Junius Balbus was a Roman Senator and Suffect Consul

Roman consul

A consul served in the highest elected political office of the Roman Republic.Each year, two consuls were elected together, to serve for a one-year term. Each consul was given veto power over his colleague and the officials would alternate each month...

. His name is given by Augustan History

Augustan History

The Augustan History is a late Roman collection of biographies, in Latin, of the Roman Emperors, their junior colleagues and usurpers of the period 117 to 284...

, however modern historians dismiss his name as false.

He married Antonia Gordiana

Antonia Gordiana

Antonia Gordiana was a prominent, wealthy and noble Roman woman that lived in the troubled and unstable 3rd century. She was the daughter of Roman Emperor Gordian I; sister to Roman Emperor Gordian II and mother to Roman Emperor Gordian III...

, daughter of Gordian I

Gordian I

Gordian I , was Roman Emperor for one month with his son Gordian II in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. Caught up in a rebellion against the Emperor Maximinus Thrax, he was defeated by forces loyal to Maximinus before committing suicide.-Early life:...

 and sister of Gordian II

Gordian II

Gordian II , was Roman Emperor for one month with his father Gordian I in 238, the Year of the Six Emperors. Seeking to overthrow the Emperor Maximinus Thrax, he died in battle outside of Carthage.-Early career:...

, and had a son Gordian III

Gordian III

Gordian III , was Roman Emperor from 238 to 244. Gordian was the son of Antonia Gordiana and an unnamed Roman Senator who died before 238. Antonia Gordiana was the daughter of Emperor Gordian I and younger sister of Emperor Gordian II. Very little is known on his early life before his acclamation...

. Although Antonia Gordiana married an unnamed Roman Senator, modern historians dismiss him as the husband of Antonia Gordiana and father of Gordian III.

The Historia Augusta

Augustan History

The Augustan History is a late Roman collection of biographies, in Latin, of the Roman Emperors, their junior colleagues and usurpers of the period 117 to 284...

says Constantius I was the son of Eutropius, a noble from northern Dardani

Dardani

Dardania was the region of the Dardani .Located at the Thraco-Illyrian contact zone, their identification as either an Illyrian or Thracian tribe is uncertain. Their territory itself was not considered part of Illyria by Strabo. The term used for their territory was , while for other tribes had...

a in modern Serbia

Serbia

Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...

, and Claudia, a niece of the emperors Claudius II

Claudius II

Claudius II , commonly known as Claudius Gothicus, was Roman Emperor from 268 to 270. During his reign he fought successfully against the Alamanni and scored a crushing victory against the Goths at the Battle of Naissus. He died after succumbing to a smallpox plague that ravaged the provinces of...

 and Quintillus

Quintillus

Quintillus , commonly known as Quintillus, was Roman Emperor for less than a year in 270.-Early Life and Election as Emperor:Quintillus was born at Sirmium in Illyricum. Originally coming from a low born family, Quintillus came to prominence with the accession of his brother Claudius II Gothicus to...

. Historians, however, suspect this maternal connection to be a genealogical fabrication created by his grandson Constantine II

Constantine II (emperor)

Constantine II , was Roman Emperor from 337 to 340. Co-emperor alongside his brothers, his short reign saw the beginnings of conflict emerge between the sons of Constantine the Great, and his attempt to exert his perceived rights of primogeniture ended up causing his death in a failed invasion of...

, thus connecting his family to two rather highly regarded predecessors, such as the Gordians (and through them the Antonines), the Severians and the Gens Julia, and to these the Theodosians. It seems that Junius Licinius Balbus' descendancy through a daughter is totally forged.

Sources

• Continuité gentilice et continuité sénatoriale dans les familles sénatoriales romaines à l'époque impériale, 2000