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he entrusted him to the soldiers, so that he might not seem to die at his hands, and to the chiliarch asking for the watchword, "to the rising sun," he said, "go away; for I am already setting." So after ruling most excellently, he passed away, having lived fifty-nine years, lacking thirty-eight days, and having reigned as sole ruler for nineteen years and eleven days. For he was a good man by nature, and in very many ways he became better through education. He was not, however, as fortunate as his virtue deserved. From this, one might admire him all the more, because though he encountered strange and extraordinary circumstances, he both survived and preserved his rule. 3.86 While he was reigning, the holy Polycarp, bishop of Smyrna, was crowned with martyrdom; and Justin, great in his words and greater in his confession, contended, many of whose writings survive to this day. In the eighth year of the reign of this Marcus Verus Antoninus, Anicetus died, having presided over the church of the Romans for eleven years; and Soter succeeded him. And when Celadion had completed his life after fourteen years, Agrippinus was entrusted with the bishopric of the Alexandrians. And of the church of the Antiochenes, after Heron, Cornelius presided as the fourth, Eros succeeded him as the fifth, and Theophilus him as the sixth, who also armed himself in writing against Marcion; whom Maximinus succeeded as the seventh. When Soter, who had served as bishop of the Romans, departed from earthly things, Eleutherus was brought in to replace him. But Commodus, the son of Marcus Antoninus, though excellently nurtured and brought up by his father, did not turn out according to the education he had received. But although he was guileless and naturally averse to villainy, being cowardly and, through his simplicity, easily persuaded by his companions, he was corrupted in his morals and was led into debauchery and bloodshed, being nineteen years old when he took power. Wherefore, spurning the advice of the best men of the senate, whom his father had appointed as his guardians, he made a truce with the barbarians and returned to Rome, wishing neither to toil nor loving anything but a life of ease. Therefore, he was often plotted against, and he killed many, not only men 3.87 but also women, and almost all who were then prominent, except for Pompeianus and Pertinax and Victorinus, so that it is a puzzle for those who have written these things to consider how they escaped death at that time. As he was entering the hunting theater, Claudius Pompeianus plotted against him. For, raising a sword in the narrowness of the entrance, he said, "The senate sends you this." To this man was betrothed the daughter of Lucilla, Commodus's uterine sister, but Lucilla herself was also having an affair with him, being neither more decent nor more chaste than her brother. Therefore she persuaded Pompeianus to attack Commodus, and destroyed both him and herself as well. Commodus also killed his wife Crispina, accusing her of adultery. And if anyone should wish to record accurately each of those killed by him, whether through false slanders or groundless suspicions or because of great wealth or because of the splendor of their family or because of excellence in education or because of a reputation for virtue, he would provide a crowd for those who are to come upon the writing. While he was reigning, there were also wars against the barbarians beyond Dacia, and the greatest was the Britannic war, against whom he sent Marcellus Ulpius, a man living both temperately and as a soldier, most incorruptible and sleepless by nature and even more so out of self-control. For so that he might not be sated even with bread, he ate it many days old and very stale, so that he was unable to eat anything at all beyond what was necessary. This man greatly afflicted the barbarians in Britain. 3.88 For which reason, because of his virtue, Commodus almost killed the man. But Perennius, the prefect of the guard, since Commodus was occupied with chariot-racing and debauchery, was compelled to manage both military and public affairs. So if anything difficult happened to the soldiers anywhere, they reported it to him and were angry with him.

