Name	Pompei
Official name	Comune di Pompei
Image shield	Pompei-Stemma.png
Shield size	75px
Region	Campania
Province	Naples (NA)
Frazioni	Messigno, Pompei Scavi
Mayor	Claudio D'Alessio
Area total km2	12
Population total	25671
Population as of	30 June 2010
Saint	Beata Vergine del Rosario
Day	May 8
Postal code	80045, 80040
Area code	081
Website

Pompei is a city and comune in the province of Naples in Campania, southern Italy, famous for the Ancient Pompeii. As of 2010 its population was of 25,671.

History

The modern Pompei was founded in 1891, after the building of the sanctuary, stared by the blessed Bartolo Longo. He is considered as the founder of the modern town.

Geography

The town of Pompei is located at the eastern borders of its province, and its urban area is contiguous with Scafati, in the Province of Salerno. It borders also with Torre Annunziata, Castellammare di Stabia, Boscoreale, Santa Maria la Carità and Sant'Antonio Abate.

Main sights

The city is mainly famous for the ruins of the ancient city of Pompeii, located in the zone of Pompei Scavi.

The Shrine of Our Lady of Pompei, dedicated to Madonna del Rosario di Pompei, has become a site for Catholic pilgrimages in recent years. It houses a canvas by Luca Giordano.

Demographics

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Transportation

Roads: Pompei is served by the motorway A3 at the exits of Pompei-Scafati, Pompei Ovest (close to the ruins of Villa of the Mysteries) and also Castellammare di Stabia. It is crossed by the national roads SS 18 and SS 145.

Railways: On the Naples-Salerno line, owned by FS, is situated the main railway station and a little stop named Pompei Scavi (ruins of P.), closed in the 1970's. Onto two lines owned by the SFSM - Circumvesuviana, Pompei counts a total of 4 station. Pompei Santuario (P. Sanctuary, in the middle of the town) and Pompei Valle (close to Pompeii) lies on the Torre Annunziata-Pompei-Poggiomarino line. Pompei Scavi-Villa dei Misteri (serving the Villa of the Mysteries) and Moregine lie on the Naples-Torre Annunziata-Castellammare-Sorrento line.

Personalities

Agostino Abbagnale (b. 1966), rower

Felice Evacuo (b. 1982), footballer

Bartolo Longo (1841-1926), catholic blessed

Gilda Sansone (b. 1989), fashion model

Alberto Savino (b. 1973), footballer

Vincenzo Sicignano (b. 1974), footballer

Gaetano Vastola (b. 1978), footballer

Twin towns

Latiano (Italy) Tarragona (Spain) Xi'an (PR China) Gyeongju (South Korea) Lijiang (PR China) Tel Aviv (Israel)

Gallery

References

External links

Official website

Pompeii Travel Guide from Wikitravel

Pompei Tourism Info

Official tour guides of Pompei

Category:Cities and towns in Campania

Raúl Giménez (Buenos Aires, 1951) is an Argentinian operatic tenor, particularly associated with the Italian bel canto repertory, in which he is considered one of the best exponent in recent years.

He studied at the Music Conservatory of Buenos Aires and made his operatic debut at the Teatro Colón as Ernesto in Don Pasquale, in 1980. After appearing in concert and opera throughout South America, he came to Europe in 1984, where he made his debut at the Wexford Festival in Ireland, in Cimarosa's Le astuzie femminili.

He quickly established himself in Mozart and Rossini operas, appearing at all the great opera houses and festivals of Europe (Paris, Aix-en-Provence, London, Glyndebourne, Vienna, Salzburg, Milan, Venice, Pesaro, Martina Franca, Rome, Barcelona, Brussels, Munich, etc).

He made his American debut in Los Angeles in 1991, as Almaviva in Il barbiere di Siviglia, repeating the role for his debut at the New York Metropolitan Opera in 1995.

He also appeared frequently in works by Donizetti and Bellini, as well as lesser known composers such as Salieri and Pacini.

Selected recordings

Rossini - L'italiana in Algeri, Teldec

Rossini - Il barbiere di Siviglia, Teldec

Rossini - La cenerentola, Teldec

Mayr - Medea in Corinto, Opera Rara

Bellini - La sonnambula, Naxos

Sources

Operissimo.com

Category:1951 births Category:Living people Category:Argentine opera singers Category:Operatic tenors Category:Illustrious Citizen of Buenos Aires

Name	Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus
Caption	Roman statue of Pompey, at the Villa Arconati a Castellazzo di Bollate (Milan, Italy). It was brought there from Rome in 1627 by Galeazzo Arconati.
Birth date	September 29, 106 BC
Birth place	Rome, Roman Republic
Death date	September 29, 48 BC (aged 58)
Death place	Ptolemaic Kingdom
Occupation	Politician and military commander
Spouses	Antistia Aemilia Scaura Mucia Tertia Julia Cornelia Metella

Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, also known as Pompey () or Pompey the Great (Classical Latin abbreviation: CN·POMPEIVS·CN·F·SEX·N·MAGNVS) (September 29, 106 BC – September 29, 48 BC), was a military and political leader of the late Roman Republic. He came from a wealthy Italian provincial background, and established himself in the ranks of Roman nobility by successful leadership in several campaigns. Sulla addressed him by the cognomen Magnus (the Great) and he was awarded three triumphs.

Pompey joined his rival Marcus Licinius Crassus and his ally Julius Caesar in the unofficial military-political alliance known as the First Triumvirate. The first triumvirate was validated by the marriage between Julia (daughter of Julius Caesar) and Pompey. After the deaths of Crassus and Julia, Pompey's wife and Caesar's daughter, Pompey sided with the optimates, the conservative and aristocratic faction of the Roman Senate. Pompey and Caesar contended for the leadership of the Roman state leading to a civil war. When Caesar defeated him at the battle of Pharsalus he sought refuge in Egypt, where he was assassinated. His career and defeat are significant in Rome's subsequent transformation from Republic to Principate and Empire.

