Viriathus: and the Lusitanian Resistance to Rome 155-139 BC Free
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FREE VIRIATHUS: AND THE LUSITANIAN RESISTANCE TO ROME 155-139 BC PDF Luis Silva | 336 pages | 19 Sep 2013 | Pen & Sword Books Ltd | 9781781591284 | English | South Yorkshire, United Kingdom Viriathus and the Lusitanian Resistance to Rome BC - Luis Silva - Google книги Viriathus also spelled Viriatus ; known as Viriato in Portuguese and Spanish ; died BC was the most important leader of the Lusitanian people that resisted Roman expansion into the regions of western Hispania as the Romans called it or western Iberia as the Greeks called itwhere the Roman province of Lusitania would be finally established after the conquest. Viriatus developed alliances with other Iberian groups, even far away from his usual theatres of war, inducing them to rebel against Rome. He led his army, supported by most of the Lusitanian and Vetton tribes as well as by other Celtiberian allies, to several victories over the Romans between BC and BC before being betrayed by them and murdered while sleeping. Of him, Theodor Mommsen said, "It seemed as if, in that thoroughly prosaic age, one of the Homeric heroes had reappeared. There are several possible etymologies for the name Viriatus. Viri may come from:. The Celtiberian elite used the title uiros ueramosmeaning the 'highest man' and the Latin equivalent would be summus vir. According to the historian SchultenViriatus had a Celtic name. For he was, as is agreed by all, valiant in dangers, prudent and careful in providing whatever was necessary, and that which was most considerable of all was, that whilst he commanded he was more beloved than ever any was before him. Little is known about Viriatus. The only reference to the location of his native tribe was made by the Greek historian Diodorus Siculuswho claims he was from the Lusitanian tribes of the ocean side. He belonged to the class of warriors, the occupation of the minority ruling elites. He was known to the Romans as the dux of the Lusitanian army, as the adsertor protector of Hispania, [8] or as an imperator[9] probably of the confederated Lusitanian and Celtiberian tribes. Livy described him as a shepherd who became a hunter, then a soldier, thus following the path of most young warriors, the iuventuswho devoted themselves to cattle raiding, hunting and war. According to Appian[12] Viriatus was one of the few who escaped when Galbathe Roman governor, massacred the flos iuventutisViriathus: And the Lusitanian Resistance to Rome 155-139 BC flower of the young Lusitanian warriors, [13] in BC. Viriatus was thought by some to have a very obscure origin, [14] although Diodorus Siculus also says that Viriatus "approved himself to be a prince" and that he said he was "lord and owner of all". His personality and his physical and intellectual abilities as well as his skills as a warrior were described by several authors. He was a man of great physical strength, probably in the very prime of life, an excellent strategist, [16] and possessor of a brilliant mind. Some authors claim that the ancient authors described Viriatus with the precise features of a Celtic king. He was described as a man who followed the principles of honesty and fair dealing and Viriathus: And the Lusitanian Resistance to Rome 155-139 BC acknowledged for being exact and faithful to his word on the treaties and alliances he made. A more modern current claims Viriatus belonged to an aristocratic Lusitanian clan who were owners of cattle. His aims could then be compared to pure Roman aristocratic ideals of that time: to serve and gain military glory and honor. The Lusitanians honored Viriatus as their BenefactorGreek: euergetes[22] and Savior Greek: soter[23] typically Hellenistic honorifics used by kings like the Ptolemies. Some authors assert that he was probably from the Herminius Mons Serra da Estrelain the heart of Lusitania, in central Portugal or the Beira Alta region. Most of his life and his war against the Romans are part of legend and Viriatus is considered the earliest Portuguese national herogiven the fact that he was the leader of the confederate tribes of Iberia who resisted Rome. The historian Appianus of Alexandria in his book about Iberia in the Viriathus: And the Lusitanian Resistance to Rome 155-139 BC Historia RomanaRoman Historycommented that Viriatus "killed numerous Romans and showed great skill". It has been argued that Silius Italicusin his epic poem entitled Punica[25] [26] mentions a former Viriatus who would have been a contemporary of Hannibal. The historical Viriatus would be the one who received the title of regnator Hiberae magnanimus terraethe "magnanimous ruler of the Iberian land". The Roman conquest of Iberia began during the Second Viriathus: And the Lusitanian Resistance to Rome 155-139 BC Warwhen the senate sent an army to Iberia