Marcus Claudius Marcellus (/mɑːrˈsɛləs/; c. 270 – 208 BC) was a Roman general and politician during the 3rd century BC. Five times elected as consul of the Roman Republic (222, 215, 214, 210, and 208 BC). Marcellus gained the most prestigious award a Roman general could earn, the spolia opima, for killing the Gallic king Viridomarus in single combat in 222 BC at the Battle of Clastidium. Furthermore, he is noted for having conquered the fortified city of Syracuse in a protracted siege during which Archimedes, the famous mathematician, scientist, and inventor, was killed, despite Marcellus ordering the soldiers under his command not to harm him. Marcus Claudius Marcellus died in battle in 208 BC, leaving behind a legacy of military conquests and a reinvigorated Roman legend of the spolia opima.
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👉 Marcus Claudius Marcellus in the context of Clastidium
Clastidium (modern Casteggio), was a village of the Ligurian tribe of Anamares (Marici named also) in Gallia Cispadana, on the Via Postumia, 5 miles east of Iria (modern Voghera) and 31 miles west of Placentia.
Here in 222 BC, Marcus Claudius Marcellus defeated the Gauls and won the spolia opima; in 218 BC, Hannibal took it and its stores of grain by treachery. It never had an independent government, and not later than 190 BC was made part of the colony of Placentia, founded in 218 BC.
- ⭐ Core Definition: Marcus Claudius Marcellus
- 👉 Marcus Claudius Marcellus in the context of Clastidium
- Marcus Claudius Marcellus in the context of Siege of Syracuse (212 BC)
- Marcus Claudius Marcellus in the context of Viridomarus
- Marcus Claudius Marcellus in the context of Battle of Clastidium
- Marcus Claudius Marcellus in the context of Lucius Licinius Lucullus (consul 151 BC)
Marcus Claudius Marcellus in the context of Siege of Syracuse (212 BC)
The siege of Syracuse by the Roman Republic took place in 213–212 BC. The Romans successfully stormed the Hellenistic city of Syracuse after a protracted siege, giving them control of the entire island of Sicily. During the siege, the city was protected by weapons developed by the prominent inventor and polymath Archimedes, who was slain at the conclusion of the siege by a Roman soldier, in contravention of the Roman proconsul Marcellus's instructions to spare his life.
Marcus Claudius Marcellus in the context of Viridomarus
Viridomarus (or Britomartus as translations vary; died 222 BC) was a Gallic military leader of the Gaesatae. In 222 BC he was hired by the Insubres who were fighting the Romans. Viridomarus led a mercenary army against a Roman army at the Battle of Clastidium. The Romans won the battle, and in the process, Marcus Claudius Marcellus, the Roman leader, earned the spolia opima by killing Viridomarus in single combat.
Marcus Claudius Marcellus in the context of Battle of Clastidium
The Battle of Clastidium was fought in 222 BC between a Roman army led by the consul Marcus Claudius Marcellus and a Celtic force of the transalpine Gaesatae, called by the cisalpine Insubres. The Gaesatae were led by Viridomarus (Florus) or Britomartus (Plutarch), as the name varies in translation. The Romans won the battle, and in the process, Marcellus earned the spolia opima, one of the highest honors in ancient Rome, by killing the king in single combat. It was also notable as one of the few battles won by the Roman cavalry without any aid by the legions.
Marcus Claudius Marcellus in the context of Lucius Licinius Lucullus (consul 151 BC)
Lucius Licinius Lucullus was a Roman politician who became consul in 151 BC.
Lucullus was sent to Hispania Citerior (Nearer Spain, on the east coast of Hispania) when the senate rejected a proposal for a peace treaty with the Celtiberians by Marcus Claudius Marcellus to end the Numantine War (154–152 BC). However, Marcellus went ahead with his plan and quickly concluded a treaty before Lucullus got there. Lucullus was disappointed and, "being greedy of fame and needing money because he was in straitened circumstances", he attacked the Vaccaei, a Celtiberian tribe which lived further north and who were not at war with Rome, and did so without the authorisation of the senate. He claimed that they had mistreated the Carpetani as an excuse.