Complete Works of Frontinus

by Frontinus

  [11] When Marius was fighting against the Etruscans, his colleague Marcus Fabius, commander of the left flank, was wounded, and that section of the army therefore gave way, imagining that the consul had been slain. Thereupon Manlius confronted the broken line with squadrons of horse, shouting that his colleague was alive and that he himself had been victorious on the right flank. By this dauntless spirit, he restored the courage of his men and won the victory.

  [12] Marius adversus Cimbros et Teutonos, cum metatores eius per imprudentiam ita castris locum cepissent, ut sub potestate barbarorum esset aqua, flagitantibus eam suis, digito hostem ostendens “illinc”, inquit, “petenda est”; quo instinctu assecutus est, ut protinus barbari tollerentur.

  [12] When Marius was fighting against the Cimbrians and Teutons, his engineers on one occasion had heedlessly chosen such a site for the camp that the barbarians controlled the water supply. In response to the soldiers’ demand for water, Marius pointed with his finger toward the enemy and said: “There is where you must get it.” Thus inspired, the Romans straightway drove the barbarians from the place.

  [13] T. Labienus post Pharsalicam pugnam, cum victis partibus Dyrrhachium refugisset, miscuit vera falsis et, non celato exitu pugnae, aequatam partium fortunam gravi vulnere Caesaris finxit; et hac assimulatione reliquiis Pompeianarum partium fiduciam fecit.

  [13] Titus Labienus, after the Battle of Pharsalia, when his side had been defeated and he himself had fled to Dyrrhachium, combined falsehood with truth, and while not concealing the outcome of the battle, pretended that the fortunes of the two sides had been equalized in consequence of a severe wound received by Caesar. By this pretence, he created confidence in the other followers of Pompey’s party.

  [14] M. Cato, cum Ambraciam eo tempore, quo sociae naves ab Aetolis oppugnabantur, imprudens uno lembo appulisset, quamquam nihil secum praesidii haberet, coepit signum voce gestuque dare, quo videretur subsequentis suorum navis vocare, eaque asseveratione hostem terruit, tamquam plane appropinquarent, qui quasi ex proximo citabantur. Aetoli, ne adventu Romanae classis opprimerentur, reliquerunt oppugnationem.

  [14] Marcus Cato, having inadvertently landed with a single galley in Ambracia at a time when the allied fleet was blockaded by the Aetolians, although he had no troops with him, began nevertheless to make signals by voice and gesture, in order to give the impression that he was summoning the approaching ships of his own forces. By this earnestness he alarmed the enemy, just as though the troops, whom he pretended to be summoning from near at hand, were visibly approaching. The Aetolians, accordingly, fearing that they would be crushed by the arrival of the Roman fleet, abandoned the blockade.

  VIII. De Restituenda per Constantiam Acie

  VIII. On Restoring Morale by Firmness

  [1] Servius Tullius adulescens proelio, quo rex Tarquinius adversus Sabinos conflixit, signiferis segnius dimicantibus raptum signum in hostem misit; cuius recuperandi gratia Romani ita ardenter pugnaverunt, ut et signum et victoriam rettulerint.

  [1] In the battle in which King Tarquinius encountered the Sabines, Servius Tullius, then a young man, noticing that the standard-bearers fought halfheartedly, seized a standard and hurled it into the ranks of the enemy. To recover it, the Romans fought so furiously that they not only regained the standard, but also won the day.

  [2] Furius Agrippa consul cedente cornu signum militare ereptum signifero in hostes Hernicos et Aequos misit. Quo facto eius proelium restitutum est; summa enim alacritate Romani ad recipiendum signum incubuerunt.

  [2] The consul Furius Agrippa, when on one occasion his flank gave way, snatched a military standard from a standard-bearer and hurled it into the hostile ranks of the Hernici and Aequi. By this act the day was saved, for the Romans with the greatest eagerness pressed forward to recapture the standard.

  [3] T. Quintius Capitolinus consul signum in hostes Faliscos eiecit militesque id repetere iussit.

  [3] The consul Titus Quinctius Capitolinus hurled a standard into the midst of the hostile ranks of the Faliscans and commanded his troops to regain it.

  [4] M. Furius Camillus tribunus militum consulari potestate, cunctante exercitu, arreptum manu signiferum in hostes Volscos et Latinos traxit; ceteros puduit non sequi.

