351 



SCIPIO. 



SCIPIO. 



352 



Cneius, who had already acheived important things in that country. 

 Hia intention was to drive the Carthaginians from Spain, and thus to 

 cut off the supplies which Hannibal was to receive from that quarter. 

 Cneius on his arrival from Massilia had landed at Emporium, and 

 soon after the greater part of the eastern coast of Spain declared for 

 him. His mildness also induced several of the inland tribes, who 

 were discontented with the oppressive rule of the Carthaginians, to 

 join the Romans. A battle near the town of Scissis, in which the 

 Carthaginians were defeated and their general Hanno taken prisoner, 

 made the Romans masters of nearly the whole country between the 

 Iberus (Ebr>>) and the Pyrenees. Cneius now took up his whiter- 

 quarters at Tarraco (Tarragona). (Liv., xxi. 60, &c. ; Polyb., iii. 76.) 

 In the year following, a short time before his brother Publius arrived, 

 Cneius defeated the Carthaginian fleet in the mouth of the Iberus. 

 (Liv., xxii. 20 ; Polyb., iii. 96, &c.) About the middle of the summer 

 Publius arrived, and the two brothers marched against Saguntum, 

 where Hannibal had left the Spanish hostages on his setting out 

 towards QauL The treachery of a Spaniard, called Abelux or Abilyx, 

 delivered them up to the Scipios, who wisely sent them home to their 

 relatives, and thus gained a hold on the affections of a great number 

 of Spanish tribes, who gladly shook off the yoke of the Carthaginians. 

 In B.C. 216 the Scipios gained a victory at Ibera over Hasdrubal, who, 

 after the arrival of a fresh Carthaginian army under Himilco, intended 

 to make a lauding in Italy and to support his brother there. The 

 whole army of Hasdrubal was defeated and routed, his camp was taken, 

 and he himself escaped with only a few followers. (Liv., xxiiL 28, &c.) 

 The Spaniards, who had been heavily taxed by the Carthaginians, 

 willingly submitted to the Romans, but the Scipios knew the fickle- 

 ness of the Spaniards, and, in order to keep up friendly relations 

 with them, they did not levy any heavy contributions, but applied 

 to the senate at Rome to provide them with the means of supporting 

 their armies. In the meanwhile Mago arrived with another army 

 from Africa, and laid siege to the revolted town of Illiturgi on the 

 Baetis. Here again the Scipios gained a great victory, and soon after 

 another near Intibili, where the Carthaginians on their flight from 

 Illiturgi had taken refuge. In the year B.C. 214 the important town 

 of Castulo deserted the cause of the Carthaginians and joined the 

 Romans, and when the former made a new attempt against Illiturgi, 

 they were beaten by Cneius, and completely defeated in the neigh- 

 bourhood of Munda. They were not more successful in several other 

 attempts. During the following year the Carthaginians were engaged 

 in a war in Africa against Syphax, and the Scipios had time to 

 strengthen themselves in Spain. But the uninterrupted series of 

 brilliant victories of the Scipios was now at an end. In B.C. 212 the 

 Carthaginians resumed the war in Spain, and took 20,000 Celtiberians 

 into their pay. Publius Scipio commanded two-thirds of the Roman 

 forces, and was arrayed against Mago, Hasdrubal, son of Gisco (who 

 were supported by Massinissa), and the Spanish chief Indibilis. Cneius 

 was opposed to Hasdrubal Barcas. Publius, in his assault on the ranks 

 of Indibilis, was cut down with the greater part of his army. His 

 brother Cneius, abandoned by the faithless Celtiberians, withdrew as 

 far as he could. From the manreuvres of the enemy, he conjectured 

 the fate of his brother. On his retreat he found himself at last com- 

 pelled to make a stand upon a hill which was of such a nature that 

 it was impossible for him to fortify himself. Nearly the whole of his 

 army was cut to pieces, and Cneius himself fell among the rest, 29 

 days after the death of his brother. The catastrophe took place in 

 the spring of the year B.C. 211. (Becker, ' Vorarbeiten zu einer 

 Geschichte des Zweiten Punischen Krieges,' in Dahlmann's ' Forschun- 

 gen,' ii. 2, p. 113.) 



