157 he should think most consistent with the service of the public, and Atilius into Thessaly, to take possession of Larissa, lest, upon the expiration of the truce, Perseus should make himself master of that important place, the capital of the country. Lentulus was also sent to Thebes, to have an eye upon Boeotia.

Though the war with Perseus was resolved on at Rome, the senate gave audience to his ambassadors. They repeated the same things which had been said in the interview with Marcius, and endeavoured to justify their master principally upon the attempt he was accused of having made on the person of Eumenes. They were heard with little or no attention, and the senate ordered them, and all the Macedonians at Rome, to quit the city immediately, and Italy in thirty days. The consul Licinius, who was to command in Macedonia, had orders to march as soon as possible with his army. The prætor Lucretius, who had the command of the fleet, set out with forty-five galleys from Cephalonia, and arrived in five days at Naples, where he was to wait for the land forces.

SECTION II.-LICINIUS AND PERSEUS TAKE THE FIELD. THE LATTER HAS AT FIRST CONSIDERABLY THE ADVANTAGE.

THE CONSul, Licinius, after having offered his vows to the gods in the Capitol, set out from Rome, covered with a coat of arms, according to the custom. The departure of the consuls, says Livy, was always attended with great solemnity, and an incredible concourse of people, especially upon an important war, and against a powerful enemy. Besides the interest every individual might have in the glory of the consul, the citizens were induced to throng about him, out of curiosity to see the general to whose prudence and valour the fate of the republic was confided. A thousand anxious thoughts presented themselves at that time to their minds upon the events of the war, which are always precarious and uncertain. They remembered the defeats which had happened through the bad conduct and temerity, and the victories for which they were indebted, to the wisdom and courage of their generals. "What mortal,” said they, "can know the fate of a consul at his departure; whether we shall see him with his victorious army return in triumph to the Capitol, from whence he sets out, after having offered up his prayers to the gods, or whether the enemy may not rejoice in his overthrow?" The ancient glory of the Macedonians, that of Philip, who had made himself famous by his wars, and particularly by that against the Romans, added very much to the reputation of Perseus and every body knew, from his succession to the crown, a war had been expected from him. Full of such thoughts, the citizens conducted the consul out of the city. C. Claudius, and Q. Mutius, who had both been consuls, did not think it beneath them to serve in his army in quality of military tribunes, or as colonels, or brigadiers, and went with him, accompanied also by P. Lentulus, and the two Manlii Acidini. The consul repaired in their company to Brundusium, which was the rendezvous of the army, and, passing the sea with all bis troops, arrived at Nymphæum, in the country of the Apollonians.*

Perseus, some days before, upon the return of his ambassadors from Rome, and their assuring him, that there remained no hope of peace, held a great council, in which opinions were different. Some thought it necessary for him either to pay tribute, if required, or give up a part of his dominions, if the Romans insisted upon it; in a word, to suffer every thing supportable for the sake of peace, rather than expose his person and kingdom to the danger of entire destruction. That if a part of his kingdom was left him, time and chance might produce favourable conjunctures, to put him in a condition, not only to recover all he had lost, but to render him formidable to those who at present made Macedonia tremble.

* A. M. 3833. Ant. J. C. 171.

The greater number were of a quite different opinion. They insisted, that by making cession of a part, he must determine to lose all his kingdom. That it was neither money nor land that incited the ambition of the Romans, but universal empire. That they knew the greatest kingdoms and most powerful empires were subject to frequent revolutions. That they had humbled, or rather ruined Carthage, without taking possession of its territories; contenting themselves with keeping it in awe by the neighbourhood of Masinissa. That they had driven Antiochus and his son beyond Mount Taurus. That there was no kingdom but Macedonia to give umbrage to, or oppose the Romans. That prudence required Perseus, while he was still master of it, to consider seriously with himself, whether, by making the Romans sometimes one concession, and sometimes another, he was resolved to see himself deprived of all power, expelled from his dominions, and obliged to ask as a favour from the Romans, permission to retire and confine himself in Samothracia, or some other island, there to pass the remainder of his days in contempt and misery, with the mortification of surviving his glory and empire: or whether he would choose to hazard in arms all the dangers of the war in defence of his fortunes and dignity, as became a man of courage; and in case of being victorious, have the glory of delivering the world from the Roman yoke. That there would be no more wonder in driving the Romans out of Greece, than in driving Hannibal out of Italy. Besides, was it consistent for Perseus, after having opposed his brother with all his efforts, when he attempted to usurp his crown, to resign it meauly to strangers, who endeavoured to wrest it out of his hands? That, in fine, all the world agreed, that there was nothing more inglorious, than to give up empire without resistance; nor more laudable, than to have used all possible endeavours to preserve it. "Since

