Lucius Vipstanus Messalla (c. 45 – c. 80) was a

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lett ...

military officer,

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

, and a noted

orator An orator, or oratist, is a public speaker, especially one who is eloquent or skilled. Etymology Recorded in English c. 1374, with a meaning of "one who pleads or argues for a cause", from Anglo-French ''oratour'', Old French ''orateur'' (14th ...

. He appears as a character in

Tacitus Publius Cornelius Tacitus, known simply as Tacitus ( , ; – ), was a Roman historian and politician. Tacitus is widely regarded as one of the greatest Roman historians by modern scholars. The surviving portions of his two major works—the ...

' '' Dialogus de oratoribus''.

Biography

Vipstanus Messalla is presumed to be the son of

Gaius Vipstanus Messalla Gallus (Gaius) Vipstanus Messalla Gallus (c. 10 BC – aft. 60) was a Roman senator. Life He was ''consul suffectus'' in the '' nundinium'' of July-December 48 as the colleague of Lucius Vitellius. J. Devrecker has offered the argument that the elem ...

, suffect consul in 48. The younger Messalla was a '' tribunus militum'' in 69, stationed with the

legion Legion may refer to: Military * Roman legion, the basic military unit of the ancient Roman army * Spanish Legion, an elite military unit within the Spanish Army * Legion of the United States, a reorganization of the United States Army from 179 ...

VII Claudia in

Moesia Moesia (; Latin: ''Moesia''; el, Μοισία, Moisía) was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans south of the Danube River, which included most of the territory of modern eastern Serbia, Kosovo, north-eastern Alban ...

which entered 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 polici ...

against the

emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( ...

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 ...

. He was temporarily in command of the legion in September and October 69, after the legion's

legate Legate may refer to: * Legatus, a higher ranking general officer of the Roman army drawn from among the senatorial class :*Legatus Augusti pro praetore, a provincial governor in the Roman Imperial period *A member of a legation *A representative, ...

was forced to flee for his life; later, Messalla wrote an account of the campaign. Messalla was a friend of the historian

, who used Messalla's account of the campaign in his own work ''

Histories Histories or, in Latin, Historiae may refer to: * the plural of history * ''Histories'' (Herodotus), by Herodotus * ''The Histories'', by Timaeus * ''The Histories'' (Polybius), by Polybius * ''Histories'' by Gaius Sallustius Crispus (Sallust), ...

''. Tacitus described Messalla as an outstanding orator; in AD 70, Vipstanus Messalla, who was not yet of

senatorial A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the e ...

age, defended his older half-brother, the notorious informer

Marcus Aquilius Regulus Marcus Aquilius Regulus was a Roman senator, and notorious '' delator'' or informer who was active during the reigns of Nero and Domitian. Regulus is one of the best known examples of this occupation, in the words of Steven Rutledge, due to "the vi ...

in the

Curia Julia The Curia Julia ( la, Curia Iulia, links=no, it, Curia Iulia, links=no) is the third named ''curia'', or senate house, in the ancient city of Rome. It was built in 44 BC, when Julius Caesar replaced Faustus Cornelius Sulla's reconstructed Curi ...

. Massalla's family's prestige was sufficient to sway enough of the Senate to reject the charges laid against Regulus.Rudich, Vasily, ''Political Dissidence Under Nero: The Price of Dissimulation'' (1993), p. 193 Messalla likely died during the reign of

Titus Titus Caesar Vespasianus ( ; 30 December 39 – 13 September 81 AD) was Roman emperor from 79 to 81. A member of the Flavian dynasty, Titus succeeded his father Vespasian upon his death. Before becoming emperor, Titus gained renown as a mili ...

, possibly during the epidemic that swept through the city in 80. He had at least one son, also named Lucius Vipstanus Messalla.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Messalla, Lucius Vipstanus 45 births 80 deaths Messalla 1st-century Romans