Gaius Caninius Rebilus ( 52–45 BC) was a Roman general and politician. As a reward for devoted service,
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a 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 a civil war, and ...
appointed him
consul suffectus
A consul held the highest elected political office of the Roman Republic ( to 27 BC), and ancient Romans considered the consulship the second-highest level of the ''cursus honorum'' (an ascending sequence of public offices to which politic ...
on the last day of December 45 BC.
Rebilus, a
novus homo
''Novus homo'' or ''homo novus'' (Latin for 'new man'; ''novi homines'' or ''homines novi'') was the term in ancient Rome for a man who was the first in his family to serve in the Roman Senate or, more specifically, to be elected as consul. Whe ...
of the late
Republic
A republic () is a "state in which power rests with the people or their representatives; specifically a state without a monarchy" and also a "government, or system of government, of such a state." Previously, especially in the 17th and 18th c ...
, served with Julius Caesar throughout the
Gallic Wars
The Gallic Wars were waged between 58 and 50 BC by the Roman general Julius Caesar against the peoples of Gaul (present-day France, Belgium, Germany and Switzerland). Gallic, Germanic, and British tribes fought to defend their homela ...
and the
Civil Wars
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...
. He was
Military tribune
A military tribune (Latin ''tribunus militum'', "tribune of the soldiers") was an officer of the Roman army who ranked below the legate and above the centurion. Young men of Equestrian rank often served as military tribune as a stepping stone to ...
in
Gaul
Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...
in 52 BC, before becoming one of Caesar's
legates
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 office ...
in 51 BC.
Gallic Wars
During the later stages of the Gallic War he commanded two legions on the southern slope of the heights during the
siege of Alesia
The Battle of Alesia or Siege of Alesia (September 52 BC) was a military engagement in the Gallic Wars around the Gallic ''oppidum'' (fortified settlement) of Alesia in modern France, a major centre of the Mandubii tribe. It was fought by ...
, where Caesar's defences were weakest. With great difficulty, and the timely support of
Titus Labienus
Titus Labienus (c. 10017 March 45 BC) was a high-ranking military officer in the late Roman Republic. He served as tribune of the Plebs in 63 BC. Although mostly remembered as one of Julius Caesar's best lieutenants in Gaul, mentioned freq ...
, he withstood the last major attack on the Roman position there on October 2, 52 BC. The following year he was sent to pursue
Cadurci leader
Lucterius
Lucterius (Ancient Greek: Λυκτεριoς) was a leader of the Cadurci, a Celts, Celtic people whose territory was located around Cahors in the modern Departments of France, French department of Lot (department), Lot. In the 50s BC, the Cadurci ...
, who fled to the stronghold of
Uxellodunum
Uxellodunum is an Iron Age hill fort, or ''oppidum'', located above the river Dordogne near the modern-day French village of Vayrac in the Lot department. This stronghold lay within the lands of the Cadurci tribe. According to Aulus Hirtiu ...
which Rebilus proceeded to besiege. Attempting to emulate the tactics at Alesia, he was forced to deal with repeated sorties which disrupted his attempts to complete his lines. Eventually Caesar made his way there to take overall command of the siege.
Two years after Alesia, the
Andecavi
The Andecavi (also Andicavi, Andegavi, or Andigavi) were a Gallic tribe dwelling in Aremorica during the Roman period.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Andecavi'' (var. ''andic''-, ''andeg''-, ''andig''-) by Pliny (1st c. AD), ''Andecavi'' and '' ...
, led by Dumnacus, continued war against Rome and laid siege to Limonum (present-day
Poitiers
Poitiers (, , , ; Poitevin: ''Poetàe'') is a city on the River Clain in west-central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and the historical centre of Poitou. In 2017 it had a population of 88,291. Its agglomerat ...
), an
oppidum
An ''oppidum'' (plural ''oppida'') is a large fortified Iron Age settlement or town. ''Oppida'' are primarily associated with the Celtic late La Tène culture, emerging during the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, spread across Europe, stretchi ...
of the
Pictones
The Pictones were a Gallic tribe dwelling south of the Loire river, in the modern departments of Vendée, Deux-Sèvres and Vienne, during the Iron Age and Roman period.
