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19. Was his desire gratified?

20. What was the conduct of Caligula on this occasion?

21. By what acts did he display his pride?

22. Did his arrogance carry him farther than this?

23. Under what name did he assume divine honours?

24. Of what farther absurdities was he guilty?

25. Relate other follies of his?

26. What was his principal vice?

27. Give an instance of his domestic extravagance?

SECTION V

 
For him no prayers are poured, no pæans sung,
No blessings chanted from a nation's tongue. —Brereton.
 

1. The impiety, however, of Calig'ula was but subordinate to his cruelties. He slew many of the senate, and afterwards cited them to appear. He cast great numbers of old and infirm men to the wild beasts, to free the state from such unserviceable citizens. He usually fed his wild beasts with the bodies of those wretches whom he condemned; and every tenth day sent off numbers of them to be thus devoured, which he jocosely called clearing his accounts. One of those who was thus exposed, crying out that he was innocent,¹⁷⁸ Calig'ula ordered him to be taken up, his tongue to be cut out, and then thrown into the amphitheatre as before. 2. He took delight in killing men with slow tortures, that, as he expressed it, they might feel themselves dying, being always present at such executions himself, directing the duration of the punishment, and mitigating the tortures merely to prolong them. 3. In fact, he valued himself for no quality more than his unrelenting temper, and inflexible severity, when he presided at an execution. 4. Upon one occasion, being incensed with the citizens, he wished that the Roman people had but one neck, that he might dispatch them at one blow.

5. Such insupportable and capricious cruelties produced many secret conspiracies against him; but they were for a while deferred upon account of his intended expedition against the Germans and Britons.

U.C. 793.

A.D. 41

6. For this purpose he caused numerous levies to be made, and talked with so much resolution, that it was universally believed he would conquer all before him. 7. His march perfectly indicated the inequality of his temper; sometimes it was so rapid that the cohorts were obliged to leave their standards behind them; at other times it was so slow, that it more resembled a pompous procession than a military expedition. 8. In this disposition he would cause himself to be carried on a litter, on eight men's shoulders, and ordered all the neighbouring cities to have their streets well swept and watered, that he might not be annoyed with dust. 9 However, all these mighty preparations ended in nothing. Instead of conquering Britain, he merely gave refuge to one of its banished princes; and this he described, in his letter to the senate, as taking possession of the whole island. 10. Instead of conquering Germany, he only led his army to the seashore in Gaul: there, disposing his engines and warlike machines with great solemnity, and drawing up his men in order of battle, he went on board his galley, with which coasting along, he commanded his trumpets to sound, and the signal to be given as if for an engagement. 11. His men, who had previous orders, immediately fell to gathering the shells that lay upon the shore into their helmets, as their spoils of the conquered ocean, worthy of the palace and the capitol. 12. After this doughty expedition, calling his army together, like a general after victory, he harangued them in a pompous manner, and highly extolled their achievements; then, distributing money among them, and congratulating them upon their riches, he dismissed them, with orders to be joyful: and, that such exploits should not pass without a memorial, he ordered a lofty tower to be erected by the seaside.¹⁷⁹

13. Cassius Cher'ea, a tribune of the Prætorian bands, was the person who at last freed the world from this tyrant. Besides the motives which he had in common with other men, he had received repeated insults from Calig'ula, who took all occasions of turning him into ridicule, and impeaching him with cowardice, merely because he happened to have an effeminate voice. Whenever Cher'ea came to demand the watch-word from the emperor, according to custom, he always gave him either Venus, Adonis, or some such, implying softness and effeminacy.

14. Cher'ea secretly imparted his design to several senators and knights, whom he knew to have received personal injuries from Calig'ula. While these were deliberating upon the most certain and speedy method of destroying the tyrant, an unexpected incident gave new strength to the conspiracy. 15. Pempe'dius, a senator of distinction, being accused before the emperor of having spoken of him with disrespect, the informer cited one Quintil'ia, an actress, to confirm the accusation. 16. Quintil'ia, however, was possessed of a degree of fortitude not frequently found even in the other sex. She denied the fact with obstinacy; and, being put to the torture, bore the severest tortures of the rack with unshaken constancy. 17. Indeed, so remarkable was her resolution, that though acquainted with all the particulars of the conspiracy, and although Cher'ea was the person appointed to preside at her torture, she revealed nothing; on the contrary, when she was led to the rack, she trod upon the toe of one of the conspirators, intimating at once her knowledge of their conspiracy, and her resolution not to divulge it. 18. Thus she suffered, until all her limbs were dislocated; and, in that deplorable state, was presented to the emperor, who ordered her a gratuity for what she had endured.