This council was held at Pella, the ancient capital of Macedonia. you think it so necessary," said the king, "let us make war then with the help of the gods." He gave orders at the same time to his generals, to assemble all their troops at Citium, whither he went soon after himself, with all the lords of his court, and his regiments of guards, after having offered a sacrifice of a hecatomb, or one hundred oxen, to Minerva Alcidema. He found the whole army assembled there. It amounted, including the foreign troops, to thirty-nine thousand foot, of whom almost half composed the phalanx, and four thousand horse. It was agreed, that since the army which Alexander the Great led into Asia, no king of Macedonia had commanded one so numerous. It was twenty-six years since Philip had made peace with the Romans, and as during all that time Macedonia had remained in tranquillity, and without any considerable war, there were in it great numbers of youth capable of bearing arms, who had already begun to exercise and form themselves in the wars which Macedonia had supported against the Thracians their neighbours. Philip besides, and Perseus after him, had long before formed the design of undertaking a war with the Romans. Hence it was, that at the time we speak of, every thing was ready for beginning it.

Perseus, before he took the field, thought it necessary to harangue his troops. He mounted his throne therefore, and from thence, having his two sons on each side of him, spoke to them with great force. He began with a long recital of all the injuries the Romans had committed with regard to his father, which had induced him to resolve to take up arms against them; but that sudden death had prevented him from putting that design in execution. He added, that immediately after the death of Philip, the Romans had sent ambassadors to him, and at the same time marched troops into Greece, to take possession of the strongest places. That afterwards, in order to gain time, they had amused him during all the winter with deceitful interviews, and a pretended truce, under the specious pretext of negotiating a reconciliation. He compared the consul's army, which was actually on its march, with that of the Macedonians; which, in his opinion, was much superior to the other, not

only in the number and valour of the troops, but in ammunition and provisions of war, laid up with infinite care for many years. "It remains, therefore, Macedonians," said he, in concluding, "only to act with the same courage your ancestors showed, when, having triumphed over all Europe, they crossed into Asia, and set no other bounds to their conquests, than those of the uni verse. You are not now to carry your arms to the extremities of the east, but to defend yourselves in the possession of the kingdom of Macedonia. When the Romans attacked my father, they covered that unjust war with the false pretence of re-establishing the ancient liberty of Greece; the present they undertake without any disguise, to reduce and enslave Macedonia. That haughty people cannot bear that the Roman empire should have any king for its neighbour, nor that any warlike nation should have arms for their defence. For you may be assured, that if you refuse to make war, and will submit to the orders of those insulting masters, you must resolve to deliver up your arms, with your king and his kingdom, to them."

At these words the whole army, which had expressed no immoderate applause for the rest of his discourse, raised cries of anger and indignation, exhorting the king to entertain the best hopes, and demanding earnestly to be led against the enemy.

Perseus then gave audience to the ambassadors from the cities of Macedonia, who came to offer him money and provisions for the use of the army, each according to their power. The king thanked them in the kindest manner, but did not accept their offers; giving for his reason, that the army was abundantly provided with all things necessary. He only demanded carriages for the battering rams, catapultas, and other machines of war.

The two armies were now in motion. That of the Macedonians, after some days march, arrived at Sycurium, a city situated at the foot of Mount Oeta; the consul's was at Gomphi, in Thessaly, after having surmounted the most incredible difficulties in ways and defiles almost impassable. The Romans themselves confessed, that had the enemy defended those passes, they might easily have destroyed their whole army in them. The consul advanced within three miles of the country called Tripolis, and encamped upon the banks of the river Peneus.

