' MARCOS PORCIUS CATO A CONSERVATIVE STATESMAN IN THE SECOND CENTURY B. C. Thesis for the Degree of M. A. MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY RICHARD S. WILLIAMS 1969- L I B R A R1 Mid‘igan State ‘JflfiVTflfifity IIIIIIIII I IIIIIIIIIIIIIII II :II IIIII 0668 2473 I IIII I 'I‘ "~ (firfy '1' 3". A“: .L 2.3.2.. ILARCUS PORCIUS CATO A CONSERVATIVE S’I‘ATESIVIAN IN THE SECOND CENTURY B. C. by Richard S. Williams This thesis is a historical biography of Marcus Porcius Cato based on the accounts of ancient authors, particularly Plutarch and Livy, and on the fragments of Cato's speeches which are still extant. Attention has also been given to the interpretations of modern authors. AS a young man, Marcus Porcius Cato began his political career at the urging of a wealthy patrician neighbor, Lucius Valerius Flaccus, a member of the Fabian party. Allying himself with the Fabians to gain the political support which his family lacked, Cato rapidly held the succession of magistracies in the cursus honorum, culminating in the consulship in 195 B. C. which he shared with Flaccus. Cato had already developed the conservative outlook which would characterize him in later years, although it was not so static nor so strongly anti-Greek as Plutarch would have us believe. As praetor in Sardinia, Cato reduced the oppression of usurers and lived a frugal life in order to reduce the burden to the state and to provide an example to the provincials. In the beginning of his consulship, Cato stoutly, although unsuccessfully, Opposed the repeal of the sumptuary Oppian Law. Richard S. Williams Cato's province as consul was Nearer Spain, where he rapidly subdued the rebellious tribes and afterwards gave some aid of dubious value to the governor of Farther Spain. Although ancient authors generally lauded his military achievements, Cato's chief accomplishment in Spain was his organization of the provincial administration. Cato saw further military service in 192 B. C.,when he accompanied the consul Manius Acilius Glabrio to Greece as a military tribune. Employing the stratagem of the Persians, Cato precipitated the rout of Antiochus the Great at Thermopylae by attacking his unprotected rear. Thereupon, Cato returned to Rome to announce the victory. During the next eight years, Cato occupied himself with political quarrels with various members of the Scipionic party. These prosecutions not only had the effect of em- barassing his political enemies, but established Cato's image as a defender of Roman tradition against Hellenistic incursions--the platform on which Cato based his campaigns for the censorship. After an unsuccessful bid in 189, Cato was elected censor in 184 B. C., with Lucius Valerius Flaccus against the combined Opposition of the other candidates. Cato fulfilled his campaign promises of a harsh censorship and the punishment of all wrong-doers. He not only expelled a large number of senators and eguites but also delivered public denunciations of them. Cato also attempted to Richard S. Williams restore earlier simplicity by levying confiscatory taxes on luxury goods and slaves. His construction program empha- sized practical improvement rather than lavish beautifi- cation: two markets, Rome's first basilica, and an extensive expansion of the sewage system. But Cato's program for reform was unsuccessful because his measures were unpOpular and his concern for Roman tradition was shared by few in Rome. After his censorship Cato, lacking the support of a party, was an independent critic of Roman morals and poli- tics. From the extant fragments of his speeches, Cato appeared to be a champion of ancient Roman virtues, especially the dignity of the state at home and in foreign affairs. His one glaring inconsistency was his insistence on the destruction of Carthage, a position motivated more by memories of Hannibal than by reason. In addition to his political and military careers, Cato was an excellent orator and author. Cato's published speeches were crisp and full of his biting wit and acri- monious invective. Cato also wrote the earliest history of Rome in Latin, the Origines, which was based on Hellen- istic models and so brought the Greek tradition of history to Rome. Finally, Cato wrote a handbook on agriculture which alone of his works has survived as the earliest extant Latin prose composition. MARCUS PORCIUS CATO A CONSERVATIVE STATESMAN IN THE SECOND CENTURY B. C. BY Richard S. Williams A THESIS Submitted to Michigan State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Department of History 1969 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I wish to take this Opportunity to acknowledge my indebtedness to Professor Eleanor G. Huzar, my major professor, for her assistance and many helpful suggestions at various stages in the preparation of this paper. I would also like to thank T. T. B. Ryder, Visiting Professor of Ancient History at Michigan State University in 1966-1967, for his suggestion of Marcus Porcius Cato as a suitable tOpic and his aid when I began my research. Much encouragement and assistance in proofreading and in preparation Of the manuscript was provided by my wife, for which I am most grateful. East Lansing, Michigan January 24, 1969 ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11 INTRODUCTION . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Chapter I. THE CURSUS HONORUM . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 II. AFTER THE CONSULSHIP . . . . . . . . . . . 34 III. THE CENSORSHIP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 Iv. AFTER THE CENSORSHIP . . . . . . . . . . . 79 V. THE AUTHOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 CONCLUSION O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O O 1 lo BIBLIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 112 BIBLiOGRAPHY O O O O O O O O O O O O O C O O O O O 116 iii INTRODUCTION harcus Porcius Cato was one of the central figures of Roman history during the first half of the second cen- tury B.C. In addition to his distinguished political career, Cato's military and literary achievements were well-known in antiquity. However, Cato has been relatively neglected by English-speaking authors. There has been some research on Cato by German scholars, particularly a biogra- phy by D. Kienast:l but at this stage in my work toward a Masterksdegree, I do not possess a reading knowlege of that language. Facets of Cato's life have been treated by various authors, most often in connection with another tOpic; but there has been no detailed study Of Cato him— self. This paper is intended to investigate Cato's achievements and contributions in a biographical setting. The major emphasis is on his political career since Cato was, after all, primarily a politician and since most of our information about Cato from ancient sources is political in content. The researches of Lily Ross Taylorzand Ronald lCato der Zepsor: Sein Personlichkeit und seine Zeit (Heidelberg: Quelle " Reyer, 1954). 2Party Politics in the Age of Caesar ("Sather Classical Lectures,IVVOl. A311: Berkeley and Los AnSeles: University of California Press, 1949). l 2 3 Syme have well established the role of the powerful sen— atorial families in Roman politics of the later Republic. Their work has been invaluable to H. H. Scullard4 in his research on the political alignments of the second cen- tury B.C., a period which lacks the first-hand evidence of the first century. These authors all acknowledge a debt to the German historians k. Gelz-r and F. Runzer for their 5 f 1: studies of the relations of the great Roman Lawilies. The researches of these scholars have shown that in the late third century, when Marcus Porcius Cato first held political office, the most prominent political groups were Cipios. Although the political (I) the Fabians and the "parties“didrufi:have platforms, under the leadership of Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus, the Scipionic group consistently favored Roman involvement in the East and were usually among the promoters of Greek culture. Quintus Fabius Maximus Cunctator, the head of the Fabian gepg, disapproved of Africanus' Greek manners6 and was probably Opposed to the extension of Roman power in the East. However, the Fabian group included those Who favored 3 0 q I o The Roman Revolution (Oxford: xford UniverSity Press, 1939). A . *homan Politics: University Press, 1951). ~ -- n —\ 0 vv 0 .‘ w - 5m. Gelzer, Ule nooilitat oer r miscnen PQOUbllK *1 , — .. "‘5 1. . ' - w "‘ — “ ~ r- I1912): r. munzer, konische nae spartcien und n-€l"ll‘lllCU (1920), OLivy xxix. 19. 1—4. The editions of classical authors consulted may be found in the bibliography. 3 involvement as well as those who Opposed it. It was the Fabian qrouo, through the conservative Lucius Valerius Flaccus, which gave the young Cato support as he followed the cursus honorum.7 7The philhellenism of Scipio is well-documented in Livy(xxix. 19. 1-4), Nepos (Cato 1), Plutarch (Cat. Mai. 3. 5-8, and elsewhere. The attitudes of Fabius are more difficult to determine. He gave orders that the statues and pictures of the gods should not be removed from Tarentum when he captured the city, but he himself brought a colossal statue of Hercules to Rome (Plutarch Fab. 22. 2). His Opposition to Scipio's African venture (Plutarch Fab. 24. 3) may have been more a matter of military policy than anything else. All things considered, Fabius did seem to to have been at least concerned about Roman tradition. CHAPTER I TE CURSUS HONORUM Marcus Poricus Cato was born in 234 B.C.} at Tusculum, a town ten miles south of Rome on the Latin Way, and was reared on his father's estate in Sabine country. Although his family had never held public office in Rome, he was nevertheless proud Of his ancestors. He praised his father, Marcus, for his bravery and claimed that his grand- father, Cato, had Often received rewards for his valor, including the cost of five horses lost under him in battle.2 Since Cato did not mention a pgaenomen for his grandfather, and the Fasti Consulares also failed to mention one at Cato's consulship,3 it would seem that Cato's grandfather was not a full Roman citizen. Cato probably owed his citizenship to that valor of the grandfather he so Often praised. 1Cicero Sena 10 2Plutarch Cat. Mai. 1.1. 3Theodor Mommsen (ed.), Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum, (2d ed.: Berlin, George Reimer, 1893), I, Part I, 25. The entry for 559 A.U.C. reads, "MoPORCIVSo M-F CATO.“ In the entr for 570, the censor Cato is listed, "M-PORCIVS-M-F. M.N]-CATO.” The ”M.N” has been chiselled out as an error. 5 Plutarch stated that his cogpomen was originally Priscus, but that later he acquired time name of Cato for his wisdom and prudence.4 Our information about Cato's personal life is meagre. He married a wife who was from a good but not wealthy family. Plutarch attributed the match to Cato's sentiments that her nobility would make her more obedient and fearful of disgrace;5 but the marriage probably reflected the status of his family. Cato had one son by her, Marcus, who married a sister of 6 and died in 152 while he was praetor-elect.‘7 Scipio Aemilianus Very fond of his son, Cato took a personal hand in hisv education and training: and after his death, Cato lavished praise upon him.8 When his wife died, Cato married the daughter of Salonius, one of his clients, by whom he had a son Marcus surnamed Solonianus.9 Few of Cato's friendships are known. His only known lasting friendship was with Lucius Valerius Flaccus with whom he held the consulship and censorship. When Cato was 4Plutarch Cat. Mai. l. l. 5 Ibid2 20. 2. 6Plutarch Aem. 5. 6: Cat. Mai. 20. 8. 7Livy Pera xlvii; Aulus Gellius xiii. 20. 9. 8Plutarch Cat. Mai. 20. 2-5, 24. 6: Cicero Ben. 68. 84._ 9 Aulus Gellius xiii. 20 8, 13: Plutarch Cat. Mai. 24. 2—6. Plutarch disapproved of the match and said that Cato's son and daughter-in-law were Opposed. 6 in Sardinia as quaestor, he met the poet Ennius and brought him to Rome.10 Ennius made a great impression on Cato and taught him Greek.ll However, Cato severely criticized Marcus Fulvius Nobilior for taking Ennius to Aetolia in 189. In his later life, Cato became friendly enough with the father of Scipio Aemilianus, Lucius Paullus, to marry his son into that family. Aemilianus later sought Cato's aid in the debate to allow Polybius and the other Achaean hostages to return home12 and supported the war against Carthage. Cato, for his part, urged the senate to return the Achaeans and later complimented Aemilianus' actions during the war. Cato's wealth has Often been discussed. His Sabine farm was substantial and run for the most part by slave labor.13 He was famous for his parsimony and ran his farm accordingly.14 In his later years, however, Cato turned to investment as a source of wealth. He invested only in I "safe" businesses and did so through a freedman.15 Plutarch disapproved of his business ventures and declared that his profits were large. However, when Cato's elder son died, he was.tOO poor to afford more than a modest funeral.16 It would appear that Cato's entry into business was more an 10Nepos gagg 1. 