As Year III opens, we see a Republic that has managed
to gain credibility as a major power in the lands of the Middle Sea, mainly by
two consecutive victories of Carthage, thanks to the naval campaign of
the late Admiral Marcus Claudius Marcellus of NOTA BENE and the land campaign of Quintus Fabius Maximus
Verrucosus Cunctator of CORONUS.
The latter campaign extended Rome’s territory to include the islands of
Sicily, Sardinia, and Corsica.
All is not well, however, for Cunctator’s success
against Carthage required Rome to allow Philip V of Macedonia a
free hand. Still, Rome has 12 Legions,
including one Veteran, and 10 Fleets.
The treasury stands at 35.
Censor Papirius, Faction Leader of AENEAN,
suffers a stroke and dies at home. His
son takes over his role.
The Treasury has 71 talents of gold after tax
collection, which would have been higher if not for the rampaging Macedonians.
Philip’s agents, active for some time
in Illyria, have managed to stir up enough resentment there against Rome
that a guerrilla war breaks out, the effect of which disrupts the steady supply
of grain to Rome. For now, however,
there is no open war.
The gens Junius joins BACCHANALIA. There’s no proof, but it’s also no secret
that Rome Consul Plautius offered Junius a considerable financial
incentive. But perhaps to deflect
criticism, Plautius also uses his monetary resources to host Rome’s
first ever games, a small Slice & Dice event that gives the People some fun
and diversion as well as enriches the popularity of Plautius with them.
Given the size of the Macedonian Army and the
stature of their leader, Philip V, the last thing Rome needs is exactly
what Rome gets: a manpower
shortage. On top of that, the crop
report is in, and it’s bad – there won’t be the expected amount of grain this
year, and the People aren’t happy about it.
And the news just gets worse: Philip V has allied with certain
kingdoms to the east who have pledged troops and mercenaries to the Macedonian
cause which will nearly double the size of his army next year.
Rome Consul Plautius’ State of the Republic
address the challenges of the rampaging Macedonians, the Illyrian
guerrillas, and the drought. On the
plus side, Plautius is one of the most popular Senators in Rome, thanks
to his games sponsorship. The net
result is that the People are just as unhappy after his speech as they were
before it. [Unrest: 4]
And that’s not too bad.
Plautius opens the Senate. He declares the times “bleak”, citing the
new Macedonian mobilization and the current manpower shortage, which
Rome must offset with “superior
military prowess.” He therefore
declares that Lucius Aemilius Paullus of AENEAN will be one nominee for
Consul. For the other, he taps Terentius
of NOTA BENE, whom he declares “humble but loveable”.
Remember how Plautius
succeeded in getting unanimous approval of all his proposals last year, even
the one which gratuitously awarded a concession to himself? Well, the trend continues, as Plautius’
nominees win the election 47-0! Paullus
becomes Field Consul and Terentius Rome Consul.
Terentius wastes no time in taking control to put
forth the Censor candidate. He says he
would like to award Cunctator for his valiant service to Rome, but
worries that Cunctator may be needed again on the battlefield and thus
Rome cannot allow his influence to become too high. He therefore proposes the former Rome Consul, Plautius of
BACCHANALIA.
Well, now that Plautius
if no longer Rome Consul, Senators seem to wake up and realize that they are
not required to vote unanimously, and thus Plautius wins 33-0,
with 14 abstentions from ALBA and CORONUS.
And for the first
time in Rome’s history, the Censor declines to relinquish the floor and
announces a prosecution! Plautius
claims to have information indicating “discontent among the legions” arising
out of an incident from Cunctator’s Punic campaign.
Plautius explains: "While on a tour of the rear areas of the army, Cunctator
came across a young legionary who was sobbing uncontrollably. When Cunctator asked the leeches the
nature of his illness, they said the man was the sole survivor of his cohort,
and had become unbalanced over the death of his comrades in arms. Cunctator was then seen to strike
this man, and demand that he return to the front lines of the battle. Indeed several of Cunctator's
personal guards were seen dragging this reluctant legionary towards the heated
battle.”
