Cicero message. Death of Marcus Tullius Cicero

Mark Tullius Cicero short biography ancient Roman politician, orator, commander and philosopher. Being from an humble family, he made a brilliant career thanks to his oratorical talent.

Cicero was born on January 3, 106 BC. e. in the town of Arpinum in the family of a rider. Wanting to give a better education to his children, the father transports them to Rome. At that time, Cicero was 15 years old. Here the young man was engaged in oratory and showed his talent for eloquence. He studied eloquence with the famous orators Mark Antony and Lucius Licinius Crassus, and also listened to Publius Sulpicius who spoke at the forum.

The first public performance of Marcus Tullius took place in 81 or 80 BC. e. It was dedicated to the favorite of the dictator Sulla. To avoid possible persecution, the orator moved to Athens, focusing his attention on the study of philosophy and rhetoric. After the death of Sulla, Cicero returns to Rome and begins to act as a defender at trials.

After his election as quaestor in 75 B.C. e., the speaker is sent to Sicily, where he had great authority due to honesty and justice. However, in Rome they did not react to this in any way. After participating in the high-profile case of Verres in 70 BC. e. the figure became a famous person. After the accused of extortion left the city and Mark Tullius was elected aedile, and in 66 BC. - praetor.

In 63 B.C. the speaker was elected consul in an election with a rival named Catilinus. As consul, Marcus Tullius opposed the bill for the distribution of land to the poorest citizens and the creation of a special commission for this purpose. His speeches in the senate are a model of the art of eloquence. The figure was called the father of the fatherland.

Cicero during the first triumvirate refused to speak on the side of the allies and remained true to his ideals. His opponent, the tribune Clodius, secured for him in April 58 BC. e. exile. The speaker's house was burned down and his property was confiscated. The figure often thought about suicide, but Pompey soon achieved the return of Mark Tullius from exile.

Upon returning home, Cicero was not as actively involved in political life. He devoted more time to advocacy and literature. In 55 BC. e. dialogue "About the speaker" was written. A year later, he began to work on the work "On the State". When the Civil War broke out, Cicero tried to reconcile the hostile parties - Pompey and Caesar, although he believed that the coming to power of any of them would turn out deplorably for the state.

An attempt to return to politics was made by him after the death of Caesar in 44 BC. He still hoped to restore the republic. In the confrontation between Octavian and Mark Antony, Cicero sides with Octavian, deciding that he will be easier to manipulate. The orator made 14 speeches against Antony. After Octavian came to power, Mark Antony included Cicero in the list of enemies of the people. As a result, near Caieta, they tracked down and killed him on December 7, 43 BC. e.

Cicero, Mark Tullius - the famous Roman statesman and orator, was born on January 3, 106 BC in Arpin in the family of a rider, died on December 7, 43 in an estate near Formia.

After receiving his initial education in Rome, the young Cicero devoted himself to the study of rhetoric and philosophy. He acted as an orator first in civil trials; the earliest of his surviving speeches is for P. Quinctius (81). The beginning of Cicero's fame was put by a speech delivered in one criminal trial in favor of S. Roscius from Amerius (Amerian), with which he spoke out against one protégé of Sulla. To improve his health and continue his philosophical and rhetorical education, Cicero undertook in 79 a two-year trip to Greece and Asia. Returning to Rome, he was in 75 a quaestor in Lilybaeum in Sicily, and gained more and more fame in Rome, thanks to his oratorical talent. Since the trial against the former praetor in Sicily, Verres (70), he has been considered the first orator. In 69, Cicero held the post of curule aedile, and in 66, in the position of praetor, he contributed to his first political speech (in favor of the law of Manilius) in handing over the main authorities to Pompey in the third war against Mithridates.

Mark Tullius Cicero

From his wife Terentia, whom he divorced after a 38-year marriage in 46, Cicero had two children: a daughter, Tullia, who, to her father's greatest grief, died in 45 in a third unhappy marriage, and a son, Mark. This Mark at first participated in the civil war against the second triumvirate, but then went over to the side of Octavian and received from him the post of consul.

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Cicero Mark Tullius.

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero (106–43 BC), Roman orator and philosopher

Cicero (Cicero), Mark Tullius (106-43 BC) - Roman statesman, orator, theorist rhetoric and philosopher. He studied with the Greek Epicureans Phaedrus, Philo of Larissa, the Stoic Diodotus, with whom he was friends, Antiochus, the Epicurean Zeno and the rhetorician Demetrius. Posidonius had the greatest influence on him. In 44 BC. e., after the assassination of Caesar, was actually the head of Rome, but in 43 BC. e. the Caesarians took over and killed Ts. An opponent of Epicurean atomism, Ts was a supporter of the Stoic doctrine of expediency and providence. The immortality of the soul is absolutely certain for him. C. paid great attention to the problems of ethics. Contrary to the Stoics and skeptics, C. defended the idea of ​​immediate certainty and the universal innateness of moral concepts. Since the affects of the soul seem to C. too chaotic and chaotic phenomenon, he believes that it is better to get rid of them.

