Terentia: Difference between revisions

{{otherpeople5|Terentia (gens)}}

Terentia was born into a wealthy [[plebeian]] family by the name of [[TerentiusTerentia (gens)|Terentius]]. She may have been a daughter of the Terentii Varrones, who were the most important senatorial branch of that family. This is suggested by the fact that Cicero had a cousin with the [[cognomen]] Varro and a friend by the name of [[Marcus Terentius Varro]]. This Varro owned a house near [[Arpinum]] not far from Cicero's own birthplace. Therefore, if Terentia was indeed the daughter of a Varro, Cicero's links to this family may have influenced his marriage to Terentia.<ref>Treggiari 30</ref>

Terentia had one half-sister named Fabia, who was a [[Vestal Virgin]] and the daughter of a [[Patrician (ancient Rome)|patrician]] named [[Fabius]]. If Terentia’sTerentia's mother married the plebeian Terentius first, then Terentia was the older sister and probably the sole inheritor of her father’sfather's estate. Upon her father's death, Terentia became incrediblyvery wealthy.

Her total dowry was 400,000 sesterces, which was the exact amount needed for a man to run for senator. Since Cicero was still under the authority of his father, the ''[[paterfamilias]]'', he had not yet inherited anything. Therefore, Terentia's dowry was probably used to finance his political career.<ref>Treggiari 32</ref>

Terentia was around 18 years old when she married Cicero in 7980 or 8079 BC. Besides the connections between Cicero and the Terentii, Terentia probably married him because Cicero was an up-and-coming ''[[novus homo]]'' (new man) with a promising political career. She married Cicero in a ''sine manu'' marriage (see [[manus marriage]]), bringing with her the dowry and her private property. While the dowry passed into the control of Cicero’sCicero's ''paterfamilias'' and later to Cicero himself, Terentia herself conducted the affairs of her private property with the aid of her guardian Philotimus.<ref name="Treggiari 34"/>

Terentia was responsible for conducting family affairs as well. Besides assigning slaves to complete tasks such as weaving and cooking, Terentia was serious about making offerings to the gods and demonstrating proper piety. Cicero refers to her regular worship in several correspondences; in one letter he describes her piety as an act of pure devotion.<ref name="s:Letters to friends/14.4">[[s:Letters to friends/14.4]]</ref> In another, Cicero jokes that Terentia should sacrifice to the god that made him ill enough to expel his anxiety.<ref>Cicero ''Ad Familiares'' 14.7</ref> Cicero’sCicero's jest indicates that he left much of these household responsibilities in the hands of his wife. She was also involved in supporting important relations with Cicero’sCicero's friends and family. In 68, Cicero and Terentia invited Cicero's brother [[Quintus Tullius Cicero]] and his new wife [[Pomponia (sister of Atticus)|Pomponia]] (a sister to Cicero’sCicero's friend Atticus) in order to improve and solidify the marriage. In a letter of that time, Cicero writes that Terentia is just as devoted to Atticus and his family as Cicero is.<ref>[[s:Letters to Atticus/1.5]]</ref><ref>Treggiari 41</ref>

In 51, when Cicero departed for his proconsulship[[proconsul]]ship in [[Cilicia (Roman province)|Cilicia]], Tullia was unmarried and in need of a third husband. Since Cicero could not make a match for her except through letters, Terentia was instrumental in finding a suitable husband for Tullia. Cicero himself writes that he allowed the pair to make the decision without his further approval. Therefore, Cicero must have given his consent for a marriage in advance, for a Roman citizen could not get married without the approval of the ''paterfamilias''.<ref>Treggiari 83, 85</ref> Terentia was also responsible for paying [[Publius Cornelius Dolabella (consul 44 BC)|Publius Cornelius Dolabella]] the second installment of Tullia's dowry in 48 BC, when Cicero was having financial trouble.<ref>Treggiari 116</ref>

During this time, Cicero himself was depressed and at times suicidal. He writes that he is wretched and that he should no longer live. He asks frequently what he should do and despairs that he cannot ask Terentia to come to him for she is an exhausted woman.;<ref name="s:Letters to friends/14.4"/> Indeedmeanwhile, Terentia was very busy with her efforts to acquirearrange Cicero's return to Rome.

