Livy: Periochae 81-85

L. Sulla Athenas, quas Archelaus, praefectus Mithridatis, occupaverat, circumsedente et cum magno labore expugnavere [lacuna] urbi libertatem et, quae habuerat, reddidit.

Magnesia, quae sola in Asia civitas in fide manserat, summa virtute adversus Mithridaten defensa est.

Praeterea excursiones Thracum in Macedoniam continet.

[87 BCE] Lucius Sulla besieged Athens, which had been occupied by Archelaus, an officer of Mithridates; [86] after much labor he took the city [...] he gave it back the freedom it used to have.

Magnesia, the only city in Asia that remained loyal, was defended against Mithridates with the greatest courage.

It [book 81] also contains an account of Thracian raids into Macedonia.

Sulla copias regis, quae Macedonia occupata in Thessaliam venerant, proelio vicit, caesis hostium C milia et castris quoque expugnatis. Renovato deinde bello iterum exercitum regis fudit ac delevit.

Archelaus cum classe regia Sullae se tradidit.

L. Valerius Flaccus cos., collega Cinnae, missus ut Sullae succederet, propter avaritiam invisus exercitui suo a C. Fimbria, legato ipsius, ultimae audaciae homine, occisus est et imperium ad Fimbriam translatum.

Praeterea expugnatae in Asia urbes a Mithridate et crudeliter direpta provincia, incursiones Thracum in Macedoniam referuntur.

Sulla defeated in battle the army of the king, which had occupied Macedonia and entered Thessalia. 100,000 enemies were killed and the camp was captured. Later, the war was renewed and Sulla defeated and destroyed a second army of the king.

Archelaus and the royal navy surrendered to Sulla.

Because of his avarice, consul Lucius Valerius Flaccus, the colleague of Cinna, who was sent out to replace Sulla, was impopular with his army, and he was murdered by his own deputy, Gaius Fimbria, an utterly reckless man, and the command was transferred to Fimbria.

It [book 82] also contains accounts of Mithridates' attack on the cities in Asia, the ruin of that province, and Thracian raids into Macedonia.

Fl. Fimbria in Asia fusis proelio aliquot praefectis Mithridatis urbem Pergamum cepit obsessumque regem non multum afuit quin caperet. Urbem Ilium, quae se potestati Sullae reservabat, expugnavit ac delevit et magnam partem Asiae recepit.

Sulla compluribus proeliis Thracas cecidit.

Cum L. Cinna et Cn. Papirius Carbo, a se ipsis coss. per biennium creati, bellum contra Sullam praepararent, effectum est per L. Valerium Flaccum (principem senatus) qui orationem in senatu habuit, et per eos qui concordiae studebant, ut legati ad Sullam de pace mitterentur. Cinna ab exercitu suo, quem invitum cogebat naves conscendere et adversus Sullam proficisci, interfectus est. Consulatum Carbo solus gessit.

Sulla cum in Asiam traiecisset, pacem cum Mithridate fecit ita ut his cederet provinciis: Asia, Bithynia, Cappadocia.

Fimbria desertus ab exercitu qui ad Sullam transierat, ipse se percussit impetravitque de servo suo, praebens cervicem, ut se occideret.

After defeating in Asia several commanders of Mithridates in battle, Flavius Fimbria captured the city of Pergamon, and narrowly failed to arrest the king he was besieging. He also took and sacked the city of Troy, which was waiting to surrender to Sulla, and recovered a large part of Asia.

Sulla crushed the Thracians in many battles.

[85] When Lucius Cinna and Gnaeus Papirius Carbo, who had made themselves consuls for two years, were preparing the war against Sulla, Lucius Valerius Flaccus (the princeps of the Senate) delivered a speech in the Senate and, with the help of those who were pressing for unity, made sure that envoys were sent to Sulla to discuss peace. [84] Cinna was killed by his own army, which he had tried to force against its will to board ships and set out against Sulla. Carbo was now sole consul.

[85] Sulla crossed into Asia and made peace with Mithridates, so that he ceded the provinces of Asia, Bithynia, and Cappadocia.

Fimbria, left by his army, which sided with Sulla, stabbed himself, offered his neck to a slave, and persuaded the latter to kill him.

Sulla legatis, qui a senatu missi erant, futurum se in potestate senatus respondit, si cives, qui pulsi a Cinna ad se confugerant, restituerentur. Quae condicio cum iusta senatui videretur, per Carbonem factionemque eius, cui bellum videbatur utilius, ne conveniret effectum est. Idem Carbo cum ab omnibus Italiae oppidis coloniisque obsides exigere vellet, ut fidem eorum contra Sullam obligaret, consensu senatus prohibitus est.

Novis civibus S.C. suffragium datum est.

Q. Metellus Pius, qui partes optimatium secutus erat, cum in Africa bellum moliretur, a C. Fabio praetore pulsus est, senatusque consultum per factionem Carbonis et Marianarum partium factum est, ut omnes ubique exercitus dimitterentur.

Libertini in quinque et XXX tribus distributi sunt.

Praeterea belli apparatum, quod contra Sullam excitabatur, continet.

Sulla replied to the envoys who had been sent by the Senate that he would submit to the authority of the Senate if the rights of the citizens who had been expelled by Cinna and fled to him, were restored. Although this demand appeared to be reasonable to the Senate, Carbo and his faction, to whom war seemed more useful, prevented an agreement. When the same Carbo wanted to ask for hostages from all Italian towns and colonies, to secure their loyalty against Sulla, this was prevented by a unified Senate.

By senatorial decree, the new citizens received the right to vote.

After Quintus Metellus Pius, who had embraced the politics of the optimates and provoked a war in Africa, had been defeated by praetor Gaius Fabius, the faction of Carbo and the adherents of Marius passed a senatorial decree that all armies everywhere ought to be disbanded.

Freedmen were registered in the thirty-five voting districts.

It [book 84] also contains an account of the preparations of the war that was to be launched against Sulla.

Sulla in Italiam cum exercitu traiecit, missisque legatis, qui de pace agerent, et ab cos. C. Norbano violatis eumdem Norbanum proelio vicit. Et cum L. Scipionis (alterius cos.) cum quo per omnia id egerat ut pacem iungeret nec potuerat, castra oppugnaturus esset, universus exercitus consulis, sollicitatus per emissos a Sulla milites, signa ad Sullam transtulit. Scipio cum occidi posset, dimissus est.

Cn. Pompeius (Cn. Pompei eius qui Asculum ceperat filius) conscripto voluntariorum exercitum cum tribus legionibus ad Sullam venerat, ad quem se nobilitas omnis conferebat, ita ut deserta urbe ad castra veniretur.

Praeterea expeditiones per totam Italiam utriusque partis ducum referuntur.

Gnaeus Pompey (the son of the Gnaeus Pompeius who had captured Asculum) conscripted a three-legion army of volunteers and went to Sulla, to whom all leading men of Rome made their way as well, and because of this going to the camp, the city seemed abandoned.

It [book 84] also contains an account of the expeditions of war leaders of both sides all over Italy.