A HISTORICAL COMMENTARY ON PLUTARCH'S MARCELLUS By EDWARD DALE CLARK B.A., The University of Washington, 1983 M.A., The University of Washington, 1984 A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in THE FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES (Department of Classics) We accept this thesis as conforming to the required standard THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA August 1991 ® Edward Dale Clark, 1991 In presenting this thesis in partial fulfilment of the requirements for an advanced degree at the University of British Columbia, I agree that the Library shall make it freely available for reference and study. 1 further agree that permission for extensive copying of this thesis for scholarly purposes may be granted by the head of my department or by his or her representatives. It is understood that copying or publication of this thesis for financial gain shall not be allovk^ed without my written permission. Department The University of British Columbia Vancouver, Canada Date Dec, lû^ m\ DE-6 (2/88) A HISTORICAL COMMENTARY ON PLUTARCH'S MARCELLUS ABSTRACT M. Claudius Marcellus won military renown during Rome's wars with the Gauls and the Carthaginians in the latter half of the third century B.C. As consul in 222 B.C. he earned the rare honor of the spolia opima by slaying in single combat the opposing Gallic chieftain. In the dark days following the disaster at Cannae in 216 B.C., he showed himself to be the only Roman commander capable of standing up to, if not actually defeating, Hannibal in Italy; for this he gained the title of 'The Sword of Rome.' Plutarch, writing at the turn of the second century A.D., came near the end of the development of the historical tradition about this famous general. When he came to write this biography, he had available to him a wide range of sources, both favorable and hostile to Marcellus. The purpose of this study is to provide a commentary on his account and to assess the accuracy of the portrait offered. Plutarch's text has been compared with all the evidence that has survived. Its similarities to and divergences from other versions have been examined, although the investigation is hampered by the loss of much of the source material that had been available to Plutarch. Through this analysis it is hoped that a more accurate picture of Marcellus and of the events in which he was involved have emerged. Plutarch set out to prove that Marcel lus was not only a brave and energetic warrior but also a humanitarian and an admirer of Greek culture. This study concludes that he is only partially convincing. Although there is no doubt about Marcellus' military prowess, his humanitarianism and love of Greek culture are open to serious questions. As the record shows Marcellus adopted measures that were both harsh and cruel, while the extent to which some of his actions appear humane is due in large part to practical necessity. In addition, his admiration of Greek culture seems to have been only superficial. Plutarch in presenting this portrait appears motivated by his notion of virtuous ideals rather than by historical reality. TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT ii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS vi TEXT AND ABBREVIATIONS vii INTRODUCTION Plutarch's Life 1 The Parallel Lives and Plutarch's aim 7 Plutarch's Methods 12 Plutarch's Sources 20 COMMENTARY Chapter One 37 Chapter Two 44 Chapter Three 56 Chapter Four 77 Chapter Five 94 Chapter Six 104 Chapter Seven 117 Chapter Eight 125 Chapter Nine 137 Chapter Ten 146 Chapter Eleven 153 Chapter Twelve 161 Chapter Thirteen 174 Chapter Fourteen 197 Chapter Fifteen 217 Chapter Sixteen 230 Chapter Seventeen 234 Chapter Eighteen 240 Chapter Nineteen 256 Chapter Twenty 274 Chapter Twenty-one 281 Chapter Twenty-two 291 Chapter Twenty-three 298 Chapter Twenty-four 310 Chapter Twenty-five 321 Chapter Twenty-six 329 Chapter Twenty-seven 334 Chapter Twenty-eight 340 Chapter Twenty-nine 349 Chapter Thirty 369 BIBLIOGRAPHY 379 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I wish to thank Professors W. J. Dusing and A. A. Barrett for their cooperation and supervision without which this thesis would not have been possible. I would also like to express my gratitude to Professor P. E. Harding for his timely efforts and helpful suggestions. To my family I shall always be indebted for the patience shown me and the support given during my many years of study. E.D.C. TEXT The edition of Plutarch's text used is that of K. Ziegler (Leipzig: B. G. Teubner, 1968). ABBREVIATIONS Standard abbreviations are used for citing ancient authors and texts. Abbreviations used for many modern works of scholarship can be found in L'année philologique or The Oxford 2 Clssical Dictionary . In other cases shortened titles or the following abbreviations may be employed (full citations for modern works can be found in