In an earlier letter, Cicero commends Terentia's relentless courage and fortitude. He says that he has heard how active Terentia is from many of his friends. This indicates that Terentia was able to rally widespread support on behalf of Cicero. Furthermore, Cicero reassures Terentia that he has given proper thanks to those thatwho she has told him to recognize because they have helped her. This shows that Terentia was not only keeping Cicero up to date on her progress, but she was also delegating him a role to play in the whole effort. Cicero admits that the hope of his return depends on Terentia and so he worries for her health and ability to take on her many labours.<ref name="s:Letters to friends/14.1"/><ref name="s:Letters to friends/14.2">[[s:Letters to friends/14.2]]</ref><ref>[[s:Letters to friends/14.3]]</ref>

However, Terentia did not reveal the worst details to Cicero, probably so as not to encourage his depression.<ref>Treggiari 65</ref> He found out from P. Valerius that Terentia was dragged from the Temple of Vesta to the Valerian Bank.<ref name="s:Letters to friends/14.2"/> Terentia may have also suffered physical abuse atin this incident, as indicated by Cicero's later orations.<ref>Cicero ''On His House''</ref>

At the beginning of the civil war between [[Julius Caesar]] and [[Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus]] in 49 BC, both Terentia and Tullia remained at the Palatine house (which was already rebuilt). Tullia was pregnant at the time and she stayed with her mother because her third husband Dolabella had gone to join Caesar. It was up to Terentia and Tullia to decide whether or not they would remain in Rome during the war, even though Cicero worried about their safety.<ref>Treggiari 101, 103</ref>

InDuring the remainder of 49 and much of 48 BC, Terentia was once again responsible for managing the family's finances. However, now Cicero was displeased with the way she was handling things and he was especially critical of Philotimus' work. In [[s:Lives (Dryden translation)/Cicero|''Life of Cicero'']], Plutarch tells us that Terentia was at fault for the lack of funds that Cicero required to pay for his journey. Although Plutarch was hostile to the record of Terentia, his account supports a letter by Cicero in which he may be blaming Terentia - someone "he has trusted too much".<ref>Cicero ''Ad Atticum'' 11.1</ref><ref>Treggiari 114</ref>

Their time apart and the strained atmosphere of the civil war caused the letters of Terentia and Cicero to become increasingly emotionless and reserved. While Cicero was staying in [[Brundisium]], he often found time to write Terentia. However, his letters were terse and ineloquent, which was unlike most letters between the two.<ref>Burns</ref> The pair had further disagreement over Terentia's will in 47 BC, specifically about what should be left to their children.<ref>Treggiari 122 - 123</ref> At the same time, Tullia's marriage to DollabellaDolabella was going badly as his infidelity and neglect of her became more prominent. Cicero avoids blaming Terentia for making the match in the first place (despite Cicero's misgivings at the time), but it is clear that he wishes the decision had been made differently.<ref>Cicero ''Ad Atticum'' 11.25</ref> Despite the lack of affectionate feelings and the growing resentment and suspicion of Terentia, Cicero continued to trust her with the administration of their household.<ref>Treggiari 124 - 125, 129</ref>

The strain on their marriage led to divorce in 47 or 46 BC. Terentia was around 52 years old at the time. According to [[Jerome|Hieronymus Stridonensis]], Terentia later remarried two times, her second husband being the historian [[Sallust]] and her third the writer and general [[Marcus Valerius Messala Corvinus]].<ref>[[Jerome|Hieronymus]]. Adversus Jovinianum Libri Duo, I, 48: "Illa [Terentia][…] nupsit Sallustio […], et tertio Messalae Corvino". Read online: [http://www.documentacatholicaomnia.eu/02m/0347-0420,_Hieronymus,_Adversus_Jovinianum_Libri_Duo,_MLT.pdf].</ref> But Hieronymus lived much later, in the fourth century AD, and his assertions are not confirmed by any other ancient writer. Prominent scholars of Roman prosopography such as [[Ronald Syme]] refute the possibility of those two marriages (for instance, both actual wives of Messala Corvinus are known).<ref>{{Cite webjournal|jstor = 638680|title = Sallust's Wife|last=Syme|first=Roland|year=1978|journal=The onClassical Quarterly|volume=28|issue=2|pages = 292–295|doi = 10.1017/S0009838800034820|s2cid = JSTOR170773851}}</ref> She outlived her ex-husband by many years, dying at the age of 103 in 6 AD.<ref>[[Pliny the Elder|Pliny]], [[wikisource:la:Naturalis Historia/Liber VII|Naturalis Historia, lib. vii, 158]].</ref><ref>[[Valerius Maximus]], viii. 13. s. 6.</ref> [[Susan Treggiari]] has pointed out that the later historian may have confused Terentia with Cicero's second wife [[Publilia (wife of Cicero)|Publilia]].<ref>{{cite journal | url=https://bmcr.brynmawr.edu/2008/2008.07.06/ | title=Review of: Terentia, Tullia and Publilia. The Women of Cicero's Family | journal=Bryn Mawr Classical Review }}</ref>

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