Consulate of Septimus and Scaeva - 541AVC

[dragoon47]

CURIA HOSTILIA, ROMA, ITALIA.
DXLI AB VRBE CONDITA





Ave, leading men of Rome! The Curia is open for it's first official session of the Year!
Censor
Term: 541AUC-542AUC
Lucius Valerius Poplicola(Dragoon47)
Consuls
Term: 541AUC - 542AUC.
Gaius Julius Septimus(AspisPhalanx90)
Spurius Geminius Scaeva([100]jplay.TGC)
Praetor
Term: 541AUC - 542AUC.
Lucius Gotenus Aequus(Gotenus)
Tribune
Term: 541AUC - 542AUC.
Titus Cassius Gerges(Crozimodo)
Provincial Governors
Term: 540AUC - 542AUC.
- Sardinia et Corsica.
Flavius Julius Corvenus(Maiar93)- Hispania.
Pallas Rutulus Aventinus(Chaplain118)- Macedonia.
- Sicilia.



I declare this session of our sacred Senate... OPEN!

[Gotenus]

Lucius enters the Curia and sits down, shaking hands and greeting people.

[Nota']

*Spurius motions for silence, and after a moment has everyone's attention*
Last term saw the republic expand further into Hispania, crippling Carthage's income and influence in the region. Our exploits have secured us income from some of Spains abundant mines, and also the burden of defending the area from vengeful Carthaginian raids, and possibly from the Spanish tribes, keen to regain territory lost years ago to the Carthaginians. They feared Carthage, but they are yet to savour Roman steel, this may make them bold, which could cause some audacious attacks on our borders.

The Macedonians at this very moment are attacking our Greek holdings once more. No doubt their current King wishes to match Alexanders conquests, and it should be a priority to make him fail miserably. We have a war on two fronts, so expansion may only be possible on one of these fronts.

To the north of Rome, the farmlands south of the alps are ill defended, and ripe for the picking. The tribes are weak and lack unity. Perhaps we should seize them before they put aside their differences and form an alliance, or are taken by a more powerful nation.

We have two legions in Spain, one allied and one made up of Romes finest cohorts. A third legion resides in Italy, for the purpose of defending Rome and the local area. This legion has been a source of debate in these halls, with some opposing its unorthodox makeup, however it has yet to be reformed.

Romes economy has been showing slight signs of strain, with her young men away fighting in the legions. For this reason recruitment from Rome should not be done casually. Senator Rutulus has put forward a motion that would relieve some of this strain from Rome, whilst simultaneously dealing with the illegal granting of Citizenship to the people of Ariminum. This motion shall be put to the vote during this term.

We must address these issues to insure Rome's continuing prosperity and expansion.

*Spurius sits, expecting Poplicola's now traditional Quaestorial reports, and perhaps a speech from a few other senior senators.*

[drecie14]

Titus enters the Curia. He looks around and spots a vacant seat.

"I see that Spurius has already begun his speech." He said to himself.

He sat down and listened to the speaker.

[Maiar93]

Flavius enters the Curia and sits to the nearest seat. He starts to listen Spurius's speech.

[AspisPhalanx90]

Gaius Julius Septimus strode into the chamber, eying Senators as he passed. He strode to the center of the chamber, and waited for his colleague to finish before beginning

Men of Rome, Men of the Senate....may Fortuna smile upon you all..

The threat of Carthage in Iberia has been nullified. Their armies ruined. I had the privilege of serving with both the now Censor Poplicola, and my esteemed colleague Consul Geminus Scaeva has even served with my legion.

I will not waste your time with a recap of what essentially was said by Consul Scaeva. Hispania for the time is secure, however we must not forget about it. I recommend giving the governor added funds to rebuild and establish a defense force against the barbarian tribes in the area, as well as possible Punic interference.

The Gauls south of the alps must be removed. They contributed to our enemy, Hannibal. They have laid waste to our lands in the past. They hold good lands that should belong to good Romans!

Then there is the Macedonians...those deceptive quasi-greeks...they must be driven back into their hills. Alexander has long been dead, they do not have the ability to match his skill and bravery. We defeated his closest contemporary, Pyrrhos, and now more greeks turn their eyes towards Roman lands. We have an able governor now, and Rome shall overcome.

So senators, then what shall we do? Where does rome's priorities lie? The Legions as well as myself await your direction. Rome's enemies shall be crushed, and Rome's beauty herself shall grow in prosperity and territory.

