We know very little about Balbus' early life it is believed that he was born sometime around 100BC into one if not the most prominant families of the island city of Gades. We know him as L.Corenlius Balbus but the "Lucius Cornelius" came later being the name he took on entering Roman citizenship, only the family name of Balbus is known to us from this earlier incarnation. There are several theories to its origins, it may have been a Phoenician name possibly a derivative of Baal, or adopted during Gade's long association with Romans as in Latin the name means "stammerer" and could have meant an ancestor had a speech impediment or holting Latin.
He first appears in history fighting against Sertonius(79-72BC). A continuation of the civil war was sparked off by fractional fighting at Rome. This would have made him 21-28 years old, Caesar had already fought in the east by that age and Pompey had already had his first command.
Balbus fought at first under Q. Metellus Pius later Pompey and along side C.Memmius (A brother in law of Pompey's) and saw action at the siege of New Carthage (76BC) and at the battles of Sucro (75BC).
It would have been an advantage to have Gades on your side in this war. It had the largest mercantile fleet in the area, useful for the transport of troops and supplies, but Gades took sides with the Goverment in power at Rome against the rebel Sertorius who allied himself with the regions pirates, which wouldn't have endeared him to Gades merchant class. The Balbi as leading citizens of the city may have been instrumental in giving the support.
For his and his families service during the war the family received Roman citizenship, although Pompey was instrumental in granting the enfranchisement Balbus strangely did not take his name but choose to take it from L.Cornilius Lentulus Crus(consul 49BC) who may have been his sponsor.
We next find him at Rome(70BC) durin the consulship of Pompey and M.Crassus. It was here that the censors enrolled him in the ranks of citizens his wealth put him in the ranks of the equestrian order but as a new citizen he was only entitled to be placed in one of the four urban tribes these did not have very great standing/prestige but either through luck or design he gained entry to the Clustumina tribe - a prestigous rural tribe which was Pompey's own tribe - Balbus did this by successfully prosecuting a member of the tribe for electoral bribery for which he received that mans tribal place.
After this Balbus disappears from history presumably returning to Gades, the end of the war would have meant great advantages for a trading city like Gades although piracy was still a threat in the whole of the Mediterrarean. Balbus although wealthy and talented was still a new citizen at Rome a community that saw men such as Cicero from a family that had long since had the citizenship as a "new man".
A new stage of Balbus' life began with his association with Caesar. There is no record of when the two meet it could have been at Rome or while Caesar was questor in sourthern Spain in 68BC I would like to think that Balbus was with Caesar at Gades on the occasion that upon a visit to the temple of Melqart/Heracles Caesar was moved to tears at the sight of a statue of Alexander the Great, because he had done so little while Alexander had conquered the world.
Whatever the truth, they must have had an impression on each other for the next time Balbus walks into history it is as Caesar's praefectus fabrum or chief of engineers. Caesar had risen in stature he had become the potifex manximus, and taken the next step up the greasy pole of the cursus honorum, the praetorship. As his province he had been given the same area he had served in as quaestor. The post of chief of engineers was "a subordinate of high rank, with duties unrelated to his title". (R. Gardner in his introduction the pro balbo) it was most likely a diplomatic and logistical post. This would have been advantageous to Caesar to have Balbus on his side as he was now the leading man in his community having become the hospes publicus or spokesman/patron of Gades in its dealings with Rome.
Caesar needed to prove himself as a military commander to stand any chance of rising to higher office it was not the only way to get elected but it was the quickest and surest. He therefore found a pretext to attack the Lusitanians. He used the ships of Gades in his victory first against the lustanians and against the Callaaici on the northern coast of modern Portugal. In return for this help Caesar was said to have given help to Gades, at Balbus' request.(pro Balbo,43).
Balbus although wealthy and talented was still a new citizen. In Roman society this was a major drawback someone needed a powerful patron to get ahead. This community it must be remembered that still saw men such as Cicero, a man whose family had been citizens for ons, as a "new man".
Balbus returned to Rome with Caesar. As his agent he took part in the negotiations that would lead to the political alliance that would become known as the First Triumvirate. We know this from a letter of Cicero (epp.ad att iii 3.3) to his friend Atticus. Balbus tried unsuccessfully to bring Cicero on side to either openly support the move or even join it. If he was involved in talks of that nature with someone of the standing of Cicero it is no great leap of the imagination that he was involved in similar discussions with other leading people of Rome. Balbus was of equal wealth to many of the elite and had standing by association with Pompey and the Metteli as well as Caesar. He may have been used as go between because since as a foreigner, if a cultured one with little possibility of advancement in Rome's official political higherachy he may have seemed less threatening. Later some would reprise his worth and attack him.
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