Aulus Postumius Albus | |
---|---|
Consul of the Roman Republic | |
In office [1] 1 September 496 BC –29 August 495 BC Servingwith Titus Verginius Tricostus Caeliomontanus | |
Preceded by | Aulus Sempronius Atratinus,Marcus Minucius Augurinus |
Succeeded by | Appius Claudius Sabinus Regillensis,Publius Servilius Priscus Structus |
Dictator of the Roman Republic | |
In office 496 BC –496 BC | |
Preceded by | Titus Larcius |
Succeeded by | Manius Valerius Maximus |
Personal details | |
Born | Unknown Ancient Rome |
Died | Unknown Ancient Rome |
Aulus Postumius Albus Regillensis was an ancient Roman who,according to Livy,was Roman dictator in 498 or 496 BC, [2] when he conquered the Latins in the great Battle of Lake Regillus [3] and subsequently celebrated a triumph. [4] Many of the coins of the Postumii Albi commemorate this victory of their ancestor,as in the one pictured. Roman folklore related that Castor and Pollux were seen fighting in this battle on the side of the Romans,whence the dictator afterwards promised a temple to Castor and Pollux in the Roman Forum.
He was consul in 496 BC,in which year some of the annals,according to Livy,placed the battle of Lake Regillus;and it is to this year that Dionysius assigns it. [5] [6] [7] [8] The name "Regillensis" is usually supposed to have been derived from this battle;but Niebuhr thinks that it was taken from a place of residence,just as the Claudii bore the same name,and that the later annalists only spoke of Postumius as commander in consequence of the name. Livy states expressly that Scipio Africanus was the first Roman who obtained a surname from his conquests. [9] [10] In 495 BC,Postumius was chosen at short notice by the Romans to lead the cavalry to victory against a Sabine invading force. [11] In 493 BC Postumius was one of the ten envoys sent by the senate to treat with the plebeian leaders during the first secessio plebis. [12]
Postumius' career prior to his consulship and dictatorship is not known,but he might have been the military tribune who is mentioned in 504 BC serving under the consul Publius Valerius Poplicola. [13]
He was,according to some genealogies,the father of Spurius Postumius Albus Regillensis and Aulus Postumius Albus Regillensis.
The gens Valeria was a patrician family at ancient Rome,prominent from the very beginning of the Republic to the latest period of the Empire. Publius Valerius Poplicola was one of the consuls in 509 BC,the year that saw the overthrow of the Tarquins,and the members of his family were among the most celebrated statesmen and generals at the beginning of the Republic. Over the next ten centuries,few gentes produced as many distinguished men,and at every period the name of Valerius was constantly to be found in the lists of annual magistrates,and held in the highest honour. Several of the emperors claimed descent from the Valerii,whose name they bore as part of their official nomenclature.
The Battle of Lake Regillus was a legendary Roman victory over the Latin League shortly after the establishment of the Roman Republic and as part of a wider Latin War. The Latins were led by an elderly Lucius Tarquinius Superbus,the seventh and last King of Rome,who had been expelled in 509 BC,and his son-in-law,Octavius Mamilius,the dictator of Tusculum. The battle marked the final attempt of the Tarquins to reclaim their throne. According to legend,Castor and Pollux fought on the side of the Romans.
Titus Larcius was a Roman general and statesman during the early Republic,who served twice as consul and became the first Roman dictator.
Appius Claudius Sabinus Regillensis or Inregillensis was the legendary founder of the Roman gens Claudia,and consul in 495 BC. He was the leading figure of the aristocratic party in the early Roman Republic.
Titus Aebutius Helva was a Roman senator and general from the early Republic,who held the consulship in 499 BC. He was magister equitum under Aulus Postumius Albus at the Battle of Lake Regillus. He was the father of Lucius Aebutius Helva,consul in 463 BC.
