Publius Attius Varus (died 17 March 45 BC) was the

Roman governor A Roman governor was an official either elected or appointed to be the chief administrator of Roman law throughout one or more of the many Roman province, provinces constituting the Roman Empire. The generic term in Roman legal language was ''Re ...

Africa Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...

during the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

between

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, ...

and

Pompey Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus (; 29 September 106 BC – 28 September 48 BC), known in English as Pompey or Pompey the Great, was a leading Roman general and statesman. He played a significant role in the transformation of ...

. He declared war against Caesar, and initially fought Gaius Scribonius Curio, who was sent against him in 49 BC.

Political career

Varus held the office 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 ...

no later than 53 BC. No record of his earlier political career survives. He was

promagistrate In ancient Rome a promagistrate ( la, pro magistratu) was an ex-consul or ex- praetor whose '' imperium'' (the power to command an army) was extended at the end of his annual term of office or later. They were called proconsuls and propraetors. T ...

, and likely

propraetor In ancient Rome a promagistrate ( la, pro magistratu) was an ex-consul or ex-praetor whose ''imperium'' (the power to command an army) was extended at the end of his annual term of office or later. They were called proconsuls and propraetors. Thi ...

, in Africa in 52 and possibly earlier.

Role in civil war

On the outbreak of the civil war, Varus, an adherent of the

optimates Optimates (; Latin for "best ones", ) and populares (; Latin for "supporters of the people", ) are labels applied to politicians, political groups, traditions, strategies, or ideologies in the late Roman Republic. There is "heated academic dis ...

, was stationed in Picenum at the head of a considerable force. Upon the approach of Caesar, he was forced to evacuate the area. He and his levies joined Pompey in Apulia. When Pompey left

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

for

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders ...

, Varus crossed over into Africa, and took possession of his former province, which had been allotted to Q. Aelius Tubero for the purpose of obtaining grain. Excluded from his province by Varus, Tubero then went to join Pompey. Varus was well known in Africa from his earlier propraetorship, and was thus able to raise two legions.

The battle for Africa

Caesar sent Curio to Africa to take it away from the Pompeians. Curio was given command as a reward for his political support, but he had only limited military experience, and none at high command. He commanded legions that were initially recruited by the Pompeians but had switched allegiance at the surrender at

Corfinium Corfinium (Greek: ) was a city in ancient Italy, on the eastern side of the Apennines, due east of Rome, near modern Corfinio, in the province of L'Aquila (Abruzzo region). History Corfinium was the chief city of the Paeligni, situated in the ...

. Curio successfully landed his forces near Utica, surprising Varus' army. One of Varus' officers, Sextus Quinctilius Varus, who had been at Corfinium, appealed to Curio's legions to desert and return to their original loyalty. The troops refused and, after a success in a cavalry skirmish, Curio led them in a bold, uphill attack which swiftly routed Varus's army. Encouraged by this success, Curio acted on what proved to be faulty intelligence, and attacked what he believed to be a detachment of

Juba Juba () is the capital and largest city of South Sudan. The city is situated on the White Nile and also serves as the capital of the Central Equatoria State. It is the world's newest capital city to be elevated as such, and had a population ...

's army. In fact, the bulk of the king's forces were there and, after an initial success, Curio's forces were ambushed and virtually annihilated. Curio was surrounded with the remnants of his troops on a hilltop and died in the fighting. Only a small fraction of his army, including the historian Asinius Pollio and the later consul

Gaius Caninius Rebilus The gens Caninia was a plebeian family at ancient Rome during the later Republic. The first member of the gens who obtained any of the curule offices was Gaius Caninius Rebilus, praetor in 171 BC; but the first Caninius who was consul was his ...

, escaped to

Sicily (man) it, Siciliana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Ethnicity , demographics1_footnotes = , demographi ...

Aftermath

After the

Battle of Pharsalus The Battle of Pharsalus was the decisive battle of Caesar's Civil War fought on 9 August 48 BC near Pharsalus in central Greece. Julius Caesar and his allies formed up opposite the army of the Roman Republic under the command of Pompey. P ...

, the remaining Pompeians, including Cato, fled to Africa to continue the struggle. At Cato's insistence, Varus resigned the supreme command to the

consular 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 ...

Metellus Scipio Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio (c. 95 – 46 BC), often referred to as Metellus Scipio, was a Roman senator and military commander. During the civil war between Julius Caesar and the senatorial faction led by Pompey, he was a staunch supp ...

. The official rank of Varus from 48 BC was ''

legatus A ''legatus'' (; anglicised as legate) was a high-ranking Roman military officer in the Roman Army, equivalent to a modern high-ranking general officer. Initially used to delegate power, the term became formalised under Augustus as the officer ...

pro praetore'', as attested by inscriptional evidence.''CIL'' I².2.780. In 46 BC, Varus was one of the commanders of the Pompeian fleet. After the defeat at the

Battle of Thapsus A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and for ...

, Varus fled to

Hispania Hispania ( la, Hispānia , ; nearly identically pronounced in Spanish, Portuguese, Catalan, and Italian) was the Roman name for the Iberian Peninsula and its provinces. Under the Roman Republic, Hispania was divided into two provinces: Hisp ...

(Spain). There he was defeated off Carteia in a naval battle by Gaius Didius, who commanded Caesar's fleet, and forced to join the army on shore. He fell at the

Battle of Munda The Battle of Munda (17 March 45 BC), in southern Hispania Ulterior, was the final battle of Caesar's civil war against the leaders of the Optimates. With the military victory at Munda and the deaths of Titus Labienus and Gnaeus Pompeius (elde ...

. His head, together with that of

Titus Labienus Titus Labienus (c. 10017 March 45 BC) was a high-ranking military officer in the late Roman Republic. He served as tribune of the Plebs in 63 BC. Although mostly remembered as one of Julius Caesar's best lieutenants in Gaul, mentioned freq ...

, was presented to Caesar.

References

Sources

Cicero Marcus Tullius Cicero ( ; ; 3 January 106 BC – 7 December 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, scholar, philosopher, and academic skeptic, who tried to uphold optimate principles during the political crises that led to the esta ...

, ''ad Att.'' viii. 13, b, 15, 20; ''pro Ligar.'' I. *

, ''

Commentarii de Bello Civili ''Commentarii de Bello Civili'' ''(Commentaries on the Civil War)'', or ''Bellum Civile'', is an account written by Julius Caesar of his war against Gnaeus Pompeius and the Roman Senate. It consists of three books covering the events of 49–4 ...

'' i. 12, 13, 31; ii. 23–44. *

Dion Cassius Lucius Cassius Dio (), also known as Dio Cassius ( ), was a Roman historian and senator of maternal Greek origin. He published 80 volumes of the history on ancient Rome, beginning with the arrival of Aeneas in Italy. The volumes documented the ...

xli. 41, 42; xlii. 57, xliii. 30, 31. *

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, Ha ...

, ''Bellum civile'' ii. 44–46; ii. 105. * Lucan, ''Bellum civile'' (aka ''Pharsalia'') iv. 713, foll. *

Aulus Hirtius Aulus Hirtius (; – 43 BC) was consul of the Roman Republic in 43 BC and a writer on military subjects. He was killed during his consulship in battle against Mark Antony at the Battle of Mutina. Biography He was a legate of Julius Caesar's s ...

, ''Bellum Afr.'' 62, 63. {{DEFAULTSORT:Attius Varus, Publius 45 BC deaths 1st-century BC Romans Ancient Roman generals Ancient Roman politicians Varus, Publius People of the Roman Republic Roman generals killed in action Roman Republican praetors Year of birth unknown