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Gaius Sallustius CrispusAncient Roman historian, reformer of ancient historiography, who had a significant influence on Tacitus and other historians.
Country:
 Greece |
Content:
- Biography of Sallust
- Early Life and Education
- Early Career and Political Ambitions
- Political Career and Exile
Biography of Sallust
Sallust, an ancient Roman historian, was a reformer of ancient historiography and had a significant influence on Tacitus and other historians. He was one of the first Roman historians to include extended speeches by the main characters in his historical works, which were intended to highlight their characteristics and political orientations. He was also one of the first to take a critical look at recent Roman history. Although only fragments of his main work, "Histories," have survived, he is better known for his two smaller historical monographs, "The Conspiracy of Catiline" and "The Jugurthine War." The theoretical basis of Sallust's works was his teaching on the decline of morals, according to which the crisis of the Roman Republic was caused by a departure from traditional virtues in favor of ambition and greed.
Early Life and Education
Sallust was born in the city of Amiternum in central Italy, although some believe he was born in Rome. According to the "Chronicle" of Jerome of Stridon, he was born in 86 BC, although some researchers consider Jerome's exact date to be artificial and cautiously suggest the 80s as his birth date. Ronald Syme suggests that Sallust may have been born in 87 BC. In the authoritative encyclopedia "Der Kleine Pauly," his birth date is listed as October 1, 86 BC. Sallust came from a plebeian family of Sabine origin that had Roman citizenship and belonged to the equestrian class. Very little is known about his childhood, although it is believed that Sallust's parents, Roman citizens, may have fled to Rome during the Social War, and it is possible that Guy lived there from an early age. Presumably, the future historian received a typical education of his time in Latin and Ancient Greek.
Early Career and Political Ambitions
Sallust spent his youth indulging in the pleasures of Rome. Once, the politician Titus Annius Milo caught his wife Fausta Cornelia in adultery with Sallust, and he was whipped as punishment. However, Varro, who recorded and spread this story, was not impartial towards Sallust as he was a supporter and friend of Pompey. Additionally, Horace attributes the words "I do not touch any matron" to Sallust and mentions his numerous relationships exclusively with freedwomen. However, during the period of writing his "Satires," there were several Sallusts living in Rome, and this characterization may apply to other individuals. In his youth, Crispus, as he was also known, aspired to rise in politics. It is possible that he did not serve in the army, as there is no evidence that he was in military service until 49 BC. However, if Sallust did not serve in the army, it is unclear why Caesar repeatedly entrusted him with military command. Some researchers note that his work "The Conspiracy of Catiline" does not contain evidence of personal experience, suggesting that in 63 BC, Crispus could have been away from Rome, serving in the active army. In 55 BC (possibly 54 BC), Sallust became a quaestor, although there is no direct evidence of him holding this position, and he may have skipped it (in the last decades of the Republic, the sequence of holding positions in the cursus honorum was often violated). Around this time (presumably around 54 BC), he wrote "Invective Against Marcus Tullius Cicero," which is often considered a later forgery. In 52 BC, Sallust became a tribune of the plebs and took part in attacks on the politician Milo, who was accused of murdering the famous demagogue Clodius. It is unclear whether Sallust supported Clodius, but his murder was used by Sallust and other tribunes for their own interests. In Cicero's defense speech for Milo and Quintus Asconius Pedianus' commentary on it, Sallust is mentioned as one of the tribunes opposing Cicero's attempts to defend Milo and also defaming Cicero himself.
Political Career and Exile
"The people's tribunes Quintus Pompeius, Gaius Sallustius, and Titus Munatius Plancus made speeches at the meetings that were extremely hostile to Milo, seeking to incite hatred against both him and Cicero, who staunchly defended Milo." Sallust's position in the case against Milo suggests that he was not initially a supporter of Gaius Julius Caesar, as is often assumed. However, S.L. Utkin argues that Crispus was certainly oriented towards Caesar during this period. After the tribunes who had spoken against Milo and Cicero in 52 BC began to be persecuted, Sallust managed to avoid persecution for some time, possibly because Pompey did not see him as a significant opponent or because Caesar's agents intervened on Sallust's behalf. Sallust's political position during this period can be described as neutral. The early letter to Caesar, written around 51 BC, was beneficial not only to the future dictator but also to Pompey. Based on one interpretation of the mention of a certain Sallust in Cicero's correspondence, it is suggested that Crispus may have been in Syria around 50 BC. As a result of this assumption, he is attributed to holding the position of legate under proconsul Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus. However, it is sometimes speculated that the opinion of strained relations between Sallust and Cicero is much later, based on evidence from the presumably forged "Invective."
