1. Murdering Vitellius had stopped the war without initiating peace. The armed victors were hunting down the defeated throughout the city with relentless hate: streets were choked with bodies, squares and temples ran with blood after men had been killed indiscriminately wherever they happened to be found. Soon the chaos escalated as they searched everywhere and dragged their victims from their hiding places. Whenever they caught sight of anyone who was tall and youthful, they cut down such men without making any distinction between soldiers and civilians. While their feelings of hatred still ran high, they satisfied their brutal instincts with bloodshed, but then it was transformed into greed. They left no corner untouched, no door unopened, as they pretended to be looking for Vitellius’ supporters in hiding. That was when they started to break into private houses or, if they met resistance, they used this as a pretext for murder. There were plenty of destitute Romans or vicious slaves ready to betray rich masters.1 Others again were denounced by their friends. Everywhere there was wailing and lamentation as Rome suffered the plight of a captured city, so much so that people longed for the unruly soldiers of Otho and Vitellius, although they had been hated at the time. The Flavian generals had been keen to set the civil war ablaze, but in victory they were incapable of exercising control. The truth is that in times of trouble and discord it is the utter rogues who have the most forceful impact, whereas peace and quiet call for the skills of good men.
2. Domitian had taken up the title of Caesar and the imperial residence, but although he was not yet prepared to focus on his official responsibilities, he was already playing the part of an emperor’s son by his rapes and adulteries. Arrius Varus was given the post of praetorian prefect, but supreme control rested with Antonius Primus, who helped himself to money and slaves from the emperor’s palace as if they were the spoil from Cremona. Thanks to moderation or humble birth, just as the other generals had been marginalized in the war, they were now kept at arm’s length from its profits.
The Roman populace, frightened and resigned to its servitude, urged that Lucius Vitellius should be intercepted on his way back from Tarracina with the cohorts and that the final dying flames of the war should be put out. Some cavalry were sent ahead to Aricia, while a column of legionaries marched out and stopped just before Bovillae. Vitellius speedily entrusted himself and his cohorts to the victor’s discretion, and his men threw down their luckless arms as much in disgust as fear. A long line of prisoners hedged in by armed guards marched through the city. Nobody looked like he was angling for mercy, but grim-faced and truculent, they confronted the clapping and insults of the jeering mob with frozen expressions. A few tried to break away but were surrounded and dealt with. The rest were put into custody. Not a single man said anything discreditable, and despite being surrounded by troubles their reputation for valour remained intact. Lucius Vitellius was then executed. He was as unprincipled as his brother, but he showed more vigilance during Vitellius’ principate, and although he was not the emperor’s partner amidst success, he was still swept away by his fall.
3. Over this same period, Lucilius Bassus was sent off with a force of lightly armed cavalry to settle Campania, which was being disturbed by the mutually hostile feelings of the towns, rather than by any stubborn resistance against the new emperor. The sight of the troops had a calming effect, and the smaller towns were not penalized, but at Capua the Third Legion was left to spend the winter, which meant that the leading families suffered severely. The people of Tarracina, despite what one might expect, received no assistance,2 which shows that men are more inclined to repay injury than kindness: the truth is that gratitude is a burden, but vengeance can be turned to profit. It was some comfort that Vergilius Capito’s slave, who, as I have mentioned,3 had betrayed Tarracina to the enemy, was crucified, still wearing the very rings which Vitellius had given him to wear.
At Rome, however, the senate awarded Vespasian all the usual imperial titles. It felt pleased and confident: the civil war, begun in the Gallic and Spanish provinces, spreading to Upper and Lower Germany and then Illyricum, finally extending to Egypt, Judaea, Syria and every province and garrison, now seemed to have purged the whole world of evil and run its course. The senate was further encouraged by a letter from Vespasian, written under the impression that the war was still continuing. That, at any rate, was how it looked at the first glance, but he spoke like a proper emperor, making modest remarks about himself and demonstrating respect for the state. The senate in its turn showed due deference, decreeing a consulship for Vespasian and his son Titus, and a praetorship with the powers of a consul for Domitian.4
4. Mucianus, too, had sent a letter to the senate, which gave rise to comment. If he were a private citizen, why, it was asked, did he speak with the voice of authority? He could have given the same report verbally in a few days’ time when called upon to speak in the senate from his proper place. Besides, even his criticism of Vitellius came too late to prove his independence. What showed true contempt for the state and really insulted the emperor was his boast that the principate had been in his hands and had been given to Vespasian as a gift. However, they kept their resentment hidden and displayed flattery. With many fine words, Mucianus was granted triumphal honours for a war waged against fellow-Romans, although his campaign against the Sarmatians was made the excuse.5 Antonius Primus, too, received the insignia of consul, and Cornelius Fuscus and Arrius Varus those of praetor. After that it was the gods’ turn: they decided to restore the Capitol.6
All these proposals were made by the consul-designate, Valerius Asiaticus.7 The rest of the senators indicated their assent by a mere glance and gesture, but a few especially distinguished figures or those who had talent for flattery supported the resolutions with elaborate and insincere speeches. When the turn of the praetor-designate Helvidius Priscus came, he expressed himself in language which paid due respect to the new emperor, but showed no traces of insincerity, and the senate gave him a tremendous reception. For Helvidius this day above all saw him begin to offend powerful figures – but it also initiated his great distinction.
5. Since this is the second time that I have had occasion to refer to a man whom I will often have to mention, it seems appropriate to outline here his career and interests, and his fortune in life.8 Helvidius Priscus came from the town of Cluviae,9 and his father had been the senior centurion of a legion. From early youth he devoted his brilliant intellect to academic studies, not (as so often happens) in order to disguise ease and idleness under a pretentious name, but to arm himself more stoutly against the unpredictable chances of a public career. He followed the school of philosophy which counts moral virtue as the only good and vice as the only evil, while power, rank and factors extraneous to a man’s character are counted as neither good nor evil.10 When he was still only a quaestor, he was chosen by Thrasea Paetus to marry his daughter, and from his father-in-law’s character he learnt, above all, how to be independent. As citizen, senator, husband, son-in-law and friend, he met the varied obligations of life in a consistent way, showing his contempt for wealth, stubborn adherence to the right course of action and courage in the face of danger. 6. There were some who thought that he was too eager to make a name for himself, for even philosophers find that the last frailty to be shed is a longing for glory. He was driven into exile by the fall of his father-in-law, but he returned on the accession of Galba and proceeded to impeach Thrasea’s prosecutor, Eprius Marcellus.11 This act of vengeance, perhaps excessive, perhaps justified, deeply divided the senate at the time. For if Marcellus were to be convicted, it meant the downfall of a whole army of potential defendants. The case opened with a menacing encounter, as the brilliant speeches of the two opponents show, but as time went on, Galba’s ambiguous attitude and the protests of many senators caused Priscus to drop the charge. Reactions varied, like men’s characters. Some praised his restraint, others found him lacking in determination.
However, at the meeting of the senate that recognized Vespasian’s imperial power, it had been decided that a delegation should be sent to the emperor. This led to a bitter quarrel between Helvidius and Eprius. Priscus demanded that the members of the deputation should be chosen individually by the magistrates under oath, while Marcellus called for the use of lot in accordance with the motion of the consul-designate. 7. Yet Marcellus’ eagerness was really prompted by his own embarrassment, in case people believed that he was held in less esteem if others were chosen instead of him.
From brief exchanges, they gradually passed on to prolonged and bitter speeches, as Helvidius asked why Marcellus was so frightened of the verdict of the magistrates. After all, he had sufficient money and eloquence to give him a lead over many others, except that he was being hampered by men’s memory of his crimes. If lots were drawn, no distinction was made between men’s characters, but a senatorial vote and expression of opinion, on the other hand, was designed to probe the life and reputation of each and every candidate. It was crucial that, in the interest of the state and as a mark of respect for Vespasian, he should be met by the most irreproachable members of the senate – men who could accustom the emperor’s ear to the language of honour. Vespasian had been friendly with Thrasea, Soranus and Sentius.12 However inadvisable it might be that their prosecutors should be punished, they should not be paraded before him. By this senatorial verdict, they could give hints to the emperor about the men to favour and the men to fear. There was no instrument of good government more important than good advisers. Marcellus should be satisfied with having driven Nero to execute so many innocent victims. Let him enjoy his ill-gotten gains and his immunity from punishment, and leave Vespasian in the hands of better men.
8. Marcellus retorted that the proposal under attack was not his own, but it was the consul-designate who had made the recommendation in accordance with long-standing precedents which had laid down that delegations should be chosen by lot, in order to leave no room for self-promotion or personal vendettas. Nothing had happened to make these ancient practices obsolete, or to transform a tribute to the emperor into an insult to anybody else. They were all qualified to do homage. What was more pressing was to make sure that they did not allow the stubbornness of certain individuals to irritate the emperor at the start of his principate, when his mood was edgy and he was likely to be keeping an eye on everybody’s expressions and remarks. He said that he remembered the era in which he was born and the constitution devised by their fathers and grandfathers. Although he admired those earlier times, he upheld the way things were done now, and while praying for good emperors, he put up with them as they came along. Thrasea had been brought low just as much by the verdict of the senate as by his own speech. Sham trials of that sort had delighted Nero’s savage disposition, and Marcellus’ friendship with such an emperor had been just as agonizing an experience for himself as exile had been for others. In short, Helvidius was welcome to boast of his resolution and intrepidity, and class himself with the Catos and Brutuses of this world.13 He, Marcellus, was merely a single member of a senate that had been slaves together. He had one further piece of advice for Priscus. Let him not seek to climb above his emperor, or try to play the schoolmaster to a man like Vespasian who, no longer young, had held the honours of a triumph and was the father of grown-up sons. Evil emperors wanted limitless power, but even the best of them welcomed some threshold to their subjects’ independence.
These conflicting views were debated with great vigour on both sides, and met with varying reactions. The contingent which wanted the delegation to be chosen by lot won the day, with even the moderates supporting tradition. All the most prestigious senators also came down on this side because they were afraid of their colleagues’ jealousy if elected themselves.
9. Another dispute followed. The praetors, who at that time administered the treasury, had complained about the impoverished public finances and demanded a limit on expenditure. The consul-designate suggested that this problem should be left for the emperor, since the responsibility was so huge and the remedy so problematic, but Helvidius proposed senatorial action. When the consuls started to gauge the opinions of the senators in order of seniority, a tribune of the plebs called Vulcacius Tertullinus used his veto14 to prevent any decision being taken on this important issue in the absence of the emperor. Helvidius had already proposed that the Capitol should be restored at public expense, with financial assistance from Vespasian. The moderates all passed over this proposal in silence and it was then forgotten, but there were some who remembered it all too well.
10. Then Musonius Rufus attacked Publius Celer, alleging that he had only managed to get Barea Soranus convicted by false testimony.15 It seemed that this inquiry would revive the hatred that had been stirred by the professional accusers, but in this case the defendant was despicable and guilty, and there was no question of shielding him. For people remembered Soranus with reverence, while Celer, who claimed to be a philosopher, but still testified against Barea, was a traitor who had broken the very bonds of friendship which he professed to teach. The hearing was fixed for the next meeting of the senate, but now that vengeful feelings had been aroused, it was not so much Musonius or Publius they were waiting for as Priscus, Marcellus and the rest of them.
11. That was the state of affairs – disagreements between the senators, angry feelings amongst the defeated, no capacity amongst the victors to command respect, Rome uncontrolled by either laws or emperor – when Mucianus entered the capital and concentrated all power in his own hands. Antonius Primus and Arrius Varus now lost their influence, since Mucianus’ resentment towards them was obvious, although he tried to conceal it in his expression. Rome, shrewd enough to detect a strained relationship, turned her back on them and transferred her allegiance to the new master: Mucianus was the only one to be courted and flattered. He played his part too by constantly moving from one palace or park to another, closely surrounded by an armed escort. This taste for ostentation, processions and military guards shows how eagerly he embraced imperial power, while waiving the title of emperor.
The greatest alarm was caused by the execution of Calpurnius Galerianus, the son of Gaius Piso.16 He had kept out of political adventures, but his distinguished name and the good looks of youth made him the subject of popular gossip, and in a city which was still unsettled and always relished the latest rumours, some people indulged in empty talk about him as a possible emperor. On the orders of Mucianus, he was put under military arrest, and to avoid a conspicuous execution in the city itself, it was at a point forty miles from Rome along the Appian Way that his veins were opened and he bled to death.17 Julius Priscus, the praetorian prefect under Vitellius, committed suicide less from compulsion than a sense of shame, but Alfenus Varus managed to survive his own disgraceful cowardice. Asiaticus, being a freedman, paid for his evil influence at court by being executed in the manner appropriate for a slave.18
12. Over this period rumours of disaster in Germany began to multiply, but Rome received them without concern. The annihilation of armies, the capture of permanent legionary camps and the defection of the Gallic provinces were indeed discussed – but not as if they were calamities. In order to explain the reasons why this war arose and blazed up to form such a widespread rebellion of foreign and allied peoples, I shall go back and explain its origins.19
The Batavians, so long as they lived beyond the Rhine, were a tribe of the Chatti.20 Driven out by domestic dissensions, they occupied the uninhabited coastal fringes of Gaul, together with the neighbouring ‘Island’,21 which is washed by the North Sea on the west and on the other three sides by the Rhine. They were not exploited financially by the Romans (which is rare when an alliance is made with a stronger power), but contributed only men and arms to the empire. After a long training in the German campaigns, the Batavian cohorts were moved across the Channel to Britain22 where they added to their glorious reputation, still commanded according to long-standing practice by their own nobles. They also had in their home country a picked cavalry force specially trained for amphibious operations. These men could swim across the Rhine in perfect formation while keeping hold of their arms and horses. 13. By far the most prominent of the Batavians were Julius Civilis and Claudius Paulus,23 who were of royal descent. Fonteius Capito executed Paulus on a trumped-up charge of rebellion, while Civilis was sent in chains to Nero. Although acquitted by Galba, he found himself once more in danger under Vitellius, whose army clamoured for his execution. This was why he hated Rome and hoped for great things from our difficulties. However, Civilis was unusually intelligent for a native, and passed himself off as a second Sertorius or Hannibal, whose facial disfigurement he shared.24 To avoid being targeted as an enemy if he rebelled against Rome openly, he posed as a friend and supporter of Vespasian. It is true that Antonius Primus sent him a letter with instructions to divert the reinforcements called up by Vitellius and to delay the legions by the pretence of a German revolt. Hordeonius Flaccus had given him the same advice in a personal interview, since he was sympathetic to Vespasian and concerned for his country, which faced disaster if fighting were resumed and thousands of armed men poured into Italy.
