CHAPTER V
Origin of the Social War--Measures of Livius Drusus--Murder of Drusus --
Continued Seditions -- Revolt of the Italians -- The Social War--Leaders
on Either Side--Various Battles--The Consul Rutilius killed
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While they were thus occupied the so-called Social War, in which many Italian
peoples were engaged, broke out. It began unexpectedly, grew to great
proportions rapidly, and extinguished the Roman seditions for a long time by
a new terror. When it was ended it gave rise to new seditions under more
powerful leaders, who did not work by introducing new laws, or by playing
the demagogue, but by employing whole armies against each other. I have
treated it in this history because it had its origin in a Roman sedition and
resulted in another one much worse.
It began in this way. Fulvius Flaccus in
his consulship
first openly excited among the
Italians the desire for Roman citizenship, so as to be partners in the
hegemony instead of subjects. When he introduced this idea and strenuously
persisted in it, the Senate, for that reason, sent him away to take command
in a war, in the course of which his consulship expired, but he obtained the
tribuneship after that and managed to have the younger Gracchus for a
colleague, with whose coöperation he brought forward other measures
in favor of the Italians. When they were both killed, as I have previously
related, the Italians were still more excited. They could not bear to be
considered subjects instead of equals, or to think that Flaccus and Gracchus
should suffer such calamities while working for their political advantage.
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After them the tribune Livius Drusus, a man of most
illustrious birth, promised the Italians, at their urgent request, that he
would bring forward a new law to give them citizenship. They desired this
especially because by that one step they would become rulers instead of
subjects. In order to conciliate the plebeians to this measure he led out to
Italy and
Sicily several colonies which had been
voted some time before, but not yet planted. He endeavored to bring to an
agreement the Senate and the equestrian order, who were then in sharp
antagonism to each other, in reference to the law courts. As he was not able
to restore the courts to the Senate openly, he tried the following artifice
on both of them. As the senators had been reduced by the seditions to
scarcely 300 in number, he brought forward a law that an equal number should
be added to their enrolment from the knights, to be chosen according to
merit, and that the law courts should be made up from all of these
hereafter. He provided in the law that they should make investigations about
bribery, as accusations of that kind were almost unknown, since the custom
of bribe-taking prevailed without restraint. This was the plan that he
contrived for both of them, but it turned out contrary to his expectations,
for the senators were indignant that so large a number should be added to
their enrolment at one time and be transferred from knighthood to the
highest rank. They thought it not unlikely that they would form a faction in
the Senate by themselves and contend against the old senators more
powerfully than ever. The knights, on the other hand, suspected that, by
this doctoring, the courts of justice would be transferred from their order
to the Senate exclusively. Having acquired a relish for the great gains and
power of the judicial office, this suspicion disturbed them. Most of them
fell into doubt and distrust toward each other, discussing which ones seemed
more worthy than others to be enrolled among the 300; and envy against their
betters filled the breasts of the remainder. Above all were they angry at
the revival of the charge of bribery, which they thought had been ere this
entirely suppressed, so far as they were concerned.
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Thus it came to pass that both the Senate and the knights, although opposed
to each other, were united in hating Drusus. Only the plebeians were
gratified with the colonies. The Italians, in whose interest chiefly Drusus
was devising these plans, were apprehensive about the law providing for the
colonies, because they thought that the Roman public domain (which was still
undivided and which they were cultivating, some by force and others
clandestinely) would be taken away from them, and that in many cases they
might even be disturbed in their private holdings. The Etruscans and the
Umbrians had the same fears as the Italians,
1 and when they were
summoned to the city, as it was thought, by the consuls, ostensibly for the
purpose of complaining against the law of Drusus, but actually, as is
believed, for the purpose of killing him, they cried down the law publicly
and waited for the day of the comitia. Drusus learned of the plot against
him and did not go out frequently, but transacted business from day to day
in the atrium of his house, which was poorly lighted. One evening as he was
sending the crowd away he exclaimed suddenly that he was wounded, and fell
down while uttering the words. A shoemaker's knife was found thrust into his
hip.
