The Will of the Senate - Senate Deliberations

[Avicenna]

King? My dear senators, he is most definitely not a king. In spite of the Carthaginians' difference in ways to ours, they are still a republic, if less so than ours.

Senators, I disagree about the enslaving of Gauls. Do us Romans truly want the filthy barbarians dirtying our splendid countryside of Italia and our civilised brothers in Sicily? Also, we need not destroy all barbaric structures, as these can be refined by our expert craftsmen, trained in Rome herself. I propose that we batter the Gauls into subjugation, forcing the status of protectorate upon them. If they refuse to comply, we will be justified in the annexation of Gaul, or at least the seizure and extermination of their key settlements of Georgovia and Alesia.

[shifty157]

I must agree with my son. Destroying settlement and killing its populace is unnecessarily harsh. It is true that the looting may provide us with small amounts of immediate gold but in the long run we are only hurting ourselves as eventually these settlements will no doubt be ours. Much more can be gained over time by the occupation of settlements and the generation of new tax incomes. Also this allows us to spread out the burden of military upkeep so that we can free up more funds from our existing settlements.

I do not belive in abandoning a city unless strategically necessary. If our blood has been spilled on its streets then it is ours. I will not say that the blood of our men has been given in vain. Also the Gaulish land beyond the Alps is treacherous and I would not risk crossing it several times to simply "raid" a town once or twice. The risk of a complete ambush is far too prevalent and we have been lucky so far in that respect. As long as we are in Gaulish territory we must stay within the safety of cities as long as possible and moving only in force and with a defined purpose.

At this point I would also like to give my wholehearted support to Quintus' motion 5.1. Lucius is very deserving of this triumph.

[econ21]

[QUINTUS]: I would like to speak in support of our Princeps Senatus elect, Publius Laevinius, as the choice of next First Consul. I urge Senators to vote for this candidate for three reasons.

First, his manifesto is the most ambitious and exciting of all those proposed. We have many fine members of the Lower House eager to see battle. Operations in Gaul and Africa offer the most opportunities for these members to see battle. While the initial invasions may largely be led by the First Consul, other Legates and Tribunes would be called upon to defend our new conquests and garrison our homelands. The shrewd Laevinius is surely correct to say that it is a great waste to see our large armies in mere garrison duty. Even more so, it would be a waste to see our fine generals so frustrated.

Second, Legate Laevinius's battles against the Gauls have shown tremendous tactical ability. I know we have many commanders of great talent in the Senate but I doubt any could have done better than Laevinius. I certainly blanched when I heard of the gestatae and Chosen warriors marching in their hundreds for the ford outside Massilia. And the good Legate had only a mere legion with no alae to hold them. Based on his consistent performance, I have no doubt in Laevinius's ability to strike into the heart of Gaul - possibly even conquering it entirely during his term in office.

Third, the Princeps Senatus elect has showed great wisdom and understanding on matters of grand strategy. For example, it was he who identified Massilia as a valuable chokepoint in our war on Gaul. His plan for the invasion of Africa is very well thought through. And his recent comments on the folly of the raiding strategy proposed by some only add to my great esteem for his judgement.

Senators, the other candidates are also most worthy individuals and I do not doubt that they will serve Rome well as First Consuls in due course. But now is the moment for Publius Laevinius and I urge you to rally around his standard!

[Craterus]

Senators, this constant warring and need for bloodshed has me wondering what makes us better than the Gauls and other such barbarians?

When will our brave legions return home? I'm sure many have sons and daughters that they have never even met. When will these men be reunited with their families? I seem to be the only person longing for a time where we can have peace.

Yet still, you all call for an invasion of the never-ending woodland of Gaul, an invasion of the deserts of Afrika. Why must we conquer these worthless places? Italia is the perfect place to build a villa (perhaps even a vineyard too), so why not build one and enjoy life now that Rome is strong.

I gather that our economy is in a worse state than 5 years ago? Surely something can be interpreted from this. Constant conquest does not fill our coffers as much as some of you may think. I hope for a few years of peace in which we can concentrate on building up trade, encouraging prosperity but most of all, enjoying our lives in the wealth we are likely to gain from a time of peace.

[econ21]

[SENATE SPEAKER]: May I remind the Senate that we currently have eight motions tabled but only one has two seconders. The deadline for proposing motions is in 24 hours. Unless some existing motions are seconded, we will have a very quiet period of voting.

[shifty157]

Senators. I would like to unveil this Tapestry that I have commisioned in honor of our two previous Consuls Quintus and Lucius. The tapestry displays their expansion of our empire. Quintus' gains are obviously in RED and Lucius' gains are in BLUE. I look forward to updating the tapestry for all future Consuls.