Quintus Pompeius Rufus (died 88 BC) was a

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 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 88 BC. His colleague in office was the future

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 ...

Sulla Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (, ; 138–78 BC), commonly known as Sulla, was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman of the late Roman Republic. A great commander and ruthless politician, Sulla used violence to advance his career and his co ...

Biography

The son of the Quintus Pompeius who was

Plebeian Tribune 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 ...

in 132 BC, Rufus was elected Tribune of the

Plebs In ancient Rome, the plebeians or plebs were the general body of free Roman citizens who were not patricians, as determined by the census, or in other words "commoners". Both classes were hereditary. Etymology The precise origins of the gro ...

in 99 BC. He, alongside

Marcus Porcius Cato Salonianus Marcus Porcius M. f. M. n. Cato Salonianus (born ) was the younger son of Cato the Elder, and grandfather of Marcus Porcius Cato Uticensis, also known as "Cato the Younger". Salonianus' father was Marcus Porcius Cato, consul in 195 BC, and censor ...

, put forward a bill to recall

Quintus Caecilius Metellus Numidicus Quintus Caecilius Metellus Numidicus () was an ancient Roman statesman and general. He was a leader of the Optimates, the conservative faction of the Roman Senate. He was a bitter political opponent of Gaius Marius. He was Roman consul, consul in 1 ...

from exile, but it was vetoed by Publius Furius. In 91 BC, Pompeius was elected

Praetor urbanus ''Praetor'' ( , ), also ''pretor'', was the Title#Titles for heads of state, 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 ''Roman magistr ...

, followed by his election as

in 88 BC, alongside Lucius Cornelius Sulla. The outbreak of the

First Mithridatic War The First Mithridatic War /ˌmɪθrəˈdædɪk/ (89–85 BC) was a war challenging the Roman Republic's expanding empire and rule over the Greek world. In this conflict, the Kingdom of Pontus and many Greek cities rebelling against Roman rule ...

during their consulship saw the command of the war given to Sulla. This was opposed by the former consul and general

Gaius Marius Gaius Marius (; – 13 January 86 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. Victor of the Cimbrian War, Cimbric and Jugurthine War, Jugurthine wars, he held the office of Roman consul, consul an unprecedented seven times. Rising from a fami ...

, who had a tribune of the Plebs,

Publius Sulpicius Rufus Publius Sulpicius Rufus (124–88 BC) was a Roman politician and orator whose attempts to pass controversial laws with the help of mob violence helped trigger the first civil war of the Roman Republic. His actions kindled the deadly rivalry betwe ...

, firstly bring forward a law which would enrol the Italian allies who had just received Roman citizenship across all of the

Roman tribe A ''tribus'', or tribe, was a division of the Roman people for military, censorial, and voting purposes. When constituted in the '' comitia tributa'', the tribes were the voting units of a legislative assembly of the Roman Republic.''Harper's Di ...

s, thereby giving Marius a large enough body of voters to pass a law to strip Sulla of his command. This was opposed by Pompeius and Sulla who declared a

Justitium ''Justitium'' (derived from the Latin term ''Juris statio'') is a concept of Roman law, equivalent to the declaration of the state of emergency. Some scholars also refer to it as a state of exception, stemming from a state of necessity. It inv ...

, during which no laws could be passed. During the riots which followed, Sulla fled, Pompeius's son was killed, and the consuls were forced to withdraw the Justitium. The people then passed the law which stripped Sulla of his command. Pompeius continued his attempts to support Sulla in Rome; however, Publius Sulpicius then had Pompeius stripped of his consulship, forcing him to flee to

Nola Nola is a town and a municipality in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania, southern Italy. It lies on the plain between Mount Vesuvius and the Apennines. It is traditionally credited as the diocese that introduced bells to Christian worship. ...

, where Pompeius met up with Sulla and his army. Pompeius accompanied Sulla on his march on Rome, and gave him his complete support in his actions against Sulpicius and the occupation of Rome. Together, the consuls passed a series of laws, including the exile of Marius and his supporters, a limiting of some of the powers of the tribunes, the expansion of the senate by adding some 300 additional senators, and the provision that all laws were to be reviewed by the Senate before being submitted to an assembly of the people. Most important of all was the provision that laws could now only be carried in the Centuriate Assembly. Sulla was soon put back in charge of the war against Mithridates, leaving Pompeius in charge of

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

. 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 ...

then gave Pompeius the proconsular command of the ongoing Social War, with specific instructions to take over the armies of

Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo ( – 87 BC) was a Roman general and politician, who served as consul in 89 BC. He is often referred to in English as Pompey Strabo, to distinguish him from his son, the famous Pompey the Great, or from Strabo the geograp ...

, who was still in charge of the theatre of war against the

Marsi The Marsi were an Italic people of ancient Italy, whose chief centre was Marruvium, on the eastern shore of Lake Fucinus (which was drained in the time of Claudius). The area in which they lived is now called Marsica. They originally spoke a l ...

tribe. Unwilling to hand over his command, Strabo incited a mutiny that led to Pompeius being stabbed to death by his own soldiers. Pompeius had at least one child, his son Quintus Pompeius Rufus, who married Sulla's first daughter

Cornelia Sulla Cornelia Sulla or Cornelia Silla was the eldest daughter of the Roman statesman and general Lucius Cornelius Sulla and his first wife Julia. Biography Early life It is believed that she was Sulla's daughter by his first wife Julia. She likely ha ...

. Pompeius was the brother of the tribune

Aulus Pompeius Aulus Pompeius was the name of two Romans from the gens Pompeius, who were of plebs status. They lived during the Roman Republic. Brother to Quintus Pompeius Rufus, Consul 88 BC Aulus Pompeius (flourished 2nd century BC) was the son Quintus Pompeiu ...

. He appears to be the first in his family to bear 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 ...

Rufus. However, the origins of him gaining this cognomen are unknown - although it may simply be that he was red-haired.

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, orator, writer and Academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises tha ...

states that Pompeius was among the orators he had heard in his youth. Pompeius also possibly held the position of

Decemviri Sacris Faciundis In ancient Rome, the were the fifteen () members of a college (''collegium'') with priestly duties. They guarded the Sibylline Books, scriptures which they consulted and interpreted at the request of the Senate. This ''collegium'' also oversaw ...

until his death.

Fiction

Pompeius is a character in the

Colleen McCullough Colleen Margaretta McCullough (; married name Robinson, previously Ion-Robinson; 1 June 193729 January 2015) was an Australian author known for her novels, her most well-known being '' The Thorn Birds'' and '' The Ladies of Missalonghi''. Lif ...

novel ''

The Grass Crown The Grass Crown () or Blockade Crown (''corona obsidionalis'') was the highest and rarest of all military decorations in the Roman Republic and early Roman Empire. It was presented only to a general, commander, or officer whose actions saved a ...

''. In it, Pompeius is murdered after Sulla writes to Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, asking Strabo to have Pompeius killed, as Pompeius was unhappy with Sulla's actions in his march on Rome.

Notes

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pompeius Rufus, Quintus (consul 88 BC) 88 BC deaths Year of birth unknown 1st-century BC Roman consuls Assassinated ancient Roman politicians Rufus, Quintus (consul 88 BC) Roman Republican praetors Tribunes of the plebs