Latrocinium (from Latin latro, "bandit", ultimately from Greek latron, "pay" or "hire"[1]) was a war not preceded by a formal declaration of war as understood in Roman law; thus guerrilla warfare conducted against Rome was a form of latrocinium.
[2] It is typically translated into English as "banditry" or "brigandage", but in antiquity encompassed a wider range of subversive or anti-authoritarian actions, especially slave rebellions organized under charismatic leaders.
[3] In designating acts of violence that have ideological motives instead of or in addition to material gain, the modern distinction between terrorism and war may be a more illuminating comparison for the 21st century.
[4] The Greek term was leisteia; Plato and Aristotle regarded banditry as a way of life, like fishing or hunting.
[7] In the Middle Ages, latrocinium was a war without just cause, or piracy.