Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology (1870) - Volume 3.djvu/503

Rh POMPEIUS. fleet off Mylae, destroying thirty of his ihips ; but tlie decisive battle was fought on the third of Sep- tember (b. c. StJ), off Naulochus, a seaport between Mylae and the promontory of Pelorum. The Porapeian fleet was commanded by Demochares, and that of Octavian by Agrippa, each consist- ing of about 300 ships. Agrippa gained a brilliant victory ; most of the Ponipeiau ships were de- stroyed or taken. Pompey himself fled first to Messana, where he straightway embarked toge- ther with his daughter, and set sail for the East with a squadron of seventeen ships. Octavian did not pursue him, as his attention was immediately called to the attempts of Lepidus to make himself independent of his colleague [Lepidus, p. 768, a.]. Pompey was thus enabled to reach Mytilene in safety, where he began to form schemes for seizing the eastern provinces of Antony, who had just re- turned from his disastrous campaign against the Parthians, in which he had barely escaped with his life. For this purpose he entered into nego- tiations with chiefs in Thrace and the north-eastern coast of the Black Sea, and even opened a commu- nication with the Parthians, thinking that they might, perhaps, trust him with an army, as they had done T. Labienus a few years previously. He gave out that he was making preparations to carry on the war against Octavian. In B. c. 35 Pompey crossed over from Lesbos to Asia. Here he soon disclosed his real designs by seizing upon Lampsacus. Thereupon C. Furnius, the legate of Antony, declared open war against him ; and Antony likewise sent Titius, with a fleet of ] 20 ships, to attack his naval forces. Unable to cope with so large a force, Pompey burnt his ships and united their crews to his army. His friends now recommended him to make terms with Antony ; but, as their advice was not attended to, most of them deserted him, among whom was his father- in-law, Scribonius Libo. Thereupon he attempted to fly to Armenia, but he was overtaken by the troops of Antony, deserted by his own soldiers, and obliged to surrender. He was carried as a prisoner to Miletus, where he was shortly afterwards put to death (b. c. 35) by order of Titius. Titius, un- doubtedly, would not have put Pompey to death on his own responsibihty. It is probable that Plancus, the governor of Syria, to whom the execution of Pompey was attributed by many, had received orders from Antony to instruct his legates to execute Pompey, if he were seized in arms ; but, as many persons lamented the death of Pompey, the son of the great conqueror of Asia, Antony was willing enough to throw the blame upon Plancus or Titius. Sextus did not possess any great abilities. He took up arms from necessity, as he was first de- prived of every thing by Caesar, and then pro- scribed by the triumvirs. His success was owin" more to circumstances than to his own merits : the war between the triumvirs and the rep+iblicans, and subsequently the misunderstandings between Octa- vian and Antony, enabled him to obtain and keep possession of Sicily. He seems never to have as- pired to supreme power. He would have been contented if he could have returned in safety to Rome, and have recovered his patrimony, and he carried on war for that purpose, and not for domi- nion. He ought, however, to have seen that he could never have returned to Rome except as the cou(iueror of Octavian, and that his personal safety POMPEIUS. 491 could only have been secured by his becoming the master of the Roman world. He was personally brave, but was deficient in refinement, and possessed scarcely any knowledge of literature. Velleius Paterculus says (ii. 73) that he could not speak correctly, but this is doubtless an exaggeration ; for Cicero saw little to alter in the letter which Sextus sent to him for correction before it was given to the consuls (Cic. ad Att. xvi. 4). Sextus assumed the surname of Pius^ to show that he was an avenger of his father and brother. This surname appears on his coins [see below]. (Auct. B. Hisp. 3, &c. 32 ; Cic. ad Att. xii. 37, 44, xiv. 13, 21, 29, xv. 7, 20, 22, xvi, 1, PMlipp. xiii. passim ; Appian, B.C. ii. 105, 122, iii. 4,iv. 84—117, v. 2—143 ; Dion Cass. lib. xlvi,--xlix, ; VeU. Pat. ii. 73, 87 ; Liv, Epit. 123, 128, 129, 131,) The coins of Sex, Pompey are numerous. On the obverse the head of his father is usually repre- sented ; and wriiers on numismatics state that the head on the obverse of his coins is always that of the triumvir ; but we are tempted to think that it is in some cases that of Sextus himself. We subjoin a few specimens of some of the most important coins. COINS OF SBX. POMPEIUS, THE SON OF THE TRIUMVIR, The head on the obverse of the first two coins is supposed to be that of the triumvir. On the obverse of the former of these we have the legend sex. mag. pivs.iMP. SAL. (the interpretation of which is doubt- ful), and on the reverse a female figure with the legend piETAS, It has been already remarked that Sextus assumed the surname ofPuts, to show that he wished to revenge the death of his father and brother ; and for the same reason we find Pietas on the obverse of the coin. The obverse of the second coin has the legend magnvs imp. iter, with a lituus before the head of the triumvir, and an urceus behind ; and the reverse has the legend praef. clas. et orae. MARiT, EX. s. c. He is called on this coin impe- rator a second time {iterum because his victory over Asiuius Pollio in Spain first gave him a claim