Fabi biography

In childhood, he was always silent, calm, careful, slow in teaching, so that almost everyone considered him a simpleton and only a few guessed how Plutarch put it, that the clumsy nature of his nature was caused only by its depth and that there was a lot of generous and naive in it. But soon, when political events put forward this person in the field of political activity, it turned out that all the slowness that seemed was only in the lack of unreasonable ardor; What was called fear is nothing but wise caution; The lack of speed and mobility is only the hardness of the will and unshakable stability.

Indeed, calm, caution and unshakable hardness are the most distinctive features of the character of this person; Mixiness and humility have survived in it in later years. He called all good deeds, provided without friendliness, which he took a stone -free bread, but which was not difficult to choke. In his youth, he not only accustomed his body to military service, but also undermined by sciences and especially developed a gift of eloquence.

His speech, according to Plutarch, was free from all rhetorical jewelry and pomp, she testified to the mind, which had a kind of manner and depth, in which, according to many, he had a great resemblance to Fukidid. Fabiy received the consular post for the first time in the city in this rank, he defeated the ligurs. The Romans believed that by the war against Rome they prompted the Ligurs of the Carthaginians, so Fabiy sent a spear and a rod of herald as a symbol of war and peace to Carthage to choose one or another.

But the Carthaginians provided the Romans themselves to solve the case, and this time they preferred the world. In the city of Fabiy, he was a censor, when in the city of Hannibal, he took possession of Sagunta, and many in the Senate demanded to immediately start a war with Carthage, Fabi spoke out against her and proposed sending the embassy to the Carthaginians. His proposal was accepted, and he himself was sent to Carthage at the head of this deputation.

From Carthage, the messengers, according to the order given to them in Rome, went home through Spain and Gaul in order to attract the Spanish tribes devoted to Carthage and to incline the Gannibal passage through their lands. The Spaniards replied to them that let the Romans look for allies where the people still do not know about the disaster of the Sagunt left to their fate.

In Gaul, the Romans, declared by them in the national assembly, answered the mentioned proposal of the mentioned proposal. Gallah seemed to be an absurd idea to involve themselves in the war only in order to turn it away from the Romans. The choice fell on the elderly and known for his caution and nobility of Fabia, who, when he was going on a campaign of this year consuls, advised to avoid the battle and gradually weaken the terrible enemy by the extension of the war.

Since one consul fell, and the other, Serviy, was far from Rome, as a result of which, according to the laws, the dictator could not be appointed only one consul, the people announced Fabia with a spacecraft, and Miniya Rufu by his head of the cavalry Magister Equitum. On the very day when Fabiy took office, he called the Senate and announced that the consul of Flaminius brought a disaster to the state not so much his carelessness and inability or cowardice of his warriors, but by disrespect for the sacred customs and omen of the gods, and that the enemy should not be afraid, but should be taken up for the weapon, to propitiate the gods by the scary victims.

As a result of this, they consulted with the Sivilli books and, according to their prescription, arranged large games in honor of Jupiter, installed one prayer day and one feast for the gods, promised to erect the temple of Venus of Erica and the goddess of muddy and, moreover, a vow, in the event of a happy warfare during the next five years, devote spring to the Jupiter.

This last resolution was made in the national assembly. The Roman people promised to sacrifice to Jupiter all herds, all pigs, sheep, goats, cattle, which are only born next spring in Italy. Having thus reassured the religious doubts and fears of the people and eliminating the fear of the enemy invasion, the dictator at the head of the four newly formed legions and troops brought to him by the consul Servi from Upper Italy moved to Apulia.

He stopped near Hannibal. Regarding Hannibal, Fabi took a wait -and -see position. Without entering an open battle and not giving a friend the opportunity to directly attack him, he constantly kept in the mountains, did not speak out of his camp until the enemy left his own, and was heading further as soon as the enemy army moved, and he constantly kept in such a distance that it was impossible to involve him in the battle, contrary to his desire.

This slowness brought a general condemnation to him.In his own camp, the soldiers murmured and indignant; The enemies, with the exception of only Hannibal himself, recognized him with a cowardly coward. Hannibal guessed the strategic plan of his opponent and used all the cunning and strength to force him to fight, since with this method of warfare his fighting forces seemed useless, and he foresaw that over time he would not be enough compared to those that the Romans possessed.