However, by 50 BC, the censors Appius Claudius Pulcher and Lucius Calpurnius Piso Caesarinus had excluded Sallust from the list of senators, along with several other Romans, while conducting the census of the Senate. Usually, the formal reason for removing individuals from the Senate by the censors was their unworthy behavior. It is likely that the censors used the mentioned adultery with Fausta Cornelia against Crispus. The real reason for Sallust's exclusion was his position in 52 BC or his political connections that had formed during this period, possibly with Caesar: censor Appius Claudius Pulcher was among his prominent opponents. After being removed from the list of senators, the future historian definitively turned to supporting Caesar. Caesar did not help Sallust avoid punishment because, at the same time, more important supporters of Caesar were also being pursued. However, in the late 50s BC, only Caesar could help those expelled from the Senate return to the political scene, and Sallust took advantage of this. Civil War, Retirement, and Death During the civil war from 49 to 45 BC, Sallust participated on the side of Caesar. He carried out various assignments for Caesar, although his role in the war was limited, and he is not mentioned once in Caesar's "Commentaries on the Civil War." Initially, Caesar sent Sallust to Illyria, where the Caesarian fleet in the Adriatic Sea, under the command of Publius Dolabella, suffered a defeat, and the land force under Gaius Antonius surrendered to the Pompeians. Sallust and Minucius Basilus were sent with approximately two legions (Sallust likely commanded one of the legions) to assist other loyal Caesarian forces but were defeated. It is sometimes believed that Caesar made Sallust a quaestor again in 48 BC, allowing him to return to the Senate, but Dion Cassius attributes his return to the Senate to holding the praetorship in 46 BC. In the late summer of 47 BC, some of the Caesarian forces near Rome revolted because they had not received the promised rewards for their victory at the Battle of Pharsalus and due to the guaranteed delays in discharge and furlough by law. Several individuals were sent to appease the soldiers, including Sallust as praetor designatus. The soldiers refused to listen to the people sent by Caesar and attacked them. Sallust managed to escape, but two senators were killed. Caesar personally managed to stop the mutiny after addressing the mutinous soldiers. In 46 BC, Sallust, as a praetor, participated in Caesar's African campaign against Juba I, Scipio Nasica, and Cato the Younger, but he did not participate in any combat actions. He was entrusted with command over a part of the fleet, and his task was to supply Caesar's troops with food through Kerkena, which he successfully accomplished. After Caesar's victory and the annexation of most of the Numidian kingdom of Juba, Sallust was appointed governor of the newly formed province of Nova Africa in the middle of 46 BC. He held the position of a proconsul, despite only reaching the position of a praetor by that time. Modern researchers find this appointment strange since the territory of Numidia was a very important region under the protection of three legions, and Caesar had many experienced generals at his disposal, some of whom became proconsuls after Sallust. Among the most plausible versions of Sallust's appointment to the newly established province is his experience in organizing supply and transportation. However, Sallust plundered the province: he constantly accepted bribes and confiscated the property of many local residents.
No later than the end of 45 BC, Sallust returned to Rome, where he was brought to trial for extortion under the Lex Julia de Repetundis, a law proposed and enacted by Caesar as early as 59 BC. Generally, Caesar, who personally directed the courts in several cases, severely punished those accused of repetundae crimes and even expelled them from the Senate. Therefore, it is assumed that if the trial against Sallust had been fair, Caesar should have expelled him from the Senate again. However, Sallust escaped punishment, possibly because he had to share the loot with Caesar. Additionally, Sallust withdrew from mainstream politics. Historians do not agree on the reasons that led Sallust to retire from political life without reaching the pinnacle of the consulship. It is noted that the homo novus (new man) Crispus probably did not expect to reach the consulship since his political career (praetorship and proconsulate in the form of governorship in a wealthy province) was already very successful for someone from a provincial family whose ancestors had never held high positions in Rome. Moreover, Caesar had already prepared a semi-official list of "his" candidates for consuls in the coming years, and Crispus did not appear on it. Sallust finally withdrew from politics after the assassination of Caesar, his patron, in 44 BC. Ronald Syme suggests that if Crispus wanted to continue his political career and reach the consulship, he could have joined Mark Antony, who welcomed even less significant supporters of Caesar to his side, but he did not do so. Sallust was not affected by the proscriptions of the Second Triumvirate, although he was at risk. Perhaps he had to pay a bribe to avoid being included in the proscription lists or seek the intercession of influential Caesarians. The question of the impact of the 43 BC proscriptions on Sallust is debatable. However, his personal experience and, above all, his impressions of participating in the Senate's work in the years leading up to the civil war influenced the character of Sallust's historical writings and his attitude towards politics and politicians.
Using the wealth acquired in Africa, Sallust built a luxurious park in Rome (Sallust's Gardens; Latin: Horti Sallustiani) at the northern foot of the Quirinal Hill, which later became a favorite place for emperors Nero, Vespasian, and Aurelian. Withdrawing from public life, Crispus devoted himself to writing historical works. He may have also written speeches on commission, including one for Publius Ventidius Bassus in 38 BC.
Traditionally, it is believed that Sallust was married to Terentia, who had previously been married to Cicero. Terentia was ten years older than Sallust. After Sallust's death, she remarried for the third time and reportedly lived until the age of 103. However, the nature of the evidence about this marriage does not allow for a precise determination of whether the Terentia mentioned in the sources was indeed Cicero's former wife. Nothing is known about Sallust's children, but Tacitus mentions Gaius Sallustius Crispus, the historian's nephew, whom he adopted.
The exact date of Sallust's death is not established. Jerome of Stridon's "Chronicle" states that "Sallust died four years before the Battle of Actium." However, the Battle of Actium took place in 31 BC, so there is an inaccuracy in Jerome's report of Sallust's death. Due to this inaccuracy, Sallust's death has been dated from 39 to 35 BC for a long time. However, Ronald Syme was one of the first to propose 34 BC as the date, and the authoritative encyclopedia "Der Kleine Pauly" states that he died on May 13, 34 BC.
