Sextus Pompey
In the late Republic, Gaius Marius and Lucius Cornelius Sulla Felix settled their veterans on Corsica and used the islands' grain supply to support their war efforts. Julius Caesar had his delegates capture the islands from Pompey and gained control of the grain supply in the process. The wheat supply fed his army and ensured its victory in the civil war of 49 BC. During the Second Triumvirate, Octavian received the islands as part of his share and used its grain supply to feed his armies against Brutus and Cassius. Between 40 and 38 BC, Sextus Pompey, son of Pompey, and his legate Menas occupied Corsica and terrorised Sardinia, Sicily and even the Italian peninsula with a great pirate fleet. Along with the three Triumvirs, Sextus Pompey was one of the four most significant contenders in the warfare after Julius Caesar's death. His fleet largely consisted of thousands of slaves and he also held many strongholds on Corsica. With it, he so seriously threatened the Roman grain supply that Octavian had to make peace with Sextus Pompey since it was then not possible to beat him. In the Pact of Misenum (39 BC), Sextus Pompey was assigned Corsica and Sardinia, as well as Sicily and Achaia, in return for ending the blockade of the mainland and remaining neutral in the conflict between Octavian and Marc Antony. However, Octavian was not satisfied with the area assigned to him and conflict erupted anew in 38 BC. Pompey again blockaded the Italian mainland, leading to famine. Later that year, Octavian gathered a fleet that was so powerful that defeated Sextus Pompey and became ruler of the area again.