Gaius Fabius Hadrianus was

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 disch ...

in 84 BC and governor of the

Roman province of Africa Africa was a Roman province on the northern coast of the continent of Africa. It was established in 146 BC, following the Roman Republic's conquest of Carthage in the Third Punic War. It roughly comprised the territory of present-day Tunisi ...

in 83–82. He is known primarily for the sensational circumstances of his death: during an uprising, the governor's residence was set on fire and Hadrianus was burned alive.

A controversial career

Next to nothing is known of the early career of Hadrianus. He has been identified with the C. Fabius Hadrianus who was a

moneyer A moneyer is a private individual who is officially permitted to mint money. Usually the rights to coin money are bestowed as a concession by a state or government. Moneyers have a long tradition, dating back at least to ancient Greece. They bec ...

(''monetalis'') in 102 BC; several examples of his coins are known. Following his praetorship in 84, Hadrianus forced out Metellus Pius, his predecessor as

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

of Africa and a partisan of Sulla. An alternative view is that Metellus did not hold a legitimate governorship, but was attempting to seize power in Africa in 84 when Hadrianus held a duly appointed office. Since Hadrianus began his term during the last consulship of Cornelius Cinna, he is usually considered in league with the ''

populares ''Optimates'' (, ; Latin for "best ones"; ) and ''populares'' (; Latin for "supporters of the people"; ) are labels applied to politicians, political groups, traditions, strategies, or ideologies in the late Roman Republic. There is "heated ...

''. His governorship would have redirected

tribute A tribute (; from Latin ''tributum'', "contribution") is wealth, often in kind, that a party gives to another as a sign of submission, allegiance or respect. Various ancient states exacted tribute from the rulers of lands which the state con ...

from Africa to the cause of Cinna and the Marians. Metellus fled to

Numidia Numidia was the ancient kingdom of the Numidians in northwest Africa, initially comprising the territory that now makes up Algeria, but later expanding across what is today known as Tunisia and Libya. The polity was originally divided between ...

and the protection of

Hiempsal II Hiempsal II was king of Numidia from 88 – 60 BC. He was the son of Gauda, half-brother of Jugurtha, and was the father of Juba I. History In 88 BC, after the triumph of Lucius Cornelius Sulla, when Gaius Marius and his son fled from Rome to Af ...

. Hadrianus allied with Hiarbas, a rival for the Numidian kingship, and succeeded in temporarily ousting Hiempsal, who hid out with Metellus and his men in

Mauretania Mauretania (; ) is the Latin name for a region in the ancient Maghreb. It extended from central present-day Algeria to the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, encompassing northern present-day Morocco, and from the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean in the ...

under the protection of

Bocchus I Bocchus, often referred to as Bocchus I for clarity, was king of Mauretania from – 80 BCE. He was father-in-law to the Numidian king Jugurtha, with whom he initially allied against the Romans in the Jugurthine War, a lengthy and indecisive co ...

. The actions of Hadrianus incurred the enmity of the pro-Sullan upper classes in Africa. During an uprising in Utica (in modern-day

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

), he was killed when the official residence was set on fire. The sources uniformly emphasize that he was burned alive.

Politics and character

Hadrianus's tenure was remembered for greed and harshness. A.N. Sherwin-White called him "beastly." A chronological examination of the sources indicates that

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

’s characterization of Hadrianus likely colored the view of historians who came later. In the course of his prosecution of

Verres Gaius Verres ( 114 – 43 BC) was a Roman magistrate, notorious for his misgovernment of Sicily. His extortion of local farmers and plundering of temples led to his prosecution by Cicero, whose accusations were so devastating that his defence advo ...

, Cicero makes a threatening comparison to Hadrianus and the manner of his death, saying that the defendant was even worse: Cicero uses the word ''

domus In ancient Rome, the ''domus'' (: ''domūs'', genitive: ''domūs'' or ''domī'') was the type of town house occupied by the upper classes and some wealthy freedmen during the Republican and Imperial eras. It was found in almost all the ma ...

'', “house,” which directs attention away from Hadrianus's status as a

promagistrate In ancient Rome, a promagistrate () was a person who was granted the power via ''prorogation'' to act in place of an ordinary magistrate in the field. This was normally ''pro consule'' or ''pro praetore'', that is, in place of a consul or praeto ...

; Livy calls it properly the ''

praetorium The Latin term ''praetorium'' (also and ) originally identified the tent of a general within a Roman '' castrum'' (encampment), and derived from the title praetor, which identified a Roman magistrate.Smith, William. Dictionary of Greek and Roma ...

'', the official residence of the governor. The 1st-century AD historian

Valerius Maximus Valerius Maximus () was a 1st-century Latin writer and author of a collection of historical anecdotes: ' ("Nine books of memorable deeds and sayings", also known as ''De factis dictisque memorabilibus'' or ''Facta et dicta memorabilia''). He worke ...

echoes Cicero's account closely: “After Hadrianus antagonized the Roman citizens settled at Utica with his sleazy governance and consequently was burned alive by them, no inquest was held at Rome to investigate the matter, nor did anyone bother to file a complaint.” Although Hadrianus is sometimes said to have been "fluctuating between the parties of Cinna and Sulla", it is unclear what facts indicate support of Sulla. As both Cicero and Valerius Maximus note, the Sullan regime established that same year took no action in the matter, even though the legitimate governor of a major province had been killed. Both sources state that the violence in Utica was instigated not by Africans rebelling against Rome, but by Roman citizens ('' cives''). At first glance,

Orosius Paulus Orosius (; born 375/385 – 420 AD), less often Paul Orosius in English, was a Roman priest, historian and theologian, and a student of Augustine of Hippo. It is possible that he was born in '' Bracara Augusta'' (now Braga, Portugal), ...

seems to contradict both Cicero and Valerius, claiming that Hadrianus was burned alive with his entire household because he had fomented rebellion among the slaves of Africa, whose masters apparently reacted with firewood and homicidal arson. The ''populares'' were often accused by the conservative elite, factually or not, of resorting to slaves to apply violence, and the killing might best be viewed in the context of the Sullan proscriptions of 82. Even if Hadrianus was not among those proscribed, his death as a Cinnan holdover was timely. He was succeeded as governor of Africa by the most famous of Sulla's henchmen and supporters, Pompeius Magnus; at age 24, Pompey had not held the offices prerequisite to a governorship, but having declared the primacy of sword over law, he defeated the Marians, a contingent of whom were still occupying Africa, along with their

n allies. Pompey remained in Africa till 79, when he claimed his controversial first triumph for his victories there.For the legal status of Pompey’s command in Africa, see Ronald T. Ridley, “The Extraordinary Commands of the Late Republic: A Matter of Definition,” ''Historia'' 30 (1981) 280–297, especially p. 281.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fabius Hadrianus, Gaius 2nd-century BC births 82 BC deaths 2nd-century BC Romans 1st-century BC Romans Assassinated ancient Roman politicians Deaths from fire Hadrianus, Gaius Roman governors of Africa Roman Republican praetors Year of birth unknown