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Livy XXX 12 (continued):
"She was a striking beauty in the prime of her life. So when, for once his knees and then his right hand comprehensing, urgent asked for his word that she would not be extradited and her words were more like caresses than supplication, the heart of the victor was not only moved by pity, but the innate flammability of Numidians, he was overwhelmed by love for his prisoner.
He gave her his right hand as collateral for granting her request
and went into the palace.
Then he began to think about how he
could stand his promise given.
When he could not find a solution, he was inspired by
his love for an
equally reckless and shameless plan: he
commanded suddenly to organise a wedding who then for Laelius and Scipio
prevent for action against a prisoner who now was by a wedding married to Masinissa."
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Appianus.
The Punic Wars V,27 (vervolg):
Masinissa accepted
her explanations gladly and married her; but when he returned to Scipio he
left her at Cirta, forseeing apparently what would happen.”
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Appianus.
The Punic Wars V,27 (vervolg):
Scipio asked Syphax: ‘What evil genius misled
you, after inviting me as your friend to come to Africa, and caused you to
break your faith to the gods by whom you swore and the Roman people, and to
join the Carthaginians in making war against us, when not long before we were
helping you against the Carthaginians?’
Syphax replied:
‘Sophonsiba, the daughter of Hasdrubal, with whom I fell in love to my hurt,
is passionately attached to her country, and she is able to make everybody
subservient to her wishes. She turned me away from your friendship to that of
her own country and plunged me from that state of good fortune into my
present misery. I advise you (for now, being on your side and rid of
Sophonisba, I must be faithful to you) to beware of Sophonisba lest she draw
Masinissa over to her designs, for it is not to be expected that this woman
will ever choose the Roman side, so strongly is she attached to her own
country.’ “
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Livy XXX 13:
"--- He has been out of his mind, and then had all the personal guest and official friendship treaties banished from his mind when he pulled a woman from Carthage in the house. Through that marriage torch his guesthouse went up in flames, that fury and plague had all the temptations his mind distracted and alienated from themselves, and she did not hesitate before she singlehandedly wicked weapons against his guest and personal friend had attracted. It was for him in his hopeless, miserable condition, however, a consolation to see that the same hate and fury was transferred to the home of his greatest enemy. Masinissa was no wiser or firmer than Syphax, even more careless due to his youth: in any case, his marriage with her was stupid and had been wilder than his own. " |
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Appianus.
The Punic Wars. V,28:
“So he
spoke (Syphax), but whether he was telling the truth or was moved by jealousy
and a desire to hurt Masinissa as much as possible, is not known. But Scipio
called Syphax to the council, as he had shown himself sagacious and was
acquainted with the country, and took counsel with him as Cyrus did with
Croesus, king of
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Livy XXX 15:
"---- Disappointed he (Masinissa) went from the headquarters to his tent. There he removed all the witnesses and spent some time with many sighs and groans, which was good to hear by the guys around his tent. Finally, he let out a wail and called a faithful servant who, according to the tradition of the kings had poison in his care for any emergency. He recommended to make a mix, bring it to Sophoniba, taking the message, that Masinissa would like to have kept the first promise, which he owed to his wife as a man. But since the rulers deprived him of the decision thereon, he kept his second promise: she would not be alive in the power of the Romans. Thinking of her father, the commander, to her hometown and to the two kings with whom she had been married, she had to take its destiny into its own hands. When the servant of this notice and at the same time showed the poison to Sophoniba she said, "I'll take the wedding gift. He's not even unwelcome, as my husband has nothing better to offer to his wife. But mention this: I would have had a better death if I was not married at my funeral." As violently as she spoke she took the cup and drank it without any sign of emotion fearlessly empty ----".. |
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Livy XXIX 23 (continued)
"But Hasdrubal always remembered the covenant that Scipio had made with the king and the unreliable and fickle nature of the barbarians, and feared that a crossing from Scipio to
That's why he brought the Numidian, now he was still in his
first love daze, using sweet
words of the girl to led
envoys to Scipio in Sicily to warn him that he is not on his earlier promises had
to cross out on confidence to Africa on earlier promisses.
