Pontius Telesinus (died 2 November 82 BC) was the last independent leader of the Italic
Samnites
The Samnites () were an ancient Italic people who lived in Samnium, which is located in modern inland Abruzzo, Molise, and Campania in south-central Italy.
An Oscan-speaking people, who may have originated as an offshoot of the Sabines, they f ...
before their annexation by the
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...
. A fierce patriot, he was one of the rebel commanders in the
Social War (91–87 BC) against Rome, leading the last remnants of the rebellion in southern Italy after the main uprising had already been suppressed. He intervened in the Roman civil wars of the 80s BC in an attempt to improve his and his people's position, but picked the losing side and was killed in 82 BC following the
Battle of the Colline Gate against the Roman general
Sulla
Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (; 138–78 BC), commonly known as Sulla, was a Roman general and statesman. He won the first large-scale civil war in Roman history and became the first man of the Republic to seize power through force.
Sulla had t ...
.
Pontius Telesinus may be an ancestor of
Pontius Pilate
Pontius Pilate (; grc-gre, Πόντιος Πιλᾶτος, ) was the fifth governor of the Roman province of Judaea, serving under Emperor Tiberius from 26/27 to 36/37 AD. He is best known for being the official who presided over the trial of ...
, the Roman governor of Judaea who oversaw the crucifixion of
Jesus
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...
.
Life
The
Samnites
The Samnites () were an ancient Italic people who lived in Samnium, which is located in modern inland Abruzzo, Molise, and Campania in south-central Italy.
An Oscan-speaking people, who may have originated as an offshoot of the Sabines, they f ...
were a people who inhabited central and southern Italy, and had fought
several wars against the
Roman Republic
The Roman Republic ( la, Res publica Romana ) was a form of government of Rome and the era of the classical Roman civilization when it was run through public representation of the Roman people. Beginning with the overthrow of the Roman Ki ...
before being subjugated in the third century BC.
Pontius Telesinus claimed descent from
Gaius Pontius Gaius Pontius (fl. 321 BC), sometimes called Gavius Pontius, was a Samnite commander (clan Varry/Varriani) during the Second Samnite War. He is most well known for his victory over the Roman legions at the Battle of the Caudine Forks in 321 BC. ...
, the Samnite leader who had humiliated the Romans at the
Caudine Forks
The Battle of Caudine Forks, 321 BC, was a decisive event of the Second Samnite War. Its designation as a battle is a mere historical formality: there was no fighting and there were no casualties. The Romans were trapped in an enclosed valley b ...
in 321 BC. The surname () "Telesinus" indicates an origin in
Telesia. Several Roman sources list Pontius as one of the leaders of the Samnites during the
Social War against Rome in 91 BC, holding the rank 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 vari ...
", but no specific actions of his in the main part of the conflict are known. The rebellion collapsed by 88 BC, but Telesinus appears to have led the remnants of the Italian resistance to Rome in
Lucania
Lucania was a historical region of Southern Italy. It was the land of the Lucani, an Oscan people. It extended from the Tyrrhenian Sea to the Gulf of Taranto.
It bordered with Samnium and Campania in the north, Apulia in the east, and Bruttiu ...
and
Bruttium 01 or '01 may refer to:
* The year 2001, or any year ending with 01
* The month of January
* 1 (number)
Music
* 01'' (Richard Müller album), 2001
* ''01'' (Son of Dave album), 2000
* ''01'' (Urban Zakapa album), 2011
* ''O1'' (Hiroyuki Sawa ...
. In late 88 or early 87 BC, he and other remaining rebel leaders besieged
Isiae in Bruttium and
Rhegium
Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label=Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated popul ...
on the
strait of Messina
The Strait of Messina ( it, Stretto di Messina, Sicilian: Strittu di Missina) is a narrow strait between the eastern tip of Sicily ( Punta del Faro) and the western tip of Calabria ( Punta Pezzo) in Southern Italy. It connects the Tyrrhenian S ...
