33

Exc. De virt.: That Claudius, the emperor of the Romans, was not of a mean soul, but was even trained in learning so as to write some things; but his body was sickly, so that he trembled somewhat in his head and hands. And because of this his voice also faltered, and not everything that he brought before the senate did he read himself, but for the most part he gave it to the quaestor to read aloud; and whatever he did read himself, he generally recited while seated. And indeed he was the first of the Romans to use a covered chair. He was not, however, so much abused for these things as he was by his freedmen and by the women with whom he associated. For he was most conspicuously ruled by women and ruled by slaves, since from childhood he had been raised in sickness and in fear; and for this reason he feigned more foolishness than was true, which he himself somewhere even admitted. And having for a long time lived with his grandmother Livia, and for a long time also with his mother Antonia and with freedmen, and moreover having been in the company of many women, he had acquired nothing worthy of a free man. They attacked him especially at symposia and in sexual intercourse. For he was very insatiable in both; and at this time he was vulnerable. And in addition he had a cowardice, by which, being often struck with terror, he took none of the proper measures into account. For by terrifying him they exploited him, and they instilled fear in others. Being of such a character, then, he did not a few things and fittingly, whenever he was free from the aforementioned afflictions. 86 Exc. De ins.: That Claudius, the emperor of the Romans, although pleased at the death of Gaius, first drove Chaerea and some others from the city, and then had them assassinated. For he was not grateful to them because he had received the empire through their deed, but he was displeased that they had dared to slay an emperor. 87 Exc. Salmas.: Claudius, being a coward, had all who approached him searched, lest they have some small sword, and at banquets armed men stood beside him. 88 Exc. De virt.: That the same man, being insatiably devoted to gladiatorial combats, consumed the bodies not only of prisoners of war and condemned criminals, but also of freedmen. And being led on by the slanders of his wife Valeria Messalina, an intemperate and tyrannical woman, he destroyed many of the distinguished members of the senate. And he did not even abstain from his own relatives. For some of these too perished, since he accepted the slanders without examination, and she led Claudius from one man to another, taking advantage of her husband's levity. At any rate, he killed his two sisters after they were slandered, and then his sons-in-law who had done no wrong. For Messalina made those who held power witnesses for the accusations; and those who were able to reveal any of her actions, she anticipated, some with benefits, others with punishments, so that not only was the state administered by her, but she also sold and retailed military commands and procuratorships and everything else without restraint. From which Claudius was compelled, when the multitude gathered in the Campus Martius, to regulate the prices. But indeed she herself, having advanced to every kind of licentiousness and cruelty, both shamelessly having intercourse with whomever she desired, and killing many of those who associated with her, is with difficulty destroyed when Claudius perceived the outrageousness. For since it was not enough for her to commit adultery often and sitting in a brothel with the other distinguished women, but she desired to cohabit with more men according to law and contracts, at that point, having been denounced to Claudius by a certain Narcissus, a freedman of the emperor, she is killed, having been cast out of the palace, and wandering about the gardens of Asiaticus, for the sake of which she had destroyed the wretched Asiaticus a little before. After her, Claudius also destroyed his own slave who had insulted one of the men in authority. 89 Exc. De ins.: That Claudius is killed by Agrippina in the following manner.

