---
title: "Seven Books of History against the Pagans"
author: "Paulus Orosius"
translator: "S. Alexander Laurent (AI-assisted, 2026)"
title_ru: "История против язычников"
title_fr: "Histoires contre les païens"
title_de: "Sieben Bücher Geschichte gegen die Heiden"
languages: [la, en]
shelf: "Church Fathers"
section: 68 of 177
url: https://scriptura.si/works/orosius-historiae/68/
cite: "Paulus Orosius, tr. S. Alexander Laurent (AI-assisted, 2026), Seven Books of History against the Pagans, section 68. Scriptura (scriptura.si), https://scriptura.si/works/orosius-historiae/68/"
---

# Seven Books of History against the Pagans

*Paulus Orosius, tr. S. Alexander Laurent (AI-assisted, 2026)*

Russian: История против язычников · French: Histoires contre les païens · German: Sieben Bücher Geschichte gegen die Heiden

Augustine's pupil tells the whole of world history to prove that the Christian times are not the worst.

## 68. Book 4 · Chapter 3

Source: https://scriptura.si/works/orosius-historiae/68/ · cite a paragraph as https://scriptura.si/works/orosius-historiae/68/#p-N

[¶0] In the year 475 from the founding of the City, the Tarentines, on learning of the death of Pyrrhus, again stirred up new arms against the Romans; they asked for help from the Carthaginians through envoys, and received it.

> Latin: 1 Anno ab urbe condita CCCCLXXV Tarentini Pyrrhi morte conperta iterum noua aduersum Romanos arma sollicitant, Carthaginiensium auxilia per legatos poscunt atque accipiunt.

[¶1] Battle was joined and the Romans conquered: and even then the Carthaginians, though not yet adjudged enemies, perceived that they could be conquered by the Romans.

> Latin: 2 conserto proelio uicere Romani: ubi iam tunc Carthaginienses, quamuis nondum hostes adiudicati, uinci tamen a Romanis se posse senserunt.

[¶2] In the following year Roman severity cut down a great part of its own vitals.

> Latin: 3 Sequenti anno magnam uiscerum suorum partem seueritas Romana concidit.

[¶3] For some time before, when Pyrrhus was approaching, the eighth legion, distrusting the hopes of Rome, dared a new crime: it killed all the people of Rhegium, whom it had been stationed there to protect, and claimed for itself all the plunder and the town itself.

> Latin: 4 nam aduentante dudum Pyrrho octaua legio diffidens Romanae spei, nouum scelus ausa Reginenses omnes, quibus subsidio praeerat, interfecit, praedam sibi omnem atque ipsum oppidum uindicauit.

[¶4] The punishment of this outrage upon such wicked deserters was entrusted to the consul Genucius. He besieged the city of Rhegium and captured them all; upon the rest, the deserters and brigands, he himself inflicted fitting punishments, but the Roman soldiers of the whole legion he sent to Rome, where by order of the people they were beaten with rods in the middle of the Forum and struck down with the axe.

> Latin: 5 hoc facinus in tam sceleratos defectores puniendum Genucio consuli iussum est. qui obsessa Reginorum urbe captisque omnibus ipse quidem in reliquos perfugas et latrones exercuit digna supplicia, Romanos uero milites integrae legionis Romam misit: qui populi iussu medio in foro uirgis caesi sunt securique percussi.

[¶5] Rome seemed to herself to be victorious at that time, when she slew an entire legion of her own — she who would without doubt have been conquered had she lost it in battle against an enemy.

> Latin: 6 Visa sibi est tunc Roma uincere, cum legionem suam integram occidit, quae sine dubio uicta fuisset, si eam hostili proelio perdidisset.