Muerte de Viriato, en Museo de los niños

Comic History of Rome p 226 Assassination of Viriathus

Audax, Ditalcus and Minurus were

Turdetani The Turdetani were an ancient pre-Roman people of the Iberian Peninsula, living in the valley of the Guadalquivir (the river that the Turdetani called by two names: ''Kertis'' and ''Rérkēs'' (Ῥέρκης); Romans would call the river by th ...

an warriors who participated in the

Lusitanian War The Lusitanian War, called ''Pyrinos Polemos'' ("the Fiery War") in Greek, was a war of resistance fought by the Lusitanian tribes of Hispania Ulterior against the advancing legions of the Roman Republic from 155 to 139 BC. The Lusitanians revo ...

. They were the supposed betrayers and assassins of the Lusitanian leader

Viriathus Viriathus (also spelled Viriatus; known as Viriato in Portuguese and Spanish; died 139 BC) was the most important leader of the Lusitanian people that resisted Roman expansion into the regions of western Hispania (as the Romans called it) or w ...

Biography

The three came from the city of

Urso Urso is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Camilla Urso (1840–1902), American violinist * Francesco Urso (born 1994), Italian professional footballer *Frank Urso Frank Urso (born 1954) is a former American lacrosse player ...

and allied with Viriathus at some point of the war. In 139 BC, after a long war against the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

, Viriathus was killed in his sleep by Audax, Ditalcus and Minurus, who had been sent as emissaries to the Romans and had been bribed by

Marcus Popillius Laenas Marcus Popillius Laenas was a four-time consul of the Roman Republic. In the year (according to Varro) 359 BC, he defeated a Gallic army. Near the end of his consulship with Gnaeus Manlius Capitolinus Imperiosus, the Tarquinians invaded the Ro ...

. The Roman general Servilius Caepio had them kicked out, declaring "Rome does not pay traitors". According to

Appian Appian of Alexandria (; grc-gre, Ἀππιανὸς Ἀλεξανδρεύς ''Appianòs Alexandreús''; la, Appianus Alexandrinus; ) was a Greek historian with Roman citizenship who flourished during the reigns of Emperors of Rome Trajan, Hadr ...

, Servilius Caepio had paid them and sent them to Rome to collect the rest of the promised payment. Diodorus says the third killer (Minurus) is called Nicorontes, while Appian calls him Minouros. Another account by

Sextus Aurelius Victor Sextus Aurelius Victor (c. 320 – c. 390) was a historian and politician of the Roman Empire. Victor was the author of a short history of imperial Rome, entitled ''De Caesaribus'' and covering the period from Augustus to Constantius II. The work w ...

says that Caepio paid two royal guards ("satellites") to kill Viriathus.Eutropii historiae Romanae breviarium:
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Etymology

Despite their provenance from

Turdetania Baeturia, Beturia, or Turdetania was a region in the southern part of the Iberian Peninsula (in modern Spain) between the Guadiana and the Guadalquivir rivers. In the Iron Age, it was inhabited by Celts and the Turdetani. The territory was conquered ...

, their names have been noted as

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

in origin. It has been proposed they were Celtic aristocrats or mercenaries hired by southern populations, as it was usual at the time and place. ''Audax'' (maybe ''Audas'') might come from ''Auda'', meaning "luck" or "wealthy" in Celtic.

In film and television

In the Spanish television series ''Hispania, La Leyenda'' (2010-2012), their roles are filled by the characters of Paulo (played by

Juan José Ballesta Juan José Ballesta Muñoz, also known as Juanjo Ballesta (born 12 November 1987) is a Spanish actor. Biography Born on 12 November 1987 in Parla, Ballesta grew up in Toledo. He had his debut performance in television in 1997, starring in t ...

), Sandro (

Hovik Keuchkerian Hovik Keuchkerian (born 14 November 1972) is a Spanish actor and former boxer best known for the role of Bogotá in ''Money Heist''. Biography Born in Beirut, Lebanon to an ethnic Armenian father and a Spanish mother, he moved with his family ...

) and Darío (Alfonso Bassave). In the series, Paulo and Sandro are actually innocent of Viriathus's death, and are only brought to Rome by

Galba Galba (; born Servius Sulpicius Galba; 24 December 3 BC – 15 January AD 69) was the sixth Roman emperor, ruling from AD 68 to 69. After his adoption by his stepmother, and before becoming emperor, he was known as Livius Ocella Sulpicius Ga ...

as scapegoats along with the real conspirator, Darío. In the 2016 series ''

Barbarians Rising ''Barbarians Rising'' is an American docudrama television series executive produced by Adam Bullmore and produced by Chloe Leland and Michael Waterhouse that airs on History Channel. It premiered on June 6, 2016. Synopsis The series is told fr ...

'', Ditalcus is played by Radu Andrei Micu. He is portrayed as the last member of a tribe slain in retaliation to Viriathus's revolt. Other two conspirators, representing Audax and Minurus and played by uncredited actors, can be seen when he murders Viriathus.

References

External links

Detailed map of the Pre-Roman Peoples of Iberia (around 200 BC)
Iberians 139 BC 2nd-century BC people Spanish rebels {{Portugal-hist-stub

Biography

Etymology

In film and television

See also

References

External links