Pyrrhic Victory

Named after King Pyrrhus of Epirus, a Greek king regarded as one of the greatest generals of antiquity. After defeating the Romans at the Battle of Asculum in 279 BCE—in which he lost most of his commanders and a great part of his forces—Pyrrhus reportedly said, "If we are victorious in one more battle with the Romans, we shall be utterly ruined." Plutarch recorded in his Life of Pyrrhus that the king lamented, "One more victory over the Romans and we are completely done for." Though Pyrrhus won the battle, the Romans had a much larger pool of replacements, making the victory strategically worthless.