Notable Woman of the Roman Republic: Fulvia Flacca Bambula

 

In the days of the late Roman republic, it wasn’t wise for a woman to involve herself in politics. (It probably wasn’t wise for a man to involve himself in politics either, but that’s another matter.) Fulvia Flacca Bambula was married to three politically prominent Romans at successive times and she was wielded more political influence than any other woman of her time. Eventually, however, events conspired to bring her to an ignoble end.

 

Fulvia’s parentage is somewhat dubious. Wikipedia states that her maternal grandfather was Gaius Gracchus, through his one surviving child Sempronia. Later in that same paragraph it states that her maternal grandfather was Sempronius Tuditanus, whom Cicero describes as “a madman who liked to throw his money to the people from the rostra.” It is difficult to understand how Fulvia could have had two maternal grandfathers, unless, perhaps, Sempronia was adopted by Sempronius Tuditanus after her father Gaius Gracchus was killed in civil discord. I could find no evidence of this one way or another.

 

Fulvia’s first husband was Publius Clodius Pulcher, a popularis politician. Clodius was a demagogue, a disreputable character even by Roman standards, and a libertine. He is most famous for having violated the sacred female rites of Bona Dea in an effort to gain access to Caesar’s wife Pompeia, with whom he was enamored. It was strictly forbidden for a man to be present at these rites. Clodius was brought to trial on charges of incestus, or sexual immorality. He claimed to be away from Rome on the night of the offense, but Cicero was able to successfully refute that claim. He and Cicero became implacable enemies until Clodius’ death.  (and Fulvia remained Cicero’s implacable enemy until Cicero’s death.)

Clodius was acquitted of the charge due to an alliance with Marcus Licinius Crassus, the richest man of his time, who succeeded in bribing the jury. As a result of this scandal, Julius Caesar divorced his wife Pompeia, saying that, although he had no proof of her guilt in this matter, the wife of Caesar must be above suspicion.

 

Fulvia was very devoted to Clodius and bore him two children. Clodius went on to become tribune of the plebes and promulgated laws for the benefit of the plebeians. He was even successful in getting  his enemy, Cicero, banished from Rome for a time. In 52 B.C., however, he died in a street conflict with Titus Anius Milo, one of his political rivals. Fulvia publicly grieved over his death and had his body dragged through the streets of Rome and publicly cremated in the senate house.

 

Shortly after the mourning period for Clodius was over, Fulvia married Gaius Scribonius Curio. Curio was originally from the optimate party but upon marrying Fulvia he switched allegiance to the popularis faction and aligned himself with Julius Caesar. He successfully ran for tribune of the plebs in 50 B.C. He fathered one child with Fulvia before being killed in action with Julius Caesar’s army in Africa while fighting King Juba I of Numidia.

 

Several years after the death of her second husband, Curio, Fulvia married Mark Antony. Fulvia had retained much of her influence acquired as the wife of Clodius and she and Anthony made a formidable pair. They had two sons.  After the assassination of Julius Caesar, Antony became the most powerful man in Rome, and Fulvia most certainly the most powerful woman. Her old adversary Cicero now became Anthony’s principal adversary and undertook a series of orations against Antony that he called “The Philipics.” While Antony was away in the east, Cicero attempted to have him declared an enemy of the state. Fulvia used her influence to block any such action.

 

In 43 B.C. Antony formed the second triumvirate with Octavius Caesar and Marcus Aemilius Lepidus and the three of them embarked upon a program of proscriptions in which their political enemies were eliminated and their properties confiscated. First on Antony’s list was Cicero. Cicero attempted to flee but Antony’s agents caught up with him. They brought him Cicero’s head and hands, which he then had nailed to the rostra. According to Cassius Dio, Fulvia took out Cicero’s tongue and repeatedly jabbed it with her hair pin in revenge for all the insults he had leveled against her when he was alive.

 

As part of the reconciliation between Antony and Octavian, Octavian married Fulvia’s adolescent daughter Clodia Pulchra. Octavian divorced her a few years later after he and Antony had another falling-out.

 

In 42 BC, while Antony and Octavian were away in Greece  persuing Caesar’s assassins, Brutus and Cassius, Fulvia pretty much ruled Rome. No official business was conducted without her approval.

 

After destroying Brutus and Cassius at the battle of Philippi, the triumvirs distributed the provinces among themselves. Lepidus took the west while Antony took the east. Octavian stayed in Rome. Antony went to Egypt and fell hopelessly under the spell of the Egyptian queen Cleopatra VII.

 

Poor Fulvia was apparently unaware of the alienation of Antony’s affections and continued to devote herself to his interests. Thinking that Octavian was trying to undermine Antony by controlling the distribution of land to retired soldiers, she traveled to new settlements to remind veterans of their debt to Antony, and tried to delay land settlement until Antony’s return. In 41 B.C. she allied herself with Lucius Antonius, Antony’s brother and helped him raise legions to fight Octavian. Octavian, however, defeated their forces in the battle of Perusia and Fulvia fled with her children to Greece. Antony met with her in Athens and vociferously made his displeasure with her conduct known. She died shortly threafter in Achaea of an unknown illness. Antony blamed Fulvia for his conflicts with Octavian and the two were once again reconciled, with Antony marrying Octavian’s sister Octavia. Fulvia’s young children were taken in and raised by Octavia.

 

The virtuous Octavia could not compete with the charms of Cleopatra for Antony’s affection, and he abandoned all pretense of his marriage with her once he returned to Egypt. This precipitated another falling-out with Octavian with fatal consequences to both Antony and Cleopatra.