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diff --git a/old/891-8.txt b/old/891-8.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..91e8323 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/891-8.txt @@ -0,0 +1,18119 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The History of The Decline and Fall of the +Roman Empire, by Edward Gibbon + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The History of The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire + Volume 2 + +Author: Edward Gibbon + +Posting Date: June 7, 2008 [EBook #891] +Release Date: April, 1997 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE *** + + + + +Produced by David Reed and Dale R. Fredrickson + + + + + +HISTORY OF THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE, VOLUME 2 + +Edward Gibbon, Esq. + +With notes by the Rev. H. H. Milman + +1782 (Written), 1845 (Revised) + + + +CONTENTS: + +Chapter XVI--Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To Constantine.-- +Part I. Part II. Part III. Part IV. Part V. Part VI. Part +VII. Part VIII. + +The Conduct Of The Roman Government Towards The Christians, From The +Reign Of Nero To That Of Constantine. + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part I. Part II. Part +III. Part IV. Part V. Part VI. + +Foundation Of Constantinople.--Political System Constantine, And His +Successors.--Military Discipline.--The Palace.--The Finances. + + +Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His Sons.--Part I. Part +II. Part III. Part IV. + +Character Of Constantine.--Gothic War.--Death Of Constantine.--Division +Of The Empire Among His Three Sons.--Persian War.--Tragic Deaths Of +Constantine The Younger And Constans.--Usurpation Of Magnentius.--Civil +War.--Victory Of Constantius. + + +Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor.--Part I. PartII. Part III. +Part IV. + +Constantius Sole Emperor.--Elevation And Death Of Gallus.--Danger And +Elevation Of Julian.--Sarmatian And Persian Wars.--Victories Of Julian +In Gaul. + + +Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine.--Part I. Part II. Part III. +PartIV. + +The Motives, Progress, And Effects Of The Conversion Of Constantine.-- +Legal Establishment And Constitution Of The Christian Or Catholic +Church. + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part I. Part +II. Part III. Part IV. Part V. Part VI. Part VII. + +Persecution Of Heresy.--The Schism Of The Donatists.--The Arian +Controversy.--Athanasius.--Distracted State Of The Church And Empire +Under Constantine And His Sons.--Toleration Of Paganism. + + +Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor.--Part I Part II. Part III. +Part IV. + +Julian Is Declared Emperor By The Legions Of Gaul.--His March And +Success.--The Death Of Constantius.--Civil Administration Of Julian. + + +Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.--Part I. Part II. Part III. Part +IV. Part V. + +The Religion Of Julian.--Universal Toleration.--He Attempts To Restore +And Reform The Pagan Worship--To Rebuild The Temple Of Jerusalem--His +Artful Persecution Of The Christians.--Mutual Zeal And Injustice. + + +Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian.--Part I. Part II. +Part III. Part IV. Part V. + +Residence Of Julian At Antioch.--His Successful Expedition Against The +Persians.--Passage Of The Tigris--The Retreat And Death Of Julian.-- +Election Of Jovian.--He Saves The Roman Army By A Disgraceful Treaty. + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The Empire.-- +Part I. Part II. Part III. Part IV. Part V. Part VI. Part +VII. + +The Government And Death Of Jovian.--Election Of Valentinian, Who +Associates His Brother Valens, And Makes The Final Division Of The +Eastern And Western Empires.--Revolt Of Procopius.--Civil And +Ecclesiastical Administration.--Germany.--Britain.--Africa.--The East.-- +The Danube.--Death Of Valentinian.--His Two Sons, Gratian And +Valentinian II., Succeed To The Western Empire. + + +Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.--Part I. Part II. Part III. +Part IV. Part V. + +Manners Of The Pastoral Nations.--Progress Of The Huns, From China To +Europe.--Flight Of The Goths.--They Pass The Danube. --Gothic War.-- +Defeat And Death Of Valens.--Gratian Invests Theodosius With The Eastern +Empire.--His Character And Success. --Peace And Settlement Of The Goths. + + + + +Chapter XVI--Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part I. + + The Conduct Of The Roman Government Towards The Christians, + From The Reign Of Nero To That Of Constantine. + +If we seriously consider the purity of the Christian religion, the +sanctity of its moral precepts, and the innocent as well as austere +lives of the greater number of those who during the first ages embraced +the faith of the gospel, we should naturally suppose, that so benevolent +a doctrine would have been received with due reverence, even by the +unbelieving world; that the learned and the polite, however they may +deride the miracles, would have esteemed the virtues, of the new sect; +and that the magistrates, instead of persecuting, would have protected +an order of men who yielded the most passive obedience to the laws, +though they declined the active cares of war and government. If, on the +other hand, we recollect the universal toleration of Polytheism, as it +was invariably maintained by the faith of the people, the incredulity of +philosophers, and the policy of the Roman senate and emperors, we are at +a loss to discover what new offence the Christians had committed, what +new provocation could exasperate the mild indifference of antiquity, +and what new motives could urge the Roman princes, who beheld without +concern a thousand forms of religion subsisting in peace under their +gentle sway, to inflict a severe punishment on any part of their +subjects, who had chosen for themselves a singular but an inoffensive +mode of faith and worship. + +The religious policy of the ancient world seems to have assumed a more +stern and intolerant character, to oppose the progress of Christianity. +About fourscore years after the death of Christ, his innocent disciples +were punished with death by the sentence of a proconsul of the most +amiable and philosophic character, and according to the laws of +an emperor distinguished by the wisdom and justice of his general +administration. The apologies which were repeatedly addressed to the +successors of Trajan are filled with the most pathetic complaints, that +the Christians, who obeyed the dictates, and solicited the liberty, +of conscience, were alone, among all the subjects of the Roman empire, +excluded from the common benefits of their auspicious government. The +deaths of a few eminent martyrs have been recorded with care; and from +the time that Christianity was invested with the supreme power, the +governors of the church have been no less diligently employed in +displaying the cruelty, than in imitating the conduct, of their Pagan +adversaries. To separate (if it be possible) a few authentic as well as +interesting facts from an undigested mass of fiction and error, and +to relate, in a clear and rational manner, the causes, the extent, the +duration, and the most important circumstances of the persecutions to +which the first Christians were exposed, is the design of the present +chapter. * + +The sectaries of a persecuted religion, depressed by fear animated with +resentment, and perhaps heated by enthusiasm, are seldom in a proper +temper of mind calmly to investigate, or candidly to appreciate, +the motives of their enemies, which often escape the impartial and +discerning view even of those who are placed at a secure distance from +the flames of persecution. A reason has been assigned for the conduct of +the emperors towards the primitive Christians, which may appear the more +specious and probable as it is drawn from the acknowledged genius of +Polytheism. It has already been observed, that the religious concord of +the world was principally supported by the implicit assent and reverence +which the nations of antiquity expressed for their respective traditions +and ceremonies. It might therefore be expected, that they would unite +with indignation against any sect or people which should separate itself +from the communion of mankind, and claiming the exclusive possession of +divine knowledge, should disdain every form of worship, except its own, +as impious and idolatrous. The rights of toleration were held by mutual +indulgence: they were justly forfeited by a refusal of the accustomed +tribute. As the payment of this tribute was inflexibly refused by the +Jews, and by them alone, the consideration of the treatment which they +experienced from the Roman magistrates, will serve to explain how far +these speculations are justified by facts, and will lead us to discover +the true causes of the persecution of Christianity. + +Without repeating what has already been mentioned of the reverence of +the Roman princes and governors for the temple of Jerusalem, we +shall only observe, that the destruction of the temple and city was +accompanied and followed by every circumstance that could exasperate the +minds of the conquerors, and authorize religious persecution by the most +specious arguments of political justice and the public safety. From the +reign of Nero to that of Antoninus Pius, the Jews discovered a fierce +impatience of the dominion of Rome, which repeatedly broke out in the +most furious massacres and insurrections. Humanity is shocked at the +recital of the horrid cruelties which they committed in the cities +of Egypt, of Cyprus, and of Cyrene, where they dwelt in treacherous +friendship with the unsuspecting natives; and we are tempted to applaud +the severe retaliation which was exercised by the arms of the legions +against a race of fanatics, whose dire and credulous superstition seemed +to render them the implacable enemies not only of the Roman government, +but of human kind. The enthusiasm of the Jews was supported by the +opinion, that it was unlawful for them to pay taxes to an idolatrous +master; and by the flattering promise which they derived from their +ancient oracles, that a conquering Messiah would soon arise, destined +to break their fetters, and to invest the favorites of heaven with the +empire of the earth. It was by announcing himself as their long-expected +deliverer, and by calling on all the descendants of Abraham to assert +the hope of Isræl, that the famous Barchochebas collected a formidable +army, with which he resisted during two years the power of the emperor +Hadrian. + +Notwithstanding these repeated provocations, the resentment of the +Roman princes expired after the victory; nor were their apprehensions +continued beyond the period of war and danger. By the general indulgence +of polytheism, and by the mild temper of Antoninus Pius, the Jews +were restored to their ancient privileges, and once more obtained the +permission of circumcising their children, with the easy restraint, that +they should never confer on any foreign proselyte that distinguishing +mark of the Hebrew race. The numerous remains of that people, though +they were still excluded from the precincts of Jerusalem, were permitted +to form and to maintain considerable establishments both in Italy and +in the provinces, to acquire the freedom of Rome, to enjoy municipal +honors, and to obtain at the same time an exemption from the burdensome +and expensive offices of society. The moderation or the contempt of the +Romans gave a legal sanction to the form of ecclesiastical police which +was instituted by the vanquished sect. The patriarch, who had fixed +his residence at Tiberias, was empowered to appoint his subordinate +ministers and apostles, to exercise a domestic jurisdiction, and +to receive from his dispersed brethren an annual contribution. New +synagogues were frequently erected in the principal cities of the +empire; and the sabbaths, the fasts, and the festivals, which were +either commanded by the Mosaic law, or enjoined by the traditions of +the Rabbis, were celebrated in the most solemn and public manner. Such +gentle treatment insensibly assuaged the stern temper of the Jews. +Awakened from their dream of prophecy and conquest, they assumed the +behavior of peaceable and industrious subjects. Their irreconcilable +hatred of mankind, instead of flaming out in acts of blood and violence, +evaporated in less dangerous gratifications. They embraced every +opportunity of overreaching the idolaters in trade; and they pronounced +secret and ambiguous imprecations against the haughty kingdom of Edom. + +Since the Jews, who rejected with abhorrence the deities adored by +their sovereign and by their fellow-subjects, enjoyed, however, the free +exercise of their unsocial religion, there must have existed some other +cause, which exposed the disciples of Christ to those severities from +which the posterity of Abraham was exempt. The difference between them +is simple and obvious; but, according to the sentiments of antiquity, +it was of the highest importance. The Jews were a nation; the Christians +were a sect: and if it was natural for every community to respect the +sacred institutions of their neighbors, it was incumbent on them +to persevere in those of their ancestors. The voice of oracles, the +precepts of philosophers, and the authority of the laws, unanimously +enforced this national obligation. By their lofty claim of superior +sanctity the Jews might provoke the Polytheists to consider them as an +odious and impure race. By disdaining the intercourse of other nations, +they might deserve their contempt. The laws of Moses might be for the +most part frivolous or absurd; yet, since they had been received during +many ages by a large society, his followers were justified by the +example of mankind; and it was universally acknowledged, that they had +a right to practise what it would have been criminal in them to neglect. +But this principle, which protected the Jewish synagogue, afforded not +any favor or security to the primitive church. By embracing the faith of +the gospel, the Christians incurred the supposed guilt of an unnatural +and unpardonable offence. They dissolved the sacred ties of custom and +education, violated the religious institutions of their country, and +presumptuously despised whatever their fathers had believed as true, +or had reverenced as sacred. Nor was this apostasy (if we may use the +expression) merely of a partial or local kind; since the pious deserter +who withdrew himself from the temples of Egypt or Syria, would equally +disdain to seek an asylum in those of Athens or Carthage. Every +Christian rejected with contempt the superstitions of his family, his +city, and his province. The whole body of Christians unanimously refused +to hold any communion with the gods of Rome, of the empire, and of +mankind. It was in vain that the oppressed believer asserted the +inalienable rights of conscience and private judgment. Though his +situation might excite the pity, his arguments could never reach the +understanding, either of the philosophic or of the believing part of +the Pagan world. To their apprehensions, it was no less a matter +of surprise, that any individuals should entertain scruples against +complying with the established mode of worship, than if they had +conceived a sudden abhorrence to the manners, the dress, or the language +of their native country. * + +The surprise of the Pagans was soon succeeded by resentment; and the +most pious of men were exposed to the unjust but dangerous imputation of +impiety. Malice and prejudice concurred in representing the Christians +as a society of atheists, who, by the most daring attack on the +religious constitution of the empire, had merited the severest +animadversion of the civil magistrate. They had separated themselves +(they gloried in the confession) from every mode of superstition +which was received in any part of the globe by the various temper of +polytheism: but it was not altogether so evident what deity, or what +form of worship, they had substituted to the gods and temples of +antiquity. The pure and sublime idea which they entertained of the +Supreme Being escaped the gross conception of the Pagan multitude, +who were at a loss to discover a spiritual and solitary God, that was +neither represented under any corporeal figure or visible symbol, nor +was adored with the accustomed pomp of libations and festivals, of +altars and sacrifices. The sages of Greece and Rome, who had elevated +their minds to the contemplation of the existence and attributes of +the First Cause, were induced by reason or by vanity to reserve +for themselves and their chosen disciples the privilege of this +philosophical devotion. They were far from admitting the prejudices of +mankind as the standard of truth, but they considered them as flowing +from the original disposition of human nature; and they supposed that +any popular mode of faith and worship which presumed to disclaim the +assistance of the senses, would, in proportion as it receded from +superstition, find itself incapable of restraining the wanderings of the +fancy, and the visions of fanaticism. The careless glance which men +of wit and learning condescended to cast on the Christian revelation, +served only to confirm their hasty opinion, and to persuade them that +the principle, which they might have revered, of the Divine Unity, +was defaced by the wild enthusiasm, and annihilated by the airy +speculations, of the new sectaries. The author of a celebrated dialogue, +which has been attributed to Lucian, whilst he affects to treat the +mysterious subject of the Trinity in a style of ridicule and contempt, +betrays his own ignorance of the weakness of human reason, and of the +inscrutable nature of the divine perfections. + +It might appear less surprising, that the founder of Christianity should +not only be revered by his disciples as a sage and a prophet, but that +he should be adored as a God. The Polytheists were disposed to adopt +every article of faith, which seemed to offer any resemblance, however +distant or imperfect, with the popular mythology; and the legends of +Bacchus, of Hercules, and of Æsculapius, had, in some measure, prepared +their imagination for the appearance of the Son of God under a human +form. But they were astonished that the Christians should abandon the +temples of those ancient heroes, who, in the infancy of the world, had +invented arts, instituted laws, and vanquished the tyrants or monsters +who infested the earth, in order to choose for the exclusive object of +their religious worship an obscure teacher, who, in a recent age, and +among a barbarous people, had fallen a sacrifice either to the malice +of his own countrymen, or to the jealousy of the Roman government. The +Pagan multitude, reserving their gratitude for temporal benefits alone, +rejected the inestimable present of life and immortality, which was +offered to mankind by Jesus of Nazareth. His mild constancy in the midst +of cruel and voluntary sufferings, his universal benevolence, and the +sublime simplicity of his actions and character, were insufficient, in +the opinion of those carnal men, to compensate for the want of fame, +of empire, and of success; and whilst they refused to acknowledge his +stupendous triumph over the powers of darkness and of the grave, they +misrepresented, or they insulted, the equivocal birth, wandering life, +and ignominious death, of the divine Author of Christianity. + +The personal guilt which every Christian had contracted, in thus +preferring his private sentiment to the national religion, was +aggravated in a very high degree by the number and union of the +criminals. It is well known, and has been already observed, that Roman +policy viewed with the utmost jealousy and distrust any association +among its subjects; and that the privileges of private corporations, +though formed for the most harmless or beneficial purposes, were +bestowed with a very sparing hand. The religious assemblies of the +Christians who had separated themselves from the public worship, +appeared of a much less innocent nature; they were illegal in their +principle, and in their consequences might become dangerous; nor were +the emperors conscious that they violated the laws of justice, when, +for the peace of society, they prohibited those secret and sometimes +nocturnal meetings. The pious disobedience of the Christians made their +conduct, or perhaps their designs, appear in a much more serious and +criminal light; and the Roman princes, who might perhaps have suffered +themselves to be disarmed by a ready submission, deeming their honor +concerned in the execution of their commands, sometimes attempted, by +rigorous punishments, to subdue this independent spirit, which boldly +acknowledged an authority superior to that of the magistrate. The extent +and duration of this spiritual conspiracy seemed to render it everyday +more deserving of his animadversion. We have already seen that the +active and successful zeal of the Christians had insensibly diffused +them through every province and almost every city of the empire. The new +converts seemed to renounce their family and country, that they might +connect themselves in an indissoluble band of union with a peculiar +society, which every where assumed a different character from the rest +of mankind. Their gloomy and austere aspect, their abhorrence of the +common business and pleasures of life, and their frequent predictions of +impending calamities, inspired the Pagans with the apprehension of some +danger, which would arise from the new sect, the more alarming as it was +the more obscure. "Whatever," says Pliny, "may be the principle of their +conduct, their inflexible obstinacy appeared deserving of punishment." + +The precautions with which the disciples of Christ performed the offices +of religion were at first dictated by fear and necessity; but they were +continued from choice. By imitating the awful secrecy which reigned in +the Eleusinian mysteries, the Christians had flattered themselves that +they should render their sacred institutions more respectable in the +eyes of the Pagan world. But the event, as it often happens to +the operations of subtile policy, deceived their wishes and their +expectations. It was concluded, that they only concealed what they +would have blushed to disclose. Their mistaken prudence afforded an +opportunity for malice to invent, and for suspicious credulity to +believe, the horrid tales which described the Christians as the most +wicked of human kind, who practised in their dark recesses every +abomination that a depraved fancy could suggest, and who solicited the +favor of their unknown God by the sacrifice of every moral virtue. There +were many who pretended to confess or to relate the ceremonies of this +abhorred society. It was asserted, "that a new-born infant, entirely +covered over with flour, was presented, like some mystic symbol of +initiation, to the knife of the proselyte, who unknowingly inflicted +many a secret and mortal wound on the innocent victim of his error; that +as soon as the cruel deed was perpetrated, the sectaries drank up +the blood, greedily tore asunder the quivering members, and pledged +themselves to eternal secrecy, by a mutual consciousness of guilt. It +was as confidently affirmed, that this inhuman sacrifice was succeeded +by a suitable entertainment, in which intemperance served as a +provocative to brutal lust; till, at the appointed moment, the lights +were suddenly extinguished, shame was banished, nature was forgotten; +and, as accident might direct, the darkness of the night was polluted +by the incestuous commerce of sisters and brothers, of sons and of +mothers." + +But the perusal of the ancient apologies was sufficient to remove +even the slightest suspicion from the mind of a candid adversary. The +Christians, with the intrepid security of innocence, appeal from the +voice of rumor to the equity of the magistrates. They acknowledge, that +if any proof can be produced of the crimes which calumny has imputed to +them, they are worthy of the most severe punishment. They provoke the +punishment, and they challenge the proof. At the same time they urge, +with equal truth and propriety, that the charge is not less devoid of +probability, than it is destitute of evidence; they ask, whether any +one can seriously believe that the pure and holy precepts of the gospel, +which so frequently restrain the use of the most lawful enjoyments, +should inculcate the practice of the most abominable crimes; that a +large society should resolve to dishonor itself in the eyes of its own +members; and that a great number of persons of either sex, and every age +and character, insensible to the fear of death or infamy, should consent +to violate those principles which nature and education had imprinted +most deeply in their minds. Nothing, it should seem, could weaken the +force or destroy the effect of so unanswerable a justification, unless +it were the injudicious conduct of the apologists themselves, who +betrayed the common cause of religion, to gratify their devout hatred to +the domestic enemies of the church. It was sometimes faintly insinuated, +and sometimes boldly asserted, that the same bloody sacrifices, and +the same incestuous festivals, which were so falsely ascribed to the +orthodox believers, were in reality celebrated by the Marcionites, by +the Carpocratians, and by several other sects of the Gnostics, who, +notwithstanding they might deviate into the paths of heresy, were still +actuated by the sentiments of men, and still governed by the precepts +of Christianity. Accusations of a similar kind were retorted upon the +church by the schismatics who had departed from its communion, and it +was confessed on all sides, that the most scandalous licentiousness of +manners prevailed among great numbers of those who affected the name +of Christians. A Pagan magistrate, who possessed neither leisure nor +abilities to discern the almost imperceptible line which divides the +orthodox faith from heretical pravity, might easily have imagined that +their mutual animosity had extorted the discovery of their common guilt. +It was fortunate for the repose, or at least for the reputation, of the +first Christians, that the magistrates sometimes proceeded with more +temper and moderation than is usually consistent with religious zeal, +and that they reported, as the impartial result of their judicial +inquiry, that the sectaries, who had deserted the established worship, +appeared to them sincere in their professions, and blameless in their +manners; however they might incur, by their absurd and excessive +superstition, the censure of the laws. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part II. + +History, which undertakes to record the transactions of the past, for +the instruction of future ages, would ill deserve that honorable office, +if she condescended to plead the cause of tyrants, or to justify the +maxims of persecution. It must, however, be acknowledged, that the +conduct of the emperors who appeared the least favorable to the +primitive church, is by no means so criminal as that of modern +sovereigns, who have employed the arm of violence and terror against +the religious opinions of any part of their subjects. From their +reflections, or even from their own feelings, a Charles V. or a Lewis +XIV. might have acquired a just knowledge of the rights of conscience, +of the obligation of faith, and of the innocence of error. But the +princes and magistrates of ancient Rome were strangers to those +principles which inspired and authorized the inflexible obstinacy of the +Christians in the cause of truth, nor could they themselves discover in +their own breasts any motive which would have prompted them to refuse a +legal, and as it were a natural, submission to the sacred institutions +of their country. The same reason which contributes to alleviate the +guilt, must have tended to abate the vigor, of their persecutions. +As they were actuated, not by the furious zeal of bigots, but by the +temperate policy of legislators, contempt must often have relaxed, and +humanity must frequently have suspended, the execution of those laws +which they enacted against the humble and obscure followers of Christ. +From the general view of their character and motives we might naturally +conclude: I. That a considerable time elapsed before they considered the +new sectaries as an object deserving of the attention of government. II. +That in the conviction of any of their subjects who were accused of so +very singular a crime, they proceeded with caution and reluctance. III. +That they were moderate in the use of punishments; and, IV. That the +afflicted church enjoyed many intervals of peace and tranquility. +Notwithstanding the careless indifference which the most copious and +the most minute of the Pagan writers have shown to the affairs of +the Christians, it may still be in our power to confirm each of these +probable suppositions, by the evidence of authentic facts. + +1. By the wise dispensation of Providence, a mysterious veil was cast +over the infancy of the church, which, till the faith of the Christians +was matured, and their numbers were multiplied, served to protect them +not only from the malice but even from the knowledge of the Pagan world. +The slow and gradual abolition of the Mosaic ceremonies afforded a safe +and innocent disguise to the more early proselytes of the gospel. As +they were, for the greater part, of the race of Abraham, they were +distinguished by the peculiar mark of circumcision, offered up their +devotions in the Temple of Jerusalem till its final destruction, and +received both the Law and the Prophets as the genuine inspirations of +the Deity. The Gentile converts, who by a spiritual adoption had been +associated to the hope of Isræl, were likewise confounded under the +garb and appearance of Jews, and as the Polytheists paid less regard +to articles of faith than to the external worship, the new sect, which +carefully concealed, or faintly announced, its future greatness and +ambition, was permitted to shelter itself under the general toleration +which was granted to an ancient and celebrated people in the Roman +empire. It was not long, perhaps, before the Jews themselves, animated +with a fiercer zeal and a more jealous faith, perceived the gradual +separation of their Nazarene brethren from the doctrine of the +synagogue; and they would gladly have extinguished the dangerous heresy +in the blood of its adherents. But the decrees of Heaven had already +disarmed their malice; and though they might sometimes exert the +licentious privilege of sedition, they no longer possessed the +administration of criminal justice; nor did they find it easy to infuse +into the calm breast of a Roman magistrate the rancor of their own zeal +and prejudice. The provincial governors declared themselves ready to +listen to any accusation that might affect the public safety; but as +soon as they were informed that it was a question not of facts but of +words, a dispute relating only to the interpretation of the Jewish laws +and prophecies, they deemed it unworthy of the majesty of Rome seriously +to discuss the obscure differences which might arise among a barbarous +and superstitious people. The innocence of the first Christians was +protected by ignorance and contempt; and the tribunal of the Pagan +magistrate often proved their most assured refuge against the fury of +the synagogue. If indeed we were disposed to adopt the traditions of a +too credulous antiquity, we might relate the distant peregrinations, the +wonderful achievements, and the various deaths of the twelve apostles: +but a more accurate inquiry will induce us to doubt, whether any of +those persons who had been witnesses to the miracles of Christ were +permitted, beyond the limits of Palestine, to seal with their blood the +truth of their testimony. From the ordinary term of human life, it may +very naturally be presumed that most of them were deceased before +the discontent of the Jews broke out into that furious war, which was +terminated only by the ruin of Jerusalem. During a long period, from +the death of Christ to that memorable rebellion, we cannot discover any +traces of Roman intolerance, unless they are to be found in the sudden, +the transient, but the cruel persecution, which was exercised by Nero +against the Christians of the capital, thirty-five years after the +former, and only two years before the latter, of those great events. +The character of the philosophic historian, to whom we are principally +indebted for the knowledge of this singular transaction, would alone be +sufficient to recommend it to our most attentive consideration. + +In the tenth year of the reign of Nero, the capital of the empire was +afflicted by a fire which raged beyond the memory or example of former +ages. The monuments of Grecian art and of Roman virtue, the trophies of +the Punic and Gallic wars, the most holy temples, and the most splendid +palaces, were involved in one common destruction. Of the fourteen +regions or quarters into which Rome was divided, four only subsisted +entire, three were levelled with the ground, and the remaining seven, +which had experienced the fury of the flames, displayed a melancholy +prospect of ruin and desolation. The vigilance of government appears not +to have neglected any of the precautions which might alleviate the sense +of so dreadful a calamity. The Imperial gardens were thrown open to +the distressed multitude, temporary buildings were erected for their +accommodation, and a plentiful supply of corn and provisions was +distributed at a very moderate price. The most generous policy seemed to +have dictated the edicts which regulated the disposition of the streets +and the construction of private houses; and as it usually happens, in +an age of prosperity, the conflagration of Rome, in the course of a few +years, produced a new city, more regular and more beautiful than the +former. But all the prudence and humanity affected by Nero on this +occasion were insufficient to preserve him from the popular suspicion. +Every crime might be imputed to the assassin of his wife and mother; nor +could the prince who prostituted his person and dignity on the theatre +be deemed incapable of the most extravagant folly. The voice of rumor +accused the emperor as the incendiary of his own capital; and as the +most incredible stories are the best adapted to the genius of an +enraged people, it was gravely reported, and firmly believed, that +Nero, enjoying the calamity which he had occasioned, amused himself +with singing to his lyre the destruction of ancient Troy. To divert +a suspicion, which the power of despotism was unable to suppress, +the emperor resolved to substitute in his own place some fictitious +criminals. "With this view," continues Tacitus, "he inflicted the most +exquisite tortures on those men, who, under the vulgar appellation of +Christians, were already branded with deserved infamy. They derived +their name and origin from Christ, who in the reign of Tiberius had +suffered death by the sentence of the procurator Pontius Pilate. For a +while this dire superstition was checked; but it again burst forth; +* and not only spread itself over Judæa, the first seat of this +mischievous sect, but was even introduced into Rome, the common asylum +which receives and protects whatever is impure, whatever is atrocious. +The confessions of those who were seized discovered a great multitude +of their accomplices, and they were all convicted, not so much for the +crime of setting fire to the city, as for their hatred of human kind. +They died in torments, and their torments were imbittered by insult and +derision. Some were nailed on crosses; others sewn up in the skins of +wild beasts, and exposed to the fury of dogs; others again, smeared +over with combustible materials, were used as torches to illuminate +the darkness of the night. The gardens of Nero were destined for the +melancholy spectacle, which was accompanied with a horse-race and +honored with the presence of the emperor, who mingled with the populace +in the dress and attitude of a charioteer. The guilt of the Christians +deserved indeed the most exemplary punishment, but the public abhorrence +was changed into commiseration, from the opinion that those unhappy +wretches were sacrificed, not so much to the public welfare, as to the +cruelty of a jealous tyrant." Those who survey with a curious eye the +revolutions of mankind, may observe, that the gardens and circus of +Nero on the Vatican, which were polluted with the blood of the first +Christians, have been rendered still more famous by the triumph and by +the abuse of the persecuted religion. On the same spot, a temple, which +far surpasses the ancient glories of the Capitol, has been since erected +by the Christian Pontiffs, who, deriving their claim of universal +dominion from an humble fisherman of Galilee, have succeeded to the +throne of the Cæsars, given laws to the barbarian conquerors of Rome, +and extended their spiritual jurisdiction from the coast of the Baltic +to the shores of the Pacific Ocean. + +But it would be improper to dismiss this account of Nero's persecution, +till we have made some observations that may serve to remove the +difficulties with which it is perplexed, and to throw some light on the +subsequent history of the church. + +1. The most sceptical criticism is obliged to respect the truth of this +extraordinary fact, and the integrity of this celebrated passage of +Tacitus. The former is confirmed by the diligent and accurate Suetonius, +who mentions the punishment which Nero inflicted on the Christians, a +sect of men who had embraced a new and criminal superstition. The latter +may be proved by the consent of the most ancient manuscripts; by the +inimitable character of the style of Tacitus by his reputation, which +guarded his text from the interpolations of pious fraud; and by the +purport of his narration, which accused the first Christians of the most +atrocious crimes, without insinuating that they possessed any miraculous +or even magical powers above the rest of mankind. 2. Notwithstanding it +is probable that Tacitus was born some years before the fire of Rome, +he could derive only from reading and conversation the knowledge of an +event which happened during his infancy. Before he gave himself to the +public, he calmly waited till his genius had attained its full maturity, +and he was more than forty years of age, when a grateful regard for +the memory of the virtuous Agricola extorted from him the most early of +those historical compositions which will delight and instruct the most +distant posterity. After making a trial of his strength in the life of +Agricola and the description of Germany, he conceived, and at length +executed, a more arduous work; the history of Rome, in thirty books, +from the fall of Nero to the accession of Nerva. The administration +of Nerva introduced an age of justice and propriety, which Tacitus had +destined for the occupation of his old age; but when he took a nearer +view of his subject, judging, perhaps, that it was a more honorable or +a less invidious office to record the vices of past tyrants, than to +celebrate the virtues of a reigning monarch, he chose rather to relate, +under the form of annals, the actions of the four immediate successors +of Augustus. To collect, to dispose, and to adorn a series of fourscore +years, in an immortal work, every sentence of which is pregnant with +the deepest observations and the most lively images, was an undertaking +sufficient to exercise the genius of Tacitus himself during the greatest +part of his life. In the last years of the reign of Trajan, whilst the +victorious monarch extended the power of Rome beyond its ancient limits, +the historian was describing, in the second and fourth books of his +annals, the tyranny of Tiberius; and the emperor Hadrian must have +succeeded to the throne, before Tacitus, in the regular prosecution of +his work, could relate the fire of the capital, and the cruelty of Nero +towards the unfortunate Christians. At the distance of sixty years, it +was the duty of the annalist to adopt the narratives of contemporaries; +but it was natural for the philosopher to indulge himself in the +description of the origin, the progress, and the character of the new +sect, not so much according to the knowledge or prejudices of the age +of Nero, as according to those of the time of Hadrian. 3 Tacitus very +frequently trusts to the curiosity or reflection of his readers to +supply those intermediate circumstances and ideas, which, in his extreme +conciseness, he has thought proper to suppress. We may therefore presume +to imagine some probable cause which could direct the cruelty of Nero +against the Christians of Rome, whose obscurity, as well as innocence, +should have shielded them from his indignation, and even from his +notice. The Jews, who were numerous in the capital, and oppressed in +their own country, were a much fitter object for the suspicions of the +emperor and of the people: nor did it seem unlikely that a vanquished +nation, who already discovered their abhorrence of the Roman yoke, might +have recourse to the most atrocious means of gratifying their implacable +revenge. But the Jews possessed very powerful advocates in the palace, +and even in the heart of the tyrant; his wife and mistress, the +beautiful Poppæa, and a favorite player of the race of Abraham, who had +already employed their intercession in behalf of the obnoxious people. +In their room it was necessary to offer some other victims, and it might +easily be suggested that, although the genuine followers of Moses were +innocent of the fire of Rome, there had arisen among them a new and +pernicious sect of Galilæans, which was capable of the most horrid +crimes. Under the appellation of Galilæans, two distinctions of men +were confounded, the most opposite to each other in their manners +and principles; the disciples who had embraced the faith of Jesus of +Nazareth, and the zealots who had followed the standard of Judas the +Gaulonite. The former were the friends, the latter were the enemies, of +human kind; and the only resemblance between them consisted in the same +inflexible constancy, which, in the defence of their cause, rendered +them insensible of death and tortures. The followers of Judas, who +impelled their countrymen into rebellion, were soon buried under the +ruins of Jerusalem; whilst those of Jesus, known by the more celebrated +name of Christians, diffused themselves over the Roman empire. How +natural was it for Tacitus, in the time of Hadrian, to appropriate to +the Christians the guilt and the sufferings, * which he might, with far +greater truth and justice, have attributed to a sect whose odious memory +was almost extinguished! 4. Whatever opinion may be entertained of this +conjecture, (for it is no more than a conjecture,) it is evident that +the effect, as well as the cause, of Nero's persecution, was confined +to the walls of Rome, that the religious tenets of the Galilæans or +Christians, were never made a subject of punishment, or even of inquiry; +and that, as the idea of their sufferings was for a long time connected +with the idea of cruelty and injustice, the moderation of succeeding +princes inclined them to spare a sect, oppressed by a tyrant, whose rage +had been usually directed against virtue and innocence. + +It is somewhat remarkable that the flames of war consumed, almost at +the same time, the temple of Jerusalem and the Capitol of Rome; and it +appears no less singular, that the tribute which devotion had destined +to the former, should have been converted by the power of an assaulting +victor to restore and adorn the splendor of the latter. The emperors +levied a general capitation tax on the Jewish people; and although the +sum assessed on the head of each individual was inconsiderable, the use +for which it was designed, and the severity with which it was exacted, +were considered as an intolerable grievance. Since the officers of the +revenue extended their unjust claim to many persons who were strangers +to the blood or religion of the Jews, it was impossible that the +Christians, who had so often sheltered themselves under the shade of the +synagogue, should now escape this rapacious persecution. Anxious as +they were to avoid the slightest infection of idolatry, their conscience +forbade them to contribute to the honor of that dæmon who had assumed +the character of the Capitoline Jupiter. As a very numerous though +declining party among the Christians still adhered to the law of Moses, +their efforts to dissemble their Jewish origin were detected by the +decisive test of circumcision; nor were the Roman magistrates at leisure +to inquire into the difference of their religious tenets. Among the +Christians who were brought before the tribunal of the emperor, or, +as it seems more probable, before that of the procurator of Judæa, two +persons are said to have appeared, distinguished by their extraction, +which was more truly noble than that of the greatest monarchs. These +were the grandsons of St. Jude the apostle, who himself was the brother +of Jesus Christ. Their natural pretensions to the throne of David might +perhaps attract the respect of the people, and excite the jealousy of +the governor; but the meanness of their garb, and the simplicity of +their answers, soon convinced him that they were neither desirous +nor capable of disturbing the peace of the Roman empire. They frankly +confessed their royal origin, and their near relation to the Messiah; +but they disclaimed any temporal views, and professed that his kingdom, +which they devoutly expected, was purely of a spiritual and angelic +nature. When they were examined concerning their fortune and occupation, +they showed their hands, hardened with daily labor, and declared that +they derived their whole subsistence from the cultivation of a farm near +the village of Cocaba, of the extent of about twenty-four English acres, +and of the value of nine thousand drachms, or three hundred pounds +sterling. The grandsons of St. Jude were dismissed with compassion and +contempt. + +But although the obscurity of the house of David might protect them +from the suspicions of a tyrant, the present greatness of his own +family alarmed the pusillanimous temper of Domitian, which could only be +appeased by the blood of those Romans whom he either feared, or hated, +or esteemed. Of the two sons of his uncle Flavius Sabinus, the elder was +soon convicted of treasonable intentions, and the younger, who bore +the name of Flavius Clemens, was indebted for his safety to his want +of courage and ability. The emperor for a long time, distinguished so +harmless a kinsman by his favor and protection, bestowed on him his own +niece Domitilla, adopted the children of that marriage to the hope +of the succession, and invested their father with the honors of the +consulship. + +But he had scarcely finished the term of his annual magistracy, when, on +a slight pretence, he was condemned and executed; Domitilla was banished +to a desolate island on the coast of Campania; and sentences either of +death or of confiscation were pronounced against a great number of who +were involved in the same accusation. The guilt imputed to their charge +was that of Atheism and Jewish manners; a singular association of ideas, +which cannot with any propriety be applied except to the Christians, as +they were obscurely and imperfectly viewed by the magistrates and by +the writers of that period. On the strength of so probable an +interpretation, and too eagerly admitting the suspicions of a tyrant as +an evidence of their honorable crime, the church has placed both Clemens +and Domitilla among its first martyrs, and has branded the cruelty of +Domitian with the name of the second persecution. But this persecution +(if it deserves that epithet) was of no long duration. A few months +after the death of Clemens, and the banishment of Domitilla, Stephen, a +freedman belonging to the latter, who had enjoyed the favor, but who +had not surely embraced the faith, of his mistress, * assassinated +the emperor in his palace. The memory of Domitian was condemned by the +senate; his acts were rescinded; his exiles recalled; and under the +gentle administration of Nerva, while the innocent were restored to +their rank and fortunes, even the most guilty either obtained pardon or +escaped punishment. + +II. About ten years afterwards, under the reign of Trajan, the younger +Pliny was intrusted by his friend and master with the government of +Bithynia and Pontus. He soon found himself at a loss to determine by +what rule of justice or of law he should direct his conduct in the +execution of an office the most repugnant to his humanity. Pliny had +never assisted at any judicial proceedings against the Christians, +with whose lame alone he seems to be acquainted; and he was totally +uninformed with regard to the nature of their guilt, the method of their +conviction, and the degree of their punishment. In this perplexity he +had recourse to his usual expedient, of submitting to the wisdom of +Trajan an impartial, and, in some respects, a favorable account of the +new superstition, requesting the emperor, that he would condescend to +resolve his doubts, and to instruct his ignorance. The life of Pliny had +been employed in the acquisition of learning, and in the business of the +world. Since the age of nineteen he had pleaded with distinction in the +tribunals of Rome, filled a place in the senate, had been invested with +the honors of the consulship, and had formed very numerous connections +with every order of men, both in Italy and in the provinces. From his +ignorance therefore we may derive some useful information. We may assure +ourselves, that when he accepted the government of Bithynia, there +were no general laws or decrees of the senate in force against the +Christians; that neither Trajan nor any of his virtuous predecessors, +whose edicts were received into the civil and criminal jurisprudence, +had publicly declared their intentions concerning the new sect; and that +whatever proceedings had been carried on against the Christians, there +were none of sufficient weight and authority to establish a precedent +for the conduct of a Roman magistrate. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part III. + +The answer of Trajan, to which the Christians of the succeeding age have +frequently appealed, discovers as much regard for justice and humanity +as could be reconciled with his mistaken notions of religious policy. +Instead of displaying the implacable zeal of an inquisitor, anxious to +discover the most minute particles of heresy, and exulting in the number +of his victims, the emperor expresses much more solicitude to protect +the security of the innocent, than to prevent the escape of the guilty. +He acknowledged the difficulty of fixing any general plan; but he lays +down two salutary rules, which often afforded relief and support to the +distressed Christians. Though he directs the magistrates to punish such +persons as are legally convicted, he prohibits them, with a very +humane inconsistency, from making any inquiries concerning the supposed +criminals. Nor was the magistrate allowed to proceed on every kind of +information. Anonymous charges the emperor rejects, as too repugnant +to the equity of his government; and he strictly requires, for the +conviction of those to whom the guilt of Christianity is imputed, the +positive evidence of a fair and open accuser. It is likewise probable, +that the persons who assumed so invidiuous an office, were obliged to +declare the grounds of their suspicions, to specify (both in respect to +time and place) the secret assemblies, which their Christian adversary +had frequented, and to disclose a great number of circumstances, which +were concealed with the most vigilant jealousy from the eye of the +profane. If they succeeded in their prosecution, they were exposed to +the resentment of a considerable and active party, to the censure of the +more liberal portion of mankind, and to the ignominy which, in every +age and country, has attended the character of an informer. If, on the +contrary, they failed in their proofs, they incurred the severe and +perhaps capital penalty, which, according to a law published by the +emperor Hadrian, was inflicted on those who falsely attributed to their +fellow-citizens the crime of Christianity. The violence of personal or +superstitious animosity might sometimes prevail over the most natural +apprehensions of disgrace and danger but it cannot surely be imagined, +that accusations of so unpromising an appearance were either lightly or +frequently undertaken by the Pagan subjects of the Roman empire. * + +The expedient which was employed to elude the prudence of the laws, +affords a sufficient proof how effectually they disappointed the +mischievous designs of private malice or superstitious zeal. In a large +and tumultuous assembly, the restraints of fear and shame, so forcible +on the minds of individuals, are deprived of the greatest part of their +influence. The pious Christian, as he was desirous to obtain, or to +escape, the glory of martyrdom, expected, either with impatience or with +terror, the stated returns of the public games and festivals. On +those occasions the inhabitants of the great cities of the empire were +collected in the circus or the theatre, where every circumstance of the +place, as well as of the ceremony, contributed to kindle their devotion, +and to extinguish their humanity. Whilst the numerous spectators, +crowned with garlands, perfumed with incense, purified with the blood +of victims, and surrounded with the altars and statues of their tutelar +deities, resigned themselves to the enjoyment of pleasures, which +they considered as an essential part of their religious worship, they +recollected, that the Christians alone abhorred the gods of mankind, +and by their absence and melancholy on these solemn festivals, seemed +to insult or to lament the public felicity. If the empire had been +afflicted by any recent calamity, by a plague, a famine, or an +unsuccessful war; if the Tyber had, or if the Nile had not, risen beyond +its banks; if the earth had shaken, or if the temperate order of the +seasons had been interrupted, the superstitious Pagans were convinced +that the crimes and the impiety of the Christians, who were spared +by the excessive lenity of the government, had at length provoked the +divine justice. It was not among a licentious and exasperated populace, +that the forms of legal proceedings could be observed; it was not in an +amphitheatre, stained with the blood of wild beasts and gladiators, that +the voice of compassion could be heard. The impatient clamors of the +multitude denounced the Christians as the enemies of gods and men, +doomed them to the severest tortures, and venturing to accuse by name +some of the most distinguished of the new sectaries, required with +irresistible vehemence that they should be instantly apprehended and +cast to the lions. The provincial governors and magistrates who +presided in the public spectacles were usually inclined to gratify the +inclinations, and to appease the rage, of the people, by the sacrifice +of a few obnoxious victims. But the wisdom of the emperors protected +the church from the danger of these tumultuous clamors and irregular +accusations, which they justly censured as repugnant both to the +firmness and to the equity of their administration. The edicts of +Hadrian and of Antoninus Pius expressly declared, that the voice of the +multitude should never be admitted as legal evidence to convict or to +punish those unfortunate persons who had embraced the enthusiasm of the +Christians. + +III. Punishment was not the inevitable consequence of conviction, and +the Christians, whose guilt was the most clearly proved by the testimony +of witnesses, or even by their voluntary confession, still retained in +their own power the alternative of life or death. It was not so much the +past offence, as the actual resistance, which excited the indignation +of the magistrate. He was persuaded that he offered them an easy pardon, +since, if they consented to cast a few grains of incense upon the altar, +they were dismissed from the tribunal in safety and with applause. It +was esteemed the duty of a humane judge to endeavor to reclaim, rather +than to punish, those deluded enthusiasts. Varying his tone according +to the age, the sex, or the situation of the prisoners, he frequently +condescended to set before their eyes every circumstance which could +render life more pleasing, or death more terrible; and to solicit, nay, +to entreat, them, that they would show some compassion to themselves, to +their families, and to their friends. If threats and persuasions proved +ineffectual, he had often recourse to violence; the scourge and the rack +were called in to supply the deficiency of argument, and every art of +cruelty was employed to subdue such inflexible, and, as it appeared +to the Pagans, such criminal, obstinacy. The ancient apologists of +Christianity have censured, with equal truth and severity, the irregular +conduct of their persecutors who, contrary to every principle of +judicial proceeding, admitted the use of torture, in order to obtain, +not a confession, but a denial, of the crime which was the object of +their inquiry. The monks of succeeding ages, who, in their peaceful +solitudes, entertained themselves with diversifying the deaths and +sufferings of the primitive martyrs, have frequently invented torments +of a much more refined and ingenious nature. In particular, it has +pleased them to suppose, that the zeal of the Roman magistrates, +disdaining every consideration of moral virtue or public decency, +endeavored to seduce those whom they were unable to vanquish, and that +by their orders the most brutal violence was offered to those whom they +found it impossible to seduce. It is related, that females, who were +prepared to despise death, were sometimes condemned to a more severe +trial, and called upon to determine whether they set a higher value +on their religion or on their chastity. The youths to whose licentious +embraces they were abandoned, received a solemn exhortation from the +judge, to exert their most strenuous efforts to maintain the honor of +Venus against the impious virgin who refused to burn incense on her +altars. Their violence, however, was commonly disappointed, and the +seasonable interposition of some miraculous power preserved the chaste +spouses of Christ from the dishonor even of an involuntary defeat. We +should not indeed neglect to remark, that the more ancient as well +as authentic memorials of the church are seldom polluted with these +extravagant and indecent fictions. + +The total disregard of truth and probability in the representation of +these primitive martyrdoms was occasioned by a very natural mistake. The +ecclesiastical writers of the fourth or fifth centuries ascribed to the +magistrates of Rome the same degree of implacable and unrelenting zeal +which filled their own breasts against the heretics or the idolaters +of their own times. It is not improbable that some of those persons +who were raised to the dignities of the empire, might have imbibed the +prejudices of the populace, and that the cruel disposition of others +might occasionally be stimulated by motives of avarice or of personal +resentment. But it is certain, and we may appeal to the grateful +confessions of the first Christians, that the greatest part of those +magistrates who exercised in the provinces the authority of the emperor, +or of the senate, and to whose hands alone the jurisdiction of life and +death was intrusted, behaved like men of polished manners and liberal +education, who respected the rules of justice, and who were conversant +with the precepts of philosophy. They frequently declined the odious +task of persecution, dismissed the charge with contempt, or suggested +to the accused Christian some legal evasion, by which he might elude the +severity of the laws. Whenever they were invested with a discretionary +power, they used it much less for the oppression, than for the relief +and benefit of the afflicted church. They were far from condemning all +the Christians who were accused before their tribunal, and very far +from punishing with death all those who were convicted of an obstinate +adherence to the new superstition. Contenting themselves, for the most +part, with the milder chastisements of imprisonment, exile, or slavery +in the mines, they left the unhappy victims of their justice some reason +to hope, that a prosperous event, the accession, the marriage, or the +triumph of an emperor, might speedily restore them, by a general pardon, +to their former state. The martyrs, devoted to immediate execution +by the Roman magistrates, appear to have been selected from the most +opposite extremes. They were either bishops and presbyters, the persons +the most distinguished among the Christians by their rank and influence, +and whose example might strike terror into the whole sect; or else they +were the meanest and most abject among them, particularly those of the +servile condition, whose lives were esteemed of little value, and +whose sufferings were viewed by the ancients with too careless an +indifference. The learned Origen, who, from his experience as well as +reading, was intimately acquainted with the history of the Christians, +declares, in the most express terms, that the number of martyrs was very +inconsiderable. His authority would alone be sufficient to annihilate +that formidable army of martyrs, whose relics, drawn for the most part +from the catacombs of Rome, have replenished so many churches, and whose +marvellous achievements have been the subject of so many volumes of +Holy Romance. But the general assertion of Origen may be explained and +confirmed by the particular testimony of his friend Dionysius, who, in +the immense city of Alexandria, and under the rigorous persecution +of Decius, reckons only ten men and seven women who suffered for the +profession of the Christian name. + +During the same period of persecution, the zealous, the eloquent, the +ambitious Cyprian governed the church, not only of Carthage, but even of +Africa. He possessed every quality which could engage the reverence +of the faithful, or provoke the suspicions and resentment of the Pagan +magistrates. His character as well as his station seemed to mark out +that holy prelate as the most distinguished object of envy and danger. +The experience, however, of the life of Cyprian, is sufficient to prove +that our fancy has exaggerated the perilous situation of a Christian +bishop; and the dangers to which he was exposed were less imminent than +those which temporal ambition is always prepared to encounter in the +pursuit of honors. Four Roman emperors, with their families, their +favorites, and their adherents, perished by the sword in the space of +ten years, during which the bishop of Carthage guided by his authority +and eloquence the councils of the African church. It was only in the +third year of his administration, that he had reason, during a few +months, to apprehend the severe edicts of Decius, the vigilance of the +magistrate and the clamors of the multitude, who loudly demanded, that +Cyprian, the leader of the Christians, should be thrown to the lions. +Prudence suggested the necessity of a temporary retreat, and the voice +of prudence was obeyed. He withdrew himself into an obscure solitude, +from whence he could maintain a constant correspondence with the clergy +and people of Carthage; and, concealing himself till the tempest was +past, he preserved his life, without relinquishing either his power or +his reputation. His extreme caution did not, however, escape the censure +of the more rigid Christians, who lamented, or the reproaches of his +personal enemies, who insulted, a conduct which they considered as +a pusillanimous and criminal desertion of the most sacred duty. The +propriety of reserving himself for the future exigencies of the church, +the example of several holy bishops, and the divine admonitions, which, +as he declares himself, he frequently received in visions and ecstacies, +were the reasons alleged in his justification. But his best apology +may be found in the cheerful resolution, with which, about eight years +afterwards, he suffered death in the cause of religion. The authentic +history of his martyrdom has been recorded with unusual candor and +impartiality. A short abstract, therefore, of its most important +circumstances, will convey the clearest information of the spirit, and +of the forms, of the Roman persecutions. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part IV. + +When Valerian was consul for the third, and Gallienus for the fourth +time, Paternus, proconsul of Africa, summoned Cyprian to appear in +his private council-chamber. He there acquainted him with the Imperial +mandate which he had just received, that those who had abandoned +the Roman religion should immediately return to the practice of the +ceremonies of their ancestors. Cyprian replied without hesitation, that +he was a Christian and a bishop, devoted to the worship of the true and +only Deity, to whom he offered up his daily supplications for the safety +and prosperity of the two emperors, his lawful sovereigns. With modest +confidence he pleaded the privilege of a citizen, in refusing to give +any answer to some invidious and indeed illegal questions which the +proconsul had proposed. A sentence of banishment was pronounced as the +penalty of Cyprian's disobedience; and he was conducted without delay +to Curubis, a free and maritime city of Zeugitania, in a pleasant +situation, a fertile territory, and at the distance of about forty miles +from Carthage. The exiled bishop enjoyed the conveniences of life and +the consciousness of virtue. His reputation was diffused over Africa and +Italy; an account of his behavior was published for the edification of +the Christian world; and his solitude was frequently interrupted by the +letters, the visits, and the congratulations of the faithful. On the +arrival of a new proconsul in the province the fortune of Cyprian +appeared for some time to wear a still more favorable aspect. He was +recalled from banishment; and though not yet permitted to return to +Carthage, his own gardens in the neighborhood of the capital were +assigned for the place of his residence. + +At length, exactly one year after Cyprian was first apprehended, +Galerius Maximus, proconsul of Africa, received the Imperial warrant +for the execution of the Christian teachers. The bishop of Carthage was +sensible that he should be singled out for one of the first victims; +and the frailty of nature tempted him to withdraw himself, by a +secret flight, from the danger and the honor of martyrdom; * but soon +recovering that fortitude which his character required, he returned to +his gardens, and patiently expected the ministers of death. Two officers +of rank, who were intrusted with that commission, placed Cyprian between +them in a chariot, and as the proconsul was not then at leisure, they +conducted him, not to a prison, but to a private house in Carthage, +which belonged to one of them. An elegant supper was provided for the +entertainment of the bishop, and his Christian friends were permitted +for the last time to enjoy his society, whilst the streets were filled +with a multitude of the faithful, anxious and alarmed at the approaching +fate of their spiritual father. In the morning he appeared before the +tribunal of the proconsul, who, after informing himself of the name and +situation of Cyprian, commanded him to offer sacrifice, and pressed +him to reflect on the consequences of his disobedience. The refusal of +Cyprian was firm and decisive; and the magistrate, when he had taken the +opinion of his council, pronounced with some reluctance the sentence of +death. It was conceived in the following terms: "That Thascius Cyprianus +should be immediately beheaded, as the enemy of the gods of Rome, and as +the chief and ringleader of a criminal association, which he had seduced +into an impious resistance against the laws of the most holy emperors, +Valerian and Gallienus." The manner of his execution was the mildest +and least painful that could be inflicted on a person convicted of any +capital offence; nor was the use of torture admitted to obtain from +the bishop of Carthage either the recantation of his principles or the +discovery of his accomplices. + +As soon as the sentence was proclaimed, a general cry of "We will die +with him," arose at once among the listening multitude of Christians who +waited before the palace gates. The generous effusions of their zeal +and their affection were neither serviceable to Cyprian nor dangerous +to themselves. He was led away under a guard of tribunes and centurions, +without resistance and without insult, to the place of his execution, +a spacious and level plain near the city, which was already filled with +great numbers of spectators. His faithful presbyters and deacons were +permitted to accompany their holy bishop. * They assisted him in +laying aside his upper garment, spread linen on the ground to catch +the precious relics of his blood, and received his orders to bestow +five-and-twenty pieces of gold on the executioner. The martyr then +covered his face with his hands, and at one blow his head was separated +from his body. His corpse remained during some hours exposed to +the curiosity of the Gentiles: but in the night it was removed, and +transported in a triumphal procession, and with a splendid illumination, +to the burial-place of the Christians. The funeral of Cyprian was +publicly celebrated without receiving any interruption from the Roman +magistrates; and those among the faithful, who had performed the last +offices to his person and his memory, were secure from the danger of +inquiry or of punishment. It is remarkable, that of so great a multitude +of bishops in the province of Africa, Cyprian was the first who was +esteemed worthy to obtain the crown of martyrdom. + +It was in the choice of Cyprian, either to die a martyr, or to live an +apostate; but on the choice depended the alternative of honor or infamy. +Could we suppose that the bishop of Carthage had employed the profession +of the Christian faith only as the instrument of his avarice or +ambition, it was still incumbent on him to support the character he had +assumed; and if he possessed the smallest degree of manly fortitude, +rather to expose himself to the most cruel tortures, than by a single +act to exchange the reputation of a whole life, for the abhorrence of +his Christian brethren, and the contempt of the Gentile world. But if +the zeal of Cyprian was supported by the sincere conviction of the truth +of those doctrines which he preached, the crown of martyrdom must have +appeared to him as an object of desire rather than of terror. It is +not easy to extract any distinct ideas from the vague though eloquent +declamations of the Fathers, or to ascertain the degree of immortal +glory and happiness which they confidently promised to those who were +so fortunate as to shed their blood in the cause of religion. They +inculcated with becoming diligence, that the fire of martyrdom supplied +every defect and expiated every sin; that while the souls of ordinary +Christians were obliged to pass through a slow and painful purification, +the triumphant sufferers entered into the immediate fruition of eternal +bliss, where, in the society of the patriarchs, the apostles, and the +prophets, they reigned with Christ, and acted as his assessors in the +universal judgment of mankind. The assurance of a lasting reputation +upon earth, a motive so congenial to the vanity of human nature, often +served to animate the courage of the martyrs. The honors which Rome or +Athens bestowed on those citizens who had fallen in the cause of +their country, were cold and unmeaning demonstrations of respect, when +compared with the ardent gratitude and devotion which the primitive +church expressed towards the victorious champions of the faith. The +annual commemoration of their virtues and sufferings was observed as a +sacred ceremony, and at length terminated in religious worship. Among +the Christians who had publicly confessed their religious principles, +those who (as it very frequently happened) had been dismissed from the +tribunal or the prisons of the Pagan magistrates, obtained such honors +as were justly due to their imperfect martyrdom and their generous +resolution. The most pious females courted the permission of imprinting +kisses on the fetters which they had worn, and on the wounds which they +had received. Their persons were esteemed holy, their decisions were +admitted with deference, and they too often abused, by their spiritual +pride and licentious manners, the preeminence which their zeal and +intrepidity had acquired. Distinctions like these, whilst they display +the exalted merit, betray the inconsiderable number of those who +suffered, and of those who died, for the profession of Christianity. + +The sober discretion of the present age will more readily censure than +admire, but can more easily admire than imitate, the fervor of the +first Christians, who, according to the lively expressions of +Sulpicius Severus, desired martyrdom with more eagerness than his +own contemporaries solicited a bishopric. The epistles which Ignatius +composed as he was carried in chains through the cities of Asia, breathe +sentiments the most repugnant to the ordinary feelings of human nature. +He earnestly beseeches the Romans, that when he should be exposed in +the amphitheatre, they would not, by their kind but unseasonable +intercession, deprive him of the crown of glory; and he declares his +resolution to provoke and irritate the wild beasts which might be +employed as the instruments of his death. Some stories are related +of the courage of martyrs, who actually performed what Ignatius had +intended; who exasperated the fury of the lions, pressed the executioner +to hasten his office, cheerfully leaped into the fires which were +kindled to consume them, and discovered a sensation of joy and pleasure +in the midst of the most exquisite tortures. Several examples have been +preserved of a zeal impatient of those restraints which the emperors +had provided for the security of the church. The Christians sometimes +supplied by their voluntary declaration the want of an accuser, rudely +disturbed the public service of paganism, and rushing in crowds round +the tribunal of the magistrates, called upon them to pronounce and to +inflict the sentence of the law. The behavior of the Christians was too +remarkable to escape the notice of the ancient philosophers; but they +seem to have considered it with much less admiration than astonishment. +Incapable of conceiving the motives which sometimes transported the +fortitude of believers beyond the bounds of prudence or reason, they +treated such an eagerness to die as the strange result of obstinate +despair, of stupid insensibility, or of superstitious frenzy. "Unhappy +men!" exclaimed the proconsul Antoninus to the Christians of Asia; +"unhappy men! if you are thus weary of your lives, is it so difficult +for you to find ropes and precipices?" He was extremely cautious (as it +is observed by a learned and pious historian) of punishing men who had +found no accusers but themselves, the Imperial laws not having made +any provision for so unexpected a case: condemning therefore a few as a +warning to their brethren, he dismissed the multitude with indignation +and contempt. Notwithstanding this real or affected disdain, the +intrepid constancy of the faithful was productive of more salutary +effects on those minds which nature or grace had disposed for the easy +reception of religious truth. On these melancholy occasions, there were +many among the Gentiles who pitied, who admired, and who were converted. +The generous enthusiasm was communicated from the sufferer to the +spectators; and the blood of martyrs, according to a well-known +observation, became the seed of the church. + +But although devotion had raised, and eloquence continued to inflame, +this fever of the mind, it insensibly gave way to the more natural hopes +and fears of the human heart, to the love of life, the apprehension +of pain, and the horror of dissolution. The more prudent rulers of the +church found themselves obliged to restrain the indiscreet ardor of +their followers, and to distrust a constancy which too often abandoned +them in the hour of trial. As the lives of the faithful became less +mortified and austere, they were every day less ambitious of the honors +of martyrdom; and the soldiers of Christ, instead of distinguishing +themselves by voluntary deeds of heroism, frequently deserted their +post, and fled in confusion before the enemy whom it was their duty to +resist. There were three methods, however, of escaping the flames of +persecution, which were not attended with an equal degree of guilt: +first, indeed, was generally allowed to be innocent; the second was of +a doubtful, or at least of a venial, nature; but the third implied a +direct and criminal apostasy from the Christian faith. + +I. A modern inquisitor would hear with surprise, that whenever an +information was given to a Roman magistrate of any person within his +jurisdiction who had embraced the sect of the Christians, the charge +was communicated to the party accused, and that a convenient time was +allowed him to settle his domestic concerns, and to prepare an answer to +the crime which was imputed to him. If he entertained any doubt of his +own constancy, such a delay afforded him the opportunity of preserving +his life and honor by flight, of withdrawing himself into some obscure +retirement or some distant province, and of patiently expecting the +return of peace and security. A measure so consonant to reason was soon +authorized by the advice and example of the most holy prelates; and +seems to have been censured by few except by the Montanists, who +deviated into heresy by their strict and obstinate adherence to the +rigor of ancient discipline. II. The provincial governors, whose zeal +was less prevalent than their avarice, had countenanced the practice of +selling certificates, (or libels, as they were called,) which attested, +that the persons therein mentioned had complied with the laws, and +sacrificed to the Roman deities. By producing these false declarations, +the opulent and timid Christians were enabled to silence the malice of +an informer, and to reconcile in some measure their safety with their +religion. A slight penance atoned for this profane dissimulation. * III. +In every persecution there were great numbers of unworthy Christians who +publicly disowned or renounced the faith which they had professed; and +who confirmed the sincerity of their abjuration, by the legal acts of +burning incense or of offering sacrifices. Some of these apostates had +yielded on the first menace or exhortation of the magistrate; whilst +the patience of others had been subdued by the length and repetition +of tortures. The affrighted countenances of some betrayed their inward +remorse, while others advanced with confidence and alacrity to the +altars of the gods. But the disguise which fear had imposed, subsisted +no longer than the present danger. As soon as the severity of the +persecution was abated, the doors of the churches were assailed by +the returning multitude of penitents who detested their idolatrous +submission, and who solicited with equal ardor, but with various +success, their readmission into the society of Christians. + +IV. Notwithstanding the general rules established for the conviction +and punishment of the Christians, the fate of those sectaries, in an +extensive and arbitrary government, must still in a great measure, have +depended on their own behavior, the circumstances of the times, and +the temper of their supreme as well as subordinate rulers. Zeal might +sometimes provoke, and prudence might sometimes avert or assuage, the +superstitious fury of the Pagans. A variety of motives might dispose the +provincial governors either to enforce or to relax the execution of the +laws; and of these motives the most forcible was their regard not only +for the public edicts, but for the secret intentions of the emperor, +a glance from whose eye was sufficient to kindle or to extinguish +the flames of persecution. As often as any occasional severities were +exercised in the different parts of the empire, the primitive Christians +lamented and perhaps magnified their own sufferings; but the celebrated +number of ten persecutions has been determined by the ecclesiastical +writers of the fifth century, who possessed a more distinct view of the +prosperous or adverse fortunes of the church, from the age of Nero to +that of Diocletian. The ingenious parallels of the ten plagues of Egypt, +and of the ten horns of the Apocalypse, first suggested this calculation +to their minds; and in their application of the faith of prophecy to the +truth of history, they were careful to select those reigns which were +indeed the most hostile to the Christian cause. But these transient +persecutions served only to revive the zeal and to restore the +discipline of the faithful; and the moments of extraordinary rigor +were compensated by much longer intervals of peace and security. The +indifference of some princes, and the indulgence of others, permitted +the Christians to enjoy, though not perhaps a legal, yet an actual and +public, toleration of their religion. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part V. + +The apology of Tertullian contains two very ancient, very singular, but +at the same time very suspicious, instances of Imperial clemency; the +edicts published by Tiberius, and by Marcus Antoninus, and designed not +only to protect the innocence of the Christians, but even to proclaim +those stupendous miracles which had attested the truth of their +doctrine. The first of these examples is attended with some difficulties +which might perplex a sceptical mind. We are required to believe, that +Pontius Pilate informed the emperor of the unjust sentence of death +which he had pronounced against an innocent, and, as it appeared, +a divine, person; and that, without acquiring the merit, he exposed +himself to the danger of martyrdom; that Tiberius, who avowed his +contempt for all religion, immediately conceived the design of placing +the Jewish Messiah among the gods of Rome; that his servile senate +ventured to disobey the commands of their master; that Tiberius, instead +of resenting their refusal, contented himself with protecting the +Christians from the severity of the laws, many years before such laws +were enacted, or before the church had assumed any distinct name or +existence; and lastly, that the memory of this extraordinary transaction +was preserved in the most public and authentic records, which escaped +the knowledge of the historians of Greece and Rome, and were only +visible to the eyes of an African Christian, who composed his apology +one hundred and sixty years after the death of Tiberius. The edict of +Marcus Antoninus is supposed to have been the effect of his devotion and +gratitude for the miraculous deliverance which he had obtained in the +Marcomannic war. The distress of the legions, the seasonable tempest of +rain and hail, of thunder and of lightning, and the dismay and defeat of +the barbarians, have been celebrated by the eloquence of several Pagan +writers. If there were any Christians in that army, it was natural that +they should ascribe some merit to the fervent prayers, which, in the +moment of danger, they had offered up for their own and the public +safety. But we are still assured by monuments of brass and marble, by +the Imperial medals, and by the Antonine column, that neither the prince +nor the people entertained any sense of this signal obligation, since +they unanimously attribute their deliverance to the providence of +Jupiter, and to the interposition of Mercury. During the whole course of +his reign, Marcus despised the Christians as a philosopher, and punished +them as a sovereign. * + +By a singular fatality, the hardships which they had endured under the +government of a virtuous prince, immediately ceased on the accession of +a tyrant; and as none except themselves had experienced the injustice +of Marcus, so they alone were protected by the lenity of Commodus. The +celebrated Marcia, the most favored of his concubines, and who at length +contrived the murder of her Imperial lover, entertained a singular +affection for the oppressed church; and though it was impossible that +she could reconcile the practice of vice with the precepts of the +gospel, she might hope to atone for the frailties of her sex and +profession by declaring herself the patroness of the Christians. Under +the gracious protection of Marcia, they passed in safety the thirteen +years of a cruel tyranny; and when the empire was established in the +house of Severus, they formed a domestic but more honorable connection +with the new court. The emperor was persuaded, that in a dangerous +sickness, he had derived some benefit, either spiritual or physical, +from the holy oil, with which one of his slaves had anointed him. He +always treated with peculiar distinction several persons of both sexes +who had embraced the new religion. The nurse as well as the preceptor +of Caracalla were Christians; * and if that young prince ever betrayed a +sentiment of humanity, it was occasioned by an incident, which, however +trifling, bore some relation to the cause of Christianity. Under the +reign of Severus, the fury of the populace was checked; the rigor of +ancient laws was for some time suspended; and the provincial governors +were satisfied with receiving an annual present from the churches within +their jurisdiction, as the price, or as the reward, of their moderation. +The controversy concerning the precise time of the celebration of +Easter, armed the bishops of Asia and Italy against each other, and was +considered as the most important business of this period of leisure +and tranquillity. Nor was the peace of the church interrupted, till the +increasing numbers of proselytes seem at length to have attracted the +attention, and to have alienated the mind of Severus. With the design of +restraining the progress of Christianity, he published an edict, which, +though it was designed to affect only the new converts, could not be +carried into strict execution, without exposing to danger and punishment +the most zealous of their teachers and missionaries. In this mitigated +persecution we may still discover the indulgent spirit of Rome and of +Polytheism, which so readily admitted every excuse in favor of those who +practised the religious ceremonies of their fathers. + +But the laws which Severus had enacted soon expired with the authority +of that emperor; and the Christians, after this accidental tempest, +enjoyed a calm of thirty-eight years. Till this period they had usually +held their assemblies in private houses and sequestered places. They +were now permitted to erect and consecrate convenient edifices for the +purpose of religious worship; to purchase lands, even at Rome itself, +for the use of the community; and to conduct the elections of their +ecclesiastical ministers in so public, but at the same time in so +exemplary a manner, as to deserve the respectful attention of the +Gentiles. This long repose of the church was accompanied with dignity. +The reigns of those princes who derived their extraction from the +Asiatic provinces, proved the most favorable to the Christians; the +eminent persons of the sect, instead of being reduced to implore the +protection of a slave or concubine, were admitted into the palace in the +honorable characters of priests and philosophers; and their mysterious +doctrines, which were already diffused among the people, insensibly +attracted the curiosity of their sovereign. When the empress Mammæa +passed through Antioch, she expressed a desire of conversing with the +celebrated Origen, the fame of whose piety and learning was spread over +the East. Origen obeyed so flattering an invitation, and though he +could not expect to succeed in the conversion of an artful and ambitious +woman, she listened with pleasure to his eloquent exhortations, and +honorably dismissed him to his retirement in Palestine. The sentiments +of Mammæa were adopted by her son Alexander, and the philosophic +devotion of that emperor was marked by a singular but injudicious regard +for the Christian religion. In his domestic chapel he placed the statues +of Abraham, of Orpheus, of Apollonius, and of Christ, as an honor justly +due to those respectable sages who had instructed mankind in the various +modes of addressing their homage to the supreme and universal Deity. +A purer faith, as well as worship, was openly professed and practised +among his household. Bishops, perhaps for the first time, were seen +at court; and, after the death of Alexander, when the inhuman Maximin +discharged his fury on the favorites and servants of his unfortunate +benefactor, a great number of Christians of every rank and of both +sexes, were involved the promiscuous massacre, which, on their account, +has improperly received the name of Persecution. * + +Notwithstanding the cruel disposition of Maximin, the effects of his +resentment against the Christians were of a very local and temporary +nature, and the pious Origen, who had been proscribed as a devoted +victim, was still reserved to convey the truths of the gospel to the +ear of monarchs. He addressed several edifying letters to the emperor +Philip, to his wife, and to his mother; and as soon as that prince, +who was born in the neighborhood of Palestine, had usurped the Imperial +sceptre, the Christians acquired a friend and a protector. The public +and even partial favor of Philip towards the sectaries of the new +religion, and his constant reverence for the ministers of the church, +gave some color to the suspicion, which prevailed in his own times, that +the emperor himself was become a convert to the faith; and afforded +some grounds for a fable which was afterwards invented, that he had +been purified by confession and penance from the guilt contracted by the +murder of his innocent predecessor. The fall of Philip introduced, with +the change of masters, a new system of government, so oppressive to +the Christians, that their former condition, ever since the time of +Domitian, was represented as a state of perfect freedom and security, +if compared with the rigorous treatment which they experienced under the +short reign of Decius. The virtues of that prince will scarcely allow +us to suspect that he was actuated by a mean resentment against the +favorites of his predecessor; and it is more reasonable to believe, that +in the prosecution of his general design to restore the purity of Roman +manners, he was desirous of delivering the empire from what he +condemned as a recent and criminal superstition. The bishops of the most +considerable cities were removed by exile or death: the vigilance of +the magistrates prevented the clergy of Rome during sixteen months from +proceeding to a new election; and it was the opinion of the Christians, +that the emperor would more patiently endure a competitor for the +purple, than a bishop in the capital. Were it possible to suppose that +the penetration of Decius had discovered pride under the disguise of +humility, or that he could foresee the temporal dominion which might +insensibly arise from the claims of spiritual authority, we might be +less surprised, that he should consider the successors of St. Peter, as +the most formidable rivals to those of Augustus. + +The administration of Valerian was distinguished by a levity and +inconstancy ill suited to the gravity of the Roman Censor. In the first +part of his reign, he surpassed in clemency those princes who had been +suspected of an attachment to the Christian faith. In the last three +years and a half, listening to the insinuations of a minister addicted +to the superstitions of Egypt, he adopted the maxims, and imitated the +severity, of his predecessor Decius. The accession of Gallienus, which +increased the calamities of the empire, restored peace to the church; +and the Christians obtained the free exercise of their religion by an +edict addressed to the bishops, and conceived in such terms as seemed to +acknowledge their office and public character. The ancient laws, without +being formally repealed, were suffered to sink into oblivion; and +(excepting only some hostile intentions which are attributed to the +emperor Aurelian ) the disciples of Christ passed above forty years in +a state of prosperity, far more dangerous to their virtue than the +severest trials of persecution. + +The story of Paul of Samosata, who filled the metropolitan see of +Antioch, while the East was in the hands of Odenathus and Zenobia, may +serve to illustrate the condition and character of the times. The wealth +of that prelate was a sufficient evidence of his guilt, since it was +neither derived from the inheritance of his fathers, nor acquired by the +arts of honest industry. But Paul considered the service of the church +as a very lucrative profession. His ecclesiastical jurisdiction was +venal and rapacious; he extorted frequent contributions from the most +opulent of the faithful, and converted to his own use a considerable +part of the public revenue. By his pride and luxury, the Christian +religion was rendered odious in the eyes of the Gentiles. His council +chamber and his throne, the splendor with which he appeared in public, +the suppliant crowd who solicited his attention, the multitude of +letters and petitions to which he dictated his answers, and the +perpetual hurry of business in which he was involved, were circumstances +much better suited to the state of a civil magistrate, than to the +humility of a primitive bishop. When he harangued his people from the +pulpit, Paul affected the figurative style and the theatrical gestures +of an Asiatic sophist, while the cathedral resounded with the loudest +and most extravagant acclamations in the praise of his divine eloquence. +Against those who resisted his power, or refused to flatter his vanity, +the prelate of Antioch was arrogant, rigid, and inexorable; but he +relaxed the discipline, and lavished the treasures of the church on +his dependent clergy, who were permitted to imitate their master in the +gratification of every sensual appetite. For Paul indulged himself +very freely in the pleasures of the table, and he had received into +the episcopal palace two young and beautiful women as the constant +companions of his leisure moments. + +Notwithstanding these scandalous vices, if Paul of Samosata had +preserved the purity of the orthodox faith, his reign over the capital +of Syria would have ended only with his life; and had a seasonable +persecution intervened, an effort of courage might perhaps have placed +him in the rank of saints and martyrs. * Some nice and subtle errors, +which he imprudently adopted and obstinately maintained, concerning the +doctrine of the Trinity, excited the zeal and indignation of the Eastern +churches. From Egypt to the Euxine Sea, the bishops were in arms and +in motion. Several councils were held, confutations were published, +excommunications were pronounced, ambiguous explanations were by turns +accepted and refused, treaties were concluded and violated, and at +length Paul of Samosata was degraded from his episcopal character, +by the sentence of seventy or eighty bishops, who assembled for that +purpose at Antioch, and who, without consulting the rights of the clergy +or people, appointed a successor by their own authority. The +manifest irregularity of this proceeding increased the numbers of the +discontented faction; and as Paul, who was no stranger to the arts of +courts, had insinuated himself into the favor of Zenobia, he maintained +above four years the possession of the episcopal house and office. * The +victory of Aurelian changed the face of the East, and the two contending +parties, who applied to each other the epithets of schism and heresy, +were either commanded or permitted to plead their cause before the +tribunal of the conqueror. This public and very singular trial affords +a convincing proof that the existence, the property, the privileges, and +the internal policy of the Christians, were acknowledged, if not by the +laws, at least by the magistrates, of the empire. As a Pagan and as a +soldier, it could scarcely be expected that Aurelian should enter +into the discussion, whether the sentiments of Paul or those of his +adversaries were most agreeable to the true standard of the orthodox +faith. His determination, however, was founded on the general principles +of equity and reason. He considered the bishops of Italy as the most +impartial and respectable judges among the Christians, and as soon as +he was informed that they had unanimously approved the sentence of the +council, he acquiesced in their opinion, and immediately gave orders +that Paul should be compelled to relinquish the temporal possessions +belonging to an office, of which, in the judgment of his brethren, he +had been regularly deprived. But while we applaud the justice, we should +not overlook the policy, of Aurelian, who was desirous of restoring and +cementing the dependence of the provinces on the capital, by every means +which could bind the interest or prejudices of any part of his subjects. + +Amidst the frequent revolutions of the empire, the Christians still +flourished in peace and prosperity; and notwithstanding a celebrated æra +of martyrs has been deduced from the accession of Diocletian, the +new system of policy, introduced and maintained by the wisdom of that +prince, continued, during more than eighteen years, to breathe the +mildest and most liberal spirit of religious toleration. The mind of +Diocletian himself was less adapted indeed to speculative inquiries, +than to the active labors of war and government. His prudence rendered +him averse to any great innovation, and though his temper was not very +susceptible of zeal or enthusiasm, he always maintained an habitual +regard for the ancient deities of the empire. But the leisure of the two +empresses, of his wife Prisca, and of Valeria, his daughter, permitted +them to listen with more attention and respect to the truths of +Christianity, which in every age has acknowledged its important +obligations to female devotion. The principal eunuchs, Lucian and +Dorotheus, Gorgonius and Andrew, who attended the person, possessed +the favor, and governed the household of Diocletian, protected by their +powerful influence the faith which they had embraced. Their example was +imitated by many of the most considerable officers of the palace, who, +in their respective stations, had the care of the Imperial ornaments, +of the robes, of the furniture, of the jewels, and even of the private +treasury; and, though it might sometimes be incumbent on them to +accompany the emperor when he sacrificed in the temple, they enjoyed, +with their wives, their children, and their slaves, the free exercise +of the Christian religion. Diocletian and his colleagues frequently +conferred the most important offices on those persons who avowed their +abhorrence for the worship of the gods, but who had displayed abilities +proper for the service of the state. The bishops held an honorable rank +in their respective provinces, and were treated with distinction and +respect, not only by the people, but by the magistrates themselves. +Almost in every city, the ancient churches were found insufficient to +contain the increasing multitude of proselytes; and in their place more +stately and capacious edifices were erected for the public worship of +the faithful. The corruption of manners and principles, so forcibly +lamented by Eusebius, may be considered, not only as a consequence, but +as a proof, of the liberty which the Christians enjoyed and abused +under the reign of Diocletian. Prosperity had relaxed the nerves of +discipline. Fraud, envy, and malice prevailed in every congregation. The +presbyters aspired to the episcopal office, which every day became an +object more worthy of their ambition. The bishops, who contended with +each other for ecclesiastical preeminence, appeared by their conduct to +claim a secular and tyrannical power in the church; and the lively faith +which still distinguished the Christians from the Gentiles, was shown +much less in their lives, than in their controversial writings. + +Notwithstanding this seeming security, an attentive observer might +discern some symptoms that threatened the church with a more violent +persecution than any which she had yet endured. The zeal and rapid +progress of the Christians awakened the Polytheists from their supine +indifference in the cause of those deities, whom custom and education +had taught them to revere. The mutual provocations of a religious war, +which had already continued above two hundred years, exasperated the +animosity of the contending parties. The Pagans were incensed at the +rashness of a recent and obscure sect, which presumed to accuse their +countrymen of error, and to devote their ancestors to eternal misery. +The habits of justifying the popular mythology against the invectives +of an implacable enemy, produced in their minds some sentiments of faith +and reverence for a system which they had been accustomed to consider +with the most careless levity. The supernatural powers assumed by the +church inspired at the same time terror and emulation. The followers +of the established religion intrenched themselves behind a similar +fortification of prodigies; invented new modes of sacrifice, of +expiation, and of initiation; attempted to revive the credit of their +expiring oracles; and listened with eager credulity to every impostor, +who flattered their prejudices by a tale of wonders. Both parties seemed +to acknowledge the truth of those miracles which were claimed by their +adversaries; and while they were contented with ascribing them to the +arts of magic, and to the power of dæmons, they mutually concurred in +restoring and establishing the reign of superstition. Philosophy, her +most dangerous enemy, was now converted into her most useful ally. The +groves of the academy, the gardens of Epicurus, and even the portico +of the Stoics, were almost deserted, as so many different schools of +scepticism or impiety; and many among the Romans were desirous that the +writings of Cicero should be condemned and suppressed by the authority +of the senate. The prevailing sect of the new Platonicians judged +it prudent to connect themselves with the priests, whom perhaps they +despised, against the Christians, whom they had reason to fear. These +fashionable Philosophers prosecuted the design of extracting allegorical +wisdom from the fictions of the Greek poets; instituted mysterious +rites of devotion for the use of their chosen disciples; recommended the +worship of the ancient gods as the emblems or ministers of the Supreme +Deity, and composed against the faith of the gospel many elaborate +treatises, which have since been committed to the flames by the prudence +of orthodox emperors. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part VI. + +Although the policy of Diocletian and the humanity of Constantius +inclined them to preserve inviolate the maxims of toleration, it was +soon discovered that their two associates, Maximian and Galerius, +entertained the most implacable aversion for the name and religion of +the Christians. The minds of those princes had never been enlightened +by science; education had never softened their temper. They owed their +greatness to their swords, and in their most elevated fortune they still +retained their superstitious prejudices of soldiers and peasants. In the +general administration of the provinces they obeyed the laws which +their benefactor had established; but they frequently found occasions of +exercising within their camp and palaces a secret persecution, for which +the imprudent zeal of the Christians sometimes offered the most specious +pretences. A sentence of death was executed upon Maximilianus, an +African youth, who had been produced by his own father *before the +magistrate as a sufficient and legal recruit, but who obstinately +persisted in declaring, that his conscience would not permit him to +embrace the profession of a soldier. It could scarcely be expected that +any government should suffer the action of Marcellus the Centurion to +pass with impunity. On the day of a public festival, that officer threw +away his belt, his arms, and the ensigns of his office, and exclaimed +with a loud voice, that he would obey none but Jesus Christ the eternal +King, and that he renounced forever the use of carnal weapons, and the +service of an idolatrous master. The soldiers, as soon as they recovered +from their astonishment, secured the person of Marcellus. He was +examined in the city of Tingi by the president of that part of +Mauritania; and as he was convicted by his own confession, he was +condemned and beheaded for the crime of desertion. Examples of such a +nature savor much less of religious persecution than of martial or even +civil law; but they served to alienate the mind of the emperors, to +justify the severity of Galerius, who dismissed a great number of +Christian officers from their employments; and to authorize the opinion, +that a sect of enthusiastics, which avowed principles so repugnant to +the public safety, must either remain useless, or would soon become +dangerous, subjects of the empire. + +After the success of the Persian war had raised the hopes and the +reputation of Galerius, he passed a winter with Diocletian in the palace +of Nicomedia; and the fate of Christianity became the object of their +secret consultations. The experienced emperor was still inclined to +pursue measures of lenity; and though he readily consented to exclude +the Christians from holding any employments in the household or the +army, he urged in the strongest terms the danger as well as cruelty +of shedding the blood of those deluded fanatics. Galerius at length +extorted from him the permission of summoning a council, composed of a +few persons the most distinguished in the civil and military departments +of the state. The important question was agitated in their presence, +and those ambitious courtiers easily discerned, that it was incumbent +on them to second, by their eloquence, the importunate violence of the +Cæsar. It may be presumed, that they insisted on every topic which might +interest the pride, the piety, or the fears, of their sovereign in the +destruction of Christianity. Perhaps they represented, that the glorious +work of the deliverance of the empire was left imperfect, as long as an +independent people was permitted to subsist and multiply in the heart +of the provinces. The Christians, (it might specially be alleged,) +renouncing the gods and the institutions of Rome, had constituted a +distinct republic, which might yet be suppressed before it had acquired +any military force; but which was already governed by its own laws and +magistrates, was possessed of a public treasure, and was intimately +connected in all its parts by the frequent assemblies of the bishops, +to whose decrees their numerous and opulent congregations yielded an +implicit obedience. Arguments like these may seem to have determined the +reluctant mind of Diocletian to embrace a new system of persecution; +but though we may suspect, it is not in our power to relate, the secret +intrigues of the palace, the private views and resentments, the jealousy +of women or eunuchs, and all those trifling but decisive causes which +so often influence the fate of empires, and the councils of the wisest +monarchs. + +The pleasure of the emperors was at length signified to the Christians, +who, during the course of this melancholy winter, had expected, with +anxiety, the result of so many secret consultations. The twenty-third of +February, which coincided with the Roman festival of the Terminalia, +was appointed (whether from accident or design) to set bounds to the +progress of Christianity. At the earliest dawn of day, the Prætorian +præfect, accompanied by several generals, tribunes, and officers of +the revenue, repaired to the principal church of Nicomedia, which was +situated on an eminence in the most populous and beautiful part of +the city. The doors were instantly broke open; they rushed into the +sanctuary; and as they searched in vain for some visible object of +worship, they were obliged to content themselves with committing to the +flames the volumes of the holy Scripture. The ministers of Diocletian +were followed by a numerous body of guards and pioneers, who marched in +order of battle, and were provided with all the instruments used in +the destruction of fortified cities. By their incessant labor, a sacred +edifice, which towered above the Imperial palace, and had long excited +the indignation and envy of the Gentiles, was in a few hours levelled +with the ground. + +The next day the general edict of persecution was published; and though +Diocletian, still averse to the effusion of blood, had moderated +the fury of Galerius, who proposed, that every one refusing to offer +sacrifice should immediately be burnt alive, the penalties inflicted on +the obstinacy of the Christians might be deemed sufficiently rigorous +and effectual. It was enacted, that their churches, in all the provinces +of the empire, should be demolished to their foundations; and the +punishment of death was denounced against all who should presume to +hold any secret assemblies for the purpose of religious worship. The +philosophers, who now assumed the unworthy office of directing the blind +zeal of persecution, had diligently studied the nature and genius of the +Christian religion; and as they were not ignorant that the speculative +doctrines of the faith were supposed to be contained in the writings +of the prophets, of the evangelists, and of the apostles, they most +probably suggested the order, that the bishops and presbyters should +deliver all their sacred books into the hands of the magistrates; who +were commanded, under the severest penalties, to burn them in a public +and solemn manner. By the same edict, the property of the church was at +once confiscated; and the several parts of which it might consist +were either sold to the highest bidder, united to the Imperial domain, +bestowed on the cities and corporations, or granted to the solicitations +of rapacious courtiers. After taking such effectual measures to abolish +the worship, and to dissolve the government of the Christians, it was +thought necessary to subject to the most intolerable hardships the +condition of those perverse individuals who should still reject the +religion of nature, of Rome, and of their ancestors. Persons of +a liberal birth were declared incapable of holding any honors or +employments; slaves were forever deprived of the hopes of freedom, and +the whole body of the people were put out of the protection of the law. +The judges were authorized to hear and to determine every action that +was brought against a Christian. But the Christians were not permitted +to complain of any injury which they themselves had suffered; and thus +those unfortunate sectaries were exposed to the severity, while they +were excluded from the benefits, of public justice. This new species of +martyrdom, so painful and lingering, so obscure and ignominious, was, +perhaps, the most proper to weary the constancy of the faithful: nor can +it be doubted that the passions and interest of mankind were disposed on +this occasion to second the designs of the emperors. But the policy of a +well-ordered government must sometimes have interposed in behalf of +the oppressed Christians; * nor was it possible for the Roman princes +entirely to remove the apprehension of punishment, or to connive at +every act of fraud and violence, without exposing their own authority +and the rest of their subjects to the most alarming dangers. + +This edict was scarcely exhibited to the public view, in the most +conspicuous place of Nicomedia, before it was torn down by the hands +of a Christian, who expressed at the same time, by the bitterest +invectives, his contempt as well as abhorrence for such impious and +tyrannical governors. His offence, according to the mildest laws, +amounted to treason, and deserved death. And if it be true that he was +a person of rank and education, those circumstances could serve only to +aggravate his guilt. He was burnt, or rather roasted, by a slow fire; +and his executioners, zealous to revenge the personal insult which had +been offered to the emperors, exhausted every refinement of cruelty, +without being able to subdue his patience, or to alter the steady and +insulting smile which in his dying agonies he still preserved in his +countenance. The Christians, though they confessed that his conduct +had not been strictly conformable to the laws of prudence, admired the +divine fervor of his zeal; and the excessive commendations which they +lavished on the memory of their hero and martyr, contributed to fix a +deep impression of terror and hatred in the mind of Diocletian. + +His fears were soon alarmed by the view of a danger from which he very +narrowly escaped. Within fifteen days the palace of Nicomedia, and even +the bed-chamber of Diocletian, were twice in flames; and though both +times they were extinguished without any material damage, the singular +repetition of the fire was justly considered as an evident proof that it +had not been the effect of chance or negligence. The suspicion naturally +fell on the Christians; and it was suggested, with some degree of +probability, that those desperate fanatics, provoked by their present +sufferings, and apprehensive of impending calamities, had entered into +a conspiracy with their faithful brethren, the eunuchs of the +palace, against the lives of two emperors, whom they detested as the +irreconcilable enemies of the church of God. Jealousy and resentment +prevailed in every breast, but especially in that of Diocletian. A great +number of persons, distinguished either by the offices which they had +filled, or by the favor which they had enjoyed, were thrown into prison. +Every mode of torture was put in practice, and the court, as well as +city, was polluted with many bloody executions. But as it was found +impossible to extort any discovery of this mysterious transaction, it +seems incumbent on us either to presume the innocence, or to admire the +resolution, of the sufferers. A few days afterwards Galerius hastily +withdrew himself from Nicomedia, declaring, that if he delayed his +departure from that devoted palace, he should fall a sacrifice to the +rage of the Christians. The ecclesiastical historians, from whom alone +we derive a partial and imperfect knowledge of this persecution, are at +a loss how to account for the fears and dangers of the emperors. Two +of these writers, a prince and a rhetorician, were eye-witnesses of +the fire of Nicomedia. The one ascribes it to lightning, and the divine +wrath; the other affirms, that it was kindled by the malice of Galerius +himself. + +As the edict against the Christians was designed for a general law of +the whole empire, and as Diocletian and Galerius, though they might not +wait for the consent, were assured of the concurrence, of the Western +princes, it would appear more consonant to our ideas of policy, that the +governors of all the provinces should have received secret instructions +to publish, on one and the same day, this declaration of war within +their respective departments. It was at least to be expected, that the +convenience of the public highways and established posts would have +enabled the emperors to transmit their orders with the utmost despatch +from the palace of Nicomedia to the extremities of the Roman world; and +that they would not have suffered fifty days to elapse, before the edict +was published in Syria, and near four months before it was signified to +the cities of Africa. This delay may perhaps be imputed to the cautious +temper of Diocletian, who had yielded a reluctant consent to the +measures of persecution, and who was desirous of trying the experiment +under his more immediate eye, before he gave way to the disorders and +discontent which it must inevitably occasion in the distant provinces. +At first, indeed, the magistrates were restrained from the effusion +of blood; but the use of every other severity was permitted, and +even recommended to their zeal; nor could the Christians, though +they cheerfully resigned the ornaments of their churches, resolve to +interrupt their religious assemblies, or to deliver their sacred books +to the flames. The pious obstinacy of Felix, an African bishop, appears +to have embarrassed the subordinate ministers of the government. The +curator of his city sent him in chains to the proconsul. The proconsul +transmitted him to the Prætorian præfect of Italy; and Felix, who +disdained even to give an evasive answer, was at length beheaded at +Venusia, in Lucania, a place on which the birth of Horace has conferred +fame. This precedent, and perhaps some Imperial rescript, which was +issued in consequence of it, appeared to authorize the governors of +provinces, in punishing with death the refusal of the Christians to +deliver up their sacred books. There were undoubtedly many persons who +embraced this opportunity of obtaining the crown of martyrdom; but there +were likewise too many who purchased an ignominious life, by discovering +and betraying the holy Scripture into the hands of infidels. A great +number even of bishops and presbyters acquired, by this criminal +compliance, the opprobrious epithet of Traditors; and their offence was +productive of much present scandal and of much future discord in the +African church. + +The copies as well as the versions of Scripture, were already so +multiplied in the empire, that the most severe inquisition could no +longer be attended with any fatal consequences; and even the sacrifice +of those volumes, which, in every congregation, were preserved for +public use, required the consent of some treacherous and unworthy +Christians. But the ruin of the churches was easily effected by the +authority of the government, and by the labor of the Pagans. In some +provinces, however, the magistrates contented themselves with shutting +up the places of religious worship. In others, they more literally +complied with the terms of the edict; and after taking away the doors, +the benches, and the pulpit, which they burnt as it were in a funeral +pile, they completely demolished the remainder of the edifice. It +is perhaps to this melancholy occasion that we should apply a very +remarkable story, which is related with so many circumstances of variety +and improbability, that it serves rather to excite than to satisfy +our curiosity. In a small town in Phrygia, of whose names as well as +situation we are left ignorant, it should seem that the magistrates and +the body of the people had embraced the Christian faith; and as some +resistance might be apprehended to the execution of the edict, the +governor of the province was supported by a numerous detachment of +legionaries. On their approach the citizens threw themselves into the +church, with the resolution either of defending by arms that sacred +edifice, or of perishing in its ruins. They indignantly rejected the +notice and permission which was given them to retire, till the soldiers, +provoked by their obstinate refusal, set fire to the building on all +sides, and consumed, by this extraordinary kind of martyrdom, a great +number of Phrygians, with their wives and children. + +Some slight disturbances, though they were suppressed almost as soon as +excited, in Syria and the frontiers of Armenia, afforded the enemies of +the church a very plausible occasion to insinuate, that those troubles +had been secretly fomented by the intrigues of the bishops, who +had already forgotten their ostentatious professions of passive and +unlimited obedience. The resentment, or the fears, of Diocletian, at +length transported him beyond the bounds of moderation, which he had +hitherto preserved, and he declared, in a series of cruel edicts, +his intention of abolishing the Christian name. By the first of these +edicts, the governors of the provinces were directed to apprehend all +persons of the ecclesiastical order; and the prisons, destined for +the vilest criminals, were soon filled with a multitude of bishops, +presbyters, deacons, readers, and exorcists. By a second edict, the +magistrates were commanded to employ every method of severity, which +might reclaim them from their odious superstition, and oblige them to +return to the established worship of the gods. This rigorous order was +extended, by a subsequent edict, to the whole body of Christians, who +were exposed to a violent and general persecution. Instead of those +salutary restraints, which had required the direct and solemn testimony +of an accuser, it became the duty as well as the interest of the +Imperial officers to discover, to pursue, and to torment the most +obnoxious among the faithful. Heavy penalties were denounced against +all who should presume to save a prescribed sectary from the just +indignation of the gods, and of the emperors. Yet, notwithstanding the +severity of this law, the virtuous courage of many of the Pagans, in +concealing their friends or relations, affords an honorable proof, +that the rage of superstition had not extinguished in their minds the +sentiments of nature and humanity. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part VII. + +Diocletian had no sooner published his edicts against the Christians, +than, as if he had been desirous of committing to other hands the +work of persecution, he divested himself of the Imperial purple. The +character and situation of his colleagues and successors sometimes urged +them to enforce and sometimes inclined them to suspend, the execution of +these rigorous laws; nor can we acquire a just and distinct idea of +this important period of ecclesiastical history, unless we separately +consider the state of Christianity, in the different parts of the +empire, during the space of ten years, which elapsed between the first +edicts of Diocletian and the final peace of the church. + +The mild and humane temper of Constantius was averse to the oppression +of any part of his subjects. The principal offices of his palace +were exercised by Christians. He loved their persons, esteemed their +fidelity, and entertained not any dislike to their religious principles. +But as long as Constantius remained in the subordinate station of Cæsar, +it was not in his power openly to reject the edicts of Diocletian, or to +disobey the commands of Maximian. His authority contributed, however, to +alleviate the sufferings which he pitied and abhorred. He consented with +reluctance to the ruin of the churches; but he ventured to protect the +Christians themselves from the fury of the populace, and from the rigor +of the laws. The provinces of Gaul (under which we may probably include +those of Britain) were indebted for the singular tranquillity which they +enjoyed, to the gentle interposition of their sovereign. But Datianus, +the president or governor of Spain, actuated either by zeal or policy, +chose rather to execute the public edicts of the emperors, than to +understand the secret intentions of Constantius; and it can scarcely be +doubted, that his provincial administration was stained with the blood +of a few martyrs. The elevation of Constantius to the supreme and +independent dignity of Augustus, gave a free scope to the exercise of +his virtues, and the shortness of his reign did not prevent him from +establishing a system of toleration, of which he left the precept and +the example to his son Constantine. His fortunate son, from the first +moment of his accession, declaring himself the protector of the church, +at length deserved the appellation of the first emperor who publicly +professed and established the Christian religion. The motives of his +conversion, as they may variously be deduced from benevolence, from +policy, from conviction, or from remorse, and the progress of the +revolution, which, under his powerful influence and that of his sons, +rendered Christianity the reigning religion of the Roman empire, will +form a very interesting and important chapter in the present volume of +this history. At present it may be sufficient to observe, that every +victory of Constantine was productive of some relief or benefit to the +church. + +The provinces of Italy and Africa experienced a short but violent +persecution. The rigorous edicts of Diocletian were strictly and +cheerfully executed by his associate Maximian, who had long hated the +Christians, and who delighted in acts of blood and violence. In the +autumn of the first year of the persecution, the two emperors met at +Rome to celebrate their triumph; several oppressive laws appear to +have issued from their secret consultations, and the diligence of the +magistrates was animated by the presence of their sovereigns., After +Diocletian had divested himself of the purple, Italy and Africa were +administered under the name of Severus, and were exposed, without +defence, to the implacable resentment of his master Galerius. Among the +martyrs of Rome, Adauctus deserves the notice of posterity. He was of +a noble family in Italy, and had raised himself, through the successive +honors of the palace, to the important office of treasurer of the +private Jemesnes. Adauctus is the more remarkable for being the only +person of rank and distinction who appears to have suffered death, +during the whole course of this general persecution. + +The revolt of Maxentius immediately restored peace to the churches of +Italy and Africa; and the same tyrant who oppressed every other class of +his subjects, showed himself just, humane, and even partial, towards the +afflicted Christians. He depended on their gratitude and affection, and +very naturally presumed, that the injuries which they had suffered, and +the dangers which they still apprehended from his most inveterate enemy, +would secure the fidelity of a party already considerable by their +numbers and opulence. Even the conduct of Maxentius towards the bishops +of Rome and Carthage may be considered as the proof of his toleration, +since it is probable that the most orthodox princes would adopt the same +measures with regard to their established clergy. Marcellus, the former +of these prelates, had thrown the capital into confusion, by the severe +penance which he imposed on a great number of Christians, who, during +the late persecution, had renounced or dissembled their religion. The +rage of faction broke out in frequent and violent seditions; the +blood of the faithful was shed by each other's hands, and the exile of +Marcellus, whose prudence seems to have been less eminent than his +zeal, was found to be the only measure capable of restoring peace to +the distracted church of Rome. The behavior of Mensurius, bishop of +Carthage, appears to have been still more reprehensible. A deacon of +that city had published a libel against the emperor. The offender took +refuge in the episcopal palace; and though it was somewhat early to +advance any claims of ecclesiastical immunities, the bishop refused +to deliver him up to the officers of justice. For this treasonable +resistance, Mensurius was summoned to court, and instead of receiving a +legal sentence of death or banishment, he was permitted, after a short +examination, to return to his diocese. Such was the happy condition of +the Christian subjects of Maxentius, that whenever they were desirous of +procuring for their own use any bodies of martyrs, they were obliged to +purchase them from the most distant provinces of the East. A story is +related of Aglæ, a Roman lady, descended from a consular family, and +possessed of so ample an estate, that it required the management of +seventy-three stewards. Among these Boniface was the favorite of his +mistress; and as Aglæ mixed love with devotion, it is reported that he +was admitted to share her bed. Her fortune enabled her to gratify +the pious desire of obtaining some sacred relics from the East. She +intrusted Boniface with a considerable sum of gold, and a large quantity +of aromatics; and her lover, attended by twelve horsemen and three +covered chariots, undertook a remote pilgrimage, as far as Tarsus in +Cilicia. + +The sanguinary temper of Galerius, the first and principal author of the +persecution, was formidable to those Christians whom their misfortunes +had placed within the limits of his dominions; and it may fairly be +presumed that many persons of a middle rank, who were not confined by +the chains either of wealth or of poverty, very frequently deserted +their native country, and sought a refuge in the milder climate of +the West. As long as he commanded only the armies and provinces of +Illyricum, he could with difficulty either find or make a considerable +number of martyrs, in a warlike country, which had entertained the +missionaries of the gospel with more coldness and reluctance than any +other part of the empire. But when Galerius had obtained the supreme +power, and the government of the East, he indulged in their fullest +extent his zeal and cruelty, not only in the provinces of Thrace and +Asia, which acknowledged his immediate jurisdiction, but in those +of Syria, Palestine, and Egypt, where Maximin gratified his own +inclination, by yielding a rigorous obedience to the stern commands of +his benefactor. The frequent disappointments of his ambitious views, +the experience of six years of persecution, and the salutary reflections +which a lingering and painful distemper suggested to the mind of +Galerius, at length convinced him that the most violent efforts of +despotism are insufficient to extirpate a whole people, or to subdue +their religious prejudices. Desirous of repairing the mischief that he +had occasioned, he published in his own name, and in those of Licinius +and Constantine, a general edict, which, after a pompous recital of the +Imperial titles, proceeded in the following manner:-- + +"Among the important cares which have occupied our mind for the utility +and preservation of the empire, it was our intention to correct +and reestablish all things according to the ancient laws and public +discipline of the Romans. We were particularly desirous of reclaiming +into the way of reason and nature, the deluded Christians who had +renounced the religion and ceremonies instituted by their fathers; +and presumptuously despising the practice of antiquity, had invented +extravagant laws and opinions, according to the dictates of their fancy, +and had collected a various society from the different provinces of our +empire. The edicts, which we have published to enforce the worship of +the gods, having exposed many of the Christians to danger and distress, +many having suffered death, and many more, who still persist in their +impious folly, being left destitute of any public exercise of religion, +we are disposed to extend to those unhappy men the effects of our wonted +clemency. We permit them therefore freely to profess their private +opinions, and to assemble in their conventicles without fear or +molestation, provided always that they preserve a due respect to the +established laws and government. By another rescript we shall signify +our intentions to the judges and magistrates; and we hope that our +indulgence will engage the Christians to offer up their prayers to the +Deity whom they adore, for our safety and prosperity for their own, and +for that of the republic." It is not usually in the language of edicts +and manifestos that we should search for the real character or the +secret motives of princes; but as these were the words of a dying +emperor, his situation, perhaps, may be admitted as a pledge of his +sincerity. + +When Galerius subscribed this edict of toleration, he was well assured +that Licinius would readily comply with the inclinations of his friend +and benefactor, and that any measures in favor of the Christians would +obtain the approbation of Constantine. But the emperor would not venture +to insert in the preamble the name of Maximin, whose consent was of +the greatest importance, and who succeeded a few days afterwards to the +provinces of Asia. In the first six months, however, of his new reign, +Maximin affected to adopt the prudent counsels of his predecessor; and +though he never condescended to secure the tranquillity of the church +by a public edict, Sabinus, his Prætorian præfect, addressed a +circular letter to all the governors and magistrates of the provinces, +expatiating on the Imperial clemency, acknowledging the invincible +obstinacy of the Christians, and directing the officers of justice +to cease their ineffectual prosecutions, and to connive at the secret +assemblies of those enthusiasts. In consequence of these orders, great +numbers of Christians were released from prison, or delivered from the +mines. The confessors, singing hymns of triumph, returned into their +own countries; and those who had yielded to the violence of the tempest, +solicited with tears of repentance their readmission into the bosom of +the church. + +But this treacherous calm was of short duration; nor could the +Christians of the East place any confidence in the character of their +sovereign. Cruelty and superstition were the ruling passions of the soul +of Maximin. The former suggested the means, the latter pointed out the +objects of persecution. The emperor was devoted to the worship of the +gods, to the study of magic, and to the belief of oracles. The prophets +or philosophers, whom he revered as the favorites of Heaven, were +frequently raised to the government of provinces, and admitted into his +most secret councils. They easily convinced him that the Christians had +been indebted for their victories to their regular discipline, and that +the weakness of polytheism had principally flowed from a want of +union and subordination among the ministers of religion. A system of +government was therefore instituted, which was evidently copied from the +policy of the church. In all the great cities of the empire, the +temples were repaired and beautified by the order of Maximin, and +the officiating priests of the various deities were subjected to the +authority of a superior pontiff destined to oppose the bishop, and to +promote the cause of paganism. These pontiffs acknowledged, in their +turn, the supreme jurisdiction of the metropolitans or high priests +of the province, who acted as the immediate vicegerents of the emperor +himself. A white robe was the ensign of their dignity; and these +new prelates were carefully selected from the most noble and opulent +families. By the influence of the magistrates, and of the sacerdotal +order, a great number of dutiful addresses were obtained, particularly +from the cities of Nicomedia, Antioch, and Tyre, which artfully +represented the well-known intentions of the court as the general sense +of the people; solicited the emperor to consult the laws of justice +rather than the dictates of his clemency; expressed their abhorrence of +the Christians, and humbly prayed that those impious sectaries might at +least be excluded from the limits of their respective territories. The +answer of Maximin to the address which he obtained from the citizens of +Tyre is still extant. He praises their zeal and devotion in terms of +the highest satisfaction, descants on the obstinate impiety of the +Christians, and betrays, by the readiness with which he consents to +their banishment, that he considered himself as receiving, rather than +as conferring, an obligation. The priests as well as the magistrates +were empowered to enforce the execution of his edicts, which were +engraved on tables of brass; and though it was recommended to them to +avoid the effusion of blood, the most cruel and ignominious punishments +were inflicted on the refractory Christians. + +The Asiatic Christians had every thing to dread from the severity of +a bigoted monarch who prepared his measures of violence with such +deliberate policy. But a few months had scarcely elapsed before the +edicts published by the two Western emperors obliged Maximin to suspend +the prosecution of his designs: the civil war which he so rashly +undertook against Licinius employed all his attention; and the defeat +and death of Maximin soon delivered the church from the last and most +implacable of her enemies. + +In this general view of the persecution, which was first authorized by +the edicts of Diocletian, I have purposely refrained from describing the +particular sufferings and deaths of the Christian martyrs. It would have +been an easy task, from the history of Eusebius, from the declamations +of Lactantius, and from the most ancient acts, to collect a long series +of horrid and disgustful pictures, and to fill many pages with racks and +scourges, with iron hooks and red-hot beds, and with all the variety +of tortures which fire and steel, savage beasts, and more savage +executioners, could inflict upon the human body. These melancholy scenes +might be enlivened by a crowd of visions and miracles destined either to +delay the death, to celebrate the triumph, or to discover the relics of +those canonized saints who suffered for the name of Christ. But I cannot +determine what I ought to transcribe, till I am satisfied how much I +ought to believe. The gravest of the ecclesiastical historians, Eusebius +himself, indirectly confesses, that he has related whatever might +redound to the glory, and that he has suppressed all that could tend to +the disgrace, of religion. Such an acknowledgment will naturally +excite a suspicion that a writer who has so openly violated one of the +fundamental laws of history, has not paid a very strict regard to the +observance of the other; and the suspicion will derive additional +credit from the character of Eusebius, * which was less tinctured with +credulity, and more practised in the arts of courts, than that of +almost any of his contemporaries. On some particular occasions, when +the magistrates were exasperated by some personal motives of interest or +resentment, the rules of prudence, and perhaps of decency, to overturn +the altars, to pour out imprecations against the emperors, or to strike +the judge as he sat on his tribunal, it may be presumed, that every mode +of torture which cruelty could invent, or constancy could endure, was +exhausted on those devoted victims. Two circumstances, however, have +been unwarily mentioned, which insinuate that the general treatment of +the Christians, who had been apprehended by the officers of justice, +was less intolerable than it is usually imagined to have been. 1. The +confessors who were condemned to work in the mines were permitted by the +humanity or the negligence of their keepers to build chapels, and freely +to profess their religion in the midst of those dreary habitations. 2. +The bishops were obliged to check and to censure the forward zeal of +the Christians, who voluntarily threw themselves into the hands of the +magistrates. Some of these were persons oppressed by poverty and debts, +who blindly sought to terminate a miserable existence by a glorious +death. Others were allured by the hope that a short confinement would +expiate the sins of a whole life; and others again were actuated by the +less honorable motive of deriving a plentiful subsistence, and perhaps +a considerable profit, from the alms which the charity of the faithful +bestowed on the prisoners. After the church had triumphed over all her +enemies, the interest as well as vanity of the captives prompted them to +magnify the merit of their respective sufferings. A convenient distance +of time or place gave an ample scope to the progress of fiction; and the +frequent instances which might be alleged of holy martyrs, whose wounds +had been instantly healed, whose strength had been renewed, and whose +lost members had miraculously been restored, were extremely convenient +for the purpose of removing every difficulty, and of silencing every +objection. The most extravagant legends, as they conduced to the honor +of the church, were applauded by the credulous multitude, countenanced +by the power of the clergy, and attested by the suspicious evidence of +ecclesiastical history. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part VIII. + +The vague descriptions of exile and imprisonment, of pain and torture, +are so easily exaggerated or softened by the pencil of an artful +orator, * that we are naturally induced to inquire into a fact of a more +distinct and stubborn kind; the number of persons who suffered death in +consequence of the edicts published by Diocletian, his associates, and +his successors. The recent legendaries record whole armies and +cities, which were at once swept away by the undistinguishing rage of +persecution. The more ancient writers content themselves with pouring +out a liberal effusion of loose and tragical invectives, without +condescending to ascertain the precise number of those persons who were +permitted to seal with their blood their belief of the gospel. From +the history of Eusebius, it may, however, be collected, that only nine +bishops were punished with death; and we are assured, by his particular +enumeration of the martyrs of Palestine, that no more than ninety-two +Christians were entitled to that honorable appellation. As we are +unacquainted with the degree of episcopal zeal and courage which +prevailed at that time, it is not in our power to draw any useful +inferences from the former of these facts: but the latter may serve +to justify a very important and probable conclusion. According to the +distribution of Roman provinces, Palestine may be considered as +the sixteenth part of the Eastern empire: and since there were some +governors, who from a real or affected clemency had preserved their +hands unstained with the blood of the faithful, it is reasonable +to believe, that the country which had given birth to Christianity, +produced at least the sixteenth part of the martyrs who suffered +death within the dominions of Galerius and Maximin; the whole might +consequently amount to about fifteen hundred, a number which, if it is +equally divided between the ten years of the persecution, will allow an +annual consumption of one hundred and fifty martyrs. Allotting the same +proportion to the provinces of Italy, Africa, and perhaps Spain, where, +at the end of two or three years, the rigor of the penal laws was either +suspended or abolished, the multitude of Christians in the Roman empire, +on whom a capital punishment was inflicted by a judicial, sentence, will +be reduced to somewhat less than two thousand persons. Since it cannot +be doubted that the Christians were more numerous, and their enemies +more exasperated, in the time of Diocletian, than they had ever been in +any former persecution, this probable and moderate computation may teach +us to estimate the number of primitive saints and martyrs who sacrificed +their lives for the important purpose of introducing Christianity into +the world. + +We shall conclude this chapter by a melancholy truth, which obtrudes +itself on the reluctant mind; that even admitting, without hesitation or +inquiry, all that history has recorded, or devotion has feigned, on +the subject of martyrdoms, it must still be acknowledged, that the +Christians, in the course of their intestine dissensions, have inflicted +far greater severities on each other, than they had experienced from +the zeal of infidels. During the ages of ignorance which followed the +subversion of the Roman empire in the West, the bishops of the Imperial +city extended their dominion over the laity as well as clergy of the +Latin church. The fabric of superstition which they had erected, and +which might long have defied the feeble efforts of reason, was at length +assaulted by a crowd of daring fanatics, who from the twelfth to the +sixteenth century assumed the popular character of reformers. The church +of Rome defended by violence the empire which she had acquired by fraud; +a system of peace and benevolence was soon disgraced by proscriptions, +war, massacres, and the institution of the holy office. And as the +reformers were animated by the love of civil as well as of religious +freedom, the Catholic princes connected their own interest with that of +the clergy, and enforced by fire and the sword the terrors of spiritual +censures. In the Netherlands alone, more than one hundred thousand of +the subjects of Charles V. are said to have suffered by the hand of the +executioner; and this extraordinary number is attested by Grotius, a man +of genius and learning, who preserved his moderation amidst the fury +of contending sects, and who composed the annals of his own age and +country, at a time when the invention of printing had facilitated the +means of intelligence, and increased the danger of detection. If we are +obliged to submit our belief to the authority of Grotius, it must be +allowed, that the number of Protestants, who were executed in a single +province and a single reign, far exceeded that of the primitive martyrs +in the space of three centuries, and of the Roman empire. But if the +improbability of the fact itself should prevail over the weight of +evidence; if Grotius should be convicted of exaggerating the merit and +sufferings of the Reformers; we shall be naturally led to inquire what +confidence can be placed in the doubtful and imperfect monuments of +ancient credulity; what degree of credit can be assigned to a courtly +bishop, and a passionate declaimer, * who, under the protection +of Constantine, enjoyed the exclusive privilege of recording the +persecutions inflicted on the Christians by the vanquished rivals or +disregarded predecessors of their gracious sovereign. + + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part I. + + Foundation Of Constantinople.--Political System Constantine, + And His Successors.--Military Discipline.--The Palace.--The + Finances. + +The unfortunate Licinius was the last rival who opposed the greatness, +and the last captive who adorned the triumph, of Constantine. After a +tranquil and prosperous reign, the conqueror bequeathed to his family +the inheritance of the Roman empire; a new capital, a new policy, and +a new religion; and the innovations which he established have been +embraced and consecrated by succeeding generations. The age of the +great Constantine and his sons is filled with important events; but +the historian must be oppressed by their number and variety, unless he +diligently separates from each other the scenes which are connected only +by the order of time. He will describe the political institutions that +gave strength and stability to the empire, before he proceeds to relate +the wars and revolutions which hastened its decline. He will adopt the +division unknown to the ancients of civil and ecclesiastical affairs: +the victory of the Christians, and their intestine discord, will supply +copious and distinct materials both for edification and for scandal. + +After the defeat and abdication of Licinius, his victorious rival +proceeded to lay the foundations of a city destined to reign in future +times, the mistress of the East, and to survive the empire and religion +of Constantine. The motives, whether of pride or of policy, which +first induced Diocletian to withdraw himself from the ancient seat +of government, had acquired additional weight by the example of +his successors, and the habits of forty years. Rome was insensibly +confounded with the dependent kingdoms which had once acknowledged +her supremacy; and the country of the Cæsars was viewed with cold +indifference by a martial prince, born in the neighborhood of the +Danube, educated in the courts and armies of Asia, and invested with +the purple by the legions of Britain. The Italians, who had received +Constantine as their deliverer, submissively obeyed the edicts which he +sometimes condescended to address to the senate and people of Rome; +but they were seldom honored with the presence of their new sovereign. +During the vigor of his age, Constantine, according to the various +exigencies of peace and war, moved with slow dignity, or with active +diligence, along the frontiers of his extensive dominions; and was +always prepared to take the field either against a foreign or a domestic +enemy. But as he gradually reached the summit of prosperity and the +decline of life, he began to meditate the design of fixing in a more +permanent station the strength as well as majesty of the throne. In the +choice of an advantageous situation, he preferred the confines of Europe +and Asia; to curb with a powerful arm the barbarians who dwelt between +the Danube and the Tanais; to watch with an eye of jealousy the conduct +of the Persian monarch, who indignantly supported the yoke of an +ignominious treaty. With these views, Diocletian had selected and +embellished the residence of Nicomedia: but the memory of Diocletian was +justly abhorred by the protector of the church: and Constantine was not +insensible to the ambition of founding a city which might perpetuate +the glory of his own name. During the late operations of the war against +Licinius, he had sufficient opportunity to contemplate, both as a +soldier and as a statesman, the incomparable position of Byzantium; +and to observe how strongly it was guarded by nature against a hostile +attack, whilst it was accessible on every side to the benefits of +commercial intercourse. Many ages before Constantine, one of the most +judicious historians of antiquity had described the advantages of a +situation, from whence a feeble colony of Greeks derived the command of +the sea, and the honors of a flourishing and independent republic. + +If we survey Byzantium in the extent which it acquired with the +august name of Constantinople, the figure of the Imperial city may be +represented under that of an unequal triangle. The obtuse point, which +advances towards the east and the shores of Asia, meets and repels +the waves of the Thracian Bosphorus. The northern side of the city is +bounded by the harbor; and the southern is washed by the Propontis, or +Sea of Marmara. The basis of the triangle is opposed to the west, and +terminates the continent of Europe. But the admirable form and division +of the circumjacent land and water cannot, without a more ample +explanation, be clearly or sufficiently understood. + +The winding channel through which the waters of the Euxine flow with +a rapid and incessant course towards the Mediterranean, received the +appellation of Bosphorus, a name not less celebrated in the history, +than in the fables, of antiquity. A crowd of temples and of votive +altars, profusely scattered along its steep and woody banks, attested +the unskilfulness, the terrors, and the devotion of the Grecian +navigators, who, after the example of the Argonauts, explored the +dangers of the inhospitable Euxine. On these banks tradition long +preserved the memory of the palace of Phineus, infested by the obscene +harpies; and of the sylvan reign of Amycus, who defied the son of Leda +to the combat of the cestus. The straits of the Bosphorus are terminated +by the Cyanean rocks, which, according to the description of the poets, +had once floated on the face of the waters; and were destined by the +gods to protect the entrance of the Euxine against the eye of profane +curiosity. From the Cyanean rocks to the point and harbor of Byzantium, +the winding length of the Bosphorus extends about sixteen miles, and its +most ordinary breadth may be computed at about one mile and a half. The +new castles of Europe and Asia are constructed, on either continent, +upon the foundations of two celebrated temples, of Serapis and of +Jupiter Urius. The oldcastles, a work of the Greek emperors, command +the narrowest part of the channel in a place where the opposite banks +advance within five hundred paces of each other. These fortresses were +destroyed and strengthened by Mahomet the Second, when he meditated the +siege of Constantinople: but the Turkish conqueror was most probably +ignorant, that near two thousand years before his reign, continents by +a bridge of boats. At a small distance from the old castles we discover +the little town of Chrysopolis, or Scutari, which may almost be +considered as the Asiatic suburb of Constantinople. The Bosphorus, as +it begins to open into the Propontis, passes between Byzantium and +Chalcedon. The latter of those cities was built by the Greeks, a +few years before the former; and the blindness of its founders, who +overlooked the superior advantages of the opposite coast, has been +stigmatized by a proverbial expression of contempt. + +The harbor of Constantinople, which may be considered as an arm of the +Bosphorus, obtained, in a very remote period, the denomination of the +Golden Horn. The curve which it describes might be compared to the horn +of a stag, or as it should seem, with more propriety, to that of an +ox. The epithet of golden was expressive of the riches which every wind +wafted from the most distant countries into the secure and capacious +port of Constantinople. The River Lycus, formed by the conflux of two +little streams, pours into the harbor a perpetual supply of fresh water, +which serves to cleanse the bottom, and to invite the periodical +shoals of fish to seek their retreat in that convenient recess. As the +vicissitudes of tides are scarcely felt in those seas, the constant +depth of the harbor allows goods to be landed on the quays without the +assistance of boats; and it has been observed, that in many places the +largest vessels may rest their prows against the houses, while their +sterns are floating in the water. From the mouth of the Lycus to that +of the harbor, this arm of the Bosphorus is more than seven miles in +length. The entrance is about five hundred yards broad, and a strong +chain could be occasionally drawn across it, to guard the port and city +from the attack of a hostile navy. + +Between the Bosphorus and the Hellespont, the shores of Europe and Asia, +receding on either side, enclose the sea of Marmara, which was known to +the ancients by the denomination of Propontis. The navigation from the +issue of the Bosphorus to the entrance of the Hellespont is about one +hundred and twenty miles. Those who steer their westward course through +the middle of the Propontis, amt at once descry the high lands of Thrace +and Bithynia, and never lose sight of the lofty summit of Mount Olympus, +covered with eternal snows. They leave on the left a deep gulf, at +the bottom of which Nicomedia was seated, the Imperial residence of +Diocletian; and they pass the small islands of Cyzicus and Proconnesus +before they cast anchor at Gallipoli; where the sea, which separates +Asia from Europe, is again contracted into a narrow channel. + +The geographers who, with the most skilful accuracy, have surveyed the +form and extent of the Hellespont, assign about sixty miles for the +winding course, and about three miles for the ordinary breadth of those +celebrated straits. But the narrowest part of the channel is found to +the northward of the old Turkish castles between the cities of Sestus +and Abydus. It was here that the adventurous Leander braved the passage +of the flood for the possession of his mistress. It was here likewise, +in a place where the distance between the opposite banks cannot exceed +five hundred paces, that Xerxes imposed a stupendous bridge of boats, +for the purpose of transporting into Europe a hundred and seventy +myriads of barbarians. A sea contracted within such narrow limits may +seem but ill to deserve the singular epithet of broad, which Homer, as +well as Orpheus, has frequently bestowed on the Hellespont. * But +our ideas of greatness are of a relative nature: the traveller, and +especially the poet, who sailed along the Hellespont, who pursued +the windings of the stream, and contemplated the rural scenery, which +appeared on every side to terminate the prospect, insensibly lost the +remembrance of the sea; and his fancy painted those celebrated straits, +with all the attributes of a mighty river flowing with a swift current, +in the midst of a woody and inland country, and at length, through a +wide mouth, discharging itself into the Ægean or Archipelago. Ancient +Troy, seated on a an eminence at the foot of Mount Ida, overlooked the +mouth of the Hellespont, which scarcely received an accession of waters +from the tribute of those immortal rivulets the Simois and Scamander. +The Grecian camp had stretched twelve miles along the shore from the +Sigæan to the Rhætean promontory; and the flanks of the army were +guarded by the bravest chiefs who fought under the banners of Agamemnon. +The first of those promontories was occupied by Achilles with his +invincible myrmidons, and the dauntless Ajax pitched his tents on the +other. After Ajax had fallen a sacrifice to his disappointed pride, +and to the ingratitude of the Greeks, his sepulchre was erected on the +ground where he had defended the navy against the rage of Jove and of +Hector; and the citizens of the rising town of Rhæteum celebrated his +memory with divine honors. Before Constantine gave a just preference to +the situation of Byzantium, he had conceived the design of erecting the +seat of empire on this celebrated spot, from whence the Romans derived +their fabulous origin. The extensive plain which lies below ancient +Troy, towards the Rhætean promontory and the tomb of Ajax, was first +chosen for his new capital; and though the undertaking was soon +relinquished the stately remains of unfinished walls and towers +attracted the notice of all who sailed through the straits of the +Hellespont. + +We are at present qualified to view the advantageous position of +Constantinople; which appears to have been formed by nature for the +centre and capital of a great monarchy. Situated in the forty-first +degree of latitude, the Imperial city commanded, from her seven hills, +the opposite shores of Europe and Asia; the climate was healthy and +temperate, the soil fertile, the harbor secure and capacious; and the +approach on the side of the continent was of small extent and easy +defence. The Bosphorus and the Hellespont may be considered as the two +gates of Constantinople; and the prince who possessed those important +passages could always shut them against a naval enemy, and open them to +the fleets of commerce. The preservation of the eastern provinces +may, in some degree, be ascribed to the policy of Constantine, as the +barbarians of the Euxine, who in the preceding age had poured their +armaments into the heart of the Mediterranean, soon desisted from +the exercise of piracy, and despaired of forcing this insurmountable +barrier. When the gates of the Hellespont and Bosphorus were shut, the +capital still enjoyed within their spacious enclosure every production +which could supply the wants, or gratify the luxury, of its numerous +inhabitants. The sea-coasts of Thrace and Bithynia, which languish +under the weight of Turkish oppression, still exhibit a rich prospect of +vineyards, of gardens, and of plentiful harvests; and the Propontis +has ever been renowned for an inexhaustible store of the most exquisite +fish, that are taken in their stated seasons, without skill, and almost +without labor. But when the passages of the straits were thrown open for +trade, they alternately admitted the natural and artificial riches of +the north and south, of the Euxine, and of the Mediterranean. Whatever +rude commodities were collected in the forests of Germany and Scythia, +and far as the sources of the Tanais and the Borysthenes; whatsoever was +manufactured by the skill of Europe or Asia; the corn of Egypt, and the +gems and spices of the farthest India, were brought by the varying +winds into the port of Constantinople, which for many ages attracted the +commerce of the ancient world. + +[See Basilica Of Constantinople] + +The prospect of beauty, of safety, and of wealth, united in a single +spot, was sufficient to justify the choice of Constantine. But as some +decent mixture of prodigy and fable has, in every age, been supposed to +reflect a becoming majesty on the origin of great cities, the emperor +was desirous of ascribing his resolution, not so much to the uncertain +counsels of human policy, as to the infallible and eternal decrees +of divine wisdom. In one of his laws he has been careful to instruct +posterity, that in obedience to the commands of God, he laid the +everlasting foundations of Constantinople: and though he has not +condescended to relate in what manner the celestial inspiration was +communicated to his mind, the defect of his modest silence has been +liberally supplied by the ingenuity of succeeding writers; who describe +the nocturnal vision which appeared to the fancy of Constantine, as he +slept within the walls of Byzantium. The tutelar genius of the city, a +venerable matron sinking under the weight of years and infirmities, was +suddenly transformed into a blooming maid, whom his own hands adorned +with all the symbols of Imperial greatness. The monarch awoke, +interpreted the auspicious omen, and obeyed, without hesitation, +the will of Heaven The day which gave birth to a city or colony was +celebrated by the Romans with such ceremonies as had been ordained by +a generous superstition; and though Constantine might omit some rites +which savored too strongly of their Pagan origin, yet he was anxious +to leave a deep impression of hope and respect on the minds of the +spectators. On foot, with a lance in his hand, the emperor himself led +the solemn procession; and directed the line, which was traced as the +boundary of the destined capital: till the growing circumference was +observed with astonishment by the assistants, who, at length, ventured +to observe, that he had already exceeded the most ample measure of a +great city. "I shall still advance," replied Constantine, "till He, the +invisible guide who marches before me, thinks proper to stop." Without +presuming to investigate the nature or motives of this extraordinary +conductor, we shall content ourselves with the more humble task of +describing the extent and limits of Constantinople. + +In the actual state of the city, the palace and gardens of the Seraglio +occupy the eastern promontory, the first of the seven hills, and cover +about one hundred and fifty acres of our own measure. The seat of +Turkish jealousy and despotism is erected on the foundations of a +Grecian republic; but it may be supposed that the Byzantines were +tempted by the conveniency of the harbor to extend their habitations +on that side beyond the modern limits of the Seraglio. The new walls of +Constantine stretched from the port to the Propontis across the enlarged +breadth of the triangle, at the distance of fifteen stadia from the +ancient fortification; and with the city of Byzantium they enclosed +five of the seven hills, which, to the eyes of those who approach +Constantinople, appear to rise above each other in beautiful order. +About a century after the death of the founder, the new buildings, +extending on one side up the harbor, and on the other along the +Propontis, already covered the narrow ridge of the sixth, and the broad +summit of the seventh hill. The necessity of protecting those suburbs +from the incessant inroads of the barbarians engaged the younger +Theodosius to surround his capital with an adequate and permanent +enclosure of walls. From the eastern promontory to the golden gate, +the extreme length of Constantinople was about three Roman miles; the +circumference measured between ten and eleven; and the surface might be +computed as equal to about two thousand English acres. It is impossible +to justify the vain and credulous exaggerations of modern travellers, +who have sometimes stretched the limits of Constantinople over the +adjacent villages of the European, and even of the Asiatic coast. But +the suburbs of Pera and Galata, though situate beyond the harbor, may +deserve to be considered as a part of the city; and this addition may +perhaps authorize the measure of a Byzantine historian, who assigns +sixteen Greek (about fourteen Roman) miles for the circumference of +his native city. Such an extent may not seem unworthy of an Imperial +residence. Yet Constantinople must yield to Babylon and Thebes, to +ancient Rome, to London, and even to Paris. + + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part II. + +The master of the Roman world, who aspired to erect an eternal monument +of the glories of his reign could employ in the prosecution of that +great work, the wealth, the labor, and all that yet remained of the +genius of obedient millions. Some estimate may be formed of the expense +bestowed with Imperial liberality on the foundation of Constantinople, +by the allowance of about two millions five hundred thousand pounds +for the construction of the walls, the porticos, and the aqueducts. The +forests that overshadowed the shores of the Euxine, and the celebrated +quarries of white marble in the little island of Proconnesus, supplied +an inexhaustible stock of materials, ready to be conveyed, by the +convenience of a short water carriage, to the harbor of Byzantium. A +multitude of laborers and artificers urged the conclusion of the work +with incessant toil: but the impatience of Constantine soon discovered, +that, in the decline of the arts, the skill as well as numbers of +his architects bore a very unequal proportion to the greatness of his +designs. The magistrates of the most distant provinces were therefore +directed to institute schools, to appoint professors, and by the hopes +of rewards and privileges, to engage in the study and practice of +architecture a sufficient number of ingenious youths, who had received +a liberal education. The buildings of the new city were executed by +such artificers as the reign of Constantine could afford; but they were +decorated by the hands of the most celebrated masters of the age of +Pericles and Alexander. To revive the genius of Phidias and Lysippus, +surpassed indeed the power of a Roman emperor; but the immortal +productions which they had bequeathed to posterity were exposed without +defence to the rapacious vanity of a despot. By his commands the cities +of Greece and Asia were despoiled of their most valuable ornaments. The +trophies of memorable wars, the objects of religious veneration, the +most finished statues of the gods and heroes, of the sages and poets, +of ancient times, contributed to the splendid triumph of Constantinople; +and gave occasion to the remark of the historian Cedrenus, who observes, +with some enthusiasm, that nothing seemed wanting except the souls of +the illustrious men whom these admirable monuments were intended +to represent. But it is not in the city of Constantine, nor in the +declining period of an empire, when the human mind was depressed by +civil and religious slavery, that we should seek for the souls of Homer +and of Demosthenes. + +During the siege of Byzantium, the conqueror had pitched his tent on the +commanding eminence of the second hill. To perpetuate the memory of +his success, he chose the same advantageous position for the principal +Forum; which appears to have been of a circular, or rather elliptical +form. The two opposite entrances formed triumphal arches; the porticos, +which enclosed it on every side, were filled with statues; and the +centre of the Forum was occupied by a lofty column, of which a mutilated +fragment is now degraded by the appellation of the burnt pillar. This +column was erected on a pedestal of white marble twenty feet high; and +was composed of ten pieces of porphyry, each of which measured about ten +feet in height, and about thirty-three in circumference. On the summit +of the pillar, above one hundred and twenty feet from the ground, stood +the colossal statue of Apollo. It was a bronze, had been transported +either from Athens or from a town of Phrygia, and was supposed to be the +work of Phidias. The artist had represented the god of day, or, as it +was afterwards interpreted, the emperor Constantine himself, with a +sceptre in his right hand, the globe of the world in his left, and a +crown of rays glittering on his head. The Circus, or Hippodrome, was a +stately building about four hundred paces in length, and one hundred in +breadth. The space between the two met or goals were filled with statues +and obelisks; and we may still remark a very singular fragment of +antiquity; the bodies of three serpents, twisted into one pillar of +brass. Their triple heads had once supported the golden tripod which, +after the defeat of Xerxes, was consecrated in the temple of Delphi by +the victorious Greeks. The beauty of the Hippodrome has been long since +defaced by the rude hands of the Turkish conquerors; but, under the +similar appellation of Atmeidan, it still serves as a place of exercise +for their horses. From the throne, whence the emperor viewed the +Circensian games, a winding staircase descended to the palace; a +magnificent edifice, which scarcely yielded to the residence of Rome +itself, and which, together with the dependent courts, gardens, and +porticos, covered a considerable extent of ground upon the banks of the +Propontis between the Hippodrome and the church of St. Sophia. We +might likewise celebrate the baths, which still retained the name +of Zeuxippus, after they had been enriched, by the munificence of +Constantine, with lofty columns, various marbles, and above threescore +statues of bronze. But we should deviate from the design of this +history, if we attempted minutely to describe the different buildings +or quarters of the city. It may be sufficient to observe, that whatever +could adorn the dignity of a great capital, or contribute to the benefit +or pleasure of its numerous inhabitants, was contained within the walls +of Constantinople. A particular description, composed about a century +after its foundation, enumerates a capitol or school of learning, a +circus, two theatres, eight public, and one hundred and fifty-three +private baths, fifty-two porticos, five granaries, eight aqueducts or +reservoirs of water, four spacious halls for the meetings of the senate +or courts of justice, fourteen churches, fourteen palaces, and four +thousand three hundred and eighty-eight houses, which, for their size +or beauty, deserved to be distinguished from the multitude of plebeian +inhabitants. + +The populousness of his favored city was the next and most serious +object of the attention of its founder. In the dark ages which succeeded +the translation of the empire, the remote and the immediate consequences +of that memorable event were strangely confounded by the vanity of the +Greeks and the credulity of the Latins. It was asserted, and believed, +that all the noble families of Rome, the senate, and the equestrian +order, with their innumerable attendants, had followed their emperor +to the banks of the Propontis; that a spurious race of strangers and +plebeians was left to possess the solitude of the ancient capital; and +that the lands of Italy, long since converted into gardens, were at once +deprived of cultivation and inhabitants. In the course of this history, +such exaggerations will be reduced to their just value: yet, since the +growth of Constantinople cannot be ascribed to the general increase of +mankind and of industry, it must be admitted that this artificial colony +was raised at the expense of the ancient cities of the empire. Many +opulent senators of Rome, and of the eastern provinces, were probably +invited by Constantine to adopt for their country the fortunate spot, +which he had chosen for his own residence. The invitations of a master +are scarcely to be distinguished from commands; and the liberality of +the emperor obtained a ready and cheerful obedience. He bestowed on his +favorites the palaces which he had built in the several quarters of the +city, assigned them lands and pensions for the support of their dignity, +and alienated the demesnes of Pontus and Asia to grant hereditary +estates by the easy tenure of maintaining a house in the capital. But +these encouragements and obligations soon became superfluous, and +were gradually abolished. Wherever the seat of government is fixed, a +considerable part of the public revenue will be expended by the prince +himself, by his ministers, by the officers of justice, and by the +domestics of the palace. The most wealthy of the provincials will be +attracted by the powerful motives of interest and duty, of amusement +and curiosity. A third and more numerous class of inhabitants will +insensibly be formed, of servants, of artificers, and of merchants, who +derive their subsistence from their own labor, and from the wants or +luxury of the superior ranks. In less than a century, Constantinople +disputed with Rome itself the preeminence of riches and numbers. New +piles of buildings, crowded together with too little regard to health +or convenience, scarcely allowed the intervals of narrow streets for the +perpetual throng of men, of horses, and of carriages. The allotted space +of ground was insufficient to contain the increasing people; and the +additional foundations, which, on either side, were advanced into the +sea, might alone have composed a very considerable city. + +The frequent and regular distributions of wine and oil, of corn or +bread, of money or provisions, had almost exempted the poorest citizens +of Rome from the necessity of labor. The magnificence of the first +Cæsars was in some measure imitated by the founder of Constantinople: +but his liberality, however it might excite the applause of the people, +has in curred the censure of posterity. A nation of legislators and +conquerors might assert their claim to the harvests of Africa, which +had been purchased with their blood; and it was artfully contrived by +Augustus, that, in the enjoyment of plenty, the Romans should lose +the memory of freedom. But the prodigality of Constantine could not be +excused by any consideration either of public or private interest; and +the annual tribute of corn imposed upon Egypt for the benefit of his +new capital, was applied to feed a lazy and insolent populace, at the +expense of the husbandmen of an industrious province. * Some other +regulations of this emperor are less liable to blame, but they are less +deserving of notice. He divided Constantinople into fourteen regions or +quarters, dignified the public council with the appellation of senate, +communicated to the citizens the privileges of Italy, and bestowed on +the rising city the title of Colony, the first and most favored daughter +of ancient Rome. The venerable parent still maintained the legal and +acknowledged supremacy, which was due to her age, her dignity, and to +the remembrance of her former greatness. + +As Constantine urged the progress of the work with the impatience of +a lover, the walls, the porticos, and the principal edifices were +completed in a few years, or, according to another account, in a +few months; but this extraordinary diligence should excite the less +admiration, since many of the buildings were finished in so hasty and +imperfect a manner, that under the succeeding reign, they were preserved +with difficulty from impending ruin. But while they displayed the vigor +and freshness of youth, the founder prepared to celebrate the dedication +of his city. The games and largesses which crowned the pomp of this +memorable festival may easily be supposed; but there is one circumstance +of a more singular and permanent nature, which ought not entirely to be +overlooked. As often as the birthday of the city returned, the statute +of Constantine, framed by his order, of gilt wood, and bearing in his +right hand a small image of the genius of the place, was erected on a +triumphal car. The guards, carrying white tapers, and clothed in their +richest apparel, accompanied the solemn procession as it moved through +the Hippodrome. When it was opposite to the throne of the reigning +emperor, he rose from his seat, and with grateful reverence adored the +memory of his predecessor. At the festival of the dedication, an edict, +engraved on a column of marble, bestowed the title of Second or New Rome +on the city of Constantine. But the name of Constantinople has prevailed +over that honorable epithet; and after the revolution of fourteen +centuries, still perpetuates the fame of its author. + +The foundation of a new capital is naturally connected with the +establishment of a new form of civil and military administration. +The distinct view of the complicated system of policy, introduced by +Diocletian, improved by Constantine, and completed by his immediate +successors, may not only amuse the fancy by the singular picture of a +great empire, but will tend to illustrate the secret and internal causes +of its rapid decay. In the pursuit of any remarkable institution, we may +be frequently led into the more early or the more recent times of the +Roman history; but the proper limits of this inquiry will be included +within a period of about one hundred and thirty years, from the +accession of Constantine to the publication of the Theodosian code; from +which, as well as from the Notitia * of the East and West, we derive the +most copious and authentic information of the state of the empire. +This variety of objects will suspend, for some time, the course of the +narrative; but the interruption will be censured only by those readers +who are insensible to the importance of laws and manners, while they +peruse, with eager curiosity, the transient intrigues of a court, or the +accidental event of a battle. + + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part III. + +The manly pride of the Romans, content with substantial power, had +left to the vanity of the East the forms and ceremonies of ostentatious +greatness. But when they lost even the semblance of those virtues which +were derived from their ancient freedom, the simplicity of Roman manners +was insensibly corrupted by the stately affectation of the courts of +Asia. The distinctions of personal merit and influence, so conspicuous +in a republic, so feeble and obscure under a monarchy, were abolished +by the despotism of the emperors; who substituted in their room a severe +subordination of rank and office from the titled slaves who were seated +on the steps of the throne, to the meanest instruments of arbitrary +power. This multitude of abject dependants was interested in the support +of the actual government from the dread of a revolution, which might at +once confound their hopes and intercept the reward of their services. In +this divine hierarchy (for such it is frequently styled) every rank was +marked with the most scrupulous exactness, and its dignity was displayed +in a variety of trifling and solemn ceremonies, which it was a study to +learn, and a sacrilege to neglect. The purity of the Latin language +was debased, by adopting, in the intercourse of pride and flattery, a +profusion of epithets, which Tully would scarcely have understood, +and which Augustus would have rejected with indignation. The principal +officers of the empire were saluted, even by the sovereign himself, with +the deceitful titles of your Sincerity, your Gravity, your Excellency, +your Eminence, your sublime and wonderful Magnitude, your illustrious +and magnificent Highness. The codicils or patents of their office were +curiously emblazoned with such emblems as were best adapted to explain +its nature and high dignity; the image or portrait of the reigning +emperors; a triumphal car; the book of mandates placed on a table, +covered with a rich carpet, and illuminated by four tapers; the +allegorical figures of the provinces which they governed; or the +appellations and standards of the troops whom they commanded Some of +these official ensigns were really exhibited in their hall of audience; +others preceded their pompous march whenever they appeared in public; +and every circumstance of their demeanor, their dress, their ornaments, +and their train, was calculated to inspire a deep reverence for the +representatives of supreme majesty. By a philosophic observer, the +system of the Roman government might have been mistaken for a splendid +theatre, filled with players of every character and degree, who repeated +the language, and imitated the passions, of their original model. + +All the magistrates of sufficient importance to find a place in the +general state of the empire, were accurately divided into three classes. +1. The Illustrious. 2. The Spectabiles, or Respectable. And, 3. the +Clarissimi; whom we may translate by the word Honorable. In the times +of Roman simplicity, the last-mentioned epithet was used only as a +vague expression of deference, till it became at length the peculiar +and appropriated title of all who were members of the senate, and +consequently of all who, from that venerable body, were selected to +govern the provinces. The vanity of those who, from their rank and +office, might claim a superior distinction above the rest of the +senatorial order, was long afterwards indulged with the new appellation +of Respectable; but the title of Illustrious was always reserved to some +eminent personages who were obeyed or reverenced by the two subordinate +classes. It was communicated only, I. To the consuls and patricians; II. +To the Prætorian præfects, with the præfects of Rome and Constantinople; +III. To the masters-general of the cavalry and the infantry; and IV. To +the seven ministers of the palace, who exercised their sacred functions +about the person of the emperor. Among those illustrious magistrates who +were esteemed coordinate with each other, the seniority of appointment +gave place to the union of dignities. By the expedient of honorary +codicils, the emperors, who were fond of multiplying their favors, might +sometimes gratify the vanity, though not the ambition, of impatient +courtiers. + +I. As long as the Roman consuls were the first magistrates of a free +state, they derived their right to power from the choice of the people. +As long as the emperors condescended to disguise the servitude which +they imposed, the consuls were still elected by the real or apparent +suffrage of the senate. From the reign of Diocletian, even these +vestiges of liberty were abolished, and the successful candidates who +were invested with the annual honors of the consulship, affected to +deplore the humiliating condition of their predecessors. The Scipios and +the Catos had been reduced to solicit the votes of plebeians, to pass +through the tedious and expensive forms of a popular election, and to +expose their dignity to the shame of a public refusal; while their own +happier fate had reserved them for an age and government in which the +rewards of virtue were assigned by the unerring wisdom of a gracious +sovereign. In the epistles which the emperor addressed to the two +consuls elect, it was declared, that they were created by his sole +authority. Their names and portraits, engraved on gilt tables of ivory, +were dispersed over the empire as presents to the provinces, the cities, +the magistrates, the senate, and the people. Their solemn inauguration +was performed at the place of the Imperial residence; and during a +period of one hundred and twenty years, Rome was constantly deprived of +the presence of her ancient magistrates. On the morning of the first of +January, the consuls assumed the ensigns of their dignity. Their dress +was a robe of purple, embroidered in silk and gold, and sometimes +ornamented with costly gems. On this solemn occasion they were attended +by the most eminent officers of the state and army, in the habit of +senators; and the useless fasces, armed with the once formidable axes, +were borne before them by the lictors. The procession moved from the +palace to the Forum or principal square of the city; where the consuls +ascended their tribunal, and seated themselves in the curule chairs, +which were framed after the fashion of ancient times. They immediately +exercised an act of jurisdiction, by the manumission of a slave, who was +brought before them for that purpose; and the ceremony was intended +to represent the celebrated action of the elder Brutus, the author +of liberty and of the consulship, when he admitted among his +fellow-citizens the faithful Vindex, who had revealed the conspiracy of +the Tarquins. The public festival was continued during several days in +all the principal cities in Rome, from custom; in Constantinople, +from imitation in Carthage, Antioch, and Alexandria, from the love of +pleasure, and the superfluity of wealth. In the two capitals of +the empire the annual games of the theatre, the circus, and the +amphitheatre, cost four thousand pounds of gold, (about) one hundred and +sixty thousand pounds sterling: and if so heavy an expense surpassed the +faculties or the inclinations of the magistrates themselves, the sum +was supplied from the Imperial treasury. As soon as the consuls had +discharged these customary duties, they were at liberty to retire into +the shade of private life, and to enjoy, during the remainder of the +year, the undisturbed contemplation of their own greatness. They no +longer presided in the national councils; they no longer executed the +resolutions of peace or war. Their abilities (unless they were employed +in more effective offices) were of little moment; and their names served +only as the legal date of the year in which they had filled the chair +of Marius and of Cicero. Yet it was still felt and acknowledged, in the +last period of Roman servitude, that this empty name might be compared, +and even preferred, to the possession of substantial power. The title +of consul was still the most splendid object of ambition, the noblest +reward of virtue and loyalty. The emperors themselves, who disdained +the faint shadow of the republic, were conscious that they acquired +an additional splendor and majesty as often as they assumed the annual +honors of the consular dignity. + +The proudest and most perfect separation which can be found in any age +or country, between the nobles and the people, is perhaps that of the +Patricians and the Plebeians, as it was established in the first age of +the Roman republic. Wealth and honors, the offices of the state, and the +ceremonies of religion, were almost exclusively possessed by the former +who, preserving the purity of their blood with the most insulting +jealousy, held their clients in a condition of specious vassalage. But +these distinctions, so incompatible with the spirit of a free people, +were removed, after a long struggle, by the persevering efforts of the +Tribunes. The most active and successful of the Plebeians accumulated +wealth, aspired to honors, deserved triumphs, contracted alliances, +and, after some generations, assumed the pride of ancient nobility. The +Patrician families, on the other hand, whose original number was +never recruited till the end of the commonwealth, either failed in the +ordinary course of nature, or were extinguished in so many foreign +and domestic wars, or, through a want of merit or fortune, insensibly +mingled with the mass of the people. Very few remained who could derive +their pure and genuine origin from the infancy of the city, or even from +that of the republic, when Cæsar and Augustus, Claudius and Vespasian, +created from the body of the senate a competent number of new Patrician +families, in the hope of perpetuating an order, which was still +considered as honorable and sacred. But these artificial supplies (in +which the reigning house was always included) were rapidly swept away by +the rage of tyrants, by frequent revolutions, by the change of +manners, and by the intermixture of nations. Little more was left when +Constantine ascended the throne, than a vague and imperfect tradition, +that the Patricians had once been the first of the Romans. To form +a body of nobles, whose influence may restrain, while it secures the +authority of the monarch, would have been very inconsistent with the +character and policy of Constantine; but had he seriously entertained +such a design, it might have exceeded the measure of his power to +ratify, by an arbitrary edict, an institution which must expect the +sanction of time and of opinion. He revived, indeed, the title of +Patricians, but he revived it as a personal, not as an hereditary +distinction. They yielded only to the transient superiority of the +annual consuls; but they enjoyed the pre-eminence over all the great +officers of state, with the most familiar access to the person of the +prince. This honorable rank was bestowed on them for life; and as they +were usually favorites, and ministers who had grown old in the Imperial +court, the true etymology of the word was perverted by ignorance and +flattery; and the Patricians of Constantine were reverenced as the +adopted Fathers of the emperor and the republic. + +II. The fortunes of the Prætorian præfects were essentially different +from those of the consuls and Patricians. The latter saw their ancient +greatness evaporate in a vain title. The former, rising by degrees from +the most humble condition, were invested with the civil and military +administration of the Roman world. From the reign of Severus to that of +Diocletian, the guards and the palace, the laws and the finances, the +armies and the provinces, were intrusted to their superintending care; +and, like the Viziers of the East, they held with one hand the seal, +and with the other the standard, of the empire. The ambition of the +præfects, always formidable, and sometimes fatal to the masters whom +they served, was supported by the strength of the Prætorian bands; but +after those haughty troops had been weakened by Diocletian, and finally +suppressed by Constantine, the præfects, who survived their fall, +were reduced without difficulty to the station of useful and obedient +ministers. When they were no longer responsible for the safety of the +emperor's person, they resigned the jurisdiction which they had hitherto +claimed and exercised over all the departments of the palace. They were +deprived by Constantine of all military command, as soon as they had +ceased to lead into the field, under their immediate orders, the flower +of the Roman troops; and at length, by a singular revolution, the +captains of the guards were transformed into the civil magistrates +of the provinces. According to the plan of government instituted by +Diocletian, the four princes had each their Prætorian præfect; and after +the monarchy was once more united in the person of Constantine, he still +continued to create the same number of Four Præfects, and intrusted to +their care the same provinces which they already administered. 1. The +præfect of the East stretched his ample jurisdiction into the three +parts of the globe which were subject to the Romans, from the cataracts +of the Nile to the banks of the Phasis, and from the mountains of Thrace +to the frontiers of Persia. 2. The important provinces of Pannonia, +Dacia, Macedonia, and Greece, once acknowledged the authority of the +præfect of Illyricum. 3. The power of the præfect of Italy was not +confined to the country from whence he derived his title; it extended +over the additional territory of Rhætia as far as the banks of the +Danube, over the dependent islands of the Mediterranean, and over that +part of the continent of Africa which lies between the confines of +Cyrene and those of Tingitania. 4. The præfect of the Gauls comprehended +under that plural denomination the kindred provinces of Britain and +Spain, and his authority was obeyed from the wall of Antoninus to the +foot of Mount Atlas. + +After the Prætorian præfects had been dismissed from all military +command, the civil functions which they were ordained to exercise over +so many subject nations, were adequate to the ambition and abilities of +the most consummate ministers. To their wisdom was committed the supreme +administration of justice and of the finances, the two objects which, +in a state of peace, comprehend almost all the respective duties of the +sovereign and of the people; of the former, to protect the citizens +who are obedient to the laws; of the latter, to contribute the share +of their property which is required for the expenses of the state. The +coin, the highways, the posts, the granaries, the manufactures, whatever +could interest the public prosperity, was moderated by the authority of +the Prætorian præfects. As the immediate representatives of the Imperial +majesty, they were empowered to explain, to enforce, and on some +occasions to modify, the general edicts by their discretionary +proclamations. They watched over the conduct of the provincial +governors, removed the negligent, and inflicted punishments on the +guilty. From all the inferior jurisdictions, an appeal in every matter +of importance, either civil or criminal, might be brought before the +tribunal of the præfect; but his sentence was final and absolute; and +the emperors themselves refused to admit any complaints against the +judgment or the integrity of a magistrate whom they honored with such +unbounded confidence. His appointments were suitable to his dignity; and +if avarice was his ruling passion, he enjoyed frequent opportunities +of collecting a rich harvest of fees, of presents, and of perquisites. +Though the emperors no longer dreaded the ambition of their præfects, +they were attentive to counterbalance the power of this great office by +the uncertainty and shortness of its duration. + +From their superior importance and dignity, Rome and Constantinople +were alone excepted from the jurisdiction of the Prætorian præfects. The +immense size of the city, and the experience of the tardy, ineffectual +operation of the laws, had furnished the policy of Augustus with a +specious pretence for introducing a new magistrate, who alone could +restrain a servile and turbulent populace by the strong arm of arbitrary +power. Valerius Messalla was appointed the first præfect of Rome, that +his reputation might countenance so invidious a measure; but, at the end +of a few days, that accomplished citizen resigned his office, declaring, +with a spirit worthy of the friend of Brutus, that he found himself +incapable of exercising a power incompatible with public freedom. As +the sense of liberty became less exquisite, the advantages of order +were more clearly understood; and the præfect, who seemed to have been +designed as a terror only to slaves and vagrants, was permitted to +extend his civil and criminal jurisdiction over the equestrian and noble +families of Rome. The prætors, annually created as the judges of law +and equity, could not long dispute the possession of the Forum with a +vigorous and permanent magistrate, who was usually admitted into the +confidence of the prince. Their courts were deserted, their number, +which had once fluctuated between twelve and eighteen, was gradually +reduced to two or three, and their important functions were confined to +the expensive obligation of exhibiting games for the amusement of the +people. After the office of the Roman consuls had been changed into a +vain pageant, which was rarely displayed in the capital, the præfects +assumed their vacant place in the senate, and were soon acknowledged +as the ordinary presidents of that venerable assembly. They received +appeals from the distance of one hundred miles; and it was allowed as +a principle of jurisprudence, that all municipal authority was derived +from them alone. In the discharge of his laborious employment, the +governor of Rome was assisted by fifteen officers, some of whom had been +originally his equals, or even his superiors. The principal departments +were relative to the command of a numerous watch, established as a +safeguard against fires, robberies, and nocturnal disorders; the custody +and distribution of the public allowance of corn and provisions; the +care of the port, of the aqueducts, of the common sewers, and of the +navigation and bed of the Tyber; the inspection of the markets, +the theatres, and of the private as well as the public works. Their +vigilance insured the three principal objects of a regular police, +safety, plenty, and cleanliness; and as a proof of the attention of +government to preserve the splendor and ornaments of the capital, a +particular inspector was appointed for the statues; the guardian, as +it were, of that inanimate people, which, according to the extravagant +computation of an old writer, was scarcely inferior in number to the +living inhabitants of Rome. About thirty years after the foundation +of Constantinople, a similar magistrate was created in that rising +metropolis, for the same uses and with the same powers. A perfect +equality was established between the dignity of the two municipal, and +that of the four Prætorian præfects. + + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part IV. + +Those who, in the imperial hierarchy, were distinguished by the title +of Respectable, formed an intermediate class between the illustrious +præfects, and the honorable magistrates of the provinces. In this class +the proconsuls of Asia, Achaia, and Africa, claimed a preëminence, which +was yielded to the remembrance of their ancient dignity; and the appeal +from their tribunal to that of the præfects was almost the only mark of +their dependence. But the civil government of the empire was distributed +into thirteen great Dioceses, each of which equalled the just measure +of a powerful kingdom. The first of these dioceses was subject to the +jurisdiction of the count of the east; and we may convey some idea of +the importance and variety of his functions, by observing, that six +hundred apparitors, who would be styled at present either secretaries, +or clerks, or ushers, or messengers, were employed in his immediate +office. The place of Augustal prefect of Egypt was no longer filled by +a Roman knight; but the name was retained; and the extraordinary powers +which the situation of the country, and the temper of the inhabitants, +had once made indispensable, were still continued to the governor. The +eleven remaining dioceses, of Asiana, Pontica, and Thrace; of Macedonia, +Dacia, and Pannonia, or Western Illyricum; of Italy and Africa; of Gaul, +Spain, and Britain; were governed by twelve vicars or vice-prefects, +whose name sufficiently explains the nature and dependence of their +office. It may be added, that the lieutenant-generals of the Roman +armies, the military counts and dukes, who will be hereafter mentioned, +were allowed the rank and title of Respectable. + +As the spirit of jealousy and ostentation prevailed in the councils +of the emperors, they proceeded with anxious diligence to divide the +substance and to multiply the titles of power. The vast countries +which the Roman conquerors had united under the same simple form of +administration, were imperceptibly crumbled into minute fragments; till +at length the whole empire was distributed into one hundred and +sixteen provinces, each of which supported an expensive and splendid +establishment. Of these, three were governed by proconsuls, thirty-seven +by consulars, five by correctors, and seventy-one by presidents. +The appellations of these magistrates were different; they ranked in +successive order, the ensigns of and their situation, from accidental +circumstances, might be more or less agreeable or advantageous. But they +were all (excepting only the pro-consuls) alike included in the class of +honorable persons; and they were alike intrusted, during the pleasure of +the prince, and under the authority of the præfects or their deputies, +with the administration of justice and the finances in their respective +districts. The ponderous volumes of the Codes and Pandects would furnish +ample materials for a minute inquiry into the system of provincial +government, as in the space of six centuries it was approved by the +wisdom of the Roman statesmen and lawyers. It may be sufficient for the +historian to select two singular and salutary provisions, intended to +restrain the abuse of authority. 1. For the preservation of peace and +order, the governors of the provinces were armed with the sword of +justice. They inflicted corporal punishments, and they exercised, +in capital offences, the power of life and death. But they were not +authorized to indulge the condemned criminal with the choice of his own +execution, or to pronounce a sentence of the mildest and most honorable +kind of exile. These prerogatives were reserved to the præfects, +who alone could impose the heavy fine of fifty pounds of gold: their +vicegerents were confined to the trifling weight of a few ounces. +This distinction, which seems to grant the larger, while it denies the +smaller degree of authority, was founded on a very rational motive. The +smaller degree was infinitely more liable to abuse. The passions of +a provincial magistrate might frequently provoke him into acts of +oppression, which affected only the freedom or the fortunes of the +subject; though, from a principle of prudence, perhaps of humanity, he +might still be terrified by the guilt of innocent blood. It may likewise +be considered, that exile, considerable fines, or the choice of an +easy death, relate more particularly to the rich and the noble; and the +persons the most exposed to the avarice or resentment of a provincial +magistrate, were thus removed from his obscure persecution to the more +august and impartial tribunal of the Prætorian præfect. 2. As it was +reasonably apprehended that the integrity of the judge might be biased, +if his interest was concerned, or his affections were engaged, the +strictest regulations were established, to exclude any person, without +the special dispensation of the emperor, from the government of the +province where he was born; and to prohibit the governor or his son from +contracting marriage with a native, or an inhabitant; or from purchasing +slaves, lands, or houses, within the extent of his jurisdiction. +Notwithstanding these rigorous precautions, the emperor Constantine, +after a reign of twenty-five years, still deplores the venal and +oppressive administration of justice, and expresses the warmest +indignation that the audience of the judge, his despatch of business, +his seasonable delays, and his final sentence, were publicly sold, +either by himself or by the officers of his court. The continuance, and +perhaps the impunity, of these crimes, is attested by the repetition of +impotent laws and ineffectual menaces. + +All the civil magistrates were drawn from the profession of the law. +The celebrated Institutes of Justinian are addressed to the youth of +his dominions, who had devoted themselves to the study of Roman +jurisprudence; and the sovereign condescends to animate their diligence, +by the assurance that their skill and ability would in time be rewarded +by an adequate share in the government of the republic. The rudiments of +this lucrative science were taught in all the considerable cities of the +east and west; but the most famous school was that of Berytus, on the +coast of Phnicia; which flourished above three centuries from the +time of Alexander Severus, the author perhaps of an institution so +advantageous to his native country. After a regular course of education, +which lasted five years, the students dispersed themselves through +the provinces, in search of fortune and honors; nor could they want an +inexhaustible supply of business great empire, already corrupted by the +multiplicity of laws, of arts, and of vices. The court of the Prætorian +præfect of the east could alone furnish employment for one hundred +and fifty advocates, sixty-four of whom were distinguished by peculiar +privileges, and two were annually chosen, with a salary of sixty pounds +of gold, to defend the causes of the treasury. The first experiment was +made of their judicial talents, by appointing them to act occasionally +as assessors to the magistrates; from thence they were often raised to +preside in the tribunals before which they had pleaded. They obtained +the government of a province; and, by the aid of merit, of reputation, +or of favor, they ascended, by successive steps, to the illustrious +dignities of the state. In the practice of the bar, these men had +considered reason as the instrument of dispute; they interpreted +the laws according to the dictates of private interest and the same +pernicious habits might still adhere to their characters in the public +administration of the state. The honor of a liberal profession has +indeed been vindicated by ancient and modern advocates, who have filled +the most important stations, with pure integrity and consummate wisdom: +but in the decline of Roman jurisprudence, the ordinary promotion of +lawyers was pregnant with mischief and disgrace. The noble art, which +had once been preserved as the sacred inheritance of the patricians, +was fallen into the hands of freedmen and plebeians, who, with cunning +rather than with skill, exercised a sordid and pernicious trade. Some +of them procured admittance into families for the purpose of fomenting +differences, of encouraging suits, and of preparing a harvest of gain +for themselves or their brethren. Others, recluse in their chambers, +maintained the dignity of legal professors, by furnishing a rich client +with subtleties to confound the plainest truths, and with arguments to +color the most unjustifiable pretensions. The splendid and popular class +was composed of the advocates, who filled the Forum with the sound of +their turgid and loquacious rhetoric. Careless of fame and of justice, +they are described, for the most part, as ignorant and rapacious guides, +who conducted their clients through a maze of expense, of delay, and of +disappointment; from whence, after a tedious series of years, they +were at length dismissed, when their patience and fortune were almost +exhausted. + +III. In the system of policy introduced by Augustus, the governors, +those at least of the Imperial provinces, were invested with the +full powers of the sovereign himself. Ministers of peace and war, the +distribution of rewards and punishments depended on them alone, and +they successively appeared on their tribunal in the robes of civil +magistracy, and in complete armor at the head of the Roman legions. The +influence of the revenue, the authority of law, and the command of a +military force, concurred to render their power supreme and absolute; +and whenever they were tempted to violate their allegiance, the loyal +province which they involved in their rebellion was scarcely sensible +of any change in its political state. From the time of Commodus to the +reign of Constantine, near one hundred governors might be enumerated, +who, with various success, erected the standard of revolt; and though +the innocent were too often sacrificed, the guilty might be sometimes +prevented, by the suspicious cruelty of their master. To secure his +throne and the public tranquillity from these formidable servants, +Constantine resolved to divide the military from the civil +administration, and to establish, as a permanent and professional +distinction, a practice which had been adopted only as an occasional +expedient. The supreme jurisdiction exercised by the Prætorian +præfects over the armies of the empire, was transferred to the two +masters-general whom he instituted, the one for the cavalry, the other +for the infantry; and though each of these illustrious officers was more +peculiarly responsible for the discipline of those troops which were +under his immediate inspection, they both indifferently commanded in the +field the several bodies, whether of horse or foot, which were united in +the same army. Their number was soon doubled by the division of the +east and west; and as separate generals of the same rank and title were +appointed on the four important frontiers of the Rhine, of the Upper and +the Lower Danube, and of the Euphrates, the defence of the Roman empire +was at length committed to eight masters-general of the cavalry and +infantry. Under their orders, thirty-five military commanders were +stationed in the provinces: three in Britain, six in Gaul, one in Spain, +one in Italy, five on the Upper, and four on the Lower Danube; in Asia, +eight, three in Egypt, and four in Africa. The titles of counts, and +dukes, by which they were properly distinguished, have obtained in +modern languages so very different a sense, that the use of them may +occasion some surprise. But it should be recollected, that the second +of those appellations is only a corruption of the Latin word, which was +indiscriminately applied to any military chief. All these provincial +generals were therefore dukes; but no more than ten among them were +dignified with the rank of counts or companions, a title of honor, +or rather of favor, which had been recently invented in the court of +Constantine. A gold belt was the ensign which distinguished the office +of the counts and dukes; and besides their pay, they received a liberal +allowance sufficient to maintain one hundred and ninety servants, and +one hundred and fifty-eight horses. They were strictly prohibited from +interfering in any matter which related to the administration of justice +or the revenue; but the command which they exercised over the troops of +their department, was independent of the authority of the magistrates. +About the same time that Constantine gave a legal sanction to the +ecclesiastical order, he instituted in the Roman empire the nice balance +of the civil and the military powers. The emulation, and sometimes the +discord, which reigned between two professions of opposite interests +and incompatible manners, was productive of beneficial and of pernicious +consequences. It was seldom to be expected that the general and the +civil governor of a province should either conspire for the disturbance, +or should unite for the service, of their country. While the one delayed +to offer the assistance which the other disdained to solicit, the troops +very frequently remained without orders or without supplies; the public +safety was betrayed, and the defenceless subjects were left exposed to +the fury of the Barbarians. The divided administration which had been +formed by Constantine, relaxed the vigor of the state, while it secured +the tranquillity of the monarch. + +The memory of Constantine has been deservedly censured for another +innovation, which corrupted military discipline and prepared the ruin +of the empire. The nineteen years which preceded his final victory over +Licinius, had been a period of license and intestine war. The rivals +who contended for the possession of the Roman world, had withdrawn the +greatest part of their forces from the guard of the general frontier; +and the principal cities which formed the boundary of their respective +dominions were filled with soldiers, who considered their countrymen as +their most implacable enemies. After the use of these internal garrisons +had ceased with the civil war, the conqueror wanted either wisdom or +firmness to revive the severe discipline of Diocletian, and to suppress +a fatal indulgence, which habit had endeared and almost confirmed to the +military order. From the reign of Constantine, a popular and even legal +distinction was admitted between the Palatines and the Borderers; the +troops of the court, as they were improperly styled, and the troops of +the frontier. The former, elevated by the superiority of their pay and +privileges, were permitted, except in the extraordinary emergencies of +war, to occupy their tranquil stations in the heart of the provinces. +The most flourishing cities were oppressed by the intolerable weight +of quarters. The soldiers insensibly forgot the virtues of their +profession, and contracted only the vices of civil life. They were +either degraded by the industry of mechanic trades, or enervated by the +luxury of baths and theatres. They soon became careless of their martial +exercises, curious in their diet and apparel; and while they inspired +terror to the subjects of the empire, they trembled at the hostile +approach of the Barbarians. The chain of fortifications which Diocletian +and his colleagues had extended along the banks of the great rivers, +was no longer maintained with the same care, or defended with the same +vigilance. The numbers which still remained under the name of the troops +of the frontier, might be sufficient for the ordinary defence; but their +spirit was degraded by the humiliating reflection, that they who were +exposed to the hardships and dangers of a perpetual warfare, were +rewarded only with about two thirds of the pay and emoluments which were +lavished on the troops of the court. Even the bands or legions that were +raised the nearest to the level of those unworthy favorites, were in +some measure disgraced by the title of honor which they were allowed +to assume. It was in vain that Constantine repeated the most dreadful +menaces of fire and sword against the Borderers who should dare desert +their colors, to connive at the inroads of the Barbarians, or to +participate in the spoil. The mischiefs which flow from injudicious +counsels are seldom removed by the application of partial severities; +and though succeeding princes labored to restore the strength and +numbers of the frontier garrisons, the empire, till the last moment of +its dissolution, continued to languish under the mortal wound which had +been so rashly or so weakly inflicted by the hand of Constantine. + +The same timid policy, of dividing whatever is united, of reducing +whatever is eminent, of dreading every active power, and of expecting +that the most feeble will prove the most obedient, seems to pervade the +institutions of several princes, and particularly those of Constantine. +The martial pride of the legions, whose victorious camps had so often +been the scene of rebellion, was nourished by the memory of their past +exploits, and the consciousness of their actual strength. As long as +they maintained their ancient establishment of six thousand men, they +subsisted, under the reign of Diocletian, each of them singly, a visible +and important object in the military history of the Roman empire. A few +years afterwards, these gigantic bodies were shrunk to a very diminutive +size; and when seven legions, with some auxiliaries, defended the city +of Amida against the Persians, the total garrison, with the inhabitants +of both sexes, and the peasants of the deserted country, did not exceed +the number of twenty thousand persons. From this fact, and from similar +examples, there is reason to believe, that the constitution of the +legionary troops, to which they partly owed their valor and discipline, +was dissolved by Constantine; and that the bands of Roman infantry, +which still assumed the same names and the same honors, consisted +only of one thousand or fifteen hundred men. The conspiracy of so many +separate detachments, each of which was awed by the sense of its own +weakness, could easily be checked; and the successors of Constantine +might indulge their love of ostentation, by issuing their orders to one +hundred and thirty-two legions, inscribed on the muster-roll of their +numerous armies. The remainder of their troops was distributed into +several hundred cohorts of infantry, and squadrons of cavalry. Their +arms, and titles, and ensigns, were calculated to inspire terror, and to +display the variety of nations who marched under the Imperial standard. +And not a vestige was left of that severe simplicity, which, in the ages +of freedom and victory, had distinguished the line of battle of a Roman +army from the confused host of an Asiatic monarch. A more particular +enumeration, drawn from the Notitia, might exercise the diligence of an +antiquary; but the historian will content himself with observing, +that the number of permanent stations or garrisons established on the +frontiers of the empire, amounted to five hundred and eighty-three; and +that, under the successors of Constantine, the complete force of the +military establishment was computed at six hundred and forty-five +thousand soldiers. An effort so prodigious surpassed the wants of a more +ancient, and the faculties of a later, period. + +In the various states of society, armies are recruited from very +different motives. Barbarians are urged by the love of war; the citizens +of a free republic may be prompted by a principle of duty; the subjects, +or at least the nobles, of a monarchy, are animated by a sentiment of +honor; but the timid and luxurious inhabitants of a declining empire +must be allured into the service by the hopes of profit, or compelled +by the dread of punishment. The resources of the Roman treasury were +exhausted by the increase of pay, by the repetition of donatives, and by +the invention of new emolument and indulgences, which, in the opinion +of the provincial youth might compensate the hardships and dangers of a +military life. Yet, although the stature was lowered, although slaves, +least by a tacit connivance, were indiscriminately received into the +ranks, the insurmountable difficulty of procuring a regular and adequate +supply of volunteers, obliged the emperors to adopt more effectual and +coercive methods. The lands bestowed on the veterans, as the free reward +of their valor were henceforward granted under a condition which +contain the first rudiments of the feudal tenures; that their sons, who +succeeded to the inheritance, should devote themselves to the profession +of arms, as soon as they attained the age of manhood; and their cowardly +refusal was punished by the lose of honor, of fortune, or even of life. +But as the annual growth of the sons of the veterans bore a very small +proportion to the demands of the service, levies of men were frequently +required from the provinces, and every proprietor was obliged either to +take up arms, or to procure a substitute, or to purchase his exemption +by the payment of a heavy fine. The sum of forty-two pieces of gold, to +which it was reduced, ascertains the exorbitant price of volunteers, and +the reluctance with which the government admitted of this alterative. +Such was the horror for the profession of a soldier, which had affected +the minds of the degenerate Romans, that many of the youth of Italy +and the provinces chose to cut off the fingers of their right hand, to +escape from being pressed into the service; and this strange expedient +was so commonly practised, as to deserve the severe animadversion of the +laws, and a peculiar name in the Latin language. + + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part V. + +The introduction of Barbarians into the Roman armies became every day +more universal, more necessary, and more fatal. The most daring of the +Scythians, of the Goths, and of the Germans, who delighted in war, and +who found it more profitable to defend than to ravage the provinces, +were enrolled, not only in the auxiliaries of their respective nations, +but in the legions themselves, and among the most distinguished of the +Palatine troops. As they freely mingled with the subjects of the empire, +they gradually learned to despise their manners, and to imitate their +arts. They abjured the implicit reverence which the pride of Rome had +exacted from their ignorance, while they acquired the knowledge +and possession of those advantages by which alone she supported her +declining greatness. The Barbarian soldiers, who displayed any military +talents, were advanced, without exception, to the most important +commands; and the names of the tribunes, of the counts and dukes, and of +the generals themselves, betray a foreign origin, which they no longer +condescended to disguise. They were often intrusted with the conduct of +a war against their countrymen; and though most of them preferred the +ties of allegiance to those of blood, they did not always avoid +the guilt, or at least the suspicion, of holding a treasonable +correspondence with the enemy, of inviting his invasion, or of sparing +his retreat. The camps and the palace of the son of Constantine were +governed by the powerful faction of the Franks, who preserved the +strictest connection with each other, and with their country, and who +resented every personal affront as a national indignity. When the tyrant +Caligula was suspected of an intention to invest a very extraordinary +candidate with the consular robes, the sacrilegious profanation would +have scarcely excited less astonishment, if, instead of a horse, the +noblest chieftain of Germany or Britain had been the object of his +choice. The revolution of three centuries had produced so remarkable +a change in the prejudices of the people, that, with the public +approbation, Constantine showed his successors the example of bestowing +the honors of the consulship on the Barbarians, who, by their merit and +services, had deserved to be ranked among the first of the Romans. +But as these hardy veterans, who had been educated in the ignorance or +contempt of the laws, were incapable of exercising any civil offices, +the powers of the human mind were contracted by the irreconcilable +separation of talents as well as of professions. The accomplished +citizens of the Greek and Roman republics, whose characters could adapt +themselves to the bar, the senate, the camp, or the schools, had learned +to write, to speak, and to act with the same spirit, and with equal +abilities. + +IV. Besides the magistrates and generals, who at a distance from the +court diffused their delegated authority over the provinces and armies, +the emperor conferred the rank of Illustrious on seven of his more +immediate servants, to whose fidelity he intrusted his safety, or his +counsels, or his treasures. 1. The private apartments of the palace were +governed by a favorite eunuch, who, in the language of that age, was +styled the propositus, or præfect of the sacred bed-chamber. His +duty was to attend the emperor in his hours of state, or in those of +amusement, and to perform about his person all those menial services, +which can only derive their splendor from the influence of royalty. +Under a prince who deserved to reign, the great chamberlain (for such we +may call him) was a useful and humble domestic; but an artful domestic, +who improves every occasion of unguarded confidence, will insensibly +acquire over a feeble mind that ascendant which harsh wisdom and +uncomplying virtue can seldom obtain. The degenerate grandsons of +Theodosius, who were invisible to their subjects, and contemptible to +their enemies, exalted the præfects of their bed-chamber above the heads +of all the ministers of the palace; and even his deputy, the first of +the splendid train of slaves who waited in the presence, was thought +worthy to rank before the respectable proconsuls of Greece or Asia. +The jurisdiction of the chamberlain was acknowledged by the counts, +or superintendents, who regulated the two important provinces of the +magnificence of the wardrobe, and of the luxury of the Imperial table. +2. The principal administration of public affairs was committed to the +diligence and abilities of the master of the offices. He was the supreme +magistrate of the palace, inspected the discipline of the civil and +military schools, and received appeals from all parts of the empire, in +the causes which related to that numerous army of privileged persons, +who, as the servants of the court, had obtained for themselves and +families a right to decline the authority of the ordinary judges. The +correspondence between the prince and his subjects was managed by +the four scrinia, or offices of this minister of state. The first +was appropriated to memorials, the second to epistles, the third to +petitions, and the fourth to papers and orders of a miscellaneous kind. +Each of these was directed by an inferior master of respectable dignity, +and the whole business was despatched by a hundred and forty-eight +secretaries, chosen for the most part from the profession of the law, +on account of the variety of abstracts of reports and references which +frequently occurred in the exercise of their several functions. From a +condescension, which in former ages would have been esteemed unworthy +the Roman majesty, a particular secretary was allowed for the Greek +language; and interpreters were appointed to receive the ambassadors of +the Barbarians; but the department of foreign affairs, which constitutes +so essential a part of modern policy, seldom diverted the attention of +the master of the offices. His mind was more seriously engaged by the +general direction of the posts and arsenals of the empire. There were +thirty-four cities, fifteen in the East, and nineteen in the West, +in which regular companies of workmen were perpetually employed in +fabricating defensive armor, offensive weapons of all sorts, and +military engines, which were deposited in the arsenals, and occasionally +delivered for the service of the troops. 3. In the course of nine +centuries, the office of quæstor had experienced a very singular +revolution. In the infancy of Rome, two inferior magistrates were +annually elected by the people, to relieve the consuls from the +invidious management of the public treasure; a similar assistant +was granted to every proconsul, and to every prætor, who exercised a +military or provincial command; with the extent of conquest, the two +quæstors were gradually multiplied to the number of four, of eight, +of twenty, and, for a short time, perhaps, of forty; and the noblest +citizens ambitiously solicited an office which gave them a seat in the +senate, and a just hope of obtaining the honors of the republic. Whilst +Augustus affected to maintain the freedom of election, he consented +to accept the annual privilege of recommending, or rather indeed of +nominating, a certain proportion of candidates; and it was his custom +to select one of these distinguished youths, to read his orations or +epistles in the assemblies of the senate. The practice of Augustus +was imitated by succeeding princes; the occasional commission was +established as a permanent office; and the favored quæstor, assuming a +new and more illustrious character, alone survived the suppression of +his ancient and useless colleagues. As the orations which he composed in +the name of the emperor, acquired the force, and, at length, the form, +of absolute edicts, he was considered as the representative of the +legislative power, the oracle of the council, and the original source +of the civil jurisprudence. He was sometimes invited to take his seat +in the supreme judicature of the Imperial consistory, with the Prætorian +præfects, and the master of the offices; and he was frequently requested +to resolve the doubts of inferior judges: but as he was not oppressed +with a variety of subordinate business, his leisure and talents were +employed to cultivate that dignified style of eloquence, which, in the +corruption of taste and language, still preserves the majesty of the +Roman laws. In some respects, the office of the Imperial quæstor may be +compared with that of a modern chancellor; but the use of a great seal, +which seems to have been adopted by the illiterate barbarians, was +never introduced to attest the public acts of the emperors. 4. The +extraordinary title of count of the sacred largesses was bestowed on +the treasurer-general of the revenue, with the intention perhaps of +inculcating, that every payment flowed from the voluntary bounty of the +monarch. To conceive the almost infinite detail of the annual and daily +expense of the civil and military administration in every part of a +great empire, would exceed the powers of the most vigorous imagination. +The actual account employed several hundred persons, distributed into +eleven different offices, which were artfully contrived to examine and +control their respective operations. The multitude of these agents had +a natural tendency to increase; and it was more than once thought +expedient to dismiss to their native homes the useless supernumeraries, +who, deserting their honest labors, had pressed with too much eagerness +into the lucrative profession of the finances. Twenty-nine provincial +receivers, of whom eighteen were honored with the title of count, +corresponded with the treasurer; and he extended his jurisdiction over +the mines from whence the precious metals were extracted, over the +mints, in which they were converted into the current coin, and over +the public treasuries of the most important cities, where they were +deposited for the service of the state. The foreign trade of the empire +was regulated by this minister, who directed likewise all the linen and +woollen manufactures, in which the successive operations of spinning, +weaving, and dyeing were executed, chiefly by women of a servile +condition, for the use of the palace and army. Twenty-six of these +institutions are enumerated in the West, where the arts had been more +recently introduced, and a still larger proportion may be allowed for +the industrious provinces of the East. 5. Besides the public revenue, +which an absolute monarch might levy and expend according to his +pleasure, the emperors, in the capacity of opulent citizens, possessed +a very extensive property, which was administered by the count or +treasurer of the private estate. Some part had perhaps been the ancient +demesnes of kings and republics; some accessions might be derived from +the families which were successively invested with the purple; but the +most considerable portion flowed from the impure source of confiscations +and forfeitures. The Imperial estates were scattered through the +provinces, from Mauritania to Britain; but the rich and fertile soil of +Cappadocia tempted the monarch to acquire in that country his fairest +possessions, and either Constantine or his successors embraced the +occasion of justifying avarice by religious zeal. They suppressed the +rich temple of Comana, where the high priest of the goddess of war +supported the dignity of a sovereign prince; and they applied to their +private use the consecrated lands, which were inhabited by six thousand +subjects or slaves of the deity and her ministers. But these were not +the valuable inhabitants: the plains that stretch from the foot of +Mount Argæus to the banks of the Sarus, bred a generous race of horses, +renowned above all others in the ancient world for their majestic shape +and incomparable swiftness. These sacred animals, destined for the +service of the palace and the Imperial games, were protected by the laws +from the profanation of a vulgar master. The demesnes of Cappadocia were +important enough to require the inspection of a count; officers of an +inferior rank were stationed in the other parts of the empire; and the +deputies of the private, as well as those of the public, treasurer +were maintained in the exercise of their independent functions, and +encouraged to control the authority of the provincial magistrates. 6, +7. The chosen bands of cavalry and infantry, which guarded the person of +the emperor, were under the immediate command of the two counts of the +domestics. The whole number consisted of three thousand five hundred +men, divided into seven schools, or troops, of five hundred each; and in +the East, this honorable service was almost entirely appropriated to +the Armenians. Whenever, on public ceremonies, they were drawn up in the +courts and porticos of the palace, their lofty stature, silent order, +and splendid arms of silver and gold, displayed a martial pomp not +unworthy of the Roman majesty. From the seven schools two companies +of horse and foot were selected, of the protectors, whose advantageous +station was the hope and reward of the most deserving soldiers. +They mounted guard in the interior apartments, and were occasionally +despatched into the provinces, to execute with celerity and vigor the +orders of their master. The counts of the domestics had succeeded to the +office of the Prætorian præfects; like the præfects, they aspired from +the service of the palace to the command of armies. + +The perpetual intercourse between the court and the provinces was +facilitated by the construction of roads and the institution of posts. +But these beneficial establishments were accidentally connected with +a pernicious and intolerable abuse. Two or three hundred agents or +messengers were employed, under the jurisdiction of the master of the +offices, to announce the names of the annual consuls, and the edicts +or victories of the emperors. They insensibly assumed the license +of reporting whatever they could observe of the conduct either of +magistrates or of private citizens; and were soon considered as the eyes +of the monarch, and the scourge of the people. Under the warm influence +of a feeble reign, they multiplied to the incredible number of ten +thousand, disdained the mild though frequent admonitions of the laws, +and exercised in the profitable management of the posts a rapacious and +insolent oppression. These official spies, who regularly corresponded +with the palace, were encouraged by favor and reward, anxiously to watch +the progress of every treasonable design, from the faint and latent +symptoms of disaffection, to the actual preparation of an open revolt. +Their careless or criminal violation of truth and justice was covered by +the consecrated mask of zeal; and they might securely aim their poisoned +arrows at the breast either of the guilty or the innocent, who had +provoked their resentment, or refused to purchase their silence. A +faithful subject, of Syria perhaps, or of Britain, was exposed to the +danger, or at least to the dread, of being dragged in chains to the +court of Milan or Constantinople, to defend his life and fortune +against the malicious charge of these privileged informers. The ordinary +administration was conducted by those methods which extreme necessity +can alone palliate; and the defects of evidence were diligently supplied +by the use of torture. + +The deceitful and dangerous experiment of the criminal question, as +it is emphatically styled, was admitted, rather than approved, in +the jurisprudence of the Romans. They applied this sanguinary mode of +examination only to servile bodies, whose sufferings were seldom weighed +by those haughty republicans in the scale of justice or humanity; but +they would never consent to violate the sacred person of a citizen, +till they possessed the clearest evidence of his guilt. The annals +of tyranny, from the reign of Tiberius to that of Domitian, +circumstantially relate the executions of many innocent victims; but, as +long as the faintest remembrance was kept alive of the national freedom +and honor, the last hours of a Roman were secured from the danger of +ignominious torture. The conduct of the provincial magistrates was not, +however, regulated by the practice of the city, or the strict maxims of +the civilians. They found the use of torture established not only among +the slaves of oriental despotism, but among the Macedonians, who obeyed +a limited monarch; among the Rhodians, who flourished by the liberty +of commerce; and even among the sage Athenians, who had asserted and +adorned the dignity of human kind. The acquiescence of the provincials +encouraged their governors to acquire, or perhaps to usurp, a +discretionary power of employing the rack, to extort from vagrants or +plebeian criminals the confession of their guilt, till they insensibly +proceeded to confound the distinction of rank, and to disregard the +privileges of Roman citizens. The apprehensions of the subjects urged +them to solicit, and the interest of the sovereign engaged him to +grant, a variety of special exemptions, which tacitly allowed, and even +authorized, the general use of torture. They protected all persons of +illustrious or honorable rank, bishops and their presbyters, professors +of the liberal arts, soldiers and their families, municipal officers, +and their posterity to the third generation, and all children under +the age of puberty. But a fatal maxim was introduced into the new +jurisprudence of the empire, that in the case of treason, which included +every offence that the subtlety of lawyers could derive from a hostile +intention towards the prince or republic, all privileges were suspended, +and all conditions were reduced to the same ignominious level. As the +safety of the emperor was avowedly preferred to every consideration of +justice or humanity, the dignity of age and the tenderness of youth were +alike exposed to the most cruel tortures; and the terrors of a malicious +information, which might select them as the accomplices, or even as the +witnesses, perhaps, of an imaginary crime, perpetually hung over the +heads of the principal citizens of the Roman world. + +These evils, however terrible they may appear, were confined to the +smaller number of Roman subjects, whose dangerous situation was in +some degree compensated by the enjoyment of those advantages, either of +nature or of fortune, which exposed them to the jealousy of the monarch. +The obscure millions of a great empire have much less to dread from +the cruelty than from the avarice of their masters, and their humble +happiness is principally affected by the grievance of excessive taxes, +which, gently pressing on the wealthy, descend with accelerated weight +on the meaner and more indigent classes of society. An ingenious +philosopher has calculated the universal measure of the public +impositions by the degrees of freedom and servitude; and ventures to +assert, that, according to an invariable law of nature, it must always +increase with the former, and diminish in a just proportion to the +latter. But this reflection, which would tend to alleviate the miseries +of despotism, is contradicted at least by the history of the Roman +empire; which accuses the same princes of despoiling the senate of its +authority, and the provinces of their wealth. Without abolishing all +the various customs and duties on merchandises, which are imperceptibly +discharged by the apparent choice of the purchaser, the policy of +Constantine and his successors preferred a simple and direct mode of +taxation, more congenial to the spirit of an arbitrary government. + + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part VI. + +The name and use of the indictions, which serve to ascertain the +chronology of the middle ages, were derived from the regular practice +of the Roman tributes. The emperor subscribed with his own hand, and in +purple ink, the solemn edict, or indiction, which was fixed up in the +principal city of each diocese, during two months previous to the first +day of September. And by a very easy connection of ideas, the word +indiction was transferred to the measure of tribute which it prescribed, +and to the annual term which it allowed for the payment. This general +estimate of the supplies was proportioned to the real and imaginary +wants of the state; but as often as the expense exceeded the revenue, or +the revenue fell short of the computation, an additional tax, under the +name of superindiction, was imposed on the people, and the most valuable +attribute of sovereignty was communicated to the Prætorian præfects, +who, on some occasions, were permitted to provide for the unforeseen and +extraordinary exigencies of the public service. The execution of these +laws (which it would be tedious to pursue in their minute and intricate +detail) consisted of two distinct operations: the resolving the general +imposition into its constituent parts, which were assessed on the +provinces, the cities, and the individuals of the Roman world; and the +collecting the separate contributions of the individuals, the cities, +and the provinces, till the accumulated sums were poured into the +Imperial treasuries. But as the account between the monarch and +the subject was perpetually open, and as the renewal of the demand +anticipated the perfect discharge of the preceding obligation, the +weighty machine of the finances was moved by the same hands round the +circle of its yearly revolution. Whatever was honorable or important in +the administration of the revenue, was committed to the wisdom of the +præfects, and their provincial representatives; the lucrative functions +were claimed by a crowd of subordinate officers, some of whom depended +on the treasurer, others on the governor of the province; and who, +in the inevitable conflicts of a perplexed jurisdiction, had frequent +opportunities of disputing with each other the spoils of the people. The +laborious offices, which could be productive only of envy and reproach, +of expense and danger, were imposed on the Decurions, who formed the +corporations of the cities, and whom the severity of the Imperial laws +had condemned to sustain the burdens of civil society. The whole landed +property of the empire (without excepting the patrimonial estates of the +monarch) was the object of ordinary taxation; and every new purchaser +contracted the obligations of the former proprietor. An accurate census, +or survey, was the only equitable mode of ascertaining the proportion +which every citizen should be obliged to contribute for the public +service; and from the well-known period of the indictions, there is +reason to believe that this difficult and expensive operation was +repeated at the regular distance of fifteen years. The lands were +measured by surveyors, who were sent into the provinces; their nature, +whether arable or pasture, or vineyards or woods, was distinctly +reported; and an estimate was made of their common value from the +average produce of five years. The numbers of slaves and of cattle +constituted an essential part of the report; an oath was administered +to the proprietors, which bound them to disclose the true state of their +affairs; and their attempts to prevaricate, or elude the intention of +the legislator, were severely watched, and punished as a capital crime, +which included the double guilt of treason and sacrilege. A large +portion of the tribute was paid in money; and of the current coin of +the empire, gold alone could be legally accepted. The remainder of the +taxes, according to the proportions determined by the annual indiction, +was furnished in a manner still more direct, and still more oppressive. +According to the different nature of lands, their real produce in the +various articles of wine or oil, corn or barley, wood or iron, was +transported by the labor or at the expense of the provincials * to the +Imperial magazines, from whence they were occasionally distributed +for the use of the court, of the army, and of two capitals, Rome and +Constantinople. The commissioners of the revenue were so frequently +obliged to make considerable purchases, that they were strictly +prohibited from allowing any compensation, or from receiving in money +the value of those supplies which were exacted in kind. In the primitive +simplicity of small communities, this method may be well adapted to +collect the almost voluntary offerings of the people; but it is at once +susceptible of the utmost latitude, and of the utmost strictness, which +in a corrupt and absolute monarchy must introduce a perpetual contest +between the power of oppression and the arts of fraud. The agriculture +of the Roman provinces was insensibly ruined, and, in the progress of +despotism which tends to disappoint its own purpose, the emperors were +obliged to derive some merit from the forgiveness of debts, or the +remission of tributes, which their subjects were utterly incapable of +paying. According to the new division of Italy, the fertile and happy +province of Campania, the scene of the early victories and of the +delicious retirements of the citizens of Rome, extended between the +sea and the Apennine, from the Tiber to the Silarus. Within sixty years +after the death of Constantine, and on the evidence of an actual survey, +an exemption was granted in favor of three hundred and thirty thousand +English acres of desert and uncultivated land; which amounted to one +eighth of the whole surface of the province. As the footsteps of the +Barbarians had not yet been seen in Italy, the cause of this amazing +desolation, which is recorded in the laws, can be ascribed only to the +administration of the Roman emperors. + +Either from design or from accident, the mode of assessment seemed to +unite the substance of a land tax with the forms of a capitation. The +returns which were sent of every province or district, expressed the +number of tributary subjects, and the amount of the public impositions. +The latter of these sums was divided by the former; and the estimate, +that such a province contained so many capita, or heads of tribute; and +that each head was rated at such a price, was universally received, not +only in the popular, but even in the legal computation. The value of +a tributary head must have varied, according to many accidental, or at +least fluctuating circumstances; but some knowledge has been preserved +of a very curious fact, the more important, since it relates to one of +the richest provinces of the Roman empire, and which now flourishes as +the most splendid of the European kingdoms. The rapacious ministers of +Constantius had exhausted the wealth of Gaul, by exacting twenty-five +pieces of gold for the annual tribute of every head. The humane policy +of his successor reduced the capitation to seven pieces. A moderate +proportion between these opposite extremes of extraordinary oppression +and of transient indulgence, may therefore be fixed at sixteen pieces +of gold, or about nine pounds sterling, the common standard, perhaps, +of the impositions of Gaul. But this calculation, or rather, indeed, +the facts from whence it is deduced, cannot fail of suggesting two +difficulties to a thinking mind, who will be at once surprised by the +equality, and by the enormity, of the capitation. An attempt to explain +them may perhaps reflect some light on the interesting subject of the +finances of the declining empire. + +I. It is obvious, that, as long as the immutable constitution of human +nature produces and maintains so unequal a division of property, +the most numerous part of the community would be deprived of their +subsistence, by the equal assessment of a tax from which the sovereign +would derive a very trifling revenue. Such indeed might be the theory of +the Roman capitation; but in the practice, this unjust equality was no +longer felt, as the tribute was collected on the principle of a real, +not of a personal imposition. * Several indigent citizens contributed +to compose a single head, or share of taxation; while the wealthy +provincial, in proportion to his fortune, alone represented several of +those imaginary beings. In a poetical request, addressed to one of +the last and most deserving of the Roman princes who reigned in Gaul, +Sidonius Apollinaris personifies his tribute under the figure of a +triple monster, the Geryon of the Grecian fables, and entreats the new +Hercules that he would most graciously be pleased to save his life by +cutting off three of his heads. The fortune of Sidonius far exceeded the +customary wealth of a poet; but if he had pursued the allusion, he might +have painted many of the Gallic nobles with the hundred heads of the +deadly Hydra, spreading over the face of the country, and devouring +the substance of a hundred families. II. The difficulty of allowing an +annual sum of about nine pounds sterling, even for the average of the +capitation of Gaul, may be rendered more evident by the comparison of +the present state of the same country, as it is now governed by the +absolute monarch of an industrious, wealthy, and affectionate people. +The taxes of France cannot be magnified, either by fear or by flattery, +beyond the annual amount of eighteen millions sterling, which ought +perhaps to be shared among four and twenty millions of inhabitants. +Seven millions of these, in the capacity of fathers, or brothers, or +husbands, may discharge the obligations of the remaining multitude of +women and children; yet the equal proportion of each tributary subject +will scarcely rise above fifty shillings of our money, instead of +a proportion almost four times as considerable, which was regularly +imposed on their Gallic ancestors. The reason of this difference may +be found, not so much in the relative scarcity or plenty of gold and +silver, as in the different state of society, in ancient Gaul and in +modern France. In a country where personal freedom is the privilege +of every subject, the whole mass of taxes, whether they are levied on +property or on consumption, may be fairly divided among the whole body +of the nation. But the far greater part of the lands of ancient Gaul, +as well as of the other provinces of the Roman world, were cultivated +by slaves, or by peasants, whose dependent condition was a less rigid +servitude. In such a state the poor were maintained at the expense of +the masters who enjoyed the fruits of their labor; and as the rolls of +tribute were filled only with the names of those citizens who possessed +the means of an honorable, or at least of a decent subsistence, the +comparative smallness of their numbers explains and justifies the high +rate of their capitation. The truth of this assertion may be illustrated +by the following example: The Ædui, one of the most powerful and +civilized tribes or cities of Gaul, occupied an extent of territory, +which now contains about five hundred thousand inhabitants, in the +two ecclesiastical dioceses of Autun and Nevers; and with the probable +accession of those of Chalons and Macon, the population would amount to +eight hundred thousand souls. In the time of Constantine, the territory +of the Ædui afforded no more than twenty-five thousand heads of +capitation, of whom seven thousand were discharged by that prince +from the intolerable weight of tribute. A just analogy would seem to +countenance the opinion of an ingenious historian, that the free and +tributary citizens did not surpass the number of half a million; and if, +in the ordinary administration of government, their annual payments may +be computed at about four millions and a half of our money, it would +appear, that although the share of each individual was four times as +considerable, a fourth part only of the modern taxes of France was +levied on the Imperial province of Gaul. The exactions of Constantius +may be calculated at seven millions sterling, which were reduced to two +millions by the humanity or the wisdom of Julian. + +But this tax, or capitation, on the proprietors of land, would have +suffered a rich and numerous class of free citizens to escape. With +the view of sharing that species of wealth which is derived from art or +labor, and which exists in money or in merchandise, the emperors imposed +a distinct and personal tribute on the trading part of their subjects. +Some exemptions, very strictly confined both in time and place, were +allowed to the proprietors who disposed of the produce of their own +estates. Some indulgence was granted to the profession of the liberal +arts: but every other branch of commercial industry was affected by the +severity of the law. The honorable merchant of Alexandria, who imported +the gems and spices of India for the use of the western world; the +usurer, who derived from the interest of money a silent and ignominious +profit; the ingenious manufacturer, the diligent mechanic, and even the +most obscure retailer of a sequestered village, were obliged to admit +the officers of the revenue into the partnership of their gain; and the +sovereign of the Roman empire, who tolerated the profession, consented +to share the infamous salary, of public prostitutes. As this general tax +upon industry was collected every fourth year, it was styled the Lustral +Contribution: and the historian Zosimus laments that the approach of the +fatal period was announced by the tears and terrors of the citizens, +who were often compelled by the impending scourge to embrace the most +abhorred and unnatural methods of procuring the sum at which their +property had been assessed. The testimony of Zosimus cannot indeed be +justified from the charge of passion and prejudice; but, from the nature +of this tribute it seems reasonable to conclude, that it was arbitrary +in the distribution, and extremely rigorous in the mode of collecting. +The secret wealth of commerce, and the precarious profits of art or +labor, are susceptible only of a discretionary valuation, which is +seldom disadvantageous to the interest of the treasury; and as the +person of the trader supplies the want of a visible and permanent +security, the payment of the imposition, which, in the case of a land +tax, may be obtained by the seizure of property, can rarely be extorted +by any other means than those of corporal punishments. The cruel +treatment of the insolvent debtors of the state, is attested, and +was perhaps mitigated by a very humane edict of Constantine, who, +disclaiming the use of racks and of scourges, allots a spacious and airy +prison for the place of their confinement. + +These general taxes were imposed and levied by the absolute authority +of the monarch; but the occasional offerings of the coronary goldstill +retained the name and semblance of popular consent. It was an ancient +custom that the allies of the republic, who ascribed their safety or +deliverance to the success of the Roman arms, and even the cities of +Italy, who admired the virtues of their victorious general, adorned the +pomp of his triumph by their voluntary gifts of crowns of gold, which +after the ceremony were consecrated in the temple of Jupiter, to remain +a lasting monument of his glory to future ages. The progress of zeal and +flattery soon multiplied the number, and increased the size, of these +popular donations; and the triumph of Cæsar was enriched with two +thousand eight hundred and twenty-two massy crowns, whose weight +amounted to twenty thousand four hundred and fourteen pounds of gold. +This treasure was immediately melted down by the prudent dictator, who +was satisfied that it would be more serviceable to his soldiers than to +the gods: his example was imitated by his successors; and the custom +was introduced of exchanging these splendid ornaments for the more +acceptable present of the current gold coin of the empire. The +spontaneous offering was at length exacted as the debt of duty; and +instead of being confined to the occasion of a triumph, it was supposed +to be granted by the several cities and provinces of the monarchy, +as often as the emperor condescended to announce his accession, his +consulship, the birth of a son, the creation of a Cæsar, a victory over +the Barbarians, or any other real or imaginary event which graced the +annals of his reign. The peculiar free gift of the senate of Rome was +fixed by custom at sixteen hundred pounds of gold, or about sixty-four +thousand pounds sterling. The oppressed subjects celebrated their own +felicity, that their sovereign should graciously consent to accept this +feeble but voluntary testimony of their loyalty and gratitude. + +A people elated by pride, or soured by discontent, are seldom qualified +to form a just estimate of their actual situation. The subjects of +Constantine were incapable of discerning the decline of genius and manly +virtue, which so far degraded them below the dignity of their ancestors; +but they could feel and lament the rage of tyranny, the relaxation of +discipline, and the increase of taxes. The impartial historian, +who acknowledges the justice of their complaints, will observe some +favorable circumstances which tended to alleviate the misery of +their condition. The threatening tempest of Barbarians, which so soon +subverted the foundations of Roman greatness, was still repelled, or +suspended, on the frontiers. The arts of luxury and literature were +cultivated, and the elegant pleasures of society were enjoyed, by the +inhabitants of a considerable portion of the globe. The forms, the pomp, +and the expense of the civil administration contributed to restrain the +irregular license of the soldiers; and although the laws were violated +by power, or perverted by subtlety, the sage principles of the Roman +jurisprudence preserved a sense of order and equity, unknown to the +despotic governments of the East. The rights of mankind might derive +some protection from religion and philosophy; and the name of freedom, +which could no longer alarm, might sometimes admonish, the successors of +Augustus, that they did not reign over a nation of Slaves or Barbarians. + + + +Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His Sons.--Part I. + + Character Of Constantine.--Gothic War.--Death Of + Constantine.--Division Of The Empire Among His Three Sons.-- + Persian War.--Tragic Deaths Of Constantine The Younger And + Constans.--Usurpation Of Magnentius.--Civil War.--Victory Of + Constantius. + +The character of the prince who removed the seat of empire, and +introduced such important changes into the civil and religious +constitution of his country, has fixed the attention, and divided +the opinions, of mankind. By the grateful zeal of the Christians, the +deliverer of the church has been decorated with every attribute of a +hero, and even of a saint; while the discontent of the vanquished party +has compared Constantine to the most abhorred of those tyrants, who, +by their vice and weakness, dishonored the Imperial purple. The same +passions have in some degree been perpetuated to succeeding generations, +and the character of Constantine is considered, even in the present age, +as an object either of satire or of panegyric. By the impartial union of +those defects which are confessed by his warmest admirers, and of those +virtues which are acknowledged by his most-implacable enemies, we might +hope to delineate a just portrait of that extraordinary man, which the +truth and candor of history should adopt without a blush. But it would +soon appear, that the vain attempt to blend such discordant colors, +and to reconcile such inconsistent qualities, must produce a figure +monstrous rather than human, unless it is viewed in its proper and +distinct lights, by a careful separation of the different periods of the +reign of Constantine. + +The person, as well as the mind, of Constantine, had been enriched +by nature with her choices endowments. His stature was lofty, his +countenance majestic, his deportment graceful; his strength and activity +were displayed in every manly exercise, and from his earliest youth, +to a very advanced season of life, he preserved the vigor of his +constitution by a strict adherence to the domestic virtues of chastity +and temperance. He delighted in the social intercourse of familiar +conversation; and though he might sometimes indulge his disposition to +raillery with less reserve than was required by the severe dignity +of his station, the courtesy and liberality of his manners gained the +hearts of all who approached him. The sincerity of his friendship +has been suspected; yet he showed, on some occasions, that he was not +incapable of a warm and lasting attachment. The disadvantage of an +illiterate education had not prevented him from forming a just estimate +of the value of learning; and the arts and sciences derived some +encouragement from the munificent protection of Constantine. In the +despatch of business, his diligence was indefatigable; and the active +powers of his mind were almost continually exercised in reading, +writing, or meditating, in giving audiences to ambassadors, and in +examining the complaints of his subjects. Even those who censured +the propriety of his measures were compelled to acknowledge, that he +possessed magnanimity to conceive, and patience to execute, the most +arduous designs, without being checked either by the prejudices of +education, or by the clamors of the multitude. In the field, he infused +his own intrepid spirit into the troops, whom he conducted with the +talents of a consummate general; and to his abilities, rather than to +his fortune, we may ascribe the signal victories which he obtained over +the foreign and domestic foes of the republic. He loved glory as the +reward, perhaps as the motive, of his labors. The boundless ambition, +which, from the moment of his accepting the purple at York, appears as +the ruling passion of his soul, may be justified by the dangers of his +own situation, by the character of his rivals, by the consciousness of +superior merit, and by the prospect that his success would enable him to +restore peace and order to tot the distracted empire. In his civil +wars against Maxentius and Licinius, he had engaged on his side the +inclinations of the people, who compared the undissembled vices of those +tyrants with the spirit of wisdom and justice which seemed to direct the +general tenor of the administration of Constantine. + +Had Constantine fallen on the banks of the Tyber, or even in the plains +of Hadrianople, such is the character which, with a few exceptions, he +might have transmitted to posterity. But the conclusion of his reign +(according to the moderate and indeed tender sentence of a writer of +the same age) degraded him from the rank which he had acquired among the +most deserving of the Roman princes. In the life of Augustus, we behold +the tyrant of the republic, converted, almost by imperceptible +degrees, into the father of his country, and of human kind. In that of +Constantine, we may contemplate a hero, who had so long inspired his +subjects with love, and his enemies with terror, degenerating into a +cruel and dissolute monarch, corrupted by his fortune, or raised by +conquest above the necessity of dissimulation. The general peace which +he maintained during the last fourteen years of his reign, was a period +of apparent splendor rather than of real prosperity; and the old age +of Constantine was disgraced by the opposite yet reconcilable vices of +rapaciousness and prodigality. The accumulated treasures found in the +palaces of Maxentius and Licinius, were lavishly consumed; the +various innovations introduced by the conqueror, were attended with +an increasing expense; the cost of his buildings, his court, and +his festivals, required an immediate and plentiful supply; and the +oppression of the people was the only fund which could support the +magnificence of the sovereign. His unworthy favorites, enriched by +the boundless liberality of their master, usurped with impunity the +privilege of rapine and corruption. A secret but universal decay +was felt in every part of the public administration, and the emperor +himself, though he still retained the obedience, gradually lost the +esteem, of his subjects. The dress and manners, which, towards the +decline of life, he chose to affect, served only to degrade him in the +eyes of mankind. The Asiatic pomp, which had been adopted by the pride +of Diocletian, assumed an air of softness and effeminacy in the person +of Constantine. He is represented with false hair of various colors, +laboriously arranged by the skilful artists to the times; a diadem of +a new and more expensive fashion; a profusion of gems and pearls, of +collars and bracelets, and a variegated flowing robe of silk, most +curiously embroidered with flowers of gold. In such apparel, scarcely +to be excused by the youth and folly of Elagabalus, we are at a loss to +discover the wisdom of an aged monarch, and the simplicity of a Roman +veteran. A mind thus relaxed by prosperity and indulgence, was incapable +of rising to that magnanimity which disdains suspicion, and dares to +forgive. The deaths of Maximian and Licinius may perhaps be justified by +the maxims of policy, as they are taught in the schools of tyrants; +but an impartial narrative of the executions, or rather murders, which +sullied the declining age of Constantine, will suggest to our most +candid thoughts the idea of a prince who could sacrifice without +reluctance the laws of justice, and the feelings of nature, to the +dictates either of his passions or of his interest. + +The same fortune which so invariably followed the standard of +Constantine, seemed to secure the hopes and comforts of his domestic +life. Those among his predecessors who had enjoyed the longest and +most prosperous reigns, Augustus Trajan, and Diocletian, had been +disappointed of posterity; and the frequent revolutions had never +allowed sufficient time for any Imperial family to grow up and multiply +under the shade of the purple. But the royalty of the Flavian line, +which had been first ennobled by the Gothic Claudius, descended through +several generations; and Constantine himself derived from his royal +father the hereditary honors which he transmitted to his children. The +emperor had been twice married. Minervina, the obscure but lawful object +of his youthful attachment, had left him only one son, who was called +Crispus. By Fausta, the daughter of Maximian, he had three daughters, +and three sons known by the kindred names of Constantine, Constantius, +and Constans. The unambitious brothers of the great Constantine, Julius +Constantius, Dalmatius, and Hannibalianus, were permitted to enjoy +the most honorable rank, and the most affluent fortune, that could +be consistent with a private station. The youngest of the three lived +without a name, and died without posterity. His two elder brothers +obtained in marriage the daughters of wealthy senators, and propagated +new branches of the Imperial race. Gallus and Julian afterwards +became the most illustrious of the children of Julius Constantius, the +Patrician. The two sons of Dalmatius, who had been decorated with the +vain title of Censor, were named Dalmatius and Hannibalianus. The two +sisters of the great Constantine, Anastasia and Eutropia, were bestowed +on Optatus and Nepotianus, two senators of noble birth and of consular +dignity. His third sister, Constantia, was distinguished by her +preeminence of greatness and of misery. She remained the widow of the +vanquished Licinius; and it was by her entreaties, that an innocent boy, +the offspring of their marriage, preserved, for some time, his life, +the title of Cæsar, and a precarious hope of the succession. Besides the +females, and the allies of the Flavian house, ten or twelve males, to +whom the language of modern courts would apply the title of princes of +the blood, seemed, according to the order of their birth, to be destined +either to inherit or to support the throne of Constantine. But in less +than thirty years, this numerous and increasing family was reduced to +the persons of Constantius and Julian, who alone had survived a series +of crimes and calamities, such as the tragic poets have deplored in the +devoted lines of Pelops and of Cadmus. + +Crispus, the eldest son of Constantine, and the presumptive heir of +the empire, is represented by impartial historians as an amiable and +accomplished youth. The care of his education, or at least of his +studies, was intrusted to Lactantius, the most eloquent of the +Christians; a preceptor admirably qualified to form the taste, and +the excite the virtues, of his illustrious disciple. At the age of +seventeen, Crispus was invested with the title of Cæsar, and the +administration of the Gallic provinces, where the inroads of the Germans +gave him an early occasion of signalizing his military prowess. In the +civil war which broke out soon afterwards, the father and son divided +their powers; and this history has already celebrated the valor as +well as conduct displayed by the latter, in forcing the straits of the +Hellespont, so obstinately defended by the superior fleet of Licinius. +This naval victory contributed to determine the event of the war; +and the names of Constantine and of Crispus were united in the joyful +acclamations of their eastern subjects; who loudly proclaimed, that the +world had been subdued, and was now governed, by an emperor endowed with +every virtue; and by his illustrious son, a prince beloved of Heaven, +and the lively image of his father's perfections. The public favor, +which seldom accompanies old age, diffused its lustre over the youth of +Crispus. He deserved the esteem, and he engaged the affections, of the +court, the army, and the people. The experienced merit of a reigning +monarch is acknowledged by his subjects with reluctance, and frequently +denied with partial and discontented murmurs; while, from the opening +virtues of his successor, they fondly conceive the most unbounded hopes +of private as well as public felicity. + +This dangerous popularity soon excited the attention of Constantine, +who, both as a father and as a king, was impatient of an equal. Instead +of attempting to secure the allegiance of his son by the generous ties +of confidence and gratitude, he resolved to prevent the mischiefs which +might be apprehended from dissatisfied ambition. Crispus soon had reason +to complain, that while his infant brother Constantius was sent, with +the title of Cæsar, to reign over his peculiar department of the Gallic +provinces, he, a prince of mature years, who had performed such recent +and signal services, instead of being raised to the superior rank of +Augustus, was confined almost a prisoner to his father's court; and +exposed, without power or defence, to every calumny which the malice of +his enemies could suggest. Under such painful circumstances, the royal +youth might not always be able to compose his behavior, or suppress his +discontent; and we may be assured, that he was encompassed by a train of +indiscreet or perfidious followers, who assiduously studied to inflame, +and who were perhaps instructed to betray, the unguarded warmth of +his resentment. An edict of Constantine, published about this time, +manifestly indicates his real or affected suspicions, that a secret +conspiracy had been formed against his person and government. By all the +allurements of honors and rewards, he invites informers of every degree +to accuse without exception his magistrates or ministers, his friends +or his most intimate favorites, protesting, with a solemn asseveration, +that he himself will listen to the charge, that he himself will revenge +his injuries; and concluding with a prayer, which discovers some +apprehension of danger, that the providence of the Supreme Being may +still continue to protect the safety of the emperor and of the empire. + +The informers, who complied with so liberal an invitation, were +sufficiently versed in the arts of courts to select the friends and +adherents of Crispus as the guilty persons; nor is there any reason to +distrust the veracity of the emperor, who had promised an ample measure +of revenge and punishment. The policy of Constantine maintained, +however, the same appearances of regard and confidence towards a son, +whom he began to consider as his most irreconcilable enemy. Medals were +struck with the customary vows for the long and auspicious reign of the +young Cæsar; and as the people, who were not admitted into the secrets +of the palace, still loved his virtues, and respected his dignity, a +poet who solicits his recall from exile, adores with equal devotion the +majesty of the father and that of the son. The time was now arrived for +celebrating the august ceremony of the twentieth year of the reign of +Constantine; and the emperor, for that purpose, removed his court from +Nicomedia to Rome, where the most splendid preparations had been made +for his reception. Every eye, and every tongue, affected to express +their sense of the general happiness, and the veil of ceremony and +dissimulation was drawn for a while over the darkest designs of revenge +and murder. In the midst of the festival, the unfortunate Crispus was +apprehended by order of the emperor, who laid aside the tenderness of +a father, without assuming the equity of a judge. The examination was +short and private; and as it was thought decent to conceal the fate of +the young prince from the eyes of the Roman people, he was sent under a +strong guard to Pola, in Istria, where, soon afterwards, he was put +to death, either by the hand of the executioner, or by the more gentle +operations of poison. The Cæsar Licinius, a youth of amiable manners, +was involved in the ruin of Crispus: and the stern jealousy of +Constantine was unmoved by the prayers and tears of his favorite sister, +pleading for the life of a son, whose rank was his only crime, and whose +loss she did not long survive. The story of these unhappy princes, the +nature and evidence of their guilt, the forms of their trial, and the +circumstances of their death, were buried in mysterious obscurity; and +the courtly bishop, who has celebrated in an elaborate work the virtues +and piety of his hero, observes a prudent silence on the subject of +these tragic events. Such haughty contempt for the opinion of mankind, +whilst it imprints an indelible stain on the memory of Constantine, must +remind us of the very different behavior of one of the greatest monarchs +of the present age. The Czar Peter, in the full possession of despotic +power, submitted to the judgment of Russia, of Europe, and of posterity, +the reasons which had compelled him to subscribe the condemnation of a +criminal, or at least of a degenerate son. + +The innocence of Crispus was so universally acknowledged, that the +modern Greeks, who adore the memory of their founder, are reduced to +palliate the guilt of a parricide, which the common feelings of human +nature forbade them to justify. They pretend, that as soon as the +afflicted father discovered the falsehood of the accusation by which +his credulity had been so fatally misled, he published to the world +his repentance and remorse; that he mourned forty days, during which +he abstained from the use of the bath, and all the ordinary comforts of +life; and that, for the lasting instruction of posterity, he erected a +golden statue of Crispus, with this memorable inscription: To my son, +whom I unjustly condemned. A tale so moral and so interesting would +deserve to be supported by less exceptionable authority; but if we +consult the more ancient and authentic writers, they will inform us, +that the repentance of Constantine was manifested only in acts of blood +and revenge; and that he atoned for the murder of an innocent son, by +the execution, perhaps, of a guilty wife. They ascribe the misfortunes +of Crispus to the arts of his step-mother Fausta, whose implacable +hatred, or whose disappointed love, renewed in the palace of Constantine +the ancient tragedy of Hippolitus and of Phædra. Like the daughter of +Minos, the daughter of Maximian accused her son-in-law of an incestuous +attempt on the chastity of his father's wife; and easily obtained, from +the jealousy of the emperor, a sentence of death against a young prince, +whom she considered with reason as the most formidable rival of her +own children. But Helena, the aged mother of Constantine, lamented and +revenged the untimely fate of her grandson Crispus; nor was it long +before a real or pretended discovery was made, that Fausta herself +entertained a criminal connection with a slave belonging to the Imperial +stables. Her condemnation and punishment were the instant consequences +of the charge; and the adulteress was suffocated by the steam of a bath, +which, for that purpose, had been heated to an extraordinary degree. +By some it will perhaps be thought, that the remembrance of a conjugal +union of twenty years, and the honor of their common offspring, the +destined heirs of the throne, might have softened the obdurate heart of +Constantine, and persuaded him to suffer his wife, however guilty she +might appear, to expiate her offences in a solitary prison. But it seems +a superfluous labor to weigh the propriety, unless we could ascertain +the truth, of this singular event, which is attended with some +circumstances of doubt and perplexity. Those who have attacked, and +those who have defended, the character of Constantine, have alike +disregarded two very remarkable passages of two orations pronounced +under the succeeding reign. The former celebrates the virtues, the +beauty, and the fortune of the empress Fausta, the daughter, wife, +sister, and mother of so many princes. The latter asserts, in explicit +terms, that the mother of the younger Constantine, who was slain three +years after his father's death, survived to weep over the fate of her +son. Notwithstanding the positive testimony of several writers of the +Pagan as well as of the Christian religion, there may still remain some +reason to believe, or at least to suspect, that Fausta escaped the +blind and suspicious cruelty of her husband. * The deaths of a son and a +nephew, with the execution of a great number of respectable, and perhaps +innocent friends, who were involved in their fall, may be sufficient, +however, to justify the discontent of the Roman people, and to explain +the satirical verses affixed to the palace gate, comparing the splendid +and bloody reigns of Constantine and Nero. + + + +Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His Sons.--Part II. + +By the death of Crispus, the inheritance of the empire seemed to devolve +on the three sons of Fausta, who have been already mentioned under +the names of Constantine, of Constantius, and of Constans. These young +princes were successively invested with the title of Cæsar; and the +dates of their promotion may be referred to the tenth, the twentieth, +and the thirtieth years of the reign of their father. This conduct, +though it tended to multiply the future masters of the Roman world, +might be excused by the partiality of paternal affection; but it is not +so easy to understand the motives of the emperor, when he endangered +the safety both of his family and of his people, by the unnecessary +elevation of his two nephews, Dalmatius and Hannibalianus. The former +was raised, by the title of Cæsar, to an equality with his cousins. +In favor of the latter, Constantine invented the new and singular +appellation of Nobilissimus; to which he annexed the flattering +distinction of a robe of purple and gold. But of the whole series +of Roman princes in any age of the empire, Hannibalianus alone was +distinguished by the title of King; a name which the subjects of +Tiberius would have detested, as the profane and cruel insult of +capricious tyranny. The use of such a title, even as it appears under +the reign of Constantine, is a strange and unconnected fact, which +can scarcely be admitted on the joint authority of Imperial medals and +contemporary writers. + +The whole empire was deeply interested in the education of these five +youths, the acknowledged successors of Constantine. The exercise of +the body prepared them for the fatigues of war and the duties of +active life. Those who occasionally mention the education or talents of +Constantius, allow that he excelled in the gymnastic arts of leaping and +running that he was a dexterous archer, a skilful horseman, and a master +of all the different weapons used in the service either of the cavalry +or of the infantry. The same assiduous cultivation was bestowed, though +not perhaps with equal success, to improve the minds of the sons and +nephews of Constantine. The most celebrated professors of the Christian +faith, of the Grecian philosophy, and of the Roman jurisprudence, were +invited by the liberality of the emperor, who reserved for himself +the important task of instructing the royal youths in the science of +government, and the knowledge of mankind. But the genius of Constantine +himself had been formed by adversity and experience. In the free +intercourse of private life, and amidst the dangers of the court of +Galerius, he had learned to command his own passions, to encounter those +of his equals, and to depend for his present safety and future greatness +on the prudence and firmness of his personal conduct. His destined +successors had the misfortune of being born and educated in the imperial +purple. Incessantly surrounded with a train of flatterers, they passed +their youth in the enjoyment of luxury, and the expectation of a throne; +nor would the dignity of their rank permit them to descend from that +elevated station from whence the various characters of human nature +appear to wear a smooth and uniform aspect. The indulgence of +Constantine admitted them, at a very tender age, to share the +administration of the empire; and they studied the art of reigning, +at the expense of the people intrusted to their care. The younger +Constantine was appointed to hold his court in Gaul; and his brother +Constantius exchanged that department, the ancient patrimony of their +father, for the more opulent, but less martial, countries of the East. +Italy, the Western Illyricum, and Africa, were accustomed to revere +Constans, the third of his sons, as the representative of the great +Constantine. He fixed Dalmatius on the Gothic frontier, to which he +annexed the government of Thrace, Macedonia, and Greece. The city of +Cæsarea was chosen for the residence of Hannibalianus; and the provinces +of Pontus, Cappadocia, and the Lesser Armenia, were destined to form +the extent of his new kingdom. For each of these princes a suitable +establishment was provided. A just proportion of guards, of legions, and +of auxiliaries, was allotted for their respective dignity and defence. +The ministers and generals, who were placed about their persons, were +such as Constantine could trust to assist, and even to control, these +youthful sovereigns in the exercise of their delegated power. As they +advanced in years and experience, the limits of their authority were +insensibly enlarged: but the emperor always reserved for himself the +title of Augustus; and while he showed the Cæsars to the armies and +provinces, he maintained every part of the empire in equal obedience +to its supreme head. The tranquillity of the last fourteen years of his +reign was scarcely interrupted by the contemptible insurrection of a +camel-driver in the Island of Cyprus, or by the active part which the +policy of Constantine engaged him to assume in the wars of the Goths and +Sarmatians. + +Among the different branches of the human race, the Sarmatians form a +very remarkable shade; as they seem to unite the manners of the Asiatic +barbarians with the figure and complexion of the ancient inhabitants of +Europe. According to the various accidents of peace and war, of alliance +or conquest, the Sarmatians were sometimes confined to the banks of the +Tanais; and they sometimes spread themselves over the immense plains +which lie between the Vistula and the Volga. The care of their numerous +flocks and herds, the pursuit of game, and the exercises of war, or +rather of rapine, directed the vagrant motions of the Sarmatians. The +movable camps or cities, the ordinary residence of their wives and +children, consisted only of large wagons drawn by oxen, and covered in +the form of tents. The military strength of the nation was composed of +cavalry; and the custom of their warriors, to lead in their hand one or +two spare horses, enabled them to advance and to retreat with a rapid +diligence, which surprised the security, and eluded the pursuit, of a +distant enemy. Their poverty of iron prompted their rude industry to +invent a sort of cuirass, which was capable of resisting a sword or +javelin, though it was formed only of horses' hoofs, cut into thin and +polished slices, carefully laid over each other in the manner of scales +or feathers, and strongly sewed upon an under garment of coarse linen. +The offensive arms of the Sarmatians were short daggers, long lances, +and a weighty bow vow with a quiver of arrows. They were reduced to the +necessity of employing fish-bones for the points of their weapons; +but the custom of dipping them in a venomous liquor, that poisoned +the wounds which they inflicted, is alone sufficient to prove the most +savage manners, since a people impressed with a sense of humanity would +have abhorred so cruel a practice, and a nation skilled in the arts +of war would have disdained so impotent a resource. Whenever these +Barbarians issued from their deserts in quest of prey, their shaggy +beards, uncombed locks, the furs with which they were covered from head +to foot, and their fierce countenances, which seemed to express the +innate cruelty of their minds, inspired the more civilized provincials +of Rome with horror and dismay. + +The tender Ovid, after a youth spent in the enjoyment of fame and +luxury, was condemned to a hopeless exile on the frozen banks of the +Danube, where he was exposed, almost without defence, to the fury of +these monsters of the desert, with whose stern spirits he feared that +his gentle shade might hereafter be confounded. In his pathetic, but +sometimes unmanly lamentations, he describes in the most lively colors +the dress and manners, the arms and inroads, of the Getæ and Sarmatians, +who were associated for the purposes of destruction; and from the +accounts of history there is some reason to believe that these +Sarmatians were the Jazygæ, one of the most numerous and warlike +tribes of the nation. The allurements of plenty engaged them to seek a +permanent establishment on the frontiers of the empire. Soon after the +reign of Augustus, they obliged the Dacians, who subsisted by fishing +on the banks of the River Teyss or Tibiscus, to retire into the hilly +country, and to abandon to the victorious Sarmatians the fertile plains +of the Upper Hungary, which are bounded by the course of the Danube +and the semicircular enclosure of the Carpathian Mountains. In this +advantageous position, they watched or suspended the moment of attack, +as they were provoked by injuries or appeased by presents; they +gradually acquired the skill of using more dangerous weapons, and +although the Sarmatians did not illustrate their name by any memorable +exploits, they occasionally assisted their eastern and western +neighbors, the Goths and the Germans, with a formidable body of cavalry. +They lived under the irregular aristocracy of their chieftains: but +after they had received into their bosom the fugitive Vandals, who +yielded to the pressure of the Gothic power, they seem to have chosen a +king from that nation, and from the illustrious race of the Astingi, who +had formerly dwelt on the shores of the northern ocean. + +This motive of enmity must have inflamed the subjects of contention, +which perpetually arise on the confines of warlike and independent +nations. The Vandal princes were stimulated by fear and revenge; the +Gothic kings aspired to extend their dominion from the Euxine to the +frontiers of Germany; and the waters of the Maros, a small river which +falls into the Teyss, were stained with the blood of the contending +Barbarians. After some experience of the superior strength and numbers +of their adversaries, the Sarmatians implored the protection of the +Roman monarch, who beheld with pleasure the discord of the nations, but +who was justly alarmed by the progress of the Gothic arms. As soon +as Constantine had declared himself in favor of the weaker party, the +haughty Araric, king of the Goths, instead of expecting the attack of +the legions, boldly passed the Danube, and spread terror and devastation +through the province of Mæsia. To oppose the inroad of this destroying +host, the aged emperor took the field in person; but on this occasion +either his conduct or his fortune betrayed the glory which he had +acquired in so many foreign and domestic wars. He had the mortification +of seeing his troops fly before an inconsiderable detachment of the +Barbarians, who pursued them to the edge of their fortified camp, and +obliged him to consult his safety by a precipitate and ignominious +retreat. * The event of a second and more successful action retrieved +the honor of the Roman name; and the powers of art and discipline +prevailed, after an obstinate contest, over the efforts of irregular +valor. The broken army of the Goths abandoned the field of battle, the +wasted province, and the passage of the Danube: and although the eldest +of the sons of Constantine was permitted to supply the place of his +father, the merit of the victory, which diffused universal joy, was +ascribed to the auspicious counsels of the emperor himself. + +He contributed at least to improve this advantage, by his negotiations +with the free and warlike people of Chersonesus, whose capital, situate +on the western coast of the Tauric or Crimæan peninsula, still retained +some vestiges of a Grecian colony, and was governed by a perpetual +magistrate, assisted by a council of senators, emphatically styled the +Fathers of the City. The Chersonites were animated against the Goths, +by the memory of the wars, which, in the preceding century, they had +maintained with unequal forces against the invaders of their country. +They were connected with the Romans by the mutual benefits of commerce; +as they were supplied from the provinces of Asia with corn and +manufactures, which they purchased with their only productions, salt, +wax, and hides. Obedient to the requisition of Constantine, they +prepared, under the conduct of their magistrate Diogenes, a considerable +army, of which the principal strength consisted in cross-bows and +military chariots. The speedy march and intrepid attack of the +Chersonites, by diverting the attention of the Goths, assisted the +operations of the Imperial generals. The Goths, vanquished on every +side, were driven into the mountains, where, in the course of a severe +campaign, above a hundred thousand were computed to have perished +by cold and hunger Peace was at length granted to their humble +supplications; the eldest son of Araric was accepted as the most +valuable hostage; and Constantine endeavored to convince their chiefs, +by a liberal distribution of honors and rewards, how far the friendship +of the Romans was preferable to their enmity. In the expressions of his +gratitude towards the faithful Chersonites, the emperor was still more +magnificent. The pride of the nation was gratified by the splendid +and almost royal decorations bestowed on their magistrate and his +successors. A perpetual exemption from all duties was stipulated for +their vessels which traded to the ports of the Black Sea. A regular +subsidy was promised, of iron, corn, oil, and of every supply which +could be useful either in peace or war. But it was thought that +the Sarmatians were sufficiently rewarded by their deliverance from +impending ruin; and the emperor, perhaps with too strict an economy, +deducted some part of the expenses of the war from the customary +gratifications which were allowed to that turbulent nation. + +Exasperated by this apparent neglect, the Sarmatians soon forgot, +with the levity of barbarians, the services which they had so lately +received, and the dangers which still threatened their safety. Their +inroads on the territory of the empire provoked the indignation of +Constantine to leave them to their fate; and he no longer opposed the +ambition of Geberic, a renowned warrior, who had recently ascended the +Gothic throne. Wisumar, the Vandal king, whilst alone, and unassisted, +he defended his dominions with undaunted courage, was vanquished and +slain in a decisive battle, which swept away the flower of the Sarmatian +youth. * The remainder of the nation embraced the desperate expedient +of arming their slaves, a hardy race of hunters and herdsmen, by whose +tumultuary aid they revenged their defeat, and expelled the invader +from their confines. But they soon discovered that they had exchanged +a foreign for a domestic enemy, more dangerous and more implacable. +Enraged by their former servitude, elated by their present glory, the +slaves, under the name of Limigantes, claimed and usurped the possession +of the country which they had saved. Their masters, unable to withstand +the ungoverned fury of the populace, preferred the hardships of exile to +the tyranny of their servants. Some of the fugitive Sarmatians solicited +a less ignominious dependence, under the hostile standard of the Goths. +A more numerous band retired beyond the Carpathian Mountains, among +the Quadi, their German allies, and were easily admitted to share a +superfluous waste of uncultivated land. But the far greater part of the +distressed nation turned their eyes towards the fruitful provinces of +Rome. Imploring the protection and forgiveness of the emperor, they +solemnly promised, as subjects in peace, and as soldiers in war, the +most inviolable fidelity to the empire which should graciously receive +them into its bosom. According to the maxims adopted by Probus and his +successors, the offers of this barbarian colony were eagerly accepted; +and a competent portion of lands in the provinces of Pannonia, Thrace, +Macedonia, and Italy, were immediately assigned for the habitation and +subsistence of three hundred thousand Sarmatians. + +By chastising the pride of the Goths, and by accepting the homage of a +suppliant nation, Constantine asserted the majesty of the Roman empire; +and the ambassadors of Æthiopia, Persia, and the most remote countries +of India, congratulated the peace and prosperity of his government. If +he reckoned, among the favors of fortune, the death of his eldest son, +of his nephew, and perhaps of his wife, he enjoyed an uninterrupted flow +of private as well as public felicity, till the thirtieth year of his +reign; a period which none of his predecessors, since Augustus, had been +permitted to celebrate. Constantine survived that solemn festival about +ten months; and at the mature age of sixty-four, after a short illness, +he ended his memorable life at the palace of Aquyrion, in the suburbs of +Nicomedia, whither he had retired for the benefit of the air, and with +the hope of recruiting his exhausted strength by the use of the warm +baths. The excessive demonstrations of grief, or at least of mourning, +surpassed whatever had been practised on any former occasion. +Notwithstanding the claims of the senate and people of ancient Rome, +the corpse of the deceased emperor, according to his last request, was +transported to the city, which was destined to preserve the name and +memory of its founder. The body of Constantine adorned with the vain +symbols of greatness, the purple and diadem, was deposited on a golden +bed in one of the apartments of the palace, which for that purpose had +been splendidly furnished and illuminated. The forms of the court were +strictly maintained. Every day, at the appointed hours, the principal +officers of the state, the army, and the household, approaching the +person of their sovereign with bended knees and a composed countenance, +offered their respectful homage as seriously as if he had been still +alive. From motives of policy, this theatrical representation was for +some time continued; nor could flattery neglect the opportunity of +remarking that Constantine alone, by the peculiar indulgence of Heaven, +had reigned after his death. + +But this reign could subsist only in empty pageantry; and it was soon +discovered that the will of the most absolute monarch is seldom obeyed, +when his subjects have no longer anything to hope from his favor, or to +dread from his resentment. The same ministers and generals, who bowed +with such referential awe before the inanimate corpse of their deceased +sovereign, were engaged in secret consultations to exclude his two +nephews, Dalmatius and Hannibalianus, from the share which he had +assigned them in the succession of the empire. We are too imperfectly +acquainted with the court of Constantine to form any judgment of the +real motives which influenced the leaders of the conspiracy; unless +we should suppose that they were actuated by a spirit of jealousy and +revenge against the præfect Ablavius, a proud favorite, who had long +directed the counsels and abused the confidence of the late emperor. The +arguments, by which they solicited the concurrence of the soldiers and +people, are of a more obvious nature; and they might with decency, +as well as truth, insist on the superior rank of the children of +Constantine, the danger of multiplying the number of sovereigns, and the +impending mischiefs which threatened the republic, from the discord of +so many rival princes, who were not connected by the tender sympathy of +fraternal affection. The intrigue was conducted with zeal and secrecy, +till a loud and unanimous declaration was procured from the troops, +that they would suffer none except the sons of their lamented monarch to +reign over the Roman empire. The younger Dalmatius, who was united with +his collateral relations by the ties of friendship and interest, is +allowed to have inherited a considerable share of the abilities of the +great Constantine; but, on this occasion, he does not appear to have +concerted any measure for supporting, by arms, the just claims which +himself and his royal brother derived from the liberality of their +uncle. Astonished and overwhelmed by the tide of popular fury, they seem +to have remained, without the power of flight or of resistance, in the +hands of their implacable enemies. Their fate was suspended till the +arrival of Constantius, the second, and perhaps the most favored, of the +sons of Constantine. + + + +Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His Sons.--Part III. + +The voice of the dying emperor had recommended the care of his funeral +to the piety of Constantius; and that prince, by the vicinity of his +eastern station, could easily prevent the diligence of his brothers, who +resided in their distant government of Italy and Gaul. As soon as he had +taken possession of the palace of Constantinople, his first care was +to remove the apprehensions of his kinsmen, by a solemn oath which +he pledged for their security. His next employment was to find some +specious pretence which might release his conscience from the obligation +of an imprudent promise. The arts of fraud were made subservient to the +designs of cruelty; and a manifest forgery was attested by a person of +the most sacred character. From the hands of the Bishop of Nicomedia, +Constantius received a fatal scroll, affirmed to be the genuine +testament of his father; in which the emperor expressed his suspicions +that he had been poisoned by his brothers; and conjured his sons to +revenge his death, and to consult their own safety, by the punishment +of the guilty. Whatever reasons might have been alleged by these +unfortunate princes to defend their life and honor against so incredible +an accusation, they were silenced by the furious clamors of the +soldiers, who declared themselves, at once, their enemies, their +judges, and their executioners. The spirit, and even the forms of legal +proceedings were repeatedly violated in a promiscuous massacre; which +involved the two uncles of Constantius, seven of his cousins, of whom +Dalmatius and Hannibalianus were the most illustrious, the Patrician +Optatus, who had married a sister of the late emperor, and the Præfect +Ablavius, whose power and riches had inspired him with some hopes of +obtaining the purple. If it were necessary to aggravate the horrors of +this bloody scene, we might add, that Constantius himself had espoused +the daughter of his uncle Julius, and that he had bestowed his sister in +marriage on his cousin Hannibalianus. These alliances, which the policy +of Constantine, regardless of the public prejudice, had formed between +the several branches of the Imperial house, served only to convince +mankind, that these princes were as cold to the endearments of conjugal +affection, as they were insensible to the ties of consanguinity, and +the moving entreaties of youth and innocence. Of so numerous a +family, Gallus and Julian alone, the two youngest children of Julius +Constantius, were saved from the hands of the assassins, till their +rage, satiated with slaughter, had in some measure subsided. The emperor +Constantius, who, in the absence of his brothers, was the most obnoxious +to guilt and reproach, discovered, on some future occasions, a faint and +transient remorse for those cruelties which the perfidious counsels of +his ministers, and the irresistible violence of the troops, had extorted +from his unexperienced youth. + +The massacre of the Flavian race was succeeded by a new division of +the provinces; which was ratified in a personal interview of the three +brothers. Constantine, the eldest of the Cæsars, obtained, with a +certain preeminence of rank, the possession of the new capital, which +bore his own name and that of his father. Thrace, and the countries of +the East, were allotted for the patrimony of Constantius; and Constans +was acknowledged as the lawful sovereign of Italy, Africa, and the +Western Illyricum. The armies submitted to their hereditary right; and +they condescended, after some delay, to accept from the Roman senate the +title of Augustus. When they first assumed the reins of government, the +eldest of these princes was twenty-one, the second twenty, and the third +only seventeen, years of age. + +While the martial nations of Europe followed the standards of his +brothers, Constantius, at the head of the effeminate troops of Asia, +was left to sustain the weight of the Persian war. At the decease of +Constantine, the throne of the East was filled by Sapor, son of +Hormouz, or Hormisdas, and grandson of Narses, who, after the victory +of Galerius, had humbly confessed the superiority of the Roman power. +Although Sapor was in the thirtieth year of his long reign, he was still +in the vigor of youth, as the date of his accession, by a very strange +fatality, had preceded that of his birth. The wife of Hormouz remained +pregnant at the time of her husband's death; and the uncertainty of the +sex, as well as of the event, excited the ambitious hopes of the princes +of the house of Sassan. The apprehensions of civil war were at length +removed, by the positive assurance of the Magi, that the widow of +Hormouz had conceived, and would safely produce a son. Obedient to +the voice of superstition, the Persians prepared, without delay, the +ceremony of his coronation. A royal bed, on which the queen lay in +state, was exhibited in the midst of the palace; the diadem was placed +on the spot, which might be supposed to conceal the future heir of +Artaxerxes, and the prostrate satraps adored the majesty of their +invisible and insensible sovereign. If any credit can be given to this +marvellous tale, which seems, however, to be countenanced by the manners +of the people, and by the extraordinary duration of his reign, we must +admire not only the fortune, but the genius, of Sapor. In the soft, +sequestered education of a Persian harem, the royal youth could discover +the importance of exercising the vigor of his mind and body; and, by his +personal merit, deserved a throne, on which he had been seated, while he +was yet unconscious of the duties and temptations of absolute power. +His minority was exposed to the almost inevitable calamities of domestic +discord; his capital was surprised and plundered by Thair, a powerful +king of Yemen, or Arabia; and the majesty of the royal family was +degraded by the captivity of a princess, the sister of the deceased +king. But as soon as Sapor attained the age of manhood, the presumptuous +Thair, his nation, and his country, fell beneath the first effort of the +young warrior; who used his victory with so judicious a mixture of rigor +and clemency, that he obtained from the fears and gratitude of the Arabs +the title of Dhoulacnaf, or protector of the nation. + +The ambition of the Persian, to whom his enemies ascribe the virtues of +a soldier and a statesman, was animated by the desire of revenging the +disgrace of his fathers, and of wresting from the hands of the Romans +the five provinces beyond the Tigris. The military fame of Constantine, +and the real or apparent strength of his government, suspended the +attack; and while the hostile conduct of Sapor provoked the resentment, +his artful negotiations amused the patience of the Imperial court. The +death of Constantine was the signal of war, and the actual condition of +the Syrian and Armenian frontier seemed to encourage the Persians by +the prospect of a rich spoil and an easy conquest. The example of the +massacres of the palace diffused a spirit of licentiousness and sedition +among the troops of the East, who were no longer restrained by +their habits of obedience to a veteran commander. By the prudence of +Constantius, who, from the interview with his brothers in Pannonia, +immediately hastened to the banks of the Euphrates, the legions were +gradually restored to a sense of duty and discipline; but the season of +anarchy had permitted Sapor to form the siege of Nisibis, and to occupy +several of the most important fortresses of Mesopotamia. In Armenia, +the renowned Tiridates had long enjoyed the peace and glory which +he deserved by his valor and fidelity to the cause of Rome. The +firm alliance which he maintained with Constantine was productive +of spiritual as well as of temporal benefits; by the conversion of +Tiridates, the character of a saint was applied to that of a hero, the +Christian faith was preached and established from the Euphrates to the +shores of the Caspian, and Armenia was attached to the empire by the +double ties of policy and religion. But as many of the Armenian nobles +still refused to abandon the plurality of their gods and of their wives, +the public tranquillity was disturbed by a discontented faction, which +insulted the feeble age of their sovereign, and impatiently expected the +hour of his death. He died at length after a reign of fifty-six years, +and the fortune of the Armenian monarchy expired with Tiridates. His +lawful heir was driven into exile, the Christian priests were either +murdered or expelled from their churches, the barbarous tribes of +Albania were solicited to descend from their mountains; and two of the +most powerful governors, usurping the ensigns or the powers of royalty, +implored the assistance of Sapor, and opened the gates of their cities +to the Persian garrisons. The Christian party, under the guidance of +the Archbishop of Artaxata, the immediate successor of St. Gregory +the Illuminator, had recourse to the piety of Constantius. After the +troubles had continued about three years, Antiochus, one of the officers +of the household, executed with success the Imperial commission of +restoring Chosroes, * the son of Tiridates, to the throne of his +fathers, of distributing honors and rewards among the faithful servants +of the house of Arsaces, and of proclaiming a general amnesty, which was +accepted by the greater part of the rebellious satraps. But the Romans +derived more honor than advantage from this revolution. Chosroes was +a prince of a puny stature and a pusillanimous spirit. Unequal to the +fatigues of war, averse to the society of mankind, he withdrew from his +capital to a retired palace, which he built on the banks of the River +Eleutherus, and in the centre of a shady grove; where he consumed his +vacant hours in the rural sports of hunting and hawking. To secure this +inglorious ease, he submitted to the conditions of peace which Sapor +condescended to impose; the payment of an annual tribute, and the +restitution of the fertile province of Atropatene, which the courage +of Tiridates, and the victorious arms of Galerius, had annexed to the +Armenian monarchy. + +During the long period of the reign of Constantius, the provinces of the +East were afflicted by the calamities of the Persian war. The irregular +incursions of the light troops alternately spread terror and devastation +beyond the Tigris and beyond the Euphrates, from the gates of Ctesiphon +to those of Antioch; and this active service was performed by the Arabs +of the desert, who were divided in their interest and affections; some +of their independent chiefs being enlisted in the party of Sapor, whilst +others had engaged their doubtful fidelity to the emperor. The more +grave and important operations of the war were conducted with equal +vigor; and the armies of Rome and Persia encountered each other in nine +bloody fields, in two of which Constantius himself commanded in person. +The event of the day was most commonly adverse to the Romans, but in the +battle of Singara, heir imprudent valor had almost achieved a signal +and decisive victory. The stationary troops of Singara * retired on +the approach of Sapor, who passed the Tigris over three bridges, and +occupied near the village of Hilleh an advantageous camp, which, by the +labor of his numerous pioneers, he surrounded in one day with a deep +ditch and a lofty rampart. His formidable host, when it was drawn out in +order of battle, covered the banks of the river, the adjacent heights, +and the whole extent of a plain of above twelve miles, which separated +the two armies. Both were alike impatient to engage; but the Barbarians, +after a slight resistance, fled in disorder; unable to resist, or +desirous to weary, the strength of the heavy legions, who, fainting with +heat and thirst, pursued them across the plain, and cut in pieces a line +of cavalry, clothed in complete armor, which had been posted before the +gates of the camp to protect their retreat. Constantius, who was hurried +along in the pursuit, attempted, without effect, to restrain the ardor +of his troops, by representing to them the dangers of the approaching +night, and the certainty of completing their success with the return +of day. As they depended much more on their own valor than on the +experience or the abilities of their chief, they silenced by their +clamors his timid remonstrances; and rushing with fury to the charge, +filled up the ditch, broke down the rampart, and dispersed themselves +through the tents to recruit their exhausted strength, and to enjoy +the rich harvest of their labors. But the prudent Sapor had watched the +moment of victory. His army, of which the greater part, securely posted +on the heights, had been spectators of the action, advanced in silence, +and under the shadow of the night; and his Persian archers, guided by +the illumination of the camp, poured a shower of arrows on a disarmed +and licentious crowd. The sincerity of history declares, that the Romans +were vanquished with a dreadful slaughter, and that the flying remnant +of the legions was exposed to the most intolerable hardships. Even the +tenderness of panegyric, confessing that the glory of the emperor was +sullied by the disobedience of his soldiers, chooses to draw a veil over +the circumstances of this melancholy retreat. Yet one of those venal +orators, so jealous of the fame of Constantius, relates, with amazing +coolness, an act of such incredible cruelty, as, in the judgment of +posterity, must imprint a far deeper stain on the honor of the Imperial +name. The son of Sapor, the heir of his crown, had been made a captive +in the Persian camp. The unhappy youth, who might have excited the +compassion of the most savage enemy, was scourged, tortured, and +publicly executed by the inhuman Romans. + +Whatever advantages might attend the arms of Sapor in the field, though +nine repeated victories diffused among the nations the fame of his +valor and conduct, he could not hope to succeed in the execution of his +designs, while the fortified towns of Mesopotamia, and, above all, the +strong and ancient city of Nisibis, remained in the possession of the +Romans. In the space of twelve years, Nisibis, which, since the time +of Lucullus, had been deservedly esteemed the bulwark of the East, +sustained three memorable sieges against the power of Sapor; and the +disappointed monarch, after urging his attacks above sixty, eighty, and +a hundred days, was thrice repulsed with loss and ignominy. This large +and populous city was situate about two days' journey from the Tigris, +in the midst of a pleasant and fertile plain at the foot of Mount +Masius. A treble enclosure of brick walls was defended by a deep ditch; +and the intrepid resistance of Count Lucilianus, and his garrison, was +seconded by the desperate courage of the people. The citizens of Nisibis +were animated by the exhortations of their bishop, inured to arms by the +presence of danger, and convinced of the intentions of Sapor to plant +a Persian colony in their room, and to lead them away into distant and +barbarous captivity. The event of the two former sieges elated their +confidence, and exasperated the haughty spirit of the Great King, who +advanced a third time towards Nisibis, at the head of the united forces +of Persia and India. The ordinary machines, invented to batter or +undermine the walls, were rendered ineffectual by the superior skill +of the Romans; and many days had vainly elapsed, when Sapor embraced a +resolution worthy of an eastern monarch, who believed that the elements +themselves were subject to his power. At the stated season of the +melting of the snows in Armenia, the River Mygdonius, which divides the +plain and the city of Nisibis, forms, like the Nile, an inundation over +the adjacent country. By the labor of the Persians, the course of the +river was stopped below the town, and the waters were confined on every +side by solid mounds of earth. On this artificial lake, a fleet of armed +vessels filled with soldiers, and with engines which discharged stones +of five hundred pounds weight, advanced in order of battle, and engaged, +almost upon a level, the troops which defended the ramparts. *The +irresistible force of the waters was alternately fatal to the contending +parties, till at length a portion of the walls, unable to sustain the +accumulated pressure, gave way at once, and exposed an ample breach of +one hundred and fifty feet. The Persians were instantly driven to the +assault, and the fate of Nisibis depended on the event of the day. The +heavy-armed cavalry, who led the van of a deep column, were embarrassed +in the mud, and great numbers were drowned in the unseen holes which had +been filled by the rushing waters. The elephants, made furious by their +wounds, increased the disorder, and trampled down thousands of the +Persian archers. The Great King, who, from an exalted throne, beheld the +misfortunes of his arms, sounded, with reluctant indignation, the signal +of the retreat, and suspended for some hours the prosecution of the +attack. But the vigilant citizens improved the opportunity of the night; +and the return of day discovered a new wall of six feet in +height, rising every moment to fill up the interval of the breach. +Notwithstanding the disappointment of his hopes, and the loss of more +than twenty thousand men, Sapor still pressed the reduction of Nisibis, +with an obstinate firmness, which could have yielded only to the +necessity of defending the eastern provinces of Persia against a +formidable invasion of the Massagetæ. Alarmed by this intelligence, he +hastily relinquished the siege, and marched with rapid diligence +from the banks of the Tigris to those of the Oxus. The danger and +difficulties of the Scythian war engaged him soon afterwards to +conclude, or at least to observe, a truce with the Roman emperor, which +was equally grateful to both princes; as Constantius himself, after the +death of his two brothers, was involved, by the revolutions of the +West, in a civil contest, which required and seemed to exceed the most +vigorous exertion of his undivided strength. + +After the partition of the empire, three years had scarcely elapsed +before the sons of Constantine seemed impatient to convince mankind that +they were incapable of contenting themselves with the dominions which +they were unqualified to govern. The eldest of those princes soon +complained, that he was defrauded of his just proportion of the spoils +of their murdered kinsmen; and though he might yield to the superior +guilt and merit of Constantius, he exacted from Constans the cession +of the African provinces, as an equivalent for the rich countries of +Macedonia and Greece, which his brother had acquired by the death of +Dalmatius. The want of sincerity, which Constantine experienced in a +tedious and fruitless negotiation, exasperated the fierceness of his +temper; and he eagerly listened to those favorites, who suggested to +him that his honor, as well as his interest, was concerned in the +prosecution of the quarrel. At the head of a tumultuary band, suited for +rapine rather than for conquest, he suddenly broke onto the dominions of +Constans, by the way of the Julian Alps, and the country round Aquileia +felt the first effects of his resentment. The measures of Constans, who +then resided in Dacia, were directed with more prudence and ability. On +the news of his brother's invasion, he detached a select and disciplined +body of his Illyrian troops, proposing to follow them in person, with +the remainder of his forces. But the conduct of his lieutenants soon +terminated the unnatural contest. By the artful appearances of flight, +Constantine was betrayed into an ambuscade, which had been concealed +in a wood, where the rash youth, with a few attendants, was surprised, +surrounded, and slain. His body, after it had been found in the obscure +stream of the Alsa, obtained the honors of an Imperial sepulchre; +but his provinces transferred their allegiance to the conqueror, who, +refusing to admit his elder brother Constantius to any share in these +new acquisitions, maintained the undisputed possession of more than two +thirds of the Roman empire. + + + +Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His Sons.--Part IV. + +The fate of Constans himself was delayed about ten years longer, and the +revenge of his brother's death was reserved for the more ignoble hand of +a domestic traitor. The pernicious tendency of the system introduced by +Constantine was displayed in the feeble administration of his sons; +who, by their vices and weakness, soon lost the esteem and affections of +their people. The pride assumed by Constans, from the unmerited success +of his arms, was rendered more contemptible by his want of abilities +and application. His fond partiality towards some German captives, +distinguished only by the charms of youth, was an object of scandal to +the people; and Magnentius, an ambitious soldier, who was himself of +Barbarian extraction, was encouraged by the public discontent to assert +the honor of the Roman name. The chosen bands of Jovians and Herculians, +who acknowledged Magnentius as their leader, maintained the most +respectable and important station in the Imperial camp. The friendship +of Marcellinus, count of the sacred largesses, supplied with a liberal +hand the means of seduction. The soldiers were convinced by the most +specious arguments, that the republic summoned them to break the bonds +of hereditary servitude; and, by the choice of an active and vigilant +prince, to reward the same virtues which had raised the ancestors of the +degenerate Constans from a private condition to the throne of the world. +As soon as the conspiracy was ripe for execution, Marcellinus, under +the pretence of celebrating his son's birthday, gave a splendid +entertainment to the illustrious and honorable persons of the court of +Gaul, which then resided in the city of Autun. The intemperance of the +feast was artfully protracted till a very late hour of the night; +and the unsuspecting guests were tempted to indulge themselves in a +dangerous and guilty freedom of conversation. On a sudden the doors were +thrown open, and Magnentius, who had retired for a few moments, +returned into the apartment, invested with the diadem and purple. The +conspirators instantly saluted him with the titles of Augustus and +Emperor. The surprise, the terror, the intoxication, the ambitious +hopes, and the mutual ignorance of the rest of the assembly, prompted +them to join their voices to the general acclamation. The guards +hastened to take the oath of fidelity; the gates of the town were shut; +and before the dawn of day, Magnentius became master of the troops and +treasure of the palace and city of Autun. By his secrecy and diligence +he entertained some hopes of surprising the person of Constans, who was +pursuing in the adjacent forest his favorite amusement of hunting, or +perhaps some pleasures of a more private and criminal nature. The rapid +progress of fame allowed him, however, an instant for flight, though +the desertion of his soldiers and subjects deprived him of the power of +resistance. Before he could reach a seaport in Spain, where he intended +to embark, he was overtaken near Helena, at the foot of the Pyrenees, by +a party of light cavalry, whose chief, regardless of the sanctity of a +temple, executed his commission by the murder of the son of Constantine. + +As soon as the death of Constans had decided this easy but important +revolution, the example of the court of Autun was imitated by the +provinces of the West. The authority of Magnentius was acknowledged +through the whole extent of the two great præfectures of Gaul and Italy; +and the usurper prepared, by every act of oppression, to collect a +treasure, which might discharge the obligation of an immense donative, +and supply the expenses of a civil war. The martial countries of +Illyricum, from the Danube to the extremity of Greece, had long obeyed +the government of Vetranio, an aged general, beloved for the simplicity +of his manners, and who had acquired some reputation by his experience +and services in war. Attached by habit, by duty, and by gratitude, to +the house of Constantine, he immediately gave the strongest assurances +to the only surviving son of his late master, that he would expose, with +unshaken fidelity, his person and his troops, to inflict a just revenge +on the traitors of Gaul. But the legions of Vetranio were seduced, +rather than provoked, by the example of rebellion; their leader soon +betrayed a want of firmness, or a want of sincerity; and his ambition +derived a specious pretence from the approbation of the princess +Constantina. That cruel and aspiring woman, who had obtained from the +great Constantine, her father, the rank of Augusta, placed the diadem +with her own hands on the head of the Illyrian general; and seemed to +expect from his victory the accomplishment of those unbounded hopes, +of which she had been disappointed by the death of her husband +Hannibalianus. Perhaps it was without the consent of Constantina, that +the new emperor formed a necessary, though dishonorable, alliance with +the usurper of the West, whose purple was so recently stained with her +brother's blood. + +The intelligence of these important events, which so deeply affected the +honor and safety of the Imperial house, recalled the arms of Constantius +from the inglorious prosecution of the Persian war. He recommended +the care of the East to his lieutenants, and afterwards to his cousin +Gallus, whom he raised from a prison to a throne; and marched towards +Europe, with a mind agitated by the conflict of hope and fear, of grief +and indignation. On his arrival at Heraclea in Thrace, the emperor gave +audience to the ambassadors of Magnentius and Vetranio. The first author +of the conspiracy Marcellinus, who in some measure had bestowed the +purple on his new master, boldly accepted this dangerous commission; and +his three colleagues were selected from the illustrious personages +of the state and army. These deputies were instructed to soothe the +resentment, and to alarm the fears, of Constantius. They were empowered +to offer him the friendship and alliance of the western princes, +to cement their union by a double marriage; of Constantius with the +daughter of Magnentius, and of Magnentius himself with the ambitious +Constantina; and to acknowledge in the treaty the preeminence of rank, +which might justly be claimed by the emperor of the East. Should pride +and mistaken piety urge him to refuse these equitable conditions, the +ambassadors were ordered to expatiate on the inevitable ruin which must +attend his rashness, if he ventured to provoke the sovereigns of the +West to exert their superior strength; and to employ against him +that valor, those abilities, and those legions, to which the house of +Constantine had been indebted for so many triumphs. Such propositions +and such arguments appeared to deserve the most serious attention; the +answer of Constantius was deferred till the next day; and as he had +reflected on the importance of justifying a civil war in the opinion +of the people, he thus addressed his council, who listened with real or +affected credulity: "Last night," said he, "after I retired to rest, +the shade of the great Constantine, embracing the corpse of my murdered +brother, rose before my eyes; his well-known voice awakened me to +revenge, forbade me to despair of the republic, and assured me of the +success and immortal glory which would crown the justice of my arms." +The authority of such a vision, or rather of the prince who alleged +it, silenced every doubt, and excluded all negotiation. The ignominious +terms of peace were rejected with disdain. One of the ambassadors of +the tyrant was dismissed with the haughty answer of Constantius; his +colleagues, as unworthy of the privileges of the law of nations, were +put in irons; and the contending powers prepared to wage an implacable +war. + +Such was the conduct, and such perhaps was the duty, of the brother +of Constans towards the perfidious usurper of Gaul. The situation and +character of Vetranio admitted of milder measures; and the policy of +the Eastern emperor was directed to disunite his antagonists, and to +separate the forces of Illyricum from the cause of rebellion. It was +an easy task to deceive the frankness and simplicity of Vetranio, who, +fluctuating some time between the opposite views of honor and interest, +displayed to the world the insincerity of his temper, and was insensibly +engaged in the snares of an artful negotiation. Constantius acknowledged +him as a legitimate and equal colleague in the empire, on condition that +he would renounce his disgraceful alliance with Magnentius, and appoint +a place of interview on the frontiers of their respective provinces; +where they might pledge their friendship by mutual vows of fidelity, and +regulate by common consent the future operations of the civil war. In +consequence of this agreement, Vetranio advanced to the city of Sardica, +at the head of twenty thousand horse, and of a more numerous body of +infantry; a power so far superior to the forces of Constantius, that the +Illyrian emperor appeared to command the life and fortunes of his rival, +who, depending on the success of his private negotiations, had seduced +the troops, and undermined the throne, of Vetranio. The chiefs, who +had secretly embraced the party of Constantius, prepared in his favor a +public spectacle, calculated to discover and inflame the passions of the +multitude. The united armies were commanded to assemble in a large +plain near the city. In the centre, according to the rules of ancient +discipline, a military tribunal, or rather scaffold, was erected, from +whence the emperors were accustomed, on solemn and important occasions, +to harangue the troops. The well-ordered ranks of Romans and Barbarians, +with drawn swords, or with erected spears, the squadrons of cavalry, and +the cohorts of infantry, distinguished by the variety of their arms and +ensigns, formed an immense circle round the tribunal; and the attentive +silence which they preserved was sometimes interrupted by loud bursts of +clamor or of applause. In the presence of this formidable assembly, +the two emperors were called upon to explain the situation of public +affairs: the precedency of rank was yielded to the royal birth of +Constantius; and though he was indifferently skilled in the arts of +rhetoric, he acquitted himself, under these difficult circumstances, +with firmness, dexterity, and eloquence. The first part of his oration +seemed to be pointed only against the tyrant of Gaul; but while he +tragically lamented the cruel murder of Constans, he insinuated, that +none, except a brother, could claim a right to the succession of +his brother. He displayed, with some complacency, the glories of his +Imperial race; and recalled to the memory of the troops the valor, the +triumphs, the liberality of the great Constantine, to whose sons +they had engaged their allegiance by an oath of fidelity, which the +ingratitude of his most favored servants had tempted them to violate. +The officers, who surrounded the tribunal, and were instructed to act +their part in this extraordinary scene, confessed the irresistible power +of reason and eloquence, by saluting the emperor Constantius as +their lawful sovereign. The contagion of loyalty and repentance was +communicated from rank to rank; till the plain of Sardica resounded with +the universal acclamation of "Away with these upstart usurpers! Long +life and victory to the son of Constantine! Under his banners alone +we will fight and conquer." The shout of thousands, their menacing +gestures, the fierce clashing of their arms, astonished and subdued the +courage of Vetranio, who stood, amidst the defection of his followers, +in anxious and silent suspense. Instead of embracing the last refuge of +generous despair, he tamely submitted to his fate; and taking the diadem +from his head, in the view of both armies fell prostrate at the feet +of his conqueror. Constantius used his victory with prudence and +moderation; and raising from the ground the aged suppliant, whom he +affected to style by the endearing name of Father, he gave him his hand +to descend from the throne. The city of Prusa was assigned for the +exile or retirement of the abdicated monarch, who lived six years in the +enjoyment of ease and affluence. He often expressed his grateful sense +of the goodness of Constantius, and, with a very amiable simplicity, +advised his benefactor to resign the sceptre of the world, and to seek +for content (where alone it could be found) in the peaceful obscurity of +a private condition. + +The behavior of Constantius on this memorable occasion was celebrated +with some appearance of justice; and his courtiers compared the studied +orations which a Pericles or a Demosthenes addressed to the populace +of Athens, with the victorious eloquence which had persuaded an armed +multitude to desert and depose the object of their partial choice. The +approaching contest with Magnentius was of a more serious and bloody +kind. The tyrant advanced by rapid marches to encounter Constantius, at +the head of a numerous army, composed of Gauls and Spaniards, of Franks +and Saxons; of those provincials who supplied the strength of the +legions, and of those barbarians who were dreaded as the most formidable +enemies of the republic. The fertile plains of the Lower Pannonia, +between the Drave, the Save, and the Danube, presented a spacious +theatre; and the operations of the civil war were protracted during the +summer months by the skill or timidity of the combatants. Constantius +had declared his intention of deciding the quarrel in the fields of +Cibalis, a name that would animate his troops by the remembrance of the +victory, which, on the same auspicious ground, had been obtained by the +arms of his father Constantine. Yet by the impregnable fortifications +with which the emperor encompassed his camp, he appeared to decline, +rather than to invite, a general engagement. It was the object of +Magnentius to tempt or to compel his adversary to relinquish this +advantageous position; and he employed, with that view, the various +marches, evolutions, and stratagems, which the knowledge of the art of +war could suggest to an experienced officer. He carried by assault the +important town of Siscia; made an attack on the city of Sirmium, which +lay in the rear of the Imperial camp, attempted to force a passage over +the Save into the eastern provinces of Illyricum; and cut in pieces +a numerous detachment, which he had allured into the narrow passes of +Adarne. During the greater part of the summer, the tyrant of Gaul showed +himself master of the field. The troops of Constantius were harassed +and dispirited; his reputation declined in the eye of the world; and +his pride condescended to solicit a treaty of peace, which would have +resigned to the assassin of Constans the sovereignty of the provinces +beyond the Alps. These offers were enforced by the eloquence of +Philip the Imperial ambassador; and the council as well as the army +of Magnentius were disposed to accept them. But the haughty usurper, +careless of the remonstrances of his friends, gave orders that Philip +should be detained as a captive, or, at least, as a hostage; while he +despatched an officer to reproach Constantius with the weakness of +his reign, and to insult him by the promise of a pardon if he would +instantly abdicate the purple. "That he should confide in the justice of +his cause, and the protection of an avenging Deity," was the only answer +which honor permitted the emperor to return. But he was so sensible of +the difficulties of his situation, that he no longer dared to retaliate +the indignity which had been offered to his representative. The +negotiation of Philip was not, however, ineffectual, since he determined +Sylvanus the Frank, a general of merit and reputation, to desert with a +considerable body of cavalry, a few days before the battle of Mursa. + +The city of Mursa, or Essek, celebrated in modern times for a bridge +of boats, five miles in length, over the River Drave, and the adjacent +morasses, has been always considered as a place of importance in the +wars of Hungary. Magnentius, directing his march towards Mursa, set fire +to the gates, and, by a sudden assault, had almost scaled the walls of +the town. The vigilance of the garrison extinguished the flames; the +approach of Constantius left him no time to continue the operations of +the siege; and the emperor soon removed the only obstacle that could +embarrass his motions, by forcing a body of troops which had taken post +in an adjoining amphitheatre. The field of battle round Mursa was a +naked and level plain: on this ground the army of Constantius formed, +with the Drave on their right; while their left, either from the nature +of their disposition, or from the superiority of their cavalry, extended +far beyond the right flank of Magnentius. The troops on both sides +remained under arms, in anxious expectation, during the greatest part of +the morning; and the son of Constantine, after animating his soldiers +by an eloquent speech, retired into a church at some distance from +the field of battle, and committed to his generals the conduct of this +decisive day. They deserved his confidence by the valor and military +skill which they exerted. They wisely began the action upon the left; +and advancing their whole wing of cavalry in an oblique line, they +suddenly wheeled it on the right flank of the enemy, which was +unprepared to resist the impetuosity of their charge. But the Romans of +the West soon rallied, by the habits of discipline; and the Barbarians +of Germany supported the renown of their national bravery. The +engagement soon became general; was maintained with various and singular +turns of fortune; and scarcely ended with the darkness of the night. The +signal victory which Constantius obtained is attributed to the arms of +his cavalry. His cuirassiers are described as so many massy statues +of steel, glittering with their scaly armor, and breaking with their +ponderous lances the firm array of the Gallic legions. As soon as the +legions gave way, the lighter and more active squadrons of the second +line rode sword in hand into the intervals, and completed the disorder. +In the mean while, the huge bodies of the Germans were exposed almost +naked to the dexterity of the Oriental archers; and whole troops of +those Barbarians were urged by anguish and despair to precipitate +themselves into the broad and rapid stream of the Drave. The number of +the slain was computed at fifty-four thousand men, and the slaughter +of the conquerors was more considerable than that of the vanquished; a +circumstance which proves the obstinacy of the contest, and justifies +the observation of an ancient writer, that the forces of the empire were +consumed in the fatal battle of Mursa, by the loss of a veteran army, +sufficient to defend the frontiers, or to add new triumphs to the glory +of Rome. Notwithstanding the invectives of a servile orator, there +is not the least reason to believe that the tyrant deserted his own +standard in the beginning of the engagement. He seems to have displayed +the virtues of a general and of a soldier till the day was irrecoverably +lost, and his camp in the possession of the enemy. Magnentius then +consulted his safety, and throwing away the Imperial ornaments, +escaped with some difficulty from the pursuit of the light horse, who +incessantly followed his rapid flight from the banks of the Drave to the +foot of the Julian Alps. + +The approach of winter supplied the indolence of Constantius with +specious reasons for deferring the prosecution of the war till the +ensuing spring. Magnentius had fixed his residence in the city of +Aquileia, and showed a seeming resolution to dispute the passage of +the mountains and morasses which fortified the confines of the Venetian +province. The surprisal of a castle in the Alps by the secret march of +the Imperialists, could scarcely have determined him to relinquish the +possession of Italy, if the inclinations of the people had supported the +cause of their tyrant. But the memory of the cruelties exercised by his +ministers, after the unsuccessful revolt of Nepotian, had left a deep +impression of horror and resentment on the minds of the Romans. +That rash youth, the son of the princess Eutropia, and the nephew of +Constantine, had seen with indignation the sceptre of the West usurped +by a perfidious barbarian. Arming a desperate troop of slaves and +gladiators, he overpowered the feeble guard of the domestic tranquillity +of Rome, received the homage of the senate, and assuming the title of +Augustus, precariously reigned during a tumult of twenty-eight days. +The march of some regular forces put an end to his ambitious hopes: +the rebellion was extinguished in the blood of Nepotian, of his mother +Eutropia, and of his adherents; and the proscription was extended to +all who had contracted a fatal alliance with the name and family of +Constantine. But as soon as Constantius, after the battle of Mursa, +became master of the sea-coast of Dalmatia, a band of noble exiles, who +had ventured to equip a fleet in some harbor of the Adriatic, sought +protection and revenge in his victorious camp. By their secret +intelligence with their countrymen, Rome and the Italian cities were +persuaded to display the banners of Constantius on their walls. The +grateful veterans, enriched by the liberality of the father, signalized +their gratitude and loyalty to the son. The cavalry, the legions, +and the auxiliaries of Italy, renewed their oath of allegiance to +Constantius; and the usurper, alarmed by the general desertion, was +compelled, with the remains of his faithful troops, to retire beyond the +Alps into the provinces of Gaul. The detachments, however, which were +ordered either to press or to intercept the flight of Magnentius, +conducted themselves with the usual imprudence of success; and allowed +him, in the plains of Pavia, an opportunity of turning on his pursuers, +and of gratifying his despair by the carnage of a useless victory. + +The pride of Magnentius was reduced, by repeated misfortunes, to sue, +and to sue in vain, for peace. He first despatched a senator, in whose +abilities he confided, and afterwards several bishops, whose holy +character might obtain a more favorable audience, with the offer of +resigning the purple, and the promise of devoting the remainder of his +life to the service of the emperor. But Constantius, though he granted +fair terms of pardon and reconciliation to all who abandoned the +standard of rebellion, avowed his inflexible resolution to inflict +a just punishment on the crimes of an assassin, whom he prepared +to overwhelm on every side by the effort of his victorious arms. +An Imperial fleet acquired the easy possession of Africa and Spain, +confirmed the wavering faith of the Moorish nations, and landed a +considerable force, which passed the Pyrenees, and advanced towards +Lyons, the last and fatal station of Magnentius. The temper of the +tyrant, which was never inclined to clemency, was urged by distress to +exercise every act of oppression which could extort an immediate supply +from the cities of Gaul. Their patience was at length exhausted; and +Treves, the seat of Prætorian government, gave the signal of revolt, by +shutting her gates against Decentius, who had been raised by his brother +to the rank either of Cæsar or of Augustus. From Treves, Decentius was +obliged to retire to Sens, where he was soon surrounded by an army of +Germans, whom the pernicious arts of Constantius had introduced into the +civil dissensions of Rome. In the mean time, the Imperial troops forced +the passages of the Cottian Alps, and in the bloody combat of Mount +Seleucus irrevocably fixed the title of rebels on the party of +Magnentius. He was unable to bring another army into the field; the +fidelity of his guards was corrupted; and when he appeared in public to +animate them by his exhortations, he was saluted with a unanimous shout +of "Long live the emperor Constantius!" The tyrant, who perceived that +they were preparing to deserve pardon and rewards by the sacrifice of +the most obnoxious criminal, prevented their design by falling on his +sword; a death more easy and more honorable than he could hope to obtain +from the hands of an enemy, whose revenge would have been colored with +the specious pretence of justice and fraternal piety. The example of +suicide was imitated by Decentius, who strangled himself on the news of +his brother's death. The author of the conspiracy, Marcellinus, had long +since disappeared in the battle of Mursa, and the public tranquillity +was confirmed by the execution of the surviving leaders of a guilty and +unsuccessful faction. A severe inquisition was extended over all who, +either from choice or from compulsion, had been involved in the cause of +rebellion. Paul, surnamed Catena from his superior skill in the judicial +exercise of tyranny, * was sent to explore the latent remains of the +conspiracy in the remote province of Britain. The honest indignation +expressed by Martin, vice-præfect of the island, was interpreted as an +evidence of his own guilt; and the governor was urged to the necessity +of turning against his breast the sword with which he had been provoked +to wound the Imperial minister. The most innocent subjects of the West +were exposed to exile and confiscation, to death and torture; and as +the timid are always cruel, the mind of Constantius was inaccessible to +mercy. + + + +Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor.--Part I. + + Constantius Sole Emperor.--Elevation And Death Of Gallus.-- + Danger And Elevation Of Julian.--Sarmatian And Persian + Wars.--Victories Of Julian In Gaul. + +The divided provinces of the empire were again united by the victory of +Constantius; but as that feeble prince was destitute of personal merit, +either in peace or war; as he feared his generals, and distrusted his +ministers; the triumph of his arms served only to establish the reign +of the eunuchs over the Roman world. Those unhappy beings, the ancient +production of Oriental jealousy and despotism, were introduced into +Greece and Rome by the contagion of Asiatic luxury. Their progress was +rapid; and the eunuchs, who, in the time of Augustus, had been abhorred, +as the monstrous retinue of an Egyptian queen, were gradually admitted +into the families of matrons, of senators, and of the emperors +themselves. Restrained by the severe edicts of Domitian and Nerva, +cherished by the pride of Diocletian, reduced to an humble station +by the prudence of Constantine, they multiplied in the palaces of his +degenerate sons, and insensibly acquired the knowledge, and at length +the direction, of the secret councils of Constantius. The aversion and +contempt which mankind had so uniformly entertained for that imperfect +species, appears to have degraded their character, and to have rendered +them almost as incapable as they were supposed to be, of conceiving any +generous sentiment, or of performing any worthy action. But the eunuchs +were skilled in the arts of flattery and intrigue; and they alternately +governed the mind of Constantius by his fears, his indolence, and his +vanity. Whilst he viewed in a deceitful mirror the fair appearance +of public prosperity, he supinely permitted them to intercept the +complaints of the injured provinces, to accumulate immense treasures +by the sale of justice and of honors; to disgrace the most important +dignities, by the promotion of those who had purchased at their hands +the powers of oppression, and to gratify their resentment against +the few independent spirits, who arrogantly refused to solicit the +protection of slaves. Of these slaves the most distinguished was the +chamberlain Eusebius, who ruled the monarch and the palace with +such absolute sway, that Constantius, according to the sarcasm of an +impartial historian, possessed some credit with this haughty favorite. +By his artful suggestions, the emperor was persuaded to subscribe the +condemnation of the unfortunate Gallus, and to add a new crime to the +long list of unnatural murders which pollute the honor of the house of +Constantine. + +When the two nephews of Constantine, Gallus and Julian, were saved from +the fury of the soldiers, the former was about twelve, and the latter +about six, years of age; and, as the eldest was thought to be of a +sickly constitution, they obtained with the less difficulty a precarious +and dependent life, from the affected pity of Constantius, who was +sensible that the execution of these helpless orphans would have been +esteemed, by all mankind, an act of the most deliberate cruelty. * +Different cities of Ionia and Bithynia were assigned for the places of +their exile and education; but as soon as their growing years excited +the jealousy of the emperor, he judged it more prudent to secure those +unhappy youths in the strong castle of Macellum, near Cæsarea. The +treatment which they experienced during a six years' confinement, was +partly such as they could hope from a careful guardian, and partly +such as they might dread from a suspicious tyrant. Their prison was an +ancient palace, the residence of the kings of Cappadocia; the situation +was pleasant, the buildings of stately, the enclosure spacious. They +pursued their studies, and practised their exercises, under the tuition +of the most skilful masters; and the numerous household appointed to +attend, or rather to guard, the nephews of Constantine, was not unworthy +of the dignity of their birth. But they could not disguise to themselves +that they were deprived of fortune, of freedom, and of safety; secluded +from the society of all whom they could trust or esteem, and condemned +to pass their melancholy hours in the company of slaves devoted to the +commands of a tyrant who had already injured them beyond the hope +of reconciliation. At length, however, the emergencies of the state +compelled the emperor, or rather his eunuchs, to invest Gallus, in the +twenty-fifth year of his age, with the title of Cæsar, and to cement +this political connection by his marriage with the princess Constantina. +After a formal interview, in which the two princes mutually engaged +their faith never to undertake any thing to the prejudice of each other, +they repaired without delay to their respective stations. Constantius +continued his march towards the West, and Gallus fixed his residence at +Antioch; from whence, with a delegated authority, he administered the +five great dioceses of the eastern præfecture. In this fortunate change, +the new Cæsar was not unmindful of his brother Julian, who obtained the +honors of his rank, the appearances of liberty, and the restitution of +an ample patrimony. + +The writers the most indulgent to the memory of Gallus, and even Julian +himself, though he wished to cast a veil over the frailties of his +brother, are obliged to confess that the Cæsar was incapable of +reigning. Transported from a prison to a throne, he possessed neither +genius nor application, nor docility to compensate for the want of +knowledge and experience. A temper naturally morose and violent, +instead of being corrected, was soured by solitude and adversity; the +remembrance of what he had endured disposed him to retaliation rather +than to sympathy; and the ungoverned sallies of his rage were often +fatal to those who approached his person, or were subject to his power. +Constantina, his wife, is described, not as a woman, but as one of +the infernal furies tormented with an insatiate thirst of human blood. +Instead of employing her influence to insinuate the mild counsels +of prudence and humanity, she exasperated the fierce passions of her +husband; and as she retained the vanity, though she had renounced, the +gentleness of her sex, a pearl necklace was esteemed an equivalent price +for the murder of an innocent and virtuous nobleman. The cruelty of +Gallus was sometimes displayed in the undissembled violence of popular +or military executions; and was sometimes disguised by the abuse of law, +and the forms of judicial proceedings. The private houses of Antioch, +and the places of public resort, were besieged by spies and informers; +and the Cæsar himself, concealed in a plebeian habit, very frequently +condescended to assume that odious character. Every apartment of the +palace was adorned with the instruments of death and torture, and a +general consternation was diffused through the capital of Syria. The +prince of the East, as if he had been conscious how much he had to fear, +and how little he deserved to reign, selected for the objects of his +resentment the provincials accused of some imaginary treason, and his +own courtiers, whom with more reason he suspected of incensing, by their +secret correspondence, the timid and suspicious mind of Constantius. +But he forgot that he was depriving himself of his only support, the +affection of the people; whilst he furnished the malice of his enemies +with the arms of truth, and afforded the emperor the fairest pretence of +exacting the forfeit of his purple, and of his life. + +As long as the civil war suspended the fate of the Roman world, +Constantius dissembled his knowledge of the weak and cruel +administration to which his choice had subjected the East; and the +discovery of some assassins, secretly despatched to Antioch by the +tyrant of Gaul, was employed to convince the public, that the emperor +and the Cæsar were united by the same interest, and pursued by the same +enemies. But when the victory was decided in favor of Constantius, +his dependent colleague became less useful and less formidable. Every +circumstance of his conduct was severely and suspiciously examined, and +it was privately resolved, either to deprive Gallus of the purple, or +at least to remove him from the indolent luxury of Asia to the hardships +and dangers of a German war. The death of Theophilus, consular of the +province of Syria, who in a time of scarcity had been massacred by the +people of Antioch, with the connivance, and almost at the instigation, +of Gallus, was justly resented, not only as an act of wanton cruelty, +but as a dangerous insult on the supreme majesty of Constantius. Two +ministers of illustrious rank, Domitian the Oriental præfect, and +Montius, quæstor of the palace, were empowered by a special commission +* to visit and reform the state of the East. They were instructed to +behave towards Gallus with moderation and respect, and, by the gentlest +arts of persuasion, to engage him to comply with the invitation of his +brother and colleague. The rashness of the præfect disappointed these +prudent measures, and hastened his own ruin, as well as that of his +enemy. On his arrival at Antioch, Domitian passed disdainfully +before the gates of the palace, and alleging a slight pretence of +indisposition, continued several days in sullen retirement, to prepare +an inflammatory memorial, which he transmitted to the Imperial court. +Yielding at length to the pressing solicitations of Gallus, the præfect +condescended to take his seat in council; but his first step was to +signify a concise and haughty mandate, importing that the Cæsar should +immediately repair to Italy, and threatening that he himself would +punish his delay or hesitation, by suspending the usual allowance of his +household. The nephew and daughter of Constantine, who could ill brook +the insolence of a subject, expressed their resentment by instantly +delivering Domitian to the custody of a guard. The quarrel still +admitted of some terms of accommodation. They were rendered +impracticable by the imprudent behavior of Montius, a statesman whose +arts and experience were frequently betrayed by the levity of his +disposition. The quæstor reproached Gallus in a haughty language, that +a prince who was scarcely authorized to remove a municipal magistrate, +should presume to imprison a Prætorian præfect; convoked a meeting of +the civil and military officers; and required them, in the name of their +sovereign, to defend the person and dignity of his representatives. +By this rash declaration of war, the impatient temper of Gallus was +provoked to embrace the most desperate counsels. He ordered his +guards to stand to their arms, assembled the populace of Antioch, +and recommended to their zeal the care of his safety and revenge. His +commands were too fatally obeyed. They rudely seized the præfect and +the quæstor, and tying their legs together with ropes, they dragged +them through the streets of the city, inflicted a thousand insults and a +thousand wounds on these unhappy victims, and at last precipitated their +mangled and lifeless bodies into the stream of the Orontes. + +After such a deed, whatever might have been the designs of Gallus, it +was only in a field of battle that he could assert his innocence with +any hope of success. But the mind of that prince was formed of an equal +mixture of violence and weakness. Instead of assuming the title of +Augustus, instead of employing in his defence the troops and treasures +of the East, he suffered himself to be deceived by the affected +tranquillity of Constantius, who, leaving him the vain pageantry of a +court, imperceptibly recalled the veteran legions from the provinces +of Asia. But as it still appeared dangerous to arrest Gallus in his +capital, the slow and safer arts of dissimulation were practised with +success. The frequent and pressing epistles of Constantius were filled +with professions of confidence and friendship; exhorting the Cæsar to +discharge the duties of his high station, to relieve his colleague from +a part of the public cares, and to assist the West by his presence, his +counsels, and his arms. After so many reciprocal injuries, Gallus had +reason to fear and to distrust. But he had neglected the opportunities +of flight and of resistance; he was seduced by the flattering assurances +of the tribune Scudilo, who, under the semblance of a rough soldier, +disguised the most artful insinuation; and he depended on the credit +of his wife Constantina, till the unseasonable death of that princess +completed the ruin in which he had been involved by her impetuous +passions. + + + +Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor.--Part II. + +After a long delay, the reluctant Cæsar set forwards on his journey to +the Imperial court. From Antioch to Hadrianople, he traversed the wide +extent of his dominions with a numerous and stately train; and as he +labored to conceal his apprehensions from the world, and perhaps from +himself, he entertained the people of Constantinople with an exhibition +of the games of the circus. The progress of the journey might, however, +have warned him of the impending danger. In all the principal cities he +was met by ministers of confidence, commissioned to seize the offices of +government, to observe his motions, and to prevent the hasty sallies +of his despair. The persons despatched to secure the provinces which he +left behind, passed him with cold salutations, or affected disdain; and +the troops, whose station lay along the public road, were studiously +removed on his approach, lest they might be tempted to offer their +swords for the service of a civil war. After Gallus had been permitted +to repose himself a few days at Hadrianople, he received a mandate, +expressed in the most haughty and absolute style, that his splendid +retinue should halt in that city, while the Cæsar himself, with only +ten post-carriages, should hasten to the Imperial residence at Milan. +In this rapid journey, the profound respect which was due to the +brother and colleague of Constantius, was insensibly changed into rude +familiarity; and Gallus, who discovered in the countenances of the +attendants that they already considered themselves as his guards, and +might soon be employed as his executioners, began to accuse his fatal +rashness, and to recollect, with terror and remorse, the conduct by +which he had provoked his fate. The dissimulation which had hitherto +been preserved, was laid aside at Petovio, * in Pannonia. He was +conducted to a palace in the suburbs, where the general Barbatio, with +a select band of soldiers, who could neither be moved by pity, nor +corrupted by rewards, expected the arrival of his illustrious victim. In +the close of the evening he was arrested, ignominiously stripped of the +ensigns of Cæsar, and hurried away to Pola, in Istria, a sequestered +prison, which had been so recently polluted with royal blood. The horror +which he felt was soon increased by the appearance of his implacable +enemy the eunuch Eusebius, who, with the assistance of a notary and a +tribune, proceeded to interrogate him concerning the administration of +the East. The Cæsar sank under the weight of shame and guilt, confessed +all the criminal actions and all the treasonable designs with which he +was charged; and by imputing them to the advice of his wife, exasperated +the indignation of Constantius, who reviewed with partial prejudice the +minutes of the examination. The emperor was easily convinced, that his +own safety was incompatible with the life of his cousin: the sentence +of death was signed, despatched, and executed; and the nephew of +Constantine, with his hands tied behind his back, was beheaded in prison +like the vilest malefactor. Those who are inclined to palliate the +cruelties of Constantius, assert that he soon relented, and endeavored +to recall the bloody mandate; but that the second messenger, intrusted +with the reprieve, was detained by the eunuchs, who dreaded the +unforgiving temper of Gallus, and were desirous of reuniting to their +empire the wealthy provinces of the East. + +Besides the reigning emperor, Julian alone survived, of all the numerous +posterity of Constantius Chlorus. The misfortune of his royal birth +involved him in the disgrace of Gallus. From his retirement in the happy +country of Ionia, he was conveyed under a strong guard to the court +of Milan; where he languished above seven months, in the continual +apprehension of suffering the same ignominious death, which was daily +inflicted almost before his eyes, on the friends and adherents of +his persecuted family. His looks, his gestures, his silence, were +scrutinized with malignant curiosity, and he was perpetually assaulted +by enemies whom he had never offended, and by arts to which he was a +stranger. But in the school of adversity, Julian insensibly acquired the +virtues of firmness and discretion. He defended his honor, as well +as his life, against the insnaring subtleties of the eunuchs, who +endeavored to extort some declaration of his sentiments; and whilst he +cautiously suppressed his grief and resentment, he nobly disdained to +flatter the tyrant, by any seeming approbation of his brother's +murder. Julian most devoutly ascribes his miraculous deliverance to the +protection of the gods, who had exempted his innocence from the sentence +of destruction pronounced by their justice against the impious house of +Constantine. As the most effectual instrument of their providence, +he gratefully acknowledges the steady and generous friendship of the +empress Eusebia, a woman of beauty and merit, who, by the ascendant +which she had gained over the mind of her husband, counterbalanced, +in some measure, the powerful conspiracy of the eunuchs. By the +intercession of his patroness, Julian was admitted into the Imperial +presence: he pleaded his cause with a decent freedom, he was heard with +favor; and, notwithstanding the efforts of his enemies, who urged +the danger of sparing an avenger of the blood of Gallus, the milder +sentiment of Eusebia prevailed in the council. But the effects of a +second interview were dreaded by the eunuchs; and Julian was advised to +withdraw for a while into the neighborhood of Milan, till the emperor +thought proper to assign the city of Athens for the place of his +honorable exile. As he had discovered, from his earliest youth, a +propensity, or rather passion, for the language, the manners, the +learning, and the religion of the Greeks, he obeyed with pleasure an +order so agreeable to his wishes. Far from the tumult of arms, and +the treachery of courts, he spent six months under the groves of the +academy, in a free intercourse with the philosophers of the age, who +studied to cultivate the genius, to encourage the vanity, and to inflame +the devotion of their royal pupil. Their labors were not unsuccessful; +and Julian inviolably preserved for Athens that tender regard which +seldom fails to arise in a liberal mind, from the recollection of the +place where it has discovered and exercised its growing powers. The +gentleness and affability of manners, which his temper suggested and his +situation imposed, insensibly engaged the affections of the strangers, +as well as citizens, with whom he conversed. Some of his fellow-students +might perhaps examine his behavior with an eye of prejudice and +aversion; but Julian established, in the schools of Athens, a general +prepossession in favor of his virtues and talents, which was soon +diffused over the Roman world. + +Whilst his hours were passed in studious retirement, the empress, +resolute to achieve the generous design which she had undertaken, was +not unmindful of the care of his fortune. The death of the late Cæsar +had left Constantius invested with the sole command, and oppressed by +the accumulated weight, of a mighty empire. Before the wounds of civil +discord could be healed, the provinces of Gaul were overwhelmed by a +deluge of Barbarians. The Sarmatians no longer respected the barrier +of the Danube. The impunity of rapine had increased the boldness and +numbers of the wild Isaurians: those robbers descended from their craggy +mountains to ravage the adjacent country, and had even presumed, though +without success, to besiege the important city of Seleucia, which was +defended by a garrison of three Roman legions. Above all, the Persian +monarch, elated by victory, again threatened the peace of Asia, and the +presence of the emperor was indispensably required, both in the West +and in the East. For the first time, Constantius sincerely acknowledged, +that his single strength was unequal to such an extent of care and of +dominion. Insensible to the voice of flattery, which assured him that +his all-powerful virtue, and celestial fortune, would still continue to +triumph over every obstacle, he listened with complacency to the +advice of Eusebia, which gratified his indolence, without offending his +suspicious pride. As she perceived that the remembrance of Gallus dwelt +on the emperor's mind, she artfully turned his attention to the opposite +characters of the two brothers, which from their infancy had been +compared to those of Domitian and of Titus. She accustomed her husband +to consider Julian as a youth of a mild, unambitious disposition, whose +allegiance and gratitude might be secured by the gift of the purple, +and who was qualified to fill with honor a subordinate station, without +aspiring to dispute the commands, or to shade the glories, of his +sovereign and benefactor. After an obstinate, though secret struggle, +the opposition of the favorite eunuchs submitted to the ascendency of +the empress; and it was resolved that Julian, after celebrating his +nuptials with Helena, sister of Constantius, should be appointed, with +the title of Cæsar, to reign over the countries beyond the Alps. + +Although the order which recalled him to court was probably accompanied +by some intimation of his approaching greatness, he appeals to the +people of Athens to witness his tears of undissembled sorrow, when he +was reluctantly torn away from his beloved retirement. He trembled for +his life, for his fame, and even for his virtue; and his sole confidence +was derived from the persuasion, that Minerva inspired all his actions, +and that he was protected by an invisible guard of angels, whom for +that purpose she had borrowed from the Sun and Moon. He approached, with +horror, the palace of Milan; nor could the ingenuous youth conceal +his indignation, when he found himself accosted with false and servile +respect by the assassins of his family. Eusebia, rejoicing in the +success of her benevolent schemes, embraced him with the tenderness of +a sister; and endeavored, by the most soothing caresses, to dispel his +terrors, and reconcile him to his fortune. But the ceremony of shaving +his beard, and his awkward demeanor, when he first exchanged the cloak +of a Greek philosopher for the military habit of a Roman prince, amused, +during a few days, the levity of the Imperial court. + +The emperors of the age of Constantine no longer deigned to consult +with the senate in the choice of a colleague; but they were anxious that +their nomination should be ratified by the consent of the army. On this +solemn occasion, the guards, with the other troops whose stations were +in the neighborhood of Milan, appeared under arms; and Constantius +ascended his lofty tribunal, holding by the hand his cousin Julian, who +entered the same day into the twenty-fifth year of his age. In a studied +speech, conceived and delivered with dignity, the emperor represented +the various dangers which threatened the prosperity of the republic, the +necessity of naming a Cæsar for the administration of the West, and his +own intention, if it was agreeable to their wishes, of rewarding +with the honors of the purple the promising virtues of the nephew +of Constantine. The approbation of the soldiers was testified by a +respectful murmur; they gazed on the manly countenance of Julian, and +observed with pleasure, that the fire which sparkled in his eyes was +tempered by a modest blush, on being thus exposed, for the first +time, to the public view of mankind. As soon as the ceremony of his +investiture had been performed, Constantius addressed him with the tone +of authority which his superior age and station permitted him to assume; +and exhorting the new Cæsar to deserve, by heroic deeds, that sacred and +immortal name, the emperor gave his colleague the strongest assurances +of a friendship which should never be impaired by time, nor interrupted +by their separation into the most distant climes. As soon as the speech +was ended, the troops, as a token of applause, clashed their shields +against their knees; while the officers who surrounded the tribunal +expressed, with decent reserve, their sense of the merits of the +representative of Constantius. + +The two princes returned to the palace in the same chariot; and during +the slow procession, Julian repeated to himself a verse of his favorite +Homer, which he might equally apply to his fortune and to his fears. +The four-and-twenty days which the Cæsar spent at Milan after his +investiture, and the first months of his Gallic reign, were devoted to +a splendid but severe captivity; nor could the acquisition of honor +compensate for the loss of freedom. His steps were watched, his +correspondence was intercepted; and he was obliged, by prudence, +to decline the visits of his most intimate friends. Of his former +domestics, four only were permitted to attend him; two pages, his +physician, and his librarian; the last of whom was employed in the care +of a valuable collection of books, the gift of the empress, who studied +the inclinations as well as the interest of her friend. In the room of +these faithful servants, a household was formed, such indeed as became +the dignity of a Cæsar; but it was filled with a crowd of slaves, +destitute, and perhaps incapable, of any attachment for their new +master, to whom, for the most part, they were either unknown or +suspected. His want of experience might require the assistance of a wise +council; but the minute instructions which regulated the service of his +table, and the distribution of his hours, were adapted to a youth still +under the discipline of his preceptors, rather than to the situation of +a prince intrusted with the conduct of an important war. If he aspired +to deserve the esteem of his subjects, he was checked by the fear of +displeasing his sovereign; and even the fruits of his marriage-bed +were blasted by the jealous artifices of Eusebia herself, who, on this +occasion alone, seems to have been unmindful of the tenderness of her +sex, and the generosity of her character. The memory of his father and +of his brothers reminded Julian of his own danger, and his apprehensions +were increased by the recent and unworthy fate of Sylvanus. In the +summer which preceded his own elevation, that general had been chosen +to deliver Gaul from the tyranny of the Barbarians; but Sylvanus soon +discovered that he had left his most dangerous enemies in the Imperial +court. A dexterous informer, countenanced by several of the principal +ministers, procured from him some recommendatory letters; and erasing +the whole of the contents, except the signature, filled up the vacant +parchment with matters of high and treasonable import. By the industry +and courage of his friends, the fraud was however detected, and in a +great council of the civil and military officers, held in the presence +of the emperor himself, the innocence of Sylvanus was publicly +acknowledged. But the discovery came too late; the report of the +calumny, and the hasty seizure of his estate, had already provoked the +indignant chief to the rebellion of which he was so unjustly accused. +He assumed the purple at his head-quarters of Cologne, and his active +powers appeared to menace Italy with an invasion, and Milan with a +siege. In this emergency, Ursicinus, a general of equal rank, regained, +by an act of treachery, the favor which he had lost by his eminent +services in the East. Exasperated, as he might speciously allege, by the +injuries of a similar nature, he hastened with a few followers to join +the standard, and to betray the confidence, of his too credulous friend. +After a reign of only twenty-eight days, Sylvanus was assassinated: the +soldiers who, without any criminal intention, had blindly followed the +example of their leader, immediately returned to their allegiance; and +the flatterers of Constantius celebrated the wisdom and felicity of the +monarch who had extinguished a civil war without the hazard of a battle. + +The protection of the Rhætian frontier, and the persecution of the +Catholic church, detained Constantius in Italy above eighteen months +after the departure of Julian. Before the emperor returned into the +East, he indulged his pride and curiosity in a visit to the ancient +capital. He proceeded from Milan to Rome along the Æmilian and Flaminian +ways, and as soon as he approached within forty miles of the city, the +march of a prince who had never vanquished a foreign enemy, assumed the +appearance of a triumphal procession. His splendid train was composed +of all the ministers of luxury; but in a time of profound peace, he +was encompassed by the glittering arms of the numerous squadrons of his +guards and cuirassiers. Their streaming banners of silk, embossed with +gold, and shaped in the form of dragons, waved round the person of the +emperor. Constantius sat alone in a lofty car, resplendent with gold +and precious gems; and, except when he bowed his head to pass under the +gates of the cities, he affected a stately demeanor of inflexible, and, +as it might seem, of insensible gravity. The severe discipline of the +Persian youth had been introduced by the eunuchs into the Imperial +palace; and such were the habits of patience which they had inculcated, +that during a slow and sultry march, he was never seen to move his hand +towards his face, or to turn his eyes either to the right or to the +left. He was received by the magistrates and senate of Rome; and the +emperor surveyed, with attention, the civil honors of the republic, and +the consular images of the noble families. The streets were lined with +an innumerable multitude. Their repeated acclamations expressed their +joy at beholding, after an absence of thirty-two years, the sacred +person of their sovereign, and Constantius himself expressed, with +some pleasantry, he affected surprise that the human race should thus +suddenly be collected on the same spot. The son of Constantine was +lodged in the ancient palace of Augustus: he presided in the senate, +harangued the people from the tribunal which Cicero had so often +ascended, assisted with unusual courtesy at the games of the Circus, and +accepted the crowns of gold, as well as the Panegyrics which had been +prepared for the ceremony by the deputies of the principal cities. His +short visit of thirty days was employed in viewing the monuments of art +and power which were scattered over the seven hills and the interjacent +valleys. He admired the awful majesty of the Capitol, the vast extent +of the baths of Caracalla and Diocletian, the severe simplicity of the +Pantheon, the massy greatness of the amphitheatre of Titus, the elegant +architecture of the theatre of Pompey and the Temple of Peace, and, +above all, the stately structure of the Forum and column of Trajan; +acknowledging that the voice of fame, so prone to invent and to magnify, +had made an inadequate report of the metropolis of the world. The +traveller, who has contemplated the ruins of ancient Rome, may conceive +some imperfect idea of the sentiments which they must have inspired when +they reared their heads in the splendor of unsullied beauty. + +[See The Pantheon: The severe simplicity of the Pantheon] + +The satisfaction which Constantius had received from this journey +excited him to the generous emulation of bestowing on the Romans some +memorial of his own gratitude and munificence. His first idea was to +imitate the equestrian and colossal statue which he had seen in the +Forum of Trajan; but when he had maturely weighed the difficulties of +the execution, he chose rather to embellish the capital by the gift of +an Egyptian obelisk. In a remote but polished age, which seems to have +preceded the invention of alphabetical writing, a great number of these +obelisks had been erected, in the cities of Thebes and Heliopolis, +by the ancient sovereigns of Egypt, in a just confidence that the +simplicity of their form, and the hardness of their substance, would +resist the injuries of time and violence. Several of these extraordinary +columns had been transported to Rome by Augustus and his successors, +as the most durable monuments of their power and victory; but there +remained one obelisk, which, from its size or sanctity, escaped for a +long time the rapacious vanity of the conquerors. It was designed by +Constantine to adorn his new city; and, after being removed by his +order from the pedestal where it stood before the Temple of the Sun +at Heliopolis, was floated down the Nile to Alexandria. The death of +Constantine suspended the execution of his purpose, and this obelisk was +destined by his son to the ancient capital of the empire. A vessel of +uncommon strength and capaciousness was provided to convey this enormous +weight of granite, at least a hundred and fifteen feet in length, from +the banks of the Nile to those of the Tyber. The obelisk of Constantius +was landed about three miles from the city, and elevated, by the efforts +of art and labor, in the great Circus of Rome. + +The departure of Constantius from Rome was hastened by the alarming +intelligence of the distress and danger of the Illyrian provinces. The +distractions of civil war, and the irreparable loss which the Roman +legions had sustained in the battle of Mursa, exposed those countries, +almost without defence, to the light cavalry of the Barbarians; and +particularly to the inroads of the Quadi, a fierce and powerful nation, +who seem to have exchanged the institutions of Germany for the arms and +military arts of their Sarmatian allies. The garrisons of the frontiers +were insufficient to check their progress; and the indolent monarch was +at length compelled to assemble, from the extremities of his dominions, +the flower of the Palatine troops, to take the field in person, and +to employ a whole campaign, with the preceding autumn and the ensuing +spring, in the serious prosecution of the war. The emperor passed the +Danube on a bridge of boats, cut in pieces all that encountered his +march, penetrated into the heart of the country of the Quadi, and +severely retaliated the calamities which they had inflicted on the Roman +province. The dismayed Barbarians were soon reduced to sue for peace: +they offered the restitution of his captive subjects as an atonement for +the past, and the noblest hostages as a pledge of their future +conduct. The generous courtesy which was shown to the first among their +chieftains who implored the clemency of Constantius, encouraged the more +timid, or the more obstinate, to imitate their example; and the Imperial +camp was crowded with the princes and ambassadors of the most distant +tribes, who occupied the plains of the Lesser Poland, and who might +have deemed themselves secure behind the lofty ridge of the Carpathian +Mountains. While Constantius gave laws to the Barbarians beyond the +Danube, he distinguished, with specious compassion, the Sarmatian +exiles, who had been expelled from their native country by the rebellion +of their slaves, and who formed a very considerable accession to the +power of the Quadi. The emperor, embracing a generous but artful system +of policy, released the Sarmatians from the bands of this humiliating +dependence, and restored them, by a separate treaty, to the dignity of a +nation united under the government of a king, the friend and ally of the +republic. He declared his resolution of asserting the justice of their +cause, and of securing the peace of the provinces by the extirpation, +or at least the banishment, of the Limigantes, whose manners were still +infected with the vices of their servile origin. The execution of this +design was attended with more difficulty than glory. The territory of +the Limigantes was protected against the Romans by the Danube, against +the hostile Barbarians by the Teyss. The marshy lands which lay between +those rivers, and were often covered by their inundations, formed +an intricate wilderness, pervious only to the inhabitants, who were +acquainted with its secret paths and inaccessible fortresses. On the +approach of Constantius, the Limigantes tried the efficacy of prayers, +of fraud, and of arms; but he sternly rejected their supplications, +defeated their rude stratagems, and repelled with skill and firmness +the efforts of their irregular valor. One of their most warlike tribes, +established in a small island towards the conflux of the Teyss and the +Danube, consented to pass the river with the intention of surprising the +emperor during the security of an amicable conference. They soon became +the victims of the perfidy which they meditated. Encompassed on every +side, trampled down by the cavalry, slaughtered by the swords of +the legions, they disdained to ask for mercy; and with an undaunted +countenance, still grasped their weapons in the agonies of death. After +this victory, a considerable body of Romans was landed on the opposite +banks of the Danube; the Taifalæ, a Gothic tribe engaged in the service +of the empire, invaded the Limigantes on the side of the Teyss; and +their former masters, the free Sarmatians, animated by hope and revenge, +penetrated through the hilly country, into the heart of their +ancient possessions. A general conflagration revealed the huts of the +Barbarians, which were seated in the depth of the wilderness; and the +soldier fought with confidence on marshy ground, which it was dangerous +for him to tread. In this extremity, the bravest of the Limigantes were +resolved to die in arms, rather than to yield: but the milder sentiment, +enforced by the authority of their elders, at length prevailed; and the +suppliant crowd, followed by their wives and children, repaired to the +Imperial camp, to learn their fate from the mouth of the conqueror. +After celebrating his own clemency, which was still inclined to pardon +their repeated crimes, and to spare the remnant of a guilty nation, +Constantius assigned for the place of their exile a remote country, +where they might enjoy a safe and honorable repose. The Limigantes +obeyed with reluctance; but before they could reach, at least before +they could occupy, their destined habitations, they returned to the +banks of the Danube, exaggerating the hardships of their situation, and +requesting, with fervent professions of fidelity, that the emperor would +grant them an undisturbed settlement within the limits of the Roman +provinces. Instead of consulting his own experience of their incurable +perfidy, Constantius listened to his flatterers, who were ready to +represent the honor and advantage of accepting a colony of soldiers, +at a time when it was much easier to obtain the pecuniary contributions +than the military service of the subjects of the empire. The Limigantes +were permitted to pass the Danube; and the emperor gave audience to the +multitude in a large plain near the modern city of Buda. They surrounded +the tribunal, and seemed to hear with respect an oration full of +mildness and dignity when one of the Barbarians, casting his shoe +into the air, exclaimed with a loud voice, Marha! Marha! * a word of +defiance, which was received as a signal of the tumult. They rushed with +fury to seize the person of the emperor; his royal throne and golden +couch were pillaged by these rude hands; but the faithful defence of +his guards, who died at his feet, allowed him a moment to mount a fleet +horse, and to escape from the confusion. The disgrace which had been +incurred by a treacherous surprise was soon retrieved by the numbers +and discipline of the Romans; and the combat was only terminated by the +extinction of the name and nation of the Limigantes. The free Sarmatians +were reinstated in the possession of their ancient seats; and although +Constantius distrusted the levity of their character, he entertained +some hopes that a sense of gratitude might influence their future +conduct. He had remarked the lofty stature and obsequious demeanor of +Zizais, one of the noblest of their chiefs. He conferred on him the +title of King; and Zizais proved that he was not unworthy to reign, by a +sincere and lasting attachment to the interests of his benefactor, who, +after this splendid success, received the name of Sarmaticus from the +acclamations of his victorious army. + + + +Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor.--Part III. + +While the Roman emperor and the Persian monarch, at the distance +of three thousand miles, defended their extreme limits against the +Barbarians of the Danube and of the Oxus, their intermediate frontier +experienced the vicissitudes of a languid war, and a precarious truce. +Two of the eastern ministers of Constantius, the Prætorian præfect +Musonian, whose abilities were disgraced by the want of truth and +integrity, and Cassian, duke of Mesopotamia, a hardy and veteran +soldier, opened a secret negotiation with the satrap Tamsapor. These +overtures of peace, translated into the servile and flattering language +of Asia, were transmitted to the camp of the Great King; who resolved to +signify, by an ambassador, the terms which he was inclined to grant to +the suppliant Romans. Narses, whom he invested with that character, was +honorably received in his passage through Antioch and Constantinople: +he reached Sirmium after a long journey, and, at his first audience, +respectfully unfolded the silken veil which covered the haughty epistle +of his sovereign. Sapor, King of Kings, and Brother of the Sun and Moon, +(such were the lofty titles affected by Oriental vanity,) expressed his +satisfaction that his brother, Constantius Cæsar, had been taught +wisdom by adversity. As the lawful successor of Darius Hystaspes, Sapor +asserted, that the River Strymon, in Macedonia, was the true and ancient +boundary of his empire; declaring, however, that as an evidence of his +moderation, he would content himself with the provinces of Armenia and +Mesopotamia, which had been fraudulently extorted from his ancestors. He +alleged, that, without the restitution of these disputed countries, it +was impossible to establish any treaty on a solid and permanent basis; +and he arrogantly threatened, that if his ambassador returned in vain, +he was prepared to take the field in the spring, and to support the +justice of his cause by the strength of his invincible arms. Narses, who +was endowed with the most polite and amiable manners, endeavored, as far +as was consistent with his duty, to soften the harshness of the message. +Both the style and substance were maturely weighed in the Imperial +council, and he was dismissed with the following answer: "Constantius +had a right to disclaim the officiousness of his ministers, who had +acted without any specific orders from the throne: he was not, however, +averse to an equal and honorable treaty; but it was highly indecent, +as well as absurd, to propose to the sole and victorious emperor of +the Roman world, the same conditions of peace which he had indignantly +rejected at the time when his power was contracted within the narrow +limits of the East: the chance of arms was uncertain; and Sapor should +recollect, that if the Romans had sometimes been vanquished in battle, +they had almost always been successful in the event of the war." A few +days after the departure of Narses, three ambassadors were sent to the +court of Sapor, who was already returned from the Scythian expedition to +his ordinary residence of Ctesiphon. A count, a notary, and a sophist, +had been selected for this important commission; and Constantius, who +was secretly anxious for the conclusion of the peace, entertained some +hopes that the dignity of the first of these ministers, the dexterity +of the second, and the rhetoric of the third, would persuade the Persian +monarch to abate of the rigor of his demands. But the progress of their +negotiation was opposed and defeated by the hostile arts of Antoninus, +a Roman subject of Syria, who had fled from oppression, and was +admitted into the councils of Sapor, and even to the royal table, where, +according to the custom of the Persians, the most important business was +frequently discussed. The dexterous fugitive promoted his interest by +the same conduct which gratified his revenge. He incessantly urged the +ambition of his new master to embrace the favorable opportunity when +the bravest of the Palatine troops were employed with the emperor in a +distant war on the Danube. He pressed Sapor to invade the exhausted and +defenceless provinces of the East, with the numerous armies of Persia, +now fortified by the alliance and accession of the fiercest Barbarians. +The ambassadors of Rome retired without success, and a second embassy, +of a still more honorable rank, was detained in strict confinement, and +threatened either with death or exile. + +The military historian, who was himself despatched to observe the army +of the Persians, as they were preparing to construct a bridge of boats +over the Tigris, beheld from an eminence the plain of Assyria, as far as +the edge of the horizon, covered with men, with horses, and with arms. +Sapor appeared in the front, conspicuous by the splendor of his purple. +On his left hand, the place of honor among the Orientals, Grumbates, +king of the Chionites, displayed the stern countenance of an aged and +renowned warrior. The monarch had reserved a similar place on his right +hand for the king of the Albanians, who led his independent tribes from +the shores of the Caspian. * The satraps and generals were distributed +according to their several ranks, and the whole army, besides the +numerous train of Oriental luxury, consisted of more than one hundred +thousand effective men, inured to fatigue, and selected from the bravest +nations of Asia. The Roman deserter, who in some measure guided the +councils of Sapor, had prudently advised, that, instead of wasting the +summer in tedious and difficult sieges, he should march directly to +the Euphrates, and press forwards without delay to seize the feeble and +wealthy metropolis of Syria. But the Persians were no sooner advanced +into the plains of Mesopotamia, than they discovered that every +precaution had been used which could retard their progress, or defeat +their design. The inhabitants, with their cattle, were secured in places +of strength, the green forage throughout the country was set on fire, +the fords of the rivers were fortified by sharp stakes; military engines +were planted on the opposite banks, and a seasonable swell of the waters +of the Euphrates deterred the Barbarians from attempting the ordinary +passage of the bridge of Thapsacus. Their skilful guide, changing his +plan of operations, then conducted the army by a longer circuit, but +through a fertile territory, towards the head of the Euphrates, where +the infant river is reduced to a shallow and accessible stream. Sapor +overlooked, with prudent disdain, the strength of Nisibis; but as he +passed under the walls of Amida, he resolved to try whether the majesty +of his presence would not awe the garrison into immediate submission. +The sacrilegious insult of a random dart, which glanced against the +royal tiara, convinced him of his error; and the indignant monarch +listened with impatience to the advice of his ministers, who conjured +him not to sacrifice the success of his ambition to the gratification of +his resentment. The following day Grumbates advanced towards the gates +with a select body of troops, and required the instant surrender of the +city, as the only atonement which could be accepted for such an act +of rashness and insolence. His proposals were answered by a general +discharge, and his only son, a beautiful and valiant youth, was pierced +through the heart by a javelin, shot from one of the balistæ. The +funeral of the prince of the Chionites was celebrated according to the +rites of the country; and the grief of his aged father was alleviated by +the solemn promise of Sapor, that the guilty city of Amida should serve +as a funeral pile to expiate the death, and to perpetuate the memory, of +his son. + +The ancient city of Amid or Amida, which sometimes assumes the +provincial appellation of Diarbekir, is advantageously situate in a +fertile plain, watered by the natural and artificial channels of the +Tigris, of which the least inconsiderable stream bends in a semicircular +form round the eastern part of the city. The emperor Constantius +had recently conferred on Amida the honor of his own name, and the +additional fortifications of strong walls and lofty towers. It was +provided with an arsenal of military engines, and the ordinary garrison +had been reenforced to the amount of seven legions, when the place +was invested by the arms of Sapor. His first and most sanguine hopes +depended on the success of a general assault. To the several nations +which followed his standard, their respective posts were assigned; +the south to the Vertæ; the north to the Albanians; the east to +the Chionites, inflamed with grief and indignation; the west to the +Segestans, the bravest of his warriors, who covered their front with +a formidable line of Indian elephants. The Persians, on every side, +supported their efforts, and animated their courage; and the monarch +himself, careless of his rank and safety, displayed, in the prosecution +of the siege, the ardor of a youthful soldier. After an obstinate +combat, the Barbarians were repulsed; they incessantly returned to the +charge; they were again driven back with a dreadful slaughter, and two +rebel legions of Gauls, who had been banished into the East, signalized +their undisciplined courage by a nocturnal sally into the heart of the +Persian camp. In one of the fiercest of these repeated assaults, Amida +was betrayed by the treachery of a deserter, who indicated to the +Barbarians a secret and neglected staircase, scooped out of the rock +that hangs over the stream of the Tigris. Seventy chosen archers of the +royal guard ascended in silence to the third story of a lofty tower, +which commanded the precipice; they elevated on high the Persian +banner, the signal of confidence to the assailants, and of dismay to the +besieged; and if this devoted band could have maintained their post a +few minutes longer, the reduction of the place might have been purchased +by the sacrifice of their lives. After Sapor had tried, without success, +the efficacy of force and of stratagem, he had recourse to the slower +but more certain operations of a regular siege, in the conduct of which +he was instructed by the skill of the Roman deserters. The trenches +were opened at a convenient distance, and the troops destined for that +service advanced under the portable cover of strong hurdles, to fill +up the ditch, and undermine the foundations of the walls. Wooden towers +were at the same time constructed, and moved forwards on wheels, till +the soldiers, who were provided with every species of missile weapons, +could engage almost on level ground with the troops who defended the +rampart. Every mode of resistance which art could suggest, or courage +could execute, was employed in the defence of Amida, and the works of +Sapor were more than once destroyed by the fire of the Romans. But the +resources of a besieged city may be exhausted. The Persians repaired +their losses, and pushed their approaches; a large preach was made by +the battering-ram, and the strength of the garrison, wasted by the sword +and by disease, yielded to the fury of the assault. The soldiers, the +citizens, their wives, their children, all who had not time to escape +through the opposite gate, were involved by the conquerors in a +promiscuous massacre. + +But the ruin of Amida was the safety of the Roman provinces. As soon as +the first transports of victory had subsided, Sapor was at leisure to +reflect, that to chastise a disobedient city, he had lost the flower of +his troops, and the most favorable season for conquest. Thirty thousand +of his veterans had fallen under the walls of Amida, during the +continuance of a siege, which lasted seventy-three days; and the +disappointed monarch returned to his capital with affected triumph and +secret mortification. It is more than probable, that the inconstancy of +his Barbarian allies was tempted to relinquish a war in which they had +encountered such unexpected difficulties; and that the aged king of the +Chionites, satiated with revenge, turned away with horror from a scene +of action where he had been deprived of the hope of his family and +nation. The strength as well as the spirit of the army with which +Sapor took the field in the ensuing spring was no longer equal to the +unbounded views of his ambition. Instead of aspiring to the conquest of +the East, he was obliged to content himself with the reduction of two +fortified cities of Mesopotamia, Singara and Bezabde; the one situate in +the midst of a sandy desert, the other in a small peninsula, surrounded +almost on every side by the deep and rapid stream of the Tigris. Five +Roman legions, of the diminutive size to which they had been reduced +in the age of Constantine, were made prisoners, and sent into remote +captivity on the extreme confines of Persia. After dismantling the walls +of Singara, the conqueror abandoned that solitary and sequestered place; +but he carefully restored the fortifications of Bezabde, and fixed in +that important post a garrison or colony of veterans; amply supplied +with every means of defence, and animated by high sentiments of honor +and fidelity. Towards the close of the campaign, the arms of Sapor +incurred some disgrace by an unsuccessful enterprise against Virtha, +or Tecrit, a strong, or, as it was universally esteemed till the age of +Tamerlane, an impregnable fortress of the independent Arabs. + +The defence of the East against the arms of Sapor required and would +have exercised, the abilities of the most consummate general; and it +seemed fortunate for the state, that it was the actual province of the +brave Ursicinus, who alone deserved the confidence of the soldiers and +people. In the hour of danger, Ursicinus was removed from his station by +the intrigues of the eunuchs; and the military command of the East +was bestowed, by the same influence, on Sabinian, a wealthy and subtle +veteran, who had attained the infirmities, without acquiring the +experience, of age. By a second order, which issued from the same +jealous and inconstant councils, Ursicinus was again despatched to the +frontier of Mesopotamia, and condemned to sustain the labors of a war, +the honors of which had been transferred to his unworthy rival. Sabinian +fixed his indolent station under the walls of Edessa; and while he +amused himself with the idle parade of military exercise, and moved +to the sound of flutes in the Pyrrhic dance, the public defence was +abandoned to the boldness and diligence of the former general of +the East. But whenever Ursicinus recommended any vigorous plan of +operations; when he proposed, at the head of a light and active army, to +wheel round the foot of the mountains, to intercept the convoys of the +enemy, to harass the wide extent of the Persian lines, and to relieve +the distress of Amida; the timid and envious commander alleged, that he +was restrained by his positive orders from endangering the safety of +the troops. Amida was at length taken; its bravest defenders, who had +escaped the sword of the Barbarians, died in the Roman camp by the hand +of the executioner: and Ursicinus himself, after supporting the disgrace +of a partial inquiry, was punished for the misconduct of Sabinian by the +loss of his military rank. But Constantius soon experienced the truth +of the prediction which honest indignation had extorted from his injured +lieutenant, that as long as such maxims of government were suffered to +prevail, the emperor himself would find it is no easy task to defend +his eastern dominions from the invasion of a foreign enemy. When he had +subdued or pacified the Barbarians of the Danube, Constantius proceeded +by slow marches into the East; and after he had wept over the smoking +ruins of Amida, he formed, with a powerful army, the siege of Bezabde. +The walls were shaken by the reiterated efforts of the most enormous of +the battering-rams; the town was reduced to the last extremity; but it +was still defended by the patient and intrepid valor of the garrison, +till the approach of the rainy season obliged the emperor to raise the +siege, and ingloriously to retreat into his winter quarters at Antioch. +The pride of Constantius, and the ingenuity of his courtiers, were at +a loss to discover any materials for panegyric in the events of the +Persian war; while the glory of his cousin Julian, to whose military +command he had intrusted the provinces of Gaul, was proclaimed to the +world in the simple and concise narrative of his exploits. + +In the blind fury of civil discord, Constantius had abandoned to the +Barbarians of Germany the countries of Gaul, which still acknowledged +the authority of his rival. A numerous swarm of Franks and Alemanni were +invited to cross the Rhine by presents and promises, by the hopes of +spoil, and by a perpetual grant of all the territories which they should +be able to subdue. But the emperor, who for a temporary service had +thus imprudently provoked the rapacious spirit of the Barbarians, soon +discovered and lamented the difficulty of dismissing these formidable +allies, after they had tasted the richness of the Roman soil. Regardless +of the nice distinction of loyalty and rebellion, these undisciplined +robbers treated as their natural enemies all the subjects of the +empire, who possessed any property which they were desirous of acquiring +Forty-five flourishing cities, Tongres, Cologne, Treves, Worms, Spires, +Strasburgh, &c., besides a far greater number of towns and villages, +were pillaged, and for the most part reduced to ashes. The Barbarians of +Germany, still faithful to the maxims of their ancestors, abhorred the +confinement of walls, to which they applied the odious names of prisons +and sepulchres; and fixing their independent habitations on the banks of +rivers, the Rhine, the Moselle, and the Meuse, they secured themselves +against the danger of a surprise, by a rude and hasty fortification of +large trees, which were felled and thrown across the roads. The Alemanni +were established in the modern countries of Alsace and Lorraine; the +Franks occupied the island of the Batavians, together with an extensive +district of Brabant, which was then known by the appellation of +Toxandria, and may deserve to be considered as the original seat of +their Gallic monarchy. From the sources, to the mouth, of the Rhine, the +conquests of the Germans extended above forty miles to the west of that +river, over a country peopled by colonies of their own name and nation: +and the scene of their devastations was three times more extensive than +that of their conquests. At a still greater distance the open towns of +Gaul were deserted, and the inhabitants of the fortified cities, +who trusted to their strength and vigilance, were obliged to content +themselves with such supplies of corn as they could raise on the vacant +land within the enclosure of their walls. The diminished legions, +destitute of pay and provisions, of arms and discipline, trembled at the +approach, and even at the name, of the Barbarians. + + + +Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor.--Part IV. + +Under these melancholy circumstances, an unexperienced youth was +appointed to save and to govern the provinces of Gaul, or rather, as he +expressed it himself, to exhibit the vain image of Imperial greatness. +The retired scholastic education of Julian, in which he had been more +conversant with books than with arms, with the dead than with the +living, left him in profound ignorance of the practical arts of war and +government; and when he awkwardly repeated some military exercise which +it was necessary for him to learn, he exclaimed with a sigh, "O Plato, +Plato, what a task for a philosopher!" Yet even this speculative +philosophy, which men of business are too apt to despise, had filled the +mind of Julian with the noblest precepts and the most shining examples; +had animated him with the love of virtue, the desire of fame, and the +contempt of death. The habits of temperance recommended in the schools, +are still more essential in the severe discipline of a camp. The simple +wants of nature regulated the measure of his food and sleep. Rejecting +with disdain the delicacies provided for his table, he satisfied his +appetite with the coarse and common fare which was allotted to the +meanest soldiers. During the rigor of a Gallic winter, he never suffered +a fire in his bed-chamber; and after a short and interrupted slumber, he +frequently rose in the middle of the night from a carpet spread on the +floor, to despatch any urgent business, to visit his rounds, or to steal +a few moments for the prosecution of his favorite studies. The precepts +of eloquence, which he had hitherto practised on fancied topics of +declamation, were more usefully applied to excite or to assuage the +passions of an armed multitude: and although Julian, from his early +habits of conversation and literature, was more familiarly acquainted +with the beauties of the Greek language, he had attained a competent +knowledge of the Latin tongue. Since Julian was not originally designed +for the character of a legislator, or a judge, it is probable that the +civil jurisprudence of the Romans had not engaged any considerable +share of his attention: but he derived from his philosophic studies an +inflexible regard for justice, tempered by a disposition to clemency; +the knowledge of the general principles of equity and evidence, and +the faculty of patiently investigating the most intricate and tedious +questions which could be proposed for his discussion. The measures of +policy, and the operations of war, must submit to the various accidents +of circumstance and character, and the unpractised student will often +be perplexed in the application of the most perfect theory. But in the +acquisition of this important science, Julian was assisted by the active +vigor of his own genius, as well as by the wisdom and experience of +Sallust, and officer of rank, who soon conceived a sincere attachment +for a prince so worthy of his friendship; and whose incorruptible +integrity was adorned by the talent of insinuating the harshest truths +without wounding the delicacy of a royal ear. + +Immediately after Julian had received the purple at Milan, he was sent +into Gaul with a feeble retinue of three hundred and sixty soldiers. +At Vienna, where he passed a painful and anxious winter in the hands of +those ministers to whom Constantius had intrusted the direction of his +conduct, the Cæsar was informed of the siege and deliverance of Autun. +That large and ancient city, protected only by a ruined wall and +pusillanimous garrison, was saved by the generous resolution of a few +veterans, who resumed their arms for the defence of their country. In +his march from Autun, through the heart of the Gallic provinces, Julian +embraced with ardor the earliest opportunity of signalizing his courage. +At the head of a small body of archers and heavy cavalry, he preferred +the shorter but the more dangerous of two roads; * and sometimes +eluding, and sometimes resisting, the attacks of the Barbarians, who +were masters of the field, he arrived with honor and safety at the camp +near Rheims, where the Roman troops had been ordered to assemble. +The aspect of their young prince revived the drooping spirits of the +soldiers, and they marched from Rheims in search of the enemy, with +a confidence which had almost proved fatal to them. The Alemanni, +familiarized to the knowledge of the country, secretly collected their +scattered forces, and seizing the opportunity of a dark and rainy day, +poured with unexpected fury on the rear-guard of the Romans. Before the +inevitable disorder could be remedied, two legions were destroyed; and +Julian was taught by experience that caution and vigilance are the most +important lessons of the art of war. In a second and more successful +action, * he recovered and established his military fame; but as the +agility of the Barbarians saved them from the pursuit, his victory was +neither bloody nor decisive. He advanced, however, to the banks of +the Rhine, surveyed the ruins of Cologne, convinced himself of the +difficulties of the war, and retreated on the approach of winter, +discontented with the court, with his army, and with his own success. +The power of the enemy was yet unbroken; and the Cæsar had no sooner +separated his troops, and fixed his own quarters at Sens, in the centre +of Gaul, than he was surrounded and besieged, by a numerous host of +Germans. Reduced, in this extremity, to the resources of his own mind, +he displayed a prudent intrepidity, which compensated for all the +deficiencies of the place and garrison; and the Barbarians, at the end +of thirty days, were obliged to retire with disappointed rage. + +The conscious pride of Julian, who was indebted only to his sword for +this signal deliverance, was imbittered by the reflection, that he was +abandoned, betrayed, and perhaps devoted to destruction, by those who +were bound to assist him, by every tie of honor and fidelity. Marcellus, +master-general of the cavalry in Gaul, interpreting too strictly +the jealous orders of the court, beheld with supine indifference the +distress of Julian, and had restrained the troops under his command from +marching to the relief of Sens. If the Cæsar had dissembled in silence +so dangerous an insult, his person and authority would have been exposed +to the contempt of the world; and if an action so criminal had been +suffered to pass with impunity, the emperor would have confirmed the +suspicions, which received a very specious color from his past conduct +towards the princes of the Flavian family. Marcellus was recalled, and +gently dismissed from his office. In his room Severus was appointed +general of the cavalry; an experienced soldier, of approved courage and +fidelity, who could advise with respect, and execute with zeal; and who +submitted, without reluctance to the supreme command which Julian, +by the interest of his patroness Eusebia, at length obtained over the +armies of Gaul. A very judicious plan of operations was adopted for the +approaching campaign. Julian himself, at the head of the remains of the +veteran bands, and of some new levies which he had been permitted to +form, boldly penetrated into the centre of the German cantonments, +and carefully reestablished the fortifications of Saverne, in an +advantageous post, which would either check the incursions, or intercept +the retreat, of the enemy. At the same time, Barbatio, general of the +infantry, advanced from Milan with an army of thirty thousand men, and +passing the mountains, prepared to throw a bridge over the Rhine, in the +neighborhood of Basil. It was reasonable to expect that the Alemanni, +pressed on either side by the Roman arms, would soon be forced to +evacuate the provinces of Gaul, and to hasten to the defence of their +native country. But the hopes of the campaign were defeated by the +incapacity, or the envy, or the secret instructions, of Barbatio; who +acted as if he had been the enemy of the Cæsar, and the secret ally +of the Barbarians. The negligence with which he permitted a troop of +pillagers freely to pass, and to return almost before the gates of his +camp, may be imputed to his want of abilities; but the treasonable act +of burning a number of boats, and a superfluous stock of provisions, +which would have been of the most essential service to the army of Gaul, +was an evidence of his hostile and criminal intentions. The Germans +despised an enemy who appeared destitute either of power or of +inclination to offend them; and the ignominious retreat of Barbatio +deprived Julian of the expected support; and left him to extricate +himself from a hazardous situation, where he could neither remain with +safety, nor retire with honor. + +As soon as they were delivered from the fears of invasion, the Alemanni +prepared to chastise the Roman youth, who presumed to dispute the +possession of that country, which they claimed as their own by the +right of conquest and of treaties. They employed three days, and as many +nights, in transporting over the Rhine their military powers. The fierce +Chnodomar, shaking the ponderous javelin which he had victoriously +wielded against the brother of Magnentius, led the van of the +Barbarians, and moderated by his experience the martial ardor which his +example inspired. He was followed by six other kings, by ten princes +of regal extraction, by a long train of high-spirited nobles, and by +thirty-five thousand of the bravest warriors of the tribes of Germany. +The confidence derived from the view of their own strength, was +increased by the intelligence which they received from a deserter, that +the Cæsar, with a feeble army of thirteen thousand men, occupied a post +about one-and-twenty miles from their camp of Strasburgh. With this +inadequate force, Julian resolved to seek and to encounter the Barbarian +host; and the chance of a general action was preferred to the tedious +and uncertain operation of separately engaging the dispersed parties of +the Alemanni. The Romans marched in close order, and in two columns; the +cavalry on the right, the infantry on the left; and the day was so far +spent when they appeared in sight of the enemy, that Julian was desirous +of deferring the battle till the next morning, and of allowing his +troops to recruit their exhausted strength by the necessary refreshments +of sleep and food. Yielding, however, with some reluctance, to the +clamors of the soldiers, and even to the opinion of his council, he +exhorted them to justify by their valor the eager impatience, which, +in case of a defeat, would be universally branded with the epithets of +rashness and presumption. The trumpets sounded, the military shout was +heard through the field, and the two armies rushed with equal fury to +the charge. The Cæsar, who conducted in person his right wing, depended +on the dexterity of his archers, and the weight of his cuirassiers. But +his ranks were instantly broken by an irregular mixture of light horse +and of light infantry, and he had the mortification of beholding the +flight of six hundred of his most renowned cuirassiers. The fugitives +were stopped and rallied by the presence and authority of Julian, who, +careless of his own safety, threw himself before them, and urging every +motive of shame and honor, led them back against the victorious enemy. +The conflict between the two lines of infantry was obstinate and bloody. +The Germans possessed the superiority of strength and stature, the +Romans that of discipline and temper; and as the Barbarians, who served +under the standard of the empire, united the respective advantages of +both parties, their strenuous efforts, guided by a skilful leader, at +length determined the event of the day. The Romans lost four tribunes, +and two hundred and forty-three soldiers, in this memorable battle of +Strasburgh, so glorious to the Cæsar, and so salutary to the afflicted +provinces of Gaul. Six thousand of the Alemanni were slain in the field, +without including those who were drowned in the Rhine, or transfixed +with darts while they attempted to swim across the river. Chnodomar +himself was surrounded and taken prisoner, with three of his brave +companions, who had devoted themselves to follow in life or death the +fate of their chieftain. Julian received him with military pomp in the +council of his officers; and expressing a generous pity for the fallen +state, dissembled his inward contempt for the abject humiliation, of his +captive. Instead of exhibiting the vanquished king of the Alemanni, as +a grateful spectacle to the cities of Gaul, he respectfully laid at +the feet of the emperor this splendid trophy of his victory. Chnodomar +experienced an honorable treatment: but the impatient Barbarian could +not long survive his defeat, his confinement, and his exile. + +After Julian had repulsed the Alemanni from the provinces of the Upper +Rhine, he turned his arms against the Franks, who were seated nearer +to the ocean, on the confines of Gaul and Germany; and who, from +their numbers, and still more from their intrepid valor, had ever been +esteemed the most formidable of the Barbarians. Although they were +strongly actuated by the allurements of rapine, they professed a +disinterested love of war; which they considered as the supreme honor +and felicity of human nature; and their minds and bodies were so +completely hardened by perpetual action, that, according to the lively +expression of an orator, the snows of winter were as pleasant to them +as the flowers of spring. In the month of December, which followed the +battle of Strasburgh, Julian attacked a body of six hundred Franks, who +had thrown themselves into two castles on the Meuse. In the midst of +that severe season they sustained, with inflexible constancy, a siege of +fifty-four days; till at length, exhausted by hunger, and satisfied that +the vigilance of the enemy, in breaking the ice of the river, left +them no hopes of escape, the Franks consented, for the first time, to +dispense with the ancient law which commanded them to conquer or to die. +The Cæsar immediately sent his captives to the court of Constantius, +who, accepting them as a valuable present, rejoiced in the opportunity +of adding so many heroes to the choicest troops of his domestic guards. +The obstinate resistance of this handful of Franks apprised Julian of +the difficulties of the expedition which he meditated for the ensuing +spring, against the whole body of the nation. His rapid diligence +surprised and astonished the active Barbarians. Ordering his soldiers to +provide themselves with biscuit for twenty days, he suddenly pitched +his camp near Tongres, while the enemy still supposed him in his winter +quarters of Paris, expecting the slow arrival of his convoys from +Aquitain. Without allowing the Franks to unite or deliberate, he +skilfully spread his legions from Cologne to the ocean; and by the +terror, as well as by the success, of his arms, soon reduced the +suppliant tribes to implore the clemency, and to obey the commands, of +their conqueror. The Chamavians submissively retired to their former +habitations beyond the Rhine; but the Salians were permitted to possess +their new establishment of Toxandria, as the subjects and auxiliaries of +the Roman empire. The treaty was ratified by solemn oaths; and perpetual +inspectors were appointed to reside among the Franks, with the authority +of enforcing the strict observance of the conditions. An incident is +related, interesting enough in itself, and by no means repugnant to the +character of Julian, who ingeniously contrived both the plot and the +catastrophe of the tragedy. When the Chamavians sued for peace, he +required the son of their king, as the only hostage on whom he could +rely. A mournful silence, interrupted by tears and groans, declared +the sad perplexity of the Barbarians; and their aged chief lamented in +pathetic language, that his private loss was now imbittered by a sense +of public calamity. While the Chamavians lay prostrate at the foot of +his throne, the royal captive, whom they believed to have been slain, +unexpectedly appeared before their eyes; and as soon as the tumult of +joy was hushed into attention, the Cæsar addressed the assembly in the +following terms: "Behold the son, the prince, whom you wept. You had +lost him by your fault. God and the Romans have restored him to you. I +shall still preserve and educate the youth, rather as a monument of my +own virtue, than as a pledge of your sincerity. Should you presume to +violate the faith which you have sworn, the arms of the republic +will avenge the perfidy, not on the innocent, but on the guilty." +The Barbarians withdrew from his presence, impressed with the warmest +sentiments of gratitude and admiration. + +It was not enough for Julian to have delivered the provinces of Gaul +from the Barbarians of Germany. He aspired to emulate the glory of the +first and most illustrious of the emperors; after whose example, he +composed his own commentaries of the Gallic war. Cæsar has related, with +conscious pride, the manner in which he twice passed the Rhine. Julian +could boast, that before he assumed the title of Augustus, he had +carried the Roman eagles beyond that great river in three successful +expeditions. The consternation of the Germans, after the battle of +Strasburgh, encouraged him to the first attempt; and the reluctance of +the troops soon yielded to the persuasive eloquence of a leader, who +shared the fatigues and dangers which he imposed on the meanest of +the soldiers. The villages on either side of the Meyn, which were +plentifully stored with corn and cattle, felt the ravages of an invading +army. The principal houses, constructed with some imitation of Roman +elegance, were consumed by the flames; and the Cæsar boldly advanced +about ten miles, till his progress was stopped by a dark and +impenetrable forest, undermined by subterraneous passages, which +threatened with secret snares and ambush every step of the assailants. +The ground was already covered with snow; and Julian, after repairing an +ancient castle which had been erected by Trajan, granted a truce of ten +months to the submissive Barbarians. At the expiration of the truce, +Julian undertook a second expedition beyond the Rhine, to humble the +pride of Surmar and Hortaire, two of the kings of the Alemanni, who had +been present at the battle of Strasburgh. They promised to restore all +the Roman captives who yet remained alive; and as the Cæsar had +procured an exact account from the cities and villages of Gaul, of the +inhabitants whom they had lost, he detected every attempt to deceive +him, with a degree of readiness and accuracy, which almost established +the belief of his supernatural knowledge. His third expedition was +still more splendid and important than the two former. The Germans had +collected their military powers, and moved along the opposite banks of +the river, with a design of destroying the bridge, and of preventing +the passage of the Romans. But this judicious plan of defence was +disconcerted by a skilful diversion. Three hundred light-armed and +active soldiers were detached in forty small boats, to fall down the +stream in silence, and to land at some distance from the posts of the +enemy. They executed their orders with so much boldness and celerity, +that they had almost surprised the Barbarian chiefs, who returned in +the fearless confidence of intoxication from one of their nocturnal +festivals. Without repeating the uniform and disgusting tale of +slaughter and devastation, it is sufficient to observe, that Julian +dictated his own conditions of peace to six of the haughtiest kings of +the Alemanni, three of whom were permitted to view the severe discipline +and martial pomp of a Roman camp. Followed by twenty thousand captives, +whom he had rescued from the chains of the Barbarians, the Cæsar +repassed the Rhine, after terminating a war, the success of which has +been compared to the ancient glories of the Punic and Cimbric victories. + +As soon as the valor and conduct of Julian had secured an interval of +peace, he applied himself to a work more congenial to his humane and +philosophic temper. The cities of Gaul, which had suffered from the +inroads of the Barbarians, he diligently repaired; and seven important +posts, between Mentz and the mouth of the Rhine, are particularly +mentioned, as having been rebuilt and fortified by the order of Julian. +The vanquished Germans had submitted to the just but humiliating +condition of preparing and conveying the necessary materials. The active +zeal of Julian urged the prosecution of the work; and such was the +spirit which he had diffused among the troops, that the auxiliaries +themselves, waiving their exemption from any duties of fatigue, +contended in the most servile labors with the diligence of the Roman +soldiers. It was incumbent on the Cæsar to provide for the subsistence, +as well as for the safety, of the inhabitants and of the garrisons. The +desertion of the former, and the mutiny of the latter, must have been +the fatal and inevitable consequences of famine. The tillage of the +provinces of Gaul had been interrupted by the calamities of war; but the +scanty harvests of the continent were supplied, by his paternal care, +from the plenty of the adjacent island. Six hundred large barks, framed +in the forest of the Ardennes, made several voyages to the coast of +Britain; and returning from thence, laden with corn, sailed up the +Rhine, and distributed their cargoes to the several towns and fortresses +along the banks of the river. The arms of Julian had restored a free +and secure navigation, which Constantius had offered to purchase at +the expense of his dignity, and of a tributary present of two thousand +pounds of silver. The emperor parsimoniously refused to his soldiers +the sums which he granted with a lavish and trembling hand to the +Barbarians. The dexterity, as well as the firmness, of Julian was put to +a severe trial, when he took the field with a discontented army, which +had already served two campaigns, without receiving any regular pay or +any extraordinary donative. + +A tender regard for the peace and happiness of his subjects was the +ruling principle which directed, or seemed to direct, the administration +of Julian. He devoted the leisure of his winter quarters to the offices +of civil government; and affected to assume, with more pleasure, the +character of a magistrate than that of a general. Before he took the +field, he devolved on the provincial governors most of the public and +private causes which had been referred to his tribunal; but, on his +return, he carefully revised their proceedings, mitigated the rigor +of the law, and pronounced a second judgment on the judges themselves. +Superior to the last temptation of virtuous minds, an indiscreet and +intemperate zeal for justice, he restrained, with calmness and dignity, +the warmth of an advocate, who prosecuted, for extortion, the president +of the Narbonnese province. "Who will ever be found guilty," exclaimed +the vehement Delphidius, "if it be enough to deny?" "And who," replied +Julian, "will ever be innocent, if it be sufficient to affirm?" In the +general administration of peace and war, the interest of the sovereign +is commonly the same as that of his people; but Constantius would have +thought himself deeply injured, if the virtues of Julian had defrauded +him of any part of the tribute which he extorted from an oppressed +and exhausted country. The prince who was invested with the ensigns of +royalty, might sometimes presume to correct the rapacious insolence of +his inferior agents, to expose their corrupt arts, and to introduce an +equal and easier mode of collection. But the management of the finances +was more safely intrusted to Florentius, prætorian præfect of Gaul, +an effeminate tyrant, incapable of pity or remorse: and the haughty +minister complained of the most decent and gentle opposition, while +Julian himself was rather inclined to censure the weakness of his own +behavior. The Cæsar had rejected, with abhorrence, a mandate for the +levy of an extraordinary tax; a new superindiction, which the præfect +had offered for his signature; and the faithful picture of the public +misery, by which he had been obliged to justify his refusal, offended +the court of Constantius. We may enjoy the pleasure of reading the +sentiments of Julian, as he expresses them with warmth and freedom in +a letter to one of his most intimate friends. After stating his own +conduct, he proceeds in the following terms: "Was it possible for the +disciple of Plato and Aristotle to act otherwise than I have done? Could +I abandon the unhappy subjects intrusted to my care? Was I not called +upon to defend them from the repeated injuries of these unfeeling +robbers? A tribune who deserts his post is punished with death, and +deprived of the honors of burial. With what justice could I pronounce +his sentence, if, in the hour of danger, I myself neglected a duty far +more sacred and far more important? God has placed me in this elevated +post; his providence will guard and support me. Should I be condemned to +suffer, I shall derive comfort from the testimony of a pure and upright +conscience. Would to Heaven that I still possessed a counsellor like +Sallust! If they think proper to send me a successor, I shall submit +without reluctance; and had much rather improve the short opportunity +of doing good, than enjoy a long and lasting impunity of evil." The +precarious and dependent situation of Julian displayed his virtues and +concealed his defects. The young hero who supported, in Gaul, the throne +of Constantius, was not permitted to reform the vices of the government; +but he had courage to alleviate or to pity the distress of the people. +Unless he had been able to revive the martial spirit of the Romans, +or to introduce the arts of industry and refinement among their savage +enemies, he could not entertain any rational hopes of securing the +public tranquillity, either by the peace or conquest of Germany. Yet +the victories of Julian suspended, for a short time, the inroads of the +Barbarians, and delayed the ruin of the Western Empire. + +His salutary influence restored the cities of Gaul, which had been so +long exposed to the evils of civil discord, Barbarian war, and domestic +tyranny; and the spirit of industry was revived with the hopes of +enjoyment. Agriculture, manufactures, and commerce, again flourished +under the protection of the laws; and the curi, or civil corporations, +were again filled with useful and respectable members: the youth were +no longer apprehensive of marriage; and married persons were no longer +apprehensive of posterity: the public and private festivals were +celebrated with customary pomp; and the frequent and secure intercourse +of the provinces displayed the image of national prosperity. A mind like +that of Julian must have felt the general happiness of which he was the +author; but he viewed, with particular satisfaction and complacency, the +city of Paris; the seat of his winter residence, and the object even +of his partial affection. That splendid capital, which now embraces an +ample territory on either side of the Seine, was originally confined to +the small island in the midst of the river, from whence the inhabitants +derived a supply of pure and salubrious water. The river bathed the foot +of the walls; and the town was accessible only by two wooden bridges. A +forest overspread the northern side of the Seine, but on the south, +the ground, which now bears the name of the University, was insensibly +covered with houses, and adorned with a palace and amphitheatre, baths, +an aqueduct, and a field of Mars for the exercise of the Roman troops. +The severity of the climate was tempered by the neighborhood of the +ocean; and with some precautions, which experience had taught, the vine +and fig-tree were successfully cultivated. But in remarkable winters, +the Seine was deeply frozen; and the huge pieces of ice that floated +down the stream, might be compared, by an Asiatic, to the blocks of +white marble which were extracted from the quarries of Phrygia. The +licentiousness and corruption of Antioch recalled to the memory of +Julian the severe and simple manners of his beloved Lutetia; where +the amusements of the theatre were unknown or despised. He indignantly +contrasted the effeminate Syrians with the brave and honest simplicity +of the Gauls, and almost forgave the intemperance, which was the only +stain of the Celtic character. If Julian could now revisit the capital +of France, he might converse with men of science and genius, capable +of understanding and of instructing a disciple of the Greeks; he might +excuse the lively and graceful follies of a nation, whose martial +spirit has never been enervated by the indulgence of luxury; and he +must applaud the perfection of that inestimable art, which softens and +refines and embellishes the intercourse of social life. + + + +Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine.--Part I. + + The Motives, Progress, And Effects Of The Conversion Of + Constantine.