Publius Sempronius Tuditanus
Encyclopedia
Publius Sempronius C.f. Tuditanus (fl. 3rd century BC) was a Roman Republican consul and censor, best known for leading about 600 men to safety at Cannae
in August, 216 BC.
One of the few Roman officers who survived that fatal day, Publius Sempronius C.f. Tuditanus, advised that the men put on their shields, form a shield-wall, and break out through the lines of the exhausted Carthaginian army. Very few men agreed to go with him, the rest deciding to surrender to Hannibal and trusting that they would be ransomed by the Senate. The 600 men led by Tuditanus cut their way out to reach the larger camp, and from thence marched to Canusium, where they obtained safe refuge. Tuditanus's reputation was thus made with the Senate and the people of Rome. (The Senate refused to ransom those who had surrendered to Hannibal or been captured alive on the field of battle, with a senior senator Titus Manlius Torquatus citing the example of Tuditanus and his group, compared to the cowardly men who had not dared break out).
This episode recorded by Livy
goes back via Lucius Coelius Antipater
to the Roman poet Ennius
, but it is not told by Polybius
, who gives in the completely preserved third book of his historical work
a reliable and detailed report of the events of the Second Punic War
in the years 219 to 216 BC. Therefore there are doubts about the historicity of this episode.
He was elected censor in 209 BC with Marcus Cornelius Cethegus
, although neither he nor his colleague had yet held the consulship. These two young censors managed to complete the first lustrum
(ritual cleansing) of the Roman state since the start of the Second Punic War. Other lustrums had been interrupted by the death of at least one censor (sometimes in battle).
It was Tuditanus who had the right of choosing the new Princeps Senatus
; Cethegus wanted the most senior censor, namely Titus Manlius Torquatus
, to be chosen since he had been censor in 231 BC. However, Tuditanus preferred Quintus Fabius Maximus
, the "Delayer", who had been elected censor in 230 BC, and was thus "junior", to be Princeps Senatus since he was the most meritorious of the senior senators. Since Tuditanus had the right to choose, his decision prevailed. His precedent allowed Rome to break with the tradition of choosing the most senior ex-censor as Princeps Senatus
; from now, the man determined to be the most distinguished senator would be chosen, which allowed the young Scipio Africanus
to become Princeps Senatus in the year of his censorship.
In 205 BC, he was sent into Greece with the title of proconsul, and at the head of a military and naval force, for the purpose of opposing Philip V of Macedon
, with whom however he concluded a preliminary treaty, which was readily ratified by the Romans, who were anxious to give their undivided attention to the war in Africa.
In 204 BC, Tuditanus became consul
elected in his absence, again with his former co-censor Cethegus. It is not known how well the men worked together again, although Livy does not mention any unseemly fracas. Tuditanus received Bruttii as his province with the conduct of the war against Hannibal. In the neighbourhood of Croton
Tuditanus experienced a repulse, with a loss of twelve hundred men ; but he shortly afterwards gained a decisive victory over Hannibal, who was obliged in consequence to shut himself up within the walls of Croton. It was in this battle that he vowed a temple to Fortuna Primigenia
on the Quirinal, if he should succeed in routing the enemy. He consecrated this temple ten years later (194 BC).
In 200 BC, Tuditanus was one of the three ambassadors sent to Greece and to Ptolemy V, king of Egypt. He is not subsequently mentioned by Livy.
). His own father's name was Gaius (or Caius) according to lists of Roman consuls.
It is not clear how he is related to the other two or three prominent Tuditani:
The Sempronia
Tuditani, who was mother of Decimus Junius Brutus Albinus
(one of Caesar's generals and assassins), may have been descended from any one of these men.
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...
in August, 216 BC.