Early life and political debut

Pompey's father, Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo, was a wealthy landed Italian provincial from Picenum, one of the "new men" (Latin: homines novi) whose influence would increasingly dominate Roman politics in the Late Republic. Pompeius Strabo ascended the traditional cursus honorum, becoming quaestor in 104 BC, praetor in 92 BC and consul in 89 BC, and acquired a reputation for greed, political double-dealing and military ruthlessness. He supported Lucius Cornelius Sulla's traditionalist optimates against the popularist general Marius in the first Marian-Sullan war. He died during the Marian siege against Rome in 87 BC, either as a casualty of pandemic plague, or struck by lightning, or possibly both. In Plutarch's account, his body was dragged from its bier by the mob. His nineteen-year-old son Pompey inherited his estates, his political leanings and the loyalty of his legions.

in the Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen, Denmark ]] Pompey had served two years under his father's command, and was involved in the final acts of the Marsic Social War against the Italians. He returned to Rome and was prosecuted for misappropriation of plunder: his betrothal to the judge's daughter Antistia secured a rapid acquittal.

For the next few years, the Marians had possession of Italy. When Lucius Cornelius Sulla returned from campaign against Mithridates in 83 BC, Pompey raised three Picenean legions to support him against the Marian regime of Gnaeus Papirius Carbo.

Sulla and his allies displaced the Marians in Italy and Rome: Sulla, now Dictator of Rome, was impressed by the young Pompey's self-confident performance. He addressed him as imperator and offered his stepdaughter Aemilia Scaura in marriage. Aemilia – already married and pregnant – divorced her husband and Pompey divorced Antistia. Though Aemilia died in childbirth soon after, the marriage confirmed Pompey's loyalty and greatly boosted his career.

Sicily and Africa

With the war in Italy over, Sulla sent Pompey against the Marians in Sicily and Africa. In 82 BC, Pompey secured Sicily, guaranteeing Rome's grain supply. He executed Gnaeus Papirius Carbo and his supporters out of hand, which may have led to his dubbing as the adulescens carnifex meaning "adolescent butcher". In 81 BC he moved on to the Roman province of Africa, where he defeated Gnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbus and the Numidian king Hiarbas, after a hard-fought battle.

After this string of victories, Pompey was proclaimed Imperator by his troops on the field in Africa; once back in Rome, he was given an enthusiastic popular reception and hailed by Sulla as Magnus ("the Great") – probably in recognition of Pompey's undoubted victories and popularity but also with some degree of sarcasm. The young general was still officially a mere privatus (private citizen) who had held no offices in the cursus honorum. The title may have been meant to cut Pompey down to size; he himself used it only later in his career.

When Pompey demanded a triumph for his African victories, Sulla refused: it would be an unprecedented, even illegal honour for a young privatus – he must disband his legions. Pompey refused, and presented himself expectantly at the gates of Rome: Sulla gave in. However, Sulla had his own triumph first, then allowed Metellus Pius his triumph, relegating Pompey to an extra-legal third place in a quick succession of triumphs. On the day, Pompey attempted to upstage both his seniors in a triumphal chariot towed by an elephant, representing his exotic African conquests. The elephant would not fit through the city gate. Some hasty re-planning was needed, much to the embarrassment of Pompey and amusement of those present. His refusal to give in to his troops' near-mutinous demands for cash probably impressed his mentor and Rome's conservatives.

Quintus Sertorius and Spartacus

Pompey's career seems to have been driven by desire for military glory and disregard for traditional political constraints. In the consular elections of 78 BC, he supported Lepidus against Sulla's wishes. In 78, Sulla died; when Lepidus revolted, Pompey suppressed him on behalf of the senate. Then he asked for proconsular imperium in Hispania to deal with the populares general Quintus Sertorius, who had held out for the past three years against Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius, one of Sulla's most able generals. The Roman aristocracy turned him down – they were beginning to fear the young, popular and successful general. Pompey resorted to his tried and tested persuasion; he refused to disband his legions until his request was granted. The senate acceded, reluctantly granted him the title of proconsul and powers equal to those of Metellus, and sent him to Hispania.

Pompey remained there from 76 – 71 BC. Pompey was for long unable to bring the war to an end due to Sertorius' guerrilla tactics. Though he was never able to decisively beat Sertorius (and he nearly met disaster at the battle of Sucro), he won several campaigns against his junior officers. Finally, Pompey managed to crush the populares when Sertorius was murdered by his own officer Marcus Perperna Vento, who was defeated in 72 by the young general, at their first battle. By early 71 the whole of Hispania was subdued. Pompey showed a talent for efficient organisation and fair administration in the conquered province; this extended his patronage throughout Hispania and into southern Gaul. Some time in 71 BC, he set off for Italy, along with his army.

Meanwhile, Crassus was facing Spartacus to end Rome's Third Servile War. Crassus defeated Spartacus; but in his march towards Rome, Pompey encountered the remnants of Spartacus' army, captured five thousand of them and claimed the credit for finishing the revolt; this infuriated Crassus.

