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Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus (c. 102 BC – 48 BC) was a politician of the late Roman Republic. An opponent of Julius Caesar, he was consul alongside Caesar in 59 BC, and fought against him in the civil war that broke out between Caesar and Pompey in 49 BC. ==Early years and Consulship== A member of the plebeian Calpurnia clan, Bibulus served as Curule aedile alongside Julius Caesar in 65 BC, who proceeded to overshadow Bibulus throughout his year in office, particularly in the provision of the Ludi Romani.〔Broughton, pg. 158〕 He again served alongside Caesar in 62 BC when both were elected praetor, opposing him at every opportunity. During his term in office, Bibulus was called upon to suppress supporters of Catiline’s rebellion among the Paeligni.〔Broughton, pg. 173〕 Married as he was to the daughter of Marcus Porcius Cato Uticencis,〔Syme, pg. 24〕 another implacable opponent of Caesar, Bibulus was firmly in the camp of the self described ''boni'', politicians who believed that the traditional role of the Senate was being usurped by the Roman assemblies of the people for the benefit of a few power hungry individuals, and thus were against anyone who was determined to use the legislative assemblies to reform the state, of which Julius Caesar was a primary example. Consequently, when Caesar nominated himself to stand for the consular elections of 59 BC, with the support of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus and Marcus Licinius Crassus, Cato and the rest of the ''boni'', fearing him to be a radical who would destroy the Mos maiorum, bribed heavily in order to ensure that Bibulus would be his consular colleague.〔Holland, pg. 225〕〔Syme, pg. 34〕〔Holmes I, pg. 308〕 He succeeded, defeating Caesar’s preferred consular candidate, Lucius Lucceius.〔Holmes I, pg. 309〕 Entering into office, Bibulus began his term as consul by vetoing Caesar’s proposed bill to purchase land in order to discharge and settle Pompey's soldiers who had returned from the east some years previously. After successfully delaying the passage of the bill in the Senate, Caesar was forced to take the bill to the Century Assembly, where Bibulus was able to secure the support of three Plebeian Tribunes in order to block the passage of the bill.〔Broughton, pg. 187〕 However, Pompey and Crassus publicly supported Caesar’s bill, and the opposition to Bibulus was such, especially after he told the voters that he did not care about what they wanted〔Holland, pg. 226〕 that his Tribunes were unwilling to veto the bill. Bibulus then proceeded to declare that the rest of the days on which the Centuriate Assembly could meet would be religious holidays.〔Bringmann, pg. 232〕〔Holmes I, pg. 313〕 Caesar ignored this, and set the date upon which the vote was to take place; on the day of the vote, Bibulus and two of his tribunes mounted the steps of the Temple of Castor and Pollux and attempted to denounce the bill, upon which the crowd broke his ''fasces'', pushed him to the ground and dumped feces on him.〔Plutarch, ''Life of Cato the Younger'', 32:2〕 Getting up, Bibulus uncovered his neck and shouted to the crowd to kill him,〔Holland, pg. 229〕 but was persuaded by his fellow senators to leave and regroup at a nearby temple, as the assembly proceeded to pass the bill. The following day, Bibulus entered the Senate where he made a formal complaint about the treatment which he had suffered, and appealed to the Senate to annul the law, but this was not acted upon.〔Holmes I, pg. 314〕 He then resisted swearing an oath to uphold the new law, but was eventually convinced to take the oath. After this in March 59, Bibulus stopped attending the meetings of the Senate,〔Bringmann, pg. 234〕 leaving Caesar with complete control over the consulship, although he occasionally issued complaints against Caesar and Pompey, which led to attacks on his house from Caesar and Pompey's supporters. For the rest of the year, supporters of the First Triumvirate mocked Bibulus by declaring that the two consuls were really "Julius and Caesar";〔Suetonius, ''Life of Julius Caesar'', 20:2〕 Bibulus returned the insult by referring to his co-consul as the "Queen of Bithynia," an allusion to Caesar's alleged love affair with the king of Bithynia. He also alleged that Caesar had been involved in the first conspiracy of Catiline. Bibulus then spent the remainder of his term sequestered in his house where he claimed he was watching for omens, an act that purported to technically invalidate all legislation passed that year.〔Holmes I, pg. 315〕 By the middle of his consulship, Caesar’s popularity apparently began to wane, whilst Bibulus’s popularity was, according to Cicero, on the rise, mostly due to his vitriolic attacks on Caesar.〔Holmes I, pgs. 320-321〕 Seeking to further cause trouble for Caesar and Pompey, in July he directed that the consular elections for 58 were to be postponed until October 18.〔Bringmann, pg. 235〕〔Holmes I, pg. 322〕 However, in August, Bibulus, alongside one of the consular candidates for 58, Lucius Cornelius Lentulus Crus, were accused by Lucius Vettius of being involved in a plot to assassinate Pompey. Bibulus responded by declaring that he had warned Pompey of the possibility of an assassination attempt on May 13.〔Holmes I, pg. 323〕 Vettius was then murdered the day before Bibulus was going to be questioned about his alleged involvement in the plot,〔Appian, ''Civil Wars'', Book 2, 12:44-45〕 and Lentulus was unsuccessful when the delayed elections finally took place.〔Holmes I, pgs. 323-324〕 Bibulus tried again to block Caesar’s five year appointment as governor of the provinces of Cisalpine Gaul and Transalpine Gaul by declaring that no public business could be conducted whilst he observed the sky for omens, but was again rebuffed by Pompey and one of the consul-designates who supported Caesar’s appointment.〔Holmes I, pg. 325〕 Finally, at the end of the year, Bibulus emerged from his self-enforced retirement. When he presented himself before the assembly, he took the traditional oath declaring he had done his duty in his consulship. He was then about to justify his actions as consul when the new Tribune of the Plebs, Publius Clodius Pulcher, used his veto to prohibit Bibulus from speaking further.〔Holmes I, pg. 329〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア(Wikipedia)』 ■ウィキペディアで「Marcus Calpurnius Bibulus」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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