--Legal Establishment And Constitution Of The + Christian Or Catholic Church. + +The public establishment of Christianity may be considered as one of +those important and domestic revolutions which excite the most lively +curiosity, and afford the most valuable instruction. The victories and +the civil policy of Constantine no longer influence the state of Europe; +but a considerable portion of the globe still retains the impression +which it received from the conversion of that monarch; and the +ecclesiastical institutions of his reign are still connected, by an +indissoluble chain, with the opinions, the passions, and the interests +of the present generation. + +In the consideration of a subject which may be examined with +impartiality, but cannot be viewed with indifference, a difficulty +immediately arises of a very unexpected nature; that of ascertaining +the real and precise date of the conversion of Constantine. The eloquent +Lactantius, in the midst of his court, seems impatient to proclaim to +the world the glorious example of the sovereign of Gaul; who, in the +first moments of his reign, acknowledged and adored the majesty of +the true and only God. The learned Eusebius has ascribed the faith of +Constantine to the miraculous sign which was displayed in the heavens +whilst he meditated and prepared the Italian expedition. The historian +Zosimus maliciously asserts, that the emperor had imbrued his hands in +the blood of his eldest son, before he publicly renounced the gods of +Rome and of his ancestors. The perplexity produced by these discordant +authorities is derived from the behavior of Constantine himself. +According to the strictness of ecclesiastical language, the first of +the Christian emperors was unworthy of that name, till the moment of his +death; since it was only during his last illness that he received, as a +catechumen, the imposition of hands, and was afterwards admitted, by +the initiatory rites of baptism, into the number of the faithful. The +Christianity of Constantine must be allowed in a much more vague and +qualified sense; and the nicest accuracy is required in tracing the +slow and almost imperceptible gradations by which the monarch declared +himself the protector, and at length the proselyte, of the church. +It was an arduous task to eradicate the habits and prejudices of his +education, to acknowledge the divine power of Christ, and to understand +that the truth of his revelation was incompatible with the worship of +the gods. The obstacles which he had probably experienced in his own +mind, instructed him to proceed with caution in the momentous change of +a national religion; and he insensibly discovered his new opinions, as +far as he could enforce them with safety and with effect. During the +whole course of his reign, the stream of Christianity flowed with +a gentle, though accelerated, motion: but its general direction +was sometimes checked, and sometimes diverted, by the accidental +circumstances of the times, and by the prudence, or possibly by the +caprice, of the monarch. His ministers were permitted to signify the +intentions of their master in the various language which was best +adapted to their respective principles; and he artfully balanced the +hopes and fears of his subjects, by publishing in the same year two +edicts; the first of which enjoined the solemn observance of Sunday, +and the second directed the regular consultation of the Aruspices. While +this important revolution yet remained in suspense, the Christians and +the Pagans watched the conduct of their sovereign with the same anxiety, +but with very opposite sentiments. The former were prompted by every +motive of zeal, as well as vanity, to exaggerate the marks of his +favor, and the evidences of his faith. The latter, till their just +apprehensions were changed into despair and resentment, attempted to +conceal from the world, and from themselves, that the gods of Rome could +no longer reckon the emperor in the number of their votaries. The same +passions and prejudices have engaged the partial writers of the times to +connect the public profession of Christianity with the most glorious or +the most ignominious æra of the reign of Constantine. + +Whatever symptoms of Christian piety might transpire in the discourses +or actions of Constantine, he persevered till he was near forty years +of age in the practice of the established religion; and the same conduct +which in the court of Nicomedia might be imputed to his fear, could be +ascribed only to the inclination or policy of the sovereign of Gaul. +His liberality restored and enriched the temples of the gods; the medals +which issued from his Imperial mint are impressed with the figures and +attributes of Jupiter and Apollo, of Mars and Hercules; and his filial +piety increased the council of Olympus by the solemn apotheosis of his +father Constantius. But the devotion of Constantine was more peculiarly +directed to the genius of the Sun, the Apollo of Greek and Roman +mythology; and he was pleased to be represented with the symbols of +the God of Light and Poetry. The unerring shafts of that deity, the +brightness of his eyes, his laurel wreath, immortal beauty, and elegant +accomplishments, seem to point him out as the patron of a young +hero. The altars of Apollo were crowned with the votive offerings of +Constantine; and the credulous multitude were taught to believe, that +the emperor was permitted to behold with mortal eyes the visible majesty +of their tutelar deity; and that, either walking or in a vision, he was +blessed with the auspicious omens of a long and victorious reign. The +Sun was universally celebrated as the invincible guide and protector of +Constantine; and the Pagans might reasonably expect that the insulted +god would pursue with unrelenting vengeance the impiety of his +ungrateful favorite. + +As long as Constantine exercised a limited sovereignty over the +provinces of Gaul, his Christian subjects were protected by the +authority, and perhaps by the laws, of a prince, who wisely left to +the gods the care of vindicating their own honor. If we may credit the +assertion of Constantine himself, he had been an indignant spectator +of the savage cruelties which were inflicted, by the hands of Roman +soldiers, on those citizens whose religion was their only crime. In the +East and in the West, he had seen the different effects of severity +and indulgence; and as the former was rendered still more odious by the +example of Galerius, his implacable enemy, the latter was recommended to +his imitation by the authority and advice of a dying father. The son of +Constantius immediately suspended or repealed the edicts of persecution, +and granted the free exercise of their religious ceremonies to all those +who had already professed themselves members of the church. They were +soon encouraged to depend on the favor as well as on the justice of +their sovereign, who had imbibed a secret and sincere reverence for the +name of Christ, and for the God of the Christians. + +About five months after the conquest of Italy, the emperor made a solemn +and authentic declaration of his sentiments by the celebrated edict +of Milan, which restored peace to the Catholic church. In the personal +interview of the two western princes, Constantine, by the ascendant +of genius and power, obtained the ready concurrence of his colleague, +Licinius; the union of their names and authority disarmed the fury of +Maximin; and after the death of the tyrant of the East, the edict of +Milan was received as a general and fundamental law of the Roman world. + +The wisdom of the emperors provided for the restitution of all the +civil and religious rights of which the Christians had been so unjustly +deprived. It was enacted that the places of worship, and public lands, +which had been confiscated, should be restored to the church, without +dispute, without delay, and without expense; and this severe injunction +was accompanied with a gracious promise, that if any of the purchasers +had paid a fair and adequate price, they should be indemnified from +the Imperial treasury. The salutary regulations which guard the future +tranquillity of the faithful are framed on the principles of enlarged +and equal toleration; and such an equality must have been interpreted +by a recent sect as an advantageous and honorable distinction. The +two emperors proclaim to the world, that they have granted a free and +absolute power to the Christians, and to all others, of following the +religion which each individual thinks proper to prefer, to which he has +addicted his mind, and which he may deem the best adapted to his +own use. They carefully explain every ambiguous word, remove every +exception, and exact from the governors of the provinces a strict +obedience to the true and simple meaning of an edict, which was designed +to establish and secure, without any limitation, the claims of religious +liberty. They condescend to assign two weighty reasons which have +induced them to allow this universal toleration: the humane intention of +consulting the peace and happiness of their people; and the pious hope, +that, by such a conduct, they shall appease and propitiate the Deity, +whose seat is in heaven. They gratefully acknowledge the many signal +proofs which they have received of the divine favor; and they trust that +the same Providence will forever continue to protect the prosperity of +the prince and people. From these vague and indefinite expressions of +piety, three suppositions may be deduced, of a different, but not of an +incompatible nature. The mind of Constantine might fluctuate between the +Pagan and the Christian religions. According to the loose and complying +notions of Polytheism, he might acknowledge the God of the Christians as +one of the many deities who compose the hierarchy of heaven. Or +perhaps he might embrace the philosophic and pleasing idea, that, +notwithstanding the variety of names, of rites, and of opinions, all the +sects, and all the nations of mankind, are united in the worship of the +common Father and Creator of the universe. + +But the counsels of princes are more frequently influenced by views of +temporal advantage, than by considerations of abstract and speculative +truth. The partial and increasing favor of Constantine may naturally be +referred to the esteem which he entertained for the moral character of +the Christians; and to a persuasion, that the propagation of the gospel +would inculcate the practice of private and public virtue. Whatever +latitude an absolute monarch may assume in his own conduct, whatever +indulgence he may claim for his own passions, it is undoubtedly his +interest that all his subjects should respect the natural and civil +obligations of society. But the operation of the wisest laws is +imperfect and precarious. They seldom inspire virtue, they cannot always +restrain vice. Their power is insufficient to prohibit all that they +condemn, nor can they always punish the actions which they prohibit. +The legislators of antiquity had summoned to their aid the powers of +education and of opinion. But every principle which had once maintained +the vigor and purity of Rome and Sparta, was long since extinguished +in a declining and despotic empire. Philosophy still exercised her +temperate sway over the human mind, but the cause of virtue derived very +feeble support from the influence of the Pagan superstition. Under these +discouraging circumstances, a prudent magistrate might observe with +pleasure the progress of a religion which diffused among the people a +pure, benevolent, and universal system of ethics, adapted to every duty +and every condition of life; recommended as the will and reason of +the supreme Deity, and enforced by the sanction of eternal rewards or +punishments. The experience of Greek and Roman history could not inform +the world how far the system of national manners might be reformed and +improved by the precepts of a divine revelation; and Constantine might +listen with some confidence to the flattering, and indeed reasonable, +assurances of Lactantius. The eloquent apologist seemed firmly to +expect, and almost ventured to promise, that the establishment of +Christianity would restore the innocence and felicity of the primitive +age; that the worship of the true God would extinguish war and +dissension among those who mutually considered themselves as the +children of a common parent; that every impure desire, every angry or +selfish passion, would be restrained by the knowledge of the gospel; and +that the magistrates might sheath the sword of justice among a people +who would be universally actuated by the sentiments of truth and piety, +of equity and moderation, of harmony and universal love. + +The passive and unresisting obedience, which bows under the yoke of +authority, or even of oppression, must have appeared, in the eyes of +an absolute monarch, the most conspicuous and useful of the evangelic +virtues. The primitive Christians derived the institution of civil +government, not from the consent of the people, but from the decrees +of Heaven. The reigning emperor, though he had usurped the sceptre +by treason and murder, immediately assumed the sacred character of +vicegerent of the Deity. To the Deity alone he was accountable for the +abuse of his power; and his subjects were indissolubly bound, by their +oath of fidelity, to a tyrant, who had violated every law of nature and +society. The humble Christians were sent into the world as sheep among +wolves; and since they were not permitted to employ force even in the +defence of their religion, they should be still more criminal if they +were tempted to shed the blood of their fellow-creatures in disputing +the vain privileges, or the sordid possessions, of this transitory life. +Faithful to the doctrine of the apostle, who in the reign of Nero had +preached the duty of unconditional submission, the Christians of the +three first centuries preserved their conscience pure and innocent +of the guilt of secret conspiracy, or open rebellion. While they +experienced the rigor of persecution, they were never provoked either to +meet their tyrants in the field, or indignantly to withdraw themselves +into some remote and sequestered corner of the globe. The Protestants +of France, of Germany, and of Britain, who asserted with such intrepid +courage their civil and religious freedom, have been insulted by the +invidious comparison between the conduct of the primitive and of the +reformed Christians. Perhaps, instead of censure, some applause may be +due to the superior sense and spirit of our ancestors, who had convinced +themselves that religion cannot abolish the unalienable rights of human +nature. Perhaps the patience of the primitive church may be ascribed to +its weakness, as well as to its virtue. A sect of unwarlike plebeians, +without leaders, without arms, without fortifications, must have +encountered inevitable destruction in a rash and fruitless resistance +to the master of the Roman legions. But the Christians, when they +deprecated the wrath of Diocletian, or solicited the favor of +Constantine, could allege, with truth and confidence, that they held +the principle of passive obedience, and that, in the space of +three centuries, their conduct had always been conformable to their +principles. They might add, that the throne of the emperors would be +established on a fixed and permanent basis, if all their subjects, +embracing the Christian doctrine, should learn to suffer and to obey. + +In the general order of Providence, princes and tyrants are considered +as the ministers of Heaven, appointed to rule or to chastise the nations +of the earth. But sacred history affords many illustrious examples of +the more immediate interposition of the Deity in the government of his +chosen people. The sceptre and the sword were committed to the hands of +Moses, of Joshua, of Gideon, of David, of the Maccabees; the virtues +of those heroes were the motive or the effect of the divine favor, the +success of their arms was destined to achieve the deliverance or the +triumph of the church. If the judges of Isræl were occasional and +temporary magistrates, the kings of Judah derived from the royal unction +of their great ancestor an hereditary and indefeasible right, which +could not be forfeited by their own vices, nor recalled by the caprice +of their subjects. The same extraordinary providence, which was no +longer confined to the Jewish people, might elect Constantine and +his family as the protectors of the Christian world; and the devout +Lactantius announces, in a prophetic tone, the future glories of his +long and universal reign. Galerius and Maximin, Maxentius and Licinius, +were the rivals who shared with the favorite of heaven the provinces of +the empire. The tragic deaths of Galerius and Maximin soon gratified the +resentment, and fulfilled the sanguine expectations, of the Christians. +The success of Constantine against Maxentius and Licinius removed the +two formidable competitors who still opposed the triumph of the second +David, and his cause might seem to claim the peculiar interposition of +Providence. The character of the Roman tyrant disgraced the purple +and human nature; and though the Christians might enjoy his precarious +favor, they were exposed, with the rest of his subjects, to the effects +of his wanton and capricious cruelty. The conduct of Licinius soon +betrayed the reluctance with which he had consented to the wise and +humane regulations of the edict of Milan. The convocation of provincial +synods was prohibited in his dominions; his Christian officers were +ignominiously dismissed; and if he avoided the guilt, or rather danger, +of a general persecution, his partial oppressions were rendered still +more odious by the violation of a solemn and voluntary engagement. While +the East, according to the lively expression of Eusebius, was involved +in the shades of infernal darkness, the auspicious rays of celestial +light warmed and illuminated the provinces of the West. The piety of +Constantine was admitted as an unexceptionable proof of the justice +of his arms; and his use of victory confirmed the opinion of the +Christians, that their hero was inspired, and conducted, by the Lord of +Hosts. The conquest of Italy produced a general edict of toleration; and +as soon as the defeat of Licinius had invested Constantine with the +sole dominion of the Roman world, he immediately, by circular letters, +exhorted all his subjects to imitate, without delay, the example of +their sovereign, and to embrace the divine truth of Christianity. + + + +Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine.--Part II. + +The assurance that the elevation of Constantine was intimately connected +with the designs of Providence, instilled into the minds of the +Christians two opinions, which, by very different means, assisted the +accomplishment of the prophecy. Their warm and active loyalty exhausted +in his favor every resource of human industry; and they confidently +expected that their strenuous efforts would be seconded by some +divine and miraculous aid. The enemies of Constantine have imputed to +interested motives the alliance which he insensibly contracted with the +Catholic church, and which apparently contributed to the success of his +ambition. In the beginning of the fourth century, the Christians still +bore a very inadequate proportion to the inhabitants of the empire; but +among a degenerate people, who viewed the change of masters with the +indifference of slaves, the spirit and union of a religious party +might assist the popular leader, to whose service, from a principle of +conscience, they had devoted their lives and fortunes. The example of +his father had instructed Constantine to esteem and to reward the merit +of the Christians; and in the distribution of public offices, he had the +advantage of strengthening his government, by the choice of ministers +or generals, in whose fidelity he could repose a just and unreserved +confidence. By the influence of these dignified missionaries, the +proselytes of the new faith must have multiplied in the court and army; +the Barbarians of Germany, who filled the ranks of the legions, were of +a careless temper, which acquiesced without resistance in the religion +of their commander; and when they passed the Alps, it may fairly be +presumed, that a great number of the soldiers had already consecrated +their swords to the service of Christ and of Constantine. The habits of +mankind and the interests of religion gradually abated the horror of war +and bloodshed, which had so long prevailed among the Christians; and +in the councils which were assembled under the gracious protection of +Constantine, the authority of the bishops was seasonably employed to +ratify the obligation of the military oath, and to inflict the penalty +of excommunication on those soldiers who threw away their arms during +the peace of the church. While Constantine, in his own dominions, +increased the number and zeal of his faithful adherents, he could depend +on the support of a powerful faction in those provinces which were still +possessed or usurped by his rivals. A secret disaffection was diffused +among the Christian subjects of Maxentius and Licinius; and the +resentment, which the latter did not attempt to conceal, served only +to engage them still more deeply in the interest of his competitor. The +regular correspondence which connected the bishops of the most distant +provinces, enabled them freely to communicate their wishes and their +designs, and to transmit without danger any useful intelligence, or any +pious contributions, which might promote the service of Constantine, who +publicly declared that he had taken up arms for the deliverance of the +church. + +The enthusiasm which inspired the troops, and perhaps the emperor +himself, had sharpened their swords while it satisfied their conscience. +They marched to battle with the full assurance, that the same God, who +had formerly opened a passage to the Isrælites through the waters of +Jordan, and had thrown down the walls of Jericho at the sound of the +trumpets of Joshua, would display his visible majesty and power in +the victory of Constantine. The evidence of ecclesiastical history +is prepared to affirm, that their expectations were justified by the +conspicuous miracle to which the conversion of the first Christian +emperor has been almost unanimously ascribed. The real or imaginary +cause of so important an event, deserves and demands the attention of +posterity; and I shall endeavor to form a just estimate of the famous +vision of Constantine, by a distinct consideration of the standard, +the dream, and the celestial sign; by separating the historical, the +natural, and the marvellous parts of this extraordinary story, which, in +the composition of a specious argument, have been artfully confounded in +one splendid and brittle mass. + +I. An instrument of the tortures which were inflicted only on slaves and +strangers, became on object of horror in the eyes of a Roman citizen; +and the ideas of guilt, of pain, and of ignominy, were closely united +with the idea of the cross. The piety, rather than the humanity, of +Constantine soon abolished in his dominions the punishment which the +Savior of mankind had condescended to suffer; but the emperor had +already learned to despise the prejudices of his education, and of +his people, before he could erect in the midst of Rome his own statue, +bearing a cross in its right hand; with an inscription which referred +the victory of his arms, and the deliverance of Rome, to the virtue +of that salutary sign, the true symbol of force and courage. The same +symbol sanctified the arms of the soldiers of Constantine; the cross +glittered on their helmet, was engraved on their shields, was interwoven +into their banners; and the consecrated emblems which adorned the person +of the emperor himself, were distinguished only by richer materials and +more exquisite workmanship. But the principal standard which displayed +the triumph of the cross was styled the Labarum, an obscure, though +celebrated name, which has been vainly derived from almost all the +languages of the world. It is described as a long pike intersected by +a transversal beam. The silken veil, which hung down from the beam, +was curiously inwrought with the images of the reigning monarch and +his children. The summit of the pike supported a crown of gold which +enclosed the mysterious monogram, at once expressive of the figure of +the cross, and the initial letters, of the name of Christ. The safety +of the labarum was intrusted to fifty guards, of approved valor and +fidelity; their station was marked by honors and emoluments; and some +fortunate accidents soon introduced an opinion, that as long as the +guards of the labarum were engaged in the execution of their office, +they were secure and invulnerable amidst the darts of the enemy. In +the second civil war, Licinius felt and dreaded the power of this +consecrated banner, the sight of which, in the distress of battle, +animated the soldiers of Constantine with an invincible enthusiasm, and +scattered terror and dismay through the ranks of the adverse legions. +The Christian emperors, who respected the example of Constantine, +displayed in all their military expeditions the standard of the cross; +but when the degenerate successors of Theodosius had ceased to appear +in person at the head of their armies, the labarum was deposited as a +venerable but useless relic in the palace of Constantinople. Its honors +are still preserved on the medals of the Flavian family. Their grateful +devotion has placed the monogram of Christ in the midst of the ensigns +of Rome. The solemn epithets of, safety of the republic, glory of +the army, restoration of public happiness, are equally applied to the +religious and military trophies; and there is still extant a medal +of the emperor Constantius, where the standard of the labarum is +accompanied with these memorable words, By This Sign Thou Shalt Conquer. + +II. In all occasions of danger and distress, it was the practice of the +primitive Christians to fortify their minds and bodies by the sign of +the cross, which they used, in all their ecclesiastical rites, in all +the daily occurrences of life, as an infallible preservative against +every species of spiritual or temporal evil. The authority of the +church might alone have had sufficient weight to justify the devotion of +Constantine, who in the same prudent and gradual progress acknowledged +the truth, and assumed the symbol, of Christianity. But the testimony of +a contemporary writer, who in a formal treatise has avenged the cause of +religion, bestows on the piety of the emperor a more awful and sublime +character. He affirms, with the most perfect confidence, that in the +night which preceded the last battle against Maxentius, Constantine was +admonished in a dream * to inscribe the shields of his soldiers with the +celestial sign of God, the sacred monogram of the name of Christ; that +he executed the commands of Heaven, and that his valor and obedience +were rewarded by the decisive victory of the Milvian Bridge. Some +considerations might perhaps incline a sceptical mind to suspect the +judgment or the veracity of the rhetorician, whose pen, either from +zeal or interest, was devoted to the cause of the prevailing faction. +He appears to have published his deaths of the persecutors at Nicomedia +about three years after the Roman victory; but the interval of a +thousand miles, and a thousand days, will allow an ample latitude for +the invention of declaimers, the credulity of party, and the tacit +approbation of the emperor himself who might listen without indignation +to a marvellous tale, which exalted his fame, and promoted his designs. +In favor of Licinius, who still dissembled his animosity to the +Christians, the same author has provided a similar vision, of a form of +prayer, which was communicated by an angel, and repeated by the whole +army before they engaged the legions of the tyrant Maximin. The frequent +repetition of miracles serves to provoke, where it does not subdue, +the reason of mankind; but if the dream of Constantine is separately +considered, it may be naturally explained either by the policy or the +enthusiasm of the emperor. Whilst his anxiety for the approaching day, +which must decide the fate of the empire, was suspended by a short and +interrupted slumber, the venerable form of Christ, and the well-known +symbol of his religion, might forcibly offer themselves to the active +fancy of a prince who reverenced the name, and had perhaps secretly +implored the power, of the God of the Christians. As readily might a +consummate statesman indulge himself in the use of one of those military +stratagems, one of those pious frauds, which Philip and Sertorius had +employed with such art and effect. The præternatural origin of dreams +was universally admitted by the nations of antiquity, and a considerable +part of the Gallic army was already prepared to place their confidence +in the salutary sign of the Christian religion. The secret vision of +Constantine could be disproved only by the event; and the intrepid +hero who had passed the Alps and the Apennine, might view with careless +despair the consequences of a defeat under the walls of Rome. The senate +and people, exulting in their own deliverance from an odious tyrant, +acknowledged that the victory of Constantine surpassed the powers +of man, without daring to insinuate that it had been obtained by the +protection of the Gods. The triumphal arch, which was erected about +three years after the event, proclaims, in ambiguous language, that +by the greatness of his own mind, and by an instinct or impulse of the +Divinity, he had saved and avenged the Roman republic. The Pagan orator, +who had seized an earlier opportunity of celebrating the virtues of the +conqueror, supposes that he alone enjoyed a secret and intimate commerce +with the Supreme Being, who delegated the care of mortals to his +subordinate deities; and thus assigns a very plausible reason why the +subjects of Constantine should not presume to embrace the new religion +of their sovereign. + +III. The philosopher, who with calm suspicion examines the dreams and +omens, the miracles and prodigies, of profane or even of ecclesiastical +history, will probably conclude, that if the eyes of the spectators have +sometimes been deceived by fraud, the understanding of the readers +has much more frequently been insulted by fiction. Every event, or +appearance, or accident, which seems to deviate from the ordinary course +of nature, has been rashly ascribed to the immediate action of the +Deity; and the astonished fancy of the multitude has sometimes given +shape and color, language and motion, to the fleeting but uncommon +meteors of the air. Nazarius and Eusebius are the two most celebrated +orators, who, in studied panegyrics, have labored to exalt the glory of +Constantine. Nine years after the Roman victory, Nazarius describes an +army of divine warriors, who seemed to fall from the sky: he marks their +beauty, their spirit, their gigantic forms, the stream of light +which beamed from their celestial armor, their patience in suffering +themselves to be heard, as well as seen, by mortals; and their +declaration that they were sent, that they flew, to the assistance of +the great Constantine. For the truth of this prodigy, the Pagan orator +appeals to the whole Gallic nation, in whose presence he was then +speaking; and seems to hope that the ancient apparitions would now +obtain credit from this recent and public event. The Christian fable of +Eusebius, which, in the space of twenty-six years, might arise from the +original dream, is cast in a much more correct and elegant mould. In one +of the marches of Constantine, he is reported to have seen with his own +eyes the luminous trophy of the cross, placed above the meridian sun and +inscribed with the following words: By This Conquer. This amazing object +in the sky astonished the whole army, as well as the emperor himself, +who was yet undetermined in the choice of a religion: but his +astonishment was converted into faith by the vision of the ensuing +night. Christ appeared before his eyes; and displaying the same +celestial sign of the cross, he directed Constantine to frame a similar +standard, and to march, with an assurance of victory, against Maxentius +and all his enemies. The learned bishop of Cæsarea appears to be +sensible, that the recent discovery of this marvellous anecdote would +excite some surprise and distrust among the most pious of his readers. +Yet, instead of ascertaining the precise circumstances of time and +place, which always serve to detect falsehood or establish truth; +instead of collecting and recording the evidence of so many living +witnesses who must have been spectators of this stupendous miracle; +Eusebius contents himself with alleging a very singular testimony; that +of the deceased Constantine, who, many years after the event, in the +freedom of conversation, had related to him this extraordinary incident +of his own life, and had attested the truth of it by a solemn oath. The +prudence and gratitude of the learned prelate forbade him to suspect the +veracity of his victorious master; but he plainly intimates, that in a +fact of such a nature, he should have refused his assent to any meaner +authority. This motive of credibility could not survive the power of +the Flavian family; and the celestial sign, which the Infidels might +afterwards deride, was disregarded by the Christians of the age which +immediately followed the conversion of Constantine. But the Catholic +church, both of the East and of the West, has adopted a prodigy which +favors, or seems to favor, the popular worship of the cross. The +vision of Constantine maintained an honorable place in the legend of +superstition, till the bold and sagacious spirit of criticism presumed +to depreciate the triumph, and to arraign the truth, of the first +Christian emperor. + +The Protestant and philosophic readers of the present age will incline +to believe, that in the account of his own conversion, Constantine +attested a wilful falsehood by a solemn and deliberate perjury. They may +not hesitate to pronounce, that in the choice of a religion, his mind +was determined only by a sense of interest; and that (according to the +expression of a profane poet ) he used the altars of the church as a +convenient footstool to the throne of the empire. A conclusion so harsh +and so absolute is not, however, warranted by our knowledge of human +nature, of Constantine, or of Christianity. In an age of religious +fervor, the most artful statesmen are observed to feel some part of the +enthusiasm which they inspire, and the most orthodox saints assume +the dangerous privilege of defending the cause of truth by the arms of +deceit and falsehood. Personal interest is often the standard of our +belief, as well as of our practice; and the same motives of temporal +advantage which might influence the public conduct and professions of +Constantine, would insensibly dispose his mind to embrace a religion +so propitious to his fame and fortunes. His vanity was gratified by the +flattering assurance, that he had been chosen by Heaven to reign over +the earth; success had justified his divine title to the throne, and +that title was founded on the truth of the Christian revelation. As real +virtue is sometimes excited by undeserved applause, the specious piety +of Constantine, if at first it was only specious, might gradually, +by the influence of praise, of habit, and of example, be matured into +serious faith and fervent devotion. The bishops and teachers of the new +sect, whose dress and manners had not qualified them for the residence +of a court, were admitted to the Imperial table; they accompanied the +monarch in his expeditions; and the ascendant which one of them, an +Egyptian or a Spaniard, acquired over his mind, was imputed by the +Pagans to the effect of magic. Lactantius, who has adorned the precepts +of the gospel with the eloquence of Cicero, and Eusebius, who has +consecrated the learning and philosophy of the Greeks to the service +of religion, were both received into the friendship and familiarity of +their sovereign; and those able masters of controversy could patiently +watch the soft and yielding moments of persuasion, and dexterously +apply the arguments which were the best adapted to his character and +understanding. Whatever advantages might be derived from the acquisition +of an Imperial proselyte, he was distinguished by the splendor of his +purple, rather than by the superiority of wisdom, or virtue, from +the many thousands of his subjects who had embraced the doctrines of +Christianity. Nor can it be deemed incredible, that the mind of an +unlettered soldier should have yielded to the weight of evidence, which, +in a more enlightened age, has satisfied or subdued the reason of a +Grotius, a Pascal, or a Locke. In the midst of the incessant labors +of his great office, this soldier employed, or affected to employ, the +hours of the night in the diligent study of the Scriptures, and the +composition of theological discourses; which he afterwards pronounced +in the presence of a numerous and applauding audience. In a very long +discourse, which is still extant, the royal preacher expatiates on +the various proofs still extant, the royal preacher expatiates on the +various proofs of religion; but he dwells with peculiar complacency +on the Sibylline verses, and the fourth eclogue of Virgil. Forty years +before the birth of Christ, the Mantuan bard, as if inspired by the +celestial muse of Isaiah, had celebrated, with all the pomp of oriental +metaphor, the return of the Virgin, the fall of the serpent, the +approaching birth of a godlike child, the offspring of the great +Jupiter, who should expiate the guilt of human kind, and govern +the peaceful universe with the virtues of his father; the rise and +appearance of a heavenly race, primitive nation throughout the world; +and the gradual restoration of the innocence and felicity of the golden +age. The poet was perhaps unconscious of the secret sense and object of +these sublime predictions, which have been so unworthily applied to +the infant son of a consul, or a triumvir; but if a more splendid, and +indeed specious interpretation of the fourth eclogue contributed to +the conversion of the first Christian emperor, Virgil may deserve to be +ranked among the most successful missionaries of the gospel. + + + +Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine.--Part III. + +The awful mysteries of the Christian faith and worship were concealed +from the eyes of strangers, and even of catechumens, with an affected +secrecy, which served to excite their wonder and curiosity. But the +severe rules of discipline which the prudence of the bishops had +instituted, were relaxed by the same prudence in favor of an Imperial +proselyte, whom it was so important to allure, by every gentle +condescension, into the pale of the church; and Constantine was +permitted, at least by a tacit dispensation, to enjoy most of the +privileges, before he had contracted any of the obligations, of a +Christian. Instead of retiring from the congregation, when the voice of +the deacon dismissed the profane multitude, he prayed with the faithful, +disputed with the bishops, preached on the most sublime and intricate +subjects of theology, celebrated with sacred rites the vigil of Easter, +and publicly declared himself, not only a partaker, but, in some +measure, a priest and hierophant of the Christian mysteries. The +pride of Constantine might assume, and his services had deserved, some +extraordinary distinction: and ill-timed rigor might have blasted the +unripened fruits of his conversion; and if the doors of the church had +been strictly closed against a prince who had deserted the altars of +the gods, the master of the empire would have been left destitute of +any form of religious worship. In his last visit to Rome, he piously +disclaimed and insulted the superstition of his ancestors, by refusing +to lead the military procession of the equestrian order, and to offer +the public vows to the Jupiter of the Capitoline Hill. Many years before +his baptism and death, Constantine had proclaimed to the world, that +neither his person nor his image should ever more be seen within +the walls of an idolatrous temple; while he distributed through the +provinces a variety of medals and pictures, which represented the +emperor in an humble and suppliant posture of Christian devotion. + +The pride of Constantine, who refused the privileges of a catechumen, +cannot easily be explained or excused; but the delay of his baptism may +be justified by the maxims and the practice of ecclesiastical antiquity. +The sacrament of baptism was regularly administered by the bishop +himself, with his assistant clergy, in the cathedral church of the +diocese, during the fifty days between the solemn festivals of Easter +and Pentecost; and this holy term admitted a numerous band of infants +and adult persons into the bosom of the church. The discretion of +parents often suspended the baptism of their children till they could +understand the obligations which they contracted: the severity of +ancient bishops exacted from the new converts a novitiate of two or +three years; and the catechumens themselves, from different motives of +a temporal or a spiritual nature, were seldom impatient to assume the +character of perfect and initiated Christians. The sacrament of baptism +was supposed to contain a full and absolute expiation of sin; and the +soul was instantly restored to its original purity, and entitled to +the promise of eternal salvation. Among the proselytes of Christianity, +there are many who judged it imprudent to precipitate a salutary rite, +which could not be repeated; to throw away an inestimable privilege, +which could never be recovered. By the delay of their baptism, they +could venture freely to indulge their passions in the enjoyments of this +world, while they still retained in their own hands the means of a sure +and easy absolution. The sublime theory of the gospel had made a much +fainter impression on the heart than on the understanding of Constantine +himself. He pursued the great object of his ambition through the dark +and bloody paths of war and policy; and, after the victory, he abandoned +himself, without moderation, to the abuse of his fortune. Instead of +asserting his just superiority above the imperfect heroism and profane +philosophy of Trajan and the Antonines, the mature age of Constantine +forfeited the reputation which he had acquired in his youth. As he +gradually advanced in the knowledge of truth, he proportionally declined +in the practice of virtue; and the same year of his reign in which he +convened the council of Nice, was polluted by the execution, or rather +murder, of his eldest son. This date is alone sufficient to refute the +ignorant and malicious suggestions of Zosimus, who affirms, that, +after the death of Crispus, the remorse of his father accepted from the +ministers of Christianity the expiation which he had vainly solicited +from the Pagan pontiffs. At the time of the death of Crispus, the +emperor could no longer hesitate in the choice of a religion; he could +no longer be ignorant that the church was possessed of an infallible +remedy, though he chose to defer the application of it till the approach +of death had removed the temptation and danger of a relapse. The bishops +whom he summoned, in his last illness, to the palace of Nicomedia, were +edified by the fervor with which he requested and received the sacrament +of baptism, by the solemn protestation that the remainder of his life +should be worthy of a disciple of Christ, and by his humble refusal to +wear the Imperial purple after he had been clothed in the white garment +of a Neophyte. The example and reputation of Constantine seemed to +countenance the delay of baptism. Future tyrants were encouraged to +believe, that the innocent blood which they might shed in a long reign +would instantly be washed away in the waters of regeneration; and +the abuse of religion dangerously undermined the foundations of moral +virtue. + +The gratitude of the church has exalted the virtues and excused the +failings of a generous patron, who seated Christianity on the throne +of the Roman world; and the Greeks, who celebrate the festival of the +Imperial saint, seldom mention the name of Constantine without adding +the title of equal to the Apostles. Such a comparison, if it allude +to the character of those divine missionaries, must be imputed to the +extravagance of impious flattery. But if the parallel be confined to +the extent and number of their evangelic victories the success of +Constantine might perhaps equal that of the Apostles themselves. By the +edicts of toleration, he removed the temporal disadvantages which had +hitherto retarded the progress of Christianity; and its active and +numerous ministers received a free permission, a liberal encouragement, +to recommend the salutary truths of revelation by every argument which +could affect the reason or piety of mankind. The exact balance of the +two religions continued but a moment; and the piercing eye of ambition +and avarice soon discovered, that the profession of Christianity might +contribute to the interest of the present, as well as of a future +life. The hopes of wealth and honors, the example of an emperor, his +exhortations, his irresistible smiles, diffused conviction among the +venal and obsequious crowds which usually fill the apartments of a +palace. The cities which signalized a forward zeal by the voluntary +destruction of their temples, were distinguished by municipal +privileges, and rewarded with popular donatives; and the new capital of +the East gloried in the singular advantage that Constantinople was never +profaned by the worship of idols. As the lower ranks of society are +governed by imitation, the conversion of those who possessed any +eminence of birth, of power, or of riches, was soon followed by +dependent multitudes. The salvation of the common people was purchased +at an easy rate, if it be true that, in one year, twelve thousand men +were baptized at Rome, besides a proportionable number of women and +children, and that a white garment, with twenty pieces of gold, had +been promised by the emperor to every convert. The powerful influence of +Constantine was not circumscribed by the narrow limits of his life, +or of his dominions. The education which he bestowed on his sons and +nephews secured to the empire a race of princes, whose faith was still +more lively and sincere, as they imbibed, in their earliest infancy, the +spirit, or at least the doctrine, of Christianity. War and commerce +had spread the knowledge of the gospel beyond the confines of the +Roman provinces; and the Barbarians, who had disdained as humble and +proscribed sect, soon learned to esteem a religion which had been so +lately embraced by the greatest monarch, and the most civilized nation, +of the globe. The Goths and Germans, who enlisted under the standard of +Rome, revered the cross which glittered at the head of the legions, and +their fierce countrymen received at the same time the lessons of faith +and of humanity. The kings of Iberia and Armenia * worshipped the god of +their protector; and their subjects, who have invariably preserved the +name of Christians, soon formed a sacred and perpetual connection with +their Roman brethren. The Christians of Persia were suspected, in time +of war, of preferring their religion to their country; but as long as +peace subsisted between the two empires, the persecuting spirit of the +Magi was effectually restrained by the interposition of Constantine. The +rays of the gospel illuminated the coast of India. The colonies of Jews, +who had penetrated into Arabia and Ethiopia, opposed the progress of +Christianity; but the labor of the missionaries was in some measure +facilitated by a previous knowledge of the Mosaic revelation; and +Abyssinia still reveres the memory of Frumentius, * who, in the time +of Constantine, devoted his life to the conversion of those sequestered +regions. Under the reign of his son Constantius, Theophilus, who was +himself of Indian extraction, was invested with the double character +of ambassador and bishop. He embarked on the Red Sea with two hundred +horses of the purest breed of Cappadocia, which were sent by the emperor +to the prince of the Sabæans, or Homerites. Theophilus was intrusted +with many other useful or curious presents, which might raise the +admiration, and conciliate the friendship, of the Barbarians; and he +successfully employed several years in a pastoral visit to the churches +of the torrid zone. + +The irresistible power of the Roman emperors was displayed in the +important and dangerous change of the national religion. The terrors +of a military force silenced the faint and unsupported murmurs of the +Pagans, and there was reason to expect, that the cheerful submission +of the Christian clergy, as well as people, would be the result +of conscience and gratitude. It was long since established, as a +fundamental maxim of the Roman constitution, that every rank of citizens +was alike subject to the laws, and that the care of religion was the +right as well as duty of the civil magistrate. Constantine and his +successors could not easily persuade themselves that they had forfeited, +by their conversion, any branch of the Imperial prerogatives, or +that they were incapable of giving laws to a religion which they had +protected and embraced. The emperors still continued to exercise a +supreme jurisdiction over the ecclesiastical order, and the sixteenth +book of the Theodosian code represents, under a variety of titles, the +authority which they assumed in the government of the Catholic church. + +But the distinction of the spiritual and temporal powers, which had +never been imposed on the free spirit of Greece and Rome, was introduced +and confirmed by the legal establishment of Christianity. The office of +supreme pontiff, which, from the time of Numa to that of Augustus, had +always been exercised by one of the most eminent of the senators, was +at length united to the Imperial dignity. The first magistrate of the +state, as often as he was prompted by superstition or policy, performed +with his own hands the sacerdotal functions; nor was there any order of +priests, either at Rome or in the provinces, who claimed a more sacred +character among men, or a more intimate communication with the gods. But +in the Christian church, which intrusts the service of the altar to +a perpetual succession of consecrated ministers, the monarch, whose +spiritual rank is less honorable than that of the meanest deacon, was +seated below the rails of the sanctuary, and confounded with the rest +of the faithful multitude. The emperor might be saluted as the father +of his people, but he owed a filial duty and reverence to the fathers of +the church; and the same marks of respect, which Constantine had paid to +the persons of saints and confessors, were soon exacted by the pride +of the episcopal order. A secret conflict between the civil and +ecclesiastical jurisdictions embarrassed the operation of the Roman +government; and a pious emperor was alarmed by the guilt and danger of +touching with a profane hand the ark of the covenant. The separation +of men into the two orders of the clergy and of the laity was, indeed, +familiar to many nations of antiquity; and the priests of India, of +Persia, of Assyria, of Judea, of Æthiopia, of Egypt, and of Gaul, +derived from a celestial origin the temporal power and possessions +which they had acquired. These venerable institutions had gradually +assimilated themselves to the manners and government of their respective +countries; but the opposition or contempt of the civil power served to +cement the discipline of the primitive church. The Christians had +been obliged to elect their own magistrates, to raise and distribute a +peculiar revenue, and to regulate the internal policy of their republic +by a code of laws, which were ratified by the consent of the people and +the practice of three hundred years. When Constantine embraced the faith +of the Christians, he seemed to contract a perpetual alliance with +a distinct and independent society; and the privileges granted or +confirmed by that emperor, or by his successors, were accepted, not +as the precarious favors of the court, but as the just and inalienable +rights of the ecclesiastical order. + +The Catholic church was administered by the spiritual and legal +jurisdiction of eighteen hundred bishops; of whom one thousand were +seated in the Greek, and eight hundred in the Latin, provinces of the +empire. The extent and boundaries of their respective dioceses had been +variously and accidentally decided by the zeal and success of the first +missionaries, by the wishes of the people, and by the propagation of the +gospel. Episcopal churches were closely planted along the banks of the +Nile, on the sea-coast of Africa, in the proconsular Asia, and through +the southern provinces of Italy. The bishops of Gaul and Spain, of +Thrace and Pontus, reigned over an ample territory, and delegated their +rural suffragans to execute the subordinate duties of the pastoral +office. A Christian diocese might be spread over a province, or reduced +to a village; but all the bishops possessed an equal and indelible +character: they all derived the same powers and privileges from the +apostles, from the people, and from the laws. While the civil and +military professions were separated by the policy of Constantine, a new +and perpetual order of ecclesiastical ministers, always respectable, +sometimes dangerous, was established in the church and state. The +important review of their station and attributes may be distributed +under the following heads: I. Popular Election. II. Ordination of the +Clergy. III. Property. IV. Civil Jurisdiction. V. Spiritual censures. +VI. Exercise of public oratory. VII. Privilege of legislative +assemblies. + +I. The freedom of election subsisted long after the legal establishment +of Christianity; and the subjects of Rome enjoyed in the church +the privilege which they had lost in the republic, of choosing the +magistrates whom they were bound to obey. As soon as a bishop had closed +his eyes, the metropolitan issued a commission to one of his suffragans +to administer the vacant see, and prepare, within a limited time, the +future election. The right of voting was vested in the inferior clergy, +who were best qualified to judge of the merit of the candidates; in +the senators or nobles of the city, all those who were distinguished +by their rank or property; and finally in the whole body of the people, +who, on the appointed day, flocked in multitudes from the most remote +parts of the diocese, and sometimes silenced by their tumultuous +acclamations, the voice of reason and the laws of discipline. These +acclamations might accidentally fix on the head of the most deserving +competitor; of some ancient presbyter, some holy monk, or some layman, +conspicuous for his zeal and piety. But the episcopal chair was +solicited, especially in the great and opulent cities of the empire, as +a temporal rather than as a spiritual dignity. The interested views, the +selfish and angry passions, the arts of perfidy and dissimulation, the +secret corruption, the open and even bloody violence which had formerly +disgraced the freedom of election in the commonwealths of Greece and +Rome, too often influenced the choice of the successors of the apostles. +While one of the candidates boasted the honors of his family, a second +allured his judges by the delicacies of a plentiful table, and a third, +more guilty than his rivals, offered to share the plunder of the church +among the accomplices of his sacrilegious hopes The civil as well as +ecclesiastical laws attempted to exclude the populace from this +solemn and important transaction. The canons of ancient discipline, +by requiring several episcopal qualifications, of age, station, &c., +restrained, in some measure, the indiscriminate caprice of the electors. +The authority of the provincial bishops, who were assembled in the +vacant church to consecrate the choice of the people, was interposed to +moderate their passions and to correct their mistakes. The bishops +could refuse to ordain an unworthy candidate, and the rage of contending +factions sometimes accepted their impartial mediation. The submission, +or the resistance, of the clergy and people, on various occasions, +afforded different precedents, which were insensibly converted into +positive laws and provincial customs; but it was every where admitted, +as a fundamental maxim of religious policy, that no bishop could be +imposed on an orthodox church, without the consent of its members. +The emperors, as the guardians of the public peace, and as the first +citizens of Rome and Constantinople, might effectually declare their +wishes in the choice of a primate; but those absolute monarchs respected +the freedom of ecclesiastical elections; and while they distributed and +resumed the honors of the state and army, they allowed eighteen hundred +perpetual magistrates to receive their important offices from the free +suffrages of the people. It was agreeable to the dictates of justice, +that these magistrates should not desert an honorable station from +which they could not be removed; but the wisdom of councils endeavored, +without much success, to enforce the residence, and to prevent the +translation, of bishops. The discipline of the West was indeed less +relaxed than that of the East; but the same passions which made those +regulations necessary, rendered them ineffectual. The reproaches which +angry prelates have so vehemently urged against each other, serve only +to expose their common guilt, and their mutual indiscretion. + +II. The bishops alone possessed the faculty of spiritual generation: and +this extraordinary privilege might compensate, in some degree, for the +painful celibacy which was imposed as a virtue, as a duty, and at length +as a positive obligation. The religions of antiquity, which established +a separate order of priests, dedicated a holy race, a tribe or family, +to the perpetual service of the gods. Such institutions were founded for +possession, rather than conquest. The children of the priests enjoyed, +with proud and indolent security, their sacred inheritance; and the +fiery spirit of enthusiasm was abated by the cares, the pleasures, and +the endearments of domestic life. But the Christian sanctuary was open +to every ambitious candidate, who aspired to its heavenly promises or +temporal possessions. This office of priests, like that of soldiers or +magistrates, was strenuously exercised by those men, whose temper and +abilities had prompted them to embrace the ecclesiastical profession, or +who had been selected by a discerning bishop, as the best qualified +to promote the glory and interest of the church. The bishops (till the +abuse was restrained by the prudence of the laws) might constrain the +reluctant, and protect the distressed; and the imposition of hands +forever bestowed some of the most valuable privileges of civil society. +The whole body of the Catholic clergy, more numerous perhaps than the +legions, was exempted * by the emperors from all service, private or +public, all municipal offices, and all personal taxes and contributions, +which pressed on their fellow-citizens with intolerable weight; and the +duties of their holy profession were accepted as a full discharge of +their obligations to the republic. Each bishop acquired an absolute +and indefeasible right to the perpetual obedience of the clerk whom +he ordained: the clergy of each episcopal church, with its dependent +parishes, formed a regular and permanent society; and the cathedrals of +Constantinople and Carthage maintained their peculiar establishment +of five hundred ecclesiastical ministers. Their ranks and numbers were +insensibly multiplied by the superstition of the times, which introduced +into the church the splendid ceremonies of a Jewish or Pagan temple; +and a long train of priests, deacons, sub-deacons, acolythes, exorcists, +readers, singers, and doorkeepers, contributed, in their respective +stations, to swell the pomp and harmony of religious worship. The +clerical name and privileges were extended to many pious fraternities, +who devoutly supported the ecclesiastical throne. Six hundred +parabolani, or adventurers, visited the sick at Alexandria; eleven +hundred copiat, or grave-diggers, buried the dead at Constantinople; and +the swarms of monks, who arose from the Nile, overspread and darkened +the face of the Christian world. + + + +Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine.--Part IV. + +III. The edict of Milan secured the revenue as well as the peace of the +church. The Christians not only recovered the lands and houses of which +they had been stripped by the persecuting laws of Diocletian, but they +acquired a perfect title to all the possessions which they had hitherto +enjoyed by the connivance of the magistrate. As soon as Christianity +became the religion of the emperor and the empire, the national clergy +might claim a decent and honorable maintenance; and the payment of an +annual tax might have delivered the people from the more oppressive +tribute, which superstition imposes on her votaries. But as the +wants and expenses of the church increased with her prosperity, the +ecclesiastical order was still supported and enriched by the voluntary +oblations of the faithful. Eight years after the edict of Milan, +Constantine granted to all his subjects the free and universal +permission of bequeathing their fortunes to the holy Catholic church; +and their devout liberality, which during their lives was checked by +luxury or avarice, flowed with a profuse stream at the hour of their +death. The wealthy Christians were encouraged by the example of their +sovereign. An absolute monarch, who is rich without patrimony, may be +charitable without merit; and Constantine too easily believed that he +should purchase the favor of Heaven, if he maintained the idle at the +expense of the industrious; and distributed among the saints the wealth +of the republic. The same messenger who carried over to Africa the head +of Maxentius, might be intrusted with an epistle to Cæcilian, bishop of +Carthage. The emperor acquaints him, that the treasurers of the province +are directed to pay into his hands the sum of three thousand folles, or +eighteen thousand pounds sterling, and to obey his further requisitions +for the relief of the churches of Africa, Numidia, and Mauritania. The +liberality of Constantine increased in a just proportion to his faith, +and to his vices. He assigned in each city a regular allowance of corn, +to supply the fund of ecclesiastical charity; and the persons of both +sexes who embraced the monastic life became the peculiar favorites +of their sovereign. The Christian temples of Antioch, Alexandria, +Jerusalem, Constantinople &c., displayed the ostentatious piety of a +prince, ambitious in a declining age to equal the perfect labors of +antiquity. The form of these religious edifices was simple and oblong; +though they might sometimes swell into the shape of a dome, and +sometimes branch into the figure of a cross. The timbers were framed +for the most part of cedars of Libanus; the roof was covered with tiles, +perhaps of gilt brass; and the walls, the columns, the pavement, were +encrusted with variegated marbles. The most precious ornaments of gold +and silver, of silk and gems, were profusely dedicated to the service of +the altar; and this specious magnificence was supported on the solid and +perpetual basis of landed property. In the space of two centuries, from +the reign of Constantine to that of Justinian, the eighteen hundred +churches of the empire were enriched by the frequent and unalienable +gifts of the prince and people. An annual income of six hundred pounds +sterling may be reasonably assigned to the bishops, who were placed at +an equal distance between riches and poverty, but the standard of their +wealth insensibly rose with the dignity and opulence of the cities +which they governed. An authentic but imperfect rent-roll specifies some +houses, shops, gardens, and farms, which belonged to the three Basilic +of Rome, St. Peter, St. Paul, and St. John Lateran, in the provinces of +Italy, Africa, and the East. They produce, besides a reserved rent of +oil, linen, paper, aromatics, &c., a clear annual revenue of twenty-two +thousand pieces of gold, or twelve thousand pounds sterling. In the age +of Constantine and Justinian, the bishops no longer possessed, perhaps +they no longer deserved, the unsuspecting confidence of their clergy and +people. The ecclesiastical revenues of each diocese were divided +into four parts for the respective uses of the bishop himself, of his +inferior clergy, of the poor, and of the public worship; and the abuse +of this sacred trust was strictly and repeatedly checked. The patrimony +of the church was still subject to all the public compositions of the +state. The clergy of Rome, Alexandria, Thessalonica, &c., might solicit +and obtain some partial exemptions; but the premature attempt of +the great council of Rimini, which aspired to universal freedom, was +successfully resisted by the son of Constantine. + +IV. The Latin clergy, who erected their tribunal on the ruins of +the civil and common law, have modestly accepted, as the gift of +Constantine, the independent jurisdiction, which was the fruit of +time, of accident, and of their own industry. But the liberality of +the Christian emperors had actually endowed them with some legal +prerogatives, which secured and dignified the sacerdotal character. 1. +Under a despotic government, the bishops alone enjoyed and asserted the +inestimable privilege of being tried only by their peers; and even in +a capital accusation, a synod of their brethren were the sole judges +of their guilt or innocence. Such a tribunal, unless it was inflamed by +personal resentment or religious discord, might be favorable, or even +partial, to the sacerdotal order: but Constantine was satisfied, that +secret impunity would be less pernicious than public scandal: and +the Nicene council was edited by his public declaration, that if he +surprised a bishop in the act of adultery, he should cast his Imperial +mantle over the episcopal sinner. 2. The domestic jurisdiction of the +bishops was at once a privilege and a restraint of the ecclesiastical +order, whose civil causes were decently withdrawn from the cognizance of +a secular judge. Their venial offences were not exposed to the shame +of a public trial or punishment; and the gentle correction which the +tenderness of youth may endure from its parents or instructors, was +inflicted by the temperate severity of the bishops. But if the clergy +were guilty of any crime which could not be sufficiently expiated by +their degradation from an honorable and beneficial profession, the +Roman magistrate drew the sword of justice, without any regard to +ecclesiastical immunities. 3. The arbitration of the bishops was +ratified by a positive law; and the judges were instructed to execute, +without appeal or delay, the episcopal decrees, whose validity had +hitherto depended on the consent of the parties. The conversion of the +magistrates themselves, and of the whole empire, might gradually remove +the fears and scruples of the Christians. But they still resorted to the +tribunal of the bishops, whose abilities and integrity they esteemed; +and the venerable Austin enjoyed the satisfaction of complaining that +his spiritual functions were perpetually interrupted by the invidious +labor of deciding the claim or the possession of silver and gold, of +lands and cattle. 4. The ancient privilege of sanctuary was transferred +to the Christian temples, and extended, by the liberal piety of +the younger Theodosius, to the precincts of consecrated ground. The +fugitive, and even guilty, suppliants were permitted to implore either +the justice, or the mercy, of the Deity and his ministers. The rash +violence of despotism was suspended by the mild interposition of the +church; and the lives or fortunes of the most eminent subjects might be +protected by the mediation of the bishop. + +V. The bishop was the perpetual censor of the morals of his people +The discipline of penance was digested into a system of canonical +jurisprudence, which accurately defined the duty of private or public +confession, the rules of evidence, the degrees of guilt, and the measure +of punishment. It was impossible to execute this spiritual censure, if +the Christian pontiff, who punished the obscure sins of the multitude, +respected the conspicuous vices and destructive crimes of the +magistrate: but it was impossible to arraign the conduct of the +magistrate, without, controlling the administration of civil government. +Some considerations of religion, or loyalty, or fear, protected the +sacred persons of the emperors from the zeal or resentment of the +bishops; but they boldly censured and excommunicated the subordinate +tyrants, who were not invested with the majesty of the purple. St. +Athanasius excommunicated one of the ministers of Egypt; and the +interdict which he pronounced, of fire and water, was solemnly +transmitted to the churches of Cappadocia. Under the reign of the +younger Theodosius, the polite and eloquent Synesius, one of the +descendants of Hercules, filled the episcopal seat of Ptolemais, near +the ruins of ancient Cyrene, and the philosophic bishop supported +with dignity the character which he had assumed with reluctance. He +vanquished the monster of Libya, the president Andronicus, who abused +the authority of a venal office, invented new modes of rapine and +torture, and aggravated the guilt of oppression by that of sacrilege. +After a fruitless attempt to reclaim the haughty magistrate by mild and +religious admonition, Synesius proceeds to inflict the last sentence of +ecclesiastical justice, which devotes Andronicus, with his associates +and their families, to the abhorrence of earth and heaven. The +impenitent sinners, more cruel than Phalaris or Sennacherib, more +destructive than war, pestilence, or a cloud of locusts, are deprived +of the name and privileges of Christians, of the participation of the +sacraments, and of the hope of Paradise. The bishop exhorts the clergy, +the magistrates, and the people, to renounce all society with the +enemies of Christ; to exclude them from their houses and tables; and to +refuse them the common offices of life, and the decent rites of burial. +The church of Ptolemais, obscure and contemptible as she may appear, +addresses this declaration to all her sister churches of the world; and +the profane who reject her decrees, will be involved in the guilt and +punishment of Andronicus and his impious followers. These spiritual +terrors were enforced by a dexterous application to the Byzantine +court; the trembling president implored the mercy of the church; and the +descendants of Hercules enjoyed the satisfaction of raising a prostrate +tyrant from the ground. Such principles and such examples insensibly +prepared the triumph of the Roman pontiffs, who have trampled on the +necks of kings. + +VI. Every popular government has experienced the effects of rude or +artificial eloquence. The coldest nature is animated, the firmest reason +is moved, by the rapid communication of the prevailing impulse; and each +hearer is affected by his own passions, and by those of the surrounding +multitude. The ruin of civil liberty had silenced the demagogues of +Athens, and the tribunes of Rome; the custom of preaching which seems +to constitute a considerable part of Christian devotion, had not been +introduced into the temples of antiquity; and the ears of monarchs were +never invaded by the harsh sound of popular eloquence, till the pulpits +of the empire were filled with sacred orators, who possessed some +advantages unknown to their profane predecessors. The arguments and +rhetoric of the tribune were instantly opposed with equal arms, by +skilful and resolute antagonists; and the cause of truth and reason +might derive an accidental support from the conflict of hostile +passions. The bishop, or some distinguished presbyter, to whom he +cautiously delegated the powers of preaching, harangued, without the +danger of interruption or reply, a submissive multitude, whose minds had +been prepared and subdued by the awful ceremonies of religion. Such was +the strict subordination of the Catholic church, that the same concerted +sounds might issue at once from a hundred pulpits of Italy or Egypt, if +they were tuned by the master hand of the Roman or Alexandrian primate. +The design of this institution was laudable, but the fruits were not +always salutary. The preachers recommended the practice of the social +duties; but they exalted the perfection of monastic virtue, which is +painful to the individual, and useless to mankind. Their charitable +exhortations betrayed a secret wish that the clergy might be permitted +to manage the wealth of the faithful, for the benefit of the poor. The +most sublime representations of the attributes and laws of the Deity +were sullied by an idle mixture of metaphysical subtleties, puerile +rites, and fictitious miracles: and they expatiated, with the most +fervent zeal, on the religious merit of hating the adversaries, +and obeying the ministers of the church. When the public peace was +distracted by heresy and schism, the sacred orators sounded the trumpet +of discord, and, perhaps, of sedition. The understandings of their +congregations were perplexed by mystery, their passions were inflamed +by invectives; and they rushed from the Christian temples of Antioch +or Alexandria, prepared either to suffer or to inflict martyrdom. The +corruption of taste and language is strongly marked in the vehement +declamations of the Latin bishops; but the compositions of Gregory and +Chrysostom have been compared with the most splendid models of Attic, or +at least of Asiatic, eloquence. + +VII. The representatives of the Christian republic were regularly +assembled in the spring and autumn of each year; and these synods +diffused the spirit of ecclesiastical discipline and legislation through +the hundred and twenty provinces of the Roman world. The archbishop or +metropolitan was empowered, by the laws, to summon the suffragan bishops +of his province; to revise their conduct, to vindicate their rights, +to declare their faith, and to examine the merits of the candidates who +were elected by the clergy and people to supply the vacancies of the +episcopal college. The primates of Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, Carthage, +and afterwards Constantinople, who exercised a more ample jurisdiction, +convened the numerous assembly of their dependent bishops. But the +convocation of great and extraordinary synods was the prerogative of +the emperor alone. Whenever the emergencies of the church required this +decisive measure, he despatched a peremptory summons to the bishops, or +the deputies of each province, with an order for the use of post-horses, +and a competent allowance for the expenses of their journey. At an early +period, when Constantine was the protector, rather than the proselyte, +of Christianity, he referred the African controversy to the council +of Arles; in which the bishops of York of Treves, of Milan, and of +Carthage, met as friends and brethren, to debate in their native tongue +on the common interest of the Latin or Western church. Eleven years +afterwards, a more numerous and celebrated assembly was convened at Nice +in Bithynia, to extinguish, by their final sentence, the subtle disputes +which had arisen in Egypt on the subject of the Trinity. Three hundred +and eighteen bishops obeyed the summons of their indulgent master; +the ecclesiastics of every rank, and sect, and denomination, have been +computed at two thousand and forty-eight persons; the Greeks appeared +in person; and the consent of the Latins was expressed by the legates +of the Roman pontiff. The session, which lasted about two months, was +frequently honored by the presence of the emperor. Leaving his guards +at the door, he seated himself (with the permission of the council) on a +low stool in the midst of the hall. Constantine listened with patience, +and spoke with modesty: and while he influenced the debates, he humbly +professed that he was the minister, not the judge, of the successors +of the apostles, who had been established as priests and as gods upon +earth. Such profound reverence of an absolute monarch towards a feeble +and unarmed assembly of his own subjects, can only be compared to the +respect with which the senate had been treated by the Roman princes +who adopted the policy of Augustus. Within the space of fifty years, a +philosophic spectator of the vicissitudes of human affairs might have +contemplated Tacitus in the senate of Rome, and Constantine in the +council of Nice. The fathers of the Capitol and those of the church had +alike degenerated from the virtues of their founders; but as the bishops +were more deeply rooted in the public opinion, they sustained their +dignity with more decent pride, and sometimes opposed with a manly +spirit the wishes of their sovereign. The progress of time and +superstition erased the memory of the weakness, the passion, the +ignorance, which disgraced these ecclesiastical synods; and the Catholic +world has unanimously submitted to the infallible decrees of the general +councils. + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part I. + + Persecution Of Heresy.--The Schism Of The Donatists.--The + Arian Controversy.--Athanasius.--Distracted State Of The + Church And Empire Under Constantine And His Sons.-- + Toleration Of Paganism. + +The grateful applause of the clergy has consecrated the memory of +a prince who indulged their passions and promoted their interest. +Constantine gave them security, wealth, honors, and revenge; and the +support of the orthodox faith was considered as the most sacred and +important duty of the civil magistrate. The edict of Milan, the great +charter of toleration, had confirmed to each individual of the Roman +world the privilege of choosing and professing his own religion. But +this inestimable privilege was soon violated; with the knowledge of +truth, the emperor imbibed the maxims of persecution; and the sects +which dissented from the Catholic church were afflicted and oppressed +by the triumph of Christianity. Constantine easily believed that +the Heretics, who presumed to dispute his opinions, or to oppose his +commands, were guilty of the most absurd and criminal obstinacy; and +that a seasonable application of moderate severities might save those +unhappy men from the danger of an everlasting condemnation. Not a +moment was lost in excluding the ministers and teachers of the separated +congregations from any share of the rewards and immunities which the +emperor had so liberally bestowed on the orthodox clergy. But as the +sectaries might still exist under the cloud of royal disgrace, the +conquest of the East was immediately followed by an edict which +announced their total destruction. After a preamble filled with passion +and reproach, Constantine absolutely prohibits the assemblies of the +Heretics, and confiscates their public property to the use either of the +revenue or of the Catholic church. The sects against whom the Imperial +severity was directed, appear to have been the adherents of Paul of +Samosata; the Montanists of Phrygia, who maintained an enthusiastic +succession of prophecy; the Novatians, who sternly rejected the temporal +efficacy of repentance; the Marcionites and Valentinians, under whose +leading banners the various Gnostics of Asia and Egypt had insensibly +rallied; and perhaps the Manichæans, who had recently imported from +Persia a more artful composition of Oriental and Christian theology. The +design of extirpating the name, or at least of restraining the progress, +of these odious Heretics, was prosecuted with vigor and effect. Some +of the penal regulations were copied from the edicts of Diocletian; and +this method of conversion was applauded by the same bishops who had +felt the hand of oppression, and pleaded for the rights of humanity. Two +immaterial circumstances may serve, however, to prove that the mind +of Constantine was not entirely corrupted by the spirit of zeal and +bigotry. Before he condemned the Manichæans and their kindred sects, he +resolved to make an accurate inquiry into the nature of their religious +principles. As if he distrusted the impartiality of his ecclesiastical +counsellors, this delicate commission was intrusted to a civil +magistrate, whose learning and moderation he justly esteemed, and of +whose venal character he was probably ignorant. The emperor was soon +convinced, that he had too hastily proscribed the orthodox faith and the +exemplary morals of the Novatians, who had dissented from the church +in some articles of discipline which were not perhaps essential to +salvation. By a particular edict, he exempted them from the general +penalties of the law; allowed them to build a church at Constantinople, +respected the miracles of their saints, invited their bishop Acesius to +the council of Nice; and gently ridiculed the narrow tenets of his sect +by a familiar jest; which, from the mouth of a sovereign, must have been +received with applause and gratitude. + +The complaints and mutual accusations which assailed the throne of +Constantine, as soon as the death of Maxentius had submitted Africa to +his victorious arms, were ill adapted to edify an imperfect proselyte. +He learned, with surprise, that the provinces of that great country, +from the confines of Cyrene to the columns of Hercules, were distracted +with religious discord. The source of the division was derived from +a double election in the church of Carthage; the second, in rank and +opulence, of the ecclesiastical thrones of the West. Cæcilian and +Majorinus were the two rival prelates of Africa; and the death of the +latter soon made room for Donatus, who, by his superior abilities and +apparent virtues, was the firmest support of his party. The advantage +which Cæcilian might claim from the priority of his ordination, was +destroyed by the illegal, or at least indecent, haste, with which it had +been performed, without expecting the arrival of the bishops of Numidia. +The authority of these bishops, who, to the number of seventy, condemned +Cæcilian, and consecrated Majorinus, is again weakened by the infamy +of some of their personal characters; and by the female intrigues, +sacrilegious bargains, and tumultuous proceedings, which are imputed +to this Numidian council. The bishops of the contending factions +maintained, with equal ardor and obstinacy, that their adversaries were +degraded, or at least dishonored, by the odious crime of delivering +the Holy Scriptures to the officers of Diocletian. From their mutual +reproaches, as well as from the story of this dark transaction, it may +justly be inferred, that the late persecution had imbittered the zeal, +without reforming the manners, of the African Christians. That +divided church was incapable of affording an impartial judicature; the +controversy was solemnly tried in five successive tribunals, which +were appointed by the emperor; and the whole proceeding, from the +first appeal to the final sentence, lasted above three years. A severe +inquisition, which was taken by the Prætorian vicar, and the proconsul +of Africa, the report of two episcopal visitors who had been sent to +Carthage, the decrees of the councils of Rome and of Arles, and the +supreme judgment of Constantine himself in his sacred consistory, +were all favorable to the cause of Cæcilian; and he was unanimously +acknowledged by the civil and ecclesiastical powers, as the true and +lawful primate of Africa. The honors and estates of the church were +attributed to his suffragan bishops, and it was not without difficulty, +that Constantine was satisfied with inflicting the punishment of exile +on the principal leaders of the Donatist faction. As their cause was +examined with attention, perhaps it was determined with justice. Perhaps +their complaint was not without foundation, that the credulity of the +emperor had been abused by the insidious arts of his favorite Osius. The +influence of falsehood and corruption might procure the condemnation +of the innocent, or aggravate the sentence of the guilty. Such an act, +however, of injustice, if it concluded an importunate dispute, might be +numbered among the transient evils of a despotic administration, which +are neither felt nor remembered by posterity. + +But this incident, so inconsiderable that it scarcely deserves a place +in history, was productive of a memorable schism which afflicted the +provinces of Africa above three hundred years, and was extinguished only +with Christianity itself. The inflexible zeal of freedom and fanaticism +animated the Donatists to refuse obedience to the usurpers, whose +election they disputed, and whose spiritual powers they denied. +Excluded from the civil and religious communion of mankind, they boldly +excommunicated the rest of mankind, who had embraced the impious party +of Cæcilian, and of the Traditors, from which he derived his pretended +ordination. They asserted with confidence, and almost with exultation, +that the Apostolical succession was interrupted; that all the bishops of +Europe and Asia were infected by the contagion of guilt and schism; and +that the prerogatives of the Catholic church were confined to the chosen +portion of the African believers, who alone had preserved inviolate the +integrity of their faith and discipline. This rigid theory was supported +by the most uncharitable conduct. Whenever they acquired a proselyte, +even from the distant provinces of the East, they carefully repeated the +sacred rites of baptism and ordination; as they rejected the validity +of those which he had already received from the hands of heretics or +schismatics. Bishops, virgins, and even spotless infants, were subjected +to the disgrace of a public penance, before they could be admitted to +the communion of the Donatists. If they obtained possession of a church +which had been used by their Catholic adversaries, they purified the +unhallowed building with the same zealous care which a temple of idols +might have required. They washed the pavement, scraped the walls, burnt +the altar, which was commonly of wood, melted the consecrated plate, and +cast the Holy Eucharist to the dogs, with every circumstance of ignominy +which could provoke and perpetuate the animosity of religious factions. +Notwithstanding this irreconcilable aversion, the two parties, who were +mixed and separated in all the cities of Africa, had the same language +and manners, the same zeal and learning, the same faith and worship. +Proscribed by the civil and ecclesiastical powers of the empire, the +Donatists still maintained in some provinces, particularly in Numidia, +their superior numbers; and four hundred bishops acknowledged the +jurisdiction of their primate. But the invincible spirit of the sect +sometimes preyed on its own vitals: and the bosom of their schismatical +church was torn by intestine divisions. A fourth part of the Donatist +bishops followed the independent standard of the Maximianists. The +narrow and solitary path which their first leaders had marked out, +continued to deviate from the great society of mankind. Even the +imperceptible sect of the Rogatians could affirm, without a blush, that +when Christ should descend to judge the earth, he would find his true +religion preserved only in a few nameless villages of the Cæsarean +Mauritania. + +The schism of the Donatists was confined to Africa: the more diffusive +mischief of the Trinitarian controversy successively penetrated into +every part of the Christian world. The former was an accidental quarrel, +occasioned by the abuse of freedom; the latter was a high and mysterious +argument, derived from the abuse of philosophy. From the age of +Constantine to that of Clovis and Theodoric, the temporal interests both +of the Romans and Barbarians were deeply involved in the theological +disputes of Arianism. The historian may therefore be permitted +respectfully to withdraw the veil of the sanctuary; and to deduce the +progress of reason and faith, of error and passion from the school of +Plato, to the decline and fall of the empire. + +The genius of Plato, informed by his own meditation, or by the +traditional knowledge of the priests of Egypt, had ventured to explore +the mysterious nature of the Deity. When he had elevated his mind to the +sublime contemplation of the first self-existent, necessary cause of the +universe, the Athenian sage was incapable of conceiving how the simple +unity of his essence could admit the infinite variety of distinct and +successive ideas which compose the model of the intellectual world; how +a Being purely incorporeal could execute that perfect model, and mould +with a plastic hand the rude and independent chaos. The vain hope of +extricating himself from these difficulties, which must ever oppress +the feeble powers of the human mind, might induce Plato to consider the +divine nature under the threefold modification--of the first cause, the +reason, or Logos, and the soul or spirit of the universe. His +poetical imagination sometimes fixed and animated these metaphysical +abstractions; the three archical on original principles were represented +in the Platonic system as three Gods, united with each other by a +mysterious and ineffable generation; and the Logos was particularly +considered under the more accessible character of the Son of an Eternal +Father, and the Creator and Governor of the world. Such appear to have +been the secret doctrines which were cautiously whispered in the gardens +of the academy; and which, according to the more recent disciples of +Plato, * could not be perfectly understood, till after an assiduous +study of thirty years. + +The arms of the Macedonians diffused over Asia and Egypt the language +and learning of Greece; and the theological system of Plato was taught, +with less reserve, and perhaps with some improvements, in the celebrated +school of Alexandria. A numerous colony of Jews had been invited, by the +favor of the Ptolemies, to settle in their new capital. While the bulk +of the nation practised the legal ceremonies, and pursued the lucrative +occupations of commerce, a few Hebrews, of a more liberal spirit, +devoted their lives to religious and philosophical contemplation. They +cultivated with diligence, and embraced with ardor, the theological +system of the Athenian sage. But their national pride would have been +mortified by a fair confession of their former poverty: and they boldly +marked, as the sacred inheritance of their ancestors, the gold and +jewels which they had so lately stolen from their Egyptian masters. +One hundred years before the birth of Christ, a philosophical treatise, +which manifestly betrays the style and sentiments of the school of +Plato, was produced by the Alexandrian Jews, and unanimously received +as a genuine and valuable relic of the inspired Wisdom of Solomon. +A similar union of the Mosaic faith and the Grecian philosophy, +distinguishes the works of Philo, which were composed, for the most +part, under the reign of Augustus. The material soul of the universe +might offend the piety of the Hebrews: but they applied the character of +the Logos to the Jehovah of Moses and the patriarchs; and the Son of God +was introduced upon earth under a visible, and even human appearance, to +perform those familiar offices which seem incompatible with the nature +and attributes of the Universal Cause. + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part II. + +The eloquence of Plato, the name of Solomon, the authority of the school +of Alexandria, and the consent of the Jews and Greeks, were insufficient +to establish the truth of a mysterious doctrine, which might please, but +could not satisfy, a rational mind. A prophet, or apostle, inspired +by the Deity, can alone exercise a lawful dominion over the faith of +mankind: and the theology of Plato might have been forever confounded +with the philosophical visions of the Academy, the Porch, and the +Lycæum, if the name and divine attributes of the Logos had not been +confirmed by the celestial pen of the last and most sublime of the +Evangelists. The Christian Revelation, which was consummated under the +reign of Nerva, disclosed to the world the amazing secret, that the +Logos, who was with God from the beginning, and was God, who had made +all things, and for whom all things had been made, was incarnate in the +person of Jesus of Nazareth; who had been born of a virgin, and suffered +death on the cross. Besides the genera design of fixing on a perpetual +basis the divine honors of Christ, the most ancient and respectable of +the ecclesiastical writers have ascribed to the evangelic theologian a +particular intention to confute two opposite heresies, which disturbed +the peace of the primitive church. I. The faith of the Ebionites, +perhaps of the Nazarenes, was gross and imperfect. They revered Jesus +as the greatest of the prophets, endowed with supernatural virtue and +power. They ascribed to his person and to his future reign all the +predictions of the Hebrew oracles which relate to the spiritual and +everlasting kingdom of the promised Messiah. Some of them might +confess that he was born of a virgin; but they obstinately rejected the +preceding existence and divine perfections of the Logos, or Son of God, +which are so clearly defined in the Gospel of St. John. About fifty +years afterwards, the Ebionites, whose errors are mentioned by Justin +Martyr with less severity than they seem to deserve, formed a very +inconsiderable portion of the Christian name. II. The Gnostics, who +were distinguished by the epithet of Docetes, deviated into the contrary +extreme; and betrayed the human, while they asserted the divine, nature +of Christ. Educated in the school of Plato, accustomed to the sublime +idea of the Logos, they readily conceived that the brightest Æon, or +Emanation of the Deity, might assume the outward shape and visible +appearances of a mortal; but they vainly pretended, that the +imperfections of matter are incompatible with the purity of a celestial +substance. While the blood of Christ yet smoked on Mount Calvary, the +Docetes invented the impious and extravagant hypothesis, that, instead +of issuing from the womb of the Virgin, he had descended on the banks +of the Jordan in the form of perfect manhood; that he had imposed on the +senses of his enemies, and of his disciples; and that the ministers of +Pilate had wasted their impotent rage on an airy phantom, who seemed to +expire on the cross, and, after three days, to rise from the dead. + +The divine sanction, which the Apostle had bestowed on the fundamental +principle of the theology of Plato, encouraged the learned proselytes of +the second and third centuries to admire and study the writings of the +Athenian sage, who had thus marvellously anticipated one of the most +surprising discoveries of the Christian revelation. The respectable name +of Plato was used by the orthodox, and abused by the heretics, as +the common support of truth and error: the authority of his skilful +commentators, and the science of dialectics, were employed to justify +the remote consequences of his opinions and to supply the discreet +silence of the inspired writers. The same subtle and profound questions +concerning the nature, the generation, the distinction, and the equality +of the three divine persons of the mysterious Triad, or Trinity, +were agitated in the philosophical and in the Christian schools of +Alexandria. An eager spirit of curiosity urged them to explore the +secrets of the abyss; and the pride of the professors, and of their +disciples, was satisfied with the sciences of words. But the most +sagacious of the Christian theologians, the great Athanasius himself, +has candidly confessed, that whenever he forced his understanding to +meditate on the divinity of the Logos, his toilsome and unavailing +efforts recoiled on themselves; that the more he thought, the less +he comprehended; and the more he wrote, the less capable was he of +expressing his thoughts. In every step of the inquiry, we are compelled +to feel and acknowledge the immeasurable disproportion between the +size of the object and the capacity of the human mind. We may strive to +abstract the notions of time, of space, and of matter, which so closely +adhere to all the perceptions of our experimental knowledge. But as soon +as we presume to reason of infinite substance, of spiritual generation; +as often as we deduce any positive conclusions from a negative idea, we +are involved in darkness, perplexity, and inevitable contradiction. As +these difficulties arise from the nature of the subject, they oppress, +with the same insuperable weight, the philosophic and the theological +disputant; but we may observe two essential and peculiar circumstances, +which discriminated the doctrines of the Catholic church from the +opinions of the Platonic school. + +I. A chosen society of philosophers, men of a liberal education and +curious disposition, might silently meditate, and temperately discuss +in the gardens of Athens or the library of Alexandria, the abstruse +questions of metaphysical science. The lofty speculations, which +neither convinced the understanding, nor agitated the passions, of the +Platonists themselves, were carelessly overlooked by the idle, the busy, +and even the studious part of mankind. But after the Logos had been +revealed as the sacred object of the faith, the hope, and the religious +worship of the Christians, the mysterious system was embraced by a +numerous and increasing multitude in every province of the Roman world. +Those persons who, from their age, or sex, or occupations, were the +least qualified to judge, who were the least exercised in the habits +of abstract reasoning, aspired to contemplate the economy of the Divine +Nature: and it is the boast of Tertullian, that a Christian mechanic +could readily answer such questions as had perplexed the wisest of +the Grecian sages. Where the subject lies so far beyond our reach, the +difference between the highest and the lowest of human understandings +may indeed be calculated as infinitely small; yet the degree of +weakness may perhaps be measured by the degree of obstinacy and +dogmatic confidence. These speculations, instead of being treated as +the amusement of a vacant hour, became the most serious business of the +present, and the most useful preparation for a future, life. A theology, +which it was incumbent to believe, which it was impious to doubt, and +which it might be dangerous, and even fatal, to mistake, became the +familiar topic of private meditation and popular discourse. The cold +indifference of philosophy was inflamed by the fervent spirit of +devotion; and even the metaphors of common language suggested the +fallacious prejudices of sense and experience. The Christians, who +abhorred the gross and impure generation of the Greek mythology, were +tempted to argue from the familiar analogy of the filial and +paternal relations. The character of Son seemed to imply a perpetual +subordination to the voluntary author of his existence; but as the +act of generation, in the most spiritual and abstracted sense, must be +supposed to transmit the properties of a common nature, they durst not +presume to circumscribe the powers or the duration of the Son of an +eternal and omnipotent Father. Fourscore years after the death of +Christ, the Christians of Bithynia, declared before the tribunal of +Pliny, that they invoked him as a god: and his divine honors have been +perpetuated in every age and country, by the various sects who assume +the name of his disciples. Their tender reverence for the memory of +Christ, and their horror for the profane worship of any created being, +would have engaged them to assert the equal and absolute divinity of the +Logos, if their rapid ascent towards the throne of heaven had not been +imperceptibly checked by the apprehension of violating the unity and +sole supremacy of the great Father of Christ and of the Universe. The +suspense and fluctuation produced in the minds of the Christians by +these opposite tendencies, may be observed in the writings of the +theologians who flourished after the end of the apostolic age, and +before the origin of the Arian controversy. Their suffrage is claimed, +with equal confidence, by the orthodox and by the heretical parties; and +the most inquisitive critics have fairly allowed, that if they had the +good fortune of possessing the Catholic verity, they have delivered +their conceptions in loose, inaccurate, and sometimes contradictory +language. + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part III. + +II. The devotion of individuals was the first circumstance which +distinguished the Christians from the Platonists: the second was the +authority of the church. The disciples of philosophy asserted the rights +of intellectual freedom, and their respect for the sentiments of their +teachers was a liberal and voluntary tribute, which they offered to +superior reason. But the Christians formed a numerous and disciplined +society; and the jurisdiction of their laws and magistrates was strictly +exercised over the minds of the faithful. The loose wanderings of the +imagination were gradually confined by creeds and confessions; the +freedom of private judgment submitted to the public wisdom of synods; +the authority of a theologian was determined by his ecclesiastical rank; +and the episcopal successors of the apostles inflicted the censures of +the church on those who deviated from the orthodox belief. But in an age +of religious controversy, every act of oppression adds new force to +the elastic vigor of the mind; and the zeal or obstinacy of a spiritual +rebel was sometimes stimulated by secret motives of ambition or avarice. +A metaphysical argument became the cause or pretence of political +contests; the subtleties of the Platonic school were used as the badges +of popular factions, and the distance which separated their respective +tenets were enlarged or magnified by the acrimony of dispute. As long +as the dark heresies of Praxeas and Sabellius labored to confound the +Father with the Son, the orthodox party might be excused if they +adhered more strictly and more earnestly to the distinction, than to the +equality, of the divine persons. But as soon as the heat of controversy +had subsided, and the progress of the Sabellians was no longer an object +of terror to the churches of Rome, of Africa, or of Egypt, the tide +of theological opinion began to flow with a gentle but steady motion +towards the contrary extreme; and the most orthodox doctors allowed +themselves the use of the terms and definitions which had been censured +in the mouth of the sectaries. After the edict of toleration had +restored peace and leisure to the Christians, the Trinitarian +controversy was revived in the ancient seat of Platonism, the learned, +the opulent, the tumultuous city of Alexandria; and the flame of +religious discord was rapidly communicated from the schools to the +clergy, the people, the province, and the East. The abstruse question of +the eternity of the Logos was agitated in ecclesiastic conferences and +popular sermons; and the heterodox opinions of Arius were soon made +public by his own zeal, and by that of his adversaries. His most +implacable adversaries have acknowledged the learning and blameless life +of that eminent presbyter, who, in a former election, had declared, and +perhaps generously declined, his pretensions to the episcopal throne. +His competitor Alexander assumed the office of his judge. The important +cause was argued before him; and if at first he seemed to hesitate, he +at length pronounced his final sentence, as an absolute rule of faith. +The undaunted presbyter, who presumed to resist the authority of his +angry bishop, was separated from the community of the church. But the +pride of Arius was supported by the applause of a numerous party. He +reckoned among his immediate followers two bishops of Egypt, seven +presbyters, twelve deacons, and (what may appear almost incredible) +seven hundred virgins. A large majority of the bishops of Asia appeared +to support or favor his cause; and their measures were conducted by +Eusebius of Cæsarea, the most learned of the Christian prelates; and by +Eusebius of Nicomedia, who had acquired the reputation of a statesman +without forfeiting that of a saint. Synods in Palestine and Bithynia +were opposed to the synods of Egypt. The attention of the prince and +people was attracted by this theological dispute; and the decision, +at the end of six years, was referred to the supreme authority of the +general council of Nice. + +When the mysteries of the Christian faith were dangerously exposed to +public debate, it might be observed, that the human understanding was +capable of forming three district, though imperfect systems, concerning +the nature of the Divine Trinity; and it was pronounced, that none of +these systems, in a pure and absolute sense, were exempt from heresy +and error. I. According to the first hypothesis, which was maintained +by Arius and his disciples, the Logos was a dependent and spontaneous +production, created from nothing by the will of the father. The Son, by +whom all things were made, had been begotten before all worlds, and the +longest of the astronomical periods could be compared only as a +fleeting moment to the extent of his duration; yet this duration was +not infinite, and there had been a time which preceded the ineffable +generation of the Logos. On this only-begotten Son, the Almighty Father +had transfused his ample spirit, and impressed the effulgence of his +glory. Visible image of invisible perfection, he saw, at an immeasurable +distance beneath his feet, the thrones of the brightest archangels; yet +he shone only with a reflected light, and, like the sons of the Romans +emperors, who were invested with the titles of Cæsar or Augustus, +he governed the universe in obedience to the will of his Father and +Monarch. II. In the second hypothesis, the Logos possessed all the +inherent, incommunicable perfections, which religion and philosophy +appropriate to the Supreme God. Three distinct and infinite minds or +substances, three coëqual and coëternal beings, composed the Divine +Essence; and it would have implied contradiction, that any of them +should not have existed, or that they should ever cease to exist. +The advocates of a system which seemed to establish three independent +Deities, attempted to preserve the unity of the First Cause, so +conspicuous in the design and order of the world, by the perpetual +concord of their administration, and the essential agreement of their +will. A faint resemblance of this unity of action may be discovered +in the societies of men, and even of animals. The causes which disturb +their harmony, proceed only from the imperfection and inequality of +their faculties; but the omnipotence which is guided by infinite +wisdom and goodness, cannot fail of choosing the same means for +the accomplishment of the same ends. III. Three beings, who, by the +self-derived necessity of their existence, possess all the divine +attributes in the most perfect degree; who are eternal in duration, +infinite in space, and intimately present to each other, and to the +whole universe; irresistibly force themselves on the astonished mind, as +one and the same being, who, in the economy of grace, as well as in that +of nature, may manifest himself under different forms, and be considered +under different aspects. By this hypothesis, a real substantial trinity +is refined into a trinity of names, and abstract modifications, that +subsist only in the mind which conceives them. The Logos is no longer a +person, but an attribute; and it is only in a figurative sense that the +epithet of Son can be applied to the eternal reason, which was with God +from the beginning, and by which, not by whom, all things were made. The +incarnation of the Logos is reduced to a mere inspiration of the Divine +Wisdom, which filled the soul, and directed all the actions, of the +man Jesus. Thus, after revolving around the theological circle, we are +surprised to find that the Sabellian ends where the Ebionite had begun; +and that the incomprehensible mystery which excites our adoration, +eludes our inquiry. + +If the bishops of the council of Nice had been permitted to follow the +unbiased dictates of their conscience, Arius and his associates could +scarcely have flattered themselves with the hopes of obtaining a +majority of votes, in favor of an hypothesis so directly averse to +the two most popular opinions of the Catholic world. The Arians soon +perceived the danger of their situation, and prudently assumed those +modest virtues, which, in the fury of civil and religious dissensions, +are seldom practised, or even praised, except by the weaker party. They +recommended the exercise of Christian charity and moderation; urged the +incomprehensible nature of the controversy, disclaimed the use of any +terms or definitions which could not be found in the Scriptures; and +offered, by very liberal concessions, to satisfy their adversaries +without renouncing the integrity of their own principles. The victorious +faction received all their proposals with haughty suspicion; and +anxiously sought for some irreconcilable mark of distinction, +the rejection of which might involve the Arians in the guilt and +consequences of heresy. A letter was publicly read, and ignominiously +torn, in which their patron, Eusebius of Nicomedia, ingenuously +confessed, that the admission of the Homoousion, or Consubstantial, +a word already familiar to the Platonists, was incompatible with the +principles of their theological system. The fortunate opportunity was +eagerly embraced by the bishops, who governed the resolutions of the +synod; and, according to the lively expression of Ambrose, they used the +sword, which heresy itself had drawn from the scabbard, to cut off the +head of the hated monster. The consubstantiality of the Father and the +Son was established by the council of Nice, and has been unanimously +received as a fundamental article of the Christian faith, by the consent +of the Greek, the Latin, the Oriental, and the Protestant churches. But +if the same word had not served to stigmatize the heretics, and to +unite the Catholics, it would have been inadequate to the purpose of +the majority, by whom it was introduced into the orthodox creed. This +majority was divided into two parties, distinguished by a contrary +tendency to the sentiments of the Tritheists and of the Sabellians. But +as those opposite extremes seemed to overthrow the foundations either of +natural or revealed religion, they mutually agreed to qualify the +rigor of their principles; and to disavow the just, but invidious, +consequences, which might be urged by their antagonists. The interest +of the common cause inclined them to join their numbers, and to conceal +their differences; their animosity was softened by the healing counsels +of toleration, and their disputes were suspended by the use of the +mysterious Homoousion, which either party was free to interpret +according to their peculiar tenets. The Sabellian sense, which, about +fifty years before, had obliged the council of Antioch to prohibit this +celebrated term, had endeared it to those theologians who entertained +a secret but partial affection for a nominal Trinity. But the more +fashionable saints of the Arian times, the intrepid Athanasius, the +learned Gregory Nazianzen, and the other pillars of the church, who +supported with ability and success the Nicene doctrine, appeared to +consider the expression of substance as if it had been synonymous +with that of nature; and they ventured to illustrate their meaning, by +affirming that three men, as they belong to the same common species, +are consubstantial, or homoousian to each other. This pure and distinct +equality was tempered, on the one hand, by the internal connection, and +spiritual penetration which indissolubly unites the divine persons; and, +on the other, by the preeminence of the Father, which was acknowledged +as far as it is compatible with the independence of the Son. Within +these limits, the almost invisible and tremulous ball of orthodoxy was +allowed securely to vibrate. On either side, beyond this consecrated +ground, the heretics and the dæmons lurked in ambush to surprise and +devour the unhappy wanderer. But as the degrees of theological hatred +depend on the spirit of the war, rather than on the importance of the +controversy, the heretics who degraded, were treated with more +severity than those who annihilated, the person of the Son. The life +of Athanasius was consumed in irreconcilable opposition to the +impious madness of the Arians; but he defended above twenty years the +Sabellianism of Marcellus of Ancyra; and when at last he was compelled +to withdraw himself from his communion, he continued to mention, with an +ambiguous smile, the venial errors of his respectable friend. + +The authority of a general council, to which the Arians themselves had +been compelled to submit, inscribed on the banners of the orthodox party +the mysterious characters of the word Homoousion, which essentially +contributed, notwithstanding some obscure disputes, some nocturnal +combats, to maintain and perpetuate the uniformity of faith, or at least +of language. The Consubstantialists, who by their success have deserved +and obtained the title of Catholics, gloried in the simplicity and +steadiness of their own creed, and insulted the repeated variations of +their adversaries, who were destitute of any certain rule of faith. The +sincerity or the cunning of the Arian chiefs, the fear of the laws or of +the people, their reverence for Christ, their hatred of Athanasius, all +the causes, human and divine, that influence and disturb the counsels +of a theological faction, introduced among the sectaries a spirit of +discord and inconstancy, which, in the course of a few years, erected +eighteen different models of religion, and avenged the violated dignity +of the church. The zealous Hilary, who, from the peculiar hardships of +his situation, was inclined to extenuate rather than to aggravate the +errors of the Oriental clergy, declares, that in the wide extent of the +ten provinces of Asia, to which he had been banished, there could be +found very few prelates who had preserved the knowledge of the true +God. The oppression which he had felt, the disorders of which he was the +spectator and the victim, appeased, during a short interval, the angry +passions of his soul; and in the following passage, of which I shall +transcribe a few lines, the bishop of Poitiers unwarily deviates into +the style of a Christian philosopher. "It is a thing," says Hilary, +"equally deplorable and dangerous, that there are as many creeds as +opinions among men, as many doctrines as inclinations, and as many +sources of blasphemy as there are faults among us; because we make +creeds arbitrarily, and explain them as arbitrarily. The Homoousion is +rejected, and received, and explained away by successive synods. The +partial or total resemblance of the Father and of the Son is a subject +of dispute for these unhappy times. Every year, nay, every moon, we make +new creeds to describe invisible mysteries. We repent of what we +have done, we defend those who repent, we anathematize those whom we +defended. We condemn either the doctrine of others in ourselves, or our +own in that of others; and reciprocally tearing one another to pieces, +we have been the cause of each other's ruin." + +It will not be expected, it would not perhaps be endured, that I should +swell this theological digression, by a minute examination of the +eighteen creeds, the authors of which, for the most part, disclaimed the +odious name of their parent Arius. It is amusing enough to delineate the +form, and to trace the vegetation, of a singular plant; but the tedious +detail of leaves without flowers, and of branches without fruit, +would soon exhaust the patience, and disappoint the curiosity, of the +laborious student. One question, which gradually arose from the Arian +controversy, may, however, be noticed, as it served to produce and +discriminate the three sects, who were united only by their common +aversion to the Homoousion of the Nicene synod. 1. If they were asked +whether the Son was like unto the Father, the question was resolutely +answered in the negative, by the heretics who adhered to the principles +of Arius, or indeed to those of philosophy; which seem to establish an +infinite difference between the Creator and the most excellent of his +creatures. This obvious consequence was maintained by Ætius, on whom +the zeal of his adversaries bestowed the surname of the Atheist. His +restless and aspiring spirit urged him to try almost every profession +of human life. He was successively a slave, or at least a husbandman, +a travelling tinker, a goldsmith, a physician, a schoolmaster, +a theologian, and at last the apostle of a new church, which was +propagated by the abilities of his disciple Eunomius. Armed with texts +of Scripture, and with captious syllogisms from the logic of Aristotle, +the subtle Ætius had acquired the fame of an invincible disputant, whom +it was impossible either to silence or to convince. Such talents engaged +the friendship of the Arian bishops, till they were forced to renounce, +and even to persecute, a dangerous ally, who, by the accuracy of his +reasoning, had prejudiced their cause in the popular opinion, and +offended the piety of their most devoted followers. 2. The omnipotence +of the Creator suggested a specious and respectful solution of the +likeness of the Father and the Son; and faith might humbly receive what +reason could not presume to deny, that the Supreme God might communicate +his infinite perfections, and create a being similar only to himself. +These Arians were powerfully supported by the weight and abilities +of their leaders, who had succeeded to the management of the Eusebian +interest, and who occupied the principal thrones of the East. They +detested, perhaps with some affectation, the impiety of Ætius; they +professed to believe, either without reserve, or according to the +Scriptures, that the Son was different from all other creatures, and +similar only to the Father. But they denied, the he was either of the +same, or of a similar substance; sometimes boldly justifying their +dissent, and sometimes objecting to the use of the word substance, +which seems to imply an adequate, or at least, a distinct, notion of +the nature of the Deity. 3. The sect which deserted the doctrine of a +similar substance, was the most numerous, at least in the provinces of +Asia; and when the leaders of both parties were assembled in the council +of Seleucia, their opinion would have prevailed by a majority of one +hundred and five to forty-three bishops. The Greek word, which was +chosen to express this mysterious resemblance, bears so close an +affinity to the orthodox symbol, that the profane of every age have +derided the furious contests which the difference of a single diphthong +excited between the Homoousians and the Homoiousians. As it frequently +happens, that the sounds and characters which approach the nearest +to each other accidentally represent the most opposite ideas, the +observation would be itself ridiculous, if it were possible to mark any +real and sensible distinction between the doctrine of the Semi-Arians, +as they were improperly styled, and that of the Catholics themselves. +The bishop of Poitiers, who in his Phrygian exile very wisely aimed at +a coalition of parties, endeavors to prove that by a pious and faithful +interpretation, the Homoiousion may be reduced to a consubstantial +sense. Yet he confesses that the word has a dark and suspicious +aspect; and, as if darkness were congenial to theological disputes, the +Semi-Arians, who advanced to the doors of the church, assailed them with +the most unrelenting fury. + +The provinces of Egypt and Asia, which cultivated the language and +manners of the Greeks, had deeply imbibed the venom of the Arian +controversy. The familiar study of the Platonic system, a vain and +argumentative disposition, a copious and flexible idiom, supplied the +clergy and people of the East with an inexhaustible flow of words and +distinctions; and, in the midst of their fierce contentions, they easily +forgot the doubt which is recommended by philosophy, and the submission +which is enjoined by religion. The inhabitants of the West were of a +less inquisitive spirit; their passions were not so forcibly moved by +invisible objects, their minds were less frequently exercised by the +habits of dispute; and such was the happy ignorance of the Gallican +church, that Hilary himself, above thirty years after the first general +council, was still a stranger to the Nicene creed. The Latins had +received the rays of divine knowledge through the dark and doubtful +medium of a translation. The poverty and stubbornness of their native +tongue was not always capable of affording just equivalents for the +Greek terms, for the technical words of the Platonic philosophy, which +had been consecrated, by the gospel or by the church, to express the +mysteries of the Christian faith; and a verbal defect might introduce +into the Latin theology a long train of error or perplexity. But as the +western provincials had the good fortune of deriving their religion from +an orthodox source, they preserved with steadiness the doctrine +which they had accepted with docility; and when the Arian pestilence +approached their frontiers, they were supplied with the seasonable +preservative of the Homoousion, by the paternal care of the Roman +pontiff. Their sentiments and their temper were displayed in the +memorable synod of Rimini, which surpassed in numbers the council of +Nice, since it was composed of above four hundred bishops of Italy, +Africa, Spain, Gaul, Britain, and Illyricum. From the first debates it +appeared, that only fourscore prelates adhered to the party, though +they affected to anathematize the name and memory, of Arius. But this +inferiority was compensated by the advantages of skill, of experience, +and of discipline; and the minority was conducted by Valens and +Ursacius, two bishops of Illyricum, who had spent their lives in the +intrigues of courts and councils, and who had been trained under the +Eusebian banner in the religious wars of the East. By their arguments +and negotiations, they embarrassed, they confounded, they at last +deceived, the honest simplicity of the Latin bishops; who suffered +the palladium of the faith to be extorted from their hand by fraud and +importunity, rather than by open violence. The council of Rimini was +not allowed to separate, till the members had imprudently subscribed a +captious creed, in which some expressions, susceptible of an heretical +sense, were inserted in the room of the Homoousion. It was on this +occasion, that, according to Jerom, the world was surprised to find +itself Arian. But the bishops of the Latin provinces had no sooner +reached their respective dioceses, than they discovered their mistake, +and repented of their weakness. The ignominious capitulation was +rejected with disdain and abhorrence; and the Homoousian standard, which +had been shaken but not overthrown, was more firmly replanted in all the +churches of the West. + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part IV. + +Such was the rise and progress, and such were the natural revolutions +of those theological disputes, which disturbed the peace of Christianity +under the reigns of Constantine and of his sons. But as those princes +presumed to extend their despotism over the faith, as well as over the +lives and fortunes, of their subjects, the weight of their suffrage +sometimes inclined the ecclesiastical balance: and the prerogatives of +the King of Heaven were settled, or changed, or modified, in the cabinet +of an earthly monarch. + +The unhappy spirit of discord which pervaded the provinces of the East, +interrupted the triumph of Constantine; but the emperor continued for +some time to view, with cool and careless indifference, the object of +the dispute. As he was yet ignorant of the difficulty of appeasing the +quarrels of theologians, he addressed to the contending parties, to +Alexander and to Arius, a moderating epistle; which may be ascribed, +with far greater reason, to the untutored sense of a soldier and +statesman, than to the dictates of any of his episcopal counsellors. He +attributes the origin of the whole controversy to a trifling and +subtle question, concerning an incomprehensible point of law, which +was foolishly asked by the bishop, and imprudently resolved by the +presbyter. He laments that the Christian people, who had the same God, +the same religion, and the same worship, should be divided by such +inconsiderable distinctions; and he seriously recommend to the clergy +of Alexandria the example of the Greek philosophers; who could maintain +their arguments without losing their temper, and assert their freedom +without violating their friendship. The indifference and contempt of +the sovereign would have been, perhaps, the most effectual method of +silencing the dispute, if the popular current had been less rapid and +impetuous, and if Constantine himself, in the midst of faction and +fanaticism, could have preserved the calm possession of his own +mind. But his ecclesiastical ministers soon contrived to seduce the +impartiality of the magistrate, and to awaken the zeal of the proselyte. +He was provoked by the insults which had been offered to his statues; +he was alarmed by the real, as well as the imaginary magnitude of +the spreading mischief; and he extinguished the hope of peace and +toleration, from the moment that he assembled three hundred bishops +within the walls of the same palace. The presence of the monarch swelled +the importance of the debate; his attention multiplied the arguments; +and he exposed his person with a patient intrepidity, which animated +the valor of the combatants. Notwithstanding the applause which has been +bestowed on the eloquence and sagacity of Constantine, a Roman general, +whose religion might be still a subject of doubt, and whose mind had not +been enlightened either by study or by inspiration, was indifferently +qualified to discuss, in the Greek language, a metaphysical question, or +an article of faith. But the credit of his favorite Osius, who appears +to have presided in the council of Nice, might dispose the emperor in +favor of the orthodox party; and a well-timed insinuation, that the +same Eusebius of Nicomedia, who now protected the heretic, had lately +assisted the tyrant, might exasperate him against their adversaries. The +Nicene creed was ratified by Constantine; and his firm declaration, +that those who resisted the divine judgment of the synod, must prepare +themselves for an immediate exile, annihilated the murmurs of a feeble +opposition; which, from seventeen, was almost instantly reduced to +two, protesting bishops. Eusebius of Cæsarea yielded a reluctant and +ambiguous consent to the Homoousion; and the wavering conduct of the +Nicomedian Eusebius served only to delay, about three months, his +disgrace and exile. The impious Arius was banished into one of the +remote provinces of Illyricum; his person and disciples were branded by +law with the odious name of Porphyrians; his writings were condemned +to the flames, and a capital punishment was denounced against those in +whose possession they should be found. The emperor had now imbibed the +spirit of controversy, and the angry, sarcastic style of his edicts was +designed to inspire his subjects with the hatred which he had conceived +against the enemies of Christ. + +But, as if the conduct of the emperor had been guided by passion instead +of principle, three years from the council of Nice were scarcely elapsed +before he discovered some symptoms of mercy, and even of indulgence, +towards the proscribed sect, which was secretly protected by his +favorite sister. The exiles were recalled, and Eusebius, who gradually +resumed his influence over the mind of Constantine, was restored to the +episcopal throne, from which he had been ignominiously degraded. Arius +himself was treated by the whole court with the respect which would have +been due to an innocent and oppressed man. His faith was approved by +the synod of Jerusalem; and the emperor seemed impatient to repair his +injustice, by issuing an absolute command, that he should be solemnly +admitted to the communion in the cathedral of Constantinople. On the +same day, which had been fixed for the triumph of Arius, he expired; +and the strange and horrid circumstances of his death might excite a +suspicion, that the orthodox saints had contributed more efficaciously +than by their prayers, to deliver the church from the most formidable of +her enemies. The three principal leaders of the Catholics, Athanasius +of Alexandria, Eustathius of Antioch, and Paul of Constantinople were +deposed on various f accusations, by the sentence of numerous councils; +and were afterwards banished into distant provinces by the first of the +Christian emperors, who, in the last moments of his life, received the +rites of baptism from the Arian bishop of Nicomedia. The ecclesiastical +government of Constantine cannot be justified from the reproach of +levity and weakness. But the credulous monarch, unskilled in the +stratagems of theological warfare, might be deceived by the modest +and specious professions of the heretics, whose sentiments he never +perfectly understood; and while he protected Arius, and persecuted +Athanasius, he still considered the council of Nice as the bulwark of +the Christian faith, and the peculiar glory of his own reign. + +The sons of Constantine must have been admitted from their childhood +into the rank of catechumens; but they imitated, in the delay of +their baptism, the example of their father. Like him they presumed to +pronounce their judgment on mysteries into which they had never been +regularly initiated; and the fate of the Trinitarian controversy +depended, in a great measure, on the sentiments of Constantius; who +inherited the provinces of the East, and acquired the possession of the +whole empire. The Arian presbyter or bishop, who had secreted for +his use the testament of the deceased emperor, improved the fortunate +occasion which had introduced him to the familiarity of a prince, +whose public counsels were always swayed by his domestic favorites. The +eunuchs and slaves diffused the spiritual poison through the palace, and +the dangerous infection was communicated by the female attendants to the +guards, and by the empress to her unsuspicious husband. The partiality +which Constantius always expressed towards the Eusebian faction, was +insensibly fortified by the dexterous management of their leaders; and +his victory over the tyrant Magnentius increased his inclination, as +well as ability, to employ the arms of power in the cause of Arianism. +While the two armies were engaged in the plains of Mursa, and the fate +of the two rivals depended on the chance of war, the son of Constantine +passed the anxious moments in a church of the martyrs under the walls +of the city. His spiritual comforter, Valens, the Arian bishop of the +diocese, employed the most artful precautions to obtain such early +intelligence as might secure either his favor or his escape. A secret +chain of swift and trusty messengers informed him of the vicissitudes +of the battle; and while the courtiers stood trembling round their +affrighted master, Valens assured him that the Gallic legions gave way; +and insinuated with some presence of mind, that the glorious event had +been revealed to him by an angel. The grateful emperor ascribed his +success to the merits and intercession of the bishop of Mursa, whose +faith had deserved the public and miraculous approbation of Heaven. +The Arians, who considered as their own the victory of Constantius, +preferred his glory to that of his father. Cyril, bishop of Jerusalem, +immediately composed the description of a celestial cross, encircled +with a splendid rainbow; which during the festival of Pentecost, about +the third hour of the day, had appeared over the Mount of Olives, to the +edification of the devout pilgrims, and the people of the holy city. The +size of the meteor was gradually magnified; and the Arian historian has +ventured to affirm, that it was conspicuous to the two armies in the +plains of Pannonia; and that the tyrant, who is purposely represented as +an idolater, fled before the auspicious sign of orthodox Christianity. + +The sentiments of a judicious stranger, who has impartially considered +the progress of civil or ecclesiastical discord, are always entitled to +our notice; and a short passage of Ammianus, who served in the armies, +and studied the character of Constantius, is perhaps of more value than +many pages of theological invectives. "The Christian religion, which, +in itself," says that moderate historian, "is plain and simple, he +confounded by the dotage of superstition. Instead of reconciling the +parties by the weight of his authority, he cherished and promulgated, by +verbal disputes, the differences which his vain curiosity had excited. +The highways were covered with troops of bishops galloping from every +side to the assemblies, which they call synods; and while they labored +to reduce the whole sect to their own particular opinions, the public +establishment of the posts was almost ruined by their hasty and +repeated journeys." Our more intimate knowledge of the ecclesiastical +transactions of the reign of Constantius would furnish an ample +commentary on this remarkable passage, which justifies the rational +apprehensions of Athanasius, that the restless activity of the clergy, +who wandered round the empire in search of the true faith, would excite +the contempt and laughter of the unbelieving world. As soon as the +emperor was relieved from the terrors of the civil war, he devoted +the leisure of his winter quarters at Arles, Milan, Sirmium, and +Constantinople, to the amusement or toils of controversy: the sword of +the magistrate, and even of the tyrant, was unsheathed, to enforce the +reasons of the theologian; and as he opposed the orthodox faith of Nice, +it is readily confessed that his incapacity and ignorance were equal to +his presumption. The eunuchs, the women, and the bishops, who governed +the vain and feeble mind of the emperor, had inspired him with an +insuperable dislike to the Homoousion; but his timid conscience +was alarmed by the impiety of Ætius. The guilt of that atheist was +aggravated by the suspicious favor of the unfortunate Gallus; and even +the death of the Imperial ministers, who had been massacred at Antioch, +were imputed to the suggestions of that dangerous sophist. The mind of +Constantius, which could neither be moderated by reason, nor fixed by +faith, was blindly impelled to either side of the dark and empty abyss, +by his horror of the opposite extreme; he alternately embraced and +condemned the sentiments, he successively banished and recalled the +leaders, of the Arian and Semi-Arian factions. During the season of +public business or festivity, he employed whole days, and even nights, +in selecting the words, and weighing the syllables, which composed his +fluctuating creeds. The subject of his meditations still pursued +and occupied his slumbers: the incoherent dreams of the emperor were +received as celestial visions, and he accepted with complacency the +lofty title of bishop of bishops, from those ecclesiastics who forgot +the interest of their order for the gratification of their passions. The +design of establishing a uniformity of doctrine, which had engaged +him to convene so many synods in Gaul, Italy, Illyricum, and Asia, was +repeatedly baffled by his own levity, by the divisions of the Arians, +and by the resistance of the Catholics; and he resolved, as the last +and decisive effort, imperiously to dictate the decrees of a general +council. The destructive earthquake of Nicomedia, the difficulty of +finding a convenient place, and perhaps some secret motives of policy, +produced an alteration in the summons. The bishops of the East were +directed to meet at Seleucia, in Isauria; while those of the West +held their deliberations at Rimini, on the coast of the Hadriatic; and +instead of two or three deputies from each province, the whole episcopal +body was ordered to march. The Eastern council, after consuming four +days in fierce and unavailing debate, separated without any definitive +conclusion. The council of the West was protracted till the seventh +month. Taurus, the Prætorian præfect was instructed not to dismiss the +prelates till they should all be united in the same opinion; and his +efforts were supported by the power of banishing fifteen of the most +refractory, and a promise of the consulship if he achieved so difficult +an adventure. His prayers and threats, the authority of the sovereign, +the sophistry of Valens and Ursacius, the distress of cold and hunger, +and the tedious melancholy of a hopeless exile, at length extorted the +reluctant consent of the bishops of Rimini. The deputies of the East and +of the West attended the emperor in the palace of Constantinople, and he +enjoyed the satisfaction of imposing on the world a profession of +faith which established the likeness, without expressing the +consubstantiality, of the Son of God. But the triumph of Arianism +had been preceded by the removal of the orthodox clergy, whom it +was impossible either to intimidate or to corrupt; and the reign of +Constantius was disgraced by the unjust and ineffectual persecution of +the great Athanasius. + +We have seldom an opportunity of observing, either in active or +speculative life, what effect may be produced, or what obstacles may be +surmounted, by the force of a single mind, when it is inflexibly applied +to the pursuit of a single object. The immortal name of Athanasius will +never be separated from the Catholic doctrine of the Trinity, to whose +defence he consecrated every moment and every faculty of his being. +Educated in the family of Alexander, he had vigorously opposed the early +progress of the Arian heresy: he exercised the important functions of +secretary under the aged prelate; and the fathers of the Nicene council +beheld with surprise and respect the rising virtues of the young deacon. +In a time of public danger, the dull claims of age and of rank are +sometimes superseded; and within five months after his return from Nice, +the deacon Athanasius was seated on the archiepiscopal throne of Egypt. +He filled that eminent station above forty-six years, and his long +administration was spent in a perpetual combat against the powers of +Arianism. Five times was Athanasius expelled from his throne; twenty +years he passed as an exile or a fugitive: and almost every province +of the Roman empire was successively witness to his merit, and his +sufferings in the cause of the Homoousion, which he considered as the +sole pleasure and business, as the duty, and as the glory of his life. +Amidst the storms of persecution, the archbishop of Alexandria was +patient of labor, jealous of fame, careless of safety; and although his +mind was tainted by the contagion of fanaticism, Athanasius displayed a +superiority of character and abilities, which would have qualified him, +far better than the degenerate sons of Constantine, for the government +of a great monarchy. His learning was much less profound and extensive +than that of Eusebius of Cæsarea, and his rude eloquence could not be +compared with the polished oratory of Gregory of Basil; but whenever +the primate of Egypt was called upon to justify his sentiments, or his +conduct, his unpremeditated style, either of speaking or writing, was +clear, forcible, and persuasive. He has always been revered, in the +orthodox school, as one of the most accurate masters of the Christian +theology; and he was supposed to possess two profane sciences, less +adapted to the episcopal character, the knowledge of jurisprudence, and +that of divination. Some fortunate conjectures of future events, which +impartial reasoners might ascribe to the experience and judgment of +Athanasius, were attributed by his friends to heavenly inspiration, and +imputed by his enemies to infernal magic. + +But as Athanasius was continually engaged with the prejudices and +passions of every order of men, from the monk to the emperor, the +knowledge of human nature was his first and most important science. He +preserved a distinct and unbroken view of a scene which was incessantly +shifting; and never failed to improve those decisive moments which +are irrecoverably past before they are perceived by a common eye. The +archbishop of Alexandria was capable of distinguishing how far he might +boldly command, and where he must dexterously insinuate; how long he +might contend with power, and when he must withdraw from persecution; +and while he directed the thunders of the church against heresy and +rebellion, he could assume, in the bosom of his own party, the flexible +and indulgent temper of a prudent leader. The election of Athanasius +has not escaped the reproach of irregularity and precipitation; but the +propriety of his behavior conciliated the affections both of the clergy +and of the people. The Alexandrians were impatient to rise in arms for +the defence of an eloquent and liberal pastor. In his distress he always +derived support, or at least consolation, from the faithful attachment +of his parochial clergy; and the hundred bishops of Egypt adhered, with +unshaken zeal, to the cause of Athanasius. In the modest equipage which +pride and policy would affect, he frequently performed the episcopal +visitation of his provinces, from the mouth of the Nile to the confines +of Æthiopia; familiarly conversing with the meanest of the populace, and +humbly saluting the saints and hermits of the desert. Nor was it only +in ecclesiastical assemblies, among men whose education and manners +were similar to his own, that Athanasius displayed the ascendancy of his +genius. He appeared with easy and respectful firmness in the courts of +princes; and in the various turns of his prosperous and adverse fortune +he never lost the confidence of his friends, or the esteem of his +enemies. + +In his youth, the primate of Egypt resisted the great Constantine, who +had repeatedly signified his will, that Arius should be restored to +the Catholic communion. The emperor respected, and might forgive, this +inflexible resolution; and the faction who considered Athanasius as +their most formidable enemy, was constrained to dissemble their hatred, +and silently to prepare an indirect and distant assault. They scattered +rumors and suspicions, represented the archbishop as a proud and +oppressive tyrant, and boldly accused him of violating the treaty which +had been ratified in the Nicene council, with the schismatic followers +of Meletius. Athanasius had openly disapproved that ignominious +peace, and the emperor was disposed to believe that he had abused his +ecclesiastical and civil power, to prosecute those odious sectaries: +that he had sacrilegiously broken a chalice in one of their churches of +Mareotis; that he had whipped or imprisoned six of their bishops; and +that Arsenius, a seventh bishop of the same party, had been murdered, +or at least mutilated, by the cruel hand of the primate. These charges, +which affected his honor and his life, were referred by Constantine to +his brother Dalmatius the censor, who resided at Antioch; the synods of +Cæsarea and Tyre were successively convened; and the bishops of the East +were instructed to judge the cause of Athanasius, before they proceeded +to consecrate the new church of the Resurrection at Jerusalem. The +primate might be conscious of his innocence; but he was sensible that +the same implacable spirit which had dictated the accusation, would +direct the proceeding, and pronounce the sentence. He prudently declined +the tribunal of his enemies; despised the summons of the synod of +Cæsarea; and, after a long and artful delay, submitted to the peremptory +commands of the emperor, who threatened to punish his criminal +disobedience if he refused to appear in the council of Tyre. Before +Athanasius, at the head of fifty Egyptian prelates, sailed from +Alexandria, he had wisely secured the alliance of the Meletians; and +Arsenius himself, his imaginary victim, and his secret friend, was +privately concealed in his train. The synod of Tyre was conducted by +Eusebius of Cæsarea, with more passion, and with less art, than his +learning and experience might promise; his numerous faction repeated the +names of homicide and tyrant; and their clamors were encouraged by the +seeming patience of Athanasius, who expected the decisive moment to +produce Arsenius alive and unhurt in the midst of the assembly. The +nature of the other charges did not admit of such clear and satisfactory +replies; yet the archbishop was able to prove, that in the village, +where he was accused of breaking a consecrated chalice, neither church +nor altar nor chalice could really exist. The Arians, who had secretly +determined the guilt and condemnation of their enemy, attempted, +however, to disguise their injustice by the imitation of judicial forms: +the synod appointed an episcopal commission of six delegates to collect +evidence on the spot; and this measure which was vigorously opposed by +the Egyptian bishops, opened new scenes of violence and perjury. After +the return of the deputies from Alexandria, the majority of the council +pronounced the final sentence of degradation and exile against the +primate of Egypt. The decree, expressed in the fiercest language of +malice and revenge, was communicated to the emperor and the Catholic +church; and the bishops immediately resumed a mild and devout aspect, +such as became their holy pilgrimage to the Sepulchre of Christ. + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part V. + +But the injustice of these ecclesiastical judges had not been +countenanced by the submission, or even by the presence, of Athanasius. +He resolved to make a bold and dangerous experiment, whether the throne +was inaccessible to the voice of truth; and before the final sentence +could be pronounced at Tyre, the intrepid primate threw himself into a +bark which was ready to hoist sail for the Imperial city. The request +of a formal audience might have been opposed or eluded; but Athanasius +concealed his arrival, watched the moment of Constantine's return from +an adjacent villa, and boldly encountered his angry sovereign as he +passed on horseback through the principal street of Constantinople. +So strange an apparition excited his surprise and indignation; and the +guards were ordered to remove the importunate suitor; but his resentment +was subdued by involuntary respect; and the haughty spirit of the +emperor was awed by the courage and eloquence of a bishop, who implored +his justice and awakened his conscience. Constantine listened to the +complaints of Athanasius with impartial and even gracious attention; the +members of the synod of Tyre were summoned to justify their proceedings; +and the arts of the Eusebian faction would have been confounded, if +they had not aggravated the guilt of the primate, by the dexterous +supposition of an unpardonable offence; a criminal design to intercept +and detain the corn-fleet of Alexandria, which supplied the subsistence +of the new capital. The emperor was satisfied that the peace of Egypt +would be secured by the absence of a popular leader; but he refused to +fill the vacancy of the archiepiscopal throne; and the sentence, which, +after long hesitation, he pronounced, was that of a jealous ostracism, +rather than of an ignominious exile. In the remote province of Gaul, but +in the hospitable court of Treves, Athanasius passed about twenty eight +months. The death of the emperor changed the face of public affairs and, +amidst the general indulgence of a young reign, the primate was restored +to his country by an honorable edict of the younger Constantine, who +expressed a deep sense of the innocence and merit of his venerable +guest. + +The death of that prince exposed Athanasius to a second persecution; +and the feeble Constantius, the sovereign of the East, soon became +the secret accomplice of the Eusebians. Ninety bishops of that sect or +faction assembled at Antioch, under the specious pretence of dedicating +the cathedral. They composed an ambiguous creed, which is faintly tinged +with the colors of Semi-Arianism, and twenty-five canons, which still +regulate the discipline of the orthodox Greeks. It was decided, with +some appearance of equity, that a bishop, deprived by a synod, should +not resume his episcopal functions till he had been absolved by the +judgment of an equal synod; the law was immediately applied to the case +of Athanasius; the council of Antioch pronounced, or rather confirmed, +his degradation: a stranger, named Gregory, was seated on his throne; +and Philagrius, the præfect of Egypt, was instructed to support the new +primate with the civil and military powers of the province. Oppressed +by the conspiracy of the Asiatic prelates, Athanasius withdrew from +Alexandria, and passed three years as an exile and a suppliant on the +holy threshold of the Vatican. By the assiduous study of the Latin +language, he soon qualified himself to negotiate with the western +clergy; his decent flattery swayed and directed the haughty Julius; +the Roman pontiff was persuaded to consider his appeal as the peculiar +interest of the Apostolic see: and his innocence was unanimously +declared in a council of fifty bishops of Italy. At the end of three +years, the primate was summoned to the court of Milan by the emperor +Constans, who, in the indulgence of unlawful pleasures, still professed +a lively regard for the orthodox faith. The cause of truth and justice +was promoted by the influence of gold, and the ministers of Constans +advised their sovereign to require the convocation of an ecclesiastical +assembly, which might act as the representatives of the Catholic church. +Ninety-four bishops of the West, seventy-six bishops of the East, +encountered each other at Sardica, on the verge of the two empires, +but in the dominions of the protector of Athanasius. Their debates soon +degenerated into hostile altercations; the Asiatics, apprehensive for +their personal safety, retired to Philippopolis in Thrace; and the +rival synods reciprocally hurled their spiritual thunders against their +enemies, whom they piously condemned as the enemies of the true God. +Their decrees were published and ratified in their respective provinces: +and Athanasius, who in the West was revered as a saint, was exposed as +a criminal to the abhorrence of the East. The council of Sardica reveals +the first symptoms of discord and schism between the Greek and Latin +churches which were separated by the accidental difference of faith, and +the permanent distinction of language. + +During his second exile in the West, Athanasius was frequently admitted +to the Imperial presence; at Capua, Lodi, Milan, Verona, Padua, +Aquileia, and Treves. The bishop of the diocese usually assisted at +these interviews; the master of the offices stood before the veil or +curtain of the sacred apartment; and the uniform moderation of the +primate might be attested by these respectable witnesses, to whose +evidence he solemnly appeals. Prudence would undoubtedly suggest the +mild and respectful tone that became a subject and a bishop. In these +familiar conferences with the sovereign of the West, Athanasius might +lament the error of Constantius, but he boldly arraigned the guilt of +his eunuchs and his Arian prelates; deplored the distress and danger of +the Catholic church; and excited Constans to emulate the zeal and glory +of his father. The emperor declared his resolution of employing the +troops and treasures of Europe in the orthodox cause; and signified, by +a concise and peremptory epistle to his brother Constantius, that unless +he consented to the immediate restoration of Athanasius, he himself, +with a fleet and army, would seat the archbishop on the throne of +Alexandria. But this religious war, so horrible to nature, was prevented +by the timely compliance of Constantius; and the emperor of the East +condescended to solicit a reconciliation with a subject whom he had +injured. Athanasius waited with decent pride, till he had received three +successive epistles full of the strongest assurances of the protection, +the favor, and the esteem of his sovereign; who invited him to resume +his episcopal seat, and who added the humiliating precaution of engaging +his principal ministers to attest the sincerity of his intentions. They +were manifested in a still more public manner, by the strict orders +which were despatched into Egypt to recall the adherents of Athanasius, +to restore their privileges, to proclaim their innocence, and to +erase from the public registers the illegal proceedings which had been +obtained during the prevalence of the Eusebian faction. After every +satisfaction and security had been given, which justice or even delicacy +could require, the primate proceeded, by slow journeys, through the +provinces of Thrace, Asia, and Syria; and his progress was marked by the +abject homage of the Oriental bishops, who excited his contempt without +deceiving his penetration. At Antioch he saw the emperor Constantius; +sustained, with modest firmness, the embraces and protestations of his +master, and eluded the proposal of allowing the Arians a single church +at Alexandria, by claiming, in the other cities of the empire, a similar +toleration for his own party; a reply which might have appeared just +and moderate in the mouth of an independent prince. The entrance of +the archbishop into his capital was a triumphal procession; absence and +persecution had endeared him to the Alexandrians; his authority, which +he exercised with rigor, was more firmly established; and his fame +was diffused from Æthiopia to Britain, over the whole extent of the +Christian world. + +But the subject who has reduced his prince to the necessity of +dissembling, can never expect a sincere and lasting forgiveness; and +the tragic fate of Constans soon deprived Athanasius of a powerful and +generous protector. The civil war between the assassin and the only +surviving brother of Constans, which afflicted the empire above three +years, secured an interval of repose to the Catholic church; and the +two contending parties were desirous to conciliate the friendship of a +bishop, who, by the weight of his personal authority, might determine +the fluctuating resolutions of an important province. He gave audience +to the ambassadors of the tyrant, with whom he was afterwards accused of +holding a secret correspondence; and the emperor Constantius repeatedly +assured his dearest father, the most reverend Athanasius, that, +notwithstanding the malicious rumors which were circulated by their +common enemies, he had inherited the sentiments, as well as the throne, +of his deceased brother. Gratitude and humanity would have disposed the +primate of Egypt to deplore the untimely fate of Constans, and to +abhor the guilt of Magnentius; but as he clearly understood that the +apprehensions of Constantius were his only safeguard, the fervor of his +prayers for the success of the righteous cause might perhaps be somewhat +abated. The ruin of Athanasius was no longer contrived by the obscure +malice of a few bigoted or angry bishops, who abused the authority of a +credulous monarch. The monarch himself avowed the resolution, which he +had so long suppressed, of avenging his private injuries; and the first +winter after his victory, which he passed at Arles, was employed against +an enemy more odious to him than the vanquished tyrant of Gaul. + +If the emperor had capriciously decreed the death of the most eminent +and virtuous citizen of the republic, the cruel order would have been +executed without hesitation, by the ministers of open violence or of +specious injustice. The caution, the delay, the difficulty with which +he proceeded in the condemnation and punishment of a popular bishop, +discovered to the world that the privileges of the church had already +revived a sense of order and freedom in the Roman government. The +sentence which was pronounced in the synod of Tyre, and subscribed by +a large majority of the Eastern bishops, had never been expressly +repealed; and as Athanasius had been once degraded from his episcopal +dignity by the judgment of his brethren, every subsequent act might be +considered as irregular, and even criminal. But the memory of the firm +and effectual support which the primate of Egypt had derived from the +attachment of the Western church, engaged Constantius to suspend the +execution of the sentence till he had obtained the concurrence of the +Latin bishops. Two years were consumed in ecclesiastical negotiations; +and the important cause between the emperor and one of his subjects was +solemnly debated, first in the synod of Arles, and afterwards in the +great council of Milan, which consisted of above three hundred bishops. +Their integrity was gradually undermined by the arguments of the Arians, +the dexterity of the eunuchs, and the pressing solicitations of a prince +who gratified his revenge at the expense of his dignity, and exposed his +own passions, whilst he influenced those of the clergy. Corruption, +the most infallible symptom of constitutional liberty, was successfully +practised; honors, gifts, and immunities were offered and accepted as +the price of an episcopal vote; and the condemnation of the Alexandrian +primate was artfully represented as the only measure which could restore +the peace and union of the Catholic church. The friends of Athanasius +were not, however, wanting to their leader, or to their cause. With +a manly spirit, which the sanctity of their character rendered less +dangerous, they maintained, in public debate, and in private conference +with the emperor, the eternal obligation of religion and justice. +They declared, that neither the hope of his favor, nor the fear of his +displeasure, should prevail on them to join in the condemnation of an +absent, an innocent, a respectable brother. They affirmed, with apparent +reason, that the illegal and obsolete decrees of the council of Tyre had +long since been tacitly abolished by the Imperial edicts, the honorable +reestablishment of the archbishop of Alexandria, and the silence or +recantation of his most clamorous adversaries. They alleged, that his +innocence had been attested by the unanimous bishops of Egypt, and had +been acknowledged in the councils of Rome and Sardica, by the impartial +judgment of the Latin church. They deplored the hard condition of +Athanasius, who, after enjoying so many years his seat, his reputation, +and the seeming confidence of his sovereign, was again called upon to +confute the most groundless and extravagant accusations. Their language +was specious; their conduct was honorable: but in this long and +obstinate contest, which fixed the eyes of the whole empire on a single +bishop, the ecclesiastical factions were prepared to sacrifice truth +and justice to the more interesting object of defending or removing +the intrepid champion of the Nicene faith. The Arians still thought it +prudent to disguise, in ambiguous language, their real sentiments and +designs; but the orthodox bishops, armed with the favor of the people, +and the decrees of a general council, insisted on every occasion, and +particularly at Milan, that their adversaries should purge themselves +from the suspicion of heresy, before they presumed to arraign the +conduct of the great Athanasius. + +But the voice of reason (if reason was indeed on the side of Athanasius) +was silenced by the clamors of a factious or venal majority; and the +councils of Arles and Milan were not dissolved, till the archbishop of +Alexandria had been solemnly condemned and deposed by the judgment of +the Western, as well as of the Eastern, church. The bishops who had +opposed, were required to subscribe, the sentence, and to unite in +religious communion with the suspected leaders of the adverse party. A +formulary of consent was transmitted by the messengers of state to +the absent bishops: and all those who refused to submit their private +opinion to the public and inspired wisdom of the councils of Arles and +Milan, were immediately banished by the emperor, who affected to execute +the decrees of the Catholic church. Among those prelates who led the +honorable band of confessors and exiles, Liberius of Rome, Osius of +Cordova, Paulinus of Treves, Dionysius of Milan, Eusebius of Vercellæ, +Lucifer of Cagliari and Hilary of Poitiers, may deserve to be +particularly distinguished. The eminent station of Liberius, who +governed the capital of the empire; the personal merit and long +experience of the venerable Osius, who was revered as the favorite of +the great Constantine, and the father of the Nicene faith, placed those +prelates at the head of the Latin church: and their example, either of +submission or resistance, would probable be imitated by the episcopal +crowd. But the repeated attempts of the emperor to seduce or to +intimidate the bishops of Rome and Cordova, were for some time +ineffectual. The Spaniard declared himself ready to suffer under +Constantius, as he had suffered threescore years before under his +grandfather Maximian. The Roman, in the presence of his sovereign, +asserted the innocence of Athanasius and his own freedom. When he was +banished to Beræa in Thrace, he sent back a large sum which had been +offered for the accommodation of his journey; and insulted the court of +Milan by the haughty remark, that the emperor and his eunuchs might want +that gold to pay their soldiers and their bishops. The resolution of +Liberius and Osius was at length subdued by the hardships of exile and +confinement. The Roman pontiff purchased his return by some criminal +compliances; and afterwards expiated his guilt by a seasonable +repentance. Persuasion and violence were employed to extort the +reluctant signature of the decrepit bishop of Cordova, whose strength +was broken, and whose faculties were perhaps impaired by the weight of +a hundred years; and the insolent triumph of the Arians provoked some +of the orthodox party to treat with inhuman severity the character, or +rather the memory, of an unfortunate old man, to whose former services +Christianity itself was so deeply indebted. + +The fall of Liberius and Osius reflected a brighter lustre on the +firmness of those bishops who still adhered, with unshaken fidelity, +to the cause of Athanasius and religious truth. The ingenious malice +of their enemies had deprived them of the benefit of mutual comfort and +advice, separated those illustrious exiles into distant provinces, and +carefully selected the most inhospitable spots of a great empire. Yet +they soon experienced that the deserts of Libya, and the most barbarous +tracts of Cappadocia, were less inhospitable than the residence of those +cities in which an Arian bishop could satiate, without restraint, the +exquisite rancor of theological hatred. Their consolation was derived +from the consciousness of rectitude and independence, from the applause, +the visits, the letters, and the liberal alms of their adherents, and +from the satisfaction which they soon enjoyed of observing the intestine +divisions of the adversaries of the Nicene faith. Such was the nice +and capricious taste of the emperor Constantius; and so easily was +he offended by the slightest deviation from his imaginary standard of +Christian truth, that he persecuted, with equal zeal, those who defended +the consubstantiality, those who asserted the similar substance, and +those who denied the likeness of the Son of God. Three bishops, degraded +and banished for those adverse opinions, might possibly meet in the same +place of exile; and, according to the difference of their temper, might +either pity or insult the blind enthusiasm of their antagonists, whose +present sufferings would never be compensated by future happiness. + +The disgrace and exile of the orthodox bishops of the West were +designed as so many preparatory steps to the ruin of Athanasius himself. +Six-and-twenty months had elapsed, during which the Imperial court +secretly labored, by the most insidious arts, to remove him from +Alexandria, and to withdraw the allowance which supplied his popular +liberality. But when the primate of Egypt, deserted and proscribed by +the Latin church, was left destitute of any foreign support, Constantius +despatched two of his secretaries with a verbal commission to announce +and execute the order of his banishment. As the justice of the sentence +was publicly avowed by the whole party, the only motive which could +restrain Constantius from giving his messengers the sanction of a +written mandate, must be imputed to his doubt of the event; and to a +sense of the danger to which he might expose the second city, and the +most fertile province, of the empire, if the people should persist in +the resolution of defending, by force of arms, the innocence of their +spiritual father. Such extreme caution afforded Athanasius a specious +pretence respectfully to dispute the truth of an order, which he could +not reconcile, either with the equity, or with the former declarations, +of his gracious master. The civil powers of Egypt found themselves +inadequate to the task of persuading or compelling the primate to +abdicate his episcopal throne; and they were obliged to conclude +a treaty with the popular leaders of Alexandria, by which it was +stipulated, that all proceedings and all hostilities should be suspended +till the emperor's pleasure had been more distinctly ascertained. By +this seeming moderation, the Catholics were deceived into a false and +fatal security; while the legions of the Upper Egypt, and of Libya, +advanced, by secret orders and hasty marches, to besiege, or rather to +surprise, a capital habituated to sedition, and inflamed by religious +zeal. The position of Alexandria, between the sea and the Lake Mareotis, +facilitated the approach and landing of the troops; who were introduced +into the heart of the city, before any effectual measures could be taken +either to shut the gates or to occupy the important posts of defence. +At the hour of midnight, twenty-three days after the signature of the +treaty, Syrianus, duke of Egypt, at the head of five thousand soldiers, +armed and prepared for an assault, unexpectedly invested the church of +St. Theonas, where the archbishop, with a part of his clergy and people, +performed their nocturnal devotions. The doors of the sacred edifice +yielded to the impetuosity of the attack, which was accompanied with +every horrid circumstance of tumult and bloodshed; but, as the bodies of +the slain, and the fragments of military weapons, remained the next +day an unexceptionable evidence in the possession of the Catholics, +the enterprise of Syrianus may be considered as a successful irruption +rather than as an absolute conquest. The other churches of the city +were profaned by similar outrages; and, during at least four months, +Alexandria was exposed to the insults of a licentious army, stimulated +by the ecclesiastics of a hostile faction. Many of the faithful were +killed; who may deserve the name of martyrs, if their deaths were +neither provoked nor revenged; bishops and presbyters were treated with +cruel ignominy; consecrated virgins were stripped naked, scourged and +violated; the houses of wealthy citizens were plundered; and, under +the mask of religious zeal, lust, avarice, and private resentment +were gratified with impunity, and even with applause. The Pagans of +Alexandria, who still formed a numerous and discontented party, were +easily persuaded to desert a bishop whom they feared and esteemed. The +hopes of some peculiar favors, and the apprehension of being involved +in the general penalties of rebellion, engaged them to promise their +support to the destined successor of Athanasius, the famous George of +Cappadocia. The usurper, after receiving the consecration of an Arian +synod, was placed on the episcopal throne by the arms of Sebastian, who +had been appointed Count of Egypt for the execution of that important +design. In the use, as well as in the acquisition, of power, the tyrant, +George disregarded the laws of religion, of justice, and of humanity; +and the same scenes of violence and scandal which had been exhibited +in the capital, were repeated in more than ninety episcopal cities +of Egypt. Encouraged by success, Constantius ventured to approve the +conduct of his minister. By a public and passionate epistle, the emperor +congratulates the deliverance of Alexandria from a popular tyrant, who +deluded his blind votaries by the magic of his eloquence; expatiates on +the virtues and piety of the most reverend George, the elected bishop; +and aspires, as the patron and benefactor of the city to surpass the +fame of Alexander himself. But he solemnly declares his unalterable +resolution to pursue with fire and sword the seditious adherents of the +wicked Athanasius, who, by flying from justice, has confessed his guilt, +and escaped the ignominious death which he had so often deserved. + + + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part VI. + +Athanasius had indeed escaped from the most imminent dangers; and the +adventures of that extraordinary man deserve and fix our attention. On +the memorable night when the church of St. Theonas was invested by the +troops of Syrianus, the archbishop, seated on his throne, expected, +with calm and intrepid dignity, the approach of death. While the public +devotion was interrupted by shouts of rage and cries of terror, +he animated his trembling congregation to express their religious +confidence, by chanting one of the psalms of David which celebrates +the triumph of the God of Isræl over the haughty and impious tyrant +of Egypt. The doors were at length burst open: a cloud of arrows was +discharged among the people; the soldiers, with drawn swords, rushed +forwards into the sanctuary; and the dreadful gleam of their arms was +reflected by the holy luminaries which burnt round the altar. Athanasius +still rejected the pious importunity of the monks and presbyters, who +were attached to his person; and nobly refused to desert his episcopal +station, till he had dismissed in safety the last of the congregation. +The darkness and tumult of the night favored the retreat of the +archbishop; and though he was oppressed by the waves of an agitated +multitude, though he was thrown to the ground, and left without sense or +motion, he still recovered his undaunted courage, and eluded the eager +search of the soldiers, who were instructed by their Arian guides, +that the head of Athanasius would be the most acceptable present to the +emperor. From that moment the primate of Egypt disappeared from the eyes +of his enemies, and remained above six years concealed in impenetrable +obscurity. + +The despotic power of his implacable enemy filled the whole extent of +the Roman world; and the exasperated monarch had endeavored, by a very +pressing epistle to the Christian princes of Ethiopia, * to exclude +Athanasius from the most remote and sequestered regions of the earth. +Counts, præfects, tribunes, whole armies, were successively employed to +pursue a bishop and a fugitive; the vigilance of the civil and military +powers was excited by the Imperial edicts; liberal rewards were promised +to the man who should produce Athanasius, either alive or dead; and the +most severe penalties were denounced against those who should dare to +protect the public enemy. But the deserts of Thebais were now peopled by +a race of wild, yet submissive fanatics, who preferred the commands of +their abbot to the laws of their sovereign. The numerous disciples of +Antony and Pachomius received the fugitive primate as their father, +admired the patience and humility with which he conformed to their +strictest institutions, collected every word which dropped from his lips +as the genuine effusions of inspired wisdom; and persuaded themselves +that their prayers, their fasts, and their vigils, were less meritorious +than the zeal which they expressed, and the dangers which they braved, +in the defence of truth and innocence. The monasteries of Egypt were +seated in lonely and desolate places, on the summit of mountains, or in +the islands of the Nile; and the sacred horn or trumpet of Tabenne +was the well-known signal which assembled several thousand robust and +determined monks, who, for the most part, had been the peasants of the +adjacent country. When their dark retreats were invaded by a military +force, which it was impossible to resist, they silently stretched out +their necks to the executioner; and supported their national character, +that tortures could never wrest from an Egyptian the confession of +a secret which he was resolved not to disclose. The archbishop of +Alexandria, for whose safety they eagerly devoted their lives, was +lost among a uniform and well-disciplined multitude; and on the nearer +approach of danger, he was swiftly removed, by their officious hands, +from one place of concealment to another, till he reached the formidable +deserts, which the gloomy and credulous temper of superstition had +peopled with dæmons and savage monsters. The retirement of Athanasius, +which ended only with the life of Constantius, was spent, for the most +part, in the society of the monks, who faithfully served him as guards, +as secretaries, and as messengers; but the importance of maintaining a +more intimate connection with the Catholic party tempted him, whenever +the diligence of the pursuit was abated, to emerge from the desert, +to introduce himself into Alexandria, and to trust his person to the +discretion of his friends and adherents. His various adventures might +have furnished the subject of a very entertaining romance. He was once +secreted in a dry cistern, which he had scarcely left before he was +betrayed by the treachery of a female slave; and he was once concealed +in a still more extraordinary asylum, the house of a virgin, only twenty +years of age, and who was celebrated in the whole city for her exquisite +beauty. At the hour of midnight, as she related the story many years +afterwards, she was surprised by the appearance of the archbishop in a +loose undress, who, advancing with hasty steps, conjured her to afford +him the protection which he had been directed by a celestial vision to +seek under her hospitable roof. The pious maid accepted and preserved +the sacred pledge which was intrusted to her prudence and courage. +Without imparting the secret to any one, she instantly conducted +Athanasius into her most secret chamber, and watched over his safety +with the tenderness of a friend and the assiduity of a servant. As +long as the danger continued, she regularly supplied him with books and +provisions, washed his feet, managed his correspondence, and dexterously +concealed from the eye of suspicion this familiar and solitary +intercourse between a saint whose character required the most +unblemished chastity, and a female whose charms might excite the most +dangerous emotions. During the six years of persecution and exile, +Athanasius repeated his visits to his fair and faithful companion; and +the formal declaration, that he saw the councils of Rimini and Seleucia, +forces us to believe that he was secretly present at the time and place +of their convocation. The advantage of personally negotiating with his +friends, and of observing and improving the divisions of his enemies, +might justify, in a prudent statesman, so bold and dangerous an +enterprise: and Alexandria was connected by trade and navigation with +every seaport of the Mediterranean. From the depth of his inaccessible +retreat the intrepid primate waged an incessant and offensive war +against the protector of the Arians; and his seasonable writings, which +were diligently circulated and eagerly perused, contributed to unite and +animate the orthodox party. In his public apologies, which he addressed +to the emperor himself, he sometimes affected the praise of moderation; +whilst at the same time, in secret and vehement invectives, he exposed +Constantius as a weak and wicked prince, the executioner of his family, +the tyrant of the republic, and the Antichrist of the church. In the +height of his prosperity, the victorious monarch, who had chastised the +rashness of Gallus, and suppressed the revolt of Sylvanus, who had taken +the diadem from the head of Vetranio, and vanquished in the field the +legions of Magnentius, received from an invisible hand a wound, which he +could neither heal nor revenge; and the son of Constantine was the +first of the Christian princes who experienced the strength of those +principles, which, in the cause of religion, could resist the most +violent exertions of the civil power. + +The persecution of Athanasius, and of so many respectable bishops, who +suffered for the truth of their opinions, or at least for the integrity +of their conscience, was a just subject of indignation and discontent +to all Christians, except those who were blindly devoted to the Arian +faction. The people regretted the loss of their faithful pastors, whose +banishment was usually followed by the intrusion of a stranger into the +episcopal chair; and loudly complained, that the right of election was +violated, and that they were condemned to obey a mercenary usurper, +whose person was unknown, and whose principles were suspected. The +Catholics might prove to the world, that they were not involved in +the guilt and heresy of their ecclesiastical governor, by publicly +testifying their dissent, or by totally separating themselves from +his communion. The first of these methods was invented at Antioch, +and practised with such success, that it was soon diffused over the +Christian world. The doxology or sacred hymn, which celebrates the glory +of the Trinity, is susceptible of very nice, but material, inflections; +and the substance of an orthodox, or an heretical, creed, may be +expressed by the difference of a disjunctive, or a copulative, particle. +Alternate responses, and a more regular psalmody, were introduced into +the public service by Flavianus and Diodorus, two devout and active +laymen, who were attached to the Nicene faith. Under their conduct +a swarm of monks issued from the adjacent desert, bands of +well-disciplined singers were stationed in the cathedral of Antioch, the +Glory to the Father, And the Son, And the Holy Ghost, was triumphantly +chanted by a full chorus of voices; and the Catholics insulted, by the +purity of their doctrine, the Arian prelate, who had usurped the throne +of the venerable Eustathius. The same zeal which inspired their songs +prompted the more scrupulous members of the orthodox party to form +separate assemblies, which were governed by the presbyters, till the +death of their exiled bishop allowed the election and consecration of a +new episcopal pastor. The revolutions of the court multiplied the number +of pretenders; and the same city was often disputed, under the reign +of Constantius, by two, or three, or even four, bishops, who exercised +their spiritual jurisdiction over their respective followers, and +alternately lost and regained the temporal possessions of the church. +The abuse of Christianity introduced into the Roman government new +causes of tyranny and sedition; the bands of civil society were torn +asunder by the fury of religious factions; and the obscure citizen, +who might calmly have surveyed the elevation and fall of successive +emperors, imagined and experienced, that his own life and fortune were +connected with the interests of a popular ecclesiastic. The example of +the two capitals, Rome and Constantinople, may serve to represent the +state of the empire, and the temper of mankind, under the reign of the +sons of Constantine. + +I. The Roman pontiff, as long as he maintained his station and his +principles, was guarded by the warm attachment of a great people; and +could reject with scorn the prayers, the menaces, and the oblations of +an heretical prince. When the eunuchs had secretly pronounced the exile +of Liberius, the well-grounded apprehension of a tumult engaged them to +use the utmost precautions in the execution of the sentence. The capital +was invested on every side, and the præfect was commanded to seize the +person of the bishop, either by stratagem or by open force. The order +was obeyed, and Liberius, with the greatest difficulty, at the hour of +midnight, was swiftly conveyed beyond the reach of the Roman people, +before their consternation was turned into rage. As soon as they were +informed of his banishment into Thrace, a general assembly was convened, +and the clergy of Rome bound themselves, by a public and solemn oath, +never to desert their bishop, never to acknowledge the usurper Fælix; +who, by the influence of the eunuchs, had been irregularly chosen and +consecrated within the walls of a profane palace. At the end of two +years, their pious obstinacy subsisted entire and unshaken; and +when Constantius visited Rome, he was assailed by the importunate +solicitations of a people, who had preserved, as the last remnant +of their ancient freedom, the right of treating their sovereign with +familiar insolence. The wives of many of the senators and most honorable +citizens, after pressing their husbands to intercede in favor of +Liberius, were advised to undertake a commission, which in their hands +would be less dangerous, and might prove more successful. The emperor +received with politeness these female deputies, whose wealth and dignity +were displayed in the magnificence of their dress and ornaments: he +admired their inflexible resolution of following their beloved pastor +to the most distant regions of the earth; and consented that the two +bishops, Liberius and Fælix, should govern in peace their respective +congregations. But the ideas of toleration were so repugnant to the +practice, and even to the sentiments, of those times, that when the +answer of Constantius was publicly read in the Circus of Rome, so +reasonable a project of accommodation was rejected with contempt and +ridicule. The eager vehemence which animated the spectators in the +decisive moment of a horse-race, was now directed towards a different +object; and the Circus resounded with the shout of thousands, who +repeatedly exclaimed, "One God, One Christ, One Bishop!" The zeal of the +Roman people in the cause of Liberius was not confined to words alone; +and the dangerous and bloody sedition which they excited soon after the +departure of Constantius determined that prince to accept the submission +of the exiled prelate, and to restore him to the undivided dominion of +the capital. After some ineffectual resistance, his rival was expelled +from the city by the permission of the emperor and the power of the +opposite faction; the adherents of Fælix were inhumanly murdered in the +streets, in the public places, in the baths, and even in the churches; +and the face of Rome, upon the return of a Christian bishop, renewed the +horrid image of the massacres of Marius, and the proscriptions of Sylla. + +II. Notwithstanding the rapid increase of Christians under the reign of +the Flavian family, Rome, Alexandria, and the other great cities of the +empire, still contained a strong and powerful faction of Infidels, who +envied the prosperity, and who ridiculed, even in their theatres, the +theological disputes of the church. Constantinople alone enjoyed the +advantage of being born and educated in the bosom of the faith. The +capital of the East had never been polluted by the worship of idols; +and the whole body of the people had deeply imbibed the opinions, the +virtues, and the passions, which distinguished the Christians of +that age from the rest of mankind. After the death of Alexander, the +episcopal throne was disputed by Paul and Macedonius. By their zeal and +abilities they both deserved the eminent station to which they aspired; +and if the moral character of Macedonius was less exceptionable, his +competitor had the advantage of a prior election and a more orthodox +doctrine. His firm attachment to the Nicene creed, which has given Paul +a place in the calendar among saints and martyrs, exposed him to the +resentment of the Arians. In the space of fourteen years he was five +times driven from his throne; to which he was more frequently restored +by the violence of the people, than by the permission of the prince; and +the power of Macedonius could be secured only by the death of his rival. +The unfortunate Paul was dragged in chains from the sandy deserts of +Mesopotamia to the most desolate places of Mount Taurus, confined in +a dark and narrow dungeon, left six days without food, and at length +strangled, by the order of Philip, one of the principal ministers of the +emperor Constantius. The first blood which stained the new capital was +spilt in this ecclesiastical contest; and many persons were slain on +both sides, in the furious and obstinate seditions of the people. The +commission of enforcing a sentence of banishment against Paul had been +intrusted to Hermogenes, the master-general of the cavalry; but the +execution of it was fatal to himself. The Catholics rose in the defence +of their bishop; the palace of Hermogenes was consumed; the first +military officer of the empire was dragged by the heels through the +streets of Constantinople, and, after he expired, his lifeless corpse +was exposed to their wanton insults. The fate of Hermogenes instructed +Philip, the Prætorian præfect, to act with more precaution on a similar +occasion. In the most gentle and honorable terms, he required the +attendance of Paul in the baths of Zeuxippus, which had a private +communication with the palace and the sea. A vessel, which lay ready at +the garden stairs, immediately hoisted sail; and, while the people were +still ignorant of the meditated sacrilege, their bishop was already +embarked on his voyage to Thessalonica. They soon beheld, with surprise +and indignation, the gates of the palace thrown open, and the usurper +Macedonius seated by the side of the præfect on a lofty chariot, which +was surrounded by troops of guards with drawn swords. The military +procession advanced towards the cathedral; the Arians and the Catholics +eagerly rushed to occupy that important post; and three thousand one +hundred and fifty persons lost their lives in the confusion of the +tumult. Macedonius, who was supported by a regular force, obtained a +decisive victory; but his reign was disturbed by clamor and sedition; +and the causes which appeared the least connected with the subject of +dispute, were sufficient to nourish and to kindle the flame of civil +discord. As the chapel in which the body of the great Constantine had +been deposited was in a ruinous condition, the bishop transported those +venerable remains into the church of St. Acacius. This prudent and even +pious measure was represented as a wicked profanation by the whole party +which adhered to the Homoousian doctrine. The factions immediately flew +to arms, the consecrated ground was used as their field of battle; and +one of the ecclesiastical historians has observed, as a real fact, not +as a figure of rhetoric, that the well before the church overflowed with +a stream of blood, which filled the porticos and the adjacent courts. +The writer who should impute these tumults solely to a religious +principle, would betray a very imperfect knowledge of human nature; yet +it must be confessed that the motive which misled the sincerity of +zeal, and the pretence which disguised the licentiousness of passion, +suppressed the remorse which, in another cause, would have succeeded to +the rage of the Christians at Constantinople. + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part VII. + +The cruel and arbitrary disposition of Constantius, which did not always +require the provocations of guilt and resistance, was justly exasperated +by the tumults of his capital, and the criminal behavior of a faction, +which opposed the authority and religion of their sovereign. The +ordinary punishments of death, exile, and confiscation, were inflicted +with partial vigor; and the Greeks still revere the holy memory of two +clerks, a reader, and a sub-deacon, who were accused of the murder of +Hermogenes, and beheaded at the gates of Constantinople. By an edict of +Constantius against the Catholics which has not been judged worthy of a +place in the Theodosian code, those who refused to communicate with the +Arian bishops, and particularly with Macedonius, were deprived of the +immunities of ecclesiastics, and of the rights of Christians; they +were compelled to relinquish the possession of the churches; and were +strictly prohibited from holding their assemblies within the walls of +the city. The execution of this unjust law, in the provinces of Thrace +and Asia Minor, was committed to the zeal of Macedonius; the civil and +military powers were directed to obey his commands; and the cruelties +exercised by this Semi-Arian tyrant in the support of the Homoiousion, +exceeded the commission, and disgraced the reign, of Constantius. The +sacraments of the church were administered to the reluctant victims, +who denied the vocation, and abhorred the principles, of Macedonius. +The rites of baptism were conferred on women and children, who, for that +purpose, had been torn from the arms of their friends and parents; the +mouths of the communicants were held open by a wooden engine, while the +consecrated bread was forced down their throat; the breasts of tender +virgins were either burnt with red-hot egg-shells, or inhumanly +compressed between sharp and heavy boards. The Novatians of +Constantinople and the adjacent country, by their firm attachment to +the Homoousian standard, deserved to be confounded with the Catholics +themselves. Macedonius was informed, that a large district of +Paphlagonia was almost entirely inhabited by those sectaries. He +resolved either to convert or to extirpate them; and as he distrusted, +on this occasion, the efficacy of an ecclesiastical mission, he +commanded a body of four thousand legionaries to march against the +rebels, and to reduce the territory of Mantinium under his spiritual +dominion. The Novatian peasants, animated by despair and religious fury, +boldly encountered the invaders of their country; and though many of +the Paphlagonians were slain, the Roman legions were vanquished by an +irregular multitude, armed only with scythes and axes; and, except a few +who escaped by an ignominious flight, four thousand soldiers were left +dead on the field of battle. The successor of Constantius has expressed, +in a concise but lively manner, some of the theological calamities which +afflicted the empire, and more especially the East, in the reign of +a prince who was the slave of his own passions, and of those of his +eunuchs: "Many were imprisoned, and persecuted, and driven into +exile. Whole troops of those who are styled heretics, were massacred, +particularly at Cyzicus, and at Samosata. In Paphlagonia, Bithynia, +Galatia, and in many other provinces, towns and villages were laid +waste, and utterly destroyed." + +While the flames of the Arian controversy consumed the vitals of the +empire, the African provinces were infested by their peculiar enemies, +the savage fanatics, who, under the name of Circumcellions, formed the +strength and scandal of the Donatist party. The severe execution of the +laws of Constantine had excited a spirit of discontent and resistance, +the strenuous efforts of his son Constans, to restore the unity of the +church, exasperated the sentiments of mutual hatred, which had first +occasioned the separation; and the methods of force and corruption +employed by the two Imperial commissioners, Paul and Macarius, furnished +the schismatics with a specious contrast between the maxims of the +apostles and the conduct of their pretended successors. The peasants who +inhabited the villages of Numidia and Mauritania, were a ferocious race, +who had been imperfectly reduced under the authority of the Roman laws; +who were imperfectly converted to the Christian faith; but who were +actuated by a blind and furious enthusiasm in the cause of their +Donatist teachers. They indignantly supported the exile of their +bishops, the demolition of their churches, and the interruption of their +secret assemblies. The violence of the officers of justice, who were +usually sustained by a military guard, was sometimes repelled with equal +violence; and the blood of some popular ecclesiastics, which had been +shed in the quarrel, inflamed their rude followers with an eager desire +of revenging the death of these holy martyrs. By their own cruelty and +rashness, the ministers of persecution sometimes provoked their fate; +and the guilt of an accidental tumult precipitated the criminals into +despair and rebellion. Driven from their native villages, the Donatist +peasants assembled in formidable gangs on the edge of the Getulian +desert; and readily exchanged the habits of labor for a life of idleness +and rapine, which was consecrated by the name of religion, and faintly +condemned by the doctors of the sect. The leaders of the Circumcellions +assumed the title of captains of the saints; their principal weapon, as +they were indifferently provided with swords and spears, was a huge and +weighty club, which they termed an Israelite; and the well-known sound +of "Praise be to God," which they used as their cry of war, diffused +consternation over the unarmed provinces of Africa. At first their +depredations were colored by the plea of necessity; but they soon +exceeded the measure of subsistence, indulged without control their +intemperance and avarice, burnt the villages which they had pillaged, +and reigned the licentious tyrants of the open country. The occupations +of husbandry, and the administration of justice, were interrupted; and +as the Circumcellions pretended to restore the primitive equality of +mankind, and to reform the abuses of civil society, they opened a secure +asylum for the slaves and debtors, who flocked in crowds to their holy +standard. When they were not resisted, they usually contented themselves +with plunder, but the slightest opposition provoked them to acts of +violence and murder; and some Catholic priests, who had imprudently +signalized their zeal, were tortured by the fanatics with the most +refined and wanton barbarity. The spirit of the Circumcellions was not +always exerted against their defenceless enemies; they engaged, and +sometimes defeated, the troops of the province; and in the bloody action +of Bagai, they attacked in the open field, but with unsuccessful valor, +an advanced guard of the Imperial cavalry. The Donatists who were taken +in arms, received, and they soon deserved, the same treatment which +might have been shown to the wild beasts of the desert. The captives +died, without a murmur, either by the sword, the axe, or the fire; and +the measures of retaliation were multiplied in a rapid proportion, which +aggravated the horrors of rebellion, and excluded the hope of mutual +forgiveness. In the beginning of the present century, the example of the +Circumcellions has been renewed in the persecution, the boldness, the +crimes, and the enthusiasm of the Camisards; and if the fanatics of +Languedoc surpassed those of Numidia, by their military achievements, +the Africans maintained their fierce independence with more resolution +and perseverance. + +Such disorders are the natural effects of religious tyranny, but the +rage of the Donatists was inflamed by a frenzy of a very extraordinary +kind; and which, if it really prevailed among them in so extravagant a +degree, cannot surely be paralleled in any country or in any age. Many +of these fanatics were possessed with the horror of life, and the desire +of martyrdom; and they deemed it of little moment by what means, or +by what hands, they perished, if their conduct was sanctified by the +intention of devoting themselves to the glory of the true faith, and +the hope of eternal happiness. Sometimes they rudely disturbed the +festivals, and profaned the temples of Paganism, with the design of +exciting the most zealous of the idolaters to revenge the insulted +honor of their gods. They sometimes forced their way into the courts +of justice, and compelled the affrighted judge to give orders for their +immediate execution. They frequently stopped travellers on the public +highways, and obliged them to inflict the stroke of martyrdom, by the +promise of a reward, if they consented, and by the threat of instant +death, if they refused to grant so very singular a favor. When they were +disappointed of every other resource, they announced the day on +which, in the presence of their friends and brethren, they should east +themselves headlong from some lofty rock; and many precipices were +shown, which had acquired fame by the number of religious suicides. +In the actions of these desperate enthusiasts, who were admired by one +party as the martyrs of God, and abhorred by the other as the victims of +Satan, an impartial philosopher may discover the influence and the last +abuse of that inflexible spirit which was originally derived from the +character and principles of the Jewish nation. + +The simple narrative of the intestine divisions, which distracted the +peace, and dishonored the triumph, of the church, will confirm the +remark of a Pagan historian, and justify the complaint of a venerable +bishop. The experience of Ammianus had convinced him, that the enmity of +the Christians towards each other, surpassed the fury of savage beasts +against man; and Gregory Nazianzen most pathetically laments, that the +kingdom of heaven was converted, by discord, into the image of chaos, of +a nocturnal tempest, and of hell itself. The fierce and partial writers +of the times, ascribing all virtue to themselves, and imputing all guilt +to their adversaries, have painted the battle of the angels and dæmons. +Our calmer reason will reject such pure and perfect monsters of vice +or sanctity, and will impute an equal, or at least an indiscriminate, +measure of good and evil to the hostile sectaries, who assumed and +bestowed the appellations of orthodox and heretics. They had been +educated in the same religion and the same civil society. Their hopes +and fears in the present, or in a future life, were balanced in the +same proportion. On either side, the error might be innocent, the +faith sincere, the practice meritorious or corrupt. Their passions were +excited by similar objects; and they might alternately abuse the +favor of the court, or of the people. The metaphysical opinions of the +Athanasians and the Arians could not influence their moral character; +and they were alike actuated by the intolerant spirit which has been +extracted from the pure and simple maxims of the gospel. + +A modern writer, who, with a just confidence, has prefixed to his own +history the honorable epithets of political and philosophical, accuses +the timid prudence of Montesquieu, for neglecting to enumerate, among +the causes of the decline of the empire, a law of Constantine, by which +the exercise of the Pagan worship was absolutely suppressed, and a +considerable part of his subjects was left destitute of priests, +of temples, and of any public religion. The zeal of the philosophic +historian for the rights of mankind, has induced him to acquiesce in +the ambiguous testimony of those ecclesiastics, who have too lightly +ascribed to their favorite hero the merit of a general persecution. +Instead of alleging this imaginary law, which would have blazed in +the front of the Imperial codes, we may safely appeal to the original +epistle, which Constantine addressed to the followers of the ancient +religion; at a time when he no longer disguised his conversion, nor +dreaded the rivals of his throne. He invites and exhorts, in the most +pressing terms, the subjects of the Roman empire to imitate the example +of their master; but he declares, that those who still refuse to open +their eyes to the celestial light, may freely enjoy their temples and +their fancied gods. A report, that the ceremonies of paganism were +suppressed, is formally contradicted by the emperor himself, who wisely +assigns, as the principle of his moderation, the invincible force of +habit, of prejudice, and of superstition. Without violating the sanctity +of his promise, without alarming the fears of the Pagans, the artful +monarch advanced, by slow and cautious steps, to undermine the irregular +and decayed fabric of polytheism. The partial acts of severity which +he occasionally exercised, though they were secretly promoted by a +Christian zeal, were colored by the fairest pretences of justice and the +public good; and while Constantine designed to ruin the foundations, he +seemed to reform the abuses, of the ancient religion. After the example +of the wisest of his predecessors, he condemned, under the most rigorous +penalties, the occult and impious arts of divination; which excited +the vain hopes, and sometimes the criminal attempts, of those who were +discontented with their present condition. An ignominious silence was +imposed on the oracles, which had been publicly convicted of fraud +and falsehood; the effeminate priests of the Nile were abolished; and +Constantine discharged the duties of a Roman censor, when he gave orders +for the demolition of several temples of Phnicia; in which every mode of +prostitution was devoutly practised in the face of day, and to the honor +of Venus. The Imperial city of Constantinople was, in some measure, +raised at the expense, and was adorned with the spoils, of the opulent +temples of Greece and Asia; the sacred property was confiscated; the +statues of gods and heroes were transported, with rude familiarity, +among a people who considered them as objects, not of adoration, but +of curiosity; the gold and silver were restored to circulation; and +the magistrates, the bishops, and the eunuchs, improved the fortunate +occasion of gratifying, at once, their zeal, their avarice, and their +resentment. But these depredations were confined to a small part of the +Roman world; and the provinces had been long since accustomed to +endure the same sacrilegious rapine, from the tyranny of princes and +proconsuls, who could not be suspected of any design to subvert the +established religion. + +The sons of Constantine trod in the footsteps of their father, with more +zeal, and with less discretion. The pretences of rapine and oppression +were insensibly multiplied; every indulgence was shown to the +illegal behavior of the Christians; every doubt was explained to +the disadvantage of Paganism; and the demolition of the temples was +celebrated as one of the auspicious events of the reign of Constans and +Constantius. The name of Constantius is prefixed to a concise law, which +might have superseded the necessity of any future prohibitions. "It +is our pleasure, that in all places, and in all cities, the temples be +immediately shut, and carefully guarded, that none may have the power +of offending. It is likewise our pleasure, that all our subjects should +abstain from sacrifices. If any one should be guilty of such an act, +let him feel the sword of vengeance, and after his execution, let +his property be confiscated to the public use. We denounce the same +penalties against the governors of the provinces, if they neglect to +punish the criminals." But there is the strongest reason to believe, +that this formidable edict was either composed without being published, +or was published without being executed. The evidence of facts, and the +monuments which are still extant of brass and marble, continue to prove +the public exercise of the Pagan worship during the whole reign of the +sons of Constantine. In the East, as well as in the West, in cities, as +well as in the country, a great number of temples were respected, or at +least were spared; and the devout multitude still enjoyed the luxury of +sacrifices, of festivals, and of processions, by the permission, or +by the connivance, of the civil government. About four years after the +supposed date of this bloody edict, Constantius visited the temples of +Rome; and the decency of his behavior is recommended by a pagan orator +as an example worthy of the imitation of succeeding princes. "That +emperor," says Symmachus, "suffered the privileges of the vestal virgins +to remain inviolate; he bestowed the sacerdotal dignities on the nobles +of Rome, granted the customary allowance to defray the expenses of the +public rites and sacrifices; and, though he had embraced a different +religion, he never attempted to deprive the empire of the sacred worship +of antiquity." The senate still presumed to consecrate, by solemn +decrees, the divine memory of their sovereigns; and Constantine himself +was associated, after his death, to those gods whom he had renounced and +insulted during his life. The title, the ensigns, the prerogatives, of +sovereign pontiff, which had been instituted by Numa, and assumed +by Augustus, were accepted, without hesitation, by seven Christian +emperors; who were invested with a more absolute authority over the +religion which they had deserted, than over that which they professed. + +The divisions of Christianity suspended the ruin of Paganism; and the +holy war against the infidels was less vigorously prosecuted by princes +and bishops, who were more immediately alarmed by the guilt and danger +of domestic rebellion. The extirpation of idolatry might have been +justified by the established principles of intolerance: but the hostile +sects, which alternately reigned in the Imperial court were mutually +apprehensive of alienating, and perhaps exasperating, the minds of +a powerful, though declining faction. Every motive of authority +and fashion, of interest and reason, now militated on the side of +Christianity; but two or three generations elapsed, before their +victorious influence was universally felt. The religion which had +so long and so lately been established in the Roman empire was still +revered by a numerous people, less attached indeed to speculative +opinion, than to ancient custom. The honors of the state and army +were indifferently bestowed on all the subjects of Constantine and +Constantius; and a considerable portion of knowledge and wealth and +valor was still engaged in the service of polytheism. The superstition +of the senator and of the peasant, of the poet and the philosopher, was +derived from very different causes, but they met with equal devotion +in the temples of the gods. Their zeal was insensibly provoked by the +insulting triumph of a proscribed sect; and their hopes were revived by +the well-grounded confidence, that the presumptive heir of the empire, +a young and valiant hero, who had delivered Gaul from the arms of the +Barbarians, had secretly embraced the religion of his ancestors. + + + +Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor.--Part I Julian Is Declared +Emperor By The Legions Of Gaul.--His March And Success.--The Death Of +Constantius.--Civil Administration Of Julian. + +While the Romans languished under the ignominious tyranny of eunuchs +and bishops, the praises of Julian were repeated with transport in every +part of the empire, except in the palace of Constantius. The barbarians +of Germany had felt, and still dreaded, the arms of the young Cæsar; his +soldiers were the companions of his victory; the grateful provincials +enjoyed the blessings of his reign; but the favorites, who had opposed +his elevation, were offended by his virtues; and they justly considered +the friend of the people as the enemy of the court. As long as the fame +of Julian was doubtful, the buffoons of the palace, who were skilled in +the language of satire, tried the efficacy of those arts which they +had so often practised with success. They easily discovered, that his +simplicity was not exempt from affectation: the ridiculous epithets of +a hairy savage, of an ape invested with the purple, were applied to the +dress and person of the philosophic warrior; and his modest despatches +were stigmatized as the vain and elaborate fictions of a loquacious +Greek, a speculative soldier, who had studied the art of war amidst +the groves of the academy. The voice of malicious folly was at length +silenced by the shouts of victory; the conqueror of the Franks and +Alemanni could no longer be painted as an object of contempt; and the +monarch himself was meanly ambitious of stealing from his lieutenant +the honorable reward of his labors. In the letters crowned with laurel, +which, according to ancient custom, were addressed to the provinces, the +name of Julian was omitted. "Constantius had made his dispositions in +person; he had signalized his valor in the foremost ranks; his military +conduct had secured the victory; and the captive king of the barbarians +was presented to him on the field of battle," from which he was at +that time distant about forty days' journey. So extravagant a fable +was incapable, however, of deceiving the public credulity, or even of +satisfying the pride of the emperor himself. Secretly conscious that +the applause and favor of the Romans accompanied the rising fortunes of +Julian, his discontented mind was prepared to receive the subtle poison +of those artful sycophants, who colored their mischievous designs with +the fairest appearances of truth and candor. Instead of depreciating the +merits of Julian, they acknowledged, and even exaggerated, his popular +fame, superior talents, and important services. But they darkly +insinuated, that the virtues of the Cæsar might instantly be converted +into the most dangerous crimes, if the inconstant multitude should +prefer their inclinations to their duty; or if the general of a +victorious army should be tempted from his allegiance by the hopes of +revenge and independent greatness. The personal fears of Constantius +were interpreted by his council as a laudable anxiety for the public +safety; whilst in private, and perhaps in his own breast, he disguised, +under the less odious appellation of fear, the sentiments of hatred +and envy, which he had secretly conceived for the inimitable virtues of +Julian. + +The apparent tranquillity of Gaul, and the imminent danger of the +eastern provinces, offered a specious pretence for the design which was +artfully concerted by the Imperial ministers. They resolved to disarm +the Cæsar; to recall those faithful troops who guarded his person and +dignity; and to employ, in a distant war against the Persian monarch, +the hardy veterans who had vanquished, on the banks of the Rhine, the +fiercest nations of Germany. While Julian used the laborious hours of +his winter quarters at Paris in the administration of power, which, in +his hands, was the exercise of virtue, he was surprised by the hasty +arrival of a tribune and a notary, with positive orders, from the +emperor, which they were directed to execute, and he was commanded not +to oppose. Constantius signified his pleasure, that four entire legions, +the Celtæ, and Petulants, the Heruli, and the Batavians, should be +separated from the standard of Julian, under which they had acquired +their fame and discipline; that in each of the remaining bands three +hundred of the bravest youths should be selected; and that this numerous +detachment, the strength of the Gallic army, should instantly begin +their march, and exert their utmost diligence to arrive, before the +opening of the campaign, on the frontiers of Persia. The Cæsar foresaw +and lamented the consequences of this fatal mandate. Most of the +auxiliaries, who engaged their voluntary service, had stipulated, that +they should never be obliged to pass the Alps. The public faith of Rome, +and the personal honor of Julian, had been pledged for the observance +of this condition. Such an act of treachery and oppression would destroy +the confidence, and excite the resentment, of the independent warriors +of Germany, who considered truth as the noblest of their virtues, and +freedom as the most valuable of their possessions. The legionaries, +who enjoyed the title and privileges of Romans, were enlisted for the +general defence of the republic; but those mercenary troops heard with +cold indifference the antiquated names of the republic and of Rome. +Attached, either from birth or long habit, to the climate and manners of +Gaul, they loved and admired Julian; they despised, and perhaps hated, +the emperor; they dreaded the laborious march, the Persian arrows, and +the burning deserts of Asia. They claimed as their own the country which +they had saved; and excused their want of spirit, by pleading the sacred +and more immediate duty of protecting their families and friends. +The apprehensions of the Gauls were derived from the knowledge of the +impending and inevitable danger. As soon as the provinces were exhausted +of their military strength, the Germans would violate a treaty which had +been imposed on their fears; and notwithstanding the abilities and valor +of Julian, the general of a nominal army, to whom the public calamities +would be imputed, must find himself, after a vain resistance, either a +prisoner in the camp of the barbarians, or a criminal in the palace of +Constantius. If Julian complied with the orders which he had received, +he subscribed his own destruction, and that of a people who deserved +his affection. But a positive refusal was an act of rebellion, and +a declaration of war. The inexorable jealousy of the emperor, the +peremptory, and perhaps insidious, nature of his commands, left not any +room for a fair apology, or candid interpretation; and the dependent +station of the Cæsar scarcely allowed him to pause or to deliberate. +Solitude increased the perplexity of Julian; he could no longer apply to +the faithful counsels of Sallust, who had been removed from his office +by the judicious malice of the eunuchs: he could not even enforce his +representations by the concurrence of the ministers, who would have +been afraid or ashamed to approve the ruin of Gaul. The moment had been +chosen, when Lupicinus, the general of the cavalry, was despatched into +Britain, to repulse the inroads of the Scots and Picts; and Florentius +was occupied at Vienna by the assessment of the tribute. The latter, a +crafty and corrupt statesman, declining to assume a responsible part on +this dangerous occasion, eluded the pressing and repeated invitations +of Julian, who represented to him, that in every important measure, the +presence of the præfect was indispensable in the council of the prince. +In the mean while the Cæsar was oppressed by the rude and importunate +solicitations of the Imperial messengers, who presumed to suggest, that +if he expected the return of his ministers, he would charge himself with +the guilt of the delay, and reserve for them the merit of the execution. +Unable to resist, unwilling to comply, Julian expressed, in the most +serious terms, his wish, and even his intention, of resigning the +purple, which he could not preserve with honor, but which he could not +abdicate with safety. + +After a painful conflict, Julian was compelled to acknowledge, that +obedience was the virtue of the most eminent subject, and that the +sovereign alone was entitled to judge of the public welfare. He issued +the necessary orders for carrying into execution the commands of +Constantius; a part of the troops began their march for the Alps; +and the detachments from the several garrisons moved towards their +respective places of assembly. They advanced with difficulty through the +trembling and affrighted crowds of provincials, who attempted to excite +their pity by silent despair, or loud lamentations, while the wives of +the soldiers, holding their infants in their arms, accused the desertion +of their husbands, in the mixed language of grief, of tenderness, and +of indignation. This scene of general distress afflicted the humanity +of the Cæsar; he granted a sufficient number of post-wagons to transport +the wives and families of the soldiers, endeavored to alleviate the +hardships which he was constrained to inflict, and increased, by the +most laudable arts, his own popularity, and the discontent of the exiled +troops. The grief of an armed multitude is soon converted into rage; +their licentious murmurs, which every hour were communicated from tent +to tent with more boldness and effect, prepared their minds for the +most daring acts of sedition; and by the connivance of their tribunes, a +seasonable libel was secretly dispersed, which painted in lively colors +the disgrace of the Cæsar, the oppression of the Gallic army, and the +feeble vices of the tyrant of Asia. The servants of Constantius were +astonished and alarmed by the progress of this dangerous spirit. They +pressed the Cæsar to hasten the departure of the troops; but they +imprudently rejected the honest and judicious advice of Julian; who +proposed that they should not march through Paris, and suggested the +danger and temptation of a last interview. + +As soon as the approach of the troops was announced, the Cæsar went out +to meet them, and ascended his tribunal, which had been erected in a +plain before the gates of the city. After distinguishing the officers +and soldiers, who by their rank or merit deserved a peculiar attention, +Julian addressed himself in a studied oration to the surrounding +multitude: he celebrated their exploits with grateful applause; +encouraged them to accept, with alacrity, the honor of serving under +the eye of a powerful and liberal monarch; and admonished them, that +the commands of Augustus required an instant and cheerful obedience. +The soldiers, who were apprehensive of offending their general by an +indecent clamor, or of belying their sentiments by false and venal +acclamations, maintained an obstinate silence; and after a short +pause, were dismissed to their quarters. The principal officers were +entertained by the Cæsar, who professed, in the warmest language of +friendship, his desire and his inability to reward, according to their +deserts, the brave companions of his victories. They retired from the +feast, full of grief and perplexity; and lamented the hardship of +their fate, which tore them from their beloved general and their native +country. The only expedient which could prevent their separation was +boldly agitated and approved the popular resentment was insensibly +moulded into a regular conspiracy; their just reasons of complaint were +heightened by passion, and their passions were inflamed by wine; as, +on the eve of their departure, the troops were indulged in licentious +festivity. At the hour of midnight, the impetuous multitude, with +swords, and bows, and torches in their hands, rushed into the suburbs; +encompassed the palace; and, careless of future dangers, pronounced the +fatal and irrevocable words, Julian Augustus! The prince, whose anxious +suspense was interrupted by their disorderly acclamations, secured +the doors against their intrusion; and as long as it was in his power, +secluded his person and dignity from the accidents of a nocturnal +tumult. At the dawn of day, the soldiers, whose zeal was irritated +by opposition, forcibly entered the palace, seized, with respectful +violence, the object of their choice, guarded Julian with drawn swords +through the streets of Paris, placed him on the tribunal, and with +repeated shouts saluted him as their emperor. Prudence, as well as +loyalty, inculcated the propriety of resisting their treasonable +designs; and of preparing, for his oppressed virtue, the excuse +of violence. Addressing himself by turns to the multitude and to +individuals, he sometimes implored their mercy, and sometimes expressed +his indignation; conjured them not to sully the fame of their immortal +victories; and ventured to promise, that if they would immediately +return to their allegiance, he would undertake to obtain from the +emperor not only a free and gracious pardon, but even the revocation +of the orders which had excited their resentment. But the soldiers, who +were conscious of their guilt, chose rather to depend on the gratitude +of Julian, than on the clemency of the emperor. Their zeal was +insensibly turned into impatience, and their impatience into rage. +The inflexible Cæsar sustained, till the third hour of the day, their +prayers, their reproaches, and their menaces; nor did he yield, till he +had been repeatedly assured, that if he wished to live, he must consent +to reign. He was exalted on a shield in the presence, and amidst the +unanimous acclamations, of the troops; a rich military collar, which +was offered by chance, supplied the want of a diadem; the ceremony was +concluded by the promise of a moderate donative; and the new emperor, +overwhelmed with real or affected grief retired into the most secret +recesses of his apartment. + +The grief of Julian could proceed only from his innocence; out his +innocence must appear extremely doubtful in the eyes of those who have +learned to suspect the motives and the professions of princes. His +lively and active mind was susceptible of the various impressions of +hope and fear, of gratitude and revenge, of duty and of ambition, of the +love of fame, and of the fear of reproach. But it is impossible for us +to calculate the respective weight and operation of these sentiments; +or to ascertain the principles of action which might escape the +observation, while they guided, or rather impelled, the steps of Julian +himself. The discontent of the troops was produced by the malice of his +enemies; their tumult was the natural effect of interest and of passion; +and if Julian had tried to conceal a deep design under the appearances +of chance, he must have employed the most consummate artifice without +necessity, and probably without success. He solemnly declares, in the +presence of Jupiter, of the Sun, of Mars, of Minerva, and of all the +other deities, that till the close of the evening which preceded his +elevation, he was utterly ignorant of the designs of the soldiers; and +it may seem ungenerous to distrust the honor of a hero and the truth of +a philosopher. Yet the superstitious confidence that Constantius was the +enemy, and that he himself was the favorite, of the gods, might prompt +him to desire, to solicit, and even to hasten the auspicious moment +of his reign, which was predestined to restore the ancient religion of +mankind. When Julian had received the intelligence of the conspiracy, +he resigned himself to a short slumber; and afterwards related to his +friends that he had seen the genius of the empire waiting with some +impatience at his door, pressing for admittance, and reproaching his +want of spirit and ambition. Astonished and perplexed, he addressed his +prayers to the great Jupiter, who immediately signified, by a clear and +manifest omen, that he should submit to the will of heaven and of the +army. The conduct which disclaims the ordinary maxims of reason, excites +our suspicion and eludes our inquiry. Whenever the spirit of fanaticism, +at once so credulous and so crafty, has insinuated itself into a +noble mind, it insensibly corrodes the vital principles of virtue and +veracity. + +To moderate the zeal of his party, to protect the persons of his +enemies, to defeat and to despise the secret enterprises which were +formed against his life and dignity, were the cares which employed +the first days of the reign of the new emperor. Although he was firmly +resolved to maintain the station which he had assumed, he was still +desirous of saving his country from the calamities of civil war, of +declining a contest with the superior forces of Constantius, and +of preserving his own character from the reproach of perfidy and +ingratitude. Adorned with the ensigns of military and imperial pomp, +Julian showed himself in the field of Mars to the soldiers, who glowed +with ardent enthusiasm in the cause of their pupil, their leader, +and their friend. He recapitulated their victories, lamented their +sufferings, applauded their resolution, animated their hopes, and +checked their impetuosity; nor did he dismiss the assembly, till he had +obtained a solemn promise from the troops, that if the emperor of the +East would subscribe an equitable treaty, they would renounce any views +of conquest, and satisfy themselves with the tranquil possession of the +Gallic provinces. On this foundation he composed, in his own name, +and in that of the army, a specious and moderate epistle, which +was delivered to Pentadius, his master of the offices, and to his +chamberlain Eutherius; two ambassadors whom he appointed to receive the +answer, and observe the dispositions of Constantius. This epistle is +inscribed with the modest appellation of Cæsar; but Julian solicits in a +peremptory, though respectful, manner, the confirmation of the title of +Augustus. He acknowledges the irregularity of his own election, while +he justifies, in some measure, the resentment and violence of the troops +which had extorted his reluctant consent. He allows the supremacy of +his brother Constantius; and engages to send him an annual present of +Spanish horses, to recruit his army with a select number of barbarian +youths, and to accept from his choice a Prætorian præfect of approved +discretion and fidelity. But he reserves for himself the nomination of +his other civil and military officers, with the troops, the revenue, +and the sovereignty of the provinces beyond the Alps. He admonishes +the emperor to consult the dictates of justice; to distrust the arts of +those venal flatterers, who subsist only by the discord of princes; +and to embrace the offer of a fair and honorable treaty, equally +advantageous to the republic and to the house of Constantine. In this +negotiation Julian claimed no more than he already possessed. The +delegated authority which he had long exercised over the provinces of +Gaul, Spain, and Britain, was still obeyed under a name more independent +and august. The soldiers and the people rejoiced in a revolution which +was not stained even with the blood of the guilty. Florentius was a +fugitive; Lupicinus a prisoner. The persons who were disaffected to the +new government were disarmed and secured; and the vacant offices were +distributed, according to the recommendation of merit, by a prince who +despised the intrigues of the palace, and the clamors of the soldiers. + +The negotiations of peace were accompanied and supported by the most +vigorous preparations for war. The army, which Julian held in readiness +for immediate action, was recruited and augmented by the disorders +of the times. The cruel persecutions of the faction of Magnentius had +filled Gaul with numerous bands of outlaws and robbers. They cheerfully +accepted the offer of a general pardon from a prince whom they could +trust, submitted to the restraints of military discipline, and +retained only their implacable hatred to the person and government of +Constantius. As soon as the season of the year permitted Julian to take +the field, he appeared at the head of his legions; threw a bridge over +the Rhine in the neighborhood of Cleves; and prepared to chastise the +perfidy of the Attuarii, a tribe of Franks, who presumed that they +might ravage, with impunity, the frontiers of a divided empire. The +difficulty, as well as glory, of this enterprise, consisted in a +laborious march; and Julian had conquered, as soon as he could penetrate +into a country, which former princes had considered as inaccessible. +After he had given peace to the Barbarians, the emperor carefully +visited the fortifications along the Rhine from Cleves to Basil; +surveyed, with peculiar attention, the territories which he had +recovered from the hands of the Alemanni, passed through Besançon, which +had severely suffered from their fury, and fixed his headquarters at +Vienna for the ensuing winter. The barrier of Gaul was improved and +strengthened with additional fortifications; and Julian entertained some +hopes that the Germans, whom he had so often vanquished, might, in his +absence, be restrained by the terror of his name. Vadomair was the only +prince of the Alemanni whom he esteemed or feared and while the subtle +Barbarian affected to observe the faith of treaties, the progress of his +arms threatened the state with an unseasonable and dangerous war. The +policy of Julian condescended to surprise the prince of the Alemanni +by his own arts: and Vadomair, who, in the character of a friend, had +incautiously accepted an invitation from the Roman governors, was seized +in the midst of the entertainment, and sent away prisoner into the heart +of Spain. Before the Barbarians were recovered from their amazement, +the emperor appeared in arms on the banks of the Rhine, and, once more +crossing the river, renewed the deep impressions of terror and respect +which had been already made by four preceding expeditions. + + + +Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor.--Part II. + +The ambassadors of Julian had been instructed to execute, with the +utmost diligence, their important commission. But, in their passage +through Italy and Illyricum, they were detained by the tedious and +affected delays of the provincial governors; they were conducted by +slow journeys from Constantinople to Cæsarea in Cappadocia; and when +at length they were admitted to the presence of Constantius, they found +that he had already conceived, from the despatches of his own officers, +the most unfavorable opinion of the conduct of Julian, and of the Gallic +army. The letters were heard with impatience; the trembling messengers +were dismissed with indignation and contempt; and the looks, gestures, +the furious language of the monarch, expressed the disorder of his soul. +The domestic connection, which might have reconciled the brother and the +husband of Helena, was recently dissolved by the death of that princess, +whose pregnancy had been several times fruitless, and was at last fatal +to herself. The empress Eusebia had preserved, to the last moment of her +life, the warm, and even jealous, affection which she had conceived for +Julian; and her mild influence might have moderated the resentment of a +prince, who, since her death, was abandoned to his own passions, and to +the arts of his eunuchs. But the terror of a foreign invasion obliged +him to suspend the punishment of a private enemy: he continued his march +towards the confines of Persia, and thought it sufficient to signify the +conditions which might entitle Julian and his guilty followers to the +clemency of their offended sovereign. He required, that the presumptuous +Cæsar should expressly renounce the appellation and rank of Augustus, +which he had accepted from the rebels; that he should descend to his +former station of a limited and dependent minister; that he should vest +the powers of the state and army in the hands of those officers who were +appointed by the Imperial court; and that he should trust his safety to +the assurances of pardon, which were announced by Epictetus, a Gallic +bishop, and one of the Arian favorites of Constantius. Several months +were ineffectually consumed in a treaty which was negotiated at the +distance of three thousand miles between Paris and Antioch; and, as soon +as Julian perceived that his modest and respectful behavior served only +to irritate the pride of an implacable adversary, he boldly resolved +to commit his life and fortune to the chance of a civil war. He gave a +public and military audience to the quæstor Leonas: the haughty +epistle of Constantius was read to the attentive multitude; and Julian +protested, with the most flattering deference, that he was ready to +resign the title of Augustus, if he could obtain the consent of those +whom he acknowledged as the authors of his elevation. The faint proposal +was impetuously silenced; and the acclamations of "Julian Augustus, +continue to reign, by the authority of the army, of the people, of the +republic which you have saved," thundered at once from every part of the +field, and terrified the pale ambassador of Constantius. A part of +the letter was afterwards read, in which the emperor arraigned the +ingratitude of Julian, whom he had invested with the honors of the +purple; whom he had educated with so much care and tenderness; whom he +had preserved in his infancy, when he was left a helpless orphan. "An +orphan!" interrupted Julian, who justified his cause by indulging his +passions: "does the assassin of my family reproach me that I was left an +orphan? He urges me to revenge those injuries which I have long studied +to forget." The assembly was dismissed; and Leonas, who, with some +difficulty, had been protected from the popular fury, was sent back to +his master with an epistle, in which Julian expressed, in a strain of +the most vehement eloquence, the sentiments of contempt, of hatred, +and of resentment, which had been suppressed and imbittered by the +dissimulation of twenty years. After this message, which might be +considered as a signal of irreconcilable war, Julian, who, some weeks +before, had celebrated the Christian festival of the Epiphany, made +a public declaration that he committed the care of his safety to the +Immortal Gods; and thus publicly renounced the religion as well as the +friendship of Constantius. + +The situation of Julian required a vigorous and immediate resolution. +He had discovered, from intercepted letters, that his adversary, +sacrificing the interest of the state to that of the monarch, had again +excited the Barbarians to invade the provinces of the West. The position +of two magazines, one of them collected on the banks of the Lake of +Constance, the other formed at the foot of the Cottian Alps, seemed to +indicate the march of two armies; and the size of those magazines, each +of which consisted of six hundred thousand quarters of wheat, or rather +flour, was a threatening evidence of the strength and numbers of the +enemy who prepared to surround him. But the Imperial legions were still +in their distant quarters of Asia; the Danube was feebly guarded; and if +Julian could occupy, by a sudden incursion, the important provinces of +Illyricum, he might expect that a people of soldiers would resort to his +standard, and that the rich mines of gold and silver would contribute to +the expenses of the civil war. He proposed this bold enterprise to the +assembly of the soldiers; inspired them with a just confidence in +their general, and in themselves; and exhorted them to maintain +their reputation of being terrible to the enemy, moderate to their +fellow-citizens, and obedient to their officers. His spirited discourse +was received with the loudest acclamations, and the same troops which +had taken up arms against Constantius, when he summoned them to leave +Gaul, now declared with alacrity, that they would follow Julian to +the farthest extremities of Europe or Asia. The oath of fidelity was +administered; and the soldiers, clashing their shields, and pointing +their drawn swords to their throats, devoted themselves, with horrid +imprecations, to the service of a leader whom they celebrated as +the deliverer of Gaul and the conqueror of the Germans. This solemn +engagement, which seemed to be dictated by affection rather than by +duty, was singly opposed by Nebridius, who had been admitted to +the office of Prætorian præfect. That faithful minister, alone and +unassisted, asserted the rights of Constantius, in the midst of an armed +and angry multitude, to whose fury he had almost fallen an honorable, +but useless sacrifice. After losing one of his hands by the stroke of a +sword, he embraced the knees of the prince whom he had offended. Julian +covered the præfect with his Imperial mantle, and, protecting him from +the zeal of his followers, dismissed him to his own house, with less +respect than was perhaps due to the virtue of an enemy. The high office +of Nebridius was bestowed on Sallust; and the provinces of Gaul, which +were now delivered from the intolerable oppression of taxes, enjoyed +the mild and equitable administration of the friend of Julian, who was +permitted to practise those virtues which he had instilled into the mind +of his pupil. + +The hopes of Julian depended much less on the number of his troops, than +on the celerity of his motions. In the execution of a daring enterprise, +he availed himself of every precaution, as far as prudence could +suggest; and where prudence could no longer accompany his steps, he +trusted the event to valor and to fortune. In the neighborhood of Basil +he assembled and divided his army. One body, which consisted of ten +thousand men, was directed under the command of Nevitta, general of the +cavalry, to advance through the midland parts of Rhætia and Noricum. +A similar division of troops, under the orders of Jovius and Jovinus, +prepared to follow the oblique course of the highways, through the Alps, +and the northern confines of Italy. The instructions to the generals +were conceived with energy and precision: to hasten their march in close +and compact columns, which, according to the disposition of the ground, +might readily be changed into any order of battle; to secure themselves +against the surprises of the night by strong posts and vigilant guards; +to prevent resistance by their unexpected arrival; to elude examination +by their sudden departure; to spread the opinion of their strength, and +the terror of his name; and to join their sovereign under the walls +of Sirmium. For himself Julian had reserved a more difficult and +extraordinary part. He selected three thousand brave and active +volunteers, resolved, like their leader, to cast behind them every hope +of a retreat; at the head of this faithful band, he fearlessly plunged +into the recesses of the Marcian, or Black Forest, which conceals +the sources of the Danube; and, for many days, the fate of Julian was +unknown to the world. The secrecy of his march, his diligence, and +vigor, surmounted every obstacle; he forced his way over mountains and +morasses, occupied the bridges or swam the rivers, pursued his direct +course, without reflecting whether he traversed the territory of the +Romans or of the Barbarians, and at length emerged, between Ratisbon +and Vienna, at the place where he designed to embark his troops on +the Danube. By a well-concerted stratagem, he seized a fleet of light +brigantines, as it lay at anchor; secured a apply of coarse provisions +sufficient to satisfy the indelicate, and voracious, appetite of a +Gallic army; and boldly committed himself to the stream of the Danube. +The labors of the mariners, who plied their oars with incessant +diligence, and the steady continuance of a favorable wind, carried +his fleet above seven hundred miles in eleven days; and he had already +disembarked his troops at Bononia, * only nineteen miles from Sirmium, +before his enemies could receive any certain intelligence that he +had left the banks of the Rhine. In the course of this long and +rapid navigation, the mind of Julian was fixed on the object of his +enterprise; and though he accepted the deputations of some cities, which +hastened to claim the merit of an early submission, he passed before the +hostile stations, which were placed along the river, without indulging +the temptation of signalizing a useless and ill-timed valor. The banks +of the Danube were crowded on either side with spectators, who gazed on +the military pomp, anticipated the importance of the event, and diffused +through the adjacent country the fame of a young hero, who advanced +with more than mortal speed at the head of the innumerable forces of the +West. Lucilian, who, with the rank of general of the cavalry, commanded +the military powers of Illyricum, was alarmed and perplexed by the +doubtful reports, which he could neither reject nor believe. He had +taken some slow and irresolute measures for the purpose of collecting +his troops, when he was surprised by Dagalaiphus, an active officer, +whom Julian, as soon as he landed at Bononia, had pushed forwards with +some light infantry. The captive general, uncertain of his life or +death, was hastily thrown upon a horse, and conducted to the presence of +Julian; who kindly raised him from the ground, and dispelled the terror +and amazement which seemed to stupefy his faculties. But Lucilian had no +sooner recovered his spirits, than he betrayed his want of discretion, +by presuming to admonish his conqueror that he had rashly ventured, +with a handful of men, to expose his person in the midst of his enemies. +"Reserve for your master Constantius these timid remonstrances," replied +Julian, with a smile of contempt: "when I gave you my purple to kiss, +I received you not as a counsellor, but as a suppliant." Conscious that +success alone could justify his attempt, and that boldness only could +command success, he instantly advanced, at the head of three thousand +soldiers, to attack the strongest and most populous city of the Illyrian +provinces. As he entered the long suburb of Sirmium, he was received +by the joyful acclamations of the army and people; who, crowned with +flowers, and holding lighted tapers in their hands, conducted their +acknowledged sovereign to his Imperial residence. Two days were devoted +to the public joy, which was celebrated by the games of the circus; +but, early on the morning of the third day, Julian marched to occupy the +narrow pass of Succi, in the defiles of Mount Hæmus; which, almost in +the midway between Sirmium and Constantinople, separates the provinces +of Thrace and Dacia, by an abrupt descent towards the former, and +a gentle declivity on the side of the latter. The defence of this +important post was intrusted to the brave Nevitta; who, as well as the +generals of the Italian division, successfully executed the plan of the +march and junction which their master had so ably conceived. + +The homage which Julian obtained, from the fears or the inclination of +the people, extended far beyond the immediate effect of his arms. The +præfectures of Italy and Illyricum were administered by Taurus and +Florentius, who united that important office with the vain honors of the +consulship; and as those magistrates had retired with precipitation to +the court of Asia, Julian, who could not always restrain the levity of +his temper, stigmatized their flight by adding, in all the Acts of +the Year, the epithet of fugitive to the names of the two consuls. +The provinces which had been deserted by their first magistrates +acknowledged the authority of an emperor, who, conciliating the +qualities of a soldier with those of a philosopher, was equally admired +in the camps of the Danube and in the cities of Greece. From his palace, +or, more properly, from his head-quarters of Sirmium and Naissus, he +distributed to the principal cities of the empire, a labored apology +for his own conduct; published the secret despatches of Constantius; and +solicited the judgment of mankind between two competitors, the one of +whom had expelled, and the other had invited, the Barbarians. Julian, +whose mind was deeply wounded by the reproach of ingratitude, aspired +to maintain, by argument as well as by arms, the superior merits of +his cause; and to excel, not only in the arts of war, but in those of +composition. His epistle to the senate and people of Athens seems to +have been dictated by an elegant enthusiasm; which prompted him to +submit his actions and his motives to the degenerate Athenians of his +own times, with the same humble deference as if he had been pleading, +in the days of Aristides, before the tribunal of the Areopagus. His +application to the senate of Rome, which was still permitted to bestow +the titles of Imperial power, was agreeable to the forms of the expiring +republic. An assembly was summoned by Tertullus, præfect of the city; +the epistle of Julian was read; and, as he appeared to be master of +Italy his claims were admitted without a dissenting voice. His oblique +censure of the innovations of Constantine, and his passionate invective +against the vices of Constantius, were heard with less satisfaction; +and the senate, as if Julian had been present, unanimously exclaimed, +"Respect, we beseech you, the author of your own fortune." An artful +expression, which, according to the chance of war, might be differently +explained; as a manly reproof of the ingratitude of the usurper, or as +a flattering confession, that a single act of such benefit to the state +ought to atone for all the failings of Constantius. + +The intelligence of the march and rapid progress of Julian was speedily +transmitted to his rival, who, by the retreat of Sapor, had obtained +some respite from the Persian war. Disguising the anguish of his soul +under the semblance of contempt, Constantius professed his intention of +returning into Europe, and of giving chase to Julian; for he never spoke +of his military expedition in any other light than that of a hunting +party. In the camp of Hierapolis, in Syria, he communicated this design +to his army; slightly mentioned the guilt and rashness of the Cæsar; and +ventured to assure them, that if the mutineers of Gaul presumed to meet +them in the field, they would be unable to sustain the fire of their +eyes, and the irresistible weight of their shout of onset. The speech +of the emperor was received with military applause, and Theodotus, +the president of the council of Hierapolis, requested, with tears +of adulation, that his city might be adorned with the head of +the vanquished rebel. A chosen detachment was despatched away in +post-wagons, to secure, if it were yet possible, the pass of Succi; +the recruits, the horses, the arms, and the magazines, which had been +prepared against Sapor, were appropriated to the service of the civil +war; and the domestic victories of Constantius inspired his partisans +with the most sanguine assurances of success. The notary Gaudentius had +occupied in his name the provinces of Africa; the subsistence of +Rome was intercepted; and the distress of Julian was increased by +an unexpected event, which might have been productive of fatal +consequences. Julian had received the submission of two legions and a +cohort of archers, who were stationed at Sirmium; but he suspected, with +reason, the fidelity of those troops which had been distinguished by the +emperor; and it was thought expedient, under the pretence of the exposed +state of the Gallic frontier, to dismiss them from the most important +scene of action. They advanced, with reluctance, as far as the confines +of Italy; but as they dreaded the length of the way, and the savage +fierceness of the Germans, they resolved, by the instigation of one +of their tribunes, to halt at Aquileia, and to erect the banners of +Constantius on the walls of that impregnable city. The vigilance of +Julian perceived at once the extent of the mischief, and the necessity +of applying an immediate remedy. By his order, Jovinus led back a +part of the army into Italy; and the siege of Aquileia was formed with +diligence, and prosecuted with vigor. But the legionaries, who seemed to +have rejected the yoke of discipline, conducted the defence of the place +with skill and perseverance; invited the rest of Italy to imitate the +example of their courage and loyalty; and threatened the retreat of +Julian, if he should be forced to yield to the superior numbers of the +armies of the East. + +But the humanity of Julian was preserved from the cruel alternative +which he pathetically laments, of destroying or of being himself +destroyed: and the seasonable death of Constantius delivered the Roman +empire from the calamities of civil war. The approach of winter could +not detain the monarch at Antioch; and his favorites durst not oppose +his impatient desire of revenge. A slight fever, which was perhaps +occasioned by the agitation of his spirits, was increased by the +fatigues of the journey; and Constantius was obliged to halt at the +little town of Mopsucrene, twelve miles beyond Tarsus, where he expired, +after a short illness, in the forty-fifth year of his age, and the +twenty-fourth of his reign. His genuine character, which was composed +of pride and weakness, of superstition and cruelty, has been fully +displayed in the preceding narrative of civil and ecclesiastical events. +The long abuse of power rendered him a considerable object in the eyes +of his contemporaries; but as personal merit can alone deserve the +notice of posterity, the last of the sons of Constantine may be +dismissed from the world, with the remark, that he inherited the +defects, without the abilities, of his father. Before Constantius +expired, he is said to have named Julian for his successor; nor does it +seem improbable, that his anxious concern for the fate of a young and +tender wife, whom he left with child, may have prevailed, in his last +moments, over the harsher passions of hatred and revenge. Eusebius, and +his guilty associates, made a faint attempt to prolong the reign of the +eunuchs, by the election of another emperor; but their intrigues were +rejected with disdain, by an army which now abhorred the thought of +civil discord; and two officers of rank were instantly despatched, to +assure Julian, that every sword in the empire would be drawn for his +service. The military designs of that prince, who had formed three +different attacks against Thrace, were prevented by this fortunate +event. Without shedding the blood of his fellow-citizens, he escaped +the dangers of a doubtful conflict, and acquired the advantages of a +complete victory. Impatient to visit the place of his birth, and the new +capital of the empire, he advanced from Naissus through the mountains +of Hæmus, and the cities of Thrace. When he reached Heraclea, at the +distance of sixty miles, all Constantinople was poured forth to receive +him; and he made his triumphal entry amidst the dutiful acclamations +of the soldiers, the people, and the senate. At innumerable multitude +pressed around him with eager respect and were perhaps disappointed +when they beheld the small stature and simple garb of a hero, whose +unexperienced youth had vanquished the Barbarians of Germany, and +who had now traversed, in a successful career, the whole continent of +Europe, from the shores of the Atlantic to those of the Bosphorus. A few +days afterwards, when the remains of the deceased emperor were landed +in the harbor, the subjects of Julian applauded the real or affected +humanity of their sovereign. On foot, without his diadem, and clothed in +a mourning habit, he accompanied the funeral as far as the church of +the Holy Apostles, where the body was deposited: and if these marks of +respect may be interpreted as a selfish tribute to the birth and dignity +of his Imperial kinsman, the tears of Julian professed to the world that +he had forgot the injuries, and remembered only the obligations, which +he had received from Constantius. As soon as the legions of Aquileia +were assured of the death of the emperor, they opened the gates of the +city, and, by the sacrifice of their guilty leaders, obtained an easy +pardon from the prudence or lenity of Julian; who, in the thirty-second +year of his age, acquired the undisputed possession of the Roman empire. + + + +Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor.--Part III. + +Philosophy had instructed Julian to compare the advantages of action +and retirement; but the elevation of his birth, and the accidents of +his life, never allowed him the freedom of choice. He might perhaps +sincerely have preferred the groves of the academy, and the society of +Athens; but he was constrained, at first by the will, and afterwards +by the injustice, of Constantius, to expose his person and fame to the +dangers of Imperial greatness; and to make himself accountable to +the world, and to posterity, for the happiness of millions. Julian +recollected with terror the observation of his master Plato, that the +government of our flocks and herds is always committed to beings of a +superior species; and that the conduct of nations requires and deserves +the celestial powers of the gods or of the genii. From this principle he +justly concluded, that the man who presumes to reign, should aspire to +the perfection of the divine nature; that he should purify his soul +from her mortal and terrestrial part; that he should extinguish his +appetites, enlighten his understanding, regulate his passions, and +subdue the wild beast, which, according to the lively metaphor of +Aristotle, seldom fails to ascend the throne of a despot. The throne of +Julian, which the death of Constantius fixed on an independent basis, +was the seat of reason, of virtue, and perhaps of vanity. He despised +the honors, renounced the pleasures, and discharged with incessant +diligence the duties, of his exalted station; and there were few among +his subjects who would have consented to relieve him from the weight of +the diadem, had they been obliged to submit their time and their actions +to the rigorous laws which that philosophic emperor imposed on himself. +One of his most intimate friends, who had often shared the frugal +simplicity of his table, has remarked, that his light and sparing diet +(which was usually of the vegetable kind) left his mind and body always +free and active, for the various and important business of an author, a +pontiff, a magistrate, a general, and a prince. In one and the same day, +he gave audience to several ambassadors, and wrote, or dictated, a great +number of letters to his generals, his civil magistrates, his private +friends, and the different cities of his dominions. He listened to +the memorials which had been received, considered the subject of the +petitions, and signified his intentions more rapidly than they could be +taken in short-hand by the diligence of his secretaries. He possessed +such flexibility of thought, and such firmness of attention, that he +could employ his hand to write, his ear to listen, and his voice to +dictate; and pursue at once three several trains of ideas without +hesitation, and without error. While his ministers reposed, the prince +flew with agility from one labor to another, and, after a hasty dinner, +retired into his library, till the public business, which he had +appointed for the evening, summoned him to interrupt the prosecution of +his studies. The supper of the emperor was still less substantial +than the former meal; his sleep was never clouded by the fumes of +indigestion; and except in the short interval of a marriage, which was +the effect of policy rather than love, the chaste Julian never shared +his bed with a female companion. He was soon awakened by the entrance +of fresh secretaries, who had slept the preceding day; and his servants +were obliged to wait alternately while their indefatigable master +allowed himself scarcely any other refreshment than the change of +occupation. The predecessors of Julian, his uncle, his brother, and his +cousin, indulged their puerile taste for the games of the Circus, under +the specious pretence of complying with the inclinations of the people; +and they frequently remained the greatest part of the day as idle +spectators, and as a part of the splendid spectacle, till the ordinary +round of twenty-four races was completely finished. On solemn festivals, +Julian, who felt and professed an unfashionable dislike to these +frivolous amusements, condescended to appear in the Circus; and after +bestowing a careless glance at five or six of the races, he hastily +withdrew with the impatience of a philosopher, who considered every +moment as lost that was not devoted to the advantage of the public or +the improvement of his own mind. By this avarice of time, he seemed to +protract the short duration of his reign; and if the dates were less +securely ascertained, we should refuse to believe, that only sixteen +months elapsed between the death of Constantius and the departure of +his successor for the Persian war. The actions of Julian can only +be preserved by the care of the historian; but the portion of his +voluminous writings, which is still extant, remains as a monument of the +application, as well as of the genius, of the emperor. The Misopogon, +the Cæsars, several of his orations, and his elaborate work against the +Christian religion, were composed in the long nights of the two winters, +the former of which he passed at Constantinople, and the latter at +Antioch. + +The reformation of the Imperial court was one of the first and most +necessary acts of the government of Julian. Soon after his entrance +into the palace of Constantinople, he had occasion for the service of +a barber. An officer, magnificently dressed, immediately presented +himself. "It is a barber," exclaimed the prince, with affected surprise, +"that I want, and not a receiver-general of the finances." He questioned +the man concerning the profits of his employment and was informed, that +besides a large salary, and some valuable perquisites, he enjoyed a +daily allowance for twenty servants, and as many horses. A thousand +barbers, a thousand cup-bearers, a thousand cooks, were distributed +in the several offices of luxury; and the number of eunuchs could +be compared only with the insects of a summer's day. The monarch who +resigned to his subjects the superiority of merit and virtue, was +distinguished by the oppressive magnificence of his dress, his table, +his buildings, and his train. The stately palaces erected by Constantine +and his sons, were decorated with many colored marbles, and ornaments of +massy gold. The most exquisite dainties were procured, to gratify their +pride, rather than their taste; birds of the most distant climates, fish +from the most remote seas, fruits out of their natural season, winter +roses, and summer snows. The domestic crowd of the palace surpassed the +expense of the legions; yet the smallest part of this costly multitude +was subservient to the use, or even to the splendor, of the throne. The +monarch was disgraced, and the people was injured, by the creation and +sale of an infinite number of obscure, and even titular employments; +and the most worthless of mankind might purchase the privilege of being +maintained, without the necessity of labor, from the public revenue. The +waste of an enormous household, the increase of fees and perquisites, +which were soon claimed as a lawful debt, and the bribes which they +extorted from those who feared their enmity, or solicited their favor, +suddenly enriched these haughty menials. They abused their fortune, +without considering their past, or their future, condition; and their +rapine and venality could be equalled only by the extravagance of their +dissipations. Their silken robes were embroidered with gold, their +tables were served with delicacy and profusion; the houses which they +built for their own use, would have covered the farm of an ancient +consul; and the most honorable citizens were obliged to dismount from +their horses, and respectfully to salute a eunuch whom they met on +the public highway. The luxury of the palace excited the contempt and +indignation of Julian, who usually slept on the ground, who yielded +with reluctance to the indispensable calls of nature; and who placed his +vanity, not in emulating, but in despising, the pomp of royalty. + +By the total extirpation of a mischief which was magnified even beyond +its real extent, he was impatient to relieve the distress, and to +appease the murmurs of the people; who support with less uneasiness the +weight of taxes, if they are convinced that the fruits of their industry +are appropriated to the service of the state. But in the execution of +this salutary work, Julian is accused of proceeding with too much haste +and inconsiderate severity. By a single edict, he reduced the palace +of Constantinople to an immense desert, and dismissed with ignominy the +whole train of slaves and dependants, without providing any just, or at +least benevolent, exceptions, for the age, the services, or the poverty, +of the faithful domestics of the Imperial family. Such indeed was +the temper of Julian, who seldom recollected the fundamental maxim of +Aristotle, that true virtue is placed at an equal distance between the +opposite vices. The splendid and effeminate dress of the Asiatics, +the curls and paint, the collars and bracelets, which had appeared so +ridiculous in the person of Constantine, were consistently rejected by +his philosophic successor. But with the fopperies, Julian affected to +renounce the decencies of dress; and seemed to value himself for his +neglect of the laws of cleanliness. In a satirical performance, which +was designed for the public eye, the emperor descants with pleasure, and +even with pride, on the length of his nails, and the inky blackness of +his hands; protests, that although the greatest part of his body was +covered with hair, the use of the razor was confined to his head alone; +and celebrates, with visible complacency, the shaggy and populous beard, +which he fondly cherished, after the example of the philosophers of +Greece. Had Julian consulted the simple dictates of reason, the first +magistrate of the Romans would have scorned the affectation of Diogenes, +as well as that of Darius. + +But the work of public reformation would have remained imperfect, if +Julian had only corrected the abuses, without punishing the crimes, of +his predecessor's reign. "We are now delivered," says he, in a familiar +letter to one of his intimate friends, "we are now surprisingly +delivered from the voracious jaws of the Hydra. I do not mean to apply +the epithet to my brother Constantius. He is no more; may the earth lie +light on his head! But his artful and cruel favorites studied to deceive +and exasperate a prince, whose natural mildness cannot be praised +without some efforts of adulation. It is not, however, my intention, +that even those men should be oppressed: they are accused, and they +shall enjoy the benefit of a fair and impartial trial." To conduct this +inquiry, Julian named six judges of the highest rank in the state and +army; and as he wished to escape the reproach of condemning his personal +enemies, he fixed this extraordinary tribunal at Chalcedon, on the +Asiatic side of the Bosphorus; and transferred to the commissioners an +absolute power to pronounce and execute their final sentence, without +delay, and without appeal. The office of president was exercised by +the venerable præfect of the East, a second Sallust, whose virtues +conciliated the esteem of Greek sophists, and of Christian bishops. He +was assisted by the eloquent Mamertinus, one of the consuls elect, whose +merit is loudly celebrated by the doubtful evidence of his own applause. +But the civil wisdom of two magistrates was overbalanced by the +ferocious violence of four generals, Nevitta, Agilo, Jovinus, and +Arbetio. Arbetio, whom the public would have seen with less surprise +at the bar than on the bench, was supposed to possess the secret of +the commission; the armed and angry leaders of the Jovian and Herculian +bands encompassed the tribunal; and the judges were alternately swayed +by the laws of justice, and by the clamors of faction. + +The chamberlain Eusebius, who had so long abused the favor of +Constantius, expiated, by an ignominious death, the insolence, the +corruption, and cruelty of his servile reign. The executions of Paul +and Apodemius (the former of whom was burnt alive) were accepted as +an inadequate atonement by the widows and orphans of so many hundred +Romans, whom those legal tyrants had betrayed and murdered. But justice +herself (if we may use the pathetic expression of Ammianus ) appeared +to weep over the fate of Ursulus, the treasurer of the empire; and +his blood accused the ingratitude of Julian, whose distress had been +seasonably relieved by the intrepid liberality of that honest minister. +The rage of the soldiers, whom he had provoked by his indiscretion, was +the cause and the excuse of his death; and the emperor, deeply wounded +by his own reproaches and those of the public, offered some consolation +to the family of Ursulus, by the restitution of his confiscated +fortunes. Before the end of the year in which they had been adorned with +the ensigns of the prefecture and consulship, Taurus and Florentius were +reduced to implore the clemency of the inexorable tribunal of Chalcedon. +The former was banished to Vercellæ in Italy, and a sentence of death +was pronounced against the latter. A wise prince should have rewarded +the crime of Taurus: the faithful minister, when he was no longer able +to oppose the progress of a rebel, had taken refuge in the court of +his benefactor and his lawful sovereign. But the guilt of Florentius +justified the severity of the judges; and his escape served to display +the magnanimity of Julian, who nobly checked the interested diligence +of an informer, and refused to learn what place concealed the wretched +fugitive from his just resentment. Some months after the tribunal of +Chalcedon had been dissolved, the prætorian vicegerent of Africa, the +notary Gaudentius, and Artemius duke of Egypt, were executed at Antioch. +Artemius had reigned the cruel and corrupt tyrant of a great province; +Gaudentius had long practised the arts of calumny against the +innocent, the virtuous, and even the person of Julian himself. Yet +the circumstances of their trial and condemnation were so unskillfully +managed, that these wicked men obtained, in the public opinion, the +glory of suffering for the obstinate loyalty with which they had +supported the cause of Constantius. The rest of his servants were +protected by a general act of oblivion; and they were left to enjoy +with impunity the bribes which they had accepted, either to defend the +oppressed, or to oppress the friendless. This measure, which, on the +soundest principles of policy, may deserve our approbation, was executed +in a manner which seemed to degrade the majesty of the throne. Julian +was tormented by the importunities of a multitude, particularly of +Egyptians, who loudly redemanded the gifts which they had imprudently +or illegally bestowed; he foresaw the endless prosecution of vexatious +suits; and he engaged a promise, which ought always to have been sacred, +that if they would repair to Chalcedon, he would meet them in person, to +hear and determine their complaints. But as soon as they were landed, +he issued an absolute order, which prohibited the watermen from +transporting any Egyptian to Constantinople; and thus detained his +disappointed clients on the Asiatic shore till, their patience and money +being utterly exhausted, they were obliged to return with indignant +murmurs to their native country. + + + +Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor.--Part IV. + +The numerous army of spies, of agents, and informers enlisted by +Constantius to secure the repose of one man, and to interrupt that of +millions, was immediately disbanded by his generous successor. Julian +was slow in his suspicions, and gentle in his punishments; and his +contempt of treason was the result of judgment, of vanity, and of +courage. Conscious of superior merit, he was persuaded that few among +his subjects would dare to meet him in the field, to attempt his life, +or even to seat themselves on his vacant throne. The philosopher could +excuse the hasty sallies of discontent; and the hero could despise the +ambitious projects which surpassed the fortune or the abilities of the +rash conspirators. A citizen of Ancyra had prepared for his own use a +purple garment; and this indiscreet action, which, under the reign +of Constantius, would have been considered as a capital offence, was +reported to Julian by the officious importunity of a private enemy. The +monarch, after making some inquiry into the rank and character of +his rival, despatched the informer with a present of a pair of purple +slippers, to complete the magnificence of his Imperial habit. A more +dangerous conspiracy was formed by ten of the domestic guards, who had +resolved to assassinate Julian in the field of exercise near Antioch. +Their intemperance revealed their guilt; and they were conducted in +chains to the presence of their injured sovereign, who, after a lively +representation of the wickedness and folly of their enterprise, instead +of a death of torture, which they deserved and expected, pronounced a +sentence of exile against the two principal offenders. The only instance +in which Julian seemed to depart from his accustomed clemency, was the +execution of a rash youth, who, with a feeble hand, had aspired to +seize the reins of empire. But that youth was the son of Marcellus, the +general of cavalry, who, in the first campaign of the Gallic war, had +deserted the standard of the Cæsar and the republic. Without appearing +to indulge his personal resentment, Julian might easily confound +the crime of the son and of the father; but he was reconciled by the +distress of Marcellus, and the liberality of the emperor endeavored to +heal the wound which had been inflicted by the hand of justice. + +Julian was not insensible of the advantages of freedom. From his studies +he had imbibed the spirit of ancient sages and heroes; his life and +fortunes had depended on the caprice of a tyrant; and when he ascended +the throne, his pride was sometimes mortified by the reflection, that +the slaves who would not dare to censure his defects were not worthy +to applaud his virtues. He sincerely abhorred the system of Oriental +despotism, which Diocletian, Constantine, and the patient habits of +fourscore years, had established in the empire. A motive of superstition +prevented the execution of the design, which Julian had frequently +meditated, of relieving his head from the weight of a costly diadem; but +he absolutely refused the title of Dominus, or Lord, a word which +was grown so familiar to the ears of the Romans, that they no longer +remembered its servile and humiliating origin. The office, or rather +the name, of consul, was cherished by a prince who contemplated with +reverence the ruins of the republic; and the same behavior which had +been assumed by the prudence of Augustus was adopted by Julian from +choice and inclination. On the calends of January, at break of day, the +new consuls, Mamertinus and Nevitta, hastened to the palace to salute +the emperor. As soon as he was informed of their approach, he leaped +from his throne, eagerly advanced to meet them, and compelled the +blushing magistrates to receive the demonstrations of his affected +humility. From the palace they proceeded to the senate. The emperor, on +foot, marched before their litters; and the gazing multitude admired the +image of ancient times, or secretly blamed a conduct, which, in their +eyes, degraded the majesty of the purple. But the behavior of Julian was +uniformly supported. During the games of the Circus, he had, imprudently +or designedly, performed the manumission of a slave in the presence of +the consul. The moment he was reminded that he had trespassed on the +jurisdiction of another magistrate, he condemned himself to pay a fine +of ten pounds of gold; and embraced this public occasion of declaring to +the world, that he was subject, like the rest of his fellow-citizens, +to the laws, and even to the forms, of the republic. The spirit of his +administration, and his regard for the place of his nativity, induced +Julian to confer on the senate of Constantinople the same honors, +privileges, and authority, which were still enjoyed by the senate of +ancient Rome. A legal fiction was introduced, and gradually established, +that one half of the national council had migrated into the East; and +the despotic successors of Julian, accepting the title of Senators, +acknowledged themselves the members of a respectable body, which +was permitted to represent the majesty of the Roman name. From +Constantinople, the attention of the monarch was extended to the +municipal senates of the provinces. He abolished, by repeated edicts, +the unjust and pernicious exemptions which had withdrawn so many idle +citizens from the services of their country; and by imposing an equal +distribution of public duties, he restored the strength, the splendor, +or, according to the glowing expression of Libanius, the soul of the +expiring cities of his empire. The venerable age of Greece excited the +most tender compassion in the mind of Julian, which kindled into rapture +when he recollected the gods, the heroes, and the men superior to heroes +and to gods, who have bequeathed to the latest posterity the monuments +of their genius, or the example of their virtues. He relieved the +distress, and restored the beauty, of the cities of Epirus and +Peloponnesus. Athens acknowledged him for her benefactor; Argos, for her +deliverer. The pride of Corinth, again rising from her ruins with the +honors of a Roman colony, exacted a tribute from the adjacent republics, +for the purpose of defraying the games of the Isthmus, which were +celebrated in the amphitheatre with the hunting of bears and panthers. +From this tribute the cities of Elis, of Delphi, and of Argos, which had +inherited from their remote ancestors the sacred office of perpetuating +the Olympic, the Pythian, and the Nemean games, claimed a just +exemption. The immunity of Elis and Delphi was respected by the +Corinthians; but the poverty of Argos tempted the insolence of +oppression; and the feeble complaints of its deputies were silenced by +the decree of a provincial magistrate, who seems to have consulted only +the interest of the capital in which he resided. Seven years after +this sentence, Julian allowed the cause to be referred to a superior +tribunal; and his eloquence was interposed, most probably with success, +in the defence of a city, which had been the royal seat of Agamemnon, +and had given to Macedonia a race of kings and conquerors. + +The laborious administration of military and civil affairs, which were +multiplied in proportion to the extent of the empire, exercised the +abilities of Julian; but he frequently assumed the two characters of +Orator and of Judge, which are almost unknown to the modern sovereigns +of Europe. The arts of persuasion, so diligently cultivated by the first +Cæsars, were neglected by the military ignorance and Asiatic pride of +their successors; and if they condescended to harangue the soldiers, +whom they feared, they treated with silent disdain the senators, whom +they despised. The assemblies of the senate, which Constantius had +avoided, were considered by Julian as the place where he could exhibit, +with the most propriety, the maxims of a republican, and the talents of +a rhetorician. He alternately practised, as in a school of declamation, +the several modes of praise, of censure, of exhortation; and his friend +Libanius has remarked, that the study of Homer taught him to imitate +the simple, concise style of Menelaus, the copiousness of Nestor, whose +words descended like the flakes of a winter's snow, or the pathetic +and forcible eloquence of Ulysses. The functions of a judge, which are +sometimes incompatible with those of a prince, were exercised by Julian, +not only as a duty, but as an amusement; and although he might have +trusted the integrity and discernment of his Prætorian præfects, he +often placed himself by their side on the seat of judgment. The +acute penetration of his mind was agreeably occupied in detecting and +defeating the chicanery of the advocates, who labored to disguise the +truths of facts, and to pervert the sense of the laws. He sometimes +forgot the gravity of his station, asked indiscreet or unseasonable +questions, and betrayed, by the loudness of his voice, and the agitation +of his body, the earnest vehemence with which he maintained his opinion +against the judges, the advocates, and their clients. But his knowledge +of his own temper prompted him to encourage, and even to solicit, the +reproof of his friends and ministers; and whenever they ventured to +oppose the irregular sallies of his passions, the spectators could +observe the shame, as well as the gratitude, of their monarch. The +decrees of Julian were almost always founded on the principles of +justice; and he had the firmness to resist the two most dangerous +temptations, which assault the tribunal of a sovereign, under the +specious forms of compassion and equity. He decided the merits of the +cause without weighing the circumstances of the parties; and the poor, +whom he wished to relieve, were condemned to satisfy the just demands of +a wealthy and noble adversary. He carefully distinguished the judge from +the legislator; and though he meditated a necessary reformation of the +Roman jurisprudence, he pronounced sentence according to the strict and +literal interpretation of those laws, which the magistrates were bound +to execute, and the subjects to obey. + +The generality of princes, if they were stripped of their purple, and +cast naked into the world, would immediately sink to the lowest rank +of society, without a hope of emerging from their obscurity. But the +personal merit of Julian was, in some measure, independent of his +fortune. Whatever had been his choice of life, by the force of intrepid +courage, lively wit, and intense application, he would have obtained, or +at least he would have deserved, the highest honors of his profession; +and Julian might have raised himself to the rank of minister, or +general, of the state in which he was born a private citizen. If the +jealous caprice of power had disappointed his expectations, if he had +prudently declined the paths of greatness, the employment of the same +talents in studious solitude would have placed beyond the reach of +kings his present happiness and his immortal fame. When we inspect, +with minute, or perhaps malevolent attention, the portrait of Julian, +something seems wanting to the grace and perfection of the whole figure. +His genius was less powerful and sublime than that of Cæsar; nor did +he possess the consummate prudence of Augustus. The virtues of Trajan +appear more steady and natural, and the philosophy of Marcus is more +simple and consistent. Yet Julian sustained adversity with firmness, and +prosperity with moderation. After an interval of one hundred and twenty +years from the death of Alexander Severus, the Romans beheld an emperor +who made no distinction between his duties and his pleasures; who +labored to relieve the distress, and to revive the spirit, of his +subjects; and who endeavored always to connect authority with merit, +and happiness with virtue. Even faction, and religious faction, was +constrained to acknowledge the superiority of his genius, in peace as +well as in war, and to confess, with a sigh, that the apostate Julian +was a lover of his country, and that he deserved the empire of the +world. + + + +Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.--Part I. + + The Religion Of Julian.--Universal Toleration.--He Attempts + To Restore And Reform The Pagan Worship--To Rebuild The + Temple Of Jerusalem--His Artful Persecution Of The + Christians.--Mutual Zeal And Injustice. + +The character of Apostate has injured the reputation of Julian; and +the enthusiasm which clouded his virtues has exaggerated the real and +apparent magnitude of his faults. Our partial ignorance may represent +him as a philosophic monarch, who studied to protect, with an equal +hand, the religious factions of the empire; and to allay the theological +fever which had inflamed the minds of the people, from the edicts of +Diocletian to the exile of Athanasius. A more accurate view of the +character and conduct of Julian will remove this favorable prepossession +for a prince who did not escape the general contagion of the times. We +enjoy the singular advantage of comparing the pictures which have been +delineated by his fondest admirers and his implacable enemies. The +actions of Julian are faithfully related by a judicious and candid +historian, the impartial spectator of his life and death. The unanimous +evidence of his contemporaries is confirmed by the public and private +declarations of the emperor himself; and his various writings express +the uniform tenor of his religious sentiments, which policy would have +prompted him to dissemble rather than to affect. A devout and sincere +attachment for the gods of Athens and Rome constituted the ruling +passion of Julian; the powers of an enlightened understanding were +betrayed and corrupted by the influence of superstitious prejudice; and +the phantoms which existed only in the mind of the emperor had a real +and pernicious effect on the government of the empire. The vehement zeal +of the Christians, who despised the worship, and overturned the +altars of those fabulous deities, engaged their votary in a state of +irreconcilable hostility with a very numerous party of his subjects; +and he was sometimes tempted by the desire of victory, or the shame of +a repulse, to violate the laws of prudence, and even of justice. The +triumph of the party, which he deserted and opposed, has fixed a stain +of infamy on the name of Julian; and the unsuccessful apostate has been +overwhelmed with a torrent of pious invectives, of which the signal +was given by the sonorous trumpet of Gregory Nazianzen. The interesting +nature of the events which were crowded into the short reign of this +active emperor, deserve a just and circumstantial narrative. His +motives, his counsels, and his actions, as far as they are connected +with the history of religion, will be the subject of the present +chapter. + +The cause of his strange and fatal apostasy may be derived from the +early period of his life, when he was left an orphan in the hands of +the murderers of his family. The names of Christ and of Constantius, +the ideas of slavery and of religion, were soon associated in a youthful +imagination, which was susceptible of the most lively impressions. The +care of his infancy was intrusted to Eusebius, bishop of Nicomedia, who +was related to him on the side of his mother; and till Julian reached +the twentieth year of his age, he received from his Christian preceptors +the education, not of a hero, but of a saint. The emperor, less jealous +of a heavenly than of an earthly crown, contented himself with the +imperfect character of a catechumen, while he bestowed the advantages +of baptism on the nephews of Constantine. They were even admitted to the +inferior offices of the ecclesiastical order; and Julian publicly read +the Holy Scriptures in the church of Nicomedia. The study of religion, +which they assiduously cultivated, appeared to produce the fairest +fruits of faith and devotion. They prayed, they fasted, they distributed +alms to the poor, gifts to the clergy, and oblations to the tombs of +the martyrs; and the splendid monument of St. Mamas, at Cæsarea, was +erected, or at least was undertaken, by the joint labor of Gallus and +Julian. They respectfully conversed with the bishops, who were eminent +for superior sanctity, and solicited the benediction of the monks and +hermits, who had introduced into Cappadocia the voluntary hardships +of the ascetic life. As the two princes advanced towards the years of +manhood, they discovered, in their religious sentiments, the difference +of their characters. The dull and obstinate understanding of Gallus +embraced, with implicit zeal, the doctrines of Christianity; which never +influenced his conduct, or moderated his passions. The mild disposition +of the younger brother was less repugnant to the precepts of the gospel; +and his active curiosity might have been gratified by a theological +system, which explains the mysterious essence of the Deity, and +opens the boundless prospect of invisible and future worlds. But +the independent spirit of Julian refused to yield the passive and +unresisting obedience which was required, in the name of religion, by +the haughty ministers of the church. Their speculative opinions +were imposed as positive laws, and guarded by the terrors of eternal +punishments; but while they prescribed the rigid formulary of the +thoughts, the words, and the actions of the young prince; whilst +they silenced his objections, and severely checked the freedom of his +inquiries, they secretly provoked his impatient genius to disclaim the +authority of his ecclesiastical guides. He was educated in the Lesser +Asia, amidst the scandals of the Arian controversy. The fierce contests +of the Eastern bishops, the incessant alterations of their creeds, and +the profane motives which appeared to actuate their conduct, insensibly +strengthened the prejudice of Julian, that they neither understood nor +believed the religion for which they so fiercely contended. Instead of +listening to the proofs of Christianity with that favorable attention +which adds weight to the most respectable evidence, he heard with +suspicion, and disputed with obstinacy and acuteness, the doctrines for +which he already entertained an invincible aversion. Whenever the young +princes were directed to compose declamations on the subject of the +prevailing controversies, Julian always declared himself the advocate of +Paganism; under the specious excuse that, in the defence of the weaker +cause, his learning and ingenuity might be more advantageously exercised +and displayed. + +As soon as Gallus was invested with the honors of the purple, Julian was +permitted to breathe the air of freedom, of literature, and of Paganism. +The crowd of sophists, who were attracted by the taste and liberality of +their royal pupil, had formed a strict alliance between the learning and +the religion of Greece; and the poems of Homer, instead of being admired +as the original productions of human genius, were seriously ascribed +to the heavenly inspiration of Apollo and the muses. The deities of +Olympus, as they are painted by the immortal bard, imprint themselves on +the minds which are the least addicted to superstitious credulity. +Our familiar knowledge of their names and characters, their forms and +attributes, seems to bestow on those airy beings a real and substantial +existence; and the pleasing enchantment produces an imperfect and +momentary assent of the imagination to those fables, which are the most +repugnant to our reason and experience. In the age of Julian, every +circumstance contributed to prolong and fortify the illusion; the +magnificent temples of Greece and Asia; the works of those artists who +had expressed, in painting or in sculpture, the divine conceptions of +the poet; the pomp of festivals and sacrifices; the successful arts of +divination; the popular traditions of oracles and prodigies; and the +ancient practice of two thousand years. The weakness of polytheism +was, in some measure, excused by the moderation of its claims; and the +devotion of the Pagans was not incompatible with the most licentious +scepticism. Instead of an indivisible and regular system, which occupies +the whole extent of the believing mind, the mythology of the Greeks was +composed of a thousand loose and flexible parts, and the servant of the +gods was at liberty to define the degree and measure of his religious +faith. The creed which Julian adopted for his own use was of the largest +dimensions; and, by strange contradiction, he disdained the salutary +yoke of the gospel, whilst he made a voluntary offering of his reason +on the altars of Jupiter and Apollo. One of the orations of Julian is +consecrated to the honor of Cybele, the mother of the gods, who required +from her effeminate priests the bloody sacrifice, so rashly performed +by the madness of the Phrygian boy. The pious emperor condescends to +relate, without a blush, and without a smile, the voyage of the +goddess from the shores of Pergamus to the mouth of the Tyber, and the +stupendous miracle, which convinced the senate and people of Rome that +the lump of clay, which their ambassadors had transported over the seas, +was endowed with life, and sentiment, and divine power. For the truth +of this prodigy he appeals to the public monuments of the city; and +censures, with some acrimony, the sickly and affected taste of those +men, who impertinently derided the sacred traditions of their ancestors. + +But the devout philosopher, who sincerely embraced, and warmly +encouraged, the superstition of the people, reserved for himself the +privilege of a liberal interpretation; and silently withdrew from the +foot of the altars into the sanctuary of the temple. The extravagance of +the Grecian mythology proclaimed, with a clear and audible voice, that +the pious inquirer, instead of being scandalized or satisfied with the +literal sense, should diligently explore the occult wisdom, which had +been disguised, by the prudence of antiquity, under the mask of folly +and of fable. The philosophers of the Platonic school, Plotinus, +Porphyry, and the divine Iamblichus, were admired as the most skilful +masters of this allegorical science, which labored to soften and +harmonize the deformed features of Paganism. Julian himself, who was +directed in the mysterious pursuit by Ædesius, the venerable successor +of Iamblichus, aspired to the possession of a treasure, which he +esteemed, if we may credit his solemn asseverations, far above the +empire of the world. It was indeed a treasure, which derived its value +only from opinion; and every artist who flattered himself that he had +extracted the precious ore from the surrounding dross, claimed an equal +right of stamping the name and figure the most agreeable to his peculiar +fancy. The fable of Atys and Cybele had been already explained by +Porphyry; but his labors served only to animate the pious industry of +Julian, who invented and published his own allegory of that ancient and +mystic tale. This freedom of interpretation, which might gratify the +pride of the Platonists, exposed the vanity of their art. Without a +tedious detail, the modern reader could not form a just idea of the +strange allusions, the forced etymologies, the solemn trifling, and +the impenetrable obscurity of these sages, who professed to reveal +the system of the universe. As the traditions of Pagan mythology were +variously related, the sacred interpreters were at liberty to select +the most convenient circumstances; and as they translated an arbitrary +cipher, they could extract from any fable any sense which was adapted to +their favorite system of religion and philosophy. The lascivious form of +a naked Venus was tortured into the discovery of some moral precept, or +some physical truth; and the castration of Atys explained the revolution +of the sun between the tropics, or the separation of the human soul from +vice and error. + +The theological system of Julian appears to have contained the sublime +and important principles of natural religion. But as the faith, which is +not founded on revelation, must remain destitute of any firm assurance, +the disciple of Plato imprudently relapsed into the habits of vulgar +superstition; and the popular and philosophic notion of the Deity seems +to have been confounded in the practice, the writings, and even in the +mind of Julian. The pious emperor acknowledged and adored the Eternal +Cause of the universe, to whom he ascribed all the perfections of +an infinite nature, invisible to the eyes and inaccessible to the +understanding, of feeble mortals. The Supreme God had created, or +rather, in the Platonic language, had generated, the gradual succession +of dependent spirits, of gods, of dæmons, of heroes, and of men; and +every being which derived its existence immediately from the First +Cause, received the inherent gift of immortality. That so precious +an advantage might be lavished upon unworthy objects, the Creator had +intrusted to the skill and power of the inferior gods the office of +forming the human body, and of arranging the beautiful harmony of the +animal, the vegetable, and the mineral kingdoms. To the conduct of these +divine ministers he delegated the temporal government of this lower +world; but their imperfect administration is not exempt from discord +or error. The earth and its inhabitants are divided among them, and the +characters of Mars or Minerva, of Mercury or Venus, may be distinctly +traced in the laws and manners of their peculiar votaries. As long as +our immortal souls are confined in a mortal prison, it is our interest, +as well as our duty, to solicit the favor, and to deprecate the wrath, +of the powers of heaven; whose pride is gratified by the devotion +of mankind; and whose grosser parts may be supposed to derive some +nourishment from the fumes of sacrifice. The inferior gods might +sometimes condescend to animate the statues, and to inhabit the temples, +which were dedicated to their honor. They might occasionally visit the +earth, but the heavens were the proper throne and symbol of their glory. +The invariable order of the sun, moon, and stars, was hastily admitted +by Julian, as a proof of their eternal duration; and their eternity was +a sufficient evidence that they were the workmanship, not of an inferior +deity, but of the Omnipotent King. In the system of Platonists, the +visible was a type of the invisible world. The celestial bodies, as they +were informed by a divine spirit, might be considered as the objects +the most worthy of religious worship. The Sun, whose genial influence +pervades and sustains the universe, justly claimed the adoration of +mankind, as the bright representative of the Logos, the lively, the +rational, the beneficent image of the intellectual Father. + +In every age, the absence of genuine inspiration is supplied by the +strong illusions of enthusiasm, and the mimic arts of imposture. If, +in the time of Julian, these arts had been practised only by the pagan +priests, for the support of an expiring cause, some indulgence might +perhaps be allowed to the interest and habits of the sacerdotal +character. But it may appear a subject of surprise and scandal, that +the philosophers themselves should have contributed to abuse the +superstitious credulity of mankind, and that the Grecian mysteries +should have been supported by the magic or theurgy of the modern +Platonists. They arrogantly pretended to control the order of nature, to +explore the secrets of futurity, to command the service of the inferior +dæmons, to enjoy the view and conversation of the superior gods, and by +disengaging the soul from her material bands, to reunite that immortal +particle with the Infinite and Divine Spirit. + +The devout and fearless curiosity of Julian tempted the philosophers +with the hopes of an easy conquest; which, from the situation of their +young proselyte, might be productive of the most important consequences. +Julian imbibed the first rudiments of the Platonic doctrines from the +mouth of Ædesius, who had fixed at Pergamus his wandering and persecuted +school. But as the declining strength of that venerable sage was unequal +to the ardor, the diligence, the rapid conception of his pupil, two of +his most learned disciples, Chrysanthes and Eusebius, supplied, at his +own desire, the place of their aged master. These philosophers seem to +have prepared and distributed their respective parts; and they artfully +contrived, by dark hints and affected disputes, to excite the impatient +hopes of the aspirant, till they delivered him into the hands of their +associate, Maximus, the boldest and most skilful master of the Theurgic +science. By his hands, Julian was secretly initiated at Ephesus, in +the twentieth year of his age. His residence at Athens confirmed this +unnatural alliance of philosophy and superstition. He obtained the +privilege of a solemn initiation into the mysteries of Eleusis, which, +amidst the general decay of the Grecian worship, still retained some +vestiges of their primæval sanctity; and such was the zeal of Julian, +that he afterwards invited the Eleusinian pontiff to the court of Gaul, +for the sole purpose of consummating, by mystic rites and sacrifices, +the great work of his sanctification. As these ceremonies were performed +in the depth of caverns, and in the silence of the night, and as the +inviolable secret of the mysteries was preserved by the discretion of +the initiated, I shall not presume to describe the horrid sounds, +and fiery apparitions, which were presented to the senses, or the +imagination, of the credulous aspirant, till the visions of comfort and +knowledge broke upon him in a blaze of celestial light. In the caverns +of Ephesus and Eleusis, the mind of Julian was penetrated with sincere, +deep, and unalterable enthusiasm; though he might sometimes exhibit the +vicissitudes of pious fraud and hypocrisy, which may be observed, or at +least suspected, in the characters of the most conscientious fanatics. +From that moment he consecrated his life to the service of the gods; +and while the occupations of war, of government, and of study, seemed +to claim the whole measure of his time, a stated portion of the hours of +the night was invariably reserved for the exercise of private devotion. +The temperance which adorned the severe manners of the soldier and +the philosopher was connected with some strict and frivolous rules of +religious abstinence; and it was in honor of Pan or Mercury, of Hecate +or Isis, that Julian, on particular days, denied himself the use of some +particular food, which might have been offensive to his tutelar deities. +By these voluntary fasts, he prepared his senses and his understanding +for the frequent and familiar visits with which he was honored by the +celestial powers. Notwithstanding the modest silence of Julian himself, +we may learn from his faithful friend, the orator Libanius, that he +lived in a perpetual intercourse with the gods and goddesses; that they +descended upon earth to enjoy the conversation of their favorite hero; +that they gently interrupted his slumbers by touching his hand or his +hair; that they warned him of every impending danger, and conducted him, +by their infallible wisdom, in every action of his life; and that he had +acquired such an intimate knowledge of his heavenly guests, as readily +to distinguish the voice of Jupiter from that of Minerva, and the form +of Apollo from the figure of Hercules. These sleeping or waking visions, +the ordinary effects of abstinence and fanaticism, would almost degrade +the emperor to the level of an Egyptian monk. But the useless lives +of Antony or Pachomius were consumed in these vain occupations. Julian +could break from the dream of superstition to arm himself for battle; +and after vanquishing in the field the enemies of Rome, he calmly +retired into his tent, to dictate the wise and salutary laws of an +empire, or to indulge his genius in the elegant pursuits of literature +and philosophy. + +The important secret of the apostasy of Julian was intrusted to the +fidelity of the initiated, with whom he was united by the sacred ties +of friendship and religion. The pleasing rumor was cautiously circulated +among the adherents of the ancient worship; and his future greatness +became the object of the hopes, the prayers, and the predictions of the +Pagans, in every province of the empire. From the zeal and virtues of +their royal proselyte, they fondly expected the cure of every evil, and +the restoration of every blessing; and instead of disapproving of the +ardor of their pious wishes, Julian ingenuously confessed, that he +was ambitious to attain a situation in which he might be useful to his +country and to his religion. But this religion was viewed with a +hostile eye by the successor of Constantine, whose capricious passions +alternately saved and threatened the life of Julian. The arts of magic +and divination were strictly prohibited under a despotic government, +which condescended to fear them; and if the Pagans were reluctantly +indulged in the exercise of their superstition, the rank of Julian would +have excepted him from the general toleration. The apostate soon became +the presumptive heir of the monarchy, and his death could alone have +appeased the just apprehensions of the Christians. But the young prince, +who aspired to the glory of a hero rather than of a martyr, consulted +his safety by dissembling his religion; and the easy temper of +polytheism permitted him to join in the public worship of a sect which +he inwardly despised. Libanius has considered the hypocrisy of his +friend as a subject, not of censure, but of praise. "As the statues of +the gods," says that orator, "which have been defiled with filth, are +again placed in a magnificent temple, so the beauty of truth was seated +in the mind of Julian, after it had been purified from the errors and +follies of his education. His sentiments were changed; but as it would +have been dangerous to have avowed his sentiments, his conduct still +continued the same. Very different from the ass in Æsop, who disguised +himself with a lion's hide, our lion was obliged to conceal himself +under the skin of an ass; and, while he embraced the dictates of reason, +to obey the laws of prudence and necessity." The dissimulation of Julian +lasted about ten years, from his secret initiation at Ephesus to +the beginning of the civil war; when he declared himself at once the +implacable enemy of Christ and of Constantius. This state of constraint +might contribute to strengthen his devotion; and as soon as he had +satisfied the obligation of assisting, on solemn festivals, at the +assemblies of the Christians, Julian returned, with the impatience of a +lover, to burn his free and voluntary incense on the domestic chapels of +Jupiter and Mercury. But as every act of dissimulation must be painful +to an ingenuous spirit, the profession of Christianity increased the +aversion of Julian for a religion which oppressed the freedom of his +mind, and compelled him to hold a conduct repugnant to the noblest +attributes of human nature, sincerity and courage. + + + +Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.--Part II. + +The inclination of Julian might prefer the gods of Homer, and of the +Scipios, to the new faith, which his uncle had established in the Roman +empire; and in which he himself had been sanctified by the sacrament of +baptism. But, as a philosopher, it was incumbent on him to justify his +dissent from Christianity, which was supported by the number of its +converts, by the chain of prophecy, the splendor of or miracles, and +the weight of evidence. The elaborate work, which he composed amidst +the preparations of the Persian war, contained the substance of those +arguments which he had long revolved in his mind. Some fragments have +been transcribed and preserved, by his adversary, the vehement Cyril +of Alexandria; and they exhibit a very singular mixture of wit and +learning, of sophistry and fanaticism. The elegance of the style and the +rank of the author, recommended his writings to the public attention; +and in the impious list of the enemies of Christianity, the celebrated +name of Porphyry was effaced by the superior merit or reputation of +Julian. The minds of the faithful were either seduced, or scandalized, +or alarmed; and the pagans, who sometimes presumed to engage in the +unequal dispute, derived, from the popular work of their Imperial +missionary, an inexhaustible supply of fallacious objections. But in the +assiduous prosecution of these theological studies, the emperor of +the Romans imbibed the illiberal prejudices and passions of a polemic +divine. He contracted an irrevocable obligation to maintain and +propagate his religious opinions; and whilst he secretly applauded the +strength and dexterity with which he wielded the weapons of +controversy, he was tempted to distrust the sincerity, or to despise +the understandings, of his antagonists, who could obstinately resist the +force of reason and eloquence. + +The Christians, who beheld with horror and indignation the apostasy of +Julian, had much more to fear from his power than from his arguments. +The pagans, who were conscious of his fervent zeal, expected, perhaps +with impatience, that the flames of persecution should be immediately +kindled against the enemies of the gods; and that the ingenious malice +of Julian would invent some cruel refinements of death and torture which +had been unknown to the rude and inexperienced fury of his predecessors. +But the hopes, as well as the fears, of the religious factions were +apparently disappointed, by the prudent humanity of a prince, who was +careful of his own fame, of the public peace, and of the rights of +mankind. Instructed by history and reflection, Julian was persuaded, +that if the diseases of the body may sometimes be cured by salutary +violence, neither steel nor fire can eradicate the erroneous opinions of +the mind. The reluctant victim may be dragged to the foot of the altar; +but the heart still abhors and disclaims the sacrilegious act of the +hand. Religious obstinacy is hardened and exasperated by oppression; +and, as soon as the persecution subsides, those who have yielded are +restored as penitents, and those who have resisted are honored as saints +and martyrs. If Julian adopted the unsuccessful cruelty of Diocletian +and his colleagues, he was sensible that he should stain his memory with +the name of a tyrant, and add new glories to the Catholic church, +which had derived strength and increase from the severity of the pagan +magistrates. Actuated by these motives, and apprehensive of disturbing +the repose of an unsettled reign, Julian surprised the world by an +edict, which was not unworthy of a statesman, or a philosopher. He +extended to all the inhabitants of the Roman world the benefits of a +free and equal toleration; and the only hardship which he inflicted on +the Christians, was to deprive them of the power of tormenting their +fellow-subjects, whom they stigmatized with the odious titles of +idolaters and heretics. The pagans received a gracious permission, or +rather an express order, to open All their temples; and they were at +once delivered from the oppressive laws, and arbitrary vexations, which +they had sustained under the reign of Constantine, and of his sons. At +the same time the bishops and clergy, who had been banished by the Arian +monarch, were recalled from exile, and restored to their respective +churches; the Donatists, the Novatians, the Macedonians, the Eunomians, +and those who, with a more prosperous fortune, adhered to the doctrine +of the Council of Nice. Julian, who understood and derided their +theological disputes, invited to the palace the leaders of the hostile +sects, that he might enjoy the agreeable spectacle of their furious +encounters. The clamor of controversy sometimes provoked the emperor to +exclaim, "Hear me! the Franks have heard me, and the Alemanni;" but +he soon discovered that he was now engaged with more obstinate and +implacable enemies; and though he exerted the powers of oratory to +persuade them to live in concord, or at least in peace, he was perfectly +satisfied, before he dismissed them from his presence, that he had +nothing to dread from the union of the Christians. The impartial +Ammianus has ascribed this affected clemency to the desire of fomenting +the intestine divisions of the church, and the insidious design of +undermining the foundations of Christianity, was inseparably connected +with the zeal which Julian professed, to restore the ancient religion of +the empire. + +As soon as he ascended the throne, he assumed, according to the custom +of his predecessors, the character of supreme pontiff; not only as +the most honorable title of Imperial greatness, but as a sacred and +important office; the duties of which he was resolved to execute with +pious diligence. As the business of the state prevented the emperor from +joining every day in the public devotion of his subjects, he dedicated +a domestic chapel to his tutelar deity the Sun; his gardens were filled +with statues and altars of the gods; and each apartment of the palace +displaced the appearance of a magnificent temple. Every morning he +saluted the parent of light with a sacrifice; the blood of another +victim was shed at the moment when the Sun sunk below the horizon; +and the Moon, the Stars, and the Genii of the night received their +respective and seasonable honors from the indefatigable devotion of +Julian. On solemn festivals, he regularly visited the temple of the god +or goddess to whom the day was peculiarly consecrated, and endeavored to +excite the religion of the magistrates and people by the example of +his own zeal. Instead of maintaining the lofty state of a monarch, +distinguished by the splendor of his purple, and encompassed by +the golden shields of his guards, Julian solicited, with respectful +eagerness, the meanest offices which contributed to the worship of the +gods. Amidst the sacred but licentious crowd of priests, of inferior +ministers, and of female dancers, who were dedicated to the service of +the temple, it was the business of the emperor to bring the wood, +to blow the fire, to handle the knife, to slaughter the victim, and, +thrusting his bloody hands into the bowels of the expiring animal, to +draw forth the heart or liver, and to read, with the consummate skill of +an haruspex, imaginary signs of future events. The wisest of the Pagans +censured this extravagant superstition, which affected to despise the +restraints of prudence and decency. Under the reign of a prince, who +practised the rigid maxims of economy, the expense of religious worship +consumed a very large portion of the revenue a constant supply of the +scarcest and most beautiful birds was transported from distant climates, +to bleed on the altars of the gods; a hundred oxen were frequently +sacrificed by Julian on one and the same day; and it soon became a +popular jest, that if he should return with conquest from the Persian +war, the breed of horned cattle must infallibly be extinguished. Yet +this expense may appear inconsiderable, when it is compared with the +splendid presents which were offered either by the hand, or by order, +of the emperor, to all the celebrated places of devotion in the Roman +world; and with the sums allotted to repair and decorate the ancient +temples, which had suffered the silent decay of time, or the +recent injuries of Christian rapine. Encouraged by the example, the +exhortations, the liberality, of their pious sovereign, the cities and +families resumed the practice of their neglected ceremonies. "Every part +of the world," exclaims Libanius, with devout transport, "displayed +the triumph of religion; and the grateful prospect of flaming altars, +bleeding victims, the smoke of incense, and a solemn train of priests +and prophets, without fear and without danger. The sound of prayer and +of music was heard on the tops of the highest mountains; and the same +ox afforded a sacrifice for the gods, and a supper for their joyous +votaries." + +But the genius and power of Julian were unequal to the enterprise of +restoring a religion which was destitute of theological principles, of +moral precepts, and of ecclesiastical discipline; which rapidly hastened +to decay and dissolution, and was not susceptible of any solid or +consistent reformation. The jurisdiction of the supreme pontiff, more +especially after that office had been united with the Imperial dignity, +comprehended the whole extent of the Roman empire. Julian named for his +vicars, in the several provinces, the priests and philosophers whom he +esteemed the best qualified to cooperate in the execution of his +great design; and his pastoral letters, if we may use that name, +still represent a very curious sketch of his wishes and intentions. He +directs, that in every city the sacerdotal order should be composed, +without any distinction of birth and fortune, of those persons who were +the most conspicuous for the love of the gods, and of men. "If they +are guilty," continues he, "of any scandalous offence, they should be +censured or degraded by the superior pontiff; but as long as they retain +their rank, they are entitled to the respect of the magistrates and +people. Their humility may be shown in the plainness of their domestic +garb; their dignity, in the pomp of holy vestments. When they are +summoned in their turn to officiate before the altar, they ought not, +during the appointed number of days, to depart from the precincts of +the temple; nor should a single day be suffered to elapse, without +the prayers and the sacrifice, which they are obliged to offer for +the prosperity of the state, and of individuals. The exercise of their +sacred functions requires an immaculate purity, both of mind and body; +and even when they are dismissed from the temple to the occupations of +common life, it is incumbent on them to excel in decency and virtue the +rest of their fellow-citizens. The priest of the gods should never be +seen in theatres or taverns. His conversation should be chaste, his +diet temperate, his friends of honorable reputation; and if he sometimes +visits the Forum or the Palace, he should appear only as the advocate +of those who have vainly solicited either justice or mercy. His studies +should be suited to the sanctity of his profession. Licentious tales, +or comedies, or satires, must be banished from his library, which ought +solely to consist of historical or philosophical writings; of history, +which is founded in truth, and of philosophy, which is connected with +religion. The impious opinions of the Epicureans and sceptics deserve +his abhorrence and contempt; but he should diligently study the systems +of Pythagoras, of Plato, and of the Stoics, which unanimously teach that +there are gods; that the world is governed by their providence; that +their goodness is the source of every temporal blessing; and that +they have prepared for the human soul a future state of reward or +punishment." The Imperial pontiff inculcates, in the most persuasive +language, the duties of benevolence and hospitality; exhorts his +inferior clergy to recommend the universal practice of those virtues; +promises to assist their indigence from the public treasury; and +declares his resolution of establishing hospitals in every city, where +the poor should be received without any invidious distinction of country +or of religion. Julian beheld with envy the wise and humane regulations +of the church; and he very frankly confesses his intention to deprive +the Christians of the applause, as well as advantage, which they had +acquired by the exclusive practice of charity and beneficence. The +same spirit of imitation might dispose the emperor to adopt several +ecclesiastical institutions, the use and importance of which were +approved by the success of his enemies. But if these imaginary plans of +reformation had been realized, the forced and imperfect copy would have +been less beneficial to Paganism, than honorable to Christianity. The +Gentiles, who peaceably followed the customs of their ancestors, were +rather surprised than pleased with the introduction of foreign manners; +and in the short period of his reign, Julian had frequent occasions to +complain of the want of fervor of his own party. + +The enthusiasm of Julian prompted him to embrace the friends of Jupiter +as his personal friends and brethren; and though he partially overlooked +the merit of Christian constancy, he admired and rewarded the noble +perseverance of those Gentiles who had preferred the favor of the gods +to that of the emperor. If they cultivated the literature, as well as +the religion, of the Greeks, they acquired an additional claim to the +friendship of Julian, who ranked the Muses in the number of his tutelar +deities. In the religion which he had adopted, piety and learning +were almost synonymous; and a crowd of poets, of rhetoricians, and +of philosophers, hastened to the Imperial court, to occupy the vacant +places of the bishops, who had seduced the credulity of Constantius. His +successor esteemed the ties of common initiation as far more sacred than +those of consanguinity; he chose his favorites among the sages, who were +deeply skilled in the occult sciences of magic and divination; and every +impostor, who pretended to reveal the secrets of futurity, was +assured of enjoying the present hour in honor and affluence. Among the +philosophers, Maximus obtained the most eminent rank in the friendship +of his royal disciple, who communicated, with unreserved confidence, his +actions, his sentiments, and his religious designs, during the anxious +suspense of the civil war. As soon as Julian had taken possession of +the palace of Constantinople, he despatched an honorable and pressing +invitation to Maximus, who then resided at Sardes in Lydia, with +Chrysanthius, the associate of his art and studies. The prudent and +superstitious Chrysanthius refused to undertake a journey which showed +itself, according to the rules of divination, with the most threatening +and malignant aspect: but his companion, whose fanaticism was of a +bolder cast, persisted in his interrogations, till he had extorted from +the gods a seeming consent to his own wishes, and those of the emperor. +The journey of Maximus through the cities of Asia displayed the triumph +of philosophic vanity; and the magistrates vied with each other in +the honorable reception which they prepared for the friend of their +sovereign. Julian was pronouncing an oration before the senate, when +he was informed of the arrival of Maximus. The emperor immediately +interrupted his discourse, advanced to meet him, and after a tender +embrace, conducted him by the hand into the midst of the assembly; where +he publicly acknowledged the benefits which he had derived from +the instructions of the philosopher. Maximus, who soon acquired the +confidence, and influenced the councils of Julian, was insensibly +corrupted by the temptations of a court. His dress became more splendid, +his demeanor more lofty, and he was exposed, under a succeeding reign, +to a disgraceful inquiry into the means by which the disciple of Plato +had accumulated, in the short duration of his favor, a very scandalous +proportion of wealth. Of the other philosophers and sophists, who were +invited to the Imperial residence by the choice of Julian, or by the +success of Maximus, few were able to preserve their innocence or +their reputation. The liberal gifts of money, lands, and houses, were +insufficient to satiate their rapacious avarice; and the indignation of +the people was justly excited by the remembrance of their abject poverty +and disinterested professions. The penetration of Julian could not +always be deceived: but he was unwilling to despise the characters of +those men whose talents deserved his esteem: he desired to escape the +double reproach of imprudence and inconstancy; and he was apprehensive +of degrading, in the eyes of the profane, the honor of letters and of +religion. + +The favor of Julian was almost equally divided between the Pagans, +who had firmly adhered to the worship of their ancestors, and the +Christians, who prudently embraced the religion of their sovereign. The +acquisition of new proselytes gratified the ruling passions of his +soul, superstition and vanity; and he was heard to declare, with the +enthusiasm of a missionary, that if he could render each individual +richer than Midas, and every city greater than Babylon, he should not +esteem himself the benefactor of mankind, unless, at the same time, +he could reclaim his subjects from their impious revolt against the +immortal gods. A prince who had studied human nature, and who possessed +the treasures of the Roman empire, could adapt his arguments, his +promises, and his rewards, to every order of Christians; and the merit +of a seasonable conversion was allowed to supply the defects of a +candidate, or even to expiate the guilt of a criminal. As the army is +the most forcible engine of absolute power, Julian applied himself, with +peculiar diligence, to corrupt the religion of his troops, without whose +hearty concurrence every measure must be dangerous and unsuccessful; +and the natural temper of soldiers made this conquest as easy as it was +important. The legions of Gaul devoted themselves to the faith, as well +as to the fortunes, of their victorious leader; and even before the +death of Constantius, he had the satisfaction of announcing to his +friends, that they assisted with fervent devotion, and voracious +appetite, at the sacrifices, which were repeatedly offered in his camp, +of whole hecatombs of fat oxen. The armies of the East, which had been +trained under the standard of the cross, and of Constantius, required a +more artful and expensive mode of persuasion. On the days of solemn +and public festivals, the emperor received the homage, and rewarded +the merit, of the troops. His throne of state was encircled with the +military ensigns of Rome and the republic; the holy name of Christ was +erased from the Labarum; and the symbols of war, of majesty, and of +pagan superstition, were so dexterously blended, that the faithful +subject incurred the guilt of idolatry, when he respectfully saluted the +person or image of his sovereign. The soldiers passed successively in +review; and each of them, before he received from the hand of Julian a +liberal donative, proportioned to his rank and services, was required to +cast a few grains of incense into the flame which burnt upon the altar. +Some Christian confessors might resist, and others might repent; but +the far greater number, allured by the prospect of gold, and awed by the +presence of the emperor, contracted the criminal engagement; and their +future perseverance in the worship of the gods was enforced by every +consideration of duty and of interest. By the frequent repetition of +these arts, and at the expense of sums which would have purchased the +service of half the nations of Scythia, Julian gradually acquired for +his troops the imaginary protection of the gods, and for himself the +firm and effectual support of the Roman legions. It is indeed more than +probable, that the restoration and encouragement of Paganism revealed +a multitude of pretended Christians, who, from motives of temporal +advantage, had acquiesced in the religion of the former reign; and who +afterwards returned, with the same flexibility of conscience, to the +faith which was professed by the successors of Julian. + +While the devout monarch incessantly labored to restore and propagate +the religion of his ancestors, he embraced the extraordinary design of +rebuilding the temple of Jerusalem. In a public epistle to the nation or +community of the Jews, dispersed through the provinces, he pities +their misfortunes, condemns their oppressors, praises their constancy, +declares himself their gracious protector, and expresses a pious hope, +that after his return from the Persian war, he may be permitted to pay +his grateful vows to the Almighty in his holy city of Jerusalem. The +blind superstition, and abject slavery, of those unfortunate exiles, +must excite the contempt of a philosophic emperor; but they deserved the +friendship of Julian, by their implacable hatred of the Christian name. +The barren synagogue abhorred and envied the fecundity of the rebellious +church; the power of the Jews was not equal to their malice; but their +gravest rabbis approved the private murder of an apostate; and their +seditious clamors had often awakened the indolence of the Pagan +magistrates. Under the reign of Constantine, the Jews became the +subjects of their revolted children nor was it long before they +experienced the bitterness of domestic tyranny. The civil immunities +which had been granted, or confirmed, by Severus, were gradually +repealed by the Christian princes; and a rash tumult, excited by the +Jews of Palestine, seemed to justify the lucrative modes of oppression +which were invented by the bishops and eunuchs of the court of +Constantius. The Jewish patriarch, who was still permitted to exercise +a precarious jurisdiction, held his residence at Tiberias; and the +neighboring cities of Palestine were filled with the remains of a people +who fondly adhered to the promised land. But the edict of Hadrian was +renewed and enforced; and they viewed from afar the walls of the holy +city, which were profaned in their eyes by the triumph of the cross and +the devotion of the Christians. + + + +Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.--Part III. + +In the midst of a rocky and barren country, the walls of Jerusalem +enclosed the two mountains of Sion and Acra, within an oval figure of +about three English miles. Towards the south, the upper town, and the +fortress of David, were erected on the lofty ascent of Mount Sion: on +the north side, the buildings of the lower town covered the spacious +summit of Mount Acra; and a part of the hill, distinguished by the name +of Moriah, and levelled by human industry, was crowned with the stately +temple of the Jewish nation. After the final destruction of the temple +by the arms of Titus and Hadrian, a ploughshare was drawn over the +consecrated ground, as a sign of perpetual interdiction. Sion was +deserted; and the vacant space of the lower city was filled with the +public and private edifices of the Ælian colony, which spread themselves +over the adjacent hill of Calvary. The holy places were polluted with +mountains of idolatry; and, either from design or accident, a chapel was +dedicated to Venus, on the spot which had been sanctified by the death +and resurrection of Christ. * Almost three hundred years after those +stupendous events, the profane chapel of Venus was demolished by the +order of Constantine; and the removal of the earth and stones revealed +the holy sepulchre to the eyes of mankind. A magnificent church was +erected on that mystic ground, by the first Christian emperor; and the +effects of his pious munificence were extended to every spot which had +been consecrated by the footstep of patriarchs, of prophets, and of the +Son of God. + +The passionate desire of contemplating the original monuments of their +redemption attracted to Jerusalem a successive crowd of pilgrims, from +the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, and the most distant countries of +the East; and their piety was authorized by the example of the empress +Helena, who appears to have united the credulity of age with the warm +feelings of a recent conversion. Sages and heroes, who have visited +the memorable scenes of ancient wisdom or glory, have confessed the +inspiration of the genius of the place; and the Christian who knelt +before the holy sepulchre, ascribed his lively faith, and his fervent +devotion, to the more immediate influence of the Divine Spirit. The +zeal, perhaps the avarice, of the clergy of Jerusalem, cherished and +multiplied these beneficial visits. They fixed, by unquestionable +tradition, the scene of each memorable event. They exhibited the +instruments which had been used in the passion of Christ; the nails and +the lance that had pierced his hands, his feet, and his side; the crown +of thorns that was planted on his head; the pillar at which he was +scourged; and, above all, they showed the cross on which he suffered, +and which was dug out of the earth in the reign of those princes, who +inserted the symbol of Christianity in the banners of the Roman legions. +Such miracles as seemed necessary to account for its extraordinary +preservation, and seasonable discovery, were gradually propagated +without opposition. The custody of the true cross, which on Easter +Sunday was solemnly exposed to the people, was intrusted to the bishop +of Jerusalem; and he alone might gratify the curious devotion of the +pilgrims, by the gift of small pieces, which they encased in gold or +gems, and carried away in triumph to their respective countries. But as +this gainful branch of commerce must soon have been annihilated, it was +found convenient to suppose, that the marvelous wood possessed a +secret power of vegetation; and that its substance, though continually +diminished, still remained entire and unimpaired. It might perhaps +have been expected, that the influence of the place and the belief of +a perpetual miracle, should have produced some salutary effects on the +morals, as well as on the faith, of the people. Yet the most respectable +of the ecclesiastical writers have been obliged to confess, not only +that the streets of Jerusalem were filled with the incessant tumult of +business and pleasure, but that every species of vice--adultery, theft, +idolatry, poisoning, murder--was familiar to the inhabitants of the holy +city. The wealth and preeminence of the church of Jerusalem excited the +ambition of Arian, as well as orthodox, candidates; and the virtues of +Cyril, who, since his death, has been honored with the title of Saint, +were displayed in the exercise, rather than in the acquisition, of his +episcopal dignity. + +The vain and ambitious mind of Julian might aspire to restore the +ancient glory of the temple of Jerusalem. As the Christians were firmly +persuaded that a sentence of everlasting destruction had been pronounced +against the whole fabric of the Mosaic law, the Imperial sophist would +have converted the success of his undertaking into a specious argument +against the faith of prophecy, and the truth of revelation. He was +displeased with the spiritual worship of the synagogue; but he approved +the institutions of Moses, who had not disdained to adopt many of the +rites and ceremonies of Egypt. The local and national deity of the Jews +was sincerely adored by a polytheist, who desired only to multiply +the number of the gods; and such was the appetite of Julian for bloody +sacrifice, that his emulation might be excited by the piety of Solomon, +who had offered, at the feast of the dedication, twenty-two thousand +oxen, and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep. These considerations +might influence his designs; but the prospect of an immediate and +important advantage would not suffer the impatient monarch to expect +the remote and uncertain event of the Persian war. He resolved to erect, +without delay, on the commanding eminence of Moriah, a stately temple, +which might eclipse the splendor of the church of the resurrection on +the adjacent hill of Calvary; to establish an order of priests, whose +interested zeal would detect the arts, and resist the ambition, of their +Christian rivals; and to invite a numerous colony of Jews, whose stern +fanaticism would be always prepared to second, and even to anticipate, +the hostile measures of the Pagan government. Among the friends of the +emperor (if the names of emperor, and of friend, are not incompatible) +the first place was assigned, by Julian himself, to the virtuous and +learned Alypius. The humanity of Alypius was tempered by severe justice +and manly fortitude; and while he exercised his abilities in the civil +administration of Britain, he imitated, in his poetical compositions, +the harmony and softness of the odes of Sappho. This minister, to whom +Julian communicated, without reserve, his most careless levities, and +his most serious counsels, received an extraordinary commission to +restore, in its pristine beauty, the temple of Jerusalem; and the +diligence of Alypius required and obtained the strenuous support of the +governor of Palestine. At the call of their great deliverer, the Jews, +from all the provinces of the empire, assembled on the holy mountain of +their fathers; and their insolent triumph alarmed and exasperated the +Christian inhabitants of Jerusalem. The desire of rebuilding the temple +has in every age been the ruling passion of the children of Isræl. In +this propitious moment the men forgot their avarice, and the women their +delicacy; spades and pickaxes of silver were provided by the vanity of +the rich, and the rubbish was transported in mantles of silk and purple. +Every purse was opened in liberal contributions, every hand claimed +a share in the pious labor, and the commands of a great monarch were +executed by the enthusiasm of a whole people. + +Yet, on this occasion, the joint efforts of power and enthusiasm were +unsuccessful; and the ground of the Jewish temple, which is now covered +by a Mahometan mosque, still continued to exhibit the same edifying +spectacle of ruin and desolation. Perhaps the absence and death of the +emperor, and the new maxims of a Christian reign, might explain the +interruption of an arduous work, which was attempted only in the last +six months of the life of Julian. But the Christians entertained a +natural and pious expectation, that, in this memorable contest, the +honor of religion would be vindicated by some signal miracle. An +earthquake, a whirlwind, and a fiery eruption, which overturned and +scattered the new foundations of the temple, are attested, with some +variations, by contemporary and respectable evidence. This public event +is described by Ambrose, bishop of Milan, in an epistle to the emperor +Theodosius, which must provoke the severe animadversion of the Jews; +by the eloquent Chrysostom, who might appeal to the memory of the elder +part of his congregation at Antioch; and by Gregory Nazianzen, who +published his account of the miracle before the expiration of the +same year. The last of these writers has boldly declared, that this +preternatural event was not disputed by the infidels; and his assertion, +strange as it may seem is confirmed by the unexceptionable testimony of +Ammianus Marcellinus. The philosophic soldier, who loved the virtues, +without adopting the prejudices, of his master, has recorded, in +his judicious and candid history of his own times, the extraordinary +obstacles which interrupted the restoration of the temple of Jerusalem. +"Whilst Alypius, assisted by the governor of the province, urged, with +vigor and diligence, the execution of the work, horrible balls of fire +breaking out near the foundations, with frequent and reiterated attacks, +rendered the place, from time to time, inaccessible to the scorched and +blasted workmen; and the victorious element continuing in this manner +obstinately and resolutely bent, as it were, to drive them to a +distance, the undertaking was abandoned." * Such authority should +satisfy a believing, and must astonish an incredulous, mind. Yet a +philosopher may still require the original evidence of impartial and +intelligent spectators. At this important crisis, any singular accident +of nature would assume the appearance, and produce the effects of a +real prodigy. This glorious deliverance would be speedily improved and +magnified by the pious art of the clergy of Jerusalem, and the active +credulity of the Christian world and, at the distance of twenty years, a +Roman historian, care less of theological disputes, might adorn his work +with the specious and splendid miracle. + + + +Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.--Part IV. + +The restoration of the Jewish temple was secretly connected with the +ruin of the Christian church. Julian still continued to maintain the +freedom of religious worship, without distinguishing whether this +universal toleration proceeded from his justice or his clemency. He +affected to pity the unhappy Christians, who were mistaken in the most +important object of their lives; but his pity was degraded by contempt, +his contempt was embittered by hatred; and the sentiments of Julian were +expressed in a style of sarcastic wit, which inflicts a deep and deadly +wound, whenever it issues from the mouth of a sovereign. As he was +sensible that the Christians gloried in the name of their Redeemer, +he countenanced, and perhaps enjoined, the use of the less honorable +appellation of Galilæans. He declared, that by the folly of the +Galilæans, whom he describes as a sect of fanatics, contemptible to +men, and odious to the gods, the empire had been reduced to the brink of +destruction; and he insinuates in a public edict, that a frantic patient +might sometimes be cured by salutary violence. An ungenerous distinction +was admitted into the mind and counsels of Julian, that, according to +the difference of their religious sentiments, one part of his subjects +deserved his favor and friendship, while the other was entitled only +to the common benefits that his justice could not refuse to an obedient +people. According to a principle, pregnant with mischief and oppression, +the emperor transferred to the pontiffs of his own religion the +management of the liberal allowances for the public revenue, which had +been granted to the church by the piety of Constantine and his sons. +The proud system of clerical honors and immunities, which had been +constructed with so much art and labor, was levelled to the ground; the +hopes of testamentary donations were intercepted by the rigor of the +laws; and the priests of the Christian sect were confounded with the +last and most ignominious class of the people. Such of these regulations +as appeared necessary to check the ambition and avarice of the +ecclesiastics, were soon afterwards imitated by the wisdom of an +orthodox prince. The peculiar distinctions which policy has bestowed, or +superstition has lavished, on the sacerdotal order, must be confined to +those priests who profess the religion of the state. But the will of +the legislator was not exempt from prejudice and passion; and it was the +object of the insidious policy of Julian, to deprive the Christians of +all the temporal honors and advantages which rendered them respectable +in the eyes of the world. + +A just and severe censure has been inflicted on the law which prohibited +the Christians from teaching the arts of grammar and rhetoric. The +motives alleged by the emperor to justify this partial and oppressive +measure, might command, during his lifetime, the silence of slaves and +the applause of flatterers. Julian abuses the ambiguous meaning of +a word which might be indifferently applied to the language and the +religion of the Greeks: he contemptuously observes, that the men who +exalt the merit of implicit faith are unfit to claim or to enjoy the +advantages of science; and he vainly contends, that if they refuse +to adore the gods of Homer and Demosthenes, they ought to content +themselves with expounding Luke and Matthew in the church of the +Galilæans. In all the cities of the Roman world, the education of the +youth was intrusted to masters of grammar and rhetoric; who were elected +by the magistrates, maintained at the public expense, and distinguished +by many lucrative and honorable privileges. The edict of Julian appears +to have included the physicians, and professors of all the liberal +arts; and the emperor, who reserved to himself the approbation of the +candidates, was authorized by the laws to corrupt, or to punish, the +religious constancy of the most learned of the Christians. As soon +as the resignation of the more obstinate teachers had established the +unrivalled dominion of the Pagan sophists, Julian invited the rising +generation to resort with freedom to the public schools, in a just +confidence, that their tender minds would receive the impressions of +literature and idolatry. If the greatest part of the Christian youth +should be deterred by their own scruples, or by those of their parents, +from accepting this dangerous mode of instruction, they must, at the +same time, relinquish the benefits of a liberal education. Julian had +reason to expect that, in the space of a few years, the church would +relapse into its primæval simplicity, and that the theologians, who +possessed an adequate share of the learning and eloquence of the age, +would be succeeded by a generation of blind and ignorant fanatics, +incapable of defending the truth of their own principles, or of exposing +the various follies of Polytheism. + +It was undoubtedly the wish and design of Julian to deprive the +Christians of the advantages of wealth, of knowledge, and of power; but +the injustice of excluding them from all offices of trust and profit +seems to have been the result of his general policy, rather than the +immediate consequence of any positive law. Superior merit might deserve +and obtain, some extraordinary exceptions; but the greater part of the +Christian officers were gradually removed from their employments in the +state, the army, and the provinces. The hopes of future candidates were +extinguished by the declared partiality of a prince, who maliciously +reminded them, that it was unlawful for a Christian to use the sword, +either of justice, or of war; and who studiously guarded the camp and +the tribunals with the ensigns of idolatry. The powers of government +were intrusted to the pagans, who professed an ardent zeal for the +religion of their ancestors; and as the choice of the emperor was often +directed by the rules of divination, the favorites whom he preferred as +the most agreeable to the gods, did not always obtain the approbation of +mankind. Under the administration of their enemies, the Christians had +much to suffer, and more to apprehend. The temper of Julian was averse +to cruelty; and the care of his reputation, which was exposed to the +eyes of the universe, restrained the philosophic monarch from violating +the laws of justice and toleration, which he himself had so recently +established. But the provincial ministers of his authority were placed +in a less conspicuous station. In the exercise of arbitrary power, they +consulted the wishes, rather than the commands, of their sovereign; +and ventured to exercise a secret and vexatious tyranny against the +sectaries, on whom they were not permitted to confer the honors of +martyrdom. The emperor, who dissembled as long as possible his knowledge +of the injustice that was exercised in his name, expressed his real +sense of the conduct of his officers, by gentle reproofs and substantial +rewards. + +The most effectual instrument of oppression, with which they were +armed, was the law that obliged the Christians to make full and +ample satisfaction for the temples which they had destroyed under +the preceding reign. The zeal of the triumphant church had not always +expected the sanction of the public authority; and the bishops, who were +secure of impunity, had often marched at the head of their congregation, +to attack and demolish the fortresses of the prince of darkness. The +consecrated lands, which had increased the patrimony of the sovereign or +of the clergy, were clearly defined, and easily restored. But on these +lands, and on the ruins of Pagan superstition, the Christians had +frequently erected their own religious edifices: and as it was necessary +to remove the church before the temple could be rebuilt, the justice +and piety of the emperor were applauded by one party, while the other +deplored and execrated his sacrilegious violence. After the ground was +cleared, the restitution of those stately structures which had been +levelled with the dust, and of the precious ornaments which had been +converted to Christian uses, swelled into a very large account of +damages and debt. The authors of the injury had neither the ability nor +the inclination to discharge this accumulated demand: and the impartial +wisdom of a legislator would have been displayed in balancing +the adverse claims and complaints, by an equitable and temperate +arbitration. But the whole empire, and particularly the East, was thrown +into confusion by the rash edicts of Julian; and the Pagan magistrates, +inflamed by zeal and revenge, abused the rigorous privilege of the Roman +law, which substitutes, in the place of his inadequate property, the +person of the insolvent debtor. Under the preceding reign, Mark, bishop +of Arethusa, had labored in the conversion of his people with arms more +effectual than those of persuasion. The magistrates required the full +value of a temple which had been destroyed by his intolerant zeal: but +as they were satisfied of his poverty, they desired only to bend his +inflexible spirit to the promise of the slightest compensation. They +apprehended the aged prelate, they inhumanly scourged him, they tore his +beard; and his naked body, anointed with honey, was suspended, in a net, +between heaven and earth, and exposed to the stings of insects and the +rays of a Syrian sun. From this lofty station, Mark still persisted to +glory in his crime, and to insult the impotent rage of his persecutors. +He was at length rescued from their hands, and dismissed to enjoy the +honor of his divine triumph. The Arians celebrated the virtue of their +pious confessor; the Catholics ambitiously claimed his alliance; and the +Pagans, who might be susceptible of shame or remorse, were deterred from +the repetition of such unavailing cruelty. Julian spared his life: but +if the bishop of Arethusa had saved the infancy of Julian, posterity +will condemn the ingratitude, instead of praising the clemency, of the +emperor. + +At the distance of five miles from Antioch, the Macedonian kings of +Syria had consecrated to Apollo one of the most elegant places of +devotion in the Pagan world. A magnificent temple rose in honor of +the god of light; and his colossal figure almost filled the capacious +sanctuary, which was enriched with gold and gems, and adorned by the +skill of the Grecian artists. The deity was represented in a bending +attitude, with a golden cup in his hand, pouring out a libation on the +earth; as if he supplicated the venerable mother to give to his arms the +cold and beauteous Daphne: for the spot was ennobled by fiction; and +the fancy of the Syrian poets had transported the amorous tale from the +banks of the Peneus to those of the Orontes. The ancient rites of Greece +were imitated by the royal colony of Antioch. A stream of prophecy, +which rivalled the truth and reputation of the Delphic oracle, flowed +from the Castalian fountain of Daphne. In the adjacent fields a stadium +was built by a special privilege, which had been purchased from Elis; +the Olympic games were celebrated at the expense of the city; and a +revenue of thirty thousand pounds sterling was annually applied to +the public pleasures. The perpetual resort of pilgrims and spectators +insensibly formed, in the neighborhood of the temple, the stately +and populous village of Daphne, which emulated the splendor, without +acquiring the title, of a provincial city. The temple and the village +were deeply bosomed in a thick grove of laurels and cypresses, which +reached as far as a circumference of ten miles, and formed in the most +sultry summers a cool and impenetrable shade. A thousand streams of +the purest water, issuing from every hill, preserved the verdure of the +earth, and the temperature of the air; the senses were gratified +with harmonious sounds and aromatic odors; and the peaceful grove was +consecrated to health and joy, to luxury and love. The vigorous youth +pursued, like Apollo, the object of his desires; and the blushing maid +was warned, by the fate of Daphne, to shun the folly of unseasonable +coyness. The soldier and the philosopher wisely avoided the temptation +of this sensual paradise: where pleasure, assuming the character of +religion, imperceptibly dissolved the firmness of manly virtue. But +the groves of Daphne continued for many ages to enjoy the veneration of +natives and strangers; the privileges of the holy ground were enlarged +by the munificence of succeeding emperors; and every generation added +new ornaments to the splendor of the temple. + +When Julian, on the day of the annual festival, hastened to adore +the Apollo of Daphne, his devotion was raised to the highest pitch +of eagerness and impatience. His lively imagination anticipated the +grateful pomp of victims, of libations and of incense; a long procession +of youths and virgins, clothed in white robes, the symbol of their +innocence; and the tumultuous concourse of an innumerable people. But +the zeal of Antioch was diverted, since the reign of Christianity, into +a different channel. Instead of hecatombs of fat oxen sacrificed by the +tribes of a wealthy city to their tutelar deity the emperor complains +that he found only a single goose, provided at the expense of a priest, +the pale and solitary in habitant of this decayed temple. The altar was +deserted, the oracle had been reduced to silence, and the holy ground +was profaned by the introduction of Christian and funereal rites. After +Babylas (a bishop of Antioch, who died in prison in the persecution of +Decius) had rested near a century in his grave, his body, by the order +of Cæsar Gallus, was transported into the midst of the grove of Daphne. +A magnificent church was erected over his remains; a portion of the +sacred lands was usurped for the maintenance of the clergy, and for the +burial of the Christians at Antioch, who were ambitious of lying at +the feet of their bishop; and the priests of Apollo retired, with their +affrighted and indignant votaries. As soon as another revolution seemed +to restore the fortune of Paganism, the church of St. Babylas was +demolished, and new buildings were added to the mouldering edifice which +had been raised by the piety of Syrian kings. But the first and most +serious care of Julian was to deliver his oppressed deity from +the odious presence of the dead and living Christians, who had so +effectually suppressed the voice of fraud or enthusiasm. The scene of +infection was purified, according to the forms of ancient rituals; +the bodies were decently removed; and the ministers of the church +were permitted to convey the remains of St. Babylas to their former +habitation within the walls of Antioch. The modest behavior which might +have assuaged the jealousy of a hostile government was neglected, +on this occasion, by the zeal of the Christians. The lofty car, that +transported the relics of Babylas, was followed, and accompanied, and +received, by an innumerable multitude; who chanted, with thundering +acclamations, the Psalms of David the most expressive of their contempt +for idols and idolaters. The return of the saint was a triumph; and the +triumph was an insult on the religion of the emperor, who exerted his +pride to dissemble his resentment. During the night which terminated +this indiscreet procession, the temple of Daphne was in flames; the +statue of Apollo was consumed; and the walls of the edifice were left +a naked and awful monument of ruin. The Christians of Antioch asserted, +with religious confidence, that the powerful intercession of St. Babylas +had pointed the lightnings of heaven against the devoted roof: but as +Julian was reduced to the alternative of believing either a crime or a +miracle, he chose, without hesitation, without evidence, but with some +color of probability, to impute the fire of Daphne to the revenge of the +Galilæans. Their offence, had it been sufficiently proved, might have +justified the retaliation, which was immediately executed by the order +of Julian, of shutting the doors, and confiscating the wealth, of the +cathedral of Antioch. To discover the criminals who were guilty of the +tumult, of the fire, or of secreting the riches of the church, several +of the ecclesiastics were tortured; and a Presbyter, of the name of +Theodoret, was beheaded by the sentence of the Count of the East. But +this hasty act was blamed by the emperor; who lamented, with real or +affected concern, that the imprudent zeal of his ministers would tarnish +his reign with the disgrace of persecution. + + +Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.--Part V. + +The zeal of the ministers of Julian was instantly checked by the frown +of their sovereign; but when the father of his country declares himself +the leader of a faction, the license of popular fury cannot easily be +restrained, nor consistently punished. Julian, in a public composition, +applauds the devotion and loyalty of the holy cities of Syria, whose +pious inhabitants had destroyed, at the first signal, the sepulchres +of the Galilæans; and faintly complains, that they had revenged +the injuries of the gods with less moderation than he should have +recommended. This imperfect and reluctant confession may appear to +confirm the ecclesiastical narratives; that in the cities of Gaza, +Ascalon, Cæsarea, Heliopolis, &c., the Pagans abused, without prudence +or remorse, the moment of their prosperity. That the unhappy objects +of their cruelty were released from torture only by death; and as their +mangled bodies were dragged through the streets, they were pierced +(such was the universal rage) by the spits of cooks, and the distaffs of +enraged women; and that the entrails of Christian priests and virgins, +after they had been tasted by those bloody fanatics, were mixed with +barley, and contemptuously thrown to the unclean animals of the city. +Such scenes of religious madness exhibit the most contemptible and +odious picture of human nature; but the massacre of Alexandria attracts +still more attention, from the certainty of the fact, the rank of the +victims, and the splendor of the capital of Egypt. + +George, from his parents or his education, surnamed the Cappadocian, was +born at Epiphania in Cilicia, in a fuller's shop. From this obscure and +servile origin he raised himself by the talents of a parasite; and the +patrons, whom he assiduously flattered, procured for their worthless +dependent a lucrative commission, or contract, to supply the army with +bacon. His employment was mean; he rendered it infamous. He accumulated +wealth by the basest arts of fraud and corruption; but his malversations +were so notorious, that George was compelled to escape from the pursuits +of justice. After this disgrace, in which he appears to have saved his +fortune at the expense of his honor, he embraced, with real or affected +zeal, the profession of Arianism. From the love, or the ostentation, +of learning, he collected a valuable library of history rhetoric, +philosophy, and theology, and the choice of the prevailing faction +promoted George of Cappadocia to the throne of Athanasius. The entrance +of the new archbishop was that of a Barbarian conqueror; and each moment +of his reign was polluted by cruelty and avarice. The Catholics of +Alexandria and Egypt were abandoned to a tyrant, qualified, by nature +and education, to exercise the office of persecution; but he oppressed +with an impartial hand the various inhabitants of his extensive diocese. +The primate of Egypt assumed the pomp and insolence of his lofty +station; but he still betrayed the vices of his base and servile +extraction. The merchants of Alexandria were impoverished by the unjust, +and almost universal, monopoly, which he acquired, of nitre, salt, +paper, funerals, &c.: and the spiritual father of a great people +condescended to practise the vile and pernicious arts of an informer. +The Alexandrians could never forget, nor forgive, the tax, which he +suggested, on all the houses of the city; under an obsolete claim, that +the royal founder had conveyed to his successors, the Ptolemies and the +Cæsars, the perpetual property of the soil. The Pagans, who had been +flattered with the hopes of freedom and toleration, excited his devout +avarice; and the rich temples of Alexandria were either pillaged or +insulted by the haughty prince, who exclaimed, in a loud and threatening +tone, "How long will these sepulchres be permitted to stand?" Under +the reign of Constantius, he was expelled by the fury, or rather by the +justice, of the people; and it was not without a violent struggle, that +the civil and military powers of the state could restore his authority, +and gratify his revenge. The messenger who proclaimed at Alexandria the +accession of Julian, announced the downfall of the archbishop. George, +with two of his obsequious ministers, Count Diodorus, and Dracontius, +master of the mint were ignominiously dragged in chains to the public +prison. At the end of twenty-four days, the prison was forced open by +the rage of a superstitious multitude, impatient of the tedious forms +of judicial proceedings. The enemies of gods and men expired under their +cruel insults; the lifeless bodies of the archbishop and his associates +were carried in triumph through the streets on the back of a camel; +* and the inactivity of the Athanasian party was esteemed a shining +example of evangelical patience. The remains of these guilty wretches +were thrown into the sea; and the popular leaders of the tumult declared +their resolution to disappoint the devotion of the Christians, and to +intercept the future honors of these martyrs, who had been punished, +like their predecessors, by the enemies of their religion. The fears of +the Pagans were just, and their precautions ineffectual. The meritorious +death of the archbishop obliterated the memory of his life. The rival of +Athanasius was dear and sacred to the Arians, and the seeming conversion +of those sectaries introduced his worship into the bosom of the Catholic +church. The odious stranger, disguising every circumstance of time and +place, assumed the mask of a martyr, a saint, and a Christian hero; and +the infamous George of Cappadocia has been transformed into the renowned +St. George of England, the patron of arms, of chivalry, and of the +garter. + +About the same time that Julian was informed of the tumult of +Alexandria, he received intelligence from Edessa, that the proud +and wealthy faction of the Arians had insulted the weakness of the +Valentinians, and committed such disorders as ought not to be suffered +with impunity in a well-regulated state. Without expecting the slow +forms of justice, the exasperated prince directed his mandate to the +magistrates of Edessa, by which he confiscated the whole property of +the church: the money was distributed among the soldiers; the lands were +added to the domain; and this act of oppression was aggravated by the +most ungenerous irony. "I show myself," says Julian, "the true friend of +the Galilæans. Their admirable law has promised the kingdom of heaven +to the poor; and they will advance with more diligence in the paths of +virtue and salvation, when they are relieved by my assistance from the +load of temporal possessions. Take care," pursued the monarch, in a more +serious tone, "take care how you provoke my patience and humanity. If +these disorders continue, I will revenge on the magistrates the crimes +of the people; and you will have reason to dread, not only confiscation +and exile, but fire and the sword." The tumults of Alexandria were +doubtless of a more bloody and dangerous nature: but a Christian bishop +had fallen by the hands of the Pagans; and the public epistle of Julian +affords a very lively proof of the partial spirit of his administration. +His reproaches to the citizens of Alexandria are mingled with +expressions of esteem and tenderness; and he laments, that, on this +occasion, they should have departed from the gentle and generous manners +which attested their Grecian extraction. He gravely censures the offence +which they had committed against the laws of justice and humanity; but +he recapitulates, with visible complacency, the intolerable provocations +which they had so long endured from the impious tyranny of George +of Cappadocia. Julian admits the principle, that a wise and vigorous +government should chastise the insolence of the people; yet, in +consideration of their founder Alexander, and of Serapis their tutelar +deity, he grants a free and gracious pardon to the guilty city, for +which he again feels the affection of a brother. + +After the tumult of Alexandria had subsided, Athanasius, amidst the +public acclamations, seated himself on the throne from whence his +unworthy competitor had been precipitated: and as the zeal of the +archbishop was tempered with discretion, the exercise of his authority +tended not to inflame, but to reconcile, the minds of the people. His +pastoral labors were not confined to the narrow limits of Egypt. The +state of the Christian world was present to his active and capacious +mind; and the age, the merit, the reputation of Athanasius, enabled him +to assume, in a moment of danger, the office of Ecclesiastical Dictator. +Three years were not yet elapsed since the majority of the bishops of +the West had ignorantly, or reluctantly, subscribed the Confession of +Rimini. They repented, they believed, but they dreaded the unseasonable +rigor of their orthodox brethren; and if their pride was stronger than +their faith, they might throw themselves into the arms of the Arians, to +escape the indignity of a public penance, which must degrade them to the +condition of obscure laymen. At the same time the domestic differences +concerning the union and distinction of the divine persons, were +agitated with some heat among the Catholic doctors; and the progress of +this metaphysical controversy seemed to threaten a public and lasting +division of the Greek and Latin churches. By the wisdom of a select +synod, to which the name and presence of Athanasius gave the authority +of a general council, the bishops, who had unwarily deviated into error, +were admitted to the communion of the church, on the easy condition of +subscribing the Nicene Creed; without any formal acknowledgment of their +past fault, or any minute definition of their scholastic opinions. The +advice of the primate of Egypt had already prepared the clergy of Gaul +and Spain, of Italy and Greece, for the reception of this salutary +measure; and, notwithstanding the opposition of some ardent spirits, +the fear of the common enemy promoted the peace and harmony of the +Christians. + +The skill and diligence of the primate of Egypt had improved the season +of tranquillity, before it was interrupted by the hostile edicts of the +emperor. Julian, who despised the Christians, honored Athanasius with +his sincere and peculiar hatred. For his sake alone, he introduced an +arbitrary distinction, repugnant at least to the spirit of his former +declarations. He maintained, that the Galilæans, whom he had recalled +from exile, were not restored, by that general indulgence, to +the possession of their respective churches; and he expressed his +astonishment, that a criminal, who had been repeatedly condemned by the +judgment of the emperors, should dare to insult the majesty of the laws, +and insolently usurp the archiepiscopal throne of Alexandria, without +expecting the orders of his sovereign. As a punishment for the imaginary +offence, he again banished Athanasius from the city; and he was pleased +to suppose, that this act of justice would be highly agreeable to his +pious subjects. The pressing solicitations of the people soon convinced +him, that the majority of the Alexandrians were Christians; and that +the greatest part of the Christians were firmly attached to the cause of +their oppressed primate. But the knowledge of their sentiments, instead +of persuading him to recall his decree, provoked him to extend to all +Egypt the term of the exile of Athanasius. The zeal of the multitude +rendered Julian still more inexorable: he was alarmed by the danger of +leaving at the head of a tumultuous city, a daring and popular leader; +and the language of his resentment discovers the opinion which he +entertained of the courage and abilities of Athanasius. The execution +of the sentence was still delayed, by the caution or negligence of +Ecdicius, præfect of Egypt, who was at length awakened from his lethargy +by a severe reprimand. "Though you neglect," says Julian, "to write to +me on any other subject, at least it is your duty to inform me of your +conduct towards Athanasius, the enemy of the gods. My intentions have +been long since communicated to you. I swear by the great Serapis, +that unless, on the calends of December, Athanasius has departed from +Alexandria, nay, from Egypt, the officers of your government shall pay +a fine of one hundred pounds of gold. You know my temper: I am slow to +condemn, but I am still slower to forgive." This epistle was enforced by +a short postscript, written with the emperor's own hand. "The contempt +that is shown for all the gods fills me with grief and indignation. +There is nothing that I should see, nothing that I should hear, with +more pleasure, than the expulsion of Athanasius from all Egypt. The +abominable wretch! Under my reign, the baptism of several Grecian ladies +of the highest rank has been the effect of his persecutions." The death +of Athanasius was not expressly commanded; but the præfect of Egypt +understood that it was safer for him to exceed, than to neglect, the +orders of an irritated master. The archbishop prudently retired to the +monasteries of the Desert; eluded, with his usual dexterity, the snares +of the enemy; and lived to triumph over the ashes of a prince, who, in +words of formidable import, had declared his wish that the whole +venom of the Galilæan school were contained in the single person of +Athanasius. + +I have endeavored faithfully to represent the artful system by which +Julian proposed to obtain the effects, without incurring the guilt, +or reproach, of persecution. But if the deadly spirit of fanaticism +perverted the heart and understanding of a virtuous prince, it must, at +the same time, be confessed that the real sufferings of the Christians +were inflamed and magnified by human passions and religious enthusiasm. +The meekness and resignation which had distinguished the primitive +disciples of the gospel, was the object of the applause, rather than of +the imitation of their successors. The Christians, who had now possessed +above forty years the civil and ecclesiastical government of the empire, +had contracted the insolent vices of prosperity, and the habit of +believing that the saints alone were entitled to reign over the earth. +As soon as the enmity of Julian deprived the clergy of the privileges +which had been conferred by the favor of Constantine, they complained +of the most cruel oppression; and the free toleration of idolaters and +heretics was a subject of grief and scandal to the orthodox party. The +acts of violence, which were no longer countenanced by the magistrates, +were still committed by the zeal of the people. At Pessinus, the altar +of Cybele was overturned almost in the presence of the emperor; and in +the city of Cæsarea in Cappadocia, the temple of Fortune, the sole place +of worship which had been left to the Pagans, was destroyed by the rage +of a popular tumult. On these occasions, a prince, who felt for the +honor of the gods, was not disposed to interrupt the course of justice; +and his mind was still more deeply exasperated, when he found that the +fanatics, who had deserved and suffered the punishment of incendiaries, +were rewarded with the honors of martyrdom. The Christian subjects of +Julian were assured of the hostile designs of their sovereign; and, to +their jealous apprehension, every circumstance of his government +might afford some grounds of discontent and suspicion. In the ordinary +administration of the laws, the Christians, who formed so large a +part of the people, must frequently be condemned: but their indulgent +brethren, without examining the merits of the cause, presumed their +innocence, allowed their claims, and imputed the severity of their judge +to the partial malice of religious persecution. These present hardships, +intolerable as they might appear, were represented as a slight prelude +of the impending calamities. The Christians considered Julian as a cruel +and crafty tyrant; who suspended the execution of his revenge till he +should return victorious from the Persian war. They expected, that as +soon as he had triumphed over the foreign enemies of Rome, he would lay +aside the irksome mask of dissimulation; that the amphitheatre would +stream with the blood of hermits and bishops; and that the Christians +who still persevered in the profession of the faith, would be deprived +of the common benefits of nature and society. Every calumny that could +wound the reputation of the Apostate, was credulously embraced by +the fears and hatred of his adversaries; and their indiscreet clamors +provoked the temper of a sovereign, whom it was their duty to respect, +and their interest to flatter. They still protested, that prayers and +tears were their only weapons against the impious tyrant, whose head +they devoted to the justice of offended Heaven. But they insinuated, +with sullen resolution, that their submission was no longer the effect +of weakness; and that, in the imperfect state of human virtue, +the patience, which is founded on principle, may be exhausted by +persecution. It is impossible to determine how far the zeal of Julian +would have prevailed over his good sense and humanity; but if we +seriously reflect on the strength and spirit of the church, we shall be +convinced, that before the emperor could have extinguished the religion +of Christ, he must have involved his country in the horrors of a civil +war. + + + +Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian.--Part I. + + Residence Of Julian At Antioch.--His Successful Expedition + Against The Persians.--Passage Of The Tigris--The Retreat + And Death Of Julian.--Election Of Jovian.--He Saves The + Roman Army By A Disgraceful Treaty. + +The philosophical fable which Julian composed under the name of the +Cæsars, is one of the most agreeable and instructive productions +of ancient wit. During the freedom and equality of the days of the +Saturnalia, Romulus prepared a feast for the deities of Olympus, who had +adopted him as a worthy associate, and for the Roman princes, who had +reigned over his martial people, and the vanquished nations of the +earth. The immortals were placed in just order on their thrones of +state, and the table of the Cæsars was spread below the Moon in the +upper region of the air. The tyrants, who would have disgraced the +society of gods and men, were thrown headlong, by the inexorable +Nemesis, into the Tartarean abyss. The rest of the Cæsars successively +advanced to their seats; and as they passed, the vices, the defects, the +blemishes of their respective characters, were maliciously noticed +by old Silenus, a laughing moralist, who disguised the wisdom of a +philosopher under the mask of a Bacchanal. As soon as the feast was +ended, the voice of Mercury proclaimed the will of Jupiter, that a +celestial crown should be the reward of superior merit. Julius Cæsar, +Augustus, Trajan, and Marcus Antoninus, were selected as the most +illustrious candidates; the effeminate Constantine was not excluded +from this honorable competition, and the great Alexander was invited to +dispute the prize of glory with the Roman heroes. Each of the candidates +was allowed to display the merit of his own exploits; but, in the +judgment of the gods, the modest silence of Marcus pleaded more +powerfully than the elaborate orations of his haughty rivals. When the +judges of this awful contest proceeded to examine the heart, and to +scrutinize the springs of action, the superiority of the Imperial Stoic +appeared still more decisive and conspicuous. Alexander and Cæsar, +Augustus, Trajan, and Constantine, acknowledged, with a blush, that +fame, or power, or pleasure had been the important object of their +labors: but the gods themselves beheld, with reverence and love, +a virtuous mortal, who had practised on the throne the lessons of +philosophy; and who, in a state of human imperfection, had aspired to +imitate the moral attributes of the Deity. The value of this agreeable +composition (the Cæsars of Julian) is enhanced by the rank of the +author. A prince, who delineates, with freedom, the vices and virtues of +his predecessors, subscribes, in every line, the censure or approbation +of his own conduct. + +In the cool moments of reflection, Julian preferred the useful and +benevolent virtues of Antoninus; but his ambitious spirit was inflamed +by the glory of Alexander; and he solicited, with equal ardor, the +esteem of the wise, and the applause of the multitude. In the season of +life when the powers of the mind and body enjoy the most active vigor, +the emperor who was instructed by the experience, and animated by the +success, of the German war, resolved to signalize his reign by some more +splendid and memorable achievement. The ambassadors of the East, from +the continent of India, and the Isle of Ceylon, had respectfully saluted +the Roman purple. The nations of the West esteemed and dreaded the +personal virtues of Julian, both in peace and war. He despised the +trophies of a Gothic victory, and was satisfied that the rapacious +Barbarians of the Danube would be restrained from any future violation +of the faith of treaties by the terror of his name, and the additional +fortifications with which he strengthened the Thracian and Illyrian +frontiers. The successor of Cyrus and Artaxerxes was the only rival whom +he deemed worthy of his arms; and he resolved, by the final conquest of +Persia, to chastise the naughty nation which had so long resisted +and insulted the majesty of Rome. As soon as the Persian monarch was +informed that the throne of Constantius was filed by a prince of a very +different character, he condescended to make some artful, or perhaps +sincere, overtures towards a negotiation of peace. But the pride of +Sapor was astonished by the firmness of Julian; who sternly declared, +that he would never consent to hold a peaceful conference among the +flames and ruins of the cities of Mesopotamia; and who added, with a +smile of contempt, that it was needless to treat by ambassadors, as +he himself had determined to visit speedily the court of Persia. +The impatience of the emperor urged the diligence of the military +preparations. The generals were named; and Julian, marching from +Constantinople through the provinces of Asia Minor, arrived at Antioch +about eight months after the death of his predecessor. His ardent desire +to march into the heart of Persia, was checked by the indispensable duty +of regulating the state of the empire; by his zeal to revive the worship +of the gods; and by the advice of his wisest friends; who represented +the necessity of allowing the salutary interval of winter quarters, +to restore the exhausted strength of the legions of Gaul, and the +discipline and spirit of the Eastern troops. Julian was persuaded to +fix, till the ensuing spring, his residence at Antioch, among a people +maliciously disposed to deride the haste, and to censure the delays, of +their sovereign. + +If Julian had flattered himself, that his personal connection with the +capital of the East would be productive of mutual satisfaction to the +prince and people, he made a very false estimate of his own character, +and of the manners of Antioch. The warmth of the climate disposed the +natives to the most intemperate enjoyment of tranquillity and opulence; +and the lively licentiousness of the Greeks was blended with the +hereditary softness of the Syrians. Fashion was the only law, pleasure +the only pursuit, and the splendor of dress and furniture was the only +distinction of the citizens of Antioch. The arts of luxury were honored; +the serious and manly virtues were the subject of ridicule; and the +contempt for female modesty and reverent age announced the universal +corruption of the capital of the East. The love of spectacles was the +taste, or rather passion, of the Syrians; the most skilful artists were +procured from the adjacent cities; a considerable share of the revenue +was devoted to the public amusements; and the magnificence of the games +of the theatre and circus was considered as the happiness and as the +glory of Antioch. The rustic manners of a prince who disdained such +glory, and was insensible of such happiness, soon disgusted the delicacy +of his subjects; and the effeminate Orientals could neither imitate, +nor admire, the severe simplicity which Julian always maintained, and +sometimes affected. The days of festivity, consecrated, by ancient +custom, to the honor of the gods, were the only occasions in which +Julian relaxed his philosophic severity; and those festivals were the +only days in which the Syrians of Antioch could reject the allurements +of pleasure. The majority of the people supported the glory of the +Christian name, which had been first invented by their ancestors: they +contended themselves with disobeying the moral precepts, but they were +scrupulously attached to the speculative doctrines of their religion. +The church of Antioch was distracted by heresy and schism; but the +Arians and the Athanasians, the followers of Meletius and those of +Paulinus, were actuated by the same pious hatred of their common +adversary. + +The strongest prejudice was entertained against the character of an +apostate, the enemy and successor of a prince who had engaged the +affections of a very numerous sect; and the removal of St. Babylas +excited an implacable opposition to the person of Julian. His subjects +complained, with superstitious indignation, that famine had pursued the +emperor's steps from Constantinople to Antioch; and the discontent of +a hungry people was exasperated by the injudicious attempt to relieve +their distress. The inclemency of the season had affected the harvests +of Syria; and the price of bread, in the markets of Antioch, had +naturally risen in proportion to the scarcity of corn. But the fair +and reasonable proportion was soon violated by the rapacious arts of +monopoly. In this unequal contest, in which the produce of the land is +claimed by one party as his exclusive property, is used by another as a +lucrative object of trade, and is required by a third for the daily and +necessary support of life, all the profits of the intermediate agents +are accumulated on the head of the defenceless customers. The hardships +of their situation were exaggerated and increased by their own +impatience and anxiety; and the apprehension of a scarcity gradually +produced the appearances of a famine. When the luxurious citizens +of Antioch complained of the high price of poultry and fish, Julian +publicly declared, that a frugal city ought to be satisfied with a +regular supply of wine, oil, and bread; but he acknowledged, that it was +the duty of a sovereign to provide for the subsistence of his people. +With this salutary view, the emperor ventured on a very dangerous and +doubtful step, of fixing, by legal authority, the value of corn. He +enacted, that, in a time of scarcity, it should be sold at a price which +had seldom been known in the most plentiful years; and that his own +example might strengthen his laws, he sent into the market four hundred +and twenty-two thousand modii, or measures, which were drawn by his +order from the granaries of Hierapolis, of Chalcis, and even of Egypt. +The consequences might have been foreseen, and were soon felt. The +Imperial wheat was purchased by the rich merchants; the proprietors of +land, or of corn, withheld from the city the accustomed supply; and the +small quantities that appeared in the market were secretly sold at an +advanced and illegal price. Julian still continued to applaud his own +policy, treated the complaints of the people as a vain and ungrateful +murmur, and convinced Antioch that he had inherited the obstinacy, +though not the cruelty, of his brother Gallus. The remonstrances of the +municipal senate served only to exasperate his inflexible mind. He +was persuaded, perhaps with truth, that the senators of Antioch who +possessed lands, or were concerned in trade, had themselves contributed +to the calamities of their country; and he imputed the disrespectful +boldness which they assumed, to the sense, not of public duty, but of +private interest. The whole body, consisting of two hundred of the most +noble and wealthy citizens, were sent, under a guard, from the palace to +the prison; and though they were permitted, before the close of evening, +to return to their respective houses, the emperor himself could +not obtain the forgiveness which he had so easily granted. The same +grievances were still the subject of the same complaints, which were +industriously circulated by the wit and levity of the Syrian Greeks. +During the licentious days of the Saturnalia, the streets of the city +resounded with insolent songs, which derided the laws, the religion, +the personal conduct, and even the beard, of the emperor; the spirit +of Antioch was manifested by the connivance of the magistrates, and +the applause of the multitude. The disciple of Socrates was too deeply +affected by these popular insults; but the monarch, endowed with a quick +sensibility, and possessed of absolute power, refused his passions +the gratification of revenge. A tyrant might have proscribed, without +distinction, the lives and fortunes of the citizens of Antioch; and +the unwarlike Syrians must have patiently submitted to the lust, the +rapaciousness and the cruelty, of the faithful legions of Gaul. A milder +sentence might have deprived the capital of the East of its honors and +privileges; and the courtiers, perhaps the subjects, of Julian, would +have applauded an act of justice, which asserted the dignity of the +supreme magistrate of the republic. But instead of abusing, or exerting, +the authority of the state, to revenge his personal injuries, Julian +contented himself with an inoffensive mode of retaliation, which it +would be in the power of few princes to employ. He had been insulted +by satires and libels; in his turn, he composed, under the title of +the Enemy of the Beard, an ironical confession of his own faults, and a +severe satire on the licentious and effeminate manners of Antioch. This +Imperial reply was publicly exposed before the gates of the palace; and +the Misopogon still remains a singular monument of the resentment, the +wit, the humanity, and the indiscretion of Julian. Though he affected to +laugh, he could not forgive. His contempt was expressed, and his revenge +might be gratified, by the nomination of a governor worthy only of +such subjects; and the emperor, forever renouncing the ungrateful +city, proclaimed his resolution to pass the ensuing winter at Tarsus in +Cilicia. + +Yet Antioch possessed one citizen, whose genius and virtues might atone, +in the opinion of Julian, for the vice and folly of his country. The +sophist Libanius was born in the capital of the East; he publicly +professed the arts of rhetoric and declamation at Nice, Nicomedia, +Constantinople, Athens, and, during the remainder of his life, at +Antioch. His school was assiduously frequented by the Grecian youth; his +disciples, who sometimes exceeded the number of eighty, celebrated their +incomparable master; and the jealousy of his rivals, who persecuted him +from one city to another, confirmed the favorable opinion which Libanius +ostentatiously displayed of his superior merit. The preceptors of Julian +had extorted a rash but solemn assurance, that he would never attend +the lectures of their adversary: the curiosity of the royal youth +was checked and inflamed: he secretly procured the writings of this +dangerous sophist, and gradually surpassed, in the perfect imitation +of his style, the most laborious of his domestic pupils. When Julian +ascended the throne, he declared his impatience to embrace and reward +the Syrian sophist, who had preserved, in a degenerate age, the +Grecian purity of taste, of manners, and of religion. The emperor's +prepossession was increased and justified by the discreet pride of his +favorite. Instead of pressing, with the foremost of the crowd, into +the palace of Constantinople, Libanius calmly expected his arrival +at Antioch; withdrew from court on the first symptoms of coldness and +indifference; required a formal invitation for each visit; and taught +his sovereign an important lesson, that he might command the obedience +of a subject, but that he must deserve the attachment of a friend. +The sophists of every age, despising, or affecting to despise, the +accidental distinctions of birth and fortune, reserve their esteem for +the superior qualities of the mind, with which they themselves are so +plentifully endowed. Julian might disdain the acclamations of a venal +court, who adored the Imperial purple; but he was deeply flattered by +the praise, the admonition, the freedom, and the envy of an independent +philosopher, who refused his favors, loved his person, celebrated his +fame, and protected his memory. The voluminous writings of Libanius +still exist; for the most part, they are the vain and idle compositions +of an orator, who cultivated the science of words; the productions of +a recluse student, whose mind, regardless of his contemporaries, was +incessantly fixed on the Trojan war and the Athenian commonwealth. +Yet the sophist of Antioch sometimes descended from this imaginary +elevation; he entertained a various and elaborate correspondence; he +praised the virtues of his own times; he boldly arraigned the abuse of +public and private life; and he eloquently pleaded the cause of Antioch +against the just resentment of Julian and Theodosius. It is the common +calamity of old age, to lose whatever might have rendered it desirable; +but Libanius experienced the peculiar misfortune of surviving the +religion and the sciences, to which he had consecrated his genius. +The friend of Julian was an indignant spectator of the triumph of +Christianity; and his bigotry, which darkened the prospect of the +visible world, did not inspire Libanius with any lively hopes of +celestial glory and happiness. + + + +Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian.--Part II. + +The martial impatience of Julian urged him to take the field in the +beginning of the spring; and he dismissed, with contempt and reproach, +the senate of Antioch, who accompanied the emperor beyond the limits of +their own territory, to which he was resolved never to return. After a +laborious march of two days, he halted on the third at Beræa, or Aleppo, +where he had the mortification of finding a senate almost entirely +Christian; who received with cold and formal demonstrations of respect +the eloquent sermon of the apostle of paganism. The son of one of +the most illustrious citizens of Beræa, who had embraced, either from +interest or conscience, the religion of the emperor, was disinherited +by his angry parent. The father and the son were invited to the Imperial +table. Julian, placing himself between them, attempted, without success, +to inculcate the lesson and example of toleration; supported, with +affected calmness, the indiscreet zeal of the aged Christian, who seemed +to forget the sentiments of nature, and the duty of a subject; and at +length, turning towards the afflicted youth, "Since you have lost a +father," said he, "for my sake, it is incumbent on me to supply his +place." The emperor was received in a manner much more agreeable to +his wishes at Batnæ, * a small town pleasantly seated in a grove of +cypresses, about twenty miles from the city of Hierapolis. The solemn +rites of sacrifice were decently prepared by the inhabitants of Batnæ, +who seemed attached to the worship of their tutelar deities, Apollo and +Jupiter; but the serious piety of Julian was offended by the tumult of +their applause; and he too clearly discerned, that the smoke which arose +from their altars was the incense of flattery, rather than of devotion. +The ancient and magnificent temple which had sanctified, for so many +ages, the city of Hierapolis, no longer subsisted; and the consecrated +wealth, which afforded a liberal maintenance to more than three hundred +priests, might hasten its downfall. Yet Julian enjoyed the satisfaction +of embracing a philosopher and a friend, whose religious firmness had +withstood the pressing and repeated solicitations of Constantius and +Gallus, as often as those princes lodged at his house, in their passage +through Hierapolis. In the hurry of military preparation, and the +careless confidence of a familiar correspondence, the zeal of Julian +appears to have been lively and uniform. He had now undertaken an +important and difficult war; and the anxiety of the event rendered him +still more attentive to observe and register the most trifling presages, +from which, according to the rules of divination, any knowledge of +futurity could be derived. He informed Libanius of his progress as far +as Hierapolis, by an elegant epistle, which displays the facility of his +genius, and his tender friendship for the sophist of Antioch. + +Hierapolis, * situate almost on the banks of the Euphrates, had +been appointed for the general rendezvous of the Roman troops, who +immediately passed the great river on a bridge of boats, which was +previously constructed. If the inclinations of Julian had been similar +to those of his predecessor, he might have wasted the active and +important season of the year in the circus of Samosata or in the +churches of Edessa. But as the warlike emperor, instead of Constantius, +had chosen Alexander for his model, he advanced without delay to Carrhæ, +a very ancient city of Mesopotamia, at the distance of fourscore miles +from Hierapolis. The temple of the Moon attracted the devotion +of Julian; but the halt of a few days was principally employed in +completing the immense preparations of the Persian war. The secret of +the expedition had hitherto remained in his own breast; but as Carrhæ +is the point of separation of the two great roads, he could no longer +conceal whether it was his design to attack the dominions of Sapor +on the side of the Tigris, or on that of the Euphrates. The emperor +detached an army of thirty thousand men, under the command of his +kinsman Procopius, and of Sebastian, who had been duke of Egypt. They +were ordered to direct their march towards Nisibis, and to secure +the frontier from the desultory incursions of the enemy, before they +attempted the passage of the Tigris. Their subsequent operations were +left to the discretion of the generals; but Julian expected, that after +wasting with fire and sword the fertile districts of Media and Adiabene, +they might arrive under the walls of Ctesiphon at the same time that he +himself, advancing with equal steps along the banks of the Euphrates, +should besiege the capital of the Persian monarchy. The success of this +well-concerted plan depended, in a great measure, on the powerful and +ready assistance of the king of Armenia, who, without exposing the +safety of his own dominions, might detach an army of four thousand +horse, and twenty thousand foot, to the assistance of the Romans. But +the feeble Arsaces Tiranus, king of Armenia, had degenerated still more +shamefully than his father Chosroes, from the manly virtues of the great +Tiridates; and as the pusillanimous monarch was averse to any enterprise +of danger and glory, he could disguise his timid indolence by the +more decent excuses of religion and gratitude. He expressed a pious +attachment to the memory of Constantius, from whose hands he had +received in marriage Olympias, the daughter of the præfect Ablavius; and +the alliance of a female, who had been educated as the destined wife of +the emperor Constans, exalted the dignity of a Barbarian king. +Tiranus professed the Christian religion; he reigned over a nation of +Christians; and he was restrained, by every principle of conscience and +interest, from contributing to the victory, which would consummate the +ruin of the church. The alienated mind of Tiranus was exasperated by the +indiscretion of Julian, who treated the king of Armenia as his slave, +and as the enemy of the gods. The haughty and threatening style of the +Imperial mandates awakened the secret indignation of a prince, who, in +the humiliating state of dependence, was still conscious of his royal +descent from the Arsacides, the lords of the East, and the rivals of the +Roman power. + +The military dispositions of Julian were skilfully contrived to deceive +the spies and to divert the attention of Sapor. The legions appeared +to direct their march towards Nisibis and the Tigris. On a sudden they +wheeled to the right; traversed the level and naked plain of Carrhæ; and +reached, on the third day, the banks of the Euphrates, where the strong +town of Nicephorium, or Callinicum, had been founded by the Macedonian +kings. From thence the emperor pursued his march, above ninety miles, +along the winding stream of the Euphrates, till, at length, about one +month after his departure from Antioch, he discovered the towers of +Circesium, * the extreme limit of the Roman dominions. The army of +Julian, the most numerous that any of the Cæsars had ever led against +Persia, consisted of sixty-five thousand effective and well-disciplined +soldiers. The veteran bands of cavalry and infantry, of Romans and +Barbarians, had been selected from the different provinces; and a just +preeminence of loyalty and valor was claimed by the hardy Gauls, who +guarded the throne and person of their beloved prince. A formidable body +of Scythian auxiliaries had been transported from another climate, and +almost from another world, to invade a distant country, of whose name +and situation they were ignorant. The love of rapine and war allured to +the Imperial standard several tribes of Saracens, or roving Arabs, whose +service Julian had commanded, while he sternly refuse the payment of the +accustomed subsidies. The broad channel of the Euphrates was crowded by +a fleet of eleven hundred ships, destined to attend the motions, and to +satisfy the wants, of the Roman army. The military strength of the fleet +was composed of fifty armed galleys; and these were accompanied by +an equal number of flat-bottomed boats, which might occasionally be +connected into the form of temporary bridges. The rest of the ships, +partly constructed of timber, and partly covered with raw hides, were +laden with an almost inexhaustible supply of arms and engines, of +utensils and provisions. The vigilant humanity of Julian had embarked a +very large magazine of vinegar and biscuit for the use of the soldiers, +but he prohibited the indulgence of wine; and rigorously stopped a long +string of superfluous camels that attempted to follow the rear of the +army. The River Chaboras falls into the Euphrates at Circesium; and +as soon as the trumpet gave the signal of march, the Romans passed the +little stream which separated two mighty and hostile empires. The custom +of ancient discipline required a military oration; and Julian embraced +every opportunity of displaying his eloquence. He animated the impatient +and attentive legions by the example of the inflexible courage and +glorious triumphs of their ancestors. He excited their resentment by a +lively picture of the insolence of the Persians; and he exhorted them to +imitate his firm resolution, either to extirpate that perfidious nation, +or to devote his life in the cause of the republic. The eloquence of +Julian was enforced by a donative of one hundred and thirty pieces of +silver to every soldier; and the bridge of the Chaboras was instantly +cut away, to convince the troops that they must place their hopes of +safety in the success of their arms. Yet the prudence of the emperor +induced him to secure a remote frontier, perpetually exposed to the +inroads of the hostile Arabs. A detachment of four thousand men was +left at Circesium, which completed, to the number of ten thousand, the +regular garrison of that important fortress. + +From the moment that the Romans entered the enemy's country, the country +of an active and artful enemy, the order of march was disposed in three +columns. The strength of the infantry, and consequently of the whole +army was placed in the centre, under the peculiar command of their +master-general Victor. On the right, the brave Nevitta led a column of +several legions along the banks of the Euphrates, and almost always +in sight of the fleet. The left flank of the army was protected by the +column of cavalry. Hormisdas and Arinthæus were appointed generals of +the horse; and the singular adventures of Hormisdas are not undeserving +of our notice. He was a Persian prince, of the royal race of the +Sassanides, who, in the troubles of the minority of Sapor, had escaped +from prison to the hospitable court of the great Constantine. Hormisdas +at first excited the compassion, and at length acquired the esteem, +of his new masters; his valor and fidelity raised him to the military +honors of the Roman service; and though a Christian, he might indulge +the secret satisfaction of convincing his ungrateful country, than +at oppressed subject may prove the most dangerous enemy. Such was the +disposition of the three principal columns. The front and flanks of +the army were covered by Lucilianus with a flying detachment of fifteen +hundred light-armed soldiers, whose active vigilance observed the +most distant signs, and conveyed the earliest notice, of any hostile +approach. Dagalaiphus, and Secundinus duke of Osrhoene, conducted +the troops of the rear-guard; the baggage securely proceeded in the +intervals of the columns; and the ranks, from a motive either of use +or ostentation, were formed in such open order, that the whole line of +march extended almost ten miles. The ordinary post of Julian was at the +head of the centre column; but as he preferred the duties of a general +to the state of a monarch, he rapidly moved, with a small escort of +light cavalry, to the front, the rear, the flanks, wherever his presence +could animate or protect the march of the Roman army. The country which +they traversed from the Chaboras, to the cultivated lands of Assyria, +may be considered as a part of the desert of Arabia, a dry and barren +waste, which could never be improved by the most powerful arts of human +industry. Julian marched over the same ground which had been trod above +seven hundred years before by the footsteps of the younger Cyrus, and +which is described by one of the companions of his expedition, the sage +and heroic Xenophon. "The country was a plain throughout, as even as the +sea, and full of wormwood; and if any other kind of shrubs or reeds +grew there, they had all an aromatic smell, but no trees could be seen. +Bustards and ostriches, antelopes and wild asses, appeared to be the +only inhabitants of the desert; and the fatigues of the march were +alleviated by the amusements of the chase." The loose sand of the desert +was frequently raised by the wind into clouds of dust; and a great +number of the soldiers of Julian, with their tents, were suddenly thrown +to the ground by the violence of an unexpected hurricane. + +The sandy plains of Mesopotamia were abandoned to the antelopes and wild +asses of the desert; but a variety of populous towns and villages were +pleasantly situated on the banks of the Euphrates, and in the islands +which are occasionally formed by that river. The city of Annah, or +Anatho, the actual residence of an Arabian emir, is composed of two long +streets, which enclose, within a natural fortification, a small island +in the midst, and two fruitful spots on either side, of the Euphrates. +The warlike inhabitants of Anatho showed a disposition to stop the march +of a Roman emperor; till they were diverted from such fatal presumption +by the mild exhortations of Prince Hormisdas, and the approaching +terrors of the fleet and army. They implored, and experienced, the +clemency of Julian, who transplanted the people to an advantageous +settlement, near Chalcis in Syria, and admitted Pusæus, the governor, +to an honorable rank in his service and friendship. But the impregnable +fortress of Thilutha could scorn the menace of a siege; and the emperor +was obliged to content himself with an insulting promise, that, when he +had subdued the interior provinces of Persia, Thilutha would no longer +refuse to grace the triumph of the emperor. The inhabitants of the +open towns, unable to resist, and unwilling to yield, fled with +precipitation; and their houses, filled with spoil and provisions, were +occupied by the soldiers of Julian, who massacred, without remorse +and without punishment, some defenceless women. During the march, the +Surenas, * or Persian general, and Malek Rodosaces, the renowned emir of +the tribe of Gassan, incessantly hovered round the army; every straggler +was intercepted; every detachment was attacked; and the valiant +Hormisdas escaped with some difficulty from their hands. But the +Barbarians were finally repulsed; the country became every day less +favorable to the operations of cavalry; and when the Romans arrived +at Macepracta, they perceived the ruins of the wall, which had been +constructed by the ancient kings of Assyria, to secure their dominions +from the incursions of the Medes. These preliminaries of the expedition +of Julian appear to have employed about fifteen days; and we may compute +near three hundred miles from the fortress of Circesium to the wall of +Macepracta. + +The fertile province of Assyria, which stretched beyond the Tigris, as +far as the mountains of Media, extended about four hundred miles from +the ancient wall of Macepracta, to the territory of Basra, where the +united streams of the Euphrates and Tigris discharge themselves into the +Persian Gulf. The whole country might have claimed the peculiar name of +Mesopotamia; as the two rivers, which are never more distant than fifty, +approach, between Bagdad and Babylon, within twenty-five miles, of each +other. A multitude of artificial canals, dug without much labor in a +soft and yielding soil connected the rivers, and intersected the +plain of Assyria. The uses of these artificial canals were various and +important. They served to discharge the superfluous waters from one +river into the other, at the season of their respective inundations. +Subdividing themselves into smaller and smaller branches, they refreshed +the dry lands, and supplied the deficiency of rain. They facilitated the +intercourse of peace and commerce; and, as the dams could be speedily +broke down, they armed the despair of the Assyrians with the means of +opposing a sudden deluge to the progress of an invading army. To the +soil and climate of Assyria, nature had denied some of her choicest +gifts, the vine, the olive, and the fig-tree; * but the food which +supports the life of man, and particularly wheat and barley, were +produced with inexhaustible fertility; and the husbandman, who committed +his seed to the earth, was frequently rewarded with an increase of two, +or even of three, hundred. The face of the country was interspersed with +groves of innumerable palm-trees; and the diligent natives celebrated, +either in verse or prose, the three hundred and sixty uses to which +the trunk, the branches, the leaves, the juice, and the fruit, were +skilfully applied. Several manufactures, especially those of leather and +linen, employed the industry of a numerous people, and afforded valuable +materials for foreign trade; which appears, however, to have been +conducted by the hands of strangers. Babylon had been converted into a +royal park; but near the ruins of the ancient capital, new cities had +successively arisen, and the populousness of the country was displayed +in the multitude of towns and villages, which were built of bricks dried +in the sun, and strongly cemented with bitumen; the natural and peculiar +production of the Babylonian soil. While the successors of Cyrus reigned +over Asia, the province of Syria alone maintained, during a third part +of the year, the luxurious plenty of the table and household of the +Great King. Four considerable villages were assigned for the subsistence +of his Indian dogs; eight hundred stallions, and sixteen thousand mares, +were constantly kept, at the expense of the country, for the royal +stables; and as the daily tribute, which was paid to the satrap, +amounted to one English bushel of silver, we may compute the annual +revenue of Assyria at more than twelve hundred thousand pounds sterling. + + + +Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian.--Part III. + +The fields of Assyria were devoted by Julian to the calamities of war; +and the philosopher retaliated on a guiltless people the acts of rapine +and cruelty which had been committed by their haughty master in the +Roman provinces. The trembling Assyrians summoned the rivers to their +assistance; and completed, with their own hands, the ruin of their +country. The roads were rendered impracticable; a flood of waters was +poured into the camp; and, during several days, the troops of Julian +were obliged to contend with the most discouraging hardships. But every +obstacle was surmounted by the perseverance of the legionaries, who were +inured to toil as well as to danger, and who felt themselves animated +by the spirit of their leader. The damage was gradually repaired; +the waters were restored to their proper channels; whole groves of +palm-trees were cut down, and placed along the broken parts of the road; +and the army passed over the broad and deeper canals, on bridges of +floating rafts, which were supported by the help of bladders. Two cities +of Assyria presumed to resist the arms of a Roman emperor: and they +both paid the severe penalty of their rashness. At the distance of fifty +miles from the royal residence of Ctesiphon, Perisabor, * or Anbar, +held the second rank in the province; a city, large, populous, and well +fortified, surrounded with a double wall, almost encompassed by a branch +of the Euphrates, and defended by the valor of a numerous garrison. The +exhortations of Hormisdas were repulsed with contempt; and the ears of +the Persian prince were wounded by a just reproach, that, unmindful of +his royal birth, he conducted an army of strangers against his king and +country. The Assyrians maintained their loyalty by a skilful, as well +as vigorous, defence; till the lucky stroke of a battering-ram, having +opened a large breach, by shattering one of the angles of the wall, they +hastily retired into the fortifications of the interior citadel. The +soldiers of Julian rushed impetuously into the town, and after the +full gratification of every military appetite, Perisabor was reduced to +ashes; and the engines which assaulted the citadel were planted on the +ruins of the smoking houses. The contest was continued by an incessant +and mutual discharge of missile weapons; and the superiority which the +Romans might derive from the mechanical powers of their balistæ and +catapultæ was counterbalanced by the advantage of the ground on the side +of the besieged. But as soon as an Helepolis had been constructed, which +could engage on equal terms with the loftiest ramparts, the tremendous +aspect of a moving turret, that would leave no hope of resistance or +mercy, terrified the defenders of the citadel into an humble submission; +and the place was surrendered only two days after Julian first appeared +under the walls of Perisabor. Two thousand five hundred persons, of both +sexes, the feeble remnant of a flourishing people, were permitted +to retire; the plentiful magazines of corn, of arms, and of splendid +furniture, were partly distributed among the troops, and partly reserved +for the public service; the useless stores were destroyed by fire or +thrown into the stream of the Euphrates; and the fate of Amida was +revenged by the total ruin of Perisabor. + +The city or rather fortress, of Maogamalcha, which was defended by +sixteen large towers, a deep ditch, and two strong and solid walls of +brick and bitumen, appears to have been constructed at the distance of +eleven miles, as the safeguard of the capital of Persia. The emperor, +apprehensive of leaving such an important fortress in his rear, +immediately formed the siege of Maogamalcha; and the Roman army was +distributed, for that purpose, into three divisions. Victor, at the head +of the cavalry, and of a detachment of heavy-armed foot, was ordered to +clear the country, as far as the banks of the Tigris, and the suburbs of +Ctesiphon. The conduct of the attack was assumed by Julian himself, who +seemed to place his whole dependence in the military engines which +he erected against the walls; while he secretly contrived a more +efficacious method of introducing his troops into the heart of the city +Under the direction of Nevitta and Dagalaiphus, the trenches were opened +at a considerable distance, and gradually prolonged as far as the edge +of the ditch. The ditch was speedily filled with earth; and, by the +incessant labor of the troops, a mine was carried under the foundations +of the walls, and sustained, at sufficient intervals, by props of +timber. Three chosen cohorts, advancing in a single file, silently +explored the dark and dangerous passage; till their intrepid leader +whispered back the intelligence, that he was ready to issue from his +confinement into the streets of the hostile city. Julian checked their +ardor, that he might insure their success; and immediately diverted +the attention of the garrison, by the tumult and clamor of a general +assault. The Persians, who, from their walls, contemptuously beheld the +progress of an impotent attack, celebrated with songs of triumph the +glory of Sapor; and ventured to assure the emperor, that he might +ascend the starry mansion of Ormusd, before he could hope to take the +impregnable city of Maogamalcha. The city was already taken. History has +recorded the name of a private soldier the first who ascended from the +mine into a deserted tower. The passage was widened by his companions, +who pressed forwards with impatient valor. Fifteen hundred enemies were +already in the midst of the city. The astonished garrison abandoned the +walls, and their only hope of safety; the gates were instantly burst +open; and the revenge of the soldier, unless it were suspended by lust +or avarice, was satiated by an undistinguishing massacre. The governor, +who had yielded on a promise of mercy, was burnt alive, a few days +afterwards, on a charge of having uttered some disrespectful words +against the honor of Prince Hormisdas. * The fortifications were razed +to the ground; and not a vestige was left, that the city of Maogamalcha +had ever existed. The neighborhood of the capital of Persia was adorned +with three stately palaces, laboriously enriched with every production +that could gratify the luxury and pride of an Eastern monarch. The +pleasant situation of the gardens along the banks of the Tigris, was +improved, according to the Persian taste, by the symmetry of flowers, +fountains, and shady walks: and spacious parks were enclosed for the +reception of the bears, lions, and wild boars, which were maintained +at a considerable expense for the pleasure of the royal chase. The park +walls were broken down, the savage game was abandoned to the darts of +the soldiers, and the palaces of Sapor were reduced to ashes, by the +command of the Roman emperor. Julian, on this occasion, showed himself +ignorant, or careless, of the laws of civility, which the prudence and +refinement of polished ages have established between hostile princes. +Yet these wanton ravages need not excite in our breasts any vehement +emotions of pity or resentment. A simple, naked statue, finished by the +hand of a Grecian artist, is of more genuine value than all these rude +and costly monuments of Barbaric labor; and, if we are more deeply +affected by the ruin of a palace than by the conflagration of a cottage, +our humanity must have formed a very erroneous estimate of the miseries +of human life. + +Julian was an object of hatred and terror to the Persian and the +painters of that nation represented the invader of their country under +the emblem of a furious lion, who vomited from his mouth a consuming +fire. To his friends and soldiers the philosophic hero appeared in +a more amiable light; and his virtues were never more conspicuously +displayed, than in the last and most active period of his life. He +practised, without effort, and almost without merit, the habitual +qualities of temperance and sobriety. According to the dictates of that +artificial wisdom, which assumes an absolute dominion over the mind +and body, he sternly refused himself the indulgence of the most natural +appetites. In the warm climate of Assyria, which solicited a luxurious +people to the gratification of every sensual desire, a youthful +conqueror preserved his chastity pure and inviolate; nor was Julian ever +tempted, even by a motive of curiosity, to visit his female captives +of exquisite beauty, who, instead of resisting his power, would have +disputed with each other the honor of his embraces. With the same +firmness that he resisted the allurements of love, he sustained the +hardships of war. When the Romans marched through the flat and flooded +country, their sovereign, on foot, at the head of his legions, shared +their fatigues and animated their diligence. In every useful labor, the +hand of Julian was prompt and strenuous; and the Imperial purple was wet +and dirty as the coarse garment of the meanest soldier. The two sieges +allowed him some remarkable opportunities of signalizing his personal +valor, which, in the improved state of the military art, can seldom +be exerted by a prudent general. The emperor stood before the citadel +before the citadel of Perisabor, insensible of his extreme danger, +and encouraged his troops to burst open the gates of iron, till he was +almost overwhelmed under a cloud of missile weapons and huge stones, +that were directed against his person. As he examined the exterior +fortifications of Maogamalcha, two Persians, devoting themselves for +their country, suddenly rushed upon him with drawn cimeters: the emperor +dexterously received their blows on his uplifted shield; and, with a +steady and well-aimed thrust, laid one of his adversaries dead at +his feet. The esteem of a prince who possesses the virtues which he +approves, is the noblest recompense of a deserving subject; and the +authority which Julian derived from his personal merit, enabled him to +revive and enforce the rigor of ancient discipline. He punished with +death or ignominy the misbehavior of three troops of horse, who, in +a skirmish with the Surenas, had lost their honor and one of their +standards: and he distinguished with obsidional crowns the valor of the +foremost soldiers, who had ascended into the city of Maogamalcha. After +the siege of Perisabor, the firmness of the emperor was exercised by the +insolent avarice of the army, who loudly complained, that their services +were rewarded by a trifling donative of one hundred pieces of silver. +His just indignation was expressed in the grave and manly language of a +Roman. "Riches are the object of your desires; those riches are in +the hands of the Persians; and the spoils of this fruitful country are +proposed as the prize of your valor and discipline. Believe me," added +Julian, "the Roman republic, which formerly possessed such immense +treasures, is now reduced to want and wretchedness once our princes have +been persuaded, by weak and interested ministers, to purchase with gold +the tranquillity of the Barbarians. The revenue is exhausted; the +cities are ruined; the provinces are dispeopled. For myself, the only +inheritance that I have received from my royal ancestors is a soul +incapable of fear; and as long as I am convinced that every real +advantage is seated in the mind, I shall not blush to acknowledge an +honorable poverty, which, in the days of ancient virtue, was considered +as the glory of Fabricius. That glory, and that virtue, may be your own, +if you will listen to the voice of Heaven and of your leader. But if +you will rashly persist, if you are determined to renew the shameful and +mischievous examples of old seditions, proceed. As it becomes an emperor +who has filled the first rank among men, I am prepared to die, standing; +and to despise a precarious life, which, every hour, may depend on an +accidental fever. If I have been found unworthy of the command, there +are now among you, (I speak it with pride and pleasure,) there are many +chiefs whose merit and experience are equal to the conduct of the most +important war. Such has been the temper of my reign, that I can retire, +without regret, and without apprehension, to the obscurity of a private +station." The modest resolution of Julian was answered by the unanimous +applause and cheerful obedience of the Romans, who declared their +confidence of victory, while they fought under the banners of their +heroic prince. Their courage was kindled by his frequent and familiar +asseverations, (for such wishes were the oaths of Julian,) "So may I +reduce the Persians under the yoke!" "Thus may I restore the strength +and splendor of the republic!" The love of fame was the ardent +passion of his soul: but it was not before he trampled on the ruins of +Maogamalcha, that he allowed himself to say, "We have now provided some +materials for the sophist of Antioch." + +The successful valor of Julian had triumphed over all the obstacles that +opposed his march to the gates of Ctesiphon. But the reduction, or even +the siege, of the capital of Persia, was still at a distance: nor can +the military conduct of the emperor be clearly apprehended, without a +knowledge of the country which was the theatre of his bold and skilful +operations. Twenty miles to the south of Bagdad, and on the eastern bank +of the Tigris, the curiosity of travellers has observed some ruins of +the palaces of Ctesiphon, which, in the time of Julian, was a great and +populous city. The name and glory of the adjacent Seleucia were forever +extinguished; and the only remaining quarter of that Greek colony +had resumed, with the Assyrian language and manners, the primitive +appellation of Coche. Coche was situate on the western side of the +Tigris; but it was naturally considered as a suburb of Ctesiphon, with +which we may suppose it to have been connected by a permanent bridge +of boats. The united parts contribute to form the common epithet of +Al Modain, the cities, which the Orientals have bestowed on the winter +residence of the Sassinades; and the whole circumference of the Persian +capital was strongly fortified by the waters of the river, by lofty +walls, and by impracticable morasses. Near the ruins of Seleucia, the +camp of Julian was fixed, and secured, by a ditch and rampart, against +the sallies of the numerous and enterprising garrison of Coche. In this +fruitful and pleasant country, the Romans were plentifully supplied with +water and forage: and several forts, which might have embarrassed the +motions of the army, submitted, after some resistance, to the efforts +of their valor. The fleet passed from the Euphrates into an artificial +derivation of that river, which pours a copious and navigable stream +into the Tigris, at a small distance below the great city. If they had +followed this royal canal, which bore the name of Nahar-Malcha, the +intermediate situation of Coche would have separated the fleet and army +of Julian; and the rash attempt of steering against the current of the +Tigris, and forcing their way through the midst of a hostile capital, +must have been attended with the total destruction of the Roman navy. +The prudence of the emperor foresaw the danger, and provided the remedy. +As he had minutely studied the operations of Trajan in the same country, +he soon recollected that his warlike predecessor had dug a new and +navigable canal, which, leaving Coche on the right hand, conveyed the +waters of the Nahar-Malcha into the river Tigris, at some distance above +the cities. From the information of the peasants, Julian ascertained the +vestiges of this ancient work, which were almost obliterated by design +or accident. By the indefatigable labor of the soldiers, a broad and +deep channel was speedily prepared for the reception of the Euphrates. +A strong dike was constructed to interrupt the ordinary current of the +Nahar-Malcha: a flood of waters rushed impetuously into their new bed; +and the Roman fleet, steering their triumphant course into the Tigris, +derided the vain and ineffectual barriers which the Persians of +Ctesiphon had erected to oppose their passage. + +As it became necessary to transport the Roman army over the Tigris, +another labor presented itself, of less toil, but of more danger, than +the preceding expedition. The stream was broad and rapid; the ascent +steep and difficult; and the intrenchments which had been formed on the +ridge of the opposite bank, were lined with a numerous army of heavy +cuirassiers, dexterous archers, and huge elephants; who (according to +the extravagant hyperbole of Libanius) could trample with the same +ease a field of corn, or a legion of Romans. In the presence of such an +enemy, the construction of a bridge was impracticable; and the intrepid +prince, who instantly seized the only possible expedient, concealed +his design, till the moment of execution, from the knowledge of the +Barbarians, of his own troops, and even of his generals themselves. +Under the specious pretence of examining the state of the magazines, +fourscore vessels * were gradually unladen; and a select detachment, +apparently destined for some secret expedition, was ordered to stand to +their arms on the first signal. Julian disguised the silent anxiety of +his own mind with smiles of confidence and joy; and amused the hostile +nations with the spectacle of military games, which he insultingly +celebrated under the walls of Coche. The day was consecrated to +pleasure; but, as soon as the hour of supper was passed, the emperor +summoned the generals to his tent, and acquainted them that he had +fixed that night for the passage of the Tigris. They stood in silent +and respectful astonishment; but, when the venerable Sallust assumed the +privilege of his age and experience, the rest of the chiefs supported +with freedom the weight of his prudent remonstrances. Julian contented +himself with observing, that conquest and safety depended on the +attempt; that instead of diminishing, the number of their enemies would +be increased, by successive reenforcements; and that a longer delay +would neither contract the breadth of the stream, nor level the height +of the bank. The signal was instantly given, and obeyed; the most +impatient of the legionaries leaped into five vessels that lay nearest +to the bank; and as they plied their oars with intrepid diligence, they +were lost, after a few moments, in the darkness of the night. A flame +arose on the opposite side; and Julian, who too clearly understood +that his foremost vessels, in attempting to land, had been fired by +the enemy, dexterously converted their extreme danger into a presage +of victory. "Our fellow-soldiers," he eagerly exclaimed, "are already +masters of the bank; see--they make the appointed signal; let us hasten +to emulate and assist their courage." The united and rapid motion of +a great fleet broke the violence of the current, and they reached the +eastern shore of the Tigris with sufficient speed to extinguish the +flames, and rescue their adventurous companions. The difficulties of a +steep and lofty ascent were increased by the weight of armor, and +the darkness of the night. A shower of stones, darts, and fire, was +incessantly discharged on the heads of the assailants; who, after +an arduous struggle, climbed the bank and stood victorious upon the +rampart. As soon as they possessed a more equal field, Julian, who, +with his light infantry, had led the attack, darted through the ranks +a skilful and experienced eye: his bravest soldiers, according to the +precepts of Homer, were distributed in the front and rear: and all +the trumpets of the Imperial army sounded to battle. The Romans, after +sending up a military shout, advanced in measured steps to the animating +notes of martial music; launched their formidable javelins; and rushed +forwards with drawn swords, to deprive the Barbarians, by a closer +onset, of the advantage of their missile weapons. The whole engagement +lasted above twelve hours; till the gradual retreat of the Persians +was changed into a disorderly flight, of which the shameful example +was given by the principal leader, and the Surenas himself. They were +pursued to the gates of Ctesiphon; and the conquerors might have entered +the dismayed city, if their general, Victor, who was dangerously wounded +with an arrow, had not conjured them to desist from a rash attempt, +which must be fatal, if it were not successful. On their side, the +Romans acknowledged the loss of only seventy-five men; while they +affirmed, that the Barbarians had left on the field of battle two +thousand five hundred, or even six thousand, of their bravest soldiers. +The spoil was such as might be expected from the riches and luxury of +an Oriental camp; large quantities of silver and gold, splendid arms and +trappings, and beds and tables of massy silver. * The victorious emperor +distributed, as the rewards of valor, some honorable gifts, civic, and +mural, and naval crowns; which he, and perhaps he alone, esteemed more +precious than the wealth of Asia. A solemn sacrifice was offered to +the god of war, but the appearances of the victims threatened the most +inauspicious events; and Julian soon discovered, by less ambiguous +signs, that he had now reached the term of his prosperity. + +On the second day after the battle, the domestic guards, the Jovians and +Herculians, and the remaining troops, which composed near two thirds of +the whole army, were securely wafted over the Tigris. While the Persians +beheld from the walls of Ctesiphon the desolation of the adjacent +country, Julian cast many an anxious look towards the North, in full +expectation, that as he himself had victoriously penetrated to the +capital of Sapor, the march and junction of his lieutenants, Sebastian +and Procopius, would be executed with the same courage and diligence. +His expectations were disappointed by the treachery of the Armenian +king, who permitted, and most probably directed, the desertion of his +auxiliary troops from the camp of the Romans; and by the dissensions of +the two generals, who were incapable of forming or executing any plan +for the public service. When the emperor had relinquished the hope of +this important reenforcement, he condescended to hold a council of war, +and approved, after a full debate, the sentiment of those generals, +who dissuaded the siege of Ctesiphon, as a fruitless and pernicious +undertaking. It is not easy for us to conceive, by what arts of +fortification a city thrice besieged and taken by the predecessors of +Julian could be rendered impregnable against an army of sixty thousand +Romans, commanded by a brave and experienced general, and abundantly +supplied with ships, provisions, battering engines, and military stores. +But we may rest assured, from the love of glory, and contempt of danger, +which formed the character of Julian, that he was not discouraged by any +trivial or imaginary obstacles. At the very time when he declined the +siege of Ctesiphon, he rejected, with obstinacy and disdain, the most +flattering offers of a negotiation of peace. Sapor, who had been so long +accustomed to the tardy ostentation of Constantius, was surprised by the +intrepid diligence of his successor. As far as the confines of India and +Scythia, the satraps of the distant provinces were ordered to assemble +their troops, and to march, without delay, to the assistance of their +monarch. But their preparations were dilatory, their motions slow; +and before Sapor could lead an army into the field, he received the +melancholy intelligence of the devastation of Assyria, the ruin of +his palaces, and the slaughter of his bravest troops, who defended the +passage of the Tigris. The pride of royalty was humbled in the dust; he +took his repasts on the ground; and the disorder of his hair expressed +the grief and anxiety of his mind. Perhaps he would not have refused to +purchase, with one half of his kingdom, the safety of the remainder; +and he would have gladly subscribed himself, in a treaty of peace, the +faithful and dependent ally of the Roman conqueror. Under the pretence +of private business, a minister of rank and confidence was secretly +despatched to embrace the knees of Hormisdas, and to request, in the +language of a suppliant, that he might be introduced into the presence +of the emperor. The Sassanian prince, whether he listened to the voice +of pride or humanity, whether he consulted the sentiments of his birth, +or the duties of his situation, was equally inclined to promote a +salutary measure, which would terminate the calamities of Persia, and +secure the triumph of Rome. He was astonished by the inflexible firmness +of a hero, who remembered, most unfortunately for himself and for his +country, that Alexander had uniformly rejected the propositions +of Darius. But as Julian was sensible, that the hope of a safe and +honorable peace might cool the ardor of his troops, he earnestly +requested that Hormisdas would privately dismiss the minister of Sapor, +and conceal this dangerous temptation from the knowledge of the camp. + + + +Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian.--Part IV. + +The honor, as well as interest, of Julian, forbade him to consume his +time under the impregnable walls of Ctesiphon and as often as he defied +the Barbarians, who defended the city, to meet him on the open plain, +they prudently replied, that if he desired to exercise his valor, +he might seek the army of the Great King. He felt the insult, and he +accepted the advice. Instead of confining his servile march to the banks +of the Euphrates and Tigris, he resolved to imitate the adventurous +spirit of Alexander, and boldly to advance into the inland provinces, +till he forced his rival to contend with him, perhaps in the plains of +Arbela, for the empire of Asia. The magnanimity of Julian was applauded +and betrayed, by the arts of a noble Persian, who, in the cause of +his country, had generously submitted to act a part full of danger, of +falsehood, and of shame. With a train of faithful followers, he deserted +to the Imperial camp; exposed, in a specious tale, the injuries which he +had sustained; exaggerated the cruelty of Sapor, the discontent of +the people, and the weakness of the monarchy; and confidently offered +himself as the hostage and guide of the Roman march. The most rational +grounds of suspicion were urged, without effect, by the wisdom and +experience of Hormisdas; and the credulous Julian, receiving the traitor +into his bosom, was persuaded to issue a hasty order, which, in the +opinion of mankind, appeared to arraign his prudence, and to endanger +his safety. He destroyed, in a single hour, the whole navy, which had +been transported above five hundred miles, at so great an expense of +toil, of treasure, and of blood. Twelve, or, at the most, twenty-two +small vessels were saved, to accompany, on carriages, the march of the +army, and to form occasional bridges for the passage of the rivers. +A supply of twenty days' provisions was reserved for the use of the +soldiers; and the rest of the magazines, with a fleet of eleven hundred +vessels, which rode at anchor in the Tigris, were abandoned to the +flames, by the absolute command of the emperor. The Christian bishops, +Gregory and Augustin, insult the madness of the Apostate, who executed, +with his own hands, the sentence of divine justice. Their authority, of +less weight, perhaps, in a military question, is confirmed by the cool +judgment of an experienced soldier, who was himself spectator of the +conflagration, and who could not disapprove the reluctant murmurs of +the troops. Yet there are not wanting some specious, and perhaps solid, +reasons, which might justify the resolution of Julian. The navigation of +the Euphrates never ascended above Babylon, nor that of the Tigris above +Opis. The distance of the last-mentioned city from the Roman camp was +not very considerable: and Julian must soon have renounced the vain +and impracticable attempt of forcing upwards a great fleet against the +stream of a rapid river, which in several places was embarrassed +by natural or artificial cataracts. The power of sails and oars was +insufficient; it became necessary to tow the ships against the current +of the river; the strength of twenty thousand soldiers was exhausted +in this tedious and servile labor, and if the Romans continued to march +along the banks of the Tigris, they could only expect to return home +without achieving any enterprise worthy of the genius or fortune of +their leader. If, on the contrary, it was advisable to advance into the +inland country, the destruction of the fleet and magazines was the +only measure which could save that valuable prize from the hands of the +numerous and active troops which might suddenly be poured from the gates +of Ctesiphon. Had the arms of Julian been victorious, we should now +admire the conduct, as well as the courage, of a hero, who, by depriving +his soldiers of the hopes of a retreat, left them only the alternative +of death or conquest. + +The cumbersome train of artillery and wagons, which retards the +operations of a modern army, were in a great measure unknown in the +camps of the Romans. Yet, in every age, the subsistence of sixty +thousand men must have been one of the most important cares of a prudent +general; and that subsistence could only be drawn from his own or from +the enemy's country. Had it been possible for Julian to maintain a +bridge of communication on the Tigris, and to preserve the conquered +places of Assyria, a desolated province could not afford any large or +regular supplies, in a season of the year when the lands were covered +by the inundation of the Euphrates, and the unwholesome air was darkened +with swarms of innumerable insects. The appearance of the hostile +country was far more inviting. The extensive region that lies between +the River Tigris and the mountains of Media, was filled with villages +and towns; and the fertile soil, for the most part, was in a very +improved state of cultivation. Julian might expect, that a conqueror, +who possessed the two forcible instruments of persuasion, steel and +gold, would easily procure a plentiful subsistence from the fears or +avarice of the natives. But, on the approach of the Romans, the rich +and smiling prospect was instantly blasted. Wherever they moved, +the inhabitants deserted the open villages, and took shelter in the +fortified towns; the cattle was driven away; the grass and ripe corn +were consumed with fire; and, as soon as the flames had subsided which +interrupted the march of Julian, he beheld the melancholy face of a +smoking and naked desert. This desperate but effectual method of defence +can only be executed by the enthusiasm of a people who prefer their +independence to their property; or by the rigor of an arbitrary +government, which consults the public safety without submitting to their +inclinations the liberty of choice. On the present occasion the zeal +and obedience of the Persians seconded the commands of Sapor; and +the emperor was soon reduced to the scanty stock of provisions, which +continually wasted in his hands. Before they were entirely consumed, he +might still have reached the wealthy and unwarlike cities of Ecbatana +or Susa, by the effort of a rapid and well-directed march; but he was +deprived of this last resource by his ignorance of the roads, and by the +perfidy of his guides. The Romans wandered several days in the country +to the eastward of Bagdad; the Persian deserter, who had artfully led +them into the spare, escaped from their resentment; and his followers, +as soon as they were put to the torture, confessed the secret of the +conspiracy. The visionary conquests of Hyrcania and India, which had so +long amused, now tormented, the mind of Julian. Conscious that his own +imprudence was the cause of the public distress, he anxiously balanced +the hopes of safety or success, without obtaining a satisfactory answer, +either from gods or men. At length, as the only practicable measure, he +embraced the resolution of directing his steps towards the banks of +the Tigris, with the design of saving the army by a hasty march to +the confines of Corduene; a fertile and friendly province, which +acknowledged the sovereignty of Rome. The desponding troops obeyed +the signal of the retreat, only seventy days after they had passed the +Chaboras, with the sanguine expectation of subverting the throne of +Persia. + +As long as the Romans seemed to advance into the country, their march +was observed and insulted from a distance, by several bodies of Persian +cavalry; who, showing themselves sometimes in loose, and sometimes +in close order, faintly skirmished with the advanced guards. These +detachments were, however, supported by a much greater force; and the +heads of the columns were no sooner pointed towards the Tigris than a +cloud of dust arose on the plain. The Romans, who now aspired only to +the permission of a safe and speedy retreat, endeavored to persuade +themselves, that this formidable appearance was occasioned by a troop +of wild asses, or perhaps by the approach of some friendly Arabs. They +halted, pitched their tents, fortified their camp, passed the whole +night in continual alarms; and discovered at the dawn of day, that +they were surrounded by an army of Persians. This army, which might be +considered only as the van of the Barbarians, was soon followed by the +main body of cuirassiers, archers, and elephants, commanded by Meranes, +a general of rank and reputation. He was accompanied by two of the +king's sons, and many of the principal satraps; and fame and expectation +exaggerated the strength of the remaining powers, which slowly advanced +under the conduct of Sapor himself. As the Romans continued their march, +their long array, which was forced to bend or divide, according to the +varieties of the ground, afforded frequent and favorable opportunities +to their vigilant enemies. The Persians repeatedly charged with fury; +they were repeatedly repulsed with firmness; and the action at Maronga, +which almost deserved the name of a battle, was marked by a considerable +loss of satraps and elephants, perhaps of equal value in the eyes of +their monarch. These splendid advantages were not obtained without +an adequate slaughter on the side of the Romans: several officers of +distinction were either killed or wounded; and the emperor himself, who, +on all occasions of danger, inspired and guided the valor of his troops, +was obliged to expose his person, and exert his abilities. The weight of +offensive and defensive arms, which still constituted the strength and +safety of the Romans, disabled them from making any long or effectual +pursuit; and as the horsemen of the East were trained to dart their +javelins, and shoot their arrows, at full speed, and in every possible +direction, the cavalry of Persia was never more formidable than in +the moment of a rapid and disorderly flight. But the most certain and +irreparable loss of the Romans was that of time. The hardy veterans, +accustomed to the cold climate of Gaul and Germany, fainted under the +sultry heat of an Assyrian summer; their vigor was exhausted by the +incessant repetition of march and combat; and the progress of the army +was suspended by the precautions of a slow and dangerous retreat, in +the presence of an active enemy. Every day, every hour, as the supply +diminished, the value and price of subsistence increased in the Roman +camp. Julian, who always contented himself with such food as a hungry +soldier would have disdained, distributed, for the use of the troops, +the provisions of the Imperial household, and whatever could be spared, +from the sumpter-horses, of the tribunes and generals. But this feeble +relief served only to aggravate the sense of the public distress; and +the Romans began to entertain the most gloomy apprehensions that, before +they could reach the frontiers of the empire, they should all perish, +either by famine, or by the sword of the Barbarians. + +While Julian struggled with the almost insuperable difficulties of his +situation, the silent hours of the night were still devoted to study +and contemplation. Whenever he closed his eyes in short and interrupted +slumbers, his mind was agitated with painful anxiety; nor can it be +thought surprising, that the Genius of the empire should once more +appear before him, covering with a funeral veil his head, and his horn +of abundance, and slowly retiring from the Imperial tent. The monarch +started from his couch, and stepping forth to refresh his wearied +spirits with the coolness of the midnight air, he beheld a fiery meteor, +which shot athwart the sky, and suddenly vanished. Julian was convinced +that he had seen the menacing countenance of the god of war; the council +which he summoned, of Tuscan Haruspices, unanimously pronounced that he +should abstain from action; but on this occasion, necessity and reason +were more prevalent than superstition; and the trumpets sounded at the +break of day. The army marched through a hilly country; and the hills +had been secretly occupied by the Persians. Julian led the van with +the skill and attention of a consummate general; he was alarmed by +the intelligence that his rear was suddenly attacked. The heat of the +weather had tempted him to lay aside his cuirass; but he snatched a +shield from one of his attendants, and hastened, with a sufficient +reenforcement, to the relief of the rear-guard. A similar danger +recalled the intrepid prince to the defence of the front; and, as he +galloped through the columns, the centre of the left was attacked, and +almost overpowered by the furious charge of the Persian cavalry and +elephants. This huge body was soon defeated, by the well-timed evolution +of the light infantry, who aimed their weapons, with dexterity +and effect, against the backs of the horsemen, and the legs of the +elephants. The Barbarians fled; and Julian, who was foremost in every +danger, animated the pursuit with his voice and gestures. His trembling +guards, scattered and oppressed by the disorderly throng of friends and +enemies, reminded their fearless sovereign that he was without armor; +and conjured him to decline the fall of the impending ruin. As they +exclaimed, a cloud of darts and arrows was discharged from the flying +squadrons; and a javelin, after razing the skin of his arm, transpierced +the ribs, and fixed in the inferior part of the liver. Julian attempted +to draw the deadly weapon from his side; but his fingers were cut by the +sharpness of the steel, and he fell senseless from his horse. His guards +flew to his relief; and the wounded emperor was gently raised from the +ground, and conveyed out of the tumult of the battle into an adjacent +tent. The report of the melancholy event passed from rank to rank; but +the grief of the Romans inspired them with invincible valor, and the +desire of revenge. The bloody and obstinate conflict was maintained by +the two armies, till they were separated by the total darkness of the +night. The Persians derived some honor from the advantage which they +obtained against the left wing, where Anatolius, master of the offices, +was slain, and the præfect Sallust very narrowly escaped. But the event +of the day was adverse to the Barbarians. They abandoned the field; +their two generals, Meranes and Nohordates, fifty nobles or satraps, and +a multitude of their bravest soldiers; and the success of the Romans, if +Julian had survived, might have been improved into a decisive and useful +victory. + +The first words that Julian uttered, after his recovery from the +fainting fit into which he had been thrown by loss of blood, were +expressive of his martial spirit. He called for his horse and arms, +and was impatient to rush into the battle. His remaining strength was +exhausted by the painful effort; and the surgeons, who examined his +wound, discovered the symptoms of approaching death. He employed +the awful moments with the firm temper of a hero and a sage; the +philosophers who had accompanied him in this fatal expedition, compared +the tent of Julian with the prison of Socrates; and the spectators, +whom duty, or friendship, or curiosity, had assembled round his couch, +listened with respectful grief to the funeral oration of their dying +emperor. "Friends and fellow-soldiers, the seasonable period of my +departure is now arrived, and I discharge, with the cheerfulness of a +ready debtor, the demands of nature. I have learned from philosophy, how +much the soul is more excellent than the body; and that the separation +of the nobler substance should be the subject of joy, rather than of +affliction. I have learned from religion, that an early death has often +been the reward of piety; and I accept, as a favor of the gods, the +mortal stroke that secures me from the danger of disgracing a character, +which has hitherto been supported by virtue and fortitude. I die without +remorse, as I have lived without guilt. I am pleased to reflect on the +innocence of my private life; and I can affirm with confidence, that +the supreme authority, that emanation of the Divine Power, has been +preserved in my hands pure and immaculate. Detesting the corrupt and +destructive maxims of despotism, I have considered the happiness of the +people as the end of government. Submitting my actions to the laws of +prudence, of justice, and of moderation, I have trusted the event to +the care of Providence. Peace was the object of my counsels, as long +as peace was consistent with the public welfare; but when the imperious +voice of my country summoned me to arms, I exposed my person to the +dangers of war, with the clear foreknowledge (which I had acquired from +the art of divination) that I was destined to fall by the sword. I now +offer my tribute of gratitude to the Eternal Being, who has not suffered +me to perish by the cruelty of a tyrant, by the secret dagger of +conspiracy, or by the slow tortures of lingering disease. He has +given me, in the midst of an honorable career, a splendid and glorious +departure from this world; and I hold it equally absurd, equally +base, to solicit, or to decline, the stroke of fate. This much I have +attempted to say; but my strength fails me, and I feel the approach +of death. I shall cautiously refrain from any word that may tend to +influence your suffrages in the election of an emperor. My choice might +be imprudent or injudicious; and if it should not be ratified by the +consent of the army, it might be fatal to the person whom I should +recommend. I shall only, as a good citizen, express my hopes, that the +Romans may be blessed with the government of a virtuous sovereign." +After this discourse, which Julian pronounced in a firm and gentle tone +of voice, he distributed, by a military testament, the remains of his +private fortune; and making some inquiry why Anatolius was not present, +he understood, from the answer of Sallust, that Anatolius was killed; +and bewailed, with amiable inconsistency, the loss of his friend. At +the same time he reproved the immoderate grief of the spectators; and +conjured them not to disgrace, by unmanly tears, the fate of a prince, +who in a few moments would be united with heaven, and with the stars. +The spectators were silent; and Julian entered into a metaphysical +argument with the philosophers Priscus and Maximus, on the nature of the +soul. The efforts which he made, of mind as well as body, most probably +hastened his death. His wound began to bleed with fresh violence; his +respiration was embarrassed by the swelling of the veins; he called +for a draught of cold water, and, as soon as he had drank it, expired +without pain, about the hour of midnight. Such was the end of that +extraordinary man, in the thirty-second year of his age, after a reign +of one year and about eight months, from the death of Constantius. In +his last moments he displayed, perhaps with some ostentation, the love +of virtue and of fame, which had been the ruling passions of his life. + +The triumph of Christianity, and the calamities of the empire, may, in +some measure, be ascribed to Julian himself, who had neglected to +secure the future execution of his designs, by the timely and judicious +nomination of an associate and successor. But the royal race of +Constantius Chlorus was reduced to his own person; and if he entertained +any serious thoughts of investing with the purple the most worthy among +the Romans, he was diverted from his resolution by the difficulty of the +choice, the jealousy of power, the fear of ingratitude, and the natural +presumption of health, of youth, and of prosperity. His unexpected death +left the empire without a master, and without an heir, in a state of +perplexity and danger, which, in the space of fourscore years, had never +been experienced, since the election of Diocletian. In a government +which had almost forgotten the distinction of pure and noble blood, the +superiority of birth was of little moment; the claims of official rank +were accidental and precarious; and the candidates, who might aspire to +ascend the vacant throne could be supported only by the consciousness of +personal merit, or by the hopes of popular favor. But the situation of +a famished army, encompassed on all sides by a host of Barbarians, +shortened the moments of grief and deliberation. In this scene of terror +and distress, the body of the deceased prince, according to his own +directions, was decently embalmed; and, at the dawn of day, the generals +convened a military senate, at which the commanders of the legions, and +the officers both of cavalry and infantry, were invited to assist. +Three or four hours of the night had not passed away without some secret +cabals; and when the election of an emperor was proposed, the spirit of +faction began to agitate the assembly. Victor and Arinthæus collected +the remains of the court of Constantius; the friends of Julian attached +themselves to the Gallic chiefs, Dagalaiphus and Nevitta; and the +most fatal consequences might be apprehended from the discord of two +factions, so opposite in their character and interest, in their maxims +of government, and perhaps in their religious principles. The superior +virtues of Sallust could alone reconcile their divisions, and unite +their suffrages; and the venerable præfect would immediately have been +declared the successor of Julian, if he himself, with sincere and modest +firmness, had not alleged his age and infirmities, so unequal to the +weight of the diadem. The generals, who were surprised and perplexed by +his refusal, showed some disposition to adopt the salutary advice of an +inferior officer, that they should act as they would have acted in +the absence of the emperor; that they should exert their abilities +to extricate the army from the present distress; and, if they were +fortunate enough to reach the confines of Mesopotamia, they should +proceed with united and deliberate counsels in the election of a lawful +sovereign. While they debated, a few voices saluted Jovian, who was +no more than first of the domestics, with the names of Emperor and +Augustus. The tumultuary acclamation * was instantly repeated by the +guards who surrounded the tent, and passed, in a few minutes, to the +extremities of the line. The new prince, astonished with his own fortune +was hastily invested with the Imperial ornaments, and received an oath +of fidelity from the generals, whose favor and protection he so lately +solicited. The strongest recommendation of Jovian was the merit of his +father, Count Varronian, who enjoyed, in honorable retirement, the fruit +of his long services. In the obscure freedom of a private station, +the son indulged his taste for wine and women; yet he supported, with +credit, the character of a Christian and a soldier. Without being +conspicuous for any of the ambitious qualifications which excite +the admiration and envy of mankind, the comely person of Jovian, his +cheerful temper, and familiar wit, had gained the affection of his +fellow-soldiers; and the generals of both parties acquiesced in a +popular election, which had not been conducted by the arts of their +enemies. The pride of this unexpected elevation was moderated by the +just apprehension, that the same day might terminate the life and reign +of the new emperor. The pressing voice of necessity was obeyed without +delay; and the first orders issued by Jovian, a few hours after his +predecessor had expired, were to prosecute a march, which could alone +extricate the Romans from their actual distress. + + + +Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian.--Part V. + +The esteem of an enemy is most sincerely expressed by his fears; and +the degree of fear may be accurately measured by the joy with which he +celebrates his deliverance. The welcome news of the death of Julian, +which a deserter revealed to the camp of Sapor, inspired the desponding +monarch with a sudden confidence of victory. He immediately detached the +royal cavalry, perhaps the ten thousand Immortals, to second and support +the pursuit; and discharged the whole weight of his united forces on the +rear-guard of the Romans. The rear-guard was thrown into disorder; the +renowned legions, which derived their titles from Diocletian, and his +warlike colleague, were broke and trampled down by the elephants; and +three tribunes lost their lives in attempting to stop the flight of +their soldiers. The battle was at length restored by the persevering +valor of the Romans; the Persians were repulsed with a great slaughter +of men and elephants; and the army, after marching and fighting a long +summer's day, arrived, in the evening, at Samara, on the banks of the +Tigris, about one hundred miles above Ctesiphon. On the ensuing day, +the Barbarians, instead of harassing the march, attacked the camp, of +Jovian; which had been seated in a deep and sequestered valley. From +the hills, the archers of Persia insulted and annoyed the wearied +legionaries; and a body of cavalry, which had penetrated with desperate +courage through the Prætorian gate, was cut in pieces, after a doubtful +conflict, near the Imperial tent. In the succeeding night, the camp +of Carche was protected by the lofty dikes of the river; and the +Roman army, though incessantly exposed to the vexatious pursuit of the +Saracens, pitched their tents near the city of Dura, four days after +the death of Julian. The Tigris was still on their left; their hopes +and provisions were almost consumed; and the impatient soldiers, who had +fondly persuaded themselves that the frontiers of the empire were not +far distant, requested their new sovereign, that they might be permitted +to hazard the passage of the river. With the assistance of his wisest +officers, Jovian endeavored to check their rashness; by representing, +that if they possessed sufficient skill and vigor to stem the torrent +of a deep and rapid stream, they would only deliver themselves naked +and defenceless to the Barbarians, who had occupied the opposite banks, +Yielding at length to their clamorous importunities, he consented, with +reluctance, that five hundred Gauls and Germans, accustomed from their +infancy to the waters of the Rhine and Danube, should attempt the +bold adventure, which might serve either as an encouragement, or as a +warning, for the rest of the army. In the silence of the night, they +swam the Tigris, surprised an unguarded post of the enemy, and displayed +at the dawn of day the signal of their resolution and fortune. The +success of this trial disposed the emperor to listen to the promises +of his architects, who propose to construct a floating bridge of the +inflated skins of sheep, oxen, and goats, covered with a floor of earth +and fascines. Two important days were spent in the ineffectual labor; +and the Romans, who already endured the miseries of famine, cast a look +of despair on the Tigris, and upon the Barbarians; whose numbers and +obstinacy increased with the distress of the Imperial army. + +In this hopeless condition, the fainting spirits of the Romans were +revived by the sound of peace. The transient presumption of Sapor had +vanished: he observed, with serious concern, that, in the repetition of +doubtful combats, he had lost his most faithful and intrepid nobles, his +bravest troops, and the greatest part of his train of elephants: and +the experienced monarch feared to provoke the resistance of despair, the +vicissitudes of fortune, and the unexhausted powers of the Roman empire; +which might soon advance to relieve, or to revenge, the successor of +Julian. The Surenas himself, accompanied by another satrap, * appeared +in the camp of Jovian; and declared, that the clemency of his sovereign +was not averse to signify the conditions on which he would consent to +spare and to dismiss the Cæsar with the relics of his captive army. +The hopes of safety subdued the firmness of the Romans; the emperor was +compelled, by the advice of his council, and the cries of his soldiers, +to embrace the offer of peace; and the præfect Sallust was immediately +sent, with the general Arinthæus, to understand the pleasure of the +Great King. The crafty Persian delayed, under various pretenses, +the conclusion of the agreement; started difficulties, required +explanations, suggested expedients, receded from his concessions, +increased his demands, and wasted four days in the arts of negotiation, +till he had consumed the stock of provisions which yet remained in the +camp of the Romans. Had Jovian been capable of executing a bold and +prudent measure, he would have continued his march, with unremitting +diligence; the progress of the treaty would have suspended the attacks +of the Barbarians; and, before the expiration of the fourth day, he +might have safely reached the fruitful province of Corduene, at the +distance only of one hundred miles. The irresolute emperor, instead of +breaking through the toils of the enemy, expected his fate with patient +resignation; and accepted the humiliating conditions of peace, which +it was no longer in his power to refuse. The five provinces beyond the +Tigris, which had been ceded by the grandfather of Sapor, were +restored to the Persian monarchy. He acquired, by a single article, the +impregnable city of Nisibis; which had sustained, in three successive +sieges, the effort of his arms. Singara, and the castle of the Moors, +one of the strongest places of Mesopotamia, were likewise dismembered +from the empire. It was considered as an indulgence, that the +inhabitants of those fortresses were permitted to retire with their +effects; but the conqueror rigorously insisted, that the Romans should +forever abandon the king and kingdom of Armenia. § A peace, or rather a +long truce, of thirty years, was stipulated between the hostile nations; +the faith of the treaty was ratified by solemn oaths and religious +ceremonies; and hostages of distinguished rank were reciprocally +delivered to secure the performance of the conditions. + +The sophist of Antioch, who saw with indignation the sceptre of his hero +in the feeble hand of a Christian successor, professes to admire the +moderation of Sapor, in contenting himself with so small a portion of +the Roman empire. If he had stretched as far as the Euphrates the +claims of his ambition, he might have been secure, says Libanius, of not +meeting with a refusal. If he had fixed, as the boundary of Persia, +the Orontes, the Cydnus, the Sangarius, or even the Thracian Bosphorus, +flatterers would not have been wanting in the court of Jovian to +convince the timid monarch, that his remaining provinces would still +afford the most ample gratifications of power and luxury. Without +adopting in its full force this malicious insinuation, we must +acknowledge, that the conclusion of so ignominious a treaty was +facilitated by the private ambition of Jovian. The obscure domestic, +exalted to the throne by fortune, rather than by merit, was impatient to +escape from the hands of the Persians, that he might prevent the designs +of Procopius, who commanded the army of Mesopotamia, and establish his +doubtful reign over the legions and provinces which were still ignorant +of the hasty and tumultuous choice of the camp beyond the Tigris. In the +neighborhood of the same river, at no very considerable distance from +the fatal station of Dura, the ten thousand Greeks, without generals, or +guides, or provisions, were abandoned, above twelve hundred miles from +their native country, to the resentment of a victorious monarch. The +difference of their conduct and success depended much more on their +character than on their situation. Instead of tamely resigning +themselves to the secret deliberations and private views of a single +person, the united councils of the Greeks were inspired by the generous +enthusiasm of a popular assembly; where the mind of each citizen is +filled with the love of glory, the pride of freedom, and the contempt +of death. Conscious of their superiority over the Barbarians in arms and +discipline, they disdained to yield, they refused to capitulate: every +obstacle was surmounted by their patience, courage, and military skill; +and the memorable retreat of the ten thousand exposed and insulted the +weakness of the Persian monarchy. + +As the price of his disgraceful concessions, the emperor might +perhaps have stipulated, that the camp of the hungry Romans should be +plentifully supplied; and that they should be permitted to pass the +Tigris on the bridge which was constructed by the hands of the Persians. +But, if Jovian presumed to solicit those equitable terms, they were +sternly refused by the haughty tyrant of the East, whose clemency had +pardoned the invaders of his country. The Saracens sometimes intercepted +the stragglers of the march; but the generals and troops of Sapor +respected the cessation of arms; and Jovian was suffered to explore the +most convenient place for the passage of the river. The small vessels, +which had been saved from the conflagration of the fleet, performed +the most essential service. They first conveyed the emperor and his +favorites; and afterwards transported, in many successive voyages, a +great part of the army. But, as every man was anxious for his personal +safety, and apprehensive of being left on the hostile shore, the +soldiers, who were too impatient to wait the slow returns of the boats, +boldly ventured themselves on light hurdles, or inflated skins; and, +drawing after them their horses, attempted, with various success, to +swim across the river. Many of these daring adventurers were swallowed +by the waves; many others, who were carried along by the violence of the +stream, fell an easy prey to the avarice or cruelty of the wild Arabs: +and the loss which the army sustained in the passage of the Tigris, was +not inferior to the carnage of a day of battle. As soon as the Romans +were landed on the western bank, they were delivered from the hostile +pursuit of the Barbarians; but, in a laborious march of two hundred +miles over the plains of Mesopotamia, they endured the last extremities +of thirst and hunger. They were obliged to traverse the sandy desert, +which, in the extent of seventy miles, did not afford a single blade +of sweet grass, nor a single spring of fresh water; and the rest of +the inhospitable waste was untrod by the footsteps either of friends or +enemies. Whenever a small measure of flour could be discovered in the +camp, twenty pounds weight were greedily purchased with ten pieces of +gold: the beasts of burden were slaughtered and devoured; and the desert +was strewed with the arms and baggage of the Roman soldiers, whose +tattered garments and meagre countenances displayed their past +sufferings and actual misery. A small convoy of provisions advanced to +meet the army as far as the castle of Ur; and the supply was the more +grateful, since it declared the fidelity of Sebastian and Procopius. +At Thilsaphata, the emperor most graciously received the generals +of Mesopotamia; and the remains of a once flourishing army at length +reposed themselves under the walls of Nisibis. The messengers of Jovian +had already proclaimed, in the language of flattery, his election, his +treaty, and his return; and the new prince had taken the most effectual +measures to secure the allegiance of the armies and provinces of Europe, +by placing the military command in the hands of those officers, who, +from motives of interest, or inclination, would firmly support the cause +of their benefactor. + +The friends of Julian had confidently announced the success of his +expedition. They entertained a fond persuasion that the temples of the +gods would be enriched with the spoils of the East; that Persia would +be reduced to the humble state of a tributary province, governed by the +laws and magistrates of Rome; that the Barbarians would adopt the dress, +and manners, and language of their conquerors; and that the youth of +Ecbatana and Susa would study the art of rhetoric under Grecian masters. +The progress of the arms of Julian interrupted his communication +with the empire; and, from the moment that he passed the Tigris, his +affectionate subjects were ignorant of the fate and fortunes of their +prince. Their contemplation of fancied triumphs was disturbed by the +melancholy rumor of his death; and they persisted to doubt, after they +could no longer deny, the truth of that fatal event. The messengers of +Jovian promulgated the specious tale of a prudent and necessary peace; +the voice of fame, louder and more sincere, revealed the disgrace of the +emperor, and the conditions of the ignominious treaty. The minds of the +people were filled with astonishment and grief, with indignation and +terror, when they were informed, that the unworthy successor of Julian +relinquished the five provinces which had been acquired by the victory +of Galerius; and that he shamefully surrendered to the Barbarians the +important city of Nisibis, the firmest bulwark of the provinces of the +East. The deep and dangerous question, how far the public faith should +be observed, when it becomes incompatible with the public safety, was +freely agitated in popular conversation; and some hopes were entertained +that the emperor would redeem his pusillanimous behavior by a splendid +act of patriotic perfidy. The inflexible spirit of the Roman senate had +always disclaimed the unequal conditions which were extorted from the +distress of their captive armies; and, if it were necessary to satisfy +the national honor, by delivering the guilty general into the hands of +the Barbarians, the greatest part of the subjects of Jovian would have +cheerfully acquiesced in the precedent of ancient times. + +But the emperor, whatever might be the limits of his constitutional +authority, was the absolute master of the laws and arms of the state; +and the same motives which had forced him to subscribe, now pressed him +to execute, the treaty of peace. He was impatient to secure an empire +at the expense of a few provinces; and the respectable names of +religion and honor concealed the personal fears and ambition of Jovian. +Notwithstanding the dutiful solicitations of the inhabitants, decency, +as well as prudence, forbade the emperor to lodge in the palace of +Nisibis; but the next morning after his arrival. Bineses, the ambassador +of Persia, entered the place, displayed from the citadel the standard +of the Great King, and proclaimed, in his name, the cruel alternative +of exile or servitude. The principal citizens of Nisibis, who, till that +fatal moment, had confided in the protection of their sovereign, threw +themselves at his feet. They conjured him not to abandon, or, at least, +not to deliver, a faithful colony to the rage of a Barbarian tyrant, +exasperated by the three successive defeats which he had experienced +under the walls of Nisibis. They still possessed arms and courage to +repel the invaders of their country: they requested only the permission +of using them in their own defence; and, as soon as they had asserted +their independence, they should implore the favor of being again +admitted into the ranks of his subjects. Their arguments, their +eloquence, their tears, were ineffectual. Jovian alleged, with some +confusion, the sanctity of oaths; and, as the reluctance with which he +accepted the present of a crown of gold, convinced the citizens of their +hopeless condition, the advocate Sylvanus was provoked to exclaim, "O +emperor! may you thus be crowned by all the cities of your dominions!" +Jovian, who in a few weeks had assumed the habits of a prince, was +displeased with freedom, and offended with truth: and as he reasonably +supposed, that the discontent of the people might incline them to submit +to the Persian government, he published an edict, under pain of death, +that they should leave the city within the term of three days. Ammianus +has delineated in lively colors the scene of universal despair, which +he seems to have viewed with an eye of compassion. The martial youth +deserted, with indignant grief, the walls which they had so gloriously +defended: the disconsolate mourner dropped a last tear over the tomb +of a son or husband, which must soon be profaned by the rude hand of a +Barbarian master; and the aged citizen kissed the threshold, and clung +to the doors, of the house where he had passed the cheerful and careless +hours of infancy. The highways were crowded with a trembling multitude: +the distinctions of rank, and sex, and age, were lost in the general +calamity. Every one strove to bear away some fragment from the wreck of +his fortunes; and as they could not command the immediate service of an +adequate number of horses or wagons, they were obliged to leave +behind them the greatest part of their valuable effects. The savage +insensibility of Jovian appears to have aggravated the hardships of +these unhappy fugitives. They were seated, however, in a new-built +quarter of Amida; and that rising city, with the reenforcement of a very +considerable colony, soon recovered its former splendor, and became the +capital of Mesopotamia. Similar orders were despatched by the emperor +for the evacuation of Singara and the castle of the Moors; and for the +restitution of the five provinces beyond the Tigris. Sapor enjoyed the +glory and the fruits of his victory; and this ignominious peace has +justly been considered as a memorable æra in the decline and fall of the +Roman empire. The predecessors of Jovian had sometimes relinquished +the dominion of distant and unprofitable provinces; but, since the +foundation of the city, the genius of Rome, the god Terminus, who +guarded the boundaries of the republic, had never retired before the +sword of a victorious enemy. + +After Jovian had performed those engagements which the voice of his +people might have tempted him to violate, he hastened away from the +scene of his disgrace, and proceeded with his whole court to enjoy the +luxury of Antioch. Without consulting the dictates of religious zeal, +he was prompted, by humanity and gratitude, to bestow the last honors +on the remains of his deceased sovereign: and Procopius, who sincerely +bewailed the loss of his kinsman, was removed from the command of the +army, under the decent pretence of conducting the funeral. The corpse +of Julian was transported from Nisibis to Tarsus, in a slow march of +fifteen days; and, as it passed through the cities of the East, +was saluted by the hostile factions, with mournful lamentations and +clamorous insults. The Pagans already placed their beloved hero in the +rank of those gods whose worship he had restored; while the invectives +of the Christians pursued the soul of the Apostate to hell, and his body +to the grave. One party lamented the approaching ruin of their altars; +the other celebrated the marvellous deliverance of their church. The +Christians applauded, in lofty and ambiguous strains, the stroke of +divine vengeance, which had been so long suspended over the guilty +head of Julian. They acknowledge, that the death of the tyrant, at the +instant he expired beyond the Tigris, was revealed to the saints of +Egypt, Syria, and Cappadocia; and instead of suffering him to fall by +the Persian darts, their indiscretion ascribed the heroic deed to the +obscure hand of some mortal or immortal champion of the faith. Such +imprudent declarations were eagerly adopted by the malice, or credulity, +of their adversaries; who darkly insinuated, or confidently asserted, +that the governors of the church had instigated and directed the +fanaticism of a domestic assassin. Above sixteen years after the death +of Julian, the charge was solemnly and vehemently urged, in a public +oration, addressed by Libanius to the emperor Theodosius. His suspicions +are unsupported by fact or argument; and we can only esteem the generous +zeal of the sophist of Antioch for the cold and neglected ashes of his +friend. + +It was an ancient custom in the funerals, as well as in the triumphs, +of the Romans, that the voice of praise should be corrected by that of +satire and ridicule; and that, in the midst of the splendid pageants, +which displayed the glory of the living or of the dead, their +imperfections should not be concealed from the eyes of the world. +This custom was practised in the funeral of Julian. The comedians, who +resented his contempt and aversion for the theatre, exhibited, with +the applause of a Christian audience, the lively and exaggerated +representation of the faults and follies of the deceased emperor. His +various character and singular manners afforded an ample scope for +pleasantry and ridicule. In the exercise of his uncommon talents, he +often descended below the majesty of his rank. Alexander was transformed +into Diogenes; the philosopher was degraded into a priest. The purity of +his virtue was sullied by excessive vanity; his superstition disturbed +the peace, and endangered the safety, of a mighty empire; and his +irregular sallies were the less entitled to indulgence, as they appeared +to be the laborious efforts of art, or even of affectation. The remains +of Julian were interred at Tarsus in Cilicia; but his stately tomb, +which arose in that city, on the banks of the cold and limpid Cydnus, +was displeasing to the faithful friends, who loved and revered the +memory of that extraordinary man. The philosopher expressed a very +reasonable wish, that the disciple of Plato might have reposed amidst +the groves of the academy; while the soldier exclaimed, in bolder +accents, that the ashes of Julian should have been mingled with those +of Cæsar, in the field of Mars, and among the ancient monuments of +Roman virtue. The history of princes does not very frequently renew the +examples of a similar competition. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part I. + + The Government And Death Of Jovian.--Election Of + Valentinian, Who Associates His Brother Valens, And Makes + The Final Division Of The Eastern And Western Empires.-- + Revolt Of Procopius.--Civil And Ecclesiastical + Administration.--Germany.--Britain.--Africa.--The East.--The + Danube.--Death Of Valentinian.--His Two Sons, Gratian And + Valentinian II., Succeed To The Western Empire. + +The death of Julian had left the public affairs of the empire in a +very doubtful and dangerous situation. The Roman army was saved by an +inglorious, perhaps a necessary treaty; and the first moments of peace +were consecrated by the pious Jovian to restore the domestic tranquility +of the church and state. The indiscretion of his predecessor, instead +of reconciling, had artfully fomented the religious war: and the balance +which he affected to preserve between the hostile factions, served only +to perpetuate the contest, by the vicissitudes of hope and fear, by the +rival claims of ancient possession and actual favor. The Christians +had forgotten the spirit of the gospel; and the Pagans had imbibed the +spirit of the church. In private families, the sentiments of nature were +extinguished by the blind fury of zeal and revenge: the majesty of the +laws was violated or abused; the cities of the East were stained with +blood; and the most implacable enemies of the Romans were in the bosom +of their country. Jovian was educated in the profession of Christianity; +and as he marched from Nisibis to Antioch, the banner of the Cross, the +Labarum of Constantine, which was again displayed at the head of the +legions, announced to the people the faith of their new emperor. As soon +as he ascended the throne, he transmitted a circular epistle to all +the governors of provinces; in which he confessed the divine truth, +and secured the legal establishment, of the Christian religion. The +insidious edicts of Julian were abolished; the ecclesiastical immunities +were restored and enlarged; and Jovian condescended to lament, that the +distress of the times obliged him to diminish the measure of charitable +distributions. The Christians were unanimous in the loud and sincere +applause which they bestowed on the pious successor of Julian. But they +were still ignorant what creed, or what synod, he would choose for the +standard of orthodoxy; and the peace of the church immediately revived +those eager disputes which had been suspended during the season of +persecution. The episcopal leaders of the contending sects, convinced, +from experience, how much their fate would depend on the earliest +impressions that were made on the mind of an untutored soldier, hastened +to the court of Edessa, or Antioch. The highways of the East were +crowded with Homoousian, and Arian, and Semi-Arian, and Eunomian +bishops, who struggled to outstrip each other in the holy race: the +apartments of the palace resounded with their clamors; and the ears +of the prince were assaulted, and perhaps astonished, by the singular +mixture of metaphysical argument and passionate invective. The +moderation of Jovian, who recommended concord and charity, and referred +the disputants to the sentence of a future council, was interpreted as +a symptom of indifference: but his attachment to the Nicene creed was at +length discovered and declared, by the reverence which he expressed for +the celestial virtues of the great Athanasius. The intrepid veteran of +the faith, at the age of seventy, had issued from his retreat on the +first intelligence of the tyrant's death. The acclamations of the +people seated him once more on the archiepiscopal throne; and he wisely +accepted, or anticipated, the invitation of Jovian. The venerable figure +of Athanasius, his calm courage, and insinuating eloquence, sustained +the reputation which he had already acquired in the courts of four +successive princes. As soon as he had gained the confidence, and secured +the faith, of the Christian emperor, he returned in triumph to his +diocese, and continued, with mature counsels and undiminished vigor, to +direct, ten years longer, the ecclesiastical government of Alexandria, +Egypt, and the Catholic church. Before his departure from Antioch, he +assured Jovian that his orthodox devotion would be rewarded with a long +and peaceful reign. Athanasius, had reason to hope, that he should be +allowed either the merit of a successful prediction, or the excuse of a +grateful though ineffectual prayer. + +The slightest force, when it is applied to assist and guide the natural +descent of its object, operates with irresistible weight; and Jovian had +the good fortune to embrace the religious opinions which were supported +by the spirit of the times, and the zeal and numbers of the most +powerful sect. Under his reign, Christianity obtained an easy and +lasting victory; and as soon as the smile of royal patronage was +withdrawn, the genius of Paganism, which had been fondly raised and +cherished by the arts of Julian, sunk irrecoverably. In many cities, +the temples were shut or deserted: the philosophers who had abused their +transient favor, thought it prudent to shave their beards, and disguise +their profession; and the Christians rejoiced, that they were now in +a condition to forgive, or to revenge, the injuries which they had +suffered under the preceding reign. The consternation of the Pagan +world was dispelled by a wise and gracious edict of toleration; in which +Jovian explicitly declared, that although he should severely punish the +sacrilegious rites of magic, his subjects might exercise, with freedom +and safety, the ceremonies of the ancient worship. The memory of this +law has been preserved by the orator Themistius, who was deputed by the +senate of Constantinople to express their royal devotion for the new +emperor. Themistius expatiates on the clemency of the Divine Nature, the +facility of human error, the rights of conscience, and the independence +of the mind; and, with some eloquence, inculcates the principles of +philosophical toleration; whose aid Superstition herself, in the hour of +her distress, is not ashamed to implore. He justly observes, that in +the recent changes, both religions had been alternately disgraced by the +seeming acquisition of worthless proselytes, of those votaries of the +reigning purple, who could pass, without a reason, and without a blush, +from the church to the temple, and from the altars of Jupiter to the +sacred table of the Christians. + +In the space of seven months, the Roman troops, who were now returned to +Antioch, had performed a march of fifteen hundred miles; in which +they had endured all the hardships of war, of famine, and of climate. +Notwithstanding their services, their fatigues, and the approach of +winter, the timid and impatient Jovian allowed only, to the men and +horses, a respite of six weeks. The emperor could not sustain the +indiscreet and malicious raillery of the people of Antioch. He was +impatient to possess the palace of Constantinople; and to prevent the +ambition of some competitor, who might occupy the vacant allegiance +of Europe. But he soon received the grateful intelligence, that his +authority was acknowledged from the Thracian Bosphorus to the Atlantic +Ocean. By the first letters which he despatched from the camp of +Mesopotamia, he had delegated the military command of Gaul and Illyricum +to Malarich, a brave and faithful officer of the nation of the +Franks; and to his father-in-law, Count Lucillian, who had formerly +distinguished his courage and conduct in the defence of Nisibis. +Malarich had declined an office to which he thought himself unequal; +and Lucillian was massacred at Rheims, in an accidental mutiny of the +Batavian cohorts. But the moderation of Jovinus, master-general of the +cavalry, who forgave the intention of his disgrace, soon appeased the +tumult, and confirmed the uncertain minds of the soldiers. The oath of +fidelity was administered and taken, with loyal acclamations; and +the deputies of the Western armies saluted their new sovereign as he +descended from Mount Taurus to the city of Tyana in Cappadocia. From +Tyana he continued his hasty march to Ancyra, capital of the province of +Galatia; where Jovian assumed, with his infant son, the name and ensigns +of the consulship. Dadastana, an obscure town, almost at an equal +distance between Ancyra and Nice, was marked for the fatal term of his +journey and life. After indulging himself with a plentiful, perhaps +an intemperate, supper, he retired to rest; and the next morning the +emperor Jovian was found dead in his bed. The cause of this sudden death +was variously understood. By some it was ascribed to the consequences +of an indigestion, occasioned either by the quantity of the wine, or +the quality of the mushrooms, which he had swallowed in the evening. +According to others, he was suffocated in his sleep by the vapor +of charcoal, which extracted from the walls of the apartment the +unwholesome moisture of the fresh plaster. But the want of a regular +inquiry into the death of a prince, whose reign and person were soon +forgotten, appears to have been the only circumstance which countenanced +the malicious whispers of poison and domestic guilt. The body of Jovian +was sent to Constantinople, to be interred with his predecessors, and +the sad procession was met on the road by his wife Charito, the daughter +of Count Lucillian; who still wept the recent death of her father, and +was hastening to dry her tears in the embraces of an Imperial husband. +Her disappointment and grief were imbittered by the anxiety of maternal +tenderness. Six weeks before the death of Jovian, his infant son had +been placed in the curule chair, adorned with the title of Nobilissimus, +and the vain ensigns of the consulship. Unconscious of his fortune, the +royal youth, who, from his grandfather, assumed the name of Varronian, +was reminded only by the jealousy of the government, that he was the son +of an emperor. Sixteen years afterwards he was still alive, but he had +already been deprived of an eye; and his afflicted mother expected every +hour, that the innocent victim would be torn from her arms, to appease, +with his blood, the suspicions of the reigning prince. + +After the death of Jovian, the throne of the Roman world remained ten +days, without a master. The ministers and generals still continued to +meet in council; to exercise their respective functions; to maintain the +public order; and peaceably to conduct the army to the city of Nice in +Bithynia, which was chosen for the place of the election. In a solemn +assembly of the civil and military powers of the empire, the diadem was +again unanimously offered to the præfect Sallust. He enjoyed the glory +of a second refusal: and when the virtues of the father were alleged +in favor of his son, the præfect, with the firmness of a disinterested +patriot, declared to the electors, that the feeble age of the one, and +the unexperienced youth of the other, were equally incapable of the +laborious duties of government. Several candidates were proposed; and, +after weighing the objections of character or situation, they were +successively rejected; but, as soon as the name of Valentinian was +pronounced, the merit of that officer united the suffrages of the whole +assembly, and obtained the sincere approbation of Sallust himself. +Valentinian was the son of Count Gratian, a native of Cibalis, in +Pannonia, who from an obscure condition had raised himself, by matchless +strength and dexterity, to the military commands of Africa and Britain; +from which he retired with an ample fortune and suspicious integrity. +The rank and services of Gratian contributed, however, to smooth the +first steps of the promotion of his son; and afforded him an early +opportunity of displaying those solid and useful qualifications, which +raised his character above the ordinary level of his fellow-soldiers. +The person of Valentinian was tall, graceful, and majestic. His manly +countenance, deeply marked with the impression of sense and spirit, +inspired his friends with awe, and his enemies with fear; and to second +the efforts of his undaunted courage, the son of Gratian had inherited +the advantages of a strong and healthy constitution. By the habits of +chastity and temperance, which restrain the appetites and invigorate +the faculties, Valentinian preserved his own and the public esteem. The +avocations of a military life had diverted his youth from the elegant +pursuits of literature; * he was ignorant of the Greek language, and the +arts of rhetoric; but as the mind of the orator was never disconcerted +by timid perplexity, he was able, as often as the occasion prompted him, +to deliver his decided sentiments with bold and ready elocution. The +laws of martial discipline were the only laws that he had studied; and +he was soon distinguished by the laborious diligence, and inflexible +severity, with which he discharged and enforced the duties of the +camp. In the time of Julian he provoked the danger of disgrace, by the +contempt which he publicly expressed for the reigning religion; and +it should seem, from his subsequent conduct, that the indiscreet and +unseasonable freedom of Valentinian was the effect of military spirit, +rather than of Christian zeal. He was pardoned, however, and still +employed by a prince who esteemed his merit; and in the various events +of the Persian war, he improved the reputation which he had already +acquired on the banks of the Rhine. The celerity and success with which +he executed an important commission, recommended him to the favor of +Jovian; and to the honorable command of the second school, or company, +of Targetiers, of the domestic guards. In the march from Antioch, he +had reached his quarters at Ancyra, when he was unexpectedly summoned, +without guilt and without intrigue, to assume, in the forty-third year +of his age, the absolute government of the Roman empire. + +The invitation of the ministers and generals at Nice was of little +moment, unless it were confirmed by the voice of the army. The aged +Sallust, who had long observed the irregular fluctuations of popular +assemblies, proposed, under pain of death, that none of those persons, +whose rank in the service might excite a party in their favor, should +appear in public on the day of the inauguration. Yet such was the +prevalence of ancient superstition, that a whole day was voluntarily +added to this dangerous interval, because it happened to be the +intercalation of the Bissextile. At length, when the hour was supposed +to be propitious, Valentinian showed himself from a lofty tribunal; the +judicious choice was applauded; and the new prince was solemnly invested +with the diadem and the purple, amidst the acclamation of the troops, +who were disposed in martial order round the tribunal. But when he +stretched forth his hand to address the armed multitude, a busy whisper +was accidentally started in the ranks, and insensibly swelled into +a loud and imperious clamor, that he should name, without delay, a +colleague in the empire. The intrepid calmness of Valentinian obtained +silence, and commanded respect; and he thus addressed the assembly: "A +few minutes since it was in your power, fellow-soldiers, to have left me +in the obscurity of a private station. Judging, from the testimony of my +past life, that I deserved to reign, you have placed me on the throne. +It is now my duty to consult the safety and interest of the republic. +The weight of the universe is undoubtedly too great for the hands of +a feeble mortal. I am conscious of the limits of my abilities, and the +uncertainty of my life; and far from declining, I am anxious to solicit, +the assistance of a worthy colleague. But, where discord may be +fatal, the choice of a faithful friend requires mature and serious +deliberation. That deliberation shall be my care. Let your conduct be +dutiful and consistent. Retire to your quarters; refresh your minds and +bodies; and expect the accustomed donative on the accession of a +new emperor." The astonished troops, with a mixture of pride, of +satisfaction, and of terror, confessed the voice of their master. +Their angry clamors subsided into silent reverence; and Valentinian, +encompassed with the eagles of the legions, and the various banners of +the cavalry and infantry, was conducted, in warlike pomp, to the palace +of Nice. As he was sensible, however, of the importance of preventing +some rash declaration of the soldiers, he consulted the assembly of +the chiefs; and their real sentiments were concisely expressed by the +generous freedom of Dagalaiphus. "Most excellent prince," said that +officer, "if you consider only your family, you have a brother; if you +love the republic, look round for the most deserving of the Romans." The +emperor, who suppressed his displeasure, without altering his intention, +slowly proceeded from Nice to Nicomedia and Constantinople. In one of +the suburbs of that capital, thirty days after his own elevation, he +bestowed the title of Augustus on his brother Valens; * and as the +boldest patriots were convinced, that their opposition, without +being serviceable to their country, would be fatal to themselves, the +declaration of his absolute will was received with silent submission. +Valens was now in the thirty-sixth year of his age; but his abilities +had never been exercised in any employment, military or civil; and his +character had not inspired the world with any sanguine expectations. He +possessed, however, one quality, which recommended him to Valentinian, +and preserved the domestic peace of the empire; devout and grateful +attachment to his benefactor, whose superiority of genius, as well as of +authority, Valens humbly and cheerfully acknowledged in every action of +his life. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part II. + +Before Valentinian divided the provinces, he reformed the administration +of the empire. All ranks of subjects, who had been injured or oppressed +under the reign of Julian, were invited to support their public +accusations. The silence of mankind attested the spotless integrity of +the præfect Sallust; and his own pressing solicitations, that he might +be permitted to retire from the business of the state, were rejected +by Valentinian with the most honorable expressions of friendship and +esteem. But among the favorites of the late emperor, there were many who +had abused his credulity or superstition; and who could no longer hope +to be protected either by favor or justice. The greater part of the +ministers of the palace, and the governors of the provinces, were +removed from their respective stations; yet the eminent merit of +some officers was distinguished from the obnoxious crowd; and, +notwithstanding the opposite clamors of zeal and resentment, the whole +proceedings of this delicate inquiry appear to have been conducted with +a reasonable share of wisdom and moderation. The festivity of a new +reign received a short and suspicious interruption from the sudden +illness of the two princes; but as soon as their health was restored, +they left Constantinople in the beginning of the spring. In the castle, +or palace, of Mediana, only three miles from Naissus, they executed the +solemn and final division of the Roman empire. Valentinian bestowed on +his brother the rich præfecture of the East, from the Lower Danube to +the confines of Persia; whilst he reserved for his immediate government +the warlike * præfectures of Illyricum, Italy, and Gaul, from the +extremity of Greece to the Caledonian rampart, and from the rampart +of Caledonia to the foot of Mount Atlas. The provincial administration +remained on its former basis; but a double supply of generals and +magistrates was required for two councils, and two courts: the division +was made with a just regard to their peculiar merit and situation, +and seven master-generals were soon created, either of the cavalry or +infantry. When this important business had been amicably transacted, +Valentinian and Valens embraced for the last time. The emperor of the +West established his temporary residence at Milan; and the emperor of +the East returned to Constantinople, to assume the dominion of fifty +provinces, of whose language he was totally ignorant. + +The tranquility of the East was soon disturbed by rebellion; and the +throne of Valens was threatened by the daring attempts of a rival whose +affinity to the emperor Julian was his sole merit, and had been his only +crime. Procopius had been hastily promoted from the obscure station of a +tribune, and a notary, to the joint command of the army of Mesopotamia; +the public opinion already named him as the successor of a prince who +was destitute of natural heirs; and a vain rumor was propagated by his +friends, or his enemies, that Julian, before the altar of the Moon at +Carrhæ, had privately invested Procopius with the Imperial purple. +He endeavored, by his dutiful and submissive behavior, to disarm the +jealousy of Jovian; resigned, without a contest, his military command; +and retired, with his wife and family, to cultivate the ample patrimony +which he possessed in the province of Cappadocia. These useful and +innocent occupations were interrupted by the appearance of an officer +with a band of soldiers, who, in the name of his new sovereigns, +Valentinian and Valens, was despatched to conduct the unfortunate +Procopius either to a perpetual prison or an ignominious death. His +presence of mind procured him a longer respite, and a more splendid +fate. Without presuming to dispute the royal mandate, he requested the +indulgence of a few moments to embrace his weeping family; and while +the vigilance of his guards was relaxed by a plentiful entertainment, +he dexterously escaped to the sea-coast of the Euxine, from whence he +passed over to the country of Bosphorus. In that sequestered region he +remained many months, exposed to the hardships of exile, of solitude, +and of want; his melancholy temper brooding over his misfortunes, and +his mind agitated by the just apprehension, that, if any accident should +discover his name, the faithless Barbarians would violate, without much +scruple, the laws of hospitality. In a moment of impatience and +despair, Procopius embarked in a merchant vessel, which made sail for +Constantinople; and boldly aspired to the rank of a sovereign, because +he was not allowed to enjoy the security of a subject. At first he +lurked in the villages of Bithynia, continually changing his habitation +and his disguise. By degrees he ventured into the capital, trusted his +life and fortune to the fidelity of two friends, a senator and a eunuch, +and conceived some hopes of success, from the intelligence which he +obtained of the actual state of public affairs. The body of the people +was infected with a spirit of discontent: they regretted the justice and +the abilities of Sallust, who had been imprudently dismissed from the +præfecture of the East. They despised the character of Valens, which +was rude without vigor, and feeble without mildness. They dreaded the +influence of his father-in-law, the patrician Petronius, a cruel and +rapacious minister, who rigorously exacted all the arrears of tribute +that might remain unpaid since the reign of the emperor Aurelian. The +circumstances were propitious to the designs of a usurper. The hostile +measures of the Persians required the presence of Valens in Syria: from +the Danube to the Euphrates the troops were in motion; and the capital +was occasionally filled with the soldiers who passed or repassed the +Thracian Bosphorus. Two cohorts of Gaul were persuaded to listen to +the secret proposals of the conspirators; which were recommended by the +promise of a liberal donative; and, as they still revered the memory +of Julian, they easily consented to support the hereditary claim of his +proscribed kinsman. At the dawn of day they were drawn up near the baths +of Anastasia; and Procopius, clothed in a purple garment, more suitable +to a player than to a monarch, appeared, as if he rose from the dead, +in the midst of Constantinople. The soldiers, who were prepared for his +reception, saluted their trembling prince with shouts of joy and vows +of fidelity. Their numbers were soon increased by a band of sturdy +peasants, collected from the adjacent country; and Procopius, shielded +by the arms of his adherents, was successively conducted to the +tribunal, the senate, and the palace. During the first moments of his +tumultuous reign, he was astonished and terrified by the gloomy silence +of the people; who were either ignorant of the cause, or apprehensive +of the event. But his military strength was superior to any actual +resistance: the malecontents flocked to the standard of rebellion; the +poor were excited by the hopes, and the rich were intimidated by the +fear, of a general pillage; and the obstinate credulity of the multitude +was once more deceived by the promised advantages of a revolution. The +magistrates were seized; the prisons and arsenals broke open; the gates, +and the entrance of the harbor, were diligently occupied; and, in a few +hours, Procopius became the absolute, though precarious, master of the +Imperial city. * The usurper improved this unexpected success with some +degree of courage and dexterity. He artfully propagated the rumors +and opinions the most favorable to his interest; while he deluded the +populace by giving audience to the frequent, but imaginary, ambassadors +of distant nations. The large bodies of troops stationed in the cities +of Thrace and the fortresses of the Lower Danube, were gradually +involved in the guilt of rebellion: and the Gothic princes consented to +supply the sovereign of Constantinople with the formidable strength of +several thousand auxiliaries. His generals passed the Bosphorus, and +subdued, without an effort, the unarmed, but wealthy provinces of +Bithynia and Asia. After an honorable defence, the city and island of +Cyzicus yielded to his power; the renowned legions of the Jovians and +Herculians embraced the cause of the usurper, whom they were ordered to +crush; and, as the veterans were continually augmented with new levies, +he soon appeared at the head of an army, whose valor, as well as +numbers, were not unequal to the greatness of the contest. The son of +Hormisdas, a youth of spirit and ability, condescended to draw his +sword against the lawful emperor of the East; and the Persian prince +was immediately invested with the ancient and extraordinary powers of +a Roman Proconsul. The alliance of Faustina, the widow of the emperor +Constantius, who intrusted herself and her daughter to the hands of +the usurper, added dignity and reputation to his cause. The princess +Constantia, who was then about five years of age, accompanied, in a +litter, the march of the army. She was shown to the multitude in the +arms of her adopted father; and, as often as she passed through the +ranks, the tenderness of the soldiers was inflamed into martial fury: +they recollected the glories of the house of Constantine, and they +declared, with loyal acclamation, that they would shed the last drop of +their blood in the defence of the royal infant. + +In the mean while Valentinian was alarmed and perplexed by the doubtful +intelligence of the revolt of the East. * The difficulties of a German +was forced him to confine his immediate care to the safety of his +own dominions; and, as every channel of communication was stopped or +corrupted, he listened, with doubtful anxiety, to the rumors which +were industriously spread, that the defeat and death of Valens had left +Procopius sole master of the Eastern provinces. Valens was not dead: but +on the news of the rebellion, which he received at Cæsarea, he basely +despaired of his life and fortune; proposed to negotiate with the +usurper, and discovered his secret inclination to abdicate the Imperial +purple. The timid monarch was saved from disgrace and ruin by the +firmness of his ministers, and their abilities soon decided in his favor +the event of the civil war. In a season of tranquillity, Sallust +had resigned without a murmur; but as soon as the public safety was +attacked, he ambitiously solicited the preeminence of toil and danger; +and the restoration of that virtuous minister to the præfecture of the +East, was the first step which indicated the repentance of Valens, and +satisfied the minds of the people. The reign of Procopius was apparently +supported by powerful armies and obedient provinces. But many of the +principal officers, military as well as civil, had been urged, either +by motives of duty or interest, to withdraw themselves from the guilty +scene; or to watch the moment of betraying, and deserting, the cause of +the usurper. Lupicinus advanced by hasty marches, to bring the legions +of Syria to the aid of Valens. Arintheus, who, in strength, beauty, and +valor, excelled all the heroes of the age, attacked with a small troop +a superior body of the rebels. When he beheld the faces of the soldiers +who had served under his banner, he commanded them, with a loud voice, +to seize and deliver up their pretended leader; and such was the +ascendant of his genius, that this extraordinary order was instantly +obeyed. Arbetio, a respectable veteran of the great Constantine, who +had been distinguished by the honors of the consulship, was persuaded to +leave his retirement, and once more to conduct an army into the field. +In the heat of action, calmly taking off his helmet, he showed his gray +hairs and venerable countenance: saluted the soldiers of Procopius by +the endearing names of children and companions, and exhorted them no +longer to support the desperate cause of a contemptible tyrant; but +to follow their old commander, who had so often led them to honor and +victory. In the two engagements of Thyatira and Nacolia, the unfortunate +Procopius was deserted by his troops, who were seduced by the +instructions and example of their perfidious officers. After wandering +some time among the woods and mountains of Phrygia, he was betrayed +by his desponding followers, conducted to the Imperial camp, and +immediately beheaded. He suffered the ordinary fate of an unsuccessful +usurper; but the acts of cruelty which were exercised by the conqueror, +under the forms of legal justice, excited the pity and indignation of +mankind. + +Such indeed are the common and natural fruits of despotism and +rebellion. But the inquisition into the crime of magic, which, under the +reign of the two brothers, was so rigorously prosecuted both at Rome and +Antioch, was interpreted as the fatal symptom, either of the displeasure +of Heaven, or of the depravity of mankind. Let us not hesitate to +indulge a liberal pride, that, in the present age, the enlightened part +of Europe has abolished a cruel and odious prejudice, which reigned in +every climate of the globe, and adhered to every system of religious +opinions. The nations, and the sects, of the Roman world, admitted with +equal credulity, and similar abhorrence, the reality of that infernal +art, which was able to control the eternal order of the planets, and +the voluntary operations of the human mind. They dreaded the mysterious +power of spells and incantations, of potent herbs, and execrable rites; +which could extinguish or recall life, inflame the passions of the soul, +blast the works of creation, and extort from the reluctant dæmons the +secrets of futurity. They believed, with the wildest inconsistency, +that this preternatural dominion of the air, of earth, and of hell, was +exercised, from the vilest motives of malice or gain, by some wrinkled +hags and itinerant sorcerers, who passed their obscure lives in penury +and contempt. The arts of magic were equally condemned by the public +opinion, and by the laws of Rome; but as they tended to gratify the +most imperious passions of the heart of man, they were continually +proscribed, and continually practised. An imaginary cause as capable of +producing the most serious and mischievous effects. The dark predictions +of the death of an emperor, or the success of a conspiracy, were +calculated only to stimulate the hopes of ambition, and to dissolve the +ties of fidelity; and the intentional guilt of magic was aggravated by +the actual crimes of treason and sacrilege. Such vain terrors disturbed +the peace of society, and the happiness of individuals; and the harmless +flame which insensibly melted a waxen image, might derive a powerful and +pernicious energy from the affrighted fancy of the person whom it was +maliciously designed to represent. From the infusion of those herbs, +which were supposed to possess a supernatural influence, it was an easy +step to the use of more substantial poison; and the folly of mankind +sometimes became the instrument, and the mask, of the most atrocious +crimes. As soon as the zeal of informers was encouraged by the ministers +of Valens and Valentinian, they could not refuse to listen to another +charge, too frequently mingled in the scenes of domestic guilt; a charge +of a softer and less malignant nature, for which the pious, though +excessive, rigor of Constantine had recently decreed the punishment +of death. This deadly and incoherent mixture of treason and magic, +of poison and adultery, afforded infinite gradations of guilt and +innocence, of excuse and aggravation, which in these proceedings appear +to have been confounded by the angry or corrupt passions of the judges. +They easily discovered that the degree of their industry and discernment +was estimated, by the Imperial court, according to the number of +executions that were furnished from the respective tribunals. It was not +without extreme reluctance that they pronounced a sentence of acquittal; +but they eagerly admitted such evidence as was stained with perjury, or +procured by torture, to prove the most improbable charges against the +most respectable characters. The progress of the inquiry continually +opened new subjects of criminal prosecution; the audacious informer, +whose falsehood was detected, retired with impunity; but the wretched +victim, who discovered his real or pretended accomplices, were seldom +permitted to receive the price of his infamy. From the extremity of +Italy and Asia, the young, and the aged, were dragged in chains to the +tribunals of Rome and Antioch. Senators, matrons, and philosophers, +expired in ignominious and cruel tortures. The soldiers, who were +appointed to guard the prisons, declared, with a murmur of pity and +indignation, that their numbers were insufficient to oppose the flight, +or resistance, of the multitude of captives. The wealthiest families +were ruined by fines and confiscations; the most innocent citizens +trembled for their safety; and we may form some notion of the magnitude +of the evil, from the extravagant assertion of an ancient writer, +that, in the obnoxious provinces, the prisoners, the exiles, and the +fugitives, formed the greatest part of the inhabitants. + +When Tacitus describes the deaths of the innocent and illustrious +Romans, who were sacrificed to the cruelty of the first Cæsars, the art +of the historian, or the merit of the sufferers, excites in our breast +the most lively sensations of terror, of admiration, and of pity. The +coarse and undistinguishing pencil of Ammianus has delineated his bloody +figures with tedious and disgusting accuracy. But as our attention is +no longer engaged by the contrast of freedom and servitude, of recent +greatness and of actual misery, we should turn with horror from the +frequent executions, which disgraced, both at Rome and Antioch, the +reign of the two brothers. Valens was of a timid, and Valentinian of a +choleric, disposition. An anxious regard to his personal safety was the +ruling principle of the administration of Valens. In the condition of a +subject, he had kissed, with trembling awe, the hand of the oppressor; +and when he ascended the throne, he reasonably expected, that the +same fears, which had subdued his own mind, would secure the patient +submission of his people. The favorites of Valens obtained, by the +privilege of rapine and confiscation, the wealth which his economy would +have refused. They urged, with persuasive eloquence, that, in all cases +of treason, suspicion is equivalent to proof; that the power supposes +the intention, of mischief; that the intention is not less criminal than +the act; and that a subject no longer deserves to live, if his life +may threaten the safety, or disturb the repose, of his sovereign. The +judgment of Valentinian was sometimes deceived, and his confidence +abused; but he would have silenced the informers with a contemptuous +smile, had they presumed to alarm his fortitude by the sound of danger. +They praised his inflexible love of justice; and, in the pursuit of +justice, the emperor was easily tempted to consider clemency as a +weakness, and passion as a virtue. As long as he wrestled with his +equals, in the bold competition of an active and ambitious life, +Valentinian was seldom injured, and never insulted, with impunity: if +his prudence was arraigned, his spirit was applauded; and the proudest +and most powerful generals were apprehensive of provoking the resentment +of a fearless soldier. After he became master of the world, he +unfortunately forgot, that where no resistance can be made, no courage +can be exerted; and instead of consulting the dictates of reason and +magnanimity, he indulged the furious emotions of his temper, at a time +when they were disgraceful to himself, and fatal to the defenceless +objects of his displeasure. In the government of his household, or of +his empire, slight, or even imaginary, offences--a hasty word, a +casual omission, an involuntary delay--were chastised by a sentence of +immediate death. The expressions which issued the most readily from the +mouth of the emperor of the West were, "Strike off his head;" "Burn him +alive;" "Let him be beaten with clubs till he expires;" and his most +favored ministers soon understood, that, by a rash attempt to dispute, +or suspend, the execution of his sanguinary commands, they might involve +themselves in the guilt and punishment of disobedience. The repeated +gratification of this savage justice hardened the mind of Valentinian +against pity and remorse; and the sallies of passion were confirmed +by the habits of cruelty. He could behold with calm satisfaction the +convulsive agonies of torture and death; he reserved his friendship for +those faithful servants whose temper was the most congenial to his own. +The merit of Maximin, who had slaughtered the noblest families of Rome, +was rewarded with the royal approbation, and the præfecture of Gaul. +Two fierce and enormous bears, distinguished by the appellations of +Innocence, and Mica Aurea, could alone deserve to share the favor of +Maximin. The cages of those trusty guards were always placed near the +bed-chamber of Valentinian, who frequently amused his eyes with the +grateful spectacle of seeing them tear and devour the bleeding limbs +of the malefactors who were abandoned to their rage. Their diet and +exercises were carefully inspected by the Roman emperor; and when +Innocence had earned her discharge, by a long course of meritorious +service, the faithful animal was again restored to the freedom of her +native woods. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part III. + +But in the calmer moments of reflection, when the mind of Valens was not +agitated by fear, or that of Valentinian by rage, the tyrant resumed the +sentiments, or at least the conduct, of the father of his country. The +dispassionate judgment of the Western emperor could clearly perceive, +and accurately pursue, his own and the public interest; and the +sovereign of the East, who imitated with equal docility the various +examples which he received from his elder brother, was sometimes guided +by the wisdom and virtue of the præfect Sallust. Both princes invariably +retained, in the purple, the chaste and temperate simplicity which had +adorned their private life; and, under their reign, the pleasures of the +court never cost the people a blush or a sigh. They gradually reformed +many of the abuses of the times of Constantius; judiciously adopted and +improved the designs of Julian and his successor; and displayed a style +and spirit of legislation which might inspire posterity with the most +favorable opinion of their character and government. It is not from the +master of Innocence, that we should expect the tender regard for the +welfare of his subjects, which prompted Valentinian to condemn the +exposition of new-born infants; and to establish fourteen skilful +physicians, with stipends and privileges, in the fourteen quarters +of Rome. The good sense of an illiterate soldier founded a useful and +liberal institution for the education of youth, and the support of +declining science. It was his intention, that the arts of rhetoric +and grammar should be taught in the Greek and Latin languages, in the +metropolis of every province; and as the size and dignity of the school +was usually proportioned to the importance of the city, the academies +of Rome and Constantinople claimed a just and singular preeminence. The +fragments of the literary edicts of Valentinian imperfectly represent +the school of Constantinople, which was gradually improved by subsequent +regulations. That school consisted of thirty-one professors in different +branches of learning. One philosopher, and two lawyers; five sophists, +and ten grammarians for the Greek, and three orators, and ten +grammarians for the Latin tongue; besides seven scribes, or, as they +were then styled, antiquarians, whose laborious pens supplied the public +library with fair and correct copies of the classic writers. The rule of +conduct, which was prescribed to the students, is the more curious, as +it affords the first outlines of the form and discipline of a modern +university. It was required, that they should bring proper certificates +from the magistrates of their native province. Their names, professions, +and places of abode, were regularly entered in a public register. The +studious youth were severely prohibited from wasting their time in +feasts, or in the theatre; and the term of their education was limited +to the age of twenty. The præfect of the city was empowered to chastise +the idle and refractory by stripes or expulsion; and he was directed to +make an annual report to the master of the offices, that the knowledge +and abilities of the scholars might be usefully applied to the public +service. The institutions of Valentinian contributed to secure the +benefits of peace and plenty; and the cities were guarded by the +establishment of the Defensors; freely elected as the tribunes and +advocates of the people, to support their rights, and to expose their +grievances, before the tribunals of the civil magistrates, or even +at the foot of the Imperial throne. The finances were diligently +administered by two princes, who had been so long accustomed to the +rigid economy of a private fortune; but in the receipt and application +of the revenue, a discerning eye might observe some difference between +the government of the East and of the West. Valens was persuaded, that +royal liberality can be supplied only by public oppression, and his +ambition never aspired to secure, by their actual distress, the future +strength and prosperity of his people. Instead of increasing the +weight of taxes, which, in the space of forty years, had been gradually +doubled, he reduced, in the first years of his reign, one fourth of the +tribute of the East. Valentinian appears to have been less attentive and +less anxious to relieve the burdens of his people. He might reform the +abuses of the fiscal administration; but he exacted, without scruple, a +very large share of the private property; as he was convinced, that the +revenues, which supported the luxury of individuals, would be much more +advantageously employed for the defence and improvement of the state. +The subjects of the East, who enjoyed the present benefit, applauded +the indulgence of their prince. The solid but less splendid, merit of +Valentinian was felt and acknowledged by the subsequent generation. + +But the most honorable circumstance of the character of Valentinian, is +the firm and temperate impartiality which he uniformly preserved in +an age of religious contention. His strong sense, unenlightened, but +uncorrupted, by study, declined, with respectful indifference, the +subtle questions of theological debate. The government of the Earth +claimed his vigilance, and satisfied his ambition; and while he +remembered that he was the disciple of the church, he never forgot that +he was the sovereign of the clergy. Under the reign of an apostate, he +had signalized his zeal for the honor of Christianity: he allowed to his +subjects the privilege which he had assumed for himself; and they might +accept, with gratitude and confidence, the general toleration which was +granted by a prince addicted to passion, but incapable of fear or +of disguise. The Pagans, the Jews, and all the various sects which +acknowledged the divine authority of Christ, were protected by the laws +from arbitrary power or popular insult; nor was any mode of worship +prohibited by Valentinian, except those secret and criminal practices, +which abused the name of religion for the dark purposes of vice and +disorder. The art of magic, as it was more cruelly punished, was more +strictly proscribed: but the emperor admitted a formal distinction to +protect the ancient methods of divination, which were approved by the +senate, and exercised by the Tuscan haruspices. He had condemned, +with the consent of the most rational Pagans, the license of nocturnal +sacrifices; but he immediately admitted the petition of Prætextatus, +proconsul of Achaia, who represented, that the life of the Greeks would +become dreary and comfortless, if they were deprived of the invaluable +blessing of the Eleusinian mysteries. Philosophy alone can boast, (and +perhaps it is no more than the boast of philosophy,) that her gentle +hand is able to eradicate from the human mind the latent and deadly +principle of fanaticism. But this truce of twelve years, which was +enforced by the wise and vigorous government of Valentinian, by +suspending the repetition of mutual injuries, contributed to soften the +manners, and abate the prejudices, of the religious factions. + +The friend of toleration was unfortunately placed at a distance from the +scene of the fiercest controversies. As soon as the Christians of the +West had extricated themselves from the snares of the creed of Rimini, +they happily relapsed into the slumber of orthodoxy; and the small +remains of the Arian party, that still subsisted at Sirmium or Milan, +might be considered rather as objects of contempt than of resentment. +But in the provinces of the East, from the Euxine to the extremity of +Thebais, the strength and numbers of the hostile factions were more +equally balanced; and this equality, instead of recommending the +counsels of peace, served only to perpetuate the horrors of religious +war. The monks and bishops supported their arguments by invectives; +and their invectives were sometimes followed by blows. Athanasius still +reigned at Alexandria; the thrones of Constantinople and Antioch were +occupied by Arian prelates, and every episcopal vacancy was the +occasion of a popular tumult. The Homoousians were fortified by the +reconciliation of fifty-nine Macedonian, or Semi-Arian, bishops; but +their secret reluctance to embrace the divinity of the Holy Ghost, +clouded the splendor of the triumph; and the declaration of Valens, who, +in the first years of his reign, had imitated the impartial conduct of +his brother, was an important victory on the side of Arianism. The two +brothers had passed their private life in the condition of catechumens; +but the piety of Valens prompted him to solicit the sacrament of +baptism, before he exposed his person to the dangers of a Gothic war. He +naturally addressed himself to Eudoxus, * bishop of the Imperial city; +and if the ignorant monarch was instructed by that Arian pastor in the +principles of heterodox theology, his misfortune, rather than his guilt, +was the inevitable consequence of his erroneous choice. Whatever had +been the determination of the emperor, he must have offended a numerous +party of his Christian subjects; as the leaders both of the Homoousians +and of the Arians believed, that, if they were not suffered to reign, +they were most cruelly injured and oppressed. After he had taken this +decisive step, it was extremely difficult for him to preserve either +the virtue, or the reputation of impartiality. He never aspired, +like Constantius, to the fame of a profound theologian; but as he had +received with simplicity and respect the tenets of Eudoxus, Valens +resigned his conscience to the direction of his ecclesiastical guides, +and promoted, by the influence of his authority, the reunion of the +Athanasian heretics to the body of the Catholic church. At first, he +pitied their blindness; by degrees he was provoked at their obstinacy; +and he insensibly hated those sectaries to whom he was an object of +hatred. The feeble mind of Valens was always swayed by the persons with +whom he familiarly conversed; and the exile or imprisonment of a private +citizen are the favors the most readily granted in a despotic court. +Such punishments were frequently inflicted on the leaders of the +Homoousian party; and the misfortune of fourscore ecclesiastics of +Constantinople, who, perhaps accidentally, were burned on shipboard, +was imputed to the cruel and premeditated malice of the emperor, and his +Arian ministers. In every contest, the Catholics (if we may anticipate +that name) were obliged to pay the penalty of their own faults, and of +those of their adversaries. In every election, the claims of the Arian +candidate obtained the preference; and if they were opposed by the +majority of the people, he was usually supported by the authority of +the civil magistrate, or even by the terrors of a military force. +The enemies of Athanasius attempted to disturb the last years of his +venerable age; and his temporary retreat to his father's sepulchre has +been celebrated as a fifth exile. But the zeal of a great people, who +instantly flew to arms, intimidated the præfect: and the archbishop +was permitted to end his life in peace and in glory, after a reign +of forty-seven years. The death of Athanasius was the signal of the +persecution of Egypt; and the Pagan minister of Valens, who forcibly +seated the worthless Lucius on the archiepiscopal throne, purchased +the favor of the reigning party, by the blood and sufferings of their +Christian brethren. The free toleration of the heathen and Jewish +worship was bitterly lamented, as a circumstance which aggravated the +misery of the Catholics, and the guilt of the impious tyrant of the +East. + +The triumph of the orthodox party has left a deep stain of persecution +on the memory of Valens; and the character of a prince who derived +his virtues, as well as his vices, from a feeble understanding and a +pusillanimous temper, scarcely deserves the labor of an apology. Yet +candor may discover some reasons to suspect that the ecclesiastical +ministers of Valens often exceeded the orders, or even the intentions, +of their master; and that the real measure of facts has been very +liberally magnified by the vehement declamation and easy credulity of +his antagonists. 1. The silence of Valentinian may suggest a probable +argument that the partial severities, which were exercised in the +name and provinces of his colleague, amounted only to some obscure +and inconsiderable deviations from the established system of religious +toleration: and the judicious historian, who has praised the equal +temper of the elder brother, has not thought himself obliged to contrast +the tranquillity of the West with the cruel persecution of the East. +2. Whatever credit may be allowed to vague and distant reports, the +character, or at least the behavior, of Valens, may be most distinctly +seen in his personal transactions with the eloquent Basil, archbishop +of Cæsarea, who had succeeded Athanasius in the management of the +Trinitarian cause. The circumstantial narrative has been composed by the +friends and admirers of Basil; and as soon as we have stripped away +a thick coat of rhetoric and miracle, we shall be astonished by the +unexpected mildness of the Arian tyrant, who admired the firmness of his +character, or was apprehensive, if he employed violence, of a general +revolt in the province of Cappadocia. The archbishop, who asserted, +with inflexible pride, the truth of his opinions, and the dignity of his +rank, was left in the free possession of his conscience and his throne. +The emperor devoutly assisted at the solemn service of the cathedral; +and, instead of a sentence of banishment, subscribed the donation of +a valuable estate for the use of a hospital, which Basil had lately +founded in the neighborhood of Cæsarea. 3. I am not able to discover, +that any law (such as Theodosius afterwards enacted against the Arians) +was published by Valens against the Athanasian sectaries; and the edict +which excited the most violent clamors, may not appear so extremely +reprehensible. The emperor had observed, that several of his subjects, +gratifying their lazy disposition under the pretence of religion, had +associated themselves with the monks of Egypt; and he directed the +count of the East to drag them from their solitude; and to compel these +deserters of society to accept the fair alternative of renouncing their +temporal possessions, or of discharging the public duties of men and +citizens. The ministers of Valens seem to have extended the sense of +this penal statute, since they claimed a right of enlisting the young +and able-bodied monks in the Imperial armies. A detachment of cavalry +and infantry, consisting of three thousand men, marched from Alexandria +into the adjacent desert of Nitria, which was peopled by five thousand +monks. The soldiers were conducted by Arian priests; and it is reported, +that a considerable slaughter was made in the monasteries which +disobeyed the commands of their sovereign. + +The strict regulations which have been framed by the wisdom of modern +legislators to restrain the wealth and avarice of the clergy, may be +originally deduced from the example of the emperor Valentinian. His +edict, addressed to Damasus, bishop of Rome, was publicly read in the +churches of the city. He admonished the ecclesiastics and monks not +to frequent the houses of widows and virgins; and menaced their +disobedience with the animadversion of the civil judge. The director was +no longer permitted to receive any gift, or legacy, or inheritance, from +the liberality of his spiritual-daughter: every testament contrary to +this edict was declared null and void; and the illegal donation was +confiscated for the use of the treasury. By a subsequent regulation, it +should seem, that the same provisions were extended to nuns and bishops; +and that all persons of the ecclesiastical order were rendered incapable +of receiving any testamentary gifts, and strictly confined to the +natural and legal rights of inheritance. As the guardian of domestic +happiness and virtue, Valentinian applied this severe remedy to the +growing evil. In the capital of the empire, the females of noble and +opulent houses possessed a very ample share of independent property: and +many of those devout females had embraced the doctrines of Christianity, +not only with the cold assent of the understanding, but with the warmth +of affection, and perhaps with the eagerness of fashion. They sacrificed +the pleasures of dress and luxury; and renounced, for the praise of +chastity, the soft endearments of conjugal society. Some ecclesiastic, +of real or apparent sanctity, was chosen to direct their timorous +conscience, and to amuse the vacant tenderness of their heart: and the +unbounded confidence, which they hastily bestowed, was often abused by +knaves and enthusiasts; who hastened from the extremities of the +East, to enjoy, on a splendid theatre, the privileges of the monastic +profession. By their contempt of the world, they insensibly acquired its +most desirable advantages; the lively attachment, perhaps of a young and +beautiful woman, the delicate plenty of an opulent household, and the +respectful homage of the slaves, the freedmen, and the clients of +a senatorial family. The immense fortunes of the Roman ladies were +gradually consumed in lavish alms and expensive pilgrimages; and the +artful monk, who had assigned himself the first, or possibly the sole +place, in the testament of his spiritual daughter, still presumed +to declare, with the smooth face of hypocrisy, that he was only the +instrument of charity, and the steward of the poor. The lucrative, but +disgraceful, trade, which was exercised by the clergy to defraud the +expectations of the natural heirs, had provoked the indignation of a +superstitious age: and two of the most respectable of the Latin fathers +very honestly confess, that the ignominious edict of Valentinian was +just and necessary; and that the Christian priests had deserved to lose +a privilege, which was still enjoyed by comedians, charioteers, and the +ministers of idols. But the wisdom and authority of the legislator are +seldom victorious in a contest with the vigilant dexterity of private +interest; and Jerom, or Ambrose, might patiently acquiesce in the +justice of an ineffectual or salutary law. If the ecclesiastics were +checked in the pursuit of personal emolument, they would exert a more +laudable industry to increase the wealth of the church; and dignify +their covetousness with the specious names of piety and patriotism. + +Damasus, bishop of Rome, who was constrained to stigmatize the avarice +of his clergy by the publication of the law of Valentinian, had the +good sense, or the good fortune, to engage in his service the zeal and +abilities of the learned Jerom; and the grateful saint has celebrated +the merit and purity of a very ambiguous character. But the splendid +vices of the church of Rome, under the reign of Valentinian and Damasus, +have been curiously observed by the historian Ammianus, who delivers his +impartial sense in these expressive words: "The præfecture of Juventius +was accompanied with peace and plenty, but the tranquillity of his +government was soon disturbed by a bloody sedition of the distracted +people. The ardor of Damasus and Ursinus, to seize the episcopal seat, +surpassed the ordinary measure of human ambition. They contended with +the rage of party; the quarrel was maintained by the wounds and death +of their followers; and the præfect, unable to resist or appease the +tumult, was constrained, by superior violence, to retire into the +suburbs. Damasus prevailed: the well-disputed victory remained on the +side of his faction; one hundred and thirty-seven dead bodies were found +in the Basilica of Sicininus, where the Christians hold their religious +assemblies; and it was long before the angry minds of the people resumed +their accustomed tranquillity. When I consider the splendor of the +capital, I am not astonished that so valuable a prize should inflame the +desires of ambitious men, and produce the fiercest and most obstinate +contests. The successful candidate is secure, that he will be enriched +by the offerings of matrons; that, as soon as his dress is composed with +becoming care and elegance, he may proceed, in his chariot, through the +streets of Rome; and that the sumptuousness of the Imperial table will +not equal the profuse and delicate entertainments provided by the taste, +and at the expense, of the Roman pontiffs. How much more rationally +(continues the honest Pagan) would those pontiffs consult their true +happiness, if, instead of alleging the greatness of the city as an +excuse for their manners, they would imitate the exemplary life of some +provincial bishops, whose temperance and sobriety, whose mean apparel +and downcast looks, recommend their pure and modest virtue to the +Deity and his true worshippers!" The schism of Damasus and Ursinus was +extinguished by the exile of the latter; and the wisdom of the præfect +Prætextatus restored the tranquillity of the city. Prætextatus was a +philosophic Pagan, a man of learning, of taste, and politeness; who +disguised a reproach in the form of a jest, when he assured Damasus, +that if he could obtain the bishopric of Rome, he himself would +immediately embrace the Christian religion. This lively picture of the +wealth and luxury of the popes in the fourth century becomes the more +curious, as it represents the intermediate degree between the humble +poverty of the apostolic fishermen, and the royal state of a temporal +prince, whose dominions extend from the confines of Naples to the banks +of the Po. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part IV. + +When the suffrage of the generals and of the army committed the sceptre +of the Roman empire to the hands of Valentinian, his reputation in +arms, his military skill and experience, and his rigid attachment to +the forms, as well as spirit, of ancient discipline, were the principal +motives of their judicious choice. The eagerness of the troops, who +pressed him to nominate his colleague, was justified by the dangerous +situation of public affairs; and Valentinian himself was conscious, that +the abilities of the most active mind were unequal to the defence of the +distant frontiers of an invaded monarchy. As soon as the death of +Julian had relieved the Barbarians from the terror of his name, the most +sanguine hopes of rapine and conquest excited the nations of the East, +of the North, and of the South. Their inroads were often vexatious, +and sometimes formidable; but, during the twelve years of the reign of +Valentinian, his firmness and vigilance protected his own dominions; and +his powerful genius seemed to inspire and direct the feeble counsels of +his brother. Perhaps the method of annals would more forcibly express +the urgent and divided cares of the two emperors; but the attention of +the reader, likewise, would be distracted by a tedious and desultory +narrative. A separate view of the five great theatres of war; I. +Germany; II. Britain; III. Africa; IV. The East; and, V. The Danube; +will impress a more distinct image of the military state of the empire +under the reigns of Valentinian and Valens. + +I. The ambassadors of the Alemanni had been offended by the harsh and +haughty behavior of Ursacius, master of the offices; who by an act +of unseasonable parsimony, had diminished the value, as well as the +quantity, of the presents to which they were entitled, either from +custom or treaty, on the accession of a new emperor. They expressed, +and they communicated to their countrymen, their strong sense of the +national affront. The irascible minds of the chiefs were exasperated +by the suspicion of contempt; and the martial youth crowded to their +standard. Before Valentinian could pass the Alps, the villages of Gaul +were in flames; before his general Degalaiphus could encounter the +Alemanni, they had secured the captives and the spoil in the forests of +Germany. In the beginning of the ensuing year, the military force of the +whole nation, in deep and solid columns, broke through the barrier of +the Rhine, during the severity of a northern winter. Two Roman counts +were defeated and mortally wounded; and the standard of the Heruli and +Batavians fell into the hands of the Heruli and Batavians fell into +the hands of the conquerors, who displayed, with insulting shouts and +menaces, the trophy of their victory. The standard was recovered; but +the Batavians had not redeemed the shame of their disgrace and flight in +the eyes of their severe judge. It was the opinion of Valentinian, that +his soldiers must learn to fear their commander, before they could cease +to fear the enemy. The troops were solemnly assembled; and the trembling +Batavians were enclosed within the circle of the Imperial army. +Valentinian then ascended his tribunal; and, as if he disdained to +punish cowardice with death, he inflicted a stain of indelible ignominy +on the officers, whose misconduct and pusillanimity were found to be +the first occasion of the defeat. The Batavians were degraded from their +rank, stripped of their arms, and condemned to be sold for slaves to the +highest bidder. At this tremendous sentence, the troops fell prostrate +on the ground, deprecated the indignation of their sovereign, and +protested, that, if he would indulge them in another trial, they would +approve themselves not unworthy of the name of Romans, and of his +soldiers. Valentinian, with affected reluctance, yielded to their +entreaties; the Batavians resumed their arms, and with their arms, the +invincible resolution of wiping away their disgrace in the blood of the +Alemanni. The principal command was declined by Dagalaiphus; and +that experienced general, who had represented, perhaps with too +much prudence, the extreme difficulties of the undertaking, had the +mortification, before the end of the campaign, of seeing his rival +Jovinus convert those difficulties into a decisive advantage over the +scattered forces of the Barbarians. At the head of a well-disciplined +army of cavalry, infantry, and light troops, Jovinus advanced, with +cautious and rapid steps, to Scarponna, * in the territory of Metz, +where he surprised a large division of the Alemanni, before they had +time to run to their arms; and flushed his soldiers with the confidence +of an easy and bloodless victory. Another division, or rather army, +of the enemy, after the cruel and wanton devastation of the adjacent +country, reposed themselves on the shady banks of the Moselle. Jovinus, +who had viewed the ground with the eye of a general, made a silent +approach through a deep and woody vale, till he could distinctly +perceive the indolent security of the Germans. Some were bathing their +huge limbs in the river; others were combing their long and flaxen hair; +others again were swallowing large draughts of rich and delicious wine. +On a sudden they heard the sound of the Roman trumpet; they saw the +enemy in their camp. Astonishment produced disorder; disorder was +followed by flight and dismay; and the confused multitude of the bravest +warriors was pierced by the swords and javelins of the legionaries and +auxiliaries. The fugitives escaped to the third, and most considerable, +camp, in the Catalonian plains, near Chalons in Champagne: the +straggling detachments were hastily recalled to their standard; and +the Barbarian chiefs, alarmed and admonished by the fate of their +companions, prepared to encounter, in a decisive battle, the victorious +forces of the lieutenant of Valentinian. The bloody and obstinate +conflict lasted a whole summer's day, with equal valor, and with +alternate success. The Romans at length prevailed, with the loss of +about twelve hundred men. Six thousand of the Alemanni were slain, four +thousand were wounded; and the brave Jovinus, after chasing the flying +remnant of their host as far as the banks of the Rhine, returned to +Paris, to receive the applause of his sovereign, and the ensigns of the +consulship for the ensuing year. The triumph of the Romans was indeed +sullied by their treatment of the captive king, whom they hung on +a gibbet, without the knowledge of their indignant general. This +disgraceful act of cruelty, which might be imputed to the fury of the +troops, was followed by the deliberate murder of Withicab, the son of +Vadomair; a German prince, of a weak and sickly constitution, but of a +daring and formidable spirit. The domestic assassin was instigated and +protected by the Romans; and the violation of the laws of humanity +and justice betrayed their secret apprehension of the weakness of the +declining empire. The use of the dagger is seldom adopted in public +councils, as long as they retain any confidence in the power of the +sword. + +While the Alemanni appeared to be humbled by their recent calamities, +the pride of Valentinian was mortified by the unexpected surprisal of +Moguntiacum, or Mentz, the principal city of the Upper Germany. In the +unsuspicious moment of a Christian festival, * Rando, a bold and artful +chieftain, who had long meditated his attempt, suddenly passed the +Rhine; entered the defenceless town, and retired with a multitude of +captives of either sex. Valentinian resolved to execute severe vengeance +on the whole body of the nation. Count Sebastian, with the bands of +Italy and Illyricum, was ordered to invade their country, most probably +on the side of Rhætia. The emperor in person, accompanied by his son +Gratian, passed the Rhine at the head of a formidable army, which was +supported on both flanks by Jovinus and Severus, the two masters-general +of the cavalry and infantry of the West. The Alemanni, unable to prevent +the devastation of their villages, fixed their camp on a lofty, and +almost inaccessible, mountain, in the modern duchy of Wirtemberg, and +resolutely expected the approach of the Romans. The life of Valentinian +was exposed to imminent danger by the intrepid curiosity with which +he persisted to explore some secret and unguarded path. A troop of +Barbarians suddenly rose from their ambuscade: and the emperor, who +vigorously spurred his horse down a steep and slippery descent, +was obliged to leave behind him his armor-bearer, and his helmet, +magnificently enriched with gold and precious stones. At the signal +of the general assault, the Roman troops encompassed and ascended the +mountain of Solicinium on three different sides. Every step which they +gained, increased their ardor, and abated the resistance of the enemy: +and after their united forces had occupied the summit of the hill, they +impetuously urged the Barbarians down the northern descent, where Count +Sebastian was posted to intercept their retreat. After this signal +victory, Valentinian returned to his winter quarters at Treves; where +he indulged the public joy by the exhibition of splendid and triumphal +games. But the wise monarch, instead of aspiring to the conquest of +Germany, confined his attention to the important and laborious defence +of the Gallic frontier, against an enemy whose strength was renewed by +a stream of daring volunteers, which incessantly flowed from the most +distant tribes of the North. The banks of the Rhine from its source to +the straits of the ocean, were closely planted with strong castles +and convenient towers; new works, and new arms, were invented by the +ingenuity of a prince who was skilled in the mechanical arts; and his +numerous levies of Roman and Barbarian youth were severely trained in +all the exercises of war. The progress of the work, which was sometimes +opposed by modest representations, and sometimes by hostile attempts, +secured the tranquillity of Gaul during the nine subsequent years of the +administration of Valentinian. + +That prudent emperor, who diligently practised the wise maxims of +Diocletian, was studious to foment and excite the intestine divisions +of the tribes of Germany. About the middle of the fourth century, the +countries, perhaps of Lusace and Thuringia, on either side of the Elbe, +were occupied by the vague dominion of the Burgundians; a warlike and +numerous people, * of the Vandal race, whose obscure name insensibly +swelled into a powerful kingdom, and has finally settled on a +flourishing province. The most remarkable circumstance in the ancient +manners of the Burgundians appears to have been the difference of their +civil and ecclesiastical constitution. The appellation of Hendinos was +given to the king or general, and the title of Sinistus to the high +priest, of the nation. The person of the priest was sacred, and his +dignity perpetual; but the temporal government was held by a very +precarious tenure. If the events of war accuses the courage or conduct +of the king, he was immediately deposed; and the injustice of his +subjects made him responsible for the fertility of the earth, and the +regularity of the seasons, which seemed to fall more properly within the +sacerdotal department. The disputed possession of some salt-pits engaged +the Alemanni and the Burgundians in frequent contests: the latter were +easily tempted, by the secret solicitations and liberal offers of the +emperor; and their fabulous descent from the Roman soldiers, who had +formerly been left to garrison the fortresses of Drusus, was admitted +with mutual credulity, as it was conducive to mutual interest. An army +of fourscore thousand Burgundians soon appeared on the banks of +the Rhine; and impatiently required the support and subsidies which +Valentinian had promised: but they were amused with excuses and delays, +till at length, after a fruitless expectation, they were compelled to +retire. The arms and fortifications of the Gallic frontier checked the +fury of their just resentment; and their massacre of the captives served +to imbitter the hereditary feud of the Burgundians and the Alemanni. +The inconstancy of a wise prince may, perhaps, be explained by some +alteration of circumstances; and perhaps it was the original design of +Valentinian to intimidate, rather than to destroy; as the balance of +power would have been equally overturned by the extirpation of either of +the German nations. Among the princes of the Alemanni, Macrianus, who, +with a Roman name, had assumed the arts of a soldier and a statesman, +deserved his hatred and esteem. The emperor himself, with a light and +unencumbered band, condescended to pass the Rhine, marched fifty miles +into the country, and would infallibly have seized the object of +his pursuit, if his judicious measures had not been defeated by the +impatience of the troops. Macrianus was afterwards admitted to the +honor of a personal conference with the emperor; and the favors which +he received, fixed him, till the hour of his death, a steady and sincere +friend of the republic. + +The land was covered by the fortifications of Valentinian; but the +sea-coast of Gaul and Britain was exposed to the depredations of the +Saxons. That celebrated name, in which we have a dear and domestic +interest, escaped the notice of Tacitus; and in the maps of Ptolemy, it +faintly marks the narrow neck of the Cimbric peninsula, and three small +islands towards the mouth of the Elbe. This contracted territory, the +present duchy of Sleswig, or perhaps of Holstein, was incapable of +pouring forth the inexhaustible swarms of Saxons who reigned over the +ocean, who filled the British island with their language, their laws, +and their colonies; and who so long defended the liberty of the North +against the arms of Charlemagne. The solution of this difficulty is +easily derived from the similar manners, and loose constitution, of the +tribes of Germany; which were blended with each other by the slightest +accidents of war or friendship. The situation of the native Saxons +disposed them to embrace the hazardous professions of fishermen and +pirates; and the success of their first adventures would naturally +excite the emulation of their bravest countrymen, who were impatient of +the gloomy solitude of their woods and mountains. Every tide might float +down the Elbe whole fleets of canoes, filled with hardy and intrepid +associates, who aspired to behold the unbounded prospect of the ocean, +and to taste the wealth and luxury of unknown worlds. It should seem +probable, however, that the most numerous auxiliaries of the Saxons were +furnished by the nations who dwelt along the shores of the Baltic. They +possessed arms and ships, the art of navigation, and the habits of +naval war; but the difficulty of issuing through the northern columns of +Hercules (which, during several months of the year, are obstructed with +ice) confined their skill and courage within the limits of a spacious +lake. The rumor of the successful armaments which sailed from the mouth +of the Elbe, would soon provoke them to cross the narrow isthmus of +Sleswig, and to launch their vessels on the great sea. The various +troops of pirates and adventurers, who fought under the same standard, +were insensibly united in a permanent society, at first of rapine, and +afterwards of government. A military confederation was gradually +moulded into a national body, by the gentle operation of marriage and +consanguinity; and the adjacent tribes, who solicited the alliance, +accepted the name and laws, of the Saxons. If the fact were not +established by the most unquestionable evidence, we should appear to +abuse the credulity of our readers, by the description of the vessels +in which the Saxon pirates ventured to sport in the waves of the German +Ocean, the British Channel, and the Bay of Biscay. The keel of their +large flat-bottomed boats were framed of light timber, but the sides and +upper works consisted only of wicker, with a covering of strong hides. +In the course of their slow and distant navigations, they must always +have been exposed to the danger, and very frequently to the misfortune, +of shipwreck; and the naval annals of the Saxons were undoubtedly filled +with the accounts of the losses which they sustained on the coasts of +Britain and Gaul. But the daring spirit of the pirates braved the perils +both of the sea and of the shore: their skill was confirmed by the +habits of enterprise; the meanest of their mariners was alike capable of +handling an oar, of rearing a sail, or of conducting a vessel, and the +Saxons rejoiced in the appearance of a tempest, which concealed their +design, and dispersed the fleets of the enemy. After they had acquired +an accurate knowledge of the maritime provinces of the West, they +extended the scene of their depredations, and the most sequestered +places had no reason to presume on their security. The Saxon boats drew +so little water that they could easily proceed fourscore or a hundred +miles up the great rivers; their weight was so inconsiderable, that they +were transported on wagons from one river to another; and the pirates +who had entered the mouth of the Seine, or of the Rhine, might descend, +with the rapid stream of the Rhone, into the Mediterranean. Under the +reign of Valentinian, the maritime provinces of Gaul were afflicted +by the Saxons: a military count was stationed for the defence of the +sea-coast, or Armorican limit; and that officer, who found his strength, +or his abilities, unequal to the task, implored the assistance of +Severus, master-general of the infantry. The Saxons, surrounded and +outnumbered, were forced to relinquish their spoil, and to yield a +select band of their tall and robust youth to serve in the Imperial +armies. They stipulated only a safe and honorable retreat; and the +condition was readily granted by the Roman general, who meditated an act +of perfidy, imprudent as it was inhuman, while a Saxon remained alive, +and in arms, to revenge the fate of their countrymen. The premature +eagerness of the infantry, who were secretly posted in a deep valley, +betrayed the ambuscade; and they would perhaps have fallen the victims +of their own treachery, if a large body of cuirassiers, alarmed by +the noise of the combat, had not hastily advanced to extricate their +companions, and to overwhelm the undaunted valor of the Saxons. Some of +the prisoners were saved from the edge of the sword, to shed their +blood in the amphitheatre; and the orator Symmachus complains, that +twenty-nine of those desperate savages, by strangling themselves with +their own hands, had disappointed the amusement of the public. Yet the +polite and philosophic citizens of Rome were impressed with the deepest +horror, when they were informed, that the Saxons consecrated to the gods +the tithe of their human spoil; and that they ascertained by lot the +objects of the barbarous sacrifice. + +II. The fabulous colonies of Egyptians and Trojans, of Scandinavians and +Spaniards, which flattered the pride, and amused the credulity, of our +rude ancestors, have insensibly vanished in the light of science and +philosophy. The present age is satisfied with the simple and rational +opinion, that the islands of Great Britain and Ireland were gradually +peopled from the adjacent continent of Gaul. From the coast of Kent, to +the extremity of Caithness and Ulster, the memory of a Celtic origin +was distinctly preserved, in the perpetual resemblance of language, of +religion, and of manners; and the peculiar characters of the British +tribes might be naturally ascribed to the influence of accidental and +local circumstances. The Roman Province was reduced to the state of +civilized and peaceful servitude; the rights of savage freedom were +contracted to the narrow limits of Caledonia. The inhabitants of that +northern region were divided, as early as the reign of Constantine, +between the two great tribes of the Scots and of the Picts, who have +since experienced a very different fortune. The power, and almost the +memory, of the Picts have been extinguished by their successful rivals; +and the Scots, after maintaining for ages the dignity of an independent +kingdom, have multiplied, by an equal and voluntary union, the honors of +the English name. The hand of nature had contributed to mark the ancient +distinctions of the Scots and Picts. The former were the men of the +hills, and the latter those of the plain. The eastern coast of Caledonia +may be considered as a level and fertile country, which, even in a rude +state of tillage, was capable of producing a considerable quantity +of corn; and the epithet of cruitnich, or wheat-eaters, expressed the +contempt or envy of the carnivorous highlander. The cultivation of the +earth might introduce a more accurate separation of property, and the +habits of a sedentary life; but the love of arms and rapine was still +the ruling passion of the Picts; and their warriors, who stripped +themselves for a day of battle, were distinguished, in the eyes of the +Romans, by the strange fashion of painting their naked bodies with gaudy +colors and fantastic figures. The western part of Caledonia irregularly +rises into wild and barren hills, which scarcely repay the toil of the +husbandman, and are most profitably used for the pasture of cattle. The +highlanders were condemned to the occupations of shepherds and hunters; +and, as they seldom were fixed to any permanent habitation, they +acquired the expressive name of Scots, which, in the Celtic tongue, is +said to be equivalent to that of wanderers, or vagrants. The inhabitants +of a barren land were urged to seek a fresh supply of food in the +waters. The deep lakes and bays which intersect their country, are +plentifully supplied with fish; and they gradually ventured to cast +their nets in the waves of the ocean. The vicinity of the Hebrides, so +profusely scattered along the western coast of Scotland, tempted their +curiosity, and improved their skill; and they acquired, by slow degrees, +the art, or rather the habit, of managing their boats in a tempestuous +sea, and of steering their nocturnal course by the light of the +well-known stars. The two bold headlands of Caledonia almost touch +the shores of a spacious island, which obtained, from its luxuriant +vegetation, the epithet of Green; and has preserved, with a slight +alteration, the name of Erin, or Ierne, or Ireland. It is probable, +that in some remote period of antiquity, the fertile plains of Ulster +received a colony of hungry Scots; and that the strangers of the +North, who had dared to encounter the arms of the legions, spread their +conquests over the savage and unwarlike natives of a solitary island. It +is certain, that, in the declining age of the Roman empire, Caledonia, +Ireland, and the Isle of Man, were inhabited by the Scots, and that the +kindred tribes, who were often associated in military enterprise, were +deeply affected by the various accidents of their mutual fortunes. They +long cherished the lively tradition of their common name and origin; +and the missionaries of the Isle of Saints, who diffused the light of +Christianity over North Britain, established the vain opinion, that +their Irish countrymen were the natural, as well as spiritual, fathers +of the Scottish race. The loose and obscure tradition has been preserved +by the venerable Bede, who scattered some rays of light over the +darkness of the eighth century. On this slight foundation, a huge +superstructure of fable was gradually reared, by the bards and the +monks; two orders of men, who equally abused the privilege of fiction. +The Scottish nation, with mistaken pride, adopted their Irish genealogy; +and the annals of a long line of imaginary kings have been adorned by +the fancy of Boethius, and the classic elegance of Buchanan. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part V. + +Six years after the death of Constantine, the destructive inroads of the +Scots and Picts required the presence of his youngest son, who reigned +in the Western empire. Constans visited his British dominions: but we +may form some estimate of the importance of his achievements, by the +language of panegyric, which celebrates only his triumph over the +elements or, in other words, the good fortune of a safe and easy passage +from the port of Boulogne to the harbor of Sandwich. The calamities +which the afflicted provincials continued to experience, from foreign +war and domestic tyranny, were aggravated by the feeble and corrupt +administration of the eunuchs of Constantius; and the transient relief +which they might obtain from the virtues of Julian, was soon lost by +the absence and death of their benefactor. The sums of gold and silver, +which had been painfully collected, or liberally transmitted, for +the payment of the troops, were intercepted by the avarice of the +commanders; discharges, or, at least, exemptions, from the military +service, were publicly sold; the distress of the soldiers, who were +injuriously deprived of their legal and scanty subsistence, provoked +them to frequent desertion; the nerves of discipline were relaxed, and +the highways were infested with robbers. The oppression of the good, and +the impunity of the wicked, equally contributed to diffuse through the +island a spirit of discontent and revolt; and every ambitious subject, +every desperate exile, might entertain a reasonable hope of subverting +the weak and distracted government of Britain. The hostile tribes of +the North, who detested the pride and power of the King of the World, +suspended their domestic feuds; and the Barbarians of the land and sea, +the Scots, the Picts, and the Saxons, spread themselves with rapid and +irresistible fury, from the wall of Antoninus to the shores of Kent. +Every production of art and nature, every object of convenience and +luxury, which they were incapable of creating by labor or procuring by +trade, was accumulated in the rich and fruitful province of Britain. A +philosopher may deplore the eternal discords of the human race, but he +will confess, that the desire of spoil is a more rational provocation +than the vanity of conquest. From the age of Constantine to the +Plantagenets, this rapacious spirit continued to instigate the poor and +hardy Caledonians; but the same people, whose generous humanity seems to +inspire the songs of Ossian, was disgraced by a savage ignorance of the +virtues of peace, and of the laws of war. Their southern neighbors have +felt, and perhaps exaggerated, the cruel depredations of the Scots and +Picts; and a valiant tribe of Caledonia, the Attacotti, the enemies, and +afterwards the soldiers, of Valentinian, are accused, by an eye-witness, +of delighting in the taste of human flesh. When they hunted the woods +for prey, it is said, that they attacked the shepherd rather than his +flock; and that they curiously selected the most delicate and brawny +parts, both of males and females, which they prepared for their horrid +repasts. If, in the neighborhood of the commercial and literary town of +Glasgow, a race of cannibals has really existed, we may contemplate, in +the period of the Scottish history, the opposite extremes of savage +and civilized life. Such reflections tend to enlarge the circle of our +ideas; and to encourage the pleasing hope, that New Zealand may produce, +in some future age, the Hume of the Southern Hemisphere. + +Every messenger who escaped across the British Channel, conveyed the +most melancholy and alarming tidings to the ears of Valentinian; and +the emperor was soon informed that the two military commanders of the +province had been surprised and cut off by the Barbarians. Severus, +count of the domestics, was hastily despatched, and as suddenly +recalled, by the court of Treves. The representations of Jovinus served +only to indicate the greatness of the evil; and, after a long and +serious consultation, the defence, or rather the recovery, of Britain +was intrusted to the abilities of the brave Theodosius. The exploits of +that general, the father of a line of emperors, have been celebrated, +with peculiar complacency, by the writers of the age: but his real merit +deserved their applause; and his nomination was received, by the army +and province, as a sure presage of approaching victory. He seized the +favorable moment of navigation, and securely landed the numerous and +veteran bands of the Heruli and Batavians, the Jovians and the Victors. +In his march from Sandwich to London, Theodosius defeated several +parties of the Barbarians, released a multitude of captives, and, after +distributing to his soldiers a small portion of the spoil, established +the fame of disinterested justice, by the restitution of the remainder +to the rightful proprietors. The citizens of London, who had almost +despaired of their safety, threw open their gates; and as soon as +Theodosius had obtained from the court of Treves the important aid of a +military lieutenant, and a civil governor, he executed, with wisdom and +vigor, the laborious task of the deliverance of Britain. The vagrant +soldiers were recalled to their standard; an edict of amnesty dispelled +the public apprehensions; and his cheerful example alleviated the +rigor of martial discipline. The scattered and desultory warfare of the +Barbarians, who infested the land and sea, deprived him of the glory +of a signal victory; but the prudent spirit, and consummate art, of the +Roman general, were displayed in the operations of two campaigns, which +successively rescued every part of the province from the hands of a +cruel and rapacious enemy. The splendor of the cities, and the security +of the fortifications, were diligently restored, by the paternal care of +Theodosius; who with a strong hand confined the trembling Caledonians +to the northern angle of the island; and perpetuated, by the name and +settlement of the new province of Valentia, the glories of the reign +of Valentinian. The voice of poetry and panegyric may add, perhaps with +some degree of truth, that the unknown regions of Thule were stained +with the blood of the Picts; that the oars of Theodosius dashed the +waves of the Hyperborean ocean; and that the distant Orkneys were the +scene of his naval victory over the Saxon pirates. He left the province +with a fair, as well as splendid, reputation; and was immediately +promoted to the rank of master-general of the cavalry, by a prince who +could applaud, without envy, the merit of his servants. In the important +station of the Upper Danube, the conqueror of Britain checked and +defeated the armies of the Alemanni, before he was chosen to suppress +the revolt of Africa. + +III. The prince who refuses to be the judge, instructs the people to +consider him as the accomplice, of his ministers. The military command +of Africa had been long exercised by Count Romanus, and his abilities +were not inadequate to his station; but, as sordid interest was the sole +motive of his conduct, he acted, on most occasions, as if he had been +the enemy of the province, and the friend of the Barbarians of the +desert. The three flourishing cities of Oea, Leptis, and Sabrata, which, +under the name of Tripoli, had long constituted a federal union, were +obliged, for the first time, to shut their gates against a hostile +invasion; several of their most honorable citizens were surprised and +massacred; the villages, and even the suburbs, were pillaged; and the +vines and fruit trees of that rich territory were extirpated by the +malicious savages of Getulia. The unhappy provincials implored the +protection of Romanus; but they soon found that their military governor +was not less cruel and rapacious than the Barbarians. As they were +incapable of furnishing the four thousand camels, and the exorbitant +present, which he required, before he would march to the assistance of +Tripoli; his demand was equivalent to a refusal, and he might justly be +accused as the author of the public calamity. In the annual assembly +of the three cities, they nominated two deputies, to lay at the feet of +Valentinian the customary offering of a gold victory; and to accompany +this tribute of duty, rather than of gratitude, with their humble +complaint, that they were ruined by the enemy, and betrayed by their +governor. If the severity of Valentinian had been rightly directed, it +would have fallen on the guilty head of Romanus. But the count, long +exercised in the arts of corruption, had despatched a swift and trusty +messenger to secure the venal friendship of Remigius, master of the +offices. The wisdom of the Imperial council was deceived by artifice; +and their honest indignation was cooled by delay. At length, when the +repetition of complaint had been justified by the repetition of public +misfortunes, the notary Palladius was sent from the court of Treves, +to examine the state of Africa, and the conduct of Romanus. The rigid +impartiality of Palladius was easily disarmed: he was tempted to reserve +for himself a part of the public treasure, which he brought with him for +the payment of the troops; and from the moment that he was conscious +of his own guilt, he could no longer refuse to attest the innocence and +merit of the count. The charge of the Tripolitans was declared to be +false and frivolous; and Palladius himself was sent back from Treves to +Africa, with a special commission to discover and prosecute the authors +of this impious conspiracy against the representatives of the sovereign. +His inquiries were managed with so much dexterity and success, that he +compelled the citizens of Leptis, who had sustained a recent siege of +eight days, to contradict the truth of their own decrees, and to censure +the behavior of their own deputies. A bloody sentence was pronounced, +without hesitation, by the rash and headstrong cruelty of Valentinian. +The president of Tripoli, who had presumed to pity the distress of the +province, was publicly executed at Utica; four distinguished citizens +were put to death, as the accomplices of the imaginary fraud; and the +tongues of two others were cut out, by the express order of the emperor. +Romanus, elated by impunity, and irritated by resistance, was still +continued in the military command; till the Africans were provoked, by +his avarice, to join the rebellious standard of Firmus, the Moor. + +His father Nabal was one of the richest and most powerful of the Moorish +princes, who acknowledged the supremacy of Rome. But as he left, either +by his wives or concubines, a very numerous posterity, the wealthy +inheritance was eagerly disputed; and Zamma, one of his sons, was slain +in a domestic quarrel by his brother Firmus. The implacable zeal, with +which Romanus prosecuted the legal revenge of this murder, could be +ascribed only to a motive of avarice, or personal hatred; but, on this +occasion, his claims were just; his influence was weighty; and Firmus +clearly understood, that he must either present his neck to the +executioner, or appeal from the sentence of the Imperial consistory, to +his sword, and to the people. He was received as the deliverer of his +country; and, as soon as it appeared that Romanus was formidable only +to a submissive province, the tyrant of Africa became the object of +universal contempt. The ruin of Cæsarea, which was plundered and burnt +by the licentious Barbarians, convinced the refractory cities of the +danger of resistance; the power of Firmus was established, at least in +the provinces of Mauritania and Numidia; and it seemed to be his only +doubt whether he should assume the diadem of a Moorish king, or the +purple of a Roman emperor. But the imprudent and unhappy Africans soon +discovered, that, in this rash insurrection, they had not sufficiently +consulted their own strength, or the abilities of their leader. Before +he could procure any certain intelligence, that the emperor of the West +had fixed the choice of a general, or that a fleet of transports was +collected at the mouth of the Rhone, he was suddenly informed that +the great Theodosius, with a small band of veterans, had landed near +Igilgilis, or Gigeri, on the African coast; and the timid usurper +sunk under the ascendant of virtue and military genius. Though Firmus +possessed arms and treasures, his despair of victory immediately reduced +him to the use of those arts, which, in the same country, and in a +similar situation, had formerly been practised by the crafty Jugurtha. +He attempted to deceive, by an apparent submission, the vigilance of the +Roman general; to seduce the fidelity of his troops; and to protract the +duration of the war, by successively engaging the independent tribes +of Africa to espouse his quarrel, or to protect his flight. Theodosius +imitated the example, and obtained the success, of his predecessor +Metellus. When Firmus, in the character of a suppliant, accused his +own rashness, and humbly solicited the clemency of the emperor, the +lieutenant of Valentinian received and dismissed him with a friendly +embrace: but he diligently required the useful and substantial pledges +of a sincere repentance; nor could he be persuaded, by the assurances +of peace, to suspend, for an instant, the operations of an active war. +A dark conspiracy was detected by the penetration of Theodosius; and he +satisfied, without much reluctance, the public indignation, which he +had secretly excited. Several of the guilty accomplices of Firmus were +abandoned, according to ancient custom, to the tumult of a military +execution; many more, by the amputation of both their hands, continued +to exhibit an instructive spectacle of horror; the hatred of the rebels +was accompanied with fear; and the fear of the Roman soldiers was +mingled with respectful admiration. Amidst the boundless plains of +Getulia, and the innumerable valleys of Mount Atlas, it was impossible +to prevent the escape of Firmus; and if the usurper could have tired +the patience of his antagonist, he would have secured his person in +the depth of some remote solitude, and expected the hopes of a future +revolution. He was subdued by the perseverance of Theodosius; who had +formed an inflexible determination, that the war should end only by the +death of the tyrant; and that every nation of Africa, which presumed +to support his cause, should be involved in his ruin. At the head of a +small body of troops, which seldom exceeded three thousand five hundred +men, the Roman general advanced, with a steady prudence, devoid of +rashness or of fear, into the heart of a country, where he was sometimes +attacked by armies of twenty thousand Moors. The boldness of his +charge dismayed the irregular Barbarians; they were disconcerted by his +seasonable and orderly retreats; they were continually baffled by the +unknown resources of the military art; and they felt and confessed the +just superiority which was assumed by the leader of a civilized nation. +When Theodosius entered the extensive dominions of Igmazen, king of the +Isaflenses, the haughty savage required, in words of defiance, his +name, and the object of his expedition. "I am," replied the stern and +disdainful count, "I am the general of Valentinian, the lord of the +world; who has sent me hither to pursue and punish a desperate robber. +Deliver him instantly into my hands; and be assured, that if thou dost +not obey the commands of my invincible sovereign, thou, and the people +over whom thou reignest, shall be utterly extirpated." * As soon as +Igmazen was satisfied, that his enemy had strength and resolution to +execute the fatal menace, he consented to purchase a necessary peace +by the sacrifice of a guilty fugitive. The guards that were placed to +secure the person of Firmus deprived him of the hopes of escape; and +the Moorish tyrant, after wine had extinguished the sense of danger, +disappointed the insulting triumph of the Romans, by strangling himself +in the night. His dead body, the only present which Igmazen could offer +to the conqueror, was carelessly thrown upon a camel; and Theodosius, +leading back his victorious troops to Sitifi, was saluted by the warmest +acclamations of joy and loyalty. + +Africa had been lost by the vices of Romanus; it was restored by the +virtues of Theodosius; and our curiosity may be usefully directed to the +inquiry of the respective treatment which the two generals received from +the Imperial court. The authority of Count Romanus had been suspended +by the master-general of the cavalry; and he was committed to safe and +honorable custody till the end of the war. His crimes were proved by the +most authentic evidence; and the public expected, with some impatience, +the decree of severe justice. But the partial and powerful favor of +Mellobaudes encouraged him to challenge his legal judges, to obtain +repeated delays for the purpose of procuring a crowd of friendly +witnesses, and, finally, to cover his guilty conduct, by the additional +guilt of fraud and forgery. About the same time, the restorer of +Britain and Africa, on a vague suspicion that his name and services +were superior to the rank of a subject, was ignominiously beheaded at +Carthage. Valentinian no longer reigned; and the death of Theodosius, +as well as the impunity of Romanus, may justly be imputed to the arts of +the ministers, who abused the confidence, and deceived the inexperienced +youth, of his sons. + +If the geographical accuracy of Ammianus had been fortunately bestowed +on the British exploits of Theodosius, we should have traced, with eager +curiosity, the distinct and domestic footsteps of his march. But the +tedious enumeration of the unknown and uninteresting tribes of Africa +may be reduced to the general remark, that they were all of the swarthy +race of the Moors; that they inhabited the back settlements of the +Mauritanian and Numidian province, the country, as they have since been +termed by the Arabs, of dates and of locusts; and that, as the Roman +power declined in Africa, the boundary of civilized manners and +cultivated land was insensibly contracted. Beyond the utmost limits of +the Moors, the vast and inhospitable desert of the South extends above +a thousand miles to the banks of the Niger. The ancients, who had a very +faint and imperfect knowledge of the great peninsula of Africa, were +sometimes tempted to believe, that the torrid zone must ever remain +destitute of inhabitants; and they sometimes amused their fancy by +filling the vacant space with headless men, or rather monsters; with +horned and cloven-footed satyrs; with fabulous centaurs; and with human +pygmies, who waged a bold and doubtful warfare against the cranes. +Carthage would have trembled at the strange intelligence that the +countries on either side of the equator were filled with innumerable +nations, who differed only in their color from the ordinary appearance +of the human species: and the subjects of the Roman empire might have +anxiously expected, that the swarms of Barbarians, which issued from +the North, would soon be encountered from the South by new swarms of +Barbarians, equally fierce and equally formidable. These gloomy terrors +would indeed have been dispelled by a more intimate acquaintance with +the character of their African enemies. The inaction of the negroes +does not seem to be the effect either of their virtue or of their +pusillanimity. They indulge, like the rest of mankind, their passions +and appetites; and the adjacent tribes are engaged in frequent acts of +hostility. But their rude ignorance has never invented any effectual +weapons of defence, or of destruction; they appear incapable of +forming any extensive plans of government, or conquest; and the obvious +inferiority of their mental faculties has been discovered and abused by +the nations of the temperate zone. Sixty thousand blacks are annually +embarked from the coast of Guinea, never to return to their native +country; but they are embarked in chains; and this constant emigration, +which, in the space of two centuries, might have furnished armies to +overrun the globe, accuses the guilt of Europe, and the weakness of +Africa. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part VI. + +IV. The ignominious treaty, which saved the army of Jovian, had been +faithfully executed on the side of the Romans; and as they had solemnly +renounced the sovereignty and alliance of Armenia and Iberia, those +tributary kingdoms were exposed, without protection, to the arms of the +Persian monarch. Sapor entered the Armenian territories at the head of +a formidable host of cuirassiers, of archers, and of mercenary foot; but +it was the invariable practice of Sapor to mix war and negotiation, and +to consider falsehood and perjury as the most powerful instruments of +regal policy. He affected to praise the prudent and moderate conduct of +the king of Armenia; and the unsuspicious Tiranus was persuaded, by the +repeated assurances of insidious friendship, to deliver his person into +the hands of a faithless and cruel enemy. In the midst of a splendid +entertainment, he was bound in chains of silver, as an honor due to the +blood of the Arsacides; and, after a short confinement in the Tower of +Oblivion at Ecbatana, he was released from the miseries of life, either +by his own dagger, or by that of an assassin. * The kingdom of Armenia +was reduced to the state of a Persian province; the administration was +shared between a distinguished satrap and a favorite eunuch; and Sapor +marched, without delay, to subdue the martial spirit of the Iberians. +Sauromaces, who reigned in that country by the permission of the +emperors, was expelled by a superior force; and, as an insult on the +majesty of Rome, the king of kings placed a diadem on the head of his +abject vassal Aspacuras. The city of Artogerassa was the only place of +Armenia which presumed to resist the efforts of his arms. The treasure +deposited in that strong fortress tempted the avarice of Sapor; but the +danger of Olympias, the wife or widow of the Armenian king, excited the +public compassion, and animated the desperate valor of her subjects and +soldiers. § The Persians were surprised and repulsed under the walls of +Artogerassa, by a bold and well-concerted sally of the besieged. But +the forces of Sapor were continually renewed and increased; the hopeless +courage of the garrison was exhausted; the strength of the walls yielded +to the assault; and the proud conqueror, after wasting the rebellious +city with fire and sword, led away captive an unfortunate queen; who, +in a more auspicious hour, had been the destined bride of the son of +Constantine. Yet if Sapor already triumphed in the easy conquest of two +dependent kingdoms, he soon felt, that a country is unsubdued as long +as the minds of the people are actuated by a hostile and contumacious +spirit. The satraps, whom he was obliged to trust, embraced the first +opportunity of regaining the affection of their countrymen, and of +signalizing their immortal hatred to the Persian name. Since the +conversion of the Armenians and Iberians, these nations considered the +Christians as the favorites, and the Magians as the adversaries, of the +Supreme Being: the influence of the clergy, over a superstitious +people was uniformly exerted in the cause of Rome; and as long as +the successors of Constantine disputed with those of Artaxerxes the +sovereignty of the intermediate provinces, the religious connection +always threw a decisive advantage into the scale of the empire. A +numerous and active party acknowledged Para, the son of Tiranus, as +the lawful sovereign of Armenia, and his title to the throne was deeply +rooted in the hereditary succession of five hundred years. By the +unanimous consent of the Iberians, the country was equally divided +between the rival princes; and Aspacuras, who owed his diadem to +the choice of Sapor, was obliged to declare, that his regard for his +children, who were detained as hostages by the tyrant, was the only +consideration which prevented him from openly renouncing the alliance of +Persia. The emperor Valens, who respected the obligations of the treaty, +and who was apprehensive of involving the East in a dangerous war, +ventured, with slow and cautious measures, to support the Roman party +in the kingdoms of Iberia and Armenia. $ Twelve legions established the +authority of Sauromaces on the banks of the Cyrus. The Euphrates was +protected by the valor of Arintheus. A powerful army, under the command +of Count Trajan, and of Vadomair, king of the Alemanni, fixed their +camp on the confines of Armenia. But they were strictly enjoined not to +commit the first hostilities, which might be understood as a breach of +the treaty: and such was the implicit obedience of the Roman general, +that they retreated, with exemplary patience, under a shower of Persian +arrows till they had clearly acquired a just title to an honorable and +legitimate victory. Yet these appearances of war insensibly subsided in +a vain and tedious negotiation. The contending parties supported their +claims by mutual reproaches of perfidy and ambition; and it should seem, +that the original treaty was expressed in very obscure terms, since they +were reduced to the necessity of making their inconclusive appeal to the +partial testimony of the generals of the two nations, who had assisted +at the negotiations. The invasion of the Goths and Huns which soon +afterwards shook the foundations of the Roman empire, exposed the +provinces of Asia to the arms of Sapor. But the declining age, and +perhaps the infirmities, of the monarch suggested new maxims of +tranquillity and moderation. His death, which happened in the full +maturity of a reign of seventy years, changed in a moment the court and +councils of Persia; and their attention was most probably engaged by +domestic troubles, and the distant efforts of a Carmanian war. The +remembrance of ancient injuries was lost in the enjoyment of peace. The +kingdoms of Armenia and Iberia were permitted, by the mutual, though +tacit consent of both empires, to resume their doubtful neutrality. In +the first years of the reign of Theodosius, a Persian embassy arrived +at Constantinople, to excuse the unjustifiable measures of the former +reign; and to offer, as the tribute of friendship, or even of respect, a +splendid present of gems, of silk, and of Indian elephants. + +In the general picture of the affairs of the East under the reign +of Valens, the adventures of Para form one of the most striking and +singular objects. The noble youth, by the persuasion of his mother +Olympias, had escaped through the Persian host that besieged +Artogerassa, and implored the protection of the emperor of the East. By +his timid councils, Para was alternately supported, and recalled, and +restored, and betrayed. The hopes of the Armenians were sometimes raised +by the presence of their natural sovereign, * and the ministers of +Valens were satisfied, that they preserved the integrity of the public +faith, if their vassal was not suffered to assume the diadem and +title of King. But they soon repented of their own rashness. They were +confounded by the reproaches and threats of the Persian monarch. +They found reason to distrust the cruel and inconstant temper of Para +himself; who sacrificed, to the slightest suspicions, the lives of his +most faithful servants, and held a secret and disgraceful correspondence +with the assassin of his father and the enemy of his country. Under the +specious pretence of consulting with the emperor on the subject of their +common interest, Para was persuaded to descend from the mountains of +Armenia, where his party was in arms, and to trust his independence and +safety to the discretion of a perfidious court. The king of Armenia, +for such he appeared in his own eyes and in those of his nation, was +received with due honors by the governors of the provinces through which +he passed; but when he arrived at Tarsus in Cilicia, his progress +was stopped under various pretences; his motions were watched with +respectful vigilance, and he gradually discovered, that he was a +prisoner in the hands of the Romans. Para suppressed his indignation, +dissembled his fears, and after secretly preparing his escape, mounted +on horseback with three hundred of his faithful followers. The officer +stationed at the door of his apartment immediately communicated his +flight to the consular of Cilicia, who overtook him in the suburbs, and +endeavored without success, to dissuade him from prosecuting his rash +and dangerous design. A legion was ordered to pursue the royal fugitive; +but the pursuit of infantry could not be very alarming to a body of +light cavalry; and upon the first cloud of arrows that was discharged +into the air, they retreated with precipitation to the gates of Tarsus. +After an incessant march of two days and two nights, Para and his +Armenians reached the banks of the Euphrates; but the passage of the +river which they were obliged to swim, * was attended with some delay +and some loss. The country was alarmed; and the two roads, which were +only separated by an interval of three miles had been occupied by +a thousand archers on horseback, under the command of a count and a +tribune. Para must have yielded to superior force, if the accidental +arrival of a friendly traveller had not revealed the danger and the +means of escape. A dark and almost impervious path securely conveyed +the Armenian troop through the thicket; and Para had left behind him the +count and the tribune, while they patiently expected his approach along +the public highways. They returned to the Imperial court to excuse their +want of diligence or success; and seriously alleged, that the king of +Armenia, who was a skilful magician, had transformed himself and his +followers, and passed before their eyes under a borrowed shape. After +his return to his native kingdom, Para still continued to profess +himself the friend and ally of the Romans: but the Romans had injured +him too deeply ever to forgive, and the secret sentence of his death was +signed in the council of Valens. The execution of the bloody deed was +committed to the subtle prudence of Count Trajan; and he had the merit +of insinuating himself into the confidence of the credulous prince, +that he might find an opportunity of stabbing him to the heart Para was +invited to a Roman banquet, which had been prepared with all the pomp +and sensuality of the East; the hall resounded with cheerful music, and +the company was already heated with wine; when the count retired for an +instant, drew his sword, and gave the signal of the murder. A robust and +desperate Barbarian instantly rushed on the king of Armenia; and though +he bravely defended his life with the first weapon that chance offered +to his hand, the table of the Imperial general was stained with the +royal blood of a guest, and an ally. Such were the weak and wicked +maxims of the Roman administration, that, to attain a doubtful object +of political interest the laws of nations, and the sacred rights of +hospitality were inhumanly violated in the face of the world. + +V. During a peaceful interval of thirty years, the Romans secured their +frontiers, and the Goths extended their dominions. The victories of the +great Hermanric, king of the Ostrogoths, and the most noble of the race +of the Amali, have been compared, by the enthusiasm of his countrymen, +to the exploits of Alexander; with this singular, and almost incredible, +difference, that the martial spirit of the Gothic hero, instead of being +supported by the vigor of youth, was displayed with glory and success in +the extreme period of human life, between the age of fourscore and +one hundred and ten years. The independent tribes were persuaded, or +compelled, to acknowledge the king of the Ostrogoths as the sovereign of +the Gothic nation: the chiefs of the Visigoths, or Thervingi, renounced +the royal title, and assumed the more humble appellation of Judges; and, +among those judges, Athanaric, Fritigern, and Alavivus, were the most +illustrious, by their personal merit, as well as by their vicinity +to the Roman provinces. These domestic conquests, which increased the +military power of Hermanric, enlarged his ambitious designs. He invaded +the adjacent countries of the North; and twelve considerable nations, +whose names and limits cannot be accurately defined, successively +yielded to the superiority of the Gothic arms The Heruli, who inhabited +the marshy lands near the lake Mæotis, were renowned for their strength +and agility; and the assistance of their light infantry was eagerly +solicited, and highly esteemed, in all the wars of the Barbarians. +But the active spirit of the Heruli was subdued by the slow and steady +perseverance of the Goths; and, after a bloody action, in which the king +was slain, the remains of that warlike tribe became a useful accession +to the camp of Hermanric. He then marched against the Venedi; unskilled +in the use of arms, and formidable only by their numbers, which filled +the wide extent of the plains of modern Poland. The victorious Goths, +who were not inferior in numbers, prevailed in the contest, by the +decisive advantages of exercise and discipline. After the submission of +the Venedi, the conqueror advanced, without resistance, as far as the +confines of the Æstii; an ancient people, whose name is still preserved +in the province of Esthonia. Those distant inhabitants of the Baltic +coast were supported by the labors of agriculture, enriched by the trade +of amber, and consecrated by the peculiar worship of the Mother of the +Gods. But the scarcity of iron obliged the Æstian warriors to content +themselves with wooden clubs; and the reduction of that wealthy country +is ascribed to the prudence, rather than to the arms, of Hermanric. His +dominions, which extended from the Danube to the Baltic, included the +native seats, and the recent acquisitions, of the Goths; and he reigned +over the greatest part of Germany and Scythia with the authority of a +conqueror, and sometimes with the cruelty of a tyrant. But he reigned +over a part of the globe incapable of perpetuating and adorning the +glory of its heroes. The name of Hermanric is almost buried in oblivion; +his exploits are imperfectly known; and the Romans themselves appeared +unconscious of the progress of an aspiring power which threatened the +liberty of the North, and the peace of the empire. + +The Goths had contracted an hereditary attachment for the Imperial house +of Constantine, of whose power and liberality they had received so many +signal proofs. They respected the public peace; and if a hostile band +sometimes presumed to pass the Roman limit, their irregular conduct was +candidly ascribed to the ungovernable spirit of the Barbarian youth. +Their contempt for two new and obscure princes, who had been raised to +the throne by a popular election, inspired the Goths with bolder hopes; +and, while they agitated some design of marching their confederate force +under the national standard, they were easily tempted to embrace the +party of Procopius; and to foment, by their dangerous aid, the civil +discord of the Romans. The public treaty might stipulate no more than +ten thousand auxiliaries; but the design was so zealously adopted by the +chiefs of the Visigoths, that the army which passed the Danube amounted +to the number of thirty thousand men. They marched with the proud +confidence, that their invincible valor would decide the fate of the +Roman empire; and the provinces of Thrace groaned under the weight +of the Barbarians, who displayed the insolence of masters and the +licentiousness of enemies. But the intemperance which gratified their +appetites, retarded their progress; and before the Goths could receive +any certain intelligence of the defeat and death of Procopius, they +perceived, by the hostile state of the country, that the civil and +military powers were resumed by his successful rival. A chain of posts +and fortifications, skilfully disposed by Valens, or the generals of +Valens, resisted their march, prevented their retreat, and intercepted +their subsistence. The fierceness of the Barbarians was tamed and +suspended by hunger; they indignantly threw down their arms at the +feet of the conqueror, who offered them food and chains: the numerous +captives were distributed in all the cities of the East; and the +provincials, who were soon familiarized with their savage appearance, +ventured, by degrees, to measure their own strength with these +formidable adversaries, whose name had so long been the object of their +terror. The king of Scythia (and Hermanric alone could deserve so lofty +a title) was grieved and exasperated by this national calamity. His +ambassadors loudly complained, at the court of Valens, of the infraction +of the ancient and solemn alliance, which had so long subsisted between +the Romans and the Goths. They alleged, that they had fulfilled the duty +of allies, by assisting the kinsman and successor of the emperor Julian; +they required the immediate restitution of the noble captives; and they +urged a very singular claim, that the Gothic generals marching in +arms, and in hostile array, were entitled to the sacred character and +privileges of ambassadors. The decent, but peremptory, refusal of +these extravagant demands, was signified to the Barbarians by Victor, +master-general of the cavalry; who expressed, with force and dignity, +the just complaints of the emperor of the East. The negotiation was +interrupted; and the manly exhortations of Valentinian encouraged his +timid brother to vindicate the insulted majesty of the empire. + +The splendor and magnitude of this Gothic war are celebrated by a +contemporary historian: but the events scarcely deserve the attention +of posterity, except as the preliminary steps of the approaching decline +and fall of the empire. Instead of leading the nations of Germany +and Scythia to the banks of the Danube, or even to the gates of +Constantinople, the aged monarch of the Goths resigned to the brave +Athanaric the danger and glory of a defensive war, against an enemy, +who wielded with a feeble hand the powers of a mighty state. A bridge of +boats was established upon the Danube; the presence of Valens animated +his troops; and his ignorance of the art of war was compensated by +personal bravery, and a wise deference to the advice of Victor and +Arintheus, his masters-general of the cavalry and infantry. The +operations of the campaign were conducted by their skill and experience; +but they found it impossible to drive the Visigoths from their strong +posts in the mountains; and the devastation of the plains obliged the +Romans themselves to repass the Danube on the approach of winter. The +incessant rains, which swelled the waters of the river, produced a tacit +suspension of arms, and confined the emperor Valens, during the whole +course of the ensuing summer, to his camp of Marcianopolis. The third +year of the war was more favorable to the Romans, and more pernicious +to the Goths. The interruption of trade deprived the Barbarians of the +objects of luxury, which they already confounded with the necessaries of +life; and the desolation of a very extensive tract of country threatened +them with the horrors of famine. Athanaric was provoked, or compelled, +to risk a battle, which he lost, in the plains; and the pursuit was +rendered more bloody by the cruel precaution of the victorious generals, +who had promised a large reward for the head of every Goth that was +brought into the Imperial camp. The submission of the Barbarians +appeased the resentment of Valens and his council: the emperor listened +with satisfaction to the flattering and eloquent remonstrance of the +senate of Constantinople, which assumed, for the first time, a share in +the public deliberations; and the same generals, Victor and Arintheus, +who had successfully directed the conduct of the war, were empowered to +regulate the conditions of peace. The freedom of trade, which the Goths +had hitherto enjoyed, was restricted to two cities on the Danube; the +rashness of their leaders was severely punished by the suppression of +their pensions and subsidies; and the exception, which was stipulated +in favor of Athanaric alone, was more advantageous than honorable to +the Judge of the Visigoths. Athanaric, who, on this occasion, appears to +have consulted his private interest, without expecting the orders of +his sovereign, supported his own dignity, and that of his tribe, in the +personal interview which was proposed by the ministers of Valens. He +persisted in his declaration, that it was impossible for him, without +incurring the guilt of perjury, ever to set his foot on the territory +of the empire; and it is more than probable, that his regard for the +sanctity of an oath was confirmed by the recent and fatal examples of +Roman treachery. The Danube, which separated the dominions of the two +independent nations, was chosen for the scene of the conference. The +emperor of the East, and the Judge of the Visigoths, accompanied by an +equal number of armed followers, advanced in their respective barges to +the middle of the stream. After the ratification of the treaty, and the +delivery of hostages, Valens returned in triumph to Constantinople; and +the Goths remained in a state of tranquillity about six years; till they +were violently impelled against the Roman empire by an innumerable +host of Scythians, who appeared to issue from the frozen regions of the +North. + +The emperor of the West, who had resigned to his brother the command +of the Lower Danube, reserved for his immediate care the defence of the +Rhætian and Illyrian provinces, which spread so many hundred miles along +the greatest of the European rivers. The active policy of Valentinian +was continually employed in adding new fortifications to the security of +the frontier: but the abuse of this policy provoked the just resentment +of the Barbarians. The Quadi complained, that the ground for an intended +fortress had been marked out on their territories; and their complaints +were urged with so much reason and moderation, that Equitius, +master-general of Illyricum, consented to suspend the prosecution of +the work, till he should be more clearly informed of the will of his +sovereign. This fair occasion of injuring a rival, and of advancing the +fortune of his son, was eagerly embraced by the inhuman Maximin, the +præfect, or rather tyrant, of Gaul. The passions of Valentinian were +impatient of control; and he credulously listened to the assurances of +his favorite, that if the government of Valeria, and the direction of +the work, were intrusted to the zeal of his son Marcellinus, the emperor +should no longer be importuned with the audacious remonstrances of +the Barbarians. The subjects of Rome, and the natives of Germany, +were insulted by the arrogance of a young and worthless minister, who +considered his rapid elevation as the proof and reward of his superior +merit. He affected, however, to receive the modest application of +Gabinius, king of the Quadi, with some attention and regard: but this +artful civility concealed a dark and bloody design, and the credulous +prince was persuaded to accept the pressing invitation of Marcellinus. +I am at a loss how to vary the narrative of similar crimes; or how to +relate, that, in the course of the same year, but in remote parts of the +empire, the inhospitable table of two Imperial generals was stained with +the royal blood of two guests and allies, inhumanly murdered by their +order, and in their presence. The fate of Gabinius, and of Para, was +the same: but the cruel death of their sovereign was resented in a very +different manner by the servile temper of the Armenians, and the free +and daring spirit of the Germans. The Quadi were much declined from that +formidable power, which, in the time of Marcus Antoninus, had spread +terror to the gates of Rome. But they still possessed arms and courage; +their courage was animated by despair, and they obtained the usual +reenforcement of the cavalry of their Sarmatian allies. So improvident +was the assassin Marcellinus, that he chose the moment when the bravest +veterans had been drawn away, to suppress the revolt of Firmus; and the +whole province was exposed, with a very feeble defence, to the rage +of the exasperated Barbarians. They invaded Pannonia in the season of +harvest; unmercifully destroyed every object of plunder which they could +not easily transport; and either disregarded, or demolished, the empty +fortifications. The princess Constantia, the daughter of the emperor +Constantius, and the granddaughter of the great Constantine, very +narrowly escaped. That royal maid, who had innocently supported the +revolt of Procopius, was now the destined wife of the heir of the +Western empire. She traversed the peaceful province with a splendid and +unarmed train. Her person was saved from danger, and the republic from +disgrace, by the active zeal of Messala, governor of the provinces. +As soon as he was informed that the village, where she stopped only to +dine, was almost encompassed by the Barbarians, he hastily placed her +in his own chariot, and drove full speed till he reached the gates +of Sirmium, which were at the distance of six-and-twenty miles. Even +Sirmium might not have been secure, if the Quadi and Sarmatians had +diligently advanced during the general consternation of the magistrates +and people. Their delay allowed Probus, the Prætorian præfect, +sufficient time to recover his own spirits, and to revive the courage +of the citizens. He skilfully directed their strenuous efforts to repair +and strengthen the decayed fortifications; and procured the seasonable +and effectual assistance of a company of archers, to protect the capital +of the Illyrian provinces. Disappointed in their attempts against the +walls of Sirmium, the indignant Barbarians turned their arms against +the master general of the frontier, to whom they unjustly attributed the +murder of their king. Equitius could bring into the field no more than +two legions; but they contained the veteran strength of the Mæsian and +Pannonian bands. The obstinacy with which they disputed the vain honors +of rank and precedency, was the cause of their destruction; and +while they acted with separate forces and divided councils, they were +surprised and slaughtered by the active vigor of the Sarmatian horse. +The success of this invasion provoked the emulation of the bordering +tribes; and the province of Mæsia would infallibly have been lost, if +young Theodosius, the duke, or military commander, of the frontier, had +not signalized, in the defeat of the public enemy, an intrepid genius, +worthy of his illustrious father, and of his future greatness. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part VII. + +The mind of Valentinian, who then resided at Treves, was deeply affected +by the calamities of Illyricum; but the lateness of the season suspended +the execution of his designs till the ensuing spring. He marched in +person, with a considerable part of the forces of Gaul, from the banks +of the Moselle: and to the suppliant ambassadors of the Sarmatians, who +met him on the way, he returned a doubtful answer, that, as soon as he +reached the scene of action, he should examine, and pronounce. When he +arrived at Sirmium, he gave audience to the deputies of the Illyrian +provinces; who loudly congratulated their own felicity under the +auspicious government of Probus, his Prætorian præfect. Valentinian, who +was flattered by these demonstrations of their loyalty and gratitude, +imprudently asked the deputy of Epirus, a Cynic philosopher of intrepid +sincerity, whether he was freely sent by the wishes of the province. +"With tears and groans am I sent," replied Iphicles, "by a reluctant +people." The emperor paused: but the impunity of his ministers +established the pernicious maxim, that they might oppress his subjects, +without injuring his service. A strict inquiry into their conduct would +have relieved the public discontent. The severe condemnation of the +murder of Gabinius, was the only measure which could restore the +confidence of the Germans, and vindicate the honor of the Roman name. +But the haughty monarch was incapable of the magnanimity which dares +to acknowledge a fault. He forgot the provocation, remembered only the +injury, and advanced into the country of the Quadi with an insatiate +thirst of blood and revenge. The extreme devastation, and promiscuous +massacre, of a savage war, were justified, in the eyes of the emperor, +and perhaps in those of the world, by the cruel equity of retaliation: +and such was the discipline of the Romans, and the consternation of the +enemy, that Valentinian repassed the Danube without the loss of a single +man. As he had resolved to complete the destruction of the Quadi by +a second campaign, he fixed his winter quarters at Bregetio, on the +Danube, near the Hungarian city of Presburg. While the operations of war +were suspended by the severity of the weather, the Quadi made an humble +attempt to deprecate the wrath of their conqueror; and, at the earnest +persuasion of Equitius, their ambassadors were introduced into the +Imperial council. They approached the throne with bended bodies and +dejected countenances; and without daring to complain of the murder of +their king, they affirmed, with solemn oaths, that the late invasion +was the crime of some irregular robbers, which the public council of the +nation condemned and abhorred. The answer of the emperor left them but +little to hope from his clemency or compassion. He reviled, in the +most intemperate language, their baseness, their ingratitude, their +insolence. His eyes, his voice, his color, his gestures, expressed the +violence of his ungoverned fury; and while his whole frame was agitated +with convulsive passion, a large blood vessel suddenly burst in his +body; and Valentinian fell speechless into the arms of his attendants. +Their pious care immediately concealed his situation from the crowd; +but, in a few minutes, the emperor of the West expired in an agony +of pain, retaining his senses till the last; and struggling, without +success, to declare his intentions to the generals and ministers, who +surrounded the royal couch. Valentinian was about fifty-four years of +age; and he wanted only one hundred days to accomplish the twelve years +of his reign. + +The polygamy of Valentinian is seriously attested by an ecclesiastical +historian. "The empress Severa (I relate the fable) admitted into +her familiar society the lovely Justina, the daughter of an Italian +governor: her admiration of those naked charms, which she had often seen +in the bath, was expressed with such lavish and imprudent praise, that +the emperor was tempted to introduce a second wife into his bed; and +his public edict extended to all the subjects of the empire the same +domestic privilege which he had assumed for himself." But we may be +assured, from the evidence of reason as well as history, that the +two marriages of Valentinian, with Severa, and with Justina, were +successively contracted; and that he used the ancient permission of +divorce, which was still allowed by the laws, though it was condemned by +the church Severa was the mother of Gratian, who seemed to unite every +claim which could entitle him to the undoubted succession of the Western +empire. He was the eldest son of a monarch whose glorious reign had +confirmed the free and honorable choice of his fellow-soldiers. Before +he had attained the ninth year of his age, the royal youth received from +the hands of his indulgent father the purple robe and diadem, with the +title of Augustus; the election was solemnly ratified by the consent and +applause of the armies of Gaul; and the name of Gratian was added to the +names of Valentinian and Valens, in all the legal transactions of the +Roman government. By his marriage with the granddaughter of Constantine, +the son of Valentinian acquired all the hereditary rights of the +Flavian family; which, in a series of three Imperial generations, were +sanctified by time, religion, and the reverence of the people. At the +death of his father, the royal youth was in the seventeenth year of his +age; and his virtues already justified the favorable opinion of the army +and the people. But Gratian resided, without apprehension, in the palace +of Treves; whilst, at the distance of many hundred miles, Valentinian +suddenly expired in the camp of Bregetio. The passions, which had been +so long suppressed by the presence of a master, immediately revived in +the Imperial council; and the ambitious design of reigning in the name +of an infant, was artfully executed by Mellobaudes and Equitius, +who commanded the attachment of the Illyrian and Italian bands. They +contrived the most honorable pretences to remove the popular leaders, +and the troops of Gaul, who might have asserted the claims of the lawful +successor; they suggested the necessity of extinguishing the hopes +of foreign and domestic enemies, by a bold and decisive measure. The +empress Justina, who had been left in a palace about one hundred miles +from Bregetio, was respectively invited to appear in the camp, with +the son of the deceased emperor. On the sixth day after the death of +Valentinian, the infant prince of the same name, who was only four years +old, was shown, in the arms of his mother, to the legions; and solemnly +invested, by military acclamation, with the titles and ensigns of +supreme power. The impending dangers of a civil war were seasonably +prevented by the wise and moderate conduct of the emperor Gratian. He +cheerfully accepted the choice of the army; declared that he should +always consider the son of Justina as a brother, not as a rival; and +advised the empress, with her son Valentinian to fix their residence at +Milan, in the fair and peaceful province of Italy; while he assumed +the more arduous command of the countries beyond the Alps. Gratian +dissembled his resentment till he could safely punish, or disgrace, +the authors of the conspiracy; and though he uniformly behaved with +tenderness and regard to his infant colleague, he gradually confounded, +in the administration of the Western empire, the office of a guardian +with the authority of a sovereign. The government of the Roman world +was exercised in the united names of Valens and his two nephews; but +the feeble emperor of the East, who succeeded to the rank of his elder +brother, never obtained any weight or influence in the councils of the +West. + + + +Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.--Part I. + + Manners Of The Pastoral Nations.--Progress Of The Huns, From + China To Europe.--Flight Of The Goths.--They Pass The + Danube. --Gothic War.--Defeat And Death Of Valens.--Gratian + Invests Theodosius With The Eastern Empire.--His Character + And Success. --Peace And Settlement Of The Goths. + +In the second year of the reign of Valentinian and Valens, on the +morning of the twenty-first day of July, the greatest part of the Roman +world was shaken by a violent and destructive earthquake. The impression +was communicated to the waters; the shores of the Mediterranean were +left dry, by the sudden retreat of the sea; great quantities of fish +were caught with the hand; large vessels were stranded on the mud; and a +curious spectator amused his eye, or rather his fancy, by contemplating +the various appearance of valleys and mountains, which had never, since +the formation of the globe, been exposed to the sun. But the tide soon +returned, with the weight of an immense and irresistible deluge, which +was severely felt on the coasts of Sicily, of Dalmatia, of Greece, +and of Egypt: large boats were transported, and lodged on the roofs of +houses, or at the distance of two miles from the shore; the people, +with their habitations, were swept away by the waters; and the city of +Alexandria annually commemorated the fatal day, on which fifty thousand +persons had lost their lives in the inundation. This calamity, the +report of which was magnified from one province to another, astonished +and terrified the subjects of Rome; and their affrighted imagination +enlarged the real extent of a momentary evil. They recollected the +preceding earthquakes, which had subverted the cities of Palestine and +Bithynia: they considered these alarming strokes as the prelude only of +still more dreadful calamities, and their fearful vanity was disposed to +confound the symptoms of a declining empire and a sinking world. It +was the fashion of the times to attribute every remarkable event to the +particular will of the Deity; the alterations of nature were connected, +by an invisible chain, with the moral and metaphysical opinions of the +human mind; and the most sagacious divines could distinguish, according +to the color of their respective prejudices, that the establishment +of heresy tended to produce an earthquake; or that a deluge was the +inevitable consequence of the progress of sin and error. Without +presuming to discuss the truth or propriety of these lofty speculations, +the historian may content himself with an observation, which seems to +be justified by experience, that man has much more to fear from the +passions of his fellow-creatures, than from the convulsions of the +elements. The mischievous effects of an earthquake, or deluge, a +hurricane, or the eruption of a volcano, bear a very inconsiderable +portion to the ordinary calamities of war, as they are now moderated by +the prudence or humanity of the princes of Europe, who amuse their own +leisure, and exercise the courage of their subjects, in the practice of +the military art. But the laws and manners of modern nations protect the +safety and freedom of the vanquished soldier; and the peaceful citizen +has seldom reason to complain, that his life, or even his fortune, is +exposed to the rage of war. In the disastrous period of the fall of the +Roman empire, which may justly be dated from the reign of Valens, the +happiness and security of each individual were personally attacked; and +the arts and labors of ages were rudely defaced by the Barbarians +of Scythia and Germany. The invasion of the Huns precipitated on the +provinces of the West the Gothic nation, which advanced, in less than +forty years, from the Danube to the Atlantic, and opened a way, by the +success of their arms, to the inroads of so many hostile tribes, more +savage than themselves. The original principle of motion was concealed +in the remote countries of the North; and the curious observation of the +pastoral life of the Scythians, or Tartars, will illustrate the latent +cause of these destructive emigrations. + +The different characters that mark the civilized nations of the globe, +may be ascribed to the use, and the abuse, of reason; which so variously +shapes, and so artificially composes, the manners and opinions of a +European, or a Chinese. But the operation of instinct is more sure and +simple than that of reason: it is much easier to ascertain the appetites +of a quadruped than the speculations of a philosopher; and the savage +tribes of mankind, as they approach nearer to the condition of animals, +preserve a stronger resemblance to themselves and to each other. The +uniform stability of their manners is the natural consequence of the +imperfection of their faculties. Reduced to a similar situation, their +wants, their desires, their enjoyments, still continue the same: and +the influence of food or climate, which, in a more improved state +of society, is suspended, or subdued, by so many moral causes, most +powerfully contributes to form, and to maintain, the national character +of Barbarians. In every age, the immense plains of Scythia, or Tartary, +have been inhabited by vagrant tribes of hunters and shepherds, whose +indolence refuses to cultivate the earth, and whose restless spirit +disdains the confinement of a sedentary life. In every age, the +Scythians, and Tartars, have been renowned for their invincible courage +and rapid conquests. The thrones of Asia have been repeatedly overturned +by the shepherds of the North; and their arms have spread terror and +devastation over the most fertile and warlike countries of Europe. +On this occasion, as well as on many others, the sober historian is +forcibly awakened from a pleasing vision; and is compelled, with some +reluctance, to confess, that the pastoral manners, which have been +adorned with the fairest attributes of peace and innocence, are much +better adapted to the fierce and cruel habits of a military life. To +illustrate this observation, I shall now proceed to consider a nation of +shepherds and of warriors, in the three important articles of, I. Their +diet; II. Their habitations; and, III. Their exercises. The narratives +of antiquity are justified by the experience of modern times; and +the banks of the Borysthenes, of the Volga, or of the Selinga, will +indifferently present the same uniform spectacle of similar and native +manners. + +I. The corn, or even the rice, which constitutes the ordinary and +wholesome food of a civilized people, can be obtained only by the +patient toil of the husbandman. Some of the happy savages, who dwell +between the tropics, are plentifully nourished by the liberality of +nature; but in the climates of the North, a nation of shepherds is +reduced to their flocks and herds. The skilful practitioners of the +medical art will determine (if they are able to determine) how far the +temper of the human mind may be affected by the use of animal, or of +vegetable, food; and whether the common association of carnivorous +and cruel deserves to be considered in any other light than that of an +innocent, perhaps a salutary, prejudice of humanity. Yet, if it be true, +that the sentiment of compassion is imperceptibly weakened by the +sight and practice of domestic cruelty, we may observe, that the horrid +objects which are disguised by the arts of European refinement, are +exhibited in their naked and most disgusting simplicity in the tent of +a Tartarian shepherd. The ox, or the sheep, are slaughtered by the same +hand from which they were accustomed to receive their daily food; and +the bleeding limbs are served, with very little preparation, on the +table of their unfeeling murderer. In the military profession, and +especially in the conduct of a numerous army, the exclusive use of +animal food appears to be productive of the most solid advantages. Corn +is a bulky and perishable commodity; and the large magazines, which +are indispensably necessary for the subsistence of our troops, must be +slowly transported by the labor of men or horses. But the flocks and +herds, which accompany the march of the Tartars, afford a sure and +increasing supply of flesh and milk: in the far greater part of the +uncultivated waste, the vegetation of the grass is quick and luxuriant; +and there are few places so extremely barren, that the hardy cattle of +the North cannot find some tolerable pasture. The supply is multiplied +and prolonged by the undistinguishing appetite, and patient abstinence, +of the Tartars. They indifferently feed on the flesh of those +animals that have been killed for the table, or have died of disease. +Horseflesh, which in every age and country has been proscribed by +the civilized nations of Europe and Asia, they devour with peculiar +greediness; and this singular taste facilitates the success of their +military operations. The active cavalry of Scythia is always followed, +in their most distant and rapid incursions, by an adequate number of +spare horses, who may be occasionally used, either to redouble the +speed, or to satisfy the hunger, of the Barbarians. Many are the +resources of courage and poverty. When the forage round a camp of +Tartars is almost consumed, they slaughter the greatest part of their +cattle, and preserve the flesh, either smoked, or dried in the sun. On +the sudden emergency of a hasty march, they provide themselves with a +sufficient quantity of little balls of cheese, or rather of hard curd, +which they occasionally dissolve in water; and this unsubstantial diet +will support, for many days, the life, and even the spirits, of the +patient warrior. But this extraordinary abstinence, which the Stoic +would approve, and the hermit might envy, is commonly succeeded by the +most voracious indulgence of appetite. The wines of a happier climate +are the most grateful present, or the most valuable commodity, that can +be offered to the Tartars; and the only example of their industry seems +to consist in the art of extracting from mare's milk a fermented liquor, +which possesses a very strong power of intoxication. Like the animals +of prey, the savages, both of the old and new world, experience the +alternate vicissitudes of famine and plenty; and their stomach is inured +to sustain, without much inconvenience, the opposite extremes of hunger +and of intemperance. + +II. In the ages of rustic and martial simplicity, a people of soldiers +and husbandmen are dispersed over the face of an extensive and +cultivated country; and some time must elapse before the warlike youth +of Greece or Italy could be assembled under the same standard, either to +defend their own confines, or to invade the territories of the adjacent +tribes. The progress of manufactures and commerce insensibly collects +a large multitude within the walls of a city: but these citizens are no +longer soldiers; and the arts which adorn and improve the state of civil +society, corrupt the habits of the military life. The pastoral manners +of the Scythians seem to unite the different advantages of simplicity +and refinement. The individuals of the same tribe are constantly +assembled, but they are assembled in a camp; and the native spirit of +these dauntless shepherds is animated by mutual support and emulation. +The houses of the Tartars are no more than small tents, of an oval form, +which afford a cold and dirty habitation, for the promiscuous youth of +both sexes. The palaces of the rich consist of wooden huts, of such a +size that they may be conveniently fixed on large wagons, and drawn by +a team perhaps of twenty or thirty oxen. The flocks and herds, after +grazing all day in the adjacent pastures, retire, on the approach of +night, within the protection of the camp. The necessity of preventing +the most mischievous confusion, in such a perpetual concourse of men and +animals, must gradually introduce, in the distribution, the order, and +the guard, of the encampment, the rudiments of the military art. As soon +as the forage of a certain district is consumed, the tribe, or rather +army, of shepherds, makes a regular march to some fresh pastures; and +thus acquires, in the ordinary occupations of the pastoral life, +the practical knowledge of one of the most important and difficult +operations of war. The choice of stations is regulated by the difference +of the seasons: in the summer, the Tartars advance towards the North, +and pitch their tents on the banks of a river, or, at least, in the +neighborhood of a running stream. But in the winter, they return to the +South, and shelter their camp, behind some convenient eminence, against +the winds, which are chilled in their passage over the bleak and icy +regions of Siberia. These manners are admirably adapted to diffuse, +among the wandering tribes, the spirit of emigration and conquest. +The connection between the people and their territory is of so frail a +texture, that it may be broken by the slightest accident. The camp, and +not the soil, is the native country of the genuine Tartar. Within the +precincts of that camp, his family, his companions, his property, +are always included; and, in the most distant marches, he is still +surrounded by the objects which are dear, or valuable, or familiar in +his eyes. The thirst of rapine, the fear, or the resentment of injury, +the impatience of servitude, have, in every age, been sufficient causes +to urge the tribes of Scythia boldly to advance into some unknown +countries, where they might hope to find a more plentiful subsistence +or a less formidable enemy. The revolutions of the North have frequently +determined the fate of the South; and in the conflict of hostile +nations, the victor and the vanquished have alternately drove, and been +driven, from the confines of China to those of Germany. These great +emigrations, which have been sometimes executed with almost incredible +diligence, were rendered more easy by the peculiar nature of the +climate. It is well known that the cold of Tartary is much more severe +than in the midst of the temperate zone might reasonably be expected; +this uncommon rigor is attributed to the height of the plains, which +rise, especially towards the East, more than half a mile above the level +of the sea; and to the quantity of saltpetre with which the soil is +deeply impregnated. In the winter season, the broad and rapid rivers, +that discharge their waters into the Euxine, the Caspian, or the Icy +Sea, are strongly frozen; the fields are covered with a bed of snow; and +the fugitive, or victorious, tribes may securely traverse, with their +families, their wagons, and their cattle, the smooth and hard surface of +an immense plain. + +III. The pastoral life, compared with the labors of agriculture and +manufactures, is undoubtedly a life of idleness; and as the most +honorable shepherds of the Tartar race devolve on their captives the +domestic management of the cattle, their own leisure is seldom disturbed +by any servile and assiduous cares. But this leisure, instead of being +devoted to the soft enjoyments of love and harmony, is use fully spent +in the violent and sanguinary exercise of the chase. The plains of +Tartary are filled with a strong and serviceable breed of horses, which +are easily trained for the purposes of war and hunting. The Scythians of +every age have been celebrated as bold and skilful riders; and constant +practice had seated them so firmly on horseback, that they were supposed +by strangers to perform the ordinary duties of civil life, to eat, to +drink, and even to sleep, without dismounting from their steeds. They +excel in the dexterous management of the lance; the long Tartar bow +is drawn with a nervous arm; and the weighty arrow is directed to its +object with unerring aim and irresistible force. These arrows are often +pointed against the harmless animals of the desert, which increase and +multiply in the absence of their most formidable enemy; the hare, the +goat, the roebuck, the fallow-deer, the stag, the elk, and the antelope. +The vigor and patience, both of the men and horses, are continually +exercised by the fatigues of the chase; and the plentiful supply of game +contributes to the subsistence, and even luxury, of a Tartar camp. +But the exploits of the hunters of Scythia are not confined to the +destruction of timid or innoxious beasts; they boldly encounter the +angry wild boar, when he turns against his pursuers, excite the sluggish +courage of the bear, and provoke the fury of the tiger, as he slumbers +in the thicket. Where there is danger, there may be glory; and the mode +of hunting, which opens the fairest field to the exertions of valor, +may justly be considered as the image, and as the school, of war. The +general hunting matches, the pride and delight of the Tartar princes, +compose an instructive exercise for their numerous cavalry. A circle +is drawn, of many miles in circumference, to encompass the game of +an extensive district; and the troops that form the circle regularly +advance towards a common centre; where the captive animals, surrounded +on every side, are abandoned to the darts of the hunters. In this march, +which frequently continues many days, the cavalry are obliged to climb +the hills, to swim the rivers, and to wind through the valleys, without +interrupting the prescribed order of their gradual progress. They +acquire the habit of directing their eye, and their steps, to a remote +object; of preserving their intervals of suspending or accelerating +their pace, according to the motions of the troops on their right and +left; and of watching and repeating the signals of their leaders. Their +leaders study, in this practical school, the most important lesson +of the military art; the prompt and accurate judgment of ground, of +distance, and of time. To employ against a human enemy the same patience +and valor, the same skill and discipline, is the only alteration which +is required in real war; and the amusements of the chase serve as a +prelude to the conquest of an empire. + +The political society of the ancient Germans has the appearance of +a voluntary alliance of independent warriors. The tribes of Scythia, +distinguished by the modern appellation of Hords, assume the form of +a numerous and increasing family; which, in the course of successive +generations, has been propagated from the same original stock. The +meanest, and most ignorant, of the Tartars, preserve, with conscious +pride, the inestimable treasure of their genealogy; and whatever +distinctions of rank may have been introduced, by the unequal +distribution of pastoral wealth, they mutually respect themselves, and +each other, as the descendants of the first founder of the tribe. The +custom, which still prevails, of adopting the bravest and most faithful +of the captives, may countenance the very probable suspicion, that this +extensive consanguinity is, in a great measure, legal and fictitious. +But the useful prejudice, which has obtained the sanction of time and +opinion, produces the effects of truth; the haughty Barbarians yield a +cheerful and voluntary obedience to the head of their blood; and their +chief, or mursa, as the representative of their great father, exercises +the authority of a judge in peace, and of a leader in war. In the +original state of the pastoral world, each of the mursas (if we may +continue to use a modern appellation) acted as the independent chief +of a large and separate family; and the limits of their peculiar +territories were gradually fixed by superior force, or mutual consent. +But the constant operation of various and permanent causes contributed +to unite the vagrant Hords into national communities, under the command +of a supreme head. The weak were desirous of support, and the strong +were ambitious of dominion; the power, which is the result of union, +oppressed and collected the divided force of the adjacent tribes; +and, as the vanquished were freely admitted to share the advantages of +victory, the most valiant chiefs hastened to range themselves and their +followers under the formidable standard of a confederate nation. The +most successful of the Tartar princes assumed the military command, to +which he was entitled by the superiority, either of merit or of power. +He was raised to the throne by the acclamations of his equals; and the +title of Khan expresses, in the language of the North of Asia, the full +extent of the regal dignity. The right of hereditary succession was long +confined to the blood of the founder of the monarchy; and at this moment +all the Khans, who reign from Crimea to the wall of China, are +the lineal descendants of the renowned Zingis. But, as it is the +indispensable duty of a Tartar sovereign to lead his warlike subjects +into the field, the claims of an infant are often disregarded; and some +royal kinsman, distinguished by his age and valor, is intrusted with the +sword and sceptre of his predecessor. Two distinct and regular taxes are +levied on the tribes, to support the dignity of the national monarch, +and of their peculiar chief; and each of those contributions amounts +to the tithe, both of their property, and of their spoil. A Tartar +sovereign enjoys the tenth part of the wealth of his people; and as +his own domestic riches of flocks and herds increase in a much larger +proportion, he is able plentifully to maintain the rustic splendor of +his court, to reward the most deserving, or the most favored of his +followers, and to obtain, from the gentle influence of corruption, the +obedience which might be sometimes refused to the stern mandates of +authority. The manners of his subjects, accustomed, like himself, to +blood and rapine, might excuse, in their eyes, such partial acts of +tyranny, as would excite the horror of a civilized people; but the power +of a despot has never been acknowledged in the deserts of Scythia. The +immediate jurisdiction of the khan is confined within the limits of his +own tribe; and the exercise of his royal prerogative has been moderated +by the ancient institution of a national council. The Coroultai, or +Diet, of the Tartars, was regularly held in the spring and autumn, in +the midst of a plain; where the princes of the reigning family, and the +mursas of the respective tribes, may conveniently assemble on horseback, +with their martial and numerous trains; and the ambitious monarch, who +reviewed the strength, must consult the inclination of an armed +people. The rudiments of a feudal government may be discovered in +the constitution of the Scythian or Tartar nations; but the perpetual +conflict of those hostile nations has sometimes terminated in the +establishment of a powerful and despotic empire. The victor, enriched +by the tribute, and fortified by the arms of dependent kings, has spread +his conquests over Europe or Asia: the successful shepherds of the North +have submitted to the confinement of arts, of laws, and of cities; and +the introduction of luxury, after destroying the freedom of the people, +has undermined the foundations of the throne. + +The memory of past events cannot long be preserved in the frequent and +remote emigrations of illiterate Barbarians. The modern Tartars are +ignorant of the conquests of their ancestors; and our knowledge of the +history of the Scythians is derived from their intercourse with the +learned and civilized nations of the South, the Greeks, the Persians, +and the Chinese. The Greeks, who navigated the Euxine, and planted their +colonies along the sea-coast, made the gradual and imperfect discovery +of Scythia; from the Danube, and the confines of Thrace, as far as the +frozen Mæotis, the seat of eternal winter, and Mount Caucasus, which, +in the language of poetry, was described as the utmost boundary of +the earth. They celebrated, with simple credulity, the virtues of the +pastoral life: they entertained a more rational apprehension of the +strength and numbers of the warlike Barbarians, who contemptuously +baffled the immense armament of Darius, the son of Hystaspes. The +Persian monarchs had extended their western conquests to the banks of +the Danube, and the limits of European Scythia. The eastern provinces of +their empire were exposed to the Scythians of Asia; the wild inhabitants +of the plains beyond the Oxus and the Jaxartes, two mighty rivers, which +direct their course towards the Caspian Sea. The long and memorable +quarrel of Iran and Touran is still the theme of history or romance: the +famous, perhaps the fabulous, valor of the Persian heroes, Rustan and +Asfendiar, was signalized, in the defence of their country, against the +Afrasiabs of the North; and the invincible spirit of the same Barbarians +resisted, on the same ground, the victorious arms of Cyrus and +Alexander. In the eyes of the Greeks and Persians, the real geography of +Scythia was bounded, on the East, by the mountains of Imaus, or Caf; and +their distant prospect of the extreme and inaccessible parts of Asia was +clouded by ignorance, or perplexed by fiction. But those inaccessible +regions are the ancient residence of a powerful and civilized nation, +which ascends, by a probable tradition, above forty centuries; and which +is able to verify a series of near two thousand years, by the perpetual +testimony of accurate and contemporary historians. The annals of China +illustrate the state and revolutions of the pastoral tribes, which +may still be distinguished by the vague appellation of Scythians, or +Tartars; the vassals, the enemies, and sometimes the conquerors, of a +great empire; whose policy has uniformly opposed the blind and impetuous +valor of the Barbarians of the North. From the mouth of the Danube to +the Sea of Japan, the whole longitude of Scythia is about one hundred +and ten degrees, which, in that parallel, are equal to more than five +thousand miles. The latitude of these extensive deserts cannot be so +easily, or so accurately, measured; but, from the fortieth degree, which +touches the wall of China, we may securely advance above a thousand +miles to the northward, till our progress is stopped by the excessive +cold of Siberia. In that dreary climate, instead of the animated picture +of a Tartar camp, the smoke that issues from the earth, or rather from +the snow, betrays the subterraneous dwellings of the Tongouses, and the +Samoides: the want of horses and oxen is imperfectly supplied by the +use of reindeer, and of large dogs; and the conquerors of the earth +insensibly degenerate into a race of deformed and diminutive savages, +who tremble at the sound of arms. + + + +Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.--Part II. + +The Huns, who under the reign of Valens threatened the empire of Rome, +had been formidable, in a much earlier period, to the empire of China. +Their ancient, perhaps their original, seat was an extensive, though dry +and barren, tract of country, immediately on the north side of the great +wall. Their place is at present occupied by the forty-nine Hords or +Banners of the Mongous, a pastoral nation, which consists of about two +hundred thousand families. But the valor of the Huns had extended the +narrow limits of their dominions; and their rustic chiefs, who assumed +the appellation of Tanjou, gradually became the conquerors, and the +sovereigns of a formidable empire. Towards the East, their victorious +arms were stopped only by the ocean; and the tribes, which are thinly +scattered between the Amoor and the extreme peninsula of Corea, adhered, +with reluctance, to the standard of the Huns. On the West, near the head +of the Irtish, in the valleys of Imaus, they found a more ample space, +and more numerous enemies. One of the lieutenants of the Tanjou subdued, +in a single expedition, twenty-six nations; the Igours, distinguished +above the Tartar race by the use of letters, were in the number of his +vassals; and, by the strange connection of human events, the flight of +one of those vagrant tribes recalled the victorious Parthians from the +invasion of Syria. On the side of the North, the ocean was assigned +as the limit of the power of the Huns. Without enemies to resist their +progress, or witnesses to contradict their vanity, they might securely +achieve a real, or imaginary, conquest of the frozen regions of Siberia. +The Northern Sea was fixed as the remote boundary of their empire. But +the name of that sea, on whose shores the patriot Sovou embraced the +life of a shepherd and an exile, may be transferred, with much more +probability, to the Baikal, a capacious basin, above three hundred miles +in length, which disdains the modest appellation of a lake and which +actually communicates with the seas of the North, by the long course of +the Angara, the Tongusha, and the Jenissea. The submission of so many +distant nations might flatter the pride of the Tanjou; but the valor +of the Huns could be rewarded only by the enjoyment of the wealth and +luxury of the empire of the South. In the third century before +the Christian æra, a wall of fifteen hundred miles in length was +constructed, to defend the frontiers of China against the inroads of the +Huns; but this stupendous work, which holds a conspicuous place in the +map of the world, has never contributed to the safety of an unwarlike +people. The cavalry of the Tanjou frequently consisted of two or three +hundred thousand men, formidable by the matchless dexterity with which +they managed their bows and their horses: by their hardy patience in +supporting the inclemency of the weather; and by the incredible speed of +their march, which was seldom checked by torrents, or precipices, by the +deepest rivers, or by the most lofty mountains. They spread themselves +at once over the face of the country; and their rapid impetuosity +surprised, astonished, and disconcerted the grave and elaborate tactics +of a Chinese army. The emperor Kaoti, a soldier of fortune, whose +personal merit had raised him to the throne, marched against the Huns +with those veteran troops which had been trained in the civil wars of +China. But he was soon surrounded by the Barbarians; and, after a siege +of seven days, the monarch, hopeless of relief, was reduced to purchase +his deliverance by an ignominious capitulation. The successors of Kaoti, +whose lives were dedicated to the arts of peace, or the luxury of +the palace, submitted to a more permanent disgrace. They too hastily +confessed the insufficiency of arms and fortifications. They were too +easily convinced, that while the blazing signals announced on every side +the approach of the Huns, the Chinese troops, who slept with the helmet +on their head, and the cuirass on their back, were destroyed by the +incessant labor of ineffectual marches. A regular payment of money, +and silk, was stipulated as the condition of a temporary and precarious +peace; and the wretched expedient of disguising a real tribute, under +the names of a gift or subsidy, was practised by the emperors of China +as well as by those of Rome. But there still remained a more disgraceful +article of tribute, which violated the sacred feelings of humanity and +nature. The hardships of the savage life, which destroy in their infancy +the children who are born with a less healthy and robust constitution, +introduced a remarkable disproportion between the numbers of the two +sexes. The Tartars are an ugly and even deformed race; and while they +consider their own women as the instruments of domestic labor, their +desires, or rather their appetites, are directed to the enjoyment of +more elegant beauty. A select band of the fairest maidens of China was +annually devoted to the rude embraces of the Huns; and the alliance of +the haughty Tanjous was secured by their marriage with the genuine, or +adopted, daughters of the Imperial family, which vainly attempted +to escape the sacrilegious pollution. The situation of these unhappy +victims is described in the verses of a Chinese princess, who laments +that she had been condemned by her parents to a distant exile, under a +Barbarian husband; who complains that sour milk was her only drink, raw +flesh her only food, a tent her only palace; and who expresses, in +a strain of pathetic simplicity, the natural wish, that she were +transformed into a bird, to fly back to her dear country; the object of +her tender and perpetual regret. + +The conquest of China has been twice achieved by the pastoral tribes +of the North: the forces of the Huns were not inferior to those of the +Moguls, or of the Mantcheoux; and their ambition might entertain the +most sanguine hopes of success. But their pride was humbled, and their +progress was checked, by the arms and policy of Vouti, the fifth emperor +of the powerful dynasty of the Han. In his long reign of fifty-four +years, the Barbarians of the southern provinces submitted to the laws +and manners of China; and the ancient limits of the monarchy were +enlarged, from the great river of Kiang, to the port of Canton. Instead +of confining himself to the timid operations of a defensive war, his +lieutenants penetrated many hundred miles into the country of the Huns. +In those boundless deserts, where it is impossible to form magazines, +and difficult to transport a sufficient supply of provisions, the armies +of Vouti were repeatedly exposed to intolerable hardships: and, of one +hundred and forty thousand soldiers, who marched against the Barbarians, +thirty thousand only returned in safety to the feet of their master. +These losses, however, were compensated by splendid and decisive +success. The Chinese generals improved the superiority which they +derived from the temper of their arms, their chariots of war, and +the service of their Tartar auxiliaries. The camp of the Tanjou was +surprised in the midst of sleep and intemperance; and, though the +monarch of the Huns bravely cut his way through the ranks of the enemy, +he left above fifteen thousand of his subjects on the field of battle. +Yet this signal victory, which was preceded and followed by many bloody +engagements, contributed much less to the destruction of the power of +the Huns than the effectual policy which was employed to detach the +tributary nations from their obedience. Intimidated by the arms, +or allured by the promises, of Vouti and his successors, the most +considerable tribes, both of the East and of the West, disclaimed the +authority of the Tanjou. While some acknowledged themselves the allies +or vassals of the empire, they all became the implacable enemies of +the Huns; and the numbers of that haughty people, as soon as they were +reduced to their native strength, might, perhaps, have been contained +within the walls of one of the great and populous cities of China. The +desertion of his subjects, and the perplexity of a civil war, at length +compelled the Tanjou himself to renounce the dignity of an independent +sovereign, and the freedom of a warlike and high-spirited nation. He +was received at Sigan, the capital of the monarchy, by the troops, the +mandarins, and the emperor himself, with all the honors that could adorn +and disguise the triumph of Chinese vanity. A magnificent palace was +prepared for his reception; his place was assigned above all the +princes of the royal family; and the patience of the Barbarian king +was exhausted by the ceremonies of a banquet, which consisted of eight +courses of meat, and of nine solemn pieces of music. But he performed, +on his knees, the duty of a respectful homage to the emperor of China; +pronounced, in his own name, and in the name of his successors, a +perpetual oath of fidelity; and gratefully accepted a seal, which was +bestowed as the emblem of his regal dependence. After this humiliating +submission, the Tanjous sometimes departed from their allegiance and +seized the favorable moments of war and rapine; but the monarchy of the +Huns gradually declined, till it was broken, by civil dissension, into +two hostile and separate kingdoms. One of the princes of the nation +was urged, by fear and ambition, to retire towards the South with eight +hords, which composed between forty and fifty thousand families. He +obtained, with the title of Tanjou, a convenient territory on the verge +of the Chinese provinces; and his constant attachment to the service of +the empire was secured by weakness, and the desire of revenge. From the +time of this fatal schism, the Huns of the North continued to languish +about fifty years; till they were oppressed on every side by their +foreign and domestic enemies. The proud inscription of a column, erected +on a lofty mountain, announced to posterity, that a Chinese army had +marched seven hundred miles into the heart of their country. The Sienpi, +a tribe of Oriental Tartars, retaliated the injuries which they had +formerly sustained; and the power of the Tanjous, after a reign of +thirteen hundred years, was utterly destroyed before the end of the +first century of the Christian æra. + +The fate of the vanquished Huns was diversified by the various influence +of character and situation. Above one hundred thousand persons, +the poorest, indeed, and the most pusillanimous of the people, were +contented to remain in their native country, to renounce their peculiar +name and origin, and to mingle with the victorious nation of the Sienpi. +Fifty-eight hords, about two hundred thousand men, ambitious of a more +honorable servitude, retired towards the South; implored the protection +of the emperors of China; and were permitted to inhabit, and to guard, +the extreme frontiers of the province of Chansi and the territory of +Ortous. But the most warlike and powerful tribes of the Huns maintained, +in their adverse fortune, the undaunted spirit of their ancestors. The +Western world was open to their valor; and they resolved, under the +conduct of their hereditary chieftains, to conquer and subdue some +remote country, which was still inaccessible to the arms of the Sienpi, +and to the laws of China. The course of their emigration soon carried +them beyond the mountains of Imaus, and the limits of the Chinese +geography; but we are able to distinguish the two great divisions of +these formidable exiles, which directed their march towards the Oxus, +and towards the Volga. The first of these colonies established their +dominion in the fruitful and extensive plains of Sogdiana, on the +eastern side of the Caspian; where they preserved the name of Huns, with +the epithet of Euthalites, or Nepthalites. Their manners were softened, +and even their features were insensibly improved, by the mildness of the +climate, and their long residence in a flourishing province, which might +still retain a faint impression of the arts of Greece. The white Huns, +a name which they derived from the change of their complexions, +soon abandoned the pastoral life of Scythia. Gorgo, which, under the +appellation of Carizme, has since enjoyed a temporary splendor, was the +residence of the king, who exercised a legal authority over an obedient +people. Their luxury was maintained by the labor of the Sogdians; +and the only vestige of their ancient barbarism, was the custom which +obliged all the companions, perhaps to the number of twenty, who had +shared the liberality of a wealthy lord, to be buried alive in the same +grave. The vicinity of the Huns to the provinces of Persia, involved +them in frequent and bloody contests with the power of that monarchy. +But they respected, in peace, the faith of treaties; in war, she +dictates of humanity; and their memorable victory over Peroses, +or Firuz, displayed the moderation, as well as the valor, of the +Barbarians. The second division of their countrymen, the Huns, who +gradually advanced towards the North-west, were exercised by the +hardships of a colder climate, and a more laborious march. Necessity +compelled them to exchange the silks of China for the furs of Siberia; +the imperfect rudiments of civilized life were obliterated; and the +native fierceness of the Huns was exasperated by their intercourse with +the savage tribes, who were compared, with some propriety, to the +wild beasts of the desert. Their independent spirit soon rejected the +hereditary succession of the Tanjous; and while each horde was governed +by its peculiar mursa, their tumultuary council directed the public +measures of the whole nation. As late as the thirteenth century, their +transient residence on the eastern banks of the Volga was attested by +the name of Great Hungary. In the winter, they descended with their +flocks and herds towards the mouth of that mighty river; and their +summer excursions reached as high as the latitude of Saratoff, or +perhaps the conflux of the Kama. Such at least were the recent limits of +the black Calmucks, who remained about a century under the protection +of Russia; and who have since returned to their native seats on the +frontiers of the Chinese empire. The march, and the return, of those +wandering Tartars, whose united camp consists of fifty thousand tents or +families, illustrate the distant emigrations of the ancient Huns. + +It is impossible to fill the dark interval of time, which elapsed, after +the Huns of the Volga were lost in the eyes of the Chinese, and before +they showed themselves to those of the Romans. There is some reason, +however, to apprehend, that the same force which had driven them from +their native seats, still continued to impel their march towards the +frontiers of Europe. The power of the Sienpi, their implacable enemies, +which extended above three thousand miles from East to West, must +have gradually oppressed them by the weight and terror of a formidable +neighborhood; and the flight of the tribes of Scythia would inevitably +tend to increase the strength or to contract the territories, of the +Huns. The harsh and obscure appellations of those tribes would offend +the ear, without informing the understanding, of the reader; but I +cannot suppress the very natural suspicion, that the Huns of the North +derived a considerable reenforcement from the ruin of the dynasty of +the South, which, in the course of the third century, submitted to the +dominion of China; that the bravest warriors marched away in search +of their free and adventurous countrymen; and that, as they had been +divided by prosperity, they were easily reunited by the common hardships +of their adverse fortune. The Huns, with their flocks and herds, their +wives and children, their dependents and allies, were transported to the +west of the Volga, and they boldly advanced to invade the country of the +Alani, a pastoral people, who occupied, or wasted, an extensive tract of +the deserts of Scythia. The plains between the Volga and the Tanais were +covered with the tents of the Alani, but their name and manners were +diffused over the wide extent of their conquests; and the painted tribes +of the Agathyrsi and Geloni were confounded among their vassals. Towards +the North, they penetrated into the frozen regions of Siberia, among the +savages who were accustomed, in their rage or hunger, to the taste +of human flesh; and their Southern inroads were pushed as far as the +confines of Persia and India. The mixture of Somatic and German blood +had contributed to improve the features of the Alani, * to whiten their +swarthy complexions, and to tinge their hair with a yellowish cast, +which is seldom found in the Tartar race. They were less deformed in +their persons, less brutish in their manners, than the Huns; but they +did not yield to those formidable Barbarians in their martial and +independent spirit; in the love of freedom, which rejected even the use +of domestic slaves; and in the love of arms, which considered war and +rapine as the pleasure and the glory of mankind. A naked cimeter, fixed +in the ground, was the only object of their religious worship; the +scalps of their enemies formed the costly trappings of their horses; +and they viewed, with pity and contempt, the pusillanimous warriors, who +patiently expected the infirmities of age, and the tortures of lingering +disease. On the banks of the Tanais, the military power of the Huns +and the Alani encountered each other with equal valor, but with unequal +success. The Huns prevailed in the bloody contest; the king of the Alani +was slain; and the remains of the vanquished nation were dispersed by +the ordinary alternative of flight or submission. A colony of exiles +found a secure refuge in the mountains of Caucasus, between the +Euxine and the Caspian, where they still preserve their name and their +independence. Another colony advanced, with more intrepid courage, +towards the shores of the Baltic; associated themselves with the +Northern tribes of Germany; and shared the spoil of the Roman provinces +of Gaul and Spain. But the greatest part of the nation of the Alani +embraced the offers of an honorable and advantageous union; and the +Huns, who esteemed the valor of their less fortunate enemies, proceeded, +with an increase of numbers and confidence, to invade the limits of the +Gothic empire. + +The great Hermanric, whose dominions extended from the Baltic to the +Euxine, enjoyed, in the full maturity of age and reputation, the fruit +of his victories, when he was alarmed by the formidable approach of a +host of unknown enemies, on whom his barbarous subjects might, without +injustice, bestow the epithet of Barbarians. The numbers, the strength, +the rapid motions, and the implacable cruelty of the Huns, were felt, +and dreaded, and magnified, by the astonished Goths; who beheld +their fields and villages consumed with flames, and deluged with +indiscriminate slaughter. To these real terrors they added the surprise +and abhorrence which were excited by the shrill voice, the uncouth +gestures, and the strange deformity of the Huns. * These savages of +Scythia were compared (and the picture had some resemblance) to the +animals who walk very awkwardly on two legs and to the misshapen +figures, the Termini, which were often placed on the bridges of +antiquity. They were distinguished from the rest of the human species by +their broad shoulders, flat noses, and small black eyes, deeply buried +in the head; and as they were almost destitute of beards, they never +enjoyed either the manly grace of youth, or the venerable aspect of age. +A fabulous origin was assigned, worthy of their form and manners; that +the witches of Scythia, who, for their foul and deadly practices, had +been driven from society, had copulated in the desert with infernal +spirits; and that the Huns were the offspring of this execrable +conjunction. The tale, so full of horror and absurdity, was greedily +embraced by the credulous hatred of the Goths; but, while it gratified +their hatred, it increased their fear, since the posterity of dæmons +and witches might be supposed to inherit some share of the præternatural +powers, as well as of the malignant temper, of their parents. Against +these enemies, Hermanric prepared to exert the united forces of the +Gothic state; but he soon discovered that his vassal tribes, provoked +by oppression, were much more inclined to second, than to repel, the +invasion of the Huns. One of the chiefs of the Roxolani had formerly +deserted the standard of Hermanric, and the cruel tyrant had condemned +the innocent wife of the traitor to be torn asunder by wild horses. +The brothers of that unfortunate woman seized the favorable moment +of revenge. The aged king of the Goths languished some time after the +dangerous wound which he received from their daggers; but the conduct of +the war was retarded by his infirmities; and the public councils of the +nation were distracted by a spirit of jealousy and discord. His death, +which has been imputed to his own despair, left the reins of government +in the hands of Withimer, who, with the doubtful aid of some Scythian +mercenaries, maintained the unequal contest against the arms of the Huns +and the Alani, till he was defeated and slain in a decisive battle. The +Ostrogoths submitted to their fate; and the royal race of the Amali will +hereafter be found among the subjects of the haughty Attila. But the +person of Witheric, the infant king, was saved by the diligence of +Alatheus and Saphrax; two warriors of approved valor and fidelity, who, +by cautious marches, conducted the independent remains of the nation of +the Ostrogoths towards the Danastus, or Niester; a considerable river, +which now separates the Turkish dominions from the empire of Russia. On +the banks of the Niester, the prudent Athanaric, more attentive to his +own than to the general safety, had fixed the camp of the Visigoths; +with the firm resolution of opposing the victorious Barbarians, whom he +thought it less advisable to provoke. The ordinary speed of the Huns was +checked by the weight of baggage, and the encumbrance of captives; +but their military skill deceived, and almost destroyed, the army of +Athanaric. While the Judge of the Visigoths defended the banks of the +Niester, he was encompassed and attacked by a numerous detachment +of cavalry, who, by the light of the moon, had passed the river in a +fordable place; and it was not without the utmost efforts of courage +and conduct, that he was able to effect his retreat towards the hilly +country. The undaunted general had already formed a new and judicious +plan of defensive war; and the strong lines, which he was preparing to +construct between the mountains, the Pruth, and the Danube, would have +secured the extensive and fertile territory that bears the modern name +of Walachia, from the destructive inroads of the Huns. But the hopes +and measures of the Judge of the Visigoths was soon disappointed, by the +trembling impatience of his dismayed countrymen; who were persuaded by +their fears, that the interposition of the Danube was the only barrier +that could save them from the rapid pursuit, and invincible valor, of +the Barbarians of Scythia. Under the command of Fritigern and Alavivus, +the body of the nation hastily advanced to the banks of the great river, +and implored the protection of the Roman emperor of the East. Athanaric +himself, still anxious to avoid the guilt of perjury, retired, with a +band of faithful followers, into the mountainous country of Caucaland; +which appears to have been guarded, and almost concealed, by the +impenetrable forests of Transylvania. * + + + +Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.--Part III. + +After Valens had terminated the Gothic war with some appearance of glory +and success, he made a progress through his dominions of Asia, and at +length fixed his residence in the capital of Syria. The five years which +he spent at Antioch was employed to watch, from a secure distance, the +hostile designs of the Persian monarch; to check the depredations of +the Saracens and Isaurians; to enforce, by arguments more prevalent than +those of reason and eloquence, the belief of the Arian theology; and +to satisfy his anxious suspicions by the promiscuous execution of the +innocent and the guilty. But the attention of the emperor was most +seriously engaged, by the important intelligence which he received from +the civil and military officers who were intrusted with the defence of +the Danube. He was informed, that the North was agitated by a furious +tempest; that the irruption of the Huns, an unknown and monstrous race +of savages, had subverted the power of the Goths; and that the suppliant +multitudes of that warlike nation, whose pride was now humbled in the +dust, covered a space of many miles along the banks of the river. With +outstretched arms, and pathetic lamentations, they loudly deplored their +past misfortunes and their present danger; acknowledged that their only +hope of safety was in the clemency of the Roman government; and most +solemnly protested, that if the gracious liberality of the emperor would +permit them to cultivate the waste lands of Thrace, they should +ever hold themselves bound, by the strongest obligations of duty and +gratitude, to obey the laws, and to guard the limits, of the republic. +These assurances were confirmed by the ambassadors of the Goths, * +who impatiently expected from the mouth of Valens an answer that must +finally determine the fate of their unhappy countrymen. The emperor of +the East was no longer guided by the wisdom and authority of his elder +brother, whose death happened towards the end of the preceding year; +and as the distressful situation of the Goths required an instant and +peremptory decision, he was deprived of the favorite resources of feeble +and timid minds, who consider the use of dilatory and ambiguous measures +as the most admirable efforts of consummate prudence. As long as the +same passions and interests subsist among mankind, the questions of war +and peace, of justice and policy, which were debated in the councils of +antiquity, will frequently present themselves as the subject of modern +deliberation. But the most experienced statesman of Europe has never +been summoned to consider the propriety, or the danger, of admitting, +or rejecting, an innumerable multitude of Barbarians, who are driven +by despair and hunger to solicit a settlement on the territories of +a civilized nation. When that important proposition, so essentially +connected with the public safety, was referred to the ministers of +Valens, they were perplexed and divided; but they soon acquiesced in the +flattering sentiment which seemed the most favorable to the pride, the +indolence, and the avarice of their sovereign. The slaves, who were +decorated with the titles of præfects and generals, dissembled or +disregarded the terrors of this national emigration; so extremely +different from the partial and accidental colonies, which had been +received on the extreme limits of the empire. But they applauded the +liberality of fortune, which had conducted, from the most distant +countries of the globe, a numerous and invincible army of strangers, to +defend the throne of Valens; who might now add to the royal treasures +the immense sums of gold supplied by the provincials to compensate their +annual proportion of recruits. The prayers of the Goths were granted, +and their service was accepted by the Imperial court: and orders were +immediately despatched to the civil and military governors of the +Thracian diocese, to make the necessary preparations for the passage and +subsistence of a great people, till a proper and sufficient territory +could be allotted for their future residence. The liberality of +the emperor was accompanied, however, with two harsh and rigorous +conditions, which prudence might justify on the side of the Romans; but +which distress alone could extort from the indignant Goths. Before they +passed the Danube, they were required to deliver their arms: and it was +insisted, that their children should be taken from them, and dispersed +through the provinces of Asia; where they might be civilized by the +arts of education, and serve as hostages to secure the fidelity of their +parents. + +During the suspense of a doubtful and distant negotiation, the impatient +Goths made some rash attempts to pass the Danube, without the permission +of the government, whose protection they had implored. Their motions +were strictly observed by the vigilance of the troops which were +stationed along the river and their foremost detachments were defeated +with considerable slaughter; yet such were the timid councils of the +reign of Valens, that the brave officers who had served their country +in the execution of their duty, were punished by the loss of their +employments, and narrowly escaped the loss of their heads. The Imperial +mandate was at length received for transporting over the Danube the +whole body of the Gothic nation; but the execution of this order was a +task of labor and difficulty. The stream of the Danube, which in those +parts is above a mile broad, had been swelled by incessant rains; and in +this tumultuous passage, many were swept away, and drowned, by the rapid +violence of the current. A large fleet of vessels, of boats, and of +canoes, was provided; many days and nights they passed and repassed with +indefatigable toil; and the most strenuous diligence was exerted by +the officers of Valens, that not a single Barbarian, of those who were +reserved to subvert the foundations of Rome, should be left on the +opposite shore. It was thought expedient that an accurate account +should be taken of their numbers; but the persons who were employed soon +desisted, with amazement and dismay, from the prosecution of the endless +and impracticable task: and the principal historian of the age most +seriously affirms, that the prodigious armies of Darius and Xerxes, +which had so long been considered as the fables of vain and credulous +antiquity, were now justified, in the eyes of mankind, by the evidence +of fact and experience. A probable testimony has fixed the number of the +Gothic warriors at two hundred thousand men: and if we can venture to +add the just proportion of women, of children, and of slaves, the whole +mass of people which composed this formidable emigration, must have +amounted to near a million of persons, of both sexes, and of all ages. +The children of the Goths, those at least of a distinguished rank, were +separated from the multitude. They were conducted, without delay, to +the distant seats assigned for their residence and education; and as the +numerous train of hostages or captives passed through the cities, their +gay and splendid apparel, their robust and martial figure, excited the +surprise and envy of the Provincials. * But the stipulation, the most +offensive to the Goths, and the most important to the Romans, was +shamefully eluded. The Barbarians, who considered their arms as the +ensigns of honor and the pledges of safety, were disposed to offer a +price, which the lust or avarice of the Imperial officers was easily +tempted to accept. To preserve their arms, the haughty warriors +consented, with some reluctance, to prostitute their wives or their +daughters; the charms of a beauteous maid, or a comely boy, secured the +connivance of the inspectors; who sometimes cast an eye of covetousness +on the fringed carpets and linen garments of their new allies, or who +sacrificed their duty to the mean consideration of filling their farms +with cattle, and their houses with slaves. The Goths, with arms in their +hands, were permitted to enter the boats; and when their strength was +collected on the other side of the river, the immense camp which was +spread over the plains and the hills of the Lower Mæsia, assumed a +threatening and even hostile aspect. The leaders of the Ostrogoths, +Alatheus and Saphrax, the guardians of their infant king, appeared +soon afterwards on the Northern banks of the Danube; and immediately +despatched their ambassadors to the court of Antioch, to solicit, with +the same professions of allegiance and gratitude, the same favor which +had been granted to the suppliant Visigoths. The absolute refusal of +Valens suspended their progress, and discovered the repentance, the +suspicions, and the fears, of the Imperial council. + +An undisciplined and unsettled nation of Barbarians required the firmest +temper, and the most dexterous management. The daily subsistence of near +a million of extraordinary subjects could be supplied only by constant +and skilful diligence, and might continually be interrupted by mistake +or accident. The insolence, or the indignation, of the Goths, if they +conceived themselves to be the objects either of fear or of contempt, +might urge them to the most desperate extremities; and the fortune of +the state seemed to depend on the prudence, as well as the integrity, +of the generals of Valens. At this important crisis, the military +government of Thrace was exercised by Lupicinus and Maximus, in whose +venal minds the slightest hope of private emolument outweighed every +consideration of public advantage; and whose guilt was only alleviated +by their incapacity of discerning the pernicious effects of their rash +and criminal administration. Instead of obeying the orders of their +sovereign, and satisfying, with decent liberality, the demands of the +Goths, they levied an ungenerous and oppressive tax on the wants of the +hungry Barbarians. The vilest food was sold at an extravagant price; +and, in the room of wholesome and substantial provisions, the markets +were filled with the flesh of dogs, and of unclean animals, who had died +of disease. To obtain the valuable acquisition of a pound of bread, +the Goths resigned the possession of an expensive, though serviceable, +slave; and a small quantity of meat was greedily purchased with ten +pounds of a precious, but useless metal, when their property was +exhausted, they continued this necessary traffic by the sale of their +sons and daughters; and notwithstanding the love of freedom, which +animated every Gothic breast, they submitted to the humiliating maxim, +that it was better for their children to be maintained in a servile +condition, than to perish in a state of wretched and helpless +independence. The most lively resentment is excited by the tyranny of +pretended benefactors, who sternly exact the debt of gratitude which +they have cancelled by subsequent injuries: a spirit of discontent +insensibly arose in the camp of the Barbarians, who pleaded, without +success, the merit of their patient and dutiful behavior; and loudly +complained of the inhospitable treatment which they had received from +their new allies. They beheld around them the wealth and plenty of a +fertile province, in the midst of which they suffered the intolerable +hardships of artificial famine. But the means of relief, and even of +revenge, were in their hands; since the rapaciousness of their tyrants +had left to an injured people the possession and the use of arms. The +clamors of a multitude, untaught to disguise their sentiments, announced +the first symptoms of resistance, and alarmed the timid and guilty minds +of Lupicinus and Maximus. Those crafty ministers, who substituted the +cunning of temporary expedients to the wise and salutary counsels of +general policy, attempted to remove the Goths from their dangerous +station on the frontiers of the empire; and to disperse them, in +separate quarters of cantonment, through the interior provinces. As they +were conscious how ill they had deserved the respect, or confidence, of +the Barbarians, they diligently collected, from every side, a military +force, that might urge the tardy and reluctant march of a people, who +had not yet renounced the title, or the duties, of Roman subjects. But +the generals of Valens, while their attention was solely directed to +the discontented Visigoths, imprudently disarmed the ships and the +fortifications which constituted the defence of the Danube. The fatal +oversight was observed, and improved, by Alatheus and Saphrax, who +anxiously watched the favorable moment of escaping from the pursuit +of the Huns. By the help of such rafts and vessels as could be hastily +procured, the leaders of the Ostrogoths transported, without opposition, +their king and their army; and boldly fixed a hostile and independent +camp on the territories of the empire. + +Under the name of Judges, Alavivus and Fritigern were the leaders of the +Visigoths in peace and war; and the authority which they derived from +their birth was ratified by the free consent of the nation. In a season +of tranquility, their power might have been equal, as well as their +rank; but, as soon as their countrymen were exasperated by hunger and +oppression, the superior abilities of Fritigern assumed the military +command, which he was qualified to exercise for the public welfare. He +restrained the impatient spirit of the Visigoths till the injuries and +the insults of their tyrants should justify their resistance in the +opinion of mankind: but he was not disposed to sacrifice any solid +advantages for the empty praise of justice and moderation. Sensible +of the benefits which would result from the union of the Gothic powers +under the same standard, he secretly cultivated the friendship of the +Ostrogoths; and while he professed an implicit obedience to the +orders of the Roman generals, he proceeded by slow marches towards +Marcianopolis, the capital of the Lower Mæsia, about seventy miles from +the banks of the Danube. On that fatal spot, the flames of discord and +mutual hatred burst forth into a dreadful conflagration. Lupicinus had +invited the Gothic chiefs to a splendid entertainment; and their martial +train remained under arms at the entrance of the palace. But the gates +of the city were strictly guarded, and the Barbarians were sternly +excluded from the use of a plentiful market, to which they asserted +their equal claim of subjects and allies. Their humble prayers were +rejected with insolence and derision; and as their patience was now +exhausted, the townsmen, the soldiers, and the Goths, were soon involved +in a conflict of passionate altercation and angry reproaches. A blow was +imprudently given; a sword was hastily drawn; and the first blood that +was spilt in this accidental quarrel, became the signal of a long +and destructive war. In the midst of noise and brutal intemperance, +Lupicinus was informed, by a secret messenger, that many of his soldiers +were slain, and despoiled of their arms; and as he was already inflamed +by wine, and oppressed by sleep he issued a rash command, that their +death should be revenged by the massacre of the guards of Fritigern and +Alavivus. The clamorous shouts and dying groans apprised Fritigern of +his extreme danger; and, as he possessed the calm and intrepid spirit of +a hero, he saw that he was lost if he allowed a moment of deliberation +to the man who had so deeply injured him. "A trifling dispute," said the +Gothic leader, with a firm but gentle tone of voice, "appears to have +arisen between the two nations; but it may be productive of the most +dangerous consequences, unless the tumult is immediately pacified by the +assurance of our safety, and the authority of our presence." At these +words, Fritigern and his companions drew their swords, opened their +passage through the unresisting crowd, which filled the palace, the +streets, and the gates, of Marcianopolis, and, mounting their horses, +hastily vanished from the eyes of the astonished Romans. The generals +of the Goths were saluted by the fierce and joyful acclamations of +the camp; war was instantly resolved, and the resolution was executed +without delay: the banners of the nation were displayed according to +the custom of their ancestors; and the air resounded with the harsh and +mournful music of the Barbarian trumpet. The weak and guilty Lupicinus, +who had dared to provoke, who had neglected to destroy, and who still +presumed to despise, his formidable enemy, marched against the Goths, at +the head of such a military force as could be collected on this sudden +emergency. The Barbarians expected his approach about nine miles from +Marcianopolis; and on this occasion the talents of the general were +found to be of more prevailing efficacy than the weapons and discipline +of the troops. The valor of the Goths was so ably directed by the genius +of Fritigern, that they broke, by a close and vigorous attack, the +ranks of the Roman legions. Lupicinus left his arms and standards, his +tribunes and his bravest soldiers, on the field of battle; and their +useless courage served only to protect the ignominious flight of +their leader. "That successful day put an end to the distress of the +Barbarians, and the security of the Romans: from that day, the Goths, +renouncing the precarious condition of strangers and exiles, assumed the +character of citizens and masters, claimed an absolute dominion over the +possessors of land, and held, in their own right, the northern provinces +of the empire, which are bounded by the Danube." Such are the words of +the Gothic historian, who celebrates, with rude eloquence, the glory of +his countrymen. But the dominion of the Barbarians was exercised only +for the purposes of rapine and destruction. As they had been deprived, +by the ministers of the emperor, of the common benefits of nature, and +the fair intercourse of social life, they retaliated the injustice on +the subjects of the empire; and the crimes of Lupicinus were expiated +by the ruin of the peaceful husbandmen of Thrace, the conflagration +of their villages, and the massacre, or captivity, of their innocent +families. The report of the Gothic victory was soon diffused over the +adjacent country; and while it filled the minds of the Romans with +terror and dismay, their own hasty imprudence contributed to increase +the forces of Fritigern, and the calamities of the province. Some time +before the great emigration, a numerous body of Goths, under the command +of Suerid and Colias, had been received into the protection and service +of the empire. They were encamped under the walls of Hadrianople; +but the ministers of Valens were anxious to remove them beyond the +Hellespont, at a distance from the dangerous temptation which might so +easily be communicated by the neighborhood, and the success, of their +countrymen. The respectful submission with which they yielded to the +order of their march, might be considered as a proof of their fidelity; +and their moderate request of a sufficient allowance of provisions, and +of a delay of only two days was expressed in the most dutiful terms. But +the first magistrate of Hadrianople, incensed by some disorders which +had been committed at his country-house, refused this indulgence; and +arming against them the inhabitants and manufacturers of a populous +city, he urged, with hostile threats, their instant departure. The +Barbarians stood silent and amazed, till they were exasperated by +the insulting clamors, and missile weapons, of the populace: but when +patience or contempt was fatigued, they crushed the undisciplined +multitude, inflicted many a shameful wound on the backs of their flying +enemies, and despoiled them of the splendid armor, which they were +unworthy to bear. The resemblance of their sufferings and their actions +soon united this victorious detachment to the nation of the Visigoths; +the troops of Colias and Suerid expected the approach of the great +Fritigern, ranged themselves under his standard, and signalized their +ardor in the siege of Hadrianople. But the resistance of the garrison +informed the Barbarians, that in the attack of regular fortifications, +the efforts of unskillful courage are seldom effectual. Their general +acknowledged his error, raised the siege, declared that "he was at +peace with stone walls," and revenged his disappointment on the adjacent +country. He accepted, with pleasure, the useful reenforcement of hardy +workmen, who labored in the gold mines of Thrace, for the emolument, +and under the lash, of an unfeeling master: and these new associates +conducted the Barbarians, through the secret paths, to the most +sequestered places, which had been chosen to secure the inhabitants, the +cattle, and the magazines of corn. With the assistance of such guides, +nothing could remain impervious or inaccessible; resistance was fatal; +flight was impracticable; and the patient submission of helpless +innocence seldom found mercy from the Barbarian conqueror. In the course +of these depredations, a great number of the children of the Goths, who +had been sold into captivity, were restored to the embraces of their +afflicted parents; but these tender interviews, which might have revived +and cherished in their minds some sentiments of humanity, tended only +to stimulate their native fierceness by the desire of revenge. They +listened, with eager attention, to the complaints of their captive +children, who had suffered the most cruel indignities from the lustful +or angry passions of their masters, and the same cruelties, the same +indignities, were severely retaliated on the sons and daughters of the +Romans. + +The imprudence of Valens and his ministers had introduced into the heart +of the empire a nation of enemies; but the Visigoths might even yet have +been reconciled, by the manly confession of past errors, and the sincere +performance of former engagements. These healing and temperate measures +seemed to concur with the timorous disposition of the sovereign of +the East: but, on this occasion alone, Valens was brave; and his +unseasonable bravery was fatal to himself and to his subjects. He +declared his intention of marching from Antioch to Constantinople, to +subdue this dangerous rebellion; and, as he was not ignorant of the +difficulties of the enterprise, he solicited the assistance of his +nephew, the emperor Gratian, who commanded all the forces of the West. +The veteran troops were hastily recalled from the defence of Armenia; +that important frontier was abandoned to the discretion of Sapor; +and the immediate conduct of the Gothic war was intrusted, during +the absence of Valens, to his lieutenants Trajan and Profuturus, two +generals who indulged themselves in a very false and favorable opinion +of their own abilities. On their arrival in Thrace, they were joined by +Richomer, count of the domestics; and the auxiliaries of the West, that +marched under his banner, were composed of the Gallic legions, reduced +indeed, by a spirit of desertion, to the vain appearances of strength +and numbers. In a council of war, which was influenced by pride, +rather than by reason, it was resolved to seek, and to encounter, the +Barbarians, who lay encamped in the spacious and fertile meadows, +near the most southern of the six mouths of the Danube. Their camp was +surrounded by the usual fortification of wagons; and the Barbarians, +secure within the vast circle of the enclosure, enjoyed the fruits of +their valor, and the spoils of the province. In the midst of riotous +intemperance, the watchful Fritigern observed the motions, and +penetrated the designs, of the Romans. He perceived, that the numbers +of the enemy were continually increasing: and, as he understood their +intention of attacking his rear, as soon as the scarcity of forage +should oblige him to remove his camp, he recalled to their standard his +predatory detachments, which covered the adjacent country. As soon as +they descried the flaming beacons, they obeyed, with incredible speed, +the signal of their leader: the camp was filled with the martial crowd +of Barbarians; their impatient clamors demanded the battle, and their +tumultuous zeal was approved and animated by the spirit of their chiefs. +The evening was already far advanced; and the two armies prepared +themselves for the approaching combat, which was deferred only till the +dawn of day. While the trumpets sounded to arms, the undaunted courage +of the Goths was confirmed by the mutual obligation of a solemn oath; +and as they advanced to meet the enemy, the rude songs, which celebrated +the glory of their forefathers, were mingled with their fierce and +dissonant outcries, and opposed to the artificial harmony of the Roman +shout. Some military skill was displayed by Fritigern to gain the +advantage of a commanding eminence; but the bloody conflict, which began +and ended with the light, was maintained on either side, by the personal +and obstinate efforts of strength, valor, and agility. The legions of +Armenia supported their fame in arms; but they were oppressed by the +irresistible weight of the hostile multitude the left wing of the Romans +was thrown into disorder and the field was strewed with their mangled +carcasses. This partial defeat was balanced, however, by partial +success; and when the two armies, at a late hour of the evening, +retreated to their respective camps, neither of them could claim the +honors, or the effects, of a decisive victory. The real loss was more +severely felt by the Romans, in proportion to the smallness of their +numbers; but the Goths were so deeply confounded and dismayed by this +vigorous, and perhaps unexpected, resistance, that they remained seven +days within the circle of their fortifications. Such funeral rites, as +the circumstances of time and place would admit, were piously discharged +to some officers of distinguished rank; but the indiscriminate vulgar +was left unburied on the plain. Their flesh was greedily devoured by +the birds of prey, who in that age enjoyed very frequent and delicious +feasts; and several years afterwards the white and naked bones, which +covered the wide extent of the fields, presented to the eyes of Ammianus +a dreadful monument of the battle of Salices. + +The progress of the Goths had been checked by the doubtful event of +that bloody day; and the Imperial generals, whose army would have been +consumed by the repetition of such a contest, embraced the more rational +plan of destroying the Barbarians by the wants and pressure of their own +multitudes. They prepared to confine the Visigoths in the narrow angle +of land between the Danube, the desert of Scythia, and the mountains of +Hæmus, till their strength and spirit should be insensibly wasted by +the inevitable operation of famine. The design was prosecuted with +some conduct and success: the Barbarians had almost exhausted their +own magazines, and the harvests of the country; and the diligence of +Saturninus, the master-general of the cavalry, was employed to improve +the strength, and to contract the extent, of the Roman fortifications. +His labors were interrupted by the alarming intelligence, that new +swarms of Barbarians had passed the unguarded Danube, either to +support the cause, or to imitate the example, of Fritigern. The just +apprehension, that he himself might be surrounded, and overwhelmed, +by the arms of hostile and unknown nations, compelled Saturninus to +relinquish the siege of the Gothic camp; and the indignant Visigoths, +breaking from their confinement, satiated their hunger and revenge by +the repeated devastation of the fruitful country, which extends above +three hundred miles from the banks of the Danube to the straits of the +Hellespont. The sagacious Fritigern had successfully appealed to the +passions, as well as to the interest, of his Barbarian allies; and the +love of rapine, and the hatred of Rome, seconded, or even prevented, the +eloquence of his ambassadors. He cemented a strict and useful alliance +with the great body of his countrymen, who obeyed Alatheus and Saphrax +as the guardians of their infant king: the long animosity of rival +tribes was suspended by the sense of their common interest; the +independent part of the nation was associated under one standard; and +the chiefs of the Ostrogoths appear to have yielded to the superior +genius of the general of the Visigoths. He obtained the formidable aid +of the Taifalæ, * whose military renown was disgraced and polluted +by the public infamy of their domestic manners. Every youth, on his +entrance into the world, was united by the ties of honorable friendship, +and brutal love, to some warrior of the tribe; nor could he hope to +be released from this unnatural connection, till he had approved his +manhood by slaying, in single combat, a huge bear, or a wild boar of the +forest. But the most powerful auxiliaries of the Goths were drawn from +the camp of those enemies who had expelled them from their native seats. +The loose subordination, and extensive possessions, of the Huns and +the Alani, delayed the conquests, and distracted the councils, of that +victorious people. Several of the hords were allured by the liberal +promises of Fritigern; and the rapid cavalry of Scythia added weight and +energy to the steady and strenuous efforts of the Gothic infantry. +The Sarmatians, who could never forgive the successor of Valentinian, +enjoyed and increased the general confusion; and a seasonable irruption +of the Alemanni, into the provinces of Gaul, engaged the attention, and +diverted the forces, of the emperor of the West. + + + +Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.--Part IV. + +One of the most dangerous inconveniences of the introduction of the +Barbarians into the army and the palace, was sensibly felt in their +correspondence with their hostile countrymen; to whom they imprudently, +or maliciously, revealed the weakness of the Roman empire. A soldier, of +the lifeguards of Gratian, was of the nation of the Alemanni, and of the +tribe of the Lentienses, who dwelt beyond the Lake of Constance. Some +domestic business obliged him to request a leave of absence. In a +short visit to his family and friends, he was exposed to their curious +inquiries: and the vanity of the loquacious soldier tempted him to +display his intimate acquaintance with the secrets of the state, and the +designs of his master. The intelligence, that Gratian was preparing to +lead the military force of Gaul, and of the West, to the assistance of +his uncle Valens, pointed out to the restless spirit of the Alemanni the +moment, and the mode, of a successful invasion. The enterprise of some +light detachments, who, in the month of February, passed the Rhine upon +the ice, was the prelude of a more important war. The boldest hopes +of rapine, perhaps of conquest, outweighed the considerations of timid +prudence, or national faith. Every forest, and every village, poured +forth a band of hardy adventurers; and the great army of the Alemanni, +which, on their approach, was estimated at forty thousand men by the +fears of the people, was afterwards magnified to the number of seventy +thousand by the vain and credulous flattery of the Imperial court. The +legions, which had been ordered to march into Pannonia, were immediately +recalled, or detained, for the defence of Gaul; the military command +was divided between Nanienus and Mellobaudes; and the youthful emperor, +though he respected the long experience and sober wisdom of the former, +was much more inclined to admire, and to follow, the martial ardor of +his colleague; who was allowed to unite the incompatible characters of +count of the domestics, and of king of the Franks. His rival Priarius, +king of the Alemanni, was guided, or rather impelled, by the same +headstrong valor; and as their troops were animated by the spirit of +their leaders, they met, they saw, they encountered each other, near the +town of Argentaria, or Colmar, in the plains of Alsace. The glory of +the day was justly ascribed to the missile weapons, and well-practised +evolutions, of the Roman soldiers; the Alemanni, who long maintained +their ground, were slaughtered with unrelenting fury; five thousand only +of the Barbarians escaped to the woods and mountains; and the glorious +death of their king on the field of battle saved him from the reproaches +of the people, who are always disposed to accuse the justice, or policy, +of an unsuccessful war. After this signal victory, which secured the +peace of Gaul, and asserted the honor of the Roman arms, the emperor +Gratian appeared to proceed without delay on his Eastern expedition; but +as he approached the confines of the Alemanni, he suddenly inclined to +the left, surprised them by his unexpected passage of the Rhine, and +boldly advanced into the heart of their country. The Barbarians opposed +to his progress the obstacles of nature and of courage; and still +continued to retreat, from one hill to another, till they were +satisfied, by repeated trials, of the power and perseverance of their +enemies. Their submission was accepted as a proof, not indeed of their +sincere repentance, but of their actual distress; and a select number of +their brave and robust youth was exacted from the faithless nation, as +the most substantial pledge of their future moderation. The subjects of +the empire, who had so often experienced that the Alemanni could neither +be subdued by arms, nor restrained by treaties, might not promise +themselves any solid or lasting tranquillity: but they discovered, +in the virtues of their young sovereign, the prospect of a long and +auspicious reign. When the legions climbed the mountains, and scaled the +fortifications of the Barbarians, the valor of Gratian was distinguished +in the foremost ranks; and the gilt and variegated armor of his guards +was pierced and shattered by the blows which they had received in their +constant attachment to the person of their sovereign. At the age of +nineteen, the son of Valentinian seemed to possess the talents of peace +and war; and his personal success against the Alemanni was interpreted +as a sure presage of his Gothic triumphs. + +While Gratian deserved and enjoyed the applause of his subjects, the +emperor Valens, who, at length, had removed his court and army from +Antioch, was received by the people of Constantinople as the author +of the public calamity. Before he had reposed himself ten days in the +capital, he was urged by the licentious clamors of the Hippodrome to +march against the Barbarians, whom he had invited into his dominions; +and the citizens, who are always brave at a distance from any real +danger, declared, with confidence, that, if they were supplied with +arms, they alone would undertake to deliver the province from the +ravages of an insulting foe. The vain reproaches of an ignorant +multitude hastened the downfall of the Roman empire; they provoked the +desperate rashness of Valens; who did not find, either in his reputation +or in his mind, any motives to support with firmness the public +contempt. He was soon persuaded, by the successful achievements of his +lieutenants, to despise the power of the Goths, who, by the diligence +of Fritigern, were now collected in the neighborhood of Hadrianople. The +march of the Taifalæ had been intercepted by the valiant Frigerid: +the king of those licentious Barbarians was slain in battle; and the +suppliant captives were sent into distant exile to cultivate the +lands of Italy, which were assigned for their settlement in the vacant +territories of Modena and Parma. The exploits of Sebastian, who was +recently engaged in the service of Valens, and promoted to the rank of +master-general of the infantry, were still more honorable to himself, +and useful to the republic. He obtained the permission of selecting +three hundred soldiers from each of the legions; and this separate +detachment soon acquired the spirit of discipline, and the exercise +of arms, which were almost forgotten under the reign of Valens. By the +vigor and conduct of Sebastian, a large body of the Goths were surprised +in their camp; and the immense spoil, which was recovered from their +hands, filled the city of Hadrianople, and the adjacent plain. The +splendid narratives, which the general transmitted of his own exploits, +alarmed the Imperial court by the appearance of superior merit; and +though he cautiously insisted on the difficulties of the Gothic war, +his valor was praised, his advice was rejected; and Valens, who listened +with pride and pleasure to the flattering suggestions of the eunuchs +of the palace, was impatient to seize the glory of an easy and assured +conquest. His army was strengthened by a numerous reenforcement of +veterans; and his march from Constantinople to Hadrianople was conducted +with so much military skill, that he prevented the activity of the +Barbarians, who designed to occupy the intermediate defiles, and to +intercept either the troops themselves, or their convoys of provisions. +The camp of Valens, which he pitched under the walls of Hadrianople, +was fortified, according to the practice of the Romans, with a ditch and +rampart; and a most important council was summoned, to decide the fate +of the emperor and of the empire. The party of reason and of delay was +strenuously maintained by Victor, who had corrected, by the lessons +of experience, the native fierceness of the Sarmatian character; while +Sebastian, with the flexible and obsequious eloquence of a courtier, +represented every precaution, and every measure, that implied a doubt +of immediate victory, as unworthy of the courage and majesty of their +invincible monarch. The ruin of Valens was precipitated by the deceitful +arts of Fritigern, and the prudent admonitions of the emperor of the +West. The advantages of negotiating in the midst of war were +perfectly understood by the general of the Barbarians; and a Christian +ecclesiastic was despatched, as the holy minister of peace, to +penetrate, and to perplex, the councils of the enemy. The misfortunes, +as well as the provocations, of the Gothic nation, were forcibly and +truly described by their ambassador; who protested, in the name of +Fritigern, that he was still disposed to lay down his arms, or to employ +them only in the defence of the empire; if he could secure for his +wandering countrymen a tranquil settlement on the waste lands of Thrace, +and a sufficient allowance of corn and cattle. But he added, in a +whisper of confidential friendship, that the exasperated Barbarians were +averse to these reasonable conditions; and that Fritigern was doubtful +whether he could accomplish the conclusion of the treaty, unless he +found himself supported by the presence and terrors of an Imperial army. +About the same time, Count Richomer returned from the West to announce +the defeat and submission of the Alemanni, to inform Valens that +his nephew advanced by rapid marches at the head of the veteran and +victorious legions of Gaul, and to request, in the name of Gratian and +of the republic, that every dangerous and decisive measure might be +suspended, till the junction of the two emperors should insure the +success of the Gothic war. But the feeble sovereign of the East was +actuated only by the fatal illusions of pride and jealousy. He disdained +the importunate advice; he rejected the humiliating aid; he secretly +compared the ignominious, at least the inglorious, period of his own +reign, with the fame of a beardless youth; and Valens rushed into +the field, to erect his imaginary trophy, before the diligence of his +colleague could usurp any share of the triumphs of the day. + +On the ninth of August, a day which has deserved to be marked among the +most inauspicious of the Roman Calendar, the emperor Valens, leaving, +under a strong guard, his baggage and military treasure, marched from +Hadrianople to attack the Goths, who were encamped about twelve miles +from the city. By some mistake of the orders, or some ignorance of the +ground, the right wing, or column of cavalry arrived in sight of +the enemy, whilst the left was still at a considerable distance; the +soldiers were compelled, in the sultry heat of summer, to precipitate +their pace; and the line of battle was formed with tedious confusion and +irregular delay. The Gothic cavalry had been detached to forage in +the adjacent country; and Fritigern still continued to practise his +customary arts. He despatched messengers of peace, made proposals, +required hostages, and wasted the hours, till the Romans, exposed +without shelter to the burning rays of the sun, were exhausted by +thirst, hunger, and intolerable fatigue. The emperor was persuaded to +send an ambassador to the Gothic camp; the zeal of Richomer, who alone +had courage to accept the dangerous commission, was applauded; and +the count of the domestics, adorned with the splendid ensigns of his +dignity, had proceeded some way in the space between the two armies, +when he was suddenly recalled by the alarm of battle. The hasty and +imprudent attack was made by Bacurius the Iberian, who commanded a body +of archers and targiteers; and as they advanced with rashness, they +retreated with loss and disgrace. In the same moment, the flying +squadrons of Alatheus and Saphrax, whose return was anxiously expected +by the general of the Goths, descended like a whirlwind from the hills, +swept across the plain, and added new terrors to the tumultuous, but +irresistible charge of the Barbarian host. The event of the battle of +Hadrianople, so fatal to Valens and to the empire, may be described in +a few words: the Roman cavalry fled; the infantry was abandoned, +surrounded, and cut in pieces. The most skilful evolutions, the +firmest courage, are scarcely sufficient to extricate a body of foot, +encompassed, on an open plain, by superior numbers of horse; but the +troops of Valens, oppressed by the weight of the enemy and their own +fears, were crowded into a narrow space, where it was impossible for +them to extend their ranks, or even to use, with effect, their swords +and javelins. In the midst of tumult, of slaughter, and of dismay, the +emperor, deserted by his guards and wounded, as it was supposed, with +an arrow, sought protection among the Lancearii and the Mattiarii, +who still maintained their ground with some appearance of order and +firmness. His faithful generals, Trajan and Victor, who perceived his +danger, loudly exclaimed that all was lost, unless the person of the +emperor could be saved. Some troops, animated by their exhortation, +advanced to his relief: they found only a bloody spot, covered with a +heap of broken arms and mangled bodies, without being able to discover +their unfortunate prince, either among the living or the dead. Their +search could not indeed be successful, if there is any truth in the +circumstances with which some historians have related the death of the +emperor. By the care of his attendants, Valens was removed from the +field of battle to a neighboring cottage, where they attempted to dress +his wound, and to provide for his future safety. But this humble retreat +was instantly surrounded by the enemy: they tried to force the door, +they were provoked by a discharge of arrows from the roof, till at +length, impatient of delay, they set fire to a pile of dry fagots, +and consumed the cottage with the Roman emperor and his train. Valens +perished in the flames; and a youth, who dropped from the window, alone +escaped, to attest the melancholy tale, and to inform the Goths of the +inestimable prize which they had lost by their own rashness. A great +number of brave and distinguished officers perished in the battle of +Hadrianople, which equalled in the actual loss, and far surpassed in the +fatal consequences, the misfortune which Rome had formerly sustained in +the fields of Cannæ. Two master-generals of the cavalry and infantry, +two great officers of the palace, and thirty-five tribunes, were found +among the slain; and the death of Sebastian might satisfy the world, +that he was the victim, as well as the author, of the public calamity. +Above two thirds of the Roman army were destroyed: and the darkness of +the night was esteemed a very favorable circumstance, as it served to +conceal the flight of the multitude, and to protect the more orderly +retreat of Victor and Richomer, who alone, amidst the general +consternation, maintained the advantage of calm courage and regular +discipline. + +While the impressions of grief and terror were still recent in the minds +of men, the most celebrated rhetorician of the age composed the funeral +oration of a vanquished army, and of an unpopular prince, whose throne +was already occupied by a stranger. "There are not wanting," says the +candid Libanius, "those who arraign the prudence of the emperor, or who +impute the public misfortune to the want of courage and discipline in +the troops. For my own part, I reverence the memory of their former +exploits: I reverence the glorious death, which they bravely received, +standing, and fighting in their ranks: I reverence the field of battle, +stained with their blood, and the blood of the Barbarians. Those +honorable marks have been already washed away by the rains; but the +lofty monuments of their bones, the bones of generals, of centurions, +and of valiant warriors, claim a longer period of duration. The king +himself fought and fell in the foremost ranks of the battle. His +attendants presented him with the fleetest horses of the Imperial +stable, that would soon have carried him beyond the pursuit of the +enemy. They vainly pressed him to reserve his important life for the +future service of the republic. He still declared that he was unworthy +to survive so many of the bravest and most faithful of his subjects; and +the monarch was nobly buried under a mountain of the slain. Let none, +therefore, presume to ascribe the victory of the Barbarians to the fear, +the weakness, or the imprudence, of the Roman troops. The chiefs and +the soldiers were animated by the virtue of their ancestors, whom they +equalled in discipline and the arts of war. Their generous emulation was +supported by the love of glory, which prompted them to contend at the +same time with heat and thirst, with fire and the sword; and cheerfully +to embrace an honorable death, as their refuge against flight and +infamy. The indignation of the gods has been the only cause of the +success of our enemies." The truth of history may disclaim some parts of +this panegyric, which cannot strictly be reconciled with the character +of Valens, or the circumstances of the battle: but the fairest +commendation is due to the eloquence, and still more to the generosity, +of the sophist of Antioch. + +The pride of the Goths was elated by this memorable victory; but their +avarice was disappointed by the mortifying discovery, that the richest +part of the Imperial spoil had been within the walls of Hadrianople. +They hastened to possess the reward of their valor; but they were +encountered by the remains of a vanquished army, with an intrepid +resolution, which was the effect of their despair, and the only hope of +their safety. The walls of the city, and the ramparts of the adjacent +camp, were lined with military engines, that threw stones of an enormous +weight; and astonished the ignorant Barbarians by the noise, and +velocity, still more than by the real effects, of the discharge. The +soldiers, the citizens, the provincials, the domestics of the palace, +were united in the danger, and in the defence: the furious assault of +the Goths was repulsed; their secret arts of treachery and treason were +discovered; and, after an obstinate conflict of many hours, they retired +to their tents; convinced, by experience, that it would be far more +advisable to observe the treaty, which their sagacious leader had +tacitly stipulated with the fortifications of great and populous cities. +After the hasty and impolitic massacre of three hundred deserters, an +act of justice extremely useful to the discipline of the Roman armies, +the Goths indignantly raised the siege of Hadrianople. The scene of war +and tumult was instantly converted into a silent solitude: the multitude +suddenly disappeared; the secret paths of the woods and mountains were +marked with the footsteps of the trembling fugitives, who sought +a refuge in the distant cities of Illyricum and Macedonia; and the +faithful officers of the household, and the treasury, cautiously +proceeded in search of the emperor, of whose death they were still +ignorant. The tide of the Gothic inundation rolled from the walls +of Hadrianople to the suburbs of Constantinople. The Barbarians were +surprised with the splendid appearance of the capital of the East, the +height and extent of the walls, the myriads of wealthy and affrighted +citizens who crowded the ramparts, and the various prospect of the sea +and land. While they gazed with hopeless desire on the inaccessible +beauties of Constantinople, a sally was made from one of the gates by +a party of Saracens, who had been fortunately engaged in the service +of Valens. The cavalry of Scythia was forced to yield to the admirable +swiftness and spirit of the Arabian horses: their riders were skilled +in the evolutions of irregular war; and the Northern Barbarians were +astonished and dismayed, by the inhuman ferocity of the Barbarians of +the South. A Gothic soldier was slain by the dagger of an Arab; and the +hairy, naked savage, applying his lips to the wound, expressed a horrid +delight, while he sucked the blood of his vanquished enemy. The army of +the Goths, laden with the spoils of the wealthy suburbs and the adjacent +territory, slowly moved, from the Bosphorus, to the mountains which form +the western boundary of Thrace. The important pass of Succi was betrayed +by the fear, or the misconduct, of Maurus; and the Barbarians, who no +longer had any resistance to apprehend from the scattered and vanquished +troops of the East, spread themselves over the face of a fertile and +cultivated country, as far as the confines of Italy and the Hadriatic +Sea. + +The Romans, who so coolly, and so concisely, mention the acts of justice +which were exercised by the legions, reserve their compassion, and their +eloquence, for their own sufferings, when the provinces were invaded, +and desolated, by the arms of the successful Barbarians. The simple +circumstantial narrative (did such a narrative exist) of the ruin of +a single town, of the misfortunes of a single family, might exhibit an +interesting and instructive picture of human manners: but the tedious +repetition of vague and declamatory complaints would fatigue the +attention of the most patient reader. The same censure may be applied, +though not perhaps in an equal degree, to the profane, and the +ecclesiastical, writers of this unhappy period; that their minds were +inflamed by popular and religious animosity; and that the true size and +color of every object is falsified by the exaggerations of their corrupt +eloquence. The vehement Jerom might justly deplore the calamities +inflicted by the Goths, and their barbarous allies, on his native +country of Pannonia, and the wide extent of the provinces, from the +walls of Constantinople to the foot of the Julian Alps; the rapes, the +massacres, the conflagrations; and, above all, the profanation of the +churches, that were turned into stables, and the contemptuous treatment +of the relics of holy martyrs. But the Saint is surely transported +beyond the limits of nature and history, when he affirms, "that, in +those desert countries, nothing was left except the sky and the earth; +that, after the destruction of the cities, and the extirpation of the +human race, the land was overgrown with thick forests and inextricable +brambles; and that the universal desolation, announced by the prophet +Zephaniah, was accomplished, in the scarcity of the beasts, the birds, +and even of the fish." These complaints were pronounced about twenty +years after the death of Valens; and the Illyrian provinces, which were +constantly exposed to the invasion and passage of the Barbarians, still +continued, after a calamitous period of ten centuries, to supply new +materials for rapine and destruction. Could it even be supposed, that +a large tract of country had been left without cultivation and without +inhabitants, the consequences might not have been so fatal to the +inferior productions of animated nature. The useful and feeble animals, +which are nourished by the hand of man, might suffer and perish, if +they were deprived of his protection; but the beasts of the forest, +his enemies or his victims, would multiply in the free and undisturbed +possession of their solitary domain. The various tribes that people the +air, or the waters, are still less connected with the fate of the human +species; and it is highly probable that the fish of the Danube would +have felt more terror and distress, from the approach of a voracious +pike, than from the hostile inroad of a Gothic army. + + + +Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.--Part V. + +Whatever may have been the just measure of the calamities of Europe, +there was reason to fear that the same calamities would soon extend +to the peaceful countries of Asia. The sons of the Goths had been +judiciously distributed through the cities of the East; and the arts of +education were employed to polish, and subdue, the native fierceness +of their temper. In the space of about twelve years, their numbers had +continually increased; and the children, who, in the first emigration, +were sent over the Hellespont, had attained, with rapid growth, the +strength and spirit of perfect manhood. It was impossible to conceal +from their knowledge the events of the Gothic war; and, as those daring +youths had not studied the language of dissimulation, they betrayed +their wish, their desire, perhaps their intention, to emulate the +glorious example of their fathers The danger of the times seemed to +justify the jealous suspicions of the provincials; and these suspicions +were admitted as unquestionable evidence, that the Goths of Asia had +formed a secret and dangerous conspiracy against the public safety. The +death of Valens had left the East without a sovereign; and Julius, who +filled the important station of master-general of the troops, with a +high reputation of diligence and ability, thought it his duty to consult +the senate of Constantinople; which he considered, during the vacancy of +the throne, as the representative council of the nation. As soon as he +had obtained the discretionary power of acting as he should judge most +expedient for the good of the republic, he assembled the principal +officers, and privately concerted effectual measures for the execution +of his bloody design. An order was immediately promulgated, that, on a +stated day, the Gothic youth should assemble in the capital cities +of their respective provinces; and, as a report was industriously +circulated, that they were summoned to receive a liberal gift of lands +and money, the pleasing hope allayed the fury of their resentment, and, +perhaps, suspended the motions of the conspiracy. On the appointed day, +the unarmed crowd of the Gothic youth was carefully collected in the +square or Forum; the streets and avenues were occupied by the Roman +troops, and the roofs of the houses were covered with archers and +slingers. At the same hour, in all the cities of the East, the signal +was given of indiscriminate slaughter; and the provinces of Asia were +delivered by the cruel prudence of Julius, from a domestic enemy, who, +in a few months, might have carried fire and sword from the Hellespont +to the Euphrates. The urgent consideration of the public safety may +undoubtedly authorize the violation of every positive law. How far +that, or any other, consideration may operate to dissolve the natural +obligations of humanity and justice, is a doctrine of which I still +desire to remain ignorant. + +The emperor Gratian was far advanced on his march towards the plains +of Hadrianople, when he was informed, at first by the confused voice +of fame, and afterwards by the more accurate reports of Victor and +Richomer, that his impatient colleague had been slain in battle, and +that two thirds of the Roman army were exterminated by the sword of the +victorious Goths. Whatever resentment the rash and jealous vanity of his +uncle might deserve, the resentment of a generous mind is easily subdued +by the softer emotions of grief and compassion; and even the sense of +pity was soon lost in the serious and alarming consideration of the +state of the republic. Gratian was too late to assist, he was too weak +to revenge, his unfortunate colleague; and the valiant and modest youth +felt himself unequal to the support of a sinking world. A formidable +tempest of the Barbarians of Germany seemed ready to burst over the +provinces of Gaul; and the mind of Gratian was oppressed and distracted +by the administration of the Western empire. In this important crisis, +the government of the East, and the conduct of the Gothic war, required +the undivided attention of a hero and a statesman. A subject invested +with such ample command would not long have preserved his fidelity to a +distant benefactor; and the Imperial council embraced the wise and manly +resolution of conferring an obligation, rather than of yielding to an +insult. It was the wish of Gratian to bestow the purple as the reward +of virtue; but, at the age of nineteen, it is not easy for a prince, +educated in the supreme rank, to understand the true characters of his +ministers and generals. He attempted to weigh, with an impartial hand, +their various merits and defects; and, whilst he checked the rash +confidence of ambition, he distrusted the cautious wisdom which +despaired of the republic. As each moment of delay diminished something +of the power and resources of the future sovereign of the East, the +situation of the times would not allow a tedious debate. The choice of +Gratian was soon declared in favor of an exile, whose father, only three +years before, had suffered, under the sanction of his authority, an +unjust and ignominious death. The great Theodosius, a name celebrated in +history, and dear to the Catholic church, was summoned to the Imperial +court, which had gradually retreated from the confines of Thrace to the +more secure station of Sirmium. Five months after the death of Valens, +the emperor Gratian produced before the assembled troops his colleague +and their master; who, after a modest, perhaps a sincere, resistance, +was compelled to accept, amidst the general acclamations, the diadem, +the purple, and the equal title of Augustus. The provinces of Thrace, +Asia, and Egypt, over which Valens had reigned, were resigned to the +administration of the new emperor; but, as he was specially intrusted +with the conduct of the Gothic war, the Illyrian præfecture was +dismembered; and the two great dioceses of Dacia and Macedonia were +added to the dominions of the Eastern empire. + +The same province, and perhaps the same city, which had given to the +throne the virtues of Trajan, and the talents of Hadrian, was the +original seat of another family of Spaniards, who, in a less fortunate +age, possessed, near fourscore years, the declining empire of Rome. They +emerged from the obscurity of municipal honors by the active spirit of +the elder Theodosius, a general whose exploits in Britain and Africa +have formed one of the most splendid parts of the annals of Valentinian. +The son of that general, who likewise bore the name of Theodosius, was +educated, by skilful preceptors, in the liberal studies of youth; but +he was instructed in the art of war by the tender care and severe +discipline of his father. Under the standard of such a leader, young +Theodosius sought glory and knowledge, in the most distant scenes of +military action; inured his constitution to the difference of seasons +and climates; distinguished his valor by sea and land; and observed the +various warfare of the Scots, the Saxons, and the Moors. His own merit, +and the recommendation of the conqueror of Africa, soon raised him to a +separate command; and, in the station of Duke of Mæsia, he vanquished +an army of Sarmatians; saved the province; deserved the love of the +soldiers; and provoked the envy of the court. His rising fortunes were +soon blasted by the disgrace and execution of his illustrious father; +and Theodosius obtained, as a favor, the permission of retiring to a +private life in his native province of Spain. He displayed a firm and +temperate character in the ease with which he adapted himself to this +new situation. His time was almost equally divided between the town and +country; the spirit, which had animated his public conduct, was shown +in the active and affectionate performance of every social duty; and the +diligence of the soldier was profitably converted to the improvement of +his ample patrimony, which lay between Valladolid and Segovia, in the +midst of a fruitful district, still famous for a most exquisite breed of +sheep. From the innocent, but humble labors of his farm, Theodosius +was transported, in less than four months, to the throne of the Eastern +empire; and the whole period of the history of the world will not +perhaps afford a similar example, of an elevation at the same time so +pure and so honorable. The princes who peaceably inherit the sceptre of +their fathers, claim and enjoy a legal right, the more secure as it is +absolutely distinct from the merits of their personal characters. The +subjects, who, in a monarchy, or a popular state, acquire the possession +of supreme power, may have raised themselves, by the superiority either +of genius or virtue, above the heads of their equals; but their +virtue is seldom exempt from ambition; and the cause of the successful +candidate is frequently stained by the guilt of conspiracy, or civil +war. Even in those governments which allow the reigning monarch to +declare a colleague or a successor, his partial choice, which may be +influenced by the blindest passions, is often directed to an unworthy +object But the most suspicious malignity cannot ascribe to Theodosius, +in his obscure solitude of Caucha, the arts, the desires, or even the +hopes, of an ambitious statesman; and the name of the Exile would long +since have been forgotten, if his genuine and distinguished virtues had +not left a deep impression in the Imperial court. During the season +of prosperity, he had been neglected; but, in the public distress, his +superior merit was universally felt and acknowledged. What confidence +must have been reposed in his integrity, since Gratian could trust, that +a pious son would forgive, for the sake of the republic, the murder of +his father! What expectations must have been formed of his abilities +to encourage the hope, that a single man could save, and restore, the +empire of the East! Theodosius was invested with the purple in the +thirty-third year of his age. The vulgar gazed with admiration on the +manly beauty of his face, and the graceful majesty of his person, which +they were pleased to compare with the pictures and medals of the emperor +Trajan; whilst intelligent observers discovered, in the qualities of his +heart and understanding, a more important resemblance to the best and +greatest of the Roman princes. + +It is not without the most sincere regret, that I must now take leave of +an accurate and faithful guide, who has composed the history of his +own times, without indulging the prejudices and passions, which usually +affect the mind of a contemporary. Ammianus Marcellinus, who terminates +his useful work with the defeat and death of Valens, recommends the +more glorious subject of the ensuing reign to the youthful vigor and +eloquence of the rising generation. The rising generation was not +disposed to accept his advice or to imitate his example; and, in the +study of the reign of Theodosius, we are reduced to illustrate the +partial narrative of Zosimus, by the obscure hints of fragments and +chronicles, by the figurative style of poetry or panegyric, and by the +precarious assistance of the ecclesiastical writers, who, in the heat of +religious faction, are apt to despise the profane virtues of sincerity +and moderation. Conscious of these disadvantages, which will continue +to involve a considerable portion of the decline and fall of the Roman +empire, I shall proceed with doubtful and timorous steps. Yet I may +boldly pronounce, that the battle of Hadrianople was never revenged by +any signal or decisive victory of Theodosius over the Barbarians: and +the expressive silence of his venal orators may be confirmed by the +observation of the condition and circumstances of the times. The fabric +of a mighty state, which has been reared by the labors of successive +ages, could not be overturned by the misfortune of a single day, if the +fatal power of the imagination did not exaggerate the real measure of +the calamity. The loss of forty thousand Romans, who fell in the plains +of Hadrianople, might have been soon recruited in the populous provinces +of the East, which contained so many millions of inhabitants. The +courage of a soldier is found to be the cheapest, and most common, +quality of human nature; and sufficient skill to encounter an +undisciplined foe might have been speedily taught by the care of the +surviving centurions. If the Barbarians were mounted on the horses, and +equipped with the armor, of their vanquished enemies, the numerous studs +of Cappadocia and Spain would have supplied new squadrons of cavalry; +the thirty-four arsenals of the empire were plentifully stored with +magazines of offensive and defensive arms: and the wealth of Asia might +still have yielded an ample fund for the expenses of the war. But the +effects which were produced by the battle of Hadrianople on the minds +of the Barbarians and of the Romans, extended the victory of the former, +and the defeat of the latter, far beyond the limits of a single day. A +Gothic chief was heard to declare, with insolent moderation, that, for +his own part, he was fatigued with slaughter: but that he was astonished +how a people, who fled before him like a flock of sheep, could still +presume to dispute the possession of their treasures and provinces. +The same terrors which the name of the Huns had spread among the Gothic +tribes, were inspired, by the formidable name of the Goths, among +the subjects and soldiers of the Roman empire. If Theodosius, hastily +collecting his scattered forces, had led them into the field to +encounter a victorious enemy, his army would have been vanquished by +their own fears; and his rashness could not have been excused by +the chance of success. But the great Theodosius, an epithet which he +honorably deserved on this momentous occasion, conducted himself as the +firm and faithful guardian of the republic. He fixed his head-quarters +at Thessalonica, the capital of the Macedonian diocese; from whence +he could watch the irregular motions of the Barbarians, and direct the +operations of his lieutenants, from the gates of Constantinople to the +shores of the Hadriatic. The fortifications and garrisons of the cities +were strengthened; and the troops, among whom a sense of order and +discipline was revived, were insensibly emboldened by the confidence of +their own safety. From these secure stations, they were encouraged +to make frequent sallies on the Barbarians, who infested the adjacent +country; and, as they were seldom allowed to engage, without some +decisive superiority, either of ground or of numbers, their enterprises +were, for the most part, successful; and they were soon convinced, by +their own experience, of the possibility of vanquishing their invincible +enemies. The detachments of these separate garrisons were generally +united into small armies; the same cautious measures were pursued, +according to an extensive and well-concerted plan of operations; the +events of each day added strength and spirit to the Roman arms; and +the artful diligence of the emperor, who circulated the most favorable +reports of the success of the war, contributed to subdue the pride of +the Barbarians, and to animate the hopes and courage of his subjects. +If, instead of this faint and imperfect outline, we could accurately +represent the counsels and actions of Theodosius, in four successive +campaigns, there is reason to believe, that his consummate skill would +deserve the applause of every military reader. The republic had formerly +been saved by the delays of Fabius; and, while the splendid trophies of +Scipio, in the field of Zama, attract the eyes of posterity, the camps +and marches of the dictator among the hills of the Campania, may claim +a juster proportion of the solid and independent fame, which the general +is not compelled to share, either with fortune or with his troops. Such +was likewise the merit of Theodosius; and the infirmities of his body, +which most unseasonably languished under a long and dangerous disease, +could not oppress the vigor of his mind, or divert his attention from +the public service. + +The deliverance and peace of the Roman provinces was the work of +prudence, rather than of valor: the prudence of Theodosius was seconded +by fortune: and the emperor never failed to seize, and to improve, every +favorable circumstance. As long as the superior genius of Fritigern +preserved the union, and directed the motions of the Barbarians, their +power was not inadequate to the conquest of a great empire. The death of +that hero, the predecessor and master of the renowned Alaric, relieved +an impatient multitude from the intolerable yoke of discipline and +discretion. The Barbarians, who had been restrained by his authority, +abandoned themselves to the dictates of their passions; and their +passions were seldom uniform or consistent. An army of conquerors was +broken into many disorderly bands of savage robbers; and their blind +and irregular fury was not less pernicious to themselves, than to their +enemies. Their mischievous disposition was shown in the destruction of +every object which they wanted strength to remove, or taste to enjoy; +and they often consumed, with improvident rage, the harvests, or +the granaries, which soon afterwards became necessary for their own +subsistence. A spirit of discord arose among the independent tribes +and nations, which had been united only by the bands of a loose and +voluntary alliance. The troops of the Huns and the Alani would naturally +upbraid the flight of the Goths; who were not disposed to use with +moderation the advantages of their fortune; the ancient jealousy of +the Ostrogoths and the Visigoths could not long be suspended; and the +haughty chiefs still remembered the insults and injuries, which they had +reciprocally offered, or sustained, while the nation was seated in the +countries beyond the Danube. The progress of domestic faction abated +the more diffusive sentiment of national animosity; and the officers of +Theodosius were instructed to purchase, with liberal gifts and promises, +the retreat or service of the discontented party. The acquisition +of Modar, a prince of the royal blood of the Amali, gave a bold and +faithful champion to the cause of Rome. The illustrious deserter +soon obtained the rank of master-general, with an important command; +surprised an army of his countrymen, who were immersed in wine and +sleep; and, after a cruel slaughter of the astonished Goths, returned +with an immense spoil, and four thousand wagons, to the Imperial camp. +In the hands of a skilful politician, the most different means may be +successfully applied to the same ends; and the peace of the empire, +which had been forwarded by the divisions, was accomplished by the +reunion, of the Gothic nation. Athanaric, who had been a patient +spectator of these extraordinary events, was at length driven, by the +chance of arms, from the dark recesses of the woods of Caucaland. He no +longer hesitated to pass the Danube; and a very considerable part of the +subjects of Fritigern, who already felt the inconveniences of anarchy, +were easily persuaded to acknowledge for their king a Gothic Judge, +whose birth they respected, and whose abilities they had frequently +experienced. But age had chilled the daring spirit of Athanaric; and, +instead of leading his people to the field of battle and victory, he +wisely listened to the fair proposal of an honorable and advantageous +treaty. Theodosius, who was acquainted with the merit and power of his +new ally, condescended to meet him at the distance of several miles +from Constantinople; and entertained him in the Imperial city, with +the confidence of a friend, and the magnificence of a monarch. "The +Barbarian prince observed, with curious attention, the variety of +objects which attracted his notice, and at last broke out into a sincere +and passionate exclamation of wonder. I now behold (said he) what I +never could believe, the glories of this stupendous capital! And as +he cast his eyes around, he viewed, and he admired, the commanding +situation of the city, the strength and beauty of the walls and public +edifices, the capacious harbor, crowded with innumerable vessels, the +perpetual concourse of distant nations, and the arms and discipline of +the troops. Indeed, (continued Athanaric,) the emperor of the Romans is +a god upon earth; and the presumptuous man, who dares to lift his hand +against him, is guilty of his own blood." The Gothic king did not long +enjoy this splendid and honorable reception; and, as temperance was not +the virtue of his nation, it may justly be suspected, that his mortal +disease was contracted amidst the pleasures of the Imperial banquets. +But the policy of Theodosius derived more solid benefit from the death, +than he could have expected from the most faithful services, of his +ally. The funeral of Athanaric was performed with solemn rites in the +capital of the East; a stately monument was erected to his memory; +and his whole army, won by the liberal courtesy, and decent grief, +of Theodosius, enlisted under the standard of the Roman empire. The +submission of so great a body of the Visigoths was productive of the +most salutary consequences; and the mixed influence of force, of reason, +and of corruption, became every day more powerful, and more extensive. +Each independent chieftain hastened to obtain a separate treaty, from +the apprehension that an obstinate delay might expose him, alone and +unprotected, to the revenge, or justice, of the conqueror. The general, +or rather the final, capitulation of the Goths, may be dated four years, +one month, and twenty-five days, after the defeat and death of the +emperor Valens. + +The provinces of the Danube had been already relieved from the +oppressive weight of the Gruthungi, or Ostrogoths, by the voluntary +retreat of Alatheus and Saphrax, whose restless spirit had prompted them +to seek new scenes of rapine and glory. Their destructive course was +pointed towards the West; but we must be satisfied with a very obscure +and imperfect knowledge of their various adventures. The Ostrogoths +impelled several of the German tribes on the provinces of Gaul; +concluded, and soon violated, a treaty with the emperor Gratian; +advanced into the unknown countries of the North; and, after an interval +of more than four years, returned, with accumulated force, to the banks +of the Lower Danube. Their troops were recruited with the fiercest +warriors of Germany and Scythia; and the soldiers, or at least +the historians, of the empire, no longer recognized the name and +countenances of their former enemies. The general who commanded the +military and naval powers of the Thracian frontier, soon perceived that +his superiority would be disadvantageous to the public service; and that +the Barbarians, awed by the presence of his fleet and legions, would +probably defer the passage of the river till the approaching winter. The +dexterity of the spies, whom he sent into the Gothic camp, allured +the Barbarians into a fatal snare. They were persuaded that, by a bold +attempt, they might surprise, in the silence and darkness of the night, +the sleeping army of the Romans; and the whole multitude was hastily +embarked in a fleet of three thousand canoes. The bravest of the +Ostrogoths led the van; the main body consisted of the remainder +of their subjects and soldiers; and the women and children securely +followed in the rear. One of the nights without a moon had been selected +for the execution of their design; and they had almost reached the +southern bank of the Danube, in the firm confidence that they should +find an easy landing and an unguarded camp. But the progress of the +Barbarians was suddenly stopped by an unexpected obstacle a triple line +of vessels, strongly connected with each other, and which formed an +impenetrable chain of two miles and a half along the river. While they +struggled to force their way in the unequal conflict, their right flank +was overwhelmed by the irresistible attack of a fleet of galleys, which +were urged down the stream by the united impulse of oars and of the +tide. The weight and velocity of those ships of war broke, and sunk, and +dispersed, the rude and feeble canoes of the Barbarians; their valor +was ineffectual; and Alatheus, the king, or general, of the Ostrogoths, +perished with his bravest troops, either by the sword of the Romans, or +in the waves of the Danube. The last division of this unfortunate fleet +might regain the opposite shore; but the distress and disorder of the +multitude rendered them alike incapable, either of action or counsel; +and they soon implored the clemency of the victorious enemy. On this +occasion, as well as on many others, it is a difficult task to reconcile +the passions and prejudices of the writers of the age of Theodosius. The +partial and malignant historian, who misrepresents every action of his +reign, affirms, that the emperor did not appear in the field of battle +till the Barbarians had been vanquished by the valor and conduct of his +lieutenant Promotus. The flattering poet, who celebrated, in the court +of Honorius, the glory of the father and of the son, ascribes the +victory to the personal prowess of Theodosius; and almost insinuates, +that the king of the Ostrogoths was slain by the hand of the emperor. +The truth of history might perhaps be found in a just medium between +these extreme and contradictory assertions. + +The original treaty which fixed the settlement of the Goths, ascertained +their privileges, and stipulated their obligations, would illustrate the +history of Theodosius and his successors. The series of their history +has imperfectly preserved the spirit and substance of this single +agreement. The ravages of war and tyranny had provided many large tracts +of fertile but uncultivated land for the use of those Barbarians who +might not disdain the practice of agriculture. A numerous colony of +the Visigoths was seated in Thrace; the remains of the Ostrogoths were +planted in Phrygia and Lydia; their immediate wants were supplied by +a distribution of corn and cattle; and their future industry was +encouraged by an exemption from tribute, during a certain term of years. +The Barbarians would have deserved to feel the cruel and perfidious +policy of the Imperial court, if they had suffered themselves to be +dispersed through the provinces. They required, and they obtained, +the sole possession of the villages and districts assigned for their +residence; they still cherished and propagated their native manners +and language; asserted, in the bosom of despotism, the freedom of their +domestic government; and acknowledged the sovereignty of the emperor, +without submitting to the inferior jurisdiction of the laws and +magistrates of Rome. The hereditary chiefs of the tribes and families +were still permitted to command their followers in peace and war; but +the royal dignity was abolished; and the generals of the Goths were +appointed and removed at the pleasure of the emperor. An army of forty +thousand Goths was maintained for the perpetual service of the empire of +the East; and those haughty troops, who assumed the title of Federati, +or allies, were distinguished by their gold collars, liberal pay, and +licentious privileges. Their native courage was improved by the use +of arms and the knowledge of discipline; and, while the republic was +guarded, or threatened, by the doubtful sword of the Barbarians, the +last sparks of the military flame were finally extinguished in the minds +of the Romans. Theodosius had the address to persuade his allies, that +the conditions of peace, which had been extorted from him by prudence +and necessity, were the voluntary expressions of his sincere friendship +for the Gothic nation. A different mode of vindication or apology was +opposed to the complaints of the people; who loudly censured these +shameful and dangerous concessions. The calamities of the war were +painted in the most lively colors; and the first symptoms of the return +of order, of plenty, and security, were diligently exaggerated. The +advocates of Theodosius could affirm, with some appearance of truth and +reason, that it was impossible to extirpate so many warlike tribes, who +were rendered desperate by the loss of their native country; and that +the exhausted provinces would be revived by a fresh supply of soldiers +and husbandmen. The Barbarians still wore an angry and hostile aspect; +but the experience of past times might encourage the hope, that they +would acquire the habits of industry and obedience; that their manners +would be polished by time, education, and the influence of Christianity; +and that their posterity would insensibly blend with the great body of +the Roman people. + +Notwithstanding these specious arguments, and these sanguine +expectations, it was apparent to every discerning eye, that the Goths +would long remain the enemies, and might soon become the conquerors +of the Roman empire. Their rude and insolent behavior expressed their +contempt of the citizens and provincials, whom they insulted with +impunity. To the zeal and valor of the Barbarians Theodosius was +indebted for the success of his arms: but their assistance was +precarious; and they were sometimes seduced, by a treacherous and +inconstant disposition, to abandon his standard, at the moment when +their service was the most essential. During the civil war against +Maximus, a great number of Gothic deserters retired into the morasses +of Macedonia, wasted the adjacent provinces, and obliged the intrepid +monarch to expose his person, and exert his power, to suppress the +rising flame of rebellion. The public apprehensions were fortified +by the strong suspicion, that these tumults were not the effect of +accidental passion, but the result of deep and premeditated design. It +was generally believed, that the Goths had signed the treaty of +peace with a hostile and insidious spirit; and that their chiefs had +previously bound themselves, by a solemn and secret oath, never to +keep faith with the Romans; to maintain the fairest show of loyalty and +friendship, and to watch the favorable moment of rapine, of conquest, +and of revenge. But as the minds of the Barbarians were not insensible +to the power of gratitude, several of the Gothic leaders sincerely +devoted themselves to the service of the empire, or, at least, of the +emperor; the whole nation was insensibly divided into two opposite +factions, and much sophistry was employed in conversation and dispute, +to compare the obligations of their first, and second, engagements. The +Goths, who considered themselves as the friends of peace, of justice, +and of Rome, were directed by the authority of Fravitta, a valiant and +honorable youth, distinguished above the rest of his countrymen by the +politeness of his manners, the liberality of his sentiments, and the +mild virtues of social life. But the more numerous faction adhered +to the fierce and faithless Priulf, * who inflamed the passions, and +asserted the independence, of his warlike followers. On one of the +solemn festivals, when the chiefs of both parties were invited to the +Imperial table, they were insensibly heated by wine, till they forgot +the usual restraints of discretion and respect, and betrayed, in the +presence of Theodosius, the fatal secret of their domestic disputes. +The emperor, who had been the reluctant witness of this extraordinary +controversy, dissembled his fears and resentment, and soon dismissed the +tumultuous assembly. Fravitta, alarmed and exasperated by the insolence +of his rival, whose departure from the palace might have been the signal +of a civil war, boldly followed him; and, drawing his sword, laid +Priulf dead at his feet. Their companions flew to arms; and the faithful +champion of Rome would have been oppressed by superior numbers, if he +had not been protected by the seasonable interposition of the Imperial +guards. Such were the scenes of Barbaric rage, which disgraced the +palace and table of the Roman emperor; and, as the impatient Goths could +only be restrained by the firm and temperate character of Theodosius, +the public safety seemed to depend on the life and abilities of a single +man. 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Thus, we do not necessarily +keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition. + + +Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: + + http://www.gutenberg.org + +This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg-tm, +including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary +Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to +subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. diff --git a/old/891-8.zip b/old/891-8.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..c5ec06c --- /dev/null +++ b/old/891-8.zip diff --git a/old/891.txt b/old/891.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..46c1ab2 --- /dev/null +++ b/old/891.txt @@ -0,0 +1,18119 @@ +The Project Gutenberg EBook of The History of The Decline and Fall of the +Roman Empire, by Edward Gibbon + +This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with +almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or +re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included +with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org + + +Title: The History of The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire + Volume 2 + +Author: Edward Gibbon + +Posting Date: June 7, 2008 [EBook #891] +Release Date: April, 1997 + +Language: English + +Character set encoding: ASCII + +*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE *** + + + + +Produced by David Reed and Dale R. Fredrickson + + + + + +HISTORY OF THE DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE, VOLUME 2 + +Edward Gibbon, Esq. + +With notes by the Rev. H. H. Milman + +1782 (Written), 1845 (Revised) + + + +CONTENTS: + +Chapter XVI--Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To Constantine.-- +Part I. Part II. Part III. Part IV. Part V. Part VI. Part +VII. Part VIII. + +The Conduct Of The Roman Government Towards The Christians, From The +Reign Of Nero To That Of Constantine. + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part I. Part II. Part +III. Part IV. Part V. Part VI. + +Foundation Of Constantinople.--Political System Constantine, And His +Successors.--Military Discipline.--The Palace.--The Finances. + + +Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His Sons.--Part I. Part +II. Part III. Part IV. + +Character Of Constantine.--Gothic War.--Death Of Constantine.--Division +Of The Empire Among His Three Sons.--Persian War.--Tragic Deaths Of +Constantine The Younger And Constans.--Usurpation Of Magnentius.--Civil +War.--Victory Of Constantius. + + +Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor.--Part I. PartII. Part III. +Part IV. + +Constantius Sole Emperor.--Elevation And Death Of Gallus.--Danger And +Elevation Of Julian.--Sarmatian And Persian Wars.--Victories Of Julian +In Gaul. + + +Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine.--Part I. Part II. Part III. +PartIV. + +The Motives, Progress, And Effects Of The Conversion Of Constantine.-- +Legal Establishment And Constitution Of The Christian Or Catholic +Church. + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part I. Part +II. Part III. Part IV. Part V. Part VI. Part VII. + +Persecution Of Heresy.--The Schism Of The Donatists.--The Arian +Controversy.--Athanasius.--Distracted State Of The Church And Empire +Under Constantine And His Sons.--Toleration Of Paganism. + + +Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor.--Part I Part II. Part III. +Part IV. + +Julian Is Declared Emperor By The Legions Of Gaul.--His March And +Success.--The Death Of Constantius.--Civil Administration Of Julian. + + +Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.--Part I. Part II. Part III. Part +IV. Part V. + +The Religion Of Julian.--Universal Toleration.--He Attempts To Restore +And Reform The Pagan Worship--To Rebuild The Temple Of Jerusalem--His +Artful Persecution Of The Christians.--Mutual Zeal And Injustice. + + +Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian.--Part I. Part II. +Part III. Part IV. Part V. + +Residence Of Julian At Antioch.--His Successful Expedition Against The +Persians.--Passage Of The Tigris--The Retreat And Death Of Julian.-- +Election Of Jovian.--He Saves The Roman Army By A Disgraceful Treaty. + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The Empire.-- +Part I. Part II. Part III. Part IV. Part V. Part VI. Part +VII. + +The Government And Death Of Jovian.--Election Of Valentinian, Who +Associates His Brother Valens, And Makes The Final Division Of The +Eastern And Western Empires.--Revolt Of Procopius.--Civil And +Ecclesiastical Administration.--Germany.--Britain.--Africa.--The East.-- +The Danube.--Death Of Valentinian.--His Two Sons, Gratian And +Valentinian II., Succeed To The Western Empire. + + +Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.--Part I. Part II. Part III. +Part IV. Part V. + +Manners Of The Pastoral Nations.--Progress Of The Huns, From China To +Europe.--Flight Of The Goths.--They Pass The Danube. --Gothic War.-- +Defeat And Death Of Valens.--Gratian Invests Theodosius With The Eastern +Empire.--His Character And Success. --Peace And Settlement Of The Goths. + + + + +Chapter XVI--Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part I. + + The Conduct Of The Roman Government Towards The Christians, + From The Reign Of Nero To That Of Constantine. + +If we seriously consider the purity of the Christian religion, the +sanctity of its moral precepts, and the innocent as well as austere +lives of the greater number of those who during the first ages embraced +the faith of the gospel, we should naturally suppose, that so benevolent +a doctrine would have been received with due reverence, even by the +unbelieving world; that the learned and the polite, however they may +deride the miracles, would have esteemed the virtues, of the new sect; +and that the magistrates, instead of persecuting, would have protected +an order of men who yielded the most passive obedience to the laws, +though they declined the active cares of war and government. If, on the +other hand, we recollect the universal toleration of Polytheism, as it +was invariably maintained by the faith of the people, the incredulity of +philosophers, and the policy of the Roman senate and emperors, we are at +a loss to discover what new offence the Christians had committed, what +new provocation could exasperate the mild indifference of antiquity, +and what new motives could urge the Roman princes, who beheld without +concern a thousand forms of religion subsisting in peace under their +gentle sway, to inflict a severe punishment on any part of their +subjects, who had chosen for themselves a singular but an inoffensive +mode of faith and worship. + +The religious policy of the ancient world seems to have assumed a more +stern and intolerant character, to oppose the progress of Christianity. +About fourscore years after the death of Christ, his innocent disciples +were punished with death by the sentence of a proconsul of the most +amiable and philosophic character, and according to the laws of +an emperor distinguished by the wisdom and justice of his general +administration. The apologies which were repeatedly addressed to the +successors of Trajan are filled with the most pathetic complaints, that +the Christians, who obeyed the dictates, and solicited the liberty, +of conscience, were alone, among all the subjects of the Roman empire, +excluded from the common benefits of their auspicious government. The +deaths of a few eminent martyrs have been recorded with care; and from +the time that Christianity was invested with the supreme power, the +governors of the church have been no less diligently employed in +displaying the cruelty, than in imitating the conduct, of their Pagan +adversaries. To separate (if it be possible) a few authentic as well as +interesting facts from an undigested mass of fiction and error, and +to relate, in a clear and rational manner, the causes, the extent, the +duration, and the most important circumstances of the persecutions to +which the first Christians were exposed, is the design of the present +chapter. * + +The sectaries of a persecuted religion, depressed by fear animated with +resentment, and perhaps heated by enthusiasm, are seldom in a proper +temper of mind calmly to investigate, or candidly to appreciate, +the motives of their enemies, which often escape the impartial and +discerning view even of those who are placed at a secure distance from +the flames of persecution. A reason has been assigned for the conduct of +the emperors towards the primitive Christians, which may appear the more +specious and probable as it is drawn from the acknowledged genius of +Polytheism. It has already been observed, that the religious concord of +the world was principally supported by the implicit assent and reverence +which the nations of antiquity expressed for their respective traditions +and ceremonies. It might therefore be expected, that they would unite +with indignation against any sect or people which should separate itself +from the communion of mankind, and claiming the exclusive possession of +divine knowledge, should disdain every form of worship, except its own, +as impious and idolatrous. The rights of toleration were held by mutual +indulgence: they were justly forfeited by a refusal of the accustomed +tribute. As the payment of this tribute was inflexibly refused by the +Jews, and by them alone, the consideration of the treatment which they +experienced from the Roman magistrates, will serve to explain how far +these speculations are justified by facts, and will lead us to discover +the true causes of the persecution of Christianity. + +Without repeating what has already been mentioned of the reverence of +the Roman princes and governors for the temple of Jerusalem, we +shall only observe, that the destruction of the temple and city was +accompanied and followed by every circumstance that could exasperate the +minds of the conquerors, and authorize religious persecution by the most +specious arguments of political justice and the public safety. From the +reign of Nero to that of Antoninus Pius, the Jews discovered a fierce +impatience of the dominion of Rome, which repeatedly broke out in the +most furious massacres and insurrections. Humanity is shocked at the +recital of the horrid cruelties which they committed in the cities +of Egypt, of Cyprus, and of Cyrene, where they dwelt in treacherous +friendship with the unsuspecting natives; and we are tempted to applaud +the severe retaliation which was exercised by the arms of the legions +against a race of fanatics, whose dire and credulous superstition seemed +to render them the implacable enemies not only of the Roman government, +but of human kind. The enthusiasm of the Jews was supported by the +opinion, that it was unlawful for them to pay taxes to an idolatrous +master; and by the flattering promise which they derived from their +ancient oracles, that a conquering Messiah would soon arise, destined +to break their fetters, and to invest the favorites of heaven with the +empire of the earth. It was by announcing himself as their long-expected +deliverer, and by calling on all the descendants of Abraham to assert +the hope of Israel, that the famous Barchochebas collected a formidable +army, with which he resisted during two years the power of the emperor +Hadrian. + +Notwithstanding these repeated provocations, the resentment of the +Roman princes expired after the victory; nor were their apprehensions +continued beyond the period of war and danger. By the general indulgence +of polytheism, and by the mild temper of Antoninus Pius, the Jews +were restored to their ancient privileges, and once more obtained the +permission of circumcising their children, with the easy restraint, that +they should never confer on any foreign proselyte that distinguishing +mark of the Hebrew race. The numerous remains of that people, though +they were still excluded from the precincts of Jerusalem, were permitted +to form and to maintain considerable establishments both in Italy and +in the provinces, to acquire the freedom of Rome, to enjoy municipal +honors, and to obtain at the same time an exemption from the burdensome +and expensive offices of society. The moderation or the contempt of the +Romans gave a legal sanction to the form of ecclesiastical police which +was instituted by the vanquished sect. The patriarch, who had fixed +his residence at Tiberias, was empowered to appoint his subordinate +ministers and apostles, to exercise a domestic jurisdiction, and +to receive from his dispersed brethren an annual contribution. New +synagogues were frequently erected in the principal cities of the +empire; and the sabbaths, the fasts, and the festivals, which were +either commanded by the Mosaic law, or enjoined by the traditions of +the Rabbis, were celebrated in the most solemn and public manner. Such +gentle treatment insensibly assuaged the stern temper of the Jews. +Awakened from their dream of prophecy and conquest, they assumed the +behavior of peaceable and industrious subjects. Their irreconcilable +hatred of mankind, instead of flaming out in acts of blood and violence, +evaporated in less dangerous gratifications. They embraced every +opportunity of overreaching the idolaters in trade; and they pronounced +secret and ambiguous imprecations against the haughty kingdom of Edom. + +Since the Jews, who rejected with abhorrence the deities adored by +their sovereign and by their fellow-subjects, enjoyed, however, the free +exercise of their unsocial religion, there must have existed some other +cause, which exposed the disciples of Christ to those severities from +which the posterity of Abraham was exempt. The difference between them +is simple and obvious; but, according to the sentiments of antiquity, +it was of the highest importance. The Jews were a nation; the Christians +were a sect: and if it was natural for every community to respect the +sacred institutions of their neighbors, it was incumbent on them +to persevere in those of their ancestors. The voice of oracles, the +precepts of philosophers, and the authority of the laws, unanimously +enforced this national obligation. By their lofty claim of superior +sanctity the Jews might provoke the Polytheists to consider them as an +odious and impure race. By disdaining the intercourse of other nations, +they might deserve their contempt. The laws of Moses might be for the +most part frivolous or absurd; yet, since they had been received during +many ages by a large society, his followers were justified by the +example of mankind; and it was universally acknowledged, that they had +a right to practise what it would have been criminal in them to neglect. +But this principle, which protected the Jewish synagogue, afforded not +any favor or security to the primitive church. By embracing the faith of +the gospel, the Christians incurred the supposed guilt of an unnatural +and unpardonable offence. They dissolved the sacred ties of custom and +education, violated the religious institutions of their country, and +presumptuously despised whatever their fathers had believed as true, +or had reverenced as sacred. Nor was this apostasy (if we may use the +expression) merely of a partial or local kind; since the pious deserter +who withdrew himself from the temples of Egypt or Syria, would equally +disdain to seek an asylum in those of Athens or Carthage. Every +Christian rejected with contempt the superstitions of his family, his +city, and his province. The whole body of Christians unanimously refused +to hold any communion with the gods of Rome, of the empire, and of +mankind. It was in vain that the oppressed believer asserted the +inalienable rights of conscience and private judgment. Though his +situation might excite the pity, his arguments could never reach the +understanding, either of the philosophic or of the believing part of +the Pagan world. To their apprehensions, it was no less a matter +of surprise, that any individuals should entertain scruples against +complying with the established mode of worship, than if they had +conceived a sudden abhorrence to the manners, the dress, or the language +of their native country. * + +The surprise of the Pagans was soon succeeded by resentment; and the +most pious of men were exposed to the unjust but dangerous imputation of +impiety. Malice and prejudice concurred in representing the Christians +as a society of atheists, who, by the most daring attack on the +religious constitution of the empire, had merited the severest +animadversion of the civil magistrate. They had separated themselves +(they gloried in the confession) from every mode of superstition +which was received in any part of the globe by the various temper of +polytheism: but it was not altogether so evident what deity, or what +form of worship, they had substituted to the gods and temples of +antiquity. The pure and sublime idea which they entertained of the +Supreme Being escaped the gross conception of the Pagan multitude, +who were at a loss to discover a spiritual and solitary God, that was +neither represented under any corporeal figure or visible symbol, nor +was adored with the accustomed pomp of libations and festivals, of +altars and sacrifices. The sages of Greece and Rome, who had elevated +their minds to the contemplation of the existence and attributes of +the First Cause, were induced by reason or by vanity to reserve +for themselves and their chosen disciples the privilege of this +philosophical devotion. They were far from admitting the prejudices of +mankind as the standard of truth, but they considered them as flowing +from the original disposition of human nature; and they supposed that +any popular mode of faith and worship which presumed to disclaim the +assistance of the senses, would, in proportion as it receded from +superstition, find itself incapable of restraining the wanderings of the +fancy, and the visions of fanaticism. The careless glance which men +of wit and learning condescended to cast on the Christian revelation, +served only to confirm their hasty opinion, and to persuade them that +the principle, which they might have revered, of the Divine Unity, +was defaced by the wild enthusiasm, and annihilated by the airy +speculations, of the new sectaries. The author of a celebrated dialogue, +which has been attributed to Lucian, whilst he affects to treat the +mysterious subject of the Trinity in a style of ridicule and contempt, +betrays his own ignorance of the weakness of human reason, and of the +inscrutable nature of the divine perfections. + +It might appear less surprising, that the founder of Christianity should +not only be revered by his disciples as a sage and a prophet, but that +he should be adored as a God. The Polytheists were disposed to adopt +every article of faith, which seemed to offer any resemblance, however +distant or imperfect, with the popular mythology; and the legends of +Bacchus, of Hercules, and of AEsculapius, had, in some measure, prepared +their imagination for the appearance of the Son of God under a human +form. But they were astonished that the Christians should abandon the +temples of those ancient heroes, who, in the infancy of the world, had +invented arts, instituted laws, and vanquished the tyrants or monsters +who infested the earth, in order to choose for the exclusive object of +their religious worship an obscure teacher, who, in a recent age, and +among a barbarous people, had fallen a sacrifice either to the malice +of his own countrymen, or to the jealousy of the Roman government. The +Pagan multitude, reserving their gratitude for temporal benefits alone, +rejected the inestimable present of life and immortality, which was +offered to mankind by Jesus of Nazareth. His mild constancy in the midst +of cruel and voluntary sufferings, his universal benevolence, and the +sublime simplicity of his actions and character, were insufficient, in +the opinion of those carnal men, to compensate for the want of fame, +of empire, and of success; and whilst they refused to acknowledge his +stupendous triumph over the powers of darkness and of the grave, they +misrepresented, or they insulted, the equivocal birth, wandering life, +and ignominious death, of the divine Author of Christianity. + +The personal guilt which every Christian had contracted, in thus +preferring his private sentiment to the national religion, was +aggravated in a very high degree by the number and union of the +criminals. It is well known, and has been already observed, that Roman +policy viewed with the utmost jealousy and distrust any association +among its subjects; and that the privileges of private corporations, +though formed for the most harmless or beneficial purposes, were +bestowed with a very sparing hand. The religious assemblies of the +Christians who had separated themselves from the public worship, +appeared of a much less innocent nature; they were illegal in their +principle, and in their consequences might become dangerous; nor were +the emperors conscious that they violated the laws of justice, when, +for the peace of society, they prohibited those secret and sometimes +nocturnal meetings. The pious disobedience of the Christians made their +conduct, or perhaps their designs, appear in a much more serious and +criminal light; and the Roman princes, who might perhaps have suffered +themselves to be disarmed by a ready submission, deeming their honor +concerned in the execution of their commands, sometimes attempted, by +rigorous punishments, to subdue this independent spirit, which boldly +acknowledged an authority superior to that of the magistrate. The extent +and duration of this spiritual conspiracy seemed to render it everyday +more deserving of his animadversion. We have already seen that the +active and successful zeal of the Christians had insensibly diffused +them through every province and almost every city of the empire. The new +converts seemed to renounce their family and country, that they might +connect themselves in an indissoluble band of union with a peculiar +society, which every where assumed a different character from the rest +of mankind. Their gloomy and austere aspect, their abhorrence of the +common business and pleasures of life, and their frequent predictions of +impending calamities, inspired the Pagans with the apprehension of some +danger, which would arise from the new sect, the more alarming as it was +the more obscure. "Whatever," says Pliny, "may be the principle of their +conduct, their inflexible obstinacy appeared deserving of punishment." + +The precautions with which the disciples of Christ performed the offices +of religion were at first dictated by fear and necessity; but they were +continued from choice. By imitating the awful secrecy which reigned in +the Eleusinian mysteries, the Christians had flattered themselves that +they should render their sacred institutions more respectable in the +eyes of the Pagan world. But the event, as it often happens to +the operations of subtile policy, deceived their wishes and their +expectations. It was concluded, that they only concealed what they +would have blushed to disclose. Their mistaken prudence afforded an +opportunity for malice to invent, and for suspicious credulity to +believe, the horrid tales which described the Christians as the most +wicked of human kind, who practised in their dark recesses every +abomination that a depraved fancy could suggest, and who solicited the +favor of their unknown God by the sacrifice of every moral virtue. There +were many who pretended to confess or to relate the ceremonies of this +abhorred society. It was asserted, "that a new-born infant, entirely +covered over with flour, was presented, like some mystic symbol of +initiation, to the knife of the proselyte, who unknowingly inflicted +many a secret and mortal wound on the innocent victim of his error; that +as soon as the cruel deed was perpetrated, the sectaries drank up +the blood, greedily tore asunder the quivering members, and pledged +themselves to eternal secrecy, by a mutual consciousness of guilt. It +was as confidently affirmed, that this inhuman sacrifice was succeeded +by a suitable entertainment, in which intemperance served as a +provocative to brutal lust; till, at the appointed moment, the lights +were suddenly extinguished, shame was banished, nature was forgotten; +and, as accident might direct, the darkness of the night was polluted +by the incestuous commerce of sisters and brothers, of sons and of +mothers." + +But the perusal of the ancient apologies was sufficient to remove +even the slightest suspicion from the mind of a candid adversary. The +Christians, with the intrepid security of innocence, appeal from the +voice of rumor to the equity of the magistrates. They acknowledge, that +if any proof can be produced of the crimes which calumny has imputed to +them, they are worthy of the most severe punishment. They provoke the +punishment, and they challenge the proof. At the same time they urge, +with equal truth and propriety, that the charge is not less devoid of +probability, than it is destitute of evidence; they ask, whether any +one can seriously believe that the pure and holy precepts of the gospel, +which so frequently restrain the use of the most lawful enjoyments, +should inculcate the practice of the most abominable crimes; that a +large society should resolve to dishonor itself in the eyes of its own +members; and that a great number of persons of either sex, and every age +and character, insensible to the fear of death or infamy, should consent +to violate those principles which nature and education had imprinted +most deeply in their minds. Nothing, it should seem, could weaken the +force or destroy the effect of so unanswerable a justification, unless +it were the injudicious conduct of the apologists themselves, who +betrayed the common cause of religion, to gratify their devout hatred to +the domestic enemies of the church. It was sometimes faintly insinuated, +and sometimes boldly asserted, that the same bloody sacrifices, and +the same incestuous festivals, which were so falsely ascribed to the +orthodox believers, were in reality celebrated by the Marcionites, by +the Carpocratians, and by several other sects of the Gnostics, who, +notwithstanding they might deviate into the paths of heresy, were still +actuated by the sentiments of men, and still governed by the precepts +of Christianity. Accusations of a similar kind were retorted upon the +church by the schismatics who had departed from its communion, and it +was confessed on all sides, that the most scandalous licentiousness of +manners prevailed among great numbers of those who affected the name +of Christians. A Pagan magistrate, who possessed neither leisure nor +abilities to discern the almost imperceptible line which divides the +orthodox faith from heretical pravity, might easily have imagined that +their mutual animosity had extorted the discovery of their common guilt. +It was fortunate for the repose, or at least for the reputation, of the +first Christians, that the magistrates sometimes proceeded with more +temper and moderation than is usually consistent with religious zeal, +and that they reported, as the impartial result of their judicial +inquiry, that the sectaries, who had deserted the established worship, +appeared to them sincere in their professions, and blameless in their +manners; however they might incur, by their absurd and excessive +superstition, the censure of the laws. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part II. + +History, which undertakes to record the transactions of the past, for +the instruction of future ages, would ill deserve that honorable office, +if she condescended to plead the cause of tyrants, or to justify the +maxims of persecution. It must, however, be acknowledged, that the +conduct of the emperors who appeared the least favorable to the +primitive church, is by no means so criminal as that of modern +sovereigns, who have employed the arm of violence and terror against +the religious opinions of any part of their subjects. From their +reflections, or even from their own feelings, a Charles V. or a Lewis +XIV. might have acquired a just knowledge of the rights of conscience, +of the obligation of faith, and of the innocence of error. But the +princes and magistrates of ancient Rome were strangers to those +principles which inspired and authorized the inflexible obstinacy of the +Christians in the cause of truth, nor could they themselves discover in +their own breasts any motive which would have prompted them to refuse a +legal, and as it were a natural, submission to the sacred institutions +of their country. The same reason which contributes to alleviate the +guilt, must have tended to abate the vigor, of their persecutions. +As they were actuated, not by the furious zeal of bigots, but by the +temperate policy of legislators, contempt must often have relaxed, and +humanity must frequently have suspended, the execution of those laws +which they enacted against the humble and obscure followers of Christ. +From the general view of their character and motives we might naturally +conclude: I. That a considerable time elapsed before they considered the +new sectaries as an object deserving of the attention of government. II. +That in the conviction of any of their subjects who were accused of so +very singular a crime, they proceeded with caution and reluctance. III. +That they were moderate in the use of punishments; and, IV. That the +afflicted church enjoyed many intervals of peace and tranquility. +Notwithstanding the careless indifference which the most copious and +the most minute of the Pagan writers have shown to the affairs of +the Christians, it may still be in our power to confirm each of these +probable suppositions, by the evidence of authentic facts. + +1. By the wise dispensation of Providence, a mysterious veil was cast +over the infancy of the church, which, till the faith of the Christians +was matured, and their numbers were multiplied, served to protect them +not only from the malice but even from the knowledge of the Pagan world. +The slow and gradual abolition of the Mosaic ceremonies afforded a safe +and innocent disguise to the more early proselytes of the gospel. As +they were, for the greater part, of the race of Abraham, they were +distinguished by the peculiar mark of circumcision, offered up their +devotions in the Temple of Jerusalem till its final destruction, and +received both the Law and the Prophets as the genuine inspirations of +the Deity. The Gentile converts, who by a spiritual adoption had been +associated to the hope of Israel, were likewise confounded under the +garb and appearance of Jews, and as the Polytheists paid less regard +to articles of faith than to the external worship, the new sect, which +carefully concealed, or faintly announced, its future greatness and +ambition, was permitted to shelter itself under the general toleration +which was granted to an ancient and celebrated people in the Roman +empire. It was not long, perhaps, before the Jews themselves, animated +with a fiercer zeal and a more jealous faith, perceived the gradual +separation of their Nazarene brethren from the doctrine of the +synagogue; and they would gladly have extinguished the dangerous heresy +in the blood of its adherents. But the decrees of Heaven had already +disarmed their malice; and though they might sometimes exert the +licentious privilege of sedition, they no longer possessed the +administration of criminal justice; nor did they find it easy to infuse +into the calm breast of a Roman magistrate the rancor of their own zeal +and prejudice. The provincial governors declared themselves ready to +listen to any accusation that might affect the public safety; but as +soon as they were informed that it was a question not of facts but of +words, a dispute relating only to the interpretation of the Jewish laws +and prophecies, they deemed it unworthy of the majesty of Rome seriously +to discuss the obscure differences which might arise among a barbarous +and superstitious people. The innocence of the first Christians was +protected by ignorance and contempt; and the tribunal of the Pagan +magistrate often proved their most assured refuge against the fury of +the synagogue. If indeed we were disposed to adopt the traditions of a +too credulous antiquity, we might relate the distant peregrinations, the +wonderful achievements, and the various deaths of the twelve apostles: +but a more accurate inquiry will induce us to doubt, whether any of +those persons who had been witnesses to the miracles of Christ were +permitted, beyond the limits of Palestine, to seal with their blood the +truth of their testimony. From the ordinary term of human life, it may +very naturally be presumed that most of them were deceased before +the discontent of the Jews broke out into that furious war, which was +terminated only by the ruin of Jerusalem. During a long period, from +the death of Christ to that memorable rebellion, we cannot discover any +traces of Roman intolerance, unless they are to be found in the sudden, +the transient, but the cruel persecution, which was exercised by Nero +against the Christians of the capital, thirty-five years after the +former, and only two years before the latter, of those great events. +The character of the philosophic historian, to whom we are principally +indebted for the knowledge of this singular transaction, would alone be +sufficient to recommend it to our most attentive consideration. + +In the tenth year of the reign of Nero, the capital of the empire was +afflicted by a fire which raged beyond the memory or example of former +ages. The monuments of Grecian art and of Roman virtue, the trophies of +the Punic and Gallic wars, the most holy temples, and the most splendid +palaces, were involved in one common destruction. Of the fourteen +regions or quarters into which Rome was divided, four only subsisted +entire, three were levelled with the ground, and the remaining seven, +which had experienced the fury of the flames, displayed a melancholy +prospect of ruin and desolation. The vigilance of government appears not +to have neglected any of the precautions which might alleviate the sense +of so dreadful a calamity. The Imperial gardens were thrown open to +the distressed multitude, temporary buildings were erected for their +accommodation, and a plentiful supply of corn and provisions was +distributed at a very moderate price. The most generous policy seemed to +have dictated the edicts which regulated the disposition of the streets +and the construction of private houses; and as it usually happens, in +an age of prosperity, the conflagration of Rome, in the course of a few +years, produced a new city, more regular and more beautiful than the +former. But all the prudence and humanity affected by Nero on this +occasion were insufficient to preserve him from the popular suspicion. +Every crime might be imputed to the assassin of his wife and mother; nor +could the prince who prostituted his person and dignity on the theatre +be deemed incapable of the most extravagant folly. The voice of rumor +accused the emperor as the incendiary of his own capital; and as the +most incredible stories are the best adapted to the genius of an +enraged people, it was gravely reported, and firmly believed, that +Nero, enjoying the calamity which he had occasioned, amused himself +with singing to his lyre the destruction of ancient Troy. To divert +a suspicion, which the power of despotism was unable to suppress, +the emperor resolved to substitute in his own place some fictitious +criminals. "With this view," continues Tacitus, "he inflicted the most +exquisite tortures on those men, who, under the vulgar appellation of +Christians, were already branded with deserved infamy. They derived +their name and origin from Christ, who in the reign of Tiberius had +suffered death by the sentence of the procurator Pontius Pilate. For a +while this dire superstition was checked; but it again burst forth; +* and not only spread itself over Judaea, the first seat of this +mischievous sect, but was even introduced into Rome, the common asylum +which receives and protects whatever is impure, whatever is atrocious. +The confessions of those who were seized discovered a great multitude +of their accomplices, and they were all convicted, not so much for the +crime of setting fire to the city, as for their hatred of human kind. +They died in torments, and their torments were imbittered by insult and +derision. Some were nailed on crosses; others sewn up in the skins of +wild beasts, and exposed to the fury of dogs; others again, smeared +over with combustible materials, were used as torches to illuminate +the darkness of the night. The gardens of Nero were destined for the +melancholy spectacle, which was accompanied with a horse-race and +honored with the presence of the emperor, who mingled with the populace +in the dress and attitude of a charioteer. The guilt of the Christians +deserved indeed the most exemplary punishment, but the public abhorrence +was changed into commiseration, from the opinion that those unhappy +wretches were sacrificed, not so much to the public welfare, as to the +cruelty of a jealous tyrant." Those who survey with a curious eye the +revolutions of mankind, may observe, that the gardens and circus of +Nero on the Vatican, which were polluted with the blood of the first +Christians, have been rendered still more famous by the triumph and by +the abuse of the persecuted religion. On the same spot, a temple, which +far surpasses the ancient glories of the Capitol, has been since erected +by the Christian Pontiffs, who, deriving their claim of universal +dominion from an humble fisherman of Galilee, have succeeded to the +throne of the Caesars, given laws to the barbarian conquerors of Rome, +and extended their spiritual jurisdiction from the coast of the Baltic +to the shores of the Pacific Ocean. + +But it would be improper to dismiss this account of Nero's persecution, +till we have made some observations that may serve to remove the +difficulties with which it is perplexed, and to throw some light on the +subsequent history of the church. + +1. The most sceptical criticism is obliged to respect the truth of this +extraordinary fact, and the integrity of this celebrated passage of +Tacitus. The former is confirmed by the diligent and accurate Suetonius, +who mentions the punishment which Nero inflicted on the Christians, a +sect of men who had embraced a new and criminal superstition. The latter +may be proved by the consent of the most ancient manuscripts; by the +inimitable character of the style of Tacitus by his reputation, which +guarded his text from the interpolations of pious fraud; and by the +purport of his narration, which accused the first Christians of the most +atrocious crimes, without insinuating that they possessed any miraculous +or even magical powers above the rest of mankind. 2. Notwithstanding it +is probable that Tacitus was born some years before the fire of Rome, +he could derive only from reading and conversation the knowledge of an +event which happened during his infancy. Before he gave himself to the +public, he calmly waited till his genius had attained its full maturity, +and he was more than forty years of age, when a grateful regard for +the memory of the virtuous Agricola extorted from him the most early of +those historical compositions which will delight and instruct the most +distant posterity. After making a trial of his strength in the life of +Agricola and the description of Germany, he conceived, and at length +executed, a more arduous work; the history of Rome, in thirty books, +from the fall of Nero to the accession of Nerva. The administration +of Nerva introduced an age of justice and propriety, which Tacitus had +destined for the occupation of his old age; but when he took a nearer +view of his subject, judging, perhaps, that it was a more honorable or +a less invidious office to record the vices of past tyrants, than to +celebrate the virtues of a reigning monarch, he chose rather to relate, +under the form of annals, the actions of the four immediate successors +of Augustus. To collect, to dispose, and to adorn a series of fourscore +years, in an immortal work, every sentence of which is pregnant with +the deepest observations and the most lively images, was an undertaking +sufficient to exercise the genius of Tacitus himself during the greatest +part of his life. In the last years of the reign of Trajan, whilst the +victorious monarch extended the power of Rome beyond its ancient limits, +the historian was describing, in the second and fourth books of his +annals, the tyranny of Tiberius; and the emperor Hadrian must have +succeeded to the throne, before Tacitus, in the regular prosecution of +his work, could relate the fire of the capital, and the cruelty of Nero +towards the unfortunate Christians. At the distance of sixty years, it +was the duty of the annalist to adopt the narratives of contemporaries; +but it was natural for the philosopher to indulge himself in the +description of the origin, the progress, and the character of the new +sect, not so much according to the knowledge or prejudices of the age +of Nero, as according to those of the time of Hadrian. 3 Tacitus very +frequently trusts to the curiosity or reflection of his readers to +supply those intermediate circumstances and ideas, which, in his extreme +conciseness, he has thought proper to suppress. We may therefore presume +to imagine some probable cause which could direct the cruelty of Nero +against the Christians of Rome, whose obscurity, as well as innocence, +should have shielded them from his indignation, and even from his +notice. The Jews, who were numerous in the capital, and oppressed in +their own country, were a much fitter object for the suspicions of the +emperor and of the people: nor did it seem unlikely that a vanquished +nation, who already discovered their abhorrence of the Roman yoke, might +have recourse to the most atrocious means of gratifying their implacable +revenge. But the Jews possessed very powerful advocates in the palace, +and even in the heart of the tyrant; his wife and mistress, the +beautiful Poppaea, and a favorite player of the race of Abraham, who had +already employed their intercession in behalf of the obnoxious people. +In their room it was necessary to offer some other victims, and it might +easily be suggested that, although the genuine followers of Moses were +innocent of the fire of Rome, there had arisen among them a new and +pernicious sect of Galilaeans, which was capable of the most horrid +crimes. Under the appellation of Galilaeans, two distinctions of men +were confounded, the most opposite to each other in their manners +and principles; the disciples who had embraced the faith of Jesus of +Nazareth, and the zealots who had followed the standard of Judas the +Gaulonite. The former were the friends, the latter were the enemies, of +human kind; and the only resemblance between them consisted in the same +inflexible constancy, which, in the defence of their cause, rendered +them insensible of death and tortures. The followers of Judas, who +impelled their countrymen into rebellion, were soon buried under the +ruins of Jerusalem; whilst those of Jesus, known by the more celebrated +name of Christians, diffused themselves over the Roman empire. How +natural was it for Tacitus, in the time of Hadrian, to appropriate to +the Christians the guilt and the sufferings, * which he might, with far +greater truth and justice, have attributed to a sect whose odious memory +was almost extinguished! 4. Whatever opinion may be entertained of this +conjecture, (for it is no more than a conjecture,) it is evident that +the effect, as well as the cause, of Nero's persecution, was confined +to the walls of Rome, that the religious tenets of the Galilaeans or +Christians, were never made a subject of punishment, or even of inquiry; +and that, as the idea of their sufferings was for a long time connected +with the idea of cruelty and injustice, the moderation of succeeding +princes inclined them to spare a sect, oppressed by a tyrant, whose rage +had been usually directed against virtue and innocence. + +It is somewhat remarkable that the flames of war consumed, almost at +the same time, the temple of Jerusalem and the Capitol of Rome; and it +appears no less singular, that the tribute which devotion had destined +to the former, should have been converted by the power of an assaulting +victor to restore and adorn the splendor of the latter. The emperors +levied a general capitation tax on the Jewish people; and although the +sum assessed on the head of each individual was inconsiderable, the use +for which it was designed, and the severity with which it was exacted, +were considered as an intolerable grievance. Since the officers of the +revenue extended their unjust claim to many persons who were strangers +to the blood or religion of the Jews, it was impossible that the +Christians, who had so often sheltered themselves under the shade of the +synagogue, should now escape this rapacious persecution. Anxious as +they were to avoid the slightest infection of idolatry, their conscience +forbade them to contribute to the honor of that daemon who had assumed +the character of the Capitoline Jupiter. As a very numerous though +declining party among the Christians still adhered to the law of Moses, +their efforts to dissemble their Jewish origin were detected by the +decisive test of circumcision; nor were the Roman magistrates at leisure +to inquire into the difference of their religious tenets. Among the +Christians who were brought before the tribunal of the emperor, or, +as it seems more probable, before that of the procurator of Judaea, two +persons are said to have appeared, distinguished by their extraction, +which was more truly noble than that of the greatest monarchs. These +were the grandsons of St. Jude the apostle, who himself was the brother +of Jesus Christ. Their natural pretensions to the throne of David might +perhaps attract the respect of the people, and excite the jealousy of +the governor; but the meanness of their garb, and the simplicity of +their answers, soon convinced him that they were neither desirous +nor capable of disturbing the peace of the Roman empire. They frankly +confessed their royal origin, and their near relation to the Messiah; +but they disclaimed any temporal views, and professed that his kingdom, +which they devoutly expected, was purely of a spiritual and angelic +nature. When they were examined concerning their fortune and occupation, +they showed their hands, hardened with daily labor, and declared that +they derived their whole subsistence from the cultivation of a farm near +the village of Cocaba, of the extent of about twenty-four English acres, +and of the value of nine thousand drachms, or three hundred pounds +sterling. The grandsons of St. Jude were dismissed with compassion and +contempt. + +But although the obscurity of the house of David might protect them +from the suspicions of a tyrant, the present greatness of his own +family alarmed the pusillanimous temper of Domitian, which could only be +appeased by the blood of those Romans whom he either feared, or hated, +or esteemed. Of the two sons of his uncle Flavius Sabinus, the elder was +soon convicted of treasonable intentions, and the younger, who bore +the name of Flavius Clemens, was indebted for his safety to his want +of courage and ability. The emperor for a long time, distinguished so +harmless a kinsman by his favor and protection, bestowed on him his own +niece Domitilla, adopted the children of that marriage to the hope +of the succession, and invested their father with the honors of the +consulship. + +But he had scarcely finished the term of his annual magistracy, when, on +a slight pretence, he was condemned and executed; Domitilla was banished +to a desolate island on the coast of Campania; and sentences either of +death or of confiscation were pronounced against a great number of who +were involved in the same accusation. The guilt imputed to their charge +was that of Atheism and Jewish manners; a singular association of ideas, +which cannot with any propriety be applied except to the Christians, as +they were obscurely and imperfectly viewed by the magistrates and by +the writers of that period. On the strength of so probable an +interpretation, and too eagerly admitting the suspicions of a tyrant as +an evidence of their honorable crime, the church has placed both Clemens +and Domitilla among its first martyrs, and has branded the cruelty of +Domitian with the name of the second persecution. But this persecution +(if it deserves that epithet) was of no long duration. A few months +after the death of Clemens, and the banishment of Domitilla, Stephen, a +freedman belonging to the latter, who had enjoyed the favor, but who +had not surely embraced the faith, of his mistress, * assassinated +the emperor in his palace. The memory of Domitian was condemned by the +senate; his acts were rescinded; his exiles recalled; and under the +gentle administration of Nerva, while the innocent were restored to +their rank and fortunes, even the most guilty either obtained pardon or +escaped punishment. + +II. About ten years afterwards, under the reign of Trajan, the younger +Pliny was intrusted by his friend and master with the government of +Bithynia and Pontus. He soon found himself at a loss to determine by +what rule of justice or of law he should direct his conduct in the +execution of an office the most repugnant to his humanity. Pliny had +never assisted at any judicial proceedings against the Christians, +with whose lame alone he seems to be acquainted; and he was totally +uninformed with regard to the nature of their guilt, the method of their +conviction, and the degree of their punishment. In this perplexity he +had recourse to his usual expedient, of submitting to the wisdom of +Trajan an impartial, and, in some respects, a favorable account of the +new superstition, requesting the emperor, that he would condescend to +resolve his doubts, and to instruct his ignorance. The life of Pliny had +been employed in the acquisition of learning, and in the business of the +world. Since the age of nineteen he had pleaded with distinction in the +tribunals of Rome, filled a place in the senate, had been invested with +the honors of the consulship, and had formed very numerous connections +with every order of men, both in Italy and in the provinces. From his +ignorance therefore we may derive some useful information. We may assure +ourselves, that when he accepted the government of Bithynia, there +were no general laws or decrees of the senate in force against the +Christians; that neither Trajan nor any of his virtuous predecessors, +whose edicts were received into the civil and criminal jurisprudence, +had publicly declared their intentions concerning the new sect; and that +whatever proceedings had been carried on against the Christians, there +were none of sufficient weight and authority to establish a precedent +for the conduct of a Roman magistrate. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part III. + +The answer of Trajan, to which the Christians of the succeeding age have +frequently appealed, discovers as much regard for justice and humanity +as could be reconciled with his mistaken notions of religious policy. +Instead of displaying the implacable zeal of an inquisitor, anxious to +discover the most minute particles of heresy, and exulting in the number +of his victims, the emperor expresses much more solicitude to protect +the security of the innocent, than to prevent the escape of the guilty. +He acknowledged the difficulty of fixing any general plan; but he lays +down two salutary rules, which often afforded relief and support to the +distressed Christians. Though he directs the magistrates to punish such +persons as are legally convicted, he prohibits them, with a very +humane inconsistency, from making any inquiries concerning the supposed +criminals. Nor was the magistrate allowed to proceed on every kind of +information. Anonymous charges the emperor rejects, as too repugnant +to the equity of his government; and he strictly requires, for the +conviction of those to whom the guilt of Christianity is imputed, the +positive evidence of a fair and open accuser. It is likewise probable, +that the persons who assumed so invidiuous an office, were obliged to +declare the grounds of their suspicions, to specify (both in respect to +time and place) the secret assemblies, which their Christian adversary +had frequented, and to disclose a great number of circumstances, which +were concealed with the most vigilant jealousy from the eye of the +profane. If they succeeded in their prosecution, they were exposed to +the resentment of a considerable and active party, to the censure of the +more liberal portion of mankind, and to the ignominy which, in every +age and country, has attended the character of an informer. If, on the +contrary, they failed in their proofs, they incurred the severe and +perhaps capital penalty, which, according to a law published by the +emperor Hadrian, was inflicted on those who falsely attributed to their +fellow-citizens the crime of Christianity. The violence of personal or +superstitious animosity might sometimes prevail over the most natural +apprehensions of disgrace and danger but it cannot surely be imagined, +that accusations of so unpromising an appearance were either lightly or +frequently undertaken by the Pagan subjects of the Roman empire. * + +The expedient which was employed to elude the prudence of the laws, +affords a sufficient proof how effectually they disappointed the +mischievous designs of private malice or superstitious zeal. In a large +and tumultuous assembly, the restraints of fear and shame, so forcible +on the minds of individuals, are deprived of the greatest part of their +influence. The pious Christian, as he was desirous to obtain, or to +escape, the glory of martyrdom, expected, either with impatience or with +terror, the stated returns of the public games and festivals. On +those occasions the inhabitants of the great cities of the empire were +collected in the circus or the theatre, where every circumstance of the +place, as well as of the ceremony, contributed to kindle their devotion, +and to extinguish their humanity. Whilst the numerous spectators, +crowned with garlands, perfumed with incense, purified with the blood +of victims, and surrounded with the altars and statues of their tutelar +deities, resigned themselves to the enjoyment of pleasures, which +they considered as an essential part of their religious worship, they +recollected, that the Christians alone abhorred the gods of mankind, +and by their absence and melancholy on these solemn festivals, seemed +to insult or to lament the public felicity. If the empire had been +afflicted by any recent calamity, by a plague, a famine, or an +unsuccessful war; if the Tyber had, or if the Nile had not, risen beyond +its banks; if the earth had shaken, or if the temperate order of the +seasons had been interrupted, the superstitious Pagans were convinced +that the crimes and the impiety of the Christians, who were spared +by the excessive lenity of the government, had at length provoked the +divine justice. It was not among a licentious and exasperated populace, +that the forms of legal proceedings could be observed; it was not in an +amphitheatre, stained with the blood of wild beasts and gladiators, that +the voice of compassion could be heard. The impatient clamors of the +multitude denounced the Christians as the enemies of gods and men, +doomed them to the severest tortures, and venturing to accuse by name +some of the most distinguished of the new sectaries, required with +irresistible vehemence that they should be instantly apprehended and +cast to the lions. The provincial governors and magistrates who +presided in the public spectacles were usually inclined to gratify the +inclinations, and to appease the rage, of the people, by the sacrifice +of a few obnoxious victims. But the wisdom of the emperors protected +the church from the danger of these tumultuous clamors and irregular +accusations, which they justly censured as repugnant both to the +firmness and to the equity of their administration. The edicts of +Hadrian and of Antoninus Pius expressly declared, that the voice of the +multitude should never be admitted as legal evidence to convict or to +punish those unfortunate persons who had embraced the enthusiasm of the +Christians. + +III. Punishment was not the inevitable consequence of conviction, and +the Christians, whose guilt was the most clearly proved by the testimony +of witnesses, or even by their voluntary confession, still retained in +their own power the alternative of life or death. It was not so much the +past offence, as the actual resistance, which excited the indignation +of the magistrate. He was persuaded that he offered them an easy pardon, +since, if they consented to cast a few grains of incense upon the altar, +they were dismissed from the tribunal in safety and with applause. It +was esteemed the duty of a humane judge to endeavor to reclaim, rather +than to punish, those deluded enthusiasts. Varying his tone according +to the age, the sex, or the situation of the prisoners, he frequently +condescended to set before their eyes every circumstance which could +render life more pleasing, or death more terrible; and to solicit, nay, +to entreat, them, that they would show some compassion to themselves, to +their families, and to their friends. If threats and persuasions proved +ineffectual, he had often recourse to violence; the scourge and the rack +were called in to supply the deficiency of argument, and every art of +cruelty was employed to subdue such inflexible, and, as it appeared +to the Pagans, such criminal, obstinacy. The ancient apologists of +Christianity have censured, with equal truth and severity, the irregular +conduct of their persecutors who, contrary to every principle of +judicial proceeding, admitted the use of torture, in order to obtain, +not a confession, but a denial, of the crime which was the object of +their inquiry. The monks of succeeding ages, who, in their peaceful +solitudes, entertained themselves with diversifying the deaths and +sufferings of the primitive martyrs, have frequently invented torments +of a much more refined and ingenious nature. In particular, it has +pleased them to suppose, that the zeal of the Roman magistrates, +disdaining every consideration of moral virtue or public decency, +endeavored to seduce those whom they were unable to vanquish, and that +by their orders the most brutal violence was offered to those whom they +found it impossible to seduce. It is related, that females, who were +prepared to despise death, were sometimes condemned to a more severe +trial, and called upon to determine whether they set a higher value +on their religion or on their chastity. The youths to whose licentious +embraces they were abandoned, received a solemn exhortation from the +judge, to exert their most strenuous efforts to maintain the honor of +Venus against the impious virgin who refused to burn incense on her +altars. Their violence, however, was commonly disappointed, and the +seasonable interposition of some miraculous power preserved the chaste +spouses of Christ from the dishonor even of an involuntary defeat. We +should not indeed neglect to remark, that the more ancient as well +as authentic memorials of the church are seldom polluted with these +extravagant and indecent fictions. + +The total disregard of truth and probability in the representation of +these primitive martyrdoms was occasioned by a very natural mistake. The +ecclesiastical writers of the fourth or fifth centuries ascribed to the +magistrates of Rome the same degree of implacable and unrelenting zeal +which filled their own breasts against the heretics or the idolaters +of their own times. It is not improbable that some of those persons +who were raised to the dignities of the empire, might have imbibed the +prejudices of the populace, and that the cruel disposition of others +might occasionally be stimulated by motives of avarice or of personal +resentment. But it is certain, and we may appeal to the grateful +confessions of the first Christians, that the greatest part of those +magistrates who exercised in the provinces the authority of the emperor, +or of the senate, and to whose hands alone the jurisdiction of life and +death was intrusted, behaved like men of polished manners and liberal +education, who respected the rules of justice, and who were conversant +with the precepts of philosophy. They frequently declined the odious +task of persecution, dismissed the charge with contempt, or suggested +to the accused Christian some legal evasion, by which he might elude the +severity of the laws. Whenever they were invested with a discretionary +power, they used it much less for the oppression, than for the relief +and benefit of the afflicted church. They were far from condemning all +the Christians who were accused before their tribunal, and very far +from punishing with death all those who were convicted of an obstinate +adherence to the new superstition. Contenting themselves, for the most +part, with the milder chastisements of imprisonment, exile, or slavery +in the mines, they left the unhappy victims of their justice some reason +to hope, that a prosperous event, the accession, the marriage, or the +triumph of an emperor, might speedily restore them, by a general pardon, +to their former state. The martyrs, devoted to immediate execution +by the Roman magistrates, appear to have been selected from the most +opposite extremes. They were either bishops and presbyters, the persons +the most distinguished among the Christians by their rank and influence, +and whose example might strike terror into the whole sect; or else they +were the meanest and most abject among them, particularly those of the +servile condition, whose lives were esteemed of little value, and +whose sufferings were viewed by the ancients with too careless an +indifference. The learned Origen, who, from his experience as well as +reading, was intimately acquainted with the history of the Christians, +declares, in the most express terms, that the number of martyrs was very +inconsiderable. His authority would alone be sufficient to annihilate +that formidable army of martyrs, whose relics, drawn for the most part +from the catacombs of Rome, have replenished so many churches, and whose +marvellous achievements have been the subject of so many volumes of +Holy Romance. But the general assertion of Origen may be explained and +confirmed by the particular testimony of his friend Dionysius, who, in +the immense city of Alexandria, and under the rigorous persecution +of Decius, reckons only ten men and seven women who suffered for the +profession of the Christian name. + +During the same period of persecution, the zealous, the eloquent, the +ambitious Cyprian governed the church, not only of Carthage, but even of +Africa. He possessed every quality which could engage the reverence +of the faithful, or provoke the suspicions and resentment of the Pagan +magistrates. His character as well as his station seemed to mark out +that holy prelate as the most distinguished object of envy and danger. +The experience, however, of the life of Cyprian, is sufficient to prove +that our fancy has exaggerated the perilous situation of a Christian +bishop; and the dangers to which he was exposed were less imminent than +those which temporal ambition is always prepared to encounter in the +pursuit of honors. Four Roman emperors, with their families, their +favorites, and their adherents, perished by the sword in the space of +ten years, during which the bishop of Carthage guided by his authority +and eloquence the councils of the African church. It was only in the +third year of his administration, that he had reason, during a few +months, to apprehend the severe edicts of Decius, the vigilance of the +magistrate and the clamors of the multitude, who loudly demanded, that +Cyprian, the leader of the Christians, should be thrown to the lions. +Prudence suggested the necessity of a temporary retreat, and the voice +of prudence was obeyed. He withdrew himself into an obscure solitude, +from whence he could maintain a constant correspondence with the clergy +and people of Carthage; and, concealing himself till the tempest was +past, he preserved his life, without relinquishing either his power or +his reputation. His extreme caution did not, however, escape the censure +of the more rigid Christians, who lamented, or the reproaches of his +personal enemies, who insulted, a conduct which they considered as +a pusillanimous and criminal desertion of the most sacred duty. The +propriety of reserving himself for the future exigencies of the church, +the example of several holy bishops, and the divine admonitions, which, +as he declares himself, he frequently received in visions and ecstacies, +were the reasons alleged in his justification. But his best apology +may be found in the cheerful resolution, with which, about eight years +afterwards, he suffered death in the cause of religion. The authentic +history of his martyrdom has been recorded with unusual candor and +impartiality. A short abstract, therefore, of its most important +circumstances, will convey the clearest information of the spirit, and +of the forms, of the Roman persecutions. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part IV. + +When Valerian was consul for the third, and Gallienus for the fourth +time, Paternus, proconsul of Africa, summoned Cyprian to appear in +his private council-chamber. He there acquainted him with the Imperial +mandate which he had just received, that those who had abandoned +the Roman religion should immediately return to the practice of the +ceremonies of their ancestors. Cyprian replied without hesitation, that +he was a Christian and a bishop, devoted to the worship of the true and +only Deity, to whom he offered up his daily supplications for the safety +and prosperity of the two emperors, his lawful sovereigns. With modest +confidence he pleaded the privilege of a citizen, in refusing to give +any answer to some invidious and indeed illegal questions which the +proconsul had proposed. A sentence of banishment was pronounced as the +penalty of Cyprian's disobedience; and he was conducted without delay +to Curubis, a free and maritime city of Zeugitania, in a pleasant +situation, a fertile territory, and at the distance of about forty miles +from Carthage. The exiled bishop enjoyed the conveniences of life and +the consciousness of virtue. His reputation was diffused over Africa and +Italy; an account of his behavior was published for the edification of +the Christian world; and his solitude was frequently interrupted by the +letters, the visits, and the congratulations of the faithful. On the +arrival of a new proconsul in the province the fortune of Cyprian +appeared for some time to wear a still more favorable aspect. He was +recalled from banishment; and though not yet permitted to return to +Carthage, his own gardens in the neighborhood of the capital were +assigned for the place of his residence. + +At length, exactly one year after Cyprian was first apprehended, +Galerius Maximus, proconsul of Africa, received the Imperial warrant +for the execution of the Christian teachers. The bishop of Carthage was +sensible that he should be singled out for one of the first victims; +and the frailty of nature tempted him to withdraw himself, by a +secret flight, from the danger and the honor of martyrdom; * but soon +recovering that fortitude which his character required, he returned to +his gardens, and patiently expected the ministers of death. Two officers +of rank, who were intrusted with that commission, placed Cyprian between +them in a chariot, and as the proconsul was not then at leisure, they +conducted him, not to a prison, but to a private house in Carthage, +which belonged to one of them. An elegant supper was provided for the +entertainment of the bishop, and his Christian friends were permitted +for the last time to enjoy his society, whilst the streets were filled +with a multitude of the faithful, anxious and alarmed at the approaching +fate of their spiritual father. In the morning he appeared before the +tribunal of the proconsul, who, after informing himself of the name and +situation of Cyprian, commanded him to offer sacrifice, and pressed +him to reflect on the consequences of his disobedience. The refusal of +Cyprian was firm and decisive; and the magistrate, when he had taken the +opinion of his council, pronounced with some reluctance the sentence of +death. It was conceived in the following terms: "That Thascius Cyprianus +should be immediately beheaded, as the enemy of the gods of Rome, and as +the chief and ringleader of a criminal association, which he had seduced +into an impious resistance against the laws of the most holy emperors, +Valerian and Gallienus." The manner of his execution was the mildest +and least painful that could be inflicted on a person convicted of any +capital offence; nor was the use of torture admitted to obtain from +the bishop of Carthage either the recantation of his principles or the +discovery of his accomplices. + +As soon as the sentence was proclaimed, a general cry of "We will die +with him," arose at once among the listening multitude of Christians who +waited before the palace gates. The generous effusions of their zeal +and their affection were neither serviceable to Cyprian nor dangerous +to themselves. He was led away under a guard of tribunes and centurions, +without resistance and without insult, to the place of his execution, +a spacious and level plain near the city, which was already filled with +great numbers of spectators. His faithful presbyters and deacons were +permitted to accompany their holy bishop. * They assisted him in +laying aside his upper garment, spread linen on the ground to catch +the precious relics of his blood, and received his orders to bestow +five-and-twenty pieces of gold on the executioner. The martyr then +covered his face with his hands, and at one blow his head was separated +from his body. His corpse remained during some hours exposed to +the curiosity of the Gentiles: but in the night it was removed, and +transported in a triumphal procession, and with a splendid illumination, +to the burial-place of the Christians. The funeral of Cyprian was +publicly celebrated without receiving any interruption from the Roman +magistrates; and those among the faithful, who had performed the last +offices to his person and his memory, were secure from the danger of +inquiry or of punishment. It is remarkable, that of so great a multitude +of bishops in the province of Africa, Cyprian was the first who was +esteemed worthy to obtain the crown of martyrdom. + +It was in the choice of Cyprian, either to die a martyr, or to live an +apostate; but on the choice depended the alternative of honor or infamy. +Could we suppose that the bishop of Carthage had employed the profession +of the Christian faith only as the instrument of his avarice or +ambition, it was still incumbent on him to support the character he had +assumed; and if he possessed the smallest degree of manly fortitude, +rather to expose himself to the most cruel tortures, than by a single +act to exchange the reputation of a whole life, for the abhorrence of +his Christian brethren, and the contempt of the Gentile world. But if +the zeal of Cyprian was supported by the sincere conviction of the truth +of those doctrines which he preached, the crown of martyrdom must have +appeared to him as an object of desire rather than of terror. It is +not easy to extract any distinct ideas from the vague though eloquent +declamations of the Fathers, or to ascertain the degree of immortal +glory and happiness which they confidently promised to those who were +so fortunate as to shed their blood in the cause of religion. They +inculcated with becoming diligence, that the fire of martyrdom supplied +every defect and expiated every sin; that while the souls of ordinary +Christians were obliged to pass through a slow and painful purification, +the triumphant sufferers entered into the immediate fruition of eternal +bliss, where, in the society of the patriarchs, the apostles, and the +prophets, they reigned with Christ, and acted as his assessors in the +universal judgment of mankind. The assurance of a lasting reputation +upon earth, a motive so congenial to the vanity of human nature, often +served to animate the courage of the martyrs. The honors which Rome or +Athens bestowed on those citizens who had fallen in the cause of +their country, were cold and unmeaning demonstrations of respect, when +compared with the ardent gratitude and devotion which the primitive +church expressed towards the victorious champions of the faith. The +annual commemoration of their virtues and sufferings was observed as a +sacred ceremony, and at length terminated in religious worship. Among +the Christians who had publicly confessed their religious principles, +those who (as it very frequently happened) had been dismissed from the +tribunal or the prisons of the Pagan magistrates, obtained such honors +as were justly due to their imperfect martyrdom and their generous +resolution. The most pious females courted the permission of imprinting +kisses on the fetters which they had worn, and on the wounds which they +had received. Their persons were esteemed holy, their decisions were +admitted with deference, and they too often abused, by their spiritual +pride and licentious manners, the preeminence which their zeal and +intrepidity had acquired. Distinctions like these, whilst they display +the exalted merit, betray the inconsiderable number of those who +suffered, and of those who died, for the profession of Christianity. + +The sober discretion of the present age will more readily censure than +admire, but can more easily admire than imitate, the fervor of the +first Christians, who, according to the lively expressions of +Sulpicius Severus, desired martyrdom with more eagerness than his +own contemporaries solicited a bishopric. The epistles which Ignatius +composed as he was carried in chains through the cities of Asia, breathe +sentiments the most repugnant to the ordinary feelings of human nature. +He earnestly beseeches the Romans, that when he should be exposed in +the amphitheatre, they would not, by their kind but unseasonable +intercession, deprive him of the crown of glory; and he declares his +resolution to provoke and irritate the wild beasts which might be +employed as the instruments of his death. Some stories are related +of the courage of martyrs, who actually performed what Ignatius had +intended; who exasperated the fury of the lions, pressed the executioner +to hasten his office, cheerfully leaped into the fires which were +kindled to consume them, and discovered a sensation of joy and pleasure +in the midst of the most exquisite tortures. Several examples have been +preserved of a zeal impatient of those restraints which the emperors +had provided for the security of the church. The Christians sometimes +supplied by their voluntary declaration the want of an accuser, rudely +disturbed the public service of paganism, and rushing in crowds round +the tribunal of the magistrates, called upon them to pronounce and to +inflict the sentence of the law. The behavior of the Christians was too +remarkable to escape the notice of the ancient philosophers; but they +seem to have considered it with much less admiration than astonishment. +Incapable of conceiving the motives which sometimes transported the +fortitude of believers beyond the bounds of prudence or reason, they +treated such an eagerness to die as the strange result of obstinate +despair, of stupid insensibility, or of superstitious frenzy. "Unhappy +men!" exclaimed the proconsul Antoninus to the Christians of Asia; +"unhappy men! if you are thus weary of your lives, is it so difficult +for you to find ropes and precipices?" He was extremely cautious (as it +is observed by a learned and pious historian) of punishing men who had +found no accusers but themselves, the Imperial laws not having made +any provision for so unexpected a case: condemning therefore a few as a +warning to their brethren, he dismissed the multitude with indignation +and contempt. Notwithstanding this real or affected disdain, the +intrepid constancy of the faithful was productive of more salutary +effects on those minds which nature or grace had disposed for the easy +reception of religious truth. On these melancholy occasions, there were +many among the Gentiles who pitied, who admired, and who were converted. +The generous enthusiasm was communicated from the sufferer to the +spectators; and the blood of martyrs, according to a well-known +observation, became the seed of the church. + +But although devotion had raised, and eloquence continued to inflame, +this fever of the mind, it insensibly gave way to the more natural hopes +and fears of the human heart, to the love of life, the apprehension +of pain, and the horror of dissolution. The more prudent rulers of the +church found themselves obliged to restrain the indiscreet ardor of +their followers, and to distrust a constancy which too often abandoned +them in the hour of trial. As the lives of the faithful became less +mortified and austere, they were every day less ambitious of the honors +of martyrdom; and the soldiers of Christ, instead of distinguishing +themselves by voluntary deeds of heroism, frequently deserted their +post, and fled in confusion before the enemy whom it was their duty to +resist. There were three methods, however, of escaping the flames of +persecution, which were not attended with an equal degree of guilt: +first, indeed, was generally allowed to be innocent; the second was of +a doubtful, or at least of a venial, nature; but the third implied a +direct and criminal apostasy from the Christian faith. + +I. A modern inquisitor would hear with surprise, that whenever an +information was given to a Roman magistrate of any person within his +jurisdiction who had embraced the sect of the Christians, the charge +was communicated to the party accused, and that a convenient time was +allowed him to settle his domestic concerns, and to prepare an answer to +the crime which was imputed to him. If he entertained any doubt of his +own constancy, such a delay afforded him the opportunity of preserving +his life and honor by flight, of withdrawing himself into some obscure +retirement or some distant province, and of patiently expecting the +return of peace and security. A measure so consonant to reason was soon +authorized by the advice and example of the most holy prelates; and +seems to have been censured by few except by the Montanists, who +deviated into heresy by their strict and obstinate adherence to the +rigor of ancient discipline. II. The provincial governors, whose zeal +was less prevalent than their avarice, had countenanced the practice of +selling certificates, (or libels, as they were called,) which attested, +that the persons therein mentioned had complied with the laws, and +sacrificed to the Roman deities. By producing these false declarations, +the opulent and timid Christians were enabled to silence the malice of +an informer, and to reconcile in some measure their safety with their +religion. A slight penance atoned for this profane dissimulation. * III. +In every persecution there were great numbers of unworthy Christians who +publicly disowned or renounced the faith which they had professed; and +who confirmed the sincerity of their abjuration, by the legal acts of +burning incense or of offering sacrifices. Some of these apostates had +yielded on the first menace or exhortation of the magistrate; whilst +the patience of others had been subdued by the length and repetition +of tortures. The affrighted countenances of some betrayed their inward +remorse, while others advanced with confidence and alacrity to the +altars of the gods. But the disguise which fear had imposed, subsisted +no longer than the present danger. As soon as the severity of the +persecution was abated, the doors of the churches were assailed by +the returning multitude of penitents who detested their idolatrous +submission, and who solicited with equal ardor, but with various +success, their readmission into the society of Christians. + +IV. Notwithstanding the general rules established for the conviction +and punishment of the Christians, the fate of those sectaries, in an +extensive and arbitrary government, must still in a great measure, have +depended on their own behavior, the circumstances of the times, and +the temper of their supreme as well as subordinate rulers. Zeal might +sometimes provoke, and prudence might sometimes avert or assuage, the +superstitious fury of the Pagans. A variety of motives might dispose the +provincial governors either to enforce or to relax the execution of the +laws; and of these motives the most forcible was their regard not only +for the public edicts, but for the secret intentions of the emperor, +a glance from whose eye was sufficient to kindle or to extinguish +the flames of persecution. As often as any occasional severities were +exercised in the different parts of the empire, the primitive Christians +lamented and perhaps magnified their own sufferings; but the celebrated +number of ten persecutions has been determined by the ecclesiastical +writers of the fifth century, who possessed a more distinct view of the +prosperous or adverse fortunes of the church, from the age of Nero to +that of Diocletian. The ingenious parallels of the ten plagues of Egypt, +and of the ten horns of the Apocalypse, first suggested this calculation +to their minds; and in their application of the faith of prophecy to the +truth of history, they were careful to select those reigns which were +indeed the most hostile to the Christian cause. But these transient +persecutions served only to revive the zeal and to restore the +discipline of the faithful; and the moments of extraordinary rigor +were compensated by much longer intervals of peace and security. The +indifference of some princes, and the indulgence of others, permitted +the Christians to enjoy, though not perhaps a legal, yet an actual and +public, toleration of their religion. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part V. + +The apology of Tertullian contains two very ancient, very singular, but +at the same time very suspicious, instances of Imperial clemency; the +edicts published by Tiberius, and by Marcus Antoninus, and designed not +only to protect the innocence of the Christians, but even to proclaim +those stupendous miracles which had attested the truth of their +doctrine. The first of these examples is attended with some difficulties +which might perplex a sceptical mind. We are required to believe, that +Pontius Pilate informed the emperor of the unjust sentence of death +which he had pronounced against an innocent, and, as it appeared, +a divine, person; and that, without acquiring the merit, he exposed +himself to the danger of martyrdom; that Tiberius, who avowed his +contempt for all religion, immediately conceived the design of placing +the Jewish Messiah among the gods of Rome; that his servile senate +ventured to disobey the commands of their master; that Tiberius, instead +of resenting their refusal, contented himself with protecting the +Christians from the severity of the laws, many years before such laws +were enacted, or before the church had assumed any distinct name or +existence; and lastly, that the memory of this extraordinary transaction +was preserved in the most public and authentic records, which escaped +the knowledge of the historians of Greece and Rome, and were only +visible to the eyes of an African Christian, who composed his apology +one hundred and sixty years after the death of Tiberius. The edict of +Marcus Antoninus is supposed to have been the effect of his devotion and +gratitude for the miraculous deliverance which he had obtained in the +Marcomannic war. The distress of the legions, the seasonable tempest of +rain and hail, of thunder and of lightning, and the dismay and defeat of +the barbarians, have been celebrated by the eloquence of several Pagan +writers. If there were any Christians in that army, it was natural that +they should ascribe some merit to the fervent prayers, which, in the +moment of danger, they had offered up for their own and the public +safety. But we are still assured by monuments of brass and marble, by +the Imperial medals, and by the Antonine column, that neither the prince +nor the people entertained any sense of this signal obligation, since +they unanimously attribute their deliverance to the providence of +Jupiter, and to the interposition of Mercury. During the whole course of +his reign, Marcus despised the Christians as a philosopher, and punished +them as a sovereign. * + +By a singular fatality, the hardships which they had endured under the +government of a virtuous prince, immediately ceased on the accession of +a tyrant; and as none except themselves had experienced the injustice +of Marcus, so they alone were protected by the lenity of Commodus. The +celebrated Marcia, the most favored of his concubines, and who at length +contrived the murder of her Imperial lover, entertained a singular +affection for the oppressed church; and though it was impossible that +she could reconcile the practice of vice with the precepts of the +gospel, she might hope to atone for the frailties of her sex and +profession by declaring herself the patroness of the Christians. Under +the gracious protection of Marcia, they passed in safety the thirteen +years of a cruel tyranny; and when the empire was established in the +house of Severus, they formed a domestic but more honorable connection +with the new court. The emperor was persuaded, that in a dangerous +sickness, he had derived some benefit, either spiritual or physical, +from the holy oil, with which one of his slaves had anointed him. He +always treated with peculiar distinction several persons of both sexes +who had embraced the new religion. The nurse as well as the preceptor +of Caracalla were Christians; * and if that young prince ever betrayed a +sentiment of humanity, it was occasioned by an incident, which, however +trifling, bore some relation to the cause of Christianity. Under the +reign of Severus, the fury of the populace was checked; the rigor of +ancient laws was for some time suspended; and the provincial governors +were satisfied with receiving an annual present from the churches within +their jurisdiction, as the price, or as the reward, of their moderation. +The controversy concerning the precise time of the celebration of +Easter, armed the bishops of Asia and Italy against each other, and was +considered as the most important business of this period of leisure +and tranquillity. Nor was the peace of the church interrupted, till the +increasing numbers of proselytes seem at length to have attracted the +attention, and to have alienated the mind of Severus. With the design of +restraining the progress of Christianity, he published an edict, which, +though it was designed to affect only the new converts, could not be +carried into strict execution, without exposing to danger and punishment +the most zealous of their teachers and missionaries. In this mitigated +persecution we may still discover the indulgent spirit of Rome and of +Polytheism, which so readily admitted every excuse in favor of those who +practised the religious ceremonies of their fathers. + +But the laws which Severus had enacted soon expired with the authority +of that emperor; and the Christians, after this accidental tempest, +enjoyed a calm of thirty-eight years. Till this period they had usually +held their assemblies in private houses and sequestered places. They +were now permitted to erect and consecrate convenient edifices for the +purpose of religious worship; to purchase lands, even at Rome itself, +for the use of the community; and to conduct the elections of their +ecclesiastical ministers in so public, but at the same time in so +exemplary a manner, as to deserve the respectful attention of the +Gentiles. This long repose of the church was accompanied with dignity. +The reigns of those princes who derived their extraction from the +Asiatic provinces, proved the most favorable to the Christians; the +eminent persons of the sect, instead of being reduced to implore the +protection of a slave or concubine, were admitted into the palace in the +honorable characters of priests and philosophers; and their mysterious +doctrines, which were already diffused among the people, insensibly +attracted the curiosity of their sovereign. When the empress Mammaea +passed through Antioch, she expressed a desire of conversing with the +celebrated Origen, the fame of whose piety and learning was spread over +the East. Origen obeyed so flattering an invitation, and though he +could not expect to succeed in the conversion of an artful and ambitious +woman, she listened with pleasure to his eloquent exhortations, and +honorably dismissed him to his retirement in Palestine. The sentiments +of Mammaea were adopted by her son Alexander, and the philosophic +devotion of that emperor was marked by a singular but injudicious regard +for the Christian religion. In his domestic chapel he placed the statues +of Abraham, of Orpheus, of Apollonius, and of Christ, as an honor justly +due to those respectable sages who had instructed mankind in the various +modes of addressing their homage to the supreme and universal Deity. +A purer faith, as well as worship, was openly professed and practised +among his household. Bishops, perhaps for the first time, were seen +at court; and, after the death of Alexander, when the inhuman Maximin +discharged his fury on the favorites and servants of his unfortunate +benefactor, a great number of Christians of every rank and of both +sexes, were involved the promiscuous massacre, which, on their account, +has improperly received the name of Persecution. * + +Notwithstanding the cruel disposition of Maximin, the effects of his +resentment against the Christians were of a very local and temporary +nature, and the pious Origen, who had been proscribed as a devoted +victim, was still reserved to convey the truths of the gospel to the +ear of monarchs. He addressed several edifying letters to the emperor +Philip, to his wife, and to his mother; and as soon as that prince, +who was born in the neighborhood of Palestine, had usurped the Imperial +sceptre, the Christians acquired a friend and a protector. The public +and even partial favor of Philip towards the sectaries of the new +religion, and his constant reverence for the ministers of the church, +gave some color to the suspicion, which prevailed in his own times, that +the emperor himself was become a convert to the faith; and afforded +some grounds for a fable which was afterwards invented, that he had +been purified by confession and penance from the guilt contracted by the +murder of his innocent predecessor. The fall of Philip introduced, with +the change of masters, a new system of government, so oppressive to +the Christians, that their former condition, ever since the time of +Domitian, was represented as a state of perfect freedom and security, +if compared with the rigorous treatment which they experienced under the +short reign of Decius. The virtues of that prince will scarcely allow +us to suspect that he was actuated by a mean resentment against the +favorites of his predecessor; and it is more reasonable to believe, that +in the prosecution of his general design to restore the purity of Roman +manners, he was desirous of delivering the empire from what he +condemned as a recent and criminal superstition. The bishops of the most +considerable cities were removed by exile or death: the vigilance of +the magistrates prevented the clergy of Rome during sixteen months from +proceeding to a new election; and it was the opinion of the Christians, +that the emperor would more patiently endure a competitor for the +purple, than a bishop in the capital. Were it possible to suppose that +the penetration of Decius had discovered pride under the disguise of +humility, or that he could foresee the temporal dominion which might +insensibly arise from the claims of spiritual authority, we might be +less surprised, that he should consider the successors of St. Peter, as +the most formidable rivals to those of Augustus. + +The administration of Valerian was distinguished by a levity and +inconstancy ill suited to the gravity of the Roman Censor. In the first +part of his reign, he surpassed in clemency those princes who had been +suspected of an attachment to the Christian faith. In the last three +years and a half, listening to the insinuations of a minister addicted +to the superstitions of Egypt, he adopted the maxims, and imitated the +severity, of his predecessor Decius. The accession of Gallienus, which +increased the calamities of the empire, restored peace to the church; +and the Christians obtained the free exercise of their religion by an +edict addressed to the bishops, and conceived in such terms as seemed to +acknowledge their office and public character. The ancient laws, without +being formally repealed, were suffered to sink into oblivion; and +(excepting only some hostile intentions which are attributed to the +emperor Aurelian ) the disciples of Christ passed above forty years in +a state of prosperity, far more dangerous to their virtue than the +severest trials of persecution. + +The story of Paul of Samosata, who filled the metropolitan see of +Antioch, while the East was in the hands of Odenathus and Zenobia, may +serve to illustrate the condition and character of the times. The wealth +of that prelate was a sufficient evidence of his guilt, since it was +neither derived from the inheritance of his fathers, nor acquired by the +arts of honest industry. But Paul considered the service of the church +as a very lucrative profession. His ecclesiastical jurisdiction was +venal and rapacious; he extorted frequent contributions from the most +opulent of the faithful, and converted to his own use a considerable +part of the public revenue. By his pride and luxury, the Christian +religion was rendered odious in the eyes of the Gentiles. His council +chamber and his throne, the splendor with which he appeared in public, +the suppliant crowd who solicited his attention, the multitude of +letters and petitions to which he dictated his answers, and the +perpetual hurry of business in which he was involved, were circumstances +much better suited to the state of a civil magistrate, than to the +humility of a primitive bishop. When he harangued his people from the +pulpit, Paul affected the figurative style and the theatrical gestures +of an Asiatic sophist, while the cathedral resounded with the loudest +and most extravagant acclamations in the praise of his divine eloquence. +Against those who resisted his power, or refused to flatter his vanity, +the prelate of Antioch was arrogant, rigid, and inexorable; but he +relaxed the discipline, and lavished the treasures of the church on +his dependent clergy, who were permitted to imitate their master in the +gratification of every sensual appetite. For Paul indulged himself +very freely in the pleasures of the table, and he had received into +the episcopal palace two young and beautiful women as the constant +companions of his leisure moments. + +Notwithstanding these scandalous vices, if Paul of Samosata had +preserved the purity of the orthodox faith, his reign over the capital +of Syria would have ended only with his life; and had a seasonable +persecution intervened, an effort of courage might perhaps have placed +him in the rank of saints and martyrs. * Some nice and subtle errors, +which he imprudently adopted and obstinately maintained, concerning the +doctrine of the Trinity, excited the zeal and indignation of the Eastern +churches. From Egypt to the Euxine Sea, the bishops were in arms and +in motion. Several councils were held, confutations were published, +excommunications were pronounced, ambiguous explanations were by turns +accepted and refused, treaties were concluded and violated, and at +length Paul of Samosata was degraded from his episcopal character, +by the sentence of seventy or eighty bishops, who assembled for that +purpose at Antioch, and who, without consulting the rights of the clergy +or people, appointed a successor by their own authority. The +manifest irregularity of this proceeding increased the numbers of the +discontented faction; and as Paul, who was no stranger to the arts of +courts, had insinuated himself into the favor of Zenobia, he maintained +above four years the possession of the episcopal house and office. * The +victory of Aurelian changed the face of the East, and the two contending +parties, who applied to each other the epithets of schism and heresy, +were either commanded or permitted to plead their cause before the +tribunal of the conqueror. This public and very singular trial affords +a convincing proof that the existence, the property, the privileges, and +the internal policy of the Christians, were acknowledged, if not by the +laws, at least by the magistrates, of the empire. As a Pagan and as a +soldier, it could scarcely be expected that Aurelian should enter +into the discussion, whether the sentiments of Paul or those of his +adversaries were most agreeable to the true standard of the orthodox +faith. His determination, however, was founded on the general principles +of equity and reason. He considered the bishops of Italy as the most +impartial and respectable judges among the Christians, and as soon as +he was informed that they had unanimously approved the sentence of the +council, he acquiesced in their opinion, and immediately gave orders +that Paul should be compelled to relinquish the temporal possessions +belonging to an office, of which, in the judgment of his brethren, he +had been regularly deprived. But while we applaud the justice, we should +not overlook the policy, of Aurelian, who was desirous of restoring and +cementing the dependence of the provinces on the capital, by every means +which could bind the interest or prejudices of any part of his subjects. + +Amidst the frequent revolutions of the empire, the Christians still +flourished in peace and prosperity; and notwithstanding a celebrated aera +of martyrs has been deduced from the accession of Diocletian, the +new system of policy, introduced and maintained by the wisdom of that +prince, continued, during more than eighteen years, to breathe the +mildest and most liberal spirit of religious toleration. The mind of +Diocletian himself was less adapted indeed to speculative inquiries, +than to the active labors of war and government. His prudence rendered +him averse to any great innovation, and though his temper was not very +susceptible of zeal or enthusiasm, he always maintained an habitual +regard for the ancient deities of the empire. But the leisure of the two +empresses, of his wife Prisca, and of Valeria, his daughter, permitted +them to listen with more attention and respect to the truths of +Christianity, which in every age has acknowledged its important +obligations to female devotion. The principal eunuchs, Lucian and +Dorotheus, Gorgonius and Andrew, who attended the person, possessed +the favor, and governed the household of Diocletian, protected by their +powerful influence the faith which they had embraced. Their example was +imitated by many of the most considerable officers of the palace, who, +in their respective stations, had the care of the Imperial ornaments, +of the robes, of the furniture, of the jewels, and even of the private +treasury; and, though it might sometimes be incumbent on them to +accompany the emperor when he sacrificed in the temple, they enjoyed, +with their wives, their children, and their slaves, the free exercise +of the Christian religion. Diocletian and his colleagues frequently +conferred the most important offices on those persons who avowed their +abhorrence for the worship of the gods, but who had displayed abilities +proper for the service of the state. The bishops held an honorable rank +in their respective provinces, and were treated with distinction and +respect, not only by the people, but by the magistrates themselves. +Almost in every city, the ancient churches were found insufficient to +contain the increasing multitude of proselytes; and in their place more +stately and capacious edifices were erected for the public worship of +the faithful. The corruption of manners and principles, so forcibly +lamented by Eusebius, may be considered, not only as a consequence, but +as a proof, of the liberty which the Christians enjoyed and abused +under the reign of Diocletian. Prosperity had relaxed the nerves of +discipline. Fraud, envy, and malice prevailed in every congregation. The +presbyters aspired to the episcopal office, which every day became an +object more worthy of their ambition. The bishops, who contended with +each other for ecclesiastical preeminence, appeared by their conduct to +claim a secular and tyrannical power in the church; and the lively faith +which still distinguished the Christians from the Gentiles, was shown +much less in their lives, than in their controversial writings. + +Notwithstanding this seeming security, an attentive observer might +discern some symptoms that threatened the church with a more violent +persecution than any which she had yet endured. The zeal and rapid +progress of the Christians awakened the Polytheists from their supine +indifference in the cause of those deities, whom custom and education +had taught them to revere. The mutual provocations of a religious war, +which had already continued above two hundred years, exasperated the +animosity of the contending parties. The Pagans were incensed at the +rashness of a recent and obscure sect, which presumed to accuse their +countrymen of error, and to devote their ancestors to eternal misery. +The habits of justifying the popular mythology against the invectives +of an implacable enemy, produced in their minds some sentiments of faith +and reverence for a system which they had been accustomed to consider +with the most careless levity. The supernatural powers assumed by the +church inspired at the same time terror and emulation. The followers +of the established religion intrenched themselves behind a similar +fortification of prodigies; invented new modes of sacrifice, of +expiation, and of initiation; attempted to revive the credit of their +expiring oracles; and listened with eager credulity to every impostor, +who flattered their prejudices by a tale of wonders. Both parties seemed +to acknowledge the truth of those miracles which were claimed by their +adversaries; and while they were contented with ascribing them to the +arts of magic, and to the power of daemons, they mutually concurred in +restoring and establishing the reign of superstition. Philosophy, her +most dangerous enemy, was now converted into her most useful ally. The +groves of the academy, the gardens of Epicurus, and even the portico +of the Stoics, were almost deserted, as so many different schools of +scepticism or impiety; and many among the Romans were desirous that the +writings of Cicero should be condemned and suppressed by the authority +of the senate. The prevailing sect of the new Platonicians judged +it prudent to connect themselves with the priests, whom perhaps they +despised, against the Christians, whom they had reason to fear. These +fashionable Philosophers prosecuted the design of extracting allegorical +wisdom from the fictions of the Greek poets; instituted mysterious +rites of devotion for the use of their chosen disciples; recommended the +worship of the ancient gods as the emblems or ministers of the Supreme +Deity, and composed against the faith of the gospel many elaborate +treatises, which have since been committed to the flames by the prudence +of orthodox emperors. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part VI. + +Although the policy of Diocletian and the humanity of Constantius +inclined them to preserve inviolate the maxims of toleration, it was +soon discovered that their two associates, Maximian and Galerius, +entertained the most implacable aversion for the name and religion of +the Christians. The minds of those princes had never been enlightened +by science; education had never softened their temper. They owed their +greatness to their swords, and in their most elevated fortune they still +retained their superstitious prejudices of soldiers and peasants. In the +general administration of the provinces they obeyed the laws which +their benefactor had established; but they frequently found occasions of +exercising within their camp and palaces a secret persecution, for which +the imprudent zeal of the Christians sometimes offered the most specious +pretences. A sentence of death was executed upon Maximilianus, an +African youth, who had been produced by his own father *before the +magistrate as a sufficient and legal recruit, but who obstinately +persisted in declaring, that his conscience would not permit him to +embrace the profession of a soldier. It could scarcely be expected that +any government should suffer the action of Marcellus the Centurion to +pass with impunity. On the day of a public festival, that officer threw +away his belt, his arms, and the ensigns of his office, and exclaimed +with a loud voice, that he would obey none but Jesus Christ the eternal +King, and that he renounced forever the use of carnal weapons, and the +service of an idolatrous master. The soldiers, as soon as they recovered +from their astonishment, secured the person of Marcellus. He was +examined in the city of Tingi by the president of that part of +Mauritania; and as he was convicted by his own confession, he was +condemned and beheaded for the crime of desertion. Examples of such a +nature savor much less of religious persecution than of martial or even +civil law; but they served to alienate the mind of the emperors, to +justify the severity of Galerius, who dismissed a great number of +Christian officers from their employments; and to authorize the opinion, +that a sect of enthusiastics, which avowed principles so repugnant to +the public safety, must either remain useless, or would soon become +dangerous, subjects of the empire. + +After the success of the Persian war had raised the hopes and the +reputation of Galerius, he passed a winter with Diocletian in the palace +of Nicomedia; and the fate of Christianity became the object of their +secret consultations. The experienced emperor was still inclined to +pursue measures of lenity; and though he readily consented to exclude +the Christians from holding any employments in the household or the +army, he urged in the strongest terms the danger as well as cruelty +of shedding the blood of those deluded fanatics. Galerius at length +extorted from him the permission of summoning a council, composed of a +few persons the most distinguished in the civil and military departments +of the state. The important question was agitated in their presence, +and those ambitious courtiers easily discerned, that it was incumbent +on them to second, by their eloquence, the importunate violence of the +Caesar. It may be presumed, that they insisted on every topic which might +interest the pride, the piety, or the fears, of their sovereign in the +destruction of Christianity. Perhaps they represented, that the glorious +work of the deliverance of the empire was left imperfect, as long as an +independent people was permitted to subsist and multiply in the heart +of the provinces. The Christians, (it might specially be alleged,) +renouncing the gods and the institutions of Rome, had constituted a +distinct republic, which might yet be suppressed before it had acquired +any military force; but which was already governed by its own laws and +magistrates, was possessed of a public treasure, and was intimately +connected in all its parts by the frequent assemblies of the bishops, +to whose decrees their numerous and opulent congregations yielded an +implicit obedience. Arguments like these may seem to have determined the +reluctant mind of Diocletian to embrace a new system of persecution; +but though we may suspect, it is not in our power to relate, the secret +intrigues of the palace, the private views and resentments, the jealousy +of women or eunuchs, and all those trifling but decisive causes which +so often influence the fate of empires, and the councils of the wisest +monarchs. + +The pleasure of the emperors was at length signified to the Christians, +who, during the course of this melancholy winter, had expected, with +anxiety, the result of so many secret consultations. The twenty-third of +February, which coincided with the Roman festival of the Terminalia, +was appointed (whether from accident or design) to set bounds to the +progress of Christianity. At the earliest dawn of day, the Praetorian +praefect, accompanied by several generals, tribunes, and officers of +the revenue, repaired to the principal church of Nicomedia, which was +situated on an eminence in the most populous and beautiful part of +the city. The doors were instantly broke open; they rushed into the +sanctuary; and as they searched in vain for some visible object of +worship, they were obliged to content themselves with committing to the +flames the volumes of the holy Scripture. The ministers of Diocletian +were followed by a numerous body of guards and pioneers, who marched in +order of battle, and were provided with all the instruments used in +the destruction of fortified cities. By their incessant labor, a sacred +edifice, which towered above the Imperial palace, and had long excited +the indignation and envy of the Gentiles, was in a few hours levelled +with the ground. + +The next day the general edict of persecution was published; and though +Diocletian, still averse to the effusion of blood, had moderated +the fury of Galerius, who proposed, that every one refusing to offer +sacrifice should immediately be burnt alive, the penalties inflicted on +the obstinacy of the Christians might be deemed sufficiently rigorous +and effectual. It was enacted, that their churches, in all the provinces +of the empire, should be demolished to their foundations; and the +punishment of death was denounced against all who should presume to +hold any secret assemblies for the purpose of religious worship. The +philosophers, who now assumed the unworthy office of directing the blind +zeal of persecution, had diligently studied the nature and genius of the +Christian religion; and as they were not ignorant that the speculative +doctrines of the faith were supposed to be contained in the writings +of the prophets, of the evangelists, and of the apostles, they most +probably suggested the order, that the bishops and presbyters should +deliver all their sacred books into the hands of the magistrates; who +were commanded, under the severest penalties, to burn them in a public +and solemn manner. By the same edict, the property of the church was at +once confiscated; and the several parts of which it might consist +were either sold to the highest bidder, united to the Imperial domain, +bestowed on the cities and corporations, or granted to the solicitations +of rapacious courtiers. After taking such effectual measures to abolish +the worship, and to dissolve the government of the Christians, it was +thought necessary to subject to the most intolerable hardships the +condition of those perverse individuals who should still reject the +religion of nature, of Rome, and of their ancestors. Persons of +a liberal birth were declared incapable of holding any honors or +employments; slaves were forever deprived of the hopes of freedom, and +the whole body of the people were put out of the protection of the law. +The judges were authorized to hear and to determine every action that +was brought against a Christian. But the Christians were not permitted +to complain of any injury which they themselves had suffered; and thus +those unfortunate sectaries were exposed to the severity, while they +were excluded from the benefits, of public justice. This new species of +martyrdom, so painful and lingering, so obscure and ignominious, was, +perhaps, the most proper to weary the constancy of the faithful: nor can +it be doubted that the passions and interest of mankind were disposed on +this occasion to second the designs of the emperors. But the policy of a +well-ordered government must sometimes have interposed in behalf of +the oppressed Christians; * nor was it possible for the Roman princes +entirely to remove the apprehension of punishment, or to connive at +every act of fraud and violence, without exposing their own authority +and the rest of their subjects to the most alarming dangers. + +This edict was scarcely exhibited to the public view, in the most +conspicuous place of Nicomedia, before it was torn down by the hands +of a Christian, who expressed at the same time, by the bitterest +invectives, his contempt as well as abhorrence for such impious and +tyrannical governors. His offence, according to the mildest laws, +amounted to treason, and deserved death. And if it be true that he was +a person of rank and education, those circumstances could serve only to +aggravate his guilt. He was burnt, or rather roasted, by a slow fire; +and his executioners, zealous to revenge the personal insult which had +been offered to the emperors, exhausted every refinement of cruelty, +without being able to subdue his patience, or to alter the steady and +insulting smile which in his dying agonies he still preserved in his +countenance. The Christians, though they confessed that his conduct +had not been strictly conformable to the laws of prudence, admired the +divine fervor of his zeal; and the excessive commendations which they +lavished on the memory of their hero and martyr, contributed to fix a +deep impression of terror and hatred in the mind of Diocletian. + +His fears were soon alarmed by the view of a danger from which he very +narrowly escaped. Within fifteen days the palace of Nicomedia, and even +the bed-chamber of Diocletian, were twice in flames; and though both +times they were extinguished without any material damage, the singular +repetition of the fire was justly considered as an evident proof that it +had not been the effect of chance or negligence. The suspicion naturally +fell on the Christians; and it was suggested, with some degree of +probability, that those desperate fanatics, provoked by their present +sufferings, and apprehensive of impending calamities, had entered into +a conspiracy with their faithful brethren, the eunuchs of the +palace, against the lives of two emperors, whom they detested as the +irreconcilable enemies of the church of God. Jealousy and resentment +prevailed in every breast, but especially in that of Diocletian. A great +number of persons, distinguished either by the offices which they had +filled, or by the favor which they had enjoyed, were thrown into prison. +Every mode of torture was put in practice, and the court, as well as +city, was polluted with many bloody executions. But as it was found +impossible to extort any discovery of this mysterious transaction, it +seems incumbent on us either to presume the innocence, or to admire the +resolution, of the sufferers. A few days afterwards Galerius hastily +withdrew himself from Nicomedia, declaring, that if he delayed his +departure from that devoted palace, he should fall a sacrifice to the +rage of the Christians. The ecclesiastical historians, from whom alone +we derive a partial and imperfect knowledge of this persecution, are at +a loss how to account for the fears and dangers of the emperors. Two +of these writers, a prince and a rhetorician, were eye-witnesses of +the fire of Nicomedia. The one ascribes it to lightning, and the divine +wrath; the other affirms, that it was kindled by the malice of Galerius +himself. + +As the edict against the Christians was designed for a general law of +the whole empire, and as Diocletian and Galerius, though they might not +wait for the consent, were assured of the concurrence, of the Western +princes, it would appear more consonant to our ideas of policy, that the +governors of all the provinces should have received secret instructions +to publish, on one and the same day, this declaration of war within +their respective departments. It was at least to be expected, that the +convenience of the public highways and established posts would have +enabled the emperors to transmit their orders with the utmost despatch +from the palace of Nicomedia to the extremities of the Roman world; and +that they would not have suffered fifty days to elapse, before the edict +was published in Syria, and near four months before it was signified to +the cities of Africa. This delay may perhaps be imputed to the cautious +temper of Diocletian, who had yielded a reluctant consent to the +measures of persecution, and who was desirous of trying the experiment +under his more immediate eye, before he gave way to the disorders and +discontent which it must inevitably occasion in the distant provinces. +At first, indeed, the magistrates were restrained from the effusion +of blood; but the use of every other severity was permitted, and +even recommended to their zeal; nor could the Christians, though +they cheerfully resigned the ornaments of their churches, resolve to +interrupt their religious assemblies, or to deliver their sacred books +to the flames. The pious obstinacy of Felix, an African bishop, appears +to have embarrassed the subordinate ministers of the government. The +curator of his city sent him in chains to the proconsul. The proconsul +transmitted him to the Praetorian praefect of Italy; and Felix, who +disdained even to give an evasive answer, was at length beheaded at +Venusia, in Lucania, a place on which the birth of Horace has conferred +fame. This precedent, and perhaps some Imperial rescript, which was +issued in consequence of it, appeared to authorize the governors of +provinces, in punishing with death the refusal of the Christians to +deliver up their sacred books. There were undoubtedly many persons who +embraced this opportunity of obtaining the crown of martyrdom; but there +were likewise too many who purchased an ignominious life, by discovering +and betraying the holy Scripture into the hands of infidels. A great +number even of bishops and presbyters acquired, by this criminal +compliance, the opprobrious epithet of Traditors; and their offence was +productive of much present scandal and of much future discord in the +African church. + +The copies as well as the versions of Scripture, were already so +multiplied in the empire, that the most severe inquisition could no +longer be attended with any fatal consequences; and even the sacrifice +of those volumes, which, in every congregation, were preserved for +public use, required the consent of some treacherous and unworthy +Christians. But the ruin of the churches was easily effected by the +authority of the government, and by the labor of the Pagans. In some +provinces, however, the magistrates contented themselves with shutting +up the places of religious worship. In others, they more literally +complied with the terms of the edict; and after taking away the doors, +the benches, and the pulpit, which they burnt as it were in a funeral +pile, they completely demolished the remainder of the edifice. It +is perhaps to this melancholy occasion that we should apply a very +remarkable story, which is related with so many circumstances of variety +and improbability, that it serves rather to excite than to satisfy +our curiosity. In a small town in Phrygia, of whose names as well as +situation we are left ignorant, it should seem that the magistrates and +the body of the people had embraced the Christian faith; and as some +resistance might be apprehended to the execution of the edict, the +governor of the province was supported by a numerous detachment of +legionaries. On their approach the citizens threw themselves into the +church, with the resolution either of defending by arms that sacred +edifice, or of perishing in its ruins. They indignantly rejected the +notice and permission which was given them to retire, till the soldiers, +provoked by their obstinate refusal, set fire to the building on all +sides, and consumed, by this extraordinary kind of martyrdom, a great +number of Phrygians, with their wives and children. + +Some slight disturbances, though they were suppressed almost as soon as +excited, in Syria and the frontiers of Armenia, afforded the enemies of +the church a very plausible occasion to insinuate, that those troubles +had been secretly fomented by the intrigues of the bishops, who +had already forgotten their ostentatious professions of passive and +unlimited obedience. The resentment, or the fears, of Diocletian, at +length transported him beyond the bounds of moderation, which he had +hitherto preserved, and he declared, in a series of cruel edicts, +his intention of abolishing the Christian name. By the first of these +edicts, the governors of the provinces were directed to apprehend all +persons of the ecclesiastical order; and the prisons, destined for +the vilest criminals, were soon filled with a multitude of bishops, +presbyters, deacons, readers, and exorcists. By a second edict, the +magistrates were commanded to employ every method of severity, which +might reclaim them from their odious superstition, and oblige them to +return to the established worship of the gods. This rigorous order was +extended, by a subsequent edict, to the whole body of Christians, who +were exposed to a violent and general persecution. Instead of those +salutary restraints, which had required the direct and solemn testimony +of an accuser, it became the duty as well as the interest of the +Imperial officers to discover, to pursue, and to torment the most +obnoxious among the faithful. Heavy penalties were denounced against +all who should presume to save a prescribed sectary from the just +indignation of the gods, and of the emperors. Yet, notwithstanding the +severity of this law, the virtuous courage of many of the Pagans, in +concealing their friends or relations, affords an honorable proof, +that the rage of superstition had not extinguished in their minds the +sentiments of nature and humanity. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part VII. + +Diocletian had no sooner published his edicts against the Christians, +than, as if he had been desirous of committing to other hands the +work of persecution, he divested himself of the Imperial purple. The +character and situation of his colleagues and successors sometimes urged +them to enforce and sometimes inclined them to suspend, the execution of +these rigorous laws; nor can we acquire a just and distinct idea of +this important period of ecclesiastical history, unless we separately +consider the state of Christianity, in the different parts of the +empire, during the space of ten years, which elapsed between the first +edicts of Diocletian and the final peace of the church. + +The mild and humane temper of Constantius was averse to the oppression +of any part of his subjects. The principal offices of his palace +were exercised by Christians. He loved their persons, esteemed their +fidelity, and entertained not any dislike to their religious principles. +But as long as Constantius remained in the subordinate station of Caesar, +it was not in his power openly to reject the edicts of Diocletian, or to +disobey the commands of Maximian. His authority contributed, however, to +alleviate the sufferings which he pitied and abhorred. He consented with +reluctance to the ruin of the churches; but he ventured to protect the +Christians themselves from the fury of the populace, and from the rigor +of the laws. The provinces of Gaul (under which we may probably include +those of Britain) were indebted for the singular tranquillity which they +enjoyed, to the gentle interposition of their sovereign. But Datianus, +the president or governor of Spain, actuated either by zeal or policy, +chose rather to execute the public edicts of the emperors, than to +understand the secret intentions of Constantius; and it can scarcely be +doubted, that his provincial administration was stained with the blood +of a few martyrs. The elevation of Constantius to the supreme and +independent dignity of Augustus, gave a free scope to the exercise of +his virtues, and the shortness of his reign did not prevent him from +establishing a system of toleration, of which he left the precept and +the example to his son Constantine. His fortunate son, from the first +moment of his accession, declaring himself the protector of the church, +at length deserved the appellation of the first emperor who publicly +professed and established the Christian religion. The motives of his +conversion, as they may variously be deduced from benevolence, from +policy, from conviction, or from remorse, and the progress of the +revolution, which, under his powerful influence and that of his sons, +rendered Christianity the reigning religion of the Roman empire, will +form a very interesting and important chapter in the present volume of +this history. At present it may be sufficient to observe, that every +victory of Constantine was productive of some relief or benefit to the +church. + +The provinces of Italy and Africa experienced a short but violent +persecution. The rigorous edicts of Diocletian were strictly and +cheerfully executed by his associate Maximian, who had long hated the +Christians, and who delighted in acts of blood and violence. In the +autumn of the first year of the persecution, the two emperors met at +Rome to celebrate their triumph; several oppressive laws appear to +have issued from their secret consultations, and the diligence of the +magistrates was animated by the presence of their sovereigns., After +Diocletian had divested himself of the purple, Italy and Africa were +administered under the name of Severus, and were exposed, without +defence, to the implacable resentment of his master Galerius. Among the +martyrs of Rome, Adauctus deserves the notice of posterity. He was of +a noble family in Italy, and had raised himself, through the successive +honors of the palace, to the important office of treasurer of the +private Jemesnes. Adauctus is the more remarkable for being the only +person of rank and distinction who appears to have suffered death, +during the whole course of this general persecution. + +The revolt of Maxentius immediately restored peace to the churches of +Italy and Africa; and the same tyrant who oppressed every other class of +his subjects, showed himself just, humane, and even partial, towards the +afflicted Christians. He depended on their gratitude and affection, and +very naturally presumed, that the injuries which they had suffered, and +the dangers which they still apprehended from his most inveterate enemy, +would secure the fidelity of a party already considerable by their +numbers and opulence. Even the conduct of Maxentius towards the bishops +of Rome and Carthage may be considered as the proof of his toleration, +since it is probable that the most orthodox princes would adopt the same +measures with regard to their established clergy. Marcellus, the former +of these prelates, had thrown the capital into confusion, by the severe +penance which he imposed on a great number of Christians, who, during +the late persecution, had renounced or dissembled their religion. The +rage of faction broke out in frequent and violent seditions; the +blood of the faithful was shed by each other's hands, and the exile of +Marcellus, whose prudence seems to have been less eminent than his +zeal, was found to be the only measure capable of restoring peace to +the distracted church of Rome. The behavior of Mensurius, bishop of +Carthage, appears to have been still more reprehensible. A deacon of +that city had published a libel against the emperor. The offender took +refuge in the episcopal palace; and though it was somewhat early to +advance any claims of ecclesiastical immunities, the bishop refused +to deliver him up to the officers of justice. For this treasonable +resistance, Mensurius was summoned to court, and instead of receiving a +legal sentence of death or banishment, he was permitted, after a short +examination, to return to his diocese. Such was the happy condition of +the Christian subjects of Maxentius, that whenever they were desirous of +procuring for their own use any bodies of martyrs, they were obliged to +purchase them from the most distant provinces of the East. A story is +related of Aglae, a Roman lady, descended from a consular family, and +possessed of so ample an estate, that it required the management of +seventy-three stewards. Among these Boniface was the favorite of his +mistress; and as Aglae mixed love with devotion, it is reported that he +was admitted to share her bed. Her fortune enabled her to gratify +the pious desire of obtaining some sacred relics from the East. She +intrusted Boniface with a considerable sum of gold, and a large quantity +of aromatics; and her lover, attended by twelve horsemen and three +covered chariots, undertook a remote pilgrimage, as far as Tarsus in +Cilicia. + +The sanguinary temper of Galerius, the first and principal author of the +persecution, was formidable to those Christians whom their misfortunes +had placed within the limits of his dominions; and it may fairly be +presumed that many persons of a middle rank, who were not confined by +the chains either of wealth or of poverty, very frequently deserted +their native country, and sought a refuge in the milder climate of +the West. As long as he commanded only the armies and provinces of +Illyricum, he could with difficulty either find or make a considerable +number of martyrs, in a warlike country, which had entertained the +missionaries of the gospel with more coldness and reluctance than any +other part of the empire. But when Galerius had obtained the supreme +power, and the government of the East, he indulged in their fullest +extent his zeal and cruelty, not only in the provinces of Thrace and +Asia, which acknowledged his immediate jurisdiction, but in those +of Syria, Palestine, and Egypt, where Maximin gratified his own +inclination, by yielding a rigorous obedience to the stern commands of +his benefactor. The frequent disappointments of his ambitious views, +the experience of six years of persecution, and the salutary reflections +which a lingering and painful distemper suggested to the mind of +Galerius, at length convinced him that the most violent efforts of +despotism are insufficient to extirpate a whole people, or to subdue +their religious prejudices. Desirous of repairing the mischief that he +had occasioned, he published in his own name, and in those of Licinius +and Constantine, a general edict, which, after a pompous recital of the +Imperial titles, proceeded in the following manner:-- + +"Among the important cares which have occupied our mind for the utility +and preservation of the empire, it was our intention to correct +and reestablish all things according to the ancient laws and public +discipline of the Romans. We were particularly desirous of reclaiming +into the way of reason and nature, the deluded Christians who had +renounced the religion and ceremonies instituted by their fathers; +and presumptuously despising the practice of antiquity, had invented +extravagant laws and opinions, according to the dictates of their fancy, +and had collected a various society from the different provinces of our +empire. The edicts, which we have published to enforce the worship of +the gods, having exposed many of the Christians to danger and distress, +many having suffered death, and many more, who still persist in their +impious folly, being left destitute of any public exercise of religion, +we are disposed to extend to those unhappy men the effects of our wonted +clemency. We permit them therefore freely to profess their private +opinions, and to assemble in their conventicles without fear or +molestation, provided always that they preserve a due respect to the +established laws and government. By another rescript we shall signify +our intentions to the judges and magistrates; and we hope that our +indulgence will engage the Christians to offer up their prayers to the +Deity whom they adore, for our safety and prosperity for their own, and +for that of the republic." It is not usually in the language of edicts +and manifestos that we should search for the real character or the +secret motives of princes; but as these were the words of a dying +emperor, his situation, perhaps, may be admitted as a pledge of his +sincerity. + +When Galerius subscribed this edict of toleration, he was well assured +that Licinius would readily comply with the inclinations of his friend +and benefactor, and that any measures in favor of the Christians would +obtain the approbation of Constantine. But the emperor would not venture +to insert in the preamble the name of Maximin, whose consent was of +the greatest importance, and who succeeded a few days afterwards to the +provinces of Asia. In the first six months, however, of his new reign, +Maximin affected to adopt the prudent counsels of his predecessor; and +though he never condescended to secure the tranquillity of the church +by a public edict, Sabinus, his Praetorian praefect, addressed a +circular letter to all the governors and magistrates of the provinces, +expatiating on the Imperial clemency, acknowledging the invincible +obstinacy of the Christians, and directing the officers of justice +to cease their ineffectual prosecutions, and to connive at the secret +assemblies of those enthusiasts. In consequence of these orders, great +numbers of Christians were released from prison, or delivered from the +mines. The confessors, singing hymns of triumph, returned into their +own countries; and those who had yielded to the violence of the tempest, +solicited with tears of repentance their readmission into the bosom of +the church. + +But this treacherous calm was of short duration; nor could the +Christians of the East place any confidence in the character of their +sovereign. Cruelty and superstition were the ruling passions of the soul +of Maximin. The former suggested the means, the latter pointed out the +objects of persecution. The emperor was devoted to the worship of the +gods, to the study of magic, and to the belief of oracles. The prophets +or philosophers, whom he revered as the favorites of Heaven, were +frequently raised to the government of provinces, and admitted into his +most secret councils. They easily convinced him that the Christians had +been indebted for their victories to their regular discipline, and that +the weakness of polytheism had principally flowed from a want of +union and subordination among the ministers of religion. A system of +government was therefore instituted, which was evidently copied from the +policy of the church. In all the great cities of the empire, the +temples were repaired and beautified by the order of Maximin, and +the officiating priests of the various deities were subjected to the +authority of a superior pontiff destined to oppose the bishop, and to +promote the cause of paganism. These pontiffs acknowledged, in their +turn, the supreme jurisdiction of the metropolitans or high priests +of the province, who acted as the immediate vicegerents of the emperor +himself. A white robe was the ensign of their dignity; and these +new prelates were carefully selected from the most noble and opulent +families. By the influence of the magistrates, and of the sacerdotal +order, a great number of dutiful addresses were obtained, particularly +from the cities of Nicomedia, Antioch, and Tyre, which artfully +represented the well-known intentions of the court as the general sense +of the people; solicited the emperor to consult the laws of justice +rather than the dictates of his clemency; expressed their abhorrence of +the Christians, and humbly prayed that those impious sectaries might at +least be excluded from the limits of their respective territories. The +answer of Maximin to the address which he obtained from the citizens of +Tyre is still extant. He praises their zeal and devotion in terms of +the highest satisfaction, descants on the obstinate impiety of the +Christians, and betrays, by the readiness with which he consents to +their banishment, that he considered himself as receiving, rather than +as conferring, an obligation. The priests as well as the magistrates +were empowered to enforce the execution of his edicts, which were +engraved on tables of brass; and though it was recommended to them to +avoid the effusion of blood, the most cruel and ignominious punishments +were inflicted on the refractory Christians. + +The Asiatic Christians had every thing to dread from the severity of +a bigoted monarch who prepared his measures of violence with such +deliberate policy. But a few months had scarcely elapsed before the +edicts published by the two Western emperors obliged Maximin to suspend +the prosecution of his designs: the civil war which he so rashly +undertook against Licinius employed all his attention; and the defeat +and death of Maximin soon delivered the church from the last and most +implacable of her enemies. + +In this general view of the persecution, which was first authorized by +the edicts of Diocletian, I have purposely refrained from describing the +particular sufferings and deaths of the Christian martyrs. It would have +been an easy task, from the history of Eusebius, from the declamations +of Lactantius, and from the most ancient acts, to collect a long series +of horrid and disgustful pictures, and to fill many pages with racks and +scourges, with iron hooks and red-hot beds, and with all the variety +of tortures which fire and steel, savage beasts, and more savage +executioners, could inflict upon the human body. These melancholy scenes +might be enlivened by a crowd of visions and miracles destined either to +delay the death, to celebrate the triumph, or to discover the relics of +those canonized saints who suffered for the name of Christ. But I cannot +determine what I ought to transcribe, till I am satisfied how much I +ought to believe. The gravest of the ecclesiastical historians, Eusebius +himself, indirectly confesses, that he has related whatever might +redound to the glory, and that he has suppressed all that could tend to +the disgrace, of religion. Such an acknowledgment will naturally +excite a suspicion that a writer who has so openly violated one of the +fundamental laws of history, has not paid a very strict regard to the +observance of the other; and the suspicion will derive additional +credit from the character of Eusebius, * which was less tinctured with +credulity, and more practised in the arts of courts, than that of +almost any of his contemporaries. On some particular occasions, when +the magistrates were exasperated by some personal motives of interest or +resentment, the rules of prudence, and perhaps of decency, to overturn +the altars, to pour out imprecations against the emperors, or to strike +the judge as he sat on his tribunal, it may be presumed, that every mode +of torture which cruelty could invent, or constancy could endure, was +exhausted on those devoted victims. Two circumstances, however, have +been unwarily mentioned, which insinuate that the general treatment of +the Christians, who had been apprehended by the officers of justice, +was less intolerable than it is usually imagined to have been. 1. The +confessors who were condemned to work in the mines were permitted by the +humanity or the negligence of their keepers to build chapels, and freely +to profess their religion in the midst of those dreary habitations. 2. +The bishops were obliged to check and to censure the forward zeal of +the Christians, who voluntarily threw themselves into the hands of the +magistrates. Some of these were persons oppressed by poverty and debts, +who blindly sought to terminate a miserable existence by a glorious +death. Others were allured by the hope that a short confinement would +expiate the sins of a whole life; and others again were actuated by the +less honorable motive of deriving a plentiful subsistence, and perhaps +a considerable profit, from the alms which the charity of the faithful +bestowed on the prisoners. After the church had triumphed over all her +enemies, the interest as well as vanity of the captives prompted them to +magnify the merit of their respective sufferings. A convenient distance +of time or place gave an ample scope to the progress of fiction; and the +frequent instances which might be alleged of holy martyrs, whose wounds +had been instantly healed, whose strength had been renewed, and whose +lost members had miraculously been restored, were extremely convenient +for the purpose of removing every difficulty, and of silencing every +objection. The most extravagant legends, as they conduced to the honor +of the church, were applauded by the credulous multitude, countenanced +by the power of the clergy, and attested by the suspicious evidence of +ecclesiastical history. + + + +Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From Nero To +Constantine.--Part VIII. + +The vague descriptions of exile and imprisonment, of pain and torture, +are so easily exaggerated or softened by the pencil of an artful +orator, * that we are naturally induced to inquire into a fact of a more +distinct and stubborn kind; the number of persons who suffered death in +consequence of the edicts published by Diocletian, his associates, and +his successors. The recent legendaries record whole armies and +cities, which were at once swept away by the undistinguishing rage of +persecution. The more ancient writers content themselves with pouring +out a liberal effusion of loose and tragical invectives, without +condescending to ascertain the precise number of those persons who were +permitted to seal with their blood their belief of the gospel. From +the history of Eusebius, it may, however, be collected, that only nine +bishops were punished with death; and we are assured, by his particular +enumeration of the martyrs of Palestine, that no more than ninety-two +Christians were entitled to that honorable appellation. As we are +unacquainted with the degree of episcopal zeal and courage which +prevailed at that time, it is not in our power to draw any useful +inferences from the former of these facts: but the latter may serve +to justify a very important and probable conclusion. According to the +distribution of Roman provinces, Palestine may be considered as +the sixteenth part of the Eastern empire: and since there were some +governors, who from a real or affected clemency had preserved their +hands unstained with the blood of the faithful, it is reasonable +to believe, that the country which had given birth to Christianity, +produced at least the sixteenth part of the martyrs who suffered +death within the dominions of Galerius and Maximin; the whole might +consequently amount to about fifteen hundred, a number which, if it is +equally divided between the ten years of the persecution, will allow an +annual consumption of one hundred and fifty martyrs. Allotting the same +proportion to the provinces of Italy, Africa, and perhaps Spain, where, +at the end of two or three years, the rigor of the penal laws was either +suspended or abolished, the multitude of Christians in the Roman empire, +on whom a capital punishment was inflicted by a judicial, sentence, will +be reduced to somewhat less than two thousand persons. Since it cannot +be doubted that the Christians were more numerous, and their enemies +more exasperated, in the time of Diocletian, than they had ever been in +any former persecution, this probable and moderate computation may teach +us to estimate the number of primitive saints and martyrs who sacrificed +their lives for the important purpose of introducing Christianity into +the world. + +We shall conclude this chapter by a melancholy truth, which obtrudes +itself on the reluctant mind; that even admitting, without hesitation or +inquiry, all that history has recorded, or devotion has feigned, on +the subject of martyrdoms, it must still be acknowledged, that the +Christians, in the course of their intestine dissensions, have inflicted +far greater severities on each other, than they had experienced from +the zeal of infidels. During the ages of ignorance which followed the +subversion of the Roman empire in the West, the bishops of the Imperial +city extended their dominion over the laity as well as clergy of the +Latin church. The fabric of superstition which they had erected, and +which might long have defied the feeble efforts of reason, was at length +assaulted by a crowd of daring fanatics, who from the twelfth to the +sixteenth century assumed the popular character of reformers. The church +of Rome defended by violence the empire which she had acquired by fraud; +a system of peace and benevolence was soon disgraced by proscriptions, +war, massacres, and the institution of the holy office. And as the +reformers were animated by the love of civil as well as of religious +freedom, the Catholic princes connected their own interest with that of +the clergy, and enforced by fire and the sword the terrors of spiritual +censures. In the Netherlands alone, more than one hundred thousand of +the subjects of Charles V. are said to have suffered by the hand of the +executioner; and this extraordinary number is attested by Grotius, a man +of genius and learning, who preserved his moderation amidst the fury +of contending sects, and who composed the annals of his own age and +country, at a time when the invention of printing had facilitated the +means of intelligence, and increased the danger of detection. If we are +obliged to submit our belief to the authority of Grotius, it must be +allowed, that the number of Protestants, who were executed in a single +province and a single reign, far exceeded that of the primitive martyrs +in the space of three centuries, and of the Roman empire. But if the +improbability of the fact itself should prevail over the weight of +evidence; if Grotius should be convicted of exaggerating the merit and +sufferings of the Reformers; we shall be naturally led to inquire what +confidence can be placed in the doubtful and imperfect monuments of +ancient credulity; what degree of credit can be assigned to a courtly +bishop, and a passionate declaimer, * who, under the protection +of Constantine, enjoyed the exclusive privilege of recording the +persecutions inflicted on the Christians by the vanquished rivals or +disregarded predecessors of their gracious sovereign. + + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part I. + + Foundation Of Constantinople.--Political System Constantine, + And His Successors.--Military Discipline.--The Palace.--The + Finances. + +The unfortunate Licinius was the last rival who opposed the greatness, +and the last captive who adorned the triumph, of Constantine. After a +tranquil and prosperous reign, the conqueror bequeathed to his family +the inheritance of the Roman empire; a new capital, a new policy, and +a new religion; and the innovations which he established have been +embraced and consecrated by succeeding generations. The age of the +great Constantine and his sons is filled with important events; but +the historian must be oppressed by their number and variety, unless he +diligently separates from each other the scenes which are connected only +by the order of time. He will describe the political institutions that +gave strength and stability to the empire, before he proceeds to relate +the wars and revolutions which hastened its decline. He will adopt the +division unknown to the ancients of civil and ecclesiastical affairs: +the victory of the Christians, and their intestine discord, will supply +copious and distinct materials both for edification and for scandal. + +After the defeat and abdication of Licinius, his victorious rival +proceeded to lay the foundations of a city destined to reign in future +times, the mistress of the East, and to survive the empire and religion +of Constantine. The motives, whether of pride or of policy, which +first induced Diocletian to withdraw himself from the ancient seat +of government, had acquired additional weight by the example of +his successors, and the habits of forty years. Rome was insensibly +confounded with the dependent kingdoms which had once acknowledged +her supremacy; and the country of the Caesars was viewed with cold +indifference by a martial prince, born in the neighborhood of the +Danube, educated in the courts and armies of Asia, and invested with +the purple by the legions of Britain. The Italians, who had received +Constantine as their deliverer, submissively obeyed the edicts which he +sometimes condescended to address to the senate and people of Rome; +but they were seldom honored with the presence of their new sovereign. +During the vigor of his age, Constantine, according to the various +exigencies of peace and war, moved with slow dignity, or with active +diligence, along the frontiers of his extensive dominions; and was +always prepared to take the field either against a foreign or a domestic +enemy. But as he gradually reached the summit of prosperity and the +decline of life, he began to meditate the design of fixing in a more +permanent station the strength as well as majesty of the throne. In the +choice of an advantageous situation, he preferred the confines of Europe +and Asia; to curb with a powerful arm the barbarians who dwelt between +the Danube and the Tanais; to watch with an eye of jealousy the conduct +of the Persian monarch, who indignantly supported the yoke of an +ignominious treaty. With these views, Diocletian had selected and +embellished the residence of Nicomedia: but the memory of Diocletian was +justly abhorred by the protector of the church: and Constantine was not +insensible to the ambition of founding a city which might perpetuate +the glory of his own name. During the late operations of the war against +Licinius, he had sufficient opportunity to contemplate, both as a +soldier and as a statesman, the incomparable position of Byzantium; +and to observe how strongly it was guarded by nature against a hostile +attack, whilst it was accessible on every side to the benefits of +commercial intercourse. Many ages before Constantine, one of the most +judicious historians of antiquity had described the advantages of a +situation, from whence a feeble colony of Greeks derived the command of +the sea, and the honors of a flourishing and independent republic. + +If we survey Byzantium in the extent which it acquired with the +august name of Constantinople, the figure of the Imperial city may be +represented under that of an unequal triangle. The obtuse point, which +advances towards the east and the shores of Asia, meets and repels +the waves of the Thracian Bosphorus. The northern side of the city is +bounded by the harbor; and the southern is washed by the Propontis, or +Sea of Marmara. The basis of the triangle is opposed to the west, and +terminates the continent of Europe. But the admirable form and division +of the circumjacent land and water cannot, without a more ample +explanation, be clearly or sufficiently understood. + +The winding channel through which the waters of the Euxine flow with +a rapid and incessant course towards the Mediterranean, received the +appellation of Bosphorus, a name not less celebrated in the history, +than in the fables, of antiquity. A crowd of temples and of votive +altars, profusely scattered along its steep and woody banks, attested +the unskilfulness, the terrors, and the devotion of the Grecian +navigators, who, after the example of the Argonauts, explored the +dangers of the inhospitable Euxine. On these banks tradition long +preserved the memory of the palace of Phineus, infested by the obscene +harpies; and of the sylvan reign of Amycus, who defied the son of Leda +to the combat of the cestus. The straits of the Bosphorus are terminated +by the Cyanean rocks, which, according to the description of the poets, +had once floated on the face of the waters; and were destined by the +gods to protect the entrance of the Euxine against the eye of profane +curiosity. From the Cyanean rocks to the point and harbor of Byzantium, +the winding length of the Bosphorus extends about sixteen miles, and its +most ordinary breadth may be computed at about one mile and a half. The +new castles of Europe and Asia are constructed, on either continent, +upon the foundations of two celebrated temples, of Serapis and of +Jupiter Urius. The oldcastles, a work of the Greek emperors, command +the narrowest part of the channel in a place where the opposite banks +advance within five hundred paces of each other. These fortresses were +destroyed and strengthened by Mahomet the Second, when he meditated the +siege of Constantinople: but the Turkish conqueror was most probably +ignorant, that near two thousand years before his reign, continents by +a bridge of boats. At a small distance from the old castles we discover +the little town of Chrysopolis, or Scutari, which may almost be +considered as the Asiatic suburb of Constantinople. The Bosphorus, as +it begins to open into the Propontis, passes between Byzantium and +Chalcedon. The latter of those cities was built by the Greeks, a +few years before the former; and the blindness of its founders, who +overlooked the superior advantages of the opposite coast, has been +stigmatized by a proverbial expression of contempt. + +The harbor of Constantinople, which may be considered as an arm of the +Bosphorus, obtained, in a very remote period, the denomination of the +Golden Horn. The curve which it describes might be compared to the horn +of a stag, or as it should seem, with more propriety, to that of an +ox. The epithet of golden was expressive of the riches which every wind +wafted from the most distant countries into the secure and capacious +port of Constantinople. The River Lycus, formed by the conflux of two +little streams, pours into the harbor a perpetual supply of fresh water, +which serves to cleanse the bottom, and to invite the periodical +shoals of fish to seek their retreat in that convenient recess. As the +vicissitudes of tides are scarcely felt in those seas, the constant +depth of the harbor allows goods to be landed on the quays without the +assistance of boats; and it has been observed, that in many places the +largest vessels may rest their prows against the houses, while their +sterns are floating in the water. From the mouth of the Lycus to that +of the harbor, this arm of the Bosphorus is more than seven miles in +length. The entrance is about five hundred yards broad, and a strong +chain could be occasionally drawn across it, to guard the port and city +from the attack of a hostile navy. + +Between the Bosphorus and the Hellespont, the shores of Europe and Asia, +receding on either side, enclose the sea of Marmara, which was known to +the ancients by the denomination of Propontis. The navigation from the +issue of the Bosphorus to the entrance of the Hellespont is about one +hundred and twenty miles. Those who steer their westward course through +the middle of the Propontis, amt at once descry the high lands of Thrace +and Bithynia, and never lose sight of the lofty summit of Mount Olympus, +covered with eternal snows. They leave on the left a deep gulf, at +the bottom of which Nicomedia was seated, the Imperial residence of +Diocletian; and they pass the small islands of Cyzicus and Proconnesus +before they cast anchor at Gallipoli; where the sea, which separates +Asia from Europe, is again contracted into a narrow channel. + +The geographers who, with the most skilful accuracy, have surveyed the +form and extent of the Hellespont, assign about sixty miles for the +winding course, and about three miles for the ordinary breadth of those +celebrated straits. But the narrowest part of the channel is found to +the northward of the old Turkish castles between the cities of Sestus +and Abydus. It was here that the adventurous Leander braved the passage +of the flood for the possession of his mistress. It was here likewise, +in a place where the distance between the opposite banks cannot exceed +five hundred paces, that Xerxes imposed a stupendous bridge of boats, +for the purpose of transporting into Europe a hundred and seventy +myriads of barbarians. A sea contracted within such narrow limits may +seem but ill to deserve the singular epithet of broad, which Homer, as +well as Orpheus, has frequently bestowed on the Hellespont. * But +our ideas of greatness are of a relative nature: the traveller, and +especially the poet, who sailed along the Hellespont, who pursued +the windings of the stream, and contemplated the rural scenery, which +appeared on every side to terminate the prospect, insensibly lost the +remembrance of the sea; and his fancy painted those celebrated straits, +with all the attributes of a mighty river flowing with a swift current, +in the midst of a woody and inland country, and at length, through a +wide mouth, discharging itself into the AEgean or Archipelago. Ancient +Troy, seated on a an eminence at the foot of Mount Ida, overlooked the +mouth of the Hellespont, which scarcely received an accession of waters +from the tribute of those immortal rivulets the Simois and Scamander. +The Grecian camp had stretched twelve miles along the shore from the +Sigaean to the Rhaetean promontory; and the flanks of the army were +guarded by the bravest chiefs who fought under the banners of Agamemnon. +The first of those promontories was occupied by Achilles with his +invincible myrmidons, and the dauntless Ajax pitched his tents on the +other. After Ajax had fallen a sacrifice to his disappointed pride, +and to the ingratitude of the Greeks, his sepulchre was erected on the +ground where he had defended the navy against the rage of Jove and of +Hector; and the citizens of the rising town of Rhaeteum celebrated his +memory with divine honors. Before Constantine gave a just preference to +the situation of Byzantium, he had conceived the design of erecting the +seat of empire on this celebrated spot, from whence the Romans derived +their fabulous origin. The extensive plain which lies below ancient +Troy, towards the Rhaetean promontory and the tomb of Ajax, was first +chosen for his new capital; and though the undertaking was soon +relinquished the stately remains of unfinished walls and towers +attracted the notice of all who sailed through the straits of the +Hellespont. + +We are at present qualified to view the advantageous position of +Constantinople; which appears to have been formed by nature for the +centre and capital of a great monarchy. Situated in the forty-first +degree of latitude, the Imperial city commanded, from her seven hills, +the opposite shores of Europe and Asia; the climate was healthy and +temperate, the soil fertile, the harbor secure and capacious; and the +approach on the side of the continent was of small extent and easy +defence. The Bosphorus and the Hellespont may be considered as the two +gates of Constantinople; and the prince who possessed those important +passages could always shut them against a naval enemy, and open them to +the fleets of commerce. The preservation of the eastern provinces +may, in some degree, be ascribed to the policy of Constantine, as the +barbarians of the Euxine, who in the preceding age had poured their +armaments into the heart of the Mediterranean, soon desisted from +the exercise of piracy, and despaired of forcing this insurmountable +barrier. When the gates of the Hellespont and Bosphorus were shut, the +capital still enjoyed within their spacious enclosure every production +which could supply the wants, or gratify the luxury, of its numerous +inhabitants. The sea-coasts of Thrace and Bithynia, which languish +under the weight of Turkish oppression, still exhibit a rich prospect of +vineyards, of gardens, and of plentiful harvests; and the Propontis +has ever been renowned for an inexhaustible store of the most exquisite +fish, that are taken in their stated seasons, without skill, and almost +without labor. But when the passages of the straits were thrown open for +trade, they alternately admitted the natural and artificial riches of +the north and south, of the Euxine, and of the Mediterranean. Whatever +rude commodities were collected in the forests of Germany and Scythia, +and far as the sources of the Tanais and the Borysthenes; whatsoever was +manufactured by the skill of Europe or Asia; the corn of Egypt, and the +gems and spices of the farthest India, were brought by the varying +winds into the port of Constantinople, which for many ages attracted the +commerce of the ancient world. + +[See Basilica Of Constantinople] + +The prospect of beauty, of safety, and of wealth, united in a single +spot, was sufficient to justify the choice of Constantine. But as some +decent mixture of prodigy and fable has, in every age, been supposed to +reflect a becoming majesty on the origin of great cities, the emperor +was desirous of ascribing his resolution, not so much to the uncertain +counsels of human policy, as to the infallible and eternal decrees +of divine wisdom. In one of his laws he has been careful to instruct +posterity, that in obedience to the commands of God, he laid the +everlasting foundations of Constantinople: and though he has not +condescended to relate in what manner the celestial inspiration was +communicated to his mind, the defect of his modest silence has been +liberally supplied by the ingenuity of succeeding writers; who describe +the nocturnal vision which appeared to the fancy of Constantine, as he +slept within the walls of Byzantium. The tutelar genius of the city, a +venerable matron sinking under the weight of years and infirmities, was +suddenly transformed into a blooming maid, whom his own hands adorned +with all the symbols of Imperial greatness. The monarch awoke, +interpreted the auspicious omen, and obeyed, without hesitation, +the will of Heaven The day which gave birth to a city or colony was +celebrated by the Romans with such ceremonies as had been ordained by +a generous superstition; and though Constantine might omit some rites +which savored too strongly of their Pagan origin, yet he was anxious +to leave a deep impression of hope and respect on the minds of the +spectators. On foot, with a lance in his hand, the emperor himself led +the solemn procession; and directed the line, which was traced as the +boundary of the destined capital: till the growing circumference was +observed with astonishment by the assistants, who, at length, ventured +to observe, that he had already exceeded the most ample measure of a +great city. "I shall still advance," replied Constantine, "till He, the +invisible guide who marches before me, thinks proper to stop." Without +presuming to investigate the nature or motives of this extraordinary +conductor, we shall content ourselves with the more humble task of +describing the extent and limits of Constantinople. + +In the actual state of the city, the palace and gardens of the Seraglio +occupy the eastern promontory, the first of the seven hills, and cover +about one hundred and fifty acres of our own measure. The seat of +Turkish jealousy and despotism is erected on the foundations of a +Grecian republic; but it may be supposed that the Byzantines were +tempted by the conveniency of the harbor to extend their habitations +on that side beyond the modern limits of the Seraglio. The new walls of +Constantine stretched from the port to the Propontis across the enlarged +breadth of the triangle, at the distance of fifteen stadia from the +ancient fortification; and with the city of Byzantium they enclosed +five of the seven hills, which, to the eyes of those who approach +Constantinople, appear to rise above each other in beautiful order. +About a century after the death of the founder, the new buildings, +extending on one side up the harbor, and on the other along the +Propontis, already covered the narrow ridge of the sixth, and the broad +summit of the seventh hill. The necessity of protecting those suburbs +from the incessant inroads of the barbarians engaged the younger +Theodosius to surround his capital with an adequate and permanent +enclosure of walls. From the eastern promontory to the golden gate, +the extreme length of Constantinople was about three Roman miles; the +circumference measured between ten and eleven; and the surface might be +computed as equal to about two thousand English acres. It is impossible +to justify the vain and credulous exaggerations of modern travellers, +who have sometimes stretched the limits of Constantinople over the +adjacent villages of the European, and even of the Asiatic coast. But +the suburbs of Pera and Galata, though situate beyond the harbor, may +deserve to be considered as a part of the city; and this addition may +perhaps authorize the measure of a Byzantine historian, who assigns +sixteen Greek (about fourteen Roman) miles for the circumference of +his native city. Such an extent may not seem unworthy of an Imperial +residence. Yet Constantinople must yield to Babylon and Thebes, to +ancient Rome, to London, and even to Paris. + + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part II. + +The master of the Roman world, who aspired to erect an eternal monument +of the glories of his reign could employ in the prosecution of that +great work, the wealth, the labor, and all that yet remained of the +genius of obedient millions. Some estimate may be formed of the expense +bestowed with Imperial liberality on the foundation of Constantinople, +by the allowance of about two millions five hundred thousand pounds +for the construction of the walls, the porticos, and the aqueducts. The +forests that overshadowed the shores of the Euxine, and the celebrated +quarries of white marble in the little island of Proconnesus, supplied +an inexhaustible stock of materials, ready to be conveyed, by the +convenience of a short water carriage, to the harbor of Byzantium. A +multitude of laborers and artificers urged the conclusion of the work +with incessant toil: but the impatience of Constantine soon discovered, +that, in the decline of the arts, the skill as well as numbers of +his architects bore a very unequal proportion to the greatness of his +designs. The magistrates of the most distant provinces were therefore +directed to institute schools, to appoint professors, and by the hopes +of rewards and privileges, to engage in the study and practice of +architecture a sufficient number of ingenious youths, who had received +a liberal education. The buildings of the new city were executed by +such artificers as the reign of Constantine could afford; but they were +decorated by the hands of the most celebrated masters of the age of +Pericles and Alexander. To revive the genius of Phidias and Lysippus, +surpassed indeed the power of a Roman emperor; but the immortal +productions which they had bequeathed to posterity were exposed without +defence to the rapacious vanity of a despot. By his commands the cities +of Greece and Asia were despoiled of their most valuable ornaments. The +trophies of memorable wars, the objects of religious veneration, the +most finished statues of the gods and heroes, of the sages and poets, +of ancient times, contributed to the splendid triumph of Constantinople; +and gave occasion to the remark of the historian Cedrenus, who observes, +with some enthusiasm, that nothing seemed wanting except the souls of +the illustrious men whom these admirable monuments were intended +to represent. But it is not in the city of Constantine, nor in the +declining period of an empire, when the human mind was depressed by +civil and religious slavery, that we should seek for the souls of Homer +and of Demosthenes. + +During the siege of Byzantium, the conqueror had pitched his tent on the +commanding eminence of the second hill. To perpetuate the memory of +his success, he chose the same advantageous position for the principal +Forum; which appears to have been of a circular, or rather elliptical +form. The two opposite entrances formed triumphal arches; the porticos, +which enclosed it on every side, were filled with statues; and the +centre of the Forum was occupied by a lofty column, of which a mutilated +fragment is now degraded by the appellation of the burnt pillar. This +column was erected on a pedestal of white marble twenty feet high; and +was composed of ten pieces of porphyry, each of which measured about ten +feet in height, and about thirty-three in circumference. On the summit +of the pillar, above one hundred and twenty feet from the ground, stood +the colossal statue of Apollo. It was a bronze, had been transported +either from Athens or from a town of Phrygia, and was supposed to be the +work of Phidias. The artist had represented the god of day, or, as it +was afterwards interpreted, the emperor Constantine himself, with a +sceptre in his right hand, the globe of the world in his left, and a +crown of rays glittering on his head. The Circus, or Hippodrome, was a +stately building about four hundred paces in length, and one hundred in +breadth. The space between the two met or goals were filled with statues +and obelisks; and we may still remark a very singular fragment of +antiquity; the bodies of three serpents, twisted into one pillar of +brass. Their triple heads had once supported the golden tripod which, +after the defeat of Xerxes, was consecrated in the temple of Delphi by +the victorious Greeks. The beauty of the Hippodrome has been long since +defaced by the rude hands of the Turkish conquerors; but, under the +similar appellation of Atmeidan, it still serves as a place of exercise +for their horses. From the throne, whence the emperor viewed the +Circensian games, a winding staircase descended to the palace; a +magnificent edifice, which scarcely yielded to the residence of Rome +itself, and which, together with the dependent courts, gardens, and +porticos, covered a considerable extent of ground upon the banks of the +Propontis between the Hippodrome and the church of St. Sophia. We +might likewise celebrate the baths, which still retained the name +of Zeuxippus, after they had been enriched, by the munificence of +Constantine, with lofty columns, various marbles, and above threescore +statues of bronze. But we should deviate from the design of this +history, if we attempted minutely to describe the different buildings +or quarters of the city. It may be sufficient to observe, that whatever +could adorn the dignity of a great capital, or contribute to the benefit +or pleasure of its numerous inhabitants, was contained within the walls +of Constantinople. A particular description, composed about a century +after its foundation, enumerates a capitol or school of learning, a +circus, two theatres, eight public, and one hundred and fifty-three +private baths, fifty-two porticos, five granaries, eight aqueducts or +reservoirs of water, four spacious halls for the meetings of the senate +or courts of justice, fourteen churches, fourteen palaces, and four +thousand three hundred and eighty-eight houses, which, for their size +or beauty, deserved to be distinguished from the multitude of plebeian +inhabitants. + +The populousness of his favored city was the next and most serious +object of the attention of its founder. In the dark ages which succeeded +the translation of the empire, the remote and the immediate consequences +of that memorable event were strangely confounded by the vanity of the +Greeks and the credulity of the Latins. It was asserted, and believed, +that all the noble families of Rome, the senate, and the equestrian +order, with their innumerable attendants, had followed their emperor +to the banks of the Propontis; that a spurious race of strangers and +plebeians was left to possess the solitude of the ancient capital; and +that the lands of Italy, long since converted into gardens, were at once +deprived of cultivation and inhabitants. In the course of this history, +such exaggerations will be reduced to their just value: yet, since the +growth of Constantinople cannot be ascribed to the general increase of +mankind and of industry, it must be admitted that this artificial colony +was raised at the expense of the ancient cities of the empire. Many +opulent senators of Rome, and of the eastern provinces, were probably +invited by Constantine to adopt for their country the fortunate spot, +which he had chosen for his own residence. The invitations of a master +are scarcely to be distinguished from commands; and the liberality of +the emperor obtained a ready and cheerful obedience. He bestowed on his +favorites the palaces which he had built in the several quarters of the +city, assigned them lands and pensions for the support of their dignity, +and alienated the demesnes of Pontus and Asia to grant hereditary +estates by the easy tenure of maintaining a house in the capital. But +these encouragements and obligations soon became superfluous, and +were gradually abolished. Wherever the seat of government is fixed, a +considerable part of the public revenue will be expended by the prince +himself, by his ministers, by the officers of justice, and by the +domestics of the palace. The most wealthy of the provincials will be +attracted by the powerful motives of interest and duty, of amusement +and curiosity. A third and more numerous class of inhabitants will +insensibly be formed, of servants, of artificers, and of merchants, who +derive their subsistence from their own labor, and from the wants or +luxury of the superior ranks. In less than a century, Constantinople +disputed with Rome itself the preeminence of riches and numbers. New +piles of buildings, crowded together with too little regard to health +or convenience, scarcely allowed the intervals of narrow streets for the +perpetual throng of men, of horses, and of carriages. The allotted space +of ground was insufficient to contain the increasing people; and the +additional foundations, which, on either side, were advanced into the +sea, might alone have composed a very considerable city. + +The frequent and regular distributions of wine and oil, of corn or +bread, of money or provisions, had almost exempted the poorest citizens +of Rome from the necessity of labor. The magnificence of the first +Caesars was in some measure imitated by the founder of Constantinople: +but his liberality, however it might excite the applause of the people, +has in curred the censure of posterity. A nation of legislators and +conquerors might assert their claim to the harvests of Africa, which +had been purchased with their blood; and it was artfully contrived by +Augustus, that, in the enjoyment of plenty, the Romans should lose +the memory of freedom. But the prodigality of Constantine could not be +excused by any consideration either of public or private interest; and +the annual tribute of corn imposed upon Egypt for the benefit of his +new capital, was applied to feed a lazy and insolent populace, at the +expense of the husbandmen of an industrious province. * Some other +regulations of this emperor are less liable to blame, but they are less +deserving of notice. He divided Constantinople into fourteen regions or +quarters, dignified the public council with the appellation of senate, +communicated to the citizens the privileges of Italy, and bestowed on +the rising city the title of Colony, the first and most favored daughter +of ancient Rome. The venerable parent still maintained the legal and +acknowledged supremacy, which was due to her age, her dignity, and to +the remembrance of her former greatness. + +As Constantine urged the progress of the work with the impatience of +a lover, the walls, the porticos, and the principal edifices were +completed in a few years, or, according to another account, in a +few months; but this extraordinary diligence should excite the less +admiration, since many of the buildings were finished in so hasty and +imperfect a manner, that under the succeeding reign, they were preserved +with difficulty from impending ruin. But while they displayed the vigor +and freshness of youth, the founder prepared to celebrate the dedication +of his city. The games and largesses which crowned the pomp of this +memorable festival may easily be supposed; but there is one circumstance +of a more singular and permanent nature, which ought not entirely to be +overlooked. As often as the birthday of the city returned, the statute +of Constantine, framed by his order, of gilt wood, and bearing in his +right hand a small image of the genius of the place, was erected on a +triumphal car. The guards, carrying white tapers, and clothed in their +richest apparel, accompanied the solemn procession as it moved through +the Hippodrome. When it was opposite to the throne of the reigning +emperor, he rose from his seat, and with grateful reverence adored the +memory of his predecessor. At the festival of the dedication, an edict, +engraved on a column of marble, bestowed the title of Second or New Rome +on the city of Constantine. But the name of Constantinople has prevailed +over that honorable epithet; and after the revolution of fourteen +centuries, still perpetuates the fame of its author. + +The foundation of a new capital is naturally connected with the +establishment of a new form of civil and military administration. +The distinct view of the complicated system of policy, introduced by +Diocletian, improved by Constantine, and completed by his immediate +successors, may not only amuse the fancy by the singular picture of a +great empire, but will tend to illustrate the secret and internal causes +of its rapid decay. In the pursuit of any remarkable institution, we may +be frequently led into the more early or the more recent times of the +Roman history; but the proper limits of this inquiry will be included +within a period of about one hundred and thirty years, from the +accession of Constantine to the publication of the Theodosian code; from +which, as well as from the Notitia * of the East and West, we derive the +most copious and authentic information of the state of the empire. +This variety of objects will suspend, for some time, the course of the +narrative; but the interruption will be censured only by those readers +who are insensible to the importance of laws and manners, while they +peruse, with eager curiosity, the transient intrigues of a court, or the +accidental event of a battle. + + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part III. + +The manly pride of the Romans, content with substantial power, had +left to the vanity of the East the forms and ceremonies of ostentatious +greatness. But when they lost even the semblance of those virtues which +were derived from their ancient freedom, the simplicity of Roman manners +was insensibly corrupted by the stately affectation of the courts of +Asia. The distinctions of personal merit and influence, so conspicuous +in a republic, so feeble and obscure under a monarchy, were abolished +by the despotism of the emperors; who substituted in their room a severe +subordination of rank and office from the titled slaves who were seated +on the steps of the throne, to the meanest instruments of arbitrary +power. This multitude of abject dependants was interested in the support +of the actual government from the dread of a revolution, which might at +once confound their hopes and intercept the reward of their services. In +this divine hierarchy (for such it is frequently styled) every rank was +marked with the most scrupulous exactness, and its dignity was displayed +in a variety of trifling and solemn ceremonies, which it was a study to +learn, and a sacrilege to neglect. The purity of the Latin language +was debased, by adopting, in the intercourse of pride and flattery, a +profusion of epithets, which Tully would scarcely have understood, +and which Augustus would have rejected with indignation. The principal +officers of the empire were saluted, even by the sovereign himself, with +the deceitful titles of your Sincerity, your Gravity, your Excellency, +your Eminence, your sublime and wonderful Magnitude, your illustrious +and magnificent Highness. The codicils or patents of their office were +curiously emblazoned with such emblems as were best adapted to explain +its nature and high dignity; the image or portrait of the reigning +emperors; a triumphal car; the book of mandates placed on a table, +covered with a rich carpet, and illuminated by four tapers; the +allegorical figures of the provinces which they governed; or the +appellations and standards of the troops whom they commanded Some of +these official ensigns were really exhibited in their hall of audience; +others preceded their pompous march whenever they appeared in public; +and every circumstance of their demeanor, their dress, their ornaments, +and their train, was calculated to inspire a deep reverence for the +representatives of supreme majesty. By a philosophic observer, the +system of the Roman government might have been mistaken for a splendid +theatre, filled with players of every character and degree, who repeated +the language, and imitated the passions, of their original model. + +All the magistrates of sufficient importance to find a place in the +general state of the empire, were accurately divided into three classes. +1. The Illustrious. 2. The Spectabiles, or Respectable. And, 3. the +Clarissimi; whom we may translate by the word Honorable. In the times +of Roman simplicity, the last-mentioned epithet was used only as a +vague expression of deference, till it became at length the peculiar +and appropriated title of all who were members of the senate, and +consequently of all who, from that venerable body, were selected to +govern the provinces. The vanity of those who, from their rank and +office, might claim a superior distinction above the rest of the +senatorial order, was long afterwards indulged with the new appellation +of Respectable; but the title of Illustrious was always reserved to some +eminent personages who were obeyed or reverenced by the two subordinate +classes. It was communicated only, I. To the consuls and patricians; II. +To the Praetorian praefects, with the praefects of Rome and Constantinople; +III. To the masters-general of the cavalry and the infantry; and IV. To +the seven ministers of the palace, who exercised their sacred functions +about the person of the emperor. Among those illustrious magistrates who +were esteemed coordinate with each other, the seniority of appointment +gave place to the union of dignities. By the expedient of honorary +codicils, the emperors, who were fond of multiplying their favors, might +sometimes gratify the vanity, though not the ambition, of impatient +courtiers. + +I. As long as the Roman consuls were the first magistrates of a free +state, they derived their right to power from the choice of the people. +As long as the emperors condescended to disguise the servitude which +they imposed, the consuls were still elected by the real or apparent +suffrage of the senate. From the reign of Diocletian, even these +vestiges of liberty were abolished, and the successful candidates who +were invested with the annual honors of the consulship, affected to +deplore the humiliating condition of their predecessors. The Scipios and +the Catos had been reduced to solicit the votes of plebeians, to pass +through the tedious and expensive forms of a popular election, and to +expose their dignity to the shame of a public refusal; while their own +happier fate had reserved them for an age and government in which the +rewards of virtue were assigned by the unerring wisdom of a gracious +sovereign. In the epistles which the emperor addressed to the two +consuls elect, it was declared, that they were created by his sole +authority. Their names and portraits, engraved on gilt tables of ivory, +were dispersed over the empire as presents to the provinces, the cities, +the magistrates, the senate, and the people. Their solemn inauguration +was performed at the place of the Imperial residence; and during a +period of one hundred and twenty years, Rome was constantly deprived of +the presence of her ancient magistrates. On the morning of the first of +January, the consuls assumed the ensigns of their dignity. Their dress +was a robe of purple, embroidered in silk and gold, and sometimes +ornamented with costly gems. On this solemn occasion they were attended +by the most eminent officers of the state and army, in the habit of +senators; and the useless fasces, armed with the once formidable axes, +were borne before them by the lictors. The procession moved from the +palace to the Forum or principal square of the city; where the consuls +ascended their tribunal, and seated themselves in the curule chairs, +which were framed after the fashion of ancient times. They immediately +exercised an act of jurisdiction, by the manumission of a slave, who was +brought before them for that purpose; and the ceremony was intended +to represent the celebrated action of the elder Brutus, the author +of liberty and of the consulship, when he admitted among his +fellow-citizens the faithful Vindex, who had revealed the conspiracy of +the Tarquins. The public festival was continued during several days in +all the principal cities in Rome, from custom; in Constantinople, +from imitation in Carthage, Antioch, and Alexandria, from the love of +pleasure, and the superfluity of wealth. In the two capitals of +the empire the annual games of the theatre, the circus, and the +amphitheatre, cost four thousand pounds of gold, (about) one hundred and +sixty thousand pounds sterling: and if so heavy an expense surpassed the +faculties or the inclinations of the magistrates themselves, the sum +was supplied from the Imperial treasury. As soon as the consuls had +discharged these customary duties, they were at liberty to retire into +the shade of private life, and to enjoy, during the remainder of the +year, the undisturbed contemplation of their own greatness. They no +longer presided in the national councils; they no longer executed the +resolutions of peace or war. Their abilities (unless they were employed +in more effective offices) were of little moment; and their names served +only as the legal date of the year in which they had filled the chair +of Marius and of Cicero. Yet it was still felt and acknowledged, in the +last period of Roman servitude, that this empty name might be compared, +and even preferred, to the possession of substantial power. The title +of consul was still the most splendid object of ambition, the noblest +reward of virtue and loyalty. The emperors themselves, who disdained +the faint shadow of the republic, were conscious that they acquired +an additional splendor and majesty as often as they assumed the annual +honors of the consular dignity. + +The proudest and most perfect separation which can be found in any age +or country, between the nobles and the people, is perhaps that of the +Patricians and the Plebeians, as it was established in the first age of +the Roman republic. Wealth and honors, the offices of the state, and the +ceremonies of religion, were almost exclusively possessed by the former +who, preserving the purity of their blood with the most insulting +jealousy, held their clients in a condition of specious vassalage. But +these distinctions, so incompatible with the spirit of a free people, +were removed, after a long struggle, by the persevering efforts of the +Tribunes. The most active and successful of the Plebeians accumulated +wealth, aspired to honors, deserved triumphs, contracted alliances, +and, after some generations, assumed the pride of ancient nobility. The +Patrician families, on the other hand, whose original number was +never recruited till the end of the commonwealth, either failed in the +ordinary course of nature, or were extinguished in so many foreign +and domestic wars, or, through a want of merit or fortune, insensibly +mingled with the mass of the people. Very few remained who could derive +their pure and genuine origin from the infancy of the city, or even from +that of the republic, when Caesar and Augustus, Claudius and Vespasian, +created from the body of the senate a competent number of new Patrician +families, in the hope of perpetuating an order, which was still +considered as honorable and sacred. But these artificial supplies (in +which the reigning house was always included) were rapidly swept away by +the rage of tyrants, by frequent revolutions, by the change of +manners, and by the intermixture of nations. Little more was left when +Constantine ascended the throne, than a vague and imperfect tradition, +that the Patricians had once been the first of the Romans. To form +a body of nobles, whose influence may restrain, while it secures the +authority of the monarch, would have been very inconsistent with the +character and policy of Constantine; but had he seriously entertained +such a design, it might have exceeded the measure of his power to +ratify, by an arbitrary edict, an institution which must expect the +sanction of time and of opinion. He revived, indeed, the title of +Patricians, but he revived it as a personal, not as an hereditary +distinction. They yielded only to the transient superiority of the +annual consuls; but they enjoyed the pre-eminence over all the great +officers of state, with the most familiar access to the person of the +prince. This honorable rank was bestowed on them for life; and as they +were usually favorites, and ministers who had grown old in the Imperial +court, the true etymology of the word was perverted by ignorance and +flattery; and the Patricians of Constantine were reverenced as the +adopted Fathers of the emperor and the republic. + +II. The fortunes of the Praetorian praefects were essentially different +from those of the consuls and Patricians. The latter saw their ancient +greatness evaporate in a vain title. The former, rising by degrees from +the most humble condition, were invested with the civil and military +administration of the Roman world. From the reign of Severus to that of +Diocletian, the guards and the palace, the laws and the finances, the +armies and the provinces, were intrusted to their superintending care; +and, like the Viziers of the East, they held with one hand the seal, +and with the other the standard, of the empire. The ambition of the +praefects, always formidable, and sometimes fatal to the masters whom +they served, was supported by the strength of the Praetorian bands; but +after those haughty troops had been weakened by Diocletian, and finally +suppressed by Constantine, the praefects, who survived their fall, +were reduced without difficulty to the station of useful and obedient +ministers. When they were no longer responsible for the safety of the +emperor's person, they resigned the jurisdiction which they had hitherto +claimed and exercised over all the departments of the palace. They were +deprived by Constantine of all military command, as soon as they had +ceased to lead into the field, under their immediate orders, the flower +of the Roman troops; and at length, by a singular revolution, the +captains of the guards were transformed into the civil magistrates +of the provinces. According to the plan of government instituted by +Diocletian, the four princes had each their Praetorian praefect; and after +the monarchy was once more united in the person of Constantine, he still +continued to create the same number of Four Praefects, and intrusted to +their care the same provinces which they already administered. 1. The +praefect of the East stretched his ample jurisdiction into the three +parts of the globe which were subject to the Romans, from the cataracts +of the Nile to the banks of the Phasis, and from the mountains of Thrace +to the frontiers of Persia. 2. The important provinces of Pannonia, +Dacia, Macedonia, and Greece, once acknowledged the authority of the +praefect of Illyricum. 3. The power of the praefect of Italy was not +confined to the country from whence he derived his title; it extended +over the additional territory of Rhaetia as far as the banks of the +Danube, over the dependent islands of the Mediterranean, and over that +part of the continent of Africa which lies between the confines of +Cyrene and those of Tingitania. 4. The praefect of the Gauls comprehended +under that plural denomination the kindred provinces of Britain and +Spain, and his authority was obeyed from the wall of Antoninus to the +foot of Mount Atlas. + +After the Praetorian praefects had been dismissed from all military +command, the civil functions which they were ordained to exercise over +so many subject nations, were adequate to the ambition and abilities of +the most consummate ministers. To their wisdom was committed the supreme +administration of justice and of the finances, the two objects which, +in a state of peace, comprehend almost all the respective duties of the +sovereign and of the people; of the former, to protect the citizens +who are obedient to the laws; of the latter, to contribute the share +of their property which is required for the expenses of the state. The +coin, the highways, the posts, the granaries, the manufactures, whatever +could interest the public prosperity, was moderated by the authority of +the Praetorian praefects. As the immediate representatives of the Imperial +majesty, they were empowered to explain, to enforce, and on some +occasions to modify, the general edicts by their discretionary +proclamations. They watched over the conduct of the provincial +governors, removed the negligent, and inflicted punishments on the +guilty. From all the inferior jurisdictions, an appeal in every matter +of importance, either civil or criminal, might be brought before the +tribunal of the praefect; but his sentence was final and absolute; and +the emperors themselves refused to admit any complaints against the +judgment or the integrity of a magistrate whom they honored with such +unbounded confidence. His appointments were suitable to his dignity; and +if avarice was his ruling passion, he enjoyed frequent opportunities +of collecting a rich harvest of fees, of presents, and of perquisites. +Though the emperors no longer dreaded the ambition of their praefects, +they were attentive to counterbalance the power of this great office by +the uncertainty and shortness of its duration. + +From their superior importance and dignity, Rome and Constantinople +were alone excepted from the jurisdiction of the Praetorian praefects. The +immense size of the city, and the experience of the tardy, ineffectual +operation of the laws, had furnished the policy of Augustus with a +specious pretence for introducing a new magistrate, who alone could +restrain a servile and turbulent populace by the strong arm of arbitrary +power. Valerius Messalla was appointed the first praefect of Rome, that +his reputation might countenance so invidious a measure; but, at the end +of a few days, that accomplished citizen resigned his office, declaring, +with a spirit worthy of the friend of Brutus, that he found himself +incapable of exercising a power incompatible with public freedom. As +the sense of liberty became less exquisite, the advantages of order +were more clearly understood; and the praefect, who seemed to have been +designed as a terror only to slaves and vagrants, was permitted to +extend his civil and criminal jurisdiction over the equestrian and noble +families of Rome. The praetors, annually created as the judges of law +and equity, could not long dispute the possession of the Forum with a +vigorous and permanent magistrate, who was usually admitted into the +confidence of the prince. Their courts were deserted, their number, +which had once fluctuated between twelve and eighteen, was gradually +reduced to two or three, and their important functions were confined to +the expensive obligation of exhibiting games for the amusement of the +people. After the office of the Roman consuls had been changed into a +vain pageant, which was rarely displayed in the capital, the praefects +assumed their vacant place in the senate, and were soon acknowledged +as the ordinary presidents of that venerable assembly. They received +appeals from the distance of one hundred miles; and it was allowed as +a principle of jurisprudence, that all municipal authority was derived +from them alone. In the discharge of his laborious employment, the +governor of Rome was assisted by fifteen officers, some of whom had been +originally his equals, or even his superiors. The principal departments +were relative to the command of a numerous watch, established as a +safeguard against fires, robberies, and nocturnal disorders; the custody +and distribution of the public allowance of corn and provisions; the +care of the port, of the aqueducts, of the common sewers, and of the +navigation and bed of the Tyber; the inspection of the markets, +the theatres, and of the private as well as the public works. Their +vigilance insured the three principal objects of a regular police, +safety, plenty, and cleanliness; and as a proof of the attention of +government to preserve the splendor and ornaments of the capital, a +particular inspector was appointed for the statues; the guardian, as +it were, of that inanimate people, which, according to the extravagant +computation of an old writer, was scarcely inferior in number to the +living inhabitants of Rome. About thirty years after the foundation +of Constantinople, a similar magistrate was created in that rising +metropolis, for the same uses and with the same powers. A perfect +equality was established between the dignity of the two municipal, and +that of the four Praetorian praefects. + + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part IV. + +Those who, in the imperial hierarchy, were distinguished by the title +of Respectable, formed an intermediate class between the illustrious +praefects, and the honorable magistrates of the provinces. In this class +the proconsuls of Asia, Achaia, and Africa, claimed a preeminence, which +was yielded to the remembrance of their ancient dignity; and the appeal +from their tribunal to that of the praefects was almost the only mark of +their dependence. But the civil government of the empire was distributed +into thirteen great Dioceses, each of which equalled the just measure +of a powerful kingdom. The first of these dioceses was subject to the +jurisdiction of the count of the east; and we may convey some idea of +the importance and variety of his functions, by observing, that six +hundred apparitors, who would be styled at present either secretaries, +or clerks, or ushers, or messengers, were employed in his immediate +office. The place of Augustal prefect of Egypt was no longer filled by +a Roman knight; but the name was retained; and the extraordinary powers +which the situation of the country, and the temper of the inhabitants, +had once made indispensable, were still continued to the governor. The +eleven remaining dioceses, of Asiana, Pontica, and Thrace; of Macedonia, +Dacia, and Pannonia, or Western Illyricum; of Italy and Africa; of Gaul, +Spain, and Britain; were governed by twelve vicars or vice-prefects, +whose name sufficiently explains the nature and dependence of their +office. It may be added, that the lieutenant-generals of the Roman +armies, the military counts and dukes, who will be hereafter mentioned, +were allowed the rank and title of Respectable. + +As the spirit of jealousy and ostentation prevailed in the councils +of the emperors, they proceeded with anxious diligence to divide the +substance and to multiply the titles of power. The vast countries +which the Roman conquerors had united under the same simple form of +administration, were imperceptibly crumbled into minute fragments; till +at length the whole empire was distributed into one hundred and +sixteen provinces, each of which supported an expensive and splendid +establishment. Of these, three were governed by proconsuls, thirty-seven +by consulars, five by correctors, and seventy-one by presidents. +The appellations of these magistrates were different; they ranked in +successive order, the ensigns of and their situation, from accidental +circumstances, might be more or less agreeable or advantageous. But they +were all (excepting only the pro-consuls) alike included in the class of +honorable persons; and they were alike intrusted, during the pleasure of +the prince, and under the authority of the praefects or their deputies, +with the administration of justice and the finances in their respective +districts. The ponderous volumes of the Codes and Pandects would furnish +ample materials for a minute inquiry into the system of provincial +government, as in the space of six centuries it was approved by the +wisdom of the Roman statesmen and lawyers. It may be sufficient for the +historian to select two singular and salutary provisions, intended to +restrain the abuse of authority. 1. For the preservation of peace and +order, the governors of the provinces were armed with the sword of +justice. They inflicted corporal punishments, and they exercised, +in capital offences, the power of life and death. But they were not +authorized to indulge the condemned criminal with the choice of his own +execution, or to pronounce a sentence of the mildest and most honorable +kind of exile. These prerogatives were reserved to the praefects, +who alone could impose the heavy fine of fifty pounds of gold: their +vicegerents were confined to the trifling weight of a few ounces. +This distinction, which seems to grant the larger, while it denies the +smaller degree of authority, was founded on a very rational motive. The +smaller degree was infinitely more liable to abuse. The passions of +a provincial magistrate might frequently provoke him into acts of +oppression, which affected only the freedom or the fortunes of the +subject; though, from a principle of prudence, perhaps of humanity, he +might still be terrified by the guilt of innocent blood. It may likewise +be considered, that exile, considerable fines, or the choice of an +easy death, relate more particularly to the rich and the noble; and the +persons the most exposed to the avarice or resentment of a provincial +magistrate, were thus removed from his obscure persecution to the more +august and impartial tribunal of the Praetorian praefect. 2. As it was +reasonably apprehended that the integrity of the judge might be biased, +if his interest was concerned, or his affections were engaged, the +strictest regulations were established, to exclude any person, without +the special dispensation of the emperor, from the government of the +province where he was born; and to prohibit the governor or his son from +contracting marriage with a native, or an inhabitant; or from purchasing +slaves, lands, or houses, within the extent of his jurisdiction. +Notwithstanding these rigorous precautions, the emperor Constantine, +after a reign of twenty-five years, still deplores the venal and +oppressive administration of justice, and expresses the warmest +indignation that the audience of the judge, his despatch of business, +his seasonable delays, and his final sentence, were publicly sold, +either by himself or by the officers of his court. The continuance, and +perhaps the impunity, of these crimes, is attested by the repetition of +impotent laws and ineffectual menaces. + +All the civil magistrates were drawn from the profession of the law. +The celebrated Institutes of Justinian are addressed to the youth of +his dominions, who had devoted themselves to the study of Roman +jurisprudence; and the sovereign condescends to animate their diligence, +by the assurance that their skill and ability would in time be rewarded +by an adequate share in the government of the republic. The rudiments of +this lucrative science were taught in all the considerable cities of the +east and west; but the most famous school was that of Berytus, on the +coast of Phnicia; which flourished above three centuries from the +time of Alexander Severus, the author perhaps of an institution so +advantageous to his native country. After a regular course of education, +which lasted five years, the students dispersed themselves through +the provinces, in search of fortune and honors; nor could they want an +inexhaustible supply of business great empire, already corrupted by the +multiplicity of laws, of arts, and of vices. The court of the Praetorian +praefect of the east could alone furnish employment for one hundred +and fifty advocates, sixty-four of whom were distinguished by peculiar +privileges, and two were annually chosen, with a salary of sixty pounds +of gold, to defend the causes of the treasury. The first experiment was +made of their judicial talents, by appointing them to act occasionally +as assessors to the magistrates; from thence they were often raised to +preside in the tribunals before which they had pleaded. They obtained +the government of a province; and, by the aid of merit, of reputation, +or of favor, they ascended, by successive steps, to the illustrious +dignities of the state. In the practice of the bar, these men had +considered reason as the instrument of dispute; they interpreted +the laws according to the dictates of private interest and the same +pernicious habits might still adhere to their characters in the public +administration of the state. The honor of a liberal profession has +indeed been vindicated by ancient and modern advocates, who have filled +the most important stations, with pure integrity and consummate wisdom: +but in the decline of Roman jurisprudence, the ordinary promotion of +lawyers was pregnant with mischief and disgrace. The noble art, which +had once been preserved as the sacred inheritance of the patricians, +was fallen into the hands of freedmen and plebeians, who, with cunning +rather than with skill, exercised a sordid and pernicious trade. Some +of them procured admittance into families for the purpose of fomenting +differences, of encouraging suits, and of preparing a harvest of gain +for themselves or their brethren. Others, recluse in their chambers, +maintained the dignity of legal professors, by furnishing a rich client +with subtleties to confound the plainest truths, and with arguments to +color the most unjustifiable pretensions. The splendid and popular class +was composed of the advocates, who filled the Forum with the sound of +their turgid and loquacious rhetoric. Careless of fame and of justice, +they are described, for the most part, as ignorant and rapacious guides, +who conducted their clients through a maze of expense, of delay, and of +disappointment; from whence, after a tedious series of years, they +were at length dismissed, when their patience and fortune were almost +exhausted. + +III. In the system of policy introduced by Augustus, the governors, +those at least of the Imperial provinces, were invested with the +full powers of the sovereign himself. Ministers of peace and war, the +distribution of rewards and punishments depended on them alone, and +they successively appeared on their tribunal in the robes of civil +magistracy, and in complete armor at the head of the Roman legions. The +influence of the revenue, the authority of law, and the command of a +military force, concurred to render their power supreme and absolute; +and whenever they were tempted to violate their allegiance, the loyal +province which they involved in their rebellion was scarcely sensible +of any change in its political state. From the time of Commodus to the +reign of Constantine, near one hundred governors might be enumerated, +who, with various success, erected the standard of revolt; and though +the innocent were too often sacrificed, the guilty might be sometimes +prevented, by the suspicious cruelty of their master. To secure his +throne and the public tranquillity from these formidable servants, +Constantine resolved to divide the military from the civil +administration, and to establish, as a permanent and professional +distinction, a practice which had been adopted only as an occasional +expedient. The supreme jurisdiction exercised by the Praetorian +praefects over the armies of the empire, was transferred to the two +masters-general whom he instituted, the one for the cavalry, the other +for the infantry; and though each of these illustrious officers was more +peculiarly responsible for the discipline of those troops which were +under his immediate inspection, they both indifferently commanded in the +field the several bodies, whether of horse or foot, which were united in +the same army. Their number was soon doubled by the division of the +east and west; and as separate generals of the same rank and title were +appointed on the four important frontiers of the Rhine, of the Upper and +the Lower Danube, and of the Euphrates, the defence of the Roman empire +was at length committed to eight masters-general of the cavalry and +infantry. Under their orders, thirty-five military commanders were +stationed in the provinces: three in Britain, six in Gaul, one in Spain, +one in Italy, five on the Upper, and four on the Lower Danube; in Asia, +eight, three in Egypt, and four in Africa. The titles of counts, and +dukes, by which they were properly distinguished, have obtained in +modern languages so very different a sense, that the use of them may +occasion some surprise. But it should be recollected, that the second +of those appellations is only a corruption of the Latin word, which was +indiscriminately applied to any military chief. All these provincial +generals were therefore dukes; but no more than ten among them were +dignified with the rank of counts or companions, a title of honor, +or rather of favor, which had been recently invented in the court of +Constantine. A gold belt was the ensign which distinguished the office +of the counts and dukes; and besides their pay, they received a liberal +allowance sufficient to maintain one hundred and ninety servants, and +one hundred and fifty-eight horses. They were strictly prohibited from +interfering in any matter which related to the administration of justice +or the revenue; but the command which they exercised over the troops of +their department, was independent of the authority of the magistrates. +About the same time that Constantine gave a legal sanction to the +ecclesiastical order, he instituted in the Roman empire the nice balance +of the civil and the military powers. The emulation, and sometimes the +discord, which reigned between two professions of opposite interests +and incompatible manners, was productive of beneficial and of pernicious +consequences. It was seldom to be expected that the general and the +civil governor of a province should either conspire for the disturbance, +or should unite for the service, of their country. While the one delayed +to offer the assistance which the other disdained to solicit, the troops +very frequently remained without orders or without supplies; the public +safety was betrayed, and the defenceless subjects were left exposed to +the fury of the Barbarians. The divided administration which had been +formed by Constantine, relaxed the vigor of the state, while it secured +the tranquillity of the monarch. + +The memory of Constantine has been deservedly censured for another +innovation, which corrupted military discipline and prepared the ruin +of the empire. The nineteen years which preceded his final victory over +Licinius, had been a period of license and intestine war. The rivals +who contended for the possession of the Roman world, had withdrawn the +greatest part of their forces from the guard of the general frontier; +and the principal cities which formed the boundary of their respective +dominions were filled with soldiers, who considered their countrymen as +their most implacable enemies. After the use of these internal garrisons +had ceased with the civil war, the conqueror wanted either wisdom or +firmness to revive the severe discipline of Diocletian, and to suppress +a fatal indulgence, which habit had endeared and almost confirmed to the +military order. From the reign of Constantine, a popular and even legal +distinction was admitted between the Palatines and the Borderers; the +troops of the court, as they were improperly styled, and the troops of +the frontier. The former, elevated by the superiority of their pay and +privileges, were permitted, except in the extraordinary emergencies of +war, to occupy their tranquil stations in the heart of the provinces. +The most flourishing cities were oppressed by the intolerable weight +of quarters. The soldiers insensibly forgot the virtues of their +profession, and contracted only the vices of civil life. They were +either degraded by the industry of mechanic trades, or enervated by the +luxury of baths and theatres. They soon became careless of their martial +exercises, curious in their diet and apparel; and while they inspired +terror to the subjects of the empire, they trembled at the hostile +approach of the Barbarians. The chain of fortifications which Diocletian +and his colleagues had extended along the banks of the great rivers, +was no longer maintained with the same care, or defended with the same +vigilance. The numbers which still remained under the name of the troops +of the frontier, might be sufficient for the ordinary defence; but their +spirit was degraded by the humiliating reflection, that they who were +exposed to the hardships and dangers of a perpetual warfare, were +rewarded only with about two thirds of the pay and emoluments which were +lavished on the troops of the court. Even the bands or legions that were +raised the nearest to the level of those unworthy favorites, were in +some measure disgraced by the title of honor which they were allowed +to assume. It was in vain that Constantine repeated the most dreadful +menaces of fire and sword against the Borderers who should dare desert +their colors, to connive at the inroads of the Barbarians, or to +participate in the spoil. The mischiefs which flow from injudicious +counsels are seldom removed by the application of partial severities; +and though succeeding princes labored to restore the strength and +numbers of the frontier garrisons, the empire, till the last moment of +its dissolution, continued to languish under the mortal wound which had +been so rashly or so weakly inflicted by the hand of Constantine. + +The same timid policy, of dividing whatever is united, of reducing +whatever is eminent, of dreading every active power, and of expecting +that the most feeble will prove the most obedient, seems to pervade the +institutions of several princes, and particularly those of Constantine. +The martial pride of the legions, whose victorious camps had so often +been the scene of rebellion, was nourished by the memory of their past +exploits, and the consciousness of their actual strength. As long as +they maintained their ancient establishment of six thousand men, they +subsisted, under the reign of Diocletian, each of them singly, a visible +and important object in the military history of the Roman empire. A few +years afterwards, these gigantic bodies were shrunk to a very diminutive +size; and when seven legions, with some auxiliaries, defended the city +of Amida against the Persians, the total garrison, with the inhabitants +of both sexes, and the peasants of the deserted country, did not exceed +the number of twenty thousand persons. From this fact, and from similar +examples, there is reason to believe, that the constitution of the +legionary troops, to which they partly owed their valor and discipline, +was dissolved by Constantine; and that the bands of Roman infantry, +which still assumed the same names and the same honors, consisted +only of one thousand or fifteen hundred men. The conspiracy of so many +separate detachments, each of which was awed by the sense of its own +weakness, could easily be checked; and the successors of Constantine +might indulge their love of ostentation, by issuing their orders to one +hundred and thirty-two legions, inscribed on the muster-roll of their +numerous armies. The remainder of their troops was distributed into +several hundred cohorts of infantry, and squadrons of cavalry. Their +arms, and titles, and ensigns, were calculated to inspire terror, and to +display the variety of nations who marched under the Imperial standard. +And not a vestige was left of that severe simplicity, which, in the ages +of freedom and victory, had distinguished the line of battle of a Roman +army from the confused host of an Asiatic monarch. A more particular +enumeration, drawn from the Notitia, might exercise the diligence of an +antiquary; but the historian will content himself with observing, +that the number of permanent stations or garrisons established on the +frontiers of the empire, amounted to five hundred and eighty-three; and +that, under the successors of Constantine, the complete force of the +military establishment was computed at six hundred and forty-five +thousand soldiers. An effort so prodigious surpassed the wants of a more +ancient, and the faculties of a later, period. + +In the various states of society, armies are recruited from very +different motives. Barbarians are urged by the love of war; the citizens +of a free republic may be prompted by a principle of duty; the subjects, +or at least the nobles, of a monarchy, are animated by a sentiment of +honor; but the timid and luxurious inhabitants of a declining empire +must be allured into the service by the hopes of profit, or compelled +by the dread of punishment. The resources of the Roman treasury were +exhausted by the increase of pay, by the repetition of donatives, and by +the invention of new emolument and indulgences, which, in the opinion +of the provincial youth might compensate the hardships and dangers of a +military life. Yet, although the stature was lowered, although slaves, +least by a tacit connivance, were indiscriminately received into the +ranks, the insurmountable difficulty of procuring a regular and adequate +supply of volunteers, obliged the emperors to adopt more effectual and +coercive methods. The lands bestowed on the veterans, as the free reward +of their valor were henceforward granted under a condition which +contain the first rudiments of the feudal tenures; that their sons, who +succeeded to the inheritance, should devote themselves to the profession +of arms, as soon as they attained the age of manhood; and their cowardly +refusal was punished by the lose of honor, of fortune, or even of life. +But as the annual growth of the sons of the veterans bore a very small +proportion to the demands of the service, levies of men were frequently +required from the provinces, and every proprietor was obliged either to +take up arms, or to procure a substitute, or to purchase his exemption +by the payment of a heavy fine. The sum of forty-two pieces of gold, to +which it was reduced, ascertains the exorbitant price of volunteers, and +the reluctance with which the government admitted of this alterative. +Such was the horror for the profession of a soldier, which had affected +the minds of the degenerate Romans, that many of the youth of Italy +and the provinces chose to cut off the fingers of their right hand, to +escape from being pressed into the service; and this strange expedient +was so commonly practised, as to deserve the severe animadversion of the +laws, and a peculiar name in the Latin language. + + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part V. + +The introduction of Barbarians into the Roman armies became every day +more universal, more necessary, and more fatal. The most daring of the +Scythians, of the Goths, and of the Germans, who delighted in war, and +who found it more profitable to defend than to ravage the provinces, +were enrolled, not only in the auxiliaries of their respective nations, +but in the legions themselves, and among the most distinguished of the +Palatine troops. As they freely mingled with the subjects of the empire, +they gradually learned to despise their manners, and to imitate their +arts. They abjured the implicit reverence which the pride of Rome had +exacted from their ignorance, while they acquired the knowledge +and possession of those advantages by which alone she supported her +declining greatness. The Barbarian soldiers, who displayed any military +talents, were advanced, without exception, to the most important +commands; and the names of the tribunes, of the counts and dukes, and of +the generals themselves, betray a foreign origin, which they no longer +condescended to disguise. They were often intrusted with the conduct of +a war against their countrymen; and though most of them preferred the +ties of allegiance to those of blood, they did not always avoid +the guilt, or at least the suspicion, of holding a treasonable +correspondence with the enemy, of inviting his invasion, or of sparing +his retreat. The camps and the palace of the son of Constantine were +governed by the powerful faction of the Franks, who preserved the +strictest connection with each other, and with their country, and who +resented every personal affront as a national indignity. When the tyrant +Caligula was suspected of an intention to invest a very extraordinary +candidate with the consular robes, the sacrilegious profanation would +have scarcely excited less astonishment, if, instead of a horse, the +noblest chieftain of Germany or Britain had been the object of his +choice. The revolution of three centuries had produced so remarkable +a change in the prejudices of the people, that, with the public +approbation, Constantine showed his successors the example of bestowing +the honors of the consulship on the Barbarians, who, by their merit and +services, had deserved to be ranked among the first of the Romans. +But as these hardy veterans, who had been educated in the ignorance or +contempt of the laws, were incapable of exercising any civil offices, +the powers of the human mind were contracted by the irreconcilable +separation of talents as well as of professions. The accomplished +citizens of the Greek and Roman republics, whose characters could adapt +themselves to the bar, the senate, the camp, or the schools, had learned +to write, to speak, and to act with the same spirit, and with equal +abilities. + +IV. Besides the magistrates and generals, who at a distance from the +court diffused their delegated authority over the provinces and armies, +the emperor conferred the rank of Illustrious on seven of his more +immediate servants, to whose fidelity he intrusted his safety, or his +counsels, or his treasures. 1. The private apartments of the palace were +governed by a favorite eunuch, who, in the language of that age, was +styled the propositus, or praefect of the sacred bed-chamber. His +duty was to attend the emperor in his hours of state, or in those of +amusement, and to perform about his person all those menial services, +which can only derive their splendor from the influence of royalty. +Under a prince who deserved to reign, the great chamberlain (for such we +may call him) was a useful and humble domestic; but an artful domestic, +who improves every occasion of unguarded confidence, will insensibly +acquire over a feeble mind that ascendant which harsh wisdom and +uncomplying virtue can seldom obtain. The degenerate grandsons of +Theodosius, who were invisible to their subjects, and contemptible to +their enemies, exalted the praefects of their bed-chamber above the heads +of all the ministers of the palace; and even his deputy, the first of +the splendid train of slaves who waited in the presence, was thought +worthy to rank before the respectable proconsuls of Greece or Asia. +The jurisdiction of the chamberlain was acknowledged by the counts, +or superintendents, who regulated the two important provinces of the +magnificence of the wardrobe, and of the luxury of the Imperial table. +2. The principal administration of public affairs was committed to the +diligence and abilities of the master of the offices. He was the supreme +magistrate of the palace, inspected the discipline of the civil and +military schools, and received appeals from all parts of the empire, in +the causes which related to that numerous army of privileged persons, +who, as the servants of the court, had obtained for themselves and +families a right to decline the authority of the ordinary judges. The +correspondence between the prince and his subjects was managed by +the four scrinia, or offices of this minister of state. The first +was appropriated to memorials, the second to epistles, the third to +petitions, and the fourth to papers and orders of a miscellaneous kind. +Each of these was directed by an inferior master of respectable dignity, +and the whole business was despatched by a hundred and forty-eight +secretaries, chosen for the most part from the profession of the law, +on account of the variety of abstracts of reports and references which +frequently occurred in the exercise of their several functions. From a +condescension, which in former ages would have been esteemed unworthy +the Roman majesty, a particular secretary was allowed for the Greek +language; and interpreters were appointed to receive the ambassadors of +the Barbarians; but the department of foreign affairs, which constitutes +so essential a part of modern policy, seldom diverted the attention of +the master of the offices. His mind was more seriously engaged by the +general direction of the posts and arsenals of the empire. There were +thirty-four cities, fifteen in the East, and nineteen in the West, +in which regular companies of workmen were perpetually employed in +fabricating defensive armor, offensive weapons of all sorts, and +military engines, which were deposited in the arsenals, and occasionally +delivered for the service of the troops. 3. In the course of nine +centuries, the office of quaestor had experienced a very singular +revolution. In the infancy of Rome, two inferior magistrates were +annually elected by the people, to relieve the consuls from the +invidious management of the public treasure; a similar assistant +was granted to every proconsul, and to every praetor, who exercised a +military or provincial command; with the extent of conquest, the two +quaestors were gradually multiplied to the number of four, of eight, +of twenty, and, for a short time, perhaps, of forty; and the noblest +citizens ambitiously solicited an office which gave them a seat in the +senate, and a just hope of obtaining the honors of the republic. Whilst +Augustus affected to maintain the freedom of election, he consented +to accept the annual privilege of recommending, or rather indeed of +nominating, a certain proportion of candidates; and it was his custom +to select one of these distinguished youths, to read his orations or +epistles in the assemblies of the senate. The practice of Augustus +was imitated by succeeding princes; the occasional commission was +established as a permanent office; and the favored quaestor, assuming a +new and more illustrious character, alone survived the suppression of +his ancient and useless colleagues. As the orations which he composed in +the name of the emperor, acquired the force, and, at length, the form, +of absolute edicts, he was considered as the representative of the +legislative power, the oracle of the council, and the original source +of the civil jurisprudence. He was sometimes invited to take his seat +in the supreme judicature of the Imperial consistory, with the Praetorian +praefects, and the master of the offices; and he was frequently requested +to resolve the doubts of inferior judges: but as he was not oppressed +with a variety of subordinate business, his leisure and talents were +employed to cultivate that dignified style of eloquence, which, in the +corruption of taste and language, still preserves the majesty of the +Roman laws. In some respects, the office of the Imperial quaestor may be +compared with that of a modern chancellor; but the use of a great seal, +which seems to have been adopted by the illiterate barbarians, was +never introduced to attest the public acts of the emperors. 4. The +extraordinary title of count of the sacred largesses was bestowed on +the treasurer-general of the revenue, with the intention perhaps of +inculcating, that every payment flowed from the voluntary bounty of the +monarch. To conceive the almost infinite detail of the annual and daily +expense of the civil and military administration in every part of a +great empire, would exceed the powers of the most vigorous imagination. +The actual account employed several hundred persons, distributed into +eleven different offices, which were artfully contrived to examine and +control their respective operations. The multitude of these agents had +a natural tendency to increase; and it was more than once thought +expedient to dismiss to their native homes the useless supernumeraries, +who, deserting their honest labors, had pressed with too much eagerness +into the lucrative profession of the finances. Twenty-nine provincial +receivers, of whom eighteen were honored with the title of count, +corresponded with the treasurer; and he extended his jurisdiction over +the mines from whence the precious metals were extracted, over the +mints, in which they were converted into the current coin, and over +the public treasuries of the most important cities, where they were +deposited for the service of the state. The foreign trade of the empire +was regulated by this minister, who directed likewise all the linen and +woollen manufactures, in which the successive operations of spinning, +weaving, and dyeing were executed, chiefly by women of a servile +condition, for the use of the palace and army. Twenty-six of these +institutions are enumerated in the West, where the arts had been more +recently introduced, and a still larger proportion may be allowed for +the industrious provinces of the East. 5. Besides the public revenue, +which an absolute monarch might levy and expend according to his +pleasure, the emperors, in the capacity of opulent citizens, possessed +a very extensive property, which was administered by the count or +treasurer of the private estate. Some part had perhaps been the ancient +demesnes of kings and republics; some accessions might be derived from +the families which were successively invested with the purple; but the +most considerable portion flowed from the impure source of confiscations +and forfeitures. The Imperial estates were scattered through the +provinces, from Mauritania to Britain; but the rich and fertile soil of +Cappadocia tempted the monarch to acquire in that country his fairest +possessions, and either Constantine or his successors embraced the +occasion of justifying avarice by religious zeal. They suppressed the +rich temple of Comana, where the high priest of the goddess of war +supported the dignity of a sovereign prince; and they applied to their +private use the consecrated lands, which were inhabited by six thousand +subjects or slaves of the deity and her ministers. But these were not +the valuable inhabitants: the plains that stretch from the foot of +Mount Argaeus to the banks of the Sarus, bred a generous race of horses, +renowned above all others in the ancient world for their majestic shape +and incomparable swiftness. These sacred animals, destined for the +service of the palace and the Imperial games, were protected by the laws +from the profanation of a vulgar master. The demesnes of Cappadocia were +important enough to require the inspection of a count; officers of an +inferior rank were stationed in the other parts of the empire; and the +deputies of the private, as well as those of the public, treasurer +were maintained in the exercise of their independent functions, and +encouraged to control the authority of the provincial magistrates. 6, +7. The chosen bands of cavalry and infantry, which guarded the person of +the emperor, were under the immediate command of the two counts of the +domestics. The whole number consisted of three thousand five hundred +men, divided into seven schools, or troops, of five hundred each; and in +the East, this honorable service was almost entirely appropriated to +the Armenians. Whenever, on public ceremonies, they were drawn up in the +courts and porticos of the palace, their lofty stature, silent order, +and splendid arms of silver and gold, displayed a martial pomp not +unworthy of the Roman majesty. From the seven schools two companies +of horse and foot were selected, of the protectors, whose advantageous +station was the hope and reward of the most deserving soldiers. +They mounted guard in the interior apartments, and were occasionally +despatched into the provinces, to execute with celerity and vigor the +orders of their master. The counts of the domestics had succeeded to the +office of the Praetorian praefects; like the praefects, they aspired from +the service of the palace to the command of armies. + +The perpetual intercourse between the court and the provinces was +facilitated by the construction of roads and the institution of posts. +But these beneficial establishments were accidentally connected with +a pernicious and intolerable abuse. Two or three hundred agents or +messengers were employed, under the jurisdiction of the master of the +offices, to announce the names of the annual consuls, and the edicts +or victories of the emperors. They insensibly assumed the license +of reporting whatever they could observe of the conduct either of +magistrates or of private citizens; and were soon considered as the eyes +of the monarch, and the scourge of the people. Under the warm influence +of a feeble reign, they multiplied to the incredible number of ten +thousand, disdained the mild though frequent admonitions of the laws, +and exercised in the profitable management of the posts a rapacious and +insolent oppression. These official spies, who regularly corresponded +with the palace, were encouraged by favor and reward, anxiously to watch +the progress of every treasonable design, from the faint and latent +symptoms of disaffection, to the actual preparation of an open revolt. +Their careless or criminal violation of truth and justice was covered by +the consecrated mask of zeal; and they might securely aim their poisoned +arrows at the breast either of the guilty or the innocent, who had +provoked their resentment, or refused to purchase their silence. A +faithful subject, of Syria perhaps, or of Britain, was exposed to the +danger, or at least to the dread, of being dragged in chains to the +court of Milan or Constantinople, to defend his life and fortune +against the malicious charge of these privileged informers. The ordinary +administration was conducted by those methods which extreme necessity +can alone palliate; and the defects of evidence were diligently supplied +by the use of torture. + +The deceitful and dangerous experiment of the criminal question, as +it is emphatically styled, was admitted, rather than approved, in +the jurisprudence of the Romans. They applied this sanguinary mode of +examination only to servile bodies, whose sufferings were seldom weighed +by those haughty republicans in the scale of justice or humanity; but +they would never consent to violate the sacred person of a citizen, +till they possessed the clearest evidence of his guilt. The annals +of tyranny, from the reign of Tiberius to that of Domitian, +circumstantially relate the executions of many innocent victims; but, as +long as the faintest remembrance was kept alive of the national freedom +and honor, the last hours of a Roman were secured from the danger of +ignominious torture. The conduct of the provincial magistrates was not, +however, regulated by the practice of the city, or the strict maxims of +the civilians. They found the use of torture established not only among +the slaves of oriental despotism, but among the Macedonians, who obeyed +a limited monarch; among the Rhodians, who flourished by the liberty +of commerce; and even among the sage Athenians, who had asserted and +adorned the dignity of human kind. The acquiescence of the provincials +encouraged their governors to acquire, or perhaps to usurp, a +discretionary power of employing the rack, to extort from vagrants or +plebeian criminals the confession of their guilt, till they insensibly +proceeded to confound the distinction of rank, and to disregard the +privileges of Roman citizens. The apprehensions of the subjects urged +them to solicit, and the interest of the sovereign engaged him to +grant, a variety of special exemptions, which tacitly allowed, and even +authorized, the general use of torture. They protected all persons of +illustrious or honorable rank, bishops and their presbyters, professors +of the liberal arts, soldiers and their families, municipal officers, +and their posterity to the third generation, and all children under +the age of puberty. But a fatal maxim was introduced into the new +jurisprudence of the empire, that in the case of treason, which included +every offence that the subtlety of lawyers could derive from a hostile +intention towards the prince or republic, all privileges were suspended, +and all conditions were reduced to the same ignominious level. As the +safety of the emperor was avowedly preferred to every consideration of +justice or humanity, the dignity of age and the tenderness of youth were +alike exposed to the most cruel tortures; and the terrors of a malicious +information, which might select them as the accomplices, or even as the +witnesses, perhaps, of an imaginary crime, perpetually hung over the +heads of the principal citizens of the Roman world. + +These evils, however terrible they may appear, were confined to the +smaller number of Roman subjects, whose dangerous situation was in +some degree compensated by the enjoyment of those advantages, either of +nature or of fortune, which exposed them to the jealousy of the monarch. +The obscure millions of a great empire have much less to dread from +the cruelty than from the avarice of their masters, and their humble +happiness is principally affected by the grievance of excessive taxes, +which, gently pressing on the wealthy, descend with accelerated weight +on the meaner and more indigent classes of society. An ingenious +philosopher has calculated the universal measure of the public +impositions by the degrees of freedom and servitude; and ventures to +assert, that, according to an invariable law of nature, it must always +increase with the former, and diminish in a just proportion to the +latter. But this reflection, which would tend to alleviate the miseries +of despotism, is contradicted at least by the history of the Roman +empire; which accuses the same princes of despoiling the senate of its +authority, and the provinces of their wealth. Without abolishing all +the various customs and duties on merchandises, which are imperceptibly +discharged by the apparent choice of the purchaser, the policy of +Constantine and his successors preferred a simple and direct mode of +taxation, more congenial to the spirit of an arbitrary government. + + + +Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople.--Part VI. + +The name and use of the indictions, which serve to ascertain the +chronology of the middle ages, were derived from the regular practice +of the Roman tributes. The emperor subscribed with his own hand, and in +purple ink, the solemn edict, or indiction, which was fixed up in the +principal city of each diocese, during two months previous to the first +day of September. And by a very easy connection of ideas, the word +indiction was transferred to the measure of tribute which it prescribed, +and to the annual term which it allowed for the payment. This general +estimate of the supplies was proportioned to the real and imaginary +wants of the state; but as often as the expense exceeded the revenue, or +the revenue fell short of the computation, an additional tax, under the +name of superindiction, was imposed on the people, and the most valuable +attribute of sovereignty was communicated to the Praetorian praefects, +who, on some occasions, were permitted to provide for the unforeseen and +extraordinary exigencies of the public service. The execution of these +laws (which it would be tedious to pursue in their minute and intricate +detail) consisted of two distinct operations: the resolving the general +imposition into its constituent parts, which were assessed on the +provinces, the cities, and the individuals of the Roman world; and the +collecting the separate contributions of the individuals, the cities, +and the provinces, till the accumulated sums were poured into the +Imperial treasuries. But as the account between the monarch and +the subject was perpetually open, and as the renewal of the demand +anticipated the perfect discharge of the preceding obligation, the +weighty machine of the finances was moved by the same hands round the +circle of its yearly revolution. Whatever was honorable or important in +the administration of the revenue, was committed to the wisdom of the +praefects, and their provincial representatives; the lucrative functions +were claimed by a crowd of subordinate officers, some of whom depended +on the treasurer, others on the governor of the province; and who, +in the inevitable conflicts of a perplexed jurisdiction, had frequent +opportunities of disputing with each other the spoils of the people. The +laborious offices, which could be productive only of envy and reproach, +of expense and danger, were imposed on the Decurions, who formed the +corporations of the cities, and whom the severity of the Imperial laws +had condemned to sustain the burdens of civil society. The whole landed +property of the empire (without excepting the patrimonial estates of the +monarch) was the object of ordinary taxation; and every new purchaser +contracted the obligations of the former proprietor. An accurate census, +or survey, was the only equitable mode of ascertaining the proportion +which every citizen should be obliged to contribute for the public +service; and from the well-known period of the indictions, there is +reason to believe that this difficult and expensive operation was +repeated at the regular distance of fifteen years. The lands were +measured by surveyors, who were sent into the provinces; their nature, +whether arable or pasture, or vineyards or woods, was distinctly +reported; and an estimate was made of their common value from the +average produce of five years. The numbers of slaves and of cattle +constituted an essential part of the report; an oath was administered +to the proprietors, which bound them to disclose the true state of their +affairs; and their attempts to prevaricate, or elude the intention of +the legislator, were severely watched, and punished as a capital crime, +which included the double guilt of treason and sacrilege. A large +portion of the tribute was paid in money; and of the current coin of +the empire, gold alone could be legally accepted. The remainder of the +taxes, according to the proportions determined by the annual indiction, +was furnished in a manner still more direct, and still more oppressive. +According to the different nature of lands, their real produce in the +various articles of wine or oil, corn or barley, wood or iron, was +transported by the labor or at the expense of the provincials * to the +Imperial magazines, from whence they were occasionally distributed +for the use of the court, of the army, and of two capitals, Rome and +Constantinople. The commissioners of the revenue were so frequently +obliged to make considerable purchases, that they were strictly +prohibited from allowing any compensation, or from receiving in money +the value of those supplies which were exacted in kind. In the primitive +simplicity of small communities, this method may be well adapted to +collect the almost voluntary offerings of the people; but it is at once +susceptible of the utmost latitude, and of the utmost strictness, which +in a corrupt and absolute monarchy must introduce a perpetual contest +between the power of oppression and the arts of fraud. The agriculture +of the Roman provinces was insensibly ruined, and, in the progress of +despotism which tends to disappoint its own purpose, the emperors were +obliged to derive some merit from the forgiveness of debts, or the +remission of tributes, which their subjects were utterly incapable of +paying. According to the new division of Italy, the fertile and happy +province of Campania, the scene of the early victories and of the +delicious retirements of the citizens of Rome, extended between the +sea and the Apennine, from the Tiber to the Silarus. Within sixty years +after the death of Constantine, and on the evidence of an actual survey, +an exemption was granted in favor of three hundred and thirty thousand +English acres of desert and uncultivated land; which amounted to one +eighth of the whole surface of the province. As the footsteps of the +Barbarians had not yet been seen in Italy, the cause of this amazing +desolation, which is recorded in the laws, can be ascribed only to the +administration of the Roman emperors. + +Either from design or from accident, the mode of assessment seemed to +unite the substance of a land tax with the forms of a capitation. The +returns which were sent of every province or district, expressed the +number of tributary subjects, and the amount of the public impositions. +The latter of these sums was divided by the former; and the estimate, +that such a province contained so many capita, or heads of tribute; and +that each head was rated at such a price, was universally received, not +only in the popular, but even in the legal computation. The value of +a tributary head must have varied, according to many accidental, or at +least fluctuating circumstances; but some knowledge has been preserved +of a very curious fact, the more important, since it relates to one of +the richest provinces of the Roman empire, and which now flourishes as +the most splendid of the European kingdoms. The rapacious ministers of +Constantius had exhausted the wealth of Gaul, by exacting twenty-five +pieces of gold for the annual tribute of every head. The humane policy +of his successor reduced the capitation to seven pieces. A moderate +proportion between these opposite extremes of extraordinary oppression +and of transient indulgence, may therefore be fixed at sixteen pieces +of gold, or about nine pounds sterling, the common standard, perhaps, +of the impositions of Gaul. But this calculation, or rather, indeed, +the facts from whence it is deduced, cannot fail of suggesting two +difficulties to a thinking mind, who will be at once surprised by the +equality, and by the enormity, of the capitation. An attempt to explain +them may perhaps reflect some light on the interesting subject of the +finances of the declining empire. + +I. It is obvious, that, as long as the immutable constitution of human +nature produces and maintains so unequal a division of property, +the most numerous part of the community would be deprived of their +subsistence, by the equal assessment of a tax from which the sovereign +would derive a very trifling revenue. Such indeed might be the theory of +the Roman capitation; but in the practice, this unjust equality was no +longer felt, as the tribute was collected on the principle of a real, +not of a personal imposition. * Several indigent citizens contributed +to compose a single head, or share of taxation; while the wealthy +provincial, in proportion to his fortune, alone represented several of +those imaginary beings. In a poetical request, addressed to one of +the last and most deserving of the Roman princes who reigned in Gaul, +Sidonius Apollinaris personifies his tribute under the figure of a +triple monster, the Geryon of the Grecian fables, and entreats the new +Hercules that he would most graciously be pleased to save his life by +cutting off three of his heads. The fortune of Sidonius far exceeded the +customary wealth of a poet; but if he had pursued the allusion, he might +have painted many of the Gallic nobles with the hundred heads of the +deadly Hydra, spreading over the face of the country, and devouring +the substance of a hundred families. II. The difficulty of allowing an +annual sum of about nine pounds sterling, even for the average of the +capitation of Gaul, may be rendered more evident by the comparison of +the present state of the same country, as it is now governed by the +absolute monarch of an industrious, wealthy, and affectionate people. +The taxes of France cannot be magnified, either by fear or by flattery, +beyond the annual amount of eighteen millions sterling, which ought +perhaps to be shared among four and twenty millions of inhabitants. +Seven millions of these, in the capacity of fathers, or brothers, or +husbands, may discharge the obligations of the remaining multitude of +women and children; yet the equal proportion of each tributary subject +will scarcely rise above fifty shillings of our money, instead of +a proportion almost four times as considerable, which was regularly +imposed on their Gallic ancestors. The reason of this difference may +be found, not so much in the relative scarcity or plenty of gold and +silver, as in the different state of society, in ancient Gaul and in +modern France. In a country where personal freedom is the privilege +of every subject, the whole mass of taxes, whether they are levied on +property or on consumption, may be fairly divided among the whole body +of the nation. But the far greater part of the lands of ancient Gaul, +as well as of the other provinces of the Roman world, were cultivated +by slaves, or by peasants, whose dependent condition was a less rigid +servitude. In such a state the poor were maintained at the expense of +the masters who enjoyed the fruits of their labor; and as the rolls of +tribute were filled only with the names of those citizens who possessed +the means of an honorable, or at least of a decent subsistence, the +comparative smallness of their numbers explains and justifies the high +rate of their capitation. The truth of this assertion may be illustrated +by the following example: The AEdui, one of the most powerful and +civilized tribes or cities of Gaul, occupied an extent of territory, +which now contains about five hundred thousand inhabitants, in the +two ecclesiastical dioceses of Autun and Nevers; and with the probable +accession of those of Chalons and Macon, the population would amount to +eight hundred thousand souls. In the time of Constantine, the territory +of the AEdui afforded no more than twenty-five thousand heads of +capitation, of whom seven thousand were discharged by that prince +from the intolerable weight of tribute. A just analogy would seem to +countenance the opinion of an ingenious historian, that the free and +tributary citizens did not surpass the number of half a million; and if, +in the ordinary administration of government, their annual payments may +be computed at about four millions and a half of our money, it would +appear, that although the share of each individual was four times as +considerable, a fourth part only of the modern taxes of France was +levied on the Imperial province of Gaul. The exactions of Constantius +may be calculated at seven millions sterling, which were reduced to two +millions by the humanity or the wisdom of Julian. + +But this tax, or capitation, on the proprietors of land, would have +suffered a rich and numerous class of free citizens to escape. With +the view of sharing that species of wealth which is derived from art or +labor, and which exists in money or in merchandise, the emperors imposed +a distinct and personal tribute on the trading part of their subjects. +Some exemptions, very strictly confined both in time and place, were +allowed to the proprietors who disposed of the produce of their own +estates. Some indulgence was granted to the profession of the liberal +arts: but every other branch of commercial industry was affected by the +severity of the law. The honorable merchant of Alexandria, who imported +the gems and spices of India for the use of the western world; the +usurer, who derived from the interest of money a silent and ignominious +profit; the ingenious manufacturer, the diligent mechanic, and even the +most obscure retailer of a sequestered village, were obliged to admit +the officers of the revenue into the partnership of their gain; and the +sovereign of the Roman empire, who tolerated the profession, consented +to share the infamous salary, of public prostitutes. As this general tax +upon industry was collected every fourth year, it was styled the Lustral +Contribution: and the historian Zosimus laments that the approach of the +fatal period was announced by the tears and terrors of the citizens, +who were often compelled by the impending scourge to embrace the most +abhorred and unnatural methods of procuring the sum at which their +property had been assessed. The testimony of Zosimus cannot indeed be +justified from the charge of passion and prejudice; but, from the nature +of this tribute it seems reasonable to conclude, that it was arbitrary +in the distribution, and extremely rigorous in the mode of collecting. +The secret wealth of commerce, and the precarious profits of art or +labor, are susceptible only of a discretionary valuation, which is +seldom disadvantageous to the interest of the treasury; and as the +person of the trader supplies the want of a visible and permanent +security, the payment of the imposition, which, in the case of a land +tax, may be obtained by the seizure of property, can rarely be extorted +by any other means than those of corporal punishments. The cruel +treatment of the insolvent debtors of the state, is attested, and +was perhaps mitigated by a very humane edict of Constantine, who, +disclaiming the use of racks and of scourges, allots a spacious and airy +prison for the place of their confinement. + +These general taxes were imposed and levied by the absolute authority +of the monarch; but the occasional offerings of the coronary goldstill +retained the name and semblance of popular consent. It was an ancient +custom that the allies of the republic, who ascribed their safety or +deliverance to the success of the Roman arms, and even the cities of +Italy, who admired the virtues of their victorious general, adorned the +pomp of his triumph by their voluntary gifts of crowns of gold, which +after the ceremony were consecrated in the temple of Jupiter, to remain +a lasting monument of his glory to future ages. The progress of zeal and +flattery soon multiplied the number, and increased the size, of these +popular donations; and the triumph of Caesar was enriched with two +thousand eight hundred and twenty-two massy crowns, whose weight +amounted to twenty thousand four hundred and fourteen pounds of gold. +This treasure was immediately melted down by the prudent dictator, who +was satisfied that it would be more serviceable to his soldiers than to +the gods: his example was imitated by his successors; and the custom +was introduced of exchanging these splendid ornaments for the more +acceptable present of the current gold coin of the empire. The +spontaneous offering was at length exacted as the debt of duty; and +instead of being confined to the occasion of a triumph, it was supposed +to be granted by the several cities and provinces of the monarchy, +as often as the emperor condescended to announce his accession, his +consulship, the birth of a son, the creation of a Caesar, a victory over +the Barbarians, or any other real or imaginary event which graced the +annals of his reign. The peculiar free gift of the senate of Rome was +fixed by custom at sixteen hundred pounds of gold, or about sixty-four +thousand pounds sterling. The oppressed subjects celebrated their own +felicity, that their sovereign should graciously consent to accept this +feeble but voluntary testimony of their loyalty and gratitude. + +A people elated by pride, or soured by discontent, are seldom qualified +to form a just estimate of their actual situation. The subjects of +Constantine were incapable of discerning the decline of genius and manly +virtue, which so far degraded them below the dignity of their ancestors; +but they could feel and lament the rage of tyranny, the relaxation of +discipline, and the increase of taxes. The impartial historian, +who acknowledges the justice of their complaints, will observe some +favorable circumstances which tended to alleviate the misery of +their condition. The threatening tempest of Barbarians, which so soon +subverted the foundations of Roman greatness, was still repelled, or +suspended, on the frontiers. The arts of luxury and literature were +cultivated, and the elegant pleasures of society were enjoyed, by the +inhabitants of a considerable portion of the globe. The forms, the pomp, +and the expense of the civil administration contributed to restrain the +irregular license of the soldiers; and although the laws were violated +by power, or perverted by subtlety, the sage principles of the Roman +jurisprudence preserved a sense of order and equity, unknown to the +despotic governments of the East. The rights of mankind might derive +some protection from religion and philosophy; and the name of freedom, +which could no longer alarm, might sometimes admonish, the successors of +Augustus, that they did not reign over a nation of Slaves or Barbarians. + + + +Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His Sons.--Part I. + + Character Of Constantine.--Gothic War.--Death Of + Constantine.--Division Of The Empire Among His Three Sons.-- + Persian War.--Tragic Deaths Of Constantine The Younger And + Constans.--Usurpation Of Magnentius.--Civil War.--Victory Of + Constantius. + +The character of the prince who removed the seat of empire, and +introduced such important changes into the civil and religious +constitution of his country, has fixed the attention, and divided +the opinions, of mankind. By the grateful zeal of the Christians, the +deliverer of the church has been decorated with every attribute of a +hero, and even of a saint; while the discontent of the vanquished party +has compared Constantine to the most abhorred of those tyrants, who, +by their vice and weakness, dishonored the Imperial purple. The same +passions have in some degree been perpetuated to succeeding generations, +and the character of Constantine is considered, even in the present age, +as an object either of satire or of panegyric. By the impartial union of +those defects which are confessed by his warmest admirers, and of those +virtues which are acknowledged by his most-implacable enemies, we might +hope to delineate a just portrait of that extraordinary man, which the +truth and candor of history should adopt without a blush. But it would +soon appear, that the vain attempt to blend such discordant colors, +and to reconcile such inconsistent qualities, must produce a figure +monstrous rather than human, unless it is viewed in its proper and +distinct lights, by a careful separation of the different periods of the +reign of Constantine. + +The person, as well as the mind, of Constantine, had been enriched +by nature with her choices endowments. His stature was lofty, his +countenance majestic, his deportment graceful; his strength and activity +were displayed in every manly exercise, and from his earliest youth, +to a very advanced season of life, he preserved the vigor of his +constitution by a strict adherence to the domestic virtues of chastity +and temperance. He delighted in the social intercourse of familiar +conversation; and though he might sometimes indulge his disposition to +raillery with less reserve than was required by the severe dignity +of his station, the courtesy and liberality of his manners gained the +hearts of all who approached him. The sincerity of his friendship +has been suspected; yet he showed, on some occasions, that he was not +incapable of a warm and lasting attachment. The disadvantage of an +illiterate education had not prevented him from forming a just estimate +of the value of learning; and the arts and sciences derived some +encouragement from the munificent protection of Constantine. In the +despatch of business, his diligence was indefatigable; and the active +powers of his mind were almost continually exercised in reading, +writing, or meditating, in giving audiences to ambassadors, and in +examining the complaints of his subjects. Even those who censured +the propriety of his measures were compelled to acknowledge, that he +possessed magnanimity to conceive, and patience to execute, the most +arduous designs, without being checked either by the prejudices of +education, or by the clamors of the multitude. In the field, he infused +his own intrepid spirit into the troops, whom he conducted with the +talents of a consummate general; and to his abilities, rather than to +his fortune, we may ascribe the signal victories which he obtained over +the foreign and domestic foes of the republic. He loved glory as the +reward, perhaps as the motive, of his labors. The boundless ambition, +which, from the moment of his accepting the purple at York, appears as +the ruling passion of his soul, may be justified by the dangers of his +own situation, by the character of his rivals, by the consciousness of +superior merit, and by the prospect that his success would enable him to +restore peace and order to tot the distracted empire. In his civil +wars against Maxentius and Licinius, he had engaged on his side the +inclinations of the people, who compared the undissembled vices of those +tyrants with the spirit of wisdom and justice which seemed to direct the +general tenor of the administration of Constantine. + +Had Constantine fallen on the banks of the Tyber, or even in the plains +of Hadrianople, such is the character which, with a few exceptions, he +might have transmitted to posterity. But the conclusion of his reign +(according to the moderate and indeed tender sentence of a writer of +the same age) degraded him from the rank which he had acquired among the +most deserving of the Roman princes. In the life of Augustus, we behold +the tyrant of the republic, converted, almost by imperceptible +degrees, into the father of his country, and of human kind. In that of +Constantine, we may contemplate a hero, who had so long inspired his +subjects with love, and his enemies with terror, degenerating into a +cruel and dissolute monarch, corrupted by his fortune, or raised by +conquest above the necessity of dissimulation. The general peace which +he maintained during the last fourteen years of his reign, was a period +of apparent splendor rather than of real prosperity; and the old age +of Constantine was disgraced by the opposite yet reconcilable vices of +rapaciousness and prodigality. The accumulated treasures found in the +palaces of Maxentius and Licinius, were lavishly consumed; the +various innovations introduced by the conqueror, were attended with +an increasing expense; the cost of his buildings, his court, and +his festivals, required an immediate and plentiful supply; and the +oppression of the people was the only fund which could support the +magnificence of the sovereign. His unworthy favorites, enriched by +the boundless liberality of their master, usurped with impunity the +privilege of rapine and corruption. A secret but universal decay +was felt in every part of the public administration, and the emperor +himself, though he still retained the obedience, gradually lost the +esteem, of his subjects. The dress and manners, which, towards the +decline of life, he chose to affect, served only to degrade him in the +eyes of mankind. The Asiatic pomp, which had been adopted by the pride +of Diocletian, assumed an air of softness and effeminacy in the person +of Constantine. He is represented with false hair of various colors, +laboriously arranged by the skilful artists to the times; a diadem of +a new and more expensive fashion; a profusion of gems and pearls, of +collars and bracelets, and a variegated flowing robe of silk, most +curiously embroidered with flowers of gold. In such apparel, scarcely +to be excused by the youth and folly of Elagabalus, we are at a loss to +discover the wisdom of an aged monarch, and the simplicity of a Roman +veteran. A mind thus relaxed by prosperity and indulgence, was incapable +of rising to that magnanimity which disdains suspicion, and dares to +forgive. The deaths of Maximian and Licinius may perhaps be justified by +the maxims of policy, as they are taught in the schools of tyrants; +but an impartial narrative of the executions, or rather murders, which +sullied the declining age of Constantine, will suggest to our most +candid thoughts the idea of a prince who could sacrifice without +reluctance the laws of justice, and the feelings of nature, to the +dictates either of his passions or of his interest. + +The same fortune which so invariably followed the standard of +Constantine, seemed to secure the hopes and comforts of his domestic +life. Those among his predecessors who had enjoyed the longest and +most prosperous reigns, Augustus Trajan, and Diocletian, had been +disappointed of posterity; and the frequent revolutions had never +allowed sufficient time for any Imperial family to grow up and multiply +under the shade of the purple. But the royalty of the Flavian line, +which had been first ennobled by the Gothic Claudius, descended through +several generations; and Constantine himself derived from his royal +father the hereditary honors which he transmitted to his children. The +emperor had been twice married. Minervina, the obscure but lawful object +of his youthful attachment, had left him only one son, who was called +Crispus. By Fausta, the daughter of Maximian, he had three daughters, +and three sons known by the kindred names of Constantine, Constantius, +and Constans. The unambitious brothers of the great Constantine, Julius +Constantius, Dalmatius, and Hannibalianus, were permitted to enjoy +the most honorable rank, and the most affluent fortune, that could +be consistent with a private station. The youngest of the three lived +without a name, and died without posterity. His two elder brothers +obtained in marriage the daughters of wealthy senators, and propagated +new branches of the Imperial race. Gallus and Julian afterwards +became the most illustrious of the children of Julius Constantius, the +Patrician. The two sons of Dalmatius, who had been decorated with the +vain title of Censor, were named Dalmatius and Hannibalianus. The two +sisters of the great Constantine, Anastasia and Eutropia, were bestowed +on Optatus and Nepotianus, two senators of noble birth and of consular +dignity. His third sister, Constantia, was distinguished by her +preeminence of greatness and of misery. She remained the widow of the +vanquished Licinius; and it was by her entreaties, that an innocent boy, +the offspring of their marriage, preserved, for some time, his life, +the title of Caesar, and a precarious hope of the succession. Besides the +females, and the allies of the Flavian house, ten or twelve males, to +whom the language of modern courts would apply the title of princes of +the blood, seemed, according to the order of their birth, to be destined +either to inherit or to support the throne of Constantine. But in less +than thirty years, this numerous and increasing family was reduced to +the persons of Constantius and Julian, who alone had survived a series +of crimes and calamities, such as the tragic poets have deplored in the +devoted lines of Pelops and of Cadmus. + +Crispus, the eldest son of Constantine, and the presumptive heir of +the empire, is represented by impartial historians as an amiable and +accomplished youth. The care of his education, or at least of his +studies, was intrusted to Lactantius, the most eloquent of the +Christians; a preceptor admirably qualified to form the taste, and +the excite the virtues, of his illustrious disciple. At the age of +seventeen, Crispus was invested with the title of Caesar, and the +administration of the Gallic provinces, where the inroads of the Germans +gave him an early occasion of signalizing his military prowess. In the +civil war which broke out soon afterwards, the father and son divided +their powers; and this history has already celebrated the valor as +well as conduct displayed by the latter, in forcing the straits of the +Hellespont, so obstinately defended by the superior fleet of Licinius. +This naval victory contributed to determine the event of the war; +and the names of Constantine and of Crispus were united in the joyful +acclamations of their eastern subjects; who loudly proclaimed, that the +world had been subdued, and was now governed, by an emperor endowed with +every virtue; and by his illustrious son, a prince beloved of Heaven, +and the lively image of his father's perfections. The public favor, +which seldom accompanies old age, diffused its lustre over the youth of +Crispus. He deserved the esteem, and he engaged the affections, of the +court, the army, and the people. The experienced merit of a reigning +monarch is acknowledged by his subjects with reluctance, and frequently +denied with partial and discontented murmurs; while, from the opening +virtues of his successor, they fondly conceive the most unbounded hopes +of private as well as public felicity. + +This dangerous popularity soon excited the attention of Constantine, +who, both as a father and as a king, was impatient of an equal. Instead +of attempting to secure the allegiance of his son by the generous ties +of confidence and gratitude, he resolved to prevent the mischiefs which +might be apprehended from dissatisfied ambition. Crispus soon had reason +to complain, that while his infant brother Constantius was sent, with +the title of Caesar, to reign over his peculiar department of the Gallic +provinces, he, a prince of mature years, who had performed such recent +and signal services, instead of being raised to the superior rank of +Augustus, was confined almost a prisoner to his father's court; and +exposed, without power or defence, to every calumny which the malice of +his enemies could suggest. Under such painful circumstances, the royal +youth might not always be able to compose his behavior, or suppress his +discontent; and we may be assured, that he was encompassed by a train of +indiscreet or perfidious followers, who assiduously studied to inflame, +and who were perhaps instructed to betray, the unguarded warmth of +his resentment. An edict of Constantine, published about this time, +manifestly indicates his real or affected suspicions, that a secret +conspiracy had been formed against his person and government. By all the +allurements of honors and rewards, he invites informers of every degree +to accuse without exception his magistrates or ministers, his friends +or his most intimate favorites, protesting, with a solemn asseveration, +that he himself will listen to the charge, that he himself will revenge +his injuries; and concluding with a prayer, which discovers some +apprehension of danger, that the providence of the Supreme Being may +still continue to protect the safety of the emperor and of the empire. + +The informers, who complied with so liberal an invitation, were +sufficiently versed in the arts of courts to select the friends and +adherents of Crispus as the guilty persons; nor is there any reason to +distrust the veracity of the emperor, who had promised an ample measure +of revenge and punishment. The policy of Constantine maintained, +however, the same appearances of regard and confidence towards a son, +whom he began to consider as his most irreconcilable enemy. Medals were +struck with the customary vows for the long and auspicious reign of the +young Caesar; and as the people, who were not admitted into the secrets +of the palace, still loved his virtues, and respected his dignity, a +poet who solicits his recall from exile, adores with equal devotion the +majesty of the father and that of the son. The time was now arrived for +celebrating the august ceremony of the twentieth year of the reign of +Constantine; and the emperor, for that purpose, removed his court from +Nicomedia to Rome, where the most splendid preparations had been made +for his reception. Every eye, and every tongue, affected to express +their sense of the general happiness, and the veil of ceremony and +dissimulation was drawn for a while over the darkest designs of revenge +and murder. In the midst of the festival, the unfortunate Crispus was +apprehended by order of the emperor, who laid aside the tenderness of +a father, without assuming the equity of a judge. The examination was +short and private; and as it was thought decent to conceal the fate of +the young prince from the eyes of the Roman people, he was sent under a +strong guard to Pola, in Istria, where, soon afterwards, he was put +to death, either by the hand of the executioner, or by the more gentle +operations of poison. The Caesar Licinius, a youth of amiable manners, +was involved in the ruin of Crispus: and the stern jealousy of +Constantine was unmoved by the prayers and tears of his favorite sister, +pleading for the life of a son, whose rank was his only crime, and whose +loss she did not long survive. The story of these unhappy princes, the +nature and evidence of their guilt, the forms of their trial, and the +circumstances of their death, were buried in mysterious obscurity; and +the courtly bishop, who has celebrated in an elaborate work the virtues +and piety of his hero, observes a prudent silence on the subject of +these tragic events. Such haughty contempt for the opinion of mankind, +whilst it imprints an indelible stain on the memory of Constantine, must +remind us of the very different behavior of one of the greatest monarchs +of the present age. The Czar Peter, in the full possession of despotic +power, submitted to the judgment of Russia, of Europe, and of posterity, +the reasons which had compelled him to subscribe the condemnation of a +criminal, or at least of a degenerate son. + +The innocence of Crispus was so universally acknowledged, that the +modern Greeks, who adore the memory of their founder, are reduced to +palliate the guilt of a parricide, which the common feelings of human +nature forbade them to justify. They pretend, that as soon as the +afflicted father discovered the falsehood of the accusation by which +his credulity had been so fatally misled, he published to the world +his repentance and remorse; that he mourned forty days, during which +he abstained from the use of the bath, and all the ordinary comforts of +life; and that, for the lasting instruction of posterity, he erected a +golden statue of Crispus, with this memorable inscription: To my son, +whom I unjustly condemned. A tale so moral and so interesting would +deserve to be supported by less exceptionable authority; but if we +consult the more ancient and authentic writers, they will inform us, +that the repentance of Constantine was manifested only in acts of blood +and revenge; and that he atoned for the murder of an innocent son, by +the execution, perhaps, of a guilty wife. They ascribe the misfortunes +of Crispus to the arts of his step-mother Fausta, whose implacable +hatred, or whose disappointed love, renewed in the palace of Constantine +the ancient tragedy of Hippolitus and of Phaedra. Like the daughter of +Minos, the daughter of Maximian accused her son-in-law of an incestuous +attempt on the chastity of his father's wife; and easily obtained, from +the jealousy of the emperor, a sentence of death against a young prince, +whom she considered with reason as the most formidable rival of her +own children. But Helena, the aged mother of Constantine, lamented and +revenged the untimely fate of her grandson Crispus; nor was it long +before a real or pretended discovery was made, that Fausta herself +entertained a criminal connection with a slave belonging to the Imperial +stables. Her condemnation and punishment were the instant consequences +of the charge; and the adulteress was suffocated by the steam of a bath, +which, for that purpose, had been heated to an extraordinary degree. +By some it will perhaps be thought, that the remembrance of a conjugal +union of twenty years, and the honor of their common offspring, the +destined heirs of the throne, might have softened the obdurate heart of +Constantine, and persuaded him to suffer his wife, however guilty she +might appear, to expiate her offences in a solitary prison. But it seems +a superfluous labor to weigh the propriety, unless we could ascertain +the truth, of this singular event, which is attended with some +circumstances of doubt and perplexity. Those who have attacked, and +those who have defended, the character of Constantine, have alike +disregarded two very remarkable passages of two orations pronounced +under the succeeding reign. The former celebrates the virtues, the +beauty, and the fortune of the empress Fausta, the daughter, wife, +sister, and mother of so many princes. The latter asserts, in explicit +terms, that the mother of the younger Constantine, who was slain three +years after his father's death, survived to weep over the fate of her +son. Notwithstanding the positive testimony of several writers of the +Pagan as well as of the Christian religion, there may still remain some +reason to believe, or at least to suspect, that Fausta escaped the +blind and suspicious cruelty of her husband. * The deaths of a son and a +nephew, with the execution of a great number of respectable, and perhaps +innocent friends, who were involved in their fall, may be sufficient, +however, to justify the discontent of the Roman people, and to explain +the satirical verses affixed to the palace gate, comparing the splendid +and bloody reigns of Constantine and Nero. + + + +Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His Sons.--Part II. + +By the death of Crispus, the inheritance of the empire seemed to devolve +on the three sons of Fausta, who have been already mentioned under +the names of Constantine, of Constantius, and of Constans. These young +princes were successively invested with the title of Caesar; and the +dates of their promotion may be referred to the tenth, the twentieth, +and the thirtieth years of the reign of their father. This conduct, +though it tended to multiply the future masters of the Roman world, +might be excused by the partiality of paternal affection; but it is not +so easy to understand the motives of the emperor, when he endangered +the safety both of his family and of his people, by the unnecessary +elevation of his two nephews, Dalmatius and Hannibalianus. The former +was raised, by the title of Caesar, to an equality with his cousins. +In favor of the latter, Constantine invented the new and singular +appellation of Nobilissimus; to which he annexed the flattering +distinction of a robe of purple and gold. But of the whole series +of Roman princes in any age of the empire, Hannibalianus alone was +distinguished by the title of King; a name which the subjects of +Tiberius would have detested, as the profane and cruel insult of +capricious tyranny. The use of such a title, even as it appears under +the reign of Constantine, is a strange and unconnected fact, which +can scarcely be admitted on the joint authority of Imperial medals and +contemporary writers. + +The whole empire was deeply interested in the education of these five +youths, the acknowledged successors of Constantine. The exercise of +the body prepared them for the fatigues of war and the duties of +active life. Those who occasionally mention the education or talents of +Constantius, allow that he excelled in the gymnastic arts of leaping and +running that he was a dexterous archer, a skilful horseman, and a master +of all the different weapons used in the service either of the cavalry +or of the infantry. The same assiduous cultivation was bestowed, though +not perhaps with equal success, to improve the minds of the sons and +nephews of Constantine. The most celebrated professors of the Christian +faith, of the Grecian philosophy, and of the Roman jurisprudence, were +invited by the liberality of the emperor, who reserved for himself +the important task of instructing the royal youths in the science of +government, and the knowledge of mankind. But the genius of Constantine +himself had been formed by adversity and experience. In the free +intercourse of private life, and amidst the dangers of the court of +Galerius, he had learned to command his own passions, to encounter those +of his equals, and to depend for his present safety and future greatness +on the prudence and firmness of his personal conduct. His destined +successors had the misfortune of being born and educated in the imperial +purple. Incessantly surrounded with a train of flatterers, they passed +their youth in the enjoyment of luxury, and the expectation of a throne; +nor would the dignity of their rank permit them to descend from that +elevated station from whence the various characters of human nature +appear to wear a smooth and uniform aspect. The indulgence of +Constantine admitted them, at a very tender age, to share the +administration of the empire; and they studied the art of reigning, +at the expense of the people intrusted to their care. The younger +Constantine was appointed to hold his court in Gaul; and his brother +Constantius exchanged that department, the ancient patrimony of their +father, for the more opulent, but less martial, countries of the East. +Italy, the Western Illyricum, and Africa, were accustomed to revere +Constans, the third of his sons, as the representative of the great +Constantine. He fixed Dalmatius on the Gothic frontier, to which he +annexed the government of Thrace, Macedonia, and Greece. The city of +Caesarea was chosen for the residence of Hannibalianus; and the provinces +of Pontus, Cappadocia, and the Lesser Armenia, were destined to form +the extent of his new kingdom. For each of these princes a suitable +establishment was provided. A just proportion of guards, of legions, and +of auxiliaries, was allotted for their respective dignity and defence. +The ministers and generals, who were placed about their persons, were +such as Constantine could trust to assist, and even to control, these +youthful sovereigns in the exercise of their delegated power. As they +advanced in years and experience, the limits of their authority were +insensibly enlarged: but the emperor always reserved for himself the +title of Augustus; and while he showed the Caesars to the armies and +provinces, he maintained every part of the empire in equal obedience +to its supreme head. The tranquillity of the last fourteen years of his +reign was scarcely interrupted by the contemptible insurrection of a +camel-driver in the Island of Cyprus, or by the active part which the +policy of Constantine engaged him to assume in the wars of the Goths and +Sarmatians. + +Among the different branches of the human race, the Sarmatians form a +very remarkable shade; as they seem to unite the manners of the Asiatic +barbarians with the figure and complexion of the ancient inhabitants of +Europe. According to the various accidents of peace and war, of alliance +or conquest, the Sarmatians were sometimes confined to the banks of the +Tanais; and they sometimes spread themselves over the immense plains +which lie between the Vistula and the Volga. The care of their numerous +flocks and herds, the pursuit of game, and the exercises of war, or +rather of rapine, directed the vagrant motions of the Sarmatians. The +movable camps or cities, the ordinary residence of their wives and +children, consisted only of large wagons drawn by oxen, and covered in +the form of tents. The military strength of the nation was composed of +cavalry; and the custom of their warriors, to lead in their hand one or +two spare horses, enabled them to advance and to retreat with a rapid +diligence, which surprised the security, and eluded the pursuit, of a +distant enemy. Their poverty of iron prompted their rude industry to +invent a sort of cuirass, which was capable of resisting a sword or +javelin, though it was formed only of horses' hoofs, cut into thin and +polished slices, carefully laid over each other in the manner of scales +or feathers, and strongly sewed upon an under garment of coarse linen. +The offensive arms of the Sarmatians were short daggers, long lances, +and a weighty bow vow with a quiver of arrows. They were reduced to the +necessity of employing fish-bones for the points of their weapons; +but the custom of dipping them in a venomous liquor, that poisoned +the wounds which they inflicted, is alone sufficient to prove the most +savage manners, since a people impressed with a sense of humanity would +have abhorred so cruel a practice, and a nation skilled in the arts +of war would have disdained so impotent a resource. Whenever these +Barbarians issued from their deserts in quest of prey, their shaggy +beards, uncombed locks, the furs with which they were covered from head +to foot, and their fierce countenances, which seemed to express the +innate cruelty of their minds, inspired the more civilized provincials +of Rome with horror and dismay. + +The tender Ovid, after a youth spent in the enjoyment of fame and +luxury, was condemned to a hopeless exile on the frozen banks of the +Danube, where he was exposed, almost without defence, to the fury of +these monsters of the desert, with whose stern spirits he feared that +his gentle shade might hereafter be confounded. In his pathetic, but +sometimes unmanly lamentations, he describes in the most lively colors +the dress and manners, the arms and inroads, of the Getae and Sarmatians, +who were associated for the purposes of destruction; and from the +accounts of history there is some reason to believe that these +Sarmatians were the Jazygae, one of the most numerous and warlike +tribes of the nation. The allurements of plenty engaged them to seek a +permanent establishment on the frontiers of the empire. Soon after the +reign of Augustus, they obliged the Dacians, who subsisted by fishing +on the banks of the River Teyss or Tibiscus, to retire into the hilly +country, and to abandon to the victorious Sarmatians the fertile plains +of the Upper Hungary, which are bounded by the course of the Danube +and the semicircular enclosure of the Carpathian Mountains. In this +advantageous position, they watched or suspended the moment of attack, +as they were provoked by injuries or appeased by presents; they +gradually acquired the skill of using more dangerous weapons, and +although the Sarmatians did not illustrate their name by any memorable +exploits, they occasionally assisted their eastern and western +neighbors, the Goths and the Germans, with a formidable body of cavalry. +They lived under the irregular aristocracy of their chieftains: but +after they had received into their bosom the fugitive Vandals, who +yielded to the pressure of the Gothic power, they seem to have chosen a +king from that nation, and from the illustrious race of the Astingi, who +had formerly dwelt on the shores of the northern ocean. + +This motive of enmity must have inflamed the subjects of contention, +which perpetually arise on the confines of warlike and independent +nations. The Vandal princes were stimulated by fear and revenge; the +Gothic kings aspired to extend their dominion from the Euxine to the +frontiers of Germany; and the waters of the Maros, a small river which +falls into the Teyss, were stained with the blood of the contending +Barbarians. After some experience of the superior strength and numbers +of their adversaries, the Sarmatians implored the protection of the +Roman monarch, who beheld with pleasure the discord of the nations, but +who was justly alarmed by the progress of the Gothic arms. As soon +as Constantine had declared himself in favor of the weaker party, the +haughty Araric, king of the Goths, instead of expecting the attack of +the legions, boldly passed the Danube, and spread terror and devastation +through the province of Maesia. To oppose the inroad of this destroying +host, the aged emperor took the field in person; but on this occasion +either his conduct or his fortune betrayed the glory which he had +acquired in so many foreign and domestic wars. He had the mortification +of seeing his troops fly before an inconsiderable detachment of the +Barbarians, who pursued them to the edge of their fortified camp, and +obliged him to consult his safety by a precipitate and ignominious +retreat. * The event of a second and more successful action retrieved +the honor of the Roman name; and the powers of art and discipline +prevailed, after an obstinate contest, over the efforts of irregular +valor. The broken army of the Goths abandoned the field of battle, the +wasted province, and the passage of the Danube: and although the eldest +of the sons of Constantine was permitted to supply the place of his +father, the merit of the victory, which diffused universal joy, was +ascribed to the auspicious counsels of the emperor himself. + +He contributed at least to improve this advantage, by his negotiations +with the free and warlike people of Chersonesus, whose capital, situate +on the western coast of the Tauric or Crimaean peninsula, still retained +some vestiges of a Grecian colony, and was governed by a perpetual +magistrate, assisted by a council of senators, emphatically styled the +Fathers of the City. The Chersonites were animated against the Goths, +by the memory of the wars, which, in the preceding century, they had +maintained with unequal forces against the invaders of their country. +They were connected with the Romans by the mutual benefits of commerce; +as they were supplied from the provinces of Asia with corn and +manufactures, which they purchased with their only productions, salt, +wax, and hides. Obedient to the requisition of Constantine, they +prepared, under the conduct of their magistrate Diogenes, a considerable +army, of which the principal strength consisted in cross-bows and +military chariots. The speedy march and intrepid attack of the +Chersonites, by diverting the attention of the Goths, assisted the +operations of the Imperial generals. The Goths, vanquished on every +side, were driven into the mountains, where, in the course of a severe +campaign, above a hundred thousand were computed to have perished +by cold and hunger Peace was at length granted to their humble +supplications; the eldest son of Araric was accepted as the most +valuable hostage; and Constantine endeavored to convince their chiefs, +by a liberal distribution of honors and rewards, how far the friendship +of the Romans was preferable to their enmity. In the expressions of his +gratitude towards the faithful Chersonites, the emperor was still more +magnificent. The pride of the nation was gratified by the splendid +and almost royal decorations bestowed on their magistrate and his +successors. A perpetual exemption from all duties was stipulated for +their vessels which traded to the ports of the Black Sea. A regular +subsidy was promised, of iron, corn, oil, and of every supply which +could be useful either in peace or war. But it was thought that +the Sarmatians were sufficiently rewarded by their deliverance from +impending ruin; and the emperor, perhaps with too strict an economy, +deducted some part of the expenses of the war from the customary +gratifications which were allowed to that turbulent nation. + +Exasperated by this apparent neglect, the Sarmatians soon forgot, +with the levity of barbarians, the services which they had so lately +received, and the dangers which still threatened their safety. Their +inroads on the territory of the empire provoked the indignation of +Constantine to leave them to their fate; and he no longer opposed the +ambition of Geberic, a renowned warrior, who had recently ascended the +Gothic throne. Wisumar, the Vandal king, whilst alone, and unassisted, +he defended his dominions with undaunted courage, was vanquished and +slain in a decisive battle, which swept away the flower of the Sarmatian +youth. * The remainder of the nation embraced the desperate expedient +of arming their slaves, a hardy race of hunters and herdsmen, by whose +tumultuary aid they revenged their defeat, and expelled the invader +from their confines. But they soon discovered that they had exchanged +a foreign for a domestic enemy, more dangerous and more implacable. +Enraged by their former servitude, elated by their present glory, the +slaves, under the name of Limigantes, claimed and usurped the possession +of the country which they had saved. Their masters, unable to withstand +the ungoverned fury of the populace, preferred the hardships of exile to +the tyranny of their servants. Some of the fugitive Sarmatians solicited +a less ignominious dependence, under the hostile standard of the Goths. +A more numerous band retired beyond the Carpathian Mountains, among +the Quadi, their German allies, and were easily admitted to share a +superfluous waste of uncultivated land. But the far greater part of the +distressed nation turned their eyes towards the fruitful provinces of +Rome. Imploring the protection and forgiveness of the emperor, they +solemnly promised, as subjects in peace, and as soldiers in war, the +most inviolable fidelity to the empire which should graciously receive +them into its bosom. According to the maxims adopted by Probus and his +successors, the offers of this barbarian colony were eagerly accepted; +and a competent portion of lands in the provinces of Pannonia, Thrace, +Macedonia, and Italy, were immediately assigned for the habitation and +subsistence of three hundred thousand Sarmatians. + +By chastising the pride of the Goths, and by accepting the homage of a +suppliant nation, Constantine asserted the majesty of the Roman empire; +and the ambassadors of AEthiopia, Persia, and the most remote countries +of India, congratulated the peace and prosperity of his government. If +he reckoned, among the favors of fortune, the death of his eldest son, +of his nephew, and perhaps of his wife, he enjoyed an uninterrupted flow +of private as well as public felicity, till the thirtieth year of his +reign; a period which none of his predecessors, since Augustus, had been +permitted to celebrate. Constantine survived that solemn festival about +ten months; and at the mature age of sixty-four, after a short illness, +he ended his memorable life at the palace of Aquyrion, in the suburbs of +Nicomedia, whither he had retired for the benefit of the air, and with +the hope of recruiting his exhausted strength by the use of the warm +baths. The excessive demonstrations of grief, or at least of mourning, +surpassed whatever had been practised on any former occasion. +Notwithstanding the claims of the senate and people of ancient Rome, +the corpse of the deceased emperor, according to his last request, was +transported to the city, which was destined to preserve the name and +memory of its founder. The body of Constantine adorned with the vain +symbols of greatness, the purple and diadem, was deposited on a golden +bed in one of the apartments of the palace, which for that purpose had +been splendidly furnished and illuminated. The forms of the court were +strictly maintained. Every day, at the appointed hours, the principal +officers of the state, the army, and the household, approaching the +person of their sovereign with bended knees and a composed countenance, +offered their respectful homage as seriously as if he had been still +alive. From motives of policy, this theatrical representation was for +some time continued; nor could flattery neglect the opportunity of +remarking that Constantine alone, by the peculiar indulgence of Heaven, +had reigned after his death. + +But this reign could subsist only in empty pageantry; and it was soon +discovered that the will of the most absolute monarch is seldom obeyed, +when his subjects have no longer anything to hope from his favor, or to +dread from his resentment. The same ministers and generals, who bowed +with such referential awe before the inanimate corpse of their deceased +sovereign, were engaged in secret consultations to exclude his two +nephews, Dalmatius and Hannibalianus, from the share which he had +assigned them in the succession of the empire. We are too imperfectly +acquainted with the court of Constantine to form any judgment of the +real motives which influenced the leaders of the conspiracy; unless +we should suppose that they were actuated by a spirit of jealousy and +revenge against the praefect Ablavius, a proud favorite, who had long +directed the counsels and abused the confidence of the late emperor. The +arguments, by which they solicited the concurrence of the soldiers and +people, are of a more obvious nature; and they might with decency, +as well as truth, insist on the superior rank of the children of +Constantine, the danger of multiplying the number of sovereigns, and the +impending mischiefs which threatened the republic, from the discord of +so many rival princes, who were not connected by the tender sympathy of +fraternal affection. The intrigue was conducted with zeal and secrecy, +till a loud and unanimous declaration was procured from the troops, +that they would suffer none except the sons of their lamented monarch to +reign over the Roman empire. The younger Dalmatius, who was united with +his collateral relations by the ties of friendship and interest, is +allowed to have inherited a considerable share of the abilities of the +great Constantine; but, on this occasion, he does not appear to have +concerted any measure for supporting, by arms, the just claims which +himself and his royal brother derived from the liberality of their +uncle. Astonished and overwhelmed by the tide of popular fury, they seem +to have remained, without the power of flight or of resistance, in the +hands of their implacable enemies. Their fate was suspended till the +arrival of Constantius, the second, and perhaps the most favored, of the +sons of Constantine. + + + +Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His Sons.--Part III. + +The voice of the dying emperor had recommended the care of his funeral +to the piety of Constantius; and that prince, by the vicinity of his +eastern station, could easily prevent the diligence of his brothers, who +resided in their distant government of Italy and Gaul. As soon as he had +taken possession of the palace of Constantinople, his first care was +to remove the apprehensions of his kinsmen, by a solemn oath which +he pledged for their security. His next employment was to find some +specious pretence which might release his conscience from the obligation +of an imprudent promise. The arts of fraud were made subservient to the +designs of cruelty; and a manifest forgery was attested by a person of +the most sacred character. From the hands of the Bishop of Nicomedia, +Constantius received a fatal scroll, affirmed to be the genuine +testament of his father; in which the emperor expressed his suspicions +that he had been poisoned by his brothers; and conjured his sons to +revenge his death, and to consult their own safety, by the punishment +of the guilty. Whatever reasons might have been alleged by these +unfortunate princes to defend their life and honor against so incredible +an accusation, they were silenced by the furious clamors of the +soldiers, who declared themselves, at once, their enemies, their +judges, and their executioners. The spirit, and even the forms of legal +proceedings were repeatedly violated in a promiscuous massacre; which +involved the two uncles of Constantius, seven of his cousins, of whom +Dalmatius and Hannibalianus were the most illustrious, the Patrician +Optatus, who had married a sister of the late emperor, and the Praefect +Ablavius, whose power and riches had inspired him with some hopes of +obtaining the purple. If it were necessary to aggravate the horrors of +this bloody scene, we might add, that Constantius himself had espoused +the daughter of his uncle Julius, and that he had bestowed his sister in +marriage on his cousin Hannibalianus. These alliances, which the policy +of Constantine, regardless of the public prejudice, had formed between +the several branches of the Imperial house, served only to convince +mankind, that these princes were as cold to the endearments of conjugal +affection, as they were insensible to the ties of consanguinity, and +the moving entreaties of youth and innocence. Of so numerous a +family, Gallus and Julian alone, the two youngest children of Julius +Constantius, were saved from the hands of the assassins, till their +rage, satiated with slaughter, had in some measure subsided. The emperor +Constantius, who, in the absence of his brothers, was the most obnoxious +to guilt and reproach, discovered, on some future occasions, a faint and +transient remorse for those cruelties which the perfidious counsels of +his ministers, and the irresistible violence of the troops, had extorted +from his unexperienced youth. + +The massacre of the Flavian race was succeeded by a new division of +the provinces; which was ratified in a personal interview of the three +brothers. Constantine, the eldest of the Caesars, obtained, with a +certain preeminence of rank, the possession of the new capital, which +bore his own name and that of his father. Thrace, and the countries of +the East, were allotted for the patrimony of Constantius; and Constans +was acknowledged as the lawful sovereign of Italy, Africa, and the +Western Illyricum. The armies submitted to their hereditary right; and +they condescended, after some delay, to accept from the Roman senate the +title of Augustus. When they first assumed the reins of government, the +eldest of these princes was twenty-one, the second twenty, and the third +only seventeen, years of age. + +While the martial nations of Europe followed the standards of his +brothers, Constantius, at the head of the effeminate troops of Asia, +was left to sustain the weight of the Persian war. At the decease of +Constantine, the throne of the East was filled by Sapor, son of +Hormouz, or Hormisdas, and grandson of Narses, who, after the victory +of Galerius, had humbly confessed the superiority of the Roman power. +Although Sapor was in the thirtieth year of his long reign, he was still +in the vigor of youth, as the date of his accession, by a very strange +fatality, had preceded that of his birth. The wife of Hormouz remained +pregnant at the time of her husband's death; and the uncertainty of the +sex, as well as of the event, excited the ambitious hopes of the princes +of the house of Sassan. The apprehensions of civil war were at length +removed, by the positive assurance of the Magi, that the widow of +Hormouz had conceived, and would safely produce a son. Obedient to +the voice of superstition, the Persians prepared, without delay, the +ceremony of his coronation. A royal bed, on which the queen lay in +state, was exhibited in the midst of the palace; the diadem was placed +on the spot, which might be supposed to conceal the future heir of +Artaxerxes, and the prostrate satraps adored the majesty of their +invisible and insensible sovereign. If any credit can be given to this +marvellous tale, which seems, however, to be countenanced by the manners +of the people, and by the extraordinary duration of his reign, we must +admire not only the fortune, but the genius, of Sapor. In the soft, +sequestered education of a Persian harem, the royal youth could discover +the importance of exercising the vigor of his mind and body; and, by his +personal merit, deserved a throne, on which he had been seated, while he +was yet unconscious of the duties and temptations of absolute power. +His minority was exposed to the almost inevitable calamities of domestic +discord; his capital was surprised and plundered by Thair, a powerful +king of Yemen, or Arabia; and the majesty of the royal family was +degraded by the captivity of a princess, the sister of the deceased +king. But as soon as Sapor attained the age of manhood, the presumptuous +Thair, his nation, and his country, fell beneath the first effort of the +young warrior; who used his victory with so judicious a mixture of rigor +and clemency, that he obtained from the fears and gratitude of the Arabs +the title of Dhoulacnaf, or protector of the nation. + +The ambition of the Persian, to whom his enemies ascribe the virtues of +a soldier and a statesman, was animated by the desire of revenging the +disgrace of his fathers, and of wresting from the hands of the Romans +the five provinces beyond the Tigris. The military fame of Constantine, +and the real or apparent strength of his government, suspended the +attack; and while the hostile conduct of Sapor provoked the resentment, +his artful negotiations amused the patience of the Imperial court. The +death of Constantine was the signal of war, and the actual condition of +the Syrian and Armenian frontier seemed to encourage the Persians by +the prospect of a rich spoil and an easy conquest. The example of the +massacres of the palace diffused a spirit of licentiousness and sedition +among the troops of the East, who were no longer restrained by +their habits of obedience to a veteran commander. By the prudence of +Constantius, who, from the interview with his brothers in Pannonia, +immediately hastened to the banks of the Euphrates, the legions were +gradually restored to a sense of duty and discipline; but the season of +anarchy had permitted Sapor to form the siege of Nisibis, and to occupy +several of the most important fortresses of Mesopotamia. In Armenia, +the renowned Tiridates had long enjoyed the peace and glory which +he deserved by his valor and fidelity to the cause of Rome. The +firm alliance which he maintained with Constantine was productive +of spiritual as well as of temporal benefits; by the conversion of +Tiridates, the character of a saint was applied to that of a hero, the +Christian faith was preached and established from the Euphrates to the +shores of the Caspian, and Armenia was attached to the empire by the +double ties of policy and religion. But as many of the Armenian nobles +still refused to abandon the plurality of their gods and of their wives, +the public tranquillity was disturbed by a discontented faction, which +insulted the feeble age of their sovereign, and impatiently expected the +hour of his death. He died at length after a reign of fifty-six years, +and the fortune of the Armenian monarchy expired with Tiridates. His +lawful heir was driven into exile, the Christian priests were either +murdered or expelled from their churches, the barbarous tribes of +Albania were solicited to descend from their mountains; and two of the +most powerful governors, usurping the ensigns or the powers of royalty, +implored the assistance of Sapor, and opened the gates of their cities +to the Persian garrisons. The Christian party, under the guidance of +the Archbishop of Artaxata, the immediate successor of St. Gregory +the Illuminator, had recourse to the piety of Constantius. After the +troubles had continued about three years, Antiochus, one of the officers +of the household, executed with success the Imperial commission of +restoring Chosroes, * the son of Tiridates, to the throne of his +fathers, of distributing honors and rewards among the faithful servants +of the house of Arsaces, and of proclaiming a general amnesty, which was +accepted by the greater part of the rebellious satraps. But the Romans +derived more honor than advantage from this revolution. Chosroes was +a prince of a puny stature and a pusillanimous spirit. Unequal to the +fatigues of war, averse to the society of mankind, he withdrew from his +capital to a retired palace, which he built on the banks of the River +Eleutherus, and in the centre of a shady grove; where he consumed his +vacant hours in the rural sports of hunting and hawking. To secure this +inglorious ease, he submitted to the conditions of peace which Sapor +condescended to impose; the payment of an annual tribute, and the +restitution of the fertile province of Atropatene, which the courage +of Tiridates, and the victorious arms of Galerius, had annexed to the +Armenian monarchy. + +During the long period of the reign of Constantius, the provinces of the +East were afflicted by the calamities of the Persian war. The irregular +incursions of the light troops alternately spread terror and devastation +beyond the Tigris and beyond the Euphrates, from the gates of Ctesiphon +to those of Antioch; and this active service was performed by the Arabs +of the desert, who were divided in their interest and affections; some +of their independent chiefs being enlisted in the party of Sapor, whilst +others had engaged their doubtful fidelity to the emperor. The more +grave and important operations of the war were conducted with equal +vigor; and the armies of Rome and Persia encountered each other in nine +bloody fields, in two of which Constantius himself commanded in person. +The event of the day was most commonly adverse to the Romans, but in the +battle of Singara, heir imprudent valor had almost achieved a signal +and decisive victory. The stationary troops of Singara * retired on +the approach of Sapor, who passed the Tigris over three bridges, and +occupied near the village of Hilleh an advantageous camp, which, by the +labor of his numerous pioneers, he surrounded in one day with a deep +ditch and a lofty rampart. His formidable host, when it was drawn out in +order of battle, covered the banks of the river, the adjacent heights, +and the whole extent of a plain of above twelve miles, which separated +the two armies. Both were alike impatient to engage; but the Barbarians, +after a slight resistance, fled in disorder; unable to resist, or +desirous to weary, the strength of the heavy legions, who, fainting with +heat and thirst, pursued them across the plain, and cut in pieces a line +of cavalry, clothed in complete armor, which had been posted before the +gates of the camp to protect their retreat. Constantius, who was hurried +along in the pursuit, attempted, without effect, to restrain the ardor +of his troops, by representing to them the dangers of the approaching +night, and the certainty of completing their success with the return +of day. As they depended much more on their own valor than on the +experience or the abilities of their chief, they silenced by their +clamors his timid remonstrances; and rushing with fury to the charge, +filled up the ditch, broke down the rampart, and dispersed themselves +through the tents to recruit their exhausted strength, and to enjoy +the rich harvest of their labors. But the prudent Sapor had watched the +moment of victory. His army, of which the greater part, securely posted +on the heights, had been spectators of the action, advanced in silence, +and under the shadow of the night; and his Persian archers, guided by +the illumination of the camp, poured a shower of arrows on a disarmed +and licentious crowd. The sincerity of history declares, that the Romans +were vanquished with a dreadful slaughter, and that the flying remnant +of the legions was exposed to the most intolerable hardships. Even the +tenderness of panegyric, confessing that the glory of the emperor was +sullied by the disobedience of his soldiers, chooses to draw a veil over +the circumstances of this melancholy retreat. Yet one of those venal +orators, so jealous of the fame of Constantius, relates, with amazing +coolness, an act of such incredible cruelty, as, in the judgment of +posterity, must imprint a far deeper stain on the honor of the Imperial +name. The son of Sapor, the heir of his crown, had been made a captive +in the Persian camp. The unhappy youth, who might have excited the +compassion of the most savage enemy, was scourged, tortured, and +publicly executed by the inhuman Romans. + +Whatever advantages might attend the arms of Sapor in the field, though +nine repeated victories diffused among the nations the fame of his +valor and conduct, he could not hope to succeed in the execution of his +designs, while the fortified towns of Mesopotamia, and, above all, the +strong and ancient city of Nisibis, remained in the possession of the +Romans. In the space of twelve years, Nisibis, which, since the time +of Lucullus, had been deservedly esteemed the bulwark of the East, +sustained three memorable sieges against the power of Sapor; and the +disappointed monarch, after urging his attacks above sixty, eighty, and +a hundred days, was thrice repulsed with loss and ignominy. This large +and populous city was situate about two days' journey from the Tigris, +in the midst of a pleasant and fertile plain at the foot of Mount +Masius. A treble enclosure of brick walls was defended by a deep ditch; +and the intrepid resistance of Count Lucilianus, and his garrison, was +seconded by the desperate courage of the people. The citizens of Nisibis +were animated by the exhortations of their bishop, inured to arms by the +presence of danger, and convinced of the intentions of Sapor to plant +a Persian colony in their room, and to lead them away into distant and +barbarous captivity. The event of the two former sieges elated their +confidence, and exasperated the haughty spirit of the Great King, who +advanced a third time towards Nisibis, at the head of the united forces +of Persia and India. The ordinary machines, invented to batter or +undermine the walls, were rendered ineffectual by the superior skill +of the Romans; and many days had vainly elapsed, when Sapor embraced a +resolution worthy of an eastern monarch, who believed that the elements +themselves were subject to his power. At the stated season of the +melting of the snows in Armenia, the River Mygdonius, which divides the +plain and the city of Nisibis, forms, like the Nile, an inundation over +the adjacent country. By the labor of the Persians, the course of the +river was stopped below the town, and the waters were confined on every +side by solid mounds of earth. On this artificial lake, a fleet of armed +vessels filled with soldiers, and with engines which discharged stones +of five hundred pounds weight, advanced in order of battle, and engaged, +almost upon a level, the troops which defended the ramparts. *The +irresistible force of the waters was alternately fatal to the contending +parties, till at length a portion of the walls, unable to sustain the +accumulated pressure, gave way at once, and exposed an ample breach of +one hundred and fifty feet. The Persians were instantly driven to the +assault, and the fate of Nisibis depended on the event of the day. The +heavy-armed cavalry, who led the van of a deep column, were embarrassed +in the mud, and great numbers were drowned in the unseen holes which had +been filled by the rushing waters. The elephants, made furious by their +wounds, increased the disorder, and trampled down thousands of the +Persian archers. The Great King, who, from an exalted throne, beheld the +misfortunes of his arms, sounded, with reluctant indignation, the signal +of the retreat, and suspended for some hours the prosecution of the +attack. But the vigilant citizens improved the opportunity of the night; +and the return of day discovered a new wall of six feet in +height, rising every moment to fill up the interval of the breach. +Notwithstanding the disappointment of his hopes, and the loss of more +than twenty thousand men, Sapor still pressed the reduction of Nisibis, +with an obstinate firmness, which could have yielded only to the +necessity of defending the eastern provinces of Persia against a +formidable invasion of the Massagetae. Alarmed by this intelligence, he +hastily relinquished the siege, and marched with rapid diligence +from the banks of the Tigris to those of the Oxus. The danger and +difficulties of the Scythian war engaged him soon afterwards to +conclude, or at least to observe, a truce with the Roman emperor, which +was equally grateful to both princes; as Constantius himself, after the +death of his two brothers, was involved, by the revolutions of the +West, in a civil contest, which required and seemed to exceed the most +vigorous exertion of his undivided strength. + +After the partition of the empire, three years had scarcely elapsed +before the sons of Constantine seemed impatient to convince mankind that +they were incapable of contenting themselves with the dominions which +they were unqualified to govern. The eldest of those princes soon +complained, that he was defrauded of his just proportion of the spoils +of their murdered kinsmen; and though he might yield to the superior +guilt and merit of Constantius, he exacted from Constans the cession +of the African provinces, as an equivalent for the rich countries of +Macedonia and Greece, which his brother had acquired by the death of +Dalmatius. The want of sincerity, which Constantine experienced in a +tedious and fruitless negotiation, exasperated the fierceness of his +temper; and he eagerly listened to those favorites, who suggested to +him that his honor, as well as his interest, was concerned in the +prosecution of the quarrel. At the head of a tumultuary band, suited for +rapine rather than for conquest, he suddenly broke onto the dominions of +Constans, by the way of the Julian Alps, and the country round Aquileia +felt the first effects of his resentment. The measures of Constans, who +then resided in Dacia, were directed with more prudence and ability. On +the news of his brother's invasion, he detached a select and disciplined +body of his Illyrian troops, proposing to follow them in person, with +the remainder of his forces. But the conduct of his lieutenants soon +terminated the unnatural contest. By the artful appearances of flight, +Constantine was betrayed into an ambuscade, which had been concealed +in a wood, where the rash youth, with a few attendants, was surprised, +surrounded, and slain. His body, after it had been found in the obscure +stream of the Alsa, obtained the honors of an Imperial sepulchre; +but his provinces transferred their allegiance to the conqueror, who, +refusing to admit his elder brother Constantius to any share in these +new acquisitions, maintained the undisputed possession of more than two +thirds of the Roman empire. + + + +Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His Sons.--Part IV. + +The fate of Constans himself was delayed about ten years longer, and the +revenge of his brother's death was reserved for the more ignoble hand of +a domestic traitor. The pernicious tendency of the system introduced by +Constantine was displayed in the feeble administration of his sons; +who, by their vices and weakness, soon lost the esteem and affections of +their people. The pride assumed by Constans, from the unmerited success +of his arms, was rendered more contemptible by his want of abilities +and application. His fond partiality towards some German captives, +distinguished only by the charms of youth, was an object of scandal to +the people; and Magnentius, an ambitious soldier, who was himself of +Barbarian extraction, was encouraged by the public discontent to assert +the honor of the Roman name. The chosen bands of Jovians and Herculians, +who acknowledged Magnentius as their leader, maintained the most +respectable and important station in the Imperial camp. The friendship +of Marcellinus, count of the sacred largesses, supplied with a liberal +hand the means of seduction. The soldiers were convinced by the most +specious arguments, that the republic summoned them to break the bonds +of hereditary servitude; and, by the choice of an active and vigilant +prince, to reward the same virtues which had raised the ancestors of the +degenerate Constans from a private condition to the throne of the world. +As soon as the conspiracy was ripe for execution, Marcellinus, under +the pretence of celebrating his son's birthday, gave a splendid +entertainment to the illustrious and honorable persons of the court of +Gaul, which then resided in the city of Autun. The intemperance of the +feast was artfully protracted till a very late hour of the night; +and the unsuspecting guests were tempted to indulge themselves in a +dangerous and guilty freedom of conversation. On a sudden the doors were +thrown open, and Magnentius, who had retired for a few moments, +returned into the apartment, invested with the diadem and purple. The +conspirators instantly saluted him with the titles of Augustus and +Emperor. The surprise, the terror, the intoxication, the ambitious +hopes, and the mutual ignorance of the rest of the assembly, prompted +them to join their voices to the general acclamation. The guards +hastened to take the oath of fidelity; the gates of the town were shut; +and before the dawn of day, Magnentius became master of the troops and +treasure of the palace and city of Autun. By his secrecy and diligence +he entertained some hopes of surprising the person of Constans, who was +pursuing in the adjacent forest his favorite amusement of hunting, or +perhaps some pleasures of a more private and criminal nature. The rapid +progress of fame allowed him, however, an instant for flight, though +the desertion of his soldiers and subjects deprived him of the power of +resistance. Before he could reach a seaport in Spain, where he intended +to embark, he was overtaken near Helena, at the foot of the Pyrenees, by +a party of light cavalry, whose chief, regardless of the sanctity of a +temple, executed his commission by the murder of the son of Constantine. + +As soon as the death of Constans had decided this easy but important +revolution, the example of the court of Autun was imitated by the +provinces of the West. The authority of Magnentius was acknowledged +through the whole extent of the two great praefectures of Gaul and Italy; +and the usurper prepared, by every act of oppression, to collect a +treasure, which might discharge the obligation of an immense donative, +and supply the expenses of a civil war. The martial countries of +Illyricum, from the Danube to the extremity of Greece, had long obeyed +the government of Vetranio, an aged general, beloved for the simplicity +of his manners, and who had acquired some reputation by his experience +and services in war. Attached by habit, by duty, and by gratitude, to +the house of Constantine, he immediately gave the strongest assurances +to the only surviving son of his late master, that he would expose, with +unshaken fidelity, his person and his troops, to inflict a just revenge +on the traitors of Gaul. But the legions of Vetranio were seduced, +rather than provoked, by the example of rebellion; their leader soon +betrayed a want of firmness, or a want of sincerity; and his ambition +derived a specious pretence from the approbation of the princess +Constantina. That cruel and aspiring woman, who had obtained from the +great Constantine, her father, the rank of Augusta, placed the diadem +with her own hands on the head of the Illyrian general; and seemed to +expect from his victory the accomplishment of those unbounded hopes, +of which she had been disappointed by the death of her husband +Hannibalianus. Perhaps it was without the consent of Constantina, that +the new emperor formed a necessary, though dishonorable, alliance with +the usurper of the West, whose purple was so recently stained with her +brother's blood. + +The intelligence of these important events, which so deeply affected the +honor and safety of the Imperial house, recalled the arms of Constantius +from the inglorious prosecution of the Persian war. He recommended +the care of the East to his lieutenants, and afterwards to his cousin +Gallus, whom he raised from a prison to a throne; and marched towards +Europe, with a mind agitated by the conflict of hope and fear, of grief +and indignation. On his arrival at Heraclea in Thrace, the emperor gave +audience to the ambassadors of Magnentius and Vetranio. The first author +of the conspiracy Marcellinus, who in some measure had bestowed the +purple on his new master, boldly accepted this dangerous commission; and +his three colleagues were selected from the illustrious personages +of the state and army. These deputies were instructed to soothe the +resentment, and to alarm the fears, of Constantius. They were empowered +to offer him the friendship and alliance of the western princes, +to cement their union by a double marriage; of Constantius with the +daughter of Magnentius, and of Magnentius himself with the ambitious +Constantina; and to acknowledge in the treaty the preeminence of rank, +which might justly be claimed by the emperor of the East. Should pride +and mistaken piety urge him to refuse these equitable conditions, the +ambassadors were ordered to expatiate on the inevitable ruin which must +attend his rashness, if he ventured to provoke the sovereigns of the +West to exert their superior strength; and to employ against him +that valor, those abilities, and those legions, to which the house of +Constantine had been indebted for so many triumphs. Such propositions +and such arguments appeared to deserve the most serious attention; the +answer of Constantius was deferred till the next day; and as he had +reflected on the importance of justifying a civil war in the opinion +of the people, he thus addressed his council, who listened with real or +affected credulity: "Last night," said he, "after I retired to rest, +the shade of the great Constantine, embracing the corpse of my murdered +brother, rose before my eyes; his well-known voice awakened me to +revenge, forbade me to despair of the republic, and assured me of the +success and immortal glory which would crown the justice of my arms." +The authority of such a vision, or rather of the prince who alleged +it, silenced every doubt, and excluded all negotiation. The ignominious +terms of peace were rejected with disdain. One of the ambassadors of +the tyrant was dismissed with the haughty answer of Constantius; his +colleagues, as unworthy of the privileges of the law of nations, were +put in irons; and the contending powers prepared to wage an implacable +war. + +Such was the conduct, and such perhaps was the duty, of the brother +of Constans towards the perfidious usurper of Gaul. The situation and +character of Vetranio admitted of milder measures; and the policy of +the Eastern emperor was directed to disunite his antagonists, and to +separate the forces of Illyricum from the cause of rebellion. It was +an easy task to deceive the frankness and simplicity of Vetranio, who, +fluctuating some time between the opposite views of honor and interest, +displayed to the world the insincerity of his temper, and was insensibly +engaged in the snares of an artful negotiation. Constantius acknowledged +him as a legitimate and equal colleague in the empire, on condition that +he would renounce his disgraceful alliance with Magnentius, and appoint +a place of interview on the frontiers of their respective provinces; +where they might pledge their friendship by mutual vows of fidelity, and +regulate by common consent the future operations of the civil war. In +consequence of this agreement, Vetranio advanced to the city of Sardica, +at the head of twenty thousand horse, and of a more numerous body of +infantry; a power so far superior to the forces of Constantius, that the +Illyrian emperor appeared to command the life and fortunes of his rival, +who, depending on the success of his private negotiations, had seduced +the troops, and undermined the throne, of Vetranio. The chiefs, who +had secretly embraced the party of Constantius, prepared in his favor a +public spectacle, calculated to discover and inflame the passions of the +multitude. The united armies were commanded to assemble in a large +plain near the city. In the centre, according to the rules of ancient +discipline, a military tribunal, or rather scaffold, was erected, from +whence the emperors were accustomed, on solemn and important occasions, +to harangue the troops. The well-ordered ranks of Romans and Barbarians, +with drawn swords, or with erected spears, the squadrons of cavalry, and +the cohorts of infantry, distinguished by the variety of their arms and +ensigns, formed an immense circle round the tribunal; and the attentive +silence which they preserved was sometimes interrupted by loud bursts of +clamor or of applause. In the presence of this formidable assembly, +the two emperors were called upon to explain the situation of public +affairs: the precedency of rank was yielded to the royal birth of +Constantius; and though he was indifferently skilled in the arts of +rhetoric, he acquitted himself, under these difficult circumstances, +with firmness, dexterity, and eloquence. The first part of his oration +seemed to be pointed only against the tyrant of Gaul; but while he +tragically lamented the cruel murder of Constans, he insinuated, that +none, except a brother, could claim a right to the succession of +his brother. He displayed, with some complacency, the glories of his +Imperial race; and recalled to the memory of the troops the valor, the +triumphs, the liberality of the great Constantine, to whose sons +they had engaged their allegiance by an oath of fidelity, which the +ingratitude of his most favored servants had tempted them to violate. +The officers, who surrounded the tribunal, and were instructed to act +their part in this extraordinary scene, confessed the irresistible power +of reason and eloquence, by saluting the emperor Constantius as +their lawful sovereign. The contagion of loyalty and repentance was +communicated from rank to rank; till the plain of Sardica resounded with +the universal acclamation of "Away with these upstart usurpers! Long +life and victory to the son of Constantine! Under his banners alone +we will fight and conquer." The shout of thousands, their menacing +gestures, the fierce clashing of their arms, astonished and subdued the +courage of Vetranio, who stood, amidst the defection of his followers, +in anxious and silent suspense. Instead of embracing the last refuge of +generous despair, he tamely submitted to his fate; and taking the diadem +from his head, in the view of both armies fell prostrate at the feet +of his conqueror. Constantius used his victory with prudence and +moderation; and raising from the ground the aged suppliant, whom he +affected to style by the endearing name of Father, he gave him his hand +to descend from the throne. The city of Prusa was assigned for the +exile or retirement of the abdicated monarch, who lived six years in the +enjoyment of ease and affluence. He often expressed his grateful sense +of the goodness of Constantius, and, with a very amiable simplicity, +advised his benefactor to resign the sceptre of the world, and to seek +for content (where alone it could be found) in the peaceful obscurity of +a private condition. + +The behavior of Constantius on this memorable occasion was celebrated +with some appearance of justice; and his courtiers compared the studied +orations which a Pericles or a Demosthenes addressed to the populace +of Athens, with the victorious eloquence which had persuaded an armed +multitude to desert and depose the object of their partial choice. The +approaching contest with Magnentius was of a more serious and bloody +kind. The tyrant advanced by rapid marches to encounter Constantius, at +the head of a numerous army, composed of Gauls and Spaniards, of Franks +and Saxons; of those provincials who supplied the strength of the +legions, and of those barbarians who were dreaded as the most formidable +enemies of the republic. The fertile plains of the Lower Pannonia, +between the Drave, the Save, and the Danube, presented a spacious +theatre; and the operations of the civil war were protracted during the +summer months by the skill or timidity of the combatants. Constantius +had declared his intention of deciding the quarrel in the fields of +Cibalis, a name that would animate his troops by the remembrance of the +victory, which, on the same auspicious ground, had been obtained by the +arms of his father Constantine. Yet by the impregnable fortifications +with which the emperor encompassed his camp, he appeared to decline, +rather than to invite, a general engagement. It was the object of +Magnentius to tempt or to compel his adversary to relinquish this +advantageous position; and he employed, with that view, the various +marches, evolutions, and stratagems, which the knowledge of the art of +war could suggest to an experienced officer. He carried by assault the +important town of Siscia; made an attack on the city of Sirmium, which +lay in the rear of the Imperial camp, attempted to force a passage over +the Save into the eastern provinces of Illyricum; and cut in pieces +a numerous detachment, which he had allured into the narrow passes of +Adarne. During the greater part of the summer, the tyrant of Gaul showed +himself master of the field. The troops of Constantius were harassed +and dispirited; his reputation declined in the eye of the world; and +his pride condescended to solicit a treaty of peace, which would have +resigned to the assassin of Constans the sovereignty of the provinces +beyond the Alps. These offers were enforced by the eloquence of +Philip the Imperial ambassador; and the council as well as the army +of Magnentius were disposed to accept them. But the haughty usurper, +careless of the remonstrances of his friends, gave orders that Philip +should be detained as a captive, or, at least, as a hostage; while he +despatched an officer to reproach Constantius with the weakness of +his reign, and to insult him by the promise of a pardon if he would +instantly abdicate the purple. "That he should confide in the justice of +his cause, and the protection of an avenging Deity," was the only answer +which honor permitted the emperor to return. But he was so sensible of +the difficulties of his situation, that he no longer dared to retaliate +the indignity which had been offered to his representative. The +negotiation of Philip was not, however, ineffectual, since he determined +Sylvanus the Frank, a general of merit and reputation, to desert with a +considerable body of cavalry, a few days before the battle of Mursa. + +The city of Mursa, or Essek, celebrated in modern times for a bridge +of boats, five miles in length, over the River Drave, and the adjacent +morasses, has been always considered as a place of importance in the +wars of Hungary. Magnentius, directing his march towards Mursa, set fire +to the gates, and, by a sudden assault, had almost scaled the walls of +the town. The vigilance of the garrison extinguished the flames; the +approach of Constantius left him no time to continue the operations of +the siege; and the emperor soon removed the only obstacle that could +embarrass his motions, by forcing a body of troops which had taken post +in an adjoining amphitheatre. The field of battle round Mursa was a +naked and level plain: on this ground the army of Constantius formed, +with the Drave on their right; while their left, either from the nature +of their disposition, or from the superiority of their cavalry, extended +far beyond the right flank of Magnentius. The troops on both sides +remained under arms, in anxious expectation, during the greatest part of +the morning; and the son of Constantine, after animating his soldiers +by an eloquent speech, retired into a church at some distance from +the field of battle, and committed to his generals the conduct of this +decisive day. They deserved his confidence by the valor and military +skill which they exerted. They wisely began the action upon the left; +and advancing their whole wing of cavalry in an oblique line, they +suddenly wheeled it on the right flank of the enemy, which was +unprepared to resist the impetuosity of their charge. But the Romans of +the West soon rallied, by the habits of discipline; and the Barbarians +of Germany supported the renown of their national bravery. The +engagement soon became general; was maintained with various and singular +turns of fortune; and scarcely ended with the darkness of the night. The +signal victory which Constantius obtained is attributed to the arms of +his cavalry. His cuirassiers are described as so many massy statues +of steel, glittering with their scaly armor, and breaking with their +ponderous lances the firm array of the Gallic legions. As soon as the +legions gave way, the lighter and more active squadrons of the second +line rode sword in hand into the intervals, and completed the disorder. +In the mean while, the huge bodies of the Germans were exposed almost +naked to the dexterity of the Oriental archers; and whole troops of +those Barbarians were urged by anguish and despair to precipitate +themselves into the broad and rapid stream of the Drave. The number of +the slain was computed at fifty-four thousand men, and the slaughter +of the conquerors was more considerable than that of the vanquished; a +circumstance which proves the obstinacy of the contest, and justifies +the observation of an ancient writer, that the forces of the empire were +consumed in the fatal battle of Mursa, by the loss of a veteran army, +sufficient to defend the frontiers, or to add new triumphs to the glory +of Rome. Notwithstanding the invectives of a servile orator, there +is not the least reason to believe that the tyrant deserted his own +standard in the beginning of the engagement. He seems to have displayed +the virtues of a general and of a soldier till the day was irrecoverably +lost, and his camp in the possession of the enemy. Magnentius then +consulted his safety, and throwing away the Imperial ornaments, +escaped with some difficulty from the pursuit of the light horse, who +incessantly followed his rapid flight from the banks of the Drave to the +foot of the Julian Alps. + +The approach of winter supplied the indolence of Constantius with +specious reasons for deferring the prosecution of the war till the +ensuing spring. Magnentius had fixed his residence in the city of +Aquileia, and showed a seeming resolution to dispute the passage of +the mountains and morasses which fortified the confines of the Venetian +province. The surprisal of a castle in the Alps by the secret march of +the Imperialists, could scarcely have determined him to relinquish the +possession of Italy, if the inclinations of the people had supported the +cause of their tyrant. But the memory of the cruelties exercised by his +ministers, after the unsuccessful revolt of Nepotian, had left a deep +impression of horror and resentment on the minds of the Romans. +That rash youth, the son of the princess Eutropia, and the nephew of +Constantine, had seen with indignation the sceptre of the West usurped +by a perfidious barbarian. Arming a desperate troop of slaves and +gladiators, he overpowered the feeble guard of the domestic tranquillity +of Rome, received the homage of the senate, and assuming the title of +Augustus, precariously reigned during a tumult of twenty-eight days. +The march of some regular forces put an end to his ambitious hopes: +the rebellion was extinguished in the blood of Nepotian, of his mother +Eutropia, and of his adherents; and the proscription was extended to +all who had contracted a fatal alliance with the name and family of +Constantine. But as soon as Constantius, after the battle of Mursa, +became master of the sea-coast of Dalmatia, a band of noble exiles, who +had ventured to equip a fleet in some harbor of the Adriatic, sought +protection and revenge in his victorious camp. By their secret +intelligence with their countrymen, Rome and the Italian cities were +persuaded to display the banners of Constantius on their walls. The +grateful veterans, enriched by the liberality of the father, signalized +their gratitude and loyalty to the son. The cavalry, the legions, +and the auxiliaries of Italy, renewed their oath of allegiance to +Constantius; and the usurper, alarmed by the general desertion, was +compelled, with the remains of his faithful troops, to retire beyond the +Alps into the provinces of Gaul. The detachments, however, which were +ordered either to press or to intercept the flight of Magnentius, +conducted themselves with the usual imprudence of success; and allowed +him, in the plains of Pavia, an opportunity of turning on his pursuers, +and of gratifying his despair by the carnage of a useless victory. + +The pride of Magnentius was reduced, by repeated misfortunes, to sue, +and to sue in vain, for peace. He first despatched a senator, in whose +abilities he confided, and afterwards several bishops, whose holy +character might obtain a more favorable audience, with the offer of +resigning the purple, and the promise of devoting the remainder of his +life to the service of the emperor. But Constantius, though he granted +fair terms of pardon and reconciliation to all who abandoned the +standard of rebellion, avowed his inflexible resolution to inflict +a just punishment on the crimes of an assassin, whom he prepared +to overwhelm on every side by the effort of his victorious arms. +An Imperial fleet acquired the easy possession of Africa and Spain, +confirmed the wavering faith of the Moorish nations, and landed a +considerable force, which passed the Pyrenees, and advanced towards +Lyons, the last and fatal station of Magnentius. The temper of the +tyrant, which was never inclined to clemency, was urged by distress to +exercise every act of oppression which could extort an immediate supply +from the cities of Gaul. Their patience was at length exhausted; and +Treves, the seat of Praetorian government, gave the signal of revolt, by +shutting her gates against Decentius, who had been raised by his brother +to the rank either of Caesar or of Augustus. From Treves, Decentius was +obliged to retire to Sens, where he was soon surrounded by an army of +Germans, whom the pernicious arts of Constantius had introduced into the +civil dissensions of Rome. In the mean time, the Imperial troops forced +the passages of the Cottian Alps, and in the bloody combat of Mount +Seleucus irrevocably fixed the title of rebels on the party of +Magnentius. He was unable to bring another army into the field; the +fidelity of his guards was corrupted; and when he appeared in public to +animate them by his exhortations, he was saluted with a unanimous shout +of "Long live the emperor Constantius!" The tyrant, who perceived that +they were preparing to deserve pardon and rewards by the sacrifice of +the most obnoxious criminal, prevented their design by falling on his +sword; a death more easy and more honorable than he could hope to obtain +from the hands of an enemy, whose revenge would have been colored with +the specious pretence of justice and fraternal piety. The example of +suicide was imitated by Decentius, who strangled himself on the news of +his brother's death. The author of the conspiracy, Marcellinus, had long +since disappeared in the battle of Mursa, and the public tranquillity +was confirmed by the execution of the surviving leaders of a guilty and +unsuccessful faction. A severe inquisition was extended over all who, +either from choice or from compulsion, had been involved in the cause of +rebellion. Paul, surnamed Catena from his superior skill in the judicial +exercise of tyranny, * was sent to explore the latent remains of the +conspiracy in the remote province of Britain. The honest indignation +expressed by Martin, vice-praefect of the island, was interpreted as an +evidence of his own guilt; and the governor was urged to the necessity +of turning against his breast the sword with which he had been provoked +to wound the Imperial minister. The most innocent subjects of the West +were exposed to exile and confiscation, to death and torture; and as +the timid are always cruel, the mind of Constantius was inaccessible to +mercy. + + + +Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor.--Part I. + + Constantius Sole Emperor.--Elevation And Death Of Gallus.-- + Danger And Elevation Of Julian.--Sarmatian And Persian + Wars.--Victories Of Julian In Gaul. + +The divided provinces of the empire were again united by the victory of +Constantius; but as that feeble prince was destitute of personal merit, +either in peace or war; as he feared his generals, and distrusted his +ministers; the triumph of his arms served only to establish the reign +of the eunuchs over the Roman world. Those unhappy beings, the ancient +production of Oriental jealousy and despotism, were introduced into +Greece and Rome by the contagion of Asiatic luxury. Their progress was +rapid; and the eunuchs, who, in the time of Augustus, had been abhorred, +as the monstrous retinue of an Egyptian queen, were gradually admitted +into the families of matrons, of senators, and of the emperors +themselves. Restrained by the severe edicts of Domitian and Nerva, +cherished by the pride of Diocletian, reduced to an humble station +by the prudence of Constantine, they multiplied in the palaces of his +degenerate sons, and insensibly acquired the knowledge, and at length +the direction, of the secret councils of Constantius. The aversion and +contempt which mankind had so uniformly entertained for that imperfect +species, appears to have degraded their character, and to have rendered +them almost as incapable as they were supposed to be, of conceiving any +generous sentiment, or of performing any worthy action. But the eunuchs +were skilled in the arts of flattery and intrigue; and they alternately +governed the mind of Constantius by his fears, his indolence, and his +vanity. Whilst he viewed in a deceitful mirror the fair appearance +of public prosperity, he supinely permitted them to intercept the +complaints of the injured provinces, to accumulate immense treasures +by the sale of justice and of honors; to disgrace the most important +dignities, by the promotion of those who had purchased at their hands +the powers of oppression, and to gratify their resentment against +the few independent spirits, who arrogantly refused to solicit the +protection of slaves. Of these slaves the most distinguished was the +chamberlain Eusebius, who ruled the monarch and the palace with +such absolute sway, that Constantius, according to the sarcasm of an +impartial historian, possessed some credit with this haughty favorite. +By his artful suggestions, the emperor was persuaded to subscribe the +condemnation of the unfortunate Gallus, and to add a new crime to the +long list of unnatural murders which pollute the honor of the house of +Constantine. + +When the two nephews of Constantine, Gallus and Julian, were saved from +the fury of the soldiers, the former was about twelve, and the latter +about six, years of age; and, as the eldest was thought to be of a +sickly constitution, they obtained with the less difficulty a precarious +and dependent life, from the affected pity of Constantius, who was +sensible that the execution of these helpless orphans would have been +esteemed, by all mankind, an act of the most deliberate cruelty. * +Different cities of Ionia and Bithynia were assigned for the places of +their exile and education; but as soon as their growing years excited +the jealousy of the emperor, he judged it more prudent to secure those +unhappy youths in the strong castle of Macellum, near Caesarea. The +treatment which they experienced during a six years' confinement, was +partly such as they could hope from a careful guardian, and partly +such as they might dread from a suspicious tyrant. Their prison was an +ancient palace, the residence of the kings of Cappadocia; the situation +was pleasant, the buildings of stately, the enclosure spacious. They +pursued their studies, and practised their exercises, under the tuition +of the most skilful masters; and the numerous household appointed to +attend, or rather to guard, the nephews of Constantine, was not unworthy +of the dignity of their birth. But they could not disguise to themselves +that they were deprived of fortune, of freedom, and of safety; secluded +from the society of all whom they could trust or esteem, and condemned +to pass their melancholy hours in the company of slaves devoted to the +commands of a tyrant who had already injured them beyond the hope +of reconciliation. At length, however, the emergencies of the state +compelled the emperor, or rather his eunuchs, to invest Gallus, in the +twenty-fifth year of his age, with the title of Caesar, and to cement +this political connection by his marriage with the princess Constantina. +After a formal interview, in which the two princes mutually engaged +their faith never to undertake any thing to the prejudice of each other, +they repaired without delay to their respective stations. Constantius +continued his march towards the West, and Gallus fixed his residence at +Antioch; from whence, with a delegated authority, he administered the +five great dioceses of the eastern praefecture. In this fortunate change, +the new Caesar was not unmindful of his brother Julian, who obtained the +honors of his rank, the appearances of liberty, and the restitution of +an ample patrimony. + +The writers the most indulgent to the memory of Gallus, and even Julian +himself, though he wished to cast a veil over the frailties of his +brother, are obliged to confess that the Caesar was incapable of +reigning. Transported from a prison to a throne, he possessed neither +genius nor application, nor docility to compensate for the want of +knowledge and experience. A temper naturally morose and violent, +instead of being corrected, was soured by solitude and adversity; the +remembrance of what he had endured disposed him to retaliation rather +than to sympathy; and the ungoverned sallies of his rage were often +fatal to those who approached his person, or were subject to his power. +Constantina, his wife, is described, not as a woman, but as one of +the infernal furies tormented with an insatiate thirst of human blood. +Instead of employing her influence to insinuate the mild counsels +of prudence and humanity, she exasperated the fierce passions of her +husband; and as she retained the vanity, though she had renounced, the +gentleness of her sex, a pearl necklace was esteemed an equivalent price +for the murder of an innocent and virtuous nobleman. The cruelty of +Gallus was sometimes displayed in the undissembled violence of popular +or military executions; and was sometimes disguised by the abuse of law, +and the forms of judicial proceedings. The private houses of Antioch, +and the places of public resort, were besieged by spies and informers; +and the Caesar himself, concealed in a plebeian habit, very frequently +condescended to assume that odious character. Every apartment of the +palace was adorned with the instruments of death and torture, and a +general consternation was diffused through the capital of Syria. The +prince of the East, as if he had been conscious how much he had to fear, +and how little he deserved to reign, selected for the objects of his +resentment the provincials accused of some imaginary treason, and his +own courtiers, whom with more reason he suspected of incensing, by their +secret correspondence, the timid and suspicious mind of Constantius. +But he forgot that he was depriving himself of his only support, the +affection of the people; whilst he furnished the malice of his enemies +with the arms of truth, and afforded the emperor the fairest pretence of +exacting the forfeit of his purple, and of his life. + +As long as the civil war suspended the fate of the Roman world, +Constantius dissembled his knowledge of the weak and cruel +administration to which his choice had subjected the East; and the +discovery of some assassins, secretly despatched to Antioch by the +tyrant of Gaul, was employed to convince the public, that the emperor +and the Caesar were united by the same interest, and pursued by the same +enemies. But when the victory was decided in favor of Constantius, +his dependent colleague became less useful and less formidable. Every +circumstance of his conduct was severely and suspiciously examined, and +it was privately resolved, either to deprive Gallus of the purple, or +at least to remove him from the indolent luxury of Asia to the hardships +and dangers of a German war. The death of Theophilus, consular of the +province of Syria, who in a time of scarcity had been massacred by the +people of Antioch, with the connivance, and almost at the instigation, +of Gallus, was justly resented, not only as an act of wanton cruelty, +but as a dangerous insult on the supreme majesty of Constantius. Two +ministers of illustrious rank, Domitian the Oriental praefect, and +Montius, quaestor of the palace, were empowered by a special commission +* to visit and reform the state of the East. They were instructed to +behave towards Gallus with moderation and respect, and, by the gentlest +arts of persuasion, to engage him to comply with the invitation of his +brother and colleague. The rashness of the praefect disappointed these +prudent measures, and hastened his own ruin, as well as that of his +enemy. On his arrival at Antioch, Domitian passed disdainfully +before the gates of the palace, and alleging a slight pretence of +indisposition, continued several days in sullen retirement, to prepare +an inflammatory memorial, which he transmitted to the Imperial court. +Yielding at length to the pressing solicitations of Gallus, the praefect +condescended to take his seat in council; but his first step was to +signify a concise and haughty mandate, importing that the Caesar should +immediately repair to Italy, and threatening that he himself would +punish his delay or hesitation, by suspending the usual allowance of his +household. The nephew and daughter of Constantine, who could ill brook +the insolence of a subject, expressed their resentment by instantly +delivering Domitian to the custody of a guard. The quarrel still +admitted of some terms of accommodation. They were rendered +impracticable by the imprudent behavior of Montius, a statesman whose +arts and experience were frequently betrayed by the levity of his +disposition. The quaestor reproached Gallus in a haughty language, that +a prince who was scarcely authorized to remove a municipal magistrate, +should presume to imprison a Praetorian praefect; convoked a meeting of +the civil and military officers; and required them, in the name of their +sovereign, to defend the person and dignity of his representatives. +By this rash declaration of war, the impatient temper of Gallus was +provoked to embrace the most desperate counsels. He ordered his +guards to stand to their arms, assembled the populace of Antioch, +and recommended to their zeal the care of his safety and revenge. His +commands were too fatally obeyed. They rudely seized the praefect and +the quaestor, and tying their legs together with ropes, they dragged +them through the streets of the city, inflicted a thousand insults and a +thousand wounds on these unhappy victims, and at last precipitated their +mangled and lifeless bodies into the stream of the Orontes. + +After such a deed, whatever might have been the designs of Gallus, it +was only in a field of battle that he could assert his innocence with +any hope of success. But the mind of that prince was formed of an equal +mixture of violence and weakness. Instead of assuming the title of +Augustus, instead of employing in his defence the troops and treasures +of the East, he suffered himself to be deceived by the affected +tranquillity of Constantius, who, leaving him the vain pageantry of a +court, imperceptibly recalled the veteran legions from the provinces +of Asia. But as it still appeared dangerous to arrest Gallus in his +capital, the slow and safer arts of dissimulation were practised with +success. The frequent and pressing epistles of Constantius were filled +with professions of confidence and friendship; exhorting the Caesar to +discharge the duties of his high station, to relieve his colleague from +a part of the public cares, and to assist the West by his presence, his +counsels, and his arms. After so many reciprocal injuries, Gallus had +reason to fear and to distrust. But he had neglected the opportunities +of flight and of resistance; he was seduced by the flattering assurances +of the tribune Scudilo, who, under the semblance of a rough soldier, +disguised the most artful insinuation; and he depended on the credit +of his wife Constantina, till the unseasonable death of that princess +completed the ruin in which he had been involved by her impetuous +passions. + + + +Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor.--Part II. + +After a long delay, the reluctant Caesar set forwards on his journey to +the Imperial court. From Antioch to Hadrianople, he traversed the wide +extent of his dominions with a numerous and stately train; and as he +labored to conceal his apprehensions from the world, and perhaps from +himself, he entertained the people of Constantinople with an exhibition +of the games of the circus. The progress of the journey might, however, +have warned him of the impending danger. In all the principal cities he +was met by ministers of confidence, commissioned to seize the offices of +government, to observe his motions, and to prevent the hasty sallies +of his despair. The persons despatched to secure the provinces which he +left behind, passed him with cold salutations, or affected disdain; and +the troops, whose station lay along the public road, were studiously +removed on his approach, lest they might be tempted to offer their +swords for the service of a civil war. After Gallus had been permitted +to repose himself a few days at Hadrianople, he received a mandate, +expressed in the most haughty and absolute style, that his splendid +retinue should halt in that city, while the Caesar himself, with only +ten post-carriages, should hasten to the Imperial residence at Milan. +In this rapid journey, the profound respect which was due to the +brother and colleague of Constantius, was insensibly changed into rude +familiarity; and Gallus, who discovered in the countenances of the +attendants that they already considered themselves as his guards, and +might soon be employed as his executioners, began to accuse his fatal +rashness, and to recollect, with terror and remorse, the conduct by +which he had provoked his fate. The dissimulation which had hitherto +been preserved, was laid aside at Petovio, * in Pannonia. He was +conducted to a palace in the suburbs, where the general Barbatio, with +a select band of soldiers, who could neither be moved by pity, nor +corrupted by rewards, expected the arrival of his illustrious victim. In +the close of the evening he was arrested, ignominiously stripped of the +ensigns of Caesar, and hurried away to Pola, in Istria, a sequestered +prison, which had been so recently polluted with royal blood. The horror +which he felt was soon increased by the appearance of his implacable +enemy the eunuch Eusebius, who, with the assistance of a notary and a +tribune, proceeded to interrogate him concerning the administration of +the East. The Caesar sank under the weight of shame and guilt, confessed +all the criminal actions and all the treasonable designs with which he +was charged; and by imputing them to the advice of his wife, exasperated +the indignation of Constantius, who reviewed with partial prejudice the +minutes of the examination. The emperor was easily convinced, that his +own safety was incompatible with the life of his cousin: the sentence +of death was signed, despatched, and executed; and the nephew of +Constantine, with his hands tied behind his back, was beheaded in prison +like the vilest malefactor. Those who are inclined to palliate the +cruelties of Constantius, assert that he soon relented, and endeavored +to recall the bloody mandate; but that the second messenger, intrusted +with the reprieve, was detained by the eunuchs, who dreaded the +unforgiving temper of Gallus, and were desirous of reuniting to their +empire the wealthy provinces of the East. + +Besides the reigning emperor, Julian alone survived, of all the numerous +posterity of Constantius Chlorus. The misfortune of his royal birth +involved him in the disgrace of Gallus. From his retirement in the happy +country of Ionia, he was conveyed under a strong guard to the court +of Milan; where he languished above seven months, in the continual +apprehension of suffering the same ignominious death, which was daily +inflicted almost before his eyes, on the friends and adherents of +his persecuted family. His looks, his gestures, his silence, were +scrutinized with malignant curiosity, and he was perpetually assaulted +by enemies whom he had never offended, and by arts to which he was a +stranger. But in the school of adversity, Julian insensibly acquired the +virtues of firmness and discretion. He defended his honor, as well +as his life, against the insnaring subtleties of the eunuchs, who +endeavored to extort some declaration of his sentiments; and whilst he +cautiously suppressed his grief and resentment, he nobly disdained to +flatter the tyrant, by any seeming approbation of his brother's +murder. Julian most devoutly ascribes his miraculous deliverance to the +protection of the gods, who had exempted his innocence from the sentence +of destruction pronounced by their justice against the impious house of +Constantine. As the most effectual instrument of their providence, +he gratefully acknowledges the steady and generous friendship of the +empress Eusebia, a woman of beauty and merit, who, by the ascendant +which she had gained over the mind of her husband, counterbalanced, +in some measure, the powerful conspiracy of the eunuchs. By the +intercession of his patroness, Julian was admitted into the Imperial +presence: he pleaded his cause with a decent freedom, he was heard with +favor; and, notwithstanding the efforts of his enemies, who urged +the danger of sparing an avenger of the blood of Gallus, the milder +sentiment of Eusebia prevailed in the council. But the effects of a +second interview were dreaded by the eunuchs; and Julian was advised to +withdraw for a while into the neighborhood of Milan, till the emperor +thought proper to assign the city of Athens for the place of his +honorable exile. As he had discovered, from his earliest youth, a +propensity, or rather passion, for the language, the manners, the +learning, and the religion of the Greeks, he obeyed with pleasure an +order so agreeable to his wishes. Far from the tumult of arms, and +the treachery of courts, he spent six months under the groves of the +academy, in a free intercourse with the philosophers of the age, who +studied to cultivate the genius, to encourage the vanity, and to inflame +the devotion of their royal pupil. Their labors were not unsuccessful; +and Julian inviolably preserved for Athens that tender regard which +seldom fails to arise in a liberal mind, from the recollection of the +place where it has discovered and exercised its growing powers. The +gentleness and affability of manners, which his temper suggested and his +situation imposed, insensibly engaged the affections of the strangers, +as well as citizens, with whom he conversed. Some of his fellow-students +might perhaps examine his behavior with an eye of prejudice and +aversion; but Julian established, in the schools of Athens, a general +prepossession in favor of his virtues and talents, which was soon +diffused over the Roman world. + +Whilst his hours were passed in studious retirement, the empress, +resolute to achieve the generous design which she had undertaken, was +not unmindful of the care of his fortune. The death of the late Caesar +had left Constantius invested with the sole command, and oppressed by +the accumulated weight, of a mighty empire. Before the wounds of civil +discord could be healed, the provinces of Gaul were overwhelmed by a +deluge of Barbarians. The Sarmatians no longer respected the barrier +of the Danube. The impunity of rapine had increased the boldness and +numbers of the wild Isaurians: those robbers descended from their craggy +mountains to ravage the adjacent country, and had even presumed, though +without success, to besiege the important city of Seleucia, which was +defended by a garrison of three Roman legions. Above all, the Persian +monarch, elated by victory, again threatened the peace of Asia, and the +presence of the emperor was indispensably required, both in the West +and in the East. For the first time, Constantius sincerely acknowledged, +that his single strength was unequal to such an extent of care and of +dominion. Insensible to the voice of flattery, which assured him that +his all-powerful virtue, and celestial fortune, would still continue to +triumph over every obstacle, he listened with complacency to the +advice of Eusebia, which gratified his indolence, without offending his +suspicious pride. As she perceived that the remembrance of Gallus dwelt +on the emperor's mind, she artfully turned his attention to the opposite +characters of the two brothers, which from their infancy had been +compared to those of Domitian and of Titus. She accustomed her husband +to consider Julian as a youth of a mild, unambitious disposition, whose +allegiance and gratitude might be secured by the gift of the purple, +and who was qualified to fill with honor a subordinate station, without +aspiring to dispute the commands, or to shade the glories, of his +sovereign and benefactor. After an obstinate, though secret struggle, +the opposition of the favorite eunuchs submitted to the ascendency of +the empress; and it was resolved that Julian, after celebrating his +nuptials with Helena, sister of Constantius, should be appointed, with +the title of Caesar, to reign over the countries beyond the Alps. + +Although the order which recalled him to court was probably accompanied +by some intimation of his approaching greatness, he appeals to the +people of Athens to witness his tears of undissembled sorrow, when he +was reluctantly torn away from his beloved retirement. He trembled for +his life, for his fame, and even for his virtue; and his sole confidence +was derived from the persuasion, that Minerva inspired all his actions, +and that he was protected by an invisible guard of angels, whom for +that purpose she had borrowed from the Sun and Moon. He approached, with +horror, the palace of Milan; nor could the ingenuous youth conceal +his indignation, when he found himself accosted with false and servile +respect by the assassins of his family. Eusebia, rejoicing in the +success of her benevolent schemes, embraced him with the tenderness of +a sister; and endeavored, by the most soothing caresses, to dispel his +terrors, and reconcile him to his fortune. But the ceremony of shaving +his beard, and his awkward demeanor, when he first exchanged the cloak +of a Greek philosopher for the military habit of a Roman prince, amused, +during a few days, the levity of the Imperial court. + +The emperors of the age of Constantine no longer deigned to consult +with the senate in the choice of a colleague; but they were anxious that +their nomination should be ratified by the consent of the army. On this +solemn occasion, the guards, with the other troops whose stations were +in the neighborhood of Milan, appeared under arms; and Constantius +ascended his lofty tribunal, holding by the hand his cousin Julian, who +entered the same day into the twenty-fifth year of his age. In a studied +speech, conceived and delivered with dignity, the emperor represented +the various dangers which threatened the prosperity of the republic, the +necessity of naming a Caesar for the administration of the West, and his +own intention, if it was agreeable to their wishes, of rewarding +with the honors of the purple the promising virtues of the nephew +of Constantine. The approbation of the soldiers was testified by a +respectful murmur; they gazed on the manly countenance of Julian, and +observed with pleasure, that the fire which sparkled in his eyes was +tempered by a modest blush, on being thus exposed, for the first +time, to the public view of mankind. As soon as the ceremony of his +investiture had been performed, Constantius addressed him with the tone +of authority which his superior age and station permitted him to assume; +and exhorting the new Caesar to deserve, by heroic deeds, that sacred and +immortal name, the emperor gave his colleague the strongest assurances +of a friendship which should never be impaired by time, nor interrupted +by their separation into the most distant climes. As soon as the speech +was ended, the troops, as a token of applause, clashed their shields +against their knees; while the officers who surrounded the tribunal +expressed, with decent reserve, their sense of the merits of the +representative of Constantius. + +The two princes returned to the palace in the same chariot; and during +the slow procession, Julian repeated to himself a verse of his favorite +Homer, which he might equally apply to his fortune and to his fears. +The four-and-twenty days which the Caesar spent at Milan after his +investiture, and the first months of his Gallic reign, were devoted to +a splendid but severe captivity; nor could the acquisition of honor +compensate for the loss of freedom. His steps were watched, his +correspondence was intercepted; and he was obliged, by prudence, +to decline the visits of his most intimate friends. Of his former +domestics, four only were permitted to attend him; two pages, his +physician, and his librarian; the last of whom was employed in the care +of a valuable collection of books, the gift of the empress, who studied +the inclinations as well as the interest of her friend. In the room of +these faithful servants, a household was formed, such indeed as became +the dignity of a Caesar; but it was filled with a crowd of slaves, +destitute, and perhaps incapable, of any attachment for their new +master, to whom, for the most part, they were either unknown or +suspected. His want of experience might require the assistance of a wise +council; but the minute instructions which regulated the service of his +table, and the distribution of his hours, were adapted to a youth still +under the discipline of his preceptors, rather than to the situation of +a prince intrusted with the conduct of an important war. If he aspired +to deserve the esteem of his subjects, he was checked by the fear of +displeasing his sovereign; and even the fruits of his marriage-bed +were blasted by the jealous artifices of Eusebia herself, who, on this +occasion alone, seems to have been unmindful of the tenderness of her +sex, and the generosity of her character. The memory of his father and +of his brothers reminded Julian of his own danger, and his apprehensions +were increased by the recent and unworthy fate of Sylvanus. In the +summer which preceded his own elevation, that general had been chosen +to deliver Gaul from the tyranny of the Barbarians; but Sylvanus soon +discovered that he had left his most dangerous enemies in the Imperial +court. A dexterous informer, countenanced by several of the principal +ministers, procured from him some recommendatory letters; and erasing +the whole of the contents, except the signature, filled up the vacant +parchment with matters of high and treasonable import. By the industry +and courage of his friends, the fraud was however detected, and in a +great council of the civil and military officers, held in the presence +of the emperor himself, the innocence of Sylvanus was publicly +acknowledged. But the discovery came too late; the report of the +calumny, and the hasty seizure of his estate, had already provoked the +indignant chief to the rebellion of which he was so unjustly accused. +He assumed the purple at his head-quarters of Cologne, and his active +powers appeared to menace Italy with an invasion, and Milan with a +siege. In this emergency, Ursicinus, a general of equal rank, regained, +by an act of treachery, the favor which he had lost by his eminent +services in the East. Exasperated, as he might speciously allege, by the +injuries of a similar nature, he hastened with a few followers to join +the standard, and to betray the confidence, of his too credulous friend. +After a reign of only twenty-eight days, Sylvanus was assassinated: the +soldiers who, without any criminal intention, had blindly followed the +example of their leader, immediately returned to their allegiance; and +the flatterers of Constantius celebrated the wisdom and felicity of the +monarch who had extinguished a civil war without the hazard of a battle. + +The protection of the Rhaetian frontier, and the persecution of the +Catholic church, detained Constantius in Italy above eighteen months +after the departure of Julian. Before the emperor returned into the +East, he indulged his pride and curiosity in a visit to the ancient +capital. He proceeded from Milan to Rome along the AEmilian and Flaminian +ways, and as soon as he approached within forty miles of the city, the +march of a prince who had never vanquished a foreign enemy, assumed the +appearance of a triumphal procession. His splendid train was composed +of all the ministers of luxury; but in a time of profound peace, he +was encompassed by the glittering arms of the numerous squadrons of his +guards and cuirassiers. Their streaming banners of silk, embossed with +gold, and shaped in the form of dragons, waved round the person of the +emperor. Constantius sat alone in a lofty car, resplendent with gold +and precious gems; and, except when he bowed his head to pass under the +gates of the cities, he affected a stately demeanor of inflexible, and, +as it might seem, of insensible gravity. The severe discipline of the +Persian youth had been introduced by the eunuchs into the Imperial +palace; and such were the habits of patience which they had inculcated, +that during a slow and sultry march, he was never seen to move his hand +towards his face, or to turn his eyes either to the right or to the +left. He was received by the magistrates and senate of Rome; and the +emperor surveyed, with attention, the civil honors of the republic, and +the consular images of the noble families. The streets were lined with +an innumerable multitude. Their repeated acclamations expressed their +joy at beholding, after an absence of thirty-two years, the sacred +person of their sovereign, and Constantius himself expressed, with +some pleasantry, he affected surprise that the human race should thus +suddenly be collected on the same spot. The son of Constantine was +lodged in the ancient palace of Augustus: he presided in the senate, +harangued the people from the tribunal which Cicero had so often +ascended, assisted with unusual courtesy at the games of the Circus, and +accepted the crowns of gold, as well as the Panegyrics which had been +prepared for the ceremony by the deputies of the principal cities. His +short visit of thirty days was employed in viewing the monuments of art +and power which were scattered over the seven hills and the interjacent +valleys. He admired the awful majesty of the Capitol, the vast extent +of the baths of Caracalla and Diocletian, the severe simplicity of the +Pantheon, the massy greatness of the amphitheatre of Titus, the elegant +architecture of the theatre of Pompey and the Temple of Peace, and, +above all, the stately structure of the Forum and column of Trajan; +acknowledging that the voice of fame, so prone to invent and to magnify, +had made an inadequate report of the metropolis of the world. The +traveller, who has contemplated the ruins of ancient Rome, may conceive +some imperfect idea of the sentiments which they must have inspired when +they reared their heads in the splendor of unsullied beauty. + +[See The Pantheon: The severe simplicity of the Pantheon] + +The satisfaction which Constantius had received from this journey +excited him to the generous emulation of bestowing on the Romans some +memorial of his own gratitude and munificence. His first idea was to +imitate the equestrian and colossal statue which he had seen in the +Forum of Trajan; but when he had maturely weighed the difficulties of +the execution, he chose rather to embellish the capital by the gift of +an Egyptian obelisk. In a remote but polished age, which seems to have +preceded the invention of alphabetical writing, a great number of these +obelisks had been erected, in the cities of Thebes and Heliopolis, +by the ancient sovereigns of Egypt, in a just confidence that the +simplicity of their form, and the hardness of their substance, would +resist the injuries of time and violence. Several of these extraordinary +columns had been transported to Rome by Augustus and his successors, +as the most durable monuments of their power and victory; but there +remained one obelisk, which, from its size or sanctity, escaped for a +long time the rapacious vanity of the conquerors. It was designed by +Constantine to adorn his new city; and, after being removed by his +order from the pedestal where it stood before the Temple of the Sun +at Heliopolis, was floated down the Nile to Alexandria. The death of +Constantine suspended the execution of his purpose, and this obelisk was +destined by his son to the ancient capital of the empire. A vessel of +uncommon strength and capaciousness was provided to convey this enormous +weight of granite, at least a hundred and fifteen feet in length, from +the banks of the Nile to those of the Tyber. The obelisk of Constantius +was landed about three miles from the city, and elevated, by the efforts +of art and labor, in the great Circus of Rome. + +The departure of Constantius from Rome was hastened by the alarming +intelligence of the distress and danger of the Illyrian provinces. The +distractions of civil war, and the irreparable loss which the Roman +legions had sustained in the battle of Mursa, exposed those countries, +almost without defence, to the light cavalry of the Barbarians; and +particularly to the inroads of the Quadi, a fierce and powerful nation, +who seem to have exchanged the institutions of Germany for the arms and +military arts of their Sarmatian allies. The garrisons of the frontiers +were insufficient to check their progress; and the indolent monarch was +at length compelled to assemble, from the extremities of his dominions, +the flower of the Palatine troops, to take the field in person, and +to employ a whole campaign, with the preceding autumn and the ensuing +spring, in the serious prosecution of the war. The emperor passed the +Danube on a bridge of boats, cut in pieces all that encountered his +march, penetrated into the heart of the country of the Quadi, and +severely retaliated the calamities which they had inflicted on the Roman +province. The dismayed Barbarians were soon reduced to sue for peace: +they offered the restitution of his captive subjects as an atonement for +the past, and the noblest hostages as a pledge of their future +conduct. The generous courtesy which was shown to the first among their +chieftains who implored the clemency of Constantius, encouraged the more +timid, or the more obstinate, to imitate their example; and the Imperial +camp was crowded with the princes and ambassadors of the most distant +tribes, who occupied the plains of the Lesser Poland, and who might +have deemed themselves secure behind the lofty ridge of the Carpathian +Mountains. While Constantius gave laws to the Barbarians beyond the +Danube, he distinguished, with specious compassion, the Sarmatian +exiles, who had been expelled from their native country by the rebellion +of their slaves, and who formed a very considerable accession to the +power of the Quadi. The emperor, embracing a generous but artful system +of policy, released the Sarmatians from the bands of this humiliating +dependence, and restored them, by a separate treaty, to the dignity of a +nation united under the government of a king, the friend and ally of the +republic. He declared his resolution of asserting the justice of their +cause, and of securing the peace of the provinces by the extirpation, +or at least the banishment, of the Limigantes, whose manners were still +infected with the vices of their servile origin. The execution of this +design was attended with more difficulty than glory. The territory of +the Limigantes was protected against the Romans by the Danube, against +the hostile Barbarians by the Teyss. The marshy lands which lay between +those rivers, and were often covered by their inundations, formed +an intricate wilderness, pervious only to the inhabitants, who were +acquainted with its secret paths and inaccessible fortresses. On the +approach of Constantius, the Limigantes tried the efficacy of prayers, +of fraud, and of arms; but he sternly rejected their supplications, +defeated their rude stratagems, and repelled with skill and firmness +the efforts of their irregular valor. One of their most warlike tribes, +established in a small island towards the conflux of the Teyss and the +Danube, consented to pass the river with the intention of surprising the +emperor during the security of an amicable conference. They soon became +the victims of the perfidy which they meditated. Encompassed on every +side, trampled down by the cavalry, slaughtered by the swords of +the legions, they disdained to ask for mercy; and with an undaunted +countenance, still grasped their weapons in the agonies of death. After +this victory, a considerable body of Romans was landed on the opposite +banks of the Danube; the Taifalae, a Gothic tribe engaged in the service +of the empire, invaded the Limigantes on the side of the Teyss; and +their former masters, the free Sarmatians, animated by hope and revenge, +penetrated through the hilly country, into the heart of their +ancient possessions. A general conflagration revealed the huts of the +Barbarians, which were seated in the depth of the wilderness; and the +soldier fought with confidence on marshy ground, which it was dangerous +for him to tread. In this extremity, the bravest of the Limigantes were +resolved to die in arms, rather than to yield: but the milder sentiment, +enforced by the authority of their elders, at length prevailed; and the +suppliant crowd, followed by their wives and children, repaired to the +Imperial camp, to learn their fate from the mouth of the conqueror. +After celebrating his own clemency, which was still inclined to pardon +their repeated crimes, and to spare the remnant of a guilty nation, +Constantius assigned for the place of their exile a remote country, +where they might enjoy a safe and honorable repose. The Limigantes +obeyed with reluctance; but before they could reach, at least before +they could occupy, their destined habitations, they returned to the +banks of the Danube, exaggerating the hardships of their situation, and +requesting, with fervent professions of fidelity, that the emperor would +grant them an undisturbed settlement within the limits of the Roman +provinces. Instead of consulting his own experience of their incurable +perfidy, Constantius listened to his flatterers, who were ready to +represent the honor and advantage of accepting a colony of soldiers, +at a time when it was much easier to obtain the pecuniary contributions +than the military service of the subjects of the empire. The Limigantes +were permitted to pass the Danube; and the emperor gave audience to the +multitude in a large plain near the modern city of Buda. They surrounded +the tribunal, and seemed to hear with respect an oration full of +mildness and dignity when one of the Barbarians, casting his shoe +into the air, exclaimed with a loud voice, Marha! Marha! * a word of +defiance, which was received as a signal of the tumult. They rushed with +fury to seize the person of the emperor; his royal throne and golden +couch were pillaged by these rude hands; but the faithful defence of +his guards, who died at his feet, allowed him a moment to mount a fleet +horse, and to escape from the confusion. The disgrace which had been +incurred by a treacherous surprise was soon retrieved by the numbers +and discipline of the Romans; and the combat was only terminated by the +extinction of the name and nation of the Limigantes. The free Sarmatians +were reinstated in the possession of their ancient seats; and although +Constantius distrusted the levity of their character, he entertained +some hopes that a sense of gratitude might influence their future +conduct. He had remarked the lofty stature and obsequious demeanor of +Zizais, one of the noblest of their chiefs. He conferred on him the +title of King; and Zizais proved that he was not unworthy to reign, by a +sincere and lasting attachment to the interests of his benefactor, who, +after this splendid success, received the name of Sarmaticus from the +acclamations of his victorious army. + + + +Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor.--Part III. + +While the Roman emperor and the Persian monarch, at the distance +of three thousand miles, defended their extreme limits against the +Barbarians of the Danube and of the Oxus, their intermediate frontier +experienced the vicissitudes of a languid war, and a precarious truce. +Two of the eastern ministers of Constantius, the Praetorian praefect +Musonian, whose abilities were disgraced by the want of truth and +integrity, and Cassian, duke of Mesopotamia, a hardy and veteran +soldier, opened a secret negotiation with the satrap Tamsapor. These +overtures of peace, translated into the servile and flattering language +of Asia, were transmitted to the camp of the Great King; who resolved to +signify, by an ambassador, the terms which he was inclined to grant to +the suppliant Romans. Narses, whom he invested with that character, was +honorably received in his passage through Antioch and Constantinople: +he reached Sirmium after a long journey, and, at his first audience, +respectfully unfolded the silken veil which covered the haughty epistle +of his sovereign. Sapor, King of Kings, and Brother of the Sun and Moon, +(such were the lofty titles affected by Oriental vanity,) expressed his +satisfaction that his brother, Constantius Caesar, had been taught +wisdom by adversity. As the lawful successor of Darius Hystaspes, Sapor +asserted, that the River Strymon, in Macedonia, was the true and ancient +boundary of his empire; declaring, however, that as an evidence of his +moderation, he would content himself with the provinces of Armenia and +Mesopotamia, which had been fraudulently extorted from his ancestors. He +alleged, that, without the restitution of these disputed countries, it +was impossible to establish any treaty on a solid and permanent basis; +and he arrogantly threatened, that if his ambassador returned in vain, +he was prepared to take the field in the spring, and to support the +justice of his cause by the strength of his invincible arms. Narses, who +was endowed with the most polite and amiable manners, endeavored, as far +as was consistent with his duty, to soften the harshness of the message. +Both the style and substance were maturely weighed in the Imperial +council, and he was dismissed with the following answer: "Constantius +had a right to disclaim the officiousness of his ministers, who had +acted without any specific orders from the throne: he was not, however, +averse to an equal and honorable treaty; but it was highly indecent, +as well as absurd, to propose to the sole and victorious emperor of +the Roman world, the same conditions of peace which he had indignantly +rejected at the time when his power was contracted within the narrow +limits of the East: the chance of arms was uncertain; and Sapor should +recollect, that if the Romans had sometimes been vanquished in battle, +they had almost always been successful in the event of the war." A few +days after the departure of Narses, three ambassadors were sent to the +court of Sapor, who was already returned from the Scythian expedition to +his ordinary residence of Ctesiphon. A count, a notary, and a sophist, +had been selected for this important commission; and Constantius, who +was secretly anxious for the conclusion of the peace, entertained some +hopes that the dignity of the first of these ministers, the dexterity +of the second, and the rhetoric of the third, would persuade the Persian +monarch to abate of the rigor of his demands. But the progress of their +negotiation was opposed and defeated by the hostile arts of Antoninus, +a Roman subject of Syria, who had fled from oppression, and was +admitted into the councils of Sapor, and even to the royal table, where, +according to the custom of the Persians, the most important business was +frequently discussed. The dexterous fugitive promoted his interest by +the same conduct which gratified his revenge. He incessantly urged the +ambition of his new master to embrace the favorable opportunity when +the bravest of the Palatine troops were employed with the emperor in a +distant war on the Danube. He pressed Sapor to invade the exhausted and +defenceless provinces of the East, with the numerous armies of Persia, +now fortified by the alliance and accession of the fiercest Barbarians. +The ambassadors of Rome retired without success, and a second embassy, +of a still more honorable rank, was detained in strict confinement, and +threatened either with death or exile. + +The military historian, who was himself despatched to observe the army +of the Persians, as they were preparing to construct a bridge of boats +over the Tigris, beheld from an eminence the plain of Assyria, as far as +the edge of the horizon, covered with men, with horses, and with arms. +Sapor appeared in the front, conspicuous by the splendor of his purple. +On his left hand, the place of honor among the Orientals, Grumbates, +king of the Chionites, displayed the stern countenance of an aged and +renowned warrior. The monarch had reserved a similar place on his right +hand for the king of the Albanians, who led his independent tribes from +the shores of the Caspian. * The satraps and generals were distributed +according to their several ranks, and the whole army, besides the +numerous train of Oriental luxury, consisted of more than one hundred +thousand effective men, inured to fatigue, and selected from the bravest +nations of Asia. The Roman deserter, who in some measure guided the +councils of Sapor, had prudently advised, that, instead of wasting the +summer in tedious and difficult sieges, he should march directly to +the Euphrates, and press forwards without delay to seize the feeble and +wealthy metropolis of Syria. But the Persians were no sooner advanced +into the plains of Mesopotamia, than they discovered that every +precaution had been used which could retard their progress, or defeat +their design. The inhabitants, with their cattle, were secured in places +of strength, the green forage throughout the country was set on fire, +the fords of the rivers were fortified by sharp stakes; military engines +were planted on the opposite banks, and a seasonable swell of the waters +of the Euphrates deterred the Barbarians from attempting the ordinary +passage of the bridge of Thapsacus. Their skilful guide, changing his +plan of operations, then conducted the army by a longer circuit, but +through a fertile territory, towards the head of the Euphrates, where +the infant river is reduced to a shallow and accessible stream. Sapor +overlooked, with prudent disdain, the strength of Nisibis; but as he +passed under the walls of Amida, he resolved to try whether the majesty +of his presence would not awe the garrison into immediate submission. +The sacrilegious insult of a random dart, which glanced against the +royal tiara, convinced him of his error; and the indignant monarch +listened with impatience to the advice of his ministers, who conjured +him not to sacrifice the success of his ambition to the gratification of +his resentment. The following day Grumbates advanced towards the gates +with a select body of troops, and required the instant surrender of the +city, as the only atonement which could be accepted for such an act +of rashness and insolence. His proposals were answered by a general +discharge, and his only son, a beautiful and valiant youth, was pierced +through the heart by a javelin, shot from one of the balistae. The +funeral of the prince of the Chionites was celebrated according to the +rites of the country; and the grief of his aged father was alleviated by +the solemn promise of Sapor, that the guilty city of Amida should serve +as a funeral pile to expiate the death, and to perpetuate the memory, of +his son. + +The ancient city of Amid or Amida, which sometimes assumes the +provincial appellation of Diarbekir, is advantageously situate in a +fertile plain, watered by the natural and artificial channels of the +Tigris, of which the least inconsiderable stream bends in a semicircular +form round the eastern part of the city. The emperor Constantius +had recently conferred on Amida the honor of his own name, and the +additional fortifications of strong walls and lofty towers. It was +provided with an arsenal of military engines, and the ordinary garrison +had been reenforced to the amount of seven legions, when the place +was invested by the arms of Sapor. His first and most sanguine hopes +depended on the success of a general assault. To the several nations +which followed his standard, their respective posts were assigned; +the south to the Vertae; the north to the Albanians; the east to +the Chionites, inflamed with grief and indignation; the west to the +Segestans, the bravest of his warriors, who covered their front with +a formidable line of Indian elephants. The Persians, on every side, +supported their efforts, and animated their courage; and the monarch +himself, careless of his rank and safety, displayed, in the prosecution +of the siege, the ardor of a youthful soldier. After an obstinate +combat, the Barbarians were repulsed; they incessantly returned to the +charge; they were again driven back with a dreadful slaughter, and two +rebel legions of Gauls, who had been banished into the East, signalized +their undisciplined courage by a nocturnal sally into the heart of the +Persian camp. In one of the fiercest of these repeated assaults, Amida +was betrayed by the treachery of a deserter, who indicated to the +Barbarians a secret and neglected staircase, scooped out of the rock +that hangs over the stream of the Tigris. Seventy chosen archers of the +royal guard ascended in silence to the third story of a lofty tower, +which commanded the precipice; they elevated on high the Persian +banner, the signal of confidence to the assailants, and of dismay to the +besieged; and if this devoted band could have maintained their post a +few minutes longer, the reduction of the place might have been purchased +by the sacrifice of their lives. After Sapor had tried, without success, +the efficacy of force and of stratagem, he had recourse to the slower +but more certain operations of a regular siege, in the conduct of which +he was instructed by the skill of the Roman deserters. The trenches +were opened at a convenient distance, and the troops destined for that +service advanced under the portable cover of strong hurdles, to fill +up the ditch, and undermine the foundations of the walls. Wooden towers +were at the same time constructed, and moved forwards on wheels, till +the soldiers, who were provided with every species of missile weapons, +could engage almost on level ground with the troops who defended the +rampart. Every mode of resistance which art could suggest, or courage +could execute, was employed in the defence of Amida, and the works of +Sapor were more than once destroyed by the fire of the Romans. But the +resources of a besieged city may be exhausted. The Persians repaired +their losses, and pushed their approaches; a large preach was made by +the battering-ram, and the strength of the garrison, wasted by the sword +and by disease, yielded to the fury of the assault. The soldiers, the +citizens, their wives, their children, all who had not time to escape +through the opposite gate, were involved by the conquerors in a +promiscuous massacre. + +But the ruin of Amida was the safety of the Roman provinces. As soon as +the first transports of victory had subsided, Sapor was at leisure to +reflect, that to chastise a disobedient city, he had lost the flower of +his troops, and the most favorable season for conquest. Thirty thousand +of his veterans had fallen under the walls of Amida, during the +continuance of a siege, which lasted seventy-three days; and the +disappointed monarch returned to his capital with affected triumph and +secret mortification. It is more than probable, that the inconstancy of +his Barbarian allies was tempted to relinquish a war in which they had +encountered such unexpected difficulties; and that the aged king of the +Chionites, satiated with revenge, turned away with horror from a scene +of action where he had been deprived of the hope of his family and +nation. The strength as well as the spirit of the army with which +Sapor took the field in the ensuing spring was no longer equal to the +unbounded views of his ambition. Instead of aspiring to the conquest of +the East, he was obliged to content himself with the reduction of two +fortified cities of Mesopotamia, Singara and Bezabde; the one situate in +the midst of a sandy desert, the other in a small peninsula, surrounded +almost on every side by the deep and rapid stream of the Tigris. Five +Roman legions, of the diminutive size to which they had been reduced +in the age of Constantine, were made prisoners, and sent into remote +captivity on the extreme confines of Persia. After dismantling the walls +of Singara, the conqueror abandoned that solitary and sequestered place; +but he carefully restored the fortifications of Bezabde, and fixed in +that important post a garrison or colony of veterans; amply supplied +with every means of defence, and animated by high sentiments of honor +and fidelity. Towards the close of the campaign, the arms of Sapor +incurred some disgrace by an unsuccessful enterprise against Virtha, +or Tecrit, a strong, or, as it was universally esteemed till the age of +Tamerlane, an impregnable fortress of the independent Arabs. + +The defence of the East against the arms of Sapor required and would +have exercised, the abilities of the most consummate general; and it +seemed fortunate for the state, that it was the actual province of the +brave Ursicinus, who alone deserved the confidence of the soldiers and +people. In the hour of danger, Ursicinus was removed from his station by +the intrigues of the eunuchs; and the military command of the East +was bestowed, by the same influence, on Sabinian, a wealthy and subtle +veteran, who had attained the infirmities, without acquiring the +experience, of age. By a second order, which issued from the same +jealous and inconstant councils, Ursicinus was again despatched to the +frontier of Mesopotamia, and condemned to sustain the labors of a war, +the honors of which had been transferred to his unworthy rival. Sabinian +fixed his indolent station under the walls of Edessa; and while he +amused himself with the idle parade of military exercise, and moved +to the sound of flutes in the Pyrrhic dance, the public defence was +abandoned to the boldness and diligence of the former general of +the East. But whenever Ursicinus recommended any vigorous plan of +operations; when he proposed, at the head of a light and active army, to +wheel round the foot of the mountains, to intercept the convoys of the +enemy, to harass the wide extent of the Persian lines, and to relieve +the distress of Amida; the timid and envious commander alleged, that he +was restrained by his positive orders from endangering the safety of +the troops. Amida was at length taken; its bravest defenders, who had +escaped the sword of the Barbarians, died in the Roman camp by the hand +of the executioner: and Ursicinus himself, after supporting the disgrace +of a partial inquiry, was punished for the misconduct of Sabinian by the +loss of his military rank. But Constantius soon experienced the truth +of the prediction which honest indignation had extorted from his injured +lieutenant, that as long as such maxims of government were suffered to +prevail, the emperor himself would find it is no easy task to defend +his eastern dominions from the invasion of a foreign enemy. When he had +subdued or pacified the Barbarians of the Danube, Constantius proceeded +by slow marches into the East; and after he had wept over the smoking +ruins of Amida, he formed, with a powerful army, the siege of Bezabde. +The walls were shaken by the reiterated efforts of the most enormous of +the battering-rams; the town was reduced to the last extremity; but it +was still defended by the patient and intrepid valor of the garrison, +till the approach of the rainy season obliged the emperor to raise the +siege, and ingloriously to retreat into his winter quarters at Antioch. +The pride of Constantius, and the ingenuity of his courtiers, were at +a loss to discover any materials for panegyric in the events of the +Persian war; while the glory of his cousin Julian, to whose military +command he had intrusted the provinces of Gaul, was proclaimed to the +world in the simple and concise narrative of his exploits. + +In the blind fury of civil discord, Constantius had abandoned to the +Barbarians of Germany the countries of Gaul, which still acknowledged +the authority of his rival. A numerous swarm of Franks and Alemanni were +invited to cross the Rhine by presents and promises, by the hopes of +spoil, and by a perpetual grant of all the territories which they should +be able to subdue. But the emperor, who for a temporary service had +thus imprudently provoked the rapacious spirit of the Barbarians, soon +discovered and lamented the difficulty of dismissing these formidable +allies, after they had tasted the richness of the Roman soil. Regardless +of the nice distinction of loyalty and rebellion, these undisciplined +robbers treated as their natural enemies all the subjects of the +empire, who possessed any property which they were desirous of acquiring +Forty-five flourishing cities, Tongres, Cologne, Treves, Worms, Spires, +Strasburgh, &c., besides a far greater number of towns and villages, +were pillaged, and for the most part reduced to ashes. The Barbarians of +Germany, still faithful to the maxims of their ancestors, abhorred the +confinement of walls, to which they applied the odious names of prisons +and sepulchres; and fixing their independent habitations on the banks of +rivers, the Rhine, the Moselle, and the Meuse, they secured themselves +against the danger of a surprise, by a rude and hasty fortification of +large trees, which were felled and thrown across the roads. The Alemanni +were established in the modern countries of Alsace and Lorraine; the +Franks occupied the island of the Batavians, together with an extensive +district of Brabant, which was then known by the appellation of +Toxandria, and may deserve to be considered as the original seat of +their Gallic monarchy. From the sources, to the mouth, of the Rhine, the +conquests of the Germans extended above forty miles to the west of that +river, over a country peopled by colonies of their own name and nation: +and the scene of their devastations was three times more extensive than +that of their conquests. At a still greater distance the open towns of +Gaul were deserted, and the inhabitants of the fortified cities, +who trusted to their strength and vigilance, were obliged to content +themselves with such supplies of corn as they could raise on the vacant +land within the enclosure of their walls. The diminished legions, +destitute of pay and provisions, of arms and discipline, trembled at the +approach, and even at the name, of the Barbarians. + + + +Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor.--Part IV. + +Under these melancholy circumstances, an unexperienced youth was +appointed to save and to govern the provinces of Gaul, or rather, as he +expressed it himself, to exhibit the vain image of Imperial greatness. +The retired scholastic education of Julian, in which he had been more +conversant with books than with arms, with the dead than with the +living, left him in profound ignorance of the practical arts of war and +government; and when he awkwardly repeated some military exercise which +it was necessary for him to learn, he exclaimed with a sigh, "O Plato, +Plato, what a task for a philosopher!" Yet even this speculative +philosophy, which men of business are too apt to despise, had filled the +mind of Julian with the noblest precepts and the most shining examples; +had animated him with the love of virtue, the desire of fame, and the +contempt of death. The habits of temperance recommended in the schools, +are still more essential in the severe discipline of a camp. The simple +wants of nature regulated the measure of his food and sleep. Rejecting +with disdain the delicacies provided for his table, he satisfied his +appetite with the coarse and common fare which was allotted to the +meanest soldiers. During the rigor of a Gallic winter, he never suffered +a fire in his bed-chamber; and after a short and interrupted slumber, he +frequently rose in the middle of the night from a carpet spread on the +floor, to despatch any urgent business, to visit his rounds, or to steal +a few moments for the prosecution of his favorite studies. The precepts +of eloquence, which he had hitherto practised on fancied topics of +declamation, were more usefully applied to excite or to assuage the +passions of an armed multitude: and although Julian, from his early +habits of conversation and literature, was more familiarly acquainted +with the beauties of the Greek language, he had attained a competent +knowledge of the Latin tongue. Since Julian was not originally designed +for the character of a legislator, or a judge, it is probable that the +civil jurisprudence of the Romans had not engaged any considerable +share of his attention: but he derived from his philosophic studies an +inflexible regard for justice, tempered by a disposition to clemency; +the knowledge of the general principles of equity and evidence, and +the faculty of patiently investigating the most intricate and tedious +questions which could be proposed for his discussion. The measures of +policy, and the operations of war, must submit to the various accidents +of circumstance and character, and the unpractised student will often +be perplexed in the application of the most perfect theory. But in the +acquisition of this important science, Julian was assisted by the active +vigor of his own genius, as well as by the wisdom and experience of +Sallust, and officer of rank, who soon conceived a sincere attachment +for a prince so worthy of his friendship; and whose incorruptible +integrity was adorned by the talent of insinuating the harshest truths +without wounding the delicacy of a royal ear. + +Immediately after Julian had received the purple at Milan, he was sent +into Gaul with a feeble retinue of three hundred and sixty soldiers. +At Vienna, where he passed a painful and anxious winter in the hands of +those ministers to whom Constantius had intrusted the direction of his +conduct, the Caesar was informed of the siege and deliverance of Autun. +That large and ancient city, protected only by a ruined wall and +pusillanimous garrison, was saved by the generous resolution of a few +veterans, who resumed their arms for the defence of their country. In +his march from Autun, through the heart of the Gallic provinces, Julian +embraced with ardor the earliest opportunity of signalizing his courage. +At the head of a small body of archers and heavy cavalry, he preferred +the shorter but the more dangerous of two roads; * and sometimes +eluding, and sometimes resisting, the attacks of the Barbarians, who +were masters of the field, he arrived with honor and safety at the camp +near Rheims, where the Roman troops had been ordered to assemble. +The aspect of their young prince revived the drooping spirits of the +soldiers, and they marched from Rheims in search of the enemy, with +a confidence which had almost proved fatal to them. The Alemanni, +familiarized to the knowledge of the country, secretly collected their +scattered forces, and seizing the opportunity of a dark and rainy day, +poured with unexpected fury on the rear-guard of the Romans. Before the +inevitable disorder could be remedied, two legions were destroyed; and +Julian was taught by experience that caution and vigilance are the most +important lessons of the art of war. In a second and more successful +action, * he recovered and established his military fame; but as the +agility of the Barbarians saved them from the pursuit, his victory was +neither bloody nor decisive. He advanced, however, to the banks of +the Rhine, surveyed the ruins of Cologne, convinced himself of the +difficulties of the war, and retreated on the approach of winter, +discontented with the court, with his army, and with his own success. +The power of the enemy was yet unbroken; and the Caesar had no sooner +separated his troops, and fixed his own quarters at Sens, in the centre +of Gaul, than he was surrounded and besieged, by a numerous host of +Germans. Reduced, in this extremity, to the resources of his own mind, +he displayed a prudent intrepidity, which compensated for all the +deficiencies of the place and garrison; and the Barbarians, at the end +of thirty days, were obliged to retire with disappointed rage. + +The conscious pride of Julian, who was indebted only to his sword for +this signal deliverance, was imbittered by the reflection, that he was +abandoned, betrayed, and perhaps devoted to destruction, by those who +were bound to assist him, by every tie of honor and fidelity. Marcellus, +master-general of the cavalry in Gaul, interpreting too strictly +the jealous orders of the court, beheld with supine indifference the +distress of Julian, and had restrained the troops under his command from +marching to the relief of Sens. If the Caesar had dissembled in silence +so dangerous an insult, his person and authority would have been exposed +to the contempt of the world; and if an action so criminal had been +suffered to pass with impunity, the emperor would have confirmed the +suspicions, which received a very specious color from his past conduct +towards the princes of the Flavian family. Marcellus was recalled, and +gently dismissed from his office. In his room Severus was appointed +general of the cavalry; an experienced soldier, of approved courage and +fidelity, who could advise with respect, and execute with zeal; and who +submitted, without reluctance to the supreme command which Julian, +by the interest of his patroness Eusebia, at length obtained over the +armies of Gaul. A very judicious plan of operations was adopted for the +approaching campaign. Julian himself, at the head of the remains of the +veteran bands, and of some new levies which he had been permitted to +form, boldly penetrated into the centre of the German cantonments, +and carefully reestablished the fortifications of Saverne, in an +advantageous post, which would either check the incursions, or intercept +the retreat, of the enemy. At the same time, Barbatio, general of the +infantry, advanced from Milan with an army of thirty thousand men, and +passing the mountains, prepared to throw a bridge over the Rhine, in the +neighborhood of Basil. It was reasonable to expect that the Alemanni, +pressed on either side by the Roman arms, would soon be forced to +evacuate the provinces of Gaul, and to hasten to the defence of their +native country. But the hopes of the campaign were defeated by the +incapacity, or the envy, or the secret instructions, of Barbatio; who +acted as if he had been the enemy of the Caesar, and the secret ally +of the Barbarians. The negligence with which he permitted a troop of +pillagers freely to pass, and to return almost before the gates of his +camp, may be imputed to his want of abilities; but the treasonable act +of burning a number of boats, and a superfluous stock of provisions, +which would have been of the most essential service to the army of Gaul, +was an evidence of his hostile and criminal intentions. The Germans +despised an enemy who appeared destitute either of power or of +inclination to offend them; and the ignominious retreat of Barbatio +deprived Julian of the expected support; and left him to extricate +himself from a hazardous situation, where he could neither remain with +safety, nor retire with honor. + +As soon as they were delivered from the fears of invasion, the Alemanni +prepared to chastise the Roman youth, who presumed to dispute the +possession of that country, which they claimed as their own by the +right of conquest and of treaties. They employed three days, and as many +nights, in transporting over the Rhine their military powers. The fierce +Chnodomar, shaking the ponderous javelin which he had victoriously +wielded against the brother of Magnentius, led the van of the +Barbarians, and moderated by his experience the martial ardor which his +example inspired. He was followed by six other kings, by ten princes +of regal extraction, by a long train of high-spirited nobles, and by +thirty-five thousand of the bravest warriors of the tribes of Germany. +The confidence derived from the view of their own strength, was +increased by the intelligence which they received from a deserter, that +the Caesar, with a feeble army of thirteen thousand men, occupied a post +about one-and-twenty miles from their camp of Strasburgh. With this +inadequate force, Julian resolved to seek and to encounter the Barbarian +host; and the chance of a general action was preferred to the tedious +and uncertain operation of separately engaging the dispersed parties of +the Alemanni. The Romans marched in close order, and in two columns; the +cavalry on the right, the infantry on the left; and the day was so far +spent when they appeared in sight of the enemy, that Julian was desirous +of deferring the battle till the next morning, and of allowing his +troops to recruit their exhausted strength by the necessary refreshments +of sleep and food. Yielding, however, with some reluctance, to the +clamors of the soldiers, and even to the opinion of his council, he +exhorted them to justify by their valor the eager impatience, which, +in case of a defeat, would be universally branded with the epithets of +rashness and presumption. The trumpets sounded, the military shout was +heard through the field, and the two armies rushed with equal fury to +the charge. The Caesar, who conducted in person his right wing, depended +on the dexterity of his archers, and the weight of his cuirassiers. But +his ranks were instantly broken by an irregular mixture of light horse +and of light infantry, and he had the mortification of beholding the +flight of six hundred of his most renowned cuirassiers. The fugitives +were stopped and rallied by the presence and authority of Julian, who, +careless of his own safety, threw himself before them, and urging every +motive of shame and honor, led them back against the victorious enemy. +The conflict between the two lines of infantry was obstinate and bloody. +The Germans possessed the superiority of strength and stature, the +Romans that of discipline and temper; and as the Barbarians, who served +under the standard of the empire, united the respective advantages of +both parties, their strenuous efforts, guided by a skilful leader, at +length determined the event of the day. The Romans lost four tribunes, +and two hundred and forty-three soldiers, in this memorable battle of +Strasburgh, so glorious to the Caesar, and so salutary to the afflicted +provinces of Gaul. Six thousand of the Alemanni were slain in the field, +without including those who were drowned in the Rhine, or transfixed +with darts while they attempted to swim across the river. Chnodomar +himself was surrounded and taken prisoner, with three of his brave +companions, who had devoted themselves to follow in life or death the +fate of their chieftain. Julian received him with military pomp in the +council of his officers; and expressing a generous pity for the fallen +state, dissembled his inward contempt for the abject humiliation, of his +captive. Instead of exhibiting the vanquished king of the Alemanni, as +a grateful spectacle to the cities of Gaul, he respectfully laid at +the feet of the emperor this splendid trophy of his victory. Chnodomar +experienced an honorable treatment: but the impatient Barbarian could +not long survive his defeat, his confinement, and his exile. + +After Julian had repulsed the Alemanni from the provinces of the Upper +Rhine, he turned his arms against the Franks, who were seated nearer +to the ocean, on the confines of Gaul and Germany; and who, from +their numbers, and still more from their intrepid valor, had ever been +esteemed the most formidable of the Barbarians. Although they were +strongly actuated by the allurements of rapine, they professed a +disinterested love of war; which they considered as the supreme honor +and felicity of human nature; and their minds and bodies were so +completely hardened by perpetual action, that, according to the lively +expression of an orator, the snows of winter were as pleasant to them +as the flowers of spring. In the month of December, which followed the +battle of Strasburgh, Julian attacked a body of six hundred Franks, who +had thrown themselves into two castles on the Meuse. In the midst of +that severe season they sustained, with inflexible constancy, a siege of +fifty-four days; till at length, exhausted by hunger, and satisfied that +the vigilance of the enemy, in breaking the ice of the river, left +them no hopes of escape, the Franks consented, for the first time, to +dispense with the ancient law which commanded them to conquer or to die. +The Caesar immediately sent his captives to the court of Constantius, +who, accepting them as a valuable present, rejoiced in the opportunity +of adding so many heroes to the choicest troops of his domestic guards. +The obstinate resistance of this handful of Franks apprised Julian of +the difficulties of the expedition which he meditated for the ensuing +spring, against the whole body of the nation. His rapid diligence +surprised and astonished the active Barbarians. Ordering his soldiers to +provide themselves with biscuit for twenty days, he suddenly pitched +his camp near Tongres, while the enemy still supposed him in his winter +quarters of Paris, expecting the slow arrival of his convoys from +Aquitain. Without allowing the Franks to unite or deliberate, he +skilfully spread his legions from Cologne to the ocean; and by the +terror, as well as by the success, of his arms, soon reduced the +suppliant tribes to implore the clemency, and to obey the commands, of +their conqueror. The Chamavians submissively retired to their former +habitations beyond the Rhine; but the Salians were permitted to possess +their new establishment of Toxandria, as the subjects and auxiliaries of +the Roman empire. The treaty was ratified by solemn oaths; and perpetual +inspectors were appointed to reside among the Franks, with the authority +of enforcing the strict observance of the conditions. An incident is +related, interesting enough in itself, and by no means repugnant to the +character of Julian, who ingeniously contrived both the plot and the +catastrophe of the tragedy. When the Chamavians sued for peace, he +required the son of their king, as the only hostage on whom he could +rely. A mournful silence, interrupted by tears and groans, declared +the sad perplexity of the Barbarians; and their aged chief lamented in +pathetic language, that his private loss was now imbittered by a sense +of public calamity. While the Chamavians lay prostrate at the foot of +his throne, the royal captive, whom they believed to have been slain, +unexpectedly appeared before their eyes; and as soon as the tumult of +joy was hushed into attention, the Caesar addressed the assembly in the +following terms: "Behold the son, the prince, whom you wept. You had +lost him by your fault. God and the Romans have restored him to you. I +shall still preserve and educate the youth, rather as a monument of my +own virtue, than as a pledge of your sincerity. Should you presume to +violate the faith which you have sworn, the arms of the republic +will avenge the perfidy, not on the innocent, but on the guilty." +The Barbarians withdrew from his presence, impressed with the warmest +sentiments of gratitude and admiration. + +It was not enough for Julian to have delivered the provinces of Gaul +from the Barbarians of Germany. He aspired to emulate the glory of the +first and most illustrious of the emperors; after whose example, he +composed his own commentaries of the Gallic war. Caesar has related, with +conscious pride, the manner in which he twice passed the Rhine. Julian +could boast, that before he assumed the title of Augustus, he had +carried the Roman eagles beyond that great river in three successful +expeditions. The consternation of the Germans, after the battle of +Strasburgh, encouraged him to the first attempt; and the reluctance of +the troops soon yielded to the persuasive eloquence of a leader, who +shared the fatigues and dangers which he imposed on the meanest of +the soldiers. The villages on either side of the Meyn, which were +plentifully stored with corn and cattle, felt the ravages of an invading +army. The principal houses, constructed with some imitation of Roman +elegance, were consumed by the flames; and the Caesar boldly advanced +about ten miles, till his progress was stopped by a dark and +impenetrable forest, undermined by subterraneous passages, which +threatened with secret snares and ambush every step of the assailants. +The ground was already covered with snow; and Julian, after repairing an +ancient castle which had been erected by Trajan, granted a truce of ten +months to the submissive Barbarians. At the expiration of the truce, +Julian undertook a second expedition beyond the Rhine, to humble the +pride of Surmar and Hortaire, two of the kings of the Alemanni, who had +been present at the battle of Strasburgh. They promised to restore all +the Roman captives who yet remained alive; and as the Caesar had +procured an exact account from the cities and villages of Gaul, of the +inhabitants whom they had lost, he detected every attempt to deceive +him, with a degree of readiness and accuracy, which almost established +the belief of his supernatural knowledge. His third expedition was +still more splendid and important than the two former. The Germans had +collected their military powers, and moved along the opposite banks of +the river, with a design of destroying the bridge, and of preventing +the passage of the Romans. But this judicious plan of defence was +disconcerted by a skilful diversion. Three hundred light-armed and +active soldiers were detached in forty small boats, to fall down the +stream in silence, and to land at some distance from the posts of the +enemy. They executed their orders with so much boldness and celerity, +that they had almost surprised the Barbarian chiefs, who returned in +the fearless confidence of intoxication from one of their nocturnal +festivals. Without repeating the uniform and disgusting tale of +slaughter and devastation, it is sufficient to observe, that Julian +dictated his own conditions of peace to six of the haughtiest kings of +the Alemanni, three of whom were permitted to view the severe discipline +and martial pomp of a Roman camp. Followed by twenty thousand captives, +whom he had rescued from the chains of the Barbarians, the Caesar +repassed the Rhine, after terminating a war, the success of which has +been compared to the ancient glories of the Punic and Cimbric victories. + +As soon as the valor and conduct of Julian had secured an interval of +peace, he applied himself to a work more congenial to his humane and +philosophic temper. The cities of Gaul, which had suffered from the +inroads of the Barbarians, he diligently repaired; and seven important +posts, between Mentz and the mouth of the Rhine, are particularly +mentioned, as having been rebuilt and fortified by the order of Julian. +The vanquished Germans had submitted to the just but humiliating +condition of preparing and conveying the necessary materials. The active +zeal of Julian urged the prosecution of the work; and such was the +spirit which he had diffused among the troops, that the auxiliaries +themselves, waiving their exemption from any duties of fatigue, +contended in the most servile labors with the diligence of the Roman +soldiers. It was incumbent on the Caesar to provide for the subsistence, +as well as for the safety, of the inhabitants and of the garrisons. The +desertion of the former, and the mutiny of the latter, must have been +the fatal and inevitable consequences of famine. The tillage of the +provinces of Gaul had been interrupted by the calamities of war; but the +scanty harvests of the continent were supplied, by his paternal care, +from the plenty of the adjacent island. Six hundred large barks, framed +in the forest of the Ardennes, made several voyages to the coast of +Britain; and returning from thence, laden with corn, sailed up the +Rhine, and distributed their cargoes to the several towns and fortresses +along the banks of the river. The arms of Julian had restored a free +and secure navigation, which Constantius had offered to purchase at +the expense of his dignity, and of a tributary present of two thousand +pounds of silver. The emperor parsimoniously refused to his soldiers +the sums which he granted with a lavish and trembling hand to the +Barbarians. The dexterity, as well as the firmness, of Julian was put to +a severe trial, when he took the field with a discontented army, which +had already served two campaigns, without receiving any regular pay or +any extraordinary donative. + +A tender regard for the peace and happiness of his subjects was the +ruling principle which directed, or seemed to direct, the administration +of Julian. He devoted the leisure of his winter quarters to the offices +of civil government; and affected to assume, with more pleasure, the +character of a magistrate than that of a general. Before he took the +field, he devolved on the provincial governors most of the public and +private causes which had been referred to his tribunal; but, on his +return, he carefully revised their proceedings, mitigated the rigor +of the law, and pronounced a second judgment on the judges themselves. +Superior to the last temptation of virtuous minds, an indiscreet and +intemperate zeal for justice, he restrained, with calmness and dignity, +the warmth of an advocate, who prosecuted, for extortion, the president +of the Narbonnese province. "Who will ever be found guilty," exclaimed +the vehement Delphidius, "if it be enough to deny?" "And who," replied +Julian, "will ever be innocent, if it be sufficient to affirm?" In the +general administration of peace and war, the interest of the sovereign +is commonly the same as that of his people; but Constantius would have +thought himself deeply injured, if the virtues of Julian had defrauded +him of any part of the tribute which he extorted from an oppressed +and exhausted country. The prince who was invested with the ensigns of +royalty, might sometimes presume to correct the rapacious insolence of +his inferior agents, to expose their corrupt arts, and to introduce an +equal and easier mode of collection. But the management of the finances +was more safely intrusted to Florentius, praetorian praefect of Gaul, +an effeminate tyrant, incapable of pity or remorse: and the haughty +minister complained of the most decent and gentle opposition, while +Julian himself was rather inclined to censure the weakness of his own +behavior. The Caesar had rejected, with abhorrence, a mandate for the +levy of an extraordinary tax; a new superindiction, which the praefect +had offered for his signature; and the faithful picture of the public +misery, by which he had been obliged to justify his refusal, offended +the court of Constantius. We may enjoy the pleasure of reading the +sentiments of Julian, as he expresses them with warmth and freedom in +a letter to one of his most intimate friends. After stating his own +conduct, he proceeds in the following terms: "Was it possible for the +disciple of Plato and Aristotle to act otherwise than I have done? Could +I abandon the unhappy subjects intrusted to my care? Was I not called +upon to defend them from the repeated injuries of these unfeeling +robbers? A tribune who deserts his post is punished with death, and +deprived of the honors of burial. With what justice could I pronounce +his sentence, if, in the hour of danger, I myself neglected a duty far +more sacred and far more important? God has placed me in this elevated +post; his providence will guard and support me. Should I be condemned to +suffer, I shall derive comfort from the testimony of a pure and upright +conscience. Would to Heaven that I still possessed a counsellor like +Sallust! If they think proper to send me a successor, I shall submit +without reluctance; and had much rather improve the short opportunity +of doing good, than enjoy a long and lasting impunity of evil." The +precarious and dependent situation of Julian displayed his virtues and +concealed his defects. The young hero who supported, in Gaul, the throne +of Constantius, was not permitted to reform the vices of the government; +but he had courage to alleviate or to pity the distress of the people. +Unless he had been able to revive the martial spirit of the Romans, +or to introduce the arts of industry and refinement among their savage +enemies, he could not entertain any rational hopes of securing the +public tranquillity, either by the peace or conquest of Germany. Yet +the victories of Julian suspended, for a short time, the inroads of the +Barbarians, and delayed the ruin of the Western Empire. + +His salutary influence restored the cities of Gaul, which had been so +long exposed to the evils of civil discord, Barbarian war, and domestic +tyranny; and the spirit of industry was revived with the hopes of +enjoyment. Agriculture, manufactures, and commerce, again flourished +under the protection of the laws; and the curi, or civil corporations, +were again filled with useful and respectable members: the youth were +no longer apprehensive of marriage; and married persons were no longer +apprehensive of posterity: the public and private festivals were +celebrated with customary pomp; and the frequent and secure intercourse +of the provinces displayed the image of national prosperity. A mind like +that of Julian must have felt the general happiness of which he was the +author; but he viewed, with particular satisfaction and complacency, the +city of Paris; the seat of his winter residence, and the object even +of his partial affection. That splendid capital, which now embraces an +ample territory on either side of the Seine, was originally confined to +the small island in the midst of the river, from whence the inhabitants +derived a supply of pure and salubrious water. The river bathed the foot +of the walls; and the town was accessible only by two wooden bridges. A +forest overspread the northern side of the Seine, but on the south, +the ground, which now bears the name of the University, was insensibly +covered with houses, and adorned with a palace and amphitheatre, baths, +an aqueduct, and a field of Mars for the exercise of the Roman troops. +The severity of the climate was tempered by the neighborhood of the +ocean; and with some precautions, which experience had taught, the vine +and fig-tree were successfully cultivated. But in remarkable winters, +the Seine was deeply frozen; and the huge pieces of ice that floated +down the stream, might be compared, by an Asiatic, to the blocks of +white marble which were extracted from the quarries of Phrygia. The +licentiousness and corruption of Antioch recalled to the memory of +Julian the severe and simple manners of his beloved Lutetia; where +the amusements of the theatre were unknown or despised. He indignantly +contrasted the effeminate Syrians with the brave and honest simplicity +of the Gauls, and almost forgave the intemperance, which was the only +stain of the Celtic character. If Julian could now revisit the capital +of France, he might converse with men of science and genius, capable +of understanding and of instructing a disciple of the Greeks; he might +excuse the lively and graceful follies of a nation, whose martial +spirit has never been enervated by the indulgence of luxury; and he +must applaud the perfection of that inestimable art, which softens and +refines and embellishes the intercourse of social life. + + + +Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine.--Part I. + + The Motives, Progress, And Effects Of The Conversion Of + Constantine.--Legal Establishment And Constitution Of The + Christian Or Catholic Church. + +The public establishment of Christianity may be considered as one of +those important and domestic revolutions which excite the most lively +curiosity, and afford the most valuable instruction. The victories and +the civil policy of Constantine no longer influence the state of Europe; +but a considerable portion of the globe still retains the impression +which it received from the conversion of that monarch; and the +ecclesiastical institutions of his reign are still connected, by an +indissoluble chain, with the opinions, the passions, and the interests +of the present generation. + +In the consideration of a subject which may be examined with +impartiality, but cannot be viewed with indifference, a difficulty +immediately arises of a very unexpected nature; that of ascertaining +the real and precise date of the conversion of Constantine. The eloquent +Lactantius, in the midst of his court, seems impatient to proclaim to +the world the glorious example of the sovereign of Gaul; who, in the +first moments of his reign, acknowledged and adored the majesty of +the true and only God. The learned Eusebius has ascribed the faith of +Constantine to the miraculous sign which was displayed in the heavens +whilst he meditated and prepared the Italian expedition. The historian +Zosimus maliciously asserts, that the emperor had imbrued his hands in +the blood of his eldest son, before he publicly renounced the gods of +Rome and of his ancestors. The perplexity produced by these discordant +authorities is derived from the behavior of Constantine himself. +According to the strictness of ecclesiastical language, the first of +the Christian emperors was unworthy of that name, till the moment of his +death; since it was only during his last illness that he received, as a +catechumen, the imposition of hands, and was afterwards admitted, by +the initiatory rites of baptism, into the number of the faithful. The +Christianity of Constantine must be allowed in a much more vague and +qualified sense; and the nicest accuracy is required in tracing the +slow and almost imperceptible gradations by which the monarch declared +himself the protector, and at length the proselyte, of the church. +It was an arduous task to eradicate the habits and prejudices of his +education, to acknowledge the divine power of Christ, and to understand +that the truth of his revelation was incompatible with the worship of +the gods. The obstacles which he had probably experienced in his own +mind, instructed him to proceed with caution in the momentous change of +a national religion; and he insensibly discovered his new opinions, as +far as he could enforce them with safety and with effect. During the +whole course of his reign, the stream of Christianity flowed with +a gentle, though accelerated, motion: but its general direction +was sometimes checked, and sometimes diverted, by the accidental +circumstances of the times, and by the prudence, or possibly by the +caprice, of the monarch. His ministers were permitted to signify the +intentions of their master in the various language which was best +adapted to their respective principles; and he artfully balanced the +hopes and fears of his subjects, by publishing in the same year two +edicts; the first of which enjoined the solemn observance of Sunday, +and the second directed the regular consultation of the Aruspices. While +this important revolution yet remained in suspense, the Christians and +the Pagans watched the conduct of their sovereign with the same anxiety, +but with very opposite sentiments. The former were prompted by every +motive of zeal, as well as vanity, to exaggerate the marks of his +favor, and the evidences of his faith. The latter, till their just +apprehensions were changed into despair and resentment, attempted to +conceal from the world, and from themselves, that the gods of Rome could +no longer reckon the emperor in the number of their votaries. The same +passions and prejudices have engaged the partial writers of the times to +connect the public profession of Christianity with the most glorious or +the most ignominious aera of the reign of Constantine. + +Whatever symptoms of Christian piety might transpire in the discourses +or actions of Constantine, he persevered till he was near forty years +of age in the practice of the established religion; and the same conduct +which in the court of Nicomedia might be imputed to his fear, could be +ascribed only to the inclination or policy of the sovereign of Gaul. +His liberality restored and enriched the temples of the gods; the medals +which issued from his Imperial mint are impressed with the figures and +attributes of Jupiter and Apollo, of Mars and Hercules; and his filial +piety increased the council of Olympus by the solemn apotheosis of his +father Constantius. But the devotion of Constantine was more peculiarly +directed to the genius of the Sun, the Apollo of Greek and Roman +mythology; and he was pleased to be represented with the symbols of +the God of Light and Poetry. The unerring shafts of that deity, the +brightness of his eyes, his laurel wreath, immortal beauty, and elegant +accomplishments, seem to point him out as the patron of a young +hero. The altars of Apollo were crowned with the votive offerings of +Constantine; and the credulous multitude were taught to believe, that +the emperor was permitted to behold with mortal eyes the visible majesty +of their tutelar deity; and that, either walking or in a vision, he was +blessed with the auspicious omens of a long and victorious reign. The +Sun was universally celebrated as the invincible guide and protector of +Constantine; and the Pagans might reasonably expect that the insulted +god would pursue with unrelenting vengeance the impiety of his +ungrateful favorite. + +As long as Constantine exercised a limited sovereignty over the +provinces of Gaul, his Christian subjects were protected by the +authority, and perhaps by the laws, of a prince, who wisely left to +the gods the care of vindicating their own honor. If we may credit the +assertion of Constantine himself, he had been an indignant spectator +of the savage cruelties which were inflicted, by the hands of Roman +soldiers, on those citizens whose religion was their only crime. In the +East and in the West, he had seen the different effects of severity +and indulgence; and as the former was rendered still more odious by the +example of Galerius, his implacable enemy, the latter was recommended to +his imitation by the authority and advice of a dying father. The son of +Constantius immediately suspended or repealed the edicts of persecution, +and granted the free exercise of their religious ceremonies to all those +who had already professed themselves members of the church. They were +soon encouraged to depend on the favor as well as on the justice of +their sovereign, who had imbibed a secret and sincere reverence for the +name of Christ, and for the God of the Christians. + +About five months after the conquest of Italy, the emperor made a solemn +and authentic declaration of his sentiments by the celebrated edict +of Milan, which restored peace to the Catholic church. In the personal +interview of the two western princes, Constantine, by the ascendant +of genius and power, obtained the ready concurrence of his colleague, +Licinius; the union of their names and authority disarmed the fury of +Maximin; and after the death of the tyrant of the East, the edict of +Milan was received as a general and fundamental law of the Roman world. + +The wisdom of the emperors provided for the restitution of all the +civil and religious rights of which the Christians had been so unjustly +deprived. It was enacted that the places of worship, and public lands, +which had been confiscated, should be restored to the church, without +dispute, without delay, and without expense; and this severe injunction +was accompanied with a gracious promise, that if any of the purchasers +had paid a fair and adequate price, they should be indemnified from +the Imperial treasury. The salutary regulations which guard the future +tranquillity of the faithful are framed on the principles of enlarged +and equal toleration; and such an equality must have been interpreted +by a recent sect as an advantageous and honorable distinction. The +two emperors proclaim to the world, that they have granted a free and +absolute power to the Christians, and to all others, of following the +religion which each individual thinks proper to prefer, to which he has +addicted his mind, and which he may deem the best adapted to his +own use. They carefully explain every ambiguous word, remove every +exception, and exact from the governors of the provinces a strict +obedience to the true and simple meaning of an edict, which was designed +to establish and secure, without any limitation, the claims of religious +liberty. They condescend to assign two weighty reasons which have +induced them to allow this universal toleration: the humane intention of +consulting the peace and happiness of their people; and the pious hope, +that, by such a conduct, they shall appease and propitiate the Deity, +whose seat is in heaven. They gratefully acknowledge the many signal +proofs which they have received of the divine favor; and they trust that +the same Providence will forever continue to protect the prosperity of +the prince and people. From these vague and indefinite expressions of +piety, three suppositions may be deduced, of a different, but not of an +incompatible nature. The mind of Constantine might fluctuate between the +Pagan and the Christian religions. According to the loose and complying +notions of Polytheism, he might acknowledge the God of the Christians as +one of the many deities who compose the hierarchy of heaven. Or +perhaps he might embrace the philosophic and pleasing idea, that, +notwithstanding the variety of names, of rites, and of opinions, all the +sects, and all the nations of mankind, are united in the worship of the +common Father and Creator of the universe. + +But the counsels of princes are more frequently influenced by views of +temporal advantage, than by considerations of abstract and speculative +truth. The partial and increasing favor of Constantine may naturally be +referred to the esteem which he entertained for the moral character of +the Christians; and to a persuasion, that the propagation of the gospel +would inculcate the practice of private and public virtue. Whatever +latitude an absolute monarch may assume in his own conduct, whatever +indulgence he may claim for his own passions, it is undoubtedly his +interest that all his subjects should respect the natural and civil +obligations of society. But the operation of the wisest laws is +imperfect and precarious. They seldom inspire virtue, they cannot always +restrain vice. Their power is insufficient to prohibit all that they +condemn, nor can they always punish the actions which they prohibit. +The legislators of antiquity had summoned to their aid the powers of +education and of opinion. But every principle which had once maintained +the vigor and purity of Rome and Sparta, was long since extinguished +in a declining and despotic empire. Philosophy still exercised her +temperate sway over the human mind, but the cause of virtue derived very +feeble support from the influence of the Pagan superstition. Under these +discouraging circumstances, a prudent magistrate might observe with +pleasure the progress of a religion which diffused among the people a +pure, benevolent, and universal system of ethics, adapted to every duty +and every condition of life; recommended as the will and reason of +the supreme Deity, and enforced by the sanction of eternal rewards or +punishments. The experience of Greek and Roman history could not inform +the world how far the system of national manners might be reformed and +improved by the precepts of a divine revelation; and Constantine might +listen with some confidence to the flattering, and indeed reasonable, +assurances of Lactantius. The eloquent apologist seemed firmly to +expect, and almost ventured to promise, that the establishment of +Christianity would restore the innocence and felicity of the primitive +age; that the worship of the true God would extinguish war and +dissension among those who mutually considered themselves as the +children of a common parent; that every impure desire, every angry or +selfish passion, would be restrained by the knowledge of the gospel; and +that the magistrates might sheath the sword of justice among a people +who would be universally actuated by the sentiments of truth and piety, +of equity and moderation, of harmony and universal love. + +The passive and unresisting obedience, which bows under the yoke of +authority, or even of oppression, must have appeared, in the eyes of +an absolute monarch, the most conspicuous and useful of the evangelic +virtues. The primitive Christians derived the institution of civil +government, not from the consent of the people, but from the decrees +of Heaven. The reigning emperor, though he had usurped the sceptre +by treason and murder, immediately assumed the sacred character of +vicegerent of the Deity. To the Deity alone he was accountable for the +abuse of his power; and his subjects were indissolubly bound, by their +oath of fidelity, to a tyrant, who had violated every law of nature and +society. The humble Christians were sent into the world as sheep among +wolves; and since they were not permitted to employ force even in the +defence of their religion, they should be still more criminal if they +were tempted to shed the blood of their fellow-creatures in disputing +the vain privileges, or the sordid possessions, of this transitory life. +Faithful to the doctrine of the apostle, who in the reign of Nero had +preached the duty of unconditional submission, the Christians of the +three first centuries preserved their conscience pure and innocent +of the guilt of secret conspiracy, or open rebellion. While they +experienced the rigor of persecution, they were never provoked either to +meet their tyrants in the field, or indignantly to withdraw themselves +into some remote and sequestered corner of the globe. The Protestants +of France, of Germany, and of Britain, who asserted with such intrepid +courage their civil and religious freedom, have been insulted by the +invidious comparison between the conduct of the primitive and of the +reformed Christians. Perhaps, instead of censure, some applause may be +due to the superior sense and spirit of our ancestors, who had convinced +themselves that religion cannot abolish the unalienable rights of human +nature. Perhaps the patience of the primitive church may be ascribed to +its weakness, as well as to its virtue. A sect of unwarlike plebeians, +without leaders, without arms, without fortifications, must have +encountered inevitable destruction in a rash and fruitless resistance +to the master of the Roman legions. But the Christians, when they +deprecated the wrath of Diocletian, or solicited the favor of +Constantine, could allege, with truth and confidence, that they held +the principle of passive obedience, and that, in the space of +three centuries, their conduct had always been conformable to their +principles. They might add, that the throne of the emperors would be +established on a fixed and permanent basis, if all their subjects, +embracing the Christian doctrine, should learn to suffer and to obey. + +In the general order of Providence, princes and tyrants are considered +as the ministers of Heaven, appointed to rule or to chastise the nations +of the earth. But sacred history affords many illustrious examples of +the more immediate interposition of the Deity in the government of his +chosen people. The sceptre and the sword were committed to the hands of +Moses, of Joshua, of Gideon, of David, of the Maccabees; the virtues +of those heroes were the motive or the effect of the divine favor, the +success of their arms was destined to achieve the deliverance or the +triumph of the church. If the judges of Israel were occasional and +temporary magistrates, the kings of Judah derived from the royal unction +of their great ancestor an hereditary and indefeasible right, which +could not be forfeited by their own vices, nor recalled by the caprice +of their subjects. The same extraordinary providence, which was no +longer confined to the Jewish people, might elect Constantine and +his family as the protectors of the Christian world; and the devout +Lactantius announces, in a prophetic tone, the future glories of his +long and universal reign. Galerius and Maximin, Maxentius and Licinius, +were the rivals who shared with the favorite of heaven the provinces of +the empire. The tragic deaths of Galerius and Maximin soon gratified the +resentment, and fulfilled the sanguine expectations, of the Christians. +The success of Constantine against Maxentius and Licinius removed the +two formidable competitors who still opposed the triumph of the second +David, and his cause might seem to claim the peculiar interposition of +Providence. The character of the Roman tyrant disgraced the purple +and human nature; and though the Christians might enjoy his precarious +favor, they were exposed, with the rest of his subjects, to the effects +of his wanton and capricious cruelty. The conduct of Licinius soon +betrayed the reluctance with which he had consented to the wise and +humane regulations of the edict of Milan. The convocation of provincial +synods was prohibited in his dominions; his Christian officers were +ignominiously dismissed; and if he avoided the guilt, or rather danger, +of a general persecution, his partial oppressions were rendered still +more odious by the violation of a solemn and voluntary engagement. While +the East, according to the lively expression of Eusebius, was involved +in the shades of infernal darkness, the auspicious rays of celestial +light warmed and illuminated the provinces of the West. The piety of +Constantine was admitted as an unexceptionable proof of the justice +of his arms; and his use of victory confirmed the opinion of the +Christians, that their hero was inspired, and conducted, by the Lord of +Hosts. The conquest of Italy produced a general edict of toleration; and +as soon as the defeat of Licinius had invested Constantine with the +sole dominion of the Roman world, he immediately, by circular letters, +exhorted all his subjects to imitate, without delay, the example of +their sovereign, and to embrace the divine truth of Christianity. + + + +Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine.--Part II. + +The assurance that the elevation of Constantine was intimately connected +with the designs of Providence, instilled into the minds of the +Christians two opinions, which, by very different means, assisted the +accomplishment of the prophecy. Their warm and active loyalty exhausted +in his favor every resource of human industry; and they confidently +expected that their strenuous efforts would be seconded by some +divine and miraculous aid. The enemies of Constantine have imputed to +interested motives the alliance which he insensibly contracted with the +Catholic church, and which apparently contributed to the success of his +ambition. In the beginning of the fourth century, the Christians still +bore a very inadequate proportion to the inhabitants of the empire; but +among a degenerate people, who viewed the change of masters with the +indifference of slaves, the spirit and union of a religious party +might assist the popular leader, to whose service, from a principle of +conscience, they had devoted their lives and fortunes. The example of +his father had instructed Constantine to esteem and to reward the merit +of the Christians; and in the distribution of public offices, he had the +advantage of strengthening his government, by the choice of ministers +or generals, in whose fidelity he could repose a just and unreserved +confidence. By the influence of these dignified missionaries, the +proselytes of the new faith must have multiplied in the court and army; +the Barbarians of Germany, who filled the ranks of the legions, were of +a careless temper, which acquiesced without resistance in the religion +of their commander; and when they passed the Alps, it may fairly be +presumed, that a great number of the soldiers had already consecrated +their swords to the service of Christ and of Constantine. The habits of +mankind and the interests of religion gradually abated the horror of war +and bloodshed, which had so long prevailed among the Christians; and +in the councils which were assembled under the gracious protection of +Constantine, the authority of the bishops was seasonably employed to +ratify the obligation of the military oath, and to inflict the penalty +of excommunication on those soldiers who threw away their arms during +the peace of the church. While Constantine, in his own dominions, +increased the number and zeal of his faithful adherents, he could depend +on the support of a powerful faction in those provinces which were still +possessed or usurped by his rivals. A secret disaffection was diffused +among the Christian subjects of Maxentius and Licinius; and the +resentment, which the latter did not attempt to conceal, served only +to engage them still more deeply in the interest of his competitor. The +regular correspondence which connected the bishops of the most distant +provinces, enabled them freely to communicate their wishes and their +designs, and to transmit without danger any useful intelligence, or any +pious contributions, which might promote the service of Constantine, who +publicly declared that he had taken up arms for the deliverance of the +church. + +The enthusiasm which inspired the troops, and perhaps the emperor +himself, had sharpened their swords while it satisfied their conscience. +They marched to battle with the full assurance, that the same God, who +had formerly opened a passage to the Israelites through the waters of +Jordan, and had thrown down the walls of Jericho at the sound of the +trumpets of Joshua, would display his visible majesty and power in +the victory of Constantine. The evidence of ecclesiastical history +is prepared to affirm, that their expectations were justified by the +conspicuous miracle to which the conversion of the first Christian +emperor has been almost unanimously ascribed. The real or imaginary +cause of so important an event, deserves and demands the attention of +posterity; and I shall endeavor to form a just estimate of the famous +vision of Constantine, by a distinct consideration of the standard, +the dream, and the celestial sign; by separating the historical, the +natural, and the marvellous parts of this extraordinary story, which, in +the composition of a specious argument, have been artfully confounded in +one splendid and brittle mass. + +I. An instrument of the tortures which were inflicted only on slaves and +strangers, became on object of horror in the eyes of a Roman citizen; +and the ideas of guilt, of pain, and of ignominy, were closely united +with the idea of the cross. The piety, rather than the humanity, of +Constantine soon abolished in his dominions the punishment which the +Savior of mankind had condescended to suffer; but the emperor had +already learned to despise the prejudices of his education, and of +his people, before he could erect in the midst of Rome his own statue, +bearing a cross in its right hand; with an inscription which referred +the victory of his arms, and the deliverance of Rome, to the virtue +of that salutary sign, the true symbol of force and courage. The same +symbol sanctified the arms of the soldiers of Constantine; the cross +glittered on their helmet, was engraved on their shields, was interwoven +into their banners; and the consecrated emblems which adorned the person +of the emperor himself, were distinguished only by richer materials and +more exquisite workmanship. But the principal standard which displayed +the triumph of the cross was styled the Labarum, an obscure, though +celebrated name, which has been vainly derived from almost all the +languages of the world. It is described as a long pike intersected by +a transversal beam. The silken veil, which hung down from the beam, +was curiously inwrought with the images of the reigning monarch and +his children. The summit of the pike supported a crown of gold which +enclosed the mysterious monogram, at once expressive of the figure of +the cross, and the initial letters, of the name of Christ. The safety +of the labarum was intrusted to fifty guards, of approved valor and +fidelity; their station was marked by honors and emoluments; and some +fortunate accidents soon introduced an opinion, that as long as the +guards of the labarum were engaged in the execution of their office, +they were secure and invulnerable amidst the darts of the enemy. In +the second civil war, Licinius felt and dreaded the power of this +consecrated banner, the sight of which, in the distress of battle, +animated the soldiers of Constantine with an invincible enthusiasm, and +scattered terror and dismay through the ranks of the adverse legions. +The Christian emperors, who respected the example of Constantine, +displayed in all their military expeditions the standard of the cross; +but when the degenerate successors of Theodosius had ceased to appear +in person at the head of their armies, the labarum was deposited as a +venerable but useless relic in the palace of Constantinople. Its honors +are still preserved on the medals of the Flavian family. Their grateful +devotion has placed the monogram of Christ in the midst of the ensigns +of Rome. The solemn epithets of, safety of the republic, glory of +the army, restoration of public happiness, are equally applied to the +religious and military trophies; and there is still extant a medal +of the emperor Constantius, where the standard of the labarum is +accompanied with these memorable words, By This Sign Thou Shalt Conquer. + +II. In all occasions of danger and distress, it was the practice of the +primitive Christians to fortify their minds and bodies by the sign of +the cross, which they used, in all their ecclesiastical rites, in all +the daily occurrences of life, as an infallible preservative against +every species of spiritual or temporal evil. The authority of the +church might alone have had sufficient weight to justify the devotion of +Constantine, who in the same prudent and gradual progress acknowledged +the truth, and assumed the symbol, of Christianity. But the testimony of +a contemporary writer, who in a formal treatise has avenged the cause of +religion, bestows on the piety of the emperor a more awful and sublime +character. He affirms, with the most perfect confidence, that in the +night which preceded the last battle against Maxentius, Constantine was +admonished in a dream * to inscribe the shields of his soldiers with the +celestial sign of God, the sacred monogram of the name of Christ; that +he executed the commands of Heaven, and that his valor and obedience +were rewarded by the decisive victory of the Milvian Bridge. Some +considerations might perhaps incline a sceptical mind to suspect the +judgment or the veracity of the rhetorician, whose pen, either from +zeal or interest, was devoted to the cause of the prevailing faction. +He appears to have published his deaths of the persecutors at Nicomedia +about three years after the Roman victory; but the interval of a +thousand miles, and a thousand days, will allow an ample latitude for +the invention of declaimers, the credulity of party, and the tacit +approbation of the emperor himself who might listen without indignation +to a marvellous tale, which exalted his fame, and promoted his designs. +In favor of Licinius, who still dissembled his animosity to the +Christians, the same author has provided a similar vision, of a form of +prayer, which was communicated by an angel, and repeated by the whole +army before they engaged the legions of the tyrant Maximin. The frequent +repetition of miracles serves to provoke, where it does not subdue, +the reason of mankind; but if the dream of Constantine is separately +considered, it may be naturally explained either by the policy or the +enthusiasm of the emperor. Whilst his anxiety for the approaching day, +which must decide the fate of the empire, was suspended by a short and +interrupted slumber, the venerable form of Christ, and the well-known +symbol of his religion, might forcibly offer themselves to the active +fancy of a prince who reverenced the name, and had perhaps secretly +implored the power, of the God of the Christians. As readily might a +consummate statesman indulge himself in the use of one of those military +stratagems, one of those pious frauds, which Philip and Sertorius had +employed with such art and effect. The praeternatural origin of dreams +was universally admitted by the nations of antiquity, and a considerable +part of the Gallic army was already prepared to place their confidence +in the salutary sign of the Christian religion. The secret vision of +Constantine could be disproved only by the event; and the intrepid +hero who had passed the Alps and the Apennine, might view with careless +despair the consequences of a defeat under the walls of Rome. The senate +and people, exulting in their own deliverance from an odious tyrant, +acknowledged that the victory of Constantine surpassed the powers +of man, without daring to insinuate that it had been obtained by the +protection of the Gods. The triumphal arch, which was erected about +three years after the event, proclaims, in ambiguous language, that +by the greatness of his own mind, and by an instinct or impulse of the +Divinity, he had saved and avenged the Roman republic. The Pagan orator, +who had seized an earlier opportunity of celebrating the virtues of the +conqueror, supposes that he alone enjoyed a secret and intimate commerce +with the Supreme Being, who delegated the care of mortals to his +subordinate deities; and thus assigns a very plausible reason why the +subjects of Constantine should not presume to embrace the new religion +of their sovereign. + +III. The philosopher, who with calm suspicion examines the dreams and +omens, the miracles and prodigies, of profane or even of ecclesiastical +history, will probably conclude, that if the eyes of the spectators have +sometimes been deceived by fraud, the understanding of the readers +has much more frequently been insulted by fiction. Every event, or +appearance, or accident, which seems to deviate from the ordinary course +of nature, has been rashly ascribed to the immediate action of the +Deity; and the astonished fancy of the multitude has sometimes given +shape and color, language and motion, to the fleeting but uncommon +meteors of the air. Nazarius and Eusebius are the two most celebrated +orators, who, in studied panegyrics, have labored to exalt the glory of +Constantine. Nine years after the Roman victory, Nazarius describes an +army of divine warriors, who seemed to fall from the sky: he marks their +beauty, their spirit, their gigantic forms, the stream of light +which beamed from their celestial armor, their patience in suffering +themselves to be heard, as well as seen, by mortals; and their +declaration that they were sent, that they flew, to the assistance of +the great Constantine. For the truth of this prodigy, the Pagan orator +appeals to the whole Gallic nation, in whose presence he was then +speaking; and seems to hope that the ancient apparitions would now +obtain credit from this recent and public event. The Christian fable of +Eusebius, which, in the space of twenty-six years, might arise from the +original dream, is cast in a much more correct and elegant mould. In one +of the marches of Constantine, he is reported to have seen with his own +eyes the luminous trophy of the cross, placed above the meridian sun and +inscribed with the following words: By This Conquer. This amazing object +in the sky astonished the whole army, as well as the emperor himself, +who was yet undetermined in the choice of a religion: but his +astonishment was converted into faith by the vision of the ensuing +night. Christ appeared before his eyes; and displaying the same +celestial sign of the cross, he directed Constantine to frame a similar +standard, and to march, with an assurance of victory, against Maxentius +and all his enemies. The learned bishop of Caesarea appears to be +sensible, that the recent discovery of this marvellous anecdote would +excite some surprise and distrust among the most pious of his readers. +Yet, instead of ascertaining the precise circumstances of time and +place, which always serve to detect falsehood or establish truth; +instead of collecting and recording the evidence of so many living +witnesses who must have been spectators of this stupendous miracle; +Eusebius contents himself with alleging a very singular testimony; that +of the deceased Constantine, who, many years after the event, in the +freedom of conversation, had related to him this extraordinary incident +of his own life, and had attested the truth of it by a solemn oath. The +prudence and gratitude of the learned prelate forbade him to suspect the +veracity of his victorious master; but he plainly intimates, that in a +fact of such a nature, he should have refused his assent to any meaner +authority. This motive of credibility could not survive the power of +the Flavian family; and the celestial sign, which the Infidels might +afterwards deride, was disregarded by the Christians of the age which +immediately followed the conversion of Constantine. But the Catholic +church, both of the East and of the West, has adopted a prodigy which +favors, or seems to favor, the popular worship of the cross. The +vision of Constantine maintained an honorable place in the legend of +superstition, till the bold and sagacious spirit of criticism presumed +to depreciate the triumph, and to arraign the truth, of the first +Christian emperor. + +The Protestant and philosophic readers of the present age will incline +to believe, that in the account of his own conversion, Constantine +attested a wilful falsehood by a solemn and deliberate perjury. They may +not hesitate to pronounce, that in the choice of a religion, his mind +was determined only by a sense of interest; and that (according to the +expression of a profane poet ) he used the altars of the church as a +convenient footstool to the throne of the empire. A conclusion so harsh +and so absolute is not, however, warranted by our knowledge of human +nature, of Constantine, or of Christianity. In an age of religious +fervor, the most artful statesmen are observed to feel some part of the +enthusiasm which they inspire, and the most orthodox saints assume +the dangerous privilege of defending the cause of truth by the arms of +deceit and falsehood. Personal interest is often the standard of our +belief, as well as of our practice; and the same motives of temporal +advantage which might influence the public conduct and professions of +Constantine, would insensibly dispose his mind to embrace a religion +so propitious to his fame and fortunes. His vanity was gratified by the +flattering assurance, that he had been chosen by Heaven to reign over +the earth; success had justified his divine title to the throne, and +that title was founded on the truth of the Christian revelation. As real +virtue is sometimes excited by undeserved applause, the specious piety +of Constantine, if at first it was only specious, might gradually, +by the influence of praise, of habit, and of example, be matured into +serious faith and fervent devotion. The bishops and teachers of the new +sect, whose dress and manners had not qualified them for the residence +of a court, were admitted to the Imperial table; they accompanied the +monarch in his expeditions; and the ascendant which one of them, an +Egyptian or a Spaniard, acquired over his mind, was imputed by the +Pagans to the effect of magic. Lactantius, who has adorned the precepts +of the gospel with the eloquence of Cicero, and Eusebius, who has +consecrated the learning and philosophy of the Greeks to the service +of religion, were both received into the friendship and familiarity of +their sovereign; and those able masters of controversy could patiently +watch the soft and yielding moments of persuasion, and dexterously +apply the arguments which were the best adapted to his character and +understanding. Whatever advantages might be derived from the acquisition +of an Imperial proselyte, he was distinguished by the splendor of his +purple, rather than by the superiority of wisdom, or virtue, from +the many thousands of his subjects who had embraced the doctrines of +Christianity. Nor can it be deemed incredible, that the mind of an +unlettered soldier should have yielded to the weight of evidence, which, +in a more enlightened age, has satisfied or subdued the reason of a +Grotius, a Pascal, or a Locke. In the midst of the incessant labors +of his great office, this soldier employed, or affected to employ, the +hours of the night in the diligent study of the Scriptures, and the +composition of theological discourses; which he afterwards pronounced +in the presence of a numerous and applauding audience. In a very long +discourse, which is still extant, the royal preacher expatiates on +the various proofs still extant, the royal preacher expatiates on the +various proofs of religion; but he dwells with peculiar complacency +on the Sibylline verses, and the fourth eclogue of Virgil. Forty years +before the birth of Christ, the Mantuan bard, as if inspired by the +celestial muse of Isaiah, had celebrated, with all the pomp of oriental +metaphor, the return of the Virgin, the fall of the serpent, the +approaching birth of a godlike child, the offspring of the great +Jupiter, who should expiate the guilt of human kind, and govern +the peaceful universe with the virtues of his father; the rise and +appearance of a heavenly race, primitive nation throughout the world; +and the gradual restoration of the innocence and felicity of the golden +age. The poet was perhaps unconscious of the secret sense and object of +these sublime predictions, which have been so unworthily applied to +the infant son of a consul, or a triumvir; but if a more splendid, and +indeed specious interpretation of the fourth eclogue contributed to +the conversion of the first Christian emperor, Virgil may deserve to be +ranked among the most successful missionaries of the gospel. + + + +Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine.--Part III. + +The awful mysteries of the Christian faith and worship were concealed +from the eyes of strangers, and even of catechumens, with an affected +secrecy, which served to excite their wonder and curiosity. But the +severe rules of discipline which the prudence of the bishops had +instituted, were relaxed by the same prudence in favor of an Imperial +proselyte, whom it was so important to allure, by every gentle +condescension, into the pale of the church; and Constantine was +permitted, at least by a tacit dispensation, to enjoy most of the +privileges, before he had contracted any of the obligations, of a +Christian. Instead of retiring from the congregation, when the voice of +the deacon dismissed the profane multitude, he prayed with the faithful, +disputed with the bishops, preached on the most sublime and intricate +subjects of theology, celebrated with sacred rites the vigil of Easter, +and publicly declared himself, not only a partaker, but, in some +measure, a priest and hierophant of the Christian mysteries. The +pride of Constantine might assume, and his services had deserved, some +extraordinary distinction: and ill-timed rigor might have blasted the +unripened fruits of his conversion; and if the doors of the church had +been strictly closed against a prince who had deserted the altars of +the gods, the master of the empire would have been left destitute of +any form of religious worship. In his last visit to Rome, he piously +disclaimed and insulted the superstition of his ancestors, by refusing +to lead the military procession of the equestrian order, and to offer +the public vows to the Jupiter of the Capitoline Hill. Many years before +his baptism and death, Constantine had proclaimed to the world, that +neither his person nor his image should ever more be seen within +the walls of an idolatrous temple; while he distributed through the +provinces a variety of medals and pictures, which represented the +emperor in an humble and suppliant posture of Christian devotion. + +The pride of Constantine, who refused the privileges of a catechumen, +cannot easily be explained or excused; but the delay of his baptism may +be justified by the maxims and the practice of ecclesiastical antiquity. +The sacrament of baptism was regularly administered by the bishop +himself, with his assistant clergy, in the cathedral church of the +diocese, during the fifty days between the solemn festivals of Easter +and Pentecost; and this holy term admitted a numerous band of infants +and adult persons into the bosom of the church. The discretion of +parents often suspended the baptism of their children till they could +understand the obligations which they contracted: the severity of +ancient bishops exacted from the new converts a novitiate of two or +three years; and the catechumens themselves, from different motives of +a temporal or a spiritual nature, were seldom impatient to assume the +character of perfect and initiated Christians. The sacrament of baptism +was supposed to contain a full and absolute expiation of sin; and the +soul was instantly restored to its original purity, and entitled to +the promise of eternal salvation. Among the proselytes of Christianity, +there are many who judged it imprudent to precipitate a salutary rite, +which could not be repeated; to throw away an inestimable privilege, +which could never be recovered. By the delay of their baptism, they +could venture freely to indulge their passions in the enjoyments of this +world, while they still retained in their own hands the means of a sure +and easy absolution. The sublime theory of the gospel had made a much +fainter impression on the heart than on the understanding of Constantine +himself. He pursued the great object of his ambition through the dark +and bloody paths of war and policy; and, after the victory, he abandoned +himself, without moderation, to the abuse of his fortune. Instead of +asserting his just superiority above the imperfect heroism and profane +philosophy of Trajan and the Antonines, the mature age of Constantine +forfeited the reputation which he had acquired in his youth. As he +gradually advanced in the knowledge of truth, he proportionally declined +in the practice of virtue; and the same year of his reign in which he +convened the council of Nice, was polluted by the execution, or rather +murder, of his eldest son. This date is alone sufficient to refute the +ignorant and malicious suggestions of Zosimus, who affirms, that, +after the death of Crispus, the remorse of his father accepted from the +ministers of Christianity the expiation which he had vainly solicited +from the Pagan pontiffs. At the time of the death of Crispus, the +emperor could no longer hesitate in the choice of a religion; he could +no longer be ignorant that the church was possessed of an infallible +remedy, though he chose to defer the application of it till the approach +of death had removed the temptation and danger of a relapse. The bishops +whom he summoned, in his last illness, to the palace of Nicomedia, were +edified by the fervor with which he requested and received the sacrament +of baptism, by the solemn protestation that the remainder of his life +should be worthy of a disciple of Christ, and by his humble refusal to +wear the Imperial purple after he had been clothed in the white garment +of a Neophyte. The example and reputation of Constantine seemed to +countenance the delay of baptism. Future tyrants were encouraged to +believe, that the innocent blood which they might shed in a long reign +would instantly be washed away in the waters of regeneration; and +the abuse of religion dangerously undermined the foundations of moral +virtue. + +The gratitude of the church has exalted the virtues and excused the +failings of a generous patron, who seated Christianity on the throne +of the Roman world; and the Greeks, who celebrate the festival of the +Imperial saint, seldom mention the name of Constantine without adding +the title of equal to the Apostles. Such a comparison, if it allude +to the character of those divine missionaries, must be imputed to the +extravagance of impious flattery. But if the parallel be confined to +the extent and number of their evangelic victories the success of +Constantine might perhaps equal that of the Apostles themselves. By the +edicts of toleration, he removed the temporal disadvantages which had +hitherto retarded the progress of Christianity; and its active and +numerous ministers received a free permission, a liberal encouragement, +to recommend the salutary truths of revelation by every argument which +could affect the reason or piety of mankind. The exact balance of the +two religions continued but a moment; and the piercing eye of ambition +and avarice soon discovered, that the profession of Christianity might +contribute to the interest of the present, as well as of a future +life. The hopes of wealth and honors, the example of an emperor, his +exhortations, his irresistible smiles, diffused conviction among the +venal and obsequious crowds which usually fill the apartments of a +palace. The cities which signalized a forward zeal by the voluntary +destruction of their temples, were distinguished by municipal +privileges, and rewarded with popular donatives; and the new capital of +the East gloried in the singular advantage that Constantinople was never +profaned by the worship of idols. As the lower ranks of society are +governed by imitation, the conversion of those who possessed any +eminence of birth, of power, or of riches, was soon followed by +dependent multitudes. The salvation of the common people was purchased +at an easy rate, if it be true that, in one year, twelve thousand men +were baptized at Rome, besides a proportionable number of women and +children, and that a white garment, with twenty pieces of gold, had +been promised by the emperor to every convert. The powerful influence of +Constantine was not circumscribed by the narrow limits of his life, +or of his dominions. The education which he bestowed on his sons and +nephews secured to the empire a race of princes, whose faith was still +more lively and sincere, as they imbibed, in their earliest infancy, the +spirit, or at least the doctrine, of Christianity. War and commerce +had spread the knowledge of the gospel beyond the confines of the +Roman provinces; and the Barbarians, who had disdained as humble and +proscribed sect, soon learned to esteem a religion which had been so +lately embraced by the greatest monarch, and the most civilized nation, +of the globe. The Goths and Germans, who enlisted under the standard of +Rome, revered the cross which glittered at the head of the legions, and +their fierce countrymen received at the same time the lessons of faith +and of humanity. The kings of Iberia and Armenia * worshipped the god of +their protector; and their subjects, who have invariably preserved the +name of Christians, soon formed a sacred and perpetual connection with +their Roman brethren. The Christians of Persia were suspected, in time +of war, of preferring their religion to their country; but as long as +peace subsisted between the two empires, the persecuting spirit of the +Magi was effectually restrained by the interposition of Constantine. The +rays of the gospel illuminated the coast of India. The colonies of Jews, +who had penetrated into Arabia and Ethiopia, opposed the progress of +Christianity; but the labor of the missionaries was in some measure +facilitated by a previous knowledge of the Mosaic revelation; and +Abyssinia still reveres the memory of Frumentius, * who, in the time +of Constantine, devoted his life to the conversion of those sequestered +regions. Under the reign of his son Constantius, Theophilus, who was +himself of Indian extraction, was invested with the double character +of ambassador and bishop. He embarked on the Red Sea with two hundred +horses of the purest breed of Cappadocia, which were sent by the emperor +to the prince of the Sabaeans, or Homerites. Theophilus was intrusted +with many other useful or curious presents, which might raise the +admiration, and conciliate the friendship, of the Barbarians; and he +successfully employed several years in a pastoral visit to the churches +of the torrid zone. + +The irresistible power of the Roman emperors was displayed in the +important and dangerous change of the national religion. The terrors +of a military force silenced the faint and unsupported murmurs of the +Pagans, and there was reason to expect, that the cheerful submission +of the Christian clergy, as well as people, would be the result +of conscience and gratitude. It was long since established, as a +fundamental maxim of the Roman constitution, that every rank of citizens +was alike subject to the laws, and that the care of religion was the +right as well as duty of the civil magistrate. Constantine and his +successors could not easily persuade themselves that they had forfeited, +by their conversion, any branch of the Imperial prerogatives, or +that they were incapable of giving laws to a religion which they had +protected and embraced. The emperors still continued to exercise a +supreme jurisdiction over the ecclesiastical order, and the sixteenth +book of the Theodosian code represents, under a variety of titles, the +authority which they assumed in the government of the Catholic church. + +But the distinction of the spiritual and temporal powers, which had +never been imposed on the free spirit of Greece and Rome, was introduced +and confirmed by the legal establishment of Christianity. The office of +supreme pontiff, which, from the time of Numa to that of Augustus, had +always been exercised by one of the most eminent of the senators, was +at length united to the Imperial dignity. The first magistrate of the +state, as often as he was prompted by superstition or policy, performed +with his own hands the sacerdotal functions; nor was there any order of +priests, either at Rome or in the provinces, who claimed a more sacred +character among men, or a more intimate communication with the gods. But +in the Christian church, which intrusts the service of the altar to +a perpetual succession of consecrated ministers, the monarch, whose +spiritual rank is less honorable than that of the meanest deacon, was +seated below the rails of the sanctuary, and confounded with the rest +of the faithful multitude. The emperor might be saluted as the father +of his people, but he owed a filial duty and reverence to the fathers of +the church; and the same marks of respect, which Constantine had paid to +the persons of saints and confessors, were soon exacted by the pride +of the episcopal order. A secret conflict between the civil and +ecclesiastical jurisdictions embarrassed the operation of the Roman +government; and a pious emperor was alarmed by the guilt and danger of +touching with a profane hand the ark of the covenant. The separation +of men into the two orders of the clergy and of the laity was, indeed, +familiar to many nations of antiquity; and the priests of India, of +Persia, of Assyria, of Judea, of AEthiopia, of Egypt, and of Gaul, +derived from a celestial origin the temporal power and possessions +which they had acquired. These venerable institutions had gradually +assimilated themselves to the manners and government of their respective +countries; but the opposition or contempt of the civil power served to +cement the discipline of the primitive church. The Christians had +been obliged to elect their own magistrates, to raise and distribute a +peculiar revenue, and to regulate the internal policy of their republic +by a code of laws, which were ratified by the consent of the people and +the practice of three hundred years. When Constantine embraced the faith +of the Christians, he seemed to contract a perpetual alliance with +a distinct and independent society; and the privileges granted or +confirmed by that emperor, or by his successors, were accepted, not +as the precarious favors of the court, but as the just and inalienable +rights of the ecclesiastical order. + +The Catholic church was administered by the spiritual and legal +jurisdiction of eighteen hundred bishops; of whom one thousand were +seated in the Greek, and eight hundred in the Latin, provinces of the +empire. The extent and boundaries of their respective dioceses had been +variously and accidentally decided by the zeal and success of the first +missionaries, by the wishes of the people, and by the propagation of the +gospel. Episcopal churches were closely planted along the banks of the +Nile, on the sea-coast of Africa, in the proconsular Asia, and through +the southern provinces of Italy. The bishops of Gaul and Spain, of +Thrace and Pontus, reigned over an ample territory, and delegated their +rural suffragans to execute the subordinate duties of the pastoral +office. A Christian diocese might be spread over a province, or reduced +to a village; but all the bishops possessed an equal and indelible +character: they all derived the same powers and privileges from the +apostles, from the people, and from the laws. While the civil and +military professions were separated by the policy of Constantine, a new +and perpetual order of ecclesiastical ministers, always respectable, +sometimes dangerous, was established in the church and state. The +important review of their station and attributes may be distributed +under the following heads: I. Popular Election. II. Ordination of the +Clergy. III. Property. IV. Civil Jurisdiction. V. Spiritual censures. +VI. Exercise of public oratory. VII. Privilege of legislative +assemblies. + +I. The freedom of election subsisted long after the legal establishment +of Christianity; and the subjects of Rome enjoyed in the church +the privilege which they had lost in the republic, of choosing the +magistrates whom they were bound to obey. As soon as a bishop had closed +his eyes, the metropolitan issued a commission to one of his suffragans +to administer the vacant see, and prepare, within a limited time, the +future election. The right of voting was vested in the inferior clergy, +who were best qualified to judge of the merit of the candidates; in +the senators or nobles of the city, all those who were distinguished +by their rank or property; and finally in the whole body of the people, +who, on the appointed day, flocked in multitudes from the most remote +parts of the diocese, and sometimes silenced by their tumultuous +acclamations, the voice of reason and the laws of discipline. These +acclamations might accidentally fix on the head of the most deserving +competitor; of some ancient presbyter, some holy monk, or some layman, +conspicuous for his zeal and piety. But the episcopal chair was +solicited, especially in the great and opulent cities of the empire, as +a temporal rather than as a spiritual dignity. The interested views, the +selfish and angry passions, the arts of perfidy and dissimulation, the +secret corruption, the open and even bloody violence which had formerly +disgraced the freedom of election in the commonwealths of Greece and +Rome, too often influenced the choice of the successors of the apostles. +While one of the candidates boasted the honors of his family, a second +allured his judges by the delicacies of a plentiful table, and a third, +more guilty than his rivals, offered to share the plunder of the church +among the accomplices of his sacrilegious hopes The civil as well as +ecclesiastical laws attempted to exclude the populace from this +solemn and important transaction. The canons of ancient discipline, +by requiring several episcopal qualifications, of age, station, &c., +restrained, in some measure, the indiscriminate caprice of the electors. +The authority of the provincial bishops, who were assembled in the +vacant church to consecrate the choice of the people, was interposed to +moderate their passions and to correct their mistakes. The bishops +could refuse to ordain an unworthy candidate, and the rage of contending +factions sometimes accepted their impartial mediation. The submission, +or the resistance, of the clergy and people, on various occasions, +afforded different precedents, which were insensibly converted into +positive laws and provincial customs; but it was every where admitted, +as a fundamental maxim of religious policy, that no bishop could be +imposed on an orthodox church, without the consent of its members. +The emperors, as the guardians of the public peace, and as the first +citizens of Rome and Constantinople, might effectually declare their +wishes in the choice of a primate; but those absolute monarchs respected +the freedom of ecclesiastical elections; and while they distributed and +resumed the honors of the state and army, they allowed eighteen hundred +perpetual magistrates to receive their important offices from the free +suffrages of the people. It was agreeable to the dictates of justice, +that these magistrates should not desert an honorable station from +which they could not be removed; but the wisdom of councils endeavored, +without much success, to enforce the residence, and to prevent the +translation, of bishops. The discipline of the West was indeed less +relaxed than that of the East; but the same passions which made those +regulations necessary, rendered them ineffectual. The reproaches which +angry prelates have so vehemently urged against each other, serve only +to expose their common guilt, and their mutual indiscretion. + +II. The bishops alone possessed the faculty of spiritual generation: and +this extraordinary privilege might compensate, in some degree, for the +painful celibacy which was imposed as a virtue, as a duty, and at length +as a positive obligation. The religions of antiquity, which established +a separate order of priests, dedicated a holy race, a tribe or family, +to the perpetual service of the gods. Such institutions were founded for +possession, rather than conquest. The children of the priests enjoyed, +with proud and indolent security, their sacred inheritance; and the +fiery spirit of enthusiasm was abated by the cares, the pleasures, and +the endearments of domestic life. But the Christian sanctuary was open +to every ambitious candidate, who aspired to its heavenly promises or +temporal possessions. This office of priests, like that of soldiers or +magistrates, was strenuously exercised by those men, whose temper and +abilities had prompted them to embrace the ecclesiastical profession, or +who had been selected by a discerning bishop, as the best qualified +to promote the glory and interest of the church. The bishops (till the +abuse was restrained by the prudence of the laws) might constrain the +reluctant, and protect the distressed; and the imposition of hands +forever bestowed some of the most valuable privileges of civil society. +The whole body of the Catholic clergy, more numerous perhaps than the +legions, was exempted * by the emperors from all service, private or +public, all municipal offices, and all personal taxes and contributions, +which pressed on their fellow-citizens with intolerable weight; and the +duties of their holy profession were accepted as a full discharge of +their obligations to the republic. Each bishop acquired an absolute +and indefeasible right to the perpetual obedience of the clerk whom +he ordained: the clergy of each episcopal church, with its dependent +parishes, formed a regular and permanent society; and the cathedrals of +Constantinople and Carthage maintained their peculiar establishment +of five hundred ecclesiastical ministers. Their ranks and numbers were +insensibly multiplied by the superstition of the times, which introduced +into the church the splendid ceremonies of a Jewish or Pagan temple; +and a long train of priests, deacons, sub-deacons, acolythes, exorcists, +readers, singers, and doorkeepers, contributed, in their respective +stations, to swell the pomp and harmony of religious worship. The +clerical name and privileges were extended to many pious fraternities, +who devoutly supported the ecclesiastical throne. Six hundred +parabolani, or adventurers, visited the sick at Alexandria; eleven +hundred copiat, or grave-diggers, buried the dead at Constantinople; and +the swarms of monks, who arose from the Nile, overspread and darkened +the face of the Christian world. + + + +Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine.--Part IV. + +III. The edict of Milan secured the revenue as well as the peace of the +church. The Christians not only recovered the lands and houses of which +they had been stripped by the persecuting laws of Diocletian, but they +acquired a perfect title to all the possessions which they had hitherto +enjoyed by the connivance of the magistrate. As soon as Christianity +became the religion of the emperor and the empire, the national clergy +might claim a decent and honorable maintenance; and the payment of an +annual tax might have delivered the people from the more oppressive +tribute, which superstition imposes on her votaries. But as the +wants and expenses of the church increased with her prosperity, the +ecclesiastical order was still supported and enriched by the voluntary +oblations of the faithful. Eight years after the edict of Milan, +Constantine granted to all his subjects the free and universal +permission of bequeathing their fortunes to the holy Catholic church; +and their devout liberality, which during their lives was checked by +luxury or avarice, flowed with a profuse stream at the hour of their +death. The wealthy Christians were encouraged by the example of their +sovereign. An absolute monarch, who is rich without patrimony, may be +charitable without merit; and Constantine too easily believed that he +should purchase the favor of Heaven, if he maintained the idle at the +expense of the industrious; and distributed among the saints the wealth +of the republic. The same messenger who carried over to Africa the head +of Maxentius, might be intrusted with an epistle to Caecilian, bishop of +Carthage. The emperor acquaints him, that the treasurers of the province +are directed to pay into his hands the sum of three thousand folles, or +eighteen thousand pounds sterling, and to obey his further requisitions +for the relief of the churches of Africa, Numidia, and Mauritania. The +liberality of Constantine increased in a just proportion to his faith, +and to his vices. He assigned in each city a regular allowance of corn, +to supply the fund of ecclesiastical charity; and the persons of both +sexes who embraced the monastic life became the peculiar favorites +of their sovereign. The Christian temples of Antioch, Alexandria, +Jerusalem, Constantinople &c., displayed the ostentatious piety of a +prince, ambitious in a declining age to equal the perfect labors of +antiquity. The form of these religious edifices was simple and oblong; +though they might sometimes swell into the shape of a dome, and +sometimes branch into the figure of a cross. The timbers were framed +for the most part of cedars of Libanus; the roof was covered with tiles, +perhaps of gilt brass; and the walls, the columns, the pavement, were +encrusted with variegated marbles. The most precious ornaments of gold +and silver, of silk and gems, were profusely dedicated to the service of +the altar; and this specious magnificence was supported on the solid and +perpetual basis of landed property. In the space of two centuries, from +the reign of Constantine to that of Justinian, the eighteen hundred +churches of the empire were enriched by the frequent and unalienable +gifts of the prince and people. An annual income of six hundred pounds +sterling may be reasonably assigned to the bishops, who were placed at +an equal distance between riches and poverty, but the standard of their +wealth insensibly rose with the dignity and opulence of the cities +which they governed. An authentic but imperfect rent-roll specifies some +houses, shops, gardens, and farms, which belonged to the three Basilic +of Rome, St. Peter, St. Paul, and St. John Lateran, in the provinces of +Italy, Africa, and the East. They produce, besides a reserved rent of +oil, linen, paper, aromatics, &c., a clear annual revenue of twenty-two +thousand pieces of gold, or twelve thousand pounds sterling. In the age +of Constantine and Justinian, the bishops no longer possessed, perhaps +they no longer deserved, the unsuspecting confidence of their clergy and +people. The ecclesiastical revenues of each diocese were divided +into four parts for the respective uses of the bishop himself, of his +inferior clergy, of the poor, and of the public worship; and the abuse +of this sacred trust was strictly and repeatedly checked. The patrimony +of the church was still subject to all the public compositions of the +state. The clergy of Rome, Alexandria, Thessalonica, &c., might solicit +and obtain some partial exemptions; but the premature attempt of +the great council of Rimini, which aspired to universal freedom, was +successfully resisted by the son of Constantine. + +IV. The Latin clergy, who erected their tribunal on the ruins of +the civil and common law, have modestly accepted, as the gift of +Constantine, the independent jurisdiction, which was the fruit of +time, of accident, and of their own industry. But the liberality of +the Christian emperors had actually endowed them with some legal +prerogatives, which secured and dignified the sacerdotal character. 1. +Under a despotic government, the bishops alone enjoyed and asserted the +inestimable privilege of being tried only by their peers; and even in +a capital accusation, a synod of their brethren were the sole judges +of their guilt or innocence. Such a tribunal, unless it was inflamed by +personal resentment or religious discord, might be favorable, or even +partial, to the sacerdotal order: but Constantine was satisfied, that +secret impunity would be less pernicious than public scandal: and +the Nicene council was edited by his public declaration, that if he +surprised a bishop in the act of adultery, he should cast his Imperial +mantle over the episcopal sinner. 2. The domestic jurisdiction of the +bishops was at once a privilege and a restraint of the ecclesiastical +order, whose civil causes were decently withdrawn from the cognizance of +a secular judge. Their venial offences were not exposed to the shame +of a public trial or punishment; and the gentle correction which the +tenderness of youth may endure from its parents or instructors, was +inflicted by the temperate severity of the bishops. But if the clergy +were guilty of any crime which could not be sufficiently expiated by +their degradation from an honorable and beneficial profession, the +Roman magistrate drew the sword of justice, without any regard to +ecclesiastical immunities. 3. The arbitration of the bishops was +ratified by a positive law; and the judges were instructed to execute, +without appeal or delay, the episcopal decrees, whose validity had +hitherto depended on the consent of the parties. The conversion of the +magistrates themselves, and of the whole empire, might gradually remove +the fears and scruples of the Christians. But they still resorted to the +tribunal of the bishops, whose abilities and integrity they esteemed; +and the venerable Austin enjoyed the satisfaction of complaining that +his spiritual functions were perpetually interrupted by the invidious +labor of deciding the claim or the possession of silver and gold, of +lands and cattle. 4. The ancient privilege of sanctuary was transferred +to the Christian temples, and extended, by the liberal piety of +the younger Theodosius, to the precincts of consecrated ground. The +fugitive, and even guilty, suppliants were permitted to implore either +the justice, or the mercy, of the Deity and his ministers. The rash +violence of despotism was suspended by the mild interposition of the +church; and the lives or fortunes of the most eminent subjects might be +protected by the mediation of the bishop. + +V. The bishop was the perpetual censor of the morals of his people +The discipline of penance was digested into a system of canonical +jurisprudence, which accurately defined the duty of private or public +confession, the rules of evidence, the degrees of guilt, and the measure +of punishment. It was impossible to execute this spiritual censure, if +the Christian pontiff, who punished the obscure sins of the multitude, +respected the conspicuous vices and destructive crimes of the +magistrate: but it was impossible to arraign the conduct of the +magistrate, without, controlling the administration of civil government. +Some considerations of religion, or loyalty, or fear, protected the +sacred persons of the emperors from the zeal or resentment of the +bishops; but they boldly censured and excommunicated the subordinate +tyrants, who were not invested with the majesty of the purple. St. +Athanasius excommunicated one of the ministers of Egypt; and the +interdict which he pronounced, of fire and water, was solemnly +transmitted to the churches of Cappadocia. Under the reign of the +younger Theodosius, the polite and eloquent Synesius, one of the +descendants of Hercules, filled the episcopal seat of Ptolemais, near +the ruins of ancient Cyrene, and the philosophic bishop supported +with dignity the character which he had assumed with reluctance. He +vanquished the monster of Libya, the president Andronicus, who abused +the authority of a venal office, invented new modes of rapine and +torture, and aggravated the guilt of oppression by that of sacrilege. +After a fruitless attempt to reclaim the haughty magistrate by mild and +religious admonition, Synesius proceeds to inflict the last sentence of +ecclesiastical justice, which devotes Andronicus, with his associates +and their families, to the abhorrence of earth and heaven. The +impenitent sinners, more cruel than Phalaris or Sennacherib, more +destructive than war, pestilence, or a cloud of locusts, are deprived +of the name and privileges of Christians, of the participation of the +sacraments, and of the hope of Paradise. The bishop exhorts the clergy, +the magistrates, and the people, to renounce all society with the +enemies of Christ; to exclude them from their houses and tables; and to +refuse them the common offices of life, and the decent rites of burial. +The church of Ptolemais, obscure and contemptible as she may appear, +addresses this declaration to all her sister churches of the world; and +the profane who reject her decrees, will be involved in the guilt and +punishment of Andronicus and his impious followers. These spiritual +terrors were enforced by a dexterous application to the Byzantine +court; the trembling president implored the mercy of the church; and the +descendants of Hercules enjoyed the satisfaction of raising a prostrate +tyrant from the ground. Such principles and such examples insensibly +prepared the triumph of the Roman pontiffs, who have trampled on the +necks of kings. + +VI. Every popular government has experienced the effects of rude or +artificial eloquence. The coldest nature is animated, the firmest reason +is moved, by the rapid communication of the prevailing impulse; and each +hearer is affected by his own passions, and by those of the surrounding +multitude. The ruin of civil liberty had silenced the demagogues of +Athens, and the tribunes of Rome; the custom of preaching which seems +to constitute a considerable part of Christian devotion, had not been +introduced into the temples of antiquity; and the ears of monarchs were +never invaded by the harsh sound of popular eloquence, till the pulpits +of the empire were filled with sacred orators, who possessed some +advantages unknown to their profane predecessors. The arguments and +rhetoric of the tribune were instantly opposed with equal arms, by +skilful and resolute antagonists; and the cause of truth and reason +might derive an accidental support from the conflict of hostile +passions. The bishop, or some distinguished presbyter, to whom he +cautiously delegated the powers of preaching, harangued, without the +danger of interruption or reply, a submissive multitude, whose minds had +been prepared and subdued by the awful ceremonies of religion. Such was +the strict subordination of the Catholic church, that the same concerted +sounds might issue at once from a hundred pulpits of Italy or Egypt, if +they were tuned by the master hand of the Roman or Alexandrian primate. +The design of this institution was laudable, but the fruits were not +always salutary. The preachers recommended the practice of the social +duties; but they exalted the perfection of monastic virtue, which is +painful to the individual, and useless to mankind. Their charitable +exhortations betrayed a secret wish that the clergy might be permitted +to manage the wealth of the faithful, for the benefit of the poor. The +most sublime representations of the attributes and laws of the Deity +were sullied by an idle mixture of metaphysical subtleties, puerile +rites, and fictitious miracles: and they expatiated, with the most +fervent zeal, on the religious merit of hating the adversaries, +and obeying the ministers of the church. When the public peace was +distracted by heresy and schism, the sacred orators sounded the trumpet +of discord, and, perhaps, of sedition. The understandings of their +congregations were perplexed by mystery, their passions were inflamed +by invectives; and they rushed from the Christian temples of Antioch +or Alexandria, prepared either to suffer or to inflict martyrdom. The +corruption of taste and language is strongly marked in the vehement +declamations of the Latin bishops; but the compositions of Gregory and +Chrysostom have been compared with the most splendid models of Attic, or +at least of Asiatic, eloquence. + +VII. The representatives of the Christian republic were regularly +assembled in the spring and autumn of each year; and these synods +diffused the spirit of ecclesiastical discipline and legislation through +the hundred and twenty provinces of the Roman world. The archbishop or +metropolitan was empowered, by the laws, to summon the suffragan bishops +of his province; to revise their conduct, to vindicate their rights, +to declare their faith, and to examine the merits of the candidates who +were elected by the clergy and people to supply the vacancies of the +episcopal college. The primates of Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, Carthage, +and afterwards Constantinople, who exercised a more ample jurisdiction, +convened the numerous assembly of their dependent bishops. But the +convocation of great and extraordinary synods was the prerogative of +the emperor alone. Whenever the emergencies of the church required this +decisive measure, he despatched a peremptory summons to the bishops, or +the deputies of each province, with an order for the use of post-horses, +and a competent allowance for the expenses of their journey. At an early +period, when Constantine was the protector, rather than the proselyte, +of Christianity, he referred the African controversy to the council +of Arles; in which the bishops of York of Treves, of Milan, and of +Carthage, met as friends and brethren, to debate in their native tongue +on the common interest of the Latin or Western church. Eleven years +afterwards, a more numerous and celebrated assembly was convened at Nice +in Bithynia, to extinguish, by their final sentence, the subtle disputes +which had arisen in Egypt on the subject of the Trinity. Three hundred +and eighteen bishops obeyed the summons of their indulgent master; +the ecclesiastics of every rank, and sect, and denomination, have been +computed at two thousand and forty-eight persons; the Greeks appeared +in person; and the consent of the Latins was expressed by the legates +of the Roman pontiff. The session, which lasted about two months, was +frequently honored by the presence of the emperor. Leaving his guards +at the door, he seated himself (with the permission of the council) on a +low stool in the midst of the hall. Constantine listened with patience, +and spoke with modesty: and while he influenced the debates, he humbly +professed that he was the minister, not the judge, of the successors +of the apostles, who had been established as priests and as gods upon +earth. Such profound reverence of an absolute monarch towards a feeble +and unarmed assembly of his own subjects, can only be compared to the +respect with which the senate had been treated by the Roman princes +who adopted the policy of Augustus. Within the space of fifty years, a +philosophic spectator of the vicissitudes of human affairs might have +contemplated Tacitus in the senate of Rome, and Constantine in the +council of Nice. The fathers of the Capitol and those of the church had +alike degenerated from the virtues of their founders; but as the bishops +were more deeply rooted in the public opinion, they sustained their +dignity with more decent pride, and sometimes opposed with a manly +spirit the wishes of their sovereign. The progress of time and +superstition erased the memory of the weakness, the passion, the +ignorance, which disgraced these ecclesiastical synods; and the Catholic +world has unanimously submitted to the infallible decrees of the general +councils. + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part I. + + Persecution Of Heresy.--The Schism Of The Donatists.--The + Arian Controversy.--Athanasius.--Distracted State Of The + Church And Empire Under Constantine And His Sons.-- + Toleration Of Paganism. + +The grateful applause of the clergy has consecrated the memory of +a prince who indulged their passions and promoted their interest. +Constantine gave them security, wealth, honors, and revenge; and the +support of the orthodox faith was considered as the most sacred and +important duty of the civil magistrate. The edict of Milan, the great +charter of toleration, had confirmed to each individual of the Roman +world the privilege of choosing and professing his own religion. But +this inestimable privilege was soon violated; with the knowledge of +truth, the emperor imbibed the maxims of persecution; and the sects +which dissented from the Catholic church were afflicted and oppressed +by the triumph of Christianity. Constantine easily believed that +the Heretics, who presumed to dispute his opinions, or to oppose his +commands, were guilty of the most absurd and criminal obstinacy; and +that a seasonable application of moderate severities might save those +unhappy men from the danger of an everlasting condemnation. Not a +moment was lost in excluding the ministers and teachers of the separated +congregations from any share of the rewards and immunities which the +emperor had so liberally bestowed on the orthodox clergy. But as the +sectaries might still exist under the cloud of royal disgrace, the +conquest of the East was immediately followed by an edict which +announced their total destruction. After a preamble filled with passion +and reproach, Constantine absolutely prohibits the assemblies of the +Heretics, and confiscates their public property to the use either of the +revenue or of the Catholic church. The sects against whom the Imperial +severity was directed, appear to have been the adherents of Paul of +Samosata; the Montanists of Phrygia, who maintained an enthusiastic +succession of prophecy; the Novatians, who sternly rejected the temporal +efficacy of repentance; the Marcionites and Valentinians, under whose +leading banners the various Gnostics of Asia and Egypt had insensibly +rallied; and perhaps the Manichaeans, who had recently imported from +Persia a more artful composition of Oriental and Christian theology. The +design of extirpating the name, or at least of restraining the progress, +of these odious Heretics, was prosecuted with vigor and effect. Some +of the penal regulations were copied from the edicts of Diocletian; and +this method of conversion was applauded by the same bishops who had +felt the hand of oppression, and pleaded for the rights of humanity. Two +immaterial circumstances may serve, however, to prove that the mind +of Constantine was not entirely corrupted by the spirit of zeal and +bigotry. Before he condemned the Manichaeans and their kindred sects, he +resolved to make an accurate inquiry into the nature of their religious +principles. As if he distrusted the impartiality of his ecclesiastical +counsellors, this delicate commission was intrusted to a civil +magistrate, whose learning and moderation he justly esteemed, and of +whose venal character he was probably ignorant. The emperor was soon +convinced, that he had too hastily proscribed the orthodox faith and the +exemplary morals of the Novatians, who had dissented from the church +in some articles of discipline which were not perhaps essential to +salvation. By a particular edict, he exempted them from the general +penalties of the law; allowed them to build a church at Constantinople, +respected the miracles of their saints, invited their bishop Acesius to +the council of Nice; and gently ridiculed the narrow tenets of his sect +by a familiar jest; which, from the mouth of a sovereign, must have been +received with applause and gratitude. + +The complaints and mutual accusations which assailed the throne of +Constantine, as soon as the death of Maxentius had submitted Africa to +his victorious arms, were ill adapted to edify an imperfect proselyte. +He learned, with surprise, that the provinces of that great country, +from the confines of Cyrene to the columns of Hercules, were distracted +with religious discord. The source of the division was derived from +a double election in the church of Carthage; the second, in rank and +opulence, of the ecclesiastical thrones of the West. Caecilian and +Majorinus were the two rival prelates of Africa; and the death of the +latter soon made room for Donatus, who, by his superior abilities and +apparent virtues, was the firmest support of his party. The advantage +which Caecilian might claim from the priority of his ordination, was +destroyed by the illegal, or at least indecent, haste, with which it had +been performed, without expecting the arrival of the bishops of Numidia. +The authority of these bishops, who, to the number of seventy, condemned +Caecilian, and consecrated Majorinus, is again weakened by the infamy +of some of their personal characters; and by the female intrigues, +sacrilegious bargains, and tumultuous proceedings, which are imputed +to this Numidian council. The bishops of the contending factions +maintained, with equal ardor and obstinacy, that their adversaries were +degraded, or at least dishonored, by the odious crime of delivering +the Holy Scriptures to the officers of Diocletian. From their mutual +reproaches, as well as from the story of this dark transaction, it may +justly be inferred, that the late persecution had imbittered the zeal, +without reforming the manners, of the African Christians. That +divided church was incapable of affording an impartial judicature; the +controversy was solemnly tried in five successive tribunals, which +were appointed by the emperor; and the whole proceeding, from the +first appeal to the final sentence, lasted above three years. A severe +inquisition, which was taken by the Praetorian vicar, and the proconsul +of Africa, the report of two episcopal visitors who had been sent to +Carthage, the decrees of the councils of Rome and of Arles, and the +supreme judgment of Constantine himself in his sacred consistory, +were all favorable to the cause of Caecilian; and he was unanimously +acknowledged by the civil and ecclesiastical powers, as the true and +lawful primate of Africa. The honors and estates of the church were +attributed to his suffragan bishops, and it was not without difficulty, +that Constantine was satisfied with inflicting the punishment of exile +on the principal leaders of the Donatist faction. As their cause was +examined with attention, perhaps it was determined with justice. Perhaps +their complaint was not without foundation, that the credulity of the +emperor had been abused by the insidious arts of his favorite Osius. The +influence of falsehood and corruption might procure the condemnation +of the innocent, or aggravate the sentence of the guilty. Such an act, +however, of injustice, if it concluded an importunate dispute, might be +numbered among the transient evils of a despotic administration, which +are neither felt nor remembered by posterity. + +But this incident, so inconsiderable that it scarcely deserves a place +in history, was productive of a memorable schism which afflicted the +provinces of Africa above three hundred years, and was extinguished only +with Christianity itself. The inflexible zeal of freedom and fanaticism +animated the Donatists to refuse obedience to the usurpers, whose +election they disputed, and whose spiritual powers they denied. +Excluded from the civil and religious communion of mankind, they boldly +excommunicated the rest of mankind, who had embraced the impious party +of Caecilian, and of the Traditors, from which he derived his pretended +ordination. They asserted with confidence, and almost with exultation, +that the Apostolical succession was interrupted; that all the bishops of +Europe and Asia were infected by the contagion of guilt and schism; and +that the prerogatives of the Catholic church were confined to the chosen +portion of the African believers, who alone had preserved inviolate the +integrity of their faith and discipline. This rigid theory was supported +by the most uncharitable conduct. Whenever they acquired a proselyte, +even from the distant provinces of the East, they carefully repeated the +sacred rites of baptism and ordination; as they rejected the validity +of those which he had already received from the hands of heretics or +schismatics. Bishops, virgins, and even spotless infants, were subjected +to the disgrace of a public penance, before they could be admitted to +the communion of the Donatists. If they obtained possession of a church +which had been used by their Catholic adversaries, they purified the +unhallowed building with the same zealous care which a temple of idols +might have required. They washed the pavement, scraped the walls, burnt +the altar, which was commonly of wood, melted the consecrated plate, and +cast the Holy Eucharist to the dogs, with every circumstance of ignominy +which could provoke and perpetuate the animosity of religious factions. +Notwithstanding this irreconcilable aversion, the two parties, who were +mixed and separated in all the cities of Africa, had the same language +and manners, the same zeal and learning, the same faith and worship. +Proscribed by the civil and ecclesiastical powers of the empire, the +Donatists still maintained in some provinces, particularly in Numidia, +their superior numbers; and four hundred bishops acknowledged the +jurisdiction of their primate. But the invincible spirit of the sect +sometimes preyed on its own vitals: and the bosom of their schismatical +church was torn by intestine divisions. A fourth part of the Donatist +bishops followed the independent standard of the Maximianists. The +narrow and solitary path which their first leaders had marked out, +continued to deviate from the great society of mankind. Even the +imperceptible sect of the Rogatians could affirm, without a blush, that +when Christ should descend to judge the earth, he would find his true +religion preserved only in a few nameless villages of the Caesarean +Mauritania. + +The schism of the Donatists was confined to Africa: the more diffusive +mischief of the Trinitarian controversy successively penetrated into +every part of the Christian world. The former was an accidental quarrel, +occasioned by the abuse of freedom; the latter was a high and mysterious +argument, derived from the abuse of philosophy. From the age of +Constantine to that of Clovis and Theodoric, the temporal interests both +of the Romans and Barbarians were deeply involved in the theological +disputes of Arianism. The historian may therefore be permitted +respectfully to withdraw the veil of the sanctuary; and to deduce the +progress of reason and faith, of error and passion from the school of +Plato, to the decline and fall of the empire. + +The genius of Plato, informed by his own meditation, or by the +traditional knowledge of the priests of Egypt, had ventured to explore +the mysterious nature of the Deity. When he had elevated his mind to the +sublime contemplation of the first self-existent, necessary cause of the +universe, the Athenian sage was incapable of conceiving how the simple +unity of his essence could admit the infinite variety of distinct and +successive ideas which compose the model of the intellectual world; how +a Being purely incorporeal could execute that perfect model, and mould +with a plastic hand the rude and independent chaos. The vain hope of +extricating himself from these difficulties, which must ever oppress +the feeble powers of the human mind, might induce Plato to consider the +divine nature under the threefold modification--of the first cause, the +reason, or Logos, and the soul or spirit of the universe. His +poetical imagination sometimes fixed and animated these metaphysical +abstractions; the three archical on original principles were represented +in the Platonic system as three Gods, united with each other by a +mysterious and ineffable generation; and the Logos was particularly +considered under the more accessible character of the Son of an Eternal +Father, and the Creator and Governor of the world. Such appear to have +been the secret doctrines which were cautiously whispered in the gardens +of the academy; and which, according to the more recent disciples of +Plato, * could not be perfectly understood, till after an assiduous +study of thirty years. + +The arms of the Macedonians diffused over Asia and Egypt the language +and learning of Greece; and the theological system of Plato was taught, +with less reserve, and perhaps with some improvements, in the celebrated +school of Alexandria. A numerous colony of Jews had been invited, by the +favor of the Ptolemies, to settle in their new capital. While the bulk +of the nation practised the legal ceremonies, and pursued the lucrative +occupations of commerce, a few Hebrews, of a more liberal spirit, +devoted their lives to religious and philosophical contemplation. They +cultivated with diligence, and embraced with ardor, the theological +system of the Athenian sage. But their national pride would have been +mortified by a fair confession of their former poverty: and they boldly +marked, as the sacred inheritance of their ancestors, the gold and +jewels which they had so lately stolen from their Egyptian masters. +One hundred years before the birth of Christ, a philosophical treatise, +which manifestly betrays the style and sentiments of the school of +Plato, was produced by the Alexandrian Jews, and unanimously received +as a genuine and valuable relic of the inspired Wisdom of Solomon. +A similar union of the Mosaic faith and the Grecian philosophy, +distinguishes the works of Philo, which were composed, for the most +part, under the reign of Augustus. The material soul of the universe +might offend the piety of the Hebrews: but they applied the character of +the Logos to the Jehovah of Moses and the patriarchs; and the Son of God +was introduced upon earth under a visible, and even human appearance, to +perform those familiar offices which seem incompatible with the nature +and attributes of the Universal Cause. + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part II. + +The eloquence of Plato, the name of Solomon, the authority of the school +of Alexandria, and the consent of the Jews and Greeks, were insufficient +to establish the truth of a mysterious doctrine, which might please, but +could not satisfy, a rational mind. A prophet, or apostle, inspired +by the Deity, can alone exercise a lawful dominion over the faith of +mankind: and the theology of Plato might have been forever confounded +with the philosophical visions of the Academy, the Porch, and the +Lycaeum, if the name and divine attributes of the Logos had not been +confirmed by the celestial pen of the last and most sublime of the +Evangelists. The Christian Revelation, which was consummated under the +reign of Nerva, disclosed to the world the amazing secret, that the +Logos, who was with God from the beginning, and was God, who had made +all things, and for whom all things had been made, was incarnate in the +person of Jesus of Nazareth; who had been born of a virgin, and suffered +death on the cross. Besides the genera design of fixing on a perpetual +basis the divine honors of Christ, the most ancient and respectable of +the ecclesiastical writers have ascribed to the evangelic theologian a +particular intention to confute two opposite heresies, which disturbed +the peace of the primitive church. I. The faith of the Ebionites, +perhaps of the Nazarenes, was gross and imperfect. They revered Jesus +as the greatest of the prophets, endowed with supernatural virtue and +power. They ascribed to his person and to his future reign all the +predictions of the Hebrew oracles which relate to the spiritual and +everlasting kingdom of the promised Messiah. Some of them might +confess that he was born of a virgin; but they obstinately rejected the +preceding existence and divine perfections of the Logos, or Son of God, +which are so clearly defined in the Gospel of St. John. About fifty +years afterwards, the Ebionites, whose errors are mentioned by Justin +Martyr with less severity than they seem to deserve, formed a very +inconsiderable portion of the Christian name. II. The Gnostics, who +were distinguished by the epithet of Docetes, deviated into the contrary +extreme; and betrayed the human, while they asserted the divine, nature +of Christ. Educated in the school of Plato, accustomed to the sublime +idea of the Logos, they readily conceived that the brightest AEon, or +Emanation of the Deity, might assume the outward shape and visible +appearances of a mortal; but they vainly pretended, that the +imperfections of matter are incompatible with the purity of a celestial +substance. While the blood of Christ yet smoked on Mount Calvary, the +Docetes invented the impious and extravagant hypothesis, that, instead +of issuing from the womb of the Virgin, he had descended on the banks +of the Jordan in the form of perfect manhood; that he had imposed on the +senses of his enemies, and of his disciples; and that the ministers of +Pilate had wasted their impotent rage on an airy phantom, who seemed to +expire on the cross, and, after three days, to rise from the dead. + +The divine sanction, which the Apostle had bestowed on the fundamental +principle of the theology of Plato, encouraged the learned proselytes of +the second and third centuries to admire and study the writings of the +Athenian sage, who had thus marvellously anticipated one of the most +surprising discoveries of the Christian revelation. The respectable name +of Plato was used by the orthodox, and abused by the heretics, as +the common support of truth and error: the authority of his skilful +commentators, and the science of dialectics, were employed to justify +the remote consequences of his opinions and to supply the discreet +silence of the inspired writers. The same subtle and profound questions +concerning the nature, the generation, the distinction, and the equality +of the three divine persons of the mysterious Triad, or Trinity, +were agitated in the philosophical and in the Christian schools of +Alexandria. An eager spirit of curiosity urged them to explore the +secrets of the abyss; and the pride of the professors, and of their +disciples, was satisfied with the sciences of words. But the most +sagacious of the Christian theologians, the great Athanasius himself, +has candidly confessed, that whenever he forced his understanding to +meditate on the divinity of the Logos, his toilsome and unavailing +efforts recoiled on themselves; that the more he thought, the less +he comprehended; and the more he wrote, the less capable was he of +expressing his thoughts. In every step of the inquiry, we are compelled +to feel and acknowledge the immeasurable disproportion between the +size of the object and the capacity of the human mind. We may strive to +abstract the notions of time, of space, and of matter, which so closely +adhere to all the perceptions of our experimental knowledge. But as soon +as we presume to reason of infinite substance, of spiritual generation; +as often as we deduce any positive conclusions from a negative idea, we +are involved in darkness, perplexity, and inevitable contradiction. As +these difficulties arise from the nature of the subject, they oppress, +with the same insuperable weight, the philosophic and the theological +disputant; but we may observe two essential and peculiar circumstances, +which discriminated the doctrines of the Catholic church from the +opinions of the Platonic school. + +I. A chosen society of philosophers, men of a liberal education and +curious disposition, might silently meditate, and temperately discuss +in the gardens of Athens or the library of Alexandria, the abstruse +questions of metaphysical science. The lofty speculations, which +neither convinced the understanding, nor agitated the passions, of the +Platonists themselves, were carelessly overlooked by the idle, the busy, +and even the studious part of mankind. But after the Logos had been +revealed as the sacred object of the faith, the hope, and the religious +worship of the Christians, the mysterious system was embraced by a +numerous and increasing multitude in every province of the Roman world. +Those persons who, from their age, or sex, or occupations, were the +least qualified to judge, who were the least exercised in the habits +of abstract reasoning, aspired to contemplate the economy of the Divine +Nature: and it is the boast of Tertullian, that a Christian mechanic +could readily answer such questions as had perplexed the wisest of +the Grecian sages. Where the subject lies so far beyond our reach, the +difference between the highest and the lowest of human understandings +may indeed be calculated as infinitely small; yet the degree of +weakness may perhaps be measured by the degree of obstinacy and +dogmatic confidence. These speculations, instead of being treated as +the amusement of a vacant hour, became the most serious business of the +present, and the most useful preparation for a future, life. A theology, +which it was incumbent to believe, which it was impious to doubt, and +which it might be dangerous, and even fatal, to mistake, became the +familiar topic of private meditation and popular discourse. The cold +indifference of philosophy was inflamed by the fervent spirit of +devotion; and even the metaphors of common language suggested the +fallacious prejudices of sense and experience. The Christians, who +abhorred the gross and impure generation of the Greek mythology, were +tempted to argue from the familiar analogy of the filial and +paternal relations. The character of Son seemed to imply a perpetual +subordination to the voluntary author of his existence; but as the +act of generation, in the most spiritual and abstracted sense, must be +supposed to transmit the properties of a common nature, they durst not +presume to circumscribe the powers or the duration of the Son of an +eternal and omnipotent Father. Fourscore years after the death of +Christ, the Christians of Bithynia, declared before the tribunal of +Pliny, that they invoked him as a god: and his divine honors have been +perpetuated in every age and country, by the various sects who assume +the name of his disciples. Their tender reverence for the memory of +Christ, and their horror for the profane worship of any created being, +would have engaged them to assert the equal and absolute divinity of the +Logos, if their rapid ascent towards the throne of heaven had not been +imperceptibly checked by the apprehension of violating the unity and +sole supremacy of the great Father of Christ and of the Universe. The +suspense and fluctuation produced in the minds of the Christians by +these opposite tendencies, may be observed in the writings of the +theologians who flourished after the end of the apostolic age, and +before the origin of the Arian controversy. Their suffrage is claimed, +with equal confidence, by the orthodox and by the heretical parties; and +the most inquisitive critics have fairly allowed, that if they had the +good fortune of possessing the Catholic verity, they have delivered +their conceptions in loose, inaccurate, and sometimes contradictory +language. + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part III. + +II. The devotion of individuals was the first circumstance which +distinguished the Christians from the Platonists: the second was the +authority of the church. The disciples of philosophy asserted the rights +of intellectual freedom, and their respect for the sentiments of their +teachers was a liberal and voluntary tribute, which they offered to +superior reason. But the Christians formed a numerous and disciplined +society; and the jurisdiction of their laws and magistrates was strictly +exercised over the minds of the faithful. The loose wanderings of the +imagination were gradually confined by creeds and confessions; the +freedom of private judgment submitted to the public wisdom of synods; +the authority of a theologian was determined by his ecclesiastical rank; +and the episcopal successors of the apostles inflicted the censures of +the church on those who deviated from the orthodox belief. But in an age +of religious controversy, every act of oppression adds new force to +the elastic vigor of the mind; and the zeal or obstinacy of a spiritual +rebel was sometimes stimulated by secret motives of ambition or avarice. +A metaphysical argument became the cause or pretence of political +contests; the subtleties of the Platonic school were used as the badges +of popular factions, and the distance which separated their respective +tenets were enlarged or magnified by the acrimony of dispute. As long +as the dark heresies of Praxeas and Sabellius labored to confound the +Father with the Son, the orthodox party might be excused if they +adhered more strictly and more earnestly to the distinction, than to the +equality, of the divine persons. But as soon as the heat of controversy +had subsided, and the progress of the Sabellians was no longer an object +of terror to the churches of Rome, of Africa, or of Egypt, the tide +of theological opinion began to flow with a gentle but steady motion +towards the contrary extreme; and the most orthodox doctors allowed +themselves the use of the terms and definitions which had been censured +in the mouth of the sectaries. After the edict of toleration had +restored peace and leisure to the Christians, the Trinitarian +controversy was revived in the ancient seat of Platonism, the learned, +the opulent, the tumultuous city of Alexandria; and the flame of +religious discord was rapidly communicated from the schools to the +clergy, the people, the province, and the East. The abstruse question of +the eternity of the Logos was agitated in ecclesiastic conferences and +popular sermons; and the heterodox opinions of Arius were soon made +public by his own zeal, and by that of his adversaries. His most +implacable adversaries have acknowledged the learning and blameless life +of that eminent presbyter, who, in a former election, had declared, and +perhaps generously declined, his pretensions to the episcopal throne. +His competitor Alexander assumed the office of his judge. The important +cause was argued before him; and if at first he seemed to hesitate, he +at length pronounced his final sentence, as an absolute rule of faith. +The undaunted presbyter, who presumed to resist the authority of his +angry bishop, was separated from the community of the church. But the +pride of Arius was supported by the applause of a numerous party. He +reckoned among his immediate followers two bishops of Egypt, seven +presbyters, twelve deacons, and (what may appear almost incredible) +seven hundred virgins. A large majority of the bishops of Asia appeared +to support or favor his cause; and their measures were conducted by +Eusebius of Caesarea, the most learned of the Christian prelates; and by +Eusebius of Nicomedia, who had acquired the reputation of a statesman +without forfeiting that of a saint. Synods in Palestine and Bithynia +were opposed to the synods of Egypt. The attention of the prince and +people was attracted by this theological dispute; and the decision, +at the end of six years, was referred to the supreme authority of the +general council of Nice. + +When the mysteries of the Christian faith were dangerously exposed to +public debate, it might be observed, that the human understanding was +capable of forming three district, though imperfect systems, concerning +the nature of the Divine Trinity; and it was pronounced, that none of +these systems, in a pure and absolute sense, were exempt from heresy +and error. I. According to the first hypothesis, which was maintained +by Arius and his disciples, the Logos was a dependent and spontaneous +production, created from nothing by the will of the father. The Son, by +whom all things were made, had been begotten before all worlds, and the +longest of the astronomical periods could be compared only as a +fleeting moment to the extent of his duration; yet this duration was +not infinite, and there had been a time which preceded the ineffable +generation of the Logos. On this only-begotten Son, the Almighty Father +had transfused his ample spirit, and impressed the effulgence of his +glory. Visible image of invisible perfection, he saw, at an immeasurable +distance beneath his feet, the thrones of the brightest archangels; yet +he shone only with a reflected light, and, like the sons of the Romans +emperors, who were invested with the titles of Caesar or Augustus, +he governed the universe in obedience to the will of his Father and +Monarch. II. In the second hypothesis, the Logos possessed all the +inherent, incommunicable perfections, which religion and philosophy +appropriate to the Supreme God. Three distinct and infinite minds or +substances, three coequal and coeternal beings, composed the Divine +Essence; and it would have implied contradiction, that any of them +should not have existed, or that they should ever cease to exist. +The advocates of a system which seemed to establish three independent +Deities, attempted to preserve the unity of the First Cause, so +conspicuous in the design and order of the world, by the perpetual +concord of their administration, and the essential agreement of their +will. A faint resemblance of this unity of action may be discovered +in the societies of men, and even of animals. The causes which disturb +their harmony, proceed only from the imperfection and inequality of +their faculties; but the omnipotence which is guided by infinite +wisdom and goodness, cannot fail of choosing the same means for +the accomplishment of the same ends. III. Three beings, who, by the +self-derived necessity of their existence, possess all the divine +attributes in the most perfect degree; who are eternal in duration, +infinite in space, and intimately present to each other, and to the +whole universe; irresistibly force themselves on the astonished mind, as +one and the same being, who, in the economy of grace, as well as in that +of nature, may manifest himself under different forms, and be considered +under different aspects. By this hypothesis, a real substantial trinity +is refined into a trinity of names, and abstract modifications, that +subsist only in the mind which conceives them. The Logos is no longer a +person, but an attribute; and it is only in a figurative sense that the +epithet of Son can be applied to the eternal reason, which was with God +from the beginning, and by which, not by whom, all things were made. The +incarnation of the Logos is reduced to a mere inspiration of the Divine +Wisdom, which filled the soul, and directed all the actions, of the +man Jesus. Thus, after revolving around the theological circle, we are +surprised to find that the Sabellian ends where the Ebionite had begun; +and that the incomprehensible mystery which excites our adoration, +eludes our inquiry. + +If the bishops of the council of Nice had been permitted to follow the +unbiased dictates of their conscience, Arius and his associates could +scarcely have flattered themselves with the hopes of obtaining a +majority of votes, in favor of an hypothesis so directly averse to +the two most popular opinions of the Catholic world. The Arians soon +perceived the danger of their situation, and prudently assumed those +modest virtues, which, in the fury of civil and religious dissensions, +are seldom practised, or even praised, except by the weaker party. They +recommended the exercise of Christian charity and moderation; urged the +incomprehensible nature of the controversy, disclaimed the use of any +terms or definitions which could not be found in the Scriptures; and +offered, by very liberal concessions, to satisfy their adversaries +without renouncing the integrity of their own principles. The victorious +faction received all their proposals with haughty suspicion; and +anxiously sought for some irreconcilable mark of distinction, +the rejection of which might involve the Arians in the guilt and +consequences of heresy. A letter was publicly read, and ignominiously +torn, in which their patron, Eusebius of Nicomedia, ingenuously +confessed, that the admission of the Homoousion, or Consubstantial, +a word already familiar to the Platonists, was incompatible with the +principles of their theological system. The fortunate opportunity was +eagerly embraced by the bishops, who governed the resolutions of the +synod; and, according to the lively expression of Ambrose, they used the +sword, which heresy itself had drawn from the scabbard, to cut off the +head of the hated monster. The consubstantiality of the Father and the +Son was established by the council of Nice, and has been unanimously +received as a fundamental article of the Christian faith, by the consent +of the Greek, the Latin, the Oriental, and the Protestant churches. But +if the same word had not served to stigmatize the heretics, and to +unite the Catholics, it would have been inadequate to the purpose of +the majority, by whom it was introduced into the orthodox creed. This +majority was divided into two parties, distinguished by a contrary +tendency to the sentiments of the Tritheists and of the Sabellians. But +as those opposite extremes seemed to overthrow the foundations either of +natural or revealed religion, they mutually agreed to qualify the +rigor of their principles; and to disavow the just, but invidious, +consequences, which might be urged by their antagonists. The interest +of the common cause inclined them to join their numbers, and to conceal +their differences; their animosity was softened by the healing counsels +of toleration, and their disputes were suspended by the use of the +mysterious Homoousion, which either party was free to interpret +according to their peculiar tenets. The Sabellian sense, which, about +fifty years before, had obliged the council of Antioch to prohibit this +celebrated term, had endeared it to those theologians who entertained +a secret but partial affection for a nominal Trinity. But the more +fashionable saints of the Arian times, the intrepid Athanasius, the +learned Gregory Nazianzen, and the other pillars of the church, who +supported with ability and success the Nicene doctrine, appeared to +consider the expression of substance as if it had been synonymous +with that of nature; and they ventured to illustrate their meaning, by +affirming that three men, as they belong to the same common species, +are consubstantial, or homoousian to each other. This pure and distinct +equality was tempered, on the one hand, by the internal connection, and +spiritual penetration which indissolubly unites the divine persons; and, +on the other, by the preeminence of the Father, which was acknowledged +as far as it is compatible with the independence of the Son. Within +these limits, the almost invisible and tremulous ball of orthodoxy was +allowed securely to vibrate. On either side, beyond this consecrated +ground, the heretics and the daemons lurked in ambush to surprise and +devour the unhappy wanderer. But as the degrees of theological hatred +depend on the spirit of the war, rather than on the importance of the +controversy, the heretics who degraded, were treated with more +severity than those who annihilated, the person of the Son. The life +of Athanasius was consumed in irreconcilable opposition to the +impious madness of the Arians; but he defended above twenty years the +Sabellianism of Marcellus of Ancyra; and when at last he was compelled +to withdraw himself from his communion, he continued to mention, with an +ambiguous smile, the venial errors of his respectable friend. + +The authority of a general council, to which the Arians themselves had +been compelled to submit, inscribed on the banners of the orthodox party +the mysterious characters of the word Homoousion, which essentially +contributed, notwithstanding some obscure disputes, some nocturnal +combats, to maintain and perpetuate the uniformity of faith, or at least +of language. The Consubstantialists, who by their success have deserved +and obtained the title of Catholics, gloried in the simplicity and +steadiness of their own creed, and insulted the repeated variations of +their adversaries, who were destitute of any certain rule of faith. The +sincerity or the cunning of the Arian chiefs, the fear of the laws or of +the people, their reverence for Christ, their hatred of Athanasius, all +the causes, human and divine, that influence and disturb the counsels +of a theological faction, introduced among the sectaries a spirit of +discord and inconstancy, which, in the course of a few years, erected +eighteen different models of religion, and avenged the violated dignity +of the church. The zealous Hilary, who, from the peculiar hardships of +his situation, was inclined to extenuate rather than to aggravate the +errors of the Oriental clergy, declares, that in the wide extent of the +ten provinces of Asia, to which he had been banished, there could be +found very few prelates who had preserved the knowledge of the true +God. The oppression which he had felt, the disorders of which he was the +spectator and the victim, appeased, during a short interval, the angry +passions of his soul; and in the following passage, of which I shall +transcribe a few lines, the bishop of Poitiers unwarily deviates into +the style of a Christian philosopher. "It is a thing," says Hilary, +"equally deplorable and dangerous, that there are as many creeds as +opinions among men, as many doctrines as inclinations, and as many +sources of blasphemy as there are faults among us; because we make +creeds arbitrarily, and explain them as arbitrarily. The Homoousion is +rejected, and received, and explained away by successive synods. The +partial or total resemblance of the Father and of the Son is a subject +of dispute for these unhappy times. Every year, nay, every moon, we make +new creeds to describe invisible mysteries. We repent of what we +have done, we defend those who repent, we anathematize those whom we +defended. We condemn either the doctrine of others in ourselves, or our +own in that of others; and reciprocally tearing one another to pieces, +we have been the cause of each other's ruin." + +It will not be expected, it would not perhaps be endured, that I should +swell this theological digression, by a minute examination of the +eighteen creeds, the authors of which, for the most part, disclaimed the +odious name of their parent Arius. It is amusing enough to delineate the +form, and to trace the vegetation, of a singular plant; but the tedious +detail of leaves without flowers, and of branches without fruit, +would soon exhaust the patience, and disappoint the curiosity, of the +laborious student. One question, which gradually arose from the Arian +controversy, may, however, be noticed, as it served to produce and +discriminate the three sects, who were united only by their common +aversion to the Homoousion of the Nicene synod. 1. If they were asked +whether the Son was like unto the Father, the question was resolutely +answered in the negative, by the heretics who adhered to the principles +of Arius, or indeed to those of philosophy; which seem to establish an +infinite difference between the Creator and the most excellent of his +creatures. This obvious consequence was maintained by AEtius, on whom +the zeal of his adversaries bestowed the surname of the Atheist. His +restless and aspiring spirit urged him to try almost every profession +of human life. He was successively a slave, or at least a husbandman, +a travelling tinker, a goldsmith, a physician, a schoolmaster, +a theologian, and at last the apostle of a new church, which was +propagated by the abilities of his disciple Eunomius. Armed with texts +of Scripture, and with captious syllogisms from the logic of Aristotle, +the subtle AEtius had acquired the fame of an invincible disputant, whom +it was impossible either to silence or to convince. Such talents engaged +the friendship of the Arian bishops, till they were forced to renounce, +and even to persecute, a dangerous ally, who, by the accuracy of his +reasoning, had prejudiced their cause in the popular opinion, and +offended the piety of their most devoted followers. 2. The omnipotence +of the Creator suggested a specious and respectful solution of the +likeness of the Father and the Son; and faith might humbly receive what +reason could not presume to deny, that the Supreme God might communicate +his infinite perfections, and create a being similar only to himself. +These Arians were powerfully supported by the weight and abilities +of their leaders, who had succeeded to the management of the Eusebian +interest, and who occupied the principal thrones of the East. They +detested, perhaps with some affectation, the impiety of AEtius; they +professed to believe, either without reserve, or according to the +Scriptures, that the Son was different from all other creatures, and +similar only to the Father. But they denied, the he was either of the +same, or of a similar substance; sometimes boldly justifying their +dissent, and sometimes objecting to the use of the word substance, +which seems to imply an adequate, or at least, a distinct, notion of +the nature of the Deity. 