Menenius Agrippa
Encyclopedia
Agrippa Menenius Lanatus, sometimes called Menenius Agrippa was a consul
of the Roman Republic
in 503 BC, with Publius Postumius Tubertus
. He conquered the Sabine
s and was awarded a triumph
.
According to Livy, writing five hundred years after the fact, Menenius was chosen by the patricians to persuade soldiers serving in the Roman army to re-enter the city and rejoin the community in 494 BC. The soldiers had withdrawn from Rome in the first of so-called "secessions" (secessio plebis
), specifically to protest the oppressive debt laws, but more broadly to protest the severe inequity of power in the early Republic.
Livy says that Menenius told the soldiers a fable about the parts of the human body and how each has its own purpose in the greater function of the body. The rest of the body thought the stomach was getting a free ride so the body decided to stop nourishing the stomach. Soon, the other parts became fatigued and unable to function so they realized that the stomach did serve a purpose and they were nothing without it. In the story, the stomach represents the patrician class and the other body parts represent the plebs
. Eventually, Livy concludes, the patricians conceded to some of the plebs' demands, such as creating the tribunes of the people
and establishing legal protection for all citizens against arbitrary intervention from an elected magistrate, and the soldiers returned to the city.
It is not improbable that St Paul, an educated Roman citizen, knew this story (not necessarily through Livy) and was prompted by it in his use of the same parable
when he admonished the Christians of Corinth that, for all their "diversity of gifts", they were all members of one body (I Cor. 12: 13 ff). However, the imagery was not new, even for Livy. It appears in Xenophon
's Memorabilia (2.iii.18) and in Cicero
's De Officiis (III.v.22).
One puzzle about Menenius concerns his social status: Was he patrician or plebeian? Livy asserts that he was "an eloquent man and dear to the plebeians as being one of themselves by birth." On the other hand, he was sent to the plebs as a representative of the Senate, and furthermore he had held the office of consul. The consulship, according to the traditional historiography, was at this time reserved strictly for patricians. Ancient accounts of early Roman history are compromised by uneven use of sources, the author's bias toward either senatorial or popular interests, and sheer uncertainty. The existence of the "plebeian" and "patrician" social division in the earliest period of Rome's history has been questioned by modern scholars.
Whatever the state of affairs during the first six decades of the Republic, the Twelve Tables
of Roman law drawn up in 451 and 450 B.C. established a clear distinction between the two orders. Several of Menenius' descendants held the consulship after this time, from which it has been inferred that the Menenii were probably made patricians during the reign of one of the later Roman kings
.
Menenius had a son who would become consul in 439 BC.
Menenius was also a character in William Shakespeare
's Coriolanus
.
Roman consul
A consul served in the highest elected political office of the Roman Republic.Each year, two consuls were elected together, to serve for a one-year term. Each consul was given veto power over his colleague and the officials would alternate each month...
of the Roman Republic
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
in 503 BC, with Publius Postumius Tubertus
Publius Postumius Tubertus
Publius Postumius Tubertus, the son of Quintus, was the first of the patrician gens Postumia to obtain the consulship, which he held in 505 BC, the fifth year of the Roman Republic. Together with his colleague, Marcus Valerius Volusus, he fought against the Sabines, whom they defeated decisively...
. He conquered the Sabine
Sabine
The Sabines were an Italic tribe that lived in the central Appennines of ancient Italy, also inhabiting Latium north of the Anio before the founding of Rome...
s and was awarded a triumph
Roman triumph
The Roman triumph was a civil ceremony and religious rite of ancient Rome, held to publicly celebrate and sanctify the military achievement of an army commander who had won great military successes, or originally and traditionally, one who had successfully completed a foreign war. In Republican...
.
