Marcus Plautius Silvanus was a Roman senator, and was praetor elect in AD 24. He held the duumvirate of Trebula Suffenas in AD 23. [1]
He was a member of the gens Plautia, the son of Marcus Plautius Silvanus, consul in 2 BC, and Lartia, and was therefore related to the Aulus Plautius who invaded Britannia in 43 AD. [2]
He first married Fabia Numantina, but their marriage was over by AD 24, as by then he was married to Apronia, daughter of Lucius Apronius. He was accused of murdering Apronia "for reasons not ascertained," by throwing her out of a window in that year. Silvanus' response was to say that he had been asleep and was unaware of the circumstances leading to her death, saying that she had perhaps committed suicide. The murder was investigated by the Emperor Tiberius who, having inspected the couple's bedroom, discovered proof of a scuffle, and therefore referred the case to the Senate for trial. However, Silvanus' grandmother, Urgulania sent Silvanus a dagger, encouraging him to commit suicide, which he duly did. Shortly after the murder of Apronia, his first wife was "charged with having caused her husband's insanity by magical incantations and potions", but was acquitted. [3] [4]
During his lifetime, it is probable that Silvanus adopted Tiberius Plautius Silvanus Aelianus, who Syme has suggested was the son of Lucius Aelius Lamia, consul in AD 3. [5] Plautius was a minor character in the Robert Graves novel I, Claudius , where it is implied that his second wife was murdered by an admirer of his first.
Plautia Urgulanilla was the first wife of the future Roman Emperor Claudius. They were married circa 9 AD, when he was 18 years old. Suetonius writes that they were divorced in 24 AD on the grounds of her scandalous love affairs and the suspicion of murder.
Antonia the Elder was a niece of the first Roman emperor, Augustus, being the eldest daughter of Octavia the Younger and her second husband, the Triumvir Mark Antony. She married Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus and became the paternal grandmother of the emperor Nero.
Paullus Aemilius Lepidus was a Roman senator.
Vipsania Agrippina was the first wife of the Emperor Tiberius. She was the daughter of Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa and Pomponia Caecilia Attica, thus a granddaughter of Titus Pomponius Atticus, the best friend of Cicero.
Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus was a member of the imperial Julio-Claudian dynasty of Ancient Rome. Domitius was the son of Antonia Major. He married Agrippina the Younger and became the father of the emperor Nero.
Marcus Valerius Messalla Messallinus was a Roman senator who was elected consul for 3 BC.
The gens Junia was one of the most celebrated families of ancient Rome. The gens may originally have been patrician, and was already prominent in the last days of the Roman monarchy. Lucius Junius Brutus was the nephew of Lucius Tarquinius Superbus, the seventh and last King of Rome, and on the expulsion of Tarquin in 509 BC, he became one of the first consuls of the Roman Republic.
Urgulania, was a prominent noblewoman during the reigns of Augustus and Tiberius, due to her friendship with the empress Livia. She was the mother of the Roman general Marcus Plautius Silvanus, who had distinguished himself when fighting with the future Emperor Tiberius during the Great Illyrian Revolt in the Balkans. She was the grandmother to Plautia Urgulanilla, the first wife of the future emperor Claudius, and another Marcus Plautius Silvanus, the suspect in a notorious murder case.
Marcus Plautius Silvanus was a Roman politician and general active during the Principate. He was consul in 2 BC as the colleague of the emperor Augustus.
Faustus Cornelius Sulla was a Roman senator who lived during the reign of the emperor Tiberius. He was suffect consul in AD 31 with Sextus Tedius Valerius Catullus as his colleague. Faustus was the son of Sulla Felix, a member of the Arval Brethren who died in AD 21, thus a direct descendant of the dictator Sulla. His mother was Sextia and his brother was Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix.
Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio, often referred to as Metellus Scipio, was a Roman senator and military commander. During the civil war between Julius Caesar and the senatorial faction led by Pompey, he was a staunch supporter of the latter. He led troops against Caesar's forces, mainly in the battles of Pharsalus and Thapsus, where he was defeated. He later committed suicide. Ronald Syme called him "the last Scipio of any consequence in Roman history."
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Fabia Numantina was a member of the patrician Fabia gens. Precisely how she fits into this family is not certain; while she is generally believed to be the daughter of Paullus Fabius Maximus and Marcia, a maternal first cousin of Augustus, it is possible that she was the daughter of Paullus' brother, Africanus Fabius Maximus.
Marcus Livius Drusus Libo was an ancient Roman consul of the early Roman Empire. He was the son of Lucius Scribonius Libo and adopted brother of the empress Livia. His natural paternal aunt was Scribonia, the second wife of Augustus, as a consequence of which he was a maternal first cousin of Julia the Elder.
Lucius Vipstanus Gallus was a Roman senator who is the first documented member of the gens Vipstana. His descendants and relatives include several consuls.
The gens Apronia was a plebeian family at ancient Rome throughout the history of the Republic and into imperial times. The first member of the gens to achieve prominence was Gaius Apronius, tribune of the plebs in 449 BC. None of the Apronii obtained the consulship until the first century AD.
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