Gaius Papius Mutilus was a Samnite noble who is best known for being the leader of the southern rebels who fought against the army of

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in the Social War of 91-88 BC (also known as the Italic War); was member of the clan Variani/Varriano.Hornblower, Simon; Antony Spawforth

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The Oxford classical dictionary, 3rd, Oxford: Oxford University Press, 922. His father was Gaius Papius Mutilus, who held the highest Samnite magistracy in Bovianum a number of times in the second half of the 2nd century BC

The Southern Forces Under Gaius Papius

The Samnite army, consisting of southern rebels, was very similar to that of the Romans. Two men were elected

consuls A consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, as well as to facilitate trade and friendship between the people ...

while another twelve were granted the position of

praetor Praetor ( , ), also pretor, was the title granted by the government of Ancient Rome to a man acting in one of two official capacities: (i) the commander of an army, and (ii) as an elected '' magistratus'' (magistrate), assigned to discharge vario ...

. The consuls were the leaders of their respective armies and are referred to as “commanders in chief". Papius became the consul for the southern rebel forces, known as the Samnites, in 90 BC. His fellow consul was

Quintus Poppaedius Silo Quintus Poppaedius Silo (sometimes seen as ''Pompaedius'') (died 88 BC) was a leader of the Italian tribe of the Marsi and one of the leaders of the Italian rebels during the Social War against Rome. Poppaedius was called the 'heart and soul' of t ...

; the leader of a centrally located army, staffed mainly by members of Italic tribe of

Marsi The Marsi were an Italic people of ancient Italy, whose chief centre was Marruvium, on the eastern shore of Lake Fucinus (which was drained for agricultural land in the late 19th century). The area in which they lived is now called Marsica. ...

. Both of these men held the position of consul into the year 89 BC due to their success during the campaigning season of the following year.

Success in Battle

Papius achieved great success as the leader of the Samnite army during his advance into Roman territory. One of the more famous battles fought by the southern rebels occurred at the city of

Nola Nola is a town and a municipality in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania, southern Italy. It lies on the plain between Mount Vesuvius and the Apennines. It is traditionally credited as the diocese that introduced bells to Christian worship. ...

. The Samnite army captured the city with 2,000 Roman soldiers remaining inside. The soldiers did not accept Papius' offer to serve under him and were therefore starved to death. Following his victory at Nola, Papius took the cities of Stabiae, Minervium, and

Salernum Salerno (, , ; nap, label= Salernitano, Saliernë, ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' in Campania (southwestern Italy) and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after ...

while conquering the country around

Nuceria Nocera Inferiore ( nap, Nucèrä Inferiórë or simply , , locally ) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Salerno, in Campania in southern Italy. It lies west of Nocera Superiore, at the foot of Monte Albino, some 20 km east-so ...

. The citizens of these cities and those surrounding feared the wrath of Papius. He gathered the prisoners and slaves from each city while also being given infantry and cavalry out of fear (these troops amounted to over 10,000 infantry and 1,000 cavalry). Papius continued to destroy the Romans while continuing to have success in the city of

Campania Campania (, also , , , ) is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islands and the i ...

and the regions surrounding it. During his leadership of the Samnite army, Papius only lost two notable battles. These were to consul Lucius Julius Caesar in 90 BC and to Cornelius Sulla Felix in 89 BC. Following his loss to Sulla, Papius is said to have been granted Roman citizenship. Papius Mutilus was not prominent during the ensuing civil wars. Shortly after, he was

proscribed Proscription ( la, proscriptio) is, in current usage, a 'decree of condemnation to death or banishment' (''Oxford English Dictionary'') and can be used in a political context to refer to state-approved murder or banishment. The term originated ...

and committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and s ...

in 80 BC.

References

Bibliography

* Alberto Campana, ''La Monetazione degli insorti italici durante la Guerra Sociale (91-87 a.C.)'', Soliera, Edizioni Apparuti, 1987. {{DEFAULTSORT:Mutilus, Gaius Papius Samnite people 80s BC deaths Year of birth unknown