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Updated: June 13, 2025
The praetor Gaius Cosconius penetrated into Apulia, took Salapia and Cannae, and besieged Canusium. A Samnite corps under Marius Egnatius came to the help of the unwarlike region and actually drove back the Romans, but the Roman general succeeded in defeating it at the passage of the Aufidus; Egnatius fell, and the rest of the army had to seek shelter behind the walls of Canusium.
Some Spaniards also, little less than a thousand in number, after only stipulating with the consul that the Carthaginian garrison might be allowed to march out unhurt, passed over to the consul. The gates were therefore thrown open for the Carthaginians; and being allowed to go out unmolested, in conformity with the stipulation, they joined Hannibal in Salapia.
The loss of this body of cavalry was considerably more detrimental to Hannibal than that of Salapia, for the Carthaginian was never afterwards superior in cavalry, in which he had before been most effective.
But Blasius, notwithstanding, desisted not from his bold undertaking, till by continually harping upon the same subject, and proving how conducive such a measure would be to themselves and their country, he carried his point that the Punic garrison, consisting of five hundred Numidians, and Salapia, should be delivered up to Marcellus.
As this encreased, they formed settlements and colonies in many places; at Parthenope and Salapia, in Italy; Agrigentum and Geta, in Sicily; Rhodes, on the coast of Spain, near the foot of the Pyrenees, &c.
This message of the consul arrived at Salapia a little before a letter was brought from Hannibal, written in the name of Marcellus, to the effect, that "he should come to Salapia on the night which followed that day; that the soldiers in the garrison should hold themselves in readiness, in case he might want to employ them on any service."
Even after this he did not offer any violence to the Tarentine territory, not quitting the hope of shaking their allegiance to the Romans, though his simulated lenity had hitherto been of no advantage to him; but as soon as he came to Salapia he collected stores of corn there from the Metapontine and Heraclean lands; for midsummer was now past, and the situation pleased him as a place for winter quarters.
He had to choose one of two courses; either to throw garrisons into the wavering towns, in which case he would weaken still more his army already too weak and would expose his trusty troops to destruction in small divisions or to treachery 500 of his select Numidian horsemen were put to death in this way in 544 on the defection of the town of Salapia; or to pull down and burn the towns which could not be depended on, so as to keep them out of the enemy's hands a course, which could not raise the spirits of his Italian clients.
The natural negligence of the general was now increased by the hope that their attachment to the Carthaginians was shaken when they had heard that Hannibal, after the loss of Salapia, had retired from that neighbourhood into Bruttium.
He had to choose one of two courses; either to throw garrisons into the wavering towns, in which case he would weaken still more his army already too weak and would expose his trusty troops to destruction in small divisions or to treachery 500 of his select Numidian horsemen were put to death in this way in 544 on the defection of the town of Salapia; or to pull down and burn the towns which could not be depended on, so as to keep them out of the enemy's hands a course, which could not raise the spirits of his Italian clients.
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