A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

1232 VARUS. VATIA.
aware of his danger. He resolved to destroy 14. QUINTILIUS VARUS, probably the son of
almost all his baggage and to make for the strong No. 13, was accused by Domitius Afer in A.D. 27.
fortress of Aliso, which had been erected by Drusus (Tac. Hist. iv. 66.) He is called by Tacitus the
on the Lippe. His first camp was probably in the propinquus of the emperor Tiberius; and we learn
neighbourhood of Salzufeln; and in order to reach from Seneca, who had heard Varus declaiming,
Aliso he had to force his way through the pass in that he was the son-in-law of Germanicus. (Senec.
the neighbourhood of Detmold. His second day's Controv. 4.) Varus may also have been called
march was one uninterrupted fight from morning to the propinquus of Tiberius, because his mother
night, and the contracted extent of the camp, which Claudia Pulchra was the sobrina of Agrippina.
he pitched at the close of the day, told Gerinanicus (Tac. Ann. iv. 52, 66.)
that his numbers had been already greatly reduced. VARUS, C. VI'BIUS, whose name occurs
On the morning of the third day Varus continued only on coins, a specimen of which is annexed. On
his march. His difficulties increased more and the obverse is the head of M. Antonius, and on the
more. The roads were rendered almost impassable reverse Venus holding a figure of Victory in one
by the rain which descended in torrents: but hand and a cornucopia in the other. This Varus
nevertheless the Romans struggled on, though must have been triumvir of the mint or have held
with continually increasing losses, and at last some magistracy after the death of Julius Caesar
emerged from the woods into the open country, and the commencement of the triumvirate, as is
probably in the neighbourhood of Kreuzburg and shown by the beard of M. Antonius, which he
Osterholz. Here, however, the main force of the allowed to grow at the beginning of the triumGermans was ready to receive them. With di- virate. (Eckhel, vol. v. p. 342.) The name of Vibius
minished numbers and exhausted bodies, they were Varus occurs in the reign of Hadrian: there was a
unable to penetrate through the vast hosts which C. Vibius Juventius Varus, who was consul in
surrounded them on all sides. The fight at length A. D. 134.
became a slaughter; the Romars could no longer
preserve their ranks; Vasus in despair put an end
to his own life. Very few of the Romans succeeded in escaping to Aliso. Most perished on
the field, but several were taken prisoners. Of
these the most distinguished were sacrificed by
Arminius to the gods of his country at altars in the
forests; and the remainder were reduced to slavery.
The ferocity of the enemy did not even spare the
dead; the corpse of Varus was mangled, and his COIN OF C. VIBIUS VARUS.
bead cut off and forwarded, as a sign of victory, to VAISIUS, T. one of the conspirators against
Maroboduns, king of the Marcomanni, who, how- Q. Cassius Longinus, propraetor of Further Spain,
ever, sent it to Augustus. The defeat of Varus was in B.C. 48. (Hirt. B. Alex. 42.) [ILONG'INUS,
followed by the loss of all the Roman possessions No. 15.]
between the Weser and the Rhine, and the latter VA'TIA, the name of a family of the Servila
river again became the boundary of the Roman do- Gens.
minions. When the news of this defeat reached 1. P. SERVILIUS C. F. M. N. VATI, surnamed
Rome, the whole city was thrown into conster- ISAURICUS, was the grandson of Q. Metellus Manation; and Augustus, who was both weak and cedonicus. (Cic. pro Dome. 47.) He is first menaged, gave way to the most violent grief, tearing tioned in. C. 100, where he took up arms with
his garment and calling upon Varus to give him the other Roman nobles against Saturnlinus. (Cic.
back his legions. Orders were issued as if the pro C. Rabir. perd. 7.) He was raised to the convery empire was in danger; and Tiberius was de- sulship by Sulla in B. C. 79, along with Ap. Clauspatched with a veteran army to the Rhine. (Dion dius Pulcher, and in the followiIlg year (B. c. C78)
Cass. lvi. 18-25; Vell. Pat. ii. 117-120; Suet. was sent as proconsul to Cilicia, with a powerful
Aug. 23, Tib. 16, 17; Flor. iv. 12; Tac. Ann. i. fleet and army, in order to clear the seas of the
60, 61, 71.) The history of the defeat of Varus pirates, whose ravages now spread far and wide. He
has been treated by a great number of German was a man of integrity, resolution, and energy, and
writers, who have maintained very different views carried on the war with great ability and success.
respecting the locality of his defeat. The best ac- At first he sailed against the pirates, and defeated
count in a brief compass is given by Hickh, Ri- them in a naval engagement off the coast of Cilicia.
mische GcschiclAte, vol. i. pt. ii. p. 84, feoll., and by The pirates then abandoned the sea and took reUkert, Geographic der Griechen und Rinmer, vol. iii. fuge in their strongholds among the mountains
pt. i. p. 124, feoll., in the latter of which works a which skirt the southern coast of Asia Minor.
list of all the treatises on the subject is given. Servilius proceeded to attack their fortresses, which
The following coin was struck by Varus when were defended with the greatest obstinacy and
lie was proconsul of Syria. courage. We have only fragm ntary accounts of
this war, which occupied Servilius about three
years; but it appears that the Romans experienced
all the sufferings and dangers to which regular
-4a A\ 5 Ad gtroops are generally exposed in a warfare among
mountains defended by brave and hardy inhabitants. Servilius, after landing, first took Olympus,
a town of Lycia, situated on a mountain of the
same name, which was resolutely defended by a
robber chief, called Zenicetus, who perished with
COIN OF r. QU1NTILiULS VAIUS. his followers in the flames of the place. ie lnext