10. CN. CORNELIUS Scirio CALVUS, the brother of P. Corn. Scipio 

 (No. 9). His exploits in Spain have just been described. He was 

 consul, in B.C. 222, with M. Claudius Marcellus, with whom he made 

 an expedition against the Insubrians, and took Acerrse and Mediolanum. 

 (Polyb., ii. 34; Plut., 'Marcell.,' 6.) At the beginning of the second 

 Punic war he went, aa we have seen, to Spain as legate to his brother 

 Publius. 



11. P. CORNELIUS SCIPIO AFIUCANUS MAJOB, the son of P. Cornelius 

 Scipio (No. 9). If it be true that at the age of seventeen he fought in 

 the battle of the Ticiuus (B.C. 218), and rescued his wounded father, 

 he must have been born in B.C. 235. He was in the battle of Canna) 

 (B.C. 216) as a tribune, and was among those who after the defeat 

 escaped to Canusium. Here the chief command of the remaining 

 troops was unanimously entrusted to him and Appius Claudius 

 Pulcher. (Liv., xxii. 53.) On this occasion it was owing to his presence 

 of mind that the remnants of the Roman army did not in their despair 

 quit Italy. (Val. Max., v. 6, 7.) In B.C. 212 Scipio was curule jedile, 

 though ho had not yet attained the legitimate age. The tribunes of 

 the people endeavoured to prevent his election, but they were obliged 

 to give up their opposition, for the people, who seem to have perceived 

 the extraordinary abilities of the young man, elected him almost 

 unanimously. (Liv., xxv. 2.) In B.C. 211 his father and undo fell 

 in .Spain, and the Carthaginians again took possession of the country, 

 which they had almost entirely lost. When Capua had fallen again 

 into their hands, and Italy no longer required their exclusive attention, 

 the Romans determined to act with more energy against the Cartha- 

 ginians in Spain. On the day of the election, no one ventured to 

 come forward to undertake the command in thia war. Young Scipio, 



then scarcely twenty-four years of age, at lost offered to take the 

 command of the army in Spain. The people were struck with admira- 

 tion at the courage of the young man, and gave him the command, 

 with proconsular power, which was afterwards prolonged to him for 

 several years (B.C. 210-206). 



The extraordinary power which young Scipio exercised over his 

 contemporaries was perhaps partly owing to superstition, for he was 

 believed to be a favourite of the gods. Ever since he had taken the 

 toga virilis, he went every morning into the Capitol, where he spent 

 some hours in solitude and meditation. Hence all he did was consi- 

 dered by the people to be the result of his intercourse with the gods. 

 Scipio himself partook in this opinion, and cherished it; and the 

 extraordinary success of all his enterprises must have strengthened his 

 belief. Towards the end of the summer, in B.C. 210, or, as Livy 

 (xxvi. 41) says, at the beginning of spring, Scipio set out for Spain 

 with an army of 11,000 men, landed at the mouth of the Iberus, and 

 undertook the command of the whole Roman forces in Spain. He 

 was accompanied by his friend Lselius. His first object was to gain 

 possession of New Carthage, where the Carthaginians kept their Spanish 

 hostages. Lselius made the attack with the fleet from the sea-side, 

 while Scipio conducted the operations on laud. The town soon fell 

 into the hands of the Romans, and the generosity with which Scipio 

 treated the Spanish hostages gained over a great number of Spaniards. 

 The hostages of those tribes who declared themselves allies of the 

 Romans were sent home without ransom. A short time after the 

 conquest of this place Scipio went to Tarraco, where he received 

 embassies from various Spanish tribes, who offered to become the 

 allies of the Romans or to recognise their supremacy. Scipio is said 

 not to have set out against Hasdrubal until the year following, but it 

 can scarcely be conceived why the Carthaginians should have been so 

 long inactive, and it is a probable supposition that the battle with 

 Hasdrubal, which Livy and Polybius assign to the year B.C. 209, was 

 fought very soon after the taking of New Carthage. (Zonaras, ix. 8.) 

