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with cords made of wool, gleaming with purple dye. Indeed, he proceeded to such a point of absurdity as to go upon the stage and, in the sight of all, both to dance and to sing certain odes, taking up the costume now of cithara players, now of tragic actors. But although these things greatly disgraced his rule, they nevertheless provided laughter and pleasure to the spectators. But the most shameful and terrible thing of all was that he forced both men and women, not only of those belonging to the common people and the knights, but also of the senatorial rank, and not only the young, but also those already past their prime, to fight as gladiators in the theatres and to kill wild beasts and to dance and to sing and to proceed to every kind of disgraceful act; and in order that it might seem proper, he himself also went into the theatre. And the people of that time saw the great families, the Furii, the Horatii, the Fabii, the Porcii, the Valerii, standing below and being forced to do such things, some of which they previously could not bear to see done even by others. Aelia Catella, for instance, a woman distinguished on the one hand for her family, and on the other for her wealth, and having reached a great old age (for she was eighty years old), danced upon the stage; and the others of the prominent men, being unable to do anything on their own on account of either old age or sickness, sang, standing in choruses. And he held these unlawful spectacles both on the occasion of his beard being shaved for the first time, and on the occasion of his mother's murder; for the murderous and cruel part of his nature had not left him, although he seemed to be at play; but he was altogether hostile to the good and the educated. He had destroyed the largest and best part of the senate on absurd charges, hating and punishing some because they were noble, others because they possessed wealth, and others because they were prudent. Musonius and Cornutus he came very near to killing, but he banished them from Rome, bringing no other charge against them than that they were wise and excellent in their way of life. And each day, so to speak, was polluted with the murders of relatives. For Britannicus, who was thought to be his brother, he first outrageously violated in his youth, and then destroyed at dinner with a deadly poison; a thing terrible not only to hear of, but also to see; for he became all livid, and his eyes were open wide and calling upon the avengers for punishment. And his own wife Octavia, on whose account he had not least come to power, he first sent away, and then also