Philosophical Dictionary / ed.-comp. S. Ya. Podoprigora, A. S. Podoprigora. - Ed. 2nd, sr. - Rostov n/a: Phoenix, 2013, pp. 507-508.

Other biographical material:

Frolov I.T. ancient roman speaker Philosophical Dictionary. Ed. I.T. Frolova. M., 1991).

Gritsanov A.A. Roman politician ( The latest philosophical dictionary. Comp. Gritsanov A.A. Minsk, 1998).

Gasparov M.L. From the estate of riders ( Great Soviet Encyclopedia).

Balandin R.K. There is nothing better than the mind Balandin R.K. One Hundred Great Geniuses / R.K. Balandin. - M.: Veche, 2012).

Sokolskaya M.M. He made the Latin language a full-fledged means of expressing philosophical ideas ( New Philosophical Encyclopedia. In four volumes. / Institute of Philosophy RAS. Scientific ed. advice: V.S. Stepin, A.A. Huseynov, G.Yu. Semigin. M., Thought, 2010, vol. IV).

Life and art ( Encyclopedia "The World Around Us").

Read further:

Philosophers, lovers of wisdom (biographical index).

Rome in the 1st century BC (chronological table).

Historical figures of Rome (all Romans) and only emperors (biographical index).

M.F. Pakhomkin. Philosophy. Tasks, exercises, tests, creative tasks: educational and practical guide / M.F. Pakhomkin. - Khabarovsk: Khabar Publishing House. state tech. university 2005.

A.A. Tesla. Philosophy: guidelines / A.A. Tesla. - Khabarovsk: Publishing House of the Far East State University of Transportation, 2009. - 31 p.

Compositions:

Cicero in 28 vol. Cambr., 1981-89 (Loeb Classical Library); almost all philosophical treatises with a parallel French text, introductory articles and commentaries are available in editions of "Les belles lettres". Philologically reliable editions with detailed critical apparatus are provided by the Bibliotheca Teubneriana; in Russian per.: Dialogues, 2nd ed. M., 1994 (“On the State”, “On Laws”); On Old Age, On Friendship, On Duties, 2nd ed. M., 1993;

Works in Russian translation:

Fav. soch., M., 1975; Speeches, lane, V. Gorenstein, vol. 1 - 2, M., 1962; Full coll. speeches, trans. ed. F. Zelinsky, vol. 1, St. Petersburg, 1901; Dialogues. About the state. About laws, M., 1966; About old age. About friendship. About duties, trans. V. Gorenstein, M., 1975; Letters, trans. and comments by V. Gorenstein, vol. 1 - 3, M.-L., 1949-1951; Three treatises on oratory, trans. ed. M. Gasparova, M., 1972. Three treatises on oratory, 2nd ed. M., 1994; Philosophical treatises. M, 1995 (“On the nature of the gods”, “On divination”, “On fate”); Refutation of Epicureanism. Book. 1, 2 of the work "On the highest good and the last evil." Kazan, 1889; Fav. op. M., 1975 (“Tuskulan conversations”, etc.); On the limits of good and evil. Stoic paradoxes. M., 2000.

Literature:

Utchenko S. L., Cicero and his time, M., 1972; Cicero. Sat. articles [ed. F. Petrovsky], M., 1958; Cicero. 2000 years since death. Sat. articles, M., 1959; Boissier G., Cicero and his friends, trans. from French, Moscow, 1914; Z i e 1 i n s k i T h., Cicero im Wandel der Jahrhunderte, 3 Aufl., Lpz.-B, 1912; Kumaniecki K., Cyceron i jego wspdfczesni, 1959; M a f i i M., Ciceron et son drame politique, P., 1961; Sm i t h R. E., Cicero the statesman, Camb., 1966.

Plutarch. Cicero. - In the book: Plutarch. Comparative biographies, vol. 3. M., 1964 Cicero. Dialogues. M., 1966 Cicero. About old age. About friendship. About responsibilities. M., 1975 Utchenko S.L. Cicero and his time. M., 1986 Grimal P. Cicero. M., 1991 Cicero. Speeches, vols. 1–2. M., 1993 Cicero. Letters, vols. 1–3. M., 1993 Cicero. Three treatises on oratory. M., 1994

Pokrovsky M. M. Lectures on Cicero. M., 1914; Boissier G. Cicero and his friends. M., 1914; Utchenko S. L. Cicero and his time. M., 1972; Grimal P. Cicero. M 1996; Philippson, Tullius, RE, 2 Reihe, 13 Hbbd, 6/2, col. 1104-1191; Hirzel R. Untersuchungen zu philosophischen Schriften Ciceros, Bd. I-III. Lpz., 1877; Zielinski Th. Cicero im Wandel der Jahrhunderte, 1914; Hunt H. The humanism of Cicero. Melbourne, 1954; Fortenbaugh W.W., SteitmetzP. (ed.). Cicero's Knowledge of the Peripatos. New Brunswick, 1989; Powell J. G. F. (ed.). Cicero the Philosopher: Twelve Papers Edited and Introduced. Oxf., 1995.

