Manius Aemilius Mamercinus was a three-time

consular tribune A consular tribune was putatively a type of magistrate in the early Roman Republic. According to Roman tradition, colleges of consular tribunes held office throughout the fifth and fourth centuries BC during the so-called "Conflict of the Or ...

, in 405, 403 and 401 and also

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throug ...

in 410 BC, of the

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 ...

. Aemilius belonged to the

Aemilia gens The gens Aemilia, originally written Aimilia, was one of the greatest patrician families at ancient Rome. The gens was of great antiquity, and claimed descent from Numa Pompilius, the second King of Rome. Its members held the highest offices o ...

, one of the oldest and most prominent

patrician Patrician may refer to: * Patrician (ancient Rome), the original aristocratic families of ancient Rome, and a synonym for "aristocratic" in modern English usage * Patrician (post-Roman Europe), the governing elites of cities in parts of medieval ...

gens In ancient Rome, a gens ( or , ; plural: ''gentes'' ) was a family consisting of individuals who shared the same Roman naming conventions#Nomen, nomen and who claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens was called a ''stirps'' (p ...

of the early Republic. Aemilius' father was the thrice appointed dictator

Mamercus Aemilius Mamercinus Mamercus Aemilius Mamercinus was a political figure in the Roman Republic, serving as consular tribune in 438 BC and dictator three times in 437, 434, and 426 BC. Prior to gaining the imperium Aemilius was, in 446 BC, elected Quaestor together wit ...

. Therefore, the seven-time consular tribune

Lucius Aemilius Mamercinus Lucius ( el, Λούκιος ''Loukios''; ett, Luvcie) is a male given name derived from ''Lucius'' (abbreviated ''L.''), one of the small group of common Latin forenames (''praenomina'') found in the culture of ancient Rome. Lucius derives from L ...

was his brother. Manius Aemilius Mamercinus had no known descendants and later Aemilii Mamercini trace their ancestry to his brother Lucius.

Career

Consulship (410 BC)

Aemilius first held the ''

imperium In ancient Rome, ''imperium'' was a form of authority held by a citizen to control a military or governmental entity. It is distinct from ''auctoritas'' and ''potestas'', different and generally inferior types of power in the Roman Republic an ...

'' in 410 BC as one of the two ordinary consuls of that year. His colleague in the office was

Gaius Valerius Potitus Volusus Gaius Valerius Potitus Volusus was a consul in 410 BC and consular tribune in 415, 407 and 404 BC of the Roman Republic. Valerius belonged to the Valeria gens, one of the oldest and possibly the most influential and powerful patrician gens of the ...

. The consuls fought a successful war against the

Aequi 300px, Location of the Aequi (Equi) in central Italy, 5th century BC. The Aequi ( grc, Αἴκουοι and Αἴκοι) were an Italic tribe on a stretch of the Apennine Mountains to the east of Latium in central Italy who appear in the early his ...

and the

Volsci The Volsci (, , ) were an Italic tribe, well known in the history of the first century of the Roman Republic. At the time they inhabited the partly hilly, partly marshy district of the south of Latium, bounded by the Aurunci and Samnites on the ...

which resulted in the capture of the fortress of Arx Carventana. One of the consuls (most likely Valerius) were granted an

ovatio The ovation ( la, ovatio from ''ovare'': to rejoice) was a form of the Roman triumph. Ovations were granted when war was not declared between enemies on the level of nations or states; when an enemy was considered basely inferior (e.g., slaves, p ...

for this. Their continued efforts in the war were hampered by the actions of the

tribune of the plebs Tribune of the plebs, tribune of the people or plebeian tribune ( la, tribunus plebis) was the first office of the Roman Republic, Roman state that was open to the plebs, plebeians, and was, throughout the history of the Republic, the most importan ...

, Marcus Menenius, who

veto A veto is a legal power to unilaterally stop an official action. In the most typical case, a president or monarch vetoes a bill to stop it from becoming law. In many countries, veto powers are established in the country's constitution. Veto ...

ed a proposed

levy Levy, Lévy or Levies may refer to: People * Levy (surname), people with the surname Levy or Lévy * Levy Adcock (born 1988), American football player * Levy Barent Cohen (1747–1808), Dutch-born British financier and community worker * Levy Fi ...

while proposing a new

agrarian law Agrarian laws (from the Latin ''ager'', meaning "land") were laws among the Romans regulating the division of the public lands, or ''ager publicus''. In its broader definition, it can also refer to the agricultural laws relating to peasants and hu ...

Chronograph of 354 The ''Chronograph of 354'' (or "Chronography"), also known as the ''Calendar of 354'', is a compilation of chronological and calendrical texts produced in 354 AD for a wealthy Roman Christian named Valentinus by the calligrapher and illustrato ...

(Mamertino et Volusio)

Military tribune with consular powers (405 - 401 BC)

Aemilius held the imperium for a second time in 405 BC, this time as consular tribune. He shared the office with five others,

Titus Quinctius Capitolinus Barbatus Titus Quinctius Capitolinus Barbatus (513 BCafter 423 BC) was a Roman statesman and general who served as consul six times. Titus Quinctius was a member of the gens Quinctia, one of the oldest patrician families in Rome. He was the son of Luci ...

Quintus Quinctius Cincinnatus Quintus Quinctius Cincinnatus was a consular tribune in 415 and 405 BC of the Roman Republic. Quinctius belonged to the Quinctia gens, one of the oldest and possibly the most influential and powerful patrician gens of the early Republic. Quinct ...

