Misplaced Pages

#551448

99-807: Cato typically refers to either Cato the Elder or Cato the Younger , both of the Porcii Catones family of Rome. It may also refer to: Cato the Elder Marcus Porcius Cato ( / ˈ k eɪ t oʊ / , KAY -toe ; 234–149 BC), also known as Cato the Censor ( Latin : Censorius ), the Elder and the Wise , was a Roman soldier, senator , and historian known for his conservatism and opposition to Hellenization . He

198-526: A " scorched earth " practice to prevent Hannibal's forces from obtaining grain and other resources. The Romans were unimpressed with this defensive strategy and at first gave Fabius his epithet Cunctator (delayer) as an insult. The strategy was in part ruined because of a lack of unity in the command of the Roman army, since Fabius' Master of the Horse, Minucius, was a political enemy of Fabius. At one point, Fabius

297-454: A carriage with horses closer than a mile to the city, except to attend public celebrations of religious rites. After Hannibal was defeated and Rome was resplendent with Carthaginian wealth, tribunes Marcus Fundanius and Lucius Valerius proposed to abolish the Oppian law, but tribunes Marcus Junius Brutus and Titus Junius Brutus opposed doing so. This conflict spawned far more interest than

396-559: A choice by Cato remains unclear, since the assertion that he might very well have already known Greek at the time can be made from anecdotal evidence. For example, Plutarch said that while at Tarentum in his youth he had developed a close friendship with Nearchus, who was himself a Greek philosopher . Similarly, Aurelius Victor stated he had received instruction in Greek from Ennius while praetor in Sardinia. Nevertheless, because his speech

495-510: A commander." When Fabius' term as dictator ended, consular government was restored, and Gnaeus Servilius Geminus and Marcus Atilius Regulus assumed the consulship for the remainder of the year. The once-looked-down-upon tactics employed by Fabius came then to be respected. It is said, asserts Plutarch, that even Hannibal acknowledged and feared the Fabian strategy and the Roman inexhaustible manpower. After Fabius lured him away from Apulia into

594-430: A consul twice more (in 215 BC and 214 BC), and for a fifth time in 209 BC. He was also chief augur (at a very young age) and pontifex , but never pontifex maximus according to Gaius Stern (citing Livy on Fabius). The holding of seats in the two highest colleges was not repeated until either Julius Caesar or possibly Sulla . In the senate, he opposed the young and ambitious Scipio Africanus , who wanted to carry

693-537: A disastrous end when he was killed during the decisive Roman defeat at the Battle of Lake Trasimene in 217 BC, with panic sweeping Rome. With consular armies destroyed in these two major battles, and Hannibal approaching Rome's gates, the Romans feared the imminent destruction of their city. The Roman Senate decided to appoint a dictator , and chose Fabius for the role – possibly for the second time, though evidence of

792-548: A fragment, which praised his delaying strategy in his altercations with Hannibal during the Second Punic War. The inscription reads as follows: "...[as censor] he conducted the first revision of the senate membership and held committal elections in the consulship of Marcus Junius Pera and Marcus Barbula; he besieged and recaptured Tarentum and the strong-hold of Hannibal, and [obtained enormous booty?]; he won surpassing glory by his military [exploits?]." Later, he became

891-467: A heavy tax upon dress and personal adornment, especially of women, and upon young slaves purchased as favourites. In 181 BC he supported the lex Orchia (according to others, he first opposed its introduction, and subsequently its repeal), which prescribed a limit to the number of guests at an entertainment, and in 169 BC the lex Voconia , one of the provisions of which was intended to limit the accumulation of what Cato considered an undue amount of wealth in

990-479: A hero of the Samnite Wars , who like Verrucosus held five consulships, as well as the offices of dictator and censor. Many earlier ancestors had also been consuls. His cognomen , Verrucosus , or "warty", used to distinguish him from other members of his family, derived from a wart on his upper lip. According to Plutarch , Fabius possessed a mild temper and slow speech. As a child, he learned with difficulty,

1089-418: A hero. On hearing of this, Fabius became enraged, and as dictator, could have ordered Minucius' execution for his disobedience. One of the plebeian tribunes (chief representatives of the people) for the year, Metilius, was a partisan of Minucius, and as such he sought to use his power to help Minucius. The plebeian tribunes were the only officials independent of the dictator, and so with his protection, Minucius

SECTION 10

#1732772855552

1188-530: A legendary figure and the model of a tough, courageous Roman, and was bestowed the honorific title, "The Shield of Rome" (similar to Marcus Claudius Marcellus being named the "Sword of Rome"). According to Ennius , unus homo nobis cunctando restituit rem  – "one man, by delaying, restored the state to us." Virgil , in the Aeneid , has Aeneas ' father Anchises mention Fabius Maximus while in Hades as

