2 Numantia, destroyed by P. Scipio Africanus Minor Numantinus, 133 B.C.
3 P. Nasīca, a partisan leader of the Senate. privatus = not in office. Cicero speaks very differently of the Gracchi when it suits his purpose, e.g. in de lege agraria, ii. § 10, duos (Gracchos) clarissimos, ingeniosissimos, amantissimos plebei Romanae viros . . . quorum consiliis, sapientia, legibus multas esse video partes constitutas.
B. On the Lex Frumentaria of C. Gracchus, 123 B.C.
Et quidem C. Gracchus, cum largitiones maximas 5 fecisset et effudisset aerarium, verbis tamen defendebat aerarium. Quid verba audiam, cum facta videam? L. Piso ille Frugi semper contra legem frumentariam dixerat. Is lege lata consularis ad frumentum accipiendum venerat. Animum advertit 10 Gracchus in contione Pisonem stantem: quaerit audiente populo Romano qui sibi constet, cum ea lege frumentum petat, quam dissuaserit. ‘Nolim’ inquit ‘mea bona, Gracche, tibi viritim dividere libeat, sed si facias, partem petam.’ Parumne declaravit vir 15 gravis et sapiens lege Sempronia patrimonium publicum dissipari? Lege orationes Gracchi, patronum aerari esse dices.
8 L. Piso ille Frugi = L. Calpurnius Piso Frugi (the man of worth), a convinced and honourable opponent of C. Gracchus.
8-9 legem frumentariam, by which corn was sold to Roman citizens at about half the market price. ‘One of the worst measures ever proposed by a well-meaning statesman.’—Ihne.
12 qui = how, old abl. of qui.
C. On C. Gracchus as an Orator.
Sed ecce in manibus vir et praestantissimo ingenio et flagranti studio et doctus a puero, C. Gracchus. Noli enim putare quemquam. Brute, pleniorem et uberiorem ad dicendum fuisse.
20 doctus a puero. Cornelia mater gracchorum (inscribed upon her statue erected by the Roman people), the daughter of the Conqueror of Zama, was mainly responsible for their training and education; so Cic. Brut. 104 Fuit Tib. Gracchus diligentia matris a puero doctus et Graecis literis eruditus. ‘From her they had received that sensitive nature and that sympathy with the weak and suffering, which animated their political action.’—Ihne.
THE JUGURTHINE WAR, 111-106 B.C.
The Betrayal of Jugurtha, 106 B.C.
Postea, tempore et loco constituto, in colloquium uti de pace veniretur, Bocchus Sullam modo, modo Iugurthae legatum appellare, benigne habere, idem ambobus polliceri. Illi pariter laeti ac spei bonae pleni esse. Sed nocte ea, quae proxuma fuit ante 5 diem colloquio decretum, Maurus, adhibitis amicis ac statim immutata voluntate remotis, dicitur secum ipse multa agitavisse, voltu et oculis pariter atque animo varius: quae scilicet tacente ipso occulta pectoris patefecisse. Tamen postremo Sullam accersi 10 iubet et ex illius sententia Numidae insidias tendit. Deinde ubi dies advenit et ei nuntiatum est Iugurtham haud procul abesse, cum paucis amicis et quaestore nostro quasi obvius honoris causa procedit in tumulum facillumum visu insidiantibus. Eodem 15 Numida cum plerisque necessariis suis inermis, uti dictum erat, accedit; ac statim signo dato undique simul ex insidiis invaditur. Ceteri obtruncati, Iugurtha Suilae vinctus traditur et ab eo ad Marium deductus est. 20
2 Bocchus, King of Mauretania, and father-in-law of Jugurtha, coveted the West of Numidia, and was ready to accept it either from the Romans or from Jugurtha, as the price of his alliance.
Sullam, appointed Quaestor 107 B.C. by Marius, who superseded Metellus in the conduct of the Jugurthine War.
9 quae scilicet . . . patefecisse, i.e. the external signs of his irresolution,—the calling and then dismissing his people (adhibitis . . . remotis, ll. 6, 7), and the changes of his countenance (voltu . . . varius, ll. 8, 9). Scilicet is here used with the Infinitive patefecisse, the verbal sense of the word (= scire + licet) being prominent.
10 accersi (= arcessiri), frequent in Sallust.
16 necessariis (necesse) = friends. Cf. ἀναγκαῖοι (ἀνάγκη).
