Marcus Vettius Bolanus (c. 33 – 76) 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 lette ...
senator and soldier. He was
suffect consul for the ''
nundinium Nundinium was a Latin word derived from the word '' nundinum'', which referred to the cycle of days observed by the Romans. During the Roman Empire, ''nundinium'' came to mean the duration of a single consulship among several in a calendar year.
S ...
'' of September-December 66 as the colleague of
Marcus Arruntius Aquila.
Career
Bolanus served in
Anatolia
Anatolia, tr, Anadolu Yarımadası), and the Anatolian plateau, also known as Asia Minor, is a large peninsula in Western Asia and the westernmost protrusion of the Asian continent. It constitutes the major part of modern-day Turkey. The ...
under
Corbulo in 62. He became governor of
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 ...
in 69 in the midst of the
Year of four emperors
A year or annus is the orbital period of a planetary body, for example, the Earth, moving in its orbit around the Sun. Due to the Earth's axial tilt, the course of a year sees the passing of the seasons, marked by change in weather, the hou ...
, appointed by the short-lived
emperor
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...
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 ...
. His predecessor,
Marcus Trebellius Maximus
Marcus Trebellius Maximus was a Roman senator active during the reign of Nero. He was suffect consul for the '' nundinium'' of May to June 55 AD as the colleague of Seneca the Younger, replacing Publius Cornelius Dolabella.
In 61 Trebellius ser ...
, had been undermined and forced to flee by a mutiny led by
Marcus Roscius Coelius
Marcus Roscius Coelius (or Caelius) was a Roman military officer of the 1st century AD. He was appointed suffect consul for the '' nundinium'' March-April AD 81 with Gaius Julius Juvenalis as his colleague.
There is some uncertainty about his nam ...
, commander of ''
Legio XX Valeria Victrix
Legio XX Valeria Victrix, in English Twentieth Victorious Valeria Legion was a legion of the Imperial Roman army.
The origin of the Legion's name is unclear and there are various theories, but the legion may have gained its title ''Valeria ...
''. Bolanus was joined by ''
Legio XIV Gemina
Legio XIV Gemina ("The Twinned Fourteenth Legion") was a legion of the Imperial Roman army, levied by Julius Caesar in 57 BC. The cognomen ''Gemina'' (Twinned) was added when the legion was combined with another understrength legion after the B ...
'', which had been withdrawn from Britain in 67 and was still loyal to Vitellius's defeated opponent,
Otho
Marcus Otho (; born Marcus Salvius Otho; 28 April 32 – 16 April 69) was the seventh Roman emperor, ruling for three months from 15 January to 16 April 69. He was the second emperor of the Year of the Four Emperors.
A member of a noble Etr ...
.
Bolanus had to face the second insurrection of
Venutius
Venutius was a 1st-century king of the Brigantes in northern Britain at the time of the Roman conquest. Some have suggested he may have belonged to the Carvetii, a tribe that probably formed part of the Brigantes confederation.
History first b ...
amongst the
Brigantes.
Cartimandua
Cartimandua or Cartismandua (reigned ) was a 1st-century queen of the Brigantes, a Celtic people living in what is now northern England. She came to power around the time of the Roman conquest of Britain, and formed a large tribal agglomeration ...
, Venutius's ex-wife and queen of the Brigantes, had been a loyal client ruler for twenty years, and the Romans had defended her against an earlier revolt by her ex-husband. On this occasion, however, Bolanus was only able to send
auxiliaries
Auxiliaries are support personnel that assist the military or police but are organised differently from regular forces. Auxiliary may be military volunteers undertaking support functions or performing certain duties such as garrison troops, ...
. Cartimandua was evacuated, leaving the kingdom to Venutius.
By the end of 69,
Vespasian
Vespasian (; la, Vespasianus ; 17 November AD 9 – 23/24 June 79) was a Roman emperor who reigned from AD 69 to 79. The fourth and last emperor who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors, he founded the Flavian dynasty that ruled the Empi ...
had established himself as emperor and set about restoring control. The XIVth Gemina was withdrawn again in 70 to help put down unrest on the lower Rhine, and Roscius Coelius was replaced as commander of XX ''Valeria Victrix'' by
Gnaeus Julius Agricola
Gnaeus Julius Agricola (; 13 June 40 – 23 August 93) was a Roman general and politician responsible for much of the Roman conquest of Britain. Born to a political family of senatorial rank, Agricola began his military career as a military tribu ...
. Bolanus remained as governor until 71. The poet
Statius
Publius Papinius Statius ( Greek: Πόπλιος Παπίνιος Στάτιος; ; ) was a Greco-Roman poet of the 1st century CE. His surviving Latin poetry includes an epic in twelve books, the ''Thebaid''; a collection of occasional poetry, ...
speaks of him establishing forts and capturing trophies from a British king, which suggests that he was able to reconquer some of the territory lost in the revolt. He was succeeded by
Quintus Petillius Cerialis.
For 75/76, Bolanus was appointed governor 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 are ...
.
[Werner Eck, "Jahres- und Provinzialfasten der senatorischen Statthalter von 69/70 bis 138/139", ''Chiron'', 12 (1982), p. 296]
References
*
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 ...
, ''
Annals
Annals ( la, annāles, from , "year") are a concise historical record in which events are arranged chronologically, year by year, although the term is also used loosely for any historical record.
Scope
The nature of the distinction between ann ...
'
15.3 ''
Histories'
2.652.97 ''
Agricola
Agricola, the Latin word for farmer, may also refer to:
People Cognomen or given name
:''In chronological order''
* Gnaeus Julius Agricola (40–93), Roman governor of Britannia (AD 77–85)
* Sextus Calpurnius Agricola, Roman governor of the mi ...
'
816*
Statius
Publius Papinius Statius ( Greek: Πόπλιος Παπίνιος Στάτιος; ; ) was a Greco-Roman poet of the 1st century CE. His surviving Latin poetry includes an epic in twelve books, the ''Thebaid''; a collection of occasional poetry, ...
, ''
Silvae
The is a collection of Latin occasional poetry in hexameters, hendecasyllables, and lyric meters by Publius Papinius Statius (c. 45 – c. 96 CE). There are 32 poems in the collection, divided into five books. Each book contains a prose prefa ...
'' Vol 2
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vettius Bolanus, Marcus
30s births
76 deaths
1st-century Romans
Ancient Romans in Britain
Roman governors of Asia
Roman governors of Britain
Roman governors of Macedonia
Suffect consuls of Imperial Rome
Bolanus, Marcus
Year of birth uncertain