Lucius Vipsanius was the elder brother of

Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (; BC – 12 BC) was a Roman general, statesman, and architect who was a close friend, son-in-law, and lieutenant to the Roman emperor Augustus. He was responsible for the construction of some of the most notable buildi ...

, the right-hand man of Roman emperor

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

History

Early life

Lucius Vipsanius was born in the late

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Kin ...

to 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, his father being Lucius Vipsanius and his mother an unknown woman. His

praenomen The ''praenomen'' (; plural: ''praenomina'') was a personal name chosen by the parents of a Roman child. It was first bestowed on the ''dies lustricus'' (day of lustration), the eighth day after the birth of a girl, or the ninth day after the bi ...

is not actually known, but has been assumed to be ''Lucius'', since he was older than Marcus, and first sons were generally given their fathers' praenomen in Rome. He and Agrippa likely spent their childhood playing with each other until Lucius was old enough to go to school. Since Lucius became a soldier his education likely took him away from home rather young. He also had a sister named

Vipsania Polla Vipsania Polla was an ancient Roman woman of the late Republic, she was the sister of emperor Augustus' right hand man Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa. She is best known today for the construction of the '' Porticus Vipsania''. History Early life Polla w ...

, it's not known if she was younger or older than him.

Career

During

Caesar's Civil War Caesar's civil war (49–45 BC) was one of the last politico-military conflicts of the Roman Republic before its reorganization into the Roman Empire. It began as a series of political and military confrontations between Gaius Julius Caesar and ...

, Lucius sided with the

Pompeians 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 ...

and fought for

Cato the Younger Marcus Porcius Cato "Uticensis" ("of Utica"; ; 95 BC – April 46 BC), also known as Cato the Younger ( la, Cato Minor), was an influential conservative Roman senator during the late Republic. His conservative principles were focused on the pr ...

in Africa where he was taken prisoner by

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 ...

Numidia Numidia ( Berber: ''Inumiden''; 202–40 BC) was the ancient kingdom of the Numidians located in northwest Africa, initially comprising the territory that now makes up modern-day Algeria, but later expanding across what is today known as Tunis ...

after defeat in battle. It is likely that he had actually been captured before and pardoned already. Caesar had a habit of showing clemency to everyone the first time but made sure to punish repeat offenders and as such was likely to have him executed. Despite this he was treated with much respect. Agrippa was 17 years old at the time and was already studying with Caesar's grandnephew Octavian (later known as Augustus). Fearing for his brothers life, Agrippa asked his friend to speak to his uncle and beg him to show mercy for Lucius. This was the first time Octavian had asked his uncle for a favour and the wish was granted. This bound Agrippa forever to his benefactor and earned Octavian a reputation for loyalty. When returning home to Rome Lucius would have been expected to make a courtesy call to Cato's closest relatives there, his sister Servilia and wife Marcia.

Later life

Lucius appears to have been alive later on in his brother's career as he was involved in some type of affair which his brother refused to influence with his authority when a consul asked for his opinion on the matter.

Cultural depictions

In ''

I Loved Tiberius {{Infobox book , name= I Loved Tiberius , title_orig= Jeg elsket Tiberius , translator= Naomi Walford , image= File:ILovedTiberius.jpg , caption= First UK edition , author= Elisabeth Dored , illustrator= , cover_artist= , country= Norwa ...

'' by Elisabeth Dored Lucius' salvation at the hands of Octavian is mentioned as a reason for Agrippa's undying loyalty to the emperor. The same is done in ''

Cleopatra's Daughter ''Cleopatra's Daughter'' ( it, Il sepolcro dei re) is a 1960 historical drama film set in Egypt during the reign of the pharaoh Khufu Khufu or Cheops was an ancient Egyptian monarch who was the second pharaoh of the Fourth Dynasty, in the ...

'' by

Michelle Moran Michelle Moran (born August 11, 1980) is an American novelist known for her historical fiction writing. Biography Michelle Moran was born in California's San Fernando Valley, August 11, 1980. She took an interest in writing from an early age, pu ...

. In Ray Gleason's ''Affair'' series of novels Lucius plays a bigger role as a character.

References