1287-430: A precise sum of 333 sestertii and 333 denarii . Plutarch isn't sure exactly how Fabius came up with this number, although he believes it was to honor the perfection of the number three, as it is the first of the odd numbers and one of the first of the prime numbers . It is not known if Fabius truly believed that these actions had won the gods over to the Roman side, although the actions probably did (as intended) convince

1386-560: A previous term seems to be conflicting – in part due to his advanced age and experience. However, he was not allowed to appoint his own Magister Equitum ; instead, the Romans chose a political enemy, Marcus Minucius . Fabius sought to calm the Roman people promptly by asserting himself as a strong dictator, in a crisis perceived as the worst in Roman history. He asked the Senate to allow him to ride on horseback, which dictators were never allowed to do. He then caused himself to be accompanied by

1485-534: A problem, as Frontinus records much later. Cato also ordered the demolition of shops and private houses which encroached on the public way, and built the first known basilica in 184 BC, named Basilica Porcia, in the Forum near the Curia (Livy, History , 39.44; Plutarch, Marcus Cato , 19). It served as a political and commercial activity center where courts were held and merchants accumulated. Some accounts state that

1584-545: A quaestor and his proconsul . Fabius had opposed the permission given to Scipio to carry the attack to the enemy's home, and Cato, whose appointment was intended to monitor Scipio's behavior, adopted the views of his friend. Plutarch reports that the lenient discipline of the troops under Scipio's command and the exaggerated expenses incurred by the general provoked Cato's protests, such that Scipio, immediately afterward, replied angrily, saying he would give an account of victories, not of money. Cato left his place of duty after

1683-526: A series of omens had been witnessed, including a series of lightning bolts, which Fabius had believed were warnings from the gods. He had warned Flaminius of this, but Flaminius had ignored the warnings. And so Fabius, as dictator, next sought to please the gods. He ordered a massive sacrifice of the whole product of the next harvest season throughout Italy, in particular that of cows, goats, swine, and sheep. In addition, he ordered that musical festivities be celebrated, and then told his fellow citizens to each spend

1782-518: A statement of Cato himself that is recorded by Plutarch. When Cato was very young, after his father's death, he inherited a small property in Sabine territory, at a distance from his native town. There, he spent most of his childhood overseeing the operations of the farm, learning business and the rural economy. Near this land was a small hut owned by Manius Curius Dentatus , whose military feats and rigidly simple character were remembered and admired in

1881-474: A stranger like Cato, the only way to the magisterial honours was success in the Roman Forum . For that reason, he suggested to Cato that he shift his ambition to the field of Roman politics. The advice was followed. Invited to the townhouse of Flaccus, and ratified by his support, Cato began to distinguish himself in the forum, and became a candidate for assuming a post in the magistracy. In 205 BC, Cato

1980-416: A warmer interest in his sons, Marcus Porcius Cato Licinianus and Marcus Porcius Cato Salonianus . Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Born at Rome c. 280 BC, Fabius was a descendant of the ancient patrician Fabia gens . He was the son or grandson of Quintus Fabius Maximus Gurges , three times consul and princeps senatus , and grandson or great-grandson of Quintus Fabius Maximus Rullianus ,

2079-510: A young nobleman of significant influence and high patrician family. Flaccus could not help remarking on Cato's energy, his military talent, his eloquence, his frugal and simple life, and his traditional principles. Flaccus himself was a member of that purist patrician faction which displayed its adherence to the stricter virtues of the Roman character. Within Roman society a transition was in progress—from Samnite rusticity to Grecian civilization and oriental luxuriance. The chief magistracies of

SECTION 20

#1732772855552

2178-451: Is a valiant man, and a lover of his country." Fabius rushed to his co-commander's assistance and Hannibal's forces immediately retreated. After the battle, there was some feeling that there would be conflict between Minucius and Fabius; however, the younger soldier marched his men to Fabius' encampment and is reported to have said, "My father gave me life. Today you saved my life. You are my second father. I recognize your superior abilities as

2277-409: Is fully quoted as "Moreover, I advise that Carthage must be destroyed" ( Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam ). Cicero 's dialogue Cato the Elder on Old Age also depicted Cato's antipathy to Carthage. According to Ben Kiernan , Cato may have made the first recorded incitement to genocide . To Cato the individual life was a continual discipline, and public life was the discipline of

2376-430: Is most generally distinguished. He revised with unsparing severity the lists of senators and knights, ejecting from either order the men whom he judged unworthy of membership, either on moral grounds or on the basis of their lack of the prescribed means. Senators were supposed to be independently wealthy, their income to be based on land ownership rather than commerce, and there was also a financial "means test." A Senator