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τοῦτόν τε τοῖς στρατιώταις παρακατέθετο, ινα μὴ δοκῇ ὑπ' αὐτοῦ θνήσκειν, καὶ τῷ χιλιάρχῳ τὸ σύνθημα αἰτοῦντι "πρὸς τὸν ἀνατέλλοντα" ειπεν "απιθι· ἐγὼ γὰρ δύομαι ηδη." αριστα ουν αρξας μετήλλαξε, ζήσας μὲν ετη πεντήκοντα καὶ ἐννέα, τριάκοντα καὶ ὀκτὼ ἐνδέοντα ἡμερῶν, αὐταρχήσας δὲ ετη ἐννεακαίδεκα καὶ ἡμέρας ενδεκα. ην γὰρ καὶ φύσει ἀγαθὸς ἀνήρ, πλεῖστα δὲ καὶ ὑπὸ παιδείας βελτίων ἐγένετο. οὐ μέντοι ἀξίως τῆς ἀρετῆς εὐδαιμόνησεν. ἐντεῦθεν δὲ μᾶλλον θαυμάσειεν αν τις αὐτόν, οτι καὶ ἀλλοκότοις καὶ ἐξαισίοις χρησάμενος πράγμασιν αὐτός τε περιεγένετο καὶ τὴν ἀρχὴν διεσώσατο. 3.86 Τούτου κρατοῦντος ὁ ἱερὸς Πολύκαρπος ὁ Σμύρνης ἀρχιερεὺς τὸν μαρτυρικὸν ἀνεδήσατο στέφανον· καὶ ὁ μέγας ἐπὶ λόγοις καὶ μείζων ἐν ὁμολογίᾳ ̓Ιουστῖνος ἐνήθλησεν, ου πολλὰ μέχρι τοῦδε συγγράμματα σώζονται. τῷ δὲ ὀγδόῳ ετει τῆς Μάρκου Οὐήρου τοῦ ̓Αντωνίνου τούτου ἀρχῆς ̓Ανίκητος τελευτᾷ, ετη εν ἐπὶ δέκα τῆς ̔Ρωμαίων ἐκκλησίας προστάς· καὶ τοῦτον Σωτὴρ διαδέχεται. καὶ Κελαδίωνος μετὰ δέκα καὶ τέσσαρα ετη τὴν ζωὴν ἐκμετρήσαντος ̓Αγριππῖνος τὴν ̓Αλεξανδρέων ἐπισκοπὴν ἐγκεχείριστο. καὶ τῆς ̓Αντιοχέων ἐκκλησίας μετὰ Ηρωνα Κορνηλίου προστάντος τετάρτου, πέμπτος Ερως αὐτὸν διεδέξατο, κἀκεῖνον εκτος Θεόφιλος, ος καὶ κατὰ Μαρκίωνος ἐγγράφως ὡπλίσατο· ον εβδομος διεδέξατο Μαξιμῖνος. τοῦ ̔Ρωμαίων δὲ ἀρχιερατεύσαντος Σωτῆρος μεταστάντος τῶν γηίνων, ἀντεισῆκτο ̓Ελεύθερος. Κόμοδος δὲ ὁ υἱὸς ̓Αντωνίνου Μάρκου αριστα παρὰ τοῦ πατρὸς τραφείς τε καὶ ἀναχθεὶς οὐ κατὰ τὴν παιδείαν ἀποβεβήκει ηνπερ πεπαίδευτο. ἀλλ' ακακος μὲν ην καὶ πρὸς πανουργίαν ἀποπεφύκει, δειλὸς δὲ ων καὶ τοῖς συνοῦσι πειθόμενος δι' ἁπλότητα τὰ ηθη τε διεφθάρη καὶ εἰς ἀσέλγειαν καὶ μιαιφονίαν προήχθη, ἐννεακαιδεκέτης τυγχάνων οτε τῆς ἐξουσίας ἐκράτησεν. οθεν τὰς συμβουλίας τῶν ἀρίστων τῆς βουλῆς παρωσάμενος, ους ἐπιτρόπους αὐτῷ ἐπέστησεν ὁ πατήρ, σπένδεται τοῖς βαρβάροις καὶ εἰς τὴν ̔Ρώμην ὑπονοστεῖ, ουτε πονεῖν ἐθέλων καὶ ἐρρᾳστωνευμένης ἐρῶν βιοτῆς. οθεν καὶ πλειστάκις ἐπεβουλεύθη, καὶ συχνοὺς ἀπέκτεινεν οὐκ ανδρας 3.87 μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ γυναῖκας, καὶ σχεδὸν πάντας τοὺς τότε ἀνθήσαντας, ατερ Πομπηιανοῦ καὶ Περτίνακος καὶ Βικτωρίνου, ωστ' απορον λογίζεσθαι τοῖς ταῦτα συγγραψαμένοις οπως ἐκεῖνοι τὸν φόνον τότε διέφυγον. εἰσιόντι δὲ αὐτῷ εἰς τὸ θέατρον τὸ κυνηγετικὸν ἐπεβούλευσε Κλαύδιος Πομπηιανός. ξίφος γὰρ ἐν τῇ τῆς εἰσόδου ἀνατείνας στενοχωρίᾳ εφη "τοῦτό σοι πέπομφεν ἡ βουλή." τούτῳ κατηγγύητο μὲν ἡ θυγάτηρ Λουκίλλης τῆς τοῦ Κομόδου ὁμαίμονος, συνεφθείρετο δὲ καὶ αὐτὴ ἡ Λουκίλλα ουτ' ἐπιεικεστέρα ουτε σωφρονεστέρα ουσα τοῦ ἀδελφοῦ. διὸ καὶ τὸν Πομπηιανὸν ἀνέπεισεν ἐπιθέσθαι τῷ Κομόδῳ, καὶ ἐκεῖνον καὶ ἑαυτὴν προσαπώλεσεν. ἀνεῖλε δὲ καὶ τὴν γυναῖκα Κρισπῖναν ὁ Κόμοδος, μοιχείαν ἐπεγκαλέσας αὐτῇ. καὶ ει τις εκαστον τῶν ὑπ' ἐκείνου κτανθέντων η διὰ συκοφαντίας ψευδεῖς η δι' ὑποψίας εἰκαίας η διὰ πλοῦτον βαθὺν η διὰ γένους λαμπρότητα η διὰ παιδείας ὑπεροχὴν η δι' ἀρετῆς εὐδοκίμησιν ἀκριβώσασθαι τῇ συγγραφῇ βουληθῇ, οχλον αν παρέξοι τοῖς ἐπιέναι τὸ σύγγραμμα μέλλουσιν. ̓Εγένοντο δὲ καὶ πόλεμοι αὐταρχοῦντος αὐτοῦ πρός τε τοὺς ὑπὲρ τὴν ∆ακίαν βαρβάρους καὶ μέγιστος ὁ Βρεττανικός, ἐφ' ον Μάρκελλον Ουλπιον επεμψεν, ανδρα ἐγκρατῶς τε ζῶντα καὶ στρατιωτικῶς, ἀδωρότατόν τε καὶ ἀϋπνότατον φύσει καὶ ετι μᾶλλον ἐξ ἐγκρατείας. ινα γὰρ μηδὲ αρτου κορέννυται, πολυήμερόν τε καὶ παλαιότατον αὐτὸν ησθιεν, ωστε μηδὲ δύνασθαί τι φαγεῖν τοῦ ἀναγκαίου πάνυ ἐπέκεινα. ουτος τοὺς ἐν Βρεττανίᾳ βαρβάρους σφό3.88 δρα ἐκάκωσεν. οθεν διὰ τὴν ἀρετὴν αὐτοῦ ὀλίγου ἀπέκτεινεν αν τὸν ανδρα ὁ Κόμοδος. Περέννιος δὲ ὁ τοῦ δορυφορικοῦ αρχων, τοῦ Κομόδου ἁρματηλασίαις καὶ ἀσελγείαις ἐσχολακότος, ἠναγκάζετο τά τε στρατιωτικὰ καὶ τὰ τοῦ κοινοῦ διοικεῖν. ει τι γοῦν τοῖς στρατιώταις ἀπήντα που δυσχερές, ἐπ' ἐκεῖνον τοῦτο ἀνέφερον καὶ ἐμηνίων αὐτῷ.