Lucius Cornelius Cinna

Lucius Cornelius Cinna (died 84 BC) was a Roman politician and military commander who served as consul for four successive years, from 87 to 84 BC. A prominent supporter of Gaius Marius and opponent of Lucius Cornelius Sulla, he became the dominant political figure in the Roman Republic during Sulla's absence in the East. After being expelled from Rome during his first consulship, Cinna raised an army in Italy, allied himself with Marius, and returned to capture the capital. His subsequent government, commonly known as the Cinnan regime, attempted to restore political stability and address the economic and constitutional problems arising from the Social War and the preceding civil conflicts. He was the father of Cornelia (wife of Caesar), who married Gaius Julius Caesar, and of the later praetor Lucius Cornelius Cinna (praetor 44 BC).

Lucius Cornelius Cinna
Roman statesman and military commander
Born	Unknown
Died	84 BC, during an army mutiny
Family	Gens Cornelia (patrician)
Political allies	Gaius Marius, Quintus Sertorius, Gnaeus Papirius Carbo
Political opponents	Lucius Cornelius Sulla, Gnaeus Octavius
Occupation	Politician, military commander
Office	Consul, 87, 86, 85 and 84 BC
Known for	Leadership of the Marian faction and the Cinnan regime
Children	Cornelia (wife of Caesar); Lucius Cornelius Cinna (praetor 44 BC)

Early Life and Military Career

Cinna belonged to the patrician gens Cornelia, one of the established aristocratic families of the Roman Republic. Although his family possessed patrician status, it had not recently achieved particular political distinction. The surviving historical record provides little information concerning his childhood or early personal life.

Cinna first appears prominently during the Social War (91–88 BC), when Rome fought against its Italian allies seeking Roman citizenship and greater political equality. He served as a military commander of praetorian rank and was successful in campaigns against the Italian forces. Livy's surviving epitome records that the Roman commanders Cinna and Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius defeated the Marsi, compelling them to seek peace.

The experience of the Social War was important in shaping the political circumstances of Cinna's subsequent career. The conflict had resulted in the extension of Roman citizenship to large sections of the Italian population, but questions concerning their registration and voting rights remained unresolved.

Cinna eventually became associated with the political faction led by Gaius Marius, whose earlier military successes had made him one of the most influential figures in Roman politics.

First Consulship and Conflict with Octavius

In 87 BC, Cinna was elected consul alongside Gnaeus Octavius. The political circumstances were exceptionally unstable. The preceding year, Lucius Cornelius Sulla had marched his legions upon Rome, establishing control over the capital before departing for the East to conduct the First Mithridatic War against Mithridates VI of Pontus.

Sulla had imposed a series of political measures designed to strengthen the authority of the Senate and reverse the reforms promoted by his opponents. According to Plutarch, Cinna had sworn before Sulla's departure that he would respect these arrangements. Plutarch relates that Cinna even took a stone in his hand during the oath, declaring that he should be expelled from Rome like the stone if he broke his promise. Nevertheless, shortly after entering office, Cinna began promoting the reversal of Sulla's political settlement.

One of Cinna's principal objectives was to secure more equitable political representation for the Italian citizens who had recently acquired Roman citizenship. Although these Italians had formally become Roman citizens, their allocation among the voting tribes substantially restricted their influence in electoral assemblies. Cinna sought to distribute the new citizens among all 35 tribes, thereby giving them a more meaningful share in Roman political life. His proposals also included the redistribution of freedmen among the tribes and the recall of political exiles associated with the Marian faction.

These proposals encountered determined opposition from his consular colleague Octavius, who supported Sulla's constitutional arrangements and the existing distribution of political power.

The disagreement developed into armed confrontation in the Roman Forum. Appian describes how supporters of Cinna and the new citizens attempted to occupy the Forum, while Octavius gathered his own supporters and drove them from the public assembly. Cinna subsequently left Rome and appealed to the Italian communities for military and financial assistance.

The Senate declared that Cinna had forfeited his citizenship and consulship, and appointed Lucius Cornelius Merula, the Flamen Dialis, as his replacement. Cinna, however, refused to recognise his deposition and continued to claim legitimate authority as consul.

Alliance with Marius and Capture of Rome

Having been expelled from Rome, Cinna travelled through the Italian communities recruiting soldiers and gathering financial support. He secured the assistance of Roman military forces stationed in Campania and attracted prominent political supporters, including Quintus Sertorius and Gnaeus Papirius Carbo.

He also invited Gaius Marius to return from exile in Africa. Marius had been driven from Rome by Sulla in 88 BC and had subsequently taken refuge in North Africa. Recognising the importance of Marius's military reputation and political following, Cinna accepted him as an ally and gave him authority to assist in the campaign against the government in Rome.