2475-406: Is of course possible that Flaminius was successively deputy to both, after Minucius's apparently premature deposition following bad augural omens: and also possible that little of note (other than, possibly, holding elections during the absence of consuls) was accomplished during either dictatorship. According to Livy , in 218 BC Fabius took part in an embassy to Carthage, sent to demand redress for

2574-487: Is rather out of the line of the trip to Rome, it is more likely that the first contact between Ennius and Cato happened at a later date, when the latter was praetor in Sardinia. In 199 BC Cato was elected aedile , and with his colleague Helvius, restored the Plebeian Games, and gave upon that occasion a banquet in honour of Jupiter . In 198 BC he was elected praetor , and obtained Sardinia as his province, with

2673-547: Is recorded that the services of Cato contributed to the decisive and important victory of Sena at the Battle of the Metaurus , where Hasdrubal was slain. Cato later gave several vehement speeches, which he often ended by saying " Carthago delenda est ", or "Carthage must be destroyed." He encouraged the Romans to attack Carthage . In the pauses between campaigns Cato returned to his Sabine farm, where he dressed simply, working and behaving like his laborers. Young as he was,

2772-594: The Alps . He was censor in 230, then consul a second time in 228. It is possible that he held the office of dictator for a first time around this time: according to Livy , Fabius's tenure of the dictatorship in 217 was his second term in that office, with Gaius Flaminius as his deputy and magister equitum during the first term: however Plutarch suggests that Flaminius was deputy instead to Marcus Minucius Rufus – presumably Fabius's great political rival of that name, who later served as deputy to Fabius himself (see below). It

2871-584: The Battle of the Trebia in December 218 BC, Fabius advised that the Romans should simply bide their time and deny Hannibal any chance at a general engagement, instead letting the invasion peter out while making sure the cities of their Italian Allies were supported or protected. However, consul Gaius Flaminius opposed this and joined his colleague Gnaeus Servilius Geminus in raising two consular armies to confront Hannibal in central Italy. Flaminius' plan came to

2970-506: The Carthaginians and Massinissa , king of Numidia . The mission was unsuccessful and the commissioners returned home, but Cato was so struck by Carthage's growing prosperity that he was convinced that the security of Rome depended on its annihilation. From then on, he began concluding his speeches in the Senate —on any topic whatsoever— with the cry, " Carthage must be destroyed " ( Carthago delenda est ). Other times, his phrase

3069-596: The First Punic War , fought between the Roman Republic and Carthage from 264 to 241 BC, or what his role might have been. Fabius' political career began in the years following that war. He was probably quaestor in 237 or 236 BC, and curule aedile about 235. During his first consulship , in 233 BC, Fabius was awarded a triumph for his victory over the Ligurians , whom he defeated and drove into

Cato - Misplaced Pages Continue

3168-574: The Battle of Thermopylae, Cato was chosen to prevent Corinth , Patrae , and Aegium from siding with Antiochus. During this period, Cato visited Athens where, in trying to prevent the Athenians from listening to the propositions of the Seleucid king, Cato addressed them in a Latin speech, which required an interpreter to be understood by the audience. Whether this was out of necessity or merely

3267-629: The Bruttian territory and then proceeded to besiege Tarentum by treachery in 209 BC, Hannibal commented, "It seems that the Romans have found another Hannibal, for we have lost Tarentum in the same way that we took it." Shortly after Fabius had laid down his dictatorship, Gaius Terentius Varro and Lucius Aemilius Paullus were elected as consuls. They rallied the people through the assemblies , and won their support for Varro's plan to abandon Fabius' strategy, and engage Hannibal directly. Varro's rashness did not surprise Fabius, but when Fabius learned of

3366-403: The Elder are now his most common, as well as his most characteristic names, since he carried out the office of Censor with extraordinary standing and was the only Cato who ever held it. The date of Cato's birth has to be deduced from conflicting reports of his age at the time of his death, which is known to have happened in 149 BC. According to the chronology of Cicero, Cato was born in 234 BC, in

3465-467: The Elder was born in the municipal town of Tusculum , like some generations of his ancestors. His father had earned a reputation as a brave soldier, and his great-grandfather had received a reward from the state for having had five horses killed under him in battle. However, the Tusculan Porcii had never obtained the privileges of the Roman magistracy. Cato the Elder, their famous descendant, at

3564-529: The Republic's Valerian Law . In 215, at the height of the Second Punic War and at the request of the tribune of the plebs Gaius Oppius, the Oppian Law ( Lex Oppia ), intended to restrict the luxury and extravagance of women in order to save money for the public treasury, was passed. The law specified that no woman could own more than half an ounce of gold, nor wear a garment of several colours, nor drive

