Shackleton Bailey describes Cicero’s political career as “erratic”, “unstable”, and “fluid”.
As Plutarch’s Life of Cicero shows, the nature of Cicero’s relationships with his political
colleagues were rocky. In many cases Cicero’s relationships showed great instability in the
sphere of governmental affairs. Depending on the political climate, Cicero crafted these
relationships in a mold unique to the situation and the individuals involved in order to achieve a
self-serving goal. This proposal is supported by evidence found in Cicero’s Selected Letters.
Several key events in Cicero’s life had significant influence in changing the tide of certain
bureaucratic relationships; specifically, the conspiracy of Cataline, the Bona Dea Affair, and
Caesar’s Civil War. Through these events, Plutarch’s Life of Cicero and the Selected Letters
demonstrate the fluidity of Cicero’s political relationships throughout his life.
The Second Catilinian Conspiracy, which took place in 63 B.C. strongly exemplifies the
dramatic change in course that Cicero’s political relationships could take. The strongest example
of this is seen in Cicero’s relationship with Antonius. Antonius and Cicero both ran for consul in
64 B.C., along with Catiline. In that election, Cicero delivered a speech known as in Toga
Candida. This speech publicly accused both Catiline and Antonius of taking part in a secret
meeting which involved planning to kill particular members of the Senate. Cicero and Antonius
went on to win the election.
There were two major points of contention between Cicero and Antonius. First, the
tribunes were introducing laws that would appoint
“a commission of ten men with unlimited powers, to whom was committed, as supreme
masters of all Italy, of all Syria, and of all the territories which Pompey had lately added
to the empire, the right to sell the public lands, to try whom they pleased, to send into
exile, to settle cities, to take moneys from the public treasury, and to levy and maintain as
many soldiers as they wanted” 1.
Antonius, who thought he would be among one of the ten men appointed to these powers
was in strong support of this law. Cicero was adamantly against this proposal.
The second point of contention between the two consuls was that Cicero had strongly
suspected that Antonius was open to the conspiracy of Catiline which was to murder members of
the Consul and seize control of Rome. However, it was not without reason that Cicero took this
stance on Antonius.Cicero believed Antonius’ position on the conspiracy was due to “the
magnitudes of his debts”2. In order to eliminate these debts, it was thought that he would side
with Catiline in his conspiracy efforts.
Cicero takes an interesting approach to eliminating the proposed law in the Senate and
Antonius’ role in the conspiracy. Rather than again publicly defame Antonius, Cicero grants him