According to Livy, writing five hundred years after the fact, Menenius was chosen by the patricians to persuade soldiers serving in the Roman army to re-enter the city and rejoin the community in 494 BC. The soldiers had withdrawn from Rome in the first of so-called "secessions" (secessio plebis
Secessio plebis
Secessio plebis was an informal exercise of power by Rome's plebeian citizens, similar to a general strike taken to the extreme. During a secessio plebis, the plebs would simply abandon the city en masse and leave the patrician order to themselves...
), specifically to protest the oppressive debt laws, but more broadly to protest the severe inequity of power in the early Republic.
Livy says that Menenius told the soldiers a fable about the parts of the human body and how each has its own purpose in the greater function of the body. The rest of the body thought the stomach was getting a free ride so the body decided to stop nourishing the stomach. Soon, the other parts became fatigued and unable to function so they realized that the stomach did serve a purpose and they were nothing without it. In the story, the stomach represents the patrician class and the other body parts represent the plebs
Plebs
The plebs was the general body of free land-owning Roman citizens in Ancient Rome. They were distinct from the higher order of the patricians. A member of the plebs was known as a plebeian...
. Eventually, Livy concludes, the patricians conceded to some of the plebs' demands, such as creating the tribunes of the people
Tribune
Tribune was a title shared by elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it. They were sacrosanct, in the sense that any assault on their person was...
and establishing legal protection for all citizens against arbitrary intervention from an elected magistrate, and the soldiers returned to the city.
It is not improbable that St Paul, an educated Roman citizen, knew this story (not necessarily through Livy) and was prompted by it in his use of the same parable
Parable
A parable is a succinct story, in prose or verse, which illustrates one or more instructive principles, or lessons, or a normative principle. It differs from a fable in that fables use animals, plants, inanimate objects, and forces of nature as characters, while parables generally feature human...
when he admonished the Christians of Corinth that, for all their "diversity of gifts", they were all members of one body (I Cor. 12: 13 ff). However, the imagery was not new, even for Livy. It appears in Xenophon
Xenophon
Xenophon , son of Gryllus, of the deme Erchia of Athens, also known as Xenophon of Athens, was a Greek historian, soldier, mercenary, philosopher and a contemporary and admirer of Socrates...
's Memorabilia (2.iii.18) and in Cicero
Cicero
Marcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...
's De Officiis (III.v.22).
One puzzle about Menenius concerns his social status: Was he patrician or plebeian? Livy asserts that he was "an eloquent man and dear to the plebeians as being one of themselves by birth." On the other hand, he was sent to the plebs as a representative of the Senate, and furthermore he had held the office of consul. The consulship, according to the traditional historiography, was at this time reserved strictly for patricians. Ancient accounts of early Roman history are compromised by uneven use of sources, the author's bias toward either senatorial or popular interests, and sheer uncertainty. The existence of the "plebeian" and "patrician" social division in the earliest period of Rome's history has been questioned by modern scholars.
Whatever the state of affairs during the first six decades of the Republic, the Twelve Tables
Twelve Tables
The Law of the Twelve Tables was the ancient legislation that stood at the foundation of Roman law. The Law of the Twelve Tables formed the centrepiece of the constitution of the Roman Republic and the core of the mos maiorum...
of Roman law drawn up in 451 and 450 B.C. established a clear distinction between the two orders. Several of Menenius' descendants held the consulship after this time, from which it has been inferred that the Menenii were probably made patricians during the reign of one of the later Roman kings
King of Rome
The King of Rome was the chief magistrate of the Roman Kingdom. According to legend, the first king of Rome was Romulus, who founded the city in 753 BC upon the Palatine Hill. Seven legendary kings are said to have ruled Rome until 509 BC, when the last king was overthrown. These kings ruled for...
.
Menenius had a son who would become consul in 439 BC.
Menenius was also a character in William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare
William Shakespeare was an English poet and playwright, widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's national poet and the "Bard of Avon"...
's Coriolanus
Coriolanus (play)
Coriolanus is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1605 and 1608. The play is based on the life of the legendary Roman leader, Gaius Marcius Coriolanus.-Characters:*Caius Martius, later surnamed Coriolanus...
.