Shocking stuff,
and while the Senate is held spellbound and speechless, Plautius further
asserts that this incident is what caused the current manpower shortage. He calls upon Cunctator to apologize
for his actions. And he calls upon Acilius
of IONIC to serve as prosecutor.
So damning is Plautius’
oration (and perhaps so great is Plautius’ aura, which served him well as
Consul and now seems to serve his just as well as Censor) that most Senators
are already calling for Cunctator’s head and Acilius greatly busies himself
with his case preparations.
Amid the furor, Quintus
Fabius Maximus Verrucosus Cunctator of CORONUS, Imperator Carthago, up
until now silent and stoic, rises to his full height and projects such an aura
of command and dignity that Senators fall silent and sit down one after the
other, their eyes fixed on him.
And the great
general speaks.
"Senators!”
he booms. He allows the echoes and
reverberations to subside before he continues.
No one even moves.
"This is an
outrage and a grievous assault on my dignitas and that of the entire Fabian
gens and Patricians as a whole! I know
not which insult is worst, the flimsy accusation or the leap to conclusions by
several factions before I can even defend myself.”
No one
speaks. All attention is in on Cunctator,
and already some Senators are gulping nervously. Cunctator continues.
"I will
freely admit that the bare facts described are true. I came across a legionary, weeping and gnashing his teeth over
fallen comrades, not far from the still undecided broil. His wounds were superficial and mostly on
his back, so did the leeches assure me.
Most any other Commander would have had him executed immediately.
“I recognized him
as one of Plautius' distant kin and one who was rumored to be a
‘girly-man’”, continues Cunctator with a sneer. “Such a man wasn't likely to sire strong
sons for Rome, nor bring honor to his family should he slink away from his
duty. Yes, I struck him. And sent him back into the fray. To die avenging his comrades, or to emerge a
hero.
"I don't know
if he survived, but judging from this prosecution, he didn't.
"Few other
Roman commanders would have given him a chance to redeem himself. Most would have had him executed on the
spot. And I'm brought to trial for
giving a man a chance to preserve his and his family's dignitas?”
You can feel the
resolve of the Senate slipping – it’s in the very air. But Cunctator is not finished.
"That this
incident is responsible for the lack of recruits is absurd. Lack of State funds has been the primary
drag heretofore, but if the Senate would widen the recruitment pool to the head
count, the shortage will be immediately abated.”
Cunctator pauses and turns toward Censor Plautius
and Prosecutor Acilius, both of whom seem to grow smaller under that
baleful gaze.
"If the
Censor or his lackey prosecutor would like to meet me in the Coliseum for a
'trial by arms', I'll be there at noon tomorrow."
And he sits.
And when the
tension breaks, Senators practically fall over themselves to make sure that
their vote is ABSOLVO. But all of this
proves unnecessary as Prosecutor Acilius, fresh from a closed-door session
with his faction mate, Calpurnius Pontifex Maximus, declares his
resignation as Prosecutor.
Thus ends the
“prosecution” of one Quintus Fabius Verrucosus Maximus Cunctator of CORONUS.
When next the
Senate meets, Rome Consul Terentius of NOTA BENE is fully in charge,
which, given the events of the previous session, seems quite fine to most
members. Terentius announces his
nominations for the open Governorships:
Papirius of AENEAN to Sardinia-Corsica and Quinctius of
CORONUS to Sicily.
And this proposal
carries 47-0.
Nodding with
satisfaction at the way things are going, the Rome Consul now proposes the
Egyptian Grain Concession to Cornelius of AENEAN.
This one passes
31-0, with 12 abstentions from ALBA and BACCHANALIA. Cornelius
is deeply gratified and hails the vote as “proof that this Senate is united for
the success of Rome.”
(Or the success of
Cornelius’ pocketbook. Senators
sometimes get confused about this. You
understand. Don’t you? Of course you do!)
