmen A freedman or freedwoman is a person who has been released from slavery, usually by legal means. Historically, slaves were freed by manumission (granted freedom by their owners), emancipation (granted freedom as part of a larger group), or self- ...

under this law came to be known as ''Latini Juniani''. From AD 32 to 38, Silanus was proconsul of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent after Asia. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 20% of Earth's land area and 6% of its total surfac ...

Descendants

Silanus and Aemilia had five children, all of whom suffered as a result of their connection to the imperial family. * Marcus Junius Silanus (AD 14–54), consul in 46, put to death in order to ensure the succession of

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68) was a Roman emperor and the final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 until his ...

, and to prevent him from avenging the death of his brother, Lucius. *

Junia Calvina Junia Calvina was a Roman noblewoman who lived in the 1st century AD. Biography The daughter of Aemilia Lepida and Marcus Junius Silanus Torquatus, consul in 19, Calvina belonged to two patrician houses: the ''gens Aemilia'' and ''gens Juni ...

(d. after AD 79), married

Lucius Vitellius Lucius Vitellius (before 7 BC – AD 51) was the youngest of four sons of procurator Publius Vitellius and the only one who did not die through politics. He was consul three times, which was unusual during the Roman Empire for someone who ...

, a brother of the future emperor

Vitellius Aulus Vitellius ( ; ; 24 September 1520 December 69) was Roman emperor for eight months, from 19 April to 20 December AD 69. Vitellius became emperor following the quick succession of the previous emperors Galba and Otho, in a year of civil wa ...

. Accused of incest with her youngest brother, she was exiled by

Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; ; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54), or Claudius, was a Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Nero Claudius Drusus, Drusus and Ant ...

, only to be recalled ten years later by the emperor

. *

Decimus Junius Silanus Torquatus Decimus Junius Silanus Torquatus (c. 16 AD64 AD) was a Roman senator who lived during the 1st century. Life He served as an ordinary consul in 53 with Quintus Haterius Antoninus as his colleague. Decimus was the second son born to Aemilia Lep ...

(d. AD 64), consul in 53, forced by Nero to commit suicide after being accused of boasting of his descent from Augustus. *

Lucius Junius Silanus Torquatus Two noblemen, an uncle and nephew, who shared the name Lucius Junius Silanus Torquatus and were descendants of the Roman Emperor Augustus, lived during the 1st century AD. Elder Silanus Silanus (died 49), was the third born son to Aemilia Lepi ...

(d. AD 49), praetor in 48, he was engaged to Octavia, daughter of

. Agrippina spread a rumor that he had committed incest with his sister, as a result of which he was expelled from the Senate and deprived of his office. He committed suicide on the day that Claudius and Agrippina were married. *

Junia Lepida Junia Lepida (c. AD 18 - 65) was a Roman noblewoman who lived in the first century. Life She was the second daughter of Aemilia Lepida and Marcus Junius Silanus Torquatus, one of the Junii Silani. Her maternal grandparents were Julia the Younge ...

, who married

Gaius Cassius Longinus Gaius Cassius Longinus (; – 3 October 42 BC) was a Roman senator and general best known as a leading instigator of the plot to assassinate Julius Caesar on 15 March 44 BC. He was the brother-in-law of Brutus, another leader of the conspir ...

, and raised her nephew

the younger (50–66), after his father Marcus was murdered.Barrett, Anthony, ''Caligula: The Corruption of Power'' (Touchstone, 1989), pp. viii–ix.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Junius Silanus Torquatus, Marcus 1st-century Roman consuls Torquatus, Marcus Roman governors of Africa

Biography

Descendants

See also

References