Sthenius and Pacuvius Ninnius Celer
Encyclopedia
Sthenius and Pacuvius Ninnius Celer were brothers, and members of the noble Capua
n house of the Ninnii Celeres
, during the Second Punic War
. Following the Battle of Cannae
in 216 B.C., Hannibal advanced upon the city of Capua, which opened its gates to him, as defeat otherwise seemed inevitable. There he made his winter quarters, and lodged in the house of the brothers Sthenius and Pacuvius.
Due to ambiguities in some manuscripts of Livius
, Pacuvius Ninnius is sometimes confused with Pacuvius Calavius
, the chief magistrate of Capua, and for this reason, Sthenius is described as Sthenius Calavius in some sources. As one of the leading men of Capua, Calavius, who had previously worked to prevent the city's capitulation in 217, was invited to a banquet given by Hannibal at the house of his hosts, in an attempt to reconcile his former opponents to his presence and gain their trust.
Also invited was Calavius' son, Perolla, a supporter of Decius Magius, who had opposed Capua's surrender, and been placed in chains by Hannibal. Perolla proposed to murder the Carthaginian
general during the banquet, but his father managed to dissuade him from this rash plan.
Capua
Capua is a city and comune in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy, situated 25 km north of Naples, on the northeastern edge of the Campanian plain. Ancient Capua was situated where Santa Maria Capua Vetere is now...
n house of the Ninnii Celeres
Ninnia (gens)
The gens Ninnia was a plebeian family at Rome. Members of the gens first appear at Capua during the Second Punic War, and are found at Rome towards the end of the Republic.-Origin of the gens:...
, during 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...
. Following the Battle of Cannae
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 216 B.C., Hannibal advanced upon the city of Capua, which opened its gates to him, as defeat otherwise seemed inevitable. There he made his winter quarters, and lodged in the house of the brothers Sthenius and Pacuvius.
Due to ambiguities in some manuscripts of Livius
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...
, Pacuvius Ninnius is sometimes confused with Pacuvius Calavius
Pacuvius Calavius
Pacuvius Calavius was the chief magistrate of Capua during the Second Punic War. In the aftermath of the Battle of Lake Trasimene, he prevented the people of Capua from surrendering the city to Hannibal...
, the chief magistrate of Capua, and for this reason, Sthenius is described as Sthenius Calavius in some sources. As one of the leading men of Capua, Calavius, who had previously worked to prevent the city's capitulation in 217, was invited to a banquet given by Hannibal at the house of his hosts, in an attempt to reconcile his former opponents to his presence and gain their trust.
Also invited was Calavius' son, Perolla, a supporter of Decius Magius, who had opposed Capua's surrender, and been placed in chains by Hannibal. Perolla proposed to murder the Carthaginian
Carthage
Carthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...
general during the banquet, but his father managed to dissuade him from this rash plan.