Tuditanus at Cannae
The consul Aemilius Paullus (who died at Cannae) had left a reserve camp of about 10,000 men on the other bank. These men who did not participate in the battle had three choices after the disastrous battle: surrender to Hannibal, attempt to break through the Carthaginian lines and escape, or stand their ground and die fighting. The smaller of the two camps was besieged by the Carthaginians.One of the few Roman officers who survived that fatal day, Publius Sempronius C.f. Tuditanus, advised that the men put on their shields, form a shield-wall, and break out through the lines of the exhausted Carthaginian army. Very few men agreed to go with him, the rest deciding to surrender to Hannibal and trusting that they would be ransomed by the Senate. The 600 men led by Tuditanus cut their way out to reach the larger camp, and from thence marched to Canusium, where they obtained safe refuge. Tuditanus's reputation was thus made with the Senate and the people of Rome. (The Senate refused to ransom those who had surrendered to Hannibal or been captured alive on the field of battle, with a senior senator Titus Manlius Torquatus citing the example of Tuditanus and his group, compared to the cowardly men who had not dared break out).
This episode recorded by Livy
Livy
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...
goes back via Lucius Coelius Antipater
Lucius Coelius Antipater
Lucius Coelius Antipater was a Roman jurist and historian. He is not to be confused with Coelius Sabinus, the Coelius of the Digest. He was a contemporary of C. Gracchus ; L...
to the Roman poet Ennius
Ennius
Quintus Ennius was a writer during the period of the Roman Republic, and is often considered the father of Roman poetry. He was of Calabrian descent...
, but it is not told by 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...
, who gives in the completely preserved third book of his historical work
The Histories (Polybius)
Polybius’ Histories were originally written in 40 volumes, only the first five of which are existent in their entirety. The bulk of the work is passed down to us through collections of excerpts kept in libraries in Byzantium, for the most part....
a reliable and detailed report of the events of 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 the years 219 to 216 BC. Therefore there are doubts about the historicity of this episode.
Tuditanus in politics
Two years afterwards (214 BC) Tuditanus was elected curule aedile, and in the next year (213 BC) he was chosen praetor, with Ariminum as his province. He allegedly took the town of Atrinum, and was continued in the same command for the two following years (212 and 211 BC). Again there are serious doubts about the historicity of these recounted deeds of Tuditanus as praetor.He was elected censor in 209 BC with Marcus Cornelius Cethegus
Marcus Cornelius Cethegus
Marcus Cornelius Cethegus was a Roman Republican consul and censor during the Second Punic War, best known as a political ally of his kinsman Scipio Africanus.-Political career:...
, although neither he nor his colleague had yet held the consulship. These two young censors managed to complete the first lustrum
Lustrum
A lustrum was a term for a five-year period in Ancient Rome.The lustration was originally a sacrifice for expiation and purification offered by one of the censors in the name of the Roman people at the close of the taking of the census...
(ritual cleansing) of the Roman state since the start of the Second Punic War. Other lustrums had been interrupted by the death of at least one censor (sometimes in battle).
It was Tuditanus who had the right of choosing the new Princeps Senatus
Princeps senatus
The princeps senatus was the first member by precedence of the Roman Senate. Although officially out of the cursus honorum and owning no imperium, this office brought enormous prestige to the senator holding it.-Overview:...
; Cethegus wanted the most senior censor, namely Titus Manlius Torquatus
Titus Manlius Torquatus (235 BC)
Titus Manlius Torquatus, son of Titus , was Roman Republican consul 235 BC and 224 BC, censor 231 BC, and dictator 208 BC.-Family background:...
, to be chosen since he had been censor in 231 BC. However, Tuditanus preferred Quintus Fabius Maximus
Fabius Maximus
Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Cunctator was a Roman politician and general, born in Rome around 280 BC and died in Rome in 203 BC. He was Roman Consul five times and was twice Dictator in 221 and again in 217 BC. He reached the office of Roman Censor in 230 BC...
, the "Delayer", who had been elected censor in 230 BC, and was thus "junior", to be Princeps Senatus since he was the most meritorious of the senior senators. Since Tuditanus had the right to choose, his decision prevailed. His precedent allowed Rome to break with the tradition of choosing the most senior ex-censor as Princeps Senatus
Princeps senatus
The princeps senatus was the first member by precedence of the Roman Senate. Although officially out of the cursus honorum and owning no imperium, this office brought enormous prestige to the senator holding it.-Overview:...
; from now, the man determined to be the most distinguished senator would be chosen, which allowed the young Scipio Africanus
Scipio Africanus
Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus , also known as Scipio Africanus and Scipio the Elder, was a general in the Second Punic War and statesman of the Roman Republic...
to become Princeps Senatus in the year of his censorship.