3. The sect which deserted the doctrine of a +similar substance, was the most numerous, at least in the provinces of +Asia; and when the leaders of both parties were assembled in the council +of Seleucia, their opinion would have prevailed by a majority of one +hundred and five to forty-three bishops. The Greek word, which was +chosen to express this mysterious resemblance, bears so close an +affinity to the orthodox symbol, that the profane of every age have +derided the furious contests which the difference of a single diphthong +excited between the Homoousians and the Homoiousians. As it frequently +happens, that the sounds and characters which approach the nearest +to each other accidentally represent the most opposite ideas, the +observation would be itself ridiculous, if it were possible to mark any +real and sensible distinction between the doctrine of the Semi-Arians, +as they were improperly styled, and that of the Catholics themselves. +The bishop of Poitiers, who in his Phrygian exile very wisely aimed at +a coalition of parties, endeavors to prove that by a pious and faithful +interpretation, the Homoiousion may be reduced to a consubstantial +sense. Yet he confesses that the word has a dark and suspicious +aspect; and, as if darkness were congenial to theological disputes, the +Semi-Arians, who advanced to the doors of the church, assailed them with +the most unrelenting fury. + +The provinces of Egypt and Asia, which cultivated the language and +manners of the Greeks, had deeply imbibed the venom of the Arian +controversy. The familiar study of the Platonic system, a vain and +argumentative disposition, a copious and flexible idiom, supplied the +clergy and people of the East with an inexhaustible flow of words and +distinctions; and, in the midst of their fierce contentions, they easily +forgot the doubt which is recommended by philosophy, and the submission +which is enjoined by religion. The inhabitants of the West were of a +less inquisitive spirit; their passions were not so forcibly moved by +invisible objects, their minds were less frequently exercised by the +habits of dispute; and such was the happy ignorance of the Gallican +church, that Hilary himself, above thirty years after the first general +council, was still a stranger to the Nicene creed. The Latins had +received the rays of divine knowledge through the dark and doubtful +medium of a translation. The poverty and stubbornness of their native +tongue was not always capable of affording just equivalents for the +Greek terms, for the technical words of the Platonic philosophy, which +had been consecrated, by the gospel or by the church, to express the +mysteries of the Christian faith; and a verbal defect might introduce +into the Latin theology a long train of error or perplexity. But as the +western provincials had the good fortune of deriving their religion from +an orthodox source, they preserved with steadiness the doctrine +which they had accepted with docility; and when the Arian pestilence +approached their frontiers, they were supplied with the seasonable +preservative of the Homoousion, by the paternal care of the Roman +pontiff. Their sentiments and their temper were displayed in the +memorable synod of Rimini, which surpassed in numbers the council of +Nice, since it was composed of above four hundred bishops of Italy, +Africa, Spain, Gaul, Britain, and Illyricum. From the first debates it +appeared, that only fourscore prelates adhered to the party, though +they affected to anathematize the name and memory, of Arius. But this +inferiority was compensated by the advantages of skill, of experience, +and of discipline; and the minority was conducted by Valens and +Ursacius, two bishops of Illyricum, who had spent their lives in the +intrigues of courts and councils, and who had been trained under the +Eusebian banner in the religious wars of the East. By their arguments +and negotiations, they embarrassed, they confounded, they at last +deceived, the honest simplicity of the Latin bishops; who suffered +the palladium of the faith to be extorted from their hand by fraud and +importunity, rather than by open violence. The council of Rimini was +not allowed to separate, till the members had imprudently subscribed a +captious creed, in which some expressions, susceptible of an heretical +sense, were inserted in the room of the Homoousion. It was on this +occasion, that, according to Jerom, the world was surprised to find +itself Arian. But the bishops of the Latin provinces had no sooner +reached their respective dioceses, than they discovered their mistake, +and repented of their weakness. The ignominious capitulation was +rejected with disdain and abhorrence; and the Homoousian standard, which +had been shaken but not overthrown, was more firmly replanted in all the +churches of the West. + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part IV. + +Such was the rise and progress, and such were the natural revolutions +of those theological disputes, which disturbed the peace of Christianity +under the reigns of Constantine and of his sons. But as those princes +presumed to extend their despotism over the faith, as well as over the +lives and fortunes, of their subjects, the weight of their suffrage +sometimes inclined the ecclesiastical balance: and the prerogatives of +the King of Heaven were settled, or changed, or modified, in the cabinet +of an earthly monarch. + +The unhappy spirit of discord which pervaded the provinces of the East, +interrupted the triumph of Constantine; but the emperor continued for +some time to view, with cool and careless indifference, the object of +the dispute. As he was yet ignorant of the difficulty of appeasing the +quarrels of theologians, he addressed to the contending parties, to +Alexander and to Arius, a moderating epistle; which may be ascribed, +with far greater reason, to the untutored sense of a soldier and +statesman, than to the dictates of any of his episcopal counsellors. He +attributes the origin of the whole controversy to a trifling and +subtle question, concerning an incomprehensible point of law, which +was foolishly asked by the bishop, and imprudently resolved by the +presbyter. He laments that the Christian people, who had the same God, +the same religion, and the same worship, should be divided by such +inconsiderable distinctions; and he seriously recommend to the clergy +of Alexandria the example of the Greek philosophers; who could maintain +their arguments without losing their temper, and assert their freedom +without violating their friendship. The indifference and contempt of +the sovereign would have been, perhaps, the most effectual method of +silencing the dispute, if the popular current had been less rapid and +impetuous, and if Constantine himself, in the midst of faction and +fanaticism, could have preserved the calm possession of his own +mind. But his ecclesiastical ministers soon contrived to seduce the +impartiality of the magistrate, and to awaken the zeal of the proselyte. +He was provoked by the insults which had been offered to his statues; +he was alarmed by the real, as well as the imaginary magnitude of +the spreading mischief; and he extinguished the hope of peace and +toleration, from the moment that he assembled three hundred bishops +within the walls of the same palace. The presence of the monarch swelled +the importance of the debate; his attention multiplied the arguments; +and he exposed his person with a patient intrepidity, which animated +the valor of the combatants. Notwithstanding the applause which has been +bestowed on the eloquence and sagacity of Constantine, a Roman general, +whose religion might be still a subject of doubt, and whose mind had not +been enlightened either by study or by inspiration, was indifferently +qualified to discuss, in the Greek language, a metaphysical question, or +an article of faith. But the credit of his favorite Osius, who appears +to have presided in the council of Nice, might dispose the emperor in +favor of the orthodox party; and a well-timed insinuation, that the +same Eusebius of Nicomedia, who now protected the heretic, had lately +assisted the tyrant, might exasperate him against their adversaries. The +Nicene creed was ratified by Constantine; and his firm declaration, +that those who resisted the divine judgment of the synod, must prepare +themselves for an immediate exile, annihilated the murmurs of a feeble +opposition; which, from seventeen, was almost instantly reduced to +two, protesting bishops. Eusebius of Caesarea yielded a reluctant and +ambiguous consent to the Homoousion; and the wavering conduct of the +Nicomedian Eusebius served only to delay, about three months, his +disgrace and exile. The impious Arius was banished into one of the +remote provinces of Illyricum; his person and disciples were branded by +law with the odious name of Porphyrians; his writings were condemned +to the flames, and a capital punishment was denounced against those in +whose possession they should be found. The emperor had now imbibed the +spirit of controversy, and the angry, sarcastic style of his edicts was +designed to inspire his subjects with the hatred which he had conceived +against the enemies of Christ. + +But, as if the conduct of the emperor had been guided by passion instead +of principle, three years from the council of Nice were scarcely elapsed +before he discovered some symptoms of mercy, and even of indulgence, +towards the proscribed sect, which was secretly protected by his +favorite sister. The exiles were recalled, and Eusebius, who gradually +resumed his influence over the mind of Constantine, was restored to the +episcopal throne, from which he had been ignominiously degraded. Arius +himself was treated by the whole court with the respect which would have +been due to an innocent and oppressed man. His faith was approved by +the synod of Jerusalem; and the emperor seemed impatient to repair his +injustice, by issuing an absolute command, that he should be solemnly +admitted to the communion in the cathedral of Constantinople. On the +same day, which had been fixed for the triumph of Arius, he expired; +and the strange and horrid circumstances of his death might excite a +suspicion, that the orthodox saints had contributed more efficaciously +than by their prayers, to deliver the church from the most formidable of +her enemies. The three principal leaders of the Catholics, Athanasius +of Alexandria, Eustathius of Antioch, and Paul of Constantinople were +deposed on various f accusations, by the sentence of numerous councils; +and were afterwards banished into distant provinces by the first of the +Christian emperors, who, in the last moments of his life, received the +rites of baptism from the Arian bishop of Nicomedia. The ecclesiastical +government of Constantine cannot be justified from the reproach of +levity and weakness. But the credulous monarch, unskilled in the +stratagems of theological warfare, might be deceived by the modest +and specious professions of the heretics, whose sentiments he never +perfectly understood; and while he protected Arius, and persecuted +Athanasius, he still considered the council of Nice as the bulwark of +the Christian faith, and the peculiar glory of his own reign. + +The sons of Constantine must have been admitted from their childhood +into the rank of catechumens; but they imitated, in the delay of +their baptism, the example of their father. Like him they presumed to +pronounce their judgment on mysteries into which they had never been +regularly initiated; and the fate of the Trinitarian controversy +depended, in a great measure, on the sentiments of Constantius; who +inherited the provinces of the East, and acquired the possession of the +whole empire. The Arian presbyter or bishop, who had secreted for +his use the testament of the deceased emperor, improved the fortunate +occasion which had introduced him to the familiarity of a prince, +whose public counsels were always swayed by his domestic favorites. The +eunuchs and slaves diffused the spiritual poison through the palace, and +the dangerous infection was communicated by the female attendants to the +guards, and by the empress to her unsuspicious husband. The partiality +which Constantius always expressed towards the Eusebian faction, was +insensibly fortified by the dexterous management of their leaders; and +his victory over the tyrant Magnentius increased his inclination, as +well as ability, to employ the arms of power in the cause of Arianism. +While the two armies were engaged in the plains of Mursa, and the fate +of the two rivals depended on the chance of war, the son of Constantine +passed the anxious moments in a church of the martyrs under the walls +of the city. His spiritual comforter, Valens, the Arian bishop of the +diocese, employed the most artful precautions to obtain such early +intelligence as might secure either his favor or his escape. A secret +chain of swift and trusty messengers informed him of the vicissitudes +of the battle; and while the courtiers stood trembling round their +affrighted master, Valens assured him that the Gallic legions gave way; +and insinuated with some presence of mind, that the glorious event had +been revealed to him by an angel. The grateful emperor ascribed his +success to the merits and intercession of the bishop of Mursa, whose +faith had deserved the public and miraculous approbation of Heaven. +The Arians, who considered as their own the victory of Constantius, +preferred his glory to that of his father. Cyril, bishop of Jerusalem, +immediately composed the description of a celestial cross, encircled +with a splendid rainbow; which during the festival of Pentecost, about +the third hour of the day, had appeared over the Mount of Olives, to the +edification of the devout pilgrims, and the people of the holy city. The +size of the meteor was gradually magnified; and the Arian historian has +ventured to affirm, that it was conspicuous to the two armies in the +plains of Pannonia; and that the tyrant, who is purposely represented as +an idolater, fled before the auspicious sign of orthodox Christianity. + +The sentiments of a judicious stranger, who has impartially considered +the progress of civil or ecclesiastical discord, are always entitled to +our notice; and a short passage of Ammianus, who served in the armies, +and studied the character of Constantius, is perhaps of more value than +many pages of theological invectives. "The Christian religion, which, +in itself," says that moderate historian, "is plain and simple, he +confounded by the dotage of superstition. Instead of reconciling the +parties by the weight of his authority, he cherished and promulgated, by +verbal disputes, the differences which his vain curiosity had excited. +The highways were covered with troops of bishops galloping from every +side to the assemblies, which they call synods; and while they labored +to reduce the whole sect to their own particular opinions, the public +establishment of the posts was almost ruined by their hasty and +repeated journeys." Our more intimate knowledge of the ecclesiastical +transactions of the reign of Constantius would furnish an ample +commentary on this remarkable passage, which justifies the rational +apprehensions of Athanasius, that the restless activity of the clergy, +who wandered round the empire in search of the true faith, would excite +the contempt and laughter of the unbelieving world. As soon as the +emperor was relieved from the terrors of the civil war, he devoted +the leisure of his winter quarters at Arles, Milan, Sirmium, and +Constantinople, to the amusement or toils of controversy: the sword of +the magistrate, and even of the tyrant, was unsheathed, to enforce the +reasons of the theologian; and as he opposed the orthodox faith of Nice, +it is readily confessed that his incapacity and ignorance were equal to +his presumption. The eunuchs, the women, and the bishops, who governed +the vain and feeble mind of the emperor, had inspired him with an +insuperable dislike to the Homoousion; but his timid conscience +was alarmed by the impiety of AEtius. The guilt of that atheist was +aggravated by the suspicious favor of the unfortunate Gallus; and even +the death of the Imperial ministers, who had been massacred at Antioch, +were imputed to the suggestions of that dangerous sophist. The mind of +Constantius, which could neither be moderated by reason, nor fixed by +faith, was blindly impelled to either side of the dark and empty abyss, +by his horror of the opposite extreme; he alternately embraced and +condemned the sentiments, he successively banished and recalled the +leaders, of the Arian and Semi-Arian factions. During the season of +public business or festivity, he employed whole days, and even nights, +in selecting the words, and weighing the syllables, which composed his +fluctuating creeds. The subject of his meditations still pursued +and occupied his slumbers: the incoherent dreams of the emperor were +received as celestial visions, and he accepted with complacency the +lofty title of bishop of bishops, from those ecclesiastics who forgot +the interest of their order for the gratification of their passions. The +design of establishing a uniformity of doctrine, which had engaged +him to convene so many synods in Gaul, Italy, Illyricum, and Asia, was +repeatedly baffled by his own levity, by the divisions of the Arians, +and by the resistance of the Catholics; and he resolved, as the last +and decisive effort, imperiously to dictate the decrees of a general +council. The destructive earthquake of Nicomedia, the difficulty of +finding a convenient place, and perhaps some secret motives of policy, +produced an alteration in the summons. The bishops of the East were +directed to meet at Seleucia, in Isauria; while those of the West +held their deliberations at Rimini, on the coast of the Hadriatic; and +instead of two or three deputies from each province, the whole episcopal +body was ordered to march. The Eastern council, after consuming four +days in fierce and unavailing debate, separated without any definitive +conclusion. The council of the West was protracted till the seventh +month. Taurus, the Praetorian praefect was instructed not to dismiss the +prelates till they should all be united in the same opinion; and his +efforts were supported by the power of banishing fifteen of the most +refractory, and a promise of the consulship if he achieved so difficult +an adventure. His prayers and threats, the authority of the sovereign, +the sophistry of Valens and Ursacius, the distress of cold and hunger, +and the tedious melancholy of a hopeless exile, at length extorted the +reluctant consent of the bishops of Rimini. The deputies of the East and +of the West attended the emperor in the palace of Constantinople, and he +enjoyed the satisfaction of imposing on the world a profession of +faith which established the likeness, without expressing the +consubstantiality, of the Son of God. But the triumph of Arianism +had been preceded by the removal of the orthodox clergy, whom it +was impossible either to intimidate or to corrupt; and the reign of +Constantius was disgraced by the unjust and ineffectual persecution of +the great Athanasius. + +We have seldom an opportunity of observing, either in active or +speculative life, what effect may be produced, or what obstacles may be +surmounted, by the force of a single mind, when it is inflexibly applied +to the pursuit of a single object. The immortal name of Athanasius will +never be separated from the Catholic doctrine of the Trinity, to whose +defence he consecrated every moment and every faculty of his being. +Educated in the family of Alexander, he had vigorously opposed the early +progress of the Arian heresy: he exercised the important functions of +secretary under the aged prelate; and the fathers of the Nicene council +beheld with surprise and respect the rising virtues of the young deacon. +In a time of public danger, the dull claims of age and of rank are +sometimes superseded; and within five months after his return from Nice, +the deacon Athanasius was seated on the archiepiscopal throne of Egypt. +He filled that eminent station above forty-six years, and his long +administration was spent in a perpetual combat against the powers of +Arianism. Five times was Athanasius expelled from his throne; twenty +years he passed as an exile or a fugitive: and almost every province +of the Roman empire was successively witness to his merit, and his +sufferings in the cause of the Homoousion, which he considered as the +sole pleasure and business, as the duty, and as the glory of his life. +Amidst the storms of persecution, the archbishop of Alexandria was +patient of labor, jealous of fame, careless of safety; and although his +mind was tainted by the contagion of fanaticism, Athanasius displayed a +superiority of character and abilities, which would have qualified him, +far better than the degenerate sons of Constantine, for the government +of a great monarchy. His learning was much less profound and extensive +than that of Eusebius of Caesarea, and his rude eloquence could not be +compared with the polished oratory of Gregory of Basil; but whenever +the primate of Egypt was called upon to justify his sentiments, or his +conduct, his unpremeditated style, either of speaking or writing, was +clear, forcible, and persuasive. He has always been revered, in the +orthodox school, as one of the most accurate masters of the Christian +theology; and he was supposed to possess two profane sciences, less +adapted to the episcopal character, the knowledge of jurisprudence, and +that of divination. Some fortunate conjectures of future events, which +impartial reasoners might ascribe to the experience and judgment of +Athanasius, were attributed by his friends to heavenly inspiration, and +imputed by his enemies to infernal magic. + +But as Athanasius was continually engaged with the prejudices and +passions of every order of men, from the monk to the emperor, the +knowledge of human nature was his first and most important science. He +preserved a distinct and unbroken view of a scene which was incessantly +shifting; and never failed to improve those decisive moments which +are irrecoverably past before they are perceived by a common eye. The +archbishop of Alexandria was capable of distinguishing how far he might +boldly command, and where he must dexterously insinuate; how long he +might contend with power, and when he must withdraw from persecution; +and while he directed the thunders of the church against heresy and +rebellion, he could assume, in the bosom of his own party, the flexible +and indulgent temper of a prudent leader. The election of Athanasius +has not escaped the reproach of irregularity and precipitation; but the +propriety of his behavior conciliated the affections both of the clergy +and of the people. The Alexandrians were impatient to rise in arms for +the defence of an eloquent and liberal pastor. In his distress he always +derived support, or at least consolation, from the faithful attachment +of his parochial clergy; and the hundred bishops of Egypt adhered, with +unshaken zeal, to the cause of Athanasius. In the modest equipage which +pride and policy would affect, he frequently performed the episcopal +visitation of his provinces, from the mouth of the Nile to the confines +of AEthiopia; familiarly conversing with the meanest of the populace, and +humbly saluting the saints and hermits of the desert. Nor was it only +in ecclesiastical assemblies, among men whose education and manners +were similar to his own, that Athanasius displayed the ascendancy of his +genius. He appeared with easy and respectful firmness in the courts of +princes; and in the various turns of his prosperous and adverse fortune +he never lost the confidence of his friends, or the esteem of his +enemies. + +In his youth, the primate of Egypt resisted the great Constantine, who +had repeatedly signified his will, that Arius should be restored to +the Catholic communion. The emperor respected, and might forgive, this +inflexible resolution; and the faction who considered Athanasius as +their most formidable enemy, was constrained to dissemble their hatred, +and silently to prepare an indirect and distant assault. They scattered +rumors and suspicions, represented the archbishop as a proud and +oppressive tyrant, and boldly accused him of violating the treaty which +had been ratified in the Nicene council, with the schismatic followers +of Meletius. Athanasius had openly disapproved that ignominious +peace, and the emperor was disposed to believe that he had abused his +ecclesiastical and civil power, to prosecute those odious sectaries: +that he had sacrilegiously broken a chalice in one of their churches of +Mareotis; that he had whipped or imprisoned six of their bishops; and +that Arsenius, a seventh bishop of the same party, had been murdered, +or at least mutilated, by the cruel hand of the primate. These charges, +which affected his honor and his life, were referred by Constantine to +his brother Dalmatius the censor, who resided at Antioch; the synods of +Caesarea and Tyre were successively convened; and the bishops of the East +were instructed to judge the cause of Athanasius, before they proceeded +to consecrate the new church of the Resurrection at Jerusalem. The +primate might be conscious of his innocence; but he was sensible that +the same implacable spirit which had dictated the accusation, would +direct the proceeding, and pronounce the sentence. He prudently declined +the tribunal of his enemies; despised the summons of the synod of +Caesarea; and, after a long and artful delay, submitted to the peremptory +commands of the emperor, who threatened to punish his criminal +disobedience if he refused to appear in the council of Tyre. Before +Athanasius, at the head of fifty Egyptian prelates, sailed from +Alexandria, he had wisely secured the alliance of the Meletians; and +Arsenius himself, his imaginary victim, and his secret friend, was +privately concealed in his train. The synod of Tyre was conducted by +Eusebius of Caesarea, with more passion, and with less art, than his +learning and experience might promise; his numerous faction repeated the +names of homicide and tyrant; and their clamors were encouraged by the +seeming patience of Athanasius, who expected the decisive moment to +produce Arsenius alive and unhurt in the midst of the assembly. The +nature of the other charges did not admit of such clear and satisfactory +replies; yet the archbishop was able to prove, that in the village, +where he was accused of breaking a consecrated chalice, neither church +nor altar nor chalice could really exist. The Arians, who had secretly +determined the guilt and condemnation of their enemy, attempted, +however, to disguise their injustice by the imitation of judicial forms: +the synod appointed an episcopal commission of six delegates to collect +evidence on the spot; and this measure which was vigorously opposed by +the Egyptian bishops, opened new scenes of violence and perjury. After +the return of the deputies from Alexandria, the majority of the council +pronounced the final sentence of degradation and exile against the +primate of Egypt. The decree, expressed in the fiercest language of +malice and revenge, was communicated to the emperor and the Catholic +church; and the bishops immediately resumed a mild and devout aspect, +such as became their holy pilgrimage to the Sepulchre of Christ. + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part V. + +But the injustice of these ecclesiastical judges had not been +countenanced by the submission, or even by the presence, of Athanasius. +He resolved to make a bold and dangerous experiment, whether the throne +was inaccessible to the voice of truth; and before the final sentence +could be pronounced at Tyre, the intrepid primate threw himself into a +bark which was ready to hoist sail for the Imperial city. The request +of a formal audience might have been opposed or eluded; but Athanasius +concealed his arrival, watched the moment of Constantine's return from +an adjacent villa, and boldly encountered his angry sovereign as he +passed on horseback through the principal street of Constantinople. +So strange an apparition excited his surprise and indignation; and the +guards were ordered to remove the importunate suitor; but his resentment +was subdued by involuntary respect; and the haughty spirit of the +emperor was awed by the courage and eloquence of a bishop, who implored +his justice and awakened his conscience. Constantine listened to the +complaints of Athanasius with impartial and even gracious attention; the +members of the synod of Tyre were summoned to justify their proceedings; +and the arts of the Eusebian faction would have been confounded, if +they had not aggravated the guilt of the primate, by the dexterous +supposition of an unpardonable offence; a criminal design to intercept +and detain the corn-fleet of Alexandria, which supplied the subsistence +of the new capital. The emperor was satisfied that the peace of Egypt +would be secured by the absence of a popular leader; but he refused to +fill the vacancy of the archiepiscopal throne; and the sentence, which, +after long hesitation, he pronounced, was that of a jealous ostracism, +rather than of an ignominious exile. In the remote province of Gaul, but +in the hospitable court of Treves, Athanasius passed about twenty eight +months. The death of the emperor changed the face of public affairs and, +amidst the general indulgence of a young reign, the primate was restored +to his country by an honorable edict of the younger Constantine, who +expressed a deep sense of the innocence and merit of his venerable +guest. + +The death of that prince exposed Athanasius to a second persecution; +and the feeble Constantius, the sovereign of the East, soon became +the secret accomplice of the Eusebians. Ninety bishops of that sect or +faction assembled at Antioch, under the specious pretence of dedicating +the cathedral. They composed an ambiguous creed, which is faintly tinged +with the colors of Semi-Arianism, and twenty-five canons, which still +regulate the discipline of the orthodox Greeks. It was decided, with +some appearance of equity, that a bishop, deprived by a synod, should +not resume his episcopal functions till he had been absolved by the +judgment of an equal synod; the law was immediately applied to the case +of Athanasius; the council of Antioch pronounced, or rather confirmed, +his degradation: a stranger, named Gregory, was seated on his throne; +and Philagrius, the praefect of Egypt, was instructed to support the new +primate with the civil and military powers of the province. Oppressed +by the conspiracy of the Asiatic prelates, Athanasius withdrew from +Alexandria, and passed three years as an exile and a suppliant on the +holy threshold of the Vatican. By the assiduous study of the Latin +language, he soon qualified himself to negotiate with the western +clergy; his decent flattery swayed and directed the haughty Julius; +the Roman pontiff was persuaded to consider his appeal as the peculiar +interest of the Apostolic see: and his innocence was unanimously +declared in a council of fifty bishops of Italy. At the end of three +years, the primate was summoned to the court of Milan by the emperor +Constans, who, in the indulgence of unlawful pleasures, still professed +a lively regard for the orthodox faith. The cause of truth and justice +was promoted by the influence of gold, and the ministers of Constans +advised their sovereign to require the convocation of an ecclesiastical +assembly, which might act as the representatives of the Catholic church. +Ninety-four bishops of the West, seventy-six bishops of the East, +encountered each other at Sardica, on the verge of the two empires, +but in the dominions of the protector of Athanasius. Their debates soon +degenerated into hostile altercations; the Asiatics, apprehensive for +their personal safety, retired to Philippopolis in Thrace; and the +rival synods reciprocally hurled their spiritual thunders against their +enemies, whom they piously condemned as the enemies of the true God. +Their decrees were published and ratified in their respective provinces: +and Athanasius, who in the West was revered as a saint, was exposed as +a criminal to the abhorrence of the East. The council of Sardica reveals +the first symptoms of discord and schism between the Greek and Latin +churches which were separated by the accidental difference of faith, and +the permanent distinction of language. + +During his second exile in the West, Athanasius was frequently admitted +to the Imperial presence; at Capua, Lodi, Milan, Verona, Padua, +Aquileia, and Treves. The bishop of the diocese usually assisted at +these interviews; the master of the offices stood before the veil or +curtain of the sacred apartment; and the uniform moderation of the +primate might be attested by these respectable witnesses, to whose +evidence he solemnly appeals. Prudence would undoubtedly suggest the +mild and respectful tone that became a subject and a bishop. In these +familiar conferences with the sovereign of the West, Athanasius might +lament the error of Constantius, but he boldly arraigned the guilt of +his eunuchs and his Arian prelates; deplored the distress and danger of +the Catholic church; and excited Constans to emulate the zeal and glory +of his father. The emperor declared his resolution of employing the +troops and treasures of Europe in the orthodox cause; and signified, by +a concise and peremptory epistle to his brother Constantius, that unless +he consented to the immediate restoration of Athanasius, he himself, +with a fleet and army, would seat the archbishop on the throne of +Alexandria. But this religious war, so horrible to nature, was prevented +by the timely compliance of Constantius; and the emperor of the East +condescended to solicit a reconciliation with a subject whom he had +injured. Athanasius waited with decent pride, till he had received three +successive epistles full of the strongest assurances of the protection, +the favor, and the esteem of his sovereign; who invited him to resume +his episcopal seat, and who added the humiliating precaution of engaging +his principal ministers to attest the sincerity of his intentions. They +were manifested in a still more public manner, by the strict orders +which were despatched into Egypt to recall the adherents of Athanasius, +to restore their privileges, to proclaim their innocence, and to +erase from the public registers the illegal proceedings which had been +obtained during the prevalence of the Eusebian faction. After every +satisfaction and security had been given, which justice or even delicacy +could require, the primate proceeded, by slow journeys, through the +provinces of Thrace, Asia, and Syria; and his progress was marked by the +abject homage of the Oriental bishops, who excited his contempt without +deceiving his penetration. At Antioch he saw the emperor Constantius; +sustained, with modest firmness, the embraces and protestations of his +master, and eluded the proposal of allowing the Arians a single church +at Alexandria, by claiming, in the other cities of the empire, a similar +toleration for his own party; a reply which might have appeared just +and moderate in the mouth of an independent prince. The entrance of +the archbishop into his capital was a triumphal procession; absence and +persecution had endeared him to the Alexandrians; his authority, which +he exercised with rigor, was more firmly established; and his fame +was diffused from AEthiopia to Britain, over the whole extent of the +Christian world. + +But the subject who has reduced his prince to the necessity of +dissembling, can never expect a sincere and lasting forgiveness; and +the tragic fate of Constans soon deprived Athanasius of a powerful and +generous protector. The civil war between the assassin and the only +surviving brother of Constans, which afflicted the empire above three +years, secured an interval of repose to the Catholic church; and the +two contending parties were desirous to conciliate the friendship of a +bishop, who, by the weight of his personal authority, might determine +the fluctuating resolutions of an important province. He gave audience +to the ambassadors of the tyrant, with whom he was afterwards accused of +holding a secret correspondence; and the emperor Constantius repeatedly +assured his dearest father, the most reverend Athanasius, that, +notwithstanding the malicious rumors which were circulated by their +common enemies, he had inherited the sentiments, as well as the throne, +of his deceased brother. Gratitude and humanity would have disposed the +primate of Egypt to deplore the untimely fate of Constans, and to +abhor the guilt of Magnentius; but as he clearly understood that the +apprehensions of Constantius were his only safeguard, the fervor of his +prayers for the success of the righteous cause might perhaps be somewhat +abated. The ruin of Athanasius was no longer contrived by the obscure +malice of a few bigoted or angry bishops, who abused the authority of a +credulous monarch. The monarch himself avowed the resolution, which he +had so long suppressed, of avenging his private injuries; and the first +winter after his victory, which he passed at Arles, was employed against +an enemy more odious to him than the vanquished tyrant of Gaul. + +If the emperor had capriciously decreed the death of the most eminent +and virtuous citizen of the republic, the cruel order would have been +executed without hesitation, by the ministers of open violence or of +specious injustice. The caution, the delay, the difficulty with which +he proceeded in the condemnation and punishment of a popular bishop, +discovered to the world that the privileges of the church had already +revived a sense of order and freedom in the Roman government. The +sentence which was pronounced in the synod of Tyre, and subscribed by +a large majority of the Eastern bishops, had never been expressly +repealed; and as Athanasius had been once degraded from his episcopal +dignity by the judgment of his brethren, every subsequent act might be +considered as irregular, and even criminal. But the memory of the firm +and effectual support which the primate of Egypt had derived from the +attachment of the Western church, engaged Constantius to suspend the +execution of the sentence till he had obtained the concurrence of the +Latin bishops. Two years were consumed in ecclesiastical negotiations; +and the important cause between the emperor and one of his subjects was +solemnly debated, first in the synod of Arles, and afterwards in the +great council of Milan, which consisted of above three hundred bishops. +Their integrity was gradually undermined by the arguments of the Arians, +the dexterity of the eunuchs, and the pressing solicitations of a prince +who gratified his revenge at the expense of his dignity, and exposed his +own passions, whilst he influenced those of the clergy. Corruption, +the most infallible symptom of constitutional liberty, was successfully +practised; honors, gifts, and immunities were offered and accepted as +the price of an episcopal vote; and the condemnation of the Alexandrian +primate was artfully represented as the only measure which could restore +the peace and union of the Catholic church. The friends of Athanasius +were not, however, wanting to their leader, or to their cause. With +a manly spirit, which the sanctity of their character rendered less +dangerous, they maintained, in public debate, and in private conference +with the emperor, the eternal obligation of religion and justice. +They declared, that neither the hope of his favor, nor the fear of his +displeasure, should prevail on them to join in the condemnation of an +absent, an innocent, a respectable brother. They affirmed, with apparent +reason, that the illegal and obsolete decrees of the council of Tyre had +long since been tacitly abolished by the Imperial edicts, the honorable +reestablishment of the archbishop of Alexandria, and the silence or +recantation of his most clamorous adversaries. They alleged, that his +innocence had been attested by the unanimous bishops of Egypt, and had +been acknowledged in the councils of Rome and Sardica, by the impartial +judgment of the Latin church. They deplored the hard condition of +Athanasius, who, after enjoying so many years his seat, his reputation, +and the seeming confidence of his sovereign, was again called upon to +confute the most groundless and extravagant accusations. Their language +was specious; their conduct was honorable: but in this long and +obstinate contest, which fixed the eyes of the whole empire on a single +bishop, the ecclesiastical factions were prepared to sacrifice truth +and justice to the more interesting object of defending or removing +the intrepid champion of the Nicene faith. The Arians still thought it +prudent to disguise, in ambiguous language, their real sentiments and +designs; but the orthodox bishops, armed with the favor of the people, +and the decrees of a general council, insisted on every occasion, and +particularly at Milan, that their adversaries should purge themselves +from the suspicion of heresy, before they presumed to arraign the +conduct of the great Athanasius. + +But the voice of reason (if reason was indeed on the side of Athanasius) +was silenced by the clamors of a factious or venal majority; and the +councils of Arles and Milan were not dissolved, till the archbishop of +Alexandria had been solemnly condemned and deposed by the judgment of +the Western, as well as of the Eastern, church. The bishops who had +opposed, were required to subscribe, the sentence, and to unite in +religious communion with the suspected leaders of the adverse party. A +formulary of consent was transmitted by the messengers of state to +the absent bishops: and all those who refused to submit their private +opinion to the public and inspired wisdom of the councils of Arles and +Milan, were immediately banished by the emperor, who affected to execute +the decrees of the Catholic church. Among those prelates who led the +honorable band of confessors and exiles, Liberius of Rome, Osius of +Cordova, Paulinus of Treves, Dionysius of Milan, Eusebius of Vercellae, +Lucifer of Cagliari and Hilary of Poitiers, may deserve to be +particularly distinguished. The eminent station of Liberius, who +governed the capital of the empire; the personal merit and long +experience of the venerable Osius, who was revered as the favorite of +the great Constantine, and the father of the Nicene faith, placed those +prelates at the head of the Latin church: and their example, either of +submission or resistance, would probable be imitated by the episcopal +crowd. But the repeated attempts of the emperor to seduce or to +intimidate the bishops of Rome and Cordova, were for some time +ineffectual. The Spaniard declared himself ready to suffer under +Constantius, as he had suffered threescore years before under his +grandfather Maximian. The Roman, in the presence of his sovereign, +asserted the innocence of Athanasius and his own freedom. When he was +banished to Beraea in Thrace, he sent back a large sum which had been +offered for the accommodation of his journey; and insulted the court of +Milan by the haughty remark, that the emperor and his eunuchs might want +that gold to pay their soldiers and their bishops. The resolution of +Liberius and Osius was at length subdued by the hardships of exile and +confinement. The Roman pontiff purchased his return by some criminal +compliances; and afterwards expiated his guilt by a seasonable +repentance. Persuasion and violence were employed to extort the +reluctant signature of the decrepit bishop of Cordova, whose strength +was broken, and whose faculties were perhaps impaired by the weight of +a hundred years; and the insolent triumph of the Arians provoked some +of the orthodox party to treat with inhuman severity the character, or +rather the memory, of an unfortunate old man, to whose former services +Christianity itself was so deeply indebted. + +The fall of Liberius and Osius reflected a brighter lustre on the +firmness of those bishops who still adhered, with unshaken fidelity, +to the cause of Athanasius and religious truth. The ingenious malice +of their enemies had deprived them of the benefit of mutual comfort and +advice, separated those illustrious exiles into distant provinces, and +carefully selected the most inhospitable spots of a great empire. Yet +they soon experienced that the deserts of Libya, and the most barbarous +tracts of Cappadocia, were less inhospitable than the residence of those +cities in which an Arian bishop could satiate, without restraint, the +exquisite rancor of theological hatred. Their consolation was derived +from the consciousness of rectitude and independence, from the applause, +the visits, the letters, and the liberal alms of their adherents, and +from the satisfaction which they soon enjoyed of observing the intestine +divisions of the adversaries of the Nicene faith. Such was the nice +and capricious taste of the emperor Constantius; and so easily was +he offended by the slightest deviation from his imaginary standard of +Christian truth, that he persecuted, with equal zeal, those who defended +the consubstantiality, those who asserted the similar substance, and +those who denied the likeness of the Son of God. Three bishops, degraded +and banished for those adverse opinions, might possibly meet in the same +place of exile; and, according to the difference of their temper, might +either pity or insult the blind enthusiasm of their antagonists, whose +present sufferings would never be compensated by future happiness. + +The disgrace and exile of the orthodox bishops of the West were +designed as so many preparatory steps to the ruin of Athanasius himself. +Six-and-twenty months had elapsed, during which the Imperial court +secretly labored, by the most insidious arts, to remove him from +Alexandria, and to withdraw the allowance which supplied his popular +liberality. But when the primate of Egypt, deserted and proscribed by +the Latin church, was left destitute of any foreign support, Constantius +despatched two of his secretaries with a verbal commission to announce +and execute the order of his banishment. As the justice of the sentence +was publicly avowed by the whole party, the only motive which could +restrain Constantius from giving his messengers the sanction of a +written mandate, must be imputed to his doubt of the event; and to a +sense of the danger to which he might expose the second city, and the +most fertile province, of the empire, if the people should persist in +the resolution of defending, by force of arms, the innocence of their +spiritual father. Such extreme caution afforded Athanasius a specious +pretence respectfully to dispute the truth of an order, which he could +not reconcile, either with the equity, or with the former declarations, +of his gracious master. The civil powers of Egypt found themselves +inadequate to the task of persuading or compelling the primate to +abdicate his episcopal throne; and they were obliged to conclude +a treaty with the popular leaders of Alexandria, by which it was +stipulated, that all proceedings and all hostilities should be suspended +till the emperor's pleasure had been more distinctly ascertained. By +this seeming moderation, the Catholics were deceived into a false and +fatal security; while the legions of the Upper Egypt, and of Libya, +advanced, by secret orders and hasty marches, to besiege, or rather to +surprise, a capital habituated to sedition, and inflamed by religious +zeal. The position of Alexandria, between the sea and the Lake Mareotis, +facilitated the approach and landing of the troops; who were introduced +into the heart of the city, before any effectual measures could be taken +either to shut the gates or to occupy the important posts of defence. +At the hour of midnight, twenty-three days after the signature of the +treaty, Syrianus, duke of Egypt, at the head of five thousand soldiers, +armed and prepared for an assault, unexpectedly invested the church of +St. Theonas, where the archbishop, with a part of his clergy and people, +performed their nocturnal devotions. The doors of the sacred edifice +yielded to the impetuosity of the attack, which was accompanied with +every horrid circumstance of tumult and bloodshed; but, as the bodies of +the slain, and the fragments of military weapons, remained the next +day an unexceptionable evidence in the possession of the Catholics, +the enterprise of Syrianus may be considered as a successful irruption +rather than as an absolute conquest. The other churches of the city +were profaned by similar outrages; and, during at least four months, +Alexandria was exposed to the insults of a licentious army, stimulated +by the ecclesiastics of a hostile faction. Many of the faithful were +killed; who may deserve the name of martyrs, if their deaths were +neither provoked nor revenged; bishops and presbyters were treated with +cruel ignominy; consecrated virgins were stripped naked, scourged and +violated; the houses of wealthy citizens were plundered; and, under +the mask of religious zeal, lust, avarice, and private resentment +were gratified with impunity, and even with applause. The Pagans of +Alexandria, who still formed a numerous and discontented party, were +easily persuaded to desert a bishop whom they feared and esteemed. The +hopes of some peculiar favors, and the apprehension of being involved +in the general penalties of rebellion, engaged them to promise their +support to the destined successor of Athanasius, the famous George of +Cappadocia. The usurper, after receiving the consecration of an Arian +synod, was placed on the episcopal throne by the arms of Sebastian, who +had been appointed Count of Egypt for the execution of that important +design. In the use, as well as in the acquisition, of power, the tyrant, +George disregarded the laws of religion, of justice, and of humanity; +and the same scenes of violence and scandal which had been exhibited +in the capital, were repeated in more than ninety episcopal cities +of Egypt. Encouraged by success, Constantius ventured to approve the +conduct of his minister. By a public and passionate epistle, the emperor +congratulates the deliverance of Alexandria from a popular tyrant, who +deluded his blind votaries by the magic of his eloquence; expatiates on +the virtues and piety of the most reverend George, the elected bishop; +and aspires, as the patron and benefactor of the city to surpass the +fame of Alexander himself. But he solemnly declares his unalterable +resolution to pursue with fire and sword the seditious adherents of the +wicked Athanasius, who, by flying from justice, has confessed his guilt, +and escaped the ignominious death which he had so often deserved. + + + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part VI. + +Athanasius had indeed escaped from the most imminent dangers; and the +adventures of that extraordinary man deserve and fix our attention. On +the memorable night when the church of St. Theonas was invested by the +troops of Syrianus, the archbishop, seated on his throne, expected, +with calm and intrepid dignity, the approach of death. While the public +devotion was interrupted by shouts of rage and cries of terror, +he animated his trembling congregation to express their religious +confidence, by chanting one of the psalms of David which celebrates +the triumph of the God of Israel over the haughty and impious tyrant +of Egypt. The doors were at length burst open: a cloud of arrows was +discharged among the people; the soldiers, with drawn swords, rushed +forwards into the sanctuary; and the dreadful gleam of their arms was +reflected by the holy luminaries which burnt round the altar. Athanasius +still rejected the pious importunity of the monks and presbyters, who +were attached to his person; and nobly refused to desert his episcopal +station, till he had dismissed in safety the last of the congregation. +The darkness and tumult of the night favored the retreat of the +archbishop; and though he was oppressed by the waves of an agitated +multitude, though he was thrown to the ground, and left without sense or +motion, he still recovered his undaunted courage, and eluded the eager +search of the soldiers, who were instructed by their Arian guides, +that the head of Athanasius would be the most acceptable present to the +emperor. From that moment the primate of Egypt disappeared from the eyes +of his enemies, and remained above six years concealed in impenetrable +obscurity. + +The despotic power of his implacable enemy filled the whole extent of +the Roman world; and the exasperated monarch had endeavored, by a very +pressing epistle to the Christian princes of Ethiopia, * to exclude +Athanasius from the most remote and sequestered regions of the earth. +Counts, praefects, tribunes, whole armies, were successively employed to +pursue a bishop and a fugitive; the vigilance of the civil and military +powers was excited by the Imperial edicts; liberal rewards were promised +to the man who should produce Athanasius, either alive or dead; and the +most severe penalties were denounced against those who should dare to +protect the public enemy. But the deserts of Thebais were now peopled by +a race of wild, yet submissive fanatics, who preferred the commands of +their abbot to the laws of their sovereign. The numerous disciples of +Antony and Pachomius received the fugitive primate as their father, +admired the patience and humility with which he conformed to their +strictest institutions, collected every word which dropped from his lips +as the genuine effusions of inspired wisdom; and persuaded themselves +that their prayers, their fasts, and their vigils, were less meritorious +than the zeal which they expressed, and the dangers which they braved, +in the defence of truth and innocence. The monasteries of Egypt were +seated in lonely and desolate places, on the summit of mountains, or in +the islands of the Nile; and the sacred horn or trumpet of Tabenne +was the well-known signal which assembled several thousand robust and +determined monks, who, for the most part, had been the peasants of the +adjacent country. When their dark retreats were invaded by a military +force, which it was impossible to resist, they silently stretched out +their necks to the executioner; and supported their national character, +that tortures could never wrest from an Egyptian the confession of +a secret which he was resolved not to disclose. The archbishop of +Alexandria, for whose safety they eagerly devoted their lives, was +lost among a uniform and well-disciplined multitude; and on the nearer +approach of danger, he was swiftly removed, by their officious hands, +from one place of concealment to another, till he reached the formidable +deserts, which the gloomy and credulous temper of superstition had +peopled with daemons and savage monsters. The retirement of Athanasius, +which ended only with the life of Constantius, was spent, for the most +part, in the society of the monks, who faithfully served him as guards, +as secretaries, and as messengers; but the importance of maintaining a +more intimate connection with the Catholic party tempted him, whenever +the diligence of the pursuit was abated, to emerge from the desert, +to introduce himself into Alexandria, and to trust his person to the +discretion of his friends and adherents. His various adventures might +have furnished the subject of a very entertaining romance. He was once +secreted in a dry cistern, which he had scarcely left before he was +betrayed by the treachery of a female slave; and he was once concealed +in a still more extraordinary asylum, the house of a virgin, only twenty +years of age, and who was celebrated in the whole city for her exquisite +beauty. At the hour of midnight, as she related the story many years +afterwards, she was surprised by the appearance of the archbishop in a +loose undress, who, advancing with hasty steps, conjured her to afford +him the protection which he had been directed by a celestial vision to +seek under her hospitable roof. The pious maid accepted and preserved +the sacred pledge which was intrusted to her prudence and courage. +Without imparting the secret to any one, she instantly conducted +Athanasius into her most secret chamber, and watched over his safety +with the tenderness of a friend and the assiduity of a servant. As +long as the danger continued, she regularly supplied him with books and +provisions, washed his feet, managed his correspondence, and dexterously +concealed from the eye of suspicion this familiar and solitary +intercourse between a saint whose character required the most +unblemished chastity, and a female whose charms might excite the most +dangerous emotions. During the six years of persecution and exile, +Athanasius repeated his visits to his fair and faithful companion; and +the formal declaration, that he saw the councils of Rimini and Seleucia, +forces us to believe that he was secretly present at the time and place +of their convocation. The advantage of personally negotiating with his +friends, and of observing and improving the divisions of his enemies, +might justify, in a prudent statesman, so bold and dangerous an +enterprise: and Alexandria was connected by trade and navigation with +every seaport of the Mediterranean. From the depth of his inaccessible +retreat the intrepid primate waged an incessant and offensive war +against the protector of the Arians; and his seasonable writings, which +were diligently circulated and eagerly perused, contributed to unite and +animate the orthodox party. In his public apologies, which he addressed +to the emperor himself, he sometimes affected the praise of moderation; +whilst at the same time, in secret and vehement invectives, he exposed +Constantius as a weak and wicked prince, the executioner of his family, +the tyrant of the republic, and the Antichrist of the church. In the +height of his prosperity, the victorious monarch, who had chastised the +rashness of Gallus, and suppressed the revolt of Sylvanus, who had taken +the diadem from the head of Vetranio, and vanquished in the field the +legions of Magnentius, received from an invisible hand a wound, which he +could neither heal nor revenge; and the son of Constantine was the +first of the Christian princes who experienced the strength of those +principles, which, in the cause of religion, could resist the most +violent exertions of the civil power. + +The persecution of Athanasius, and of so many respectable bishops, who +suffered for the truth of their opinions, or at least for the integrity +of their conscience, was a just subject of indignation and discontent +to all Christians, except those who were blindly devoted to the Arian +faction. The people regretted the loss of their faithful pastors, whose +banishment was usually followed by the intrusion of a stranger into the +episcopal chair; and loudly complained, that the right of election was +violated, and that they were condemned to obey a mercenary usurper, +whose person was unknown, and whose principles were suspected. The +Catholics might prove to the world, that they were not involved in +the guilt and heresy of their ecclesiastical governor, by publicly +testifying their dissent, or by totally separating themselves from +his communion. The first of these methods was invented at Antioch, +and practised with such success, that it was soon diffused over the +Christian world. The doxology or sacred hymn, which celebrates the glory +of the Trinity, is susceptible of very nice, but material, inflections; +and the substance of an orthodox, or an heretical, creed, may be +expressed by the difference of a disjunctive, or a copulative, particle. +Alternate responses, and a more regular psalmody, were introduced into +the public service by Flavianus and Diodorus, two devout and active +laymen, who were attached to the Nicene faith. Under their conduct +a swarm of monks issued from the adjacent desert, bands of +well-disciplined singers were stationed in the cathedral of Antioch, the +Glory to the Father, And the Son, And the Holy Ghost, was triumphantly +chanted by a full chorus of voices; and the Catholics insulted, by the +purity of their doctrine, the Arian prelate, who had usurped the throne +of the venerable Eustathius. The same zeal which inspired their songs +prompted the more scrupulous members of the orthodox party to form +separate assemblies, which were governed by the presbyters, till the +death of their exiled bishop allowed the election and consecration of a +new episcopal pastor. The revolutions of the court multiplied the number +of pretenders; and the same city was often disputed, under the reign +of Constantius, by two, or three, or even four, bishops, who exercised +their spiritual jurisdiction over their respective followers, and +alternately lost and regained the temporal possessions of the church. +The abuse of Christianity introduced into the Roman government new +causes of tyranny and sedition; the bands of civil society were torn +asunder by the fury of religious factions; and the obscure citizen, +who might calmly have surveyed the elevation and fall of successive +emperors, imagined and experienced, that his own life and fortune were +connected with the interests of a popular ecclesiastic. The example of +the two capitals, Rome and Constantinople, may serve to represent the +state of the empire, and the temper of mankind, under the reign of the +sons of Constantine. + +I. The Roman pontiff, as long as he maintained his station and his +principles, was guarded by the warm attachment of a great people; and +could reject with scorn the prayers, the menaces, and the oblations of +an heretical prince. When the eunuchs had secretly pronounced the exile +of Liberius, the well-grounded apprehension of a tumult engaged them to +use the utmost precautions in the execution of the sentence. The capital +was invested on every side, and the praefect was commanded to seize the +person of the bishop, either by stratagem or by open force. The order +was obeyed, and Liberius, with the greatest difficulty, at the hour of +midnight, was swiftly conveyed beyond the reach of the Roman people, +before their consternation was turned into rage. As soon as they were +informed of his banishment into Thrace, a general assembly was convened, +and the clergy of Rome bound themselves, by a public and solemn oath, +never to desert their bishop, never to acknowledge the usurper Faelix; +who, by the influence of the eunuchs, had been irregularly chosen and +consecrated within the walls of a profane palace. At the end of two +years, their pious obstinacy subsisted entire and unshaken; and +when Constantius visited Rome, he was assailed by the importunate +solicitations of a people, who had preserved, as the last remnant +of their ancient freedom, the right of treating their sovereign with +familiar insolence. The wives of many of the senators and most honorable +citizens, after pressing their husbands to intercede in favor of +Liberius, were advised to undertake a commission, which in their hands +would be less dangerous, and might prove more successful. The emperor +received with politeness these female deputies, whose wealth and dignity +were displayed in the magnificence of their dress and ornaments: he +admired their inflexible resolution of following their beloved pastor +to the most distant regions of the earth; and consented that the two +bishops, Liberius and Faelix, should govern in peace their respective +congregations. But the ideas of toleration were so repugnant to the +practice, and even to the sentiments, of those times, that when the +answer of Constantius was publicly read in the Circus of Rome, so +reasonable a project of accommodation was rejected with contempt and +ridicule. The eager vehemence which animated the spectators in the +decisive moment of a horse-race, was now directed towards a different +object; and the Circus resounded with the shout of thousands, who +repeatedly exclaimed, "One God, One Christ, One Bishop!" The zeal of the +Roman people in the cause of Liberius was not confined to words alone; +and the dangerous and bloody sedition which they excited soon after the +departure of Constantius determined that prince to accept the submission +of the exiled prelate, and to restore him to the undivided dominion of +the capital. After some ineffectual resistance, his rival was expelled +from the city by the permission of the emperor and the power of the +opposite faction; the adherents of Faelix were inhumanly murdered in the +streets, in the public places, in the baths, and even in the churches; +and the face of Rome, upon the return of a Christian bishop, renewed the +horrid image of the massacres of Marius, and the proscriptions of Sylla. + +II. Notwithstanding the rapid increase of Christians under the reign of +the Flavian family, Rome, Alexandria, and the other great cities of the +empire, still contained a strong and powerful faction of Infidels, who +envied the prosperity, and who ridiculed, even in their theatres, the +theological disputes of the church. Constantinople alone enjoyed the +advantage of being born and educated in the bosom of the faith. The +capital of the East had never been polluted by the worship of idols; +and the whole body of the people had deeply imbibed the opinions, the +virtues, and the passions, which distinguished the Christians of +that age from the rest of mankind. After the death of Alexander, the +episcopal throne was disputed by Paul and Macedonius. By their zeal and +abilities they both deserved the eminent station to which they aspired; +and if the moral character of Macedonius was less exceptionable, his +competitor had the advantage of a prior election and a more orthodox +doctrine. His firm attachment to the Nicene creed, which has given Paul +a place in the calendar among saints and martyrs, exposed him to the +resentment of the Arians. In the space of fourteen years he was five +times driven from his throne; to which he was more frequently restored +by the violence of the people, than by the permission of the prince; and +the power of Macedonius could be secured only by the death of his rival. +The unfortunate Paul was dragged in chains from the sandy deserts of +Mesopotamia to the most desolate places of Mount Taurus, confined in +a dark and narrow dungeon, left six days without food, and at length +strangled, by the order of Philip, one of the principal ministers of the +emperor Constantius. The first blood which stained the new capital was +spilt in this ecclesiastical contest; and many persons were slain on +both sides, in the furious and obstinate seditions of the people. The +commission of enforcing a sentence of banishment against Paul had been +intrusted to Hermogenes, the master-general of the cavalry; but the +execution of it was fatal to himself. The Catholics rose in the defence +of their bishop; the palace of Hermogenes was consumed; the first +military officer of the empire was dragged by the heels through the +streets of Constantinople, and, after he expired, his lifeless corpse +was exposed to their wanton insults. The fate of Hermogenes instructed +Philip, the Praetorian praefect, to act with more precaution on a similar +occasion. In the most gentle and honorable terms, he required the +attendance of Paul in the baths of Zeuxippus, which had a private +communication with the palace and the sea. A vessel, which lay ready at +the garden stairs, immediately hoisted sail; and, while the people were +still ignorant of the meditated sacrilege, their bishop was already +embarked on his voyage to Thessalonica. They soon beheld, with surprise +and indignation, the gates of the palace thrown open, and the usurper +Macedonius seated by the side of the praefect on a lofty chariot, which +was surrounded by troops of guards with drawn swords. The military +procession advanced towards the cathedral; the Arians and the Catholics +eagerly rushed to occupy that important post; and three thousand one +hundred and fifty persons lost their lives in the confusion of the +tumult. Macedonius, who was supported by a regular force, obtained a +decisive victory; but his reign was disturbed by clamor and sedition; +and the causes which appeared the least connected with the subject of +dispute, were sufficient to nourish and to kindle the flame of civil +discord. As the chapel in which the body of the great Constantine had +been deposited was in a ruinous condition, the bishop transported those +venerable remains into the church of St. Acacius. This prudent and even +pious measure was represented as a wicked profanation by the whole party +which adhered to the Homoousian doctrine. The factions immediately flew +to arms, the consecrated ground was used as their field of battle; and +one of the ecclesiastical historians has observed, as a real fact, not +as a figure of rhetoric, that the well before the church overflowed with +a stream of blood, which filled the porticos and the adjacent courts. +The writer who should impute these tumults solely to a religious +principle, would betray a very imperfect knowledge of human nature; yet +it must be confessed that the motive which misled the sincerity of +zeal, and the pretence which disguised the licentiousness of passion, +suppressed the remorse which, in another cause, would have succeeded to +the rage of the Christians at Constantinople. + + + +Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The Church.--Part VII. + +The cruel and arbitrary disposition of Constantius, which did not always +require the provocations of guilt and resistance, was justly exasperated +by the tumults of his capital, and the criminal behavior of a faction, +which opposed the authority and religion of their sovereign. The +ordinary punishments of death, exile, and confiscation, were inflicted +with partial vigor; and the Greeks still revere the holy memory of two +clerks, a reader, and a sub-deacon, who were accused of the murder of +Hermogenes, and beheaded at the gates of Constantinople. By an edict of +Constantius against the Catholics which has not been judged worthy of a +place in the Theodosian code, those who refused to communicate with the +Arian bishops, and particularly with Macedonius, were deprived of the +immunities of ecclesiastics, and of the rights of Christians; they +were compelled to relinquish the possession of the churches; and were +strictly prohibited from holding their assemblies within the walls of +the city. The execution of this unjust law, in the provinces of Thrace +and Asia Minor, was committed to the zeal of Macedonius; the civil and +military powers were directed to obey his commands; and the cruelties +exercised by this Semi-Arian tyrant in the support of the Homoiousion, +exceeded the commission, and disgraced the reign, of Constantius. The +sacraments of the church were administered to the reluctant victims, +who denied the vocation, and abhorred the principles, of Macedonius. +The rites of baptism were conferred on women and children, who, for that +purpose, had been torn from the arms of their friends and parents; the +mouths of the communicants were held open by a wooden engine, while the +consecrated bread was forced down their throat; the breasts of tender +virgins were either burnt with red-hot egg-shells, or inhumanly +compressed between sharp and heavy boards. The Novatians of +Constantinople and the adjacent country, by their firm attachment to +the Homoousian standard, deserved to be confounded with the Catholics +themselves. Macedonius was informed, that a large district of +Paphlagonia was almost entirely inhabited by those sectaries. He +resolved either to convert or to extirpate them; and as he distrusted, +on this occasion, the efficacy of an ecclesiastical mission, he +commanded a body of four thousand legionaries to march against the +rebels, and to reduce the territory of Mantinium under his spiritual +dominion. The Novatian peasants, animated by despair and religious fury, +boldly encountered the invaders of their country; and though many of +the Paphlagonians were slain, the Roman legions were vanquished by an +irregular multitude, armed only with scythes and axes; and, except a few +who escaped by an ignominious flight, four thousand soldiers were left +dead on the field of battle. The successor of Constantius has expressed, +in a concise but lively manner, some of the theological calamities which +afflicted the empire, and more especially the East, in the reign of +a prince who was the slave of his own passions, and of those of his +eunuchs: "Many were imprisoned, and persecuted, and driven into +exile. Whole troops of those who are styled heretics, were massacred, +particularly at Cyzicus, and at Samosata. In Paphlagonia, Bithynia, +Galatia, and in many other provinces, towns and villages were laid +waste, and utterly destroyed." + +While the flames of the Arian controversy consumed the vitals of the +empire, the African provinces were infested by their peculiar enemies, +the savage fanatics, who, under the name of Circumcellions, formed the +strength and scandal of the Donatist party. The severe execution of the +laws of Constantine had excited a spirit of discontent and resistance, +the strenuous efforts of his son Constans, to restore the unity of the +church, exasperated the sentiments of mutual hatred, which had first +occasioned the separation; and the methods of force and corruption +employed by the two Imperial commissioners, Paul and Macarius, furnished +the schismatics with a specious contrast between the maxims of the +apostles and the conduct of their pretended successors. The peasants who +inhabited the villages of Numidia and Mauritania, were a ferocious race, +who had been imperfectly reduced under the authority of the Roman laws; +who were imperfectly converted to the Christian faith; but who were +actuated by a blind and furious enthusiasm in the cause of their +Donatist teachers. They indignantly supported the exile of their +bishops, the demolition of their churches, and the interruption of their +secret assemblies. The violence of the officers of justice, who were +usually sustained by a military guard, was sometimes repelled with equal +violence; and the blood of some popular ecclesiastics, which had been +shed in the quarrel, inflamed their rude followers with an eager desire +of revenging the death of these holy martyrs. By their own cruelty and +rashness, the ministers of persecution sometimes provoked their fate; +and the guilt of an accidental tumult precipitated the criminals into +despair and rebellion. Driven from their native villages, the Donatist +peasants assembled in formidable gangs on the edge of the Getulian +desert; and readily exchanged the habits of labor for a life of idleness +and rapine, which was consecrated by the name of religion, and faintly +condemned by the doctors of the sect. The leaders of the Circumcellions +assumed the title of captains of the saints; their principal weapon, as +they were indifferently provided with swords and spears, was a huge and +weighty club, which they termed an Israelite; and the well-known sound +of "Praise be to God," which they used as their cry of war, diffused +consternation over the unarmed provinces of Africa. At first their +depredations were colored by the plea of necessity; but they soon +exceeded the measure of subsistence, indulged without control their +intemperance and avarice, burnt the villages which they had pillaged, +and reigned the licentious tyrants of the open country. The occupations +of husbandry, and the administration of justice, were interrupted; and +as the Circumcellions pretended to restore the primitive equality of +mankind, and to reform the abuses of civil society, they opened a secure +asylum for the slaves and debtors, who flocked in crowds to their holy +standard. When they were not resisted, they usually contented themselves +with plunder, but the slightest opposition provoked them to acts of +violence and murder; and some Catholic priests, who had imprudently +signalized their zeal, were tortured by the fanatics with the most +refined and wanton barbarity. The spirit of the Circumcellions was not +always exerted against their defenceless enemies; they engaged, and +sometimes defeated, the troops of the province; and in the bloody action +of Bagai, they attacked in the open field, but with unsuccessful valor, +an advanced guard of the Imperial cavalry. The Donatists who were taken +in arms, received, and they soon deserved, the same treatment which +might have been shown to the wild beasts of the desert. The captives +died, without a murmur, either by the sword, the axe, or the fire; and +the measures of retaliation were multiplied in a rapid proportion, which +aggravated the horrors of rebellion, and excluded the hope of mutual +forgiveness. In the beginning of the present century, the example of the +Circumcellions has been renewed in the persecution, the boldness, the +crimes, and the enthusiasm of the Camisards; and if the fanatics of +Languedoc surpassed those of Numidia, by their military achievements, +the Africans maintained their fierce independence with more resolution +and perseverance. + +Such disorders are the natural effects of religious tyranny, but the +rage of the Donatists was inflamed by a frenzy of a very extraordinary +kind; and which, if it really prevailed among them in so extravagant a +degree, cannot surely be paralleled in any country or in any age. Many +of these fanatics were possessed with the horror of life, and the desire +of martyrdom; and they deemed it of little moment by what means, or +by what hands, they perished, if their conduct was sanctified by the +intention of devoting themselves to the glory of the true faith, and +the hope of eternal happiness. Sometimes they rudely disturbed the +festivals, and profaned the temples of Paganism, with the design of +exciting the most zealous of the idolaters to revenge the insulted +honor of their gods. They sometimes forced their way into the courts +of justice, and compelled the affrighted judge to give orders for their +immediate execution. They frequently stopped travellers on the public +highways, and obliged them to inflict the stroke of martyrdom, by the +promise of a reward, if they consented, and by the threat of instant +death, if they refused to grant so very singular a favor. When they were +disappointed of every other resource, they announced the day on +which, in the presence of their friends and brethren, they should east +themselves headlong from some lofty rock; and many precipices were +shown, which had acquired fame by the number of religious suicides. +In the actions of these desperate enthusiasts, who were admired by one +party as the martyrs of God, and abhorred by the other as the victims of +Satan, an impartial philosopher may discover the influence and the last +abuse of that inflexible spirit which was originally derived from the +character and principles of the Jewish nation. + +The simple narrative of the intestine divisions, which distracted the +peace, and dishonored the triumph, of the church, will confirm the +remark of a Pagan historian, and justify the complaint of a venerable +bishop. The experience of Ammianus had convinced him, that the enmity of +the Christians towards each other, surpassed the fury of savage beasts +against man; and Gregory Nazianzen most pathetically laments, that the +kingdom of heaven was converted, by discord, into the image of chaos, of +a nocturnal tempest, and of hell itself. The fierce and partial writers +of the times, ascribing all virtue to themselves, and imputing all guilt +to their adversaries, have painted the battle of the angels and daemons. +Our calmer reason will reject such pure and perfect monsters of vice +or sanctity, and will impute an equal, or at least an indiscriminate, +measure of good and evil to the hostile sectaries, who assumed and +bestowed the appellations of orthodox and heretics. They had been +educated in the same religion and the same civil society. Their hopes +and fears in the present, or in a future life, were balanced in the +same proportion. On either side, the error might be innocent, the +faith sincere, the practice meritorious or corrupt. Their passions were +excited by similar objects; and they might alternately abuse the +favor of the court, or of the people. The metaphysical opinions of the +Athanasians and the Arians could not influence their moral character; +and they were alike actuated by the intolerant spirit which has been +extracted from the pure and simple maxims of the gospel. + +A modern writer, who, with a just confidence, has prefixed to his own +history the honorable epithets of political and philosophical, accuses +the timid prudence of Montesquieu, for neglecting to enumerate, among +the causes of the decline of the empire, a law of Constantine, by which +the exercise of the Pagan worship was absolutely suppressed, and a +considerable part of his subjects was left destitute of priests, +of temples, and of any public religion. The zeal of the philosophic +historian for the rights of mankind, has induced him to acquiesce in +the ambiguous testimony of those ecclesiastics, who have too lightly +ascribed to their favorite hero the merit of a general persecution. +Instead of alleging this imaginary law, which would have blazed in +the front of the Imperial codes, we may safely appeal to the original +epistle, which Constantine addressed to the followers of the ancient +religion; at a time when he no longer disguised his conversion, nor +dreaded the rivals of his throne. He invites and exhorts, in the most +pressing terms, the subjects of the Roman empire to imitate the example +of their master; but he declares, that those who still refuse to open +their eyes to the celestial light, may freely enjoy their temples and +their fancied gods. A report, that the ceremonies of paganism were +suppressed, is formally contradicted by the emperor himself, who wisely +assigns, as the principle of his moderation, the invincible force of +habit, of prejudice, and of superstition. Without violating the sanctity +of his promise, without alarming the fears of the Pagans, the artful +monarch advanced, by slow and cautious steps, to undermine the irregular +and decayed fabric of polytheism. The partial acts of severity which +he occasionally exercised, though they were secretly promoted by a +Christian zeal, were colored by the fairest pretences of justice and the +public good; and while Constantine designed to ruin the foundations, he +seemed to reform the abuses, of the ancient religion. After the example +of the wisest of his predecessors, he condemned, under the most rigorous +penalties, the occult and impious arts of divination; which excited +the vain hopes, and sometimes the criminal attempts, of those who were +discontented with their present condition. An ignominious silence was +imposed on the oracles, which had been publicly convicted of fraud +and falsehood; the effeminate priests of the Nile were abolished; and +Constantine discharged the duties of a Roman censor, when he gave orders +for the demolition of several temples of Phnicia; in which every mode of +prostitution was devoutly practised in the face of day, and to the honor +of Venus. The Imperial city of Constantinople was, in some measure, +raised at the expense, and was adorned with the spoils, of the opulent +temples of Greece and Asia; the sacred property was confiscated; the +statues of gods and heroes were transported, with rude familiarity, +among a people who considered them as objects, not of adoration, but +of curiosity; the gold and silver were restored to circulation; and +the magistrates, the bishops, and the eunuchs, improved the fortunate +occasion of gratifying, at once, their zeal, their avarice, and their +resentment. But these depredations were confined to a small part of the +Roman world; and the provinces had been long since accustomed to +endure the same sacrilegious rapine, from the tyranny of princes and +proconsuls, who could not be suspected of any design to subvert the +established religion. + +The sons of Constantine trod in the footsteps of their father, with more +zeal, and with less discretion. The pretences of rapine and oppression +were insensibly multiplied; every indulgence was shown to the +illegal behavior of the Christians; every doubt was explained to +the disadvantage of Paganism; and the demolition of the temples was +celebrated as one of the auspicious events of the reign of Constans and +Constantius. The name of Constantius is prefixed to a concise law, which +might have superseded the necessity of any future prohibitions. "It +is our pleasure, that in all places, and in all cities, the temples be +immediately shut, and carefully guarded, that none may have the power +of offending. It is likewise our pleasure, that all our subjects should +abstain from sacrifices. If any one should be guilty of such an act, +let him feel the sword of vengeance, and after his execution, let +his property be confiscated to the public use. We denounce the same +penalties against the governors of the provinces, if they neglect to +punish the criminals." But there is the strongest reason to believe, +that this formidable edict was either composed without being published, +or was published without being executed. The evidence of facts, and the +monuments which are still extant of brass and marble, continue to prove +the public exercise of the Pagan worship during the whole reign of the +sons of Constantine. In the East, as well as in the West, in cities, as +well as in the country, a great number of temples were respected, or at +least were spared; and the devout multitude still enjoyed the luxury of +sacrifices, of festivals, and of processions, by the permission, or +by the connivance, of the civil government. About four years after the +supposed date of this bloody edict, Constantius visited the temples of +Rome; and the decency of his behavior is recommended by a pagan orator +as an example worthy of the imitation of succeeding princes. "That +emperor," says Symmachus, "suffered the privileges of the vestal virgins +to remain inviolate; he bestowed the sacerdotal dignities on the nobles +of Rome, granted the customary allowance to defray the expenses of the +public rites and sacrifices; and, though he had embraced a different +religion, he never attempted to deprive the empire of the sacred worship +of antiquity." The senate still presumed to consecrate, by solemn +decrees, the divine memory of their sovereigns; and Constantine himself +was associated, after his death, to those gods whom he had renounced and +insulted during his life. The title, the ensigns, the prerogatives, of +sovereign pontiff, which had been instituted by Numa, and assumed +by Augustus, were accepted, without hesitation, by seven Christian +emperors; who were invested with a more absolute authority over the +religion which they had deserted, than over that which they professed. + +The divisions of Christianity suspended the ruin of Paganism; and the +holy war against the infidels was less vigorously prosecuted by princes +and bishops, who were more immediately alarmed by the guilt and danger +of domestic rebellion. The extirpation of idolatry might have been +justified by the established principles of intolerance: but the hostile +sects, which alternately reigned in the Imperial court were mutually +apprehensive of alienating, and perhaps exasperating, the minds of +a powerful, though declining faction. Every motive of authority +and fashion, of interest and reason, now militated on the side of +Christianity; but two or three generations elapsed, before their +victorious influence was universally felt. The religion which had +so long and so lately been established in the Roman empire was still +revered by a numerous people, less attached indeed to speculative +opinion, than to ancient custom. The honors of the state and army +were indifferently bestowed on all the subjects of Constantine and +Constantius; and a considerable portion of knowledge and wealth and +valor was still engaged in the service of polytheism. The superstition +of the senator and of the peasant, of the poet and the philosopher, was +derived from very different causes, but they met with equal devotion +in the temples of the gods. Their zeal was insensibly provoked by the +insulting triumph of a proscribed sect; and their hopes were revived by +the well-grounded confidence, that the presumptive heir of the empire, +a young and valiant hero, who had delivered Gaul from the arms of the +Barbarians, had secretly embraced the religion of his ancestors. + + + +Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor.--Part I Julian Is Declared +Emperor By The Legions Of Gaul.--His March And Success.--The Death Of +Constantius.--Civil Administration Of Julian. + +While the Romans languished under the ignominious tyranny of eunuchs +and bishops, the praises of Julian were repeated with transport in every +part of the empire, except in the palace of Constantius. The barbarians +of Germany had felt, and still dreaded, the arms of the young Caesar; his +soldiers were the companions of his victory; the grateful provincials +enjoyed the blessings of his reign; but the favorites, who had opposed +his elevation, were offended by his virtues; and they justly considered +the friend of the people as the enemy of the court. As long as the fame +of Julian was doubtful, the buffoons of the palace, who were skilled in +the language of satire, tried the efficacy of those arts which they +had so often practised with success. They easily discovered, that his +simplicity was not exempt from affectation: the ridiculous epithets of +a hairy savage, of an ape invested with the purple, were applied to the +dress and person of the philosophic warrior; and his modest despatches +were stigmatized as the vain and elaborate fictions of a loquacious +Greek, a speculative soldier, who had studied the art of war amidst +the groves of the academy. The voice of malicious folly was at length +silenced by the shouts of victory; the conqueror of the Franks and +Alemanni could no longer be painted as an object of contempt; and the +monarch himself was meanly ambitious of stealing from his lieutenant +the honorable reward of his labors. In the letters crowned with laurel, +which, according to ancient custom, were addressed to the provinces, the +name of Julian was omitted. "Constantius had made his dispositions in +person; he had signalized his valor in the foremost ranks; his military +conduct had secured the victory; and the captive king of the barbarians +was presented to him on the field of battle," from which he was at +that time distant about forty days' journey. So extravagant a fable +was incapable, however, of deceiving the public credulity, or even of +satisfying the pride of the emperor himself. Secretly conscious that +the applause and favor of the Romans accompanied the rising fortunes of +Julian, his discontented mind was prepared to receive the subtle poison +of those artful sycophants, who colored their mischievous designs with +the fairest appearances of truth and candor. Instead of depreciating the +merits of Julian, they acknowledged, and even exaggerated, his popular +fame, superior talents, and important services. But they darkly +insinuated, that the virtues of the Caesar might instantly be converted +into the most dangerous crimes, if the inconstant multitude should +prefer their inclinations to their duty; or if the general of a +victorious army should be tempted from his allegiance by the hopes of +revenge and independent greatness. The personal fears of Constantius +were interpreted by his council as a laudable anxiety for the public +safety; whilst in private, and perhaps in his own breast, he disguised, +under the less odious appellation of fear, the sentiments of hatred +and envy, which he had secretly conceived for the inimitable virtues of +Julian. + +The apparent tranquillity of Gaul, and the imminent danger of the +eastern provinces, offered a specious pretence for the design which was +artfully concerted by the Imperial ministers. They resolved to disarm +the Caesar; to recall those faithful troops who guarded his person and +dignity; and to employ, in a distant war against the Persian monarch, +the hardy veterans who had vanquished, on the banks of the Rhine, the +fiercest nations of Germany. While Julian used the laborious hours of +his winter quarters at Paris in the administration of power, which, in +his hands, was the exercise of virtue, he was surprised by the hasty +arrival of a tribune and a notary, with positive orders, from the +emperor, which they were directed to execute, and he was commanded not +to oppose. Constantius signified his pleasure, that four entire legions, +the Celtae, and Petulants, the Heruli, and the Batavians, should be +separated from the standard of Julian, under which they had acquired +their fame and discipline; that in each of the remaining bands three +hundred of the bravest youths should be selected; and that this numerous +detachment, the strength of the Gallic army, should instantly begin +their march, and exert their utmost diligence to arrive, before the +opening of the campaign, on the frontiers of Persia. The Caesar foresaw +and lamented the consequences of this fatal mandate. Most of the +auxiliaries, who engaged their voluntary service, had stipulated, that +they should never be obliged to pass the Alps. The public faith of Rome, +and the personal honor of Julian, had been pledged for the observance +of this condition. Such an act of treachery and oppression would destroy +the confidence, and excite the resentment, of the independent warriors +of Germany, who considered truth as the noblest of their virtues, and +freedom as the most valuable of their possessions. The legionaries, +who enjoyed the title and privileges of Romans, were enlisted for the +general defence of the republic; but those mercenary troops heard with +cold indifference the antiquated names of the republic and of Rome. +Attached, either from birth or long habit, to the climate and manners of +Gaul, they loved and admired Julian; they despised, and perhaps hated, +the emperor; they dreaded the laborious march, the Persian arrows, and +the burning deserts of Asia. They claimed as their own the country which +they had saved; and excused their want of spirit, by pleading the sacred +and more immediate duty of protecting their families and friends. +The apprehensions of the Gauls were derived from the knowledge of the +impending and inevitable danger. As soon as the provinces were exhausted +of their military strength, the Germans would violate a treaty which had +been imposed on their fears; and notwithstanding the abilities and valor +of Julian, the general of a nominal army, to whom the public calamities +would be imputed, must find himself, after a vain resistance, either a +prisoner in the camp of the barbarians, or a criminal in the palace of +Constantius. If Julian complied with the orders which he had received, +he subscribed his own destruction, and that of a people who deserved +his affection. But a positive refusal was an act of rebellion, and +a declaration of war. The inexorable jealousy of the emperor, the +peremptory, and perhaps insidious, nature of his commands, left not any +room for a fair apology, or candid interpretation; and the dependent +station of the Caesar scarcely allowed him to pause or to deliberate. +Solitude increased the perplexity of Julian; he could no longer apply to +the faithful counsels of Sallust, who had been removed from his office +by the judicious malice of the eunuchs: he could not even enforce his +representations by the concurrence of the ministers, who would have +been afraid or ashamed to approve the ruin of Gaul. The moment had been +chosen, when Lupicinus, the general of the cavalry, was despatched into +Britain, to repulse the inroads of the Scots and Picts; and Florentius +was occupied at Vienna by the assessment of the tribute. The latter, a +crafty and corrupt statesman, declining to assume a responsible part on +this dangerous occasion, eluded the pressing and repeated invitations +of Julian, who represented to him, that in every important measure, the +presence of the praefect was indispensable in the council of the prince. +In the mean while the Caesar was oppressed by the rude and importunate +solicitations of the Imperial messengers, who presumed to suggest, that +if he expected the return of his ministers, he would charge himself with +the guilt of the delay, and reserve for them the merit of the execution. +Unable to resist, unwilling to comply, Julian expressed, in the most +serious terms, his wish, and even his intention, of resigning the +purple, which he could not preserve with honor, but which he could not +abdicate with safety. + +After a painful conflict, Julian was compelled to acknowledge, that +obedience was the virtue of the most eminent subject, and that the +sovereign alone was entitled to judge of the public welfare. He issued +the necessary orders for carrying into execution the commands of +Constantius; a part of the troops began their march for the Alps; +and the detachments from the several garrisons moved towards their +respective places of assembly. They advanced with difficulty through the +trembling and affrighted crowds of provincials, who attempted to excite +their pity by silent despair, or loud lamentations, while the wives of +the soldiers, holding their infants in their arms, accused the desertion +of their husbands, in the mixed language of grief, of tenderness, and +of indignation. This scene of general distress afflicted the humanity +of the Caesar; he granted a sufficient number of post-wagons to transport +the wives and families of the soldiers, endeavored to alleviate the +hardships which he was constrained to inflict, and increased, by the +most laudable arts, his own popularity, and the discontent of the exiled +troops. The grief of an armed multitude is soon converted into rage; +their licentious murmurs, which every hour were communicated from tent +to tent with more boldness and effect, prepared their minds for the +most daring acts of sedition; and by the connivance of their tribunes, a +seasonable libel was secretly dispersed, which painted in lively colors +the disgrace of the Caesar, the oppression of the Gallic army, and the +feeble vices of the tyrant of Asia. The servants of Constantius were +astonished and alarmed by the progress of this dangerous spirit. They +pressed the Caesar to hasten the departure of the troops; but they +imprudently rejected the honest and judicious advice of Julian; who +proposed that they should not march through Paris, and suggested the +danger and temptation of a last interview. + +As soon as the approach of the troops was announced, the Caesar went out +to meet them, and ascended his tribunal, which had been erected in a +plain before the gates of the city. After distinguishing the officers +and soldiers, who by their rank or merit deserved a peculiar attention, +Julian addressed himself in a studied oration to the surrounding +multitude: he celebrated their exploits with grateful applause; +encouraged them to accept, with alacrity, the honor of serving under +the eye of a powerful and liberal monarch; and admonished them, that +the commands of Augustus required an instant and cheerful obedience. +The soldiers, who were apprehensive of offending their general by an +indecent clamor, or of belying their sentiments by false and venal +acclamations, maintained an obstinate silence; and after a short +pause, were dismissed to their quarters. The principal officers were +entertained by the Caesar, who professed, in the warmest language of +friendship, his desire and his inability to reward, according to their +deserts, the brave companions of his victories. They retired from the +feast, full of grief and perplexity; and lamented the hardship of +their fate, which tore them from their beloved general and their native +country. The only expedient which could prevent their separation was +boldly agitated and approved the popular resentment was insensibly +moulded into a regular conspiracy; their just reasons of complaint were +heightened by passion, and their passions were inflamed by wine; as, +on the eve of their departure, the troops were indulged in licentious +festivity. At the hour of midnight, the impetuous multitude, with +swords, and bows, and torches in their hands, rushed into the suburbs; +encompassed the palace; and, careless of future dangers, pronounced the +fatal and irrevocable words, Julian Augustus! The prince, whose anxious +suspense was interrupted by their disorderly acclamations, secured +the doors against their intrusion; and as long as it was in his power, +secluded his person and dignity from the accidents of a nocturnal +tumult. At the dawn of day, the soldiers, whose zeal was irritated +by opposition, forcibly entered the palace, seized, with respectful +violence, the object of their choice, guarded Julian with drawn swords +through the streets of Paris, placed him on the tribunal, and with +repeated shouts saluted him as their emperor. Prudence, as well as +loyalty, inculcated the propriety of resisting their treasonable +designs; and of preparing, for his oppressed virtue, the excuse +of violence. Addressing himself by turns to the multitude and to +individuals, he sometimes implored their mercy, and sometimes expressed +his indignation; conjured them not to sully the fame of their immortal +victories; and ventured to promise, that if they would immediately +return to their allegiance, he would undertake to obtain from the +emperor not only a free and gracious pardon, but even the revocation +of the orders which had excited their resentment. But the soldiers, who +were conscious of their guilt, chose rather to depend on the gratitude +of Julian, than on the clemency of the emperor. Their zeal was +insensibly turned into impatience, and their impatience into rage. +The inflexible Caesar sustained, till the third hour of the day, their +prayers, their reproaches, and their menaces; nor did he yield, till he +had been repeatedly assured, that if he wished to live, he must consent +to reign. He was exalted on a shield in the presence, and amidst the +unanimous acclamations, of the troops; a rich military collar, which +was offered by chance, supplied the want of a diadem; the ceremony was +concluded by the promise of a moderate donative; and the new emperor, +overwhelmed with real or affected grief retired into the most secret +recesses of his apartment. + +The grief of Julian could proceed only from his innocence; out his +innocence must appear extremely doubtful in the eyes of those who have +learned to suspect the motives and the professions of princes. His +lively and active mind was susceptible of the various impressions of +hope and fear, of gratitude and revenge, of duty and of ambition, of the +love of fame, and of the fear of reproach. But it is impossible for us +to calculate the respective weight and operation of these sentiments; +or to ascertain the principles of action which might escape the +observation, while they guided, or rather impelled, the steps of Julian +himself. The discontent of the troops was produced by the malice of his +enemies; their tumult was the natural effect of interest and of passion; +and if Julian had tried to conceal a deep design under the appearances +of chance, he must have employed the most consummate artifice without +necessity, and probably without success. He solemnly declares, in the +presence of Jupiter, of the Sun, of Mars, of Minerva, and of all the +other deities, that till the close of the evening which preceded his +elevation, he was utterly ignorant of the designs of the soldiers; and +it may seem ungenerous to distrust the honor of a hero and the truth of +a philosopher. Yet the superstitious confidence that Constantius was the +enemy, and that he himself was the favorite, of the gods, might prompt +him to desire, to solicit, and even to hasten the auspicious moment +of his reign, which was predestined to restore the ancient religion of +mankind. When Julian had received the intelligence of the conspiracy, +he resigned himself to a short slumber; and afterwards related to his +friends that he had seen the genius of the empire waiting with some +impatience at his door, pressing for admittance, and reproaching his +want of spirit and ambition. Astonished and perplexed, he addressed his +prayers to the great Jupiter, who immediately signified, by a clear and +manifest omen, that he should submit to the will of heaven and of the +army. The conduct which disclaims the ordinary maxims of reason, excites +our suspicion and eludes our inquiry. Whenever the spirit of fanaticism, +at once so credulous and so crafty, has insinuated itself into a +noble mind, it insensibly corrodes the vital principles of virtue and +veracity. + +To moderate the zeal of his party, to protect the persons of his +enemies, to defeat and to despise the secret enterprises which were +formed against his life and dignity, were the cares which employed +the first days of the reign of the new emperor. Although he was firmly +resolved to maintain the station which he had assumed, he was still +desirous of saving his country from the calamities of civil war, of +declining a contest with the superior forces of Constantius, and +of preserving his own character from the reproach of perfidy and +ingratitude. Adorned with the ensigns of military and imperial pomp, +Julian showed himself in the field of Mars to the soldiers, who glowed +with ardent enthusiasm in the cause of their pupil, their leader, +and their friend. He recapitulated their victories, lamented their +sufferings, applauded their resolution, animated their hopes, and +checked their impetuosity; nor did he dismiss the assembly, till he had +obtained a solemn promise from the troops, that if the emperor of the +East would subscribe an equitable treaty, they would renounce any views +of conquest, and satisfy themselves with the tranquil possession of the +Gallic provinces. On this foundation he composed, in his own name, +and in that of the army, a specious and moderate epistle, which +was delivered to Pentadius, his master of the offices, and to his +chamberlain Eutherius; two ambassadors whom he appointed to receive the +answer, and observe the dispositions of Constantius. This epistle is +inscribed with the modest appellation of Caesar; but Julian solicits in a +peremptory, though respectful, manner, the confirmation of the title of +Augustus. He acknowledges the irregularity of his own election, while +he justifies, in some measure, the resentment and violence of the troops +which had extorted his reluctant consent. He allows the supremacy of +his brother Constantius; and engages to send him an annual present of +Spanish horses, to recruit his army with a select number of barbarian +youths, and to accept from his choice a Praetorian praefect of approved +discretion and fidelity. But he reserves for himself the nomination of +his other civil and military officers, with the troops, the revenue, +and the sovereignty of the provinces beyond the Alps. He admonishes +the emperor to consult the dictates of justice; to distrust the arts of +those venal flatterers, who subsist only by the discord of princes; +and to embrace the offer of a fair and honorable treaty, equally +advantageous to the republic and to the house of Constantine. In this +negotiation Julian claimed no more than he already possessed. The +delegated authority which he had long exercised over the provinces of +Gaul, Spain, and Britain, was still obeyed under a name more independent +and august. The soldiers and the people rejoiced in a revolution which +was not stained even with the blood of the guilty. Florentius was a +fugitive; Lupicinus a prisoner. The persons who were disaffected to the +new government were disarmed and secured; and the vacant offices were +distributed, according to the recommendation of merit, by a prince who +despised the intrigues of the palace, and the clamors of the soldiers. + +The negotiations of peace were accompanied and supported by the most +vigorous preparations for war. The army, which Julian held in readiness +for immediate action, was recruited and augmented by the disorders +of the times. The cruel persecutions of the faction of Magnentius had +filled Gaul with numerous bands of outlaws and robbers. They cheerfully +accepted the offer of a general pardon from a prince whom they could +trust, submitted to the restraints of military discipline, and +retained only their implacable hatred to the person and government of +Constantius. As soon as the season of the year permitted Julian to take +the field, he appeared at the head of his legions; threw a bridge over +the Rhine in the neighborhood of Cleves; and prepared to chastise the +perfidy of the Attuarii, a tribe of Franks, who presumed that they +might ravage, with impunity, the frontiers of a divided empire. The +difficulty, as well as glory, of this enterprise, consisted in a +laborious march; and Julian had conquered, as soon as he could penetrate +into a country, which former princes had considered as inaccessible. +After he had given peace to the Barbarians, the emperor carefully +visited the fortifications along the Rhine from Cleves to Basil; +surveyed, with peculiar attention, the territories which he had +recovered from the hands of the Alemanni, passed through Besancon, which +had severely suffered from their fury, and fixed his headquarters at +Vienna for the ensuing winter. The barrier of Gaul was improved and +strengthened with additional fortifications; and Julian entertained some +hopes that the Germans, whom he had so often vanquished, might, in his +absence, be restrained by the terror of his name. Vadomair was the only +prince of the Alemanni whom he esteemed or feared and while the subtle +Barbarian affected to observe the faith of treaties, the progress of his +arms threatened the state with an unseasonable and dangerous war. The +policy of Julian condescended to surprise the prince of the Alemanni +by his own arts: and Vadomair, who, in the character of a friend, had +incautiously accepted an invitation from the Roman governors, was seized +in the midst of the entertainment, and sent away prisoner into the heart +of Spain. Before the Barbarians were recovered from their amazement, +the emperor appeared in arms on the banks of the Rhine, and, once more +crossing the river, renewed the deep impressions of terror and respect +which had been already made by four preceding expeditions. + + + +Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor.--Part II. + +The ambassadors of Julian had been instructed to execute, with the +utmost diligence, their important commission. But, in their passage +through Italy and Illyricum, they were detained by the tedious and +affected delays of the provincial governors; they were conducted by +slow journeys from Constantinople to Caesarea in Cappadocia; and when +at length they were admitted to the presence of Constantius, they found +that he had already conceived, from the despatches of his own officers, +the most unfavorable opinion of the conduct of Julian, and of the Gallic +army. The letters were heard with impatience; the trembling messengers +were dismissed with indignation and contempt; and the looks, gestures, +the furious language of the monarch, expressed the disorder of his soul. +The domestic connection, which might have reconciled the brother and the +husband of Helena, was recently dissolved by the death of that princess, +whose pregnancy had been several times fruitless, and was at last fatal +to herself. The empress Eusebia had preserved, to the last moment of her +life, the warm, and even jealous, affection which she had conceived for +Julian; and her mild influence might have moderated the resentment of a +prince, who, since her death, was abandoned to his own passions, and to +the arts of his eunuchs. But the terror of a foreign invasion obliged +him to suspend the punishment of a private enemy: he continued his march +towards the confines of Persia, and thought it sufficient to signify the +conditions which might entitle Julian and his guilty followers to the +clemency of their offended sovereign. He required, that the presumptuous +Caesar should expressly renounce the appellation and rank of Augustus, +which he had accepted from the rebels; that he should descend to his +former station of a limited and dependent minister; that he should vest +the powers of the state and army in the hands of those officers who were +appointed by the Imperial court; and that he should trust his safety to +the assurances of pardon, which were announced by Epictetus, a Gallic +bishop, and one of the Arian favorites of Constantius. Several months +were ineffectually consumed in a treaty which was negotiated at the +distance of three thousand miles between Paris and Antioch; and, as soon +as Julian perceived that his modest and respectful behavior served only +to irritate the pride of an implacable adversary, he boldly resolved +to commit his life and fortune to the chance of a civil war. He gave a +public and military audience to the quaestor Leonas: the haughty +epistle of Constantius was read to the attentive multitude; and Julian +protested, with the most flattering deference, that he was ready to +resign the title of Augustus, if he could obtain the consent of those +whom he acknowledged as the authors of his elevation. The faint proposal +was impetuously silenced; and the acclamations of "Julian Augustus, +continue to reign, by the authority of the army, of the people, of the +republic which you have saved," thundered at once from every part of the +field, and terrified the pale ambassador of Constantius. A part of +the letter was afterwards read, in which the emperor arraigned the +ingratitude of Julian, whom he had invested with the honors of the +purple; whom he had educated with so much care and tenderness; whom he +had preserved in his infancy, when he was left a helpless orphan. "An +orphan!" interrupted Julian, who justified his cause by indulging his +passions: "does the assassin of my family reproach me that I was left an +orphan? He urges me to revenge those injuries which I have long studied +to forget." The assembly was dismissed; and Leonas, who, with some +difficulty, had been protected from the popular fury, was sent back to +his master with an epistle, in which Julian expressed, in a strain of +the most vehement eloquence, the sentiments of contempt, of hatred, +and of resentment, which had been suppressed and imbittered by the +dissimulation of twenty years. After this message, which might be +considered as a signal of irreconcilable war, Julian, who, some weeks +before, had celebrated the Christian festival of the Epiphany, made +a public declaration that he committed the care of his safety to the +Immortal Gods; and thus publicly renounced the religion as well as the +friendship of Constantius. + +The situation of Julian required a vigorous and immediate resolution. +He had discovered, from intercepted letters, that his adversary, +sacrificing the interest of the state to that of the monarch, had again +excited the Barbarians to invade the provinces of the West. The position +of two magazines, one of them collected on the banks of the Lake of +Constance, the other formed at the foot of the Cottian Alps, seemed to +indicate the march of two armies; and the size of those magazines, each +of which consisted of six hundred thousand quarters of wheat, or rather +flour, was a threatening evidence of the strength and numbers of the +enemy who prepared to surround him. But the Imperial legions were still +in their distant quarters of Asia; the Danube was feebly guarded; and if +Julian could occupy, by a sudden incursion, the important provinces of +Illyricum, he might expect that a people of soldiers would resort to his +standard, and that the rich mines of gold and silver would contribute to +the expenses of the civil war. He proposed this bold enterprise to the +assembly of the soldiers; inspired them with a just confidence in +their general, and in themselves; and exhorted them to maintain +their reputation of being terrible to the enemy, moderate to their +fellow-citizens, and obedient to their officers. His spirited discourse +was received with the loudest acclamations, and the same troops which +had taken up arms against Constantius, when he summoned them to leave +Gaul, now declared with alacrity, that they would follow Julian to +the farthest extremities of Europe or Asia. The oath of fidelity was +administered; and the soldiers, clashing their shields, and pointing +their drawn swords to their throats, devoted themselves, with horrid +imprecations, to the service of a leader whom they celebrated as +the deliverer of Gaul and the conqueror of the Germans. This solemn +engagement, which seemed to be dictated by affection rather than by +duty, was singly opposed by Nebridius, who had been admitted to +the office of Praetorian praefect. That faithful minister, alone and +unassisted, asserted the rights of Constantius, in the midst of an armed +and angry multitude, to whose fury he had almost fallen an honorable, +but useless sacrifice. After losing one of his hands by the stroke of a +sword, he embraced the knees of the prince whom he had offended. Julian +covered the praefect with his Imperial mantle, and, protecting him from +the zeal of his followers, dismissed him to his own house, with less +respect than was perhaps due to the virtue of an enemy. The high office +of Nebridius was bestowed on Sallust; and the provinces of Gaul, which +were now delivered from the intolerable oppression of taxes, enjoyed +the mild and equitable administration of the friend of Julian, who was +permitted to practise those virtues which he had instilled into the mind +of his pupil. + +The hopes of Julian depended much less on the number of his troops, than +on the celerity of his motions. In the execution of a daring enterprise, +he availed himself of every precaution, as far as prudence could +suggest; and where prudence could no longer accompany his steps, he +trusted the event to valor and to fortune. In the neighborhood of Basil +he assembled and divided his army. One body, which consisted of ten +thousand men, was directed under the command of Nevitta, general of the +cavalry, to advance through the midland parts of Rhaetia and Noricum. +A similar division of troops, under the orders of Jovius and Jovinus, +prepared to follow the oblique course of the highways, through the Alps, +and the northern confines of Italy. The instructions to the generals +were conceived with energy and precision: to hasten their march in close +and compact columns, which, according to the disposition of the ground, +might readily be changed into any order of battle; to secure themselves +against the surprises of the night by strong posts and vigilant guards; +to prevent resistance by their unexpected arrival; to elude examination +by their sudden departure; to spread the opinion of their strength, and +the terror of his name; and to join their sovereign under the walls +of Sirmium. For himself Julian had reserved a more difficult and +extraordinary part. He selected three thousand brave and active +volunteers, resolved, like their leader, to cast behind them every hope +of a retreat; at the head of this faithful band, he fearlessly plunged +into the recesses of the Marcian, or Black Forest, which conceals +the sources of the Danube; and, for many days, the fate of Julian was +unknown to the world. The secrecy of his march, his diligence, and +vigor, surmounted every obstacle; he forced his way over mountains and +morasses, occupied the bridges or swam the rivers, pursued his direct +course, without reflecting whether he traversed the territory of the +Romans or of the Barbarians, and at length emerged, between Ratisbon +and Vienna, at the place where he designed to embark his troops on +the Danube. By a well-concerted stratagem, he seized a fleet of light +brigantines, as it lay at anchor; secured a apply of coarse provisions +sufficient to satisfy the indelicate, and voracious, appetite of a +Gallic army; and boldly committed himself to the stream of the Danube. +The labors of the mariners, who plied their oars with incessant +diligence, and the steady continuance of a favorable wind, carried +his fleet above seven hundred miles in eleven days; and he had already +disembarked his troops at Bononia, * only nineteen miles from Sirmium, +before his enemies could receive any certain intelligence that he +had left the banks of the Rhine. In the course of this long and +rapid navigation, the mind of Julian was fixed on the object of his +enterprise; and though he accepted the deputations of some cities, which +hastened to claim the merit of an early submission, he passed before the +hostile stations, which were placed along the river, without indulging +the temptation of signalizing a useless and ill-timed valor. The banks +of the Danube were crowded on either side with spectators, who gazed on +the military pomp, anticipated the importance of the event, and diffused +through the adjacent country the fame of a young hero, who advanced +with more than mortal speed at the head of the innumerable forces of the +West. Lucilian, who, with the rank of general of the cavalry, commanded +the military powers of Illyricum, was alarmed and perplexed by the +doubtful reports, which he could neither reject nor believe. He had +taken some slow and irresolute measures for the purpose of collecting +his troops, when he was surprised by Dagalaiphus, an active officer, +whom Julian, as soon as he landed at Bononia, had pushed forwards with +some light infantry. The captive general, uncertain of his life or +death, was hastily thrown upon a horse, and conducted to the presence of +Julian; who kindly raised him from the ground, and dispelled the terror +and amazement which seemed to stupefy his faculties. But Lucilian had no +sooner recovered his spirits, than he betrayed his want of discretion, +by presuming to admonish his conqueror that he had rashly ventured, +with a handful of men, to expose his person in the midst of his enemies. +"Reserve for your master Constantius these timid remonstrances," replied +Julian, with a smile of contempt: "when I gave you my purple to kiss, +I received you not as a counsellor, but as a suppliant." Conscious that +success alone could justify his attempt, and that boldness only could +command success, he instantly advanced, at the head of three thousand +soldiers, to attack the strongest and most populous city of the Illyrian +provinces. As he entered the long suburb of Sirmium, he was received +by the joyful acclamations of the army and people; who, crowned with +flowers, and holding lighted tapers in their hands, conducted their +acknowledged sovereign to his Imperial residence. Two days were devoted +to the public joy, which was celebrated by the games of the circus; +but, early on the morning of the third day, Julian marched to occupy the +narrow pass of Succi, in the defiles of Mount Haemus; which, almost in +the midway between Sirmium and Constantinople, separates the provinces +of Thrace and Dacia, by an abrupt descent towards the former, and +a gentle declivity on the side of the latter. The defence of this +important post was intrusted to the brave Nevitta; who, as well as the +generals of the Italian division, successfully executed the plan of the +march and junction which their master had so ably conceived. + +The homage which Julian obtained, from the fears or the inclination of +the people, extended far beyond the immediate effect of his arms. The +praefectures of Italy and Illyricum were administered by Taurus and +Florentius, who united that important office with the vain honors of the +consulship; and as those magistrates had retired with precipitation to +the court of Asia, Julian, who could not always restrain the levity of +his temper, stigmatized their flight by adding, in all the Acts of +the Year, the epithet of fugitive to the names of the two consuls. +The provinces which had been deserted by their first magistrates +acknowledged the authority of an emperor, who, conciliating the +qualities of a soldier with those of a philosopher, was equally admired +in the camps of the Danube and in the cities of Greece. From his palace, +or, more properly, from his head-quarters of Sirmium and Naissus, he +distributed to the principal cities of the empire, a labored apology +for his own conduct; published the secret despatches of Constantius; and +solicited the judgment of mankind between two competitors, the one of +whom had expelled, and the other had invited, the Barbarians. Julian, +whose mind was deeply wounded by the reproach of ingratitude, aspired +to maintain, by argument as well as by arms, the superior merits of +his cause; and to excel, not only in the arts of war, but in those of +composition. His epistle to the senate and people of Athens seems to +have been dictated by an elegant enthusiasm; which prompted him to +submit his actions and his motives to the degenerate Athenians of his +own times, with the same humble deference as if he had been pleading, +in the days of Aristides, before the tribunal of the Areopagus. His +application to the senate of Rome, which was still permitted to bestow +the titles of Imperial power, was agreeable to the forms of the expiring +republic. An assembly was summoned by Tertullus, praefect of the city; +the epistle of Julian was read; and, as he appeared to be master of +Italy his claims were admitted without a dissenting voice. His oblique +censure of the innovations of Constantine, and his passionate invective +against the vices of Constantius, were heard with less satisfaction; +and the senate, as if Julian had been present, unanimously exclaimed, +"Respect, we beseech you, the author of your own fortune." An artful +expression, which, according to the chance of war, might be differently +explained; as a manly reproof of the ingratitude of the usurper, or as +a flattering confession, that a single act of such benefit to the state +ought to atone for all the failings of Constantius. + +The intelligence of the march and rapid progress of Julian was speedily +transmitted to his rival, who, by the retreat of Sapor, had obtained +some respite from the Persian war. Disguising the anguish of his soul +under the semblance of contempt, Constantius professed his intention of +returning into Europe, and of giving chase to Julian; for he never spoke +of his military expedition in any other light than that of a hunting +party. In the camp of Hierapolis, in Syria, he communicated this design +to his army; slightly mentioned the guilt and rashness of the Caesar; and +ventured to assure them, that if the mutineers of Gaul presumed to meet +them in the field, they would be unable to sustain the fire of their +eyes, and the irresistible weight of their shout of onset. The speech +of the emperor was received with military applause, and Theodotus, +the president of the council of Hierapolis, requested, with tears +of adulation, that his city might be adorned with the head of +the vanquished rebel. A chosen detachment was despatched away in +post-wagons, to secure, if it were yet possible, the pass of Succi; +the recruits, the horses, the arms, and the magazines, which had been +prepared against Sapor, were appropriated to the service of the civil +war; and the domestic victories of Constantius inspired his partisans +with the most sanguine assurances of success. The notary Gaudentius had +occupied in his name the provinces of Africa; the subsistence of +Rome was intercepted; and the distress of Julian was increased by +an unexpected event, which might have been productive of fatal +consequences. Julian had received the submission of two legions and a +cohort of archers, who were stationed at Sirmium; but he suspected, with +reason, the fidelity of those troops which had been distinguished by the +emperor; and it was thought expedient, under the pretence of the exposed +state of the Gallic frontier, to dismiss them from the most important +scene of action. They advanced, with reluctance, as far as the confines +of Italy; but as they dreaded the length of the way, and the savage +fierceness of the Germans, they resolved, by the instigation of one +of their tribunes, to halt at Aquileia, and to erect the banners of +Constantius on the walls of that impregnable city. The vigilance of +Julian perceived at once the extent of the mischief, and the necessity +of applying an immediate remedy. By his order, Jovinus led back a +part of the army into Italy; and the siege of Aquileia was formed with +diligence, and prosecuted with vigor. But the legionaries, who seemed to +have rejected the yoke of discipline, conducted the defence of the place +with skill and perseverance; invited the rest of Italy to imitate the +example of their courage and loyalty; and threatened the retreat of +Julian, if he should be forced to yield to the superior numbers of the +armies of the East. + +But the humanity of Julian was preserved from the cruel alternative +which he pathetically laments, of destroying or of being himself +destroyed: and the seasonable death of Constantius delivered the Roman +empire from the calamities of civil war. The approach of winter could +not detain the monarch at Antioch; and his favorites durst not oppose +his impatient desire of revenge. A slight fever, which was perhaps +occasioned by the agitation of his spirits, was increased by the +fatigues of the journey; and Constantius was obliged to halt at the +little town of Mopsucrene, twelve miles beyond Tarsus, where he expired, +after a short illness, in the forty-fifth year of his age, and the +twenty-fourth of his reign. His genuine character, which was composed +of pride and weakness, of superstition and cruelty, has been fully +displayed in the preceding narrative of civil and ecclesiastical events. +The long abuse of power rendered him a considerable object in the eyes +of his contemporaries; but as personal merit can alone deserve the +notice of posterity, the last of the sons of Constantine may be +dismissed from the world, with the remark, that he inherited the +defects, without the abilities, of his father. Before Constantius +expired, he is said to have named Julian for his successor; nor does it +seem improbable, that his anxious concern for the fate of a young and +tender wife, whom he left with child, may have prevailed, in his last +moments, over the harsher passions of hatred and revenge. Eusebius, and +his guilty associates, made a faint attempt to prolong the reign of the +eunuchs, by the election of another emperor; but their intrigues were +rejected with disdain, by an army which now abhorred the thought of +civil discord; and two officers of rank were instantly despatched, to +assure Julian, that every sword in the empire would be drawn for his +service. The military designs of that prince, who had formed three +different attacks against Thrace, were prevented by this fortunate +event. Without shedding the blood of his fellow-citizens, he escaped +the dangers of a doubtful conflict, and acquired the advantages of a +complete victory. Impatient to visit the place of his birth, and the new +capital of the empire, he advanced from Naissus through the mountains +of Haemus, and the cities of Thrace. When he reached Heraclea, at the +distance of sixty miles, all Constantinople was poured forth to receive +him; and he made his triumphal entry amidst the dutiful acclamations +of the soldiers, the people, and the senate. At innumerable multitude +pressed around him with eager respect and were perhaps disappointed +when they beheld the small stature and simple garb of a hero, whose +unexperienced youth had vanquished the Barbarians of Germany, and +who had now traversed, in a successful career, the whole continent of +Europe, from the shores of the Atlantic to those of the Bosphorus. A few +days afterwards, when the remains of the deceased emperor were landed +in the harbor, the subjects of Julian applauded the real or affected +humanity of their sovereign. On foot, without his diadem, and clothed in +a mourning habit, he accompanied the funeral as far as the church of +the Holy Apostles, where the body was deposited: and if these marks of +respect may be interpreted as a selfish tribute to the birth and dignity +of his Imperial kinsman, the tears of Julian professed to the world that +he had forgot the injuries, and remembered only the obligations, which +he had received from Constantius. As soon as the legions of Aquileia +were assured of the death of the emperor, they opened the gates of the +city, and, by the sacrifice of their guilty leaders, obtained an easy +pardon from the prudence or lenity of Julian; who, in the thirty-second +year of his age, acquired the undisputed possession of the Roman empire. + + + +Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor.--Part III. + +Philosophy had instructed Julian to compare the advantages of action +and retirement; but the elevation of his birth, and the accidents of +his life, never allowed him the freedom of choice. He might perhaps +sincerely have preferred the groves of the academy, and the society of +Athens; but he was constrained, at first by the will, and afterwards +by the injustice, of Constantius, to expose his person and fame to the +dangers of Imperial greatness; and to make himself accountable to +the world, and to posterity, for the happiness of millions. Julian +recollected with terror the observation of his master Plato, that the +government of our flocks and herds is always committed to beings of a +superior species; and that the conduct of nations requires and deserves +the celestial powers of the gods or of the genii. From this principle he +justly concluded, that the man who presumes to reign, should aspire to +the perfection of the divine nature; that he should purify his soul +from her mortal and terrestrial part; that he should extinguish his +appetites, enlighten his understanding, regulate his passions, and +subdue the wild beast, which, according to the lively metaphor of +Aristotle, seldom fails to ascend the throne of a despot. The throne of +Julian, which the death of Constantius fixed on an independent basis, +was the seat of reason, of virtue, and perhaps of vanity. He despised +the honors, renounced the pleasures, and discharged with incessant +diligence the duties, of his exalted station; and there were few among +his subjects who would have consented to relieve him from the weight of +the diadem, had they been obliged to submit their time and their actions +to the rigorous laws which that philosophic emperor imposed on himself. +One of his most intimate friends, who had often shared the frugal +simplicity of his table, has remarked, that his light and sparing diet +(which was usually of the vegetable kind) left his mind and body always +free and active, for the various and important business of an author, a +pontiff, a magistrate, a general, and a prince. In one and the same day, +he gave audience to several ambassadors, and wrote, or dictated, a great +number of letters to his generals, his civil magistrates, his private +friends, and the different cities of his dominions. He listened to +the memorials which had been received, considered the subject of the +petitions, and signified his intentions more rapidly than they could be +taken in short-hand by the diligence of his secretaries. He possessed +such flexibility of thought, and such firmness of attention, that he +could employ his hand to write, his ear to listen, and his voice to +dictate; and pursue at once three several trains of ideas without +hesitation, and without error. While his ministers reposed, the prince +flew with agility from one labor to another, and, after a hasty dinner, +retired into his library, till the public business, which he had +appointed for the evening, summoned him to interrupt the prosecution of +his studies. The supper of the emperor was still less substantial +than the former meal; his sleep was never clouded by the fumes of +indigestion; and except in the short interval of a marriage, which was +the effect of policy rather than love, the chaste Julian never shared +his bed with a female companion. He was soon awakened by the entrance +of fresh secretaries, who had slept the preceding day; and his servants +were obliged to wait alternately while their indefatigable master +allowed himself scarcely any other refreshment than the change of +occupation. The predecessors of Julian, his uncle, his brother, and his +cousin, indulged their puerile taste for the games of the Circus, under +the specious pretence of complying with the inclinations of the people; +and they frequently remained the greatest part of the day as idle +spectators, and as a part of the splendid spectacle, till the ordinary +round of twenty-four races was completely finished. On solemn festivals, +Julian, who felt and professed an unfashionable dislike to these +frivolous amusements, condescended to appear in the Circus; and after +bestowing a careless glance at five or six of the races, he hastily +withdrew with the impatience of a philosopher, who considered every +moment as lost that was not devoted to the advantage of the public or +the improvement of his own mind. By this avarice of time, he seemed to +protract the short duration of his reign; and if the dates were less +securely ascertained, we should refuse to believe, that only sixteen +months elapsed between the death of Constantius and the departure of +his successor for the Persian war. The actions of Julian can only +be preserved by the care of the historian; but the portion of his +voluminous writings, which is still extant, remains as a monument of the +application, as well as of the genius, of the emperor. The Misopogon, +the Caesars, several of his orations, and his elaborate work against the +Christian religion, were composed in the long nights of the two winters, +the former of which he passed at Constantinople, and the latter at +Antioch. + +The reformation of the Imperial court was one of the first and most +necessary acts of the government of Julian. Soon after his entrance +into the palace of Constantinople, he had occasion for the service of +a barber. An officer, magnificently dressed, immediately presented +himself. "It is a barber," exclaimed the prince, with affected surprise, +"that I want, and not a receiver-general of the finances." He questioned +the man concerning the profits of his employment and was informed, that +besides a large salary, and some valuable perquisites, he enjoyed a +daily allowance for twenty servants, and as many horses. A thousand +barbers, a thousand cup-bearers, a thousand cooks, were distributed +in the several offices of luxury; and the number of eunuchs could +be compared only with the insects of a summer's day. The monarch who +resigned to his subjects the superiority of merit and virtue, was +distinguished by the oppressive magnificence of his dress, his table, +his buildings, and his train. The stately palaces erected by Constantine +and his sons, were decorated with many colored marbles, and ornaments of +massy gold. The most exquisite dainties were procured, to gratify their +pride, rather than their taste; birds of the most distant climates, fish +from the most remote seas, fruits out of their natural season, winter +roses, and summer snows. The domestic crowd of the palace surpassed the +expense of the legions; yet the smallest part of this costly multitude +was subservient to the use, or even to the splendor, of the throne. The +monarch was disgraced, and the people was injured, by the creation and +sale of an infinite number of obscure, and even titular employments; +and the most worthless of mankind might purchase the privilege of being +maintained, without the necessity of labor, from the public revenue. The +waste of an enormous household, the increase of fees and perquisites, +which were soon claimed as a lawful debt, and the bribes which they +extorted from those who feared their enmity, or solicited their favor, +suddenly enriched these haughty menials. They abused their fortune, +without considering their past, or their future, condition; and their +rapine and venality could be equalled only by the extravagance of their +dissipations. Their silken robes were embroidered with gold, their +tables were served with delicacy and profusion; the houses which they +built for their own use, would have covered the farm of an ancient +consul; and the most honorable citizens were obliged to dismount from +their horses, and respectfully to salute a eunuch whom they met on +the public highway. The luxury of the palace excited the contempt and +indignation of Julian, who usually slept on the ground, who yielded +with reluctance to the indispensable calls of nature; and who placed his +vanity, not in emulating, but in despising, the pomp of royalty. + +By the total extirpation of a mischief which was magnified even beyond +its real extent, he was impatient to relieve the distress, and to +appease the murmurs of the people; who support with less uneasiness the +weight of taxes, if they are convinced that the fruits of their industry +are appropriated to the service of the state. But in the execution of +this salutary work, Julian is accused of proceeding with too much haste +and inconsiderate severity. By a single edict, he reduced the palace +of Constantinople to an immense desert, and dismissed with ignominy the +whole train of slaves and dependants, without providing any just, or at +least benevolent, exceptions, for the age, the services, or the poverty, +of the faithful domestics of the Imperial family. Such indeed was +the temper of Julian, who seldom recollected the fundamental maxim of +Aristotle, that true virtue is placed at an equal distance between the +opposite vices. The splendid and effeminate dress of the Asiatics, +the curls and paint, the collars and bracelets, which had appeared so +ridiculous in the person of Constantine, were consistently rejected by +his philosophic successor. But with the fopperies, Julian affected to +renounce the decencies of dress; and seemed to value himself for his +neglect of the laws of cleanliness. In a satirical performance, which +was designed for the public eye, the emperor descants with pleasure, and +even with pride, on the length of his nails, and the inky blackness of +his hands; protests, that although the greatest part of his body was +covered with hair, the use of the razor was confined to his head alone; +and celebrates, with visible complacency, the shaggy and populous beard, +which he fondly cherished, after the example of the philosophers of +Greece. Had Julian consulted the simple dictates of reason, the first +magistrate of the Romans would have scorned the affectation of Diogenes, +as well as that of Darius. + +But the work of public reformation would have remained imperfect, if +Julian had only corrected the abuses, without punishing the crimes, of +his predecessor's reign. "We are now delivered," says he, in a familiar +letter to one of his intimate friends, "we are now surprisingly +delivered from the voracious jaws of the Hydra. I do not mean to apply +the epithet to my brother Constantius. He is no more; may the earth lie +light on his head! But his artful and cruel favorites studied to deceive +and exasperate a prince, whose natural mildness cannot be praised +without some efforts of adulation. It is not, however, my intention, +that even those men should be oppressed: they are accused, and they +shall enjoy the benefit of a fair and impartial trial." To conduct this +inquiry, Julian named six judges of the highest rank in the state and +army; and as he wished to escape the reproach of condemning his personal +enemies, he fixed this extraordinary tribunal at Chalcedon, on the +Asiatic side of the Bosphorus; and transferred to the commissioners an +absolute power to pronounce and execute their final sentence, without +delay, and without appeal. The office of president was exercised by +the venerable praefect of the East, a second Sallust, whose virtues +conciliated the esteem of Greek sophists, and of Christian bishops. He +was assisted by the eloquent Mamertinus, one of the consuls elect, whose +merit is loudly celebrated by the doubtful evidence of his own applause. +But the civil wisdom of two magistrates was overbalanced by the +ferocious violence of four generals, Nevitta, Agilo, Jovinus, and +Arbetio. Arbetio, whom the public would have seen with less surprise +at the bar than on the bench, was supposed to possess the secret of +the commission; the armed and angry leaders of the Jovian and Herculian +bands encompassed the tribunal; and the judges were alternately swayed +by the laws of justice, and by the clamors of faction. + +The chamberlain Eusebius, who had so long abused the favor of +Constantius, expiated, by an ignominious death, the insolence, the +corruption, and cruelty of his servile reign. The executions of Paul +and Apodemius (the former of whom was burnt alive) were accepted as +an inadequate atonement by the widows and orphans of so many hundred +Romans, whom those legal tyrants had betrayed and murdered. But justice +herself (if we may use the pathetic expression of Ammianus ) appeared +to weep over the fate of Ursulus, the treasurer of the empire; and +his blood accused the ingratitude of Julian, whose distress had been +seasonably relieved by the intrepid liberality of that honest minister. +The rage of the soldiers, whom he had provoked by his indiscretion, was +the cause and the excuse of his death; and the emperor, deeply wounded +by his own reproaches and those of the public, offered some consolation +to the family of Ursulus, by the restitution of his confiscated +fortunes. Before the end of the year in which they had been adorned with +the ensigns of the prefecture and consulship, Taurus and Florentius were +reduced to implore the clemency of the inexorable tribunal of Chalcedon. +The former was banished to Vercellae in Italy, and a sentence of death +was pronounced against the latter. A wise prince should have rewarded +the crime of Taurus: the faithful minister, when he was no longer able +to oppose the progress of a rebel, had taken refuge in the court of +his benefactor and his lawful sovereign. But the guilt of Florentius +justified the severity of the judges; and his escape served to display +the magnanimity of Julian, who nobly checked the interested diligence +of an informer, and refused to learn what place concealed the wretched +fugitive from his just resentment. Some months after the tribunal of +Chalcedon had been dissolved, the praetorian vicegerent of Africa, the +notary Gaudentius, and Artemius duke of Egypt, were executed at Antioch. +Artemius had reigned the cruel and corrupt tyrant of a great province; +Gaudentius had long practised the arts of calumny against the +innocent, the virtuous, and even the person of Julian himself. Yet +the circumstances of their trial and condemnation were so unskillfully +managed, that these wicked men obtained, in the public opinion, the +glory of suffering for the obstinate loyalty with which they had +supported the cause of Constantius. The rest of his servants were +protected by a general act of oblivion; and they were left to enjoy +with impunity the bribes which they had accepted, either to defend the +oppressed, or to oppress the friendless. This measure, which, on the +soundest principles of policy, may deserve our approbation, was executed +in a manner which seemed to degrade the majesty of the throne. Julian +was tormented by the importunities of a multitude, particularly of +Egyptians, who loudly redemanded the gifts which they had imprudently +or illegally bestowed; he foresaw the endless prosecution of vexatious +suits; and he engaged a promise, which ought always to have been sacred, +that if they would repair to Chalcedon, he would meet them in person, to +hear and determine their complaints. But as soon as they were landed, +he issued an absolute order, which prohibited the watermen from +transporting any Egyptian to Constantinople; and thus detained his +disappointed clients on the Asiatic shore till, their patience and money +being utterly exhausted, they were obliged to return with indignant +murmurs to their native country. + + + +Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor.--Part IV. + +The numerous army of spies, of agents, and informers enlisted by +Constantius to secure the repose of one man, and to interrupt that of +millions, was immediately disbanded by his generous successor. Julian +was slow in his suspicions, and gentle in his punishments; and his +contempt of treason was the result of judgment, of vanity, and of +courage. Conscious of superior merit, he was persuaded that few among +his subjects would dare to meet him in the field, to attempt his life, +or even to seat themselves on his vacant throne. The philosopher could +excuse the hasty sallies of discontent; and the hero could despise the +ambitious projects which surpassed the fortune or the abilities of the +rash conspirators. A citizen of Ancyra had prepared for his own use a +purple garment; and this indiscreet action, which, under the reign +of Constantius, would have been considered as a capital offence, was +reported to Julian by the officious importunity of a private enemy. The +monarch, after making some inquiry into the rank and character of +his rival, despatched the informer with a present of a pair of purple +slippers, to complete the magnificence of his Imperial habit. A more +dangerous conspiracy was formed by ten of the domestic guards, who had +resolved to assassinate Julian in the field of exercise near Antioch. +Their intemperance revealed their guilt; and they were conducted in +chains to the presence of their injured sovereign, who, after a lively +representation of the wickedness and folly of their enterprise, instead +of a death of torture, which they deserved and expected, pronounced a +sentence of exile against the two principal offenders. The only instance +in which Julian seemed to depart from his accustomed clemency, was the +execution of a rash youth, who, with a feeble hand, had aspired to +seize the reins of empire. But that youth was the son of Marcellus, the +general of cavalry, who, in the first campaign of the Gallic war, had +deserted the standard of the Caesar and the republic. Without appearing +to indulge his personal resentment, Julian might easily confound +the crime of the son and of the father; but he was reconciled by the +distress of Marcellus, and the liberality of the emperor endeavored to +heal the wound which had been inflicted by the hand of justice. + +Julian was not insensible of the advantages of freedom. From his studies +he had imbibed the spirit of ancient sages and heroes; his life and +fortunes had depended on the caprice of a tyrant; and when he ascended +the throne, his pride was sometimes mortified by the reflection, that +the slaves who would not dare to censure his defects were not worthy +to applaud his virtues. He sincerely abhorred the system of Oriental +despotism, which Diocletian, Constantine, and the patient habits of +fourscore years, had established in the empire. A motive of superstition +prevented the execution of the design, which Julian had frequently +meditated, of relieving his head from the weight of a costly diadem; but +he absolutely refused the title of Dominus, or Lord, a word which +was grown so familiar to the ears of the Romans, that they no longer +remembered its servile and humiliating origin. The office, or rather +the name, of consul, was cherished by a prince who contemplated with +reverence the ruins of the republic; and the same behavior which had +been assumed by the prudence of Augustus was adopted by Julian from +choice and inclination. On the calends of January, at break of day, the +new consuls, Mamertinus and Nevitta, hastened to the palace to salute +the emperor. As soon as he was informed of their approach, he leaped +from his throne, eagerly advanced to meet them, and compelled the +blushing magistrates to receive the demonstrations of his affected +humility. From the palace they proceeded to the senate. The emperor, on +foot, marched before their litters; and the gazing multitude admired the +image of ancient times, or secretly blamed a conduct, which, in their +eyes, degraded the majesty of the purple. But the behavior of Julian was +uniformly supported. During the games of the Circus, he had, imprudently +or designedly, performed the manumission of a slave in the presence of +the consul. The moment he was reminded that he had trespassed on the +jurisdiction of another magistrate, he condemned himself to pay a fine +of ten pounds of gold; and embraced this public occasion of declaring to +the world, that he was subject, like the rest of his fellow-citizens, +to the laws, and even to the forms, of the republic. The spirit of his +administration, and his regard for the place of his nativity, induced +Julian to confer on the senate of Constantinople the same honors, +privileges, and authority, which were still enjoyed by the senate of +ancient Rome. A legal fiction was introduced, and gradually established, +that one half of the national council had migrated into the East; and +the despotic successors of Julian, accepting the title of Senators, +acknowledged themselves the members of a respectable body, which +was permitted to represent the majesty of the Roman name. From +Constantinople, the attention of the monarch was extended to the +municipal senates of the provinces. He abolished, by repeated edicts, +the unjust and pernicious exemptions which had withdrawn so many idle +citizens from the services of their country; and by imposing an equal +distribution of public duties, he restored the strength, the splendor, +or, according to the glowing expression of Libanius, the soul of the +expiring cities of his empire. The venerable age of Greece excited the +most tender compassion in the mind of Julian, which kindled into rapture +when he recollected the gods, the heroes, and the men superior to heroes +and to gods, who have bequeathed to the latest posterity the monuments +of their genius, or the example of their virtues. He relieved the +distress, and restored the beauty, of the cities of Epirus and +Peloponnesus. Athens acknowledged him for her benefactor; Argos, for her +deliverer. The pride of Corinth, again rising from her ruins with the +honors of a Roman colony, exacted a tribute from the adjacent republics, +for the purpose of defraying the games of the Isthmus, which were +celebrated in the amphitheatre with the hunting of bears and panthers. +From this tribute the cities of Elis, of Delphi, and of Argos, which had +inherited from their remote ancestors the sacred office of perpetuating +the Olympic, the Pythian, and the Nemean games, claimed a just +exemption. The immunity of Elis and Delphi was respected by the +Corinthians; but the poverty of Argos tempted the insolence of +oppression; and the feeble complaints of its deputies were silenced by +the decree of a provincial magistrate, who seems to have consulted only +the interest of the capital in which he resided. Seven years after +this sentence, Julian allowed the cause to be referred to a superior +tribunal; and his eloquence was interposed, most probably with success, +in the defence of a city, which had been the royal seat of Agamemnon, +and had given to Macedonia a race of kings and conquerors. + +The laborious administration of military and civil affairs, which were +multiplied in proportion to the extent of the empire, exercised the +abilities of Julian; but he frequently assumed the two characters of +Orator and of Judge, which are almost unknown to the modern sovereigns +of Europe. The arts of persuasion, so diligently cultivated by the first +Caesars, were neglected by the military ignorance and Asiatic pride of +their successors; and if they condescended to harangue the soldiers, +whom they feared, they treated with silent disdain the senators, whom +they despised. The assemblies of the senate, which Constantius had +avoided, were considered by Julian as the place where he could exhibit, +with the most propriety, the maxims of a republican, and the talents of +a rhetorician. He alternately practised, as in a school of declamation, +the several modes of praise, of censure, of exhortation; and his friend +Libanius has remarked, that the study of Homer taught him to imitate +the simple, concise style of Menelaus, the copiousness of Nestor, whose +words descended like the flakes of a winter's snow, or the pathetic +and forcible eloquence of Ulysses. The functions of a judge, which are +sometimes incompatible with those of a prince, were exercised by Julian, +not only as a duty, but as an amusement; and although he might have +trusted the integrity and discernment of his Praetorian praefects, he +often placed himself by their side on the seat of judgment. The +acute penetration of his mind was agreeably occupied in detecting and +defeating the chicanery of the advocates, who labored to disguise the +truths of facts, and to pervert the sense of the laws. He sometimes +forgot the gravity of his station, asked indiscreet or unseasonable +questions, and betrayed, by the loudness of his voice, and the agitation +of his body, the earnest vehemence with which he maintained his opinion +against the judges, the advocates, and their clients. But his knowledge +of his own temper prompted him to encourage, and even to solicit, the +reproof of his friends and ministers; and whenever they ventured to +oppose the irregular sallies of his passions, the spectators could +observe the shame, as well as the gratitude, of their monarch. The +decrees of Julian were almost always founded on the principles of +justice; and he had the firmness to resist the two most dangerous +temptations, which assault the tribunal of a sovereign, under the +specious forms of compassion and equity. He decided the merits of the +cause without weighing the circumstances of the parties; and the poor, +whom he wished to relieve, were condemned to satisfy the just demands of +a wealthy and noble adversary. He carefully distinguished the judge from +the legislator; and though he meditated a necessary reformation of the +Roman jurisprudence, he pronounced sentence according to the strict and +literal interpretation of those laws, which the magistrates were bound +to execute, and the subjects to obey. + +The generality of princes, if they were stripped of their purple, and +cast naked into the world, would immediately sink to the lowest rank +of society, without a hope of emerging from their obscurity. But the +personal merit of Julian was, in some measure, independent of his +fortune. Whatever had been his choice of life, by the force of intrepid +courage, lively wit, and intense application, he would have obtained, or +at least he would have deserved, the highest honors of his profession; +and Julian might have raised himself to the rank of minister, or +general, of the state in which he was born a private citizen. If the +jealous caprice of power had disappointed his expectations, if he had +prudently declined the paths of greatness, the employment of the same +talents in studious solitude would have placed beyond the reach of +kings his present happiness and his immortal fame. When we inspect, +with minute, or perhaps malevolent attention, the portrait of Julian, +something seems wanting to the grace and perfection of the whole figure. +His genius was less powerful and sublime than that of Caesar; nor did +he possess the consummate prudence of Augustus. The virtues of Trajan +appear more steady and natural, and the philosophy of Marcus is more +simple and consistent. Yet Julian sustained adversity with firmness, and +prosperity with moderation. After an interval of one hundred and twenty +years from the death of Alexander Severus, the Romans beheld an emperor +who made no distinction between his duties and his pleasures; who +labored to relieve the distress, and to revive the spirit, of his +subjects; and who endeavored always to connect authority with merit, +and happiness with virtue. Even faction, and religious faction, was +constrained to acknowledge the superiority of his genius, in peace as +well as in war, and to confess, with a sigh, that the apostate Julian +was a lover of his country, and that he deserved the empire of the +world. + + + +Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.--Part I. + + The Religion Of Julian.--Universal Toleration.--He Attempts + To Restore And Reform The Pagan Worship--To Rebuild The + Temple Of Jerusalem--His Artful Persecution Of The + Christians.--Mutual Zeal And Injustice. + +The character of Apostate has injured the reputation of Julian; and +the enthusiasm which clouded his virtues has exaggerated the real and +apparent magnitude of his faults. Our partial ignorance may represent +him as a philosophic monarch, who studied to protect, with an equal +hand, the religious factions of the empire; and to allay the theological +fever which had inflamed the minds of the people, from the edicts of +Diocletian to the exile of Athanasius. A more accurate view of the +character and conduct of Julian will remove this favorable prepossession +for a prince who did not escape the general contagion of the times. We +enjoy the singular advantage of comparing the pictures which have been +delineated by his fondest admirers and his implacable enemies. The +actions of Julian are faithfully related by a judicious and candid +historian, the impartial spectator of his life and death. The unanimous +evidence of his contemporaries is confirmed by the public and private +declarations of the emperor himself; and his various writings express +the uniform tenor of his religious sentiments, which policy would have +prompted him to dissemble rather than to affect. A devout and sincere +attachment for the gods of Athens and Rome constituted the ruling +passion of Julian; the powers of an enlightened understanding were +betrayed and corrupted by the influence of superstitious prejudice; and +the phantoms which existed only in the mind of the emperor had a real +and pernicious effect on the government of the empire. The vehement zeal +of the Christians, who despised the worship, and overturned the +altars of those fabulous deities, engaged their votary in a state of +irreconcilable hostility with a very numerous party of his subjects; +and he was sometimes tempted by the desire of victory, or the shame of +a repulse, to violate the laws of prudence, and even of justice. The +triumph of the party, which he deserted and opposed, has fixed a stain +of infamy on the name of Julian; and the unsuccessful apostate has been +overwhelmed with a torrent of pious invectives, of which the signal +was given by the sonorous trumpet of Gregory Nazianzen. The interesting +nature of the events which were crowded into the short reign of this +active emperor, deserve a just and circumstantial narrative. His +motives, his counsels, and his actions, as far as they are connected +with the history of religion, will be the subject of the present +chapter. + +The cause of his strange and fatal apostasy may be derived from the +early period of his life, when he was left an orphan in the hands of +the murderers of his family. The names of Christ and of Constantius, +the ideas of slavery and of religion, were soon associated in a youthful +imagination, which was susceptible of the most lively impressions. The +care of his infancy was intrusted to Eusebius, bishop of Nicomedia, who +was related to him on the side of his mother; and till Julian reached +the twentieth year of his age, he received from his Christian preceptors +the education, not of a hero, but of a saint. The emperor, less jealous +of a heavenly than of an earthly crown, contented himself with the +imperfect character of a catechumen, while he bestowed the advantages +of baptism on the nephews of Constantine. They were even admitted to the +inferior offices of the ecclesiastical order; and Julian publicly read +the Holy Scriptures in the church of Nicomedia. The study of religion, +which they assiduously cultivated, appeared to produce the fairest +fruits of faith and devotion. They prayed, they fasted, they distributed +alms to the poor, gifts to the clergy, and oblations to the tombs of +the martyrs; and the splendid monument of St. Mamas, at Caesarea, was +erected, or at least was undertaken, by the joint labor of Gallus and +Julian. They respectfully conversed with the bishops, who were eminent +for superior sanctity, and solicited the benediction of the monks and +hermits, who had introduced into Cappadocia the voluntary hardships +of the ascetic life. As the two princes advanced towards the years of +manhood, they discovered, in their religious sentiments, the difference +of their characters. The dull and obstinate understanding of Gallus +embraced, with implicit zeal, the doctrines of Christianity; which never +influenced his conduct, or moderated his passions. The mild disposition +of the younger brother was less repugnant to the precepts of the gospel; +and his active curiosity might have been gratified by a theological +system, which explains the mysterious essence of the Deity, and +opens the boundless prospect of invisible and future worlds. But +the independent spirit of Julian refused to yield the passive and +unresisting obedience which was required, in the name of religion, by +the haughty ministers of the church. Their speculative opinions +were imposed as positive laws, and guarded by the terrors of eternal +punishments; but while they prescribed the rigid formulary of the +thoughts, the words, and the actions of the young prince; whilst +they silenced his objections, and severely checked the freedom of his +inquiries, they secretly provoked his impatient genius to disclaim the +authority of his ecclesiastical guides. He was educated in the Lesser +Asia, amidst the scandals of the Arian controversy. The fierce contests +of the Eastern bishops, the incessant alterations of their creeds, and +the profane motives which appeared to actuate their conduct, insensibly +strengthened the prejudice of Julian, that they neither understood nor +believed the religion for which they so fiercely contended. Instead of +listening to the proofs of Christianity with that favorable attention +which adds weight to the most respectable evidence, he heard with +suspicion, and disputed with obstinacy and acuteness, the doctrines for +which he already entertained an invincible aversion. Whenever the young +princes were directed to compose declamations on the subject of the +prevailing controversies, Julian always declared himself the advocate of +Paganism; under the specious excuse that, in the defence of the weaker +cause, his learning and ingenuity might be more advantageously exercised +and displayed. + +As soon as Gallus was invested with the honors of the purple, Julian was +permitted to breathe the air of freedom, of literature, and of Paganism. +The crowd of sophists, who were attracted by the taste and liberality of +their royal pupil, had formed a strict alliance between the learning and +the religion of Greece; and the poems of Homer, instead of being admired +as the original productions of human genius, were seriously ascribed +to the heavenly inspiration of Apollo and the muses. The deities of +Olympus, as they are painted by the immortal bard, imprint themselves on +the minds which are the least addicted to superstitious credulity. +Our familiar knowledge of their names and characters, their forms and +attributes, seems to bestow on those airy beings a real and substantial +existence; and the pleasing enchantment produces an imperfect and +momentary assent of the imagination to those fables, which are the most +repugnant to our reason and experience. In the age of Julian, every +circumstance contributed to prolong and fortify the illusion; the +magnificent temples of Greece and Asia; the works of those artists who +had expressed, in painting or in sculpture, the divine conceptions of +the poet; the pomp of festivals and sacrifices; the successful arts of +divination; the popular traditions of oracles and prodigies; and the +ancient practice of two thousand years. The weakness of polytheism +was, in some measure, excused by the moderation of its claims; and the +devotion of the Pagans was not incompatible with the most licentious +scepticism. Instead of an indivisible and regular system, which occupies +the whole extent of the believing mind, the mythology of the Greeks was +composed of a thousand loose and flexible parts, and the servant of the +gods was at liberty to define the degree and measure of his religious +faith. The creed which Julian adopted for his own use was of the largest +dimensions; and, by strange contradiction, he disdained the salutary +yoke of the gospel, whilst he made a voluntary offering of his reason +on the altars of Jupiter and Apollo. One of the orations of Julian is +consecrated to the honor of Cybele, the mother of the gods, who required +from her effeminate priests the bloody sacrifice, so rashly performed +by the madness of the Phrygian boy. The pious emperor condescends to +relate, without a blush, and without a smile, the voyage of the +goddess from the shores of Pergamus to the mouth of the Tyber, and the +stupendous miracle, which convinced the senate and people of Rome that +the lump of clay, which their ambassadors had transported over the seas, +was endowed with life, and sentiment, and divine power. For the truth +of this prodigy he appeals to the public monuments of the city; and +censures, with some acrimony, the sickly and affected taste of those +men, who impertinently derided the sacred traditions of their ancestors. + +But the devout philosopher, who sincerely embraced, and warmly +encouraged, the superstition of the people, reserved for himself the +privilege of a liberal interpretation; and silently withdrew from the +foot of the altars into the sanctuary of the temple. The extravagance of +the Grecian mythology proclaimed, with a clear and audible voice, that +the pious inquirer, instead of being scandalized or satisfied with the +literal sense, should diligently explore the occult wisdom, which had +been disguised, by the prudence of antiquity, under the mask of folly +and of fable. The philosophers of the Platonic school, Plotinus, +Porphyry, and the divine Iamblichus, were admired as the most skilful +masters of this allegorical science, which labored to soften and +harmonize the deformed features of Paganism. Julian himself, who was +directed in the mysterious pursuit by AEdesius, the venerable successor +of Iamblichus, aspired to the possession of a treasure, which he +esteemed, if we may credit his solemn asseverations, far above the +empire of the world. It was indeed a treasure, which derived its value +only from opinion; and every artist who flattered himself that he had +extracted the precious ore from the surrounding dross, claimed an equal +right of stamping the name and figure the most agreeable to his peculiar +fancy. The fable of Atys and Cybele had been already explained by +Porphyry; but his labors served only to animate the pious industry of +Julian, who invented and published his own allegory of that ancient and +mystic tale. This freedom of interpretation, which might gratify the +pride of the Platonists, exposed the vanity of their art. Without a +tedious detail, the modern reader could not form a just idea of the +strange allusions, the forced etymologies, the solemn trifling, and +the impenetrable obscurity of these sages, who professed to reveal +the system of the universe. As the traditions of Pagan mythology were +variously related, the sacred interpreters were at liberty to select +the most convenient circumstances; and as they translated an arbitrary +cipher, they could extract from any fable any sense which was adapted to +their favorite system of religion and philosophy. The lascivious form of +a naked Venus was tortured into the discovery of some moral precept, or +some physical truth; and the castration of Atys explained the revolution +of the sun between the tropics, or the separation of the human soul from +vice and error. + +The theological system of Julian appears to have contained the sublime +and important principles of natural religion. But as the faith, which is +not founded on revelation, must remain destitute of any firm assurance, +the disciple of Plato imprudently relapsed into the habits of vulgar +superstition; and the popular and philosophic notion of the Deity seems +to have been confounded in the practice, the writings, and even in the +mind of Julian. The pious emperor acknowledged and adored the Eternal +Cause of the universe, to whom he ascribed all the perfections of +an infinite nature, invisible to the eyes and inaccessible to the +understanding, of feeble mortals. The Supreme God had created, or +rather, in the Platonic language, had generated, the gradual succession +of dependent spirits, of gods, of daemons, of heroes, and of men; and +every being which derived its existence immediately from the First +Cause, received the inherent gift of immortality. That so precious +an advantage might be lavished upon unworthy objects, the Creator had +intrusted to the skill and power of the inferior gods the office of +forming the human body, and of arranging the beautiful harmony of the +animal, the vegetable, and the mineral kingdoms. To the conduct of these +divine ministers he delegated the temporal government of this lower +world; but their imperfect administration is not exempt from discord +or error. The earth and its inhabitants are divided among them, and the +characters of Mars or Minerva, of Mercury or Venus, may be distinctly +traced in the laws and manners of their peculiar votaries. As long as +our immortal souls are confined in a mortal prison, it is our interest, +as well as our duty, to solicit the favor, and to deprecate the wrath, +of the powers of heaven; whose pride is gratified by the devotion +of mankind; and whose grosser parts may be supposed to derive some +nourishment from the fumes of sacrifice. The inferior gods might +sometimes condescend to animate the statues, and to inhabit the temples, +which were dedicated to their honor. They might occasionally visit the +earth, but the heavens were the proper throne and symbol of their glory. +The invariable order of the sun, moon, and stars, was hastily admitted +by Julian, as a proof of their eternal duration; and their eternity was +a sufficient evidence that they were the workmanship, not of an inferior +deity, but of the Omnipotent King. In the system of Platonists, the +visible was a type of the invisible world. The celestial bodies, as they +were informed by a divine spirit, might be considered as the objects +the most worthy of religious worship. The Sun, whose genial influence +pervades and sustains the universe, justly claimed the adoration of +mankind, as the bright representative of the Logos, the lively, the +rational, the beneficent image of the intellectual Father. + +In every age, the absence of genuine inspiration is supplied by the +strong illusions of enthusiasm, and the mimic arts of imposture. If, +in the time of Julian, these arts had been practised only by the pagan +priests, for the support of an expiring cause, some indulgence might +perhaps be allowed to the interest and habits of the sacerdotal +character. But it may appear a subject of surprise and scandal, that +the philosophers themselves should have contributed to abuse the +superstitious credulity of mankind, and that the Grecian mysteries +should have been supported by the magic or theurgy of the modern +Platonists. They arrogantly pretended to control the order of nature, to +explore the secrets of futurity, to command the service of the inferior +daemons, to enjoy the view and conversation of the superior gods, and by +disengaging the soul from her material bands, to reunite that immortal +particle with the Infinite and Divine Spirit. + +The devout and fearless curiosity of Julian tempted the philosophers +with the hopes of an easy conquest; which, from the situation of their +young proselyte, might be productive of the most important consequences. +Julian imbibed the first rudiments of the Platonic doctrines from the +mouth of AEdesius, who had fixed at Pergamus his wandering and persecuted +school. But as the declining strength of that venerable sage was unequal +to the ardor, the diligence, the rapid conception of his pupil, two of +his most learned disciples, Chrysanthes and Eusebius, supplied, at his +own desire, the place of their aged master. These philosophers seem to +have prepared and distributed their respective parts; and they artfully +contrived, by dark hints and affected disputes, to excite the impatient +hopes of the aspirant, till they delivered him into the hands of their +associate, Maximus, the boldest and most skilful master of the Theurgic +science. By his hands, Julian was secretly initiated at Ephesus, in +the twentieth year of his age. His residence at Athens confirmed this +unnatural alliance of philosophy and superstition. He obtained the +privilege of a solemn initiation into the mysteries of Eleusis, which, +amidst the general decay of the Grecian worship, still retained some +vestiges of their primaeval sanctity; and such was the zeal of Julian, +that he afterwards invited the Eleusinian pontiff to the court of Gaul, +for the sole purpose of consummating, by mystic rites and sacrifices, +the great work of his sanctification. As these ceremonies were performed +in the depth of caverns, and in the silence of the night, and as the +inviolable secret of the mysteries was preserved by the discretion of +the initiated, I shall not presume to describe the horrid sounds, +and fiery apparitions, which were presented to the senses, or the +imagination, of the credulous aspirant, till the visions of comfort and +knowledge broke upon him in a blaze of celestial light. In the caverns +of Ephesus and Eleusis, the mind of Julian was penetrated with sincere, +deep, and unalterable enthusiasm; though he might sometimes exhibit the +vicissitudes of pious fraud and hypocrisy, which may be observed, or at +least suspected, in the characters of the most conscientious fanatics. +From that moment he consecrated his life to the service of the gods; +and while the occupations of war, of government, and of study, seemed +to claim the whole measure of his time, a stated portion of the hours of +the night was invariably reserved for the exercise of private devotion. +The temperance which adorned the severe manners of the soldier and +the philosopher was connected with some strict and frivolous rules of +religious abstinence; and it was in honor of Pan or Mercury, of Hecate +or Isis, that Julian, on particular days, denied himself the use of some +particular food, which might have been offensive to his tutelar deities. +By these voluntary fasts, he prepared his senses and his understanding +for the frequent and familiar visits with which he was honored by the +celestial powers. Notwithstanding the modest silence of Julian himself, +we may learn from his faithful friend, the orator Libanius, that he +lived in a perpetual intercourse with the gods and goddesses; that they +descended upon earth to enjoy the conversation of their favorite hero; +that they gently interrupted his slumbers by touching his hand or his +hair; that they warned him of every impending danger, and conducted him, +by their infallible wisdom, in every action of his life; and that he had +acquired such an intimate knowledge of his heavenly guests, as readily +to distinguish the voice of Jupiter from that of Minerva, and the form +of Apollo from the figure of Hercules. These sleeping or waking visions, +the ordinary effects of abstinence and fanaticism, would almost degrade +the emperor to the level of an Egyptian monk. But the useless lives +of Antony or Pachomius were consumed in these vain occupations. Julian +could break from the dream of superstition to arm himself for battle; +and after vanquishing in the field the enemies of Rome, he calmly +retired into his tent, to dictate the wise and salutary laws of an +empire, or to indulge his genius in the elegant pursuits of literature +and philosophy. + +The important secret of the apostasy of Julian was intrusted to the +fidelity of the initiated, with whom he was united by the sacred ties +of friendship and religion. The pleasing rumor was cautiously circulated +among the adherents of the ancient worship; and his future greatness +became the object of the hopes, the prayers, and the predictions of the +Pagans, in every province of the empire. From the zeal and virtues of +their royal proselyte, they fondly expected the cure of every evil, and +the restoration of every blessing; and instead of disapproving of the +ardor of their pious wishes, Julian ingenuously confessed, that he +was ambitious to attain a situation in which he might be useful to his +country and to his religion. But this religion was viewed with a +hostile eye by the successor of Constantine, whose capricious passions +alternately saved and threatened the life of Julian. The arts of magic +and divination were strictly prohibited under a despotic government, +which condescended to fear them; and if the Pagans were reluctantly +indulged in the exercise of their superstition, the rank of Julian would +have excepted him from the general toleration. The apostate soon became +the presumptive heir of the monarchy, and his death could alone have +appeased the just apprehensions of the Christians. But the young prince, +who aspired to the glory of a hero rather than of a martyr, consulted +his safety by dissembling his religion; and the easy temper of +polytheism permitted him to join in the public worship of a sect which +he inwardly despised. Libanius has considered the hypocrisy of his +friend as a subject, not of censure, but of praise. "As the statues of +the gods," says that orator, "which have been defiled with filth, are +again placed in a magnificent temple, so the beauty of truth was seated +in the mind of Julian, after it had been purified from the errors and +follies of his education. His sentiments were changed; but as it would +have been dangerous to have avowed his sentiments, his conduct still +continued the same. Very different from the ass in AEsop, who disguised +himself with a lion's hide, our lion was obliged to conceal himself +under the skin of an ass; and, while he embraced the dictates of reason, +to obey the laws of prudence and necessity." The dissimulation of Julian +lasted about ten years, from his secret initiation at Ephesus to +the beginning of the civil war; when he declared himself at once the +implacable enemy of Christ and of Constantius. This state of constraint +might contribute to strengthen his devotion; and as soon as he had +satisfied the obligation of assisting, on solemn festivals, at the +assemblies of the Christians, Julian returned, with the impatience of a +lover, to burn his free and voluntary incense on the domestic chapels of +Jupiter and Mercury. But as every act of dissimulation must be painful +to an ingenuous spirit, the profession of Christianity increased the +aversion of Julian for a religion which oppressed the freedom of his +mind, and compelled him to hold a conduct repugnant to the noblest +attributes of human nature, sincerity and courage. + + + +Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.--Part II. + +The inclination of Julian might prefer the gods of Homer, and of the +Scipios, to the new faith, which his uncle had established in the Roman +empire; and in which he himself had been sanctified by the sacrament of +baptism. But, as a philosopher, it was incumbent on him to justify his +dissent from Christianity, which was supported by the number of its +converts, by the chain of prophecy, the splendor of or miracles, and +the weight of evidence. The elaborate work, which he composed amidst +the preparations of the Persian war, contained the substance of those +arguments which he had long revolved in his mind. Some fragments have +been transcribed and preserved, by his adversary, the vehement Cyril +of Alexandria; and they exhibit a very singular mixture of wit and +learning, of sophistry and fanaticism. The elegance of the style and the +rank of the author, recommended his writings to the public attention; +and in the impious list of the enemies of Christianity, the celebrated +name of Porphyry was effaced by the superior merit or reputation of +Julian. The minds of the faithful were either seduced, or scandalized, +or alarmed; and the pagans, who sometimes presumed to engage in the +unequal dispute, derived, from the popular work of their Imperial +missionary, an inexhaustible supply of fallacious objections. But in the +assiduous prosecution of these theological studies, the emperor of +the Romans imbibed the illiberal prejudices and passions of a polemic +divine. He contracted an irrevocable obligation to maintain and +propagate his religious opinions; and whilst he secretly applauded the +strength and dexterity with which he wielded the weapons of +controversy, he was tempted to distrust the sincerity, or to despise +the understandings, of his antagonists, who could obstinately resist the +force of reason and eloquence. + +The Christians, who beheld with horror and indignation the apostasy of +Julian, had much more to fear from his power than from his arguments. +The pagans, who were conscious of his fervent zeal, expected, perhaps +with impatience, that the flames of persecution should be immediately +kindled against the enemies of the gods; and that the ingenious malice +of Julian would invent some cruel refinements of death and torture which +had been unknown to the rude and inexperienced fury of his predecessors. +But the hopes, as well as the fears, of the religious factions were +apparently disappointed, by the prudent humanity of a prince, who was +careful of his own fame, of the public peace, and of the rights of +mankind. Instructed by history and reflection, Julian was persuaded, +that if the diseases of the body may sometimes be cured by salutary +violence, neither steel nor fire can eradicate the erroneous opinions of +the mind. The reluctant victim may be dragged to the foot of the altar; +but the heart still abhors and disclaims the sacrilegious act of the +hand. Religious obstinacy is hardened and exasperated by oppression; +and, as soon as the persecution subsides, those who have yielded are +restored as penitents, and those who have resisted are honored as saints +and martyrs. If Julian adopted the unsuccessful cruelty of Diocletian +and his colleagues, he was sensible that he should stain his memory with +the name of a tyrant, and add new glories to the Catholic church, +which had derived strength and increase from the severity of the pagan +magistrates. Actuated by these motives, and apprehensive of disturbing +the repose of an unsettled reign, Julian surprised the world by an +edict, which was not unworthy of a statesman, or a philosopher. He +extended to all the inhabitants of the Roman world the benefits of a +free and equal toleration; and the only hardship which he inflicted on +the Christians, was to deprive them of the power of tormenting their +fellow-subjects, whom they stigmatized with the odious titles of +idolaters and heretics. The pagans received a gracious permission, or +rather an express order, to open All their temples; and they were at +once delivered from the oppressive laws, and arbitrary vexations, which +they had sustained under the reign of Constantine, and of his sons. At +the same time the bishops and clergy, who had been banished by the Arian +monarch, were recalled from exile, and restored to their respective +churches; the Donatists, the Novatians, the Macedonians, the Eunomians, +and those who, with a more prosperous fortune, adhered to the doctrine +of the Council of Nice. Julian, who understood and derided their +theological disputes, invited to the palace the leaders of the hostile +sects, that he might enjoy the agreeable spectacle of their furious +encounters. The clamor of controversy sometimes provoked the emperor to +exclaim, "Hear me! the Franks have heard me, and the Alemanni;" but +he soon discovered that he was now engaged with more obstinate and +implacable enemies; and though he exerted the powers of oratory to +persuade them to live in concord, or at least in peace, he was perfectly +satisfied, before he dismissed them from his presence, that he had +nothing to dread from the union of the Christians. The impartial +Ammianus has ascribed this affected clemency to the desire of fomenting +the intestine divisions of the church, and the insidious design of +undermining the foundations of Christianity, was inseparably connected +with the zeal which Julian professed, to restore the ancient religion of +the empire. + +As soon as he ascended the throne, he assumed, according to the custom +of his predecessors, the character of supreme pontiff; not only as +the most honorable title of Imperial greatness, but as a sacred and +important office; the duties of which he was resolved to execute with +pious diligence. As the business of the state prevented the emperor from +joining every day in the public devotion of his subjects, he dedicated +a domestic chapel to his tutelar deity the Sun; his gardens were filled +with statues and altars of the gods; and each apartment of the palace +displaced the appearance of a magnificent temple. Every morning he +saluted the parent of light with a sacrifice; the blood of another +victim was shed at the moment when the Sun sunk below the horizon; +and the Moon, the Stars, and the Genii of the night received their +respective and seasonable honors from the indefatigable devotion of +Julian. On solemn festivals, he regularly visited the temple of the god +or goddess to whom the day was peculiarly consecrated, and endeavored to +excite the religion of the magistrates and people by the example of +his own zeal. Instead of maintaining the lofty state of a monarch, +distinguished by the splendor of his purple, and encompassed by +the golden shields of his guards, Julian solicited, with respectful +eagerness, the meanest offices which contributed to the worship of the +gods. Amidst the sacred but licentious crowd of priests, of inferior +ministers, and of female dancers, who were dedicated to the service of +the temple, it was the business of the emperor to bring the wood, +to blow the fire, to handle the knife, to slaughter the victim, and, +thrusting his bloody hands into the bowels of the expiring animal, to +draw forth the heart or liver, and to read, with the consummate skill of +an haruspex, imaginary signs of future events. The wisest of the Pagans +censured this extravagant superstition, which affected to despise the +restraints of prudence and decency. Under the reign of a prince, who +practised the rigid maxims of economy, the expense of religious worship +consumed a very large portion of the revenue a constant supply of the +scarcest and most beautiful birds was transported from distant climates, +to bleed on the altars of the gods; a hundred oxen were frequently +sacrificed by Julian on one and the same day; and it soon became a +popular jest, that if he should return with conquest from the Persian +war, the breed of horned cattle must infallibly be extinguished. Yet +this expense may appear inconsiderable, when it is compared with the +splendid presents which were offered either by the hand, or by order, +of the emperor, to all the celebrated places of devotion in the Roman +world; and with the sums allotted to repair and decorate the ancient +temples, which had suffered the silent decay of time, or the +recent injuries of Christian rapine. Encouraged by the example, the +exhortations, the liberality, of their pious sovereign, the cities and +families resumed the practice of their neglected ceremonies. "Every part +of the world," exclaims Libanius, with devout transport, "displayed +the triumph of religion; and the grateful prospect of flaming altars, +bleeding victims, the smoke of incense, and a solemn train of priests +and prophets, without fear and without danger. The sound of prayer and +of music was heard on the tops of the highest mountains; and the same +ox afforded a sacrifice for the gods, and a supper for their joyous +votaries." + +But the genius and power of Julian were unequal to the enterprise of +restoring a religion which was destitute of theological principles, of +moral precepts, and of ecclesiastical discipline; which rapidly hastened +to decay and dissolution, and was not susceptible of any solid or +consistent reformation. The jurisdiction of the supreme pontiff, more +especially after that office had been united with the Imperial dignity, +comprehended the whole extent of the Roman empire. Julian named for his +vicars, in the several provinces, the priests and philosophers whom he +esteemed the best qualified to cooperate in the execution of his +great design; and his pastoral letters, if we may use that name, +still represent a very curious sketch of his wishes and intentions. He +directs, that in every city the sacerdotal order should be composed, +without any distinction of birth and fortune, of those persons who were +the most conspicuous for the love of the gods, and of men. "If they +are guilty," continues he, "of any scandalous offence, they should be +censured or degraded by the superior pontiff; but as long as they retain +their rank, they are entitled to the respect of the magistrates and +people. Their humility may be shown in the plainness of their domestic +garb; their dignity, in the pomp of holy vestments. When they are +summoned in their turn to officiate before the altar, they ought not, +during the appointed number of days, to depart from the precincts of +the temple; nor should a single day be suffered to elapse, without +the prayers and the sacrifice, which they are obliged to offer for +the prosperity of the state, and of individuals. The exercise of their +sacred functions requires an immaculate purity, both of mind and body; +and even when they are dismissed from the temple to the occupations of +common life, it is incumbent on them to excel in decency and virtue the +rest of their fellow-citizens. The priest of the gods should never be +seen in theatres or taverns. His conversation should be chaste, his +diet temperate, his friends of honorable reputation; and if he sometimes +visits the Forum or the Palace, he should appear only as the advocate +of those who have vainly solicited either justice or mercy. His studies +should be suited to the sanctity of his profession. Licentious tales, +or comedies, or satires, must be banished from his library, which ought +solely to consist of historical or philosophical writings; of history, +which is founded in truth, and of philosophy, which is connected with +religion. The impious opinions of the Epicureans and sceptics deserve +his abhorrence and contempt; but he should diligently study the systems +of Pythagoras, of Plato, and of the Stoics, which unanimously teach that +there are gods; that the world is governed by their providence; that +their goodness is the source of every temporal blessing; and that +they have prepared for the human soul a future state of reward or +punishment." The Imperial pontiff inculcates, in the most persuasive +language, the duties of benevolence and hospitality; exhorts his +inferior clergy to recommend the universal practice of those virtues; +promises to assist their indigence from the public treasury; and +declares his resolution of establishing hospitals in every city, where +the poor should be received without any invidious distinction of country +or of religion. Julian beheld with envy the wise and humane regulations +of the church; and he very frankly confesses his intention to deprive +the Christians of the applause, as well as advantage, which they had +acquired by the exclusive practice of charity and beneficence. The +same spirit of imitation might dispose the emperor to adopt several +ecclesiastical institutions, the use and importance of which were +approved by the success of his enemies. But if these imaginary plans of +reformation had been realized, the forced and imperfect copy would have +been less beneficial to Paganism, than honorable to Christianity. The +Gentiles, who peaceably followed the customs of their ancestors, were +rather surprised than pleased with the introduction of foreign manners; +and in the short period of his reign, Julian had frequent occasions to +complain of the want of fervor of his own party. + +The enthusiasm of Julian prompted him to embrace the friends of Jupiter +as his personal friends and brethren; and though he partially overlooked +the merit of Christian constancy, he admired and rewarded the noble +perseverance of those Gentiles who had preferred the favor of the gods +to that of the emperor. If they cultivated the literature, as well as +the religion, of the Greeks, they acquired an additional claim to the +friendship of Julian, who ranked the Muses in the number of his tutelar +deities. In the religion which he had adopted, piety and learning +were almost synonymous; and a crowd of poets, of rhetoricians, and +of philosophers, hastened to the Imperial court, to occupy the vacant +places of the bishops, who had seduced the credulity of Constantius. His +successor esteemed the ties of common initiation as far more sacred than +those of consanguinity; he chose his favorites among the sages, who were +deeply skilled in the occult sciences of magic and divination; and every +impostor, who pretended to reveal the secrets of futurity, was +assured of enjoying the present hour in honor and affluence. Among the +philosophers, Maximus obtained the most eminent rank in the friendship +of his royal disciple, who communicated, with unreserved confidence, his +actions, his sentiments, and his religious designs, during the anxious +suspense of the civil war. As soon as Julian had taken possession of +the palace of Constantinople, he despatched an honorable and pressing +invitation to Maximus, who then resided at Sardes in Lydia, with +Chrysanthius, the associate of his art and studies. The prudent and +superstitious Chrysanthius refused to undertake a journey which showed +itself, according to the rules of divination, with the most threatening +and malignant aspect: but his companion, whose fanaticism was of a +bolder cast, persisted in his interrogations, till he had extorted from +the gods a seeming consent to his own wishes, and those of the emperor. +The journey of Maximus through the cities of Asia displayed the triumph +of philosophic vanity; and the magistrates vied with each other in +the honorable reception which they prepared for the friend of their +sovereign. Julian was pronouncing an oration before the senate, when +he was informed of the arrival of Maximus. The emperor immediately +interrupted his discourse, advanced to meet him, and after a tender +embrace, conducted him by the hand into the midst of the assembly; where +he publicly acknowledged the benefits which he had derived from +the instructions of the philosopher. Maximus, who soon acquired the +confidence, and influenced the councils of Julian, was insensibly +corrupted by the temptations of a court. His dress became more splendid, +his demeanor more lofty, and he was exposed, under a succeeding reign, +to a disgraceful inquiry into the means by which the disciple of Plato +had accumulated, in the short duration of his favor, a very scandalous +proportion of wealth. Of the other philosophers and sophists, who were +invited to the Imperial residence by the choice of Julian, or by the +success of Maximus, few were able to preserve their innocence or +their reputation. The liberal gifts of money, lands, and houses, were +insufficient to satiate their rapacious avarice; and the indignation of +the people was justly excited by the remembrance of their abject poverty +and disinterested professions. The penetration of Julian could not +always be deceived: but he was unwilling to despise the characters of +those men whose talents deserved his esteem: he desired to escape the +double reproach of imprudence and inconstancy; and he was apprehensive +of degrading, in the eyes of the profane, the honor of letters and of +religion. + +The favor of Julian was almost equally divided between the Pagans, +who had firmly adhered to the worship of their ancestors, and the +Christians, who prudently embraced the religion of their sovereign. The +acquisition of new proselytes gratified the ruling passions of his +soul, superstition and vanity; and he was heard to declare, with the +enthusiasm of a missionary, that if he could render each individual +richer than Midas, and every city greater than Babylon, he should not +esteem himself the benefactor of mankind, unless, at the same time, +he could reclaim his subjects from their impious revolt against the +immortal gods. A prince who had studied human nature, and who possessed +the treasures of the Roman empire, could adapt his arguments, his +promises, and his rewards, to every order of Christians; and the merit +of a seasonable conversion was allowed to supply the defects of a +candidate, or even to expiate the guilt of a criminal. As the army is +the most forcible engine of absolute power, Julian applied himself, with +peculiar diligence, to corrupt the religion of his troops, without whose +hearty concurrence every measure must be dangerous and unsuccessful; +and the natural temper of soldiers made this conquest as easy as it was +important. The legions of Gaul devoted themselves to the faith, as well +as to the fortunes, of their victorious leader; and even before the +death of Constantius, he had the satisfaction of announcing to his +friends, that they assisted with fervent devotion, and voracious +appetite, at the sacrifices, which were repeatedly offered in his camp, +of whole hecatombs of fat oxen. The armies of the East, which had been +trained under the standard of the cross, and of Constantius, required a +more artful and expensive mode of persuasion. On the days of solemn +and public festivals, the emperor received the homage, and rewarded +the merit, of the troops. His throne of state was encircled with the +military ensigns of Rome and the republic; the holy name of Christ was +erased from the Labarum; and the symbols of war, of majesty, and of +pagan superstition, were so dexterously blended, that the faithful +subject incurred the guilt of idolatry, when he respectfully saluted the +person or image of his sovereign. The soldiers passed successively in +review; and each of them, before he received from the hand of Julian a +liberal donative, proportioned to his rank and services, was required to +cast a few grains of incense into the flame which burnt upon the altar. +Some Christian confessors might resist, and others might repent; but +the far greater number, allured by the prospect of gold, and awed by the +presence of the emperor, contracted the criminal engagement; and their +future perseverance in the worship of the gods was enforced by every +consideration of duty and of interest. By the frequent repetition of +these arts, and at the expense of sums which would have purchased the +service of half the nations of Scythia, Julian gradually acquired for +his troops the imaginary protection of the gods, and for himself the +firm and effectual support of the Roman legions. It is indeed more than +probable, that the restoration and encouragement of Paganism revealed +a multitude of pretended Christians, who, from motives of temporal +advantage, had acquiesced in the religion of the former reign; and who +afterwards returned, with the same flexibility of conscience, to the +faith which was professed by the successors of Julian. + +While the devout monarch incessantly labored to restore and propagate +the religion of his ancestors, he embraced the extraordinary design of +rebuilding the temple of Jerusalem. In a public epistle to the nation or +community of the Jews, dispersed through the provinces, he pities +their misfortunes, condemns their oppressors, praises their constancy, +declares himself their gracious protector, and expresses a pious hope, +that after his return from the Persian war, he may be permitted to pay +his grateful vows to the Almighty in his holy city of Jerusalem. The +blind superstition, and abject slavery, of those unfortunate exiles, +must excite the contempt of a philosophic emperor; but they deserved the +friendship of Julian, by their implacable hatred of the Christian name. +The barren synagogue abhorred and envied the fecundity of the rebellious +church; the power of the Jews was not equal to their malice; but their +gravest rabbis approved the private murder of an apostate; and their +seditious clamors had often awakened the indolence of the Pagan +magistrates. Under the reign of Constantine, the Jews became the +subjects of their revolted children nor was it long before they +experienced the bitterness of domestic tyranny. The civil immunities +which had been granted, or confirmed, by Severus, were gradually +repealed by the Christian princes; and a rash tumult, excited by the +Jews of Palestine, seemed to justify the lucrative modes of oppression +which were invented by the bishops and eunuchs of the court of +Constantius. The Jewish patriarch, who was still permitted to exercise +a precarious jurisdiction, held his residence at Tiberias; and the +neighboring cities of Palestine were filled with the remains of a people +who fondly adhered to the promised land. But the edict of Hadrian was +renewed and enforced; and they viewed from afar the walls of the holy +city, which were profaned in their eyes by the triumph of the cross and +the devotion of the Christians. + + + +Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.--Part III. + +In the midst of a rocky and barren country, the walls of Jerusalem +enclosed the two mountains of Sion and Acra, within an oval figure of +about three English miles. Towards the south, the upper town, and the +fortress of David, were erected on the lofty ascent of Mount Sion: on +the north side, the buildings of the lower town covered the spacious +summit of Mount Acra; and a part of the hill, distinguished by the name +of Moriah, and levelled by human industry, was crowned with the stately +temple of the Jewish nation. After the final destruction of the temple +by the arms of Titus and Hadrian, a ploughshare was drawn over the +consecrated ground, as a sign of perpetual interdiction. Sion was +deserted; and the vacant space of the lower city was filled with the +public and private edifices of the AElian colony, which spread themselves +over the adjacent hill of Calvary. The holy places were polluted with +mountains of idolatry; and, either from design or accident, a chapel was +dedicated to Venus, on the spot which had been sanctified by the death +and resurrection of Christ. * Almost three hundred years after those +stupendous events, the profane chapel of Venus was demolished by the +order of Constantine; and the removal of the earth and stones revealed +the holy sepulchre to the eyes of mankind. A magnificent church was +erected on that mystic ground, by the first Christian emperor; and the +effects of his pious munificence were extended to every spot which had +been consecrated by the footstep of patriarchs, of prophets, and of the +Son of God. + +The passionate desire of contemplating the original monuments of their +redemption attracted to Jerusalem a successive crowd of pilgrims, from +the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, and the most distant countries of +the East; and their piety was authorized by the example of the empress +Helena, who appears to have united the credulity of age with the warm +feelings of a recent conversion. Sages and heroes, who have visited +the memorable scenes of ancient wisdom or glory, have confessed the +inspiration of the genius of the place; and the Christian who knelt +before the holy sepulchre, ascribed his lively faith, and his fervent +devotion, to the more immediate influence of the Divine Spirit. The +zeal, perhaps the avarice, of the clergy of Jerusalem, cherished and +multiplied these beneficial visits. They fixed, by unquestionable +tradition, the scene of each memorable event. They exhibited the +instruments which had been used in the passion of Christ; the nails and +the lance that had pierced his hands, his feet, and his side; the crown +of thorns that was planted on his head; the pillar at which he was +scourged; and, above all, they showed the cross on which he suffered, +and which was dug out of the earth in the reign of those princes, who +inserted the symbol of Christianity in the banners of the Roman legions. +Such miracles as seemed necessary to account for its extraordinary +preservation, and seasonable discovery, were gradually propagated +without opposition. The custody of the true cross, which on Easter +Sunday was solemnly exposed to the people, was intrusted to the bishop +of Jerusalem; and he alone might gratify the curious devotion of the +pilgrims, by the gift of small pieces, which they encased in gold or +gems, and carried away in triumph to their respective countries. But as +this gainful branch of commerce must soon have been annihilated, it was +found convenient to suppose, that the marvelous wood possessed a +secret power of vegetation; and that its substance, though continually +diminished, still remained entire and unimpaired. It might perhaps +have been expected, that the influence of the place and the belief of +a perpetual miracle, should have produced some salutary effects on the +morals, as well as on the faith, of the people. Yet the most respectable +of the ecclesiastical writers have been obliged to confess, not only +that the streets of Jerusalem were filled with the incessant tumult of +business and pleasure, but that every species of vice--adultery, theft, +idolatry, poisoning, murder--was familiar to the inhabitants of the holy +city. The wealth and preeminence of the church of Jerusalem excited the +ambition of Arian, as well as orthodox, candidates; and the virtues of +Cyril, who, since his death, has been honored with the title of Saint, +were displayed in the exercise, rather than in the acquisition, of his +episcopal dignity. + +The vain and ambitious mind of Julian might aspire to restore the +ancient glory of the temple of Jerusalem. As the Christians were firmly +persuaded that a sentence of everlasting destruction had been pronounced +against the whole fabric of the Mosaic law, the Imperial sophist would +have converted the success of his undertaking into a specious argument +against the faith of prophecy, and the truth of revelation. He was +displeased with the spiritual worship of the synagogue; but he approved +the institutions of Moses, who had not disdained to adopt many of the +rites and ceremonies of Egypt. The local and national deity of the Jews +was sincerely adored by a polytheist, who desired only to multiply +the number of the gods; and such was the appetite of Julian for bloody +sacrifice, that his emulation might be excited by the piety of Solomon, +who had offered, at the feast of the dedication, twenty-two thousand +oxen, and one hundred and twenty thousand sheep. These considerations +might influence his designs; but the prospect of an immediate and +important advantage would not suffer the impatient monarch to expect +the remote and uncertain event of the Persian war. He resolved to erect, +without delay, on the commanding eminence of Moriah, a stately temple, +which might eclipse the splendor of the church of the resurrection on +the adjacent hill of Calvary; to establish an order of priests, whose +interested zeal would detect the arts, and resist the ambition, of their +Christian rivals; and to invite a numerous colony of Jews, whose stern +fanaticism would be always prepared to second, and even to anticipate, +the hostile measures of the Pagan government. Among the friends of the +emperor (if the names of emperor, and of friend, are not incompatible) +the first place was assigned, by Julian himself, to the virtuous and +learned Alypius. The humanity of Alypius was tempered by severe justice +and manly fortitude; and while he exercised his abilities in the civil +administration of Britain, he imitated, in his poetical compositions, +the harmony and softness of the odes of Sappho. This minister, to whom +Julian communicated, without reserve, his most careless levities, and +his most serious counsels, received an extraordinary commission to +restore, in its pristine beauty, the temple of Jerusalem; and the +diligence of Alypius required and obtained the strenuous support of the +governor of Palestine. At the call of their great deliverer, the Jews, +from all the provinces of the empire, assembled on the holy mountain of +their fathers; and their insolent triumph alarmed and exasperated the +Christian inhabitants of Jerusalem. The desire of rebuilding the temple +has in every age been the ruling passion of the children of Israel. In +this propitious moment the men forgot their avarice, and the women their +delicacy; spades and pickaxes of silver were provided by the vanity of +the rich, and the rubbish was transported in mantles of silk and purple. +Every purse was opened in liberal contributions, every hand claimed +a share in the pious labor, and the commands of a great monarch were +executed by the enthusiasm of a whole people. + +Yet, on this occasion, the joint efforts of power and enthusiasm were +unsuccessful; and the ground of the Jewish temple, which is now covered +by a Mahometan mosque, still continued to exhibit the same edifying +spectacle of ruin and desolation. Perhaps the absence and death of the +emperor, and the new maxims of a Christian reign, might explain the +interruption of an arduous work, which was attempted only in the last +six months of the life of Julian. But the Christians entertained a +natural and pious expectation, that, in this memorable contest, the +honor of religion would be vindicated by some signal miracle. An +earthquake, a whirlwind, and a fiery eruption, which overturned and +scattered the new foundations of the temple, are attested, with some +variations, by contemporary and respectable evidence. This public event +is described by Ambrose, bishop of Milan, in an epistle to the emperor +Theodosius, which must provoke the severe animadversion of the Jews; +by the eloquent Chrysostom, who might appeal to the memory of the elder +part of his congregation at Antioch; and by Gregory Nazianzen, who +published his account of the miracle before the expiration of the +same year. The last of these writers has boldly declared, that this +preternatural event was not disputed by the infidels; and his assertion, +strange as it may seem is confirmed by the unexceptionable testimony of +Ammianus Marcellinus. The philosophic soldier, who loved the virtues, +without adopting the prejudices, of his master, has recorded, in +his judicious and candid history of his own times, the extraordinary +obstacles which interrupted the restoration of the temple of Jerusalem. +"Whilst Alypius, assisted by the governor of the province, urged, with +vigor and diligence, the execution of the work, horrible balls of fire +breaking out near the foundations, with frequent and reiterated attacks, +rendered the place, from time to time, inaccessible to the scorched and +blasted workmen; and the victorious element continuing in this manner +obstinately and resolutely bent, as it were, to drive them to a +distance, the undertaking was abandoned." * Such authority should +satisfy a believing, and must astonish an incredulous, mind. Yet a +philosopher may still require the original evidence of impartial and +intelligent spectators. At this important crisis, any singular accident +of nature would assume the appearance, and produce the effects of a +real prodigy. This glorious deliverance would be speedily improved and +magnified by the pious art of the clergy of Jerusalem, and the active +credulity of the Christian world and, at the distance of twenty years, a +Roman historian, care less of theological disputes, might adorn his work +with the specious and splendid miracle. + + + +Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.--Part IV. + +The restoration of the Jewish temple was secretly connected with the +ruin of the Christian church. Julian still continued to maintain the +freedom of religious worship, without distinguishing whether this +universal toleration proceeded from his justice or his clemency. He +affected to pity the unhappy Christians, who were mistaken in the most +important object of their lives; but his pity was degraded by contempt, +his contempt was embittered by hatred; and the sentiments of Julian were +expressed in a style of sarcastic wit, which inflicts a deep and deadly +wound, whenever it issues from the mouth of a sovereign. As he was +sensible that the Christians gloried in the name of their Redeemer, +he countenanced, and perhaps enjoined, the use of the less honorable +appellation of Galilaeans. He declared, that by the folly of the +Galilaeans, whom he describes as a sect of fanatics, contemptible to +men, and odious to the gods, the empire had been reduced to the brink of +destruction; and he insinuates in a public edict, that a frantic patient +might sometimes be cured by salutary violence. An ungenerous distinction +was admitted into the mind and counsels of Julian, that, according to +the difference of their religious sentiments, one part of his subjects +deserved his favor and friendship, while the other was entitled only +to the common benefits that his justice could not refuse to an obedient +people. According to a principle, pregnant with mischief and oppression, +the emperor transferred to the pontiffs of his own religion the +management of the liberal allowances for the public revenue, which had +been granted to the church by the piety of Constantine and his sons. +The proud system of clerical honors and immunities, which had been +constructed with so much art and labor, was levelled to the ground; the +hopes of testamentary donations were intercepted by the rigor of the +laws; and the priests of the Christian sect were confounded with the +last and most ignominious class of the people. Such of these regulations +as appeared necessary to check the ambition and avarice of the +ecclesiastics, were soon afterwards imitated by the wisdom of an +orthodox prince. The peculiar distinctions which policy has bestowed, or +superstition has lavished, on the sacerdotal order, must be confined to +those priests who profess the religion of the state. But the will of +the legislator was not exempt from prejudice and passion; and it was the +object of the insidious policy of Julian, to deprive the Christians of +all the temporal honors and advantages which rendered them respectable +in the eyes of the world. + +A just and severe censure has been inflicted on the law which prohibited +the Christians from teaching the arts of grammar and rhetoric. The +motives alleged by the emperor to justify this partial and oppressive +measure, might command, during his lifetime, the silence of slaves and +the applause of flatterers. Julian abuses the ambiguous meaning of +a word which might be indifferently applied to the language and the +religion of the Greeks: he contemptuously observes, that the men who +exalt the merit of implicit faith are unfit to claim or to enjoy the +advantages of science; and he vainly contends, that if they refuse +to adore the gods of Homer and Demosthenes, they ought to content +themselves with expounding Luke and Matthew in the church of the +Galilaeans. In all the cities of the Roman world, the education of the +youth was intrusted to masters of grammar and rhetoric; who were elected +by the magistrates, maintained at the public expense, and distinguished +by many lucrative and honorable privileges. The edict of Julian appears +to have included the physicians, and professors of all the liberal +arts; and the emperor, who reserved to himself the approbation of the +candidates, was authorized by the laws to corrupt, or to punish, the +religious constancy of the most learned of the Christians. As soon +as the resignation of the more obstinate teachers had established the +unrivalled dominion of the Pagan sophists, Julian invited the rising +generation to resort with freedom to the public schools, in a just +confidence, that their tender minds would receive the impressions of +literature and idolatry. If the greatest part of the Christian youth +should be deterred by their own scruples, or by those of their parents, +from accepting this dangerous mode of instruction, they must, at the +same time, relinquish the benefits of a liberal education. Julian had +reason to expect that, in the space of a few years, the church would +relapse into its primaeval simplicity, and that the theologians, who +possessed an adequate share of the learning and eloquence of the age, +would be succeeded by a generation of blind and ignorant fanatics, +incapable of defending the truth of their own principles, or of exposing +the various follies of Polytheism. + +It was undoubtedly the wish and design of Julian to deprive the +Christians of the advantages of wealth, of knowledge, and of power; but +the injustice of excluding them from all offices of trust and profit +seems to have been the result of his general policy, rather than the +immediate consequence of any positive law. Superior merit might deserve +and obtain, some extraordinary exceptions; but the greater part of the +Christian officers were gradually removed from their employments in the +state, the army, and the provinces. The hopes of future candidates were +extinguished by the declared partiality of a prince, who maliciously +reminded them, that it was unlawful for a Christian to use the sword, +either of justice, or of war; and who studiously guarded the camp and +the tribunals with the ensigns of idolatry. The powers of government +were intrusted to the pagans, who professed an ardent zeal for the +religion of their ancestors; and as the choice of the emperor was often +directed by the rules of divination, the favorites whom he preferred as +the most agreeable to the gods, did not always obtain the approbation of +mankind. Under the administration of their enemies, the Christians had +much to suffer, and more to apprehend. The temper of Julian was averse +to cruelty; and the care of his reputation, which was exposed to the +eyes of the universe, restrained the philosophic monarch from violating +the laws of justice and toleration, which he himself had so recently +established. But the provincial ministers of his authority were placed +in a less conspicuous station. In the exercise of arbitrary power, they +consulted the wishes, rather than the commands, of their sovereign; +and ventured to exercise a secret and vexatious tyranny against the +sectaries, on whom they were not permitted to confer the honors of +martyrdom. The emperor, who dissembled as long as possible his knowledge +of the injustice that was exercised in his name, expressed his real +sense of the conduct of his officers, by gentle reproofs and substantial +rewards. + +The most effectual instrument of oppression, with which they were +armed, was the law that obliged the Christians to make full and +ample satisfaction for the temples which they had destroyed under +the preceding reign. The zeal of the triumphant church had not always +expected the sanction of the public authority; and the bishops, who were +secure of impunity, had often marched at the head of their congregation, +to attack and demolish the fortresses of the prince of darkness. The +consecrated lands, which had increased the patrimony of the sovereign or +of the clergy, were clearly defined, and easily restored. But on these +lands, and on the ruins of Pagan superstition, the Christians had +frequently erected their own religious edifices: and as it was necessary +to remove the church before the temple could be rebuilt, the justice +and piety of the emperor were applauded by one party, while the other +deplored and execrated his sacrilegious violence. After the ground was +cleared, the restitution of those stately structures which had been +levelled with the dust, and of the precious ornaments which had been +converted to Christian uses, swelled into a very large account of +damages and debt. The authors of the injury had neither the ability nor +the inclination to discharge this accumulated demand: and the impartial +wisdom of a legislator would have been displayed in balancing +the adverse claims and complaints, by an equitable and temperate +arbitration. But the whole empire, and particularly the East, was thrown +into confusion by the rash edicts of Julian; and the Pagan magistrates, +inflamed by zeal and revenge, abused the rigorous privilege of the Roman +law, which substitutes, in the place of his inadequate property, the +person of the insolvent debtor. Under the preceding reign, Mark, bishop +of Arethusa, had labored in the conversion of his people with arms more +effectual than those of persuasion. The magistrates required the full +value of a temple which had been destroyed by his intolerant zeal: but +as they were satisfied of his poverty, they desired only to bend his +inflexible spirit to the promise of the slightest compensation. They +apprehended the aged prelate, they inhumanly scourged him, they tore his +beard; and his naked body, anointed with honey, was suspended, in a net, +between heaven and earth, and exposed to the stings of insects and the +rays of a Syrian sun. From this lofty station, Mark still persisted to +glory in his crime, and to insult the impotent rage of his persecutors. +He was at length rescued from their hands, and dismissed to enjoy the +honor of his divine triumph. The Arians celebrated the virtue of their +pious confessor; the Catholics ambitiously claimed his alliance; and the +Pagans, who might be susceptible of shame or remorse, were deterred from +the repetition of such unavailing cruelty. Julian spared his life: but +if the bishop of Arethusa had saved the infancy of Julian, posterity +will condemn the ingratitude, instead of praising the clemency, of the +emperor. + +At the distance of five miles from Antioch, the Macedonian kings of +Syria had consecrated to Apollo one of the most elegant places of +devotion in the Pagan world. A magnificent temple rose in honor of +the god of light; and his colossal figure almost filled the capacious +sanctuary, which was enriched with gold and gems, and adorned by the +skill of the Grecian artists. The deity was represented in a bending +attitude, with a golden cup in his hand, pouring out a libation on the +earth; as if he supplicated the venerable mother to give to his arms the +cold and beauteous Daphne: for the spot was ennobled by fiction; and +the fancy of the Syrian poets had transported the amorous tale from the +banks of the Peneus to those of the Orontes. The ancient rites of Greece +were imitated by the royal colony of Antioch. A stream of prophecy, +which rivalled the truth and reputation of the Delphic oracle, flowed +from the Castalian fountain of Daphne. In the adjacent fields a stadium +was built by a special privilege, which had been purchased from Elis; +the Olympic games were celebrated at the expense of the city; and a +revenue of thirty thousand pounds sterling was annually applied to +the public pleasures. The perpetual resort of pilgrims and spectators +insensibly formed, in the neighborhood of the temple, the stately +and populous village of Daphne, which emulated the splendor, without +acquiring the title, of a provincial city. The temple and the village +were deeply bosomed in a thick grove of laurels and cypresses, which +reached as far as a circumference of ten miles, and formed in the most +sultry summers a cool and impenetrable shade. A thousand streams of +the purest water, issuing from every hill, preserved the verdure of the +earth, and the temperature of the air; the senses were gratified +with harmonious sounds and aromatic odors; and the peaceful grove was +consecrated to health and joy, to luxury and love. The vigorous youth +pursued, like Apollo, the object of his desires; and the blushing maid +was warned, by the fate of Daphne, to shun the folly of unseasonable +coyness. The soldier and the philosopher wisely avoided the temptation +of this sensual paradise: where pleasure, assuming the character of +religion, imperceptibly dissolved the firmness of manly virtue. But +the groves of Daphne continued for many ages to enjoy the veneration of +natives and strangers; the privileges of the holy ground were enlarged +by the munificence of succeeding emperors; and every generation added +new ornaments to the splendor of the temple. + +When Julian, on the day of the annual festival, hastened to adore +the Apollo of Daphne, his devotion was raised to the highest pitch +of eagerness and impatience. His lively imagination anticipated the +grateful pomp of victims, of libations and of incense; a long procession +of youths and virgins, clothed in white robes, the symbol of their +innocence; and the tumultuous concourse of an innumerable people. But +the zeal of Antioch was diverted, since the reign of Christianity, into +a different channel. Instead of hecatombs of fat oxen sacrificed by the +tribes of a wealthy city to their tutelar deity the emperor complains +that he found only a single goose, provided at the expense of a priest, +the pale and solitary in habitant of this decayed temple. The altar was +deserted, the oracle had been reduced to silence, and the holy ground +was profaned by the introduction of Christian and funereal rites. After +Babylas (a bishop of Antioch, who died in prison in the persecution of +Decius) had rested near a century in his grave, his body, by the order +of Caesar Gallus, was transported into the midst of the grove of Daphne. +A magnificent church was erected over his remains; a portion of the +sacred lands was usurped for the maintenance of the clergy, and for the +burial of the Christians at Antioch, who were ambitious of lying at +the feet of their bishop; and the priests of Apollo retired, with their +affrighted and indignant votaries. As soon as another revolution seemed +to restore the fortune of Paganism, the church of St. Babylas was +demolished, and new buildings were added to the mouldering edifice which +had been raised by the piety of Syrian kings. But the first and most +serious care of Julian was to deliver his oppressed deity from +the odious presence of the dead and living Christians, who had so +effectually suppressed the voice of fraud or enthusiasm. The scene of +infection was purified, according to the forms of ancient rituals; +the bodies were decently removed; and the ministers of the church +were permitted to convey the remains of St. Babylas to their former +habitation within the walls of Antioch. The modest behavior which might +have assuaged the jealousy of a hostile government was neglected, +on this occasion, by the zeal of the Christians. The lofty car, that +transported the relics of Babylas, was followed, and accompanied, and +received, by an innumerable multitude; who chanted, with thundering +acclamations, the Psalms of David the most expressive of their contempt +for idols and idolaters. The return of the saint was a triumph; and the +triumph was an insult on the religion of the emperor, who exerted his +pride to dissemble his resentment. During the night which terminated +this indiscreet procession, the temple of Daphne was in flames; the +statue of Apollo was consumed; and the walls of the edifice were left +a naked and awful monument of ruin. The Christians of Antioch asserted, +with religious confidence, that the powerful intercession of St. Babylas +had pointed the lightnings of heaven against the devoted roof: but as +Julian was reduced to the alternative of believing either a crime or a +miracle, he chose, without hesitation, without evidence, but with some +color of probability, to impute the fire of Daphne to the revenge of the +Galilaeans. Their offence, had it been sufficiently proved, might have +justified the retaliation, which was immediately executed by the order +of Julian, of shutting the doors, and confiscating the wealth, of the +cathedral of Antioch. To discover the criminals who were guilty of the +tumult, of the fire, or of secreting the riches of the church, several +of the ecclesiastics were tortured; and a Presbyter, of the name of +Theodoret, was beheaded by the sentence of the Count of the East. But +this hasty act was blamed by the emperor; who lamented, with real or +affected concern, that the imprudent zeal of his ministers would tarnish +his reign with the disgrace of persecution. + + +Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.--Part V. + +The zeal of the ministers of Julian was instantly checked by the frown +of their sovereign; but when the father of his country declares himself +the leader of a faction, the license of popular fury cannot easily be +restrained, nor consistently punished. Julian, in a public composition, +applauds the devotion and loyalty of the holy cities of Syria, whose +pious inhabitants had destroyed, at the first signal, the sepulchres +of the Galilaeans; and faintly complains, that they had revenged +the injuries of the gods with less moderation than he should have +recommended. This imperfect and reluctant confession may appear to +confirm the ecclesiastical narratives; that in the cities of Gaza, +Ascalon, Caesarea, Heliopolis, &c., the Pagans abused, without prudence +or remorse, the moment of their prosperity. That the unhappy objects +of their cruelty were released from torture only by death; and as their +mangled bodies were dragged through the streets, they were pierced +(such was the universal rage) by the spits of cooks, and the distaffs of +enraged women; and that the entrails of Christian priests and virgins, +after they had been tasted by those bloody fanatics, were mixed with +barley, and contemptuously thrown to the unclean animals of the city. +Such scenes of religious madness exhibit the most contemptible and +odious picture of human nature; but the massacre of Alexandria attracts +still more attention, from the certainty of the fact, the rank of the +victims, and the splendor of the capital of Egypt. + +George, from his parents or his education, surnamed the Cappadocian, was +born at Epiphania in Cilicia, in a fuller's shop. From this obscure and +servile origin he raised himself by the talents of a parasite; and the +patrons, whom he assiduously flattered, procured for their worthless +dependent a lucrative commission, or contract, to supply the army with +bacon. His employment was mean; he rendered it infamous. He accumulated +wealth by the basest arts of fraud and corruption; but his malversations +were so notorious, that George was compelled to escape from the pursuits +of justice. After this disgrace, in which he appears to have saved his +fortune at the expense of his honor, he embraced, with real or affected +zeal, the profession of Arianism. From the love, or the ostentation, +of learning, he collected a valuable library of history rhetoric, +philosophy, and theology, and the choice of the prevailing faction +promoted George of Cappadocia to the throne of Athanasius. The entrance +of the new archbishop was that of a Barbarian conqueror; and each moment +of his reign was polluted by cruelty and avarice. The Catholics of +Alexandria and Egypt were abandoned to a tyrant, qualified, by nature +and education, to exercise the office of persecution; but he oppressed +with an impartial hand the various inhabitants of his extensive diocese. +The primate of Egypt assumed the pomp and insolence of his lofty +station; but he still betrayed the vices of his base and servile +extraction. The merchants of Alexandria were impoverished by the unjust, +and almost universal, monopoly, which he acquired, of nitre, salt, +paper, funerals, &c.: and the spiritual father of a great people +condescended to practise the vile and pernicious arts of an informer. +The Alexandrians could never forget, nor forgive, the tax, which he +suggested, on all the houses of the city; under an obsolete claim, that +the royal founder had conveyed to his successors, the Ptolemies and the +Caesars, the perpetual property of the soil. The Pagans, who had been +flattered with the hopes of freedom and toleration, excited his devout +avarice; and the rich temples of Alexandria were either pillaged or +insulted by the haughty prince, who exclaimed, in a loud and threatening +tone, "How long will these sepulchres be permitted to stand?" Under +the reign of Constantius, he was expelled by the fury, or rather by the +justice, of the people; and it was not without a violent struggle, that +the civil and military powers of the state could restore his authority, +and gratify his revenge. The messenger who proclaimed at Alexandria the +accession of Julian, announced the downfall of the archbishop. George, +with two of his obsequious ministers, Count Diodorus, and Dracontius, +master of the mint were ignominiously dragged in chains to the public +prison. At the end of twenty-four days, the prison was forced open by +the rage of a superstitious multitude, impatient of the tedious forms +of judicial proceedings. The enemies of gods and men expired under their +cruel insults; the lifeless bodies of the archbishop and his associates +were carried in triumph through the streets on the back of a camel; +* and the inactivity of the Athanasian party was esteemed a shining +example of evangelical patience. The remains of these guilty wretches +were thrown into the sea; and the popular leaders of the tumult declared +their resolution to disappoint the devotion of the Christians, and to +intercept the future honors of these martyrs, who had been punished, +like their predecessors, by the enemies of their religion. The fears of +the Pagans were just, and their precautions ineffectual. The meritorious +death of the archbishop obliterated the memory of his life. The rival of +Athanasius was dear and sacred to the Arians, and the seeming conversion +of those sectaries introduced his worship into the bosom of the Catholic +church. The odious stranger, disguising every circumstance of time and +place, assumed the mask of a martyr, a saint, and a Christian hero; and +the infamous George of Cappadocia has been transformed into the renowned +St. George of England, the patron of arms, of chivalry, and of the +garter. + +About the same time that Julian was informed of the tumult of +Alexandria, he received intelligence from Edessa, that the proud +and wealthy faction of the Arians had insulted the weakness of the +Valentinians, and committed such disorders as ought not to be suffered +with impunity in a well-regulated state. Without expecting the slow +forms of justice, the exasperated prince directed his mandate to the +magistrates of Edessa, by which he confiscated the whole property of +the church: the money was distributed among the soldiers; the lands were +added to the domain; and this act of oppression was aggravated by the +most ungenerous irony. "I show myself," says Julian, "the true friend of +the Galilaeans. Their admirable law has promised the kingdom of heaven +to the poor; and they will advance with more diligence in the paths of +virtue and salvation, when they are relieved by my assistance from the +load of temporal possessions. Take care," pursued the monarch, in a more +serious tone, "take care how you provoke my patience and humanity. If +these disorders continue, I will revenge on the magistrates the crimes +of the people; and you will have reason to dread, not only confiscation +and exile, but fire and the sword." The tumults of Alexandria were +doubtless of a more bloody and dangerous nature: but a Christian bishop +had fallen by the hands of the Pagans; and the public epistle of Julian +affords a very lively proof of the partial spirit of his administration. +His reproaches to the citizens of Alexandria are mingled with +expressions of esteem and tenderness; and he laments, that, on this +occasion, they should have departed from the gentle and generous manners +which attested their Grecian extraction. He gravely censures the offence +which they had committed against the laws of justice and humanity; but +he recapitulates, with visible complacency, the intolerable provocations +which they had so long endured from the impious tyranny of George +of Cappadocia. Julian admits the principle, that a wise and vigorous +government should chastise the insolence of the people; yet, in +consideration of their founder Alexander, and of Serapis their tutelar +deity, he grants a free and gracious pardon to the guilty city, for +which he again feels the affection of a brother. + +After the tumult of Alexandria had subsided, Athanasius, amidst the +public acclamations, seated himself on the throne from whence his +unworthy competitor had been precipitated: and as the zeal of the +archbishop was tempered with discretion, the exercise of his authority +tended not to inflame, but to reconcile, the minds of the people. His +pastoral labors were not confined to the narrow limits of Egypt. The +state of the Christian world was present to his active and capacious +mind; and the age, the merit, the reputation of Athanasius, enabled him +to assume, in a moment of danger, the office of Ecclesiastical Dictator. +Three years were not yet elapsed since the majority of the bishops of +the West had ignorantly, or reluctantly, subscribed the Confession of +Rimini. They repented, they believed, but they dreaded the unseasonable +rigor of their orthodox brethren; and if their pride was stronger than +their faith, they might throw themselves into the arms of the Arians, to +escape the indignity of a public penance, which must degrade them to the +condition of obscure laymen. At the same time the domestic differences +concerning the union and distinction of the divine persons, were +agitated with some heat among the Catholic doctors; and the progress of +this metaphysical controversy seemed to threaten a public and lasting +division of the Greek and Latin churches. By the wisdom of a select +synod, to which the name and presence of Athanasius gave the authority +of a general council, the bishops, who had unwarily deviated into error, +were admitted to the communion of the church, on the easy condition of +subscribing the Nicene Creed; without any formal acknowledgment of their +past fault, or any minute definition of their scholastic opinions. The +advice of the primate of Egypt had already prepared the clergy of Gaul +and Spain, of Italy and Greece, for the reception of this salutary +measure; and, notwithstanding the opposition of some ardent spirits, +the fear of the common enemy promoted the peace and harmony of the +Christians. + +The skill and diligence of the primate of Egypt had improved the season +of tranquillity, before it was interrupted by the hostile edicts of the +emperor. Julian, who despised the Christians, honored Athanasius with +his sincere and peculiar hatred. For his sake alone, he introduced an +arbitrary distinction, repugnant at least to the spirit of his former +declarations. He maintained, that the Galilaeans, whom he had recalled +from exile, were not restored, by that general indulgence, to +the possession of their respective churches; and he expressed his +astonishment, that a criminal, who had been repeatedly condemned by the +judgment of the emperors, should dare to insult the majesty of the laws, +and insolently usurp the archiepiscopal throne of Alexandria, without +expecting the orders of his sovereign. As a punishment for the imaginary +offence, he again banished Athanasius from the city; and he was pleased +to suppose, that this act of justice would be highly agreeable to his +pious subjects. The pressing solicitations of the people soon convinced +him, that the majority of the Alexandrians were Christians; and that +the greatest part of the Christians were firmly attached to the cause of +their oppressed primate. But the knowledge of their sentiments, instead +of persuading him to recall his decree, provoked him to extend to all +Egypt the term of the exile of Athanasius. The zeal of the multitude +rendered Julian still more inexorable: he was alarmed by the danger of +leaving at the head of a tumultuous city, a daring and popular leader; +and the language of his resentment discovers the opinion which he +entertained of the courage and abilities of Athanasius. The execution +of the sentence was still delayed, by the caution or negligence of +Ecdicius, praefect of Egypt, who was at length awakened from his lethargy +by a severe reprimand. "Though you neglect," says Julian, "to write to +me on any other subject, at least it is your duty to inform me of your +conduct towards Athanasius, the enemy of the gods. My intentions have +been long since communicated to you. I swear by the great Serapis, +that unless, on the calends of December, Athanasius has departed from +Alexandria, nay, from Egypt, the officers of your government shall pay +a fine of one hundred pounds of gold. You know my temper: I am slow to +condemn, but I am still slower to forgive." This epistle was enforced by +a short postscript, written with the emperor's own hand. "The contempt +that is shown for all the gods fills me with grief and indignation. +There is nothing that I should see, nothing that I should hear, with +more pleasure, than the expulsion of Athanasius from all Egypt. The +abominable wretch! Under my reign, the baptism of several Grecian ladies +of the highest rank has been the effect of his persecutions." The death +of Athanasius was not expressly commanded; but the praefect of Egypt +understood that it was safer for him to exceed, than to neglect, the +orders of an irritated master. The archbishop prudently retired to the +monasteries of the Desert; eluded, with his usual dexterity, the snares +of the enemy; and lived to triumph over the ashes of a prince, who, in +words of formidable import, had declared his wish that the whole +venom of the Galilaean school were contained in the single person of +Athanasius. + +I have endeavored faithfully to represent the artful system by which +Julian proposed to obtain the effects, without incurring the guilt, +or reproach, of persecution. But if the deadly spirit of fanaticism +perverted the heart and understanding of a virtuous prince, it must, at +the same time, be confessed that the real sufferings of the Christians +were inflamed and magnified by human passions and religious enthusiasm. +The meekness and resignation which had distinguished the primitive +disciples of the gospel, was the object of the applause, rather than of +the imitation of their successors. The Christians, who had now possessed +above forty years the civil and ecclesiastical government of the empire, +had contracted the insolent vices of prosperity, and the habit of +believing that the saints alone were entitled to reign over the earth. +As soon as the enmity of Julian deprived the clergy of the privileges +which had been conferred by the favor of Constantine, they complained +of the most cruel oppression; and the free toleration of idolaters and +heretics was a subject of grief and scandal to the orthodox party. The +acts of violence, which were no longer countenanced by the magistrates, +were still committed by the zeal of the people. At Pessinus, the altar +of Cybele was overturned almost in the presence of the emperor; and in +the city of Caesarea in Cappadocia, the temple of Fortune, the sole place +of worship which had been left to the Pagans, was destroyed by the rage +of a popular tumult. On these occasions, a prince, who felt for the +honor of the gods, was not disposed to interrupt the course of justice; +and his mind was still more deeply exasperated, when he found that the +fanatics, who had deserved and suffered the punishment of incendiaries, +were rewarded with the honors of martyrdom. The Christian subjects of +Julian were assured of the hostile designs of their sovereign; and, to +their jealous apprehension, every circumstance of his government +might afford some grounds of discontent and suspicion. In the ordinary +administration of the laws, the Christians, who formed so large a +part of the people, must frequently be condemned: but their indulgent +brethren, without examining the merits of the cause, presumed their +innocence, allowed their claims, and imputed the severity of their judge +to the partial malice of religious persecution. These present hardships, +intolerable as they might appear, were represented as a slight prelude +of the impending calamities. The Christians considered Julian as a cruel +and crafty tyrant; who suspended the execution of his revenge till he +should return victorious from the Persian war. They expected, that as +soon as he had triumphed over the foreign enemies of Rome, he would lay +aside the irksome mask of dissimulation; that the amphitheatre would +stream with the blood of hermits and bishops; and that the Christians +who still persevered in the profession of the faith, would be deprived +of the common benefits of nature and society. Every calumny that could +wound the reputation of the Apostate, was credulously embraced by +the fears and hatred of his adversaries; and their indiscreet clamors +provoked the temper of a sovereign, whom it was their duty to respect, +and their interest to flatter. They still protested, that prayers and +tears were their only weapons against the impious tyrant, whose head +they devoted to the justice of offended Heaven. But they insinuated, +with sullen resolution, that their submission was no longer the effect +of weakness; and that, in the imperfect state of human virtue, +the patience, which is founded on principle, may be exhausted by +persecution. It is impossible to determine how far the zeal of Julian +would have prevailed over his good sense and humanity; but if we +seriously reflect on the strength and spirit of the church, we shall be +convinced, that before the emperor could have extinguished the religion +of Christ, he must have involved his country in the horrors of a civil +war. + + + +Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian.--Part I. + + Residence Of Julian At Antioch.--His Successful Expedition + Against The Persians.--Passage Of The Tigris--The Retreat + And Death Of Julian.--Election Of Jovian.--He Saves The + Roman Army By A Disgraceful Treaty. + +The philosophical fable which Julian composed under the name of the +Caesars, is one of the most agreeable and instructive productions +of ancient wit. During the freedom and equality of the days of the +Saturnalia, Romulus prepared a feast for the deities of Olympus, who had +adopted him as a worthy associate, and for the Roman princes, who had +reigned over his martial people, and the vanquished nations of the +earth. The immortals were placed in just order on their thrones of +state, and the table of the Caesars was spread below the Moon in the +upper region of the air. The tyrants, who would have disgraced the +society of gods and men, were thrown headlong, by the inexorable +Nemesis, into the Tartarean abyss. The rest of the Caesars successively +advanced to their seats; and as they passed, the vices, the defects, the +blemishes of their respective characters, were maliciously noticed +by old Silenus, a laughing moralist, who disguised the wisdom of a +philosopher under the mask of a Bacchanal. As soon as the feast was +ended, the voice of Mercury proclaimed the will of Jupiter, that a +celestial crown should be the reward of superior merit. Julius Caesar, +Augustus, Trajan, and Marcus Antoninus, were selected as the most +illustrious candidates; the effeminate Constantine was not excluded +from this honorable competition, and the great Alexander was invited to +dispute the prize of glory with the Roman heroes. Each of the candidates +was allowed to display the merit of his own exploits; but, in the +judgment of the gods, the modest silence of Marcus pleaded more +powerfully than the elaborate orations of his haughty rivals. When the +judges of this awful contest proceeded to examine the heart, and to +scrutinize the springs of action, the superiority of the Imperial Stoic +appeared still more decisive and conspicuous. Alexander and Caesar, +Augustus, Trajan, and Constantine, acknowledged, with a blush, that +fame, or power, or pleasure had been the important object of their +labors: but the gods themselves beheld, with reverence and love, +a virtuous mortal, who had practised on the throne the lessons of +philosophy; and who, in a state of human imperfection, had aspired to +imitate the moral attributes of the Deity. The value of this agreeable +composition (the Caesars of Julian) is enhanced by the rank of the +author. A prince, who delineates, with freedom, the vices and virtues of +his predecessors, subscribes, in every line, the censure or approbation +of his own conduct. + +In the cool moments of reflection, Julian preferred the useful and +benevolent virtues of Antoninus; but his ambitious spirit was inflamed +by the glory of Alexander; and he solicited, with equal ardor, the +esteem of the wise, and the applause of the multitude. In the season of +life when the powers of the mind and body enjoy the most active vigor, +the emperor who was instructed by the experience, and animated by the +success, of the German war, resolved to signalize his reign by some more +splendid and memorable achievement. The ambassadors of the East, from +the continent of India, and the Isle of Ceylon, had respectfully saluted +the Roman purple. The nations of the West esteemed and dreaded the +personal virtues of Julian, both in peace and war. He despised the +trophies of a Gothic victory, and was satisfied that the rapacious +Barbarians of the Danube would be restrained from any future violation +of the faith of treaties by the terror of his name, and the additional +fortifications with which he strengthened the Thracian and Illyrian +frontiers. The successor of Cyrus and Artaxerxes was the only rival whom +he deemed worthy of his arms; and he resolved, by the final conquest of +Persia, to chastise the naughty nation which had so long resisted +and insulted the majesty of Rome. As soon as the Persian monarch was +informed that the throne of Constantius was filed by a prince of a very +different character, he condescended to make some artful, or perhaps +sincere, overtures towards a negotiation of peace. But the pride of +Sapor was astonished by the firmness of Julian; who sternly declared, +that he would never consent to hold a peaceful conference among the +flames and ruins of the cities of Mesopotamia; and who added, with a +smile of contempt, that it was needless to treat by ambassadors, as +he himself had determined to visit speedily the court of Persia. +The impatience of the emperor urged the diligence of the military +preparations. The generals were named; and Julian, marching from +Constantinople through the provinces of Asia Minor, arrived at Antioch +about eight months after the death of his predecessor. His ardent desire +to march into the heart of Persia, was checked by the indispensable duty +of regulating the state of the empire; by his zeal to revive the worship +of the gods; and by the advice of his wisest friends; who represented +the necessity of allowing the salutary interval of winter quarters, +to restore the exhausted strength of the legions of Gaul, and the +discipline and spirit of the Eastern troops. Julian was persuaded to +fix, till the ensuing spring, his residence at Antioch, among a people +maliciously disposed to deride the haste, and to censure the delays, of +their sovereign. + +If Julian had flattered himself, that his personal connection with the +capital of the East would be productive of mutual satisfaction to the +prince and people, he made a very false estimate of his own character, +and of the manners of Antioch. The warmth of the climate disposed the +natives to the most intemperate enjoyment of tranquillity and opulence; +and the lively licentiousness of the Greeks was blended with the +hereditary softness of the Syrians. Fashion was the only law, pleasure +the only pursuit, and the splendor of dress and furniture was the only +distinction of the citizens of Antioch. The arts of luxury were honored; +the serious and manly virtues were the subject of ridicule; and the +contempt for female modesty and reverent age announced the universal +corruption of the capital of the East. The love of spectacles was the +taste, or rather passion, of the Syrians; the most skilful artists were +procured from the adjacent cities; a considerable share of the revenue +was devoted to the public amusements; and the magnificence of the games +of the theatre and circus was considered as the happiness and as the +glory of Antioch. The rustic manners of a prince who disdained such +glory, and was insensible of such happiness, soon disgusted the delicacy +of his subjects; and the effeminate Orientals could neither imitate, +nor admire, the severe simplicity which Julian always maintained, and +sometimes affected. The days of festivity, consecrated, by ancient +custom, to the honor of the gods, were the only occasions in which +Julian relaxed his philosophic severity; and those festivals were the +only days in which the Syrians of Antioch could reject the allurements +of pleasure. The majority of the people supported the glory of the +Christian name, which had been first invented by their ancestors: they +contended themselves with disobeying the moral precepts, but they were +scrupulously attached to the speculative doctrines of their religion. +The church of Antioch was distracted by heresy and schism; but the +Arians and the Athanasians, the followers of Meletius and those of +Paulinus, were actuated by the same pious hatred of their common +adversary. + +The strongest prejudice was entertained against the character of an +apostate, the enemy and successor of a prince who had engaged the +affections of a very numerous sect; and the removal of St. Babylas +excited an implacable opposition to the person of Julian. His subjects +complained, with superstitious indignation, that famine had pursued the +emperor's steps from Constantinople to Antioch; and the discontent of +a hungry people was exasperated by the injudicious attempt to relieve +their distress. The inclemency of the season had affected the harvests +of Syria; and the price of bread, in the markets of Antioch, had +naturally risen in proportion to the scarcity of corn. But the fair +and reasonable proportion was soon violated by the rapacious arts of +monopoly. In this unequal contest, in which the produce of the land is +claimed by one party as his exclusive property, is used by another as a +lucrative object of trade, and is required by a third for the daily and +necessary support of life, all the profits of the intermediate agents +are accumulated on the head of the defenceless customers. The hardships +of their situation were exaggerated and increased by their own +impatience and anxiety; and the apprehension of a scarcity gradually +produced the appearances of a famine. When the luxurious citizens +of Antioch complained of the high price of poultry and fish, Julian +publicly declared, that a frugal city ought to be satisfied with a +regular supply of wine, oil, and bread; but he acknowledged, that it was +the duty of a sovereign to provide for the subsistence of his people. +With this salutary view, the emperor ventured on a very dangerous and +doubtful step, of fixing, by legal authority, the value of corn. He +enacted, that, in a time of scarcity, it should be sold at a price which +had seldom been known in the most plentiful years; and that his own +example might strengthen his laws, he sent into the market four hundred +and twenty-two thousand modii, or measures, which were drawn by his +order from the granaries of Hierapolis, of Chalcis, and even of Egypt. +The consequences might have been foreseen, and were soon felt. The +Imperial wheat was purchased by the rich merchants; the proprietors of +land, or of corn, withheld from the city the accustomed supply; and the +small quantities that appeared in the market were secretly sold at an +advanced and illegal price. Julian still continued to applaud his own +policy, treated the complaints of the people as a vain and ungrateful +murmur, and convinced Antioch that he had inherited the obstinacy, +though not the cruelty, of his brother Gallus. The remonstrances of the +municipal senate served only to exasperate his inflexible mind. He +was persuaded, perhaps with truth, that the senators of Antioch who +possessed lands, or were concerned in trade, had themselves contributed +to the calamities of their country; and he imputed the disrespectful +boldness which they assumed, to the sense, not of public duty, but of +private interest. The whole body, consisting of two hundred of the most +noble and wealthy citizens, were sent, under a guard, from the palace to +the prison; and though they were permitted, before the close of evening, +to return to their respective houses, the emperor himself could +not obtain the forgiveness which he had so easily granted. The same +grievances were still the subject of the same complaints, which were +industriously circulated by the wit and levity of the Syrian Greeks. +During the licentious days of the Saturnalia, the streets of the city +resounded with insolent songs, which derided the laws, the religion, +the personal conduct, and even the beard, of the emperor; the spirit +of Antioch was manifested by the connivance of the magistrates, and +the applause of the multitude. The disciple of Socrates was too deeply +affected by these popular insults; but the monarch, endowed with a quick +sensibility, and possessed of absolute power, refused his passions +the gratification of revenge. A tyrant might have proscribed, without +distinction, the lives and fortunes of the citizens of Antioch; and +the unwarlike Syrians must have patiently submitted to the lust, the +rapaciousness and the cruelty, of the faithful legions of Gaul. A milder +sentence might have deprived the capital of the East of its honors and +privileges; and the courtiers, perhaps the subjects, of Julian, would +have applauded an act of justice, which asserted the dignity of the +supreme magistrate of the republic. But instead of abusing, or exerting, +the authority of the state, to revenge his personal injuries, Julian +contented himself with an inoffensive mode of retaliation, which it +would be in the power of few princes to employ. He had been insulted +by satires and libels; in his turn, he composed, under the title of +the Enemy of the Beard, an ironical confession of his own faults, and a +severe satire on the licentious and effeminate manners of Antioch. This +Imperial reply was publicly exposed before the gates of the palace; and +the Misopogon still remains a singular monument of the resentment, the +wit, the humanity, and the indiscretion of Julian. Though he affected to +laugh, he could not forgive. His contempt was expressed, and his revenge +might be gratified, by the nomination of a governor worthy only of +such subjects; and the emperor, forever renouncing the ungrateful +city, proclaimed his resolution to pass the ensuing winter at Tarsus in +Cilicia. + +Yet Antioch possessed one citizen, whose genius and virtues might atone, +in the opinion of Julian, for the vice and folly of his country. The +sophist Libanius was born in the capital of the East; he publicly +professed the arts of rhetoric and declamation at Nice, Nicomedia, +Constantinople, Athens, and, during the remainder of his life, at +Antioch. His school was assiduously frequented by the Grecian youth; his +disciples, who sometimes exceeded the number of eighty, celebrated their +incomparable master; and the jealousy of his rivals, who persecuted him +from one city to another, confirmed the favorable opinion which Libanius +ostentatiously displayed of his superior merit. The preceptors of Julian +had extorted a rash but solemn assurance, that he would never attend +the lectures of their adversary: the curiosity of the royal youth +was checked and inflamed: he secretly procured the writings of this +dangerous sophist, and gradually surpassed, in the perfect imitation +of his style, the most laborious of his domestic pupils. When Julian +ascended the throne, he declared his impatience to embrace and reward +the Syrian sophist, who had preserved, in a degenerate age, the +Grecian purity of taste, of manners, and of religion. The emperor's +prepossession was increased and justified by the discreet pride of his +favorite. Instead of pressing, with the foremost of the crowd, into +the palace of Constantinople, Libanius calmly expected his arrival +at Antioch; withdrew from court on the first symptoms of coldness and +indifference; required a formal invitation for each visit; and taught +his sovereign an important lesson, that he might command the obedience +of a subject, but that he must deserve the attachment of a friend. +The sophists of every age, despising, or affecting to despise, the +accidental distinctions of birth and fortune, reserve their esteem for +the superior qualities of the mind, with which they themselves are so +plentifully endowed. Julian might disdain the acclamations of a venal +court, who adored the Imperial purple; but he was deeply flattered by +the praise, the admonition, the freedom, and the envy of an independent +philosopher, who refused his favors, loved his person, celebrated his +fame, and protected his memory. The voluminous writings of Libanius +still exist; for the most part, they are the vain and idle compositions +of an orator, who cultivated the science of words; the productions of +a recluse student, whose mind, regardless of his contemporaries, was +incessantly fixed on the Trojan war and the Athenian commonwealth. +Yet the sophist of Antioch sometimes descended from this imaginary +elevation; he entertained a various and elaborate correspondence; he +praised the virtues of his own times; he boldly arraigned the abuse of +public and private life; and he eloquently pleaded the cause of Antioch +against the just resentment of Julian and Theodosius. It is the common +calamity of old age, to lose whatever might have rendered it desirable; +but Libanius experienced the peculiar misfortune of surviving the +religion and the sciences, to which he had consecrated his genius. +The friend of Julian was an indignant spectator of the triumph of +Christianity; and his bigotry, which darkened the prospect of the +visible world, did not inspire Libanius with any lively hopes of +celestial glory and happiness. + + + +Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian.--Part II. + +The martial impatience of Julian urged him to take the field in the +beginning of the spring; and he dismissed, with contempt and reproach, +the senate of Antioch, who accompanied the emperor beyond the limits of +their own territory, to which he was resolved never to return. After a +laborious march of two days, he halted on the third at Beraea, or Aleppo, +where he had the mortification of finding a senate almost entirely +Christian; who received with cold and formal demonstrations of respect +the eloquent sermon of the apostle of paganism. The son of one of +the most illustrious citizens of Beraea, who had embraced, either from +interest or conscience, the religion of the emperor, was disinherited +by his angry parent. The father and the son were invited to the Imperial +table. Julian, placing himself between them, attempted, without success, +to inculcate the lesson and example of toleration; supported, with +affected calmness, the indiscreet zeal of the aged Christian, who seemed +to forget the sentiments of nature, and the duty of a subject; and at +length, turning towards the afflicted youth, "Since you have lost a +father," said he, "for my sake, it is incumbent on me to supply his +place." The emperor was received in a manner much more agreeable to +his wishes at Batnae, * a small town pleasantly seated in a grove of +cypresses, about twenty miles from the city of Hierapolis. The solemn +rites of sacrifice were decently prepared by the inhabitants of Batnae, +who seemed attached to the worship of their tutelar deities, Apollo and +Jupiter; but the serious piety of Julian was offended by the tumult of +their applause; and he too clearly discerned, that the smoke which arose +from their altars was the incense of flattery, rather than of devotion. +The ancient and magnificent temple which had sanctified, for so many +ages, the city of Hierapolis, no longer subsisted; and the consecrated +wealth, which afforded a liberal maintenance to more than three hundred +priests, might hasten its downfall. Yet Julian enjoyed the satisfaction +of embracing a philosopher and a friend, whose religious firmness had +withstood the pressing and repeated solicitations of Constantius and +Gallus, as often as those princes lodged at his house, in their passage +through Hierapolis. In the hurry of military preparation, and the +careless confidence of a familiar correspondence, the zeal of Julian +appears to have been lively and uniform. He had now undertaken an +important and difficult war; and the anxiety of the event rendered him +still more attentive to observe and register the most trifling presages, +from which, according to the rules of divination, any knowledge of +futurity could be derived. He informed Libanius of his progress as far +as Hierapolis, by an elegant epistle, which displays the facility of his +genius, and his tender friendship for the sophist of Antioch. + +Hierapolis, * situate almost on the banks of the Euphrates, had +been appointed for the general rendezvous of the Roman troops, who +immediately passed the great river on a bridge of boats, which was +previously constructed. If the inclinations of Julian had been similar +to those of his predecessor, he might have wasted the active and +important season of the year in the circus of Samosata or in the +churches of Edessa. But as the warlike emperor, instead of Constantius, +had chosen Alexander for his model, he advanced without delay to Carrhae, +a very ancient city of Mesopotamia, at the distance of fourscore miles +from Hierapolis. The temple of the Moon attracted the devotion +of Julian; but the halt of a few days was principally employed in +completing the immense preparations of the Persian war. The secret of +the expedition had hitherto remained in his own breast; but as Carrhae +is the point of separation of the two great roads, he could no longer +conceal whether it was his design to attack the dominions of Sapor +on the side of the Tigris, or on that of the Euphrates. The emperor +detached an army of thirty thousand men, under the command of his +kinsman Procopius, and of Sebastian, who had been duke of Egypt. They +were ordered to direct their march towards Nisibis, and to secure +the frontier from the desultory incursions of the enemy, before they +attempted the passage of the Tigris. Their subsequent operations were +left to the discretion of the generals; but Julian expected, that after +wasting with fire and sword the fertile districts of Media and Adiabene, +they might arrive under the walls of Ctesiphon at the same time that he +himself, advancing with equal steps along the banks of the Euphrates, +should besiege the capital of the Persian monarchy. The success of this +well-concerted plan depended, in a great measure, on the powerful and +ready assistance of the king of Armenia, who, without exposing the +safety of his own dominions, might detach an army of four thousand +horse, and twenty thousand foot, to the assistance of the Romans. But +the feeble Arsaces Tiranus, king of Armenia, had degenerated still more +shamefully than his father Chosroes, from the manly virtues of the great +Tiridates; and as the pusillanimous monarch was averse to any enterprise +of danger and glory, he could disguise his timid indolence by the +more decent excuses of religion and gratitude. He expressed a pious +attachment to the memory of Constantius, from whose hands he had +received in marriage Olympias, the daughter of the praefect Ablavius; and +the alliance of a female, who had been educated as the destined wife of +the emperor Constans, exalted the dignity of a Barbarian king. +Tiranus professed the Christian religion; he reigned over a nation of +Christians; and he was restrained, by every principle of conscience and +interest, from contributing to the victory, which would consummate the +ruin of the church. The alienated mind of Tiranus was exasperated by the +indiscretion of Julian, who treated the king of Armenia as his slave, +and as the enemy of the gods. The haughty and threatening style of the +Imperial mandates awakened the secret indignation of a prince, who, in +the humiliating state of dependence, was still conscious of his royal +descent from the Arsacides, the lords of the East, and the rivals of the +Roman power. + +The military dispositions of Julian were skilfully contrived to deceive +the spies and to divert the attention of Sapor. The legions appeared +to direct their march towards Nisibis and the Tigris. On a sudden they +wheeled to the right; traversed the level and naked plain of Carrhae; and +reached, on the third day, the banks of the Euphrates, where the strong +town of Nicephorium, or Callinicum, had been founded by the Macedonian +kings. From thence the emperor pursued his march, above ninety miles, +along the winding stream of the Euphrates, till, at length, about one +month after his departure from Antioch, he discovered the towers of +Circesium, * the extreme limit of the Roman dominions. The army of +Julian, the most numerous that any of the Caesars had ever led against +Persia, consisted of sixty-five thousand effective and well-disciplined +soldiers. The veteran bands of cavalry and infantry, of Romans and +Barbarians, had been selected from the different provinces; and a just +preeminence of loyalty and valor was claimed by the hardy Gauls, who +guarded the throne and person of their beloved prince. A formidable body +of Scythian auxiliaries had been transported from another climate, and +almost from another world, to invade a distant country, of whose name +and situation they were ignorant. The love of rapine and war allured to +the Imperial standard several tribes of Saracens, or roving Arabs, whose +service Julian had commanded, while he sternly refuse the payment of the +accustomed subsidies. The broad channel of the Euphrates was crowded by +a fleet of eleven hundred ships, destined to attend the motions, and to +satisfy the wants, of the Roman army. The military strength of the fleet +was composed of fifty armed galleys; and these were accompanied by +an equal number of flat-bottomed boats, which might occasionally be +connected into the form of temporary bridges. The rest of the ships, +partly constructed of timber, and partly covered with raw hides, were +laden with an almost inexhaustible supply of arms and engines, of +utensils and provisions. The vigilant humanity of Julian had embarked a +very large magazine of vinegar and biscuit for the use of the soldiers, +but he prohibited the indulgence of wine; and rigorously stopped a long +string of superfluous camels that attempted to follow the rear of the +army. The River Chaboras falls into the Euphrates at Circesium; and +as soon as the trumpet gave the signal of march, the Romans passed the +little stream which separated two mighty and hostile empires. The custom +of ancient discipline required a military oration; and Julian embraced +every opportunity of displaying his eloquence. He animated the impatient +and attentive legions by the example of the inflexible courage and +glorious triumphs of their ancestors. He excited their resentment by a +lively picture of the insolence of the Persians; and he exhorted them to +imitate his firm resolution, either to extirpate that perfidious nation, +or to devote his life in the cause of the republic. The eloquence of +Julian was enforced by a donative of one hundred and thirty pieces of +silver to every soldier; and the bridge of the Chaboras was instantly +cut away, to convince the troops that they must place their hopes of +safety in the success of their arms. Yet the prudence of the emperor +induced him to secure a remote frontier, perpetually exposed to the +inroads of the hostile Arabs. A detachment of four thousand men was +left at Circesium, which completed, to the number of ten thousand, the +regular garrison of that important fortress. + +From the moment that the Romans entered the enemy's country, the country +of an active and artful enemy, the order of march was disposed in three +columns. The strength of the infantry, and consequently of the whole +army was placed in the centre, under the peculiar command of their +master-general Victor. On the right, the brave Nevitta led a column of +several legions along the banks of the Euphrates, and almost always +in sight of the fleet. The left flank of the army was protected by the +column of cavalry. Hormisdas and Arinthaeus were appointed generals of +the horse; and the singular adventures of Hormisdas are not undeserving +of our notice. He was a Persian prince, of the royal race of the +Sassanides, who, in the troubles of the minority of Sapor, had escaped +from prison to the hospitable court of the great Constantine. Hormisdas +at first excited the compassion, and at length acquired the esteem, +of his new masters; his valor and fidelity raised him to the military +honors of the Roman service; and though a Christian, he might indulge +the secret satisfaction of convincing his ungrateful country, than +at oppressed subject may prove the most dangerous enemy. Such was the +disposition of the three principal columns. The front and flanks of +the army were covered by Lucilianus with a flying detachment of fifteen +hundred light-armed soldiers, whose active vigilance observed the +most distant signs, and conveyed the earliest notice, of any hostile +approach. Dagalaiphus, and Secundinus duke of Osrhoene, conducted +the troops of the rear-guard; the baggage securely proceeded in the +intervals of the columns; and the ranks, from a motive either of use +or ostentation, were formed in such open order, that the whole line of +march extended almost ten miles. The ordinary post of Julian was at the +head of the centre column; but as he preferred the duties of a general +to the state of a monarch, he rapidly moved, with a small escort of +light cavalry, to the front, the rear, the flanks, wherever his presence +could animate or protect the march of the Roman army. The country which +they traversed from the Chaboras, to the cultivated lands of Assyria, +may be considered as a part of the desert of Arabia, a dry and barren +waste, which could never be improved by the most powerful arts of human +industry. Julian marched over the same ground which had been trod above +seven hundred years before by the footsteps of the younger Cyrus, and +which is described by one of the companions of his expedition, the sage +and heroic Xenophon. "The country was a plain throughout, as even as the +sea, and full of wormwood; and if any other kind of shrubs or reeds +grew there, they had all an aromatic smell, but no trees could be seen. +Bustards and ostriches, antelopes and wild asses, appeared to be the +only inhabitants of the desert; and the fatigues of the march were +alleviated by the amusements of the chase." The loose sand of the desert +was frequently raised by the wind into clouds of dust; and a great +number of the soldiers of Julian, with their tents, were suddenly thrown +to the ground by the violence of an unexpected hurricane. + +The sandy plains of Mesopotamia were abandoned to the antelopes and wild +asses of the desert; but a variety of populous towns and villages were +pleasantly situated on the banks of the Euphrates, and in the islands +which are occasionally formed by that river. The city of Annah, or +Anatho, the actual residence of an Arabian emir, is composed of two long +streets, which enclose, within a natural fortification, a small island +in the midst, and two fruitful spots on either side, of the Euphrates. +The warlike inhabitants of Anatho showed a disposition to stop the march +of a Roman emperor; till they were diverted from such fatal presumption +by the mild exhortations of Prince Hormisdas, and the approaching +terrors of the fleet and army. They implored, and experienced, the +clemency of Julian, who transplanted the people to an advantageous +settlement, near Chalcis in Syria, and admitted Pusaeus, the governor, +to an honorable rank in his service and friendship. But the impregnable +fortress of Thilutha could scorn the menace of a siege; and the emperor +was obliged to content himself with an insulting promise, that, when he +had subdued the interior provinces of Persia, Thilutha would no longer +refuse to grace the triumph of the emperor. The inhabitants of the +open towns, unable to resist, and unwilling to yield, fled with +precipitation; and their houses, filled with spoil and provisions, were +occupied by the soldiers of Julian, who massacred, without remorse +and without punishment, some defenceless women. During the march, the +Surenas, * or Persian general, and Malek Rodosaces, the renowned emir of +the tribe of Gassan, incessantly hovered round the army; every straggler +was intercepted; every detachment was attacked; and the valiant +Hormisdas escaped with some difficulty from their hands. But the +Barbarians were finally repulsed; the country became every day less +favorable to the operations of cavalry; and when the Romans arrived +at Macepracta, they perceived the ruins of the wall, which had been +constructed by the ancient kings of Assyria, to secure their dominions +from the incursions of the Medes. These preliminaries of the expedition +of Julian appear to have employed about fifteen days; and we may compute +near three hundred miles from the fortress of Circesium to the wall of +Macepracta. + +The fertile province of Assyria, which stretched beyond the Tigris, as +far as the mountains of Media, extended about four hundred miles from +the ancient wall of Macepracta, to the territory of Basra, where the +united streams of the Euphrates and Tigris discharge themselves into the +Persian Gulf. The whole country might have claimed the peculiar name of +Mesopotamia; as the two rivers, which are never more distant than fifty, +approach, between Bagdad and Babylon, within twenty-five miles, of each +other. A multitude of artificial canals, dug without much labor in a +soft and yielding soil connected the rivers, and intersected the +plain of Assyria. The uses of these artificial canals were various and +important. They served to discharge the superfluous waters from one +river into the other, at the season of their respective inundations. +Subdividing themselves into smaller and smaller branches, they refreshed +the dry lands, and supplied the deficiency of rain. They facilitated the +intercourse of peace and commerce; and, as the dams could be speedily +broke down, they armed the despair of the Assyrians with the means of +opposing a sudden deluge to the progress of an invading army. To the +soil and climate of Assyria, nature had denied some of her choicest +gifts, the vine, the olive, and the fig-tree; * but the food which +supports the life of man, and particularly wheat and barley, were +produced with inexhaustible fertility; and the husbandman, who committed +his seed to the earth, was frequently rewarded with an increase of two, +or even of three, hundred. The face of the country was interspersed with +groves of innumerable palm-trees; and the diligent natives celebrated, +either in verse or prose, the three hundred and sixty uses to which +the trunk, the branches, the leaves, the juice, and the fruit, were +skilfully applied. Several manufactures, especially those of leather and +linen, employed the industry of a numerous people, and afforded valuable +materials for foreign trade; which appears, however, to have been +conducted by the hands of strangers. Babylon had been converted into a +royal park; but near the ruins of the ancient capital, new cities had +successively arisen, and the populousness of the country was displayed +in the multitude of towns and villages, which were built of bricks dried +in the sun, and strongly cemented with bitumen; the natural and peculiar +production of the Babylonian soil. While the successors of Cyrus reigned +over Asia, the province of Syria alone maintained, during a third part +of the year, the luxurious plenty of the table and household of the +Great King. Four considerable villages were assigned for the subsistence +of his Indian dogs; eight hundred stallions, and sixteen thousand mares, +were constantly kept, at the expense of the country, for the royal +stables; and as the daily tribute, which was paid to the satrap, +amounted to one English bushel of silver, we may compute the annual +revenue of Assyria at more than twelve hundred thousand pounds sterling. + + + +Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian.--Part III. + +The fields of Assyria were devoted by Julian to the calamities of war; +and the philosopher retaliated on a guiltless people the acts of rapine +and cruelty which had been committed by their haughty master in the +Roman provinces. The trembling Assyrians summoned the rivers to their +assistance; and completed, with their own hands, the ruin of their +country. The roads were rendered impracticable; a flood of waters was +poured into the camp; and, during several days, the troops of Julian +were obliged to contend with the most discouraging hardships. But every +obstacle was surmounted by the perseverance of the legionaries, who were +inured to toil as well as to danger, and who felt themselves animated +by the spirit of their leader. The damage was gradually repaired; +the waters were restored to their proper channels; whole groves of +palm-trees were cut down, and placed along the broken parts of the road; +and the army passed over the broad and deeper canals, on bridges of +floating rafts, which were supported by the help of bladders. Two cities +of Assyria presumed to resist the arms of a Roman emperor: and they +both paid the severe penalty of their rashness. At the distance of fifty +miles from the royal residence of Ctesiphon, Perisabor, * or Anbar, +held the second rank in the province; a city, large, populous, and well +fortified, surrounded with a double wall, almost encompassed by a branch +of the Euphrates, and defended by the valor of a numerous garrison. The +exhortations of Hormisdas were repulsed with contempt; and the ears of +the Persian prince were wounded by a just reproach, that, unmindful of +his royal birth, he conducted an army of strangers against his king and +country. The Assyrians maintained their loyalty by a skilful, as well +as vigorous, defence; till the lucky stroke of a battering-ram, having +opened a large breach, by shattering one of the angles of the wall, they +hastily retired into the fortifications of the interior citadel. The +soldiers of Julian rushed impetuously into the town, and after the +full gratification of every military appetite, Perisabor was reduced to +ashes; and the engines which assaulted the citadel were planted on the +ruins of the smoking houses. The contest was continued by an incessant +and mutual discharge of missile weapons; and the superiority which the +Romans might derive from the mechanical powers of their balistae and +catapultae was counterbalanced by the advantage of the ground on the side +of the besieged. But as soon as an Helepolis had been constructed, which +could engage on equal terms with the loftiest ramparts, the tremendous +aspect of a moving turret, that would leave no hope of resistance or +mercy, terrified the defenders of the citadel into an humble submission; +and the place was surrendered only two days after Julian first appeared +under the walls of Perisabor. Two thousand five hundred persons, of both +sexes, the feeble remnant of a flourishing people, were permitted +to retire; the plentiful magazines of corn, of arms, and of splendid +furniture, were partly distributed among the troops, and partly reserved +for the public service; the useless stores were destroyed by fire or +thrown into the stream of the Euphrates; and the fate of Amida was +revenged by the total ruin of Perisabor. + +The city or rather fortress, of Maogamalcha, which was defended by +sixteen large towers, a deep ditch, and two strong and solid walls of +brick and bitumen, appears to have been constructed at the distance of +eleven miles, as the safeguard of the capital of Persia. The emperor, +apprehensive of leaving such an important fortress in his rear, +immediately formed the siege of Maogamalcha; and the Roman army was +distributed, for that purpose, into three divisions. Victor, at the head +of the cavalry, and of a detachment of heavy-armed foot, was ordered to +clear the country, as far as the banks of the Tigris, and the suburbs of +Ctesiphon. The conduct of the attack was assumed by Julian himself, who +seemed to place his whole dependence in the military engines which +he erected against the walls; while he secretly contrived a more +efficacious method of introducing his troops into the heart of the city +Under the direction of Nevitta and Dagalaiphus, the trenches were opened +at a considerable distance, and gradually prolonged as far as the edge +of the ditch. The ditch was speedily filled with earth; and, by the +incessant labor of the troops, a mine was carried under the foundations +of the walls, and sustained, at sufficient intervals, by props of +timber. Three chosen cohorts, advancing in a single file, silently +explored the dark and dangerous passage; till their intrepid leader +whispered back the intelligence, that he was ready to issue from his +confinement into the streets of the hostile city. Julian checked their +ardor, that he might insure their success; and immediately diverted +the attention of the garrison, by the tumult and clamor of a general +assault. The Persians, who, from their walls, contemptuously beheld the +progress of an impotent attack, celebrated with songs of triumph the +glory of Sapor; and ventured to assure the emperor, that he might +ascend the starry mansion of Ormusd, before he could hope to take the +impregnable city of Maogamalcha. The city was already taken. History has +recorded the name of a private soldier the first who ascended from the +mine into a deserted tower. The passage was widened by his companions, +who pressed forwards with impatient valor. Fifteen hundred enemies were +already in the midst of the city. The astonished garrison abandoned the +walls, and their only hope of safety; the gates were instantly burst +open; and the revenge of the soldier, unless it were suspended by lust +or avarice, was satiated by an undistinguishing massacre. The governor, +who had yielded on a promise of mercy, was burnt alive, a few days +afterwards, on a charge of having uttered some disrespectful words +against the honor of Prince Hormisdas. * The fortifications were razed +to the ground; and not a vestige was left, that the city of Maogamalcha +had ever existed. The neighborhood of the capital of Persia was adorned +with three stately palaces, laboriously enriched with every production +that could gratify the luxury and pride of an Eastern monarch. The +pleasant situation of the gardens along the banks of the Tigris, was +improved, according to the Persian taste, by the symmetry of flowers, +fountains, and shady walks: and spacious parks were enclosed for the +reception of the bears, lions, and wild boars, which were maintained +at a considerable expense for the pleasure of the royal chase. The park +walls were broken down, the savage game was abandoned to the darts of +the soldiers, and the palaces of Sapor were reduced to ashes, by the +command of the Roman emperor. Julian, on this occasion, showed himself +ignorant, or careless, of the laws of civility, which the prudence and +refinement of polished ages have established between hostile princes. +Yet these wanton ravages need not excite in our breasts any vehement +emotions of pity or resentment. A simple, naked statue, finished by the +hand of a Grecian artist, is of more genuine value than all these rude +and costly monuments of Barbaric labor; and, if we are more deeply +affected by the ruin of a palace than by the conflagration of a cottage, +our humanity must have formed a very erroneous estimate of the miseries +of human life. + +Julian was an object of hatred and terror to the Persian and the +painters of that nation represented the invader of their country under +the emblem of a furious lion, who vomited from his mouth a consuming +fire. To his friends and soldiers the philosophic hero appeared in +a more amiable light; and his virtues were never more conspicuously +displayed, than in the last and most active period of his life. He +practised, without effort, and almost without merit, the habitual +qualities of temperance and sobriety. According to the dictates of that +artificial wisdom, which assumes an absolute dominion over the mind +and body, he sternly refused himself the indulgence of the most natural +appetites. In the warm climate of Assyria, which solicited a luxurious +people to the gratification of every sensual desire, a youthful +conqueror preserved his chastity pure and inviolate; nor was Julian ever +tempted, even by a motive of curiosity, to visit his female captives +of exquisite beauty, who, instead of resisting his power, would have +disputed with each other the honor of his embraces. With the same +firmness that he resisted the allurements of love, he sustained the +hardships of war. When the Romans marched through the flat and flooded +country, their sovereign, on foot, at the head of his legions, shared +their fatigues and animated their diligence. In every useful labor, the +hand of Julian was prompt and strenuous; and the Imperial purple was wet +and dirty as the coarse garment of the meanest soldier. The two sieges +allowed him some remarkable opportunities of signalizing his personal +valor, which, in the improved state of the military art, can seldom +be exerted by a prudent general. The emperor stood before the citadel +before the citadel of Perisabor, insensible of his extreme danger, +and encouraged his troops to burst open the gates of iron, till he was +almost overwhelmed under a cloud of missile weapons and huge stones, +that were directed against his person. As he examined the exterior +fortifications of Maogamalcha, two Persians, devoting themselves for +their country, suddenly rushed upon him with drawn cimeters: the emperor +dexterously received their blows on his uplifted shield; and, with a +steady and well-aimed thrust, laid one of his adversaries dead at +his feet. The esteem of a prince who possesses the virtues which he +approves, is the noblest recompense of a deserving subject; and the +authority which Julian derived from his personal merit, enabled him to +revive and enforce the rigor of ancient discipline. He punished with +death or ignominy the misbehavior of three troops of horse, who, in +a skirmish with the Surenas, had lost their honor and one of their +standards: and he distinguished with obsidional crowns the valor of the +foremost soldiers, who had ascended into the city of Maogamalcha. After +the siege of Perisabor, the firmness of the emperor was exercised by the +insolent avarice of the army, who loudly complained, that their services +were rewarded by a trifling donative of one hundred pieces of silver. +His just indignation was expressed in the grave and manly language of a +Roman. "Riches are the object of your desires; those riches are in +the hands of the Persians; and the spoils of this fruitful country are +proposed as the prize of your valor and discipline. Believe me," added +Julian, "the Roman republic, which formerly possessed such immense +treasures, is now reduced to want and wretchedness once our princes have +been persuaded, by weak and interested ministers, to purchase with gold +the tranquillity of the Barbarians. The revenue is exhausted; the +cities are ruined; the provinces are dispeopled. For myself, the only +inheritance that I have received from my royal ancestors is a soul +incapable of fear; and as long as I am convinced that every real +advantage is seated in the mind, I shall not blush to acknowledge an +honorable poverty, which, in the days of ancient virtue, was considered +as the glory of Fabricius. That glory, and that virtue, may be your own, +if you will listen to the voice of Heaven and of your leader. But if +you will rashly persist, if you are determined to renew the shameful and +mischievous examples of old seditions, proceed. As it becomes an emperor +who has filled the first rank among men, I am prepared to die, standing; +and to despise a precarious life, which, every hour, may depend on an +accidental fever. If I have been found unworthy of the command, there +are now among you, (I speak it with pride and pleasure,) there are many +chiefs whose merit and experience are equal to the conduct of the most +important war. Such has been the temper of my reign, that I can retire, +without regret, and without apprehension, to the obscurity of a private +station." The modest resolution of Julian was answered by the unanimous +applause and cheerful obedience of the Romans, who declared their +confidence of victory, while they fought under the banners of their +heroic prince. Their courage was kindled by his frequent and familiar +asseverations, (for such wishes were the oaths of Julian,) "So may I +reduce the Persians under the yoke!" "Thus may I restore the strength +and splendor of the republic!" The love of fame was the ardent +passion of his soul: but it was not before he trampled on the ruins of +Maogamalcha, that he allowed himself to say, "We have now provided some +materials for the sophist of Antioch." + +The successful valor of Julian had triumphed over all the obstacles that +opposed his march to the gates of Ctesiphon. But the reduction, or even +the siege, of the capital of Persia, was still at a distance: nor can +the military conduct of the emperor be clearly apprehended, without a +knowledge of the country which was the theatre of his bold and skilful +operations. Twenty miles to the south of Bagdad, and on the eastern bank +of the Tigris, the curiosity of travellers has observed some ruins of +the palaces of Ctesiphon, which, in the time of Julian, was a great and +populous city. The name and glory of the adjacent Seleucia were forever +extinguished; and the only remaining quarter of that Greek colony +had resumed, with the Assyrian language and manners, the primitive +appellation of Coche. Coche was situate on the western side of the +Tigris; but it was naturally considered as a suburb of Ctesiphon, with +which we may suppose it to have been connected by a permanent bridge +of boats. The united parts contribute to form the common epithet of +Al Modain, the cities, which the Orientals have bestowed on the winter +residence of the Sassinades; and the whole circumference of the Persian +capital was strongly fortified by the waters of the river, by lofty +walls, and by impracticable morasses. Near the ruins of Seleucia, the +camp of Julian was fixed, and secured, by a ditch and rampart, against +the sallies of the numerous and enterprising garrison of Coche. In this +fruitful and pleasant country, the Romans were plentifully supplied with +water and forage: and several forts, which might have embarrassed the +motions of the army, submitted, after some resistance, to the efforts +of their valor. The fleet passed from the Euphrates into an artificial +derivation of that river, which pours a copious and navigable stream +into the Tigris, at a small distance below the great city. If they had +followed this royal canal, which bore the name of Nahar-Malcha, the +intermediate situation of Coche would have separated the fleet and army +of Julian; and the rash attempt of steering against the current of the +Tigris, and forcing their way through the midst of a hostile capital, +must have been attended with the total destruction of the Roman navy. +The prudence of the emperor foresaw the danger, and provided the remedy. +As he had minutely studied the operations of Trajan in the same country, +he soon recollected that his warlike predecessor had dug a new and +navigable canal, which, leaving Coche on the right hand, conveyed the +waters of the Nahar-Malcha into the river Tigris, at some distance above +the cities. From the information of the peasants, Julian ascertained the +vestiges of this ancient work, which were almost obliterated by design +or accident. By the indefatigable labor of the soldiers, a broad and +deep channel was speedily prepared for the reception of the Euphrates. +A strong dike was constructed to interrupt the ordinary current of the +Nahar-Malcha: a flood of waters rushed impetuously into their new bed; +and the Roman fleet, steering their triumphant course into the Tigris, +derided the vain and ineffectual barriers which the Persians of +Ctesiphon had erected to oppose their passage. + +As it became necessary to transport the Roman army over the Tigris, +another labor presented itself, of less toil, but of more danger, than +the preceding expedition. The stream was broad and rapid; the ascent +steep and difficult; and the intrenchments which had been formed on the +ridge of the opposite bank, were lined with a numerous army of heavy +cuirassiers, dexterous archers, and huge elephants; who (according to +the extravagant hyperbole of Libanius) could trample with the same +ease a field of corn, or a legion of Romans. In the presence of such an +enemy, the construction of a bridge was impracticable; and the intrepid +prince, who instantly seized the only possible expedient, concealed +his design, till the moment of execution, from the knowledge of the +Barbarians, of his own troops, and even of his generals themselves. +Under the specious pretence of examining the state of the magazines, +fourscore vessels * were gradually unladen; and a select detachment, +apparently destined for some secret expedition, was ordered to stand to +their arms on the first signal. Julian disguised the silent anxiety of +his own mind with smiles of confidence and joy; and amused the hostile +nations with the spectacle of military games, which he insultingly +celebrated under the walls of Coche. The day was consecrated to +pleasure; but, as soon as the hour of supper was passed, the emperor +summoned the generals to his tent, and acquainted them that he had +fixed that night for the passage of the Tigris. They stood in silent +and respectful astonishment; but, when the venerable Sallust assumed the +privilege of his age and experience, the rest of the chiefs supported +with freedom the weight of his prudent remonstrances. Julian contented +himself with observing, that conquest and safety depended on the +attempt; that instead of diminishing, the number of their enemies would +be increased, by successive reenforcements; and that a longer delay +would neither contract the breadth of the stream, nor level the height +of the bank. The signal was instantly given, and obeyed; the most +impatient of the legionaries leaped into five vessels that lay nearest +to the bank; and as they plied their oars with intrepid diligence, they +were lost, after a few moments, in the darkness of the night. A flame +arose on the opposite side; and Julian, who too clearly understood +that his foremost vessels, in attempting to land, had been fired by +the enemy, dexterously converted their extreme danger into a presage +of victory. "Our fellow-soldiers," he eagerly exclaimed, "are already +masters of the bank; see--they make the appointed signal; let us hasten +to emulate and assist their courage." The united and rapid motion of +a great fleet broke the violence of the current, and they reached the +eastern shore of the Tigris with sufficient speed to extinguish the +flames, and rescue their adventurous companions. The difficulties of a +steep and lofty ascent were increased by the weight of armor, and +the darkness of the night. A shower of stones, darts, and fire, was +incessantly discharged on the heads of the assailants; who, after +an arduous struggle, climbed the bank and stood victorious upon the +rampart. As soon as they possessed a more equal field, Julian, who, +with his light infantry, had led the attack, darted through the ranks +a skilful and experienced eye: his bravest soldiers, according to the +precepts of Homer, were distributed in the front and rear: and all +the trumpets of the Imperial army sounded to battle. The Romans, after +sending up a military shout, advanced in measured steps to the animating +notes of martial music; launched their formidable javelins; and rushed +forwards with drawn swords, to deprive the Barbarians, by a closer +onset, of the advantage of their missile weapons. The whole engagement +lasted above twelve hours; till the gradual retreat of the Persians +was changed into a disorderly flight, of which the shameful example +was given by the principal leader, and the Surenas himself. They were +pursued to the gates of Ctesiphon; and the conquerors might have entered +the dismayed city, if their general, Victor, who was dangerously wounded +with an arrow, had not conjured them to desist from a rash attempt, +which must be fatal, if it were not successful. On their side, the +Romans acknowledged the loss of only seventy-five men; while they +affirmed, that the Barbarians had left on the field of battle two +thousand five hundred, or even six thousand, of their bravest soldiers. +The spoil was such as might be expected from the riches and luxury of +an Oriental camp; large quantities of silver and gold, splendid arms and +trappings, and beds and tables of massy silver. * The victorious emperor +distributed, as the rewards of valor, some honorable gifts, civic, and +mural, and naval crowns; which he, and perhaps he alone, esteemed more +precious than the wealth of Asia. A solemn sacrifice was offered to +the god of war, but the appearances of the victims threatened the most +inauspicious events; and Julian soon discovered, by less ambiguous +signs, that he had now reached the term of his prosperity. + +On the second day after the battle, the domestic guards, the Jovians and +Herculians, and the remaining troops, which composed near two thirds of +the whole army, were securely wafted over the Tigris. While the Persians +beheld from the walls of Ctesiphon the desolation of the adjacent +country, Julian cast many an anxious look towards the North, in full +expectation, that as he himself had victoriously penetrated to the +capital of Sapor, the march and junction of his lieutenants, Sebastian +and Procopius, would be executed with the same courage and diligence. +His expectations were disappointed by the treachery of the Armenian +king, who permitted, and most probably directed, the desertion of his +auxiliary troops from the camp of the Romans; and by the dissensions of +the two generals, who were incapable of forming or executing any plan +for the public service. When the emperor had relinquished the hope of +this important reenforcement, he condescended to hold a council of war, +and approved, after a full debate, the sentiment of those generals, +who dissuaded the siege of Ctesiphon, as a fruitless and pernicious +undertaking. It is not easy for us to conceive, by what arts of +fortification a city thrice besieged and taken by the predecessors of +Julian could be rendered impregnable against an army of sixty thousand +Romans, commanded by a brave and experienced general, and abundantly +supplied with ships, provisions, battering engines, and military stores. +But we may rest assured, from the love of glory, and contempt of danger, +which formed the character of Julian, that he was not discouraged by any +trivial or imaginary obstacles. At the very time when he declined the +siege of Ctesiphon, he rejected, with obstinacy and disdain, the most +flattering offers of a negotiation of peace. Sapor, who had been so long +accustomed to the tardy ostentation of Constantius, was surprised by the +intrepid diligence of his successor. As far as the confines of India and +Scythia, the satraps of the distant provinces were ordered to assemble +their troops, and to march, without delay, to the assistance of their +monarch. But their preparations were dilatory, their motions slow; +and before Sapor could lead an army into the field, he received the +melancholy intelligence of the devastation of Assyria, the ruin of +his palaces, and the slaughter of his bravest troops, who defended the +passage of the Tigris. The pride of royalty was humbled in the dust; he +took his repasts on the ground; and the disorder of his hair expressed +the grief and anxiety of his mind. Perhaps he would not have refused to +purchase, with one half of his kingdom, the safety of the remainder; +and he would have gladly subscribed himself, in a treaty of peace, the +faithful and dependent ally of the Roman conqueror. Under the pretence +of private business, a minister of rank and confidence was secretly +despatched to embrace the knees of Hormisdas, and to request, in the +language of a suppliant, that he might be introduced into the presence +of the emperor. The Sassanian prince, whether he listened to the voice +of pride or humanity, whether he consulted the sentiments of his birth, +or the duties of his situation, was equally inclined to promote a +salutary measure, which would terminate the calamities of Persia, and +secure the triumph of Rome. He was astonished by the inflexible firmness +of a hero, who remembered, most unfortunately for himself and for his +country, that Alexander had uniformly rejected the propositions +of Darius. But as Julian was sensible, that the hope of a safe and +honorable peace might cool the ardor of his troops, he earnestly +requested that Hormisdas would privately dismiss the minister of Sapor, +and conceal this dangerous temptation from the knowledge of the camp. + + + +Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian.--Part IV. + +The honor, as well as interest, of Julian, forbade him to consume his +time under the impregnable walls of Ctesiphon and as often as he defied +the Barbarians, who defended the city, to meet him on the open plain, +they prudently replied, that if he desired to exercise his valor, +he might seek the army of the Great King. He felt the insult, and he +accepted the advice. Instead of confining his servile march to the banks +of the Euphrates and Tigris, he resolved to imitate the adventurous +spirit of Alexander, and boldly to advance into the inland provinces, +till he forced his rival to contend with him, perhaps in the plains of +Arbela, for the empire of Asia. The magnanimity of Julian was applauded +and betrayed, by the arts of a noble Persian, who, in the cause of +his country, had generously submitted to act a part full of danger, of +falsehood, and of shame. With a train of faithful followers, he deserted +to the Imperial camp; exposed, in a specious tale, the injuries which he +had sustained; exaggerated the cruelty of Sapor, the discontent of +the people, and the weakness of the monarchy; and confidently offered +himself as the hostage and guide of the Roman march. The most rational +grounds of suspicion were urged, without effect, by the wisdom and +experience of Hormisdas; and the credulous Julian, receiving the traitor +into his bosom, was persuaded to issue a hasty order, which, in the +opinion of mankind, appeared to arraign his prudence, and to endanger +his safety. He destroyed, in a single hour, the whole navy, which had +been transported above five hundred miles, at so great an expense of +toil, of treasure, and of blood. Twelve, or, at the most, twenty-two +small vessels were saved, to accompany, on carriages, the march of the +army, and to form occasional bridges for the passage of the rivers. +A supply of twenty days' provisions was reserved for the use of the +soldiers; and the rest of the magazines, with a fleet of eleven hundred +vessels, which rode at anchor in the Tigris, were abandoned to the +flames, by the absolute command of the emperor. The Christian bishops, +Gregory and Augustin, insult the madness of the Apostate, who executed, +with his own hands, the sentence of divine justice. Their authority, of +less weight, perhaps, in a military question, is confirmed by the cool +judgment of an experienced soldier, who was himself spectator of the +conflagration, and who could not disapprove the reluctant murmurs of +the troops. Yet there are not wanting some specious, and perhaps solid, +reasons, which might justify the resolution of Julian. The navigation of +the Euphrates never ascended above Babylon, nor that of the Tigris above +Opis. The distance of the last-mentioned city from the Roman camp was +not very considerable: and Julian must soon have renounced the vain +and impracticable attempt of forcing upwards a great fleet against the +stream of a rapid river, which in several places was embarrassed +by natural or artificial cataracts. The power of sails and oars was +insufficient; it became necessary to tow the ships against the current +of the river; the strength of twenty thousand soldiers was exhausted +in this tedious and servile labor, and if the Romans continued to march +along the banks of the Tigris, they could only expect to return home +without achieving any enterprise worthy of the genius or fortune of +their leader. If, on the contrary, it was advisable to advance into the +inland country, the destruction of the fleet and magazines was the +only measure which could save that valuable prize from the hands of the +numerous and active troops which might suddenly be poured from the gates +of Ctesiphon. Had the arms of Julian been victorious, we should now +admire the conduct, as well as the courage, of a hero, who, by depriving +his soldiers of the hopes of a retreat, left them only the alternative +of death or conquest. + +The cumbersome train of artillery and wagons, which retards the +operations of a modern army, were in a great measure unknown in the +camps of the Romans. Yet, in every age, the subsistence of sixty +thousand men must have been one of the most important cares of a prudent +general; and that subsistence could only be drawn from his own or from +the enemy's country. Had it been possible for Julian to maintain a +bridge of communication on the Tigris, and to preserve the conquered +places of Assyria, a desolated province could not afford any large or +regular supplies, in a season of the year when the lands were covered +by the inundation of the Euphrates, and the unwholesome air was darkened +with swarms of innumerable insects. The appearance of the hostile +country was far more inviting. The extensive region that lies between +the River Tigris and the mountains of Media, was filled with villages +and towns; and the fertile soil, for the most part, was in a very +improved state of cultivation. Julian might expect, that a conqueror, +who possessed the two forcible instruments of persuasion, steel and +gold, would easily procure a plentiful subsistence from the fears or +avarice of the natives. But, on the approach of the Romans, the rich +and smiling prospect was instantly blasted. Wherever they moved, +the inhabitants deserted the open villages, and took shelter in the +fortified towns; the cattle was driven away; the grass and ripe corn +were consumed with fire; and, as soon as the flames had subsided which +interrupted the march of Julian, he beheld the melancholy face of a +smoking and naked desert. This desperate but effectual method of defence +can only be executed by the enthusiasm of a people who prefer their +independence to their property; or by the rigor of an arbitrary +government, which consults the public safety without submitting to their +inclinations the liberty of choice. On the present occasion the zeal +and obedience of the Persians seconded the commands of Sapor; and +the emperor was soon reduced to the scanty stock of provisions, which +continually wasted in his hands. Before they were entirely consumed, he +might still have reached the wealthy and unwarlike cities of Ecbatana +or Susa, by the effort of a rapid and well-directed march; but he was +deprived of this last resource by his ignorance of the roads, and by the +perfidy of his guides. The Romans wandered several days in the country +to the eastward of Bagdad; the Persian deserter, who had artfully led +them into the spare, escaped from their resentment; and his followers, +as soon as they were put to the torture, confessed the secret of the +conspiracy. The visionary conquests of Hyrcania and India, which had so +long amused, now tormented, the mind of Julian. Conscious that his own +imprudence was the cause of the public distress, he anxiously balanced +the hopes of safety or success, without obtaining a satisfactory answer, +either from gods or men. At length, as the only practicable measure, he +embraced the resolution of directing his steps towards the banks of +the Tigris, with the design of saving the army by a hasty march to +the confines of Corduene; a fertile and friendly province, which +acknowledged the sovereignty of Rome. The desponding troops obeyed +the signal of the retreat, only seventy days after they had passed the +Chaboras, with the sanguine expectation of subverting the throne of +Persia. + +As long as the Romans seemed to advance into the country, their march +was observed and insulted from a distance, by several bodies of Persian +cavalry; who, showing themselves sometimes in loose, and sometimes +in close order, faintly skirmished with the advanced guards. These +detachments were, however, supported by a much greater force; and the +heads of the columns were no sooner pointed towards the Tigris than a +cloud of dust arose on the plain. The Romans, who now aspired only to +the permission of a safe and speedy retreat, endeavored to persuade +themselves, that this formidable appearance was occasioned by a troop +of wild asses, or perhaps by the approach of some friendly Arabs. They +halted, pitched their tents, fortified their camp, passed the whole +night in continual alarms; and discovered at the dawn of day, that +they were surrounded by an army of Persians. This army, which might be +considered only as the van of the Barbarians, was soon followed by the +main body of cuirassiers, archers, and elephants, commanded by Meranes, +a general of rank and reputation. He was accompanied by two of the +king's sons, and many of the principal satraps; and fame and expectation +exaggerated the strength of the remaining powers, which slowly advanced +under the conduct of Sapor himself. As the Romans continued their march, +their long array, which was forced to bend or divide, according to the +varieties of the ground, afforded frequent and favorable opportunities +to their vigilant enemies. The Persians repeatedly charged with fury; +they were repeatedly repulsed with firmness; and the action at Maronga, +which almost deserved the name of a battle, was marked by a considerable +loss of satraps and elephants, perhaps of equal value in the eyes of +their monarch. These splendid advantages were not obtained without +an adequate slaughter on the side of the Romans: several officers of +distinction were either killed or wounded; and the emperor himself, who, +on all occasions of danger, inspired and guided the valor of his troops, +was obliged to expose his person, and exert his abilities. The weight of +offensive and defensive arms, which still constituted the strength and +safety of the Romans, disabled them from making any long or effectual +pursuit; and as the horsemen of the East were trained to dart their +javelins, and shoot their arrows, at full speed, and in every possible +direction, the cavalry of Persia was never more formidable than in +the moment of a rapid and disorderly flight. But the most certain and +irreparable loss of the Romans was that of time. The hardy veterans, +accustomed to the cold climate of Gaul and Germany, fainted under the +sultry heat of an Assyrian summer; their vigor was exhausted by the +incessant repetition of march and combat; and the progress of the army +was suspended by the precautions of a slow and dangerous retreat, in +the presence of an active enemy. Every day, every hour, as the supply +diminished, the value and price of subsistence increased in the Roman +camp. Julian, who always contented himself with such food as a hungry +soldier would have disdained, distributed, for the use of the troops, +the provisions of the Imperial household, and whatever could be spared, +from the sumpter-horses, of the tribunes and generals. But this feeble +relief served only to aggravate the sense of the public distress; and +the Romans began to entertain the most gloomy apprehensions that, before +they could reach the frontiers of the empire, they should all perish, +either by famine, or by the sword of the Barbarians. + +While Julian struggled with the almost insuperable difficulties of his +situation, the silent hours of the night were still devoted to study +and contemplation. Whenever he closed his eyes in short and interrupted +slumbers, his mind was agitated with painful anxiety; nor can it be +thought surprising, that the Genius of the empire should once more +appear before him, covering with a funeral veil his head, and his horn +of abundance, and slowly retiring from the Imperial tent. The monarch +started from his couch, and stepping forth to refresh his wearied +spirits with the coolness of the midnight air, he beheld a fiery meteor, +which shot athwart the sky, and suddenly vanished. Julian was convinced +that he had seen the menacing countenance of the god of war; the council +which he summoned, of Tuscan Haruspices, unanimously pronounced that he +should abstain from action; but on this occasion, necessity and reason +were more prevalent than superstition; and the trumpets sounded at the +break of day. The army marched through a hilly country; and the hills +had been secretly occupied by the Persians. Julian led the van with +the skill and attention of a consummate general; he was alarmed by +the intelligence that his rear was suddenly attacked. The heat of the +weather had tempted him to lay aside his cuirass; but he snatched a +shield from one of his attendants, and hastened, with a sufficient +reenforcement, to the relief of the rear-guard. A similar danger +recalled the intrepid prince to the defence of the front; and, as he +galloped through the columns, the centre of the left was attacked, and +almost overpowered by the furious charge of the Persian cavalry and +elephants. This huge body was soon defeated, by the well-timed evolution +of the light infantry, who aimed their weapons, with dexterity +and effect, against the backs of the horsemen, and the legs of the +elephants. The Barbarians fled; and Julian, who was foremost in every +danger, animated the pursuit with his voice and gestures. His trembling +guards, scattered and oppressed by the disorderly throng of friends and +enemies, reminded their fearless sovereign that he was without armor; +and conjured him to decline the fall of the impending ruin. As they +exclaimed, a cloud of darts and arrows was discharged from the flying +squadrons; and a javelin, after razing the skin of his arm, transpierced +the ribs, and fixed in the inferior part of the liver. Julian attempted +to draw the deadly weapon from his side; but his fingers were cut by the +sharpness of the steel, and he fell senseless from his horse. His guards +flew to his relief; and the wounded emperor was gently raised from the +ground, and conveyed out of the tumult of the battle into an adjacent +tent. The report of the melancholy event passed from rank to rank; but +the grief of the Romans inspired them with invincible valor, and the +desire of revenge. The bloody and obstinate conflict was maintained by +the two armies, till they were separated by the total darkness of the +night. The Persians derived some honor from the advantage which they +obtained against the left wing, where Anatolius, master of the offices, +was slain, and the praefect Sallust very narrowly escaped. But the event +of the day was adverse to the Barbarians. They abandoned the field; +their two generals, Meranes and Nohordates, fifty nobles or satraps, and +a multitude of their bravest soldiers; and the success of the Romans, if +Julian had survived, might have been improved into a decisive and useful +victory. + +The first words that Julian uttered, after his recovery from the +fainting fit into which he had been thrown by loss of blood, were +expressive of his martial spirit. He called for his horse and arms, +and was impatient to rush into the battle. His remaining strength was +exhausted by the painful effort; and the surgeons, who examined his +wound, discovered the symptoms of approaching death. He employed +the awful moments with the firm temper of a hero and a sage; the +philosophers who had accompanied him in this fatal expedition, compared +the tent of Julian with the prison of Socrates; and the spectators, +whom duty, or friendship, or curiosity, had assembled round his couch, +listened with respectful grief to the funeral oration of their dying +emperor. "Friends and fellow-soldiers, the seasonable period of my +departure is now arrived, and I discharge, with the cheerfulness of a +ready debtor, the demands of nature. I have learned from philosophy, how +much the soul is more excellent than the body; and that the separation +of the nobler substance should be the subject of joy, rather than of +affliction. I have learned from religion, that an early death has often +been the reward of piety; and I accept, as a favor of the gods, the +mortal stroke that secures me from the danger of disgracing a character, +which has hitherto been supported by virtue and fortitude. I die without +remorse, as I have lived without guilt. I am pleased to reflect on the +innocence of my private life; and I can affirm with confidence, that +the supreme authority, that emanation of the Divine Power, has been +preserved in my hands pure and immaculate. Detesting the corrupt and +destructive maxims of despotism, I have considered the happiness of the +people as the end of government. Submitting my actions to the laws of +prudence, of justice, and of moderation, I have trusted the event to +the care of Providence. Peace was the object of my counsels, as long +as peace was consistent with the public welfare; but when the imperious +voice of my country summoned me to arms, I exposed my person to the +dangers of war, with the clear foreknowledge (which I had acquired from +the art of divination) that I was destined to fall by the sword. I now +offer my tribute of gratitude to the Eternal Being, who has not suffered +me to perish by the cruelty of a tyrant, by the secret dagger of +conspiracy, or by the slow tortures of lingering disease. He has +given me, in the midst of an honorable career, a splendid and glorious +departure from this world; and I hold it equally absurd, equally +base, to solicit, or to decline, the stroke of fate. This much I have +attempted to say; but my strength fails me, and I feel the approach +of death. I shall cautiously refrain from any word that may tend to +influence your suffrages in the election of an emperor. My choice might +be imprudent or injudicious; and if it should not be ratified by the +consent of the army, it might be fatal to the person whom I should +recommend. I shall only, as a good citizen, express my hopes, that the +Romans may be blessed with the government of a virtuous sovereign." +After this discourse, which Julian pronounced in a firm and gentle tone +of voice, he distributed, by a military testament, the remains of his +private fortune; and making some inquiry why Anatolius was not present, +he understood, from the answer of Sallust, that Anatolius was killed; +and bewailed, with amiable inconsistency, the loss of his friend. At +the same time he reproved the immoderate grief of the spectators; and +conjured them not to disgrace, by unmanly tears, the fate of a prince, +who in a few moments would be united with heaven, and with the stars. +The spectators were silent; and Julian entered into a metaphysical +argument with the philosophers Priscus and Maximus, on the nature of the +soul. The efforts which he made, of mind as well as body, most probably +hastened his death. His wound began to bleed with fresh violence; his +respiration was embarrassed by the swelling of the veins; he called +for a draught of cold water, and, as soon as he had drank it, expired +without pain, about the hour of midnight. Such was the end of that +extraordinary man, in the thirty-second year of his age, after a reign +of one year and about eight months, from the death of Constantius. In +his last moments he displayed, perhaps with some ostentation, the love +of virtue and of fame, which had been the ruling passions of his life. + +The triumph of Christianity, and the calamities of the empire, may, in +some measure, be ascribed to Julian himself, who had neglected to +secure the future execution of his designs, by the timely and judicious +nomination of an associate and successor. But the royal race of +Constantius Chlorus was reduced to his own person; and if he entertained +any serious thoughts of investing with the purple the most worthy among +the Romans, he was diverted from his resolution by the difficulty of the +choice, the jealousy of power, the fear of ingratitude, and the natural +presumption of health, of youth, and of prosperity. His unexpected death +left the empire without a master, and without an heir, in a state of +perplexity and danger, which, in the space of fourscore years, had never +been experienced, since the election of Diocletian. In a government +which had almost forgotten the distinction of pure and noble blood, the +superiority of birth was of little moment; the claims of official rank +were accidental and precarious; and the candidates, who might aspire to +ascend the vacant throne could be supported only by the consciousness of +personal merit, or by the hopes of popular favor. But the situation of +a famished army, encompassed on all sides by a host of Barbarians, +shortened the moments of grief and deliberation. In this scene of terror +and distress, the body of the deceased prince, according to his own +directions, was decently embalmed; and, at the dawn of day, the generals +convened a military senate, at which the commanders of the legions, and +the officers both of cavalry and infantry, were invited to assist. +Three or four hours of the night had not passed away without some secret +cabals; and when the election of an emperor was proposed, the spirit of +faction began to agitate the assembly. Victor and Arinthaeus collected +the remains of the court of Constantius; the friends of Julian attached +themselves to the Gallic chiefs, Dagalaiphus and Nevitta; and the +most fatal consequences might be apprehended from the discord of two +factions, so opposite in their character and interest, in their maxims +of government, and perhaps in their religious principles. The superior +virtues of Sallust could alone reconcile their divisions, and unite +their suffrages; and the venerable praefect would immediately have been +declared the successor of Julian, if he himself, with sincere and modest +firmness, had not alleged his age and infirmities, so unequal to the +weight of the diadem. The generals, who were surprised and perplexed by +his refusal, showed some disposition to adopt the salutary advice of an +inferior officer, that they should act as they would have acted in +the absence of the emperor; that they should exert their abilities +to extricate the army from the present distress; and, if they were +fortunate enough to reach the confines of Mesopotamia, they should +proceed with united and deliberate counsels in the election of a lawful +sovereign. While they debated, a few voices saluted Jovian, who was +no more than first of the domestics, with the names of Emperor and +Augustus. The tumultuary acclamation * was instantly repeated by the +guards who surrounded the tent, and passed, in a few minutes, to the +extremities of the line. The new prince, astonished with his own fortune +was hastily invested with the Imperial ornaments, and received an oath +of fidelity from the generals, whose favor and protection he so lately +solicited. The strongest recommendation of Jovian was the merit of his +father, Count Varronian, who enjoyed, in honorable retirement, the fruit +of his long services. In the obscure freedom of a private station, +the son indulged his taste for wine and women; yet he supported, with +credit, the character of a Christian and a soldier. Without being +conspicuous for any of the ambitious qualifications which excite +the admiration and envy of mankind, the comely person of Jovian, his +cheerful temper, and familiar wit, had gained the affection of his +fellow-soldiers; and the generals of both parties acquiesced in a +popular election, which had not been conducted by the arts of their +enemies. The pride of this unexpected elevation was moderated by the +just apprehension, that the same day might terminate the life and reign +of the new emperor. The pressing voice of necessity was obeyed without +delay; and the first orders issued by Jovian, a few hours after his +predecessor had expired, were to prosecute a march, which could alone +extricate the Romans from their actual distress. + + + +Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian.--Part V. + +The esteem of an enemy is most sincerely expressed by his fears; and +the degree of fear may be accurately measured by the joy with which he +celebrates his deliverance. The welcome news of the death of Julian, +which a deserter revealed to the camp of Sapor, inspired the desponding +monarch with a sudden confidence of victory. He immediately detached the +royal cavalry, perhaps the ten thousand Immortals, to second and support +the pursuit; and discharged the whole weight of his united forces on the +rear-guard of the Romans. The rear-guard was thrown into disorder; the +renowned legions, which derived their titles from Diocletian, and his +warlike colleague, were broke and trampled down by the elephants; and +three tribunes lost their lives in attempting to stop the flight of +their soldiers. The battle was at length restored by the persevering +valor of the Romans; the Persians were repulsed with a great slaughter +of men and elephants; and the army, after marching and fighting a long +summer's day, arrived, in the evening, at Samara, on the banks of the +Tigris, about one hundred miles above Ctesiphon. On the ensuing day, +the Barbarians, instead of harassing the march, attacked the camp, of +Jovian; which had been seated in a deep and sequestered valley. From +the hills, the archers of Persia insulted and annoyed the wearied +legionaries; and a body of cavalry, which had penetrated with desperate +courage through the Praetorian gate, was cut in pieces, after a doubtful +conflict, near the Imperial tent. In the succeeding night, the camp +of Carche was protected by the lofty dikes of the river; and the +Roman army, though incessantly exposed to the vexatious pursuit of the +Saracens, pitched their tents near the city of Dura, four days after +the death of Julian. The Tigris was still on their left; their hopes +and provisions were almost consumed; and the impatient soldiers, who had +fondly persuaded themselves that the frontiers of the empire were not +far distant, requested their new sovereign, that they might be permitted +to hazard the passage of the river. With the assistance of his wisest +officers, Jovian endeavored to check their rashness; by representing, +that if they possessed sufficient skill and vigor to stem the torrent +of a deep and rapid stream, they would only deliver themselves naked +and defenceless to the Barbarians, who had occupied the opposite banks, +Yielding at length to their clamorous importunities, he consented, with +reluctance, that five hundred Gauls and Germans, accustomed from their +infancy to the waters of the Rhine and Danube, should attempt the +bold adventure, which might serve either as an encouragement, or as a +warning, for the rest of the army. In the silence of the night, they +swam the Tigris, surprised an unguarded post of the enemy, and displayed +at the dawn of day the signal of their resolution and fortune. The +success of this trial disposed the emperor to listen to the promises +of his architects, who propose to construct a floating bridge of the +inflated skins of sheep, oxen, and goats, covered with a floor of earth +and fascines. Two important days were spent in the ineffectual labor; +and the Romans, who already endured the miseries of famine, cast a look +of despair on the Tigris, and upon the Barbarians; whose numbers and +obstinacy increased with the distress of the Imperial army. + +In this hopeless condition, the fainting spirits of the Romans were +revived by the sound of peace. The transient presumption of Sapor had +vanished: he observed, with serious concern, that, in the repetition of +doubtful combats, he had lost his most faithful and intrepid nobles, his +bravest troops, and the greatest part of his train of elephants: and +the experienced monarch feared to provoke the resistance of despair, the +vicissitudes of fortune, and the unexhausted powers of the Roman empire; +which might soon advance to relieve, or to revenge, the successor of +Julian. The Surenas himself, accompanied by another satrap, * appeared +in the camp of Jovian; and declared, that the clemency of his sovereign +was not averse to signify the conditions on which he would consent to +spare and to dismiss the Caesar with the relics of his captive army. +The hopes of safety subdued the firmness of the Romans; the emperor was +compelled, by the advice of his council, and the cries of his soldiers, +to embrace the offer of peace; and the praefect Sallust was immediately +sent, with the general Arinthaeus, to understand the pleasure of the +Great King. The crafty Persian delayed, under various pretenses, +the conclusion of the agreement; started difficulties, required +explanations, suggested expedients, receded from his concessions, +increased his demands, and wasted four days in the arts of negotiation, +till he had consumed the stock of provisions which yet remained in the +camp of the Romans. Had Jovian been capable of executing a bold and +prudent measure, he would have continued his march, with unremitting +diligence; the progress of the treaty would have suspended the attacks +of the Barbarians; and, before the expiration of the fourth day, he +might have safely reached the fruitful province of Corduene, at the +distance only of one hundred miles. The irresolute emperor, instead of +breaking through the toils of the enemy, expected his fate with patient +resignation; and accepted the humiliating conditions of peace, which +it was no longer in his power to refuse. The five provinces beyond the +Tigris, which had been ceded by the grandfather of Sapor, were +restored to the Persian monarchy. He acquired, by a single article, the +impregnable city of Nisibis; which had sustained, in three successive +sieges, the effort of his arms. Singara, and the castle of the Moors, +one of the strongest places of Mesopotamia, were likewise dismembered +from the empire. It was considered as an indulgence, that the +inhabitants of those fortresses were permitted to retire with their +effects; but the conqueror rigorously insisted, that the Romans should +forever abandon the king and kingdom of Armenia. Sec. A peace, or rather a +long truce, of thirty years, was stipulated between the hostile nations; +the faith of the treaty was ratified by solemn oaths and religious +ceremonies; and hostages of distinguished rank were reciprocally +delivered to secure the performance of the conditions. + +The sophist of Antioch, who saw with indignation the sceptre of his hero +in the feeble hand of a Christian successor, professes to admire the +moderation of Sapor, in contenting himself with so small a portion of +the Roman empire. If he had stretched as far as the Euphrates the +claims of his ambition, he might have been secure, says Libanius, of not +meeting with a refusal. If he had fixed, as the boundary of Persia, +the Orontes, the Cydnus, the Sangarius, or even the Thracian Bosphorus, +flatterers would not have been wanting in the court of Jovian to +convince the timid monarch, that his remaining provinces would still +afford the most ample gratifications of power and luxury. Without +adopting in its full force this malicious insinuation, we must +acknowledge, that the conclusion of so ignominious a treaty was +facilitated by the private ambition of Jovian. The obscure domestic, +exalted to the throne by fortune, rather than by merit, was impatient to +escape from the hands of the Persians, that he might prevent the designs +of Procopius, who commanded the army of Mesopotamia, and establish his +doubtful reign over the legions and provinces which were still ignorant +of the hasty and tumultuous choice of the camp beyond the Tigris. In the +neighborhood of the same river, at no very considerable distance from +the fatal station of Dura, the ten thousand Greeks, without generals, or +guides, or provisions, were abandoned, above twelve hundred miles from +their native country, to the resentment of a victorious monarch. The +difference of their conduct and success depended much more on their +character than on their situation. Instead of tamely resigning +themselves to the secret deliberations and private views of a single +person, the united councils of the Greeks were inspired by the generous +enthusiasm of a popular assembly; where the mind of each citizen is +filled with the love of glory, the pride of freedom, and the contempt +of death. Conscious of their superiority over the Barbarians in arms and +discipline, they disdained to yield, they refused to capitulate: every +obstacle was surmounted by their patience, courage, and military skill; +and the memorable retreat of the ten thousand exposed and insulted the +weakness of the Persian monarchy. + +As the price of his disgraceful concessions, the emperor might +perhaps have stipulated, that the camp of the hungry Romans should be +plentifully supplied; and that they should be permitted to pass the +Tigris on the bridge which was constructed by the hands of the Persians. +But, if Jovian presumed to solicit those equitable terms, they were +sternly refused by the haughty tyrant of the East, whose clemency had +pardoned the invaders of his country. The Saracens sometimes intercepted +the stragglers of the march; but the generals and troops of Sapor +respected the cessation of arms; and Jovian was suffered to explore the +most convenient place for the passage of the river. The small vessels, +which had been saved from the conflagration of the fleet, performed +the most essential service. They first conveyed the emperor and his +favorites; and afterwards transported, in many successive voyages, a +great part of the army. But, as every man was anxious for his personal +safety, and apprehensive of being left on the hostile shore, the +soldiers, who were too impatient to wait the slow returns of the boats, +boldly ventured themselves on light hurdles, or inflated skins; and, +drawing after them their horses, attempted, with various success, to +swim across the river. Many of these daring adventurers were swallowed +by the waves; many others, who were carried along by the violence of the +stream, fell an easy prey to the avarice or cruelty of the wild Arabs: +and the loss which the army sustained in the passage of the Tigris, was +not inferior to the carnage of a day of battle. As soon as the Romans +were landed on the western bank, they were delivered from the hostile +pursuit of the Barbarians; but, in a laborious march of two hundred +miles over the plains of Mesopotamia, they endured the last extremities +of thirst and hunger. They were obliged to traverse the sandy desert, +which, in the extent of seventy miles, did not afford a single blade +of sweet grass, nor a single spring of fresh water; and the rest of +the inhospitable waste was untrod by the footsteps either of friends or +enemies. Whenever a small measure of flour could be discovered in the +camp, twenty pounds weight were greedily purchased with ten pieces of +gold: the beasts of burden were slaughtered and devoured; and the desert +was strewed with the arms and baggage of the Roman soldiers, whose +tattered garments and meagre countenances displayed their past +sufferings and actual misery. A small convoy of provisions advanced to +meet the army as far as the castle of Ur; and the supply was the more +grateful, since it declared the fidelity of Sebastian and Procopius. +At Thilsaphata, the emperor most graciously received the generals +of Mesopotamia; and the remains of a once flourishing army at length +reposed themselves under the walls of Nisibis. The messengers of Jovian +had already proclaimed, in the language of flattery, his election, his +treaty, and his return; and the new prince had taken the most effectual +measures to secure the allegiance of the armies and provinces of Europe, +by placing the military command in the hands of those officers, who, +from motives of interest, or inclination, would firmly support the cause +of their benefactor. + +The friends of Julian had confidently announced the success of his +expedition. They entertained a fond persuasion that the temples of the +gods would be enriched with the spoils of the East; that Persia would +be reduced to the humble state of a tributary province, governed by the +laws and magistrates of Rome; that the Barbarians would adopt the dress, +and manners, and language of their conquerors; and that the youth of +Ecbatana and Susa would study the art of rhetoric under Grecian masters. +The progress of the arms of Julian interrupted his communication +with the empire; and, from the moment that he passed the Tigris, his +affectionate subjects were ignorant of the fate and fortunes of their +prince. Their contemplation of fancied triumphs was disturbed by the +melancholy rumor of his death; and they persisted to doubt, after they +could no longer deny, the truth of that fatal event. The messengers of +Jovian promulgated the specious tale of a prudent and necessary peace; +the voice of fame, louder and more sincere, revealed the disgrace of the +emperor, and the conditions of the ignominious treaty. The minds of the +people were filled with astonishment and grief, with indignation and +terror, when they were informed, that the unworthy successor of Julian +relinquished the five provinces which had been acquired by the victory +of Galerius; and that he shamefully surrendered to the Barbarians the +important city of Nisibis, the firmest bulwark of the provinces of the +East. The deep and dangerous question, how far the public faith should +be observed, when it becomes incompatible with the public safety, was +freely agitated in popular conversation; and some hopes were entertained +that the emperor would redeem his pusillanimous behavior by a splendid +act of patriotic perfidy. The inflexible spirit of the Roman senate had +always disclaimed the unequal conditions which were extorted from the +distress of their captive armies; and, if it were necessary to satisfy +the national honor, by delivering the guilty general into the hands of +the Barbarians, the greatest part of the subjects of Jovian would have +cheerfully acquiesced in the precedent of ancient times. + +But the emperor, whatever might be the limits of his constitutional +authority, was the absolute master of the laws and arms of the state; +and the same motives which had forced him to subscribe, now pressed him +to execute, the treaty of peace. He was impatient to secure an empire +at the expense of a few provinces; and the respectable names of +religion and honor concealed the personal fears and ambition of Jovian. +Notwithstanding the dutiful solicitations of the inhabitants, decency, +as well as prudence, forbade the emperor to lodge in the palace of +Nisibis; but the next morning after his arrival. Bineses, the ambassador +of Persia, entered the place, displayed from the citadel the standard +of the Great King, and proclaimed, in his name, the cruel alternative +of exile or servitude. The principal citizens of Nisibis, who, till that +fatal moment, had confided in the protection of their sovereign, threw +themselves at his feet. They conjured him not to abandon, or, at least, +not to deliver, a faithful colony to the rage of a Barbarian tyrant, +exasperated by the three successive defeats which he had experienced +under the walls of Nisibis. They still possessed arms and courage to +repel the invaders of their country: they requested only the permission +of using them in their own defence; and, as soon as they had asserted +their independence, they should implore the favor of being again +admitted into the ranks of his subjects. Their arguments, their +eloquence, their tears, were ineffectual. Jovian alleged, with some +confusion, the sanctity of oaths; and, as the reluctance with which he +accepted the present of a crown of gold, convinced the citizens of their +hopeless condition, the advocate Sylvanus was provoked to exclaim, "O +emperor! may you thus be crowned by all the cities of your dominions!" +Jovian, who in a few weeks had assumed the habits of a prince, was +displeased with freedom, and offended with truth: and as he reasonably +supposed, that the discontent of the people might incline them to submit +to the Persian government, he published an edict, under pain of death, +that they should leave the city within the term of three days. Ammianus +has delineated in lively colors the scene of universal despair, which +he seems to have viewed with an eye of compassion. The martial youth +deserted, with indignant grief, the walls which they had so gloriously +defended: the disconsolate mourner dropped a last tear over the tomb +of a son or husband, which must soon be profaned by the rude hand of a +Barbarian master; and the aged citizen kissed the threshold, and clung +to the doors, of the house where he had passed the cheerful and careless +hours of infancy. The highways were crowded with a trembling multitude: +the distinctions of rank, and sex, and age, were lost in the general +calamity. Every one strove to bear away some fragment from the wreck of +his fortunes; and as they could not command the immediate service of an +adequate number of horses or wagons, they were obliged to leave +behind them the greatest part of their valuable effects. The savage +insensibility of Jovian appears to have aggravated the hardships of +these unhappy fugitives. They were seated, however, in a new-built +quarter of Amida; and that rising city, with the reenforcement of a very +considerable colony, soon recovered its former splendor, and became the +capital of Mesopotamia. Similar orders were despatched by the emperor +for the evacuation of Singara and the castle of the Moors; and for the +restitution of the five provinces beyond the Tigris. Sapor enjoyed the +glory and the fruits of his victory; and this ignominious peace has +justly been considered as a memorable aera in the decline and fall of the +Roman empire. The predecessors of Jovian had sometimes relinquished +the dominion of distant and unprofitable provinces; but, since the +foundation of the city, the genius of Rome, the god Terminus, who +guarded the boundaries of the republic, had never retired before the +sword of a victorious enemy. + +After Jovian had performed those engagements which the voice of his +people might have tempted him to violate, he hastened away from the +scene of his disgrace, and proceeded with his whole court to enjoy the +luxury of Antioch. Without consulting the dictates of religious zeal, +he was prompted, by humanity and gratitude, to bestow the last honors +on the remains of his deceased sovereign: and Procopius, who sincerely +bewailed the loss of his kinsman, was removed from the command of the +army, under the decent pretence of conducting the funeral. The corpse +of Julian was transported from Nisibis to Tarsus, in a slow march of +fifteen days; and, as it passed through the cities of the East, +was saluted by the hostile factions, with mournful lamentations and +clamorous insults. The Pagans already placed their beloved hero in the +rank of those gods whose worship he had restored; while the invectives +of the Christians pursued the soul of the Apostate to hell, and his body +to the grave. One party lamented the approaching ruin of their altars; +the other celebrated the marvellous deliverance of their church. The +Christians applauded, in lofty and ambiguous strains, the stroke of +divine vengeance, which had been so long suspended over the guilty +head of Julian. They acknowledge, that the death of the tyrant, at the +instant he expired beyond the Tigris, was revealed to the saints of +Egypt, Syria, and Cappadocia; and instead of suffering him to fall by +the Persian darts, their indiscretion ascribed the heroic deed to the +obscure hand of some mortal or immortal champion of the faith. Such +imprudent declarations were eagerly adopted by the malice, or credulity, +of their adversaries; who darkly insinuated, or confidently asserted, +that the governors of the church had instigated and directed the +fanaticism of a domestic assassin. Above sixteen years after the death +of Julian, the charge was solemnly and vehemently urged, in a public +oration, addressed by Libanius to the emperor Theodosius. His suspicions +are unsupported by fact or argument; and we can only esteem the generous +zeal of the sophist of Antioch for the cold and neglected ashes of his +friend. + +It was an ancient custom in the funerals, as well as in the triumphs, +of the Romans, that the voice of praise should be corrected by that of +satire and ridicule; and that, in the midst of the splendid pageants, +which displayed the glory of the living or of the dead, their +imperfections should not be concealed from the eyes of the world. +This custom was practised in the funeral of Julian. The comedians, who +resented his contempt and aversion for the theatre, exhibited, with +the applause of a Christian audience, the lively and exaggerated +representation of the faults and follies of the deceased emperor. His +various character and singular manners afforded an ample scope for +pleasantry and ridicule. In the exercise of his uncommon talents, he +often descended below the majesty of his rank. Alexander was transformed +into Diogenes; the philosopher was degraded into a priest. The purity of +his virtue was sullied by excessive vanity; his superstition disturbed +the peace, and endangered the safety, of a mighty empire; and his +irregular sallies were the less entitled to indulgence, as they appeared +to be the laborious efforts of art, or even of affectation. The remains +of Julian were interred at Tarsus in Cilicia; but his stately tomb, +which arose in that city, on the banks of the cold and limpid Cydnus, +was displeasing to the faithful friends, who loved and revered the +memory of that extraordinary man. The philosopher expressed a very +reasonable wish, that the disciple of Plato might have reposed amidst +the groves of the academy; while the soldier exclaimed, in bolder +accents, that the ashes of Julian should have been mingled with those +of Caesar, in the field of Mars, and among the ancient monuments of +Roman virtue. The history of princes does not very frequently renew the +examples of a similar competition. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part I. + + The Government And Death Of Jovian.--Election Of + Valentinian, Who Associates His Brother Valens, And Makes + The Final Division Of The Eastern And Western Empires.-- + Revolt Of Procopius.--Civil And Ecclesiastical + Administration.--Germany.--Britain.--Africa.--The East.--The + Danube.--Death Of Valentinian.--His Two Sons, Gratian And + Valentinian II., Succeed To The Western Empire. + +The death of Julian had left the public affairs of the empire in a +very doubtful and dangerous situation. The Roman army was saved by an +inglorious, perhaps a necessary treaty; and the first moments of peace +were consecrated by the pious Jovian to restore the domestic tranquility +of the church and state. The indiscretion of his predecessor, instead +of reconciling, had artfully fomented the religious war: and the balance +which he affected to preserve between the hostile factions, served only +to perpetuate the contest, by the vicissitudes of hope and fear, by the +rival claims of ancient possession and actual favor. The Christians +had forgotten the spirit of the gospel; and the Pagans had imbibed the +spirit of the church. In private families, the sentiments of nature were +extinguished by the blind fury of zeal and revenge: the majesty of the +laws was violated or abused; the cities of the East were stained with +blood; and the most implacable enemies of the Romans were in the bosom +of their country. Jovian was educated in the profession of Christianity; +and as he marched from Nisibis to Antioch, the banner of the Cross, the +Labarum of Constantine, which was again displayed at the head of the +legions, announced to the people the faith of their new emperor. As soon +as he ascended the throne, he transmitted a circular epistle to all +the governors of provinces; in which he confessed the divine truth, +and secured the legal establishment, of the Christian religion. The +insidious edicts of Julian were abolished; the ecclesiastical immunities +were restored and enlarged; and Jovian condescended to lament, that the +distress of the times obliged him to diminish the measure of charitable +distributions. The Christians were unanimous in the loud and sincere +applause which they bestowed on the pious successor of Julian. But they +were still ignorant what creed, or what synod, he would choose for the +standard of orthodoxy; and the peace of the church immediately revived +those eager disputes which had been suspended during the season of +persecution. The episcopal leaders of the contending sects, convinced, +from experience, how much their fate would depend on the earliest +impressions that were made on the mind of an untutored soldier, hastened +to the court of Edessa, or Antioch. The highways of the East were +crowded with Homoousian, and Arian, and Semi-Arian, and Eunomian +bishops, who struggled to outstrip each other in the holy race: the +apartments of the palace resounded with their clamors; and the ears +of the prince were assaulted, and perhaps astonished, by the singular +mixture of metaphysical argument and passionate invective. The +moderation of Jovian, who recommended concord and charity, and referred +the disputants to the sentence of a future council, was interpreted as +a symptom of indifference: but his attachment to the Nicene creed was at +length discovered and declared, by the reverence which he expressed for +the celestial virtues of the great Athanasius. The intrepid veteran of +the faith, at the age of seventy, had issued from his retreat on the +first intelligence of the tyrant's death. The acclamations of the +people seated him once more on the archiepiscopal throne; and he wisely +accepted, or anticipated, the invitation of Jovian. The venerable figure +of Athanasius, his calm courage, and insinuating eloquence, sustained +the reputation which he had already acquired in the courts of four +successive princes. As soon as he had gained the confidence, and secured +the faith, of the Christian emperor, he returned in triumph to his +diocese, and continued, with mature counsels and undiminished vigor, to +direct, ten years longer, the ecclesiastical government of Alexandria, +Egypt, and the Catholic church. Before his departure from Antioch, he +assured Jovian that his orthodox devotion would be rewarded with a long +and peaceful reign. Athanasius, had reason to hope, that he should be +allowed either the merit of a successful prediction, or the excuse of a +grateful though ineffectual prayer. + +The slightest force, when it is applied to assist and guide the natural +descent of its object, operates with irresistible weight; and Jovian had +the good fortune to embrace the religious opinions which were supported +by the spirit of the times, and the zeal and numbers of the most +powerful sect. Under his reign, Christianity obtained an easy and +lasting victory; and as soon as the smile of royal patronage was +withdrawn, the genius of Paganism, which had been fondly raised and +cherished by the arts of Julian, sunk irrecoverably. In many cities, +the temples were shut or deserted: the philosophers who had abused their +transient favor, thought it prudent to shave their beards, and disguise +their profession; and the Christians rejoiced, that they were now in +a condition to forgive, or to revenge, the injuries which they had +suffered under the preceding reign. The consternation of the Pagan +world was dispelled by a wise and gracious edict of toleration; in which +Jovian explicitly declared, that although he should severely punish the +sacrilegious rites of magic, his subjects might exercise, with freedom +and safety, the ceremonies of the ancient worship. The memory of this +law has been preserved by the orator Themistius, who was deputed by the +senate of Constantinople to express their royal devotion for the new +emperor. Themistius expatiates on the clemency of the Divine Nature, the +facility of human error, the rights of conscience, and the independence +of the mind; and, with some eloquence, inculcates the principles of +philosophical toleration; whose aid Superstition herself, in the hour of +her distress, is not ashamed to implore. He justly observes, that in +the recent changes, both religions had been alternately disgraced by the +seeming acquisition of worthless proselytes, of those votaries of the +reigning purple, who could pass, without a reason, and without a blush, +from the church to the temple, and from the altars of Jupiter to the +sacred table of the Christians. + +In the space of seven months, the Roman troops, who were now returned to +Antioch, had performed a march of fifteen hundred miles; in which +they had endured all the hardships of war, of famine, and of climate. +Notwithstanding their services, their fatigues, and the approach of +winter, the timid and impatient Jovian allowed only, to the men and +horses, a respite of six weeks. The emperor could not sustain the +indiscreet and malicious raillery of the people of Antioch. He was +impatient to possess the palace of Constantinople; and to prevent the +ambition of some competitor, who might occupy the vacant allegiance +of Europe. But he soon received the grateful intelligence, that his +authority was acknowledged from the Thracian Bosphorus to the Atlantic +Ocean. By the first letters which he despatched from the camp of +Mesopotamia, he had delegated the military command of Gaul and Illyricum +to Malarich, a brave and faithful officer of the nation of the +Franks; and to his father-in-law, Count Lucillian, who had formerly +distinguished his courage and conduct in the defence of Nisibis. +Malarich had declined an office to which he thought himself unequal; +and Lucillian was massacred at Rheims, in an accidental mutiny of the +Batavian cohorts. But the moderation of Jovinus, master-general of the +cavalry, who forgave the intention of his disgrace, soon appeased the +tumult, and confirmed the uncertain minds of the soldiers. The oath of +fidelity was administered and taken, with loyal acclamations; and +the deputies of the Western armies saluted their new sovereign as he +descended from Mount Taurus to the city of Tyana in Cappadocia. From +Tyana he continued his hasty march to Ancyra, capital of the province of +Galatia; where Jovian assumed, with his infant son, the name and ensigns +of the consulship. Dadastana, an obscure town, almost at an equal +distance between Ancyra and Nice, was marked for the fatal term of his +journey and life. After indulging himself with a plentiful, perhaps +an intemperate, supper, he retired to rest; and the next morning the +emperor Jovian was found dead in his bed. The cause of this sudden death +was variously understood. By some it was ascribed to the consequences +of an indigestion, occasioned either by the quantity of the wine, or +the quality of the mushrooms, which he had swallowed in the evening. +According to others, he was suffocated in his sleep by the vapor +of charcoal, which extracted from the walls of the apartment the +unwholesome moisture of the fresh plaster. But the want of a regular +inquiry into the death of a prince, whose reign and person were soon +forgotten, appears to have been the only circumstance which countenanced +the malicious whispers of poison and domestic guilt. The body of Jovian +was sent to Constantinople, to be interred with his predecessors, and +the sad procession was met on the road by his wife Charito, the daughter +of Count Lucillian; who still wept the recent death of her father, and +was hastening to dry her tears in the embraces of an Imperial husband. +Her disappointment and grief were imbittered by the anxiety of maternal +tenderness. Six weeks before the death of Jovian, his infant son had +been placed in the curule chair, adorned with the title of Nobilissimus, +and the vain ensigns of the consulship. Unconscious of his fortune, the +royal youth, who, from his grandfather, assumed the name of Varronian, +was reminded only by the jealousy of the government, that he was the son +of an emperor. Sixteen years afterwards he was still alive, but he had +already been deprived of an eye; and his afflicted mother expected every +hour, that the innocent victim would be torn from her arms, to appease, +with his blood, the suspicions of the reigning prince. + +After the death of Jovian, the throne of the Roman world remained ten +days, without a master. The ministers and generals still continued to +meet in council; to exercise their respective functions; to maintain the +public order; and peaceably to conduct the army to the city of Nice in +Bithynia, which was chosen for the place of the election. In a solemn +assembly of the civil and military powers of the empire, the diadem was +again unanimously offered to the praefect Sallust. He enjoyed the glory +of a second refusal: and when the virtues of the father were alleged +in favor of his son, the praefect, with the firmness of a disinterested +patriot, declared to the electors, that the feeble age of the one, and +the unexperienced youth of the other, were equally incapable of the +laborious duties of government. Several candidates were proposed; and, +after weighing the objections of character or situation, they were +successively rejected; but, as soon as the name of Valentinian was +pronounced, the merit of that officer united the suffrages of the whole +assembly, and obtained the sincere approbation of Sallust himself. +Valentinian was the son of Count Gratian, a native of Cibalis, in +Pannonia, who from an obscure condition had raised himself, by matchless +strength and dexterity, to the military commands of Africa and Britain; +from which he retired with an ample fortune and suspicious integrity. +The rank and services of Gratian contributed, however, to smooth the +first steps of the promotion of his son; and afforded him an early +opportunity of displaying those solid and useful qualifications, which +raised his character above the ordinary level of his fellow-soldiers. +The person of Valentinian was tall, graceful, and majestic. His manly +countenance, deeply marked with the impression of sense and spirit, +inspired his friends with awe, and his enemies with fear; and to second +the efforts of his undaunted courage, the son of Gratian had inherited +the advantages of a strong and healthy constitution. By the habits of +chastity and temperance, which restrain the appetites and invigorate +the faculties, Valentinian preserved his own and the public esteem. The +avocations of a military life had diverted his youth from the elegant +pursuits of literature; * he was ignorant of the Greek language, and the +arts of rhetoric; but as the mind of the orator was never disconcerted +by timid perplexity, he was able, as often as the occasion prompted him, +to deliver his decided sentiments with bold and ready elocution. The +laws of martial discipline were the only laws that he had studied; and +he was soon distinguished by the laborious diligence, and inflexible +severity, with which he discharged and enforced the duties of the +camp. In the time of Julian he provoked the danger of disgrace, by the +contempt which he publicly expressed for the reigning religion; and +it should seem, from his subsequent conduct, that the indiscreet and +unseasonable freedom of Valentinian was the effect of military spirit, +rather than of Christian zeal. He was pardoned, however, and still +employed by a prince who esteemed his merit; and in the various events +of the Persian war, he improved the reputation which he had already +acquired on the banks of the Rhine. The celerity and success with which +he executed an important commission, recommended him to the favor of +Jovian; and to the honorable command of the second school, or company, +of Targetiers, of the domestic guards. In the march from Antioch, he +had reached his quarters at Ancyra, when he was unexpectedly summoned, +without guilt and without intrigue, to assume, in the forty-third year +of his age, the absolute government of the Roman empire. + +The invitation of the ministers and generals at Nice was of little +moment, unless it were confirmed by the voice of the army. The aged +Sallust, who had long observed the irregular fluctuations of popular +assemblies, proposed, under pain of death, that none of those persons, +whose rank in the service might excite a party in their favor, should +appear in public on the day of the inauguration. Yet such was the +prevalence of ancient superstition, that a whole day was voluntarily +added to this dangerous interval, because it happened to be the +intercalation of the Bissextile. At length, when the hour was supposed +to be propitious, Valentinian showed himself from a lofty tribunal; the +judicious choice was applauded; and the new prince was solemnly invested +with the diadem and the purple, amidst the acclamation of the troops, +who were disposed in martial order round the tribunal. But when he +stretched forth his hand to address the armed multitude, a busy whisper +was accidentally started in the ranks, and insensibly swelled into +a loud and imperious clamor, that he should name, without delay, a +colleague in the empire. The intrepid calmness of Valentinian obtained +silence, and commanded respect; and he thus addressed the assembly: "A +few minutes since it was in your power, fellow-soldiers, to have left me +in the obscurity of a private station. Judging, from the testimony of my +past life, that I deserved to reign, you have placed me on the throne. +It is now my duty to consult the safety and interest of the republic. +The weight of the universe is undoubtedly too great for the hands of +a feeble mortal. I am conscious of the limits of my abilities, and the +uncertainty of my life; and far from declining, I am anxious to solicit, +the assistance of a worthy colleague. But, where discord may be +fatal, the choice of a faithful friend requires mature and serious +deliberation. That deliberation shall be my care. Let your conduct be +dutiful and consistent. Retire to your quarters; refresh your minds and +bodies; and expect the accustomed donative on the accession of a +new emperor." The astonished troops, with a mixture of pride, of +satisfaction, and of terror, confessed the voice of their master. +Their angry clamors subsided into silent reverence; and Valentinian, +encompassed with the eagles of the legions, and the various banners of +the cavalry and infantry, was conducted, in warlike pomp, to the palace +of Nice. As he was sensible, however, of the importance of preventing +some rash declaration of the soldiers, he consulted the assembly of +the chiefs; and their real sentiments were concisely expressed by the +generous freedom of Dagalaiphus. "Most excellent prince," said that +officer, "if you consider only your family, you have a brother; if you +love the republic, look round for the most deserving of the Romans." The +emperor, who suppressed his displeasure, without altering his intention, +slowly proceeded from Nice to Nicomedia and Constantinople. In one of +the suburbs of that capital, thirty days after his own elevation, he +bestowed the title of Augustus on his brother Valens; * and as the +boldest patriots were convinced, that their opposition, without +being serviceable to their country, would be fatal to themselves, the +declaration of his absolute will was received with silent submission. +Valens was now in the thirty-sixth year of his age; but his abilities +had never been exercised in any employment, military or civil; and his +character had not inspired the world with any sanguine expectations. He +possessed, however, one quality, which recommended him to Valentinian, +and preserved the domestic peace of the empire; devout and grateful +attachment to his benefactor, whose superiority of genius, as well as of +authority, Valens humbly and cheerfully acknowledged in every action of +his life. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part II. + +Before Valentinian divided the provinces, he reformed the administration +of the empire. All ranks of subjects, who had been injured or oppressed +under the reign of Julian, were invited to support their public +accusations. The silence of mankind attested the spotless integrity of +the praefect Sallust; and his own pressing solicitations, that he might +be permitted to retire from the business of the state, were rejected +by Valentinian with the most honorable expressions of friendship and +esteem. But among the favorites of the late emperor, there were many who +had abused his credulity or superstition; and who could no longer hope +to be protected either by favor or justice. The greater part of the +ministers of the palace, and the governors of the provinces, were +removed from their respective stations; yet the eminent merit of +some officers was distinguished from the obnoxious crowd; and, +notwithstanding the opposite clamors of zeal and resentment, the whole +proceedings of this delicate inquiry appear to have been conducted with +a reasonable share of wisdom and moderation. The festivity of a new +reign received a short and suspicious interruption from the sudden +illness of the two princes; but as soon as their health was restored, +they left Constantinople in the beginning of the spring. In the castle, +or palace, of Mediana, only three miles from Naissus, they executed the +solemn and final division of the Roman empire. Valentinian bestowed on +his brother the rich praefecture of the East, from the Lower Danube to +the confines of Persia; whilst he reserved for his immediate government +the warlike * praefectures of Illyricum, Italy, and Gaul, from the +extremity of Greece to the Caledonian rampart, and from the rampart +of Caledonia to the foot of Mount Atlas. The provincial administration +remained on its former basis; but a double supply of generals and +magistrates was required for two councils, and two courts: the division +was made with a just regard to their peculiar merit and situation, +and seven master-generals were soon created, either of the cavalry or +infantry. When this important business had been amicably transacted, +Valentinian and Valens embraced for the last time. The emperor of the +West established his temporary residence at Milan; and the emperor of +the East returned to Constantinople, to assume the dominion of fifty +provinces, of whose language he was totally ignorant. + +The tranquility of the East was soon disturbed by rebellion; and the +throne of Valens was threatened by the daring attempts of a rival whose +affinity to the emperor Julian was his sole merit, and had been his only +crime. Procopius had been hastily promoted from the obscure station of a +tribune, and a notary, to the joint command of the army of Mesopotamia; +the public opinion already named him as the successor of a prince who +was destitute of natural heirs; and a vain rumor was propagated by his +friends, or his enemies, that Julian, before the altar of the Moon at +Carrhae, had privately invested Procopius with the Imperial purple. +He endeavored, by his dutiful and submissive behavior, to disarm the +jealousy of Jovian; resigned, without a contest, his military command; +and retired, with his wife and family, to cultivate the ample patrimony +which he possessed in the province of Cappadocia. These useful and +innocent occupations were interrupted by the appearance of an officer +with a band of soldiers, who, in the name of his new sovereigns, +Valentinian and Valens, was despatched to conduct the unfortunate +Procopius either to a perpetual prison or an ignominious death. His +presence of mind procured him a longer respite, and a more splendid +fate. Without presuming to dispute the royal mandate, he requested the +indulgence of a few moments to embrace his weeping family; and while +the vigilance of his guards was relaxed by a plentiful entertainment, +he dexterously escaped to the sea-coast of the Euxine, from whence he +passed over to the country of Bosphorus. In that sequestered region he +remained many months, exposed to the hardships of exile, of solitude, +and of want; his melancholy temper brooding over his misfortunes, and +his mind agitated by the just apprehension, that, if any accident should +discover his name, the faithless Barbarians would violate, without much +scruple, the laws of hospitality. In a moment of impatience and +despair, Procopius embarked in a merchant vessel, which made sail for +Constantinople; and boldly aspired to the rank of a sovereign, because +he was not allowed to enjoy the security of a subject. At first he +lurked in the villages of Bithynia, continually changing his habitation +and his disguise. By degrees he ventured into the capital, trusted his +life and fortune to the fidelity of two friends, a senator and a eunuch, +and conceived some hopes of success, from the intelligence which he +obtained of the actual state of public affairs. The body of the people +was infected with a spirit of discontent: they regretted the justice and +the abilities of Sallust, who had been imprudently dismissed from the +praefecture of the East. They despised the character of Valens, which +was rude without vigor, and feeble without mildness. They dreaded the +influence of his father-in-law, the patrician Petronius, a cruel and +rapacious minister, who rigorously exacted all the arrears of tribute +that might remain unpaid since the reign of the emperor Aurelian. The +circumstances were propitious to the designs of a usurper. The hostile +measures of the Persians required the presence of Valens in Syria: from +the Danube to the Euphrates the troops were in motion; and the capital +was occasionally filled with the soldiers who passed or repassed the +Thracian Bosphorus. Two cohorts of Gaul were persuaded to listen to +the secret proposals of the conspirators; which were recommended by the +promise of a liberal donative; and, as they still revered the memory +of Julian, they easily consented to support the hereditary claim of his +proscribed kinsman. At the dawn of day they were drawn up near the baths +of Anastasia; and Procopius, clothed in a purple garment, more suitable +to a player than to a monarch, appeared, as if he rose from the dead, +in the midst of Constantinople. The soldiers, who were prepared for his +reception, saluted their trembling prince with shouts of joy and vows +of fidelity. Their numbers were soon increased by a band of sturdy +peasants, collected from the adjacent country; and Procopius, shielded +by the arms of his adherents, was successively conducted to the +tribunal, the senate, and the palace. During the first moments of his +tumultuous reign, he was astonished and terrified by the gloomy silence +of the people; who were either ignorant of the cause, or apprehensive +of the event. But his military strength was superior to any actual +resistance: the malecontents flocked to the standard of rebellion; the +poor were excited by the hopes, and the rich were intimidated by the +fear, of a general pillage; and the obstinate credulity of the multitude +was once more deceived by the promised advantages of a revolution. The +magistrates were seized; the prisons and arsenals broke open; the gates, +and the entrance of the harbor, were diligently occupied; and, in a few +hours, Procopius became the absolute, though precarious, master of the +Imperial city. * The usurper improved this unexpected success with some +degree of courage and dexterity. He artfully propagated the rumors +and opinions the most favorable to his interest; while he deluded the +populace by giving audience to the frequent, but imaginary, ambassadors +of distant nations. The large bodies of troops stationed in the cities +of Thrace and the fortresses of the Lower Danube, were gradually +involved in the guilt of rebellion: and the Gothic princes consented to +supply the sovereign of Constantinople with the formidable strength of +several thousand auxiliaries. His generals passed the Bosphorus, and +subdued, without an effort, the unarmed, but wealthy provinces of +Bithynia and Asia. After an honorable defence, the city and island of +Cyzicus yielded to his power; the renowned legions of the Jovians and +Herculians embraced the cause of the usurper, whom they were ordered to +crush; and, as the veterans were continually augmented with new levies, +he soon appeared at the head of an army, whose valor, as well as +numbers, were not unequal to the greatness of the contest. The son of +Hormisdas, a youth of spirit and ability, condescended to draw his +sword against the lawful emperor of the East; and the Persian prince +was immediately invested with the ancient and extraordinary powers of +a Roman Proconsul. The alliance of Faustina, the widow of the emperor +Constantius, who intrusted herself and her daughter to the hands of +the usurper, added dignity and reputation to his cause. The princess +Constantia, who was then about five years of age, accompanied, in a +litter, the march of the army. She was shown to the multitude in the +arms of her adopted father; and, as often as she passed through the +ranks, the tenderness of the soldiers was inflamed into martial fury: +they recollected the glories of the house of Constantine, and they +declared, with loyal acclamation, that they would shed the last drop of +their blood in the defence of the royal infant. + +In the mean while Valentinian was alarmed and perplexed by the doubtful +intelligence of the revolt of the East. * The difficulties of a German +was forced him to confine his immediate care to the safety of his +own dominions; and, as every channel of communication was stopped or +corrupted, he listened, with doubtful anxiety, to the rumors which +were industriously spread, that the defeat and death of Valens had left +Procopius sole master of the Eastern provinces. Valens was not dead: but +on the news of the rebellion, which he received at Caesarea, he basely +despaired of his life and fortune; proposed to negotiate with the +usurper, and discovered his secret inclination to abdicate the Imperial +purple. The timid monarch was saved from disgrace and ruin by the +firmness of his ministers, and their abilities soon decided in his favor +the event of the civil war. In a season of tranquillity, Sallust +had resigned without a murmur; but as soon as the public safety was +attacked, he ambitiously solicited the preeminence of toil and danger; +and the restoration of that virtuous minister to the praefecture of the +East, was the first step which indicated the repentance of Valens, and +satisfied the minds of the people. The reign of Procopius was apparently +supported by powerful armies and obedient provinces. But many of the +principal officers, military as well as civil, had been urged, either +by motives of duty or interest, to withdraw themselves from the guilty +scene; or to watch the moment of betraying, and deserting, the cause of +the usurper. Lupicinus advanced by hasty marches, to bring the legions +of Syria to the aid of Valens. Arintheus, who, in strength, beauty, and +valor, excelled all the heroes of the age, attacked with a small troop +a superior body of the rebels. When he beheld the faces of the soldiers +who had served under his banner, he commanded them, with a loud voice, +to seize and deliver up their pretended leader; and such was the +ascendant of his genius, that this extraordinary order was instantly +obeyed. Arbetio, a respectable veteran of the great Constantine, who +had been distinguished by the honors of the consulship, was persuaded to +leave his retirement, and once more to conduct an army into the field. +In the heat of action, calmly taking off his helmet, he showed his gray +hairs and venerable countenance: saluted the soldiers of Procopius by +the endearing names of children and companions, and exhorted them no +longer to support the desperate cause of a contemptible tyrant; but +to follow their old commander, who had so often led them to honor and +victory. In the two engagements of Thyatira and Nacolia, the unfortunate +Procopius was deserted by his troops, who were seduced by the +instructions and example of their perfidious officers. After wandering +some time among the woods and mountains of Phrygia, he was betrayed +by his desponding followers, conducted to the Imperial camp, and +immediately beheaded. He suffered the ordinary fate of an unsuccessful +usurper; but the acts of cruelty which were exercised by the conqueror, +under the forms of legal justice, excited the pity and indignation of +mankind. + +Such indeed are the common and natural fruits of despotism and +rebellion. But the inquisition into the crime of magic, which, under the +reign of the two brothers, was so rigorously prosecuted both at Rome and +Antioch, was interpreted as the fatal symptom, either of the displeasure +of Heaven, or of the depravity of mankind. Let us not hesitate to +indulge a liberal pride, that, in the present age, the enlightened part +of Europe has abolished a cruel and odious prejudice, which reigned in +every climate of the globe, and adhered to every system of religious +opinions. The nations, and the sects, of the Roman world, admitted with +equal credulity, and similar abhorrence, the reality of that infernal +art, which was able to control the eternal order of the planets, and +the voluntary operations of the human mind. They dreaded the mysterious +power of spells and incantations, of potent herbs, and execrable rites; +which could extinguish or recall life, inflame the passions of the soul, +blast the works of creation, and extort from the reluctant daemons the +secrets of futurity. They believed, with the wildest inconsistency, +that this preternatural dominion of the air, of earth, and of hell, was +exercised, from the vilest motives of malice or gain, by some wrinkled +hags and itinerant sorcerers, who passed their obscure lives in penury +and contempt. The arts of magic were equally condemned by the public +opinion, and by the laws of Rome; but as they tended to gratify the +most imperious passions of the heart of man, they were continually +proscribed, and continually practised. An imaginary cause as capable of +producing the most serious and mischievous effects. The dark predictions +of the death of an emperor, or the success of a conspiracy, were +calculated only to stimulate the hopes of ambition, and to dissolve the +ties of fidelity; and the intentional guilt of magic was aggravated by +the actual crimes of treason and sacrilege. Such vain terrors disturbed +the peace of society, and the happiness of individuals; and the harmless +flame which insensibly melted a waxen image, might derive a powerful and +pernicious energy from the affrighted fancy of the person whom it was +maliciously designed to represent. From the infusion of those herbs, +which were supposed to possess a supernatural influence, it was an easy +step to the use of more substantial poison; and the folly of mankind +sometimes became the instrument, and the mask, of the most atrocious +crimes. As soon as the zeal of informers was encouraged by the ministers +of Valens and Valentinian, they could not refuse to listen to another +charge, too frequently mingled in the scenes of domestic guilt; a charge +of a softer and less malignant nature, for which the pious, though +excessive, rigor of Constantine had recently decreed the punishment +of death. This deadly and incoherent mixture of treason and magic, +of poison and adultery, afforded infinite gradations of guilt and +innocence, of excuse and aggravation, which in these proceedings appear +to have been confounded by the angry or corrupt passions of the judges. +They easily discovered that the degree of their industry and discernment +was estimated, by the Imperial court, according to the number of +executions that were furnished from the respective tribunals. It was not +without extreme reluctance that they pronounced a sentence of acquittal; +but they eagerly admitted such evidence as was stained with perjury, or +procured by torture, to prove the most improbable charges against the +most respectable characters. The progress of the inquiry continually +opened new subjects of criminal prosecution; the audacious informer, +whose falsehood was detected, retired with impunity; but the wretched +victim, who discovered his real or pretended accomplices, were seldom +permitted to receive the price of his infamy. From the extremity of +Italy and Asia, the young, and the aged, were dragged in chains to the +tribunals of Rome and Antioch. Senators, matrons, and philosophers, +expired in ignominious and cruel tortures. The soldiers, who were +appointed to guard the prisons, declared, with a murmur of pity and +indignation, that their numbers were insufficient to oppose the flight, +or resistance, of the multitude of captives. The wealthiest families +were ruined by fines and confiscations; the most innocent citizens +trembled for their safety; and we may form some notion of the magnitude +of the evil, from the extravagant assertion of an ancient writer, +that, in the obnoxious provinces, the prisoners, the exiles, and the +fugitives, formed the greatest part of the inhabitants. + +When Tacitus describes the deaths of the innocent and illustrious +Romans, who were sacrificed to the cruelty of the first Caesars, the art +of the historian, or the merit of the sufferers, excites in our breast +the most lively sensations of terror, of admiration, and of pity. The +coarse and undistinguishing pencil of Ammianus has delineated his bloody +figures with tedious and disgusting accuracy. But as our attention is +no longer engaged by the contrast of freedom and servitude, of recent +greatness and of actual misery, we should turn with horror from the +frequent executions, which disgraced, both at Rome and Antioch, the +reign of the two brothers. Valens was of a timid, and Valentinian of a +choleric, disposition. An anxious regard to his personal safety was the +ruling principle of the administration of Valens. In the condition of a +subject, he had kissed, with trembling awe, the hand of the oppressor; +and when he ascended the throne, he reasonably expected, that the +same fears, which had subdued his own mind, would secure the patient +submission of his people. The favorites of Valens obtained, by the +privilege of rapine and confiscation, the wealth which his economy would +have refused. They urged, with persuasive eloquence, that, in all cases +of treason, suspicion is equivalent to proof; that the power supposes +the intention, of mischief; that the intention is not less criminal than +the act; and that a subject no longer deserves to live, if his life +may threaten the safety, or disturb the repose, of his sovereign. The +judgment of Valentinian was sometimes deceived, and his confidence +abused; but he would have silenced the informers with a contemptuous +smile, had they presumed to alarm his fortitude by the sound of danger. +They praised his inflexible love of justice; and, in the pursuit of +justice, the emperor was easily tempted to consider clemency as a +weakness, and passion as a virtue. As long as he wrestled with his +equals, in the bold competition of an active and ambitious life, +Valentinian was seldom injured, and never insulted, with impunity: if +his prudence was arraigned, his spirit was applauded; and the proudest +and most powerful generals were apprehensive of provoking the resentment +of a fearless soldier. After he became master of the world, he +unfortunately forgot, that where no resistance can be made, no courage +can be exerted; and instead of consulting the dictates of reason and +magnanimity, he indulged the furious emotions of his temper, at a time +when they were disgraceful to himself, and fatal to the defenceless +objects of his displeasure. In the government of his household, or of +his empire, slight, or even imaginary, offences--a hasty word, a +casual omission, an involuntary delay--were chastised by a sentence of +immediate death. The expressions which issued the most readily from the +mouth of the emperor of the West were, "Strike off his head;" "Burn him +alive;" "Let him be beaten with clubs till he expires;" and his most +favored ministers soon understood, that, by a rash attempt to dispute, +or suspend, the execution of his sanguinary commands, they might involve +themselves in the guilt and punishment of disobedience. The repeated +gratification of this savage justice hardened the mind of Valentinian +against pity and remorse; and the sallies of passion were confirmed +by the habits of cruelty. He could behold with calm satisfaction the +convulsive agonies of torture and death; he reserved his friendship for +those faithful servants whose temper was the most congenial to his own. +The merit of Maximin, who had slaughtered the noblest families of Rome, +was rewarded with the royal approbation, and the praefecture of Gaul. +Two fierce and enormous bears, distinguished by the appellations of +Innocence, and Mica Aurea, could alone deserve to share the favor of +Maximin. The cages of those trusty guards were always placed near the +bed-chamber of Valentinian, who frequently amused his eyes with the +grateful spectacle of seeing them tear and devour the bleeding limbs +of the malefactors who were abandoned to their rage. Their diet and +exercises were carefully inspected by the Roman emperor; and when +Innocence had earned her discharge, by a long course of meritorious +service, the faithful animal was again restored to the freedom of her +native woods. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part III. + +But in the calmer moments of reflection, when the mind of Valens was not +agitated by fear, or that of Valentinian by rage, the tyrant resumed the +sentiments, or at least the conduct, of the father of his country. The +dispassionate judgment of the Western emperor could clearly perceive, +and accurately pursue, his own and the public interest; and the +sovereign of the East, who imitated with equal docility the various +examples which he received from his elder brother, was sometimes guided +by the wisdom and virtue of the praefect Sallust. Both princes invariably +retained, in the purple, the chaste and temperate simplicity which had +adorned their private life; and, under their reign, the pleasures of the +court never cost the people a blush or a sigh. They gradually reformed +many of the abuses of the times of Constantius; judiciously adopted and +improved the designs of Julian and his successor; and displayed a style +and spirit of legislation which might inspire posterity with the most +favorable opinion of their character and government. It is not from the +master of Innocence, that we should expect the tender regard for the +welfare of his subjects, which prompted Valentinian to condemn the +exposition of new-born infants; and to establish fourteen skilful +physicians, with stipends and privileges, in the fourteen quarters +of Rome. The good sense of an illiterate soldier founded a useful and +liberal institution for the education of youth, and the support of +declining science. It was his intention, that the arts of rhetoric +and grammar should be taught in the Greek and Latin languages, in the +metropolis of every province; and as the size and dignity of the school +was usually proportioned to the importance of the city, the academies +of Rome and Constantinople claimed a just and singular preeminence. The +fragments of the literary edicts of Valentinian imperfectly represent +the school of Constantinople, which was gradually improved by subsequent +regulations. That school consisted of thirty-one professors in different +branches of learning. One philosopher, and two lawyers; five sophists, +and ten grammarians for the Greek, and three orators, and ten +grammarians for the Latin tongue; besides seven scribes, or, as they +were then styled, antiquarians, whose laborious pens supplied the public +library with fair and correct copies of the classic writers. The rule of +conduct, which was prescribed to the students, is the more curious, as +it affords the first outlines of the form and discipline of a modern +university. It was required, that they should bring proper certificates +from the magistrates of their native province. Their names, professions, +and places of abode, were regularly entered in a public register. The +studious youth were severely prohibited from wasting their time in +feasts, or in the theatre; and the term of their education was limited +to the age of twenty. The praefect of the city was empowered to chastise +the idle and refractory by stripes or expulsion; and he was directed to +make an annual report to the master of the offices, that the knowledge +and abilities of the scholars might be usefully applied to the public +service. The institutions of Valentinian contributed to secure the +benefits of peace and plenty; and the cities were guarded by the +establishment of the Defensors; freely elected as the tribunes and +advocates of the people, to support their rights, and to expose their +grievances, before the tribunals of the civil magistrates, or even +at the foot of the Imperial throne. The finances were diligently +administered by two princes, who had been so long accustomed to the +rigid economy of a private fortune; but in the receipt and application +of the revenue, a discerning eye might observe some difference between +the government of the East and of the West. Valens was persuaded, that +royal liberality can be supplied only by public oppression, and his +ambition never aspired to secure, by their actual distress, the future +strength and prosperity of his people. Instead of increasing the +weight of taxes, which, in the space of forty years, had been gradually +doubled, he reduced, in the first years of his reign, one fourth of the +tribute of the East. Valentinian appears to have been less attentive and +less anxious to relieve the burdens of his people. He might reform the +abuses of the fiscal administration; but he exacted, without scruple, a +very large share of the private property; as he was convinced, that the +revenues, which supported the luxury of individuals, would be much more +advantageously employed for the defence and improvement of the state. +The subjects of the East, who enjoyed the present benefit, applauded +the indulgence of their prince. The solid but less splendid, merit of +Valentinian was felt and acknowledged by the subsequent generation. + +But the most honorable circumstance of the character of Valentinian, is +the firm and temperate impartiality which he uniformly preserved in +an age of religious contention. His strong sense, unenlightened, but +uncorrupted, by study, declined, with respectful indifference, the +subtle questions of theological debate. The government of the Earth +claimed his vigilance, and satisfied his ambition; and while he +remembered that he was the disciple of the church, he never forgot that +he was the sovereign of the clergy. Under the reign of an apostate, he +had signalized his zeal for the honor of Christianity: he allowed to his +subjects the privilege which he had assumed for himself; and they might +accept, with gratitude and confidence, the general toleration which was +granted by a prince addicted to passion, but incapable of fear or +of disguise. The Pagans, the Jews, and all the various sects which +acknowledged the divine authority of Christ, were protected by the laws +from arbitrary power or popular insult; nor was any mode of worship +prohibited by Valentinian, except those secret and criminal practices, +which abused the name of religion for the dark purposes of vice and +disorder. The art of magic, as it was more cruelly punished, was more +strictly proscribed: but the emperor admitted a formal distinction to +protect the ancient methods of divination, which were approved by the +senate, and exercised by the Tuscan haruspices. He had condemned, +with the consent of the most rational Pagans, the license of nocturnal +sacrifices; but he immediately admitted the petition of Praetextatus, +proconsul of Achaia, who represented, that the life of the Greeks would +become dreary and comfortless, if they were deprived of the invaluable +blessing of the Eleusinian mysteries. Philosophy alone can boast, (and +perhaps it is no more than the boast of philosophy,) that her gentle +hand is able to eradicate from the human mind the latent and deadly +principle of fanaticism. But this truce of twelve years, which was +enforced by the wise and vigorous government of Valentinian, by +suspending the repetition of mutual injuries, contributed to soften the +manners, and abate the prejudices, of the religious factions. + +The friend of toleration was unfortunately placed at a distance from the +scene of the fiercest controversies. As soon as the Christians of the +West had extricated themselves from the snares of the creed of Rimini, +they happily relapsed into the slumber of orthodoxy; and the small +remains of the Arian party, that still subsisted at Sirmium or Milan, +might be considered rather as objects of contempt than of resentment. +But in the provinces of the East, from the Euxine to the extremity of +Thebais, the strength and numbers of the hostile factions were more +equally balanced; and this equality, instead of recommending the +counsels of peace, served only to perpetuate the horrors of religious +war. The monks and bishops supported their arguments by invectives; +and their invectives were sometimes followed by blows. Athanasius still +reigned at Alexandria; the thrones of Constantinople and Antioch were +occupied by Arian prelates, and every episcopal vacancy was the +occasion of a popular tumult. The Homoousians were fortified by the +reconciliation of fifty-nine Macedonian, or Semi-Arian, bishops; but +their secret reluctance to embrace the divinity of the Holy Ghost, +clouded the splendor of the triumph; and the declaration of Valens, who, +in the first years of his reign, had imitated the impartial conduct of +his brother, was an important victory on the side of Arianism. The two +brothers had passed their private life in the condition of catechumens; +but the piety of Valens prompted him to solicit the sacrament of +baptism, before he exposed his person to the dangers of a Gothic war. He +naturally addressed himself to Eudoxus, * bishop of the Imperial city; +and if the ignorant monarch was instructed by that Arian pastor in the +principles of heterodox theology, his misfortune, rather than his guilt, +was the inevitable consequence of his erroneous choice. Whatever had +been the determination of the emperor, he must have offended a numerous +party of his Christian subjects; as the leaders both of the Homoousians +and of the Arians believed, that, if they were not suffered to reign, +they were most cruelly injured and oppressed. After he had taken this +decisive step, it was extremely difficult for him to preserve either +the virtue, or the reputation of impartiality. He never aspired, +like Constantius, to the fame of a profound theologian; but as he had +received with simplicity and respect the tenets of Eudoxus, Valens +resigned his conscience to the direction of his ecclesiastical guides, +and promoted, by the influence of his authority, the reunion of the +Athanasian heretics to the body of the Catholic church. At first, he +pitied their blindness; by degrees he was provoked at their obstinacy; +and he insensibly hated those sectaries to whom he was an object of +hatred. The feeble mind of Valens was always swayed by the persons with +whom he familiarly conversed; and the exile or imprisonment of a private +citizen are the favors the most readily granted in a despotic court. +Such punishments were frequently inflicted on the leaders of the +Homoousian party; and the misfortune of fourscore ecclesiastics of +Constantinople, who, perhaps accidentally, were burned on shipboard, +was imputed to the cruel and premeditated malice of the emperor, and his +Arian ministers. In every contest, the Catholics (if we may anticipate +that name) were obliged to pay the penalty of their own faults, and of +those of their adversaries. In every election, the claims of the Arian +candidate obtained the preference; and if they were opposed by the +majority of the people, he was usually supported by the authority of +the civil magistrate, or even by the terrors of a military force. +The enemies of Athanasius attempted to disturb the last years of his +venerable age; and his temporary retreat to his father's sepulchre has +been celebrated as a fifth exile. But the zeal of a great people, who +instantly flew to arms, intimidated the praefect: and the archbishop +was permitted to end his life in peace and in glory, after a reign +of forty-seven years. The death of Athanasius was the signal of the +persecution of Egypt; and the Pagan minister of Valens, who forcibly +seated the worthless Lucius on the archiepiscopal throne, purchased +the favor of the reigning party, by the blood and sufferings of their +Christian brethren. The free toleration of the heathen and Jewish +worship was bitterly lamented, as a circumstance which aggravated the +misery of the Catholics, and the guilt of the impious tyrant of the +East. + +The triumph of the orthodox party has left a deep stain of persecution +on the memory of Valens; and the character of a prince who derived +his virtues, as well as his vices, from a feeble understanding and a +pusillanimous temper, scarcely deserves the labor of an apology. Yet +candor may discover some reasons to suspect that the ecclesiastical +ministers of Valens often exceeded the orders, or even the intentions, +of their master; and that the real measure of facts has been very +liberally magnified by the vehement declamation and easy credulity of +his antagonists. 1. The silence of Valentinian may suggest a probable +argument that the partial severities, which were exercised in the +name and provinces of his colleague, amounted only to some obscure +and inconsiderable deviations from the established system of religious +toleration: and the judicious historian, who has praised the equal +temper of the elder brother, has not thought himself obliged to contrast +the tranquillity of the West with the cruel persecution of the East. +2. Whatever credit may be allowed to vague and distant reports, the +character, or at least the behavior, of Valens, may be most distinctly +seen in his personal transactions with the eloquent Basil, archbishop +of Caesarea, who had succeeded Athanasius in the management of the +Trinitarian cause. The circumstantial narrative has been composed by the +friends and admirers of Basil; and as soon as we have stripped away +a thick coat of rhetoric and miracle, we shall be astonished by the +unexpected mildness of the Arian tyrant, who admired the firmness of his +character, or was apprehensive, if he employed violence, of a general +revolt in the province of Cappadocia. The archbishop, who asserted, +with inflexible pride, the truth of his opinions, and the dignity of his +rank, was left in the free possession of his conscience and his throne. +The emperor devoutly assisted at the solemn service of the cathedral; +and, instead of a sentence of banishment, subscribed the donation of +a valuable estate for the use of a hospital, which Basil had lately +founded in the neighborhood of Caesarea. 3. I am not able to discover, +that any law (such as Theodosius afterwards enacted against the Arians) +was published by Valens against the Athanasian sectaries; and the edict +which excited the most violent clamors, may not appear so extremely +reprehensible. The emperor had observed, that several of his subjects, +gratifying their lazy disposition under the pretence of religion, had +associated themselves with the monks of Egypt; and he directed the +count of the East to drag them from their solitude; and to compel these +deserters of society to accept the fair alternative of renouncing their +temporal possessions, or of discharging the public duties of men and +citizens. The ministers of Valens seem to have extended the sense of +this penal statute, since they claimed a right of enlisting the young +and able-bodied monks in the Imperial armies. A detachment of cavalry +and infantry, consisting of three thousand men, marched from Alexandria +into the adjacent desert of Nitria, which was peopled by five thousand +monks. The soldiers were conducted by Arian priests; and it is reported, +that a considerable slaughter was made in the monasteries which +disobeyed the commands of their sovereign. + +The strict regulations which have been framed by the wisdom of modern +legislators to restrain the wealth and avarice of the clergy, may be +originally deduced from the example of the emperor Valentinian. His +edict, addressed to Damasus, bishop of Rome, was publicly read in the +churches of the city. He admonished the ecclesiastics and monks not +to frequent the houses of widows and virgins; and menaced their +disobedience with the animadversion of the civil judge. The director was +no longer permitted to receive any gift, or legacy, or inheritance, from +the liberality of his spiritual-daughter: every testament contrary to +this edict was declared null and void; and the illegal donation was +confiscated for the use of the treasury. By a subsequent regulation, it +should seem, that the same provisions were extended to nuns and bishops; +and that all persons of the ecclesiastical order were rendered incapable +of receiving any testamentary gifts, and strictly confined to the +natural and legal rights of inheritance. As the guardian of domestic +happiness and virtue, Valentinian applied this severe remedy to the +growing evil. In the capital of the empire, the females of noble and +opulent houses possessed a very ample share of independent property: and +many of those devout females had embraced the doctrines of Christianity, +not only with the cold assent of the understanding, but with the warmth +of affection, and perhaps with the eagerness of fashion. They sacrificed +the pleasures of dress and luxury; and renounced, for the praise of +chastity, the soft endearments of conjugal society. Some ecclesiastic, +of real or apparent sanctity, was chosen to direct their timorous +conscience, and to amuse the vacant tenderness of their heart: and the +unbounded confidence, which they hastily bestowed, was often abused by +knaves and enthusiasts; who hastened from the extremities of the +East, to enjoy, on a splendid theatre, the privileges of the monastic +profession. By their contempt of the world, they insensibly acquired its +most desirable advantages; the lively attachment, perhaps of a young and +beautiful woman, the delicate plenty of an opulent household, and the +respectful homage of the slaves, the freedmen, and the clients of +a senatorial family. The immense fortunes of the Roman ladies were +gradually consumed in lavish alms and expensive pilgrimages; and the +artful monk, who had assigned himself the first, or possibly the sole +place, in the testament of his spiritual daughter, still presumed +to declare, with the smooth face of hypocrisy, that he was only the +instrument of charity, and the steward of the poor. The lucrative, but +disgraceful, trade, which was exercised by the clergy to defraud the +expectations of the natural heirs, had provoked the indignation of a +superstitious age: and two of the most respectable of the Latin fathers +very honestly confess, that the ignominious edict of Valentinian was +just and necessary; and that the Christian priests had deserved to lose +a privilege, which was still enjoyed by comedians, charioteers, and the +ministers of idols. But the wisdom and authority of the legislator are +seldom victorious in a contest with the vigilant dexterity of private +interest; and Jerom, or Ambrose, might patiently acquiesce in the +justice of an ineffectual or salutary law. If the ecclesiastics were +checked in the pursuit of personal emolument, they would exert a more +laudable industry to increase the wealth of the church; and dignify +their covetousness with the specious names of piety and patriotism. + +Damasus, bishop of Rome, who was constrained to stigmatize the avarice +of his clergy by the publication of the law of Valentinian, had the +good sense, or the good fortune, to engage in his service the zeal and +abilities of the learned Jerom; and the grateful saint has celebrated +the merit and purity of a very ambiguous character. But the splendid +vices of the church of Rome, under the reign of Valentinian and Damasus, +have been curiously observed by the historian Ammianus, who delivers his +impartial sense in these expressive words: "The praefecture of Juventius +was accompanied with peace and plenty, but the tranquillity of his +government was soon disturbed by a bloody sedition of the distracted +people. The ardor of Damasus and Ursinus, to seize the episcopal seat, +surpassed the ordinary measure of human ambition. They contended with +the rage of party; the quarrel was maintained by the wounds and death +of their followers; and the praefect, unable to resist or appease the +tumult, was constrained, by superior violence, to retire into the +suburbs. Damasus prevailed: the well-disputed victory remained on the +side of his faction; one hundred and thirty-seven dead bodies were found +in the Basilica of Sicininus, where the Christians hold their religious +assemblies; and it was long before the angry minds of the people resumed +their accustomed tranquillity. When I consider the splendor of the +capital, I am not astonished that so valuable a prize should inflame the +desires of ambitious men, and produce the fiercest and most obstinate +contests. The successful candidate is secure, that he will be enriched +by the offerings of matrons; that, as soon as his dress is composed with +becoming care and elegance, he may proceed, in his chariot, through the +streets of Rome; and that the sumptuousness of the Imperial table will +not equal the profuse and delicate entertainments provided by the taste, +and at the expense, of the Roman pontiffs. How much more rationally +(continues the honest Pagan) would those pontiffs consult their true +happiness, if, instead of alleging the greatness of the city as an +excuse for their manners, they would imitate the exemplary life of some +provincial bishops, whose temperance and sobriety, whose mean apparel +and downcast looks, recommend their pure and modest virtue to the +Deity and his true worshippers!" The schism of Damasus and Ursinus was +extinguished by the exile of the latter; and the wisdom of the praefect +Praetextatus restored the tranquillity of the city. Praetextatus was a +philosophic Pagan, a man of learning, of taste, and politeness; who +disguised a reproach in the form of a jest, when he assured Damasus, +that if he could obtain the bishopric of Rome, he himself would +immediately embrace the Christian religion. This lively picture of the +wealth and luxury of the popes in the fourth century becomes the more +curious, as it represents the intermediate degree between the humble +poverty of the apostolic fishermen, and the royal state of a temporal +prince, whose dominions extend from the confines of Naples to the banks +of the Po. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part IV. + +When the suffrage of the generals and of the army committed the sceptre +of the Roman empire to the hands of Valentinian, his reputation in +arms, his military skill and experience, and his rigid attachment to +the forms, as well as spirit, of ancient discipline, were the principal +motives of their judicious choice. The eagerness of the troops, who +pressed him to nominate his colleague, was justified by the dangerous +situation of public affairs; and Valentinian himself was conscious, that +the abilities of the most active mind were unequal to the defence of the +distant frontiers of an invaded monarchy. As soon as the death of +Julian had relieved the Barbarians from the terror of his name, the most +sanguine hopes of rapine and conquest excited the nations of the East, +of the North, and of the South. Their inroads were often vexatious, +and sometimes formidable; but, during the twelve years of the reign of +Valentinian, his firmness and vigilance protected his own dominions; and +his powerful genius seemed to inspire and direct the feeble counsels of +his brother. Perhaps the method of annals would more forcibly express +the urgent and divided cares of the two emperors; but the attention of +the reader, likewise, would be distracted by a tedious and desultory +narrative. A separate view of the five great theatres of war; I. +Germany; II. Britain; III. Africa; IV. The East; and, V. The Danube; +will impress a more distinct image of the military state of the empire +under the reigns of Valentinian and Valens. + +I. The ambassadors of the Alemanni had been offended by the harsh and +haughty behavior of Ursacius, master of the offices; who by an act +of unseasonable parsimony, had diminished the value, as well as the +quantity, of the presents to which they were entitled, either from +custom or treaty, on the accession of a new emperor. They expressed, +and they communicated to their countrymen, their strong sense of the +national affront. The irascible minds of the chiefs were exasperated +by the suspicion of contempt; and the martial youth crowded to their +standard. Before Valentinian could pass the Alps, the villages of Gaul +were in flames; before his general Degalaiphus could encounter the +Alemanni, they had secured the captives and the spoil in the forests of +Germany. In the beginning of the ensuing year, the military force of the +whole nation, in deep and solid columns, broke through the barrier of +the Rhine, during the severity of a northern winter. Two Roman counts +were defeated and mortally wounded; and the standard of the Heruli and +Batavians fell into the hands of the Heruli and Batavians fell into +the hands of the conquerors, who displayed, with insulting shouts and +menaces, the trophy of their victory. The standard was recovered; but +the Batavians had not redeemed the shame of their disgrace and flight in +the eyes of their severe judge. It was the opinion of Valentinian, that +his soldiers must learn to fear their commander, before they could cease +to fear the enemy. The troops were solemnly assembled; and the trembling +Batavians were enclosed within the circle of the Imperial army. +Valentinian then ascended his tribunal; and, as if he disdained to +punish cowardice with death, he inflicted a stain of indelible ignominy +on the officers, whose misconduct and pusillanimity were found to be +the first occasion of the defeat. The Batavians were degraded from their +rank, stripped of their arms, and condemned to be sold for slaves to the +highest bidder. At this tremendous sentence, the troops fell prostrate +on the ground, deprecated the indignation of their sovereign, and +protested, that, if he would indulge them in another trial, they would +approve themselves not unworthy of the name of Romans, and of his +soldiers. Valentinian, with affected reluctance, yielded to their +entreaties; the Batavians resumed their arms, and with their arms, the +invincible resolution of wiping away their disgrace in the blood of the +Alemanni. The principal command was declined by Dagalaiphus; and +that experienced general, who had represented, perhaps with too +much prudence, the extreme difficulties of the undertaking, had the +mortification, before the end of the campaign, of seeing his rival +Jovinus convert those difficulties into a decisive advantage over the +scattered forces of the Barbarians. At the head of a well-disciplined +army of cavalry, infantry, and light troops, Jovinus advanced, with +cautious and rapid steps, to Scarponna, * in the territory of Metz, +where he surprised a large division of the Alemanni, before they had +time to run to their arms; and flushed his soldiers with the confidence +of an easy and bloodless victory. Another division, or rather army, +of the enemy, after the cruel and wanton devastation of the adjacent +country, reposed themselves on the shady banks of the Moselle. Jovinus, +who had viewed the ground with the eye of a general, made a silent +approach through a deep and woody vale, till he could distinctly +perceive the indolent security of the Germans. Some were bathing their +huge limbs in the river; others were combing their long and flaxen hair; +others again were swallowing large draughts of rich and delicious wine. +On a sudden they heard the sound of the Roman trumpet; they saw the +enemy in their camp. Astonishment produced disorder; disorder was +followed by flight and dismay; and the confused multitude of the bravest +warriors was pierced by the swords and javelins of the legionaries and +auxiliaries. The fugitives escaped to the third, and most considerable, +camp, in the Catalonian plains, near Chalons in Champagne: the +straggling detachments were hastily recalled to their standard; and +the Barbarian chiefs, alarmed and admonished by the fate of their +companions, prepared to encounter, in a decisive battle, the victorious +forces of the lieutenant of Valentinian. The bloody and obstinate +conflict lasted a whole summer's day, with equal valor, and with +alternate success. The Romans at length prevailed, with the loss of +about twelve hundred men. Six thousand of the Alemanni were slain, four +thousand were wounded; and the brave Jovinus, after chasing the flying +remnant of their host as far as the banks of the Rhine, returned to +Paris, to receive the applause of his sovereign, and the ensigns of the +consulship for the ensuing year. The triumph of the Romans was indeed +sullied by their treatment of the captive king, whom they hung on +a gibbet, without the knowledge of their indignant general. This +disgraceful act of cruelty, which might be imputed to the fury of the +troops, was followed by the deliberate murder of Withicab, the son of +Vadomair; a German prince, of a weak and sickly constitution, but of a +daring and formidable spirit. The domestic assassin was instigated and +protected by the Romans; and the violation of the laws of humanity +and justice betrayed their secret apprehension of the weakness of the +declining empire. The use of the dagger is seldom adopted in public +councils, as long as they retain any confidence in the power of the +sword. + +While the Alemanni appeared to be humbled by their recent calamities, +the pride of Valentinian was mortified by the unexpected surprisal of +Moguntiacum, or Mentz, the principal city of the Upper Germany. In the +unsuspicious moment of a Christian festival, * Rando, a bold and artful +chieftain, who had long meditated his attempt, suddenly passed the +Rhine; entered the defenceless town, and retired with a multitude of +captives of either sex. Valentinian resolved to execute severe vengeance +on the whole body of the nation. Count Sebastian, with the bands of +Italy and Illyricum, was ordered to invade their country, most probably +on the side of Rhaetia. The emperor in person, accompanied by his son +Gratian, passed the Rhine at the head of a formidable army, which was +supported on both flanks by Jovinus and Severus, the two masters-general +of the cavalry and infantry of the West. The Alemanni, unable to prevent +the devastation of their villages, fixed their camp on a lofty, and +almost inaccessible, mountain, in the modern duchy of Wirtemberg, and +resolutely expected the approach of the Romans. The life of Valentinian +was exposed to imminent danger by the intrepid curiosity with which +he persisted to explore some secret and unguarded path. A troop of +Barbarians suddenly rose from their ambuscade: and the emperor, who +vigorously spurred his horse down a steep and slippery descent, +was obliged to leave behind him his armor-bearer, and his helmet, +magnificently enriched with gold and precious stones. At the signal +of the general assault, the Roman troops encompassed and ascended the +mountain of Solicinium on three different sides. Every step which they +gained, increased their ardor, and abated the resistance of the enemy: +and after their united forces had occupied the summit of the hill, they +impetuously urged the Barbarians down the northern descent, where Count +Sebastian was posted to intercept their retreat. After this signal +victory, Valentinian returned to his winter quarters at Treves; where +he indulged the public joy by the exhibition of splendid and triumphal +games. But the wise monarch, instead of aspiring to the conquest of +Germany, confined his attention to the important and laborious defence +of the Gallic frontier, against an enemy whose strength was renewed by +a stream of daring volunteers, which incessantly flowed from the most +distant tribes of the North. The banks of the Rhine from its source to +the straits of the ocean, were closely planted with strong castles +and convenient towers; new works, and new arms, were invented by the +ingenuity of a prince who was skilled in the mechanical arts; and his +numerous levies of Roman and Barbarian youth were severely trained in +all the exercises of war. The progress of the work, which was sometimes +opposed by modest representations, and sometimes by hostile attempts, +secured the tranquillity of Gaul during the nine subsequent years of the +administration of Valentinian. + +That prudent emperor, who diligently practised the wise maxims of +Diocletian, was studious to foment and excite the intestine divisions +of the tribes of Germany. About the middle of the fourth century, the +countries, perhaps of Lusace and Thuringia, on either side of the Elbe, +were occupied by the vague dominion of the Burgundians; a warlike and +numerous people, * of the Vandal race, whose obscure name insensibly +swelled into a powerful kingdom, and has finally settled on a +flourishing province. The most remarkable circumstance in the ancient +manners of the Burgundians appears to have been the difference of their +civil and ecclesiastical constitution. The appellation of Hendinos was +given to the king or general, and the title of Sinistus to the high +priest, of the nation. The person of the priest was sacred, and his +dignity perpetual; but the temporal government was held by a very +precarious tenure. If the events of war accuses the courage or conduct +of the king, he was immediately deposed; and the injustice of his +subjects made him responsible for the fertility of the earth, and the +regularity of the seasons, which seemed to fall more properly within the +sacerdotal department. The disputed possession of some salt-pits engaged +the Alemanni and the Burgundians in frequent contests: the latter were +easily tempted, by the secret solicitations and liberal offers of the +emperor; and their fabulous descent from the Roman soldiers, who had +formerly been left to garrison the fortresses of Drusus, was admitted +with mutual credulity, as it was conducive to mutual interest. An army +of fourscore thousand Burgundians soon appeared on the banks of +the Rhine; and impatiently required the support and subsidies which +Valentinian had promised: but they were amused with excuses and delays, +till at length, after a fruitless expectation, they were compelled to +retire. The arms and fortifications of the Gallic frontier checked the +fury of their just resentment; and their massacre of the captives served +to imbitter the hereditary feud of the Burgundians and the Alemanni. +The inconstancy of a wise prince may, perhaps, be explained by some +alteration of circumstances; and perhaps it was the original design of +Valentinian to intimidate, rather than to destroy; as the balance of +power would have been equally overturned by the extirpation of either of +the German nations. Among the princes of the Alemanni, Macrianus, who, +with a Roman name, had assumed the arts of a soldier and a statesman, +deserved his hatred and esteem. The emperor himself, with a light and +unencumbered band, condescended to pass the Rhine, marched fifty miles +into the country, and would infallibly have seized the object of +his pursuit, if his judicious measures had not been defeated by the +impatience of the troops. Macrianus was afterwards admitted to the +honor of a personal conference with the emperor; and the favors which +he received, fixed him, till the hour of his death, a steady and sincere +friend of the republic. + +The land was covered by the fortifications of Valentinian; but the +sea-coast of Gaul and Britain was exposed to the depredations of the +Saxons. That celebrated name, in which we have a dear and domestic +interest, escaped the notice of Tacitus; and in the maps of Ptolemy, it +faintly marks the narrow neck of the Cimbric peninsula, and three small +islands towards the mouth of the Elbe. This contracted territory, the +present duchy of Sleswig, or perhaps of Holstein, was incapable of +pouring forth the inexhaustible swarms of Saxons who reigned over the +ocean, who filled the British island with their language, their laws, +and their colonies; and who so long defended the liberty of the North +against the arms of Charlemagne. The solution of this difficulty is +easily derived from the similar manners, and loose constitution, of the +tribes of Germany; which were blended with each other by the slightest +accidents of war or friendship. The situation of the native Saxons +disposed them to embrace the hazardous professions of fishermen and +pirates; and the success of their first adventures would naturally +excite the emulation of their bravest countrymen, who were impatient of +the gloomy solitude of their woods and mountains. Every tide might float +down the Elbe whole fleets of canoes, filled with hardy and intrepid +associates, who aspired to behold the unbounded prospect of the ocean, +and to taste the wealth and luxury of unknown worlds. It should seem +probable, however, that the most numerous auxiliaries of the Saxons were +furnished by the nations who dwelt along the shores of the Baltic. They +possessed arms and ships, the art of navigation, and the habits of +naval war; but the difficulty of issuing through the northern columns of +Hercules (which, during several months of the year, are obstructed with +ice) confined their skill and courage within the limits of a spacious +lake. The rumor of the successful armaments which sailed from the mouth +of the Elbe, would soon provoke them to cross the narrow isthmus of +Sleswig, and to launch their vessels on the great sea. The various +troops of pirates and adventurers, who fought under the same standard, +were insensibly united in a permanent society, at first of rapine, and +afterwards of government. A military confederation was gradually +moulded into a national body, by the gentle operation of marriage and +consanguinity; and the adjacent tribes, who solicited the alliance, +accepted the name and laws, of the Saxons. If the fact were not +established by the most unquestionable evidence, we should appear to +abuse the credulity of our readers, by the description of the vessels +in which the Saxon pirates ventured to sport in the waves of the German +Ocean, the British Channel, and the Bay of Biscay. The keel of their +large flat-bottomed boats were framed of light timber, but the sides and +upper works consisted only of wicker, with a covering of strong hides. +In the course of their slow and distant navigations, they must always +have been exposed to the danger, and very frequently to the misfortune, +of shipwreck; and the naval annals of the Saxons were undoubtedly filled +with the accounts of the losses which they sustained on the coasts of +Britain and Gaul. But the daring spirit of the pirates braved the perils +both of the sea and of the shore: their skill was confirmed by the +habits of enterprise; the meanest of their mariners was alike capable of +handling an oar, of rearing a sail, or of conducting a vessel, and the +Saxons rejoiced in the appearance of a tempest, which concealed their +design, and dispersed the fleets of the enemy. After they had acquired +an accurate knowledge of the maritime provinces of the West, they +extended the scene of their depredations, and the most sequestered +places had no reason to presume on their security. The Saxon boats drew +so little water that they could easily proceed fourscore or a hundred +miles up the great rivers; their weight was so inconsiderable, that they +were transported on wagons from one river to another; and the pirates +who had entered the mouth of the Seine, or of the Rhine, might descend, +with the rapid stream of the Rhone, into the Mediterranean. Under the +reign of Valentinian, the maritime provinces of Gaul were afflicted +by the Saxons: a military count was stationed for the defence of the +sea-coast, or Armorican limit; and that officer, who found his strength, +or his abilities, unequal to the task, implored the assistance of +Severus, master-general of the infantry. The Saxons, surrounded and +outnumbered, were forced to relinquish their spoil, and to yield a +select band of their tall and robust youth to serve in the Imperial +armies. They stipulated only a safe and honorable retreat; and the +condition was readily granted by the Roman general, who meditated an act +of perfidy, imprudent as it was inhuman, while a Saxon remained alive, +and in arms, to revenge the fate of their countrymen. The premature +eagerness of the infantry, who were secretly posted in a deep valley, +betrayed the ambuscade; and they would perhaps have fallen the victims +of their own treachery, if a large body of cuirassiers, alarmed by +the noise of the combat, had not hastily advanced to extricate their +companions, and to overwhelm the undaunted valor of the Saxons. Some of +the prisoners were saved from the edge of the sword, to shed their +blood in the amphitheatre; and the orator Symmachus complains, that +twenty-nine of those desperate savages, by strangling themselves with +their own hands, had disappointed the amusement of the public. Yet the +polite and philosophic citizens of Rome were impressed with the deepest +horror, when they were informed, that the Saxons consecrated to the gods +the tithe of their human spoil; and that they ascertained by lot the +objects of the barbarous sacrifice. + +II. The fabulous colonies of Egyptians and Trojans, of Scandinavians and +Spaniards, which flattered the pride, and amused the credulity, of our +rude ancestors, have insensibly vanished in the light of science and +philosophy. The present age is satisfied with the simple and rational +opinion, that the islands of Great Britain and Ireland were gradually +peopled from the adjacent continent of Gaul. From the coast of Kent, to +the extremity of Caithness and Ulster, the memory of a Celtic origin +was distinctly preserved, in the perpetual resemblance of language, of +religion, and of manners; and the peculiar characters of the British +tribes might be naturally ascribed to the influence of accidental and +local circumstances. The Roman Province was reduced to the state of +civilized and peaceful servitude; the rights of savage freedom were +contracted to the narrow limits of Caledonia. The inhabitants of that +northern region were divided, as early as the reign of Constantine, +between the two great tribes of the Scots and of the Picts, who have +since experienced a very different fortune. The power, and almost the +memory, of the Picts have been extinguished by their successful rivals; +and the Scots, after maintaining for ages the dignity of an independent +kingdom, have multiplied, by an equal and voluntary union, the honors of +the English name. The hand of nature had contributed to mark the ancient +distinctions of the Scots and Picts. The former were the men of the +hills, and the latter those of the plain. The eastern coast of Caledonia +may be considered as a level and fertile country, which, even in a rude +state of tillage, was capable of producing a considerable quantity +of corn; and the epithet of cruitnich, or wheat-eaters, expressed the +contempt or envy of the carnivorous highlander. The cultivation of the +earth might introduce a more accurate separation of property, and the +habits of a sedentary life; but the love of arms and rapine was still +the ruling passion of the Picts; and their warriors, who stripped +themselves for a day of battle, were distinguished, in the eyes of the +Romans, by the strange fashion of painting their naked bodies with gaudy +colors and fantastic figures. The western part of Caledonia irregularly +rises into wild and barren hills, which scarcely repay the toil of the +husbandman, and are most profitably used for the pasture of cattle. The +highlanders were condemned to the occupations of shepherds and hunters; +and, as they seldom were fixed to any permanent habitation, they +acquired the expressive name of Scots, which, in the Celtic tongue, is +said to be equivalent to that of wanderers, or vagrants. The inhabitants +of a barren land were urged to seek a fresh supply of food in the +waters. The deep lakes and bays which intersect their country, are +plentifully supplied with fish; and they gradually ventured to cast +their nets in the waves of the ocean. The vicinity of the Hebrides, so +profusely scattered along the western coast of Scotland, tempted their +curiosity, and improved their skill; and they acquired, by slow degrees, +the art, or rather the habit, of managing their boats in a tempestuous +sea, and of steering their nocturnal course by the light of the +well-known stars. The two bold headlands of Caledonia almost touch +the shores of a spacious island, which obtained, from its luxuriant +vegetation, the epithet of Green; and has preserved, with a slight +alteration, the name of Erin, or Ierne, or Ireland. It is probable, +that in some remote period of antiquity, the fertile plains of Ulster +received a colony of hungry Scots; and that the strangers of the +North, who had dared to encounter the arms of the legions, spread their +conquests over the savage and unwarlike natives of a solitary island. It +is certain, that, in the declining age of the Roman empire, Caledonia, +Ireland, and the Isle of Man, were inhabited by the Scots, and that the +kindred tribes, who were often associated in military enterprise, were +deeply affected by the various accidents of their mutual fortunes. They +long cherished the lively tradition of their common name and origin; +and the missionaries of the Isle of Saints, who diffused the light of +Christianity over North Britain, established the vain opinion, that +their Irish countrymen were the natural, as well as spiritual, fathers +of the Scottish race. The loose and obscure tradition has been preserved +by the venerable Bede, who scattered some rays of light over the +darkness of the eighth century. On this slight foundation, a huge +superstructure of fable was gradually reared, by the bards and the +monks; two orders of men, who equally abused the privilege of fiction. +The Scottish nation, with mistaken pride, adopted their Irish genealogy; +and the annals of a long line of imaginary kings have been adorned by +the fancy of Boethius, and the classic elegance of Buchanan. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part V. + +Six years after the death of Constantine, the destructive inroads of the +Scots and Picts required the presence of his youngest son, who reigned +in the Western empire. Constans visited his British dominions: but we +may form some estimate of the importance of his achievements, by the +language of panegyric, which celebrates only his triumph over the +elements or, in other words, the good fortune of a safe and easy passage +from the port of Boulogne to the harbor of Sandwich. The calamities +which the afflicted provincials continued to experience, from foreign +war and domestic tyranny, were aggravated by the feeble and corrupt +administration of the eunuchs of Constantius; and the transient relief +which they might obtain from the virtues of Julian, was soon lost by +the absence and death of their benefactor. The sums of gold and silver, +which had been painfully collected, or liberally transmitted, for +the payment of the troops, were intercepted by the avarice of the +commanders; discharges, or, at least, exemptions, from the military +service, were publicly sold; the distress of the soldiers, who were +injuriously deprived of their legal and scanty subsistence, provoked +them to frequent desertion; the nerves of discipline were relaxed, and +the highways were infested with robbers. The oppression of the good, and +the impunity of the wicked, equally contributed to diffuse through the +island a spirit of discontent and revolt; and every ambitious subject, +every desperate exile, might entertain a reasonable hope of subverting +the weak and distracted government of Britain. The hostile tribes of +the North, who detested the pride and power of the King of the World, +suspended their domestic feuds; and the Barbarians of the land and sea, +the Scots, the Picts, and the Saxons, spread themselves with rapid and +irresistible fury, from the wall of Antoninus to the shores of Kent. +Every production of art and nature, every object of convenience and +luxury, which they were incapable of creating by labor or procuring by +trade, was accumulated in the rich and fruitful province of Britain. A +philosopher may deplore the eternal discords of the human race, but he +will confess, that the desire of spoil is a more rational provocation +than the vanity of conquest. From the age of Constantine to the +Plantagenets, this rapacious spirit continued to instigate the poor and +hardy Caledonians; but the same people, whose generous humanity seems to +inspire the songs of Ossian, was disgraced by a savage ignorance of the +virtues of peace, and of the laws of war. Their southern neighbors have +felt, and perhaps exaggerated, the cruel depredations of the Scots and +Picts; and a valiant tribe of Caledonia, the Attacotti, the enemies, and +afterwards the soldiers, of Valentinian, are accused, by an eye-witness, +of delighting in the taste of human flesh. When they hunted the woods +for prey, it is said, that they attacked the shepherd rather than his +flock; and that they curiously selected the most delicate and brawny +parts, both of males and females, which they prepared for their horrid +repasts. If, in the neighborhood of the commercial and literary town of +Glasgow, a race of cannibals has really existed, we may contemplate, in +the period of the Scottish history, the opposite extremes of savage +and civilized life. Such reflections tend to enlarge the circle of our +ideas; and to encourage the pleasing hope, that New Zealand may produce, +in some future age, the Hume of the Southern Hemisphere. + +Every messenger who escaped across the British Channel, conveyed the +most melancholy and alarming tidings to the ears of Valentinian; and +the emperor was soon informed that the two military commanders of the +province had been surprised and cut off by the Barbarians. Severus, +count of the domestics, was hastily despatched, and as suddenly +recalled, by the court of Treves. The representations of Jovinus served +only to indicate the greatness of the evil; and, after a long and +serious consultation, the defence, or rather the recovery, of Britain +was intrusted to the abilities of the brave Theodosius. The exploits of +that general, the father of a line of emperors, have been celebrated, +with peculiar complacency, by the writers of the age: but his real merit +deserved their applause; and his nomination was received, by the army +and province, as a sure presage of approaching victory. He seized the +favorable moment of navigation, and securely landed the numerous and +veteran bands of the Heruli and Batavians, the Jovians and the Victors. +In his march from Sandwich to London, Theodosius defeated several +parties of the Barbarians, released a multitude of captives, and, after +distributing to his soldiers a small portion of the spoil, established +the fame of disinterested justice, by the restitution of the remainder +to the rightful proprietors. The citizens of London, who had almost +despaired of their safety, threw open their gates; and as soon as +Theodosius had obtained from the court of Treves the important aid of a +military lieutenant, and a civil governor, he executed, with wisdom and +vigor, the laborious task of the deliverance of Britain. The vagrant +soldiers were recalled to their standard; an edict of amnesty dispelled +the public apprehensions; and his cheerful example alleviated the +rigor of martial discipline. The scattered and desultory warfare of the +Barbarians, who infested the land and sea, deprived him of the glory +of a signal victory; but the prudent spirit, and consummate art, of the +Roman general, were displayed in the operations of two campaigns, which +successively rescued every part of the province from the hands of a +cruel and rapacious enemy. The splendor of the cities, and the security +of the fortifications, were diligently restored, by the paternal care of +Theodosius; who with a strong hand confined the trembling Caledonians +to the northern angle of the island; and perpetuated, by the name and +settlement of the new province of Valentia, the glories of the reign +of Valentinian. The voice of poetry and panegyric may add, perhaps with +some degree of truth, that the unknown regions of Thule were stained +with the blood of the Picts; that the oars of Theodosius dashed the +waves of the Hyperborean ocean; and that the distant Orkneys were the +scene of his naval victory over the Saxon pirates. He left the province +with a fair, as well as splendid, reputation; and was immediately +promoted to the rank of master-general of the cavalry, by a prince who +could applaud, without envy, the merit of his servants. In the important +station of the Upper Danube, the conqueror of Britain checked and +defeated the armies of the Alemanni, before he was chosen to suppress +the revolt of Africa. + +III. The prince who refuses to be the judge, instructs the people to +consider him as the accomplice, of his ministers. The military command +of Africa had been long exercised by Count Romanus, and his abilities +were not inadequate to his station; but, as sordid interest was the sole +motive of his conduct, he acted, on most occasions, as if he had been +the enemy of the province, and the friend of the Barbarians of the +desert. The three flourishing cities of Oea, Leptis, and Sabrata, which, +under the name of Tripoli, had long constituted a federal union, were +obliged, for the first time, to shut their gates against a hostile +invasion; several of their most honorable citizens were surprised and +massacred; the villages, and even the suburbs, were pillaged; and the +vines and fruit trees of that rich territory were extirpated by the +malicious savages of Getulia. The unhappy provincials implored the +protection of Romanus; but they soon found that their military governor +was not less cruel and rapacious than the Barbarians. As they were +incapable of furnishing the four thousand camels, and the exorbitant +present, which he required, before he would march to the assistance of +Tripoli; his demand was equivalent to a refusal, and he might justly be +accused as the author of the public calamity. In the annual assembly +of the three cities, they nominated two deputies, to lay at the feet of +Valentinian the customary offering of a gold victory; and to accompany +this tribute of duty, rather than of gratitude, with their humble +complaint, that they were ruined by the enemy, and betrayed by their +governor. If the severity of Valentinian had been rightly directed, it +would have fallen on the guilty head of Romanus. But the count, long +exercised in the arts of corruption, had despatched a swift and trusty +messenger to secure the venal friendship of Remigius, master of the +offices. The wisdom of the Imperial council was deceived by artifice; +and their honest indignation was cooled by delay. At length, when the +repetition of complaint had been justified by the repetition of public +misfortunes, the notary Palladius was sent from the court of Treves, +to examine the state of Africa, and the conduct of Romanus. The rigid +impartiality of Palladius was easily disarmed: he was tempted to reserve +for himself a part of the public treasure, which he brought with him for +the payment of the troops; and from the moment that he was conscious +of his own guilt, he could no longer refuse to attest the innocence and +merit of the count. The charge of the Tripolitans was declared to be +false and frivolous; and Palladius himself was sent back from Treves to +Africa, with a special commission to discover and prosecute the authors +of this impious conspiracy against the representatives of the sovereign. +His inquiries were managed with so much dexterity and success, that he +compelled the citizens of Leptis, who had sustained a recent siege of +eight days, to contradict the truth of their own decrees, and to censure +the behavior of their own deputies. A bloody sentence was pronounced, +without hesitation, by the rash and headstrong cruelty of Valentinian. +The president of Tripoli, who had presumed to pity the distress of the +province, was publicly executed at Utica; four distinguished citizens +were put to death, as the accomplices of the imaginary fraud; and the +tongues of two others were cut out, by the express order of the emperor. +Romanus, elated by impunity, and irritated by resistance, was still +continued in the military command; till the Africans were provoked, by +his avarice, to join the rebellious standard of Firmus, the Moor. + +His father Nabal was one of the richest and most powerful of the Moorish +princes, who acknowledged the supremacy of Rome. But as he left, either +by his wives or concubines, a very numerous posterity, the wealthy +inheritance was eagerly disputed; and Zamma, one of his sons, was slain +in a domestic quarrel by his brother Firmus. The implacable zeal, with +which Romanus prosecuted the legal revenge of this murder, could be +ascribed only to a motive of avarice, or personal hatred; but, on this +occasion, his claims were just; his influence was weighty; and Firmus +clearly understood, that he must either present his neck to the +executioner, or appeal from the sentence of the Imperial consistory, to +his sword, and to the people. He was received as the deliverer of his +country; and, as soon as it appeared that Romanus was formidable only +to a submissive province, the tyrant of Africa became the object of +universal contempt. The ruin of Caesarea, which was plundered and burnt +by the licentious Barbarians, convinced the refractory cities of the +danger of resistance; the power of Firmus was established, at least in +the provinces of Mauritania and Numidia; and it seemed to be his only +doubt whether he should assume the diadem of a Moorish king, or the +purple of a Roman emperor. But the imprudent and unhappy Africans soon +discovered, that, in this rash insurrection, they had not sufficiently +consulted their own strength, or the abilities of their leader. Before +he could procure any certain intelligence, that the emperor of the West +had fixed the choice of a general, or that a fleet of transports was +collected at the mouth of the Rhone, he was suddenly informed that +the great Theodosius, with a small band of veterans, had landed near +Igilgilis, or Gigeri, on the African coast; and the timid usurper +sunk under the ascendant of virtue and military genius. Though Firmus +possessed arms and treasures, his despair of victory immediately reduced +him to the use of those arts, which, in the same country, and in a +similar situation, had formerly been practised by the crafty Jugurtha. +He attempted to deceive, by an apparent submission, the vigilance of the +Roman general; to seduce the fidelity of his troops; and to protract the +duration of the war, by successively engaging the independent tribes +of Africa to espouse his quarrel, or to protect his flight. Theodosius +imitated the example, and obtained the success, of his predecessor +Metellus. When Firmus, in the character of a suppliant, accused his +own rashness, and humbly solicited the clemency of the emperor, the +lieutenant of Valentinian received and dismissed him with a friendly +embrace: but he diligently required the useful and substantial pledges +of a sincere repentance; nor could he be persuaded, by the assurances +of peace, to suspend, for an instant, the operations of an active war. +A dark conspiracy was detected by the penetration of Theodosius; and he +satisfied, without much reluctance, the public indignation, which he +had secretly excited. Several of the guilty accomplices of Firmus were +abandoned, according to ancient custom, to the tumult of a military +execution; many more, by the amputation of both their hands, continued +to exhibit an instructive spectacle of horror; the hatred of the rebels +was accompanied with fear; and the fear of the Roman soldiers was +mingled with respectful admiration. Amidst the boundless plains of +Getulia, and the innumerable valleys of Mount Atlas, it was impossible +to prevent the escape of Firmus; and if the usurper could have tired +the patience of his antagonist, he would have secured his person in +the depth of some remote solitude, and expected the hopes of a future +revolution. He was subdued by the perseverance of Theodosius; who had +formed an inflexible determination, that the war should end only by the +death of the tyrant; and that every nation of Africa, which presumed +to support his cause, should be involved in his ruin. At the head of a +small body of troops, which seldom exceeded three thousand five hundred +men, the Roman general advanced, with a steady prudence, devoid of +rashness or of fear, into the heart of a country, where he was sometimes +attacked by armies of twenty thousand Moors. The boldness of his +charge dismayed the irregular Barbarians; they were disconcerted by his +seasonable and orderly retreats; they were continually baffled by the +unknown resources of the military art; and they felt and confessed the +just superiority which was assumed by the leader of a civilized nation. +When Theodosius entered the extensive dominions of Igmazen, king of the +Isaflenses, the haughty savage required, in words of defiance, his +name, and the object of his expedition. "I am," replied the stern and +disdainful count, "I am the general of Valentinian, the lord of the +world; who has sent me hither to pursue and punish a desperate robber. +Deliver him instantly into my hands; and be assured, that if thou dost +not obey the commands of my invincible sovereign, thou, and the people +over whom thou reignest, shall be utterly extirpated." * As soon as +Igmazen was satisfied, that his enemy had strength and resolution to +execute the fatal menace, he consented to purchase a necessary peace +by the sacrifice of a guilty fugitive. The guards that were placed to +secure the person of Firmus deprived him of the hopes of escape; and +the Moorish tyrant, after wine had extinguished the sense of danger, +disappointed the insulting triumph of the Romans, by strangling himself +in the night. His dead body, the only present which Igmazen could offer +to the conqueror, was carelessly thrown upon a camel; and Theodosius, +leading back his victorious troops to Sitifi, was saluted by the warmest +acclamations of joy and loyalty. + +Africa had been lost by the vices of Romanus; it was restored by the +virtues of Theodosius; and our curiosity may be usefully directed to the +inquiry of the respective treatment which the two generals received from +the Imperial court. The authority of Count Romanus had been suspended +by the master-general of the cavalry; and he was committed to safe and +honorable custody till the end of the war. His crimes were proved by the +most authentic evidence; and the public expected, with some impatience, +the decree of severe justice. But the partial and powerful favor of +Mellobaudes encouraged him to challenge his legal judges, to obtain +repeated delays for the purpose of procuring a crowd of friendly +witnesses, and, finally, to cover his guilty conduct, by the additional +guilt of fraud and forgery. About the same time, the restorer of +Britain and Africa, on a vague suspicion that his name and services +were superior to the rank of a subject, was ignominiously beheaded at +Carthage. Valentinian no longer reigned; and the death of Theodosius, +as well as the impunity of Romanus, may justly be imputed to the arts of +the ministers, who abused the confidence, and deceived the inexperienced +youth, of his sons. + +If the geographical accuracy of Ammianus had been fortunately bestowed +on the British exploits of Theodosius, we should have traced, with eager +curiosity, the distinct and domestic footsteps of his march. But the +tedious enumeration of the unknown and uninteresting tribes of Africa +may be reduced to the general remark, that they were all of the swarthy +race of the Moors; that they inhabited the back settlements of the +Mauritanian and Numidian province, the country, as they have since been +termed by the Arabs, of dates and of locusts; and that, as the Roman +power declined in Africa, the boundary of civilized manners and +cultivated land was insensibly contracted. Beyond the utmost limits of +the Moors, the vast and inhospitable desert of the South extends above +a thousand miles to the banks of the Niger. The ancients, who had a very +faint and imperfect knowledge of the great peninsula of Africa, were +sometimes tempted to believe, that the torrid zone must ever remain +destitute of inhabitants; and they sometimes amused their fancy by +filling the vacant space with headless men, or rather monsters; with +horned and cloven-footed satyrs; with fabulous centaurs; and with human +pygmies, who waged a bold and doubtful warfare against the cranes. +Carthage would have trembled at the strange intelligence that the +countries on either side of the equator were filled with innumerable +nations, who differed only in their color from the ordinary appearance +of the human species: and the subjects of the Roman empire might have +anxiously expected, that the swarms of Barbarians, which issued from +the North, would soon be encountered from the South by new swarms of +Barbarians, equally fierce and equally formidable. These gloomy terrors +would indeed have been dispelled by a more intimate acquaintance with +the character of their African enemies. The inaction of the negroes +does not seem to be the effect either of their virtue or of their +pusillanimity. They indulge, like the rest of mankind, their passions +and appetites; and the adjacent tribes are engaged in frequent acts of +hostility. But their rude ignorance has never invented any effectual +weapons of defence, or of destruction; they appear incapable of +forming any extensive plans of government, or conquest; and the obvious +inferiority of their mental faculties has been discovered and abused by +the nations of the temperate zone. Sixty thousand blacks are annually +embarked from the coast of Guinea, never to return to their native +country; but they are embarked in chains; and this constant emigration, +which, in the space of two centuries, might have furnished armies to +overrun the globe, accuses the guilt of Europe, and the weakness of +Africa. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part VI. + +IV. The ignominious treaty, which saved the army of Jovian, had been +faithfully executed on the side of the Romans; and as they had solemnly +renounced the sovereignty and alliance of Armenia and Iberia, those +tributary kingdoms were exposed, without protection, to the arms of the +Persian monarch. Sapor entered the Armenian territories at the head of +a formidable host of cuirassiers, of archers, and of mercenary foot; but +it was the invariable practice of Sapor to mix war and negotiation, and +to consider falsehood and perjury as the most powerful instruments of +regal policy. He affected to praise the prudent and moderate conduct of +the king of Armenia; and the unsuspicious Tiranus was persuaded, by the +repeated assurances of insidious friendship, to deliver his person into +the hands of a faithless and cruel enemy. In the midst of a splendid +entertainment, he was bound in chains of silver, as an honor due to the +blood of the Arsacides; and, after a short confinement in the Tower of +Oblivion at Ecbatana, he was released from the miseries of life, either +by his own dagger, or by that of an assassin. * The kingdom of Armenia +was reduced to the state of a Persian province; the administration was +shared between a distinguished satrap and a favorite eunuch; and Sapor +marched, without delay, to subdue the martial spirit of the Iberians. +Sauromaces, who reigned in that country by the permission of the +emperors, was expelled by a superior force; and, as an insult on the +majesty of Rome, the king of kings placed a diadem on the head of his +abject vassal Aspacuras. The city of Artogerassa was the only place of +Armenia which presumed to resist the efforts of his arms. The treasure +deposited in that strong fortress tempted the avarice of Sapor; but the +danger of Olympias, the wife or widow of the Armenian king, excited the +public compassion, and animated the desperate valor of her subjects and +soldiers. Sec. The Persians were surprised and repulsed under the walls of +Artogerassa, by a bold and well-concerted sally of the besieged. But +the forces of Sapor were continually renewed and increased; the hopeless +courage of the garrison was exhausted; the strength of the walls yielded +to the assault; and the proud conqueror, after wasting the rebellious +city with fire and sword, led away captive an unfortunate queen; who, +in a more auspicious hour, had been the destined bride of the son of +Constantine. Yet if Sapor already triumphed in the easy conquest of two +dependent kingdoms, he soon felt, that a country is unsubdued as long +as the minds of the people are actuated by a hostile and contumacious +spirit. The satraps, whom he was obliged to trust, embraced the first +opportunity of regaining the affection of their countrymen, and of +signalizing their immortal hatred to the Persian name. Since the +conversion of the Armenians and Iberians, these nations considered the +Christians as the favorites, and the Magians as the adversaries, of the +Supreme Being: the influence of the clergy, over a superstitious +people was uniformly exerted in the cause of Rome; and as long as +the successors of Constantine disputed with those of Artaxerxes the +sovereignty of the intermediate provinces, the religious connection +always threw a decisive advantage into the scale of the empire. A +numerous and active party acknowledged Para, the son of Tiranus, as +the lawful sovereign of Armenia, and his title to the throne was deeply +rooted in the hereditary succession of five hundred years. By the +unanimous consent of the Iberians, the country was equally divided +between the rival princes; and Aspacuras, who owed his diadem to +the choice of Sapor, was obliged to declare, that his regard for his +children, who were detained as hostages by the tyrant, was the only +consideration which prevented him from openly renouncing the alliance of +Persia. The emperor Valens, who respected the obligations of the treaty, +and who was apprehensive of involving the East in a dangerous war, +ventured, with slow and cautious measures, to support the Roman party +in the kingdoms of Iberia and Armenia. $ Twelve legions established the +authority of Sauromaces on the banks of the Cyrus. The Euphrates was +protected by the valor of Arintheus. A powerful army, under the command +of Count Trajan, and of Vadomair, king of the Alemanni, fixed their +camp on the confines of Armenia. But they were strictly enjoined not to +commit the first hostilities, which might be understood as a breach of +the treaty: and such was the implicit obedience of the Roman general, +that they retreated, with exemplary patience, under a shower of Persian +arrows till they had clearly acquired a just title to an honorable and +legitimate victory. Yet these appearances of war insensibly subsided in +a vain and tedious negotiation. The contending parties supported their +claims by mutual reproaches of perfidy and ambition; and it should seem, +that the original treaty was expressed in very obscure terms, since they +were reduced to the necessity of making their inconclusive appeal to the +partial testimony of the generals of the two nations, who had assisted +at the negotiations. The invasion of the Goths and Huns which soon +afterwards shook the foundations of the Roman empire, exposed the +provinces of Asia to the arms of Sapor. But the declining age, and +perhaps the infirmities, of the monarch suggested new maxims of +tranquillity and moderation. His death, which happened in the full +maturity of a reign of seventy years, changed in a moment the court and +councils of Persia; and their attention was most probably engaged by +domestic troubles, and the distant efforts of a Carmanian war. The +remembrance of ancient injuries was lost in the enjoyment of peace. The +kingdoms of Armenia and Iberia were permitted, by the mutual, though +tacit consent of both empires, to resume their doubtful neutrality. In +the first years of the reign of Theodosius, a Persian embassy arrived +at Constantinople, to excuse the unjustifiable measures of the former +reign; and to offer, as the tribute of friendship, or even of respect, a +splendid present of gems, of silk, and of Indian elephants. + +In the general picture of the affairs of the East under the reign +of Valens, the adventures of Para form one of the most striking and +singular objects. The noble youth, by the persuasion of his mother +Olympias, had escaped through the Persian host that besieged +Artogerassa, and implored the protection of the emperor of the East. By +his timid councils, Para was alternately supported, and recalled, and +restored, and betrayed. The hopes of the Armenians were sometimes raised +by the presence of their natural sovereign, * and the ministers of +Valens were satisfied, that they preserved the integrity of the public +faith, if their vassal was not suffered to assume the diadem and +title of King. But they soon repented of their own rashness. They were +confounded by the reproaches and threats of the Persian monarch. +They found reason to distrust the cruel and inconstant temper of Para +himself; who sacrificed, to the slightest suspicions, the lives of his +most faithful servants, and held a secret and disgraceful correspondence +with the assassin of his father and the enemy of his country. Under the +specious pretence of consulting with the emperor on the subject of their +common interest, Para was persuaded to descend from the mountains of +Armenia, where his party was in arms, and to trust his independence and +safety to the discretion of a perfidious court. The king of Armenia, +for such he appeared in his own eyes and in those of his nation, was +received with due honors by the governors of the provinces through which +he passed; but when he arrived at Tarsus in Cilicia, his progress +was stopped under various pretences; his motions were watched with +respectful vigilance, and he gradually discovered, that he was a +prisoner in the hands of the Romans. Para suppressed his indignation, +dissembled his fears, and after secretly preparing his escape, mounted +on horseback with three hundred of his faithful followers. The officer +stationed at the door of his apartment immediately communicated his +flight to the consular of Cilicia, who overtook him in the suburbs, and +endeavored without success, to dissuade him from prosecuting his rash +and dangerous design. A legion was ordered to pursue the royal fugitive; +but the pursuit of infantry could not be very alarming to a body of +light cavalry; and upon the first cloud of arrows that was discharged +into the air, they retreated with precipitation to the gates of Tarsus. +After an incessant march of two days and two nights, Para and his +Armenians reached the banks of the Euphrates; but the passage of the +river which they were obliged to swim, * was attended with some delay +and some loss. The country was alarmed; and the two roads, which were +only separated by an interval of three miles had been occupied by +a thousand archers on horseback, under the command of a count and a +tribune. Para must have yielded to superior force, if the accidental +arrival of a friendly traveller had not revealed the danger and the +means of escape. A dark and almost impervious path securely conveyed +the Armenian troop through the thicket; and Para had left behind him the +count and the tribune, while they patiently expected his approach along +the public highways. They returned to the Imperial court to excuse their +want of diligence or success; and seriously alleged, that the king of +Armenia, who was a skilful magician, had transformed himself and his +followers, and passed before their eyes under a borrowed shape. After +his return to his native kingdom, Para still continued to profess +himself the friend and ally of the Romans: but the Romans had injured +him too deeply ever to forgive, and the secret sentence of his death was +signed in the council of Valens. The execution of the bloody deed was +committed to the subtle prudence of Count Trajan; and he had the merit +of insinuating himself into the confidence of the credulous prince, +that he might find an opportunity of stabbing him to the heart Para was +invited to a Roman banquet, which had been prepared with all the pomp +and sensuality of the East; the hall resounded with cheerful music, and +the company was already heated with wine; when the count retired for an +instant, drew his sword, and gave the signal of the murder. A robust and +desperate Barbarian instantly rushed on the king of Armenia; and though +he bravely defended his life with the first weapon that chance offered +to his hand, the table of the Imperial general was stained with the +royal blood of a guest, and an ally. Such were the weak and wicked +maxims of the Roman administration, that, to attain a doubtful object +of political interest the laws of nations, and the sacred rights of +hospitality were inhumanly violated in the face of the world. + +V. During a peaceful interval of thirty years, the Romans secured their +frontiers, and the Goths extended their dominions. The victories of the +great Hermanric, king of the Ostrogoths, and the most noble of the race +of the Amali, have been compared, by the enthusiasm of his countrymen, +to the exploits of Alexander; with this singular, and almost incredible, +difference, that the martial spirit of the Gothic hero, instead of being +supported by the vigor of youth, was displayed with glory and success in +the extreme period of human life, between the age of fourscore and +one hundred and ten years. The independent tribes were persuaded, or +compelled, to acknowledge the king of the Ostrogoths as the sovereign of +the Gothic nation: the chiefs of the Visigoths, or Thervingi, renounced +the royal title, and assumed the more humble appellation of Judges; and, +among those judges, Athanaric, Fritigern, and Alavivus, were the most +illustrious, by their personal merit, as well as by their vicinity +to the Roman provinces. These domestic conquests, which increased the +military power of Hermanric, enlarged his ambitious designs. He invaded +the adjacent countries of the North; and twelve considerable nations, +whose names and limits cannot be accurately defined, successively +yielded to the superiority of the Gothic arms The Heruli, who inhabited +the marshy lands near the lake Maeotis, were renowned for their strength +and agility; and the assistance of their light infantry was eagerly +solicited, and highly esteemed, in all the wars of the Barbarians. +But the active spirit of the Heruli was subdued by the slow and steady +perseverance of the Goths; and, after a bloody action, in which the king +was slain, the remains of that warlike tribe became a useful accession +to the camp of Hermanric. He then marched against the Venedi; unskilled +in the use of arms, and formidable only by their numbers, which filled +the wide extent of the plains of modern Poland. The victorious Goths, +who were not inferior in numbers, prevailed in the contest, by the +decisive advantages of exercise and discipline. After the submission of +the Venedi, the conqueror advanced, without resistance, as far as the +confines of the AEstii; an ancient people, whose name is still preserved +in the province of Esthonia. Those distant inhabitants of the Baltic +coast were supported by the labors of agriculture, enriched by the trade +of amber, and consecrated by the peculiar worship of the Mother of the +Gods. But the scarcity of iron obliged the AEstian warriors to content +themselves with wooden clubs; and the reduction of that wealthy country +is ascribed to the prudence, rather than to the arms, of Hermanric. His +dominions, which extended from the Danube to the Baltic, included the +native seats, and the recent acquisitions, of the Goths; and he reigned +over the greatest part of Germany and Scythia with the authority of a +conqueror, and sometimes with the cruelty of a tyrant. But he reigned +over a part of the globe incapable of perpetuating and adorning the +glory of its heroes. The name of Hermanric is almost buried in oblivion; +his exploits are imperfectly known; and the Romans themselves appeared +unconscious of the progress of an aspiring power which threatened the +liberty of the North, and the peace of the empire. + +The Goths had contracted an hereditary attachment for the Imperial house +of Constantine, of whose power and liberality they had received so many +signal proofs. They respected the public peace; and if a hostile band +sometimes presumed to pass the Roman limit, their irregular conduct was +candidly ascribed to the ungovernable spirit of the Barbarian youth. +Their contempt for two new and obscure princes, who had been raised to +the throne by a popular election, inspired the Goths with bolder hopes; +and, while they agitated some design of marching their confederate force +under the national standard, they were easily tempted to embrace the +party of Procopius; and to foment, by their dangerous aid, the civil +discord of the Romans. The public treaty might stipulate no more than +ten thousand auxiliaries; but the design was so zealously adopted by the +chiefs of the Visigoths, that the army which passed the Danube amounted +to the number of thirty thousand men. They marched with the proud +confidence, that their invincible valor would decide the fate of the +Roman empire; and the provinces of Thrace groaned under the weight +of the Barbarians, who displayed the insolence of masters and the +licentiousness of enemies. But the intemperance which gratified their +appetites, retarded their progress; and before the Goths could receive +any certain intelligence of the defeat and death of Procopius, they +perceived, by the hostile state of the country, that the civil and +military powers were resumed by his successful rival. A chain of posts +and fortifications, skilfully disposed by Valens, or the generals of +Valens, resisted their march, prevented their retreat, and intercepted +their subsistence. The fierceness of the Barbarians was tamed and +suspended by hunger; they indignantly threw down their arms at the +feet of the conqueror, who offered them food and chains: the numerous +captives were distributed in all the cities of the East; and the +provincials, who were soon familiarized with their savage appearance, +ventured, by degrees, to measure their own strength with these +formidable adversaries, whose name had so long been the object of their +terror. The king of Scythia (and Hermanric alone could deserve so lofty +a title) was grieved and exasperated by this national calamity. His +ambassadors loudly complained, at the court of Valens, of the infraction +of the ancient and solemn alliance, which had so long subsisted between +the Romans and the Goths. They alleged, that they had fulfilled the duty +of allies, by assisting the kinsman and successor of the emperor Julian; +they required the immediate restitution of the noble captives; and they +urged a very singular claim, that the Gothic generals marching in +arms, and in hostile array, were entitled to the sacred character and +privileges of ambassadors. The decent, but peremptory, refusal of +these extravagant demands, was signified to the Barbarians by Victor, +master-general of the cavalry; who expressed, with force and dignity, +the just complaints of the emperor of the East. The negotiation was +interrupted; and the manly exhortations of Valentinian encouraged his +timid brother to vindicate the insulted majesty of the empire. + +The splendor and magnitude of this Gothic war are celebrated by a +contemporary historian: but the events scarcely deserve the attention +of posterity, except as the preliminary steps of the approaching decline +and fall of the empire. Instead of leading the nations of Germany +and Scythia to the banks of the Danube, or even to the gates of +Constantinople, the aged monarch of the Goths resigned to the brave +Athanaric the danger and glory of a defensive war, against an enemy, +who wielded with a feeble hand the powers of a mighty state. A bridge of +boats was established upon the Danube; the presence of Valens animated +his troops; and his ignorance of the art of war was compensated by +personal bravery, and a wise deference to the advice of Victor and +Arintheus, his masters-general of the cavalry and infantry. The +operations of the campaign were conducted by their skill and experience; +but they found it impossible to drive the Visigoths from their strong +posts in the mountains; and the devastation of the plains obliged the +Romans themselves to repass the Danube on the approach of winter. The +incessant rains, which swelled the waters of the river, produced a tacit +suspension of arms, and confined the emperor Valens, during the whole +course of the ensuing summer, to his camp of Marcianopolis. The third +year of the war was more favorable to the Romans, and more pernicious +to the Goths. The interruption of trade deprived the Barbarians of the +objects of luxury, which they already confounded with the necessaries of +life; and the desolation of a very extensive tract of country threatened +them with the horrors of famine. Athanaric was provoked, or compelled, +to risk a battle, which he lost, in the plains; and the pursuit was +rendered more bloody by the cruel precaution of the victorious generals, +who had promised a large reward for the head of every Goth that was +brought into the Imperial camp. The submission of the Barbarians +appeased the resentment of Valens and his council: the emperor listened +with satisfaction to the flattering and eloquent remonstrance of the +senate of Constantinople, which assumed, for the first time, a share in +the public deliberations; and the same generals, Victor and Arintheus, +who had successfully directed the conduct of the war, were empowered to +regulate the conditions of peace. The freedom of trade, which the Goths +had hitherto enjoyed, was restricted to two cities on the Danube; the +rashness of their leaders was severely punished by the suppression of +their pensions and subsidies; and the exception, which was stipulated +in favor of Athanaric alone, was more advantageous than honorable to +the Judge of the Visigoths. Athanaric, who, on this occasion, appears to +have consulted his private interest, without expecting the orders of +his sovereign, supported his own dignity, and that of his tribe, in the +personal interview which was proposed by the ministers of Valens. He +persisted in his declaration, that it was impossible for him, without +incurring the guilt of perjury, ever to set his foot on the territory +of the empire; and it is more than probable, that his regard for the +sanctity of an oath was confirmed by the recent and fatal examples of +Roman treachery. The Danube, which separated the dominions of the two +independent nations, was chosen for the scene of the conference. The +emperor of the East, and the Judge of the Visigoths, accompanied by an +equal number of armed followers, advanced in their respective barges to +the middle of the stream. After the ratification of the treaty, and the +delivery of hostages, Valens returned in triumph to Constantinople; and +the Goths remained in a state of tranquillity about six years; till they +were violently impelled against the Roman empire by an innumerable +host of Scythians, who appeared to issue from the frozen regions of the +North. + +The emperor of the West, who had resigned to his brother the command +of the Lower Danube, reserved for his immediate care the defence of the +Rhaetian and Illyrian provinces, which spread so many hundred miles along +the greatest of the European rivers. The active policy of Valentinian +was continually employed in adding new fortifications to the security of +the frontier: but the abuse of this policy provoked the just resentment +of the Barbarians. The Quadi complained, that the ground for an intended +fortress had been marked out on their territories; and their complaints +were urged with so much reason and moderation, that Equitius, +master-general of Illyricum, consented to suspend the prosecution of +the work, till he should be more clearly informed of the will of his +sovereign. This fair occasion of injuring a rival, and of advancing the +fortune of his son, was eagerly embraced by the inhuman Maximin, the +praefect, or rather tyrant, of Gaul. The passions of Valentinian were +impatient of control; and he credulously listened to the assurances of +his favorite, that if the government of Valeria, and the direction of +the work, were intrusted to the zeal of his son Marcellinus, the emperor +should no longer be importuned with the audacious remonstrances of +the Barbarians. The subjects of Rome, and the natives of Germany, +were insulted by the arrogance of a young and worthless minister, who +considered his rapid elevation as the proof and reward of his superior +merit. He affected, however, to receive the modest application of +Gabinius, king of the Quadi, with some attention and regard: but this +artful civility concealed a dark and bloody design, and the credulous +prince was persuaded to accept the pressing invitation of Marcellinus. +I am at a loss how to vary the narrative of similar crimes; or how to +relate, that, in the course of the same year, but in remote parts of the +empire, the inhospitable table of two Imperial generals was stained with +the royal blood of two guests and allies, inhumanly murdered by their +order, and in their presence. The fate of Gabinius, and of Para, was +the same: but the cruel death of their sovereign was resented in a very +different manner by the servile temper of the Armenians, and the free +and daring spirit of the Germans. The Quadi were much declined from that +formidable power, which, in the time of Marcus Antoninus, had spread +terror to the gates of Rome. But they still possessed arms and courage; +their courage was animated by despair, and they obtained the usual +reenforcement of the cavalry of their Sarmatian allies. So improvident +was the assassin Marcellinus, that he chose the moment when the bravest +veterans had been drawn away, to suppress the revolt of Firmus; and the +whole province was exposed, with a very feeble defence, to the rage +of the exasperated Barbarians. They invaded Pannonia in the season of +harvest; unmercifully destroyed every object of plunder which they could +not easily transport; and either disregarded, or demolished, the empty +fortifications. The princess Constantia, the daughter of the emperor +Constantius, and the granddaughter of the great Constantine, very +narrowly escaped. That royal maid, who had innocently supported the +revolt of Procopius, was now the destined wife of the heir of the +Western empire. She traversed the peaceful province with a splendid and +unarmed train. Her person was saved from danger, and the republic from +disgrace, by the active zeal of Messala, governor of the provinces. +As soon as he was informed that the village, where she stopped only to +dine, was almost encompassed by the Barbarians, he hastily placed her +in his own chariot, and drove full speed till he reached the gates +of Sirmium, which were at the distance of six-and-twenty miles. Even +Sirmium might not have been secure, if the Quadi and Sarmatians had +diligently advanced during the general consternation of the magistrates +and people. Their delay allowed Probus, the Praetorian praefect, +sufficient time to recover his own spirits, and to revive the courage +of the citizens. He skilfully directed their strenuous efforts to repair +and strengthen the decayed fortifications; and procured the seasonable +and effectual assistance of a company of archers, to protect the capital +of the Illyrian provinces. Disappointed in their attempts against the +walls of Sirmium, the indignant Barbarians turned their arms against +the master general of the frontier, to whom they unjustly attributed the +murder of their king. Equitius could bring into the field no more than +two legions; but they contained the veteran strength of the Maesian and +Pannonian bands. The obstinacy with which they disputed the vain honors +of rank and precedency, was the cause of their destruction; and +while they acted with separate forces and divided councils, they were +surprised and slaughtered by the active vigor of the Sarmatian horse. +The success of this invasion provoked the emulation of the bordering +tribes; and the province of Maesia would infallibly have been lost, if +young Theodosius, the duke, or military commander, of the frontier, had +not signalized, in the defeat of the public enemy, an intrepid genius, +worthy of his illustrious father, and of his future greatness. + + + +Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, Division Of The +Empire.--Part VII. + +The mind of Valentinian, who then resided at Treves, was deeply affected +by the calamities of Illyricum; but the lateness of the season suspended +the execution of his designs till the ensuing spring. He marched in +person, with a considerable part of the forces of Gaul, from the banks +of the Moselle: and to the suppliant ambassadors of the Sarmatians, who +met him on the way, he returned a doubtful answer, that, as soon as he +reached the scene of action, he should examine, and pronounce. When he +arrived at Sirmium, he gave audience to the deputies of the Illyrian +provinces; who loudly congratulated their own felicity under the +auspicious government of Probus, his Praetorian praefect. Valentinian, who +was flattered by these demonstrations of their loyalty and gratitude, +imprudently asked the deputy of Epirus, a Cynic philosopher of intrepid +sincerity, whether he was freely sent by the wishes of the province. +"With tears and groans am I sent," replied Iphicles, "by a reluctant +people." The emperor paused: but the impunity of his ministers +established the pernicious maxim, that they might oppress his subjects, +without injuring his service. A strict inquiry into their conduct would +have relieved the public discontent. The severe condemnation of the +murder of Gabinius, was the only measure which could restore the +confidence of the Germans, and vindicate the honor of the Roman name. +But the haughty monarch was incapable of the magnanimity which dares +to acknowledge a fault. He forgot the provocation, remembered only the +injury, and advanced into the country of the Quadi with an insatiate +thirst of blood and revenge. The extreme devastation, and promiscuous +massacre, of a savage war, were justified, in the eyes of the emperor, +and perhaps in those of the world, by the cruel equity of retaliation: +and such was the discipline of the Romans, and the consternation of the +enemy, that Valentinian repassed the Danube without the loss of a single +man. As he had resolved to complete the destruction of the Quadi by +a second campaign, he fixed his winter quarters at Bregetio, on the +Danube, near the Hungarian city of Presburg. While the operations of war +were suspended by the severity of the weather, the Quadi made an humble +attempt to deprecate the wrath of their conqueror; and, at the earnest +persuasion of Equitius, their ambassadors were introduced into the +Imperial council. They approached the throne with bended bodies and +dejected countenances; and without daring to complain of the murder of +their king, they affirmed, with solemn oaths, that the late invasion +was the crime of some irregular robbers, which the public council of the +nation condemned and abhorred. The answer of the emperor left them but +little to hope from his clemency or compassion. He reviled, in the +most intemperate language, their baseness, their ingratitude, their +insolence. His eyes, his voice, his color, his gestures, expressed the +violence of his ungoverned fury; and while his whole frame was agitated +with convulsive passion, a large blood vessel suddenly burst in his +body; and Valentinian fell speechless into the arms of his attendants. +Their pious care immediately concealed his situation from the crowd; +but, in a few minutes, the emperor of the West expired in an agony +of pain, retaining his senses till the last; and struggling, without +success, to declare his intentions to the generals and ministers, who +surrounded the royal couch. Valentinian was about fifty-four years of +age; and he wanted only one hundred days to accomplish the twelve years +of his reign. + +The polygamy of Valentinian is seriously attested by an ecclesiastical +historian. "The empress Severa (I relate the fable) admitted into +her familiar society the lovely Justina, the daughter of an Italian +governor: her admiration of those naked charms, which she had often seen +in the bath, was expressed with such lavish and imprudent praise, that +the emperor was tempted to introduce a second wife into his bed; and +his public edict extended to all the subjects of the empire the same +domestic privilege which he had assumed for himself." But we may be +assured, from the evidence of reason as well as history, that the +two marriages of Valentinian, with Severa, and with Justina, were +successively contracted; and that he used the ancient permission of +divorce, which was still allowed by the laws, though it was condemned by +the church Severa was the mother of Gratian, who seemed to unite every +claim which could entitle him to the undoubted succession of the Western +empire. He was the eldest son of a monarch whose glorious reign had +confirmed the free and honorable choice of his fellow-soldiers. Before +he had attained the ninth year of his age, the royal youth received from +the hands of his indulgent father the purple robe and diadem, with the +title of Augustus; the election was solemnly ratified by the consent and +applause of the armies of Gaul; and the name of Gratian was added to the +names of Valentinian and Valens, in all the legal transactions of the +Roman government. By his marriage with the granddaughter of Constantine, +the son of Valentinian acquired all the hereditary rights of the +Flavian family; which, in a series of three Imperial generations, were +sanctified by time, religion, and the reverence of the people. At the +death of his father, the royal youth was in the seventeenth year of his +age; and his virtues already justified the favorable opinion of the army +and the people. But Gratian resided, without apprehension, in the palace +of Treves; whilst, at the distance of many hundred miles, Valentinian +suddenly expired in the camp of Bregetio. The passions, which had been +so long suppressed by the presence of a master, immediately revived in +the Imperial council; and the ambitious design of reigning in the name +of an infant, was artfully executed by Mellobaudes and Equitius, +who commanded the attachment of the Illyrian and Italian bands. They +contrived the most honorable pretences to remove the popular leaders, +and the troops of Gaul, who might have asserted the claims of the lawful +successor; they suggested the necessity of extinguishing the hopes +of foreign and domestic enemies, by a bold and decisive measure. The +empress Justina, who had been left in a palace about one hundred miles +from Bregetio, was respectively invited to appear in the camp, with +the son of the deceased emperor. On the sixth day after the death of +Valentinian, the infant prince of the same name, who was only four years +old, was shown, in the arms of his mother, to the legions; and solemnly +invested, by military acclamation, with the titles and ensigns of +supreme power. The impending dangers of a civil war were seasonably +prevented by the wise and moderate conduct of the emperor Gratian. He +cheerfully accepted the choice of the army; declared that he should +always consider the son of Justina as a brother, not as a rival; and +advised the empress, with her son Valentinian to fix their residence at +Milan, in the fair and peaceful province of Italy; while he assumed +the more arduous command of the countries beyond the Alps. Gratian +dissembled his resentment till he could safely punish, or disgrace, +the authors of the conspiracy; and though he uniformly behaved with +tenderness and regard to his infant colleague, he gradually confounded, +in the administration of the Western empire, the office of a guardian +with the authority of a sovereign. The government of the Roman world +was exercised in the united names of Valens and his two nephews; but +the feeble emperor of the East, who succeeded to the rank of his elder +brother, never obtained any weight or influence in the councils of the +West. + + + +Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.--Part I. + + Manners Of The Pastoral Nations.--Progress Of The Huns, From + China To Europe.--Flight Of The Goths.--They Pass The + Danube. --Gothic War.--Defeat And Death Of Valens.--Gratian + Invests Theodosius With The Eastern Empire.--His Character + And Success. --Peace And Settlement Of The Goths. + +In the second year of the reign of Valentinian and Valens, on the +morning of the twenty-first day of July, the greatest part of the Roman +world was shaken by a violent and destructive earthquake. The impression +was communicated to the waters; the shores of the Mediterranean were +left dry, by the sudden retreat of the sea; great quantities of fish +were caught with the hand; large vessels were stranded on the mud; and a +curious spectator amused his eye, or rather his fancy, by contemplating +the various appearance of valleys and mountains, which had never, since +the formation of the globe, been exposed to the sun. But the tide soon +returned, with the weight of an immense and irresistible deluge, which +was severely felt on the coasts of Sicily, of Dalmatia, of Greece, +and of Egypt: large boats were transported, and lodged on the roofs of +houses, or at the distance of two miles from the shore; the people, +with their habitations, were swept away by the waters; and the city of +Alexandria annually commemorated the fatal day, on which fifty thousand +persons had lost their lives in the inundation. This calamity, the +report of which was magnified from one province to another, astonished +and terrified the subjects of Rome; and their affrighted imagination +enlarged the real extent of a momentary evil. They recollected the +preceding earthquakes, which had subverted the cities of Palestine and +Bithynia: they considered these alarming strokes as the prelude only of +still more dreadful calamities, and their fearful vanity was disposed to +confound the symptoms of a declining empire and a sinking world. It +was the fashion of the times to attribute every remarkable event to the +particular will of the Deity; the alterations of nature were connected, +by an invisible chain, with the moral and metaphysical opinions of the +human mind; and the most sagacious divines could distinguish, according +to the color of their respective prejudices, that the establishment +of heresy tended to produce an earthquake; or that a deluge was the +inevitable consequence of the progress of sin and error. Without +presuming to discuss the truth or propriety of these lofty speculations, +the historian may content himself with an observation, which seems to +be justified by experience, that man has much more to fear from the +passions of his fellow-creatures, than from the convulsions of the +elements. The mischievous effects of an earthquake, or deluge, a +hurricane, or the eruption of a volcano, bear a very inconsiderable +portion to the ordinary calamities of war, as they are now moderated by +the prudence or humanity of the princes of Europe, who amuse their own +leisure, and exercise the courage of their subjects, in the practice of +the military art. But the laws and manners of modern nations protect the +safety and freedom of the vanquished soldier; and the peaceful citizen +has seldom reason to complain, that his life, or even his fortune, is +exposed to the rage of war. In the disastrous period of the fall of the +Roman empire, which may justly be dated from the reign of Valens, the +happiness and security of each individual were personally attacked; and +the arts and labors of ages were rudely defaced by the Barbarians +of Scythia and Germany. The invasion of the Huns precipitated on the +provinces of the West the Gothic nation, which advanced, in less than +forty years, from the Danube to the Atlantic, and opened a way, by the +success of their arms, to the inroads of so many hostile tribes, more +savage than themselves. The original principle of motion was concealed +in the remote countries of the North; and the curious observation of the +pastoral life of the Scythians, or Tartars, will illustrate the latent +cause of these destructive emigrations. + +The different characters that mark the civilized nations of the globe, +may be ascribed to the use, and the abuse, of reason; which so variously +shapes, and so artificially composes, the manners and opinions of a +European, or a Chinese. But the operation of instinct is more sure and +simple than that of reason: it is much easier to ascertain the appetites +of a quadruped than the speculations of a philosopher; and the savage +tribes of mankind, as they approach nearer to the condition of animals, +preserve a stronger resemblance to themselves and to each other. The +uniform stability of their manners is the natural consequence of the +imperfection of their faculties. Reduced to a similar situation, their +wants, their desires, their enjoyments, still continue the same: and +the influence of food or climate, which, in a more improved state +of society, is suspended, or subdued, by so many moral causes, most +powerfully contributes to form, and to maintain, the national character +of Barbarians. In every age, the immense plains of Scythia, or Tartary, +have been inhabited by vagrant tribes of hunters and shepherds, whose +indolence refuses to cultivate the earth, and whose restless spirit +disdains the confinement of a sedentary life. In every age, the +Scythians, and Tartars, have been renowned for their invincible courage +and rapid conquests. The thrones of Asia have been repeatedly overturned +by the shepherds of the North; and their arms have spread terror and +devastation over the most fertile and warlike countries of Europe. +On this occasion, as well as on many others, the sober historian is +forcibly awakened from a pleasing vision; and is compelled, with some +reluctance, to confess, that the pastoral manners, which have been +adorned with the fairest attributes of peace and innocence, are much +better adapted to the fierce and cruel habits of a military life. To +illustrate this observation, I shall now proceed to consider a nation of +shepherds and of warriors, in the three important articles of, I. Their +diet; II. Their habitations; and, III. Their exercises. The narratives +of antiquity are justified by the experience of modern times; and +the banks of the Borysthenes, of the Volga, or of the Selinga, will +indifferently present the same uniform spectacle of similar and native +manners. + +I. The corn, or even the rice, which constitutes the ordinary and +wholesome food of a civilized people, can be obtained only by the +patient toil of the husbandman. Some of the happy savages, who dwell +between the tropics, are plentifully nourished by the liberality of +nature; but in the climates of the North, a nation of shepherds is +reduced to their flocks and herds. The skilful practitioners of the +medical art will determine (if they are able to determine) how far the +temper of the human mind may be affected by the use of animal, or of +vegetable, food; and whether the common association of carnivorous +and cruel deserves to be considered in any other light than that of an +innocent, perhaps a salutary, prejudice of humanity. Yet, if it be true, +that the sentiment of compassion is imperceptibly weakened by the +sight and practice of domestic cruelty, we may observe, that the horrid +objects which are disguised by the arts of European refinement, are +exhibited in their naked and most disgusting simplicity in the tent of +a Tartarian shepherd. The ox, or the sheep, are slaughtered by the same +hand from which they were accustomed to receive their daily food; and +the bleeding limbs are served, with very little preparation, on the +table of their unfeeling murderer. In the military profession, and +especially in the conduct of a numerous army, the exclusive use of +animal food appears to be productive of the most solid advantages. Corn +is a bulky and perishable commodity; and the large magazines, which +are indispensably necessary for the subsistence of our troops, must be +slowly transported by the labor of men or horses. But the flocks and +herds, which accompany the march of the Tartars, afford a sure and +increasing supply of flesh and milk: in the far greater part of the +uncultivated waste, the vegetation of the grass is quick and luxuriant; +and there are few places so extremely barren, that the hardy cattle of +the North cannot find some tolerable pasture. The supply is multiplied +and prolonged by the undistinguishing appetite, and patient abstinence, +of the Tartars. They indifferently feed on the flesh of those +animals that have been killed for the table, or have died of disease. +Horseflesh, which in every age and country has been proscribed by +the civilized nations of Europe and Asia, they devour with peculiar +greediness; and this singular taste facilitates the success of their +military operations. The active cavalry of Scythia is always followed, +in their most distant and rapid incursions, by an adequate number of +spare horses, who may be occasionally used, either to redouble the +speed, or to satisfy the hunger, of the Barbarians. Many are the +resources of courage and poverty. When the forage round a camp of +Tartars is almost consumed, they slaughter the greatest part of their +cattle, and preserve the flesh, either smoked, or dried in the sun. On +the sudden emergency of a hasty march, they provide themselves with a +sufficient quantity of little balls of cheese, or rather of hard curd, +which they occasionally dissolve in water; and this unsubstantial diet +will support, for many days, the life, and even the spirits, of the +patient warrior. But this extraordinary abstinence, which the Stoic +would approve, and the hermit might envy, is commonly succeeded by the +most voracious indulgence of appetite. The wines of a happier climate +are the most grateful present, or the most valuable commodity, that can +be offered to the Tartars; and the only example of their industry seems +to consist in the art of extracting from mare's milk a fermented liquor, +which possesses a very strong power of intoxication. Like the animals +of prey, the savages, both of the old and new world, experience the +alternate vicissitudes of famine and plenty; and their stomach is inured +to sustain, without much inconvenience, the opposite extremes of hunger +and of intemperance. + +II. In the ages of rustic and martial simplicity, a people of soldiers +and husbandmen are dispersed over the face of an extensive and +cultivated country; and some time must elapse before the warlike youth +of Greece or Italy could be assembled under the same standard, either to +defend their own confines, or to invade the territories of the adjacent +tribes. The progress of manufactures and commerce insensibly collects +a large multitude within the walls of a city: but these citizens are no +longer soldiers; and the arts which adorn and improve the state of civil +society, corrupt the habits of the military life. The pastoral manners +of the Scythians seem to unite the different advantages of simplicity +and refinement. The individuals of the same tribe are constantly +assembled, but they are assembled in a camp; and the native spirit of +these dauntless shepherds is animated by mutual support and emulation. +The houses of the Tartars are no more than small tents, of an oval form, +which afford a cold and dirty habitation, for the promiscuous youth of +both sexes. The palaces of the rich consist of wooden huts, of such a +size that they may be conveniently fixed on large wagons, and drawn by +a team perhaps of twenty or thirty oxen. The flocks and herds, after +grazing all day in the adjacent pastures, retire, on the approach of +night, within the protection of the camp. The necessity of preventing +the most mischievous confusion, in such a perpetual concourse of men and +animals, must gradually introduce, in the distribution, the order, and +the guard, of the encampment, the rudiments of the military art. As soon +as the forage of a certain district is consumed, the tribe, or rather +army, of shepherds, makes a regular march to some fresh pastures; and +thus acquires, in the ordinary occupations of the pastoral life, +the practical knowledge of one of the most important and difficult +operations of war. The choice of stations is regulated by the difference +of the seasons: in the summer, the Tartars advance towards the North, +and pitch their tents on the banks of a river, or, at least, in the +neighborhood of a running stream. But in the winter, they return to the +South, and shelter their camp, behind some convenient eminence, against +the winds, which are chilled in their passage over the bleak and icy +regions of Siberia. These manners are admirably adapted to diffuse, +among the wandering tribes, the spirit of emigration and conquest. +The connection between the people and their territory is of so frail a +texture, that it may be broken by the slightest accident. The camp, and +not the soil, is the native country of the genuine Tartar. Within the +precincts of that camp, his family, his companions, his property, +are always included; and, in the most distant marches, he is still +surrounded by the objects which are dear, or valuable, or familiar in +his eyes. The thirst of rapine, the fear, or the resentment of injury, +the impatience of servitude, have, in every age, been sufficient causes +to urge the tribes of Scythia boldly to advance into some unknown +countries, where they might hope to find a more plentiful subsistence +or a less formidable enemy. The revolutions of the North have frequently +determined the fate of the South; and in the conflict of hostile +nations, the victor and the vanquished have alternately drove, and been +driven, from the confines of China to those of Germany. These great +emigrations, which have been sometimes executed with almost incredible +diligence, were rendered more easy by the peculiar nature of the +climate. It is well known that the cold of Tartary is much more severe +than in the midst of the temperate zone might reasonably be expected; +this uncommon rigor is attributed to the height of the plains, which +rise, especially towards the East, more than half a mile above the level +of the sea; and to the quantity of saltpetre with which the soil is +deeply impregnated. In the winter season, the broad and rapid rivers, +that discharge their waters into the Euxine, the Caspian, or the Icy +Sea, are strongly frozen; the fields are covered with a bed of snow; and +the fugitive, or victorious, tribes may securely traverse, with their +families, their wagons, and their cattle, the smooth and hard surface of +an immense plain. + +III. The pastoral life, compared with the labors of agriculture and +manufactures, is undoubtedly a life of idleness; and as the most +honorable shepherds of the Tartar race devolve on their captives the +domestic management of the cattle, their own leisure is seldom disturbed +by any servile and assiduous cares. But this leisure, instead of being +devoted to the soft enjoyments of love and harmony, is use fully spent +in the violent and sanguinary exercise of the chase. The plains of +Tartary are filled with a strong and serviceable breed of horses, which +are easily trained for the purposes of war and hunting. The Scythians of +every age have been celebrated as bold and skilful riders; and constant +practice had seated them so firmly on horseback, that they were supposed +by strangers to perform the ordinary duties of civil life, to eat, to +drink, and even to sleep, without dismounting from their steeds. They +excel in the dexterous management of the lance; the long Tartar bow +is drawn with a nervous arm; and the weighty arrow is directed to its +object with unerring aim and irresistible force. These arrows are often +pointed against the harmless animals of the desert, which increase and +multiply in the absence of their most formidable enemy; the hare, the +goat, the roebuck, the fallow-deer, the stag, the elk, and the antelope. +The vigor and patience, both of the men and horses, are continually +exercised by the fatigues of the chase; and the plentiful supply of game +contributes to the subsistence, and even luxury, of a Tartar camp. +But the exploits of the hunters of Scythia are not confined to the +destruction of timid or innoxious beasts; they boldly encounter the +angry wild boar, when he turns against his pursuers, excite the sluggish +courage of the bear, and provoke the fury of the tiger, as he slumbers +in the thicket. Where there is danger, there may be glory; and the mode +of hunting, which opens the fairest field to the exertions of valor, +may justly be considered as the image, and as the school, of war. The +general hunting matches, the pride and delight of the Tartar princes, +compose an instructive exercise for their numerous cavalry. A circle +is drawn, of many miles in circumference, to encompass the game of +an extensive district; and the troops that form the circle regularly +advance towards a common centre; where the captive animals, surrounded +on every side, are abandoned to the darts of the hunters. In this march, +which frequently continues many days, the cavalry are obliged to climb +the hills, to swim the rivers, and to wind through the valleys, without +interrupting the prescribed order of their gradual progress. They +acquire the habit of directing their eye, and their steps, to a remote +object; of preserving their intervals of suspending or accelerating +their pace, according to the motions of the troops on their right and +left; and of watching and repeating the signals of their leaders. Their +leaders study, in this practical school, the most important lesson +of the military art; the prompt and accurate judgment of ground, of +distance, and of time. To employ against a human enemy the same patience +and valor, the same skill and discipline, is the only alteration which +is required in real war; and the amusements of the chase serve as a +prelude to the conquest of an empire. + +The political society of the ancient Germans has the appearance of +a voluntary alliance of independent warriors. The tribes of Scythia, +distinguished by the modern appellation of Hords, assume the form of +a numerous and increasing family; which, in the course of successive +generations, has been propagated from the same original stock. The +meanest, and most ignorant, of the Tartars, preserve, with conscious +pride, the inestimable treasure of their genealogy; and whatever +distinctions of rank may have been introduced, by the unequal +distribution of pastoral wealth, they mutually respect themselves, and +each other, as the descendants of the first founder of the tribe. The +custom, which still prevails, of adopting the bravest and most faithful +of the captives, may countenance the very probable suspicion, that this +extensive consanguinity is, in a great measure, legal and fictitious. +But the useful prejudice, which has obtained the sanction of time and +opinion, produces the effects of truth; the haughty Barbarians yield a +cheerful and voluntary obedience to the head of their blood; and their +chief, or mursa, as the representative of their great father, exercises +the authority of a judge in peace, and of a leader in war. In the +original state of the pastoral world, each of the mursas (if we may +continue to use a modern appellation) acted as the independent chief +of a large and separate family; and the limits of their peculiar +territories were gradually fixed by superior force, or mutual consent. +But the constant operation of various and permanent causes contributed +to unite the vagrant Hords into national communities, under the command +of a supreme head. The weak were desirous of support, and the strong +were ambitious of dominion; the power, which is the result of union, +oppressed and collected the divided force of the adjacent tribes; +and, as the vanquished were freely admitted to share the advantages of +victory, the most valiant chiefs hastened to range themselves and their +followers under the formidable standard of a confederate nation. The +most successful of the Tartar princes assumed the military command, to +which he was entitled by the superiority, either of merit or of power. +He was raised to the throne by the acclamations of his equals; and the +title of Khan expresses, in the language of the North of Asia, the full +extent of the regal dignity. The right of hereditary succession was long +confined to the blood of the founder of the monarchy; and at this moment +all the Khans, who reign from Crimea to the wall of China, are +the lineal descendants of the renowned Zingis. But, as it is the +indispensable duty of a Tartar sovereign to lead his warlike subjects +into the field, the claims of an infant are often disregarded; and some +royal kinsman, distinguished by his age and valor, is intrusted with the +sword and sceptre of his predecessor. Two distinct and regular taxes are +levied on the tribes, to support the dignity of the national monarch, +and of their peculiar chief; and each of those contributions amounts +to the tithe, both of their property, and of their spoil. A Tartar +sovereign enjoys the tenth part of the wealth of his people; and as +his own domestic riches of flocks and herds increase in a much larger +proportion, he is able plentifully to maintain the rustic splendor of +his court, to reward the most deserving, or the most favored of his +followers, and to obtain, from the gentle influence of corruption, the +obedience which might be sometimes refused to the stern mandates of +authority. The manners of his subjects, accustomed, like himself, to +blood and rapine, might excuse, in their eyes, such partial acts of +tyranny, as would excite the horror of a civilized people; but the power +of a despot has never been acknowledged in the deserts of Scythia. The +immediate jurisdiction of the khan is confined within the limits of his +own tribe; and the exercise of his royal prerogative has been moderated +by the ancient institution of a national council. The Coroultai, or +Diet, of the Tartars, was regularly held in the spring and autumn, in +the midst of a plain; where the princes of the reigning family, and the +mursas of the respective tribes, may conveniently assemble on horseback, +with their martial and numerous trains; and the ambitious monarch, who +reviewed the strength, must consult the inclination of an armed +people. The rudiments of a feudal government may be discovered in +the constitution of the Scythian or Tartar nations; but the perpetual +conflict of those hostile nations has sometimes terminated in the +establishment of a powerful and despotic empire. The victor, enriched +by the tribute, and fortified by the arms of dependent kings, has spread +his conquests over Europe or Asia: the successful shepherds of the North +have submitted to the confinement of arts, of laws, and of cities; and +the introduction of luxury, after destroying the freedom of the people, +has undermined the foundations of the throne. + +The memory of past events cannot long be preserved in the frequent and +remote emigrations of illiterate Barbarians. The modern Tartars are +ignorant of the conquests of their ancestors; and our knowledge of the +history of the Scythians is derived from their intercourse with the +learned and civilized nations of the South, the Greeks, the Persians, +and the Chinese. The Greeks, who navigated the Euxine, and planted their +colonies along the sea-coast, made the gradual and imperfect discovery +of Scythia; from the Danube, and the confines of Thrace, as far as the +frozen Maeotis, the seat of eternal winter, and Mount Caucasus, which, +in the language of poetry, was described as the utmost boundary of +the earth. They celebrated, with simple credulity, the virtues of the +pastoral life: they entertained a more rational apprehension of the +strength and numbers of the warlike Barbarians, who contemptuously +baffled the immense armament of Darius, the son of Hystaspes. The +Persian monarchs had extended their western conquests to the banks of +the Danube, and the limits of European Scythia. The eastern provinces of +their empire were exposed to the Scythians of Asia; the wild inhabitants +of the plains beyond the Oxus and the Jaxartes, two mighty rivers, which +direct their course towards the Caspian Sea. The long and memorable +quarrel of Iran and Touran is still the theme of history or romance: the +famous, perhaps the fabulous, valor of the Persian heroes, Rustan and +Asfendiar, was signalized, in the defence of their country, against the +Afrasiabs of the North; and the invincible spirit of the same Barbarians +resisted, on the same ground, the victorious arms of Cyrus and +Alexander. In the eyes of the Greeks and Persians, the real geography of +Scythia was bounded, on the East, by the mountains of Imaus, or Caf; and +their distant prospect of the extreme and inaccessible parts of Asia was +clouded by ignorance, or perplexed by fiction. But those inaccessible +regions are the ancient residence of a powerful and civilized nation, +which ascends, by a probable tradition, above forty centuries; and which +is able to verify a series of near two thousand years, by the perpetual +testimony of accurate and contemporary historians. The annals of China +illustrate the state and revolutions of the pastoral tribes, which +may still be distinguished by the vague appellation of Scythians, or +Tartars; the vassals, the enemies, and sometimes the conquerors, of a +great empire; whose policy has uniformly opposed the blind and impetuous +valor of the Barbarians of the North. From the mouth of the Danube to +the Sea of Japan, the whole longitude of Scythia is about one hundred +and ten degrees, which, in that parallel, are equal to more than five +thousand miles. The latitude of these extensive deserts cannot be so +easily, or so accurately, measured; but, from the fortieth degree, which +touches the wall of China, we may securely advance above a thousand +miles to the northward, till our progress is stopped by the excessive +cold of Siberia. In that dreary climate, instead of the animated picture +of a Tartar camp, the smoke that issues from the earth, or rather from +the snow, betrays the subterraneous dwellings of the Tongouses, and the +Samoides: the want of horses and oxen is imperfectly supplied by the +use of reindeer, and of large dogs; and the conquerors of the earth +insensibly degenerate into a race of deformed and diminutive savages, +who tremble at the sound of arms. + + + +Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.--Part II. + +The Huns, who under the reign of Valens threatened the empire of Rome, +had been formidable, in a much earlier period, to the empire of China. +Their ancient, perhaps their original, seat was an extensive, though dry +and barren, tract of country, immediately on the north side of the great +wall. Their place is at present occupied by the forty-nine Hords or +Banners of the Mongous, a pastoral nation, which consists of about two +hundred thousand families. But the valor of the Huns had extended the +narrow limits of their dominions; and their rustic chiefs, who assumed +the appellation of Tanjou, gradually became the conquerors, and the +sovereigns of a formidable empire. Towards the East, their victorious +arms were stopped only by the ocean; and the tribes, which are thinly +scattered between the Amoor and the extreme peninsula of Corea, adhered, +with reluctance, to the standard of the Huns. On the West, near the head +of the Irtish, in the valleys of Imaus, they found a more ample space, +and more numerous enemies. One of the lieutenants of the Tanjou subdued, +in a single expedition, twenty-six nations; the Igours, distinguished +above the Tartar race by the use of letters, were in the number of his +vassals; and, by the strange connection of human events, the flight of +one of those vagrant tribes recalled the victorious Parthians from the +invasion of Syria. On the side of the North, the ocean was assigned +as the limit of the power of the Huns. Without enemies to resist their +progress, or witnesses to contradict their vanity, they might securely +achieve a real, or imaginary, conquest of the frozen regions of Siberia. +The Northern Sea was fixed as the remote boundary of their empire. But +the name of that sea, on whose shores the patriot Sovou embraced the +life of a shepherd and an exile, may be transferred, with much more +probability, to the Baikal, a capacious basin, above three hundred miles +in length, which disdains the modest appellation of a lake and which +actually communicates with the seas of the North, by the long course of +the Angara, the Tongusha, and the Jenissea. The submission of so many +distant nations might flatter the pride of the Tanjou; but the valor +of the Huns could be rewarded only by the enjoyment of the wealth and +luxury of the empire of the South. In the third century before +the Christian aera, a wall of fifteen hundred miles in length was +constructed, to defend the frontiers of China against the inroads of the +Huns; but this stupendous work, which holds a conspicuous place in the +map of the world, has never contributed to the safety of an unwarlike +people. The cavalry of the Tanjou frequently consisted of two or three +hundred thousand men, formidable by the matchless dexterity with which +they managed their bows and their horses: by their hardy patience in +supporting the inclemency of the weather; and by the incredible speed of +their march, which was seldom checked by torrents, or precipices, by the +deepest rivers, or by the most lofty mountains. They spread themselves +at once over the face of the country; and their rapid impetuosity +surprised, astonished, and disconcerted the grave and elaborate tactics +of a Chinese army. The emperor Kaoti, a soldier of fortune, whose +personal merit had raised him to the throne, marched against the Huns +with those veteran troops which had been trained in the civil wars of +China. But he was soon surrounded by the Barbarians; and, after a siege +of seven days, the monarch, hopeless of relief, was reduced to purchase +his deliverance by an ignominious capitulation. The successors of Kaoti, +whose lives were dedicated to the arts of peace, or the luxury of +the palace, submitted to a more permanent disgrace. They too hastily +confessed the insufficiency of arms and fortifications. They were too +easily convinced, that while the blazing signals announced on every side +the approach of the Huns, the Chinese troops, who slept with the helmet +on their head, and the cuirass on their back, were destroyed by the +incessant labor of ineffectual marches. A regular payment of money, +and silk, was stipulated as the condition of a temporary and precarious +peace; and the wretched expedient of disguising a real tribute, under +the names of a gift or subsidy, was practised by the emperors of China +as well as by those of Rome. But there still remained a more disgraceful +article of tribute, which violated the sacred feelings of humanity and +nature. The hardships of the savage life, which destroy in their infancy +the children who are born with a less healthy and robust constitution, +introduced a remarkable disproportion between the numbers of the two +sexes. The Tartars are an ugly and even deformed race; and while they +consider their own women as the instruments of domestic labor, their +desires, or rather their appetites, are directed to the enjoyment of +more elegant beauty. A select band of the fairest maidens of China was +annually devoted to the rude embraces of the Huns; and the alliance of +the haughty Tanjous was secured by their marriage with the genuine, or +adopted, daughters of the Imperial family, which vainly attempted +to escape the sacrilegious pollution. The situation of these unhappy +victims is described in the verses of a Chinese princess, who laments +that she had been condemned by her parents to a distant exile, under a +Barbarian husband; who complains that sour milk was her only drink, raw +flesh her only food, a tent her only palace; and who expresses, in +a strain of pathetic simplicity, the natural wish, that she were +transformed into a bird, to fly back to her dear country; the object of +her tender and perpetual regret. + +The conquest of China has been twice achieved by the pastoral tribes +of the North: the forces of the Huns were not inferior to those of the +Moguls, or of the Mantcheoux; and their ambition might entertain the +most sanguine hopes of success. But their pride was humbled, and their +progress was checked, by the arms and policy of Vouti, the fifth emperor +of the powerful dynasty of the Han. In his long reign of fifty-four +years, the Barbarians of the southern provinces submitted to the laws +and manners of China; and the ancient limits of the monarchy were +enlarged, from the great river of Kiang, to the port of Canton. Instead +of confining himself to the timid operations of a defensive war, his +lieutenants penetrated many hundred miles into the country of the Huns. +In those boundless deserts, where it is impossible to form magazines, +and difficult to transport a sufficient supply of provisions, the armies +of Vouti were repeatedly exposed to intolerable hardships: and, of one +hundred and forty thousand soldiers, who marched against the Barbarians, +thirty thousand only returned in safety to the feet of their master. +These losses, however, were compensated by splendid and decisive +success. The Chinese generals improved the superiority which they +derived from the temper of their arms, their chariots of war, and +the service of their Tartar auxiliaries. The camp of the Tanjou was +surprised in the midst of sleep and intemperance; and, though the +monarch of the Huns bravely cut his way through the ranks of the enemy, +he left above fifteen thousand of his subjects on the field of battle. +Yet this signal victory, which was preceded and followed by many bloody +engagements, contributed much less to the destruction of the power of +the Huns than the effectual policy which was employed to detach the +tributary nations from their obedience. Intimidated by the arms, +or allured by the promises, of Vouti and his successors, the most +considerable tribes, both of the East and of the West, disclaimed the +authority of the Tanjou. While some acknowledged themselves the allies +or vassals of the empire, they all became the implacable enemies of +the Huns; and the numbers of that haughty people, as soon as they were +reduced to their native strength, might, perhaps, have been contained +within the walls of one of the great and populous cities of China. The +desertion of his subjects, and the perplexity of a civil war, at length +compelled the Tanjou himself to renounce the dignity of an independent +sovereign, and the freedom of a warlike and high-spirited nation. He +was received at Sigan, the capital of the monarchy, by the troops, the +mandarins, and the emperor himself, with all the honors that could adorn +and disguise the triumph of Chinese vanity. A magnificent palace was +prepared for his reception; his place was assigned above all the +princes of the royal family; and the patience of the Barbarian king +was exhausted by the ceremonies of a banquet, which consisted of eight +courses of meat, and of nine solemn pieces of music. But he performed, +on his knees, the duty of a respectful homage to the emperor of China; +pronounced, in his own name, and in the name of his successors, a +perpetual oath of fidelity; and gratefully accepted a seal, which was +bestowed as the emblem of his regal dependence. After this humiliating +submission, the Tanjous sometimes departed from their allegiance and +seized the favorable moments of war and rapine; but the monarchy of the +Huns gradually declined, till it was broken, by civil dissension, into +two hostile and separate kingdoms. One of the princes of the nation +was urged, by fear and ambition, to retire towards the South with eight +hords, which composed between forty and fifty thousand families. He +obtained, with the title of Tanjou, a convenient territory on the verge +of the Chinese provinces; and his constant attachment to the service of +the empire was secured by weakness, and the desire of revenge. From the +time of this fatal schism, the Huns of the North continued to languish +about fifty years; till they were oppressed on every side by their +foreign and domestic enemies. The proud inscription of a column, erected +on a lofty mountain, announced to posterity, that a Chinese army had +marched seven hundred miles into the heart of their country. The Sienpi, +a tribe of Oriental Tartars, retaliated the injuries which they had +formerly sustained; and the power of the Tanjous, after a reign of +thirteen hundred years, was utterly destroyed before the end of the +first century of the Christian aera. + +The fate of the vanquished Huns was diversified by the various influence +of character and situation. Above one hundred thousand persons, +the poorest, indeed, and the most pusillanimous of the people, were +contented to remain in their native country, to renounce their peculiar +name and origin, and to mingle with the victorious nation of the Sienpi. +Fifty-eight hords, about two hundred thousand men, ambitious of a more +honorable servitude, retired towards the South; implored the protection +of the emperors of China; and were permitted to inhabit, and to guard, +the extreme frontiers of the province of Chansi and the territory of +Ortous. But the most warlike and powerful tribes of the Huns maintained, +in their adverse fortune, the undaunted spirit of their ancestors. The +Western world was open to their valor; and they resolved, under the +conduct of their hereditary chieftains, to conquer and subdue some +remote country, which was still inaccessible to the arms of the Sienpi, +and to the laws of China. The course of their emigration soon carried +them beyond the mountains of Imaus, and the limits of the Chinese +geography; but we are able to distinguish the two great divisions of +these formidable exiles, which directed their march towards the Oxus, +and towards the Volga. The first of these colonies established their +dominion in the fruitful and extensive plains of Sogdiana, on the +eastern side of the Caspian; where they preserved the name of Huns, with +the epithet of Euthalites, or Nepthalites. Their manners were softened, +and even their features were insensibly improved, by the mildness of the +climate, and their long residence in a flourishing province, which might +still retain a faint impression of the arts of Greece. The white Huns, +a name which they derived from the change of their complexions, +soon abandoned the pastoral life of Scythia. Gorgo, which, under the +appellation of Carizme, has since enjoyed a temporary splendor, was the +residence of the king, who exercised a legal authority over an obedient +people. Their luxury was maintained by the labor of the Sogdians; +and the only vestige of their ancient barbarism, was the custom which +obliged all the companions, perhaps to the number of twenty, who had +shared the liberality of a wealthy lord, to be buried alive in the same +grave. The vicinity of the Huns to the provinces of Persia, involved +them in frequent and bloody contests with the power of that monarchy. +But they respected, in peace, the faith of treaties; in war, she +dictates of humanity; and their memorable victory over Peroses, +or Firuz, displayed the moderation, as well as the valor, of the +Barbarians. The second division of their countrymen, the Huns, who +gradually advanced towards the North-west, were exercised by the +hardships of a colder climate, and a more laborious march. Necessity +compelled them to exchange the silks of China for the furs of Siberia; +the imperfect rudiments of civilized life were obliterated; and the +native fierceness of the Huns was exasperated by their intercourse with +the savage tribes, who were compared, with some propriety, to the +wild beasts of the desert. Their independent spirit soon rejected the +hereditary succession of the Tanjous; and while each horde was governed +by its peculiar mursa, their tumultuary council directed the public +measures of the whole nation. As late as the thirteenth century, their +transient residence on the eastern banks of the Volga was attested by +the name of Great Hungary. In the winter, they descended with their +flocks and herds towards the mouth of that mighty river; and their +summer excursions reached as high as the latitude of Saratoff, or +perhaps the conflux of the Kama. Such at least were the recent limits of +the black Calmucks, who remained about a century under the protection +of Russia; and who have since returned to their native seats on the +frontiers of the Chinese empire. The march, and the return, of those +wandering Tartars, whose united camp consists of fifty thousand tents or +families, illustrate the distant emigrations of the ancient Huns. + +It is impossible to fill the dark interval of time, which elapsed, after +the Huns of the Volga were lost in the eyes of the Chinese, and before +they showed themselves to those of the Romans. There is some reason, +however, to apprehend, that the same force which had driven them from +their native seats, still continued to impel their march towards the +frontiers of Europe. The power of the Sienpi, their implacable enemies, +which extended above three thousand miles from East to West, must +have gradually oppressed them by the weight and terror of a formidable +neighborhood; and the flight of the tribes of Scythia would inevitably +tend to increase the strength or to contract the territories, of the +Huns. The harsh and obscure appellations of those tribes would offend +the ear, without informing the understanding, of the reader; but I +cannot suppress the very natural suspicion, that the Huns of the North +derived a considerable reenforcement from the ruin of the dynasty of +the South, which, in the course of the third century, submitted to the +dominion of China; that the bravest warriors marched away in search +of their free and adventurous countrymen; and that, as they had been +divided by prosperity, they were easily reunited by the common hardships +of their adverse fortune. The Huns, with their flocks and herds, their +wives and children, their dependents and allies, were transported to the +west of the Volga, and they boldly advanced to invade the country of the +Alani, a pastoral people, who occupied, or wasted, an extensive tract of +the deserts of Scythia. The plains between the Volga and the Tanais were +covered with the tents of the Alani, but their name and manners were +diffused over the wide extent of their conquests; and the painted tribes +of the Agathyrsi and Geloni were confounded among their vassals. Towards +the North, they penetrated into the frozen regions of Siberia, among the +savages who were accustomed, in their rage or hunger, to the taste +of human flesh; and their Southern inroads were pushed as far as the +confines of Persia and India. The mixture of Somatic and German blood +had contributed to improve the features of the Alani, * to whiten their +swarthy complexions, and to tinge their hair with a yellowish cast, +which is seldom found in the Tartar race. They were less deformed in +their persons, less brutish in their manners, than the Huns; but they +did not yield to those formidable Barbarians in their martial and +independent spirit; in the love of freedom, which rejected even the use +of domestic slaves; and in the love of arms, which considered war and +rapine as the pleasure and the glory of mankind. A naked cimeter, fixed +in the ground, was the only object of their religious worship; the +scalps of their enemies formed the costly trappings of their horses; +and they viewed, with pity and contempt, the pusillanimous warriors, who +patiently expected the infirmities of age, and the tortures of lingering +disease. On the banks of the Tanais, the military power of the Huns +and the Alani encountered each other with equal valor, but with unequal +success. The Huns prevailed in the bloody contest; the king of the Alani +was slain; and the remains of the vanquished nation were dispersed by +the ordinary alternative of flight or submission. A colony of exiles +found a secure refuge in the mountains of Caucasus, between the +Euxine and the Caspian, where they still preserve their name and their +independence. Another colony advanced, with more intrepid courage, +towards the shores of the Baltic; associated themselves with the +Northern tribes of Germany; and shared the spoil of the Roman provinces +of Gaul and Spain. But the greatest part of the nation of the Alani +embraced the offers of an honorable and advantageous union; and the +Huns, who esteemed the valor of their less fortunate enemies, proceeded, +with an increase of numbers and confidence, to invade the limits of the +Gothic empire. + +The great Hermanric, whose dominions extended from the Baltic to the +Euxine, enjoyed, in the full maturity of age and reputation, the fruit +of his victories, when he was alarmed by the formidable approach of a +host of unknown enemies, on whom his barbarous subjects might, without +injustice, bestow the epithet of Barbarians. The numbers, the strength, +the rapid motions, and the implacable cruelty of the Huns, were felt, +and dreaded, and magnified, by the astonished Goths; who beheld +their fields and villages consumed with flames, and deluged with +indiscriminate slaughter. To these real terrors they added the surprise +and abhorrence which were excited by the shrill voice, the uncouth +gestures, and the strange deformity of the Huns. * These savages of +Scythia were compared (and the picture had some resemblance) to the +animals who walk very awkwardly on two legs and to the misshapen +figures, the Termini, which were often placed on the bridges of +antiquity. They were distinguished from the rest of the human species by +their broad shoulders, flat noses, and small black eyes, deeply buried +in the head; and as they were almost destitute of beards, they never +enjoyed either the manly grace of youth, or the venerable aspect of age. +A fabulous origin was assigned, worthy of their form and manners; that +the witches of Scythia, who, for their foul and deadly practices, had +been driven from society, had copulated in the desert with infernal +spirits; and that the Huns were the offspring of this execrable +conjunction. The tale, so full of horror and absurdity, was greedily +embraced by the credulous hatred of the Goths; but, while it gratified +their hatred, it increased their fear, since the posterity of daemons +and witches might be supposed to inherit some share of the praeternatural +powers, as well as of the malignant temper, of their parents. Against +these enemies, Hermanric prepared to exert the united forces of the +Gothic state; but he soon discovered that his vassal tribes, provoked +by oppression, were much more inclined to second, than to repel, the +invasion of the Huns. One of the chiefs of the Roxolani had formerly +deserted the standard of Hermanric, and the cruel tyrant had condemned +the innocent wife of the traitor to be torn asunder by wild horses. +The brothers of that unfortunate woman seized the favorable moment +of revenge. The aged king of the Goths languished some time after the +dangerous wound which he received from their daggers; but the conduct of +the war was retarded by his infirmities; and the public councils of the +nation were distracted by a spirit of jealousy and discord. His death, +which has been imputed to his own despair, left the reins of government +in the hands of Withimer, who, with the doubtful aid of some Scythian +mercenaries, maintained the unequal contest against the arms of the Huns +and the Alani, till he was defeated and slain in a decisive battle. The +Ostrogoths submitted to their fate; and the royal race of the Amali will +hereafter be found among the subjects of the haughty Attila. But the +person of Witheric, the infant king, was saved by the diligence of +Alatheus and Saphrax; two warriors of approved valor and fidelity, who, +by cautious marches, conducted the independent remains of the nation of +the Ostrogoths towards the Danastus, or Niester; a considerable river, +which now separates the Turkish dominions from the empire of Russia. On +the banks of the Niester, the prudent Athanaric, more attentive to his +own than to the general safety, had fixed the camp of the Visigoths; +with the firm resolution of opposing the victorious Barbarians, whom he +thought it less advisable to provoke. The ordinary speed of the Huns was +checked by the weight of baggage, and the encumbrance of captives; +but their military skill deceived, and almost destroyed, the army of +Athanaric. While the Judge of the Visigoths defended the banks of the +Niester, he was encompassed and attacked by a numerous detachment +of cavalry, who, by the light of the moon, had passed the river in a +fordable place; and it was not without the utmost efforts of courage +and conduct, that he was able to effect his retreat towards the hilly +country. The undaunted general had already formed a new and judicious +plan of defensive war; and the strong lines, which he was preparing to +construct between the mountains, the Pruth, and the Danube, would have +secured the extensive and fertile territory that bears the modern name +of Walachia, from the destructive inroads of the Huns. But the hopes +and measures of the Judge of the Visigoths was soon disappointed, by the +trembling impatience of his dismayed countrymen; who were persuaded by +their fears, that the interposition of the Danube was the only barrier +that could save them from the rapid pursuit, and invincible valor, of +the Barbarians of Scythia. Under the command of Fritigern and Alavivus, +the body of the nation hastily advanced to the banks of the great river, +and implored the protection of the Roman emperor of the East. Athanaric +himself, still anxious to avoid the guilt of perjury, retired, with a +band of faithful followers, into the mountainous country of Caucaland; +which appears to have been guarded, and almost concealed, by the +impenetrable forests of Transylvania. * + + + +Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.--Part III. + +After Valens had terminated the Gothic war with some appearance of glory +and success, he made a progress through his dominions of Asia, and at +length fixed his residence in the capital of Syria. The five years which +he spent at Antioch was employed to watch, from a secure distance, the +hostile designs of the Persian monarch; to check the depredations of +the Saracens and Isaurians; to enforce, by arguments more prevalent than +those of reason and eloquence, the belief of the Arian theology; and +to satisfy his anxious suspicions by the promiscuous execution of the +innocent and the guilty. But the attention of the emperor was most +seriously engaged, by the important intelligence which he received from +the civil and military officers who were intrusted with the defence of +the Danube. He was informed, that the North was agitated by a furious +tempest; that the irruption of the Huns, an unknown and monstrous race +of savages, had subverted the power of the Goths; and that the suppliant +multitudes of that warlike nation, whose pride was now humbled in the +dust, covered a space of many miles along the banks of the river. With +outstretched arms, and pathetic lamentations, they loudly deplored their +past misfortunes and their present danger; acknowledged that their only +hope of safety was in the clemency of the Roman government; and most +solemnly protested, that if the gracious liberality of the emperor would +permit them to cultivate the waste lands of Thrace, they should +ever hold themselves bound, by the strongest obligations of duty and +gratitude, to obey the laws, and to guard the limits, of the republic. +These assurances were confirmed by the ambassadors of the Goths, * +who impatiently expected from the mouth of Valens an answer that must +finally determine the fate of their unhappy countrymen. The emperor of +the East was no longer guided by the wisdom and authority of his elder +brother, whose death happened towards the end of the preceding year; +and as the distressful situation of the Goths required an instant and +peremptory decision, he was deprived of the favorite resources of feeble +and timid minds, who consider the use of dilatory and ambiguous measures +as the most admirable efforts of consummate prudence. As long as the +same passions and interests subsist among mankind, the questions of war +and peace, of justice and policy, which were debated in the councils of +antiquity, will frequently present themselves as the subject of modern +deliberation. But the most experienced statesman of Europe has never +been summoned to consider the propriety, or the danger, of admitting, +or rejecting, an innumerable multitude of Barbarians, who are driven +by despair and hunger to solicit a settlement on the territories of +a civilized nation. When that important proposition, so essentially +connected with the public safety, was referred to the ministers of +Valens, they were perplexed and divided; but they soon acquiesced in the +flattering sentiment which seemed the most favorable to the pride, the +indolence, and the avarice of their sovereign. The slaves, who were +decorated with the titles of praefects and generals, dissembled or +disregarded the terrors of this national emigration; so extremely +different from the partial and accidental colonies, which had been +received on the extreme limits of the empire. But they applauded the +liberality of fortune, which had conducted, from the most distant +countries of the globe, a numerous and invincible army of strangers, to +defend the throne of Valens; who might now add to the royal treasures +the immense sums of gold supplied by the provincials to compensate their +annual proportion of recruits. The prayers of the Goths were granted, +and their service was accepted by the Imperial court: and orders were +immediately despatched to the civil and military governors of the +Thracian diocese, to make the necessary preparations for the passage and +subsistence of a great people, till a proper and sufficient territory +could be allotted for their future residence. The liberality of +the emperor was accompanied, however, with two harsh and rigorous +conditions, which prudence might justify on the side of the Romans; but +which distress alone could extort from the indignant Goths. Before they +passed the Danube, they were required to deliver their arms: and it was +insisted, that their children should be taken from them, and dispersed +through the provinces of Asia; where they might be civilized by the +arts of education, and serve as hostages to secure the fidelity of their +parents. + +During the suspense of a doubtful and distant negotiation, the impatient +Goths made some rash attempts to pass the Danube, without the permission +of the government, whose protection they had implored. Their motions +were strictly observed by the vigilance of the troops which were +stationed along the river and their foremost detachments were defeated +with considerable slaughter; yet such were the timid councils of the +reign of Valens, that the brave officers who had served their country +in the execution of their duty, were punished by the loss of their +employments, and narrowly escaped the loss of their heads. The Imperial +mandate was at length received for transporting over the Danube the +whole body of the Gothic nation; but the execution of this order was a +task of labor and difficulty. The stream of the Danube, which in those +parts is above a mile broad, had been swelled by incessant rains; and in +this tumultuous passage, many were swept away, and drowned, by the rapid +violence of the current. A large fleet of vessels, of boats, and of +canoes, was provided; many days and nights they passed and repassed with +indefatigable toil; and the most strenuous diligence was exerted by +the officers of Valens, that not a single Barbarian, of those who were +reserved to subvert the foundations of Rome, should be left on the +opposite shore. It was thought expedient that an accurate account +should be taken of their numbers; but the persons who were employed soon +desisted, with amazement and dismay, from the prosecution of the endless +and impracticable task: and the principal historian of the age most +seriously affirms, that the prodigious armies of Darius and Xerxes, +which had so long been considered as the fables of vain and credulous +antiquity, were now justified, in the eyes of mankind, by the evidence +of fact and experience. A probable testimony has fixed the number of the +Gothic warriors at two hundred thousand men: and if we can venture to +add the just proportion of women, of children, and of slaves, the whole +mass of people which composed this formidable emigration, must have +amounted to near a million of persons, of both sexes, and of all ages. +The children of the Goths, those at least of a distinguished rank, were +separated from the multitude. They were conducted, without delay, to +the distant seats assigned for their residence and education; and as the +numerous train of hostages or captives passed through the cities, their +gay and splendid apparel, their robust and martial figure, excited the +surprise and envy of the Provincials. * But the stipulation, the most +offensive to the Goths, and the most important to the Romans, was +shamefully eluded. The Barbarians, who considered their arms as the +ensigns of honor and the pledges of safety, were disposed to offer a +price, which the lust or avarice of the Imperial officers was easily +tempted to accept. To preserve their arms, the haughty warriors +consented, with some reluctance, to prostitute their wives or their +daughters; the charms of a beauteous maid, or a comely boy, secured the +connivance of the inspectors; who sometimes cast an eye of covetousness +on the fringed carpets and linen garments of their new allies, or who +sacrificed their duty to the mean consideration of filling their farms +with cattle, and their houses with slaves. The Goths, with arms in their +hands, were permitted to enter the boats; and when their strength was +collected on the other side of the river, the immense camp which was +spread over the plains and the hills of the Lower Maesia, assumed a +threatening and even hostile aspect. The leaders of the Ostrogoths, +Alatheus and Saphrax, the guardians of their infant king, appeared +soon afterwards on the Northern banks of the Danube; and immediately +despatched their ambassadors to the court of Antioch, to solicit, with +the same professions of allegiance and gratitude, the same favor which +had been granted to the suppliant Visigoths. The absolute refusal of +Valens suspended their progress, and discovered the repentance, the +suspicions, and the fears, of the Imperial council. + +An undisciplined and unsettled nation of Barbarians required the firmest +temper, and the most dexterous management. The daily subsistence of near +a million of extraordinary subjects could be supplied only by constant +and skilful diligence, and might continually be interrupted by mistake +or accident. The insolence, or the indignation, of the Goths, if they +conceived themselves to be the objects either of fear or of contempt, +might urge them to the most desperate extremities; and the fortune of +the state seemed to depend on the prudence, as well as the integrity, +of the generals of Valens. At this important crisis, the military +government of Thrace was exercised by Lupicinus and Maximus, in whose +venal minds the slightest hope of private emolument outweighed every +consideration of public advantage; and whose guilt was only alleviated +by their incapacity of discerning the pernicious effects of their rash +and criminal administration. Instead of obeying the orders of their +sovereign, and satisfying, with decent liberality, the demands of the +Goths, they levied an ungenerous and oppressive tax on the wants of the +hungry Barbarians. The vilest food was sold at an extravagant price; +and, in the room of wholesome and substantial provisions, the markets +were filled with the flesh of dogs, and of unclean animals, who had died +of disease. To obtain the valuable acquisition of a pound of bread, +the Goths resigned the possession of an expensive, though serviceable, +slave; and a small quantity of meat was greedily purchased with ten +pounds of a precious, but useless metal, when their property was +exhausted, they continued this necessary traffic by the sale of their +sons and daughters; and notwithstanding the love of freedom, which +animated every Gothic breast, they submitted to the humiliating maxim, +that it was better for their children to be maintained in a servile +condition, than to perish in a state of wretched and helpless +independence. The most lively resentment is excited by the tyranny of +pretended benefactors, who sternly exact the debt of gratitude which +they have cancelled by subsequent injuries: a spirit of discontent +insensibly arose in the camp of the Barbarians, who pleaded, without +success, the merit of their patient and dutiful behavior; and loudly +complained of the inhospitable treatment which they had received from +their new allies. They beheld around them the wealth and plenty of a +fertile province, in the midst of which they suffered the intolerable +hardships of artificial famine. But the means of relief, and even of +revenge, were in their hands; since the rapaciousness of their tyrants +had left to an injured people the possession and the use of arms. The +clamors of a multitude, untaught to disguise their sentiments, announced +the first symptoms of resistance, and alarmed the timid and guilty minds +of Lupicinus and Maximus. Those crafty ministers, who substituted the +cunning of temporary expedients to the wise and salutary counsels of +general policy, attempted to remove the Goths from their dangerous +station on the frontiers of the empire; and to disperse them, in +separate quarters of cantonment, through the interior provinces. As they +were conscious how ill they had deserved the respect, or confidence, of +the Barbarians, they diligently collected, from every side, a military +force, that might urge the tardy and reluctant march of a people, who +had not yet renounced the title, or the duties, of Roman subjects. But +the generals of Valens, while their attention was solely directed to +the discontented Visigoths, imprudently disarmed the ships and the +fortifications which constituted the defence of the Danube. The fatal +oversight was observed, and improved, by Alatheus and Saphrax, who +anxiously watched the favorable moment of escaping from the pursuit +of the Huns. By the help of such rafts and vessels as could be hastily +procured, the leaders of the Ostrogoths transported, without opposition, +their king and their army; and boldly fixed a hostile and independent +camp on the territories of the empire. + +Under the name of Judges, Alavivus and Fritigern were the leaders of the +Visigoths in peace and war; and the authority which they derived from +their birth was ratified by the free consent of the nation. In a season +of tranquility, their power might have been equal, as well as their +rank; but, as soon as their countrymen were exasperated by hunger and +oppression, the superior abilities of Fritigern assumed the military +command, which he was qualified to exercise for the public welfare. He +restrained the impatient spirit of the Visigoths till the injuries and +the insults of their tyrants should justify their resistance in the +opinion of mankind: but he was not disposed to sacrifice any solid +advantages for the empty praise of justice and moderation. Sensible +of the benefits which would result from the union of the Gothic powers +under the same standard, he secretly cultivated the friendship of the +Ostrogoths; and while he professed an implicit obedience to the +orders of the Roman generals, he proceeded by slow marches towards +Marcianopolis, the capital of the Lower Maesia, about seventy miles from +the banks of the Danube. On that fatal spot, the flames of discord and +mutual hatred burst forth into a dreadful conflagration. Lupicinus had +invited the Gothic chiefs to a splendid entertainment; and their martial +train remained under arms at the entrance of the palace. But the gates +of the city were strictly guarded, and the Barbarians were sternly +excluded from the use of a plentiful market, to which they asserted +their equal claim of subjects and allies. Their humble prayers were +rejected with insolence and derision; and as their patience was now +exhausted, the townsmen, the soldiers, and the Goths, were soon involved +in a conflict of passionate altercation and angry reproaches. A blow was +imprudently given; a sword was hastily drawn; and the first blood that +was spilt in this accidental quarrel, became the signal of a long +and destructive war. In the midst of noise and brutal intemperance, +Lupicinus was informed, by a secret messenger, that many of his soldiers +were slain, and despoiled of their arms; and as he was already inflamed +by wine, and oppressed by sleep he issued a rash command, that their +death should be revenged by the massacre of the guards of Fritigern and +Alavivus. The clamorous shouts and dying groans apprised Fritigern of +his extreme danger; and, as he possessed the calm and intrepid spirit of +a hero, he saw that he was lost if he allowed a moment of deliberation +to the man who had so deeply injured him. "A trifling dispute," said the +Gothic leader, with a firm but gentle tone of voice, "appears to have +arisen between the two nations; but it may be productive of the most +dangerous consequences, unless the tumult is immediately pacified by the +assurance of our safety, and the authority of our presence." At these +words, Fritigern and his companions drew their swords, opened their +passage through the unresisting crowd, which filled the palace, the +streets, and the gates, of Marcianopolis, and, mounting their horses, +hastily vanished from the eyes of the astonished Romans. The generals +of the Goths were saluted by the fierce and joyful acclamations of +the camp; war was instantly resolved, and the resolution was executed +without delay: the banners of the nation were displayed according to +the custom of their ancestors; and the air resounded with the harsh and +mournful music of the Barbarian trumpet. The weak and guilty Lupicinus, +who had dared to provoke, who had neglected to destroy, and who still +presumed to despise, his formidable enemy, marched against the Goths, at +the head of such a military force as could be collected on this sudden +emergency. The Barbarians expected his approach about nine miles from +Marcianopolis; and on this occasion the talents of the general were +found to be of more prevailing efficacy than the weapons and discipline +of the troops. The valor of the Goths was so ably directed by the genius +of Fritigern, that they broke, by a close and vigorous attack, the +ranks of the Roman legions. Lupicinus left his arms and standards, his +tribunes and his bravest soldiers, on the field of battle; and their +useless courage served only to protect the ignominious flight of +their leader. "That successful day put an end to the distress of the +Barbarians, and the security of the Romans: from that day, the Goths, +renouncing the precarious condition of strangers and exiles, assumed the +character of citizens and masters, claimed an absolute dominion over the +possessors of land, and held, in their own right, the northern provinces +of the empire, which are bounded by the Danube." Such are the words of +the Gothic historian, who celebrates, with rude eloquence, the glory of +his countrymen. But the dominion of the Barbarians was exercised only +for the purposes of rapine and destruction. As they had been deprived, +by the ministers of the emperor, of the common benefits of nature, and +the fair intercourse of social life, they retaliated the injustice on +the subjects of the empire; and the crimes of Lupicinus were expiated +by the ruin of the peaceful husbandmen of Thrace, the conflagration +of their villages, and the massacre, or captivity, of their innocent +families. The report of the Gothic victory was soon diffused over the +adjacent country; and while it filled the minds of the Romans with +terror and dismay, their own hasty imprudence contributed to increase +the forces of Fritigern, and the calamities of the province. Some time +before the great emigration, a numerous body of Goths, under the command +of Suerid and Colias, had been received into the protection and service +of the empire. They were encamped under the walls of Hadrianople; +but the ministers of Valens were anxious to remove them beyond the +Hellespont, at a distance from the dangerous temptation which might so +easily be communicated by the neighborhood, and the success, of their +countrymen. The respectful submission with which they yielded to the +order of their march, might be considered as a proof of their fidelity; +and their moderate request of a sufficient allowance of provisions, and +of a delay of only two days was expressed in the most dutiful terms. But +the first magistrate of Hadrianople, incensed by some disorders which +had been committed at his country-house, refused this indulgence; and +arming against them the inhabitants and manufacturers of a populous +city, he urged, with hostile threats, their instant departure. The +Barbarians stood silent and amazed, till they were exasperated by +the insulting clamors, and missile weapons, of the populace: but when +patience or contempt was fatigued, they crushed the undisciplined +multitude, inflicted many a shameful wound on the backs of their flying +enemies, and despoiled them of the splendid armor, which they were +unworthy to bear. The resemblance of their sufferings and their actions +soon united this victorious detachment to the nation of the Visigoths; +the troops of Colias and Suerid expected the approach of the great +Fritigern, ranged themselves under his standard, and signalized their +ardor in the siege of Hadrianople. But the resistance of the garrison +informed the Barbarians, that in the attack of regular fortifications, +the efforts of unskillful courage are seldom effectual. Their general +acknowledged his error, raised the siege, declared that "he was at +peace with stone walls," and revenged his disappointment on the adjacent +country. He accepted, with pleasure, the useful reenforcement of hardy +workmen, who labored in the gold mines of Thrace, for the emolument, +and under the lash, of an unfeeling master: and these new associates +conducted the Barbarians, through the secret paths, to the most +sequestered places, which had been chosen to secure the inhabitants, the +cattle, and the magazines of corn. With the assistance of such guides, +nothing could remain impervious or inaccessible; resistance was fatal; +flight was impracticable; and the patient submission of helpless +innocence seldom found mercy from the Barbarian conqueror. In the course +of these depredations, a great number of the children of the Goths, who +had been sold into captivity, were restored to the embraces of their +afflicted parents; but these tender interviews, which might have revived +and cherished in their minds some sentiments of humanity, tended only +to stimulate their native fierceness by the desire of revenge. They +listened, with eager attention, to the complaints of their captive +children, who had suffered the most cruel indignities from the lustful +or angry passions of their masters, and the same cruelties, the same +indignities, were severely retaliated on the sons and daughters of the +Romans. + +The imprudence of Valens and his ministers had introduced into the heart +of the empire a nation of enemies; but the Visigoths might even yet have +been reconciled, by the manly confession of past errors, and the sincere +performance of former engagements. These healing and temperate measures +seemed to concur with the timorous disposition of the sovereign of +the East: but, on this occasion alone, Valens was brave; and his +unseasonable bravery was fatal to himself and to his subjects. He +declared his intention of marching from Antioch to Constantinople, to +subdue this dangerous rebellion; and, as he was not ignorant of the +difficulties of the enterprise, he solicited the assistance of his +nephew, the emperor Gratian, who commanded all the forces of the West. +The veteran troops were hastily recalled from the defence of Armenia; +that important frontier was abandoned to the discretion of Sapor; +and the immediate conduct of the Gothic war was intrusted, during +the absence of Valens, to his lieutenants Trajan and Profuturus, two +generals who indulged themselves in a very false and favorable opinion +of their own abilities. On their arrival in Thrace, they were joined by +Richomer, count of the domestics; and the auxiliaries of the West, that +marched under his banner, were composed of the Gallic legions, reduced +indeed, by a spirit of desertion, to the vain appearances of strength +and numbers. In a council of war, which was influenced by pride, +rather than by reason, it was resolved to seek, and to encounter, the +Barbarians, who lay encamped in the spacious and fertile meadows, +near the most southern of the six mouths of the Danube. Their camp was +surrounded by the usual fortification of wagons; and the Barbarians, +secure within the vast circle of the enclosure, enjoyed the fruits of +their valor, and the spoils of the province. In the midst of riotous +intemperance, the watchful Fritigern observed the motions, and +penetrated the designs, of the Romans. He perceived, that the numbers +of the enemy were continually increasing: and, as he understood their +intention of attacking his rear, as soon as the scarcity of forage +should oblige him to remove his camp, he recalled to their standard his +predatory detachments, which covered the adjacent country. As soon as +they descried the flaming beacons, they obeyed, with incredible speed, +the signal of their leader: the camp was filled with the martial crowd +of Barbarians; their impatient clamors demanded the battle, and their +tumultuous zeal was approved and animated by the spirit of their chiefs. +The evening was already far advanced; and the two armies prepared +themselves for the approaching combat, which was deferred only till the +dawn of day. While the trumpets sounded to arms, the undaunted courage +of the Goths was confirmed by the mutual obligation of a solemn oath; +and as they advanced to meet the enemy, the rude songs, which celebrated +the glory of their forefathers, were mingled with their fierce and +dissonant outcries, and opposed to the artificial harmony of the Roman +shout. Some military skill was displayed by Fritigern to gain the +advantage of a commanding eminence; but the bloody conflict, which began +and ended with the light, was maintained on either side, by the personal +and obstinate efforts of strength, valor, and agility. The legions of +Armenia supported their fame in arms; but they were oppressed by the +irresistible weight of the hostile multitude the left wing of the Romans +was thrown into disorder and the field was strewed with their mangled +carcasses. This partial defeat was balanced, however, by partial +success; and when the two armies, at a late hour of the evening, +retreated to their respective camps, neither of them could claim the +honors, or the effects, of a decisive victory. The real loss was more +severely felt by the Romans, in proportion to the smallness of their +numbers; but the Goths were so deeply confounded and dismayed by this +vigorous, and perhaps unexpected, resistance, that they remained seven +days within the circle of their fortifications. Such funeral rites, as +the circumstances of time and place would admit, were piously discharged +to some officers of distinguished rank; but the indiscriminate vulgar +was left unburied on the plain. Their flesh was greedily devoured by +the birds of prey, who in that age enjoyed very frequent and delicious +feasts; and several years afterwards the white and naked bones, which +covered the wide extent of the fields, presented to the eyes of Ammianus +a dreadful monument of the battle of Salices. + +The progress of the Goths had been checked by the doubtful event of +that bloody day; and the Imperial generals, whose army would have been +consumed by the repetition of such a contest, embraced the more rational +plan of destroying the Barbarians by the wants and pressure of their own +multitudes. They prepared to confine the Visigoths in the narrow angle +of land between the Danube, the desert of Scythia, and the mountains of +Haemus, till their strength and spirit should be insensibly wasted by +the inevitable operation of famine. The design was prosecuted with +some conduct and success: the Barbarians had almost exhausted their +own magazines, and the harvests of the country; and the diligence of +Saturninus, the master-general of the cavalry, was employed to improve +the strength, and to contract the extent, of the Roman fortifications. +His labors were interrupted by the alarming intelligence, that new +swarms of Barbarians had passed the unguarded Danube, either to +support the cause, or to imitate the example, of Fritigern. The just +apprehension, that he himself might be surrounded, and overwhelmed, +by the arms of hostile and unknown nations, compelled Saturninus to +relinquish the siege of the Gothic camp; and the indignant Visigoths, +breaking from their confinement, satiated their hunger and revenge by +the repeated devastation of the fruitful country, which extends above +three hundred miles from the banks of the Danube to the straits of the +Hellespont. The sagacious Fritigern had successfully appealed to the +passions, as well as to the interest, of his Barbarian allies; and the +love of rapine, and the hatred of Rome, seconded, or even prevented, the +eloquence of his ambassadors. He cemented a strict and useful alliance +with the great body of his countrymen, who obeyed Alatheus and Saphrax +as the guardians of their infant king: the long animosity of rival +tribes was suspended by the sense of their common interest; the +independent part of the nation was associated under one standard; and +the chiefs of the Ostrogoths appear to have yielded to the superior +genius of the general of the Visigoths. He obtained the formidable aid +of the Taifalae, * whose military renown was disgraced and polluted +by the public infamy of their domestic manners. Every youth, on his +entrance into the world, was united by the ties of honorable friendship, +and brutal love, to some warrior of the tribe; nor could he hope to +be released from this unnatural connection, till he had approved his +manhood by slaying, in single combat, a huge bear, or a wild boar of the +forest. But the most powerful auxiliaries of the Goths were drawn from +the camp of those enemies who had expelled them from their native seats. +The loose subordination, and extensive possessions, of the Huns and +the Alani, delayed the conquests, and distracted the councils, of that +victorious people. Several of the hords were allured by the liberal +promises of Fritigern; and the rapid cavalry of Scythia added weight and +energy to the steady and strenuous efforts of the Gothic infantry. +The Sarmatians, who could never forgive the successor of Valentinian, +enjoyed and increased the general confusion; and a seasonable irruption +of the Alemanni, into the provinces of Gaul, engaged the attention, and +diverted the forces, of the emperor of the West. + + + +Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.--Part IV. + +One of the most dangerous inconveniences of the introduction of the +Barbarians into the army and the palace, was sensibly felt in their +correspondence with their hostile countrymen; to whom they imprudently, +or maliciously, revealed the weakness of the Roman empire. A soldier, of +the lifeguards of Gratian, was of the nation of the Alemanni, and of the +tribe of the Lentienses, who dwelt beyond the Lake of Constance. Some +domestic business obliged him to request a leave of absence. In a +short visit to his family and friends, he was exposed to their curious +inquiries: and the vanity of the loquacious soldier tempted him to +display his intimate acquaintance with the secrets of the state, and the +designs of his master. The intelligence, that Gratian was preparing to +lead the military force of Gaul, and of the West, to the assistance of +his uncle Valens, pointed out to the restless spirit of the Alemanni the +moment, and the mode, of a successful invasion. The enterprise of some +light detachments, who, in the month of February, passed the Rhine upon +the ice, was the prelude of a more important war. The boldest hopes +of rapine, perhaps of conquest, outweighed the considerations of timid +prudence, or national faith. Every forest, and every village, poured +forth a band of hardy adventurers; and the great army of the Alemanni, +which, on their approach, was estimated at forty thousand men by the +fears of the people, was afterwards magnified to the number of seventy +thousand by the vain and credulous flattery of the Imperial court. The +legions, which had been ordered to march into Pannonia, were immediately +recalled, or detained, for the defence of Gaul; the military command +was divided between Nanienus and Mellobaudes; and the youthful emperor, +though he respected the long experience and sober wisdom of the former, +was much more inclined to admire, and to follow, the martial ardor of +his colleague; who was allowed to unite the incompatible characters of +count of the domestics, and of king of the Franks. His rival Priarius, +king of the Alemanni, was guided, or rather impelled, by the same +headstrong valor; and as their troops were animated by the spirit of +their leaders, they met, they saw, they encountered each other, near the +town of Argentaria, or Colmar, in the plains of Alsace. The glory of +the day was justly ascribed to the missile weapons, and well-practised +evolutions, of the Roman soldiers; the Alemanni, who long maintained +their ground, were slaughtered with unrelenting fury; five thousand only +of the Barbarians escaped to the woods and mountains; and the glorious +death of their king on the field of battle saved him from the reproaches +of the people, who are always disposed to accuse the justice, or policy, +of an unsuccessful war. After this signal victory, which secured the +peace of Gaul, and asserted the honor of the Roman arms, the emperor +Gratian appeared to proceed without delay on his Eastern expedition; but +as he approached the confines of the Alemanni, he suddenly inclined to +the left, surprised them by his unexpected passage of the Rhine, and +boldly advanced into the heart of their country. The Barbarians opposed +to his progress the obstacles of nature and of courage; and still +continued to retreat, from one hill to another, till they were +satisfied, by repeated trials, of the power and perseverance of their +enemies. Their submission was accepted as a proof, not indeed of their +sincere repentance, but of their actual distress; and a select number of +their brave and robust youth was exacted from the faithless nation, as +the most substantial pledge of their future moderation. The subjects of +the empire, who had so often experienced that the Alemanni could neither +be subdued by arms, nor restrained by treaties, might not promise +themselves any solid or lasting tranquillity: but they discovered, +in the virtues of their young sovereign, the prospect of a long and +auspicious reign. When the legions climbed the mountains, and scaled the +fortifications of the Barbarians, the valor of Gratian was distinguished +in the foremost ranks; and the gilt and variegated armor of his guards +was pierced and shattered by the blows which they had received in their +constant attachment to the person of their sovereign. At the age of +nineteen, the son of Valentinian seemed to possess the talents of peace +and war; and his personal success against the Alemanni was interpreted +as a sure presage of his Gothic triumphs. + +While Gratian deserved and enjoyed the applause of his subjects, the +emperor Valens, who, at length, had removed his court and army from +Antioch, was received by the people of Constantinople as the author +of the public calamity. Before he had reposed himself ten days in the +capital, he was urged by the licentious clamors of the Hippodrome to +march against the Barbarians, whom he had invited into his dominions; +and the citizens, who are always brave at a distance from any real +danger, declared, with confidence, that, if they were supplied with +arms, they alone would undertake to deliver the province from the +ravages of an insulting foe. The vain reproaches of an ignorant +multitude hastened the downfall of the Roman empire; they provoked the +desperate rashness of Valens; who did not find, either in his reputation +or in his mind, any motives to support with firmness the public +contempt. He was soon persuaded, by the successful achievements of his +lieutenants, to despise the power of the Goths, who, by the diligence +of Fritigern, were now collected in the neighborhood of Hadrianople. The +march of the Taifalae had been intercepted by the valiant Frigerid: +the king of those licentious Barbarians was slain in battle; and the +suppliant captives were sent into distant exile to cultivate the +lands of Italy, which were assigned for their settlement in the vacant +territories of Modena and Parma. The exploits of Sebastian, who was +recently engaged in the service of Valens, and promoted to the rank of +master-general of the infantry, were still more honorable to himself, +and useful to the republic. He obtained the permission of selecting +three hundred soldiers from each of the legions; and this separate +detachment soon acquired the spirit of discipline, and the exercise +of arms, which were almost forgotten under the reign of Valens. By the +vigor and conduct of Sebastian, a large body of the Goths were surprised +in their camp; and the immense spoil, which was recovered from their +hands, filled the city of Hadrianople, and the adjacent plain. The +splendid narratives, which the general transmitted of his own exploits, +alarmed the Imperial court by the appearance of superior merit; and +though he cautiously insisted on the difficulties of the Gothic war, +his valor was praised, his advice was rejected; and Valens, who listened +with pride and pleasure to the flattering suggestions of the eunuchs +of the palace, was impatient to seize the glory of an easy and assured +conquest. His army was strengthened by a numerous reenforcement of +veterans; and his march from Constantinople to Hadrianople was conducted +with so much military skill, that he prevented the activity of the +Barbarians, who designed to occupy the intermediate defiles, and to +intercept either the troops themselves, or their convoys of provisions. +The camp of Valens, which he pitched under the walls of Hadrianople, +was fortified, according to the practice of the Romans, with a ditch and +rampart; and a most important council was summoned, to decide the fate +of the emperor and of the empire. The party of reason and of delay was +strenuously maintained by Victor, who had corrected, by the lessons +of experience, the native fierceness of the Sarmatian character; while +Sebastian, with the flexible and obsequious eloquence of a courtier, +represented every precaution, and every measure, that implied a doubt +of immediate victory, as unworthy of the courage and majesty of their +invincible monarch. The ruin of Valens was precipitated by the deceitful +arts of Fritigern, and the prudent admonitions of the emperor of the +West. The advantages of negotiating in the midst of war were +perfectly understood by the general of the Barbarians; and a Christian +ecclesiastic was despatched, as the holy minister of peace, to +penetrate, and to perplex, the councils of the enemy. The misfortunes, +as well as the provocations, of the Gothic nation, were forcibly and +truly described by their ambassador; who protested, in the name of +Fritigern, that he was still disposed to lay down his arms, or to employ +them only in the defence of the empire; if he could secure for his +wandering countrymen a tranquil settlement on the waste lands of Thrace, +and a sufficient allowance of corn and cattle. But he added, in a +whisper of confidential friendship, that the exasperated Barbarians were +averse to these reasonable conditions; and that Fritigern was doubtful +whether he could accomplish the conclusion of the treaty, unless he +found himself supported by the presence and terrors of an Imperial army. +About the same time, Count Richomer returned from the West to announce +the defeat and submission of the Alemanni, to inform Valens that +his nephew advanced by rapid marches at the head of the veteran and +victorious legions of Gaul, and to request, in the name of Gratian and +of the republic, that every dangerous and decisive measure might be +suspended, till the junction of the two emperors should insure the +success of the Gothic war. But the feeble sovereign of the East was +actuated only by the fatal illusions of pride and jealousy. He disdained +the importunate advice; he rejected the humiliating aid; he secretly +compared the ignominious, at least the inglorious, period of his own +reign, with the fame of a beardless youth; and Valens rushed into +the field, to erect his imaginary trophy, before the diligence of his +colleague could usurp any share of the triumphs of the day. + +On the ninth of August, a day which has deserved to be marked among the +most inauspicious of the Roman Calendar, the emperor Valens, leaving, +under a strong guard, his baggage and military treasure, marched from +Hadrianople to attack the Goths, who were encamped about twelve miles +from the city. By some mistake of the orders, or some ignorance of the +ground, the right wing, or column of cavalry arrived in sight of +the enemy, whilst the left was still at a considerable distance; the +soldiers were compelled, in the sultry heat of summer, to precipitate +their pace; and the line of battle was formed with tedious confusion and +irregular delay. The Gothic cavalry had been detached to forage in +the adjacent country; and Fritigern still continued to practise his +customary arts. He despatched messengers of peace, made proposals, +required hostages, and wasted the hours, till the Romans, exposed +without shelter to the burning rays of the sun, were exhausted by +thirst, hunger, and intolerable fatigue. The emperor was persuaded to +send an ambassador to the Gothic camp; the zeal of Richomer, who alone +had courage to accept the dangerous commission, was applauded; and +the count of the domestics, adorned with the splendid ensigns of his +dignity, had proceeded some way in the space between the two armies, +when he was suddenly recalled by the alarm of battle. The hasty and +imprudent attack was made by Bacurius the Iberian, who commanded a body +of archers and targiteers; and as they advanced with rashness, they +retreated with loss and disgrace. In the same moment, the flying +squadrons of Alatheus and Saphrax, whose return was anxiously expected +by the general of the Goths, descended like a whirlwind from the hills, +swept across the plain, and added new terrors to the tumultuous, but +irresistible charge of the Barbarian host. The event of the battle of +Hadrianople, so fatal to Valens and to the empire, may be described in +a few words: the Roman cavalry fled; the infantry was abandoned, +surrounded, and cut in pieces. The most skilful evolutions, the +firmest courage, are scarcely sufficient to extricate a body of foot, +encompassed, on an open plain, by superior numbers of horse; but the +troops of Valens, oppressed by the weight of the enemy and their own +fears, were crowded into a narrow space, where it was impossible for +them to extend their ranks, or even to use, with effect, their swords +and javelins. In the midst of tumult, of slaughter, and of dismay, the +emperor, deserted by his guards and wounded, as it was supposed, with +an arrow, sought protection among the Lancearii and the Mattiarii, +who still maintained their ground with some appearance of order and +firmness. His faithful generals, Trajan and Victor, who perceived his +danger, loudly exclaimed that all was lost, unless the person of the +emperor could be saved. Some troops, animated by their exhortation, +advanced to his relief: they found only a bloody spot, covered with a +heap of broken arms and mangled bodies, without being able to discover +their unfortunate prince, either among the living or the dead. Their +search could not indeed be successful, if there is any truth in the +circumstances with which some historians have related the death of the +emperor. By the care of his attendants, Valens was removed from the +field of battle to a neighboring cottage, where they attempted to dress +his wound, and to provide for his future safety. But this humble retreat +was instantly surrounded by the enemy: they tried to force the door, +they were provoked by a discharge of arrows from the roof, till at +length, impatient of delay, they set fire to a pile of dry fagots, +and consumed the cottage with the Roman emperor and his train. Valens +perished in the flames; and a youth, who dropped from the window, alone +escaped, to attest the melancholy tale, and to inform the Goths of the +inestimable prize which they had lost by their own rashness. A great +number of brave and distinguished officers perished in the battle of +Hadrianople, which equalled in the actual loss, and far surpassed in the +fatal consequences, the misfortune which Rome had formerly sustained in +the fields of Cannae. Two master-generals of the cavalry and infantry, +two great officers of the palace, and thirty-five tribunes, were found +among the slain; and the death of Sebastian might satisfy the world, +that he was the victim, as well as the author, of the public calamity. +Above two thirds of the Roman army were destroyed: and the darkness of +the night was esteemed a very favorable circumstance, as it served to +conceal the flight of the multitude, and to protect the more orderly +retreat of Victor and Richomer, who alone, amidst the general +consternation, maintained the advantage of calm courage and regular +discipline. + +While the impressions of grief and terror were still recent in the minds +of men, the most celebrated rhetorician of the age composed the funeral +oration of a vanquished army, and of an unpopular prince, whose throne +was already occupied by a stranger. "There are not wanting," says the +candid Libanius, "those who arraign the prudence of the emperor, or who +impute the public misfortune to the want of courage and discipline in +the troops. For my own part, I reverence the memory of their former +exploits: I reverence the glorious death, which they bravely received, +standing, and fighting in their ranks: I reverence the field of battle, +stained with their blood, and the blood of the Barbarians. Those +honorable marks have been already washed away by the rains; but the +lofty monuments of their bones, the bones of generals, of centurions, +and of valiant warriors, claim a longer period of duration. The king +himself fought and fell in the foremost ranks of the battle. His +attendants presented him with the fleetest horses of the Imperial +stable, that would soon have carried him beyond the pursuit of the +enemy. They vainly pressed him to reserve his important life for the +future service of the republic. He still declared that he was unworthy +to survive so many of the bravest and most faithful of his subjects; and +the monarch was nobly buried under a mountain of the slain. Let none, +therefore, presume to ascribe the victory of the Barbarians to the fear, +the weakness, or the imprudence, of the Roman troops. The chiefs and +the soldiers were animated by the virtue of their ancestors, whom they +equalled in discipline and the arts of war. Their generous emulation was +supported by the love of glory, which prompted them to contend at the +same time with heat and thirst, with fire and the sword; and cheerfully +to embrace an honorable death, as their refuge against flight and +infamy. The indignation of the gods has been the only cause of the +success of our enemies." The truth of history may disclaim some parts of +this panegyric, which cannot strictly be reconciled with the character +of Valens, or the circumstances of the battle: but the fairest +commendation is due to the eloquence, and still more to the generosity, +of the sophist of Antioch. + +The pride of the Goths was elated by this memorable victory; but their +avarice was disappointed by the mortifying discovery, that the richest +part of the Imperial spoil had been within the walls of Hadrianople. +They hastened to possess the reward of their valor; but they were +encountered by the remains of a vanquished army, with an intrepid +resolution, which was the effect of their despair, and the only hope of +their safety. The walls of the city, and the ramparts of the adjacent +camp, were lined with military engines, that threw stones of an enormous +weight; and astonished the ignorant Barbarians by the noise, and +velocity, still more than by the real effects, of the discharge. The +soldiers, the citizens, the provincials, the domestics of the palace, +were united in the danger, and in the defence: the furious assault of +the Goths was repulsed; their secret arts of treachery and treason were +discovered; and, after an obstinate conflict of many hours, they retired +to their tents; convinced, by experience, that it would be far more +advisable to observe the treaty, which their sagacious leader had +tacitly stipulated with the fortifications of great and populous cities. +After the hasty and impolitic massacre of three hundred deserters, an +act of justice extremely useful to the discipline of the Roman armies, +the Goths indignantly raised the siege of Hadrianople. The scene of war +and tumult was instantly converted into a silent solitude: the multitude +suddenly disappeared; the secret paths of the woods and mountains were +marked with the footsteps of the trembling fugitives, who sought +a refuge in the distant cities of Illyricum and Macedonia; and the +faithful officers of the household, and the treasury, cautiously +proceeded in search of the emperor, of whose death they were still +ignorant. The tide of the Gothic inundation rolled from the walls +of Hadrianople to the suburbs of Constantinople. The Barbarians were +surprised with the splendid appearance of the capital of the East, the +height and extent of the walls, the myriads of wealthy and affrighted +citizens who crowded the ramparts, and the various prospect of the sea +and land. While they gazed with hopeless desire on the inaccessible +beauties of Constantinople, a sally was made from one of the gates by +a party of Saracens, who had been fortunately engaged in the service +of Valens. The cavalry of Scythia was forced to yield to the admirable +swiftness and spirit of the Arabian horses: their riders were skilled +in the evolutions of irregular war; and the Northern Barbarians were +astonished and dismayed, by the inhuman ferocity of the Barbarians of +the South. A Gothic soldier was slain by the dagger of an Arab; and the +hairy, naked savage, applying his lips to the wound, expressed a horrid +delight, while he sucked the blood of his vanquished enemy. The army of +the Goths, laden with the spoils of the wealthy suburbs and the adjacent +territory, slowly moved, from the Bosphorus, to the mountains which form +the western boundary of Thrace. The important pass of Succi was betrayed +by the fear, or the misconduct, of Maurus; and the Barbarians, who no +longer had any resistance to apprehend from the scattered and vanquished +troops of the East, spread themselves over the face of a fertile and +cultivated country, as far as the confines of Italy and the Hadriatic +Sea. + +The Romans, who so coolly, and so concisely, mention the acts of justice +which were exercised by the legions, reserve their compassion, and their +eloquence, for their own sufferings, when the provinces were invaded, +and desolated, by the arms of the successful Barbarians. The simple +circumstantial narrative (did such a narrative exist) of the ruin of +a single town, of the misfortunes of a single family, might exhibit an +interesting and instructive picture of human manners: but the tedious +repetition of vague and declamatory complaints would fatigue the +attention of the most patient reader. The same censure may be applied, +though not perhaps in an equal degree, to the profane, and the +ecclesiastical, writers of this unhappy period; that their minds were +inflamed by popular and religious animosity; and that the true size and +color of every object is falsified by the exaggerations of their corrupt +eloquence. The vehement Jerom might justly deplore the calamities +inflicted by the Goths, and their barbarous allies, on his native +country of Pannonia, and the wide extent of the provinces, from the +walls of Constantinople to the foot of the Julian Alps; the rapes, the +massacres, the conflagrations; and, above all, the profanation of the +churches, that were turned into stables, and the contemptuous treatment +of the relics of holy martyrs. But the Saint is surely transported +beyond the limits of nature and history, when he affirms, "that, in +those desert countries, nothing was left except the sky and the earth; +that, after the destruction of the cities, and the extirpation of the +human race, the land was overgrown with thick forests and inextricable +brambles; and that the universal desolation, announced by the prophet +Zephaniah, was accomplished, in the scarcity of the beasts, the birds, +and even of the fish." These complaints were pronounced about twenty +years after the death of Valens; and the Illyrian provinces, which were +constantly exposed to the invasion and passage of the Barbarians, still +continued, after a calamitous period of ten centuries, to supply new +materials for rapine and destruction. Could it even be supposed, that +a large tract of country had been left without cultivation and without +inhabitants, the consequences might not have been so fatal to the +inferior productions of animated nature. The useful and feeble animals, +which are nourished by the hand of man, might suffer and perish, if +they were deprived of his protection; but the beasts of the forest, +his enemies or his victims, would multiply in the free and undisturbed +possession of their solitary domain. The various tribes that people the +air, or the waters, are still less connected with the fate of the human +species; and it is highly probable that the fish of the Danube would +have felt more terror and distress, from the approach of a voracious +pike, than from the hostile inroad of a Gothic army. + + + +Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.--Part V. + +Whatever may have been the just measure of the calamities of Europe, +there was reason to fear that the same calamities would soon extend +to the peaceful countries of Asia. The sons of the Goths had been +judiciously distributed through the cities of the East; and the arts of +education were employed to polish, and subdue, the native fierceness +of their temper. In the space of about twelve years, their numbers had +continually increased; and the children, who, in the first emigration, +were sent over the Hellespont, had attained, with rapid growth, the +strength and spirit of perfect manhood. It was impossible to conceal +from their knowledge the events of the Gothic war; and, as those daring +youths had not studied the language of dissimulation, they betrayed +their wish, their desire, perhaps their intention, to emulate the +glorious example of their fathers The danger of the times seemed to +justify the jealous suspicions of the provincials; and these suspicions +were admitted as unquestionable evidence, that the Goths of Asia had +formed a secret and dangerous conspiracy against the public safety. The +death of Valens had left the East without a sovereign; and Julius, who +filled the important station of master-general of the troops, with a +high reputation of diligence and ability, thought it his duty to consult +the senate of Constantinople; which he considered, during the vacancy of +the throne, as the representative council of the nation. As soon as he +had obtained the discretionary power of acting as he should judge most +expedient for the good of the republic, he assembled the principal +officers, and privately concerted effectual measures for the execution +of his bloody design. An order was immediately promulgated, that, on a +stated day, the Gothic youth should assemble in the capital cities +of their respective provinces; and, as a report was industriously +circulated, that they were summoned to receive a liberal gift of lands +and money, the pleasing hope allayed the fury of their resentment, and, +perhaps, suspended the motions of the conspiracy. On the appointed day, +the unarmed crowd of the Gothic youth was carefully collected in the +square or Forum; the streets and avenues were occupied by the Roman +troops, and the roofs of the houses were covered with archers and +slingers. At the same hour, in all the cities of the East, the signal +was given of indiscriminate slaughter; and the provinces of Asia were +delivered by the cruel prudence of Julius, from a domestic enemy, who, +in a few months, might have carried fire and sword from the Hellespont +to the Euphrates. The urgent consideration of the public safety may +undoubtedly authorize the violation of every positive law. How far +that, or any other, consideration may operate to dissolve the natural +obligations of humanity and justice, is a doctrine of which I still +desire to remain ignorant. + +The emperor Gratian was far advanced on his march towards the plains +of Hadrianople, when he was informed, at first by the confused voice +of fame, and afterwards by the more accurate reports of Victor and +Richomer, that his impatient colleague had been slain in battle, and +that two thirds of the Roman army were exterminated by the sword of the +victorious Goths. Whatever resentment the rash and jealous vanity of his +uncle might deserve, the resentment of a generous mind is easily subdued +by the softer emotions of grief and compassion; and even the sense of +pity was soon lost in the serious and alarming consideration of the +state of the republic. Gratian was too late to assist, he was too weak +to revenge, his unfortunate colleague; and the valiant and modest youth +felt himself unequal to the support of a sinking world. A formidable +tempest of the Barbarians of Germany seemed ready to burst over the +provinces of Gaul; and the mind of Gratian was oppressed and distracted +by the administration of the Western empire. In this important crisis, +the government of the East, and the conduct of the Gothic war, required +the undivided attention of a hero and a statesman. A subject invested +with such ample command would not long have preserved his fidelity to a +distant benefactor; and the Imperial council embraced the wise and manly +resolution of conferring an obligation, rather than of yielding to an +insult. It was the wish of Gratian to bestow the purple as the reward +of virtue; but, at the age of nineteen, it is not easy for a prince, +educated in the supreme rank, to understand the true characters of his +ministers and generals. He attempted to weigh, with an impartial hand, +their various merits and defects; and, whilst he checked the rash +confidence of ambition, he distrusted the cautious wisdom which +despaired of the republic. As each moment of delay diminished something +of the power and resources of the future sovereign of the East, the +situation of the times would not allow a tedious debate. The choice of +Gratian was soon declared in favor of an exile, whose father, only three +years before, had suffered, under the sanction of his authority, an +unjust and ignominious death. The great Theodosius, a name celebrated in +history, and dear to the Catholic church, was summoned to the Imperial +court, which had gradually retreated from the confines of Thrace to the +more secure station of Sirmium. Five months after the death of Valens, +the emperor Gratian produced before the assembled troops his colleague +and their master; who, after a modest, perhaps a sincere, resistance, +was compelled to accept, amidst the general acclamations, the diadem, +the purple, and the equal title of Augustus. The provinces of Thrace, +Asia, and Egypt, over which Valens had reigned, were resigned to the +administration of the new emperor; but, as he was specially intrusted +with the conduct of the Gothic war, the Illyrian praefecture was +dismembered; and the two great dioceses of Dacia and Macedonia were +added to the dominions of the Eastern empire. + +The same province, and perhaps the same city, which had given to the +throne the virtues of Trajan, and the talents of Hadrian, was the +original seat of another family of Spaniards, who, in a less fortunate +age, possessed, near fourscore years, the declining empire of Rome. They +emerged from the obscurity of municipal honors by the active spirit of +the elder Theodosius, a general whose exploits in Britain and Africa +have formed one of the most splendid parts of the annals of Valentinian. +The son of that general, who likewise bore the name of Theodosius, was +educated, by skilful preceptors, in the liberal studies of youth; but +he was instructed in the art of war by the tender care and severe +discipline of his father. Under the standard of such a leader, young +Theodosius sought glory and knowledge, in the most distant scenes of +military action; inured his constitution to the difference of seasons +and climates; distinguished his valor by sea and land; and observed the +various warfare of the Scots, the Saxons, and the Moors. His own merit, +and the recommendation of the conqueror of Africa, soon raised him to a +separate command; and, in the station of Duke of Maesia, he vanquished +an army of Sarmatians; saved the province; deserved the love of the +soldiers; and provoked the envy of the court. His rising fortunes were +soon blasted by the disgrace and execution of his illustrious father; +and Theodosius obtained, as a favor, the permission of retiring to a +private life in his native province of Spain. He displayed a firm and +temperate character in the ease with which he adapted himself to this +new situation. His time was almost equally divided between the town and +country; the spirit, which had animated his public conduct, was shown +in the active and affectionate performance of every social duty; and the +diligence of the soldier was profitably converted to the improvement of +his ample patrimony, which lay between Valladolid and Segovia, in the +midst of a fruitful district, still famous for a most exquisite breed of +sheep. From the innocent, but humble labors of his farm, Theodosius +was transported, in less than four months, to the throne of the Eastern +empire; and the whole period of the history of the world will not +perhaps afford a similar example, of an elevation at the same time so +pure and so honorable. The princes who peaceably inherit the sceptre of +their fathers, claim and enjoy a legal right, the more secure as it is +absolutely distinct from the merits of their personal characters. The +subjects, who, in a monarchy, or a popular state, acquire the possession +of supreme power, may have raised themselves, by the superiority either +of genius or virtue, above the heads of their equals; but their +virtue is seldom exempt from ambition; and the cause of the successful +candidate is frequently stained by the guilt of conspiracy, or civil +war. Even in those governments which allow the reigning monarch to +declare a colleague or a successor, his partial choice, which may be +influenced by the blindest passions, is often directed to an unworthy +object But the most suspicious malignity cannot ascribe to Theodosius, +in his obscure solitude of Caucha, the arts, the desires, or even the +hopes, of an ambitious statesman; and the name of the Exile would long +since have been forgotten, if his genuine and distinguished virtues had +not left a deep impression in the Imperial court. During the season +of prosperity, he had been neglected; but, in the public distress, his +superior merit was universally felt and acknowledged. What confidence +must have been reposed in his integrity, since Gratian could trust, that +a pious son would forgive, for the sake of the republic, the murder of +his father! What expectations must have been formed of his abilities +to encourage the hope, that a single man could save, and restore, the +empire of the East! Theodosius was invested with the purple in the +thirty-third year of his age. The vulgar gazed with admiration on the +manly beauty of his face, and the graceful majesty of his person, which +they were pleased to compare with the pictures and medals of the emperor +Trajan; whilst intelligent observers discovered, in the qualities of his +heart and understanding, a more important resemblance to the best and +greatest of the Roman princes. + +It is not without the most sincere regret, that I must now take leave of +an accurate and faithful guide, who has composed the history of his +own times, without indulging the prejudices and passions, which usually +affect the mind of a contemporary. Ammianus Marcellinus, who terminates +his useful work with the defeat and death of Valens, recommends the +more glorious subject of the ensuing reign to the youthful vigor and +eloquence of the rising generation. The rising generation was not +disposed to accept his advice or to imitate his example; and, in the +study of the reign of Theodosius, we are reduced to illustrate the +partial narrative of Zosimus, by the obscure hints of fragments and +chronicles, by the figurative style of poetry or panegyric, and by the +precarious assistance of the ecclesiastical writers, who, in the heat of +religious faction, are apt to despise the profane virtues of sincerity +and moderation. Conscious of these disadvantages, which will continue +to involve a considerable portion of the decline and fall of the Roman +empire, I shall proceed with doubtful and timorous steps. Yet I may +boldly pronounce, that the battle of Hadrianople was never revenged by +any signal or decisive victory of Theodosius over the Barbarians: and +the expressive silence of his venal orators may be confirmed by the +observation of the condition and circumstances of the times. The fabric +of a mighty state, which has been reared by the labors of successive +ages, could not be overturned by the misfortune of a single day, if the +fatal power of the imagination did not exaggerate the real measure of +the calamity. The loss of forty thousand Romans, who fell in the plains +of Hadrianople, might have been soon recruited in the populous provinces +of the East, which contained so many millions of inhabitants. The +courage of a soldier is found to be the cheapest, and most common, +quality of human nature; and sufficient skill to encounter an +undisciplined foe might have been speedily taught by the care of the +surviving centurions. If the Barbarians were mounted on the horses, and +equipped with the armor, of their vanquished enemies, the numerous studs +of Cappadocia and Spain would have supplied new squadrons of cavalry; +the thirty-four arsenals of the empire were plentifully stored with +magazines of offensive and defensive arms: and the wealth of Asia might +still have yielded an ample fund for the expenses of the war. But the +effects which were produced by the battle of Hadrianople on the minds +of the Barbarians and of the Romans, extended the victory of the former, +and the defeat of the latter, far beyond the limits of a single day. A +Gothic chief was heard to declare, with insolent moderation, that, for +his own part, he was fatigued with slaughter: but that he was astonished +how a people, who fled before him like a flock of sheep, could still +presume to dispute the possession of their treasures and provinces. +The same terrors which the name of the Huns had spread among the Gothic +tribes, were inspired, by the formidable name of the Goths, among +the subjects and soldiers of the Roman empire. If Theodosius, hastily +collecting his scattered forces, had led them into the field to +encounter a victorious enemy, his army would have been vanquished by +their own fears; and his rashness could not have been excused by +the chance of success. But the great Theodosius, an epithet which he +honorably deserved on this momentous occasion, conducted himself as the +firm and faithful guardian of the republic. He fixed his head-quarters +at Thessalonica, the capital of the Macedonian diocese; from whence +he could watch the irregular motions of the Barbarians, and direct the +operations of his lieutenants, from the gates of Constantinople to the +shores of the Hadriatic. The fortifications and garrisons of the cities +were strengthened; and the troops, among whom a sense of order and +discipline was revived, were insensibly emboldened by the confidence of +their own safety. From these secure stations, they were encouraged +to make frequent sallies on the Barbarians, who infested the adjacent +country; and, as they were seldom allowed to engage, without some +decisive superiority, either of ground or of numbers, their enterprises +were, for the most part, successful; and they were soon convinced, by +their own experience, of the possibility of vanquishing their invincible +enemies. The detachments of these separate garrisons were generally +united into small armies; the same cautious measures were pursued, +according to an extensive and well-concerted plan of operations; the +events of each day added strength and spirit to the Roman arms; and +the artful diligence of the emperor, who circulated the most favorable +reports of the success of the war, contributed to subdue the pride of +the Barbarians, and to animate the hopes and courage of his subjects. +If, instead of this faint and imperfect outline, we could accurately +represent the counsels and actions of Theodosius, in four successive +campaigns, there is reason to believe, that his consummate skill would +deserve the applause of every military reader. The republic had formerly +been saved by the delays of Fabius; and, while the splendid trophies of +Scipio, in the field of Zama, attract the eyes of posterity, the camps +and marches of the dictator among the hills of the Campania, may claim +a juster proportion of the solid and independent fame, which the general +is not compelled to share, either with fortune or with his troops. Such +was likewise the merit of Theodosius; and the infirmities of his body, +which most unseasonably languished under a long and dangerous disease, +could not oppress the vigor of his mind, or divert his attention from +the public service. + +The deliverance and peace of the Roman provinces was the work of +prudence, rather than of valor: the prudence of Theodosius was seconded +by fortune: and the emperor never failed to seize, and to improve, every +favorable circumstance. As long as the superior genius of Fritigern +preserved the union, and directed the motions of the Barbarians, their +power was not inadequate to the conquest of a great empire. The death of +that hero, the predecessor and master of the renowned Alaric, relieved +an impatient multitude from the intolerable yoke of discipline and +discretion. The Barbarians, who had been restrained by his authority, +abandoned themselves to the dictates of their passions; and their +passions were seldom uniform or consistent. An army of conquerors was +broken into many disorderly bands of savage robbers; and their blind +and irregular fury was not less pernicious to themselves, than to their +enemies. Their mischievous disposition was shown in the destruction of +every object which they wanted strength to remove, or taste to enjoy; +and they often consumed, with improvident rage, the harvests, or +the granaries, which soon afterwards became necessary for their own +subsistence. A spirit of discord arose among the independent tribes +and nations, which had been united only by the bands of a loose and +voluntary alliance. The troops of the Huns and the Alani would naturally +upbraid the flight of the Goths; who were not disposed to use with +moderation the advantages of their fortune; the ancient jealousy of +the Ostrogoths and the Visigoths could not long be suspended; and the +haughty chiefs still remembered the insults and injuries, which they had +reciprocally offered, or sustained, while the nation was seated in the +countries beyond the Danube. The progress of domestic faction abated +the more diffusive sentiment of national animosity; and the officers of +Theodosius were instructed to purchase, with liberal gifts and promises, +the retreat or service of the discontented party. The acquisition +of Modar, a prince of the royal blood of the Amali, gave a bold and +faithful champion to the cause of Rome. The illustrious deserter +soon obtained the rank of master-general, with an important command; +surprised an army of his countrymen, who were immersed in wine and +sleep; and, after a cruel slaughter of the astonished Goths, returned +with an immense spoil, and four thousand wagons, to the Imperial camp. +In the hands of a skilful politician, the most different means may be +successfully applied to the same ends; and the peace of the empire, +which had been forwarded by the divisions, was accomplished by the +reunion, of the Gothic nation. Athanaric, who had been a patient +spectator of these extraordinary events, was at length driven, by the +chance of arms, from the dark recesses of the woods of Caucaland. He no +longer hesitated to pass the Danube; and a very considerable part of the +subjects of Fritigern, who already felt the inconveniences of anarchy, +were easily persuaded to acknowledge for their king a Gothic Judge, +whose birth they respected, and whose abilities they had frequently +experienced. But age had chilled the daring spirit of Athanaric; and, +instead of leading his people to the field of battle and victory, he +wisely listened to the fair proposal of an honorable and advantageous +treaty. Theodosius, who was acquainted with the merit and power of his +new ally, condescended to meet him at the distance of several miles +from Constantinople; and entertained him in the Imperial city, with +the confidence of a friend, and the magnificence of a monarch. "The +Barbarian prince observed, with curious attention, the variety of +objects which attracted his notice, and at last broke out into a sincere +and passionate exclamation of wonder. I now behold (said he) what I +never could believe, the glories of this stupendous capital! And as +he cast his eyes around, he viewed, and he admired, the commanding +situation of the city, the strength and beauty of the walls and public +edifices, the capacious harbor, crowded with innumerable vessels, the +perpetual concourse of distant nations, and the arms and discipline of +the troops. Indeed, (continued Athanaric,) the emperor of the Romans is +a god upon earth; and the presumptuous man, who dares to lift his hand +against him, is guilty of his own blood." The Gothic king did not long +enjoy this splendid and honorable reception; and, as temperance was not +the virtue of his nation, it may justly be suspected, that his mortal +disease was contracted amidst the pleasures of the Imperial banquets. +But the policy of Theodosius derived more solid benefit from the death, +than he could have expected from the most faithful services, of his +ally. The funeral of Athanaric was performed with solemn rites in the +capital of the East; a stately monument was erected to his memory; +and his whole army, won by the liberal courtesy, and decent grief, +of Theodosius, enlisted under the standard of the Roman empire. The +submission of so great a body of the Visigoths was productive of the +most salutary consequences; and the mixed influence of force, of reason, +and of corruption, became every day more powerful, and more extensive. +Each independent chieftain hastened to obtain a separate treaty, from +the apprehension that an obstinate delay might expose him, alone and +unprotected, to the revenge, or justice, of the conqueror. The general, +or rather the final, capitulation of the Goths, may be dated four years, +one month, and twenty-five days, after the defeat and death of the +emperor Valens. + +The provinces of the Danube had been already relieved from the +oppressive weight of the Gruthungi, or Ostrogoths, by the voluntary +retreat of Alatheus and Saphrax, whose restless spirit had prompted them +to seek new scenes of rapine and glory. Their destructive course was +pointed towards the West; but we must be satisfied with a very obscure +and imperfect knowledge of their various adventures. The Ostrogoths +impelled several of the German tribes on the provinces of Gaul; +concluded, and soon violated, a treaty with the emperor Gratian; +advanced into the unknown countries of the North; and, after an interval +of more than four years, returned, with accumulated force, to the banks +of the Lower Danube. Their troops were recruited with the fiercest +warriors of Germany and Scythia; and the soldiers, or at least +the historians, of the empire, no longer recognized the name and +countenances of their former enemies. The general who commanded the +military and naval powers of the Thracian frontier, soon perceived that +his superiority would be disadvantageous to the public service; and that +the Barbarians, awed by the presence of his fleet and legions, would +probably defer the passage of the river till the approaching winter. The +dexterity of the spies, whom he sent into the Gothic camp, allured +the Barbarians into a fatal snare. They were persuaded that, by a bold +attempt, they might surprise, in the silence and darkness of the night, +the sleeping army of the Romans; and the whole multitude was hastily +embarked in a fleet of three thousand canoes. The bravest of the +Ostrogoths led the van; the main body consisted of the remainder +of their subjects and soldiers; and the women and children securely +followed in the rear. One of the nights without a moon had been selected +for the execution of their design; and they had almost reached the +southern bank of the Danube, in the firm confidence that they should +find an easy landing and an unguarded camp. But the progress of the +Barbarians was suddenly stopped by an unexpected obstacle a triple line +of vessels, strongly connected with each other, and which formed an +impenetrable chain of two miles and a half along the river. While they +struggled to force their way in the unequal conflict, their right flank +was overwhelmed by the irresistible attack of a fleet of galleys, which +were urged down the stream by the united impulse of oars and of the +tide. The weight and velocity of those ships of war broke, and sunk, and +dispersed, the rude and feeble canoes of the Barbarians; their valor +was ineffectual; and Alatheus, the king, or general, of the Ostrogoths, +perished with his bravest troops, either by the sword of the Romans, or +in the waves of the Danube. The last division of this unfortunate fleet +might regain the opposite shore; but the distress and disorder of the +multitude rendered them alike incapable, either of action or counsel; +and they soon implored the clemency of the victorious enemy. On this +occasion, as well as on many others, it is a difficult task to reconcile +the passions and prejudices of the writers of the age of Theodosius. The +partial and malignant historian, who misrepresents every action of his +reign, affirms, that the emperor did not appear in the field of battle +till the Barbarians had been vanquished by the valor and conduct of his +lieutenant Promotus. The flattering poet, who celebrated, in the court +of Honorius, the glory of the father and of the son, ascribes the +victory to the personal prowess of Theodosius; and almost insinuates, +that the king of the Ostrogoths was slain by the hand of the emperor. +The truth of history might perhaps be found in a just medium between +these extreme and contradictory assertions. + +The original treaty which fixed the settlement of the Goths, ascertained +their privileges, and stipulated their obligations, would illustrate the +history of Theodosius and his successors. The series of their history +has imperfectly preserved the spirit and substance of this single +agreement. The ravages of war and tyranny had provided many large tracts +of fertile but uncultivated land for the use of those Barbarians who +might not disdain the practice of agriculture. A numerous colony of +the Visigoths was seated in Thrace; the remains of the Ostrogoths were +planted in Phrygia and Lydia; their immediate wants were supplied by +a distribution of corn and cattle; and their future industry was +encouraged by an exemption from tribute, during a certain term of years. +The Barbarians would have deserved to feel the cruel and perfidious +policy of the Imperial court, if they had suffered themselves to be +dispersed through the provinces. They required, and they obtained, +the sole possession of the villages and districts assigned for their +residence; they still cherished and propagated their native manners +and language; asserted, in the bosom of despotism, the freedom of their +domestic government; and acknowledged the sovereignty of the emperor, +without submitting to the inferior jurisdiction of the laws and +magistrates of Rome. The hereditary chiefs of the tribes and families +were still permitted to command their followers in peace and war; but +the royal dignity was abolished; and the generals of the Goths were +appointed and removed at the pleasure of the emperor. An army of forty +thousand Goths was maintained for the perpetual service of the empire of +the East; and those haughty troops, who assumed the title of Federati, +or allies, were distinguished by their gold collars, liberal pay, and +licentious privileges. Their native courage was improved by the use +of arms and the knowledge of discipline; and, while the republic was +guarded, or threatened, by the doubtful sword of the Barbarians, the +last sparks of the military flame were finally extinguished in the minds +of the Romans. Theodosius had the address to persuade his allies, that +the conditions of peace, which had been extorted from him by prudence +and necessity, were the voluntary expressions of his sincere friendship +for the Gothic nation. A different mode of vindication or apology was +opposed to the complaints of the people; who loudly censured these +shameful and dangerous concessions. The calamities of the war were +painted in the most lively colors; and the first symptoms of the return +of order, of plenty, and security, were diligently exaggerated. The +advocates of Theodosius could affirm, with some appearance of truth and +reason, that it was impossible to extirpate so many warlike tribes, who +were rendered desperate by the loss of their native country; and that +the exhausted provinces would be revived by a fresh supply of soldiers +and husbandmen. The Barbarians still wore an angry and hostile aspect; +but the experience of past times might encourage the hope, that they +would acquire the habits of industry and obedience; that their manners +would be polished by time, education, and the influence of Christianity; +and that their posterity would insensibly blend with the great body of +the Roman people. + +Notwithstanding these specious arguments, and these sanguine +expectations, it was apparent to every discerning eye, that the Goths +would long remain the enemies, and might soon become the conquerors +of the Roman empire. Their rude and insolent behavior expressed their +contempt of the citizens and provincials, whom they insulted with +impunity. To the zeal and valor of the Barbarians Theodosius was +indebted for the success of his arms: but their assistance was +precarious; and they were sometimes seduced, by a treacherous and +inconstant disposition, to abandon his standard, at the moment when +their service was the most essential. During the civil war against +Maximus, a great number of Gothic deserters retired into the morasses +of Macedonia, wasted the adjacent provinces, and obliged the intrepid +monarch to expose his person, and exert his power, to suppress the +rising flame of rebellion. The public apprehensions were fortified +by the strong suspicion, that these tumults were not the effect of +accidental passion, but the result of deep and premeditated design. It +was generally believed, that the Goths had signed the treaty of +peace with a hostile and insidious spirit; and that their chiefs had +previously bound themselves, by a solemn and secret oath, never to +keep faith with the Romans; to maintain the fairest show of loyalty and +friendship, and to watch the favorable moment of rapine, of conquest, +and of revenge. But as the minds of the Barbarians were not insensible +to the power of gratitude, several of the Gothic leaders sincerely +devoted themselves to the service of the empire, or, at least, of the +emperor; the whole nation was insensibly divided into two opposite +factions, and much sophistry was employed in conversation and dispute, +to compare the obligations of their first, and second, engagements. The +Goths, who considered themselves as the friends of peace, of justice, +and of Rome, were directed by the authority of Fravitta, a valiant and +honorable youth, distinguished above the rest of his countrymen by the +politeness of his manners, the liberality of his sentiments, and the +mild virtues of social life. But the more numerous faction adhered +to the fierce and faithless Priulf, * who inflamed the passions, and +asserted the independence, of his warlike followers. On one of the +solemn festivals, when the chiefs of both parties were invited to the +Imperial table, they were insensibly heated by wine, till they forgot +the usual restraints of discretion and respect, and betrayed, in the +presence of Theodosius, the fatal secret of their domestic disputes. +The emperor, who had been the reluctant witness of this extraordinary +controversy, dissembled his fears and resentment, and soon dismissed the +tumultuous assembly. Fravitta, alarmed and exasperated by the insolence +of his rival, whose departure from the palace might have been the signal +of a civil war, boldly followed him; and, drawing his sword, laid +Priulf dead at his feet. Their companions flew to arms; and the faithful +champion of Rome would have been oppressed by superior numbers, if he +had not been protected by the seasonable interposition of the Imperial +guards. Such were the scenes of Barbaric rage, which disgraced the +palace and table of the Roman emperor; and, as the impatient Goths could +only be restrained by the firm and temperate character of Theodosius, +the public safety seemed to depend on the life and abilities of a single +man. End of Vol. 2 + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The History of The Decline and Fall of +the Roman Empire, by Edward Gibbon + +*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK DECLINE AND FALL OF THE ROMAN EMPIRE *** + +***** This file should be named 891.txt or 891.zip ***** +This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: + http://www.gutenberg.org/8/9/891/ + +Produced by David Reed and Dale R. Fredrickson + +Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions +will be renamed. + +Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no +one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation +(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without +permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, +set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to +copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to +protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. 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If you</p> + +<p>don't derive profits, no royalty is due. Royalties are</p> + +<p>payable to "Project Gutenberg Association/Carnegie-Mellon</p> + +<p>University" within the 60 days following each</p> + +<p>date you prepare (or were legally required to prepare)</p> + +<p>your annual (or equivalent periodic) tax return.<br> +</p> + +<p>WHAT IF YOU *WANT* TO SEND MONEY EVEN IF YOU DON'T HAVE +TO?</p> + +<p>The Project gratefully accepts contributions in money, +time,</p> + +<p>scanning machines, OCR software, public domain etexts, +royalty</p> + +<p>free copyright licenses, and every other sort of +contribution</p> + +<p>you can think of. Money should be paid to "Project +Gutenberg</p> + +<p>Association / Carnegie-Mellon University".<br> +</p> + +<p>*END*THE SMALL PRINT! FOR PUBLIC DOMAIN +ETEXTS*Ver.04.29.93*END*<br> +<br> +<br> +<br> +</p> + +<p>This is volume two of the six volumes of Edward Gibbon's +History Of The Decline And Fall Of The Roman Empire. If you find +any errors please feel free to notify me of them. I want to make +this the best etext edition possible for both scholars and the +general public. I would like to thank those who have helped in +making this text better. Especially Dale R. Fredrickson who has +hand entered the Greek characters in the footnotes and who has +suggested retaining the conjoined ae character in the text. +Haradda@aol.com and davidr@inconnect.com are my email addresses +for now. Please feel free to send me your comments and I hope you +enjoy this.<br> +</p> + +<p>David Reed<br> +</p> + +<p align="center"><strong>History Of The Decline And Fall Of The +Roman Empire</strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Edward Gibbon, Esq.</p> + +<p>With notes by the Rev. H. H. Milman</p> + +<p>Vol. 2</p> + +<p>1782 (Written), 1845 (Revised)<br> +</p> + +<p><strong>Chapter XVI * Conduct Towards The Christians, From +Nero To Constantine.</strong></p> + +<p><strong><em>Part I.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The Conduct Of The Roman Government Towards The Christians, +From The Reign Of Nero To That Of Constantine.<br> +</p> + +<p>If we seriously consider the purity of the Christian religion, +the sanctity of its moral precepts, and the innocent as well as +austere lives of the greater number of those who during the first +ages embraced the faith of the gospel, we should naturally +suppose, that so benevolent a doctrine would have been received +with due reverence, even by the unbelieving world; that the +learned and the polite, however they may deride the miracles, +would have esteemed the virtues, of the new sect; and that the +magistrates, instead of persecuting, would have protected an +order of men who yielded the most passive obedience to the laws, +though they declined the active cares of war and government. If, +on the other hand, we recollect the universal toleration of +Polytheism, as it was invariably maintained by the faith of the +people, the incredulity of philosophers, and the policy of the +Roman senate and emperors, we are at a loss to discover what new +offence the Christians had committed, what new provocation could +exasperate the mild indifference of antiquity, and what new +motives could urge the Roman princes, who beheld without concern +a thousand forms of religion subsisting in peace under their +gentle sway, to inflict a severe punishment on any part of their +subjects, who had chosen for themselves a singular but an +inoffensive mode of faith and worship.<br> +</p> + +<p>The religious policy of the ancient world seems to have +assumed a more stern and intolerant character, to oppose the +progress of Christianity. About fourscore years after the death +of Christ, his innocent disciples were punished with death by the +sentence of a proconsul of the most amiable and philosophic +character, and according to the laws of an emperor distinguished +by the wisdom and justice of his general administration. The +apologies which were repeatedly addressed to the successors of +Trajan are filled with the most pathetic complaints, that the +Christians, who obeyed the dictates, and solicited the liberty, +of conscience, were alone, among all the subjects of the Roman +empire, excluded from the common benefits of their auspicious +government. The deaths of a few eminent martyrs have been +recorded with care; and from the time that Christianity was +invested with the supreme power, the governors of the church have +been no less diligently employed in displaying the cruelty, than +in imitating the conduct, of their Pagan adversaries. To separate +(if it be possible) a few authentic as well as interesting facts +from an undigested mass of fiction and error, and to relate, in a +clear and rational manner, the causes, the extent, the duration, +and the most important circumstances of the persecutions to which +the first Christians were exposed, is the design of the present +chapter. *<br> +</p> + +<p>The sectaries of a persecuted religion, depressed by fear +animated with resentment, and perhaps heated by enthusiasm, are +seldom in a proper temper of mind calmly to investigate, or +candidly to appreciate, the motives of their enemies, which often +escape the impartial and discerning view even of those who are +placed at a secure distance from the flames of persecution. A +reason has been assigned for the conduct of the emperors towards +the primitive Christians, which may appear the more specious and +probable as it is drawn from the acknowledged genius of +Polytheism. It has already been observed, that the religious +concord of the world was principally supported by the implicit +assent and reverence which the nations of antiquity expressed for +their respective traditions and ceremonies. It might therefore be +expected, that they would unite with indignation against any sect +or people which should separate itself from the communion of +mankind, and claiming the exclusive possession of divine +knowledge, should disdain every form of worship, except its own, +as impious and idolatrous. The rights of toleration were held by +mutual indulgence: they were justly forfeited by a refusal of the +accustomed tribute. As the payment of this tribute was inflexibly +refused by the Jews, and by them alone, the consideration of the +treatment which they experienced from the Roman magistrates, will +serve to explain how far these speculations are justified by +facts, and will lead us to discover the true causes of the +persecution of Christianity.<br> +</p> + +<p>Without repeating what has already been mentioned of the +reverence of the Roman princes and governors for the temple of +Jerusalem, we shall only observe, that the destruction of the +temple and city was accompanied and followed by every +circumstance that could exasperate the minds of the conquerors, +and authorize religious persecution by the most specious +arguments of political justice and the public safety. From the +reign of Nero to that of Antoninus Pius, the Jews discovered a +fierce impatience of the dominion of Rome, which repeatedly broke +out in the most furious massacres and insurrections. Humanity is +shocked at the recital of the horrid cruelties which they +committed in the cities of Egypt, of Cyprus, and of Cyrene, where +they dwelt in treacherous friendship with the unsuspecting +natives; and we are tempted to applaud the severe retaliation +which was exercised by the arms of the legions against a race of +fanatics, whose dire and credulous superstition seemed to render +them the implacable enemies not only of the Roman government, but +of human kind. The enthusiasm of the Jews was supported by the +opinion, that it was unlawful for them to pay taxes to an +idolatrous master; and by the flattering promise which they +derived from their ancient oracles, that a conquering Messiah +would soon arise, destined to break their fetters, and to invest +the favorites of heaven with the empire of the earth. It was by +announcing himself as their long-expected deliverer, and by +calling on all the descendants of Abraham to assert the hope of +Isræl, that the famous Barchochebas collected a formidable +army, with which he resisted during two years the power of the +emperor Hadrian.<br> +</p> + +<p>Notwithstanding these repeated provocations, the resentment of +the Roman princes expired after the victory; nor were their +apprehensions continued beyond the period of war and danger. By +the general indulgence of polytheism, and by the mild temper of +Antoninus Pius, the Jews were restored to their ancient +privileges, and once more obtained the permission of circumcising +their children, with the easy restraint, that they should never +confer on any foreign proselyte that distinguishing mark of the +Hebrew race. The numerous remains of that people, though they +were still excluded from the precincts of Jerusalem, were +permitted to form and to maintain considerable establishments +both in Italy and in the provinces, to acquire the freedom of +Rome, to enjoy municipal honors, and to obtain at the same time +an exemption from the burdensome and expensive offices of +society. The moderation or the contempt of the Romans gave a +legal sanction to the form of ecclesiastical police which was +instituted by the vanquished sect. The patriarch, who had fixed +his residence at Tiberias, was empowered to appoint his +subordinate ministers and apostles, to exercise a domestic +jurisdiction, and to receive from his dispersed brethren an +annual contribution. New synagogues were frequently erected in +the principal cities of the empire; and the sabbaths, the fasts, +and the festivals, which were either commanded by the Mosaic law, +or enjoined by the traditions of the Rabbis, were celebrated in +the most solemn and public manner. Such gentle treatment +insensibly assuaged the stern temper of the Jews. Awakened from +their dream of prophecy and conquest, they assumed the behavior +of peaceable and industrious subjects. Their irreconcilable +hatred of mankind, instead of flaming out in acts of blood and +violence, evaporated in less dangerous gratifications. They +embraced every opportunity of overreaching the idolaters in +trade; and they pronounced secret and ambiguous imprecations +against the haughty kingdom of Edom.<br> +</p> + +<p>Since the Jews, who rejected with abhorrence the deities +adored by their sovereign and by their fellow-subjects, enjoyed, +however, the free exercise of their unsocial religion, there must +have existed some other cause, which exposed the disciples of +Christ to those severities from which the posterity of Abraham +was exempt. The difference between them is simple and obvious; +but, according to the sentiments of antiquity, it was of the +highest importance. The Jews were a +<strong><em>nation</em></strong>; the Christians were a +<strong><em>sect</em></strong>: and if it was natural for every +community to respect the sacred institutions of their neighbors, +it was incumbent on them to persevere in those of their +ancestors. The voice of oracles, the precepts of philosophers, +and the authority of the laws, unanimously enforced this national +obligation. By their lofty claim of superior sanctity the Jews +might provoke the Polytheists to consider them as an odious and +impure race. By disdaining the intercourse of other nations, they +might deserve their contempt. The laws of Moses might be for the +most part frivolous or absurd; yet, since they had been received +during many ages by a large society, his followers were justified +by the example of mankind; and it was universally acknowledged, +that they had a right to practise what it would have been +criminal in them to neglect. But this principle, which protected +the Jewish synagogue, afforded not any favor or security to the +primitive church. By embracing the faith of the gospel, the +Christians incurred the supposed guilt of an unnatural and +unpardonable offence. They dissolved the sacred ties of custom +and education, violated the religious institutions of their +country, and presumptuously despised whatever their fathers had +believed as true, or had reverenced as sacred. Nor was this +apostasy (if we may use the expression) merely of a partial or +local kind; since the pious deserter who withdrew himself from +the temples of Egypt or Syria, would equally disdain to seek an +asylum in those of Athens or Carthage. Every Christian rejected +with contempt the superstitions of his family, his city, and his +province. The whole body of Christians unanimously refused to +hold any communion with the gods of Rome, of the empire, and of +mankind. It was in vain that the oppressed believer asserted the +inalienable rights of conscience and private judgment. Though his +situation might excite the pity, his arguments could never reach +the understanding, either of the philosophic or of the believing +part of the Pagan world. To their apprehensions, it was no less a +matter of surprise, that any individuals should entertain +scruples against complying with the established mode of worship, +than if they had conceived a sudden abhorrence to the manners, +the dress, or the language of their native country. *<br> +</p> + +<p>The surprise of the Pagans was soon succeeded by resentment; +and the most pious of men were exposed to the unjust but +dangerous imputation of impiety. Malice and prejudice concurred +in representing the Christians as a society of atheists, who, by +the most daring attack on the religious constitution of the +empire, had merited the severest animadversion of the civil +magistrate. They had separated themselves (they gloried in the +confession) from every mode of superstition which was received in +any part of the globe by the various temper of polytheism: but it +was not altogether so evident what deity, or what form of +worship, they had substituted to the gods and temples of +antiquity. The pure and sublime idea which they entertained of +the Supreme Being escaped the gross conception of the Pagan +multitude, who were at a loss to discover a spiritual and +solitary God, that was neither represented under any corporeal +figure or visible symbol, nor was adored with the accustomed pomp +of libations and festivals, of altars and sacrifices. The sages +of Greece and Rome, who had elevated their minds to the +contemplation of the existence and attributes of the First Cause, +were induced by reason or by vanity to reserve for themselves and +their chosen disciples the privilege of this philosophical +devotion. They were far from admitting the prejudices of mankind +as the standard of truth, but they considered them as flowing +from the original disposition of human nature; and they supposed +that any popular mode of faith and worship which presumed to +disclaim the assistance of the senses, would, in proportion as it +receded from superstition, find itself incapable of restraining +the wanderings of the fancy, and the visions of fanaticism. The +careless glance which men of wit and learning condescended to +cast on the Christian revelation, served only to confirm their +hasty opinion, and to persuade them that the principle, which +they might have revered, of the Divine Unity, was defaced by the +wild enthusiasm, and annihilated by the airy speculations, of the +new sectaries. The author of a celebrated dialogue, which has +been attributed to Lucian, whilst he affects to treat the +mysterious subject of the Trinity in a style of ridicule and +contempt, betrays his own ignorance of the weakness of human +reason, and of the inscrutable nature of the divine +perfections.<br> +</p> + +<p>It might appear less surprising, that the founder of +Christianity should not only be revered by his disciples as a +sage and a prophet, but that he should be adored as a God. The +Polytheists were disposed to adopt every article of faith, which +seemed to offer any resemblance, however distant or imperfect, +with the popular mythology; and the legends of Bacchus, of +Hercules, and of Æsculapius, had, in some measure, prepared +their imagination for the appearance of the Son of God under a +human form. But they were astonished that the Christians should +abandon the temples of those ancient heroes, who, in the infancy +of the world, had invented arts, instituted laws, and vanquished +the tyrants or monsters who infested the earth, in order to +choose for the exclusive object of their religious worship an +obscure teacher, who, in a recent age, and among a barbarous +people, had fallen a sacrifice either to the malice of his own +countrymen, or to the jealousy of the Roman government. The Pagan +multitude, reserving their gratitude for temporal benefits alone, +rejected the inestimable present of life and immortality, which +was offered to mankind by Jesus of Nazareth. His mild constancy +in the midst of cruel and voluntary sufferings, his universal +benevolence, and the sublime simplicity of his actions and +character, were insufficient, in the opinion of those carnal men, +to compensate for the want of fame, of empire, and of success; +and whilst they refused to acknowledge his stupendous triumph +over the powers of darkness and of the grave, they +misrepresented, or they insulted, the equivocal birth, wandering +life, and ignominious death, of the divine Author of +Christianity.<br> +</p> + +<p>The personal guilt which every Christian had contracted, in +thus preferring his private sentiment to the national religion, +was aggravated in a very high degree by the number and union of +the criminals. It is well known, and has been already observed, +that Roman policy viewed with the utmost jealousy and distrust +any association among its subjects; and that the privileges of +private corporations, though formed for the most harmless or +beneficial purposes, were bestowed with a very sparing hand. The +religious assemblies of the Christians who had separated +themselves from the public worship, appeared of a much less +innocent nature; they were illegal in their principle, and in +their consequences might become dangerous; nor were the emperors +conscious that they violated the laws of justice, when, for the +peace of society, they prohibited those secret and sometimes +nocturnal meetings. The pious disobedience of the Christians made +their conduct, or perhaps their designs, appear in a much more +serious and criminal light; and the Roman princes, who might +perhaps have suffered themselves to be disarmed by a ready +submission, deeming their honor concerned in the execution of +their commands, sometimes attempted, by rigorous punishments, to +subdue this independent spirit, which boldly acknowledged an +authority superior to that of the magistrate. The extent and +duration of this spiritual conspiracy seemed to render it +everyday more deserving of his animadversion. We have already +seen that the active and successful zeal of the Christians had +insensibly diffused them through every province and almost every +city of the empire. The new converts seemed to renounce their +family and country, that they might connect themselves in an +indissoluble band of union with a peculiar society, which every +where assumed a different character from the rest of mankind. +Their gloomy and austere aspect, their abhorrence of the common +business and pleasures of life, and their frequent predictions of +impending calamities, inspired the Pagans with the apprehension +of some danger, which would arise from the new sect, the more +alarming as it was the more obscure. "Whatever," says Pliny, "may +be the principle of their conduct, their inflexible obstinacy +appeared deserving of punishment."<br> +</p> + +<p>The precautions with which the disciples of Christ performed +the offices of religion were at first dictated by fear and +necessity; but they were continued from choice. By imitating the +awful secrecy which reigned in the Eleusinian mysteries, the +Christians had flattered themselves that they should render their +sacred institutions more respectable in the eyes of the Pagan +world. But the event, as it often happens to the operations of +subtile policy, deceived their wishes and their expectations. It +was concluded, that they only concealed what they would have +blushed to disclose. Their mistaken prudence afforded an +opportunity for malice to invent, and for suspicious credulity to +believe, the horrid tales which described the Christians as the +most wicked of human kind, who practised in their dark recesses +every abomination that a depraved fancy could suggest, and who +solicited the favor of their unknown God by the sacrifice of +every moral virtue. There were many who pretended to confess or +to relate the ceremonies of this abhorred society. It was +asserted, "that a new-born infant, entirely covered over with +flour, was presented, like some mystic symbol of initiation, to +the knife of the proselyte, who unknowingly inflicted many a +secret and mortal wound on the innocent victim of his error; that +as soon as the cruel deed was perpetrated, the sectaries drank up +the blood, greedily tore asunder the quivering members, and +pledged themselves to eternal secrecy, by a mutual consciousness +of guilt. It was as confidently affirmed, that this inhuman +sacrifice was succeeded by a suitable entertainment, in which +intemperance served as a provocative to brutal lust; till, at the +appointed moment, the lights were suddenly extinguished, shame +was banished, nature was forgotten; and, as accident might +direct, the darkness of the night was polluted by the incestuous +commerce of sisters and brothers, of sons and of mothers."<br> +</p> + +<p>But the perusal of the ancient apologies was sufficient to +remove even the slightest suspicion from the mind of a candid +adversary. The Christians, with the intrepid security of +innocence, appeal from the voice of rumor to the equity of the +magistrates. They acknowledge, that if any proof can be produced +of the crimes which calumny has imputed to them, they are worthy +of the most severe punishment. They provoke the punishment, and +they challenge the proof. At the same time they urge, with equal +truth and propriety, that the charge is not less devoid of +probability, than it is destitute of evidence; they ask, whether +any one can seriously believe that the pure and holy precepts of +the gospel, which so frequently restrain the use of the most +lawful enjoyments, should inculcate the practice of the most +abominable crimes; that a large society should resolve to +dishonor itself in the eyes of its own members; and that a great +number of persons of either sex, and every age and character, +insensible to the fear of death or infamy, should consent to +violate those principles which nature and education had imprinted +most deeply in their minds. Nothing, it should seem, could weaken +the force or destroy the effect of so unanswerable a +justification, unless it were the injudicious conduct of the +apologists themselves, who betrayed the common cause of religion, +to gratify their devout hatred to the domestic enemies of the +church. It was sometimes faintly insinuated, and sometimes boldly +asserted, that the same bloody sacrifices, and the same +incestuous festivals, which were so falsely ascribed to the +orthodox believers, were in reality celebrated by the +Marcionites, by the Carpocratians, and by several other sects of +the Gnostics, who, notwithstanding they might deviate into the +paths of heresy, were still actuated by the sentiments of men, +and still governed by the precepts of Christianity. Accusations +of a similar kind were retorted upon the church by the +schismatics who had departed from its communion, and it was +confessed on all sides, that the most scandalous licentiousness +of manners prevailed among great numbers of those who affected +the name of Christians. A Pagan magistrate, who possessed neither +leisure nor abilities to discern the almost imperceptible line +which divides the orthodox faith from heretical pravity, might +easily have imagined that their mutual animosity had extorted the +discovery of their common guilt. It was fortunate for the repose, +or at least for the reputation, of the first Christians, that the +magistrates sometimes proceeded with more temper and moderation +than is usually consistent with religious zeal, and that they +reported, as the impartial result of their judicial inquiry, that +the sectaries, who had deserted the established worship, appeared +to them sincere in their professions, and blameless in their +manners; however they might incur, by their absurd and excessive +superstition, the censure of the laws.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From +Nero To Constantine. -- Part II.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>History, which undertakes to record the transactions of the +past, for the instruction of future ages, would ill deserve that +honorable office, if she condescended to plead the cause of +tyrants, or to justify the maxims of persecution. It must, +however, be acknowledged, that the conduct of the emperors who +appeared the least favorable to the primitive church, is by no +means so criminal as that of modern sovereigns, who have employed +the arm of violence and terror against the religious opinions of +any part of their subjects. From their reflections, or even from +their own feelings, a Charles V. or a Lewis XIV. might have +acquired a just knowledge of the rights of conscience, of the +obligation of faith, and of the innocence of error. But the +princes and magistrates of ancient Rome were strangers to those +principles which inspired and authorized the inflexible obstinacy +of the Christians in the cause of truth, nor could they +themselves discover in their own breasts any motive which would +have prompted them to refuse a legal, and as it were a natural, +submission to the sacred institutions of their country. The same +reason which contributes to alleviate the guilt, must have tended +to abate the vigor, of their persecutions. As they were actuated, +not by the furious zeal of bigots, but by the temperate policy of +legislators, contempt must often have relaxed, and humanity must +frequently have suspended, the execution of those laws which they +enacted against the humble and obscure followers of Christ. From +the general view of their character and motives we might +naturally conclude: I. That a considerable time elapsed before +they considered the new sectaries as an object deserving of the +attention of government. II. That in the conviction of any of +their subjects who were accused of so very singular a crime, they +proceeded with caution and reluctance. III. That they were +moderate in the use of punishments; and, IV. That the afflicted +church enjoyed many intervals of peace and tranquility. +Notwithstanding the careless indifference which the most copious +and the most minute of the Pagan writers have shown to the +affairs of the Christians, it may still be in our power to +confirm each of these probable suppositions, by the evidence of +authentic facts.<br> +</p> + +<p>1. By the wise dispensation of Providence, a mysterious veil +was cast over the infancy of the church, which, till the faith of +the Christians was matured, and their numbers were multiplied, +served to protect them not only from the malice but even from the +knowledge of the Pagan world. The slow and gradual abolition of +the Mosaic ceremonies afforded a safe and innocent disguise to +the more early proselytes of the gospel. As they were, for the +greater part, of the race of Abraham, they were distinguished by +the peculiar mark of circumcision, offered up their devotions in +the Temple of Jerusalem till its final destruction, and received +both the Law and the Prophets as the genuine inspirations of the +Deity. The Gentile converts, who by a spiritual adoption had been +associated to the hope of Isræl, were likewise confounded +under the garb and appearance of Jews, and as the Polytheists +paid less regard to articles of faith than to the external +worship, the new sect, which carefully concealed, or faintly +announced, its future greatness and ambition, was permitted to +shelter itself under the general toleration which was granted to +an ancient and celebrated people in the Roman empire. It was not +long, perhaps, before the Jews themselves, animated with a +fiercer zeal and a more jealous faith, perceived the gradual +separation of their Nazarene brethren from the doctrine of the +synagogue; and they would gladly have extinguished the dangerous +heresy in the blood of its adherents. But the decrees of Heaven +had already disarmed their malice; and though they might +sometimes exert the licentious privilege of sedition, they no +longer possessed the administration of criminal justice; nor did +they find it easy to infuse into the calm breast of a Roman +magistrate the rancor of their own zeal and prejudice. The +provincial governors declared themselves ready to listen to any +accusation that might affect the public safety; but as soon as +they were informed that it was a question not of facts but of +words, a dispute relating only to the interpretation of the +Jewish laws and prophecies, they deemed it unworthy of the +majesty of Rome seriously to discuss the obscure differences +which might arise among a barbarous and superstitious people. The +innocence of the first Christians was protected by ignorance and +contempt; and the tribunal of the Pagan magistrate often proved +their most assured refuge against the fury of the synagogue. If +indeed we were disposed to adopt the traditions of a too +credulous antiquity, we might relate the distant peregrinations, +the wonderful achievements, and the various deaths of the twelve +apostles: but a more accurate inquiry will induce us to doubt, +whether any of those persons who had been witnesses to the +miracles of Christ were permitted, beyond the limits of +Palestine, to seal with their blood the truth of their testimony. +From the ordinary term of human life, it may very naturally be +presumed that most of them were deceased before the discontent of +the Jews broke out into that furious war, which was terminated +only by the ruin of Jerusalem. During a long period, from the +death of Christ to that memorable rebellion, we cannot discover +any traces of Roman intolerance, unless they are to be found in +the sudden, the transient, but the cruel persecution, which was +exercised by Nero against the Christians of the capital, +thirty-five years after the former, and only two years before the +latter, of those great events. The character of the philosophic +historian, to whom we are principally indebted for the knowledge +of this singular transaction, would alone be sufficient to +recommend it to our most attentive consideration.<br> +</p> + +<p>In the tenth year of the reign of Nero, the capital of the +empire was afflicted by a fire which raged beyond the memory or +example of former ages. The monuments of Grecian art and of Roman +virtue, the trophies of the Punic and Gallic wars, the most holy +temples, and the most splendid palaces, were involved in one +common destruction. Of the fourteen regions or quarters into +which Rome was divided, four only subsisted entire, three were +levelled with the ground, and the remaining seven, which had +experienced the fury of the flames, displayed a melancholy +prospect of ruin and desolation. The vigilance of government +appears not to have neglected any of the precautions which might +alleviate the sense of so dreadful a calamity. The Imperial +gardens were thrown open to the distressed multitude, temporary +buildings were erected for their accommodation, and a plentiful +supply of corn and provisions was distributed at a very moderate +price. The most generous policy seemed to have dictated the +edicts which regulated the disposition of the streets and the +construction of private houses; and as it usually happens, in an +age of prosperity, the conflagration of Rome, in the course of a +few years, produced a new city, more regular and more beautiful +than the former. But all the prudence and humanity affected by +Nero on this occasion were insufficient to preserve him from the +popular suspicion. Every crime might be imputed to the assassin +of his wife and mother; nor could the prince who prostituted his +person and dignity on the theatre be deemed incapable of the most +extravagant folly. The voice of rumor accused the emperor as the +incendiary of his own capital; and as the most incredible stories +are the best adapted to the genius of an enraged people, it was +gravely reported, and firmly believed, that Nero, enjoying the +calamity which he had occasioned, amused himself with singing to +his lyre the destruction of ancient Troy. To divert a suspicion, +which the power of despotism was unable to suppress, the emperor +resolved to substitute in his own place some fictitious +criminals. "With this view," continues Tacitus, "he inflicted the +most exquisite tortures on those men, who, under the vulgar +appellation of Christians, were already branded with deserved +infamy. They derived their name and origin from Christ, who in +the reign of Tiberius had suffered death by the sentence of the +procurator Pontius Pilate. For a while this dire superstition was +checked; but it again burst forth; * and not only spread itself +over Judæa, the first seat of this mischievous sect, but +was even introduced into Rome, the common asylum which receives +and protects whatever is impure, whatever is atrocious. The +confessions of those who were seized discovered a great multitude +of their accomplices, and they were all convicted, not so much +for the crime of setting fire to the city, as for their hatred of +human kind. They died in torments, and their torments were +imbittered by insult and derision. Some were nailed on crosses; +others sewn up in the skins of wild beasts, and exposed to the +fury of dogs; others again, smeared over with combustible +materials, were used as torches to illuminate the darkness of the +night. The gardens of Nero were destined for the melancholy +spectacle, which was accompanied with a horse-race and honored +with the presence of the emperor, who mingled with the populace +in the dress and attitude of a charioteer. The guilt of the +Christians deserved indeed the most exemplary punishment, but the +public abhorrence was changed into commiseration, from the +opinion that those unhappy wretches were sacrificed, not so much +to the public welfare, as to the cruelty of a jealous tyrant." +Those who survey with a curious eye the revolutions of mankind, +may observe, that the gardens and circus of Nero on the Vatican, +which were polluted with the blood of the first Christians, have +been rendered still more famous by the triumph and by the abuse +of the persecuted religion. On the same spot, a temple, which far +surpasses the ancient glories of the Capitol, has been since +erected by the Christian Pontiffs, who, deriving their claim of +universal dominion from an humble fisherman of Galilee, have +succeeded to the throne of the Cæsars, given laws to the +barbarian conquerors of Rome, and extended their spiritual +jurisdiction from the coast of the Baltic to the shores of the +Pacific Ocean.<br> +</p> + +<p>But it would be improper to dismiss this account of Nero's +persecution, till we have made some observations that may serve +to remove the difficulties with which it is perplexed, and to +throw some light on the subsequent history of the church.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong>1</strong>. The most sceptical criticism is obliged to +respect the truth of this extraordinary fact, and the integrity +of this celebrated passage of Tacitus. The former is confirmed by +the diligent and accurate Suetonius, who mentions the punishment +which Nero inflicted on the Christians, a sect of men who had +embraced a new and criminal superstition. The latter may be +proved by the consent of the most ancient manuscripts; by the +inimitable character of the style of Tacitus by his reputation, +which guarded his text from the interpolations of pious fraud; +and by the purport of his narration, which accused the first +Christians of the most atrocious crimes, without insinuating that +they possessed any miraculous or even magical powers above the +rest of mankind. <strong>2</strong>. Notwithstanding it is +probable that Tacitus was born some years before the fire of +Rome, he could derive only from reading and conversation the +knowledge of an event which happened during his infancy. Before +he gave himself to the public, he calmly waited till his genius +had attained its full maturity, and he was more than forty years +of age, when a grateful regard for the memory of the virtuous +Agricola extorted from him the most early of those historical +compositions which will delight and instruct the most distant +posterity. After making a trial of his strength in the life of +Agricola and the description of Germany, he conceived, and at +length executed, a more arduous work; the history of Rome, in +thirty books, from the fall of Nero to the accession of Nerva. +The administration of Nerva introduced an age of justice and +propriety, which Tacitus had destined for the occupation of his +old age; but when he took a nearer view of his subject, judging, +perhaps, that it was a more honorable or a less invidious office +to record the vices of past tyrants, than to celebrate the +virtues of a reigning monarch, he chose rather to relate, under +the form of annals, the actions of the four immediate successors +of Augustus. To collect, to dispose, and to adorn a series of +fourscore years, in an immortal work, every sentence of which is +pregnant with the deepest observations and the most lively +images, was an undertaking sufficient to exercise the genius of +Tacitus himself during the greatest part of his life. In the last +years of the reign of Trajan, whilst the victorious monarch +extended the power of Rome beyond its ancient limits, the +historian was describing, in the second and fourth books of his +annals, the tyranny of Tiberius; and the emperor Hadrian must +have succeeded to the throne, before Tacitus, in the regular +prosecution of his work, could relate the fire of the capital, +and the cruelty of Nero towards the unfortunate Christians. At +the distance of sixty years, it was the duty of the annalist to +adopt the narratives of contemporaries; but it was natural for +the philosopher to indulge himself in the description of the +origin, the progress, and the character of the new sect, not so +much according to the knowledge or prejudices of the age of Nero, +as according to those of the time of Hadrian. <strong>3</strong> +Tacitus very frequently trusts to the curiosity or reflection of +his readers to supply those intermediate circumstances and ideas, +which, in his extreme conciseness, he has thought proper to +suppress. We may therefore presume to imagine some probable cause +which could direct the cruelty of Nero against the Christians of +Rome, whose obscurity, as well as innocence, should have shielded +them from his indignation, and even from his notice. The Jews, +who were numerous in the capital, and oppressed in their own +country, were a much fitter object for the suspicions of the +emperor and of the people: nor did it seem unlikely that a +vanquished nation, who already discovered their abhorrence of the +Roman yoke, might have recourse to the most atrocious means of +gratifying their implacable revenge. But the Jews possessed very +powerful advocates in the palace, and even in the heart of the +tyrant; his wife and mistress, the beautiful Poppæa, and a +favorite player of the race of Abraham, who had already employed +their intercession in behalf of the obnoxious people. In their +room it was necessary to offer some other victims, and it might +easily be suggested that, although the genuine followers of Moses +were innocent of the fire of Rome, there had arisen among them a +new and pernicious sect of Galilæans, which was capable of +the most horrid crimes. Under the appellation of Galilæans, +two distinctions of men were confounded, the most opposite to +each other in their manners and principles; the disciples who had +embraced the faith of Jesus of Nazareth, and the zealots who had +followed the standard of Judas the Gaulonite. The former were the +friends, the latter were the enemies, of human kind; and the only +resemblance between them consisted in the same inflexible +constancy, which, in the defence of their cause, rendered them +insensible of death and tortures. The followers of Judas, who +impelled their countrymen into rebellion, were soon buried under +the ruins of Jerusalem; whilst those of Jesus, known by the more +celebrated name of Christians, diffused themselves over the Roman +empire. How natural was it for Tacitus, in the time of Hadrian, +to appropriate to the Christians the guilt and the sufferings, * +which he might, with far greater truth and justice, have +attributed to a sect whose odious memory was almost extinguished! +4. Whatever opinion may be entertained of this conjecture, (for +it is no more than a conjecture,) it is evident that the effect, +as well as the cause, of Nero's persecution, was confined to the +walls of Rome, that the religious tenets of the Galilæans +or Christians, were never made a subject of punishment, or even +of inquiry; and that, as the idea of their sufferings was for a +long time connected with the idea of cruelty and injustice, the +moderation of succeeding princes inclined them to spare a sect, +oppressed by a tyrant, whose rage had been usually directed +against virtue and innocence.<br> +</p> + +<p>It is somewhat remarkable that the flames of war consumed, +almost at the same time, the temple of Jerusalem and the Capitol +of Rome; and it appears no less singular, that the tribute which +devotion had destined to the former, should have been converted +by the power of an assaulting victor to restore and adorn the +splendor of the latter. The emperors levied a general capitation +tax on the Jewish people; and although the sum assessed on the +head of each individual was inconsiderable, the use for which it +was designed, and the severity with which it was exacted, were +considered as an intolerable grievance. Since the officers of the +revenue extended their unjust claim to many persons who were +strangers to the blood or religion of the Jews, it was impossible +that the Christians, who had so often sheltered themselves under +the shade of the synagogue, should now escape this rapacious +persecution. Anxious as they were to avoid the slightest +infection of idolatry, their conscience forbade them to +contribute to the honor of that dæmon who had assumed the +character of the Capitoline Jupiter. As a very numerous though +declining party among the Christians still adhered to the law of +Moses, their efforts to dissemble their Jewish origin were +detected by the decisive test of circumcision; nor were the Roman +magistrates at leisure to inquire into the difference of their +religious tenets. Among the Christians who were brought before +the tribunal of the emperor, or, as it seems more probable, +before that of the procurator of Judæa, two persons are +said to have appeared, distinguished by their extraction, which +was more truly noble than that of the greatest monarchs. These +were the grandsons of St. Jude the apostle, who himself was the +brother of Jesus Christ. Their natural pretensions to the throne +of David might perhaps attract the respect of the people, and +excite the jealousy of the governor; but the meanness of their +garb, and the simplicity of their answers, soon convinced him +that they were neither desirous nor capable of disturbing the +peace of the Roman empire. They frankly confessed their royal +origin, and their near relation to the Messiah; but they +disclaimed any temporal views, and professed that his kingdom, +which they devoutly expected, was purely of a spiritual and +angelic nature. When they were examined concerning their fortune +and occupation, they showed their hands, hardened with daily +labor, and declared that they derived their whole subsistence +from the cultivation of a farm near the village of Cocaba, of the +extent of about twenty-four English acres, and of the value of +nine thousand drachms, or three hundred pounds sterling. The +grandsons of St. Jude were dismissed with compassion and +contempt.<br> +</p> + +<p>But although the obscurity of the house of David might protect +them from the suspicions of a tyrant, the present greatness of +his own family alarmed the pusillanimous temper of Domitian, +which could only be appeased by the blood of those Romans whom he +either feared, or hated, or esteemed. Of the two sons of his +uncle Flavius Sabinus, the elder was soon convicted of +treasonable intentions, and the younger, who bore the name of +Flavius Clemens, was indebted for his safety to his want of +courage and ability. The emperor for a long time, distinguished +so harmless a kinsman by his favor and protection, bestowed on +him his own niece Domitilla, adopted the children of that +marriage to the hope of the succession, and invested their father +with the honors of the consulship.<br> +</p> + +<p>But he had scarcely finished the term of his annual +magistracy, when, on a slight pretence, he was condemned and +executed; Domitilla was banished to a desolate island on the +coast of Campania; and sentences either of death or of +confiscation were pronounced against a great number of who were +involved in the same accusation. The guilt imputed to their +charge was that of <strong><em>Atheism</em></strong> and +<strong><em>Jewish manners</em></strong>; a singular association +of ideas, which cannot with any propriety be applied except to +the Christians, as they were obscurely and imperfectly viewed by +the magistrates and by the writers of that period. On the +strength of so probable an interpretation, and too eagerly +admitting the suspicions of a tyrant as an evidence of their +honorable crime, the church has placed both Clemens and Domitilla +among its first martyrs, and has branded the cruelty of Domitian +with the name of the second persecution. But this persecution (if +it deserves that epithet) was of no long duration. A few months +after the death of Clemens, and the banishment of Domitilla, +Stephen, a freedman belonging to the latter, who had enjoyed the +favor, but who had not surely embraced the faith, of his +mistress, * assassinated the emperor in his palace. The memory of +Domitian was condemned by the senate; his acts were rescinded; +his exiles recalled; and under the gentle administration of +Nerva, while the innocent were restored to their rank and +fortunes, even the most guilty either obtained pardon or escaped +punishment.<br> +</p> + +<p>II. About ten years afterwards, under the reign of Trajan, the +younger Pliny was intrusted by his friend and master with the +government of Bithynia and Pontus. He soon found himself at a +loss to determine by what rule of justice or of law he should +direct his conduct in the execution of an office the most +repugnant to his humanity. Pliny had never assisted at any +judicial proceedings against the Christians, with whose lame +alone he seems to be acquainted; and he was totally uninformed +with regard to the nature of their guilt, the method of their +conviction, and the degree of their punishment. In this +perplexity he had recourse to his usual expedient, of submitting +to the wisdom of Trajan an impartial, and, in some respects, a +favorable account of the new superstition, requesting the +emperor, that he would condescend to resolve his doubts, and to +instruct his ignorance. The life of Pliny had been employed in +the acquisition of learning, and in the business of the world. +Since the age of nineteen he had pleaded with distinction in the +tribunals of Rome, filled a place in the senate, had been +invested with the honors of the consulship, and had formed very +numerous connections with every order of men, both in Italy and +in the provinces. From his ignorance therefore we may derive some +useful information. We may assure ourselves, that when he +accepted the government of Bithynia, there were no general laws +or decrees of the senate in force against the Christians; that +neither Trajan nor any of his virtuous predecessors, whose edicts +were received into the civil and criminal jurisprudence, had +publicly declared their intentions concerning the new sect; and +that whatever proceedings had been carried on against the +Christians, there were none of sufficient weight and authority to +establish a precedent for the conduct of a Roman magistrate.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From +Nero To Constantine. -- Part III.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The answer of Trajan, to which the Christians of the +succeeding age have frequently appealed, discovers as much regard +for justice and humanity as could be reconciled with his mistaken +notions of religious policy. Instead of displaying the implacable +zeal of an inquisitor, anxious to discover the most minute +particles of heresy, and exulting in the number of his victims, +the emperor expresses much more solicitude to protect the +security of the innocent, than to prevent the escape of the +guilty. He acknowledged the difficulty of fixing any general +plan; but he lays down two salutary rules, which often afforded +relief and support to the distressed Christians. Though he +directs the magistrates to punish such persons as are legally +convicted, he prohibits them, with a very humane inconsistency, +from making any inquiries concerning the supposed criminals. Nor +was the magistrate allowed to proceed on every kind of +information. Anonymous charges the emperor rejects, as too +repugnant to the equity of his government; and he strictly +requires, for the conviction of those to whom the guilt of +Christianity is imputed, the positive evidence of a fair and open +accuser. It is likewise probable, that the persons who assumed so +invidiuous an office, were obliged to declare the grounds of +their suspicions, to specify (both in respect to time and place) +the secret assemblies, which their Christian adversary had +frequented, and to disclose a great number of circumstances, +which were concealed with the most vigilant jealousy from the eye +of the profane. If they succeeded in their prosecution, they were +exposed to the resentment of a considerable and active party, to +the censure of the more liberal portion of mankind, and to the +ignominy which, in every age and country, has attended the +character of an informer. If, on the contrary, they failed in +their proofs, they incurred the severe and perhaps capital +penalty, which, according to a law published by the emperor +Hadrian, was inflicted on those who falsely attributed to their +fellow-citizens the crime of Christianity. The violence of +personal or superstitious animosity might sometimes prevail over +the most natural apprehensions of disgrace and danger but it +cannot surely be imagined, that accusations of so unpromising an +appearance were either lightly or frequently undertaken by the +Pagan subjects of the Roman empire. *<br> +</p> + +<p>The expedient which was employed to elude the prudence of the +laws, affords a sufficient proof how effectually they +disappointed the mischievous designs of private malice or +superstitious zeal. In a large and tumultuous assembly, the +restraints of fear and shame, so forcible on the minds of +individuals, are deprived of the greatest part of their +influence. The pious Christian, as he was desirous to obtain, or +to escape, the glory of martyrdom, expected, either with +impatience or with terror, the stated returns of the public games +and festivals. On those occasions the inhabitants of the great +cities of the empire were collected in the circus or the theatre, +where every circumstance of the place, as well as of the +ceremony, contributed to kindle their devotion, and to extinguish +their humanity. Whilst the numerous spectators, crowned with +garlands, perfumed with incense, purified with the blood of +victims, and surrounded with the altars and statues of their +tutelar deities, resigned themselves to the enjoyment of +pleasures, which they considered as an essential part of their +religious worship, they recollected, that the Christians alone +abhorred the gods of mankind, and by their absence and melancholy +on these solemn festivals, seemed to insult or to lament the +public felicity. If the empire had been afflicted by any recent +calamity, by a plague, a famine, or an unsuccessful war; if the +Tyber had, or if the Nile had not, risen beyond its banks; if the +earth had shaken, or if the temperate order of the seasons had +been interrupted, the superstitious Pagans were convinced that +the crimes and the impiety of the Christians, who were spared by +the excessive lenity of the government, had at length provoked +the divine justice. It was not among a licentious and exasperated +populace, that the forms of legal proceedings could be observed; +it was not in an amphitheatre, stained with the blood of wild +beasts and gladiators, that the voice of compassion could be +heard. The impatient clamors of the multitude denounced the +Christians as the enemies of gods and men, doomed them to the +severest tortures, and venturing to accuse by name some of the +most distinguished of the new sectaries, required with +irresistible vehemence that they should be instantly apprehended +and cast to the lions. The provincial governors and magistrates +who presided in the public spectacles were usually inclined to +gratify the inclinations, and to appease the rage, of the people, +by the sacrifice of a few obnoxious victims. But the wisdom of +the emperors protected the church from the danger of these +tumultuous clamors and irregular accusations, which they justly +censured as repugnant both to the firmness and to the equity of +their administration. The edicts of Hadrian and of Antoninus Pius +expressly declared, that the voice of the multitude should never +be admitted as legal evidence to convict or to punish those +unfortunate persons who had embraced the enthusiasm of the +Christians.<br> +</p> + +<p>III. Punishment was not the inevitable consequence of +conviction, and the Christians, whose guilt was the most clearly +proved by the testimony of witnesses, or even by their voluntary +confession, still retained in their own power the alternative of +life or death. It was not so much the past offence, as the actual +resistance, which excited the indignation of the magistrate. He +was persuaded that he offered them an easy pardon, since, if they +consented to cast a few grains of incense upon the altar, they +were dismissed from the tribunal in safety and with applause. It +was esteemed the duty of a humane judge to endeavor to reclaim, +rather than to punish, those deluded enthusiasts. Varying his +tone according to the age, the sex, or the situation of the +prisoners, he frequently condescended to set before their eyes +every circumstance which could render life more pleasing, or +death more terrible; and to solicit, nay, to entreat, them, that +they would show some compassion to themselves, to their families, +and to their friends. If threats and persuasions proved +ineffectual, he had often recourse to violence; the scourge and +the rack were called in to supply the deficiency of argument, and +every art of cruelty was employed to subdue such inflexible, and, +as it appeared to the Pagans, such criminal, obstinacy. The +ancient apologists of Christianity have censured, with equal +truth and severity, the irregular conduct of their persecutors +who, contrary to every principle of judicial proceeding, admitted +the use of torture, in order to obtain, not a confession, but a +denial, of the crime which was the object of their inquiry. The +monks of succeeding ages, who, in their peaceful solitudes, +entertained themselves with diversifying the deaths and +sufferings of the primitive martyrs, have frequently invented +torments of a much more refined and ingenious nature. In +particular, it has pleased them to suppose, that the zeal of the +Roman magistrates, disdaining every consideration of moral virtue +or public decency, endeavored to seduce those whom they were +unable to vanquish, and that by their orders the most brutal +violence was offered to those whom they found it impossible to +seduce. It is related, that females, who were prepared to despise +death, were sometimes condemned to a more severe trial, and +called upon to determine whether they set a higher value on their +religion or on their chastity. The youths to whose licentious +embraces they were abandoned, received a solemn exhortation from +the judge, to exert their most strenuous efforts to maintain the +honor of Venus against the impious virgin who refused to burn +incense on her altars. Their violence, however, was commonly +disappointed, and the seasonable interposition of some miraculous +power preserved the chaste spouses of Christ from the dishonor +even of an involuntary defeat. We should not indeed neglect to +remark, that the more ancient as well as authentic memorials of +the church are seldom polluted with these extravagant and +indecent fictions.<br> +</p> + +<p>The total disregard of truth and probability in the +representation of these primitive martyrdoms was occasioned by a +very natural mistake. The ecclesiastical writers of the fourth or +fifth centuries ascribed to the magistrates of Rome the same +degree of implacable and unrelenting zeal which filled their own +breasts against the heretics or the idolaters of their own times. +It is not improbable that some of those persons who were raised +to the dignities of the empire, might have imbibed the prejudices +of the populace, and that the cruel disposition of others might +occasionally be stimulated by motives of avarice or of personal +resentment. But it is certain, and we may appeal to the grateful +confessions of the first Christians, that the greatest part of +those magistrates who exercised in the provinces the authority of +the emperor, or of the senate, and to whose hands alone the +jurisdiction of life and death was intrusted, behaved like men of +polished manners and liberal education, who respected the rules +of justice, and who were conversant with the precepts of +philosophy. They frequently declined the odious task of +persecution, dismissed the charge with contempt, or suggested to +the accused Christian some legal evasion, by which he might elude +the severity of the laws. Whenever they were invested with a +discretionary power, they used it much less for the oppression, +than for the relief and benefit of the afflicted church. They +were far from condemning all the Christians who were accused +before their tribunal, and very far from punishing with death all +those who were convicted of an obstinate adherence to the new +superstition. Contenting themselves, for the most part, with the +milder chastisements of imprisonment, exile, or slavery in the +mines, they left the unhappy victims of their justice some reason +to hope, that a prosperous event, the accession, the marriage, or +the triumph of an emperor, might speedily restore them, by a +general pardon, to their former state. The martyrs, devoted to +immediate execution by the Roman magistrates, appear to have been +selected from the most opposite extremes. They were either +bishops and presbyters, the persons the most distinguished among +the Christians by their rank and influence, and whose example +might strike terror into the whole sect; or else they were the +meanest and most abject among them, particularly those of the +servile condition, whose lives were esteemed of little value, and +whose sufferings were viewed by the ancients with too careless an +indifference. The learned Origen, who, from his experience as +well as reading, was intimately acquainted with the history of +the Christians, declares, in the most express terms, that the +number of martyrs was very inconsiderable. His authority would +alone be sufficient to annihilate that formidable army of +martyrs, whose relics, drawn for the most part from the catacombs +of Rome, have replenished so many churches, and whose marvellous +achievements have been the subject of so many volumes of Holy +Romance. But the general assertion of Origen may be explained and +confirmed by the particular testimony of his friend Dionysius, +who, in the immense city of Alexandria, and under the rigorous +persecution of Decius, reckons only ten men and seven women who +suffered for the profession of the Christian name.<br> +</p> + +<p>During the same period of persecution, the zealous, the +eloquent, the ambitious Cyprian governed the church, not only of +Carthage, but even of Africa. He possessed every quality which +could engage the reverence of the faithful, or provoke the +suspicions and resentment of the Pagan magistrates. His character +as well as his station seemed to mark out that holy prelate as +the most distinguished object of envy and danger. The experience, +however, of the life of Cyprian, is sufficient to prove that our +fancy has exaggerated the perilous situation of a Christian +bishop; and the dangers to which he was exposed were less +imminent than those which temporal ambition is always prepared to +encounter in the pursuit of honors. Four Roman emperors, with +their families, their favorites, and their adherents, perished by +the sword in the space of ten years, during which the bishop of +Carthage guided by his authority and eloquence the councils of +the African church. It was only in the third year of his +administration, that he had reason, during a few months, to +apprehend the severe edicts of Decius, the vigilance of the +magistrate and the clamors of the multitude, who loudly demanded, +that Cyprian, the leader of the Christians, should be thrown to +the lions. Prudence suggested the necessity of a temporary +retreat, and the voice of prudence was obeyed. He withdrew +himself into an obscure solitude, from whence he could maintain a +constant correspondence with the clergy and people of Carthage; +and, concealing himself till the tempest was past, he preserved +his life, without relinquishing either his power or his +reputation. His extreme caution did not, however, escape the +censure of the more rigid Christians, who lamented, or the +reproaches of his personal enemies, who insulted, a conduct which +they considered as a pusillanimous and criminal desertion of the +most sacred duty. The propriety of reserving himself for the +future exigencies of the church, the example of several holy +bishops, and the divine admonitions, which, as he declares +himself, he frequently received in visions and ecstacies, were +the reasons alleged in his justification. But his best apology +may be found in the cheerful resolution, with which, about eight +years afterwards, he suffered death in the cause of religion. The +authentic history of his martyrdom has been recorded with unusual +candor and impartiality. A short abstract, therefore, of its most +important circumstances, will convey the clearest information of +the spirit, and of the forms, of the Roman persecutions.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From +Nero To Constantine. -- Part IV.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>When Valerian was consul for the third, and Gallienus for the +fourth time, Paternus, proconsul of Africa, summoned Cyprian to +appear in his private council-chamber. He there acquainted him +with the Imperial mandate which he had just received, that those +who had abandoned the Roman religion should immediately return to +the practice of the ceremonies of their ancestors. Cyprian +replied without hesitation, that he was a Christian and a bishop, +devoted to the worship of the true and only Deity, to whom he +offered up his daily supplications for the safety and prosperity +of the two emperors, his lawful sovereigns. With modest +confidence he pleaded the privilege of a citizen, in refusing to +give any answer to some invidious and indeed illegal questions +which the proconsul had proposed. A sentence of banishment was +pronounced as the penalty of Cyprian's disobedience; and he was +conducted without delay to Curubis, a free and maritime city of +Zeugitania, in a pleasant situation, a fertile territory, and at +the distance of about forty miles from Carthage. The exiled +bishop enjoyed the conveniences of life and the consciousness of +virtue. His reputation was diffused over Africa and Italy; an +account of his behavior was published for the edification of the +Christian world; and his solitude was frequently interrupted by +the letters, the visits, and the congratulations of the faithful. +On the arrival of a new proconsul in the province the fortune of +Cyprian appeared for some time to wear a still more favorable +aspect. He was recalled from banishment; and though not yet +permitted to return to Carthage, his own gardens in the +neighborhood of the capital were assigned for the place of his +residence.<br> +</p> + +<p>At length, exactly one year after Cyprian was first +apprehended, Galerius Maximus, proconsul of Africa, received the +Imperial warrant for the execution of the Christian teachers. The +bishop of Carthage was sensible that he should be singled out for +one of the first victims; and the frailty of nature tempted him +to withdraw himself, by a secret flight, from the danger and the +honor of martyrdom; * but soon recovering that fortitude which +his character required, he returned to his gardens, and patiently +expected the ministers of death. Two officers of rank, who were +intrusted with that commission, placed Cyprian between them in a +chariot, and as the proconsul was not then at leisure, they +conducted him, not to a prison, but to a private house in +Carthage, which belonged to one of them. An elegant supper was +provided for the entertainment of the bishop, and his Christian +friends were permitted for the last time to enjoy his society, +whilst the streets were filled with a multitude of the faithful, +anxious and alarmed at the approaching fate of their spiritual +father. In the morning he appeared before the tribunal of the +proconsul, who, after informing himself of the name and situation +of Cyprian, commanded him to offer sacrifice, and pressed him to +reflect on the consequences of his disobedience. The refusal of +Cyprian was firm and decisive; and the magistrate, when he had +taken the opinion of his council, pronounced with some reluctance +the sentence of death. It was conceived in the following terms: +"That Thascius Cyprianus should be immediately beheaded, as the +enemy of the gods of Rome, and as the chief and ringleader of a +criminal association, which he had seduced into an impious +resistance against the laws of the most holy emperors, Valerian +and Gallienus." The manner of his execution was the mildest and +least painful that could be inflicted on a person convicted of +any capital offence; nor was the use of torture admitted to +obtain from the bishop of Carthage either the recantation of his +principles or the discovery of his accomplices.<br> +</p> + +<p>As soon as the sentence was proclaimed, a general cry of "We +will die with him," arose at once among the listening multitude +of Christians who waited before the palace gates. The generous +effusions of their zeal and their affection were neither +serviceable to Cyprian nor dangerous to themselves. He was led +away under a guard of tribunes and centurions, without resistance +and without insult, to the place of his execution, a spacious and +level plain near the city, which was already filled with great +numbers of spectators. His faithful presbyters and deacons were +permitted to accompany their holy bishop. * They assisted him in +laying aside his upper garment, spread linen on the ground to +catch the precious relics of his blood, and received his orders +to bestow five-and-twenty pieces of gold on the executioner. The +martyr then covered his face with his hands, and at one blow his +head was separated from his body. His corpse remained during some +hours exposed to the curiosity of the Gentiles: but in the night +it was removed, and transported in a triumphal procession, and +with a splendid illumination, to the burial-place of the +Christians. The funeral of Cyprian was publicly celebrated +without receiving any interruption from the Roman magistrates; +and those among the faithful, who had performed the last offices +to his person and his memory, were secure from the danger of +inquiry or of punishment. It is remarkable, that of so great a +multitude of bishops in the province of Africa, Cyprian was the +first who was esteemed worthy to obtain the crown of +martyrdom.<br> +</p> + +<p>It was in the choice of Cyprian, either to die a martyr, or to +live an apostate; but on the choice depended the alternative of +honor or infamy. Could we suppose that the bishop of Carthage had +employed the profession of the Christian faith only as the +instrument of his avarice or ambition, it was still incumbent on +him to support the character he had assumed; and if he possessed +the smallest degree of manly fortitude, rather to expose himself +to the most cruel tortures, than by a single act to exchange the +reputation of a whole life, for the abhorrence of his Christian +brethren, and the contempt of the Gentile world. But if the zeal +of Cyprian was supported by the sincere conviction of the truth +of those doctrines which he preached, the crown of martyrdom must +have appeared to him as an object of desire rather than of +terror. It is not easy to extract any distinct ideas from the +vague though eloquent declamations of the Fathers, or to +ascertain the degree of immortal glory and happiness which they +confidently promised to those who were so fortunate as to shed +their blood in the cause of religion. They inculcated with +becoming diligence, that the fire of martyrdom supplied every +defect and expiated every sin; that while the souls of ordinary +Christians were obliged to pass through a slow and painful +purification, the triumphant sufferers entered into the immediate +fruition of eternal bliss, where, in the society of the +patriarchs, the apostles, and the prophets, they reigned with +Christ, and acted as his assessors in the universal judgment of +mankind. The assurance of a lasting reputation upon earth, a +motive so congenial to the vanity of human nature, often served +to animate the courage of the martyrs. The honors which Rome or +Athens bestowed on those citizens who had fallen in the cause of +their country, were cold and unmeaning demonstrations of respect, +when compared with the ardent gratitude and devotion which the +primitive church expressed towards the victorious champions of +the faith. The annual commemoration of their virtues and +sufferings was observed as a sacred ceremony, and at length +terminated in religious worship. Among the Christians who had +publicly confessed their religious principles, those who (as it +very frequently happened) had been dismissed from the tribunal or +the prisons of the Pagan magistrates, obtained such honors as +were justly due to their imperfect martyrdom and their generous +resolution. The most pious females courted the permission of +imprinting kisses on the fetters which they had worn, and on the +wounds which they had received. Their persons were esteemed holy, +their decisions were admitted with deference, and they too often +abused, by their spiritual pride and licentious manners, the +preeminence which their zeal and intrepidity had acquired. +Distinctions like these, whilst they display the exalted merit, +betray the inconsiderable number of those who suffered, and of +those who died, for the profession of Christianity.<br> +</p> + +<p>The sober discretion of the present age will more readily +censure than admire, but can more easily admire than imitate, the +fervor of the first Christians, who, according to the lively +expressions of Sulpicius Severus, desired martyrdom with more +eagerness than his own contemporaries solicited a bishopric. The +epistles which Ignatius composed as he was carried in chains +through the cities of Asia, breathe sentiments the most repugnant +to the ordinary feelings of human nature. He earnestly beseeches +the Romans, that when he should be exposed in the amphitheatre, +they would not, by their kind but unseasonable intercession, +deprive him of the crown of glory; and he declares his resolution +to provoke and irritate the wild beasts which might be employed +as the instruments of his death. Some stories are related of the +courage of martyrs, who actually performed what Ignatius had +intended; who exasperated the fury of the lions, pressed the +executioner to hasten his office, cheerfully leaped into the +fires which were kindled to consume them, and discovered a +sensation of joy and pleasure in the midst of the most exquisite +tortures. Several examples have been preserved of a zeal +impatient of those restraints which the emperors had provided for +the security of the church. The Christians sometimes supplied by +their voluntary declaration the want of an accuser, rudely +disturbed the public service of paganism, and rushing in crowds +round the tribunal of the magistrates, called upon them to +pronounce and to inflict the sentence of the law. The behavior of +the Christians was too remarkable to escape the notice of the +ancient philosophers; but they seem to have considered it with +much less admiration than astonishment. Incapable of conceiving +the motives which sometimes transported the fortitude of +believers beyond the bounds of prudence or reason, they treated +such an eagerness to die as the strange result of obstinate +despair, of stupid insensibility, or of superstitious frenzy. +"Unhappy men!" exclaimed the proconsul Antoninus to the +Christians of Asia; "unhappy men! if you are thus weary of your +lives, is it so difficult for you to find ropes and precipices?" +He was extremely cautious (as it is observed by a learned and +pious historian) of punishing men who had found no accusers but +themselves, the Imperial laws not having made any provision for +so unexpected a case: condemning therefore a few as a warning to +their brethren, he dismissed the multitude with indignation and +contempt. Notwithstanding this real or affected disdain, the +intrepid constancy of the faithful was productive of more +salutary effects on those minds which nature or grace had +disposed for the easy reception of religious truth. On these +melancholy occasions, there were many among the Gentiles who +pitied, who admired, and who were converted. The generous +enthusiasm was communicated from the sufferer to the spectators; +and the blood of martyrs, according to a well-known observation, +became the seed of the church.<br> +</p> + +<p>But although devotion had raised, and eloquence continued to +inflame, this fever of the mind, it insensibly gave way to the +more natural hopes and fears of the human heart, to the love of +life, the apprehension of pain, and the horror of dissolution. +The more prudent rulers of the church found themselves obliged to +restrain the indiscreet ardor of their followers, and to distrust +a constancy which too often abandoned them in the hour of trial. +As the lives of the faithful became less mortified and austere, +they were every day less ambitious of the honors of martyrdom; +and the soldiers of Christ, instead of distinguishing themselves +by voluntary deeds of heroism, frequently deserted their post, +and fled in confusion before the enemy whom it was their duty to +resist. There were three methods, however, of escaping the flames +of persecution, which were not attended with an equal degree of +guilt: first, indeed, was generally allowed to be innocent; the +second was of a doubtful, or at least of a venial, nature; but +the third implied a direct and criminal apostasy from the +Christian faith.<br> +</p> + +<p>I. A modern inquisitor would hear with surprise, that whenever +an information was given to a Roman magistrate of any person +within his jurisdiction who had embraced the sect of the +Christians, the charge was communicated to the party accused, and +that a convenient time was allowed him to settle his domestic +concerns, and to prepare an answer to the crime which was imputed +to him. If he entertained any doubt of his own constancy, such a +delay afforded him the opportunity of preserving his life and +honor by flight, of withdrawing himself into some obscure +retirement or some distant province, and of patiently expecting +the return of peace and security. A measure so consonant to +reason was soon authorized by the advice and example of the most +holy prelates; and seems to have been censured by few except by +the Montanists, who deviated into heresy by their strict and +obstinate adherence to the rigor of ancient discipline. II. The +provincial governors, whose zeal was less prevalent than their +avarice, had countenanced the practice of selling certificates, +(or libels, as they were called,) which attested, that the +persons therein mentioned had complied with the laws, and +sacrificed to the Roman deities. By producing these false +declarations, the opulent and timid Christians were enabled to +silence the malice of an informer, and to reconcile in some +measure their safety with their religion. A slight penance atoned +for this profane dissimulation. * III. In every persecution there +were great numbers of unworthy Christians who publicly disowned +or renounced the faith which they had professed; and who +confirmed the sincerity of their abjuration, by the legal acts of +burning incense or of offering sacrifices. Some of these +apostates had yielded on the first menace or exhortation of the +magistrate; whilst the patience of others had been subdued by the +length and repetition of tortures. The affrighted countenances of +some betrayed their inward remorse, while others advanced with +confidence and alacrity to the altars of the gods. But the +disguise which fear had imposed, subsisted no longer than the +present danger. As soon as the severity of the persecution was +abated, the doors of the churches were assailed by the returning +multitude of penitents who detested their idolatrous submission, +and who solicited with equal ardor, but with various success, +their readmission into the society of Christians.<br> +</p> + +<p>IV. Notwithstanding the general rules established for the +conviction and punishment of the Christians, the fate of those +sectaries, in an extensive and arbitrary government, must still +in a great measure, have depended on their own behavior, the +circumstances of the times, and the temper of their supreme as +well as subordinate rulers. Zeal might sometimes provoke, and +prudence might sometimes avert or assuage, the superstitious fury +of the Pagans. A variety of motives might dispose the provincial +governors either to enforce or to relax the execution of the +laws; and of these motives the most forcible was their regard not +only for the public edicts, but for the secret intentions of the +emperor, a glance from whose eye was sufficient to kindle or to +extinguish the flames of persecution. As often as any occasional +severities were exercised in the different parts of the empire, +the primitive Christians lamented and perhaps magnified their own +sufferings; but the celebrated number of ten persecutions has +been determined by the ecclesiastical writers of the fifth +century, who possessed a more distinct view of the prosperous or +adverse fortunes of the church, from the age of Nero to that of +Diocletian. The ingenious parallels of the ten plagues of Egypt, +and of the ten horns of the Apocalypse, first suggested this +calculation to their minds; and in their application of the faith +of prophecy to the truth of history, they were careful to select +those reigns which were indeed the most hostile to the Christian +cause. But these transient persecutions served only to revive the +zeal and to restore the discipline of the faithful; and the +moments of extraordinary rigor were compensated by much longer +intervals of peace and security. The indifference of some +princes, and the indulgence of others, permitted the Christians +to enjoy, though not perhaps a legal, yet an actual and public, +toleration of their religion.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From +Nero To Constantine. -- Part V.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The apology of Tertullian contains two very ancient, very +singular, but at the same time very suspicious, instances of +Imperial clemency; the edicts published by Tiberius, and by +Marcus Antoninus, and designed not only to protect the innocence +of the Christians, but even to proclaim those stupendous miracles +which had attested the truth of their doctrine. The first of +these examples is attended with some difficulties which might +perplex a sceptical mind. We are required to believe, +<strong><em>that</em></strong> Pontius Pilate informed the +emperor of the unjust sentence of death which he had pronounced +against an innocent, and, as it appeared, a divine, person; and +that, without acquiring the merit, he exposed himself to the +danger of martyrdom; <strong><em>that</em></strong> Tiberius, who +avowed his contempt for all religion, immediately conceived the +design of placing the Jewish Messiah among the gods of Rome; +<strong><em>that</em></strong> his servile senate ventured to +disobey the commands of their master; +<strong><em>that</em></strong> Tiberius, instead of resenting +their refusal, contented himself with protecting the Christians +from the severity of the laws, many years before such laws were +enacted, or before the church had assumed any distinct name or +existence; and lastly, <strong><em>that</em></strong> the memory +of this extraordinary transaction was preserved in the most +public and authentic records, which escaped the knowledge of the +historians of Greece and Rome, and were only visible to the eyes +of an African Christian, who composed his apology one hundred and +sixty years after the death of Tiberius. The edict of Marcus +Antoninus is supposed to have been the effect of his devotion and +gratitude for the miraculous deliverance which he had obtained in +the Marcomannic war. The distress of the legions, the seasonable +tempest of rain and hail, of thunder and of lightning, and the +dismay and defeat of the barbarians, have been celebrated by the +eloquence of several Pagan writers. If there were any Christians +in that army, it was natural that they should ascribe some merit +to the fervent prayers, which, in the moment of danger, they had +offered up for their own and the public safety. But we are still +assured by monuments of brass and marble, by the Imperial medals, +and by the Antonine column, that neither the prince nor the +people entertained any sense of this signal obligation, since +they unanimously attribute their deliverance to the providence of +Jupiter, and to the interposition of Mercury. During the whole +course of his reign, Marcus despised the Christians as a +philosopher, and punished them as a sovereign. *<br> +</p> + +<p>By a singular fatality, the hardships which they had endured +under the government of a virtuous prince, immediately ceased on +the accession of a tyrant; and as none except themselves had +experienced the injustice of Marcus, so they alone were protected +by the lenity of Commodus. The celebrated Marcia, the most +favored of his concubines, and who at length contrived the murder +of her Imperial lover, entertained a singular affection for the +oppressed church; and though it was impossible that she could +reconcile the practice of vice with the precepts of the gospel, +she might hope to atone for the frailties of her sex and +profession by declaring herself the patroness of the Christians. +Under the gracious protection of Marcia, they passed in safety +the thirteen years of a cruel tyranny; and when the empire was +established in the house of Severus, they formed a domestic but +more honorable connection with the new court. The emperor was +persuaded, that in a dangerous sickness, he had derived some +benefit, either spiritual or physical, from the holy oil, with +which one of his slaves had anointed him. He always treated with +peculiar distinction several persons of both sexes who had +embraced the new religion. The nurse as well as the preceptor of +Caracalla were Christians; * and if that young prince ever +betrayed a sentiment of humanity, it was occasioned by an +incident, which, however trifling, bore some relation to the +cause of Christianity. Under the reign of Severus, the fury of +the populace was checked; the rigor of ancient laws was for some +time suspended; and the provincial governors were satisfied with +receiving an annual present from the churches within their +jurisdiction, as the price, or as the reward, of their +moderation. The controversy concerning the precise time of the +celebration of Easter, armed the bishops of Asia and Italy +against each other, and was considered as the most important +business of this period of leisure and tranquillity. Nor was the +peace of the church interrupted, till the increasing numbers of +proselytes seem at length to have attracted the attention, and to +have alienated the mind of Severus. With the design of +restraining the progress of Christianity, he published an edict, +which, though it was designed to affect only the new converts, +could not be carried into strict execution, without exposing to +danger and punishment the most zealous of their teachers and +missionaries. In this mitigated persecution we may still discover +the indulgent spirit of Rome and of Polytheism, which so readily +admitted every excuse in favor of those who practised the +religious ceremonies of their fathers.<br> +</p> + +<p>But the laws which Severus had enacted soon expired with the +authority of that emperor; and the Christians, after this +accidental tempest, enjoyed a calm of thirty-eight years. Till +this period they had usually held their assemblies in private +houses and sequestered places. They were now permitted to erect +and consecrate convenient edifices for the purpose of religious +worship; to purchase lands, even at Rome itself, for the use of +the community; and to conduct the elections of their +ecclesiastical ministers in so public, but at the same time in so +exemplary a manner, as to deserve the respectful attention of the +Gentiles. This long repose of the church was accompanied with +dignity. The reigns of those princes who derived their extraction +from the Asiatic provinces, proved the most favorable to the +Christians; the eminent persons of the sect, instead of being +reduced to implore the protection of a slave or concubine, were +admitted into the palace in the honorable characters of priests +and philosophers; and their mysterious doctrines, which were +already diffused among the people, insensibly attracted the +curiosity of their sovereign. When the empress Mammæa +passed through Antioch, she expressed a desire of conversing with +the celebrated Origen, the fame of whose piety and learning was +spread over the East. Origen obeyed so flattering an invitation, +and though he could not expect to succeed in the conversion of an +artful and ambitious woman, she listened with pleasure to his +eloquent exhortations, and honorably dismissed him to his +retirement in Palestine. The sentiments of Mammæa were +adopted by her son Alexander, and the philosophic devotion of +that emperor was marked by a singular but injudicious regard for +the Christian religion. In his domestic chapel he placed the +statues of Abraham, of Orpheus, of Apollonius, and of Christ, as +an honor justly due to those respectable sages who had instructed +mankind in the various modes of addressing their homage to the +supreme and universal Deity. A purer faith, as well as worship, +was openly professed and practised among his household. Bishops, +perhaps for the first time, were seen at court; and, after the +death of Alexander, when the inhuman Maximin discharged his fury +on the favorites and servants of his unfortunate benefactor, a +great number of Christians of every rank and of both sexes, were +involved the promiscuous massacre, which, on their account, has +improperly received the name of Persecution. *<br> +</p> + +<p>Notwithstanding the cruel disposition of Maximin, the effects +of his resentment against the Christians were of a very local and +temporary nature, and the pious Origen, who had been proscribed +as a devoted victim, was still reserved to convey the truths of +the gospel to the ear of monarchs. He addressed several edifying +letters to the emperor Philip, to his wife, and to his mother; +and as soon as that prince, who was born in the neighborhood of +Palestine, had usurped the Imperial sceptre, the Christians +acquired a friend and a protector. The public and even partial +favor of Philip towards the sectaries of the new religion, and +his constant reverence for the ministers of the church, gave some +color to the suspicion, which prevailed in his own times, that +the emperor himself was become a convert to the faith; and +afforded some grounds for a fable which was afterwards invented, +that he had been purified by confession and penance from the +guilt contracted by the murder of his innocent predecessor. the +fall of Philip introduced, with the change of masters, a new +system of government, so oppressive to the Christians, that their +former condition, ever since the time of Domitian, was +represented as a state of perfect freedom and security, if +compared with the rigorous treatment which they experienced under +the short reign of Decius. The virtues of that prince will +scarcely allow us to suspect that he was actuated by a mean +resentment against the favorites of his predecessor; and it is +more reasonable to believe, that in the prosecution of his +general design to restore the purity of Roman manners, he was +desirous of delivering the empire from what he condemned as a +recent and criminal superstition. The bishops of the most +considerable cities were removed by exile or death: the vigilance +of the magistrates prevented the clergy of Rome during sixteen +months from proceeding to a new election; and it was the opinion +of the Christians, that the emperor would more patiently endure a +competitor for the purple, than a bishop in the capital. Were it +possible to suppose that the penetration of Decius had discovered +pride under the disguise of humility, or that he could foresee +the temporal dominion which might insensibly arise from the +claims of spiritual authority, we might be less surprised, that +he should consider the successors of St. Peter, as the most +formidable rivals to those of Augustus.<br> +</p> + +<p>The administration of Valerian was distinguished by a levity +and inconstancy ill suited to the gravity of the +<strong><em>Roman Censor</em></strong>. In the first part of his +reign, he surpassed in clemency those princes who had been +suspected of an attachment to the Christian faith. In the last +three years and a half, listening to the insinuations of a +minister addicted to the superstitions of Egypt, he adopted the +maxims, and imitated the severity, of his predecessor Decius. The +accession of Gallienus, which increased the calamities of the +empire, restored peace to the church; and the Christians obtained +the free exercise of their religion by an edict addressed to the +bishops, and conceived in such terms as seemed to acknowledge +their office and public character. The ancient laws, without +being formally repealed, were suffered to sink into oblivion; and +(excepting only some hostile intentions which are attributed to +the emperor Aurelian ) the disciples of Christ passed above forty +years in a state of prosperity, far more dangerous to their +virtue than the severest trials of persecution.<br> +</p> + +<p>The story of Paul of Samosata, who filled the metropolitan see +of Antioch, while the East was in the hands of Odenathus and +Zenobia, may serve to illustrate the condition and character of +the times. The wealth of that prelate was a sufficient evidence +of his guilt, since it was neither derived from the inheritance +of his fathers, nor acquired by the arts of honest industry. But +Paul considered the service of the church as a very lucrative +profession. His ecclesiastical jurisdiction was venal and +rapacious; he extorted frequent contributions from the most +opulent of the faithful, and converted to his own use a +considerable part of the public revenue. By his pride and luxury, +the Christian religion was rendered odious in the eyes of the +Gentiles. His council chamber and his throne, the splendor with +which he appeared in public, the suppliant crowd who solicited +his attention, the multitude of letters and petitions to which he +dictated his answers, and the perpetual hurry of business in +which he was involved, were circumstances much better suited to +the state of a civil magistrate, than to the humility of a +primitive bishop. When he harangued his people from the pulpit, +Paul affected the figurative style and the theatrical gestures of +an Asiatic sophist, while the cathedral resounded with the +loudest and most extravagant acclamations in the praise of his +divine eloquence. Against those who resisted his power, or +refused to flatter his vanity, the prelate of Antioch was +arrogant, rigid, and inexorable; but he relaxed the discipline, +and lavished the treasures of the church on his dependent clergy, +who were permitted to imitate their master in the gratification +of every sensual appetite. For Paul indulged himself very freely +in the pleasures of the table, and he had received into the +episcopal palace two young and beautiful women as the constant +companions of his leisure moments.<br> +</p> + +<p>Notwithstanding these scandalous vices, if Paul of Samosata +had preserved the purity of the orthodox faith, his reign over +the capital of Syria would have ended only with his life; and had +a seasonable persecution intervened, an effort of courage might +perhaps have placed him in the rank of saints and martyrs. * Some +nice and subtle errors, which he imprudently adopted and +obstinately maintained, concerning the doctrine of the Trinity, +excited the zeal and indignation of the Eastern churches. From +Egypt to the Euxine Sea, the bishops were in arms and in motion. +Several councils were held, confutations were published, +excommunications were pronounced, ambiguous explanations were by +turns accepted and refused, treaties were concluded and violated, +and at length Paul of Samosata was degraded from his episcopal +character, by the sentence of seventy or eighty bishops, who +assembled for that purpose at Antioch, and who, without +consulting the rights of the clergy or people, appointed a +successor by their own authority. The manifest irregularity of +this proceeding increased the numbers of the discontented +faction; and as Paul, who was no stranger to the arts of courts, +had insinuated himself into the favor of Zenobia, he maintained +above four years the possession of the episcopal house and +office. * The victory of Aurelian changed the face of the East, +and the two contending parties, who applied to each other the +epithets of schism and heresy, were either commanded or permitted +to plead their cause before the tribunal of the conqueror. This +public and very singular trial affords a convincing proof that +the existence, the property, the privileges, and the internal +policy of the Christians, were acknowledged, if not by the laws, +at least by the magistrates, of the empire. As a Pagan and as a +soldier, it could scarcely be expected that Aurelian should enter +into the discussion, whether the sentiments of Paul or those of +his adversaries were most agreeable to the true standard of the +orthodox faith. His determination, however, was founded on the +general principles of equity and reason. He considered the +bishops of Italy as the most impartial and respectable judges +among the Christians, and as soon as he was informed that they +had unanimously approved the sentence of the council, he +acquiesced in their opinion, and immediately gave orders that +Paul should be compelled to relinquish the temporal possessions +belonging to an office, of which, in the judgment of his +brethren, he had been regularly deprived. But while we applaud +the justice, we should not overlook the policy, of Aurelian, who +was desirous of restoring and cementing the dependence of the +provinces on the capital, by every means which could bind the +interest or prejudices of any part of his subjects.<br> +</p> + +<p>Amidst the frequent revolutions of the empire, the Christians +still flourished in peace and prosperity; and notwithstanding a +celebrated æra of martyrs has been deduced from the +accession of Diocletian, the new system of policy, introduced and +maintained by the wisdom of that prince, continued, during more +than eighteen years, to breathe the mildest and most liberal +spirit of religious toleration. The mind of Diocletian himself +was less adapted indeed to speculative inquiries, than to the +active labors of war and government. His prudence rendered him +averse to any great innovation, and though his temper was not +very susceptible of zeal or enthusiasm, he always maintained an +habitual regard for the ancient deities of the empire. But the +leisure of the two empresses, of his wife Prisca, and of Valeria, +his daughter, permitted them to listen with more attention and +respect to the truths of Christianity, which in every age has +acknowledged its important obligations to female devotion. The +principal eunuchs, Lucian and Dorotheus, Gorgonius and Andrew, +who attended the person, possessed the favor, and governed the +household of Diocletian, protected by their powerful influence +the faith which they had embraced. Their example was imitated by +many of the most considerable officers of the palace, who, in +their respective stations, had the care of the Imperial +ornaments, of the robes, of the furniture, of the jewels, and +even of the private treasury; and, though it might sometimes be +incumbent on them to accompany the emperor when he sacrificed in +the temple, they enjoyed, with their wives, their children, and +their slaves, the free exercise of the Christian religion. +Diocletian and his colleagues frequently conferred the most +important offices on those persons who avowed their abhorrence +for the worship of the gods, but who had displayed abilities +proper for the service of the state. The bishops held an +honorable rank in their respective provinces, and were treated +with distinction and respect, not only by the people, but by the +magistrates themselves. Almost in every city, the ancient +churches were found insufficient to contain the increasing +multitude of proselytes; and in their place more stately and +capacious edifices were erected for the public worship of the +faithful. The corruption of manners and principles, so forcibly +lamented by Eusebius, may be considered, not only as a +consequence, but as a proof, of the liberty which the Christians +enjoyed and abused under the reign of Diocletian. Prosperity had +relaxed the nerves of discipline. Fraud, envy, and malice +prevailed in every congregation. The presbyters aspired to the +episcopal office, which every day became an object more worthy of +their ambition. The bishops, who contended with each other for +ecclesiastical preeminence, appeared by their conduct to claim a +secular and tyrannical power in the church; and the lively faith +which still distinguished the Christians from the Gentiles, was +shown much less in their lives, than in their controversial +writings.<br> +</p> + +<p>Notwithstanding this seeming security, an attentive observer +might discern some symptoms that threatened the church with a +more violent persecution than any which she had yet endured. The +zeal and rapid progress of the Christians awakened the +Polytheists from their supine indifference in the cause of those +deities, whom custom and education had taught them to revere. The +mutual provocations of a religious war, which had already +continued above two hundred years, exasperated the animosity of +the contending parties. The Pagans were incensed at the rashness +of a recent and obscure sect, which presumed to accuse their +countrymen of error, and to devote their ancestors to eternal +misery. The habits of justifying the popular mythology against +the invectives of an implacable enemy, produced in their minds +some sentiments of faith and reverence for a system which they +had been accustomed to consider with the most careless levity. +The supernatural powers assumed by the church inspired at the +same time terror and emulation. The followers of the established +religion intrenched themselves behind a similar fortification of +prodigies; invented new modes of sacrifice, of expiation, and of +initiation; attempted to revive the credit of their expiring +oracles; and listened with eager credulity to every impostor, who +flattered their prejudices by a tale of wonders. Both parties +seemed to acknowledge the truth of those miracles which were +claimed by their adversaries; and while they were contented with +ascribing them to the arts of magic, and to the power of +dæmons, they mutually concurred in restoring and +establishing the reign of superstition. Philosophy, her most +dangerous enemy, was now converted into her most useful ally. The +groves of the academy, the gardens of Epicurus, and even the +portico of the Stoics, were almost deserted, as so many different +schools of scepticism or impiety; and many among the Romans were +desirous that the writings of Cicero should be condemned and +suppressed by the authority of the senate. The prevailing sect of +the new Platonicians judged it prudent to connect themselves with +the priests, whom perhaps they despised, against the Christians, +whom they had reason to fear. These fashionable Philosophers +prosecuted the design of extracting allegorical wisdom from the +fictions of the Greek poets; instituted mysterious rites of +devotion for the use of their chosen disciples; recommended the +worship of the ancient gods as the emblems or ministers of the +Supreme Deity, and composed against the faith of the gospel many +elaborate treatises, which have since been committed to the +flames by the prudence of orthodox emperors.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From +Nero To Constantine. -- Part VI.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Although the policy of Diocletian and the humanity of +Constantius inclined them to preserve inviolate the maxims of +toleration, it was soon discovered that their two associates, +Maximian and Galerius, entertained the most implacable aversion +for the name and religion of the Christians. The minds of those +princes had never been enlightened by science; education had +never softened their temper. They owed their greatness to their +swords, and in their most elevated fortune they still retained +their superstitious prejudices of soldiers and peasants. In the +general administration of the provinces they obeyed the laws +which their benefactor had established; but they frequently found +occasions of exercising within their camp and palaces a secret +persecution, for which the imprudent zeal of the Christians +sometimes offered the most specious pretences. A sentence of +death was executed upon Maximilianus, an African youth, who had +been produced by his own father *before the magistrate as a +sufficient and legal recruit, but who obstinately persisted in +declaring, that his conscience would not permit him to embrace +the profession of a soldier. It could scarcely be expected that +any government should suffer the action of Marcellus the +Centurion to pass with impunity. On the day of a public festival, +that officer threw away his belt, his arms, and the ensigns of +his office, and exclaimed with a loud voice, that he would obey +none but Jesus Christ the eternal King, and that he renounced +forever the use of carnal weapons, and the service of an +idolatrous master. The soldiers, as soon as they recovered from +their astonishment, secured the person of Marcellus. He was +examined in the city of Tingi by the president of that part of +Mauritania; and as he was convicted by his own confession, he was +condemned and beheaded for the crime of desertion. Examples of +such a nature savor much less of religious persecution than of +martial or even civil law; but they served to alienate the mind +of the emperors, to justify the severity of Galerius, who +dismissed a great number of Christian officers from their +employments; and to authorize the opinion, that a sect of +enthusiastics, which avowed principles so repugnant to the public +safety, must either remain useless, or would soon become +dangerous, subjects of the empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>After the success of the Persian war had raised the hopes and +the reputation of Galerius, he passed a winter with Diocletian in +the palace of Nicomedia; and the fate of Christianity became the +object of their secret consultations. The experienced emperor was +still inclined to pursue measures of lenity; and though he +readily consented to exclude the Christians from holding any +employments in the household or the army, he urged in the +strongest terms the danger as well as cruelty of shedding the +blood of those deluded fanatics. Galerius at length extorted from +him the permission of summoning a council, composed of a few +persons the most distinguished in the civil and military +departments of the state. The important question was agitated in +their presence, and those ambitious courtiers easily discerned, +that it was incumbent on them to second, by their eloquence, the +importunate violence of the Cæsar. It may be presumed, that +they insisted on every topic which might interest the pride, the +piety, or the fears, of their sovereign in the destruction of +Christianity. Perhaps they represented, that the glorious work of +the deliverance of the empire was left imperfect, as long as an +independent people was permitted to subsist and multiply in the +heart of the provinces. The Christians, (it might specially be +alleged,) renouncing the gods and the institutions of Rome, had +constituted a distinct republic, which might yet be suppressed +before it had acquired any military force; but which was already +governed by its own laws and magistrates, was possessed of a +public treasure, and was intimately connected in all its parts by +the frequent assemblies of the bishops, to whose decrees their +numerous and opulent congregations yielded an implicit obedience. +Arguments like these may seem to have determined the reluctant +mind of Diocletian to embrace a new system of persecution; but +though we may suspect, it is not in our power to relate, the +secret intrigues of the palace, the private views and +resentments, the jealousy of women or eunuchs, and all those +trifling but decisive causes which so often influence the fate of +empires, and the councils of the wisest monarchs.<br> +</p> + +<p>The pleasure of the emperors was at length signified to the +Christians, who, during the course of this melancholy winter, had +expected, with anxiety, the result of so many secret +consultations. The twenty-third of February, which coincided with +the Roman festival of the Terminalia, was appointed (whether from +accident or design) to set bounds to the progress of +Christianity. At the earliest dawn of day, the Prætorian +præfect, accompanied by several generals, tribunes, and +officers of the revenue, repaired to the principal church of +Nicomedia, which was situated on an eminence in the most populous +and beautiful part of the city. The doors were instantly broke +open; they rushed into the sanctuary; and as they searched in +vain for some visible object of worship, they were obliged to +content themselves with committing to the flames the volumes of +the holy Scripture. The ministers of Diocletian were followed by +a numerous body of guards and pioneers, who marched in order of +battle, and were provided with all the instruments used in the +destruction of fortified cities. By their incessant labor, a +sacred edifice, which towered above the Imperial palace, and had +long excited the indignation and envy of the Gentiles, was in a +few hours levelled with the ground.<br> +</p> + +<p>The next day the general edict of persecution was published; +and though Diocletian, still averse to the effusion of blood, had +moderated the fury of Galerius, who proposed, that every one +refusing to offer sacrifice should immediately be burnt alive, +the penalties inflicted on the obstinacy of the Christians might +be deemed sufficiently rigorous and effectual. It was enacted, +that their churches, in all the provinces of the empire, should +be demolished to their foundations; and the punishment of death +was denounced against all who should presume to hold any secret +assemblies for the purpose of religious worship. The +philosophers, who now assumed the unworthy office of directing +the blind zeal of persecution, had diligently studied the nature +and genius of the Christian religion; and as they were not +ignorant that the speculative doctrines of the faith were +supposed to be contained in the writings of the prophets, of the +evangelists, and of the apostles, they most probably suggested +the order, that the bishops and presbyters should deliver all +their sacred books into the hands of the magistrates; who were +commanded, under the severest penalties, to burn them in a public +and solemn manner. By the same edict, the property of the church +was at once confiscated; and the several parts of which it might +consist were either sold to the highest bidder, united to the +Imperial domain, bestowed on the cities and corporations, or +granted to the solicitations of rapacious courtiers. After taking +such effectual measures to abolish the worship, and to dissolve +the government of the Christians, it was thought necessary to +subject to the most intolerable hardships the condition of those +perverse individuals who should still reject the religion of +nature, of Rome, and of their ancestors. Persons of a liberal +birth were declared incapable of holding any honors or +employments; slaves were forever deprived of the hopes of +freedom, and the whole body of the people were put out of the +protection of the law. The judges were authorized to hear and to +determine every action that was brought against a Christian. But +the Christians were not permitted to complain of any injury which +they themselves had suffered; and thus those unfortunate +sectaries were exposed to the severity, while they were excluded +from the benefits, of public justice. This new species of +martyrdom, so painful and lingering, so obscure and ignominious, +was, perhaps, the most proper to weary the constancy of the +faithful: nor can it be doubted that the passions and interest of +mankind were disposed on this occasion to second the designs of +the emperors. But the policy of a well-ordered government must +sometimes have interposed in behalf of the oppressed Christians; +* nor was it possible for the Roman princes entirely to remove +the apprehension of punishment, or to connive at every act of +fraud and violence, without exposing their own authority and the +rest of their subjects to the most alarming dangers.<br> +</p> + +<p>This edict was scarcely exhibited to the public view, in the +most conspicuous place of Nicomedia, before it was torn down by +the hands of a Christian, who expressed at the same time, by the +bitterest invectives, his contempt as well as abhorrence for such +impious and tyrannical governors. His offence, according to the +mildest laws, amounted to treason, and deserved death. And if it +be true that he was a person of rank and education, those +circumstances could serve only to aggravate his guilt. He was +burnt, or rather roasted, by a slow fire; and his executioners, +zealous to revenge the personal insult which had been offered to +the emperors, exhausted every refinement of cruelty, without +being able to subdue his patience, or to alter the steady and +insulting smile which in his dying agonies he still preserved in +his countenance. The Christians, though they confessed that his +conduct had not been strictly conformable to the laws of +prudence, admired the divine fervor of his zeal; and the +excessive commendations which they lavished on the memory of +their hero and martyr, contributed to fix a deep impression of +terror and hatred in the mind of Diocletian.<br> +</p> + +<p>His fears were soon alarmed by the view of a danger from which +he very narrowly escaped. Within fifteen days the palace of +Nicomedia, and even the bed-chamber of Diocletian, were twice in +flames; and though both times they were extinguished without any +material damage, the singular repetition of the fire was justly +considered as an evident proof that it had not been the effect of +chance or negligence. The suspicion naturally fell on the +Christians; and it was suggested, with some degree of +probability, that those desperate fanatics, provoked by their +present sufferings, and apprehensive of impending calamities, had +entered into a conspiracy with their faithful brethren, the +eunuchs of the palace, against the lives of two emperors, whom +they detested as the irreconcilable enemies of the church of God. +Jealousy and resentment prevailed in every breast, but especially +in that of Diocletian. A great number of persons, distinguished +either by the offices which they had filled, or by the favor +which they had enjoyed, were thrown into prison. Every mode of +torture was put in practice, and the court, as well as city, was +polluted with many bloody executions. But as it was found +impossible to extort any discovery of this mysterious +transaction, it seems incumbent on us either to presume the +innocence, or to admire the resolution, of the sufferers. A few +days afterwards Galerius hastily withdrew himself from Nicomedia, +declaring, that if he delayed his departure from that devoted +palace, he should fall a sacrifice to the rage of the Christians. +The ecclesiastical historians, from whom alone we derive a +partial and imperfect knowledge of this persecution, are at a +loss how to account for the fears and dangers of the emperors. +Two of these writers, a prince and a rhetorician, were +eye-witnesses of the fire of Nicomedia. The one ascribes it to +lightning, and the divine wrath; the other affirms, that it was +kindled by the malice of Galerius himself.<br> +</p> + +<p>As the edict against the Christians was designed for a general +law of the whole empire, and as Diocletian and Galerius, though +they might not wait for the consent, were assured of the +concurrence, of the Western princes, it would appear more +consonant to our ideas of policy, that the governors of all the +provinces should have received secret instructions to publish, on +one and the same day, this declaration of war within their +respective departments. It was at least to be expected, that the +convenience of the public highways and established posts would +have enabled the emperors to transmit their orders with the +utmost despatch from the palace of Nicomedia to the extremities +of the Roman world; and that they would not have suffered fifty +days to elapse, before the edict was published in Syria, and near +four months before it was signified to the cities of Africa. This +delay may perhaps be imputed to the cautious temper of +Diocletian, who had yielded a reluctant consent to the measures +of persecution, and who was desirous of trying the experiment +under his more immediate eye, before he gave way to the disorders +and discontent which it must inevitably occasion in the distant +provinces. At first, indeed, the magistrates were restrained from +the effusion of blood; but the use of every other severity was +permitted, and even recommended to their zeal; nor could the +Christians, though they cheerfully resigned the ornaments of +their churches, resolve to interrupt their religious assemblies, +or to deliver their sacred books to the flames. The pious +obstinacy of Felix, an African bishop, appears to have +embarrassed the subordinate ministers of the government. The +curator of his city sent him in chains to the proconsul. The +proconsul transmitted him to the Prætorian præfect of +Italy; and Felix, who disdained even to give an evasive answer, +was at length beheaded at Venusia, in Lucania, a place on which +the birth of Horace has conferred fame. This precedent, and +perhaps some Imperial rescript, which was issued in consequence +of it, appeared to authorize the governors of provinces, in +punishing with death the refusal of the Christians to deliver up +their sacred books. There were undoubtedly many persons who +embraced this opportunity of obtaining the crown of martyrdom; +but there were likewise too many who purchased an ignominious +life, by discovering and betraying the holy Scripture into the +hands of infidels. A great number even of bishops and presbyters +acquired, by this criminal compliance, the opprobrious epithet of +<strong><em>Traditors</em></strong>; and their offence was +productive of much present scandal and of much future discord in +the African church.<br> +</p> + +<p>The copies as well as the versions of Scripture, were already +so multiplied in the empire, that the most severe inquisition +could no longer be attended with any fatal consequences; and even +the sacrifice of those volumes, which, in every congregation, +were preserved for public use, required the consent of some +treacherous and unworthy Christians. But the ruin of the churches +was easily effected by the authority of the government, and by +the labor of the Pagans. In some provinces, however, the +magistrates contented themselves with shutting up the places of +religious worship. In others, they more literally complied with +the terms of the edict; and after taking away the doors, the +benches, and the pulpit, which they burnt as it were in a funeral +pile, they completely demolished the remainder of the edifice. It +is perhaps to this melancholy occasion that we should apply a +very remarkable story, which is related with so many +circumstances of variety and improbability, that it serves rather +to excite than to satisfy our curiosity. In a small town in +Phrygia, of whose names as well as situation we are left +ignorant, it should seem that the magistrates and the body of the +people had embraced the Christian faith; and as some resistance +might be apprehended to the execution of the edict, the governor +of the province was supported by a numerous detachment of +legionaries. On their approach the citizens threw themselves into +the church, with the resolution either of defending by arms that +sacred edifice, or of perishing in its ruins. They indignantly +rejected the notice and permission which was given them to +retire, till the soldiers, provoked by their obstinate refusal, +set fire to the building on all sides, and consumed, by this +extraordinary kind of martyrdom, a great number of Phrygians, +with their wives and children.<br> +</p> + +<p>Some slight disturbances, though they were suppressed almost +as soon as excited, in Syria and the frontiers of Armenia, +afforded the enemies of the church a very plausible occasion to +insinuate, that those troubles had been secretly fomented by the +intrigues of the bishops, who had already forgotten their +ostentatious professions of passive and unlimited obedience. The +resentment, or the fears, of Diocletian, at length transported +him beyond the bounds of moderation, which he had hitherto +preserved, and he declared, in a series of cruel edicts, his +intention of abolishing the Christian name. By the first of these +edicts, the governors of the provinces were directed to apprehend +all persons of the ecclesiastical order; and the prisons, +destined for the vilest criminals, were soon filled with a +multitude of bishops, presbyters, deacons, readers, and +exorcists. By a second edict, the magistrates were commanded to +employ every method of severity, which might reclaim them from +their odious superstition, and oblige them to return to the +established worship of the gods. This rigorous order was +extended, by a subsequent edict, to the whole body of Christians, +who were exposed to a violent and general persecution. Instead of +those salutary restraints, which had required the direct and +solemn testimony of an accuser, it became the duty as well as the +interest of the Imperial officers to discover, to pursue, and to +torment the most obnoxious among the faithful. Heavy penalties +were denounced against all who should presume to save a +prescribed sectary from the just indignation of the gods, and of +the emperors. Yet, notwithstanding the severity of this law, the +virtuous courage of many of the Pagans, in concealing their +friends or relations, affords an honorable proof, that the rage +of superstition had not extinguished in their minds the +sentiments of nature and humanity.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From +Nero To Constantine. -- Part VII.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Diocletian had no sooner published his edicts against the +Christians, than, as if he had been desirous of committing to +other hands the work of persecution, he divested himself of the +Imperial purple. The character and situation of his colleagues +and successors sometimes urged them to enforce and sometimes +inclined them to suspend, the execution of these rigorous laws; +nor can we acquire a just and distinct idea of this important +period of ecclesiastical history, unless we separately consider +the state of Christianity, in the different parts of the empire, +during the space of ten years, which elapsed between the first +edicts of Diocletian and the final peace of the church.<br> +</p> + +<p>The mild and humane temper of Constantius was averse to the +oppression of any part of his subjects. The principal offices of +his palace were exercised by Christians. He loved their persons, +esteemed their fidelity, and entertained not any dislike to their +religious principles. But as long as Constantius remained in the +subordinate station of Cæsar, it was not in his power +openly to reject the edicts of Diocletian, or to disobey the +commands of Maximian. His authority contributed, however, to +alleviate the sufferings which he pitied and abhorred. He +consented with reluctance to the ruin of the churches; but he +ventured to protect the Christians themselves from the fury of +the populace, and from the rigor of the laws. The provinces of +Gaul (under which we may probably include those of Britain) were +indebted for the singular tranquillity which they enjoyed, to the +gentle interposition of their sovereign. But Datianus, the +president or governor of Spain, actuated either by zeal or +policy, chose rather to execute the public edicts of the +emperors, than to understand the secret intentions of +Constantius; and it can scarcely be doubted, that his provincial +administration was stained with the blood of a few martyrs. The +elevation of Constantius to the supreme and independent dignity +of Augustus, gave a free scope to the exercise of his virtues, +and the shortness of his reign did not prevent him from +establishing a system of toleration, of which he left the precept +and the example to his son Constantine. His fortunate son, from +the first moment of his accession, declaring himself the +protector of the church, at length deserved the appellation of +the first emperor who publicly professed and established the +Christian religion. The motives of his conversion, as they may +variously be deduced from benevolence, from policy, from +conviction, or from remorse, and the progress of the revolution, +which, under his powerful influence and that of his sons, +rendered Christianity the reigning religion of the Roman empire, +will form a very interesting and important chapter in the present +volume of this history. At present it may be sufficient to +observe, that every victory of Constantine was productive of some +relief or benefit to the church.<br> +</p> + +<p>The provinces of Italy and Africa experienced a short but +violent persecution. The rigorous edicts of Diocletian were +strictly and cheerfully executed by his associate Maximian, who +had long hated the Christians, and who delighted in acts of blood +and violence. In the autumn of the first year of the persecution, +the two emperors met at Rome to celebrate their triumph; several +oppressive laws appear to have issued from their secret +consultations, and the diligence of the magistrates was animated +by the presence of their sovereigns., After Diocletian had +divested himself of the purple, Italy and Africa were +administered under the name of Severus, and were exposed, without +defence, to the implacable resentment of his master Galerius. +Among the martyrs of Rome, Adauctus deserves the notice of +posterity. He was of a noble family in Italy, and had raised +himself, through the successive honors of the palace, to the +important office of treasurer of the private Jemesnes. Adauctus +is the more remarkable for being the only person of rank and +distinction who appears to have suffered death, during the whole +course of this general persecution.<br> +</p> + +<p>The revolt of Maxentius immediately restored peace to the +churches of Italy and Africa; and the same tyrant who oppressed +every other class of his subjects, showed himself just, humane, +and even partial, towards the afflicted Christians. He depended +on their gratitude and affection, and very naturally presumed, +that the injuries which they had suffered, and the dangers which +they still apprehended from his most inveterate enemy, would +secure the fidelity of a party already considerable by their +numbers and opulence. Even the conduct of Maxentius towards the +bishops of Rome and Carthage may be considered as the proof of +his toleration, since it is probable that the most orthodox +princes would adopt the same measures with regard to their +established clergy. Marcellus, the former of these prelates, had +thrown the capital into confusion, by the severe penance which he +imposed on a great number of Christians, who, during the late +persecution, had renounced or dissembled their religion. The rage +of faction broke out in frequent and violent seditions; the blood +of the faithful was shed by each other's hands, and the exile of +Marcellus, whose prudence seems to have been less eminent than +his zeal, was found to be the only measure capable of restoring +peace to the distracted church of Rome. The behavior of +Mensurius, bishop of Carthage, appears to have been still more +reprehensible. A deacon of that city had published a libel +against the emperor. The offender took refuge in the episcopal +palace; and though it was somewhat early to advance any claims of +ecclesiastical immunities, the bishop refused to deliver him up +to the officers of justice. For this treasonable resistance, +Mensurius was summoned to court, and instead of receiving a legal +sentence of death or banishment, he was permitted, after a short +examination, to return to his diocese. Such was the happy +condition of the Christian subjects of Maxentius, that whenever +they were desirous of procuring for their own use any bodies of +martyrs, they were obliged to purchase them from the most distant +provinces of the East. A story is related of Aglæ, a Roman +lady, descended from a consular family, and possessed of so ample +an estate, that it required the management of seventy-three +stewards. Among these Boniface was the favorite of his mistress; +and as Aglæ mixed love with devotion, it is reported that +he was admitted to share her bed. Her fortune enabled her to +gratify the pious desire of obtaining some sacred relics from the +East. She intrusted Boniface with a considerable sum of gold, and +a large quantity of aromatics; and her lover, attended by twelve +horsemen and three covered chariots, undertook a remote +pilgrimage, as far as Tarsus in Cilicia.<br> +</p> + +<p>The sanguinary temper of Galerius, the first and principal +author of the persecution, was formidable to those Christians +whom their misfortunes had placed within the limits of his +dominions; and it may fairly be presumed that many persons of a +middle rank, who were not confined by the chains either of wealth +or of poverty, very frequently deserted their native country, and +sought a refuge in the milder climate of the West. As long as he +commanded only the armies and provinces of Illyricum, he could +with difficulty either find or make a considerable number of +martyrs, in a warlike country, which had entertained the +missionaries of the gospel with more coldness and reluctance than +any other part of the empire. But when Galerius had obtained the +supreme power, and the government of the East, he indulged in +their fullest extent his zeal and cruelty, not only in the +provinces of Thrace and Asia, which acknowledged his immediate +jurisdiction, but in those of Syria, Palestine, and Egypt, where +Maximin gratified his own inclination, by yielding a rigorous +obedience to the stern commands of his benefactor. The frequent +disappointments of his ambitious views, the experience of six +years of persecution, and the salutary reflections which a +lingering and painful distemper suggested to the mind of +Galerius, at length convinced him that the most violent efforts +of despotism are insufficient to extirpate a whole people, or to +subdue their religious prejudices. Desirous of repairing the +mischief that he had occasioned, he published in his own name, +and in those of Licinius and Constantine, a general edict, which, +after a pompous recital of the Imperial titles, proceeded in the +following manner: --<br> +</p> + +<p>"Among the important cares which have occupied our mind for +the utility and preservation of the empire, it was our intention +to correct and reestablish all things according to the ancient +laws and public discipline of the Romans. We were particularly +desirous of reclaiming into the way of reason and nature, the +deluded Christians who had renounced the religion and ceremonies +instituted by their fathers; and presumptuously despising the +practice of antiquity, had invented extravagant laws and +opinions, according to the dictates of their fancy, and had +collected a various society from the different provinces of our +empire. The edicts, which we have published to enforce the +worship of the gods, having exposed many of the Christians to +danger and distress, many having suffered death, and many more, +who still persist in their impious folly, being left destitute of +<strong><em>any</em></strong> public exercise of religion, we are +disposed to extend to those unhappy men the effects of our wonted +clemency. We permit them therefore freely to profess their +private opinions, and to assemble in their conventicles without +fear or molestation, provided always that they preserve a due +respect to the established laws and government. By another +rescript we shall signify our intentions to the judges and +magistrates; and we hope that our indulgence will engage the +Christians to offer up their prayers to the Deity whom they +adore, for our safety and prosperity for their own, and for that +of the republic." It is not usually in the language of edicts and +manifestos that we should search for the real character or the +secret motives of princes; but as these were the words of a dying +emperor, his situation, perhaps, may be admitted as a pledge of +his sincerity.<br> +</p> + +<p>When Galerius subscribed this edict of toleration, he was well +assured that Licinius would readily comply with the inclinations +of his friend and benefactor, and that any measures in favor of +the Christians would obtain the approbation of Constantine. But +the emperor would not venture to insert in the preamble the name +of Maximin, whose consent was of the greatest importance, and who +succeeded a few days afterwards to the provinces of Asia. In the +first six months, however, of his new reign, Maximin affected to +adopt the prudent counsels of his predecessor; and though he +never condescended to secure the tranquillity of the church by a +public edict, Sabinus, his Prætorian præfect, +addressed a circular letter to all the governors and magistrates +of the provinces, expatiating on the Imperial clemency, +acknowledging the invincible obstinacy of the Christians, and +directing the officers of justice to cease their ineffectual +prosecutions, and to connive at the secret assemblies of those +enthusiasts. In consequence of these orders, great numbers of +Christians were released from prison, or delivered from the +mines. The confessors, singing hymns of triumph, returned into +their own countries; and those who had yielded to the violence of +the tempest, solicited with tears of repentance their readmission +into the bosom of the church.<br> +</p> + +<p>But this treacherous calm was of short duration; nor could the +Christians of the East place any confidence in the character of +their sovereign. Cruelty and superstition were the ruling +passions of the soul of Maximin. The former suggested the means, +the latter pointed out the objects of persecution. The emperor +was devoted to the worship of the gods, to the study of magic, +and to the belief of oracles. The prophets or philosophers, whom +he revered as the favorites of Heaven, were frequently raised to +the government of provinces, and admitted into his most secret +councils. They easily convinced him that the Christians had been +indebted for their victories to their regular discipline, and +that the weakness of polytheism had principally flowed from a +want of union and subordination among the ministers of religion. +A system of government was therefore instituted, which was +evidently copied from the policy of the church. In all the great +cities of the empire, the temples were repaired and beautified by +the order of Maximin, and the officiating priests of the various +deities were subjected to the authority of a superior pontiff +destined to oppose the bishop, and to promote the cause of +paganism. These pontiffs acknowledged, in their turn, the supreme +jurisdiction of the metropolitans or high priests of the +province, who acted as the immediate vicegerents of the emperor +himself. A white robe was the ensign of their dignity; and these +new prelates were carefully selected from the most noble and +opulent families. By the influence of the magistrates, and of the +sacerdotal order, a great number of dutiful addresses were +obtained, particularly from the cities of Nicomedia, Antioch, and +Tyre, which artfully represented the well-known intentions of the +court as the general sense of the people; solicited the emperor +to consult the laws of justice rather than the dictates of his +clemency; expressed their abhorrence of the Christians, and +humbly prayed that those impious sectaries might at least be +excluded from the limits of their respective territories. The +answer of Maximin to the address which he obtained from the +citizens of Tyre is still extant. He praises their zeal and +devotion in terms of the highest satisfaction, descants on the +obstinate impiety of the Christians, and betrays, by the +readiness with which he consents to their banishment, that he +considered himself as receiving, rather than as conferring, an +obligation. The priests as well as the magistrates were empowered +to enforce the execution of his edicts, which were engraved on +tables of brass; and though it was recommended to them to avoid +the effusion of blood, the most cruel and ignominious punishments +were inflicted on the refractory Christians.<br> +</p> + +<p>The Asiatic Christians had every thing to dread from the +severity of a bigoted monarch who prepared his measures of +violence with such deliberate policy. But a few months had +scarcely elapsed before the edicts published by the two Western +emperors obliged Maximin to suspend the prosecution of his +designs: the civil war which he so rashly undertook against +Licinius employed all his attention; and the defeat and death of +Maximin soon delivered the church from the last and most +implacable of her enemies.<br> +</p> + +<p>In this general view of the persecution, which was first +authorized by the edicts of Diocletian, I have purposely +refrained from describing the particular sufferings and deaths of +the Christian martyrs. It would have been an easy task, from the +history of Eusebius, from the declamations of Lactantius, and +from the most ancient acts, to collect a long series of horrid +and disgustful pictures, and to fill many pages with racks and +scourges, with iron hooks and red-hot beds, and with all the +variety of tortures which fire and steel, savage beasts, and more +savage executioners, could inflict upon the human body. These +melancholy scenes might be enlivened by a crowd of visions and +miracles destined either to delay the death, to celebrate the +triumph, or to discover the relics of those canonized saints who +suffered for the name of Christ. But I cannot determine what I +ought to transcribe, till I am satisfied how much I ought to +believe. The gravest of the ecclesiastical historians, Eusebius +himself, indirectly confesses, that he has related whatever might +redound to the glory, and that he has suppressed all that could +tend to the disgrace, of religion. Such an acknowledgment will +naturally excite a suspicion that a writer who has so openly +violated one of the fundamental laws of history, has not paid a +very strict regard to the observance of the other; and the +suspicion will derive additional credit from the character of +Eusebius, * which was less tinctured with credulity, and more +practised in the arts of courts, than that of almost any of his +contemporaries. On some particular occasions, when the +magistrates were exasperated by some personal motives of interest +or resentment, the rules of prudence, and perhaps of decency, to +overturn the altars, to pour out imprecations against the +emperors, or to strike the judge as he sat on his tribunal, it +may be presumed, that every mode of torture which cruelty could +invent, or constancy could endure, was exhausted on those devoted +victims. Two circumstances, however, have been unwarily +mentioned, which insinuate that the general treatment of the +Christians, who had been apprehended by the officers of justice, +was less intolerable than it is usually imagined to have been. 1. +The confessors who were condemned to work in the mines were +permitted by the humanity or the negligence of their keepers to +build chapels, and freely to profess their religion in the midst +of those dreary habitations. 2. The bishops were obliged to check +and to censure the forward zeal of the Christians, who +voluntarily threw themselves into the hands of the magistrates. +Some of these were persons oppressed by poverty and debts, who +blindly sought to terminate a miserable existence by a glorious +death. Others were allured by the hope that a short confinement +would expiate the sins of a whole life; and others again were +actuated by the less honorable motive of deriving a plentiful +subsistence, and perhaps a considerable profit, from the alms +which the charity of the faithful bestowed on the prisoners. +After the church had triumphed over all her enemies, the interest +as well as vanity of the captives prompted them to magnify the +merit of their respective sufferings. A convenient distance of +time or place gave an ample scope to the progress of fiction; and +the frequent instances which might be alleged of holy martyrs, +whose wounds had been instantly healed, whose strength had been +renewed, and whose lost members had miraculously been restored, +were extremely convenient for the purpose of removing every +difficulty, and of silencing every objection. The most +extravagant legends, as they conduced to the honor of the church, +were applauded by the credulous multitude, countenanced by the +power of the clergy, and attested by the suspicious evidence of +ecclesiastical history.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVI: Conduct Towards The Christians, From +Nero To Constantine. -- Part VIII.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The vague descriptions of exile and imprisonment, of pain and +torture, are so easily exaggerated or softened by the pencil of +an artful orator, * that we are naturally induced to inquire into +a fact of a more distinct and stubborn kind; the number of +persons who suffered death in consequence of the edicts published +by Diocletian, his associates, and his successors. The recent +legendaries record whole armies and cities, which were at once +swept away by the undistinguishing rage of persecution. The more +ancient writers content themselves with pouring out a liberal +effusion of loose and tragical invectives, without condescending +to ascertain the precise number of those persons who were +permitted to seal with their blood their belief of the gospel. +From the history of Eusebius, it may, however, be collected, that +only nine bishops were punished with death; and we are assured, +by his particular enumeration of the martyrs of Palestine, that +no more than ninety-two Christians were entitled to that +honorable appellation. As we are unacquainted with the degree of +episcopal zeal and courage which prevailed at that time, it is +not in our power to draw any useful inferences from the former of +these facts: but the latter may serve to justify a very important +and probable conclusion. According to the distribution of Roman +provinces, Palestine may be considered as the sixteenth part of +the Eastern empire: and since there were some governors, who from +a real or affected clemency had preserved their hands unstained +with the blood of the faithful, it is reasonable to believe, that +the country which had given birth to Christianity, produced at +least the sixteenth part of the martyrs who suffered death within +the dominions of Galerius and Maximin; the whole might +consequently amount to about fifteen hundred, a number which, if +it is equally divided between the ten years of the persecution, +will allow an annual consumption of one hundred and fifty +martyrs. Allotting the same proportion to the provinces of Italy, +Africa, and perhaps Spain, where, at the end of two or three +years, the rigor of the penal laws was either suspended or +abolished, the multitude of Christians in the Roman empire, on +whom a capital punishment was inflicted by a judicial, sentence, +will be reduced to somewhat less than two thousand persons. Since +it cannot be doubted that the Christians were more numerous, and +their enemies more exasperated, in the time of Diocletian, than +they had ever been in any former persecution, this probable and +moderate computation may teach us to estimate the number of +primitive saints and martyrs who sacrificed their lives for the +important purpose of introducing Christianity into the world.<br> +</p> + +<p>We shall conclude this chapter by a melancholy truth, which +obtrudes itself on the reluctant mind; that even admitting, +without hesitation or inquiry, all that history has recorded, or +devotion has feigned, on the subject of martyrdoms, it must still +be acknowledged, that the Christians, in the course of their +intestine dissensions, have inflicted far greater severities on +each other, than they had experienced from the zeal of infidels. +During the ages of ignorance which followed the subversion of the +Roman empire in the West, the bishops of the Imperial city +extended their dominion over the laity as well as clergy of the +Latin church. The fabric of superstition which they had erected, +and which might long have defied the feeble efforts of reason, +was at length assaulted by a crowd of daring fanatics, who from +the twelfth to the sixteenth century assumed the popular +character of reformers. The church of Rome defended by violence +the empire which she had acquired by fraud; a system of peace and +benevolence was soon disgraced by proscriptions, war, massacres, +and the institution of the holy office. And as the reformers were +animated by the love of civil as well as of religious freedom, +the Catholic princes connected their own interest with that of +the clergy, and enforced by fire and the sword the terrors of +spiritual censures. In the Netherlands alone, more than one +hundred thousand of the subjects of Charles V. are said to have +suffered by the hand of the executioner; and this extraordinary +number is attested by Grotius, a man of genius and learning, who +preserved his moderation amidst the fury of contending sects, and +who composed the annals of his own age and country, at a time +when the invention of printing had facilitated the means of +intelligence, and increased the danger of detection. If we are +obliged to submit our belief to the authority of Grotius, it must +be allowed, that the number of Protestants, who were executed in +a single province and a single reign, far exceeded that of the +primitive martyrs in the space of three centuries, and of the +Roman empire. But if the improbability of the fact itself should +prevail over the weight of evidence; if Grotius should be +convicted of exaggerating the merit and sufferings of the +Reformers; we shall be naturally led to inquire what confidence +can be placed in the doubtful and imperfect monuments of ancient +credulity; what degree of credit can be assigned to a courtly +bishop, and a passionate declaimer, * who, under the protection +of Constantine, enjoyed the exclusive privilege of recording the +persecutions inflicted on the Christians by the vanquished rivals +or disregarded predecessors of their gracious sovereign.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong>Chapter XVII: Foundation Of +Constantinople.</strong><br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Part I.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Foundation Of Constantinople. -- Political System Constantine, +And His Successors. -- Military Discipline. -- The Palace. -- The +Finances.<br> +</p> + +<p>The unfortunate Licinius was the last rival who opposed the +greatness, and the last captive who adorned the triumph, of +Constantine. After a tranquil and prosperous reign, the conqueror +bequeathed to his family the inheritance of the Roman empire; a +new capital, a new policy, and a new religion; and the +innovations which he established have been embraced and +consecrated by succeeding generations. The age of the great +Constantine and his sons is filled with important events; but the +historian must be oppressed by their number and variety, unless +he diligently separates from each other the scenes which are +connected only by the order of time. He will describe the +political institutions that gave strength and stability to the +empire, before he proceeds to relate the wars and revolutions +which hastened its decline. He will adopt the division unknown to +the ancients of civil and ecclesiastical affairs: the victory of +the Christians, and their intestine discord, will supply copious +and distinct materials both for edification and for scandal.<br> +</p> + +<p>After the defeat and abdication of Licinius, his victorious +rival proceeded to lay the foundations of a city destined to +reign in future times, the mistress of the East, and to survive +the empire and religion of Constantine. The motives, whether of +pride or of policy, which first induced Diocletian to withdraw +himself from the ancient seat of government, had acquired +additional weight by the example of his successors, and the +habits of forty years. Rome was insensibly confounded with the +dependent kingdoms which had once acknowledged her supremacy; and +the country of the Cæsars was viewed with cold indifference +by a martial prince, born in the neighborhood of the Danube, +educated in the courts and armies of Asia, and invested with the +purple by the legions of Britain. The Italians, who had received +Constantine as their deliverer, submissively obeyed the edicts +which he sometimes condescended to address to the senate and +people of Rome; but they were seldom honored with the presence of +their new sovereign. During the vigor of his age, Constantine, +according to the various exigencies of peace and war, moved with +slow dignity, or with active diligence, along the frontiers of +his extensive dominions; and was always prepared to take the +field either against a foreign or a domestic enemy. But as he +gradually reached the summit of prosperity and the decline of +life, he began to meditate the design of fixing in a more +permanent station the strength as well as majesty of the throne. +In the choice of an advantageous situation, he preferred the +confines of Europe and Asia; to curb with a powerful arm the +barbarians who dwelt between the Danube and the Tanais; to watch +with an eye of jealousy the conduct of the Persian monarch, who +indignantly supported the yoke of an ignominious treaty. With +these views, Diocletian had selected and embellished the +residence of Nicomedia: but the memory of Diocletian was justly +abhorred by the protector of the church: and Constantine was not +insensible to the ambition of founding a city which might +perpetuate the glory of his own name. During the late operations +of the war against Licinius, he had sufficient opportunity to +contemplate, both as a soldier and as a statesman, the +incomparable position of Byzantium; and to observe how strongly +it was guarded by nature against a hostile attack, whilst it was +accessible on every side to the benefits of commercial +intercourse. Many ages before Constantine, one of the most +judicious historians of antiquity had described the advantages of +a situation, from whence a feeble colony of Greeks derived the +command of the sea, and the honors of a flourishing and +independent republic.<br> +</p> + +<p>If we survey Byzantium in the extent which it acquired with +the august name of Constantinople, the figure of the Imperial +city may be represented under that of an unequal triangle. The +obtuse point, which advances towards the east and the shores of +Asia, meets and repels the waves of the Thracian Bosphorus. The +northern side of the city is bounded by the harbor; and the +southern is washed by the Propontis, or Sea of Marmara. The basis +of the triangle is opposed to the west, and terminates the +continent of Europe. But the admirable form and division of the +circumjacent land and water cannot, without a more ample +explanation, be clearly or sufficiently understood.<br> +</p> + +<p>The winding channel through which the waters of the Euxine +flow with a rapid and incessant course towards the Mediterranean, +received the appellation of Bosphorus, a name not less celebrated +in the history, than in the fables, of antiquity. A crowd of +temples and of votive altars, profusely scattered along its steep +and woody banks, attested the unskilfulness, the terrors, and the +devotion of the Grecian navigators, who, after the example of the +Argonauts, explored the dangers of the inhospitable Euxine. On +these banks tradition long preserved the memory of the palace of +Phineus, infested by the obscene harpies; and of the sylvan reign +of Amycus, who defied the son of Leda to the combat of the +cestus. The straits of the Bosphorus are terminated by the +Cyanean rocks, which, according to the description of the poets, +had once floated on the face of the waters; and were destined by +the gods to protect the entrance of the Euxine against the eye of +profane curiosity. From the Cyanean rocks to the point and harbor +of Byzantium, the winding length of the Bosphorus extends about +sixteen miles, and its most ordinary breadth may be computed at +about one mile and a half. The <strong><em>new</em></strong> +castles of Europe and Asia are constructed, on either continent, +upon the foundations of two celebrated temples, of Serapis and of +Jupiter Urius. The <strong><em>old</em></strong>castles, a work +of the Greek emperors, command the narrowest part of the channel +in a place where the opposite banks advance within five hundred +paces of each other. These fortresses were destroyed and +strengthened by Mahomet the Second, when he meditated the siege +of Constantinople: but the Turkish conqueror was most probably +ignorant, that near two thousand years before his reign, +continents by a bridge of boats. At a small distance from the old +castles we discover the little town of Chrysopolis, or Scutari, +which may almost be considered as the Asiatic suburb of +Constantinople. The Bosphorus, as it begins to open into the +Propontis, passes between Byzantium and Chalcedon. The latter of +those cities was built by the Greeks, a few years before the +former; and the blindness of its founders, who overlooked the +superior advantages of the opposite coast, has been stigmatized +by a proverbial expression of contempt.<br> +</p> + +<p>The harbor of Constantinople, which may be considered as an +arm of the Bosphorus, obtained, in a very remote period, the +denomination of the <strong><em>Golden Horn</em></strong>. The +curve which it describes might be compared to the horn of a stag, +or as it should seem, with more propriety, to that of an ox. The +epithet of <strong><em>golden</em></strong> was expressive of the +riches which every wind wafted from the most distant countries +into the secure and capacious port of Constantinople. The River +Lycus, formed by the conflux of two little streams, pours into +the harbor a perpetual supply of fresh water, which serves to +cleanse the bottom, and to invite the periodical shoals of fish +to seek their retreat in that convenient recess. As the +vicissitudes of tides are scarcely felt in those seas, the +constant depth of the harbor allows goods to be landed on the +quays without the assistance of boats; and it has been observed, +that in many places the largest vessels may rest their prows +against the houses, while their sterns are floating in the water. +From the mouth of the Lycus to that of the harbor, this arm of +the Bosphorus is more than seven miles in length. The entrance is +about five hundred yards broad, and a strong chain could be +occasionally drawn across it, to guard the port and city from the +attack of a hostile navy.<br> +</p> + +<p>Between the Bosphorus and the Hellespont, the shores of Europe +and Asia, receding on either side, enclose the sea of Marmara, +which was known to the ancients by the denomination of Propontis. +The navigation from the issue of the Bosphorus to the entrance of +the Hellespont is about one hundred and twenty miles. Those who +steer their westward course through the middle of the Propontis, +amt at once descry the high lands of Thrace and Bithynia, and +never lose sight of the lofty summit of Mount Olympus, covered +with eternal snows. They leave on the left a deep gulf, at the +bottom of which Nicomedia was seated, the Imperial residence of +Diocletian; and they pass the small islands of Cyzicus and +Proconnesus before they cast anchor at Gallipoli; where the sea, +which separates Asia from Europe, is again contracted into a +narrow channel.<br> +</p> + +<p>The geographers who, with the most skilful accuracy, have +surveyed the form and extent of the Hellespont, assign about +sixty miles for the winding course, and about three miles for the +ordinary breadth of those celebrated straits. But the narrowest +part of the channel is found to the northward of the old Turkish +castles between the cities of Sestus and Abydus. It was here that +the adventurous Leander braved the passage of the flood for the +possession of his mistress. It was here likewise, in a place +where the distance between the opposite banks cannot exceed five +hundred paces, that Xerxes imposed a stupendous bridge of boats, +for the purpose of transporting into Europe a hundred and seventy +myriads of barbarians. A sea contracted within such narrow limits +may seem but ill to deserve the singular epithet of +<strong><em>broad</em></strong>, which Homer, as well as Orpheus, +has frequently bestowed on the Hellespont. * But our ideas of +greatness are of a relative nature: the traveller, and especially +the poet, who sailed along the Hellespont, who pursued the +windings of the stream, and contemplated the rural scenery, which +appeared on every side to terminate the prospect, insensibly lost +the remembrance of the sea; and his fancy painted those +celebrated straits, with all the attributes of a mighty river +flowing with a swift current, in the midst of a woody and inland +country, and at length, through a wide mouth, discharging itself +into the Ægean or Archipelago. Ancient Troy, seated on a an +eminence at the foot of Mount Ida, overlooked the mouth of the +Hellespont, which scarcely received an accession of waters from +the tribute of those immortal rivulets the Simois and Scamander. +The Grecian camp had stretched twelve miles along the shore from +the Sigæan to the Rhætean promontory; and the flanks +of the army were guarded by the bravest chiefs who fought under +the banners of Agamemnon. The first of those promontories was +occupied by Achilles with his invincible myrmidons, and the +dauntless Ajax pitched his tents on the other. After Ajax had +fallen a sacrifice to his disappointed pride, and to the +ingratitude of the Greeks, his sepulchre was erected on the +ground where he had defended the navy against the rage of Jove +and of Hector; and the citizens of the rising town of +Rhæteum celebrated his memory with divine honors. Before +Constantine gave a just preference to the situation of Byzantium, +he had conceived the design of erecting the seat of empire on +this celebrated spot, from whence the Romans derived their +fabulous origin. The extensive plain which lies below ancient +Troy, towards the Rhætean promontory and the tomb of Ajax, +was first chosen for his new capital; and though the undertaking +was soon relinquished the stately remains of unfinished walls and +towers attracted the notice of all who sailed through the straits +of the Hellespont.<br> +</p> + +<p>We are at present qualified to view the advantageous position +of Constantinople; which appears to have been formed by nature +for the centre and capital of a great monarchy. Situated in the +forty-first degree of latitude, the Imperial city commanded, from +her seven hills, the opposite shores of Europe and Asia; the +climate was healthy and temperate, the soil fertile, the harbor +secure and capacious; and the approach on the side of the +continent was of small extent and easy defence. The Bosphorus and +the Hellespont may be considered as the two gates of +Constantinople; and the prince who possessed those important +passages could always shut them against a naval enemy, and open +them to the fleets of commerce. The preservation of the eastern +provinces may, in some degree, be ascribed to the policy of +Constantine, as the barbarians of the Euxine, who in the +preceding age had poured their armaments into the heart of the +Mediterranean, soon desisted from the exercise of piracy, and +despaired of forcing this insurmountable barrier. When the gates +of the Hellespont and Bosphorus were shut, the capital still +enjoyed within their spacious enclosure every production which +could supply the wants, or gratify the luxury, of its numerous +inhabitants. The sea-coasts of Thrace and Bithynia, which +languish under the weight of Turkish oppression, still exhibit a +rich prospect of vineyards, of gardens, and of plentiful +harvests; and the Propontis has ever been renowned for an +inexhaustible store of the most exquisite fish, that are taken in +their stated seasons, without skill, and almost without labor. +But when the passages of the straits were thrown open for trade, +they alternately admitted the natural and artificial riches of +the north and south, of the Euxine, and of the Mediterranean. +Whatever rude commodities were collected in the forests of +Germany and Scythia, and far as the sources of the Tanais and the +Borysthenes; whatsoever was manufactured by the skill of Europe +or Asia; the corn of Egypt, and the gems and spices of the +farthest India, were brought by the varying winds into the port +of Constantinople, which for many ages attracted the commerce of +the ancient world.<br> +</p> + +<p>[See Basilica Of Constantinople]<br> +</p> + +<p>The prospect of beauty, of safety, and of wealth, united in a +single spot, was sufficient to justify the choice of Constantine. +But as some decent mixture of prodigy and fable has, in every +age, been supposed to reflect a becoming majesty on the origin of +great cities, the emperor was desirous of ascribing his +resolution, not so much to the uncertain counsels of human +policy, as to the infallible and eternal decrees of divine +wisdom. In one of his laws he has been careful to instruct +posterity, that in obedience to the commands of God, he laid the +everlasting foundations of Constantinople: and though he has not +condescended to relate in what manner the celestial inspiration +was communicated to his mind, the defect of his modest silence +has been liberally supplied by the ingenuity of succeeding +writers; who describe the nocturnal vision which appeared to the +fancy of Constantine, as he slept within the walls of Byzantium. +The tutelar genius of the city, a venerable matron sinking under +the weight of years and infirmities, was suddenly transformed +into a blooming maid, whom his own hands adorned with all the +symbols of Imperial greatness. The monarch awoke, interpreted the +auspicious omen, and obeyed, without hesitation, the will of +Heaven The day which gave birth to a city or colony was +celebrated by the Romans with such ceremonies as had been +ordained by a generous superstition; and though Constantine might +omit some rites which savored too strongly of their Pagan origin, +yet he was anxious to leave a deep impression of hope and respect +on the minds of the spectators. On foot, with a lance in his +hand, the emperor himself led the solemn procession; and directed +the line, which was traced as the boundary of the destined +capital: till the growing circumference was observed with +astonishment by the assistants, who, at length, ventured to +observe, that he had already exceeded the most ample measure of a +great city. "I shall still advance," replied Constantine, "till +He, the invisible guide who marches before me, thinks proper to +stop." Without presuming to investigate the nature or motives of +this extraordinary conductor, we shall content ourselves with the +more humble task of describing the extent and limits of +Constantinople.<br> +</p> + +<p>In the actual state of the city, the palace and gardens of the +Seraglio occupy the eastern promontory, the first of the seven +hills, and cover about one hundred and fifty acres of our own +measure. The seat of Turkish jealousy and despotism is erected on +the foundations of a Grecian republic; but it may be supposed +that the Byzantines were tempted by the conveniency of the harbor +to extend their habitations on that side beyond the modern limits +of the Seraglio. The new walls of Constantine stretched from the +port to the Propontis across the enlarged breadth of the +triangle, at the distance of fifteen stadia from the ancient +fortification; and with the city of Byzantium they enclosed five +of the seven hills, which, to the eyes of those who approach +Constantinople, appear to rise above each other in beautiful +order. About a century after the death of the founder, the new +buildings, extending on one side up the harbor, and on the other +along the Propontis, already covered the narrow ridge of the +sixth, and the broad summit of the seventh hill. The necessity of +protecting those suburbs from the incessant inroads of the +barbarians engaged the younger Theodosius to surround his capital +with an adequate and permanent enclosure of walls. From the +eastern promontory to the golden gate, the extreme length of +Constantinople was about three Roman miles; the circumference +measured between ten and eleven; and the surface might be +computed as equal to about two thousand English acres. It is +impossible to justify the vain and credulous exaggerations of +modern travellers, who have sometimes stretched the limits of +Constantinople over the adjacent villages of the European, and +even of the Asiatic coast. But the suburbs of Pera and Galata, +though situate beyond the harbor, may deserve to be considered as +a part of the city; and this addition may perhaps authorize the +measure of a Byzantine historian, who assigns sixteen Greek +(about fourteen Roman) miles for the circumference of his native +city. Such an extent may not seem unworthy of an Imperial +residence. Yet Constantinople must yield to Babylon and Thebes, +to ancient Rome, to London, and even to Paris.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople. -- +Part II.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The master of the Roman world, who aspired to erect an eternal +monument of the glories of his reign could employ in the +prosecution of that great work, the wealth, the labor, and all +that yet remained of the genius of obedient millions. Some +estimate may be formed of the expense bestowed with Imperial +liberality on the foundation of Constantinople, by the allowance +of about two millions five hundred thousand pounds for the +construction of the walls, the porticos, and the aqueducts. The +forests that overshadowed the shores of the Euxine, and the +celebrated quarries of white marble in the little island of +Proconnesus, supplied an inexhaustible stock of materials, ready +to be conveyed, by the convenience of a short water carriage, to +the harbor of Byzantium. A multitude of laborers and artificers +urged the conclusion of the work with incessant toil: but the +impatience of Constantine soon discovered, that, in the decline +of the arts, the skill as well as numbers of his architects bore +a very unequal proportion to the greatness of his designs. The +magistrates of the most distant provinces were therefore directed +to institute schools, to appoint professors, and by the hopes of +rewards and privileges, to engage in the study and practice of +architecture a sufficient number of ingenious youths, who had +received a liberal education. The buildings of the new city were +executed by such artificers as the reign of Constantine could +afford; but they were decorated by the hands of the most +celebrated masters of the age of Pericles and Alexander. To +revive the genius of Phidias and Lysippus, surpassed indeed the +power of a Roman emperor; but the immortal productions which they +had bequeathed to posterity were exposed without defence to the +rapacious vanity of a despot. By his commands the cities of +Greece and Asia were despoiled of their most valuable ornaments. +The trophies of memorable wars, the objects of religious +veneration, the most finished statues of the gods and heroes, of +the sages and poets, of ancient times, contributed to the +splendid triumph of Constantinople; and gave occasion to the +remark of the historian Cedrenus, who observes, with some +enthusiasm, that nothing seemed wanting except the souls of the +illustrious men whom these admirable monuments were intended to +represent. But it is not in the city of Constantine, nor in the +declining period of an empire, when the human mind was depressed +by civil and religious slavery, that we should seek for the souls +of Homer and of Demosthenes.<br> +</p> + +<p>During the siege of Byzantium, the conqueror had pitched his +tent on the commanding eminence of the second hill. To perpetuate +the memory of his success, he chose the same advantageous +position for the principal Forum; which appears to have been of a +circular, or rather elliptical form. The two opposite entrances +formed triumphal arches; the porticos, which enclosed it on every +side, were filled with statues; and the centre of the Forum was +occupied by a lofty column, of which a mutilated fragment is now +degraded by the appellation of the <strong><em>burnt +pillar</em></strong>. This column was erected on a pedestal of +white marble twenty feet high; and was composed of ten pieces of +porphyry, each of which measured about ten feet in height, and +about thirty-three in circumference. On the summit of the pillar, +above one hundred and twenty feet from the ground, stood the +colossal statue of Apollo. It was a bronze, had been transported +either from Athens or from a town of Phrygia, and was supposed to +be the work of Phidias. The artist had represented the god of +day, or, as it was afterwards interpreted, the emperor +Constantine himself, with a sceptre in his right hand, the globe +of the world in his left, and a crown of rays glittering on his +head. The Circus, or Hippodrome, was a stately building about +four hundred paces in length, and one hundred in breadth. The +space between the two met or goals were filled with statues and +obelisks; and we may still remark a very singular fragment of +antiquity; the bodies of three serpents, twisted into one pillar +of brass. Their triple heads had once supported the golden tripod +which, after the defeat of Xerxes, was consecrated in the temple +of Delphi by the victorious Greeks. The beauty of the Hippodrome +has been long since defaced by the rude hands of the Turkish +conquerors; but, under the similar appellation of Atmeidan, it +still serves as a place of exercise for their horses. From the +throne, whence the emperor viewed the Circensian games, a winding +staircase descended to the palace; a magnificent edifice, which +scarcely yielded to the residence of Rome itself, and which, +together with the dependent courts, gardens, and porticos, +covered a considerable extent of ground upon the banks of the +Propontis between the Hippodrome and the church of St. Sophia. We +might likewise celebrate the baths, which still retained the name +of Zeuxippus, after they had been enriched, by the munificence of +Constantine, with lofty columns, various marbles, and above +threescore statues of bronze. But we should deviate from the +design of this history, if we attempted minutely to describe the +different buildings or quarters of the city. It may be sufficient +to observe, that whatever could adorn the dignity of a great +capital, or contribute to the benefit or pleasure of its numerous +inhabitants, was contained within the walls of Constantinople. A +particular description, composed about a century after its +foundation, enumerates a capitol or school of learning, a circus, +two theatres, eight public, and one hundred and fifty-three +private baths, fifty-two porticos, five granaries, eight +aqueducts or reservoirs of water, four spacious halls for the +meetings of the senate or courts of justice, fourteen churches, +fourteen palaces, and four thousand three hundred and +eighty-eight houses, which, for their size or beauty, deserved to +be distinguished from the multitude of plebeian inhabitants.<br> +</p> + +<p>The populousness of his favored city was the next and most +serious object of the attention of its founder. In the dark ages +which succeeded the translation of the empire, the remote and the +immediate consequences of that memorable event were strangely +confounded by the vanity of the Greeks and the credulity of the +Latins. It was asserted, and believed, that all the noble +families of Rome, the senate, and the equestrian order, with +their innumerable attendants, had followed their emperor to the +banks of the Propontis; that a spurious race of strangers and +plebeians was left to possess the solitude of the ancient +capital; and that the lands of Italy, long since converted into +gardens, were at once deprived of cultivation and inhabitants. In +the course of this history, such exaggerations will be reduced to +their just value: yet, since the growth of Constantinople cannot +be ascribed to the general increase of mankind and of industry, +it must be admitted that this artificial colony was raised at the +expense of the ancient cities of the empire. Many opulent +senators of Rome, and of the eastern provinces, were probably +invited by Constantine to adopt for their country the fortunate +spot, which he had chosen for his own residence. The invitations +of a master are scarcely to be distinguished from commands; and +the liberality of the emperor obtained a ready and cheerful +obedience. He bestowed on his favorites the palaces which he had +built in the several quarters of the city, assigned them lands +and pensions for the support of their dignity, and alienated the +demesnes of Pontus and Asia to grant hereditary estates by the +easy tenure of maintaining a house in the capital. But these +encouragements and obligations soon became superfluous, and were +gradually abolished. Wherever the seat of government is fixed, a +considerable part of the public revenue will be expended by the +prince himself, by his ministers, by the officers of justice, and +by the domestics of the palace. The most wealthy of the +provincials will be attracted by the powerful motives of interest +and duty, of amusement and curiosity. A third and more numerous +class of inhabitants will insensibly be formed, of servants, of +artificers, and of merchants, who derive their subsistence from +their own labor, and from the wants or luxury of the superior +ranks. In less than a century, Constantinople disputed with Rome +itself the preeminence of riches and numbers. New piles of +buildings, crowded together with too little regard to health or +convenience, scarcely allowed the intervals of narrow streets for +the perpetual throng of men, of horses, and of carriages. The +allotted space of ground was insufficient to contain the +increasing people; and the additional foundations, which, on +either side, were advanced into the sea, might alone have +composed a very considerable city.<br> +</p> + +<p>The frequent and regular distributions of wine and oil, of +corn or bread, of money or provisions, had almost exempted the +poorest citizens of Rome from the necessity of labor. The +magnificence of the first Cæsars was in some measure +imitated by the founder of Constantinople: but his liberality, +however it might excite the applause of the people, has in curred +the censure of posterity. A nation of legislators and conquerors +might assert their claim to the harvests of Africa, which had +been purchased with their blood; and it was artfully contrived by +Augustus, that, in the enjoyment of plenty, the Romans should +lose the memory of freedom. But the prodigality of Constantine +could not be excused by any consideration either of public or +private interest; and the annual tribute of corn imposed upon +Egypt for the benefit of his new capital, was applied to feed a +lazy and insolent populace, at the expense of the husbandmen of +an industrious province. * Some other regulations of this emperor +are less liable to blame, but they are less deserving of notice. +He divided Constantinople into fourteen regions or quarters, +dignified the public council with the appellation of senate, +communicated to the citizens the privileges of Italy, and +bestowed on the rising city the title of Colony, the first and +most favored daughter of ancient Rome. The venerable parent still +maintained the legal and acknowledged supremacy, which was due to +her age, her dignity, and to the remembrance of her former +greatness.<br> +</p> + +<p>As Constantine urged the progress of the work with the +impatience of a lover, the walls, the porticos, and the principal +edifices were completed in a few years, or, according to another +account, in a few months; but this extraordinary diligence should +excite the less admiration, since many of the buildings were +finished in so hasty and imperfect a manner, that under the +succeeding reign, they were preserved with difficulty from +impending ruin. But while they displayed the vigor and freshness +of youth, the founder prepared to celebrate the dedication of his +city. The games and largesses which crowned the pomp of this +memorable festival may easily be supposed; but there is one +circumstance of a more singular and permanent nature, which ought +not entirely to be overlooked. As often as the birthday of the +city returned, the statute of Constantine, framed by his order, +of gilt wood, and bearing in his right hand a small image of the +genius of the place, was erected on a triumphal car. The guards, +carrying white tapers, and clothed in their richest apparel, +accompanied the solemn procession as it moved through the +Hippodrome. When it was opposite to the throne of the reigning +emperor, he rose from his seat, and with grateful reverence +adored the memory of his predecessor. At the festival of the +dedication, an edict, engraved on a column of marble, bestowed +the title of Second or New Rome on the city of Constantine. But +the name of Constantinople has prevailed over that honorable +epithet; and after the revolution of fourteen centuries, still +perpetuates the fame of its author.<br> +</p> + +<p>The foundation of a new capital is naturally connected with +the establishment of a new form of civil and military +administration. The distinct view of the complicated system of +policy, introduced by Diocletian, improved by Constantine, and +completed by his immediate successors, may not only amuse the +fancy by the singular picture of a great empire, but will tend to +illustrate the secret and internal causes of its rapid decay. In +the pursuit of any remarkable institution, we may be frequently +led into the more early or the more recent times of the Roman +history; but the proper limits of this inquiry will be included +within a period of about one hundred and thirty years, from the +accession of Constantine to the publication of the Theodosian +code; from which, as well as from the +<strong><em>Notitia</em></strong> * of the East and West, we +derive the most copious and authentic information of the state of +the empire. This variety of objects will suspend, for some time, +the course of the narrative; but the interruption will be +censured only by those readers who are insensible to the +importance of laws and manners, while they peruse, with eager +curiosity, the transient intrigues of a court, or the accidental +event of a battle.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople. -- +Part III.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The manly pride of the Romans, content with substantial power, +had left to the vanity of the East the forms and ceremonies of +ostentatious greatness. But when they lost even the semblance of +those virtues which were derived from their ancient freedom, the +simplicity of Roman manners was insensibly corrupted by the +stately affectation of the courts of Asia. The distinctions of +personal merit and influence, so conspicuous in a republic, so +feeble and obscure under a monarchy, were abolished by the +despotism of the emperors; who substituted in their room a severe +subordination of rank and office from the titled slaves who were +seated on the steps of the throne, to the meanest instruments of +arbitrary power. This multitude of abject dependants was +interested in the support of the actual government from the dread +of a revolution, which might at once confound their hopes and +intercept the reward of their services. In this divine hierarchy +(for such it is frequently styled) every rank was marked with the +most scrupulous exactness, and its dignity was displayed in a +variety of trifling and solemn ceremonies, which it was a study +to learn, and a sacrilege to neglect. The purity of the Latin +language was debased, by adopting, in the intercourse of pride +and flattery, a profusion of epithets, which Tully would scarcely +have understood, and which Augustus would have rejected with +indignation. The principal officers of the empire were saluted, +even by the sovereign himself, with the deceitful titles of your +<strong><em>Sincerity</em></strong>, your +<strong><em>Gravity</em></strong>, your +<strong><em>Excellency</em></strong>, your +<strong><em>Eminence</em></strong>, your <strong><em>sublime and +wonderful Magnitude</em></strong>, your <strong><em>illustrious +and magnificent Highness</em></strong>. The codicils or patents +of their office were curiously emblazoned with such emblems as +were best adapted to explain its nature and high dignity; the +image or portrait of the reigning emperors; a triumphal car; the +book of mandates placed on a table, covered with a rich carpet, +and illuminated by four tapers; the allegorical figures of the +provinces which they governed; or the appellations and standards +of the troops whom they commanded Some of these official ensigns +were really exhibited in their hall of audience; others preceded +their pompous march whenever they appeared in public; and every +circumstance of their demeanor, their dress, their ornaments, and +their train, was calculated to inspire a deep reverence for the +representatives of supreme majesty. By a philosophic observer, +the system of the Roman government might have been mistaken for a +splendid theatre, filled with players of every character and +degree, who repeated the language, and imitated the passions, of +their original model.<br> +</p> + +<p>All the magistrates of sufficient importance to find a place +in the general state of the empire, were accurately divided into +three classes. 1. The <strong><em>Illustrious</em></strong>. 2. +The <strong><em>Spectabiles</em></strong>, or +<strong><em>Respectable</em></strong>. And, 3. the +<strong><em>Clarissimi</em></strong>; whom we may translate by +the word <strong><em>Honorable</em></strong>. In the times of +Roman simplicity, the last-mentioned epithet was used only as a +vague expression of deference, till it became at length the +peculiar and appropriated title of all who were members of the +senate, and consequently of all who, from that venerable body, +were selected to govern the provinces. The vanity of those who, +from their rank and office, might claim a superior distinction +above the rest of the senatorial order, was long afterwards +indulged with the new appellation of +<strong><em>Respectable</em></strong>; but the title of +<strong><em>Illustrious</em></strong> was always reserved to some +eminent personages who were obeyed or reverenced by the two +subordinate classes. It was communicated only, I. To the consuls +and patricians; II. To the Prætorian præfects, with +the præfects of Rome and Constantinople; III. To the +masters-general of the cavalry and the infantry; and IV. To the +seven ministers of the palace, who exercised their +<strong><em>sacred</em></strong> functions about the person of +the emperor. Among those illustrious magistrates who were +esteemed coordinate with each other, the seniority of appointment +gave place to the union of dignities. By the expedient of +honorary codicils, the emperors, who were fond of multiplying +their favors, might sometimes gratify the vanity, though not the +ambition, of impatient courtiers.<br> +</p> + +<p>I. As long as the Roman consuls were the first magistrates of +a free state, they derived their right to power from the choice +of the people. As long as the emperors condescended to disguise +the servitude which they imposed, the consuls were still elected +by the real or apparent suffrage of the senate. From the reign of +Diocletian, even these vestiges of liberty were abolished, and +the successful candidates who were invested with the annual +honors of the consulship, affected to deplore the humiliating +condition of their predecessors. The Scipios and the Catos had +been reduced to solicit the votes of plebeians, to pass through +the tedious and expensive forms of a popular election, and to +expose their dignity to the shame of a public refusal; while +their own happier fate had reserved them for an age and +government in which the rewards of virtue were assigned by the +unerring wisdom of a gracious sovereign. In the epistles which +the emperor addressed to the two consuls elect, it was declared, +that they were created by his sole authority. Their names and +portraits, engraved on gilt tables of ivory, were dispersed over +the empire as presents to the provinces, the cities, the +magistrates, the senate, and the people. Their solemn +inauguration was performed at the place of the Imperial +residence; and during a period of one hundred and twenty years, +Rome was constantly deprived of the presence of her ancient +magistrates. On the morning of the first of January, the consuls +assumed the ensigns of their dignity. Their dress was a robe of +purple, embroidered in silk and gold, and sometimes ornamented +with costly gems. On this solemn occasion they were attended by +the most eminent officers of the state and army, in the habit of +senators; and the useless fasces, armed with the once formidable +axes, were borne before them by the lictors. The procession moved +from the palace to the Forum or principal square of the city; +where the consuls ascended their tribunal, and seated themselves +in the curule chairs, which were framed after the fashion of +ancient times. They immediately exercised an act of jurisdiction, +by the manumission of a slave, who was brought before them for +that purpose; and the ceremony was intended to represent the +celebrated action of the elder Brutus, the author of liberty and +of the consulship, when he admitted among his fellow-citizens the +faithful Vindex, who had revealed the conspiracy of the Tarquins. +The public festival was continued during several days in all the +principal cities in Rome, from custom; in Constantinople, from +imitation in Carthage, Antioch, and Alexandria, from the love of +pleasure, and the superfluity of wealth. In the two capitals of +the empire the annual games of the theatre, the circus, and the +amphitheatre, cost four thousand pounds of gold, (about) one +hundred and sixty thousand pounds sterling: and if so heavy an +expense surpassed the faculties or the inclinations of the +magistrates themselves, the sum was supplied from the Imperial +treasury. As soon as the consuls had discharged these customary +duties, they were at liberty to retire into the shade of private +life, and to enjoy, during the remainder of the year, the +undisturbed contemplation of their own greatness. They no longer +presided in the national councils; they no longer executed the +resolutions of peace or war. Their abilities (unless they were +employed in more effective offices) were of little moment; and +their names served only as the legal date of the year in which +they had filled the chair of Marius and of Cicero. Yet it was +still felt and acknowledged, in the last period of Roman +servitude, that this empty name might be compared, and even +preferred, to the possession of substantial power. The title of +consul was still the most splendid object of ambition, the +noblest reward of virtue and loyalty. The emperors themselves, +who disdained the faint shadow of the republic, were conscious +that they acquired an additional splendor and majesty as often as +they assumed the annual honors of the consular dignity.<br> +</p> + +<p>The proudest and most perfect separation which can be found in +any age or country, between the nobles and the people, is perhaps +that of the Patricians and the Plebeians, as it was established +in the first age of the Roman republic. Wealth and honors, the +offices of the state, and the ceremonies of religion, were almost +exclusively possessed by the former who, preserving the purity of +their blood with the most insulting jealousy, held their clients +in a condition of specious vassalage. But these distinctions, so +incompatible with the spirit of a free people, were removed, +after a long struggle, by the persevering efforts of the +Tribunes. The most active and successful of the Plebeians +accumulated wealth, aspired to honors, deserved triumphs, +contracted alliances, and, after some generations, assumed the +pride of ancient nobility. The Patrician families, on the other +hand, whose original number was never recruited till the end of +the commonwealth, either failed in the ordinary course of nature, +or were extinguished in so many foreign and domestic wars, or, +through a want of merit or fortune, insensibly mingled with the +mass of the people. Very few remained who could derive their pure +and genuine origin from the infancy of the city, or even from +that of the republic, when Cæsar and Augustus, Claudius and +Vespasian, created from the body of the senate a competent number +of new Patrician families, in the hope of perpetuating an order, +which was still considered as honorable and sacred. But these +artificial supplies (in which the reigning house was always +included) were rapidly swept away by the rage of tyrants, by +frequent revolutions, by the change of manners, and by the +intermixture of nations. Little more was left when Constantine +ascended the throne, than a vague and imperfect tradition, that +the Patricians had once been the first of the Romans. To form a +body of nobles, whose influence may restrain, while it secures +the authority of the monarch, would have been very inconsistent +with the character and policy of Constantine; but had he +seriously entertained such a design, it might have exceeded the +measure of his power to ratify, by an arbitrary edict, an +institution which must expect the sanction of time and of +opinion. He revived, indeed, the title of Patricians, but he +revived it as a personal, not as an hereditary distinction. They +yielded only to the transient superiority of the annual consuls; +but they enjoyed the pre-eminence over all the great officers of +state, with the most familiar access to the person of the prince. +This honorable rank was bestowed on them for life; and as they +were usually favorites, and ministers who had grown old in the +Imperial court, the true etymology of the word was perverted by +ignorance and flattery; and the Patricians of Constantine were +reverenced as the adopted <strong><em>Fathers</em></strong> of +the emperor and the republic.<br> +</p> + +<p>II. The fortunes of the Prætorian præfects were +essentially different from those of the consuls and Patricians. +The latter saw their ancient greatness evaporate in a vain title. +The former, rising by degrees from the most humble condition, +were invested with the civil and military administration of the +Roman world. From the reign of Severus to that of Diocletian, the +guards and the palace, the laws and the finances, the armies and +the provinces, were intrusted to their superintending care; and, +like the Viziers of the East, they held with one hand the seal, +and with the other the standard, of the empire. The ambition of +the præfects, always formidable, and sometimes fatal to the +masters whom they served, was supported by the strength of the +Prætorian bands; but after those haughty troops had been +weakened by Diocletian, and finally suppressed by Constantine, +the præfects, who survived their fall, were reduced without +difficulty to the station of useful and obedient ministers. When +they were no longer responsible for the safety of the emperor's +person, they resigned the jurisdiction which they had hitherto +claimed and exercised over all the departments of the palace. +They were deprived by Constantine of all military command, as +soon as they had ceased to lead into the field, under their +immediate orders, the flower of the Roman troops; and at length, +by a singular revolution, the captains of the guards were +transformed into the civil magistrates of the provinces. +According to the plan of government instituted by Diocletian, the +four princes had each their Prætorian præfect; and +after the monarchy was once more united in the person of +Constantine, he still continued to create the same number of Four +Præfects, and intrusted to their care the same provinces +which they already administered. 1. The præfect of the East +stretched his ample jurisdiction into the three parts of the +globe which were subject to the Romans, from the cataracts of the +Nile to the banks of the Phasis, and from the mountains of Thrace +to the frontiers of Persia. 2. The important provinces of +Pannonia, Dacia, Macedonia, and Greece, once acknowledged the +authority of the præfect of Illyricum. 3. The power of the +præfect of Italy was not confined to the country from +whence he derived his title; it extended over the additional +territory of Rhætia as far as the banks of the Danube, over +the dependent islands of the Mediterranean, and over that part of +the continent of Africa which lies between the confines of Cyrene +and those of Tingitania. 4. The præfect of the Gauls +comprehended under that plural denomination the kindred provinces +of Britain and Spain, and his authority was obeyed from the wall +of Antoninus to the foot of Mount Atlas.<br> +</p> + +<p>After the Prætorian præfects had been dismissed +from all military command, the civil functions which they were +ordained to exercise over so many subject nations, were adequate +to the ambition and abilities of the most consummate ministers. +To their wisdom was committed the supreme administration of +justice and of the finances, the two objects which, in a state of +peace, comprehend almost all the respective duties of the +sovereign and of the people; of the former, to protect the +citizens who are obedient to the laws; of the latter, to +contribute the share of their property which is required for the +expenses of the state. The coin, the highways, the posts, the +granaries, the manufactures, whatever could interest the public +prosperity, was moderated by the authority of the Prætorian +præfects. As the immediate representatives of the Imperial +majesty, they were empowered to explain, to enforce, and on some +occasions to modify, the general edicts by their discretionary +proclamations. They watched over the conduct of the provincial +governors, removed the negligent, and inflicted punishments on +the guilty. From all the inferior jurisdictions, an appeal in +every matter of importance, either civil or criminal, might be +brought before the tribunal of the præfect; but +<strong><em>his</em></strong> sentence was final and absolute; +and the emperors themselves refused to admit any complaints +against the judgment or the integrity of a magistrate whom they +honored with such unbounded confidence. His appointments were +suitable to his dignity; and if avarice was his ruling passion, +he enjoyed frequent opportunities of collecting a rich harvest of +fees, of presents, and of perquisites. Though the emperors no +longer dreaded the ambition of their præfects, they were +attentive to counterbalance the power of this great office by the +uncertainty and shortness of its duration.<br> +</p> + +<p>From their superior importance and dignity, Rome and +Constantinople were alone excepted from the jurisdiction of the +Prætorian præfects. The immense size of the city, and +the experience of the tardy, ineffectual operation of the laws, +had furnished the policy of Augustus with a specious pretence for +introducing a new magistrate, who alone could restrain a servile +and turbulent populace by the strong arm of arbitrary power. +Valerius Messalla was appointed the first præfect of Rome, +that his reputation might countenance so invidious a measure; +but, at the end of a few days, that accomplished citizen resigned +his office, declaring, with a spirit worthy of the friend of +Brutus, that he found himself incapable of exercising a power +incompatible with public freedom. As the sense of liberty became +less exquisite, the advantages of order were more clearly +understood; and the præfect, who seemed to have been +designed as a terror only to slaves and vagrants, was permitted +to extend his civil and criminal jurisdiction over the equestrian +and noble families of Rome. The prætors, annually created +as the judges of law and equity, could not long dispute the +possession of the Forum with a vigorous and permanent magistrate, +who was usually admitted into the confidence of the prince. Their +courts were deserted, their number, which had once fluctuated +between twelve and eighteen, was gradually reduced to two or +three, and their important functions were confined to the +expensive obligation of exhibiting games for the amusement of the +people. After the office of the Roman consuls had been changed +into a vain pageant, which was rarely displayed in the capital, +the præfects assumed their vacant place in the senate, and +were soon acknowledged as the ordinary presidents of that +venerable assembly. They received appeals from the distance of +one hundred miles; and it was allowed as a principle of +jurisprudence, that all municipal authority was derived from them +alone. In the discharge of his laborious employment, the governor +of Rome was assisted by fifteen officers, some of whom had been +originally his equals, or even his superiors. The principal +departments were relative to the command of a numerous watch, +established as a safeguard against fires, robberies, and +nocturnal disorders; the custody and distribution of the public +allowance of corn and provisions; the care of the port, of the +aqueducts, of the common sewers, and of the navigation and bed of +the Tyber; the inspection of the markets, the theatres, and of +the private as well as the public works. Their vigilance insured +the three principal objects of a regular police, safety, plenty, +and cleanliness; and as a proof of the attention of government to +preserve the splendor and ornaments of the capital, a particular +inspector was appointed for the statues; the guardian, as it +were, of that inanimate people, which, according to the +extravagant computation of an old writer, was scarcely inferior +in number to the living inhabitants of Rome. About thirty years +after the foundation of Constantinople, a similar magistrate was +created in that rising metropolis, for the same uses and with the +same powers. A perfect equality was established between the +dignity of the two municipal, and that of the +<strong><em>four</em></strong>Prætorian præfects.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople. -- +Part IV.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Those who, in the imperial hierarchy, were distinguished by +the title of <strong><em>Respectable</em></strong>, formed an +intermediate class between the +<strong><em>illustrious</em></strong> præfects, and the +<strong><em>honorable</em></strong> magistrates of the provinces. +In this class the proconsuls of Asia, Achaia, and Africa, claimed +a preëminence, which was yielded to the remembrance of their +ancient dignity; and the appeal from their tribunal to that of +the præfects was almost the only mark of their dependence. +But the civil government of the empire was distributed into +thirteen great Dioceses, each of which equalled the just measure +of a powerful kingdom. The first of these dioceses was subject to +the jurisdiction of the <strong><em>count</em></strong> of the +east; and we may convey some idea of the importance and variety +of his functions, by observing, that six hundred apparitors, who +would be styled at present either secretaries, or clerks, or +ushers, or messengers, were employed in his immediate office. The +place of <strong><em>Augustal prfect</em></strong> of Egypt was +no longer filled by a Roman knight; but the name was retained; +and the extraordinary powers which the situation of the country, +and the temper of the inhabitants, had once made indispensable, +were still continued to the governor. The eleven remaining +dioceses, of Asiana, Pontica, and Thrace; of Macedonia, Dacia, +and Pannonia, or Western Illyricum; of Italy and Africa; of Gaul, +Spain, and Britain; were governed by twelve +<strong><em>vicars</em></strong> or +<strong><em>vice-prfects</em></strong>, whose name sufficiently +explains the nature and dependence of their office. It may be +added, that the lieutenant-generals of the Roman armies, the +military counts and dukes, who will be hereafter mentioned, were +allowed the rank and title of +<strong><em>Respectable</em></strong>.<br> +</p> + +<p>As the spirit of jealousy and ostentation prevailed in the +councils of the emperors, they proceeded with anxious diligence +to divide the substance and to multiply the titles of power. The +vast countries which the Roman conquerors had united under the +same simple form of administration, were imperceptibly crumbled +into minute fragments; till at length the whole empire was +distributed into one hundred and sixteen provinces, each of which +supported an expensive and splendid establishment. Of these, +three were governed by <strong><em>proconsuls</em></strong>, +thirty-seven by <strong><em>consulars</em></strong>, five by +<strong><em>correctors</em></strong>, and seventy-one by +<strong><em>presidents</em></strong>. The appellations of these +magistrates were different; they ranked in successive order, the +ensigns of and their situation, from accidental circumstances, +might be more or less agreeable or advantageous. But they were +all (excepting only the pro-consuls) alike included in the class +of <strong><em>honorable</em></strong> persons; and they were +alike intrusted, during the pleasure of the prince, and under the +authority of the præfects or their deputies, with the +administration of justice and the finances in their respective +districts. The ponderous volumes of the Codes and Pandects would +furnish ample materials for a minute inquiry into the system of +provincial government, as in the space of six centuries it was +approved by the wisdom of the Roman statesmen and lawyers. It may +be sufficient for the historian to select two singular and +salutary provisions, intended to restrain the abuse of authority. +1. For the preservation of peace and order, the governors of the +provinces were armed with the sword of justice. They inflicted +corporal punishments, and they exercised, in capital offences, +the power of life and death. But they were not authorized to +indulge the condemned criminal with the choice of his own +execution, or to pronounce a sentence of the mildest and most +honorable kind of exile. These prerogatives were reserved to the +præfects, who alone could impose the heavy fine of fifty +pounds of gold: their vicegerents were confined to the trifling +weight of a few ounces. This distinction, which seems to grant +the larger, while it denies the smaller degree of authority, was +founded on a very rational motive. The smaller degree was +infinitely more liable to abuse. The passions of a provincial +magistrate might frequently provoke him into acts of oppression, +which affected only the freedom or the fortunes of the subject; +though, from a principle of prudence, perhaps of humanity, he +might still be terrified by the guilt of innocent blood. It may +likewise be considered, that exile, considerable fines, or the +choice of an easy death, relate more particularly to the rich and +the noble; and the persons the most exposed to the avarice or +resentment of a provincial magistrate, were thus removed from his +obscure persecution to the more august and impartial tribunal of +the Prætorian præfect. 2. As it was reasonably +apprehended that the integrity of the judge might be biased, if +his interest was concerned, or his affections were engaged, the +strictest regulations were established, to exclude any person, +without the special dispensation of the emperor, from the +government of the province where he was born; and to prohibit the +governor or his son from contracting marriage with a native, or +an inhabitant; or from purchasing slaves, lands, or houses, +within the extent of his jurisdiction. Notwithstanding these +rigorous precautions, the emperor Constantine, after a reign of +twenty-five years, still deplores the venal and oppressive +administration of justice, and expresses the warmest indignation +that the audience of the judge, his despatch of business, his +seasonable delays, and his final sentence, were publicly sold, +either by himself or by the officers of his court. The +continuance, and perhaps the impunity, of these crimes, is +attested by the repetition of impotent laws and ineffectual +menaces.<br> +</p> + +<p>All the civil magistrates were drawn from the profession of +the law. The celebrated Institutes of Justinian are addressed to +the youth of his dominions, who had devoted themselves to the +study of Roman jurisprudence; and the sovereign condescends to +animate their diligence, by the assurance that their skill and +ability would in time be rewarded by an adequate share in the +government of the republic. The rudiments of this lucrative +science were taught in all the considerable cities of the east +and west; but the most famous school was that of Berytus, on the +coast of Phnicia; which flourished above three centuries from the +time of Alexander Severus, the author perhaps of an institution +so advantageous to his native country. After a regular course of +education, which lasted five years, the students dispersed +themselves through the provinces, in search of fortune and +honors; nor could they want an inexhaustible supply of business +great empire, already corrupted by the multiplicity of laws, of +arts, and of vices. The court of the Prætorian +præfect of the east could alone furnish employment for one +hundred and fifty advocates, sixty-four of whom were +distinguished by peculiar privileges, and two were annually +chosen, with a salary of sixty pounds of gold, to defend the +causes of the treasury. The first experiment was made of their +judicial talents, by appointing them to act occasionally as +assessors to the magistrates; from thence they were often raised +to preside in the tribunals before which they had pleaded. They +obtained the government of a province; and, by the aid of merit, +of reputation, or of favor, they ascended, by successive steps, +to the <strong><em>illustrious</em></strong> dignities of the +state. In the practice of the bar, these men had considered +reason as the instrument of dispute; they interpreted the laws +according to the dictates of private interest and the same +pernicious habits might still adhere to their characters in the +public administration of the state. The honor of a liberal +profession has indeed been vindicated by ancient and modern +advocates, who have filled the most important stations, with pure +integrity and consummate wisdom: but in the decline of Roman +jurisprudence, the ordinary promotion of lawyers was pregnant +with mischief and disgrace. The noble art, which had once been +preserved as the sacred inheritance of the patricians, was fallen +into the hands of freedmen and plebeians, who, with cunning +rather than with skill, exercised a sordid and pernicious trade. +Some of them procured admittance into families for the purpose of +fomenting differences, of encouraging suits, and of preparing a +harvest of gain for themselves or their brethren. Others, recluse +in their chambers, maintained the dignity of legal professors, by +furnishing a rich client with subtleties to confound the plainest +truths, and with arguments to color the most unjustifiable +pretensions. The splendid and popular class was composed of the +advocates, who filled the Forum with the sound of their turgid +and loquacious rhetoric. Careless of fame and of justice, they +are described, for the most part, as ignorant and rapacious +guides, who conducted their clients through a maze of expense, of +delay, and of disappointment; from whence, after a tedious series +of years, they were at length dismissed, when their patience and +fortune were almost exhausted.<br> +</p> + +<p>III. In the system of policy introduced by Augustus, the +governors, those at least of the Imperial provinces, were +invested with the full powers of the sovereign himself. Ministers +of peace and war, the distribution of rewards and punishments +depended on them alone, and they successively appeared on their +tribunal in the robes of civil magistracy, and in complete armor +at the head of the Roman legions. The influence of the revenue, +the authority of law, and the command of a military force, +concurred to render their power supreme and absolute; and +whenever they were tempted to violate their allegiance, the loyal +province which they involved in their rebellion was scarcely +sensible of any change in its political state. From the time of +Commodus to the reign of Constantine, near one hundred governors +might be enumerated, who, with various success, erected the +standard of revolt; and though the innocent were too often +sacrificed, the guilty might be sometimes prevented, by the +suspicious cruelty of their master. To secure his throne and the +public tranquillity from these formidable servants, Constantine +resolved to divide the military from the civil administration, +and to establish, as a permanent and professional distinction, a +practice which had been adopted only as an occasional expedient. +The supreme jurisdiction exercised by the Prætorian +præfects over the armies of the empire, was transferred to +the two <strong><em>masters-general</em></strong> whom he +instituted, the one for the <strong><em>cavalry</em></strong>, +the other for the <strong><em>infantry</em></strong>; and though +each of these <strong><em>illustrious</em></strong> officers was +more peculiarly responsible for the discipline of those troops +which were under his immediate inspection, they both +indifferently commanded in the field the several bodies, whether +of horse or foot, which were united in the same army. Their +number was soon doubled by the division of the east and west; and +as separate generals of the same rank and title were appointed on +the four important frontiers of the Rhine, of the Upper and the +Lower Danube, and of the Euphrates, the defence of the Roman +empire was at length committed to eight masters-general of the +cavalry and infantry. Under their orders, thirty-five military +commanders were stationed in the provinces: three in Britain, six +in Gaul, one in Spain, one in Italy, five on the Upper, and four +on the Lower Danube; in Asia, eight, three in Egypt, and four in +Africa. The titles of <strong><em>counts</em></strong>, and +<strong><em>dukes</em></strong>, by which they were properly +distinguished, have obtained in modern languages so very +different a sense, that the use of them may occasion some +surprise. But it should be recollected, that the second of those +appellations is only a corruption of the Latin word, which was +indiscriminately applied to any military chief. All these +provincial generals were therefore +<strong><em>dukes</em></strong>; but no more than ten among them +were dignified with the rank of <strong><em>counts</em></strong> +or companions, a title of honor, or rather of favor, which had +been recently invented in the court of Constantine. A gold belt +was the ensign which distinguished the office of the counts and +dukes; and besides their pay, they received a liberal allowance +sufficient to maintain one hundred and ninety servants, and one +hundred and fifty-eight horses. They were strictly prohibited +from interfering in any matter which related to the +administration of justice or the revenue; but the command which +they exercised over the troops of their department, was +independent of the authority of the magistrates. About the same +time that Constantine gave a legal sanction to the ecclesiastical +order, he instituted in the Roman empire the nice balance of the +civil and the military powers. The emulation, and sometimes the +discord, which reigned between two professions of opposite +interests and incompatible manners, was productive of beneficial +and of pernicious consequences. It was seldom to be expected that +the general and the civil governor of a province should either +conspire for the disturbance, or should unite for the service, of +their country. While the one delayed to offer the assistance +which the other disdained to solicit, the troops very frequently +remained without orders or without supplies; the public safety +was betrayed, and the defenceless subjects were left exposed to +the fury of the Barbarians. The divided administration which had +been formed by Constantine, relaxed the vigor of the state, while +it secured the tranquillity of the monarch.<br> +</p> + +<p>The memory of Constantine has been deservedly censured for +another innovation, which corrupted military discipline and +prepared the ruin of the empire. The nineteen years which +preceded his final victory over Licinius, had been a period of +license and intestine war. The rivals who contended for the +possession of the Roman world, had withdrawn the greatest part of +their forces from the guard of the general frontier; and the +principal cities which formed the boundary of their respective +dominions were filled with soldiers, who considered their +countrymen as their most implacable enemies. After the use of +these internal garrisons had ceased with the civil war, the +conqueror wanted either wisdom or firmness to revive the severe +discipline of Diocletian, and to suppress a fatal indulgence, +which habit had endeared and almost confirmed to the military +order. From the reign of Constantine, a popular and even legal +distinction was admitted between the +<strong><em>Palatines</em></strong> and the +<strong><em>Borderers</em></strong>; the troops of the court, as +they were improperly styled, and the troops of the frontier. The +former, elevated by the superiority of their pay and privileges, +were permitted, except in the extraordinary emergencies of war, +to occupy their tranquil stations in the heart of the provinces. +The most flourishing cities were oppressed by the intolerable +weight of quarters. The soldiers insensibly forgot the virtues of +their profession, and contracted only the vices of civil life. +They were either degraded by the industry of mechanic trades, or +enervated by the luxury of baths and theatres. They soon became +careless of their martial exercises, curious in their diet and +apparel; and while they inspired terror to the subjects of the +empire, they trembled at the hostile approach of the Barbarians. +The chain of fortifications which Diocletian and his colleagues +had extended along the banks of the great rivers, was no longer +maintained with the same care, or defended with the same +vigilance. The numbers which still remained under the name of the +troops of the frontier, might be sufficient for the ordinary +defence; but their spirit was degraded by the humiliating +reflection, that <strong><em>they</em></strong> who were exposed +to the hardships and dangers of a perpetual warfare, were +rewarded only with about two thirds of the pay and emoluments +which were lavished on the troops of the court. Even the bands or +legions that were raised the nearest to the level of those +unworthy favorites, were in some measure disgraced by the title +of honor which they were allowed to assume. It was in vain that +Constantine repeated the most dreadful menaces of fire and sword +against the Borderers who should dare desert their colors, to +connive at the inroads of the Barbarians, or to participate in +the spoil. The mischiefs which flow from injudicious counsels are +seldom removed by the application of partial severities; and +though succeeding princes labored to restore the strength and +numbers of the frontier garrisons, the empire, till the last +moment of its dissolution, continued to languish under the mortal +wound which had been so rashly or so weakly inflicted by the hand +of Constantine.<br> +</p> + +<p>The same timid policy, of dividing whatever is united, of +reducing whatever is eminent, of dreading every active power, and +of expecting that the most feeble will prove the most obedient, +seems to pervade the institutions of several princes, and +particularly those of Constantine. The martial pride of the +legions, whose victorious camps had so often been the scene of +rebellion, was nourished by the memory of their past exploits, +and the consciousness of their actual strength. As long as they +maintained their ancient establishment of six thousand men, they +subsisted, under the reign of Diocletian, each of them singly, a +visible and important object in the military history of the Roman +empire. A few years afterwards, these gigantic bodies were shrunk +to a very diminutive size; and when seven legions, with some +auxiliaries, defended the city of Amida against the Persians, the +total garrison, with the inhabitants of both sexes, and the +peasants of the deserted country, did not exceed the number of +twenty thousand persons. From this fact, and from similar +examples, there is reason to believe, that the constitution of +the legionary troops, to which they partly owed their valor and +discipline, was dissolved by Constantine; and that the bands of +Roman infantry, which still assumed the same names and the same +honors, consisted only of one thousand or fifteen hundred men. +The conspiracy of so many separate detachments, each of which was +awed by the sense of its own weakness, could easily be checked; +and the successors of Constantine might indulge their love of +ostentation, by issuing their orders to one hundred and +thirty-two legions, inscribed on the muster-roll of their +numerous armies. The remainder of their troops was distributed +into several hundred cohorts of infantry, and squadrons of +cavalry. Their arms, and titles, and ensigns, were calculated to +inspire terror, and to display the variety of nations who marched +under the Imperial standard. And not a vestige was left of that +severe simplicity, which, in the ages of freedom and victory, had +distinguished the line of battle of a Roman army from the +confused host of an Asiatic monarch. A more particular +enumeration, drawn from the <strong><em>Notitia</em></strong>, +might exercise the diligence of an antiquary; but the historian +will content himself with observing, that the number of permanent +stations or garrisons established on the frontiers of the empire, +amounted to five hundred and eighty-three; and that, under the +successors of Constantine, the complete force of the military +establishment was computed at six hundred and forty-five thousand +soldiers. An effort so prodigious surpassed the wants of a more +ancient, and the faculties of a later, period.<br> +</p> + +<p>In the various states of society, armies are recruited from +very different motives. Barbarians are urged by the love of war; +the citizens of a free republic may be prompted by a principle of +duty; the subjects, or at least the nobles, of a monarchy, are +animated by a sentiment of honor; but the timid and luxurious +inhabitants of a declining empire must be allured into the +service by the hopes of profit, or compelled by the dread of +punishment. The resources of the Roman treasury were exhausted by +the increase of pay, by the repetition of donatives, and by the +invention of new emolument and indulgences, which, in the opinion +of the provincial youth might compensate the hardships and +dangers of a military life. Yet, although the stature was +lowered, although slaves, least by a tacit connivance, were +indiscriminately received into the ranks, the insurmountable +difficulty of procuring a regular and adequate supply of +volunteers, obliged the emperors to adopt more effectual and +coercive methods. The lands bestowed on the veterans, as the free +reward of their valor were henceforward granted under a condition +which contain the first rudiments of the feudal tenures; that +their sons, who succeeded to the inheritance, should devote +themselves to the profession of arms, as soon as they attained +the age of manhood; and their cowardly refusal was punished by +the lose of honor, of fortune, or even of life. But as the annual +growth of the sons of the veterans bore a very small proportion +to the demands of the service, levies of men were frequently +required from the provinces, and every proprietor was obliged +either to take up arms, or to procure a substitute, or to +purchase his exemption by the payment of a heavy fine. The sum of +forty-two pieces of gold, to which it was +<strong><em>reduced</em></strong>, ascertains the exorbitant +price of volunteers, and the reluctance with which the government +admitted of this alterative. Such was the horror for the +profession of a soldier, which had affected the minds of the +degenerate Romans, that many of the youth of Italy and the +provinces chose to cut off the fingers of their right hand, to +escape from being pressed into the service; and this strange +expedient was so commonly practised, as to deserve the severe +animadversion of the laws, and a peculiar name in the Latin +language.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople. -- +Part V.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The introduction of Barbarians into the Roman armies became +every day more universal, more necessary, and more fatal. The +most daring of the Scythians, of the Goths, and of the Germans, +who delighted in war, and who found it more profitable to defend +than to ravage the provinces, were enrolled, not only in the +auxiliaries of their respective nations, but in the legions +themselves, and among the most distinguished of the Palatine +troops. As they freely mingled with the subjects of the empire, +they gradually learned to despise their manners, and to imitate +their arts. They abjured the implicit reverence which the pride +of Rome had exacted from their ignorance, while they acquired the +knowledge and possession of those advantages by which alone she +supported her declining greatness. The Barbarian soldiers, who +displayed any military talents, were advanced, without exception, +to the most important commands; and the names of the tribunes, of +the counts and dukes, and of the generals themselves, betray a +foreign origin, which they no longer condescended to disguise. +They were often intrusted with the conduct of a war against their +countrymen; and though most of them preferred the ties of +allegiance to those of blood, they did not always avoid the +guilt, or at least the suspicion, of holding a treasonable +correspondence with the enemy, of inviting his invasion, or of +sparing his retreat. The camps and the palace of the son of +Constantine were governed by the powerful faction of the Franks, +who preserved the strictest connection with each other, and with +their country, and who resented every personal affront as a +national indignity. When the tyrant Caligula was suspected of an +intention to invest a very extraordinary candidate with the +consular robes, the sacrilegious profanation would have scarcely +excited less astonishment, if, instead of a horse, the noblest +chieftain of Germany or Britain had been the object of his +choice. The revolution of three centuries had produced so +remarkable a change in the prejudices of the people, that, with +the public approbation, Constantine showed his successors the +example of bestowing the honors of the consulship on the +Barbarians, who, by their merit and services, had deserved to be +ranked among the first of the Romans. But as these hardy +veterans, who had been educated in the ignorance or contempt of +the laws, were incapable of exercising any civil offices, the +powers of the human mind were contracted by the irreconcilable +separation of talents as well as of professions. The accomplished +citizens of the Greek and Roman republics, whose characters could +adapt themselves to the bar, the senate, the camp, or the +schools, had learned to write, to speak, and to act with the same +spirit, and with equal abilities.<br> +</p> + +<p>IV. Besides the magistrates and generals, who at a distance +from the court diffused their delegated authority over the +provinces and armies, the emperor conferred the rank of +<strong><em>Illustrious</em></strong>on seven of his more +immediate servants, to whose fidelity he intrusted his safety, or +his counsels, or his treasures. <strong>1</strong>. The private +apartments of the palace were governed by a favorite eunuch, who, +in the language of that age, was styled the +<strong><em>prpositus</em></strong>, or præfect of the +sacred bed-chamber. His duty was to attend the emperor in his +hours of state, or in those of amusement, and to perform about +his person all those menial services, which can only derive their +splendor from the influence of royalty. Under a prince who +deserved to reign, the great chamberlain (for such we may call +him) was a useful and humble domestic; but an artful domestic, +who improves every occasion of unguarded confidence, will +insensibly acquire over a feeble mind that ascendant which harsh +wisdom and uncomplying virtue can seldom obtain. The degenerate +grandsons of Theodosius, who were invisible to their subjects, +and contemptible to their enemies, exalted the præfects of +their bed-chamber above the heads of all the ministers of the +palace; and even his deputy, the first of the splendid train of +slaves who waited in the presence, was thought worthy to rank +before the <strong><em>respectable</em></strong> proconsuls of +Greece or Asia. The jurisdiction of the chamberlain was +acknowledged by the <strong><em>counts</em></strong>, or +superintendents, who regulated the two important provinces of the +magnificence of the wardrobe, and of the luxury of the Imperial +table. <strong>2</strong>. The principal administration of public +affairs was committed to the diligence and abilities of the +<strong><em>master of the offices</em></strong>. He was the +supreme magistrate of the palace, inspected the discipline of the +civil and military <strong><em>schools</em></strong>, and +received appeals from all parts of the empire, in the causes +which related to that numerous army of privileged persons, who, +as the servants of the court, had obtained for themselves and +families a right to decline the authority of the ordinary judges. +The correspondence between the prince and his subjects was +managed by the four <strong><em>scrinia</em></strong>, or offices +of this minister of state. The first was appropriated to +memorials, the second to epistles, the third to petitions, and +the fourth to papers and orders of a miscellaneous kind. Each of +these was directed by an inferior <strong><em>master of +respectable</em></strong> dignity, and the whole business was +despatched by a hundred and forty-eight secretaries, chosen for +the most part from the profession of the law, on account of the +variety of abstracts of reports and references which frequently +occurred in the exercise of their several functions. From a +condescension, which in former ages would have been esteemed +unworthy the Roman majesty, a particular secretary was allowed +for the Greek language; and interpreters were appointed to +receive the ambassadors of the Barbarians; but the department of +foreign affairs, which constitutes so essential a part of modern +policy, seldom diverted the attention of the master of the +offices. His mind was more seriously engaged by the general +direction of the posts and arsenals of the empire. There were +thirty-four cities, fifteen in the East, and nineteen in the +West, in which regular companies of workmen were perpetually +employed in fabricating defensive armor, offensive weapons of all +sorts, and military engines, which were deposited in the +arsenals, and occasionally delivered for the service of the +troops. <strong>3</strong>. In the course of nine centuries, the +office of <strong><em>quæstor</em></strong> had experienced +a very singular revolution. In the infancy of Rome, two inferior +magistrates were annually elected by the people, to relieve the +consuls from the invidious management of the public treasure; a +similar assistant was granted to every proconsul, and to every +prætor, who exercised a military or provincial command; +with the extent of conquest, the two quæstors were +gradually multiplied to the number of four, of eight, of twenty, +and, for a short time, perhaps, of forty; and the noblest +citizens ambitiously solicited an office which gave them a seat +in the senate, and a just hope of obtaining the honors of the +republic. Whilst Augustus affected to maintain the freedom of +election, he consented to accept the annual privilege of +recommending, or rather indeed of nominating, a certain +proportion of candidates; and it was his custom to select one of +these distinguished youths, to read his orations or epistles in +the assemblies of the senate. The practice of Augustus was +imitated by succeeding princes; the occasional commission was +established as a permanent office; and the favored quæstor, +assuming a new and more illustrious character, alone survived the +suppression of his ancient and useless colleagues. As the +orations which he composed in the name of the emperor, acquired +the force, and, at length, the form, of absolute edicts, he was +considered as the representative of the legislative power, the +oracle of the council, and the original source of the civil +jurisprudence. He was sometimes invited to take his seat in the +supreme judicature of the Imperial consistory, with the +Prætorian præfects, and the master of the offices; +and he was frequently requested to resolve the doubts of inferior +judges: but as he was not oppressed with a variety of subordinate +business, his leisure and talents were employed to cultivate that +dignified style of eloquence, which, in the corruption of taste +and language, still preserves the majesty of the Roman laws. In +some respects, the office of the Imperial quæstor may be +compared with that of a modern chancellor; but the use of a great +seal, which seems to have been adopted by the illiterate +barbarians, was never introduced to attest the public acts of the +emperors. <strong>4</strong>. The extraordinary title of +<strong><em>count of the sacred largesses</em></strong> was +bestowed on the treasurer-general of the revenue, with the +intention perhaps of inculcating, that every payment flowed from +the voluntary bounty of the monarch. To conceive the almost +infinite detail of the annual and daily expense of the civil and +military administration in every part of a great empire, would +exceed the powers of the most vigorous imagination. The actual +account employed several hundred persons, distributed into eleven +different offices, which were artfully contrived to examine and +control their respective operations. The multitude of these +agents had a natural tendency to increase; and it was more than +once thought expedient to dismiss to their native homes the +useless supernumeraries, who, deserting their honest labors, had +pressed with too much eagerness into the lucrative profession of +the finances. Twenty-nine provincial receivers, of whom eighteen +were honored with the title of count, corresponded with the +treasurer; and he extended his jurisdiction over the mines from +whence the precious metals were extracted, over the mints, in +which they were converted into the current coin, and over the +public treasuries of the most important cities, where they were +deposited for the service of the state. The foreign trade of the +empire was regulated by this minister, who directed likewise all +the linen and woollen manufactures, in which the successive +operations of spinning, weaving, and dyeing were executed, +chiefly by women of a servile condition, for the use of the +palace and army. Twenty-six of these institutions are enumerated +in the West, where the arts had been more recently introduced, +and a still larger proportion may be allowed for the industrious +provinces of the East. <strong>5</strong>. Besides the public +revenue, which an absolute monarch might levy and expend +according to his pleasure, the emperors, in the capacity of +opulent citizens, possessed a very extensive property, which was +administered by the <strong><em>count</em></strong> or treasurer +of <strong><em>the private estate</em></strong>. Some part had +perhaps been the ancient demesnes of kings and republics; some +accessions might be derived from the families which were +successively invested with the purple; but the most considerable +portion flowed from the impure source of confiscations and +forfeitures. The Imperial estates were scattered through the +provinces, from Mauritania to Britain; but the rich and fertile +soil of Cappadocia tempted the monarch to acquire in that country +his fairest possessions, and either Constantine or his successors +embraced the occasion of justifying avarice by religious zeal. +They suppressed the rich temple of Comana, where the high priest +of the goddess of war supported the dignity of a sovereign +prince; and they applied to their private use the consecrated +lands, which were inhabited by six thousand subjects or slaves of +the deity and her ministers. But these were not the valuable +inhabitants: the plains that stretch from the foot of Mount +Argæus to the banks of the Sarus, bred a generous race of +horses, renowned above all others in the ancient world for their +majestic shape and incomparable swiftness. These sacred animals, +destined for the service of the palace and the Imperial games, +were protected by the laws from the profanation of a vulgar +master. The demesnes of Cappadocia were important enough to +require the inspection of a count; officers of an inferior rank +were stationed in the other parts of the empire; and the deputies +of the private, as well as those of the public, treasurer were +maintained in the exercise of their independent functions, and +encouraged to control the authority of the provincial +magistrates. <strong>6<em>,</em> 7</strong>. The chosen bands of +cavalry and infantry, which guarded the person of the emperor, +were under the immediate command of the <strong><em>two counts of +the domestics</em></strong>. The whole number consisted of three +thousand five hundred men, divided into seven +<strong><em>schools</em></strong>, or troops, of five hundred +each; and in the East, this honorable service was almost entirely +appropriated to the Armenians. Whenever, on public ceremonies, +they were drawn up in the courts and porticos of the palace, +their lofty stature, silent order, and splendid arms of silver +and gold, displayed a martial pomp not unworthy of the Roman +majesty. From the seven schools two companies of horse and foot +were selected, of the <strong><em>protectors</em></strong>, whose +advantageous station was the hope and reward of the most +deserving soldiers. They mounted guard in the interior +apartments, and were occasionally despatched into the provinces, +to execute with celerity and vigor the orders of their master. +The counts of the domestics had succeeded to the office of the +Prætorian præfects; like the præfects, they +aspired from the service of the palace to the command of +armies.<br> +</p> + +<p>The perpetual intercourse between the court and the provinces +was facilitated by the construction of roads and the institution +of posts. But these beneficial establishments were accidentally +connected with a pernicious and intolerable abuse. Two or three +hundred agents or messengers were employed, under the +jurisdiction of the master of the offices, to announce the names +of the annual consuls, and the edicts or victories of the +emperors. They insensibly assumed the license of reporting +whatever they could observe of the conduct either of magistrates +or of private citizens; and were soon considered as the eyes of +the monarch, and the scourge of the people. Under the warm +influence of a feeble reign, they multiplied to the incredible +number of ten thousand, disdained the mild though frequent +admonitions of the laws, and exercised in the profitable +management of the posts a rapacious and insolent oppression. +These official spies, who regularly corresponded with the palace, +were encouraged by favor and reward, anxiously to watch the +progress of every treasonable design, from the faint and latent +symptoms of disaffection, to the actual preparation of an open +revolt. Their careless or criminal violation of truth and justice +was covered by the consecrated mask of zeal; and they might +securely aim their poisoned arrows at the breast either of the +guilty or the innocent, who had provoked their resentment, or +refused to purchase their silence. A faithful subject, of Syria +perhaps, or of Britain, was exposed to the danger, or at least to +the dread, of being dragged in chains to the court of Milan or +Constantinople, to defend his life and fortune against the +malicious charge of these privileged informers. The ordinary +administration was conducted by those methods which extreme +necessity can alone palliate; and the defects of evidence were +diligently supplied by the use of torture.<br> +</p> + +<p>The deceitful and dangerous experiment of the criminal +<strong><em>quæstion</em></strong>, as it is emphatically +styled, was admitted, rather than approved, in the jurisprudence +of the Romans. They applied this sanguinary mode of examination +only to servile bodies, whose sufferings were seldom weighed by +those haughty republicans in the scale of justice or humanity; +but they would never consent to violate the sacred person of a +citizen, till they possessed the clearest evidence of his guilt. +The annals of tyranny, from the reign of Tiberius to that of +Domitian, circumstantially relate the executions of many innocent +victims; but, as long as the faintest remembrance was kept alive +of the national freedom and honor, the last hours of a Roman were +secured from the danger of ignominious torture. The conduct of +the provincial magistrates was not, however, regulated by the +practice of the city, or the strict maxims of the civilians. They +found the use of torture established not only among the slaves of +oriental despotism, but among the Macedonians, who obeyed a +limited monarch; among the Rhodians, who flourished by the +liberty of commerce; and even among the sage Athenians, who had +asserted and adorned the dignity of human kind. The acquiescence +of the provincials encouraged their governors to acquire, or +perhaps to usurp, a discretionary power of employing the rack, to +extort from vagrants or plebeian criminals the confession of +their guilt, till they insensibly proceeded to confound the +distinction of rank, and to disregard the privileges of Roman +citizens. The apprehensions of the subjects urged them to +solicit, and the interest of the sovereign engaged him to grant, +a variety of special exemptions, which tacitly allowed, and even +authorized, the general use of torture. They protected all +persons of illustrious or honorable rank, bishops and their +presbyters, professors of the liberal arts, soldiers and their +families, municipal officers, and their posterity to the third +generation, and all children under the age of puberty. But a +fatal maxim was introduced into the new jurisprudence of the +empire, that in the case of treason, which included every offence +that the subtlety of lawyers could derive from a +<strong><em>hostile intention</em></strong> towards the prince or +republic, all privileges were suspended, and all conditions were +reduced to the same ignominious level. As the safety of the +emperor was avowedly preferred to every consideration of justice +or humanity, the dignity of age and the tenderness of youth were +alike exposed to the most cruel tortures; and the terrors of a +malicious information, which might select them as the +accomplices, or even as the witnesses, perhaps, of an imaginary +crime, perpetually hung over the heads of the principal citizens +of the Roman world.<br> +</p> + +<p>These evils, however terrible they may appear, were confined +to the smaller number of Roman subjects, whose dangerous +situation was in some degree compensated by the enjoyment of +those advantages, either of nature or of fortune, which exposed +them to the jealousy of the monarch. The obscure millions of a +great empire have much less to dread from the cruelty than from +the avarice of their masters, and <strong><em>their</em></strong> +humble happiness is principally affected by the grievance of +excessive taxes, which, gently pressing on the wealthy, descend +with accelerated weight on the meaner and more indigent classes +of society. An ingenious philosopher has calculated the universal +measure of the public impositions by the degrees of freedom and +servitude; and ventures to assert, that, according to an +invariable law of nature, it must always increase with the +former, and diminish in a just proportion to the latter. But this +reflection, which would tend to alleviate the miseries of +despotism, is contradicted at least by the history of the Roman +empire; which accuses the same princes of despoiling the senate +of its authority, and the provinces of their wealth. Without +abolishing all the various customs and duties on merchandises, +which are imperceptibly discharged by the apparent choice of the +purchaser, the policy of Constantine and his successors preferred +a simple and direct mode of taxation, more congenial to the +spirit of an arbitrary government.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVII: Foundation Of Constantinople. -- +Part VI.