Volume 5: The Hegemon of Southern Italy, Chapter 28: The Post-War Senate Meeting (Part 1)

Subsequently, the Assembly held elections. Lysias, who had brought peace to Croton, became Chief General. Although many criticized him for ceding territory, the over ten thousand citizen soldiers who returned home were grateful to him for saving them from hell in time, so most voted for him. Sisprontis, who had participated in the peace negotiations alongside Lysias, also became a general. For a time, the conservatives clearly held the upper hand in Croton's Council of Generals.

But the urgent priority was to repel Locri and rescue their ally. The newly formed board of ten generals in Croton were all well aware of this. After careful deliberation, they decided to appoint three battalion commanders—who had been captured by Daonia but had rich combat experience—as generals for the expedition.

Thus, the soldiers who had just returned to Croton had to don their armor and march out again. Fifteen thousand soldiers (including ten thousand heavy infantry), plus four thousand freemen recruited, were provisioned and immediately set out for Caulonia.

Some in the Council raised objections, demanding that more citizens be left behind to protect the depleted city of Croton.

Although conservative, Lysias was not cowardly. Not only did he refuse, but he even sent envoys to Asperustum to convey to the Daonia garrison: “Croton is now empty. Should the need arise, we hope to receive aid from our ally.”

Upon receiving a clear response from Asiastes, the Croton fleet, led by the naval commander Aschamas, set sail for Caulonia with over sixty warships of various sizes.

…

Just as Croton was about to engage in a major battle with Locri, the Daonia Senate voted to select five individuals from Crimissa eligible to enter the Senate. Antaoris, Euricpus, and Pleiades were all chosen.

This matter was merely the appetizer for today’s long Senate meeting. Next came the rewards for soldiers who had participated in the Croton campaign. Since the number of participants was enormous, Military Affairs Officer Philistos and Registrar Raphias only established approximate figures during the meeting: about seven thousand full citizens would receive one to three plethra of land depending on their merits, with the suggestion from Davos and the other senators being to allocate land as close as possible to the city where the citizen resided. Of course, if someone voluntarily requested a swap, it should be accommodated.

Second, among the approximately fifteen thousand registered freemen who participated in the war, thanks to consecutive victories, more than half would enter the probation period for full citizenship according to law. Since a large amount of land and two cities had been acquired from this war, many people were urgently needed to occupy these lands and garrison the new cities. Therefore, although the probation period for full citizenship had not yet expired, the Senate decided to grant them five plethra of “allotments” in Crimissa, Asperustum, and the northern plain of Croton. Since they were not yet full citizens, during the probation period their tax would remain at 10% of land income, reduced to 1% land tax only after becoming full citizens.

For the nearly six thousand participating freemen, their probation period for preparatory citizenship would be halved, and they would be given priority rights to lease alliance land. Of course, the 20% tax rate remained unchanged.

For soldiers who died in battle, whether citizens or freemen, as long as their relatives were still alive, the Senate would grant rewards equal to those of regular soldiers, plus generous compensation, mainly from the spoils of war.

The entire reward and distribution process would be led primarily by Agricultural Affairs Officer Bourkos and Registrar Raphias, with assistance from legion commanders Capus, Drakos, and Hieronymus.

“Daonian citizens answered the call, fulfilled their duties, and fought valiantly for the alliance. As the helmsman of this great ship of the alliance, the Senate must fairly and justly give them corresponding rewards and care. We must not let our warriors shed blood and tears! Only then can we motivate more people to contribute more strength to the prosperity and strength of the alliance!…” Finally, Davos concluded with an impassioned speech to remind Bourkos and the others of their upcoming tasks.

Next, the discussion turned to the selection of City Administrators for Crimissa and Asperustum.

Many senators applied for the position of Crimissa, as it was a seaport city with favorable conditions and Greek inhabitants. Although it bordered Croton, it was already an ally, and with Asperustum standing in front, the governing environment was relatively safe.

The final vote surprisingly gave Scombrus the highest number of votes, astonishing some. But upon reflection, although Scombrus had a hot temper, he was straightforward, quick to admit mistakes, not overly scheming, and happy to help his juniors, so many enjoyed interacting with him.