19. Cher'ea could no longer contain his indignation, at being thus made the instrument of a tyrant's cruelty. After several deliberations of the conspirators, it was at last resolved to attack him during the Palatine games, which lasted four days,¹⁸⁰ and to strike the blow when his guards should not have the opportunity to defend him. 20. The first three days of the games passed. Cher'ea began to apprehend that deferring the completion of the conspiracy might be the means of divulging it; he even dreaded that the honour of killing the tyrant might fall to the lot of some other person bolder than himself. At last he resolved to defer the execution of his plot only to the day following, when Calig'ula should pass through a private gallery, to some baths near the palace.

21. The last day of the games was more splendid than the rest; and Calig'ula seemed more sprightly and condescending than usual. He enjoyed the amusement of seeing the people scramble for the fruits and other rarities by his order thrown among them, being no way apprehensive of the plot formed for his destruction. 22. In the mean time the conspiracy began to transpire: and, had he any friends remaining, it could not have failed of being discovered. A senator who was present, asking one of his acquaintance if he had heard any thing new, and the other replying in the negative, said "you must know, that this day will be represented the death of a tyrant." The other immediately understood him, but desired him to be cautious. 23. The conspirators waited many hours with extreme anxiety; and Calig'ula seemed resolved to spend the whole day without any refreshment. So unexpected a delay exasperated Cher'ea; and, had he not been restrained, he would suddenly have perpetrated his design in the midst of all the people. 24. At that instant, while he was hesitating, Aspore'nus,¹⁸¹ one of the conspirators, persuaded Calig'ula to go to the bath, and take some slight refreshment, that he might the better enjoy the rest of the entertainment. 25. The emperor, rising up, the conspirators used every precaution to keep off the throng, and to surround him themselves, under pretence of great assiduity. Upon his entering a little vaulted gallery that led to the bath, Cher'ea struck him to the ground with his dagger, crying out, "Tyrant, think upon this." The other conspirators closed in upon him; and while the emperor was resisting, and crying out that he was not yet dead, they dispatched him with thirty wounds.

26. Such was the merited death of Calig'ula, in the 29th year of his age, after a short reign of not four years. His character may be summed up in the words of Sen'eca; namely, "Nature seemed to have brought him forth, to show what mischief could be effected by the greatest vices supported by the greatest authority."

Questions for Examination.

1. Of what enormities was Caligula guilty?

2. How did he heighten his cruelties?

3. On what did he chiefly value himself?

4. What monstrous wish did he express?

5. What was the consequence of such atrocities?

6. What preparations did he make?

7. How did his disposition display itself on this occasion?

8. How did he sometimes travel?

9. What exploits did he perform?

10. Did he not make a show of some great enterprise?

11. How did it end?

12. Of what farther follies was he guilty?

13. By whom was he assassinated, and by what provocations was his fate hastened?

14. Were others made privy to the design?

15. Relate this incident.

16. Did Quintilia confirm the accusation?

17. What rendered this resolution more remarkable?

18. What was the result?

19. Was the crisis much longer deferred?

20. Was this resolution put in practice?

21. Was Caligula at all apprehensive of what was in agitation?

22. Was the secret inviolably kept?

23. How was the design nearly frustrated?

24. What induced Caligula to alter his intention?

25. Relate the manner of his death.

26. Repeat the summary of his character as given by Seneca.

SECTION VI.
U.C. 794. – A.D. 42

 
Old as I am,
And withered as you see these war-worn limbs,
Trust me, they shall support the mightiest load
Injustice dares impose. —Mason's Caractacus.
 