But no less than Hannibal was dissatisfied with the image of Fabia Miniocations, a person who is perky and belligerent, like flasinius, every day more and more transmitting his own indignation more and more. With his boastful appeals, he instilled in the soldiers a crazy warlike courage and unreasonable hopes to such an extent that they mocked the dictator as a teacher of Hannibal, since he accompanied the Carthaginian commander everywhere, as if the schoolboy's care entrusted to his care.

On the contrary, Miniya considered the army a military leader, whom fate itself chose to save Rome. Minurius mocked the location of the Fabia camp in the mountains, from where, according to him, the army could constantly look at the devastation of Italy; He asked the dictator's friends if the last wanted, desperate to find salvation on earth, leading his army on heaven, whether he was trying to hide behind the clouds and fog in order to escape from the enemy.

When Fabia's friends gave him the words of Minurius and persuaded him to save his honor with an immediate battle, the dictator answered: “Understand that I would be cowardly and cowardly than now I am considered now if, after being ridicule and slander, I changed my rules.” In Rome, the people were also dissatisfied with the slowness of Fabia; He was nicknamed the Kunktator- a mocking proceeding, which later turned into an honorary title.

It was said that he is none other than a school teacher, only training his warriors and does not allow them before the battle. Many have already suspected the dictator of treason, and Hannibal tried to support this suspicion, sparing at the universal devastation of the same area in the campaign the fabi estate there, and even assigned the guard for its protection. The Senate was also outraged by the image of the dictator’s actions, especially because of the contract concluded by him with Hannibal about the prisoners.

Both commanders agreed to exchange prisoners, a person for a person, and if there were more prisoners on the one hand, then pay for a drachm for each extra. It turned out that Hannibal was more for prisoners than Fabia, and the Senate refused to pay the assigned redemption amount for them, making Fabia a reprimand that he, to the detriment of the honor and benefits of the state, again accepted people who were captured due to his own cowardice.

To restrain his word, Fabi sold the same estate in the campaign, which Hannibal spared through his son’s mediation, and bought the aforementioned prisoners with the helped money. Many of these latter wanted to subsequently return Fabia paid for them, but he did not take a dime from any of them. When both troops arrived in Apulia again, the dictator was forced to go to Rome for a short time to commit some sacrifices.

He transferred Minurius command, but forbade him to enter into a battle with the enemy during his absence. However, the dictator did not have time to leave, Minurius attacked the Hannibal camp, precisely at the time when most of the Carthaginian soldiers were sent to extract edible supplies, and he managed to inflict a rather significant defeat to the enemy.

An exaggerated report of Miniocius about this victory served as an occasion to the explosion of indignation against Fabius. The rostrum of methyliya, one of the leaders of the People’s Party and a friend of Minurius, made a speech in the national assembly of glorifying the exploits of this latter and accused Fabia not only of cowardice, but also of treason; He also accused the aristocratic party of that, in order to overthrow the power of the people, from the very beginning she transferred the war to Roman ground, then subjugated the city of the authorities of one person who was not responsible and now gave Hannibal the time to establish itself in Italy.

Fabius did not answer a single word to the accusations of a methylia and only accelerated his sacrifice in order to be able to immediately return to the army and punish a mini -coat for his disobedience. The people were frightened for the fate of their pet, and as soon as Fabius left, methyliy, supported by Terencius Varron, achieved a popular resolution, according to which Minurius received the same power with Fabi and the authority in this new rank to wage war together with the dictator.

Fabius learned about this decree on the way back to the army and calmly suffered an insult; But he did not agree to a break in the main command of the army, which he demanded, he did not agree, but divided the army into two parts, so that each of them commanded two legions standing in two separate camps. Thus, again what exactly they wanted to achieve by the institution of dictatorship, t.Hannibal soon learned about what happened in the Roman army and decided to immediately take advantage of the reckless courage of Minuria.

Between his army and the camp, Minurius was an elevation, which could be taken easily and this was secured by the camp. But Hannibal did not occupy him, but left this item with an apple of discord between both troops. The sole of the mountain was an open plain that did not overgrown with forest, but in places there were minor ditches and other recesses on it.

