Publius Petronius Turpilianus was a
Roman senator
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
who held a number of offices in the middle of the 1st century AD, most notably governor of
Britain. He was an ordinary
consul in the year 61 with
Lucius Junius Caesennius Paetus
Lucius Junius Caesennius Paetus (c. 45 - after 94) was a Roman senator active during the Flavian dynasty. He was suffect consul for the ''nundinium'' of March-June 79 with Publius Calvisius Ruso as his colleague.
Caesennius was the son and name ...
as his colleague.
[Paul A. Gallivan]
"Some Comments on the Fasti for the Reign of Nero"
''Classical Quarterly
The Classical Association is a British learned society in the field of classics, aimed at developing classical study and promoting its importance in education.
Constitution
The association was founded on 19 December 1903, and its objects are de ...
'', 24 (1974), pp. 292, 310
He was the (adopted?) son of
Publius Petronius
Publius Petronius was a Roman senator, who was active during the reigns of Caligula and Claudius. He was suffect consul in the second half of the year 19, replacing Lucius Norbanus Balbus. The sortition also awarded him the proconsulate of Asia; ...
and Plautia, sister of
Aulus Plautius who was the conqueror and first governor of Britain.
Life
He was
consul in 61, but in the second half of that year he laid down that office and was appointed governor of Roman Britain, replacing
Gaius Suetonius Paulinus
Gaius Suetonius Paulinus (fl. AD 41–69) was a Roman general best known as the commander who defeated the rebellion of Boudica.
Early life
Little is known of Suetonius' family, but it likely came from Pisaurum (modern Pesaro), a town on the Adri ...
who had been removed from office in the wake of the rebellion of
Boudica
Boudica or Boudicca (, known in Latin chronicles as Boadicea or Boudicea, and in Welsh as ()), was a queen of the ancient British Iceni tribe, who led a failed uprising against the conquering forces of the Roman Empire in AD 60 or 61. She ...
. In contrast to Suetonius's punitive measures, Petronius took a conciliatory approach, and conducted few military operations. In 63 he was replaced by
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 ...
, and was appointed ''
curator aquarum
The ''Curator Aquarum'' was a Roman official responsible for managing Rome's water supply and distributing free grain. Curators were appointed by the emperor. The first curator was Agrippa. Another notable ''Curator Aquarum'' was Frontinus, a Ro ...
'' (superintendent of
aqueducts) in
Rome.
In 65 he was given a
triumph, apparently for his loyalty to the
emperor Nero. Following Nero's death in 68,
Servius Sulpicius Galba Servius Sulpicius Galba may refer to:
* Servius Sulpicius Galba (consul 144 BC)
* Servius Sulpicius Galba (consul 108 BC)
* Servius Sulpicius Galba (praetor 54 BC), assassin of Julius Caesar
* Galba, born Servius Sulpicius Galba, Roman emperor fro ...
, governor of
Hispania Tarraconensis
Hispania Tarraconensis was one of three Roman provinces in Hispania. It encompassed much of the northern, eastern and central territories of modern Spain along with modern northern Portugal. Southern Spain, the region now called Andalusia was the ...
, was named Emperor by the
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
. During his march from
Spain to
Rome, Galba had Petronius summarily executed (or ordered him to take his own life) as a commander appointed by Nero.
References
Primary sources
*
Tacitus, ''
Agricola'
16 ''
Annals'
14:2914:3915:72 ''
Histories
Histories or, in Latin, Historiae may refer to:
* the plural of history
* ''Histories'' (Herodotus), by Herodotus
* ''The Histories'', by Timaeus
* ''The Histories'' (Polybius), by Polybius
* ''Histories'' by Gaius Sallustius Crispus (Sallust), ...
br>
1:61:37*
Plutarch''Life of Galba'' 15*
Frontinus''On the Water Supply of Rome'' 102
Secondary sources
*William Smith (ed) (1870), ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'
*Kevin K Carroll (1979), "The Date of Boudicca's Revolt", ''Britannia'' 10, pp. 197-202
*Anthony R Birley (1981), ''The ''Fasti'' of Roman Britain''
Footnotes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Petronius Publius Turpilianus
68 deaths
1st-century Romans
Imperial Roman consuls
Roman governors of Britain
Roman consuls designate
Ancient Roman generals
Ancient Romans in Britain
People of the Year of the Four Emperors
Executed ancient Roman people
People executed by the Roman Empire
1st-century executions
Petronii
Year of birth unknown