The civil war between the Second Triumvirate and the Republicans After the coup that Octavian was elected consul by comitia 19 August 43 BC. AD , and the conclusion of the second triumvirate November 27, 1943 BC. AD with Lepidus and Marc Antony, hopes the Senate to keep the Republic based on the murderers of Caesar , Brutus and Cassius, who fled to East in 44 BC. AD Autumn 43, Cassius, who has been leading the legions of Syria and Egypt , and defeated the Caesarian Dolabella at Laodicea, is the junction with Brutus to Smyrna. Both then decided the war against the triumvirate.
Movements of armies before the battle
- Brutus and Cassius crossed the straits with a large army of 19 legions, accompanied by a large cavalry.
- Antony and Octavian crossed the Adriatic and then Greece with 28 of their 43 legions. They loose an army of 8 they send legions under the command of L. Decidius Saxa and C. Norbanus Flaccus to meet the Republicans. The army crosses the entire Macedonia go to interdict two parades in Thrace : Decidius occupies one of Korpiles Norbanus and that of Sapens.
- Brutus and Cassius are warned of the presence of Norbanus Sapens parades of the Thracian prince Rhaskuporis their ally. They go around the obstacle by a stratagem: they send their fleet, led by Cimber Tillius, with a legion around Cape Serrheion and along the coast to pretend they do not need the land route. Indeed, Norbanus, impressed by the show of force, Decidius ordered to retreat, which releases the parade Korpiles for Republicans.
Movements of armies before the battle of Philippi (based Collart 1937, pl. XXVIII)
- The 8 legions Norbanus Decidius and hold together the parade Sapens in the region of Abdera. The Thracian prince Rhaskuporis then shows Republicans how to circumvent the position by the North, the price of four days of walking in difficult mountain paths of Symbolon. Brutus and Cassius arrive well in the plains of Philippi. Warned by Rhaskos their position was again turned, and Decidius Norbanus fold by the coast road to Amphipolis.
- Brutus and Cassius each set up camp in the plain west of Philippi, the first on the slopes in the northwest of the city, the second on a small hill in the Southwest.
The forces
The plains of Philippi, where the first battle took place viewed from the Acropolis where Cassius witnessed the rout of his forces and where he committed suicide
- On the Republican side, according to Appian ( Bellum Civile, IV, 88 ) Brutus has 8 legions and 6000 cavalry; Cassius of 11 legions and 6000 cavalry also. Brutus had 4000 riders and Gaul and Lusitania , 3000 in Thrace and Illyria 2000 and Parthians and Thessaly. The cavalry of Cassius in turn is divided into 2 000 Spaniards and Gauls, 4000 archers mounted Arabs , Medes and Parthians. Allied princes Galatians and Asian bring them reinforcements of infantry and especially cavalry additional 8000, including 3000 from the Thracian prince Rhaskuporis. Total Republican forces is approximately 80 000 men were some legions under-staffed.
- In the camp of the triumvirate, 28 of 43 legions at their disposal in all are involved in this campaign, but 8 have been detached, so that Octavius and Antony did have 20 at Philippi. Unlike the Republican legions, they are at their maximum enrollment. Rhaskos, Thracian prince's brother had Rhaskuporis contributed 5,000 riders also triumvirate.
The First Battle of Philippi (first week of October 1942 BC.)
Fig. 2. First Battle of Philippi (see legend in the text by Collart, 1937, pl. XXIX
- Anthony tries to get back the protections of the marshes to the Republicans taking advantage of the coverage it offers its troops, he quietly built a road that bypasses the South by the positions of Cassius, and after 10 days of this work sends some troops establish redoubts in southeastern thereof (Fig. 2.1).
- Cassius surprises and response operation by building a dyke in the marsh perpendicular to that of Antony, the cutting off of his outpost. (Fig. 2.2)
- Antoine then launched a frontal attack on positions of general Cassius: he seized his camp that his soldiers began to loot (Fig. 2.3).
- Simultaneously, the legions of Brutus attacked north towards the camp of Octavian, upset his legions, and in turn seized the enemy's camp they ransacked. Octavian himself should miraculously her hello - that's what he relates in his memoirs - as a premonitory dream that did leave the camp (Fig. 2.4).
- Driven out of its fortifications, Cassius prefers to take refuge on the Acropolis of Philippi nearby in order to receive an overview of the battlefield. But dust mask his attack against Octavian Brutus, and leaves him to see the rout of his own troops. Considering the situation lost, and despite perhaps messengers announcing the victory of Brutus, he asks his freedman to kill Pindarus (Fig. 2.5).
