Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology (1870) - Volume 2.djvu/779

 avoiding an immediate outbreak except by inducing the two consuls to swear that they would not take up arms against one another. To this they both consented, and Lepidus the more willingly, as the oath, according to his interpretation, only bound him during his consulship, and he had now time to collect resources for the coming contest. These the senate itself supplied him with. They had in the previous year voted Italy and Further Gaul as the consular provinces, and the latter had fallen to Lepidus. Anxious now to remove him from Italy, the senate ordered him to repair to his province, under the pretence of threatening dangers, and furnished him with money and supplies. Lepidus left the city ; but instead of repairing to his province he stopped in Etruria and collected an army. The senate thereupon ordered him to return to the city in order to hold the comitia for the election of the consuls ; but he would not trust himself in their hands. This year seems to have passed away without any decisive measures on either side. At the beginning of the following year, however, 77, Lepidus was declared a public enemy by the senate. Without waiting for the forces of M. Brutus, who had espoused his cause and commanded in Cisalpine Gaul, Lepidus marched straight against Rome. Here Pompey and Catulus were prepared to receive him ; and in the battle which was fought under the walls of the city, in the Campus Martins, Lepidus was easily defeated and obliged to take to flight. While Pompey marched against Brutus in Cisalpine Gaul, whom he overcame and put to death [], Catulus followed Lepidus into Etruria, Finding it impossible to hold his ground in Italy, Lepidus sailed with the remainder of his forces to Sardinia; but repulsed even in this island by the propraetor, he died shortly afterwards of chagrin and sorrow, which is said to have been increased by the discovery of the infidelity of his wife. The aristocratical party used their victory with great moderation, probably from fear of driving their opponents to join Sertorius in Spain. (Sall. Hist. lib. 1, and Fragm. p. 190, in Gerlach's ed. min. ; Appian, B. C. i. 105, 107 ; Plut. Sull. 34, 38, Pomp. 15, 16 ; Liv. Epit. 90 ; Flor. iii. 23 ; Oros. v. 22 ; Eutrop. vi. 5 ; Tac. Ann. iii. 27 ; Suet. Caes. 3, 5 ; Cic. in Cat. iii. 10 ; Plin. H. N. vii. 36, 54 ; Drumann's Rom, vol. iv. pp. 339—346.)

 14. , who appears to have been a grandson of No. 8, but only an adopted son, as his surname Livianus shows, was consul, 77, with D. Junius Brutus. He belonged to the aristocratical party, and is mentioned as one of the influential persons who prevailed upon Sulla to spare the life of the young Julius Caesar. He failed in obtaining the consulship at his first attempt, because he was supposed, though very rich, to have declined the office of aedile in order to avoid the expences attending it. (Suet. Caes. 1 ; Cic. Brut. 47, de Off. ii. 17 ; Obsequ. 119 ; Val. Max. vii. 7. § 6.)

 15. , probably likewise a son of No. 8, was consul, 66, with L. Volcatius Tullus, the same year in which Cicero was praetor. He is mentioned several times by Cicero, but never attained much political importance. In 65, he is spoken of as one of the witnesses against C. Cornelius, whom Cicero defended. He belonged to the aristocratical party, but on the breaking out of the civil war in 49, he retired to his Formian villa to watch the progress of events. Here he was in almost daily intercourse with Cicero, from whose letters we learn that Lepidus was resolved not to cross the sea with Pompey, but to yield to Caesar if the latter was likely to be victorious. He eventually returned to Rome in March. (Sall. Cat. 18 ; Cic. in Cat. i. 6, pro Sull. 4 ; Dion Cass, xxxvi. 25 ; Ascon. in Cornel. p. 66, ed. Orelli ; Cic. ad Att. vii. 12, 23, viii. 1, 6, 9, 15, ix. 1.)

 16. , was a son of No. 13, and a brother of M. Lepidus, the triumvir. (Vell. Pat. ii. 67.) His surname Paullus instead of Lepidus has led many to suppose that he was only an adopted brother of the triumvir ; but Drumann has shown that Paullus was own brother of the triumvir. (Drumann's Rom, vol. i. p. 5.) The surname of Paullus was probably given him by his father in honour of the celebrated Aemilius Paullus, the conqueror of Macedonia, which he might do with the less scruple, as Paullus appears to have left no descendants bearing his name. Lepidus might therefore naturally desire that this family should be, as it were, again revived by one of his sons ; and to show the more honour to the name, he gave it to his eldest son ; for that L. Paullus was older than his brother the triumvir appears almost certain from the respective dates at which they attained the offices of the state. Some writers have supposed that the triumvir must have been the elder from his bearing the praenomen of his father ; but since Lucius was the praenomen of the conqueror of Macedonia, we can easily understand why the father should depart on this occasion from the usual Roman practice of giving his own praenomen to his eldest son.

Since Aemilius Paullus undoubtedly belonged to the family of the Lepidi, and not to that of the Paulli, he is inserted in this place and not under.

Aemilius Paullus did not follow the example of his father, but commenced his public career by warmly supporting the aristocratical party. His first public act was the accusation of Catiline in 63, according to the Lex Plautia de vi, an act which Cicero praised as one of great service to the state, and on account of which Paullus incurred the hatred of the popular party. He must then have been quite a young man, for he was not quaestor till three years afterwards ; and it was during his quaestorship in Macedonia, in 59, under the propraetor C. Octavius, that he was accused by L. Vettius as one of the persons privy to the pretended conspiracy against the life of Pompey. He is mentioned in 57 as exerting himself to obtain the recall of Cicero from banishment.

In his aedileship, 55, Paullus restored one of the ancient basilicae in the middle of the forum, and likewise commenced a new one of extraordinary size and splendour. (Cic. ad Att. iv. 16.) Respecting these basilicae, which have given rise to considerable dispute, a few remarks are made below, where a coin is given representing one of them.

In 53, Paullus obtained the praetorship, but not until the month of July, in consequence of the disturbances at Rome, which prevented the elections taking place till that month. He was chosen consul for the year 50, along with M. Claudius Marcellus, as one of the most determined enemies of Caesar. But he grievously disappointed