Quintus Iunius Blaesus ( Latin Quintus Iunius Blaesus , c. 33 BC - 31) - a political and military leader of the era of the early Roman Empire . Consul Suffect (10 g.) [1] , Legate in Pannonia (14 g.) [2] , Proconsul of Sicily (11 g.) [3] and Africa (21-22 gg.) [4] .
| Quintus Young Blaise | |||||||
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| lat Quintus Iunius Blaesus | |||||||
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| Birth | 33 BC e. | ||||||
| Death | 31 | ||||||
| Children | Quintus Young Blaise , Quintus Young Blaise the Younger | ||||||
The last Roman commander who received the title of emperor according to an ancient custom - for winning the battlefield [5] . Subsequently, this honorable military title, which gave the right to triumph , belonged only to the rulers of Rome in status.
In October 31, Emperor Tiberius suspected Blaise of participating in the so-called “ Sejan plot”. Together with many other senators , close to the omnipotent prefect of the guard , who had fallen into disgrace, Junius Blaise, without waiting for trial and execution, committed suicide, saving his family from dishonor, - deprivation of ranks and confiscation of property on charges of treason [6] .
Content
Biography
By birth, Quintus Junius Blaise is the so-called “ homo novus ” , that is, the first representative of his kind, who rose to the higher magistracy , and is not related to the ancient genus Uniev [7] ; probably came from Etruria . Most likely, he owes his exaltation to the successful marriages of his sister, Junia Blaise.
Ascent
Through her first marriage, these obscure Unions became intermarried with the influential clan Eliev Tuberonov [8] [9] In the second marriage, which took place around the year 20 BC. e., the husband of Unia became the Roman horseman from the ancient city of the Etruscans of Volcini Lucius Sey Strabo [9] . Thanks to the connections of his mother (through her he was a nephew to Patron and Varron , also natives of Etruria), Lucius Strabo managed to get closer to the Court of Octavian Augustus , and between the 2nd and 10th years he was appointed head of the personal guard of the latter - the prefect of Praetorium . His son-in-law’s career, Junia Blaise, also went uphill.
In the 10th year AD e. Quintus Junius Blaise is already a consul-suffice - that is, by this time he had already completed the masters of the quaestor , aedile and praetor , or equivalent positions. Paired with him, another brother-in-law of Lucius Strabo was elected - Lentul Maluginen ; this means that both of them are at least forty years old this year (age requirement for consuls), that both have joined the ranks of politicians who will manage the Roman state in the coming years, and that the influence of the current prefecture of the Praetorium in the Senate has increased by at least two votes.
At the same time, the native nephew of Junius Blaise, the son of Say Strabo, Lucius Elii Seeian , farsightedly settled in the retinue of his stepson Octavian, Tiberius , the future emperor. Tiberius was also interested in drawing closer to the head of the palace guard and even made his son his confidant [10] , counting on their help at the unpredictable in many respects moment of the transfer of power; therefore, after the death of Emperor Octavian (August 19, 14), Tiberius immediately appointed Sejanus, first as the second prefect under Lucius Strabo, and the next year as the only prefect of Praetorium, sending his father on the most honorable pension, as governor in Egypt .
Sejanus, with the full consent of Tiberius, carried out a reform in the Praetorian Guard, which made him and, more broadly, the prefect of the Praetorians in general, the most influential person in Rome after the Princeps [11] . The uncle of the prefect Seyan was Junior Blaise.
Legate Prophet of Pannonia
However, family ties, which at all times played an important role behind the curtains of power, in the era of the early Roman Empire did not yet contradict the spirit of meritocracy that reigned in the days of the Republic . Quintus Junius Blaise, although having achieved his position with the help of relatives, proved himself in all respects worthy of his posts: “I don’t know if it is more useful in a war or valuable in peacetime,” a contemporary said about it [12] .
As Tiberius had foreseen, the transfer of power to him was not without excitement. In the active armies that stood along the Rhine and Danube , his nephew Germanicus was much more popular than Tiberius. Excited by the upcoming oath, the soldiers, feeling the convenience of the moment, were in a hurry to declare their grievances and wishes. The commander of the three Danube legions [13] , gathered at the summer camp in Pannonia , was just Junius Blaise [14] . Thanks to the courage and resourcefulness of Blaise and Seyan, who came to his aid with two cohorts of Praetorians, they managed to crush the riot in the Danube legions almost without bloodshed.
