Lucius Licinius Lucullus

Lucius Licinius Lucullus (born 144 BC) was a politician and a general of the Roman Republic. He was the eldest son of Lucius Licinius Lucullus, the consul of 151 BC. He, however, did not achieve the political success of his father and failed to hold the consulship, reaching only the position of praetor in 104 BC. During his praetorship he first successfully put down the Vettian Revolt, a minor slave revolt in Campania, before being sent to take command in Sicily during the Second Servile War. He was later relieved of his command and prosecuted for embezzlement upon his recall to Rome. Being convicted, he was banished from the city and lived the remainder of his life in exile. He is the father of the more famous Lucius Licinius Lucullus, who defeated Mithridates and Tigranes in the Third Mithridatic War.

Family The first recorded Lucullus is a L. Licinius Lucullus who held the junior magistracy of Curule Aedile in 202 BC, and his descendants were to play a relatively obscure part in history until Lucullus' father became the first member of the family to be elected to the consulship in 151 BC, thereby officially ennobling his family. While consul, the elder Lucullus was sent to continue the war against the Celtiberians in Hispania, however, his predecessor made peace and ended the war before his arrival, thereby depriving him of the opportunity for obtaining booty, through which he had hoped to make his family fortune. He therefore proceeded to make war on the neighbouring Vaccaei tribe, without any pretext or authorisation from the Senate, and with the sole aim of plundering their towns and lands for his own enrichment. She was also the sister of Metellus Numidicus and Metellus Dalmaticus, two of the leading optimates of their day. This political marriage brought the Luculli the support and influence of the powerful Caecilii Metelli family which would help their own rise to prominence. From this marriage Lucullus had two sons, Lucius and Marcus, born around 118/117 BC and 116 BC.

The Vettian Slave Revolt Lucullus was elected as one of the praetors for 104 BC, probably Praetor Peregrinus, the magistrate responsible for hearing appeals and judicial cases in Italy outside of the city of Rome.

When news reached Rome of the revolt, the Senate appointed Lucullus, then praetor, 'to apprehend the fugitives.'

As a consequence of this, the Governor of Sicily, Publius Licinius Nerva, set up a tribunal and began the process of interviewing slaves claiming to be Italians and determining whether in fact they were telling the truth or not. By presenting themselves at the tribunal in this way, in a few days, eight hundred Italians had obtained their freedom. However, several wealthy landowners, most of whom depended on a large slave workforce to farm their extensive estates, soon became agitated and demanded that the Governor desist from his work immediately.

The Battle of Scirthaea Salvius, now calling himself Tryphon, planned to respond to Lucullus' arrival by withdrawing into his fortress of Triocala and there hold out against the Roman siege. However, his general Athenion prevailed upon him not to hide behind the walls of Triocala and instead face the Romans in open battle. Marching to meet Lucullus, the rebels encamped at Scirthaea, twelve miles distant from the Roman camp and, the next day, the two sides prepared for battle. According to Diodorus, Tryphon's host numbered around 40,000 against Lucullus' 14,000. By ordering his army to disband, he intended, by ensuring the failure of his successor, he would prove his own innocence from any alleged incompetence. His successor, Servilius, with no army or fortifications, did indeed fail in his attempt to defeat the rebels and was unable to effectively contain the revolt for his entire year. Servilius was ultimately defeated by Athenion, who had succeeded Tyrphon as leader upon the latter's death. Servilius was replaced in 101 BC by Manius Aquillius, the junior consul of that year, who also brought several cohorts from the army of Gaius Marius in Gaul. Aquillius succeeded in defeated the rebel slaves, captured their strongholds and finally putting an end to the revolt in 100 BC.

Prosecution and Banishment Naturally, upon return to Rome in 102 BC, after disbanding his army and destroying all of his own fortifications, he was immediately brought up on charges and exiled. He was further charged with abuse of his command in Sicily and accused of seeking to prolong the war merely as a pretext to plunder the province for his own profit just as his father had done during his command in Spain. The destruction of his camp and equipment, as well as the disbanding of his army, also supported the charge that he had abused his position and the public resources entrusted to him. This may have been because the Servilii, too, had family connections with the Metelli—Servilius Vatia being married to the daughter of Metellus Macedonicus, Numidicus's uncle—and so they were unable to favour either side in the trial.

Lucullus was found guilty of peculation and banished from the city in 102 BC. and died at an unknown date.

When his two sons, Lucius and Marcus Lucullus reached their majority, they immediately sought revenge by impeaching their father's accuser, Servilius the Augur, whom they charged with misusing public funds. However, despite the best efforts of the brothers, the trial descended into chaos and Servilius was acquitted.