Gaius Terentius Varro
Encyclopedia
Gaius Terentius Varro was a Roman
consul
and commander. Along with his colleague, Lucius Aemilius Paullus
, he commanded at the Battle of Cannae
during the Second Punic War
, in 216 BC, against the Carthaginian
general Hannibal. The battle resulted in a decisive Roman defeat.
Varro had been a praetor
in 218 BC. He was proconsul
in Picenum
from 215–213 BC, and in 208–207 BC, as propraetor he held Etruria
against Hannibal's younger brother Hasdrubal Barca
. He went to Africa
, in 200 BC as ambassador.
emphasized Varro's low birth and his rashness. Livy's own stress on Varro's rashness runs contrary to internal evidence in Livy's own history that the plebeian consul was held in high regard by the Senate and people of Rome, even after the defeat. One view is that the defeat was more the work of Aemilius Paullus, who commanded the right wing of the army (the wing traditionally commanded by the commander-in-chief). Polybius
's surviving histories say little of Varro at Cannae, but since his informants were the other general's son Lucius Aemilius Paullus Macedonicus and grandsons Scipio Aemilianus and Quintus Fabius Maximus Aemilianus
, this is not surprising. Livy relies heavily on Polybius.
Such modern re-assessment can be the practice of interjecting hindsight and theory over the conclusions of historians of the era. Livy intricately described Varro as a demagogue, rousing popular passions against the painstaking strategies of Quintus Fabius Maximus who was, in fact, hampering Hannibal in the field. Varro succeeded by maligning Fabius during the election process, and in directing the "limelight" onto himself (Livy's descriptions) such that he succeeded in taking the rein
s and ousting Fabius. He then promptly led the armies to the catastrophe of Cannae. The fact that Paullus wrested control of the right wing is foreseen in Livy's own account of Fabius exhorting his friend prior to the battle to be wary the rashness of Varro and the inevitable portents. Thus, it makes perfect sense that Publius might exert controls as a means of staving off the Carthaginians, if at all possible, in an attempt to survive the perceived weaknesses in the command of Varro. This perspective is found in Livy's account of Paullus' death as well. And certainly Polybius' use of the predecessors of generals surviving that battle to record his history, is the natural work of a historian, and cannot be proof that Varro was held in high repute because he was missing from their accounts. The fact that these military men did not mention the politician Varro, in recounting their understandings of the battle is perhaps stronger evidence of the irrelevance of the man as any kind of credit to Rome during the moment.
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...
consul
Consul
Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...
and commander. Along with his colleague, Lucius Aemilius Paullus
Lucius Aemilius Paullus (General)
Lucius Aemilius Paullus was a Roman consul twice, in 219 and 216 BC.He served his first consulship with Marcus Livius Salinator. During this year, he defeated Demetrius of Pharos, in the Second Illyrian War and forced him to flee to the court of Philip V of Macedon. Upon his return to Rome, he was...
, he commanded at the Battle of Cannae
Battle of Cannae
The Battle of Cannae was a major battle of the Second Punic War, which took place on August 2, 216 BC near the town of Cannae in Apulia in southeast Italy. The army of Carthage under Hannibal decisively defeated a numerically superior army of the Roman Republic under command of the consuls Lucius...
during the Second Punic War
Second Punic War
The Second Punic War, also referred to as The Hannibalic War and The War Against Hannibal, lasted from 218 to 201 BC and involved combatants in the western and eastern Mediterranean. This was the second major war between Carthage and the Roman Republic, with the participation of the Berbers on...
, in 216 BC, against the Carthaginian
Carthage
Carthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
general Hannibal. The battle resulted in a decisive Roman defeat.