Back in Rome, Pompey was wildly popular. On December 31, 71 BC, he was given a triumph for his victories in Hispania – like his first, it was granted extralegally. To his admirers he was the most brilliant general of the age, evidently favoured by the gods and a possible champion of the people's rights. He had successfully faced down Sulla and his senate; he or his influence might restore the traditional plebian rights and privileges lost under Sulla's dictatorship. So Pompey was allowed to bypass another ancient Roman tradition; at only 35 years of age and while not even a senator, he was elected Consul by an overwhelming majority vote, and served in 70 BC with Crassus as partner. Pompey's leap from mere eques to Consul was not simply unprecedented; his tactics offended the traditionalist nobility whose values he claimed to share and defend. He had left them no option but to allow his consulship and they probably never forgave him.

Campaign against the pirates

Two years after his consulship, Pompey was offered command of a naval task force to deal with piracy in the Mediterranean Sea. The conservative faction of the Senate remained suspicious and wary of him; this seemed yet another illegal or at least extraordinary appointment. Pompey's supporters for this command – including Caesar – were in the minority, but support was whipped up through his nomination by the Tribune of the Plebs Aulus Gabinius who proposed a Lex Gabinia; Pompey should have control over the sea and the coasts for 50 miles inland. This would set him above every military leader in the East – it was passed despite vehement opposition.

According to Rome's historians, pirates had freely plundered the coastal cities of Greece, Asia and Italy itself. The extent and nature of their threat is questionable: anything that threatened Rome's grain supply was cause for panic. Roman public opinion and Pompey's supporters may have exaggerated the problem. Various settlements, peoples and city-states around the Mediterranean had co-existed several centuries and most had operated small fleets for war, or trade in commodities, including slaves. Their alliances might be loose and temporary or more-or-less permanent; some regarded themselves as nations. With Rome's increasing hegemony, the independent maritime economies of the Mediterranean would have been further marginalised; an increasing number would have resorted to piracy. As long as they met Rome's increasing requirement for slaves, left her allies and territories untouched and offered her enemies no support, they were tolerated. Some were subsidised. But fear of piracy was potent – and these same pirates, it was later alleged, had assisted Sertorius.

By the end of that winter, the preparations were complete. Pompey allocated one of thirteen areas to each of his legates, and sent out their fleets. In forty days the Western Mediterranean was cleared. and that Pompey then attended to the largest of these alliances, centered on the coast of "Rough Cilicia". After "defeating" its fleet, he induced its surrender with promises of pardon, and settled many of its people at Soli, which was henceforward called Pompeiopolis. De Souza (2002) finds that Pompey had officially returned the Cilicians to their own cities, which were ideal bases for piracy and not – as Dio would have it – for the dignified reformation of pirates as farmers. Pompey's entire campaign is therefore in question; its description as "war" is hyperbole – some form of treaty or pay-off is likely, with Pompey as chief negotiator. This was standard practice but undignified and seldom acknowledged; Rome's generals were supposed to wage and win wars. A decade on, in the 50's BC, the Cilicians and pirates in general remained a nuisance to Rome's sea-trade.

In Rome, however, Pompey was hero; once again, he had guaranteed the grain supply. According to Plutarch, by the end of the summer of 66 BC his forces had swept the Mediterranean clear of opposition. Pompey was hailed as the first man in Rome, "Primus inter pares" the first among equals. Cicero could not resist a panegyric:

"Pompey made his preparations for the war at the end of the winter, entered upon it at the commencement of spring, and finished it in the middle of the summer."

The expedience of his campaign probably guaranteed Pompey his next and even more impressive command, this time in Rome's long-running war against Mithridates. By the 40's BC Cicero could comment less favourably on the pirate campaign, and especially the funded "resettlement" at Soli/Pompeiopolis; "we give immunity to pirates and make our allies pay tribute."

Pompey in the East

Pompey spent the rest of that year and the beginning of the next visiting the cities of Cilicia and Pamphylia, and providing for the government of newly-conquered territories. In his absence from Rome (66 BC) he was nominated to succeed Lucius Licinius Lucullus as commander in the Third Mithridatic War against Mithridates VI of Pontus in the East. Pompey's command was proposed by the tribune Gaius Manilius, supported by Caesar and justified by Cicero in pro Lege Manilia. Like the Gabinian law, it was opposed by the aristocracy, but was carried nonetheless.

Lucullus, a plebeian noble, was incensed at the prospect of his replacement by a "new man" such as Pompey. The outgoing commander and his replacements traded insults. Lucullus called Pompey a "vulture" who fed from the work of others. Lucullus was referring not merely to Pompey's new command against Mithridates but also his claim to have finished the war against Spartacus.

At Pompey's approach, Mithridates strategically withdrew his forces. Tigranes the Great refused him refuge so he made his way to his own dominions in the Cimmerian Bosporus. Pompey secured a treaty with Tigranes and in 65 BC set out in pursuit of Mithridates but met resistance from the Caucasian Iberians and Albanians. He advanced to Phasis in Colchis and liaised with his legate Servilius, admiral of his Euxine fleet, before decisively defeating Mithridates. Pompey then retraced his steps, wintered at Pontus and made it into a Roman province. In 64 BC he marched into Syria, deposed its king, Antiochus XIII Asiaticus and reconstituted this too as a Roman province. In 63 BC, he moved south, and established Roman supremacy in Phoenicia and Coele-Syria.

In Judea, Pompey intervened in civil war between Hyrcanus II, who supported the Pharisee faction against Aristobulus II and the Sadducees in Judaea's civil war. The armies of Pompey and Hyrcanus II laid siege to Jerusalem. After three months, the city fell.