14. So Civilis resolved to rebel, but for the time being he concealed his real purpose, intending to shape the rest of his actions in the light of future events. He initiated his uprising in the following way. On Vitellius’ orders, the young Batavians were being conscripted, which was a heavy enough burden on its own, but it was exacerbated by the greed and depravity of the recruiting officers, who called up the old and unfit in order to exact a bribe for their release, while young, good-looking lads – for children are normally quite tall among the Batavians25 – were dragged off and raped. This caused bitter resentment, so the ringleaders of revolt assembled and got their countrymen to refuse service. Civilis invited the nobles and the most enterprising commoners to a sacred grove, ostensibly for a banquet. When he saw that darkness and revelry had inflamed their hearts, he spoke to them. He opened with patriotic remarks about the glory and renown of their tribe, and then he went on to catalogue the injustices, the exactions and all the other evils of slavery. Once they had been regarded as allies, but now they were treated like slaves. When was the Roman governor coming? At least he exercised real control, despite his oppressive and arrogant entourage, but the Batavians were at the mercy of prefects and centurions. After these men had glutted themselves with spoil and blood, they were only replaced by others looking for fresh pockets to pick and new descriptions for plunder. They were faced with a levy which parted children from parents and brothers from brothers, apparently for ever. The Roman state had never been in such low water. The permanent legionary camps contained nothing but loot and old men. Let them just lift up their eyes and have no fear of legions which existed in name only. The Batavians, on the other hand, could rely on the strength of their infantry and cavalry, their kinsmen the Germans, and aspirations which united them with the Gallic provinces. Even the Romans would welcome such a war. If it ended in failure, they could still claim credit with Vespasian, but if they won, they would not have to give an account to anyone.26
15. The Batavians listened to the speech with wholehearted approval, so Civilis got them all to swear an oath of loyalty marked by barbarous ritual and traditional curses for perjury. Envoys were sent to the Canninefates to agree a joint plan of action. This tribe occupies part of the Island and closely resembles the Batavians in origin, language and fighting spirit, but they are less numerous. Then by secret communications he won over the auxiliaries from Britain, that is, the Batavian cohorts, which, as I have already mentioned, had been sent to Germany27 and were now stationed at Mogontiacum.
Among the Canninefates there was a foolishly reckless man called Brinno, who came from a very distinguished family. His father had embarked on many daring escapades against the enemy, and he had also poured scorn on Gaius’ ridiculous expeditions without being punished.28 Thanks to the aura of celebrity surrounding this rebellious family, he was popular, and after being placed on a shield in the tribal fashion and carried on the swaying shoulders of his bearers, he was chosen as leader. Immediately calling upon the Frisii, a tribe beyond the Rhine, he attacked two Roman cohorts in their camp near the North Sea. The garrison had not expected the attack, nor indeed would it have been strong enough to hold out if it had, so the camp was captured and sacked. Then they fell upon the Roman camp-followers and traders who were scattered over the countryside and wandering about with no thought of war. The marauders were also on the point of destroying the frontier forts, but these were set on fire by the cohort-prefects because they could not be defended. The remaining troops with their standards and colours rallied to the upper part of the Island under a senior centurion called Aquilius, but this was an army in name only and it lacked real strength. That was because Vitellius had withdrawn the bulk of the cohorts’ effective soldiers and saddled with arms a bunch of loafers from the nearest Nervian and German districts.
16. Civilis thought that he should try a ruse and took the initiative by blaming the prefects for abandoning their forts. He told them that with the cohort under his command, he would suppress the outbreak of the Canninefates, while the Roman commanders could go back to their respective winter-quarters. However, it was clear that treachery lay behind his advice, that scattered cohorts were more liable to be wiped out, and that the ringleader was not Brinno, but Civilis. Hints of this gradually leaked out and the Germans, a nation which delights in war, did not keep the secret for long. When the plot came to nothing, Civilis resorted to force and enrolled the Canninefates, Frisii and Batavians in three separate columns. The Roman battleline faced them, not far from the River Rhine, and their ships, which had landed here after burning the forts, were arrayed to face the enemy. The fighting had only just started when a Tungrian cohort went over to Civilis, and the Roman troops, dismayed by this unforeseen treachery, were slaughtered by a joint force of their allies and enemies. The naval force was equally disloyal. Some of the Batavian rowers feigned incompetence and got in the way of the sailors and marines as they performed their duties. Then they openly resisted them and steered the ships towards the enemy-held bank, finally murdering the helmsmen and centurions who refused to join them. In the end the whole fleet of twenty-four ships either deserted or was captured.
17. This victory immediately made Civilis and his supporters famous, as well as proving useful subsequently. They had obtained the arms and ships they needed, and were acclaimed as liberators as the news spread like wild-fire throughout the German and Gallic provinces. Envoys were sent at once from the German provinces offering help, and Civilis used cunning and bribery to achieve an alliance with the provinces of Gaul. He returned the captured auxiliary commanders to their own communities and gave the men the choice between discharge and staying with him. Those who remained were offered service on honourable terms, while those who went received spoil taken from the Romans. At the same time, in confidential conversations, he reminded them of the ill-treatment which they had endured for so many years and which they wrongly called ‘peace’ although it was actually miserable slavery. The Batavians, he said, despite exemption from tribute, had taken up arms against the tyranny they all endured. The Romans had been routed and vanquished in the very first encounter. What if the Gallic provinces shook off the yoke? What reserves were left in Italy? It was at the cost of provincial blood that the provinces were crushed. They should not worry about the battle fought by Vindex. In this, the Aedui and the Arverni had been trampled underfoot by Batavian cavalry. Among the auxiliaries of Verginius had figured the Belgae, and sober reflection showed that Gaul had succumbed to her own Gallic armies. Now they were all on the same side, with the added advantage of such military discipline as had flourished in the Roman army in the past. They were supported by veteran cohorts, fresh from the defeat of Otho’s legions. Slavery was good enough for Syria and Asia and the Orient with its tradition of kingship,29 but in Gaul there were many men still living who had been born before the Roman tribute was imposed.30 Not all that long ago the annihilation of Quinctilius Varus had certainly banished slavery from Germany, and in that case the emperor challenged was not Vitellius, but Caesar Augustus.31 Nature had given even the dumb beasts their freedom, but courage to act was the distinctive attribute of human beings. The gods helped the braver side. So, while they were unencumbered and fresh, they should attack the enemy who was bogged down and exhausted. While one lot was supporting Vitellius and another lot supporting Vespasian, there was scope to attack both.
So Civilis concentrated his efforts on Gaul and Germany. He was aspiring, had his plan succeeded, to become king of the strongest and richest nations in the world.
18. As for Hordeonius Flaccus, he actually helped Civilis’ initial moves by pretending that there was nothing wrong, but when panic-stricken messengers arrived with news that a camp had been stormed, cohorts wiped out and everything Roman had been expelled from the Island of the Batavians, he instructed the legate Munius Lupercus to march out against the enemy. Lupercus, who commanded a camp containing two legions,32 assembled a force consisting of legionaries from the garrison, Ubii from adjacent units and Treviran cavalry stationed at no great distance. These units he rapidly sent across the river, together with a Batavian cavalry regiment which, though long disaffected, pretended to be loyal in order to betray the Romans on the battlefield and derive greater profit from its flight. Civilis surrounded himself with the captured Roman standards so that his men would have before their eyes the newly won trophies, while their enemies would be terrified by reminders of their defeat. He also gave orders for his mother and sisters, accompanied by the wives and young children of all his men, to stand at their rear as a spur to victory or to shame them if they were beaten.33 When his battleline rang out with the chant of his men and the shrill wailing of the women, it evoked only a feeble cheer from the legions and cohorts in response. The Roman left front was soon exposed by the defection of the Batavian cavalry regiment, which immediately turned about to face us. However, despite this frightening situation, the legionaries kept their arms and ranks intact. The Ubian and Treviran auxiliaries disgraced themselves by stampeding all over the countryside in wild flight. Against them the Germans directed the brunt of their attack, which gave the legions a breathing space in which to get back to the camp called Vetera. The prefect of the Batavian cavalry regiment, Claudius Labeo, was involved in some petty local rivalry with Civilis. As murdering him might stir resentment amongst the Batavians, but his continued presence could encourage dissension, Civilis had him taken away to the Frisii.
19. At about the same time, the messenger sent by Civilis caught up with the cohorts of Batavians and Canninefates as they were setting off for Rome on Vitellius’ orders. They immediately took on an air of ferocious arrogance, and as their price for making the journey they demanded a bounty, double pay and an increase in the cavalry contingent of their units.34 No doubt Vitellius had promised these privileges, but the men were less concerned to obtain them than to secure a pretext for mutiny. Moreover, by his many concessions Hordeonius Flaccus had only encouraged them to clamour more noisily for what they knew he would refuse. Paying no attention to him, they made for Lower Germany to join Civilis. Flaccus called his tribunes and centurions together and consulted them about whether to bring the insubordinate troops to heel by force. Yet he was naturally sluggish and his anxious staff were worried by the unreliable mood of the auxiliaries and the fact that the legions had been diluted by hasty conscription, so he decided to keep his soldiers within the camp. Afterwards he changed his mind, and as his advisers themselves went back on the views they had expressed, he gave the impression that he intended pursuit, and wrote to Herennius Gallus, stationed at Bonna in command of the First Legion,35 telling him to bar the passage of the Batavians and promising to follow closely on their heels with his army. The rebels could in fact have been crushed if Flaccus and Gallus had moved up from opposite directions and caught them in the middle. However, Flaccus abandoned his plan, and in a fresh dispatch to Gallus warned him not to trouble the departing cohorts. This caused suspicion that the commanders wanted to stir up the war, and that everything that had already happened, or was feared in the future, sprang not from the slackness of the army or the enemy’s violence but from the treachery of the generals.
20. On approaching the camp at Bonna, the Batavian cohorts sent a representative ahead to lay their views before Herennius Gallus. They did not want to wage war against the Romans, for whom they had fought so many times, they said, but they were tired by long and fruitless service, and longed for their homeland and retirement. If no resistance were offered, they would march on without doing damage, but if faced with armed force, they would cut a way through with their weapons. This attitude made the legate hesitate, but his troops induced him to risk a fight. He had 3,000 legionaries and some untrained cohorts of Belgae, together with a number of civilians and camp-followers who were cowardly, although they were boastful enough before the crisis. This force burst from all the gates of the camp so as to surround the Batavians, who were numerically inferior. Yet these Batavians were experienced veterans and they formed up into squares, compact masses of men presenting an impregnable defence everywhere, front, rear and sides. In this formation they broke the thin Roman line. As the Belgae gave way, the legion was driven back and the panic-stricken fugitives made for the rampart and gates of the camp. This was where the heaviest losses occurred. The ditches were piled high with bodies, and the Romans suffered death and wounds not only at the hands of the enemy but as a result of falling and, in many instances, by their own weapons. The victors gave Colonia Agrippinensium a wide berth and did not try their hand at any further hostile act for the rest of the march. They made their excuses for the battle at Bonna, saying that they had asked for peace, but, when this was refused, they had been forced to act in self-defence.
21. The arrival of the veteran cohorts meant that Civilis now commanded a proper army, but he still hesitated about his plan and pondered that Rome was strong. So he made all the men he had swear allegiance to Vespasian, and sent envoys to the two legions which had been beaten in the previous battle and had retired to the camp at Vetera, asking them to accept the same oath. Back came the reply. They were not in the habit of taking advice from a traitor or from the enemy. They already had an emperor, Vitellius, and in his defence they would maintain their loyalty and arms to their dying breath. So a Batavian deserter should not sit in judgement on Roman affairs, but instead he should await the punishment he had earned by his crime.36 When this reply reached Civilis, he flew into a rage, and quickly drove the whole Batavian nation into arms. They were joined by the Bructeri and Tencteri, and as the news spread, Germany awoke to the call of spoil and glory.
22. In the face of this threatening concentration of war, the legionary legates Munius Lupercus and Numisius Rufus proceeded to reinforce the rampart and walls. A settlement just outside the camp which had grown during the long peace to the size of a small town was now demolished to deny its use to the enemy. However, they had forgotten to arrange for the food supplies to be brought into the camp, and allowed them to be looted. Thus stocks which would have covered their needs for a long time were recklessly used up in a few days.37 Civilis, leading the central expeditionary force consisting of the strongest Batavian troops, filled both banks of the Rhine with disorderly bands of Germans in order to look more ferocious, while the cavalry careered over the plains nearby. At the same time the ships were moving upstream. The besieged were dumbfounded at the sight. In one direction they saw the standards of veteran cohorts, in another direction the images of wild beasts which the various tribes had brought from the forests and sacred groves, for that is how they normally enter battle.38 The whole appearance was an amalgam of civil and foreign war.
The attacking force was encouraged by the length of the rampart, for scarcely 5,000 armed men were defending a camp which had been designed for two legions. However, a crowd of camp-followers had flocked to Vetera owing to the disturbances and were on hand to help the war effort. 23. Part of the camp occupied a gentle slope, while the other was on level ground and approachable. Augustus had believed that this camp was sufficient to keep the German provinces under supervision and control, never imagining a situation so desperate that the enemy would actually dare to march on Vetera and attack our legions. As a result, no labour had been invested in either the site or the defences. The strength of the garrison had always seemed enough.
