Battle of the Fenectane Plains, 339 BC

The battle of the Fenectane Plains (339 BC) was a Roman victory in the second year of the Latin War of 340-338 BC. The battle is recorded by Livy, but he provides almost no details. It was fought between a Roman army led by the consul Q. Publilius Philo and a Latin army that had been raised after the defeats of 340 BC (at Veseris and Trifanum). The location is unknown, but must have been somewhere in Latium. According to Livy the Latins were routed and driven out of their camp, and after the battle the Latin cities that had lost their armies in the battle surrendered to Publilius. Unfortunately Livy doesn't record which cities were involved.

Although the Fenectane Plains was a Roman victory its result was to extend the war into the following year. The second consular army, under Titus Aemilius Mamercinus, had been sent against the small city of Pedum, which became the focus of the Latin war effort. When he discovered that Publilius had been awarded a triumph he abandoned the siege and returned to Rome to claim his own triumph for the victories won earlier in the campaign. Unsurprisingly the senate refused to grant him a triumph, aware that his actions meant that the war would have to continue into 338.

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How to cite this article: Rickard, J (18 November 2009), Battle of the Fenectane Plains, 339 BC , http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/battles_fenectance_plains.html

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