According to Daonia law, Davos had the final veto power over any Senate proposal, but as long as the proposal was reasonable, he rarely used it. As now, he thought the selected City Administrator for Crimissa was decent. Scombrus’s frank and approachable personality might win over the Crimissans, who still harbored some hostility toward Daonians. So he was the first to congratulate Scombrus.

“Chief Magistrate, rest assured. I will make the people of Crimissa identify with the Daonia Alliance as soon as possible, while also coordinating relations between locals and new immigrants…” Scombrus pledged to Davos with great enthusiasm.

As the saying goes, “an elder in the house is a treasure.” Even before taking office, Scombrus, already over fifty, had grasped the two major issues he needed to focus on as City Administrator of Crimissa. Davos smiled and said, “With you in Crimissa, the Senate has nothing to worry about!”

As for the position of City Administrator of Asperustum, Davos had previously stated: “Asperustum is different from Crimissa. It is located in the upper-middle reaches of the Neto River, occasionally harassed by Bruttians roaming from the southwest. To the south, it must keep watch and deter other Greek city-states from coveting the northern plain of Croton, while also coordinating relations with the people of Croton.”

Furthermore, Davos informed the senators: “Many Lucanian warriors are willing to relocate to Asperustum.” Thus, aside from Lucania proper (including Nerulum), Asperustum would become the Daonia Alliance city with the highest proportion of Lucanian residents. Therefore, the requirements for the City Administrator of Asperustum were relatively high: strong military ability, some administrative experience, strong coordination skills, and the ability to command obedience from the Lucanians, who had recently joined Daonia and were still somewhat undisciplined.

For the senators from Amendolara and Thurii, who had endured the pain of war, the thought of independently dealing with war always left an indelible fear in their hearts. Vespa and Hemon were eager to offer suggestions on Lucanian issues but remained calmly observant and merely voted on Greek polis affairs. Most of the mercenary senators were unwilling to handle administrative matters or lacked the ability; those with stronger administrative skills, like Antonios and Alexis, held important public offices and could not leave. Thus, when Rotating Chairman Cornelius asked for a show of hands from those willing to serve as City Administrator of Asperustum, for a moment no one responded.

Davos was somewhat surprised. A name came to his mind—Asiastes. But Asiastes was not a senator and, according to regulations, could not hold the position of City Administrator. It was then that Davos realized that, before the Daonia Alliance Public Office Law was enacted, it had become difficult for former mercenaries who were not yet senators to enter the Senate and become senators. For most of them, who only thought about fighting, starting over in administrative affairs and climbing the ranks step by step was undoubtedly impossible. It seemed necessary to add a few provisions to the Public Office Law specifically for high-ranking legion commanders to enter the Senate…

As Davos pondered, he saw a hand raised among the crowd—Heilos! It was Davos’s former squadron leader and most trusted subordinate, Heilos!

Lately, Davos had been busy, and Heilos had been serving as Patrol Captain of Amendolara. Apart from meeting at Senate sessions, they had few opportunities to see each other, but Davos was well aware of Heilos’s performance. With the prosperity of the warehouses, lodging, and eateries in Amendolara and the influx of outsiders, no major conflicts had occurred—Heilos’s contributions were paramount. His ability to handle emergencies and his impartiality in resolving conflicts between residents and outsiders had earned praise from the people of Amendolara and City Administrator Cornelius. As for military ability, Davos considered him skilled in steady and cautious warfare, which suited the strategically located Asperustum. He believed that with Heilos’s rich mercenary experience, winning over the Lucanians would not be a major problem. As for administrative experience…

Davos thought: Asiastes could stay in Asperustum for a while longer to assist Heilos in handling administrative affairs. With Heilos’s diligent learning attitude, he would soon be able to govern independently.

After a long wait, only Heilos had raised his hand. Cornelius reluctantly announced: “The candidate for City Administrator of Asperustum is Heilos.”

“I agree that Heilos should serve as City Administrator of Asperustum. He is the most suitable choice!” Davos immediately expressed his support.

Then Capus, Antonios, and others also voiced their agreement, and the selection for City Administrator of Asperustum was finalized. Only Cornelius sighed, “Although I want to congratulate Heilos very much, I cannot help but regret that Amendolara is losing an excellent Patrol Captain!”