11[Aurelius Victor] Qe_Vi£._Ill. 47. l. 12Polybius xxxv. 6. 13 Plutarch gag. Mai. 21. 1. 14Ibid., 1-4. 15Ibid., 5-6. l6Livy Per. xlviii. 7 effort to hedge against sagging farm products than a desire to accumulate vast wealth. Cato's early life was marked by the develOpment Of the austere personal habits which he maintained throughout his life. He gained his early military eXperience in the Second Punic War fighting mostly in Italy against the hated Hannibal. He fought in the army Of Fabius Maximus as a cavalryman at Cannae in 216, where he was said to have been rescued from the hands of the enemy by Lucius Aemilius Paulus. He may have served with Fabius again at Capua in 17 214 and again in 209 at Tarentum: but he was more likely with Marcellus in Sicily from 214 to 207, serving as 18 military tribune. His courage as a soldier was widely proclaimed. Plutarch stated that while he was still a youth, Cato had his breast covered with honorable wounds.19 When marching, he carried his own weapons and drank only water while he was with the army.20 When he was not serving in the army, Cato worked his farm with his own hands and develOped his Speaking abilities by pleading cases in local courts. The young man l7Plutarch pat. Mai. 21. l. 18Nepos (Cato 1) said he Was with Marcellus until he returned to Italy Just in time to join the battle of the Metaurus. Plutarch and Cicero probably used an earlier biography of Cato which emphasized his connections with Fabius. See R. E. Smith, "Plutarch's Biographical Sources in Roman Lives," _Q, XXXIV (1940), 4—5. 19Cat. Mai. 1. 5. 20Ibid., 1. 7. 8 was an advocate for all who requested his services and earned the reputation of being a zealous pleader and a capable orator.21 Thus, the rigors of war and the natural conservatism Of the Italian countryside helped to mold the young Marcus Cato's austere and admirable character. Cato might never have become involved in Roman politics had not his neighbor Lucius Valerius Flaccus, a patrician member of the Fabian party taken an interest in him. Plutarch claimed that Flaccus "had the power to dis- cern excellence in the bud, and the grace to cultivate it and bring it into general esteem."22 In any case, Flaccus befriended his young neighbor and, since he was convinced Of his potential, urged him to engage in public life. Through Valerius' patronage, Cato was made a military tribune and soon entered the cursus honorum, The friendship of the two men increased as they both grew Older. Flaccus had probably been attracted to Cato as much by his conservative outlook as by his potential 211bid., 1. 4. If Cato did indeed do much pleading in the courts and worked his own farm, besides fighting in the war, he was certainly a very busy young man: Since his estate produced enough wealth to allow him to serve in the cavalry, Cato's field work on the farm was probably not extensive. With the demands of war, he probably did not plead in the courts to any great extent, either. .\ \ 22cat. Mai. 3. 1. ’strév if: ¢uo/a£’wzy,ucy I I \ / ‘ «Zaflwzafim (swag, august/I}; J5: Kai 445%!“ IraL ”poqyaysé‘y :2; 55m " 9 abilities, for when Cato was a candidate for the censorship he argued that Flaccus was the only man in Rome with whom he could carry out a conservative reform. Their relation— ship proved beneficial to both: Cato received the support of the Fabian party through Flaccus, and Flaccus found a younger and more charismatic man to espouse the political views of which he approved. It was no accident that Cato and Flaccus held their highest magistracies, the consulship and the censorship, together. Very little is known about Cato's election to the Office of quaestor in 204.23 except that he was aided by Flaccus. Cato seemed to have been influenced in this early part of his career by Fabius Maximus, although the actual contacts between the two were probably minimal. Plutarch said that he attached himself to Fabius in order to set Fabius' character and life before himself as the fairest examples.24 It is improbable that Cato had any direct contacts with Fabius: just as Plutarch falsely emphasized his earlier contacts with Fabius, so these later contacts were probably fictitious. However, Cato was supported by the Fabian party and undoubtedly returned that support, eSpecially when he Opposed its rivals the Scipios. Cato's antagonism toward the Scipios probably began 23Cicero Brut2 xv: Livy xxix. 15. 24Cat. Mai. 3. 4. 10 in his quaestorship When he came into contact with Scipio Africanus' phil-Hellenism during the African eXpeditiOn at the end of the Second Punic War. The young quaestor feared that Scipio's adoption of Greek customs and his lavish eXpenditure of funds would corrupt the' native simplicity of the soldiers. According to Plutarch, the audacious Cato informed his commander Of his apprehensions. Scipio replied that he had no use for a parsimonious quaestor when the winds were bearing him under full sail to the war: he owed the city an account of his achievements, not of its moneys. 25 Although improbable, the conversation demon- strated the attitudes Of the two men rather well.26 Cato's second political Office, the plebeian aedileship, was won in the election of 199. We know virtually nothing of his activities in this Office, which he held with Gaius Helvius, except that the Plebeian Games were repeated by them and a banquet to Jupiter was held on the occasion 27 of the games. While still holding this office, both men ____._ ‘— 25Cat%&Mai. 3. 4. 26Plutarch fther asserted that Cato joined in Fabius Maximus' attack on Africanus. However, this would necessitate placing Cato's quaestorship in 205, the year in which Fabius lost his attempt to prevent Africanus from sailing to Africa. Although Nepos(CatO l. 3) also placed his quaestorship in 205, the date of 204 is firmly estab- lished by both Cicero and Livy. Plutarch would have placed Cato with Fabius in his attack on Scipio to strengthen the alleged ties between Cato and Fabius. See R. E. Smith, 9Q, XXXIV (1940), 4—5. 27Livy xxxii. 7. 13. ll stood for the praetorship and were elected along with Lucius Cornelius Nerula and yarcus Claudius parcellus. Since the elections were held soon after the celebration of the games, a popular device of the time was for the plebeian aediles to secure their election to the praetorship by means of their lavish expenditures. of the twenty- eight plebeian aediles holding Office between 210 and 197, "no less than 17, including Cato, stood for the praetorship while actually holding the aedileship . . . ."28 Cato's backers undoubtedly realized the value Of this and pro- vided for his games accordingly. The praetors drew lots for their provinces; Sardinia fell to Cato. Two thousand infantry and two hundred cavalry were levied at the same time so that the troops serving,there could be sent home.29 In the administration Of the island, Cato showed the same austerity and self- restraint that characterized his personal life. Livy said that he was honest and upright in his administration of the island, but was considered too harsh in his restraint of usury. “The usurers were expelled from the island, and the expenses which the allies were accustomed to incur for the comfort of the praetor were cut down or abolished."30 28H. H. Scullard, p. 25. 29Livy xxxii. 8. 5-8. t 30Ibid., 2:. 2I4. "fugatioue ex insula faeneratores e 3 us 0 n cu t m r etoru: so " e ' ' eran gIrcumgIsI aut subIatI.fi m Cll fac re SOlltl 12 Cato himself never charged anything to the public eXpense, and he even walked to the various cities accompanied only by a single public Official to carry his robe and a chalice for sacrifices. Although he was mild to those under his authority in the above matters, he rigorously administered justice and carried out the edicts Of the government directly and masterfully, "so that the Roman power never inspired its subjects with greater fear or affection."31 During his praetorship the Porcian law was passed which protected the persons of the citizens, and thereby the dignity of Roman citizenship, by imposing a heavy penalty on anyone who scourged or put a Roman citizen to death.32 In the year 195, a lull in military Operations in the East allowed Roman attention to focus briefly on the problems that had been develOping in the West. Titus QUinctius Flamininus had concluded the war with Philip Of Macedon the previous year and had proclaimed the freedom of the Greeks at the summer Isthmian Games.33 Flaminus \ 31Plutarch Cat. Iviai. 6. 2-3. ”ad/'7': [476257071 717V T I 3 \ 5 I J ,0 / Pea/«rum! «,9qu (Ira Yet; #776 égég/own'par ,uné' ’ I ‘. Recruit/Ira ”loom y: V6659!“ 32Livy x. 9. 4. Livy included this law in a dis- cussion of the events of 299 B. C. The law was passed in 198 at the instigation of Cato. An alternate, but less probable, date is 195 during Cato's consulship. See B. C. Foster (ed.), Livy ("Loeb Classical Library": Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1963), IV, p. 338, n. 4. 33Livy xxxiii. 44. 5-9. 13 was kept in Greece, however, to check the power of the Lacedaemonian tyrant Kabis and to maintain surveillance of Antiochus the Great, king Of the Seleucid Empire, who was suSpected Of having designs upon the Greeks. In the West the military situation was more pressing. Two hostile tribes, the 301 and the Insubres, had been defeated in large battles the previous year in Gaul: but they were still strong enough to require the presence of two legions to protect the province Of Gaul.34 of greater concern was the deterioration of Roman control in Spain that had led to a general insurrection by the Spanish tribes.35 Spain had come into Roman possession during the Second Punic War due to the military achievements of Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus. Little has survived of his arrangements for organizing the government of the province, but they were rather hasty and probably were not very thorough. Polybius wrote that he was anxious to return to Rome for the consular elections of 206. In such a frame of mind, he hastily arranged for the government of Spain; and, having put the army under the command of Junius Silanus and L. iarcius,he embarked with Caius Laelius and his other friends for Rome.36 SOOn after Scipio departed, there was a brief revolt of the tribes north of the Ebro 34Livy xxxiii. 36. 4-37. 12: 43. 4. 35Appian Hisp. 8. 36Polybius xi. 33. 14 River, but the military commanders quickly suppressed the disturbance.37. There was no attempt to organize a pro- vincial government or to exploit the natural wealth of Spain, and the province enjoyed a period Of tranquility until 198.38 I In that year, Rome finally decided to organize Spain into two separate provinces and elected two additional praetors to govern these provinces.39 When the first praetors assigned to Spain took office in 197, they were ordered by the Senate to fix the boundaries between the nearer and farther provinces.4O The result of this attempted organization of Spain was a general rebellion of the Spanish tribes. Late in 197, harcus Helvius, the first governor for Farther Spain, sent a dispatch to the Senate informing it of the war which had broken out. In addition to two -petty kings and the seventeen towns and two cities which had joined in the war, Helvius' letter stated that "the halacini and Sexetani and all Baeturia and other states 37C. V. H. Sutherland, The Romans in Spain: 217 B.C.- A.D. 117 (London: hethuen & Co., 1939), pp. 54, 64. 38E. Badian, Foreign Clientelae: 264-70 B.C. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1958), p. 120. 39Livy xxxii. 27. 6. 40Ibid., 28. ll. Livy did not record the boundary between the two Spanish provinces. Perhaps one was not firmly established until the wars in Spain were concluded. 15 Which had not yet disclosed their intentions would soon rise to join the revolt of their neighbors."41 In 196, Quintus Fabius Buteo and Quintus hunicius Thermus were assigned to Spain, each with one legion and 4,000 allied troops. So little had been accomplished by the next year's elections that the Senate felt compelled to diSpatch a consular army to re-establish Roman control. In the consular elections for 195, Marcus Porcius Cato was chosen together with Lucius Valerius Flaccus, his patron and close friend. Attaining the consulship was a great achievement for Cato. In the first half Of the second century, just sixteen "new men" achieved consular rank. Of these only four men from families which had never held a curule office reached the consulship, as did Cato.42 Marcus Cato, like all the new men in Roman politics, 41Livy xxxiii. 21. 