As a sign of mourning for the late emperor, he announced the abolition of ordinary soldiering and conscription in the camp. Soon, instead of pious grief, the soldiers began to express irritated dissatisfaction with their salaries, their service life, and the conditions for their discharge. At a spontaneous gathering, when the anger of the soldiers became threatening, the commander who went out to them allegedly said: “Better wet your hands in my blood: to kill the legate is a lesser crime than to change the emperor; either whole and unscathed, I will keep the legions faithful to duty, or, having died, will push you to repentance with my death! ” [14] .
Blaise proposed sending a delegate to Rome, who would transfer the demands of the legionnaires to the new emperor. The soldiers elected as a delegate the son of Junius Blaise, who served under his father as a military tribune , and apparently calmed down. Then two more maniples returned to the camp from the roadwork, and the rebellion gained new strength - looting began. Blaise arrested several looters, ordered them to be carved and kept before the tribunal. Then the soldiers broke into the prison premises, freeing all the prisoners, and captured several people of Blaise, torturing them. In such a situation, the camp in Pannonia was found by the son of Tiberius, Druz , sent to the rebellious legions. With him, two reinforced cohorts of Praetorians arrived under Blaise under the command of Blaise's own nephew, Sejan. Entering them into the camp, the rebels blocked the exits from it, ready for anything [14] .
After unsuccessful negotiations, the situation escalated to the limit, with the onset of darkness, the massacre could begin. Suddenly, the moon, clear before this, began to darken, an eclipse began. Superstitious soldiers hesitated and began to rattle with copper and weapons to ward off evil spirits. When the flawed disk disappeared behind the clouds, Blaise hastened, having sent faithful people, to support the rumor that this was a bad omen for them, that the gods were unhappy with self-will, and that it was better for everyone to change their minds. Suddenly a storm broke out - fires poured in a dense shower, lightning flashed with a deafening roar, the wind tearing down tents [14] . The anger of the gods became tangible.
The next day, taking advantage of the soldiers' religious fright, Druz ordered the two main instigators to be executed, who were immediately executed, the rest were already caught and killed by the Praetorians scattered around the camp, some of which were given out by the soldiers themselves. Two of the three legions, obeying the officers, withdrew from the summer camp and went into winter apartments, in the last, most rebellious, under the supervision of the Praetorians, everyone quickly returned to their usual routine [14] .
So at the moment of the highest danger, the legates of the emperor Junius Blaise, this rootless "new man", the protege of his brother-in-law, showed loyalty to duty, self-control, courage, ingenuity and generosity - the qualities of the best commanders.In the following years, he, apparently, remained governor of Pannonia with the rank of legate.
Proconsul of Africa
In the 20th year AD e. Tiberius, theatrically swearing at the pesky senators, proposed to the Senate two candidates to fill the post of proconsul in the "Senate" province of Africa (next year): Junia Blaise and Mania Lepida . Lepidus, taking his word, refused, citing illness and family circumstances, "but everyone was clear about what he was silent about, that Blaise is Uncle Sejan and therefore the advantage is on his side." “Blaise refused for the sight, but did not persist” [15] . In the year 22, his powers were extended for another year.
During governorship, Blaise, on personal instructions from Tiberius, fought in Numidia against the leader of the Muslim tribe, a former Roman legionnaire, Takfarinat . In the year 21, Takfarinat, who had been harassing the Roman garrisons in Africa for several years, sent ambassadors with a proposal to end the feud in return for the land in the province for him and his people. Tiberius considered the offer a daring blackmail and decided at all costs to put an end to this military threat to the southern borders [15] . Takfarinat, acting predominantly the famous Numidian desert cavalry , was elusive.
Blaise led a large campaign against the flying units of Takfarinat, systematically squeezing from all sides, "so that wherever they go, they invariably find themselves - in front, from the flank, and often from the rear, this or that part of the Roman army" . Blaise even refused to withdraw troops to winter apartments until the enemy was broken. Finally, capturing his brother Takfarinat, having dispersed almost all his forces, Blaise declared the campaign completed, since his master's program, which was already extended for the sake of the war for a year, was coming to an end [15] . The honor of catching Takfarinata remained the work of the next governor of Africa, Cornelia Dolabella .