19 Iugurtha Sullae . . . traditur. Sulla is said to have been so proud of this stratagem that he had the scene engraved upon a signet-ring, an act of vainglory which estranged Marius from him. (Plutarch, Sulla, 3.)
Jugurtha. ‘Having resisted the whole power of the great Republic for six years, having kept his ground against the best generals of the time, against a Metellus, a Marius, and a Sulla, he was deluded by treacherous promises of peace and betrayed by his own ally and father-in-law.’—Ihne.
A. Arpinum—Birthplace of Cicero and Marius.
Hic novus Arpinas, ignobilis et modo Romae
Municipalis eques, galeatum ponit ubique
Praesidium attonitis et in omni monte laborat.
243. . . . . . . . . Sed Roma parentem,
Roma patrem patriae Ciceronem libera dixit.
245Arpinas alius Volscorum in monte solebat
Poscere mercedes alieno lassus aratro,
Nodosam post haec frangebat vertice vitem,
Si lentus pigra muniret castra dolabra;
Hic tamen et Cimbros et summa pericula rerum
250Excipit et solus trepidantem protegit urbem.
239 in omni monte, i.e. in every part of Rome, on each of the seven hills.
244 patrem patriae: under the Empire the title pater patriae became a formal one, always accorded to the new Emperor.
libera = while yet free, emphatic. The State was no longer free when Augustus received this title, 2 B.C.—Duff.
247 frangebat vertice vitem = he had the vine-switch (rattan) broken on his head, i.e. served as a common soldier.—D.
248 dolabra = half-hatchet for cutting stakes, and half-pickaxe for digging the fossa. For dolabra, cf. Dolabella.
249 Cimbros, annihilated by Marius and Catulus near Vercellae, 101 B.C.
250 Excipit = faced (lit. is ready to receive); metaphor from field-sports.—D.
B. From a poem by Cicero on his fellow-townsman Marius.
Hic Iovis altisoni subito pinnata satelles
Arboris e trunco serpentis saucia morsu
Surrigit ipsa feris transfigens unguibus anguem
Semianimum et varia graviter cervice micantem.
.......
Hanc ubi praepetibus pennis lapsuque volantem
Conspexit Marius, divini numinis augur,
Faustaque signa suae laudis reditusque notavit,
Partibus intonuit caeli pater ipse sinistris:
Sic aquilae clarum firmavit Iuppiter omen.
1 Iovis pinnata satelles, i.e. the Eagle. Cf. Pindar, Pyth. i. 6: εὕδει δ’ ἀνὰ σκάπτῳ (= σκήπτρῳ) Διὸς αἰετός, and sleeps on the staff of Zeus his eagle.
3 Surrigit (= surgit) = raises up; very rare in this sense. The v.l. Sūbigit (for sŭbigit) = carries aloft.
Compare Plutarch’s story of the eagle’s nest, with seven young ones in it, which fell into the lap of Marius when a boy, predicting (so the diviners said) that Marius would be seven times Consul.
The Annihilation of the Teutones at Aquae Sextiae, 102 B.C.
Cimbri et Teutones ab extremis Germaniae profugi, cum terras eorum inundasset Oceanus, novas sedes toto orbe quaerebant, exclusique et Gallia et Hispania cum in Italiam demigrarent, misere legatos in castra Silani, inde ad Senatum 5 petentes ut populus Martius aliquid sibi terrae daret. Sed quas daret terras populus Romanus, agrariis legibus inter se dimicaturus? Repulsi igitur, quod nequiverant precibus, armis petere coeperunt. Sed nec primum impetum barbarorum Silanus, nec 10 secundum Mallius, nec tertium Caepio sustinere potuerunt: omnes fugati, exuti castris. Actum erat, nisi Marius illi saeculo contigisset. . . . Ille mira statim velocitate occupatis compendiis praevenit hostem, prioresque Teutones sub ipsis Alpium radicibus 15 adsecutus in loco quem Aquas Sextias vocant, proelio oppressit. Vallem fluviumque medium hostes tenebant, et nostris aquarum nulla erat copia. Consultone id egerit imperator an errorem in consilium verterit, dubium; certe necessitate acta virtus 20 victoriae causa fuit. Nam flagitante aquam exercitu, ‘Si viri estis’ inquit, ‘en, illic habetis.’ Itaque tanto ardore pugnatum est, ea caedes hostium fuit ut victor Romanus cruento flumine non plus aquae biberit quam sanguinis barbarorum. 25
5 Silani = M. Junius Silanus, defeated by Cimbri, 109 B.C.
11 Mallius—Caepio, defeated by Cimbrians at Arausio, on the Rhone, 105 B.C.
Plutarch, Lucullus 27, says: ‘The 6th Oct., on which day the battle was fought, was marked in the calendar as a black day, like the fatal day of the Allia, 390 B.C.’
