Marcus Livius Denter (d. 295 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 ...

, belonging to gens

Livia Livia Drusilla (30 January 59 BC AD 29) was List of Roman and Byzantine empresses, Roman empress from 27 BC to AD 14 as the wife of Augustus, the first Roman emperor. She was known as Julia Augusta after her formal Adoption ...

in the fourth century BC. In 302 BC, he was appointed as consul with

Marcus Aemilius Paullus Marcus Aemilius Paullus was a Roman statesman and general during the middle era of the Roman Republic. He was one of the consuls of 255 BCE, serving with Servius Fulvius Paetinius Nobilior. As consul Paullus led the Republic's forces in the ongoi ...

. During their consulship, the Spartan prince Cleonymus landed in southern Italy to attack the Lucani, and according to

Titus Livius 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 ...

, was either defeated and driven out by Aemilius Paullus or he left before the arrival of 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 ...

Gaius Junius Bubulcus Brutus Gaius Junius Bubulcus Brutus ( late 4th century BC) was a Roman general and statesman, he was elected consul of the Roman Republic thrice, he was also appointed '' dictator'' or ''magister equitum'' thrice, and censor in 307 BC. In 311, he made a ...

, who was sent to repel him.Titus Livius X, 1. After the decision of the ''

Lex Ogulnia The ''lex Ogulnia'' was a Roman law passed in 300 BC. It was a milestone in the long struggle between the patricians and plebeians. The law was carried by the brothers Quintus and Gnaeus Ogulnius, tribunes of the plebs in 300 BC. For the first ...

'' in 300 BC, plebeians were allowed to hold priestly offices, and Livius Denter was the first plebeian to be elected

Pontiff In Roman antiquity, a pontiff () was a member of the most illustrious of the colleges of priests of the Roman religion, the College of Pontiffs."Pontifex". "Oxford English Dictionary", March 2007 The term ''pontiff'' was later applied to any h ...

. In this capacity, he is said to have died in 295 BC. During the decisive

Battle of Sentinum The Battle of Sentinum was the decisive battle of the Third Samnite War, fought in 295 BC near Sentinum (next to the modern town of Sassoferrato, in the Marches region of Italy), in which the Romans overcame a formidable coalition of Samni ...

, he was at the side of the consul Publius Decius Mus when he performed the ''

Devotio In ancient Roman religion, the ''devotio'' was an extreme form of '' votum'' in which a Roman general vowed to sacrifice his own life in battle along with the enemy to chthonic gods in exchange for a victory. The most extended description of t ...

,'' sacrificing himself in battle for victory.Titus Livius X, 6-9.

References

4th-century BC Roman consuls 295 BC deaths Livii {{AncientRome-politician-stub