Gaius Octavius (praetor 61 BC)

Head of statue, thought to be Gaius Octavius, ca. 60 BC, Munich Glyptothek

Gaius Octavius^[1] (about 100 – 59 BC) was an ancestor to the Roman Emperors of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. He is the father of the Emperor Augustus, step-grandfather of the Emperor Tiberius, great-grandfather of the Emperor Claudius, great-great grandfather of the Emperor Caligula, and great-great-great grandfather of the Emperor Nero. Hailing from Velitrae, he descended from an old, wealthy equestrian branch of the gens Octavia. Despite being from a wealthy family, his family was plebeian, rather than patrician. As a novus homo ("new man"), he would not be of a senatorial family.

His grandfather, Gaius Octavius, fought as a military tribune in Sicily during the Second Punic War. His father Gaius Octavius was a municipal magistrate who lived to an advanced age. He is a distant relative (possibly as third cousins, through their ancestor Gnaeus Octavius Rufus) to Gnaeus Octavius, the consul of 87 BC who led the opposition to Lucius Cornelius Cinna.

Personal life

Octavius' first wife was named Ancharia. The two had a child (named Octavia Major). It is not known how the marriage ended, although it is possible that Ancharia died during child birth. He later married the niece of Julius Caesar, Atia Balba Caesonia. How they met is not known, although Atia's family on her father's side (the Balbi) lived close to Velitrae, which was the ancestral home of the Octavii. They had two children: Octavia Minor and the Emperor Augustus, the latter of whom was born in 63 BC.

Political career

Octavius was elected quaestor, believed to have been in 70 BC. In 61 BC, he was elected praetor. In 60 BC, after his term had ended, he was appointed proprietor, and was to serve as governor (praefectus pro praetor) of Macedonia. Before he left for Macedonia, the senate sent him to put down a slave rebellion at Thurii. These slaves had previously taken part in the rebellions of Spartacus and Catiline. He then left for Macedonia and proved a capable administrator, governing "courageously and justly", his deeds included leading the Roman forces to victory in an unexpected battle against the Thracian Bessian tribe. Cicero had high regard for his diplomatic dealings. Because of his successful term as governor of Macedonia, he won the support necessary to be elected consul.

In 59 BC, Octavius sailed to Rome, to stand for election as consul. However, he died in Nola, before arriving in Rome. He supposedly died in the same bedroom where his son Augustus would pass away many years later. His career is summarized in an inscription erected by his son on the forum he built in Rome:^[2]

C(aius) Octavius C(ai) f(ilius) C(ai) n(epos) C(ai) pr[on(epos)]

pater Augusti

tr(ibunus) mil(itum) bis q(uaestor) aed(ilis) pl(ebis) cum

C(aio) Toranio iudex quaestionum

pr(aetor) proco(n)s(ul) imperator appellatus

ex provincia Macedonia

“Gaius Octavius, son, grandson and great-grandson of Gaius,

father of Augustus,

twice military tribune, quaestor, aedile of the plebs together with

Gaius Toranius, judge,

praetor, proconsul, proclaimed imperator

in the province of Macedonia”

Family tree of the Octavii Rufi

Legend

Orange

Emperor

Green

Consul

Gnaeus Octavius Rufus

Gnaeus Octavius II

Gaius Octavius I

Gnaeus Octavius III

Gaius Octavius II

Gnaeus Octavius IV

Marcus Octavius

Gaius Octavius III

Gnaeus Octavius V

Marcus Octavius I

Gaius Octavius IV

Lucius Octavius

Gnaeus Octavius M.f.Cn.n.

Octavia Major

Octavia Minor

Augustus (Gaius Octavius V)

Marcus Octavius II

Since Gaius Octavius V was adopted by his great-uncle Julius Caesar and become one of the Julii Caesares, the family's original nomen gentile was not descended to his only daughter (i.e. Julia the Elder) and adopted sons (i.e. Gaius Caesar, Lucius Caesar, Tiberius, Agrippa Postumus), which end the Octavii Rufi's male line.

See also

• Octavia (gens)
• Julio-Claudian family tree

Footnotes

1. No ancient source uses a cognomen (surname). The surname Rufus had belonged to his ancestor, Gnaeus Octavius, quaestor circa 230 BC. It was occasionally used (but more often ignored) by his descendants.
2. CIL VI, 41023

Sources

• Suetonius - The Twelve Caesars - Augustus vs. 1-8
• Augustus: The Life of Rome's First Emperor; by Anthony Everitt