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Thus was Drusus also slain while serving as tribune. The knights, in order to
make his policy a ground of accusation against their enemies, persuaded the
tribune Quintus Varius to bring forward a law to prosecute those who should,
either openly or secretly, aid the Italians to acquire citizenship. They
hoped to bring all the leaders under malicious indictment, and themselves to
sit in judgment on them, and that when their enemies were out of the way
they should be more powerful than ever in the government of
Rome. When the other tribunes interposed
their veto the knights surrounded them with drawn daggers and enacted the
measure, whereupon accusers at once brought actions against the most
illustrious of the senators. Of these Bestia did not respond, but went into
exile voluntarily rather than surrender himself into the hands of his
enemies. After him Cotta went before the court, made a brilliant defence of
his administration of public affairs, and openly reviled the knights. He,
too, departed from the city before the vote of the judges was taken.
Mummius, the one who had conquered
Greece, was basely ensnared by the knights, who promised to
acquit him, but condemned him to banishment. He passed the remainder of his
life at
Delos.
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As this wickedness prevailed more and more against the best citizens, the
people were grieved because they were deprived all at once of so many men
who had rendered such great services. When the Italians learned of the
killing of Drusus and of the reason alleged for banishing the others, they
considered it no longer bearable that those who were laboring for their
political advancement should suffer such outrages, and as they saw no other
means of acquiring citizenship they decided to revolt from the Romans
altogether, and to make war against them with all their might. They sent
envoys to each other secretly, formed a league, and exchanged hostages as a
pledge of good faith. The Romans were in ignorance of these facts for a long
time, being preoccupied by the judicial proceedings and the seditions in the
city. When they heard what was going on they sent men around to the towns,
choosing those who were best acquainted with each, to collect information
quietly. One of these saw a young man who was being taken as a hostage from
the town of
Asculum to another
town, and informed Servilius, the proconsul in those parts. (It appears that
there were proconsuls at that time governing the various parts of
Italy; Hadrian revived the custom a long
time afterward when he held the supreme power, but it did not long survive
him.) Servilius hastened to
Asculum and indulged in very menacing language to the
people, who were celebrating a festival, and they put him to death,
supposing that the plot was discovered. They also killed Fonteius, his
legate (for so they call those of the senatorial order who accompany the
governors of provinces as assistants). After these were slain none of the
other Romans in
Asculum were
spared. The inhabitants fell upon them, slaughtered them all, and plundered
their goods.
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When the revolt broke out all the neighboring peoples showed their
preparedness at the same time, the Marsi, the Peligni, the Vestini, the
Marrucini; and after them the Picentines, the Frentani, the Hirpini, the
Pompeiians, the Venusini, the Apulians, the Lucanians, and
the Samnites, all of whom had been hostile to the
Romans before; also all the rest extending from the river Liris (which is
now, I think, the Liternus) to the extremity of the Adriatic gulf, both
inland and sea-coast. They sent ambassadors to
Rome to complain that although they had coöperated
in all ways with the Romans in building up the empire, the latter had not
been willing to admit their helpers to citizenship. The Senate answered
sternly that if they repented of what they had done they could send
ambassadors, otherwise not. The Italians, in despair of any other remedy,
went on with their preparations for war. Besides the soldiers which were
kept for guards at each town, they had forces in common amounting to about
100,000 foot and horse. The Romans sent an equal force against them, made up
of their own citizens and of the Italian peoples who were still in alliance
with them.