At the same time, Eumenes arrived at Chalcis with his brother Attalus and Athenæus; Phileterus, the fourth, was left at Pergamus for the defence of the country. Eumenes and Attalus joined the consul with four thousand foot and a thousand horse. They had left Athenæus with two thousand foot at Chalcis, to reinforce the garrison of that important place. The allies sent also other troops, though their numbers were inconsiderable, and some galleys. Perseus, in the mean time, sent out several detachments to ravage the country in the neighbourhood of Pheræ, in hopes that if the consul should quit his camp, and march to the aid of the cities in his alliance, that he might surprise and attack him to advantage; but he was disappointed, and obliged to content himself with distributing the booty he had made among his soldiers, which was very considerable, and consisted principally in cattle of all sorts.

The consul and king held each of them a council at the same time, in order to resolve in what manner to begin the war. The king, proud of having been suffered to ravage the territories of the Pheræans without opposition, thought it adviseable to go and attack the Romans in their camp without loss of time. The Romans judged rightly, that their slowness and delays would discredit them very much with their allies, and reproached themselves with not having defended the people of Pheræ. While they were consulting upon the measures it was necessary to take, Eumenes and Attalus being present, a courier came in at full speed, and informed them the enemy were very near, with a numerous army. The signal was immediately given for the soldiers to stand to their arms, and one hundred horse detached, with as many of the light armed foot, to reconnoitre the enemy. Perseus, at ten in the morning, finding himself no

farther from the Roman camp than about half a league, ordered his foot to halt, and advanced with his horse and light-armed soldiers. He had scarcely marched a quarter of a league, when he perceived a body of the enemy, against which he sent a small detachment of horse, supported by some light-armed troops. As the two detachments were very nearly equal in number, and neither side sent any fresh troops to their aid, the skirmish ended without its being possible to say which side was victorious. Perseus marched back his troops to Sycurium.

The next day, at the same hour, Perseus advanced with all his troops to the same place. They were followed by chariots laden with water, for there was none to be found within six leagues of the place; the way was very dusty, and the troops might have been obliged to fight immediately, which would have incommoded them exceedingly. The Romans keeping close in their camp, and having withdrawn their advanced guards within their intrenchments, the king's troops returned to their camp. They did the same several days, in hopes the Romans would not fail to detach their cavalry to attack their rear-guard, and when they had drawn them on far enough from their camp, and the battle was begun, that they might face about. As the king's horse and light-armed foot were very far superior to those of the Romans, they assured themselves it would be no difficulty to defeat them.

The first design not succeeding, the king encamped nearer the enemy, within little more than two leagues of them. At break of day, having drawn up his infantry in the same place as he had done the two preceding days, about a thousand paces from the enemy, he advanced at the head of his cavalry and light-armed foot, toward the camp of the Romans. The dust, which appeared nearer than usual, and was raised by a great number of troops, excited alarm, and those who first brought information of the enemy being so near were scarcely credited, because, for several days preceding, they had not appeared till ten in the morning, and the sun at that time was just rising. But when it was confirmed by the cries of many, who ran in crowds from the gates, there was no longer any room to doubt it, and the camp was in very great confusion. All the officers repaired with the utmost haste to the general's tent as the soldiers did each to his own. The negligence of the consul, so ill informed in the motions of an enemy, whose nearness to him ought to have kept him perpetually on his guard, gives us no great idea of his ability. Perseus had drawn up his troops at less than five hundred paces from the consul's intrenchments. Cotys, king of the Odrysæ in Thrace, commanded the left with the horse of his nation; the light-armed troops were distributed in the intervals of the front rank. The Macedonian and Cretan horse formed the right wing. At the extremity of each wing the king's horse and those of the auxiliaries were posted. The king occupied the centre with the horse which always attended his person; before whom were placed the slingers and archers, to the number of about four hundred.