"Of the Jews there fell twelve thousand, but of the Romans very few.... and no small enormities were committed about the temple itself, which, in former ages, had been inaccessible, and seen by none; for Pompey went into it, and not a few of those that were with him also, and saw all that which it was unlawful for any other men to see but only for the high priests. There were in that temple the golden table, the holy candlestick, and the pouring vessels, and a great quantity of spices; and besides these there were among the treasures two thousand talents of sacred money: yet did Pompey touch nothing of all this, on account of his regard to religion; and in this point also he acted in a manner that was worthy of his virtue. The next day he gave order to those that had the charge of the temple to cleanse it, and to bring what offerings the law required to God; and restored the high priesthood to Hyrcanus, both because he had been useful to him in other respects, and because he hindered the Jews in the country from giving Aristobulus any assistance in his war against him." (Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews, book 14, chapter 4; tr. by William Whiston, available at Project Gutenberg.)

During the war in Judea, Pompey heard of Mithridates' suicide; his army had deserted him for his son Pharnaces.

In Pompey's absence, his old supporter Cicero had risen to the consulship, then been forced into exile by his popularist opponents. His old enemy and colleague Crassus supported Caesar. In the Senate and behind its scenes, Pompey was probably equally admired, feared and excluded; on the streets he was as popular as ever. His Eastern victories earned him his third triumph. On his 45th birthday, in 61 BC, he rode the triumphal chariot, a magnificent god-king but one of Republican form, ritualistically reminded of his impermanence and mortality. Even so, he was accompanied by a gigantic portrait head of himself, studded with pearls. His third triumph exceeded all others; an unprecedented two days were scheduled for its procession and games (ludi). Spoils, prisoners, army and banners depicting battle scenes wended the triumphal route between the Campus Martius and the Capitoline temple of Jupiter. To conclude, he gave an immense triumphal banquet and money to the people of Rome, and promised them a new theatre. Plutarch claimed that this triumph represented Pompey's – and therefore Rome's – domination over the entire world, an achievement to outshine even Alexander's. In the meantime, Pompey promised his retiring veterans public lands to farm, then dismissed his armies. It was a reassuringly traditional gesture but the senate remained suspicious. They debated and delayed his Eastern political settlements and the promised gifts of public land. From now on, Pompey seems to have toed a cautious line between his enthusiastic popular supporters and the conservatives who seemed so reluctant to acknowledge his solid achievements. It would lead him into unexpected political alliances.

Caesar and the First Triumvirate

Although Pompey and Crassus distrusted each other, Crassus' tax farming clients were being rebuffed at the same time that Pompey's veterans were being ignored, and by 61 BC their grievances had pushed them both into an alliance with Caesar, 6 years younger than Pompey, returning from service in Hispania, and ready to seek the consulship for 59 BC. Their political alliance, known as the First Triumvirate operated to the benefit of each. Pompey and Crassus would make Caesar Consul, and Caesar would use his consular power to promote their claims.

Caesar's consulship of 59 BC brought Pompey land for his veterans, confirmation of his Asian political settlements and a new wife. She was Caesar's daughter, Julia; Pompey was said to be besotted by her. In the same year, Clodius renounced his patrician status, was adopted into a plebian gens and was elected a Tribune of the plebs. At the end of his consulship, Caesar secured proconsular command in Gaul. Pompey was given the governorship of Hispania Ulterior but remained in Rome to oversee the grain supply as curator annonae.

Despite his preoccupation with his new wife, Pompey handled the grain issue well. His political acumen was less sure. When Clodius turned on him in turn, Pompey defended himself by supporting Cicero's recall from exile (57 BC). Once back in Rome, Cicero stepped back into his role as Pompey's defender and Clodius' antagonist but Pompey himself retreated to his lovely young wife and his theatre plans: such behaviour was not expected of the once dazzling young general. Pompey might equally have been obsessed, exhausted and frustrated. His own party had not forgiven him for allowing Cicero's expulsion. Some tried to persuade him that Crassus was plotting his assassination. Meanwhile, Caesar seemed set on outstripping both his colleagues in generalship and popularity. By 56 BC, the bonds between the three men were fraying. Pompey's new theatre was inaugurated in the same year. It was Rome's first permanent theatre, a gigantic, architecturally daring, self-contained complex on the Campus Martius, complete with shops, multi-service buildings, gardens and a temple to Venus Victrix. The latter connected its donor to Aeneas, a son of Venus and ancestor of Rome itself. In its portico, the statuary, paintings and personal wealth of foreign kings could be admired at leisure; Pompey's triumph lived on. His theatre made an ideal meeting-place for his supporters.

From confrontation to war

In 54 BC, Julia, Caesar's only child and Pompey's wife, died in childbirth along with her baby. Pompey and Caesar shared their grief and condolences, but Julia's death broke their family bonds. The following year, Crassus, his son Publius and most of his army were annihilated by the Parthians at Carrhae. Caesar, not Pompey, was now Rome's great new general and the fragile balance of power between them was under threat. Public anxiety spilled over: rumours circulated that Pompey would be offered dictatorship for the sake of law and order. Caesar sought a second matrimonial alliance with Pompey, offering his grandniece Octavia (the sister of the future emperor Augustus). This time, Pompey refused. In 52 BC, he married Cornelia Metella, the very young widow of Crassus's son Publius, and the daughter of Caecilius Metellus Scipio, one of Caesar’s greatest enemies. Pompey was drifting back toward the Optimates. It can be presumed that they thought him the lesser of two evils.

In the same year, Publius Clodius was murdered. When his supporters burned down the Senate House in retaliation, the Senate appealed to Pompey. He reacted with ruthless efficiency. Cicero, defending the accused murderer Titus Annius Milo, was so shaken by a Forum seething with armed soldiers that he was unable to complete his defense. Once order was restored the Senate and Cato avoided granting Pompey dictatorship – it recalled Sulla and his bloody proscriptions. Instead they made him sole Consul; this gave him sweeping but limited powers. A Dictator could not be lawfully punished for measures taken during his office. As sole Consul, Pompey would be answerable for his actions once out of office.