Spurius Postumius Albus Regillensis was a patrician politician of Ancient Rome. His filiation as reported in the Fasti Capitolini suggests he was the son of Aulus Postumius Albus Regillensis,consul 496 BC,and brother of Aulus Postumius Albus Regillensis,consul 464 BC,although it must be observed that no great dependence can be placed upon genealogies from such early times.
Aulus Postumius Albus Regillensis was a patrician politician of ancient Rome,and apparently son of Aulus Postumius Albus Regillensis,and therefore brother of Spurius Postumius Albus Regillensis. He,or possibly his brother Spurius,was appointed to dedicate the Temple of Castor in 484 BC as duumviri aedi dedicandae.
Marcus Postumius Albinus Regillensis was an ancient Roman politician belonging to the patrician Postumia gens. His father and grandfather were both named Aulus,possibly identifying his father or grandfather as Aulus Postumius Albus Regillensis,consul in 464 BC. Publius Postumius Albinus Regillensis,consular tribune in 414 BC,was most likely his brother. Postumius relationship to later Postumii Albini remains unknown as filiations are missing from the consular tribunes and consuls of 397,394 and 334 BC.
Marcus Valerius Volusus was a Roman consul with Publius Postumius Tubertus in 505 BC.
Octavius Mamilius was princeps of Tusculum,an ancient city of Latium. He was the son-in-law of Lucius Tarquinius Superbus,the seventh and last king of Rome. According to tradition,the gens Mamilia was descended from Mamilia,reputedly a granddaughter of Ulysses (Odysseus) and Circe. Titus Livius described Octavius as head of one of the most distinguished families of Latium,and thus an important ally of Tarquinius.
The gens Postumia was a noble patrician family at ancient Rome. Throughout the history of the Republic,the Postumii frequently occupied the chief magistracies of the Roman state,beginning with Publius Postumius Tubertus,consul in 505 BC,the fifth year of the Republic. Although like much of the old Roman aristocracy,the Postumii faded for a time into obscurity under the Empire,individuals bearing the name of Postumius again filled a number of important offices from the second century AD to the end of the Western Empire.
Aulus Postumius Tubertus was a Roman military leader in the wars with the Aequi and Volsci during the fifth century BC. He served as Magister Equitum under the dictator Mamercus Aemilius Mamercinus in 434 BC.
Spurius Larcius was one of the leading men of the early Roman Republic,of which he was twice consul. However,his greatest fame was won as one of the defenders of the Sublician bridge against the army of Lars Porsena,the King of Clusium.
Titus Herminius,surnamed Aquilinus,was one of the heroes of the Roman Republic. He participated in two of the most famous conflicts that attended the birth of the Republic,and was elected consul in 506 BC. However,his greatest fame was won as one of the defenders of the Sublician bridge against the army of Lars Porsena,the King of Clusium.
Titus Verginius Tricostus Caeliomontanus was a Roman statesman who served as Consul in 496 BC. He is probably the (older) brother of Aulus Verginius Tricostus Caeliomontanus,consul in 494 BC.
Regillum or Inregillum was a town in ancient Sabinum,north of Rome,known chiefly as the original home of Appius Claudius Sabinus Regillensis.
The Roman–Sabine wars were a series of wars during the early expansion of ancient Rome in central Italy against their northern neighbours,the Sabines. It is commonly accepted that the events pre-dating the Roman Republic in 509 BC are semi-legendary in nature.
The first secessio plebis was a significant event in ancient Roman political and social history that occurred between 495 and 493 BC. It involved a dispute between the patrician ruling class and the plebeian underclass,and was one of a number of secessions by the plebs and part of a broader political conflict known as the conflict of the orders.
Publius Valerius Poplicola was consul of the Roman Republic in 475 BC and 460 BC,and interrex in 462 BC.
Publius Volumnius Amintinus Gallus was a consul of the Roman Republic in 461 BC;he served with Servius Sulpicius Camerinus Cornutus.
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain : Smith, William, ed. (1870). "Albinus (1)". Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology . Vol. 1. p. 90.