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Julius Secundus

Julius Secundus was a Roman orator and a friend of Quintilian. He is one of the speakers in Tacitus's short dialogue, Dialogus de Oratoribus. In his Institutio Oratoria, Quintilian praises Secundus for the elegance of his oratory as well as the "lucidity, smoothness and beauty" of his speech. Though he died an untimely death, Quintilian states that he still holds a high place, and would "undoubtedly have attained a great and enduring reputation" as an orator had he lived longer.

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Jul 25, 2026
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Julius Secundus was a Roman orator and a friend of Quintilian.1 He is one of the speakers in Tacitus's short dialogue, Dialogus de Oratoribus.2 In his Institutio Oratoria, Quintilian praises Secundus for the elegance of his oratory as well as the "lucidity, smoothness and beauty" of his speech.34 Though he died an untimely death, Quintilian states that he still holds a high place, and would "undoubtedly have attained a great and enduring reputation" as an orator had he lived longer.5

References

References

  1.  Smith, William (1870). "Secundus, Julius". In Smith, William (ed.). Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. Vol. 3. p. 763.
  2. Tacitus, Dialogus de oratoribus, 2
  3. Quintilian, Institutio Oratoria, 12.10.11
  4. Quintilian, Institutio Oratoria, 10.1.121
  5. Quintilian, Institutio Oratoria, 10.1.120