7-9. "Malacinos SexetanOSque et Baeturiam omnem et quae nondum animos nudaverant ad finitimorum motus consurrectura." It is unlikely that a mere delineating of borders would incite such a widespread rebellion. The more probable eXplanation is that the Romans began to collect a permanent tribute from the new provinces. Badian, (pp. 120-21), is of this view, maintaining that only thus can the sudden increase in precious metals brought to Rome from Spain be explained. In 198, Lucius Manlius Acidnus deposited 1200 pounds of silver in the treasury after being denied an ovation by a tribune's veto. In 196, when he returned from Nearer Spain, Gnaeus Cornelius Blasio carried 1500 pounds of gold, 20,000 pounds Of silver, and 34,500 denarii of coined silver. Lucius Stertinius deposited 50,000 pounds of silver from Further Spain that same year without asking for an ovation. (Livy xxxii. 7. 4: xxxiii. 27. 1-4). Badian says that Livy never thereafter 3: gded an amount as low as that of Acidnus coming from 42H. H. Scullard, p. 11. l6 reached the consulship not entirely on his Own merit, but through the patronage and support of a powerful noble family. As Scipio Africanus aided and sponsored Gaius Laelius and Manius Acilius Glabrio, so Valerius Flaccus undoubtedly aided Cato. TO be sure, Cato spent the three years between his praetorship and consulship demonstrating his oratorical abilities: but virtually nothing is known about this period of his life. It is therefore unsound to conjecture how much influence Cato‘s rigid morality and rural con- servatism had on his election. His very election with Flaccus makes it certain that patronage also played a strong, if not overwhelming, part.43 When the newly elected consuls took Office on March 15, the senate decided that the war in Spain warranted a consular army. Accordingly, the senate decreed that one consul should receive Nearer Spain as his province while the other, receiving Italy, was charged with defending the province of Gaul against the 801 and the Insubres. Those tribes had been defeated in battle the previous year, but, nevertheless, remained a serious threat on the northern frontier. When the consuls drew lots for provinces, Cato received Spain: and Flaccus obtained Italy. Each was authoriZed to levy two fresh legions to prosecute his war.44 —— 43H. H. Scullard (p. 113) declares that Cato won the consularship by the support of the agricultural classes for his'stern uprightness." But, nevertheless, he maintains throughout the book that Cato was a member of the Fabian party together with Flaccus. 44Livy xxxiii. 43. 1-5. 17 Before Cato could set out for Spain with his trOOps, an incident occured which soon embroiled the whole city and much of the surrounding countryside. Two of the tribunes of the peOple had prOposed to the assembly that the Oppian law, a sumptuary measure passed during the rigors of the Second Punic War,45 probably in 213, be repealed. The law provided “that no woman should possess more than half an ounce of gold or wear a parti-coloured garment or ride in a carriage in the City or in a town within a mile thereof, except on the occasion Of a religious festival."46 Since two other tribunes declared that they would forbid the repeal, a great public debate on the issue develOped, drawing huge crowds to the Forum. Women blocked the streets, begging the men to restore their former honors with a most un—Roman lack of matronly modesty. As the crowds grew larger and the women bolder, the matrons began to approach the public Officials, even the consuls them- selves. Cato found their display repugnant and delivered a harsh Speech denouncing those who would repeal the law.47 45Livy xxxiv. 1. 2. Here Livy stated that the law was passed during the consulship of Ti. Sempronius and Q. Fabius (probably the son of Cunctator). 46Livy xxxiv. 1. 3. "ne qua mulier plus semunciam auri haveret neu vestimento versicolori uteretur neu iuncto vehiculo in urbe Oppodove aut prOpius inde mille passus nisi sacrorum publicorum causa veheretur." A semuncia equals 1/24 Roman libra or about .03 U. S. pound. 471bid., 4-7. 18 The diSplay Of the women merely confirmed his conservatism and demonstrated the need to retain the Cppian law. Cato's Speech in support Of the law is found only in Livy. It is Livy's composition, not Cato's, and forms an elaborate rhetorical exercise when taken with its counter- part by the tribune Lucius Valerius opposing the Cppian law. Like all of Livy's speeches, the purpose of this speech is to characterize the Speaker. "It must be admitted, however, that the psychology of Cato is more cleverly presented than his style, for critics find little trace of the real Cato in the Speech."48 While the Speech does not capture Cato's style Of speech, his attitudes on luxury and his distrust of women as a group are presented well.49 In the Livian Speech, Cato complained that the crowds of women were interfering with public affairs because their husbands were not exercising proper control over them. The women desired nothing short of complete licence: and if they were not controlled, they would soon break all their .bonds and become, not the equals, but the superiors of the men. Finally, Cato condemned the growing avarice and luxury. In the former times there had been no such law 48Evan T. Sage (ed,) Livy ("Loeb Classical Library": Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard Uhiversity Press, 1935), Ix, pp. 438-39, n. 2. 49 H. H. Scullard, (p. 257) eXpresses doubt that the Speech ever existed. He is certainly correct in maintaining that the Livian Speech did not derive from Cato's speech. d t s . fficult however to imagine h 99% SIIent on Such a volatile iésue gsaghfgto WOUld have 19 because there had been no extravagance, but the days when women would be modest without the restraint of law had passed. Therefore, he argued, the law should by no means be repealed. Extant fragments of another Speech by Cato indicate that Livy's composition must have approximated Cato's feelings toward women.51 He felt that they should definitely be subservient to their husbands. Nhen a husband divOrced his wife, he passed judgement on her. "She is severely punished if she has drunk wine; if she has committed unchaste acts with another man, she is condemned."52 However, if a man were caught committing adulterylnrhis wife, “she would not dare to lay a finger on you, nor is it lawful."53 Nevertheless, even the advice of Cato was not sufficient to deter the repeal of an unpopular law. The crowd of women besieged the homes of the tribunes Who had declared that they would block the passage Of the bill, and the women persisted Until the threat of the veto was withdrawn. After that there was no question that all 50Livy xxiv. 2. 1-4. 20. 51H. Nalcovati (ed.) Cratorum Romanorum Fragmenta Liberae Rei Publicae: Iteratis Curis Recensuit Colleoit (Ed ed.: Turin: Paravia, 1955), I, 89-90. The Speech, De Dote, was delivered on an unknown occasion. 52Malcovati, pp. 89-90, frg. 221. "mulitatur, si vinum bibit, si cum alieno vino probri quid fecit, condemnatur." My translation. .53Ibid., frg. 222. "dignito non auderat contingere neque ius est.’ My translation. 20 the tribes would vote to repeal the law.54 As soon as the repeal of the Oppian law was passed, Cato set out for the harbor of Luna where he had arranged for his army to meet before setting sail for Spain. In addition to his two legions, Cato had been authorized to levy 15,000 infantry and 300 cavalry from the Latin Confederacy.55 Having regrouped his forces at Pyrenaeus and driven out a Spanish garrison from nearby Rhoda, Cato finally disembarked at Emporiae, on the eastern coast Of Spain.56 The Greek inhabitants of the city received him well, for they mistrusted the Spaniards with whom they traded and relied on Roman friendship and protection as well as their own vigilance to maintain their security. Cato delayed at Emporiae for a few days while he gathered intelligence about the Spanish forces and planned his strategy. His basic plan seemed to be to attack and defeat the united army of the Spanish tribes and then quickly effect the surrender of the separate tribes before they could reunite and mount an effective defense. Cato's ‘province consisted Of the Ebro River valley and a rather Iiarrow coastal strip on either side. Since there had been llittle Roman penetration of the interior sOuth of the Ebro, Cato's principal concern would be the narrow wedge between 54Livy xxiv. 8. l-3. 551bid., xxxiii. 43. 3. 56Ibid., xxxiv. 8. 4-7. 21 ’ “6.2.0 y~ Rhoda d) £44». .Iergium. ~~ ex v“ 9 . {I Z-Tumantiao-~~ 1V1? .34,“ smoor 1:58. I 6'“: «:97: , u I c0 \ 9,?) ‘9 I, I \~—’ ’9“, l Segontiaq 'arraco ‘ I I ’ I l‘ ' ' , J , I I a 3 ,' I g ' ’ x 9 I’ I x , Tr A f’ ’ \J x ‘3 f) ’ D; 7:313» C l ‘ "I f ’I I -1 ’ / -.......----. \\ ,’ Cato's probable \ ,’ route. \ \ -"¢ Map l.——Spain in 195 B.C. I: I O 22 the Ebro and the Pyrenees. Cato also used his stay at Emporiae to begin the training Of his trOOps and to complete arrangements for provisioning the army. The trOOps were mostly new recruits, and Cato used the relative security of Emporiae to drill them in the arts of Roman warfare. (Before the contractors had purchaSed grain for the army, Cato found that he had arrived during the Spanish harvest. He, therefore, forbade the contractors to buy any and sent them back to Rome with a message for the senate: “This war will support itself."57 Leaving Emporiae, Cato established a camp a few miles from the city and began to test his soldiers in small 58 Operations, burning and pillaging the countryside. In one of the rare surviving passages from Cato's own works, he furnished an insight into his methods for conditioning the troops. Meanwhile I tested each separate squadrom, maniple, cohort, to gauge its capabilities. By little combats I found out the calibre of each man: if a soldier had done gallant service I rewarded him handsomely, that others might have a mind to the same, and in my address to the soldiers I was profuse in his praise. heanwhile I made a few encampments here and there, but when the season of the year came around, I established winter quarters . . . .59 57Ibid., 9. 11-12. "Bellum inquit se ipsum alet." 581bid., 13. 59Fronto Ad Verum Imp. ii. 1; Loeb Classical Library edition, II, 150. "Interea unamquamque turman manipulum cohort m tem tabag uid facere possent: proeliis levibus Specta am cu usmo i guisque esset; Si qui strenue fecerat, donabam hoseste, ut alii idem vellent, atque in contione verbis multis laudabam. Interea aliquot pauca castra feci sed ube anni tempus venit, castra hiberna Lconstitui] . . ." 23 While Cato's army was still encamped near Emporiae, three ambassadors arrived from Bilistages, chief of the Ilergetes§oone Of the few tribes loyal to the Romans, requesting aid against the hostile forces besieging his tribe's fortresses. Cato did not want to divide his army since he expected that the Spaniards would Offer battle soon, and yet he did not want to lose his allies. Cato resolved this dilemma by a clever deceit designed to aid the Ilergetes with hOpe, not trOOps. He promised that he WOuld sent aid and ordered a third of his army to prepare rations and board ships to impress the ambassadors, who re- ported to their chief that they had actually seen the 61 Romans setting out. When the ambassadors had left, Cato ordered the soldiers to disembark and establish a winter camp about three miles from Emporiae in preparation for the rapidly approaching campaigning season.62 From his camp, Cato began to ravage further into the enemy's territory, increasing the range Of his trOOps by night marches.4 "By this means he hardened his recruits and 60An island tribe near the Ebro. To reach them Cato would have had to sail up the river since there were hostile tribes between his position on the coast and the territory of the Ilergetes. See map II. 61Livy (xxxiv. ll. 8) said that the envoys Spread the news of the approaching Romans to both their own people and the enemy. 62Livy xxxiv. 11. 1-13. 1. Livy did not specify what happened to the Ilergetes, but stated (xxiv. 12. 4) that the man who believed that help was at hand would act as if he already had it and WUUld thus be Saved by that very Confidence. It may thus be assumed that they were successful. 24 captured a great number of the enemy: no longer did they venture to go outside the fortifications of their stations.“63 Thinking his own troops sufficiently seasoned to withstand the rigors of battle, Cato decided to attack the main camp of the combined, and now rather demoralized, forces of the rebellious Spaniards. Cato's intention was to surprise the enemy to prevent them from making a coordinated plan of battle. By means of a night march beginning at midnight, the Roman army was in position beyond the Spanish camp before dawn. This position not only enabled Cato to attack the camp from an uneXpected direction but also reduced the danger of panic among his inexperienced trOOps: for their only hope of safety lay not to the rear, but directly ahead. Livy put this policy into Cato's Speech of exhortation preceding the battle. "Nowhere, soldiers, is there any hOpe except in your courage, and I deliberately acted so that there should be none. Between us and our camp is the enemy, and in the rear is the enemy's country. What is most glorious is also the safest: to place our hopes in valour."64 63L1vy xxxiv. 