to block Carthaginian reinforcements from helping Hannibal in the Italian Peninsula. This began Roman involvement in years of subsequent fighting throughout Iberia, resulting in its eventual conquest in 19 BC with Viriathus: And the Lusitanian Resistance to Rome 155-139 BC end of the Cantabrian Wars. The Lusitanian War is one of the most well documented episodes of the conquest. Rome's dominion of Iberia met with much opposition. In BC, Rome divided the southeastern coast of Iberia into two provinces, Hispania Citerior and Hispania Ulteriorand two elected praetors were assigned Viriathus: And the Lusitanian Resistance to Rome 155-139 BC command the legions. Lusitania's rich land was praised by ancient authors. Polybius in his Histories"speaking of the natural wealth of Lusitania [ The Romans charged the native tribes with heavy taxes: a fixed vectigal or land-tax, the tributum and a certain quantity of cereals. The indigenous towns had to deliver their own treasures to the Romans, which left them only with their yearly earnings to pay the taxes. Between and BC, the Roman army collected 4 tons of gold and tons of silver looting the native tribes of the Iberian peninsula. In BC, when Publius Furius Philus was accused of paying very little for the cereals that Iberia was compelled to deliver to Rome, Cato defended the interests of the native tribes. The exploitation and extortion reached such an extreme degree in the provinces that Rome had to create a special tribunal and laws, like the Lex Calpurnia created in BC. Also as part of the payment, a certain number of men were required to serve in the Roman army. The Lusitanians revolted first in BC against the Romans. Iberia was divided between the tribes that supported Roman rule and the tribes that revolted against Roman rule, as they had been divided before by those who supported the Carthaginian Viriathus: And the Lusitanian Resistance to Rome 155-139 BC those who supported Romans. This period was marked by a number of broken treaties either by the Roman generals, or their senate, that would not ratify the treaties, or by the native people. In Roman lawperegrini dediticii was the designation given to peoples who had surrendered themselves after taking up arms against the Romans. Then they attacked the tribes that were Roman subjects and that had sided with the Romans in helping to attack and plunder the Lusitanian towns. Possibly [ citation needed ] the Lusitanians recovered some of the booty the Romans had divided with those tribes. In BC the Celtiberians who had become Roman allies, fearing the revenge of the rebels who considered them traitors, asked the Romans to punish the rebellious tribes who had broken out into war and that the legions should remain in Iberia to protect them. In the year BC, Lucullus "being greedy of fame and needing money", made a peace treaty with the Caucaeiof the Vaccaei tribe, after which he ordered his men to kill all the tribe's adult males, of which it is said only a few out of 30, escaped. While Lucullus invaded the country from the east, Galba attacked it from the south. Unable to Viriathus: And the Lusitanian Resistance to Rome 155-139 BC a war on two fronts, the Lusitanian troops suffered several losses in engagements with the Romans. Fearing a long siege and the destruction the Roman siege engines would cause in their towns, the Lusitanians sent an embassy to Galba to negotiate a peace treaty, although for the Romans it would be perceived as the Deditio in dicionemthe surrender. The Lusitanians hoped they could at least renew the former treaty made with Atilius. Galba received the Lusitanian embassy politely, and a peace treaty was agreed on the terms proposed by him. He commanded them to leave their homes and remain in open country. The Lusitanians probably lost their city and possessions and their land would have become Ager Publicus. The treaty turned out to be a trap, like the one Lucullus had prepared for the Caucaei. When the unarmed Lusitanians, among them Viriathus, were gathered together by Galba to hand over their weapons and to be split into three groups two of the points of the treaty that had been negotiated and allocated to new lands, the trap was sprung. With the promise that they would be given new lands they waited unaware while Galba's army surrounded them with a ditchto prevent them from escaping. Afterwards, Roman soldiers were sent in and began to massacre all the males of military age. The survivors are said to have been sold into Viriathus: And the Lusitanian Resistance to Rome 155-139 BC in Gaul. The relocation of an entire tribe, accompanied by slaughter or their reduction to the status of slaves was a punishment often inflicted on native populations who took part in revolts. Galba distributed a little of the plunder to the army and a little to his friends, the native tribes that sided with him, and kept the rest.