The consul, having drawn up his foot in order of battle within his camp, detached only his cavalry and light-armed troops, who had orders to form a line in the front of his intrenchments. The right wing, which consisted of all the Italian horse, was commanded by C. Licinius Crassus, the consul's brother; the left, composed of the horse of the Grecian allies, by M. Valerius Levinus; both intermingled with the light-armed troops. Q. Mucius was posted in the centre with a select body of horse; two hundred Gallic horse, and three hundred troops of Eumenes, were drawn up in his front. Four hundred Thessalian horse were placed a little beyond the left wing, as a reserved body. Eumenes and his brother Attalus, with their troops, were posted in the space between the intrenchments and the rear ranks.

This was only an engagement of cavalry, which was almost equal on both sides, and might amount to about four thousand on each, without including the light-armed troops. The action began with the slings and missile weapons,

which were posted in front. The Thracians, like wild beasts long shut up, and thereby more furious, threw themselves first upon the right wing of the Romans, who, though brave and intrepid as they were, could not support so rude and violent a charge. The light-armed foot, whom the Thracians had among them, beat down the lances of the enemy with their swords, sometimes cutting the legs of the horses, and sometimes wounding them in their flanks. Perseus, who attacked the centre of the enemy, soon threw the Greeks into disorder; and as they were vigorously pursued in their flight, the Thessalian horse, which, at a small distance from the left wing, formed a body of reserve, and in the beginning of the action had been only spectators of the battle, was of great service, when that wing gave way. For those horse, retiring gently, and in good order, after having joined the auxiliary troops of Eumenes, gave a safe retreat between their ranks to those who fled and were dispersed; and when they saw that the enemy was not eager in their pursuit, were so bold as to advance to sustain and encourage their own party. As this body of horse marched in good order, and always kept their ranks, the king's cavalry, who had broke in the pursuit, did not dare to wait their approach, nor to come to blows with them.

Hippias and Leonatus, having learned the advantage of the cavalry, that the king might not lose so favourable an opportunity of completing the glory of the day, by vigorously pushing the enemy, and charging them in their intrenchments, brought on the Macedonian phalanx of their own accord, and without orders. It appeared indeed, that had the king made the least effort, he might have rendered his victory complete; and in the present ardour of his troops, and terror into which they had thrown the Romans, the latter must have been entirely defeated. While he was deliberating with himself, between hope and fear, upon what he should resolve, Evander of Crete,* in whom he reposed great confidence, upon seeing the phalanx advance, ran immediately to Perseus, and earnestly begged of him not to abandon himself to his present success, nor engage rashly in a new action, that was not necessary, and wherein he hazarded every thing. He represented to him, that if he continued quiet, and contented himself with the present advantage, he would either obtain honourable conditions of peace; or, if he should choose to continue the war, his first success would infallibly determine those, who till then had remained neutral, to declare in his favour. The king was already inclined to follow that opinion; and having praised the counsel and zeal of Evander, he caused the retreat to be sounded for his horse, and ordered his foot to return to the camp. The Romans lost at least two thousand of their light-armed infantry in this battle, and had two hundred of their horse killed, and as many taken prisoners. On the other side, only twenty cavalry, and forty foot soldiers, were left upon the field. The victors returned into their camp with great joy; especially the Thracians, who, with songs of triumph, carried the heads of those they had killed upon the ends of their pikes; it was to them Perseus was principally indebted for his victory. The Romans, on the contrary, in profound sorrow, kept a mournful silence, and, filled with terror, expecting every moment that the enemy would come and attack them in their camp. Eumenes was of opinion, that it was proper to remove the camp to the other side of the Peneus, in order that the river might serve as an additional fortification for the troops till they had recovered from their panic. The consul was averse to taking that step, which, as an open profession of fear, was highly dishonourable to himself and his army; but, being convinced by reason, he yielded to necessity, passed with his troops, under cover of the night, and encamped on the opposite bank of the river.

Perseus advanced the next day to attack the enemy, and to give them battle, but it was then too late; he found their camp abandoned. When he saw them entrenched on the other side of the river, he perceived the great error

VOL. IV.

Perseus made use of him in the intended assassination of Eumenes.

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