12 Actum erat, sc. de republica.
14 compendiis = short ways; cf. our compendium = an abridgement.
16 Aquas Sextias, founded by Sextius Calvinus 122 B.C. = Aix, 18 miles N. of Marseilles.
23 caedes hostium. 150,000 (Vell.) and 200,000 (Liv. Ep. lxviii.).
‘By the great victories of Aquae Sextiae and of Vercellae (over the Cimbri, 101 B.C.), the movement of the German races southward was for the present stopped. Rome was saved, and the saviour of Rome was Marius, the champion of the people.’—Ihne.
Parallel Passages. Propert. IV. iii. 41-44; Livy Ep. lxviii.
References. Plutarch, Marius, 15. Ihne, Hist. Rome, vol. v. pp. 98-105.
MARIUS, 157-86 B.C.
A. His Flight from Sulla: Consul for the 7th time.
Atque aliquis magno quaerens exempla timori,
‘Non alios,’ inquit, ‘motus tum fata parabant,
Cum post Teutonicos victor Libycosque triumphos
70Exsul limosa Marius caput abdidit ulva.
Stagna avidi texere soli laxaeque paludes
Depositum, Fortuna, tuum: mox vincula ferri
Exedere senem longusque in carcere paedor.
Consul et eversa felix moriturus in urbe
75Poenas ante dabat scelerum. Mors ipsa refugit
Saepe virum, frustraque hosti concessa potestas.
Sanguinis invisi: primo qui caedis in ictu*
Deriguit ferrumque manu torpente remisit;
Viderat immensum tenebroso in carcere lumen
80Terribilesque deos scelerum Mariumque futurum
Audieratque pavens: “Fas haec contingere non est
Colla tibi: debet multas his legibus aevi
Ante suam mortes: vanum depone furoremi.”
Si libet ulcisci deletae funera gentis,
85Hunc, Cimbri, servate senem.’
* Postgate, actu.
67 exempla timori = precedents to hear out his fears.—Haskins.
70 Exsul. 88-7 B.C. For details see Plut. Marius, caps. 38-40.
72 Fortuna, i.e. the evil destiny of Rome, protecting him because the gods were angry with Rome. Cf. 82-83 debet . . . mortes.
73 in carcere, i.e. at Minturnae, S.E. of Latium. There were extensive marshes in the neighbourhood.
paedor = filth.
82 legibus aevi = the laws that govern time = fatis.—H.
B. Marius outlived his fame.
Quid illo cive tulisset
Natura in terris, quid Roma beatius umquam,
280Si circumducto captivorum agmine et omni
Bellorum pompa animam exhalasset opimam,
Cum de Teutonico vellet descendere curru?
Marius outlived his powers and his reputation.
‘Had he now died, he would have gone down to posterity as one of the greatest men of his people, as a second Romulus or Camillus, unstained with any blood save that of foreign foes.’—Ihne.
Parallel Passages. Ov. P. Ep. iv. 3. 45-48; Juv. x. 276-278.
References. Plut. Marius, caps. 38-end. Ihne, vol. iv. pp. 336-7, vol. v. pp. 111-12.
Cicero on Civil Strife.
Etenim recordamini, Quirites, omnes civiles dissensiones, non solum eas quas audistis, sed et has quas vosmetipsi meministis atque vidistis. L. Sulla P. Sulpicium oppressit: ex Urbe eiecit C. Marium, custodem huius urbis, multosque fortes viros partim 5 eiecit ex civitate, partim interemit. Cn. Octavius consul armis ex Urbe collegam suum expulit: omnis his locus acervis corporum et civium sanguine redundavit. Superavit postea Cinna cum Mario: tum vero, clarissimis viris interfectis, lumina civitatis 10 exstincta sunt. Ultus est huius victoriae crudelitatem postea Sulla: ne dici quidem opus est, quanta deminutione civium et quanta calamitate reipublicae. . . . Atque illae tamen omnes dissensiones, quae non ad delendam, sed ad commutandam rempublicam 15 pertinebant—non illi nullam esse rempublicam, sed in ea quae esset se esse principes, neque hanc urbem conflagrare, sed se in hac urbe florere voluerunt—eius modi fuerunt, ut non reconciliatione concordiae, sed internecione civium diiudicatae sint. 20
