After the expulsion of the Tarquins and the difficult war with Porsena, Rome was very weakened. His neighbors took advantage of this and began to attack the Romans from all sides. A particularly stubborn enemy was the Etruscan city of Veii, which was aided by many other Etruscans. The Roman army, led by both consuls Marcus Fabius and Gnaeus Manlius, moved against them. In Rome at this time, discord was still ongoing between the patricians and the plebeians, and the unrest spread to the army. Therefore, when the Romans and Etruscans stood against each other in battle formation, Fabius wanted to test his soldiers before the battle. He decided not to give the signal to move until the soldiers swore to return from the battle as winners, because they could deceive the consul, but they could not deceive the gods. Hearing this, the centurion Marcus Flavoley was the first to declare that he would win this battle, and called upon himself the wrath of Jupiter, Mars and other gods if he lied. Following him, other Romans took the same oath. And although in a fierce battle military fortune more than once tilted to one side or the other, the Romans still won. In the front ranks of those fighting, warriors from the Fabian family were distinguished by their special courage. Quintus Fabius fell, pierced by a sword. The consul Manlius died at the hands of the enemy, but his comrade-in-arms Marcus Fabius repulsed the enemies. Everyone glorified both the fallen Quintus and the victorious Mark.
The following year, Caeso Fabius was elected consul. He came to the aid of his colleague, who was being pressed by the Etruscans, and they stopped engaging in open battles with the Romans. At the sight of Roman soldiers, they went into the city, and in the absence of the army they ravaged the fields of the Romans. At the same time, other neighbors began to threaten Rome, so the Romans could not send a large army against the Etruscans. And then the Fabi family got down to business.
One day the Romans saw how all the Fabii, forming a military detachment, moved towards the Senate. The consul walked ahead, fully armed. He entered the curia, and the rest, as was customary, stood outside the door, awaiting the outcome of the matter. Caeso said that the Fabii were ready to fight the Veienti alone, without demanding money or additional soldiers from the state, and they guaranteed that the greatness of Rome would not suffer. The senators happily welcomed the Fabiyev's decision. When Caeso left the curia and announced the consent of the senate, his relatives rejoiced. The consul ordered them to disperse today and the next day to approach his house in full armor. Ordinary Romans, having learned about this event, began to glorify the brave family.
The next morning the armed Fabii approached Caeso's house and formed up for the march. Caeson left the house in a military cloak, stood in the middle of the line and gave the order to march. The detachment moved through the streets of Rome. People flocked from everywhere, among whom were many relatives and people dependent on the Fabians. The latter numbered about five thousand. They, too, were ready to follow the Fabii. But the Fabii still decided to take upon themselves the burden of protecting their homeland from the predatory raids of the Etruscans. Those accompanying him wished the Fabii happiness, a safe return and future honors. Passing by each temple, everyone said a prayer to the gods for the success of Fabi's enterprise. The Fabii left Rome through the Carmental Gate. They approached the Cremere River, the right tributary of the Tiber, and decided to build a fortification here in order to prevent the actions of the Etruscans.
The year ended, Caeso Fabius ceased to be consul, but Fabius continued to guard the Roman border. Over time, having grown bolder, they themselves began to penetrate Veyent territory. This is what the Etruscans decided to take advantage of. In the third year of the confrontation, they came up with this trick. When the Fabii left their fortification, they released cattle to meet them, the neighboring peasants fled, and the armed detachments of the Veienti also retreated, luring the Romans.
One day the Fabii saw a herd grazing and decided to take it away from their enemies. They went out into the open field and began to catch the scattering cows. The Fabii did not notice that a large Etruscan detachment was hiding in ambush. Passionate about catching livestock, they violated the military order and scattered into separate groups. And then the Etruscans jumped out of the ambush. They surrounded the Fabii and began to throw spears and arrows at them. Seeing that they were surrounded on all sides by enemies, the Fabii formed a ring to repel the attackers. Over time, the number of Etruscans, to whom more and more new detachments came to the aid, increased, and the number of Fabii decreased. Then the Fabii changed tactics. They stopped fighting back from all sides, but lined up so that they could break through in one direction. Their pressure was so furious and strong that they managed to break through the ranks of enemies much superior in number.
The Fabii broke through to the hill and occupied it. Their position was so convenient that they even began to push back the Etruscans themselves. But a new detachment came to support the fighting Veients. While the Fabii fought with the first detachment, the new one climbed the hill and attacked the Fabii from the rear. And the Fabii courageously turned against the new enemy. But the forces were unequal. All three hundred and six Fabii heroically fell in an unequal battle. This could have ended the glorious family if, before leaving for the war, Fabia had not left at home one of the young men - Quintus, who had not yet reached the age of a warrior. He became the successor of the family. Ten years later, Quintus Fabius became consul. And many more times the Fabii became consuls, and many of the Fabii brought glory to the state.
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru