Frontinus

• 1. Origins And Family Lineage

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  Sextus Julius Frontinus emerged from a background that left few traces in the historical record. No titulus honorarius or sepulcralis outlines his life, parents, or wife. Scholars infer he was of Narbonese origins and originally belonged to the equestrian class. The name Publius Calvisius Ruso Julius Frontinus suggests a sister who became the mother of another consul around 84 AD. He had at least one daughter who married Quintus Sosius Senecio, a man who served as consul in 99 and again in 107. That daughter bore a child named Sosia Polla. These fragmented details form the only known map of his private world.

• 2. Military Campaigns In Britain

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  In AD 70, Frontinus participated in the suppression of the Rhineland revolt. He later recorded receiving the surrender of 70,000 Lingones. Between that date and his appointment as governor of Britain, he held the office of suffect consul. As governor, he subjugated the Silures of South Wales and likely campaigned against the Brigantes. Gnaeus Julius Agricola succeeded him in 77. Agricola was the father-in-law of the famous historian Tacitus. An inscription at Hieropolis in Phrygia and coins from Smyrna attest that he served as proconsul of Asia in AD 86. Birley speculates Frontinus accompanied Domitian during the German campaign of 83.

• 3. Administrative Rise To Power

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  In 97, emperor Nerva appointed Frontinus curator aquarum, an office reserved for persons of very high standing. The following year, he held a second consulship as suffect in February with Trajan as his colleague. Two years later, he became consul ordinarius alongside Trajan. This exceptional honor underlines the high regard in which he was held. It suggests Trajan had a debt to repay. He also joined the College of Augurs. Pliny the Younger wrote to friends that Frontinus died in 103 or 104, creating a vacancy filled by another election to the college.

• 4. Engineering The Roman Water System

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  Frontinus prepared maps of Rome's water system to assess their condition before maintenance began. Many aqueducts were neglected and not working at full capacity. Unscrupulous farmers and tradesmen inserted pipes into channels to tap the supply illegally. He made a meticulous survey of each line's intake and investigated discrepancies. Lead pipe stamps bearing owner names helped prevent such theft. He reviewed existing laws governing state aqueducts and enforced those statutes. Leaks in underground conduits posed difficult problems to locate and mend. Trees needed keeping at a distance so roots would not damage arched superstructures.

• 5. Authorship Of Military Stratagems

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  Frontinus wrote a theoretical treatise on military science that is now lost. His extant work, the Strategemata, collects examples from Greek and Roman history for generals. He drew on his own experience as a general in Germania under Domitian. Similarities between recorded anecdotes and versions by Valerius Maximus and Livy suggest he relied mainly on literary sources. The authenticity of the fourth book has been challenged. One example describes controlling river water during a siege. Selected editions include R.H. Rodgers' 2004 Cambridge University Press edition with extensive English commentary. Charles E. Bennet published an English translation edited by Mary B. McElwain in the Loeb Classical Library no. L174.

• 6. Legacy And Modern Scholarship

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  Frontinus remains best known to the post-Classical world as author of technical treatises. De aquaeductu presents history and description of Rome's nine aqueducts at the turn of the 1st century AD. It includes laws relating to use and maintenance. Frontinus described quality of water delivered by each source: river, lake, or spring. Poor-quality water went to irrigation and gardens while best reserved drinking water. Intermediate-quality water served baths and fountains. He criticized mixing supplies from different systems and separated waters from each system. Thomas Ashby wrote The Aqueducts of Rome in 1934. A.T. Hodge published Roman Aqueducts & Water Supply in its second edition in London. Blackman and Hodge edited Frontinus' Legacy essays in 2001 for University of Michigan Press.