The gens Cossutia was a
plebeian
In ancient Rome, the plebeians (also called 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 ...
family of
equestrian rank
The ''equites'' (; literally "horse-" or "cavalrymen", though sometimes referred to as "knights" in English) constituted the second of the property-based classes of ancient Rome, ranking below the senatorial class. A member of the equestrian o ...
at
ancient Rome
In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 B ...
. It never attained any importance.
['']Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology
The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' (1849, originally published 1844 under a slightly different title) is an encyclopedia/biographical dictionary. Edited by William Smith, the dictionary spans three volumes and 3,700 p ...
'', William Smith, Editor.
Origin
It is conjectured by some from
Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the estab ...
's mention of the ''Cossutianae tabulae'', near
Caesena
Cesena (; rgn, Cisêna) is a city and ''comune'' in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, served by Autostrada A14, and located near the Apennine Mountains, about from the Adriatic Sea. The total population is 97,137.
History
Cesena was or ...
, in
Gallia Cisalpina
Cisalpine Gaul ( la, Gallia Cisalpina, also called ''Gallia Citerior'' or ''Gallia Togata'') was the part of Italy inhabited by Celts (Gauls) during the 4th and 3rd centuries BC.
After its conquest by the Roman Republic in the 200s BC it was con ...
, that the Cossutii originally came from that place.
Branches and cognomina
On coins of this gens, we find the cognomens ''Maridianus'' and ''Sabula'', but none occur in history.
Members
*
Decimus Cossutius Decimus may refer to:
Romen praenomen
* Decimus (praenomen)
* Decimus Carfulenus (died 43 BC), Roman statesman
* Decimus Haterius Agrippa (died 32 AD), consul in 22 AD
* Decimus Junius Brutus (consul 77 BC)
* Decimus Junius Brutus Albinus (–43 ...
, a Roman architect, rebuilt the
temple of the Olympian Zeus at
Athens
Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...
, in the most magnificent
Corinthian style
The Corinthian order (Greek: Κορινθιακός ρυθμός, Latin: ''Ordo Corinthius'') is the last developed of the three principal classical orders of Ancient Greek architecture and Roman architecture. The other two are the Doric order ...
, in 168 BC.
*
Marcus Cossutius, an
eques
Eques, ''horseman'' or ''rider'' in Latin, may refer to:
* Equites, a member of the Roman Equestrian order
* the Latin word for a knight
A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or ...
, and a man of the greatest respectability and integrity, who lived in Sicily during the administration of
Verres
Gaius Verres (c. 120–43 BC) was a Roman magistrate, notorious for his misgovernment of Sicily. His extortion of local farmers and plundering of temples led to his prosecution by Cicero, whose accusations were so devastating that his defence adv ...
, and defended Xeno before the latter.
*
Cossutia
Cossutia was a Roman woman who became engaged to Julius Caesar prior to his reaching adulthood. There has been debate among historians on whether the marriage actually occurred.
Biography Early life
Cossutia belonged to a very wealthy equestrian ...
, fiancée and perhaps the first wife of
Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman people, Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caes ...
, belonged to a very wealthy equestrian family. She was betrothed to him by his parents, while he was very young, but was rejected by him in his seventeenth year, that he might marry
Cornelia.
*
Gaius Cossutius Maridianus, ''triumvir monetalis'' under Caesar in 44 BC.
See also
*
List of Roman gentes
The gens (plural gentes) was a Roman family, of Italic or Etruscan origins, consisting of all those individuals who shared the same '' nomen'' and claimed descent from a common ancestor. It was an important social and legal structure in early ...
*
Cossutianus Capito
Cossutianus Capito () was a Roman senator and ''delator'', often acting on behalf of the contemporary Roman emperor during the Principate. Tacitus offers a hostile portrait of Capito in his ''Annales'', describing him as a "man stained with much ...
References
{{reflist
Roman gentes