[3][4][5], This story is not improbable in itself, but since neither Livy nor Dionysius mention the Octavii when they speak of Velitrae, and the Octavii do not appear in history till the latter half of the third century BC, the tradition connecting them with the Roman kings may be safely rejected. Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. Baby Names of Generation Alpha, Outstanding & Original Baby Names Beginning With O, Expectant Parents, Take Note: These Are the Baby-Naming Trends of 2010-2020. 389, Virgil reading The Aeneid before Augustus, Livia and Octavia, "St. Melania (the Younger)." Lavinia Continued Zora Origin: Serbo-Croatian Meaning: "dawn" Description: Gnaeus Octavius L. f., a senator in 129 BC. Mark Antonywas the son and grandson of men of the same name. The story in the Aeneid is that many generations later - after the sack of Troy - Aeneas leads his people back to Italy as a kind of new Dardanus. - Antony & dispute Seneca's version, as Octavia publicly opened the Library of Marcellus, dedicated in his memory, while her brother completed the Marcellus's theatre in his honor. The sudden end of the Aeneid, with such a violent turn, has proved very challenging and unsatisfying for many readers. ("Agamemnon", "Hom. an American Theological Hide browse bar 1406-58). I wanted to explore this aspect of the goddess, as I was born in Norfolk, an area of Britain with a long history of warrior woman. This meant they could freely manage their own finances. Antony and Octavia went to Athens, where they were deified; Antony was declared the New Dionysus, mystic god of wine, happiness, and immortality. n., tribune of the plebs in an uncertain year, brought forward a law raising the price at which corn was sold to the people. In Augustus' rebuilding of Rome as a city of marble, Octavia was featured. Valerius does not give sufficient information to identify either man. - Antony's public liaison, Octavia remained a loyal wife & For instance, mythological figures and events appear in the 5th-century plays of Aeschylus, Sophocles and Euripides and the lyric poems of Pindar. The gens Octavia was a plebeian family at ancient Rome, which was raised to patrician status by Caesar during the first century BC. Octavian defeated the rebellion, capturing and destroying Perusia (present-day Perugia). Last edited on 24 February 2023, at 19:01, Gaius Octavius Tidius Tossianus Lucius Javolenus Priscus, Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Octavia_gens&oldid=1141372712. As news reached Rome of f. Cn. After 36 BC, Octavia returned to Rome with the daughters of her second marriage. Agrippa had to divorce Octavia's daughter Claudia Marcella Major in order to marry Julia, so Augustus wanted Octavia's endorsement very much. C. Mark Antony served with distinction as a cavalry commander inJudaeaandEgypt. The first member of the gens to achieve prominence was Gnaeus Octavius Rufus, quaestor circa 230 BC. According to the Roman historian Dio Cassius, Boudicca made offerings to the goddess Andraste before going into battle. In the Roman Empire, Octavia was the sister of Octavian who was married to Mark Antony (as a political alliance). Virgil is his guide through Inferno and Purgatorio, which says something about the high regard of poet for poet - bearing in mind, of course, that Virgil was a pagan. He fled from Rome to Caesars headquarters after receiving threats of violence. Antony fought in the brief Italian campaign that forced Pompey to evacuate the Italian peninsula. That was the last time she saw her husband, Octavia died of natural causes. )., Foubert, Lien. 2023, A&E Television Networks, LLC. Publius Octavius, a noted epicurean during the reign of Tiberius. Cicero, however, fiercely attacked him in the Philippic orations between September 44 and April 43, and Octavian joined forces with the consuls in 43. The hatred and vindictiveness shown by Juno to the Trojans anchors the whole Aeneid, and it only comes to an end in the final book. But in 36 Antony left Italy to command troops in Parthia and while in the East resumed his liaison with the Egyptian queen Cleopatra. In the 1963 film Cleopatra, she is played by Jean Marsh in an uncredited role.[28]. There is every reason to think that Virgils Aeneid became a classic as soon as it was written and published. While Antony was Octavia and Mark Antony had two surviving daughters by their marriage (her second, his fourth), and both were the ancestors of later Roman emperors. n., consul in 128 BC; according to, Gaius Octavius C. f. C. n., the grandfather of Augustus, possessed considerable property, and lived quietly in his villa at Velitrae. During the Republic, none of the Octavii of this stirps bore any cognomen other than Rufus, and even this is rarely mentioned. Scholars, poets and critics, often against a background of modern wars (such as WWII or Vietnam), have agonised over the question of Virgils own attitude to war and the Augustan imperial agenda, which receives some considerable attention at critical moments in the Aeneid. Whilst the shadow side of the warrior reflects the need to win at all costs, abandoning ethical principles to prove your supremacy. Olym'pias, Olym'pias Many high school, college and professional sports teams (Titans, Spartans and Trojans, for instance) also get their names from mythological sources. Suetonius, "The Life of Augustus," 1 (J. C. Rolfe, Translator). The underworld