The Fall of Veii- Part 2

by Francis Mulhern

  Marcus held a triumph and did, indeed, parade in a Quadriga and wear a purple cap, which angered many of the Roman population who felt he was mocking the gods. I’ve tried to link the use of the chariot, the cap and the link to the dead king’s robe as a way to portray the political intrigue and back-stabbing of the time (the king’s robe is my invention and not mentioned in history). It also links to the later story following the sack of Rome in which Marcus is again accused of ‘kingly desire.’

  Marcus did veto the suggestion that the Romans move to Veii, though Livy tells us that it was actually the majority of the patrician population that wished to move to the city, not the plebeian’s per-se. Whatever the arguments were Marcus was forceful in his decision to veto any move to Veii and as such I made it an element of his prophecy such that he had reason to state that Veii would never be a city again.

  The battle at Napete was also a real battle. The Etruscan council met and agreed a plan to support Veii with a strong force of allied troops. History tells us that Marcus beat them in a set-piece battle but doesn’t explain how. I used the story to enhance the development of Marcus’ changing fighting tactics and how he has used the fighting style of the maniples he learned from the Gaul’s along with the fighting style of the day. All of this will be needed if he is to defeat Brennus in a coming story.

  The battle at Faleria is also well documented, as is the teacher who brought the children to Camillus at his camp. As portrayed the teacher was tied up and whipped back to the city by the very boys he had tried to use as bargaining tools. I hate to think what the leaders of Faleria did to the man, but soon afterwards they surrendered to Rome, stating that they were deeply touched by the humanity of the Romans and so surrendered without condition. This angered many of the Roman nobility who felt that the lack of spoils from Faleria was an offence to the public purse and that Marcus had ‘sided with the enemy’ in accepting their surrender.

  The battle of Faleria is actually in 395 BC so approximately a year after the fall of Veii. As such I changed the timelines to keep the story tighter and to avoid long stretches of political debates which, whilst interesting, don’t add to the glory of the military might of Camillus. I hope that the shortening hasn’t underplayed the political scenes and background which led to Marcus’ impeachment.

  The story of the doors is mentioned in one of the various stories of how Marcus Furius Camillus came to leave Rome, though it is only mentioned in passing. It is clear that a long series of legal and political challenges were faced by Marcus at the time and that he grew more and more frustrated with the people of Rome and the courts of law. The story of his words as he left Rome and looked back to the Capitolium is true and taken directly from history. He felt aggrieved that his friends had deserted him and he left Rome in self imposed exile, though even this story is challenged by historians who feel that his leaving Rome at this time was simply a good excuse to have him return as a conquering hero at a later date.

  Quintus Fabius, Caelio and Javenoli will play a part in the next story, though Marcus Manlius will play a central part in the fall of Rome as he becomes the hero of the people that we know today.

  Marcus will return as Rome faces its greatest enemy before Hannibal and the men who turned against him must call for him to become the saviour of the greatest city on Earth.