Legio XVII: Roman Legion at War (28 page)

Centurion Vitulus ~
Clastidium
Mission

Centurion Appollonius Albus Vitulus knew he had his work cut out for him when he received his order.  He appreciated Tribune Tullus’ confidence in him and hoped the information that the
Ligurians
could be trusted as loyal allies of Rome was reliable.  From his perspective, everything hinged on their support and loyalty.

After receiving his mission statement from Tullus in late October, he met with his War Council comprised of his two personal aides, the 10 Centurions assigned to his half of the
Triarii
, and the two Centurions in charge of his 100-man horse cavalry and 200 archers.  He repeated the assignment to them and outlined what they had to do.  Their input and perspective helped reveal the hidden and assumed tasks of the mission that needed to be accomplished in addition to the stated tasks.

Vitulus, 32, was very much like Tribune Tullus in his family background, outward appearance, and temperament, although a lot younger.  He enjoyed a good laugh, excelled in all things athletic, and did not shirk physical hardship.  Unlike some Centurions, he liked his troops and enjoyed their company.  He could rapidly assess problems and make sound decisions on matters pertaining to troop movements, logistics, training, and morale, yet lacked the patience to deal effectively with difficult people and multiple courses of action.

He favored clear cut problems and equally clear solutions.  His saving grace was that he was aware of his own shortcomings and chose subordinates whose temperament would make up for what he lacked.  Even with this strategy, though, he often lacked the patience to stop and listen to their counsel.

Vitulus knew that Consul Scipio, 25, [who would later become Scipio Africanus] was preparing to drop a requisition for 30 ships.  Vitulus was not 100% sure of Scipio’s overall mission, but had heard that Scipio was preparing to launch an expedition with 25,000 Legionaries in early 209.  He heard that Scipio would launch his campaign from his current base in northern Spain to capture the Carthaginian city of
Carthago Nova
[
Cartagena]
, which is on the east coast of Spain.  Vitulus believed that Scipio’s mission was to establish a base of operations and then go after Hasdrubal who was recruiting an army to reinforce Hannibal.

Scipio’s expedition had many negative implications for Vitulus’ mission.  The primary one was that they would be in direct competition for ships.  Scipio needed 30 and Vitulus needed only 3, but that could be 3 too many.  Scipio had priority.

Vitulus scheduled a meeting with the Naval Commander at
Ostia
to brief them on his mission.  It went well until he mentioned that he needed three dedicated ships for the foreseeable future to carry his command to
Genua
and then to make frequent resupply runs.  The Navy showed him the door!  The reason given for not supporting Vitulus’ mission was that, “The Navy will be supporting Scipio and there aren’t enough ships to go around.  You could try to hire civilian ships.”

Vitulus immediately reported this to Tribune Tullus and his Second-in-Command Tribune Calvus.  It was well known that this problem might occur and Calvus had an immediate solution.  He said, “We knew this might happen, so I’ve already approached several wealthy citizens and they’ve agreed to rent the ships for us in exchange for 20% of any spoils we capture during our mission.  To them, this is an investment.”

Tullus immediately suspected Farrid and Carthaginian involvement.  What better way to sabotage the mission than to delay the ships’ arrival, ambush them while at sea, or fail to conduct the resupply runs.  He thought, this was a bad idea, but he didn’t want to challenge Calvus on this issue now.  It may end up being the only option.  Tullus said to Vitulus and Calvus, “Let’s keep this on the table, while I try to find out if there are any other solutions.”

Tullus told Levi about the Navy’s rejection and of Calvus’ proposal.  Levi also sensed Farrid’s involvement.  Levi thought out loud, “We don’t want to jeopardize Scipio’s mission by taking his ships; that would play to the Carthaginians’ advantage.  Maybe hiring three boats is the only feasible alternative, but not Farrid’s ships.  I’ll speak to the Navy and get the names of loyal Romans.  We will get our ships.”

Calvus was visibly upset when, only three days later, Tullus announced that a civilian shipping company had been hired and was immediately available to start planning.

The weeks passed quickly and, before long, it was time to board the ships for the trip north.  Loading the ships with men, animals, and materials is a significant undertaking, but it progressed smoothly and was relatively free of problems.

After three miserable days at sea hugging the western coast of Italy, Centurion Vitulus and his force of 800 men, cavalry, archers, dogs, pack animals, and supplies arrived and disembarked at
Genua
.  Unlike many of the other surrounding tribes, the
Ligurians
of
Genua
continued to support Rome ~ and within a few years this port city would pay a very high price for that loyalty.

Once off loaded, Vitulus rested his men for a day and used the time to link up with the 500 loyal
Ligurians
who were to help him rebuild the fort and then escort supplies from
Genua
.  The link-up went off without a hitch.  The 1300 man force then began a rapid 67 mile march to
Clastidium
.  They made good time, about 15 miles a day, with the cavalry screening their every move and a ready and alert rear guard.

To protect his command from a surprise attack at night, Vitulus ordered his men to dig an encampment each evening and designed a Ready Maniple to stand guard under arms as a rapid reaction force.  He knew they did not want to do it.  It was much easier for everyone to just drop their gear, picket and feed the animals, and go to sleep.  Even his aides would occasionally suggest that they forgo the encampment for the night.

