Gaius Flaminius

Gaius Flaminius was a leading Roman politician in the third century BC. Flaminius served as consul twice, in 223 and 217. He is notable for being the first Roman governor of Sicily, the Lex Flaminia, a land reform bill passed in 232, the construction of the Circus Flaminius in 221, the construction of the Via Flaminia, and his death at the hands of Hannibal's army at the Battle of Lake Trasimene in 217, during the Second Punic War. Flaminius is celebrated by ancient sources as being a skilled orator and a man possessed of great piety, strength, and determination. He is, however, simultaneously criticised by ancient writers such as Cicero and Livy for his popular policies and disregard of Roman traditions, particularly during the terms of his tribunate and second consulship.