  [4] Marcus Furius Camillus, military tribune with consular power, on one occasion when his troops held back, seized a standard-bearer by the hand and dragged him into the hostile ranks of the Volscians and Latins, whereupon the rest were shamed into following.

  [5] Salvius Pelignus bello Persico idem fecit.

  [5] Salvius, the Pelignian, did the same in the Persian War.

  [6] M. Furius averso exercitu, cum occurrisset, affirmavit non recepturum se in castra quemquam nisi victorem, reductisque in aciem victoria potitus est.

  [6] Marcus Furius, meeting his army in retreat, declared he would receive in camp no one who was not victorious. Thereupon he led them back to battle and won the day.

  [7] Scipio apud Numantiam, cum aversum suum videret exercitum, pronuntiavit pro hoste sibi futurum, quisquis in castra redisset.

  [7] Scipio, at Numantia, seeing his forces in retreat, proclaimed that he would treat as an enemy whoever should return to camp.

  [8] Servilius Priscus dictator, cum signa legionum ferri in hostis Faliscos iussisset, signiferum cunctantem occidi imperavit; quo exemplo perterriti hostem invaserunt.

  [8] The dictator Servilius Priscus, having given the command to carry the standards of the legions against the hostile Faliscans, ordered the standard-bearer to be executed for hesitating to obey. The rest, cowed by this example, advanced against the foe.

  [9] Cossus Cornelius magister equitum adversus Fidenates idem fecit.

  [9] Cornelius Cossus, master of the horse, did the same in an engagement with the people of Fidenae.

  [10] Tarquinius adversus Sabinos cunctantes equites detractis frenis concitatisque equis perrumpere aciem iussit.

  [10] Tarquinius, when his cavalry showed hesitation in the battle against the Sabines, ordered them to fling away their bridles, put spurs to their horses, and break through the enemy’s line.

  [11] M. Atilius consul bello Samnitico ex acie refugientibus in castra militibus aciem suorum opposuit, affirmans secum et bonis civibus dimicaturos eos, nisi cum hostibus maluissent; ea ratione universos in aciem reduxit.

  [11] In the Samnite War, the consul Marcus Atilius, seeing his troops quitting the battle and taking refuge in camp, met them with his own command and declared that they would have to fight against him and all loyal citizens, unless they preferred to fight against the enemy. In this way he marched them back in a body to the battle.

  [12] L. Sulla, cedentibus iam legionibus exercitui 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.

  [12] When Sulla’s legions broke before the hosts of Mithridates led by Archelaus, Sulla advanced with drawn sword into the first line and, addressing his troops, told them, in case anybody asked where they had left their general, to answer: “Fighting in Boeotia.” Shamed by these words, they followed him to a man.

  [13] Divus Iulius ad Mundam referentibus suis pedem equum suum abduci a conspectu iussit et in primam aciem pedes prosiluit; milites, dum destituere imperatorem erubescunt, redintegraverunt proelium.

  [13] The deified Julius, when his troops gave way at Munda, ordered his horse to be removed from sight, and strode forward as a foot-soldier to the front line. His men, ashamed to desert their commander, thereupon renewed the fight.

  [14] Philippus veritus, ne impetum Scytharum sui non sustinerent, fidelissimos equitum a tergo posuit praecepitque, ne quem commilitonum ex acie fugere paterentur, perseverantius abeuntes trucidarent. Qua denuntiatione cum effecisset, ut etiam timidissimi mallent ab hostibus quam ab suis interfici, victoriam acquisivit. De His Quae Post Proelium Fiunt

  [14] Philip, on one occasion, fearing that his
troops would not withstand the onset of the Scythians, stationed the trustiest of his cavalry in the rear, and commanded them to permit no one of their comrades to quit the battle, but to kill them if they persisted in retreating. This proclamation induced even the most timid to prefer to be killed by the enemy rather than by their own comrades, and enabled Philip to win the day.

  On Measures taken after Battle

  IX. Si Res Prospere Cesserit, de Consummandis

  IX. On Bringing the War to a Close after a Successful Engagement

  [1] C. Marius, victis proelio Teutonis, reliquias eorum, quia nox intervenerat, circumsedens, sublatis subinde clamoribus per paucos suorum territavit insomnemque hostem detinuit, ex eo assecutus, ut postero die irrequietum facilius debellaret.

