Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso
Encyclopedia
Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso Roman statesman, was consul
in 7 BC; subsequently, he was governor of Hispania
and proconsul of Africa
.
In AD 17 Tiberius
appointed him governor of Syria
(with an army of 4 legions). Some Roman sources of the period suggest that Tiberius gave Piso secret instructions to thwart and control Germanicus
, who had been sent to supervise all Eastern provinces. Piso and Germanicus clashed on several occasions and, in AD 19, Piso had to leave the province. At the death of Germanicus during the same year most people suspected Piso of having poisoned him (although no definite proof was available).
The armed attempt of Piso to gain once more control of the province of Syria immediately after the death of Germanicus only aroused more indignation, and Tiberius was forced to order an investigation and a public trial in the Roman Senate
for Piso and his wife. Piso committed suicide
, though it was rumoured that Tiberius, fearing incriminating disclosures, had put him to death. Tiberius and his mother Livia
were able to avoid incrimination of his wife Plancina
.
in the BBC TV serial I, Claudius
.
Consul
Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...
in 7 BC; subsequently, he was governor of Hispania
Hispania
Another theory holds that the name derives from Ezpanna, the Basque word for "border" or "edge", thus meaning the farthest area or place. Isidore of Sevilla considered Hispania derived from Hispalis....
and proconsul of Africa
North Africa during the Classical Period
The history of North Africa during the period of Classical Antiquity can be divided roughly into the History of Egypt in the east and the history of Ancient Libya in the west. The Roman Republic established the province of Africa in 146 BC after the defeat of Carthage...
.
In AD 17 Tiberius
Tiberius
Tiberius , was Roman Emperor from 14 AD to 37 AD. Tiberius was by birth a Claudian, son of Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia Drusilla. His mother divorced Nero and married Augustus in 39 BC, making him a step-son of Octavian...
appointed him governor of Syria
History of Syria
The history of Syria:*Prehistory and Ancient Near East: see Pre-history of the Southern Levant, Fertile Crescent, Ebla, Mitanni*Antiquity: see Syro-Hittite states, Greater Syria, Roman Syria...
(with an army of 4 legions). Some Roman sources of the period suggest that Tiberius gave Piso secret instructions to thwart and control Germanicus
Germanicus
Germanicus Julius Caesar , commonly known as Germanicus, was a member of the Julio-Claudian dynasty and a prominent general of the early Roman Empire. He was born in Rome, Italia, and was named either Nero Claudius Drusus after his father or Tiberius Claudius Nero after his uncle...
, who had been sent to supervise all Eastern provinces. Piso and Germanicus clashed on several occasions and, in AD 19, Piso had to leave the province. At the death of Germanicus during the same year most people suspected Piso of having poisoned him (although no definite proof was available).
The armed attempt of Piso to gain once more control of the province of Syria immediately after the death of Germanicus only aroused more indignation, and Tiberius was forced to order an investigation and a public trial in the Roman Senate
Roman Senate
The Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...
for Piso and his wife. Piso committed suicide
Suicide
Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...
, though it was rumoured that Tiberius, fearing incriminating disclosures, had put him to death. Tiberius and his mother Livia
Livia
Livia Drusilla, , after her formal adoption into the Julian family in AD 14 also known as Julia Augusta, was a Roman empress as the third wife of the Emperor Augustus and his adviser...
were able to avoid incrimination of his wife Plancina
Munatia Plancina
Munatia Plancina was a Roman noblewoman who lived in the early times of the Empire founded by Augustus. She was the wife of the governor of Syria, Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso. The couple was accused to have poisoned Germanicus, the nephew and adopted son of the Emperor Tiberius...
.
Piso in fiction
He was played by Stratford JohnsStratford Johns
Stratford Johns, born Alan Edgar Stratford-Johns, was a popular British stage, film and television actor who is best remembered for his starring role as Detective Inspector Charlie Barlow in the innovative and long-running BBC police series Z-Cars, created by Troy Kennedy-Martin.-Early life:Johns...
in the BBC TV serial I, Claudius
I, Claudius (TV series)
I, Claudius is a 1976 BBC Television adaptation of Robert Graves' I, Claudius and Claudius the God. Written by Jack Pulman, it proved one of the corporation's most successful drama serials of all time...
.
External links
- Calpurnius Piso entry in historical sourcebook by Mahlon H. Smith
- Senatus Consultum de Cn. Pisone patre - recently discovered decree of the senate summarizing the results of Piso's trial (in Latin)