Pharsaʹlia

An epic in Latin hexameters by Lucan. The battle of Pharsalia was between Pompey and Cæsar. Pompey had 45,000 legionaries, 7,000 cavalry, and a large number of auxiliaries; Cæsar had 22,000 legionaries and 1,000 cavalry. Pompey’s battle-cry was “Hercules invictus;” that of Cæsar was “Venus victrix.” On this occasion Cæsar won the battle.