13. 3. "Et exercebat ea res novos milites et hostium magna vis excipiebatur: nec iam egredi extra munimenta castellorum audebant.“ 64Ibid“ 14. 3-4. "nusquam nisi in virtute Spes est, milites, inquit it ego sedulo ne esset feci. Inter castra nostra et nos medii hostes et ab tergo hostium ager est. Quod pulcherrimum idem tutissimum: in virtute Spem positam habere.” 25 The battle65 began when three cohorts which had been stationed close to the fortifications of the enemy's camp withdrew in pretended flight upon being "discovered" by the Spaniards. The feint which was not particularly brilliant was nevertheless successful, for the Spanish trOOps eagerly rushed out of the camp to attack the fleeing Romans. While the enemy was still forming its array, the Roman cavalry suddenly attacked both flanks. However, the Spaniards repulsed the cavalry on the Roman right which fled in panic, causing a great deal of confusion in the ranks of the infantry directly behind them. In order to prevent the confusion from developing into a general panic, Cato sent two cohorts of the reserves to attack the enemy's rear while he rushed to the right to take charge personally. Although he was able to reform the ranks, often turning confused soldiers around to face the enemy himself, the Roman right was hard pressed to withstand the Spanish attack. However, the Romans were fighting successfully on the left and center: and the forces which Cato had sent to harass the rear were terrifying the barbarians with showers of missiles. As the Romans closed in on the enemy for hand-to- ___._ J.— 65The following account is from Livy xxiv. l4. 5- 15. 8, with exceptions as noted. Livy's source for the entire Spanish campaign was probably from Cato himself, but he may have used an annalistic account which was taken from Cato. See F. Walsh, Liyy} His Historical Aims and Methods (Cambridge: Cambridge Uhiversity Press, 19537 pp. 134—35; E. T. Sage, p. 470. 26 hand combat, the Spaniards fought with renewed courage: and the battle was again in doubt. But Cato had held his second legion in reserve, and he now committed some of these to battle. Appian said that he led the three cohorts, now committed, into battle himself from a hill where he had been observing the progress of the battle. "Seeing the center of his own line sorely pressed he sprang to their relief, exposing himself to danger, and broke the ranks of the enemy with a shout, and began the victory with his own hand.“66 As the defeated Spanish fled to their camp, where they desperately fought the pursuing Romans from the ramparts, Cato ordered the remainder of the second legion to make an ordered march and join the battle. Leading the principes and hastati67 of this legion himself, Cato broke through a poorly defended gate. The panic-stricken barbarians were slaughtered by the Romans as they attempted to force their way out of their own camp by the gates. Livy related Valerius Antias' account that over forty thousand of the 66Appian HisE. 40. 4‘“); (6‘ 62(6 7'01}; flE/O'OV‘C ’ I I 2 I 773V LJ‘UV flax/{carat grazJaax/(rraz/y, ép/uqcay ’ ,2 ‘ I 3’ \ a 6g cwrou; ”pair/Viv ”may spygo 7“? Arm flay; «rm/{rages}? 7’02}; Ezé’oazk KA'Z 17736377; mré‘pfg 75¢ Var/1;.“ 67 The first and second lines of a Roman legion, each 1200 men strong. See H. M. D. Parker, "Legion," Oxford glassical Dictionary. 27 enemy fell, but added, "Cato himself, a man not much inclined to begrudging in his own praise, says that many were killed, "68 hhile Valerius undoubtedly exaggerated the number killed§9Cato did score but does not give a definite number. a well-executed and overwhelming victory, for with the combined Spanish army defeated and scattered, the insurrection was effectively broken. Cato did not rest with this victory. Having led his trOOps laden with booty back to camp, he gave them a few hours rest and set out to plunder the countryside on a much wider scale than he had dared earlier. LivY stated that this had as much influence on the Spaniards as the results of the battle. The Spaniards of Emporiae were the first to surrender to Cato, and soon after their neighbors and many other states sent ambassadors to 'him. He treated all who came to him kindly: and wherever he marched, he found ambassadors ready to surrender their states. "By the time he reached Tarraco, all Spain on this side of the Ebro had been subdued . . . ."70 While Cato remained at Tarracq,he faced the problem of keeping the conquered Spaniards pacified. Cn a rumor that Cato had set out for Turdetania in Further Spain, 68Livy xxxiv. 15. 9. "Cato ipse, haud sane detrectator laudum suarum, multos caesos ait, numerum non adscribit." 69Appian (Hiso. 40) gave 40,000 trOOps as the total complement of the Spanish forces. He said only that the Romans killed a vast number. 7OLivy xxxiv. 16. 3-7. "iam omnis cis Hiberum Hispania perdomita erat . . . ." 28 seven forts of the Bergistani71 revolted but were subdued with little effort. When Cato had returned to Tarraco, the tribe again revolted and the consul again was forced to subdue them. Cato showed no mercy the second time and had the entire pOpulation sold into slavery lest they would disturb the peace too frequently.72 The Bergistani resistance had been eliminated, but the possibility of revolt by the subdued tribes disturbed Cato. He therefore ordered all the Spaniards north of the Ebro to disarm. He summoned their leaders to a conference at which he explained that it was in their interest as well as the Romans' interest not to rebel. He asked for their counsel on the matter. When they had remained silent at two meetings, "on one day he destroyed the walls of all the towns . . . ."73 Appian offered an account of the stratagem which Cato used to accomplish the fantastic feat of demolishing all the walls on the same day. Having determined the distance to each town, (Cato sent messengers with letters to the towns so they xwould arrive at each town on the same day. The letters <:ommanded the magistrates of each town to demolish their xvalls on the same day they received the order. If they 71The location of this tribe has not been determined. 72Livy xxiv. 16. 9-10. 73£Eiéio 17. 5-11. ”uno die muris omnium dirutis." 29 attempted to delay, he threatened to sell them into slavery. Not knowing' whether they had been singled out or whether all the towns had been so ordered and having no time for delay, the people of each town decided to comply with the order. "Thus the towns along the river Ebro in one day, and thanks to a single stratagem, levelled their own walls."75 His rear thus secured, Cato easily subdued the remaining states in that region. While Cato was quieting the rebellion in Hither Spain, the praetor assigned to Further Spain, Publius Ranlius, was having difficulty subduing the Turdetani who had hired ten thousand Celtiberi mercenaries to aid them. Cato hastened to Manlius' aid when his presence was requested. Finding the enemy forces encamped separately, the consul attempted to deal with the Celtiberi alone. He (offered them twice the pay the Turdetani were giving them his soldiers for the sake of popularity: “Now to begin with, who ever saw anyone presented with a crown, when a town had not been taken or an enemy's camp burned?“lo Gellius added contemptuously that Fulvius had given crowns to his soldiers for industry in building ramparts and digging wells.ll Cato's motives for this attack probably went beyond his annoyance at a mild censor- ship. In 184, Fulvius had run for the censorship against Cato: and there was surely a good deal of animosity between them arising from the election. Further, in 189, Fulvius had taken the poet finnius with him to his province to record the consul's deeds.12 Cato had befriended the poet when he was quaestor and had brought him to Rome.13 Thus, jealousy may have been an underlying factor in this attack. Spanish envoys from the two provinces in Spain registeied a complaint in the senate against the greed and arrogance of Roman officials in 171. "They begged the _ 91bid., p. 58, frg. 150. See also Livy xl. 51. 7. lOAulus Gellius v. 6. 25. “Iam principio quis Vidit corona donari ouemcuam, cum Oppidum captum non esset aut castra hostium non incensa essent?" 11Ibid., 23. Crowns were usually awarded to the first soldier to enter the enemy's camp or to the first to scale the walls of an enemy city. 12Cicero Tusc. 1. 3. l3fhurelius Victor De Vir. 111. 47. 82 senate on bended knees that it would not permit them, its its allies, to be more wretchedly despoiled and harassed than its enemies."14 The senate was moved by the pleas of the Spaniards and by the realization that there had been widespread extortion in the provinces. The praetor Lucius Canuleius was assigned to handle the investigation. The envoys, allowed to choose their own advocates, chose Cato, Scipio Nasica, Lucius Aemilius Paulus, and Gaius Sulpicius- Gallus. When the first defendant, Narcus Titinius, who had been praetor in Nearer Spain in 178, was acquitted, the envoys ouarreled and decided to prosecute their cases separately. In the second case, Publius Furius Philus, praetor in 174, was prosecuted by Cato and Scipio Nasica on behalf of the peonle of Nearer Spain:15 and Marcus Matienus, praetor in 172, was prosecuted by Lucius Paulus and Sulpicius Gallus for Farther Spain. "Both were accused on serious charges and the cases were adjourned; when the time came for a fresh trial, the defence reported that they had left Roman territory to go into exile."16 The Spaniards were prevented from further aCcusations because the praetor Lucius Canuleius left for his province, l4Livy xliii. 2. 1—2. “nixi genibus ab senatu petierunt ne se socios foedius spoliari vexarique quam hostes patiantur. ' lSMalcovati (p. 59, frgs. 154-55) gives the remains of Cato's speech." 6 o o I q o o o o 1 Livy xliii. 2. 3~lO. "araVissimis criminibus accusati ambo ampliatique: cum dicenda de integro causa esset, excusati exilii causa solum vertisse." 83 but the senate appeased the Spaniards by passing the reforms they had requested.17 Soon after his prosecutions on behalf of the Span- iards, Cato supported a law proposed by the tribune Quintus Voconius Saxa which forbade women to be made heirs of citizens of the highest prOperty class and severely restricted the inheritance rights of women of all other classes.18 The only fragment of Cato's speech which has survived related the abuses in which Rome's emancipated women engaged when provided with large sums of money. In the beginning the woman brought you a great dowry: then she holds back a large sum of money, which she does not entrust to the control of her husband, but lends it to her husband. Later, becoming angry with him, she orders a servus recepticius, or “slave of her own," to hound him and demand the money. Cato's arguments must have been effective, for the Voconian Law was enacted and retained well into the Empire. In 167, Cato became involved in a controversy in- volving the Rhodians. The praetor Manius Juventius Thalna was stirring up the people against Rhodes and was attempt- ing to persuade the Romans to declare war. The issue was that while the Rhodians had maintained a precarious 17Ibid.’ 11-12. 18c1cero (Sen. 14) dated the law 169, but Livy (Per. xli) placed in 174. See Aulus Gellius vi. 13. 1-3, .about the various classes. 19Aulus Gellius xvii. 6. 1. "Principio vobis mulier Inagnam dotem adtulit: tum magnam pecuniam recipit,_quam .in viri potestatem non conmittit, eam pecuniam viro Inutuam dat; postea, ubi irata facta est, servum recepticium sectari atque flagitare virum iubet." 84 neutrality during the Roman war with Perseus, they had tried to negotiate a peace settlement in 168 just as the Romans were successfully concluding the war. The senate was incensed at the Rhodians since they had come with this prOposal so late in the war when Perseus was so closely beleaguered. It seemed obvious to the Romans that the Rhodians had sent the embassy, not to help end the war, but to save Perseus from destruction.20 Cato was not an imperialist with respect to the Greek—speaking East: he felt that the best way to avoid the inundation of Hellenistic corruption was to avoid in- volvement in Eastern politics as far as possible. With this intent he had recently opposed the annexation of Macedonia to the empire.21 Now when the Rhodians, fearing Roman conquest, were pleading to be accepted as Roman allies, Cato came to their aid. Livy said that although Cato had a harsh temperament, on that occasion he played the part of a tolerant and mild senator.22 Cato began his speech with an admonition to his fellow senators to avoid becoming too arrogant in their good fortune. Adversity subdues and shows what ought to be done: prosperity, since it inspires joy, commonly turns men 20Polybius xxxix. 