Septimus bowed to the chamber, and sat down

[Gotenus]

I do not know all the details in Hispania and Northern Italy, but I do know that the Illyrians detest Makedonian rule, and they took well to Roman guidance. There is gold to be had in the Balkans, and it would be easier to march our men from Italy to Greece. That said, we already have two legions in Spain, with even better gold mines. It may be easier to subdue Spain while we can, before the local tribes and the Carthaginians muster their forces together.

[Maiar93]

I agree.
OOC: Still, due to some that i don't know, the launcher says that i've done something wrong. I've reinstalled RSII and RTW for approx. 10 times, but it never works.

[Crozimodo]

The Tribune arrived having seen many with grievances that morning, he looked haggard and found a seat at the back so he could listen to the reports.

[AspisPhalanx90]

Senators, I ask of you now...what are we to do with the allied legion in Hispania? Shall we bring it back to italy and assault the Gallic cities in the north? Shall we leave it in Hispania? Shall we disband the legion? These questions must be addressed soon Senators. The Gauls in northern Italy will not sit idly by while we debate matters here. For now, they are a rabble of unorganized tribes, but what will happen if the Averni tribes unite with the tribes in northern Italia? What we do now is in your hands Senators, i urge you all to voice your opinions on matters.

As a second proposal, i would like to ask this body to allow the recruitment of archers from the Island of Crete for usage in our legions. The men are famed for their skill with a bow, and could prove extremely useful to compliment our velites and heavy infantry. They are too skilled to pass up Senators. One or two units per legion shall make them an unstoppable force.

[War lord]

I say we attack the Hispanic tribes and secure the north of Spain before heading into Gaul.

[Maiar93]

If we are to conquer another region, do we have the manpower to hold it when we still have to consider disbanding at least a portion of the legion?

[War lord]

If we are to conquer another region, do we have the manpower to hold it when we still have to consider disbanding at least a portion of the legion?

Manpower is my concern also,but if we conquer the rest of Hispana we can avoid having to permanently station a Legion in the area.

[Maiar93]

So a blitzkrieg through Iberia? Your idea is interesting, Caldius. But still it is risky. One pyrrhus-victory and our enemies are able to gather and strike back.. if we are to do so, we need an able general in the area.

[Royal_McKeogh]

if we conquer the north of iberia, we will be attacked by both the gauls from the appennines and central iberia. We must secure the coastline before moving inland. To both allow for more ports and to allow for a fallback area free of encirclement.

[Maiar93]

I'm sure that the gauls have their own problems. Why should they attack the well-defended cities of Rome, when it is defended by a legion? But, considering we can blitzkrieg the whole of Spain, we must build a fort to the mountain pass leading to northern spain.

[Gotenus]

OOC: Wow, I didn't know Romans had such knowledge of the German language.

I agree with you all. If we take all of Hispania, then we can fight the Gauls on two fronts, and pincer them form the left as well as from the south. However, do not forget the Carthaginians. They will not accept a blitz through Spain lightly. For all we know, they have the same plans.

Right now we must decide what we plan to do with our legions. Should we keep them both in Hispania, or should we send one of the legions to Africa and take the Carthaginian capital?

[Maiar93]

That is a bold move you propose, Aequus. But i think that it may take our opponents by surprise. We need complete scouting of the terrain before we do any blitzkrieg, though. For taking Carthage we also need a much bigger fleet than what we currently have.

[Nota']

I agree with my esteemed co-consul.
As he is the senior consul I would expect he will take the Roman legion. These men I think are best suited to continue the campaign in Spain. Meanwhile I would like to have the Allied Legion returned to Italy so I can lead them personally against the tribes of northern Italy, before the area becomes a serious threat to Rome.

*Spurius opens a scroll containing a map of Hispania, colour coded to show the placement of Carthaginian, Roman and Spanish holdings.*
What a coincidence. Our current enemy, Carthage, happens to hold the costal areas of Spain, arguably the most valuable areas. Why make more enemies when Carthage is such a good one. I say relieve Carthage of their holdings in Spain, while making trade agreements with the Spanish tribes, to try and build a freindship, that will in time benefit Rome.

[Maiar93]

I fully agree, senator. But when they have no other possible enemies on their borders than us, romans, and knowing their war-mongery, what will happen? Taking the coastal line is a good plan in my opinion, Scaeva. And knowing that we have an excellent commander and senior consul, Septimus, i believe that he is able to relieve Carthage of it's coastal regions.