Metaurus
Metaurus is an Italian river that flows for approximately sixty-eight miles into the Adriatic Sea, located just south of the city of Fano. It gained historical significance during the Second Punic War, particularly in 207 BC, when it was the site of a pivotal battle between Roman forces and the Carthaginian army. During this conflict, Roman consuls Gaius Claudius Nero and Marcus Livius Salinator sought to prevent the unification of Carthaginian brothers Hannibal and Hasdrubal, who was advancing from Spain with reinforcements. The Roman commanders executed a strategic maneuver to confront Hasdrubal before he could join forces with Hannibal. The battle concluded decisively with a Roman victory; Hasdrubal's army was largely destroyed, and he was killed on the battlefield. This defeat forced Hannibal to retreat and marked a turning point in the war, leading Rome toward eventual victory over Carthage. The battle at Metaurus is often noted for its tactical significance and the dramatic nature of its outcome.
Subject Terms
Metaurus
(Metauro)
An Italian river that rises in the Etruscan Apennines and flows for sixty-eight miles into the Adriatic Sea just south of Fanum Fortunae (Fano).
In 207 BC it was the scene of one of the decisive battles of the Second Punic War (218–201). Hannibal, whose invasion of the peninsula had already lasted eleven years, was in southern Italy, watched by one of the Roman consuls, Gaius Claudius Nero. Hannibal's brother Hasdrubal, who had come from Spain to bring reinforcements, found himself confronted by the army of the other consul, Marcus Livius Salinator, beside the Metaurus. Learning from a captured dispatch rider that the Carthaginian brothers intended to meet in Umbria, Nero boldly proceeded north, by forced marches, in order that his and his colleague's combined armies might engage and defeat Hasdrubal before Hannibal discovered that the two consuls had joined forces. Although the subsequent course of events is controversial, it seems likely that Hasdrubal withdrew inland up the Metaurus valley by night, with the intention of crossing the river; but before (or perhaps after?) he had done this he was compelled to fight. The engagement, however, came to a decisive end when a determined attack delivered by both Roman commanders outflanked his left wing.
Hasdrubal's army was destroyed, and he perished on the battlefield. Speedily returning to southern Italy, Nero acquainted Hannibal with the news by flinging his brother's head into his camp at Larinum (Larino). Hannibal was then compelled to retreat into Bruttii (the modern Calabria), without any hope of replenishing his forces; and Rome's final victory was in sight.