Publius Valerius Laevinus
Encyclopedia
Publius Valerius Laevinus was commander of the Roman forces at the Battle of Heraclea
in 280 BC, in which he was defeated by Pyrrhus of Epirus
. In his Life of Pyrrhus
, Plutarch
wrote that Caius Fabricius said of this battle that it was not the Epirots
who had beaten the Romans, but only Pyrrhus who had beaten Laevinus.
Laevinus was consul
, along with Tiberius Coruncanius
, in 280 BC
.
Battle of Heraclea
The Battle of Heraclea took place in 280 BC between the Romans under the command of Consul Publius Valerius Laevinus and the combined forces of Greeks from Epirus, Tarentum, Thurii, Metapontum, and Heraclea under the command of King Pyrrhus of Epirus....
in 280 BC, in which he was defeated by Pyrrhus of Epirus
Pyrrhus of Epirus
Pyrrhus or Pyrrhos was a Greek general and statesman of the Hellenistic era. He was king of the Greek tribe of Molossians, of the royal Aeacid house , and later he became king of Epirus and Macedon . He was one of the strongest opponents of early Rome...
. In his Life of Pyrrhus
Parallel Lives
Plutarch's Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans, commonly called Parallel Lives or Plutarch's Lives, is a series of biographies of famous men, arranged in tandem to illuminate their common moral virtues or failings, written in the late 1st century...
, Plutarch
Plutarch
Plutarch then named, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. 46 – 120 AD, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
wrote that Caius Fabricius said of this battle that it was not the Epirots
Epirus
The name Epirus, from the Greek "Ήπειρος" meaning continent may refer to:-Geographical:* Epirus - a historical and geographical region of the southwestern Balkans, straddling modern Greece and Albania...
who had beaten the Romans, but only Pyrrhus who had beaten Laevinus.
Laevinus was consul
Consul
Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...
, along with Tiberius Coruncanius
Tiberius Coruncanius
Tiberius Coruncanius was Roman consul, and military commander in 280 BC – 279 BC, who was known for his military contests with Pyrrhus...
, in 280 BC
280 BC
Year 280 BC was a year of the pre-Julian Roman calendar. At the time it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Laevinus and Coruncanius...
.
Sources
- The Life of Pyrrhus by PlutarchPlutarchPlutarch then named, on his becoming a Roman citizen, Lucius Mestrius Plutarchus , c. 46 – 120 AD, was a Greek historian, biographer, essayist, and Middle Platonist known primarily for his Parallel Lives and Moralia...
http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Pyrrhus*.htmlhttp://classics.mit.edu/Plutarch/pyrrhus.html