- The battle ends when each army withdraws to its original positions, taking the spoils in the opposite camp. Losses were heavy on both sides: Cassius and Brutus have lost 8,000 men and 16,000 Octavian and Antony (from Messala Corvinus, a commander of Brutus, quoted by Plutarch , Brutus, 45). These high numbers (and all figures as doubtful of loss of ancient battles) are evidence of the violence of fighting this battle indecisive.
- Brutus, Cassius was buried secretly in Thasos to try to limit the impact of this on the republican army.
The Second Battle of Philippi (October 23, 1942 BC.)
Fig. 3. Second Battle of Philippi (see legend in the text, according Collart 1937, pl. XXIX)
- The day of the first battle of Philippi took place a naval engagement in the Ionian Sea: the fleet and Republican Murcus Ahenobarbus destroyed two legions that reinforcements would bring to Domitius Calvinus Octave. This setback forced the triumvirate to keep the initiative and forcing Republicans to fight for their logistical situation remains very poor. Brutus on his side held the previous positions of Cassius and again wishes to weaken his opponents temporize.
- Antoine tries again to get around the southern flank by the Republicans, but by making available the bulk of its forces (Fig. 3.1). He occupied the hill with 4 legions secondary between the camp of Cassius and the marsh, that Brutus failed to reoccupy. Then from this position, he sent 10 legions establish another camp 5 stages further east along the marsh, and again 2 more legions to build a third camp, 4 stages to the east of the second.
- Brutus responds by building a series of redoubts to meet these new deployments (Fig. 3.2). The front line changes direction completely and become east-west rather than north-south. It extends dangerously in the direction of Philippi Brutus and threatens to cut his line of communications with the sea triumvirate are on their side bet to occupy a delicate position, along the marshes, which leaves them no or little possibility of retirement if they are defeated.
- The second battle of Philippi was finally committed to 15h October 23, three weeks after the first, when Brutus gives his officers who urged him to start the fight. According to Appian, these are the soldiers of Octavian who make this decision once and seized positions fortification of Brutus. The defeat turned quickly to rout the Republicans fleeing towards the sea and mountains.
- Brutus retreated to the heights (Fig. 2.3), where he expects to continue fighting and resume his camp invested by Octavian. But he must resign himself abandoned by his men, he chose to commit suicide in turn rather than being taken prisoner. Antoine burned her corpse on a pyre and the ashes sent to his mother, Servilia Caepio. According to Suetonius , on the contrary, Octave cut off his head to make it at the feet of the statue of Caesar in Rome. Among the fugitives, the Latin poet Horace is not the last, which he had tied his fate to that of Brutus.
- The remaining Republican troops surrendered and put the orders of the triumvirate. There are no estimates on the losses suffered by both sides in this second battle.
The consequences of the victory of the triumvirate
- Octavian and Antony lay off some of their troops on the battlefield, and founded a Roman colony on the site of the Greek city of Philippi, Colonia Victrix Iulia philippensis, dedicated to the victory they have won. They probably raise a memorial on the battlefield, which we found no trace. But it is remarkable that at the point where the Via Egnatia passed the levee Cassius, is building a monumental arch which marks, according to the interpretations or the pomrium of the colony, is the necropolis, including the soldiers fallen in battle.
- The triumvirate proceed to a division of the Roman world: Antoine gets to pacify the east and Narbonne , Lepidus of Africa , and Octavian the West to support him to eliminate Sextus Pompey. The Roman Republic is dead, but the shape of the regime that replaces it remains to be seen: more than a decade of civil war split Philippi to Actium , the birth of the Roman Empire.
Sources
- Appian , Bell. civ. (IV, 105-138) gives a very detailed account of the battle;
- Dio Cassius , Roman History (XLVII, 35-49);
- Plutarch , Parallel Lives See also
Bibliography
- L. Heuzey and H. Daumet, Archaeological Mission of Macedonia, 1876, 97-116 and Plan A (used to illustrate this article): pioneering study to recognize the battlefield and follow Appian step.
- P. Collart, Philippi City of Macedonia from its origins until the end of the Roman era, Paris, 1937, 191-219: it corrects and complete Heuzey-Daumet.
- P. Collart, "Note on troop movements that preceded the battle of Philippi," BCH LIII, 1929, 351-364: the conclusions of this article can be found in Collart 1937, but has the advantage of being available online on CEFAEL.
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