  [1] After Gaius Marius had defeated the Teutons in battle, and night had put an end to the conflict, he encamped round about the remnants of his opponents. By causing a small group of his own men to raise loud cries from time to time, he kept the enemy in a state of alarm and prevented them from securing rest. He thus succeeded more easily in crushing them on the following day, since they had had no sleep.

  [2] Claudius Nero, victis Poenis, quos Hasdrubale duce in Italiam ex Hispania traicientes exceperat, caput Hasdrubalis in castra Hannibalis eiecit; quo factum est, ut et Hannibal luctu [nam frater occisus erat] et exercitus desperatione adventantis praesidii affligerentur.

  [2] Claudius Nero, having met the Carthaginians on their way from Spain to Italy under the command of Hasdrubal, defeated them and threw Hasdrubal’s head into Hannibal’s camp. As a result, Hannibal was overwhelmed with grief and the army gave up hope of receiving reinforcements.

  [3] L. Sulla his, qui Praeneste obsidebantur, occisorum in proelio ducum capita hastis praefixa ostendit atque ita obstinatorum pervicaciam fregit.

  [3] When Lucius Sulla was besieging Praeneste, he fastened on spears the heads of Praenestine generals who had been slain in battle, and exhibited them to the besieged inhabitants, thus breaking their stubborn resistance.

  [4] Arminius, dux Germanorum, capita eorum, quos occiderat, similiter praefixa ad vallum hostium admoveri iussit.

  [4] Arminius, leader of the Germans, likewise fastened on spears the heads of those he had slain, and ordered them to be brought up to the fortifications of the enemy.

  [5] Domitius Corbulo, cum Tigranocertam obsideret et Armenii pertinaciter viderentur toleraturi obsidionem, in Vadandum ex megistanis, quos ceperat, animadvertit caputque eius ballista excussum intra munimenta hostium misit. Id forte decidit in medium concilium, quod cum maxime habebant barbari; ad cuius conspectum velut ostento consternati ad deditionem festinaverunt.

  [5] When Domitius Corbulo was besieging Tigranocerta and the Armenians seemed likely to make an obstinate defence, Corbulo executed Vadandus, one of the nobles he had captured, shot his head out of a balista, and sent it flying within the fortifications of the enemy. It happened to fall in the midst of a council which the barbarians were holding at that very moment, and the sight of it (as though it were some portent) so filled them with consternation that they made haste to surrender.

  [6] Hermocrates Syracusanus superatis acie Carthaginiensibus veritus, ne captivi, quorum ingentem manum in potestatem redegerat, parum diligenter custodirentur, quia eventus dimicationis in epulas et securitatem compellere victores poterat, finxit proxima nocte equitatum hostilem venturum. Qua exspectatione assecutus, ut solito attentius vigiliae agerentur.

  [6] When Hermocrates, the Syracusan, had defeated the Carthaginians in battle, and was afraid that the prisoners, of whom he had taken an enormous number, would be carelessly guarded, since the successful issue of the struggle might prompt the victors to revelry and neglect, he pretended that the cavalry of the enemy were planning an attack on the following night. By instilling this fear, he succeeded in having the guard over the prisoners maintained even more carefully than usual.

  [7] Idem, rebus prospere gestis et ob id resolutis suis in nimiam securitatem somnoque et mero pressis, in castra hostium transfugam misit, qui praemoneret de fuga: dispositas enim ubique a Syracusanis insidias. Quarum metu illi continuerunt se intra castra. Hermocrates detentos eos postero die habilioribus iam suis tradidit bellumque confecit.

  [7] When the same Hermocrates had achieved certain successes, and for that reason his men, through a spirit of over-confidence, had abandoned all restraint and were sunk in a drunken stupor, he sent a deserter into the camp of the enemy to prevent their flight by declaring that ambuscades of Syracusans had been posted everywhere. From fear of these, the enemy remained in camp. Having thus detained them, Hermocrates, on the following day, when his own men were more fit, gave the enemy over to their mercy and ended the war.

  [8] Miltiades, cum ingentem Persarum multitudinem apud Marathona fudisset, Athenienses circa gratulationem morantis compulit, ut festinarent ad opem urbi ferendam, quam classis Persarum petebat; cumque praecucurrisset implessetque moenia armatis, Persae, rati ingentem numerum esse Atheniensium et alio milite apud Marathona pugnatum, alium pro muris suis opponi, circumactis extemplo navibus Asiam repetierunt.

