Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio

Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio (c. 95 – 46 BC), often referred to as Metellus Scipio, was a Roman politician and military commander. Ronald Syme called him "the last Scipio of any consequence in Roman history."

He was born a member of the patrician Cornelii Scipiones family and initially named Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica after his father. After reaching adulthood, he was adopted into the plebeian Caecilii Metelli family, taking his unusually complex final name.

He was a member of the Roman Senate and held the series of increasingly powerful offices that formed the cursus honorum, culminating in the consulship of 52 BC. As an aristocratic and conservative politician, he opposed the populist policies of the First Triumvirate.

During Caesar's civil war, he supported the senatorial faction led by Pompey against Julius Caesar. He used his position as proconsul of the province of Syria to raise troops for the war, then commanded them in subsequent actions. Metellus Scipio led the centre at the Battle of Pharsalus and was overall commander at the Battle of Thapsus, both defeats. Fleeing across the sea after Thapsus, he was caught at the naval Battle of Hippo Regius. Facing imminent capture, he killed himself with a stoicism that was later commended by Seneca the Younger.

The son of Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica, praetor about 95 BC, and Licinia, Scipio was the grandson of Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica, consul in 111, and Lucius Licinius Crassus, consul in 95. His great-grandfather was Scipio Nasica Serapio, the man who murdered Tiberius Gracchus in 133 BC. Through his mother Cornelia, Serapio was also the grandson of Scipio Africanus. Scipio's father died not long after his praetorship, and was survived by two sons and two daughters. The brother was adopted by their grandfather Crassus, but left little mark on history.

Publius Scipio, as he was referred to in contemporary sources early in his life, was adopted in adulthood through the testament of Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius, consul in 80 BC and pontifex maximus. He retained his patrician status: "Scipio's ancestry," notes Syme, "was unmatched for splendour." As Jerzy Linderski has shown at length, this legal process constitutes adoption only in a loose sense; Scipio becomes a Caecilius Metellus in name while inheriting the estate of Metellus Pius, but was never his "son" while the pontifex maximus was alive. He was sometimes called "Metellus Scipio", or just "Scipio", after his adoption. A decree of the senate gave his official name as "Q. Caecilius Q. f. Fab. Metellus Scipio."

Scipio married Aemilia Lepida, daughter of Mamercus Aemilius Lepidus Livianus, consul in 77 BC, but was not without rival in seeking to marry Aemilia Lepida. The virginal Cato had also wanted to marry Aemilia but lost out:

When [Cato] thought that he was old enough to marry, and up to that time he had consorted with no woman, he engaged himself to Lepida, who had formerly been betrothed to Metellus Scipio, but was now free, since Scipio had rejected her and the betrothal had been broken. However, before the marriage Scipio changed his mind again, and by dint of every effort got the maid. Cato was greatly exasperated and inflamed by this, and attempted to go to law about it; but his friends prevented this, and so, in his rage and youthful fervour, he betook himself to iambic verse, and heaped much scornful abuse upon Scipio … .