19. See books xxvii and xxviii for Rhodian policies during the war and xxix. 11 for the Rhodian decision to prOpose peace. 21 was entitled Q2 Kacedonia Liberanda. Malcovati, p. 61, frgs. 161-62. Cato's speech .L 22xlv. 25. 2. 85 aside from wise counsel and right understanding. Therefore it is with the greater emphasis that I advise and urge that this matter be put off for a few days, until we regain our self-command after so great rejoicing. Cato admitted that the Rhodians may not have wished the Romans to win a total victory, for that would possibly endanger their freedom. Some might even have wished that the Romans would lose, but throughout the war Rhodes maintained her neutrality. He asked, "Shall the Rhodians suffer, not because they did wrong, but because they are said to have wished to do wrong?"24 Cato's defense of the Rhodians was at least partially successful, for the senate's reply to the Rhodians was ambiguous, neither declaring them enemies nor granting them the status of allies.25 The Rhodians, who feared that the senate would declare war, received the reply joyously.26 In 164, Cato was charged with extravagance,27 23Aulus Gellius vi. 3. 14. “Advorsae res edomant et docent quid Opus siet facto, secundae res laetitia transvorsum trudere solent a recte consulendo atque intellegendo. Quo maiore Opere dico suadeoque uti haec res aliquot dies proferatur, dum ex tanto gaudio in potestatem nostram redeamus.“ Thanks to Aulus Gellius we have more of this speech extant than of any other work of Cato except the Qe Agri Cultura. The extant portions of the speech are contained in vi. 3. 14-50. 24Aulus Gellius vi. 3. 38. ”Rodiensibus oberit, quod non male fecerunt, sed quia voluisse dicuntur facere?" - 25Livy xlv. 25. 4. 26Ibid., 6. 27A passage from Aulus Gellius (xiii. 24. 1) mentions that Cato was frugal up to his seVentieth year. Since Gellius knew that Cato lived for over ninety years, this provides a probable date for this episode. 86 probably by the censors. The basis for the charge may have been the dinners which he gave for his friends at his coun- try estate. Plutarch mentioned that he often invited con- genial neighbors for plentiful banquets.28 Perhaps Cato was accused of violating the lex Orchia. But Cato defended himself admirably against the charges. He had a servant read the Speech he had prepared, outlining his frugality and virtues, while he frequently interrupted, sarcastically 29 The .protesting that the PeOple did not want to hear it. defense must have been successful, for Cato was never con~ victed in the nearly fifty charges brought against him . . . . 30 during his lifetime. In 152, Marcus Claudius Marcellus was elected consul for the third time. His election undoubtedly aroused a great deal of Opposition in the senate, for a law was passed shortly thereafter prohibiting a second consulship. Cato supported this law with a speech, ne ouis iterum consul fieret, suggesting that some men used their office to build luxurious homes.31 Perhaps as part of this speech, Cato said that those who sought high office frequently were like men who did not know the road; they wished to be always attended by lictors so they would not go astray.32 28Cat. Mai. 25. 2. 29Pronto, Loeb Classical Library edition, pp. 45-46. 3OPlutarch Cat. hai. 15. 4: Pliny g; vii. 27. 31Ea1covati, p. 75, frg. 75. 32P1utarch Cat. Mai. 8. 5. 87 He also rebuked the peOple for choosing the same men over and over: "You will be thought . . . not to deem your offices worth much or else not to deem many men worthy of your offices.“33 The final political attack by Cato came in his last year, 149, when the tribune Lucius Scribonius proposed a resolution that the Lusitanians sold into slavery by A Servius Galba should be restored to freedom.3‘ Cato spoke in favor of the bill vigorously, in spite of his old age.35 He Opened his Speech thus: "Many things have disuaded me from appearing here, my years, my time of life, my voice, my strength, my Old age: . . ."36 In the speech Cato used the same argument he had used on behalf of the Rhodians: Yet they say that they [the Lusitanians] wished to revolt. I myself at the present moment wish a thorough knowledge of the pontifical law; shall I therefore be taken as chief pontiff? If I wish to understand the science of augury thorouGhly, shall anyone for that reason take me as augur? But Cato's eloquence was not to succeed, for Galba, seeing himself clearly defeated, appealed to sympathy. He "Spoke 33Ibid., 6. ”cfo'far: 75p. . «3,017 Ira/”00 r5 3:0)(517 {fear 3; [a5 Ira/III 00‘; ref} 3;:qu 5(1312; liyeh'fiu.” 34Livy Egg. xlix. 35Cicero Egpg. 89. 35Au1us Gellius xiii. 25. 15. "Nulta me dehortata sunt huc prodire, anni, aetas, vox, vires, senectus: . . ." 37Ibid., 1. 12. 17. "Tamen dicunt deficere voluisse. Ego me nunc volo ius oontificium Optime scire: iamne ea causa pontifex capiar? Si volo augurium Optime tenere, ecquis me oh eam rem augurem capiat?" 88 in his own defense so pitiably, clasping his two young sons and the sons of Sulpicius Gallus, whose guardian he was, that the resolution was defeated."33 As a result of Galba's actions, however, a law was passed, probably at Cato's urging, prohibiting the use of children in court to excite pity.39 The most famous (or infamous) accomplishment of Karcus Cato was his incitement of the Roman senate to launch the Third Punic Mar. Plutarch said that it was largely due to Cato's counsel and advice that the Romans declared war.40 Cato's role may have been exaggerated, for he was not the only Roman who hated and feared Carthage. When the Carthaginians recalled Hannibal from exile to bring about democratic reforms in the city, the senate was quick to intervene. His subsequent flight to Antiochus merely confirmed the opinions of those who were convinced that he had been plotting with Antiochus all along.41 In the several border disputes between Carthage and Masinissa, the senate had shown its hostility toward Carthage by 38Livy Per. xlix. “complexus duos filios praetex— tatos et Sulpicii Galli filium, cuius tutor erat, ita miserabiliter pro se locutus est, ut rogatio antiquaretur." 39Cicero Brut. 89; Pronto, Loeb Classical Library edition, p. 173. 40Cat. Dai. 26. 1. 41Livy xxxiii. 45. 6—49. 8. The blind hatred Of many Romans prevented them from seeing that Hannibal would have checked the power of the city's oligarchs, keeping the government weak. Hannibal fled to Antiochus because he was the only one who could be trusted not to hand him over to the Romans. See Scullard, p. 114. 89 consistently favoring the ambitious Numidian king. Nasinissa was encouraged to make ever greedier territorial demands by the provisions of the treaty ending the Second Punic War which forbade the Carthaginians to wage war without Rome's consent and ordered them to restore to Masinissa all homes, territory, and cities which had be- longed to him or his ancestors.42 Whenever such a dispute was submitted to Rome for resolution, the Carthaginians always got the worst of it, not on the merits of the case, but because the Romans considered such a policy in their interest.43 The Third Punic War developed out of the decision of the eanperated Carthaginians to defend their territory against the encroachments of Nasinissa. In 157, Roman commissioners were sent to resolve territorial claims,-44 but the Numidian king, encouraged by favorable decisions, claimed additional territory in 153.45 When Carthage requested Roman intervention, the senate sent a commission including Cato and Scipio Nasica. The Roman envoys sug- gested that both sides submit all their differences to them. Masinissa readily consented: but the Carthaginians, who remembered past unfair decisions all too well, were 42Polybius xv. 18. 43Ibid., xxxii. 2. For individual disputes see Livy xxxiv. 42: xl. 17. 1-6, 35. 14: and Appian 333. 68. See also A. E. Astin, Scipio Aemilianus (Oxford; Oxford University Press, 1967), p. 49: and T. Frank, Roman ‘Imperialism (New York; MacMillan, 1921), p. 233. 44Livy Per. xlvii. 45Ibid.,° Appian Pun. 68. 9O suSpiciouS of Roman intentions. Therefore, they replied that there was no need for a correction of the treaty: they were only protesting hasinissa's transgressions of it.46 The ambassadors, shocked by the Spirit of the Carthaginians, would not accept their demand and so left without having accomplished anything. The envoys returned to Rome after viewing the Carthaginian countryside, and the Carthaginians resolved to defend themselves against Masinissa without Roman help.47 When the commission returned to Rome, they reported that Carthage had become a great and prosperous city and an object of apprehension. Cato, in particular, was insistent that Rome would not be safe until Carthage was destroyed. Appian declared that when the senate heard the report it resolvedtuxniwar but concealed the decision until a suitable pretext could be found.48 However, con- siderable opposition to war existed in the senate. Scipio Nasica constantly argued against Cato, declaring that Carthage should be spared in order to preserve slackening Roman discipline through fear.49 Scipio's counsel pre- vailed in the senate for three years until Rome finally declared war in 149. Sometime after 153, Cato delivered a Speech in the senate urging the Third Punic War.50 He must have feared 46Appian, Pun. 69. 47Livy Per. xlviii. 499un. 69. 49Ibid. 50Livy (Per. xlviii) said Cato urged war several times. Thus, the exact date of the speech is in doubt. 91 that the Carthaginian issue would be forgotten, for he was ending every Speech with the phrase “Carthage must be destroyed."51 Indeed, Cato was becoming impatient with virtually everything not concerned with Carthage. When a debate on the question of the return of the Achaean hostages was protracted, Cato declared, "As though we had nothing else to do, we Sit here the whole day debating whether some Old Greek dotards should be buried by Italian or Achaean undertakersl”52 Cato's speech urging war was brutal. “The Carthaginians are already our enemies: for whoever prepares against me in all respects, so that he is able to make war against me in the time which he wishes, is already my enemy, although he does not yet act with “53 arms. Cato's Speech and the probable reply from Nasica that there was no proper cause for war 54 indicated that 51Plutarch Cat. Kai. 27. l. The traditional words, "Ceterum censeo Carthaginem esse delendam” apparently develOped rather late. The earliest works still extant, including Plutarch, use the phrase, "must not exist.“ See C. Little, ”The Authenticity and Form of Cato's Saying 'Carthago Delenda Est,'“ pg, XXIX (1934), 429-35. (/ 9 / \ 52P01ybius XXXV. 6. ”wont/g a9” £10vrff . . . a I z \ ¢ I " \ / fl/«rrw/uey, kaflqfltgq rqv QflE/WV OAqV ”gal. yepovnwv r- A A I 6 ~ 4 , G A $\ ,6”ka {qrauyrtg Ira-repay 0170 now my: 7%" q a ’ ’ .f z 9 A |l raw 0/ Arne. yekpa¢0pwv ckra/zcflwn. 53Malcovati, p. 78, frg. 195. “Carthaginienses nobis iam hostes sunt: nam qui omnia parat contra me, ut quo tempore velit, bellum possit inferre, hic iam mihi hostis est, tametsi nondum armis agat." My translation. 54Livy Per. xlviii. 92 in Spite of the impending war between Carthage and Masinissa, the Carthaginians had not yet broken the Treaty of 201.55 Thus, Cato was forced to plead for a war of agression against Carthage under the guise of a preventive war. Cato's arguments for a preventive war not only appear to exaggerate the potential threat of Carthage to Rome, but they also seem to contradict the benevolent attitude he had taken toward Rhodes in 167.56 However, Cato's attitude toward the Creek East was probably moti- vated by a firm desire to keep Rome isolated from Hellenistic civilization. Roman legions in Rhodes would only make this more difficult to attain. In the West, however, where there were no dangers to Roman civilization, Cato supported Roman expansion. Nevertheless, his approval of Roman imperialism in the West is not a sufficient explanation of Cato's savage insistence that Carthage be destroyed. Plutarch attributed Cato's motives to his concern for the danger of having a chastened enemy nearby while Rome was drunk and staggering with power.57 Plutarch was probably exaggerating 55In Livy Peg. xlviii, it appears that Carthage had already broken the treaty by building a fleet and inviting a foreign army onto her soil. This would make Cato's arguments irrelevant since Rome would already have had a "just cause" for the war. Livy was perhaps following a patriotic account which tried to justify Rome's actions by fabricating a series of Carthaginian abuses of the Treaty of 201. SSAt that time he had argued that the Rhodians should not be considered enemies just because they wished to join against Rome. 57Cat. kai. 27. 