Mark Tullius Cicero is an outstanding ancient Roman orator, politician, philosopher, and writer. His family belonged to the class of horsemen. Born in 106 BC. e., January 3, in the town of Arpinum. So that his sons could get a decent education, their father moved them to Rome when Cicero was 15. The natural talent for eloquence and diligent studies were not in vain: Cicero's oratorical skills did not go unnoticed.

His first public performance took place in 81 or 80 BC. e. and was dedicated to one of the favorites of the dictator Sulla. This could be followed by persecution, so Cicero moved to Athens, where he paid special attention to the study of rhetoric and philosophy. When Sulla died, Cicero returned to Rome, began to act as a defender at trials. In 75 BC. e. he was elected quaestor and sent to Sicily. Being an honest and fair official, he won great prestige among the local population, but this practically did not affect his reputation in Rome.

Cicero became a famous person in 70 BC. e. after participating in a high-profile trial, the so-called. Verres case. Despite all the tricks of his opponents, Cicero brilliantly coped with his mission, and thanks to his speeches, Verres, accused of extortion, had to leave the city. In 69 BC. e. Cicero was elected aedile, after another 3 years - praetor. The first speech of a purely political content belongs to this period. In it, he came out with the support of the law of one of the people's tribunes, who wanted Pompey to receive emergency powers in the war with Mithridates.

Another milestone in the political biography of Cicero was his election in 63 BC. e. consul. His opponent in the elections was Catiline, who was set up for revolutionary changes and, in many respects, therefore, lost. While in this position, Cicero opposed a bill that proposed distributing land to the poorest citizens and creating a special commission for this purpose. To win the election of 62 BC. Catiline conceived a plot that was successfully uncovered by Cicero. His four speeches in the Senate against a rival are considered a model of the art of eloquence. Catiline fled, and the other conspirators were executed. The influence of Cicero, his fame at that time reached its climax, he was called the father of the fatherland, but at the same time, according to Plutarch, his penchant for self-praise, the constant recall of merits in revealing the Catiline conspiracy aroused in many citizens hostility towards him and even hatred.

During the so-called. the first triumvirate, Cicero did not succumb to the temptation to take the side of the allies and remained faithful to the republican ideals. One of his opponents, the tribune Clodius, achieved that in 58 BC. e., in April, Cicero went into voluntary exile, his house was burned, and his property was confiscated. At this time, he repeatedly had thoughts of suicide, but soon Pompey ensured that Cicero was returned from exile.

Returning home, Cicero did not actively participate in political life, preferring literature and advocacy. In 55 BC. e. his dialogue “On the Speaker” appears, a year later he begins to work on the work “On the State”. During the civil war, the orator tried to act as a conciliator between Caesar and Pompey, but he considered the coming of either of them to power to be a deplorable outcome for the state. Having taken the side of Pompey, after the battle of Forsal (48 BC), he did not command his army and moved to Brundisium, where he met with Caesar. Despite the fact that he forgave him, Cicero, not being ready to accept the dictatorship, delved into writings and translations, and this time turned out to be the most intense in his creative biography.

In 44 BC. e., after Caesar was killed, Cicero made an attempt to return to big politics, believing that the state still had a chance to return the republic. In the confrontation between Mark Antony and Caesar's heir Octavian, Cicero took the side of the second, seeing him as an easier object for influence. The 14 speeches delivered against Anthony went down in history as the Philippics. After Octavian came to power, Antony managed to include Cicero in the lists of enemies of the people, and on December 7, 43 BC. e. he was killed near Caieta.

The creative legacy of the orator has survived to this day in the form of 58 speeches of judicial and political content, 19 treatises on politics and rhetoric, philosophy, as well as more than 800 letters. All his writings are a valuable source of information about several dramatic pages in the history of Rome.

Cicero was born in the ancient city of Arpinum, located on a hill 100 km from Rome. His father belonged to the class of horsemen and had good connections in Rome. Little is known about his mother, Helvia.

According to the Greek historian Plutarch, the outstanding abilities of the young Cicero lead him, along with other students - Servius Sulpicius Rufus and Titus Pomponius - to study law under the guidance of Quintus Mucis Scaevola.

