Marcus Papirius Mugillanus was a

consular tribune A consular tribune was putatively a type of magistrate in the early Roman Republic. According to Roman tradition, colleges of consular tribunes held office throughout the fifth and fourth centuries BC during the so-called "Conflict of the Or ...

in 418 and 416 BC, and perhaps consul of the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...

in 411. Papirius belonged to the

Papiria gens The gens Papiria was a patrician (ancient Rome), patrician family at ancient Rome. According to tradition, the Papirii had already achieved prominence in the time of Roman Kingdom, the kings, and the first Rex Sacrorum and Pontifex maximus, Pontif ...

, one of the oldest patrician families. The family had, according to legend, been among the first families to hold the most prestigious religious offices, such as Pontifex maximus and

Rex Sacrorum In ancient Roman religion, the ''rex sacrorum'' ("king of the sacred things", also sometimes ''rex sacrificulus'') was a senatorial priesthood reserved for patricians. Although in the historical era, the '' pontifex maximus'' was the head of ...

. Papirius was the son of Lucius Papirius Mugillanus, the

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 ...

of 427 BC, and possibly himself the father of Lucius Papirius Mugillanus, the consular tribune in 382, 380 and 376 BC.

Career

Papirius first held the ''

imperium In ancient Rome, ''imperium'' was a form of authority held by a citizen to control a military or governmental entity. It is distinct from '' auctoritas'' and '' potestas'', different and generally inferior types of power in the Roman Republic a ...

'' in 418 BC as one of three consular tribunes. His colleagues in the office were

Lucius Sergius Fidenas Lucius Sergius Fidenas was a Roman politician during the 5th century BC, and was elected consul in 437 and 429 BC. In 433, 424, and 418 BC he was military tribune with consular power. Family He was a member of the ''Sergii Fidenates'', a branch o ...

and

Gaius Servilius Axilla Gaius Servilius Axilla (or Servilius Structus; 427–417 BC) was a Roman aristocrat and statesman during the early Republic. He held the senior executive offices of consul in 427 BC and consular tribune in 419, 418 and 417 BC. He also served as ...

, both experienced generals and repeated consulars. The year saw war against 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 ...

and the Labici which resulted, after the defeat of Papirius colleague Sergius, to the appointment of a

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 ...

, Quintus Servilius Priscus Fidenas. Servilius, the dictator, appointed his relative, Axilla, to the office of ''

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 ...

'', and together they defeated both their enemies resulting in the capture of Labici. Papirius father, the consul of 427 BC, was elected as censor during this year.

Chronograph of 354 The Chronograph of 354 is a compilation of chronological and calendrical texts produced in 354 AD for a wealthy Roman Christian named Valentinus by the calligrapher and manuscript illuminator, illustrator Furius Dionysius Filocalus. The origina ...

(Structo II et Fidenas III) Papirius was again elected as consular tribune in 416 BC, this time sharing the office with Aulus Sempronius Atratinus, Quintus Fabius Vibulanus and Spurius Nautius Rutilus. The whole college was exceptionally experienced and consisted solely of former consulars. The year saw the proposal of a new

agrarian law Agrarian laws (from the Latin ''ager'', meaning "land") were Roman law, laws among the Ancient Rome, Romans regulating the division of the public real property, lands, or ''ager publicus''. In its broader definition, it can also refer to the agric ...

by the

plebeian tribunes 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 ...

, Spurius Maecilius and Marcus Metilius, which was vetoed by their own colleagues.

Mugillanus or Atratinus? - Consulship of 411 BC

There exists some conflicting traditions in regards to the

cognomen A ''cognomen'' (; : ''cognomina''; from ''co-'' "together with" and ''(g)nomen'' "name") was the third name of a citizen of ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. Initially, it was a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became hereditar ...

of the consul in 411 BC. The consul has the cognomen of Mugillanus in both the

and the Fasti Hydatius; however, the ancient historian

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 ...

, drawing on an ancient document known as the ''libri lintei'', reports the consul of that year as having the cognomen Atratinus. No help can be gained from 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 ...

'' as it is not preserved for this year. While the Classicist Broughton argues that the evidence of Mugillanus in the two later ''fasti'' is an indication that the ''Fasti Capitolini'' would have had the same name, names the consul of 411 BC as Marcus Papirius Mugillanus and concludes he is the same person as the consular tribune of 418 and 416 BC. In opposition R.M. Ogilvie, noting that the cognomen of Atratinus is otherwise unattested among the Papiria and seems to be exclusively used by another gens, the Sempronia, argues that the source of the ''Fasti Capitolini'' is corrupt at this point and "the original list of 411 will have been a college of three consular tribunes, Papirius, Sempronius and Nautius". The identity of the Papirius of 411 BC will most likely remain unrecoverable. If Mugillanus is to be identified as the consul in 411 BC he would have shared the office with his former colleague Nautius in a consulship beset by pestillence and famine.Broughton, vol i, pp.76-77

References

{{s-end 5th-century BC Romans Roman consular tribunes Papirii

Career

Mugillanus or Atratinus? - Consulship of 411 BC

See also

References