Lucius Manlius Torquatus 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 th ...

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 Kingd ...

in 65 BC, elected after the condemnation of

Publius Cornelius Sulla Publius Cornelius Sulla (died 45 BC) was a politician of the late Roman Republic and the nephew of Lucius Cornelius Sulla. He was also a brother-in-law of Pompey, having married his sister Pompeia. Early life Publius Cornelius Sulla was the so ...

and Publius Autronius Paetus.

Biography

Torquatus belonged to the patrician gens Manlii, one of the oldest Roman houses. He was proquaestor in Asia under Lucius Cornelius Sulla in 84 BC, for whom he issued gold and silver coinage. He returned to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus ( legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

with Sulla in 82 BC where he fought at the Battle of the Colline Gate. He was elected

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 vario ...

by 68 BC, and was possibly a legate under

Pompey Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a leading Roman general and statesman. He played a significant role in the transformation of ...

before taking up his new post of propraetor of the Roman province of

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 ...

in 67 BC. In 66 BC, Torquatus stood for election as

Roman consul A consul held the highest elected political office of the Roman Republic ( to 27 BC), and ancient Romans considered the consulship the second-highest level of the '' cursus honorum'' (an ascending sequence of public offices to which polit ...

, but was defeated by

and Publius Autronius Paetus. However, Torquatus and Lucius Aurelius Cotta accused the consul designates for the following year of bribery in connection with the elections; they were condemned under the Lex Acilia Calpurnia, and Cotta and Torquatus elected in their places. This, allegedly, led to the so-called First Catilinian Conspiracy where

Catiline Lucius Sergius Catilina ( 108 BC – January 62 BC), known in English as Catiline (), was a Roman politician and soldier. He is best known for instigating the Catilinarian conspiracy, a failed attempt to violently seize control of the ...

, together with Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso, Autronius, and Sulla, conspired to murder the new consuls on 1 January 65 BC, when they were due to enter office. Autronius and Sulla were to install themselves as consuls, while Piso was to take possession of the provinces of

Hispania Hispania ( la, Hispānia , ; nearly identically pronounced in Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, and Italian) was the Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula and its provinces. Under the Roman Republic, Hispania was divided into two provinces: His ...

. The plot failed when the Senate became suspicious and issued bodyguards to the incoming consuls. However, during Catiline's trial for corruption when he was governor of

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

in 65 BC, he was supported by Torquatus, and an investigation undertaken by the consul into the circumstances of the aborted plot was inconclusive. In 64 BC, Torquatus obtained

Macedonia Macedonia most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a traditional geographic reg ...

as his allotted proconsular province and while there was awarded the title of Imperator by the Senate on the recommendation of

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 est ...

when Cicero reported Torquatus's achievements to the Senate. By the autumn of 63 BC he was back in Rome. He took an active part in suppressing the Second Catilinarian conspiracy late that year, and he also supported Cicero when Cicero was banished in 58 BC. Torquatus was married to a woman from Asculum. He had at least one son, Lucius Manlius Torquatus who died during

Caesar's Civil War Caesar's civil war (49–45 BC) was one of the last politico-military conflicts of the Roman Republic before its reorganization into the Roman Empire. It began as a series of political and military confrontations between Gaius Julius Caesar ...

. He may also have had a daughter who married Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus.

References

Sources

* T. Robert S. Broughton, ''The Magistrates of the Roman Republic, Vol II'' (1952). * Holmes, T. Rice, ''The Roman Republic and the Founder of the Empire'', Vol. I (1923) * Syme, Ronald, ''The Roman Revolution'', Clarendon Press, Oxford, 1939. * Anthon, Charles & Smith, William, ''A New Classical Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography, Mythology and Geography'' (1860). {{DEFAULTSORT:Manlius Torquatus, Lucius 1st-century BC Roman consuls Lucius Roman governors of Macedonia Roman patricians

Biography

See also

References

Sources