1. As soon as the death of Calig'ula was made public it produced the greatest confusion. The conspirators, who only aimed at destroying a tyrant, without attending to the appointment of a successor, had all sought safety by retiring to private places. 2. Some soldiers happening to wander about the palace, discovered Clau'dius, Calig'ula's uncle, lurking in a secret place where he had hid himself. Of this person, who had hitherto been despised for his imbecility, they resolved to make an emperor: and accordingly they carried him upon their shoulders to the camp, where they proclaimed him at a time when he expected nothing but death.

3. Clau'dius was now fifty years old. The complicated diseases of his infancy had, in some measure, affected all the faculties of his mind as well as body, and he seemed, both in public and domestic life, incapable of conducting himself with propriety.¹⁸²

4. The commencement of his reign, however, as had been the case with all the bad emperors, gave the most promising hopes. It began by an act of oblivion for all former words and actions, and by disannulling all the cruel edicts of Calig'ula. 5. He showed himself more moderate than his predecessors with regard to titles and honours. He forbade all persons, under severe penalties, to sacrifice to him, as they had done to Calig'ula. He was assiduous in hearing and examining complaints; and frequently administered justice in person with great mildness. To his solicitude for the internal advantages of the state, he added that of a watchful guardianship over the provinces. He restored Jude'a to Her'od Agrip'pa,¹⁸³ which Calig'ula had taken from Her'od Antipas, his uncle, the man who had put John the Baptist to death, and who was banished by order of the present emperor.¹⁸⁴

6. He even undertook to gratify the people by foreign conquest. The Britons, who had for nearly a hundred years been left in quiet possession of their own island, began to seek the mediation of Rome, to quell their intestine commotions. 7. The principal man who desired to subject his native country to the Roman dominion, was one Ber'icus, who persuaded the emperor to make a descent upon the island, magnifying the advantages that would attend the conquest of it. 8. In pursuance of his advice, therefore, Plau'tius, the prætor, was ordered to go into Gaul, and make preparations for this great expedition. At first, indeed, his soldiers seemed backward to embark, declaring that they were unwilling to make war beyond the limits of the world; for so they judged Britain to be. However, they were at last persuaded to go, and the Britons were several times overthrown.

A.D. 46.

9. These successes soon after induced Claud'ius to go into Britain in person, under pretence that the natives were still seditious, and had not delivered up some Roman fugitives, who had taken shelter among them. 10. However, this exhibition seemed rather calculated for show than service: the time he continued in Britain, which was in all but sixteen days, was more taken up in receiving homage than extending his conquests. 11. Great rejoicings were made upon his return to Rome: the senate decreed him a splendid triumph; triumphal arches were erected to his honour, and annual games instituted to commemorate his victories. 12. In the mean time the war was vigorously prosecuted by Plau'tius, and his lieutenant Vespasian, who, according to Sueto'nius, fought thirty battles, and reduced a part of the island into the form of a Roman province.

A.D. 51

13. However, this war broke out afresh under the government of Osto'rius, who succeeded Plau'tius. The Britons, either despising him for want of experience, or hoping to gain advantages over a person newly come to command, rose up in arms, and disclaimed the Roman power. 14. The Ice'ni, who inhabited Suffolk, Norfolk, Cambridge, and Huntingdonshire; the Can'gi, in Wiltshire and Somersetshire; and the Brigan'tes, in Yorkshire, &c. made a powerful resistance, though they were at length overcome; but the Silu'res, or inhabitants of South Wales, under their king Carac'tacus, were the most formidable opponents the Roman generals had ever yet encountered. 15. This brave barbarian not only made a gallant defence, but often claimed a doubtful victory. He, with great conduct, removed the seat of war into the most inaccessible parts of the country, and for nine years kept the Romans in continued alarm.