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The name and use of the <strong><em>indictions</em></strong>, +which serve to ascertain the chronology of the middle ages, were +derived from the regular practice of the Roman tributes. The +emperor subscribed with his own hand, and in purple ink, the +solemn edict, or indiction, which was fixed up in the principal +city of each diocese, during two months previous to the first day +of September. And by a very easy connection of ideas, the word +<strong><em>indiction</em></strong> was transferred to the +measure of tribute which it prescribed, and to the annual term +which it allowed for the payment. This general estimate of the +supplies was proportioned to the real and imaginary wants of the +state; but as often as the expense exceeded the revenue, or the +revenue fell short of the computation, an additional tax, under +the name of <strong><em>superindiction</em></strong>, was imposed +on the people, and the most valuable attribute of sovereignty was +communicated to the Prætorian præfects, who, on some +occasions, were permitted to provide for the unforeseen and +extraordinary exigencies of the public service. The execution of +these laws (which it would be tedious to pursue in their minute +and intricate detail) consisted of two distinct operations: the +resolving the general imposition into its constituent parts, +which were assessed on the provinces, the cities, and the +individuals of the Roman world; and the collecting the separate +contributions of the individuals, the cities, and the provinces, +till the accumulated sums were poured into the Imperial +treasuries. But as the account between the monarch and the +subject was perpetually open, and as the renewal of the demand +anticipated the perfect discharge of the preceding obligation, +the weighty machine of the finances was moved by the same hands +round the circle of its yearly revolution. Whatever was honorable +or important in the administration of the revenue, was committed +to the wisdom of the præfects, and their provincial. +representatives; the lucrative functions were claimed by a crowd +of subordinate officers, some of whom depended on the treasurer, +others on the governor of the province; and who, in the +inevitable conflicts of a perplexed jurisdiction, had frequent +opportunities of disputing with each other the spoils of the +people. The laborious offices, which could be productive only of +envy and reproach, of expense and danger, were imposed on the +<strong><em>Decurions</em></strong>, who formed the corporations +of the cities, and whom the severity of the Imperial laws had +condemned to sustain the burdens of civil society. The whole +landed property of the empire (without excepting the patrimonial +estates of the monarch) was the object of ordinary taxation; and +every new purchaser contracted the obligations of the former +proprietor. An accurate census, or survey, was the only equitable +mode of ascertaining the proportion which every citizen should be +obliged to contribute for the public service; and from the +well-known period of the indictions, there is reason to believe +that this difficult and expensive operation was repeated at the +regular distance of fifteen years. The lands were measured by +surveyors, who were sent into the provinces; their nature, +whether arable or pasture, or vineyards or woods, was distinctly +reported; and an estimate was made of their common value from the +average produce of five years. The numbers of slaves and of +cattle constituted an essential part of the report; an oath was +administered to the proprietors, which bound them to disclose the +true state of their affairs; and their attempts to prevaricate, +or elude the intention of the legislator, were severely watched, +and punished as a capital crime, which included the double guilt +of treason and sacrilege. A large portion of the tribute was paid +in money; and of the current coin of the empire, gold alone could +be legally accepted. The remainder of the taxes, according to the +proportions determined by the annual indiction, was furnished in +a manner still more direct, and still more oppressive. According +to the different nature of lands, their real produce in the +various articles of wine or oil, corn or barley, wood or iron, +was transported by the labor or at the expense of the provincials +* to the Imperial magazines, from whence they were occasionally +distributed for the use of the court, of the army, and of two +capitals, Rome and Constantinople. The commissioners of the +revenue were so frequently obliged to make considerable +purchases, that they were strictly prohibited from allowing any +compensation, or from receiving in money the value of those +supplies which were exacted in kind. In the primitive simplicity +of small communities, this method may be well adapted to collect +the almost voluntary offerings of the people; but it is at once +susceptible of the utmost latitude, and of the utmost strictness, +which in a corrupt and absolute monarchy must introduce a +perpetual contest between the power of oppression and the arts of +fraud. The agriculture of the Roman provinces was insensibly +ruined, and, in the progress of despotism which tends to +disappoint its own purpose, the emperors were obliged to derive +some merit from the forgiveness of debts, or the remission of +tributes, which their subjects were utterly incapable of paying. +According to the new division of Italy, the fertile and happy +province of Campania, the scene of the early victories and of the +delicious retirements of the citizens of Rome, extended between +the sea and the Apennine, from the Tiber to the Silarus. Within +sixty years after the death of Constantine, and on the evidence +of an actual survey, an exemption was granted in favor of three +hundred and thirty thousand English acres of desert and +uncultivated land; which amounted to one eighth of the whole +surface of the province. As the footsteps of the Barbarians had +not yet been seen in Italy, the cause of this amazing desolation, +which is recorded in the laws, can be ascribed only to the +administration of the Roman emperors.<br> +</p> + +<p>Either from design or from accident, the mode of assessment +seemed to unite the substance of a land tax with the forms of a +capitation. The returns which were sent of every province or +district, expressed the number of tributary subjects, and the +amount of the public impositions. The latter of these sums was +divided by the former; and the estimate, that such a province +contained so many <strong><em>capita</em></strong>, or heads of +tribute; and that each <strong><em>head</em></strong> was rated +at such a price, was universally received, not only in the +popular, but even in the legal computation. The value of a +tributary head must have varied, according to many accidental, or +at least fluctuating circumstances; but some knowledge has been +preserved of a very curious fact, the more important, since it +relates to one of the richest provinces of the Roman empire, and +which now flourishes as the most splendid of the European +kingdoms. The rapacious ministers of Constantius had exhausted +the wealth of Gaul, by exacting twenty-five pieces of gold for +the annual tribute of every head. The humane policy of his +successor reduced the capitation to seven pieces. A moderate +proportion between these opposite extremes of extraordinary +oppression and of transient indulgence, may therefore be fixed at +sixteen pieces of gold, or about nine pounds sterling, the common +standard, perhaps, of the impositions of Gaul. But this +calculation, or rather, indeed, the facts from whence it is +deduced, cannot fail of suggesting two difficulties to a thinking +mind, who will be at once surprised by the +<strong><em>equality</em></strong>, and by the +<strong><em>enormity</em></strong>, of the capitation. An attempt +to explain them may perhaps reflect some light on the interesting +subject of the finances of the declining empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>I. It is obvious, that, as long as the immutable constitution +of human nature produces and maintains so unequal a division of +property, the most numerous part of the community would be +deprived of their subsistence, by the equal assessment of a tax +from which the sovereign would derive a very trifling revenue. +Such indeed might be the theory of the Roman capitation; but in +the practice, this unjust equality was no longer felt, as the +tribute was collected on the principle of a +<strong><em>real</em></strong>, not of a +<strong><em>personal</em></strong> imposition. * Several indigent +citizens contributed to compose a single +<strong><em>head</em></strong>, or share of taxation; while the +wealthy provincial, in proportion to his fortune, alone +represented several of those imaginary beings. In a poetical +request, addressed to one of the last and most deserving of the +Roman princes who reigned in Gaul, Sidonius Apollinaris +personifies his tribute under the figure of a triple monster, the +Geryon of the Grecian fables, and entreats the new Hercules that +he would most graciously be pleased to save his life by cutting +off three of his heads. The fortune of Sidonius far exceeded the +customary wealth of a poet; but if he had pursued the allusion, +he might have painted many of the Gallic nobles with the hundred +heads of the deadly Hydra, spreading over the face of the +country, and devouring the substance of a hundred families. II. +The difficulty of allowing an annual sum of about nine pounds +sterling, even for the average of the capitation of Gaul, may be +rendered more evident by the comparison of the present state of +the same country, as it is now governed by the absolute monarch +of an industrious, wealthy, and affectionate people. The taxes of +France cannot be magnified, either by fear or by flattery, beyond +the annual amount of eighteen millions sterling, which ought +perhaps to be shared among four and twenty millions of +inhabitants. Seven millions of these, in the capacity of fathers, +or brothers, or husbands, may discharge the obligations of the +remaining multitude of women and children; yet the equal +proportion of each tributary subject will scarcely rise above +fifty shillings of our money, instead of a proportion almost four +times as considerable, which was regularly imposed on their +Gallic ancestors. The reason of this difference may be found, not +so much in the relative scarcity or plenty of gold and silver, as +in the different state of society, in ancient Gaul and in modern +France. In a country where personal freedom is the privilege of +every subject, the whole mass of taxes, whether they are levied +on property or on consumption, may be fairly divided among the +whole body of the nation. But the far greater part of the lands +of ancient Gaul, as well as of the other provinces of the Roman +world, were cultivated by slaves, or by peasants, whose dependent +condition was a less rigid servitude. In such a state the poor +were maintained at the expense of the masters who enjoyed the +fruits of their labor; and as the rolls of tribute were filled +only with the names of those citizens who possessed the means of +an honorable, or at least of a decent subsistence, the +comparative smallness of their numbers explains and justifies the +high rate of their capitation. The truth of this assertion may be +illustrated by the following example: The Ædui, one of the +most powerful and civilized tribes or +<strong><em>cities</em></strong> of Gaul, occupied an extent of +territory, which now contains about five hundred thousand +inhabitants, in the two ecclesiastical dioceses of Autun and +Nevers; and with the probable accession of those of Chalons and +Macon, the population would amount to eight hundred thousand +souls. In the time of Constantine, the territory of the +Ædui afforded no more than twenty-five thousand +<strong><em>heads</em></strong> of capitation, of whom seven +thousand were discharged by that prince from the intolerable +weight of tribute. A just analogy would seem to countenance the +opinion of an ingenious historian, that the free and tributary +citizens did not surpass the number of half a million; and if, in +the ordinary administration of government, their annual payments +may be computed at about four millions and a half of our money, +it would appear, that although the share of each individual was +four times as considerable, a fourth part only of the modern +taxes of France was levied on the Imperial province of Gaul. The +exactions of Constantius may be calculated at seven millions +sterling, which were reduced to two millions by the humanity or +the wisdom of Julian.<br> +</p> + +<p>But this tax, or capitation, on the proprietors of land, would +have suffered a rich and numerous class of free citizens to +escape. With the view of sharing that species of wealth which is +derived from art or labor, and which exists in money or in +merchandise, the emperors imposed a distinct and personal tribute +on the trading part of their subjects. Some exemptions, very +strictly confined both in time and place, were allowed to the +proprietors who disposed of the produce of their own estates. +Some indulgence was granted to the profession of the liberal +arts: but every other branch of commercial industry was affected +by the severity of the law. The honorable merchant of Alexandria, +who imported the gems and spices of India for the use of the +western world; the usurer, who derived from the interest of money +a silent and ignominious profit; the ingenious manufacturer, the +diligent mechanic, and even the most obscure retailer of a +sequestered village, were obliged to admit the officers of the +revenue into the partnership of their gain; and the sovereign of +the Roman empire, who tolerated the profession, consented to +share the infamous salary, of public prostitutes. As this general +tax upon industry was collected every fourth year, it was styled +the <strong><em>Lustral Contribution</em></strong>: and the +historian Zosimus laments that the approach of the fatal period +was announced by the tears and terrors of the citizens, who were +often compelled by the impending scourge to embrace the most +abhorred and unnatural methods of procuring the sum at which +their property had been assessed. The testimony of Zosimus cannot +indeed be justified from the charge of passion and prejudice; +but, from the nature of this tribute it seems reasonable to +conclude, that it was arbitrary in the distribution, and +extremely rigorous in the mode of collecting. The secret wealth +of commerce, and the precarious profits of art or labor, are +susceptible only of a discretionary valuation, which is seldom +disadvantageous to the interest of the treasury; and as the +person of the trader supplies the want of a visible and permanent +security, the payment of the imposition, which, in the case of a +land tax, may be obtained by the seizure of property, can rarely +be extorted by any other means than those of corporal +punishments. The cruel treatment of the insolvent debtors of the +state, is attested, and was perhaps mitigated by a very humane +edict of Constantine, who, disclaiming the use of racks and of +scourges, allots a spacious and airy prison for the place of +their confinement.<br> +</p> + +<p>These general taxes were imposed and levied by the absolute +authority of the monarch; but the occasional offerings of the +<strong><em>coronary gold</em></strong>still retained the name +and semblance of popular consent. It was an ancient custom that +the allies of the republic, who ascribed their safety or +deliverance to the success of the Roman arms, and even the cities +of Italy, who admired the virtues of their victorious general, +adorned the pomp of his triumph by their voluntary gifts of +crowns of gold, which after the ceremony were consecrated in the +temple of Jupiter, to remain a lasting monument of his glory to +future ages. The progress of zeal and flattery soon multiplied +the number, and increased the size, of these popular donations; +and the triumph of Cæsar was enriched with two thousand +eight hundred and twenty-two massy crowns, whose weight amounted +to twenty thousand four hundred and fourteen pounds of gold. This +treasure was immediately melted down by the prudent dictator, who +was satisfied that it would be more serviceable to his soldiers +than to the gods: his example was imitated by his successors; and +the custom was introduced of exchanging these splendid ornaments +for the more acceptable present of the current gold coin of the +empire. The spontaneous offering was at length exacted as the +debt of duty; and instead of being confined to the occasion of a +triumph, it was supposed to be granted by the several cities and +provinces of the monarchy, as often as the emperor condescended +to announce his accession, his consulship, the birth of a son, +the creation of a Cæsar, a victory over the Barbarians, or +any other real or imaginary event which graced the annals of his +reign. The peculiar free gift of the senate of Rome was fixed by +custom at sixteen hundred pounds of gold, or about sixty-four +thousand pounds sterling. The oppressed subjects celebrated their +own felicity, that their sovereign should graciously consent to +accept this feeble but voluntary testimony of their loyalty and +gratitude.<br> +</p> + +<p>A people elated by pride, or soured by discontent, are seldom +qualified to form a just estimate of their actual situation. The +subjects of Constantine were incapable of discerning the decline +of genius and manly virtue, which so far degraded them below the +dignity of their ancestors; but they could feel and lament the +rage of tyranny, the relaxation of discipline, and the increase +of taxes. The impartial historian, who acknowledges the justice +of their complaints, will observe some favorable circumstances +which tended to alleviate the misery of their condition. The +threatening tempest of Barbarians, which so soon subverted the +foundations of Roman greatness, was still repelled, or suspended, +on the frontiers. The arts of luxury and literature were +cultivated, and the elegant pleasures of society were enjoyed, by +the inhabitants of a considerable portion of the globe. The +forms, the pomp, and the expense of the civil administration +contributed to restrain the irregular license of the soldiers; +and although the laws were violated by power, or perverted by +subtlety, the sage principles of the Roman jurisprudence +preserved a sense of order and equity, unknown to the despotic +governments of the East. The rights of mankind might derive some +protection from religion and philosophy; and the name of freedom, +which could no longer alarm, might sometimes admonish, the +successors of Augustus, that they did not reign over a nation of +Slaves or Barbarians.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong>Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His +Sons.</strong></p> + +<p><strong><em>Part I.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Character Of Constantine. -- Gothic War. -- Death Of +Constantine. -- Division Of The Empire Among His Three Sons. -- +Persian War. -- Tragic Deaths Of Constantine The Younger And +Constans. -- Usurpation Of Magnentius. -- Civil War. -- Victory +Of Constantius.<br> +</p> + +<p>The character of the prince who removed the seat of empire, +and introduced such important changes into the civil and +religious constitution of his country, has fixed the attention, +and divided the opinions, of mankind. By the grateful zeal of the +Christians, the deliverer of the church has been decorated with +every attribute of a hero, and even of a saint; while the +discontent of the vanquished party has compared Constantine to +the most abhorred of those tyrants, who, by their vice and +weakness, dishonored the Imperial purple. The same passions have +in some degree been perpetuated to succeeding generations, and +the character of Constantine is considered, even in the present +age, as an object either of satire or of panegyric. By the +impartial union of those defects which are confessed by his +warmest admirers, and of those virtues which are acknowledged by +his most-implacable enemies, we might hope to delineate a just +portrait of that extraordinary man, which the truth and candor of +history should adopt without a blush. But it would soon appear, +that the vain attempt to blend such discordant colors, and to +reconcile such inconsistent qualities, must produce a figure +monstrous rather than human, unless it is viewed in its proper +and distinct lights, by a careful separation of the different +periods of the reign of Constantine.<br> +</p> + +<p>The person, as well as the mind, of Constantine, had been +enriched by nature with her choices endowments. His stature was +lofty, his countenance majestic, his deportment graceful; his +strength and activity were displayed in every manly exercise, and +from his earliest youth, to a very advanced season of life, he +preserved the vigor of his constitution by a strict adherence to +the domestic virtues of chastity and temperance. He delighted in +the social intercourse of familiar conversation; and though he +might sometimes indulge his disposition to raillery with less +reserve than was required by the severe dignity of his station, +the courtesy and liberality of his manners gained the hearts of +all who approached him. The sincerity of his friendship has been +suspected; yet he showed, on some occasions, that he was not +incapable of a warm and lasting attachment. The disadvantage of +an illiterate education had not prevented him from forming a just +estimate of the value of learning; and the arts and sciences +derived some encouragement from the munificent protection of +Constantine. In the despatch of business, his diligence was +indefatigable; and the active powers of his mind were almost +continually exercised in reading, writing, or meditating, in +giving audiences to ambassadors, and in examining the complaints +of his subjects. Even those who censured the propriety of his +measures were compelled to acknowledge, that he possessed +magnanimity to conceive, and patience to execute, the most +arduous designs, without being checked either by the prejudices +of education, or by the clamors of the multitude. In the field, +he infused his own intrepid spirit into the troops, whom he +conducted with the talents of a consummate general; and to his +abilities, rather than to his fortune, we may ascribe the signal +victories which he obtained over the foreign and domestic foes of +the republic. He loved glory as the reward, perhaps as the +motive, of his labors. The boundless ambition, which, from the +moment of his accepting the purple at York, appears as the ruling +passion of his soul, may be justified by the dangers of his own +situation, by the character of his rivals, by the consciousness +of superior merit, and by the prospect that his success would +enable him to restore peace and order to tot the distracted +empire. In his civil wars against Maxentius and Licinius, he had +engaged on his side the inclinations of the people, who compared +the undissembled vices of those tyrants with the spirit of wisdom +and justice which seemed to direct the general tenor of the +administration of Constantine.<br> +</p> + +<p>Had Constantine fallen on the banks of the Tyber, or even in +the plains of Hadrianople, such is the character which, with a +few exceptions, he might have transmitted to posterity. But the +conclusion of his reign (according to the moderate and indeed +tender sentence of a writer of the same age) degraded him from +the rank which he had acquired among the most deserving of the +Roman princes. In the life of Augustus, we behold the tyrant of +the republic, converted, almost by imperceptible degrees, into +the father of his country, and of human kind. In that of +Constantine, we may contemplate a hero, who had so long inspired +his subjects with love, and his enemies with terror, degenerating +into a cruel and dissolute monarch, corrupted by his fortune, or +raised by conquest above the necessity of dissimulation. The +general peace which he maintained during the last fourteen years +of his reign, was a period of apparent splendor rather than of +real prosperity; and the old age of Constantine was disgraced by +the opposite yet reconcilable vices of rapaciousness and +prodigality. The accumulated treasures found in the palaces of +Maxentius and Licinius, were lavishly consumed; the various +innovations introduced by the conqueror, were attended with an +increasing expense; the cost of his buildings, his court, and his +festivals, required an immediate and plentiful supply; and the +oppression of the people was the only fund which could support +the magnificence of the sovereign. His unworthy favorites, +enriched by the boundless liberality of their master, usurped +with impunity the privilege of rapine and corruption. A secret +but universal decay was felt in every part of the public +administration, and the emperor himself, though he still retained +the obedience, gradually lost the esteem, of his subjects. The +dress and manners, which, towards the decline of life, he chose +to affect, served only to degrade him in the eyes of mankind. The +Asiatic pomp, which had been adopted by the pride of Diocletian, +assumed an air of softness and effeminacy in the person of +Constantine. He is represented with false hair of various colors, +laboriously arranged by the skilful artists to the times; a +diadem of a new and more expensive fashion; a profusion of gems +and pearls, of collars and bracelets, and a variegated flowing +robe of silk, most curiously embroidered with flowers of gold. In +such apparel, scarcely to be excused by the youth and folly of +Elagabalus, we are at a loss to discover the wisdom of an aged +monarch, and the simplicity of a Roman veteran. A mind thus +relaxed by prosperity and indulgence, was incapable of rising to +that magnanimity which disdains suspicion, and dares to forgive. +The deaths of Maximian and Licinius may perhaps be justified by +the maxims of policy, as they are taught in the schools of +tyrants; but an impartial narrative of the executions, or rather +murders, which sullied the declining age of Constantine, will +suggest to our most candid thoughts the idea of a prince who +could sacrifice without reluctance the laws of justice, and the +feelings of nature, to the dictates either of his passions or of +his interest.<br> +</p> + +<p>The same fortune which so invariably followed the standard of +Constantine, seemed to secure the hopes and comforts of his +domestic life. Those among his predecessors who had enjoyed the +longest and most prosperous reigns, Augustus Trajan, and +Diocletian, had been disappointed of posterity; and the frequent +revolutions had never allowed sufficient time for any Imperial +family to grow up and multiply under the shade of the purple. But +the royalty of the Flavian line, which had been first ennobled by +the Gothic Claudius, descended through several generations; and +Constantine himself derived from his royal father the hereditary +honors which he transmitted to his children. The emperor had been +twice married. Minervina, the obscure but lawful object of his +youthful attachment, had left him only one son, who was called +Crispus. By Fausta, the daughter of Maximian, he had three +daughters, and three sons known by the kindred names of +Constantine, Constantius, and Constans. The unambitious brothers +of the great Constantine, Julius Constantius, Dalmatius, and +Hannibalianus, were permitted to enjoy the most honorable rank, +and the most affluent fortune, that could be consistent with a +private station. The youngest of the three lived without a name, +and died without posterity. His two elder brothers obtained in +marriage the daughters of wealthy senators, and propagated new +branches of the Imperial race. Gallus and Julian afterwards +became the most illustrious of the children of Julius +Constantius, the <strong><em>Patrician</em></strong>. The two +sons of Dalmatius, who had been decorated with the vain title of +<strong><em>Censor</em></strong>, were named Dalmatius and +Hannibalianus. The two sisters of the great Constantine, +Anastasia and Eutropia, were bestowed on Optatus and Nepotianus, +two senators of noble birth and of consular dignity. His third +sister, Constantia, was distinguished by her preeminence of +greatness and of misery. She remained the widow of the vanquished +Licinius; and it was by her entreaties, that an innocent boy, the +offspring of their marriage, preserved, for some time, his life, +the title of Cæsar, and a precarious hope of the +succession. Besides the females, and the allies of the Flavian +house, ten or twelve males, to whom the language of modern courts +would apply the title of princes of the blood, seemed, according +to the order of their birth, to be destined either to inherit or +to support the throne of Constantine. But in less than thirty +years, this numerous and increasing family was reduced to the +persons of Constantius and Julian, who alone had survived a +series of crimes and calamities, such as the tragic poets have +deplored in the devoted lines of Pelops and of Cadmus.<br> +</p> + +<p>Crispus, the eldest son of Constantine, and the presumptive +heir of the empire, is represented by impartial historians as an +amiable and accomplished youth. The care of his education, or at +least of his studies, was intrusted to Lactantius, the most +eloquent of the Christians; a preceptor admirably qualified to +form the taste, and the excite the virtues, of his illustrious +disciple. At the age of seventeen, Crispus was invested with the +title of Cæsar, and the administration of the Gallic +provinces, where the inroads of the Germans gave him an early +occasion of signalizing his military prowess. In the civil war +which broke out soon afterwards, the father and son divided their +powers; and this history has already celebrated the valor as well +as conduct displayed by the latter, in forcing the straits of the +Hellespont, so obstinately defended by the superior fleet of +Licinius. This naval victory contributed to determine the event +of the war; and the names of Constantine and of Crispus were +united in the joyful acclamations of their eastern subjects; who +loudly proclaimed, that the world had been subdued, and was now +governed, by an emperor endowed with every virtue; and by his +illustrious son, a prince beloved of Heaven, and the lively image +of his father's perfections. The public favor, which seldom +accompanies old age, diffused its lustre over the youth of +Crispus. He deserved the esteem, and he engaged the affections, +of the court, the army, and the people. The experienced merit of +a reigning monarch is acknowledged by his subjects with +reluctance, and frequently denied with partial and discontented +murmurs; while, from the opening virtues of his successor, they +fondly conceive the most unbounded hopes of private as well as +public felicity.<br> +</p> + +<p>This dangerous popularity soon excited the attention of +Constantine, who, both as a father and as a king, was impatient +of an equal. Instead of attempting to secure the allegiance of +his son by the generous ties of confidence and gratitude, he +resolved to prevent the mischiefs which might be apprehended from +dissatisfied ambition. Crispus soon had reason to complain, that +while his infant brother Constantius was sent, with the title of +Cæsar, to reign over his peculiar department of the Gallic +provinces, <strong><em>he</em></strong>, a prince of mature +years, who had performed such recent and signal services, instead +of being raised to the superior rank of Augustus, was confined +almost a prisoner to his father's court; and exposed, without +power or defence, to every calumny which the malice of his +enemies could suggest. Under such painful circumstances, the +royal youth might not always be able to compose his behavior, or +suppress his discontent; and we may be assured, that he was +encompassed by a train of indiscreet or perfidious followers, who +assiduously studied to inflame, and who were perhaps instructed +to betray, the unguarded warmth of his resentment. An edict of +Constantine, published about this time, manifestly indicates his +real or affected suspicions, that a secret conspiracy had been +formed against his person and government. By all the allurements +of honors and rewards, he invites informers of every degree to +accuse without exception his magistrates or ministers, his +friends or his most intimate favorites, protesting, with a solemn +asseveration, that he himself will listen to the charge, that he +himself will revenge his injuries; and concluding with a prayer, +which discovers some apprehension of danger, that the providence +of the Supreme Being may still continue to protect the safety of +the emperor and of the empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>The informers, who complied with so liberal an invitation, +were sufficiently versed in the arts of courts to select the +friends and adherents of Crispus as the guilty persons; nor is +there any reason to distrust the veracity of the emperor, who had +promised an ample measure of revenge and punishment. The policy +of Constantine maintained, however, the same appearances of +regard and confidence towards a son, whom he began to consider as +his most irreconcilable enemy. Medals were struck with the +customary vows for the long and auspicious reign of the young +Cæsar; and as the people, who were not admitted into the +secrets of the palace, still loved his virtues, and respected his +dignity, a poet who solicits his recall from exile, adores with +equal devotion the majesty of the father and that of the son. The +time was now arrived for celebrating the august ceremony of the +twentieth year of the reign of Constantine; and the emperor, for +that purpose, removed his court from Nicomedia to Rome, where the +most splendid preparations had been made for his reception. Every +eye, and every tongue, affected to express their sense of the +general happiness, and the veil of ceremony and dissimulation was +drawn for a while over the darkest designs of revenge and murder. +In the midst of the festival, the unfortunate Crispus was +apprehended by order of the emperor, who laid aside the +tenderness of a father, without assuming the equity of a judge. +The examination was short and private; and as it was thought +decent to conceal the fate of the young prince from the eyes of +the Roman people, he was sent under a strong guard to Pola, in +Istria, where, soon afterwards, he was put to death, either by +the hand of the executioner, or by the more gentle operations of +poison. The Cæsar Licinius, a youth of amiable manners, was +involved in the ruin of Crispus: and the stern jealousy of +Constantine was unmoved by the prayers and tears of his favorite +sister, pleading for the life of a son, whose rank was his only +crime, and whose loss she did not long survive. The story of +these unhappy princes, the nature and evidence of their guilt, +the forms of their trial, and the circumstances of their death, +were buried in mysterious obscurity; and the courtly bishop, who +has celebrated in an elaborate work the virtues and piety of his +hero, observes a prudent silence on the subject of these tragic +events. Such haughty contempt for the opinion of mankind, whilst +it imprints an indelible stain on the memory of Constantine, must +remind us of the very different behavior of one of the greatest +monarchs of the present age. The Czar Peter, in the full +possession of despotic power, submitted to the judgment of +Russia, of Europe, and of posterity, the reasons which had +compelled him to subscribe the condemnation of a criminal, or at +least of a degenerate son.<br> +</p> + +<p>The innocence of Crispus was so universally acknowledged, that +the modern Greeks, who adore the memory of their founder, are +reduced to palliate the guilt of a parricide, which the common +feelings of human nature forbade them to justify. They pretend, +that as soon as the afflicted father discovered the falsehood of +the accusation by which his credulity had been so fatally misled, +he published to the world his repentance and remorse; that he +mourned forty days, during which he abstained from the use of the +bath, and all the ordinary comforts of life; and that, for the +lasting instruction of posterity, he erected a golden statue of +Crispus, with this memorable inscription: To my son, whom I +unjustly condemned. A tale so moral and so interesting would +deserve to be supported by less exceptionable authority; but if +we consult the more ancient and authentic writers, they will +inform us, that the repentance of Constantine was manifested only +in acts of blood and revenge; and that he atoned for the murder +of an innocent son, by the execution, perhaps, of a guilty wife. +They ascribe the misfortunes of Crispus to the arts of his +step-mother Fausta, whose implacable hatred, or whose +disappointed love, renewed in the palace of Constantine the +ancient tragedy of Hippolitus and of Phædra. Like the +daughter of Minos, the daughter of Maximian accused her +son-in-law of an incestuous attempt on the chastity of his +father's wife; and easily obtained, from the jealousy of the +emperor, a sentence of death against a young prince, whom she +considered with reason as the most formidable rival of her own +children. But Helena, the aged mother of Constantine, lamented +and revenged the untimely fate of her grandson Crispus; nor was +it long before a real or pretended discovery was made, that +Fausta herself entertained a criminal connection with a slave +belonging to the Imperial stables. Her condemnation and +punishment were the instant consequences of the charge; and the +adulteress was suffocated by the steam of a bath, which, for that +purpose, had been heated to an extraordinary degree. By some it +will perhaps be thought, that the remembrance of a conjugal union +of twenty years, and the honor of their common offspring, the +destined heirs of the throne, might have softened the obdurate +heart of Constantine, and persuaded him to suffer his wife, +however guilty she might appear, to expiate her offences in a +solitary prison. But it seems a superfluous labor to weigh the +propriety, unless we could ascertain the truth, of this singular +event, which is attended with some circumstances of doubt and +perplexity. Those who have attacked, and those who have defended, +the character of Constantine, have alike disregarded two very +remarkable passages of two orations pronounced under the +succeeding reign. The former celebrates the virtues, the beauty, +and the fortune of the empress Fausta, the daughter, wife, +sister, and mother of so many princes. The latter asserts, in +explicit terms, that the mother of the younger Constantine, who +was slain three years after his father's death, survived to weep +over the fate of her son. Notwithstanding the positive testimony +of several writers of the Pagan as well as of the Christian +religion, there may still remain some reason to believe, or at +least to suspect, that Fausta escaped the blind and suspicious +cruelty of her husband. * The deaths of a son and a nephew, with +the execution of a great number of respectable, and perhaps +innocent friends, who were involved in their fall, may be +sufficient, however, to justify the discontent of the Roman +people, and to explain the satirical verses affixed to the palace +gate, comparing the splendid and bloody reigns of Constantine and +Nero.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His +Sons. -- Part II.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>By the death of Crispus, the inheritance of the empire seemed +to devolve on the three sons of Fausta, who have been already +mentioned under the names of Constantine, of Constantius, and of +Constans. These young princes were successively invested with the +title of Cæsar; and the dates of their promotion may be +referred to the tenth, the twentieth, and the thirtieth years of +the reign of their father. This conduct, though it tended to +multiply the future masters of the Roman world, might be excused +by the partiality of paternal affection; but it is not so easy to +understand the motives of the emperor, when he endangered the +safety both of his family and of his people, by the unnecessary +elevation of his two nephews, Dalmatius and Hannibalianus. The +former was raised, by the title of Cæsar, to an equality +with his cousins. In favor of the latter, Constantine invented +the new and singular appellation of +<strong><em>Nobilissimus</em></strong>; to which he annexed the +flattering distinction of a robe of purple and gold. But of the +whole series of Roman princes in any age of the empire, +Hannibalianus alone was distinguished by the title of King; a +name which the subjects of Tiberius would have detested, as the +profane and cruel insult of capricious tyranny. The use of such a +title, even as it appears under the reign of Constantine, is a +strange and unconnected fact, which can scarcely be admitted on +the joint authority of Imperial medals and contemporary +writers.<br> +</p> + +<p>The whole empire was deeply interested in the education of +these five youths, the acknowledged successors of Constantine. +The exercise of the body prepared them for the fatigues of war +and the duties of active life. Those who occasionally mention the +education or talents of Constantius, allow that he excelled in +the gymnastic arts of leaping and running that he was a dexterous +archer, a skilful horseman, and a master of all the different +weapons used in the service either of the cavalry or of the +infantry. The same assiduous cultivation was bestowed, though not +perhaps with equal success, to improve the minds of the sons and +nephews of Constantine. The most celebrated professors of the +Christian faith, of the Grecian philosophy, and of the Roman +jurisprudence, were invited by the liberality of the emperor, who +reserved for himself the important task of instructing the royal +youths in the science of government, and the knowledge of +mankind. But the genius of Constantine himself had been formed by +adversity and experience. In the free intercourse of private +life, and amidst the dangers of the court of Galerius, he had +learned to command his own passions, to encounter those of his +equals, and to depend for his present safety and future greatness +on the prudence and firmness of his personal conduct. His +destined successors had the misfortune of being born and educated +in the imperial purple. Incessantly surrounded with a train of +flatterers, they passed their youth in the enjoyment of luxury, +and the expectation of a throne; nor would the dignity of their +rank permit them to descend from that elevated station from +whence the various characters of human nature appear to wear a +smooth and uniform aspect. The indulgence of Constantine admitted +them, at a very tender age, to share the administration of the +empire; and they studied the art of reigning, at the expense of +the people intrusted to their care. The younger Constantine was +appointed to hold his court in Gaul; and his brother Constantius +exchanged that department, the ancient patrimony of their father, +for the more opulent, but less martial, countries of the East. +Italy, the Western Illyricum, and Africa, were accustomed to +revere Constans, the third of his sons, as the representative of +the great Constantine. He fixed Dalmatius on the Gothic frontier, +to which he annexed the government of Thrace, Macedonia, and +Greece. The city of Cæsarea was chosen for the residence of +Hannibalianus; and the provinces of Pontus, Cappadocia, and the +Lesser Armenia, were destined to form the extent of his new +kingdom. For each of these princes a suitable establishment was +provided. A just proportion of guards, of legions, and of +auxiliaries, was allotted for their respective dignity and +defence. The ministers and generals, who were placed about their +persons, were such as Constantine could trust to assist, and even +to control, these youthful sovereigns in the exercise of their +delegated power. As they advanced in years and experience, the +limits of their authority were insensibly enlarged: but the +emperor always reserved for himself the title of Augustus; and +while he showed the <strong><em>Cæsars</em></strong> to the +armies and provinces, he maintained every part of the empire in +equal obedience to its supreme head. The tranquillity of the last +fourteen years of his reign was scarcely interrupted by the +contemptible insurrection of a camel-driver in the Island of +Cyprus, or by the active part which the policy of Constantine +engaged him to assume in the wars of the Goths and +Sarmatians.<br> +</p> + +<p>Among the different branches of the human race, the Sarmatians +form a very remarkable shade; as they seem to unite the manners +of the Asiatic barbarians with the figure and complexion of the +ancient inhabitants of Europe. According to the various accidents +of peace and war, of alliance or conquest, the Sarmatians were +sometimes confined to the banks of the Tanais; and they sometimes +spread themselves over the immense plains which lie between the +Vistula and the Volga. The care of their numerous flocks and +herds, the pursuit of game, and the exercises of war, or rather +of rapine, directed the vagrant motions of the Sarmatians. The +movable camps or cities, the ordinary residence of their wives +and children, consisted only of large wagons drawn by oxen, and +covered in the form of tents. The military strength of the nation +was composed of cavalry; and the custom of their warriors, to +lead in their hand one or two spare horses, enabled them to +advance and to retreat with a rapid diligence, which surprised +the security, and eluded the pursuit, of a distant enemy. Their +poverty of iron prompted their rude industry to invent a sort of +cuirass, which was capable of resisting a sword or javelin, +though it was formed only of horses' hoofs, cut into thin and +polished slices, carefully laid over each other in the manner of +scales or feathers, and strongly sewed upon an under garment of +coarse linen. The offensive arms of the Sarmatians were short +daggers, long lances, and a weighty bow vow with a quiver of +arrows. They were reduced to the necessity of employing +fish-bones for the points of their weapons; but the custom of +dipping them in a venomous liquor, that poisoned the wounds which +they inflicted, is alone sufficient to prove the most savage +manners, since a people impressed with a sense of humanity would +have abhorred so cruel a practice, and a nation skilled in the +arts of war would have disdained so impotent a resource. Whenever +these Barbarians issued from their deserts in quest of prey, +their shaggy beards, uncombed locks, the furs with which they +were covered from head to foot, and their fierce countenances, +which seemed to express the innate cruelty of their minds, +inspired the more civilized provincials of Rome with horror and +dismay.<br> +</p> + +<p>The tender Ovid, after a youth spent in the enjoyment of fame +and luxury, was condemned to a hopeless exile on the frozen banks +of the Danube, where he was exposed, almost without defence, to +the fury of these monsters of the desert, with whose stern +spirits he feared that his gentle shade might hereafter be +confounded. In his pathetic, but sometimes unmanly lamentations, +he describes in the most lively colors the dress and manners, the +arms and inroads, of the Getæ and Sarmatians, who were +associated for the purposes of destruction; and from the accounts +of history there is some reason to believe that these Sarmatians +were the Jazygæ, one of the most numerous and warlike +tribes of the nation. The allurements of plenty engaged them to +seek a permanent establishment on the frontiers of the empire. +Soon after the reign of Augustus, they obliged the Dacians, who +subsisted by fishing on the banks of the River Teyss or Tibiscus, +to retire into the hilly country, and to abandon to the +victorious Sarmatians the fertile plains of the Upper Hungary, +which are bounded by the course of the Danube and the +semicircular enclosure of the Carpathian Mountains. In this +advantageous position, they watched or suspended the moment of +attack, as they were provoked by injuries or appeased by +presents; they gradually acquired the skill of using more +dangerous weapons, and although the Sarmatians did not illustrate +their name by any memorable exploits, they occasionally assisted +their eastern and western neighbors, the Goths and the Germans, +with a formidable body of cavalry. They lived under the irregular +aristocracy of their chieftains: but after they had received into +their bosom the fugitive Vandals, who yielded to the pressure of +the Gothic power, they seem to have chosen a king from that +nation, and from the illustrious race of the Astingi, who had +formerly dwelt on the shores of the northern ocean.<br> +</p> + +<p>This motive of enmity must have inflamed the subjects of +contention, which perpetually arise on the confines of warlike +and independent nations. The Vandal princes were stimulated by +fear and revenge; the Gothic kings aspired to extend their +dominion from the Euxine to the frontiers of Germany; and the +waters of the Maros, a small river which falls into the Teyss, +were stained with the blood of the contending Barbarians. After +some experience of the superior strength and numbers of their +adversaries, the Sarmatians implored the protection of the Roman +monarch, who beheld with pleasure the discord of the nations, but +who was justly alarmed by the progress of the Gothic arms. As +soon as Constantine had declared himself in favor of the weaker +party, the haughty Araric, king of the Goths, instead of +expecting the attack of the legions, boldly passed the Danube, +and spread terror and devastation through the province of +Mæsia. To oppose the inroad of this destroying host, the +aged emperor took the field in person; but on this occasion +either his conduct or his fortune betrayed the glory which he had +acquired in so many foreign and domestic wars. He had the +mortification of seeing his troops fly before an inconsiderable +detachment of the Barbarians, who pursued them to the edge of +their fortified camp, and obliged him to consult his safety by a +precipitate and ignominious retreat. * The event of a second and +more successful action retrieved the honor of the Roman name; and +the powers of art and discipline prevailed, after an obstinate +contest, over the efforts of irregular valor. The broken army of +the Goths abandoned the field of battle, the wasted province, and +the passage of the Danube: and although the eldest of the sons of +Constantine was permitted to supply the place of his father, the +merit of the victory, which diffused universal joy, was ascribed +to the auspicious counsels of the emperor himself.<br> +</p> + +<p>He contributed at least to improve this advantage, by his +negotiations with the free and warlike people of Chersonesus, +whose capital, situate on the western coast of the Tauric or +Crimæan peninsula, still retained some vestiges of a +Grecian colony, and was governed by a perpetual magistrate, +assisted by a council of senators, emphatically styled the +Fathers of the City. The Chersonites were animated against the +Goths, by the memory of the wars, which, in the preceding +century, they had maintained with unequal forces against the +invaders of their country. They were connected with the Romans by +the mutual benefits of commerce; as they were supplied from the +provinces of Asia with corn and manufactures, which they +purchased with their only productions, salt, wax, and hides. +Obedient to the requisition of Constantine, they prepared, under +the conduct of their magistrate Diogenes, a considerable army, of +which the principal strength consisted in cross-bows and military +chariots. The speedy march and intrepid attack of the +Chersonites, by diverting the attention of the Goths, assisted +the operations of the Imperial generals. The Goths, vanquished on +every side, were driven into the mountains, where, in the course +of a severe campaign, above a hundred thousand were computed to +have perished by cold and hunger Peace was at length granted to +their humble supplications; the eldest son of Araric was accepted +as the most valuable hostage; and Constantine endeavored to +convince their chiefs, by a liberal distribution of honors and +rewards, how far the friendship of the Romans was preferable to +their enmity. In the expressions of his gratitude towards the +faithful Chersonites, the emperor was still more magnificent. The +pride of the nation was gratified by the splendid and almost +royal decorations bestowed on their magistrate and his +successors. A perpetual exemption from all duties was stipulated +for their vessels which traded to the ports of the Black Sea. A +regular subsidy was promised, of iron, corn, oil, and of every +supply which could be useful either in peace or war. But it was +thought that the Sarmatians were sufficiently rewarded by their +deliverance from impending ruin; and the emperor, perhaps with +too strict an economy, deducted some part of the expenses of the +war from the customary gratifications which were allowed to that +turbulent nation.<br> +</p> + +<p>Exasperated by this apparent neglect, the Sarmatians soon +forgot, with the levity of barbarians, the services which they +had so lately received, and the dangers which still threatened +their safety. Their inroads on the territory of the empire +provoked the indignation of Constantine to leave them to their +fate; and he no longer opposed the ambition of Geberic, a +renowned warrior, who had recently ascended the Gothic throne. +Wisumar, the Vandal king, whilst alone, and unassisted, he +defended his dominions with undaunted courage, was vanquished and +slain in a decisive battle, which swept away the flower of the +Sarmatian youth. * The remainder of the nation embraced the +desperate expedient of arming their slaves, a hardy race of +hunters and herdsmen, by whose tumultuary aid they revenged their +defeat, and expelled the invader from their confines. But they +soon discovered that they had exchanged a foreign for a domestic +enemy, more dangerous and more implacable. Enraged by their +former servitude, elated by their present glory, the slaves, +under the name of Limigantes, claimed and usurped the possession +of the country which they had saved. Their masters, unable to +withstand the ungoverned fury of the populace, preferred the +hardships of exile to the tyranny of their servants. Some of the +fugitive Sarmatians solicited a less ignominious dependence, +under the hostile standard of the Goths. A more numerous band +retired beyond the Carpathian Mountains, among the Quadi, their +German allies, and were easily admitted to share a superfluous +waste of uncultivated land. But the far greater part of the +distressed nation turned their eyes towards the fruitful +provinces of Rome. Imploring the protection and forgiveness of +the emperor, they solemnly promised, as subjects in peace, and as +soldiers in war, the most inviolable fidelity to the empire which +should graciously receive them into its bosom. According to the +maxims adopted by Probus and his successors, the offers of this +barbarian colony were eagerly accepted; and a competent portion +of lands in the provinces of Pannonia, Thrace, Macedonia, and +Italy, were immediately assigned for the habitation and +subsistence of three hundred thousand Sarmatians.<br> +</p> + +<p>By chastising the pride of the Goths, and by accepting the +homage of a suppliant nation, Constantine asserted the majesty of +the Roman empire; and the ambassadors of Æthiopia, Persia, +and the most remote countries of India, congratulated the peace +and prosperity of his government. If he reckoned, among the +favors of fortune, the death of his eldest son, of his nephew, +and perhaps of his wife, he enjoyed an uninterrupted flow of +private as well as public felicity, till the thirtieth year of +his reign; a period which none of his predecessors, since +Augustus, had been permitted to celebrate. Constantine survived +that solemn festival about ten months; and at the mature age of +sixty-four, after a short illness, he ended his memorable life at +the palace of Aquyrion, in the suburbs of Nicomedia, whither he +had retired for the benefit of the air, and with the hope of +recruiting his exhausted strength by the use of the warm baths. +The excessive demonstrations of grief, or at least of mourning, +surpassed whatever had been practised on any former occasion. +Notwithstanding the claims of the senate and people of ancient +Rome, the corpse of the deceased emperor, according to his last +request, was transported to the city, which was destined to +preserve the name and memory of its founder. The body of +Constantine adorned with the vain symbols of greatness, the +purple and diadem, was deposited on a golden bed in one of the +apartments of the palace, which for that purpose had been +splendidly furnished and illuminated. The forms of the court were +strictly maintained. Every day, at the appointed hours, the +principal officers of the state, the army, and the household, +approaching the person of their sovereign with bended knees and a +composed countenance, offered their respectful homage as +seriously as if he had been still alive. From motives of policy, +this theatrical representation was for some time continued; nor +could flattery neglect the opportunity of remarking that +Constantine alone, by the peculiar indulgence of Heaven, had +reigned after his death.<br> +</p> + +<p>But this reign could subsist only in empty pageantry; and it +was soon discovered that the will of the most absolute monarch is +seldom obeyed, when his subjects have no longer anything to hope +from his favor, or to dread from his resentment. The same +ministers and generals, who bowed with such referential awe +before the inanimate corpse of their deceased sovereign, were +engaged in secret consultations to exclude his two nephews, +Dalmatius and Hannibalianus, from the share which he had assigned +them in the succession of the empire. We are too imperfectly +acquainted with the court of Constantine to form any judgment of +the real motives which influenced the leaders of the conspiracy; +unless we should suppose that they were actuated by a spirit of +jealousy and revenge against the præfect Ablavius, a proud +favorite, who had long directed the counsels and abused the +confidence of the late emperor. The arguments, by which they +solicited the concurrence of the soldiers and people, are of a +more obvious nature; and they might with decency, as well as +truth, insist on the superior rank of the children of +Constantine, the danger of multiplying the number of sovereigns, +and the impending mischiefs which threatened the republic, from +the discord of so many rival princes, who were not connected by +the tender sympathy of fraternal affection. The intrigue was +conducted with zeal and secrecy, till a loud and unanimous +declaration was procured from the troops, that they would suffer +none except the sons of their lamented monarch to reign over the +Roman empire. The younger Dalmatius, who was united with his +collateral relations by the ties of friendship and interest, is +allowed to have inherited a considerable share of the abilities +of the great Constantine; but, on this occasion, he does not +appear to have concerted any measure for supporting, by arms, the +just claims which himself and his royal brother derived from the +liberality of their uncle. Astonished and overwhelmed by the tide +of popular fury, they seem to have remained, without the power of +flight or of resistance, in the hands of their implacable +enemies. Their fate was suspended till the arrival of +Constantius, the second, and perhaps the most favored, of the +sons of Constantine.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His +Sons. -- Part III.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The voice of the dying emperor had recommended the care of his +funeral to the piety of Constantius; and that prince, by the +vicinity of his eastern station, could easily prevent the +diligence of his brothers, who resided in their distant +government of Italy and Gaul. As soon as he had taken possession +of the palace of Constantinople, his first care was to remove the +apprehensions of his kinsmen, by a solemn oath which he pledged +for their security. His next employment was to find some specious +pretence which might release his conscience from the obligation +of an imprudent promise. The arts of fraud were made subservient +to the designs of cruelty; and a manifest forgery was attested by +a person of the most sacred character. From the hands of the +Bishop of Nicomedia, Constantius received a fatal scroll, +affirmed to be the genuine testament of his father; in which the +emperor expressed his suspicions that he had been poisoned by his +brothers; and conjured his sons to revenge his death, and to +consult their own safety, by the punishment of the guilty. +Whatever reasons might have been alleged by these unfortunate +princes to defend their life and honor against so incredible an +accusation, they were silenced by the furious clamors of the +soldiers, who declared themselves, at once, their enemies, their +judges, and their executioners. The spirit, and even the forms of +legal proceedings were repeatedly violated in a promiscuous +massacre; which involved the two uncles of Constantius, seven of +his cousins, of whom Dalmatius and Hannibalianus were the most +illustrious, the Patrician Optatus, who had married a sister of +the late emperor, and the Præfect Ablavius, whose power and +riches had inspired him with some hopes of obtaining the purple. +If it were necessary to aggravate the horrors of this bloody +scene, we might add, that Constantius himself had espoused the +daughter of his uncle Julius, and that he had bestowed his sister +in marriage on his cousin Hannibalianus. These alliances, which +the policy of Constantine, regardless of the public prejudice, +had formed between the several branches of the Imperial house, +served only to convince mankind, that these princes were as cold +to the endearments of conjugal affection, as they were insensible +to the ties of consanguinity, and the moving entreaties of youth +and innocence. Of so numerous a family, Gallus and Julian alone, +the two youngest children of Julius Constantius, were saved from +the hands of the assassins, till their rage, satiated with +slaughter, had in some measure subsided. The emperor Constantius, +who, in the absence of his brothers, was the most obnoxious to +guilt and reproach, discovered, on some future occasions, a faint +and transient remorse for those cruelties which the perfidious +counsels of his ministers, and the irresistible violence of the +troops, had extorted from his unexperienced youth.<br> +</p> + +<p>The massacre of the Flavian race was succeeded by a new +division of the provinces; which was ratified in a personal +interview of the three brothers. Constantine, the eldest of the +Cæsars, obtained, with a certain preeminence of rank, the +possession of the new capital, which bore his own name and that +of his father. Thrace, and the countries of the East, were +allotted for the patrimony of Constantius; and Constans was +acknowledged as the lawful sovereign of Italy, Africa, and the +Western Illyricum. The armies submitted to their hereditary +right; and they condescended, after some delay, to accept from +the Roman senate the title of Augustus. When they first assumed +the reins of government, the eldest of these princes was +twenty-one, the second twenty, and the third only seventeen, +years of age.<br> +</p> + +<p>While the martial nations of Europe followed the standards of +his brothers, Constantius, at the head of the effeminate troops +of Asia, was left to sustain the weight of the Persian war. At +the decease of Constantine, the throne of the East was filled by +Sapor, son of Hormouz, or Hormisdas, and grandson of Narses, who, +after the victory of Galerius, had humbly confessed the +superiority of the Roman power. Although Sapor was in the +thirtieth year of his long reign, he was still in the vigor of +youth, as the date of his accession, by a very strange fatality, +had preceded that of his birth. The wife of Hormouz remained +pregnant at the time of her husband's death; and the uncertainty +of the sex, as well as of the event, excited the ambitious hopes +of the princes of the house of Sassan. The apprehensions of civil +war were at length removed, by the positive assurance of the +Magi, that the widow of Hormouz had conceived, and would safely +produce a son. Obedient to the voice of superstition, the +Persians prepared, without delay, the ceremony of his coronation. +A royal bed, on which the queen lay in state, was exhibited in +the midst of the palace; the diadem was placed on the spot, which +might be supposed to conceal the future heir of Artaxerxes, and +the prostrate satraps adored the majesty of their invisible and +insensible sovereign. If any credit can be given to this +marvellous tale, which seems, however, to be countenanced by the +manners of the people, and by the extraordinary duration of his +reign, we must admire not only the fortune, but the genius, of +Sapor. In the soft, sequestered education of a Persian harem, the +royal youth could discover the importance of exercising the vigor +of his mind and body; and, by his personal merit, deserved a +throne, on which he had been seated, while he was yet unconscious +of the duties and temptations of absolute power. His minority was +exposed to the almost inevitable calamities of domestic discord; +his capital was surprised and plundered by Thair, a powerful king +of Yemen, or Arabia; and the majesty of the royal family was +degraded by the captivity of a princess, the sister of the +deceased king. But as soon as Sapor attained the age of manhood, +the presumptuous Thair, his nation, and his country, fell beneath +the first effort of the young warrior; who used his victory with +so judicious a mixture of rigor and clemency, that he obtained +from the fears and gratitude of the Arabs the title of +<strong><em>Dhoulacnaf</em></strong>, or protector of the +nation.<br> +</p> + +<p>The ambition of the Persian, to whom his enemies ascribe the +virtues of a soldier and a statesman, was animated by the desire +of revenging the disgrace of his fathers, and of wresting from +the hands of the Romans the five provinces beyond the Tigris. The +military fame of Constantine, and the real or apparent strength +of his government, suspended the attack; and while the hostile +conduct of Sapor provoked the resentment, his artful negotiations +amused the patience of the Imperial court. The death of +Constantine was the signal of war, and the actual condition of +the Syrian and Armenian frontier seemed to encourage the Persians +by the prospect of a rich spoil and an easy conquest. The example +of the massacres of the palace diffused a spirit of +licentiousness and sedition among the troops of the East, who +were no longer restrained by their habits of obedience to a +veteran commander. By the prudence of Constantius, who, from the +interview with his brothers in Pannonia, immediately hastened to +the banks of the Euphrates, the legions were gradually restored +to a sense of duty and discipline; but the season of anarchy had +permitted Sapor to form the siege of Nisibis, and to occupy +several of the most important fortresses of Mesopotamia. In +Armenia, the renowned Tiridates had long enjoyed the peace and +glory which he deserved by his valor and fidelity to the cause of +Rome. The firm alliance which he maintained with Constantine was +productive of spiritual as well as of temporal benefits; by the +conversion of Tiridates, the character of a saint was applied to +that of a hero, the Christian faith was preached and established +from the Euphrates to the shores of the Caspian, and Armenia was +attached to the empire by the double ties of policy and religion. +But as many of the Armenian nobles still refused to abandon the +plurality of their gods and of their wives, the public +tranquillity was disturbed by a discontented faction, which +insulted the feeble age of their sovereign, and impatiently +expected the hour of his death. He died at length after a reign +of fifty-six years, and the fortune of the Armenian monarchy +expired with Tiridates. His lawful heir was driven into exile, +the Christian priests were either murdered or expelled from their +churches, the barbarous tribes of Albania were solicited to +descend from their mountains; and two of the most powerful +governors, usurping the ensigns or the powers of royalty, +implored the assistance of Sapor, and opened the gates of their +cities to the Persian garrisons. The Christian party, under the +guidance of the Archbishop of Artaxata, the immediate successor +of St. Gregory the Illuminator, had recourse to the piety of +Constantius. After the troubles had continued about three years, +Antiochus, one of the officers of the household, executed with +success the Imperial commission of restoring Chosroes, * the son +of Tiridates, to the throne of his fathers, of distributing +honors and rewards among the faithful servants of the house of +Arsaces, and of proclaiming a general amnesty, which was accepted +by the greater part of the rebellious satraps. But the Romans +derived more honor than advantage from this revolution. Chosroes +was a prince of a puny stature and a pusillanimous spirit. +Unequal to the fatigues of war, averse to the society of mankind, +he withdrew from his capital to a retired palace, which he built +on the banks of the River Eleutherus, and in the centre of a +shady grove; where he consumed his vacant hours in the rural +sports of hunting and hawking. To secure this inglorious ease, he +submitted to the conditions of peace which Sapor condescended to +impose; the payment of an annual tribute, and the restitution of +the fertile province of Atropatene, which the courage of +Tiridates, and the victorious arms of Galerius, had annexed to +the Armenian monarchy.<br> +</p> + +<p>During the long period of the reign of Constantius, the +provinces of the East were afflicted by the calamities of the +Persian war. The irregular incursions of the light troops +alternately spread terror and devastation beyond the Tigris and +beyond the Euphrates, from the gates of Ctesiphon to those of +Antioch; and this active service was performed by the Arabs of +the desert, who were divided in their interest and affections; +some of their independent chiefs being enlisted in the party of +Sapor, whilst others had engaged their doubtful fidelity to the +emperor. The more grave and important operations of the war were +conducted with equal vigor; and the armies of Rome and Persia +encountered each other in nine bloody fields, in two of which +Constantius himself commanded in person. The event of the day was +most commonly adverse to the Romans, but in the battle of +Singara, heir imprudent valor had almost achieved a signal and +decisive victory. The stationary troops of Singara * retired on +the approach of Sapor, who passed the Tigris over three bridges, +and occupied near the village of Hilleh an advantageous camp, +which, by the labor of his numerous pioneers, he surrounded in +one day with a deep ditch and a lofty rampart. His formidable +host, when it was drawn out in order of battle, covered the banks +of the river, the adjacent heights, and the whole extent of a +plain of above twelve miles, which separated the two armies. Both +were alike impatient to engage; but the Barbarians, after a +slight resistance, fled in disorder; unable to resist, or +desirous to weary, the strength of the heavy legions, who, +fainting with heat and thirst, pursued them across the plain, and +cut in pieces a line of cavalry, clothed in complete armor, which +had been posted before the gates of the camp to protect their +retreat. Constantius, who was hurried along in the pursuit, +attempted, without effect, to restrain the ardor of his troops, +by representing to them the dangers of the approaching night, and +the certainty of completing their success with the return of day. +As they depended much more on their own valor than on the +experience or the abilities of their chief, they silenced by +their clamors his timid remonstrances; and rushing with fury to +the charge, filled up the ditch, broke down the rampart, and +dispersed themselves through the tents to recruit their exhausted +strength, and to enjoy the rich harvest of their labors. But the +prudent Sapor had watched the moment of victory. His army, of +which the greater part, securely posted on the heights, had been +spectators of the action, advanced in silence, and under the +shadow of the night; and his Persian archers, guided by the +illumination of the camp, poured a shower of arrows on a disarmed +and licentious crowd. The sincerity of history declares, that the +Romans were vanquished with a dreadful slaughter, and that the +flying remnant of the legions was exposed to the most intolerable +hardships. Even the tenderness of panegyric, confessing that the +glory of the emperor was sullied by the disobedience of his +soldiers, chooses to draw a veil over the circumstances of this +melancholy retreat. Yet one of those venal orators, so jealous of +the fame of Constantius, relates, with amazing coolness, an act +of such incredible cruelty, as, in the judgment of posterity, +must imprint a far deeper stain on the honor of the Imperial +name. The son of Sapor, the heir of his crown, had been made a +captive in the Persian camp. The unhappy youth, who might have +excited the compassion of the most savage enemy, was scourged, +tortured, and publicly executed by the inhuman Romans.<br> +</p> + +<p>Whatever advantages might attend the arms of Sapor in the +field, though nine repeated victories diffused among the nations +the fame of his valor and conduct, he could not hope to succeed +in the execution of his designs, while the fortified towns of +Mesopotamia, and, above all, the strong and ancient city of +Nisibis, remained in the possession of the Romans. In the space +of twelve years, Nisibis, which, since the time of Lucullus, had +been deservedly esteemed the bulwark of the East, sustained three +memorable sieges against the power of Sapor; and the disappointed +monarch, after urging his attacks above sixty, eighty, and a +hundred days, was thrice repulsed with loss and ignominy. This +large and populous city was situate about two days' journey from +the Tigris, in the midst of a pleasant and fertile plain at the +foot of Mount Masius. A treble enclosure of brick walls was +defended by a deep ditch; and the intrepid resistance of Count +Lucilianus, and his garrison, was seconded by the desperate +courage of the people. The citizens of Nisibis were animated by +the exhortations of their bishop, inured to arms by the presence +of danger, and convinced of the intentions of Sapor to plant a +Persian colony in their room, and to lead them away into distant +and barbarous captivity. The event of the two former sieges +elated their confidence, and exasperated the haughty spirit of +the Great King, who advanced a third time towards Nisibis, at the +head of the united forces of Persia and India. The ordinary +machines, invented to batter or undermine the walls, were +rendered ineffectual by the superior skill of the Romans; and +many days had vainly elapsed, when Sapor embraced a resolution +worthy of an eastern monarch, who believed that the elements +themselves were subject to his power. At the stated season of the +melting of the snows in Armenia, the River Mygdonius, which +divides the plain and the city of Nisibis, forms, like the Nile, +an inundation over the adjacent country. By the labor of the +Persians, the course of the river was stopped below the town, and +the waters were confined on every side by solid mounds of earth. +On this artificial lake, a fleet of armed vessels filled with +soldiers, and with engines which discharged stones of five +hundred pounds weight, advanced in order of battle, and engaged, +almost upon a level, the troops which defended the ramparts. *The +irresistible force of the waters was alternately fatal to the +contending parties, till at length a portion of the walls, unable +to sustain the accumulated pressure, gave way at once, and +exposed an ample breach of one hundred and fifty feet. The +Persians were instantly driven to the assault, and the fate of +Nisibis depended on the event of the day. The heavy-armed +cavalry, who led the van of a deep column, were embarrassed in +the mud, and great numbers were drowned in the unseen holes which +had been filled by the rushing waters. The elephants, made +furious by their wounds, increased the disorder, and trampled +down thousands of the Persian archers. The Great King, who, from +an exalted throne, beheld the misfortunes of his arms, sounded, +with reluctant indignation, the signal of the retreat, and +suspended for some hours the prosecution of the attack. But the +vigilant citizens improved the opportunity of the night; and the +return of day discovered a new wall of six feet in height, rising +every moment to fill up the interval of the breach. +Notwithstanding the disappointment of his hopes, and the loss of +more than twenty thousand men, Sapor still pressed the reduction +of Nisibis, with an obstinate firmness, which could have yielded +only to the necessity of defending the eastern provinces of +Persia against a formidable invasion of the Massagetæ. +Alarmed by this intelligence, he hastily relinquished the siege, +and marched with rapid diligence from the banks of the Tigris to +those of the Oxus. The danger and difficulties of the Scythian +war engaged him soon afterwards to conclude, or at least to +observe, a truce with the Roman emperor, which was equally +grateful to both princes; as Constantius himself, after the death +of his two brothers, was involved, by the revolutions of the +West, in a civil contest, which required and seemed to exceed the +most vigorous exertion of his undivided strength.<br> +</p> + +<p>After the partition of the empire, three years had scarcely +elapsed before the sons of Constantine seemed impatient to +convince mankind that they were incapable of contenting +themselves with the dominions which they were unqualified to +govern. The eldest of those princes soon complained, that he was +defrauded of his just proportion of the spoils of their murdered +kinsmen; and though he might yield to the superior guilt and +merit of Constantius, he exacted from Constans the cession of the +African provinces, as an equivalent for the rich countries of +Macedonia and Greece, which his brother had acquired by the death +of Dalmatius. The want of sincerity, which Constantine +experienced in a tedious and fruitless negotiation, exasperated +the fierceness of his temper; and he eagerly listened to those +favorites, who suggested to him that his honor, as well as his +interest, was concerned in the prosecution of the quarrel. At the +head of a tumultuary band, suited for rapine rather than for +conquest, he suddenly broke onto the dominions of Constans, by +the way of the Julian Alps, and the country round Aquileia felt +the first effects of his resentment. The measures of Constans, +who then resided in Dacia, were directed with more prudence and +ability. On the news of his brother's invasion, he detached a +select and disciplined body of his Illyrian troops, proposing to +follow them in person, with the remainder of his forces. But the +conduct of his lieutenants soon terminated the unnatural contest. +By the artful appearances of flight, Constantine was betrayed +into an ambuscade, which had been concealed in a wood, where the +rash youth, with a few attendants, was surprised, surrounded, and +slain. His body, after it had been found in the obscure stream of +the Alsa, obtained the honors of an Imperial sepulchre; but his +provinces transferred their allegiance to the conqueror, who, +refusing to admit his elder brother Constantius to any share in +these new acquisitions, maintained the undisputed possession of +more than two thirds of the Roman empire.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XVIII: Character Of Constantine And His +Sons. -- Part IV.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The fate of Constans himself was delayed about ten years +longer, and the revenge of his brother's death was reserved for +the more ignoble hand of a domestic traitor. The pernicious +tendency of the system introduced by Constantine was displayed in +the feeble administration of his sons; who, by their vices and +weakness, soon lost the esteem and affections of their people. +The pride assumed by Constans, from the unmerited success of his +arms, was rendered more contemptible by his want of abilities and +application. His fond partiality towards some German captives, +distinguished only by the charms of youth, was an object of +scandal to the people; and Magnentius, an ambitious soldier, who +was himself of Barbarian extraction, was encouraged by the public +discontent to assert the honor of the Roman name. The chosen +bands of Jovians and Herculians, who acknowledged Magnentius as +their leader, maintained the most respectable and important +station in the Imperial camp. The friendship of Marcellinus, +count of the sacred largesses, supplied with a liberal hand the +means of seduction. The soldiers were convinced by the most +specious arguments, that the republic summoned them to break the +bonds of hereditary servitude; and, by the choice of an active +and vigilant prince, to reward the same virtues which had raised +the ancestors of the degenerate Constans from a private condition +to the throne of the world. As soon as the conspiracy was ripe +for execution, Marcellinus, under the pretence of celebrating his +son's birthday, gave a splendid entertainment to the +<strong><em>illustrious</em></strong> and +<strong><em>honorable</em></strong>persons of the court of Gaul, +which then resided in the city of Autun. The intemperance of the +feast was artfully protracted till a very late hour of the night; +and the unsuspecting guests were tempted to indulge themselves in +a dangerous and guilty freedom of conversation. On a sudden the +doors were thrown open, and Magnentius, who had retired for a few +moments, returned into the apartment, invested with the diadem +and purple. The conspirators instantly saluted him with the +titles of Augustus and Emperor. The surprise, the terror, the +intoxication, the ambitious hopes, and the mutual ignorance of +the rest of the assembly, prompted them to join their voices to +the general acclamation. The guards hastened to take the oath of +fidelity; the gates of the town were shut; and before the dawn of +day, Magnentius became master of the troops and treasure of the +palace and city of Autun. By his secrecy and diligence he +entertained some hopes of surprising the person of Constans, who +was pursuing in the adjacent forest his favorite amusement of +hunting, or perhaps some pleasures of a more private and criminal +nature. The rapid progress of fame allowed him, however, an +instant for flight, though the desertion of his soldiers and +subjects deprived him of the power of resistance. Before he could +reach a seaport in Spain, where he intended to embark, he was +overtaken near Helena, at the foot of the Pyrenees, by a party of +light cavalry, whose chief, regardless of the sanctity of a +temple, executed his commission by the murder of the son of +Constantine.<br> +</p> + +<p>As soon as the death of Constans had decided this easy but +important revolution, the example of the court of Autun was +imitated by the provinces of the West. The authority of +Magnentius was acknowledged through the whole extent of the two +great præfectures of Gaul and Italy; and the usurper +prepared, by every act of oppression, to collect a treasure, +which might discharge the obligation of an immense donative, and +supply the expenses of a civil war. The martial countries of +Illyricum, from the Danube to the extremity of Greece, had long +obeyed the government of Vetranio, an aged general, beloved for +the simplicity of his manners, and who had acquired some +reputation by his experience and services in war. Attached by +habit, by duty, and by gratitude, to the house of Constantine, he +immediately gave the strongest assurances to the only surviving +son of his late master, that he would expose, with unshaken +fidelity, his person and his troops, to inflict a just revenge on +the traitors of Gaul. But the legions of Vetranio were seduced, +rather than provoked, by the example of rebellion; their leader +soon betrayed a want of firmness, or a want of sincerity; and his +ambition derived a specious pretence from the approbation of the +princess Constantina. That cruel and aspiring woman, who had +obtained from the great Constantine, her father, the rank of +<strong><em>Augusta</em></strong>, placed the diadem with her own +hands on the head of the Illyrian general; and seemed to expect +from his victory the accomplishment of those unbounded hopes, of +which she had been disappointed by the death of her husband +Hannibalianus. Perhaps it was without the consent of Constantina, +that the new emperor formed a necessary, though dishonorable, +alliance with the usurper of the West, whose purple was so +recently stained with her brother's blood.<br> +</p> + +<p>The intelligence of these important events, which so deeply +affected the honor and safety of the Imperial house, recalled the +arms of Constantius from the inglorious prosecution of the +Persian war. He recommended the care of the East to his +lieutenants, and afterwards to his cousin Gallus, whom he raised +from a prison to a throne; and marched towards Europe, with a +mind agitated by the conflict of hope and fear, of grief and +indignation. On his arrival at Heraclea in Thrace, the emperor +gave audience to the ambassadors of Magnentius and Vetranio. The +first author of the conspiracy Marcellinus, who in some measure +had bestowed the purple on his new master, boldly accepted this +dangerous commission; and his three colleagues were selected from +the illustrious personages of the state and army. These deputies +were instructed to soothe the resentment, and to alarm the fears, +of Constantius. They were empowered to offer him the friendship +and alliance of the western princes, to cement their union by a +double marriage; of Constantius with the daughter of Magnentius, +and of Magnentius himself with the ambitious Constantina; and to +acknowledge in the treaty the preeminence of rank, which might +justly be claimed by the emperor of the East. Should pride and +mistaken piety urge him to refuse these equitable conditions, the +ambassadors were ordered to expatiate on the inevitable ruin +which must attend his rashness, if he ventured to provoke the +sovereigns of the West to exert their superior strength; and to +employ against him that valor, those abilities, and those +legions, to which the house of Constantine had been indebted for +so many triumphs. Such propositions and such arguments appeared +to deserve the most serious attention; the answer of Constantius +was deferred till the next day; and as he had reflected on the +importance of justifying a civil war in the opinion of the +people, he thus addressed his council, who listened with real or +affected credulity: "Last night," said he, "after I retired to +rest, the shade of the great Constantine, embracing the corpse of +my murdered brother, rose before my eyes; his well-known voice +awakened me to revenge, forbade me to despair of the republic, +and assured me of the success and immortal glory which would +crown the justice of my arms." The authority of such a vision, or +rather of the prince who alleged it, silenced every doubt, and +excluded all negotiation. The ignominious terms of peace were +rejected with disdain. One of the ambassadors of the tyrant was +dismissed with the haughty answer of Constantius; his colleagues, +as unworthy of the privileges of the law of nations, were put in +irons; and the contending powers prepared to wage an implacable +war.<br> +</p> + +<p>Such was the conduct, and such perhaps was the duty, of the +brother of Constans towards the perfidious usurper of Gaul. The +situation and character of Vetranio admitted of milder measures; +and the policy of the Eastern emperor was directed to disunite +his antagonists, and to separate the forces of Illyricum from the +cause of rebellion. It was an easy task to deceive the frankness +and simplicity of Vetranio, who, fluctuating some time between +the opposite views of honor and interest, displayed to the world +the insincerity of his temper, and was insensibly engaged in the +snares of an artful negotiation. Constantius acknowledged him as +a legitimate and equal colleague in the empire, on condition that +he would renounce his disgraceful alliance with Magnentius, and +appoint a place of interview on the frontiers of their respective +provinces; where they might pledge their friendship by mutual +vows of fidelity, and regulate by common consent the future +operations of the civil war. In consequence of this agreement, +Vetranio advanced to the city of Sardica, at the head of twenty +thousand horse, and of a more numerous body of infantry; a power +so far superior to the forces of Constantius, that the Illyrian +emperor appeared to command the life and fortunes of his rival, +who, depending on the success of his private negotiations, had +seduced the troops, and undermined the throne, of Vetranio. The +chiefs, who had secretly embraced the party of Constantius, +prepared in his favor a public spectacle, calculated to discover +and inflame the passions of the multitude. The united armies were +commanded to assemble in a large plain near the city. In the +centre, according to the rules of ancient discipline, a military +tribunal, or rather scaffold, was erected, from whence the +emperors were accustomed, on solemn and important occasions, to +harangue the troops. The well-ordered ranks of Romans and +Barbarians, with drawn swords, or with erected spears, the +squadrons of cavalry, and the cohorts of infantry, distinguished +by the variety of their arms and ensigns, formed an immense +circle round the tribunal; and the attentive silence which they +preserved was sometimes interrupted by loud bursts of clamor or +of applause. In the presence of this formidable assembly, the two +emperors were called upon to explain the situation of public +affairs: the precedency of rank was yielded to the royal birth of +Constantius; and though he was indifferently skilled in the arts +of rhetoric, he acquitted himself, under these difficult +circumstances, with firmness, dexterity, and eloquence. The first +part of his oration seemed to be pointed only against the tyrant +of Gaul; but while he tragically lamented the cruel murder of +Constans, he insinuated, that none, except a brother, could claim +a right to the succession of his brother. He displayed, with some +complacency, the glories of his Imperial race; and recalled to +the memory of the troops the valor, the triumphs, the liberality +of the great Constantine, to whose sons they had engaged their +allegiance by an oath of fidelity, which the ingratitude of his +most favored servants had tempted them to violate. The officers, +who surrounded the tribunal, and were instructed to act their +part in this extraordinary scene, confessed the irresistible +power of reason and eloquence, by saluting the emperor +Constantius as their lawful sovereign. The contagion of loyalty +and repentance was communicated from rank to rank; till the plain +of Sardica resounded with the universal acclamation of "Away with +these upstart usurpers! Long life and victory to the son of +Constantine! Under his banners alone we will fight and conquer." +The shout of thousands, their menacing gestures, the fierce +clashing of their arms, astonished and subdued the courage of +Vetranio, who stood, amidst the defection of his followers, in +anxious and silent suspense. Instead of embracing the last refuge +of generous despair, he tamely submitted to his fate; and taking +the diadem from his head, in the view of both armies fell +prostrate at the feet of his conqueror. Constantius used his +victory with prudence and moderation; and raising from the ground +the aged suppliant, whom he affected to style by the endearing +name of Father, he gave him his hand to descend from the throne. +The city of Prusa was assigned for the exile or retirement of the +abdicated monarch, who lived six years in the enjoyment of ease +and affluence. He often expressed his grateful sense of the +goodness of Constantius, and, with a very amiable simplicity, +advised his benefactor to resign the sceptre of the world, and to +seek for content (where alone it could be found) in the peaceful +obscurity of a private condition.<br> +</p> + +<p>The behavior of Constantius on this memorable occasion was +celebrated with some appearance of justice; and his courtiers +compared the studied orations which a Pericles or a Demosthenes +addressed to the populace of Athens, with the victorious +eloquence which had persuaded an armed multitude to desert and +depose the object of their partial choice. The approaching +contest with Magnentius was of a more serious and bloody kind. +The tyrant advanced by rapid marches to encounter Constantius, at +the head of a numerous army, composed of Gauls and Spaniards, of +Franks and Saxons; of those provincials who supplied the strength +of the legions, and of those barbarians who were dreaded as the +most formidable enemies of the republic. The fertile plains of +the Lower Pannonia, between the Drave, the Save, and the Danube, +presented a spacious theatre; and the operations of the civil war +were protracted during the summer months by the skill or timidity +of the combatants. Constantius had declared his intention of +deciding the quarrel in the fields of Cibalis, a name that would +animate his troops by the remembrance of the victory, which, on +the same auspicious ground, had been obtained by the arms of his +father Constantine. Yet by the impregnable fortifications with +which the emperor encompassed his camp, he appeared to decline, +rather than to invite, a general engagement. It was the object of +Magnentius to tempt or to compel his adversary to relinquish this +advantageous position; and he employed, with that view, the +various marches, evolutions, and stratagems, which the knowledge +of the art of war could suggest to an experienced officer. He +carried by assault the important town of Siscia; made an attack +on the city of Sirmium, which lay in the rear of the Imperial +camp, attempted to force a passage over the Save into the eastern +provinces of Illyricum; and cut in pieces a numerous detachment, +which he had allured into the narrow passes of Adarne. During the +greater part of the summer, the tyrant of Gaul showed himself +master of the field. The troops of Constantius were harassed and +dispirited; his reputation declined in the eye of the world; and +his pride condescended to solicit a treaty of peace, which would +have resigned to the assassin of Constans the sovereignty of the +provinces beyond the Alps. These offers were enforced by the +eloquence of Philip the Imperial ambassador; and the council as +well as the army of Magnentius were disposed to accept them. But +the haughty usurper, careless of the remonstrances of his +friends, gave orders that Philip should be detained as a captive, +or, at least, as a hostage; while he despatched an officer to +reproach Constantius with the weakness of his reign, and to +insult him by the promise of a pardon if he would instantly +abdicate the purple. "That he should confide in the justice of +his cause, and the protection of an avenging Deity," was the only +answer which honor permitted the emperor to return. But he was so +sensible of the difficulties of his situation, that he no longer +dared to retaliate the indignity which had been offered to his +representative. The negotiation of Philip was not, however, +ineffectual, since he determined Sylvanus the Frank, a general of +merit and reputation, to desert with a considerable body of +cavalry, a few days before the battle of Mursa.<br> +</p> + +<p>The city of Mursa, or Essek, celebrated in modern times for a +bridge of boats, five miles in length, over the River Drave, and +the adjacent morasses, has been always considered as a place of +importance in the wars of Hungary. Magnentius, directing his +march towards Mursa, set fire to the gates, and, by a sudden +assault, had almost scaled the walls of the town. The vigilance +of the garrison extinguished the flames; the approach of +Constantius left him no time to continue the operations of the +siege; and the emperor soon removed the only obstacle that could +embarrass his motions, by forcing a body of troops which had +taken post in an adjoining amphitheatre. The field of battle +round Mursa was a naked and level plain: on this ground the army +of Constantius formed, with the Drave on their right; while their +left, either from the nature of their disposition, or from the +superiority of their cavalry, extended far beyond the right flank +of Magnentius. The troops on both sides remained under arms, in +anxious expectation, during the greatest part of the morning; and +the son of Constantine, after animating his soldiers by an +eloquent speech, retired into a church at some distance from the +field of battle, and committed to his generals the conduct of +this decisive day. They deserved his confidence by the valor and +military skill which they exerted. They wisely began the action +upon the left; and advancing their whole wing of cavalry in an +oblique line, they suddenly wheeled it on the right flank of the +enemy, which was unprepared to resist the impetuosity of their +charge. But the Romans of the West soon rallied, by the habits of +discipline; and the Barbarians of Germany supported the renown of +their national bravery. The engagement soon became general; was +maintained with various and singular turns of fortune; and +scarcely ended with the darkness of the night. The signal victory +which Constantius obtained is attributed to the arms of his +cavalry. His cuirassiers are described as so many massy statues +of steel, glittering with their scaly armor, and breaking with +their ponderous lances the firm array of the Gallic legions. As +soon as the legions gave way, the lighter and more active +squadrons of the second line rode sword in hand into the +intervals, and completed the disorder. In the mean while, the +huge bodies of the Germans were exposed almost naked to the +dexterity of the Oriental archers; and whole troops of those +Barbarians were urged by anguish and despair to precipitate +themselves into the broad and rapid stream of the Drave. The +number of the slain was computed at fifty-four thousand men, and +the slaughter of the conquerors was more considerable than that +of the vanquished; a circumstance which proves the obstinacy of +the contest, and justifies the observation of an ancient writer, +that the forces of the empire were consumed in the fatal battle +of Mursa, by the loss of a veteran army, sufficient to defend the +frontiers, or to add new triumphs to the glory of Rome. +Notwithstanding the invectives of a servile orator, there is not +the least reason to believe that the tyrant deserted his own +standard in the beginning of the engagement. He seems to have +displayed the virtues of a general and of a soldier till the day +was irrecoverably lost, and his camp in the possession of the +enemy. Magnentius then consulted his safety, and throwing away +the Imperial ornaments, escaped with some difficulty from the +pursuit of the light horse, who incessantly followed his rapid +flight from the banks of the Drave to the foot of the Julian +Alps.<br> +</p> + +<p>The approach of winter supplied the indolence of Constantius +with specious reasons for deferring the prosecution of the war +till the ensuing spring. Magnentius had fixed his residence in +the city of Aquileia, and showed a seeming resolution to dispute +the passage of the mountains and morasses which fortified the +confines of the Venetian province. The surprisal of a castle in +the Alps by the secret march of the Imperialists, could scarcely +have determined him to relinquish the possession of Italy, if the +inclinations of the people had supported the cause of their +tyrant. But the memory of the cruelties exercised by his +ministers, after the unsuccessful revolt of Nepotian, had left a +deep impression of horror and resentment on the minds of the +Romans. That rash youth, the son of the princess Eutropia, and +the nephew of Constantine, had seen with indignation the sceptre +of the West usurped by a perfidious barbarian. Arming a desperate +troop of slaves and gladiators, he overpowered the feeble guard +of the domestic tranquillity of Rome, received the homage of the +senate, and assuming the title of Augustus, precariously reigned +during a tumult of twenty-eight days. The march of some regular +forces put an end to his ambitious hopes: the rebellion was +extinguished in the blood of Nepotian, of his mother Eutropia, +and of his adherents; and the proscription was extended to all +who had contracted a fatal alliance with the name and family of +Constantine. But as soon as Constantius, after the battle of +Mursa, became master of the sea-coast of Dalmatia, a band of +noble exiles, who had ventured to equip a fleet in some harbor of +the Adriatic, sought protection and revenge in his victorious +camp. By their secret intelligence with their countrymen, Rome +and the Italian cities were persuaded to display the banners of +Constantius on their walls. The grateful veterans, enriched by +the liberality of the father, signalized their gratitude and +loyalty to the son. The cavalry, the legions, and the auxiliaries +of Italy, renewed their oath of allegiance to Constantius; and +the usurper, alarmed by the general desertion, was compelled, +with the remains of his faithful troops, to retire beyond the +Alps into the provinces of Gaul. The detachments, however, which +were ordered either to press or to intercept the flight of +Magnentius, conducted themselves with the usual imprudence of +success; and allowed him, in the plains of Pavia, an opportunity +of turning on his pursuers, and of gratifying his despair by the +carnage of a useless victory.<br> +</p> + +<p>The pride of Magnentius was reduced, by repeated misfortunes, +to sue, and to sue in vain, for peace. He first despatched a +senator, in whose abilities he confided, and afterwards several +bishops, whose holy character might obtain a more favorable +audience, with the offer of resigning the purple, and the promise +of devoting the remainder of his life to the service of the +emperor. But Constantius, though he granted fair terms of pardon +and reconciliation to all who abandoned the standard of +rebellion, avowed his inflexible resolution to inflict a just +punishment on the crimes of an assassin, whom he prepared to +overwhelm on every side by the effort of his victorious arms. An +Imperial fleet acquired the easy possession of Africa and Spain, +confirmed the wavering faith of the Moorish nations, and landed a +considerable force, which passed the Pyrenees, and advanced +towards Lyons, the last and fatal station of Magnentius. The +temper of the tyrant, which was never inclined to clemency, was +urged by distress to exercise every act of oppression which could +extort an immediate supply from the cities of Gaul. Their +patience was at length exhausted; and Treves, the seat of +Prætorian government, gave the signal of revolt, by +shutting her gates against Decentius, who had been raised by his +brother to the rank either of Cæsar or of Augustus. From +Treves, Decentius was obliged to retire to Sens, where he was +soon surrounded by an army of Germans, whom the pernicious arts +of Constantius had introduced into the civil dissensions of Rome. +In the mean time, the Imperial troops forced the passages of the +Cottian Alps, and in the bloody combat of Mount Seleucus +irrevocably fixed the title of rebels on the party of Magnentius. +He was unable to bring another army into the field; the fidelity +of his guards was corrupted; and when he appeared in public to +animate them by his exhortations, he was saluted with a unanimous +shout of "Long live the emperor Constantius!" The tyrant, who +perceived that they were preparing to deserve pardon and rewards +by the sacrifice of the most obnoxious criminal, prevented their +design by falling on his sword; a death more easy and more +honorable than he could hope to obtain from the hands of an +enemy, whose revenge would have been colored with the specious +pretence of justice and fraternal piety. The example of suicide +was imitated by Decentius, who strangled himself on the news of +his brother's death. The author of the conspiracy, Marcellinus, +had long since disappeared in the battle of Mursa, and the public +tranquillity was confirmed by the execution of the surviving +leaders of a guilty and unsuccessful faction. A severe +inquisition was extended over all who, either from choice or from +compulsion, had been involved in the cause of rebellion. Paul, +surnamed Catena from his superior skill in the judicial exercise +of tyranny, * was sent to explore the latent remains of the +conspiracy in the remote province of Britain. The honest +indignation expressed by Martin, vice-præfect of the +island, was interpreted as an evidence of his own guilt; and the +governor was urged to the necessity of turning against his breast +the sword with which he had been provoked to wound the Imperial +minister. The most innocent subjects of the West were exposed to +exile and confiscation, to death and torture; and as the timid +are always cruel, the mind of Constantius was inaccessible to +mercy.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong>Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor.</strong></p> + +<p><strong><em>Part I.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Constantius Sole Emperor. -- Elevation And Death Of Gallus. -- +Danger And Elevation Of Julian. -- Sarmatian And Persian Wars. -- +Victories Of Julian In Gaul.<br> +</p> + +<p>The divided provinces of the empire were again united by the +victory of Constantius; but as that feeble prince was destitute +of personal merit, either in peace or war; as he feared his +generals, and distrusted his ministers; the triumph of his arms +served only to establish the reign of the eunuchs over the Roman +world. Those unhappy beings, the ancient production of Oriental +jealousy and despotism, were introduced into Greece and Rome by +the contagion of Asiatic luxury. Their progress was rapid; and +the eunuchs, who, in the time of Augustus, had been abhorred, as +the monstrous retinue of an Egyptian queen, were gradually +admitted into the families of matrons, of senators, and of the +emperors themselves. Restrained by the severe edicts of Domitian +and Nerva, cherished by the pride of Diocletian, reduced to an +humble station by the prudence of Constantine, they multiplied in +the palaces of his degenerate sons, and insensibly acquired the +knowledge, and at length the direction, of the secret councils of +Constantius. The aversion and contempt which mankind had so +uniformly entertained for that imperfect species, appears to have +degraded their character, and to have rendered them almost as +incapable as they were supposed to be, of conceiving any generous +sentiment, or of performing any worthy action. But the eunuchs +were skilled in the arts of flattery and intrigue; and they +alternately governed the mind of Constantius by his fears, his +indolence, and his vanity. Whilst he viewed in a deceitful mirror +the fair appearance of public prosperity, he supinely permitted +them to intercept the complaints of the injured provinces, to +accumulate immense treasures by the sale of justice and of +honors; to disgrace the most important dignities, by the +promotion of those who had purchased at their hands the powers of +oppression, and to gratify their resentment against the few +independent spirits, who arrogantly refused to solicit the +protection of slaves. Of these slaves the most distinguished was +the chamberlain Eusebius, who ruled the monarch and the palace +with such absolute sway, that Constantius, according to the +sarcasm of an impartial historian, possessed some credit with +this haughty favorite. By his artful suggestions, the emperor was +persuaded to subscribe the condemnation of the unfortunate +Gallus, and to add a new crime to the long list of unnatural +murders which pollute the honor of the house of Constantine.<br> +</p> + +<p>When the two nephews of Constantine, Gallus and Julian, were +saved from the fury of the soldiers, the former was about twelve, +and the latter about six, years of age; and, as the eldest was +thought to be of a sickly constitution, they obtained with the +less difficulty a precarious and dependent life, from the +affected pity of Constantius, who was sensible that the execution +of these helpless orphans would have been esteemed, by all +mankind, an act of the most deliberate cruelty. * Different +cities of Ionia and Bithynia were assigned for the places of +their exile and education; but as soon as their growing years +excited the jealousy of the emperor, he judged it more prudent to +secure those unhappy youths in the strong castle of Macellum, +near Cæsarea. The treatment which they experienced during a +six years' confinement, was partly such as they could hope from a +careful guardian, and partly such as they might dread from a +suspicious tyrant. Their prison was an ancient palace, the +residence of the kings of Cappadocia; the situation was pleasant, +the buildings of stately, the enclosure spacious. They pursued +their studies, and practised their exercises, under the tuition +of the most skilful masters; and the numerous household appointed +to attend, or rather to guard, the nephews of Constantine, was +not unworthy of the dignity of their birth. But they could not +disguise to themselves that they were deprived of fortune, of +freedom, and of safety; secluded from the society of all whom +they could trust or esteem, and condemned to pass their +melancholy hours in the company of slaves devoted to the commands +of a tyrant who had already injured them beyond the hope of +reconciliation. At length, however, the emergencies of the state +compelled the emperor, or rather his eunuchs, to invest Gallus, +in the twenty-fifth year of his age, with the title of +Cæsar, and to cement this political connection by his +marriage with the princess Constantina. After a formal interview, +in which the two princes mutually engaged their faith never to +undertake any thing to the prejudice of each other, they repaired +without delay to their respective stations. Constantius continued +his march towards the West, and Gallus fixed his residence at +Antioch; from whence, with a delegated authority, he administered +the five great dioceses of the eastern præfecture. In this +fortunate change, the new Cæsar was not unmindful of his +brother Julian, who obtained the honors of his rank, the +appearances of liberty, and the restitution of an ample +patrimony.<br> +</p> + +<p>The writers the most indulgent to the memory of Gallus, and +even Julian himself, though he wished to cast a veil over the +frailties of his brother, are obliged to confess that the +Cæsar was incapable of reigning. Transported from a prison +to a throne, he possessed neither genius nor application, nor +docility to compensate for the want of knowledge and experience. +A temper naturally morose and violent, instead of being +corrected, was soured by solitude and adversity; the remembrance +of what he had endured disposed him to retaliation rather than to +sympathy; and the ungoverned sallies of his rage were often fatal +to those who approached his person, or were subject to his power. +Constantina, his wife, is described, not as a woman, but as one +of the infernal furies tormented with an insatiate thirst of +human blood. Instead of employing her influence to insinuate the +mild counsels of prudence and humanity, she exasperated the +fierce passions of her husband; and as she retained the vanity, +though she had renounced, the gentleness of her sex, a pearl +necklace was esteemed an equivalent price for the murder of an +innocent and virtuous nobleman. The cruelty of Gallus was +sometimes displayed in the undissembled violence of popular or +military executions; and was sometimes disguised by the abuse of +law, and the forms of judicial proceedings. The private houses of +Antioch, and the places of public resort, were besieged by spies +and informers; and the Cæsar himself, concealed in a +plebeian habit, very frequently condescended to assume that +odious character. Every apartment of the palace was adorned with +the instruments of death and torture, and a general consternation +was diffused through the capital of Syria. The prince of the +East, as if he had been conscious how much he had to fear, and +how little he deserved to reign, selected for the objects of his +resentment the provincials accused of some imaginary treason, and +his own courtiers, whom with more reason he suspected of +incensing, by their secret correspondence, the timid and +suspicious mind of Constantius. But he forgot that he was +depriving himself of his only support, the affection of the +people; whilst he furnished the malice of his enemies with the +arms of truth, and afforded the emperor the fairest pretence of +exacting the forfeit of his purple, and of his life.<br> +</p> + +<p>As long as the civil war suspended the fate of the Roman +world, Constantius dissembled his knowledge of the weak and cruel +administration to which his choice had subjected the East; and +the discovery of some assassins, secretly despatched to Antioch +by the tyrant of Gaul, was employed to convince the public, that +the emperor and the Cæsar were united by the same interest, +and pursued by the same enemies. But when the victory was decided +in favor of Constantius, his dependent colleague became less +useful and less formidable. Every circumstance of his conduct was +severely and suspiciously examined, and it was privately +resolved, either to deprive Gallus of the purple, or at least to +remove him from the indolent luxury of Asia to the hardships and +dangers of a German war. The death of Theophilus, consular of the +province of Syria, who in a time of scarcity had been massacred +by the people of Antioch, with the connivance, and almost at the +instigation, of Gallus, was justly resented, not only as an act +of wanton cruelty, but as a dangerous insult on the supreme +majesty of Constantius. Two ministers of illustrious rank, +Domitian the Oriental præfect, and Montius, quæstor +of the palace, were empowered by a special commission * to visit +and reform the state of the East. They were instructed to behave +towards Gallus with moderation and respect, and, by the gentlest +arts of persuasion, to engage him to comply with the invitation +of his brother and colleague. The rashness of the præfect +disappointed these prudent measures, and hastened his own ruin, +as well as that of his enemy. On his arrival at Antioch, Domitian +passed disdainfully before the gates of the palace, and alleging +a slight pretence of indisposition, continued several days in +sullen retirement, to prepare an inflammatory memorial, which he +transmitted to the Imperial court. Yielding at length to the +pressing solicitations of Gallus, the præfect condescended +to take his seat in council; but his first step was to signify a +concise and haughty mandate, importing that the Cæsar +should immediately repair to Italy, and threatening that he +himself would punish his delay or hesitation, by suspending the +usual allowance of his household. The nephew and daughter of +Constantine, who could ill brook the insolence of a subject, +expressed their resentment by instantly delivering Domitian to +the custody of a guard. The quarrel still admitted of some terms +of accommodation. They were rendered impracticable by the +imprudent behavior of Montius, a statesman whose arts and +experience were frequently betrayed by the levity of his +disposition. The quæstor reproached Gallus in a haughty +language, that a prince who was scarcely authorized to remove a +municipal magistrate, should presume to imprison a +Prætorian præfect; convoked a meeting of the civil +and military officers; and required them, in the name of their +sovereign, to defend the person and dignity of his +representatives. By this rash declaration of war, the impatient +temper of Gallus was provoked to embrace the most desperate +counsels. He ordered his guards to stand to their arms, assembled +the populace of Antioch, and recommended to their zeal the care +of his safety and revenge. His commands were too fatally obeyed. +They rudely seized the præfect and the quæstor, and +tying their legs together with ropes, they dragged them through +the streets of the city, inflicted a thousand insults and a +thousand wounds on these unhappy victims, and at last +precipitated their mangled and lifeless bodies into the stream of +the Orontes.<br> +</p> + +<p>After such a deed, whatever might have been the designs of +Gallus, it was only in a field of battle that he could assert his +innocence with any hope of success. But the mind of that prince +was formed of an equal mixture of violence and weakness. Instead +of assuming the title of Augustus, instead of employing in his +defence the troops and treasures of the East, he suffered himself +to be deceived by the affected tranquillity of Constantius, who, +leaving him the vain pageantry of a court, imperceptibly recalled +the veteran legions from the provinces of Asia. But as it still +appeared dangerous to arrest Gallus in his capital, the slow and +safer arts of dissimulation were practised with success. The +frequent and pressing epistles of Constantius were filled with +professions of confidence and friendship; exhorting the +Cæsar to discharge the duties of his high station, to +relieve his colleague from a part of the public cares, and to +assist the West by his presence, his counsels, and his arms. +After so many reciprocal injuries, Gallus had reason to fear and +to distrust. But he had neglected the opportunities of flight and +of resistance; he was seduced by the flattering assurances of the +tribune Scudilo, who, under the semblance of a rough soldier, +disguised the most artful insinuation; and he depended on the +credit of his wife Constantina, till the unseasonable death of +that princess completed the ruin in which he had been involved by +her impetuous passions.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor. -- Part +II.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>After a long delay, the reluctant Cæsar set forwards on +his journey to the Imperial court. From Antioch to Hadrianople, +he traversed the wide extent of his dominions with a numerous and +stately train; and as he labored to conceal his apprehensions +from the world, and perhaps from himself, he entertained the +people of Constantinople with an exhibition of the games of the +circus. The progress of the journey might, however, have warned +him of the impending danger. In all the principal cities he was +met by ministers of confidence, commissioned to seize the offices +of government, to observe his motions, and to prevent the hasty +sallies of his despair. The persons despatched to secure the +provinces which he left behind, passed him with cold salutations, +or affected disdain; and the troops, whose station lay along the +public road, were studiously removed on his approach, lest they +might be tempted to offer their swords for the service of a civil +war. After Gallus had been permitted to repose himself a few days +at Hadrianople, he received a mandate, expressed in the most +haughty and absolute style, that his splendid retinue should halt +in that city, while the Cæsar himself, with only ten +post-carriages, should hasten to the Imperial residence at Milan. +In this rapid journey, the profound respect which was due to the +brother and colleague of Constantius, was insensibly changed into +rude familiarity; and Gallus, who discovered in the countenances +of the attendants that they already considered themselves as his +guards, and might soon be employed as his executioners, began to +accuse his fatal rashness, and to recollect, with terror and +remorse, the conduct by which he had provoked his fate. The +dissimulation which had hitherto been preserved, was laid aside +at Petovio, * in Pannonia. He was conducted to a palace in the +suburbs, where the general Barbatio, with a select band of +soldiers, who could neither be moved by pity, nor corrupted by +rewards, expected the arrival of his illustrious victim. In the +close of the evening he was arrested, ignominiously stripped of +the ensigns of Cæsar, and hurried away to Pola, in Istria, +a sequestered prison, which had been so recently polluted with +royal blood. The horror which he felt was soon increased by the +appearance of his implacable enemy the eunuch Eusebius, who, with +the assistance of a notary and a tribune, proceeded to +interrogate him concerning the administration of the East. The +Cæsar sank under the weight of shame and guilt, confessed +all the criminal actions and all the treasonable designs with +which he was charged; and by imputing them to the advice of his +wife, exasperated the indignation of Constantius, who reviewed +with partial prejudice the minutes of the examination. The +emperor was easily convinced, that his own safety was +incompatible with the life of his cousin: the sentence of death +was signed, despatched, and executed; and the nephew of +Constantine, with his hands tied behind his back, was beheaded in +prison like the vilest malefactor. Those who are inclined to +palliate the cruelties of Constantius, assert that he soon +relented, and endeavored to recall the bloody mandate; but that +the second messenger, intrusted with the reprieve, was detained +by the eunuchs, who dreaded the unforgiving temper of Gallus, and +were desirous of reuniting to <strong><em>their</em></strong> +empire the wealthy provinces of the East.<br> +</p> + +<p>Besides the reigning emperor, Julian alone survived, of all +the numerous posterity of Constantius Chlorus. The misfortune of +his royal birth involved him in the disgrace of Gallus. From his +retirement in the happy country of Ionia, he was conveyed under a +strong guard to the court of Milan; where he languished above +seven months, in the continual apprehension of suffering the same +ignominious death, which was daily inflicted almost before his +eyes, on the friends and adherents of his persecuted family. His +looks, his gestures, his silence, were scrutinized with malignant +curiosity, and he was perpetually assaulted by enemies whom he +had never offended, and by arts to which he was a stranger. But +in the school of adversity, Julian insensibly acquired the +virtues of firmness and discretion. He defended his honor, as +well as his life, against the insnaring subtleties of the +eunuchs, who endeavored to extort some declaration of his +sentiments; and whilst he cautiously suppressed his grief and +resentment, he nobly disdained to flatter the tyrant, by any +seeming approbation of his brother's murder. Julian most devoutly +ascribes his miraculous deliverance to the protection of the +gods, who had exempted his innocence from the sentence of +destruction pronounced by their justice against the impious house +of Constantine. As the most effectual instrument of their +providence, he gratefully acknowledges the steady and generous +friendship of the empress Eusebia, a woman of beauty and merit, +who, by the ascendant which she had gained over the mind of her +husband, counterbalanced, in some measure, the powerful +conspiracy of the eunuchs. By the intercession of his patroness, +Julian was admitted into the Imperial presence: he pleaded his +cause with a decent freedom, he was heard with favor; and, +notwithstanding the efforts of his enemies, who urged the danger +of sparing an avenger of the blood of Gallus, the milder +sentiment of Eusebia prevailed in the council. But the effects of +a second interview were dreaded by the eunuchs; and Julian was +advised to withdraw for a while into the neighborhood of Milan, +till the emperor thought proper to assign the city of Athens for +the place of his honorable exile. As he had discovered, from his +earliest youth, a propensity, or rather passion, for the +language, the manners, the learning, and the religion of the +Greeks, he obeyed with pleasure an order so agreeable to his +wishes. Far from the tumult of arms, and the treachery of courts, +he spent six months under the groves of the academy, in a free +intercourse with the philosophers of the age, who studied to +cultivate the genius, to encourage the vanity, and to inflame the +devotion of their royal pupil. Their labors were not +unsuccessful; and Julian inviolably preserved for Athens that +tender regard which seldom fails to arise in a liberal mind, from +the recollection of the place where it has discovered and +exercised its growing powers. The gentleness and affability of +manners, which his temper suggested and his situation imposed, +insensibly engaged the affections of the strangers, as well as +citizens, with whom he conversed. Some of his fellow-students +might perhaps examine his behavior with an eye of prejudice and +aversion; but Julian established, in the schools of Athens, a +general prepossession in favor of his virtues and talents, which +was soon diffused over the Roman world.<br> +</p> + +<p>Whilst his hours were passed in studious retirement, the +empress, resolute to achieve the generous design which she had +undertaken, was not unmindful of the care of his fortune. The +death of the late Cæsar had left Constantius invested with +the sole command, and oppressed by the accumulated weight, of a +mighty empire. Before the wounds of civil discord could be +healed, the provinces of Gaul were overwhelmed by a deluge of +Barbarians. The Sarmatians no longer respected the barrier of the +Danube. The impunity of rapine had increased the boldness and +numbers of the wild Isaurians: those robbers descended from their +craggy mountains to ravage the adjacent country, and had even +presumed, though without success, to besiege the important city +of Seleucia, which was defended by a garrison of three Roman +legions. Above all, the Persian monarch, elated by victory, again +threatened the peace of Asia, and the presence of the emperor was +indispensably required, both in the West and in the East. For the +first time, Constantius sincerely acknowledged, that his single +strength was unequal to such an extent of care and of dominion. +Insensible to the voice of flattery, which assured him that his +all-powerful virtue, and celestial fortune, would still continue +to triumph over every obstacle, he listened with complacency to +the advice of Eusebia, which gratified his indolence, without +offending his suspicious pride. As she perceived that the +remembrance of Gallus dwelt on the emperor's mind, she artfully +turned his attention to the opposite characters of the two +brothers, which from their infancy had been compared to those of +Domitian and of Titus. She accustomed her husband to consider +Julian as a youth of a mild, unambitious disposition, whose +allegiance and gratitude might be secured by the gift of the +purple, and who was qualified to fill with honor a subordinate +station, without aspiring to dispute the commands, or to shade +the glories, of his sovereign and benefactor. After an obstinate, +though secret struggle, the opposition of the favorite eunuchs +submitted to the ascendency of the empress; and it was resolved +that Julian, after celebrating his nuptials with Helena, sister +of Constantius, should be appointed, with the title of +Cæsar, to reign over the countries beyond the Alps.<br> +</p> + +<p>Although the order which recalled him to court was probably +accompanied by some intimation of his approaching greatness, he +appeals to the people of Athens to witness his tears of +undissembled sorrow, when he was reluctantly torn away from his +beloved retirement. He trembled for his life, for his fame, and +even for his virtue; and his sole confidence was derived from the +persuasion, that Minerva inspired all his actions, and that he +was protected by an invisible guard of angels, whom for that +purpose she had borrowed from the Sun and Moon. He approached, +with horror, the palace of Milan; nor could the ingenuous youth +conceal his indignation, when he found himself accosted with +false and servile respect by the assassins of his family. +Eusebia, rejoicing in the success of her benevolent schemes, +embraced him with the tenderness of a sister; and endeavored, by +the most soothing caresses, to dispel his terrors, and reconcile +him to his fortune. But the ceremony of shaving his beard, and +his awkward demeanor, when he first exchanged the cloak of a +Greek philosopher for the military habit of a Roman prince, +amused, during a few days, the levity of the Imperial court.<br> +</p> + +<p>The emperors of the age of Constantine no longer deigned to +consult with the senate in the choice of a colleague; but they +were anxious that their nomination should be ratified by the +consent of the army. On this solemn occasion, the guards, with +the other troops whose stations were in the neighborhood of +Milan, appeared under arms; and Constantius ascended his lofty +tribunal, holding by the hand his cousin Julian, who entered the +same day into the twenty-fifth year of his age. In a studied +speech, conceived and delivered with dignity, the emperor +represented the various dangers which threatened the prosperity +of the republic, the necessity of naming a Cæsar for the +administration of the West, and his own intention, if it was +agreeable to their wishes, of rewarding with the honors of the +purple the promising virtues of the nephew of Constantine. The +approbation of the soldiers was testified by a respectful murmur; +they gazed on the manly countenance of Julian, and observed with +pleasure, that the fire which sparkled in his eyes was tempered +by a modest blush, on being thus exposed, for the first time, to +the public view of mankind. As soon as the ceremony of his +investiture had been performed, Constantius addressed him with +the tone of authority which his superior age and station +permitted him to assume; and exhorting the new Cæsar to +deserve, by heroic deeds, that sacred and immortal name, the +emperor gave his colleague the strongest assurances of a +friendship which should never be impaired by time, nor +interrupted by their separation into the most distant climes. As +soon as the speech was ended, the troops, as a token of applause, +clashed their shields against their knees; while the officers who +surrounded the tribunal expressed, with decent reserve, their +sense of the merits of the representative of Constantius.<br> +</p> + +<p>The two princes returned to the palace in the same chariot; +and during the slow procession, Julian repeated to himself a +verse of his favorite Homer, which he might equally apply to his +fortune and to his fears. The four-and-twenty days which the +Cæsar spent at Milan after his investiture, and the first +months of his Gallic reign, were devoted to a splendid but severe +captivity; nor could the acquisition of honor compensate for the +loss of freedom. His steps were watched, his correspondence was +intercepted; and he was obliged, by prudence, to decline the +visits of his most intimate friends. Of his former domestics, +four only were permitted to attend him; two pages, his physician, +and his librarian; the last of whom was employed in the care of a +valuable collection of books, the gift of the empress, who +studied the inclinations as well as the interest of her friend. +In the room of these faithful servants, a household was formed, +such indeed as became the dignity of a Cæsar; but it was +filled with a crowd of slaves, destitute, and perhaps incapable, +of any attachment for their new master, to whom, for the most +part, they were either unknown or suspected. His want of +experience might require the assistance of a wise council; but +the minute instructions which regulated the service of his table, +and the distribution of his hours, were adapted to a youth still +under the discipline of his preceptors, rather than to the +situation of a prince intrusted with the conduct of an important +war. If he aspired to deserve the esteem of his subjects, he was +checked by the fear of displeasing his sovereign; and even the +fruits of his marriage-bed were blasted by the jealous artifices +of Eusebia herself, who, on this occasion alone, seems to have +been unmindful of the tenderness of her sex, and the generosity +of her character. The memory of his father and of his brothers +reminded Julian of his own danger, and his apprehensions were +increased by the recent and unworthy fate of Sylvanus. In the +summer which preceded his own elevation, that general had been +chosen to deliver Gaul from the tyranny of the Barbarians; but +Sylvanus soon discovered that he had left his most dangerous +enemies in the Imperial court. A dexterous informer, countenanced +by several of the principal ministers, procured from him some +recommendatory letters; and erasing the whole of the contents, +except the signature, filled up the vacant parchment with matters +of high and treasonable import. By the industry and courage of +his friends, the fraud was however detected, and in a great +council of the civil and military officers, held in the presence +of the emperor himself, the innocence of Sylvanus was publicly +acknowledged. But the discovery came too late; the report of the +calumny, and the hasty seizure of his estate, had already +provoked the indignant chief to the rebellion of which he was so +unjustly accused. He assumed the purple at his head-quarters of +Cologne, and his active powers appeared to menace Italy with an +invasion, and Milan with a siege. In this emergency, Ursicinus, a +general of equal rank, regained, by an act of treachery, the +favor which he had lost by his eminent services in the East. +Exasperated, as he might speciously allege, by the injuries of a +similar nature, he hastened with a few followers to join the +standard, and to betray the confidence, of his too credulous +friend. After a reign of only twenty-eight days, Sylvanus was +assassinated: the soldiers who, without any criminal intention, +had blindly followed the example of their leader, immediately +returned to their allegiance; and the flatterers of Constantius +celebrated the wisdom and felicity of the monarch who had +extinguished a civil war without the hazard of a battle.<br> +</p> + +<p>The protection of the Rhætian frontier, and the +persecution of the Catholic church, detained Constantius in Italy +above eighteen months after the departure of Julian. Before the +emperor returned into the East, he indulged his pride and +curiosity in a visit to the ancient capital. He proceeded from +Milan to Rome along the Æmilian and Flaminian ways, and as +soon as he approached within forty miles of the city, the march +of a prince who had never vanquished a foreign enemy, assumed the +appearance of a triumphal procession. His splendid train was +composed of all the ministers of luxury; but in a time of +profound peace, he was encompassed by the glittering arms of the +numerous squadrons of his guards and cuirassiers. Their streaming +banners of silk, embossed with gold, and shaped in the form of +dragons, waved round the person of the emperor. Constantius sat +alone in a lofty car, resplendent with gold and precious gems; +and, except when he bowed his head to pass under the gates of the +cities, he affected a stately demeanor of inflexible, and, as it +might seem, of insensible gravity. The severe discipline of the +Persian youth had been introduced by the eunuchs into the +Imperial palace; and such were the habits of patience which they +had inculcated, that during a slow and sultry march, he was never +seen to move his hand towards his face, or to turn his eyes +either to the right or to the left. He was received by the +magistrates and senate of Rome; and the emperor surveyed, with +attention, the civil honors of the republic, and the consular +images of the noble families. The streets were lined with an +innumerable multitude. Their repeated acclamations expressed +their joy at beholding, after an absence of thirty-two years, the +sacred person of their sovereign, and Constantius himself +expressed, with some pleasantry, he affected surprise that the +human race should thus suddenly be collected on the same spot. +The son of Constantine was lodged in the ancient palace of +Augustus: he presided in the senate, harangued the people from +the tribunal which Cicero had so often ascended, assisted with +unusual courtesy at the games of the Circus, and accepted the +crowns of gold, as well as the Panegyrics which had been prepared +for the ceremony by the deputies of the principal cities. His +short visit of thirty days was employed in viewing the monuments +of art and power which were scattered over the seven hills and +the interjacent valleys. He admired the awful majesty of the +Capitol, the vast extent of the baths of Caracalla and +Diocletian, the severe simplicity of the Pantheon, the massy +greatness of the amphitheatre of Titus, the elegant architecture +of the theatre of Pompey and the Temple of Peace, and, above all, +the stately structure of the Forum and column of Trajan; +acknowledging that the voice of fame, so prone to invent and to +magnify, had made an inadequate report of the metropolis of the +world. The traveller, who has contemplated the ruins of ancient +Rome, may conceive some imperfect idea of the sentiments which +they must have inspired when they reared their heads in the +splendor of unsullied beauty.<br> +</p> + +<p>[See The Pantheon: The severe simplicity of the Pantheon]<br> +</p> + +<p>The satisfaction which Constantius had received from this +journey excited him to the generous emulation of bestowing on the +Romans some memorial of his own gratitude and munificence. His +first idea was to imitate the equestrian and colossal statue +which he had seen in the Forum of Trajan; but when he had +maturely weighed the difficulties of the execution, he chose +rather to embellish the capital by the gift of an Egyptian +obelisk. In a remote but polished age, which seems to have +preceded the invention of alphabetical writing, a great number of +these obelisks had been erected, in the cities of Thebes and +Heliopolis, by the ancient sovereigns of Egypt, in a just +confidence that the simplicity of their form, and the hardness of +their substance, would resist the injuries of time and violence. +Several of these extraordinary columns had been transported to +Rome by Augustus and his successors, as the most durable +monuments of their power and victory; but there remained one +obelisk, which, from its size or sanctity, escaped for a long +time the rapacious vanity of the conquerors. It was designed by +Constantine to adorn his new city; and, after being removed by +his order from the pedestal where it stood before the Temple of +the Sun at Heliopolis, was floated down the Nile to Alexandria. +The death of Constantine suspended the execution of his purpose, +and this obelisk was destined by his son to the ancient capital +of the empire. A vessel of uncommon strength and capaciousness +was provided to convey this enormous weight of granite, at least +a hundred and fifteen feet in length, from the banks of the Nile +to those of the Tyber. The obelisk of Constantius was landed +about three miles from the city, and elevated, by the efforts of +art and labor, in the great Circus of Rome.<br> +</p> + +<p>The departure of Constantius from Rome was hastened by the +alarming intelligence of the distress and danger of the Illyrian +provinces. The distractions of civil war, and the irreparable +loss which the Roman legions had sustained in the battle of +Mursa, exposed those countries, almost without defence, to the +light cavalry of the Barbarians; and particularly to the inroads +of the Quadi, a fierce and powerful nation, who seem to have +exchanged the institutions of Germany for the arms and military +arts of their Sarmatian allies. The garrisons of the frontiers +were insufficient to check their progress; and the indolent +monarch was at length compelled to assemble, from the extremities +of his dominions, the flower of the Palatine troops, to take the +field in person, and to employ a whole campaign, with the +preceding autumn and the ensuing spring, in the serious +prosecution of the war. The emperor passed the Danube on a bridge +of boats, cut in pieces all that encountered his march, +penetrated into the heart of the country of the Quadi, and +severely retaliated the calamities which they had inflicted on +the Roman province. The dismayed Barbarians were soon reduced to +sue for peace: they offered the restitution of his captive +subjects as an atonement for the past, and the noblest hostages +as a pledge of their future conduct. The generous courtesy which +was shown to the first among their chieftains who implored the +clemency of Constantius, encouraged the more timid, or the more +obstinate, to imitate their example; and the Imperial camp was +crowded with the princes and ambassadors of the most distant +tribes, who occupied the plains of the Lesser Poland, and who +might have deemed themselves secure behind the lofty ridge of the +Carpathian Mountains. While Constantius gave laws to the +Barbarians beyond the Danube, he distinguished, with specious +compassion, the Sarmatian exiles, who had been expelled from +their native country by the rebellion of their slaves, and who +formed a very considerable accession to the power of the Quadi. +The emperor, embracing a generous but artful system of policy, +released the Sarmatians from the bands of this humiliating +dependence, and restored them, by a separate treaty, to the +dignity of a nation united under the government of a king, the +friend and ally of the republic. He declared his resolution of +asserting the justice of their cause, and of securing the peace +of the provinces by the extirpation, or at least the banishment, +of the Limigantes, whose manners were still infected with the +vices of their servile origin. The execution of this design was +attended with more difficulty than glory. The territory of the +Limigantes was protected against the Romans by the Danube, +against the hostile Barbarians by the Teyss. The marshy lands +which lay between those rivers, and were often covered by their +inundations, formed an intricate wilderness, pervious only to the +inhabitants, who were acquainted with its secret paths and +inaccessible fortresses. On the approach of Constantius, the +Limigantes tried the efficacy of prayers, of fraud, and of arms; +but he sternly rejected their supplications, defeated their rude +stratagems, and repelled with skill and firmness the efforts of +their irregular valor. One of their most warlike tribes, +established in a small island towards the conflux of the Teyss +and the Danube, consented to pass the river with the intention of +surprising the emperor during the security of an amicable +conference. They soon became the victims of the perfidy which +they meditated. Encompassed on every side, trampled down by the +cavalry, slaughtered by the swords of the legions, they disdained +to ask for mercy; and with an undaunted countenance, still +grasped their weapons in the agonies of death. After this +victory, a considerable body of Romans was landed on the opposite +banks of the Danube; the Taifalæ, a Gothic tribe engaged in +the service of the empire, invaded the Limigantes on the side of +the Teyss; and their former masters, the free Sarmatians, +animated by hope and revenge, penetrated through the hilly +country, into the heart of their ancient possessions. A general +conflagration revealed the huts of the Barbarians, which were +seated in the depth of the wilderness; and the soldier fought +with confidence on marshy ground, which it was dangerous for him +to tread. In this extremity, the bravest of the Limigantes were +resolved to die in arms, rather than to yield: but the milder +sentiment, enforced by the authority of their elders, at length +prevailed; and the suppliant crowd, followed by their wives and +children, repaired to the Imperial camp, to learn their fate from +the mouth of the conqueror. After celebrating his own clemency, +which was still inclined to pardon their repeated crimes, and to +spare the remnant of a guilty nation, Constantius assigned for +the place of their exile a remote country, where they might enjoy +a safe and honorable repose. The Limigantes obeyed with +reluctance; but before they could reach, at least before they +could occupy, their destined habitations, they returned to the +banks of the Danube, exaggerating the hardships of their +situation, and requesting, with fervent professions of fidelity, +that the emperor would grant them an undisturbed settlement +within the limits of the Roman provinces. Instead of consulting +his own experience of their incurable perfidy, Constantius +listened to his flatterers, who were ready to represent the honor +and advantage of accepting a colony of soldiers, at a time when +it was much easier to obtain the pecuniary contributions than the +military service of the subjects of the empire. The Limigantes +were permitted to pass the Danube; and the emperor gave audience +to the multitude in a large plain near the modern city of Buda. +They surrounded the tribunal, and seemed to hear with respect an +oration full of mildness and dignity when one of the Barbarians, +casting his shoe into the air, exclaimed with a loud voice, +<strong><em>Marha! Marha!</em></strong> * a word of defiance, +which was received as a signal of the tumult. They rushed with +fury to seize the person of the emperor; his royal throne and +golden couch were pillaged by these rude hands; but the faithful +defence of his guards, who died at his feet, allowed him a moment +to mount a fleet horse, and to escape from the confusion. The +disgrace which had been incurred by a treacherous surprise was +soon retrieved by the numbers and discipline of the Romans; and +the combat was only terminated by the extinction of the name and +nation of the Limigantes. The free Sarmatians were reinstated in +the possession of their ancient seats; and although Constantius +distrusted the levity of their character, he entertained some +hopes that a sense of gratitude might influence their future +conduct. He had remarked the lofty stature and obsequious +demeanor of Zizais, one of the noblest of their chiefs. He +conferred on him the title of King; and Zizais proved that he was +not unworthy to reign, by a sincere and lasting attachment to the +interests of his benefactor, who, after this splendid success, +received the name of <strong><em>Sarmaticus</em></strong> from +the acclamations of his victorious army.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor. -- Part +III.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>While the Roman emperor and the Persian monarch, at the +distance of three thousand miles, defended their extreme limits +against the Barbarians of the Danube and of the Oxus, their +intermediate frontier experienced the vicissitudes of a languid +war, and a precarious truce. Two of the eastern ministers of +Constantius, the Prætorian præfect Musonian, whose +abilities were disgraced by the want of truth and integrity, and +Cassian, duke of Mesopotamia, a hardy and veteran soldier, opened +a secret negotiation with the satrap Tamsapor. These overtures of +peace, translated into the servile and flattering language of +Asia, were transmitted to the camp of the Great King; who +resolved to signify, by an ambassador, the terms which he was +inclined to grant to the suppliant Romans. Narses, whom he +invested with that character, was honorably received in his +passage through Antioch and Constantinople: he reached Sirmium +after a long journey, and, at his first audience, respectfully +unfolded the silken veil which covered the haughty epistle of his +sovereign. Sapor, King of Kings, and Brother of the Sun and Moon, +(such were the lofty titles affected by Oriental vanity,) +expressed his satisfaction that his brother, Constantius +Cæsar, had been taught wisdom by adversity. As the lawful +successor of Darius Hystaspes, Sapor asserted, that the River +Strymon, in Macedonia, was the true and ancient boundary of his +empire; declaring, however, that as an evidence of his +moderation, he would content himself with the provinces of +Armenia and Mesopotamia, which had been fraudulently extorted +from his ancestors. He alleged, that, without the restitution of +these disputed countries, it was impossible to establish any +treaty on a solid and permanent basis; and he arrogantly +threatened, that if his ambassador returned in vain, he was +prepared to take the field in the spring, and to support the +justice of his cause by the strength of his invincible arms. +Narses, who was endowed with the most polite and amiable manners, +endeavored, as far as was consistent with his duty, to soften the +harshness of the message. Both the style and substance were +maturely weighed in the Imperial council, and he was dismissed +with the following answer: "Constantius had a right to disclaim +the officiousness of his ministers, who had acted without any +specific orders from the throne: he was not, however, averse to +an equal and honorable treaty; but it was highly indecent, as +well as absurd, to propose to the sole and victorious emperor of +the Roman world, the same conditions of peace which he had +indignantly rejected at the time when his power was contracted +within the narrow limits of the East: the chance of arms was +uncertain; and Sapor should recollect, that if the Romans had +sometimes been vanquished in battle, they had almost always been +successful in the event of the war." A few days after the +departure of Narses, three ambassadors were sent to the court of +Sapor, who was already returned from the Scythian expedition to +his ordinary residence of Ctesiphon. A count, a notary, and a +sophist, had been selected for this important commission; and +Constantius, who was secretly anxious for the conclusion of the +peace, entertained some hopes that the dignity of the first of +these ministers, the dexterity of the second, and the rhetoric of +the third, would persuade the Persian monarch to abate of the +rigor of his demands. But the progress of their negotiation was +opposed and defeated by the hostile arts of Antoninus, a Roman +subject of Syria, who had fled from oppression, and was admitted +into the councils of Sapor, and even to the royal table, where, +according to the custom of the Persians, the most important +business was frequently discussed. The dexterous fugitive +promoted his interest by the same conduct which gratified his +revenge. He incessantly urged the ambition of his new master to +embrace the favorable opportunity when the bravest of the +Palatine troops were employed with the emperor in a distant war +on the Danube. He pressed Sapor to invade the exhausted and +defenceless provinces of the East, with the numerous armies of +Persia, now fortified by the alliance and accession of the +fiercest Barbarians. The ambassadors of Rome retired without +success, and a second embassy, of a still more honorable rank, +was detained in strict confinement, and threatened either with +death or exile.<br> +</p> + +<p>The military historian, who was himself despatched to observe +the army of the Persians, as they were preparing to construct a +bridge of boats over the Tigris, beheld from an eminence the +plain of Assyria, as far as the edge of the horizon, covered with +men, with horses, and with arms. Sapor appeared in the front, +conspicuous by the splendor of his purple. On his left hand, the +place of honor among the Orientals, Grumbates, king of the +Chionites, displayed the stern countenance of an aged and +renowned warrior. The monarch had reserved a similar place on his +right hand for the king of the Albanians, who led his independent +tribes from the shores of the Caspian. * The satraps and generals +were distributed according to their several ranks, and the whole +army, besides the numerous train of Oriental luxury, consisted of +more than one hundred thousand effective men, inured to fatigue, +and selected from the bravest nations of Asia. The Roman +deserter, who in some measure guided the councils of Sapor, had +prudently advised, that, instead of wasting the summer in tedious +and difficult sieges, he should march directly to the Euphrates, +and press forwards without delay to seize the feeble and wealthy +metropolis of Syria. But the Persians were no sooner advanced +into the plains of Mesopotamia, than they discovered that every +precaution had been used which could retard their progress, or +defeat their design. The inhabitants, with their cattle, were +secured in places of strength, the green forage throughout the +country was set on fire, the fords of the rivers were fortified +by sharp stakes; military engines were planted on the opposite +banks, and a seasonable swell of the waters of the Euphrates +deterred the Barbarians from attempting the ordinary passage of +the bridge of Thapsacus. Their skilful guide, changing his plan +of operations, then conducted the army by a longer circuit, but +through a fertile territory, towards the head of the Euphrates, +where the infant river is reduced to a shallow and accessible +stream. Sapor overlooked, with prudent disdain, the strength of +Nisibis; but as he passed under the walls of Amida, he resolved +to try whether the majesty of his presence would not awe the +garrison into immediate submission. The sacrilegious insult of a +random dart, which glanced against the royal tiara, convinced him +of his error; and the indignant monarch listened with impatience +to the advice of his ministers, who conjured him not to sacrifice +the success of his ambition to the gratification of his +resentment. The following day Grumbates advanced towards the +gates with a select body of troops, and required the instant +surrender of the city, as the only atonement which could be +accepted for such an act of rashness and insolence. His proposals +were answered by a general discharge, and his only son, a +beautiful and valiant youth, was pierced through the heart by a +javelin, shot from one of the balistæ. The funeral of the +prince of the Chionites was celebrated according to the rites of +the country; and the grief of his aged father was alleviated by +the solemn promise of Sapor, that the guilty city of Amida should +serve as a funeral pile to expiate the death, and to perpetuate +the memory, of his son.<br> +</p> + +<p>The ancient city of Amid or Amida, which sometimes assumes the +provincial appellation of Diarbekir, is advantageously situate in +a fertile plain, watered by the natural and artificial channels +of the Tigris, of which the least inconsiderable stream bends in +a semicircular form round the eastern part of the city. The +emperor Constantius had recently conferred on Amida the honor of +his own name, and the additional fortifications of strong walls +and lofty towers. It was provided with an arsenal of military +engines, and the ordinary garrison had been reenforced to the +amount of seven legions, when the place was invested by the arms +of Sapor. His first and most sanguine hopes depended on the +success of a general assault. To the several nations which +followed his standard, their respective posts were assigned; the +south to the Vertæ; the north to the Albanians; the east to +the Chionites, inflamed with grief and indignation; the west to +the Segestans, the bravest of his warriors, who covered their +front with a formidable line of Indian elephants. The Persians, +on every side, supported their efforts, and animated their +courage; and the monarch himself, careless of his rank and +safety, displayed, in the prosecution of the siege, the ardor of +a youthful soldier. After an obstinate combat, the Barbarians +were repulsed; they incessantly returned to the charge; they were +again driven back with a dreadful slaughter, and two rebel +legions of Gauls, who had been banished into the East, signalized +their undisciplined courage by a nocturnal sally into the heart +of the Persian camp. In one of the fiercest of these repeated +assaults, Amida was betrayed by the treachery of a deserter, who +indicated to the Barbarians a secret and neglected staircase, +scooped out of the rock that hangs over the stream of the Tigris. +Seventy chosen archers of the royal guard ascended in silence to +the third story of a lofty tower, which commanded the precipice; +they elevated on high the Persian banner, the signal of +confidence to the assailants, and of dismay to the besieged; and +if this devoted band could have maintained their post a few +minutes longer, the reduction of the place might have been +purchased by the sacrifice of their lives. After Sapor had tried, +without success, the efficacy of force and of stratagem, he had +recourse to the slower but more certain operations of a regular +siege, in the conduct of which he was instructed by the skill of +the Roman deserters. The trenches were opened at a convenient +distance, and the troops destined for that service advanced under +the portable cover of strong hurdles, to fill up the ditch, and +undermine the foundations of the walls. Wooden towers were at the +same time constructed, and moved forwards on wheels, till the +soldiers, who were provided with every species of missile +weapons, could engage almost on level ground with the troops who +defended the rampart. Every mode of resistance which art could +suggest, or courage could execute, was employed in the defence of +Amida, and the works of Sapor were more than once destroyed by +the fire of the Romans. But the resources of a besieged city may +be exhausted. The Persians repaired their losses, and pushed +their approaches; a large preach was made by the battering-ram, +and the strength of the garrison, wasted by the sword and by +disease, yielded to the fury of the assault. The soldiers, the +citizens, their wives, their children, all who had not time to +escape through the opposite gate, were involved by the conquerors +in a promiscuous massacre.<br> +</p> + +<p>But the ruin of Amida was the safety of the Roman provinces. +As soon as the first transports of victory had subsided, Sapor +was at leisure to reflect, that to chastise a disobedient city, +he had lost the flower of his troops, and the most favorable +season for conquest. Thirty thousand of his veterans had fallen +under the walls of Amida, during the continuance of a siege, +which lasted seventy-three days; and the disappointed monarch +returned to his capital with affected triumph and secret +mortification. It is more than probable, that the inconstancy of +his Barbarian allies was tempted to relinquish a war in which +they had encountered such unexpected difficulties; and that the +aged king of the Chionites, satiated with revenge, turned away +with horror from a scene of action where he had been deprived of +the hope of his family and nation. The strength as well as the +spirit of the army with which Sapor took the field in the ensuing +spring was no longer equal to the unbounded views of his +ambition. Instead of aspiring to the conquest of the East, he was +obliged to content himself with the reduction of two fortified +cities of Mesopotamia, Singara and Bezabde; the one situate in +the midst of a sandy desert, the other in a small peninsula, +surrounded almost on every side by the deep and rapid stream of +the Tigris. Five Roman legions, of the diminutive size to which +they had been reduced in the age of Constantine, were made +prisoners, and sent into remote captivity on the extreme confines +of Persia. After dismantling the walls of Singara, the conqueror +abandoned that solitary and sequestered place; but he carefully +restored the fortifications of Bezabde, and fixed in that +important post a garrison or colony of veterans; amply supplied +with every means of defence, and animated by high sentiments of +honor and fidelity. Towards the close of the campaign, the arms +of Sapor incurred some disgrace by an unsuccessful enterprise +against Virtha, or Tecrit, a strong, or, as it was universally +esteemed till the age of Tamerlane, an impregnable fortress of +the independent Arabs.<br> +</p> + +<p>The defence of the East against the arms of Sapor required and +would have exercised, the abilities of the most consummate +general; and it seemed fortunate for the state, that it was the +actual province of the brave Ursicinus, who alone deserved the +confidence of the soldiers and people. In the hour of danger, +Ursicinus was removed from his station by the intrigues of the +eunuchs; and the military command of the East was bestowed, by +the same influence, on Sabinian, a wealthy and subtle veteran, +who had attained the infirmities, without acquiring the +experience, of age. By a second order, which issued from the same +jealous and inconstant councils, Ursicinus was again despatched +to the frontier of Mesopotamia, and condemned to sustain the +labors of a war, the honors of which had been transferred to his +unworthy rival. Sabinian fixed his indolent station under the +walls of Edessa; and while he amused himself with the idle parade +of military exercise, and moved to the sound of flutes in the +Pyrrhic dance, the public defence was abandoned to the boldness +and diligence of the former general of the East. But whenever +Ursicinus recommended any vigorous plan of operations; when he +proposed, at the head of a light and active army, to wheel round +the foot of the mountains, to intercept the convoys of the enemy, +to harass the wide extent of the Persian lines, and to relieve +the distress of Amida; the timid and envious commander alleged, +that he was restrained by his positive orders from endangering +the safety of the troops. Amida was at length taken; its bravest +defenders, who had escaped the sword of the Barbarians, died in +the Roman camp by the hand of the executioner: and Ursicinus +himself, after supporting the disgrace of a partial inquiry, was +punished for the misconduct of Sabinian by the loss of his +military rank. But Constantius soon experienced the truth of the +prediction which honest indignation had extorted from his injured +lieutenant, that as long as such maxims of government were +suffered to prevail, the emperor himself would find it is no easy +task to defend his eastern dominions from the invasion of a +foreign enemy. When he had subdued or pacified the Barbarians of +the Danube, Constantius proceeded by slow marches into the East; +and after he had wept over the smoking ruins of Amida, he formed, +with a powerful army, the siege of Bezabde. The walls were shaken +by the reiterated efforts of the most enormous of the +battering-rams; the town was reduced to the last extremity; but +it was still defended by the patient and intrepid valor of the +garrison, till the approach of the rainy season obliged the +emperor to raise the siege, and ingloriously to retreat into his +winter quarters at Antioch. The pride of Constantius, and the +ingenuity of his courtiers, were at a loss to discover any +materials for panegyric in the events of the Persian war; while +the glory of his cousin Julian, to whose military command he had +intrusted the provinces of Gaul, was proclaimed to the world in +the simple and concise narrative of his exploits.<br> +</p> + +<p>In the blind fury of civil discord, Constantius had abandoned +to the Barbarians of Germany the countries of Gaul, which still +acknowledged the authority of his rival. A numerous swarm of +Franks and Alemanni were invited to cross the Rhine by presents +and promises, by the hopes of spoil, and by a perpetual grant of +all the territories which they should be able to subdue. But the +emperor, who for a temporary service had thus imprudently +provoked the rapacious spirit of the Barbarians, soon discovered +and lamented the difficulty of dismissing these formidable +allies, after they had tasted the richness of the Roman soil. +Regardless of the nice distinction of loyalty and rebellion, +these undisciplined robbers treated as their natural enemies all +the subjects of the empire, who possessed any property which they +were desirous of acquiring Forty-five flourishing cities, +Tongres, Cologne, Treves, Worms, Spires, Strasburgh, &c., +besides a far greater number of towns and villages, were +pillaged, and for the most part reduced to ashes. The Barbarians +of Germany, still faithful to the maxims of their ancestors, +abhorred the confinement of walls, to which they applied the +odious names of prisons and sepulchres; and fixing their +independent habitations on the banks of rivers, the Rhine, the +Moselle, and the Meuse, they secured themselves against the +danger of a surprise, by a rude and hasty fortification of large +trees, which were felled and thrown across the roads. The +Alemanni were established in the modern countries of Alsace and +Lorraine; the Franks occupied the island of the Batavians, +together with an extensive district of Brabant, which was then +known by the appellation of Toxandria, and may deserve to be +considered as the original seat of their Gallic monarchy. From +the sources, to the mouth, of the Rhine, the conquests of the +Germans extended above forty miles to the west of that river, +over a country peopled by colonies of their own name and nation: +and the scene of their devastations was three times more +extensive than that of their conquests. At a still greater +distance the open towns of Gaul were deserted, and the +inhabitants of the fortified cities, who trusted to their +strength and vigilance, were obliged to content themselves with +such supplies of corn as they could raise on the vacant land +within the enclosure of their walls. The diminished legions, +destitute of pay and provisions, of arms and discipline, trembled +at the approach, and even at the name, of the Barbarians.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XIX: Constantius Sole Emperor. -- Part +IV.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Under these melancholy circumstances, an unexperienced youth +was appointed to save and to govern the provinces of Gaul, or +rather, as he expressed it himself, to exhibit the vain image of +Imperial greatness. The retired scholastic education of Julian, +in which he had been more conversant with books than with arms, +with the dead than with the living, left him in profound +ignorance of the practical arts of war and government; and when +he awkwardly repeated some military exercise which it was +necessary for him to learn, he exclaimed with a sigh, "O Plato, +Plato, what a task for a philosopher!" Yet even this speculative +philosophy, which men of business are too apt to despise, had +filled the mind of Julian with the noblest precepts and the most +shining examples; had animated him with the love of virtue, the +desire of fame, and the contempt of death. The habits of +temperance recommended in the schools, are still more essential +in the severe discipline of a camp. The simple wants of nature +regulated the measure of his food and sleep. Rejecting with +disdain the delicacies provided for his table, he satisfied his +appetite with the coarse and common fare which was allotted to +the meanest soldiers. During the rigor of a Gallic winter, he +never suffered a fire in his bed-chamber; and after a short and +interrupted slumber, he frequently rose in the middle of the +night from a carpet spread on the floor, to despatch any urgent +business, to visit his rounds, or to steal a few moments for the +prosecution of his favorite studies. The precepts of eloquence, +which he had hitherto practised on fancied topics of declamation, +were more usefully applied to excite or to assuage the passions +of an armed multitude: and although Julian, from his early habits +of conversation and literature, was more familiarly acquainted +with the beauties of the Greek language, he had attained a +competent knowledge of the Latin tongue. Since Julian was not +originally designed for the character of a legislator, or a +judge, it is probable that the civil jurisprudence of the Romans +had not engaged any considerable share of his attention: but he +derived from his philosophic studies an inflexible regard for +justice, tempered by a disposition to clemency; the knowledge of +the general principles of equity and evidence, and the faculty of +patiently investigating the most intricate and tedious questions +which could be proposed for his discussion. The measures of +policy, and the operations of war, must submit to the various +accidents of circumstance and character, and the unpractised +student will often be perplexed in the application of the most +perfect theory. But in the acquisition of this important science, +Julian was assisted by the active vigor of his own genius, as +well as by the wisdom and experience of Sallust, and officer of +rank, who soon conceived a sincere attachment for a prince so +worthy of his friendship; and whose incorruptible integrity was +adorned by the talent of insinuating the harshest truths without +wounding the delicacy of a royal ear.<br> +</p> + +<p>Immediately after Julian had received the purple at Milan, he +was sent into Gaul with a feeble retinue of three hundred and +sixty soldiers. At Vienna, where he passed a painful and anxious +winter in the hands of those ministers to whom Constantius had +intrusted the direction of his conduct, the Cæsar was +informed of the siege and deliverance of Autun. That large and +ancient city, protected only by a ruined wall and pusillanimous +garrison, was saved by the generous resolution of a few veterans, +who resumed their arms for the defence of their country. In his +march from Autun, through the heart of the Gallic provinces, +Julian embraced with ardor the earliest opportunity of +signalizing his courage. At the head of a small body of archers +and heavy cavalry, he preferred the shorter but the more +dangerous of two roads; * and sometimes eluding, and sometimes +resisting, the attacks of the Barbarians, who were masters of the +field, he arrived with honor and safety at the camp near Rheims, +where the Roman troops had been ordered to assemble. The aspect +of their young prince revived the drooping spirits of the +soldiers, and they marched from Rheims in search of the enemy, +with a confidence which had almost proved fatal to them. The +Alemanni, familiarized to the knowledge of the country, secretly +collected their scattered forces, and seizing the opportunity of +a dark and rainy day, poured with unexpected fury on the +rear-guard of the Romans. Before the inevitable disorder could be +remedied, two legions were destroyed; and Julian was taught by +experience that caution and vigilance are the most important +lessons of the art of war. In a second and more successful +action, * he recovered and established his military fame; but as +the agility of the Barbarians saved them from the pursuit, his +victory was neither bloody nor decisive. He advanced, however, to +the banks of the Rhine, surveyed the ruins of Cologne, convinced +himself of the difficulties of the war, and retreated on the +approach of winter, discontented with the court, with his army, +and with his own success. The power of the enemy was yet +unbroken; and the Cæsar had no sooner separated his troops, +and fixed his own quarters at Sens, in the centre of Gaul, than +he was surrounded and besieged, by a numerous host of Germans. +Reduced, in this extremity, to the resources of his own mind, he +displayed a prudent intrepidity, which compensated for all the +deficiencies of the place and garrison; and the Barbarians, at +the end of thirty days, were obliged to retire with disappointed +rage.<br> +</p> + +<p>The conscious pride of Julian, who was indebted only to his +sword for this signal deliverance, was imbittered by the +reflection, that he was abandoned, betrayed, and perhaps devoted +to destruction, by those who were bound to assist him, by every +tie of honor and fidelity. Marcellus, master-general of the +cavalry in Gaul, interpreting too strictly the jealous orders of +the court, beheld with supine indifference the distress of +Julian, and had restrained the troops under his command from +marching to the relief of Sens. If the Cæsar had dissembled +in silence so dangerous an insult, his person and authority would +have been exposed to the contempt of the world; and if an action +so criminal had been suffered to pass with impunity, the emperor +would have confirmed the suspicions, which received a very +specious color from his past conduct towards the princes of the +Flavian family. Marcellus was recalled, and gently dismissed from +his office. In his room Severus was appointed general of the +cavalry; an experienced soldier, of approved courage and +fidelity, who could advise with respect, and execute with zeal; +and who submitted, without reluctance to the supreme command +which Julian, by the interest of his patroness Eusebia, at length +obtained over the armies of Gaul. A very judicious plan of +operations was adopted for the approaching campaign. Julian +himself, at the head of the remains of the veteran bands, and of +some new levies which he had been permitted to form, boldly +penetrated into the centre of the German cantonments, and +carefully reestablished the fortifications of Saverne, in an +advantageous post, which would either check the incursions, or +intercept the retreat, of the enemy. At the same time, Barbatio, +general of the infantry, advanced from Milan with an army of +thirty thousand men, and passing the mountains, prepared to throw +a bridge over the Rhine, in the neighborhood of Basil. It was +reasonable to expect that the Alemanni, pressed on either side by +the Roman arms, would soon be forced to evacuate the provinces of +Gaul, and to hasten to the defence of their native country. But +the hopes of the campaign were defeated by the incapacity, or the +envy, or the secret instructions, of Barbatio; who acted as if he +had been the enemy of the Cæsar, and the secret ally of the +Barbarians. The negligence with which he permitted a troop of +pillagers freely to pass, and to return almost before the gates +of his camp, may be imputed to his want of abilities; but the +treasonable act of burning a number of boats, and a superfluous +stock of provisions, which would have been of the most essential +service to the army of Gaul, was an evidence of his hostile and +criminal intentions. The Germans despised an enemy who appeared +destitute either of power or of inclination to offend them; and +the ignominious retreat of Barbatio deprived Julian of the +expected support; and left him to extricate himself from a +hazardous situation, where he could neither remain with safety, +nor retire with honor.<br> +</p> + +<p>As soon as they were delivered from the fears of invasion, the +Alemanni prepared to chastise the Roman youth, who presumed to +dispute the possession of that country, which they claimed as +their own by the right of conquest and of treaties. They employed +three days, and as many nights, in transporting over the Rhine +their military powers. The fierce Chnodomar, shaking the +ponderous javelin which he had victoriously wielded against the +brother of Magnentius, led the van of the Barbarians, and +moderated by his experience the martial ardor which his example +inspired. He was followed by six other kings, by ten princes of +regal extraction, by a long train of high-spirited nobles, and by +thirty-five thousand of the bravest warriors of the tribes of +Germany. The confidence derived from the view of their own +strength, was increased by the intelligence which they received +from a deserter, that the Cæsar, with a feeble army of +thirteen thousand men, occupied a post about one-and-twenty miles +from their camp of Strasburgh. With this inadequate force, Julian +resolved to seek and to encounter the Barbarian host; and the +chance of a general action was preferred to the tedious and +uncertain operation of separately engaging the dispersed parties +of the Alemanni. The Romans marched in close order, and in two +columns; the cavalry on the right, the infantry on the left; and +the day was so far spent when they appeared in sight of the +enemy, that Julian was desirous of deferring the battle till the +next morning, and of allowing his troops to recruit their +exhausted strength by the necessary refreshments of sleep and +food. Yielding, however, with some reluctance, to the clamors of +the soldiers, and even to the opinion of his council, he exhorted +them to justify by their valor the eager impatience, which, in +case of a defeat, would be universally branded with the epithets +of rashness and presumption. The trumpets sounded, the military +shout was heard through the field, and the two armies rushed with +equal fury to the charge. The Cæsar, who conducted in +person his right wing, depended on the dexterity of his archers, +and the weight of his cuirassiers. But his ranks were instantly +broken by an irregular mixture of light horse and of light +infantry, and he had the mortification of beholding the flight of +six hundred of his most renowned cuirassiers. The fugitives were +stopped and rallied by the presence and authority of Julian, who, +careless of his own safety, threw himself before them, and urging +every motive of shame and honor, led them back against the +victorious enemy. The conflict between the two lines of infantry +was obstinate and bloody. The Germans possessed the superiority +of strength and stature, the Romans that of discipline and +temper; and as the Barbarians, who served under the standard of +the empire, united the respective advantages of both parties, +their strenuous efforts, guided by a skilful leader, at length +determined the event of the day. The Romans lost four tribunes, +and two hundred and forty-three soldiers, in this memorable +battle of Strasburgh, so glorious to the Cæsar, and so +salutary to the afflicted provinces of Gaul. Six thousand of the +Alemanni were slain in the field, without including those who +were drowned in the Rhine, or transfixed with darts while they +attempted to swim across the river. Chnodomar himself was +surrounded and taken prisoner, with three of his brave +companions, who had devoted themselves to follow in life or death +the fate of their chieftain. Julian received him with military +pomp in the council of his officers; and expressing a generous +pity for the fallen state, dissembled his inward contempt for the +abject humiliation, of his captive. Instead of exhibiting the +vanquished king of the Alemanni, as a grateful spectacle to the +cities of Gaul, he respectfully laid at the feet of the emperor +this splendid trophy of his victory. Chnodomar experienced an +honorable treatment: but the impatient Barbarian could not long +survive his defeat, his confinement, and his exile.<br> +</p> + +<p>After Julian had repulsed the Alemanni from the provinces of +the Upper Rhine, he turned his arms against the Franks, who were +seated nearer to the ocean, on the confines of Gaul and Germany; +and who, from their numbers, and still more from their intrepid +valor, had ever been esteemed the most formidable of the +Barbarians. Although they were strongly actuated by the +allurements of rapine, they professed a disinterested love of +war; which they considered as the supreme honor and felicity of +human nature; and their minds and bodies were so completely +hardened by perpetual action, that, according to the lively +expression of an orator, the snows of winter were as pleasant to +them as the flowers of spring. In the month of December, which +followed the battle of Strasburgh, Julian attacked a body of six +hundred Franks, who had thrown themselves into two castles on the +Meuse. In the midst of that severe season they sustained, with +inflexible constancy, a siege of fifty-four days; till at length, +exhausted by hunger, and satisfied that the vigilance of the +enemy, in breaking the ice of the river, left them no hopes of +escape, the Franks consented, for the first time, to dispense +with the ancient law which commanded them to conquer or to die. +The Cæsar immediately sent his captives to the court of +Constantius, who, accepting them as a valuable present, rejoiced +in the opportunity of adding so many heroes to the choicest +troops of his domestic guards. The obstinate resistance of this +handful of Franks apprised Julian of the difficulties of the +expedition which he meditated for the ensuing spring, against the +whole body of the nation. His rapid diligence surprised and +astonished the active Barbarians. Ordering his soldiers to +provide themselves with biscuit for twenty days, he suddenly +pitched his camp near Tongres, while the enemy still supposed him +in his winter quarters of Paris, expecting the slow arrival of +his convoys from Aquitain. Without allowing the Franks to unite +or deliberate, he skilfully spread his legions from Cologne to +the ocean; and by the terror, as well as by the success, of his +arms, soon reduced the suppliant tribes to implore the clemency, +and to obey the commands, of their conqueror. The Chamavians +submissively retired to their former habitations beyond the +Rhine; but the Salians were permitted to possess their new +establishment of Toxandria, as the subjects and auxiliaries of +the Roman empire. The treaty was ratified by solemn oaths; and +perpetual inspectors were appointed to reside among the Franks, +with the authority of enforcing the strict observance of the +conditions. An incident is related, interesting enough in itself, +and by no means repugnant to the character of Julian, who +ingeniously contrived both the plot and the catastrophe of the +tragedy. When the Chamavians sued for peace, he required the son +of their king, as the only hostage on whom he could rely. A +mournful silence, interrupted by tears and groans, declared the +sad perplexity of the Barbarians; and their aged chief lamented +in pathetic language, that his private loss was now imbittered by +a sense of public calamity. While the Chamavians lay prostrate at +the foot of his throne, the royal captive, whom they believed to +have been slain, unexpectedly appeared before their eyes; and as +soon as the tumult of joy was hushed into attention, the +Cæsar addressed the assembly in the following terms: +"Behold the son, the prince, whom you wept. You had lost him by +your fault. God and the Romans have restored him to you. I shall +still preserve and educate the youth, rather as a monument of my +own virtue, than as a pledge of your sincerity. Should you +presume to violate the faith which you have sworn, the arms of +the republic will avenge the perfidy, not on the innocent, but on +the guilty." The Barbarians withdrew from his presence, impressed +with the warmest sentiments of gratitude and admiration.<br> +</p> + +<p>It was not enough for Julian to have delivered the provinces +of Gaul from the Barbarians of Germany. He aspired to emulate the +glory of the first and most illustrious of the emperors; after +whose example, he composed his own commentaries of the Gallic +war. Cæsar has related, with conscious pride, the manner in +which he <strong><em>twice</em></strong> passed the Rhine. Julian +could boast, that before he assumed the title of Augustus, he had +carried the Roman eagles beyond that great river in +<strong><em>three</em></strong> successful expeditions. The +consternation of the Germans, after the battle of Strasburgh, +encouraged him to the first attempt; and the reluctance of the +troops soon yielded to the persuasive eloquence of a leader, who +shared the fatigues and dangers which he imposed on the meanest +of the soldiers. The villages on either side of the Meyn, which +were plentifully stored with corn and cattle, felt the ravages of +an invading army. The principal houses, constructed with some +imitation of Roman elegance, were consumed by the flames; and the +Cæsar boldly advanced about ten miles, till his progress +was stopped by a dark and impenetrable forest, undermined by +subterraneous passages, which threatened with secret snares and +ambush every step of the assailants. The ground was already +covered with snow; and Julian, after repairing an ancient castle +which had been erected by Trajan, granted a truce of ten months +to the submissive Barbarians. At the expiration of the truce, +Julian undertook a second expedition beyond the Rhine, to humble +the pride of Surmar and Hortaire, two of the kings of the +Alemanni, who had been present at the battle of Strasburgh. They +promised to restore all the Roman captives who yet remained +alive; and as the Cæsar had procured an exact account from +the cities and villages of Gaul, of the inhabitants whom they had +lost, he detected every attempt to deceive him, with a degree of +readiness and accuracy, which almost established the belief of +his supernatural knowledge. His third expedition was still more +splendid and important than the two former. The Germans had +collected their military powers, and moved along the opposite +banks of the river, with a design of destroying the bridge, and +of preventing the passage of the Romans. But this judicious plan +of defence was disconcerted by a skilful diversion. Three hundred +light-armed and active soldiers were detached in forty small +boats, to fall down the stream in silence, and to land at some +distance from the posts of the enemy. They executed their orders +with so much boldness and celerity, that they had almost +surprised the Barbarian chiefs, who returned in the fearless +confidence of intoxication from one of their nocturnal festivals. +Without repeating the uniform and disgusting tale of slaughter +and devastation, it is sufficient to observe, that Julian +dictated his own conditions of peace to six of the haughtiest +kings of the Alemanni, three of whom were permitted to view the +severe discipline and martial pomp of a Roman camp. Followed by +twenty thousand captives, whom he had rescued from the chains of +the Barbarians, the Cæsar repassed the Rhine, after +terminating a war, the success of which has been compared to the +ancient glories of the Punic and Cimbric victories.<br> +</p> + +<p>As soon as the valor and conduct of Julian had secured an +interval of peace, he applied himself to a work more congenial to +his humane and philosophic temper. The cities of Gaul, which had +suffered from the inroads of the Barbarians, he diligently +repaired; and seven important posts, between Mentz and the mouth +of the Rhine, are particularly mentioned, as having been rebuilt +and fortified by the order of Julian. The vanquished Germans had +submitted to the just but humiliating condition of preparing and +conveying the necessary materials. The active zeal of Julian +urged the prosecution of the work; and such was the spirit which +he had diffused among the troops, that the auxiliaries +themselves, waiving their exemption from any duties of fatigue, +contended in the most servile labors with the diligence of the +Roman soldiers. It was incumbent on the Cæsar to provide +for the subsistence, as well as for the safety, of the +inhabitants and of the garrisons. The desertion of the former, +and the mutiny of the latter, must have been the fatal and +inevitable consequences of famine. The tillage of the provinces +of Gaul had been interrupted by the calamities of war; but the +scanty harvests of the continent were supplied, by his paternal +care, from the plenty of the adjacent island. Six hundred large +barks, framed in the forest of the Ardennes, made several voyages +to the coast of Britain; and returning from thence, laden with +corn, sailed up the Rhine, and distributed their cargoes to the +several towns and fortresses along the banks of the river. The +arms of Julian had restored a free and secure navigation, which +Constantius had offered to purchase at the expense of his +dignity, and of a tributary present of two thousand pounds of +silver. The emperor parsimoniously refused to his soldiers the +sums which he granted with a lavish and trembling hand to the +Barbarians. The dexterity, as well as the firmness, of Julian was +put to a severe trial, when he took the field with a discontented +army, which had already served two campaigns, without receiving +any regular pay or any extraordinary donative.<br> +</p> + +<p>A tender regard for the peace and happiness of his subjects +was the ruling principle which directed, or seemed to direct, the +administration of Julian. He devoted the leisure of his winter +quarters to the offices of civil government; and affected to +assume, with more pleasure, the character of a magistrate than +that of a general. Before he took the field, he devolved on the +provincial governors most of the public and private causes which +had been referred to his tribunal; but, on his return, he +carefully revised their proceedings, mitigated the rigor of the +law, and pronounced a second judgment on the judges themselves. +Superior to the last temptation of virtuous minds, an indiscreet +and intemperate zeal for justice, he restrained, with calmness +and dignity, the warmth of an advocate, who prosecuted, for +extortion, the president of the Narbonnese province. "Who will +ever be found guilty," exclaimed the vehement Delphidius, "if it +be enough to deny?" "And who," replied Julian, "will ever be +innocent, if it be sufficient to affirm?" In the general +administration of peace and war, the interest of the sovereign is +commonly the same as that of his people; but Constantius would +have thought himself deeply injured, if the virtues of Julian had +defrauded him of any part of the tribute which he extorted from +an oppressed and exhausted country. The prince who was invested +with the ensigns of royalty, might sometimes presume to correct +the rapacious insolence of his inferior agents, to expose their +corrupt arts, and to introduce an equal and easier mode of +collection. But the management of the finances was more safely +intrusted to Florentius, prætorian præfect of Gaul, +an effeminate tyrant, incapable of pity or remorse: and the +haughty minister complained of the most decent and gentle +opposition, while Julian himself was rather inclined to censure +the weakness of his own behavior. The Cæsar had rejected, +with abhorrence, a mandate for the levy of an extraordinary tax; +a new superindiction, which the præfect had offered for his +signature; and the faithful picture of the public misery, by +which he had been obliged to justify his refusal, offended the +court of Constantius. We may enjoy the pleasure of reading the +sentiments of Julian, as he expresses them with warmth and +freedom in a letter to one of his most intimate friends. After +stating his own conduct, he proceeds in the following terms: "Was +it possible for the disciple of Plato and Aristotle to act +otherwise than I have done? Could I abandon the unhappy subjects +intrusted to my care? Was I not called upon to defend them from +the repeated injuries of these unfeeling robbers? A tribune who +deserts his post is punished with death, and deprived of the +honors of burial. With what justice could I pronounce +<strong><em>his</em></strong>sentence, if, in the hour of danger, +I myself neglected a duty far more sacred and far more important? +God has placed me in this elevated post; his providence will +guard and support me. Should I be condemned to suffer, I shall +derive comfort from the testimony of a pure and upright +conscience. Would to Heaven that I still possessed a counsellor +like Sallust! If they think proper to send me a successor, I +shall submit without reluctance; and had much rather improve the +short opportunity of doing good, than enjoy a long and lasting +impunity of evil." The precarious and dependent situation of +Julian displayed his virtues and concealed his defects. The young +hero who supported, in Gaul, the throne of Constantius, was not +permitted to reform the vices of the government; but he had +courage to alleviate or to pity the distress of the people. +Unless he had been able to revive the martial spirit of the +Romans, or to introduce the arts of industry and refinement among +their savage enemies, he could not entertain any rational hopes +of securing the public tranquillity, either by the peace or +conquest of Germany. Yet the victories of Julian suspended, for a +short time, the inroads of the Barbarians, and delayed the ruin +of the Western Empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>His salutary influence restored the cities of Gaul, which had +been so long exposed to the evils of civil discord, Barbarian +war, and domestic tyranny; and the spirit of industry was revived +with the hopes of enjoyment. Agriculture, manufactures, and +commerce, again flourished under the protection of the laws; and +the <strong><em>curi</em></strong>, or civil corporations, were +again filled with useful and respectable members: the youth were +no longer apprehensive of marriage; and married persons were no +longer apprehensive of posterity: the public and private +festivals were celebrated with customary pomp; and the frequent +and secure intercourse of the provinces displayed the image of +national prosperity. A mind like that of Julian must have felt +the general happiness of which he was the author; but he viewed, +with particular satisfaction and complacency, the city of Paris; +the seat of his winter residence, and the object even of his +partial affection. That splendid capital, which now embraces an +ample territory on either side of the Seine, was originally +confined to the small island in the midst of the river, from +whence the inhabitants derived a supply of pure and salubrious +water. The river bathed the foot of the walls; and the town was +accessible only by two wooden bridges. A forest overspread the +northern side of the Seine, but on the south, the ground, which +now bears the name of the University, was insensibly covered with +houses, and adorned with a palace and amphitheatre, baths, an +aqueduct, and a field of Mars for the exercise of the Roman +troops. The severity of the climate was tempered by the +neighborhood of the ocean; and with some precautions, which +experience had taught, the vine and fig-tree were successfully +cultivated. But in remarkable winters, the Seine was deeply +frozen; and the huge pieces of ice that floated down the stream, +might be compared, by an Asiatic, to the blocks of white marble +which were extracted from the quarries of Phrygia. The +licentiousness and corruption of Antioch recalled to the memory +of Julian the severe and simple manners of his beloved Lutetia; +where the amusements of the theatre were unknown or despised. He +indignantly contrasted the effeminate Syrians with the brave and +honest simplicity of the Gauls, and almost forgave the +intemperance, which was the only stain of the Celtic character. +If Julian could now revisit the capital of France, he might +converse with men of science and genius, capable of understanding +and of instructing a disciple of the Greeks; he might excuse the +lively and graceful follies of a nation, whose martial spirit has +never been enervated by the indulgence of luxury; and he must +applaud the perfection of that inestimable art, which softens and +refines and embellishes the intercourse of social life.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong>Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine.</strong></p> + +<p><strong><em>Part I.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The Motives, Progress, And Effects Of The Conversion Of +Constantine. -- Legal Establishment And Constitution Of The +Christian Or Catholic Church.<br> +</p> + +<p>The public establishment of Christianity may be considered as +one of those important and domestic revolutions which excite the +most lively curiosity, and afford the most valuable instruction. +The victories and the civil policy of Constantine no longer +influence the state of Europe; but a considerable portion of the +globe still retains the impression which it received from the +conversion of that monarch; and the ecclesiastical institutions +of his reign are still connected, by an indissoluble chain, with +the opinions, the passions, and the interests of the present +generation.<br> +</p> + +<p>In the consideration of a subject which may be examined with +impartiality, but cannot be viewed with indifference, a +difficulty immediately arises of a very unexpected nature; that +of ascertaining the real and precise date of the conversion of +Constantine. The eloquent Lactantius, in the midst of his court, +seems impatient to proclaim to the world the glorious example of +the sovereign of Gaul; who, in the first moments of his reign, +acknowledged and adored the majesty of the true and only God. The +learned Eusebius has ascribed the faith of Constantine to the +miraculous sign which was displayed in the heavens whilst he +meditated and prepared the Italian expedition. The historian +Zosimus maliciously asserts, that the emperor had imbrued his +hands in the blood of his eldest son, before he publicly +renounced the gods of Rome and of his ancestors. The perplexity +produced by these discordant authorities is derived from the +behavior of Constantine himself. According to the strictness of +ecclesiastical language, the first of the +<strong><em>Christian</em></strong> emperors was unworthy of that +name, till the moment of his death; since it was only during his +last illness that he received, as a catechumen, the imposition of +hands, and was afterwards admitted, by the initiatory rites of +baptism, into the number of the faithful. The Christianity of +Constantine must be allowed in a much more vague and qualified +sense; and the nicest accuracy is required in tracing the slow +and almost imperceptible gradations by which the monarch declared +himself the protector, and at length the proselyte, of the +church. It was an arduous task to eradicate the habits and +prejudices of his education, to acknowledge the divine power of +Christ, and to understand that the truth of his revelation was +incompatible with the worship of the gods. The obstacles which he +had probably experienced in his own mind, instructed him to +proceed with caution in the momentous change of a national +religion; and he insensibly discovered his new opinions, as far +as he could enforce them with safety and with effect. During the +whole course of his reign, the stream of Christianity flowed with +a gentle, though accelerated, motion: but its general direction +was sometimes checked, and sometimes diverted, by the accidental +circumstances of the times, and by the prudence, or possibly by +the caprice, of the monarch. His ministers were permitted to +signify the intentions of their master in the various language +which was best adapted to their respective principles; and he +artfully balanced the hopes and fears of his subjects, by +publishing in the same year two edicts; the first of which +enjoined the solemn observance of Sunday, and the second directed +the regular consultation of the Aruspices. While this important +revolution yet remained in suspense, the Christians and the +Pagans watched the conduct of their sovereign with the same +anxiety, but with very opposite sentiments. The former were +prompted by every motive of zeal, as well as vanity, to +exaggerate the marks of his favor, and the evidences of his +faith. The latter, till their just apprehensions were changed +into despair and resentment, attempted to conceal from the world, +and from themselves, that the gods of Rome could no longer reckon +the emperor in the number of their votaries. The same passions +and prejudices have engaged the partial writers of the times to +connect the public profession of Christianity with the most +glorious or the most ignominious æra of the reign of +Constantine.<br> +</p> + +<p>Whatever symptoms of Christian piety might transpire in the +discourses or actions of Constantine, he persevered till he was +near forty years of age in the practice of the established +religion; and the same conduct which in the court of Nicomedia +might be imputed to his fear, could be ascribed only to the +inclination or policy of the sovereign of Gaul. His liberality +restored and enriched the temples of the gods; the medals which +issued from his Imperial mint are impressed with the figures and +attributes of Jupiter and Apollo, of Mars and Hercules; and his +filial piety increased the council of Olympus by the solemn +apotheosis of his father Constantius. But the devotion of +Constantine was more peculiarly directed to the genius of the +Sun, the Apollo of Greek and Roman mythology; and he was pleased +to be represented with the symbols of the God of Light and +Poetry. The unerring shafts of that deity, the brightness of his +eyes, his laurel wreath, immortal beauty, and elegant +accomplishments, seem to point him out as the patron of a young +hero. The altars of Apollo were crowned with the votive offerings +of Constantine; and the credulous multitude were taught to +believe, that the emperor was permitted to behold with mortal +eyes the visible majesty of their tutelar deity; and that, either +walking or in a vision, he was blessed with the auspicious omens +of a long and victorious reign. The Sun was universally +celebrated as the invincible guide and protector of Constantine; +and the Pagans might reasonably expect that the insulted god +would pursue with unrelenting vengeance the impiety of his +ungrateful favorite.<br> +</p> + +<p>As long as Constantine exercised a limited sovereignty over +the provinces of Gaul, his Christian subjects were protected by +the authority, and perhaps by the laws, of a prince, who wisely +left to the gods the care of vindicating their own honor. If we +may credit the assertion of Constantine himself, he had been an +indignant spectator of the savage cruelties which were inflicted, +by the hands of Roman soldiers, on those citizens whose religion +was their only crime. In the East and in the West, he had seen +the different effects of severity and indulgence; and as the +former was rendered still more odious by the example of Galerius, +his implacable enemy, the latter was recommended to his imitation +by the authority and advice of a dying father. The son of +Constantius immediately suspended or repealed the edicts of +persecution, and granted the free exercise of their religious +ceremonies to all those who had already professed themselves +members of the church. They were soon encouraged to depend on the +favor as well as on the justice of their sovereign, who had +imbibed a secret and sincere reverence for the name of Christ, +and for the God of the Christians.<br> +</p> + +<p>About five months after the conquest of Italy, the emperor +made a solemn and authentic declaration of his sentiments by the +celebrated edict of Milan, which restored peace to the Catholic +church. In the personal interview of the two western princes, +Constantine, by the ascendant of genius and power, obtained the +ready concurrence of his colleague, Licinius; the union of their +names and authority disarmed the fury of Maximin; and after the +death of the tyrant of the East, the edict of Milan was received +as a general and fundamental law of the Roman world.<br> +</p> + +<p>The wisdom of the emperors provided for the restitution of all +the civil and religious rights of which the Christians had been +so unjustly deprived. It was enacted that the places of worship, +and public lands, which had been confiscated, should be restored +to the church, without dispute, without delay, and without +expense; and this severe injunction was accompanied with a +gracious promise, that if any of the purchasers had paid a fair +and adequate price, they should be indemnified from the Imperial +treasury. The salutary regulations which guard the future +tranquillity of the faithful are framed on the principles of +enlarged and equal toleration; and such an equality must have +been interpreted by a recent sect as an advantageous and +honorable distinction. The two emperors proclaim to the world, +that they have granted a free and absolute power to the +Christians, and to all others, of following the religion which +each individual thinks proper to prefer, to which he has addicted +his mind, and which he may deem the best adapted to his own use. +They carefully explain every ambiguous word, remove every +exception, and exact from the governors of the provinces a strict +obedience to the true and simple meaning of an edict, which was +designed to establish and secure, without any limitation, the +claims of religious liberty. They condescend to assign two +weighty reasons which have induced them to allow this universal +toleration: the humane intention of consulting the peace and +happiness of their people; and the pious hope, that, by such a +conduct, they shall appease and propitiate the Deity, whose seat +is in heaven. They gratefully acknowledge the many signal proofs +which they have received of the divine favor; and they trust that +the same Providence will forever continue to protect the +prosperity of the prince and people. From these vague and +indefinite expressions of piety, three suppositions may be +deduced, of a different, but not of an incompatible nature. The +mind of Constantine might fluctuate between the Pagan and the +Christian religions. According to the loose and complying notions +of Polytheism, he might acknowledge the God of the Christians as +<strong><em>one</em></strong> of the +<strong><em>many</em></strong> deities who compose the hierarchy +of heaven. Or perhaps he might embrace the philosophic and +pleasing idea, that, notwithstanding the variety of names, of +rites, and of opinions, all the sects, and all the nations of +mankind, are united in the worship of the common Father and +Creator of the universe.<br> +</p> + +<p>But the counsels of princes are more frequently influenced by +views of temporal advantage, than by considerations of abstract +and speculative truth. The partial and increasing favor of +Constantine may naturally be referred to the esteem which he +entertained for the moral character of the Christians; and to a +persuasion, that the propagation of the gospel would inculcate +the practice of private and public virtue. Whatever latitude an +absolute monarch may assume in his own conduct, whatever +indulgence he may claim for his own passions, it is undoubtedly +his interest that all his subjects should respect the natural and +civil obligations of society. But the operation of the wisest +laws is imperfect and precarious. They seldom inspire virtue, +they cannot always restrain vice. Their power is insufficient to +prohibit all that they condemn, nor can they always punish the +actions which they prohibit. The legislators of antiquity had +summoned to their aid the powers of education and of opinion. But +every principle which had once maintained the vigor and purity of +Rome and Sparta, was long since extinguished in a declining and +despotic empire. Philosophy still exercised her temperate sway +over the human mind, but the cause of virtue derived very feeble +support from the influence of the Pagan superstition. Under these +discouraging circumstances, a prudent magistrate might observe +with pleasure the progress of a religion which diffused among the +people a pure, benevolent, and universal system of ethics, +adapted to every duty and every condition of life; recommended as +the will and reason of the supreme Deity, and enforced by the +sanction of eternal rewards or punishments. The experience of +Greek and Roman history could not inform the world how far the +system of national manners might be reformed and improved by the +precepts of a divine revelation; and Constantine might listen +with some confidence to the flattering, and indeed reasonable, +assurances of Lactantius. The eloquent apologist seemed firmly to +expect, and almost ventured to promise, +<strong><em>that</em></strong> the establishment of Christianity +would restore the innocence and felicity of the primitive age; +<strong><em>that</em></strong>the worship of the true God would +extinguish war and dissension among those who mutually considered +themselves as the children of a common parent; +<strong><em>that</em></strong> every impure desire, every angry +or selfish passion, would be restrained by the knowledge of the +gospel; and <strong><em>that</em></strong> the magistrates might +sheath the sword of justice among a people who would be +universally actuated by the sentiments of truth and piety, of +equity and moderation, of harmony and universal love.<br> +</p> + +<p>The passive and unresisting obedience, which bows under the +yoke of authority, or even of oppression, must have appeared, in +the eyes of an absolute monarch, the most conspicuous and useful +of the evangelic virtues. The primitive Christians derived the +institution of civil government, not from the consent of the +people, but from the decrees of Heaven. The reigning emperor, +though he had usurped the sceptre by treason and murder, +immediately assumed the sacred character of vicegerent of the +Deity. To the Deity alone he was accountable for the abuse of his +power; and his subjects were indissolubly bound, by their oath of +fidelity, to a tyrant, who had violated every law of nature and +society. The humble Christians were sent into the world as sheep +among wolves; and since they were not permitted to employ force +even in the defence of their religion, they should be still more +criminal if they were tempted to shed the blood of their +fellow-creatures in disputing the vain privileges, or the sordid +possessions, of this transitory life. Faithful to the doctrine of +the apostle, who in the reign of Nero had preached the duty of +unconditional submission, the Christians of the three first +centuries preserved their conscience pure and innocent of the +guilt of secret conspiracy, or open rebellion. While they +experienced the rigor of persecution, they were never provoked +either to meet their tyrants in the field, or indignantly to +withdraw themselves into some remote and sequestered corner of +the globe. The Protestants of France, of Germany, and of Britain, +who asserted with such intrepid courage their civil and religious +freedom, have been insulted by the invidious comparison between +the conduct of the primitive and of the reformed Christians. +Perhaps, instead of censure, some applause may be due to the +superior sense and spirit of our ancestors, who had convinced +themselves that religion cannot abolish the unalienable rights of +human nature. Perhaps the patience of the primitive church may be +ascribed to its weakness, as well as to its virtue. A sect of +unwarlike plebeians, without leaders, without arms, without +fortifications, must have encountered inevitable destruction in a +rash and fruitless resistance to the master of the Roman legions. +But the Christians, when they deprecated the wrath of Diocletian, +or solicited the favor of Constantine, could allege, with truth +and confidence, that they held the principle of passive +obedience, and that, in the space of three centuries, their +conduct had always been conformable to their principles. They +might add, that the throne of the emperors would be established +on a fixed and permanent basis, if all their subjects, embracing +the Christian doctrine, should learn to suffer and to obey.<br> +</p> + +<p>In the general order of Providence, princes and tyrants are +considered as the ministers of Heaven, appointed to rule or to +chastise the nations of the earth. But sacred history affords +many illustrious examples of the more immediate interposition of +the Deity in the government of his chosen people. The sceptre and +the sword were committed to the hands of Moses, of Joshua, of +Gideon, of David, of the Maccabees; the virtues of those heroes +were the motive or the effect of the divine favor, the success of +their arms was destined to achieve the deliverance or the triumph +of the church. If the judges of Isræl were occasional and +temporary magistrates, the kings of Judah derived from the royal +unction of their great ancestor an hereditary and indefeasible +right, which could not be forfeited by their own vices, nor +recalled by the caprice of their subjects. The same extraordinary +providence, which was no longer confined to the Jewish people, +might elect Constantine and his family as the protectors of the +Christian world; and the devout Lactantius announces, in a +prophetic tone, the future glories of his long and universal +reign. Galerius and Maximin, Maxentius and Licinius, were the +rivals who shared with the favorite of heaven the provinces of +the empire. The tragic deaths of Galerius and Maximin soon +gratified the resentment, and fulfilled the sanguine +expectations, of the Christians. The success of Constantine +against Maxentius and Licinius removed the two formidable +competitors who still opposed the triumph of the second David, +and his cause might seem to claim the peculiar interposition of +Providence. The character of the Roman tyrant disgraced the +purple and human nature; and though the Christians might enjoy +his precarious favor, they were exposed, with the rest of his +subjects, to the effects of his wanton and capricious cruelty. +The conduct of Licinius soon betrayed the reluctance with which +he had consented to the wise and humane regulations of the edict +of Milan. The convocation of provincial synods was prohibited in +his dominions; his Christian officers were ignominiously +dismissed; and if he avoided the guilt, or rather danger, of a +general persecution, his partial oppressions were rendered still +more odious by the violation of a solemn and voluntary +engagement. While the East, according to the lively expression of +Eusebius, was involved in the shades of infernal darkness, the +auspicious rays of celestial light warmed and illuminated the +provinces of the West. The piety of Constantine was admitted as +an unexceptionable proof of the justice of his arms; and his use +of victory confirmed the opinion of the Christians, that their +hero was inspired, and conducted, by the Lord of Hosts. The +conquest of Italy produced a general edict of toleration; and as +soon as the defeat of Licinius had invested Constantine with the +sole dominion of the Roman world, he immediately, by circular +letters, exhorted all his subjects to imitate, without delay, the +example of their sovereign, and to embrace the divine truth of +Christianity.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine. -- Part +II.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The assurance that the elevation of Constantine was intimately +connected with the designs of Providence, instilled into the +minds of the Christians two opinions, which, by very different +means, assisted the accomplishment of the prophecy. Their warm +and active loyalty exhausted in his favor every resource of human +industry; and they confidently expected that their strenuous +efforts would be seconded by some divine and miraculous aid. The +enemies of Constantine have imputed to interested motives the +alliance which he insensibly contracted with the Catholic church, +and which apparently contributed to the success of his ambition. +In the beginning of the fourth century, the Christians still bore +a very inadequate proportion to the inhabitants of the empire; +but among a degenerate people, who viewed the change of masters +with the indifference of slaves, the spirit and union of a +religious party might assist the popular leader, to whose +service, from a principle of conscience, they had devoted their +lives and fortunes. The example of his father had instructed +Constantine to esteem and to reward the merit of the Christians; +and in the distribution of public offices, he had the advantage +of strengthening his government, by the choice of ministers or +generals, in whose fidelity he could repose a just and unreserved +confidence. By the influence of these dignified missionaries, the +proselytes of the new faith must have multiplied in the court and +army; the Barbarians of Germany, who filled the ranks of the +legions, were of a careless temper, which acquiesced without +resistance in the religion of their commander; and when they +passed the Alps, it may fairly be presumed, that a great number +of the soldiers had already consecrated their swords to the +service of Christ and of Constantine. The habits of mankind and +the interests of religion gradually abated the horror of war and +bloodshed, which had so long prevailed among the Christians; and +in the councils which were assembled under the gracious +protection of Constantine, the authority of the bishops was +seasonably employed to ratify the obligation of the military +oath, and to inflict the penalty of excommunication on those +soldiers who threw away their arms during the peace of the +church. While Constantine, in his own dominions, increased the +number and zeal of his faithful adherents, he could depend on the +support of a powerful faction in those provinces which were still +possessed or usurped by his rivals. A secret disaffection was +diffused among the Christian subjects of Maxentius and Licinius; +and the resentment, which the latter did not attempt to conceal, +served only to engage them still more deeply in the interest of +his competitor. The regular correspondence which connected the +bishops of the most distant provinces, enabled them freely to +communicate their wishes and their designs, and to transmit +without danger any useful intelligence, or any pious +contributions, which might promote the service of Constantine, +who publicly declared that he had taken up arms for the +deliverance of the church.<br> +</p> + +<p>The enthusiasm which inspired the troops, and perhaps the +emperor himself, had sharpened their swords while it satisfied +their conscience. They marched to battle with the full assurance, +that the same God, who had formerly opened a passage to the +Isrælites through the waters of Jordan, and had thrown down +the walls of Jericho at the sound of the trumpets of Joshua, +would display his visible majesty and power in the victory of +Constantine. The evidence of ecclesiastical history is prepared +to affirm, that their expectations were justified by the +conspicuous miracle to which the conversion of the first +Christian emperor has been almost unanimously ascribed. The real +or imaginary cause of so important an event, deserves and demands +the attention of posterity; and I shall endeavor to form a just +estimate of the famous vision of Constantine, by a distinct +consideration of the <strong><em>standard</em></strong>, the +<strong><em>dream</em></strong>, and the <strong><em>celestial +sign</em></strong>; by separating the historical, the natural, +and the marvellous parts of this extraordinary story, which, in +the composition of a specious argument, have been artfully +confounded in one splendid and brittle mass.<br> +</p> + +<p>I. An instrument of the tortures which were inflicted only on +slaves and strangers, became on object of horror in the eyes of a +Roman citizen; and the ideas of guilt, of pain, and of ignominy, +were closely united with the idea of the cross. The piety, rather +than the humanity, of Constantine soon abolished in his dominions +the punishment which the Savior of mankind had condescended to +suffer; but the emperor had already learned to despise the +prejudices of his education, and of his people, before he could +erect in the midst of Rome his own statue, bearing a cross in its +right hand; with an inscription which referred the victory of his +arms, and the deliverance of Rome, to the virtue of that salutary +sign, the true symbol of force and courage. The same symbol +sanctified the arms of the soldiers of Constantine; the cross +glittered on their helmet, was engraved on their shields, was +interwoven into their banners; and the consecrated emblems which +adorned the person of the emperor himself, were distinguished +only by richer materials and more exquisite workmanship. But the +principal standard which displayed the triumph of the cross was +styled the <strong><em>Labarum</em></strong>, an obscure, though +celebrated name, which has been vainly derived from almost all +the languages of the world. It is described as a long pike +intersected by a transversal beam. The silken veil, which hung +down from the beam, was curiously inwrought with the images of +the reigning monarch and his children. The summit of the pike +supported a crown of gold which enclosed the mysterious monogram, +at once expressive of the figure of the cross, and the initial +letters, of the name of Christ. The safety of the labarum was +intrusted to fifty guards, of approved valor and fidelity; their +station was marked by honors and emoluments; and some fortunate +accidents soon introduced an opinion, that as long as the guards +of the labarum were engaged in the execution of their office, +they were secure and invulnerable amidst the darts of the enemy. +In the second civil war, Licinius felt and dreaded the power of +this consecrated banner, the sight of which, in the distress of +battle, animated the soldiers of Constantine with an invincible +enthusiasm, and scattered terror and dismay through the ranks of +the adverse legions. The Christian emperors, who respected the +example of Constantine, displayed in all their military +expeditions the standard of the cross; but when the degenerate +successors of Theodosius had ceased to appear in person at the +head of their armies, the labarum was deposited as a venerable +but useless relic in the palace of Constantinople. Its honors are +still preserved on the medals of the Flavian family. Their +grateful devotion has placed the monogram of Christ in the midst +of the ensigns of Rome. The solemn epithets of, safety of the +republic, glory of the army, restoration of public happiness, are +equally applied to the religious and military trophies; and there +is still extant a medal of the emperor Constantius, where the +standard of the labarum is accompanied with these memorable +words, By This Sign Thou Shalt Conquer.<br> +</p> + +<p>II. In all occasions of danger and distress, it was the +practice of the primitive Christians to fortify their minds and +bodies by the sign of the cross, which they used, in all their +ecclesiastical rites, in all the daily occurrences of life, as an +infallible preservative against every species of spiritual or +temporal evil. The authority of the church might alone have had +sufficient weight to justify the devotion of Constantine, who in +the same prudent and gradual progress acknowledged the truth, and +assumed the symbol, of Christianity. But the testimony of a +contemporary writer, who in a formal treatise has avenged the +cause of religion, bestows on the piety of the emperor a more +awful and sublime character. He affirms, with the most perfect +confidence, that in the night which preceded the last battle +against Maxentius, Constantine was admonished in a dream * to +inscribe the shields of his soldiers with the +<strong><em>celestial sign of God</em></strong>, the sacred +monogram of the name of Christ; that he executed the commands of +Heaven, and that his valor and obedience were rewarded by the +decisive victory of the Milvian Bridge. Some considerations might +perhaps incline a sceptical mind to suspect the judgment or the +veracity of the rhetorician, whose pen, either from zeal or +interest, was devoted to the cause of the prevailing faction. He +appears to have published his deaths of the persecutors at +Nicomedia about three years after the Roman victory; but the +interval of a thousand miles, and a thousand days, will allow an +ample latitude for the invention of declaimers, the credulity of +party, and the tacit approbation of the emperor himself who might +listen without indignation to a marvellous tale, which exalted +his fame, and promoted his designs. In favor of Licinius, who +still dissembled his animosity to the Christians, the same author +has provided a similar vision, of a form of prayer, which was +communicated by an angel, and repeated by the whole army before +they engaged the legions of the tyrant Maximin. The frequent +repetition of miracles serves to provoke, where it does not +subdue, the reason of mankind; but if the dream of Constantine is +separately considered, it may be naturally explained either by +the policy or the enthusiasm of the emperor. Whilst his anxiety +for the approaching day, which must decide the fate of the +empire, was suspended by a short and interrupted slumber, the +venerable form of Christ, and the well-known symbol of his +religion, might forcibly offer themselves to the active fancy of +a prince who reverenced the name, and had perhaps secretly +implored the power, of the God of the Christians. As readily +might a consummate statesman indulge himself in the use of one of +those military stratagems, one of those pious frauds, which +Philip and Sertorius had employed with such art and effect. The +præternatural origin of dreams was universally admitted by +the nations of antiquity, and a considerable part of the Gallic +army was already prepared to place their confidence in the +salutary sign of the Christian religion. The secret vision of +Constantine could be disproved only by the event; and the +intrepid hero who had passed the Alps and the Apennine, might +view with careless despair the consequences of a defeat under the +walls of Rome. The senate and people, exulting in their own +deliverance from an odious tyrant, acknowledged that the victory +of Constantine surpassed the powers of man, without daring to +insinuate that it had been obtained by the protection of the +<strong><em>Gods</em></strong>. The triumphal arch, which was +erected about three years after the event, proclaims, in +ambiguous language, that by the greatness of his own mind, and by +an <strong><em>instinct</em></strong> or impulse of the Divinity, +he had saved and avenged the Roman republic. The Pagan orator, +who had seized an earlier opportunity of celebrating the virtues +of the conqueror, supposes that he alone enjoyed a secret and +intimate commerce with the Supreme Being, who delegated the care +of mortals to his subordinate deities; and thus assigns a very +plausible reason why the subjects of Constantine should not +presume to embrace the new religion of their sovereign.<br> +</p> + +<p>III. The philosopher, who with calm suspicion examines the +dreams and omens, the miracles and prodigies, of profane or even +of ecclesiastical history, will probably conclude, that if the +eyes of the spectators have sometimes been deceived by fraud, the +understanding of the readers has much more frequently been +insulted by fiction. Every event, or appearance, or accident, +which seems to deviate from the ordinary course of nature, has +been rashly ascribed to the immediate action of the Deity; and +the astonished fancy of the multitude has sometimes given shape +and color, language and motion, to the fleeting but uncommon +meteors of the air. Nazarius and Eusebius are the two most +celebrated orators, who, in studied panegyrics, have labored to +exalt the glory of Constantine. Nine years after the Roman +victory, Nazarius describes an army of divine warriors, who +seemed to fall from the sky: he marks their beauty, their spirit, +their gigantic forms, the stream of light which beamed from their +celestial armor, their patience in suffering themselves to be +heard, as well as seen, by mortals; and their declaration that +they were sent, that they flew, to the assistance of the great +Constantine. For the truth of this prodigy, the Pagan orator +appeals to the whole Gallic nation, in whose presence he was then +speaking; and seems to hope that the ancient apparitions would +now obtain credit from this recent and public event. The +Christian fable of Eusebius, which, in the space of twenty-six +years, might arise from the original dream, is cast in a much +more correct and elegant mould. In one of the marches of +Constantine, he is reported to have seen with his own eyes the +luminous trophy of the cross, placed above the meridian sun and +inscribed with the following words: By This Conquer. This amazing +object in the sky astonished the whole army, as well as the +emperor himself, who was yet undetermined in the choice of a +religion: but his astonishment was converted into faith by the +vision of the ensuing night. Christ appeared before his eyes; and +displaying the same celestial sign of the cross, he directed +Constantine to frame a similar standard, and to march, with an +assurance of victory, against Maxentius and all his enemies. The +learned bishop of Cæsarea appears to be sensible, that the +recent discovery of this marvellous anecdote would excite some +surprise and distrust among the most pious of his readers. Yet, +instead of ascertaining the precise circumstances of time and +place, which always serve to detect falsehood or establish truth; +instead of collecting and recording the evidence of so many +living witnesses who must have been spectators of this stupendous +miracle; Eusebius contents himself with alleging a very singular +testimony; that of the deceased Constantine, who, many years +after the event, in the freedom of conversation, had related to +him this extraordinary incident of his own life, and had attested +the truth of it by a solemn oath. The prudence and gratitude of +the learned prelate forbade him to suspect the veracity of his +victorious master; but he plainly intimates, that in a fact of +such a nature, he should have refused his assent to any meaner +authority. This motive of credibility could not survive the power +of the Flavian family; and the celestial sign, which the Infidels +might afterwards deride, was disregarded by the Christians of the +age which immediately followed the conversion of Constantine. But +the Catholic church, both of the East and of the West, has +adopted a prodigy which favors, or seems to favor, the popular +worship of the cross. The vision of Constantine maintained an +honorable place in the legend of superstition, till the bold and +sagacious spirit of criticism presumed to depreciate the triumph, +and to arraign the truth, of the first Christian emperor.<br> +</p> + +<p>The Protestant and philosophic readers of the present age will +incline to believe, that in the account of his own conversion, +Constantine attested a wilful falsehood by a solemn and +deliberate perjury. They may not hesitate to pronounce, that in +the choice of a religion, his mind was determined only by a sense +of interest; and that (according to the expression of a profane +poet ) he used the altars of the church as a convenient footstool +to the throne of the empire. A conclusion so harsh and so +absolute is not, however, warranted by our knowledge of human +nature, of Constantine, or of Christianity. In an age of +religious fervor, the most artful statesmen are observed to feel +some part of the enthusiasm which they inspire, and the most +orthodox saints assume the dangerous privilege of defending the +cause of truth by the arms of deceit and falsehood. Personal +interest is often the standard of our belief, as well as of our +practice; and the same motives of temporal advantage which might +influence the public conduct and professions of Constantine, +would insensibly dispose his mind to embrace a religion so +propitious to his fame and fortunes. His vanity was gratified by +the flattering assurance, that <strong><em>he</em></strong> had +been chosen by Heaven to reign over the earth; success had +justified his divine title to the throne, and that title was +founded on the truth of the Christian revelation. As real virtue +is sometimes excited by undeserved applause, the specious piety +of Constantine, if at first it was only specious, might +gradually, by the influence of praise, of habit, and of example, +be matured into serious faith and fervent devotion. The bishops +and teachers of the new sect, whose dress and manners had not +qualified them for the residence of a court, were admitted to the +Imperial table; they accompanied the monarch in his expeditions; +and the ascendant which one of them, an Egyptian or a Spaniard, +acquired over his mind, was imputed by the Pagans to the effect +of magic. Lactantius, who has adorned the precepts of the gospel +with the eloquence of Cicero, and Eusebius, who has consecrated +the learning and philosophy of the Greeks to the service of +religion, were both received into the friendship and familiarity +of their sovereign; and those able masters of controversy could +patiently watch the soft and yielding moments of persuasion, and +dexterously apply the arguments which were the best adapted to +his character and understanding. Whatever advantages might be +derived from the acquisition of an Imperial proselyte, he was +distinguished by the splendor of his purple, rather than by the +superiority of wisdom, or virtue, from the many thousands of his +subjects who had embraced the doctrines of Christianity. Nor can +it be deemed incredible, that the mind of an unlettered soldier +should have yielded to the weight of evidence, which, in a more +enlightened age, has satisfied or subdued the reason of a +Grotius, a Pascal, or a Locke. In the midst of the incessant +labors of his great office, this soldier employed, or affected to +employ, the hours of the night in the diligent study of the +Scriptures, and the composition of theological discourses; which +he afterwards pronounced in the presence of a numerous and +applauding audience. In a very long discourse, which is still +extant, the royal preacher expatiates on the various proofs still +extant, the royal preacher expatiates on the various proofs of +religion; but he dwells with peculiar complacency on the +Sibylline verses, and the fourth eclogue of Virgil. Forty years +before the birth of Christ, the Mantuan bard, as if inspired by +the celestial muse of Isaiah, had celebrated, with all the pomp +of oriental metaphor, the return of the Virgin, the fall of the +serpent, the approaching birth of a godlike child, the offspring +of the great Jupiter, who should expiate the guilt of human kind, +and govern the peaceful universe with the virtues of his father; +the rise and appearance of a heavenly race, primitive nation +throughout the world; and the gradual restoration of the +innocence and felicity of the golden age. The poet was perhaps +unconscious of the secret sense and object of these sublime +predictions, which have been so unworthily applied to the infant +son of a consul, or a triumvir; but if a more splendid, and +indeed specious interpretation of the fourth eclogue contributed +to the conversion of the first Christian emperor, Virgil may +deserve to be ranked among the most successful missionaries of +the gospel.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine. -- Part +III.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The awful mysteries of the Christian faith and worship were +concealed from the eyes of strangers, and even of catechumens, +with an affected secrecy, which served to excite their wonder and +curiosity. But the severe rules of discipline which the prudence +of the bishops had instituted, were relaxed by the same prudence +in favor of an Imperial proselyte, whom it was so important to +allure, by every gentle condescension, into the pale of the +church; and Constantine was permitted, at least by a tacit +dispensation, to enjoy <strong><em>most</em></strong> of the +privileges, before he had contracted +<strong><em>any</em></strong> of the obligations, of a Christian. +Instead of retiring from the congregation, when the voice of the +deacon dismissed the profane multitude, he prayed with the +faithful, disputed with the bishops, preached on the most sublime +and intricate subjects of theology, celebrated with sacred rites +the vigil of Easter, and publicly declared himself, not only a +partaker, but, in some measure, a priest and hierophant of the +Christian mysteries. The pride of Constantine might assume, and +his services had deserved, some extraordinary distinction: and +ill-timed rigor might have blasted the unripened fruits of his +conversion; and if the doors of the church had been strictly +closed against a prince who had deserted the altars of the gods, +the master of the empire would have been left destitute of any +form of religious worship. In his last visit to Rome, he piously +disclaimed and insulted the superstition of his ancestors, by +refusing to lead the military procession of the equestrian order, +and to offer the public vows to the Jupiter of the Capitoline +Hill. Many years before his baptism and death, Constantine had +proclaimed to the world, that neither his person nor his image +should ever more be seen within the walls of an idolatrous +temple; while he distributed through the provinces a variety of +medals and pictures, which represented the emperor in an humble +and suppliant posture of Christian devotion.<br> +</p> + +<p>The pride of Constantine, who refused the privileges of a +catechumen, cannot easily be explained or excused; but the delay +of his baptism may be justified by the maxims and the practice of +ecclesiastical antiquity. The sacrament of baptism was regularly +administered by the bishop himself, with his assistant clergy, in +the cathedral church of the diocese, during the fifty days +between the solemn festivals of Easter and Pentecost; and this +holy term admitted a numerous band of infants and adult persons +into the bosom of the church. The discretion of parents often +suspended the baptism of their children till they could +understand the obligations which they contracted: the severity of +ancient bishops exacted from the new converts a novitiate of two +or three years; and the catechumens themselves, from different +motives of a temporal or a spiritual nature, were seldom +impatient to assume the character of perfect and initiated +Christians. The sacrament of baptism was supposed to contain a +full and absolute expiation of sin; and the soul was instantly +restored to its original purity, and entitled to the promise of +eternal salvation. Among the proselytes of Christianity, there +are many who judged it imprudent to precipitate a salutary rite, +which could not be repeated; to throw away an inestimable +privilege, which could never be recovered. By the delay of their +baptism, they could venture freely to indulge their passions in +the enjoyments of this world, while they still retained in their +own hands the means of a sure and easy absolution. The sublime +theory of the gospel had made a much fainter impression on the +heart than on the understanding of Constantine himself. He +pursued the great object of his ambition through the dark and +bloody paths of war and policy; and, after the victory, he +abandoned himself, without moderation, to the abuse of his +fortune. Instead of asserting his just superiority above the +imperfect heroism and profane philosophy of Trajan and the +Antonines, the mature age of Constantine forfeited the reputation +which he had acquired in his youth. As he gradually advanced in +the knowledge of truth, he proportionally declined in the +practice of virtue; and the same year of his reign in which he +convened the council of Nice, was polluted by the execution, or +rather murder, of his eldest son. This date is alone sufficient +to refute the ignorant and malicious suggestions of Zosimus, who +affirms, that, after the death of Crispus, the remorse of his +father accepted from the ministers of Christianity the expiation +which he had vainly solicited from the Pagan pontiffs. At the +time of the death of Crispus, the emperor could no longer +hesitate in the choice of a religion; he could no longer be +ignorant that the church was possessed of an infallible remedy, +though he chose to defer the application of it till the approach +of death had removed the temptation and danger of a relapse. The +bishops whom he summoned, in his last illness, to the palace of +Nicomedia, were edified by the fervor with which he requested and +received the sacrament of baptism, by the solemn protestation +that the remainder of his life should be worthy of a disciple of +Christ, and by his humble refusal to wear the Imperial purple +after he had been clothed in the white garment of a Neophyte. The +example and reputation of Constantine seemed to countenance the +delay of baptism. Future tyrants were encouraged to believe, that +the innocent blood which they might shed in a long reign would +instantly be washed away in the waters of regeneration; and the +abuse of religion dangerously undermined the foundations of moral +virtue.<br> +</p> + +<p>The gratitude of the church has exalted the virtues and +excused the failings of a generous patron, who seated +Christianity on the throne of the Roman world; and the Greeks, +who celebrate the festival of the Imperial saint, seldom mention +the name of Constantine without adding the title of +<strong><em>equal to the Apostles</em></strong>. Such a +comparison, if it allude to the character of those divine +missionaries, must be imputed to the extravagance of impious +flattery. But if the parallel be confined to the extent and +number of their evangelic victories the success of Constantine +might perhaps equal that of the Apostles themselves. By the +edicts of toleration, he removed the temporal disadvantages which +had hitherto retarded the progress of Christianity; and its +active and numerous ministers received a free permission, a +liberal encouragement, to recommend the salutary truths of +revelation by every argument which could affect the reason or +piety of mankind. The exact balance of the two religions +continued but a moment; and the piercing eye of ambition and +avarice soon discovered, that the profession of Christianity +might contribute to the interest of the present, as well as of a +future life. The hopes of wealth and honors, the example of an +emperor, his exhortations, his irresistible smiles, diffused +conviction among the venal and obsequious crowds which usually +fill the apartments of a palace. The cities which signalized a +forward zeal by the voluntary destruction of their temples, were +distinguished by municipal privileges, and rewarded with popular +donatives; and the new capital of the East gloried in the +singular advantage that Constantinople was never profaned by the +worship of idols. As the lower ranks of society are governed by +imitation, the conversion of those who possessed any eminence of +birth, of power, or of riches, was soon followed by dependent +multitudes. The salvation of the common people was purchased at +an easy rate, if it be true that, in one year, twelve thousand +men were baptized at Rome, besides a proportionable number of +women and children, and that a white garment, with twenty pieces +of gold, had been promised by the emperor to every convert. The +powerful influence of Constantine was not circumscribed by the +narrow limits of his life, or of his dominions. The education +which he bestowed on his sons and nephews secured to the empire a +race of princes, whose faith was still more lively and sincere, +as they imbibed, in their earliest infancy, the spirit, or at +least the doctrine, of Christianity. War and commerce had spread +the knowledge of the gospel beyond the confines of the Roman +provinces; and the Barbarians, who had disdained as humble and +proscribed sect, soon learned to esteem a religion which had been +so lately embraced by the greatest monarch, and the most +civilized nation, of the globe. The Goths and Germans, who +enlisted under the standard of Rome, revered the cross which +glittered at the head of the legions, and their fierce countrymen +received at the same time the lessons of faith and of humanity. +The kings of Iberia and Armenia * worshipped the god of their +protector; and their subjects, who have invariably preserved the +name of Christians, soon formed a sacred and perpetual connection +with their Roman brethren. The Christians of Persia were +suspected, in time of war, of preferring their religion to their +country; but as long as peace subsisted between the two empires, +the persecuting spirit of the Magi was effectually restrained by +the interposition of Constantine. The rays of the gospel +illuminated the coast of India. The colonies of Jews, who had +penetrated into Arabia and Ethiopia, opposed the progress of +Christianity; but the labor of the missionaries was in some +measure facilitated by a previous knowledge of the Mosaic +revelation; and Abyssinia still reveres the memory of Frumentius, +* who, in the time of Constantine, devoted his life to the +conversion of those sequestered regions. Under the reign of his +son Constantius, Theophilus, who was himself of Indian +extraction, was invested with the double character of ambassador +and bishop. He embarked on the Red Sea with two hundred horses of +the purest breed of Cappadocia, which were sent by the emperor to +the prince of the Sabæans, or Homerites. Theophilus was +intrusted with many other useful or curious presents, which might +raise the admiration, and conciliate the friendship, of the +Barbarians; and he successfully employed several years in a +pastoral visit to the churches of the torrid zone.<br> +</p> + +<p>The irresistible power of the Roman emperors was displayed in +the important and dangerous change of the national religion. The +terrors of a military force silenced the faint and unsupported +murmurs of the Pagans, and there was reason to expect, that the +cheerful submission of the Christian clergy, as well as people, +would be the result of conscience and gratitude. It was long +since established, as a fundamental maxim of the Roman +constitution, that every rank of citizens was alike subject to +the laws, and that the care of religion was the right as well as +duty of the civil magistrate. Constantine and his successors +could not easily persuade themselves that they had forfeited, by +their conversion, any branch of the Imperial prerogatives, or +that they were incapable of giving laws to a religion which they +had protected and embraced. The emperors still continued to +exercise a supreme jurisdiction over the ecclesiastical order, +and the sixteenth book of the Theodosian code represents, under a +variety of titles, the authority which they assumed in the +government of the Catholic church.<br> +</p> + +<p>But the distinction of the spiritual and temporal powers, +which had never been imposed on the free spirit of Greece and +Rome, was introduced and confirmed by the legal establishment of +Christianity. The office of supreme pontiff, which, from the time +of Numa to that of Augustus, had always been exercised by one of +the most eminent of the senators, was at length united to the +Imperial dignity. The first magistrate of the state, as often as +he was prompted by superstition or policy, performed with his own +hands the sacerdotal functions; nor was there any order of +priests, either at Rome or in the provinces, who claimed a more +sacred character among men, or a more intimate communication with +the gods. But in the Christian church, which intrusts the service +of the altar to a perpetual succession of consecrated ministers, +the monarch, whose spiritual rank is less honorable than that of +the meanest deacon, was seated below the rails of the sanctuary, +and confounded with the rest of the faithful multitude. The +emperor might be saluted as the father of his people, but he owed +a filial duty and reverence to the fathers of the church; and the +same marks of respect, which Constantine had paid to the persons +of saints and confessors, were soon exacted by the pride of the +episcopal order. A secret conflict between the civil and +ecclesiastical jurisdictions embarrassed the operation of the +Roman government; and a pious emperor was alarmed by the guilt +and danger of touching with a profane hand the ark of the +covenant. The separation of men into the two orders of the clergy +and of the laity was, indeed, familiar to many nations of +antiquity; and the priests of India, of Persia, of Assyria, of +Judea, of Æthiopia, of Egypt, and of Gaul, derived from a +celestial origin the temporal power and possessions which they +had acquired. These venerable institutions had gradually +assimilated themselves to the manners and government of their +respective countries; but the opposition or contempt of the civil +power served to cement the discipline of the primitive church. +The Christians had been obliged to elect their own magistrates, +to raise and distribute a peculiar revenue, and to regulate the +internal policy of their republic by a code of laws, which were +ratified by the consent of the people and the practice of three +hundred years. When Constantine embraced the faith of the +Christians, he seemed to contract a perpetual alliance with a +distinct and independent society; and the privileges granted or +confirmed by that emperor, or by his successors, were accepted, +not as the precarious favors of the court, but as the just and +inalienable rights of the ecclesiastical order.<br> +</p> + +<p>The Catholic church was administered by the spiritual and +legal jurisdiction of eighteen hundred bishops; of whom one +thousand were seated in the Greek, and eight hundred in the +Latin, provinces of the empire. The extent and boundaries of +their respective dioceses had been variously and accidentally +decided by the zeal and success of the first missionaries, by the +wishes of the people, and by the propagation of the gospel. +Episcopal churches were closely planted along the banks of the +Nile, on the sea-coast of Africa, in the proconsular Asia, and +through the southern provinces of Italy. The bishops of Gaul and +Spain, of Thrace and Pontus, reigned over an ample territory, and +delegated their rural suffragans to execute the subordinate +duties of the pastoral office. A Christian diocese might be +spread over a province, or reduced to a village; but all the +bishops possessed an equal and indelible character: they all +derived the same powers and privileges from the apostles, from +the people, and from the laws. While the +<strong><em>civil</em></strong> and +<strong><em>military</em></strong> professions were separated by +the policy of Constantine, a new and perpetual order of +<strong><em>ecclesiastical</em></strong> ministers, always +respectable, sometimes dangerous, was established in the church +and state. The important review of their station and attributes +may be distributed under the following heads: I. Popular +Election. II. Ordination of the Clergy. III. Property. IV. Civil +Jurisdiction. V. Spiritual censures. VI. Exercise of public +oratory. VII. Privilege of legislative assemblies.<br> +</p> + +<p>I. The freedom of election subsisted long after the legal +establishment of Christianity; and the subjects of Rome enjoyed +in the church the privilege which they had lost in the republic, +of choosing the magistrates whom they were bound to obey. As soon +as a bishop had closed his eyes, the metropolitan issued a +commission to one of his suffragans to administer the vacant see, +and prepare, within a limited time, the future election. The +right of voting was vested in the inferior clergy, who were best +qualified to judge of the merit of the candidates; in the +senators or nobles of the city, all those who were distinguished +by their rank or property; and finally in the whole body of the +people, who, on the appointed day, flocked in multitudes from the +most remote parts of the diocese, and sometimes silenced by their +tumultuous acclamations, the voice of reason and the laws of +discipline. These acclamations might accidentally fix on the head +of the most deserving competitor; of some ancient presbyter, some +holy monk, or some layman, conspicuous for his zeal and piety. +But the episcopal chair was solicited, especially in the great +and opulent cities of the empire, as a temporal rather than as a +spiritual dignity. The interested views, the selfish and angry +passions, the arts of perfidy and dissimulation, the secret +corruption, the open and even bloody violence which had formerly +disgraced the freedom of election in the commonwealths of Greece +and Rome, too often influenced the choice of the successors of +the apostles. While one of the candidates boasted the honors of +his family, a second allured his judges by the delicacies of a +plentiful table, and a third, more guilty than his rivals, +offered to share the plunder of the church among the accomplices +of his sacrilegious hopes The civil as well as ecclesiastical +laws attempted to exclude the populace from this solemn and +important transaction. The canons of ancient discipline, by +requiring several episcopal qualifications, of age, station, +&c., restrained, in some measure, the indiscriminate caprice +of the electors. The authority of the provincial bishops, who +were assembled in the vacant church to consecrate the choice of +the people, was interposed to moderate their passions and to +correct their mistakes. The bishops could refuse to ordain an +unworthy candidate, and the rage of contending factions sometimes +accepted their impartial mediation. The submission, or the +resistance, of the clergy and people, on various occasions, +afforded different precedents, which were insensibly converted +into positive laws and provincial customs; but it was every where +admitted, as a fundamental maxim of religious policy, that no +bishop could be imposed on an orthodox church, without the +consent of its members. The emperors, as the guardians of the +public peace, and as the first citizens of Rome and +Constantinople, might effectually declare their wishes in the +choice of a primate; but those absolute monarchs respected the +freedom of ecclesiastical elections; and while they distributed +and resumed the honors of the state and army, they allowed +eighteen hundred perpetual magistrates to receive their important +offices from the free suffrages of the people. It was agreeable +to the dictates of justice, that these magistrates should not +desert an honorable station from which they could not be removed; +but the wisdom of councils endeavored, without much success, to +enforce the residence, and to prevent the translation, of +bishops. The discipline of the West was indeed less relaxed than +that of the East; but the same passions which made those +regulations necessary, rendered them ineffectual. The reproaches +which angry prelates have so vehemently urged against each other, +serve only to expose their common guilt, and their mutual +indiscretion.<br> +</p> + +<p>II. The bishops alone possessed the faculty of spiritual +generation: and this extraordinary privilege might compensate, in +some degree, for the painful celibacy which was imposed as a +virtue, as a duty, and at length as a positive obligation. The +religions of antiquity, which established a separate order of +priests, dedicated a holy race, a tribe or family, to the +perpetual service of the gods. Such institutions were founded for +possession, rather than conquest. The children of the priests +enjoyed, with proud and indolent security, their sacred +inheritance; and the fiery spirit of enthusiasm was abated by the +cares, the pleasures, and the endearments of domestic life. But +the Christian sanctuary was open to every ambitious candidate, +who aspired to its heavenly promises or temporal possessions. +This office of priests, like that of soldiers or magistrates, was +strenuously exercised by those men, whose temper and abilities +had prompted them to embrace the ecclesiastical profession, or +who had been selected by a discerning bishop, as the best +qualified to promote the glory and interest of the church. The +bishops (till the abuse was restrained by the prudence of the +laws) might constrain the reluctant, and protect the distressed; +and the imposition of hands forever bestowed some of the most +valuable privileges of civil society. The whole body of the +Catholic clergy, more numerous perhaps than the legions, was +exempted * by the emperors from all service, private or public, +all municipal offices, and all personal taxes and contributions, +which pressed on their fellow-citizens with intolerable weight; +and the duties of their holy profession were accepted as a full +discharge of their obligations to the republic. Each bishop +acquired an absolute and indefeasible right to the perpetual +obedience of the clerk whom he ordained: the clergy of each +episcopal church, with its dependent parishes, formed a regular +and permanent society; and the cathedrals of Constantinople and +Carthage maintained their peculiar establishment of five hundred +ecclesiastical ministers. Their ranks and numbers were insensibly +multiplied by the superstition of the times, which introduced +into the church the splendid ceremonies of a Jewish or Pagan +temple; and a long train of priests, deacons, sub-deacons, +acolythes, exorcists, readers, singers, and doorkeepers, +contributed, in their respective stations, to swell the pomp and +harmony of religious worship. The clerical name and privileges +were extended to many pious fraternities, who devoutly supported +the ecclesiastical throne. Six hundred +<strong><em>parabolani</em></strong>, or adventurers, visited the +sick at Alexandria; eleven hundred +<strong><em>copiat</em></strong>, or grave-diggers, buried the +dead at Constantinople; and the swarms of monks, who arose from +the Nile, overspread and darkened the face of the Christian +world.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XX: Conversion Of Constantine. -- Part +IV.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>III. The edict of Milan secured the revenue as well as the +peace of the church. The Christians not only recovered the lands +and houses of which they had been stripped by the persecuting +laws of Diocletian, but they acquired a perfect title to all the +possessions which they had hitherto enjoyed by the connivance of +the magistrate. As soon as Christianity became the religion of +the emperor and the empire, the national clergy might claim a +decent and honorable maintenance; and the payment of an annual +tax might have delivered the people from the more oppressive +tribute, which superstition imposes on her votaries. But as the +wants and expenses of the church increased with her prosperity, +the ecclesiastical order was still supported and enriched by the +voluntary oblations of the faithful. Eight years after the edict +of Milan, Constantine granted to all his subjects the free and +universal permission of bequeathing their fortunes to the holy +Catholic church; and their devout liberality, which during their +lives was checked by luxury or avarice, flowed with a profuse +stream at the hour of their death. The wealthy Christians were +encouraged by the example of their sovereign. An absolute +monarch, who is rich without patrimony, may be charitable without +merit; and Constantine too easily believed that he should +purchase the favor of Heaven, if he maintained the idle at the +expense of the industrious; and distributed among the saints the +wealth of the republic. The same messenger who carried over to +Africa the head of Maxentius, might be intrusted with an epistle +to Cæcilian, bishop of Carthage. The emperor acquaints him, +that the treasurers of the province are directed to pay into his +hands the sum of three thousand <strong><em>folles</em></strong>, +or eighteen thousand pounds sterling, and to obey his further +requisitions for the relief of the churches of Africa, Numidia, +and Mauritania. The liberality of Constantine increased in a just +proportion to his faith, and to his vices. He assigned in each +city a regular allowance of corn, to supply the fund of +ecclesiastical charity; and the persons of both sexes who +embraced the monastic life became the peculiar favorites of their +sovereign. The Christian temples of Antioch, Alexandria, +Jerusalem, Constantinople &c., displayed the ostentatious +piety of a prince, ambitious in a declining age to equal the +perfect labors of antiquity. The form of these religious edifices +was simple and oblong; though they might sometimes swell into the +shape of a dome, and sometimes branch into the figure of a cross. +The timbers were framed for the most part of cedars of Libanus; +the roof was covered with tiles, perhaps of gilt brass; and the +walls, the columns, the pavement, were encrusted with variegated +marbles. The most precious ornaments of gold and silver, of silk +and gems, were profusely dedicated to the service of the altar; +and this specious magnificence was supported on the solid and +perpetual basis of landed property. In the space of two +centuries, from the reign of Constantine to that of Justinian, +the eighteen hundred churches of the empire were enriched by the +frequent and unalienable gifts of the prince and people. An +annual income of six hundred pounds sterling may be reasonably +assigned to the bishops, who were placed at an equal distance +between riches and poverty, but the standard of their wealth +insensibly rose with the dignity and opulence of the cities which +they governed. An authentic but imperfect rent-roll specifies +some houses, shops, gardens, and farms, which belonged to the +three <strong><em>Basilic</em></strong> of Rome, St. Peter, St. +Paul, and St. John Lateran, in the provinces of Italy, Africa, +and the East. They produce, besides a reserved rent of oil, +linen, paper, aromatics, &c., a clear annual revenue of +twenty-two thousand pieces of gold, or twelve thousand pounds +sterling. In the age of Constantine and Justinian, the bishops no +longer possessed, perhaps they no longer deserved, the +unsuspecting confidence of their clergy and people. The +ecclesiastical revenues of each diocese were divided into four +parts for the respective uses of the bishop himself, of his +inferior clergy, of the poor, and of the public worship; and the +abuse of this sacred trust was strictly and repeatedly checked. +The patrimony of the church was still subject to all the public +compositions of the state. The clergy of Rome, Alexandria, +Thessalonica, &c., might solicit and obtain some partial +exemptions; but the premature attempt of the great council of +Rimini, which aspired to universal freedom, was successfully +resisted by the son of Constantine.<br> +</p> + +<p>IV. The Latin clergy, who erected their tribunal on the ruins +of the civil and common law, have modestly accepted, as the gift +of Constantine, the independent jurisdiction, which was the fruit +of time, of accident, and of their own industry. But the +liberality of the Christian emperors had actually endowed them +with some legal prerogatives, which secured and dignified the +sacerdotal character. <strong>1</strong>. Under a despotic +government, the bishops alone enjoyed and asserted the +inestimable privilege of being tried only by their +<strong><em>peers</em></strong>; and even in a capital +accusation, a synod of their brethren were the sole judges of +their guilt or innocence. Such a tribunal, unless it was inflamed +by personal resentment or religious discord, might be favorable, +or even partial, to the sacerdotal order: but Constantine was +satisfied, that secret impunity would be less pernicious than +public scandal: and the Nicene council was edited by his public +declaration, that if he surprised a bishop in the act of +adultery, he should cast his Imperial mantle over the episcopal +sinner. <strong>2</strong>. The domestic jurisdiction of the +bishops was at once a privilege and a restraint of the +ecclesiastical order, whose civil causes were decently withdrawn +from the cognizance of a secular judge. Their venial offences +were not exposed to the shame of a public trial or punishment; +and the gentle correction which the tenderness of youth may +endure from its parents or instructors, was inflicted by the +temperate severity of the bishops. But if the clergy were guilty +of any crime which could not be sufficiently expiated by their +degradation from an honorable and beneficial profession, the +Roman magistrate drew the sword of justice, without any regard to +ecclesiastical immunities. <strong>3</strong>. The arbitration of +the bishops was ratified by a positive law; and the judges were +instructed to execute, without appeal or delay, the episcopal +decrees, whose validity had hitherto depended on the consent of +the parties. The conversion of the magistrates themselves, and of +the whole empire, might gradually remove the fears and scruples +of the Christians. But they still resorted to the tribunal of the +bishops, whose abilities and integrity they esteemed; and the +venerable Austin enjoyed the satisfaction of complaining that his +spiritual functions were perpetually interrupted by the invidious +labor of deciding the claim or the possession of silver and gold, +of lands and cattle. <strong>4</strong>. The ancient privilege of +sanctuary was transferred to the Christian temples, and extended, +by the liberal piety of the younger Theodosius, to the precincts +of consecrated ground. The fugitive, and even guilty, suppliants +were permitted to implore either the justice, or the mercy, of +the Deity and his ministers. The rash violence of despotism was +suspended by the mild interposition of the church; and the lives +or fortunes of the most eminent subjects might be protected by +the mediation of the bishop.<br> +</p> + +<p>V. The bishop was the perpetual censor of the morals of his +people The discipline of penance was digested into a system of +canonical jurisprudence, which accurately defined the duty of +private or public confession, the rules of evidence, the degrees +of guilt, and the measure of punishment. It was impossible to +execute this spiritual censure, if the Christian pontiff, who +punished the obscure sins of the multitude, respected the +conspicuous vices and destructive crimes of the magistrate: but +it was impossible to arraign the conduct of the magistrate, +without, controlling the administration of civil government. Some +considerations of religion, or loyalty, or fear, protected the +sacred persons of the emperors from the zeal or resentment of the +bishops; but they boldly censured and excommunicated the +subordinate tyrants, who were not invested with the majesty of +the purple. St. Athanasius excommunicated one of the ministers of +Egypt; and the interdict which he pronounced, of fire and water, +was solemnly transmitted to the churches of Cappadocia. Under the +reign of the younger Theodosius, the polite and eloquent +Synesius, one of the descendants of Hercules, filled the +episcopal seat of Ptolemais, near the ruins of ancient Cyrene, +and the philosophic bishop supported with dignity the character +which he had assumed with reluctance. He vanquished the monster +of Libya, the president Andronicus, who abused the authority of a +venal office, invented new modes of rapine and torture, and +aggravated the guilt of oppression by that of sacrilege. After a +fruitless attempt to reclaim the haughty magistrate by mild and +religious admonition, Synesius proceeds to inflict the last +sentence of ecclesiastical justice, which devotes Andronicus, +with his associates and their <strong><em>families</em></strong>, +to the abhorrence of earth and heaven. The impenitent sinners, +more cruel than Phalaris or Sennacherib, more destructive than +war, pestilence, or a cloud of locusts, are deprived of the name +and privileges of Christians, of the participation of the +sacraments, and of the hope of Paradise. The bishop exhorts the +clergy, the magistrates, and the people, to renounce all society +with the enemies of Christ; to exclude them from their houses and +tables; and to refuse them the common offices of life, and the +decent rites of burial. The church of Ptolemais, obscure and +contemptible as she may appear, addresses this declaration to all +her sister churches of the world; and the profane who reject her +decrees, will be involved in the guilt and punishment of +Andronicus and his impious followers. These spiritual terrors +were enforced by a dexterous application to the Byzantine court; +the trembling president implored the mercy of the church; and the +descendants of Hercules enjoyed the satisfaction of raising a +prostrate tyrant from the ground. Such principles and such +examples insensibly prepared the triumph of the Roman pontiffs, +who have trampled on the necks of kings.<br> +</p> + +<p>VI. Every popular government has experienced the effects of +rude or artificial eloquence. The coldest nature is animated, the +firmest reason is moved, by the rapid communication of the +prevailing impulse; and each hearer is affected by his own +passions, and by those of the surrounding multitude. The ruin of +civil liberty had silenced the demagogues of Athens, and the +tribunes of Rome; the custom of preaching which seems to +constitute a considerable part of Christian devotion, had not +been introduced into the temples of antiquity; and the ears of +monarchs were never invaded by the harsh sound of popular +eloquence, till the pulpits of the empire were filled with sacred +orators, who possessed some advantages unknown to their profane +predecessors. The arguments and rhetoric of the tribune were +instantly opposed with equal arms, by skilful and resolute +antagonists; and the cause of truth and reason might derive an +accidental support from the conflict of hostile passions. The +bishop, or some distinguished presbyter, to whom he cautiously +delegated the powers of preaching, harangued, without the danger +of interruption or reply, a submissive multitude, whose minds had +been prepared and subdued by the awful ceremonies of religion. +Such was the strict subordination of the Catholic church, that +the same concerted sounds might issue at once from a hundred +pulpits of Italy or Egypt, if they were +<strong><em>tuned</em></strong> by the master hand of the Roman +or Alexandrian primate. The design of this institution was +laudable, but the fruits were not always salutary. The preachers +recommended the practice of the social duties; but they exalted +the perfection of monastic virtue, which is painful to the +individual, and useless to mankind. Their charitable exhortations +betrayed a secret wish that the clergy might be permitted to +manage the wealth of the faithful, for the benefit of the poor. +The most sublime representations of the attributes and laws of +the Deity were sullied by an idle mixture of metaphysical +subtleties, puerile rites, and fictitious miracles: and they +expatiated, with the most fervent zeal, on the religious merit of +hating the adversaries, and obeying the ministers of the church. +When the public peace was distracted by heresy and schism, the +sacred orators sounded the trumpet of discord, and, perhaps, of +sedition. The understandings of their congregations were +perplexed by mystery, their passions were inflamed by invectives; +and they rushed from the Christian temples of Antioch or +Alexandria, prepared either to suffer or to inflict martyrdom. +The corruption of taste and language is strongly marked in the +vehement declamations of the Latin bishops; but the compositions +of Gregory and Chrysostom have been compared with the most +splendid models of Attic, or at least of Asiatic, eloquence.<br> +</p> + +<p>VII. The representatives of the Christian republic were +regularly assembled in the spring and autumn of each year; and +these synods diffused the spirit of ecclesiastical discipline and +legislation through the hundred and twenty provinces of the Roman +world. The archbishop or metropolitan was empowered, by the laws, +to summon the suffragan bishops of his province; to revise their +conduct, to vindicate their rights, to declare their faith, and +to examine the merits of the candidates who were elected by the +clergy and people to supply the vacancies of the episcopal +college. The primates of Rome, Alexandria, Antioch, Carthage, and +afterwards Constantinople, who exercised a more ample +jurisdiction, convened the numerous assembly of their dependent +bishops. But the convocation of great and extraordinary synods +was the prerogative of the emperor alone. Whenever the +emergencies of the church required this decisive measure, he +despatched a peremptory summons to the bishops, or the deputies +of each province, with an order for the use of post-horses, and a +competent allowance for the expenses of their journey. At an +early period, when Constantine was the protector, rather than the +proselyte, of Christianity, he referred the African controversy +to the council of Arles; in which the bishops of York of Treves, +of Milan, and of Carthage, met as friends and brethren, to debate +in their native tongue on the common interest of the Latin or +Western church. Eleven years afterwards, a more numerous and +celebrated assembly was convened at Nice in Bithynia, to +extinguish, by their final sentence, the subtle disputes which +had arisen in Egypt on the subject of the Trinity. Three hundred +and eighteen bishops obeyed the summons of their indulgent +master; the ecclesiastics of every rank, and sect, and +denomination, have been computed at two thousand and forty-eight +persons; the Greeks appeared in person; and the consent of the +Latins was expressed by the legates of the Roman pontiff. The +session, which lasted about two months, was frequently honored by +the presence of the emperor. Leaving his guards at the door, he +seated himself (with the permission of the council) on a low +stool in the midst of the hall. Constantine listened with +patience, and spoke with modesty: and while he influenced the +debates, he humbly professed that he was the minister, not the +judge, of the successors of the apostles, who had been +established as priests and as gods upon earth. Such profound +reverence of an absolute monarch towards a feeble and unarmed +assembly of his own subjects, can only be compared to the respect +with which the senate had been treated by the Roman princes who +adopted the policy of Augustus. Within the space of fifty years, +a philosophic spectator of the vicissitudes of human affairs +might have contemplated Tacitus in the senate of Rome, and +Constantine in the council of Nice. The fathers of the Capitol +and those of the church had alike degenerated from the virtues of +their founders; but as the bishops were more deeply rooted in the +public opinion, they sustained their dignity with more decent +pride, and sometimes opposed with a manly spirit the wishes of +their sovereign. The progress of time and superstition erased the +memory of the weakness, the passion, the ignorance, which +disgraced these ecclesiastical synods; and the Catholic world has +unanimously submitted to the <strong><em>infallible</em></strong> +decrees of the general councils.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong>Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The +Church.</strong></p> + +<p><strong><em>Part I.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Persecution Of Heresy. -- The Schism Of The Donatists. -- The +Arian Controversy. -- Athanasius. -- Distracted State Of The +Church And Empire Under Constantine And His Sons. -- Toleration +Of Paganism.<br> +</p> + +<p>The grateful applause of the clergy has consecrated the memory +of a prince who indulged their passions and promoted their +interest. Constantine gave them security, wealth, honors, and +revenge; and the support of the orthodox faith was considered as +the most sacred and important duty of the civil magistrate. The +edict of Milan, the great charter of toleration, had confirmed to +each individual of the Roman world the privilege of choosing and +professing his own religion. But this inestimable privilege was +soon violated; with the knowledge of truth, the emperor imbibed +the maxims of persecution; and the sects which dissented from the +Catholic church were afflicted and oppressed by the triumph of +Christianity. Constantine easily believed that the Heretics, who +presumed to dispute <strong><em>his</em></strong>opinions, or to +oppose <strong><em>his</em></strong> commands, were guilty of the +most absurd and criminal obstinacy; and that a seasonable +application of moderate severities might save those unhappy men +from the danger of an everlasting condemnation. Not a moment was +lost in excluding the ministers and teachers of the separated +congregations from any share of the rewards and immunities which +the emperor had so liberally bestowed on the orthodox clergy. But +as the sectaries might still exist under the cloud of royal +disgrace, the conquest of the East was immediately followed by an +edict which announced their total destruction. After a preamble +filled with passion and reproach, Constantine absolutely +prohibits the assemblies of the Heretics, and confiscates their +public property to the use either of the revenue or of the +Catholic church. The sects against whom the Imperial severity was +directed, appear to have been the adherents of Paul of Samosata; +the Montanists of Phrygia, who maintained an enthusiastic +succession of prophecy; the Novatians, who sternly rejected the +temporal efficacy of repentance; the Marcionites and +Valentinians, under whose leading banners the various Gnostics of +Asia and Egypt had insensibly rallied; and perhaps the +Manichæans, who had recently imported from Persia a more +artful composition of Oriental and Christian theology. The design +of extirpating the name, or at least of restraining the progress, +of these odious Heretics, was prosecuted with vigor and effect. +Some of the penal regulations were copied from the edicts of +Diocletian; and this method of conversion was applauded by the +same bishops who had felt the hand of oppression, and pleaded for +the rights of humanity. Two immaterial circumstances may serve, +however, to prove that the mind of Constantine was not entirely +corrupted by the spirit of zeal and bigotry. Before he condemned +the Manichæans and their kindred sects, he resolved to make +an accurate inquiry into the nature of their religious +principles. As if he distrusted the impartiality of his +ecclesiastical counsellors, this delicate commission was +intrusted to a civil magistrate, whose learning and moderation he +justly esteemed, and of whose venal character he was probably +ignorant. The emperor was soon convinced, that he had too hastily +proscribed the orthodox faith and the exemplary morals of the +Novatians, who had dissented from the church in some articles of +discipline which were not perhaps essential to salvation. By a +particular edict, he exempted them from the general penalties of +the law; allowed them to build a church at Constantinople, +respected the miracles of their saints, invited their bishop +Acesius to the council of Nice; and gently ridiculed the narrow +tenets of his sect by a familiar jest; which, from the mouth of a +sovereign, must have been received with applause and +gratitude.<br> +</p> + +<p>The complaints and mutual accusations which assailed the +throne of Constantine, as soon as the death of Maxentius had +submitted Africa to his victorious arms, were ill adapted to +edify an imperfect proselyte. He learned, with surprise, that the +provinces of that great country, from the confines of Cyrene to +the columns of Hercules, were distracted with religious discord. +The source of the division was derived from a double election in +the church of Carthage; the second, in rank and opulence, of the +ecclesiastical thrones of the West. Cæcilian and Majorinus +were the two rival prelates of Africa; and the death of the +latter soon made room for Donatus, who, by his superior abilities +and apparent virtues, was the firmest support of his party. The +advantage which Cæcilian might claim from the priority of +his ordination, was destroyed by the illegal, or at least +indecent, haste, with which it had been performed, without +expecting the arrival of the bishops of Numidia. The authority of +these bishops, who, to the number of seventy, condemned +Cæcilian, and consecrated Majorinus, is again weakened by +the infamy of some of their personal characters; and by the +female intrigues, sacrilegious bargains, and tumultuous +proceedings, which are imputed to this Numidian council. The +bishops of the contending factions maintained, with equal ardor +and obstinacy, that their adversaries were degraded, or at least +dishonored, by the odious crime of delivering the Holy Scriptures +to the officers of Diocletian. From their mutual reproaches, as +well as from the story of this dark transaction, it may justly be +inferred, that the late persecution had imbittered the zeal, +without reforming the manners, of the African Christians. That +divided church was incapable of affording an impartial +judicature; the controversy was solemnly tried in five successive +tribunals, which were appointed by the emperor; and the whole +proceeding, from the first appeal to the final sentence, lasted +above three years. A severe inquisition, which was taken by the +Prætorian vicar, and the proconsul of Africa, the report of +two episcopal visitors who had been sent to Carthage, the decrees +of the councils of Rome and of Arles, and the supreme judgment of +Constantine himself in his sacred consistory, were all favorable +to the cause of Cæcilian; and he was unanimously +acknowledged by the civil and ecclesiastical powers, as the true +and lawful primate of Africa. The honors and estates of the +church were attributed to his suffragan bishops, and it was not +without difficulty, that Constantine was satisfied with +inflicting the punishment of exile on the principal leaders of +the Donatist faction. As their cause was examined with attention, +perhaps it was determined with justice. Perhaps their complaint +was not without foundation, that the credulity of the emperor had +been abused by the insidious arts of his favorite Osius. The +influence of falsehood and corruption might procure the +condemnation of the innocent, or aggravate the sentence of the +guilty. Such an act, however, of injustice, if it concluded an +importunate dispute, might be numbered among the transient evils +of a despotic administration, which are neither felt nor +remembered by posterity.<br> +</p> + +<p>But this incident, so inconsiderable that it scarcely deserves +a place in history, was productive of a memorable schism which +afflicted the provinces of Africa above three hundred years, and +was extinguished only with Christianity itself. The inflexible +zeal of freedom and fanaticism animated the Donatists to refuse +obedience to the usurpers, whose election they disputed, and +whose spiritual powers they denied. Excluded from the civil and +religious communion of mankind, they boldly excommunicated the +rest of mankind, who had embraced the impious party of +Cæcilian, and of the Traditors, from which he derived his +pretended ordination. They asserted with confidence, and almost +with exultation, that the Apostolical succession was interrupted; +that all the bishops of Europe and Asia were infected by the +contagion of guilt and schism; and that the prerogatives of the +Catholic church were confined to the chosen portion of the +African believers, who alone had preserved inviolate the +integrity of their faith and discipline. This rigid theory was +supported by the most uncharitable conduct. Whenever they +acquired a proselyte, even from the distant provinces of the +East, they carefully repeated the sacred rites of baptism and +ordination; as they rejected the validity of those which he had +already received from the hands of heretics or schismatics. +Bishops, virgins, and even spotless infants, were subjected to +the disgrace of a public penance, before they could be admitted +to the communion of the Donatists. If they obtained possession of +a church which had been used by their Catholic adversaries, they +purified the unhallowed building with the same zealous care which +a temple of idols might have required. They washed the pavement, +scraped the walls, burnt the altar, which was commonly of wood, +melted the consecrated plate, and cast the Holy Eucharist to the +dogs, with every circumstance of ignominy which could provoke and +perpetuate the animosity of religious factions. Notwithstanding +this irreconcilable aversion, the two parties, who were mixed and +separated in all the cities of Africa, had the same language and +manners, the same zeal and learning, the same faith and worship. +Proscribed by the civil and ecclesiastical powers of the empire, +the Donatists still maintained in some provinces, particularly in +Numidia, their superior numbers; and four hundred bishops +acknowledged the jurisdiction of their primate. But the +invincible spirit of the sect sometimes preyed on its own vitals: +and the bosom of their schismatical church was torn by intestine +divisions. A fourth part of the Donatist bishops followed the +independent standard of the Maximianists. The narrow and solitary +path which their first leaders had marked out, continued to +deviate from the great society of mankind. Even the imperceptible +sect of the Rogatians could affirm, without a blush, that when +Christ should descend to judge the earth, he would find his true +religion preserved only in a few nameless villages of the +Cæsarean Mauritania.<br> +</p> + +<p>The schism of the Donatists was confined to Africa: the more +diffusive mischief of the Trinitarian controversy successively +penetrated into every part of the Christian world. The former was +an accidental quarrel, occasioned by the abuse of freedom; the +latter was a high and mysterious argument, derived from the abuse +of philosophy. From the age of Constantine to that of Clovis and +Theodoric, the temporal interests both of the Romans and +Barbarians were deeply involved in the theological disputes of +Arianism. The historian may therefore be permitted respectfully +to withdraw the veil of the sanctuary; and to deduce the progress +of reason and faith, of error and passion from the school of +Plato, to the decline and fall of the empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>The genius of Plato, informed by his own meditation, or by the +traditional knowledge of the priests of Egypt, had ventured to +explore the mysterious nature of the Deity. When he had elevated +his mind to the sublime contemplation of the first self-existent, +necessary cause of the universe, the Athenian sage was incapable +of conceiving how the simple unity of his essence could admit the +infinite variety of distinct and successive ideas which compose +the model of the intellectual world; how a Being purely +incorporeal could execute that perfect model, and mould with a +plastic hand the rude and independent chaos. The vain hope of +extricating himself from these difficulties, which must ever +oppress the feeble powers of the human mind, might induce Plato +to consider the divine nature under the threefold modification -- +of the first cause, the reason, or +<strong><em>Logos</em></strong>, and the soul or spirit of the +universe. His poetical imagination sometimes fixed and animated +these metaphysical abstractions; the three archical on original +principles were represented in the Platonic system as three Gods, +united with each other by a mysterious and ineffable generation; +and the Logos was particularly considered under the more +accessible character of the Son of an Eternal Father, and the +Creator and Governor of the world. Such appear to have been the +secret doctrines which were cautiously whispered in the gardens +of the academy; and which, according to the more recent disciples +of Plato, * could not be perfectly understood, till after an +assiduous study of thirty years.<br> +</p> + +<p>The arms of the Macedonians diffused over Asia and Egypt the +language and learning of Greece; and the theological system of +Plato was taught, with less reserve, and perhaps with some +improvements, in the celebrated school of Alexandria. A numerous +colony of Jews had been invited, by the favor of the Ptolemies, +to settle in their new capital. While the bulk of the nation +practised the legal ceremonies, and pursued the lucrative +occupations of commerce, a few Hebrews, of a more liberal spirit, +devoted their lives to religious and philosophical contemplation. +They cultivated with diligence, and embraced with ardor, the +theological system of the Athenian sage. But their national pride +would have been mortified by a fair confession of their former +poverty: and they boldly marked, as the sacred inheritance of +their ancestors, the gold and jewels which they had so lately +stolen from their Egyptian masters. One hundred years before the +birth of Christ, a philosophical treatise, which manifestly +betrays the style and sentiments of the school of Plato, was +produced by the Alexandrian Jews, and unanimously received as a +genuine and valuable relic of the inspired Wisdom of Solomon. A +similar union of the Mosaic faith and the Grecian philosophy, +distinguishes the works of Philo, which were composed, for the +most part, under the reign of Augustus. The material soul of the +universe might offend the piety of the Hebrews: but they applied +the character of the Logos to the Jehovah of Moses and the +patriarchs; and the Son of God was introduced upon earth under a +visible, and even human appearance, to perform those familiar +offices which seem incompatible with the nature and attributes of +the Universal Cause.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The +Church. -- Part II.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The eloquence of Plato, the name of Solomon, the authority of +the school of Alexandria, and the consent of the Jews and Greeks, +were insufficient to establish the truth of a mysterious +doctrine, which might please, but could not satisfy, a rational +mind. A prophet, or apostle, inspired by the Deity, can alone +exercise a lawful dominion over the faith of mankind: and the +theology of Plato might have been forever confounded with the +philosophical visions of the Academy, the Porch, and the +Lycæum, if the name and divine attributes of the +<strong><em>Logos</em></strong> had not been confirmed by the +celestial pen of the last and most sublime of the Evangelists. +The Christian Revelation, which was consummated under the reign +of Nerva, disclosed to the world the amazing secret, that the +Logos, who was with God from the beginning, and was God, who had +made all things, and for whom all things had been made, was +incarnate in the person of Jesus of Nazareth; who had been born +of a virgin, and suffered death on the cross. Besides the genera +design of fixing on a perpetual basis the divine honors of +Christ, the most ancient and respectable of the ecclesiastical +writers have ascribed to the evangelic theologian a particular +intention to confute two opposite heresies, which disturbed the +peace of the primitive church. I. The faith of the Ebionites, +perhaps of the Nazarenes, was gross and imperfect. They revered +Jesus as the greatest of the prophets, endowed with supernatural +virtue and power. They ascribed to his person and to his future +reign all the predictions of the Hebrew oracles which relate to +the spiritual and everlasting kingdom of the promised Messiah. +Some of them might confess that he was born of a virgin; but they +obstinately rejected the preceding existence and divine +perfections of the <strong><em>Logos</em></strong>, or Son of +God, which are so clearly defined in the Gospel of St. John. +About fifty years afterwards, the Ebionites, whose errors are +mentioned by Justin Martyr with less severity than they seem to +deserve, formed a very inconsiderable portion of the Christian +name. II. The Gnostics, who were distinguished by the epithet of +<strong><em>Docetes</em></strong>, deviated into the contrary +extreme; and betrayed the human, while they asserted the divine, +nature of Christ. Educated in the school of Plato, accustomed to +the sublime idea of the <strong><em>Logos</em></strong>, they +readily conceived that the brightest +<strong><em>Æon</em></strong>, or +<strong><em>Emanation</em></strong> of the Deity, might assume +the outward shape and visible appearances of a mortal; but they +vainly pretended, that the imperfections of matter are +incompatible with the purity of a celestial substance. While the +blood of Christ yet smoked on Mount Calvary, the Docetes invented +the impious and extravagant hypothesis, that, instead of issuing +from the womb of the Virgin, he had descended on the banks of the +Jordan in the form of perfect manhood; that he had imposed on the +senses of his enemies, and of his disciples; and that the +ministers of Pilate had wasted their impotent rage on an airy +phantom, who <strong><em>seemed</em></strong> to expire on the +cross, and, after three days, to rise from the dead.<br> +</p> + +<p>The divine sanction, which the Apostle had bestowed on the +fundamental principle of the theology of Plato, encouraged the +learned proselytes of the second and third centuries to admire +and study the writings of the Athenian sage, who had thus +marvellously anticipated one of the most surprising discoveries +of the Christian revelation. The respectable name of Plato was +used by the orthodox, and abused by the heretics, as the common +support of truth and error: the authority of his skilful +commentators, and the science of dialectics, were employed to +justify the remote consequences of his opinions and to supply the +discreet silence of the inspired writers. The same subtle and +profound questions concerning the nature, the generation, the +distinction, and the equality of the three divine persons of the +mysterious <strong><em>Triad</em></strong>, or +<strong><em>Trinity</em></strong>, were agitated in the +philosophical and in the Christian schools of Alexandria. An +eager spirit of curiosity urged them to explore the secrets of +the abyss; and the pride of the professors, and of their +disciples, was satisfied with the sciences of words. But the most +sagacious of the Christian theologians, the great Athanasius +himself, has candidly confessed, that whenever he forced his +understanding to meditate on the divinity of the +<strong><em>Logos</em></strong>, his toilsome and unavailing +efforts recoiled on themselves; that the more he thought, the +less he comprehended; and the more he wrote, the less capable was +he of expressing his thoughts. In every step of the inquiry, we +are compelled to feel and acknowledge the immeasurable +disproportion between the size of the object and the capacity of +the human mind. We may strive to abstract the notions of time, of +space, and of matter, which so closely adhere to all the +perceptions of our experimental knowledge. But as soon as we +presume to reason of infinite substance, of spiritual generation; +as often as we deduce any positive conclusions from a negative +idea, we are involved in darkness, perplexity, and inevitable +contradiction. As these difficulties arise from the nature of the +subject, they oppress, with the same insuperable weight, the +philosophic and the theological disputant; but we may observe two +essential and peculiar circumstances, which discriminated the +doctrines of the Catholic church from the opinions of the +Platonic school.<br> +</p> + +<p>I. A chosen society of philosophers, men of a liberal +education and curious disposition, might silently meditate, and +temperately discuss in the gardens of Athens or the library of +Alexandria, the abstruse questions of metaphysical science. The +lofty speculations, which neither convinced the understanding, +nor agitated the passions, of the Platonists themselves, were +carelessly overlooked by the idle, the busy, and even the +studious part of mankind. But after the +<strong><em>Logos</em></strong> had been revealed as the sacred +object of the faith, the hope, and the religious worship of the +Christians, the mysterious system was embraced by a numerous and +increasing multitude in every province of the Roman world. Those +persons who, from their age, or sex, or occupations, were the +least qualified to judge, who were the least exercised in the +habits of abstract reasoning, aspired to contemplate the economy +of the Divine Nature: and it is the boast of Tertullian, that a +Christian mechanic could readily answer such questions as had +perplexed the wisest of the Grecian sages. Where the subject lies +so far beyond our reach, the difference between the highest and +the lowest of human understandings may indeed be calculated as +infinitely small; yet the degree of weakness may perhaps be +measured by the degree of obstinacy and dogmatic confidence. +These speculations, instead of being treated as the amusement of +a vacant hour, became the most serious business of the present, +and the most useful preparation for a future, life. A theology, +which it was incumbent to believe, which it was impious to doubt, +and which it might be dangerous, and even fatal, to mistake, +became the familiar topic of private meditation and popular +discourse. The cold indifference of philosophy was inflamed by +the fervent spirit of devotion; and even the metaphors of common +language suggested the fallacious prejudices of sense and +experience. The Christians, who abhorred the gross and impure +generation of the Greek mythology, were tempted to argue from the +familiar analogy of the filial and paternal relations. The +character of <strong><em>Son</em></strong> seemed to imply a +perpetual subordination to the voluntary author of his existence; +but as the act of generation, in the most spiritual and +abstracted sense, must be supposed to transmit the properties of +a common nature, they durst not presume to circumscribe the +powers or the duration of the Son of an eternal and omnipotent +Father. Fourscore years after the death of Christ, the Christians +of Bithynia, declared before the tribunal of Pliny, that they +invoked him as a god: and his divine honors have been perpetuated +in every age and country, by the various sects who assume the +name of his disciples. Their tender reverence for the memory of +Christ, and their horror for the profane worship of any created +being, would have engaged them to assert the equal and absolute +divinity of the <strong><em>Logos</em></strong>, if their rapid +ascent towards the throne of heaven had not been imperceptibly +checked by the apprehension of violating the unity and sole +supremacy of the great Father of Christ and of the Universe. The +suspense and fluctuation produced in the minds of the Christians +by these opposite tendencies, may be observed in the writings of +the theologians who flourished after the end of the apostolic +age, and before the origin of the Arian controversy. Their +suffrage is claimed, with equal confidence, by the orthodox and +by the heretical parties; and the most inquisitive critics have +fairly allowed, that if they had the good fortune of possessing +the Catholic verity, they have delivered their conceptions in +loose, inaccurate, and sometimes contradictory language.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The +Church. -- Part III.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>II. The devotion of individuals was the first circumstance +which distinguished the Christians from the Platonists: the +second was the authority of the church. The disciples of +philosophy asserted the rights of intellectual freedom, and their +respect for the sentiments of their teachers was a liberal and +voluntary tribute, which they offered to superior reason. But the +Christians formed a numerous and disciplined society; and the +jurisdiction of their laws and magistrates was strictly exercised +over the minds of the faithful. The loose wanderings of the +imagination were gradually confined by creeds and confessions; +the freedom of private judgment submitted to the public wisdom of +synods; the authority of a theologian was determined by his +ecclesiastical rank; and the episcopal successors of the apostles +inflicted the censures of the church on those who deviated from +the orthodox belief. But in an age of religious controversy, +every act of oppression adds new force to the elastic vigor of +the mind; and the zeal or obstinacy of a spiritual rebel was +sometimes stimulated by secret motives of ambition or avarice. A +metaphysical argument became the cause or pretence of political +contests; the subtleties of the Platonic school were used as the +badges of popular factions, and the distance which separated +their respective tenets were enlarged or magnified by the +acrimony of dispute. As long as the dark heresies of Praxeas and +Sabellius labored to confound the +<strong><em>Father</em></strong> with the +<strong><em>Son</em></strong>, the orthodox party might be +excused if they adhered more strictly and more earnestly to the +<strong><em>distinction</em></strong>, than to the +<strong><em>equality</em></strong>, of the divine persons. But as +soon as the heat of controversy had subsided, and the progress of +the Sabellians was no longer an object of terror to the churches +of Rome, of Africa, or of Egypt, the tide of theological opinion +began to flow with a gentle but steady motion towards the +contrary extreme; and the most orthodox doctors allowed +themselves the use of the terms and definitions which had been +censured in the mouth of the sectaries. After the edict of +toleration had restored peace and leisure to the Christians, the +Trinitarian controversy was revived in the ancient seat of +Platonism, the learned, the opulent, the tumultuous city of +Alexandria; and the flame of religious discord was rapidly +communicated from the schools to the clergy, the people, the +province, and the East. The abstruse question of the eternity of +the <strong><em>Logos</em></strong> was agitated in ecclesiastic +conferences and popular sermons; and the heterodox opinions of +Arius were soon made public by his own zeal, and by that of his +adversaries. His most implacable adversaries have acknowledged +the learning and blameless life of that eminent presbyter, who, +in a former election, had declared, and perhaps generously +declined, his pretensions to the episcopal throne. His competitor +Alexander assumed the office of his judge. The important cause +was argued before him; and if at first he seemed to hesitate, he +at length pronounced his final sentence, as an absolute rule of +faith. The undaunted presbyter, who presumed to resist the +authority of his angry bishop, was separated from the community +of the church. But the pride of Arius was supported by the +applause of a numerous party. He reckoned among his immediate +followers two bishops of Egypt, seven presbyters, twelve deacons, +and (what may appear almost incredible) seven hundred virgins. A +large majority of the bishops of Asia appeared to support or +favor his cause; and their measures were conducted by Eusebius of +Cæsarea, the most learned of the Christian prelates; and by +Eusebius of Nicomedia, who had acquired the reputation of a +statesman without forfeiting that of a saint. Synods in Palestine +and Bithynia were opposed to the synods of Egypt. The attention +of the prince and people was attracted by this theological +dispute; and the decision, at the end of six years, was referred +to the supreme authority of the general council of Nice.<br> +</p> + +<p>When the mysteries of the Christian faith were dangerously +exposed to public debate, it might be observed, that the human +understanding was capable of forming three district, though +imperfect systems, concerning the nature of the Divine Trinity; +and it was pronounced, that none of these systems, in a pure and +absolute sense, were exempt from heresy and error. I. According +to the first hypothesis, which was maintained by Arius and his +disciples, the <strong><em>Logos</em></strong> was a dependent +and spontaneous production, created from nothing by the will of +the father. The Son, by whom all things were made, had been +begotten before all worlds, and the longest of the astronomical +periods could be compared only as a fleeting moment to the extent +of his duration; yet this duration was not infinite, and there +<strong><em>had</em></strong> been a time which preceded the +ineffable generation of the <strong><em>Logos</em></strong>. On +this only-begotten Son, the Almighty Father had transfused his +ample spirit, and impressed the effulgence of his glory. Visible +image of invisible perfection, he saw, at an immeasurable +distance beneath his feet, the thrones of the brightest +archangels; yet he shone only with a reflected light, and, like +the sons of the Romans emperors, who were invested with the +titles of Cæsar or Augustus, he governed the universe in +obedience to the will of his Father and Monarch. II. In the +second hypothesis, the <strong><em>Logos</em></strong> possessed +all the inherent, incommunicable perfections, which religion and +philosophy appropriate to the Supreme God. Three distinct and +infinite minds or substances, three coëqual and +coëternal beings, composed the Divine Essence; and it would +have implied contradiction, that any of them should not have +existed, or that they should ever cease to exist. The advocates +of a system which seemed to establish three independent Deities, +attempted to preserve the unity of the First Cause, so +conspicuous in the design and order of the world, by the +perpetual concord of their administration, and the essential +agreement of their will. A faint resemblance of this unity of +action may be discovered in the societies of men, and even of +animals. The causes which disturb their harmony, proceed only +from the imperfection and inequality of their faculties; but the +omnipotence which is guided by infinite wisdom and goodness, +cannot fail of choosing the same means for the accomplishment of +the same ends. III. Three beings, who, by the self-derived +necessity of their existence, possess all the divine attributes +in the most perfect degree; who are eternal in duration, infinite +in space, and intimately present to each other, and to the whole +universe; irresistibly force themselves on the astonished mind, +as one and the same being, who, in the economy of grace, as well +as in that of nature, may manifest himself under different forms, +and be considered under different aspects. By this hypothesis, a +real substantial trinity is refined into a trinity of names, and +abstract modifications, that subsist only in the mind which +conceives them. The <strong><em>Logos</em></strong> is no longer +a person, but an attribute; and it is only in a figurative sense +that the epithet of Son can be applied to the eternal reason, +which was with God from the beginning, and by +<strong><em>which</em></strong>, not by +<strong><em>whom</em></strong>, all things were made. The +incarnation of the <strong><em>Logos</em></strong> is reduced to +a mere inspiration of the Divine Wisdom, which filled the soul, +and directed all the actions, of the man Jesus. Thus, after +revolving around the theological circle, we are surprised to find +that the Sabellian ends where the Ebionite had begun; and that +the incomprehensible mystery which excites our adoration, eludes +our inquiry.<br> +</p> + +<p>If the bishops of the council of Nice had been permitted to +follow the unbiased dictates of their conscience, Arius and his +associates could scarcely have flattered themselves with the +hopes of obtaining a majority of votes, in favor of an hypothesis +so directly averse to the two most popular opinions of the +Catholic world. The Arians soon perceived the danger of their +situation, and prudently assumed those modest virtues, which, in +the fury of civil and religious dissensions, are seldom +practised, or even praised, except by the weaker party. They +recommended the exercise of Christian charity and moderation; +urged the incomprehensible nature of the controversy, disclaimed +the use of any terms or definitions which could not be found in +the Scriptures; and offered, by very liberal concessions, to +satisfy their adversaries without renouncing the integrity of +their own principles. The victorious faction received all their +proposals with haughty suspicion; and anxiously sought for some +irreconcilable mark of distinction, the rejection of which might +involve the Arians in the guilt and consequences of heresy. A +letter was publicly read, and ignominiously torn, in which their +patron, Eusebius of Nicomedia, ingenuously confessed, that the +admission of the Homoousion, or Consubstantial, a word already +familiar to the Platonists, was incompatible with the principles +of their theological system. The fortunate opportunity was +eagerly embraced by the bishops, who governed the resolutions of +the synod; and, according to the lively expression of Ambrose, +they used the sword, which heresy itself had drawn from the +scabbard, to cut off the head of the hated monster. The +consubstantiality of the Father and the Son was established by +the council of Nice, and has been unanimously received as a +fundamental article of the Christian faith, by the consent of the +Greek, the Latin, the Oriental, and the Protestant churches. But +if the same word had not served to stigmatize the heretics, and +to unite the Catholics, it would have been inadequate to the +purpose of the majority, by whom it was introduced into the +orthodox creed. This majority was divided into two parties, +distinguished by a contrary tendency to the sentiments of the +Tritheists and of the Sabellians. But as those opposite extremes +seemed to overthrow the foundations either of natural or revealed +religion, they mutually agreed to qualify the rigor of their +principles; and to disavow the just, but invidious, consequences, +which might be urged by their antagonists. The interest of the +common cause inclined them to join their numbers, and to conceal +their differences; their animosity was softened by the healing +counsels of toleration, and their disputes were suspended by the +use of the mysterious <strong><em>Homoousion</em></strong>, which +either party was free to interpret according to their peculiar +tenets. The Sabellian sense, which, about fifty years before, had +obliged the council of Antioch to prohibit this celebrated term, +had endeared it to those theologians who entertained a secret but +partial affection for a nominal Trinity. But the more fashionable +saints of the Arian times, the intrepid Athanasius, the learned +Gregory Nazianzen, and the other pillars of the church, who +supported with ability and success the Nicene doctrine, appeared +to consider the expression of <strong><em>substance</em></strong> +as if it had been synonymous with that of +<strong><em>nature</em></strong>; and they ventured to illustrate +their meaning, by affirming that three men, as they belong to the +same common species, are consubstantial, or homoousian to each +other. This pure and distinct equality was tempered, on the one +hand, by the internal connection, and spiritual penetration which +indissolubly unites the divine persons; and, on the other, by the +preeminence of the Father, which was acknowledged as far as it is +compatible with the independence of the Son. Within these limits, +the almost invisible and tremulous ball of orthodoxy was allowed +securely to vibrate. On either side, beyond this consecrated +ground, the heretics and the dæmons lurked in ambush to +surprise and devour the unhappy wanderer. But as the degrees of +theological hatred depend on the spirit of the war, rather than +on the importance of the controversy, the heretics who degraded, +were treated with more severity than those who annihilated, the +person of the Son. The life of Athanasius was consumed in +irreconcilable opposition to the impious madness of the +<strong><em>Arians</em></strong>; but he defended above twenty +years the Sabellianism of Marcellus of Ancyra; and when at last +he was compelled to withdraw himself from his communion, he +continued to mention, with an ambiguous smile, the venial errors +of his respectable friend.<br> +</p> + +<p>The authority of a general council, to which the Arians +themselves had been compelled to submit, inscribed on the banners +of the orthodox party the mysterious characters of the word +<strong><em>Homoousion</em></strong>, which essentially +contributed, notwithstanding some obscure disputes, some +nocturnal combats, to maintain and perpetuate the uniformity of +faith, or at least of language. The Consubstantialists, who by +their success have deserved and obtained the title of Catholics, +gloried in the simplicity and steadiness of their own creed, and +insulted the repeated variations of their adversaries, who were +destitute of any certain rule of faith. The sincerity or the +cunning of the Arian chiefs, the fear of the laws or of the +people, their reverence for Christ, their hatred of Athanasius, +all the causes, human and divine, that influence and disturb the +counsels of a theological faction, introduced among the sectaries +a spirit of discord and inconstancy, which, in the course of a +few years, erected eighteen different models of religion, and +avenged the violated dignity of the church. The zealous Hilary, +who, from the peculiar hardships of his situation, was inclined +to extenuate rather than to aggravate the errors of the Oriental +clergy, declares, that in the wide extent of the ten provinces of +Asia, to which he had been banished, there could be found very +few prelates who had preserved the knowledge of the true God. The +oppression which he had felt, the disorders of which he was the +spectator and the victim, appeased, during a short interval, the +angry passions of his soul; and in the following passage, of +which I shall transcribe a few lines, the bishop of Poitiers +unwarily deviates into the style of a Christian philosopher. "It +is a thing," says Hilary, "equally deplorable and dangerous, that +there are as many creeds as opinions among men, as many doctrines +as inclinations, and as many sources of blasphemy as there are +faults among us; because we make creeds arbitrarily, and explain +them as arbitrarily. The Homoousion is rejected, and received, +and explained away by successive synods. The partial or total +resemblance of the Father and of the Son is a subject of dispute +for these unhappy times. Every year, nay, every moon, we make new +creeds to describe invisible mysteries. We repent of what we have +done, we defend those who repent, we anathematize those whom we +defended. We condemn either the doctrine of others in ourselves, +or our own in that of others; and reciprocally tearing one +another to pieces, we have been the cause of each other's +ruin."<br> +</p> + +<p>It will not be expected, it would not perhaps be endured, that +I should swell this theological digression, by a minute +examination of the eighteen creeds, the authors of which, for the +most part, disclaimed the odious name of their parent Arius. It +is amusing enough to delineate the form, and to trace the +vegetation, of a singular plant; but the tedious detail of leaves +without flowers, and of branches without fruit, would soon +exhaust the patience, and disappoint the curiosity, of the +laborious student. One question, which gradually arose from the +Arian controversy, may, however, be noticed, as it served to +produce and discriminate the three sects, who were united only by +their common aversion to the Homoousion of the Nicene synod. +<strong>1</strong>. If they were asked whether the Son was like +unto the Father, the question was resolutely answered in the +negative, by the heretics who adhered to the principles of Arius, +or indeed to those of philosophy; which seem to establish an +infinite difference between the Creator and the most excellent of +his creatures. This obvious consequence was maintained by +Ætius, on whom the zeal of his adversaries bestowed the +surname of the Atheist. His restless and aspiring spirit urged +him to try almost every profession of human life. He was +successively a slave, or at least a husbandman, a travelling +tinker, a goldsmith, a physician, a schoolmaster, a theologian, +and at last the apostle of a new church, which was propagated by +the abilities of his disciple Eunomius. Armed with texts of +Scripture, and with captious syllogisms from the logic of +Aristotle, the subtle Ætius had acquired the fame of an +invincible disputant, whom it was impossible either to silence or +to convince. Such talents engaged the friendship of the Arian +bishops, till they were forced to renounce, and even to +persecute, a dangerous ally, who, by the accuracy of his +reasoning, had prejudiced their cause in the popular opinion, and +offended the piety of their most devoted followers. +<strong>2</strong>. The omnipotence of the Creator suggested a +specious and respectful solution of the +<strong><em>likeness</em></strong> of the Father and the Son; and +faith might humbly receive what reason could not presume to deny, +that the Supreme God might communicate his infinite perfections, +and create a being similar only to himself. These Arians were +powerfully supported by the weight and abilities of their +leaders, who had succeeded to the management of the Eusebian +interest, and who occupied the principal thrones of the East. +They detested, perhaps with some affectation, the impiety of +Ætius; they professed to believe, either without reserve, +or according to the Scriptures, that the Son was different from +all <strong><em>other</em></strong> creatures, and similar only +to the Father. But they denied, the he was either of the same, or +of a similar substance; sometimes boldly justifying their +dissent, and sometimes objecting to the use of the word +substance, which seems to imply an adequate, or at least, a +distinct, notion of the nature of the Deity. <strong>3</strong>. +The sect which deserted the doctrine of a similar substance, was +the most numerous, at least in the provinces of Asia; and when +the leaders of both parties were assembled in the council of +Seleucia, <strong><em>their</em></strong> opinion would have +prevailed by a majority of one hundred and five to forty-three +bishops. The Greek word, which was chosen to express this +mysterious resemblance, bears so close an affinity to the +orthodox symbol, that the profane of every age have derided the +furious contests which the difference of a single diphthong +excited between the Homoousians and the Homoiousians. As it +frequently happens, that the sounds and characters which approach +the nearest to each other accidentally represent the most +opposite ideas, the observation would be itself ridiculous, if it +were possible to mark any real and sensible distinction between +the doctrine of the Semi-Arians, as they were improperly styled, +and that of the Catholics themselves. The bishop of Poitiers, who +in his Phrygian exile very wisely aimed at a coalition of +parties, endeavors to prove that by a pious and faithful +interpretation, the <strong><em>Homoiousion</em></strong> may be +reduced to a consubstantial sense. Yet he confesses that the word +has a dark and suspicious aspect; and, as if darkness were +congenial to theological disputes, the Semi-Arians, who advanced +to the doors of the church, assailed them with the most +unrelenting fury.<br> +</p> + +<p>The provinces of Egypt and Asia, which cultivated the language +and manners of the Greeks, had deeply imbibed the venom of the +Arian controversy. The familiar study of the Platonic system, a +vain and argumentative disposition, a copious and flexible idiom, +supplied the clergy and people of the East with an inexhaustible +flow of words and distinctions; and, in the midst of their fierce +contentions, they easily forgot the doubt which is recommended by +philosophy, and the submission which is enjoined by religion. The +inhabitants of the West were of a less inquisitive spirit; their +passions were not so forcibly moved by invisible objects, their +minds were less frequently exercised by the habits of dispute; +and such was the happy ignorance of the Gallican church, that +Hilary himself, above thirty years after the first general +council, was still a stranger to the Nicene creed. The Latins had +received the rays of divine knowledge through the dark and +doubtful medium of a translation. The poverty and stubbornness of +their native tongue was not always capable of affording just +equivalents for the Greek terms, for the technical words of the +Platonic philosophy, which had been consecrated, by the gospel or +by the church, to express the mysteries of the Christian faith; +and a verbal defect might introduce into the Latin theology a +long train of error or perplexity. But as the western provincials +had the good fortune of deriving their religion from an orthodox +source, they preserved with steadiness the doctrine which they +had accepted with docility; and when the Arian pestilence +approached their frontiers, they were supplied with the +seasonable preservative of the Homoousion, by the paternal care +of the Roman pontiff. Their sentiments and their temper were +displayed in the memorable synod of Rimini, which surpassed in +numbers the council of Nice, since it was composed of above four +hundred bishops of Italy, Africa, Spain, Gaul, Britain, and +Illyricum. From the first debates it appeared, that only +fourscore prelates adhered to the party, though +<strong><em>they</em></strong> affected to anathematize the name +and memory, of Arius. But this inferiority was compensated by the +advantages of skill, of experience, and of discipline; and the +minority was conducted by Valens and Ursacius, two bishops of +Illyricum, who had spent their lives in the intrigues of courts +and councils, and who had been trained under the Eusebian banner +in the religious wars of the East. By their arguments and +negotiations, they embarrassed, they confounded, they at last +deceived, the honest simplicity of the Latin bishops; who +suffered the palladium of the faith to be extorted from their +hand by fraud and importunity, rather than by open violence. The +council of Rimini was not allowed to separate, till the members +had imprudently subscribed a captious creed, in which some +expressions, susceptible of an heretical sense, were inserted in +the room of the Homoousion. It was on this occasion, that, +according to Jerom, the world was surprised to find itself Arian. +But the bishops of the Latin provinces had no sooner reached +their respective dioceses, than they discovered their mistake, +and repented of their weakness. The ignominious capitulation was +rejected with disdain and abhorrence; and the Homoousian +standard, which had been shaken but not overthrown, was more +firmly replanted in all the churches of the West.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The +Church. -- Part IV.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Such was the rise and progress, and such were the natural +revolutions of those theological disputes, which disturbed the +peace of Christianity under the reigns of Constantine and of his +sons. But as those princes presumed to extend their despotism +over the faith, as well as over the lives and fortunes, of their +subjects, the weight of their suffrage sometimes inclined the +ecclesiastical balance: and the prerogatives of the King of +Heaven were settled, or changed, or modified, in the cabinet of +an earthly monarch.<br> +</p> + +<p>The unhappy spirit of discord which pervaded the provinces of +the East, interrupted the triumph of Constantine; but the emperor +continued for some time to view, with cool and careless +indifference, the object of the dispute. As he was yet ignorant +of the difficulty of appeasing the quarrels of theologians, he +addressed to the contending parties, to Alexander and to Arius, a +moderating epistle; which may be ascribed, with far greater +reason, to the untutored sense of a soldier and statesman, than +to the dictates of any of his episcopal counsellors. He +attributes the origin of the whole controversy to a trifling and +subtle question, concerning an incomprehensible point of law, +which was foolishly asked by the bishop, and imprudently resolved +by the presbyter. He laments that the Christian people, who had +the same God, the same religion, and the same worship, should be +divided by such inconsiderable distinctions; and he seriously +recommend to the clergy of Alexandria the example of the Greek +philosophers; who could maintain their arguments without losing +their temper, and assert their freedom without violating their +friendship. The indifference and contempt of the sovereign would +have been, perhaps, the most effectual method of silencing the +dispute, if the popular current had been less rapid and +impetuous, and if Constantine himself, in the midst of faction +and fanaticism, could have preserved the calm possession of his +own mind. But his ecclesiastical ministers soon contrived to +seduce the impartiality of the magistrate, and to awaken the zeal +of the proselyte. He was provoked by the insults which had been +offered to his statues; he was alarmed by the real, as well as +the imaginary magnitude of the spreading mischief; and he +extinguished the hope of peace and toleration, from the moment +that he assembled three hundred bishops within the walls of the +same palace. The presence of the monarch swelled the importance +of the debate; his attention multiplied the arguments; and he +exposed his person with a patient intrepidity, which animated the +valor of the combatants. Notwithstanding the applause which has +been bestowed on the eloquence and sagacity of Constantine, a +Roman general, whose religion might be still a subject of doubt, +and whose mind had not been enlightened either by study or by +inspiration, was indifferently qualified to discuss, in the Greek +language, a metaphysical question, or an article of faith. But +the credit of his favorite Osius, who appears to have presided in +the council of Nice, might dispose the emperor in favor of the +orthodox party; and a well-timed insinuation, that the same +Eusebius of Nicomedia, who now protected the heretic, had lately +assisted the tyrant, might exasperate him against their +adversaries. The Nicene creed was ratified by Constantine; and +his firm declaration, that those who resisted the divine judgment +of the synod, must prepare themselves for an immediate exile, +annihilated the murmurs of a feeble opposition; which, from +seventeen, was almost instantly reduced to two, protesting +bishops. Eusebius of Cæsarea yielded a reluctant and +ambiguous consent to the Homoousion; and the wavering conduct of +the Nicomedian Eusebius served only to delay, about three months, +his disgrace and exile. The impious Arius was banished into one +of the remote provinces of Illyricum; his person and disciples +were branded by law with the odious name of Porphyrians; his +writings were condemned to the flames, and a capital punishment +was denounced against those in whose possession they should be +found. The emperor had now imbibed the spirit of controversy, and +the angry, sarcastic style of his edicts was designed to inspire +his subjects with the hatred which he had conceived against the +enemies of Christ.<br> +</p> + +<p>But, as if the conduct of the emperor had been guided by +passion instead of principle, three years from the council of +Nice were scarcely elapsed before he discovered some symptoms of +mercy, and even of indulgence, towards the proscribed sect, which +was secretly protected by his favorite sister. The exiles were +recalled, and Eusebius, who gradually resumed his influence over +the mind of Constantine, was restored to the episcopal throne, +from which he had been ignominiously degraded. Arius himself was +treated by the whole court with the respect which would have been +due to an innocent and oppressed man. His faith was approved by +the synod of Jerusalem; and the emperor seemed impatient to +repair his injustice, by issuing an absolute command, that he +should be solemnly admitted to the communion in the cathedral of +Constantinople. On the same day, which had been fixed for the +triumph of Arius, he expired; and the strange and horrid +circumstances of his death might excite a suspicion, that the +orthodox saints had contributed more efficaciously than by their +prayers, to deliver the church from the most formidable of her +enemies. The three principal leaders of the Catholics, Athanasius +of Alexandria, Eustathius of Antioch, and Paul of Constantinople +were deposed on various f accusations, by the sentence of +numerous councils; and were afterwards banished into distant +provinces by the first of the Christian emperors, who, in the +last moments of his life, received the rites of baptism from the +Arian bishop of Nicomedia. The ecclesiastical government of +Constantine cannot be justified from the reproach of levity and +weakness. But the credulous monarch, unskilled in the stratagems +of theological warfare, might be deceived by the modest and +specious professions of the heretics, whose sentiments he never +perfectly understood; and while he protected Arius, and +persecuted Athanasius, he still considered the council of Nice as +the bulwark of the Christian faith, and the peculiar glory of his +own reign.<br> +</p> + +<p>The sons of Constantine must have been admitted from their +childhood into the rank of catechumens; but they imitated, in the +delay of their baptism, the example of their father. Like him +they presumed to pronounce their judgment on mysteries into which +they had never been regularly initiated; and the fate of the +Trinitarian controversy depended, in a great measure, on the +sentiments of Constantius; who inherited the provinces of the +East, and acquired the possession of the whole empire. The Arian +presbyter or bishop, who had secreted for his use the testament +of the deceased emperor, improved the fortunate occasion which +had introduced him to the familiarity of a prince, whose public +counsels were always swayed by his domestic favorites. The +eunuchs and slaves diffused the spiritual poison through the +palace, and the dangerous infection was communicated by the +female attendants to the guards, and by the empress to her +unsuspicious husband. The partiality which Constantius always +expressed towards the Eusebian faction, was insensibly fortified +by the dexterous management of their leaders; and his victory +over the tyrant Magnentius increased his inclination, as well as +ability, to employ the arms of power in the cause of Arianism. +While the two armies were engaged in the plains of Mursa, and the +fate of the two rivals depended on the chance of war, the son of +Constantine passed the anxious moments in a church of the martyrs +under the walls of the city. His spiritual comforter, Valens, the +Arian bishop of the diocese, employed the most artful precautions +to obtain such early intelligence as might secure either his +favor or his escape. A secret chain of swift and trusty +messengers informed him of the vicissitudes of the battle; and +while the courtiers stood trembling round their affrighted +master, Valens assured him that the Gallic legions gave way; and +insinuated with some presence of mind, that the glorious event +had been revealed to him by an angel. The grateful emperor +ascribed his success to the merits and intercession of the bishop +of Mursa, whose faith had deserved the public and miraculous +approbation of Heaven. The Arians, who considered as their own +the victory of Constantius, preferred his glory to that of his +father. Cyril, bishop of Jerusalem, immediately composed the +description of a celestial cross, encircled with a splendid +rainbow; which during the festival of Pentecost, about the third +hour of the day, had appeared over the Mount of Olives, to the +edification of the devout pilgrims, and the people of the holy +city. The size of the meteor was gradually magnified; and the +Arian historian has ventured to affirm, that it was conspicuous +to the two armies in the plains of Pannonia; and that the tyrant, +who is purposely represented as an idolater, fled before the +auspicious sign of orthodox Christianity.<br> +</p> + +<p>The sentiments of a judicious stranger, who has impartially +considered the progress of civil or ecclesiastical discord, are +always entitled to our notice; and a short passage of Ammianus, +who served in the armies, and studied the character of +Constantius, is perhaps of more value than many pages of +theological invectives. "The Christian religion, which, in +itself," says that moderate historian, "is plain and simple, +<strong><em>he</em></strong> confounded by the dotage of +superstition. Instead of reconciling the parties by the weight of +his authority, he cherished and promulgated, by verbal disputes, +the differences which his vain curiosity had excited. The +highways were covered with troops of bishops galloping from every +side to the assemblies, which they call synods; and while they +labored to reduce the whole sect to their own particular +opinions, the public establishment of the posts was almost ruined +by their hasty and repeated journeys." Our more intimate +knowledge of the ecclesiastical transactions of the reign of +Constantius would furnish an ample commentary on this remarkable +passage, which justifies the rational apprehensions of +Athanasius, that the restless activity of the clergy, who +wandered round the empire in search of the true faith, would +excite the contempt and laughter of the unbelieving world. As +soon as the emperor was relieved from the terrors of the civil +war, he devoted the leisure of his winter quarters at Arles, +Milan, Sirmium, and Constantinople, to the amusement or toils of +controversy: the sword of the magistrate, and even of the tyrant, +was unsheathed, to enforce the reasons of the theologian; and as +he opposed the orthodox faith of Nice, it is readily confessed +that his incapacity and ignorance were equal to his presumption. +The eunuchs, the women, and the bishops, who governed the vain +and feeble mind of the emperor, had inspired him with an +insuperable dislike to the Homoousion; but his timid conscience +was alarmed by the impiety of Ætius. The guilt of that +atheist was aggravated by the suspicious favor of the unfortunate +Gallus; and even the death of the Imperial ministers, who had +been massacred at Antioch, were imputed to the suggestions of +that dangerous sophist. The mind of Constantius, which could +neither be moderated by reason, nor fixed by faith, was blindly +impelled to either side of the dark and empty abyss, by his +horror of the opposite extreme; he alternately embraced and +condemned the sentiments, he successively banished and recalled +the leaders, of the Arian and Semi-Arian factions. During the +season of public business or festivity, he employed whole days, +and even nights, in selecting the words, and weighing the +syllables, which composed his fluctuating creeds. The subject of +his meditations still pursued and occupied his slumbers: the +incoherent dreams of the emperor were received as celestial +visions, and he accepted with complacency the lofty title of +bishop of bishops, from those ecclesiastics who forgot the +interest of their order for the gratification of their passions. +The design of establishing a uniformity of doctrine, which had +engaged him to convene so many synods in Gaul, Italy, Illyricum, +and Asia, was repeatedly baffled by his own levity, by the +divisions of the Arians, and by the resistance of the Catholics; +and he resolved, as the last and decisive effort, imperiously to +dictate the decrees of a general council. The destructive +earthquake of Nicomedia, the difficulty of finding a convenient +place, and perhaps some secret motives of policy, produced an +alteration in the summons. The bishops of the East were directed +to meet at Seleucia, in Isauria; while those of the West held +their deliberations at Rimini, on the coast of the Hadriatic; and +instead of two or three deputies from each province, the whole +episcopal body was ordered to march. The Eastern council, after +consuming four days in fierce and unavailing debate, separated +without any definitive conclusion. The council of the West was +protracted till the seventh month. Taurus, the Prætorian +præfect was instructed not to dismiss the prelates till +they should all be united in the same opinion; and his efforts +were supported by the power of banishing fifteen of the most +refractory, and a promise of the consulship if he achieved so +difficult an adventure. His prayers and threats, the authority of +the sovereign, the sophistry of Valens and Ursacius, the distress +of cold and hunger, and the tedious melancholy of a hopeless +exile, at length extorted the reluctant consent of the bishops of +Rimini. The deputies of the East and of the West attended the +emperor in the palace of Constantinople, and he enjoyed the +satisfaction of imposing on the world a profession of faith which +established the likeness, without expressing the +<strong><em>consubstantiality</em></strong>, of the Son of God. +But the triumph of Arianism had been preceded by the removal of +the orthodox clergy, whom it was impossible either to intimidate +or to corrupt; and the reign of Constantius was disgraced by the +unjust and ineffectual persecution of the great Athanasius.<br> +</p> + +<p>We have seldom an opportunity of observing, either in active +or speculative life, what effect may be produced, or what +obstacles may be surmounted, by the force of a single mind, when +it is inflexibly applied to the pursuit of a single object. The +immortal name of Athanasius will never be separated from the +Catholic doctrine of the Trinity, to whose defence he consecrated +every moment and every faculty of his being. Educated in the +family of Alexander, he had vigorously opposed the early progress +of the Arian heresy: he exercised the important functions of +secretary under the aged prelate; and the fathers of the Nicene +council beheld with surprise and respect the rising virtues of +the young deacon. In a time of public danger, the dull claims of +age and of rank are sometimes superseded; and within five months +after his return from Nice, the deacon Athanasius was seated on +the archiepiscopal throne of Egypt. He filled that eminent +station above forty-six years, and his long administration was +spent in a perpetual combat against the powers of Arianism. Five +times was Athanasius expelled from his throne; twenty years he +passed as an exile or a fugitive: and almost every province of +the Roman empire was successively witness to his merit, and his +sufferings in the cause of the Homoousion, which he considered as +the sole pleasure and business, as the duty, and as the glory of +his life. Amidst the storms of persecution, the archbishop of +Alexandria was patient of labor, jealous of fame, careless of +safety; and although his mind was tainted by the contagion of +fanaticism, Athanasius displayed a superiority of character and +abilities, which would have qualified him, far better than the +degenerate sons of Constantine, for the government of a great +monarchy. His learning was much less profound and extensive than +that of Eusebius of Cæsarea, and his rude eloquence could +not be compared with the polished oratory of Gregory of Basil; +but whenever the primate of Egypt was called upon to justify his +sentiments, or his conduct, his unpremeditated style, either of +speaking or writing, was clear, forcible, and persuasive. He has +always been revered, in the orthodox school, as one of the most +accurate masters of the Christian theology; and he was supposed +to possess two profane sciences, less adapted to the episcopal +character, the knowledge of jurisprudence, and that of +divination. Some fortunate conjectures of future events, which +impartial reasoners might ascribe to the experience and judgment +of Athanasius, were attributed by his friends to heavenly +inspiration, and imputed by his enemies to infernal magic.<br> +</p> + +<p>But as Athanasius was continually engaged with the prejudices +and passions of every order of men, from the monk to the emperor, +the knowledge of human nature was his first and most important +science. He preserved a distinct and unbroken view of a scene +which was incessantly shifting; and never failed to improve those +decisive moments which are irrecoverably past before they are +perceived by a common eye. The archbishop of Alexandria was +capable of distinguishing how far he might boldly command, and +where he must dexterously insinuate; how long he might contend +with power, and when he must withdraw from persecution; and while +he directed the thunders of the church against heresy and +rebellion, he could assume, in the bosom of his own party, the +flexible and indulgent temper of a prudent leader. The election +of Athanasius has not escaped the reproach of irregularity and +precipitation; but the propriety of his behavior conciliated the +affections both of the clergy and of the people. The Alexandrians +were impatient to rise in arms for the defence of an eloquent and +liberal pastor. In his distress he always derived support, or at +least consolation, from the faithful attachment of his parochial +clergy; and the hundred bishops of Egypt adhered, with unshaken +zeal, to the cause of Athanasius. In the modest equipage which +pride and policy would affect, he frequently performed the +episcopal visitation of his provinces, from the mouth of the Nile +to the confines of Æthiopia; familiarly conversing with the +meanest of the populace, and humbly saluting the saints and +hermits of the desert. Nor was it only in ecclesiastical +assemblies, among men whose education and manners were similar to +his own, that Athanasius displayed the ascendancy of his genius. +He appeared with easy and respectful firmness in the courts of +princes; and in the various turns of his prosperous and adverse +fortune he never lost the confidence of his friends, or the +esteem of his enemies.<br> +</p> + +<p>In his youth, the primate of Egypt resisted the great +Constantine, who had repeatedly signified his will, that Arius +should be restored to the Catholic communion. The emperor +respected, and might forgive, this inflexible resolution; and the +faction who considered Athanasius as their most formidable enemy, +was constrained to dissemble their hatred, and silently to +prepare an indirect and distant assault. They scattered rumors +and suspicions, represented the archbishop as a proud and +oppressive tyrant, and boldly accused him of violating the treaty +which had been ratified in the Nicene council, with the +schismatic followers of Meletius. Athanasius had openly +disapproved that ignominious peace, and the emperor was disposed +to believe that he had abused his ecclesiastical and civil power, +to prosecute those odious sectaries: that he had sacrilegiously +broken a chalice in one of their churches of Mareotis; that he +had whipped or imprisoned six of their bishops; and that +Arsenius, a seventh bishop of the same party, had been murdered, +or at least mutilated, by the cruel hand of the primate. These +charges, which affected his honor and his life, were referred by +Constantine to his brother Dalmatius the censor, who resided at +Antioch; the synods of Cæsarea and Tyre were successively +convened; and the bishops of the East were instructed to judge +the cause of Athanasius, before they proceeded to consecrate the +new church of the Resurrection at Jerusalem. The primate might be +conscious of his innocence; but he was sensible that the same +implacable spirit which had dictated the accusation, would direct +the proceeding, and pronounce the sentence. He prudently declined +the tribunal of his enemies; despised the summons of the synod of +Cæsarea; and, after a long and artful delay, submitted to +the peremptory commands of the emperor, who threatened to punish +his criminal disobedience if he refused to appear in the council +of Tyre. Before Athanasius, at the head of fifty Egyptian +prelates, sailed from Alexandria, he had wisely secured the +alliance of the Meletians; and Arsenius himself, his imaginary +victim, and his secret friend, was privately concealed in his +train. The synod of Tyre was conducted by Eusebius of +Cæsarea, with more passion, and with less art, than his +learning and experience might promise; his numerous faction +repeated the names of homicide and tyrant; and their clamors were +encouraged by the seeming patience of Athanasius, who expected +the decisive moment to produce Arsenius alive and unhurt in the +midst of the assembly. The nature of the other charges did not +admit of such clear and satisfactory replies; yet the archbishop +was able to prove, that in the village, where he was accused of +breaking a consecrated chalice, neither church nor altar nor +chalice could really exist. The Arians, who had secretly +determined the guilt and condemnation of their enemy, attempted, +however, to disguise their injustice by the imitation of judicial +forms: the synod appointed an episcopal commission of six +delegates to collect evidence on the spot; and this measure which +was vigorously opposed by the Egyptian bishops, opened new scenes +of violence and perjury. After the return of the deputies from +Alexandria, the majority of the council pronounced the final +sentence of degradation and exile against the primate of Egypt. +The decree, expressed in the fiercest language of malice and +revenge, was communicated to the emperor and the Catholic church; +and the bishops immediately resumed a mild and devout aspect, +such as became their holy pilgrimage to the Sepulchre of +Christ.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The +Church. -- Part V.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>But the injustice of these ecclesiastical judges had not been +countenanced by the submission, or even by the presence, of +Athanasius. He resolved to make a bold and dangerous experiment, +whether the throne was inaccessible to the voice of truth; and +before the final sentence could be pronounced at Tyre, the +intrepid primate threw himself into a bark which was ready to +hoist sail for the Imperial city. The request of a formal +audience might have been opposed or eluded; but Athanasius +concealed his arrival, watched the moment of Constantine's return +from an adjacent villa, and boldly encountered his angry +sovereign as he passed on horseback through the principal street +of Constantinople. So strange an apparition excited his surprise +and indignation; and the guards were ordered to remove the +importunate suitor; but his resentment was subdued by involuntary +respect; and the haughty spirit of the emperor was awed by the +courage and eloquence of a bishop, who implored his justice and +awakened his conscience. Constantine listened to the complaints +of Athanasius with impartial and even gracious attention; the +members of the synod of Tyre were summoned to justify their +proceedings; and the arts of the Eusebian faction would have been +confounded, if they had not aggravated the guilt of the primate, +by the dexterous supposition of an unpardonable offence; a +criminal design to intercept and detain the corn-fleet of +Alexandria, which supplied the subsistence of the new capital. +The emperor was satisfied that the peace of Egypt would be +secured by the absence of a popular leader; but he refused to +fill the vacancy of the archiepiscopal throne; and the sentence, +which, after long hesitation, he pronounced, was that of a +jealous ostracism, rather than of an ignominious exile. In the +remote province of Gaul, but in the hospitable court of Treves, +Athanasius passed about twenty eight months. The death of the +emperor changed the face of public affairs and, amidst the +general indulgence of a young reign, the primate was restored to +his country by an honorable edict of the younger Constantine, who +expressed a deep sense of the innocence and merit of his +venerable guest.<br> +</p> + +<p>The death of that prince exposed Athanasius to a second +persecution; and the feeble Constantius, the sovereign of the +East, soon became the secret accomplice of the Eusebians. Ninety +bishops of that sect or faction assembled at Antioch, under the +specious pretence of dedicating the cathedral. They composed an +ambiguous creed, which is faintly tinged with the colors of +Semi-Arianism, and twenty-five canons, which still regulate the +discipline of the orthodox Greeks. It was decided, with some +appearance of equity, that a bishop, deprived by a synod, should +not resume his episcopal functions till he had been absolved by +the judgment of an equal synod; the law was immediately applied +to the case of Athanasius; the council of Antioch pronounced, or +rather confirmed, his degradation: a stranger, named Gregory, was +seated on his throne; and Philagrius, the præfect of Egypt, +was instructed to support the new primate with the civil and +military powers of the province. Oppressed by the conspiracy of +the Asiatic prelates, Athanasius withdrew from Alexandria, and +passed three years as an exile and a suppliant on the holy +threshold of the Vatican. By the assiduous study of the Latin +language, he soon qualified himself to negotiate with the western +clergy; his decent flattery swayed and directed the haughty +Julius; the Roman pontiff was persuaded to consider his appeal as +the peculiar interest of the Apostolic see: and his innocence was +unanimously declared in a council of fifty bishops of Italy. At +the end of three years, the primate was summoned to the court of +Milan by the emperor Constans, who, in the indulgence of unlawful +pleasures, still professed a lively regard for the orthodox +faith. The cause of truth and justice was promoted by the +influence of gold, and the ministers of Constans advised their +sovereign to require the convocation of an ecclesiastical +assembly, which might act as the representatives of the Catholic +church. Ninety-four bishops of the West, seventy-six bishops of +the East, encountered each other at Sardica, on the verge of the +two empires, but in the dominions of the protector of Athanasius. +Their debates soon degenerated into hostile altercations; the +Asiatics, apprehensive for their personal safety, retired to +Philippopolis in Thrace; and the rival synods reciprocally hurled +their spiritual thunders against their enemies, whom they piously +condemned as the enemies of the true God. Their decrees were +published and ratified in their respective provinces: and +Athanasius, who in the West was revered as a saint, was exposed +as a criminal to the abhorrence of the East. The council of +Sardica reveals the first symptoms of discord and schism between +the Greek and Latin churches which were separated by the +accidental difference of faith, and the permanent distinction of +language.<br> +</p> + +<p>During his second exile in the West, Athanasius was frequently +admitted to the Imperial presence; at Capua, Lodi, Milan, Verona, +Padua, Aquileia, and Treves. The bishop of the diocese usually +assisted at these interviews; the master of the offices stood +before the veil or curtain of the sacred apartment; and the +uniform moderation of the primate might be attested by these +respectable witnesses, to whose evidence he solemnly appeals. +Prudence would undoubtedly suggest the mild and respectful tone +that became a subject and a bishop. In these familiar conferences +with the sovereign of the West, Athanasius might lament the error +of Constantius, but he boldly arraigned the guilt of his eunuchs +and his Arian prelates; deplored the distress and danger of the +Catholic church; and excited Constans to emulate the zeal and +glory of his father. The emperor declared his resolution of +employing the troops and treasures of Europe in the orthodox +cause; and signified, by a concise and peremptory epistle to his +brother Constantius, that unless he consented to the immediate +restoration of Athanasius, he himself, with a fleet and army, +would seat the archbishop on the throne of Alexandria. But this +religious war, so horrible to nature, was prevented by the timely +compliance of Constantius; and the emperor of the East +condescended to solicit a reconciliation with a subject whom he +had injured. Athanasius waited with decent pride, till he had +received three successive epistles full of the strongest +assurances of the protection, the favor, and the esteem of his +sovereign; who invited him to resume his episcopal seat, and who +added the humiliating precaution of engaging his principal +ministers to attest the sincerity of his intentions. They were +manifested in a still more public manner, by the strict orders +which were despatched into Egypt to recall the adherents of +Athanasius, to restore their privileges, to proclaim their +innocence, and to erase from the public registers the illegal +proceedings which had been obtained during the prevalence of the +Eusebian faction. After every satisfaction and security had been +given, which justice or even delicacy could require, the primate +proceeded, by slow journeys, through the provinces of Thrace, +Asia, and Syria; and his progress was marked by the abject homage +of the Oriental bishops, who excited his contempt without +deceiving his penetration. At Antioch he saw the emperor +Constantius; sustained, with modest firmness, the embraces and +protestations of his master, and eluded the proposal of allowing +the Arians a single church at Alexandria, by claiming, in the +other cities of the empire, a similar toleration for his own +party; a reply which might have appeared just and moderate in the +mouth of an independent prince. The entrance of the archbishop +into his capital was a triumphal procession; absence and +persecution had endeared him to the Alexandrians; his authority, +which he exercised with rigor, was more firmly established; and +his fame was diffused from Æthiopia to Britain, over the +whole extent of the Christian world.<br> +</p> + +<p>But the subject who has reduced his prince to the necessity of +dissembling, can never expect a sincere and lasting forgiveness; +and the tragic fate of Constans soon deprived Athanasius of a +powerful and generous protector. The civil war between the +assassin and the only surviving brother of Constans, which +afflicted the empire above three years, secured an interval of +repose to the Catholic church; and the two contending parties +were desirous to conciliate the friendship of a bishop, who, by +the weight of his personal authority, might determine the +fluctuating resolutions of an important province. He gave +audience to the ambassadors of the tyrant, with whom he was +afterwards accused of holding a secret correspondence; and the +emperor Constantius repeatedly assured his dearest father, the +most reverend Athanasius, that, notwithstanding the malicious +rumors which were circulated by their common enemies, he had +inherited the sentiments, as well as the throne, of his deceased +brother. Gratitude and humanity would have disposed the primate +of Egypt to deplore the untimely fate of Constans, and to abhor +the guilt of Magnentius; but as he clearly understood that the +apprehensions of Constantius were his only safeguard, the fervor +of his prayers for the success of the righteous cause might +perhaps be somewhat abated. The ruin of Athanasius was no longer +contrived by the obscure malice of a few bigoted or angry +bishops, who abused the authority of a credulous monarch. The +monarch himself avowed the resolution, which he had so long +suppressed, of avenging his private injuries; and the first +winter after his victory, which he passed at Arles, was employed +against an enemy more odious to him than the vanquished tyrant of +Gaul.<br> +</p> + +<p>If the emperor had capriciously decreed the death of the most +eminent and virtuous citizen of the republic, the cruel order +would have been executed without hesitation, by the ministers of +open violence or of specious injustice. The caution, the delay, +the difficulty with which he proceeded in the condemnation and +punishment of a popular bishop, discovered to the world that the +privileges of the church had already revived a sense of order and +freedom in the Roman government. The sentence which was +pronounced in the synod of Tyre, and subscribed by a large +majority of the Eastern bishops, had never been expressly +repealed; and as Athanasius had been once degraded from his +episcopal dignity by the judgment of his brethren, every +subsequent act might be considered as irregular, and even +criminal. But the memory of the firm and effectual support which +the primate of Egypt had derived from the attachment of the +Western church, engaged Constantius to suspend the execution of +the sentence till he had obtained the concurrence of the Latin +bishops. Two years were consumed in ecclesiastical negotiations; +and the important cause between the emperor and one of his +subjects was solemnly debated, first in the synod of Arles, and +afterwards in the great council of Milan, which consisted of +above three hundred bishops. Their integrity was gradually +undermined by the arguments of the Arians, the dexterity of the +eunuchs, and the pressing solicitations of a prince who gratified +his revenge at the expense of his dignity, and exposed his own +passions, whilst he influenced those of the clergy. Corruption, +the most infallible symptom of constitutional liberty, was +successfully practised; honors, gifts, and immunities were +offered and accepted as the price of an episcopal vote; and the +condemnation of the Alexandrian primate was artfully represented +as the only measure which could restore the peace and union of +the Catholic church. The friends of Athanasius were not, however, +wanting to their leader, or to their cause. With a manly spirit, +which the sanctity of their character rendered less dangerous, +they maintained, in public debate, and in private conference with +the emperor, the eternal obligation of religion and justice. They +declared, that neither the hope of his favor, nor the fear of his +displeasure, should prevail on them to join in the condemnation +of an absent, an innocent, a respectable brother. They affirmed, +with apparent reason, that the illegal and obsolete decrees of +the council of Tyre had long since been tacitly abolished by the +Imperial edicts, the honorable reestablishment of the archbishop +of Alexandria, and the silence or recantation of his most +clamorous adversaries. They alleged, that his innocence had been +attested by the unanimous bishops of Egypt, and had been +acknowledged in the councils of Rome and Sardica, by the +impartial judgment of the Latin church. They deplored the hard +condition of Athanasius, who, after enjoying so many years his +seat, his reputation, and the seeming confidence of his +sovereign, was again called upon to confute the most groundless +and extravagant accusations. Their language was specious; their +conduct was honorable: but in this long and obstinate contest, +which fixed the eyes of the whole empire on a single bishop, the +ecclesiastical factions were prepared to sacrifice truth and +justice to the more interesting object of defending or removing +the intrepid champion of the Nicene faith. The Arians still +thought it prudent to disguise, in ambiguous language, their real +sentiments and designs; but the orthodox bishops, armed with the +favor of the people, and the decrees of a general council, +insisted on every occasion, and particularly at Milan, that their +adversaries should purge themselves from the suspicion of heresy, +before they presumed to arraign the conduct of the great +Athanasius.<br> +</p> + +<p>But the voice of reason (if reason was indeed on the side of +Athanasius) was silenced by the clamors of a factious or venal +majority; and the councils of Arles and Milan were not dissolved, +till the archbishop of Alexandria had been solemnly condemned and +deposed by the judgment of the Western, as well as of the +Eastern, church. The bishops who had opposed, were required to +subscribe, the sentence, and to unite in religious communion with +the suspected leaders of the adverse party. A formulary of +consent was transmitted by the messengers of state to the absent +bishops: and all those who refused to submit their private +opinion to the public and inspired wisdom of the councils of +Arles and Milan, were immediately banished by the emperor, who +affected to execute the decrees of the Catholic church. Among +those prelates who led the honorable band of confessors and +exiles, Liberius of Rome, Osius of Cordova, Paulinus of Treves, +Dionysius of Milan, Eusebius of Vercellæ, Lucifer of +Cagliari and Hilary of Poitiers, may deserve to be particularly +distinguished. The eminent station of Liberius, who governed the +capital of the empire; the personal merit and long experience of +the venerable Osius, who was revered as the favorite of the great +Constantine, and the father of the Nicene faith, placed those +prelates at the head of the Latin church: and their example, +either of submission or resistance, would probable be imitated by +the episcopal crowd. But the repeated attempts of the emperor to +seduce or to intimidate the bishops of Rome and Cordova, were for +some time ineffectual. The Spaniard declared himself ready to +suffer under Constantius, as he had suffered threescore years +before under his grandfather Maximian. The Roman, in the presence +of his sovereign, asserted the innocence of Athanasius and his +own freedom. When he was banished to Beræa in Thrace, he +sent back a large sum which had been offered for the +accommodation of his journey; and insulted the court of Milan by +the haughty remark, that the emperor and his eunuchs might want +that gold to pay their soldiers and their bishops. The resolution +of Liberius and Osius was at length subdued by the hardships of +exile and confinement. The Roman pontiff purchased his return by +some criminal compliances; and afterwards expiated his guilt by a +seasonable repentance. Persuasion and violence were employed to +extort the reluctant signature of the decrepit bishop of Cordova, +whose strength was broken, and whose faculties were perhaps +impaired by the weight of a hundred years; and the insolent +triumph of the Arians provoked some of the orthodox party to +treat with inhuman severity the character, or rather the memory, +of an unfortunate old man, to whose former services Christianity +itself was so deeply indebted.<br> +</p> + +<p>The fall of Liberius and Osius reflected a brighter lustre on +the firmness of those bishops who still adhered, with unshaken +fidelity, to the cause of Athanasius and religious truth. The +ingenious malice of their enemies had deprived them of the +benefit of mutual comfort and advice, separated those illustrious +exiles into distant provinces, and carefully selected the most +inhospitable spots of a great empire. Yet they soon experienced +that the deserts of Libya, and the most barbarous tracts of +Cappadocia, were less inhospitable than the residence of those +cities in which an Arian bishop could satiate, without restraint, +the exquisite rancor of theological hatred. Their consolation was +derived from the consciousness of rectitude and independence, +from the applause, the visits, the letters, and the liberal alms +of their adherents, and from the satisfaction which they soon +enjoyed of observing the intestine divisions of the adversaries +of the Nicene faith. Such was the nice and capricious taste of +the emperor Constantius; and so easily was he offended by the +slightest deviation from his imaginary standard of Christian +truth, that he persecuted, with equal zeal, those who defended +the <strong><em>consubstantiality</em></strong>, those who +asserted the <strong><em>similar</em></strong> +<strong><em>substance</em></strong>, and those who denied the +<strong><em>likeness</em></strong> of the Son of God. Three +bishops, degraded and banished for those adverse opinions, might +possibly meet in the same place of exile; and, according to the +difference of their temper, might either pity or insult the blind +enthusiasm of their antagonists, whose present sufferings would +never be compensated by future happiness.<br> +</p> + +<p>The disgrace and exile of the orthodox bishops of the West +were designed as so many preparatory steps to the ruin of +Athanasius himself. Six-and-twenty months had elapsed, during +which the Imperial court secretly labored, by the most insidious +arts, to remove him from Alexandria, and to withdraw the +allowance which supplied his popular liberality. But when the +primate of Egypt, deserted and proscribed by the Latin church, +was left destitute of any foreign support, Constantius despatched +two of his secretaries with a verbal commission to announce and +execute the order of his banishment. As the justice of the +sentence was publicly avowed by the whole party, the only motive +which could restrain Constantius from giving his messengers the +sanction of a written mandate, must be imputed to his doubt of +the event; and to a sense of the danger to which he might expose +the second city, and the most fertile province, of the empire, if +the people should persist in the resolution of defending, by +force of arms, the innocence of their spiritual father. Such +extreme caution afforded Athanasius a specious pretence +respectfully to dispute the truth of an order, which he could not +reconcile, either with the equity, or with the former +declarations, of his gracious master. The civil powers of Egypt +found themselves inadequate to the task of persuading or +compelling the primate to abdicate his episcopal throne; and they +were obliged to conclude a treaty with the popular leaders of +Alexandria, by which it was stipulated, that all proceedings and +all hostilities should be suspended till the emperor's pleasure +had been more distinctly ascertained. By this seeming moderation, +the Catholics were deceived into a false and fatal security; +while the legions of the Upper Egypt, and of Libya, advanced, by +secret orders and hasty marches, to besiege, or rather to +surprise, a capital habituated to sedition, and inflamed by +religious zeal. The position of Alexandria, between the sea and +the Lake Mareotis, facilitated the approach and landing of the +troops; who were introduced into the heart of the city, before +any effectual measures could be taken either to shut the gates or +to occupy the important posts of defence. At the hour of +midnight, twenty-three days after the signature of the treaty, +Syrianus, duke of Egypt, at the head of five thousand soldiers, +armed and prepared for an assault, unexpectedly invested the +church of St. Theonas, where the archbishop, with a part of his +clergy and people, performed their nocturnal devotions. The doors +of the sacred edifice yielded to the impetuosity of the attack, +which was accompanied with every horrid circumstance of tumult +and bloodshed; but, as the bodies of the slain, and the fragments +of military weapons, remained the next day an unexceptionable +evidence in the possession of the Catholics, the enterprise of +Syrianus may be considered as a successful irruption rather than +as an absolute conquest. The other churches of the city were +profaned by similar outrages; and, during at least four months, +Alexandria was exposed to the insults of a licentious army, +stimulated by the ecclesiastics of a hostile faction. Many of the +faithful were killed; who may deserve the name of martyrs, if +their deaths were neither provoked nor revenged; bishops and +presbyters were treated with cruel ignominy; consecrated virgins +were stripped naked, scourged and violated; the houses of wealthy +citizens were plundered; and, under the mask of religious zeal, +lust, avarice, and private resentment were gratified with +impunity, and even with applause. The Pagans of Alexandria, who +still formed a numerous and discontented party, were easily +persuaded to desert a bishop whom they feared and esteemed. The +hopes of some peculiar favors, and the apprehension of being +involved in the general penalties of rebellion, engaged them to +promise their support to the destined successor of Athanasius, +the famous George of Cappadocia. The usurper, after receiving the +consecration of an Arian synod, was placed on the episcopal +throne by the arms of Sebastian, who had been appointed Count of +Egypt for the execution of that important design. In the use, as +well as in the acquisition, of power, the tyrant, George +disregarded the laws of religion, of justice, and of humanity; +and the same scenes of violence and scandal which had been +exhibited in the capital, were repeated in more than ninety +episcopal cities of Egypt. Encouraged by success, Constantius +ventured to approve the conduct of his minister. By a public and +passionate epistle, the emperor congratulates the deliverance of +Alexandria from a popular tyrant, who deluded his blind votaries +by the magic of his eloquence; expatiates on the virtues and +piety of the most reverend George, the elected bishop; and +aspires, as the patron and benefactor of the city to surpass the +fame of Alexander himself. But he solemnly declares his +unalterable resolution to pursue with fire and sword the +seditious adherents of the wicked Athanasius, who, by flying from +justice, has confessed his guilt, and escaped the ignominious +death which he had so often deserved.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The +Church. -- Part VI.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Athanasius had indeed escaped from the most imminent dangers; +and the adventures of that extraordinary man deserve and fix our +attention. On the memorable night when the church of St. Theonas +was invested by the troops of Syrianus, the archbishop, seated on +his throne, expected, with calm and intrepid dignity, the +approach of death. While the public devotion was interrupted by +shouts of rage and cries of terror, he animated his trembling +congregation to express their religious confidence, by chanting +one of the psalms of David which celebrates the triumph of the +God of Isræl over the haughty and impious tyrant of Egypt. +The doors were at length burst open: a cloud of arrows was +discharged among the people; the soldiers, with drawn swords, +rushed forwards into the sanctuary; and the dreadful gleam of +their arms was reflected by the holy luminaries which burnt round +the altar. Athanasius still rejected the pious importunity of the +monks and presbyters, who were attached to his person; and nobly +refused to desert his episcopal station, till he had dismissed in +safety the last of the congregation. The darkness and tumult of +the night favored the retreat of the archbishop; and though he +was oppressed by the waves of an agitated multitude, though he +was thrown to the ground, and left without sense or motion, he +still recovered his undaunted courage, and eluded the eager +search of the soldiers, who were instructed by their Arian +guides, that the head of Athanasius would be the most acceptable +present to the emperor. From that moment the primate of Egypt +disappeared from the eyes of his enemies, and remained above six +years concealed in impenetrable obscurity.<br> +</p> + +<p>The despotic power of his implacable enemy filled the whole +extent of the Roman world; and the exasperated monarch had +endeavored, by a very pressing epistle to the Christian princes +of Ethiopia, * to exclude Athanasius from the most remote and +sequestered regions of the earth. Counts, præfects, +tribunes, whole armies, were successively employed to pursue a +bishop and a fugitive; the vigilance of the civil and military +powers was excited by the Imperial edicts; liberal rewards were +promised to the man who should produce Athanasius, either alive +or dead; and the most severe penalties were denounced against +those who should dare to protect the public enemy. But the +deserts of Thebais were now peopled by a race of wild, yet +submissive fanatics, who preferred the commands of their abbot to +the laws of their sovereign. The numerous disciples of Antony and +Pachomius received the fugitive primate as their father, admired +the patience and humility with which he conformed to their +strictest institutions, collected every word which dropped from +his lips as the genuine effusions of inspired wisdom; and +persuaded themselves that their prayers, their fasts, and their +vigils, were less meritorious than the zeal which they expressed, +and the dangers which they braved, in the defence of truth and +innocence. The monasteries of Egypt were seated in lonely and +desolate places, on the summit of mountains, or in the islands of +the Nile; and the sacred horn or trumpet of Tabenne was the +well-known signal which assembled several thousand robust and +determined monks, who, for the most part, had been the peasants +of the adjacent country. When their dark retreats were invaded by +a military force, which it was impossible to resist, they +silently stretched out their necks to the executioner; and +supported their national character, that tortures could never +wrest from an Egyptian the confession of a secret which he was +resolved not to disclose. The archbishop of Alexandria, for whose +safety they eagerly devoted their lives, was lost among a uniform +and well-disciplined multitude; and on the nearer approach of +danger, he was swiftly removed, by their officious hands, from +one place of concealment to another, till he reached the +formidable deserts, which the gloomy and credulous temper of +superstition had peopled with dæmons and savage monsters. +The retirement of Athanasius, which ended only with the life of +Constantius, was spent, for the most part, in the society of the +monks, who faithfully served him as guards, as secretaries, and +as messengers; but the importance of maintaining a more intimate +connection with the Catholic party tempted him, whenever the +diligence of the pursuit was abated, to emerge from the desert, +to introduce himself into Alexandria, and to trust his person to +the discretion of his friends and adherents. His various +adventures might have furnished the subject of a very +entertaining romance. He was once secreted in a dry cistern, +which he had scarcely left before he was betrayed by the +treachery of a female slave; and he was once concealed in a still +more extraordinary asylum, the house of a virgin, only twenty +years of age, and who was celebrated in the whole city for her +exquisite beauty. At the hour of midnight, as she related the +story many years afterwards, she was surprised by the appearance +of the archbishop in a loose undress, who, advancing with hasty +steps, conjured her to afford him the protection which he had +been directed by a celestial vision to seek under her hospitable +roof. The pious maid accepted and preserved the sacred pledge +which was intrusted to her prudence and courage. Without +imparting the secret to any one, she instantly conducted +Athanasius into her most secret chamber, and watched over his +safety with the tenderness of a friend and the assiduity of a +servant. As long as the danger continued, she regularly supplied +him with books and provisions, washed his feet, managed his +correspondence, and dexterously concealed from the eye of +suspicion this familiar and solitary intercourse between a saint +whose character required the most unblemished chastity, and a +female whose charms might excite the most dangerous emotions. +During the six years of persecution and exile, Athanasius +repeated his visits to his fair and faithful companion; and the +formal declaration, that he <strong><em>saw</em></strong> the +councils of Rimini and Seleucia, forces us to believe that he was +secretly present at the time and place of their convocation. The +advantage of personally negotiating with his friends, and of +observing and improving the divisions of his enemies, might +justify, in a prudent statesman, so bold and dangerous an +enterprise: and Alexandria was connected by trade and navigation +with every seaport of the Mediterranean. From the depth of his +inaccessible retreat the intrepid primate waged an incessant and +offensive war against the protector of the Arians; and his +seasonable writings, which were diligently circulated and eagerly +perused, contributed to unite and animate the orthodox party. In +his public apologies, which he addressed to the emperor himself, +he sometimes affected the praise of moderation; whilst at the +same time, in secret and vehement invectives, he exposed +Constantius as a weak and wicked prince, the executioner of his +family, the tyrant of the republic, and the Antichrist of the +church. In the height of his prosperity, the victorious monarch, +who had chastised the rashness of Gallus, and suppressed the +revolt of Sylvanus, who had taken the diadem from the head of +Vetranio, and vanquished in the field the legions of Magnentius, +received from an invisible hand a wound, which he could neither +heal nor revenge; and the son of Constantine was the first of the +Christian princes who experienced the strength of those +principles, which, in the cause of religion, could resist the +most violent exertions of the civil power.<br> +</p> + +<p>The persecution of Athanasius, and of so many respectable +bishops, who suffered for the truth of their opinions, or at +least for the integrity of their conscience, was a just subject +of indignation and discontent to all Christians, except those who +were blindly devoted to the Arian faction. The people regretted +the loss of their faithful pastors, whose banishment was usually +followed by the intrusion of a stranger into the episcopal chair; +and loudly complained, that the right of election was violated, +and that they were condemned to obey a mercenary usurper, whose +person was unknown, and whose principles were suspected. The +Catholics might prove to the world, that they were not involved +in the guilt and heresy of their ecclesiastical governor, by +publicly testifying their dissent, or by totally separating +themselves from his communion. The first of these methods was +invented at Antioch, and practised with such success, that it was +soon diffused over the Christian world. The doxology or sacred +hymn, which celebrates the <strong><em>glory</em></strong> of the +Trinity, is susceptible of very nice, but material, inflections; +and the substance of an orthodox, or an heretical, creed, may be +expressed by the difference of a disjunctive, or a copulative, +particle. Alternate responses, and a more regular psalmody, were +introduced into the public service by Flavianus and Diodorus, two +devout and active laymen, who were attached to the Nicene faith. +Under their conduct a swarm of monks issued from the adjacent +desert, bands of well-disciplined singers were stationed in the +cathedral of Antioch, the Glory to the Father, And the Son, And +the Holy Ghost, was triumphantly chanted by a full chorus of +voices; and the Catholics insulted, by the purity of their +doctrine, the Arian prelate, who had usurped the throne of the +venerable Eustathius. The same zeal which inspired their songs +prompted the more scrupulous members of the orthodox party to +form separate assemblies, which were governed by the presbyters, +till the death of their exiled bishop allowed the election and +consecration of a new episcopal pastor. The revolutions of the +court multiplied the number of pretenders; and the same city was +often disputed, under the reign of Constantius, by two, or three, +or even four, bishops, who exercised their spiritual jurisdiction +over their respective followers, and alternately lost and +regained the temporal possessions of the church. The abuse of +Christianity introduced into the Roman government new causes of +tyranny and sedition; the bands of civil society were torn +asunder by the fury of religious factions; and the obscure +citizen, who might calmly have surveyed the elevation and fall of +successive emperors, imagined and experienced, that his own life +and fortune were connected with the interests of a popular +ecclesiastic. The example of the two capitals, Rome and +Constantinople, may serve to represent the state of the empire, +and the temper of mankind, under the reign of the sons of +Constantine.<br> +</p> + +<p>I. The Roman pontiff, as long as he maintained his station and +his principles, was guarded by the warm attachment of a great +people; and could reject with scorn the prayers, the menaces, and +the oblations of an heretical prince. When the eunuchs had +secretly pronounced the exile of Liberius, the well-grounded +apprehension of a tumult engaged them to use the utmost +precautions in the execution of the sentence. The capital was +invested on every side, and the præfect was commanded to +seize the person of the bishop, either by stratagem or by open +force. The order was obeyed, and Liberius, with the greatest +difficulty, at the hour of midnight, was swiftly conveyed beyond +the reach of the Roman people, before their consternation was +turned into rage. As soon as they were informed of his banishment +into Thrace, a general assembly was convened, and the clergy of +Rome bound themselves, by a public and solemn oath, never to +desert their bishop, never to acknowledge the usurper +Fælix; who, by the influence of the eunuchs, had been +irregularly chosen and consecrated within the walls of a profane +palace. At the end of two years, their pious obstinacy subsisted +entire and unshaken; and when Constantius visited Rome, he was +assailed by the importunate solicitations of a people, who had +preserved, as the last remnant of their ancient freedom, the +right of treating their sovereign with familiar insolence. The +wives of many of the senators and most honorable citizens, after +pressing their husbands to intercede in favor of Liberius, were +advised to undertake a commission, which in their hands would be +less dangerous, and might prove more successful. The emperor +received with politeness these female deputies, whose wealth and +dignity were displayed in the magnificence of their dress and +ornaments: he admired their inflexible resolution of following +their beloved pastor to the most distant regions of the earth; +and consented that the two bishops, Liberius and Fælix, +should govern in peace their respective congregations. But the +ideas of toleration were so repugnant to the practice, and even +to the sentiments, of those times, that when the answer of +Constantius was publicly read in the Circus of Rome, so +reasonable a project of accommodation was rejected with contempt +and ridicule. The eager vehemence which animated the spectators +in the decisive moment of a horse-race, was now directed towards +a different object; and the Circus resounded with the shout of +thousands, who repeatedly exclaimed, "One God, One Christ, One +Bishop!" The zeal of the Roman people in the cause of Liberius +was not confined to words alone; and the dangerous and bloody +sedition which they excited soon after the departure of +Constantius determined that prince to accept the submission of +the exiled prelate, and to restore him to the undivided dominion +of the capital. After some ineffectual resistance, his rival was +expelled from the city by the permission of the emperor and the +power of the opposite faction; the adherents of Fælix were +inhumanly murdered in the streets, in the public places, in the +baths, and even in the churches; and the face of Rome, upon the +return of a Christian bishop, renewed the horrid image of the +massacres of Marius, and the proscriptions of Sylla.<br> +</p> + +<p>II. Notwithstanding the rapid increase of Christians under the +reign of the Flavian family, Rome, Alexandria, and the other +great cities of the empire, still contained a strong and powerful +faction of Infidels, who envied the prosperity, and who +ridiculed, even in their theatres, the theological disputes of +the church. Constantinople alone enjoyed the advantage of being +born and educated in the bosom of the faith. The capital of the +East had never been polluted by the worship of idols; and the +whole body of the people had deeply imbibed the opinions, the +virtues, and the passions, which distinguished the Christians of +that age from the rest of mankind. After the death of Alexander, +the episcopal throne was disputed by Paul and Macedonius. By +their zeal and abilities they both deserved the eminent station +to which they aspired; and if the moral character of Macedonius +was less exceptionable, his competitor had the advantage of a +prior election and a more orthodox doctrine. His firm attachment +to the Nicene creed, which has given Paul a place in the calendar +among saints and martyrs, exposed him to the resentment of the +Arians. In the space of fourteen years he was five times driven +from his throne; to which he was more frequently restored by the +violence of the people, than by the permission of the prince; and +the power of Macedonius could be secured only by the death of his +rival. The unfortunate Paul was dragged in chains from the sandy +deserts of Mesopotamia to the most desolate places of Mount +Taurus, confined in a dark and narrow dungeon, left six days +without food, and at length strangled, by the order of Philip, +one of the principal ministers of the emperor Constantius. The +first blood which stained the new capital was spilt in this +ecclesiastical contest; and many persons were slain on both +sides, in the furious and obstinate seditions of the people. The +commission of enforcing a sentence of banishment against Paul had +been intrusted to Hermogenes, the master-general of the cavalry; +but the execution of it was fatal to himself. The Catholics rose +in the defence of their bishop; the palace of Hermogenes was +consumed; the first military officer of the empire was dragged by +the heels through the streets of Constantinople, and, after he +expired, his lifeless corpse was exposed to their wanton insults. +The fate of Hermogenes instructed Philip, the Prætorian +præfect, to act with more precaution on a similar occasion. +In the most gentle and honorable terms, he required the +attendance of Paul in the baths of Zeuxippus, which had a private +communication with the palace and the sea. A vessel, which lay +ready at the garden stairs, immediately hoisted sail; and, while +the people were still ignorant of the meditated sacrilege, their +bishop was already embarked on his voyage to Thessalonica. They +soon beheld, with surprise and indignation, the gates of the +palace thrown open, and the usurper Macedonius seated by the side +of the præfect on a lofty chariot, which was surrounded by +troops of guards with drawn swords. The military procession +advanced towards the cathedral; the Arians and the Catholics +eagerly rushed to occupy that important post; and three thousand +one hundred and fifty persons lost their lives in the confusion +of the tumult. Macedonius, who was supported by a regular force, +obtained a decisive victory; but his reign was disturbed by +clamor and sedition; and the causes which appeared the least +connected with the subject of dispute, were sufficient to nourish +and to kindle the flame of civil discord. As the chapel in which +the body of the great Constantine had been deposited was in a +ruinous condition, the bishop transported those venerable remains +into the church of St. Acacius. This prudent and even pious +measure was represented as a wicked profanation by the whole +party which adhered to the Homoousian doctrine. The factions +immediately flew to arms, the consecrated ground was used as +their field of battle; and one of the ecclesiastical historians +has observed, as a real fact, not as a figure of rhetoric, that +the well before the church overflowed with a stream of blood, +which filled the porticos and the adjacent courts. The writer who +should impute these tumults solely to a religious principle, +would betray a very imperfect knowledge of human nature; yet it +must be confessed that the motive which misled the sincerity of +zeal, and the pretence which disguised the licentiousness of +passion, suppressed the remorse which, in another cause, would +have succeeded to the rage of the Christians at +Constantinople.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXI: Persecution Of Heresy, State Of The +Church. -- Part VII.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The cruel and arbitrary disposition of Constantius, which did +not always require the provocations of guilt and resistance, was +justly exasperated by the tumults of his capital, and the +criminal behavior of a faction, which opposed the authority and +religion of their sovereign. The ordinary punishments of death, +exile, and confiscation, were inflicted with partial vigor; and +the Greeks still revere the holy memory of two clerks, a reader, +and a sub-deacon, who were accused of the murder of Hermogenes, +and beheaded at the gates of Constantinople. By an edict of +Constantius against the Catholics which has not been judged +worthy of a place in the Theodosian code, those who refused to +communicate with the Arian bishops, and particularly with +Macedonius, were deprived of the immunities of ecclesiastics, and +of the rights of Christians; they were compelled to relinquish +the possession of the churches; and were strictly prohibited from +holding their assemblies within the walls of the city. The +execution of this unjust law, in the provinces of Thrace and Asia +Minor, was committed to the zeal of Macedonius; the civil and +military powers were directed to obey his commands; and the +cruelties exercised by this Semi-Arian tyrant in the support of +the <strong><em>Homoiousion</em></strong>, exceeded the +commission, and disgraced the reign, of Constantius. The +sacraments of the church were administered to the reluctant +victims, who denied the vocation, and abhorred the principles, of +Macedonius. The rites of baptism were conferred on women and +children, who, for that purpose, had been torn from the arms of +their friends and parents; the mouths of the communicants were +held open by a wooden engine, while the consecrated bread was +forced down their throat; the breasts of tender virgins were +either burnt with red-hot egg-shells, or inhumanly compressed +between sharp and heavy boards. The Novatians of Constantinople +and the adjacent country, by their firm attachment to the +Homoousian standard, deserved to be confounded with the Catholics +themselves. Macedonius was informed, that a large district of +Paphlagonia was almost entirely inhabited by those sectaries. He +resolved either to convert or to extirpate them; and as he +distrusted, on this occasion, the efficacy of an ecclesiastical +mission, he commanded a body of four thousand legionaries to +march against the rebels, and to reduce the territory of +Mantinium under his spiritual dominion. The Novatian peasants, +animated by despair and religious fury, boldly encountered the +invaders of their country; and though many of the Paphlagonians +were slain, the Roman legions were vanquished by an irregular +multitude, armed only with scythes and axes; and, except a few +who escaped by an ignominious flight, four thousand soldiers were +left dead on the field of battle. The successor of Constantius +has expressed, in a concise but lively manner, some of the +theological calamities which afflicted the empire, and more +especially the East, in the reign of a prince who was the slave +of his own passions, and of those of his eunuchs: "Many were +imprisoned, and persecuted, and driven into exile. Whole troops +of those who are styled heretics, were massacred, particularly at +Cyzicus, and at Samosata. In Paphlagonia, Bithynia, Galatia, and +in many other provinces, towns and villages were laid waste, and +utterly destroyed.<br> +</p> + +<p>While the flames of the Arian controversy consumed the vitals +of the empire, the African provinces were infested by their +peculiar enemies, the savage fanatics, who, under the name of +<strong><em>Circumcellions</em></strong>, formed the strength and +scandal of the Donatist party. The severe execution of the laws +of Constantine had excited a spirit of discontent and resistance, +the strenuous efforts of his son Constans, to restore the unity +of the church, exasperated the sentiments of mutual hatred, which +had first occasioned the separation; and the methods of force and +corruption employed by the two Imperial commissioners, Paul and +Macarius, furnished the schismatics with a specious contrast +between the maxims of the apostles and the conduct of their +pretended successors. The peasants who inhabited the villages of +Numidia and Mauritania, were a ferocious race, who had been +imperfectly reduced under the authority of the Roman laws; who +were imperfectly converted to the Christian faith; but who were +actuated by a blind and furious enthusiasm in the cause of their +Donatist teachers. They indignantly supported the exile of their +bishops, the demolition of their churches, and the interruption +of their secret assemblies. The violence of the officers of +justice, who were usually sustained by a military guard, was +sometimes repelled with equal violence; and the blood of some +popular ecclesiastics, which had been shed in the quarrel, +inflamed their rude followers with an eager desire of revenging +the death of these holy martyrs. By their own cruelty and +rashness, the ministers of persecution sometimes provoked their +fate; and the guilt of an accidental tumult precipitated the +criminals into despair and rebellion. Driven from their native +villages, the Donatist peasants assembled in formidable gangs on +the edge of the Getulian desert; and readily exchanged the habits +of labor for a life of idleness and rapine, which was consecrated +by the name of religion, and faintly condemned by the doctors of +the sect. The leaders of the Circumcellions assumed the title of +captains of the saints; their principal weapon, as they were +indifferently provided with swords and spears, was a huge and +weighty club, which they termed an +<strong><em>Israelite</em></strong>; and the well-known sound of +"Praise be to God," which they used as their cry of war, diffused +consternation over the unarmed provinces of Africa. At first +their depredations were colored by the plea of necessity; but +they soon exceeded the measure of subsistence, indulged without +control their intemperance and avarice, burnt the villages which +they had pillaged, and reigned the licentious tyrants of the open +country. The occupations of husbandry, and the administration of +justice, were interrupted; and as the Circumcellions pretended to +restore the primitive equality of mankind, and to reform the +abuses of civil society, they opened a secure asylum for the +slaves and debtors, who flocked in crowds to their holy standard. +When they were not resisted, they usually contented themselves +with plunder, but the slightest opposition provoked them to acts +of violence and murder; and some Catholic priests, who had +imprudently signalized their zeal, were tortured by the fanatics +with the most refined and wanton barbarity. The spirit of the +Circumcellions was not always exerted against their defenceless +enemies; they engaged, and sometimes defeated, the troops of the +province; and in the bloody action of Bagai, they attacked in the +open field, but with unsuccessful valor, an advanced guard of the +Imperial cavalry. The Donatists who were taken in arms, received, +and they soon deserved, the same treatment which might have been +shown to the wild beasts of the desert. The captives died, +without a murmur, either by the sword, the axe, or the fire; and +the measures of retaliation were multiplied in a rapid +proportion, which aggravated the horrors of rebellion, and +excluded the hope of mutual forgiveness. In the beginning of the +present century, the example of the Circumcellions has been +renewed in the persecution, the boldness, the crimes, and the +enthusiasm of the Camisards; and if the fanatics of Languedoc +surpassed those of Numidia, by their military achievements, the +Africans maintained their fierce independence with more +resolution and perseverance.<br> +</p> + +<p>Such disorders are the natural effects of religious tyranny, +but the rage of the Donatists was inflamed by a frenzy of a very +extraordinary kind; and which, if it really prevailed among them +in so extravagant a degree, cannot surely be paralleled in any +country or in any age. Many of these fanatics were possessed with +the horror of life, and the desire of martyrdom; and they deemed +it of little moment by what means, or by what hands, they +perished, if their conduct was sanctified by the intention of +devoting themselves to the glory of the true faith, and the hope +of eternal happiness. Sometimes they rudely disturbed the +festivals, and profaned the temples of Paganism, with the design +of exciting the most zealous of the idolaters to revenge the +insulted honor of their gods. They sometimes forced their way +into the courts of justice, and compelled the affrighted judge to +give orders for their immediate execution. They frequently +stopped travellers on the public highways, and obliged them to +inflict the stroke of martyrdom, by the promise of a reward, if +they consented, and by the threat of instant death, if they +refused to grant so very singular a favor. When they were +disappointed of every other resource, they announced the day on +which, in the presence of their friends and brethren, they should +east themselves headlong from some lofty rock; and many +precipices were shown, which had acquired fame by the number of +religious suicides. In the actions of these desperate +enthusiasts, who were admired by one party as the martyrs of God, +and abhorred by the other as the victims of Satan, an impartial +philosopher may discover the influence and the last abuse of that +inflexible spirit which was originally derived from the character +and principles of the Jewish nation.<br> +</p> + +<p>The simple narrative of the intestine divisions, which +distracted the peace, and dishonored the triumph, of the church, +will confirm the remark of a Pagan historian, and justify the +complaint of a venerable bishop. The experience of Ammianus had +convinced him, that the enmity of the Christians towards each +other, surpassed the fury of savage beasts against man; and +Gregory Nazianzen most pathetically laments, that the kingdom of +heaven was converted, by discord, into the image of chaos, of a +nocturnal tempest, and of hell itself. The fierce and partial +writers of the times, ascribing <strong><em>all</em></strong> +virtue to themselves, and imputing <strong><em>all</em></strong> +guilt to their adversaries, have painted the battle of the angels +and dæmons. Our calmer reason will reject such pure and +perfect monsters of vice or sanctity, and will impute an equal, +or at least an indiscriminate, measure of good and evil to the +hostile sectaries, who assumed and bestowed the appellations of +orthodox and heretics. They had been educated in the same +religion and the same civil society. Their hopes and fears in the +present, or in a future life, were balanced in the same +proportion. On either side, the error might be innocent, the +faith sincere, the practice meritorious or corrupt. Their +passions were excited by similar objects; and they might +alternately abuse the favor of the court, or of the people. The +metaphysical opinions of the Athanasians and the Arians could not +influence their moral character; and they were alike actuated by +the intolerant spirit which has been extracted from the pure and +simple maxims of the gospel.<br> +</p> + +<p>A modern writer, who, with a just confidence, has prefixed to +his own history the honorable epithets of political and +philosophical, accuses the timid prudence of Montesquieu, for +neglecting to enumerate, among the causes of the decline of the +empire, a law of Constantine, by which the exercise of the Pagan +worship was absolutely suppressed, and a considerable part of his +subjects was left destitute of priests, of temples, and of any +public religion. The zeal of the philosophic historian for the +rights of mankind, has induced him to acquiesce in the ambiguous +testimony of those ecclesiastics, who have too lightly ascribed +to their favorite hero the <strong><em>merit</em></strong> of a +general persecution. Instead of alleging this imaginary law, +which would have blazed in the front of the Imperial codes, we +may safely appeal to the original epistle, which Constantine +addressed to the followers of the ancient religion; at a time +when he no longer disguised his conversion, nor dreaded the +rivals of his throne. He invites and exhorts, in the most +pressing terms, the subjects of the Roman empire to imitate the +example of their master; but he declares, that those who still +refuse to open their eyes to the celestial light, may freely +enjoy their temples and their fancied gods. A report, that the +ceremonies of paganism were suppressed, is formally contradicted +by the emperor himself, who wisely assigns, as the principle of +his moderation, the invincible force of habit, of prejudice, and +of superstition. Without violating the sanctity of his promise, +without alarming the fears of the Pagans, the artful monarch +advanced, by slow and cautious steps, to undermine the irregular +and decayed fabric of polytheism. The partial acts of severity +which he occasionally exercised, though they were secretly +promoted by a Christian zeal, were colored by the fairest +pretences of justice and the public good; and while Constantine +designed to ruin the foundations, he seemed to reform the abuses, +of the ancient religion. After the example of the wisest of his +predecessors, he condemned, under the most rigorous penalties, +the occult and impious arts of divination; which excited the vain +hopes, and sometimes the criminal attempts, of those who were +discontented with their present condition. An ignominious silence +was imposed on the oracles, which had been publicly convicted of +fraud and falsehood; the effeminate priests of the Nile were +abolished; and Constantine discharged the duties of a Roman +censor, when he gave orders for the demolition of several temples +of Phnicia; in which every mode of prostitution was devoutly +practised in the face of day, and to the honor of Venus. The +Imperial city of Constantinople was, in some measure, raised at +the expense, and was adorned with the spoils, of the opulent +temples of Greece and Asia; the sacred property was confiscated; +the statues of gods and heroes were transported, with rude +familiarity, among a people who considered them as objects, not +of adoration, but of curiosity; the gold and silver were restored +to circulation; and the magistrates, the bishops, and the +eunuchs, improved the fortunate occasion of gratifying, at once, +their zeal, their avarice, and their resentment. But these +depredations were confined to a small part of the Roman world; +and the provinces had been long since accustomed to endure the +same sacrilegious rapine, from the tyranny of princes and +proconsuls, who could not be suspected of any design to subvert +the established religion.<br> +</p> + +<p>The sons of Constantine trod in the footsteps of their father, +with more zeal, and with less discretion. The pretences of rapine +and oppression were insensibly multiplied; every indulgence was +shown to the illegal behavior of the Christians; every doubt was +explained to the disadvantage of Paganism; and the demolition of +the temples was celebrated as one of the auspicious events of the +reign of Constans and Constantius. The name of Constantius is +prefixed to a concise law, which might have superseded the +necessity of any future prohibitions. "It is our pleasure, that +in all places, and in all cities, the temples be immediately +shut, and carefully guarded, that none may have the power of +offending. It is likewise our pleasure, that all our subjects +should abstain from sacrifices. If any one should be guilty of +such an act, let him feel the sword of vengeance, and after his +execution, let his property be confiscated to the public use. We +denounce the same penalties against the governors of the +provinces, if they neglect to punish the criminals." But there is +the strongest reason to believe, that this formidable edict was +either composed without being published, or was published without +being executed. The evidence of facts, and the monuments which +are still extant of brass and marble, continue to prove the +public exercise of the Pagan worship during the whole reign of +the sons of Constantine. In the East, as well as in the West, in +cities, as well as in the country, a great number of temples were +respected, or at least were spared; and the devout multitude +still enjoyed the luxury of sacrifices, of festivals, and of +processions, by the permission, or by the connivance, of the +civil government. About four years after the supposed date of +this bloody edict, Constantius visited the temples of Rome; and +the decency of his behavior is recommended by a pagan orator as +an example worthy of the imitation of succeeding princes. "That +emperor," says Symmachus, "suffered the privileges of the vestal +virgins to remain inviolate; he bestowed the sacerdotal dignities +on the nobles of Rome, granted the customary allowance to defray +the expenses of the public rites and sacrifices; and, though he +had embraced a different religion, he never attempted to deprive +the empire of the sacred worship of antiquity." The senate still +presumed to consecrate, by solemn decrees, the divine memory of +their sovereigns; and Constantine himself was associated, after +his death, to those gods whom he had renounced and insulted +during his life. The title, the ensigns, the prerogatives, of +sovereign pontiff, which had been instituted by Numa, and assumed +by Augustus, were accepted, without hesitation, by seven +Christian emperors; who were invested with a more absolute +authority over the religion which they had deserted, than over +that which they professed.<br> +</p> + +<p>The divisions of Christianity suspended the ruin of +<strong><em>Paganism</em></strong>; and the holy war against the +infidels was less vigorously prosecuted by princes and bishops, +who were more immediately alarmed by the guilt and danger of +domestic rebellion. The extirpation of +<strong><em>idolatry</em></strong> might have been justified by +the established principles of intolerance: but the hostile sects, +which alternately reigned in the Imperial court were mutually +apprehensive of alienating, and perhaps exasperating, the minds +of a powerful, though declining faction. Every motive of +authority and fashion, of interest and reason, now militated on +the side of Christianity; but two or three generations elapsed, +before their victorious influence was universally felt. The +religion which had so long and so lately been established in the +Roman empire was still revered by a numerous people, less +attached indeed to speculative opinion, than to ancient custom. +The honors of the state and army were indifferently bestowed on +all the subjects of Constantine and Constantius; and a +considerable portion of knowledge and wealth and valor was still +engaged in the service of polytheism. The superstition of the +senator and of the peasant, of the poet and the philosopher, was +derived from very different causes, but they met with equal +devotion in the temples of the gods. Their zeal was insensibly +provoked by the insulting triumph of a proscribed sect; and their +hopes were revived by the well-grounded confidence, that the +presumptive heir of the empire, a young and valiant hero, who had +delivered Gaul from the arms of the Barbarians, had secretly +embraced the religion of his ancestors.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXII: Julian Declared +Emperor.</em></strong></p> + +<p>Part I<br> +</p> + +<p>Julian Is Declared Emperor By The Legions Of Gaul. -- His +March And Success. -- The Death Of Constantius. -- Civil +Administration Of Julian.<br> +</p> + +<p>While the Romans languished under the ignominious tyranny of +eunuchs and bishops, the praises of Julian were repeated with +transport in every part of the empire, except in the palace of +Constantius. The barbarians of Germany had felt, and still +dreaded, the arms of the young Cæsar; his soldiers were the +companions of his victory; the grateful provincials enjoyed the +blessings of his reign; but the favorites, who had opposed his +elevation, were offended by his virtues; and they justly +considered the friend of the people as the enemy of the court. As +long as the fame of Julian was doubtful, the buffoons of the +palace, who were skilled in the language of satire, tried the +efficacy of those arts which they had so often practised with +success. They easily discovered, that his simplicity was not +exempt from affectation: the ridiculous epithets of a hairy +savage, of an ape invested with the purple, were applied to the +dress and person of the philosophic warrior; and his modest +despatches were stigmatized as the vain and elaborate fictions of +a loquacious Greek, a speculative soldier, who had studied the +art of war amidst the groves of the academy. The voice of +malicious folly was at length silenced by the shouts of victory; +the conqueror of the Franks and Alemanni could no longer be +painted as an object of contempt; and the monarch himself was +meanly ambitious of stealing from his lieutenant the honorable +reward of his labors. In the letters crowned with laurel, which, +according to ancient custom, were addressed to the provinces, the +name of Julian was omitted. "Constantius had made his +dispositions in person; <strong><em>he</em></strong>had +signalized his valor in the foremost ranks; +<strong><em>his</em></strong> military conduct had secured the +victory; and the captive king of the barbarians was presented to +<strong><em>him</em></strong> on the field of battle," from which +he was at that time distant about forty days' journey. So +extravagant a fable was incapable, however, of deceiving the +public credulity, or even of satisfying the pride of the emperor +himself. Secretly conscious that the applause and favor of the +Romans accompanied the rising fortunes of Julian, his +discontented mind was prepared to receive the subtle poison of +those artful sycophants, who colored their mischievous designs +with the fairest appearances of truth and candor. Instead of +depreciating the merits of Julian, they acknowledged, and even +exaggerated, his popular fame, superior talents, and important +services. But they darkly insinuated, that the virtues of the +Cæsar might instantly be converted into the most dangerous +crimes, if the inconstant multitude should prefer their +inclinations to their duty; or if the general of a victorious +army should be tempted from his allegiance by the hopes of +revenge and independent greatness. The personal fears of +Constantius were interpreted by his council as a laudable anxiety +for the public safety; whilst in private, and perhaps in his own +breast, he disguised, under the less odious appellation of fear, +the sentiments of hatred and envy, which he had secretly +conceived for the inimitable virtues of Julian.<br> +</p> + +<p>The apparent tranquillity of Gaul, and the imminent danger of +the eastern provinces, offered a specious pretence for the design +which was artfully concerted by the Imperial ministers. They +resolved to disarm the Cæsar; to recall those faithful +troops who guarded his person and dignity; and to employ, in a +distant war against the Persian monarch, the hardy veterans who +had vanquished, on the banks of the Rhine, the fiercest nations +of Germany. While Julian used the laborious hours of his winter +quarters at Paris in the administration of power, which, in his +hands, was the exercise of virtue, he was surprised by the hasty +arrival of a tribune and a notary, with positive orders, from the +emperor, which <strong><em>they</em></strong> were directed to +execute, and <strong><em>he</em></strong> was commanded not to +oppose. Constantius signified his pleasure, that four entire +legions, the Celtæ, and Petulants, the Heruli, and the +Batavians, should be separated from the standard of Julian, under +which they had acquired their fame and discipline; that in each +of the remaining bands three hundred of the bravest youths should +be selected; and that this numerous detachment, the strength of +the Gallic army, should instantly begin their march, and exert +their utmost diligence to arrive, before the opening of the +campaign, on the frontiers of Persia. The Cæsar foresaw and +lamented the consequences of this fatal mandate. Most of the +auxiliaries, who engaged their voluntary service, had stipulated, +that they should never be obliged to pass the Alps. The public +faith of Rome, and the personal honor of Julian, had been pledged +for the observance of this condition. Such an act of treachery +and oppression would destroy the confidence, and excite the +resentment, of the independent warriors of Germany, who +considered truth as the noblest of their virtues, and freedom as +the most valuable of their possessions. The legionaries, who +enjoyed the title and privileges of Romans, were enlisted for the +general defence of the republic; but those mercenary troops heard +with cold indifference the antiquated names of the republic and +of Rome. Attached, either from birth or long habit, to the +climate and manners of Gaul, they loved and admired Julian; they +despised, and perhaps hated, the emperor; they dreaded the +laborious march, the Persian arrows, and the burning deserts of +Asia. They claimed as their own the country which they had saved; +and excused their want of spirit, by pleading the sacred and more +immediate duty of protecting their families and friends. The +apprehensions of the Gauls were derived from the knowledge of the +impending and inevitable danger. As soon as the provinces were +exhausted of their military strength, the Germans would violate a +treaty which had been imposed on their fears; and notwithstanding +the abilities and valor of Julian, the general of a nominal army, +to whom the public calamities would be imputed, must find +himself, after a vain resistance, either a prisoner in the camp +of the barbarians, or a criminal in the palace of Constantius. If +Julian complied with the orders which he had received, he +subscribed his own destruction, and that of a people who deserved +his affection. But a positive refusal was an act of rebellion, +and a declaration of war. The inexorable jealousy of the emperor, +the peremptory, and perhaps insidious, nature of his commands, +left not any room for a fair apology, or candid interpretation; +and the dependent station of the Cæsar scarcely allowed him +to pause or to deliberate. Solitude increased the perplexity of +Julian; he could no longer apply to the faithful counsels of +Sallust, who had been removed from his office by the judicious +malice of the eunuchs: he could not even enforce his +representations by the concurrence of the ministers, who would +have been afraid or ashamed to approve the ruin of Gaul. The +moment had been chosen, when Lupicinus, the general of the +cavalry, was despatched into Britain, to repulse the inroads of +the Scots and Picts; and Florentius was occupied at Vienna by the +assessment of the tribute. The latter, a crafty and corrupt +statesman, declining to assume a responsible part on this +dangerous occasion, eluded the pressing and repeated invitations +of Julian, who represented to him, that in every important +measure, the presence of the præfect was indispensable in +the council of the prince. In the mean while the Cæsar was +oppressed by the rude and importunate solicitations of the +Imperial messengers, who presumed to suggest, that if he expected +the return of his ministers, he would charge himself with the +guilt of the delay, and reserve for them the merit of the +execution. Unable to resist, unwilling to comply, Julian +expressed, in the most serious terms, his wish, and even his +intention, of resigning the purple, which he could not preserve +with honor, but which he could not abdicate with safety.<br> +</p> + +<p>After a painful conflict, Julian was compelled to acknowledge, +that obedience was the virtue of the most eminent subject, and +that the sovereign alone was entitled to judge of the public +welfare. He issued the necessary orders for carrying into +execution the commands of Constantius; a part of the troops began +their march for the Alps; and the detachments from the several +garrisons moved towards their respective places of assembly. They +advanced with difficulty through the trembling and affrighted +crowds of provincials, who attempted to excite their pity by +silent despair, or loud lamentations, while the wives of the +soldiers, holding their infants in their arms, accused the +desertion of their husbands, in the mixed language of grief, of +tenderness, and of indignation. This scene of general distress +afflicted the humanity of the Cæsar; he granted a +sufficient number of post-wagons to transport the wives and +families of the soldiers, endeavored to alleviate the hardships +which he was constrained to inflict, and increased, by the most +laudable arts, his own popularity, and the discontent of the +exiled troops. The grief of an armed multitude is soon converted +into rage; their licentious murmurs, which every hour were +communicated from tent to tent with more boldness and effect, +prepared their minds for the most daring acts of sedition; and by +the connivance of their tribunes, a seasonable libel was secretly +dispersed, which painted in lively colors the disgrace of the +Cæsar, the oppression of the Gallic army, and the feeble +vices of the tyrant of Asia. The servants of Constantius were +astonished and alarmed by the progress of this dangerous spirit. +They pressed the Cæsar to hasten the departure of the +troops; but they imprudently rejected the honest and judicious +advice of Julian; who proposed that they should not march through +Paris, and suggested the danger and temptation of a last +interview.<br> +</p> + +<p>As soon as the approach of the troops was announced, the +Cæsar went out to meet them, and ascended his tribunal, +which had been erected in a plain before the gates of the city. +After distinguishing the officers and soldiers, who by their rank +or merit deserved a peculiar attention, Julian addressed himself +in a studied oration to the surrounding multitude: he celebrated +their exploits with grateful applause; encouraged them to accept, +with alacrity, the honor of serving under the eye of a powerful +and liberal monarch; and admonished them, that the commands of +Augustus required an instant and cheerful obedience. The +soldiers, who were apprehensive of offending their general by an +indecent clamor, or of belying their sentiments by false and +venal acclamations, maintained an obstinate silence; and after a +short pause, were dismissed to their quarters. The principal +officers were entertained by the Cæsar, who professed, in +the warmest language of friendship, his desire and his inability +to reward, according to their deserts, the brave companions of +his victories. They retired from the feast, full of grief and +perplexity; and lamented the hardship of their fate, which tore +them from their beloved general and their native country. The +only expedient which could prevent their separation was boldly +agitated and approved the popular resentment was insensibly +moulded into a regular conspiracy; their just reasons of +complaint were heightened by passion, and their passions were +inflamed by wine; as, on the eve of their departure, the troops +were indulged in licentious festivity. At the hour of midnight, +the impetuous multitude, with swords, and bows, and torches in +their hands, rushed into the suburbs; encompassed the palace; +and, careless of future dangers, pronounced the fatal and +irrevocable words, Julian Augustus! The prince, whose anxious +suspense was interrupted by their disorderly acclamations, +secured the doors against their intrusion; and as long as it was +in his power, secluded his person and dignity from the accidents +of a nocturnal tumult. At the dawn of day, the soldiers, whose +zeal was irritated by opposition, forcibly entered the palace, +seized, with respectful violence, the object of their choice, +guarded Julian with drawn swords through the streets of Paris, +placed him on the tribunal, and with repeated shouts saluted him +as their emperor. Prudence, as well as loyalty, inculcated the +propriety of resisting their treasonable designs; and of +preparing, for his oppressed virtue, the excuse of violence. +Addressing himself by turns to the multitude and to individuals, +he sometimes implored their mercy, and sometimes expressed his +indignation; conjured them not to sully the fame of their +immortal victories; and ventured to promise, that if they would +immediately return to their allegiance, he would undertake to +obtain from the emperor not only a free and gracious pardon, but +even the revocation of the orders which had excited their +resentment. But the soldiers, who were conscious of their guilt, +chose rather to depend on the gratitude of Julian, than on the +clemency of the emperor. Their zeal was insensibly turned into +impatience, and their impatience into rage. The inflexible +Cæsar sustained, till the third hour of the day, their +prayers, their reproaches, and their menaces; nor did he yield, +till he had been repeatedly assured, that if he wished to live, +he must consent to reign. He was exalted on a shield in the +presence, and amidst the unanimous acclamations, of the troops; a +rich military collar, which was offered by chance, supplied the +want of a diadem; the ceremony was concluded by the promise of a +moderate donative; and the new emperor, overwhelmed with real or +affected grief retired into the most secret recesses of his +apartment.<br> +</p> + +<p>The grief of Julian could proceed only from his innocence; out +his innocence must appear extremely doubtful in the eyes of those +who have learned to suspect the motives and the professions of +princes. His lively and active mind was susceptible of the +various impressions of hope and fear, of gratitude and revenge, +of duty and of ambition, of the love of fame, and of the fear of +reproach. But it is impossible for us to calculate the respective +weight and operation of these sentiments; or to ascertain the +principles of action which might escape the observation, while +they guided, or rather impelled, the steps of Julian himself. The +discontent of the troops was produced by the malice of his +enemies; their tumult was the natural effect of interest and of +passion; and if Julian had tried to conceal a deep design under +the appearances of chance, he must have employed the most +consummate artifice without necessity, and probably without +success. He solemnly declares, in the presence of Jupiter, of the +Sun, of Mars, of Minerva, and of all the other deities, that till +the close of the evening which preceded his elevation, he was +utterly ignorant of the designs of the soldiers; and it may seem +ungenerous to distrust the honor of a hero and the truth of a +philosopher. Yet the superstitious confidence that Constantius +was the enemy, and that he himself was the favorite, of the gods, +might prompt him to desire, to solicit, and even to hasten the +auspicious moment of his reign, which was predestined to restore +the ancient religion of mankind. When Julian had received the +intelligence of the conspiracy, he resigned himself to a short +slumber; and afterwards related to his friends that he had seen +the genius of the empire waiting with some impatience at his +door, pressing for admittance, and reproaching his want of spirit +and ambition. Astonished and perplexed, he addressed his prayers +to the great Jupiter, who immediately signified, by a clear and +manifest omen, that he should submit to the will of heaven and of +the army. The conduct which disclaims the ordinary maxims of +reason, excites our suspicion and eludes our inquiry. Whenever +the spirit of fanaticism, at once so credulous and so crafty, has +insinuated itself into a noble mind, it insensibly corrodes the +vital principles of virtue and veracity.<br> +</p> + +<p>To moderate the zeal of his party, to protect the persons of +his enemies, to defeat and to despise the secret enterprises +which were formed against his life and dignity, were the cares +which employed the first days of the reign of the new emperor. +Although he was firmly resolved to maintain the station which he +had assumed, he was still desirous of saving his country from the +calamities of civil war, of declining a contest with the superior +forces of Constantius, and of preserving his own character from +the reproach of perfidy and ingratitude. Adorned with the ensigns +of military and imperial pomp, Julian showed himself in the field +of Mars to the soldiers, who glowed with ardent enthusiasm in the +cause of their pupil, their leader, and their friend. He +recapitulated their victories, lamented their sufferings, +applauded their resolution, animated their hopes, and checked +their impetuosity; nor did he dismiss the assembly, till he had +obtained a solemn promise from the troops, that if the emperor of +the East would subscribe an equitable treaty, they would renounce +any views of conquest, and satisfy themselves with the tranquil +possession of the Gallic provinces. On this foundation he +composed, in his own name, and in that of the army, a specious +and moderate epistle, which was delivered to Pentadius, his +master of the offices, and to his chamberlain Eutherius; two +ambassadors whom he appointed to receive the answer, and observe +the dispositions of Constantius. This epistle is inscribed with +the modest appellation of Cæsar; but Julian solicits in a +peremptory, though respectful, manner, the confirmation of the +title of Augustus. He acknowledges the irregularity of his own +election, while he justifies, in some measure, the resentment and +violence of the troops which had extorted his reluctant consent. +He allows the supremacy of his brother Constantius; and engages +to send him an annual present of Spanish horses, to recruit his +army with a select number of barbarian youths, and to accept from +his choice a Prætorian præfect of approved discretion +and fidelity. But he reserves for himself the nomination of his +other civil and military officers, with the troops, the revenue, +and the sovereignty of the provinces beyond the Alps. He +admonishes the emperor to consult the dictates of justice; to +distrust the arts of those venal flatterers, who subsist only by +the discord of princes; and to embrace the offer of a fair and +honorable treaty, equally advantageous to the republic and to the +house of Constantine. In this negotiation Julian claimed no more +than he already possessed. The delegated authority which he had +long exercised over the provinces of Gaul, Spain, and Britain, +was still obeyed under a name more independent and august. The +soldiers and the people rejoiced in a revolution which was not +stained even with the blood of the guilty. Florentius was a +fugitive; Lupicinus a prisoner. The persons who were disaffected +to the new government were disarmed and secured; and the vacant +offices were distributed, according to the recommendation of +merit, by a prince who despised the intrigues of the palace, and +the clamors of the soldiers.<br> +</p> + +<p>The negotiations of peace were accompanied and supported by +the most vigorous preparations for war. The army, which Julian +held in readiness for immediate action, was recruited and +augmented by the disorders of the times. The cruel persecutions +of the faction of Magnentius had filled Gaul with numerous bands +of outlaws and robbers. They cheerfully accepted the offer of a +general pardon from a prince whom they could trust, submitted to +the restraints of military discipline, and retained only their +implacable hatred to the person and government of Constantius. As +soon as the season of the year permitted Julian to take the +field, he appeared at the head of his legions; threw a bridge +over the Rhine in the neighborhood of Cleves; and prepared to +chastise the perfidy of the Attuarii, a tribe of Franks, who +presumed that they might ravage, with impunity, the frontiers of +a divided empire. The difficulty, as well as glory, of this +enterprise, consisted in a laborious march; and Julian had +conquered, as soon as he could penetrate into a country, which +former princes had considered as inaccessible. After he had given +peace to the Barbarians, the emperor carefully visited the +fortifications along the Rhine from Cleves to Basil; surveyed, +with peculiar attention, the territories which he had recovered +from the hands of the Alemanni, passed through Besançon, +which had severely suffered from their fury, and fixed his +headquarters at Vienna for the ensuing winter. The barrier of +Gaul was improved and strengthened with additional +fortifications; and Julian entertained some hopes that the +Germans, whom he had so often vanquished, might, in his absence, +be restrained by the terror of his name. Vadomair was the only +prince of the Alemanni whom he esteemed or feared and while the +subtle Barbarian affected to observe the faith of treaties, the +progress of his arms threatened the state with an unseasonable +and dangerous war. The policy of Julian condescended to surprise +the prince of the Alemanni by his own arts: and Vadomair, who, in +the character of a friend, had incautiously accepted an +invitation from the Roman governors, was seized in the midst of +the entertainment, and sent away prisoner into the heart of +Spain. Before the Barbarians were recovered from their amazement, +the emperor appeared in arms on the banks of the Rhine, and, once +more crossing the river, renewed the deep impressions of terror +and respect which had been already made by four preceding +expeditions.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor. -- Part +II.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The ambassadors of Julian had been instructed to execute, with +the utmost diligence, their important commission. But, in their +passage through Italy and Illyricum, they were detained by the +tedious and affected delays of the provincial governors; they +were conducted by slow journeys from Constantinople to +Cæsarea in Cappadocia; and when at length they were +admitted to the presence of Constantius, they found that he had +already conceived, from the despatches of his own officers, the +most unfavorable opinion of the conduct of Julian, and of the +Gallic army. The letters were heard with impatience; the +trembling messengers were dismissed with indignation and +contempt; and the looks, gestures, the furious language of the +monarch, expressed the disorder of his soul. The domestic +connection, which might have reconciled the brother and the +husband of Helena, was recently dissolved by the death of that +princess, whose pregnancy had been several times fruitless, and +was at last fatal to herself. The empress Eusebia had preserved, +to the last moment of her life, the warm, and even jealous, +affection which she had conceived for Julian; and her mild +influence might have moderated the resentment of a prince, who, +since her death, was abandoned to his own passions, and to the +arts of his eunuchs. But the terror of a foreign invasion obliged +him to suspend the punishment of a private enemy: he continued +his march towards the confines of Persia, and thought it +sufficient to signify the conditions which might entitle Julian +and his guilty followers to the clemency of their offended +sovereign. He required, that the presumptuous Cæsar should +expressly renounce the appellation and rank of Augustus, which he +had accepted from the rebels; that he should descend to his +former station of a limited and dependent minister; that he +should vest the powers of the state and army in the hands of +those officers who were appointed by the Imperial court; and that +he should trust his safety to the assurances of pardon, which +were announced by Epictetus, a Gallic bishop, and one of the +Arian favorites of Constantius. Several months were ineffectually +consumed in a treaty which was negotiated at the distance of +three thousand miles between Paris and Antioch; and, as soon as +Julian perceived that his modest and respectful behavior served +only to irritate the pride of an implacable adversary, he boldly +resolved to commit his life and fortune to the chance of a civil +war. He gave a public and military audience to the quæstor +Leonas: the haughty epistle of Constantius was read to the +attentive multitude; and Julian protested, with the most +flattering deference, that he was ready to resign the title of +Augustus, if he could obtain the consent of those whom he +acknowledged as the authors of his elevation. The faint proposal +was impetuously silenced; and the acclamations of "Julian +Augustus, continue to reign, by the authority of the army, of the +people, of the republic which you have saved," thundered at once +from every part of the field, and terrified the pale ambassador +of Constantius. A part of the letter was afterwards read, in +which the emperor arraigned the ingratitude of Julian, whom he +had invested with the honors of the purple; whom he had educated +with so much care and tenderness; whom he had preserved in his +infancy, when he was left a helpless orphan. "An orphan!" +interrupted Julian, who justified his cause by indulging his +passions: "does the assassin of my family reproach me that I was +left an orphan? He urges me to revenge those injuries which I +have long studied to forget." The assembly was dismissed; and +Leonas, who, with some difficulty, had been protected from the +popular fury, was sent back to his master with an epistle, in +which Julian expressed, in a strain of the most vehement +eloquence, the sentiments of contempt, of hatred, and of +resentment, which had been suppressed and imbittered by the +dissimulation of twenty years. After this message, which might be +considered as a signal of irreconcilable war, Julian, who, some +weeks before, had celebrated the Christian festival of the +Epiphany, made a public declaration that he committed the care of +his safety to the Immortal Gods; and thus publicly renounced the +religion as well as the friendship of Constantius.<br> +</p> + +<p>The situation of Julian required a vigorous and immediate +resolution. He had discovered, from intercepted letters, that his +adversary, sacrificing the interest of the state to that of the +monarch, had again excited the Barbarians to invade the provinces +of the West. The position of two magazines, one of them collected +on the banks of the Lake of Constance, the other formed at the +foot of the Cottian Alps, seemed to indicate the march of two +armies; and the size of those magazines, each of which consisted +of six hundred thousand quarters of wheat, or rather flour, was a +threatening evidence of the strength and numbers of the enemy who +prepared to surround him. But the Imperial legions were still in +their distant quarters of Asia; the Danube was feebly guarded; +and if Julian could occupy, by a sudden incursion, the important +provinces of Illyricum, he might expect that a people of soldiers +would resort to his standard, and that the rich mines of gold and +silver would contribute to the expenses of the civil war. He +proposed this bold enterprise to the assembly of the soldiers; +inspired them with a just confidence in their general, and in +themselves; and exhorted them to maintain their reputation of +being terrible to the enemy, moderate to their fellow-citizens, +and obedient to their officers. His spirited discourse was +received with the loudest acclamations, and the same troops which +had taken up arms against Constantius, when he summoned them to +leave Gaul, now declared with alacrity, that they would follow +Julian to the farthest extremities of Europe or Asia. The oath of +fidelity was administered; and the soldiers, clashing their +shields, and pointing their drawn swords to their throats, +devoted themselves, with horrid imprecations, to the service of a +leader whom they celebrated as the deliverer of Gaul and the +conqueror of the Germans. This solemn engagement, which seemed to +be dictated by affection rather than by duty, was singly opposed +by Nebridius, who had been admitted to the office of +Prætorian præfect. That faithful minister, alone and +unassisted, asserted the rights of Constantius, in the midst of +an armed and angry multitude, to whose fury he had almost fallen +an honorable, but useless sacrifice. After losing one of his +hands by the stroke of a sword, he embraced the knees of the +prince whom he had offended. Julian covered the præfect +with his Imperial mantle, and, protecting him from the zeal of +his followers, dismissed him to his own house, with less respect +than was perhaps due to the virtue of an enemy. The high office +of Nebridius was bestowed on Sallust; and the provinces of Gaul, +which were now delivered from the intolerable oppression of +taxes, enjoyed the mild and equitable administration of the +friend of Julian, who was permitted to practise those virtues +which he had instilled into the mind of his pupil.