Quintus Poetelius Libo Visolus was a Roman politician, and member of the Second ''Decemvirate'' in 450 and 449 BC.

Family

He was a part of the ''

gens In ancient Rome, a gens ( or , ; plural: ''gentes'' ) was a family consisting of individuals who shared the same Roman naming conventions#Nomen, nomen and who claimed descent from a common ancestor. A branch of a gens was called a ''stirps'' (p ...

Poetelia''. According to

Dionysius of Halicarnassus Dionysius of Halicarnassus ( grc, Διονύσιος Ἀλεξάνδρου Ἁλικαρνασσεύς, ; – after 7 BC) was a Greek historian and teacher of rhetoric, who flourished during the reign of Emperor Augustus. His literary sty ...

, he was

plebeian In ancient Rome, the plebeians (also called plebs) were the general body of free Roman citizens who were not patricians, as determined by the census, or in other words " commoners". Both classes were hereditary. Etymology The precise origins of ...

Biography

Quintus Poetelius Libo Visolus was one of the ten members of the Second ''Decemvirate'', presided over by

Appius Claudius Appius Claudius may refer to: * Appius Claudius Caecus * Appius Claudius Caudex * Appius Claudius Crassus Inregillensis Sabinus * Appius Claudius Pulcher (disambiguation) * Appius Claudius Sabinus Inregillensis Appius Claudius Sabinus Regillensis ...

and elected in order to draft the Law of the Twelve Tables, first body of written law in the Roman Republic. The Second ''Decemvirate'' was made up of just as many plebeians, like Quintus Poetelius, as it was by patricians. At the instigation of

, the decemvirs held on to power the following year and refused to allow the annual election of consuls in 449 BC. In 449 BC, a war escalated with the

Sabines The Sabines (; lat, Sabini; it, Sabini, all exonyms) were an Italic people who lived in the central Apennine Mountains of the ancient Italian Peninsula, also inhabiting Latium north of the Anio before the founding of Rome. The Sabines divid ...

who established themselves in

Eretum Eretum (Greek: ), was an ancient town of the Sabines, situated on the Via Salaria, at its junction with the Via Nomentana, a short distance from the Tiber, and about from Rome. History Eretum lay near the frontier between Roman and Sabine territo ...

and the Aequi who had camped on Mount Algidus. Roman forces were divided into two armies in order to fight on two fronts. Quintus Poetelius received command of the army which fought the Sabines, with three other decemvirs: Quintus Fabius Vibulanus,

Manius Rabuleius Manius Rabuleius was an Ancient Roman politician and a member of the second decemvirate in 450 BC.Livy 3.35; Dionysius of Halicarnassus 10.58, 11.23 Dionysius of Halicarnassus calls him a patrician, whereas he speaks of Gaius Rabuleius as a plebei ...

, and

Kaeso Duillius Kaeso may refer to: * Kaeso (praenomen) or Caeso (abbreviated ''K.''), an ancient Roman naming convention Some of those who bore the name are: *Caeso Fabius Vibulanus (consul), consul 484, 481?, 479 BC *Caeso Quinctius, son of Lucius Quinctius ...

. At the time, Appius Claudius and

Spurius Oppius Cornicen Spurius Oppius Cornicen was a Roman politician and member of the Second ''Decemvirate'' in 450 and 449 BC. Biography According to Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Spurius Oppius Cornicen was plebeian. He was one of the ten members of the Second ''D ...

remained in Rome in order to ensure the defence of the city, while the other four decemvirs fought against the Aequi. The two Roman armies were each kept in check on both fronts. The army commanded by Quintus Poetelius withdrew to Fidenae and Crustumerium then returned to the field after the death of Lucius Siccius Dentatus, former tribune of the plebs and staunch opponent of the patricians. His death was concealed as though it were a loss suffered in an ambush. The soldiers then mutinied and elected ten military tribunes to command the army. They returned to Rome and camped on the Aventine before merging with the other army on

Monte Sacro __NoToC__ The Mons Sacer, Sacer Mons, or Sacred Mount is a hill in Rome, famed as the location of the first secession of the plebs, in 494 BC.''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography'', vol. II, p. 871 ("Sacer Mons"). Geography The Mons Sacer i ...

. Under pressure from the soldiers and the plebeians, the decemvirs resigned. Appius Claudius Crassus and Spurius Oppius Cornicen remained in Rome and were imprisoned, but committed suicide during their trial. The other eight decemvirs, such as Quintus Poetelius, left Rome and went into exile.

, ''Roman Antiquities'', XI. 24-43

References

Bibliography

Ancient bibliography

* Livy, ''

Ab urbe condita ''Ab urbe condita'' ( 'from the founding of the City'), or ''anno urbis conditae'' (; 'in the year since the city's founding'), abbreviated as AUC or AVC, expresses a date in years since 753 BC, the traditional founding of Rome. It is an exp ...

'' *

, ''Roman Antiquities''

Modern bibliography

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Poetelius Libo Visolus, Quintus 5th-century BC Romans Ancient Roman decemvirs