The paper studies the initial formation (in the De imperio) and the evolution (in Cicero’s first letter to his brother) of the figure of the ideal leader, before Cicero’s submission to the Triumvirate. In the oration, the ideal commander for the Mithridatic war is not only praised for his military skills, but also for his providential rôle, reflecting the will of the gods, and for his personal moral virtue. Seven years later, writing to his brother then governor of the province of Asia, Cicero puts forth a similar model. In this context, the moral and political aspects of the reflection are tightly connected to the requirements of the Roman provincial administration, and thoroughly rely on the leader’s education to virtue through Greek culture and philosophy to insure the justice of the Roman rule and the welfare of the submitted populations.
