POMPEY 





PONCA 



Consult Muu's Pompeii (translation l>y K- !- 



sey) ; Thomas's ]; > t >nl> r f/i- 



Also, Lytton's Last Days of Pompeii is recom- 

 mended. 



POMPEY, pom 'pi (106-48 B.C.), the com- 

 mon Kn,L r li>h form of the name of GNAEUS 

 M. MINTS POMI-KHS. tin* ^n at Roman general 

 and a member of the First Triumvirate. His 

 first military training was received under his 

 father in the war between Marius and Sulla, 

 but he first did real personal service by his aid 

 to Sulla in 83 B. c. By his own efforts he raised 

 three legions and defeated the Marian armies 

 in Italy, winning thus the command against the 

 party of Marius in Africa and in Sicily. Vic- 

 torius in both places, he received on his return 

 to Rome a triumph, an unheard-of honor for 

 a young man who had held no public office. 



Early Service to the State. When Lepidus 

 nipted to overthrow the constitutions of 

 Sulla, Pompey effectually opposed him, and in 

 76 was sent to Spain, where the Marian party, 

 headed by Sertorius, was still very strong. 

 Even Pompey could make no headway against 

 Sertorius, but after the murder of that brave 

 leader in 71 B. c. he easily overcame all opposi- 

 tion, and on his return to Rome was given the 

 post of consul with Crassus as his colleague. 

 Meanwhile, though the people idolized him, 

 the aristocratic party had come to look upon 

 him with suspicion, because too much inclined 

 to cater to the popular demands, and he proved 

 the justice of their suspicions by restoring the 

 office of tribune of the people. His military 

 powers could not be denied, however, and in 67 

 he was intrusted with the task of freeing the 

 Mediterranean of pirates. This difficult task 

 he speedily accomplished, and in 65 B. c. he was 

 placed in command of the Mithridatic War, 

 Cicero delivering one of his most famous ora- 

 tions in favor of his appointment. 



First Triumvirate Formed. He brought that 

 long-drawn-out struggle to a close, subduing 

 Pontus, Armenia and Syria and capturing Jeru- 

 salem, entering, it is said, the Holy of Holies in 

 the Temple there. The Senate, however, still 

 mistrusted him and refused to ratify his con- 

 duct of affairs in Asia, and in order to advance 

 his interests he formed a coalition with Julius 

 Caesar. Crassus, with whom Pompey had 

 quarreled, was also reconciled and brought into 

 the alliance, which thus became the famous 

 First Triumvirate. 



Pompey was married to Caesar's daughter 

 Julia, and the two promised to respect each 

 other's ambitions, but Pompey grew jealous of 



Caesar's ever-increasing fame, and after Julia's 

 death openly turned against him. He induced 

 the Senate, now more afraid of Caesar than of 

 him. to demand that Caesar relinquish his com- 

 mand, but this the latter refused to do unli-ss 

 Pompey should resign his offices. Pompey in 

 his turn refused, and Caesar, who was on a 

 campaign in the north, promptly crossed the 

 Rubicon and marched on Rome. 



Flight and Death. Fleeing to Thessaly, Pom- 

 pey was completely defeated by Cae.sir at 

 Pharsalia, and escaped to Egypt; but as he was 

 landing from his boat he was killed by one of 

 his old centurions. His head was afterward 

 presented to Caesar, who refused to look upon 

 it and ordered the murderer's death. 



Pompey was a remarkably successful general, 

 but it must be remembered that for most of his 

 achievements the way had been paved by the 

 long and toilsome work of others. He was not 

 a statesman but deserved honor for the purity 

 and uprightness of his private life. A.MCC. 



Consult "Life of Pompey," in Plutarch's Lives; 

 Oman's Seven Roman Statesmen of the Late Re- 

 public. 



Related Subjects. The following articles in 

 these volumes will make clear the references in 

 the above article on Pompey : 

 Caesar, Caius Julius Marius, Caius 



Consul, subhead The Mithridates 



Roman Consul Rubicon 



Crassus, Marcus Sulla, Lucius Cornelius 



Licinius Tribune 



Lepidus, Marcus Triumph 



Aemilius Triumvirate 



PONCA, pong'kah, a tribe of North Ameri- 

 can Indians belonging to the Sioux family, the 

 majority of whom are now living in Oklahoma 

 and the remainder in Nebraska, on the Santee 

 reservation. Originally they lived with the 

 Omahas near the Red River of- the North, but 

 after many treaties with the United States gov- 

 ernment they settled at the mouth of the Nio- 

 brara River, near the Nebraska-Dakota bound- 

 ary. There Lewis and Clark visited them in 

 1804, while on their expedition westward. Later 

 the United States ceded the lands of the peace- 

 loving Poncas to the Sioux, and in 1877 the 

 tribe was forcibly removed to the present Okla- 

 homa, where large numbers of them died. The 

 following year they revolted and returned to 

 the Omahas. Their sufferings aroused public 

 sympathy, and in 1880 the rebels were par- 

 doned and given the rights of citizenship. 

 Later a part of the tribe was permitted to re- 

 turn to Nebraska. In all, the Poncas number 

 fewer than 1,000. 



