When Marcus Antonius tried to show his contempt against Augustus, he said that Octavius was a freedman and rope-maker from Thurii.
[1][2] During the Second Punic War, Octavius served as military tribune and participated in the disastrous battle of Cannae, being one of few survivors.
When the Carthaginians marched into the Roman camp, Octavius and his colleague, tribune P. Sempronius Tuditanus, managed to cut their way through the enemy and arrived safely in Canusium.
He served in Sicilia (modern Sicily) under the praetor Lucius Aemilius Papus in 205 BC, but it is unknown whether he took part in some other expedition.
This article about an ancient Roman politician is a stub.