The name Cyfarwydd translates to storyteller and of course that is what our company is all about – telling the weird and wonderful stories of our past. For me, and I’m sure many others, growing up I have always been most enthralled by the titanic final showdowns between heroes and villains in stories, history and of course action movies. You also see these battles in sports such as boxing, where just like war; things are not as black and white as the movies. Most of the time there is no good or evil, it’s just a matter of perspective. This was shown to me more than anything when I studied the Iliad at university. Here many extremely brave heroes fought one another in single combats, but it was difficult to take a side as the reader due to the very admirable qualities shown by both sides, most notably of course by the main opposing protagonists, Achilles and Hector. Despite the criticisms levelled at the 2004 movie Troy, it managed to capture the fact that good men are on both sides in conflict perfectly, unlike most action movies where there is a clear differentiation.
These epic showdowns between ancient action heroes are very exciting tales and I would like to go through some of the best in my blog posts. The Iliad features a large amount of fascinating encounters, and at some point I will undoubtedly cover some of them. However, I would prefer to begin by looking at some of the lesser known single combats of history, many of which come from Roman history, despite the common belief that the Roman army was all about team work and discipline. I will begin with a Roman hero by the name of Titus Manlius, who received the cognomen (Roman third name), Torquatus, for his actions in this account.
In 361 BC a large Gallic army was descending on Roman territory. The Romans had appointed a dictator, something they only did when in dire need, by the name of Titus Quinctius Poenus, and he had positioned his army along a river bank. The Gallic army was deployed on the opposing bank, while a bridge in between the forces had seen many skirmishes for its control with neither side coming out on top. Suddenly, with both armies glaring at one another across the river, a Gallic champion, either naked but for a neck chain and bracelets, or in gilded armour and a many coloured coat (stories differ as to his appearance), stepped forward into no man’s land and loudly challenged the Romans. “Let him whom Rome now reckons her bravest man come out and fight, that we two may show by the outcome which people is the superior in war.” In other words come and have a go if you think you’re hard enough.
Due to the large size of the Gaul and his flamboyant appearance (whether he was naked or dressed to impress), the best and bravest of the Romans were reluctant to accept the challenge and stood in silence. This was exactly what the Gaul wanted as they excelled in psychological warfare, and he began to follow the challenge up by sticking his tongue out and laughing at the terrified Romans. All of a sudden the silence of the Romans was broken by Titus Manlius, a member of the Roman aristocracy, who begged the dictator to let him fight the giant Gaul. Impressed by his bravery, the Roman commander allowed Titus to step forward from the battle line and engage the Gaul in single combat.
As the two heroes circled one another the surrounding audience was gripped with hope and fear. The Gaul began the attack swinging his shield at Titus before delivering a slashing stroke with his huge sword which caused a loud clatter as it hit the Roman’s shield. Titus replied by hitting the Gaul’s shield in the air with his own in order to get inside the guard of his enemy, getting so close that no part of his own body was exposed. In the blink of an eye Titus followed his movement up with a thrust of his sword to the groin and then immediately another to the belly, causing blood to pour out of the Gaul who bellowed with pain before crashing headlong to the ground like some colossal statue. The triumphant hero next cut off his opponent’s head, in order to remove the blood stained torc, before placing the grisly trophy around his own neck as a sign of his triumph.
For his courageous action Titus received the cognomen Torquatus (“adorned with a chain”) and would go down in Rome’s history as one of her greatest and most revered hero’s. The showdown between Titus Malius Torquatus and the Gallic champion is a fantastic example of Roman (and for that matter Gallic) virtus or manliness and the potential courage of all humankind. For more information on the account see Livy’s History of Rome, book 7.9-10 and Aulus Gellius’s Attic Nights, 9.13.
Verdun Howells
These epic showdowns between ancient action heroes are very exciting tales and I would like to go through some of the best in my blog posts. The Iliad features a large amount of fascinating encounters, and at some point I will undoubtedly cover some of them. However, I would prefer to begin by looking at some of the lesser known single combats of history, many of which come from Roman history, despite the common belief that the Roman army was all about team work and discipline. I will begin with a Roman hero by the name of Titus Manlius, who received the cognomen (Roman third name), Torquatus, for his actions in this account.
In 361 BC a large Gallic army was descending on Roman territory. The Romans had appointed a dictator, something they only did when in dire need, by the name of Titus Quinctius Poenus, and he had positioned his army along a river bank. The Gallic army was deployed on the opposing bank, while a bridge in between the forces had seen many skirmishes for its control with neither side coming out on top. Suddenly, with both armies glaring at one another across the river, a Gallic champion, either naked but for a neck chain and bracelets, or in gilded armour and a many coloured coat (stories differ as to his appearance), stepped forward into no man’s land and loudly challenged the Romans. “Let him whom Rome now reckons her bravest man come out and fight, that we two may show by the outcome which people is the superior in war.” In other words come and have a go if you think you’re hard enough.
Due to the large size of the Gaul and his flamboyant appearance (whether he was naked or dressed to impress), the best and bravest of the Romans were reluctant to accept the challenge and stood in silence. This was exactly what the Gaul wanted as they excelled in psychological warfare, and he began to follow the challenge up by sticking his tongue out and laughing at the terrified Romans. All of a sudden the silence of the Romans was broken by Titus Manlius, a member of the Roman aristocracy, who begged the dictator to let him fight the giant Gaul. Impressed by his bravery, the Roman commander allowed Titus to step forward from the battle line and engage the Gaul in single combat.
As the two heroes circled one another the surrounding audience was gripped with hope and fear. The Gaul began the attack swinging his shield at Titus before delivering a slashing stroke with his huge sword which caused a loud clatter as it hit the Roman’s shield. Titus replied by hitting the Gaul’s shield in the air with his own in order to get inside the guard of his enemy, getting so close that no part of his own body was exposed. In the blink of an eye Titus followed his movement up with a thrust of his sword to the groin and then immediately another to the belly, causing blood to pour out of the Gaul who bellowed with pain before crashing headlong to the ground like some colossal statue. The triumphant hero next cut off his opponent’s head, in order to remove the blood stained torc, before placing the grisly trophy around his own neck as a sign of his triumph.
For his courageous action Titus received the cognomen Torquatus (“adorned with a chain”) and would go down in Rome’s history as one of her greatest and most revered hero’s. The showdown between Titus Malius Torquatus and the Gallic champion is a fantastic example of Roman (and for that matter Gallic) virtus or manliness and the potential courage of all humankind. For more information on the account see Livy’s History of Rome, book 7.9-10 and Aulus Gellius’s Attic Nights, 9.13.
Verdun Howells