Viriathus

Viriathus (also spelled Viriatus; known as Viriato in Portuguese and Spanish; died 139 BC) was the most formidable leader of the Lusitanian people who mounted fierce resistance against Roman expansion into the territory that would become Portugal, then known as Lusitania.

Viriathus proved a masterful strategist and diplomat, forging alliances with other Celtic groups across the Iberian Peninsula, some far removed from his primary battlegrounds, and inspiring them to take up arms against Rome. Leading an army composed predominantly of Lusitanian and Vetton tribes along with various Celtic and Iberian allies, he won a remarkable series of victories over Roman forces between 147 BC and 139 BC. His success ended only when he was betrayed and assassinated in his sleep. The renowned historian Theodor Mommsen wrote admiringly of him: "It seemed as if, in that thoroughly prosaic age, one of the Homeric heroes had reappeared."