  [8] When Miltiades had defeated a huge host of Persians at Marathon, and the Athenians were losing time in rejoicing over the victory, he forced them to hurry to bear aid to the city, at which the Persian fleet was aiming. Having thus got ahead of the enemy, he filled the walls with warriors, so that the Persians, thinking that the number of the Athenians was enormous and that they themselves had met one army at Marathon while another was now confronting them on the walls, straightway turned their vessels about and laid their course for Asia.

  [9] Pisistratus Atheniensis, cum excepisset Megarensium classem, qua illi ad Eleusin noctu applicuerant, ut operatas Cereris sacro feminas Atheniensium raperent, magnaque edita caede eorum ultus esset suos, eadem quae ceperat navigia Atheniensi milite complevit, quibusdam matronis habitu captivarum in conspectu locatis. Qua facie decepti Megarenses tamquam suis et cum successu renavigantibus effuse obvii inermesque rursus oppressi sunt.

  [9] When the fleet of the Megarians approached Eleusis at night with the object of kidnapping the Athenian matrons who had made sacrifice to Ceres, Pisistratus, the Athenian, engaged it in battle and, by ruthlessly slaughtering the enemy, avenged his own countrymen. Then he filled these same captured ships with Athenian soldiers, placing in full view certain matrons dressed as captives. The Megarians, deceived by these appearances, thinking their own people were sailing back, and that, too, crowned with victory, rushed out to meet them, in disorder and without weapons, whereupon they were a second time overwhelmed.

  [10] Cimon, dux Atheniensium, victa classe Persarum apud insulam Cypron, milites suos captivis armis induit et eisdem barbarorum navibus ad hostem navigavit in Pamphyliam apud flumen Eurymedonta. Persae, qui et navigia et habitum superstantium agnoscerent, nihil caverunt. Subito itaque oppressi eodem die et navali et pedestri proelio victi sunt.

  [10] Cimon, the Athenian general, having defeated the fleet of the Persians near the island of Cyprus, fitted out his men with the weapons of the prisoners and in the barbarians’ own ships set sail to meet the enemy in Pamphylia, near the Eurymedon River. The Persians, recognizing the vessels and the garb of those standing on deck, were quite off their guard. Thus on the same day they were suddenly crushed in two battles, one on sea and one on land.

  X. Si Res Durius Cesserit, de Adversis Emendandis

  X. On Repairing One’s Losses after a Reverse

  [1] T. Didius in Hispania, cum acerrimo proelio conflixisset, quod nox diremerat, magno numero utrimque caeso complura suorum corpora intra noctem sepelienda curavit. Hispani postero die ad simile officium progressi, quia plures ex ipsorum numero quam ex Romanis caesos reppererant, victos se esse secundum eam dinumerationem argumentati, ad condiciones imperatoris descenderunt.

  [1] When Titus Didius was warring in Spain and had fought an extremely bitter engagement, to which darkness put an end, leaving a large number of slain on both sides, he provided for the burial by night of
many bodies of his own men. On the following day, the Spaniards, coming out to perform a like duty, found more of their men slain than of the Romans, and arguing according to this calculation that they had been beaten, came to terms with the Roman commander.

  [2] T. Marcius, eques Romanus, qui reliquiis exercitus praefuit, cum in propinquo bina castra Poenorum paucis milibus pas suum distarent, cohortatus milites proxima castra intempesta nocte adortus est, et cum hostem victoriae fiducia incompositum adgressus ne nuntios quidem cladis reliquisset, brevissimo tempore militi ad requiem dato, eadem nocte raptim famam rei gestae praegressus altera eorundem castra invasit. Ita bis simili usus eventu, deletis utrubique Poenis, amissas populo Romano Hispanias restituit.

  [2] Titus Marcius, a Roman knight, who had charge of the remnants of the army [of the Scipios] in Spain, seeing near at hand two camps of the Carthaginians a few miles distant from each other, urged on his men and attacked the nearer camp at dead of night. Since the enemy, being flushed with victory, were without organization, Marcius by his attack did not leave so much as a single man to report the disaster. Granting his troops merely the briefest time for rest, and outstripping the news of his exploit, he attacked the second camp the same night. Thus, by a double success, he destroyed the Carthaginians in both places and restored to the Roman people the lost provinces of Spain.