In 205 BC, he was sent into Greece with the title of proconsul, and at the head of a military and naval force, for the purpose of opposing Philip V of Macedon
Philip V of Macedon
Philip V was King of Macedon from 221 BC to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of Rome. Philip was attractive and charismatic as a young man...
, with whom however he concluded a preliminary treaty, which was readily ratified by the Romans, who were anxious to give their undivided attention to the war in Africa.
In 204 BC, Tuditanus became 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...
elected in his absence, again with his former co-censor Cethegus. It is not known how well the men worked together again, although Livy does not mention any unseemly fracas. Tuditanus received Bruttii as his province with the conduct of the war against Hannibal. In the neighbourhood of Croton
Croton
-In plants:* Croton , a plant genus of the family Euphorbiaceae* Crotoneae, a tribe of the subfamily Crotonoideae* Codiaeum variegatum, a plant commonly called a "Croton"...
Tuditanus experienced a repulse, with a loss of twelve hundred men ; but he shortly afterwards gained a decisive victory over Hannibal, who was obliged in consequence to shut himself up within the walls of Croton. It was in this battle that he vowed a temple to Fortuna Primigenia
Fortuna
Fortuna can mean:*Fortuna, the Roman goddess of luck -Geographical:*19 Fortuna, asteroid*Fortuna, California, town located on the north coast of California*Fortuna, United States Virgin Islands...
on the Quirinal, if he should succeed in routing the enemy. He consecrated this temple ten years later (194 BC).
In 200 BC, Tuditanus was one of the three ambassadors sent to Greece and to Ptolemy V, king of Egypt. He is not subsequently mentioned by Livy.
Family
Tuditanus, descended from a prominent branch of the plebeian gens Sempronia, may have been a nephew or cousin of the censor Marcus Sempronius C.f. Tuditanus who had been consul in 240 BC with Gaius Claudius Centho and censor in 230 BC with Quintus Fabius MaximusQuintus Fabius Maximus
Quintus Fabius Maximus most commonly refers to;*Quintus Fabius Maximus*A number of ancient Romans from the gens Fabia.The ancient Romans that share the name Quintus Fabius Maximus include:* Quintus Fabius Maximus, augur 203–196 BC....
). His own father's name was Gaius (or Caius) according to lists of Roman consuls.
It is not clear how he is related to the other two or three prominent Tuditani:
- M. Sempronius Tuditanus, one of the officers of Scipio at the capture of New Carthage in Spain. (Liv. xxvi. 48.). Possibly the same man as the consul 185 BC
- C. Sempronius Tuditanus, plebeian aedile 198 BC and praetor 197 BC, when he obtained Nearer Spain as his province. He was defeated by the Spaniards with great loss, and died shortly afterwards in consequence of a wound which he had received in the battle. He was pontifex at the time of his death.
- M. Sempronius M.f. C.n. Tuditanus (d. 174 BC Rome), tribune of the plebs 193 BC, proposed and carried a plebiscitum, which enacted that the law about money lent should be the same for the Socii and the Latini as for the Roman citizens. He was praetor 189 BC, when he obtained Sicily as his province, and consul 185 BC with Ap. Claudius Pulcher. In his consulship he carried on war, in Liguria, and defeated the Apuani, while his colleague was equally successful against the Ingauni. Tuditanus was an unsuccessful candidate for the consulship in 184 BC (won by Cato and Flaccus), but was elected one of the pontifices in the following year. He was carried off by the great pestilence which devastated Rome
The Sempronia
Sempronia
Sempronia is the nomen of the Roman gens Sempronia. Men of the gens were named Sempronius, and women Sempronia. The Sempronii were an important family throughout the history of the Republic...
Tuditani, who was mother of Decimus Junius Brutus Albinus
Decimus Junius Brutus Albinus
Decimus Junius Brutus Albinus was a Roman politician and general of the 1st century BC and one of the leading instigators of Julius Caesar's assassination...
(one of Caesar's generals and assassins), may have been descended from any one of these men.
See also
- Sempronia (gens)
- List of Roman Republican consuls
- List of Roman censors