3663-412: The Roman troops were winning, but Hannibal had set a trap. Soon the Roman troops were being slaughtered. Upon seeing the ambush of Minucius' army, Fabius cried "O Hercules! how much sooner than I expected, though later than he seemed to desire, hath Minucius destroyed himself!" On ordering his army to join the battle and rescue their fellow Romans, Fabius exclaimed "we must make haste to rescue Minucius, who

3762-499: The State and least for contractors, creating controversies around him. According to Plutarch, the Senate "strongly opposed the erection of the basilica". Cato's expenditure on public works were objected by the party of Titus Flamininus and also deemed trivial by the Senate. After gaining influence, Flamininus repealed the public rentals and contracts of Cato while encouraging tribunes to ferment opprobrium against him and fine him. From

3861-405: The age of 20, he was a military tribune . Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus had the command in this area, Campania , during the year of his fourth consulship. At the siege of Tarentum , in 209, Cato was again at the side of Fabius. Two years later, Cato was one of the men who went with the consul Claudius Nero on his northern march from Lucania to check the progress of Hasdrubal Barca . It

3960-576: The army, while he commanded the other half. Minucius openly claimed that Fabius was cowardly because he failed to confront the Carthaginian forces. Near Larinum in Samnium , Hannibal had taken up position in a town called Geronium. In the leadup to the Battle of Geronium , Minucius decided to make a broad frontal attack on Hannibal's troops in the valley between Larinum and Geronium. Several thousand men were involved on either side. It appeared that

4059-431: The average Roman that the gods had finally been won over. Fabius respected Hannibal's military genius and so refused to engage him directly in pitched battle . Instead, he kept his troops close to Hannibal, hoping to exhaust him in a long war of attrition . Fabius was able to harass the Carthaginian foraging parties, limiting Hannibal's ability to wreak destruction while conserving his own military force, and implementing

Cato - Misplaced Pages Continue

4158-413: The basilica was burned by the conflagration of Publius Clodius Pulcher's funeral pyre after his death in 52 BC, and was probably never rebuilt. Today, there are no remains of Basilica Porcia. Cato had also raised the amount paid by the publicani for the right to collect taxes and, at the same time, reduced the contract prices for the construction of public works. Which was seen as most beneficial for

4257-572: The beginning of his career in Rome , was regarded as a novus homo (new man), and the feeling of his unsatisfactory position, working along with the belief of his inherent superiority, aggravated and drove his ambition. Early in life, he so far exceeded the previous deeds of his predecessors that he is frequently spoken of not only as the leader, but as the founder of the Porcia gens . His ancestors for three generations had been named Marcus Porcius, and it

4356-420: The bitterness with which Fabius blamed Scipio for corrupting military discipline and for having illegally left his province to take the town of Locri . The author of the abridged life of Cato, commonly considered the work of Cornelius Nepos , asserts that Cato, after his return from Africa, put in at Sardinia , and brought the poet Quintus Ennius in his own ship from the island to Italy. But because Sardinia

4455-474: The campaign, as related by Livy, and illustrated by incidental anecdotes by Plutarch , are full of horror and they make clear that Cato reduced Hispania Citerior to subjection with great speed and little mercy. We read of multitudes who put themselves to death because of the dishonour after they had been stripped of all their arms, of extensive massacres of surrendered troops, and the frequent harsh plunders. The phrase bellum se ipsum alet —the war feeds itself—

4554-536: The capture of the supposedly neutral town of Saguntum in Spain . Fabius then demanded that Hannibal and his officers would be turned over to Roman custody. The Carthaginian senate refused and Fabius held up two ends of his toga, one stood for peace, the other for war. He let the Carthaginian senate choose but they insisted that Fabius would decide. After the delegation had received the Carthaginians' reply, it

4653-438: The command of 3,000 infantry and 200 cavalry. Here he took the earliest opportunity to demonstrate his main beliefs by practicing his strict public morality. He reduced official operating costs, walked his trips with a single assistant, and placed his own frugality in contrast with the opulence of provincial magistrates. The rites of religion were celebrated with thrift, justice was administered with strict impartiality , and usury

4752-573: The date of his censorship (184) to his death in 149, Cato held no public office, but continued to distinguish himself in the Senate as the persistent opponent of the new ideas. He was struck with horror, along with many other Romans, at the licence of the Bacchanalian mysteries, which he attributed to the influence of Greek manners, and he vehemently urged the dismissal of the philosophers Carneades , Diogenes , and Critolaus , who had come as ambassadors from Athens , on account of what he believed