While Caesar was fighting against Vercingetorix in Gaul, Pompey proceeded with a legislative agenda for Rome. Its details suggested covert alliance with Caesar's enemies: among his various legal and military reforms was a law allowing retrospective prosecution for electoral bribery. Caesar's allies correctly interpreted this as a threat to Caesar once his imperium ended. Pompey also prohibited Caesar from standing for the consulship in absentia, though this had been permitted under past laws. This seemed to put paid to Caesar's plans after his term in Gaul expired. Finally, in 51 BC, Pompey was more forthright: Caesar would not be permitted to stand for Consul unless he relinquished his armies. This would, of course, leave Caesar defenseless before his enemies. As Cicero sadly noted, Pompey had been diminished by age, uncertainty, his fear of Caesar and the strain of being the chosen tool of a quarreling oligarchy of Optimates. The coming conflict seemed inevitable.

Civil War and assassination

In the beginning, Pompey claimed he could defeat Caesar and raise armies merely by stamping his foot on the soil of Italy, but by the spring of 49 BC, with Caesar crossing the Rubicon and his invading legions sweeping down the peninsula, Pompey ordered the abandonment of Rome. His legions retreated south towards Brundisium, where Pompey intended to find renewed strength by waging war against Caesar in the East. In the process, neither Pompey nor the Senate thought of taking the vast treasury with them, probably thinking that Caesar would not dare take it for himself. It was left conveniently in the Temple of Saturn when Caesar and his forces entered Rome.

Barely eluding Caesar in Brundisium, Pompey crossed over into Epirus where during Caesar's Spanish campaign, Pompey had gathered a large force in Macedonia, comprising nine legions reinforced by contingents from the Roman allies in the east. His fleet, recruited from the maritime cities in the east, controlled the Adriatic. Nevertheless, Caesar managed to cross over into Epirus in November 49 BC and proceeded to capture Apollonia. Cassius Dio describes Caesar's reactions with scepticism, and considers Pompey's own political misjudgements, rather than treachery, as instrumental in his downfall. For Pliny, the humiliation of his end is anticipated by the vaunting pride of Pompey's oversized portrait-head, studded entirely with pearls, carried in procession during his greatest Triumph.

Later portrayals and reputation

To the historians of his own and later Roman periods, Pompey fulfilled the trope of the great man who achieved extraordinary triumphs through his own efforts, yet fell from power and was, in the end, murdered through treachery.

He was a hero of the Republic, who seemed once to hold the Roman world in his palm only to be brought low by his own poor judgment and Caesar. Pompey was idealized as a tragic hero almost immediately after Pharsalus and his murder: Plutarch portrayed him as a Roman Alexander the Great, pure of heart and mind, destroyed by the cynical ambitions of those around him. This portrayal of him survived into the Renaissance and Baroque periods, for example in Corneille's play The Death of Pompey (1642).

Pompey has appeared as a character in several modern novels, plays, motion pictures, and other media. A theatrical portrayal was John Masefield's play The Tragedy of Pompey the Great (1910). Chris Noth portrays Pompey in the 2002 miniseries Julius Caesar. He appears as a major character in the first season of the HBO series Rome, in which he is portrayed by Kenneth Cranham.

Marriages and offspring

First wife, Antistia

Second wife, Aemilia Scaura (Sulla's stepdaughter)

Third wife, Mucia Tertia (whom he divorced for adultery, according to Cicero's letters)

* Gnaeus Pompeius, executed in 45 BC, after the Battle of Munda

* Pompeia Magna, married to Faustus Cornelius Sulla; ancestor of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (Claudia Antonia's first husband)

* Sextus Pompey, who would rebel in Sicily against Augustus

Fourth wife Julia (daughter of Caesar)

Fifth wife, Cornelia Metella (daughter of Metellus Scipio)

Chronology of Pompey's life and career

106 BC September 29– Born in Picenum

83 BC– Aligns with Sulla, after his return from the Mithridatic War against King Mithridates IV of Pontus; Marriage to Aemilia Scaura

82–81 BC– Defeats Gaius Marius's allies in Sicily and Africa

81 BC– Returns to Rome and celebrates First triumph

76–71 BC– Campaign in Hispania against Sertorius

71 BC– Returns to Italy and participates in the suppression of a slave rebellion led by Spartacus; Second triumph

70 BC– First consulship (with M. Licinius Crassus)

67 BC– Defeats the pirates and goes to Asia province

66–61 BC– Defeats King Mithridates of Pontus; end of the Third Mithridatic War

64–63 BC– Pompey's March through Syria, the Levant, and Judea

61 BC September 29– Third triumph

59 BC April– The first triumvirate is constituted; Pompey allies to Julius Caesar and Licinius Crassus; marriage to Julia (daughter of Julius Caesar)

58–55 BC– Governs Hispania Ulterior by proxy, construction of Pompey's Theater

55 BC– Second consulship (with M. Licinius Crassus), Dedication of the Theatre of Pompey

54 BC– Julia, dies; the first triumvirate ends

52 BC– Serves as sole consul for intercalary month, third ordinary consulship with Metellus Scipio for the rest of the year; marriage to Cornelia Metella

51 BC– Forbids Caesar (in Gaul) to stand for consulship in absentia

50 BC– Falls dangerously ill with fever in Campania but is saved 'by public prayers'

49 BC– Caesar crosses the Rubicon River and invades Italy; Pompey retreats to Greece with the conservatives

48 BC– Caesar defeats Pompey's army near Pharsalus, Greece. Pompey retreats to Egypt and is killed there.

External links

Pompey's War Jona Lendering details Pompey's conquest of Judea

Notes

References

Abbott, Frank Frost (1901). A History and Description of Roman Political Institutions. Elibron Classics (ISBN 0-543-92749-0).

