verres - governor of sicily

73-71 BC

He had served both sides* in the Civil War between Marius and Sulla (88-87 BC). ​

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Under Sulla’s protection, he had been a junior official (84 – 82 BC) and then later governor of Sicily(73 – 71 BC) after his praetorship in 74 BC – which he secured by lavish use of bribe.​

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He had used the troubled political times to take advantage of his office and make vast sums of money through corruption and extortion​

in verrem = against verrem

  • In 70 BC Cicero delivered the speech in the trial against Verres which established him as Rome’s greatest orator​

  • Cicero’s power of rhetoric and his oratorical skills enabled him to persuade the jury(judges) to break with a growing tradition of corruption and to sacrifice ‘one of their own’ – a senator accused by a novus homo!​

  • With the power of his oratory Cicero joined the group of other political players of the times

the courtroom setting

  • The trial of Verres – a significant turning point forCicero in his political career*​

  • Being elected quaestor suo anno* served in Sicily, ​

  • After three years of suffering, the Sicilians asked Cicero to plead their case against Verres and his unacceptable misgovernment of the province​

  • Cicero was to deliver Against Verres (In Verrem 1)** in the permanent court in Rome specifically for cases of extortion. ​

  • Verres’ a member of the nobiles was defended by Hortensius – the leading orator of the time who was elected consul for the next year​

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a trial

  • People overcrowded Rome due to elections* and to enjoy the public festival granted to celebrate Pompey’s military success. ​

  • The judge was Manius Acilius Glabrio​

  • The jury comprised senators alone since Sulla removed the right of equites to stand on juries​

  • Cicero published the speeches which demonstrates the importance he attached to them and his pride at the success.

corruption, justice, the defence of the state

  • Verres was being brought to trial for the extortion of either 4 million or 400 000 sesterces from the province of Sicily – this was mentioned only in final paragraph​

  • Cicero skilfully and carefully framed the accused, the prosecutor and the jury in away that jury was morally and politically obliged to pass a guilty verdict​

  • in dramatic way Cicero created an urgent sense of social and political crisis, in which the senatorial order was under thereat of collapse from corruption within ​

  • The future stability of the Republican social orders and the superiority of the senate were at stake for the members of the jury