16. Upon the approach of Osto'rius, however, Carac'tacus, finding himself obliged to come to a decisive engagement, addressed his countrymen with calm resolution, telling them that this battle would either establish their liberty, or confirm their servitude; that they ought to remember the bravery of their ancestors, by whose valour they were delivered from taxes and tribute; and that this was the time to show themselves equal to their progenitors. 17. But nothing that undisciplined valour could perform availed against the conduct of the Roman legions. After an obstinate fight, the Britons were entirely routed: the wife and daughter of Carac'tacus were taken prisoners; and he himself, seeking refuge from Cartisman'dua, queen of the Brigan'tes, was treacherously delivered up to the conquerors. 18. When he was brought to Rome, nothing could exceed the curiosity of the people to behold a man who had, for so many years, braved the power of the empire. Carac'tacus testified no marks of base dejection. When he was led through the streets, and observed the splendor of every object around him – "Alas!" cried he, "how is it possible that people possessed of such magnificence at home, could think of envying Carac'tacus a humble cottage in Britain!" 19. When he was brought before the emperor, while the other prisoners sued for pity with the most abject lamentations, Carac'tacus stood before the tribunal with an intrepid air, and though he was willing to accept of pardon, was not mean enough to sue for it. "If," said he, "I had yielded immediately, and without opposing you, neither would my fortune have been remarkable, nor your glory memorable; you could not have been victorious, and I had been forgotten. If now, therefore, you spare my life, I shall continue a perpetual example of your clemency." Clau'dius generously pardoned him, and Osto'rius was decreed a triumph.

20. In the beginning of his reign Clau'dius gave the highest hopes of a happy continuance; but he soon began to lessen his care for the public, and to commit to his favourites all the concerns of the empire. This prince, weak from his infancy, was little able, when called to govern, to act but under the direction of others. 21. One of his chief instructors was his wife Messa'lina: whose name is become a common appellation for women of abandoned character. By her was Clau'dius urged on to commit cruelties, which he considered only as wholesome severities; while her crimes became every day more notorious, and exceeded what had ever been in Rome. For her crimes and enormities, however, she, together with her accomplice Cai'us Sil'ius, suffered that death they both had so justly deserved.

22. Clau'dius afterwards married Agrippi'na, the daughter of his brother German'icus, a woman of a cruel and ambitious spirit, whose only aim being to procure the succession of Nero, her son by a former marriage, she treated Claudius with such haughtiness, that he was heard to declare, when heated with wine, that it was his fate to smart under the disorders of his wives, and to be their executioner. 23. This expression sunk deep in her mind, and engaged all her faculties to prevent the blow; she therefore resolved not to defer a deed which she had meditated long before, which was to poison him. She for some time debated within herself in what quantity the poison should be administered, as she feared that too strong a dose would discover the treachery, while one too weak would fail of its effect. 24. At length she determined upon a poison of singular efficacy to destroy his intellects, and yet not suddenly to terminate his life; it was given among mushrooms, a dish the emperor was particularly fond of. 25. Shortly after he had eaten, he dropped down insensible; but this caused no alarm, as it was usual with him to eat till he had stupified his facilities, and been obliged to be carried from the table to his bed. 26. His constitution, however, seemed to overcome the effects of the potion; but Agrippi'na resolving to make sure of him, directed a wretch of a physician, her creature, to introduce a poisoned feather into his throat, under pretence of making him vomit, and thus to dispatch him, which had its intended effect. Thus died Clau'dius the First, the complicated diseases of whose infancy seemed to have affected and perverted all the faculties of his mind. He was succeeded by Nero, the son of Agrippi'na by her first husband. Nero had been adopted by Clau'dius.

Questions for Examination.

1. What happened on the death of Caligula?

2. Who was appointed his successor?

3. What was the character of Claudius?

4. How did he conduct himself?

5. By what farther acts did he distinguish his accession?

6. Did he adopt any warlike measure?

7. By whom was he persuaded to interfere?

8. Who was sent into that country, and what occurred in consequence?

9. What resolution did Claudius form?

10. Did he perform any memorable exploits?

11. Was his return celebrated?

12. Was the war in Britain now at an end?

13. Did this finish the war?

14. Who were the most formidable adversaries of the Romans?

15. How did he distinguish himself?

16. By what means did he strengthen the courage of his troops?

17. Were his efforts successful?

18. What happened on his arrival in Rome?

19. What was his behaviour before the emperor?

20. Did Claudius continue to govern well?

21. Who was the chief instigator of his cruelties?

22. Who was the second wife of Claudius, and what was her conduct towards him?

23. What was the consequence of this unguarded expression?

24. On what did she at length resolve?

25. What effect did it produce?

26. Did he recover?

SECTION VII.
U.C. 793 – A.D. 55

 
That so, obstructing those that quenched the fire,
He might at once destroy rebellious Rome. —Lee.
 