killed. And at night he would revel through the whole city, insulting the women and behaving wantonly toward the youths, stripping those he met, striking, wounding, murdering; and he thought to escape notice by using the clothes of others; and wantonly insulting the wives of free men, and using virgins as if they were courtesans with his friends. But Agrippina would go to the council meetings, and she would give audiences to embassies, and she sent letters to peoples and rulers and kings. But Agrippina did these things, until Nero married Sabina. For then he also murdered his mother. The cause of this unholy deed was Sabina, a woman of a distinguished family; Nero, having fallen in love with her, first took her away by force from her husband Poplius; then, not content to rank her with his concubines but having decided to make her his wife, he takes away Agrippina's honor and declares Sabina Augusta. As a result of this, his mother plotted some unholy and most abominable deed. For just as she had enticed her uncle Claudius into love with her by drugs, so also she tried to turn her own son to such impiety. But nevertheless, even after such actions, when she was slandered to him by Sabina, he handed her over to a certain Anicetus, one of his bodyguards, for destruction. When this happened, she cried out and leaped up from her bed, and tore her clothes, and baring her womb, she said, “Strike this, Anicetus, because it bore Nero.” And the remaining

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καλωδίοις ἐξ ἐρίου πεποιημένοις, ἀστράπτουσι τῇ βαφῇ τῆς κόχλου. Ἐς τοῦτό γε μὴν προϊὼν ἀτοπίας ἐλήλυθεν, ὡς παριέναι μὲν εἰς τὴν σκηνὴν, ὑπὸ δὲ τῇ πάντων ὄψει ὀρχεῖσθαί τε καὶ ᾠδάς τινας διεξιέναι, ἀναλαμβάνοντα σκευὴν νῦν μὲν κιθαριστῶν, νῦν δὲ τραγῳδίας ὑποκριτῶν. Ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν εἰ καὶ σφόδρα τὴν ἀρχὴν ἐλυμαίνετο, γέλωτά γε ὅμως καὶ ἡδονὴν παρεῖχε τοῖς θεωμένοις. Τὸ δὲ πάντων αἴσχιστον καὶ δεινότατον ὅτι καὶ ἄνδρας καὶ γυναῖκας οὐ μόνον τῶν εἰς τὸν δῆμον καὶ τοὺς ἱππεῖς τελούντων, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῦ βουλευτικοῦ ἀξιώματος, καὶ οὐχ ὅπως νέους, ἀλλ' ἤδη καὶ παρηβηκότας ὁπλομαχεῖν ἐν τοῖς θεάτροις ἠνάγκαζε καὶ θηρία φονεύειν καὶ ὀρχεῖσθαι καὶ ᾄδειν καὶ πρὸς πᾶν ἀσχημοσύνης ἰέναι· ἵνα δὲ δὴ εὐπρεπὲς εἴη, καὶ αὐτὸς ἐς τὸ θέατρον παρῄει. Καὶ εἶδον οἱ τότε ἄνθρωποι τὰ γένη τὰ μεγάλα, τοὺς Φουρίους, τοὺς Ὁρατίους, τοὺς Φαβίους, τοὺς Πορκίους, τοὺς Βαλερίους κάτω ἑστηκότας καὶ τοιαῦτα δρᾶν ἀναγκαζομένους, ὧν ἔνια οὐδὲ ὑπὸ ἄλλων γινόμενα πρόσθεν ὁρᾶν ἠνείχοντο. Αἰλία γοῦν Κατέλλα γυνὴ τοῦτο μὲν γένει, τοῦτο δὲ καὶ πλούτῳ προήκουσα, πρὸς γῆράς τε μακρὸν ἀφιγμένη (ὀγδοηκοντοῦτις