Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus

            He was a Roman general and consul and a dominant figure between Sulla and his own defeat by Julius Caesar. He lived from 106-48 BC. Pompey was one of the great generals of the late Roman Republic.

            He came from a noble family so he had enough money to establish his own army. He had military successes in Sicily, Hispania, an Africa. Therefore the Senate permitted Pompey to have a triumph in Rome. It was the greatest distinction for a stateman or a general. Then he was 25 years old.

            In 71 BC he and Crassus defeated the slave-rising of Spartacus.

            After the third war of Mithridates, the Senate didn’t approve of the distribution of lands for veterans, so Pompey was hurt. Caesar was also offended by the Senate, so he and Pompey persuaded Crassus to found secretly an alliance and took over the power. That was the first triumvirate in 60 BC. That alliance was against the Senate and it meant, that nobody did anything, without the other two agreement. The triumvirate was confirmed by the wedding between Pompey and the daughter of Caesar. The three men divided the power so that Crassus went to Syria, Caesar to Gallia, and Pompey to Hispania. In 56 BC the alliance was confirmed  which was the lengthen of the triumvirate. In that Caesar promised that Crassus and Pompey will be elected consuls in 55 BC.

            Later the relationship between Pompey and Caesar got worse; and when Caesar’s daughter  (Pompey’s wife) and Crassus died, the triumvirate was divided in 53 BC. In 52 BC Pompey became a consul and his contact with the Senate got better. Finally he took the side of the Senate.

            In 49 BC Caesar unleashed a civil war, where he marched with his army into Italy and defeated Pompey and the Senate’s army. Afterwards Pompey moved to Egypt, where he was murdred by an Egyptian child-king, Ptolemy, because he wanted to please Caesar.

He was both successful general and politician. The Senate was afraid of Pompey to have too  huge power, that’s why they didn’t approved his land-law for veterans. As a consequence he formed an alliance with Caesar and Crassus. So the Senate achieved just the opposit which they wanted to prevent. Admirers saw in Pompey the most brilliant general of the age.