Gaius Stephanus Pictor
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Gaius Stephanus Pictor | |
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| Pontifex Maximus of Great Levantia | |
| In office 1 January 57 BC – 10 March 30 BC | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | ca. 101 BC Colonia Urceopolitania, Great Levantia |
| Died | 10 March 30 BC Colonia Urceopolitania, Great Levantia |
Gaius Stephanus Pictor (ca. 101 BC - 10 March 30 BC), known by his cognomen Pictor and sometimes by his nickname "Caesaries", was a politician and general of Great Levantia who was responsible for ending the Levantine Social War, the conquest of Gaul, and the transformation of Great Levantia from a classical Latinic republic into a theocratic autocracy known as the Principate. A member of the aristocratic Stephanii tribe, Pictor was chosen to become Pontifex Maximus early in life, but the length of office of his predecessor precluded him from assuming the position until his early 40s. During that time, Pictor served as a magistrate and subsequently gained a reputation as a skilled commander during the early years of the Levantine Social War.
Pictor, aware of the political turmoil that gripped Great Levantia in the waning days of the republican period, used his ascension to the office of Pontifex Maximus as an opportunity for permanent political power, a break with the custom of being keeper of temples and high priest of the Cult of the State God. A series of sweeping victories in the Levantine Social War in 56 BC that ended the conflict lead to a power struggle with the landed aristocracy that resulted in Pictor's total victory, and the Levantine Senate formally proclaimed him as Princeps - First Citizen - in 50 BC. Working under the veneer of republican legitimacy, Pictor, now functionally an autocrat, implemented sweeping reforms to the Levantine State aimed at improving the station of the plebeian class, including land redistribution and reform. Following a series of political disputes arising from the land distribution debate, Pictor decided to invade Gaul in 44 BC, bringing most of it under Levantine control. His invasion would form the early foundations of modern Fiannria, which would emerge out of the collapse of Great Levantia as a thoroughly Levantinized region.
After an injury received in Gaul, Pictor returned to Urceopolis in 39 BC and remained there for the rest of his life, spending much of his time subsuming every other institution of the moribund republic to his will as Pontifex Maximus, rendering any republican restoration impossible and eventually foregoing the role of Princeps; in so doing, he transformed Great Levantia into a authoritarian theocracy. In his 60s, Pictor's energy began to fade, but during the period he managed to have a son and adopt two others, leaving the newly-founded Principate on good footing. He died a natural death in 30 BC at the age of 70 or 71.