4851-412: The decadence and luxury, formed a party with a more conservative and ascetic ideology. In their eyes, rusticity and austerity were the marks of Sabine character, and of the old Roman inflexible integrity and love of order. Marcus Claudius Marcellus , Scipio Africanus and his family, and Titus Quinctius Flamininus may be taken as representative of the new culture; Cato's friends, Fabius and Flaccus, were

4950-411: The dispute with Scipio about the latter's alleged extravagance, and returning to Rome, condemned the uneconomical activities of his general to the senate. Plutarch went on to say that at the joint request of Cato and Fabius, a commission of tribunes was sent to Sicily to examine Scipio's activity. Upon their review of his extensive and careful arrangements for the transport of the troops, they determined he

5049-470: The downfall of Antiochus, Cato behaved with his usual valor, and enjoyed good fortune. By a daring and difficult advance, he surprised and defeated a body of the enemy's Aetolian auxiliaries , who were posted upon the Callidromus, the highest peak of the range of Mount Oeta . Then, coming to the aid of forces under Flaccus's command, he began a sudden descent from the hills above the royal camp, and

SECTION 50

#1732772855552

5148-420: The entire city was purified of its blood-guilt in the deaths. Although he did not again hold the office of dictator – and indeed, it was granted to others over him – he might as well have been one unofficially at this time, because whatever measures he proposed were immediately adopted with little or no further debate. Cunctator became an honorific title, and his delaying tactic

5247-413: The full complement of twenty-four lictors , and ordered the surviving consul, Gnaeus Servilius Geminus , to dismiss his lictors (in essence, acknowledging the seniority of the dictator), and to present himself before Fabius as a private citizen. Plutarch tells us that Fabius believed that the disaster at Lake Trasimene was due, in part, to the fact that the gods had become neglected. Before that battle,

5346-585: The greatest of the many great Fabii, quoting the same line. While Hannibal is mentioned in the company of history's greatest generals, military professionals have bestowed Fabius' name on an entire strategic doctrine known as " Fabian strategy ", and George Washington has been called "the American Fabius". Mikhail Kutuzov has likewise been called "the Russian Fabius" for his strategy against Napoleon. According to its own ancient legend,

5445-428: The hands of women. Among other things he repaired the aqueducts , mended as well as extended the sewage system , and prevented private persons from drawing off public water for their own use. The Aqua Appia was the first aqueduct of Rome . It was constructed in 312 BC by Appius Claudius Caecus, the same Roman censor who also built the important Via Appia. Unauthorised plumbing into Rome's aqueducts had always been

5544-401: The judges for causes of great public interest. Consequently, he was enabled to strengthen by practice his oratorical abilities, to gain self-confidence, to observe the manners of men, to analyze the diversity of human nature, to apply the rules of law, and to practically investigate the principles of justice. In the area surrounding Cato's Sabine farm were the lands of Lucius Valerius Flaccus ,

5643-505: The labours of the common soldier. Wherever it was possible, he personally superintended the execution of his orders. His movements were reported as bold and rapid, and he always pushed for victory. His operations appear to have been carefully designed, and were coordinated with the plans of other generals in other parts of Hispania. His manoeuvres were considered original and successful. He managed to benefit by setting tribe against tribe, and took native mercenaries into his pay. The details of

5742-430: The leading men in the faction defending the old plainness. Flaccus was a perceptive politician, who looked for young and emergent men to support him. He had observed Cato's martial spirit and heard his eloquent tongue. He knew how much courage and persuasiveness were valued at Rome. He also knew that distinction achieved on the battlefield opened the way to achievements in the higher civil offices. Flaccus knew too that for

5841-465: The many. He regarded the individual householder as the germ of the family, the family as the germ of the state. By strict economy of time he accomplished an immense amount of work; he demanded his dependents practice a similar dedication, and proved himself a hard husband, a strict father, and a severe and cruel master. There was little difference, apparently, in the esteem in which he held his wife and his slaves, although perhaps his pride caused him to take

5940-472: The monetary prize to his soldiery, and was more liberal than might have been expected from his vigorous parsimony. The return of Cato seems to have accelerated the enmity of Scipio Africanus , who was Consul in 194 BC and is said to have desired the command of the province in which Cato was harvesting notoriety. There is some disagreement between Nepos (or the pseudo-Nepos), and Plutarch, in their accounts of this topic. Nepos claims that Scipio failed to obtain

6039-405: The most important state affairs. Middle-aged married Roman women crowded the streets, blocked access to the forum, and intercepted their approaching husbands, demanding to restore the traditional ornaments of Roman matrons. They even begged the praetors, consuls and other magistrates. Even Flaccus hesitated, but his colleague Cato was inflexible, and made a characteristically impolite speech, which