The Batavians and the Germans from across the Rhine formed up in separate tribal contingents to show off their individual fighting skills, and challenged us with long-distance volleys. After they found that most of their missiles sank harmlessly into the towers and crenellations of the walls, while they themselves were suffering wounds from the stones being fired from above, they attacked the rampart in a noisy charge. Most of them put ladders against it, while others clambered over a testudo formed by their comrades. A few had already climbed up some way when they were sent tumbling down under a rain of blows from swords and other weapons, to be overwhelmed by the enemy’s stakes and javelins. These warriors are always excessively fierce at the outset and uncontrollable when the battle goes their way, but on that occasion their greed for booty made them put up with problems as well.39 They even risked using siege-engines, although these were a complete novelty for them. Not that they had any technical knowledge themselves. Deserters and prisoners taught them how to build a timber structure rather like a bridge, then after fitting it with wheels how to move it forward. Thus, some of the attackers stood on top of it and so fought as though from a mound, while others hidden inside set about undermining the walls. However, a bombardment of stones from the catapults soon flattened this irregular contraption. As they were preparing bundles of brush and defensive huts, the catapults shot burning spears at the besiegers, who themselves became the target of flames. In the end, despairing of storming Vetera, they resolved on a waiting game, since they were well aware that the camp held only a few days’ provisions and a huge crowd of non-combatants.40 At the same time they hoped that famine might encourage treason, undermine the loyalty of the slaves and bring the chance elements of war into play.
24. Hordeonius Flaccus, meanwhile, hearing that Vetera was under siege, had sent officers to scour the Gallic provinces for reinforcements. He then handed over men specially chosen from the legions to the commander of the Twenty-Second Legion, Dillius Vocula. The plan was that Vocula should march along the bank of the Rhine at top speed, while Flaccus himself travelled on board a naval squadron, being physically unfit and unpopular with his men. Indeed, the soldiers were quite blunt, grumbling that he had let the Batavian cohorts leave Mogontiacum, hushed up Civilis’ designs and was now making an alliance with the Germans. Not even Antonius Primus or Mucianus had done more to promote Vespasian’s rise. Obvious hostility and armed attack could be repelled in the open, but treachery and deceit worked in darkness and were therefore impossible to avoid. There, opposite them, stood Civilis, organizing his battleline, but Flaccus confined himself to a couch in his bedroom from where he gave whatever order best suited the enemy. All these armed units of the bravest fighters were being controlled by one sick old man. They were better off killing the traitor and disentangling their luck and bravery from this doomed creature! By such remarks they goaded each other on, but what made them blaze up further was a letter from Vespasian. Flaccus could not hide it, so he read it out to the assembled troops, and sent its bearers to Vitellius in chains.
25. This ploy settled the troops, and they marched to Bonna, the headquarters of the First Legion, but there the men were even more resentful, and blamed Hordeonius Flaccus for their defeat. It was by his orders, they reckoned, that they had been deployed against the Batavians under the impression that the legions from Mogontiacum were in pursuit, and it was thanks to his treachery, too, that they had been cut down when no reinforcements came to help; and, what is more, the other armies had no idea about these events, which were not being communicated to their emperor, although this treachery could have been nipped in the bud by swiftly bringing in reinforcements from the numerous provinces within reach.
Hordeonius Flaccus read out to the army copies of all the letters he had sent asking Britain and the provinces of Gaul and Spain for help, and introduced the disastrous practice of handing over dispatches to the standard-bearers of the legions, who read them to the troops before the officers had seen them. Then he had one of the mutineers arrested, more to assert his right of command than because a single man was to blame. The army now moved from Bonna to Colonia Agrippinensium, where Gallic auxiliaries started to stream in, for at first the Gauls energetically helped the Roman cause, although later, as German strength increased, numerous states took up arms against us, hoping for freedom and desiring to acquire an empire of their own once they had cast off their slavery. Among the legions there was growing resentment, and they had not been intimidated by the imprisonment of one solitary soldier. Indeed, this man actually tried to incriminate the general, alleging that he himself had carried messages between Civilis and Flaccus, but because he was a witness to the truth, he was being stifled on a trumped-up charge. Showing remarkable determination, Vocula got up on a platform and ordered the man to be seized and taken away, still yelling, to execution. This gave the troublemakers a shock, and the better sort obeyed orders. Then, as they unanimously called for Vocula to be their general, Flaccus handed over the command to him.
26. However, many factors exasperated the troubled soldiers. Pay and provisions were short; the Gallic provinces refused to provide either men or tribute; the Rhine was scarcely navigable because of a drought, unusual in this region, and this restricted the movement of supplies.41 Moreover, units had been posted all along the river bank to prevent the Germans from crossing it, and this factor meant that there were more people to consume less food. Ignorant minds found the shortage of water in itself ominous, since it felt as if even the rivers, those ancient defences of the empire, were abandoning us. Something which in peacetime would have been regarded as a fluke or a natural event was now dubbed ‘fate’ and ‘the anger of heaven’.42
On entering Novaesium, they were joined by the Sixteenth Legion. Its commanding officer, Herennius Gallus, was brought in to share the burden of command with Vocula. Not venturing to continue their advance against the enemy…43 they encamped at a place called Gelduba. Here the generals strengthened the soldiers by manoeuvres, by building fortifications and ramparts and by various other military preparations. Wishing to raise morale by the prospect of plunder, Vocula led the army against the lands of the nearby Cugerni, who had accepted Civilis’ offer of alliance. Part of the force remained behind with Herennius Gallus.
27. It happened that not far from the camp a heavily laden corn-ship had run aground, and the Germans proceeded to tow it to their side of the river. Gallus was not prepared to put up with this, and sent a cohort to the rescue. The Germans, too, brought up reserves, and as newcomers steadily joined in on either side, a regular battle was fought. After inflicting heavy losses on us, the Germans extricated the ship. The defeated troops adopted the now habitual tactic of blaming their general for treachery rather than themselves for cowardice. They dragged him out of his tent, tore his uniform and gave him a flogging, telling him to reveal what he had got for betraying the army, and who his accomplices were. They then rounded on Hordeonius Flaccus, calling him the mastermind whereas Gallus was just his dogsbody. In the end, terrified by repeated threats of murder, Gallus himself accused Flaccus of treachery. He was then put in chains, and only freed on the arrival of Vocula, who on the following day had the ringleaders of the mutiny executed. This army had the capacity for such diametrically opposed extremes of licentious conduct and submission. The common soldiers were without doubt loyal to Vitellius, while the senior officers favoured Vespasian.44 This is why there were cycles of crime and punishment and why discipline alternated with insubordination with the result that it was possible to punish men without controlling them.
28. The whole of Germany was now supporting Civilis with vast reinforcements after a firm alliance had been sealed by exchanging hostages of the highest rank. He gave orders for the Ubii and Treviri to be plundered by their immediate neighbours, and another force was sent across the River Mosa to strike a blow at the Menapii and Morini in the north of Gaul. In both areas booty was gathered, but they were especially vindictive in plundering the Ubii because this tribe of German origin had renounced its nationality and preferred to be called by the Roman name of ‘Agrippinenses’.45 Some of their cohorts were cut to pieces in the village of Marcodurum, after they had become complacent because they were so far from the Rhine. The Ubii in their turn did not hold back from plundering Germany, initially doing so without reprisal, but later they were rounded up, and indeed throughout this war they were less lucky than loyal.
After the crushing of the Ubii, Civilis became more dangerous. Success made him more feisty and now he pressed on with the siege of the legionary camp,46 keeping tighter watch to prevent any messenger with news of the relieving army from slipping through his lines unobserved. He allotted the artillery and siege-works to the Batavians. He ordered the Germans from across the Rhine, who were clamouring for action, to advance and try to cut the rampart; if they were repulsed they were to renew the struggle, since there was a huge crowd of them and casualties mattered little. 29. Nightfall did not bring an end to their exertions. After heaping up piles of logs all around and setting fire to them, while they were feasting they would surge forward into battle with pointless recklessness as the wine went to each man’s head, for their own shots went astray in the darkness, but the Romans could easily see the barbarian troops and aimed at anyone who was conspicuous because of his enterprise or glittering decorations.47 Civilis, realizing what was happening, gave orders to put out the fires and to turn the whole area into a bewildering blend of darkness and battle. Now, indeed, there was a cacophony of howls and blind onslaughts in which it was impossible to see far enough to strike or to parry blows. Whenever there happened to be shouting, they would wheel in that direction and flail around. Courage was useless, chance ruled the chaos and often the bravest men were felled by the weapons of cowards. The German fighting was marked by incoherent fury, but the Roman soldiers, who knew all about dangerous situations, hurled their iron-tipped stakes and heavy stones to good effect. Whenever the sound of climbing or ladders being placed against the wall delivered the enemy into their hands, they would push back the assailants with their shield-bosses and follow this up with thrusts from their javelins. Many made it up onto the walls, but were stabbed by Roman swords.
This is how they passed the night, but dawn revealed a new form of assault. 30. The Batavians had built a high tower with two storeys which they brought up to the main gate, where the ground was flattest. The defenders responded by using sturdy poles and ramming it with beams until it fell to pieces, causing heavy losses to the men standing on it. The attackers were in a mess and a sudden sortie against them got results. At the same time the legionaries used their extraordinary experience and skill to contrive various engines of war. The one which caused most panic was a grab balanced in a raised position. This would suddenly be let down, whipping one or more enemy soldiers into the air before the eyes of their comrades and then dropped inside the camp by the rotation of the counterweight. Civilis gave up hope of storming the camp and resumed his leisurely blockade, trying in the meantime to wear down the loyalty of the legions by messages and promises.
31. Such was the course of events in Germany up to the battle of Cremona,48 whose outcome was reported in a letter from Antonius Primus, which also included an edict from Caecina. As well as this, a prefect of one of the defeated auxiliary cohorts, Alpinius Montanus, gave evidence in person of the Flavian victory. Reaction to this news was varied. The auxiliaries from Gaul, who felt neither passion nor hatred for the contending sides and whose service implied no personal attachment, immediately abandoned Vitellius at the prompting of their commanders. The seasoned troops dragged their feet, but when Hordeonius Flaccus administered the oath of allegiance, they too accepted it under pressure from the tribunes, although with little conviction in their looks or hearts, and, while firmly reciting the other formulae of the solemn declaration, they hesitated at Vespasian’s name or mumbled it; and most of them passed over it in silence.
32. A letter from Antonius to Civilis was then read to the assembled troops. It stirred their suspicions because it was written as if the recipient were an ally of the Flavians, while the army of Germany was alluded to as an enemy. When in due course the news reached the camp at Gelduba, it provoked the same sort of comments and reactions, and Montanus was sent on to Civilis with instructions for him to abandon his fighting and not to conceal a war against Rome under false colours. If he had set out to help Vespasian, he was told, his mission had already been fulfilled. Civilis replied artfully at first, but when he saw that Montanus had an extremely violent character and was ready for rebellion, he began to complain about the dangers he had endured for twenty-five years in Roman camps. ‘A fine payment I got for my efforts,’ he said, ‘the murder of my brother, my own imprisonment and the vicious clamour of this army for my execution. For this I seek satisfaction according to the law of nations. As for you Treviri and the others who are born slaves, do you expect any reward for the blood you have shed so often except thankless military service, endless taxation, rods, axes and the whims of tyranny? Look at me. I command a single cohort, but with the Canninefates and Batavians, only a tiny fragment of the Gallic provinces, we have utterly destroyed those enormous but useless bases or else we are now overwhelming them on all sides with war and hunger. One final argument: we shall either make a daring attempt and achieve freedom or lose nothing by defeat.’ With these inflammatory words, but with instructions to take back a milder reply, he dismissed Montanus, who returned and pretended that his mission had failed.49 He concealed the other developments, but the explosion soon came.
33. Civilis held back a section of his forces, and sent the veteran cohorts and the keenest of his German troops against Vocula and his army, under the command of Julius Maximus and Claudius Victor, his sister’s son. They sacked the headquarters of a cavalry regiment at Asciburgium as they passed by, and swooped upon the legionary camp so unexpectedly that Vocula was unable to address his men or deploy them in battle formation. All he could do in the chaos was to urge them to form a central core of legionaries, around which the auxiliaries clustered in a ragged array. The cavalry charged, but came face to face with the disciplined ranks of the enemy and turned about only to collide with their own men. What followed was a massacre, not a battle. The Nervian cohorts, too, whether through fear or treachery, left the Roman flanks bare, so the attack penetrated to the legions. They lost their standards and were already suffering heavy losses within the rampart when fresh help suddenly altered the luck of battle. Some auxiliary cohorts of Vascones recruited by Galba had then been summoned to the Rhineland. As they neared the camp, they heard the shouts of men fighting and charged the enemy from the rear while they were distracted, causing a widespread panic out of all proportion to their numbers. It was thought that the whole army had arrived, either from Novaesium or from Mogontiacum. This misconception gave the Romans new heart: confident in the strength of others, they regained their own. All the bravest Batavian fighters (at least from the infantry) were killed; the cavalry got away with the standards and prisoners taken in the first phase of the battle. On that day a greater number of men were slain on our side, but they were the poorer fighters, whereas the Germans lost their very best. 34. The generals on both sides were equally culpable: they deserved defeat and failed to exploit success. For if Civilis had drawn up his battleline in greater strength, he could not possibly have been surrounded by this small number of cohorts, but would have broken into the camp and destroyed it. Vocula, on the other hand, failed to inform himself of the enemy’s approach and was therefore beaten as soon as he came out; then, distrusting his success, he wasted several days before moving against the enemy. If he had quickly taken advantage of his success and kept the enemy on the run, he could have broken the siege of the legions50 in the same momentous attack.