in Greek mythology was not a lively place, for it was where all the dead souls went. Has this been at the expense of others or your values and integrity? Lepidus was perhaps not included. . Early in 40 Antonys brother, the consul Lucius Antonius, supported by Antonys wife, Fulvia, rebelled against Octavian in Italy. The triumvirs had agreed to divide the empire, so Antony proceeded to take up the administration of the eastern provinces. Octavia Books | 513 Octavia St, New Orleans, LA 70115 | 504-899-7323, Not in stock. Asteria - Goddess of the stars and the last immortal to live with man Atalanta - A competitive warrior and runner she was a famous mortal in Greek mythology and not a Goddess who was turned into a lion by Aphrodite. Menhit(Egyptian) - Considered by many historians to be an aspect of Sekhmet. After initial skirmishes, Antony and Octavian were reconciled at Brundisium (present-day Brindisi) and, since Fulvia had died in the meantime, Antony married Octavians sister, Octavia. So Dante characterizes Sinon, painting a picture not incompatible with Virgil's depiction of the Greek deceiver in the Aeneid.According to Aeneas (Aeneid 2), Sinon is a villainous pretender who tricks the guileless Trojans into accepting the Trojan Horse.Aeneas wastes no time recounting Sinon's disingenuous rhetoric and feigned victimhood. 7. Nike(Greek) Personification of victory in both battle and peaceful competitions. Pax - (Roman) - She was the personification of peace in Roman mythology. There was also an early Roman depiction of Dido by Gnaeus Naevius (270-201 BC) in his epic The Punic War. [2] Octavia was born in Nola, present-day Italy; her father, a Roman governor and senator, died in 59 BC from natural causes. When you buy through our . Virgils own death before the final completion of the poem in 19 BC added a further element of debate. On the death of Marcellus in 40 she was married to Mark Antony, who at the time was ruling the Roman state with Octavian and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus. The descendants of the younger Gnaeus held many of the higher magistracies, but the descendants of Gaius remained simple equites, who did not rise to any importance. Although Octavia brought troops and money to him (35), he refused to see her, and in 32 he obtained a divorce. The Theogony, composed by Hesiod around 700 BCE, is an early Greek epic. Previously, this had been only granted to tribunes. Auden was rather unsympathetic to Virgil in his poem Secondary Epic (1959): Not even the first of the Romans can learn. [1][6], The chief praenomina used by the Octavii were Gnaeus, Gaius, Marcus, and Lucius. In 50 he was elected to the politically influential priesthood of the augurs, defeating Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus. Octavius Sagitta, tribune of the plebs in AD 58, he murdered his mistress, Pontia Postumia, because she refused to marry him after promising to do so. Paris prefers this bribe to the bribes of the other two contestants - Juno and Minerva. One of the great tragic love stories from Greek mythology, the tale of the musician Orpheus and his lover Eurydice features the Underworld. The pace of poetic creativity could be very slow. Ona'tas, Ona'tas The Aeneid looks back to a time well before the foundation of the city of Rome, and forward to the realities of Roman imperialism up to Virgils own day. Previously, only one woman, Cornelia, mother of the Gracchi, had been part of the public statues displayed in Rome. Later Greek writers and artists used and elaborated upon these sources in their own work. He tends to focus on the greater good, sometimes with an element of personal suffering (perhaps along Stoic lines). The earliest known record about the story of Medusa and the Gorgons can be found in Hesiod's Theogony. Suetonius, Life [3], Some time before 54 BC, her stepfather arranged for her to marry Gaius Claudius Marcellus. This marriage had to be approved by the Senate, as she was pregnant with her first husband's child, and was a politically motivated attempt to cement the uneasy alliance between her brother Octavian and Mark Antony; however, Octavia does appear to have been a loyal and faithful wife to Antony. Updates? Orestes, Orestes , Ventidius, meanwhile, pushed the Parthians out of Asia Minor in 40 and drove them back beyond the Euphrates River (3938). Antony sent her back because she arrived with almost none of the troops Antony had lent Octavian. f. Cn. 9.1", "denarius"). In Shakespearean Baby Names the meaning of the name Octavia is: Antony and Cleopatra'. She became sole caretaker of their children,[16] except for Antyllus who was already with his father in the East. The English poet W.H. Priam wanted to use Helen as a bargain to retrieve his sister. Chris Mackie does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment. What was Mark Antonys relationship to Cleopatra? Ancient Greek mythology is a vast and fascinating group of legends about gods and goddesses, heroes and monsters, warriors and fools, that were an important part of everyday life in the ancient world. Second marriage present-day Perugia ). capturing and destroying Perusia ( present-day Perugia ). the,. His liaison with the Egyptian queen Cleopatra time she saw her husband, Octavia a... And even this is rarely mentioned for many readers turn, has proved very challenging unsatisfying! 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