Boak, Arthur E.R. A History of Rome to 565 A.D. (MacMillan, New York, 1922)

De Souza, P., Piracy in the Graeco-Roman World, Cambridge University Press, 2002. ISBN 9780521012409

Cassius Dio, Roman History, Volume 3 (Loeb Classical Library, 1914)

Goldsworthy, Adrian. In the name of Rome: The Men Who Won the Roman Empire. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 2004 (hardcopy, ISBN 0-297-84666-3); New York: Phoenix Press, (paperback, ISBN 0-7538-1789-6).

Greenhalgh, Peter. Pompey The Republican Prince, George Weidenfield and Nicolson Ltd, 1981, ISBN 0297778811

Holland, Tom. Rubicon – The Triumph and Tragedy of the Roman Republic, Abacus, London, 2004, ISBN 0-349-11563-X

Plutarch, Parallel Lives, Life of Pompey (Loeb Classical Library, 1917)

Seager, Robin. Pompey the Great: A Political Biography. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing, 2002 (hardcover, ISBN 0-631-22720-2; paperback, ISBN 0-631-22721-0).

Southern, Pat. Pompey the Great: Caesar's Friend and Foe. Stroud, Gloucestershire, UK: Tempus Publishing, 2002 (paperback, ISBN 0-7524-2521-8).

Truman, RW., Lázaro de Tormes and the "Homo Novus" Tradition, 62–67, in The Modern Language Review: 64.1, Jan 1969.

Category:106 BC births Category:48 BC deaths Category:Ancient Roman senators Category:Ancient Roman generals Category:Assassinated Roman politicians Category:1st-century BC Romans Category:Correspondents of Cicero Category:Pompeii (gens) Category:People from Marche Category:Roman Republican consuls Category:Piracy Category:Roman governors of Hispania

Giovanni Pacini (February 17, 1796 – December 6, 1867) was an Italian composer, best known for his operas.

Biography

Pacini was born in Catania, Sicily, the son of the buffo Luigi Pacini, who was to appear in the premieres of many of Giovanni's operas. The family was of Tuscan origin, and just happened to be in Catania when the composer was born.

During his lifetime, Pacini wrote some 74 operas. This is less than earlier estimates, which ranged from 80 to 90, since it has now been ascertained that many were just alternate titles for other works. His first 25 or so operas were written when Gioacchino Rossini dominated the Italian operatic stage, and took after Rossini's style, a characteristic which he "candidly admits in his Memoirs ". This author states that he "bothered little about harmony and instrumentation", and quotes a statement by Rossini: "God help us if he knew music. No one could resist him".

After Rossini moved to Paris in 1824, Pacini and his contemporaries (Giacomo Meyerbeer, Nicola Vaccai, Michele Carafa, Carlo Coccia, Vincenzo Bellini, Gaetano Donizetti, the brothers Federico and Luigi Ricci, and Saverio Mercadante) collectively began to change the nature of Italian opera and took bel canto singing in a new direction. Orchestration became heavier, coloratura was reduced, especially for men's voices, and more importance was placed on lyrical pathos. While there were exceptions, romantic leads were assigned to tenors (in Rossini's time, they were frequently sung by alto or mezzo-soprano women). Villains became basses or later baritones (while they often were tenors for Rossini). Over time, far more emphasis was placed on the drama.

The role that Pacini played in instituting these changes is only now beginning to be recognized. There is little doubt that Pacini and his contemporary Nicola Vaccai exerted a stronger influence on Bellini than has been credited before. This change in attitude can be credited to the revival of two key works: Vaccai's Giulietta e Romeo and Pacini's L'ultimo giorno di Pompei, both composed in 1825 within a few weeks of each other.

The success of many of Pacini's lighter operas especially Il Barone di Dolsheim, La sposa fedele, and La schiava in Bagdad (all composed between 1818 and 1820) made Pacini one of the most prominent composers in Italy. His position was greatly enhanced by the rapid-fire successes of Alessandro nelle Indie (Naples, 1824, revised, Milan, 1826; given and recorded in London in November 2006), Amazilia (Naples 1824, revised, Vienna, 1827), and the previously mentioned L'Ultimo giorno di Pompei (Naples, 1825).

In Alessandro nell'Indie (Naples, 1824), the title role of Alessandro was created by a baritonal tenor, Andrea Nozzari, but it was sung by the much lighter-voiced Giovanni David at the Milan revival, indicating Pacini's desire to go in a new direction. Arabi nelle Gallie (Milan, 1827) reached many of the world's most important stages and was the first Pacini opera to be given in the United States. It was staged frequently in Italy, and it was not until 1830 that Bellini's first success, Il pirata (also Milan, 1827) passed Gli arabi nelle Gallie in number of performances at the Teatro alla Scala. While this is not generally recognized, it was Pacini, rather than Donizetti, Mercadante or Bellini, who gave Rossini the stiffest competition in Italy during the 1820s.

Many operas followed that are almost completely forgotten. However, one of these, Il corsaro (Rome, 1831) was revived one hundred and seventy-three years later, in 2004, albeit only with piano accompaniment. This work is different in many ways from Verdi's later opera by the same name. The title role, Corrado, is a musico role for an alto, and the villainous Seid is a tenor.

Still, first Bellini and then Donizetti outstripped Pacini in fame. Many of his later operas, such as Carlo di Borgogna of 1835, were failures, but oddly this is one of the few Pacini operas currently (Dec. 2008) available on CD, and it has received many warm reviews. Pacini himself was the first to recognize his apparent defeat noted in memoirs: "I began to realize that I must withdraw from the field. Bellini, the divine Bellini, has surpassed me.". Some years later, he resumed composing, and, after one more setback, enjoyed his greatest triumph with Saffò (Naples, 1840).

