 Near this land was a small hut abandoned after the triumphs of its owner Manius Curius Dentatus, whose military feats and rigidly simple character were remembered and admired in the neighborhood.Cato was inspired to imitate that character, hoping to match the glory of Dentatus.Soon, an opportunity came for a military campaign in 217 BC, during the Second Punic War against Hannibal Barca.