Meanwhile, Civilis had been making trial of the besieged garrison’s morale by pretending that the Romans were finished and that his own force had won a victory. The captured standards and flags were paraded round the camp, and even the prisoners were put on show. One of these pulled off a superb act of daring by shouting out what had really happened for all to hear. He was cut down on the spot by the Germans, but that just confirmed his story. At the same time, the sack and smoke of burning farmhouses told them that the victorious army was coming. When Vocula was within sight of the camp, he ordered a halt, and had his position surrounded by ditch and rampart. His instructions were for the baggage and heavy kit to be dumped so that the army could fight unimpeded. This evoked a storm of criticism against the general as the troops clamoured for immediate action. They were used to making threats. Without even giving themselves time to form up properly, the disarrayed and exhausted troops went into battle. Civilis was ready for them, relying as much on the enemy’s blunders as upon the courage of his own troops. The Romans fought with mixed success. The troublemakers turned out to be cowards, but some men remembered their recent victory. Standing firm and striking the enemy hard, they heartened themselves and their neighbours, and when the line was restored they signalled to the besieged to seize their chance. From the walls the garrison could see everything, and they burst out from every gate of the camp. Moreover, it happened that Civilis’ horse fell and threw his rider. Both armies believed the rumour that he was injured or killed, and this had a tremendous impact in dismaying his own men and encouraging their enemies, but Vocula let the retreating Germans go, and strengthened the rampart and towers of the camp, as if the siege were soon to be renewed. After so many failures to exploit victory, there were good grounds for the suspicion that he preferred fighting.
35. Nothing exhausted our troops so much as the lack of supplies. The legionary baggage was sent to Novaesium with a crowd of non-combatants so that they could bring up grain from there by road, as the river was controlled by the enemy. The first convoy got through safely, for Civilis was still reeling. Then he got wind that the supply-train had again been sent to Novaesium under the protection of auxiliary cohorts and was proceeding on its way as if all were peaceful and that only a few men remained at the command posts, with their weapons stowed away in the wagons and everybody straying about wherever they liked. Civilis attacked in good order after sending ahead men to hold the bridges where the roads narrowed. Fighting developed along the straggling marching column, but it was indecisive, and finally night stopped the battle. The cohorts rushed on to Gelduba, which still had its camp as before, guarded by the garrison left there. It was quite clear how much danger the return trip would involve for the heavily laden and demoralized convoy. Vocula therefore reinforced his troops with 1,000 men taken from the Fifth and Fifteenth Legions which had been besieged at Vetera. These soldiers were insubordinate and hated their officers. More of them set off than had been ordered, openly grumbling on the march that they would no longer put up with short rations and the treachery of their generals. Those who had stayed behind, however, complained that withdrawing a portion of the legions had left them high and dry. So there was a double mutiny, with one group calling Vocula back and the others refusing to return to camp.
36. Meanwhile, Civilis besieged Vetera, while Vocula retreated to Gelduba and from there to Novaesium, near where he soon won a cavalry engagement. However, whether in success or defeat, the troops were just as eager to destroy their leaders. Once the legions were reinforced by the arrival of detachments from the Fifth and Fifteenth, they demanded a bounty, after discovering that Vitellius had sent the money for this. Flaccus quickly handed it over in the name of Vespasian, and it was this more than anything else which nurtured mutiny. In a wild riot of pleasure, feasting and seditious gatherings at night, their old hatred for Hordeonius Flaccus revived, and since none of the legates and tribunes dared to resist – the night had eliminated the last vestige of restraint – the troops dragged him out of bed and murdered him. The same fate was in store for Vocula, but he disguised himself as a slave and managed to get away through the darkness. 37. After the frenzy subsided, fear returned and they sent some centurions bearing letters to ask the Gallic communities for reinforcements and pay. A leaderless mob tends to be impetuous, panic-stricken and slack, and they were no different. As Civilis was approaching they hastily prepared to resist, then promptly dropped their weapons and fled. This failure generated dissension, for the contingents from the army of Upper Germany dissociated themselves from the others. However, the portraits of Vitellius were replaced in the camps and throughout the nearest communities in Belgica, although Vitellius was already dead.51 Then the men of the First, Fourth and Twenty-Second repentantly followed Vocula and in his presence once more swore allegiance to Vespasian. They were led off to relieve Mogontiacum, but by this time the besiegers, a mixed force of Chatti, Usipi and Mattiaci, had left the scene with their fill of spoil, but they paid for this with their blood when some of our troops had attacked them on their march, while they were scattered and off their guard. In addition, the Treviri built a battlement and rampart across their own territory, and fought the Germans with heavy losses on both sides. Their subsequent defection tarnished a fine record of service to Rome.
38. While this was happening, Vespasian and Titus entered office as consuls, the former for the second time, although both men were absent. Rome was gloomy and tense thanks to a variety of fears. Quite apart from the calamities which were in fact impending, it was struck by a groundless panic because of a rumour that the province of Africa had revolted at the instigation of its governor, Lucius Piso.52 He was the last man to make trouble, but shipping was being held up by severe winter storms, and the city populace, accustomed to buying its food on a daily basis and only concerned with politics if it involved the corn supply,53 feared that the coast of Africa was being blockaded and the supplies were being kept back. Fear bred conviction, while the story was exaggerated by the Vitellians, as strongly partisan as ever, and not even the winners themselves were displeased by the rumour – even foreign campaigns could not satisfy their greed, and no victory in civil war ever did so.
39. On 1 January, at a meeting of the senate called by the city praetor, Julius Frontinus,54 decrees were passed praising and thanking commanding officers, armies and client-kings. Tettius Julianus55 was deprived of his praetorship, ostensibly for abandoning his legion when it switched its allegiance to Vespasian, but in reality so that the vacant post could be transferred to Plotius Grypus.56 Hormus received the rank of knight.
Before long, Frontinus resigned and Caesar Domitian assumed the praetorship. It was his name that stood at the head of official letters and edicts, but real power rested with Mucianus, although Domitian ventured a number of measures at his friends’ instigation or on his own whim. However, Mucianus’ main source of fear lay with Antonius Primus and Arrius Varus. The fame of their achievements was still current and bright, which meant that they had the enthusiastic support of the soldiers, while the people also backed them because, once the fighting was over, they had avoided any act of violence. There was also a story that Antonius had encouraged Crassus Scribonianus57 to take power. This man derived his prominence from his distinguished forebears and his brother’s memory, and there was a ready band of conspirators to hand, but Scribonianus refused. He was not an easy man to tempt, even if success had been guaranteed, but he was all the more afraid of a complete gamble. So Mucianus, not being able to suppress Antonius openly, heaped lavish praise on him in the senate and overwhelmed him with secret offers, pointing to Nearer Spain, which was then vacant owing to Cluvius Rufus’ departure. He also distributed the posts of tribune and prefect generously among Antonius’ friends. Then, after Mucianus had filled Antonius’ mind with empty hope and ambition, he crippled him by removing to its winter camp the formation most devoted to Antonius – the Seventh Legion.58 The Third, too, long associated with Arrius Varus, was returned to Syria. Part of the army was already on its way to the German provinces. All troublesome elements were thus removed, and Rome regained its normal aspect under the rule of law and the operation of civil authority.
40. On the day when Domitian first formally entered the senate, he made a short and restrained speech about his father’s and brother’s absence and his own youthfulness. He was good looking and those who did not yet know his character took his repeated blushes as proof of his modesty.59 When he proposed a motion that all Galba’s honours should be restored, Curtius Montanus moved that Piso’s memory should be honoured as well. The senate approved both proposals, but the one about Piso was never put into effect. Then a committee was chosen by lot to supervise the restoration of property stolen during the fighting, and others were selected to survey and re-affix the bronze tablets containing the text of laws which had fallen down with the passage of time, to tidy up the official calendars which had become tainted by the current vogue for flattery,60 and to impose restrictions on state expenditure. Tettius Julianus had his praetorship restored to him when it was discovered that he had fled to Vespasian, while Grypus retained his office. It was then decided to resume the hearing of the case between Musonius Rufus and Publius Celer.61 Publius was convicted and satisfaction done to the spirit of the dead Soranus. A day that was remarkable for a commendably strict verdict in public matters also reflected positively on private individuals. By bringing the action it was felt that Musonius had done his proper duty, although opinions were divided about the Cynic philosopher Demetrius:62 his defence of an obviously guilty man seemed to indicate self-promotion rather than a concern with morality. As for Publius himself, both his courage and his eloquence faltered in his hour of danger.
This trial was the signal to take revenge on the prosecutors. Junius Mauricus63 asked Domitian to put the imperial diaries at the disposal of the senate so that it could discover from them who had requested permission to impeach which victim. He replied that, in matters of this sort, the emperor must be consulted. 41. The senate, following the prompt given by its leading representatives, formulated a solemn oath which all the magistrates vied with one another to take, followed by the other senators in the order of their seniority. In this they called the gods to witness that they had never aided and abetted any action likely to compromise anyone’s safety and had not received either reward or distinction from the downfall of fellow-Romans. Senators with guilty consciences were panic-stricken, and adopted various tricks to change the phrasing of the oath. The members showed approval to those who swore honestly, and stigmatized perjurors. This kind of informal public degradation fell especially harshly on Sariolenus Vocula, Nonius Attianus and Cestius Severus,64 men notorious for their regular prosecutions during Nero’s principate. Sariolenus also had to face the charge that he had recently engaged in the same activity under Vitellius, and the senators continued to shake their fists at Vocula until he left the chamber. They then turned their attention to Paccius Africanus, and hounded him out as well for prompting Nero to destroy the Scribonii, two brothers who had been famous for their wealth and their mutual devotion.65 Africanus did not dare to confess his part in this, nor could he deny it, but he rounded on Vibius Crispus, who had been tormenting him with questions.66 Implicating him in charges to which he had no defence, he parried odium by producing an accomplice.
42. On that day Vipstanus Messalla won a great name for loyalty and eloquence. Although under senatorial age,67 he ventured to plead for his brother Aquilius Regulus, who had attained a detestable eminence after bringing to ruin the families of the Crassi and of Orfitus.68 It seemed that as a very young man Regulus had volunteered to take upon himself their prosecution, not in order to save his own skin, but in the hope of becoming more influential. Crassus’ wife, Sulpicia Praetextata, and their four children were poised for vengeance, if the senate was prepared to try the case. Therefore Messalla had avoided answering the charge or defending the accused, but simply by shielding his brother from dangers he had won over some senators. Curtius Montanus confronted him with a fierce speech and even went so far as to allege that after Galba’s assassination Regulus had rewarded Piso’s murderer, and had taken a bite at Piso’s head. ‘That, at least,’ he said, ‘Nero did not force you to do, and you did not procure either promotion or safety for yourself by such a savage action. No doubt we must tolerate the excuses of those who preferred ruining others to putting themselves in danger, but in your case, the exile of your father and the division of his fortune among his creditors left you free from worry. You were not yet old enough to stand for office, and Nero had no reason to desire anything from you, or to fear you. It was bloodthirstiness and insatiable greed that made you dabble your talents, still unexplored and untried in the defence of an accused, in the carnage of noble men. You stole the spoils of consuls from this fatally wounded state; and although gorged on 7 million sesterces and decked out with a priesthood, you mowed down innocent children, distinguished old men and high-ranking women in a career of indiscriminate destruction, blaming Nero as a slacker because he drained his energy and that of his informers by only attacking families one by one. The whole senate, you cried, could be overturned by a single verdict! Gentlemen, you must protect and preserve such a quick-witted counsellor so that each future generation can receive instruction. Just as our seniors imitate Marcellus and Crispus, so let our young men model themselves on Regulus. Even when iniquity fails, it finds followers. What if it should flourish and grow strong? If we dare not offend someone who is still just a quaestor, will we be any bolder after he has become praetor and consul? Do you imagine that Nero will be the last of the tyrants? Those who survived Tiberius and Gaius thought so, although a more frightful and pitiless master was to follow. We are not afraid of Vespasian. Our present emperor is a man of maturity and moderation. However, forceful precedents outlast good emperors. We have lost our energy, gentlemen, and we are no longer the senate which on Nero’s death demanded that his informers and attendants should be punished in the traditional way. After an evil emperor has gone, it is the first day which is the sweetest.’
43. The senate heard Montanus’ speech and agreed with it so enthusiastically that Helvidius began to hope that even Marcellus might be toppled. So he started his speech by praising Cluvius Rufus, who, he said, although just as rich and outstanding in eloquence as Marcellus, had never impeached a single individual under Nero. Then he went on to attack Marcellus, both by pressing the charge against him and by citing the positive example of Rufus, while the senators grew increasingly excited. Marcellus sensed their reaction, and made as if to leave the house, saying, ‘I am leaving, Priscus, and I leave in your hands your obedient senate. Carry on playing the tyrant in the presence of the emperor’s son.’ Vibius Crispus began to follow him. Both of them were furious, although their expressions were quite different: Marcellus flashed menacing looks, while Crispus was all smiles. Their friends, however, ran forward and pulled them back. The conflict of opinion grew more and more extreme, and as the opposing parties – honest majority versus powerful minority – fought it out with bitter determination, the day was spent in dispute.
44. At the next meeting of the senate, Domitian opened the debate by stressing the need to drop their angry grievances and forget the measures forced on men by the previous regime, while Mucianus defended the professional prosecutors at length and also warned those who wanted to revive legal processes which had been set in motion and then dropped. His language was mild, and sounded like an appeal. As for the senate, it quickly abandoned its newly won freedom of speech as soon as it met with opposition. Mucianus, so as not to appear to be flouting the senate’s views and condoning every crime committed under Nero, compelled Octavius Sagitta and Antistius Sosianus,69 both former senators who had escaped from exile, to return to their islands of banishment. Octavius had seduced Pontia Postumina, who had refused to marry him, whereupon the frustrated lover had murdered her. Sosianus was an evil character who had ruined many victims. Both of these had been condemned to exile by a severe decree of the senate, and their sentences were now confirmed, although other offenders were allowed to come back home. This, however, did nothing to soothe the hatred inspired by Mucianus. After all, Sosianus and Sagitta counted for nothing, even if they were returned to exile. The real source of fear lay in the clever prosecutors, who were wealthy and experts at wielding their power with malicious skill.
45. An investigation conducted in the traditional way briefly restored the unity of the senate. A senator called Manlius Patruitus complained that he had been beaten up by a rowdy mob in the town of Sena, and indeed on the orders of the local officials. Nor, it seemed, had that been the end of the outrage. The people had made him the centrepiece of a mock funeral, complete with a dirge and lamentations right under his nose,70 and they had also hurled insults and abuse at the whole senate. The accused were summoned to appear, and after a hearing, convicted and punished. In addition, a senatorial decree was passed warning the common people of Sena to behave. Over this same period, Antonius Flamma, who had been prosecuted by the inhabitants of Cyrene, was condemned under the extortion law and exiled for cruelty.
