Obligatory pre-TL note: This is my first TL, concocted after roughly a year spent lurking this site - I urge those reading this TL not to be gentle or considerate of my feelings, but to tear me apart if I make a mistake, so that I learn and improve from thereon. 
I'll be using the AD/BC dating system for simplicity's sake, though Butterflies from this TL will almost certainly do away with Jesus Christ.
SPQR: A Roman Republic TL, Version 1.0
Chapter 1 - The Threshold Almost Crossed - Gaius Marius, Lucius Cornelius Sulla and the Pontic War(1) 90-87 BC:
In the early days of the 1st century, BC, Rome faced the greatest threat since the days of Hannibal and one that could be said to have easily had as much of an impact upon the psyche of the Republic as their long-dead Carthaginian nemesis. Whilst in the recently-acquired province of Asia, the overtaxed locals invited the Pontic king Mithridates to liberate them from the yoke of Rome and its publicani(2), the disenfranchised Italian allies of Rome, frustrated by the opposition in the Senate towards granting them Roman citizenship, entered open rebellion in what is now known as the third Social War.
It was obvious to many of the Roman leaders at the time just what the Italians wanted - even as the rebels made plans to set a capital at Corfinium after the defeat of Rome, everything from their currency to their political model was based on that of Rome. Some of the Roman commanders, such as the Consul Lucius Julius Caesar(3), made provisions to pardon those rebels that put down their arms, and extend to them Roman citizenship.
Key to these efforts was one of the titans of the Republic, Gaius Marius - a self-made man who was not a member of the Patrician class, and yet had raised himself to the prestigious office of Consul no less than five times by the time of the Social War. Whilst his reputation amongst the notoriously fickle Roman public had flagged with his age, he was held in high regard by many Italians as an example of a man coming from humble beginnings and rising to the highest office of the Republic through their own strength.
However, the man who made the greatest strides for Rome against the Italians was Marius’ protégé, Lucius Cornelius Sulla, a man envious of the shadow cast upon him by his former officer, and hungry as only a Roman citizen could be for fame, advancement, and the glory of triumph. He broke the back of the rebellion in 89 BC, and immediately turned to Rome, competing with Marius for the honour of the command against Mithridates in the East.
The nature of the Italian problem, however, was deemed too volatile to be dismissed simply via defeat. A number of politicians in Rome, especially amongst the plebeian-dominated Tribunes, were in favour of Italians being granted citizenship. They pointed towards the Italian contribution towards Roman ventures abroad, both military and commercial, and though the overwhelmingly Patrician Senate was still wary of such a large enfranchisement, the idea was still one that circulated in political debate.
In the Consular elections of 89 BC, Sulla found his reward – elected first as one of the two Consuls alongside Quintus Pompeius Rufus, and then confirmed as the commander of the forces that would fight Mithridates. A grimacing Marius was less than happy with such a situation, and found many others that shared his discontent with the current political situation – the Tribune Publius Sulpicius Rufus, whose frustration with the Consuls’ refusal to consider his legislation for the enfranchisement of Italians led him to suggest to Marius a plot – gathering soldiers loyal to Marius to attack and intimidate the consuls into giving up both the Mithridatic command and their opposition to his legislation.
The use of force in politics was certainly not a new idea – several politicians, including the tribunes Gaius and Tiberius Gracchus, had been murdered for their political views, and intimidation was relatively commonplace, but Sulpicius’ idea verged on treason – almost an outright coup against the highest authorities in the Republic.
It is a very tempting and often-discussed subject, with countless treatsies being written on the subject of what may have transpired had Marius gone along with this plot, and one can certainly imagine the conflict within the old general, as his instincts as a general and his politician’s desire for personal glory clashed. In this instance, however, his pragmatism won out. He counselled patience from Sulpicius, and laid plans of his own. Sulla may have won a battle against the old man of Rome, but Marius was certain that he would win a war that the Consul was no longer concentrating on.
Sulla, flush from his political victory, quickly sought to amass military victories of his own. The revolt of the province of Asia and Rome’s slowness to respond had led to similar disobediences across the Greek portions of the Empire, including the ancient city of Athens. Whilst a second army under Lucius Valerius Flaccus was to advance through Macedonia and across the Hellespont, Sulla took the time to fully assert Roman dominance over the proud Greeks, starving Athens into submission and subsequently plundering the city.
Flaccus was to meet with an untimely end, however. A strict disciplinarian who refused to allow his soldiers to pillage and plunder through cities after defeating the Hellenic forces there, he was deposed in a mutiny by Gaius Flavius Fimbria, and subsequently murdered. Fimbria was far more lenient – some would say unduly savage towards defeated foes, and eager to ravage the province of Asia in response to the murder of 80,000 Italians by its native Greeks.