1. Nero, though but seventeen years old, began his reign with the general approbation of mankind. He appeared just, liberal, and humane. When a warrant for the execution of a criminal was brought to be signed, he would cry out with compassion, "Would to heaven that I had never learned to write!"

2. But as he increased in years, his native disposition began to show itself. The execution of his mother Agrippi'na was the first alarming instance he gave of his cruelty. After attempting to get her drowned at sea, he ordered her to be put to death in her palace; and coming to gaze upon the dead body, was heard to say, that he had never thought his mother so handsome a woman.

The manner of his attempt to drown her was extremely singular. He caused a vessel to be constructed that, by withdrawing some bolts, would separate in the open sea, and thus give her death the appearance of a shipwreck. Agrippi'na, naturally suspicious, at first refused to go on board; but, lulled into security by the artful blandishments of her son, she embarked. The attempt was made; but Agrippi'na was taken up by some fisher-boats, and conveyed to her own villa. The very great calmness of the sea prevented the possibility of its being considered as an accident. Agrippi'na, however, dissembled her suspicions, and informed the emperor of her wonderful escape. Three years after the death of his mother, he murdered his tutor Burrhus, and also his wife Octavia, a young princess of admirable virtue and beauty that he might marry the infamous Poppæ'a.

3. The mounds of virtue being thus broken down, Nero gave a loose to appetites that were not only sordid, but inhuman. There was a sort of odd contrast in his disposition: for while he practised cruelties sufficient to make the mind shudder with horror, he was fond of those amusing arts which soften and refine the heart. He was particularly addicted, even from childhood, to music, and not totally ignorant of poetry; chariot-driving was his favourite pursuit; and all these he frequently exhibited in public.

4. Happy had it been for mankind, had he confined himself to these; and contented with being contemptible, sought not to become formidable also. His cruelties exceeded all his other extravagancies. 5. A great part of the city of Rome was consumed by fire in his time, and to him most historians ascribe the conflagration. It is said that he stood upon a high tower, during the continuance of the flames, enjoying the sight, and singing, in a theatrical manner to his harp, verses upon the burning of Troy. Of the fourteen quarters into which Rome was divided, only four remained entire. None were permitted to lend assistance towards extinguishing the flames; and several persons were seen setting fire to the houses, alleging that they had orders for so doing. 6. However this be, the emperor used every art to throw the odium of so detestable an action from himself, and fix it upon the Christians, who were at that time gaining ground in Rome.

7. Nothing could be more dreadful than the persecution raised against them upon this false accusation. Some were covered with the skins of wild beasts, and, in that disguise, devoured by the dogs; some were crucified, and others burnt alive. "When the day was not sufficient for their tortures, the flames in which, they perished," says Ta'citus, "served to illuminate the night: " while Nero, dressed in the habit of a charioteer, regaled himself with a view of their tortures from his gardens, and entertained the people at one time with their sufferings, at another with the games of the circus. 8. In this persecution St. Paul was beheaded, and St. Peter crucified, with his head downwards; a mode of death he chose, as being more dishonourable than that of his divine master. Upon the ruins of the demolished city, Nero founded a palace, which he called his Golden House. It contained within its inclosure, artificial lakes, large wildernesses, spacious parks, gardens, orchards, vineyards, &c. &c. The entrance of the stately edifice was sufficiently lofty to admit a colossal statue of Nero, 120 feet high. The galleries, erected on three rows of tall pillars, were each a mile in length. The palace itself was tiled with gold (probably gilding), the walls covered with the same metal, and richly adorned with precious stones and mother-of-pearl: and the ceiling of one of the banqueting rooms represented the firmament beset with, stars, turning about incessantly night and day, and showering sweet waters on the guests.

9. A conspiracy formed against Nero, by Piso, a man of great power and integrity, which was prematurely discovered, opened a train of suspicions that destroyed many of the principal families in Rome. 10. The two most remarkable personages who fell on this occasion, were Sen'eca, the philosopher, and Lucan the poet, his nephew.