γὰρ ἦν) ἐπὶ τῆς σκηνῆς ὠρχήσατο, οἵ τε ἄλλοι τῶν ἐπιφανῶν, ἢ διὰ γῆρας ἢ διὰ νόσον οὐδὲν ἰδίᾳ ποιῆσαι δυνηθέντες, ᾖδον κατὰ χοροὺς ἱστάμενοι. Ἐπετέλει δὲ ταύτας τὰς ἐκθέσμους θέας ἐπί τε τῷ γενείῳ τὸ πρῶτον ψιλωθέντι, καὶ ἐπὶ τῷ τῆς μητρὸς φόνῳ· ἀπολελοίπει γὰρ αὐτὸν οὐδὲ τὸ φονικόν τε καὶ ἀπηνὲς, καίτοι γε παίζειν δοκοῦντα· ἀλλ' ἦν μὲν καθάπαξ τοῖς ἀγαθοῖς τε καὶ πεπαιδευμένοις ἔγκοτος. Τὸ δὲ πλεῖστον καὶ κράτιστον ἐπὶ παραλόγοις αἰτίαις ἀπανηλώκει τῆς βουλῆς μέρος, τοὺς μὲν ὅτι εὐγενεῖς, τοὺς δὲ ὅτι περιουσίας ἔχοντας, τοὺς δὲ ὅτι σώφρονες ἦσαν μισῶν τε καὶ κολάζων. Μουσώνιόν τε καὶ Κορνοῦτον μικροῦ μὲν ἐδέησεν ἀποκτεῖναι, τῆς δὲ Ῥώμης ἐξήλασεν· ἄλλο μὲν οὐδὲν ἐπικαλῶν, ὅτι δὲ σοφοὶ καὶ ἄριστοι τὸν βίον ἐγενέσθην. Συγγενῶν τε φόνοις ἑκάστης, ὡς εἰπεῖν, ἐμιαίνετο τῆς ἡμέρας. Τόν τε γὰρ Βρεττανικὸν ἀδελφόν οἱ εἶναι δοκοῦντα, πρῶτα μὲν εἰς τὴν ὥραν ἀσελγῶς ὕβρισεν, ἔπειτα δὲ παρὰ δεῖπνον δηλητηρίῳ φαρμάκῳ διέφθειρεν· ὡς δεινὸν μὴ μόνον ἀκούεσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ ὁρᾶσθαι· πελιδνὸς γὰρ ὅλος ἐγένετο, καὶ οἱ ὀφθαλμοὶ αὐτοῦ ἀνεῳγμένοι καὶ τοὺς ἐφόρους πρὸς τιμωρίαν καλοῦντες. Καὶ τὴν ἑαυτοῦ γαμετὴν Ὀκταβίαν δι' ἣν εἰς τὴν ἀρχὴν οὐχ ἥκιστα παρεληλύθει, πρῶτον μὲν ἀπεπέμψατο, ἔπειτα καὶ ἀπέκτεινε. Καὶ ἐν νυκτὶ ἐκώμαζε κατὰ πᾶσαν τὴν πόλιν, ὑβρίζων τὰς γυναῖκας καὶ ἀσελγαίνων εἰς τὰ μειράκια, ἀποδύων τε τοὺς ἀπαντῶντας, παίων, τιτρώσκων, φονεύων· καὶ ἐδόκει λανθάνειν ἀλλοτρίαις ἐσθῆσι χρώμενος· τάς τε τῶν ἐλευθέρων γυναῖκας ἐξ ἐπηρείας ὑβρίζων, καὶ ταῖς παρθένοις ὡς καὶ ἑταιρίσι μετὰ τῶν φίλων χρώμενος. Ἡ δὲ Ἀγριππίνη ἔς τε τὰ συνέδρια ἐφοίτα, ταῖς τε πρεσβείαις ἐχρημάτιζε, καὶ ἐπιστολὰς δήμοις καὶ ἄρχουσι καὶ βασιλεῦσιν ἐπέστελλεν. Ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν Ἀγριππίνη ἔπραττεν, ἄχρις οὗ ὁ Νέρων τὴν Σαβίνην ἠγάγετο. Τότε γὰρ καὶ τὴν μητέρα ἐφόνευσεν. Αἰτίαν δὲ τῆς ἀνοσιουργίας τῆσδε γεγενῆσθαι Σαβίναν γυναῖκα γένους ἐπιφανοῦς· ἧς ἐρασθεὶς ὁ Νέρων πρῶτον μὲν αὐτὴν πρὸς βίαν τοῦ ἀνδρὸς Ποπλίου ἀπήγαγεν· ἔπειτα σὺν ταῖς παλλακίσι τάττειν οὐκ ἀνασχόμενος, ἀλλὰ γαμετὴν ποιήσασθαι διεγνωκὼς, τὴν μὲν Ἀγριππίνης ἀφαιρεῖται τιμὴν, Αὐγούσταν δὲ τὴν Σαβίναν ἀποδείκνυσιν· ὡς ἐκ τούτου ἀνόσιόν τι καὶ μιαρώτατον ἔργον τὴν μητέρα αὐτοῦ μελετῆσαι. Ὥσπερ γὰρ τὸν θεῖον αὐτῆς τὸν Κλαύδιον εἰς ἔρωτα φαρμακείαις εἰσήγαγεν, οὕτω καὶ τὸν ἑαυτοῦ παῖδα πρὸς τὴν τοιαύτην δυσσέβειαν παρέτρεψεν. Ἀλλ' ὅμως καὶ μετὰ τὰς τοιαύτας πράξεις διαβληθεῖσάν οἱ πρὸς τῆς Σαβίνης, Ἀνικήτῳ τινὶ τῶν σωματοφυλάκων πρὸς διαφθορὰν ἐξέδοτο. Οὗ γενομένου, ἔγων τε ἐκείνη καὶ ἀνεπήδησεν ἐκ τῆς κλίνης, τήν τε ἐσθῆτα περιερρήξατο, καὶ τὴν γαστέρα γυμνώσασα, «Παῖε, ἔφη, ταύτην, Ἀνίκητε, ὅτι Νέρωνα ἔτεκε.» Καὶ τὰς περιττὰς