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Livy · History of Rome §39.20.1-39.20.10

Defeat of Consul Marcius in Liguria

Passage 1467 of 1770 · Latin

Summary

The consul Marcius sets out for the territory of the Apuan Ligurians but is surrounded in a difficult forest pass and suffers a major defeat; the site of the battle is subsequently named the Marcian Forest after him.

§39.20.1et iam Q. Marcius quaestionibus suae regionis perfectis in Ligures provinciam proficisci parabat, tribus milibus peditum Romanorum, centum quinquaginta equitibus, et quinque milibus Latini nominis peditum, ducentis equitibus in supplementum acceptis.
And now Quintus Marcius, having completed the inquiries in his own district, was preparing to set out for his province of Liguria, having received as reinforcements three thousand Roman infantry and one hundred and fifty cavalry, and five thousand infantry of the Latin name and two hundred cavalry.
eadem provincia, §39.20.2idem numerus peditum equitumque et collegae decretus erat.
The same province, and the same number of infantry and cavalry, had been decreed to his colleague as well.
exercitus acceperunt, quos priore anno C. Flaminius et M. Aemilius consules habuerant.
They received the armies which the consuls Gaius Flaminius and Marcus Aemilius had commanded in the previous year.
§39.20.3duas praeterea legiones novas ex senatus consulto scribere iussi sunt, et viginti milia peditum sociis et nomini Latino imperarunt et equites octingentos, et tria milia peditum Romanorum, ducentos equites.
They were ordered besides to enroll two new legions in accordance with the decree of the senate, and they requisitioned twenty thousand infantry and eight hundred cavalry from the allies and the Latin name, and three thousand Roman infantry and two hundred cavalry.
§39.20.4totum hunc exercitum praeter legiones in supplementum Hispaniensis exercitus duci placebat.
It was resolved that this entire army, except for the legions, should be led as reinforcements to the army in Spain.
itaque consules, dum ipsi quaestionibus impediebantur, T. Maenium dilectui habendo praefecerunt.
Therefore, while the consuls themselves were hindered by the inquiries, they appointed Titus Maenius to conduct the levy.
§39.20.5perfectis quaestionibus prior Q. Marcius in Ligures Apuanos est profectus.
When the inquiries had been completed, Quintus Marcius was the first to set out against the Apuan Ligurians.
§39.20.6dum penitus in abditos saltus, quae latebrae receptaculaque illis semper fuerant, persequitur, in praeoccupatis angustiis loco iniquo est circumventus.
While he was pursuing them deep into hidden forest glades, which had always served as their hiding-places and retreats, he was surrounded in an unfavorable position in mountain passes that had been occupied beforehand.
quattuor milia militum amissa, §39.20.7et legionis secundae signa tria, undecim vexilla socium Latini nominis in potestatem hostium venerunt, et arma multa, quae quia impedimento fugientibus per silvestres semitas erant, passim iactabantur.
Four thousand soldiers were lost, and three standards of the second legion, eleven banners of the allies of the Latin name fell into the power of the enemy, and many arms, which were thrown away here and there because they were an impediment to those fleeing through the wooded paths.
§39.20.8prius sequendi Ligures finem quam fugae Romani fecerunt.
The Ligurians made an end of pursuing before the Romans made an end of fleeing.
§39.20.9consul ubi primum ex hostium agro evasit, ne, quantum deminutae copiae forent, appareret, in locis pacatis exercitum dimisit.
As soon as the consul escaped from the enemy's territory, lest it should appear how much his forces had been diminished, he disbanded the army in peaceful regions.
non tamen oblitterare famam rei male gestae potuit: §39.20.10nam saltus, unde eum Ligures fugaverant, Marcius est appellatus.
He could not, however, obliterate the rumor of the disaster; for the forest glade from which the Ligurians had routed him was named the Marcian.

Notes

  1. §39.20.1eadem provincia — "eadem provincia" ("the same province") is coordinated with "idem numerus ... decretus erat" in the next sentence, with the verb "decreta erat" being omitted. The full structure is "the same province [was decreed] and the same number of infantry and cavalry was decreed to his colleague".
  2. §39.20.3sociis et nomini Latino imperarunt — The verb "imperare" here means "to requisition" or "to demand (military forces)", taking the dative of the person from whom they are demanded ("sociis et nomini Latino") and the accusative of the thing demanded ("viginti milia peditum ... et equites octingentos").
  3. §39.20.6quae latebrae receptaculaque — The relative pronoun "quae" refers to the antecedent "saltus" (masculine plural accusative, "forest glades"), but its gender and number are attracted to the predicate nouns within the relative clause, "latebrae receptaculaque" (specifically the feminine plural "latebrae").
  4. §39.20.9quantum deminutae copiae forent — Within the purpose clause introduced by "ne ... appareret", the indirect question "quantum deminutae copiae forent" functions as the subject. "forent" is an alternative form for the imperfect subjunctive "essent".

Cite this passage

Livy, History of Rome §39.20.1-39.20.10. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:39.20.1-39.20.10

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