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

698 LABIENTTS. LABIENUS.
general character of Labienus has been sufficiently These successes at length roused Antony from
shown by the above sketch: he seems to have his inactivity. He sent an army into Asia Minor
been a vain, haughty, headstrong man; nothing in B. c. 39, commanded by P. Ventidius, the most
is recorded of him which exhibits him in a favour- able of his legates, who suddenly came upon Laable light; and with the exception of his military bienus before the latter had received any intelliabilities, which were not, however, of the highest gence of his approach. Not having any of his
order, he possessed nothing to distinguish him Parthian allies with him, he dared not meet Venfrom the general mass of the Roman nobles of his tidius in the field, and, accordingly, fled with the
time. (Dion Cass. xliii. 30, 38; Flor. iv. 2; utmost haste towards Syria, to effect a junction
Appian, B. C. ii. 105; Auctor,'B. Hisp. 18, 31.) with Pacorus. This, however, was prevented by
3. Q. LABIENUS, the son of the preceding, the rapid pursuit of Ventidius, who came up with
joined the party of Brutus and Cassius after the him by Mount Taurus, and stopped him from admurder of Caesar (B. C. 44), and was sent by them vancing further. Here both parties remained for
into Parthia to seek aid from Orodes, the Parthian some days, Ventidius waiting for his heavy-armed
king. [ARsAcES XIV.] Here he remained for a troops, and Labienus the arrival of the Parthians.
considerable time, and before he could obtain any The latter marched to his assistance, but weredefinite answer from Orodes, the news came of the defeated by Ventidius before they joined Labienus,
battle of Philippi (B. C. 42). Seeing that the whom they then deserted, and fled into Cilicia. In
triumvirs were resolved to spare none of their op- these circumstances Labienus, not daring to engage
ponents, Labienus made up his mind to continue with Ventidius, abandoned his men, and fled in
in Parthia; but circumstances soon occurred which disguise into Cilicia. Here he remained concealed
enabled him to take revenge upon the victorious for some time, but was at length apprehended by
party. The attention of Octavian was fully en- Demetrius, a freedman of Octavian, and put to
gaged by the affairs of Italy and the war against death. It would appear, from a statement of
Sex. Pompey; and Antony, to whom the govern- Strabo (xiv. p. 600), that this Labienus possessed
ment of the East had devolved, -had retired to the same arrogance and vehemence of temper
Egypt, captivated by the charms of Cleopatra, and which distinguished his father. (Dion Cass. xlviii.
careless about every thing else. Labienus per- 24-2f, 39, 40; Liv. poit. cxxvii.; Flor. iv. 9;
suaded Orodes to embrace this favourable oppor- Vell. Pat. ii. 78; Plut. Ant. 30, 33; Appian,
tunity for the invasion of the Roman provinces B. C. v. 65, 133; Justin, xlii. 4.) The coin anin Asia; and accordingly the Parthian king en- nexed has on the obverse the head of Labienus,
trusted to him and Pacorus a large army for the with the legend Q. LABIENVS PARTHICVS IMP., and
purpose. They crossed the Euphrates, and in- on the reverse a horse, which refers clearly to the
vaded Syria, in B. c. 40. At first they were celebrated cavalry of the Parthians. (Eckhel, vol.
repulsed from the walls of Apameia; but as al- v. p. 146.)
most all the fortified places were garrisoned by the
old soldiers of Brutus and Cassius, who had joined
the army of the triumvirs after the victory of the
latter, Labienus and Pacorus met with little resist-
ance. Most of these troops joined their banners;,
but their commander, Decidius Saxa, continued
firm in his allegiance to Antony. He was, how- -__P Y oo
ever, easily overcome in battle; and as the fruit of COIN OF Q. LABIENUS.
this victory, Labienus and the Parthians obtained
possession of the two great towns of Antioch and 4. LABIE.US was one of those included in the
Apameia, While Pacorus remained with the proscription of the triumvirs in B.c. 43, but we
Parthians in Syria, to complete the subjugation of know not whether he was in any way connected
the country, advancing for that object as far south with the other persons of this name. It is related
as Palestine, Labienus, with the Roman troops he of him that he had taken an active part in aphad collected, entered Asia Minor in pursuit of prehending and killing those who had been proSaxa, whom he overtook and slew in Cilicia, and scribed by Sulla; and deeming it disgraceful not
then proceeded along the south of Asia Minor, to meet a similar fate with courage, he seated himreceiving the submission of almost all the cities in self in front of his house, and quietly waited for
his way. The only resistance he experienced was the assassins. (Appian, B. C. iv. 26.) Whether
from Alabanda, Mylasa, and Stratoniceia; the two this Labienus is the same as the one whose place
former of which he took by force [compare HY- of concealment his freedmen could be induced by
BREAS], while the latter successfully resisted all his no tortures to reveal (Macrob. Saturn. i. 11), is
efforts. Hereupon he assumed the name of Par- doubtful: the account of Appian would imply that
thian imperator, a title which we also find upon they were two different persons, as the former did
his coins, as is mentioned below. In adopting this not seek to conceal himself.
title, Dion Cassius remarks (xlviii. 26), Labienus 5. T. LABIENUS, a celebrated orator and hisdeparted from the custom of all Roman command- torian in the reign. of Augustus, appears to have
ers, who were wont to take such titles from the been either the son or grandson of the Labienus
names of the people whom they conquered, of who deserted Julius Caesar. [No. 3.] He retained
which we have examples in Scipio Africanus, Ser- all the republican feelings of his family, and, unlike
vilius Isauricus, Fabius Allobrogicus, and the like, most of his contemporaries, never became reconciled
while Labienus, on the contrary, assumed his from to the imperial government, but took every opthe victorious nation. It was in reference to this portunity to attack Augustus and his friends. In
that Hybreas, when he was defending Mylasus, consequence of his bitterness he received the nicksent Labienus the taunting message that he would name of Rabienus from the imperial party. He
call himself the Carian imperator. was an. intimate friend of Cassius Severus, and an