Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus was a noble Roman that lived during the 1st century; he is not to be confused with his namesake Pompey the Great.
Background
Pompeius’ birth name is unknown, however by birth and adoption through his father, Pompeius was of the gens Licinia. Pompeius’ maternal grandparents were both direct descendants of Pompeia, the daughter of triumvir Pompey (Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus) from his third marriage to Mucia Tertia.
Career
Pompeius was one among the sons of the consul of the year 27, Marcus Licinius Crassus Frugi and Scribonia. According to Suetonius, Pompeius was a nobleman of the highest ancient birth. During the Roman Empire, it was common for Roman nobles to drop their paternal names and assume the names of their maternal ancestors.
Roman nobles did this to either honor the memory of their ancestors or for adoption purposes.
Crassus was the adoptive son of consul and general Marcus Licinius Crassus, who was the grandson of triumvir Marcus Licinius Crassus. He was the last known direct descendant of the triumvir and was the last known direct descendant of the triumvir who bore his name.
Little is known on the life of Pompeius. During the reign of unstable Roman Emperor Caligula (reigned 37–41), the emperor had removed his cognomen Magnus or The Great from him and wouldn’t allow Pompeius to use his cognomen.
Claudius had restored Pompeius" cognomen to him.
Antonia and Pompeius had married in 43. Claudius had successfully conquered Britain and had added Britain as a province to the Roman Empire. Claudius had sent Pompeius to the Roman Senate to proclaim to the senators, that his father-in-law had conquered Britain.
According to Suetonius he died in 47, because he was stabbed to death while in bed with a favorite boyfriend.
After Pompeius died, Antonia married Faustus Cornelius Sulla Felix, Messalina’s half-brother, in order to strengthen the bloodline of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Pompeius had no children with Antonia.
After Pompeius died he was placed in the tomb of Licinii Calpurnii that is located on the Via Salaria. The engraved on the urn of Pompeius says:
" Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, son of Crassus, pontiff, quaestor of the Emperor Tiberius Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, his father-in-law".
Pompeius is a character in the novel series, written by Robert Graves, I, Claudius and Claudius the God.
This account claims that Claudius had Pompeius killed as the latter engaged in unnatural sexual practices with the former"s daughter. He was omitted from the 1976 television adaptation.