CAMELLUS, Matters Frmus, a celebrated Roman patrician who first makes his appearance as consular tribune, 403 n.c. His military career was a series of unbroken successes, according to the accounts which have come down to us; but these accounts have been shown by Niebuhr to possess a considerable admixture of mythological or poetic fiction. In 396, C. was made dictator, during the Veientine war, in which he mined and captured the city of Veil; but the proud splendor of his subsequent triumph offended the Roman populace, who were still further displeased when C. demanded a tithe of the spoils of Veii, in order to fulfill a vow made to Apollo, on condition of vic tory. In 394, C. was again elected consular tribune, and besieged the Falerii, who after bravely defending themselves, were led by a magnanimous act of C. to yield uncondi tionally. Afterwards, C., being accused of peculation, and foreseeing certain condemna tion, banished himself from Rome, 391, and lived in retirement at Arden, until Brennus, at the head of his wild Gauls, had swept through Etruria, and captured and destroyed the whole of Rome except the capitol. C. was now recalled, and appointed dictator a
second time. He achieved a decisive victory over the invaders, rebuilt Rome, and obtained new victories over the Volsci, and others. In 386 B.C., he was elected dictator for the third time, but refused the office. In 381 n.c., C. was victorious in the war of Rome against Pneneste and other Latin towns; and in 368 n.c., he was elected to his fourth dictatorship, but abdicated during the same year. In 367 B.C.., when war broke out with time Gauls, C., though 80 years old, accepted the dictatorship for the fifth time, defeated the barbarians near Alba, and made peace between patricians and plebeians. After this, he erected near the capitol a temple to Concord. and, having retired from public life, died 365 n.c., of the plague, lamented by the whole Roman people.