Gaius Suetonius Tranguillus

Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus (circa A.D. 69 ? circa 140) was the son of a Roman knight, a military tribune attached to the 13th Legion. Not much is known about Suetonius. He was a friend of Pliny the Younger and accompanied him to Bithynia when Pliny was governor there. Pliny recommended his services to the Emperor Trajan. He practiced law for a time, though shunning politics, and managed to obtain an important position as chief secretary to Trajan's heir, Hadrian. Much of the material Suetonius utilized was a result of his access to court records and private correspondence. Sometime during the Emperor Hadrian's reign, (A.D. 117 ? 138), he and a group of officials were dismissed for improper court etiquette in the presence of the Empress Sabina while the Emperor was absent in Britain. Suetonius was the author of many historical and social works, however, except for "The Twelve Caesars", none have survived beyond fragments of one of his other books, the "Lives of Illustrious Romans."… (mehr)