Numerius Fabius Ambust

Numerius Fabius belonged to one of the most noble and influential patrician clans of Rome. Later sources built the family tree of Fabiev to the son of Heracles and the Italian nymph , claiming that at the beginning this family was called Fodia (from the Latin fodere - dig), because its representatives used wild holes to catch wild animals ^[1] . Antikoved called this explanation “unusual enough to be true” ^[2] .

Numerius Fabius was one of the three sons of Marc Fabius Vibulan , consul of 442 BC. e., and the grandson of the only Fabius who survived after the disaster at Kremer in 477 BC. e. - Quinta Fabius Vibulan ^[3] . The brothers Numeria, Caeson and Quintus, were also repeatedly elected by military tribunes in different years ^{[4] [5]} .

In 406 BC e. Numerius Fabius was one of four military tribunes with consular power ^[6] . By the decision of the Senate, the tribunals submitted to the People’s Assembly a proposal to declare war on the Weyam , as Roman ambassadors were offended in this city. But the plebeians rejected this proposal. Subsequently, the stands fought with the Volsk . Fabius acted in the direction of the main blow: he besieged Anksur. When the fate of the city had already been decided, Fabius waited for his colleagues Publius Cornelius Rutil Coss and Lucius Valery Potit to give all three armies the opportunity to rob Anksur. The captured rich booty went to the legionnaires , who, moreover, for the first time in the history of Rome received a salary for this year ^{[7] [8]} . This significantly improved the relationship between the plebeians and the patricians, in particular, allowing the senate to nevertheless begin a war with the Wei ^[3] .

In 398, Numerius Fabius was an ambassador to the Delphic temple ^[9] ; in 391, when the Gauls invaded Italy, the Senate sent precisely to them Numeria and his brothers, demanding that they not attack Rome’s friends and allies. According to Libya , the ambassadors themselves turned out to be “violent and more like galls than Romans” ^[10] , and this influenced the outcome of the case. First, the ambassadors flared up during the negotiations, and then took part in hostilities on the side of the Etruscans. In this situation, the Gauls demanded that the Senate give them three Fabians as violators of the “right of peoples”. The Senate recognized the claim as fair, but referred the matter to the assembly of the people, and in the end, thanks to the “personalities and bribery” Fabia was not only not extradited, but even became the military tribune of the following year (390 BC) ^[11] . Such an outcome, according to ancient sources, was the reason for the capture of Rome by the Gauls ^{[12] [13] [14]} .

The stands (except Fabiev, it was Quint Servili Fidenat , Quint Sulpicius Long and Servius Cornelius Maluginsky ^[11] ) came forward to meet the enemy, but on the eve of the battle of Allia they did not build a camp, and in battle they could not provide organized resistance to the Gauls ^[15] .

The son of Noumeria Fabius was Mark Fabius Ambust , three times consul ^[16] .

Sources

1. Diodorus of Sicily. Historical Library (Neopr.) . Site "Symposium". Date of treatment January 5, 2017.
2. Titus Livy. The history of Rome from the foundation of the city. - M .: Nauka, 1989 .-- T. 1. - 576 p. - ISBN 5-02-008995-8 .
3. Plutarch. Comparative biographies. - M .: Nauka, 1994 .-- T. 1 .-- 704 p. - ISBN 5-02-011570-3 .

Literature

1. Broughton T. Magistrates of the Roman Republic. - New York, 1951. - Vol. I. - P. 600.
2. Münzer F. Fabius 42 // RE. - 1909. - Bd. VI, 2. - S. 1752-1753.
3. Münzer F. Fabius 44 // RE. - 1909. - Bd. VI, 2. - S. 1753-1756.
4. Münzer F. Fabius 45 // RE. - 1909. - Bd. VI, 2. - S. 1756.
5. Münzer F. Fabius 48 // RE. - 1909. - Bd. VI, 2. - S. 1756-1759.
6. Wiseman T. Legendary Genealogies in Late-Republican Rome // G&R. - 1974. - Vol. 21, No. 2 . - P. 153-164.