Decimus Valerius Asiaticus (35after 69 AD) was a

Roman Senator The Roman Senate ( la, Senātus Rōmānus) was a governing and advisory assembly in ancient Rome. It was one of the most enduring institutions in Roman history, being established in the first days of the city of Rome (traditionally founded in ...

who served as a

Legatus A ''legatus'' (; anglicised as legate) was a high-ranking Roman military officer in the Roman Army, equivalent to a modern high-ranking general officer. Initially used to delegate power, the term became formalised under Augustus as the officer ...

Gallia Belgica Gallia Belgica ("Belgic Gaul") was a province of the Roman Empire located in the north-eastern part of Roman Gaul, in what is today primarily northern France, Belgium, and Luxembourg, along with parts of the Netherlands and Germany. In 50 BC, af ...

.Bowman, ''The Cambridge Ancient History, Volume 10'', p. 273

Family background and early life

Asiaticus was of

praetor Praetor ( , ), also pretor, was the 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 '' magistratus'' (magistrate), assigned to discharge vario ...

ian rank. He was the son of the Roman Senator, consul

Decimus Valerius Asiaticus Decimus Valerius Asiaticus (around 5 BCP.J. Sijpesteijn"Another οὐσία of Decimus Valerius Asiaticus in Egypt" ''Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik'', 79 (1989), p. 19347 AD,Alston, ''Aspects of Roman History AD 14-117'', p. 92 el, ...

and

Lollia Saturnina Lollia Saturnina (c.10-41) was a Roman noble woman who lived in the Roman Empire in the 1st century. She was the sister of the Roman empress Lollia Paulina and was a mistress of the Roman emperor Caligula.Seneca the Younger, ''De Constantia sapien ...

. There is a possibility he may have had siblings. He and his family had their origins in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

,Morgan, ''69 AD: The Year of Four Emperors'', p. 149

Gallia Narbonensis Gallia Narbonensis (Latin for "Gaul of Narbonne", from its chief settlement) was a Roman province located in what is now Languedoc and Provence, in Southern France. It was also known as Provincia Nostra ("Our Province"), because it was the ...

. The father of Asiaticus was of Allobrogian origin and his political career was a contemporary of the rule of the Roman emperors

Tiberius Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus (; 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was the second Roman emperor. He reigned from AD 14 until 37, succeeding his stepfather, the first Roman emperor Augustus. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC. His father ...

Caligula Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (31 August 12 – 24 January 41), better known by his nickname Caligula (), was the third Roman emperor, ruling from 37 until his assassination in 41. He was the son of the popular Roman general Germanicu ...

and

Claudius Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (; 1 August 10 BC – 13 October AD 54) was the fourth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 41 to 54. A member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, Claudius was born to Nero Claudius Drusus, Drusu ...

. His father was a respected,Alston, ''Aspects of Roman History AD 14-117'', p. 92 wealthy, and prominent Roman Senator. The elder Asiaticus in 35 served as a suffect consul and again in 46, served as an ordinary consul.P.J. Sijpesteijn
"Another οὑσἱᾳ of D.Valerius Asiaticus in Egypt"
''

Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik The ''Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik'' (commonly abbreviated ZPE; "Journal of Papyrology and Epigraphy") is a peer-reviewed academic journal which contains articles that pertain to papyrology and epigraphy. It has been described as "th ...

'', 79 (1989), p. 194 He was the first man from Gaul to attain the consulship and became the first man from Gaul to be admitted into the

Roman Senate The Roman Senate ( la, Senātus Rōmānus) was a governing and advisory assembly in ancient Rome. It was one of the most enduring institutions in Roman history, being established in the first days of the city of Rome (traditionally founded in ...

. The mother of Asiaticus was the social and beautiful

, whose younger sister

Lollia Paulina Lollia Paulina, also known as Lollia Paullina Marcus Lollius Marcus LolliusHazel, ''Who's Who in the Roman World'', p.171 perhaps with the cognomen Paulinus Volusia Saturnina Volusia Saturnina also known from her funeral inscription as Volusia Latina Saturnina was a Roman noble woman who lived in the Roman Empire in the second half of the 1st century BC and first half of the first century AD. Family background Saturni ...

, who was first cousin to the Roman emperor

. The father of Asiaticus was murdered on the orders of the Roman empress Valeria

Messalina Valeria Messalina (; ) was the third wife of Roman emperor Claudius. She was a paternal cousin of Emperor Nero, a second cousin of Emperor Caligula, and a great-grandniece of Emperor Augustus. A powerful and influential woman with a reputation ...

in 47 and the junior Asiaticus was later raised by his mother.