33

Exc. De virt.: Ὅτι Κλαύδιος ὁ βασιλεὺς Ῥωμαίων τὴν μὲν ψυχὴν οὐ φαῦλος ἐγεγόνει, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν παιδείᾳ ἤσκητο ὡς καὶ συγγράψαι τινά· τὸ δὲ δὴ σῶμα νοσώδης, ὥστε καὶ τῇ κεφαλῇ καὶ ταῖς χερσὶν ὑποτρέμειν. Καὶ διὰ τοῦτο καὶ τῷ φωνήματι ἐσφάλλετο, καὶ οὐ πάντα ὅσα εἰς τὸ συνέδριον εἰσέφερεν, αὐτὸς ἀνεγίνωσκεν, ἀλλὰ τῷ ταμίᾳ ὥς γε πλήθει ἀναλέγεσθαι ἐδίδου· ὅσα δ' αὐτὸς ἀνεγίνωσκε, καθήμενος ὡς τὸ πολὺ ἐπελέγετο. Καὶ μέντοι καὶ δίφρῳ καταστέγῳ πρῶτος Ῥωμαίων ἐχρήσατο. Οὐ μέντοι καὶ διὰ ταῦτα οὕτως ὅσον ὑπὸ τῶν ἐξελευθέρων καὶ ὑπὸ τῶν γυναικῶν αἷς συνῆν ἐκακύνετο. Περιφανέστατα γὰρ ἐγυναικοκρατήθη καὶ ἐδουλοκρατήθη, ἅτε ἐκ παίδων ἐν νοσηλείᾳ καὶ ἐν φόβῳ τραφείς· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἐπὶ πλέον τῆς ἀληθείας εὐήθειαν προσεποιεῖτο, ὅπερ που καὶ αὐτὸς ὡμολόγησε. Καὶ πολὺν μὲν χρόνον τῇ τηθῇ Λιουίᾳ, πολὺν δὲ καὶ τῇ μητρὶ Ἀντωνίᾳ τοῖς τε ἀπελευθέροις συνδιαιτηθεὶς, καὶ προσέτι καὶ ἐν συνουσίαις γυναικῶν πλείοσι γενόμενος, οὐδὲν ἐλευθεροπρεπὲς ἐκέκτητο. Ἐπετίθεντο δὲ αὐτῷ ἔν τε τοῖς συμποσίοις μάλιστα καὶ ἐν ταῖς συμμίξεσι. Πάνυ γὰρ ἀπλήστως ἐν ἀμφοτέροις διέκειτο· καὶ ἦν ἐν τῷ καιρῷ τούτῳ εὐάλωτος. Πρὸς δὲ καὶ δειλίαν εἶχεν, ὑφ' ἧς πολλάκις ἐκπληττόμενος οὐδὲν τῶν προσηκόντων ἐξελογίζετο. Ἐκεῖνόν τε γὰρ ἐκφοβοῦντες ἐξεκαρποῦντο, καὶ τοῖς ἄλλοις δέος ἐνέβαλλον. Τοιοῦτος οὖν δή τις ὢν οὐκ ὀλίγα καὶ δεόντως ἔπραττεν, ὁσάκις ἔξω τῶν εἰρημένων παθῶν ἐγίνετο. 86 Exc. De ins.: Ὅτι ὁ Κλαύδιος ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν Ῥωμαίων τόν τε Χαιρέαν καί τινας ἄλλους, καίπερ ἐπὶ τὸν τοῦ Γαΐου θάνατον ἡσθεὶς, πρῶτα μὲν τῆς πόλεως ἐξέβαλεν, ἔπειτα καὶ ἐδολοφόνησεν. Οὐ γὰρ ὅτι τὴν ἀρχὴν διὰ τὴν ἐκείνων πρᾶξιν εἰλήφει χάριν αὐτοῖς εἶχεν, ἀλλ' ὅτι ἐτόλμησαν αὐτοκράτορα ἀποσφάξαι ἐδυσχέραινεν. 