Flamen Dialis

The Flemings Dialis was in the Roman religion of the State priests of the supreme god Jupiter Optimus Maximus and the highest-ranking flamens. The Flemings Dialis had to be patricians, originate from a closed according to the special rules of confarreatio marriage and be married in such a marriage. His wife died, he had to resign his priesthood, because he was no longer married. Even his wife, who Flaminica had to be a patrician and come from a confarreatio marriage.

The life of the Flemish Dialis subject to strict ritual rules, indicating that the Flemings Dialis was originally a pre-Roman, archaic priesthood, which was later integrated into the priestly college: He could, for example, do not pursue their own political career, the city of Rome not leave, had certain dress code note - a special headgear, of Apex, was the symbol of a Flemish - and was not allowed to come into contact with the dead, raw meat, beans, leavened bread, Ivy, arms, horses, dogs and goats, or an army ( source: Howard Hayes Scullard: Roman Festivals, page 20, Philip of Saverne -Verlag, Mainz, German edition, 1985, ISBN 3-8053-0555-9 ). But this he received extensive privileges: He was the only priest with the political rights of a magistrate, he was entitled to a sella curulis, had a seat in the Senate and a lictor and could always wear the toga praetexta.

Caesar as flamen Dialis

Gaius Julius Caesar was already provided at the age of 13 years for service as Flemings Dialis. On the advice of his uncle Gaius Marius the priestly college had him nominated for election and Caesar was supported by the Mariani and the followers of Lucius Cornelius Cinna, but it is unclear whether he could actually take office. Probably either the inauguration at the initiative of the dictator Sulla, the then pontifex maximus and Quintus Mucius Scaevola Sullans denied or the Caesar already inaugurated by Mucius it was suspended. Caesar's predecessors in the Flemish Dialis, Lucius Cornelius Merula, had taken in the year 87 BC, the life, but not without first resign his political and ecclesiastical offices, the latter certainly on the orders of the pontifex maximus to esp. a violation of the ius sacrum to avoid. When Caesar should assume the position of the Flemish Dialis, the position had already been vacant four years. The reasons for this may in the former civil war or in Mucius ' have lain intention to brand the undignified treatment of the political class with Merula, whereupon the Senate tried the pontifex maximus of the right to withdraw the nomination for the flamens Pontificium.

Before Caesar's planned inauguration, the situation escalated. However, the source location allows no way to determine whether Mucius with his hard-line stance against the Senate had success. The historian Velleius Paterculus explains that Caesar had held the office officially begun, Suetonius mentions Caesar, however, a destinatus ("[ for the position ] determined "). Whether hereby Suetonius alludes to an already completed captio, but can not be clarified. As the Flemings Dialis is no longer mentioned in the sources for many decades, is likely to Caesar the Office held a maximum unofficial. This was possible because the flamen Dialis had lost priestly importance, together with the rex Sacrorum long been subjected to the pontifex maximus as before the priest - king. The four vacant years after 87 BC may be due to the fact that Caesar was indeed already provided at the age of 13 years for the post, but had to wait with the inauguration, while he was still unmarried and does not reach the necessary age had. Although officially was only the pontifex maximus select a Flemish or reject, but as dictator Sulla took two attempts to prevent Caesar's Inauguration: on the one hand, he demanded of Caesar divorce, which would have made ​​an election to Flemings Dialis impossible. Caesar refused and received a (monetary ) penalty ( Suetonius: sacerdotio [ ... ] multatus ). As part of the proscriptions of Sulla managed to drive Caesar from Rome, and since it was a Flemish Dialis not allowed to leave the city that inauguratio Caesar had thus become impossible. If Caesar already held the office, he will have lost it as a result.