 In this battle Scipio gamed a great victory ; 8000 Carthaginians were 

 slam, and 22,000, with their camp, fell into the hands of the victor. 

 Many of the Spaniards now wished to proclaim Scipio their king, but 

 he refused the honour. (Liv., xxvii. 19; Polyb., x. 40.) Hasdrubal 

 fled with the remainder of his army towards the Tagus and the 

 Pyrenees. Scipio did not follow him, partly because he thought his 

 enemy too much weakened to be dangerous, and partly because he 

 feared lest he might expose himself to the combined attacks of tho 

 two other Carthaginian generals, Mago, and Hasdrubal, son of Gisco. 

 Hasdrubal Barcas, the defeated general, however, had carried consi- 

 derable wealth with him in his flight, and with these means he raised 

 an army in Spain, to lead into Italy to the assistance of his brother 

 Hannibal, hoping thus to bring the war to an end in Italy. During 

 these preparations of Hasdrubal, Soipio was engaged against the two 

 other Carthaginian generals, one of whom (Mago) was defeated, in 

 B.C. 208, by the proprsetor Silauu.-', in the country of the Celtiberiaus, 

 and Hanno, who came with an auxiliary army from Africa, was taken 

 prisoner. After this success of the proprietor, Scipio united his forces 

 with those of Silanus to attack Hasdrubal, son of Gisco. But as this 

 general had retired to the south of Spain, and had distributed his 

 army in the fortified places on the Btetis as far as Gades, Scipio 

 (through his brother Lucius) only took the important town of Oriugis, 

 and then gradually returned across the Iberus. The power of the 

 Carthaginians in Spain was however already broken, and in the year 

 following (B.C. 207) Scipio gained possession of nearly all Spain by a 

 victory, the place of which is not clearly ascertained, some calling it 

 Silpia or Bsecula, some Ilipa, and others Carmo. Scipio, now in the 

 almost undisputed possession of Spain, began to turn his eyes to 

 Africa, and, accompanied by his friend Laelius, he ventured to pay a 

 visit to King Syphax, with whom Lzelius had already commenced 

 negociations. Here Scipio is said to have met Hasdrubal, son of 

 Gisco, and to have made a very favourable impression on Syphax as 

 well as on Hasdrubal. After a short stay in Africa, Scipio returned 

 to Spain, where he first punished several towns for their faithlessness, 

 and subdued some of the Spanish chiefs who ventured to claim their 

 former independence. During these occupations Scipio was attacked 

 by a severe illness, from which however he recovered in time to quell 

 an insurrection of 8000 Roman soldiers, who were discontented from 

 not having derived from their conquests those advantages which they 

 had expected, and who are said also to have been bribed by the Cartha- 

 ginians. Mago had in the meantime withdrawn to the Balearic 

 Islands, and thence to Liguria. Gades, the last place which the Cartha- 

 ginians possessed in Spain, was now taken from them, and thus the 

 war in Spain was at an end. 



Towards the close of the year B.C. 206, Scipio surrendered the com- 

 mand of the Roman forces in Spam to the proconsuls L. Leutulus 

 and L. Manlius Acidinus, and returned to Rome, (Liv., xxviii. 38.) He 

 delivered to the rerarium the immense treasures which he brought from 

 Spain. He evidently wished for a triumph, but the senate paid no 

 attention to his wishes, for no one had ever triumphed at Rome before 

 he had held the consulship, lu the year B.C. 205, Scipio was made 

 consul with P. Licinius Crassus, who was at the same time pontiiex 

 maximus, and was consequently not allowed to leave Italy. If there- 

 fore a war was to be carried on abroad, the command necessarily 

 devolved upon Scipio. His wish was immediately to sail with an 



