384

Since almost all the grain belonged to the Romans, the land at the mouths of the Tiber, having neither safe anchorages nor suitable harbors, made their command of the sea useless to them; for nothing could be imported during the winter season. Therefore, understanding this, he constructed harbors and completed a project worthy of both the spirit and the greatness of Rome. And being moderate in all things, neither when a son was born3.27 to him, who at that time was named Claudius Tiberius Germanicus, but later also Britannicus, did he do anything else noteworthy, nor did he permit himself to be called Augustus or Messalina to be called Augusta. He continuously held gladiatorial contests, taking great pleasure in them, and from these many men perished, having been condemned on some charges. Therefore, having become accustomed to being sated with blood and slaughter in this way, he resorted to other massacres more rashly. The causes of this were Caesar's men and Messalina. For if they wished to kill someone, they would thoroughly frighten him, and they were permitted to do all that they wanted. And often, being suddenly struck with terror and having ordered someone to be destroyed out of his immediate fear, afterward, recovering and coming to his senses, he was grieved upon learning what had happened and repented. As he was doing such things, the Romans no longer held a good hope for Claudius. For this reason, he was plotted against by others and by Annius Vinicianus, who sent word to Furius Camillus Scribonianus, the governor of Dalmatia, and persuaded him to revolt. But when the soldiers were not persuaded by him, he killed himself, and Claudius, although he had been very afraid to the point of being ready to willingly yield the rule to him, nevertheless took courage on learning of his death, and he rewarded the soldiers with other things and with money, and sought out the fellow conspirators and punished most of them. And many others, including Vinicianus, killed3.28 themselves. For Messalina and Narcissus, Claudius's freedman, and his fellow freedmen, taking this opportunity, refrained from none of the most terrible things. Therefore many men and women were punished; but some of the very guilty were saved, some by money, and others indeed by favors. And a certain Galaesus, a freedman of Camillus, in the senate-house, when Narcissus came forward and said to him, 'What would you have done, Galaesus, if Camillus had become monarch?' answered, 'I would have stood behind him and kept silent.' And Arria, being the wife of Caecina, a consul, although she was very intimate with Messalina, could not bear to live while her husband was dying, but also encouraged her husband when he showed cowardice. For taking the sword, she struck herself and handed it to him, saying, 'Look, Paetus, it does not hurt.' And they were praised for these things, but Claudius was so inclined to punishments that he would continuously give this line as a watchword to the soldiers: a man must defend himself, whenever another is the first to be harsh. And Messalina and his freedmen were selling and trafficking so much in citizenships and military commands and procuratorships and governorships and everything else that all saleable goods became scarce, and consequently Claudius was forced to decree their prices from the platform. And when Aulus Plautius had campaigned in Britain, and having suffered some things and done others, he then reported what had happened to Claudius, that one entrusted matters at home to Lucius Vitellius his colleague3.29 in the consulship and marched out on campaign. And arriving at the Ocean, he crossed over into Britain with a larger force and elephants and joined the troops. And with them he engaged the barbarians, was victorious, and captured their royal city. And he returned to Rome, having sent ahead the news of his victory through his sons-in-law, Magnus and Silanus. And when the senate learned these things, it bestowed the name Britannicus on both him and his son, and voted them many other things. But Messalina, having fallen in love with a certain dancer named Mnester, since she could not persuade him to have relations with her either by promises or by threats, induced Claudius to order

384

παντὸς σχεδὸν τοῦ σίτου τοῖς ̔Ρωμαίοις οντος, ἡ χώρα ἡ πρὸς ταῖς ἐκβολαῖς τοῦ Τιβέριδος ουτε κατάρσεις ἀσφαλεῖς ουτε λιμένας ἐπιτηδείους εχουσα ἀνωφελὲς σφίσι τὸ κράτος τῆς θαλάσσης ἐποίει· οὐδὲν γὰρ κατὰ τὴν χειμερινὴν ωραν ἠδύνατο εἰσφοιτᾶν. τοῦτο ουν συνιδὼν λιμένας τε κατεσκεύασε καὶ ἀπετέλεσε πρᾶγμα καὶ τοῦ φρονήματος καὶ τοῦ μεγέθους τῆς ̔Ρώμης αξιον. ἐν πᾶσι δὲ μετριάζων, ουτε γεννηθέν3.27 τος αὐτῷ υἱέος, ος τότε μὲν Κλαύδιος Τιβέριος Γερμανικός, υστερον δὲ καὶ Βρεττανικὸς ἐπωνομάσθη, αλλο τι ἐπιφανὲς επραξεν, ουτ' Αυγουστον αὐτὸν η τὴν Μεσσαλῖναν Αὐγούσταν ἐπικληθῆναι ἐφῆκε. Συνεχῶς δὲ μονομαχίας ἀγῶνας ἐτίθει, πάνυ χαίρων αὐτοῖς, κἀντεῦθεν πολλοὶ ἀπώλλυντο ανθρωποι, ἐπ' αἰτίαις τισὶ καταψηφισθέντες. ἐθισθεὶς ουν ουτως αιματος καὶ φόνων ἀναπίμπλασθαι, προπετέστερον καὶ ταῖς αλλαις σφαγαῖς ἐχρήσατο. αιτιοι δὲ τούτου οι τε Καισάρειοι καὶ ἡ Μεσσαλῖνα ἐγίνοντο. εἰ γὰρ ἀποκτεῖναί τινα ἐθελήσειαν, ἐξεφόβουν αὐτόν, καὶ πάνθ' οσα ἐβούλοντο ποιεῖν ἐπετρέποντο. καὶ πολλάκις ἐξαπιναίως ἐκπλαγεὶς καὶ κελεύσας τινὰ ἐκ τοῦ παραχρῆμα περιδεοῦς ἀπολέσθαι, επειτα ἀνενεγκὼν καὶ ἀναφρονήσας, μαθὼν τὸ γεγονὸς ἐλυπεῖτο καὶ μετεγίνωσκε. Τοιαῦτα δὲ ποιοῦντος αὐτοῦ οὐκέτι χρηστὴν ἐλπίδα ἐπὶ Κλαυδίῳ οἱ ̔Ρωμαῖοι ἐσχήκασι. διὸ καὶ ἐπεβουλεύθη ὑφ' ἑτέρων τε καὶ ὑπ' ̓Αννίου Βινικιανοῦ, ος πρὸς Φούριον Κάμιλλον Σκριβωνιανὸν τῆς ∆αλματίας αρχοντα επεμψε καὶ ἀνέπεισεν αὐτὸν ἐπαναστῆναι. τῶν δὲ στρατιωτῶν μὴ πεισθέντων αὐτῷ, αὐτὸς μὲν ἀπέκτεινεν ἑαυτόν, Κλαύδιος δὲ καίτοι πάνυ καταδείσας ὡς ἑτοίμως εχειν ἐκστῆναι αὐτῷ τοῦ κράτους ἐθελοντής, ομως τὸν θάνατον αὐτοῦ μαθὼν ἀνεθάρσησε, καὶ τοὺς μὲν στρατιώτας αλλοις τέ τισι καὶ χρήμασιν ἀντημείψατο, τοὺς δὲ συνεπιβουλεύσαντας ἀνεζήτησε καὶ πλείστους ἐκόλασε. συχνοὶ δὲ αλλοι τε καὶ ὁ Βινικιανὸς διεχειρί3.28 σαντο ἑαυτούς. ἡ γὰρ Μεσσαλῖνα καὶ ὁ τοῦ Κλαυδίου ἀπελεύθερος Νάρκισσος οι τε συναπελεύθεροι αὐτοῦ, τῆς ἀφορμῆς ταύτης λαβόμενοι, οὐδενὸς τῶν δεινοτάτων ἀπέσχοντο. ανδρες τε ουν πολλοὶ καὶ γυναῖκες ἐκολάσθησαν· τινὲς δὲ καὶ τῶν πάνυ ὑπαιτίων ἐσώθησαν, οἱ μὲν χρήμασιν, ενιοι δέ γε καὶ χάρισι. Γαλαῖσος δέ τις ἀπελεύθερος τοῦ Καμίλλου ἐν τῷ βουλευτηρίῳ τοῦ Ναρκίσσου παρελθόντος εἰς τὸ μέσον καὶ εἰπόντος αὐτῷ "τί αν ἐποίησας, Γαλαῖσε, εἰ Κάμιλλος ἐμονάρχησεν;" ἀπεκρίνατο οτι "εἱστήκειν αν οπισθεν αὐτοῦ καὶ ἐσιώπων." ̓Αρρία δὲ γυνὴ Καικίνου ὑπάτου ουσα, εἰ καὶ τῇ Μεσσαλίνῃ σφόδρα ᾠκείωτο, οὐκ ηνεγκε ζῆν τοῦ ἀνδρὸς θνήσκοντος, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν ανδρα ἀποδειλιῶντα ἐπέρρωσε. τὸ γὰρ ξίφος λαβοῦσα ἑαυτὴν επληξε κἀκείνῳ ἐπέδωκεν εἰποῦσα "ἰδοὺ Παῖτε, οὐκ ἀλγῶ." καὶ οἱ μὲν ἐπὶ τούτοις ἐπῃνοῦντο, Κλαύδιος δὲ ουτως πρὸς τὰς κολάσεις εσχεν ωστε καὶ σύνθημα τοῖς στρατιώταις τὸ επος τοῦτο συνεχῶς διδόναι, χρὴ ανδρ' ἀπαμύνασθαι, οτε τις πρότερος χαλεπήνῃ. ἡ δὲ Μεσσαλῖνα καὶ οἱ ἀπελεύθεροι αὐτοῦ ουτως τὴν πολιτείαν καὶ τὰς στρατείας καὶ τὰς ἐπιτροπὰς τάς τε ἡγεμονίας καὶ τὰ αλλα πάντα ἐπώλουν καὶ ἐκαπήλευον ωστε σπανίσαι πάντα τὰ ωνια, κἀντεῦθεν βιασθῆναι τὸν Κλαύδιον ἀπὸ βήματος τὰς τιμὰς αὐτῶν διατάξαι. Αυλου δὲ Πλαυτίου ἐς τὴν Βρεττανίαν στρατεύσαντος, καὶ τὰ μὲν παθόντος, τὰ δὲ δράσαντος, ειτα τῷ Κλαυδίῳ τὰ συμβάντα γνωρίσαντος, ἐκεῖνος τὰ οικοι Οὐιτελλίῳ Λουκίῳ τῷ συνυ3.29 πατευκότι ἐγχειρίσας ἐξεστράτευσε. καὶ πρὸς τὸν ̓Ωκεανὸν ἀφικόμενος εις τε τὴν Βρεττανίαν περαιωθεὶς μετὰ πλείονος παρασκευῆς καὶ ἐλεφάντων συνέμιξε τοῖς στρατεύμασι. καὶ μετ' αὐτῶν τοῖς βαρβάροις συμβαλὼν ἐνίκησε καὶ τὸ βασίλειον αὐτῶν ειλε. καὶ εἰς τὴν ̔Ρώμην ἐπανῆλθε, τὴν ἀγγελίαν τῆς νίκης διὰ τῶν γαμβρῶν τοῦ τε Μάγνου καὶ τοῦ Σιλανοῦ προπέμψας. μαθοῦσα δὲ ταῦτα ἡ γερουσία Βρεττανικὸν καὶ αὐτὸν καὶ τὸν υἱὸν αὐτοῦ ἐπεκάλεσε, καὶ πολλὰ αὐτοῖς ἐψηφίσατο ετερα. ̔Η δὲ Μεσσαλῖνα ὀρχηστοῦ ἐρασθεῖσά τινος Μνηστῆρος ὠνομασμένου, ἐπεὶ μήθ' ὑποσχέσεσιν αὐτὸν μήτ' ἐκφοβήσεσιν ἀνέπειθε συγγενέσθαι αὐτῇ, τὸν Κλαύδιον παρεσκεύασεν ἐπιτάξαι