Name
They are mentioned as ''Pictonibus'' and ''Pictones'' by Julius Caes ...
. Gaius Caninius Rebilus led the Roman relief army and forced them to lift the siege and retreat. The army of the Andecavi was pursued by the Romans and suffered heavy casualties. In a decisive battle the following day, the Romans killed some 12,000 men. Dumnacus escaped, and when Armorica surrendered, he went into self-imposed exile.
Civil War
Upon the outbreak of the
civil war
A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country).
The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...
in 49 BC, Rebilus accompanied Caesar in his march into Italy and he was sent to
Brundisium
Brindisi ( , ) ; la, Brundisium; grc, Βρεντέσιον, translit=Brentésion; cms, Brunda), group=pron is a city in the region of Apulia in southern Italy, the capital of the province of Brindisi, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea.
Histo ...
as an unsuccessful negotiator to
Pompey
Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a leading Roman general and statesman. He played a significant role in the transformation of ...
. Later that year, he was sent by Caesar as a legate under
Gaius Scribonius Curio in the hope that Rebilus would compensate for Curio's lack of military experience. He pushed Curio to take advantage of a break in the enemy lines to achieve victory at the
Battle of Utica
The Battle of Utica took place early in 240 BC between a Carthaginian army commanded by Hanno and a force of rebellious mutineers possibly led by Spendius. It was the first major engagement of the Mercenary War between Carthage and the comb ...
, and after the latter's defeat and death, he was one of the few who escaped from
Africa Province
Africa Proconsularis was a Roman province on the northern African coast that was established in 146 BC following the defeat of Carthage in the Third Punic War. It roughly comprised the territory of present-day Tunisia, the northeast of Algeria, ...
. In the following year (48 BC), it is assumed that he was made
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 ...
.
In 46 BC he again returned to Africa as
Propraetor
In ancient Rome a promagistrate ( la, pro magistratu) was an ex-consul or ex-praetor whose ''imperium'' (the power to command an army) was extended at the end of his annual term of office or later. They were called proconsuls and propraetors. Thi ...
with Caesar, under whom he served in the
Thapsus campaign, laying siege to
Thapsus
Thapsus, also known as Tampsus and as Thapsus Minor to distinguish it from Thapsus in Sicily, was a Carthaginian and Roman port near present-day Bekalta, Tunisia.
Geography
Thapsus was established on Ras ed-Dimas, an easily defended promontory ...
and accepting the surrender of Gaius Vergilius, the governor of Africa. The next year he accompanied Caesar to Spain as his legate, joining him to fight in the last stand of the Republicans at
Munda, after which he occupied the town of
Hispalis
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula. ...
during the push to drive out the demoralized Republicans.
Consulship
On the last day of December 45 BC, the consul
Quintus Fabius Maximus suddenly died and Caesar made Rebilus ''consul suffectus'' for the few remaining hours of the year, to the scorn of
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 ...
, who commented, "Understand therefore that in the consulship of Caninius no one breakfasted. However, while he was consul there was no harm done, for he was so astonishingly vigilant that throughout his consulship he never ever closed his eyes."
Family
He had a son,
Gaius Caninius Rebilus
The gens Caninia was a plebeian family at ancient Rome during the later Republic. The first member of the gens who obtained any of the curule offices was Gaius Caninius Rebilus, praetor in 171 BC; but the first Caninius who was consul was his ...
, who was suffect consul in 12 BC.
See also
*
Caninia gens
References
Sources
*
T. Robert S. Broughton, ''The Magistrates of the Roman Republic, Vol II'' (1952).
* Holmes, T. Rice, ''The Roman Republic and the Founder of the Empire'', Vol II, Oxford University Press, 1923
* Holmes, T. Rice, ''The Roman Republic and the Founder of the Empire'', Vol III, Oxford University Press, 1923
* Syme, Ronald, ''The Roman Revolution'', Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1939
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Caninius Rebilus, Gaius consul 709 AUC
1st-century BC Roman consuls
Rebilus, Gaius consul 709 AUC
Roman people of the Gallic Wars
Roman Republican praetors