He was by his marriage to a Carthaginian
citizeness - the
daughter of Hasdrubal he had seen a guest with
him - and, moreover, linked by a formal treaty with the people of
Therefore, he wished for everything that the Romans would perform as they had done so
far, their war against the
Carthaginians far from Africa so he was
not forced to participate
in their war record and join one or the other
army to and
thus to be infidelity
with the other convenant. When Scipio
would not stay in Africa away and his army
would come to Carthage, he could not do anything else than fight for the
African country in which he was
born, and fight for the home town of his
wife and her
father and her roommates.
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Zonaras B.IX, c.12:
"Fearing that
Masinissa would like to find his way to Scipio,
the Carthaginians tried to convince
Syphax to resign its heritage and at the same time regaining that
presented in
view. Masinissa saw through the stop well,
but he went on with the contract, to inflict under the mask of the reliability of his enemies great damage; for he was
angry with them more about Sophonisba, as to
the throne due. On the way, he
was actually an
ally of the Romans, while
he wore friendship for Carthage to the public; conversely was the case with Syphax, while he was in fact on the
part of the Carthaginians, apparently
an ally of the Romans; in this capacity he sent an embassy to Scipio and dissuaded
him to risk the
crossing. This learned Scipio in clandestine
dialogues with the Herald; to hide the news from
the soldiers, he made the
Herald depart on the same day,
before it has had time to get together with others; then he summoned his
army and accelerated the
crossing, by pretending the
Carthaginians were still not
prepared, and already
earlier Masinissa had forced the exit
and complained about the slowness of the Romans, and would do so Syphax
the same. After these words he drove off
and landed on the Apollonian promontory. "
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Polybius 14,1,7. World History.
"---- The Numidian prince (Syphax) and his aides had initially been planning on their retreat to go directly to their own area. But when they encountered to Abba Celtiberians over 4000 men as mercenaries who were recruited by the Carthaginians, they broke off their retreat, because these auxiliaries inspired in them confidence, and they started to get again some faith in the future Moreover, prayed and begged the girl, Hasdrubal's daughter, who, as I have said, the wife of Syphax, her husband not to go away, and in this critical situation not to let the Carthaginians down. The Numidian was persuaded and acceded to its request. " |
Livy XXX 6:
"---- It now began to be mobilize men in the city and in the country and envoys were sent to Syphax. He was itself with all its might busy with preparations for the war. His wife, not like before with caresses, which already had impact enough on her loving husband, but with prayers and lamentations used its influence, and tears exorcised her father and hometown not be left to their fate and that Carthage should not be destroyed by flames as was happened to the army camps. The envoys also brought encouraging news that came at the right time: they were encountered in a town called Obba 4000 Celtiberiërs ----- " |
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Livy XXX 12:
"--- When he entered the court, Sophoniba, the wife of Syphax and the daughter of the Punic Hasdrubal, rushed to meet him from the threshold. When she saw the multitude of soldiers around Masinissa who by his armor and subsequent appearance, she kept him for a king, fell down on his knees and said, "The gods, your courage and your lucky stars have brought to you all the power over our lives. But if a prisoner is allowed to elevate him who is master of her life and death, and touch his victorious right hand to her pleading voice, pray and I beg you in your royal majesty, which we recently also possessed by name of the people of the Numidians that you have shared with Syphax, the gods of the palace - that you may receive favorable signs from here then they have to leave Syphax - that if you grant me this favor as a suppliant: that you yourself decide over your prisoner what your heart tells you and me, but not to be a subject to the arrogant, cruel arbitrariness of some Roman. If I had been the wife of Syphax, nothing else, I'd prefer the word of a Numidian and a man born in |
Appianus.
The Punic Wars V,27:
“After this they entered the country of the
Massylians and the
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