Munatia Plancina (died 33 AD) was a Roman noblewoman who lived during the reigns of

Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

and

Tiberius Tiberius Julius Caesar Augustus (; 16 November 42 BC – 16 March AD 37) was the second Roman emperor. He reigned from AD 14 until 37, succeeding his stepfather, the first Roman emperor Augustus. Tiberius was born in Rome in 42 BC. His father ...

. She was the wife of the governor of Syria, Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso. The couple was accused of poisoning

Germanicus Germanicus Julius Caesar (24 May 15 BC – 10 October AD 19) was an ancient Roman general, known for his campaigns in Germania. The son of Nero Claudius Drusus and Antonia the Younger, Germanicus was born into an influential branch of the Patric ...

, the nephew and adopted son of the Emperor Tiberius. At first, Munatia Plancina was acquitted, but when the trial was renewed she committed suicide.

Biography

Often Munatia Plancina is simply called ''Plancina''. She was probably the daughter of a certain Munatius, who was the

Comes ''Comes'' ( ), plural ''comites'' ( ), was a Roman title or office, and the origin Latin form of the medieval and modern title "count". Before becoming a word for various types of title or office, the word originally meant "companion", either i ...

of Tiberius during his diplomatic mission in the East. In this case she was the granddaughter of

Lucius Munatius Plancus Lucius Munatius Plancus ( – ) was a Roman senator, consul in 42 BC, and censor in 22 BC with Paullus Aemilius Lepidus. Along with Talleyrand eighteen centuries later, he is one of the classic historical examples of men who have m ...

, who had been

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 42 BC. Munatia Plancina was a rich woman and very self-confident because of her noble descent. She was probably the second wife of Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso. They had two sons: Gnaeus, who later changed his first name to

Lucius 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 Marcus Calpurnius Piso. Munatia Plancina was also a close friend of

Livia Livia Drusilla (30 January 59 BC – 28 September AD 29) was a Roman empress from 27 BC to AD 14 as the wife of Roman emperor, Emperor Augustus Caesar. She was known as Julia Augusta after her formal Adoption in ancient Rome, adoption into the J ...

, the wife of the Emperor Augustus and mother of his successor, Tiberius. When her husband was elected governor of Syria Munatia Plancina accompanied him to his province (18 AD). At this time Germanicus was given overall command in the east of the Roman Empire. Germanicus and his wife

Agrippina the Elder Agrippina "the Elder" (also, in Latin, , "Germanicus's Agrippina"; – AD 33) was a prominent member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. She was the daughter of Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa (a close supporter of the first Roman emperor, Augustus) and ...

subsequently travelled to Syria where they became involved in a serious quarrel with the governor Piso and his wife. The Roman historian

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

states that like Agrippina, Munatia Plancina was sometimes present at military parades. Munatia Plancina was said to openly insult Germanicus and his wife. Tacitus goes on to say that Livia secretly ordered Munatia Plancina to take this action against Germanicus and Agrippina. Munatia Plancina was supposed to have been in contact with a Syrian called Martina who prepared the poison to be used to kill Germanicus. As Germanicus was dying (10 October 19 AD) he was said to have suspected Piso and his wife of having him poisoned. The death of Germanicus supposedly gave Munatia Plancina a lot of pleasure. Then she supported her husband Piso in taking possession of Syria through military force. In autumn 20 AD Munatia Plancina and her husband returned to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. The couple had to answer to the

Roman Senate The Roman Senate ( la, Senātus Rōmānus) was a governing and advisory assembly in ancient Rome. It was one of the most enduring institutions in Roman history, being established in the first days of the city of Rome (traditionally founded in ...

for their alleged murder of Germanicus. Munatia Plancina was convicted but Livia exerted pressure on Tiberius to acquit her. Munatia Plancina then dissociated herself from her husband Piso who committed suicide. A recently discovered senate resolution has confirmed that Munatia Plancina owed her acquittal to a recommendation of Tiberius, who had been persuaded by Livia to act in this way. But after the death of Livia, Munatia Plancina lost a powerful protectress. In 33 AD, Tiberius renewed the charge of murder against her. Munatia Plancina committed suicide before the judgement. It has been noted that the family of Munatia Plancina was poorly regarded during the reign of Tiberius because of the very negative characterization of her grandfather, Lucius Munatius Plancus, by the historian

Marcus Velleius Paterculus Marcus Velleius Paterculus (; c. 19 BC – c. AD 31) was a Roman historian, soldier and senator. His Roman history, written in a highly rhetorical style, covered the period from the end of the Trojan War to AD 30, but is most useful for the per ...

, ''Roman History'' 2.83

References

{{reflist

Sources

* Rudolf Hanslik: ''Munatius 44)''. In: '' Realencyclopädie der Classischen Altertumswissenschaft'', vol. XVI 1 (1933), col. 556–557. * ''Munatia Plancina''. In: ''Der Neue Pauly'' (English: ''Brill's New Pauly''), vol. 7 (1999), col. 468. 33 deaths 1st-century Romans 1st-century Roman women Ancient Roman assassins Ancient Romans who committed suicide

Plancina Munatia Plancina (died 33 AD) was a Roman noblewoman who lived during the reigns of Augustus and Tiberius. She was the wife of the governor of Syria, Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso. The couple was accused of poisoning Germanicus, the nephew and adopted s ...

People acquitted of murder Poisoners Year of birth unknown