3. 93 Cato's concern for Roman morals, but a deep fear and hatred of Carthage are the only satisfactory motives for his stand. Cato's impression of Carthage is demonstrated in the dramatic episode in which he dropped a large ripe Libyan fig from his toga and proclaimed to the senators who were admiring it that the fruit came from a country 58 Cato had not expected only three days' sail from Rome. to find a prosperous city in a bountiful land when he had been sent to Carthage. The independent spirit of the Carthaginians in rejecting the commision's demands was also unexpected and probably roused Cato's memories of the Hannibalic Carthage which had nearly conquered Rome in his youth. Thus, Cato did not see Carthage as a weakened small state, with Numidia on its flank, which could never presume to attack Rome. He saw only a potential enemy who could be at the gates of Rome within three days. At some time after the return of the embassy, probably after Cato's speech, the senate came to adopt Cato's view that Carthage was too dangerous to be allowed to exist. Only a shadow of the senatorial controversy over the issue remains, making the senate's motives for wishing the destruction of Carthage even more difficult to assess than Cato's.59 As the chief protagonist for the 53Ibid., 27. 1. 59The chief source for the Third Punic War is Appian (Pun. 68—135). He followed Polybius to a certain extent but failed to give an analysis of the senatorial debate preceding the war. Polybius is fragmentary;and what has survived gives little insight into the beginning of the 94 war, Cato argued for the immediate destruction of Carthage. In opposition, Scipio Nasica argued that Rome could not attack Carthage without a just cause. This eventually became the position of nearly all the senate, for Polybius reported that the senators were looking for an opportune pretext to justify themselves in the eyes of the world.60 If Nasica's intention had been to prevent the war, he nearly succeeded, for the senate was ready to abandon the war; because they could not agree on what would be a suit- able pretext.61 But the motives of the senate remain in doubt. Surely they were not driven to war by the series of hostile acts as reported in Livy.62 The most probable motive is that which prompted Cato: the irrational fear of the city which had so nearly destroyed Rome fifty years before.63 by attacking Hasinissa in 150, Carthage provided the senate with the incident for which it had been waiting. Although the Carthaginian army demonstrated its weakness and was badly defeated, the senate, at Cato's urging, 'war. Only the summaries remain of Livy's account. Al- though they are Sketchy, they seem to indicate that Livy built up Rome's case against Carthage. 60xxxvi. 2. 61Ibid. 62233. xlvii, xlix. Cato's Speech indicates the falsehood of many of the statements. 63F. E. Adcock, "'Delenda Est Carthago,'" CHJ, ‘VIII (1946), 118—128 examines and discusses severalt 'theories on the senate's decision to destroy Carthage. ,Adcock concludes that the decision marked the advent of a "phase of irrational impatience“ in Roman foreign policy. 95 declared war Since Carthage had clearly violated the Treaty of 291.64 The Carthaginians surrendered to Rome immedi- ately, but the senate's decision to destroy the city was not revoked.65 The senate informed Carthage of its decision to destroy the city only after all weapons and hostages had been given over to the Roman army. Neverthe— less, the Carthaginians were determined to resist; and they held the overwhelming might of the Roman army in check U‘ for four years.6' In the early part of the war, Cato uttered his only recorded words of praise for a Scipio. The young Publius Cornelius Scipio Aemilianus, serving as a military tribune, had distinguished himself in battle. Quoting Homer, Cato declared, “He alone has understanding: but the others flit about as Shadows.“57 However, Cato did not live to see Aemilianus defeat the Carthaginians, for he died in 149, soon after the war had begun. The issues in which Cato was involved during his later years were primarily those which dealt with good government at home and in the provinces and those which 64Livy Per. xlix. 65The senate was legally justified in what it did, since the surrendering peOple gave up all their rights unconditionally. The action of the senate was, neverthe- less, unusually harsh and severe. 66Appian Pun. 70—135. a 6‘ 07Polybius xxxvi. 8: from Odyssey 10. 495. ”0‘0; ’ \ ‘ S ’of ‘. rrtn'rurac' 7'0: 6': 6mm awaovam 96 dealt with personal corruption. Cato also Showed an interest in restricting Roman imperialism in the East but not in the West. Cato's desire to promote better government in Rome led him to support the Baebian Law in 181 which provided regulations for elections and a law in 152 which forbade re-election to the consulship. These laws not only helped to ensure better government but also tended to curb the power of the leaders of the large “parties" who did their best to prevent the rise of "new men“ such as Cato. Cato was unsuccessful, however, in preventing the repeal of the section of the Baebian Law which limited the number of praetors to four in alternate years. Any measure which decreased the number of young men eligible to the consulship was bound to prove very unpOpular. Cato‘s involvement in the prosecutions of the Roman magistrates on behalf of the Spaniards in 174 and his prosecution of Servius Galba in 149 demonstrated his concern for good government in the provinces. It was probably not coincidental that both instances involved Spain. Nearer Spain had been Cato's consular province, and he had several clients there.68 Both affairs had also been cases of public corruption which had involved the honor of Rome. Cato took the duties of Roman magistrates serious— ly as exhibited not only in his reactions against major 68Badian, Foreign Clientelae, p. 318. 97 offenders such as Galba, but also in his personal attack on Fulvius Nobilior in 179 for the conduct of his censor- ship and consulship. Cato's dislike for the excesses of luxury prompted his support of the Orchian Law in 181 and of the Voconian Law in 169. His ardor for simplicity was not Shared by the majority of Roman citizens, however; and the Orchian Law was soon repealed or allowed to lapse into oblivion. Many Romans did, however, concur with Cato's Opinions on the inability of women to handle monetary affairs: and the Voconian Law lasted into the Christian era. ' In matters of foreign policy, Cato seemed to be guided by two principles. His distress at the breakdown of traditional Roman culture in the face of growing Hellenism caused him to Oppose the extension of Roman power in the East. Cato also exhibited a desire for con- ducting foreign affairs on the basis of justice in his support of the Rhodians in 167. However, his policy toward Carthage showed a glaring inconsistency in his ideals. The demand for a preventive war against a small inoffensive state seemed to be part of a national para— noia on the issue. Thus Cato ended his life supporting an ignominious war for reasons totally without merit. CHAPTER V THE AUTHOR In addition to being a successful politician and general, Marcus Porcius Cato was an accomplished author. His success as an orator prompted him to publish his speeches. Over one hundred fifty were known to Cicero,l and the titles and fragments of nearly eighty have been preserved by various ancient authors. Besides those which were published individually, Cato incorporated many of his Speeches in the Origines, his history of Rome. His Speech- es, the Origines, a book on customs, and one on military science have survived only in a few fragments. Iowever, a book on farming, 2g Agri Cultura, has survived to become the earliest extant specimen of connected Latin prose. Since Cato published his speeches, his oratorical abilities were known as late as the second century after Christ. Cicero, Livy, Aulus Gellius, and Fronto were all familiar with his Speeches. To later writers, Cato's style seemed exceedingly unpolished. Although oratory had long been practiced as a necessary part of Roman public life, Latin did not become a literary language until Cato's lifetime. The father of Latin poetry, Ennius, was a —; lBrut. 65. \0 C0 99 contemporary of Cato and did not come to Rome until after Cato's quaestorship. Even Cicero stated with some amaze- ment that although Cato died just eighty-six years before his own consulship, he could not name anyone earlier whose writings could be adduced.2 He remarked further that Cato was so early that there was no piece of writing before him worth reading.3 Because he wrote in such an archaic and rough style, Cato's speeches were already generally neglected in Cicero's time. He lamented that contemporary orators did not read Cato and complained that they did not appreciate the same qualities in Cato's orations which they professed to admire in older Greek oratory. "The very men who find such pleasure in the early period of Greek letters, and in that simplicity which they call Attic, have no knowledge of the same quality in Cato.“4 If Cato's words were rearranged and his language and style refined, then Cicero felt that no one could be placed before Cato. "Whom will you find more weighty in commendation, sharper in censure, shrewder in aphorism, more subtle in presentation and proof?“5 21bid., 61. 31bid., 69. 4Ibid., 65-68. “quod hi ipse, qui in Graecis antiquitate delectantur eaque subtilitate, quam Atticam appellant, hanc in Catone ne noverunt quidem." 51bid., 65. "quis illo gravior in laudando? acerbior in vituperando? in sententiis argutior? in docendo edisserendoque subtilior?“ See J. F. D'Alton, Roman Literary Theory and Criticism: A Study in Tendencies (Reprinted ed.: New York: Russell & Russell, Inc., 1962), 100 Other authors also thought highly of Cato's oratory. Livy considered Cato the most skilled in law and the most eloquent speaker of his time.5 In a passage in which he :as comparing Gaius Gracchus' Style to that of Cicero, Aulus Gellius said that anyone who preferred the more con- cise and unstudied style of Gracchus should study the ora- tions of Harcus Cato, whose vigorous style Gracchus could never hope to attain. "3e will realize, I think, that Cato was not content with the eloquence of his own time, but aspired to do even what Cicero later accomplished."7 harcus Cornelius Fronto, who mentioned that he had read several of Cato's orations, instilled in Earcus Aurelius his own admiration for Cato.8 Finally, St. Jerome declared that Cato was the most eloquent of the Romans.9 The political effects of Cato's speeches have al- ready been demonstrated. His skill as an orator facilitated pp. 199-200 for an evaluation of Cicero as a critic of Cato. D'Alton interprets Cicero's praise as polemic against Atticists of his own time. , Oxxxix. 40. 3-8. 7x. 3. 15-16. "Intelleget, Opinor, Catonem contentum eloquentia aetatis suae non fuisse et id iam tum facere voluisse quod Cicero postea perfecit.” 9Pronto, Loeb Classical Library edition, £01. I, pp. 117, 151, 153, 301: Vol II, pp. 151, 281. For Cato's influence on the writers of the Silver Age, especially Pliny the Elder, see J. Wight Duff, A Literary History of Rome in the Silver Age: From Tiberius to Hadrian, ed. A. L. Duff (2d ed.; new York: garnes & Noble, 1960), pp. 58, 288, 289—91, 35 passim. 9Select Letters of St. Jerome, trans. F. A. Wright ("Loeb Classical Library": London: Heinemann,_1933), p. 195. 101 his rise in Roman politics and enabled him to wield con- siderable influence in the senate and in the law courts. But the fragmentary remains of his oratory are of further value to the modern reader, for they allow an intimate glimpse into Cato's personality. Plutarch too often forced him into a static image in the service of his moralistic biography:lo Livy, in his passion for style, either entirely rewrote or invented Speeches as he felt they ought to have been delivered. In these authors' works, Cato's personality tended to merge with the political positions which he came to represent. The remains of Cato's oratory help to compensate for this. Cato's oration against Quintus Hinucius Thermus demonstrated that he could be a harsh and relentless pro- secutor. Cato brought the enormity of his charges vividly into the minds of his audience by the use of repetitious phrases or words with the same meaning. Who could endure such an insult, such tyranny, such Slavery? . . . TO think that you have dared to inflict signal wrongs, blows, lashes, stripes, these pains and tortures, accompanied with disgrace and extreme igno- miny, Since their fellow citizens and other men looked on! But amid how great grief, what groans, what tears, what lamentations have I heard that this was done:11 loSee Smith, g9, kaIV (1940), 1-10, 105-12: and “Cato Censorius," Greece and Rome, Ix (1940), 150—65. llAulus Gellius x. 3. 