Claudia Marcella was the name of several women of ancient Rome of the Marcelli branch of the Claudia gens. By the late Republican period girls from this branch were often called "

Clodia Clodius is an alternate form of the Roman '' nomen'' Claudius, a patrician '' gens'' that was traditionally regarded as Sabine in origin. The alternation of ''o'' and ''au'' is characteristic of the Sabine dialect. The feminine form is Clodia. R ...

". A number of Marcellae are believed to have been the daughters of the consul Gaius Claudius Marcellus * Claudia Marcella, a proposed daughter by an unknown woman, this Marcella might have been the mother of Publius Quinctilius Varus * Claudia Marcella Major, (? - ?) oldest surviving daughter by Octavia Minor, married Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa *

Claudia Marcella Minor Claudia Marcella Minor (''PIR2'' C 1103, born some time before 39 BC) was a niece of the first Roman emperor Augustus. She was the second surviving daughter of the emperor's sister Octavia the Younger and her first husband Gaius Claudius Marcellu ...

, (? - ?) youngest surviving daughter by Octavia Minor, grandmother of empress

Messalina Valeria Messalina (; ) was the third wife of Roman emperor Claudius. She was a paternal cousin of Emperor Nero, a second cousin of Emperor Caligula, and a great-grandniece of Emperor Augustus. A powerful and influential woman with a reputatio ...

* Claudia Marcella Ignota Prima, (? - ?) a daughter by

Octavia Minor Octavia the Younger ( la, Octavia Minor; c. 66 BC – 11 BC) was the elder sister of the first Roman Emperor, Augustus (known also as Octavian), the half-sister of Octavia the Elder, and the fourth wife of Mark Antony. She was also the great-gr ...

who died in childhood

Spyridon Lambros Spyridon Lambros or Lampros ( el, Σπυρίδων Λάμπρος; 1851–1919) was a Greek history professor and briefly Prime Minister of Greece during the National Schism. Biography He was born in Corfu in 1851 and was educated in London, Paris ...

, ''Ἀνέκδοτον ἀπόσπασμα συγγραϕῆς περὶ τοῦ Καισαρείου γένους'', Νέος Ἑλληνομνήμων 1 (1904), p. 148 * Claudia Marcella Ignota Secunda, (? - ?) a daughter by Octavia Minor who died in childhood The two surviving daughters of Octavia (the sister of Roman emperor

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 Pr ...

) by MarcellusLightman, ''A to Z of Ancient Greek and Roman Women'', pp. 204-5 became important in Augustus imperial plans. According to the Roman Historian Suetonius, they were known as "the Marcellae sisters" or "the two Marcellae". The sisters were born in

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 ...

and lived with their mother and their stepfather Triumvir

Mark Antony Marcus Antonius (14 January 1 August 30 BC), commonly known in English as Mark Antony, was a Roman politician and general who played a critical role in the transformation of the Roman Republic from a constitutional republic into the au ...

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

. After 36 BC they accompanied their mother when she returned to Rome with their brother and half-sisters. They were raised and educated by their mother, their maternal uncle and their maternal aunt-in-marriage Roman Empress Livia Drusilla. They and their siblings provided a critical link between the past of the

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...

and the new

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post- Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediter ...

.Lightman, ''A to Z of Ancient Greek and Roman Women'', p. 205 The marriages of the sisters and the children born to their unions assured republican family lines into the next generation.Lightman, ''A to Z of Ancient Greek and Roman Women'', p. 204 A number of other women could have been Marcellae: * Claudia, last wife of

Quintus Lutatius Catulus Quintus Lutatius Catulus (149–87 BC) was a consul of the Roman Republic in 102 BC. His consular colleague was Gaius Marius. During their consulship the Cimbri and Teutones marched south again and threatened the Republic. While Marius marched ag ...

may have been a Marcella if she was she was likely a daughter of

Gaius Marius Gaius Marius (; – 13 January 86 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. Victor of the Cimbric and Jugurthine wars, he held the office of consul an unprecedented seven times during his career. He was also noted for his important refor ...

' friend and legate

Marcus Claudius Marcellus Marcus Claudius Marcellus (; 270 – 208 BC), five times elected as consul of the Roman Republic, was an important Roman military leader during the Gallic War of 225 BC and the Second Punic War. Marcellus gained the most prestigious award a Roma ...

. *

, wife of

Decimus Junius Brutus Callaicus Decimus Junius Brutus Callaicus (or Gallaecus or Callaecus; c. 180113 BC) was a consul of the Roman Republic for the year 138 BC together with Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica Serapio. He was an optimate politician and a military commander in His ...

and mother of Decimus Junius Brutus may have been a Marcella.

References

Sources

;Ancient *

Plutarch Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for hi ...

, ''Life of Mark Antony'' * Suetonius, "Augustus", ''The Twelve Caesars'' *

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 ...

, ''Annales'' ;Modern * Annelise Freisenbruch, ''Caesars' Wives: Sex, Power, and Politics in the Roman Empire'', Simon and Schuster, 2011 * Diana E. E. Kleiner, ''Cleopatra and Rome'', Harvard University Press, 2009 * N. Kokkinos, ''Antonia Augusta: Portrait of a Great Roman Lady'', Psychology Press, 1992 * M. Lightman & B. Lightman, ''A to Z of Ancient Greek and Roman Women'', Infobase Publishing, 2008 * G. Stern, ''Women, Children, and Senators on the Ara Pacis Augustae: A Study of Augustus' Vision of a New World Order in 13 BC'', ProQuest, 2006 * Ronald Syme, ''The Augustan Aristocracy'', Oxford University Press, 1989

External links

Octavia Minor
at Livius.org (last accessed 5 April 2020) {{DEFAULTSORT:Marcella, Claudia Ancient Roman prosopographical lists of women Claudii Marcelli