4 P. Sulpicium, distinguished orator, bought over by Marius. As Tribunus Plebis 88 B.C. carried the Leges Sulpiciae.
6 Cn. Octavius, one of Sulla’s chief supporters. Consul 87 B.C. Expelled his colleague Cinna. Murdered in his curule chair.
9-11 Superavit . . . exstincta sunt, i.e. 87-6 B.C. The Reign of Terror. Marius Consul for the 7th time. Cf. Vell. Pat. ii. 22 ‘Nihil illa victoria fuisset crudelius, nisi mox Sullana esset secuta.’
10 lumina civitatis, e.g. the Consuls Cn. Octavius and L. Merula; Q. Catulus, the conqueror (with Marius) in the Cimbric War; the orator M. Antonius; the brothers L. and C. Caesar.
11-13 The victims of the Sullanian proscriptions. Cf. Vell. Pat. ii. 28 ‘Primus ille (Sulla), et utinam ultimus, exemplum proscriptionis invenit.’
Parallel Passages. Horace, Epodes vii. and xvi. 1-14.
The Sullanian Proscriptions. Sulla was not like Marius swayed by feelings of revenge alone. His main object was the public good, which in his conviction was to be realised by a return to the older institutions of the republic. This he believed could be accomplished only by the utter annihilation of his opponents. The Proscriptions were not however intended to be an encouragement to indiscriminate murder, but rather a barrier against the rage of over-zealous partisans.
Tribunate of M. Livius Drusus, 91 B.C.
Deinde interiectis paucis annis tribunatum iniit M. Livius Drusus, vir nobilissimus, eloquentissimus, sanetissimus, meliore in omnia ingenio animoque quam fortuna usus. Qui cum senatui priscum restituere cuperet decus et indicia ab equitibus ad 5 eum transferre ordinem . . . in eis ipsis, quae pro senatu moliebatur, senatum habuit adversarium non intellegentem, si qua de plebis commodis ab eo agerentur, veluti illiciendae multitudinis causa fieri, ut minoribus perceptis maiora permitteret. Denique 10 ea fortuna Drusi fuit, ut malefacta collegarum quamvis optime ab ipso cogitatis senatus probaret magis. . . . Tum conversus Drusi animus, quando bene incepta male cedebant, ad dandam civitatem Italiae: quod cum moliens revertisset e foro, immensa 15 illa et incondita, quae eum semper comitabatur, cinctus multitudine in area domus suae cultello percussus, qui affixus lateri eius relictus est, intra paucas horas decessit. Sed cum ultimum redderet spiritum, intuens circumstantium macrentiumque 20 frequentiam, effudit vocem convenientissimam conscientiae suae: ecquandone, inquit, propinqui amicique, similem mei civem habebit res publica? Hunc finem clarissimus iuvenis vitae habuit.
3-4 Drusus. ‘Generous and free from all selfishness and meanness, but without political experience, adroitness and knowledge of men, he aspired to a task which surpassed his strength.’—Ihne.
4-6 By the Sempronian Laws of C. Gracchus 123 B.C. exclusive judicial rights had been given to the Equites, as a counterpoise to the power of the Senate. The corruption of the Equites (as Judices) was flagrant, and Drusus proposed to transfer the judicial functions to a mixed body of 300 Senators and 300 Knights, the selected Knights to be included in the now attenuated ranks of the Senate.
14 ad dandam civitatem Italiae. The claims of the Italians to the franchise were just and pressing, but the overbearing pride and self-sufficiency of the Roman citizens proved too strong.
Parallel Passages. Cic. de Oratore iii. 1, and pro Cluent. 56, 153. Florus, iii. 18.
Reference. Ihne, Hist. vol. v. pp. 176-189.
‘Drusus was the Mirabeau of the social revolution of Rome, and had his measures been carried Rome might have been spared the most terrible of her civil wars.’
