Cataclysm 90 BC: The Forgotten War that Almost Destroyed Rome

by Philip Matyszak

historian Cassius Dio tells us how similar the two sides were. The Marsi were able to spy on the Romans ‘by mingling with their forage parties and entering through their ramparts under the guise of allies. There they took note of what was seen and heard in the [Roman] camp and later reported this to their own side.’5 In other words, even when the two sides were at war, it was hard to tell them apart. As a general rule, the Italians had more skirmishers, since the hillmen from allied tribes were accustomed to this sort of fighting, and as a bonus many were also expert with the sling. On the other hand, the Romans had the better cavalry, both because they could recruit warriors skilled in this arm of combat from Cisalpine Gaul, and because most of northern Campania had stayed loyal and this region traditionally provided the Roman army with the bulk of its cavalry. Nevertheless, with both sides so equally matched in weapons, skill and numbers, the war would be decided by whichever side had the generals better able to outmanoeuvre their opponents, and which group had the politicians better able to maintain their own alliances and pick apart those of the other side. Given the wealth of military experience among the Roman generals, and the colossal ineptitude of their politicians (who were often the same people), one might expect victories in the field to be cancelled out by political setbacks. In fact the reverse was the case. In the year 90 BC, it was Rome’s generals who broug...