Political career

After serving as a

, he became the

Roman governor A Roman governor was an official either elected or appointed to be the chief administrator of Roman law throughout one or more of the many provinces constituting the Roman Empire. The generic term in Roman legal language was '' Rector provinciae ...

of that province in the reign of the Roman emperor

Nero Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus ( ; born Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus; 15 December AD 37 – 9 June AD 68), was the fifth Roman emperor and final emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty, reigning from AD 54 un ...

.Wightman, ''Gallia Belgica'', p. 61 In early 69 when Aulus

Vitellius Aulus Vitellius (; ; 24 September 1520 December 69) was Roman emperor for eight months, from 19 April to 20 December AD 69. Vitellius was proclaimed emperor following the quick succession of the previous emperors Galba and Otho, in a year of ci ...

became Roman emperor, he was finding governors and commanders in the provinces as supporters for his emperorship who were genuinely enthusiastic.Morgan, ''69 AD: The Year of Four Emperors'', p. 81 Among those supporters was Asiaticus. When Vitellius was in the city of

Lugdunum Lugdunum (also spelled Lugudunum, ; modern Lyon, France) was an important Roman city in Gaul, established on the current site of Lyon. The Roman city was founded in 43 BC by Lucius Munatius Plancus, but continued an existing Gallic settlem ...

in Gaul, proclaiming his son and daughter as heirs from his wife

Galeria Fundana Galeria Fundana (c. 40 – aft. 69) was a Roman empress, the second wife of Roman emperor Vitellius. Biography Early life Suetonius tells us that Galeria was the daughter of an ex-praetor, and bore two children during her marriage, a son and a ...

, Vitellius betrothed his daughter Vitellia to Asiaticus. Asiaticus and Vitellia had married in the reign of Vitellius. He had become powerful through wealth and the skilful exploitation of imperial patronage. The alliance with Asiaticus and Vitellius was perhaps an attempt to reconcile the communities in Gaul with the Roman state. Asiaticus was unable to give Vitellius much support when the Roman army commanders appointed

Vespasian Vespasian (; la, Vespasianus ; 17 November AD 9 – 23/24 June 79) was a Roman emperor who reigned from AD 69 to 79. The fourth and last emperor who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors, he founded the Flavian dynasty that ruled the Empi ...

as an alternative successor to Vitellius. When Vespasian became Roman emperor in the second half of 69, Asiaticus was appointed for a consulship in 70. Before he could serve his consulship in early 70, Asiaticus died.Epilogue: The Fall of the Vitellii - Vitellia?, daughter
Asiaticus was survived by Vitellia and their son

Marcus Lollius Paulinus Decimus Valerius Asiaticus Saturninus Marcus Lollius Paullinus Decimus Valerius Asiaticus Saturninus (69/70 – after 134) was a prominentJosephus, ''Death of an Emperor'', p. 72 Roman Senator who was a powerful figure in the second half of the 1st century and first half of the 2nd ce ...

.Bowman, ''The Cambridge Ancient History, Volume 10'', p. 217 Later in 70, Vespasian arranged for Vitellia to remarry another unnamed groom. Her second marriage was a splendid match for her and Vespasian provided for her the dowry and clothing.

References

Sources

The Roman World: Gallia Narbonensis's Urbs of ViennaDecimus Valerius Asiaticus: A notable Gallo-Roman from Vienna in the 1st century, translated from French to Englisharticle of Decimus Valerius Asiaticus by P.J. Sijpesteijn of University of Amsterdam, 1989Genealogy of M. Lollius by D.C. O’DriscollEpilogue: The Fall of the Vitellii - Vitellia?, daughter
*E.M. Wightman, ''Gallia Belgica'', University of California Press, 1985 *T.P. Wiseman, ''Talking to Virgil: A Miscellany'', University of Exeter Press, 1992 *A.K. Bowman, E. Champlin & A. Lintott, ''The Cambridge Ancient History'', Volume 10, Cambridge University Press, 1996 *R. Alston, ''Aspects of Roman History AD 14-117'', Routledge, 2002 *G. Morgan, ''69 AD: The Year of Four Emperors'', Oxford University Press, 2005 *A. Freisenbruch, ''The First Ladies of Rome: The Women Behind the Caesars'' (Google eBook), Random House, 2011 {{DEFAULTSORT:Valerius Asiaticus, Decimus 1st-century Romans 35 births Year of death unknown Roman legates Roman governors of Gallia Belgica Ancient Roman generals Valerii Vitellii