Cataclysm 90 BC: The Forgotten War that Almost Destroyed Rome

by Philip Matyszak

Marius was dead, and his son with him. This left a nephew, Marius Gratidianus who had been among the most bloodthirsty Marians during their time of triumph. He suffered a grisly death, and his corpse was mutilated again thereafter. Lacking Marius himself to kill, Sulla tried to kill his memory. The ashes were disinterred and scattered into the river Anio, and monuments and statues commemorating Marius up and down the country were overthrown and defaced. Overall, it has been estimated that some 5,000 people perished in the proscriptions, though this number does not include those killed collectively as will be seen in the fate of Praeneste and Norba. Furthermore, the general chaos lent itself to extra-curricular killings as wartime grudges were settled and private land grabs took place.