Vistilia | |
---|---|
Known for | progenitor of several notable Romans |
Children | Glitius Publius Pomponius Secundus Quintus Pomponius Secundus Orfitus Publius Suillius Rufus Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo Milonia Caesonia |
Relatives | Sextus Vistilius (brother) Domitia Longina (granddaughter) |
Vistilia was a Roman matron of the gens Vistilia known by her contemporaries for having seven children by six different husbands; Pliny the Elder was more impressed by the fact most of her pregnancies were remarkably brief. [1] Five of her sons became consuls, her daughter Milonia Caesonia became Roman empress through her marriage to Caligula, and her granddaughter Domitia Longina became empress through her marriage with Domitian. Due to her fertility Vistilia became a byword for prodigious fecundity in antiquity. [2]
Her brother was probably Sextus Vistilius, a former praetor, who was a close friend to the Roman General Nero Claudius Drusus, the younger brother to Roman Emperor Tiberius. [3] In the opinion of Frederik Juliaan Vervaet, this made Vistilia "an extremely valuable bride, whose connections offered her husbands and their joint children fantastic prospects. Four marriages, three clarissimi mariti before 10 BC." But when Drusus died of a fall from his horse in 9 BC, "marriage to Vistilia, from a praetorian family, suddenly became a lot less interesting for ambitious and high-ranking senators descending from noble families." [4]
But then Sextus was admitted to the cohors amicorum , and her value as a bride was restored; she married twice more. When Tiberius charged Sextus for criticizing the morals of his great-nephew, Caligula, he excluded Sextus from his company. By the time Sextus committed suicide in 32, Vervaet notes "he had long outlived his utility." [4]
Vistilia was married six times and had seven children. Syme identifies the children as follows, with his dates of birth: [5]
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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.
Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo was a popular Roman general, brother-in-law of the emperor Caligula and father-in-law of Domitian. The emperor Nero, highly fearful of Corbulo's reputation, ordered him to commit suicide, which the general carried out faithfully, exclaiming "Axios", meaning "I am worthy", and fell on his own sword.
Domitia Longina was a Roman empress and wife to the Roman emperor Domitian. She was the youngest daughter of the general and consul Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo. Domitia divorced her first husband, Lucius Aelius Lamia Plautius Aelianus in order to marry Domitian in AD 71. The marriage produced only one son, whose early death is believed to have been the cause of a temporary rift between Domitia and her husband in 83. She became the empress upon Domitian's accession in 81, and remained so until his assassination in 96. She is believed to have died sometime between AD 126 and 130.
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.
Aemilia Lepida is a Latin feminine given name that was given to the daughters of various Aemilius Lepiduses, men belonging to the Lepidus branch of the Aemilia gens (family) that was founded by the Marcus Aemilius Lepidus who served as consul in 285 BC. The Aemila Lepidas who appear in Roman historians were principally known for their engagements and marriages, with those in the late Republic and early Empire related to the Julio-Claudian dynasty.
Milonia Caesonia was Roman empress as the fourth and last wife of the Roman emperor Caligula from their marriage in AD 39 until they were both assassinated in 41.
Publius Pomponius Secundus was a distinguished statesman and poet in the reigns of Tiberius, Caligula, and Claudius. He was suffect consul for the nundinium of January to June 44, succeeding the ordinary consul Gaius Sallustius Crispus Passienus and as the colleague of the other ordinary consul, Titus Statilius Taurus. Publius was on intimate terms with the elder Pliny, who wrote a biography of him, now lost.
Gaius Sallustius Passienus Crispus was a prominent figure in the Roman Empire during the first century. He held the consulship twice, and was stepfather of the future emperor Nero.
GaiusPomponius Graecinus was a Roman politician who was suffect consul in AD 16 as the colleague of Gaius Vibius Rufus. He was probably a novus homo raised to the Senate by Augustus. He was a friend and patron of the poet Ovid, who addressed three letters of his Epistulae ex Ponto to him around AD 10.
Quintus Pomponius Secundus was a Roman aristocrat of the first century, and consul suffectus in AD 41 as the colleague of Gnaeus Sentius Saturninus. His brother was the poet and statesman Publius Pomponius Secundus, and their half-sister, Milonia Caesonia, was the second wife of the emperor Caligula.
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.
The gens Aelia, occasionally written Ailia, was a plebeian family in Rome, which flourished from the fifth century BC until at least the third century AD, a period of nearly eight hundred years. The archaic spelling Ailia is found on coins, but must not be confused with Allia, which is a distinct gens. The first member of the family to obtain the consulship was Publius Aelius Paetus in 337 BC.
Lucius Aelius Lamia Plautius Aelianus was a Roman senator.
Servius Cornelius Scipio Salvidienus Orfitus was a Roman senator, and consul ordinarius for the year 51, as the colleague of the emperor Claudius. His father Orfitus was one of the seven sons of Vistilia, a noblewoman who came from a family that had held the praetorship, although some have erroneously stated Servius himself was the husband of Vistilia. He became a member of the gens Cornelia through adoption by an otherwise unknown Servius Cornelius Scipio.
Publius Suillius Rufus was a Roman senator who was active during the Principate. He was notorious for his prosecutions during the reign of Claudius; and he was the husband of the step-daughter of Ovid. Rufus was suffect consul in the nundinium of November-December 41 as the colleague of Quintus Ostorius Scapula.
Lucius Pomponius Flaccus was a Roman senator, who held a number of imperial appointments during the reign of Tiberius. He was consul in AD 17 with Gaius Caelius Rufus as his colleague.
The gens Vistilia or Vestilia was a minor plebeian family at ancient Rome. They occur in history during the early part of the first century, and became connected with the imperial family. Only one member of this gens is known to have held any of the higher offices of the Roman state: Sextus Vistilius, who attained the praetorship, was a contemporary and friend of Drusus the Elder.