The Senate now
gets down to the business of war. Terentius
first proposes that Rome recruit three Legions. This is fewer than Rome would like to recruit, but given the
manpower shortage and the funds shortage, three is all Rome can manage this
year.
This passes 43-0,
and Calpurnius Pontifex Maximus of IONIC pockets six talents for his
very, very hard work – all for the good of the Republic, you understand (of
course you do!) – as Administrator of Legionary Recruitment.
The final proposal
of the year is no surprise: give Field
Consul Lucius Aemilius Paullus of AENEAN command of the entire military
machine – 15 Legions (one of which is Veteran) and 10 Fleets and send him
against Philip V’s Macedonians.
While the Senate
votes, Calpurnius blesses the war plan and bestows a Priesthood upon the
Field Consul.
And the vote is
in: 47-0.
And Paullus
departs.
And the Senate
adjourns.
And that brings us
to …
The 1st
Macedonian Campaign
Field Consul Lucius
Aemilius Paullus of AENEAN knew that he had to bring home nothing less than
a victory – there was simply too much at stake for the Roman Republic. If Paullus failed, he knew well that Philip’s
army would be twice as strong next year.
Given more years to build up the veteran cadre, Rome could eventually
match Philip’s military might – but Rome didn’t have a few years. She only had these 15 Legions, only one of
which was Veteran. True, the Army had
seen action last year against Carthage, but this was a new foe, and Philip
was better than Hamilcar. But Macedonia
wasn’t the only enemy – there were the Illyrian guerillas who might at
any time rise up in open war; there was the rumor of Gallic unrest to
the immediate north, the rumor of Syrians mobilizing in the far east,
and worst of all Carthage, bloodied but far from beaten. Thank the gods that they were still mobilizing
and not yet marching!
There was simply
no time for stalemates or standoffs, and definitely no time for defeats or
disasters. Quite simply, Paullus
knew that if he failed to achieve victory, the very survival of Rome would be
in doubt. To be sure, Rome would not be
“beaten” and would certainly hold out for a while, perhaps even a long while
– but once Philip joined with Carthage and Rome’s other enemies …
no, a victory it must be – nothing else would do.
There was, of course,
one other asset that Rome’s Army enjoyed – Paullus himself, an
accomplished General who now faced his greatest test. His Army was just not big enough or experienced enough, he knew – not enough to ensure victory. So Paullus set about to work with what
he had, putting the recruits and veterans alike through a rigorous training and
drill program, the likes of which they’d never before seen, and which caused
them to curse their General by all the gods they knew and even to create new
ones just for the purpose of bad-mouthing their leader.
But it all paid
off, for by the time the Romans took the field, Paullus knew they were
as ready as they’d ever be. Even so, it
was only by personally leading from the front time and time again, inspiring as
well as intimidating his men with his very presence, that Paullus was
able to hold things together.
And the gods
indeed smiled upon Rome, for against the odds, Paullus indeed got the
victory, but not without grave cost.
Rome is down two legions by the end of the campaign, but the worst loss
if that of Lucius Aemilius Paullus himself, who falls in the hour of his
glory. The Senate posthumously cognomes
him “Macedonicus”.
Macedonicus was the Faction Leader, so the eldest Aemilius
now assumes leadership of AENEAN.
Aemilius wryly wonders if he’s “very unlucky” for losing two
influential members of his faction within two years or “very lucky” because
they were both Faction Leaders, which allowed the gens to maintain its
senatorial seat. He wryly comments
that, should this trend continue, AENEAN “will be the best guarantor of
Roman security without the danger of growing too much in power.”
In a dramatic
economic move, Calpurnius Pontifex Maximus of IONIC gains control over
two Tax Farmer districts and the coveted Sicilian Grain Concession. All of that, combined his control over
Legion Recruitment, makes him the single richest Senator in Rome and secures
his Faction’s place as the preeminent economic power in the Republic.
Thus ends Year III
of SPQR IV.