Fimbria won a decisive victory over Mithridatian forces outside the great city of Pergamon, and forced the Pontic king to flee to the coastal city of Pitane. With the Quaestor Lucius Licinius Lucullus’ navy blocking escape, Mithridates VI was trapped, and an attempt by loyalists to smuggle him out in disguise failed, leading to the capture of the Pontic King who fancied himself as the next Alexander. In Pontus, command passed to his eldest son Machares.
Sulla, confident of the political situation at home, with fellow consul Quintus Pompeius Rufus remaining in Rome, moved into Asia Minor soon after Fimbria for a push on Pontus itself when he received word of the capture of Mithridates. Shortly thereafter, he marched on Pontus. Attempts by Machares to achieve peace were swiftly rebuffed. Sulla would brook no Carthage of the East – the war could only end with Pontus reduced to a state whereby it could never again threaten the Republic.
However, despite the successes of Sulla abroad, events in Rome were progressing out of his control. As Sulla was committed in Asia, Marius took his opportunity. Under the mobs of Sulpicius, Rufus was forced to accept legislation enfranchising a large number of Italians, who were thereafter loyal supporters of the Marian faction; the man who had publically battled for this move.
In addition, Marius courted the man in command of the legions defending Italy – a man named Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo. Strabo, like Marius, was a man whose background was sneered at by the more cosmopolitan Patricians, and who had been forced to prove himself through military service. Together, they came to an agreement – to strike at Sulla and remove him from the political scene.
In 87 BC, Sulla and Fimbria finished the conquest of Pontus. By now, Sulla had realised the mistake he had made politically, and left Pontus and Asia in the hands of Fimbria as he rushed back to Rome with his five legions. Some claim that he knew that Marius and Strabo had set a trap for him, and his refusal to pass legislation supporting the enfranchisement of the Italians had ensured that the now vastly larger voting base of the Republic had little love for him; others claim that he fully intended to take Rome and rule it as a tyrant, having gained an appreciation for Oriental despotism from Mithridates(4). Regardless of his intention in bringing his armies, Marius and his propagandists trumpeted it as an attack on Rome by a power-mad man who wished to become a tyrant, and when Sulla landed in Italy, Marius, Strabo, and six legions, Strabo’s three Roman, and three hastily-slapped together Italian, waited for him.
~~~
(1)-No Mithridatic Wars in this timeline, due to Sulla’s increased focus on the Asian theatre and thus wanting a complete victory rather than a quick one, and so not preventing Lucullus from cutting off Mithridates’ escape via the black sea/Pontus Euxine
(2)-Think Roman corporations.
(3)-Not to be confused with Gaius Julius Caesar.
(4)-This was not the case, but Marius’ propagandists make certain that it is often reported.
~~~
Thoughts? Comments and criticisms are always welcomed.
I'll be using the AD/BC dating system for simplicity's sake, though Butterflies from this TL will almost certainly do away with Jesus Christ.
SPQR: A Roman Republic TL, Version 1.0
Chapter 1 - The Threshold Almost Crossed - Gaius Marius, Lucius Cornelius Sulla and the Pontic War(1) 90-87 BC:
In the early days of the 1st century, BC, Rome faced the greatest threat since the days of Hannibal and one that could be said to have easily had as much of an impact upon the psyche of the Republic as their long-dead Carthaginian nemesis. Whilst in the recently-acquired province of Asia, the overtaxed locals invited the Pontic king Mithridates to liberate them from the yoke of Rome and its publicani(2), the disenfranchised Italian allies of Rome, frustrated by the opposition in the Senate towards granting them Roman citizenship, entered open rebellion in what is now known as the third Social War.
It was obvious to many of the Roman leaders at the time just what the Italians wanted - even as the rebels made plans to set a capital at Corfinium after the defeat of Rome, everything from their currency to their political model was based on that of Rome. Some of the Roman commanders, such as the Consul Lucius Julius Caesar(3), made provisions to pardon those rebels that put down their arms, and extend to them Roman citizenship.
Key to these efforts was one of the titans of the Republic, Gaius Marius - a self-made man who was not a member of the Patrician class, and yet had raised himself to the prestigious office of Consul no less than five times by the time of the Social War. Whilst his reputation amongst the notoriously fickle Roman public had flagged with his age, he was held in high regard by many Italians as an example of a man coming from humble beginnings and rising to the highest office of the Republic through their own strength.
However, the man who made the greatest strides for Rome against the Italians was Marius’ protégé, Lucius Cornelius Sulla, a man envious of the shadow cast upon him by his former officer, and hungry as only a Roman citizen could be for fame, advancement, and the glory of triumph. He broke the back of the rebellion in 89 BC, and immediately turned to Rome, competing with Marius for the honour of the command against Mithridates in the East.
The nature of the Italian problem, however, was deemed too volatile to be dismissed simply via defeat. A number of politicians in Rome, especially amongst the plebeian-dominated Tribunes, were in favour of Italians being granted citizenship. They pointed towards the Italian contribution towards Roman ventures abroad, both military and commercial, and though the overwhelmingly Patrician Senate was still wary of such a large enfranchisement, the idea was still one that circulated in political debate.
