Marcus Atius
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Marcus Atius Balbus (105 – 51 BC) was a 1st-century Roman who served as a praetor in 62 BC and became governor of Sardinia.
Early life[edit]
Balbus was born and raised in Aricia into a political family and was the son and heir of the elder Marcus Atius Balbus (148 – 87 BC). His mother was Pompeia the sister to consul Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, father of Pompey Magnus, a member of the First Triumvirate with Julius Caesar and Marcus Licinius Crassus.
The family of the elder Balbus came from a Roman senatorial family of plebs status from Aricia (modern Ariccia, Italy). "Balbus" in Latin means stammer.
Career[edit]
During the consulship of Julius Caesar in 59 BC, Balbus was appointed along with Pompey to a board of commissioners under a Julian Law to divide estates in Campania among the commoners. Cicero stated that Pompey would say as a joke about Balbus, that he was not a person of any importance.
Personal life[edit]
He married Julia Minor, the younger of the two sisters of the dictator Gaius Julius Caesar. Julia bore him three daughters and they were:
- Atia Balba Prima was the mother of Quintus Pedius who served as a general and consul.
- Atia Balba Caesonia became the mother of Octavia Minor, who was the fourth wife of triumvir Mark Antony, and of the first Emperor Augustus.
- Atia Balba Tertia was the mother of Lucius Pinarius, a political supporter of Mark Antony.
Death[edit]
The younger Balbus died in 51 BC.
See also[edit]
External links[edit]
Sources[edit]
- Suetonius, The Lives of the Twelve Caesars, Augustus
- http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-bio/0464.html
