Gaius Marius
Roman general, consul seven times
- Born
- c. 157 BCE, Arpinum, Italy
- Died
- 86 BCE, Rome
- Consulships
- 107, 104–100 and 86 BCE
- Known for
- Army reforms; defeat of the Cimbri and Teutones
- Colleague in 100 BCE
- Lucius Valerius Flaccus
The seven-time Roman consul whose sixth consulship dates Pliny's burning shield in the sky to 100 BCE.
What is Gaius Marius known for?
Gaius Marius was a Roman general and politician from Arpinum who held the consulship an unprecedented seven times: in 107 BCE, every year from 104 to 100 BCE, and in 86 BCE. He won the war against Jugurtha in Africa and defeated the migrating Cimbri and Teutones. He was the first Roman to show how much political power a general could draw from his veterans, a pattern that later destabilized the Republic. His rivalry with Sulla led to civil war, and he died early in his seventh consulship.
Romans named years by their two consuls. Pliny the Elder dates a burning shield that crossed the sky at sunset, scattering sparks, to the consulship of Lucius Valerius and Gaius Marius, which places it in 100 BCE, Marius's sixth term.
He is not the 'Marius' in Plutarch's account of Lucullus: that was Marcus Marius, a Roman officer who had joined Mithridates.
His consulship with Lucius Valerius Flaccus dates Pliny's burning-shield sighting to 100 BCE.
Mentioned on these pages
- Rabbit holePliny's burning shield
- PassageThe burning shield (Pliny the Elder, Natural History 2.34)
- PersonLucius Valerius Flaccus
- PersonPliny the Elder
Sources
- Encyclopaedia Britannica, 'Gaius Marius'Reference
- Wikipedia, 'Gaius Marius'Reference
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