Varro had been a praetor
Praetor
Praetor was a title granted by the government of Ancient Rome to men acting in one of two official capacities: the commander of an army, usually in the field, or the named commander before mustering the army; and an elected magistratus assigned varied duties...
in 218 BC. He was proconsul
Proconsul
A proconsul was a governor of a province in the Roman Republic appointed for one year by the senate. In modern usage, the title has been used for a person from one country ruling another country or bluntly interfering in another country's internal affairs.-Ancient Rome:In the Roman Republic, a...
in Picenum
Picenum
Picenum was a region of ancient Italy. The name is an exonym assigned by the Romans, who conquered and incorporated it into the Roman Republic. Picenum was the birthplace of such notables as Pompey the Great and his father Pompeius Strabo. It was situated in what is now Marche...
from 215–213 BC, and in 208–207 BC, as propraetor he held Etruria
Etruria
Etruria—usually referred to in Greek and Latin source texts as Tyrrhenia—was a region of Central Italy, an area that covered part of what now are Tuscany, Latium, Emilia-Romagna, and Umbria. A particularly noteworthy work dealing with Etruscan locations is D. H...
against Hannibal's younger brother Hasdrubal Barca
Hasdrubal Barca
Hasdrubal was Hamilcar Barca's second son and a Carthaginian general in the Second Punic War. He was a younger brother of the much more famous Hannibal.-Youth and Iberian leadership:...
. He went to Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
, in 200 BC as ambassador.
Varro reassessed
Varro's role in the defeat at Cannae has been re-assessed recently by modern historians and historiographers, who point out that LivyLivy
Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
emphasized Varro's low birth and his rashness. Livy's own stress on Varro's rashness runs contrary to internal evidence in Livy's own history that the plebeian consul was held in high regard by the Senate and people of Rome, even after the defeat. One view is that the defeat was more the work of Aemilius Paullus, who commanded the right wing of the army (the wing traditionally commanded by the commander-in-chief). Polybius
Polybius
Polybius , Greek ) was a Greek historian of the Hellenistic Period noted for his work, The Histories, which covered the period of 220–146 BC in detail. The work describes in part the rise of the Roman Republic and its gradual domination over Greece...
's surviving histories say little of Varro at Cannae, but since his informants were the other general's son Lucius Aemilius Paullus Macedonicus and grandsons Scipio Aemilianus and Quintus Fabius Maximus Aemilianus
Quintus Fabius Maximus Aemilianus
Quintus Fabius Maximus Aemilianus was a Roman statesman and consul .Fabius was by adoption a member of the patrician gens Fabia, but by birth he was the eldest son of Lucius Aemilius Paullus Macedonicus and Papiria Masonis and the elder brother of Scipio Aemilianus...
, this is not surprising. Livy relies heavily on Polybius.
Such modern re-assessment can be the practice of interjecting hindsight and theory over the conclusions of historians of the era. Livy intricately described Varro as a demagogue, rousing popular passions against the painstaking strategies of Quintus Fabius Maximus who was, in fact, hampering Hannibal in the field. Varro succeeded by maligning Fabius during the election process, and in directing the "limelight" onto himself (Livy's descriptions) such that he succeeded in taking the rein
Rein
Reins are items of horse tack, used to direct a horse or other animal used for riding or driving. Reins can be made of leather, nylon, metal, or other materials, and attach to a bridle via either its bit or its noseband.-Use for riding:...
s and ousting Fabius. He then promptly led the armies to the catastrophe of Cannae. The fact that Paullus wrested control of the right wing is foreseen in Livy's own account of Fabius exhorting his friend prior to the battle to be wary the rashness of Varro and the inevitable portents. Thus, it makes perfect sense that Publius might exert controls as a means of staving off the Carthaginians, if at all possible, in an attempt to survive the perceived weaknesses in the command of Varro. This perspective is found in Livy's account of Paullus' death as well. And certainly Polybius' use of the predecessors of generals surviving that battle to record his history, is the natural work of a historian, and cannot be proof that Varro was held in high repute because he was missing from their accounts. The fact that these military men did not mention the politician Varro, in recounting their understandings of the battle is perhaps stronger evidence of the irrelevance of the man as any kind of credit to Rome during the moment.
Sources
- LivyLivyTitus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
, History of Rome, Rev. Canon Roberts (translator), Ernest Rhys (Ed.); (1905) London: J. M. Dent & Sons, Ltd.