Gaius Coelius Caldus was a

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 ...

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 ...

in 94 BC alongside his colleague Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus. AR denarius of Caldus

In 107 BC, Coelius Caldus was elected

tribune of the plebs Tribune of the plebs, tribune of the people or plebeian tribune ( la, tribunus plebis) was the first office of the Roman state that was open to the plebeians, and was, throughout the history of the Republic, the most important check on the power o ...

and passed a '' lex tabellaria,'' which ordained that in cases of high treason in the courts of justice the voting should be secret with each voter marking their decision on a clay tablet.

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the esta ...

stated that Caldus regretted this law as having been the source of injury to the republic. He was a

praetor Praetor ( , ), also pretor, was the title granted by the government of Ancient Rome to a man acting in one of two official capacities: (i) the commander of an army, and (ii) as an elected '' magistratus'' (magistrate), assigned to discharge vari ...

in 100 or 99 BC, and

proconsul A proconsul was an official of ancient Rome who acted on behalf of a consul. A proconsul was typically a former consul. The term is also used in recent history for officials with delegated authority. In the Roman Republic, military command, or ' ...

Hispania Citerior Hispania Citerior (English: "Hither Iberia", or "Nearer Iberia") was a Roman province in Hispania during the Roman Republic. It was on the eastern coast of Iberia down to the town of Cartago Nova, today's Cartagena in the autonomous community of ...

the following year. Coelius' portrait appears on a small series of Roman silver coins from the late republic. Some of his coins feature the boar emblem of Clunia.Broughton, ''MRR²'', p. 3.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coelius Caldus, Gaius 2nd-century BC Romans 1st-century BC Roman consuls Caldus, Gaius Roman governors of Hispania Citerior Roman Republican praetors Tribunes of the plebs