It was then that Hannibal placed about 5 thousand Mins at night. He wanted to prevent the hill and sent his light infantry against the enemy troops, and then, when Hannibal put more troops against him, and cavalry. After some time, both commander stood with all their troops in battle order against each other. The battle has already begun when suddenly, according to the sign of Hannibal, the detachments that were in ambush jumped out of there and attacked the Romans from the rear.

This sudden attack caused horror and confusion in the Roman ranks, and Minurius himself lost the presence of the spirit. He searched everywhere through the eyes of his main assistants, but not one assisted him. Everyone fled rapidly. The Numidians surrounded the enemy from all sides and killed everyone who only wanted to run away. Standing near Fabi, anticipating such a turn of the matter, held his army ready and, standing in front of his camp, only watched the progress of the battle.

When he saw that the army of his comrade was surrounded from all sides and that his ranks trembled, he struck himself in his chest with a sigh and exclaimed: “That's what I had foreseen! But now this is not the time to argue and indignant! We are obsessed with the victory over the enemy and make our fellow citizens confess their error! But Hannibal stopped the battle and ordered to trumpet the hang up.

The Romans also willingly returned to their camp. It is said that Hannibal jokingly said about Fabia on the way back: “Didn’t I predicted that this cloud hanging there for so long on the mountains will burst into thunder and lightning? It is impossible to make mistakes and mistakes for a person, but a little mistake is made, a brave and skilled person uses it as a lesson for the future.

In the same way, I confess now that, having suffered a small failure, owes her much more significant benefit. What remained hidden for me for so long, I understood at several hours, and now I know that I not only can’t lead others, but I need a leader and should not look for my glory in such a victory where the defeat would be more honorable. From this minute, the dictator will lead you everywhere; I will show you only one more road - the road of gratitude to him and the first implicitly will obey his superiors.

” After that, he led his army to the camp of Fabia and stopped in front of the head of the commander. When Fabius came out of there, Minurius put banners in front of him and loudly greeted him as his father, and the soldiers called his Fabia warriors with their cartridges - the title that the freedom gave the man who released them to freedom. When the silence plunged, Minius said: “Dictator, you won a double victory today: one - thanks to your courage, over Hannibal, the other with your mind and kindness, over his colleagues; You saved one victory, and the other instructed the path of the truth of us, struck by the enemy so shameful, and you are so beautiful to our common good.

I call you a good father, because I have no other more worthy name; In fact, I owe you more than my sons than gratitude. Father gave life only to me, you saved my life and such a lot of my associates. ” With these words, he hugged Fabia, and at the same time the soldiers began to hug and kiss each other. The camp was filled with glee and tears of joy. Fabius did not long after that remained the only commander in chief, he called both consuls of that year: Prince.

Gemin Servilia and the chosen, instead of the fallen flamingin by M. Attilia Regulus, handed them the authorities over the army with a request to remain faithful to his strategic plans, which was fulfilled by them. Of the next consuls, on the contrary, the other, Terentius Varron, the favorite of Cherni, did not stop screaming in the national assembly that the war could not stop until the commanders would be elected from the Fabi House, and that he, Varzn, will break the enemy on the very day when he sees him.

The consequence of his reckless courage was a terrible defeat for Cannes. The firmness and unshakable dignity of the Senate after this unfortunate battle, in the middle of despair and fright, was mainly the work of the old Fabius, who again restored confidence and hope with his intelligent advice and indestructible courage; Rome was owed to him that at the time of the general grief, the old enmity of the parties was eliminated and the Senate decided to leave with a greeting to meet the Battle of Cannes Varron.

In the years, Rome, who followed the battle of Cannes, put the best of his people to his troops as consuls, pronsuls and praetors.In the main thing, he resorted to the assistance of Fabia and Claudius Marcellus - the “shield and sword of Italy”. As a result, the war took a more constant move, and Hannibal gradually lost one advantage after another. Fabius was elected for the third time by the consul in the city at that time he won many cities in the campaign, Samnium, Apulia and Lucania.

The following joke belongs to the campaign of the fourth consular year, which serves as evidence of Dobrashiy and wise meekness of Fabia. It reached his attention that one Marzi warrior in his army, named Statili, famous for his courage and nobility, was circumvented and, as a result, allowed himself sharp antics against the authorities; Fabius called him to him, listened good -naturedly and admitted that he had acted unjustly with him.

With these words, he gave him a combat horse and decorated it with an order, as a result of which this man became forever devoted to him.