Vitulus knew that that would be the one night he was attacked.  It became a battle of wills.  No one really wants to work if they do not have to particularly if there is no immediate tangible benefit.  Manius told Vitulus that this would happen.  He told him if he gave in just once and did not dig an encampment, the troops were in charge and not him.  “Make them dig in every night and they will respect you for it.  Be resolute!  And if they rebel and refuse to dig, punish the opposition leaders.  Do not tolerate even a hint of insubordination.  In the field, you have the power, delegated by me, to discipline soldiers.  Use that power, but use it wisely.  Err on the side of leniency if the question is in doubt, but absolutely crush insubordination.”

Vitulus was not sure about the
Ligurians
.  Should he insist they also dig or not?  As it turned out, they showed no hesitancy to dig alongside the Romans.  Maybe they dug with enthusiasm because they knew there was still a looming threat out there.  Vitulus dispatched a rider to inform Tribune Tullus of their progress.

Vitulus’
Triarii
and
Ligurians
passed near a few villages, but encountered only women, children, and old men, all of whom showed great fear upon seeing the two dogs.  He knew that the fields should be planted soon, but there was no evidence of any preparation.  Vitulus sensed that the young men were in southern Italy with Hannibal.  Most villagers scattered in fear when they saw the approaching Romans, but one fearless old man pulling a wagon of firewood only edged off the trail a bit to allow the Romans to pass.  He showed no fear, only curiosity.

In broken Latin, he called out, to no one in particular, “You men going to
Clastidium
?”  In years past, he had often seen such columns coming and going from
Genua
to the fort.

Vitulus called a 10 minute break and spoke to the man.  “Anyone at the fort old man?”  he asked. “No not since nine years ago when Hannibal captured it and killed the guards.”  “Any idea how the walls and gate are these days?”

“Everything needs to be replaced.  What Hannibal didn’t destroy the weather and time surely have.”

“Are we going to meet any hostile forces?”

The old man laughed.  “Anyone who can lift a sword or throw a spear is down south with Hannibal.  And us?  We are going to starve this winter because no one is tending to the fields.  If you’re in the fort this winter, people will be trying to break in looking for something to eat.  It’s going to be bad.”  That was an interesting bit of intelligence.  Vitulus gave him some Roman rations, which were received with much gratitude.

When they were about a day out from the fort, Vitulus sent a cavalry detachment to the fort to determine its condition.  The report they brought back was encouraging.  The gate and the wooden wall it was attached to were broken beyond simple repair.  They would have to be replaced, but the other walls and buildings internal to the fort simply needed some care.  They were usable.

During the march, Vitulus continued training his men.  He would stage mock attacks and form his men into battle lines.  One night he announced a surprise night time attack on the encampment to see how rapidly the men could occupy their assigned positions on the ramparts.  The
Ligurians
were quickly folded into his scheme of defense and offense.  Once, upon entering a low area with hills on both sides, he stopped his unit, formed them into battle lines, and sent the cavalry up the hills to conduct a detailed search since it was a perfect ambush site.  But not this time.  The next day, they arrived at the fort and, to the Legionaries’ great relief, the fort was still strong enough to occupy, post guards, and let the majority of the troops rest.  There would be no digging tonight, but the Ready Maniple remained under arms and alert.

Vitulus let the men and animals rest from heavy work for three days during which time fodder and firewood were gathered, supplies were stored, and immediate defensive needs looked after.  For the cavalry, however, there was no rest.  They began actively patrolling the region early the first day and never stopped.

Information is the key element to success in any mission.  In that regard, Vitulus’
Ligurian
spy master Quiamelius, who was hired by Elitovius, proposed a plan to hire locals to observe and report what they see in their villages and surrounding areas.  He devised a scheme whereby information could be passed to the Romans without compromising the spies.  Vitulus approved the plan and Quiamelius began his life saving work.

Vitulus and his subordinate leaders also did not rest.  They inspected the fort and noted what needed to be done.  They rode around the immediate area looking for stands of trees that would meet their construction needs and also looked at the fort through the eyes of an attacker.

This inspection technique was a very interactive process.  Everyone was encouraged to speak his mind particularly on those topics for which he was the acknowledged expert.  The archer, for example, explained where he would place his archers if he were attacking the fort.  The commander of the
ballistae
teams did the same.  They identified places where the enemy could establish his base camp, where he could form his battle lines, and how he could attempt to storm the fort.  They also thought long and hard about what deception and surprises they could incorporate into a plan to attack the fort.  Each of these possibilities was factored into the defensive plan that Vitulus was formulating and would announce in the coming week.

A key piece of hardware that Vitulus planned to incorporate into his defense was the caltrop, which is a small hand thrown metal device used to deny access to a specific area.  It is composed of four sharpened spikes attached to a common center.  When thrown, it rests on three spikes and presents the fourth point upright.  These devices had been around for years, but not yet fully incorporated into Legions’ operational planning.  Manius saw their value and managed to secure one for every member of his command.  Each Legionary carried one with him in the field.

On the fourth day, the recovery period from the long trip from Rome was over.  Vitulus sent out teams of men to cut and gather wooden poles to replace the gate and damaged parts of the wall.  He knew it could take as long as a month to make the repairs and add additional fortifications and did not want to be surprised while the work was in progress.  With that in mind, he gathered a 50-man cavalry escort and rode out to discover what was around the fort in terms of villages, forests, rivers and so forth.  His cavalry scouts provided a steady stream of information, but he needed to see for himself.