Cilician Pirates - Rome and The Pirates

Rome and The Pirates

By the 1st century BC, what began as a trickle was a plague on the Mediterranean commerce. The Cilician pirates roamed across the entire Mediterranean, and began to attack the towns of Italy itself. In fact, even Ostia was plundered.

Eventually, Rome took action. In 75 BC, P. Servilius Isauricus led a campaign over land against the pirate bases in Cilicia and against their allies the Isauri. But this was only a temporary relief.

Finally, after heated debate, Pompey was granted extraordinary powers to eliminate the Cilician pirates. Pompey divided the Mediterranean into thirteen districts, to each of which he assigned a fleet and a commander. Pompey then swept through the western Mediterranean with his own powerful fleet, driving the pirates out or into the paths of his other commanders. By keeping vigilance over all the sea at the same time (and at great cost), there was nowhere to run or hide. Those Cilician pirates that did escape fled to the eastern Mediterranean. Pompey completed this first part of his campaign in 40 days.

Pompey then turned to the eastern Mediterranean. Pompey gave mild terms to those pirates who surrendered to him personally, as opposed to his other commanders. Some pirates surrendered their ships, and their families and themselves up to Pompey. From these, Pompey learned about where others were hiding. Many pirates retreated to their strongholds of Asia Minor. The pirates gathered and waited for Pompey to attack them at Coracesium. Pompey won a decisive victory and blockaded the town. The Cilician pirates surrendered all their harbors and fortified islands. The Romans took the wealth the pirates had collected, and released many of their prisoners, whom the pirates intended to ransom, other prisoners were sold into slavery. Strabo writes that Pompey destroyed 1300 pirate vessels of all sizes.

Pompey spared numerous Cilician pirates who had been taken prisoner, realizing many had been driven to such recourse by desperation. Those who surrendered were settled into various parts of the southern coast of Asia Minor, where the population was sparse. Settlements were created at Mallus, Adana, and Epiphaneia in Cilicia. Many were settled at Soli, which was thereafter called Pompeiopolis.

The eastern campaign lasted 49 days. In total, Pompey's campaign removed the Cilician pirates, who had held a stranglehold on Mediterranean commerce and imperiled Rome with famine, in a mere 89 days, the summer of 66 BC.