, but were repelled by the Roman governor of
Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
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,
Gaius Norbanus
Gaius Norbanus (died 82 BC) was a Roman politician who was elected consul in 83 BC alongside Lucius Cornelius Scipio Asiaticus. He committed suicide in exile at Rhodes after being proscribed by Lucius Cornelius Sulla shortly after the latter's v ...
. Nonetheless, they were able to make peace with Rome on favorable terms by siding with the Roman consul
Cornelius Cinna in
the civil war of 87 BC.
The Samnites took up arms again in 82 BC, together the allied
Lucanians
The Lucanians ( la, Lucani) were an Italic tribe living in Lucania, in what is now southern Italy, who spoke an Oscan language, a member of the Italic languages. Today, the inhabitants of the Basilicata region are still called Lucani, and so t ...
, to aid the Roman government in
another civil war, this time against the renegade Roman general
Sulla
Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix (; 138–78 BC), commonly known as Sulla, was a Roman general and statesman. He won the first large-scale civil war in Roman history and became the first man of the Republic to seize power through force.
Sulla had t ...
. Pontius Telesinus's younger brother and a contingent of Samnites were among the forces of the Roman consul
Marius which fought Sulla at the Battle of Sacriportus. They were heavily defeated and subsequently besieged at
Praeneste. After the victory, Sulla took the city of
Rome
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, founder = King Romulus ( legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
. Hearing of this disaster, Pontius Telesinus and the Lucanian leader
Marcus Lamponius Marcus, Markus, Márkus or Mărcuș may refer to:
* Marcus (name), a masculine given name
* Marcus (praenomen), a Roman personal name
Places
* Marcus, a main belt asteroid, also known as (369088) Marcus 2008 GG44
* Mărcuş, a village in Dobâr ...
raised a large force to relieve Marius at Praeneste, but, finding that Sulla's armies were both blocking the road to the city and threatening their rear, decided instead to march towards Rome, encamping near the
Colline Gate.
Some Roman sources present the Samnites as a self-interested party who took advantage of the civil war to undermine the Roman Republic while pretending to aid the cause of Marius. According to
Florus, they laid waste to
Campania
(man), it, Campana (woman)
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, while
Velleius Paterculus
Marcus Velleius Paterculus (; c. 19 BC – c. AD 31) was a Roman historian, soldier and senator. His Roman history, written in a highly rhetorical style, covered the period from the end of the Trojan War to AD 30, but is most useful for the per ...
described Telesinus as a man "brave in spirit and in action and hating to the core the very name of Rome". Velleius also said the Samnites planned to destroy the city of Rome itself; according to him, Telesinus exclaimed to his men:
Later historians were sceptical of this, wondering whether the Samnites, as participants of a Roman inter-factional conflict, would have really acted in such manner. On 1 November 82 BC, the Samnites and Lucanians were defeated at the
Battle of the Colline Gate, which lasted into the night. Telesinus was found on the following day mortally wounded on the field; according to Velleius, he had the look of a conqueror in his face despite the defeat. His head was cut off and paraded before the walls of Praeneste, where Marius and Telesinus's brother then committed joint suicide in despair.
As Ollivier described, a skilled general and ardent patriot like Telesinus formed the center and focus of the Samnites' efforts for self-determination; with the loss of their natural leader, the Samnites scattered and their war effort collapsed. With Telesinus ended the last expression of resistance by the Samnites against Roman domination.
Pontius Telesinus may be an ancestor of
Pontius Pilatus (Pilate), a first century Roman governor of Judaea mentioned in Christian texts as presiding over the execution of
Jesus
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...
.
Notes
Citations
References
Ancient sources
*
*
*
*
Modern sources
*
*
*
*
* {{cite book , last=Salmon , year=1967 , first=E.T. , title=Samnium and the Samnites , publisher=Cambridge University Press , isbn=0-521-06185-7 , url={{googlebooks, -jA9AAAAIAAJ, plainurl=y , author-link=Edward Togo Salmon , ref={{sfnref, Salmon
82 BC deaths
1st-century BC Romans
Military personnel killed in action
Telesinus
Samnite people
Year of birth unknown