17. "Quis hanc contumeliam, quis hoc imperium, quis hanc servitutem ferre potest? . . . Insignitas iniurias, plagas, verbera, vibices, eos dolores atque carnificinas per dedecus atque maximam contumeliam, inspectantibus popularibus suis atque multis mortalibus, te facere ausum esse? Set quantum luctum, quantum gemitum, quid lacrimarum, quantum fletum factum audivi: " 102 On the contrary, when he was called upon to defend an individual or a state, Cato could argue with a restrained confidence in his ability as an eloquent lawyer. In a speech defending Lucius Turius in an obscure lawsuit about a private contract, Cato cited the legal tradition that the court should rule in favor of the defendant if there were no witnesses to the transaction. He concluded, "If Gellius is not better than Turio [gig], the one from whom the claim is made ought preferably to be credited."12 When he spoke in the senate on behalf of the Rhodians, Cato argued for moderation with great skill and subtle logic. He conceded that the Rhodians had wished for Rome's defeat but demanded that they be judged only by their actions. "Shall the Rhodians suffer, not because they did wrong, but because they are said to have wished to do wrong?"13 Perhaps the most effective weapon in his oratory was the acidic invective with which he castigated his per- sonal enemies. "This man's mother holds the wish that he may survive her to be no pious prayer, but a malignant curse."l4 Equally effective was his comment to a tribune ‘121bid., xiv. 2. 21-26. “si non melior Gellius est Turio, potius oportet credi unde petitur.“ 13Ibid., vi. 3. 38. "Rodiensibus oberit, quod non male fecerunt, sed quia voluisse dicuntur facere?“ 14Plutarch Cat. N81. 8. 6. raw-cu rum y ov’x Izmir, 6712‘": 1'5 "any umr‘p 37:7; a’ma 077’: r.” ,oa Plutarch included a number of sayings in one section. Due to the wide variety of the sayings and the fact that several also appear in other sources it would appear that the sayings are as authentic as Plutarch's sources. 103 of the people who had been accused of using poison: "Young man, I know not which is worse, to drink your mixtures, or to enact your bills."15 In an oration, Egg g3 contra g. Cassium, Cato combined righteous indignation with his bitterness towards his accuser. ”And so it happened, fellow citizens that in this insult which is going to be put upon me by the insolence of this man I also, fellow citizens (so help me!), pity our country."16 Cato's remarks were not confined to invective, how- ever. When he applied his keen wit to his sharp remarks, Cato appeared to be a far warmer, if still sarcastic man. He could comment with a great deal of irony, "Those who commit private theft pass their lives in confinement and fetters: plunderers of the public in purple and gold."17 When three ambassadors were sent to Bithynia, one of whom suffered from gout, another of whom had been struck on the head, and the third of whom was reputed to be a fool, he quipped that the embassy had neither head, feet, nor wits.18 Cato also asked sarcastically about an obese knight, "Where can such a body be of service to the state, when everything A A lsPlutarch Cat. Mai. 9. 7. ”a3 ”aloof/nan . , .oJIr alias, I 4 ’ i ‘\ I A \ ’ a ‘, rrorepov xecpov 56er a «4pr may 3 b y,“ ¢uc Kupwd'ac. 16Aulus Gellius x. 14. 13. "Atque evenit ita, Quirites, uti in hac contumelia quae mihi per huiusce petulantiam factum itur, rei quoque publicae medius fidius miserear, Quirites." 17Ibid., xi. 18. 18. "Fures, . . . privatorum furtorum in nervo atque in compedibus aetatem agunt, fures publici in auro atque in purpura." 18Livy Per. 1x; Plutarch Cat. Kai. 9. l. 104 between its gullet and its groins is devoted to belly?“19 But Cato's humor could be warm on occasion. When Polybius had succeeded in obtaining the release of the Achaean hostages, largely through Cato‘s efforts, he was about to petition the senate for the restoration of their former honors. "Cato, however, remarked with a smile that Polybius, like another Odysseus, wanted to go a second time into the cave of the Cyclops, because he had for- gotten his cap and belt."20 In his later life, Cato published a history of Rome written in Latin. This was a great achievement, for no one had previously attempted to write any literary prose in the vernacular. Although only fragments have survived, the comments of ancient authors and some of the fragments themselves have given us an adequate picture of the style and scope of the work. The Origines was written in seven books, comprising 21 at least two (and possibly three) distinct parts. The first book dealt with the foundation and the early history lgPlutarch Cat. blin. 9. 5. ”7703 J’é’y. . . 713.001.“ A 4 I I f \ f A“ A 4mm TO‘WTO ycvmro quflflov, 00 7’0 fllrl v (It-IOU \ I ‘I ‘ 5 A s I O, M‘ 30¢!”va away W0 1"" YUOTPO‘ "713:7“; 20Polybius xxxv. 6. ”0‘ Ji flfl‘l‘duc ‘3’? TBV wafllag I \ ‘D A I foams/v 1w ’OJwa‘Ea, fioflwflac malty mg r‘o my Mm! (07m; 0 3 A \ ’ 3 A \ \ I ' I . ”44am? Stu/Way, Ta ”Idler um. mu Tqv foqu (If/Athtfllm 21wepos (Cato 3) indicated two parts, but the first book may have been composed earlier as a primer for Cato's eldest son. See Plutarch Cat. Kai. 20. 5. 105 of Rome.22 In the second and third books, Cato gave the origins of the various Italian cities, from which the entire history took its name. Book IV began a new section, for there Cato jumped to the First PlhiC War. In the fifth book, Cato began to write contemporary history: the Second Punic Mar and events at least through 167.23 Books VI and VII continued through Cato's attack on Servius Galba in 149, only a few months before his death. These two books covered a much shorter period of time than the previous books and included many of his speeches. One of the more prominent features of the work was Cato's refusal to include the names of any of the military commanders in his account, probably to avoid glorifying the aristocratic families of his own time.24 This work, although written in Latin, was based on Hellenistic models. The Latin annalistic tradition, in the form of the tabulae pontificum, was clearly rejected as trivial. "I do not care to write what appears on the tablet of the high priest: how often grain was dear, how often darkness, or something else, obscurred the 22Nepos (Cato 3) listed the contents of the individual books. 23Aulus Gellius (vi. 3. 7) mentioned that Cato's speech, Pro Rodiensibus, delivered in 167, was included in the fifth book of the Origines as well as published separately. 24Nepos Cato 3; Pliny EN viii. ll. Pliny added that Cato did give the name of a brave Carthaginian elephant, Surus. The extant fragments support Hepos' and Pliny's statements that no names were mentioned. 106 light of the sun or the moon.“23 P. C. fialsh stated that by rejecting the annals, Cato was demonstrating the effects of Hellenistic theories that history should be instructive 2 Eellenistic in- (h and inspire men to defend the state. fluences are also evident in the scope of the work and particularly in Cato's emphasis on the Greek origins of Rome and the Italian cities.27 Cato's purposes in writing his history were probably didactic. Plutarch said that he wrote his history to in- 29 struct his first son in ancient Roman traditions. In his dislike for the excess've reliance on Greek culture, Cato probably also saw the desirability of a Roman history written in Latin for Romans and Italians. Earlier his- tories, written in Greek to explain Rome to the Hellenistic East, were no longer satisfactory. Cato's message was addressed to his countrymen: "They had nothing to be R . .. , w . 2"Aulus Gellius ll. 8. 6. "won lubet scribere quod in tabula apud pontificem maximum est, quotiens annona cara, quotiens lunae aut solis lumine caligo aut quid obstiterit." 6 - -~- -~o o o .. 0-5 2‘Livy: fllS historical Aims and LGthOdS (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1963), p. 29. 27See 3. Badian, "The Early Historians," Latin historians, ed. T. A. Dorey (New York: Basic Books, Inc., Publishers, 1966), pp. 7-11. For the collection of fragments, see F. Peter, Historicorum Romanorum Reliquae (2d ed.: Leipzig: Teubner, 1906), Vol.1. See also w. 5. Teuffel, Eistory of Roman Literature, revised and enlarged by L. Schwabe, trans. G. C. a. Warr from the 5th German edition (London: George Bell and Sons, 1891), pp. 172-78; and J. Wight Duff, A Literary History of Rome: From the Origins to the Close of the Golden age, ed. A. h. puff (3d ed.; Kew York: barnes & Noble, 1960), pp. 193-94. 28Cat. Mai. 20. 5. 107 ashamed of, no need for a cultural inferiority complex, such as many of them were showing, much to his chagrin: modern Greece was not worth imitating.“29 In the later books, Cato found another use for his history. 3y including his orations in increasing numbers, Cato added a measure of endurance to his political struggles. His history became largely polemic and aoologia. This was the beginning of political biography and ex parte contemporary history, "a tradition that was to find many followers in the next few generations, some of them going back to Cato as a model."30 Foremost among the imitators of Cato was Sallust. He used Cato's vocabulary as well as his vigorous and terse style, and even based some speeches on Catonian models.31 Cato, by daring to write in a Latin that was not yet a literary tongue, began the tradition of Latin history.32 Latin would develop so rapidly that Cato could be praised by Polybius for his remark about the attempt of Aulus Postumius Albinus to write a formal history in Greek. In the preface of his book, he attempted to excuse himself for his inability to handle the Greek idiom more adequately. 29Badian, Latin Historians, p. 9. 3OIbid. 31Ronald Syme, Sallust (”Sather Classical Lectures," ‘Vol. XXXIII; Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 1964), pp. 168, 262, 267-68. 32For a brief discussion of Cato's style and his contribution to literary Latin, see Badian, Latin Historians, pp. 10-11: and A. I. Duff, "The Beginnings of Latin Literature,“ Cambridge Ancient History (New York: Macmillan, 1930), JIII, 420. 108 Cato scornfully declared that Albinus had no right to ask for tolerance, since no one had forced him to write in Greek.33 Polybius attributed the fact that Greek had be— come offensive to the elder and most respected men in Rome to Albinus' immoderate pursuit of Greek.34 Lore probably, the success of Cato's history was the cause of the decline of Greek prose: for no Roman would write a serious work in Greek again_until harcus Aurelius. Cato truly deserved to be called the father of Latin history. The third major work of Cato, the De Agri Cultura, is the only one to survive in other than fragmentary form. It appears to be a sort of farmer's notebook and consists of a number of loosely connected passages giving a multi- tude of directions for purchasing and running a farm. It is based on Cato's own experience as a farmer. The work does not appear to be as well-written as Cato‘s lost works: and because it lacks any systematic arrangement, it “can hardly pass as literature."35 The manuscript text of the De Agri Cultura has been preserved in a very imperfect form. The text is full of additions and repetitions, and the Latin has been modernized.33 The work is less significant for its content than 33Polybius xxix. 12. 34Ibid. 35H. D. Hooper, fiarcus Porcius Cato: On AgricultureL Ifarcus Terentius Farro: On Agriculture, revised by d. 3. Ash ("Loeb Classical Library;” Cambridge, Nass.: Harvard University Press, 1960), p. xiii. 109 for its very existence, since it is the earliest surviving work of Latin prose and thus offers a unique viev of early Italian farm life. Cato's advice soon became inadequate because changing farm conditions made the work obsolete, but it formed the basis for the more systematized works of Varro and Columella.37 37Duff, Literary History of Rome, PP. 250-51: and Literary History of Rome in the Silver Age, p. 163. C I-ICLUSIOI? harcus Porcius Cato's life spanned three generations. He reached manhood during the bitter struggle of the Hannibalic War. fie held political office during the period when Rome was slowly becoming entangled in Kellenistic politics. In his later life he urged Rome into a war which made her the virtual mistress of the western kediterranean basin. During a period when Roman foreign policy seemed to be dictating her future, Marcus Porcius Cato was primarily interested in grappling with the vast internal problems which beset :ome. In an age which paid little heed to his warnings, Cato fought the intrusion of Greek culture and accompanying vice into Rome. Perhaps his solutions could not have produced the reforms which he desired, but he correctly assessed the breakdown of Roman values which most Romans refused to recognize. In later generations, many would hold harcus Cato as the ideal Roman of the Republic. Cicero would idealize him in the De Senectute, Livy would proclaim his excellence, Fronto and Marcus Aurelius would discuss his orations. But the philoSOphy of life he represented could ‘not be recalled. 