known as Cato the Censor or Cato the Elder
born 234, Tusculum, Latium
died 149 BC
Roman statesman and orator, the first important Latin prose writer.
Born of plebeian stock, he fought in the Second mos majorum ("ancestral custom") and combat Greek influence, which he believed undermined Roman morality. He crafted laws against luxury and the financial freedom of women and never ceased to demand the destruction of Carthage. His writings include works on history, medicine, law, military science, and agriculture. His great-grandson Cato the Younger (b. 95
d. 46 BC) was a leading Optimate (see {{link=Optimates and Populares">Optimates and Populares ) who sought to preserve the republic against Julius Caesar .