Cincinnatus.

 What does that name invoke in the minds of us Americans? Does it invoke the image of the glowing towering skyline of Cincinnati, Ohio with its famous SkyStar, or a picture of Cincinnati's finest steamy Skyline Chilli and sending out one of the best aromas known to man? 

No. Today, we speak not of these great things, but of the great man all these are named after. We speak of Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus.  

Cincinnatus, born around 519 BC, was an influential Roman Statesman, consuel, and dictator who led Rome to many early victories. 

          We can trace the roots of the two great empires of America and Rome filled with wreaths and laurels back to two humble farmers who lived in the boondocks near their respectives capital cities. One was the christened George Washington, and the other was Cincinnatus- who could not be christened, as Christ would not be born for another 519 years. They lived extremely similar lives; not by chance, but because Washington based much of his life and administration on Cincinnatus’. For example, both Cincinnatus and Washington lived the Roman and Colonial ideal of “Enlightened Poverty”. Popularized by the upper classes of the Roman Empire, this enabled a resurgence in the enlightenment in the face of French and British aristocrats. As Charles Rollin stated in his work “The Roman history from the foundation of Rome to the battle of Actium: that is, to the end of the Commonwealth”: “ Happy Times! Admirable Simplicity! Poverty was not universal, but it was admired…”.  Despite the harsh sounding condition of the term poverty, Enlightened Poverty mainly consisted of the planter lifestyle made famous by the Antebellum Period. Many presidents, including Washington, Jefferson, Jackson, and even Sam Houston of the Republic of Texas, partook in the lifestyle that Cincinnatus made famous. 

  So he inspired the presidential lifestyle and the American tradition of humility- but why should we look at Cincinnatus for political policy? He was a simple cabbage farmer who toiled along the Tiber half naked for most of his life, but that is exactly why we should admire this hero of Western civilization. Unlike the other dictators of his time, Cincinnatus was called two times to the Roman throne. The first time, he was appointed due to the Aequi Threat (which he crushed in 15 days), and when he returned to Rome he was hailed as a hero and blessed by the gods. He was even offered the throne for longer than the designated time he was appointed. Instead, he returned to his cabbage patch among the reeds of the Tiber.  The second and final time he was appointed to the throne was due to the Maelius-Controversy in which Spurius Maelius, a Roman Nobleman, was suspected of trying to make himself king. Maelius was eventually killed by the orders of Cincinnatus. His death ended the controversy and led to the second retirement of Cincinnatus. The Roman Peoples begged him to stay, but he kept his word and lived until his death among the cabbages along the Tiber. This one man's two terms in power influenced another farmer's precedent 2000 years later: Washington establishing our nation's two term presidential limit. This limit was enshrined into the Constitution in the 23rd Amendment, ratified after the death of Franklin Delano Roosevelt whose four terms in office broke the ancient tradition.

          Now what does this say about the enlightened republic that our country is founded upon? It states that our Government should be run with humility and humanity. Cincinatus was the epitome of a humble leader, which has influenced the Ancient Roman leaders and philosophers, the Dutch Republicans, and the modern U.S. Presidency. Even more so, what does it mean that most Americans don’t even know who Cincinnatus is? What does it mean that the average political scientist or classicalist has never heard of Cincinatus- not to mention his major influence on the history of not only Rome and America, but of the world itself?

Works Cited

Cincinnatus, Digital Encyclopedia, Washington Library, Mount Vernon, by Rob Hardy Ph.D

Cincinnatus and the Myth of Amateur Rule, LegBranch Team

Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus, The Editors of Encyclopedia Britannica

Cincinnatus, Donald L. Wasson

Old Western Cultures, Wesley Callihan