46. While this was happening, a mutiny nearly flared up among the troops. The praetorians who had flocked to Vespasian after being dismissed by Vitellius were asking to be re-enlisted,71 and the legionaries chosen for the same promotion were demanding the pay which they had been promised. Even the Vitellian soldiers alone could not have been dispersed without serious bloodshed, but such large numbers of men could only be kept on at vast cost. Mucianus entered the praetorian camp in order to consider more accurately each soldier’s service record, making the victorious Flavians line up with their proper decorations and arms, and separating one man from the next with a little space. Then the Vitellians who had surrendered at Bovillae, as I have mentioned,72 and the others who had been rounded up throughout the capital and its suburbs were marched out in rags. Mucianus ordered these men to be divided up in separate groups depending on whether they came from Germany, Britain or any of the other armies. Their first glimpse of the sight that greeted them had immediately caused consternation. Facing them they saw what looked like an enemy battleline, bristling with arms and equipment, whereas they themselves were encircled, naked and bedraggled. Once the process of sorting them out began, fear gripped them all, but the troops from Germany were particularly terrified as they thought this categorization was a prelude to execution.73 They embraced their comrades tightly, threw their arms round their necks, and kissed them farewell for ever, protesting that they should not be left abandoned and alone, nor in a common cause suffer a different fate. They appealed in turn to Mucianus, to the absent emperor and finally to heaven and the gods. In the end, Mucianus addressed them all as soldiers of the same allegiance and the same emperor, and thus confronted their misguided fears. Indeed, the victorious army added its shouts to their tears. This concluded events on that day. When they heard a speech from Domitian a few days later, they had already recovered their nerve. They now refused the offer of land, and pleaded for continued service and pay. This was a request – but one which could not be refused. They were therefore taken up as praetorians. Later, those who had reached the age limit and served their time were honourably discharged, while others were dismissed for misconduct, but they were demobilized selectively and one by one. This is the safest remedy when trying to diminish the strength of a mass movement.
47. However, whether because of a real financial crisis or to give the appearance of one, the senate resolved that a state loan of 60 million sesterces should be raised from private citizens. This responsibility was entrusted to Pompeius Silvanus, but not long afterwards the need disappeared or the pretence was abandoned. Then, a law was passed on the motion of Domitian rescinding the consulships granted by Vitellius,74 and Flavius Sabinus was given a state funeral – striking proofs of the mercurial nature of fortune and her habit of distributing prosperity and disaster in equal measure.
48. At about the same time the senatorial governor, Lucius Piso, was killed. The best way to do justice to this murderous story is if I go back briefly and give some details which are not irrelevant to the origin and causes of crimes such as this.
During the principates of the divine Augustus and of Tiberius, the senatorial governor controlled the legion stationed in Africa and the auxiliary troops intended to defend the imperial frontiers. Then Gaius Caesar, who had a restless character and feared Marcus Silanus,75 the official then in control of Africa, removed the legion from the governor’s control and entrusted it to a legate sent out for the purpose. This deliberately fostered tensions, as the dispersal of patronage was shared equally between the two men, who had overlapping responsibilities, and the situation was exacerbated by an ugly spirit of competition. The power of the legates grew because of their long tenure of office, or else because inferior men are always more concerned to outdo their rivals. The senatorial governors on the other hand, being extremely eminent men, were more concerned with self-preservation than acquiring personal power.76
49. However, at that time, the legion in Africa was controlled by Valerius Festus, a decadent young man with big ambitions, who was worried because he was related to Vitellius.77 During their numerous conversations it is impossible to say whether Festus tempted Piso to rebel or whether he himself resisted Piso’s temptations. No third person was present at their secret negotiation, and after Piso’s murder most people were keen to butter up the murderer. What is beyond dispute is that the province and its garrison felt alienated from Vespasian; and some Vitellian fugitives from Rome were revealing incentives to Piso – the Gallic provinces were wavering, Germany was ready for a change, Piso himself was in peril, and war was safer for a man who was suspected during peacetime. While this was happening, Claudius Sagitta, the commander of the Petrian78 cavalry regiment, crossed the sea quickly and got to Africa before Mucianus’ envoy, the centurion Papirius, who had been instructed to murder Piso, or so Sagitta asserted. He added that the governor’s cousin and son-in-law, Galerianus, had already been murdered.79 The only hope of survival, he suggested, lay in a daring act, but there were two such courses open to him: he might prefer an immediate military revolt, or he could sail for Gaul and offer himself to the Vitellian armies as their leader. Piso did not react to this at all. As for the centurion sent by Mucianus, when he landed at Carthage, his voice constantly rang out with good wishes for Piso as though he were already emperor and he encouraged the people he met, who were amazed at this sudden development, to echo his acclamations. The mob was gullible enough. They made a rush for the Forum, and demanded Piso’s presence. Their noisy and jubilant demonstrations created pandemonium, for they cared nothing for the truth and were passionate in their flattery. Thanks to Sagitta’s information or his own natural reserve, Piso did not appear in public or give himself up to the enthusiastic crowd. He interrogated the centurion, and after establishing that the plan was to incriminate him and secure his death, he had him executed. In doing this he was motivated less by the hope of saving his own life than by his anger towards the assassin. The man had been one of the killers of Clodius Macer and he had returned to murder the proconsular governor while his hands still dripped with the blood of the legate. Then he reproached the people of Carthage in an agitated edict, and avoided even routine engagements, locking himself in his house to remove any excuse for fresh trouble, even if it arose quite by chance.
50. However, when the rioting of the mob, the centurion’s execution, and an exaggerated cocktail of truth and lies so typical of rumours was revealed to Festus, he sent horsemen to kill Piso. They rode at speed, and in the half-light of dawn they were already breaking into the governor’s palace with drawn swords. Many of them did not know Piso personally, for Festus had selected Punic and Moorish auxiliaries to carry out this murder. Near the governor’s bedroom they happened to come across one of his slaves. They asked him who he was and where Piso was. When the slave responded with a gallant lie by saying that he was Piso, he was butchered on the spot. Not long afterwards Piso was killed, for there was somebody there who knew him, Baebius Massa, one of the imperial agents in Africa. Already at that point the deadly enemy of all the best men, this character is destined to figure again in the story as one of the causes of the troubles which we were later to endure.80 Festus left Hadrumetum, where he had stopped to survey the situation, and, hurriedly rejoining the legion, he ordered Caetronius Pisanus, the prefect of the legionary camp, to be imprisoned. The real reason for this was a personal feud, but he denounced him as Piso’s accomplice. He punished some of the soldiers and centurions and rewarded others – not to reflect what they deserved, but to foster belief that he had crushed an armed rebellion.
Later on Festus settled a dispute between Oea and Lepcis. It had started for trivial reasons, after the country people had stolen crops and herds, but now it involved full-scale hostilities and set battles. For the people of Oea, being outnumbered, had summoned the Garamantes, a wild tribe much given to plundering its neighbours.81 So the people of Lepcis were in real trouble. Their lands had been extensively ravaged and they were now cowering behind the walls of their city. However, when the cavalry and infantry forces of the Roman auxiliaries intervened, the Garamantes were routed and all the loot was recovered, apart from what they had sold to the people of the interior as they travelled around the inaccessible settlements.
51. After the victory at Cremona and the arrival of good news from all sides, Vespasian now heard that Vitellius had died. He was told this by many people of every class who had gambled successfully on risking a crossing of the Mediterranean during winter. Representatives of King Vologaeses were also there, offering him 40,000 Parthian cavalry.82 It was a glorious and happy situation to have such a considerable force of allies at one’s disposal and yet be able to do without them. Vologaeses was thanked, and told to send envoys to the senate and conclude a formal peace treaty. Vespasian, with his mind set on Italy and events in the capital, now heard ugly stories about Domitian, who was said to be exceeding both the limits appropriate to his years and the privileges of a son. He therefore handed over the main part of his army to Titus to conclude the campaign in Judaea.83
52. There is a story that before Titus set off, he begged his father at some length not to be too readily incensed by these incriminating allegations against Domitian, but to remain unprejudiced and to adopt a conciliatory attitude towards his son. Neither legions nor fleets, he said, were such a sure defence of imperial power as a contingent of children. Time, chance and, sometimes, ambition or misjudgement could diminish, disaffect or terminate friendships, but a man’s own flesh and blood was inseparable, particularly in the case of emperors. For while other men enjoyed their successes, their misfortunes only touched those nearest and dearest to them.84 Not even brothers were likely to see eye to eye for ever unless their father set them an example.
Although Vespasian was still somewhat ruffled about Domitian, he was certainly delighted by Titus’ loyalty. He told him to keep in good spirits and to glorify his country by war and military exploits: peace and domestic matters would be his own concern. Then he loaded his fastest ships with corn and consigned them to the still stormy seas, for Rome was in such dire straits that not more than ten days’ supply was left in the granaries when Vespasian’s shipments brought relief.85
53. Responsibility for reconstructing the Capitol was entrusted to Lucius Vestinus.86 Although he was an equestrian, Vestinus’ prestige and reputation had won him a place among the leading men of Rome. He summoned the soothsayers, who advised that the rubble of the earlier shrine should be dumped in the marshes and the temple rebuilt on the same foundations, so far as these remained: the gods did not want the ancient plan of the temple to be altered. On 21 June, under a tranquil sky, the whole area that was being dedicated as the site of the temple was wreathed with fillets and garlands, and soldiers with auspicious names entered bearing branches from lucky trees,87 followed by the Vestal Virgins with boy and girl attendants who had both parents alive. Together they sprinkled the whole site with water drawn from springs and rivers. Then, while the high priest Plautius Aelianus88 was dictating the formulae, the praetor Helvidius Priscus purified the area by the sacrifice of pig, sheep and ox,89 and offered up the entrails upon an altar of turf, praying to Jupiter, Juno and Minerva, as the deities who protected the empire, that they would allow the labours now being undertaken to prosper, and that by divine assistance they would raise aloft this building of theirs that had been started by human piety. Then the praetor put his hand on the fillets tied around the foundation stone, to which ropes were secured. At the same time, the other magistrates, the priests, senators, knights and a large number of the common people eagerly and gladly took the strain and hauled the enormous block into place. Everywhere they cast into the foundations offerings of gold and silver nuggets of unrefined metal in the natural state. The soothsayers had instructed that the building should not be desecrated by the use of stone or gold intended for any other purpose. The height of the building was raised, which was the only change that religious feeling permitted and the only respect in which people believed the earlier temple had lacked splendour.
54. Meanwhile, news of Vitellius’ death had spread throughout the Gallic and German provinces and doubled the scale of the war. Civilis stopped pretending and threw himself headlong at Rome, while the Vitellian legions actually preferred enslavement to a foreign power over acknowledging Vespasian as emperor. The spirits of the Gauls were now high, since they thought that our armies were in the same predicament everywhere. For a rumour had spread that the bases in Moesia and Pannonia were under siege by the Sarmatians and Dacians, and a similar story, though false, was being told about Britain. However, it was above all the burning of the Capitol that spurred them on to believe that the empire’s days were numbered.90 They reflected that the Gauls had captured Rome in the past, but as the house of Jupiter remained untouched the empire had survived. Now, however, the Druids manifested their barren superstition and were singing their prophecies: the gods had signalled their anger by this fateful fire and world dominion was passing to the nations north of the Alps. There was also a rumour abroad about the Gallic leaders who had been sent by Otho to fight Vitellius. Before they separated, it was alleged, they had sworn an oath not to abandon their fight for freedom if Rome crumbled under the impact of continued civil wars and internal disasters.
55. Before the murder of Hordeonius Flaccus,91 nothing had got out to give any hint of the conspiracy. But after his death, messages were exchanged between Civilis and Classicus, the commander of the Treviran cavalry regiment. Classicus outclassed the others in rank and wealth. He was descended from kings, and members of his family had been prominent in peace and war. He himself used to boast that he counted among his ancestors more enemies of Rome than allies. Also involved were Julius Tutor and Julius Sabinus, the former a Treviran who had been given command of the west bank of the Rhine by Vitellius, the latter a Lingonian. Sabinus, on top of his naturally conceited personality, was inflamed by the distinction of high birth, bogus though this was. He claimed that his great-grandmother’s beauty had captivated the divine Julius Caesar during the Gallic war and that they had become lovers.92
These men investigated the mood of other potential rebels in private conversations. Then, after they had involved any individuals they regarded as suitable and shared their plans with them, they met in Colonia Agrippinensium, at a private house. This was because officially the city recoiled from such endeavours, but a few Ubii and Tungri were nevertheless present at the conference. However, the Treviri and Lingones, who carried most weight, would not tolerate lengthy negotiations. They fell over each other to proclaim that the Roman nation was in a fever of disunity, the legions cut to pieces, Italy ravaged, Rome was on the verge of being captured and all her armies were distracted with fighting on their own doorsteps. If the Alps were strongly manned, once the movement for freedom had grown strong, the Gallic provinces would decide the limits of their dominion at will. 56. No sooner were these words spoken than they won instant approval. Dealing with the remaining contingents of the Vitellian army was a more difficult problem. Many thought that they should be put to death as disloyal troublemakers stained with the blood of their generals, but a policy of mercy won the day, so as to avoid sparking desperate resistance by removing all hope of pardon. It was thought better to entice them into an alliance. If the legionary commanders alone were killed, it would be easy to get the common soldiers to join the rebellion, prompted by their guilty consciences and the hope of impunity.
Such, in outline, was their initial plan. Men were sent throughout the Gallic provinces to stir up war, although the conspirators themselves feigned obedience in order to catch Vocula off his guard. There were informants who told Vocula what was afoot, but he lacked the resources to crush the rebellion, as his legions were under strength and disloyal. Caught between an unreliable army and a hidden enemy, he thought that the best course open to him was to engage in deception in his turn, and to attack with the very weapon that threatened him. So he moved downstream to Colonia Agrippinensium. To this same city Claudius Labeo (whose capture and removal to Frisian territory I have described)93 escaped after bribing his gaolers. This man undertook, if given a bodyguard, to go to the Batavians and get the better part of the tribe to return to their alliance with Rome. After being given a small infantry and cavalry force, he made no attempt to carry out his venture against the Batavians, but induced a few Nervii and Baetasii to take up arms, and he began to make stealthy raids against the Canninefates and Marsaci, rather than conducting a regular campaign.