Future life

In 90-88. BC, during the Allied War, Cicero serves with the Roman generals Gnaeus Pompey Strabo and Lucius Cornelius Sulla, although he does not like military life at all. In 80 BC he takes on his first court case, the successful defense of Sextus Roscius, accused of parricide - a very bold act, given that the crime was serious, and those accused of murder by Cicero enjoyed the special disposition of the dictator Sulla.

In 79 BC, probably fearing the wrath of Sulla, Cicero leaves Rome and travels through Greece, Asia Minor and the island of Rhodes. In Athens, he meets Atticus, by that time already an honorary citizen, who introduces him to a number of influential Athenians.

Cicero is constantly looking for less exhausting ways of delivering speeches, and therefore turns to the rhetorician Apollonius Molon of Rhodes for help, who taught him a less intense form of oratory.

In 75 BC Cicero is elected quaestor of western Sicily, where he shows himself to be a truthful and honest person in relation to the local population. He successfully pursues the case against Gaius Verres, the corrupt ruler of Sicily.

His speeches "in Verrem" ("against Verres"), delivered in 70 BC, attracted the attention of the ancient world to him.

Cicero successfully overcomes the Roman "cursus honorum", "the path of honor" - a successive series of services that a successful politician had to go through - being alternately quaestor, aedile, praetor, and, finally, at the age of 43, being elected consul.

He becomes consul in 63 BC. - at the very time when he uncovers a plot aimed at killing himself, as well as overthrowing the Republic with the help of a foreign army led by Lucius Sergius Catiline.

Cicero obtains the Senatus Consultum Ultimum, the declaration of martial law, and banishes Catiline from the city with four impassioned speeches (the "Catilinaria"), which to this day are the best examples of his rhetorical style.

Catiline fled and began calling for a coup d'état, but Cicero forces him and his supporters to publicly confess their guilt to the Senate. The conspirators were executed without any trial, and this will torment Cicero for many years.

In 60 BC, Cicero rejects Julius Caesar's offer to join the First Triumvirate, which at that time included Julius Caesar, Pompey and Marcus Licinius Crassus, since the orator was firmly convinced that the Triumvirate would undermine the foundations of the Republic.

In 58 BC Publius Clodius Pulcher, tribune of the people, issues a law that threatens to banish anyone who kills a Roman citizen without trial. That is why Cicero is exiled to the Greek Tressalonica.

Thanks to the intervention of the newly elected tribune Titus Annius Milo, Cicero is returned from exile. In 57 BC he returns to Italy, landing on the shores of Brundisia to the joyful cries of the crowd.

Cicero is no longer allowed to engage in political activities, and therefore he is taken for philosophy. Between 55 and 51 years. BC. he writes treatises On Oratory, On the State, and On Laws.

After the death of Crassus, the Triumvirate fell, and in 49 BC. Caesar with his army crosses the Rubicon River, invades Italy. Here begins the civil war between Caesar and Pompey. Cicero, though reluctantly, supports Pompey. Unfortunately, in 48 BC. Caesar's army is victorious, and he becomes the first Roman emperor. He grants pardon to Cicero, but he does not let him get close to political life. On the Ides of March 44 BC, as a result of a conspiracy by a group of senators, Caesar was killed. And the struggle for power broke out again, the key figures in which were Mark Antony, Mark Lepidus and Octavian. Cicero delivers speeches, "Philippi", which got their name from the Greek orator Demosthenes, calling on the inhabitants of Athens to revolt against Philip of Macedon and prompting the Senate to support Octavian in his struggle to forgive Mark Antony.

However, Mark Antony, Lepidius and Octavian come to an agreement to share power among themselves, from which it follows that each of them will give out the names of their likely enemies. Cicero tries to flee to Italy - but, alas, too late. The speaker was caught and killed.

Major writings

The Treatise on Oratory, completed by Cicero in 55 BC, is a long-winded work written in the form of a dialogue in which the author puts rhetoric above law and philosophy. The author disputes the fact that the ideal speaker must have knowledge of these sciences, as well as be eloquent.

Personal life and legacy

In 79 BC, at about the age of 27, Cicero joins his destiny with Terentia. A marriage concluded for the sake of profit will last in peace and harmony for 30 years, but will end in divorce.

In 46 BC, Cicero takes his young client Publilia as his wife. However, seeing the indifference shown by Publilia to the death of his daughter, Tullia, for whom she was very jealous of her husband, Cicero breaks off the marriage.

Cicero was killed in 43 BC, on the orders of Mark Antony, while trying to escape to Italy.

This Roman orator owns the words: "The life allotted to us by nature is short, but the memory of a life well lived is eternal."

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