sătellĕs, ĭtis, comm., an attendant upon a distinguished person, esp. a prince, a lifeguard; in plur., attendants, escort, train, retinue (class.; syn.: stipator, apparitor, accensus).
I Lit.: regii satellites, Liv. 2, 12; 34, 36 fin. ; cf. Quint. 7, 2, 54: administri et satellites Sex. Naevii, Cic. Quint. 25, 80 (cf. infra, II.): habet sectatores vel potius satellites, qui, etc., Tac. A. 16, 22: contumeliosum foret, si equites Romani satellites Numidae traderentur, Sall. J. 65, 2: Sullae, id. H. 1, 41, 2 Dietsch; cf. Liv. 34, 41: sequimini satellites, Plaut. Mil. 1, 78: aurum per medios ire satellites... amat, Hor. C. 3, 16, 9: ne posset adire, Cursus equi fecit circumfususque satelles, Ov. M. 14, 354: Caesaris, Tac. A. 2, 45: Sejani, id. ib. 6, 3 et saep.: Hannibalis, followers , satellites , Liv. 23, 12; 25, 28.—
B Transf. (mostly poet.), of attendants analog. to the preceding: Jovis pinnata satelles, i. e. the eagle , Cic. poët. Div. 1, 47, 106 id. Tusc. 2, 10, 24: Noctis, i. e. the evening-star , id. poët. ap. Non. 65, 10: Orci, i. e. Charon , Hor. C. 2, 18, 34: Neptuni, storms , etc., Plaut. Trin. 4, 1, 14.—Of the attendants of the queen-bee, Plin. 11, 17, 17, § 53.—Of Orion , as Diana's attendant, Ov. F. 5, 538. —
II Trop., an assistant , attendant : hominem natura non solum celeritate mentis ornavit, sed etiam sensus tamquam satellites attribuit ac nuncios, Cic. Leg. 1, 9, 26: virtutis verae custos rigidusque satelles, Hor. Ep. 1, 1, 17.—In Cicero more freq. in a bad sense, an assistant in crime , an accomplice , partner , abettor , etc.: stipatores corporis constituit, eosdem ministros et satellites potestatis, Cic. Agr. 2, 13, 32: satellites scelerum, ministros cupiditatum, id. Prov. Cons. 3, 5: C. Mallium, audaciae satellitem atque administrum tuae, id. Cat. 1, 3, 7: voluptatum satellites et ministras, id. Fin. 2, 12, 37; cf. (opp. dominatrix), id. Inv. 1, 2, 2.