Lucius Cornelius Sulla Faustus, second son of Faustus Cornelius Sulla (49 BC - 9), Consul

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...

 under the Principitate of Augustus, was born in Arretium in 30 BC, of the Cornelii Sullae.

Even under the Principitate, the Cornelii were highly respected and feared members of the Empire

Roman Empire

The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....

, especially Lucius Sulla (known as Faustus to distinguish himself from the great Dictator, his direct great-grandfather). Lucius was said to be affected deeply by the adoption of his brother Faustus by his Uncle Barbatus Sulla; he was close to his brother, known as Barbatus Cornelius Sulla Albinus Faustullus Cornelianus.

As the senior Sulla in his generation, he was favored by the Imperial Household, and Augustus

Augustus

Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...

, took a special interest in him. Some think this is because his mother, Junia Albina, was in fact Augustus' daughter by Aemilia Scaura. He became friends with both Drusus the younger and Germanicus, often healing or preventing rifts betwixt the two.

He was appointed Consul at the age of twenty five in 5 BC, much to the embarrassment of his father, not yet even Praetor

Praetor

Praetor was a title granted by the government of Ancient Rome to men acting in one of two official capacities: the commander of an army, usually in the field, or the named commander before mustering the army; and an elected magistratus assigned varied duties...

. He was a formidable general, and many later Imperial historians think it was he, not Germanicus, who was the true winner of the German war. He did not court favor, and was made Augur

Augur

The augur was a priest and official in the classical world, especially ancient Rome and Etruria. His main role was to interpret the will of the gods by studying the flight of birds: whether they are flying in groups/alone, what noises they make as they fly, direction of flight and what kind of...

 in AD 4. However, he did incite the jealousy of his younger brothers, particularly Illyricus Cornelius Sulla, who tried to banish Lucius and Barbatus, claiming they were plotting to re-establish a Sullan Dictatorship. This was discovered to be false, and Illyricus was executed.

This spawned what became known as the Sullan 'Civil War' as soon after Barbatus and his youngest son Gaius Cornelius Sulla Albinus were brutally murdered by Proculus Sulla, brother of Lucius and Illyricus. Their father Faustus (II) Cornelius Sulla took advantage of this in AD 9 when he tried to assassinate Augustus. All his descendants had their estates confiscated, and it wasn’t until the reign of 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...

 that Lucius was re-granted his estates after military exile in Belgium. It was there that he was hailed Imperator

Imperator

The Latin word Imperator was originally a title roughly equivalent to commander under the Roman Republic. Later it became a part of the titulature of the Roman Emperors as part of their cognomen. The English word emperor derives from imperator via Old French Empreur...

, and granted the title 'Belgicus' which he refused for himself but gave to his youngest son.

Lucius died one month into the reign of Caligula

Caligula

Caligula , also known as Gaius, was Roman Emperor from 37 AD to 41 AD. Caligula was a member of the house of rulers conventionally known as the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Caligula's father Germanicus, the nephew and adopted son of Emperor Tiberius, was a very successful general and one of Rome's most...

. After his exile he was never the same man, and focused on using his popularity to gain favors for his numerous children.

He was married five times.

Marriage and Children

• Aemilia Lepida
  Aemilia Lepida
  Aemilia Lepida is a Roman woman belonging to the gens Aemilia. All but the first Aemilia Lepida lived in the imperial era. The name was given to daughters of men belonging to the Lepidus branch of the gens Aemilia. The first Aemilia Lepida to be mentioned by Roman historians was the former fiancee...
  
  
  • Faustus Cornelius Sulla Lucullus III
    Faustus Cornelius Sulla Lucullus III
    Faustus Cornelius Sulla Lucullus III was a Roman nobleman, the son of Lucius Cornelius Sulla Faustus. He was a great-grandchild of the Roman dictator Lucius Cornelius Sulla. His mother was Aemilia Lepida. Faustus and his brother Lucius Cornelius Sulla Magnus were senators who lived in Emperor...
    
    
  • Lucius Cornelius Sulla Magnus
    Lucius Cornelius Sulla Magnus
    Lucius Cornelius Sulla Magnus was son of Lucius Cornelius Sulla Faustus, who was a descendant of the Roman dictator Faustus Cornelius Sulla I. Lucius Cornelius Sulla Magnus and his brother Faustus Cornelius Sulla Lucullus III were senators who lived in Tiberius' reign....
    
    
  • Cornelia Sulla Lucia

• Cornelia Sulla Ancina
  • Servius Cornelius Sulla
  • Numerius Cornelius Sulla
  • Publius Cornelius Sulla Faustullus
  • Caelus Cornelius Sulla

• Julia Caearia Lucullina
  • Cornilla Sullilla

• Fabia Persicana
  • Cornelia Sulla Persicana
  • Rufinus Cornelius Sulla
  • Decimus Cornelius Sulla Ahala
  • Fabus Cornelius Sulla
  • Persicus Cornelius Sulla Maximus
  • Quintus Cornelius Sulla