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Livy · History of Rome §41.14.1-41.14.11

Ligurian Capture of Mutina and the Consular Elections

Passage 1576 of 1770 · Latin

Summary

While a triumph is celebrated in Rome, the Ligurians seize the opportunity to capture the colony of Mutina, prompting the senate to order the consul to hold elections immediately and return to his province. New consuls and praetors are elected, but an ominous sacrifice on their inauguration day requires a repetition, after which provinces and troop levies are assigned.

§41.14.1Cum is triumphus de Liguribus agebatur, Ligures postquam senserunt non consularem tantum exercitum Romam abductum, §41.14.2sed legionem ab Ti. Claudio Pisis dimissam, soluti metu, clam exercitu indicto, per transversos limites superatis montibus in campos degressi, agrum Mutinensem populati, repentino impetu coloniam ipsam ceperunt.
While this triumph over the Ligurians was being celebrated, the Ligurians, when they perceived that not only the consular army had been withdrawn to Rome, but also that the legion had been disbanded at Pisae by Tiberius Claudius, freed from fear, secretly summoned an army, and crossing the mountains by cross-paths, descended into the plains, ravaged the territory of Mutina, and by a sudden assault captured the colony itself.
§41.14.3id ubi Romam allatum est, senatus C. Claudium consulem comitia primo quoque tempore habere iussit creatisque in annum magistratibus in provinciam redire et coloniam ex hostibus eripere.
When this news was brought to Rome, the senate ordered the consul Gaius Claudius to hold the elections at the earliest possible moment, and, having elected the magistrates for the year, to return to his province and rescue the colony from the enemy.
§41.14.4ita, uti censuit senatus, comitia habita.
Thus, as the senate had decreed, the elections were held.
consules creati Cn. Cornelius Scipio Hispallus Q. Petilius Spurinus.
Gnaeus Cornelius Scipio Hispallus and Quintus Petilius Spurinus were elected consuls.
§41.14.5praetores inde facti M. Popilius Laenas P. Licinius Crassus M. Cornelius Scipio L. Papirius Maso M. Aburius L. Aquilius Gallus.
Next, the following were made praetors: Marcus Popilius Laenas, Publius Licinius Crassus, Marcus Cornelius Scipio, Lucius Papirius Maso, Marcus Aburius, and Lucius Aquilius Gallus.
§41.14.6C. Claudio consuli prorogatum in annum imperium et Gallia provincia; et ne Histri idem, quod et Ligures, facerent, socios nominis Latini in Histriam mitteret, quos triumphi causa de provincia deduxisset.
The command of the consul Gaius Claudius was prolonged for a year, with Gaul as his province; and in order that the Istrians might not do the same as the Ligurians, he was directed to send into Istria those allies of the Latin name whom he had brought away from his province for the sake of his triumph.
§41.14.7Cn. Cornelio et Q. Petilio consulibus, quo die magistratum inierunt, immolantibus Iovi singulis bubus, uti solet, in ea hostia, qua Q. Petilius sacrificavit, in iocinere caput non inventum.
On the day when they entered upon their office, as the consuls Gnaeus Cornelius and Quintus Petilius were sacrificing a bull each to Jupiter, according to custom, in the victim which Quintus Petilius sacrificed, no lobe was found in the liver.
id cum ad senatum rettulisset, bove perlitare iussus.
When he reported this to the senate, he was ordered to sacrifice again with a bull until favorable omens were obtained.
§41.14.8de provinciis deinde consultus senatus Pisas et Ligures provincias consulibus decrevit; §41.14.9cui Pisae provincia obvenisset, cum magistratuum creandorum tempus esset, ad comitia reverti iussit.
The senate, then consulted about the provinces, decreed Pisae and Liguria as the provinces for the consuls; and ordered the one to whom the province of Pisae should fall to return for the elections when the time came for creating the magistrates.
§41.14.10additum decreto, ut binas legiones novas scriberent et trecenos equites; et dena milia peditum sociis nominique Latino et sescenos imperarent equites.
It was added to the decree that they should enlist two new legions each and three hundred cavalry, and demand from the allies and the Latin name ten thousand infantry and six hundred cavalry each.
§41.14.11Ti. Claudio prorogatum est imperium in id tempus, quo in provinciam consul venisset.
The command of Tiberius Claudius was prolonged until the time when a consul should arrive in the province.

Notes

  1. §41.14.1non consularem tantum exercitum Romam abductum — This is an accusative with infinitive construction functioning as the object of senserunt (perceived), with the auxiliary verb esse omitted. The subsequent clause sed legionem ... dimissam is in the same construction, parallelled by non tantum ... sed [etiam] (not only ... but also).
  2. §41.14.6socios nominis Latini in Histriam mitteret — This imperfect subjunctive clause, introduced by et, expresses the content of the senate's decree in indirect discourse. It functions as a jussive subjunctive without ut, parallel to the main clause prorogatum [est], as if expressing [ei mandatum est ut] mitteret or [senatus censuit ut] mitteret.
  3. §41.14.7bove perlitare iussus — The verb perlitare is a religious technical term meaning "to sacrifice auspiciously" or "to obtain favorable omens through sacrifice." Here, because of the bad omen (caput non inventum), the consul was ordered (iussus [est]) to sacrifice again with a bull until a favorable response from the gods was secured.
  4. §41.14.10binas legiones — The use of the distributive numeral binas indicates "two legions each" (for each of the two consuls) rather than "two legions in total." Similarly, the following trecenos indicates "three hundred cavalry each."

Cite this passage

Livy, History of Rome §41.14.1-41.14.11. Humanitext Reader, https://reader.humanitext.ai/en/text/urn:cts:latinLit:phi0914.phi001.humanitext-lat2:41.14.1-41.14.11

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