After Saffo, Pacini entered into another period of prominence. Donizetti had departed for Paris, Bellini had died, and Mercadante's major successes were behind him, thus Verdi offered the only important competition. Pacini's successes during this time period include La fidanzata corsa (Naples, 1842), Maria, regina d'Inghilterra (Palermo, 1843), Medea (Palermo, 1843 with several later revisions, the last of which was in Naples in 1853), Lorenzino de' Medici (Venice, 1845), Bondelmonte (Florence, 1845), Stella di Napoli (Naples,1845) and La regina di Cipro (Turin, 1846). Allan Cameron (Venice, 1848) is noteworthy because it deals with the youth of King Charles II, before he was crowned King of England. Still, by 1844, Verdi had written Nabucco, I Lombardi, and Ernani, thus outstripping Pacini.

This period of accomplishments was followed by a long but slow decline, marked only by the moderate successes of La punizione (Venice, 1854) Il saltimbanco (Rome, 1858) and Niccolò de' Lapi (Florence,1873).

Pacini died in Pescia, Tuscany in 1867. Although he is mostly forgotten today, he produced much music of high caliber. His output of more than 70 stage works is staggering even compared to Rossini (41 operas) and Handel (43 operas), and he will always be remembered, with Donizetti, as one of the most prolific composers in the history of opera.

Operas

:See List of operas by Pacini.

Notes

References

External links

Pacini Operas with original casts, by Thomas G. Kaufman

A Pacini discography

Category:1796 births Category:1867 deaths Category:Italian composers Category:Romantic composers Category:Opera composers

Name	Frankie Howerd
Caption	Frankie Howerd in a publicity still for Superfrank!
Birth name	Francis Alick Howard
Birth date	March 06, 1917
Birth place	York, Yorkshire, England
Death date	April 19, 1992
Death place	Fulham, London, England
Occupation	Actor, comedian
Years active	1946–92
Partner	Dennis Heymer (1955–92)

Francis Alick "Frankie" Howerd OBE (6 March 1917 – 19 April 1992) was an English comedian and comic actor whose career, described by fellow comedian Barry Cryer as "a series of comebacks", spanned six decades.

Early career

Howerd was born the son of a soldier, Francis A. W. Howard, in York, Yorkshire, England, in 1917 (not 1922 as he later claimed). He was educated at Shooters Hill Grammar School in Woolwich, London. His first appearance on stage was at age 13 but his early hopes of becoming a serious actor were dashed when he failed an audition for RADA. He got into entertaining during World War II service in the Army. Despite suffering from stage fright, he continued to work after the war, beginning his professional career in the summer of 1946 in a touring show called For the Fun of It.

He soon started working in radio, making his debut at the start of December 1946 in the BBC Variety Bandbox programme with a number of other ex-servicemen. His fame built steadily throughout the late 1940s and early 1950s (aided by material written by Eric Sykes, Galton and Simpson and Johnny Speight). In 1954, he made his screen début opposite Petula Clark in The Runaway Bus, which had been written for his specific comic talents, but he never became a major film presence. The film was so low-budget that they could not afford scenery, background and such; instead they used a fog generator so that little was visible behind the action. The film was an immediate hit.

Breakthrough

Howerd was a regular feature in the 1950s version of the comic Film Fun but when he began experimenting with different formats and contexts, including stage farces, Shakespearean comedy roles, and television sitcoms, he began to fall out of fashion. After suffering a nervous breakdown at the start of the 1960s, he began to recover his old popularity, initially with a season at Peter Cook's satirical Establishment Club in Soho in London. He was boosted further by success on That Was The Week That Was (TW3) in 1963 and on stage with A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (1963–1965), which led into regular television work. In 1966 and 1967, he did a 90-minute Christmas show called The Frankie and Bruce Christmas Show with Bruce Forsyth, featuring many top acts of the day.

Through the 1960s and 1970s, he did a number of shows for the BBC and Thames Television (as well as Frankie Howerd Reveals All for Yorkshire Television in 1980). Ray Galton and Alan Simpson wrote for him from 1964 to 1966 when he worked for the BBC and also for a one-off show for Thames, Frankie Howerd meets The Bee Gees, shown on 20 August 1968. He was famous for his seemingly off-the-cuff remarks to the audience, especially in the show Up Pompeii!, which was a direct follow-up from Forum. His television work was characterised by addressing himself directly to the camera and littering his monologues with verbal tics: "Oooh, no missus", "Titter ye not", and so on, but a later sale of his scripts showed that the seemingly off-the-cuff remarks were all planned. Barry Cryer said of his technique : "What he could do with a script was amazing, like all the great performers. He transformed something you'd just written - what you hoped was in a Frankie Howerd idiom - but when you heard him do it, my God, it was something else; - it was gossiping over the garden wall, the apparent waffle - he was like a tightrope walker, you thought he's going to fall off in a minute, you thought , 'Come on, Frank' , we're waiting for a laugh, and then, suddenly, Bang. He knew exactly what he was doing." Another feature of his humour was to feign innocence about his obvious and risqué double entendres while mockingly censuring the audience for finding them funny.

He was awarded an OBE in 1977.

Later career

In 1978, Howerd was cast in the big-budget Hollywood musical Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band playing Mean Mr Mustard, acting alongside musical and film talent such as Peter Frampton, The Bee Gees, George Burns, Alice Cooper, Aerosmith and Steve Martin. He was cast by producer Robert Stigwood as he was on Stigwood's record label at the time. The film was a critical and commercial flop, although now it has achieved cult status. Since Howerd was not well known to American audiences, this may have been his biggest exposure in the U.S.