THE SOCIAL OR MARSIC WAR, 91-88 B.C. (1)
A. Cause and Outbreak of the War at Asculum.
Cum ius civitatis, quam viribus auxerant, socii iustissime postularent, quam in spem eos cupidine dominationis Drusus erexerat, postquam ille domestico scelere oppressus est, eadem fax, quae illum cremavit, socios in arma et in expugnationem urbis 5 accendit. . . . Primum fuit belli consilium ut in Albano monte festo die Latinarum Iulius Caesar et Marcius Philippus consules inter sacra et aras immolarentur. Postquam id nefas proditione discussum est, Asculo furor omnis erupit, in ipsa quidem ludorum 10 frequentia trucidatis qui tum aderant ab urbe legatis. Hoc fuit impii belli sacramentum. Inde iam passim ab omni parte Italiae duce et auctore belli discursante Poppaedio diversa per populos et urbes signa cecinere. 15
2 iustissime. ‘The final issue of the war confirmed the justice and the wisdom of the reforms planned by the Gracchi and by Livius Drusus.’—Ihne.
7 Latinarum, sc. Feriarum, the solemn festival conducted by the Consuls on the Alban Mount.
10 Asculo. Asculum (Ascoli), chief town of Picenum. The opening and closing scene of the war.
B. Advice of the Sabellian father to his sons.
‘Vivite contenti casulis et collibus istis,
180O pueri,’ Marsus dicebat et Hernicus olim
Vestinusque senex, ‘panem quaeramus aratro,
Qui satis est mensis: laudant hoc numina ruris,
Quorum ope et auxilio gratae post munus aristae
Contingunt homini veteris fastidia quercus.
185Nil vetitum fecisse volet, quem non pudet alto
Per glaciem perone tegi, qui summovet Euros
Pellibus inversis; peregrina ignotaque nobis
Ad scelus atque nefas, quaecumque est, purpura ducit.’
179 collibus istis, i.e. in the central mountain range of Italy. The Federals chose Corfinium (E. of Lake Fucinus) to be the Italian rallying-point, and the seat of a new State.
180-181 Marsus . . . Hernicus . . . Vestinus, Sabellian peoples noted for their bravery and simplicity; the backbone of Rome’s army.
182 numina ruris, e.g. Ceres, Liber and Priapus.
185-186 alto perone = a high rustic boot of raw hide.
187 pellibus inversis = skins with the hair turned inwards.—Duff.
THE SOCIAL OR MARSIC WAR, 91-88 B.C. (2)
A. Defeat and Death of Rutilius.
Hanc tibi, ‘Quo properas’, memorant dixisse ‘Rutili?
Luce mea Marso consul ab hoste cades.’
Exitus accessit verbis, flumenque Toleni
566Purpureum mixtis sanguine fluxit aquis.
563 Hanc, sc. Leucothea, goddess of the sea and of harbours.
Rutili. Rutilius, consul 90 B.C., defeated and slain at the R. Tolenus (Turano) by the Marsian Vettius Scato.
B. The Lex Plautia Papiria of 89 B.C.
Data est civitas Silvani lege et Carbonis: si qui 5 foederatis civitatibus ascripti fuissent, si tum, cum lex ferebatur, in Italia domicilium habuissent et si sexaginta diebus apud praetorem essent professi.
5 lege, i.e. the Lex Plautia Papiria of the tribines M. Plautius Silvanus and C. Papirius Carbo. The Lex Julia of L. Julius Caesar 90 B.C., granting the civitas to the Latins and to all the other Italian States not in rebellion, had weakened the resistance. The Lex Plautia Papiria ‘scattered among the Italian ranks the seeds of discord and dissolution.’
C. Cicero’s first and only Campaign.
Memini colloquia et cum acerrimis hostibus et cum gravissime dissidentibus civibus. Cn. Pompeius, 10 consul me praesente, cum essem tiro in eius exercitu, cum P. Vettio Scatone, duce Marsorum, inter bina castra collocutus est. . . . Quem cum Scato salutasset, ‘quem te appellem?’ inquit: ‘voluntate hospitem, necessitate hostem.’ Erat in colloquio aequitas: 15 nullus timor, nulla suberat suspicio; mediocre etiam odium. Non enim, ut eriperent nobis socii civitatem, sed ut in eam reciperentur petebant.
D. The battle near Asculum, and capture of the city.
Strabo vero Pompeius omnia flammis ferroque populatus non prius finem caedium fecit quam Asculi 20 eversione manibus tot exercituum consulum direptarumque urbium dis litaretur.
