Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (died AD 47) was a noble Roman who lived during the 1st century. (He is not to be confused with his namesake Pompey the Great.) Pompeius was one of the sons of the consul of the year AD 27, Marcus Licinius Crassus Frugi and Scribonia.

Birth and family

According to

Suetonius Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (), commonly referred to as Suetonius ( ; c. AD 69 – after AD 122), was a Roman historian who wrote during the early Imperial era The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τ� ...

, Pompeius was a nobleman of the highest ancient birth. Pompeius’ birth name is unknown, however by birth and adoption through his father, Pompeius was of the ''

gens In ancient Rome, a gens ( or , ; plural: ''gentes'' ) was a family consisting of individuals who shared the same nomen and who claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens was called a ''stirps'' (plural: ''stirpes''). The ''gen ...

Licinia'', hence the nomen ''Licinius''. During the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

, it was common for Roman nobles to drop their paternal names and assume the names of their maternal ancestors. Roman nobles did this to either honour the memory of their ancestors or for adoption purposes. His paternal grandfather was consul and governor

Marcus Licinius Crassus Marcus Licinius Crassus (; 115 – 53 BC) was a Roman general and statesman who played a key role in the transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire. He is often called "the richest man in Rome." Wallechinsky, David & Wallace, I ...

. Crassus was the adoptive son of consul and general

, who was the grandson of triumvir

. He was the last known direct descendant of the triumvir and was the last known direct descendant of the triumvir who bore his name.

Life and career

Little is known on the life of Pompeius. During the reign of Roman Emperor

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 Germani ...

(reigned AD 37–41), the emperor removed his

cognomen A ''cognomen'' (; plural ''cognomina''; from ''con-'' "together with" and ''(g)nomen'' "name") was the third name of a citizen of ancient Rome, under Roman naming conventions. Initially, it was a nickname, but lost that purpose when it became here ...

''Magnus'' or ''The Great'' from him and wouldn't allow Pompeius to use his cognomen. When Caligula was assassinated in AD 41, his paternal uncle

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 Drusus and Antonia Minor ...

became the new emperor. Claudius restored Pompeius' cognomen to him. Pompeius’ father gained the favour of the new emperor and it was probably through this favour, that Claudius arranged for Pompeius to marry

Claudia Antonia Claudia Antonia ( Classical Latin: ANTONIA•CLAUDII•CAESARIS•FILIA (edd), ''Prosopographia Imperii Romani saeculi I, II et III'', Berlin, 1933 - A 886) (c. AD 30–AD 66) was the daughter and oldest surviving child of the Roman Emperor ...

, Claudius’ daughter and only child from his second marriage to

Aelia Paetina Aelia Paetina or Paetina (fl. early 1st century AD) was the second wife of the Roman Emperor Claudius. Her biological father was a consul of 4 AD, Sextus Aelius Catus, while her mother is unknown. Family She was born into the family of the A ...

. Antonia and Pompeius married in AD 43. Claudius had successfully conquered

Britain Britain most often refers to: * The United Kingdom, a sovereign state in Europe comprising the island of Great Britain, the north-eastern part of the island of Ireland and many smaller islands * Great Britain, the largest island in the United King ...

and added it as a province to the Roman Empire. Claudius sent Pompeius to 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 ...

to proclaim to the senators that his father-in-law had conquered Britain. According to

, Pompeius died in AD 47, because he was stabbed to death while in bed with a favourite boyfriend.

Cassius Dio Lucius Cassius Dio (), also known as Dio Cassius ( ), was a Roman historian and senator of maternal Greek origin. He published 80 volumes of the history on ancient Rome, beginning with the arrival of Aeneas in Italy. The volumes documented the ...

states that 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 ...

(who was Claudius' third wife and out of her fear of Pompeius being a rival to Messalina and Claudius’ son,

Britannicus Tiberius Claudius Caesar Britannicus (12 February AD 41 – 11 February AD 55), usually called Britannicus, was the son of Roman emperor Claudius and his third wife Valeria Messalina. For a time he was considered his father's heir, but that ...

) ordered his death. With the death of Pompeius, Antonia married

Faustus Cornelius Sulla Felix Faustus Cornelius Sulla Felix (22 – 62 AD) was one of the lesser known figures of the Julio-Claudian dynasty of Ancient Rome. Life Felix was the son of Domitia Lepida the Younger and the suffect consul of 31, Faustus Cornelius Sulla Lucullus, a ...

, Messalina's half-brother, in order to strengthen the bloodline of the

Julio-Claudian dynasty , native_name_lang=Latin, coat of arms=Great_Cameo_of_France-removebg.png, image_size=260px, caption= The Great Cameo of France depicting emperors Augustus, Tiberius, Claudius and Nero, type= Ancient Roman dynasty, country= Roman Empire, estates=* ...

. Pompeius had no children with Antonia. After Pompeius died his remains were interred in the tomb of the ''Licinii Calpurnii'' located on the Via Salaria. Engraved on the urn of Pompeius is this text: :" ere liesGnaeus Pompeius Magnus, son of Crassus, pontiff, quaestor of the Emperor Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, his father-in-law"

In fiction

Pompeius is a character in

Robert Graves Captain Robert von Ranke Graves (24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985) was a British poet, historical novelist and critic. His father was Alfred Perceval Graves, a celebrated Irish poet and figure in the Gaelic revival; they were both Celt ...

' novel ''Claudius the God'' (the sequel to ''

I, Claudius ''I, Claudius'' is a historical novel by English writer Robert Graves, published in 1934. Written in the form of an autobiography of the Roman Emperor Claudius, it tells the history of the Julio-Claudian dynasty and the early years of the Ro ...

''). This account claims that Claudius had Pompeius killed as the latter engaged in unnatural sexual practices with the former's daughter. He was omitted from the 1976 television adaptation.

References

Sources

*Suetonius – The Lives of the Twelve Caesars – Caligula & Claudius *http://www.ancientlibrary.com/smith-bio/2825.html *http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Gazetteer/Places/Europe/Italy/Lazio/Roma/Rome/_Texts/Lanciani/LANPAC/6*.html {{DEFAULTSORT:Pompeius Magnus, Gnaeus 1st-century Romans 47 deaths Deaths by stabbing in Rome Licinii Year of birth unknown

Birth and family

Life and career

In fiction

See also

References

Sources