Quintus Sosius Senecio (fl. 1st century AD) was a Romansenator who was favored by the emperors Domitian and Trajan. As a result of this relationship, he was twice ordinary consul, an unusual and prestigious honor: first in 99, with Aulus Cornelius Palma Frontonianus as his colleague; and again in 107 as the colleague of Lucius Licinius Sura, who was himself consul for the third time.
Senecio's origins are unknown. He has been identified as the subject of an inscription where the name of the subject is lost,[1] which provides us his cursus honorum.[2] The earliest office recorded on this inscription was quattuorviri viarum curandarum, one of the four boards that comprised the vigintiviri; membership in one of these was a required first step toward a gaining entry into the Roman Senate. His next recorded office was as quaestor of the senatorial province of Achaea; upon completion of this traditional Republican magistracy he would be enrolled in the Senate.[3] The inscription omits all mention of a term of service as military tribune; John D. Grainger speculates that Senecio may have served with Legio XXI Rapax, which was destroyed by the Iazyges in 92.[4] He was the emperor's candidate for plebeian tribune and praetor, a clear honor; that the emperor's name is not provided suggests he was Domitian, who suffered damnatio memoriae after his death. After achieving the rank of praetor, Senecio was commissioned legatus legionis or commander of Legio I Minervia. He was then appointed legatus pro praetore or governor of Gallia Belgica for the term 96 to 98.[5] It was while governor that Senecio provided early support to Trajan.[4]
Senecio became consul ordinarius in 99. During the Dacian Wars, he held the governorship of Moesia Inferior.[6] Afterwards he earned a second consulate in 107 as well as a statue at state expense.
Personal detailsedit
Senecio was a member of literary circles. Pliny the Younger addressed two letters to a "Senecio" who is commonly identified with him. The first, beginning with "This year has produced a healthy crop of poets", is on the health of contemporary Roman literature.[7] The second is a request for a commission as military tribune on behalf of a relative of Pliny's friend Gaius Calvisius Rufus.[8]Plutarch also dedicated several of his Parallel Lives (Theseus 1, Demosthenes 1, Brutus 1) as well some of the individual Moralia (Quaestiones conviviales and Quomodo quis suos in virtute sentiat profectus) to Senecio. These include reminiscences about Plutarch's and Senecio's conversations at Athens, Patras and Rome, as well as at Plutarch's home in Boeotia, where Senecio attended the wedding of Plutarch's son.[9]
quintus, sosius, senecio, century, roman, senator, favored, emperors, domitian, trajan, result, this, relationship, twice, ordinary, consul, unusual, prestigious, honor, first, with, aulus, cornelius, palma, frontonianus, colleague, again, colleague, lucius, l. Quintus Sosius Senecio fl 1st century AD was a Roman senator who was favored by the emperors Domitian and Trajan As a result of this relationship he was twice ordinary consul an unusual and prestigious honor first in 99 with Aulus Cornelius Palma Frontonianus as his colleague and again in 107 as the colleague of Lucius Licinius Sura who was himself consul for the third time Contents 1 Career 2 Personal details 3 Footnotes 4 Further readingCareer editSenecio s origins are unknown He has been identified as the subject of an inscription where the name of the subject is lost 1 which provides us his cursus honorum 2 The earliest office recorded on this inscription was quattuorviri viarum curandarum one of the four boards that comprised the vigintiviri membership in one of these was a required first step toward a gaining entry into the Roman Senate His next recorded office was as quaestor of the senatorial province of Achaea upon completion of this traditional Republican magistracy he would be enrolled in the Senate 3 The inscription omits all mention of a term of service as military tribune John D Grainger speculates that Senecio may have served with Legio XXI Rapax which was destroyed by the Iazyges in 92 4 He was the emperor s candidate for plebeian tribune and praetor a clear honor that the emperor s name is not provided suggests he was Domitian who suffered damnatio memoriae after his death After achieving the rank of praetor Senecio was commissioned legatus legionis or commander of Legio I Minervia He was then appointed legatus pro praetore or governor of Gallia Belgica for the term 96 to 98 5 It was while governor that Senecio provided early support to Trajan 4 Senecio became consul ordinarius in 99 During the Dacian Wars he held the governorship of Moesia Inferior 6 Afterwards he earned a second consulate in 107 as well as a statue at state expense Personal details editSenecio was a member of literary circles Pliny the Younger addressed two letters to a Senecio who is commonly identified with him The first beginning with This year has produced a healthy crop of poets is on the health of contemporary Roman literature 7 The second is a request for a commission as military tribune on behalf of a relative of Pliny s friend Gaius Calvisius Rufus 8 Plutarch also dedicated several of his Parallel Lives Theseus 1 Demosthenes 1 Brutus 1 as well some of the individual Moralia Quaestiones conviviales and Quomodo quis suos in virtute sentiat profectus to Senecio These include reminiscences about Plutarch s and Senecio s conversations at Athens Patras and Rome as well as at Plutarch s home in Boeotia where Senecio attended the wedding of Plutarch s son 9 Senecio married the daughter of Sextus Julius Frontinus a three time consul cos 97 98 100 10 They had a daughter Sosia Polla who married Quintus Pompeius Falco Footnotes edit CIL VI 1444 C P Jones Sura and Senecio Journal of Roman Studies 60 1970 pp 98 104 Richard Talbert The Senate of Imperial Rome Princeton University Press 1984 p 16 a b Grainger Nerva and the Roman Succession Crisis of AD 96 99 London Routledge 2004 p 121 Werner Eck Jahres und Provinzialfasten der senatorischen Statthalter von 69 70 bis 138 139 Chiron 12 1982 pp 328 330 Eck Jahres und Provinzialfasten pp 336 340 Epistulae i 13 Epistulae iv 4 Anthony R Birley Hadrian and Greek Senators Zeitschrift fur Papyrologie und Epigraphik 116 1997 p 215 Ronald Syme Ummidius Quadratus Capax Imperii Harvard Studies in Classical Philology 83 1979 p 295Further reading editProsopographia Imperii Romani S 777 Puech Bernadette Prosopographie des amis de Plutarque in ANRW II 33 6 1992 4883 Political offices Preceded byQuintus Fulvius Gillo Bittius Proculus and Publius Julius Lupusas consules suffecti Consul of the Roman Empire99with Aulus Cornelius Palma Frontonianus Succeeded byPublius Sulpicius Lucretius Barba and Senecio Memmius Aferas consules suffecti Preceded byLucius Minicius Natalis and Quintus Licinius Silvanus Granianus Quadronius Proculus Consul of the Roman Empire107with Lucius Licinius Sura III followed by Acilius Rufus Succeeded byGaius Minicius Fundanus and Titus Vettennius Severus Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Quintus Sosius Senecio amp oldid 1070315652, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
