Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology (1870) - Volume 3.djvu/486

Rh 474 POMPEIUS. victim to the cruelties of Commodus, but more trustworthy authorities represent him as having lived on to the reign of Severus. (Dion Cass. Ixxi. 3, 20, Ixxiii. 3 ; Herodian. i. 8. § 6 ; Ca- pitolin. M. Aur. 20 ; Vulcat. Gallican. Jvid. Cass. 11 ; Lamprid. Commod.) [W. R.] POMPEIA'NUS, CLAU'DIUS QUINTIA'- NUS, a young senator, husband of the daughter of Lucilla, was persuaded by his mother-in-law to attempt the life of Commodus, with whom he lived on terms of familiar intimacy, and having failed was put to death. (Dion Cass. Ixxii. 4, and note of Reimarus ; Herodian. i. 8 ; Lamprid. Commod. 4 ; Amm. Marc. xxix. 4.) [W. R.] POMPEIUS. In the following account we give first the family of Q. Pompeius, consul B.C. 141, and next that of the triumvir. The lives of the various persons mentioned below are treated at length by Drumann {Gesddchle Roms., vol. iv. p. 306, &c. ), to whom we refer our readers once for all. The Stemma on the opposite page is taken from Dnimann, and is in some parts conjectural. 1. L. Pompeius, tribune of the soldiers, b. c. 171, in the army of the consul P. Crassus, when the latter was carrying on war against Perseus, king of Macedonia (Liv. xlii. QQ). 2. A. Pompeius, is said to have been a flute- player, a report probably invented by the aristo- cracy for the purpose of degrading his son, a novus homo (Pint. Reg. et Imperat. Apopth. p. 200). 3. Q, Pompeius, A. p., the son of the preceding [No. 2], was of humble origin ; but we know nothing of his early career, nor of the means by which he first came into public notice. Since, however, Cicero speaks of him {Brut. 25) as no mean orator, distinction in oratory may have paved the way for him as it did for so many other Romans to the higher offices of the state. He was consul B. c. 141 with Cn. Servilius Caepio, and gained his election in opposition to Laelius by assuring Scipio that he did not intend to become a candi- date for the office, and then entering upon a vigor- ous canvass after he had thus thrown the friends of Laelius oif their guard. Scipio had previously been on friendly terms with Pompeius, but now renounced all further connection with him. (Plut. I. c. ; Cic. Lael. 21.) Pompeius in his consulship was sent into Nearer Spain as the successor of Q. Metellus (Val. Max. ix. 3. § 7), and not of Fabms Maximus Servilianus, who commanded in Further Spain (Appian, Hisp. 63). Pompeius was unsuc- cessful in Spain: he experienced several defeats from the enemy, and in vain laid siege to Nu- niantia. His troops, which he kept encamped before the walls of this town during the winter, perished in great numbers through the cold and disease ; and, accordingly, fearing that the aristo- cracy would call him to account on his return to Rome, he proposed to the Numantines terms of peace. He required from them publicly an un- conditional surrender ; but in private only de- manded from them hostages, the captives and deserters, and also thirty talents. The Numan- tines, who were weary of the war, gladly purchased peace on these conditions, and immediately paid part of the money ; but on the arrival of M. Popil- lius Laenas in Spain shortly afterwards (b. c. 139), as the successor of Pompeius, the latter, who was now released from the responsibility of the war, had the effrontery to disown the treaty, although it had been witnessed by the officers of his own array. POMPEIUS. Laenas referred the matter to the senate, to which the Numantine legates accordingly repaired. Pom- peius persisted in the same lie ; the senate declared tiie treaty invalid ; and the war was accordingly renewed. Pompeius escaped all punishment for this conduct in relation to the treaty: he was, however, accused shortly afterwards of extortion in his province, but was fortunate enough to obtain an acquittal, although some of the most eminent men at Rome, such as Q. Metellus Macedonicus and L. Metellus Calvus, bore witness against him. (Val. Max. viii. 5. § 1 ; Cic. pro Font. ?•) His want of success in Spain did not lose hira the favour of the people, for he was elected censor in B.C. 131 with Q. Metellus Macedonicus, the first time that both censors were chosen from the plebs. (Appian, Hisp. 76 — 79 ; Liv. Epit. 54, 59 ; Oros. V. 4 ; Cic. de Of. iii. 30, deFin. ii. 17.) 4. Pompeius, is mentioned as one of the oppo- nents of Tib. Gracchus in b. c. 133: he stated that, as he lived near Gracchus, he knew that Eudemus of Pergamura had given a diadem out of the royal treasures and a purple robe to Gracchus, and he also promised to accuse the latter as soon as his year of office as tribune had expired. (Phit. Tib. Graccli. 14 ; Oros. v. 8.) Drumann makes this Pompeius the son of No. 3, and likewise tri- bune of the plebs for B. c. 1 32 ; but although nei- ther of these suppositions is impossible, there is still no authority for them. It is not impossible that this Pompeius is the same as the pr 'ceding ; and as the latter very likely possessed public land, he would be ready enough to oppose Gracchus, although he had previously belonged to the popular party. We have likewise seen from his conduct in the Numantine war that he had no great regard for truth. 5. Pompeia, daughter of No. 3, married C. Sicinius. [Pompeia, No. ].] 6. Q. Pompeius Q. f. Rufus, either son oi grandson of No. 3, was a aealous supporter of the aristocratical party. In his tribunate of the plebs, B. c. 100, he brought forward a bill, in conjunction with his colleague L. Cato, for the recal of Me- tellus Macedonicus from banishment (Oros. V. 17.) He was praetor b. c. 91 (Cic. de Oral. i. 37), and consul, b. c. 88, with L. Sulla. In the latter year the civil war broke out between Marius and Sulla re- specting the command of the Mithridatic war. The history of these events is related in the life of Marius [p. 957] ; and it is only necessary to mention here that the tribune P. Sulpicius Rufu^ who was the great agent of Marius, had previously been the personal friend of Pompeius ; but such was the exasperation of political feeling, that Sulpi- cius had recourse to arms against his former friend, in order to carry his measure for incorporating the new citizens among the old tribes. In the riots which ensued, the young son of Pompeius was murdered. Pompeius himself was deprived of his consulship and fled to Nola, where Sulla had a powerful army. At the head of these troops the two consuls speedily returned to Rome, and pro- scribed Marius and his leading partizans. Sulla then set out for the East to conduct the war against Mithridates, leaving Italy in charge of Pompeius. To the latter was assigned the army of Cn. Pom- peius Strabo, who was still engaged in carrying on war against the Marsi ; but Strabo, who was un- willing to be deprived of the command, caused Pompeius Rufus to be murdered by the soldiers