SECTION 60

#1732772855552

6138-468: The neighborhood. Cato was inspired to imitate that character, hoping to match the glory of Dentatus. Soon an opportunity came for a military campaign. In 218 BC Hannibal Barca attacked one of Rome's allies, starting the Second Punic War . Experts express some disagreement about Cato's early military life. In 214, he served at Capua , and the historian Wilhelm Drumann imagines that already, at

6237-422: The neighboring farmers liked his tough mode of living, enjoyed his old-fashioned and concise proverbs, and had a high regard for his abilities. His own active personality made him willing and eager to make himself available in the service of his neighbors. He was selected to act, sometimes as an arbitrator of disputes, and sometimes as a supporter in local causes, which were probably tried in front of recuperatores ,

6336-455: The panic caused by this unexpected movement promptly turned the day in favor of the Romans, and signaled the end of the Seleucid invasion of Greece. After the action, the consul hugged Cato with the greatest warmth and attributed to him the whole credit of the victory. This fact rests on the authority of Cato himself, who, like Cicero , often indulged in the habit, offensive to modern taste, of sounding his own praises. After an interval spent in

6435-480: The promotion of Minucius, but rather decided to wait until Minucius' rashness caused him to run headlong into some disaster. He realized what would happen when Minucius was defeated in battle by Hannibal. Fabius, we are told, reminded Minucius that it was Hannibal, and not he, who was the enemy. Minucius proposed that they share the joint control of the army, with command rotating between the two every other day. Fabius rejected this, and instead let Minucius command half of

6534-583: The prosecution of the Scipiones (Africanus and Asiaticus ) for corruption, it was his spirit that animated the attack upon them. Even Scipio Africanus —who refused to reply to the charge, saying only, "Romans, this is the day on which I conquered Hannibal" and was absolved by acclamation—found it necessary to retire, self-banished, to his villa at Liternum . Cato's enmity dated from the African campaign when he quarreled with Scipio for his lavish distribution of

6633-461: The province, and, offended by the rejection, remained after his consulship in a private capacity at Rome. Plutarch claims that Scipio, who was disgusted by Cato's severity, was appointed to succeed him but could not convince the senate to censure Cato's administration, and passed his consulship in inactivity. Plutarch was probably mistaken, judging by the statement in Livy, that in 194 BC, Sextus Digitius

6732-561: The pursuit of Antiochus and the pacification of Greece, Cato was sent to Rome by Glabrio to announce the successful outcome of the campaign, and he performed his journey with such celerity that he had started his report in the senate before the return of Lucius Cornelius Scipio , the later conqueror of Antiochus, who had been sent off from Greece a few days before him. During the campaign in Greece under Glabrio, Plutarch's account (albeit rejected by historian Wilhelm Drumann) suggests that before

6831-480: The revenues of the province by improvements in the working of the iron and silver mines . For his achievements in Hispania, the senate decreed a thanksgiving ceremony of three days. In the course of the year 194 BC, he returned to Rome and was rewarded with the honour of a Roman triumph , at which he exhibited an extraordinary quantity of captured brass , silver, and gold , both coin and ingots. Cato distributed

6930-466: The senate by unanimous decision, but Flaccus failed to stand with him. However, perhaps because of Flaccus' connection to Lucius Valerius he was deliberately staying out of the controversy. He soon set sail for his appointed province, Hispania Citerior . In his campaign in Hispania , Cato behaved in keeping with his reputation of untiring hard work and alertness. He lived soberly, sharing the food and

7029-418: The senate might have remained too frightened to even meet. He placed guards at the gates of the city to stop the frightened Romans from fleeing, and regulated mourning activities. He set times and places for this mourning, and ordered that each family perform such observances within their own private walls, and that the mourning should be complete within a month; following the completion of these mourning rituals,

7128-500: The size of the army (eighty-eight thousand soldiers) that Varro had raised, he became quite concerned. Unlike the losses that had been suffered by Minucius, a major loss by Varro had the potential to kill so many soldiers that Rome might have had no further resources with which to continue the war. Fabius had warned the other consul for the year, Aemilius Paullus, to make sure that Varro remained unable to directly engage Hannibal. According to Plutarch, Paullus replied to Fabius that he feared

7227-466: The speeches (or one speech under different names) made after his return attest to the strength of his arguments. Plutarch states that, after his Consulship, Cato accompanied Tiberius Sempronius Longus as legatus to Thrace , but this seems incorrect because, although Scipio Africanus believed that one Consul should have Macedonia , Sempronius was soon in Cisalpine Gaul , and in 193 BC Cato

7326-402: The spoil among the troops, and his general luxury and extravagance. Cato was also opposed to the spread of Hellenic culture, which he believed threatened to destroy the rugged simplicity of the conventional Roman type. It was during this censorship that his determination to oppose Hellenism was most strongly exhibited, and hence, the behavior from which was derived the title (censor) by which he

