Manius Curius Dentatus | |
|---|---|
 Curius Dentatus refusing wealth in favour of a turnip, as depicted byJacopo Amigoni | |
| Died | 270 BC |
| Occupation(s) | Roman general, statesman |
Manius Curius Dentatus (died 270 BC) was a Roman general and statesman noted for ending theSamnite War and for his military exploits during thePyrrhic War. According toPliny, he was born with teeth, thus earning the surname Dentatus, "toothed."[1]
Dentatus was atribune of the plebs sometime between 298 and 291 BC. As tribune, he foiled efforts by theinterrexAppius Claudius Caecus to keep plebeian candidates out of the consular elections. If his tribunate is dated to 291, his actions advanced his own candidacy, but since Appius served three times asinterrex, the earliest date accords better with the timeline of Dentatus's own career.[2]
Dentatus served his first term asconsul in 290 BC, with a colleague by the name of P. Cornelius Rufinus (cos. 290 and 277 BC, dict. 276 BC and ancestor ofLucius Cornelius Sulla Felix the dictator) during which time he defeated both theSamnites andSabines and celebrated twotriumphs.[3] Returning home he took on a massivepublic works project, partly drainingLake Velinus.
In 283, Dentatus filled thepraetorship (or possibly the consulship) ofL. Caecilius Metellus Denter after the latter was killed in theBattle of Arretium.Polybius says Dentatus drove the Gauls from their territory, clearing the way for the establishment of acolony at Sena.
As consul again in 275 BC, Dentatus foughtPyrrhus in the inconclusiveBattle of Beneventum which nevertheless forced Pyrrhus out of Italy. As a result, he held a consecutive consulship, defeating theLucani in the following year and earning anovation. He wascensor in 272, and in 270 he andLucius Papirius Cursor were elected commissioners[4] to oversee construction of theAnio Vetus, Rome's secondaqueduct, for which he used his personal share of the booty from his recent victories.[5] He died during the project, which was completed under his fellow commissionerM. Fulvius Flaccus.[6]
Dentatus is described as having been incorruptible and frugal; the story was that when the Samnites sent ambassadors with expensive gifts in an attempt to influence him in their favor, they found him sitting by the hearth roastingturnips. He refused the gifts, saying that he preferred ruling the possessors of gold over possessing it himself.[7][8] Although the truth of this story is unclear — it may have been an invention ofCato — it was the inspiration for a number ofpaintings byJacopo Amigoni,Govert Flinck, and others.
Hispraenomen is sometimes given erroneously as Marcus because the standard abbreviation of Manius (M'.) is confused with theM. that abbreviatesMarcus.
The Dutch Study Association 'S.V.T.B. Curius' atDelft University of Technology and its sub-association Dentatus are named after him.[9]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Roman consul 290 BC withPublius Cornelius Rufinus | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Roman consul II 275 BC withLucius Cornelius Lentulus Caudinus | Succeeded by himself Servius Cornelius Merenda |
| Preceded by | Roman consul III 274 BC withServius Cornelius Merenda | Succeeded by |