Tiberius, despite the apparent incompleteness of the war, was pleased with the actions of Blaise and even “graciously allowed the warriors of Blaise to declare him emperor ” [15] . It was “an old honor, which the victorious army, seized with a joyful outburst, exerted to its commander who successfully ended the war” [15] . Moreover, "the permission of this kind, given by Tiberius Blaise, was the last" [15] . Triumphal differences (the so-called ornamenta triumphalia , the right to wear triumphal robes on holidays and placing the statue among the statues of triumphs) were granted to Blaise in the year 23 [3] [5] . Tiberius said that he would give them to him in honor of his nephew, “and meanwhile, the deeds of Blaise were already worthy of this award” [15] , ”said the ancient narrator .
Subsequently, Junior Blaise may have served back in Spain , but this statement remains controversial, since Wellei’s corresponding place is corrupted [3] [12] .
Suicide
In the 31st year e. Junior Blaise was already an elderly man, respected and glorified. His triumphal statue, dressed in a snow-white toga with a wide purple border and decorated with a laurel wreath, stood among the statues of other triumphs at the Forum . His nephew, Sejanus , had actually led the Roman state for several years. His son (full namesake Junius Blaise , consul-suffice in the 28th year) was already a senator himself. The year began even more successfully than the past - Seyan was elected an ordinary consul along with Tiberius himself, the sons of Blaise were promised the highest posts in the priestly curia; it was rumored that Seyan was about to receive a special tribunal magistracy, which only members of the emperor’s family had ... [16]
Everything collapsed in one day, - on the morning of October 19, the 31st year of N. e. Sejan, the omnipotent pretoria prefect, husband of the granddaughter of Tiberius, was arrested in the Senate and executed several hours later; his corpse was thrown into the street, numerous statues were thrown and smashed; an open hunt began for his children and his closest associates. Quintus Junius Blaise may have been killed during this three-day bloody orgy that erupted in Rome. However, indirectly about his voluntary death due to the inevitability of the persecution, says that Tiberius expressed his “shameful accusations” against him, when Blaise was already dead [6] . Also in favor of this version is the fact that the children of Blaise, both senators, were not injured in the “Seyan case”, but died later, in the 36th year of N. e., and that his grandson, Junius Blaise, ruler of Lugdunsky Gaul , was so rich that he aroused envy and fear from the emperor Vitellius and was poisoned by his order [17] .
That is, the family of Junius Blaise after his death retained both his position and his property, which would be unlikely in the event of official accusation of treason.
Notes
- ↑ AE 1998, 366; CIL VI 20606; 25617; X 6639
- ↑ Tacitus “Annals”, I, 16
- ↑ 1 2 3 Iunius 41 // Paulys Realencyclopädie der classischen Altertumswissenschaft (in German)
- ↑ Tacitus “Annals”, III, 74
- ↑ 1 2 Sergeev I.P. Princesps and the imperial bureaucracy // State institutions of the ancient Romans: the late Republic and the early Empire: materials for the special course . - Kharkov: Kharkov National University named after V.N. Karazin, 2013 .-- S. 192. - 312 p. - ISBN 978-966-623-922-1 .
- ↑ 1 2 Tacitus “Annals”, V, 7
- ↑ Quintus Junius Blaise // Roman Genealogy. - ancientrome.ru (electronic resource). - Retrieved May 2, 2016 .
- ↑ Along this line, Young Blaise was the cousin of the famous lawyer Cassius Longinus and his brother Lucius , the consul of the 30th year. e., brother-in-law of Caligula .
- ↑ 1 2 R. Syme, “The Augustan Aristocracy”, 1989, Table XXIII
- ↑ Tacitus “Annals”, III, 24
- ↑ William Smith Praefectus Praetorio // A Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities. - John Murray, London, 1875 (in English)
- ↑ 1 2 Wellay Patculus “Roman History”, II, 125
- ↑ These were the VIII Augustus, IX Spanish and XV Apollo.
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 Tacitus “Annals”, I, 16-30
- ↑ 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Tacitus “Annals”. III 35, 58, 72-74
- ↑ Cassius Dio “Roman history”, LVIII
- ↑ Tacitus “History”, I, 59
Literature
- Rudolf Hanslik, Iunius II 4 , Der Kleine Pauly (KlP) . Band 2, 1967, Sp. 1557f.
- R. Syme, The Augustan Aristocracy, 1989