7425-422: The state had become almost hereditary for a few wealthy and upper-class families. They were popular by acts of generosity and charming manners, and they collected material wealth from their clients and followers, as well as intellectual prowess provided by their education, taste in the fine arts, and knowledge of literature. Nonetheless, the less fortunate nobles, envious of this exclusive oligarchy and critical of

7524-416: The title of Cato, which may have been given in childhood as a symbol of distinction. The qualities implied in the word Cato were acknowledged by the plainer and less outdated title of Sapiens , by which he was so well known in his old age that Cicero says it became his virtual cognomen . From the number and eloquence of his speeches, he was a gifted orator, but Cato the Censor ( Cato Censorius ), and Cato

7623-622: The votes in Rome more than Hannibal's army. When word reached Rome of the disastrous Roman defeat under Varro and Paullus at the Battle of Cannae in 216 BC, the Senate and the People of Rome turned to Fabius for guidance. They had believed his strategy to be flawed before, but now they thought him to be as wise as the gods. He walked the streets of Rome, assured as to eventual Roman victory, in an attempt to comfort his fellow Romans. Without his support,

7722-456: The war to Africa . Fabius continued to argue that confronting Hannibal directly was too dangerous. Scipio planned to take Roman forces to Carthage itself and force Hannibal to return to Africa to defend the city. Scipio was eventually given limited approval, despite continuous opposition from Fabius, who blocked levies and restricted Scipio's access to troops. Fabius wished to ensure that sufficient forces remained to defend Roman territory if Scipio

7821-425: The year before the first Consulship of Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus , and died at the age of 85, in the consulship of Lucius Marcius Censorinus and Manius Manilius. Pliny agrees with Cicero . Other authors exaggerate the age of Cato. According to Valerius Maximus he survived his 86th year, according to Livy and Plutarch he was 90 years old when he died. These exaggerated ages, however, are inconsistent with

7920-471: Was Fabius himself who, addressing the Carthaginian senate, issued a formal declaration of war between Carthage and the Roman Republic. However, Cassius Dio , followed by Zonaras , calls the ambassador Marcus Fabius , suggesting that it was his cousin, Marcus Fabius Buteo , who issued the declaration of war against the Carthaginians. When the consul Tiberius Sempronius Longus was defeated in

8019-478: Was an affair of state, it is probable that he complied with the Roman norms of the day in using the Latin language while practicing diplomacy, which was considered as a mark of Roman dignity . His reputation as a soldier was now established; henceforth he preferred to serve the state at home, scrutinizing the conduct of the candidates for public honours and of generals in the field. If he was not personally engaged in

8118-476: Was appointed quaestor , and in the next year (204) he entered upon the duties of his place of work, following Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus Major to Sicily. When Scipio, after much opposition, obtained from the Senate permission to transport armed forces from Sicily to Africa , Cato and Gaius Laelius were appointed to escort the baggage ships. Yet there proved not to be the friendliness of cooperation between Cato and Scipio which ought to have existed between

8217-455: Was appointed to the province of Hispania Citerior. The notion that Scipio was appointed successor to Cato in Hispania may have arisen from a double confusion of name and place, since Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica was chosen in 194 BC to the province of Hispania Ulterior . However true this account, Cato used his eloquence and produced detailed financial accounts to successfully defend against criticism of his consulship. The known fragments of

8316-418: Was called by the priests to assist with certain sacrifices, so Fabius left the command of the army in the hands of Minucius during his absence. Fabius had told Minucius not to attack Hannibal in his absence, but Minucius disobeyed and attacked anyway. The attack, though of no strategic value, resulted in the retreat of several enemy units, and so the Roman people, desperate for good news, believed Minucius to be

8415-399: Was cautious in sports and appeared timid in demeanor. Superficially, he seemed hapless, but Plutarch judges these as traits of a prudent and firm mind and a leonine temper. By the time he reached adulthood and was roused by the challenges of public life, his virtues exerted themselves. While still a youth in 265 BC, Fabius was consecrated an augur . It is unknown whether he participated in

8514-590: Was coined by Cato during this period. His conduct in Hispania were not contradictory with the traditional ideals of a Roman soldier, or with his own firm and over-assertive temper. He claimed to have destroyed more towns in Hispania than he had spent days in that country. After he reduced the area between the River Iberus and the Pyrenees to a resentful and, as it turned out, temporary obedience, Cato turned his attention to administrative reforms, and increased

8613-411: Was defeated. Another motive mentioned by Plutarch was personal jealousy of Scipio's popularity, so that Fabius continued to argue against the African expedition even after its initial successes. Fabius became gravely ill and died in 203 BC, shortly after Hannibal's army left Italy, and before the eventual Roman victory over Hannibal at the Battle of Zama won by Scipio. Part of his eulogy is preserved on

