Dusmanul la Poarta!-Partea-6!

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2-Istoria ramane pasiunea mea nr-1!

“My friends, what a wrestling ground for Carthaginians and Romans we are leaving behind us!”

The Epirote King Pyrrhus left Sicily behind following a request for aid from his Greek allies in Magna Graecia (southern Italy), giving him a reason to abandon his Sicilian expedition without conceding defeat – just as had when quitting Italy to cross the Strait of Messina three years previously. As he left the island he declared: “My friends, what a wrestling ground for Carthaginians and Romans we are leaving behind us!”

Still his opponents were not merely content to let him leave unchallenged. The Carthaginians, who he had taken so much territory from in his Sicilian campaign, assembled a fleet to attack his retreating army, sinking many of his ships. They also ferried across 10,000 of the Mamertines before Pyrrhus arrived, and these mercenaries attacked the Greek force when it landed in Italy. Two of his elephants and many of his soldiers were killed, and Pyrrhus himself was wounded in the head, though he managed to rally his troops and rout the Mamertines. Pyrrhus reached Tarentum in Autumn 276 BC with around 20,000 men.

Arriving in Italy, Pyrrhus found that many of his former allies, having tired of his despotism, were now reneging on their agreed tributes. In need of money to fund his enterprise of constant war, Pyrrhus took to further antagonising the local populace by looting temples and treasures. This even extended to pillaging the Treasure of Persephone from the temple in Locris, earning the citizens’ enmity.

When Pyrrhus had left for Sicily three years previously, the Romans had postponed their conflict with Tarentum. In 277 BC, the Consuls Publius Cornelius Rufinius and Gaius Junius Bubulcus Brutus invaded and devastated that old enemy, Samnium. The Samnites evacuated with their treasures to the Cranita hill, and when the Consuls’ legions attempted to scale these they were foiled by the dense undergrowth, and repelled, with many killed. The consular duo blamed each other for the reverse and refused to cooperate, so while Bubulcus ravaged Samnium, Rufinius attacked the Lucani and Brutii nearby, after which he besieged the town of Croton, which had rebelled against Rome.

The anti-Roman faction of Croton asked Milo, the lieutenant of Pyrrhus in Tarentum, for help. He sent Nicomachus to garrison the city, and when an unknowing Cornelius attacked the city walls, he was shocked to be driven off by a sortie from the new garrison. He sent two men to Nicomahcus who impersonated deserters, claiming that the Consul had abandoned his designs for Croton and was now marching on Locris, which would be betrayed to him. Cornelius completed the ruse by packing up his camp in haste, causing Nicomahcus to swiftly mobilise his troops and march to garrison Locris instead. This allowed the cunning Cornelius to turn back and capture Croton, and when Nicomahcus returned to Tarentum, the frustrated Locris did indeed declare for Rome.

Although the Samnites had lost much of their territory during Pyrrhus’ absence, this served only to embitter most of the mountain tribes towards him, rather than enamour him to them. Pyrrhus was thus shocked by how few Italians joined his coalition following his return – evidently their memory of his flight to Sicily and the apparent betrayal remained fresh, as did memories of his despotism. Magna Greacia was in no mood to support Pyrrhus afresh as it had been when he first arrived five years earlier. The Samnites were hard pressed by the legions, and Pyrrhus looked to ensure their support by marching to relieve them. The Roman Consuls for 275 BC, Lucius Cornelius Lentulus Caudinus and Manius Curius Dentatus, were fighting in Lucania and Samnium respectively. Pyrrhus thus needed to move quickly, attacking now as he had a slight numerical advantage over each army – and few allies arriving to bolster his numbers, as he would have expected. Advancing into Campania, Pyrrhus drew up his force to crush the legions under Dentatus and proclaim to Magna Graecia that he had returned in triumph as he lined up to face the Romans at the Battle of Beneventum.