Publius Decius Mus was a Roman

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...

 politician and general. As 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...

 in 279 BC

279 BC

Year 279 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Saverrius and Mus...

, he and his fellow consul, Publius Sulpicius Saverrio, combined their armies against Pyrrhus of Epirus

Pyrrhus of Epirus

Pyrrhus or Pyrrhos was a Greek general and statesman of the Hellenistic era. He was king of the Greek tribe of Molossians, of the royal Aeacid house , and later he became king of Epirus and Macedon . He was one of the strongest opponents of early Rome...

 at the Battle of Asculum

Battle of Asculum (279 BC)

The Battle of Asculum took place in 279 BC between the Romans under the command of Consul Publius Decius Mus and the combined Tarantine, Oscan, Samnite, and Epirote forces, under the command of the Greek king Pyrrhus of Epirus...

. Pyrrhus was victorious, but at such a high cost that the security of Asculum was guaranteed. (Hence the term "Pyrrhic victory

Pyrrhic victory

A Pyrrhic victory is a victory with such a devastating cost to the victor that it carries the implication that another such victory will ultimately cause defeat.-Origin:...

".) According to one tradition, Decius died in the field; according to another, he survived.