Publius Rutilius Lupus was a

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throu ...

of 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 ...

in 90 BC. The Social Wars broke out the year before his consulship. His colleague, Lucius Julius Caesar, was sent out to face 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 ...

, while Lupus was to fight the

Marsi The Marsi were an Italic people of ancient Italy, whose chief centre was Marruvium, on the eastern shore of Lake Fucinus (which was drained for agricultural land in the late 19th century). The area in which they lived is now called Marsica. D ...

. He chose

Gaius Marius Gaius Marius (; – 13 January 86 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. Victor of the Cimbric and Jugurthine wars, he held the office of consul an unprecedented seven times during his career. He was also noted for his important refor ...

(who was a relative of his) as his senior

legate Legate may refer to: * Legatus, a higher ranking general officer of the Roman army drawn from among the senatorial class :*Legatus Augusti pro praetore, a provincial governor in the Roman Imperial period *A member of a legation *A representative, ...

. Marius advised him to train his inexperienced troops more before meeting the enemy in battle, but Rutilius ignored this advice. Rutilius advanced and divided his troops between himself and Marius in order to build two bridges to cross the river Tolenus. The Marsic commander, Titus Vettius Scato, was encamped on the other side. He placed a thin screen of troops near the bridge of Marius and with his main body he lay in wait near Lupus's bridge. The following morning, Lupus fell into the trap and lost most of his army, some 8,000 men; he himself received a fatal wound to the head. Marius noticed bodies floating down the river and so crossed and captured the poorly defended enemy camp. The battle was fought on the feast of Matralia: 11 June 90 BC.

References

Sources

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 ...

, ''Civil Wars,'
43.
*

Livy Titus Livius (; 59 BC – AD 17), known in English as Livy ( ), was a Roman historian. He wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people, titled , covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome before the traditional founding in ...

, '' Epitomes''
73.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rutilius Lupus, Publius 2nd-century BC births Year of birth uncertain 90 BC deaths 1st-century BC Roman consuls Ancient Roman generals Roman consuls who died in office Roman generals killed in action Lupus, Publius