20 Asculi eversione. The siege was memorable for the desperate patriotism of the besieged under their leader Judacilius, cf. siege of Saguntum.
Reference. Ihne, Hist. vol. v. pp. 190-220.
L. CORNELIUS SULLA, 138-78 B.C.
His Character and Bearing.
Igitur Sulla gentis patriciae nobilis fuit, familia prope iam exstincta maiorum ignavia, litteris Graecis et Latinis iuxta atque doctissimi eruditus, animo ingenti, cupidus voluptatum sed gloriae cupidior: tamen ab negotiis numquam voluptas remorata; 5 facundus callidus et amicitia facilis, ad simulanda negotia altitudo ingeni incredibilis, multarum rerum ac maxumae pecuniae largitor. Atque illi, felicissumo omnium ante civilem victoriam, numquam super industriam fortuna fuit, multique dubitavere fortior 10 an felicior esset. Nam postea quae fecerit, incertum habeo pudeat an pigeat magis disserere. Igitur Sulla, uti supra dictum est, postquam in Africam atque in castra Mari cum equitatu venit, rudis antea et ignarus belli, solertissumus omnium in paucis 15 tempestatibus factus est. Ad hoc milites benigne appellare, multis rogantibus aliis per se ipse dare beneficia, invitus accipere, sed ea properantius quam aes mutuum reddere, ipse ab nullo repetere, magis id laborare ut illi quam plurimi deberent, ioca atque 20 seria cum humillumis agere, in operibus in agmine atque ad vigilias multus adesse neque interim, quod prava ambitio solet, consulis aut cuiusquam boni famam laedere, tantum modo neque consilio neque manu priorem alium pati, plerosque antevenire. 25
1 nobilis, i.e. of a patrician family which had held curule offices.
1-2 familia . . . exstincta. The Cornelii were a distinguished gens in early times and included 7 patrician families (e.g. the Lentuli and Scipios). Of these the Sullae were the least known.
2-3 litteris Graecis . . . eruditus. Contrast the proud boast of Marius:—‘I have learnt no Greek: in the knowledge, however, which is far the most important for the State, I am a master.’—Sall. Jug. 85.
9 ante civilem victoriam, i.e. before 81 B.C.
10-11 fortior an felicior. Sulla assumed the name Felix on the death of the younger Marius 82 B.C. Cf. Plut. Sulla, cap. vi.
11-12 Nam postea . . . disserere. Cf. Vell. Patere. II. xvii. 2: ‘Sulla vir qui neque ad finem victoriae satis laudari neque post victoriam abunde vituperari potest.’
20 illi more strictly sibi—‘a negligence not unfrequent.’—Merivale.
22 multus adesse = frequently visited, multus = saepe.
For character of Sulla cf. Plut. Sulla, and Mommsen, iv. pp. 139-142: ‘One of the most marvellous characters in history.’
MITHRIDATES THE GREAT, 130-63 B.C.
A. His Youth and Early Training.
Huius futuram magnitudinem etiam caelestia ostenta praedixerant. Nam et eo, quo genitus est, anno, et eo, quo regnare primum coepit, stella cometes per utrumque tempus LXX diebus ita luxit, ut caelum omne conflagrare videretur. Puer tutorum insidias 5 passus est, qui eum fero equo impositum equitare iacularique cogebant: qui conatus cum eos fefellissent, supra aetatem regente equum Mithridate, veneno eum appetivere. Veritus deinde, ne inimici, quod veneno non potuerant, ferro peragerent, venandi 10 studium finxit, quo per septem annos neque urbano neque rustico tecto usus est, sed per silvas vagatus, diversis montium regionibus pernoctabat ignaris omnibus, quibus esset locis; adsuetus feras cursu aut fugere aut persequi, cum quibusdam etiam viribus 15 congredi. Quibus rebus et insidias vitavit, et corpus ad omnem virtutis patientiam duravit.
1 Huius. Mithridates (Mithras = Persian sun-god) ‘second only to Hannibal in inextinguishable, life-long hostility to Rome, as also in military genius.’ Ihne.
5 tutorum = (at the hands) of his guardians. Cf. tueor.
17 ad omnem virtutis patientiam = to all manly endurance.
