The Mediterranean pirates were unbearable by any standard, and Cilicia was full of them. The pirates were also on Crete and Dalmatia, which is right next to Italy. The pirates even supported the Mithridates against Rome in battle. The Senate was doing nothing about the pirate problem and the pirates continued to rise and cause issues for Rome. They decided to send M. Antonius to fight the pirates, a mistake considering he lost, giving him the title “Creticus”. Still, the Senate did nothing after the defeat and the pirate dilemma continued. In the year 68 BC, Rome lost a praetor going down the Via Appia when he was kidnapped by the pirates. The Senate was still too scared to do anything and let the situation worsen from 70 BC to 67 BC. Finally,