Epicha'ris, a woman of infamous character, who by some means was implicated in the conspiracy, deserves to be mentioned as an instance of female fortitude. She was condemned to the torture, but the united force of racks, stripes and fire, could not extort a word from her. The next day she was conducted in a chair to be tortured afresh, (for her limbs were so mangled and disjointed, that she could not stand,) she hung herself with her girdle to the top of the chair, voluntarily suspending the whole weight of her body to the noose: thus a woman once a slave, cheerfully endured the most exquisite torture, and even death, to save persons she scarcely knew, and from whom she had never received any favours.

Nero, either having real testimony, or else hating him for his virtues, sent a tribune to Sen'eca¹⁸⁵, informing him that he was suspected as an accomplice. The tribune found the philosopher at table with Pauli'na, his wife; and informing him of his business, Sen'eca replied without emotion, that his welfare depended upon no man; that he had never beenaccustomed to indulge the errors of the emperor, and would not do it now. 11. When this answer was brought to Nero, he demanded whether Sen'eca seemed afraid to die; the tribune replying that he did not appear in the least terrified; "Then go to him again," cried the emperor, "and give him my orders to die." Accordingly he sent a centurion to Sen'eca, signifying that it was the emperor's plea sure that he should die. Sen'eca seemed no way discomposed, but displayed the fortitude of conscious integrity. He endeavoured to console his wife, and exhorted her to a life of persevering virtue. 12. She seemed resolved, however, not to survive him, and pressed her request to die with him so earnestly, that Sen'eca, who had long looked upon death as a benefit, at last gave his consent; and the veins of both their arms were opened at the same time. 13. As Sen'eca was old, and much enfeebled by the austerities of his life, the blood flowed but slowly; so that he caused the veins of his legs and thighs to be opened also. His pains were long and violent, but they were not capable of repressing his fortitude or his eloquence. He dictated a discourse to two secretaries, which was read with great avidity after his death, but which has since perished in the lapse of time. 14. His agonies being now drawn out to a great length, he at last demanded poison from his physician; but this also failed of its effect, his body being already exhausted, and incapable of exciting its operation. He was from this carried into a warm bath, which only served to prolong his sufferings; at length, therefore, he was put in a stove, the vapour of which quickly dispatched him. 15. In the mean time his wife, Pauli'na, having fallen into a swoon with the loss of blood, had her arms bound up by her domestics, and by this means survived her husband for some years; but by her conduct during the rest of her life, she seemed never to forget her affection and his example.

16. The death of Lucan was not less remarkable. After he had lost a great quantity of blood from the veins of his arms, perceiving his hands and legs already dead, while the vital parts still continued warm and vigorous, he called to mind the description of his own poem of the Pharsa'lia, of a person dying in similar circumstances, and expired while he was repeating the passage.

U.C. 817.

A.D. 66.

17. The death of C. Petro'nius, about this time, is too remarkable to be passed over in silence. This person, whom some historians suppose to be the author of the piece entitled T. Petro'nii Arbi'tri Saty'ricon, was an Epicu'rean, both in principle and practice. In a court like that of Nero, he was esteemed for his refinements in luxury, and became the emperor's tutor in this exquisite art. 18. Accused of being privy to Piso's conspiracy, he was committed to prison. Petro'nius, who could not endure the anxiety of suspense, resolved upon putting himself to death, by causing his veins to be opened. 19. In the mean time, he conversed with his friends, not upon maxims of philosophy, or grave subjects, but upon such topics as had amused his gayest revels. He listened while they recited the lightest poems; and by no action, no word, no circumstance, showed the perplexity of a dying person. 20. Shortly after him, Numi'cius Thermus, Bare'a Sora'nus, and Pe'tus Thra'sea, were put to death. The valiant Cor'bulo, who had gained Nero so many victories over the Parthians, followed next. Nor did the empress Poppæ'a herself escape. 21. At length human nature grew weary of bearing her persecutor; and the whole world seemed to rouse, as if by common consent, to rid the earth of a monster.

Questions for Examination.

1. What was Nero's conduct at the commencement of his reign?

2. Did this disposition continue?

3. What was there peculiar in his disposition?

4. Were these his greatest faults?

5. Of what heinous crime is he accused?

6. On whom was the odium of this barbarous action cast?

7. What was the consequence to these unhappy men?

8. What eminent persons suffered on this occasion?

9. Did not these cruelties give birth to conspiracies?

10. What persons of note suffered in consequence?

11. Did this defence save his life?