B. His Preparations for Conquest.
Ad regni deinde administrationem cum accessisset, statim non de regendo, sed de augendo regno cogitavit. Itaque Scythas invictos antea ingenti 20 felicitate perdomuit. Hieme deinde appetente, non in convivio, sed in campo, nec in avocationibus, nec inter sodales, sed inter aequales, aut equo aut cursu aut viribus contendebat. Exercitum quoque suum ad parem laboris patientiam cotidiana exercitatione 25 durabat, atque ita invictus ipse inexpugnabilem exercitum fecerat.
19 de augendo regno. He subdued all the coast districts of the Euxine, East, North and West, as far as the Hister (Danube).
22 avocationibus = in diversions (very rare).
24 exercitum. At the outbreak of the War with Rome, 88 B.C., he had collected a motley force of 250,000 foot and 40,000 horse.
Mithridates. ‘With one blow he overthrew the Roman dominion in Asia, carried the war into Europe, united almost the whole Eastern world in an attack on the Republic, and resisted for 25 years the first generals of his time,—a Sulla, a Lucullus, and a Pompeius.’—Ihne.
Historic Parallels. Alexander, Hannibal, Peter the Great.
FIRST MITHRIDATIC WAR, 88-84 B.C. (1)
The Battle of Chaeronea, 86 B.C.
Brilliant Tactics of Sulla.
Archelaus adversus L. Sullam in fronte ad perturbandum hostem falcatas quadrigas locavit, in secunda acie phalangem Macedonicam, in tertia Romanorum more armatos auxiliares, mixtis fugitivis Italicae gentis, quorum pervicaciae plurimum fidebat; 5 levem armaturam in ultimo statuit; in utroque deinde latere equitatum, cuius amplum numerum habebat, circumeundi hostis causa posuit. Contra haec Sulla fossas amplae latitudinis utroque latere duxit et capitibus earum castella communiit: qua 10 ratione, ne circuiretur ab hoste et peditum numero et maxime equitatu superante, consecutus est. Triplicem deinde peditum aciem ordinavit relictis intervallis per quae levem armaturam et equitem, quem in novissimo conlocaverat, cum res exegisset, emitteret. 15 Tum postsignanis qui in secunda acie erant imperavit ut densos numerososque palos firme in terram defigerent, intraque eos appropinquantibus quadrigis antesignanorum aciem recepit: tum demum sublato universorum clamore velites et levem armaturam 20 ingerere tela iussit. Quibus factis quadrigae hostium aut implicitae palis aut exterritae clamore telisque in suos conversae sunt turbaveruntque Macedonum structuram: qua cedente, cum Sulla instaret et Archelaus equitem opposuisset, Romani equites 25 subito emissi averterunt eos consummaverantque victoriam.
1 Archelaus (and his brother Neoptolemus) ‘trained in the traditions and experience of Greek and Macedonian masters.’
2 falcatas quadrigras. Archelaus had 60 of these chariots armed with scythes projecting. Cf. Livy xxxvii. 41.
5 pervicaciae = steadfastness (per + vic; cf. vinco).
11-12 qua ratione . . . consecutus est. Sulla had about 30,000 men (15,000 Romans only) against 120,000.
23 turbaverunt. ‘The war-chariots on this as on other occasions (e.g. at Magnesia) had not only proved a failure, but had actually led to a partial disaster.’—Ihne. Cf. use of war elephants, e.g. at Beneventum 275 B.C. and at Zama 202 B.C.
27 victoriam. It was a great victory, but the results were trifling, partly because Sulla had no fleet, and partly because his political enemies at Rome were bent on crippling him.
Historic Parallel. The Battle of Magnesia 190 B.C.
FIRST MITHRIDATIC WAR, 88-84 B.C. (2)
A. Capture of Athens and the Piraeus, 86 B.C.
Sulla interim cum Mithridatis praefectis circa Athenas ita dimicavit, ut et Athenas reciperet et plurimo circa multiplices Piraei portus munitiones labore expleto amplius CC milia hostium interficeret nec minus multa caperet. . . . Nam oppressi (Athenienses) 5 Mithridatis armis homines miserrimae condicionis cum ab inimicis tenerentur, oppugnabantur ab amicis et animos extra moenia, corpora necessitati servientes intra muros habebant.
2 ut Athenas reciperet. Sulla reduced the city by starvation.
3 Piraei portus. This was strongly held by Archelaus, and was taken only after a most obstinate defence.
7 cum . . . tenerentur. The contemptible adventurer Aristion, with his bodyguard of 2000 men and the bribe of Delos and its treasure, had made himself master of Athens.