87 Exc. Salmas.: Κλαύδιος δειλὸς ὢν πάντας 87 τοὺς προσιόντας αὐτῷ ἐποίησεν ἀνερευνᾶσθαι, μή τι ξιφίδιον ἔχωσι, καὶ ἐν τοῖς συμποσίοις ὡπλισμένοι παρεστήκεσαν αὐτῷ. 88 Exc. De virt.: Ὅτι ὁ αὐτὸς ταῖς ὁπλομαχίαις ἀκορέστως προσκείμενος οὐ μόνον τὰ τῶν δορυαλώτων καὶ κατακρίτων κατανήλισκε σώματα, ἀλλὰ καὶ τῶν ἀπελευθέρων. Ταῖς τε τῆς γαμετῆς Βαλερίας Μεσσαλίνης γυναίου ἀκολάστου καὶ τυραννικοῦ διαβολαῖς ὑπαγόμενος, συχνοὺς τῶν ἐπισήμων τῆς βουλῆς διέφθειρεν. Ἀπείχετο δὲ οὐδὲ τῶν ἀφ' αἵματος. Καὶ γὰρ τούτων ἔστιν οἳ ἀπώλοντο, τοῦ μὲν ἀβασανίστως τὰς διαβολὰς δεχομένου, τῆς δὲ ἀφ' ἑτέρου εἰς ἕτερον ἀγούσης τὸν Κλαύδιον, τῇ τε κουφότητι τοῦ ἀνδρὸς κατακεχρημένης. Τὰς γοῦν δύω ἀδελφὰς διαβληθείσας ἀνεῖλεν, αὖθίς τε τοὺς γαμβροὺς μηδὲν ἡμαρτηκότας. Ἐκείνους γὰρ μάρτυρας τῶν κατηγοριῶν ἡ Μεσσαλίνα ἐποιεῖτο τοὺς τὸ κράτος ἔχοντας· καὶ τούς τι δυναμένους μηνῦσαι τῶν ὑπ' αὐτῆς πραττομένων, οὓς μὲν εὐεργεσίαις, οὓς δὲ τιμωρίαις προκατελάμβανεν, ὡς οὐ τὴν πολιτείαν μόνην ὑπ' αὐτῆς διοικεῖσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὰς στρατείας καὶ ἐπιτροπείας πάντα τε τἄλλα ἀφειδῶς πωλεῖν καὶ καπηλεύειν. Ἐξ οὗπερ ἀναγκασθῆναι τὸν Κλαύδιον, εἰς τὸ Ἄρειον πεδίον τοῦ πλήθους συνελθόντος, τὰς τιμὰς διατάξαι. Οὐ μὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτή γε, εἰς πᾶν ἀκολασίας τε καὶ ὠμότητος προελθοῦσα, καὶ μιγνυμένη μὲν ἀναίδην οἷς ἐπιθυμήσειεν, ἀναιροῦσα δὲ καὶ τῶν ὁμιλούντων αὐτῇ συχνοὺς, μόλις πρὸς τοῦ Κλαυδίου τῆς ἀτοπίας αἰσθομένου διαφθείρεται. Ἐπεὶ γὰρ οὐκ ἀπέχρησεν αὐτῇ μοιχεύεσθαι πολλάκις καὶ ἐπὶ οἰκήματος σὺν ταῖς ἄλλαις τῶν ἐπιφανῶν γυναιξὶ καθεζομένῃ, ἀλλ' ἐπεθύμησε κατὰ νόμον δὴ καὶ συμβόλαια πλείοσι συνοικεῖν ἀνδράσιν, ἐνταῦθα καταμηνυθεῖσα τῷ Κλαυδίῳ πρὸς Ναρκίσσου τινὸς ἀπελευθέρου τοῦ βασιλέως ἀναιρεῖται, τῶν μὲν βασιλείων ἐξωσθεῖσα, περὶ δὲ τοὺς Ἀσιατικοῦ κήπους πλανωμένη, ὧν ἕνεκα τὸν δείλαιον Ἀσιατικὸν μικρῷ πρόσθεν ἀπολωλέκει. Μεθ' ἣν καὶ τὸν ἑαυτοῦ δοῦλον ὁ Κλαύδιος ὑβρίσαντά τινα τῶν ἐν ἀξιώσει διέφθειρεν. 89 Exc. De ins.: Ὅτι Κλαύδιος ὑπὸ Ἀγριππίνης ἀναιρεῖται τρόπῳ τοιῷδε.