After five years without a regular television show (though he had hosted a one-off UK version of The Gong Show for Channel 4, which was critically panned and was not commissioned for a full series), Howerd returned to TV screens in 1987 in the Channel 4 show Superfrank!, scripted by Miles Tredinnick and Vince Powell. In the last years of his career, Howerd developed a cult following with student audiences and performed a one-man show at universities and in small theatrical venues. He was also a regular and popular guest on the late night BBC Radio 1 programme Into the Night, hosted by Nicky Campbell.

Howerd often worked with Sunny Rogers who was his accompanying pianist from 1960 onwards. She appeared in his TV and live theatre shows including his last major West End appearance—his one-man show—at the Garrick Theatre in 1990.

In 1982, Howerd appeared in the televised versions of Trial by Jury (as the Learned Judge) and H.M.S. Pinafore (as ''Sir Joseph Porter, KCB).

Death

Having contracted a virus during a Christmas trip up the River Amazon in 1991, Howerd suffered respiratory problems at the beginning of April 1992 and was rushed to London's Harley Street clinic, but was released at Easter to enjoy his last few days at home. He collapsed and died of heart failure two weeks afterwards, on the morning of 18 April 1992. He was 75 years old. Two hours before he died, he was speaking on the telephone to his TV producer about new ideas for his next show.

Howerd died one day before fellow comedian Benny Hill. News of the two deaths broke almost simultaneously.

Personal life

Throughout his career, Howerd hid his potentially career-destroying homosexuality (acts between consenting males being illegal in England and Wales until 1967 and illegal in Scotland until 1981) from both his audience and his mother. In 1955, he met waiter Dennis Heymer, who later became his manager. Heymer was with Howerd for more than thirty years, as lighting operator, manager and partner, until Howerd died. When Howerd appeared as the subject of This Is Your Life, Heymer wore horn-rimmed glasses in an effort to appear less attractive and to perpetuate the illusion that he was solely Howerd's manager rather than his partner.

, Howerd was notoriously bold in his advances, and was known for his promiscuity. One of Howerd's former partners was comic actor Lee Young who created the TV sitcom Whoops Baghdad. Howerd's uncomfortable relationship with his sexuality he once said to Cilla Black, "I wish to God I wasn't gay" as well as his depressive mental state, led him to seek resolution through a series of different methods. Heymer would often drop Howerd off on Friday at his psychiatrist, who would ply him with LSD over the weekend.

Howerd lived for the last 20 or so years of his life in Wavering Down, a house in the village of Cross, Somerset by the Mendip Hills.

The song "Sects Therapy" from the CD Freudiana (released 1990) featured lead vocals by Howerd.

A BBC TV biography about Frankie Howerd—Rather You Than Me—has been produced and was broadcast by BBC Four on 9 April 2008. The script was written by Peter Harness, after extensive interviews with Howerd's partner, Dennis Heymer. Comedian David Walliams was cast as Howerd.

On 15 May 2009, his former partner Dennis Heymer died in the home that he and Howerd had shared near Axbridge, Somerset. He was aged 80.

Tourist attraction

Howerd's home, Wavering Down, is a tourist attraction and, in the summer, hosts concerts and opens regularly as a museum of Howerd's collection of memorabilia to raise funds for charities. Howerd's grave is at St. Gregory's Church in Weare, Somerset.

Howerd also lived at 27 Edwardes Square, Kensington, London W8 6HH. The house bears a blue plaque erected by the Dead Comics' Society.

Works

Television

That Was The Week That Was (1962)

East of Howerd (1966)

Howerd's Hour (1968)

Carry on Christmas (1969)

The Frankie Howerd Show (1969)

Up Pompeii! (1969–75)

Whoops Baghdad

The Frankie Howerd Show (1976)

Howerd Confessions (1976)

Up the Convicts (1976)

Frankie Howerd Strikes Again (1981)

Then Churchill Said to Me (1982)

Superfrank! (1987)

All Change (1989)

Frankie Howerd on Campus (1990)

Frankie's On... (1992)

Selected filmography

The Runaway Bus (1954)

The Ladykillers (1955)

An Alligator Named Daisy (1955)

Jumping for Joy (1956)

A Touch of the Sun (1956)

Further Up the Creek (1958)

The Cool Mikado (1962)

The Fast Lady (1962)

The Mouse on the Moon (1963)

The Great St Trinian's Train Robbery (1966)

Carry On Doctor (1967)

Carry On Up the Jungle (1969)

Up Pompeii (1971)

Up the Chastity Belt (1971)

Up the Front (1972)

The House in Nightmare Park (1972)

Sgt Peppers Lonely Hearts Club Band (1978)

Selected bibliography

On the Way I Lost It by Frankie Howerd (1976). ISBN 0-491-01807-X.

The Complete Frankie Howerd by Robert Ross (2001). ISBN 1-903111-08-0.

Frankie Howerd: Stand-Up Comic by Graham McCann (2004). ISBN 1-84115-310-9.

References

External links

Frankie Howerd Tribute Site

Carry On Line: Official Website of the Carry On films Detailed information on the Carry Ons

Photos of Howerd's grave

Gay Great From Fyne Times Magazine

Frankie Howerd figure

Dennis Heymer - Daily Telegraph obituary

Category:1917 births Category:1992 deaths Category:English comedians Category:English film actors Category:English stage actors Category:English television actors Category:LGBT comedians Category:LGBT people from England Category:LGBT television personalities Category:Officers of the Order of the British Empire Category:People from York Category:Gay actors Category:Carry On films Category:Gilbert and Sullivan performers