Gaius Marcius Censorinus (died c. AD 2) 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 lette ...

Senator who was elected

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 8 BC.

Biography

A member of the Plebeian Censorini branch of the '' gens Marcia'', Marcius Censorinus was the son of Lucius Marcius Censorinus, the consul of 39 BC. He was appointed as '' Triumvir monetalis'' sometime around 20 or 19 BC. He was elected consul in 8 BC alongside

Gaius Asinius Gallus Saloninus Gaius Asinius Gallus (before 38 BC – AD 33) was a Roman senator, son of Gaius Asinius Pollio and Quinctia. He was the second husband of Vipsania, eldest daughter of Marcus Agrippa and first wife of Tiberius, who ultimately imprisoned him. Bi ...

, but his election was clouded by accusations of electoral bribery; the 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 ...

however refused to intervene. During his consulship, he offered votive games to

Jupiter Optimus Maximus The Capitoline Triad was a group of three deities who were worshipped in ancient Roman religion in an elaborate temple on Rome's Capitoline Hill (Latin ''Capitolium''). It comprised Jupiter, Juno and Minerva. The triad held a central place in th ...

for the return of Augustus who was touring the provinces at the time. He also chaired the session of the Senate which voted to rename the month of

Sextilis Sextilis ("sixth") or ''mensis Sextilis'' was the Latin name for what was originally the sixth month in the Roman calendar, when March ('' Martius'', "Mars' month") was the first of ten months in the year. After the calendar reform that produced ...

to August in honour of the emperor. Prior to 11 BC Marcius Censorinus was admitted to the ''

collegia A (plural ), or college, was any association in ancient Rome that acted as a legal entity. Following the passage of the ''Lex Julia'' during the reign of Julius Caesar as Consul and Dictator of the Roman Republic (49–44 BC), and their ...

'' of Augurs. Around 3 BC the

sortition In governance, sortition (also known as selection by lottery, selection by lot, allotment, demarchy, stochocracy, aleatoric democracy, democratic lottery, and lottocracy) is the selection of political officials as a random sample from a larger ...

awarded him the

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 ...

governorship 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 ...

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

. It is conjectured that he was later the consular ''

Legatus Augusti pro praetore A ''legatus Augusti pro praetore'' (literally: "envoy of the emperor – acting for the praetor") was the official title of the governor or general of some Imperial provincess of the Roman Empire during the Principate era, normally the larger ones ...

'' (or imperial governor) of Galatia in around AD 2, where he hosted

Gaius Caesar Gaius Caesar (; 20 BC – 21 February 4 AD) was the grandson and heir to the throne of Roman emperor Augustus, alongside his younger brother Lucius Caesar. Although he was born to Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa and Julia, Augustus' only daughter, Gai ...

during his stay in the east. He died in that year, while still governor of Galatia. Marcius Censorinus was a

patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...

of the city of Miletus, and in the city of

Mylasa Milas ( grc, Μύλασα, Mylasa) is an ancient city and the seat of the district of the same name in Muğla Province in southwestern Turkey. The city commands a region with an active economy and very rich in history and ancient remains, the ter ...

he was given the title of "saviour and founder", and games called the ''Censorineia'' were held annually in his honour. The poet Horace wrote an ode in his honour, and he was praised by the Roman historian

Marcus Velleius Paterculus Marcus Velleius Paterculus (; c. 19 BC – c. AD 31) was a Roman historian, soldier and senator. His Roman history, written in a highly rhetorical style, covered the period from the end of the Trojan War to AD 30, but is most useful for the per ...

as "''vir demerendis hominibus genitus''".Syme, p. 424 He had no known children.

Sources

*Swan, Peter Michael, ''The Augustan Succession: An Historical Commentary on Cassius Dio's Roman History Books 55-56 (9 B.C.-A.D. 14)'' (2004) *Syme, Ronald, ''The Augustan Aristocracy'' (1986).

Clarendon Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marcius Censorinus, Gaius 1st-century BC Romans 1st-century Romans AD 2 deaths Senators of the Roman Empire Imperial Roman consuls Roman governors of Asia Roman governors of Galatia Augurs of the Roman Empire Year of birth unknown Gaius Moneyers of ancient Rome