Julia (wife of Marius)

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Iulia (* around 130 BC; † 68 (or 69?) BC) was the wife of the Roman politician and general Gaius Marius and aunt on the father's side of the dictator Gaius Iulius Caesar .

Life

Iulia was the daughter of a not known Gaius Iulius Caesar and the Marcia , a daughter of the consul Quintus Marcius Rex . Between 115 and 109 BC She married Gaius Marius († 86 BC) and gave birth to him in 109 BC. The son Gaius Marius the younger . Little is known about her life. She is described as virtuous and loving to her husband and only son. She spoke out against her son having the consulate in 82 BC. Began.

After her death (probably 68 BC), her nephew Caesar, as quaestor, organized splendid funeral ceremonies for her and his young wife Cornelia, who had also died . Evidently enough time had passed since Sulla's death († 78 BC) that Caesar dared to publicly rehabilitate and honor Marius, Sulla's mortal enemy, at this event. For the first time since Sulla's seizure of power, he had the picture of Marius shown publicly at the funeral procession. Caesar's funeral speech for Iulia is well known through larger quotations from Suetons . In it he emphasizes the (politically constructed) descent of Julia on her mother's side from the early Roman king Ancus Marcius and praises the Julian family , which is close to the gods. Suetonius emphasizes that Caesar was already referring to his supposedly royal origins and anticipated his later pursuit of monarchy. The relationship between Caesar and Marius, established by Julia, is mentioned several times by ancient authors because of their high political symbolism.

literature

Web links

Remarks

  1. ↑ Plutarch , Caesar 1, 1 ; Marius 6, 3 .
  2. ↑ Sallust , historiae II 35 ed. Maurenbrecher.
  3. ^ Suetonius, Caesar 6 ; Plutarch, Caesar 5, 1 ; on this Luciano Canfora , Caesar, the democratic dictator , Munich 2001, p. 29f.
  4. ↑ Sources in Münzer, Col. 892.
personal data
SURNAME Julia
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Aunt Caesars, wife of Marius
DATE OF BIRTH around 130 BC Chr.
DATE OF DEATH 68 BC Chr.