8712-455: Was devoted to agriculture when not serving in the army. Having attracted the attention of Lucius Valerius Flaccus , he was brought to Rome . He was successively military tribune (214 BC), quaestor (204), aedile (199), praetor (198), consul (195) together with Flaccus, and censor (184). As praetor, he expelled usurers from Sardinia . As censor, he tried to save Rome's ancestral customs and combat Hellenistic influences. Cato

8811-515: Was expected to have what we would call a "net worth" of over a million sestertii, the standard Roman silver coin. Equivalencies in modern currencies are both misleading and impossible, but nevertheless, it would be fair to characterize the Roman Senate as a literal "Millionaires club." The expulsion of L. Quinctius Flamininus for wanton cruelty was an example of his rigid justice. His regulations against luxury were very stringent. He imposed

8910-522: Was followed in Italy for the rest of the war. Fabius' own military success was small, aside from the reconquest of Tarentum in 209 BC. For this victory, Plutarch tells us, he was awarded a second triumph that was even more splendid than the first. When Marcus Livius Macatus, the governor of Tarentum, claimed the merit of recovering the town, Fabius rejoined, "Certainly, had you not lost it, I would have never retaken it." After serving as dictator, he served as

9009-568: Was in Rome dedicating a small temple to Victoria Virgo . The military career of Cato had not yet ended. In 191, he, along with his old associate Lucius Valerius Flaccus , were appointed as lieutenant-generals ( legatus ) under the consul Manius Acilius Glabrio , who had been dispatched to Greece to oppose the invasion of Antiochus III the Great , King of the Seleucid Empire . In the decisive Battle of Thermopylae (191 BC) , which led to

9108-431: Was later retold by Livy. The dissenting tribunes withdrew their opposition and the Oppian law was repealed by vote of all tribes. Women went in procession through the streets and the forum, dressed up with their now legitimate finery. During the controversy Cato maintained a firm opposition to the repeal, so he suffered politically and personally when it was finally repealed. Not only had the former consul been rejected by

9207-429: Was not guilty of Cato's charges. Plutarch's version, which seemed to attribute to Cato the wrongdoing of quitting his post before his time, is barely consistent with Livy's narrative. If Livy is correct, the commission was sent because of the complaints of the inhabitants of Locri, who had been harshly oppressed by Quintus Pleminius , Scipio's legate. Livy says nothing of Cato's interference in this matter, but mentions

9306-480: Was not until his eightieth year that he made his first acquaintance with Greek literature, though some think after examining his writings that he may have had a knowledge of Greek works for much of his life. In his last years, he was known for strenuously urging his countrymen to prosecute the Third Punic War and to destroy Carthage . In 157, he was one of the deputies sent to Carthage to arbitrate between

9405-477: Was relatively safe. Plutarch states that Metilius "boldly applied himself to the people in the behalf of Minucius", and had Minucius granted powers equivalent to those of Fabius. By this, Plutarch probably means that as a plebeian tribune, Metilius had the Plebeian Council , a popular assembly which only tribunes could preside over, grant Minucius quasi-dictatorial powers. Fabius did not attempt to fight

9504-422: Was said by Plutarch that at first he was known by the additional cognomen Priscus , but was afterwards called Cato—a word (from Latin catus ) indicating 'common sense that is the result of natural wisdom combined with experience'. Priscus, like Major , may have been merely an epithet used to distinguish him from the later Cato the Younger . There is no precise information as to when he first received

9603-461: Was severely punished. According to Aurelius Victor, a revolt in Sardinia was subdued by Cato during his praetorship. In 195, when he was only 39 years old, Cato was elected junior consul to his old friend and patron Flaccus. During his consulship, he enacted the first two of the Porcian Laws , which expanded the protections of Roman citizens against degrading or capricious punishment under

9702-451: Was the dangerous nature of their ideas. He also uttered warnings against the influence of Chaldean astrologers who had entered Italy along with Greek culture. He had a horror of physicians, who were chiefly Greeks. He obtained the release of Polybius , the historian, and his fellow prisoners, contemptuously asking whether the Senate had nothing more important to do than discuss whether a few Greeks should die at Rome or in their own land. It

9801-537: Was the first to write history in Latin with his Origines , a now fragmentary work on the history of Rome . His work De agri cultura , a rambling work on agriculture, rituals, and recipes, is the oldest extant prose written in the Latin language. His epithet "Elder" distinguishes him from his great-grandson Cato the Younger , who opposed Julius Caesar . He came from an ancient plebeian family who were noted for their military service. Like his forefathers, Cato

#551448