Manius Laberius Maximus 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 general, who was active during the reign of

Domitian Domitian (; la, Domitianus; 24 October 51 – 18 September 96) was a Roman emperor who reigned from 81 to 96. The son of Vespasian and the younger brother of Titus, his two predecessors on the throne, he was the last member of the Fl ...

and

Trajan Trajan ( ; la, Caesar Nerva Traianus; 18 September 539/11 August 117) was Roman emperor from 98 to 117. Officially declared ''optimus princeps'' ("best ruler") by the senate, Trajan is remembered as a successful soldier-emperor who presi ...

. He was twice

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 throu ...

: the first time he was suffect consul in 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 to December 89 AD as the colleague of

Aulus Vicirius Proculus Aulus Vicirius Proculus was a Roman senator active during the last half of the first century AD. He was suffect consul for the '' nundinium'' September to December 89 with Manius Laberius Maximus as his colleague. Proculus is known only through ...

; the second time as ordinary consul in 103 as colleague to the Emperor Trajan. He was a member of a family that originated in

Lanuvium Lanuvium, modern Lanuvio, is an ancient city of Latium vetus, some southeast of Rome, a little southwest of the Via Appia. Situated on an isolated hill projecting south from the main mass of the Alban Hills, Lanuvium commanded an extensive vie ...

, where his presumed grandfather, Lucius Laberius Maximus, was a magistrate. His father, also

Lucius Laberius Maximus Lucius Laberius Maximus was a governor of Roman Egypt in 83 CE, and prefect of the imperial bodyguard, known as the Praetorian Guard, during the reign of Roman Emperor Domitian, in 84 CE. Prior to achieving these positions, Laberius Maximus h ...

, was a high equestrian official who was successively ''praefectus annonae'',

Prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect's ...

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

and Praetorian prefect in the years 80 to 84. His mother is unknown. Lucius' achievements enabled his son Manius to be adlected to the senatorial order.

Life

There was a considerable gap between his consulate and the first known appointment Maximus enjoyed, governor of Moesia Inferior, which he held from the year 100 to 102. While governor, Maximus served as a general in Trajan's First Dacian War. During the hostilities a slave of his, Callidromus, was captured by the

Dacia Dacia (, ; ) was the land inhabited by the Dacians, its core in Transylvania, stretching to the Danube in the south, the Black Sea in the east, and the Tisza in the west. The Carpathian Mountains were located in the middle of Dacia. It ...

ns: this man was later interviewed in Bithynia in 111 by Pliny the Younger. According to

Cassius Dio Lucius Cassius Dio (), also known as Dio Cassius ( ), was a Roman historian and senator of maternal Greek origin. He published 80 volumes of the history on ancient Rome, beginning with the arrival of Aeneas in Italy. The volumes documented the ...

, Maximus distinguished himself during the campaigning of 102, and was rewarded for his services by a second consulship in 103, indicating his favour with emperor Trajan. This imperial favour ended with the death of Trajan. According to the '' Augustan History'', on the accession of emperor Hadrian in 117, Maximus was 'in exile on an island under suspicion of designs on the throne'.''Hadrian'', V. 5 Nothing more is known of these suspected designs, but they prompted Hadrian's guard prefect

Publius Acilius Attianus Publius Acilius Attianus (1st – 2nd century AD) was a powerful Roman official who played a significant, though obscured, role in the transfer of power from Trajan to Hadrian. Life He was born in Italica, Hispania Baetica, which was also ...

to recommend Maximus be put to death. The sequel is not known, but Hadrian was tiring of Attianus and it is more likely that Maximus was pardoned.

Family

The identity of Maximus’ wife is unknown. His only known child was a daughter, Laberia Hostilia Crispina who, after his death, became the heiress to his fortune. Crispina became the second wife of

Gaius Bruttius Praesens Lucius Fulvius Rusticus Gaius Bruttius Praesens Lucius Fulvius Rusticus (68 – 140 AD) was an important Roman senator of the reigns of the emperors Trajan, Hadrian and Antoninus Pius. A friend of Pliny the Younger and Hadrian, he was twice consul, governed provinces, ...

, consul in 139. She bore him a son, Lucius Fulvius Gaius Bruttius Praesens Laberius Maximus, twice consul. Maximus was the great-grandfather of Bruttia Crispina, who married the

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), ...

Commodus.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Laberius Maximus, Manius 1st-century births 2nd-century deaths 1st-century Romans 2nd-century Romans Ancient Roman generals Imperial Roman consuls Maximus, Manius People from Lanuvio Roman governors of Lower Moesia Year of death unknown Year of birth unknown