In the Consular elections of 89 BC, Sulla found his reward – elected first as one of the two Consuls alongside Quintus Pompeius Rufus, and then confirmed as the commander of the forces that would fight Mithridates. A grimacing Marius was less than happy with such a situation, and found many others that shared his discontent with the current political situation – the Tribune Publius Sulpicius Rufus, whose frustration with the Consuls’ refusal to consider his legislation for the enfranchisement of Italians led him to suggest to Marius a plot – gathering soldiers loyal to Marius to attack and intimidate the consuls into giving up both the Mithridatic command and their opposition to his legislation.
The use of force in politics was certainly not a new idea – several politicians, including the tribunes Gaius and Tiberius Gracchus, had been murdered for their political views, and intimidation was relatively commonplace, but Sulpicius’ idea verged on treason – almost an outright coup against the highest authorities in the Republic.
It is a very tempting and often-discussed subject, with countless treatsies being written on the subject of what may have transpired had Marius gone along with this plot, and one can certainly imagine the conflict within the old general, as his instincts as a general and his politician’s desire for personal glory clashed. In this instance, however, his pragmatism won out. He counselled patience from Sulpicius, and laid plans of his own. Sulla may have won a battle against the old man of Rome, but Marius was certain that he would win a war that the Consul was no longer concentrating on.
Sulla, flush from his political victory, quickly sought to amass military victories of his own. The revolt of the province of Asia and Rome’s slowness to respond had led to similar disobediences across the Greek portions of the Empire, including the ancient city of Athens. Whilst a second army under Lucius Valerius Flaccus was to advance through Macedonia and across the Hellespont, Sulla took the time to fully assert Roman dominance over the proud Greeks, starving Athens into submission and subsequently plundering the city.
Flaccus was to meet with an untimely end, however. A strict disciplinarian who refused to allow his soldiers to pillage and plunder through cities after defeating the Hellenic forces there, he was deposed in a mutiny by Gaius Flavius Fimbria, and subsequently murdered. Fimbria was far more lenient – some would say unduly savage towards defeated foes, and eager to ravage the province of Asia in response to the murder of 80,000 Italians by its native Greeks.
Fimbria won a decisive victory over Mithridatian forces outside the great city of Pergamon, and forced the Pontic king to flee to the coastal city of Pitane. With the Quaestor Lucius Licinius Lucullus’ navy blocking escape, Mithridates VI was trapped, and an attempt by loyalists to smuggle him out in disguise failed, leading to the capture of the Pontic King who fancied himself as the next Alexander. In Pontus, command passed to his eldest son Machares.
Sulla, confident of the political situation at home, with fellow consul Quintus Pompeius Rufus remaining in Rome, moved into Asia Minor soon after Fimbria for a push on Pontus itself when he received word of the capture of Mithridates. Shortly thereafter, he marched on Pontus. Attempts by Machares to achieve peace were swiftly rebuffed. Sulla would brook no Carthage of the East – the war could only end with Pontus reduced to a state whereby it could never again threaten the Republic.
However, despite the successes of Sulla abroad, events in Rome were progressing out of his control. As Sulla was committed in Asia, Marius took his opportunity. Under the mobs of Sulpicius, Rufus was forced to accept legislation enfranchising a large number of Italians, who were thereafter loyal supporters of the Marian faction; the man who had publically battled for this move.
In addition, Marius courted the man in command of the legions defending Italy – a man named Gnaeus Pompeius Strabo. Strabo, like Marius, was a man whose background was sneered at by the more cosmopolitan Patricians, and who had been forced to prove himself through military service. Together, they came to an agreement – to strike at Sulla and remove him from the political scene.
In 87 BC, Sulla and Fimbria finished the conquest of Pontus. By now, Sulla had realised the mistake he had made politically, and left Pontus and Asia in the hands of Fimbria as he rushed back to Rome with his five legions. Some claim that he knew that Marius and Strabo had set a trap for him, and his refusal to pass legislation supporting the enfranchisement of the Italians had ensured that the now vastly larger voting base of the Republic had little love for him; others claim that he fully intended to take Rome and rule it as a tyrant, having gained an appreciation for Oriental despotism from Mithridates(4). Regardless of his intention in bringing his armies, Marius and his propagandists trumpeted it as an attack on Rome by a power-mad man who wished to become a tyrant, and when Sulla landed in Italy, Marius, Strabo, and six legions, Strabo’s three Roman, and three hastily-slapped together Italian, waited for him.
~~~
(1)-No Mithridatic Wars in this timeline, due to Sulla’s increased focus on the Asian theatre and thus wanting a complete victory rather than a quick one, and so not preventing Lucullus from cutting off Mithridates’ escape via the black sea/Pontus Euxine
(2)-Think Roman corporations.
(3)-Not to be confused with Gaius Julius Caesar.
(4)-This was not the case, but Marius’ propagandists make certain that it is often reported.
~~~
Thoughts? Comments and criticisms are always welcomed.
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