Publius Aelius Paetus (fl. c. 240 BC – 174 BC) 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 ...

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 late 3rd century BC. He was a prominent supporter and ally of Scipio Africanus, and was elected censor with Africanus in 199.

Family

Publius Aelius Paetus was apparently the elder surviving son of

Quintus Aelius Paetus Quintus is a male given name derived from '' Quintus'', a common Latin forename ('' praenomen'') found in the culture of ancient Rome. Quintus derives from Latin word ''quintus'', meaning "fifth". Quintus is an English masculine given name an ...

, 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 ...

who was killed at Cannae in August 216 BC. The father may have been descended from Publius Aelius Paetus, who was consul in 337 BC and a

Master of the Horse Master of the Horse is an official position in several European nations. It was more common when most countries in Europe were monarchies, and is of varying prominence today. (Ancient Rome) The original Master of the Horse ( la, Magister Equitu ...

, and as such, one of the earliest plebeian consuls; another ancestor may have been Gaius Aelius Paetus, consul in 286 BC. His younger brother was

Sextus Aelius Paetus Catus Sextus Aelius Paetus Catus ( fl. 198194 BC) or Sextus Aelius Q.f. Paetus Catus (or "the clever one"), was a Roman Republican consul, elected in 198 BC. Today, he is best known for his interpretation of the laws of the Twelve Tables, which is kno ...

who became consul in 198 and censor in 194, and is best known to us via

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 ...

as a jurist and commentator on the ''

Twelve Tables The Laws of the Twelve Tables was the legislation that stood at the foundation of Roman law. Formally promulgated in 449 BC, the Tables consolidated earlier traditions into an enduring set of laws.Crawford, M.H. 'Twelve Tables' in Simon Hornblowe ...

''. Publius was also a jurist.

Political life

Aelius Paetus makes relatively few appearances in

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...

's ''History of Rome.'' He was

aedile ''Aedile'' ( ; la, aedīlis , from , "temple edifice") was an elected office of the Roman Republic. Based in Rome, the aediles were responsible for maintenance of public buildings () and regulation of public festivals. They also had powers to ...

in 204 BC, was elected

in 203 BC and then selected as

, and became consul in 201 with Gnaeus Cornelius L.f. Lentulus. In his year as consul, he made a treaty with the

Ingauni The Ingauni were a Celto-Ligurian tribe dwelling on the Mediterranean coast, around the modern city of Albenga (Liguria), during the Iron Age Europe, Iron Age and the Roman period. Name They are mentioned as ''Ingauni'' by Livy (late 1st c. BC) ...

Ligures The Ligures (singular Ligur; Italian: liguri; English: Ligurians) were an ancient people after whom Liguria, a region of present-day north-western Italy, is named. Ancient Liguria corresponded more or less to the current Italian regi ...

and was appointed one of the ten

decemvir The decemviri or decemvirs (Latin for "ten men") were some of the several 10-man commissions established by the Roman Republic. The most important were those of the two Decemvirates, formally the " decemvirate with consular power for writing ...

s for the distribution of lands of the ''

ager publicus The ''ager publicus'' (; "public land") is the Latin name for the public land of Ancient Rome. It was usually acquired via the means of expropriation from enemies of Rome. History In the earliest periods of Roman expansion in central Italy, th ...

'' among the veteran soldiers of Scipio Africanus in

Samnium Samnium ( it, Sannio) is a Latin exonym for a region of Southern Italy anciently inhabited by the Samnites. Their own endonyms were ''Safinim'' for the country (attested in one inscription and one coin legend) and ''Safineis'' for the The ...

and Apulia. In 199 he was elected censor with Africanus himself. The two censors were relatively liberal in their ''

lustrum A lūstrum (, plural lūstra) was a term for a five-year period in Ancient Rome. It is distinct from the homograph ''lustrum'' ( ): a haunt of wild beasts (and figuratively, a den of vice), plural ''lustra'' ( ).Oxford Latin Desk Dictionary (20 ...

'' and degraded none. Paetus died in 174 during a pestilence at Rome, as recorded by Livy in a fragmentary chapter.Livy, ''Ab urbe condita'', XLI 21,8 His son was

, who became consul in 167.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Aelius Paetus, Publius 3rd-century BC births 174 BC deaths 3rd-century BC Roman augurs 3rd-century BC Roman consuls 3rd-century BC Roman praetors 2nd-century BC Roman augurs 2nd-century BC diplomats Paetus, Publius Curule aediles Magistri equitum (Roman Republic) Roman censors Year of birth uncertain