Marcus Gavius Maximus (died 156) was an '' eques'' of

ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 B ...

who held several imperial positions, both civil and military, under

Hadrian Hadrian (; la, Caesar Trâiānus Hadriānus ; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. He was born in Italica (close to modern Santiponce in Spain), a Roman ''municipium'' founded by Italic settlers in Hispania B ...

and

Antoninus Pius Antoninus Pius (Latin: ''Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Pius''; 19 September 86 – 7 March 161) was Roman emperor from 138 to 161. He was the fourth of the Five Good Emperors from the Nerva–Antonine dynasty. Born into a senatoria ...

. Firmum in northern Italy is considered his hometown, confirmed by the fact that his voting tribe, Palatina, is found there. His filiation records his father's praenomen, Marcus. We know that he and the advocate

Marcus Cornelius Fronto Marcus Cornelius Fronto (c. 100late 160s AD), best known as Fronto, was a Roman grammarian, rhetorician, and advocate. Of Berber origin, he was born at Cirta (modern-day Constantine, Algeria) in Numidia. He was suffect consul for the '' nundin ...

were acquaintances, if not friends: Fronto was made primary heir and executor of the will of Gaius Censorius Niger who had included unflattering comments about both Gavius Maximus and the emperor. Fronto wrote apologetic letters to both men concerning the will, stating he had little choice in reading those comments out loud.

Career

Although it can be assumed Gavius Maximus passed through the ''

tres militiae The ''tres militiae'' ("three military posts") was a career progression of the Roman Imperial army for men of the equestrian order. It developed as an alternative to the ''cursus honorum'' of the senatorial order for enabling the social mobility ...

'', which was the usual manner most ''equites'' began their careers, the first office attested for him is ''

procurator Procurator (with procuracy or procuratorate referring to the office itself) may refer to: * Procurator, one engaged in procuration, the action of taking care of, hence management, stewardship, agency * ''Procurator'' (Ancient Rome), the title o ...

'' or governor of

Mauretania Tingitana Mauretania Tingitana (Latin for "Tangerine Mauretania") was a Roman province, coinciding roughly with the northern part of present-day Morocco. The territory stretched from the northern peninsula opposite Gibraltar, to Sala Colonia (or Chella ...

;

Anthony Birley Anthony Richard Birley (8 October 1937 – 19 December 2020) was a British ancient historian, archaeologist and academic. He was the son of Margaret Isabel (Goodlet) and historian and archaeologist Eric Birley. Early life and education Anthony ...

believes Hadrian appointed him to that post in 128, and Maximus governed there until 132. While governor, he was one of several governors to receive an imperial rescript from Hadrian concerning how to handle witnesses that is preserved in the '' Digest''. Maximus next appears as procurator of the province of

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...

, where he may have come to the attention of Antoninus Pius, who was ''

proconsul A proconsul was an official of ancient Rome who acted on behalf of a consul. A proconsul was typically a former consul. The term is also used in recent history for officials with delegated authority. In the Roman Republic, military command, or ...

'' of that Senatorial province in 134/135. Antoninus Pius later appointed him

praetorian prefect The praetorian prefect ( la, praefectus praetorio, el, ) was a high office in the Roman Empire. Originating as the commander of the Praetorian Guard, the office gradually acquired extensive legal and administrative functions, with its holders be ...

, as the colleague of Marcus Petronius Mamertinus; this was one of the highest offices an ''eques'' could hold. According to the ''

Historia Augusta The ''Historia Augusta'' (English: ''Augustan History'') is a late Roman collection of biographies, written in Latin, of the Roman emperors, their junior colleagues, designated heirs and usurpers from 117 to 284. Supposedly modeled on the sim ...

'', Maximus was praetorian prefect for twenty years. There is independent evidence attesting that he was prefect between 139 and 143;

Gaius Tattius Maximus Gaius, sometimes spelled ''Gajus'', Kaius, Cajus, Caius, was a common Latin praenomen; see Gaius (praenomen). People * Gaius (jurist) (), Roman jurist *Gaius Acilius *Gaius Antonius *Gaius Antonius Hybrida *Gaius Asinius Gallus *Gaius Asinius P ...

, who succeeded him upon his death, is attested as holding the appointment no earlier than 156. This would confirm the ''Historia Augusta'' about this claim, and indicates that Maximus had the longest tenure as praetorian prefect of any man appointed to that office. Ostia-mainbaths01

While the ''Historia Augusta'' also describes Maximus as a harsh man, he is known as a benefactor to the port city of

Ostia Antica Ostia Antica ("Ancient Ostia") is a large archaeological site, close to the modern town of Ostia (Rome), Ostia, that is the location of the harbour city of ancient Rome, 25 kilometres (15 miles) southwest of Rome. "Ostia" (plur. of "ostium") is a ...

, gifting the city the lavish civic baths. "It is difficult to know what to make of this," writes Guy de la Bédoyère. "Why Gavius Maximus would have wanted to needed to pay for the baths, or indeed how he became wealthy enough to fund them, is unknown. Civic munificence was virtually ubiquitous in the Roman world but we know of no particular connection that Gavius Maximus had with the port town."de la Bédoyère, ''Praetorian: The Rise and Fall of Rome's Imperial Bodyguard'' (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2017), p. 202

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gavius Maximus, Marcus 2nd-century Romans 156 deaths Year of birth unknown Maximus, Marcus Gavius Roman governors of Mauretania Tingitana Praetorian prefects

Career

See also

References