Battle of Thapsus
Part of Caesar's civil war
Scheme of the Battle of Thapsus - Reproduction of a copper printing by Andrea Palladio (1619)
Date April 6, 46 BC Location Thapsus (Tunisia), modern Ras Dimas Result Populares victory
Belligerents
Populares	Optimates
Commanders
G. Julius Caesar	Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio Nasica †, Cato the Younger †
Strength
Unknown (at least 10 legions)	Unknown (at least 10 legions), 2,500 cavalry Juba's allied troops with 60 elephants
Casualties and losses
1,000	30,000

The Battle of Thapsus took place on April 6, 46 BC^[1] near Thapsus (modern Ras Dimas, Tunisia). The Roman civil war of 49 BC sometimes called Caesar's Civil War, is one of the last conflicts within the Roman Republic. Andrea Palladio ( November 30, 1508 – August 19, 1580) was an Italian Architect, widely considered the most influential Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats Caecilius Metellus Scipio and Marcus Porcius Cato in the Battle of Thapsus Year 46 BC was the last year of the pre-Julian calendar. This year had 445 days due to the errors that had accumulated in the pre-Julian calendar Thapsus (less commonly Tapsus) was an ancient city in what is modern day Tunisia. Tunisia (تونس Tūnis officially the Tunisian Republic ( is a country located in North Africa. Populares ("favoring the people" singular popularis) were Aristocratic leaders in the late Roman Republic who tended to use the Optimates (singular optimas, The Best of Men, Italian: ottimati; also known as the priests or boni, the Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio Nasica (b c 100 BC or 98 BC - d Marcus Porcius Catō Uticensis (95 BC&ndash46 BC known as Cato the Younger ( Cato Minor) to distinguish him from his great-grandfather ( Cato the Elder Juba I of Numidia or Juba I (c 85 BC-46 BC reigned 60 BC-46 BC was a King of Numidia. Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats Caecilius Metellus Scipio and Marcus Porcius Cato in the Battle of Thapsus Year 46 BC was the last year of the pre-Julian calendar. This year had 445 days due to the errors that had accumulated in the pre-Julian calendar Thapsus (less commonly Tapsus) was an ancient city in what is modern day Tunisia. Tunisia (تونس Tūnis officially the Tunisian Republic ( is a country located in North Africa. The Conservative Republican Army, led by Marcus Porcius Cato, the younger and Quintus Caecillius Metellus Scipio clashed with the forces of Julius Caesar, who eventually won the battle. Marcus Porcius Catō Uticensis (95 BC&ndash46 BC known as Cato the Younger ( Cato Minor) to distinguish him from his great-grandfather ( Cato the Elder Quintus Caecilius Metellus Pius Scipio Nasica (b c 100 BC or 98 BC - d With this victory, Caesar temporarily ended the resistance against his power in Africa and was one step closer to absolute power.

Contents 1 Prelude 2 Battle 3 Aftermath 4 Notes

Prelude

After crossing the Rubicon in 49 BC, Caesar started the last Republican civil war by defying senatorial orders to disband his army. Rubicon ( Rubicō, Italian: Rubicone) is a 29 km long River in northern Italy. Year 49 BC was a year of the pre-Julian calendar. Events By place Rome Consuls Lucius Cornelius Lentulus Crus The Roman Republic was the phase of the ancient Roman civilization characterized by a Republican form of government a period which began with the overthrow of the The Roman Senate was a political institution in Ancient Rome. Following his invasion of Italy and Rome, the Conservative Republicans fled to Greece under the command of Pompey. Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, commonly known as Pompey /'pɑmpi/ Pompey the Great or Pompey the Triumvir ( Classical Latin abbreviation The Populares under Julius Caesar were defeated in the Battle of Dyrrhachium but went on to decisively defeat the Optimates under Pompey at Pharsalus in 48 BC. Populares ("favoring the people" singular popularis) were Aristocratic leaders in the late Roman Republic who tended to use the Optimates (singular optimas, The Best of Men, Italian: ottimati; also known as the priests or boni, the The Battle of Pharsalus was a decisive battle of Caesar's Civil War. Year 48 BC was a year of the pre-Julian calendar. Events By place Rome Consuls Gaius Julius Caesar, Pompey fled to Egypt, where, to Caesar's consternation, Pompey was assassinated. But the conservatives, not ready to give up fighting, clustered in the African provinces and organized a resistance. Its leaders were Marcus Cato, the younger, and Caecilius Metellus Scipio. Other key figures in the resistance were Titus Labienus, Publius Attius Varus, Lucius Afranius, Marcus Petreius and the brothers Sextus and Gnaeus Pompeius (Pompey's sons). Titus Labienus (ca 100 BC– March 17, 45 BC was a professional Roman soldier in the late Roman Republic. Publius Attius Varus (d March 17, 45 BC was the Roman governor of Africa during the Civil War that broke out after Gaius Julius Caesar crossed the Rubicon. Lucius Afranius was also the name of a Comic Poet of the 90s BC Gnaeus Popmeius should not be confused with his father Gnaeus Pompeius '''Magnus''', known as "Pompey the Great King Juba I of Numidia was a valuable local ally. Juba I of Numidia or Juba I (c 85 BC-46 BC reigned 60 BC-46 BC was a King of Numidia. After the pacification of the Eastern provinces, and a short visit to Rome, Caesar followed his opponents to Africa and landed in Hadrumetum (modern Sousse, Tunisia) in December 28, 47 BC. Hadrume(ntum (sometimes called Adrametum or Adrametus) was a Phoenician colony that pre-dated Carthage and stood on the site of modern-day Sousse ( Arabic سوسة Sousa) is a city of Tunisia. Located 140 km south of Tunis, the city has 173 047 inhabitants (2004 Tunisia (تونس Tūnis officially the Tunisian Republic ( is a country located in North Africa. Events 1065 - Westminster Abbey is Consecrated. 1308 - The reign of Emperor Hanazono, Emperor of Year 47 BC was a year of the pre-Julian calendar. Events By place Rome Consuls Quintus Fufius Calenus,