the Bibliography): Barrow PT Barrow, R. H. Plutarch and His Times. London, 1967. Cassola GPR Cassola, F. I gruppi polit ici romani nel iii secolo a. C. Trieste, 1962. De Sanctis SR De Sanctis, G. Storia dei Romani. Florence, 1967-1968. Eckstein SG Eckstein, A. M. Senate and General: Individual Decision Making and Roman Foreign Relations, 264-194 B.C. Berkeley, 1987. Ernout-Meillet Ernout, A. and A. Meillet. Dictionnaire Étymologique de la Langue Latine. Paris, 1959. Hamilton PAC Hamilton, J. R. Plutarch, Alexander, A Commentary. Oxford, 1969. Heath HGM Heath, Sir T. L. A History of Greek Mathematics. Oxford, 1921. Hesselbarth HKUDDL Hesselbarth, H. Historisch- kritische Untersuchungen zur dritten VI1 Dekade des Livius. Halle, 1889. Inscr. It. Inscriptiones Italia. Ed. A. Degrassi. Rome, 1937. Jones PR Jones, C. P. Plutarch and Rome. Oxford, 1971. LandeIs EAW Landels, J. G. Engineering in the Ancient World. Berkeley, 1978. Marsden GRATT Marsden, E. W. Greek and Roman Artillery: Historical Development. Oxford, 1969. Marsden GRAHD Marsden, E. W. Greek and Roman Artillery: Technical Treatises. Oxford, 1971. Mommsen Str. Mommsen, T. Romisches Staatsrecht. Graz, 1952-1953. Mommsen Strafr. Mommsen, T. Romisches Strafrecht. Berlin, 1955. Nissen It. Land. Nissen, H. Italische Landeskunde. Berlin, 1883-1902. PECS The Princeton Encyclopedia of Classical Sites. Ed. R. Stillwell. Princeton, 1976. Peter HRR Peter, H. Historicorum Romanorum Reliquiae. Stuttgart, 1967. Picard TR Picard, G. C. Les Trophées romains: Contribution à l' histoire de la Religion et de l' Art triomphal. Paris, 1957. RE Real-Encyclopadie der classischen Altertumswissenshaft. Ed. A. Pauly et al. Stuttgart, 1893-. Schwenn MGR Schwenn, F. Die Menschenopfer bei den Griechen und Rômern. Berlin, 1966. Scullard RP Scullard, H. H. Roman Politics 220-150 B.C. Oxford, 1951. Syll. Sylioge Inscriptionum Graecarum. Ed. G. Dittenberger. Leipzig, 1960. Thiel SHRSPRT Thiel, J. H. Studies on the History of Roman Sea-Power in Republican. Times. Amsterdam, 1946. Walde-Hofmann Walde, A. and J. B. Hofmann. Lateinisches etymologisches Worterbuch. Heidelberg, 1965. References to the commentary begin with "Chapter..." (with a capital C) , otherwise the word chapter refers to the text of the Marcellus. INTRODUCTION Plutarch's Life Plutarch was born in the fourth decade after Christ of a well-to-do family resident in the Greek city of Chaeronea. His 2 family had resided there for generations. It was evidently well-off, since his father, Autobulus, kept the finest horses and engaged in hunting."^ Plutarch undoubtedly had a very good education. The chronology for his studies is uncertain, but it is known that he was a student of the philosopher Ammonius in A.D. 66/7 and after going through a period of intense interest in mathematics, . 4 coined the Academy in Athens. However, before coining he must have received a thorough training in rhetoric. This is evident '^RE 21,1 [1951], "Plutarchos, " no. 2: 636-962; a more precise date for his birth is difficult to determine since it is based on Plutarch's writings from which we learn that he was a student of Ammonius during Nero's stay in Greece and about ready to join the Academy (A.D. 66/7; Wor. 385b, 387f, 391e). 2 Plutarch (Ant. 68.7-8) reports that his great-grandfather Nicarchus used to tell how all the citizens of Chaeronea were pressed into service by Antony's agents to transport grain down to the Corinthian gulf at Anticyra in the year of Actium. ^Mor. 642a, 959b; Plutarch never tells us his father's name, but it has been inferred from Moralia 964d (see Barrow PT 15 and Ziegler RE 21.1 [1951]: 643-644). 4 Mor. 385b, 391e; it is reported that Ammonius came from Egypt and held the position of stratèges at Athens three times (Eunap. VS p. 454 Clear ius: èv otç 'A|i|aa>vtôç xe rjv ô AtyuTtTOU, IlÀouxàpXou ToO Gstoxàxou yeyovàç StSàaKaA,oç; Plut. Mor. 720c; see Jones HSPh 71 [1966]: 205-213).^ Mor. 387f: ^ àTiV ènet xrivtKttuxa TtpoasKeturiv xoCç paGrjiJiaotv è)XKaQ5>Q, xà%a ôx] |aé?iÀcDV eiç Ttdvxa xtM^ioetv xô ^riSèv ayav' âv 'AKaSr||aetg ysvô|isvoç. in some of his early works. His later mistrust of rhetoric was probably derived from his stay at the Academy.^ As a young man Plutarch went on travels. It may be assumed that he toured widely throughout Greece. But he also went on more distant journeys, going to the province of Asia, most likely visiting the city of Smyrna, and travelling to Egypt, 7 visiting Alexandria. He married young, taking Timoxena, the daughter of Alexion, as his wife. The marriage, which appears to have been a happy g one, produced at least five children. While still a young man, he was chosen as part of a two-man delegation to go to the proconsul of Achaea, probably in order to represent the interests of Chaeronea.'^'^ This was the beginning of his official contact with the Roman governing class, among whom he was to make many friends.