_The victory of the Romans over the Tolistoboii at Mount Olympus is
described by Livy, 38, 19-23; that over the Tectosages, a few miles
from Ancyra, in 38, 24-27. The second battle took place in mid-autumn,
B.C. 189; and the result was that the Gauls gave in their submission at
Ephesus, and were forced to engage to leave off predatory excursions,
and to confine themselves to their own frontiers. Livy, 38, 27 and 40._
[Sidenote: The vengeance of Chiomara, wife of the Gallic chief Ortiago.
See Livy, 38, 24.]
+38.+ It chanced that among the prisoners made when the Romans won
the victory at Olympus over the Gauls of Asia, was Chiomara, wife of
Ortiago. The centurion who had charge of her availed himself of his
chance in soldierly fashion, and violated her.
He was a slave indeed both to lust and money: but eventually his love
of money got the upper hand; and, on a large sum of gold being agreed
to be paid for the woman, he led her off to put her to ransom. There
being a river between the two camps, when the Gauls had crossed it,
paid the man the money, and received the woman, she ordered one of
them by a nod to strike the Roman as he was in the act of taking a
polite and affectionate farewell of her. The man obeyed, and cut off
the centurion’s head, which she picked up and drove off with, wrapped
in the folds of her dress. On reaching her husband she threw the head
at his feet; and when he expressed astonishment and said: “Wife to
keep faith is a good thing,” she replied: “Yes; but it is a better
thing that there should be only one man alive who has lain with me!”
[Polybius says that he conversed with the woman at Sardis, and was
struck with her dignified demeanour and intelligence.][110]...
[Sidenote: The Gauls try to take Cnaeus Manlius by a stratagem, but are
foiled. See Livy, 38, 25.]
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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