The Optimates gathered their forces to oppose Caesar with astonishing speed. Their army included 40,000 men (about 10 legions), a powerful cavalry force led by Caesar's former right hand man, the talented Titus Labienus, forces of allied local kings and 60 war elephants. For other uses see Legion The Roman Legion (from Latin legio "military levy Conscription," Titus Labienus (ca 100 BC– March 17, 45 BC was a professional Roman soldier in the late Roman Republic. A war elephant is an Elephant trained and guided by humans for combat The two armies engaged in small skirmishes to gauge the strength of the opposing force, during which two conservative legions deserted to Caesar. Meanwhile, Caesar expected reinforcements from Sicily. In the beginning of February, Caesar arrived in Thapsus and besieged the city, blocking the southern entrance with three lines of fortifications. The conservatives, led by Metellus Scipio, could not risk the loss of this position and were forced to accept battle.

Battle

Metellus Scipio's army circled Thapsus in order to approach the city by its northern side. Anticipating Caesar's approach, it remained in tight battle order flanked by its elephant cavalry. Caesar's position was typical of his style, with him commanding the right side and the cavalry and archers flanked. The threat of the elephants led to the additional precaution of reinforcing the cavalry with five cohorts. For other uses see Legion The Roman Legion (from Latin legio "military levy Conscription,"

One of Caesar's trumpeters sounded the battle. Caesar's archers attacked the elephants, causing them to panic and trample their own men. The elephants on the left flank charged against Caesar's center, where Legio V Alaudae was placed. Legio V Alaudae, the Larks ' sometimes known as Gallica, was levied by Julius Caesar in 52 BC from native Gauls This legion sustained the charge with such bravery that afterwards they wore an elephant as a symbol. After the loss of the elephants, Metellus Scipio started to lose ground. Caesar's cavalry outmaneuvered its enemy, destroyed the fortified camp, and forced its enemy into retreat. King Juba's allied troops abandoned the site and the battle was decided.

Roughly 10,000 enemy soldiers wanted to surrender to Caesar, but were instead slaughtered by his army. This action is unusual for Caesar, who was known as a merciful victor. Some sources contend Caesar had an epileptic seizure during the battle and was not fully conscious for its aftermath. Epilepsy is a common chronic Neurological disorder that is characterized by recurrent unprovoked seizures. Scipio himself escaped, only to die months later in a naval battle near Hippo.

Aftermath

Following the battle, Caesar renewed the siege of Thapsus, which eventually fell. Caesar proceeded to Utica, where Cato the Younger was garrisoned. Utica is an ancient city northwest of Carthage near the outflow of the Medjerda River into the Mediterranean Sea, traditionally considered to be the first Marcus Porcius Catō Uticensis (95 BC&ndash46 BC known as Cato the Younger ( Cato Minor) to distinguish him from his great-grandfather ( Cato the Elder On the news of the defeat of his allies, Cato committed suicide. Caesar was upset by this and is reported by Plutarch to have said: Cato, I must grudge you your death, as you grudged me the honour of saving your life. Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus ( Greek: Μέστριος Πλούταρχος c

The battle preceded peace in Africa--Caesar pulled out and returned to Rome on July 25 of the same year. Events 285 - Diocletian appoints Maximian as Caesar, co-ruler Opposition, however, would rise again. Titus Labienus, the Pompeian brothers and others had managed to escape to the Hispania provinces. The civil war was not finished and the battle of Munda would soon follow. For the World War II battle see Battle of Munda Point. The Battle of Munda took place on March 17, 45 BC in

Notes

---

© 2009 citizendia.org; parts available under the terms of GNU Free Documentation License, from http://en.wikipedia.org
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic