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to Claudius, who ruled the Romans, being his predecessor. He ruled the Romans after Claudius for 13 years, but according to others 14. The Romans appear at no time to have been ruled under a more unfortunate or shameful reign than this one. For acts of all tyranny and cruelty were committed by him, intemperance, the bloody murder of his mother Agrippina and of Octavia his own wife, of his legitimate 415 brother and his paternal uncle and many other relatives, and of those in the senate. On top of all his misfortunes, he also initiated the first persecution against the Christians, at which time Peter and Paul, the most divine apostles, were crowned in the contest, having martyred for Christ, the one being crucified upside down, as he himself chose, the other, Paul, having his holy head cut off; concerning whom the Roman writer Tertullian writes these things: Look into your records; there you will find that Nero was the first to decree this, at the time when, having subdued the entire East in Rome, he was a cruel persecutor against all. We glory in such a leader of our punishment. For he who knows that man can understand that it could not be condemned by Nero unless it were something of great good. In this way, therefore, this fighter against God, being proclaimed first among the foremost, was incited to the slaughter of the apostles. Paul, then, was beheaded in Rome and Peter is likewise said to have been crucified according to him. And the history is confirmed by the designation of Paul and Peter which has prevailed to this day over the cemeteries there. To these things also Gaius the historian, an ecclesiastical man, writes similar things, arguing with a certain Proclus of the Phrygian heresy in the time of Zephyrinus, the fifteenth bishop of the Roman church, under Severus, emperor of the Romans: But I have the trophies of the apostles. For if you will go to the Vatican or to the Ostian Way, you will find the trophies of those who founded this church. In agreement with these things, Dionysius, the bishop of Corinth, also writes, that they evidently martyred at the same time: You also by this great admonition have blended together the planting of the Romans 416 and Corinthians that came from Paul and Peter. For both of them came to our Corinth and taught us likewise, and likewise having taught in Italy, they martyred at the same time. The 1st bishop of the church of the Romans after Peter the chief was Linus, for 18 years.

YEAR OF THE WORLD 5564 Year of the divine incarnation 64. Nero shamefully ended his life

Vespasian was proclaimed emperor of the Romans by the armies in Judea. But Galba, general of Iberia, having come to Rome, reigns for 7 months. Otho, one of the officials, having killed him, reigns for 3 months in Rome, whom Vitellius, having killed, reigns for 8 months. This man killed Sabinus, the brother of Vespasian, who was staying in Rome and, for fear of his brother's proclamation, had taken refuge in the Capitol in the temple of Jupiter, having besieged the man and burned the temple. He himself was immediately killed by Domitian, the younger son of Vespasian, who was sent for this by his father. For leaving his elder son Titus, who finished the war against the Jews, he himself goes to Greece, rejoicing, as the Greeks tell, at what he had heard from Apollonius of Tyana concerning the length of his reign and his other successes, having met him in Egypt as he was returning from the Indies and the Brahmans of the Gymnosophists there. Therefore, having come to Greece, he subdued the rebellious cities, and from there he comes to Rome, having ruled in an orderly manner and in a way opposite to Nero. For he restores the ways of life and the rights of the city, and the rebellious barbarians, the Broxyli and Britons and Dacians and

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Ῥωμαίων βασιλεύσαντι Κλαυδίῳ, πρόγονος ὢν αὐτοῦ. ἐβασίλευσε δὲ Ῥωμαίων μετὰ Κλαύδιον ἔτη ιγʹ, κατὰ δὲ ἄλλους ιδʹ. τούτου δὲ τῆς βασιλείας ἀτυχεστέραν ἢ αἰσχροτέραν ἐν οὐδενὶ χρόνῳ φαίνονται βασιλευθέντες Ῥωμαῖοι. πάσης γὰρ τυραννίδος καὶ ὠμότητος ἔργα παρ' αὐτοῦ πέπρακται, ἀκρασίαι, μιαιφονίαι τῆς τε μητρὸς Ἀγριππίνης καὶ Ὀκταβίας τῆς οἰκείας γαμετῆς, ἀδελφοῦ τε γνη 415 σίου καὶ θείου πρὸς πατρὸς καὶ ἄλλων πολλῶν συγγενῶν, καὶ τῶν ἐν γερουσίᾳ. ἐπὶ πᾶσι δ' αὐτοῦ τοῖς ἀτυχήμασι καὶ τὸν πρῶτον κατὰ Χρι στιανῶν ἐνεδείξατο διωγμόν, ἡνίκα Πέτρος καὶ Παῦλος οἱ θειότατοι ἀπό στολοι τῷ ὑπὲρ Χριστοῦ μαρτυρήσαντες κατεστέφθησαν ἀγῶνι, ὁ μὲν κατὰ κεφαλῆς ἀνασκολοπισθείς, ὡς αὐτὸς ᾑρετίσατο, ὁ δὲ τὴν ἁγίαν ἐκτμηθεὶς κεφαλὴν Παῦλος· περὶ ὧν ὁ Ῥωμαϊκὸς συγγραφεὺς Τερτυλλιανὸς τάδε γράφει· Ἐντύχετε τοῖς ὑπομνήμασιν ὑμῶν· ἐκεῖ εὑρήσετε πρῶτον Νέρωνα τοῦτο δογματίσαντα, ἡνίκα μάλιστα ἐν Ῥώμῃ τὴν ἀνατολὴν πᾶσαν ὑποτάξας ὠμὸς ἦν εἰς πάντας διώκτης. τοιούτῳ τῆς κολάσεως ἡμῶν ἀρχηγῷ καυ χώμεθα. ὁ γὰρ εἰδὼς ἐκεῖνον νοῆσαι δύναται οὐκ ἄν, εἰ μὴ μέγα τι ἀγαθῶν ἦν, ὑπὸ Νέρωνος κατακριθῆναι. ταύτῃ γοῦν οὗτος θεομάχος ἐν τοῖς μά λιστα πρῶτος ἀνακηρυχθεὶς ἐπὶ τὰς κατὰ τῶν ἀποστόλων ἐπήρθη σφα γάς. Παῦλος δὴ οὖν ἐπὶ τῆς Ῥώμης τὴν κεφαλὴν ἀπετμήθη καὶ Πέτρος ὡσαύτως ἀνασκολοπισθῆναι κατ' αὐτὸν λέγεται. καὶ πιστοῦταί γε τὴν ἱστορίαν ἡ Παύλου καὶ Πέτρου εἰς δεῦρο κρατήσασα ἐπὶ τῶν αὐτόθι κοιμητηρίων πρόρρησις. τούτοις καὶ Γάιος ἱστορικός, ἀνὴρ ἐκκλησιαστι κός, ὅμοια γράφει Πρόκλῳ τινὶ τῆς Φρυγῶν αἱρέσεως διαλεγόμενος ἐν τοῖς χρόνοις Ζεφυρίνου, πεντεκαιδέκατος τῆς Ῥωμαίων ἐκκλησίας ἐπί σκοπος κατὰ Σεβῆρον Ῥωμαίων αὐτοκράτορα· ἐγὼ δὲ τὰ τρόπαια τῶν ἀποστόλων ἔχω. ἐὰν γὰρ θελήσῃς ἀπελθεῖν ἐπὶ τὸν Βασίκανον ἐπὶ τὴν ὁδὸν τὴν Ὀστείαν, εὑρήσεις τὰ τρόπαια τῶν ταύτην ἱδρυσαμένων τὴν ἐκκλησίαν. Τούτοις ἀκόλουθα καὶ ∆ιονύσιος ὁ Κορίνθου ἐπίσκοπος γράφει, ὡς δη λονότι κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν καιρὸν ἐμαρτύρησαν· ταῦτα καὶ ὑμεῖς διὰ τῆς το σαύτης νουθεσίας τὴν ἀπὸ Παύλου καὶ Πέτρου φυτείαν γενηθεῖσαν Ῥω 416 μαίων τε καὶ Κορινθίων συνεκεράσατε. καὶ γὰρ ἄμφω καὶ εἰς τὴν ἡμετέ ραν Κόρινθον φοιτήσαντες ἡμᾶς ὁμοίως ἐδίδαξαν, ὁμοίως δὲ καὶ εἰς τὴν Ἰταλίαν ἐκδιδάξαντες ἐμαρτύρησαν κατὰ τὸν αὐτὸν καιρόν. Τῆς Ῥωμαίων ἐκκλησίας αʹ ἐπίσκοπος μετὰ Πέτρον τὸν κορυφαῖον Λίνος ἔτη ιηʹ.

ΚΟΣΜΟΥ ΕΤΗ ΕΦΞ∆ Τῆς θείας σαρκώσεως ἔτη ξδʹ Νέρωνος τὸν βίον αἰσχρῶς

καταλύσαντος Οὐεσπασιανὸς ὑπὸ τῶν στρα τευμάτων κατὰ τὴν Ἰουδαίαν βασιλεὺς Ῥωμαίων ἀνηγορεύθη. Γαλβᾶς δὲ στρατηγῶν Ἰβηρίας εἰς Ῥώμην παρελθὼν κρατεῖ μῆνας ζʹ. τοῦτον Ὄθων ἀνελὼν εἷς τῶν ἐν τέλει κρατεῖ μῆνας γʹ ἐπὶ τῆς Ῥώμης, ὃν Βιτέλλιος κτείνας κρατεῖ μῆνας ηʹ. οὗτος Σαβῖνον τὸν ἀδελφὸν Οὐεσπασιανοῦ διατρίβοντα κατὰ τὴν Ῥώμην καὶ φόβῳ τῆς ἀναρρήσεως τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ ἐν τῷ Καπετωλίῳ προσφυγόντα κατὰ τὸν ναὸν τοῦ ∆ιὸς ἀνεῖλε, πολιορκήσας τὸν ἄνδρα καὶ τὸν ναὸν ἐμπρήσας. Ὁ δὲ αὐτὸς ὑπὸ ∆ομετιανοῦ παραχρῆμα ἀνῃρέθη τοῦ νεωτέρου παιδὸς Οὐεσπασιανοῦ πεμφθέντος εἰς τοῦτο παρὰ τοῦ πατρός. τὸν γὰρ πρεσβύτε ρον υἱὸν Τίτον τὸν πρὸς Ἰουδαίους πόλεμον ἐκτελέσαντα καταλιπὼν αὐτὸς ἐπὶ τὴν Ἑλλάδα παραγίνεται, χαίρων, ὡς Ἕλληνες μυθεύονται, ἐφ' οἷς ἠκηκόει παρὰ τοῦ Τυανέως Ἀπολλωνίου περὶ τοῦ χρόνου τῆς βασιλείας καὶ τῶν λοιπῶν εὐδοκιμήσεων, κατὰ τὴν Αἴγυπτον συντυχὼν αὐτῷ ἐξ Ἰνδῶν καὶ Βραχμάνων ἐπανελθόντι τῶν ἐκεῖσε Γυμνοσοφιστῶν. ἐλθὼν οὖν εἰς Ἑλλάδα χειροῦται τὰς ἀποστάσας πόλεις, κἀκεῖθεν εἰς Ῥώμην παραγίνεται, βασιλεύσας κοσμίως καὶ ἀντιθέτως τῷ Νέρωνι. βίους γὰρ καὶ τὰ τῆς πόλεως ἀνακαλεῖται δίκαια, τούς τε ἐπαναστάντας βαρβάρους Βροξύλους καὶ Βρεττανοὺς καὶ ∆άκας καὶ