Illyrian Wars

Cæsar was preoccupied by the necessity of coming to a conclusion with Pompey, and, after Pompey's death, with the numerous parts of his faction still remaining. When he had settled everything he returned to Rome and made preparations for war with the Getæ and the Parthians. The Illyrians began to fear lest he should attack them, as they were on his intended line of march. So they sent ambassadors to Rome to crave pardon for what they had done and to offer their friendship and alliance, vaunting themselves [*](Y.R. 709) as a very brave race. Cæsar was hastening his preparations [*](B.C.45) against the Parthians; nevertheless, he gave them the dignified answer that he could not make friends of those who had done what they had, but that he would grant them pardon if they would subject themselves to tribute and give him hostages. They promised to do both, and accordingly he sent Vatinius thither with three legions and a large cavalry force to impose a light tribute on them and receive the [*](Y.R. 710) hostages. When Cæsar was slain the Dalmatians, thinking [*](B.C.44) that the Roman power resided in him and had perished with him, would not listen to Vatinius on the subject of the tribute or anything else. When he attempted to use force they attacked and destroyed five of his cohorts, including their commanding officer, Bæbius, a man of senatorial rank. Vatinius took refuge with the remainder of his force in Epidamnus. The Roman Senate transferred this army, together with the province of Macedonia and Roman Illyria, to Brutus Cæpio, one of Cæsar's murderers, and at the same time assigned Syria to Cassius, another of the assassins. But they also, being involved in war with Antony and the second Cæsar, surnamed Augustus, had no time to attend to the Illyrians.

The Pæones are a great nation on the Danube, extending from the Iapydes to the Dardani. They are called Pæones by the Greeks, but Pannonians by the Romans. They are counted by the Romans as a part of Illyria, as I have previously said, for which reason it seems proper that I should include them in my Illyrian history. They have been renowned from the Macedonian period through the Agrianes, who rendered very important aid to Philip and Alexander and are Pæones of Lower Pannonia bordering on Illyria. When the expedition of Cornelius against the Pannonians resulted disastrously, so great a fear of those people came over all the Italians that for a long time afterwards none of the consuls ventured to march against them. Concerning the early history of the Illyrians and Pannonians, I have not been able to discover anything further, nor have I found in the commentaries of Augustus anything earlier in the chapters treating of the Pannonians.

I think that other Illyrian tribes besides those mentioned had previously come under Roman rule, but how, I do not know. Augustus did not describe the transactions of others so much as his own, telling how he brought back those who had revolted and compelled them again to pay tribute, how he subjugated others that had been independent from the beginning, and how he mastered all the tribes that inhabit the summits of the Alps, barbarous and warlike peoples, who often plundered the neighboring parts of Italy. It is a wonder to me that so many great Roman armies traversing the Alps to conquer the Gauls and Spaniards, should have overlooked these tribes, and that even Gaius Cæsar, that most successful man of war, did not despatch them during the ten years that he was fighting the Gauls and wintering in that very country. But the Romans seem to have been intent only upon getting through the Alpine region on the business they were bestirring themselves about, and Cæsar seems to have delayed putting an end to the Illyrian troubles on account of the Gallic war and the strife with Pompey, which closely followed it. It appears that he was chosen commander of Illyria as well as of Gaul -- not the whole of it, but as much as was then under Roman rule.

When Augustus had made himself master of everything, he informed the Senate, by way of contrast with Antony's slothfulness, that he had freed Italy from the savage tribes that had so often raided it. He overcame the Oxyæi, the Perthoneatæ, the Bathiatæ, the Taulantii, the Cambæi, the Cinambri, the Meromenni, and the Pyrissæi in one campaign. By more prolonged effort he also over-came the Docleatæ, the Carui, the Interphrurini, the Naresii, the Glintidiones, and the Taurisci. From these tribes he exacted the tributes they had been failing to pay. When these were conquered, the Hippasini and the Bessi, neighboring tribes, were overcome by fear and surrendered themselves to him. Others which had revolted, the Meliteni and the Corcyreans, who inhabited islands and practised piracy, he destroyed utterly, putting the young men to death and selling the rest as slaves. He deprived the Liburnians of their ships because they also practised piracy. [*](Y.R. 719) The Mœntini and the Avendeatæ,two tribes of the Iapydes, [*](B.C.35) dwelling within the Alps, surrendered themselves to him at his approach. The Arrepini, who are the most numerous and warlike of the Iapydes, betook themselves from their villages to their city, but when he arrived there they fled to the woods. Augustus took the city, but did not burn it, hoping that they would deliver themselves up, and when they did so he allowed them to occupy it.

Those who gave him the most trouble were the Salassi, the transalpine Iapydes, the Segestani, the Dalmatians, the Dæsitiatæ, and the Pannonians, far distant from the Salassi, who occupy the higher Alpine mountains, difficult of access, the paths being narrow and hard to climb. For this reason they had not only preserved their independence, but had levied tolls on those who passed through their country. Vetus assaulted them unexpectedly, seized the passes by stratagem, and besieged them for two years. They were driven to surrender for want of salt, which they use largely, and they received a Roman garrison; but when Vetus went away they expelled the garrison forthwith, and, possessing themselves of the mountain passes, they mocked at the forces that Augustus sent against them, as unable to accomplish anything of importance. Thereupon Augustus, anticipating a war with Antony, acknowledged their independence and allowed them to go unpunished for their offences against Vetus. But as they were suspicious of what might happen, they laid in large supplies of salt and made [*](Y.R. 720) incursions into the Roman territory until Messala Corvinus [*](B.C.34) was sent against them and reduced them by hunger. In this way were the Salassi subjugated. [*](Y.R. 719)

The transalpine Iapydes, a strong and savage tribe, drove back the Romans twice within the space of about twenty years, overran Aquileia, and plundered the Roman colony of Tergestus. When Augustus advanced against them by a steep and rugged road, they made it still harder for him by felling trees. As he advanced farther they took refuge in another forest, where they lay in ambush for the approaching foe. Augustus, who was always suspecting something of this kind, sent forces to occupy certain ridges which flanked both sides of his advance through the flat country and the fallen timber. The Iapydes darted out from their ambush and wounded many of the soldiers, but [*](B.C.35) the greater part of their own forces were killed by the Romans who fell upon them from the heights above. The remainder again took refuge in the thickets, abandoning their town, the name of which was Terponus. Augustus took this town, but did not burn it, hoping that they also would give themselves up, and they did so.