Gnaeus Octavius
Gnaeus Octavius was a senator and later consul of the Roman Republic. His father, also called Gnaeus Octavius, was Consul in 128 BC.
His uncle, Marcus Octavius, was a key figure in opposition to the reforms of Tiberius Gracchus in 133 BC. He was distantly related to Gaius Octavius, father of the future emperor Augustus.
In 87 BC he became consul along with the popularist senator Lucius Cornelius Cinna. Political differences, owing to Cinna's ties to Gaius Marius, led to the two consuls quarrelling over policy. The dispute came to a head with Octavius, backed by the remaining optimates, forcing Cinna to flee Rome later in the year. Octavius was subsequently killed alongside many others when Cinna marched on Rome alongside Gaius Marius, returning at the head of his troops.[1]
He was said to have held to strict principles in his politics and was known for his honesty. Plutarch, who discusses him in his lives of Marius and Lucius Cornelius Sulla, describes Gnaeus Octavius' character as "reputable"
His son Lucius Octavius became Consul in 75 BC.
An earlier Gnaeus Octavius was elected as a plebeian aedile along with Spurius Lucretius, according to Titus Livy. During the fourteenth year of the Second Punic War Gnaeus Octavius, as praetor, was assigned to Sardinia.[2]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ The Fall of Marius
- ^ The War With Hannibal (Books XXXI-XXXIII of The History of Rome, Books 21-30), Titus Livy, Aubrey De Selincourt, and Betty Radice, pg. 548.
| Preceded by Lucius Cornelius Sulla and Quintus Pompeius Rufus |
Consul of the Roman Republic with Lucius Cornelius Cinna 87 BCE |
Succeeded by Lucius Cornelius Cinna and Gaius Marius (Suffect: Lucius Valerius Flaccus) |
 |
This article about an Ancient Roman politician is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
