34.17
In the
meantime the praetor, P. Manlius, marched into Turdetania with the army
which he had taken over from his predecessor Q. Minucius and, in addition,
the force which Appius Claudius Nero had commanded in Further Spain.
The Turdetani are considered the least warlike of all the Spanish tribes;
nevertheless, trusting to their numbers, they ventured to oppose the Roman
armies. A cavalry charge threw them at once into disorder; the infantry
encounter was hardly a contest, the seasoned troops, familiar with the tactics
of the enemy, left no doubt as to the issue of the fight. Still, that battle did
not end the war. The Turduli hired a force of 10,000 Celtiberian mercenaries
and prepared to carry on hostilities with foreign arms. While this was going
on, the consul, seriously perturbed by the rising of the Bergistani, and
convinced that all the other tribes would do the same whenever they had the
chance, disarmed the whole of the Spanish population on this side of the
Ebro. This step aroused such bitter feeling that many of them destroyed
themselves, for they were a brave and high-spirited nation, and did not think
life worth living without the possession of arms. On this being reported to
the consul he summoned the senators in all the cities to meet him. "It is not,"
he told them, "more in our interest than in yours that you should abstain
from hostilities; hitherto your wars have always involved more suffering for
the Spaniards than toil and trouble for the Romans. I know of only one way
in which this can be prevented, and that is to put it out of your power to
commence hostilities. I am anxious to attain that result with as little
harshness as possible. You must help me in this matter with your advice. I
shall adopt no plan more gladly than the one which you yourselves suggest."
As they remained silent, he said he would give them a few days for
deliberation. After they had been summoned to a second conference, at
which they still remained silent, he levelled the walls of all their cities in a
single day, and during his advance against those which were still refractory
he received the submission of all the cities in each district into which he
came. The sole exception was Segestica, and this important and wealthy city
he took by storm.
