SullaSulla was a fairly vicious and authoritative power in the final few decades of the Roman Republic.
He first became known due to his aid in helping capture the Roman enemy, Jugurtha, a grandson of the Numidian king, Masinissa. He also took part in the fight against Mithridates IV and his kingdom of Pontus. However, soon after gaining command of this conflict, he was taken down and replaced by Marius, another famous soldier and politician. Sulla was so offended by this action that he marched on Rome and took power for himself. In 82 BCE, after defeating Mithridates, Sulla defeated the Samnites at Colline Gate and declared himself dictator. As dictator, Sulla was a ruthless leader. He imprisoned and tortured a group of 6000 Samnite soldiers in revenge of their attempted overthrow of his power. He also attempted to strengthen the Roman aristocracy and declared himself dictator for an unspecified period of time. During this time, he also created his infamous proscription lists, in which he declared certain powerful Romans enemies of the state and had them executed. He then took their riches and property and gave them to his supporters. He retired to an estate near Puteoli in Italy, and there died of a hemorrhage. Although he created much conflict, he was celebrated in Rome after his death. |
Other Facts• Full Name: Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix
• Born: 138 BCE • Died: 78 BCE, age 50 • Wife: Valeria (final) • Father: Unknown • Mother: Unknown |
Fun Facts• Sulla is the subject of 4 Italian operas
• Sulla is thought to be the model of future leaders in Rome, and a few of his actions were copied and served as inspiration for leaders such as Julius Caesar or Pompey the Great • Sulla was dictator while the famous slave revolt of Spartacus occurred |