57. Lured on by the treacherous Gauls, Vocula now marched against the enemy. He was already nearing Vetera when Classicus and Tutor went ahead, ostensibly to reconnoitre, but they actually made a firm agreement with the German leaders. Then, for the first time, they broke away from the legions and built their own walled camp, although Vocula protested that Rome was not so racked with civil strife that even the Treviri and Lingones could afford to despise her. She still had at her disposal loyal provinces, victorious armies, her imperial destiny and the avenging gods. That was why Sacrovir and the Aedui long ago,94 and in recent times Vindex with the Gallic provinces, had both been beaten in a single battle. Treaty breakers could expect to face the same divine forces and the same fate. Julius Caesar and Augustus had been better judges of the Gallic temper, and it was Galba and his tax concessions that had prompted them to adopt an insolent air of hostility. Now the Gauls were enemies because they bore a light yoke; when they had been plundered and stripped, they would revert to being friends.
Vocula’s words were spirited, but when he saw that Classicus and Tutor persisted in their treachery, he turned round and went back to Novaesium. The Gauls set up camp two miles away on the flat ground. Centurions and soldiers passed to and fro between the camps, selling their souls to the enemy. The result was an unparalleled outrage: a Roman army was to swear allegiance to a foreign power, sealing the monstrous bargain with a pledge to murder or imprison its generals. Although many of his staff advised Vocula to flee, he thought that he must act with daring, and after calling a meeting, he addressed the troops along the following lines:95
58. ‘Never have I addressed you when I felt more anxious on your behalf or less concerned for myself. I am glad to hear that there is a plan to kill me and in such a terrible situation I welcome death as the end of all my afflictions. It is for you that I feel ashamed and sorry, for you are facing no ordinary array of battle – that is the proper form of warfare in accordance with the normal rules of enemy engagement. Instead, Classicus wants to use you to wage war with the Roman people, as he dangles before you a Gallic empire and asks you to swear allegiance to it. Even if luck and courage have deserted us for the moment, have things got so bad that we have forgotten the lessons of the past when Roman legions chose to perish rather than abandon their post? Our allies have often endured the sack of their cities and allowed themselves to be burnt to death with wives and children, when their only reward for such a fate was a reputation for loyalty. At this very moment the legions at Vetera are facing hunger and siege,96 and neither intimidation nor promises can shift them. Our own position is quite different. Apart from weapons, men and excellent defences, we have adequate corn and supplies, however long the campaign. Our financial resources have just allowed the payment of a bounty, and whether you choose to regard this as coming from Vespasian or from Vitellius, you have certainly received it from a Roman emperor. If, after all your victorious campaigns, all the defeats inflicted on the enemy at Gelduba and at Vetera, you are frightened to fight them, this of course does you no credit, but you have a rampart, walls and the skill to hang on until reinforcements and armies gather from neighbouring provinces. To be sure, you may dislike me, but there are other commanders and tribunes or in the last resort a centurion or a common soldier. Do not let this portent be spread around the whole world, that Civilis and Classicus are going to invade Italy assisted by you. Tell me, if the Germans and Gauls lead you to the walls of Rome, will you bear arms against your fatherland? The imagination shudders at the thought of such wickedness. Will Tutor the Treviran make you stand guard for him? Will a Batavian give you the signal for battle? And will you add your strength to the German hordes? What will be the final chapter in this career of infamy, when Roman legions draw up against you? After deserting the deserters and betraying the traitors, will you hover between your new and old allegiance as an abomination to the gods? I address this prayer and supplication to you, Jupiter Best and Greatest, to whom for 820 years we have paid the tribute of so many triumphs, and to you, Quirinus, father of the city of Rome:97 if it was not your pleasure to see this camp preserved whole and inviolate, with me in command, please do not let it be polluted and outraged at the hands of Tutor and Classicus. Grant to the soldiers of Rome either innocence or a speedy repentance before it is too late.’
59. The speech was heard with emotions which varied between hope, fear and shame. Vocula withdrew and thought about killing himself, but his freedmen and slaves stopped him from anticipating a most hideous death by suicide. What happened was that Classicus sent Aemilius Longinus, a deserter belonging to the First Legion, and quickly murdered him.98 As for the legionary commanders Herennius and Numisius, it seemed sufficient to imprison them. Then Classicus dressed himself up in the uniform of a Roman general and entered the camp. Yet, although he was hardened to every kind of criminal act, he found that words failed him and all he could do was to read out the terms of the oath. Those present swore to support the Gallic Empire. He gave Vocula’s assassin a glittering promotion, and rewarded the rest according to their villainous services.
Thereafter, Tutor and Classicus assumed separate responsibilities within the command. Tutor surrounded Colonia Agrippinensium with a strong force and compelled its inhabitants and all the troops on the Rhine in Upper Germany to swear the same oath. At Mogontiacum he executed the tribunes and expelled the commander of the camp since they had refused to take the pledge. Classicus selected all the most flawed men from the troops who had surrendered and told them to approach the besieged garrison and offer a pardon if they were prepared to accept the situation.99 Otherwise there was no hope for them, for they would have to suffer famine, the sword and ultimately death. The messengers reinforced their argument by pointing out the precedent of their own actions.
60. The besieged were torn: their loyalty pulled them towards heroic resistance, but their hunger drew them towards a disgraceful surrender. While they hesitated, all normal and emergency rations ran out. They had by now consumed the mules, horses and other animals which, however unclean and revolting, a desperate plight compels men to use as food. Finally, they were reduced to tearing up shrubs, roots and the blades of grass growing between the stones so that they became a striking example of how to hold out in a wretched situation.100 However, they finally tarnished their splendid record by a dishonourable finale, sending envoys to Civilis to plead for life – not that their request was considered until they had taken an oath of allegiance to the Gallic confederacy. Then, after Civilis had secured an agreement that the camp should be his to plunder, he appointed guards to secure the money, soldiers’ slaves and baggage and to oversee the departing garrison as it marched out empty-handed. About five miles from Vetera, the Germans ambushed the unsuspecting column of men. The toughest fighters fell on the spot, and many others in scattered flight, while the rest retreated to the camp. To be sure, Civilis protested and loudly blamed the Germans for what he described as a criminal breach of faith. However, our sources are unclear whether this was just a pretence or whether Civilis really was incapable of restraining his ferocious allies. After plundering the camp, they threw in torches, and all the survivors of the battle were consumed by the fire.
61. After Civilis had started to fight the Romans, he had sworn a typically barbarian oath to dye his hair red and let it grow until the point when he had annihilated the legions. Now that he had achieved this, he had it cut.101 He was also alleged to have given some prisoners to his little son to use as targets for his arrows and spears. However, he did not swear allegiance to the Gallic confederacy himself, nor get any other Batavian to do so, since he was relying on the resources of the Germans and his conviction that, if he had to fight against the Gauls for supremacy, his formidable reputation would give him the lead. The legionary commander Munius Lupercus was sent along with other presents to Veleda, an unmarried woman from the tribe of the Bructeri who enjoyed wide influence.102 The Germans have a long-standing custom whereby they regard many women as prophets and even (as their superstitious awe grows) as goddesses. At that point, Veleda’s influence had reached its peak, for she had foretold the German successes and the extermination of the legions. Lupercus, however, was put to death before he reached her. A few of the centurions and tribunes who were born in Gaul were kept on as hostages to secure the alliance. The winter-quarters of the cohorts, cavalry regiments and legions were dismantled and burnt, apart from those at Mogontiacum and Vindonissa.
62. The Sixteenth Legion and the auxiliary units which had surrendered at the same time received orders to move from Novaesium to Augusta Trevirorum, a time-limit being fixed for their departure from the camp.103 They spent this whole interval brooding over different concerns. The cowards were quaking as they thought back to the massacre at Vetera, while the better sort were ashamed at the disgrace: what sort of march was this to be and who would lead the way? Besides, they reflected, everything would be done at the whim of the men to whom they had given absolute power over life and death. Others again, totally unconcerned about the disgrace, were busily stowing about them their money or favourite possessions. A few got their equipment ready and armed themselves as if they were going into battle. As the men contemplated such matters, the hour of departure arrived. It was even grimmer than they had anticipated. For inside the rampart, their sorry state had been less obvious, but the open country and broad daylight revealed the full extent of their humiliation. The emperors’ portraits had been ripped off and the standards thus dishonoured, while all around them fluttered the gleaming banners of the Gauls. The marching column was silent, like a long funeral procession. Their leader was the one-eyed Claudius Sanctus, a man of fateful appearance, whose character was even more abominable.104 Their disgrace was doubled when the other legion joined them from the now abandoned camp at Bonna. Besides, the word had gone round that the legions had capitulated. All those who used to tremble at the mere name of Rome a short time ago now rushed out from their farms and houses and scattered everywhere, gloating over the novel spectacle. The delight of the insolent people proved too much for the Picentian cavalry regiment. Ignoring the promises or threats of Sanctus, they made off to Mogontiacum, and when they happened to come across Vocula’s murderer, Longinus, they hurled their weapons at him and thus took the first step upon the road to redemption. The legions, however, stuck to their route and in due course encamped before the walls of Augusta Trevirorum.
63. Elated by success, Civilis and Classicus considered whether they should give their armies licence to plunder Colonia Agrippinensium. By inclination cruel and greedy for booty, they were strongly attracted to the idea of sacking the city, but they were prevented by strategic considerations of war and by the useful possibility of acquiring a name for clemency while they were starting to establish a new state.105 Civilis was also influenced by his memory of past services, since at the outbreak of hostilities his son had been imprisoned at Colonia Agrippinensium, but they had kept him in honourable custody. The tribes east of the Rhine, however, hated the city for its opulence and rapid growth, and only contemplated ending the war on one of two conditions: either the settlement was to be opened up to all Germans without discrimination or else it would have to be demolished, thereby scattering the Ubii.
64. So the Tencteri, a tribe separated from Colonia Agrippinensium by the Rhine, sent envoys to present their demands to the assembled citizens of the town. The most spirited envoy laid out the arguments roughly as follows: ‘We thank the gods whom we all worship, above all Mars,106 the greatest of our deities, that you have rejoined the German nation and assumed once more the name of Germans. We congratulate you that at last you will be free men belonging to an association of free peoples. For until today, the Romans shut off the rivers, the earth and in a sense the very sky, to prevent conversation and contact between us, or else – and this is a greater insult to natural warriors – they saw to it that we met disarmed and practically defenceless under supervision and only for a price. However, so as to confirm our friendship and alliance for all time, we call upon you to dismantle those defences that marked your slavery, your city-walls. Even wild beasts forget their fighting spirit if you keep them locked up. We also demand that you put to death all the Romans in your territory, for liberty is incompatible with the presence of tyrants. The property of the executed men should be shared among the community, so that nobody can conceal anything or keep his own interests separate. We and you must have the right to settle on either bank of the Rhine, as our fathers did in the past. Just as nature has permitted all men to enjoy the daylight, so she has opened up all lands to brave men. Go back to your fathers’ practices and their way of life, and tear yourselves away from those pleasures which give the Romans more power over their subjects than their weapons do.107 Then you will become a pure and unimpaired people as you forget about your past enslavement, and you will deal with men as their equals, or as their leaders.’
65. The citizens of Colonia Agrippinensium took their time to think over the matter. Then, as submitting to the terms was impossible for fear of future consequences, but their present plight did not allow the option of outright rejection, they replied along the following lines: ‘As soon as we had a chance of freedom, we seized it with greater eagerness than caution, so that we could join with you and the rest of the Germans, our kinsmen. As for our city-walls, at a moment when the armies of Rome are gathering, it is safer to strengthen rather than demolish them. All the foreigners from Italy or the provinces who previously lived among us have become casualties of war, or have fled to their various countries. As for the original settlers who have been united with us through marriage, and their families, this is their homeland. We do not believe that you are so unjust that you want us to kill our parents, brothers and children. We are ready to abolish taxes and charges upon trade, and to allow unsupervised crossing of the Rhine, provided that this happens by day and no weapons are carried, until what are now novel concessions develop into a tradition with the passing of time. Civilis and Veleda will be the arbiters of our proposals, and they shall negotiate and witness the agreement.’ This reply satisfied the Tencteri,108 and envoys sent to Civilis and Veleda with gifts secured a decision fully satisfactory to Colonia Agrippinensium. They were not, however, permitted to approach Veleda in person or to speak with her. By preventing them from seeing her, they intended to enhance the aura of veneration surrounding the prophetess. She herself lived in a high tower and one of her relatives used to transmit questions and answers as if he were a messenger between a god and his worshippers.
66. The alliance with Colonia Agrippinensium strengthened Civilis’ position, so he decided to court the nearby communities or to attack them if they offered opposition. Having taken over the Sunuci and arranged their fighting men in cohorts, he found that he could not advance any further because Claudius Labeo and his hastily conscripted units of Baetasii, Tungri and Nervii barred the way. Labeo relied on his advantageous position after he had anticipated the enemy by seizing a bridge over the River Mosa. The battle fought in this confined space was inconclusive until the Germans swam the river and attacked Labeo in the rear.109 At the same moment, Civilis showed great daring (or perhaps it was by prior arrangement) when he rode up to the Tungrian lines and exclaimed loudly: ‘We have not declared war to allow the Batavians and Treviri to rule over the other tribes. Such arrogant conduct is beneath us. Take up this alliance. I am coming over to your side, whether you want me as general or a common soldier.’ This made a great impression on the ordinary soldiers and they were sheathing their swords when two of the Tungrian nobles, Campanus and Juvenalis, offered him the surrender of the whole tribe. Labeo fled before he could be rounded up. Civilis took the Baetasii and Nervii into his service, too, and added them to his own forces. He was now in a strong position, as the communities were demoralized, or else inclined to support him of their own free will.
67. Meanwhile, Julius Sabinus, who had demolished all reminders of the alliance with Rome, claimed the title ‘Caesar’.110 He then hastily led a large and disorganized crowd of his countrymen against the Sequani, a neighbouring state faithful to us. Nor did the Sequani decline the challenge. Fortune favoured the better side and the Lingones were routed. Sabinus’ rashness in forcing an encounter was matched by the panic with which he abandoned it. In order to spread a rumour that he was dead, he set fire to the house where he had taken refuge, and people believed that he had committed suicide there. I will relate in the proper place, however, the ingenious ways in which he hid himself and stayed alive for another nine years, as well as the unflagging fidelity of his friends, and the remarkable example set by his wife, Epponina.111 With this victory won by the Sequani, the war lost its momentum. Gradually the communities began to recover their senses and honour their obligations and treaties. In this the Remi took the lead and they sent word throughout Gaul that the tribes should send representatives to a general meeting to decide whether they wanted independence or peace.
68. At Rome, however, all the pessimistic and exaggerated rumours made Mucianus anxious. He was worried that, however eminent the generals (for he had already selected Annius Gallus and Petilius Cerialis112), they would not be up to the burden of such a serious war. Nor could Rome be left without supervision; and besides that, he was afraid of Domitian’s ungovernable passions and suspected Antonius Primus and Arrius Varus, as I have said.113 The praetorian prefect Varus still had a powerful military force under his command. So Mucianus removed him from his post and put him in charge of the corn supply as a consolation prize. To pacify Domitian, who was well disposed towards Varus, he appointed Arrecinus Clemens as praetorian prefect. This man was related to Vespasian by marriage114 and stood high in Domitian’s favour. Mucianus repeatedly said that Clemens’ father had held the post with distinction during Gaius’ principate, that a familiar name would please the troops, and that, while belonging to the senatorial order, Clemens was quite competent to discharge both functions.115
The most distinguished men at Rome were selected to assist in the operations, and others not so distinguished used their influence. Domitian and Mucianus prepared themselves too, although their attitudes differed. Domitian was impetuous, thanks to the optimism of youth, while Mucianus kept on contriving delays to hold back the prince’s burning enthusiasm. He feared that if Domitian got his hands on an army, his youthful belligerence and the prompting of bad advisers would result in his jeopardizing what was in the best interests, whether of peace or war. The expeditionary force consisted of the victorious Eighth, Eleventh and Thirteenth Legions, the Twenty-First (which had supported Vitellius) and the Second (one of the recently recruited legions). Most of these were led across the Alps by the Pennine and Cottian Alps, but some crossed by the Graian Alps. The Fourteenth Legion was summoned from Britain and the Sixth and First from Spain.
So the news that this army was approaching, together with the natural inclination of the Gallic communities for a less aggressive policy, prompted them to hold a meeting in the territory of the Remi. Here they found waiting for them a delegation from the Treviri, including the most fervent instigator of war, Julius Valentinus. In a carefully rehearsed speech, he made all the usual criticisms of great empires, and poured out malicious abuse against Rome, for he was a troublemaker who was expert at stirring up rebellions, and his senseless rhetoric won him many admirers. 69. However, Julius Auspex, one of the chieftains of the Remi, spoke expansively about Rome’s power and the advantages of peace. Even cowards, he said, found it easy enough to declare war, but it was the most dynamic men who ran the risks of fighting, and already the legions were poised to strike. So he managed to restrain all the most sensible men by stirring respectful feelings of loyalty, and the younger ones by appealing to their sense of danger and their fears. So while applauding Valentinus’ spirit, they followed the advice of Auspex. It is clear that the Gallic states looked unfavourably upon the Treviri and Lingones because they had sided with Verginius during the revolt of Vindex. Many were deterred from acting by the mutual jealousy of the provinces. Where would the headquarters for the war be set up? From whom should they seek legal and religious sanctions? If everything went well, which city would they choose as their capital? They had not yet secured victory, but dissension was already upon them. They squabbled with one another, some boasting about their alliances, and others about their wealth and manpower or their ancient origins. They eventually grew so tired of discussing the future that they settled for the current state of affairs. A letter was written to the Treviri in the name of the Gallic provinces, inviting them to refrain from arms, since they could still get a pardon and many were ready to intercede for them if they expressed repentance. However, that same man Valentinus opposed this and blocked the ears of his countrymen, although he concentrated not so much on organizing the war effort as on making frequent speeches.
70. Therefore the Treviri, Lingones and other rebellious communities did not act in a manner that was appropriate to the huge risks they had undertaken. Even their generals failed to make a common plan. Civilis was scouring remote parts of Belgica in an effort to capture Claudius Labeo or dislodge him. Classicus spent most of his time in idleness as if enjoying an empire that had already been won. Not even Tutor hurried to man the Rhine in Upper Germany and close the Alpine passes. In the meantime, moreover, the Twenty-First Legion invaded from Vindonissa, and Sextilius Felix with some auxiliary cohorts did the same from Raetia. In addition to this there was the mixed cavalry unit of special recruits which had been mobilized by Vitellius and had then gone over to Vespasian’s side. It was commanded by Julius Briganticus, the son of Civilis’ sister, who, with the intense bitterness typical of family feuds, was loathed by his uncle, and vice versa. Tutor’s Treviran contingent had been reinforced by a recent levy of Vangiones, Caeracates and Triboci,116 and he now strengthened it with veteran infantry and cavalry, after enticing or intimidating some legionaries to join him. At first these troops annihilated a cohort sent on ahead by Sextilius Felix, but when in due course the Roman army and its generals drew near, they returned to their original allegiance by an act of honourable desertion, followed by the Triboci, Vangiones and Caeracates. Tutor, accompanied by the Treviri, avoided Mogontiacum and withdrew to Bingium, relying on an advantageous position after he had cut the bridge over the River Nava. However, some cohorts led by Sextilius hurried forward and discovered a ford, and Tutor was betrayed and put to flight. This defeat broke the morale of the Treviri, and a great crowd of them threw down their arms and scattered over the countryside. Some of their chieftains, to give the impression that they were the first to cease hostilities, fled to those communities which had not renounced their alliance with Rome. The legions which, as I have already mentioned,117 had been transferred from Novaesium and Bonna to Augusta Trevirorum took the oath to Vespasian voluntarily. These events occurred in the absence of Valentinus. When he arrived in a frenzied state and was ready to reduce everything to confusion and destruction once more, the legions retired to the friendly Mediomatrici. Valentinus and Tutor forced the Treviri to fight again, murdering the legionary commanders Herennius and Numisius to lessen the chances of pardon and strengthen the bond of crime.
71. This was the military situation when Petilius Cerialis reached Mogontiacum. On his arrival there was a resurgence of hope. Petilius was spoiling for a fight, and his strength lay rather in despising the enemy than in treating them warily. His fiery language set his troops alight, as he promised that he would engage the enemy at close quarters as soon as he could, and would allow nothing to delay the battle. He sent back to their homes the troops levied throughout Gaul, and told them to announce that the legions were enough to defend the empire: the allies might return to their peacetime tasks confident that a war taken in hand by the Romans was as good as over. This made the Gauls more obedient. Now that they had their men back at home, they tolerated the taxes more readily, and the mere fact of being despised made them more prepared to do their duty. Civilis and Classicus, on the other hand, hearing about Tutor’s rout, the Treviran disaster and the fact that everything was going the enemy’s way, were gripped by panic and scrambled into action. While concentrating their own scattered forces, they sent a succession of messages warning Valentinus not to risk a decisive engagement.
This only made Cerialis act more quickly. After sending officers to the country of the Mediomatrici to lead the legions back against the enemy by the direct route, which was shorter, and after gathering such troops as were available at Mogontiacum and the force he had brought with him over the Alps, he marched in three days to Rigodulum. Valentinus had already occupied this place with a large contingent of Treviri, since it was protected on one side by mountains and on another by the River Moselle. He had reinforced the position with trenches and rock barricades, but these defences could not frighten a general of Rome. Petilius ordered his infantry to force a way through and sent his cavalry up the rising ground, pouring scorn on such a hastily assembled enemy force: any advantage they derived from their position was more than outweighed by his own men’s courage. There was a slight delay while they climbed up, as the cavalry rode past the missiles hurled by the enemy. However, when the hand-to-hand fighting came, the Treviri were dislodged and sent tumbling down the hillside like an avalanche. Moreover, a detachment of the cavalry which had ridden around along the lower contours, captured some chieftains of the Belgae, including their general Valentinus.
72. On the next day Cerialis entered Augusta Trevirorum. His men were bursting to destroy the city: this was the home of Classicus, this was the home of Tutor, the criminals who had encircled and slaughtered Roman legions. What crime had Cremona committed to deserve its fate in comparison? Yet it had been torn from the heart of Italy because it had delayed the victors for just one night. Here, still standing intact upon the borders of Germany, was a place which was revelling over the plundered armies and murdered generals. By all means let the booty pass to the exchequer. They, the troops, felt that the conflagration and downfall of a rebel town was enough compensation for the destruction of all those camps.118
However, Cerialis feared that he might become notorious if people believed that he had given the troops a taste for licence and brutality, so he restrained their angry feelings. What is more, they obeyed, for now that the civil war was concluded their discipline had improved when facing foreign enemies. After that, their attention was seized by the pitiful appearance of the legions brought from the land of the Mediomatrici. The men stood about, miserably conscious of their guilt, their eyes fixed on the ground.119 No words of greeting were exchanged between the armies as they met, nor would the newcomers respond to consolation or encouragement, but they hid themselves in their tents and avoided the very daylight. What had petrified them was not so much their predicament or fear, but the shame and scandal. Even the victors were astonished. Not daring to articulate a plea, the guilty asked for pardon with tears and in silence until Cerialis reassured them by repeatedly blaming destiny for events actually caused by the feuding troops and their generals or the enemy’s low cunning. They should regard this as the first day of their military service and sworn allegiance. Neither the emperor nor he, Cerialis, wanted to dwell upon wrongs committed in the past. Then they were admitted to the same camp, and orders were circulated amongst the various companies that, in the event of an argument or dispute, nobody should taunt a comrade with sedition or defeat.
73. Then, Cerialis assembled the Treviri and Lingones and addressed them as follows:120 ‘I have never been trained in oratory and I have always maintained Rome’s reputation for bravery by force of arms. However, since you attach great importance to words, and judge good and evil according to the utterances of agitators rather than by their real nature, I have decided to make a few comments. Now that the fighting is over, it may be more useful for you to hear these facts than it will be for me to state them.
‘Roman generals and emperors occupied your land and the territory of the other Gauls, not because they were greedy, but because your ancestors invited them. Their quarrels had exhausted them to the point of collapse, while the Germans summoned to help had imposed servitude on allies and enemies alike. It is clear enough to you how many battles we fought against the Cimbri and Teutoni,121 what great labours our armies endured and what was the outcome of the German campaigns. We planted ourselves on the Rhine not to protect Italy but to stop a second Ariovistus122 from dominating Gaul. Do you believe that Civilis, the Batavians and the tribes from across the Rhine care any more for you than did their ancestors for your fathers and grandfathers? The Germans always have the same motives for invading Gaul – their lust, greed and roving spirit made them eager to abandon their marshes and deserts and seize possession of this fertile land and of you, too. However, they use “liberty” and other fine phrases as their pretexts. Indeed, nobody has ever desired to enslave others and gain dominance for himself without using this very same language.
74. ‘Throughout Gaul there were always despots and wars until you united yourselves with us. We ourselves, despite many provocations, imposed upon you by right of conquest only such additional burdens as were required to preserve peace. Stability between peoples cannot be maintained without armies, nor armies without pay, nor pay without taxation. Everything else is shared equally between us. You yourselves often command our legions, and you yourselves govern these and other provinces.123 There is no question of segregation or exclusion. Again, although you live far away, you benefit from praiseworthy emperors just as much as we do, whereas the tyrannical ones oppress only those nearest to them. Just as you resign yourselves to natural disasters like bad harvests or excessive rainfall, you must put up with spending and greed on the part of your masters. There will be shortcomings as long as there are men, but these bad governments are not constant, and there are compensations from the better regimes which crop up at intervals.
‘You are surely not going to tell me that you expect a milder rule when Tutor and Classicus are in control, or that less taxation than now will be needed to maintain the armies for defending you from the Germans and Britons? For if the Romans are driven out – may the gods prevent that! – the only result can be that all peoples will fight universal wars with one another. The good luck and good discipline of 800 years has consolidated this imperial framework, which cannot be torn down without destroying in turn those who demolish it, but you will be in the most danger, for you have the riches and resources which are the main causes of war. Accordingly, you must learn to love and foster peace and the city of Rome in which all of us, victors and vanquished, enjoy the same rights. Your experience of both alternatives should warn you not to choose wilful disobedience and ruin over obedience and security.’ Cerialis’ hearers had been fearing harsher treatment, but a speech of this sort reassured and encouraged them.
75. Augusta Trevirorum was still being occupied by the victorious army when Civilis and Classicus sent Cerialis a letter whose substance was as follows: Vespasian was dead, although this news was being suppressed; Rome and Italy were worn out from civil conflict; and Mucianus and Domitian were just empty and powerless ciphers. If Cerialis wanted to take power in the Gallic provinces, Civilis and Classicus would for their part be content with the present boundaries of their two states. If, however, he should prefer a fight, then they were ready for that, too. To this Cerialis gave Civilis and Classicus no answer. The bearer of the offer and the letter itself he sent on to Domitian.
The enemy now advanced on Augusta Trevirorum in several bodies and from every direction. Many blamed Cerialis for allowing them to unite when he could have intercepted the separate contingents. The Roman army dug a ditch and built a rampart round their camp, which previously they had rashly occupied without fortifying it.
