Gaius Flavius Fimbria (d.85 BC)

Gaius Flavius Fimbria
Cistophorus minted by Fimbria in Pergamum after he took the city in 85 BC[1]
Personal details
Born	115 or 114 BC
Died	85 BC (aged 29–30) Pergamum, Roman Asia (modern-day Bergama, İzmir, Turkey)
Cause of death	suicide
Nationality	Roman
Military service
Allegiance	Roman Republic Marius and Cinna
Years of service	87–85 BC
Rank	Probably cavalry prefect and pro-quaestor
Commands	Fimbrian legions
Battles/wars	Bellum Octavianum First Mithridatic War

Gaius Flavius Fimbria (c. 115 – 85 BC) was a Roman general. Born to a recently distinguished senatorial family, he became one of the most violent and bloodthirsty partisans of the consul Cornelius Cinna and his ally, Gaius Marius, in the civil war of 87 BC. During the conflict, Fimbria served them as both cavalry commander and negotiator, and took a leading part in the political purges that followed their capture of Rome, putting a number of prominent aristocrats to death.

In 86 BC, Fimbria served as the quaestor of Marius, elected consul for the 7th time, who nevertheless died after only two weeks in charge. The new consul, Lucius Valerius Flaccus, was tasked with conducting the war against the king of Pontus, Mithridates VI, with Fimbria as his quaestor. However, Fimbria murdered Flaccus midway through and assumed command of the campaign. In Asia, after having defeated Mithridates, Fimbria was confronted by Lucius Cornelius Sulla, the first Roman general in charge of the war, who had been removed from his command by Cinna and Marius, but entered into a rebellion against the official government in Rome. After his two legions deserted to Sulla, who had a larger army, Fimbria committed suicide in Pergamum. Fimbria's contemporary Cicero remembered him as "the most audacious madman of his times".^[2]