3232 Rome could have chosen to solve -the dangers to the Republic, the warnings of harcus 110 __ 111 Porcius Cato went unheeded. With him died part of the traditional heritage of the Roman Republic. BIBLIOGRAPHICAL ESSAY In reconstructing the life of Marcus Porcius Cato, I have found that the most useful ancient writings might be put into three categories. The first of these were the biographies of Cato: Plutarch Cato Maior, Kepos gagg, and Cicero Cato Maior de Senectute. Cicero's work was not a biography of Cato but a philoSOphical work on old age: however, Cicero did use a considerable amount of bio- graphical material which I made use of in the study of Cato's life. All of these were based on earlier biog- raphies (to a large extent the same one) now lost and were written over a century after Cato's death. Both Nepos' and Cicero's works were rather brief and were consulted primarily in checking Plutarch and other sources, but each contained important information not found else- where. I found that Plutarch's life of Cato had several defects including his lack of understanding of Roman politics, his failure to provide an adequate dating system, and his tendency to portray character traits as static. Iaowever, without Plutarch's biography, any account of Cato twould be extremely barren. Nuch of what we know about Cato's personal life, his character, and his family can be :found only in the pages of Plutarch. The historical accounts made up the second category 112 113 of ancient sources. Of these, the three most useful historians were Polybius, Appian, and Livy. Polybius was the one author who was a contemporary of Cato and was, thus, a primary source. Unfortunately; the parts of Polybius which would have dealt with Cato are extant only in frag- mentary form. Therefore, we lack any long account of Cato's activities in Polybius. Appian based at least part of his history on Polybius and included information about several periods of Cato's life, especially the Third Punic War. The most valuable ancient author was Livy, who covered Cato's career in some detail and used Cato himself as an ultimate source for at least some of his account. Livy's chief fault was his attempt to minimize several of the disputes in which Cato was involved. Nevertheless, Livy provided the most accurate and complete account of Cato's political career through 167, after which only the summaries of Livy's history are extant. The third category of ancient sources consisted of those writers who included various passages from Cato's speeches and other writings in their own works. By far the most valuable author in this category was Aulus Gellius, whose Attic Nights contained numerous fragments from Cato's works. In addition, Marcus Cornelius Fronto included several passages from Cato in his letters. For the many fragments of Cato's Speeches found in other authors, many of whom were difficult to obtain individually, I found Henrica Malcovati, Oratorum Romanorum Fragmenta, invaluable. 114 H. Peter, Historicorum Romanorum Religuae, was likewise useful for the collection of the fragments of the Origines. In general, the most useful modern work in the preparation of this paper was H. H. Scullard,Roman Politics, which explored the relations of the various political parties and families of Rome in the first half of the second century B. C. (This book offered the basis for the dis- cussion of Cato's political career and his relation to the powerful families. 1 P. G. Walsh, Liyy: His Historical Aims and Methods, was useful in helping to determine the limitations of Livy's account of Cato, as were R. E. Smith's articles in The Classical Cuarterly (1940), for Plutarch's biography. Various books and articles were helpful in the preparation of specific parts of Cato's career. E. Badian, Foreign Clientelae, and C. H. V. Sutherland, Romans in Spain, were consulted in establishing the background of Roman control in Spain and the importance of Cato's political and military achievements in that province. E. Badian, "Rome and Antiochus the Great," aided me in the preparation of the background of the Syrian War of 192. F. E. Adcock, "Delenda Est Carthago," and A. E. Astin, Scipio Aemilianus, were instrumental in determining Cato's role in the tangled crisis preceding the Third Carthaginian war. Finally, E. Badian's chapter "Early Historians," in Roman Historians, edited by T. A. Dorey, provided the basis for the discussion of Cato's Origines. 115 Other ancient and modern works were useful in more specific areas or to a more limited extent, as is evident from their use in the text. A more complete bibliography of all works consulted and cited in the text follows. BIBLIOGRAPHY Ancient Authors The texts consulted for each author are listed first, with the translations (if any) that were used in the text immediately following. Appian. Historia Romana. Edited by P. Viereck and A. G. Roos. 2 vols. Leipzig: B. G. Teubner, 1962. . Appian's Roman History. Translated by Horace White. 4 vols. (Loeb Classical Library.) Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1964. Aurelius Victor, Sextus. Liber de Caesaribus: Praecedunt Origo Gentis Romanae, et Liber de Viris Illustribus Urbis Romae, Subsequentur Epitome de Caesaribus. Edited by R. Gruendel. Leipzig: B. G. Teubner, 1966. 'Cato, Marcus Porcius. De Agri Cultura. Edited by A. Mazzarino. Leipzig: B. G. Teubner, 1962. , and Varro, Marcus Terentius. Marcus Porcius Cato: On Agriculturey_karcus Terentius Varro: On Agriculture. Translated by William Davis HOOper and revised by Harrison Boyd Ash. (Loeb Classical Library.) Cambridge, hass.: Harvard University Press, 1960. Cicero, Marcus Tullius. Cato NaiorL_Laelius, De Gloria. Edited by K. Simbeck and O. Plasberg. (M. Tulli Ciceronis Scripta Quae Manserunt Omnia, Fasc. 47.) Stuttgart: B. G. Teubner, 1967. . De Re Publica. Edited by K. Ziegler. (M. Tulli Ciceronis Scripta Quae Manserunt Omnia, Fasc. 39.) Leipzig: B. G. Teubner, 1958. . Rhetorica. Edited by A. S. Wilkins. 2 vols. (Oxford Classical Texts.) Oxford: Oxford Univer- sity Press, 1955. 116 117 . Tusculanae Disputationes. Edited by M. Pohlenz. (M. Tulli Ciceronis Scripta Quae Lanserunt Omnia, Fasc. 44.) Stuttgart: B. G. Teubner, 1967. . Brutus, Orator. Translated by d. M. Bubbell. (Loeb Classical Library.) Cambridge, hass.: Harvard University Press, 1939. . De Re Publica, De Legibus. Translated by C. W. Reyes. (Loeb Classical Library.) London: Heinemann, 1928. . De SenectuteL De Amicitia, De Divinatione. Translated by William A. Falconer. —(Loeb Classical Library.) Cambridge, Nass.: Earvard University Press, 1959. . Tusculan Disoutations. Translated by J. E. King. (Loeb Classical Library.) London: Heinemann, 1927. Corpps Inscriptionum Latinarum. Edited by Theodor Nommsen. Vol. I. Berlin: George Reimer, 1893. Dionysius of Halicarnassus. The Roman Antiquities of Dio- nysius of Halicarnassus. Translated by Earnest Cary. 7vols. (Loeb Classical Library.) Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1939. Frontinus. The Strategems and the Aqueducts of Rome. Translated by Charles E. Bennet. (Loeb Classical Library.) London: Heinemann, 1925. Pronto, Marcus Cornelius. The CorreSpondence of harcus Cornelius Pronto with Marcus Aurelius Antoninusy Lucius Verus, Antoninus Pius! and Various Friends. Translated by C. R. haines. 2 vols. (Loeb Classical Library.) London: Heinemann, 1919-20. Gellius, Aulus. The Attic Nights of Aulus Gellius. Translated by John C. Rolfe. 3 vols. (Loeb Clas— sical Library.) London: Heinemann, 1927. Historicorum Romanorum Religuae. Edited by H. Peter. Vol. I. 2d ed. Leipzig: Teubner, 1906. Jerome. Select Letters of St. Jerome. Translated by F. A. Wright. (Loeb Classical Library.) London: Heinemann, 1933. Livius, Titus. Livy. Translated by B. 0. Foster, et a1. 14 vols. (Loeb Classical Library.) Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1960-67. 118 Nepos, Cornelius, and Florus, Lucius Annaeus. Lucius Annaeus Florus: Epitome of Roman Eistoryl Cornelius Kgpos. Florus translated by E. S. Forster, and Nepos translated by John C. Rolfe. (Loeb Classical Library.) London: Heinemann, 1929. Oratorum Romanorum Fragmenta Liberae Rei Publicae: Iteratis Curis Recensuit Collegit. Edited by henrica Malcovati. 2d ed. Turin: Paravia, 1955. Plinius Secundus, Gaius. Pliny: Natural History. Edited and translated by H. Rackham. 10 vols. (Loeb Classical Library.) Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1940. Plutarch, Vitae Parallelae. Edited by K. Ziegler. 3 vols. 3rd ed. Leipzig: B. G. Teubner, 1960. . Plutarch's Lives. Translated by Bernadotte Perrin. '11 vols. (Loeb Classical Library.) Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1959. Polybius, Historiae. Edited by T. Buettner-Wobst. 5 vols. Stuttgart: B. G. Teubner, 1963-65. . The Histories of Polybius. Translated by Evelyn S. Shuckburgh with a new introduction by F. W. Walbank. 2 vols. Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press, 1962. Remains of Old Latin. Edited and translated by E. H. Harmington. Vol. I: Ennius and Caecilius. (Loeb Classical Library.) Cambridge, hass.: Harvard University Press, 1961. Valerius Maximus, et a1. Valerius Maximus: De Dictis Pactisgue Memorabilibusl et Jul. Obseduens: De Prodigiis,cum Sppplementis Conradi Lycosthenis. Edited by C. B. Ease. 3 vols. Paris: Nicolaus Eligius Lemaire, 1882. Modern Works Books Altheim, Franz. A Jistory of Roman Religion. Translated by H. Mattingly. London: Methuen & Co., 1938. Astin, A. E. Scipio Aemilianus. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1967. Badian, E. Foreign Clientelae: 264—70 3. C. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1958. 119 Cook, S. A., et al. (eds.) The Cambridge Ancient History. Vols. VII, VIII. New York: Macmillan, 1928—30. D'Alton, J. F. Roman Literary Theory and Criticism: _§ Study in Tendencies. New York: Russell & Russell, Inc., 1962 (first Published in 1931). Dorey, T. A. (ed.) Latin Historians. New York: Basic Books, Inc., Publishers, 1966. Duff, J. Wight. A Literary Histogy of Rome: From the Origins to the Close of the Golden Age. Edited by A. M. Duff. 3rd ed., 23 impression. New York: Barnes & Noble, 1960. . A Literary History of Rome in the Silver Age: From Tiberius to Hadrian. Edited by A. M. Duff. d ed. New York: Barnes & Noble, 1960. Frank, Tenny. Roman Imgerialism. New York: Macmillan, 1921. . Rome and Italy of the Republic. Vol. I of An Economic Survey of Ancient Rome. Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1933. ' Hill, H. The Roman Middle Class in the Regublican Period. Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 1952. Scullard, H. H. Roman Politics: 220-150 B.C. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1951. . A History of the Roman World: From 753 to 146 H. C. 3rd ed., rev. London: Nethuen & Co., 1964. Sutherland, C. H. V. The Romans in Soain. London: Methuen & Co., 1939. Syme, Ronald. The Roman Revolution. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1939. . Sallust. (Sather Classical Lectures, Vol. YXXIIL) Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1964. Taylor, Lily R. Party Politics in the Age of Caesar. (Sather Classical Lectures, Vol. HAII.) Berkeley and Los Angeles, 1949. Teuffel, W. 8. History of Roman Literature. Revised and enlarged by L. Schwabe. Translated by G. C. W. Warr from the 5th German edition. 2 vols. London: George Bell and Sons, 1891. 1.;‘. .. T to 4;». math... .554 His uti... 120 Walsh, P. G. Livy: His Historical Aims and Nethods. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1963. Periodicals Abbott, Frank. “The Colonizing Policy of the Romans from 123 to 31 3. C.," Classical Philology, K (1915), 365-80. Adcock, F. E. “'Delenda Est Carthago,'“ The Cambridge Historical Journal, VIII (1946), 117-28. Badian, E. "Rome and Antiochus the Great: A Study in Cold War,“ Classical Philology, LIV (1959), 81-99. Frank, Tenny. “The Bacchian Cult of 186 B. C.," The Classical Quarterly, XXI (1927), 128-32. Little, Charles E. "The Authenticity and Form of Cato's Saying 'Carthago Delenda Est,'“ Classical Journal, XXIX (1934), 429-35. McDonald, A. H. ”Rome and the Italian Confederation (200-186 B. C.),“ Journal of Roman Studies, xxxIv (1944), 11-33. . “Scipio Africanus and Roman Politics in the Second Century B. C.," Journal of Roman Studies, XXVIII (1938), 153-64. Salmon, E. T._ ”Roman Colonisation from the Second Punic war to the Gracchi,” Journal of Roman Studies, XXVI (1936), 47-67. Smith, R. E. “Cato Censorius," Greece and Rome, IX, No. 27 (May, 1940), 150—65. "The Cato Censorius of Plutarch," The Classical Qggggggly, XXKIV (1940), 105-112. . “Plutarch's Biographical Sources in Roman Lives," The Classical Quarterly, XXXIV (1940), 1-10. Wamrrdqufilla IgQIEh‘rE OJ . I U mlflfllflifllfl (1111:: M 1m: 111111;"! I!“ 6682473