76. Among the Germans there were differing opinions and disagreement ensued. Civilis suggested waiting for the tribes from across the Rhine, who would create sufficient terror to crush the shattered Roman forces to pieces. What else were the Gauls but booty for the victorious side?124 And in any case, their only strength, the Belgae, were openly on his side, or at least sympathized with him. Tutor, however, asserted that delay favoured Rome, since her armies were coming together from all quarters. One legion had been shipped across from Britain, others had been summoned from Spain or were arriving from Italy. Nor were these hastily raised troops, but veterans with experience of war. As for the Germans, on whom they were pinning their hopes, they did not know what orders or obedience meant, but invariably did whatever they wanted. Money and gifts, the only means of bribing such people, were in greater supply on the Roman side. Nobody was so keen on fighting as not to prefer peace and quiet to danger if the reward was the same. If they clashed with the enemy immediately, Cerialis only had legions made up of the leftovers from the German army, and these were in any case committed to the Gallic alliance. Again, the very fact that the Romans, much to their surprise, had just routed Valentinus’ scrappy force would make the soldiers and their general more reckless. They would try another gamble, and this time fall into the hands, not of an inexperienced youth more practised in words and speeches than in fighting and the sword, but of Civilis and Classicus. Seeing them would revive in their imaginations a picture of fear, flight and famine, and the realization that men who had surrendered so often only survived on sufferance. Nor were the Treviri or Lingones restrained by real affection. They would take up arms again when their fear left them.
This conflict of opinion was resolved when Classicus expressed support for Tutor’s view, and the plan was immediately put into effect.
77. The centre was assigned to the Ubii and Lingones. On the right wing were the Batavian cohorts, on the left the Bructeri and Tencteri. One division moved up over the hills, a second by the road and a third along the ground between the road and the River Moselle. They attacked the Romans so unexpectedly that Cerialis was still in his quarters in bed (he had not spent the night in camp)125 when he heard simultaneously that the battle had begun and that his men were being beaten. At first he reprimanded the messengers for their panic, but soon the whole extent of the catastrophe was revealed before his eyes. The legionary camp had been penetrated, the cavalry had fled and the connecting bridge over the Moselle which links the suburbs with the city was held by the enemy. Cerialis tended to remain calm in a crisis. He caught hold of the fugitives and forcibly dragged them back, rushing forwards into the shower of missiles although he was not wearing any protective armour.126 Thanks to this beneficial recklessness and to the onslaught of his best fighters, he recovered the bridge and strengthened the position with a picked force. Then, returning to the camp, he saw that the companies of the legions captured at Novaesium and Bonna were wandering aimlessly about, while only a few soldiers were gathered around the standards and the eagles were practically in the hands of the enemy. Exploding with rage, Cerialis exclaimed: ‘It is not Hordeonius Flaccus nor Vocula that you are deserting. There is no question of treachery here. The only thing that I must apologize for is that I rashly believed that you had forgotten your alliance with Gaul and remembered your oath to Rome. Will I be added to the tally of Numisiuses and Herenniuses?127 Are all your commanders destined to die either at the hands of their own soldiers or those of the enemy? Go and tell Vespasian – or Civilis and Classicus, they are nearer – that you have abandoned your general on the battlefield. Other legions will come, and they will not leave me unavenged or you unpunished.’
78. His words were true, and the same taunts were driven home by the tribunes and prefects. The men formed up in their cohorts and companies, since it was impossible to deploy them in an extended battleline while the enemy was pouring in and the tents and baggage were in the way, now that the fighting was in progress inside the camp rampart. At their various command posts, Tutor, Classicus and Civilis were spurring their men to battle, urging the Gauls to fight for freedom, the Batavians for glory and the Germans to gain plunder. Indeed, everything went in the enemy’s favour until the Twenty-First Legion, having managed to assemble in a more open space than was available to the others, first sustained the onslaught of their opponents and then drove them back. Then, with the help of the gods, the victors suddenly lost their nerve and retreated. Their own story was that they had been terrified at seeing the Roman auxiliary cohorts, who had been scattered at the opening of the attack; for these had now gathered once more on the top of the ridge, giving the impression that they were a fresh reinforcing army. However, the real obstacle to a rebel victory was their shocking scramble with each other for loot, which distracted them from the Romans. So, although Cerialis had nearly ruined everything by his carelessness, he restored his chances by determination and exploited his success to the full, capturing the enemy camp on the same day and destroying it.
79. Cerialis’ troops were not allowed to rest for long. The people of Colonia Agrippinensium were calling for help and offering to hand over Civilis’ wife and sister and Classicus’ daughter, who had been left there as pledges for the alliance. Moreover, they had in the meantime killed the Germans who had been billeted separately in private houses. As a result, they were afraid and had good cause to appeal for aid before the enemy could recover its strength and get ready to achieve its ambition or take revenge. For Civilis had moved in their direction too. He had considerable striking power, for the most passionate of his cohorts remained intact: made up of Chauci and Frisii, the unit was stationed at Tolbiacum128 in the territory of Colonia Agrippinensium. However, bad news made Civilis change his plans. It turned out that the cohort had been destroyed by a cunning ruse of the people of Colonia Agrippinensium. They had plied the Germans with lavish food and drink until they were sleepy, then shut the doors, set fire to the building and burnt them to death. Moreover, Cerialis came to the rescue at full speed. Yet Civilis was assailed by a further worry on top of this – the possibility that the Fourteenth Legion, aided by the British fleet, might raid the Batavians who were exposed to attack from the North Sea. However, the legion’s commander, Fabius Priscus, marched his men by land against the Nervii and Tungri, who surrendered to him. As for the fleet, the Canninefates took the initiative and attacked it, so that most of the ships were either sunk or captured. These same Canninefates also routed a mob of Nervii who had volunteered to fight on behalf of Rome. Classicus also fought a successful battle against the cavalry sent ahead by Cerialis to Novaesium. These minor but repeated losses were damaging the positive impact of the recent victory.
80. Over this same period Mucianus gave orders for Vitellius’ son to be put to death,129 giving the excuse that discord would continue unless he stamped out the last embers of war. Nor did he allow Antonius Primus to join Domitian’s staff, since he was worried by his popularity with the troops and by the conceit of a man who could not tolerate equals, let alone superiors. Antonius left to join Vespasian, and although he was not received as warmly as he had hoped, the emperor did not rebuff him either. Vespasian was being torn in two different directions. On the one hand he appreciated Antonius’ services, since it was his generalship which had undoubtedly finished off the war, but on the other hand there were Mucianus’ letters. Besides, other men were denouncing Antonius for his hostile personality and arrogance, throwing in for good measure the earlier scandals of his life. He made matters worse himself, as his haughty airs provoked resentment and he endlessly harped on about his services. He jeered at the other generals for having no fight in them and called Caecina a prisoner who had surrendered unconditionally. As a result, he gradually came to be regarded as relatively unimportant and worthless, although outwardly the emperor remained friendly.
81. During the months which Vespasian spent at Alexandria, waiting for the regular season of summer winds when the sea was reliable,130 many miracles occurred. These seemed to show that Vespasian enjoyed divine blessing and that the gods were leaning favourably towards him. One day, one of the common people from Alexandria, a man who was well known as being blind, prostrated himself at Vespasian’s knees, imploring him with a whimper to heal his blindness. He had been told to do this by Serapis, the favourite god of a nation much addicted to strange beliefs. He asked the emperor if he would deign to anoint his eyelids and eyeballs with the saliva from his mouth.131 A second man, who suffered from a withered hand, also on the advice of Serapis, asked Caesar if he would tread upon it with the imperial foot. At first Vespasian laughed at them and refused, but when the two men insisted, he hesitated. At one moment he feared gaining a reputation for foolishness, but at the next moment, the urgent appeals of the two men and the flattery of his entourage prompted him to hope that he would succeed. Finally, he told the doctors to give an opinion whether blindness and withering of this sort were curable by human means. The doctors held forth on the various possibilities. The blind man’s sight was not completely destroyed and would return if certain impediments were removed, while the other man’s limb had been distorted, but could be put right by effective treatment. Perhaps this was the will of the gods, they added; perhaps the emperor had been chosen to perform a miracle. Anyhow, if a cure were effected, the glory would go to Caesar; if it failed, the poor wretches would have to bear the ridicule. So Vespasian reckoned that his destiny knew no limitations and that nothing now defied belief. With a smiling expression and surrounded by an excited crowd of bystanders, he did what was asked. At once the cripple regained the use of his hand and the light gleamed again in the blind man’s eyes. Those who were there still vouch for both these incidents, although they have nothing to gain now from lying.132
82. This deepened Vespasian’s desire to visit the sacred house of Serapis,133 for he wished to consult the god on matters of state. He gave orders for everyone else to be excluded from the temple and went in, concentrating on the deity. Happening to glance round, he caught sight of a leading Egyptian named Basilides standing behind him. He was well aware that this man was detained by illness far from Alexandria at a place several days’ journey away. He asked the priests whether Basilides had entered the temple that day. He also asked those he met whether he had been seen in the city. Finally, after sending off some horsemen, he ascertained that at that very point in time Basilides had been eighty miles away. Vespasian therefore regarded the vision as divine and guessed that the force of the response lay in the meaning of the name Basilides.134
83. The origins of the god Serapis have not yet been made known to the public by Roman writers.135 The Egyptian priests give the following account: King Ptolemy, the first Macedonian king of Egypt,136 bolstered the resources of the country, and while he was busy providing the newly founded city of Alexandria with walls, temples and religious cults, he dreamed that he met a young man of remarkable beauty and superhuman stature, who instructed him to send his most trusty friends to Pontus137 to fetch a statue of himself. This, he said, would make the kingdom prosper, and whichever place received the image would become great and famous. Thereupon, this same youth appeared to rise up to heaven in a blaze of fire.
Ptolemy, excited by this marvellous omen, revealed his nocturnal vision to the Egyptian priests, who customarily interpret such signs. As they knew little about Pontus and foreign parts, he consulted Timotheus, an Athenian from the clan of the Eumolpidae, whom he had brought over from Eleusis138 to supervise religious rites, and asked him what sort of cult this was and which divine power was involved. After Timotheus had asked regular travellers to Pontus, he found out from them that there was a city there called Sinope, near which was a temple long famous amongst the locals and dedicated to Jupiter Dis, but what was also relevant was that the image of a female figure stood nearby, referred to as Proserpina by most people.139 However, Ptolemy had the typical character of a despot: although he was prone to take fright, once the emergency was over he pursued his pleasures rather than his religious duties. So he gradually disregarded the matter and devoted himself to other business until the same vision appeared before him, now more terrifying and overwhelming in appearance, and threatening both king and kingdom with ruin if he did not follow his commands. Then Ptolemy ordered envoys with gifts to be made ready for a visit to King Scydrothemis, who ruled Sinope at that time, and he told them as they were about to set sail that they should visit the shrine of Pythian Apollo.140 They were granted a favourable voyage and an unambiguous answer from the oracle. They were to go on their way and bring back the image of Apollo’s father, but to leave behind the one of his sister.141
84. When they reached Sinope, they presented the offerings, requests and instructions of their king to Scydrothemis. He found it hard to make up his mind. At one moment, he was afraid of the divine power, at another he was terrified by the threats of his people, who opposed the arrangement; and often he was tempted by the gifts and promises of the envoys. In this way three years passed, although Ptolemy did not give up making his enthusiastic appeals. He sent in increasingly distinguished ambassadors, more and more ships and greater quantities of gold. Then a dreadful apparition confronted Scydrothemis in a dream, forbidding him to delay further the god’s plans. When he still hesitated, he was assailed by all manner of disasters, including plagues, and the divine anger, which became more oppressive every day, was clear. Then he called his people together and laid before them the orders of the deity, the visions seen by himself and Ptolemy and their ever growing afflictions. The common people were displeased with their king, jealous of Egypt and afraid for themselves, so they blockaded the temple. At this point, the story became even more impressive: apparently the god himself went on board one of the ships which was moored by the coast and (remarkable to report) they completed the long voyage and put in at Alexandria within three days. A temple worthy of a great city was built in the quarter called Rhacotis, where there had long been a shrine dedicated to Serapis and Isis.142
This is the most widely circulated version of where Serapis came from and how he reached Egypt. I am aware that some people believe he was brought from the Syrian city of Seleucia during the reign of Ptolemy, the third ruler with that name. Others, again, confirm that it was this same Ptolemy who was involved, but say that the place from which the god crossed over was Memphis, a city once famous as the capital of the Old Kingdom. As for the identity of the god himself, many equate him with Aesculapius because he heals the sick,143 some speculate that he is Osiris, the oldest deity known to those peoples, many guess that he is Jupiter owing to his all-embracing powers, but the prevailing view identifies Serapis as Father Dis, based either on the distinctive attributes clearly portrayed on his statues,144 or on an elaborate set of deductions.
85. I return now to the main narrative. Before Domitian and Mucianus approached the Alps, they received the good news of the victory over the Treviri. Striking confirmation of this success was provided by the presence of the enemy commander Valentinus.145 He was far from downcast and his looks indicated the brave spirit he had shown. His defence was heard, but only so as to get a sense of his character, and he was condemned. At the moment of execution, someone jeered at him that his country had been conquered, but Valentinus replied that his solace was in death.
Mucianus now made a suggestion which he had long contemplated in secret, although he pretended that it had just occurred to him. He said that since, by the kindness of the gods, the main forces of the enemy had been crushed, it was unseemly for Domitian to stand in the way of other generals who deserved their glory now that the war was virtually finished. If the stability of the empire or the safety of the Gallic provinces were in danger, Caesar’s place would have been in the front line. However, the Canninefates and Batavians should be delegated to minor commanders, while Domitian himself should stay at Lyons and display the power and success of the dynasty from close at hand. By steering clear of petty hazards, he would be available to face greater threats.
86. Domitian saw through this sophistry; but Mucianus’ posture of deference meant that he could not be caught out. So they reached Lyons. From there it is believed that Domitian sent secret messengers to test the loyalty of Cerialis, and see if he would hand over the army and supreme command to himself when they met. Whether he was toying with the idea of fighting his father or trying to gain support and strength against his brother was uncertain. For Cerialis showed judicious restraint and returned an evasive answer to what he took to be a boy’s idle fancy.146 Domitian realized that his elders despised his youth, and gave up even the trivial official duties which he had previously undertaken. Looking the picture of innocence and restraint, he shrouded himself in profound reserve and posed as an enthusiastic connoisseur of literature and poetry. The idea was to hide his real character and avoid competing with his brother, whose gentler nature, quite unlike his own, he totally misunderstood.