Home Back
About Sources
Portrait of Lucius Licinius Lucullus (cos. 74)

Lucius Licinius Lucullus (cos. 74)

Consul in 74 BCE. Defeated Mithridates

🏛️ Career

  1. 88 BCE
    (aged 29)
    Quaestor

    Broughton: 5 Lucullus' quaestorship is dated, perhaps rightly, in 88 by Sobeck (29) along with the consulship of Sulla. This year is the latest possible date and receives some slight support from the distinction made by Cicero between Lucullus' service, as Quaestor and as Proquaestor (a). See also 1. de, Delos 4.1.1620.

    MT: citation above taken from and confirmed in DPPR

    Sources (1)
    • Broughton, MRR3
      • (a) Acad. 2.1 and 4 and 11
    Career-overlap (5) Magistrates with the closest career overlap; red font indicates family member

    M. Aurelius Cotta (cos. 74) (1 year; raw 4.00, base 0.500, final 0.500): 74 BCE (Consul)

    C. Aurelius Cotta (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    L. Octavius (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    L. Valerius Trianius (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    Terentius Varro (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

  2. 87 BCE
    (aged 30)
    Quaestor

    Broughton: Sent in advance by Sulla to Greece, he made Bruttius Sura, the Legate of Sentius, return to Macedonia (a). He had charge of Sulla's mint in Greece (b). At the end of the year he was sent to Egypt and elsewhere to assemble a fleet (c).

    Sources (4)
    • Broughton, MRR2
      • SIG³ 743, cf. SEG 1.153; Cic. Acad. 2.1; Auct. Vir. Ill. 74.1.
      • (a) Plut. Sull. 11.5; cf. Cimon 1.2
      • (b) Plut. Luc. 2.1-2; cf. Grueber, CRRBM 2.459-460
      • (c) Cic. Acad. 2.11 and 61; Plut. Luc. 2.2-6; App. Mith. 33
    Career-overlap (5) Magistrates with the closest career overlap; red font indicates family member

    M. Aurelius Cotta (cos. 74) (1 year; raw 4.00, base 0.500, final 0.500): 74 BCE (Consul)

    C. Aurelius Cotta (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    L. Octavius (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    L. Valerius Trianius (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    Terentius Varro (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

  3. 79 BCE
    (aged 38)
    Aedile ·curule

    Broughton: Pliny attests a date 20 years after the aedileship of C. Claudius Pulcher (99 B.C.), Granius Lieinianus the fact that they were Curule Aediles

    Sources (1)
    • Broughton, MRR2
    Career-overlap (5) Magistrates with the closest career overlap; red font indicates family member

    M. Aurelius Cotta (cos. 74) (1 year; raw 4.00, base 0.500, final 0.500): 74 BCE (Consul)

    C. Aurelius Cotta (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    L. Octavius (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    L. Valerius Trianius (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    Terentius Varro (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

  4. 78 BCE
    (aged 39)
    Praetor

    MT: No further comments in MRR2

    Sources (1)
    • Broughton, MRR2
      • Cic. Acad. 2.1; of. Elogium, Inscr. Ital. 13.8.84-CIL 12.1, p. 196ILS 60.
    Career-overlap (5) Magistrates with the closest career overlap; red font indicates family member

    M. Aurelius Cotta (cos. 74) (1 year; raw 4.00, base 0.500, final 0.500): 74 BCE (Consul)

    C. Aurelius Cotta (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    L. Octavius (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    L. Valerius Trianius (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    Terentius Varro (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

  5. 74 BCE
    (aged 43)
    Consul · Co-consul: M. Aurelius Cotta (cos. 74)

    Broughton: In Rome Lucullus checked the Tribune Quinctius (a; see Tribunes of the Plebs). He had been assigned the province of Cisalpine Gaul, but upon the death of Octavius, Proconsul in Cilicia, early in the year (see Promagistrates), he intrigued to get this province and the command against Mithridates (b). He received also command of the former armies of Fimbria and of Servilius Isauricus (c), and probably also the province of Asia (d; and see 70, Promagistrates, on Lucullus). Cotta received command of a fleet to protect his province of Bithynia and the Propontis, but was defeated on sea and on land, and shut up in Chalcedon until Lucullus relieved him (e). The latter checked the forces of Mithridates in a battle at the Rhyndacus river, and during the winter of 74-73 brought him to disaster in a trap as he was besieging Cyzicus (f).

    Sources (7)
    • Broughton, MRR2
      • CIL 12.2.740, and 954; SIG³ 746, 747–I. de Delos 4.1.1758, cf. 4.2.2514 bis; Cic. Verr. 2.5.34; Sall. Hist. 2.98 M, at the end; Fast. Cap., Degrassi 56f., 130, 486f. (L. [Liciniu]s L. f. L. n. Lucullus, M. Au[re]lius M. [f. - n. Cotta]); Eutrop. 6.6; Chr. 354 (Lucullo et Cotta); Fast. Hyd. (Lucullo et Micotta), so also Chr. Pasc.; Cassiod.; on Lucullus, Cic. Cluent. 137; CIL 12.1, p. 196-Inscr. Ital. 13.3.84; Ps.-Ascon. 222 Stangl; and on Cotta, Ascon. 66C.
      • (a) Sall. Hist. 3.48.11 M
      • (b) Plut. Luc. 6-7; App. Mith. 72; cf. Cic. Mur. 33; Acad. 2.1; Sall. Hist. 2.98M, at the end
      • (c) Cic. Flacc. 85; Sall. Hist. 3.19, and 33M; Plut. Luc. 7.1-3; 34.2; App. Mith. 72; Memnon 40 in FGrH 2 B.356; Porphyr. on Hor. Epist. 2.2.26; Dio 36.14.3, and 15.3, and 16.3, and 46.1
      • (d) Cic. Flacc. 85; Vell. 2.33.1; Plut. Luc. 7.1; Memnon 37 in FGrH 2B.355; cf. Dio 36.2.2
      • (e) Cic. Mur. 33; Sall. Hist. 3.23-24M; 4.69.13M; Liv. Per. 93; CIL 12.1, . p. 196-Inser. Ital. 13.3.84; Plut. Luc. 5.1; 6.5; 8.1-3; App. Mith. 71; Menmon 37-39 in FGrH 3B.355f.; Eutrop. 6.6.2; Auct. Vir. Ill. 74.4; Oros. 6.2.13
      • (f) Cic. Leg. Man. 20-21; Mur. 33; Sall. Hist. 3.17-42M; 4.69.4 and 13-14M; Liv. Per. 94-95; Inscr. Ital. 13.3.84-ILS 60; Strabo 12.8.11, 575-576c; Diod., excerpt in FHG 2, xxiv; Frontin. Str. 3.13.6; Plut. Luc. 8.1-12.2, cf. Sert. 24.3-4; App. Mith. 72-76; Flor. 1.40.12-18; Memnon 37-40 in FGrH 3B.355f.; Eutrop. 6.6.2; Oros. 6.2.12-24; cf. CIL 12.2.743–ILS 37
    Career-overlap (5) Magistrates with the closest career overlap; red font indicates family member

    M. Aurelius Cotta (cos. 74) (1 year; raw 4.00, base 0.500, final 0.500): 74 BCE (Consul)

    C. Aurelius Cotta (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    L. Octavius (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    L. Valerius Trianius (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

    Terentius Varro (1 year; raw 3.00, base 0.375, final 0.375): 78 BCE (Praetor)

🏺 Family

  1. Parents
    Lucius Licinius Lucullus (pr. 104)
  2. Siblings
    Marcus Terentius Varro Lucullus (cos. 73)