Aulus Sempronius Atratinus
Aulus Sempronius Atratinus was a Roman Republican politician of the gens Sempronia during the beginning of the 5th century BC. He served as Consul of Rome in 497 BC and again in 491 BC. He was of the patrician branch of his gens although the Sempronia gens also included certain plebeian families.
Aulus Sempronius Atratinus | |
|---|---|
| Consul of the Roman Republic | |
| In office [1] 1 September 497 BC – 29 August 496 BC | |
| Preceded by | Quintus Cloelius Siculus, Titus Lartius |
| Succeeded by | Aulus Postumius Albus Regillensis, Titus Verginius Tricostus Caeliomontanus |
| In office [2] 1 September 491 BC – 29 August 490 BC | |
| Preceded by | Titus Geganius Macerinus, Publius Minucius Augurinus |
| Succeeded by | Quintus Sulpicius Camerinus Cornutus, Spurius Lartius |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Unknown Ancient Rome |
| Died | Unknown Ancient Rome |
Aulus Sempronius Atratinus served as a Roman consul in 497 BC and 491 BC. In both of those terms, he served together with Marcus Minucius Augurinus. Livy cites Sempronius Atratinus as without a cognomen (simply as A. Sempronius), but the consular records show only his cognomen. Dionysius of Halicarnassus refers to him with his full name.
During his first consular appointment in 497 BC, he consecrated the newly built Temple of Saturn in the Roman Forum. The aforementioned writers relate the foundation with the festivals of Saturnalia.[3]
There had been a famine in Rome in the previous year and, in 491 BC during Sempronius' second consulship, a significant quantity of corn was imported from Sicily, and the question of how it should be distributed amongst the Roman citizens, together with tensions arising from the recent secession of the plebs, led to the exile and defection of Gaius Marcius Coriolanus after he unsuccessfully advocated the reversal of the reforms which arose from the secession, including the creation of the office of the tribunes.[4]
Dionysius of Halicarnassus further states that Sempronius Atratinus was a prefect of Rome during the Battle of Lake Regillus (498 BC or 496 BC). The same historian writes that Sempronius Atratinus was involved in the wars against the Hernici and the Volsci in 487 BC. He is mentioned as the first Interrex in 482 BC,[5][6] a position otherwise ascribed to the curio maximus, which might either mean that Dionysius ignored the politically insignificant curio maximus in his listing of the interreges of 482 or that Sempronius was the curio maximus.
Sempronius is included in a broken notice by Festus where he is listed among those who were burned at the Circus Maximus in 486 BC, possibly for conspiring with the consul Spurius Cassius Viscellinus. Considering that Sempronius is mentioned after this event, one can assume that Festus is either incorrect or that the Sempronius listed is a different person than the consul.[7][8][9]
See also
- List of Roman consuls
- Roman Republic
- Sempronia (gens)
References
- Robert Maxwell Ogilvie, Commentary on Livy, books 1–5, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1965, pp. 404, 405.
- Robert Maxwell Ogilvie, Commentary on Livy, books 1–5, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1965, pp. 404, 405.
- Livy, Ab urbe condita, II.xxi.
- Livy, 2.34
- Dionysius of Halicarnassus, viii, 90.4-5
- Broughton, vol i, pp.23
- Festus, 180 L
- Valerius Maximus, vi, 3.2
- Broughton, vol i, pp. 21
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Quintus Cloelius Siculus Titus Lartius |
Consul of the Roman Republic with Marcus Minucius Augurinus 497 BC |
Succeeded by Aulus Postumius Albus Regillensis Titus Verginius Tricostus Caelimontanus |
| Preceded by Titus Geganius Macerinus Publius Minucius Augurinus |
Consul of the Roman Republic with Marcus Minucius Augurinus II 491 BC |
Succeeded by Quintus Sulpicius Camerinus Cornutus Spurius Lartius |