The Roman Senate's grew alarmed about the military successes of this band, and their damage to Roman towns and the countryside. Eventually, after several defeats, the Senate put an army of eight legions under the harsh but effective leadership of Marcus Licinius Crassus. The war ended in 71 BC when the armies of Spartacus, after long and bitter fighting, retreated before the legions of Crassus. Realizing that the legions of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus and Marcus Terentius Varro Lucullus were moving in to trap them, they launched their full strength against Crassus' legions and were utterly destroyed.