The forces of Cinna and Marius gradually surrounded Rome. Their armies operated under several commanders, including Sertorius and Carbo, while Marius used naval forces to disrupt the city's food supplies. Cinna also occupied important positions in northern Italy, including Ariminum, to prevent reinforcements arriving from the north.

The government in Rome attempted to organise resistance. Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, father of Pompey the Great, and Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius were among those called upon to defend the capital. However, Pompeius Strabo died during the campaign, and the remaining resistance progressively disintegrated.

The Senate eventually sought an accommodation with Cinna and Marius. Cinna agreed to enter Rome as consul and assured the Senate that he would not willingly cause the death of its citizens. Nevertheless, the return of the Marian faction was followed by extensive political violence.

The Massacres of 87 BC

The capture of Rome was accompanied by a series of executions and reprisals against leading supporters of Sulla and members of the opposing aristocratic faction.

Among the victims was Cinna's former consular colleague, Gnaeus Octavius, who was killed while still wearing the insignia of his office. His severed head was displayed publicly in the Forum, establishing a particularly notorious precedent for the subsequent political massacres of the late Republic.

Other victims included the distinguished orator Marcus Antonius (orator), the former consul Quintus Lutatius Catulus, and members of the Julian family, including Lucius Julius Caesar (consul 90 BC). Several other prominent Romans were killed, while others committed suicide rather than fall into the hands of their enemies.

The precise division of responsibility between Cinna and Marius is difficult to establish. Plutarch presents Marius as the principal instigator of the killings, describing how his armed followers executed men who failed to receive his favour. Cinna, however, was one of the two dominant political leaders and cannot be separated from the government that presided over the reprisals.

Plutarch also records that Cinna eventually became troubled by the continuing bloodshed. Together with Sertorius, he ordered the destruction of an undisciplined armed contingent of freed slaves whose members had been conducting murders and robberies independently. Appian similarly records that Cinna attempted to suppress the excesses of these forces after repeated warnings had failed.

The ancient accounts therefore present a complicated picture. Cinna participated in the violent overthrow of the Sullan government and presided over its aftermath, but the sources also distinguish his conduct from the more openly vengeful actions of Marius and the undisciplined elements of their forces.

The Cinnan Government, 86–84 BC

Following the capture of Rome, Cinna and Marius established themselves as consuls for 86 BC. Their appointment was not conducted through a normal electoral process. Livy's epitome specifically records that they declared themselves consuls without holding the customary elections.

Marius died on 13 January 86 BC, only seventeen days after beginning his seventh consulship. Cinna remained the dominant political authority and arranged for Lucius Valerius Flaccus to succeed Marius as suffect consul.

Flaccus was subsequently sent to the East with an army to conduct operations against Mithridates VI of Pontus and to prevent Sulla from monopolising the Roman military position in the region. However, Flaccus was murdered by his subordinate Gaius Flavius Fimbria, whose mutinous forces assumed control of the expedition.

Cinna continued as consul in 85 and 84 BC, sharing the office with Gnaeus Papirius Carbo. These successive consulships effectively maintained his control of the Roman government during the period of uncertainty created by Sulla's impending return from the East.

Although the Cinnan government was established through civil war and the removal of its opponents, it also attempted to restore administrative order and address the economic difficulties that had followed the Social War and the disruption of normal commercial activity.

Financial and Economic Measures

The Cinnan government undertook several significant financial measures.

In 86 BC, the suffect consul Lucius Valerius Flaccus introduced the Lex Valeria de aere alieno, a debt-relief measure allowing debtors to settle their obligations by paying one-quarter of the original principal. The remaining three-quarters were effectively cancelled. Although the measure was controversial among creditors, it addressed the serious debt crisis that had developed during the preceding years of warfare.

Another important measure concerned the Roman currency, whose value had become unstable following the debasement of the coinage.

The praetor Marcus Marius Gratidianus became particularly associated with a currency reform designed to establish a more reliable standard of monetary value and identify debased coins. Cicero relates that the praetors and tribunes had jointly agreed upon a measure, but Gratidianus publicly announced it himself before the others could appear together. The resulting popular acclaim was considerable, with statues of Gratidianus reportedly erected throughout Rome's neighbourhoods.

These initiatives demonstrate that the Cinnan government was not concerned exclusively with military survival. It also attempted to restore confidence in Roman commerce, address private indebtedness and obtain the support of the equestrian order and the wider population.

Italian Citizenship and Political Moderation

Cinna's original political programme had included the more equitable distribution of the newly enfranchised Italian citizens throughout the 35 voting tribes.

The extent to which this objective was fully achieved during his government remains a subject of scholarly debate. The surviving evidence concerning the census of 86 BC and the subsequent allocation of Italian citizens is incomplete, and historians have differed over how far the Cinnan government implemented the proposed redistribution.

