Editing Cato the Elder (section)

====Post in Hispania Citerior====
In his campaign in [[Hispania]], Cato behaved in keeping with his reputation of untiring hard work and alertness. He lived soberly, sharing the food and the labours of the common soldier. Wherever it was possible, he personally superintended the execution of his orders. His movements were reported as bold and rapid, and he always pushed for victory. 
His operations appear to have been carefully designed, and were coordinated with the plans of other generals in other parts of Hispania. His manoeuvres were considered original and successful. He managed to benefit by setting tribe against tribe, and took native mercenaries into his pay.

[[File:Hispania 1a division provincial.PNG|thumb|250px|right|[[Hispania]] in 197 BC]]

The details of the campaign, as related by Livy,<ref>Livy, ''History of Rome'', book xxxiv.</ref> and illustrated by incidental anecdotes by [[Plutarch]], are full of horror and they make clear that Cato reduced [[Hispania Citerior]] to subjection with great speed and little mercy. We read of multitudes who put themselves to death because of the dishonour after they had been stripped of all their arms, of extensive massacres of surrendered troops, and the frequent harsh plunders. The phrase [[bellum se ipsum alet]]—the war will feed itself—was coined by Cato during this period.<ref>{{cite book|title=Latein – Deutsch: Zitaten-Lexikon|first=Ernst|last=Lautenbach|publisher=LIT Verlag|location=Berlin-Hamburg-Münster|year=2002|isbn=3-8258-5652-6|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qepmsXSNHtsC&pg=PA101|access-date=2009-09-09|language=de|page=101}}</ref> His conduct in Hispania were not contradictory with the traditional ideals of a Roman soldier, or with his own firm and over-assertive temper. He claimed to have destroyed more towns in Hispania than he had spent days in that country.