Download STORY of CINCINNATUS

THE STORY OF CINCINNATUS
In 458 B.C., a crisis struck the Roman Republic.
Rome’s consul, Minucius Esquilnus, and his army became
trapped by enemy tribes. Some cavalry soldiers escaped to
alert the Senate. The whole city was panicked and the
Senate decided they needed to appoint somebody dictator
for six months to solve the crisis; they chose Lucius
Quintius Cincinnatus, a former politician who had retired
to his small farm.
A senatorial delegation visited Cincinnatus to
notify him of his election. They found him plowing his
fields. The farmer immediately dropped his plough,
donned his toga, and traveled to Rome. Cincinnatus
quickly assembled an army and marched out to meet the
enemy. The newly formed army dismantled the enemy
tribe who begged for mercy. Cincinnatus arrested their
leaders and allowed the rank and file to return home
unharmed. After the battle, the dictator disbanded his
army and resigned his office after only 16 days.
Cincinnatus then returned home to tend his fields.
History repeated itself nearly 20 years later. In
439 B.C., Cincinnatus was called out of retirement a second
time to quell a rebellion during a major famine. After
dealing with this crisis, Cincinnatus again quickly
surrendered his power and returned again to his farm.
SOURCE: http://www.examiner.com/article/george-washington-s-role-model