Gaius Trebatius Testa (C.84 BC-AD 4, fl. 1st century BC,) was a
jurist
A jurist is a person with expert knowledge of law; someone who analyses and comments on law. This person is usually a specialist legal scholar, mostly (but not always) with a formal qualification in law and often a legal practitioner. In the Uni ...
of
ancient Rome
In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 B ...
, whose family, and himself, originated from
Elea.
Friendship with Cicero and the Caesars
Some twenty years younger than
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 estab ...
, Trebatius was both a familiar friend and a protégé of the latter. Cicero dedicated his ''Topica'' to Trebatius, and recommended Trebatius as a legal advisor to
Julius Caesar
Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and ...
, calling him a thorough gentleman and a "leading light in civil law". Trebatius enjoyed Caesar's favor, making his fortune alongside him in Gaul, and supporting him in the Civil War.
Later he also worked closely with
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 Pri ...
, and was subsequently described in the
''Digest'' as being of the greatest authority for Augustan law.
Character
A good-humoured man - Cicero wrote of sending him "badinage in your own style" - Trebatius was featured by
Horace
Quintus Horatius Flaccus (; 8 December 65 – 27 November 8 BC), known in the English-speaking world as Horace (), was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus (also known as Octavian). The rhetorician Quintilian regarded his ' ...
as a learned adviser in his
''Satires''. As well as a fondness for wine, Trebatius also seemed to enjoy swimming as a hobby.
Legal career and influence
A pupil of
Cornelius Maximus
Cornelius may refer to:
People
* Cornelius (name), Roman family name and a masculine given name
* Pope Cornelius, pope from AD 251 to 253
* St. Cornelius (disambiguation), multiple saints
* Cornelius (musician), stage name of Keigo Oyamada
* Metro ...
, Trebatius played a key part in the transfer of legal authority from the senate to individual jurisconsults under the
Principate
The Principate is the name sometimes given to the first period of the Roman Empire from the beginning of the reign of Augustus in 27 BC to the end of the Crisis of the Third Century in AD 284, after which it evolved into the so-called Dominate.
...
.
An expert on sacral law,
[ A Bauman, ''Lawyers in Roman Transitional Politics'' (1985) p.123] Trebatius' writings included a ''de religionibus'' and ''de iure civili'', but not even excerpts of these survive. He was, however, frequently cited by later jurists, and also had a high reputation as the teacher of
Marcus Antistius Labeo.
See also
*
Aulus Ofilius Aulus Ofilius (Ofilius in Greek: ο Όφίλλιος, flourished 1st century BC) was a Roman jurist of Equestrian rank, who lived in the Roman Republic. He is named as a jurist by Pomponius. Ofilius was a friend to Roman statesman Marcus Tullius Cic ...
*
Gaius Matius Gaius Matius (fl. 1st century BC) ('' PW'' 1) was a citizen of ancient Rome notable as a friend of Julius Caesar and of Cicero, who described him in a letter to Trebatius (53BC) as "homo suavissimus doctissimusque". (Cic. Fam. 7,15,2)
A member of t ...
- friend of Cicero/Trebatius
*
Servius Sulpicius Rufus - legal rival
References
Ancient Roman jurists
Correspondents of Cicero
1st-century BC Romans
{{AncientRome-law-bio-stub