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The Romans were led by the consuls Sextus Julius Cæsar and Publius
Rutilius Lupus, for in this great civil war both consuls marched forth at
once, leaving the gates and walls in charge of others, as was customary in
cases of danger arising at home or very near by. When the war was found to
be complicated and many-sided, they sent their most renowned men as
lieutenant-generals to aid the consuls: to Rutilius, Gnæus
Pompeius, the father of Pompey the Great, Quintus Cæpio, Gaius
Perpenna, Gaius Marius, and Valerius Messala; to Sextus Cæsar,
Publius Lentulus, a brother of Cæsar himself, Titus Didius,
Licinius Crassus, Cornelius Sulla, and Marcellus. All these served under the
consuls and the country was divided among them. The consuls visited all
parts of the field of operations, and the Romans sent them additional forces
continually, knowing that it was a great conflict. The Italians had generals
for their united forces besides those of the separate towns. The chief
commanders were Titus Lafrenius, Gaius Pontilius, Marius Egnatius, Quintus
Pompædius, Gaius Papius, Marcus Lamponius, Gaius Judacilius,
Herius Asinius, and Vettius Cato. They divided their army in equal parts,
took their positions against the Roman generals, performed many notable
exploits, and suffered many disasters. The most memorable events of each
class I shall here summarize.
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Vettius Cato defeated Sextus Julius, killed 2000 of his men, and marched
against Æsernia, which adhered to Rome. L. Scipio and L. Acilius,
who were in command here, escaped in the disguise of slaves. The enemy,
after a considerable time, reduced it by famine. Marius Egnatius captured
Venafrum by treachery and slew two Roman cohorts there. Publius Presenteius
defeated Perpenna, who had 10,000 men under his command, killed 4000 and
captured the arms of the greater part of the others, for which reason the
consul Rutilius deprived Perpenna of his command and gave his division of
the army to Gaius Marius. Marcus Lamponius destroyed some 800 of the forces
under Licinius Crassus and drove the remainder into the town of Grumentum.
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Gaius Papius captured Nola by treachery and offered to the 2000 Roman
soldiers in it the privilege of serving under him if they would change their
allegiance. They did so, but as their officers refused the proposal the
latter were taken prisoners and starved to death by Papius. In conjunction
with Stabias he captured Minturnæ, and Salernum, which was a Roman
colony. The prisoners and the slaves from these places were taken into the
military service. Then he plundered the entire country around Nuceria. The
towns in the vicinity were struck with terror and submitted to him, and when
he demanded military assistance they furnished him about 10,000 foot and
1000 horse. With these Papius laid siege to Acerræ. Sextus
Cæsar, with 10,000 Gallic foot and certain Numidian and
Mauretanian horse and foot, advanced toward Acerræ. Papius took a
son of Jugurtha, formerly king of Numidia, named Oxynta, who was under
charge of a Roman guard at Venusia, led him out of that place, clothed him
in royal purple, and showed him frequently to the Numidians who were in
Cæsar's army. Many of them deserted, as if to their own king, so
that Cæsar was obliged to send the rest back to Africa, as they
were not trustworthy. Papius attacked him rashly, and had already made a
breach in his fortified camp when Cæsar debouched with his horse
through the other gates and slew about 6000 of his men, after which
Cæsar withdrew from Acerræ. Canusia and Venusia and many
other towns in Apulia sided with Judacilius. Some that did not submit he
besieged, and he put to death the principal Roman citizens in them, but the
common people and the slaves he enrolled in his army.
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The consul Rutilius and Gaius Marius built bridges over the river Liris at no
great distance from each other. Vettius Cato pitched his camp opposite them,
but nearer to the bridge of Marius, and placed an ambush by night in some
ravines around the bridge of Rutilius. Early in the morning, after he had
allowed Rutilius to cross the bridge, he started up from ambush and killed a
large number of the enemy on the dry land and drove many into the river. In
this fight Rutilius himself was wounded in the head by a missile and died
soon afterward. Marius was on the other bridge and when he guessed, from the
bodies floating down stream, what had happened, he pushed away those in his
front, crossed the river, and captured the camp of Cato, which was guarded
by only a small force, so that Cato was obliged to spend the night where he
had won his victory, and to retreat in the morning for want of provisions.
The body of Rutilius and those of many other patricians were brought to Rome
for burial. The corpses of the consul and his numerous comrades made a
piteous spectacle and the mourning lasted many days. The Senate decreed from
this time on that those who were killed in war should be buried where they
fell, lest others should be deterred by the spectacle from entering the
army. When the enemy heard of this they made a similar decree for
themselves.
