Pyrrhus and His Italic Allies, 281-275 BC

Abstract

In 281 BC, Pyrrhus was visited by an embassy of Tarentum and by the representatives of the Samnites, Lucanians and Bruttians. For the King of Epirus, Italy and Sicily meant a new prospect for his career, since the delegates undertook the obligation to give under his command a powerful army, composed of 300,000 infantrymen and 20,000 horsemen. Protecting Tarentum against the Roman aggression was only the official reason of his Western campaign. In Italy, he became the leader of a coalition consisting of Tarentines, Samnites, Lucanians and Bruttians. As a result of this position, he had to consider the objectives of his allies when negotiating peace with Rome. Most probable, Pyrrhus was engaged in negotiations with the Romans three times: first, before the battle from Heraclea,
second, after this confrontation, and third, after the battle of Ausculum. In each case, the king conditioned peace on guaranteeing the freedom of the Greeks from the South of Italy and returning the territories seized from the Samnites, Lucanians and Bruttians. His departure to Sicily decisively influenced the evolution of the events in Italy, leaving the allies deprived of a skilful military leader and of the forces required to face the Roman offensive. At his return to Italy, his former allies, exhausted and with the feeling of having been abandoned, did not support him in the decisive battle from Beneventum.