Gaius Calvisius Sabinus 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 lett ...

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 was

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 ...

in AD 26 as the colleague of Gnaeus Cornelius Lentulus Gaetulicus. During the reign of

Caligula Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus Germanicus (31 August 12 – 24 January 41), better known by his nickname Caligula (), was the third Roman emperor, ruling from 37 until his assassination in 41. He was the son of the popular Roman general Germani ...

, he was accused of conspiring against the emperor, and took his own life rather than submit to a trial.

Family

Calvisius was probably the son of Gaius Calvisius Sabinus, consul in 4 BC, and grandson of Gaius Calvisius Sabinus, consul in 39 BC. His wife, Cornelia, may have been the sister of Cornelius Lentulus, Calvisius' colleague in the consulship.''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'', vol. III, p. 689 ("Calvisius Sabinus", No. 3).

Career

Calvisius is first heard of when he and Cornelius were named ''consules ordinarii'' for AD 26. This was the year in which Tiberius left Rome for

Campania (man), it, Campana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demog ...

, never to return. On the Kalends of July, the consuls were replaced by Quintus Junius Blaesus and Lucius Antistius Vetus. Tiberius' removal from Rome may have been influenced by his advisor

Sejanus Lucius Aelius Sejanus (c. 20 BC – 18 October AD 31), commonly known as Sejanus (), was a Roman soldier, friend and confidant of the Roman Emperor Tiberius. Of the Equites class by birth, Sejanus rose to power as prefect of the Praetorian ...

, who assumed power in the emperor's absence. Sejanus fell from power and was executed the year of his own consulship, AD 31. The following year, Calvisius and three other men of consular rank were accused of '' maiestas''. One of the informers, a tribune of a city cohort by the name of Celsus, gave testimony that exculpated Calvisius and

Appius Junius Silanus __NOTOC__ Appius Junius Silanus (died AD 43), whom Cassius Dio calls Gaius Appius Silanus, was consul in AD 28, with Publius Silius Nerva as his colleague. He was accused of ''majestas'', or treason, in AD 32 along with a number of senators, but h ...

, consul in AD 28. Tiberius deferred action against the other two, Gaius Annius Pollio and

Mamercus Aemilius Scaurus Mamercus Aemilius Scaurus (died AD 34) was a Roman rhetorician, poet and senator. Tacitus writes that Scaurus was "a man of distinguished rank and ability as an advocate, but of infamous life." He was suffect consul from July to the end of the y ...

. During the reign of

, Calvisius was appointed

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

Pannonia Pannonia (, ) was a province of the Roman Empire bounded on the north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia. Pannonia was located in the territory that is now west ...

, and given the command of two legions. The emperor recalled the governor in AD 39, suspecting Calvisius and his wife of plotting against him, and brought charges against both. Cornelia was accused of entering the camp at night dressed as a soldier, interfering with the guard, and committing adultery in the general's headquarters. As their condemnation was certain, they put an end to their own lives before the trial could begin.Barrett, ''Agrippina''
online. p. 60

References

Bibliography

Publius Cornelius 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 Annals are a concise form of historical writing which record events chronologically, year by year. The equivalent word in Latin and French is ''annales'', which is used untranslated in English in various contexts. List of works with titles contai ...

'', '' Historiae''. * Lucius Cassius Dio Cocceianus (

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 ...

), ''Roman History''. * ''

Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology The ''Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology'' (1849, originally published 1844 under a slightly different title) is an encyclopedia/ biographical dictionary. Edited by William Smith, the dictionary spans three volumes and 3,700 ...

'', William Smith, ed., Little, Brown and Company, Boston (1849). * Robin Seager, ''Tiberius'', Blackwell (1972, 2005). *

Ronald Syme Sir Ronald Syme, (11 March 1903 – 4 September 1989) was a New Zealand-born historian and classicist. He was regarded as the greatest historian of ancient Rome since Theodor Mommsen and the most brilliant exponent of the history of the Roman ...

, ''The Augustan Aristocracy'', Clarendon Press, Oxford (1989). * Anthony A. Barrett, ''Agrippina: Sex, Power, and Politics in the Early Empire'', Yale University Press, (1996). * Steven H. Rutledge, ''Imperial Inquisitions: Prosecutors and Informants from Tiberius to Domitian'', Routledge, (2001). {{DEFAULTSORT:Calvisius Sabinus, Gaius 1st-century Romans 1st-century deaths Ancient Romans who committed suicide Sabinus, Gaius Imperial Roman consuls Roman governors of Pannonia Year of birth unknown Year of death unknown

Family

Career

See also

References

Bibliography