Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus

Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus (* 103 BC or earlier, † 48 BC ) was a politician of the late Roman Republic. He belonged to the Optimates.

Life

Bibulus is received as an opponent of Caesar in the story, whose colleague he was both during his Aedilats in years 65 and 62 and in his praetorship in his consulship 59 BC. Tensions between the two there was since the year 65, as they financed as Aedile together extremely costly circus games - there are 320 gladiators be up against each other - Caesar, but acted as if he should pay all out of pocket, the thanks of the plebs urbana so focused on him alone.

During the joint consulship tensions between Caesar and Bibulus escalated: On the latter, the son of Caesar entschiedenstem opponents Cato, rested the hopes of the senatorial party to stop the foreseeable machinations of the Populares consul of the year 59. Bibulus was in fact with Porcia, daughter of Cato the Younger and later wife of Brutus, married and had a son with her.

As Bibulus tried to prevent in the People's Assembly for a vote on Caesar's agrarian law in that he claimed to have observed unfavorable omens ( this right was every magistrate because of the Lex Aelia Fufia to ), let Caesar him from the political thugs of Publius Vatinius only with manure pelt and then drive out by force of arms from the forum. In the session of the Senate on the following day, therefore, dared not Senator, Bibulus ' lawsuit over this blatant breach of the law to support. He then withdrew from all official duties back, left no more to his house, but disagreed only in writing all the official acts of Caesar, the resulting de jure were invalid. In fact, had the edicts of Bibulus but no effect, so that in Rome the joke bypassed, this was the year, " and Julius Caesar were consuls " in the.

In the following years the consular Bibulus was a pretty influential senator. So he applied successfully 56 BC to let the Egyptian King Ptolemy Neos Dionysos, the father of Cleopatra, used by Roman envoys again; Four years later he made it hard to make Caesar's most powerful opponent Pompey sole consul during the riots after the death of Clodius. 51 BC, he was appointed proconsul of Syria, the administration - were originally for him and his counterparts at the consulate as a province only the forests and pastures of the Empire have been provided a measure by the Senate Caesar the consulate had wanted to go stale. As Bibulus had no inclination to play the Roman chief forester of the Empire, he had to wait until the majority had changed in the Senate and he was assigned a profitable province.

At the outbreak of the civil war Bibulus was of course on the side of Pompey, took over the command of the fleet. Caesar's crossing of the Adriatic Sea, he could not prevent it, but at least he cut it, then from the supplies from Italy from. Since all ports, however, were in the hands of the Caesarian, he could not leave the ship for months. His sailors were suffering distress, and Bibulus himself could not cure his severe cold which he had contracted during the long months at sea. After Caesar sham offered armistice negotiations, only to his thirsty sailors to gain an opportunity to go ashore and fetch water, he died in the early summer of 48 BC acted the fleet of Pompey in shortly thereafter taking place battle of Dyrrhachium without uniform strategic management, as a successor to Bibulus had not been determined.

Sources and Literature

Ancient sources

• Gaius Iulius Caesar: De bello civili
• Plutarch: Caesar
• Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus: Divus Iulius.

Secondary literature

• The Little Pauly. Encyclopedia of antiquity in 5 volumes, ed. v. Konrat Ziegler and Walther Sontheimer, German Taschenbuch Verlag, Munich 1979, Volume 1, Sp 1019, sv Caplurnius 9

• Consul ( Roman Republic )
• Calpurnier
• Born in the 2nd century BC
• Died 48 BC
• Man
• Governor (Syria )