Nevertheless, Cinna's willingness to work with the newly enfranchised Italians was an important element of his political position. He also sought the cooperation of established Roman politicians and members of the equestrian order through a more moderate approach to government and a return to traditional Roman political conventions.

The modern historian Ernst Badian notes that Cinna gained support through moderation and a restoration of the mos maiorum, or ancestral custom, although the continuing economic disruption caused by the Social War and subsequent civil conflicts could not be entirely overcome.

Conflict with Sulla and Death

By 84 BC, the situation had become increasingly dangerous for Cinna's government. Sulla had concluded his eastern campaign against Mithridates and was preparing to return to Italy with his victorious and experienced army.

Cinna and Carbo began organising military preparations against the anticipated invasion. They recruited additional forces, collected supplies and arranged for troops to be transported across the Adriatic Sea to Liburnia, which was intended to serve as a military base for operations against Sulla.

However, the expedition was disrupted by unrest among the soldiers. The troops were reluctant to embark on a campaign against their fellow Romans, and dissatisfaction grew when Cinna attempted to compel them to continue the preparations.

According to Appian, the immediate outbreak of violence followed an altercation in which one of Cinna's lictors struck a soldier who was obstructing the way. Another soldier retaliated by striking the lictor. Cinna ordered the offender to be arrested, provoking an uproar among the assembled troops. Stones were thrown and Cinna was stabbed to death.

Plutarch provides a somewhat different account in his Life of Pompey. He relates that the young Pompey the Great had visited Cinna's camp but withdrew secretly after becoming fearful of an accusation against him. A rumour subsequently circulated that Cinna had murdered Pompey, provoking an outbreak of violence among soldiers who already resented his authority. Cinna attempted to flee but was overtaken and killed by a centurion.

Cinna's death in 84 BC deprived the Marian coalition of its dominant political leader shortly before Sulla's return to Italy. Gnaeus Papirius Carbo continued the resistance, but the political and military position of the Cinnan government gradually deteriorated. Sulla subsequently invaded Italy and defeated the remaining Marian forces in the Second Civil War, culminating in his establishment of the dictatorship in 82 BC.

Family and Historical Legacy

Cinna's family remained politically significant after his death.

His daughter Cornelia (wife of Caesar) married Gaius Julius Caesar, connecting Caesar directly with the family of one of Sulla's principal political opponents. Caesar's refusal to divorce Cornelia, despite Sulla's demands, subsequently became an important episode in his early political career.

Cinna's son, Lucius Cornelius Cinna (praetor 44 BC), later returned to Roman public life and became praetor in 44 BC. Despite being the brother-in-law of Caesar, he publicly supported the assassination of Caesar and expressed approval of the conspirators. This later Cinna must be distinguished from his father, who had died sixty years earlier.

Cinna's political career remains one of the most important episodes in the history of the late Roman Republic. His four successive consulships demonstrated the extent to which traditional republican institutions had become subordinated to military power and factional competition.

His government also illustrates that the Marian coalition was not merely a military movement directed against Sulla. It attempted to address the consequences of the Social War, the political integration of the Italian population and the severe financial instability of the Roman state.

The historical assessment of Cinna is complicated by the character of the surviving sources. Many of the ancient accounts were written after Sulla's victory and reflect the political outlook of his supporters or of those who abandoned Cinna's faction. Ernst Badian specifically cautions that the uniformly hostile accounts of Cinna derive from Sullan writers or men who deserted him for the victorious Sulla. Michael Lovano's modern study, The Age of Cinna, accordingly reassesses the Cinnan government in the wider context of the political and economic problems confronting the Republic.

Cinna was therefore a major political figure in the final decades of the Roman Republic, whose influence extended well beyond his personal military and political career.

Further Reading

• Appian, The Civil Wars, Book I, sections 64–79.
• Plutarch, Life of Marius, chapters 41–46.
• Plutarch, Life of Sulla, chapters 10 and 20–22.
• Plutarch, Life of Pompey, chapters 3–5.
• Plutarch, Life of Sertorius, chapters 4–6.
• Livy, History of Rome, Periochae, Books 76–80.
• T. Robert S. Broughton, The Magistrates of the Roman Republic, Volume II, American Philological Association, 1952.
• Michael Lovano, The Age of Cinna: Crucible of Late Republican Rome, Franz Steiner Verlag, 2002.
• Ernst Badian, "Cornelius Cinna (1), Lucius, Roman consul, 87 BCE," Oxford Classical Dictionary, 2016.

See also

• Gaius Marius
• Lucius Cornelius Sulla
• Gnaeus Octavius
• Lucius Cornelius Merula
• Quintus Sertorius
• Gnaeus Papirius Carbo
• Lucius Valerius Flaccus
• Marcus Marius Gratidianus
• Cornelia (wife of Caesar)
• Gaius Julius Caesar
• Social War
• First Mithridatic War
• Original Source: Plutarch - Lives - Caesar