B.
Battle of Orchomenus, 85 B.C.
Sulla restores the Fight.
L. Sulla, cedentibus iam legionibus exercitui 10 Mithridatico ductu Archelai, stricto gladio in primam aciem procucurrit appellansque milites dixit, si quis quaesisset, ubi imperatorem reliquissent, responderent pugnantem in Boeotia: cuius rei pudore universi eum secuti sunt. 15
10-15 = ‘The great victory at Orchomenus was the turning-point in the War.’—Ihne.
C.
Peace of Dardanus.
End of the First Mithridatic War, 84 B.C.
Transgressus deinde in Asiam Sulla parentem ad omnia supplicemque Mithridatem invenit, quem multatum pecunia ac parte navium, Asia omnibusque aliis provinciis, quas armis occupaverat, decedere coegit, captivos recepit, in perfugas noxiosque 20 animadvertit, paternis, id est Ponticis finibus contentum esse iussit.
16-22 The terms of peace were (i) Restoration of all conquests, (ii) Surrender of 80 ships and of all prisoners, (iii) Indemnity of 3000 talents. Florus says ‘Non fregit ea res Ponticos, sed incendit.’ Sulla was anxious to secure peace, because his presence was needed at Rome.
Sulla’s Conduct of the War. ‘No previous general had shown so great a mastery of the art of war and such care and interest for the welfare of the State, as distinguished from the success of a party.’—Ihne.
SECOND CIVIL WAR, 83-82 B.C. (1)
Battles of Sacriportus and the Colline Gate.
Iam quot apud Sacri cecidere cadavera Portum
135Aut Collina tulit stratas quot porta catervas,
Tum cum, paene caput mundi rerumque potestas
Mutavit translata locum, Romanaque Samnis
Ultra Caudinas speravit volnera Furcas.
134 apud Sacriportum, near Praeneste, where Sulla totally defeated the Marians, under the younger Marius, 82 B.C.
135 Collina Porta, i.e. N.E. gate of Rome near the Collis Quirinalis.
138 paene, with mutavit, l. 137.
B. At Pontius Telesinus, dux Samnitium, vir animi bellique fortissimus penitusque Romano nomini infestissimus, contractis circiter XL milibus fortissimae pertinacissimaeque in retinendis armis iuventutis Kal. Novembribus ita ad portam Collinam cum Sulla 10 dimicavit, ut ad summum discrimen et eum et rempublicam perduceret, quae non maius periculum adiit Hannibalis intra tertium miliarium conspicata castra, quam eo die, quo circumvolans ordines exercitus sui Telesinus dictitansque adesse Romanis ultimum 15 diem vociferabatur eruendam delendamque urbem, adiciens numquam deluturos raptores Italicae libertatis lupos, nisi silva, in quam refugere solerent, esset excisa. Post primam demum horam noctis et Romana acies respiravit et hostium cessit. Telesinus 20 postera die semianimis repertus est, victoris magis quam morientis vultum praeferens, cuius abscisum caput ferro figi gestarique circa Praeneste Sulla iussit.
6 Pontius Telesinus, ‘a kinsman in name and temper of the hero of 321 B.C.’
12-14 quae . . . castra. ‘As Hannibal had tried to relieve the closely pressed Capua by a direct attack on Rome, Pontius Telesinus thought to draw off the besieging army from Praeneste by threatening the Capital.’—Ihne.
20 Romana acies respiravit. Sulla, with the left wing, was driven back by the Samnites to the walls of Rome, but Crassus with the right wing was completely victorious, and to him the final victory was due.
‘The issue of the whole war, at least on Italian ground, was decided by the battle of the Colline Gate.’—Ihne.
SECOND CIVIL WAR, 83-82 B.C. (2)
A.
Death of the Younger Marius.
Sulla Felix.
Tum demum desperatis rebus suis C. Marius adulescens per cuniculos, qui miro opere fabricati in diversas agrorum partes fuerunt, conatus erumpere, cum foramine e terra emersisset, a dispositis in id ipsum interemptus est. . . . De quo iuvene quid 5 existimaverit Sulla, in promptu est; occiso enim demum eo Felicis nomen adsumpsit, quod quidem usurpasset iustissime, si eundem et vincendi et vivendi finem habuisset.