, Gaius Julius Iulus,

Aulus Manlius Vulso Capitolinus Aulus Manlius Vulso Capitolinus was a consular tribune of the Roman Republic in 405, 402 and 397 BC. Manlius belonged to the Manlia gens, one of the oldest patrician gentes of the Republic. Manlius' father, taken from filiations, was named Aulu ...

and

Lucius Furius Medullinus Lucius Furius Medullinus (c. 445 BC – c. 375 BC), of the patrician '' gens Furia'', was a politician and general of the Roman Republic who was consul twice and Consular Tribune seven times. First two consulships Medullinus was elected consul for ...

, of which all were former consular tribunes with the exception of Manlius. The consular tribunes saw success against the

Veii Veii (also Veius; it, Veio) was an important ancient Etruscan city situated on the southern limits of Etruria and north-northwest of Rome, Italy. It now lies in Isola Farnese, in the comune of Rome. Many other sites associated with and in the ...

and began the "

siege of Veii A siege is a military blockade of a city, or fortress, with the intent of conquering by attrition, or a well-prepared assault. This derives from la, sedere, lit=to sit. Siege warfare is a form of constant, low-intensity conflict characterize ...

" which would last for ten years. In 403 BC Aemilius held his second consular tribuneship. He shared the office with Lucius Valerius Potitus (brother of his former colleague Volusus),

Appius Claudius Crassus Inregillensis Appius Claudius Crassus Inregillensis (died 349 BC) was a Roman politician and general. According to the historian Livy, he delivered a speech to the senate in 368 BC unsuccessfully opposing the proposal to open the executive office of Roman cons ...

Marcus Quinctilius Varus Marcus Quinctilius Varus was a consular tribune of the Roman Republic in 403 BC. Quinctilius belonged to the Quinctilia gens, an obscure gens of the Republic which had produced one consular previously, Sextus Quinctilius Varus, consul in 453 BC. ...

. Lucius Julius Iulus and

Marcus Furius Fusus Marcus Furius Fusus was a Tribuni militum consulari potestate, consular tribune of the Roman Republic in 403 BC. Furius belonged to the Furia gens, an old and powerful Patrician (ancient Rome), patrician Gens, gentes of the Republic which had ris ...

. Unlike his previous consular tribuneship this primarily consisted of newcomers to the imperium. The year saw the continuation of the war started in 406 BC against the Veii with all the consular tribunes (including Aemilius) leading armies against the Veii with the exception of Claudius who remained in Rome. The long years of war and new payments for the soldiers seemed to have strained the economy of Rome and the two censors,

Marcus Furius Camillus Marcus Furius Camillus (; c. 446 – 365 BC) was a Roman soldier and statesman of the patrician class. According to Livy and Plutarch, Camillus triumphed four times, was five times dictator, and was honoured with the title of ''Second Founder ...

and

Marcus Postumius Albinus Regillensis Marcus Postumius Albinus Regillensis was an ancient Roman politician belonging to the patrician Postumia gens. His father and grandfather were both named Aulus, possibly identifying his father or grandfather as Aulus Postumius Albus Regillensis, con ...

imposed new taxes targeting bachelors and orphans. Two years later, in 401 BC, Aemilius was again elected to the role of consular tribune. He shared the office with his former colleague, Valerius from 403 BC, and four others, Camillus (the censor from 403 BC), Lucius Julius Iulus (close relative of his former colleague Julius),

Caeso Fabius Ambustus Caeso Fabius Ambustus was a four-time consular tribune of the Roman Republic around the turn of the 5th and 4th centuries BC. Caeso was quaestor in 409 BC, the first year the office was opened to the '' plebs'', and three of his colleagues were pl ...

and

Gnaeus Cornelius Cossus Gnaeus, also spelled Cnaeus, was a Roman praenomen derived from the Latin ''naevus'', a birthmark. It was a common name borne by many individuals throughout Roman history, including: Individuals *Gnaeus Acerronius Proculus, a consul of the Roman ...

. The year saw war against the Volsci, Falerii, Veii and the Capena. Aemilius held the command against the Veii. Outside of war there was continued civil strife within Rome with a conflict involving three of the plebeian tribunes, Marcus Acutius, Gaius Lacerius and Gnaeus Trebonius, over the

Lex Trebonia The ''Lex Trebonia'' was a Roman law passed in 55 BC during the second joint consulship of Marcus Licinius Crassus and Pompey, as part of their informal political arrangement known as the First Triumvirate. Sponsored by the tribune of the plebs G ...

. Additionally there was legal procedures against two former consular tribunes,

Lucius Verginius Tricostus Esquilinus Lucius ( el, Λούκιος ''Loukios''; ett, Luvcie) is a male given name derived from ''Lucius'' (abbreviated ''L.''), one of the small group of common Latin forenames (''praenomina'') found in the culture of ancient Rome. Lucius derives from L ...

and

Manius Sergius Fidenas Manius Sergius Fidenas was a consular tribune of the Roman Republic in 404 and 402 BC. Sergius belonged to the Sergia gens, a young patrician gentes of the Republic which had first risen to become ''consulares'' with Lucius Sergius Fidenas in 43 ...

, led by the other three plebeian tribunes and targeting the consular tribunes for their conduct and being defeated in battles against the Veientanes and

Faliscans Falisci ( grc, Φαλίσκοι, ''Phaliskoi'') is the ancient Roman exonym for an Italic tribe who lived in what is now northern Lazio, on the Etruscan side of the Tiber River. They spoke an Italic language, Faliscan, closely akin to Latin. Or ...

. Eventually the plebeian tribunes united in supporting a proposed a new agrarian law.Broughton, vol i, pp.83-84

References

{{s-end 5th-century BC Roman consuls Roman consular tribunes Aemilii

Career

Consulship (410 BC)

Military tribune with consular powers (405 - 401 BC)

See also

References