Marcus Appius Bradua facts for kids

Marcus Appius Bradua was an important Roman politician who lived during the time of the Roman Empire. He was active from the late 1st century to the early 2nd century. His full name was Marcus Atilius Metilius Bradua.

His Life and Career

Bradua came from a well-known Roman family called the Atilia gens. His family had members who had served as consuls, which was a very high position in Rome. He was probably born in northern Italy.

His father, Marcus Atilius Postumus Bradua, was a governor in the Asia Province when Emperor Domitian was in charge (from 81 to 96 AD). Bradua's second name, Metilius, might mean that his mother was from the Metilia family. If so, a governor named Publius Metilius Nepos could have been his uncle.

Because his family was so important, Bradua quickly moved up in his political career. He likely served as a quaestor (a financial official) and then a praetor (a judge). He might have also been a military tribune, which was a military officer role.

In 108 AD, Bradua became an ordinary consul alongside Appius Annius Trebonius Gallus. This was a very important job, as consuls were the highest elected officials in Rome. After being a consul, he joined the College of Pontiffs, a group of important priests.

Bradua served as the governor of Britain for several years, probably from 111 AD until 118 AD. At some point, he also governed either Germania Inferior or Germania Superior, which were Roman provinces in what is now Germany. Around 122 or 123 AD, he became the governor of the Africa Province. After this, he might have traveled with Emperor Hadrian on some of his many trips around the Roman Empire. Bradua lived longer than Hadrian and passed away sometime during the rule of Emperor Antoninus Pius (138–161 AD).

His Family

Marcus Bradua married a woman named Caucidia Tertulla. She was an important person who might have come from an ancient Etruscan family. They had two children together:

• A son, Marcus Atilius Metilius Bradua Caucidius Tertullus...Bassus. He also became a governor of the Africa Province during the time of Antoninus Pius.
• A daughter, Atilia Caucidia Tertulla. She married a younger man also named Appius Annius Trebonius Gallus. His father was the same Appius Annius Trebonius Gallus who was Bradua's fellow consul in 108 AD. Atilia Caucidia Tertulla and her husband had two children.

Honors and Legacy

Years after his death, Marcus Appius Bradua was still remembered. In Olympia, Greece, there is a stone carving dedicated to him. It was put there by his granddaughter, Aspasia Annia Regilla.

The inscription says that the city of Eleans honored Marcus Appius Bradua for his many roles: quaestor, praetor, governor of Germany and Britain, and a priest. It also mentions that he was the maternal grandfather of Regilla, who was married to Herodes.

Another stone carving, found in Gwynedd (in modern-day Wales), might also refer to Bradua. It mentions a "Propraetor" (a type of governor) and is thought to be from the time he was governor of Britain.

Regilla and her husband, Herodes Atticus, built a special outdoor monument called an exedra in Olympia. It had statues honoring their family members and the ruling emperors. One of these statues was of Bradua. Only the head and a bust (a statue showing the head and shoulders) of this statue have survived. You can see it today at the Archaeological Museum of Olympia.

Sources

• Marcus Appius (or Attius, or Atilius) Bradua
• Plancia Magna, Aurelia Paulina, and Regilla: Civic Donors
• A. R. Birley, The Roman government of Britain, Oxford University Press, 2005
• S. B. Pomeroy, The murder of Regilla: a case of domestic violence in antiquity, Harvard University Press, 2007