<br> +</p> + +<p>The hopes of Julian depended much less on the number of his +troops, than on the celerity of his motions. In the execution of +a daring enterprise, he availed himself of every precaution, as +far as prudence could suggest; and where prudence could no longer +accompany his steps, he trusted the event to valor and to +fortune. In the neighborhood of Basil he assembled and divided +his army. One body, which consisted of ten thousand men, was +directed under the command of Nevitta, general of the cavalry, to +advance through the midland parts of Rhætia and Noricum. A +similar division of troops, under the orders of Jovius and +Jovinus, prepared to follow the oblique course of the highways, +through the Alps, and the northern confines of Italy. The +instructions to the generals were conceived with energy and +precision: to hasten their march in close and compact columns, +which, according to the disposition of the ground, might readily +be changed into any order of battle; to secure themselves against +the surprises of the night by strong posts and vigilant guards; +to prevent resistance by their unexpected arrival; to elude +examination by their sudden departure; to spread the opinion of +their strength, and the terror of his name; and to join their +sovereign under the walls of Sirmium. For himself Julian had +reserved a more difficult and extraordinary part. He selected +three thousand brave and active volunteers, resolved, like their +leader, to cast behind them every hope of a retreat; at the head +of this faithful band, he fearlessly plunged into the recesses of +the Marcian, or Black Forest, which conceals the sources of the +Danube; and, for many days, the fate of Julian was unknown to the +world. The secrecy of his march, his diligence, and vigor, +surmounted every obstacle; he forced his way over mountains and +morasses, occupied the bridges or swam the rivers, pursued his +direct course, without reflecting whether he traversed the +territory of the Romans or of the Barbarians, and at length +emerged, between Ratisbon and Vienna, at the place where he +designed to embark his troops on the Danube. By a well-concerted +stratagem, he seized a fleet of light brigantines, as it lay at +anchor; secured a apply of coarse provisions sufficient to +satisfy the indelicate, and voracious, appetite of a Gallic army; +and boldly committed himself to the stream of the Danube. The +labors of the mariners, who plied their oars with incessant +diligence, and the steady continuance of a favorable wind, +carried his fleet above seven hundred miles in eleven days; and +he had already disembarked his troops at Bononia, * only nineteen +miles from Sirmium, before his enemies could receive any certain +intelligence that he had left the banks of the Rhine. In the +course of this long and rapid navigation, the mind of Julian was +fixed on the object of his enterprise; and though he accepted the +deputations of some cities, which hastened to claim the merit of +an early submission, he passed before the hostile stations, which +were placed along the river, without indulging the temptation of +signalizing a useless and ill-timed valor. The banks of the +Danube were crowded on either side with spectators, who gazed on +the military pomp, anticipated the importance of the event, and +diffused through the adjacent country the fame of a young hero, +who advanced with more than mortal speed at the head of the +innumerable forces of the West. Lucilian, who, with the rank of +general of the cavalry, commanded the military powers of +Illyricum, was alarmed and perplexed by the doubtful reports, +which he could neither reject nor believe. He had taken some slow +and irresolute measures for the purpose of collecting his troops, +when he was surprised by Dagalaiphus, an active officer, whom +Julian, as soon as he landed at Bononia, had pushed forwards with +some light infantry. The captive general, uncertain of his life +or death, was hastily thrown upon a horse, and conducted to the +presence of Julian; who kindly raised him from the ground, and +dispelled the terror and amazement which seemed to stupefy his +faculties. But Lucilian had no sooner recovered his spirits, than +he betrayed his want of discretion, by presuming to admonish his +conqueror that he had rashly ventured, with a handful of men, to +expose his person in the midst of his enemies. "Reserve for your +master Constantius these timid remonstrances," replied Julian, +with a smile of contempt: "when I gave you my purple to kiss, I +received you not as a counsellor, but as a suppliant." Conscious +that success alone could justify his attempt, and that boldness +only could command success, he instantly advanced, at the head of +three thousand soldiers, to attack the strongest and most +populous city of the Illyrian provinces. As he entered the long +suburb of Sirmium, he was received by the joyful acclamations of +the army and people; who, crowned with flowers, and holding +lighted tapers in their hands, conducted their acknowledged +sovereign to his Imperial residence. Two days were devoted to the +public joy, which was celebrated by the games of the circus; but, +early on the morning of the third day, Julian marched to occupy +the narrow pass of Succi, in the defiles of Mount Hæmus; +which, almost in the midway between Sirmium and Constantinople, +separates the provinces of Thrace and Dacia, by an abrupt descent +towards the former, and a gentle declivity on the side of the +latter. The defence of this important post was intrusted to the +brave Nevitta; who, as well as the generals of the Italian +division, successfully executed the plan of the march and +junction which their master had so ably conceived.<br> +</p> + +<p>The homage which Julian obtained, from the fears or the +inclination of the people, extended far beyond the immediate +effect of his arms. The præfectures of Italy and Illyricum +were administered by Taurus and Florentius, who united that +important office with the vain honors of the consulship; and as +those magistrates had retired with precipitation to the court of +Asia, Julian, who could not always restrain the levity of his +temper, stigmatized their flight by adding, in all the Acts of +the Year, the epithet of <strong><em>fugitive</em></strong> to +the names of the two consuls. The provinces which had been +deserted by their first magistrates acknowledged the authority of +an emperor, who, conciliating the qualities of a soldier with +those of a philosopher, was equally admired in the camps of the +Danube and in the cities of Greece. From his palace, or, more +properly, from his head-quarters of Sirmium and Naissus, he +distributed to the principal cities of the empire, a labored +apology for his own conduct; published the secret despatches of +Constantius; and solicited the judgment of mankind between two +competitors, the one of whom had expelled, and the other had +invited, the Barbarians. Julian, whose mind was deeply wounded by +the reproach of ingratitude, aspired to maintain, by argument as +well as by arms, the superior merits of his cause; and to excel, +not only in the arts of war, but in those of composition. His +epistle to the senate and people of Athens seems to have been +dictated by an elegant enthusiasm; which prompted him to submit +his actions and his motives to the degenerate Athenians of his +own times, with the same humble deference as if he had been +pleading, in the days of Aristides, before the tribunal of the +Areopagus. His application to the senate of Rome, which was still +permitted to bestow the titles of Imperial power, was agreeable +to the forms of the expiring republic. An assembly was summoned +by Tertullus, præfect of the city; the epistle of Julian +was read; and, as he appeared to be master of Italy his claims +were admitted without a dissenting voice. His oblique censure of +the innovations of Constantine, and his passionate invective +against the vices of Constantius, were heard with less +satisfaction; and the senate, as if Julian had been present, +unanimously exclaimed, "Respect, we beseech you, the author of +your own fortune." An artful expression, which, according to the +chance of war, might be differently explained; as a manly reproof +of the ingratitude of the usurper, or as a flattering confession, +that a single act of such benefit to the state ought to atone for +all the failings of Constantius.<br> +</p> + +<p>The intelligence of the march and rapid progress of Julian was +speedily transmitted to his rival, who, by the retreat of Sapor, +had obtained some respite from the Persian war. Disguising the +anguish of his soul under the semblance of contempt, Constantius +professed his intention of returning into Europe, and of giving +chase to Julian; for he never spoke of his military expedition in +any other light than that of a hunting party. In the camp of +Hierapolis, in Syria, he communicated this design to his army; +slightly mentioned the guilt and rashness of the Cæsar; and +ventured to assure them, that if the mutineers of Gaul presumed +to meet them in the field, they would be unable to sustain the +fire of their eyes, and the irresistible weight of their shout of +onset. The speech of the emperor was received with military +applause, and Theodotus, the president of the council of +Hierapolis, requested, with tears of adulation, that his city +might be adorned with the head of the vanquished rebel. A chosen +detachment was despatched away in post-wagons, to secure, if it +were yet possible, the pass of Succi; the recruits, the horses, +the arms, and the magazines, which had been prepared against +Sapor, were appropriated to the service of the civil war; and the +domestic victories of Constantius inspired his partisans with the +most sanguine assurances of success. The notary Gaudentius had +occupied in his name the provinces of Africa; the subsistence of +Rome was intercepted; and the distress of Julian was increased by +an unexpected event, which might have been productive of fatal +consequences. Julian had received the submission of two legions +and a cohort of archers, who were stationed at Sirmium; but he +suspected, with reason, the fidelity of those troops which had +been distinguished by the emperor; and it was thought expedient, +under the pretence of the exposed state of the Gallic frontier, +to dismiss them from the most important scene of action. They +advanced, with reluctance, as far as the confines of Italy; but +as they dreaded the length of the way, and the savage fierceness +of the Germans, they resolved, by the instigation of one of their +tribunes, to halt at Aquileia, and to erect the banners of +Constantius on the walls of that impregnable city. The vigilance +of Julian perceived at once the extent of the mischief, and the +necessity of applying an immediate remedy. By his order, Jovinus +led back a part of the army into Italy; and the siege of Aquileia +was formed with diligence, and prosecuted with vigor. But the +legionaries, who seemed to have rejected the yoke of discipline, +conducted the defence of the place with skill and perseverance; +invited the rest of Italy to imitate the example of their courage +and loyalty; and threatened the retreat of Julian, if he should +be forced to yield to the superior numbers of the armies of the +East.<br> +</p> + +<p>But the humanity of Julian was preserved from the cruel +alternative which he pathetically laments, of destroying or of +being himself destroyed: and the seasonable death of Constantius +delivered the Roman empire from the calamities of civil war. The +approach of winter could not detain the monarch at Antioch; and +his favorites durst not oppose his impatient desire of revenge. A +slight fever, which was perhaps occasioned by the agitation of +his spirits, was increased by the fatigues of the journey; and +Constantius was obliged to halt at the little town of Mopsucrene, +twelve miles beyond Tarsus, where he expired, after a short +illness, in the forty-fifth year of his age, and the +twenty-fourth of his reign. His genuine character, which was +composed of pride and weakness, of superstition and cruelty, has +been fully displayed in the preceding narrative of civil and +ecclesiastical events. The long abuse of power rendered him a +considerable object in the eyes of his contemporaries; but as +personal merit can alone deserve the notice of posterity, the +last of the sons of Constantine may be dismissed from the world, +with the remark, that he inherited the defects, without the +abilities, of his father. Before Constantius expired, he is said +to have named Julian for his successor; nor does it seem +improbable, that his anxious concern for the fate of a young and +tender wife, whom he left with child, may have prevailed, in his +last moments, over the harsher passions of hatred and revenge. +Eusebius, and his guilty associates, made a faint attempt to +prolong the reign of the eunuchs, by the election of another +emperor; but their intrigues were rejected with disdain, by an +army which now abhorred the thought of civil discord; and two +officers of rank were instantly despatched, to assure Julian, +that every sword in the empire would be drawn for his service. +The military designs of that prince, who had formed three +different attacks against Thrace, were prevented by this +fortunate event. Without shedding the blood of his +fellow-citizens, he escaped the dangers of a doubtful conflict, +and acquired the advantages of a complete victory. Impatient to +visit the place of his birth, and the new capital of the empire, +he advanced from Naissus through the mountains of Hæmus, +and the cities of Thrace. When he reached Heraclea, at the +distance of sixty miles, all Constantinople was poured forth to +receive him; and he made his triumphal entry amidst the dutiful +acclamations of the soldiers, the people, and the senate. At +innumerable multitude pressed around him with eager respect and +were perhaps disappointed when they beheld the small stature and +simple garb of a hero, whose unexperienced youth had vanquished +the Barbarians of Germany, and who had now traversed, in a +successful career, the whole continent of Europe, from the shores +of the Atlantic to those of the Bosphorus. A few days afterwards, +when the remains of the deceased emperor were landed in the +harbor, the subjects of Julian applauded the real or affected +humanity of their sovereign. On foot, without his diadem, and +clothed in a mourning habit, he accompanied the funeral as far as +the church of the Holy Apostles, where the body was deposited: +and if these marks of respect may be interpreted as a selfish +tribute to the birth and dignity of his Imperial kinsman, the +tears of Julian professed to the world that he had forgot the +injuries, and remembered only the obligations, which he had +received from Constantius. As soon as the legions of Aquileia +were assured of the death of the emperor, they opened the gates +of the city, and, by the sacrifice of their guilty leaders, +obtained an easy pardon from the prudence or lenity of Julian; +who, in the thirty-second year of his age, acquired the +undisputed possession of the Roman empire.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor. -- Part +III.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Philosophy had instructed Julian to compare the advantages of +action and retirement; but the elevation of his birth, and the +accidents of his life, never allowed him the freedom of choice. +He might perhaps sincerely have preferred the groves of the +academy, and the society of Athens; but he was constrained, at +first by the will, and afterwards by the injustice, of +Constantius, to expose his person and fame to the dangers of +Imperial greatness; and to make himself accountable to the world, +and to posterity, for the happiness of millions. Julian +recollected with terror the observation of his master Plato, that +the government of our flocks and herds is always committed to +beings of a superior species; and that the conduct of nations +requires and deserves the celestial powers of the gods or of the +genii. From this principle he justly concluded, that the man who +presumes to reign, should aspire to the perfection of the divine +nature; that he should purify his soul from her mortal and +terrestrial part; that he should extinguish his appetites, +enlighten his understanding, regulate his passions, and subdue +the wild beast, which, according to the lively metaphor of +Aristotle, seldom fails to ascend the throne of a despot. The +throne of Julian, which the death of Constantius fixed on an +independent basis, was the seat of reason, of virtue, and perhaps +of vanity. He despised the honors, renounced the pleasures, and +discharged with incessant diligence the duties, of his exalted +station; and there were few among his subjects who would have +consented to relieve him from the weight of the diadem, had they +been obliged to submit their time and their actions to the +rigorous laws which that philosophic emperor imposed on himself. +One of his most intimate friends, who had often shared the frugal +simplicity of his table, has remarked, that his light and sparing +diet (which was usually of the vegetable kind) left his mind and +body always free and active, for the various and important +business of an author, a pontiff, a magistrate, a general, and a +prince. In one and the same day, he gave audience to several +ambassadors, and wrote, or dictated, a great number of letters to +his generals, his civil magistrates, his private friends, and the +different cities of his dominions. He listened to the memorials +which had been received, considered the subject of the petitions, +and signified his intentions more rapidly than they could be +taken in short-hand by the diligence of his secretaries. He +possessed such flexibility of thought, and such firmness of +attention, that he could employ his hand to write, his ear to +listen, and his voice to dictate; and pursue at once three +several trains of ideas without hesitation, and without error. +While his ministers reposed, the prince flew with agility from +one labor to another, and, after a hasty dinner, retired into his +library, till the public business, which he had appointed for the +evening, summoned him to interrupt the prosecution of his +studies. The supper of the emperor was still less substantial +than the former meal; his sleep was never clouded by the fumes of +indigestion; and except in the short interval of a marriage, +which was the effect of policy rather than love, the chaste +Julian never shared his bed with a female companion. He was soon +awakened by the entrance of fresh secretaries, who had slept the +preceding day; and his servants were obliged to wait alternately +while their indefatigable master allowed himself scarcely any +other refreshment than the change of occupation. The predecessors +of Julian, his uncle, his brother, and his cousin, indulged their +puerile taste for the games of the Circus, under the specious +pretence of complying with the inclinations of the people; and +they frequently remained the greatest part of the day as idle +spectators, and as a part of the splendid spectacle, till the +ordinary round of twenty-four races was completely finished. On +solemn festivals, Julian, who felt and professed an unfashionable +dislike to these frivolous amusements, condescended to appear in +the Circus; and after bestowing a careless glance at five or six +of the races, he hastily withdrew with the impatience of a +philosopher, who considered every moment as lost that was not +devoted to the advantage of the public or the improvement of his +own mind. By this avarice of time, he seemed to protract the +short duration of his reign; and if the dates were less securely +ascertained, we should refuse to believe, that only sixteen +months elapsed between the death of Constantius and the departure +of his successor for the Persian war. The actions of Julian can +only be preserved by the care of the historian; but the portion +of his voluminous writings, which is still extant, remains as a +monument of the application, as well as of the genius, of the +emperor. The Misopogon, the Cæsars, several of his +orations, and his elaborate work against the Christian religion, +were composed in the long nights of the two winters, the former +of which he passed at Constantinople, and the latter at +Antioch.<br> +</p> + +<p>The reformation of the Imperial court was one of the first and +most necessary acts of the government of Julian. Soon after his +entrance into the palace of Constantinople, he had occasion for +the service of a barber. An officer, magnificently dressed, +immediately presented himself. "It is a barber," exclaimed the +prince, with affected surprise, "that I want, and not a +receiver-general of the finances." He questioned the man +concerning the profits of his employment and was informed, that +besides a large salary, and some valuable perquisites, he enjoyed +a daily allowance for twenty servants, and as many horses. A +thousand barbers, a thousand cup-bearers, a thousand cooks, were +distributed in the several offices of luxury; and the number of +eunuchs could be compared only with the insects of a summer's +day. The monarch who resigned to his subjects the superiority of +merit and virtue, was distinguished by the oppressive +magnificence of his dress, his table, his buildings, and his +train. The stately palaces erected by Constantine and his sons, +were decorated with many colored marbles, and ornaments of massy +gold. The most exquisite dainties were procured, to gratify their +pride, rather than their taste; birds of the most distant +climates, fish from the most remote seas, fruits out of their +natural season, winter roses, and summer snows. The domestic +crowd of the palace surpassed the expense of the legions; yet the +smallest part of this costly multitude was subservient to the +use, or even to the splendor, of the throne. The monarch was +disgraced, and the people was injured, by the creation and sale +of an infinite number of obscure, and even titular employments; +and the most worthless of mankind might purchase the privilege of +being maintained, without the necessity of labor, from the public +revenue. The waste of an enormous household, the increase of fees +and perquisites, which were soon claimed as a lawful debt, and +the bribes which they extorted from those who feared their +enmity, or solicited their favor, suddenly enriched these haughty +menials. They abused their fortune, without considering their +past, or their future, condition; and their rapine and venality +could be equalled only by the extravagance of their dissipations. +Their silken robes were embroidered with gold, their tables were +served with delicacy and profusion; the houses which they built +for their own use, would have covered the farm of an ancient +consul; and the most honorable citizens were obliged to dismount +from their horses, and respectfully to salute a eunuch whom they +met on the public highway. The luxury of the palace excited the +contempt and indignation of Julian, who usually slept on the +ground, who yielded with reluctance to the indispensable calls of +nature; and who placed his vanity, not in emulating, but in +despising, the pomp of royalty.<br> +</p> + +<p>By the total extirpation of a mischief which was magnified +even beyond its real extent, he was impatient to relieve the +distress, and to appease the murmurs of the people; who support +with less uneasiness the weight of taxes, if they are convinced +that the fruits of their industry are appropriated to the service +of the state. But in the execution of this salutary work, Julian +is accused of proceeding with too much haste and inconsiderate +severity. By a single edict, he reduced the palace of +Constantinople to an immense desert, and dismissed with ignominy +the whole train of slaves and dependants, without providing any +just, or at least benevolent, exceptions, for the age, the +services, or the poverty, of the faithful domestics of the +Imperial family. Such indeed was the temper of Julian, who seldom +recollected the fundamental maxim of Aristotle, that true virtue +is placed at an equal distance between the opposite vices. The +splendid and effeminate dress of the Asiatics, the curls and +paint, the collars and bracelets, which had appeared so +ridiculous in the person of Constantine, were consistently +rejected by his philosophic successor. But with the fopperies, +Julian affected to renounce the decencies of dress; and seemed to +value himself for his neglect of the laws of cleanliness. In a +satirical performance, which was designed for the public eye, the +emperor descants with pleasure, and even with pride, on the +length of his nails, and the inky blackness of his hands; +protests, that although the greatest part of his body was covered +with hair, the use of the razor was confined to his head alone; +and celebrates, with visible complacency, the shaggy and +<strong><em>populous</em></strong> beard, which he fondly +cherished, after the example of the philosophers of Greece. Had +Julian consulted the simple dictates of reason, the first +magistrate of the Romans would have scorned the affectation of +Diogenes, as well as that of Darius.<br> +</p> + +<p>But the work of public reformation would have remained +imperfect, if Julian had only corrected the abuses, without +punishing the crimes, of his predecessor's reign. "We are now +delivered," says he, in a familiar letter to one of his intimate +friends, "we are now surprisingly delivered from the voracious +jaws of the Hydra. I do not mean to apply the epithet to my +brother Constantius. He is no more; may the earth lie light on +his head! But his artful and cruel favorites studied to deceive +and exasperate a prince, whose natural mildness cannot be praised +without some efforts of adulation. It is not, however, my +intention, that even those men should be oppressed: they are +accused, and they shall enjoy the benefit of a fair and impartial +trial." To conduct this inquiry, Julian named six judges of the +highest rank in the state and army; and as he wished to escape +the reproach of condemning his personal enemies, he fixed this +extraordinary tribunal at Chalcedon, on the Asiatic side of the +Bosphorus; and transferred to the commissioners an absolute power +to pronounce and execute their final sentence, without delay, and +without appeal. The office of president was exercised by the +venerable præfect of the East, a second Sallust, whose +virtues conciliated the esteem of Greek sophists, and of +Christian bishops. He was assisted by the eloquent Mamertinus, +one of the consuls elect, whose merit is loudly celebrated by the +doubtful evidence of his own applause. But the civil wisdom of +two magistrates was overbalanced by the ferocious violence of +four generals, Nevitta, Agilo, Jovinus, and Arbetio. Arbetio, +whom the public would have seen with less surprise at the bar +than on the bench, was supposed to possess the secret of the +commission; the armed and angry leaders of the Jovian and +Herculian bands encompassed the tribunal; and the judges were +alternately swayed by the laws of justice, and by the clamors of +faction.<br> +</p> + +<p>The chamberlain Eusebius, who had so long abused the favor of +Constantius, expiated, by an ignominious death, the insolence, +the corruption, and cruelty of his servile reign. The executions +of Paul and Apodemius (the former of whom was burnt alive) were +accepted as an inadequate atonement by the widows and orphans of +so many hundred Romans, whom those legal tyrants had betrayed and +murdered. But justice herself (if we may use the pathetic +expression of Ammianus ) appeared to weep over the fate of +Ursulus, the treasurer of the empire; and his blood accused the +ingratitude of Julian, whose distress had been seasonably +relieved by the intrepid liberality of that honest minister. The +rage of the soldiers, whom he had provoked by his indiscretion, +was the cause and the excuse of his death; and the emperor, +deeply wounded by his own reproaches and those of the public, +offered some consolation to the family of Ursulus, by the +restitution of his confiscated fortunes. Before the end of the +year in which they had been adorned with the ensigns of the +prefecture and consulship, Taurus and Florentius were reduced to +implore the clemency of the inexorable tribunal of Chalcedon. The +former was banished to Vercellæ in Italy, and a sentence of +death was pronounced against the latter. A wise prince should +have rewarded the crime of Taurus: the faithful minister, when he +was no longer able to oppose the progress of a rebel, had taken +refuge in the court of his benefactor and his lawful sovereign. +But the guilt of Florentius justified the severity of the judges; +and his escape served to display the magnanimity of Julian, who +nobly checked the interested diligence of an informer, and +refused to learn what place concealed the wretched fugitive from +his just resentment. Some months after the tribunal of Chalcedon +had been dissolved, the prætorian vicegerent of Africa, the +notary Gaudentius, and Artemius duke of Egypt, were executed at +Antioch. Artemius had reigned the cruel and corrupt tyrant of a +great province; Gaudentius had long practised the arts of calumny +against the innocent, the virtuous, and even the person of Julian +himself. Yet the circumstances of their trial and condemnation +were so unskillfully managed, that these wicked men obtained, in +the public opinion, the glory of suffering for the obstinate +loyalty with which they had supported the cause of Constantius. +The rest of his servants were protected by a general act of +oblivion; and they were left to enjoy with impunity the bribes +which they had accepted, either to defend the oppressed, or to +oppress the friendless. This measure, which, on the soundest +principles of policy, may deserve our approbation, was executed +in a manner which seemed to degrade the majesty of the throne. +Julian was tormented by the importunities of a multitude, +particularly of Egyptians, who loudly redemanded the gifts which +they had imprudently or illegally bestowed; he foresaw the +endless prosecution of vexatious suits; and he engaged a promise, +which ought always to have been sacred, that if they would repair +to Chalcedon, he would meet them in person, to hear and determine +their complaints. But as soon as they were landed, he issued an +absolute order, which prohibited the watermen from transporting +any Egyptian to Constantinople; and thus detained his +disappointed clients on the Asiatic shore till, their patience +and money being utterly exhausted, they were obliged to return +with indignant murmurs to their native country.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXII: Julian Declared Emperor. -- Part +IV.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The numerous army of spies, of agents, and informers enlisted +by Constantius to secure the repose of one man, and to interrupt +that of millions, was immediately disbanded by his generous +successor. Julian was slow in his suspicions, and gentle in his +punishments; and his contempt of treason was the result of +judgment, of vanity, and of courage. Conscious of superior merit, +he was persuaded that few among his subjects would dare to meet +him in the field, to attempt his life, or even to seat themselves +on his vacant throne. The philosopher could excuse the hasty +sallies of discontent; and the hero could despise the ambitious +projects which surpassed the fortune or the abilities of the rash +conspirators. A citizen of Ancyra had prepared for his own use a +purple garment; and this indiscreet action, which, under the +reign of Constantius, would have been considered as a capital +offence, was reported to Julian by the officious importunity of a +private enemy. The monarch, after making some inquiry into the +rank and character of his rival, despatched the informer with a +present of a pair of purple slippers, to complete the +magnificence of his Imperial habit. A more dangerous conspiracy +was formed by ten of the domestic guards, who had resolved to +assassinate Julian in the field of exercise near Antioch. Their +intemperance revealed their guilt; and they were conducted in +chains to the presence of their injured sovereign, who, after a +lively representation of the wickedness and folly of their +enterprise, instead of a death of torture, which they deserved +and expected, pronounced a sentence of exile against the two +principal offenders. The only instance in which Julian seemed to +depart from his accustomed clemency, was the execution of a rash +youth, who, with a feeble hand, had aspired to seize the reins of +empire. But that youth was the son of Marcellus, the general of +cavalry, who, in the first campaign of the Gallic war, had +deserted the standard of the Cæsar and the republic. +Without appearing to indulge his personal resentment, Julian +might easily confound the crime of the son and of the father; but +he was reconciled by the distress of Marcellus, and the +liberality of the emperor endeavored to heal the wound which had +been inflicted by the hand of justice.<br> +</p> + +<p>Julian was not insensible of the advantages of freedom. From +his studies he had imbibed the spirit of ancient sages and +heroes; his life and fortunes had depended on the caprice of a +tyrant; and when he ascended the throne, his pride was sometimes +mortified by the reflection, that the slaves who would not dare +to censure his defects were not worthy to applaud his virtues. He +sincerely abhorred the system of Oriental despotism, which +Diocletian, Constantine, and the patient habits of fourscore +years, had established in the empire. A motive of superstition +prevented the execution of the design, which Julian had +frequently meditated, of relieving his head from the weight of a +costly diadem; but he absolutely refused the title of +<strong><em>Dominus</em></strong>, or +<strong><em>Lord</em></strong>, a word which was grown so +familiar to the ears of the Romans, that they no longer +remembered its servile and humiliating origin. The office, or +rather the name, of consul, was cherished by a prince who +contemplated with reverence the ruins of the republic; and the +same behavior which had been assumed by the prudence of Augustus +was adopted by Julian from choice and inclination. On the calends +of January, at break of day, the new consuls, Mamertinus and +Nevitta, hastened to the palace to salute the emperor. As soon as +he was informed of their approach, he leaped from his throne, +eagerly advanced to meet them, and compelled the blushing +magistrates to receive the demonstrations of his affected +humility. From the palace they proceeded to the senate. The +emperor, on foot, marched before their litters; and the gazing +multitude admired the image of ancient times, or secretly blamed +a conduct, which, in their eyes, degraded the majesty of the +purple. But the behavior of Julian was uniformly supported. +During the games of the Circus, he had, imprudently or +designedly, performed the manumission of a slave in the presence +of the consul. The moment he was reminded that he had trespassed +on the jurisdiction of <strong><em>another</em></strong> +magistrate, he condemned himself to pay a fine of ten pounds of +gold; and embraced this public occasion of declaring to the +world, that he was subject, like the rest of his fellow-citizens, +to the laws, and even to the forms, of the republic. The spirit +of his administration, and his regard for the place of his +nativity, induced Julian to confer on the senate of +Constantinople the same honors, privileges, and authority, which +were still enjoyed by the senate of ancient Rome. A legal fiction +was introduced, and gradually established, that one half of the +national council had migrated into the East; and the despotic +successors of Julian, accepting the title of Senators, +acknowledged themselves the members of a respectable body, which +was permitted to represent the majesty of the Roman name. From +Constantinople, the attention of the monarch was extended to the +municipal senates of the provinces. He abolished, by repeated +edicts, the unjust and pernicious exemptions which had withdrawn +so many idle citizens from the services of their country; and by +imposing an equal distribution of public duties, he restored the +strength, the splendor, or, according to the glowing expression +of Libanius, the soul of the expiring cities of his empire. The +venerable age of Greece excited the most tender compassion in the +mind of Julian, which kindled into rapture when he recollected +the gods, the heroes, and the men superior to heroes and to gods, +who have bequeathed to the latest posterity the monuments of +their genius, or the example of their virtues. He relieved the +distress, and restored the beauty, of the cities of Epirus and +Peloponnesus. Athens acknowledged him for her benefactor; Argos, +for her deliverer. The pride of Corinth, again rising from her +ruins with the honors of a Roman colony, exacted a tribute from +the adjacent republics, for the purpose of defraying the games of +the Isthmus, which were celebrated in the amphitheatre with the +hunting of bears and panthers. From this tribute the cities of +Elis, of Delphi, and of Argos, which had inherited from their +remote ancestors the sacred office of perpetuating the Olympic, +the Pythian, and the Nemean games, claimed a just exemption. The +immunity of Elis and Delphi was respected by the Corinthians; but +the poverty of Argos tempted the insolence of oppression; and the +feeble complaints of its deputies were silenced by the decree of +a provincial magistrate, who seems to have consulted only the +interest of the capital in which he resided. Seven years after +this sentence, Julian allowed the cause to be referred to a +superior tribunal; and his eloquence was interposed, most +probably with success, in the defence of a city, which had been +the royal seat of Agamemnon, and had given to Macedonia a race of +kings and conquerors.<br> +</p> + +<p>The laborious administration of military and civil affairs, +which were multiplied in proportion to the extent of the empire, +exercised the abilities of Julian; but he frequently assumed the +two characters of Orator and of Judge, which are almost unknown +to the modern sovereigns of Europe. The arts of persuasion, so +diligently cultivated by the first Cæsars, were neglected +by the military ignorance and Asiatic pride of their successors; +and if they condescended to harangue the soldiers, whom they +feared, they treated with silent disdain the senators, whom they +despised. The assemblies of the senate, which Constantius had +avoided, were considered by Julian as the place where he could +exhibit, with the most propriety, the maxims of a republican, and +the talents of a rhetorician. He alternately practised, as in a +school of declamation, the several modes of praise, of censure, +of exhortation; and his friend Libanius has remarked, that the +study of Homer taught him to imitate the simple, concise style of +Menelaus, the copiousness of Nestor, whose words descended like +the flakes of a winter's snow, or the pathetic and forcible +eloquence of Ulysses. The functions of a judge, which are +sometimes incompatible with those of a prince, were exercised by +Julian, not only as a duty, but as an amusement; and although he +might have trusted the integrity and discernment of his +Prætorian præfects, he often placed himself by their +side on the seat of judgment. The acute penetration of his mind +was agreeably occupied in detecting and defeating the chicanery +of the advocates, who labored to disguise the truths of facts, +and to pervert the sense of the laws. He sometimes forgot the +gravity of his station, asked indiscreet or unseasonable +questions, and betrayed, by the loudness of his voice, and the +agitation of his body, the earnest vehemence with which he +maintained his opinion against the judges, the advocates, and +their clients. But his knowledge of his own temper prompted him +to encourage, and even to solicit, the reproof of his friends and +ministers; and whenever they ventured to oppose the irregular +sallies of his passions, the spectators could observe the shame, +as well as the gratitude, of their monarch. The decrees of Julian +were almost always founded on the principles of justice; and he +had the firmness to resist the two most dangerous temptations, +which assault the tribunal of a sovereign, under the specious +forms of compassion and equity. He decided the merits of the +cause without weighing the circumstances of the parties; and the +poor, whom he wished to relieve, were condemned to satisfy the +just demands of a wealthy and noble adversary. He carefully +distinguished the judge from the legislator; and though he +meditated a necessary reformation of the Roman jurisprudence, he +pronounced sentence according to the strict and literal +interpretation of those laws, which the magistrates were bound to +execute, and the subjects to obey.<br> +</p> + +<p>The generality of princes, if they were stripped of their +purple, and cast naked into the world, would immediately sink to +the lowest rank of society, without a hope of emerging from their +obscurity. But the personal merit of Julian was, in some measure, +independent of his fortune. Whatever had been his choice of life, +by the force of intrepid courage, lively wit, and intense +application, he would have obtained, or at least he would have +deserved, the highest honors of his profession; and Julian might +have raised himself to the rank of minister, or general, of the +state in which he was born a private citizen. If the jealous +caprice of power had disappointed his expectations, if he had +prudently declined the paths of greatness, the employment of the +same talents in studious solitude would have placed beyond the +reach of kings his present happiness and his immortal fame. When +we inspect, with minute, or perhaps malevolent attention, the +portrait of Julian, something seems wanting to the grace and +perfection of the whole figure. His genius was less powerful and +sublime than that of Cæsar; nor did he possess the +consummate prudence of Augustus. The virtues of Trajan appear +more steady and natural, and the philosophy of Marcus is more +simple and consistent. Yet Julian sustained adversity with +firmness, and prosperity with moderation. After an interval of +one hundred and twenty years from the death of Alexander Severus, +the Romans beheld an emperor who made no distinction between his +duties and his pleasures; who labored to relieve the distress, +and to revive the spirit, of his subjects; and who endeavored +always to connect authority with merit, and happiness with +virtue. Even faction, and religious faction, was constrained to +acknowledge the superiority of his genius, in peace as well as in +war, and to confess, with a sigh, that the apostate Julian was a +lover of his country, and that he deserved the empire of the +world.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong>Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian.</strong></p> + +<p><strong><em>Part I.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The Religion Of Julian. -- Universal Toleration. -- He +Attempts To Restore And Reform The Pagan Worship -- To Rebuild +The Temple Of Jerusalem -- His Artful Persecution Of The +Christians. -- Mutual Zeal And Injustice.<br> +</p> + +<p>The character of Apostate has injured the reputation of +Julian; and the enthusiasm which clouded his virtues has +exaggerated the real and apparent magnitude of his faults. Our +partial ignorance may represent him as a philosophic monarch, who +studied to protect, with an equal hand, the religious factions of +the empire; and to allay the theological fever which had inflamed +the minds of the people, from the edicts of Diocletian to the +exile of Athanasius. A more accurate view of the character and +conduct of Julian will remove this favorable prepossession for a +prince who did not escape the general contagion of the times. We +enjoy the singular advantage of comparing the pictures which have +been delineated by his fondest admirers and his implacable +enemies. The actions of Julian are faithfully related by a +judicious and candid historian, the impartial spectator of his +life and death. The unanimous evidence of his contemporaries is +confirmed by the public and private declarations of the emperor +himself; and his various writings express the uniform tenor of +his religious sentiments, which policy would have prompted him to +dissemble rather than to affect. A devout and sincere attachment +for the gods of Athens and Rome constituted the ruling passion of +Julian; the powers of an enlightened understanding were betrayed +and corrupted by the influence of superstitious prejudice; and +the phantoms which existed only in the mind of the emperor had a +real and pernicious effect on the government of the empire. The +vehement zeal of the Christians, who despised the worship, and +overturned the altars of those fabulous deities, engaged their +votary in a state of irreconcilable hostility with a very +numerous party of his subjects; and he was sometimes tempted by +the desire of victory, or the shame of a repulse, to violate the +laws of prudence, and even of justice. The triumph of the party, +which he deserted and opposed, has fixed a stain of infamy on the +name of Julian; and the unsuccessful apostate has been +overwhelmed with a torrent of pious invectives, of which the +signal was given by the sonorous trumpet of Gregory Nazianzen. +The interesting nature of the events which were crowded into the +short reign of this active emperor, deserve a just and +circumstantial narrative. His motives, his counsels, and his +actions, as far as they are connected with the history of +religion, will be the subject of the present chapter.<br> +</p> + +<p>The cause of his strange and fatal apostasy may be derived +from the early period of his life, when he was left an orphan in +the hands of the murderers of his family. The names of Christ and +of Constantius, the ideas of slavery and of religion, were soon +associated in a youthful imagination, which was susceptible of +the most lively impressions. The care of his infancy was +intrusted to Eusebius, bishop of Nicomedia, who was related to +him on the side of his mother; and till Julian reached the +twentieth year of his age, he received from his Christian +preceptors the education, not of a hero, but of a saint. The +emperor, less jealous of a heavenly than of an earthly crown, +contented himself with the imperfect character of a catechumen, +while he bestowed the advantages of baptism on the nephews of +Constantine. They were even admitted to the inferior offices of +the ecclesiastical order; and Julian publicly read the Holy +Scriptures in the church of Nicomedia. The study of religion, +which they assiduously cultivated, appeared to produce the +fairest fruits of faith and devotion. They prayed, they fasted, +they distributed alms to the poor, gifts to the clergy, and +oblations to the tombs of the martyrs; and the splendid monument +of St. Mamas, at Cæsarea, was erected, or at least was +undertaken, by the joint labor of Gallus and Julian. They +respectfully conversed with the bishops, who were eminent for +superior sanctity, and solicited the benediction of the monks and +hermits, who had introduced into Cappadocia the voluntary +hardships of the ascetic life. As the two princes advanced +towards the years of manhood, they discovered, in their religious +sentiments, the difference of their characters. The dull and +obstinate understanding of Gallus embraced, with implicit zeal, +the doctrines of Christianity; which never influenced his +conduct, or moderated his passions. The mild disposition of the +younger brother was less repugnant to the precepts of the gospel; +and his active curiosity might have been gratified by a +theological system, which explains the mysterious essence of the +Deity, and opens the boundless prospect of invisible and future +worlds. But the independent spirit of Julian refused to yield the +passive and unresisting obedience which was required, in the name +of religion, by the haughty ministers of the church. Their +speculative opinions were imposed as positive laws, and guarded +by the terrors of eternal punishments; but while they prescribed +the rigid formulary of the thoughts, the words, and the actions +of the young prince; whilst they silenced his objections, and +severely checked the freedom of his inquiries, they secretly +provoked his impatient genius to disclaim the authority of his +ecclesiastical guides. He was educated in the Lesser Asia, amidst +the scandals of the Arian controversy. The fierce contests of the +Eastern bishops, the incessant alterations of their creeds, and +the profane motives which appeared to actuate their conduct, +insensibly strengthened the prejudice of Julian, that they +neither understood nor believed the religion for which they so +fiercely contended. Instead of listening to the proofs of +Christianity with that favorable attention which adds weight to +the most respectable evidence, he heard with suspicion, and +disputed with obstinacy and acuteness, the doctrines for which he +already entertained an invincible aversion. Whenever the young +princes were directed to compose declamations on the subject of +the prevailing controversies, Julian always declared himself the +advocate of Paganism; under the specious excuse that, in the +defence of the weaker cause, his learning and ingenuity might be +more advantageously exercised and displayed.<br> +</p> + +<p>As soon as Gallus was invested with the honors of the purple, +Julian was permitted to breathe the air of freedom, of +literature, and of Paganism. The crowd of sophists, who were +attracted by the taste and liberality of their royal pupil, had +formed a strict alliance between the learning and the religion of +Greece; and the poems of Homer, instead of being admired as the +original productions of human genius, were seriously ascribed to +the heavenly inspiration of Apollo and the muses. The deities of +Olympus, as they are painted by the immortal bard, imprint +themselves on the minds which are the least addicted to +superstitious credulity. Our familiar knowledge of their names +and characters, their forms and attributes, +<strong><em>seems</em></strong> to bestow on those airy beings a +real and substantial existence; and the pleasing enchantment +produces an imperfect and momentary assent of the imagination to +those fables, which are the most repugnant to our reason and +experience. In the age of Julian, every circumstance contributed +to prolong and fortify the illusion; the magnificent temples of +Greece and Asia; the works of those artists who had expressed, in +painting or in sculpture, the divine conceptions of the poet; the +pomp of festivals and sacrifices; the successful arts of +divination; the popular traditions of oracles and prodigies; and +the ancient practice of two thousand years. The weakness of +polytheism was, in some measure, excused by the moderation of its +claims; and the devotion of the Pagans was not incompatible with +the most licentious scepticism. Instead of an indivisible and +regular system, which occupies the whole extent of the believing +mind, the mythology of the Greeks was composed of a thousand +loose and flexible parts, and the servant of the gods was at +liberty to define the degree and measure of his religious faith. +The creed which Julian adopted for his own use was of the largest +dimensions; and, by strange contradiction, he disdained the +salutary yoke of the gospel, whilst he made a voluntary offering +of his reason on the altars of Jupiter and Apollo. One of the +orations of Julian is consecrated to the honor of Cybele, the +mother of the gods, who required from her effeminate priests the +bloody sacrifice, so rashly performed by the madness of the +Phrygian boy. The pious emperor condescends to relate, without a +blush, and without a smile, the voyage of the goddess from the +shores of Pergamus to the mouth of the Tyber, and the stupendous +miracle, which convinced the senate and people of Rome that the +lump of clay, which their ambassadors had transported over the +seas, was endowed with life, and sentiment, and divine power. For +the truth of this prodigy he appeals to the public monuments of +the city; and censures, with some acrimony, the sickly and +affected taste of those men, who impertinently derided the sacred +traditions of their ancestors.<br> +</p> + +<p>But the devout philosopher, who sincerely embraced, and warmly +encouraged, the superstition of the people, reserved for himself +the privilege of a liberal interpretation; and silently withdrew +from the foot of the altars into the sanctuary of the temple. The +extravagance of the Grecian mythology proclaimed, with a clear +and audible voice, that the pious inquirer, instead of being +scandalized or satisfied with the literal sense, should +diligently explore the occult wisdom, which had been disguised, +by the prudence of antiquity, under the mask of folly and of +fable. The philosophers of the Platonic school, Plotinus, +Porphyry, and the divine Iamblichus, were admired as the most +skilful masters of this allegorical science, which labored to +soften and harmonize the deformed features of Paganism. Julian +himself, who was directed in the mysterious pursuit by +Ædesius, the venerable successor of Iamblichus, aspired to +the possession of a treasure, which he esteemed, if we may credit +his solemn asseverations, far above the empire of the world. It +was indeed a treasure, which derived its value only from opinion; +and every artist who flattered himself that he had extracted the +precious ore from the surrounding dross, claimed an equal right +of stamping the name and figure the most agreeable to his +peculiar fancy. The fable of Atys and Cybele had been already +explained by Porphyry; but his labors served only to animate the +pious industry of Julian, who invented and published his own +allegory of that ancient and mystic tale. This freedom of +interpretation, which might gratify the pride of the Platonists, +exposed the vanity of their art. Without a tedious detail, the +modern reader could not form a just idea of the strange +allusions, the forced etymologies, the solemn trifling, and the +impenetrable obscurity of these sages, who professed to reveal +the system of the universe. As the traditions of Pagan mythology +were variously related, the sacred interpreters were at liberty +to select the most convenient circumstances; and as they +translated an arbitrary cipher, they could extract from +<strong><em>any</em></strong> fable <strong><em>any</em></strong> +sense which was adapted to their favorite system of religion and +philosophy. The lascivious form of a naked Venus was tortured +into the discovery of some moral precept, or some physical truth; +and the castration of Atys explained the revolution of the sun +between the tropics, or the separation of the human soul from +vice and error.<br> +</p> + +<p>The theological system of Julian appears to have contained the +sublime and important principles of natural religion. But as the +faith, which is not founded on revelation, must remain destitute +of any firm assurance, the disciple of Plato imprudently relapsed +into the habits of vulgar superstition; and the popular and +philosophic notion of the Deity seems to have been confounded in +the practice, the writings, and even in the mind of Julian. The +pious emperor acknowledged and adored the Eternal Cause of the +universe, to whom he ascribed all the perfections of an infinite +nature, invisible to the eyes and inaccessible to the +understanding, of feeble mortals. The Supreme God had created, or +rather, in the Platonic language, had generated, the gradual +succession of dependent spirits, of gods, of dæmons, of +heroes, and of men; and every being which derived its existence +immediately from the First Cause, received the inherent gift of +immortality. That so precious an advantage might be lavished upon +unworthy objects, the Creator had intrusted to the skill and +power of the inferior gods the office of forming the human body, +and of arranging the beautiful harmony of the animal, the +vegetable, and the mineral kingdoms. To the conduct of these +divine ministers he delegated the temporal government of this +lower world; but their imperfect administration is not exempt +from discord or error. The earth and its inhabitants are divided +among them, and the characters of Mars or Minerva, of Mercury or +Venus, may be distinctly traced in the laws and manners of their +peculiar votaries. As long as our immortal souls are confined in +a mortal prison, it is our interest, as well as our duty, to +solicit the favor, and to deprecate the wrath, of the powers of +heaven; whose pride is gratified by the devotion of mankind; and +whose grosser parts may be supposed to derive some nourishment +from the fumes of sacrifice. The inferior gods might sometimes +condescend to animate the statues, and to inhabit the temples, +which were dedicated to their honor. They might occasionally +visit the earth, but the heavens were the proper throne and +symbol of their glory. The invariable order of the sun, moon, and +stars, was hastily admitted by Julian, as a proof of their +<strong><em>eternal</em></strong>duration; and their eternity was +a sufficient evidence that they were the workmanship, not of an +inferior deity, but of the Omnipotent King. In the system of +Platonists, the visible was a type of the invisible world. The +celestial bodies, as they were informed by a divine spirit, might +be considered as the objects the most worthy of religious +worship. The Sun, whose genial influence pervades and sustains +the universe, justly claimed the adoration of mankind, as the +bright representative of the Logos, the lively, the rational, the +beneficent image of the intellectual Father.<br> +</p> + +<p>In every age, the absence of genuine inspiration is supplied +by the strong illusions of enthusiasm, and the mimic arts of +imposture. If, in the time of Julian, these arts had been +practised only by the pagan priests, for the support of an +expiring cause, some indulgence might perhaps be allowed to the +interest and habits of the sacerdotal character. But it may +appear a subject of surprise and scandal, that the philosophers +themselves should have contributed to abuse the superstitious +credulity of mankind, and that the Grecian mysteries should have +been supported by the magic or theurgy of the modern Platonists. +They arrogantly pretended to control the order of nature, to +explore the secrets of futurity, to command the service of the +inferior dæmons, to enjoy the view and conversation of the +superior gods, and by disengaging the soul from her material +bands, to reunite that immortal particle with the Infinite and +Divine Spirit.<br> +</p> + +<p>The devout and fearless curiosity of Julian tempted the +philosophers with the hopes of an easy conquest; which, from the +situation of their young proselyte, might be productive of the +most important consequences. Julian imbibed the first rudiments +of the Platonic doctrines from the mouth of Ædesius, who +had fixed at Pergamus his wandering and persecuted school. But as +the declining strength of that venerable sage was unequal to the +ardor, the diligence, the rapid conception of his pupil, two of +his most learned disciples, Chrysanthes and Eusebius, supplied, +at his own desire, the place of their aged master. These +philosophers seem to have prepared and distributed their +respective parts; and they artfully contrived, by dark hints and +affected disputes, to excite the impatient hopes of the +<strong><em>aspirant</em></strong>, till they delivered him into +the hands of their associate, Maximus, the boldest and most +skilful master of the Theurgic science. By his hands, Julian was +secretly initiated at Ephesus, in the twentieth year of his age. +His residence at Athens confirmed this unnatural alliance of +philosophy and superstition. He obtained the privilege of a +solemn initiation into the mysteries of Eleusis, which, amidst +the general decay of the Grecian worship, still retained some +vestiges of their primæval sanctity; and such was the zeal +of Julian, that he afterwards invited the Eleusinian pontiff to +the court of Gaul, for the sole purpose of consummating, by +mystic rites and sacrifices, the great work of his +sanctification. As these ceremonies were performed in the depth +of caverns, and in the silence of the night, and as the +inviolable secret of the mysteries was preserved by the +discretion of the initiated, I shall not presume to describe the +horrid sounds, and fiery apparitions, which were presented to the +senses, or the imagination, of the credulous aspirant, till the +visions of comfort and knowledge broke upon him in a blaze of +celestial light. In the caverns of Ephesus and Eleusis, the mind +of Julian was penetrated with sincere, deep, and unalterable +enthusiasm; though he might sometimes exhibit the vicissitudes of +pious fraud and hypocrisy, which may be observed, or at least +suspected, in the characters of the most conscientious fanatics. +From that moment he consecrated his life to the service of the +gods; and while the occupations of war, of government, and of +study, seemed to claim the whole measure of his time, a stated +portion of the hours of the night was invariably reserved for the +exercise of private devotion. The temperance which adorned the +severe manners of the soldier and the philosopher was connected +with some strict and frivolous rules of religious abstinence; and +it was in honor of Pan or Mercury, of Hecate or Isis, that +Julian, on particular days, denied himself the use of some +particular food, which might have been offensive to his tutelar +deities. By these voluntary fasts, he prepared his senses and his +understanding for the frequent and familiar visits with which he +was honored by the celestial powers. Notwithstanding the modest +silence of Julian himself, we may learn from his faithful friend, +the orator Libanius, that he lived in a perpetual intercourse +with the gods and goddesses; that they descended upon earth to +enjoy the conversation of their favorite hero; that they gently +interrupted his slumbers by touching his hand or his hair; that +they warned him of every impending danger, and conducted him, by +their infallible wisdom, in every action of his life; and that he +had acquired such an intimate knowledge of his heavenly guests, +as readily to distinguish the voice of Jupiter from that of +Minerva, and the form of Apollo from the figure of Hercules. +These sleeping or waking visions, the ordinary effects of +abstinence and fanaticism, would almost degrade the emperor to +the level of an Egyptian monk. But the useless lives of Antony or +Pachomius were consumed in these vain occupations. Julian could +break from the dream of superstition to arm himself for battle; +and after vanquishing in the field the enemies of Rome, he calmly +retired into his tent, to dictate the wise and salutary laws of +an empire, or to indulge his genius in the elegant pursuits of +literature and philosophy.<br> +</p> + +<p>The important secret of the apostasy of Julian was intrusted +to the fidelity of the <strong><em>initiated</em></strong>, with +whom he was united by the sacred ties of friendship and religion. +The pleasing rumor was cautiously circulated among the adherents +of the ancient worship; and his future greatness became the +object of the hopes, the prayers, and the predictions of the +Pagans, in every province of the empire. From the zeal and +virtues of their royal proselyte, they fondly expected the cure +of every evil, and the restoration of every blessing; and instead +of disapproving of the ardor of their pious wishes, Julian +ingenuously confessed, that he was ambitious to attain a +situation in which he might be useful to his country and to his +religion. But this religion was viewed with a hostile eye by the +successor of Constantine, whose capricious passions alternately +saved and threatened the life of Julian. The arts of magic and +divination were strictly prohibited under a despotic government, +which condescended to fear them; and if the Pagans were +reluctantly indulged in the exercise of their superstition, the +rank of Julian would have excepted him from the general +toleration. The apostate soon became the presumptive heir of the +monarchy, and his death could alone have appeased the just +apprehensions of the Christians. But the young prince, who +aspired to the glory of a hero rather than of a martyr, consulted +his safety by dissembling his religion; and the easy temper of +polytheism permitted him to join in the public worship of a sect +which he inwardly despised. Libanius has considered the hypocrisy +of his friend as a subject, not of censure, but of praise. "As +the statues of the gods," says that orator, "which have been +defiled with filth, are again placed in a magnificent temple, so +the beauty of truth was seated in the mind of Julian, after it +had been purified from the errors and follies of his education. +His sentiments were changed; but as it would have been dangerous +to have avowed his sentiments, his conduct still continued the +same. Very different from the ass in Æsop, who disguised +himself with a lion's hide, our lion was obliged to conceal +himself under the skin of an ass; and, while he embraced the +dictates of reason, to obey the laws of prudence and necessity." +The dissimulation of Julian lasted about ten years, from his +secret initiation at Ephesus to the beginning of the civil war; +when he declared himself at once the implacable enemy of Christ +and of Constantius. This state of constraint might contribute to +strengthen his devotion; and as soon as he had satisfied the +obligation of assisting, on solemn festivals, at the assemblies +of the Christians, Julian returned, with the impatience of a +lover, to burn his free and voluntary incense on the domestic +chapels of Jupiter and Mercury. But as every act of dissimulation +must be painful to an ingenuous spirit, the profession of +Christianity increased the aversion of Julian for a religion +which oppressed the freedom of his mind, and compelled him to +hold a conduct repugnant to the noblest attributes of human +nature, sincerity and courage.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian. -- Part +II.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The inclination of Julian might prefer the gods of Homer, and +of the Scipios, to the new faith, which his uncle had established +in the Roman empire; and in which he himself had been sanctified +by the sacrament of baptism. But, as a philosopher, it was +incumbent on him to justify his dissent from Christianity, which +was supported by the number of its converts, by the chain of +prophecy, the splendor of or miracles, and the weight of +evidence. The elaborate work, which he composed amidst the +preparations of the Persian war, contained the substance of those +arguments which he had long revolved in his mind. Some fragments +have been transcribed and preserved, by his adversary, the +vehement Cyril of Alexandria; and they exhibit a very singular +mixture of wit and learning, of sophistry and fanaticism. The +elegance of the style and the rank of the author, recommended his +writings to the public attention; and in the impious list of the +enemies of Christianity, the celebrated name of Porphyry was +effaced by the superior merit or reputation of Julian. The minds +of the faithful were either seduced, or scandalized, or alarmed; +and the pagans, who sometimes presumed to engage in the unequal +dispute, derived, from the popular work of their Imperial +missionary, an inexhaustible supply of fallacious objections. But +in the assiduous prosecution of these theological studies, the +emperor of the Romans imbibed the illiberal prejudices and +passions of a polemic divine. He contracted an irrevocable +obligation to maintain and propagate his religious opinions; and +whilst he secretly applauded the strength and dexterity with +which he wielded the weapons of controversy, he was tempted to +distrust the sincerity, or to despise the understandings, of his +antagonists, who could obstinately resist the force of reason and +eloquence.<br> +</p> + +<p>The Christians, who beheld with horror and indignation the +apostasy of Julian, had much more to fear from his power than +from his arguments. The pagans, who were conscious of his fervent +zeal, expected, perhaps with impatience, that the flames of +persecution should be immediately kindled against the enemies of +the gods; and that the ingenious malice of Julian would invent +some cruel refinements of death and torture which had been +unknown to the rude and inexperienced fury of his predecessors. +But the hopes, as well as the fears, of the religious factions +were apparently disappointed, by the prudent humanity of a +prince, who was careful of his own fame, of the public peace, and +of the rights of mankind. Instructed by history and reflection, +Julian was persuaded, that if the diseases of the body may +sometimes be cured by salutary violence, neither steel nor fire +can eradicate the erroneous opinions of the mind. The reluctant +victim may be dragged to the foot of the altar; but the heart +still abhors and disclaims the sacrilegious act of the hand. +Religious obstinacy is hardened and exasperated by oppression; +and, as soon as the persecution subsides, those who have yielded +are restored as penitents, and those who have resisted are +honored as saints and martyrs. If Julian adopted the unsuccessful +cruelty of Diocletian and his colleagues, he was sensible that he +should stain his memory with the name of a tyrant, and add new +glories to the Catholic church, which had derived strength and +increase from the severity of the pagan magistrates. Actuated by +these motives, and apprehensive of disturbing the repose of an +unsettled reign, Julian surprised the world by an edict, which +was not unworthy of a statesman, or a philosopher. He extended to +all the inhabitants of the Roman world the benefits of a free and +equal toleration; and the only hardship which he inflicted on the +Christians, was to deprive them of the power of tormenting their +fellow-subjects, whom they stigmatized with the odious titles of +idolaters and heretics. The pagans received a gracious +permission, or rather an express order, to open All their +temples; and they were at once delivered from the oppressive +laws, and arbitrary vexations, which they had sustained under the +reign of Constantine, and of his sons. At the same time the +bishops and clergy, who had been banished by the Arian monarch, +were recalled from exile, and restored to their respective +churches; the Donatists, the Novatians, the Macedonians, the +Eunomians, and those who, with a more prosperous fortune, adhered +to the doctrine of the Council of Nice. Julian, who understood +and derided their theological disputes, invited to the palace the +leaders of the hostile sects, that he might enjoy the agreeable +spectacle of their furious encounters. The clamor of controversy +sometimes provoked the emperor to exclaim, "Hear me! the Franks +have heard me, and the Alemanni;" but he soon discovered that he +was now engaged with more obstinate and implacable enemies; and +though he exerted the powers of oratory to persuade them to live +in concord, or at least in peace, he was perfectly satisfied, +before he dismissed them from his presence, that he had nothing +to dread from the union of the Christians. The impartial Ammianus +has ascribed this affected clemency to the desire of fomenting +the intestine divisions of the church, and the insidious design +of undermining the foundations of Christianity, was inseparably +connected with the zeal which Julian professed, to restore the +ancient religion of the empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>As soon as he ascended the throne, he assumed, according to +the custom of his predecessors, the character of supreme pontiff; +not only as the most honorable title of Imperial greatness, but +as a sacred and important office; the duties of which he was +resolved to execute with pious diligence. As the business of the +state prevented the emperor from joining every day in the public +devotion of his subjects, he dedicated a domestic chapel to his +tutelar deity the Sun; his gardens were filled with statues and +altars of the gods; and each apartment of the palace displaced +the appearance of a magnificent temple. Every morning he saluted +the parent of light with a sacrifice; the blood of another victim +was shed at the moment when the Sun sunk below the horizon; and +the Moon, the Stars, and the Genii of the night received their +respective and seasonable honors from the indefatigable devotion +of Julian. On solemn festivals, he regularly visited the temple +of the god or goddess to whom the day was peculiarly consecrated, +and endeavored to excite the religion of the magistrates and +people by the example of his own zeal. Instead of maintaining the +lofty state of a monarch, distinguished by the splendor of his +purple, and encompassed by the golden shields of his guards, +Julian solicited, with respectful eagerness, the meanest offices +which contributed to the worship of the gods. Amidst the sacred +but licentious crowd of priests, of inferior ministers, and of +female dancers, who were dedicated to the service of the temple, +it was the business of the emperor to bring the wood, to blow the +fire, to handle the knife, to slaughter the victim, and, +thrusting his bloody hands into the bowels of the expiring +animal, to draw forth the heart or liver, and to read, with the +consummate skill of an haruspex, imaginary signs of future +events. The wisest of the Pagans censured this extravagant +superstition, which affected to despise the restraints of +prudence and decency. Under the reign of a prince, who practised +the rigid maxims of economy, the expense of religious worship +consumed a very large portion of the revenue a constant supply of +the scarcest and most beautiful birds was transported from +distant climates, to bleed on the altars of the gods; a hundred +oxen were frequently sacrificed by Julian on one and the same +day; and it soon became a popular jest, that if he should return +with conquest from the Persian war, the breed of horned cattle +must infallibly be extinguished. Yet this expense may appear +inconsiderable, when it is compared with the splendid presents +which were offered either by the hand, or by order, of the +emperor, to all the celebrated places of devotion in the Roman +world; and with the sums allotted to repair and decorate the +ancient temples, which had suffered the silent decay of time, or +the recent injuries of Christian rapine. Encouraged by the +example, the exhortations, the liberality, of their pious +sovereign, the cities and families resumed the practice of their +neglected ceremonies. "Every part of the world," exclaims +Libanius, with devout transport, "displayed the triumph of +religion; and the grateful prospect of flaming altars, bleeding +victims, the smoke of incense, and a solemn train of priests and +prophets, without fear and without danger. The sound of prayer +and of music was heard on the tops of the highest mountains; and +the same ox afforded a sacrifice for the gods, and a supper for +their joyous votaries."<br> +</p> + +<p>But the genius and power of Julian were unequal to the +enterprise of restoring a religion which was destitute of +theological principles, of moral precepts, and of ecclesiastical +discipline; which rapidly hastened to decay and dissolution, and +was not susceptible of any solid or consistent reformation. The +jurisdiction of the supreme pontiff, more especially after that +office had been united with the Imperial dignity, comprehended +the whole extent of the Roman empire. Julian named for his +vicars, in the several provinces, the priests and philosophers +whom he esteemed the best qualified to cooperate in the execution +of his great design; and his pastoral letters, if we may use that +name, still represent a very curious sketch of his wishes and +intentions. He directs, that in every city the sacerdotal order +should be composed, without any distinction of birth and fortune, +of those persons who were the most conspicuous for the love of +the gods, and of men. "If they are guilty," continues he, "of any +scandalous offence, they should be censured or degraded by the +superior pontiff; but as long as they retain their rank, they are +entitled to the respect of the magistrates and people. Their +humility may be shown in the plainness of their domestic garb; +their dignity, in the pomp of holy vestments. When they are +summoned in their turn to officiate before the altar, they ought +not, during the appointed number of days, to depart from the +precincts of the temple; nor should a single day be suffered to +elapse, without the prayers and the sacrifice, which they are +obliged to offer for the prosperity of the state, and of +individuals. The exercise of their sacred functions requires an +immaculate purity, both of mind and body; and even when they are +dismissed from the temple to the occupations of common life, it +is incumbent on them to excel in decency and virtue the rest of +their fellow-citizens. The priest of the gods should never be +seen in theatres or taverns. His conversation should be chaste, +his diet temperate, his friends of honorable reputation; and if +he sometimes visits the Forum or the Palace, he should appear +only as the advocate of those who have vainly solicited either +justice or mercy. His studies should be suited to the sanctity of +his profession. Licentious tales, or comedies, or satires, must +be banished from his library, which ought solely to consist of +historical or philosophical writings; of history, which is +founded in truth, and of philosophy, which is connected with +religion. The impious opinions of the Epicureans and sceptics +deserve his abhorrence and contempt; but he should diligently +study the systems of Pythagoras, of Plato, and of the Stoics, +which unanimously teach that there <strong><em>are</em></strong> +gods; that the world is governed by their providence; that their +goodness is the source of every temporal blessing; and that they +have prepared for the human soul a future state of reward or +punishment." The Imperial pontiff inculcates, in the most +persuasive language, the duties of benevolence and hospitality; +exhorts his inferior clergy to recommend the universal practice +of those virtues; promises to assist their indigence from the +public treasury; and declares his resolution of establishing +hospitals in every city, where the poor should be received +without any invidious distinction of country or of religion. +Julian beheld with envy the wise and humane regulations of the +church; and he very frankly confesses his intention to deprive +the Christians of the applause, as well as advantage, which they +had acquired by the exclusive practice of charity and +beneficence. The same spirit of imitation might dispose the +emperor to adopt several ecclesiastical institutions, the use and +importance of which were approved by the success of his enemies. +But if these imaginary plans of reformation had been realized, +the forced and imperfect copy would have been less beneficial to +Paganism, than honorable to Christianity. The Gentiles, who +peaceably followed the customs of their ancestors, were rather +surprised than pleased with the introduction of foreign manners; +and in the short period of his reign, Julian had frequent +occasions to complain of the want of fervor of his own party.<br> +</p> + +<p>The enthusiasm of Julian prompted him to embrace the friends +of Jupiter as his personal friends and brethren; and though he +partially overlooked the merit of Christian constancy, he admired +and rewarded the noble perseverance of those Gentiles who had +preferred the favor of the gods to that of the emperor. If they +cultivated the literature, as well as the religion, of the +Greeks, they acquired an additional claim to the friendship of +Julian, who ranked the Muses in the number of his tutelar +deities. In the religion which he had adopted, piety and learning +were almost synonymous; and a crowd of poets, of rhetoricians, +and of philosophers, hastened to the Imperial court, to occupy +the vacant places of the bishops, who had seduced the credulity +of Constantius. His successor esteemed the ties of common +initiation as far more sacred than those of consanguinity; he +chose his favorites among the sages, who were deeply skilled in +the occult sciences of magic and divination; and every impostor, +who pretended to reveal the secrets of futurity, was assured of +enjoying the present hour in honor and affluence. Among the +philosophers, Maximus obtained the most eminent rank in the +friendship of his royal disciple, who communicated, with +unreserved confidence, his actions, his sentiments, and his +religious designs, during the anxious suspense of the civil war. +As soon as Julian had taken possession of the palace of +Constantinople, he despatched an honorable and pressing +invitation to Maximus, who then resided at Sardes in Lydia, with +Chrysanthius, the associate of his art and studies. The prudent +and superstitious Chrysanthius refused to undertake a journey +which showed itself, according to the rules of divination, with +the most threatening and malignant aspect: but his companion, +whose fanaticism was of a bolder cast, persisted in his +interrogations, till he had extorted from the gods a seeming +consent to his own wishes, and those of the emperor. The journey +of Maximus through the cities of Asia displayed the triumph of +philosophic vanity; and the magistrates vied with each other in +the honorable reception which they prepared for the friend of +their sovereign. Julian was pronouncing an oration before the +senate, when he was informed of the arrival of Maximus. The +emperor immediately interrupted his discourse, advanced to meet +him, and after a tender embrace, conducted him by the hand into +the midst of the assembly; where he publicly acknowledged the +benefits which he had derived from the instructions of the +philosopher. Maximus, who soon acquired the confidence, and +influenced the councils of Julian, was insensibly corrupted by +the temptations of a court. His dress became more splendid, his +demeanor more lofty, and he was exposed, under a succeeding +reign, to a disgraceful inquiry into the means by which the +disciple of Plato had accumulated, in the short duration of his +favor, a very scandalous proportion of wealth. Of the other +philosophers and sophists, who were invited to the Imperial +residence by the choice of Julian, or by the success of Maximus, +few were able to preserve their innocence or their reputation. +The liberal gifts of money, lands, and houses, were insufficient +to satiate their rapacious avarice; and the indignation of the +people was justly excited by the remembrance of their abject +poverty and disinterested professions. The penetration of Julian +could not always be deceived: but he was unwilling to despise the +characters of those men whose talents deserved his esteem: he +desired to escape the double reproach of imprudence and +inconstancy; and he was apprehensive of degrading, in the eyes of +the profane, the honor of letters and of religion.<br> +</p> + +<p>The favor of Julian was almost equally divided between the +Pagans, who had firmly adhered to the worship of their ancestors, +and the Christians, who prudently embraced the religion of their +sovereign. The acquisition of new proselytes gratified the ruling +passions of his soul, superstition and vanity; and he was heard +to declare, with the enthusiasm of a missionary, that if he could +render each individual richer than Midas, and every city greater +than Babylon, he should not esteem himself the benefactor of +mankind, unless, at the same time, he could reclaim his subjects +from their impious revolt against the immortal gods. A prince who +had studied human nature, and who possessed the treasures of the +Roman empire, could adapt his arguments, his promises, and his +rewards, to every order of Christians; and the merit of a +seasonable conversion was allowed to supply the defects of a +candidate, or even to expiate the guilt of a criminal. As the +army is the most forcible engine of absolute power, Julian +applied himself, with peculiar diligence, to corrupt the religion +of his troops, without whose hearty concurrence every measure +must be dangerous and unsuccessful; and the natural temper of +soldiers made this conquest as easy as it was important. The +legions of Gaul devoted themselves to the faith, as well as to +the fortunes, of their victorious leader; and even before the +death of Constantius, he had the satisfaction of announcing to +his friends, that they assisted with fervent devotion, and +voracious appetite, at the sacrifices, which were repeatedly +offered in his camp, of whole hecatombs of fat oxen. The armies +of the East, which had been trained under the standard of the +cross, and of Constantius, required a more artful and expensive +mode of persuasion. On the days of solemn and public festivals, +the emperor received the homage, and rewarded the merit, of the +troops. His throne of state was encircled with the military +ensigns of Rome and the republic; the holy name of Christ was +erased from the Labarum; and the symbols of war, of majesty, and +of pagan superstition, were so dexterously blended, that the +faithful subject incurred the guilt of idolatry, when he +respectfully saluted the person or image of his sovereign. The +soldiers passed successively in review; and each of them, before +he received from the hand of Julian a liberal donative, +proportioned to his rank and services, was required to cast a few +grains of incense into the flame which burnt upon the altar. Some +Christian confessors might resist, and others might repent; but +the far greater number, allured by the prospect of gold, and awed +by the presence of the emperor, contracted the criminal +engagement; and their future perseverance in the worship of the +gods was enforced by every consideration of duty and of interest. +By the frequent repetition of these arts, and at the expense of +sums which would have purchased the service of half the nations +of Scythia, Julian gradually acquired for his troops the +imaginary protection of the gods, and for himself the firm and +effectual support of the Roman legions. It is indeed more than +probable, that the restoration and encouragement of Paganism +revealed a multitude of pretended Christians, who, from motives +of temporal advantage, had acquiesced in the religion of the +former reign; and who afterwards returned, with the same +flexibility of conscience, to the faith which was professed by +the successors of Julian.<br> +</p> + +<p>While the devout monarch incessantly labored to restore and +propagate the religion of his ancestors, he embraced the +extraordinary design of rebuilding the temple of Jerusalem. In a +public epistle to the nation or community of the Jews, dispersed +through the provinces, he pities their misfortunes, condemns +their oppressors, praises their constancy, declares himself their +gracious protector, and expresses a pious hope, that after his +return from the Persian war, he may be permitted to pay his +grateful vows to the Almighty in his holy city of Jerusalem. The +blind superstition, and abject slavery, of those unfortunate +exiles, must excite the contempt of a philosophic emperor; but +they deserved the friendship of Julian, by their implacable +hatred of the Christian name. The barren synagogue abhorred and +envied the fecundity of the rebellious church; the power of the +Jews was not equal to their malice; but their gravest rabbis +approved the private murder of an apostate; and their seditious +clamors had often awakened the indolence of the Pagan +magistrates. Under the reign of Constantine, the Jews became the +subjects of their revolted children nor was it long before they +experienced the bitterness of domestic tyranny. The civil +immunities which had been granted, or confirmed, by Severus, were +gradually repealed by the Christian princes; and a rash tumult, +excited by the Jews of Palestine, seemed to justify the lucrative +modes of oppression which were invented by the bishops and +eunuchs of the court of Constantius. The Jewish patriarch, who +was still permitted to exercise a precarious jurisdiction, held +his residence at Tiberias; and the neighboring cities of +Palestine were filled with the remains of a people who fondly +adhered to the promised land. But the edict of Hadrian was +renewed and enforced; and they viewed from afar the walls of the +holy city, which were profaned in their eyes by the triumph of +the cross and the devotion of the Christians.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian. -- Part +III.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>In the midst of a rocky and barren country, the walls of +Jerusalem enclosed the two mountains of Sion and Acra, within an +oval figure of about three English miles. Towards the south, the +upper town, and the fortress of David, were erected on the lofty +ascent of Mount Sion: on the north side, the buildings of the +lower town covered the spacious summit of Mount Acra; and a part +of the hill, distinguished by the name of Moriah, and levelled by +human industry, was crowned with the stately temple of the Jewish +nation. After the final destruction of the temple by the arms of +Titus and Hadrian, a ploughshare was drawn over the consecrated +ground, as a sign of perpetual interdiction. Sion was deserted; +and the vacant space of the lower city was filled with the public +and private edifices of the Ælian colony, which spread +themselves over the adjacent hill of Calvary. The holy places +were polluted with mountains of idolatry; and, either from design +or accident, a chapel was dedicated to Venus, on the spot which +had been sanctified by the death and resurrection of Christ. * +Almost three hundred years after those stupendous events, the +profane chapel of Venus was demolished by the order of +Constantine; and the removal of the earth and stones revealed the +holy sepulchre to the eyes of mankind. A magnificent church was +erected on that mystic ground, by the first Christian emperor; +and the effects of his pious munificence were extended to every +spot which had been consecrated by the footstep of patriarchs, of +prophets, and of the Son of God.<br> +</p> + +<p>The passionate desire of contemplating the original monuments +of their redemption attracted to Jerusalem a successive crowd of +pilgrims, from the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, and the most +distant countries of the East; and their piety was authorized by +the example of the empress Helena, who appears to have united the +credulity of age with the warm feelings of a recent conversion. +Sages and heroes, who have visited the memorable scenes of +ancient wisdom or glory, have confessed the inspiration of the +genius of the place; and the Christian who knelt before the holy +sepulchre, ascribed his lively faith, and his fervent devotion, +to the more immediate influence of the Divine Spirit. The zeal, +perhaps the avarice, of the clergy of Jerusalem, cherished and +multiplied these beneficial visits. They fixed, by unquestionable +tradition, the scene of each memorable event. They exhibited the +instruments which had been used in the passion of Christ; the +nails and the lance that had pierced his hands, his feet, and his +side; the crown of thorns that was planted on his head; the +pillar at which he was scourged; and, above all, they showed the +cross on which he suffered, and which was dug out of the earth in +the reign of those princes, who inserted the symbol of +Christianity in the banners of the Roman legions. Such miracles +as seemed necessary to account for its extraordinary +preservation, and seasonable discovery, were gradually propagated +without opposition. The custody of the <strong><em>true +cross</em></strong>, which on Easter Sunday was solemnly exposed +to the people, was intrusted to the bishop of Jerusalem; and he +alone might gratify the curious devotion of the pilgrims, by the +gift of small pieces, which they encased in gold or gems, and +carried away in triumph to their respective countries. But as +this gainful branch of commerce must soon have been annihilated, +it was found convenient to suppose, that the marvelous wood +possessed a secret power of vegetation; and that its substance, +though continually diminished, still remained entire and +unimpaired. It might perhaps have been expected, that the +influence of the place and the belief of a perpetual miracle, +should have produced some salutary effects on the morals, as well +as on the faith, of the people. Yet the most respectable of the +ecclesiastical writers have been obliged to confess, not only +that the streets of Jerusalem were filled with the incessant +tumult of business and pleasure, but that every species of vice +-- adultery, theft, idolatry, poisoning, murder -- was familiar +to the inhabitants of the holy city. The wealth and preeminence +of the church of Jerusalem excited the ambition of Arian, as well +as orthodox, candidates; and the virtues of Cyril, who, since his +death, has been honored with the title of Saint, were displayed +in the exercise, rather than in the acquisition, of his episcopal +dignity.<br> +</p> + +<p>The vain and ambitious mind of Julian might aspire to restore +the ancient glory of the temple of Jerusalem. As the Christians +were firmly persuaded that a sentence of everlasting destruction +had been pronounced against the whole fabric of the Mosaic law, +the Imperial sophist would have converted the success of his +undertaking into a specious argument against the faith of +prophecy, and the truth of revelation. He was displeased with the +spiritual worship of the synagogue; but he approved the +institutions of Moses, who had not disdained to adopt many of the +rites and ceremonies of Egypt. The local and national deity of +the Jews was sincerely adored by a polytheist, who desired only +to multiply the number of the gods; and such was the appetite of +Julian for bloody sacrifice, that his emulation might be excited +by the piety of Solomon, who had offered, at the feast of the +dedication, twenty-two thousand oxen, and one hundred and twenty +thousand sheep. These considerations might influence his designs; +but the prospect of an immediate and important advantage would +not suffer the impatient monarch to expect the remote and +uncertain event of the Persian war. He resolved to erect, without +delay, on the commanding eminence of Moriah, a stately temple, +which might eclipse the splendor of the church of the +resurrection on the adjacent hill of Calvary; to establish an +order of priests, whose interested zeal would detect the arts, +and resist the ambition, of their Christian rivals; and to invite +a numerous colony of Jews, whose stern fanaticism would be always +prepared to second, and even to anticipate, the hostile measures +of the Pagan government. Among the friends of the emperor (if the +names of emperor, and of friend, are not incompatible) the first +place was assigned, by Julian himself, to the virtuous and +learned Alypius. The humanity of Alypius was tempered by severe +justice and manly fortitude; and while he exercised his abilities +in the civil administration of Britain, he imitated, in his +poetical compositions, the harmony and softness of the odes of +Sappho. This minister, to whom Julian communicated, without +reserve, his most careless levities, and his most serious +counsels, received an extraordinary commission to restore, in its +pristine beauty, the temple of Jerusalem; and the diligence of +Alypius required and obtained the strenuous support of the +governor of Palestine. At the call of their great deliverer, the +Jews, from all the provinces of the empire, assembled on the holy +mountain of their fathers; and their insolent triumph alarmed and +exasperated the Christian inhabitants of Jerusalem. The desire of +rebuilding the temple has in every age been the ruling passion of +the children of Isræl. In this propitious moment the men +forgot their avarice, and the women their delicacy; spades and +pickaxes of silver were provided by the vanity of the rich, and +the rubbish was transported in mantles of silk and purple. Every +purse was opened in liberal contributions, every hand claimed a +share in the pious labor, and the commands of a great monarch +were executed by the enthusiasm of a whole people.<br> +</p> + +<p>Yet, on this occasion, the joint efforts of power and +enthusiasm were unsuccessful; and the ground of the Jewish +temple, which is now covered by a Mahometan mosque, still +continued to exhibit the same edifying spectacle of ruin and +desolation. Perhaps the absence and death of the emperor, and the +new maxims of a Christian reign, might explain the interruption +of an arduous work, which was attempted only in the last six +months of the life of Julian. But the Christians entertained a +natural and pious expectation, that, in this memorable contest, +the honor of religion would be vindicated by some signal miracle. +An earthquake, a whirlwind, and a fiery eruption, which +overturned and scattered the new foundations of the temple, are +attested, with some variations, by contemporary and respectable +evidence. This public event is described by Ambrose, bishop of +Milan, in an epistle to the emperor Theodosius, which must +provoke the severe animadversion of the Jews; by the eloquent +Chrysostom, who might appeal to the memory of the elder part of +his congregation at Antioch; and by Gregory Nazianzen, who +published his account of the miracle before the expiration of the +same year. The last of these writers has boldly declared, that +this preternatural event was not disputed by the infidels; and +his assertion, strange as it may seem is confirmed by the +unexceptionable testimony of Ammianus Marcellinus. The +philosophic soldier, who loved the virtues, without adopting the +prejudices, of his master, has recorded, in his judicious and +candid history of his own times, the extraordinary obstacles +which interrupted the restoration of the temple of Jerusalem. +"Whilst Alypius, assisted by the governor of the province, urged, +with vigor and diligence, the execution of the work, horrible +balls of fire breaking out near the foundations, with frequent +and reiterated attacks, rendered the place, from time to time, +inaccessible to the scorched and blasted workmen; and the +victorious element continuing in this manner obstinately and +resolutely bent, as it were, to drive them to a distance, the +undertaking was abandoned." * Such authority should satisfy a +believing, and must astonish an incredulous, mind. Yet a +philosopher may still require the original evidence of impartial +and intelligent spectators. At this important crisis, any +singular accident of nature would assume the appearance, and +produce the effects of a real prodigy. This glorious deliverance +would be speedily improved and magnified by the pious art of the +clergy of Jerusalem, and the active credulity of the Christian +world and, at the distance of twenty years, a Roman historian, +care less of theological disputes, might adorn his work with the +specious and splendid miracle.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian. -- Part +IV.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The restoration of the Jewish temple was secretly connected +with the ruin of the Christian church. Julian still continued to +maintain the freedom of religious worship, without distinguishing +whether this universal toleration proceeded from his justice or +his clemency. He affected to pity the unhappy Christians, who +were mistaken in the most important object of their lives; but +his pity was degraded by contempt, his contempt was embittered by +hatred; and the sentiments of Julian were expressed in a style of +sarcastic wit, which inflicts a deep and deadly wound, whenever +it issues from the mouth of a sovereign. As he was sensible that +the Christians gloried in the name of their Redeemer, he +countenanced, and perhaps enjoined, the use of the less honorable +appellation of Galilæans. He declared, that by the folly of +the Galilæans, whom he describes as a sect of fanatics, +contemptible to men, and odious to the gods, the empire had been +reduced to the brink of destruction; and he insinuates in a +public edict, that a frantic patient might sometimes be cured by +salutary violence. An ungenerous distinction was admitted into +the mind and counsels of Julian, that, according to the +difference of their religious sentiments, one part of his +subjects deserved his favor and friendship, while the other was +entitled only to the common benefits that his justice could not +refuse to an obedient people. According to a principle, pregnant +with mischief and oppression, the emperor transferred to the +pontiffs of his own religion the management of the liberal +allowances for the public revenue, which had been granted to the +church by the piety of Constantine and his sons. The proud system +of clerical honors and immunities, which had been constructed +with so much art and labor, was levelled to the ground; the hopes +of testamentary donations were intercepted by the rigor of the +laws; and the priests of the Christian sect were confounded with +the last and most ignominious class of the people. Such of these +regulations as appeared necessary to check the ambition and +avarice of the ecclesiastics, were soon afterwards imitated by +the wisdom of an orthodox prince. The peculiar distinctions which +policy has bestowed, or superstition has lavished, on the +sacerdotal order, must be confined to those priests who profess +the religion of the state. But the will of the legislator was not +exempt from prejudice and passion; and it was the object of the +insidious policy of Julian, to deprive the Christians of all the +temporal honors and advantages which rendered them respectable in +the eyes of the world.<br> +</p> + +<p>A just and severe censure has been inflicted on the law which +prohibited the Christians from teaching the arts of grammar and +rhetoric. The motives alleged by the emperor to justify this +partial and oppressive measure, might command, during his +lifetime, the silence of slaves and the applause of flatterers. +Julian abuses the ambiguous meaning of a word which might be +indifferently applied to the language and the religion of the +Greeks: he contemptuously observes, that the men who exalt the +merit of implicit faith are unfit to claim or to enjoy the +advantages of science; and he vainly contends, that if they +refuse to adore the gods of Homer and Demosthenes, they ought to +content themselves with expounding Luke and Matthew in the church +of the Galilæans. In all the cities of the Roman world, the +education of the youth was intrusted to masters of grammar and +rhetoric; who were elected by the magistrates, maintained at the +public expense, and distinguished by many lucrative and honorable +privileges. The edict of Julian appears to have included the +physicians, and professors of all the liberal arts; and the +emperor, who reserved to himself the approbation of the +candidates, was authorized by the laws to corrupt, or to punish, +the religious constancy of the most learned of the Christians. As +soon as the resignation of the more obstinate teachers had +established the unrivalled dominion of the Pagan sophists, Julian +invited the rising generation to resort with freedom to the +public schools, in a just confidence, that their tender minds +would receive the impressions of literature and idolatry. If the +greatest part of the Christian youth should be deterred by their +own scruples, or by those of their parents, from accepting this +dangerous mode of instruction, they must, at the same time, +relinquish the benefits of a liberal education. Julian had reason +to expect that, in the space of a few years, the church would +relapse into its primæval simplicity, and that the +theologians, who possessed an adequate share of the learning and +eloquence of the age, would be succeeded by a generation of blind +and ignorant fanatics, incapable of defending the truth of their +own principles, or of exposing the various follies of +Polytheism.<br> +</p> + +<p>It was undoubtedly the wish and design of Julian to deprive +the Christians of the advantages of wealth, of knowledge, and of +power; but the injustice of excluding them from all offices of +trust and profit seems to have been the result of his general +policy, rather than the immediate consequence of any positive +law. Superior merit might deserve and obtain, some extraordinary +exceptions; but the greater part of the Christian officers were +gradually removed from their employments in the state, the army, +and the provinces. The hopes of future candidates were +extinguished by the declared partiality of a prince, who +maliciously reminded them, that it was unlawful for a Christian +to use the sword, either of justice, or of war; and who +studiously guarded the camp and the tribunals with the ensigns of +idolatry. The powers of government were intrusted to the pagans, +who professed an ardent zeal for the religion of their ancestors; +and as the choice of the emperor was often directed by the rules +of divination, the favorites whom he preferred as the most +agreeable to the gods, did not always obtain the approbation of +mankind. Under the administration of their enemies, the +Christians had much to suffer, and more to apprehend. The temper +of Julian was averse to cruelty; and the care of his reputation, +which was exposed to the eyes of the universe, restrained the +philosophic monarch from violating the laws of justice and +toleration, which he himself had so recently established. But the +provincial ministers of his authority were placed in a less +conspicuous station. In the exercise of arbitrary power, they +consulted the wishes, rather than the commands, of their +sovereign; and ventured to exercise a secret and vexatious +tyranny against the sectaries, on whom they were not permitted to +confer the honors of martyrdom. The emperor, who dissembled as +long as possible his knowledge of the injustice that was +exercised in his name, expressed his real sense of the conduct of +his officers, by gentle reproofs and substantial rewards.<br> +</p> + +<p>The most effectual instrument of oppression, with which they +were armed, was the law that obliged the Christians to make full +and ample satisfaction for the temples which they had destroyed +under the preceding reign. The zeal of the triumphant church had +not always expected the sanction of the public authority; and the +bishops, who were secure of impunity, had often marched at the +head of their congregation, to attack and demolish the fortresses +of the prince of darkness. The consecrated lands, which had +increased the patrimony of the sovereign or of the clergy, were +clearly defined, and easily restored. But on these lands, and on +the ruins of Pagan superstition, the Christians had frequently +erected their own religious edifices: and as it was necessary to +remove the church before the temple could be rebuilt, the justice +and piety of the emperor were applauded by one party, while the +other deplored and execrated his sacrilegious violence. After the +ground was cleared, the restitution of those stately structures +which had been levelled with the dust, and of the precious +ornaments which had been converted to Christian uses, swelled +into a very large account of damages and debt. The authors of the +injury had neither the ability nor the inclination to discharge +this accumulated demand: and the impartial wisdom of a legislator +would have been displayed in balancing the adverse claims and +complaints, by an equitable and temperate arbitration. But the +whole empire, and particularly the East, was thrown into +confusion by the rash edicts of Julian; and the Pagan +magistrates, inflamed by zeal and revenge, abused the rigorous +privilege of the Roman law, which substitutes, in the place of +his inadequate property, the person of the insolvent debtor. +Under the preceding reign, Mark, bishop of Arethusa, had labored +in the conversion of his people with arms more effectual than +those of persuasion. The magistrates required the full value of a +temple which had been destroyed by his intolerant zeal: but as +they were satisfied of his poverty, they desired only to bend his +inflexible spirit to the promise of the slightest compensation. +They apprehended the aged prelate, they inhumanly scourged him, +they tore his beard; and his naked body, anointed with honey, was +suspended, in a net, between heaven and earth, and exposed to the +stings of insects and the rays of a Syrian sun. From this lofty +station, Mark still persisted to glory in his crime, and to +insult the impotent rage of his persecutors. He was at length +rescued from their hands, and dismissed to enjoy the honor of his +divine triumph. The Arians celebrated the virtue of their pious +confessor; the Catholics ambitiously claimed his alliance; and +the Pagans, who might be susceptible of shame or remorse, were +deterred from the repetition of such unavailing cruelty. Julian +spared his life: but if the bishop of Arethusa had saved the +infancy of Julian, posterity will condemn the ingratitude, +instead of praising the clemency, of the emperor.<br> +</p> + +<p>At the distance of five miles from Antioch, the Macedonian +kings of Syria had consecrated to Apollo one of the most elegant +places of devotion in the Pagan world. A magnificent temple rose +in honor of the god of light; and his colossal figure almost +filled the capacious sanctuary, which was enriched with gold and +gems, and adorned by the skill of the Grecian artists. The deity +was represented in a bending attitude, with a golden cup in his +hand, pouring out a libation on the earth; as if he supplicated +the venerable mother to give to his arms the cold and beauteous +Daphne: for the spot was ennobled by fiction; and the fancy of +the Syrian poets had transported the amorous tale from the banks +of the Peneus to those of the Orontes. The ancient rites of +Greece were imitated by the royal colony of Antioch. A stream of +prophecy, which rivalled the truth and reputation of the Delphic +oracle, flowed from the <strong><em>Castalian</em></strong> +fountain of Daphne. In the adjacent fields a stadium was built by +a special privilege, which had been purchased from Elis; the +Olympic games were celebrated at the expense of the city; and a +revenue of thirty thousand pounds sterling was annually applied +to the public pleasures. The perpetual resort of pilgrims and +spectators insensibly formed, in the neighborhood of the temple, +the stately and populous village of Daphne, which emulated the +splendor, without acquiring the title, of a provincial city. The +temple and the village were deeply bosomed in a thick grove of +laurels and cypresses, which reached as far as a circumference of +ten miles, and formed in the most sultry summers a cool and +impenetrable shade. A thousand streams of the purest water, +issuing from every hill, preserved the verdure of the earth, and +the temperature of the air; the senses were gratified with +harmonious sounds and aromatic odors; and the peaceful grove was +consecrated to health and joy, to luxury and love. The vigorous +youth pursued, like Apollo, the object of his desires; and the +blushing maid was warned, by the fate of Daphne, to shun the +folly of unseasonable coyness. The soldier and the philosopher +wisely avoided the temptation of this sensual paradise: where +pleasure, assuming the character of religion, imperceptibly +dissolved the firmness of manly virtue. But the groves of Daphne +continued for many ages to enjoy the veneration of natives and +strangers; the privileges of the holy ground were enlarged by the +munificence of succeeding emperors; and every generation added +new ornaments to the splendor of the temple.<br> +</p> + +<p>When Julian, on the day of the annual festival, hastened to +adore the Apollo of Daphne, his devotion was raised to the +highest pitch of eagerness and impatience. His lively imagination +anticipated the grateful pomp of victims, of libations and of +incense; a long procession of youths and virgins, clothed in +white robes, the symbol of their innocence; and the tumultuous +concourse of an innumerable people. But the zeal of Antioch was +diverted, since the reign of Christianity, into a different +channel. Instead of hecatombs of fat oxen sacrificed by the +tribes of a wealthy city to their tutelar deity the emperor +complains that he found only a single goose, provided at the +expense of a priest, the pale and solitary in habitant of this +decayed temple. The altar was deserted, the oracle had been +reduced to silence, and the holy ground was profaned by the +introduction of Christian and funereal rites. After Babylas (a +bishop of Antioch, who died in prison in the persecution of +Decius) had rested near a century in his grave, his body, by the +order of Cæsar Gallus, was transported into the midst of +the grove of Daphne. A magnificent church was erected over his +remains; a portion of the sacred lands was usurped for the +maintenance of the clergy, and for the burial of the Christians +at Antioch, who were ambitious of lying at the feet of their +bishop; and the priests of Apollo retired, with their affrighted +and indignant votaries. As soon as another revolution seemed to +restore the fortune of Paganism, the church of St. Babylas was +demolished, and new buildings were added to the mouldering +edifice which had been raised by the piety of Syrian kings. But +the first and most serious care of Julian was to deliver his +oppressed deity from the odious presence of the dead and living +Christians, who had so effectually suppressed the voice of fraud +or enthusiasm. The scene of infection was purified, according to +the forms of ancient rituals; the bodies were decently removed; +and the ministers of the church were permitted to convey the +remains of St. Babylas to their former habitation within the +walls of Antioch. The modest behavior which might have assuaged +the jealousy of a hostile government was neglected, on this +occasion, by the zeal of the Christians. The lofty car, that +transported the relics of Babylas, was followed, and accompanied, +and received, by an innumerable multitude; who chanted, with +thundering acclamations, the Psalms of David the most expressive +of their contempt for idols and idolaters. The return of the +saint was a triumph; and the triumph was an insult on the +religion of the emperor, who exerted his pride to dissemble his +resentment. During the night which terminated this indiscreet +procession, the temple of Daphne was in flames; the statue of +Apollo was consumed; and the walls of the edifice were left a +naked and awful monument of ruin. The Christians of Antioch +asserted, with religious confidence, that the powerful +intercession of St. Babylas had pointed the lightnings of heaven +against the devoted roof: but as Julian was reduced to the +alternative of believing either a crime or a miracle, he chose, +without hesitation, without evidence, but with some color of +probability, to impute the fire of Daphne to the revenge of the +Galilæans. Their offence, had it been sufficiently proved, +might have justified the retaliation, which was immediately +executed by the order of Julian, of shutting the doors, and +confiscating the wealth, of the cathedral of Antioch. To discover +the criminals who were guilty of the tumult, of the fire, or of +secreting the riches of the church, several of the ecclesiastics +were tortured; and a Presbyter, of the name of Theodoret, was +beheaded by the sentence of the Count of the East. But this hasty +act was blamed by the emperor; who lamented, with real or +affected concern, that the imprudent zeal of his ministers would +tarnish his reign with the disgrace of persecution.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXIII: Reign Of Julian. -- Part +V.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The zeal of the ministers of Julian was instantly checked by +the frown of their sovereign; but when the father of his country +declares himself the leader of a faction, the license of popular +fury cannot easily be restrained, nor consistently punished. +Julian, in a public composition, applauds the devotion and +loyalty of the holy cities of Syria, whose pious inhabitants had +destroyed, at the first signal, the sepulchres of the +Galilæans; and faintly complains, that they had revenged +the injuries of the gods with less moderation than he should have +recommended. This imperfect and reluctant confession may appear +to confirm the ecclesiastical narratives; that in the cities of +Gaza, Ascalon, Cæsarea, Heliopolis, &c., the Pagans +abused, without prudence or remorse, the moment of their +prosperity. That the unhappy objects of their cruelty were +released from torture only by death; and as their mangled bodies +were dragged through the streets, they were pierced (such was the +universal rage) by the spits of cooks, and the distaffs of +enraged women; and that the entrails of Christian priests and +virgins, after they had been tasted by those bloody fanatics, +were mixed with barley, and contemptuously thrown to the unclean +animals of the city. Such scenes of religious madness exhibit the +most contemptible and odious picture of human nature; but the +massacre of Alexandria attracts still more attention, from the +certainty of the fact, the rank of the victims, and the splendor +of the capital of Egypt.<br> +</p> + +<p>George, from his parents or his education, surnamed the +Cappadocian, was born at Epiphania in Cilicia, in a fuller's +shop. From this obscure and servile origin he raised himself by +the talents of a parasite; and the patrons, whom he assiduously +flattered, procured for their worthless dependent a lucrative +commission, or contract, to supply the army with bacon. His +employment was mean; he rendered it infamous. He accumulated +wealth by the basest arts of fraud and corruption; but his +malversations were so notorious, that George was compelled to +escape from the pursuits of justice. After this disgrace, in +which he appears to have saved his fortune at the expense of his +honor, he embraced, with real or affected zeal, the profession of +Arianism. From the love, or the ostentation, of learning, he +collected a valuable library of history rhetoric, philosophy, and +theology, and the choice of the prevailing faction promoted +George of Cappadocia to the throne of Athanasius. The entrance of +the new archbishop was that of a Barbarian conqueror; and each +moment of his reign was polluted by cruelty and avarice. The +Catholics of Alexandria and Egypt were abandoned to a tyrant, +qualified, by nature and education, to exercise the office of +persecution; but he oppressed with an impartial hand the various +inhabitants of his extensive diocese. The primate of Egypt +assumed the pomp and insolence of his lofty station; but he still +betrayed the vices of his base and servile extraction. The +merchants of Alexandria were impoverished by the unjust, and +almost universal, monopoly, which he acquired, of nitre, salt, +paper, funerals, &c.: and the spiritual father of a great +people condescended to practise the vile and pernicious arts of +an informer. The Alexandrians could never forget, nor forgive, +the tax, which he suggested, on all the houses of the city; under +an obsolete claim, that the royal founder had conveyed to his +successors, the Ptolemies and the Cæsars, the perpetual +property of the soil. The Pagans, who had been flattered with the +hopes of freedom and toleration, excited his devout avarice; and +the rich temples of Alexandria were either pillaged or insulted +by the haughty prince, who exclaimed, in a loud and threatening +tone, "How long will these sepulchres be permitted to stand?" +Under the reign of Constantius, he was expelled by the fury, or +rather by the justice, of the people; and it was not without a +violent struggle, that the civil and military powers of the state +could restore his authority, and gratify his revenge. The +messenger who proclaimed at Alexandria the accession of Julian, +announced the downfall of the archbishop. George, with two of his +obsequious ministers, Count Diodorus, and Dracontius, master of +the mint were ignominiously dragged in chains to the public +prison. At the end of twenty-four days, the prison was forced +open by the rage of a superstitious multitude, impatient of the +tedious forms of judicial proceedings. The enemies of gods and +men expired under their cruel insults; the lifeless bodies of the +archbishop and his associates were carried in triumph through the +streets on the back of a camel; * and the inactivity of the +Athanasian party was esteemed a shining example of evangelical +patience. The remains of these guilty wretches were thrown into +the sea; and the popular leaders of the tumult declared their +resolution to disappoint the devotion of the Christians, and to +intercept the future honors of these +<strong><em>martyrs</em></strong>, who had been punished, like +their predecessors, by the enemies of their religion. The fears +of the Pagans were just, and their precautions ineffectual. The +meritorious death of the archbishop obliterated the memory of his +life. The rival of Athanasius was dear and sacred to the Arians, +and the seeming conversion of those sectaries introduced his +worship into the bosom of the Catholic church. The odious +stranger, disguising every circumstance of time and place, +assumed the mask of a martyr, a saint, and a Christian hero; and +the infamous George of Cappadocia has been transformed into the +renowned St. George of England, the patron of arms, of chivalry, +and of the garter.<br> +</p> + +<p>About the same time that Julian was informed of the tumult of +Alexandria, he received intelligence from Edessa, that the proud +and wealthy faction of the Arians had insulted the weakness of +the Valentinians, and committed such disorders as ought not to be +suffered with impunity in a well-regulated state. Without +expecting the slow forms of justice, the exasperated prince +directed his mandate to the magistrates of Edessa, by which he +confiscated the whole property of the church: the money was +distributed among the soldiers; the lands were added to the +domain; and this act of oppression was aggravated by the most +ungenerous irony. "I show myself," says Julian, "the true friend +of the Galilæans. Their <strong><em>admirable</em></strong> +law has promised the kingdom of heaven to the poor; and they will +advance with more diligence in the paths of virtue and salvation, +when they are relieved by my assistance from the load of temporal +possessions. Take care," pursued the monarch, in a more serious +tone, "take care how you provoke my patience and humanity. If +these disorders continue, I will revenge on the magistrates the +crimes of the people; and you will have reason to dread, not only +confiscation and exile, but fire and the sword." The tumults of +Alexandria were doubtless of a more bloody and dangerous nature: +but a Christian bishop had fallen by the hands of the Pagans; and +the public epistle of Julian affords a very lively proof of the +partial spirit of his administration. His reproaches to the +citizens of Alexandria are mingled with expressions of esteem and +tenderness; and he laments, that, on this occasion, they should +have departed from the gentle and generous manners which attested +their Grecian extraction. He gravely censures the offence which +they had committed against the laws of justice and humanity; but +he recapitulates, with visible complacency, the intolerable +provocations which they had so long endured from the impious +tyranny of George of Cappadocia. Julian admits the principle, +that a wise and vigorous government should chastise the insolence +of the people; yet, in consideration of their founder Alexander, +and of Serapis their tutelar deity, he grants a free and gracious +pardon to the guilty city, for which he again feels the affection +of a brother.<br> +</p> + +<p>After the tumult of Alexandria had subsided, Athanasius, +amidst the public acclamations, seated himself on the throne from +whence his unworthy competitor had been precipitated: and as the +zeal of the archbishop was tempered with discretion, the exercise +of his authority tended not to inflame, but to reconcile, the +minds of the people. His pastoral labors were not confined to the +narrow limits of Egypt. The state of the Christian world was +present to his active and capacious mind; and the age, the merit, +the reputation of Athanasius, enabled him to assume, in a moment +of danger, the office of Ecclesiastical Dictator. Three years +were not yet elapsed since the majority of the bishops of the +West had ignorantly, or reluctantly, subscribed the Confession of +Rimini. They repented, they believed, but they dreaded the +unseasonable rigor of their orthodox brethren; and if their pride +was stronger than their faith, they might throw themselves into +the arms of the Arians, to escape the indignity of a public +penance, which must degrade them to the condition of obscure +laymen. At the same time the domestic differences concerning the +union and distinction of the divine persons, were agitated with +some heat among the Catholic doctors; and the progress of this +metaphysical controversy seemed to threaten a public and lasting +division of the Greek and Latin churches. By the wisdom of a +select synod, to which the name and presence of Athanasius gave +the authority of a general council, the bishops, who had unwarily +deviated into error, were admitted to the communion of the +church, on the easy condition of subscribing the Nicene Creed; +without any formal acknowledgment of their past fault, or any +minute definition of their scholastic opinions. The advice of the +primate of Egypt had already prepared the clergy of Gaul and +Spain, of Italy and Greece, for the reception of this salutary +measure; and, notwithstanding the opposition of some ardent +spirits, the fear of the common enemy promoted the peace and +harmony of the Christians.<br> +</p> + +<p>The skill and diligence of the primate of Egypt had improved +the season of tranquillity, before it was interrupted by the +hostile edicts of the emperor. Julian, who despised the +Christians, honored Athanasius with his sincere and peculiar +hatred. For his sake alone, he introduced an arbitrary +distinction, repugnant at least to the spirit of his former +declarations. He maintained, that the Galilæans, whom he +had recalled from exile, were not restored, by that general +indulgence, to the possession of their respective churches; and +he expressed his astonishment, that a criminal, who had been +repeatedly condemned by the judgment of the emperors, should dare +to insult the majesty of the laws, and insolently usurp the +archiepiscopal throne of Alexandria, without expecting the orders +of his sovereign. As a punishment for the imaginary offence, he +again banished Athanasius from the city; and he was pleased to +suppose, that this act of justice would be highly agreeable to +his pious subjects. The pressing solicitations of the people soon +convinced him, that the majority of the Alexandrians were +Christians; and that the greatest part of the Christians were +firmly attached to the cause of their oppressed primate. But the +knowledge of their sentiments, instead of persuading him to +recall his decree, provoked him to extend to all Egypt the term +of the exile of Athanasius. The zeal of the multitude rendered +Julian still more inexorable: he was alarmed by the danger of +leaving at the head of a tumultuous city, a daring and popular +leader; and the language of his resentment discovers the opinion +which he entertained of the courage and abilities of Athanasius. +The execution of the sentence was still delayed, by the caution +or negligence of Ecdicius, præfect of Egypt, who was at +length awakened from his lethargy by a severe reprimand. "Though +you neglect," says Julian, "to write to me on any other subject, +at least it is your duty to inform me of your conduct towards +Athanasius, the enemy of the gods. My intentions have been long +since communicated to you. I swear by the great Serapis, that +unless, on the calends of December, Athanasius has departed from +Alexandria, nay, from Egypt, the officers of your government +shall pay a fine of one hundred pounds of gold. You know my +temper: I am slow to condemn, but I am still slower to forgive." +This epistle was enforced by a short postscript, written with the +emperor's own hand. "The contempt that is shown for all the gods +fills me with grief and indignation. There is nothing that I +should see, nothing that I should hear, with more pleasure, than +the expulsion of Athanasius from all Egypt. The abominable +wretch! Under my reign, the baptism of several Grecian ladies of +the highest rank has been the effect of his persecutions." The +death of Athanasius was not <strong><em>expressly</em></strong> +commanded; but the præfect of Egypt understood that it was +safer for him to exceed, than to neglect, the orders of an +irritated master. The archbishop prudently retired to the +monasteries of the Desert; eluded, with his usual dexterity, the +snares of the enemy; and lived to triumph over the ashes of a +prince, who, in words of formidable import, had declared his wish +that the whole venom of the Galilæan school were contained +in the single person of Athanasius.<br> +</p> + +<p>I have endeavored faithfully to represent the artful system by +which Julian proposed to obtain the effects, without incurring +the guilt, or reproach, of persecution. But if the deadly spirit +of fanaticism perverted the heart and understanding of a virtuous +prince, it must, at the same time, be confessed that the +<strong><em>real</em></strong> sufferings of the Christians were +inflamed and magnified by human passions and religious +enthusiasm. The meekness and resignation which had distinguished +the primitive disciples of the gospel, was the object of the +applause, rather than of the imitation of their successors. The +Christians, who had now possessed above forty years the civil and +ecclesiastical government of the empire, had contracted the +insolent vices of prosperity, and the habit of believing that the +saints alone were entitled to reign over the earth. As soon as +the enmity of Julian deprived the clergy of the privileges which +had been conferred by the favor of Constantine, they complained +of the most cruel oppression; and the free toleration of +idolaters and heretics was a subject of grief and scandal to the +orthodox party. The acts of violence, which were no longer +countenanced by the magistrates, were still committed by the zeal +of the people. At Pessinus, the altar of Cybele was overturned +almost in the presence of the emperor; and in the city of +Cæsarea in Cappadocia, the temple of Fortune, the sole +place of worship which had been left to the Pagans, was destroyed +by the rage of a popular tumult. On these occasions, a prince, +who felt for the honor of the gods, was not disposed to interrupt +the course of justice; and his mind was still more deeply +exasperated, when he found that the fanatics, who had deserved +and suffered the punishment of incendiaries, were rewarded with +the honors of martyrdom. The Christian subjects of Julian were +assured of the hostile designs of their sovereign; and, to their +jealous apprehension, every circumstance of his government might +afford some grounds of discontent and suspicion. In the ordinary +administration of the laws, the Christians, who formed so large a +part of the people, must frequently be condemned: but their +indulgent brethren, without examining the merits of the cause, +presumed their innocence, allowed their claims, and imputed the +severity of their judge to the partial malice of religious +persecution. These present hardships, intolerable as they might +appear, were represented as a slight prelude of the impending +calamities. The Christians considered Julian as a cruel and +crafty tyrant; who suspended the execution of his revenge till he +should return victorious from the Persian war. They expected, +that as soon as he had triumphed over the foreign enemies of +Rome, he would lay aside the irksome mask of dissimulation; that +the amphitheatre would stream with the blood of hermits and +bishops; and that the Christians who still persevered in the +profession of the faith, would be deprived of the common benefits +of nature and society. Every calumny that could wound the +reputation of the Apostate, was credulously embraced by the fears +and hatred of his adversaries; and their indiscreet clamors +provoked the temper of a sovereign, whom it was their duty to +respect, and their interest to flatter. They still protested, +that prayers and tears were their only weapons against the +impious tyrant, whose head they devoted to the justice of +offended Heaven. But they insinuated, with sullen resolution, +that their submission was no longer the effect of weakness; and +that, in the imperfect state of human virtue, the patience, which +is founded on principle, may be exhausted by persecution. It is +impossible to determine how far the zeal of Julian would have +prevailed over his good sense and humanity; but if we seriously +reflect on the strength and spirit of the church, we shall be +convinced, that before the emperor could have extinguished the +religion of Christ, he must have involved his country in the +horrors of a civil war.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong>Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of +Julian.</strong></p> + +<p><strong><em>Part I.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Residence Of Julian At Antioch. -- His Successful Expedition +Against The Persians. -- Passage Of The Tigris -- The Retreat And +Death Of Julian. -- Election Of Jovian. -- He Saves The Roman +Army By A Disgraceful Treaty.<br> +</p> + +<p>The philosophical fable which Julian composed under the name +of the Cæsars, is one of the most agreeable and instructive +productions of ancient wit. During the freedom and equality of +the days of the Saturnalia, Romulus prepared a feast for the +deities of Olympus, who had adopted him as a worthy associate, +and for the Roman princes, who had reigned over his martial +people, and the vanquished nations of the earth. The immortals +were placed in just order on their thrones of state, and the +table of the Cæsars was spread below the Moon in the upper +region of the air. The tyrants, who would have disgraced the +society of gods and men, were thrown headlong, by the inexorable +Nemesis, into the Tartarean abyss. The rest of the Cæsars +successively advanced to their seats; and as they passed, the +vices, the defects, the blemishes of their respective characters, +were maliciously noticed by old Silenus, a laughing moralist, who +disguised the wisdom of a philosopher under the mask of a +Bacchanal. As soon as the feast was ended, the voice of Mercury +proclaimed the will of Jupiter, that a celestial crown should be +the reward of superior merit. Julius Cæsar, Augustus, +Trajan, and Marcus Antoninus, were selected as the most +illustrious candidates; the effeminate Constantine was not +excluded from this honorable competition, and the great Alexander +was invited to dispute the prize of glory with the Roman heroes. +Each of the candidates was allowed to display the merit of his +own exploits; but, in the judgment of the gods, the modest +silence of Marcus pleaded more powerfully than the elaborate +orations of his haughty rivals. When the judges of this awful +contest proceeded to examine the heart, and to scrutinize the +springs of action, the superiority of the Imperial Stoic appeared +still more decisive and conspicuous. Alexander and Cæsar, +Augustus, Trajan, and Constantine, acknowledged, with a blush, +that fame, or power, or pleasure had been the important object of +<strong><em>their</em></strong> labors: but the gods themselves +beheld, with reverence and love, a virtuous mortal, who had +practised on the throne the lessons of philosophy; and who, in a +state of human imperfection, had aspired to imitate the moral +attributes of the Deity. The value of this agreeable composition +(the Cæsars of Julian) is enhanced by the rank of the +author. A prince, who delineates, with freedom, the vices and +virtues of his predecessors, subscribes, in every line, the +censure or approbation of his own conduct.<br> +</p> + +<p>In the cool moments of reflection, Julian preferred the useful +and benevolent virtues of Antoninus; but his ambitious spirit was +inflamed by the glory of Alexander; and he solicited, with equal +ardor, the esteem of the wise, and the applause of the multitude. +In the season of life when the powers of the mind and body enjoy +the most active vigor, the emperor who was instructed by the +experience, and animated by the success, of the German war, +resolved to signalize his reign by some more splendid and +memorable achievement. The ambassadors of the East, from the +continent of India, and the Isle of Ceylon, had respectfully +saluted the Roman purple. The nations of the West esteemed and +dreaded the personal virtues of Julian, both in peace and war. He +despised the trophies of a Gothic victory, and was satisfied that +the rapacious Barbarians of the Danube would be restrained from +any future violation of the faith of treaties by the terror of +his name, and the additional fortifications with which he +strengthened the Thracian and Illyrian frontiers. The successor +of Cyrus and Artaxerxes was the only rival whom he deemed worthy +of his arms; and he resolved, by the final conquest of Persia, to +chastise the naughty nation which had so long resisted and +insulted the majesty of Rome. As soon as the Persian monarch was +informed that the throne of Constantius was filed by a prince of +a very different character, he condescended to make some artful, +or perhaps sincere, overtures towards a negotiation of peace. But +the pride of Sapor was astonished by the firmness of Julian; who +sternly declared, that he would never consent to hold a peaceful +conference among the flames and ruins of the cities of +Mesopotamia; and who added, with a smile of contempt, that it was +needless to treat by ambassadors, as he himself had determined to +visit speedily the court of Persia. The impatience of the emperor +urged the diligence of the military preparations. The generals +were named; and Julian, marching from Constantinople through the +provinces of Asia Minor, arrived at Antioch about eight months +after the death of his predecessor. His ardent desire to march +into the heart of Persia, was checked by the indispensable duty +of regulating the state of the empire; by his zeal to revive the +worship of the gods; and by the advice of his wisest friends; who +represented the necessity of allowing the salutary interval of +winter quarters, to restore the exhausted strength of the legions +of Gaul, and the discipline and spirit of the Eastern troops. +Julian was persuaded to fix, till the ensuing spring, his +residence at Antioch, among a people maliciously disposed to +deride the haste, and to censure the delays, of their +sovereign.<br> +</p> + +<p>If Julian had flattered himself, that his personal connection +with the capital of the East would be productive of mutual +satisfaction to the prince and people, he made a very false +estimate of his own character, and of the manners of Antioch. The +warmth of the climate disposed the natives to the most +intemperate enjoyment of tranquillity and opulence; and the +lively licentiousness of the Greeks was blended with the +hereditary softness of the Syrians. Fashion was the only law, +pleasure the only pursuit, and the splendor of dress and +furniture was the only distinction of the citizens of Antioch. +The arts of luxury were honored; the serious and manly virtues +were the subject of ridicule; and the contempt for female modesty +and reverent age announced the universal corruption of the +capital of the East. The love of spectacles was the taste, or +rather passion, of the Syrians; the most skilful artists were +procured from the adjacent cities; a considerable share of the +revenue was devoted to the public amusements; and the +magnificence of the games of the theatre and circus was +considered as the happiness and as the glory of Antioch. The +rustic manners of a prince who disdained such glory, and was +insensible of such happiness, soon disgusted the delicacy of his +subjects; and the effeminate Orientals could neither imitate, nor +admire, the severe simplicity which Julian always maintained, and +sometimes affected. The days of festivity, consecrated, by +ancient custom, to the honor of the gods, were the only occasions +in which Julian relaxed his philosophic severity; and those +festivals were the only days in which the Syrians of Antioch +could reject the allurements of pleasure. The majority of the +people supported the glory of the Christian name, which had been +first invented by their ancestors: they contended themselves with +disobeying the moral precepts, but they were scrupulously +attached to the speculative doctrines of their religion. The +church of Antioch was distracted by heresy and schism; but the +Arians and the Athanasians, the followers of Meletius and those +of Paulinus, were actuated by the same pious hatred of their +common adversary.<br> +</p> + +<p>The strongest prejudice was entertained against the character +of an apostate, the enemy and successor of a prince who had +engaged the affections of a very numerous sect; and the removal +of St. Babylas excited an implacable opposition to the person of +Julian. His subjects complained, with superstitious indignation, +that famine had pursued the emperor's steps from Constantinople +to Antioch; and the discontent of a hungry people was exasperated +by the injudicious attempt to relieve their distress. The +inclemency of the season had affected the harvests of Syria; and +the price of bread, in the markets of Antioch, had naturally +risen in proportion to the scarcity of corn. But the fair and +reasonable proportion was soon violated by the rapacious arts of +monopoly. In this unequal contest, in which the produce of the +land is claimed by one party as his exclusive property, is used +by another as a lucrative object of trade, and is required by a +third for the daily and necessary support of life, all the +profits of the intermediate agents are accumulated on the head of +the defenceless customers. The hardships of their situation were +exaggerated and increased by their own impatience and anxiety; +and the apprehension of a scarcity gradually produced the +appearances of a famine. When the luxurious citizens of Antioch +complained of the high price of poultry and fish, Julian publicly +declared, that a frugal city ought to be satisfied with a regular +supply of wine, oil, and bread; but he acknowledged, that it was +the duty of a sovereign to provide for the subsistence of his +people. With this salutary view, the emperor ventured on a very +dangerous and doubtful step, of fixing, by legal authority, the +value of corn. He enacted, that, in a time of scarcity, it should +be sold at a price which had seldom been known in the most +plentiful years; and that his own example might strengthen his +laws, he sent into the market four hundred and twenty-two +thousand <strong><em>modii</em></strong>, or measures, which were +drawn by his order from the granaries of Hierapolis, of Chalcis, +and even of Egypt. The consequences might have been foreseen, and +were soon felt. The Imperial wheat was purchased by the rich +merchants; the proprietors of land, or of corn, withheld from the +city the accustomed supply; and the small quantities that +appeared in the market were secretly sold at an advanced and +illegal price. Julian still continued to applaud his own policy, +treated the complaints of the people as a vain and ungrateful +murmur, and convinced Antioch that he had inherited the +obstinacy, though not the cruelty, of his brother Gallus. The +remonstrances of the municipal senate served only to exasperate +his inflexible mind. He was persuaded, perhaps with truth, that +the senators of Antioch who possessed lands, or were concerned in +trade, had themselves contributed to the calamities of their +country; and he imputed the disrespectful boldness which they +assumed, to the sense, not of public duty, but of private +interest. The whole body, consisting of two hundred of the most +noble and wealthy citizens, were sent, under a guard, from the +palace to the prison; and though they were permitted, before the +close of evening, to return to their respective houses, the +emperor himself could not obtain the forgiveness which he had so +easily granted. The same grievances were still the subject of the +same complaints, which were industriously circulated by the wit +and levity of the Syrian Greeks. During the licentious days of +the Saturnalia, the streets of the city resounded with insolent +songs, which derided the laws, the religion, the personal +conduct, and even the <strong><em>beard</em></strong>, of the +emperor; the spirit of Antioch was manifested by the connivance +of the magistrates, and the applause of the multitude. The +disciple of Socrates was too deeply affected by these popular +insults; but the monarch, endowed with a quick sensibility, and +possessed of absolute power, refused his passions the +gratification of revenge. A tyrant might have proscribed, without +distinction, the lives and fortunes of the citizens of Antioch; +and the unwarlike Syrians must have patiently submitted to the +lust, the rapaciousness and the cruelty, of the faithful legions +of Gaul. A milder sentence might have deprived the capital of the +East of its honors and privileges; and the courtiers, perhaps the +subjects, of Julian, would have applauded an act of justice, +which asserted the dignity of the supreme magistrate of the +republic. But instead of abusing, or exerting, the authority of +the state, to revenge his personal injuries, Julian contented +himself with an inoffensive mode of retaliation, which it would +be in the power of few princes to employ. He had been insulted by +satires and libels; in his turn, he composed, under the title of +the <strong><em>Enemy of the Beard</em></strong>, an ironical +confession of his own faults, and a severe satire on the +licentious and effeminate manners of Antioch. This Imperial reply +was publicly exposed before the gates of the palace; and the +Misopogon still remains a singular monument of the resentment, +the wit, the humanity, and the indiscretion of Julian. Though he +affected to laugh, he could not forgive. His contempt was +expressed, and his revenge might be gratified, by the nomination +of a governor worthy only of such subjects; and the emperor, +forever renouncing the ungrateful city, proclaimed his resolution +to pass the ensuing winter at Tarsus in Cilicia.<br> +</p> + +<p>Yet Antioch possessed one citizen, whose genius and virtues +might atone, in the opinion of Julian, for the vice and folly of +his country. The sophist Libanius was born in the capital of the +East; he publicly professed the arts of rhetoric and declamation +at Nice, Nicomedia, Constantinople, Athens, and, during the +remainder of his life, at Antioch. His school was assiduously +frequented by the Grecian youth; his disciples, who sometimes +exceeded the number of eighty, celebrated their incomparable +master; and the jealousy of his rivals, who persecuted him from +one city to another, confirmed the favorable opinion which +Libanius ostentatiously displayed of his superior merit. The +preceptors of Julian had extorted a rash but solemn assurance, +that he would never attend the lectures of their adversary: the +curiosity of the royal youth was checked and inflamed: he +secretly procured the writings of this dangerous sophist, and +gradually surpassed, in the perfect imitation of his style, the +most laborious of his domestic pupils. When Julian ascended the +throne, he declared his impatience to embrace and reward the +Syrian sophist, who had preserved, in a degenerate age, the +Grecian purity of taste, of manners, and of religion. The +emperor's prepossession was increased and justified by the +discreet pride of his favorite. Instead of pressing, with the +foremost of the crowd, into the palace of Constantinople, +Libanius calmly expected his arrival at Antioch; withdrew from +court on the first symptoms of coldness and indifference; +required a formal invitation for each visit; and taught his +sovereign an important lesson, that he might command the +obedience of a subject, but that he must deserve the attachment +of a friend. The sophists of every age, despising, or affecting +to despise, the accidental distinctions of birth and fortune, +reserve their esteem for the superior qualities of the mind, with +which they themselves are so plentifully endowed. Julian might +disdain the acclamations of a venal court, who adored the +Imperial purple; but he was deeply flattered by the praise, the +admonition, the freedom, and the envy of an independent +philosopher, who refused his favors, loved his person, celebrated +his fame, and protected his memory. The voluminous writings of +Libanius still exist; for the most part, they are the vain and +idle compositions of an orator, who cultivated the science of +words; the productions of a recluse student, whose mind, +regardless of his contemporaries, was incessantly fixed on the +Trojan war and the Athenian commonwealth. Yet the sophist of +Antioch sometimes descended from this imaginary elevation; he +entertained a various and elaborate correspondence; he praised +the virtues of his own times; he boldly arraigned the abuse of +public and private life; and he eloquently pleaded the cause of +Antioch against the just resentment of Julian and Theodosius. It +is the common calamity of old age, to lose whatever might have +rendered it desirable; but Libanius experienced the peculiar +misfortune of surviving the religion and the sciences, to which +he had consecrated his genius. The friend of Julian was an +indignant spectator of the triumph of Christianity; and his +bigotry, which darkened the prospect of the visible world, did +not inspire Libanius with any lively hopes of celestial glory and +happiness.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian. -- +Part II.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The martial impatience of Julian urged him to take the field +in the beginning of the spring; and he dismissed, with contempt +and reproach, the senate of Antioch, who accompanied the emperor +beyond the limits of their own territory, to which he was +resolved never to return. After a laborious march of two days, he +halted on the third at Beræa, or Aleppo, where he had the +mortification of finding a senate almost entirely Christian; who +received with cold and formal demonstrations of respect the +eloquent sermon of the apostle of paganism. The son of one of the +most illustrious citizens of Beræa, who had embraced, +either from interest or conscience, the religion of the emperor, +was disinherited by his angry parent. The father and the son were +invited to the Imperial table. Julian, placing himself between +them, attempted, without success, to inculcate the lesson and +example of toleration; supported, with affected calmness, the +indiscreet zeal of the aged Christian, who seemed to forget the +sentiments of nature, and the duty of a subject; and at length, +turning towards the afflicted youth, "Since you have lost a +father," said he, "for my sake, it is incumbent on me to supply +his place." The emperor was received in a manner much more +agreeable to his wishes at Batnæ, * a small town pleasantly +seated in a grove of cypresses, about twenty miles from the city +of Hierapolis. The solemn rites of sacrifice were decently +prepared by the inhabitants of Batnæ, who seemed attached +to the worship of their tutelar deities, Apollo and Jupiter; but +the serious piety of Julian was offended by the tumult of their +applause; and he too clearly discerned, that the smoke which +arose from their altars was the incense of flattery, rather than +of devotion. The ancient and magnificent temple which had +sanctified, for so many ages, the city of Hierapolis, no longer +subsisted; and the consecrated wealth, which afforded a liberal +maintenance to more than three hundred priests, might hasten its +downfall. Yet Julian enjoyed the satisfaction of embracing a +philosopher and a friend, whose religious firmness had withstood +the pressing and repeated solicitations of Constantius and +Gallus, as often as those princes lodged at his house, in their +passage through Hierapolis. In the hurry of military preparation, +and the careless confidence of a familiar correspondence, the +zeal of Julian appears to have been lively and uniform. He had +now undertaken an important and difficult war; and the anxiety of +the event rendered him still more attentive to observe and +register the most trifling presages, from which, according to the +rules of divination, any knowledge of futurity could be derived. +He informed Libanius of his progress as far as Hierapolis, by an +elegant epistle, which displays the facility of his genius, and +his tender friendship for the sophist of Antioch.<br> +</p> + +<p>Hierapolis, * situate almost on the banks of the Euphrates, +had been appointed for the general rendezvous of the Roman +troops, who immediately passed the great river on a bridge of +boats, which was previously constructed. If the inclinations of +Julian had been similar to those of his predecessor, he might +have wasted the active and important season of the year in the +circus of Samosata or in the churches of Edessa. But as the +warlike emperor, instead of Constantius, had chosen Alexander for +his model, he advanced without delay to Carrhæ, a very +ancient city of Mesopotamia, at the distance of fourscore miles +from Hierapolis. The temple of the Moon attracted the devotion of +Julian; but the halt of a few days was principally employed in +completing the immense preparations of the Persian war. The +secret of the expedition had hitherto remained in his own breast; +but as Carrhæ is the point of separation of the two great +roads, he could no longer conceal whether it was his design to +attack the dominions of Sapor on the side of the Tigris, or on +that of the Euphrates. The emperor detached an army of thirty +thousand men, under the command of his kinsman Procopius, and of +Sebastian, who had been duke of Egypt. They were ordered to +direct their march towards Nisibis, and to secure the frontier +from the desultory incursions of the enemy, before they attempted +the passage of the Tigris. Their subsequent operations were left +to the discretion of the generals; but Julian expected, that +after wasting with fire and sword the fertile districts of Media +and Adiabene, they might arrive under the walls of Ctesiphon at +the same time that he himself, advancing with equal steps along +the banks of the Euphrates, should besiege the capital of the +Persian monarchy. The success of this well-concerted plan +depended, in a great measure, on the powerful and ready +assistance of the king of Armenia, who, without exposing the +safety of his own dominions, might detach an army of four +thousand horse, and twenty thousand foot, to the assistance of +the Romans. But the feeble Arsaces Tiranus, king of Armenia, had +degenerated still more shamefully than his father Chosroes, from +the manly virtues of the great Tiridates; and as the +pusillanimous monarch was averse to any enterprise of danger and +glory, he could disguise his timid indolence by the more decent +excuses of religion and gratitude. He expressed a pious +attachment to the memory of Constantius, from whose hands he had +received in marriage Olympias, the daughter of the præfect +Ablavius; and the alliance of a female, who had been educated as +the destined wife of the emperor Constans, exalted the dignity of +a Barbarian king. Tiranus professed the Christian religion; he +reigned over a nation of Christians; and he was restrained, by +every principle of conscience and interest, from contributing to +the victory, which would consummate the ruin of the church. The +alienated mind of Tiranus was exasperated by the indiscretion of +Julian, who treated the king of Armenia as his slave, and as the +enemy of the gods. The haughty and threatening style of the +Imperial mandates awakened the secret indignation of a prince, +who, in the humiliating state of dependence, was still conscious +of his royal descent from the Arsacides, the lords of the East, +and the rivals of the Roman power.<br> +</p> + +<p>The military dispositions of Julian were skilfully contrived +to deceive the spies and to divert the attention of Sapor. The +legions appeared to direct their march towards Nisibis and the +Tigris. On a sudden they wheeled to the right; traversed the +level and naked plain of Carrhæ; and reached, on the third +day, the banks of the Euphrates, where the strong town of +Nicephorium, or Callinicum, had been founded by the Macedonian +kings. From thence the emperor pursued his march, above ninety +miles, along the winding stream of the Euphrates, till, at +length, about one month after his departure from Antioch, he +discovered the towers of Circesium, * the extreme limit of the +Roman dominions. The army of Julian, the most numerous that any +of the Cæsars had ever led against Persia, consisted of +sixty-five thousand effective and well-disciplined soldiers. The +veteran bands of cavalry and infantry, of Romans and Barbarians, +had been selected from the different provinces; and a just +preeminence of loyalty and valor was claimed by the hardy Gauls, +who guarded the throne and person of their beloved prince. A +formidable body of Scythian auxiliaries had been transported from +another climate, and almost from another world, to invade a +distant country, of whose name and situation they were ignorant. +The love of rapine and war allured to the Imperial standard +several tribes of Saracens, or roving Arabs, whose service Julian +had commanded, while he sternly refuse the payment of the +accustomed subsidies. The broad channel of the Euphrates was +crowded by a fleet of eleven hundred ships, destined to attend +the motions, and to satisfy the wants, of the Roman army. The +military strength of the fleet was composed of fifty armed +galleys; and these were accompanied by an equal number of +flat-bottomed boats, which might occasionally be connected into +the form of temporary bridges. The rest of the ships, partly +constructed of timber, and partly covered with raw hides, were +laden with an almost inexhaustible supply of arms and engines, of +utensils and provisions. The vigilant humanity of Julian had +embarked a very large magazine of vinegar and biscuit for the use +of the soldiers, but he prohibited the indulgence of wine; and +rigorously stopped a long string of superfluous camels that +attempted to follow the rear of the army. The River Chaboras +falls into the Euphrates at Circesium; and as soon as the trumpet +gave the signal of march, the Romans passed the little stream +which separated two mighty and hostile empires. The custom of +ancient discipline required a military oration; and Julian +embraced every opportunity of displaying his eloquence. He +animated the impatient and attentive legions by the example of +the inflexible courage and glorious triumphs of their ancestors. +He excited their resentment by a lively picture of the insolence +of the Persians; and he exhorted them to imitate his firm +resolution, either to extirpate that perfidious nation, or to +devote his life in the cause of the republic. The eloquence of +Julian was enforced by a donative of one hundred and thirty +pieces of silver to every soldier; and the bridge of the Chaboras +was instantly cut away, to convince the troops that they must +place their hopes of safety in the success of their arms. Yet the +prudence of the emperor induced him to secure a remote frontier, +perpetually exposed to the inroads of the hostile Arabs. A +detachment of four thousand men was left at Circesium, which +completed, to the number of ten thousand, the regular garrison of +that important fortress.<br> +</p> + +<p>From the moment that the Romans entered the enemy's country, +the country of an active and artful enemy, the order of march was +disposed in three columns. The strength of the infantry, and +consequently of the whole army was placed in the centre, under +the peculiar command of their master-general Victor. On the +right, the brave Nevitta led a column of several legions along +the banks of the Euphrates, and almost always in sight of the +fleet. The left flank of the army was protected by the column of +cavalry. Hormisdas and Arinthæus were appointed generals of +the horse; and the singular adventures of Hormisdas are not +undeserving of our notice. He was a Persian prince, of the royal +race of the Sassanides, who, in the troubles of the minority of +Sapor, had escaped from prison to the hospitable court of the +great Constantine. Hormisdas at first excited the compassion, and +at length acquired the esteem, of his new masters; his valor and +fidelity raised him to the military honors of the Roman service; +and though a Christian, he might indulge the secret satisfaction +of convincing his ungrateful country, than at oppressed subject +may prove the most dangerous enemy. Such was the disposition of +the three principal columns. The front and flanks of the army +were covered by Lucilianus with a flying detachment of fifteen +hundred light-armed soldiers, whose active vigilance observed the +most distant signs, and conveyed the earliest notice, of any +hostile approach. Dagalaiphus, and Secundinus duke of Osrhoene, +conducted the troops of the rear-guard; the baggage securely +proceeded in the intervals of the columns; and the ranks, from a +motive either of use or ostentation, were formed in such open +order, that the whole line of march extended almost ten miles. +The ordinary post of Julian was at the head of the centre column; +but as he preferred the duties of a general to the state of a +monarch, he rapidly moved, with a small escort of light cavalry, +to the front, the rear, the flanks, wherever his presence could +animate or protect the march of the Roman army. The country which +they traversed from the Chaboras, to the cultivated lands of +Assyria, may be considered as a part of the desert of Arabia, a +dry and barren waste, which could never be improved by the most +powerful arts of human industry. Julian marched over the same +ground which had been trod above seven hundred years before by +the footsteps of the younger Cyrus, and which is described by one +of the companions of his expedition, the sage and heroic +Xenophon. "The country was a plain throughout, as even as the +sea, and full of wormwood; and if any other kind of shrubs or +reeds grew there, they had all an aromatic smell, but no trees +could be seen. Bustards and ostriches, antelopes and wild asses, +appeared to be the only inhabitants of the desert; and the +fatigues of the march were alleviated by the amusements of the +chase." The loose sand of the desert was frequently raised by the +wind into clouds of dust; and a great number of the soldiers of +Julian, with their tents, were suddenly thrown to the ground by +the violence of an unexpected hurricane.<br> +</p> + +<p>The sandy plains of Mesopotamia were abandoned to the +antelopes and wild asses of the desert; but a variety of populous +towns and villages were pleasantly situated on the banks of the +Euphrates, and in the islands which are occasionally formed by +that river. The city of Annah, or Anatho, the actual residence of +an Arabian emir, is composed of two long streets, which enclose, +within a natural fortification, a small island in the midst, and +two fruitful spots on either side, of the Euphrates. The warlike +inhabitants of Anatho showed a disposition to stop the march of a +Roman emperor; till they were diverted from such fatal +presumption by the mild exhortations of Prince Hormisdas, and the +approaching terrors of the fleet and army. They implored, and +experienced, the clemency of Julian, who transplanted the people +to an advantageous settlement, near Chalcis in Syria, and +admitted Pusæus, the governor, to an honorable rank in his +service and friendship. But the impregnable fortress of Thilutha +could scorn the menace of a siege; and the emperor was obliged to +content himself with an insulting promise, that, when he had +subdued the interior provinces of Persia, Thilutha would no +longer refuse to grace the triumph of the emperor. The +inhabitants of the open towns, unable to resist, and unwilling to +yield, fled with precipitation; and their houses, filled with +spoil and provisions, were occupied by the soldiers of Julian, +who massacred, without remorse and without punishment, some +defenceless women. During the march, the Surenas, * or Persian +general, and Malek Rodosaces, the renowned emir of the tribe of +Gassan, incessantly hovered round the army; every straggler was +intercepted; every detachment was attacked; and the valiant +Hormisdas escaped with some difficulty from their hands. But the +Barbarians were finally repulsed; the country became every day +less favorable to the operations of cavalry; and when the Romans +arrived at Macepracta, they perceived the ruins of the wall, +which had been constructed by the ancient kings of Assyria, to +secure their dominions from the incursions of the Medes. These +preliminaries of the expedition of Julian appear to have employed +about fifteen days; and we may compute near three hundred miles +from the fortress of Circesium to the wall of Macepracta.<br> +</p> + +<p>The fertile province of Assyria, which stretched beyond the +Tigris, as far as the mountains of Media, extended about four +hundred miles from the ancient wall of Macepracta, to the +territory of Basra, where the united streams of the Euphrates and +Tigris discharge themselves into the Persian Gulf. The whole +country might have claimed the peculiar name of Mesopotamia; as +the two rivers, which are never more distant than fifty, +approach, between Bagdad and Babylon, within twenty-five miles, +of each other. A multitude of artificial canals, dug without much +labor in a soft and yielding soil connected the rivers, and +intersected the plain of Assyria. The uses of these artificial +canals were various and important. They served to discharge the +superfluous waters from one river into the other, at the season +of their respective inundations. Subdividing themselves into +smaller and smaller branches, they refreshed the dry lands, and +supplied the deficiency of rain. They facilitated the intercourse +of peace and commerce; and, as the dams could be speedily broke +down, they armed the despair of the Assyrians with the means of +opposing a sudden deluge to the progress of an invading army. To +the soil and climate of Assyria, nature had denied some of her +choicest gifts, the vine, the olive, and the fig-tree; * but the +food which supports the life of man, and particularly wheat and +barley, were produced with inexhaustible fertility; and the +husbandman, who committed his seed to the earth, was frequently +rewarded with an increase of two, or even of three, hundred. The +face of the country was interspersed with groves of innumerable +palm-trees; and the diligent natives celebrated, either in verse +or prose, the three hundred and sixty uses to which the trunk, +the branches, the leaves, the juice, and the fruit, were +skilfully applied. Several manufactures, especially those of +leather and linen, employed the industry of a numerous people, +and afforded valuable materials for foreign trade; which appears, +however, to have been conducted by the hands of strangers. +Babylon had been converted into a royal park; but near the ruins +of the ancient capital, new cities had successively arisen, and +the populousness of the country was displayed in the multitude of +towns and villages, which were built of bricks dried in the sun, +and strongly cemented with bitumen; the natural and peculiar +production of the Babylonian soil. While the successors of Cyrus +reigned over Asia, the province of Syria alone maintained, during +a third part of the year, the luxurious plenty of the table and +household of the Great King. Four considerable villages were +assigned for the subsistence of his Indian dogs; eight hundred +stallions, and sixteen thousand mares, were constantly kept, at +the expense of the country, for the royal stables; and as the +daily tribute, which was paid to the satrap, amounted to one +English bushel of silver, we may compute the annual revenue of +Assyria at more than twelve hundred thousand pounds sterling.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian. -- +Part III.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The fields of Assyria were devoted by Julian to the calamities +of war; and the philosopher retaliated on a guiltless people the +acts of rapine and cruelty which had been committed by their +haughty master in the Roman provinces. The trembling Assyrians +summoned the rivers to their assistance; and completed, with +their own hands, the ruin of their country. The roads were +rendered impracticable; a flood of waters was poured into the +camp; and, during several days, the troops of Julian were obliged +to contend with the most discouraging hardships. But every +obstacle was surmounted by the perseverance of the legionaries, +who were inured to toil as well as to danger, and who felt +themselves animated by the spirit of their leader. The damage was +gradually repaired; the waters were restored to their proper +channels; whole groves of palm-trees were cut down, and placed +along the broken parts of the road; and the army passed over the +broad and deeper canals, on bridges of floating rafts, which were +supported by the help of bladders. Two cities of Assyria presumed +to resist the arms of a Roman emperor: and they both paid the +severe penalty of their rashness. At the distance of fifty miles +from the royal residence of Ctesiphon, Perisabor, * or Anbar, +held the second rank in the province; a city, large, populous, +and well fortified, surrounded with a double wall, almost +encompassed by a branch of the Euphrates, and defended by the +valor of a numerous garrison. The exhortations of Hormisdas were +repulsed with contempt; and the ears of the Persian prince were +wounded by a just reproach, that, unmindful of his royal birth, +he conducted an army of strangers against his king and country. +The Assyrians maintained their loyalty by a skilful, as well as +vigorous, defence; till the lucky stroke of a battering-ram, +having opened a large breach, by shattering one of the angles of +the wall, they hastily retired into the fortifications of the +interior citadel. The soldiers of Julian rushed impetuously into +the town, and after the full gratification of every military +appetite, Perisabor was reduced to ashes; and the engines which +assaulted the citadel were planted on the ruins of the smoking +houses. The contest was continued by an incessant and mutual +discharge of missile weapons; and the superiority which the +Romans might derive from the mechanical powers of their +balistæ and catapultæ was counterbalanced by the +advantage of the ground on the side of the besieged. But as soon +as an <strong><em>Helepolis</em></strong> had been constructed, +which could engage on equal terms with the loftiest ramparts, the +tremendous aspect of a moving turret, that would leave no hope of +resistance or mercy, terrified the defenders of the citadel into +an humble submission; and the place was surrendered only two days +after Julian first appeared under the walls of Perisabor. Two +thousand five hundred persons, of both sexes, the feeble remnant +of a flourishing people, were permitted to retire; the plentiful +magazines of corn, of arms, and of splendid furniture, were +partly distributed among the troops, and partly reserved for the +public service; the useless stores were destroyed by fire or +thrown into the stream of the Euphrates; and the fate of Amida +was revenged by the total ruin of Perisabor.<br> +</p> + +<p>The city or rather fortress, of Maogamalcha, which was +defended by sixteen large towers, a deep ditch, and two strong +and solid walls of brick and bitumen, appears to have been +constructed at the distance of eleven miles, as the safeguard of +the capital of Persia. The emperor, apprehensive of leaving such +an important fortress in his rear, immediately formed the siege +of Maogamalcha; and the Roman army was distributed, for that +purpose, into three divisions. Victor, at the head of the +cavalry, and of a detachment of heavy-armed foot, was ordered to +clear the country, as far as the banks of the Tigris, and the +suburbs of Ctesiphon. The conduct of the attack was assumed by +Julian himself, who seemed to place his whole dependence in the +military engines which he erected against the walls; while he +secretly contrived a more efficacious method of introducing his +troops into the heart of the city Under the direction of Nevitta +and Dagalaiphus, the trenches were opened at a considerable +distance, and gradually prolonged as far as the edge of the +ditch. The ditch was speedily filled with earth; and, by the +incessant labor of the troops, a mine was carried under the +foundations of the walls, and sustained, at sufficient intervals, +by props of timber. Three chosen cohorts, advancing in a single +file, silently explored the dark and dangerous passage; till +their intrepid leader whispered back the intelligence, that he +was ready to issue from his confinement into the streets of the +hostile city. Julian checked their ardor, that he might insure +their success; and immediately diverted the attention of the +garrison, by the tumult and clamor of a general assault. The +Persians, who, from their walls, contemptuously beheld the +progress of an impotent attack, celebrated with songs of triumph +the glory of Sapor; and ventured to assure the emperor, that he +might ascend the starry mansion of Ormusd, before he could hope +to take the impregnable city of Maogamalcha. The city was already +taken. History has recorded the name of a private soldier the +first who ascended from the mine into a deserted tower. The +passage was widened by his companions, who pressed forwards with +impatient valor. Fifteen hundred enemies were already in the +midst of the city. The astonished garrison abandoned the walls, +and their only hope of safety; the gates were instantly burst +open; and the revenge of the soldier, unless it were suspended by +lust or avarice, was satiated by an undistinguishing massacre. +The governor, who had yielded on a promise of mercy, was burnt +alive, a few days afterwards, on a charge of having uttered some +disrespectful words against the honor of Prince Hormisdas. * The +fortifications were razed to the ground; and not a vestige was +left, that the city of Maogamalcha had ever existed. The +neighborhood of the capital of Persia was adorned with three +stately palaces, laboriously enriched with every production that +could gratify the luxury and pride of an Eastern monarch. The +pleasant situation of the gardens along the banks of the Tigris, +was improved, according to the Persian taste, by the symmetry of +flowers, fountains, and shady walks: and spacious parks were +enclosed for the reception of the bears, lions, and wild boars, +which were maintained at a considerable expense for the pleasure +of the royal chase. The park walls were broken down, the savage +game was abandoned to the darts of the soldiers, and the palaces +of Sapor were reduced to ashes, by the command of the Roman +emperor. Julian, on this occasion, showed himself ignorant, or +careless, of the laws of civility, which the prudence and +refinement of polished ages have established between hostile +princes. Yet these wanton ravages need not excite in our breasts +any vehement emotions of pity or resentment. A simple, naked +statue, finished by the hand of a Grecian artist, is of more +genuine value than all these rude and costly monuments of +Barbaric labor; and, if we are more deeply affected by the ruin +of a palace than by the conflagration of a cottage, our humanity +must have formed a very erroneous estimate of the miseries of +human life.<br> +</p> + +<p>Julian was an object of hatred and terror to the Persian and +the painters of that nation represented the invader of their +country under the emblem of a furious lion, who vomited from his +mouth a consuming fire. To his friends and soldiers the +philosophic hero appeared in a more amiable light; and his +virtues were never more conspicuously displayed, than in the last +and most active period of his life. He practised, without effort, +and almost without merit, the habitual qualities of temperance +and sobriety. According to the dictates of that artificial +wisdom, which assumes an absolute dominion over the mind and +body, he sternly refused himself the indulgence of the most +natural appetites. In the warm climate of Assyria, which +solicited a luxurious people to the gratification of every +sensual desire, a youthful conqueror preserved his chastity pure +and inviolate; nor was Julian ever tempted, even by a motive of +curiosity, to visit his female captives of exquisite beauty, who, +instead of resisting his power, would have disputed with each +other the honor of his embraces. With the same firmness that he +resisted the allurements of love, he sustained the hardships of +war. When the Romans marched through the flat and flooded +country, their sovereign, on foot, at the head of his legions, +shared their fatigues and animated their diligence. In every +useful labor, the hand of Julian was prompt and strenuous; and +the Imperial purple was wet and dirty as the coarse garment of +the meanest soldier. The two sieges allowed him some remarkable +opportunities of signalizing his personal valor, which, in the +improved state of the military art, can seldom be exerted by a +prudent general. The emperor stood before the citadel before the +citadel of Perisabor, insensible of his extreme danger, and +encouraged his troops to burst open the gates of iron, till he +was almost overwhelmed under a cloud of missile weapons and huge +stones, that were directed against his person. As he examined the +exterior fortifications of Maogamalcha, two Persians, devoting +themselves for their country, suddenly rushed upon him with drawn +cimeters: the emperor dexterously received their blows on his +uplifted shield; and, with a steady and well-aimed thrust, laid +one of his adversaries dead at his feet. The esteem of a prince +who possesses the virtues which he approves, is the noblest +recompense of a deserving subject; and the authority which Julian +derived from his personal merit, enabled him to revive and +enforce the rigor of ancient discipline. He punished with death +or ignominy the misbehavior of three troops of horse, who, in a +skirmish with the Surenas, had lost their honor and one of their +standards: and he distinguished with +<strong><em>obsidional</em></strong> crowns the valor of the +foremost soldiers, who had ascended into the city of Maogamalcha. +After the siege of Perisabor, the firmness of the emperor was +exercised by the insolent avarice of the army, who loudly +complained, that their services were rewarded by a trifling +donative of one hundred pieces of silver. His just indignation +was expressed in the grave and manly language of a Roman. "Riches +are the object of your desires; those riches are in the hands of +the Persians; and the spoils of this fruitful country are +proposed as the prize of your valor and discipline. Believe me," +added Julian, "the Roman republic, which formerly possessed such +immense treasures, is now reduced to want and wretchedness once +our princes have been persuaded, by weak and interested +ministers, to purchase with gold the tranquillity of the +Barbarians. The revenue is exhausted; the cities are ruined; the +provinces are dispeopled. For myself, the only inheritance that I +have received from my royal ancestors is a soul incapable of +fear; and as long as I am convinced that every real advantage is +seated in the mind, I shall not blush to acknowledge an honorable +poverty, which, in the days of ancient virtue, was considered as +the glory of Fabricius. That glory, and that virtue, may be your +own, if you will listen to the voice of Heaven and of your +leader. But if you will rashly persist, if you are determined to +renew the shameful and mischievous examples of old seditions, +proceed. As it becomes an emperor who has filled the first rank +among men, I am prepared to die, standing; and to despise a +precarious life, which, every hour, may depend on an accidental +fever. If I have been found unworthy of the command, there are +now among you, (I speak it with pride and pleasure,) there are +many chiefs whose merit and experience are equal to the conduct +of the most important war. Such has been the temper of my reign, +that I can retire, without regret, and without apprehension, to +the obscurity of a private station" The modest resolution of +Julian was answered by the unanimous applause and cheerful +obedience of the Romans, who declared their confidence of +victory, while they fought under the banners of their heroic +prince. Their courage was kindled by his frequent and familiar +asseverations, (for such wishes were the oaths of Julian,) "So +may I reduce the Persians under the yoke!" "Thus may I restore +the strength and splendor of the republic!" The love of fame was +the ardent passion of his soul: but it was not before he trampled +on the ruins of Maogamalcha, that he allowed himself to say, "We +have now provided some materials for the sophist of Antioch."<br> +</p> + +<p>The successful valor of Julian had triumphed over all the +obstacles that opposed his march to the gates of Ctesiphon. But +the reduction, or even the siege, of the capital of Persia, was +still at a distance: nor can the military conduct of the emperor +be clearly apprehended, without a knowledge of the country which +was the theatre of his bold and skilful operations. Twenty miles +to the south of Bagdad, and on the eastern bank of the Tigris, +the curiosity of travellers has observed some ruins of the +palaces of Ctesiphon, which, in the time of Julian, was a great +and populous city. The name and glory of the adjacent Seleucia +were forever extinguished; and the only remaining quarter of that +Greek colony had resumed, with the Assyrian language and manners, +the primitive appellation of Coche. Coche was situate on the +western side of the Tigris; but it was naturally considered as a +suburb of Ctesiphon, with which we may suppose it to have been +connected by a permanent bridge of boats. The united parts +contribute to form the common epithet of Al Modain, the cities, +which the Orientals have bestowed on the winter residence of the +Sassinades; and the whole circumference of the Persian capital +was strongly fortified by the waters of the river, by lofty +walls, and by impracticable morasses. Near the ruins of Seleucia, +the camp of Julian was fixed, and secured, by a ditch and +rampart, against the sallies of the numerous and enterprising +garrison of Coche. In this fruitful and pleasant country, the +Romans were plentifully supplied with water and forage: and +several forts, which might have embarrassed the motions of the +army, submitted, after some resistance, to the efforts of their +valor. The fleet passed from the Euphrates into an artificial +derivation of that river, which pours a copious and navigable +stream into the Tigris, at a small distance +<strong><em>below</em></strong> the great city. If they had +followed this royal canal, which bore the name of Nahar-Malcha, +the intermediate situation of Coche would have separated the +fleet and army of Julian; and the rash attempt of steering +against the current of the Tigris, and forcing their way through +the midst of a hostile capital, must have been attended with the +total destruction of the Roman navy. The prudence of the emperor +foresaw the danger, and provided the remedy. As he had minutely +studied the operations of Trajan in the same country, he soon +recollected that his warlike predecessor had dug a new and +navigable canal, which, leaving Coche on the right hand, conveyed +the waters of the Nahar-Malcha into the river Tigris, at some +distance <strong><em>above</em></strong> the cities. From the +information of the peasants, Julian ascertained the vestiges of +this ancient work, which were almost obliterated by design or +accident. By the indefatigable labor of the soldiers, a broad and +deep channel was speedily prepared for the reception of the +Euphrates. A strong dike was constructed to interrupt the +ordinary current of the Nahar-Malcha: a flood of waters rushed +impetuously into their new bed; and the Roman fleet, steering +their triumphant course into the Tigris, derided the vain and +ineffectual barriers which the Persians of Ctesiphon had erected +to oppose their passage.<br> +</p> + +<p>As it became necessary to transport the Roman army over the +Tigris, another labor presented itself, of less toil, but of more +danger, than the preceding expedition. The stream was broad and +rapid; the ascent steep and difficult; and the intrenchments +which had been formed on the ridge of the opposite bank, were +lined with a numerous army of heavy cuirassiers, dexterous +archers, and huge elephants; who (according to the extravagant +hyperbole of Libanius) could trample with the same ease a field +of corn, or a legion of Romans. In the presence of such an enemy, +the construction of a bridge was impracticable; and the intrepid +prince, who instantly seized the only possible expedient, +concealed his design, till the moment of execution, from the +knowledge of the Barbarians, of his own troops, and even of his +generals themselves. Under the specious pretence of examining the +state of the magazines, fourscore vessels * were gradually +unladen; and a select detachment, apparently destined for some +secret expedition, was ordered to stand to their arms on the +first signal. Julian disguised the silent anxiety of his own mind +with smiles of confidence and joy; and amused the hostile nations +with the spectacle of military games, which he insultingly +celebrated under the walls of Coche. The day was consecrated to +pleasure; but, as soon as the hour of supper was passed, the +emperor summoned the generals to his tent, and acquainted them +that he had fixed that night for the passage of the Tigris. They +stood in silent and respectful astonishment; but, when the +venerable Sallust assumed the privilege of his age and +experience, the rest of the chiefs supported with freedom the +weight of his prudent remonstrances. Julian contented himself +with observing, that conquest and safety depended on the attempt; +that instead of diminishing, the number of their enemies would be +increased, by successive reenforcements; and that a longer delay +would neither contract the breadth of the stream, nor level the +height of the bank. The signal was instantly given, and obeyed; +the most impatient of the legionaries leaped into five vessels +that lay nearest to the bank; and as they plied their oars with +intrepid diligence, they were lost, after a few moments, in the +darkness of the night. A flame arose on the opposite side; and +Julian, who too clearly understood that his foremost vessels, in +attempting to land, had been fired by the enemy, dexterously +converted their extreme danger into a presage of victory. "Our +fellow-soldiers," he eagerly exclaimed, "are already masters of +the bank; see -- they make the appointed signal; let us hasten to +emulate and assist their courage." The united and rapid motion of +a great fleet broke the violence of the current, and they reached +the eastern shore of the Tigris with sufficient speed to +extinguish the flames, and rescue their adventurous companions. +The difficulties of a steep and lofty ascent were increased by +the weight of armor, and the darkness of the night. A shower of +stones, darts, and fire, was incessantly discharged on the heads +of the assailants; who, after an arduous struggle, climbed the +bank and stood victorious upon the rampart. As soon as they +possessed a more equal field, Julian, who, with his light +infantry, had led the attack, darted through the ranks a skilful +and experienced eye: his bravest soldiers, according to the +precepts of Homer, were distributed in the front and rear: and +all the trumpets of the Imperial army sounded to battle. The +Romans, after sending up a military shout, advanced in measured +steps to the animating notes of martial music; launched their +formidable javelins; and rushed forwards with drawn swords, to +deprive the Barbarians, by a closer onset, of the advantage of +their missile weapons. The whole engagement lasted above twelve +hours; till the gradual retreat of the Persians was changed into +a disorderly flight, of which the shameful example was given by +the principal leader, and the Surenas himself. They were pursued +to the gates of Ctesiphon; and the conquerors might have entered +the dismayed city, if their general, Victor, who was dangerously +wounded with an arrow, had not conjured them to desist from a +rash attempt, which must be fatal, if it were not successful. On +<strong><em>their</em></strong> side, the Romans acknowledged the +loss of only seventy-five men; while they affirmed, that the +Barbarians had left on the field of battle two thousand five +hundred, or even six thousand, of their bravest soldiers. The +spoil was such as might be expected from the riches and luxury of +an Oriental camp; large quantities of silver and gold, splendid +arms and trappings, and beds and tables of massy silver. * The +victorious emperor distributed, as the rewards of valor, some +honorable gifts, civic, and mural, and naval crowns; which he, +and perhaps he alone, esteemed more precious than the wealth of +Asia. A solemn sacrifice was offered to the god of war, but the +appearances of the victims threatened the most inauspicious +events; and Julian soon discovered, by less ambiguous signs, that +he had now reached the term of his prosperity.<br> +</p> + +<p>On the second day after the battle, the domestic guards, the +Jovians and Herculians, and the remaining troops, which composed +near two thirds of the whole army, were securely wafted over the +Tigris. While the Persians beheld from the walls of Ctesiphon the +desolation of the adjacent country, Julian cast many an anxious +look towards the North, in full expectation, that as he himself +had victoriously penetrated to the capital of Sapor, the march +and junction of his lieutenants, Sebastian and Procopius, would +be executed with the same courage and diligence. His expectations +were disappointed by the treachery of the Armenian king, who +permitted, and most probably directed, the desertion of his +auxiliary troops from the camp of the Romans; and by the +dissensions of the two generals, who were incapable of forming or +executing any plan for the public service. When the emperor had +relinquished the hope of this important reenforcement, he +condescended to hold a council of war, and approved, after a full +debate, the sentiment of those generals, who dissuaded the siege +of Ctesiphon, as a fruitless and pernicious undertaking. It is +not easy for us to conceive, by what arts of fortification a city +thrice besieged and taken by the predecessors of Julian could be +rendered impregnable against an army of sixty thousand Romans, +commanded by a brave and experienced general, and abundantly +supplied with ships, provisions, battering engines, and military +stores. But we may rest assured, from the love of glory, and +contempt of danger, which formed the character of Julian, that he +was not discouraged by any trivial or imaginary obstacles. At the +very time when he declined the siege of Ctesiphon, he rejected, +with obstinacy and disdain, the most flattering offers of a +negotiation of peace. Sapor, who had been so long accustomed to +the tardy ostentation of Constantius, was surprised by the +intrepid diligence of his successor. As far as the confines of +India and Scythia, the satraps of the distant provinces were +ordered to assemble their troops, and to march, without delay, to +the assistance of their monarch. But their preparations were +dilatory, their motions slow; and before Sapor could lead an army +into the field, he received the melancholy intelligence of the +devastation of Assyria, the ruin of his palaces, and the +slaughter of his bravest troops, who defended the passage of the +Tigris. The pride of royalty was humbled in the dust; he took his +repasts on the ground; and the disorder of his hair expressed the +grief and anxiety of his mind. Perhaps he would not have refused +to purchase, with one half of his kingdom, the safety of the +remainder; and he would have gladly subscribed himself, in a +treaty of peace, the faithful and dependent ally of the Roman +conqueror. Under the pretence of private business, a minister of +rank and confidence was secretly despatched to embrace the knees +of Hormisdas, and to request, in the language of a suppliant, +that he might be introduced into the presence of the emperor. The +Sassanian prince, whether he listened to the voice of pride or +humanity, whether he consulted the sentiments of his birth, or +the duties of his situation, was equally inclined to promote a +salutary measure, which would terminate the calamities of Persia, +and secure the triumph of Rome. He was astonished by the +inflexible firmness of a hero, who remembered, most unfortunately +for himself and for his country, that Alexander had uniformly +rejected the propositions of Darius. But as Julian was sensible, +that the hope of a safe and honorable peace might cool the ardor +of his troops, he earnestly requested that Hormisdas would +privately dismiss the minister of Sapor, and conceal this +dangerous temptation from the knowledge of the camp.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian. -- +Part IV.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The honor, as well as interest, of Julian, forbade him to +consume his time under the impregnable walls of Ctesiphon and as +often as he defied the Barbarians, who defended the city, to meet +him on the open plain, they prudently replied, that if he desired +to exercise his valor, he might seek the army of the Great King. +He felt the insult, and he accepted the advice. Instead of +confining his servile march to the banks of the Euphrates and +Tigris, he resolved to imitate the adventurous spirit of +Alexander, and boldly to advance into the inland provinces, till +he forced his rival to contend with him, perhaps in the plains of +Arbela, for the empire of Asia. The magnanimity of Julian was +applauded and betrayed, by the arts of a noble Persian, who, in +the cause of his country, had generously submitted to act a part +full of danger, of falsehood, and of shame. With a train of +faithful followers, he deserted to the Imperial camp; exposed, in +a specious tale, the injuries which he had sustained; exaggerated +the cruelty of Sapor, the discontent of the people, and the +weakness of the monarchy; and confidently offered himself as the +hostage and guide of the Roman march. The most rational grounds +of suspicion were urged, without effect, by the wisdom and +experience of Hormisdas; and the credulous Julian, receiving the +traitor into his bosom, was persuaded to issue a hasty order, +which, in the opinion of mankind, appeared to arraign his +prudence, and to endanger his safety. He destroyed, in a single +hour, the whole navy, which had been transported above five +hundred miles, at so great an expense of toil, of treasure, and +of blood. Twelve, or, at the most, twenty-two small vessels were +saved, to accompany, on carriages, the march of the army, and to +form occasional bridges for the passage of the rivers. A supply +of twenty days' provisions was reserved for the use of the +soldiers; and the rest of the magazines, with a fleet of eleven +hundred vessels, which rode at anchor in the Tigris, were +abandoned to the flames, by the absolute command of the emperor. +The Christian bishops, Gregory and Augustin, insult the madness +of the Apostate, who executed, with his own hands, the sentence +of divine justice. Their authority, of less weight, perhaps, in a +military question, is confirmed by the cool judgment of an +experienced soldier, who was himself spectator of the +conflagration, and who could not disapprove the reluctant murmurs +of the troops. Yet there are not wanting some specious, and +perhaps solid, reasons, which might justify the resolution of +Julian. The navigation of the Euphrates never ascended above +Babylon, nor that of the Tigris above Opis. The distance of the +last-mentioned city from the Roman camp was not very +considerable: and Julian must soon have renounced the vain and +impracticable attempt of forcing upwards a great fleet against +the stream of a rapid river, which in several places was +embarrassed by natural or artificial cataracts. The power of +sails and oars was insufficient; it became necessary to tow the +ships against the current of the river; the strength of twenty +thousand soldiers was exhausted in this tedious and servile +labor, and if the Romans continued to march along the banks of +the Tigris, they could only expect to return home without +achieving any enterprise worthy of the genius or fortune of their +leader. If, on the contrary, it was advisable to advance into the +inland country, the destruction of the fleet and magazines was +the only measure which could save that valuable prize from the +hands of the numerous and active troops which might suddenly be +poured from the gates of Ctesiphon. Had the arms of Julian been +victorious, we should now admire the conduct, as well as the +courage, of a hero, who, by depriving his soldiers of the hopes +of a retreat, left them only the alternative of death or +conquest.<br> +</p> + +<p>The cumbersome train of artillery and wagons, which retards +the operations of a modern army, were in a great measure unknown +in the camps of the Romans. Yet, in every age, the subsistence of +sixty thousand men must have been one of the most important cares +of a prudent general; and that subsistence could only be drawn +from his own or from the enemy's country. Had it been possible +for Julian to maintain a bridge of communication on the Tigris, +and to preserve the conquered places of Assyria, a desolated +province could not afford any large or regular supplies, in a +season of the year when the lands were covered by the inundation +of the Euphrates, and the unwholesome air was darkened with +swarms of innumerable insects. The appearance of the hostile +country was far more inviting. The extensive region that lies +between the River Tigris and the mountains of Media, was filled +with villages and towns; and the fertile soil, for the most part, +was in a very improved state of cultivation. Julian might expect, +that a conqueror, who possessed the two forcible instruments of +persuasion, steel and gold, would easily procure a plentiful +subsistence from the fears or avarice of the natives. But, on the +approach of the Romans, the rich and smiling prospect was +instantly blasted. Wherever they moved, the inhabitants deserted +the open villages, and took shelter in the fortified towns; the +cattle was driven away; the grass and ripe corn were consumed +with fire; and, as soon as the flames had subsided which +interrupted the march of Julian, he beheld the melancholy face of +a smoking and naked desert. This desperate but effectual method +of defence can only be executed by the enthusiasm of a people who +prefer their independence to their property; or by the rigor of +an arbitrary government, which consults the public safety without +submitting to their inclinations the liberty of choice. On the +present occasion the zeal and obedience of the Persians seconded +the commands of Sapor; and the emperor was soon reduced to the +scanty stock of provisions, which continually wasted in his +hands. Before they were entirely consumed, he might still have +reached the wealthy and unwarlike cities of Ecbatana or Susa, by +the effort of a rapid and well-directed march; but he was +deprived of this last resource by his ignorance of the roads, and +by the perfidy of his guides. The Romans wandered several days in +the country to the eastward of Bagdad; the Persian deserter, who +had artfully led them into the spare, escaped from their +resentment; and his followers, as soon as they were put to the +torture, confessed the secret of the conspiracy. The visionary +conquests of Hyrcania and India, which had so long amused, now +tormented, the mind of Julian. Conscious that his own imprudence +was the cause of the public distress, he anxiously balanced the +hopes of safety or success, without obtaining a satisfactory +answer, either from gods or men. At length, as the only +practicable measure, he embraced the resolution of directing his +steps towards the banks of the Tigris, with the design of saving +the army by a hasty march to the confines of Corduene; a fertile +and friendly province, which acknowledged the sovereignty of +Rome. The desponding troops obeyed the signal of the retreat, +only seventy days after they had passed the Chaboras, with the +sanguine expectation of subverting the throne of Persia.<br> +</p> + +<p>As long as the Romans seemed to advance into the country, +their march was observed and insulted from a distance, by several +bodies of Persian cavalry; who, showing themselves sometimes in +loose, and sometimes in close order, faintly skirmished with the +advanced guards. These detachments were, however, supported by a +much greater force; and the heads of the columns were no sooner +pointed towards the Tigris than a cloud of dust arose on the +plain. The Romans, who now aspired only to the permission of a +safe and speedy retreat, endeavored to persuade themselves, that +this formidable appearance was occasioned by a troop of wild +asses, or perhaps by the approach of some friendly Arabs. They +halted, pitched their tents, fortified their camp, passed the +whole night in continual alarms; and discovered at the dawn of +day, that they were surrounded by an army of Persians. This army, +which might be considered only as the van of the Barbarians, was +soon followed by the main body of cuirassiers, archers, and +elephants, commanded by Meranes, a general of rank and +reputation. He was accompanied by two of the king's sons, and +many of the principal satraps; and fame and expectation +exaggerated the strength of the remaining powers, which slowly +advanced under the conduct of Sapor himself. As the Romans +continued their march, their long array, which was forced to bend +or divide, according to the varieties of the ground, afforded +frequent and favorable opportunities to their vigilant enemies. +The Persians repeatedly charged with fury; they were repeatedly +repulsed with firmness; and the action at Maronga, which almost +deserved the name of a battle, was marked by a considerable loss +of satraps and elephants, perhaps of equal value in the eyes of +their monarch. These splendid advantages were not obtained +without an adequate slaughter on the side of the Romans: several +officers of distinction were either killed or wounded; and the +emperor himself, who, on all occasions of danger, inspired and +guided the valor of his troops, was obliged to expose his person, +and exert his abilities. The weight of offensive and defensive +arms, which still constituted the strength and safety of the +Romans, disabled them from making any long or effectual pursuit; +and as the horsemen of the East were trained to dart their +javelins, and shoot their arrows, at full speed, and in every +possible direction, the cavalry of Persia was never more +formidable than in the moment of a rapid and disorderly flight. +But the most certain and irreparable loss of the Romans was that +of time. The hardy veterans, accustomed to the cold climate of +Gaul and Germany, fainted under the sultry heat of an Assyrian +summer; their vigor was exhausted by the incessant repetition of +march and combat; and the progress of the army was suspended by +the precautions of a slow and dangerous retreat, in the presence +of an active enemy. Every day, every hour, as the supply +diminished, the value and price of subsistence increased in the +Roman camp. Julian, who always contented himself with such food +as a hungry soldier would have disdained, distributed, for the +use of the troops, the provisions of the Imperial household, and +whatever could be spared, from the sumpter-horses, of the +tribunes and generals. But this feeble relief served only to +aggravate the sense of the public distress; and the Romans began +to entertain the most gloomy apprehensions that, before they +could reach the frontiers of the empire, they should all perish, +either by famine, or by the sword of the Barbarians.<br> +</p> + +<p>While Julian struggled with the almost insuperable +difficulties of his situation, the silent hours of the night were +still devoted to study and contemplation. Whenever he closed his +eyes in short and interrupted slumbers, his mind was agitated +with painful anxiety; nor can it be thought surprising, that the +Genius of the empire should once more appear before him, covering +with a funeral veil his head, and his horn of abundance, and +slowly retiring from the Imperial tent. The monarch started from +his couch, and stepping forth to refresh his wearied spirits with +the coolness of the midnight air, he beheld a fiery meteor, which +shot athwart the sky, and suddenly vanished. Julian was convinced +that he had seen the menacing countenance of the god of war; the +council which he summoned, of Tuscan Haruspices, unanimously +pronounced that he should abstain from action; but on this +occasion, necessity and reason were more prevalent than +superstition; and the trumpets sounded at the break of day. The +army marched through a hilly country; and the hills had been +secretly occupied by the Persians. Julian led the van with the +skill and attention of a consummate general; he was alarmed by +the intelligence that his rear was suddenly attacked. The heat of +the weather had tempted him to lay aside his cuirass; but he +snatched a shield from one of his attendants, and hastened, with +a sufficient reenforcement, to the relief of the rear-guard. A +similar danger recalled the intrepid prince to the defence of the +front; and, as he galloped through the columns, the centre of the +left was attacked, and almost overpowered by the furious charge +of the Persian cavalry and elephants. This huge body was soon +defeated, by the well-timed evolution of the light infantry, who +aimed their weapons, with dexterity and effect, against the backs +of the horsemen, and the legs of the elephants. The Barbarians +fled; and Julian, who was foremost in every danger, animated the +pursuit with his voice and gestures. His trembling guards, +scattered and oppressed by the disorderly throng of friends and +enemies, reminded their fearless sovereign that he was without +armor; and conjured him to decline the fall of the impending +ruin. As they exclaimed, a cloud of darts and arrows was +discharged from the flying squadrons; and a javelin, after razing +the skin of his arm, transpierced the ribs, and fixed in the +inferior part of the liver. Julian attempted to draw the deadly +weapon from his side; but his fingers were cut by the sharpness +of the steel, and he fell senseless from his horse. His guards +flew to his relief; and the wounded emperor was gently raised +from the ground, and conveyed out of the tumult of the battle +into an adjacent tent. The report of the melancholy event passed +from rank to rank; but the grief of the Romans inspired them with +invincible valor, and the desire of revenge. The bloody and +obstinate conflict was maintained by the two armies, till they +were separated by the total darkness of the night. The Persians +derived some honor from the advantage which they obtained against +the left wing, where Anatolius, master of the offices, was slain, +and the præfect Sallust very narrowly escaped. But the +event of the day was adverse to the Barbarians. They abandoned +the field; their two generals, Meranes and Nohordates, fifty +nobles or satraps, and a multitude of their bravest soldiers; and +the success of the Romans, if Julian had survived, might have +been improved into a decisive and useful victory.<br> +</p> + +<p>The first words that Julian uttered, after his recovery from +the fainting fit into which he had been thrown by loss of blood, +were expressive of his martial spirit. He called for his horse +and arms, and was impatient to rush into the battle. His +remaining strength was exhausted by the painful effort; and the +surgeons, who examined his wound, discovered the symptoms of +approaching death. He employed the awful moments with the firm +temper of a hero and a sage; the philosophers who had accompanied +him in this fatal expedition, compared the tent of Julian with +the prison of Socrates; and the spectators, whom duty, or +friendship, or curiosity, had assembled round his couch, listened +with respectful grief to the funeral oration of their dying +emperor. "Friends and fellow-soldiers, the seasonable period of +my departure is now arrived, and I discharge, with the +cheerfulness of a ready debtor, the demands of nature. I have +learned from philosophy, how much the soul is more excellent than +the body; and that the separation of the nobler substance should +be the subject of joy, rather than of affliction. I have learned +from religion, that an early death has often been the reward of +piety; and I accept, as a favor of the gods, the mortal stroke +that secures me from the danger of disgracing a character, which +has hitherto been supported by virtue and fortitude. I die +without remorse, as I have lived without guilt. I am pleased to +reflect on the innocence of my private life; and I can affirm +with confidence, that the supreme authority, that emanation of +the Divine Power, has been preserved in my hands pure and +immaculate. Detesting the corrupt and destructive maxims of +despotism, I have considered the happiness of the people as the +end of government. Submitting my actions to the laws of prudence, +of justice, and of moderation, I have trusted the event to the +care of Providence. Peace was the object of my counsels, as long +as peace was consistent with the public welfare; but when the +imperious voice of my country summoned me to arms, I exposed my +person to the dangers of war, with the clear foreknowledge (which +I had acquired from the art of divination) that I was destined to +fall by the sword. I now offer my tribute of gratitude to the +Eternal Being, who has not suffered me to perish by the cruelty +of a tyrant, by the secret dagger of conspiracy, or by the slow +tortures of lingering disease. He has given me, in the midst of +an honorable career, a splendid and glorious departure from this +world; and I hold it equally absurd, equally base, to solicit, or +to decline, the stroke of fate. This much I have attempted to +say; but my strength fails me, and I feel the approach of death. +I shall cautiously refrain from any word that may tend to +influence your suffrages in the election of an emperor. My choice +might be imprudent or injudicious; and if it should not be +ratified by the consent of the army, it might be fatal to the +person whom I should recommend. I shall only, as a good citizen, +express my hopes, that the Romans may be blessed with the +government of a virtuous sovereign." After this discourse, which +Julian pronounced in a firm and gentle tone of voice, he +distributed, by a military testament, the remains of his private +fortune; and making some inquiry why Anatolius was not present, +he understood, from the answer of Sallust, that Anatolius was +killed; and bewailed, with amiable inconsistency, the loss of his +friend. At the same time he reproved the immoderate grief of the +spectators; and conjured them not to disgrace, by unmanly tears, +the fate of a prince, who in a few moments would be united with +heaven, and with the stars. The spectators were silent; and +Julian entered into a metaphysical argument with the philosophers +Priscus and Maximus, on the nature of the soul. The efforts which +he made, of mind as well as body, most probably hastened his +death. His wound began to bleed with fresh violence; his +respiration was embarrassed by the swelling of the veins; he +called for a draught of cold water, and, as soon as he had drank +it, expired without pain, about the hour of midnight. Such was +the end of that extraordinary man, in the thirty-second year of +his age, after a reign of one year and about eight months, from +the death of Constantius. In his last moments he displayed, +perhaps with some ostentation, the love of virtue and of fame, +which had been the ruling passions of his life.<br> +</p> + +<p>The triumph of Christianity, and the calamities of the empire, +may, in some measure, be ascribed to Julian himself, who had +neglected to secure the future execution of his designs, by the +timely and judicious nomination of an associate and successor. +But the royal race of Constantius Chlorus was reduced to his own +person; and if he entertained any serious thoughts of investing +with the purple the most worthy among the Romans, he was diverted +from his resolution by the difficulty of the choice, the jealousy +of power, the fear of ingratitude, and the natural presumption of +health, of youth, and of prosperity. His unexpected death left +the empire without a master, and without an heir, in a state of +perplexity and danger, which, in the space of fourscore years, +had never been experienced, since the election of Diocletian. In +a government which had almost forgotten the distinction of pure +and noble blood, the superiority of birth was of little moment; +the claims of official rank were accidental and precarious; and +the candidates, who might aspire to ascend the vacant throne +could be supported only by the consciousness of personal merit, +or by the hopes of popular favor. But the situation of a famished +army, encompassed on all sides by a host of Barbarians, shortened +the moments of grief and deliberation. In this scene of terror +and distress, the body of the deceased prince, according to his +own directions, was decently embalmed; and, at the dawn of day, +the generals convened a military senate, at which the commanders +of the legions, and the officers both of cavalry and infantry, +were invited to assist. Three or four hours of the night had not +passed away without some secret cabals; and when the election of +an emperor was proposed, the spirit of faction began to agitate +the assembly. Victor and Arinthæus collected the remains of +the court of Constantius; the friends of Julian attached +themselves to the Gallic chiefs, Dagalaiphus and Nevitta; and the +most fatal consequences might be apprehended from the discord of +two factions, so opposite in their character and interest, in +their maxims of government, and perhaps in their religious +principles. The superior virtues of Sallust could alone reconcile +their divisions, and unite their suffrages; and the venerable +præfect would immediately have been declared the successor +of Julian, if he himself, with sincere and modest firmness, had +not alleged his age and infirmities, so unequal to the weight of +the diadem. The generals, who were surprised and perplexed by his +refusal, showed some disposition to adopt the salutary advice of +an inferior officer, that they should act as they would have +acted in the absence of the emperor; that they should exert their +abilities to extricate the army from the present distress; and, +if they were fortunate enough to reach the confines of +Mesopotamia, they should proceed with united and deliberate +counsels in the election of a lawful sovereign. While they +debated, a few voices saluted Jovian, who was no more than +<strong><em>first</em></strong> of the domestics, with the names +of Emperor and Augustus. The tumultuary acclamation * was +instantly repeated by the guards who surrounded the tent, and +passed, in a few minutes, to the extremities of the line. The new +prince, astonished with his own fortune was hastily invested with +the Imperial ornaments, and received an oath of fidelity from the +generals, whose favor and protection he so lately solicited. The +strongest recommendation of Jovian was the merit of his father, +Count Varronian, who enjoyed, in honorable retirement, the fruit +of his long services. In the obscure freedom of a private +station, the son indulged his taste for wine and women; yet he +supported, with credit, the character of a Christian and a +soldier. Without being conspicuous for any of the ambitious +qualifications which excite the admiration and envy of mankind, +the comely person of Jovian, his cheerful temper, and familiar +wit, had gained the affection of his fellow-soldiers; and the +generals of both parties acquiesced in a popular election, which +had not been conducted by the arts of their enemies. The pride of +this unexpected elevation was moderated by the just apprehension, +that the same day might terminate the life and reign of the new +emperor. The pressing voice of necessity was obeyed without +delay; and the first orders issued by Jovian, a few hours after +his predecessor had expired, were to prosecute a march, which +could alone extricate the Romans from their actual distress.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXIV: The Retreat And Death Of Julian. -- +Part V.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The esteem of an enemy is most sincerely expressed by his +fears; and the degree of fear may be accurately measured by the +joy with which he celebrates his deliverance. The welcome news of +the death of Julian, which a deserter revealed to the camp of +Sapor, inspired the desponding monarch with a sudden confidence +of victory. He immediately detached the royal cavalry, perhaps +the ten thousand Immortals, to second and support the pursuit; +and discharged the whole weight of his united forces on the +rear-guard of the Romans. The rear-guard was thrown into +disorder; the renowned legions, which derived their titles from +Diocletian, and his warlike colleague, were broke and trampled +down by the elephants; and three tribunes lost their lives in +attempting to stop the flight of their soldiers. The battle was +at length restored by the persevering valor of the Romans; the +Persians were repulsed with a great slaughter of men and +elephants; and the army, after marching and fighting a long +summer's day, arrived, in the evening, at Samara, on the banks of +the Tigris, about one hundred miles above Ctesiphon. On the +ensuing day, the Barbarians, instead of harassing the march, +attacked the camp, of Jovian; which had been seated in a deep and +sequestered valley. From the hills, the archers of Persia +insulted and annoyed the wearied legionaries; and a body of +cavalry, which had penetrated with desperate courage through the +Prætorian gate, was cut in pieces, after a doubtful +conflict, near the Imperial tent. In the succeeding night, the +camp of Carche was protected by the lofty dikes of the river; and +the Roman army, though incessantly exposed to the vexatious +pursuit of the Saracens, pitched their tents near the city of +Dura, four days after the death of Julian. The Tigris was still +on their left; their hopes and provisions were almost consumed; +and the impatient soldiers, who had fondly persuaded themselves +that the frontiers of the empire were not far distant, requested +their new sovereign, that they might be permitted to hazard the +passage of the river. With the assistance of his wisest officers, +Jovian endeavored to check their rashness; by representing, that +if they possessed sufficient skill and vigor to stem the torrent +of a deep and rapid stream, they would only deliver themselves +naked and defenceless to the Barbarians, who had occupied the +opposite banks, Yielding at length to their clamorous +importunities, he consented, with reluctance, that five hundred +Gauls and Germans, accustomed from their infancy to the waters of +the Rhine and Danube, should attempt the bold adventure, which +might serve either as an encouragement, or as a warning, for the +rest of the army. In the silence of the night, they swam the +Tigris, surprised an unguarded post of the enemy, and displayed +at the dawn of day the signal of their resolution and fortune. +The success of this trial disposed the emperor to listen to the +promises of his architects, who propose to construct a floating +bridge of the inflated skins of sheep, oxen, and goats, covered +with a floor of earth and fascines. Two important days were spent +in the ineffectual labor; and the Romans, who already endured the +miseries of famine, cast a look of despair on the Tigris, and +upon the Barbarians; whose numbers and obstinacy increased with +the distress of the Imperial army.<br> +</p> + +<p>In this hopeless condition, the fainting spirits of the Romans +were revived by the sound of peace. The transient presumption of +Sapor had vanished: he observed, with serious concern, that, in +the repetition of doubtful combats, he had lost his most faithful +and intrepid nobles, his bravest troops, and the greatest part of +his train of elephants: and the experienced monarch feared to +provoke the resistance of despair, the vicissitudes of fortune, +and the unexhausted powers of the Roman empire; which might soon +advance to relieve, or to revenge, the successor of Julian. The +Surenas himself, accompanied by another satrap, * appeared in the +camp of Jovian; and declared, that the clemency of his sovereign +was not averse to signify the conditions on which he would +consent to spare and to dismiss the Cæsar with the relics +of his captive army. The hopes of safety subdued the firmness of +the Romans; the emperor was compelled, by the advice of his +council, and the cries of his soldiers, to embrace the offer of +peace; and the præfect Sallust was immediately sent, with +the general Arinthæus, to understand the pleasure of the +Great King. The crafty Persian delayed, under various pretenses, +the conclusion of the agreement; started difficulties, required +explanations, suggested expedients, receded from his concessions, +increased his demands, and wasted four days in the arts of +negotiation, till he had consumed the stock of provisions which +yet remained in the camp of the Romans. Had Jovian been capable +of executing a bold and prudent measure, he would have continued +his march, with unremitting diligence; the progress of the treaty +would have suspended the attacks of the Barbarians; and, before +the expiration of the fourth day, he might have safely reached +the fruitful province of Corduene, at the distance only of one +hundred miles. The irresolute emperor, instead of breaking +through the toils of the enemy, expected his fate with patient +resignation; and accepted the humiliating conditions of peace, +which it was no longer in his power to refuse. The five provinces +beyond the Tigris, which had been ceded by the grandfather of +Sapor, were restored to the Persian monarchy. He acquired, by a +single article, the impregnable city of Nisibis; which had +sustained, in three successive sieges, the effort of his arms. +Singara, and the castle of the Moors, one of the strongest places +of Mesopotamia, were likewise dismembered from the empire. It was +considered as an indulgence, that the inhabitants of those +fortresses were permitted to retire with their effects; but the +conqueror rigorously insisted, that the Romans should forever +abandon the king and kingdom of Armenia. § A peace, or +rather a long truce, of thirty years, was stipulated between the +hostile nations; the faith of the treaty was ratified by solemn +oaths and religious ceremonies; and hostages of distinguished +rank were reciprocally delivered to secure the performance of the +conditions.<br> +</p> + +<p>The sophist of Antioch, who saw with indignation the sceptre +of his hero in the feeble hand of a Christian successor, +professes to admire the moderation of Sapor, in contenting +himself with so small a portion of the Roman empire. If he had +stretched as far as the Euphrates the claims of his ambition, he +might have been secure, says Libanius, of not meeting with a +refusal. If he had fixed, as the boundary of Persia, the Orontes, +the Cydnus, the Sangarius, or even the Thracian Bosphorus, +flatterers would not have been wanting in the court of Jovian to +convince the timid monarch, that his remaining provinces would +still afford the most ample gratifications of power and luxury. +Without adopting in its full force this malicious insinuation, we +must acknowledge, that the conclusion of so ignominious a treaty +was facilitated by the private ambition of Jovian. The obscure +domestic, exalted to the throne by fortune, rather than by merit, +was impatient to escape from the hands of the Persians, that he +might prevent the designs of Procopius, who commanded the army of +Mesopotamia, and establish his doubtful reign over the legions +and provinces which were still ignorant of the hasty and +tumultuous choice of the camp beyond the Tigris. In the +neighborhood of the same river, at no very considerable distance +from the fatal station of Dura, the ten thousand Greeks, without +generals, or guides, or provisions, were abandoned, above twelve +hundred miles from their native country, to the resentment of a +victorious monarch. The difference of +<strong><em>their</em></strong> conduct and success depended much +more on their character than on their situation. Instead of +tamely resigning themselves to the secret deliberations and +private views of a single person, the united councils of the +Greeks were inspired by the generous enthusiasm of a popular +assembly; where the mind of each citizen is filled with the love +of glory, the pride of freedom, and the contempt of death. +Conscious of their superiority over the Barbarians in arms and +discipline, they disdained to yield, they refused to capitulate: +every obstacle was surmounted by their patience, courage, and +military skill; and the memorable retreat of the ten thousand +exposed and insulted the weakness of the Persian monarchy.<br> +</p> + +<p>As the price of his disgraceful concessions, the emperor might +perhaps have stipulated, that the camp of the hungry Romans +should be plentifully supplied; and that they should be permitted +to pass the Tigris on the bridge which was constructed by the +hands of the Persians. But, if Jovian presumed to solicit those +equitable terms, they were sternly refused by the haughty tyrant +of the East, whose clemency had pardoned the invaders of his +country. The Saracens sometimes intercepted the stragglers of the +march; but the generals and troops of Sapor respected the +cessation of arms; and Jovian was suffered to explore the most +convenient place for the passage of the river. The small vessels, +which had been saved from the conflagration of the fleet, +performed the most essential service. They first conveyed the +emperor and his favorites; and afterwards transported, in many +successive voyages, a great part of the army. But, as every man +was anxious for his personal safety, and apprehensive of being +left on the hostile shore, the soldiers, who were too impatient +to wait the slow returns of the boats, boldly ventured themselves +on light hurdles, or inflated skins; and, drawing after them +their horses, attempted, with various success, to swim across the +river. Many of these daring adventurers were swallowed by the +waves; many others, who were carried along by the violence of the +stream, fell an easy prey to the avarice or cruelty of the wild +Arabs: and the loss which the army sustained in the passage of +the Tigris, was not inferior to the carnage of a day of battle. +As soon as the Romans were landed on the western bank, they were +delivered from the hostile pursuit of the Barbarians; but, in a +laborious march of two hundred miles over the plains of +Mesopotamia, they endured the last extremities of thirst and +hunger. They were obliged to traverse the sandy desert, which, in +the extent of seventy miles, did not afford a single blade of +sweet grass, nor a single spring of fresh water; and the rest of +the inhospitable waste was untrod by the footsteps either of +friends or enemies. Whenever a small measure of flour could be +discovered in the camp, twenty pounds weight were greedily +purchased with ten pieces of gold: the beasts of burden were +slaughtered and devoured; and the desert was strewed with the +arms and baggage of the Roman soldiers, whose tattered garments +and meagre countenances displayed their past sufferings and +actual misery. A small convoy of provisions advanced to meet the +army as far as the castle of Ur; and the supply was the more +grateful, since it declared the fidelity of Sebastian and +Procopius. At Thilsaphata, the emperor most graciously received +the generals of Mesopotamia; and the remains of a once +flourishing army at length reposed themselves under the walls of +Nisibis. The messengers of Jovian had already proclaimed, in the +language of flattery, his election, his treaty, and his return; +and the new prince had taken the most effectual measures to +secure the allegiance of the armies and provinces of Europe, by +placing the military command in the hands of those officers, who, +from motives of interest, or inclination, would firmly support +the cause of their benefactor.<br> +</p> + +<p>The friends of Julian had confidently announced the success of +his expedition. They entertained a fond persuasion that the +temples of the gods would be enriched with the spoils of the +East; that Persia would be reduced to the humble state of a +tributary province, governed by the laws and magistrates of Rome; +that the Barbarians would adopt the dress, and manners, and +language of their conquerors; and that the youth of Ecbatana and +Susa would study the art of rhetoric under Grecian masters. The +progress of the arms of Julian interrupted his communication with +the empire; and, from the moment that he passed the Tigris, his +affectionate subjects were ignorant of the fate and fortunes of +their prince. Their contemplation of fancied triumphs was +disturbed by the melancholy rumor of his death; and they +persisted to doubt, after they could no longer deny, the truth of +that fatal event. The messengers of Jovian promulgated the +specious tale of a prudent and necessary peace; the voice of +fame, louder and more sincere, revealed the disgrace of the +emperor, and the conditions of the ignominious treaty. The minds +of the people were filled with astonishment and grief, with +indignation and terror, when they were informed, that the +unworthy successor of Julian relinquished the five provinces +which had been acquired by the victory of Galerius; and that he +shamefully surrendered to the Barbarians the important city of +Nisibis, the firmest bulwark of the provinces of the East. The +deep and dangerous question, how far the public faith should be +observed, when it becomes incompatible with the public safety, +was freely agitated in popular conversation; and some hopes were +entertained that the emperor would redeem his pusillanimous +behavior by a splendid act of patriotic perfidy. The inflexible +spirit of the Roman senate had always disclaimed the unequal +conditions which were extorted from the distress of their captive +armies; and, if it were necessary to satisfy the national honor, +by delivering the guilty general into the hands of the +Barbarians, the greatest part of the subjects of Jovian would +have cheerfully acquiesced in the precedent of ancient times.<br> +</p> + +<p>But the emperor, whatever might be the limits of his +constitutional authority, was the absolute master of the laws and +arms of the state; and the same motives which had forced him to +subscribe, now pressed him to execute, the treaty of peace. He +was impatient to secure an empire at the expense of a few +provinces; and the respectable names of religion and honor +concealed the personal fears and ambition of Jovian. +Notwithstanding the dutiful solicitations of the inhabitants, +decency, as well as prudence, forbade the emperor to lodge in the +palace of Nisibis; but the next morning after his arrival. +Bineses, the ambassador of Persia, entered the place, displayed +from the citadel the standard of the Great King, and proclaimed, +in his name, the cruel alternative of exile or servitude. The +principal citizens of Nisibis, who, till that fatal moment, had +confided in the protection of their sovereign, threw themselves +at his feet. They conjured him not to abandon, or, at least, not +to deliver, a faithful colony to the rage of a Barbarian tyrant, +exasperated by the three successive defeats which he had +experienced under the walls of Nisibis. They still possessed arms +and courage to repel the invaders of their country: they +requested only the permission of using them in their own defence; +and, as soon as they had asserted their independence, they should +implore the favor of being again admitted into the ranks of his +subjects. Their arguments, their eloquence, their tears, were +ineffectual. Jovian alleged, with some confusion, the sanctity of +oaths; and, as the reluctance with which he accepted the present +of a crown of gold, convinced the citizens of their hopeless +condition, the advocate Sylvanus was provoked to exclaim, "O +emperor! may you thus be crowned by all the cities of your +dominions!" Jovian, who in a few weeks had assumed the habits of +a prince, was displeased with freedom, and offended with truth: +and as he reasonably supposed, that the discontent of the people +might incline them to submit to the Persian government, he +published an edict, under pain of death, that they should leave +the city within the term of three days. Ammianus has delineated +in lively colors the scene of universal despair, which he seems +to have viewed with an eye of compassion. The martial youth +deserted, with indignant grief, the walls which they had so +gloriously defended: the disconsolate mourner dropped a last tear +over the tomb of a son or husband, which must soon be profaned by +the rude hand of a Barbarian master; and the aged citizen kissed +the threshold, and clung to the doors, of the house where he had +passed the cheerful and careless hours of infancy. The highways +were crowded with a trembling multitude: the distinctions of +rank, and sex, and age, were lost in the general calamity. Every +one strove to bear away some fragment from the wreck of his +fortunes; and as they could not command the immediate service of +an adequate number of horses or wagons, they were obliged to +leave behind them the greatest part of their valuable effects. +The savage insensibility of Jovian appears to have aggravated the +hardships of these unhappy fugitives. They were seated, however, +in a new-built quarter of Amida; and that rising city, with the +reenforcement of a very considerable colony, soon recovered its +former splendor, and became the capital of Mesopotamia. Similar +orders were despatched by the emperor for the evacuation of +Singara and the castle of the Moors; and for the restitution of +the five provinces beyond the Tigris. Sapor enjoyed the glory and +the fruits of his victory; and this ignominious peace has justly +been considered as a memorable æra in the decline and fall +of the Roman empire. The predecessors of Jovian had sometimes +relinquished the dominion of distant and unprofitable provinces; +but, since the foundation of the city, the genius of Rome, the +god Terminus, who guarded the boundaries of the republic, had +never retired before the sword of a victorious enemy.<br> +</p> + +<p>After Jovian had performed those engagements which the voice +of his people might have tempted him to violate, he hastened away +from the scene of his disgrace, and proceeded with his whole +court to enjoy the luxury of Antioch. Without consulting the +dictates of religious zeal, he was prompted, by humanity and +gratitude, to bestow the last honors on the remains of his +deceased sovereign: and Procopius, who sincerely bewailed the +loss of his kinsman, was removed from the command of the army, +under the decent pretence of conducting the funeral. The corpse +of Julian was transported from Nisibis to Tarsus, in a slow march +of fifteen days; and, as it passed through the cities of the +East, was saluted by the hostile factions, with mournful +lamentations and clamorous insults. The Pagans already placed +their beloved hero in the rank of those gods whose worship he had +restored; while the invectives of the Christians pursued the soul +of the Apostate to hell, and his body to the grave. One party +lamented the approaching ruin of their altars; the other +celebrated the marvellous deliverance of their church. The +Christians applauded, in lofty and ambiguous strains, the stroke +of divine vengeance, which had been so long suspended over the +guilty head of Julian. They acknowledge, that the death of the +tyrant, at the instant he expired beyond the Tigris, was +<strong><em>revealed</em></strong> to the saints of Egypt, Syria, +and Cappadocia; and instead of suffering him to fall by the +Persian darts, their indiscretion ascribed the heroic deed to the +obscure hand of some mortal or immortal champion of the faith. +Such imprudent declarations were eagerly adopted by the malice, +or credulity, of their adversaries; who darkly insinuated, or +confidently asserted, that the governors of the church had +instigated and directed the fanaticism of a domestic assassin. +Above sixteen years after the death of Julian, the charge was +solemnly and vehemently urged, in a public oration, addressed by +Libanius to the emperor Theodosius. His suspicions are +unsupported by fact or argument; and we can only esteem the +generous zeal of the sophist of Antioch for the cold and +neglected ashes of his friend.<br> +</p> + +<p>It was an ancient custom in the funerals, as well as in the +triumphs, of the Romans, that the voice of praise should be +corrected by that of satire and ridicule; and that, in the midst +of the splendid pageants, which displayed the glory of the living +or of the dead, their imperfections should not be concealed from +the eyes of the world. This custom was practised in the funeral +of Julian. The comedians, who resented his contempt and aversion +for the theatre, exhibited, with the applause of a Christian +audience, the lively and exaggerated representation of the faults +and follies of the deceased emperor. His various character and +singular manners afforded an ample scope for pleasantry and +ridicule. In the exercise of his uncommon talents, he often +descended below the majesty of his rank. Alexander was +transformed into Diogenes; the philosopher was degraded into a +priest. The purity of his virtue was sullied by excessive vanity; +his superstition disturbed the peace, and endangered the safety, +of a mighty empire; and his irregular sallies were the less +entitled to indulgence, as they appeared to be the laborious +efforts of art, or even of affectation. The remains of Julian +were interred at Tarsus in Cilicia; but his stately tomb, which +arose in that city, on the banks of the cold and limpid Cydnus, +was displeasing to the faithful friends, who loved and revered +the memory of that extraordinary man. The philosopher expressed a +very reasonable wish, that the disciple of Plato might have +reposed amidst the groves of the academy; while the soldier +exclaimed, in bolder accents, that the ashes of Julian should +have been mingled with those of Cæsar, in the field of +Mars, and among the ancient monuments of Roman virtue. The +history of princes does not very frequently renew the examples of +a similar competition.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong>Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, +Division Of The Empire.</strong></p> + +<p><strong><em>Part I.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The Government And Death Of Jovian. -- Election Of +Valentinian, Who Associates His Brother Valens, And Makes The +Final Division Of The Eastern And Western Empires. -- Revolt Of +Procopius. -- Civil And Ecclesiastical Administration. -- +Germany. -- Britain. -- Africa. -- The East. -- The Danube. -- +Death Of Valentinian. -- His Two Sons, Gratian And Valentinian +II., Succeed To The Western Empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>The death of Julian had left the public affairs of the empire +in a very doubtful and dangerous situation. The Roman army was +saved by an inglorious, perhaps a necessary treaty; and the first +moments of peace were consecrated by the pious Jovian to restore +the domestic tranquility of the church and state. The +indiscretion of his predecessor, instead of reconciling, had +artfully fomented the religious war: and the balance which he +affected to preserve between the hostile factions, served only to +perpetuate the contest, by the vicissitudes of hope and fear, by +the rival claims of ancient possession and actual favor. The +Christians had forgotten the spirit of the gospel; and the Pagans +had imbibed the spirit of the church. In private families, the +sentiments of nature were extinguished by the blind fury of zeal +and revenge: the majesty of the laws was violated or abused; the +cities of the East were stained with blood; and the most +implacable enemies of the Romans were in the bosom of their +country. Jovian was educated in the profession of Christianity; +and as he marched from Nisibis to Antioch, the banner of the +Cross, the Labarum of Constantine, which was again displayed at +the head of the legions, announced to the people the faith of +their new emperor. As soon as he ascended the throne, he +transmitted a circular epistle to all the governors of provinces; +in which he confessed the divine truth, and secured the legal +establishment, of the Christian religion. The insidious edicts of +Julian were abolished; the ecclesiastical immunities were +restored and enlarged; and Jovian condescended to lament, that +the distress of the times obliged him to diminish the measure of +charitable distributions. The Christians were unanimous in the +loud and sincere applause which they bestowed on the pious +successor of Julian. But they were still ignorant what creed, or +what synod, he would choose for the standard of orthodoxy; and +the peace of the church immediately revived those eager disputes +which had been suspended during the season of persecution. The +episcopal leaders of the contending sects, convinced, from +experience, how much their fate would depend on the earliest +impressions that were made on the mind of an untutored soldier, +hastened to the court of Edessa, or Antioch. The highways of the +East were crowded with Homoousian, and Arian, and Semi-Arian, and +Eunomian bishops, who struggled to outstrip each other in the +holy race: the apartments of the palace resounded with their +clamors; and the ears of the prince were assaulted, and perhaps +astonished, by the singular mixture of metaphysical argument and +passionate invective. The moderation of Jovian, who recommended +concord and charity, and referred the disputants to the sentence +of a future council, was interpreted as a symptom of +indifference: but his attachment to the Nicene creed was at +length discovered and declared, by the reverence which he +expressed for the <strong><em>celestial</em></strong> virtues of +the great Athanasius. The intrepid veteran of the faith, at the +age of seventy, had issued from his retreat on the first +intelligence of the tyrant's death. The acclamations of the +people seated him once more on the archiepiscopal throne; and he +wisely accepted, or anticipated, the invitation of Jovian. The +venerable figure of Athanasius, his calm courage, and insinuating +eloquence, sustained the reputation which he had already acquired +in the courts of four successive princes. As soon as he had +gained the confidence, and secured the faith, of the Christian +emperor, he returned in triumph to his diocese, and continued, +with mature counsels and undiminished vigor, to direct, ten years +longer, the ecclesiastical government of Alexandria, Egypt, and +the Catholic church. Before his departure from Antioch, he +assured Jovian that his orthodox devotion would be rewarded with +a long and peaceful reign. Athanasius, had reason to hope, that +he should be allowed either the merit of a successful prediction, +or the excuse of a grateful though ineffectual prayer.<br> +</p> + +<p>The slightest force, when it is applied to assist and guide +the natural descent of its object, operates with irresistible +weight; and Jovian had the good fortune to embrace the religious +opinions which were supported by the spirit of the times, and the +zeal and numbers of the most powerful sect. Under his reign, +Christianity obtained an easy and lasting victory; and as soon as +the smile of royal patronage was withdrawn, the genius of +Paganism, which had been fondly raised and cherished by the arts +of Julian, sunk irrecoverably in the. In many cities, the temples +were shut or deserted: the philosophers who had abused their +transient favor, thought it prudent to shave their beards, and +disguise their profession; and the Christians rejoiced, that they +were now in a condition to forgive, or to revenge, the injuries +which they had suffered under the preceding reign. The +consternation of the Pagan world was dispelled by a wise and +gracious edict of toleration; in which Jovian explicitly +declared, that although he should severely punish the +sacrilegious rites of magic, his subjects might exercise, with +freedom and safety, the ceremonies of the ancient worship. The +memory of this law has been preserved by the orator Themistius, +who was deputed by the senate of Constantinople to express their +royal devotion for the new emperor. Themistius expatiates on the +clemency of the Divine Nature, the facility of human error, the +rights of conscience, and the independence of the mind; and, with +some eloquence, inculcates the principles of philosophical +toleration; whose aid Superstition herself, in the hour of her +distress, is not ashamed to implore. He justly observes, that in +the recent changes, both religions had been alternately disgraced +by the seeming acquisition of worthless proselytes, of those +votaries of the reigning purple, who could pass, without a +reason, and without a blush, from the church to the temple, and +from the altars of Jupiter to the sacred table of the +Christians.<br> +</p> + +<p>In the space of seven months, the Roman troops, who were now +returned to Antioch, had performed a march of fifteen hundred +miles; in which they had endured all the hardships of war, of +famine, and of climate. Notwithstanding their services, their +fatigues, and the approach of winter, the timid and impatient +Jovian allowed only, to the men and horses, a respite of six +weeks. The emperor could not sustain the indiscreet and malicious +raillery of the people of Antioch. He was impatient to possess +the palace of Constantinople; and to prevent the ambition of some +competitor, who might occupy the vacant allegiance of Europe. But +he soon received the grateful intelligence, that his authority +was acknowledged from the Thracian Bosphorus to the Atlantic +Ocean. By the first letters which he despatched from the camp of +Mesopotamia, he had delegated the military command of Gaul and +Illyricum to Malarich, a brave and faithful officer of the nation +of the Franks; and to his father-in-law, Count Lucillian, who had +formerly distinguished his courage and conduct in the defence of +Nisibis. Malarich had declined an office to which he thought +himself unequal; and Lucillian was massacred at Rheims, in an +accidental mutiny of the Batavian cohorts. But the moderation of +Jovinus, master-general of the cavalry, who forgave the intention +of his disgrace, soon appeased the tumult, and confirmed the +uncertain minds of the soldiers. The oath of fidelity was +administered and taken, with loyal acclamations; and the deputies +of the Western armies saluted their new sovereign as he descended +from Mount Taurus to the city of Tyana in Cappadocia. From Tyana +he continued his hasty march to Ancyra, capital of the province +of Galatia; where Jovian assumed, with his infant son, the name +and ensigns of the consulship. Dadastana, an obscure town, almost +at an equal distance between Ancyra and Nice, was marked for the +fatal term of his journey and life. After indulging himself with +a plentiful, perhaps an intemperate, supper, he retired to rest; +and the next morning the emperor Jovian was found dead in his +bed. The cause of this sudden death was variously understood. By +some it was ascribed to the consequences of an indigestion, +occasioned either by the quantity of the wine, or the quality of +the mushrooms, which he had swallowed in the evening. According +to others, he was suffocated in his sleep by the vapor of +charcoal, which extracted from the walls of the apartment the +unwholesome moisture of the fresh plaster. But the want of a +regular inquiry into the death of a prince, whose reign and +person were soon forgotten, appears to have been the only +circumstance which countenanced the malicious whispers of poison +and domestic guilt. The body of Jovian was sent to +Constantinople, to be interred with his predecessors, and the sad +procession was met on the road by his wife Charito, the daughter +of Count Lucillian; who still wept the recent death of her +father, and was hastening to dry her tears in the embraces of an +Imperial husband. Her disappointment and grief were imbittered by +the anxiety of maternal tenderness. Six weeks before the death of +Jovian, his infant son had been placed in the curule chair, +adorned with the title of <strong><em>Nobilissimus</em></strong>, +and the vain ensigns of the consulship. Unconscious of his +fortune, the royal youth, who, from his grandfather, assumed the +name of Varronian, was reminded only by the jealousy of the +government, that he was the son of an emperor. Sixteen years +afterwards he was still alive, but he had already been deprived +of an eye; and his afflicted mother expected every hour, that the +innocent victim would be torn from her arms, to appease, with his +blood, the suspicions of the reigning prince.<br> +</p> + +<p>After the death of Jovian, the throne of the Roman world +remained ten days, without a master. The ministers and generals +still continued to meet in council; to exercise their respective +functions; to maintain the public order; and peaceably to conduct +the army to the city of Nice in Bithynia, which was chosen for +the place of the election. In a solemn assembly of the civil and +military powers of the empire, the diadem was again unanimously +offered to the præfect Sallust. He enjoyed the glory of a +second refusal: and when the virtues of the father were alleged +in favor of his son, the præfect, with the firmness of a +disinterested patriot, declared to the electors, that the feeble +age of the one, and the unexperienced youth of the other, were +equally incapable of the laborious duties of government. Several +candidates were proposed; and, after weighing the objections of +character or situation, they were successively rejected; but, as +soon as the name of Valentinian was pronounced, the merit of that +officer united the suffrages of the whole assembly, and obtained +the sincere approbation of Sallust himself. Valentinian was the +son of Count Gratian, a native of Cibalis, in Pannonia, who from +an obscure condition had raised himself, by matchless strength +and dexterity, to the military commands of Africa and Britain; +from which he retired with an ample fortune and suspicious +integrity. The rank and services of Gratian contributed, however, +to smooth the first steps of the promotion of his son; and +afforded him an early opportunity of displaying those solid and +useful qualifications, which raised his character above the +ordinary level of his fellow-soldiers. The person of Valentinian +was tall, graceful, and majestic. His manly countenance, deeply +marked with the impression of sense and spirit, inspired his +friends with awe, and his enemies with fear; and to second the +efforts of his undaunted courage, the son of Gratian had +inherited the advantages of a strong and healthy constitution. By +the habits of chastity and temperance, which restrain the +appetites and invigorate the faculties, Valentinian preserved his +own and the public esteem. The avocations of a military life had +diverted his youth from the elegant pursuits of literature; * he +was ignorant of the Greek language, and the arts of rhetoric; but +as the mind of the orator was never disconcerted by timid +perplexity, he was able, as often as the occasion prompted him, +to deliver his decided sentiments with bold and ready elocution. +The laws of martial discipline were the only laws that he had +studied; and he was soon distinguished by the laborious +diligence, and inflexible severity, with which he discharged and +enforced the duties of the camp. In the time of Julian he +provoked the danger of disgrace, by the contempt which he +publicly expressed for the reigning religion; and it should seem, +from his subsequent conduct, that the indiscreet and unseasonable +freedom of Valentinian was the effect of military spirit, rather +than of Christian zeal. He was pardoned, however, and still +employed by a prince who esteemed his merit; and in the various +events of the Persian war, he improved the reputation which he +had already acquired on the banks of the Rhine. The celerity and +success with which he executed an important commission, +recommended him to the favor of Jovian; and to the honorable +command of the second school, or company, of Targetiers, of the +domestic guards. In the march from Antioch, he had reached his +quarters at Ancyra, when he was unexpectedly summoned, without +guilt and without intrigue, to assume, in the forty-third year of +his age, the absolute government of the Roman empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>The invitation of the ministers and generals at Nice was of +little moment, unless it were confirmed by the voice of the army. +The aged Sallust, who had long observed the irregular +fluctuations of popular assemblies, proposed, under pain of +death, that none of those persons, whose rank in the service +might excite a party in their favor, should appear in public on +the day of the inauguration. Yet such was the prevalence of +ancient superstition, that a whole day was voluntarily added to +this dangerous interval, because it happened to be the +intercalation of the Bissextile. At length, when the hour was +supposed to be propitious, Valentinian showed himself from a +lofty tribunal; the judicious choice was applauded; and the new +prince was solemnly invested with the diadem and the purple, +amidst the acclamation of the troops, who were disposed in +martial order round the tribunal. But when he stretched forth his +hand to address the armed multitude, a busy whisper was +accidentally started in the ranks, and insensibly swelled into a +loud and imperious clamor, that he should name, without delay, a +colleague in the empire. The intrepid calmness of Valentinian +obtained silence, and commanded respect; and he thus addressed +the assembly: "A few minutes since it was in +<strong><em>your</em></strong> power, fellow-soldiers, to have +left me in the obscurity of a private station. Judging, from the +testimony of my past life, that I deserved to reign, you have +placed me on the throne. It is now <strong><em>my</em></strong> +duty to consult the safety and interest of the republic. The +weight of the universe is undoubtedly too great for the hands of +a feeble mortal. I am conscious of the limits of my abilities, +and the uncertainty of my life; and far from declining, I am +anxious to solicit, the assistance of a worthy colleague. But, +where discord may be fatal, the choice of a faithful friend +requires mature and serious deliberation. That deliberation shall +be <strong><em>my</em></strong> care. Let +<strong><em>your</em></strong> conduct be dutiful and consistent. +Retire to your quarters; refresh your minds and bodies; and +expect the accustomed donative on the accession of a new +emperor." The astonished troops, with a mixture of pride, of +satisfaction, and of terror, confessed the voice of their master. +Their angry clamors subsided into silent reverence; and +Valentinian, encompassed with the eagles of the legions, and the +various banners of the cavalry and infantry, was conducted, in +warlike pomp, to the palace of Nice. As he was sensible, however, +of the importance of preventing some rash declaration of the +soldiers, he consulted the assembly of the chiefs; and their real +sentiments were concisely expressed by the generous freedom of +Dagalaiphus. "Most excellent prince," said that officer, "if you +consider only your family, you have a brother; if you love the +republic, look round for the most deserving of the Romans." The +emperor, who suppressed his displeasure, without altering his +intention, slowly proceeded from Nice to Nicomedia and +Constantinople. In one of the suburbs of that capital, thirty +days after his own elevation, he bestowed the title of Augustus +on his brother Valens; * and as the boldest patriots were +convinced, that their opposition, without being serviceable to +their country, would be fatal to themselves, the declaration of +his absolute will was received with silent submission. Valens was +now in the thirty-sixth year of his age; but his abilities had +never been exercised in any employment, military or civil; and +his character had not inspired the world with any sanguine +expectations. He possessed, however, one quality, which +recommended him to Valentinian, and preserved the domestic peace +of the empire; devout and grateful attachment to his benefactor, +whose superiority of genius, as well as of authority, Valens +humbly and cheerfully acknowledged in every action of his +life.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, +Division Of The Empire. -- Part II.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Before Valentinian divided the provinces, he reformed the +administration of the empire. All ranks of subjects, who had been +injured or oppressed under the reign of Julian, were invited to +support their public accusations. The silence of mankind attested +the spotless integrity of the præfect Sallust; and his own +pressing solicitations, that he might be permitted to retire from +the business of the state, were rejected by Valentinian with the +most honorable expressions of friendship and esteem. But among +the favorites of the late emperor, there were many who had abused +his credulity or superstition; and who could no longer hope to be +protected either by favor or justice. The greater part of the +ministers of the palace, and the governors of the provinces, were +removed from their respective stations; yet the eminent merit of +some officers was distinguished from the obnoxious crowd; and, +notwithstanding the opposite clamors of zeal and resentment, the +whole proceedings of this delicate inquiry appear to have been +conducted with a reasonable share of wisdom and moderation. The +festivity of a new reign received a short and suspicious +interruption from the sudden illness of the two princes; but as +soon as their health was restored, they left Constantinople in +the beginning of the spring. In the castle, or palace, of +Mediana, only three miles from Naissus, they executed the solemn +and final division of the Roman empire. Valentinian bestowed on +his brother the rich præfecture of the +<strong><em>East</em></strong>, from the Lower Danube to the +confines of Persia; whilst he reserved for his immediate +government the warlike * præfectures of +<strong><em>Illyricum</em></strong>, +<strong><em>Italy</em></strong>, and +<strong><em>Gaul</em></strong>, from the extremity of Greece to +the Caledonian rampart, and from the rampart of Caledonia to the +foot of Mount Atlas. The provincial administration remained on +its former basis; but a double supply of generals and magistrates +was required for two councils, and two courts: the division was +made with a just regard to their peculiar merit and situation, +and seven master-generals were soon created, either of the +cavalry or infantry. When this important business had been +amicably transacted, Valentinian and Valens embraced for the last +time. The emperor of the West established his temporary residence +at Milan; and the emperor of the East returned to Constantinople, +to assume the dominion of fifty provinces, of whose language he +was totally ignorant.<br> +</p> + +<p>The tranquility of the East was soon disturbed by rebellion; +and the throne of Valens was threatened by the daring attempts of +a rival whose affinity to the emperor Julian was his sole merit, +and had been his only crime. Procopius had been hastily promoted +from the obscure station of a tribune, and a notary, to the joint +command of the army of Mesopotamia; the public opinion already +named him as the successor of a prince who was destitute of +natural heirs; and a vain rumor was propagated by his friends, or +his enemies, that Julian, before the altar of the Moon at +Carrhæ, had privately invested Procopius with the Imperial +purple. He endeavored, by his dutiful and submissive behavior, to +disarm the jealousy of Jovian; resigned, without a contest, his +military command; and retired, with his wife and family, to +cultivate the ample patrimony which he possessed in the province +of Cappadocia. These useful and innocent occupations were +interrupted by the appearance of an officer with a band of +soldiers, who, in the name of his new sovereigns, Valentinian and +Valens, was despatched to conduct the unfortunate Procopius +either to a perpetual prison or an ignominious death. His +presence of mind procured him a longer respite, and a more +splendid fate. Without presuming to dispute the royal mandate, he +requested the indulgence of a few moments to embrace his weeping +family; and while the vigilance of his guards was relaxed by a +plentiful entertainment, he dexterously escaped to the sea-coast +of the Euxine, from whence he passed over to the country of +Bosphorus. In that sequestered region he remained many months, +exposed to the hardships of exile, of solitude, and of want; his +melancholy temper brooding over his misfortunes, and his mind +agitated by the just apprehension, that, if any accident should +discover his name, the faithless Barbarians would violate, +without much scruple, the laws of hospitality. In a moment of +impatience and despair, Procopius embarked in a merchant vessel, +which made sail for Constantinople; and boldly aspired to the +rank of a sovereign, because he was not allowed to enjoy the +security of a subject. At first he lurked in the villages of +Bithynia, continually changing his habitation and his disguise. +By degrees he ventured into the capital, trusted his life and +fortune to the fidelity of two friends, a senator and a eunuch, +and conceived some hopes of success, from the intelligence which +he obtained of the actual state of public affairs. The body of +the people was infected with a spirit of discontent: they +regretted the justice and the abilities of Sallust, who had been +imprudently dismissed from the præfecture of the East. They +despised the character of Valens, which was rude without vigor, +and feeble without mildness. They dreaded the influence of his +father-in-law, the patrician Petronius, a cruel and rapacious +minister, who rigorously exacted all the arrears of tribute that +might remain unpaid since the reign of the emperor Aurelian. The +circumstances were propitious to the designs of a usurper. The +hostile measures of the Persians required the presence of Valens +in Syria: from the Danube to the Euphrates the troops were in +motion; and the capital was occasionally filled with the soldiers +who passed or repassed the Thracian Bosphorus. Two cohorts of +Gaul were persuaded to listen to the secret proposals of the +conspirators; which were recommended by the promise of a liberal +donative; and, as they still revered the memory of Julian, they +easily consented to support the hereditary claim of his +proscribed kinsman. At the dawn of day they were drawn up near +the baths of Anastasia; and Procopius, clothed in a purple +garment, more suitable to a player than to a monarch, appeared, +as if he rose from the dead, in the midst of Constantinople. The +soldiers, who were prepared for his reception, saluted their +trembling prince with shouts of joy and vows of fidelity. Their +numbers were soon increased by a band of sturdy peasants, +collected from the adjacent country; and Procopius, shielded by +the arms of his adherents, was successively conducted to the +tribunal, the senate, and the palace. During the first moments of +his tumultuous reign, he was astonished and terrified by the +gloomy silence of the people; who were either ignorant of the +cause, or apprehensive of the event. But his military strength +was superior to any actual resistance: the malecontents flocked +to the standard of rebellion; the poor were excited by the hopes, +and the rich were intimidated by the fear, of a general pillage; +and the obstinate credulity of the multitude was once more +deceived by the promised advantages of a revolution. The +magistrates were seized; the prisons and arsenals broke open; the +gates, and the entrance of the harbor, were diligently occupied; +and, in a few hours, Procopius became the absolute, though +precarious, master of the Imperial city. * The usurper improved +this unexpected success with some degree of courage and +dexterity. He artfully propagated the rumors and opinions the +most favorable to his interest; while he deluded the populace by +giving audience to the frequent, but imaginary, ambassadors of +distant nations. The large bodies of troops stationed in the +cities of Thrace and the fortresses of the Lower Danube, were +gradually involved in the guilt of rebellion: and the Gothic +princes consented to supply the sovereign of Constantinople with +the formidable strength of several thousand auxiliaries. His +generals passed the Bosphorus, and subdued, without an effort, +the unarmed, but wealthy provinces of Bithynia and Asia. After an +honorable defence, the city and island of Cyzicus yielded to his +power; the renowned legions of the Jovians and Herculians +embraced the cause of the usurper, whom they were ordered to +crush; and, as the veterans were continually augmented with new +levies, he soon appeared at the head of an army, whose valor, as +well as numbers, were not unequal to the greatness of the +contest. The son of Hormisdas, a youth of spirit and ability, +condescended to draw his sword against the lawful emperor of the +East; and the Persian prince was immediately invested with the +ancient and extraordinary powers of a Roman Proconsul. The +alliance of Faustina, the widow of the emperor Constantius, who +intrusted herself and her daughter to the hands of the usurper, +added dignity and reputation to his cause. The princess +Constantia, who was then about five years of age, accompanied, in +a litter, the march of the army. She was shown to the multitude +in the arms of her adopted father; and, as often as she passed +through the ranks, the tenderness of the soldiers was inflamed +into martial fury: they recollected the glories of the house of +Constantine, and they declared, with loyal acclamation, that they +would shed the last drop of their blood in the defence of the +royal infant.<br> +</p> + +<p>In the mean while Valentinian was alarmed and perplexed by the +doubtful intelligence of the revolt of the East. * The +difficulties of a German was forced him to confine his immediate +care to the safety of his own dominions; and, as every channel of +communication was stopped or corrupted, he listened, with +doubtful anxiety, to the rumors which were industriously spread, +that the defeat and death of Valens had left Procopius sole +master of the Eastern provinces. Valens was not dead: but on the +news of the rebellion, which he received at Cæsarea, he +basely despaired of his life and fortune; proposed to negotiate +with the usurper, and discovered his secret inclination to +abdicate the Imperial purple. The timid monarch was saved from +disgrace and ruin by the firmness of his ministers, and their +abilities soon decided in his favor the event of the civil war. +In a season of tranquillity, Sallust had resigned without a +murmur; but as soon as the public safety was attacked, he +ambitiously solicited the preeminence of toil and danger; and the +restoration of that virtuous minister to the præfecture of +the East, was the first step which indicated the repentance of +Valens, and satisfied the minds of the people. The reign of +Procopius was apparently supported by powerful armies and +obedient provinces. But many of the principal officers, military +as well as civil, had been urged, either by motives of duty or +interest, to withdraw themselves from the guilty scene; or to +watch the moment of betraying, and deserting, the cause of the +usurper. Lupicinus advanced by hasty marches, to bring the +legions of Syria to the aid of Valens. Arintheus, who, in +strength, beauty, and valor, excelled all the heroes of the age, +attacked with a small troop a superior body of the rebels. When +he beheld the faces of the soldiers who had served under his +banner, he commanded them, with a loud voice, to seize and +deliver up their pretended leader; and such was the ascendant of +his genius, that this extraordinary order was instantly obeyed. +Arbetio, a respectable veteran of the great Constantine, who had +been distinguished by the honors of the consulship, was persuaded +to leave his retirement, and once more to conduct an army into +the field. In the heat of action, calmly taking off his helmet, +he showed his gray hairs and venerable countenance: saluted the +soldiers of Procopius by the endearing names of children and +companions, and exhorted them no longer to support the desperate +cause of a contemptible tyrant; but to follow their old +commander, who had so often led them to honor and victory. In the +two engagements of Thyatira and Nacolia, the unfortunate +Procopius was deserted by his troops, who were seduced by the +instructions and example of their perfidious officers. After +wandering some time among the woods and mountains of Phrygia, he +was betrayed by his desponding followers, conducted to the +Imperial camp, and immediately beheaded. He suffered the ordinary +fate of an unsuccessful usurper; but the acts of cruelty which +were exercised by the conqueror, under the forms of legal +justice, excited the pity and indignation of mankind.<br> +</p> + +<p>Such indeed are the common and natural fruits of despotism and +rebellion. But the inquisition into the crime of magic, which, +under the reign of the two brothers, was so rigorously prosecuted +both at Rome and Antioch, was interpreted as the fatal symptom, +either of the displeasure of Heaven, or of the depravity of +mankind. Let us not hesitate to indulge a liberal pride, that, in +the present age, the enlightened part of Europe has abolished a +cruel and odious prejudice, which reigned in every climate of the +globe, and adhered to every system of religious opinions. The +nations, and the sects, of the Roman world, admitted with equal +credulity, and similar abhorrence, the reality of that infernal +art, which was able to control the eternal order of the planets, +and the voluntary operations of the human mind. They dreaded the +mysterious power of spells and incantations, of potent herbs, and +execrable rites; which could extinguish or recall life, inflame +the passions of the soul, blast the works of creation, and extort +from the reluctant dæmons the secrets of futurity. They +believed, with the wildest inconsistency, that this preternatural +dominion of the air, of earth, and of hell, was exercised, from +the vilest motives of malice or gain, by some wrinkled hags and +itinerant sorcerers, who passed their obscure lives in penury and +contempt. The arts of magic were equally condemned by the public +opinion, and by the laws of Rome; but as they tended to gratify +the most imperious passions of the heart of man, they were +continually proscribed, and continually practised. An imaginary +cause as capable of producing the most serious and mischievous +effects. The dark predictions of the death of an emperor, or the +success of a conspiracy, were calculated only to stimulate the +hopes of ambition, and to dissolve the ties of fidelity; and the +intentional guilt of magic was aggravated by the actual crimes of +treason and sacrilege. Such vain terrors disturbed the peace of +society, and the happiness of individuals; and the harmless flame +which insensibly melted a waxen image, might derive a powerful +and pernicious energy from the affrighted fancy of the person +whom it was maliciously designed to represent. From the infusion +of those herbs, which were supposed to possess a supernatural +influence, it was an easy step to the use of more substantial +poison; and the folly of mankind sometimes became the instrument, +and the mask, of the most atrocious crimes. As soon as the zeal +of informers was encouraged by the ministers of Valens and +Valentinian, they could not refuse to listen to another charge, +too frequently mingled in the scenes of domestic guilt; a charge +of a softer and less malignant nature, for which the pious, +though excessive, rigor of Constantine had recently decreed the +punishment of death. This deadly and incoherent mixture of +treason and magic, of poison and adultery, afforded infinite +gradations of guilt and innocence, of excuse and aggravation, +which in these proceedings appear to have been confounded by the +angry or corrupt passions of the judges. They easily discovered +that the degree of their industry and discernment was estimated, +by the Imperial court, according to the number of executions that +were furnished from the respective tribunals. It was not without +extreme reluctance that they pronounced a sentence of acquittal; +but they eagerly admitted such evidence as was stained with +perjury, or procured by torture, to prove the most improbable +charges against the most respectable characters. The progress of +the inquiry continually opened new subjects of criminal +prosecution; the audacious informer, whose falsehood was +detected, retired with impunity; but the wretched victim, who +discovered his real or pretended accomplices, were seldom +permitted to receive the price of his infamy. From the extremity +of Italy and Asia, the young, and the aged, were dragged in +chains to the tribunals of Rome and Antioch. Senators, matrons, +and philosophers, expired in ignominious and cruel tortures. The +soldiers, who were appointed to guard the prisons, declared, with +a murmur of pity and indignation, that their numbers were +insufficient to oppose the flight, or resistance, of the +multitude of captives. The wealthiest families were ruined by +fines and confiscations; the most innocent citizens trembled for +their safety; and we may form some notion of the magnitude of the +evil, from the extravagant assertion of an ancient writer, that, +in the obnoxious provinces, the prisoners, the exiles, and the +fugitives, formed the greatest part of the inhabitants.<br> +</p> + +<p>When Tacitus describes the deaths of the innocent and +illustrious Romans, who were sacrificed to the cruelty of the +first Cæsars, the art of the historian, or the merit of the +sufferers, excites in our breast the most lively sensations of +terror, of admiration, and of pity. The coarse and +undistinguishing pencil of Ammianus has delineated his bloody +figures with tedious and disgusting accuracy. But as our +attention is no longer engaged by the contrast of freedom and +servitude, of recent greatness and of actual misery, we should +turn with horror from the frequent executions, which disgraced, +both at Rome and Antioch, the reign of the two brothers. Valens +was of a timid, and Valentinian of a choleric, disposition. An +anxious regard to his personal safety was the ruling principle of +the administration of Valens. In the condition of a subject, he +had kissed, with trembling awe, the hand of the oppressor; and +when he ascended the throne, he reasonably expected, that the +same fears, which had subdued his own mind, would secure the +patient submission of his people. The favorites of Valens +obtained, by the privilege of rapine and confiscation, the wealth +which his economy would have refused. They urged, with persuasive +eloquence, <strong><em>that</em></strong>, in all cases of +treason, suspicion is equivalent to proof; +<strong><em>that</em></strong> the power supposes the intention, +of mischief; <strong><em>that</em></strong> the intention is not +less criminal than the act; and <strong><em>that</em></strong> a +subject no longer deserves to live, if his life may threaten the +safety, or disturb the repose, of his sovereign. The judgment of +Valentinian was sometimes deceived, and his confidence abused; +but he would have silenced the informers with a contemptuous +smile, had they presumed to alarm his fortitude by the sound of +danger. They praised his inflexible love of justice; and, in the +pursuit of justice, the emperor was easily tempted to consider +clemency as a weakness, and passion as a virtue. As long as he +wrestled with his equals, in the bold competition of an active +and ambitious life, Valentinian was seldom injured, and never +insulted, with impunity: if his prudence was arraigned, his +spirit was applauded; and the proudest and most powerful generals +were apprehensive of provoking the resentment of a fearless +soldier. After he became master of the world, he unfortunately +forgot, that where no resistance can be made, no courage can be +exerted; and instead of consulting the dictates of reason and +magnanimity, he indulged the furious emotions of his temper, at a +time when they were disgraceful to himself, and fatal to the +defenceless objects of his displeasure. In the government of his +household, or of his empire, slight, or even imaginary, offences +-- a hasty word, a casual omission, an involuntary delay -- were +chastised by a sentence of immediate death. The expressions which +issued the most readily from the mouth of the emperor of the West +were, "Strike off his head;" "Burn him alive;" "Let him be beaten +with clubs till he expires;" and his most favored ministers soon +understood, that, by a rash attempt to dispute, or suspend, the +execution of his sanguinary commands, they might involve +themselves in the guilt and punishment of disobedience. The +repeated gratification of this savage justice hardened the mind +of Valentinian against pity and remorse; and the sallies of +passion were confirmed by the habits of cruelty. He could behold +with calm satisfaction the convulsive agonies of torture and +death; he reserved his friendship for those faithful servants +whose temper was the most congenial to his own. The merit of +Maximin, who had slaughtered the noblest families of Rome, was +rewarded with the royal approbation, and the præfecture of +Gaul. Two fierce and enormous bears, distinguished by the +appellations of <strong><em>Innocence</em></strong>, and +<strong><em>Mica Aurea</em></strong>, could alone deserve to +share the favor of Maximin. The cages of those trusty guards were +always placed near the bed-chamber of Valentinian, who frequently +amused his eyes with the grateful spectacle of seeing them tear +and devour the bleeding limbs of the malefactors who were +abandoned to their rage. Their diet and exercises were carefully +inspected by the Roman emperor; and when +<strong><em>Innocence</em></strong> had earned her discharge, by +a long course of meritorious service, the faithful animal was +again restored to the freedom of her native woods.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, +Division Of The Empire. -- Part III.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>But in the calmer moments of reflection, when the mind of +Valens was not agitated by fear, or that of Valentinian by rage, +the tyrant resumed the sentiments, or at least the conduct, of +the father of his country. The dispassionate judgment of the +Western emperor could clearly perceive, and accurately pursue, +his own and the public interest; and the sovereign of the East, +who imitated with equal docility the various examples which he +received from his elder brother, was sometimes guided by the +wisdom and virtue of the præfect Sallust. Both princes +invariably retained, in the purple, the chaste and temperate +simplicity which had adorned their private life; and, under their +reign, the pleasures of the court never cost the people a blush +or a sigh. They gradually reformed many of the abuses of the +times of Constantius; judiciously adopted and improved the +designs of Julian and his successor; and displayed a style and +spirit of legislation which might inspire posterity with the most +favorable opinion of their character and government. It is not +from the master of <strong><em>Innocence</em></strong>, that we +should expect the tender regard for the welfare of his subjects, +which prompted Valentinian to condemn the exposition of new-born +infants; and to establish fourteen skilful physicians, with +stipends and privileges, in the fourteen quarters of Rome. The +good sense of an illiterate soldier founded a useful and liberal +institution for the education of youth, and the support of +declining science. It was his intention, that the arts of +rhetoric and grammar should be taught in the Greek and Latin +languages, in the metropolis of every province; and as the size +and dignity of the school was usually proportioned to the +importance of the city, the academies of Rome and Constantinople +claimed a just and singular preeminence. The fragments of the +literary edicts of Valentinian imperfectly represent the school +of Constantinople, which was gradually improved by subsequent +regulations. That school consisted of thirty-one professors in +different branches of learning. One philosopher, and two lawyers; +five sophists, and ten grammarians for the Greek, and three +orators, and ten grammarians for the Latin tongue; besides seven +scribes, or, as they were then styled, antiquarians, whose +laborious pens supplied the public library with fair and correct +copies of the classic writers. The rule of conduct, which was +prescribed to the students, is the more curious, as it affords +the first outlines of the form and discipline of a modern +university. It was required, that they should bring proper +certificates from the magistrates of their native province. Their +names, professions, and places of abode, were regularly entered +in a public register. The studious youth were severely prohibited +from wasting their time in feasts, or in the theatre; and the +term of their education was limited to the age of twenty. The +præfect of the city was empowered to chastise the idle and +refractory by stripes or expulsion; and he was directed to make +an annual report to the master of the offices, that the knowledge +and abilities of the scholars might be usefully applied to the +public service. The institutions of Valentinian contributed to +secure the benefits of peace and plenty; and the cities were +guarded by the establishment of the +<strong><em>Defensors</em></strong>; freely elected as the +tribunes and advocates of the people, to support their rights, +and to expose their grievances, before the tribunals of the civil +magistrates, or even at the foot of the Imperial throne. The +finances were diligently administered by two princes, who had +been so long accustomed to the rigid economy of a private +fortune; but in the receipt and application of the revenue, a +discerning eye might observe some difference between the +government of the East and of the West. Valens was persuaded, +that royal liberality can be supplied only by public oppression, +and his ambition never aspired to secure, by their actual +distress, the future strength and prosperity of his people. +Instead of increasing the weight of taxes, which, in the space of +forty years, had been gradually doubled, he reduced, in the first +years of his reign, one fourth of the tribute of the East. +Valentinian appears to have been less attentive and less anxious +to relieve the burdens of his people. He might reform the abuses +of the fiscal administration; but he exacted, without scruple, a +very large share of the private property; as he was convinced, +that the revenues, which supported the luxury of individuals, +would be much more advantageously employed for the defence and +improvement of the state. The subjects of the East, who enjoyed +the present benefit, applauded the indulgence of their prince. +The solid but less splendid, merit of Valentinian was felt and +acknowledged by the subsequent generation.<br> +</p> + +<p>But the most honorable circumstance of the character of +Valentinian, is the firm and temperate impartiality which he +uniformly preserved in an age of religious contention. His strong +sense, unenlightened, but uncorrupted, by study, declined, with +respectful indifference, the subtle questions of theological +debate. The government of the <strong><em>Earth</em></strong> +claimed his vigilance, and satisfied his ambition; and while he +remembered that he was the disciple of the church, he never +forgot that he was the sovereign of the clergy. Under the reign +of an apostate, he had signalized his zeal for the honor of +Christianity: he allowed to his subjects the privilege which he +had assumed for himself; and they might accept, with gratitude +and confidence, the general toleration which was granted by a +prince addicted to passion, but incapable of fear or of disguise. +The Pagans, the Jews, and all the various sects which +acknowledged the divine authority of Christ, were protected by +the laws from arbitrary power or popular insult; nor was any mode +of worship prohibited by Valentinian, except those secret and +criminal practices, which abused the name of religion for the +dark purposes of vice and disorder. The art of magic, as it was +more cruelly punished, was more strictly proscribed: but the +emperor admitted a formal distinction to protect the ancient +methods of divination, which were approved by the senate, and +exercised by the Tuscan haruspices. He had condemned, with the +consent of the most rational Pagans, the license of nocturnal +sacrifices; but he immediately admitted the petition of +Prætextatus, proconsul of Achaia, who represented, that the +life of the Greeks would become dreary and comfortless, if they +were deprived of the invaluable blessing of the Eleusinian +mysteries. Philosophy alone can boast, (and perhaps it is no more +than the boast of philosophy,) that her gentle hand is able to +eradicate from the human mind the latent and deadly principle of +fanaticism. But this truce of twelve years, which was enforced by +the wise and vigorous government of Valentinian, by suspending +the repetition of mutual injuries, contributed to soften the +manners, and abate the prejudices, of the religious factions.<br> +</p> + +<p>The friend of toleration was unfortunately placed at a +distance from the scene of the fiercest controversies. As soon as +the Christians of the West had extricated themselves from the +snares of the creed of Rimini, they happily relapsed into the +slumber of orthodoxy; and the small remains of the Arian party, +that still subsisted at Sirmium or Milan, might be considered +rather as objects of contempt than of resentment. But in the +provinces of the East, from the Euxine to the extremity of +Thebais, the strength and numbers of the hostile factions were +more equally balanced; and this equality, instead of recommending +the counsels of peace, served only to perpetuate the horrors of +religious war. The monks and bishops supported their arguments by +invectives; and their invectives were sometimes followed by +blows. Athanasius still reigned at Alexandria; the thrones of +Constantinople and Antioch were occupied by Arian prelates, and +every episcopal vacancy was the occasion of a popular tumult. The +Homoousians were fortified by the reconciliation of fifty-nine +Macedonian, or Semi-Arian, bishops; but their secret reluctance +to embrace the divinity of the Holy Ghost, clouded the splendor +of the triumph; and the declaration of Valens, who, in the first +years of his reign, had imitated the impartial conduct of his +brother, was an important victory on the side of Arianism. The +two brothers had passed their private life in the condition of +catechumens; but the piety of Valens prompted him to solicit the +sacrament of baptism, before he exposed his person to the dangers +of a Gothic war. He naturally addressed himself to Eudoxus, * +bishop of the Imperial city; and if the ignorant monarch was +instructed by that Arian pastor in the principles of heterodox +theology, his misfortune, rather than his guilt, was the +inevitable consequence of his erroneous choice. Whatever had been +the determination of the emperor, he must have offended a +numerous party of his Christian subjects; as the leaders both of +the Homoousians and of the Arians believed, that, if they were +not suffered to reign, they were most cruelly injured and +oppressed. After he had taken this decisive step, it was +extremely difficult for him to preserve either the virtue, or the +reputation of impartiality. He never aspired, like Constantius, +to the fame of a profound theologian; but as he had received with +simplicity and respect the tenets of Eudoxus, Valens resigned his +conscience to the direction of his ecclesiastical guides, and +promoted, by the influence of his authority, the reunion of the +<strong><em>Athanasian heretics</em></strong> to the body of the +Catholic church. At first, he pitied their blindness; by degrees +he was provoked at their obstinacy; and he insensibly hated those +sectaries to whom he was an object of hatred. The feeble mind of +Valens was always swayed by the persons with whom he familiarly +conversed; and the exile or imprisonment of a private citizen are +the favors the most readily granted in a despotic court. Such +punishments were frequently inflicted on the leaders of the +Homoousian party; and the misfortune of fourscore ecclesiastics +of Constantinople, who, perhaps accidentally, were burned on +shipboard, was imputed to the cruel and premeditated malice of +the emperor, and his Arian ministers. In every contest, the +Catholics (if we may anticipate that name) were obliged to pay +the penalty of their own faults, and of those of their +adversaries. In every election, the claims of the Arian candidate +obtained the preference; and if they were opposed by the majority +of the people, he was usually supported by the authority of the +civil magistrate, or even by the terrors of a military force. The +enemies of Athanasius attempted to disturb the last years of his +venerable age; and his temporary retreat to his father's +sepulchre has been celebrated as a fifth exile. But the zeal of a +great people, who instantly flew to arms, intimidated the +præfect: and the archbishop was permitted to end his life +in peace and in glory, after a reign of forty-seven years. The +death of Athanasius was the signal of the persecution of Egypt; +and the Pagan minister of Valens, who forcibly seated the +worthless Lucius on the archiepiscopal throne, purchased the +favor of the reigning party, by the blood and sufferings of their +Christian brethren. The free toleration of the heathen and Jewish +worship was bitterly lamented, as a circumstance which aggravated +the misery of the Catholics, and the guilt of the impious tyrant +of the East.<br> +</p> + +<p>The triumph of the orthodox party has left a deep stain of +persecution on the memory of Valens; and the character of a +prince who derived his virtues, as well as his vices, from a +feeble understanding and a pusillanimous temper, scarcely +deserves the labor of an apology. Yet candor may discover some +reasons to suspect that the ecclesiastical ministers of Valens +often exceeded the orders, or even the intentions, of their +master; and that the real measure of facts has been very +liberally magnified by the vehement declamation and easy +credulity of his antagonists. <strong>1</strong>. The silence of +Valentinian may suggest a probable argument that the partial +severities, which were exercised in the name and provinces of his +colleague, amounted only to some obscure and inconsiderable +deviations from the established system of religious toleration: +and the judicious historian, who has praised the equal temper of +the elder brother, has not thought himself obliged to contrast +the tranquillity of the West with the cruel persecution of the +East. <strong>2</strong>. Whatever credit may be allowed to vague +and distant reports, the character, or at least the behavior, of +Valens, may be most distinctly seen in his personal transactions +with the eloquent Basil, archbishop of Cæsarea, who had +succeeded Athanasius in the management of the Trinitarian cause. +The circumstantial narrative has been composed by the friends and +admirers of Basil; and as soon as we have stripped away a thick +coat of rhetoric and miracle, we shall be astonished by the +unexpected mildness of the Arian tyrant, who admired the firmness +of his character, or was apprehensive, if he employed violence, +of a general revolt in the province of Cappadocia. The +archbishop, who asserted, with inflexible pride, the truth of his +opinions, and the dignity of his rank, was left in the free +possession of his conscience and his throne. The emperor devoutly +assisted at the solemn service of the cathedral; and, instead of +a sentence of banishment, subscribed the donation of a valuable +estate for the use of a hospital, which Basil had lately founded +in the neighborhood of Cæsarea. <strong>3</strong>. I am +not able to discover, that any law (such as Theodosius afterwards +enacted against the Arians) was published by Valens against the +Athanasian sectaries; and the edict which excited the most +violent clamors, may not appear so extremely reprehensible. The +emperor had observed, that several of his subjects, gratifying +their lazy disposition under the pretence of religion, had +associated themselves with the monks of Egypt; and he directed +the count of the East to drag them from their solitude; and to +compel these deserters of society to accept the fair alternative +of renouncing their temporal possessions, or of discharging the +public duties of men and citizens. The ministers of Valens seem +to have extended the sense of this penal statute, since they +claimed a right of enlisting the young and able-bodied monks in +the Imperial armies. A detachment of cavalry and infantry, +consisting of three thousand men, marched from Alexandria into +the adjacent desert of Nitria, which was peopled by five thousand +monks. The soldiers were conducted by Arian priests; and it is +reported, that a considerable slaughter was made in the +monasteries which disobeyed the commands of their sovereign.<br> +</p> + +<p>The strict regulations which have been framed by the wisdom of +modern legislators to restrain the wealth and avarice of the +clergy, may be originally deduced from the example of the emperor +Valentinian. His edict, addressed to Damasus, bishop of Rome, was +publicly read in the churches of the city. He admonished the +ecclesiastics and monks not to frequent the houses of widows and +virgins; and menaced their disobedience with the animadversion of +the civil judge. The director was no longer permitted to receive +any gift, or legacy, or inheritance, from the liberality of his +spiritual-daughter: every testament contrary to this edict was +declared null and void; and the illegal donation was confiscated +for the use of the treasury. By a subsequent regulation, it +should seem, that the same provisions were extended to nuns and +bishops; and that all persons of the ecclesiastical order were +rendered incapable of receiving any testamentary gifts, and +strictly confined to the natural and legal rights of inheritance. +As the guardian of domestic happiness and virtue, Valentinian +applied this severe remedy to the growing evil. In the capital of +the empire, the females of noble and opulent houses possessed a +very ample share of independent property: and many of those +devout females had embraced the doctrines of Christianity, not +only with the cold assent of the understanding, but with the +warmth of affection, and perhaps with the eagerness of fashion. +They sacrificed the pleasures of dress and luxury; and renounced, +for the praise of chastity, the soft endearments of conjugal +society. Some ecclesiastic, of real or apparent sanctity, was +chosen to direct their timorous conscience, and to amuse the +vacant tenderness of their heart: and the unbounded confidence, +which they hastily bestowed, was often abused by knaves and +enthusiasts; who hastened from the extremities of the East, to +enjoy, on a splendid theatre, the privileges of the monastic +profession. By their contempt of the world, they insensibly +acquired its most desirable advantages; the lively attachment, +perhaps of a young and beautiful woman, the delicate plenty of an +opulent household, and the respectful homage of the slaves, the +freedmen, and the clients of a senatorial family. The immense +fortunes of the Roman ladies were gradually consumed in lavish +alms and expensive pilgrimages; and the artful monk, who had +assigned himself the first, or possibly the sole place, in the +testament of his spiritual daughter, still presumed to declare, +with the smooth face of hypocrisy, that +<strong><em>he</em></strong> was only the instrument of charity, +and the steward of the poor. The lucrative, but disgraceful, +trade, which was exercised by the clergy to defraud the +expectations of the natural heirs, had provoked the indignation +of a superstitious age: and two of the most respectable of the +Latin fathers very honestly confess, that the ignominious edict +of Valentinian was just and necessary; and that the Christian +priests had deserved to lose a privilege, which was still enjoyed +by comedians, charioteers, and the ministers of idols. But the +wisdom and authority of the legislator are seldom victorious in a +contest with the vigilant dexterity of private interest; and +Jerom, or Ambrose, might patiently acquiesce in the justice of an +ineffectual or salutary law. If the ecclesiastics were checked in +the pursuit of personal emolument, they would exert a more +laudable industry to increase the wealth of the church; and +dignify their covetousness with the specious names of piety and +patriotism.<br> +</p> + +<p>Damasus, bishop of Rome, who was constrained to stigmatize the +avarice of his clergy by the publication of the law of +Valentinian, had the good sense, or the good fortune, to engage +in his service the zeal and abilities of the learned Jerom; and +the grateful saint has celebrated the merit and purity of a very +ambiguous character. But the splendid vices of the church of +Rome, under the reign of Valentinian and Damasus, have been +curiously observed by the historian Ammianus, who delivers his +impartial sense in these expressive words: "The præfecture +of Juventius was accompanied with peace and plenty, but the +tranquillity of his government was soon disturbed by a bloody +sedition of the distracted people. The ardor of Damasus and +Ursinus, to seize the episcopal seat, surpassed the ordinary +measure of human ambition. They contended with the rage of party; +the quarrel was maintained by the wounds and death of their +followers; and the præfect, unable to resist or appease the +tumult, was constrained, by superior violence, to retire into the +suburbs. Damasus prevailed: the well-disputed victory remained on +the side of his faction; one hundred and thirty-seven dead bodies +were found in the <strong><em>Basilica</em></strong> of +Sicininus, where the Christians hold their religious assemblies; +and it was long before the angry minds of the people resumed +their accustomed tranquillity. When I consider the splendor of +the capital, I am not astonished that so valuable a prize should +inflame the desires of ambitious men, and produce the fiercest +and most obstinate contests. The successful candidate is secure, +that he will be enriched by the offerings of matrons; that, as +soon as his dress is composed with becoming care and elegance, he +may proceed, in his chariot, through the streets of Rome; and +that the sumptuousness of the Imperial table will not equal the +profuse and delicate entertainments provided by the taste, and at +the expense, of the Roman pontiffs. How much more rationally +(continues the honest Pagan) would those pontiffs consult their +true happiness, if, instead of alleging the greatness of the city +as an excuse for their manners, they would imitate the exemplary +life of some provincial bishops, whose temperance and sobriety, +whose mean apparel and downcast looks, recommend their pure and +modest virtue to the Deity and his true worshippers!" The schism +of Damasus and Ursinus was extinguished by the exile of the +latter; and the wisdom of the præfect Prætextatus +restored the tranquillity of the city. Prætextatus was a +philosophic Pagan, a man of learning, of taste, and politeness; +who disguised a reproach in the form of a jest, when he assured +Damasus, that if he could obtain the bishopric of Rome, he +himself would immediately embrace the Christian religion. This +lively picture of the wealth and luxury of the popes in the +fourth century becomes the more curious, as it represents the +intermediate degree between the humble poverty of the apostolic +fishermen, and the royal state of a temporal prince, whose +dominions extend from the confines of Naples to the banks of the +Po.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, +Division Of The Empire. -- Part IV.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>When the suffrage of the generals and of the army committed +the sceptre of the Roman empire to the hands of Valentinian, his +reputation in arms, his military skill and experience, and his +rigid attachment to the forms, as well as spirit, of ancient +discipline, were the principal motives of their judicious choice. +The eagerness of the troops, who pressed him to nominate his +colleague, was justified by the dangerous situation of public +affairs; and Valentinian himself was conscious, that the +abilities of the most active mind were unequal to the defence of +the distant frontiers of an invaded monarchy. As soon as the +death of Julian had relieved the Barbarians from the terror of +his name, the most sanguine hopes of rapine and conquest excited +the nations of the East, of the North, and of the South. Their +inroads were often vexatious, and sometimes formidable; but, +during the twelve years of the reign of Valentinian, his firmness +and vigilance protected his own dominions; and his powerful +genius seemed to inspire and direct the feeble counsels of his +brother. Perhaps the method of annals would more forcibly express +the urgent and divided cares of the two emperors; but the +attention of the reader, likewise, would be distracted by a +tedious and desultory narrative. A separate view of the five +great theatres of war; I. Germany; II. Britain; III. Africa; IV. +The East; and, V. The Danube; will impress a more distinct image +of the military state of the empire under the reigns of +Valentinian and Valens.<br> +</p> + +<p>I. The ambassadors of the Alemanni had been offended by the +harsh and haughty behavior of Ursacius, master of the offices; +who by an act of unseasonable parsimony, had diminished the +value, as well as the quantity, of the presents to which they +were entitled, either from custom or treaty, on the accession of +a new emperor. They expressed, and they communicated to their +countrymen, their strong sense of the national affront. The +irascible minds of the chiefs were exasperated by the suspicion +of contempt; and the martial youth crowded to their standard. +Before Valentinian could pass the Alps, the villages of Gaul were +in flames; before his general Degalaiphus could encounter the +Alemanni, they had secured the captives and the spoil in the +forests of Germany. In the beginning of the ensuing year, the +military force of the whole nation, in deep and solid columns, +broke through the barrier of the Rhine, during the severity of a +northern winter. Two Roman counts were defeated and mortally +wounded; and the standard of the Heruli and Batavians fell into +the hands of the Heruli and Batavians fell into the hands of the +conquerors, who displayed, with insulting shouts and menaces, the +trophy of their victory. The standard was recovered; but the +Batavians had not redeemed the shame of their disgrace and flight +in the eyes of their severe judge. It was the opinion of +Valentinian, that his soldiers must learn to fear their +commander, before they could cease to fear the enemy. The troops +were solemnly assembled; and the trembling Batavians were +enclosed within the circle of the Imperial army. Valentinian then +ascended his tribunal; and, as if he disdained to punish +cowardice with death, he inflicted a stain of indelible ignominy +on the officers, whose misconduct and pusillanimity were found to +be the first occasion of the defeat. The Batavians were degraded +from their rank, stripped of their arms, and condemned to be sold +for slaves to the highest bidder. At this tremendous sentence, +the troops fell prostrate on the ground, deprecated the +indignation of their sovereign, and protested, that, if he would +indulge them in another trial, they would approve themselves not +unworthy of the name of Romans, and of his soldiers. Valentinian, +with affected reluctance, yielded to their entreaties; the +Batavians resumed their arms, and with their arms, the invincible +resolution of wiping away their disgrace in the blood of the +Alemanni. The principal command was declined by Dagalaiphus; and +that experienced general, who had represented, perhaps with too +much prudence, the extreme difficulties of the undertaking, had +the mortification, before the end of the campaign, of seeing his +rival Jovinus convert those difficulties into a decisive +advantage over the scattered forces of the Barbarians. At the +head of a well-disciplined army of cavalry, infantry, and light +troops, Jovinus advanced, with cautious and rapid steps, to +Scarponna, * in the territory of Metz, where he surprised a large +division of the Alemanni, before they had time to run to their +arms; and flushed his soldiers with the confidence of an easy and +bloodless victory. Another division, or rather army, of the +enemy, after the cruel and wanton devastation of the adjacent +country, reposed themselves on the shady banks of the Moselle. +Jovinus, who had viewed the ground with the eye of a general, +made a silent approach through a deep and woody vale, till he +could distinctly perceive the indolent security of the Germans. +Some were bathing their huge limbs in the river; others were +combing their long and flaxen hair; others again were swallowing +large draughts of rich and delicious wine. On a sudden they heard +the sound of the Roman trumpet; they saw the enemy in their camp. +Astonishment produced disorder; disorder was followed by flight +and dismay; and the confused multitude of the bravest warriors +was pierced by the swords and javelins of the legionaries and +auxiliaries. The fugitives escaped to the third, and most +considerable, camp, in the Catalonian plains, near Chalons in +Champagne: the straggling detachments were hastily recalled to +their standard; and the Barbarian chiefs, alarmed and admonished +by the fate of their companions, prepared to encounter, in a +decisive battle, the victorious forces of the lieutenant of +Valentinian. The bloody and obstinate conflict lasted a whole +summer's day, with equal valor, and with alternate success. The +Romans at length prevailed, with the loss of about twelve hundred +men. Six thousand of the Alemanni were slain, four thousand were +wounded; and the brave Jovinus, after chasing the flying remnant +of their host as far as the banks of the Rhine, returned to +Paris, to receive the applause of his sovereign, and the ensigns +of the consulship for the ensuing year. The triumph of the Romans +was indeed sullied by their treatment of the captive king, whom +they hung on a gibbet, without the knowledge of their indignant +general. This disgraceful act of cruelty, which might be imputed +to the fury of the troops, was followed by the deliberate murder +of Withicab, the son of Vadomair; a German prince, of a weak and +sickly constitution, but of a daring and formidable spirit. The +domestic assassin was instigated and protected by the Romans; and +the violation of the laws of humanity and justice betrayed their +secret apprehension of the weakness of the declining empire. The +use of the dagger is seldom adopted in public councils, as long +as they retain any confidence in the power of the sword.<br> +</p> + +<p>While the Alemanni appeared to be humbled by their recent +calamities, the pride of Valentinian was mortified by the +unexpected surprisal of Moguntiacum, or Mentz, the principal city +of the Upper Germany. In the unsuspicious moment of a Christian +festival, * Rando, a bold and artful chieftain, who had long +meditated his attempt, suddenly passed the Rhine; entered the +defenceless town, and retired with a multitude of captives of +either sex. Valentinian resolved to execute severe vengeance on +the whole body of the nation. Count Sebastian, with the bands of +Italy and Illyricum, was ordered to invade their country, most +probably on the side of Rhætia. The emperor in person, +accompanied by his son Gratian, passed the Rhine at the head of a +formidable army, which was supported on both flanks by Jovinus +and Severus, the two masters-general of the cavalry and infantry +of the West. The Alemanni, unable to prevent the devastation of +their villages, fixed their camp on a lofty, and almost +inaccessible, mountain, in the modern duchy of Wirtemberg, and +resolutely expected the approach of the Romans. The life of +Valentinian was exposed to imminent danger by the intrepid +curiosity with which he persisted to explore some secret and +unguarded path. A troop of Barbarians suddenly rose from their +ambuscade: and the emperor, who vigorously spurred his horse down +a steep and slippery descent, was obliged to leave behind him his +armor-bearer, and his helmet, magnificently enriched with gold +and precious stones. At the signal of the general assault, the +Roman troops encompassed and ascended the mountain of Solicinium +on three different sides. Every step which they gained, increased +their ardor, and abated the resistance of the enemy: and after +their united forces had occupied the summit of the hill, they +impetuously urged the Barbarians down the northern descent, where +Count Sebastian was posted to intercept their retreat. After this +signal victory, Valentinian returned to his winter quarters at +Treves; where he indulged the public joy by the exhibition of +splendid and triumphal games. But the wise monarch, instead of +aspiring to the conquest of Germany, confined his attention to +the important and laborious defence of the Gallic frontier, +against an enemy whose strength was renewed by a stream of daring +volunteers, which incessantly flowed from the most distant tribes +of the North. The banks of the Rhine from its source to the +straits of the ocean, were closely planted with strong castles +and convenient towers; new works, and new arms, were invented by +the ingenuity of a prince who was skilled in the mechanical arts; +and his numerous levies of Roman and Barbarian youth were +severely trained in all the exercises of war. The progress of the +work, which was sometimes opposed by modest representations, and +sometimes by hostile attempts, secured the tranquillity of Gaul +during the nine subsequent years of the administration of +Valentinian.<br> +</p> + +<p>That prudent emperor, who diligently practised the wise maxims +of Diocletian, was studious to foment and excite the intestine +divisions of the tribes of Germany. About the middle of the +fourth century, the countries, perhaps of Lusace and Thuringia, +on either side of the Elbe, were occupied by the vague dominion +of the Burgundians; a warlike and numerous people, * of the +Vandal race, whose obscure name insensibly swelled into a +powerful kingdom, and has finally settled on a flourishing +province. The most remarkable circumstance in the ancient manners +of the Burgundians appears to have been the difference of their +civil and ecclesiastical constitution. The appellation of +<strong><em>Hendinos</em></strong> was given to the king or +general, and the title of <strong><em>Sinistus</em></strong> to +the high priest, of the nation. The person of the priest was +sacred, and his dignity perpetual; but the temporal government +was held by a very precarious tenure. If the events of war +accuses the courage or conduct of the king, he was immediately +deposed; and the injustice of his subjects made him responsible +for the fertility of the earth, and the regularity of the +seasons, which seemed to fall more properly within the sacerdotal +department. The disputed possession of some salt-pits engaged the +Alemanni and the Burgundians in frequent contests: the latter +were easily tempted, by the secret solicitations and liberal +offers of the emperor; and their fabulous descent from the Roman +soldiers, who had formerly been left to garrison the fortresses +of Drusus, was admitted with mutual credulity, as it was +conducive to mutual interest. An army of fourscore thousand +Burgundians soon appeared on the banks of the Rhine; and +impatiently required the support and subsidies which Valentinian +had promised: but they were amused with excuses and delays, till +at length, after a fruitless expectation, they were compelled to +retire. The arms and fortifications of the Gallic frontier +checked the fury of their just resentment; and their massacre of +the captives served to imbitter the hereditary feud of the +Burgundians and the Alemanni. The inconstancy of a wise prince +may, perhaps, be explained by some alteration of circumstances; +and perhaps it was the original design of Valentinian to +intimidate, rather than to destroy; as the balance of power would +have been equally overturned by the extirpation of either of the +German nations. Among the princes of the Alemanni, Macrianus, +who, with a Roman name, had assumed the arts of a soldier and a +statesman, deserved his hatred and esteem. The emperor himself, +with a light and unencumbered band, condescended to pass the +Rhine, marched fifty miles into the country, and would infallibly +have seized the object of his pursuit, if his judicious measures +had not been defeated by the impatience of the troops. Macrianus +was afterwards admitted to the honor of a personal conference +with the emperor; and the favors which he received, fixed him, +till the hour of his death, a steady and sincere friend of the +republic.<br> +</p> + +<p>The land was covered by the fortifications of Valentinian; but +the sea-coast of Gaul and Britain was exposed to the depredations +of the Saxons. That celebrated name, in which we have a dear and +domestic interest, escaped the notice of Tacitus; and in the maps +of Ptolemy, it faintly marks the narrow neck of the Cimbric +peninsula, and three small islands towards the mouth of the Elbe. +This contracted territory, the present duchy of Sleswig, or +perhaps of Holstein, was incapable of pouring forth the +inexhaustible swarms of Saxons who reigned over the ocean, who +filled the British island with their language, their laws, and +their colonies; and who so long defended the liberty of the North +against the arms of Charlemagne. The solution of this difficulty +is easily derived from the similar manners, and loose +constitution, of the tribes of Germany; which were blended with +each other by the slightest accidents of war or friendship. The +situation of the native Saxons disposed them to embrace the +hazardous professions of fishermen and pirates; and the success +of their first adventures would naturally excite the emulation of +their bravest countrymen, who were impatient of the gloomy +solitude of their woods and mountains. Every tide might float +down the Elbe whole fleets of canoes, filled with hardy and +intrepid associates, who aspired to behold the unbounded prospect +of the ocean, and to taste the wealth and luxury of unknown +worlds. It should seem probable, however, that the most numerous +auxiliaries of the Saxons were furnished by the nations who dwelt +along the shores of the Baltic. They possessed arms and ships, +the art of navigation, and the habits of naval war; but the +difficulty of issuing through the northern columns of Hercules +(which, during several months of the year, are obstructed with +ice) confined their skill and courage within the limits of a +spacious lake. The rumor of the successful armaments which sailed +from the mouth of the Elbe, would soon provoke them to cross the +narrow isthmus of Sleswig, and to launch their vessels on the +great sea. The various troops of pirates and adventurers, who +fought under the same standard, were insensibly united in a +permanent society, at first of rapine, and afterwards of +government. A military confederation was gradually moulded into a +national body, by the gentle operation of marriage and +consanguinity; and the adjacent tribes, who solicited the +alliance, accepted the name and laws, of the Saxons. If the fact +were not established by the most unquestionable evidence, we +should appear to abuse the credulity of our readers, by the +description of the vessels in which the Saxon pirates ventured to +sport in the waves of the German Ocean, the British Channel, and +the Bay of Biscay. The keel of their large flat-bottomed boats +were framed of light timber, but the sides and upper works +consisted only of wicker, with a covering of strong hides. In the +course of their slow and distant navigations, they must always +have been exposed to the danger, and very frequently to the +misfortune, of shipwreck; and the naval annals of the Saxons were +undoubtedly filled with the accounts of the losses which they +sustained on the coasts of Britain and Gaul. But the daring +spirit of the pirates braved the perils both of the sea and of +the shore: their skill was confirmed by the habits of enterprise; +the meanest of their mariners was alike capable of handling an +oar, of rearing a sail, or of conducting a vessel, and the Saxons +rejoiced in the appearance of a tempest, which concealed their +design, and dispersed the fleets of the enemy. After they had +acquired an accurate knowledge of the maritime provinces of the +West, they extended the scene of their depredations, and the most +sequestered places had no reason to presume on their security. +The Saxon boats drew so little water that they could easily +proceed fourscore or a hundred miles up the great rivers; their +weight was so inconsiderable, that they were transported on +wagons from one river to another; and the pirates who had entered +the mouth of the Seine, or of the Rhine, might descend, with the +rapid stream of the Rhone, into the Mediterranean. Under the +reign of Valentinian, the maritime provinces of Gaul were +afflicted by the Saxons: a military count was stationed for the +defence of the sea-coast, or Armorican limit; and that officer, +who found his strength, or his abilities, unequal to the task, +implored the assistance of Severus, master-general of the +infantry. The Saxons, surrounded and outnumbered, were forced to +relinquish their spoil, and to yield a select band of their tall +and robust youth to serve in the Imperial armies. They stipulated +only a safe and honorable retreat; and the condition was readily +granted by the Roman general, who meditated an act of perfidy, +imprudent as it was inhuman, while a Saxon remained alive, and in +arms, to revenge the fate of their countrymen. The premature +eagerness of the infantry, who were secretly posted in a deep +valley, betrayed the ambuscade; and they would perhaps have +fallen the victims of their own treachery, if a large body of +cuirassiers, alarmed by the noise of the combat, had not hastily +advanced to extricate their companions, and to overwhelm the +undaunted valor of the Saxons. Some of the prisoners were saved +from the edge of the sword, to shed their blood in the +amphitheatre; and the orator Symmachus complains, that +twenty-nine of those desperate savages, by strangling themselves +with their own hands, had disappointed the amusement of the +public. Yet the polite and philosophic citizens of Rome were +impressed with the deepest horror, when they were informed, that +the Saxons consecrated to the gods the tithe of their +<strong><em>human</em></strong> spoil; and that they ascertained +by lot the objects of the barbarous sacrifice.<br> +</p> + +<p>II. The fabulous colonies of Egyptians and Trojans, of +Scandinavians and Spaniards, which flattered the pride, and +amused the credulity, of our rude ancestors, have insensibly +vanished in the light of science and philosophy. The present age +is satisfied with the simple and rational opinion, that the +islands of Great Britain and Ireland were gradually peopled from +the adjacent continent of Gaul. From the coast of Kent, to the +extremity of Caithness and Ulster, the memory of a Celtic origin +was distinctly preserved, in the perpetual resemblance of +language, of religion, and of manners; and the peculiar +characters of the British tribes might be naturally ascribed to +the influence of accidental and local circumstances. The Roman +Province was reduced to the state of civilized and peaceful +servitude; the rights of savage freedom were contracted to the +narrow limits of Caledonia. The inhabitants of that northern +region were divided, as early as the reign of Constantine, +between the two great tribes of the Scots and of the Picts, who +have since experienced a very different fortune. The power, and +almost the memory, of the Picts have been extinguished by their +successful rivals; and the Scots, after maintaining for ages the +dignity of an independent kingdom, have multiplied, by an equal +and voluntary union, the honors of the English name. The hand of +nature had contributed to mark the ancient distinctions of the +Scots and Picts. The former were the men of the hills, and the +latter those of the plain. The eastern coast of Caledonia may be +considered as a level and fertile country, which, even in a rude +state of tillage, was capable of producing a considerable +quantity of corn; and the epithet of +<strong><em>cruitnich</em></strong>, or wheat-eaters, expressed +the contempt or envy of the carnivorous highlander. The +cultivation of the earth might introduce a more accurate +separation of property, and the habits of a sedentary life; but +the love of arms and rapine was still the ruling passion of the +Picts; and their warriors, who stripped themselves for a day of +battle, were distinguished, in the eyes of the Romans, by the +strange fashion of painting their naked bodies with gaudy colors +and fantastic figures. The western part of Caledonia irregularly +rises into wild and barren hills, which scarcely repay the toil +of the husbandman, and are most profitably used for the pasture +of cattle. The highlanders were condemned to the occupations of +shepherds and hunters; and, as they seldom were fixed to any +permanent habitation, they acquired the expressive name of Scots, +which, in the Celtic tongue, is said to be equivalent to that of +<strong><em>wanderers</em></strong>, or +<strong><em>vagrants</em></strong>. The inhabitants of a barren +land were urged to seek a fresh supply of food in the waters. The +deep lakes and bays which intersect their country, are +plentifully supplied with fish; and they gradually ventured to +cast their nets in the waves of the ocean. The vicinity of the +Hebrides, so profusely scattered along the western coast of +Scotland, tempted their curiosity, and improved their skill; and +they acquired, by slow degrees, the art, or rather the habit, of +managing their boats in a tempestuous sea, and of steering their +nocturnal course by the light of the well-known stars. The two +bold headlands of Caledonia almost touch the shores of a spacious +island, which obtained, from its luxuriant vegetation, the +epithet of <strong><em>Green</em></strong>; and has preserved, +with a slight alteration, the name of Erin, or Ierne, or Ireland. +It is <strong><em>probable</em></strong>, that in some remote +period of antiquity, the fertile plains of Ulster received a +colony of hungry Scots; and that the strangers of the North, who +had dared to encounter the arms of the legions, spread their +conquests over the savage and unwarlike natives of a solitary +island. It is <strong><em>certain</em></strong>, that, in the +declining age of the Roman empire, Caledonia, Ireland, and the +Isle of Man, were inhabited by the Scots, and that the kindred +tribes, who were often associated in military enterprise, were +deeply affected by the various accidents of their mutual +fortunes. They long cherished the lively tradition of their +common name and origin; and the missionaries of the Isle of +Saints, who diffused the light of Christianity over North +Britain, established the vain opinion, that their Irish +countrymen were the natural, as well as spiritual, fathers of the +Scottish race. The loose and obscure tradition has been preserved +by the venerable Bede, who scattered some rays of light over the +darkness of the eighth century. On this slight foundation, a huge +superstructure of fable was gradually reared, by the bards and +the monks; two orders of men, who equally abused the privilege of +fiction. The Scottish nation, with mistaken pride, adopted their +Irish genealogy; and the annals of a long line of imaginary kings +have been adorned by the fancy of Boethius, and the classic +elegance of Buchanan.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, +Division Of The Empire. -- Part V.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Six years after the death of Constantine, the destructive +inroads of the Scots and Picts required the presence of his +youngest son, who reigned in the Western empire. Constans visited +his British dominions: but we may form some estimate of the +importance of his achievements, by the language of panegyric, +which celebrates only his triumph over the elements or, in other +words, the good fortune of a safe and easy passage from the port +of Boulogne to the harbor of Sandwich. The calamities which the +afflicted provincials continued to experience, from foreign war +and domestic tyranny, were aggravated by the feeble and corrupt +administration of the eunuchs of Constantius; and the transient +relief which they might obtain from the virtues of Julian, was +soon lost by the absence and death of their benefactor. The sums +of gold and silver, which had been painfully collected, or +liberally transmitted, for the payment of the troops, were +intercepted by the avarice of the commanders; discharges, or, at +least, exemptions, from the military service, were publicly sold; +the distress of the soldiers, who were injuriously deprived of +their legal and scanty subsistence, provoked them to frequent +desertion; the nerves of discipline were relaxed, and the +highways were infested with robbers. The oppression of the good, +and the impunity of the wicked, equally contributed to diffuse +through the island a spirit of discontent and revolt; and every +ambitious subject, every desperate exile, might entertain a +reasonable hope of subverting the weak and distracted government +of Britain. The hostile tribes of the North, who detested the +pride and power of the King of the World, suspended their +domestic feuds; and the Barbarians of the land and sea, the +Scots, the Picts, and the Saxons, spread themselves with rapid +and irresistible fury, from the wall of Antoninus to the shores +of Kent. Every production of art and nature, every object of +convenience and luxury, which they were incapable of creating by +labor or procuring by trade, was accumulated in the rich and +fruitful province of Britain. A philosopher may deplore the +eternal discords of the human race, but he will confess, that the +desire of spoil is a more rational provocation than the vanity of +conquest. From the age of Constantine to the Plantagenets, this +rapacious spirit continued to instigate the poor and hardy +Caledonians; but the same people, whose generous humanity seems +to inspire the songs of Ossian, was disgraced by a savage +ignorance of the virtues of peace, and of the laws of war. Their +southern neighbors have felt, and perhaps exaggerated, the cruel +depredations of the Scots and Picts; and a valiant tribe of +Caledonia, the Attacotti, the enemies, and afterwards the +soldiers, of Valentinian, are accused, by an eye-witness, of +delighting in the taste of human flesh. When they hunted the +woods for prey, it is said, that they attacked the shepherd +rather than his flock; and that they curiously selected the most +delicate and brawny parts, both of males and females, which they +prepared for their horrid repasts. If, in the neighborhood of the +commercial and literary town of Glasgow, a race of cannibals has +really existed, we may contemplate, in the period of the Scottish +history, the opposite extremes of savage and civilized life. Such +reflections tend to enlarge the circle of our ideas; and to +encourage the pleasing hope, that New Zealand may produce, in +some future age, the Hume of the Southern Hemisphere.<br> +</p> + +<p>Every messenger who escaped across the British Channel, +conveyed the most melancholy and alarming tidings to the ears of +Valentinian; and the emperor was soon informed that the two +military commanders of the province had been surprised and cut +off by the Barbarians. Severus, count of the domestics, was +hastily despatched, and as suddenly recalled, by the court of +Treves. The representations of Jovinus served only to indicate +the greatness of the evil; and, after a long and serious +consultation, the defence, or rather the recovery, of Britain was +intrusted to the abilities of the brave Theodosius. The exploits +of that general, the father of a line of emperors, have been +celebrated, with peculiar complacency, by the writers of the age: +but his real merit deserved their applause; and his nomination +was received, by the army and province, as a sure presage of +approaching victory. He seized the favorable moment of +navigation, and securely landed the numerous and veteran bands of +the Heruli and Batavians, the Jovians and the Victors. In his +march from Sandwich to London, Theodosius defeated several +parties of the Barbarians, released a multitude of captives, and, +after distributing to his soldiers a small portion of the spoil, +established the fame of disinterested justice, by the restitution +of the remainder to the rightful proprietors. The citizens of +London, who had almost despaired of their safety, threw open +their gates; and as soon as Theodosius had obtained from the +court of Treves the important aid of a military lieutenant, and a +civil governor, he executed, with wisdom and vigor, the laborious +task of the deliverance of Britain. The vagrant soldiers were +recalled to their standard; an edict of amnesty dispelled the +public apprehensions; and his cheerful example alleviated the +rigor of martial discipline. The scattered and desultory warfare +of the Barbarians, who infested the land and sea, deprived him of +the glory of a signal victory; but the prudent spirit, and +consummate art, of the Roman general, were displayed in the +operations of two campaigns, which successively rescued every +part of the province from the hands of a cruel and rapacious +enemy. The splendor of the cities, and the security of the +fortifications, were diligently restored, by the paternal care of +Theodosius; who with a strong hand confined the trembling +Caledonians to the northern angle of the island; and perpetuated, +by the name and settlement of the new province of +<strong><em>Valentia</em></strong>, the glories of the reign of +Valentinian. The voice of poetry and panegyric may add, perhaps +with some degree of truth, that the unknown regions of Thule were +stained with the blood of the Picts; that the oars of Theodosius +dashed the waves of the Hyperborean ocean; and that the distant +Orkneys were the scene of his naval victory over the Saxon +pirates. He left the province with a fair, as well as splendid, +reputation; and was immediately promoted to the rank of +master-general of the cavalry, by a prince who could applaud, +without envy, the merit of his servants. In the important station +of the Upper Danube, the conqueror of Britain checked and +defeated the armies of the Alemanni, before he was chosen to +suppress the revolt of Africa.<br> +</p> + +<p>III. The prince who refuses to be the judge, instructs the +people to consider him as the accomplice, of his ministers. The +military command of Africa had been long exercised by Count +Romanus, and his abilities were not inadequate to his station; +but, as sordid interest was the sole motive of his conduct, he +acted, on most occasions, as if he had been the enemy of the +province, and the friend of the Barbarians of the desert. The +three flourishing cities of Oea, Leptis, and Sabrata, which, +under the name of Tripoli, had long constituted a federal union, +were obliged, for the first time, to shut their gates against a +hostile invasion; several of their most honorable citizens were +surprised and massacred; the villages, and even the suburbs, were +pillaged; and the vines and fruit trees of that rich territory +were extirpated by the malicious savages of Getulia. The unhappy +provincials implored the protection of Romanus; but they soon +found that their military governor was not less cruel and +rapacious than the Barbarians. As they were incapable of +furnishing the four thousand camels, and the exorbitant present, +which he required, before he would march to the assistance of +Tripoli; his demand was equivalent to a refusal, and he might +justly be accused as the author of the public calamity. In the +annual assembly of the three cities, they nominated two deputies, +to lay at the feet of Valentinian the customary offering of a +gold victory; and to accompany this tribute of duty, rather than +of gratitude, with their humble complaint, that they were ruined +by the enemy, and betrayed by their governor. If the severity of +Valentinian had been rightly directed, it would have fallen on +the guilty head of Romanus. But the count, long exercised in the +arts of corruption, had despatched a swift and trusty messenger +to secure the venal friendship of Remigius, master of the +offices. The wisdom of the Imperial council was deceived by +artifice; and their honest indignation was cooled by delay. At +length, when the repetition of complaint had been justified by +the repetition of public misfortunes, the notary Palladius was +sent from the court of Treves, to examine the state of Africa, +and the conduct of Romanus. The rigid impartiality of Palladius +was easily disarmed: he was tempted to reserve for himself a part +of the public treasure, which he brought with him for the payment +of the troops; and from the moment that he was conscious of his +own guilt, he could no longer refuse to attest the innocence and +merit of the count. The charge of the Tripolitans was declared to +be false and frivolous; and Palladius himself was sent back from +Treves to Africa, with a special commission to discover and +prosecute the authors of this impious conspiracy against the +representatives of the sovereign. His inquiries were managed with +so much dexterity and success, that he compelled the citizens of +Leptis, who had sustained a recent siege of eight days, to +contradict the truth of their own decrees, and to censure the +behavior of their own deputies. A bloody sentence was pronounced, +without hesitation, by the rash and headstrong cruelty of +Valentinian. The president of Tripoli, who had presumed to pity +the distress of the province, was publicly executed at Utica; +four distinguished citizens were put to death, as the accomplices +of the imaginary fraud; and the tongues of two others were cut +out, by the express order of the emperor. Romanus, elated by +impunity, and irritated by resistance, was still continued in the +military command; till the Africans were provoked, by his +avarice, to join the rebellious standard of Firmus, the Moor.<br> +</p> + +<p>His father Nabal was one of the richest and most powerful of +the Moorish princes, who acknowledged the supremacy of Rome. But +as he left, either by his wives or concubines, a very numerous +posterity, the wealthy inheritance was eagerly disputed; and +Zamma, one of his sons, was slain in a domestic quarrel by his +brother Firmus. The implacable zeal, with which Romanus +prosecuted the legal revenge of this murder, could be ascribed +only to a motive of avarice, or personal hatred; but, on this +occasion, his claims were just; his influence was weighty; and +Firmus clearly understood, that he must either present his neck +to the executioner, or appeal from the sentence of the Imperial +consistory, to his sword, and to the people. He was received as +the deliverer of his country; and, as soon as it appeared that +Romanus was formidable only to a submissive province, the tyrant +of Africa became the object of universal contempt. The ruin of +Cæsarea, which was plundered and burnt by the licentious +Barbarians, convinced the refractory cities of the danger of +resistance; the power of Firmus was established, at least in the +provinces of Mauritania and Numidia; and it seemed to be his only +doubt whether he should assume the diadem of a Moorish king, or +the purple of a Roman emperor. But the imprudent and unhappy +Africans soon discovered, that, in this rash insurrection, they +had not sufficiently consulted their own strength, or the +abilities of their leader. Before he could procure any certain +intelligence, that the emperor of the West had fixed the choice +of a general, or that a fleet of transports was collected at the +mouth of the Rhone, he was suddenly informed that the great +Theodosius, with a small band of veterans, had landed near +Igilgilis, or Gigeri, on the African coast; and the timid usurper +sunk under the ascendant of virtue and military genius. Though +Firmus possessed arms and treasures, his despair of victory +immediately reduced him to the use of those arts, which, in the +same country, and in a similar situation, had formerly been +practised by the crafty Jugurtha. He attempted to deceive, by an +apparent submission, the vigilance of the Roman general; to +seduce the fidelity of his troops; and to protract the duration +of the war, by successively engaging the independent tribes of +Africa to espouse his quarrel, or to protect his flight. +Theodosius imitated the example, and obtained the success, of his +predecessor Metellus. When Firmus, in the character of a +suppliant, accused his own rashness, and humbly solicited the +clemency of the emperor, the lieutenant of Valentinian received +and dismissed him with a friendly embrace: but he diligently +required the useful and substantial pledges of a sincere +repentance; nor could he be persuaded, by the assurances of +peace, to suspend, for an instant, the operations of an active +war. A dark conspiracy was detected by the penetration of +Theodosius; and he satisfied, without much reluctance, the public +indignation, which he had secretly excited. Several of the guilty +accomplices of Firmus were abandoned, according to ancient +custom, to the tumult of a military execution; many more, by the +amputation of both their hands, continued to exhibit an +instructive spectacle of horror; the hatred of the rebels was +accompanied with fear; and the fear of the Roman soldiers was +mingled with respectful admiration. Amidst the boundless plains +of Getulia, and the innumerable valleys of Mount Atlas, it was +impossible to prevent the escape of Firmus; and if the usurper +could have tired the patience of his antagonist, he would have +secured his person in the depth of some remote solitude, and +expected the hopes of a future revolution. He was subdued by the +perseverance of Theodosius; who had formed an inflexible +determination, that the war should end only by the death of the +tyrant; and that every nation of Africa, which presumed to +support his cause, should be involved in his ruin. At the head of +a small body of troops, which seldom exceeded three thousand five +hundred men, the Roman general advanced, with a steady prudence, +devoid of rashness or of fear, into the heart of a country, where +he was sometimes attacked by armies of twenty thousand Moors. The +boldness of his charge dismayed the irregular Barbarians; they +were disconcerted by his seasonable and orderly retreats; they +were continually baffled by the unknown resources of the military +art; and they felt and confessed the just superiority which was +assumed by the leader of a civilized nation. When Theodosius +entered the extensive dominions of Igmazen, king of the +Isaflenses, the haughty savage required, in words of defiance, +his name, and the object of his expedition. "I am," replied the +stern and disdainful count, "I am the general of Valentinian, the +lord of the world; who has sent me hither to pursue and punish a +desperate robber. Deliver him instantly into my hands; and be +assured, that if thou dost not obey the commands of my invincible +sovereign, thou, and the people over whom thou reignest, shall be +utterly extirpated." * As soon as Igmazen was satisfied, that his +enemy had strength and resolution to execute the fatal menace, he +consented to purchase a necessary peace by the sacrifice of a +guilty fugitive. The guards that were placed to secure the person +of Firmus deprived him of the hopes of escape; and the Moorish +tyrant, after wine had extinguished the sense of danger, +disappointed the insulting triumph of the Romans, by strangling +himself in the night. His dead body, the only present which +Igmazen could offer to the conqueror, was carelessly thrown upon +a camel; and Theodosius, leading back his victorious troops to +Sitifi, was saluted by the warmest acclamations of joy and +loyalty.<br> +</p> + +<p>Africa had been lost by the vices of Romanus; it was restored +by the virtues of Theodosius; and our curiosity may be usefully +directed to the inquiry of the respective treatment which the two +generals received from the Imperial court. The authority of Count +Romanus had been suspended by the master-general of the cavalry; +and he was committed to safe and honorable custody till the end +of the war. His crimes were proved by the most authentic +evidence; and the public expected, with some impatience, the +decree of severe justice. But the partial and powerful favor of +Mellobaudes encouraged him to challenge his legal judges, to +obtain repeated delays for the purpose of procuring a crowd of +friendly witnesses, and, finally, to cover his guilty conduct, by +the additional guilt of fraud and forgery. About the same time, +the restorer of Britain and Africa, on a vague suspicion that his +name and services were superior to the rank of a subject, was +ignominiously beheaded at Carthage. Valentinian no longer +reigned; and the death of Theodosius, as well as the impunity of +Romanus, may justly be imputed to the arts of the ministers, who +abused the confidence, and deceived the inexperienced youth, of +his sons.<br> +</p> + +<p>If the geographical accuracy of Ammianus had been fortunately +bestowed on the British exploits of Theodosius, we should have +traced, with eager curiosity, the distinct and domestic footsteps +of his march. But the tedious enumeration of the unknown and +uninteresting tribes of Africa may be reduced to the general +remark, that they were all of the swarthy race of the Moors; that +they inhabited the back settlements of the Mauritanian and +Numidian province, the country, as they have since been termed by +the Arabs, of dates and of locusts; and that, as the Roman power +declined in Africa, the boundary of civilized manners and +cultivated land was insensibly contracted. Beyond the utmost +limits of the Moors, the vast and inhospitable desert of the +South extends above a thousand miles to the banks of the Niger. +The ancients, who had a very faint and imperfect knowledge of the +great peninsula of Africa, were sometimes tempted to believe, +that the torrid zone must ever remain destitute of inhabitants; +and they sometimes amused their fancy by filling the vacant space +with headless men, or rather monsters; with horned and +cloven-footed satyrs; with fabulous centaurs; and with human +pygmies, who waged a bold and doubtful warfare against the +cranes. Carthage would have trembled at the strange intelligence +that the countries on either side of the equator were filled with +innumerable nations, who differed only in their color from the +ordinary appearance of the human species: and the subjects of the +Roman empire might have anxiously expected, that the swarms of +Barbarians, which issued from the North, would soon be +encountered from the South by new swarms of Barbarians, equally +fierce and equally formidable. These gloomy terrors would indeed +have been dispelled by a more intimate acquaintance with the +character of their African enemies. The inaction of the negroes +does not seem to be the effect either of their virtue or of their +pusillanimity. They indulge, like the rest of mankind, their +passions and appetites; and the adjacent tribes are engaged in +frequent acts of hostility. But their rude ignorance has never +invented any effectual weapons of defence, or of destruction; +they appear incapable of forming any extensive plans of +government, or conquest; and the obvious inferiority of their +mental faculties has been discovered and abused by the nations of +the temperate zone. Sixty thousand blacks are annually embarked +from the coast of Guinea, never to return to their native +country; but they are embarked in chains; and this constant +emigration, which, in the space of two centuries, might have +furnished armies to overrun the globe, accuses the guilt of +Europe, and the weakness of Africa.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, +Division Of The Empire. -- Part VI.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>IV. The ignominious treaty, which saved the army of Jovian, +had been faithfully executed on the side of the Romans; and as +they had solemnly renounced the sovereignty and alliance of +Armenia and Iberia, those tributary kingdoms were exposed, +without protection, to the arms of the Persian monarch. Sapor +entered the Armenian territories at the head of a formidable host +of cuirassiers, of archers, and of mercenary foot; but it was the +invariable practice of Sapor to mix war and negotiation, and to +consider falsehood and perjury as the most powerful instruments +of regal policy. He affected to praise the prudent and moderate +conduct of the king of Armenia; and the unsuspicious Tiranus was +persuaded, by the repeated assurances of insidious friendship, to +deliver his person into the hands of a faithless and cruel enemy. +In the midst of a splendid entertainment, he was bound in chains +of silver, as an honor due to the blood of the Arsacides; and, +after a short confinement in the Tower of Oblivion at Ecbatana, +he was released from the miseries of life, either by his own +dagger, or by that of an assassin. * The kingdom of Armenia was +reduced to the state of a Persian province; the administration +was shared between a distinguished satrap and a favorite eunuch; +and Sapor marched, without delay, to subdue the martial spirit of +the Iberians. Sauromaces, who reigned in that country by the +permission of the emperors, was expelled by a superior force; +and, as an insult on the majesty of Rome, the king of kings +placed a diadem on the head of his abject vassal Aspacuras. The +city of Artogerassa was the only place of Armenia which presumed +to resist the efforts of his arms. The treasure deposited in that +strong fortress tempted the avarice of Sapor; but the danger of +Olympias, the wife or widow of the Armenian king, excited the +public compassion, and animated the desperate valor of her +subjects and soldiers. § The Persians were surprised and +repulsed under the walls of Artogerassa, by a bold and +well-concerted sally of the besieged. But the forces of Sapor +were continually renewed and increased; the hopeless courage of +the garrison was exhausted; the strength of the walls yielded to +the assault; and the proud conqueror, after wasting the +rebellious city with fire and sword, led away captive an +unfortunate queen; who, in a more auspicious hour, had been the +destined bride of the son of Constantine. Yet if Sapor already +triumphed in the easy conquest of two dependent kingdoms, he soon +felt, that a country is unsubdued as long as the minds of the +people are actuated by a hostile and contumacious spirit. The +satraps, whom he was obliged to trust, embraced the first +opportunity of regaining the affection of their countrymen, and +of signalizing their immortal hatred to the Persian name. Since +the conversion of the Armenians and Iberians, these nations +considered the Christians as the favorites, and the Magians as +the adversaries, of the Supreme Being: the influence of the +clergy, over a superstitious people was uniformly exerted in the +cause of Rome; and as long as the successors of Constantine +disputed with those of Artaxerxes the sovereignty of the +intermediate provinces, the religious connection always threw a +decisive advantage into the scale of the empire. A numerous and +active party acknowledged Para, the son of Tiranus, as the lawful +sovereign of Armenia, and his title to the throne was deeply +rooted in the hereditary succession of five hundred years. By the +unanimous consent of the Iberians, the country was equally +divided between the rival princes; and Aspacuras, who owed his +diadem to the choice of Sapor, was obliged to declare, that his +regard for his children, who were detained as hostages by the +tyrant, was the only consideration which prevented him from +openly renouncing the alliance of Persia. The emperor Valens, who +respected the obligations of the treaty, and who was apprehensive +of involving the East in a dangerous war, ventured, with slow and +cautious measures, to support the Roman party in the kingdoms of +Iberia and Armenia. $ Twelve legions established the authority of +Sauromaces on the banks of the Cyrus. The Euphrates was protected +by the valor of Arintheus. A powerful army, under the command of +Count Trajan, and of Vadomair, king of the Alemanni, fixed their +camp on the confines of Armenia. But they were strictly enjoined +not to commit the first hostilities, which might be understood as +a breach of the treaty: and such was the implicit obedience of +the Roman general, that they retreated, with exemplary patience, +under a shower of Persian arrows till they had clearly acquired a +just title to an honorable and legitimate victory. Yet these +appearances of war insensibly subsided in a vain and tedious +negotiation. The contending parties supported their claims by +mutual reproaches of perfidy and ambition; and it should seem, +that the original treaty was expressed in very obscure terms, +since they were reduced to the necessity of making their +inconclusive appeal to the partial testimony of the generals of +the two nations, who had assisted at the negotiations. The +invasion of the Goths and Huns which soon afterwards shook the +foundations of the Roman empire, exposed the provinces of Asia to +the arms of Sapor. But the declining age, and perhaps the +infirmities, of the monarch suggested new maxims of tranquillity +and moderation. His death, which happened in the full maturity of +a reign of seventy years, changed in a moment the court and +councils of Persia; and their attention was most probably engaged +by domestic troubles, and the distant efforts of a Carmanian war. +The remembrance of ancient injuries was lost in the enjoyment of +peace. The kingdoms of Armenia and Iberia were permitted, by the +mutual, though tacit consent of both empires, to resume their +doubtful neutrality. In the first years of the reign of +Theodosius, a Persian embassy arrived at Constantinople, to +excuse the unjustifiable measures of the former reign; and to +offer, as the tribute of friendship, or even of respect, a +splendid present of gems, of silk, and of Indian elephants.<br> +</p> + +<p>In the general picture of the affairs of the East under the +reign of Valens, the adventures of Para form one of the most +striking and singular objects. The noble youth, by the persuasion +of his mother Olympias, had escaped through the Persian host that +besieged Artogerassa, and implored the protection of the emperor +of the East. By his timid councils, Para was alternately +supported, and recalled, and restored, and betrayed. The hopes of +the Armenians were sometimes raised by the presence of their +natural sovereign, * and the ministers of Valens were satisfied, +that they preserved the integrity of the public faith, if their +vassal was not suffered to assume the diadem and title of King. +But they soon repented of their own rashness. They were +confounded by the reproaches and threats of the Persian monarch. +They found reason to distrust the cruel and inconstant temper of +Para himself; who sacrificed, to the slightest suspicions, the +lives of his most faithful servants, and held a secret and +disgraceful correspondence with the assassin of his father and +the enemy of his country. Under the specious pretence of +consulting with the emperor on the subject of their common +interest, Para was persuaded to descend from the mountains of +Armenia, where his party was in arms, and to trust his +independence and safety to the discretion of a perfidious court. +The king of Armenia, for such he appeared in his own eyes and in +those of his nation, was received with due honors by the +governors of the provinces through which he passed; but when he +arrived at Tarsus in Cilicia, his progress was stopped under +various pretences; his motions were watched with respectful +vigilance, and he gradually discovered, that he was a prisoner in +the hands of the Romans. Para suppressed his indignation, +dissembled his fears, and after secretly preparing his escape, +mounted on horseback with three hundred of his faithful +followers. The officer stationed at the door of his apartment +immediately communicated his flight to the consular of Cilicia, +who overtook him in the suburbs, and endeavored without success, +to dissuade him from prosecuting his rash and dangerous design. A +legion was ordered to pursue the royal fugitive; but the pursuit +of infantry could not be very alarming to a body of light +cavalry; and upon the first cloud of arrows that was discharged +into the air, they retreated with precipitation to the gates of +Tarsus. After an incessant march of two days and two nights, Para +and his Armenians reached the banks of the Euphrates; but the +passage of the river which they were obliged to swim, * was +attended with some delay and some loss. The country was alarmed; +and the two roads, which were only separated by an interval of +three miles had been occupied by a thousand archers on horseback, +under the command of a count and a tribune. Para must have +yielded to superior force, if the accidental arrival of a +friendly traveller had not revealed the danger and the means of +escape. A dark and almost impervious path securely conveyed the +Armenian troop through the thicket; and Para had left behind him +the count and the tribune, while they patiently expected his +approach along the public highways. They returned to the Imperial +court to excuse their want of diligence or success; and seriously +alleged, that the king of Armenia, who was a skilful magician, +had transformed himself and his followers, and passed before +their eyes under a borrowed shape. After his return to his native +kingdom, Para still continued to profess himself the friend and +ally of the Romans: but the Romans had injured him too deeply +ever to forgive, and the secret sentence of his death was signed +in the council of Valens. The execution of the bloody deed was +committed to the subtle prudence of Count Trajan; and he had the +merit of insinuating himself into the confidence of the credulous +prince, that he might find an opportunity of stabbing him to the +heart Para was invited to a Roman banquet, which had been +prepared with all the pomp and sensuality of the East; the hall +resounded with cheerful music, and the company was already heated +with wine; when the count retired for an instant, drew his sword, +and gave the signal of the murder. A robust and desperate +Barbarian instantly rushed on the king of Armenia; and though he +bravely defended his life with the first weapon that chance +offered to his hand, the table of the Imperial general was +stained with the royal blood of a guest, and an ally. Such were +the weak and wicked maxims of the Roman administration, that, to +attain a doubtful object of political interest the laws of +nations, and the sacred rights of hospitality were inhumanly +violated in the face of the world.<br> +</p> + +<p>V. During a peaceful interval of thirty years, the Romans +secured their frontiers, and the Goths extended their dominions. +The victories of the great Hermanric, king of the Ostrogoths, and +the most noble of the race of the Amali, have been compared, by +the enthusiasm of his countrymen, to the exploits of Alexander; +with this singular, and almost incredible, difference, that the +martial spirit of the Gothic hero, instead of being supported by +the vigor of youth, was displayed with glory and success in the +extreme period of human life, between the age of fourscore and +one hundred and ten years. The independent tribes were persuaded, +or compelled, to acknowledge the king of the Ostrogoths as the +sovereign of the Gothic nation: the chiefs of the Visigoths, or +Thervingi, renounced the royal title, and assumed the more humble +appellation of <strong><em>Judges</em></strong>; and, among those +judges, Athanaric, Fritigern, and Alavivus, were the most +illustrious, by their personal merit, as well as by their +vicinity to the Roman provinces. These domestic conquests, which +increased the military power of Hermanric, enlarged his ambitious +designs. He invaded the adjacent countries of the North; and +twelve considerable nations, whose names and limits cannot be +accurately defined, successively yielded to the superiority of +the Gothic arms The Heruli, who inhabited the marshy lands near +the lake Mæotis, were renowned for their strength and +agility; and the assistance of their light infantry was eagerly +solicited, and highly esteemed, in all the wars of the +Barbarians. But the active spirit of the Heruli was subdued by +the slow and steady perseverance of the Goths; and, after a +bloody action, in which the king was slain, the remains of that +warlike tribe became a useful accession to the camp of Hermanric. +He then marched against the Venedi; unskilled in the use of arms, +and formidable only by their numbers, which filled the wide +extent of the plains of modern Poland. The victorious Goths, who +were not inferior in numbers, prevailed in the contest, by the +decisive advantages of exercise and discipline. After the +submission of the Venedi, the conqueror advanced, without +resistance, as far as the confines of the Æstii; an ancient +people, whose name is still preserved in the province of +Esthonia. Those distant inhabitants of the Baltic coast were +supported by the labors of agriculture, enriched by the trade of +amber, and consecrated by the peculiar worship of the Mother of +the Gods. But the scarcity of iron obliged the Æstian +warriors to content themselves with wooden clubs; and the +reduction of that wealthy country is ascribed to the prudence, +rather than to the arms, of Hermanric. His dominions, which +extended from the Danube to the Baltic, included the native +seats, and the recent acquisitions, of the Goths; and he reigned +over the greatest part of Germany and Scythia with the authority +of a conqueror, and sometimes with the cruelty of a tyrant. But +he reigned over a part of the globe incapable of perpetuating and +adorning the glory of its heroes. The name of Hermanric is almost +buried in oblivion; his exploits are imperfectly known; and the +Romans themselves appeared unconscious of the progress of an +aspiring power which threatened the liberty of the North, and the +peace of the empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>The Goths had contracted an hereditary attachment for the +Imperial house of Constantine, of whose power and liberality they +had received so many signal proofs. They respected the public +peace; and if a hostile band sometimes presumed to pass the Roman +limit, their irregular conduct was candidly ascribed to the +ungovernable spirit of the Barbarian youth. Their contempt for +two new and obscure princes, who had been raised to the throne by +a popular election, inspired the Goths with bolder hopes; and, +while they agitated some design of marching their confederate +force under the national standard, they were easily tempted to +embrace the party of Procopius; and to foment, by their dangerous +aid, the civil discord of the Romans. The public treaty might +stipulate no more than ten thousand auxiliaries; but the design +was so zealously adopted by the chiefs of the Visigoths, that the +army which passed the Danube amounted to the number of thirty +thousand men. They marched with the proud confidence, that their +invincible valor would decide the fate of the Roman empire; and +the provinces of Thrace groaned under the weight of the +Barbarians, who displayed the insolence of masters and the +licentiousness of enemies. But the intemperance which gratified +their appetites, retarded their progress; and before the Goths +could receive any certain intelligence of the defeat and death of +Procopius, they perceived, by the hostile state of the country, +that the civil and military powers were resumed by his successful +rival. A chain of posts and fortifications, skilfully disposed by +Valens, or the generals of Valens, resisted their march, +prevented their retreat, and intercepted their subsistence. The +fierceness of the Barbarians was tamed and suspended by hunger; +they indignantly threw down their arms at the feet of the +conqueror, who offered them food and chains: the numerous +captives were distributed in all the cities of the East; and the +provincials, who were soon familiarized with their savage +appearance, ventured, by degrees, to measure their own strength +with these formidable adversaries, whose name had so long been +the object of their terror. The king of Scythia (and Hermanric +alone could deserve so lofty a title) was grieved and exasperated +by this national calamity. His ambassadors loudly complained, at +the court of Valens, of the infraction of the ancient and solemn +alliance, which had so long subsisted between the Romans and the +Goths. They alleged, that they had fulfilled the duty of allies, +by assisting the kinsman and successor of the emperor Julian; +they required the immediate restitution of the noble captives; +and they urged a very singular claim, that the Gothic generals +marching in arms, and in hostile array, were entitled to the +sacred character and privileges of ambassadors. The decent, but +peremptory, refusal of these extravagant demands, was signified +to the Barbarians by Victor, master-general of the cavalry; who +expressed, with force and dignity, the just complaints of the +emperor of the East. The negotiation was interrupted; and the +manly exhortations of Valentinian encouraged his timid brother to +vindicate the insulted majesty of the empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>The splendor and magnitude of this Gothic war are celebrated +by a contemporary historian: but the events scarcely deserve the +attention of posterity, except as the preliminary steps of the +approaching decline and fall of the empire. Instead of leading +the nations of Germany and Scythia to the banks of the Danube, or +even to the gates of Constantinople, the aged monarch of the +Goths resigned to the brave Athanaric the danger and glory of a +defensive war, against an enemy, who wielded with a feeble hand +the powers of a mighty state. A bridge of boats was established +upon the Danube; the presence of Valens animated his troops; and +his ignorance of the art of war was compensated by personal +bravery, and a wise deference to the advice of Victor and +Arintheus, his masters-general of the cavalry and infantry. The +operations of the campaign were conducted by their skill and +experience; but they found it impossible to drive the Visigoths +from their strong posts in the mountains; and the devastation of +the plains obliged the Romans themselves to repass the Danube on +the approach of winter. The incessant rains, which swelled the +waters of the river, produced a tacit suspension of arms, and +confined the emperor Valens, during the whole course of the +ensuing summer, to his camp of Marcianopolis. The third year of +the war was more favorable to the Romans, and more pernicious to +the Goths. The interruption of trade deprived the Barbarians of +the objects of luxury, which they already confounded with the +necessaries of life; and the desolation of a very extensive tract +of country threatened them with the horrors of famine. Athanaric +was provoked, or compelled, to risk a battle, which he lost, in +the plains; and the pursuit was rendered more bloody by the cruel +precaution of the victorious generals, who had promised a large +reward for the head of every Goth that was brought into the +Imperial camp. The submission of the Barbarians appeased the +resentment of Valens and his council: the emperor listened with +satisfaction to the flattering and eloquent remonstrance of the +senate of Constantinople, which assumed, for the first time, a +share in the public deliberations; and the same generals, Victor +and Arintheus, who had successfully directed the conduct of the +war, were empowered to regulate the conditions of peace. The +freedom of trade, which the Goths had hitherto enjoyed, was +restricted to two cities on the Danube; the rashness of their +leaders was severely punished by the suppression of their +pensions and subsidies; and the exception, which was stipulated +in favor of Athanaric alone, was more advantageous than honorable +to the Judge of the Visigoths. Athanaric, who, on this occasion, +appears to have consulted his private interest, without expecting +the orders of his sovereign, supported his own dignity, and that +of his tribe, in the personal interview which was proposed by the +ministers of Valens. He persisted in his declaration, that it was +impossible for him, without incurring the guilt of perjury, ever +to set his foot on the territory of the empire; and it is more +than probable, that his regard for the sanctity of an oath was +confirmed by the recent and fatal examples of Roman treachery. +The Danube, which separated the dominions of the two independent +nations, was chosen for the scene of the conference. The emperor +of the East, and the Judge of the Visigoths, accompanied by an +equal number of armed followers, advanced in their respective +barges to the middle of the stream. After the ratification of the +treaty, and the delivery of hostages, Valens returned in triumph +to Constantinople; and the Goths remained in a state of +tranquillity about six years; till they were violently impelled +against the Roman empire by an innumerable host of Scythians, who +appeared to issue from the frozen regions of the North.<br> +</p> + +<p>The emperor of the West, who had resigned to his brother the +command of the Lower Danube, reserved for his immediate care the +defence of the Rhætian and Illyrian provinces, which spread +so many hundred miles along the greatest of the European rivers. +The active policy of Valentinian was continually employed in +adding new fortifications to the security of the frontier: but +the abuse of this policy provoked the just resentment of the +Barbarians. The Quadi complained, that the ground for an intended +fortress had been marked out on their territories; and their +complaints were urged with so much reason and moderation, that +Equitius, master-general of Illyricum, consented to suspend the +prosecution of the work, till he should be more clearly informed +of the will of his sovereign. This fair occasion of injuring a +rival, and of advancing the fortune of his son, was eagerly +embraced by the inhuman Maximin, the præfect, or rather +tyrant, of Gaul. The passions of Valentinian were impatient of +control; and he credulously listened to the assurances of his +favorite, that if the government of Valeria, and the direction of +the work, were intrusted to the zeal of his son Marcellinus, the +emperor should no longer be importuned with the audacious +remonstrances of the Barbarians. The subjects of Rome, and the +natives of Germany, were insulted by the arrogance of a young and +worthless minister, who considered his rapid elevation as the +proof and reward of his superior merit. He affected, however, to +receive the modest application of Gabinius, king of the Quadi, +with some attention and regard: but this artful civility +concealed a dark and bloody design, and the credulous prince was +persuaded to accept the pressing invitation of Marcellinus. I am +at a loss how to vary the narrative of similar crimes; or how to +relate, that, in the course of the same year, but in remote parts +of the empire, the inhospitable table of two Imperial generals +was stained with the royal blood of two guests and allies, +inhumanly murdered by their order, and in their presence. The +fate of Gabinius, and of Para, was the same: but the cruel death +of their sovereign was resented in a very different manner by the +servile temper of the Armenians, and the free and daring spirit +of the Germans. The Quadi were much declined from that formidable +power, which, in the time of Marcus Antoninus, had spread terror +to the gates of Rome. But they still possessed arms and courage; +their courage was animated by despair, and they obtained the +usual reenforcement of the cavalry of their Sarmatian allies. So +improvident was the assassin Marcellinus, that he chose the +moment when the bravest veterans had been drawn away, to suppress +the revolt of Firmus; and the whole province was exposed, with a +very feeble defence, to the rage of the exasperated Barbarians. +They invaded Pannonia in the season of harvest; unmercifully +destroyed every object of plunder which they could not easily +transport; and either disregarded, or demolished, the empty +fortifications. The princess Constantia, the daughter of the +emperor Constantius, and the granddaughter of the great +Constantine, very narrowly escaped. That royal maid, who had +innocently supported the revolt of Procopius, was now the +destined wife of the heir of the Western empire. She traversed +the peaceful province with a splendid and unarmed train. Her +person was saved from danger, and the republic from disgrace, by +the active zeal of Messala, governor of the provinces. As soon as +he was informed that the village, where she stopped only to dine, +was almost encompassed by the Barbarians, he hastily placed her +in his own chariot, and drove full speed till he reached the +gates of Sirmium, which were at the distance of six-and-twenty +miles. Even Sirmium might not have been secure, if the Quadi and +Sarmatians had diligently advanced during the general +consternation of the magistrates and people. Their delay allowed +Probus, the Prætorian præfect, sufficient time to +recover his own spirits, and to revive the courage of the +citizens. He skilfully directed their strenuous efforts to repair +and strengthen the decayed fortifications; and procured the +seasonable and effectual assistance of a company of archers, to +protect the capital of the Illyrian provinces. Disappointed in +their attempts against the walls of Sirmium, the indignant +Barbarians turned their arms against the master general of the +frontier, to whom they unjustly attributed the murder of their +king. Equitius could bring into the field no more than two +legions; but they contained the veteran strength of the +Mæsian and Pannonian bands. The obstinacy with which they +disputed the vain honors of rank and precedency, was the cause of +their destruction; and while they acted with separate forces and +divided councils, they were surprised and slaughtered by the +active vigor of the Sarmatian horse. The success of this invasion +provoked the emulation of the bordering tribes; and the province +of Mæsia would infallibly have been lost, if young +Theodosius, the duke, or military commander, of the frontier, had +not signalized, in the defeat of the public enemy, an intrepid +genius, worthy of his illustrious father, and of his future +greatness.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXV: Reigns Of Jovian And Valentinian, +Division Of The Empire. -- Part VII.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The mind of Valentinian, who then resided at Treves, was +deeply affected by the calamities of Illyricum; but the lateness +of the season suspended the execution of his designs till the +ensuing spring. He marched in person, with a considerable part of +the forces of Gaul, from the banks of the Moselle: and to the +suppliant ambassadors of the Sarmatians, who met him on the way, +he returned a doubtful answer, that, as soon as he reached the +scene of action, he should examine, and pronounce. When he +arrived at Sirmium, he gave audience to the deputies of the +Illyrian provinces; who loudly congratulated their own felicity +under the auspicious government of Probus, his Prætorian +præfect. Valentinian, who was flattered by these +demonstrations of their loyalty and gratitude, imprudently asked +the deputy of Epirus, a Cynic philosopher of intrepid sincerity, +whether he was freely sent by the wishes of the province. "With +tears and groans am I sent," replied Iphicles, "by a reluctant +people." The emperor paused: but the impunity of his ministers +established the pernicious maxim, that they might oppress his +subjects, without injuring his service. A strict inquiry into +their conduct would have relieved the public discontent. The +severe condemnation of the murder of Gabinius, was the only +measure which could restore the confidence of the Germans, and +vindicate the honor of the Roman name. But the haughty monarch +was incapable of the magnanimity which dares to acknowledge a +fault. He forgot the provocation, remembered only the injury, and +advanced into the country of the Quadi with an insatiate thirst +of blood and revenge. The extreme devastation, and promiscuous +massacre, of a savage war, were justified, in the eyes of the +emperor, and perhaps in those of the world, by the cruel equity +of retaliation: and such was the discipline of the Romans, and +the consternation of the enemy, that Valentinian repassed the +Danube without the loss of a single man. As he had resolved to +complete the destruction of the Quadi by a second campaign, he +fixed his winter quarters at Bregetio, on the Danube, near the +Hungarian city of Presburg. While the operations of war were +suspended by the severity of the weather, the Quadi made an +humble attempt to deprecate the wrath of their conqueror; and, at +the earnest persuasion of Equitius, their ambassadors were +introduced into the Imperial council. They approached the throne +with bended bodies and dejected countenances; and without daring +to complain of the murder of their king, they affirmed, with +solemn oaths, that the late invasion was the crime of some +irregular robbers, which the public council of the nation +condemned and abhorred. The answer of the emperor left them but +little to hope from his clemency or compassion. He reviled, in +the most intemperate language, their baseness, their ingratitude, +their insolence. His eyes, his voice, his color, his gestures, +expressed the violence of his ungoverned fury; and while his +whole frame was agitated with convulsive passion, a large blood +vessel suddenly burst in his body; and Valentinian fell +speechless into the arms of his attendants. Their pious care +immediately concealed his situation from the crowd; but, in a few +minutes, the emperor of the West expired in an agony of pain, +retaining his senses till the last; and struggling, without +success, to declare his intentions to the generals and ministers, +who surrounded the royal couch. Valentinian was about fifty-four +years of age; and he wanted only one hundred days to accomplish +the twelve years of his reign.<br> +</p> + +<p>The polygamy of Valentinian is seriously attested by an +ecclesiastical historian. "The empress Severa (I relate the +fable) admitted into her familiar society the lovely Justina, the +daughter of an Italian governor: her admiration of those naked +charms, which she had often seen in the bath, was expressed with +such lavish and imprudent praise, that the emperor was tempted to +introduce a second wife into his bed; and his public edict +extended to all the subjects of the empire the same domestic +privilege which he had assumed for himself." But we may be +assured, from the evidence of reason as well as history, that the +two marriages of Valentinian, with Severa, and with Justina, were +<strong><em>successively</em></strong> contracted; and that he +used the ancient permission of divorce, which was still allowed +by the laws, though it was condemned by the church Severa was the +mother of Gratian, who seemed to unite every claim which could +entitle him to the undoubted succession of the Western empire. He +was the eldest son of a monarch whose glorious reign had +confirmed the free and honorable choice of his fellow-soldiers. +Before he had attained the ninth year of his age, the royal youth +received from the hands of his indulgent father the purple robe +and diadem, with the title of Augustus; the election was solemnly +ratified by the consent and applause of the armies of Gaul; and +the name of Gratian was added to the names of Valentinian and +Valens, in all the legal transactions of the Roman government. By +his marriage with the granddaughter of Constantine, the son of +Valentinian acquired all the hereditary rights of the Flavian +family; which, in a series of three Imperial generations, were +sanctified by time, religion, and the reverence of the people. At +the death of his father, the royal youth was in the seventeenth +year of his age; and his virtues already justified the favorable +opinion of the army and the people. But Gratian resided, without +apprehension, in the palace of Treves; whilst, at the distance of +many hundred miles, Valentinian suddenly expired in the camp of +Bregetio. The passions, which had been so long suppressed by the +presence of a master, immediately revived in the Imperial +council; and the ambitious design of reigning in the name of an +infant, was artfully executed by Mellobaudes and Equitius, who +commanded the attachment of the Illyrian and Italian bands. They +contrived the most honorable pretences to remove the popular +leaders, and the troops of Gaul, who might have asserted the +claims of the lawful successor; they suggested the necessity of +extinguishing the hopes of foreign and domestic enemies, by a +bold and decisive measure. The empress Justina, who had been left +in a palace about one hundred miles from Bregetio, was +respectively invited to appear in the camp, with the son of the +deceased emperor. On the sixth day after the death of +Valentinian, the infant prince of the same name, who was only +four years old, was shown, in the arms of his mother, to the +legions; and solemnly invested, by military acclamation, with the +titles and ensigns of supreme power. The impending dangers of a +civil war were seasonably prevented by the wise and moderate +conduct of the emperor Gratian. He cheerfully accepted the choice +of the army; declared that he should always consider the son of +Justina as a brother, not as a rival; and advised the empress, +with her son Valentinian to fix their residence at Milan, in the +fair and peaceful province of Italy; while he assumed the more +arduous command of the countries beyond the Alps. Gratian +dissembled his resentment till he could safely punish, or +disgrace, the authors of the conspiracy; and though he uniformly +behaved with tenderness and regard to his infant colleague, he +gradually confounded, in the administration of the Western +empire, the office of a guardian with the authority of a +sovereign. The government of the Roman world was exercised in the +united names of Valens and his two nephews; but the feeble +emperor of the East, who succeeded to the rank of his elder +brother, never obtained any weight or influence in the councils +of the West.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong>Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns.</strong></p> + +<p><strong><em>Part I.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Manners Of The Pastoral Nations. -- Progress Of The Huns, From +China To Europe. -- Flight Of The Goths. -- They Pass The Danube. +-- Gothic War. -- Defeat And Death Of Valens. -- Gratian Invests +Theodosius With The Eastern Empire. -- His Character And Success. +-- Peace And Settlement Of The Goths.<br> +</p> + +<p>In the second year of the reign of Valentinian and Valens, on +the morning of the twenty-first day of July, the greatest part of +the Roman world was shaken by a violent and destructive +earthquake. The impression was communicated to the waters; the +shores of the Mediterranean were left dry, by the sudden retreat +of the sea; great quantities of fish were caught with the hand; +large vessels were stranded on the mud; and a curious spectator +amused his eye, or rather his fancy, by contemplating the various +appearance of valleys and mountains, which had never, since the +formation of the globe, been exposed to the sun. But the tide +soon returned, with the weight of an immense and irresistible +deluge, which was severely felt on the coasts of Sicily, of +Dalmatia, of Greece, and of Egypt: large boats were transported, +and lodged on the roofs of houses, or at the distance of two +miles from the shore; the people, with their habitations, were +swept away by the waters; and the city of Alexandria annually +commemorated the fatal day, on which fifty thousand persons had +lost their lives in the inundation. This calamity, the report of +which was magnified from one province to another, astonished and +terrified the subjects of Rome; and their affrighted imagination +enlarged the real extent of a momentary evil. They recollected +the preceding earthquakes, which had subverted the cities of +Palestine and Bithynia: they considered these alarming strokes as +the prelude only of still more dreadful calamities, and their +fearful vanity was disposed to confound the symptoms of a +declining empire and a sinking world. It was the fashion of the +times to attribute every remarkable event to the particular will +of the Deity; the alterations of nature were connected, by an +invisible chain, with the moral and metaphysical opinions of the +human mind; and the most sagacious divines could distinguish, +according to the color of their respective prejudices, that the +establishment of heresy tended to produce an earthquake; or that +a deluge was the inevitable consequence of the progress of sin +and error. Without presuming to discuss the truth or propriety of +these lofty speculations, the historian may content himself with +an observation, which seems to be justified by experience, that +man has much more to fear from the passions of his +fellow-creatures, than from the convulsions of the elements. The +mischievous effects of an earthquake, or deluge, a hurricane, or +the eruption of a volcano, bear a very inconsiderable portion to +the ordinary calamities of war, as they are now moderated by the +prudence or humanity of the princes of Europe, who amuse their +own leisure, and exercise the courage of their subjects, in the +practice of the military art. But the laws and manners of modern +nations protect the safety and freedom of the vanquished soldier; +and the peaceful citizen has seldom reason to complain, that his +life, or even his fortune, is exposed to the rage of war. In the +disastrous period of the fall of the Roman empire, which may +justly be dated from the reign of Valens, the happiness and +security of each individual were personally attacked; and the +arts and labors of ages were rudely defaced by the Barbarians of +Scythia and Germany. The invasion of the Huns precipitated on the +provinces of the West the Gothic nation, which advanced, in less +than forty years, from the Danube to the Atlantic, and opened a +way, by the success of their arms, to the inroads of so many +hostile tribes, more savage than themselves. The original +principle of motion was concealed in the remote countries of the +North; and the curious observation of the pastoral life of the +Scythians, or Tartars, will illustrate the latent cause of these +destructive emigrations.<br> +</p> + +<p>The different characters that mark the civilized nations of +the globe, may be ascribed to the use, and the abuse, of reason; +which so variously shapes, and so artificially composes, the +manners and opinions of a European, or a Chinese. But the +operation of instinct is more sure and simple than that of +reason: it is much easier to ascertain the appetites of a +quadruped than the speculations of a philosopher; and the savage +tribes of mankind, as they approach nearer to the condition of +animals, preserve a stronger resemblance to themselves and to +each other. The uniform stability of their manners is the natural +consequence of the imperfection of their faculties. Reduced to a +similar situation, their wants, their desires, their enjoyments, +still continue the same: and the influence of food or climate, +which, in a more improved state of society, is suspended, or +subdued, by so many moral causes, most powerfully contributes to +form, and to maintain, the national character of Barbarians. In +every age, the immense plains of Scythia, or Tartary, have been +inhabited by vagrant tribes of hunters and shepherds, whose +indolence refuses to cultivate the earth, and whose restless +spirit disdains the confinement of a sedentary life. In every +age, the Scythians, and Tartars, have been renowned for their +invincible courage and rapid conquests. The thrones of Asia have +been repeatedly overturned by the shepherds of the North; and +their arms have spread terror and devastation over the most +fertile and warlike countries of Europe. On this occasion, as +well as on many others, the sober historian is forcibly awakened +from a pleasing vision; and is compelled, with some reluctance, +to confess, that the pastoral manners, which have been adorned +with the fairest attributes of peace and innocence, are much +better adapted to the fierce and cruel habits of a military life. +To illustrate this observation, I shall now proceed to consider a +nation of shepherds and of warriors, in the three important +articles of, I. Their diet; II. Their habitations; and, III. +Their exercises. The narratives of antiquity are justified by the +experience of modern times; and the banks of the Borysthenes, of +the Volga, or of the Selinga, will indifferently present the same +uniform spectacle of similar and native manners.<br> +</p> + +<p>I. The corn, or even the rice, which constitutes the ordinary +and wholesome food of a civilized people, can be obtained only by +the patient toil of the husbandman. Some of the happy savages, +who dwell between the tropics, are plentifully nourished by the +liberality of nature; but in the climates of the North, a nation +of shepherds is reduced to their flocks and herds. The skilful +practitioners of the medical art will determine (if they are able +to determine) how far the temper of the human mind may be +affected by the use of animal, or of vegetable, food; and whether +the common association of carnivorous and cruel deserves to be +considered in any other light than that of an innocent, perhaps a +salutary, prejudice of humanity. Yet, if it be true, that the +sentiment of compassion is imperceptibly weakened by the sight +and practice of domestic cruelty, we may observe, that the horrid +objects which are disguised by the arts of European refinement, +are exhibited in their naked and most disgusting simplicity in +the tent of a Tartarian shepherd. The ox, or the sheep, are +slaughtered by the same hand from which they were accustomed to +receive their daily food; and the bleeding limbs are served, with +very little preparation, on the table of their unfeeling +murderer. In the military profession, and especially in the +conduct of a numerous army, the exclusive use of animal food +appears to be productive of the most solid advantages. Corn is a +bulky and perishable commodity; and the large magazines, which +are indispensably necessary for the subsistence of our troops, +must be slowly transported by the labor of men or horses. But the +flocks and herds, which accompany the march of the Tartars, +afford a sure and increasing supply of flesh and milk: in the far +greater part of the uncultivated waste, the vegetation of the +grass is quick and luxuriant; and there are few places so +extremely barren, that the hardy cattle of the North cannot find +some tolerable pasture. The supply is multiplied and prolonged by +the undistinguishing appetite, and patient abstinence, of the +Tartars. They indifferently feed on the flesh of those animals +that have been killed for the table, or have died of disease. +Horseflesh, which in every age and country has been proscribed by +the civilized nations of Europe and Asia, they devour with +peculiar greediness; and this singular taste facilitates the +success of their military operations. The active cavalry of +Scythia is always followed, in their most distant and rapid +incursions, by an adequate number of spare horses, who may be +occasionally used, either to redouble the speed, or to satisfy +the hunger, of the Barbarians. Many are the resources of courage +and poverty. When the forage round a camp of Tartars is almost +consumed, they slaughter the greatest part of their cattle, and +preserve the flesh, either smoked, or dried in the sun. On the +sudden emergency of a hasty march, they provide themselves with a +sufficient quantity of little balls of cheese, or rather of hard +curd, which they occasionally dissolve in water; and this +unsubstantial diet will support, for many days, the life, and +even the spirits, of the patient warrior. But this extraordinary +abstinence, which the Stoic would approve, and the hermit might +envy, is commonly succeeded by the most voracious indulgence of +appetite. The wines of a happier climate are the most grateful +present, or the most valuable commodity, that can be offered to +the Tartars; and the only example of their industry seems to +consist in the art of extracting from mare's milk a fermented +liquor, which possesses a very strong power of intoxication. Like +the animals of prey, the savages, both of the old and new world, +experience the alternate vicissitudes of famine and plenty; and +their stomach is inured to sustain, without much inconvenience, +the opposite extremes of hunger and of intemperance.<br> +</p> + +<p>II. In the ages of rustic and martial simplicity, a people of +soldiers and husbandmen are dispersed over the face of an +extensive and cultivated country; and some time must elapse +before the warlike youth of Greece or Italy could be assembled +under the same standard, either to defend their own confines, or +to invade the territories of the adjacent tribes. The progress of +manufactures and commerce insensibly collects a large multitude +within the walls of a city: but these citizens are no longer +soldiers; and the arts which adorn and improve the state of civil +society, corrupt the habits of the military life. The pastoral +manners of the Scythians seem to unite the different advantages +of simplicity and refinement. The individuals of the same tribe +are constantly assembled, but they are assembled in a camp; and +the native spirit of these dauntless shepherds is animated by +mutual support and emulation. The houses of the Tartars are no +more than small tents, of an oval form, which afford a cold and +dirty habitation, for the promiscuous youth of both sexes. The +palaces of the rich consist of wooden huts, of such a size that +they may be conveniently fixed on large wagons, and drawn by a +team perhaps of twenty or thirty oxen. The flocks and herds, +after grazing all day in the adjacent pastures, retire, on the +approach of night, within the protection of the camp. The +necessity of preventing the most mischievous confusion, in such a +perpetual concourse of men and animals, must gradually introduce, +in the distribution, the order, and the guard, of the encampment, +the rudiments of the military art. As soon as the forage of a +certain district is consumed, the tribe, or rather army, of +shepherds, makes a regular march to some fresh pastures; and thus +acquires, in the ordinary occupations of the pastoral life, the +practical knowledge of one of the most important and difficult +operations of war. The choice of stations is regulated by the +difference of the seasons: in the summer, the Tartars advance +towards the North, and pitch their tents on the banks of a river, +or, at least, in the neighborhood of a running stream. But in the +winter, they return to the South, and shelter their camp, behind +some convenient eminence, against the winds, which are chilled in +their passage over the bleak and icy regions of Siberia. These +manners are admirably adapted to diffuse, among the wandering +tribes, the spirit of emigration and conquest. The connection +between the people and their territory is of so frail a texture, +that it may be broken by the slightest accident. The camp, and +not the soil, is the native country of the genuine Tartar. Within +the precincts of that camp, his family, his companions, his +property, are always included; and, in the most distant marches, +he is still surrounded by the objects which are dear, or +valuable, or familiar in his eyes. The thirst of rapine, the +fear, or the resentment of injury, the impatience of servitude, +have, in every age, been sufficient causes to urge the tribes of +Scythia boldly to advance into some unknown countries, where they +might hope to find a more plentiful subsistence or a less +formidable enemy. The revolutions of the North have frequently +determined the fate of the South; and in the conflict of hostile +nations, the victor and the vanquished have alternately drove, +and been driven, from the confines of China to those of Germany. +These great emigrations, which have been sometimes executed with +almost incredible diligence, were rendered more easy by the +peculiar nature of the climate. It is well known that the cold of +Tartary is much more severe than in the midst of the temperate +zone might reasonably be expected; this uncommon rigor is +attributed to the height of the plains, which rise, especially +towards the East, more than half a mile above the level of the +sea; and to the quantity of saltpetre with which the soil is +deeply impregnated. In the winter season, the broad and rapid +rivers, that discharge their waters into the Euxine, the Caspian, +or the Icy Sea, are strongly frozen; the fields are covered with +a bed of snow; and the fugitive, or victorious, tribes may +securely traverse, with their families, their wagons, and their +cattle, the smooth and hard surface of an immense plain.<br> +</p> + +<p>III. The pastoral life, compared with the labors of +agriculture and manufactures, is undoubtedly a life of idleness; +and as the most honorable shepherds of the Tartar race devolve on +their captives the domestic management of the cattle, their own +leisure is seldom disturbed by any servile and assiduous cares. +But this leisure, instead of being devoted to the soft enjoyments +of love and harmony, is use fully spent in the violent and +sanguinary exercise of the chase. The plains of Tartary are +filled with a strong and serviceable breed of horses, which are +easily trained for the purposes of war and hunting. The Scythians +of every age have been celebrated as bold and skilful riders; and +constant practice had seated them so firmly on horseback, that +they were supposed by strangers to perform the ordinary duties of +civil life, to eat, to drink, and even to sleep, without +dismounting from their steeds. They excel in the dexterous +management of the lance; the long Tartar bow is drawn with a +nervous arm; and the weighty arrow is directed to its object with +unerring aim and irresistible force. These arrows are often +pointed against the harmless animals of the desert, which +increase and multiply in the absence of their most formidable +enemy; the hare, the goat, the roebuck, the fallow-deer, the +stag, the elk, and the antelope. The vigor and patience, both of +the men and horses, are continually exercised by the fatigues of +the chase; and the plentiful supply of game contributes to the +subsistence, and even luxury, of a Tartar camp. But the exploits +of the hunters of Scythia are not confined to the destruction of +timid or innoxious beasts; they boldly encounter the angry wild +boar, when he turns against his pursuers, excite the sluggish +courage of the bear, and provoke the fury of the tiger, as he +slumbers in the thicket. Where there is danger, there may be +glory; and the mode of hunting, which opens the fairest field to +the exertions of valor, may justly be considered as the image, +and as the school, of war. The general hunting matches, the pride +and delight of the Tartar princes, compose an instructive +exercise for their numerous cavalry. A circle is drawn, of many +miles in circumference, to encompass the game of an extensive +district; and the troops that form the circle regularly advance +towards a common centre; where the captive animals, surrounded on +every side, are abandoned to the darts of the hunters. In this +march, which frequently continues many days, the cavalry are +obliged to climb the hills, to swim the rivers, and to wind +through the valleys, without interrupting the prescribed order of +their gradual progress. They acquire the habit of directing their +eye, and their steps, to a remote object; of preserving their +intervals of suspending or accelerating their pace, according to +the motions of the troops on their right and left; and of +watching and repeating the signals of their leaders. Their +leaders study, in this practical school, the most important +lesson of the military art; the prompt and accurate judgment of +ground, of distance, and of time. To employ against a human enemy +the same patience and valor, the same skill and discipline, is +the only alteration which is required in real war; and the +amusements of the chase serve as a prelude to the conquest of an +empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>The political society of the ancient Germans has the +appearance of a voluntary alliance of independent warriors. The +tribes of Scythia, distinguished by the modern appellation of +<strong><em>Hords</em></strong>, assume the form of a numerous +and increasing family; which, in the course of successive +generations, has been propagated from the same original stock. +The meanest, and most ignorant, of the Tartars, preserve, with +conscious pride, the inestimable treasure of their genealogy; and +whatever distinctions of rank may have been introduced, by the +unequal distribution of pastoral wealth, they mutually respect +themselves, and each other, as the descendants of the first +founder of the tribe. The custom, which still prevails, of +adopting the bravest and most faithful of the captives, may +countenance the very probable suspicion, that this extensive +consanguinity is, in a great measure, legal and fictitious. But +the useful prejudice, which has obtained the sanction of time and +opinion, produces the effects of truth; the haughty Barbarians +yield a cheerful and voluntary obedience to the head of their +blood; and their chief, or <strong><em>mursa</em></strong>, as +the representative of their great father, exercises the authority +of a judge in peace, and of a leader in war. In the original +state of the pastoral world, each of the +<strong><em>mursas</em></strong> (if we may continue to use a +modern appellation) acted as the independent chief of a large and +separate family; and the limits of their peculiar territories +were gradually fixed by superior force, or mutual consent. But +the constant operation of various and permanent causes +contributed to unite the vagrant Hords into national communities, +under the command of a supreme head. The weak were desirous of +support, and the strong were ambitious of dominion; the power, +which is the result of union, oppressed and collected the divided +force of the adjacent tribes; and, as the vanquished were freely +admitted to share the advantages of victory, the most valiant +chiefs hastened to range themselves and their followers under the +formidable standard of a confederate nation. The most successful +of the Tartar princes assumed the military command, to which he +was entitled by the superiority, either of merit or of power. He +was raised to the throne by the acclamations of his equals; and +the title of <strong><em>Khan</em></strong> expresses, in the +language of the North of Asia, the full extent of the regal +dignity. The right of hereditary succession was long confined to +the blood of the founder of the monarchy; and at this moment all +the Khans, who reign from Crimea to the wall of China, are the +lineal descendants of the renowned Zingis. But, as it is the +indispensable duty of a Tartar sovereign to lead his warlike +subjects into the field, the claims of an infant are often +disregarded; and some royal kinsman, distinguished by his age and +valor, is intrusted with the sword and sceptre of his +predecessor. Two distinct and regular taxes are levied on the +tribes, to support the dignity of the national monarch, and of +their peculiar chief; and each of those contributions amounts to +the tithe, both of their property, and of their spoil. A Tartar +sovereign enjoys the tenth part of the wealth of his people; and +as his own domestic riches of flocks and herds increase in a much +larger proportion, he is able plentifully to maintain the rustic +splendor of his court, to reward the most deserving, or the most +favored of his followers, and to obtain, from the gentle +influence of corruption, the obedience which might be sometimes +refused to the stern mandates of authority. The manners of his +subjects, accustomed, like himself, to blood and rapine, might +excuse, in their eyes, such partial acts of tyranny, as would +excite the horror of a civilized people; but the power of a +despot has never been acknowledged in the deserts of Scythia. The +immediate jurisdiction of the khan is confined within the limits +of his own tribe; and the exercise of his royal prerogative has +been moderated by the ancient institution of a national council. +The Coroultai, or Diet, of the Tartars, was regularly held in the +spring and autumn, in the midst of a plain; where the princes of +the reigning family, and the mursas of the respective tribes, may +conveniently assemble on horseback, with their martial and +numerous trains; and the ambitious monarch, who reviewed the +strength, must consult the inclination of an armed people. The +rudiments of a feudal government may be discovered in the +constitution of the Scythian or Tartar nations; but the perpetual +conflict of those hostile nations has sometimes terminated in the +establishment of a powerful and despotic empire. The victor, +enriched by the tribute, and fortified by the arms of dependent +kings, has spread his conquests over Europe or Asia: the +successful shepherds of the North have submitted to the +confinement of arts, of laws, and of cities; and the introduction +of luxury, after destroying the freedom of the people, has +undermined the foundations of the throne.<br> +</p> + +<p>The memory of past events cannot long be preserved in the +frequent and remote emigrations of illiterate Barbarians. The +modern Tartars are ignorant of the conquests of their ancestors; +and our knowledge of the history of the Scythians is derived from +their intercourse with the learned and civilized nations of the +South, the Greeks, the Persians, and the Chinese. The Greeks, who +navigated the Euxine, and planted their colonies along the +sea-coast, made the gradual and imperfect discovery of Scythia; +from the Danube, and the confines of Thrace, as far as the frozen +Mæotis, the seat of eternal winter, and Mount Caucasus, +which, in the language of poetry, was described as the utmost +boundary of the earth. They celebrated, with simple credulity, +the virtues of the pastoral life: they entertained a more +rational apprehension of the strength and numbers of the warlike +Barbarians, who contemptuously baffled the immense armament of +Darius, the son of Hystaspes. The Persian monarchs had extended +their western conquests to the banks of the Danube, and the +limits of European Scythia. The eastern provinces of their empire +were exposed to the Scythians of Asia; the wild inhabitants of +the plains beyond the Oxus and the Jaxartes, two mighty rivers, +which direct their course towards the Caspian Sea. The long and +memorable quarrel of Iran and Touran is still the theme of +history or romance: the famous, perhaps the fabulous, valor of +the Persian heroes, Rustan and Asfendiar, was signalized, in the +defence of their country, against the Afrasiabs of the North; and +the invincible spirit of the same Barbarians resisted, on the +same ground, the victorious arms of Cyrus and Alexander. In the +eyes of the Greeks and Persians, the real geography of Scythia +was bounded, on the East, by the mountains of Imaus, or Caf; and +their distant prospect of the extreme and inaccessible parts of +Asia was clouded by ignorance, or perplexed by fiction. But those +inaccessible regions are the ancient residence of a powerful and +civilized nation, which ascends, by a probable tradition, above +forty centuries; and which is able to verify a series of near two +thousand years, by the perpetual testimony of accurate and +contemporary historians. The annals of China illustrate the state +and revolutions of the pastoral tribes, which may still be +distinguished by the vague appellation of Scythians, or Tartars; +the vassals, the enemies, and sometimes the conquerors, of a +great empire; whose policy has uniformly opposed the blind and +impetuous valor of the Barbarians of the North. From the mouth of +the Danube to the Sea of Japan, the whole longitude of Scythia is +about one hundred and ten degrees, which, in that parallel, are +equal to more than five thousand miles. The latitude of these +extensive deserts cannot be so easily, or so accurately, +measured; but, from the fortieth degree, which touches the wall +of China, we may securely advance above a thousand miles to the +northward, till our progress is stopped by the excessive cold of +Siberia. In that dreary climate, instead of the animated picture +of a Tartar camp, the smoke that issues from the earth, or rather +from the snow, betrays the subterraneous dwellings of the +Tongouses, and the Samoides: the want of horses and oxen is +imperfectly supplied by the use of reindeer, and of large dogs; +and the conquerors of the earth insensibly degenerate into a race +of deformed and diminutive savages, who tremble at the sound of +arms.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns. -- Part +II.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>The Huns, who under the reign of Valens threatened the empire +of Rome, had been formidable, in a much earlier period, to the +empire of China. Their ancient, perhaps their original, seat was +an extensive, though dry and barren, tract of country, +immediately on the north side of the great wall. Their place is +at present occupied by the forty-nine Hords or Banners of the +Mongous, a pastoral nation, which consists of about two hundred +thousand families. But the valor of the Huns had extended the +narrow limits of their dominions; and their rustic chiefs, who +assumed the appellation of <strong><em>Tanjou</em></strong>, +gradually became the conquerors, and the sovereigns of a +formidable empire. Towards the East, their victorious arms were +stopped only by the ocean; and the tribes, which are thinly +scattered between the Amoor and the extreme peninsula of Corea, +adhered, with reluctance, to the standard of the Huns. On the +West, near the head of the Irtish, in the valleys of Imaus, they +found a more ample space, and more numerous enemies. One of the +lieutenants of the Tanjou subdued, in a single expedition, +twenty-six nations; the Igours, distinguished above the Tartar +race by the use of letters, were in the number of his vassals; +and, by the strange connection of human events, the flight of one +of those vagrant tribes recalled the victorious Parthians from +the invasion of Syria. On the side of the North, the ocean was +assigned as the limit of the power of the Huns. Without enemies +to resist their progress, or witnesses to contradict their +vanity, they might securely achieve a real, or imaginary, +conquest of the frozen regions of Siberia. The +<strong><em>Northern Sea</em></strong> was fixed as the remote +boundary of their empire. But the name of that sea, on whose +shores the patriot Sovou embraced the life of a shepherd and an +exile, may be transferred, with much more probability, to the +Baikal, a capacious basin, above three hundred miles in length, +which disdains the modest appellation of a lake and which +actually communicates with the seas of the North, by the long +course of the Angara, the Tongusha, and the Jenissea. The +submission of so many distant nations might flatter the pride of +the Tanjou; but the valor of the Huns could be rewarded only by +the enjoyment of the wealth and luxury of the empire of the +South. In the third century before the Christian æra, a +wall of fifteen hundred miles in length was constructed, to +defend the frontiers of China against the inroads of the Huns; +but this stupendous work, which holds a conspicuous place in the +map of the world, has never contributed to the safety of an +unwarlike people. The cavalry of the Tanjou frequently consisted +of two or three hundred thousand men, formidable by the matchless +dexterity with which they managed their bows and their horses: by +their hardy patience in supporting the inclemency of the weather; +and by the incredible speed of their march, which was seldom +checked by torrents, or precipices, by the deepest rivers, or by +the most lofty mountains. They spread themselves at once over the +face of the country; and their rapid impetuosity surprised, +astonished, and disconcerted the grave and elaborate tactics of a +Chinese army. The emperor Kaoti, a soldier of fortune, whose +personal merit had raised him to the throne, marched against the +Huns with those veteran troops which had been trained in the +civil wars of China. But he was soon surrounded by the +Barbarians; and, after a siege of seven days, the monarch, +hopeless of relief, was reduced to purchase his deliverance by an +ignominious capitulation. The successors of Kaoti, whose lives +were dedicated to the arts of peace, or the luxury of the palace, +submitted to a more permanent disgrace. They too hastily +confessed the insufficiency of arms and fortifications. They were +too easily convinced, that while the blazing signals announced on +every side the approach of the Huns, the Chinese troops, who +slept with the helmet on their head, and the cuirass on their +back, were destroyed by the incessant labor of ineffectual +marches. A regular payment of money, and silk, was stipulated as +the condition of a temporary and precarious peace; and the +wretched expedient of disguising a real tribute, under the names +of a gift or subsidy, was practised by the emperors of China as +well as by those of Rome. But there still remained a more +disgraceful article of tribute, which violated the sacred +feelings of humanity and nature. The hardships of the savage +life, which destroy in their infancy the children who are born +with a less healthy and robust constitution, introduced a +remarkable disproportion between the numbers of the two sexes. +The Tartars are an ugly and even deformed race; and while they +consider their own women as the instruments of domestic labor, +their desires, or rather their appetites, are directed to the +enjoyment of more elegant beauty. A select band of the fairest +maidens of China was annually devoted to the rude embraces of the +Huns; and the alliance of the haughty Tanjous was secured by +their marriage with the genuine, or adopted, daughters of the +Imperial family, which vainly attempted to escape the +sacrilegious pollution. The situation of these unhappy victims is +described in the verses of a Chinese princess, who laments that +she had been condemned by her parents to a distant exile, under a +Barbarian husband; who complains that sour milk was her only +drink, raw flesh her only food, a tent her only palace; and who +expresses, in a strain of pathetic simplicity, the natural wish, +that she were transformed into a bird, to fly back to her dear +country; the object of her tender and perpetual regret.<br> +</p> + +<p>The conquest of China has been twice achieved by the pastoral +tribes of the North: the forces of the Huns were not inferior to +those of the Moguls, or of the Mantcheoux; and their ambition +might entertain the most sanguine hopes of success. But their +pride was humbled, and their progress was checked, by the arms +and policy of Vouti, the fifth emperor of the powerful dynasty of +the Han. In his long reign of fifty-four years, the Barbarians of +the southern provinces submitted to the laws and manners of +China; and the ancient limits of the monarchy were enlarged, from +the great river of Kiang, to the port of Canton. Instead of +confining himself to the timid operations of a defensive war, his +lieutenants penetrated many hundred miles into the country of the +Huns. In those boundless deserts, where it is impossible to form +magazines, and difficult to transport a sufficient supply of +provisions, the armies of Vouti were repeatedly exposed to +intolerable hardships: and, of one hundred and forty thousand +soldiers, who marched against the Barbarians, thirty thousand +only returned in safety to the feet of their master. These +losses, however, were compensated by splendid and decisive +success. The Chinese generals improved the superiority which they +derived from the temper of their arms, their chariots of war, and +the service of their Tartar auxiliaries. The camp of the Tanjou +was surprised in the midst of sleep and intemperance; and, though +the monarch of the Huns bravely cut his way through the ranks of +the enemy, he left above fifteen thousand of his subjects on the +field of battle. Yet this signal victory, which was preceded and +followed by many bloody engagements, contributed much less to the +destruction of the power of the Huns than the effectual policy +which was employed to detach the tributary nations from their +obedience. Intimidated by the arms, or allured by the promises, +of Vouti and his successors, the most considerable tribes, both +of the East and of the West, disclaimed the authority of the +Tanjou. While some acknowledged themselves the allies or vassals +of the empire, they all became the implacable enemies of the +Huns; and the numbers of that haughty people, as soon as they +were reduced to their native strength, might, perhaps, have been +contained within the walls of one of the great and populous +cities of China. The desertion of his subjects, and the +perplexity of a civil war, at length compelled the Tanjou himself +to renounce the dignity of an independent sovereign, and the +freedom of a warlike and high-spirited nation. He was received at +Sigan, the capital of the monarchy, by the troops, the mandarins, +and the emperor himself, with all the honors that could adorn and +disguise the triumph of Chinese vanity. A magnificent palace was +prepared for his reception; his place was assigned above all the +princes of the royal family; and the patience of the Barbarian +king was exhausted by the ceremonies of a banquet, which +consisted of eight courses of meat, and of nine solemn pieces of +music. But he performed, on his knees, the duty of a respectful +homage to the emperor of China; pronounced, in his own name, and +in the name of his successors, a perpetual oath of fidelity; and +gratefully accepted a seal, which was bestowed as the emblem of +his regal dependence. After this humiliating submission, the +Tanjous sometimes departed from their allegiance and seized the +favorable moments of war and rapine; but the monarchy of the Huns +gradually declined, till it was broken, by civil dissension, into +two hostile and separate kingdoms. One of the princes of the +nation was urged, by fear and ambition, to retire towards the +South with eight hords, which composed between forty and fifty +thousand families. He obtained, with the title of Tanjou, a +convenient territory on the verge of the Chinese provinces; and +his constant attachment to the service of the empire was secured +by weakness, and the desire of revenge. From the time of this +fatal schism, the Huns of the North continued to languish about +fifty years; till they were oppressed on every side by their +foreign and domestic enemies. The proud inscription of a column, +erected on a lofty mountain, announced to posterity, that a +Chinese army had marched seven hundred miles into the heart of +their country. The Sienpi, a tribe of Oriental Tartars, +retaliated the injuries which they had formerly sustained; and +the power of the Tanjous, after a reign of thirteen hundred +years, was utterly destroyed before the end of the first century +of the Christian æra.<br> +</p> + +<p>The fate of the vanquished Huns was diversified by the various +influence of character and situation. Above one hundred thousand +persons, the poorest, indeed, and the most pusillanimous of the +people, were contented to remain in their native country, to +renounce their peculiar name and origin, and to mingle with the +victorious nation of the Sienpi. Fifty-eight hords, about two +hundred thousand men, ambitious of a more honorable servitude, +retired towards the South; implored the protection of the +emperors of China; and were permitted to inhabit, and to guard, +the extreme frontiers of the province of Chansi and the territory +of Ortous. But the most warlike and powerful tribes of the Huns +maintained, in their adverse fortune, the undaunted spirit of +their ancestors. The Western world was open to their valor; and +they resolved, under the conduct of their hereditary chieftains, +to conquer and subdue some remote country, which was still +inaccessible to the arms of the Sienpi, and to the laws of China. +The course of their emigration soon carried them beyond the +mountains of Imaus, and the limits of the Chinese geography; but +we are able to distinguish the two great divisions of these +formidable exiles, which directed their march towards the Oxus, +and towards the Volga. The first of these colonies established +their dominion in the fruitful and extensive plains of Sogdiana, +on the eastern side of the Caspian; where they preserved the name +of Huns, with the epithet of Euthalites, or Nepthalites. * Their +manners were softened, and even their features were insensibly +improved, by the mildness of the climate, and their long +residence in a flourishing province, which might still retain a +faint impression of the arts of Greece. The +<strong><em>white</em></strong>Huns, a name which they derived +from the change of their complexions, soon abandoned the pastoral +life of Scythia. Gorgo, which, under the appellation of Carizme, +has since enjoyed a temporary splendor, was the residence of the +king, who exercised a legal authority over an obedient people. +Their luxury was maintained by the labor of the Sogdians; and the +only vestige of their ancient barbarism, was the custom which +obliged all the companions, perhaps to the number of twenty, who +had shared the liberality of a wealthy lord, to be buried alive +in the same grave. The vicinity of the Huns to the provinces of +Persia, involved them in frequent and bloody contests with the +power of that monarchy. But they respected, in peace, the faith +of treaties; in war, she dictates of humanity; and their +memorable victory over Peroses, or Firuz, displayed the +moderation, as well as the valor, of the Barbarians. The +<strong><em>second</em></strong> division of their countrymen, +the Huns, who gradually advanced towards the North-west, were +exercised by the hardships of a colder climate, and a more +laborious march. Necessity compelled them to exchange the silks +of China for the furs of Siberia; the imperfect rudiments of +civilized life were obliterated; and the native fierceness of the +Huns was exasperated by their intercourse with the savage tribes, +who were compared, with some propriety, to the wild beasts of the +desert. Their independent spirit soon rejected the hereditary +succession of the Tanjous; and while each horde was governed by +its peculiar mursa, their tumultuary council directed the public +measures of the whole nation. As late as the thirteenth century, +their transient residence on the eastern banks of the Volga was +attested by the name of Great Hungary. In the winter, they +descended with their flocks and herds towards the mouth of that +mighty river; and their summer excursions reached as high as the +latitude of Saratoff, or perhaps the conflux of the Kama. Such at +least were the recent limits of the black Calmucks, who remained +about a century under the protection of Russia; and who have +since returned to their native seats on the frontiers of the +Chinese empire. The march, and the return, of those wandering +Tartars, whose united camp consists of fifty thousand tents or +families, illustrate the distant emigrations of the ancient +Huns.<br> +</p> + +<p>It is impossible to fill the dark interval of time, which +elapsed, after the Huns of the Volga were lost in the eyes of the +Chinese, and before they showed themselves to those of the +Romans. There is some reason, however, to apprehend, that the +same force which had driven them from their native seats, still +continued to impel their march towards the frontiers of Europe. +The power of the Sienpi, their implacable enemies, which extended +above three thousand miles from East to West, must have gradually +oppressed them by the weight and terror of a formidable +neighborhood; and the flight of the tribes of Scythia would +inevitably tend to increase the strength or to contract the +territories, of the Huns. The harsh and obscure appellations of +those tribes would offend the ear, without informing the +understanding, of the reader; but I cannot suppress the very +natural suspicion, <strong><em>that</em></strong> the Huns of the +North derived a considerable reenforcement from the ruin of the +dynasty of the South, which, in the course of the third century, +submitted to the dominion of China; +<strong><em>that</em></strong> the bravest warriors marched away +in search of their free and adventurous countrymen; +<strong><em>and</em></strong> that, as they had been divided by +prosperity, they were easily reunited by the common hardships of +their adverse fortune. The Huns, with their flocks and herds, +their wives and children, their dependents and allies, were +transported to the west of the Volga, and they boldly advanced to +invade the country of the Alani, a pastoral people, who occupied, +or wasted, an extensive tract of the deserts of Scythia. The +plains between the Volga and the Tanais were covered with the +tents of the Alani, but their name and manners were diffused over +the wide extent of their conquests; and the painted tribes of the +Agathyrsi and Geloni were confounded among their vassals. Towards +the North, they penetrated into the frozen regions of Siberia, +among the savages who were accustomed, in their rage or hunger, +to the taste of human flesh; and their Southern inroads were +pushed as far as the confines of Persia and India. The mixture of +Somatic and German blood had contributed to improve the features +of the Alani, * to whiten their swarthy complexions, and to tinge +their hair with a yellowish cast, which is seldom found in the +Tartar race. They were less deformed in their persons, less +brutish in their manners, than the Huns; but they did not yield +to those formidable Barbarians in their martial and independent +spirit; in the love of freedom, which rejected even the use of +domestic slaves; and in the love of arms, which considered war +and rapine as the pleasure and the glory of mankind. A naked +cimeter, fixed in the ground, was the only object of their +religious worship; the scalps of their enemies formed the costly +trappings of their horses; and they viewed, with pity and +contempt, the pusillanimous warriors, who patiently expected the +infirmities of age, and the tortures of lingering disease. On the +banks of the Tanais, the military power of the Huns and the Alani +encountered each other with equal valor, but with unequal +success. The Huns prevailed in the bloody contest; the king of +the Alani was slain; and the remains of the vanquished nation +were dispersed by the ordinary alternative of flight or +submission. A colony of exiles found a secure refuge in the +mountains of Caucasus, between the Euxine and the Caspian, where +they still preserve their name and their independence. Another +colony advanced, with more intrepid courage, towards the shores +of the Baltic; associated themselves with the Northern tribes of +Germany; and shared the spoil of the Roman provinces of Gaul and +Spain. But the greatest part of the nation of the Alani embraced +the offers of an honorable and advantageous union; and the Huns, +who esteemed the valor of their less fortunate enemies, +proceeded, with an increase of numbers and confidence, to invade +the limits of the Gothic empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>The great Hermanric, whose dominions extended from the Baltic +to the Euxine, enjoyed, in the full maturity of age and +reputation, the fruit of his victories, when he was alarmed by +the formidable approach of a host of unknown enemies, on whom his +barbarous subjects might, without injustice, bestow the epithet +of Barbarians. The numbers, the strength, the rapid motions, and +the implacable cruelty of the Huns, were felt, and dreaded, and +magnified, by the astonished Goths; who beheld their fields and +villages consumed with flames, and deluged with indiscriminate +slaughter. To these real terrors they added the surprise and +abhorrence which were excited by the shrill voice, the uncouth +gestures, and the strange deformity of the Huns. * These savages +of Scythia were compared (and the picture had some resemblance) +to the animals who walk very awkwardly on two legs and to the +misshapen figures, the Termini, which were often placed on the +bridges of antiquity. They were distinguished from the rest of +the human species by their broad shoulders, flat noses, and small +black eyes, deeply buried in the head; and as they were almost +destitute of beards, they never enjoyed either the manly grace of +youth, or the venerable aspect of age. A fabulous origin was +assigned, worthy of their form and manners; that the witches of +Scythia, who, for their foul and deadly practices, had been +driven from society, had copulated in the desert with infernal +spirits; and that the Huns were the offspring of this execrable +conjunction. The tale, so full of horror and absurdity, was +greedily embraced by the credulous hatred of the Goths; but, +while it gratified their hatred, it increased their fear, since +the posterity of dæmons and witches might be supposed to +inherit some share of the præternatural powers, as well as +of the malignant temper, of their parents. Against these enemies, +Hermanric prepared to exert the united forces of the Gothic +state; but he soon discovered that his vassal tribes, provoked by +oppression, were much more inclined to second, than to repel, the +invasion of the Huns. One of the chiefs of the Roxolani had +formerly deserted the standard of Hermanric, and the cruel tyrant +had condemned the innocent wife of the traitor to be torn asunder +by wild horses. The brothers of that unfortunate woman seized the +favorable moment of revenge. The aged king of the Goths +languished some time after the dangerous wound which he received +from their daggers; but the conduct of the war was retarded by +his infirmities; and the public councils of the nation were +distracted by a spirit of jealousy and discord. His death, which +has been imputed to his own despair, left the reins of government +in the hands of Withimer, who, with the doubtful aid of some +Scythian mercenaries, maintained the unequal contest against the +arms of the Huns and the Alani, till he was defeated and slain in +a decisive battle. The Ostrogoths submitted to their fate; and +the royal race of the Amali will hereafter be found among the +subjects of the haughty Attila. But the person of Witheric, the +infant king, was saved by the diligence of Alatheus and Saphrax; +two warriors of approved valor and fidelity, who, by cautious +marches, conducted the independent remains of the nation of the +Ostrogoths towards the Danastus, or Niester; a considerable +river, which now separates the Turkish dominions from the empire +of Russia. On the banks of the Niester, the prudent Athanaric, +more attentive to his own than to the general safety, had fixed +the camp of the Visigoths; with the firm resolution of opposing +the victorious Barbarians, whom he thought it less advisable to +provoke. The ordinary speed of the Huns was checked by the weight +of baggage, and the encumbrance of captives; but their military +skill deceived, and almost destroyed, the army of Athanaric. +While the Judge of the Visigoths defended the banks of the +Niester, he was encompassed and attacked by a numerous detachment +of cavalry, who, by the light of the moon, had passed the river +in a fordable place; and it was not without the utmost efforts of +courage and conduct, that he was able to effect his retreat +towards the hilly country. The undaunted general had already +formed a new and judicious plan of defensive war; and the strong +lines, which he was preparing to construct between the mountains, +the Pruth, and the Danube, would have secured the extensive and +fertile territory that bears the modern name of Walachia, from +the destructive inroads of the Huns. But the hopes and measures +of the Judge of the Visigoths was soon disappointed, by the +trembling impatience of his dismayed countrymen; who were +persuaded by their fears, that the interposition of the Danube +was the only barrier that could save them from the rapid pursuit, +and invincible valor, of the Barbarians of Scythia. Under the +command of Fritigern and Alavivus, the body of the nation hastily +advanced to the banks of the great river, and implored the +protection of the Roman emperor of the East. Athanaric himself, +still anxious to avoid the guilt of perjury, retired, with a band +of faithful followers, into the mountainous country of Caucaland; +which appears to have been guarded, and almost concealed, by the +impenetrable forests of Transylvania. *<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns. -- Part +III.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>After Valens had terminated the Gothic war with some +appearance of glory and success, he made a progress through his +dominions of Asia, and at length fixed his residence in the +capital of Syria. The five years which he spent at Antioch was +employed to watch, from a secure distance, the hostile designs of +the Persian monarch; to check the depredations of the Saracens +and Isaurians; to enforce, by arguments more prevalent than those +of reason and eloquence, the belief of the Arian theology; and to +satisfy his anxious suspicions by the promiscuous execution of +the innocent and the guilty. But the attention of the emperor was +most seriously engaged, by the important intelligence which he +received from the civil and military officers who were intrusted +with the defence of the Danube. He was informed, that the North +was agitated by a furious tempest; that the irruption of the +Huns, an unknown and monstrous race of savages, had subverted the +power of the Goths; and that the suppliant multitudes of that +warlike nation, whose pride was now humbled in the dust, covered +a space of many miles along the banks of the river. With +outstretched arms, and pathetic lamentations, they loudly +deplored their past misfortunes and their present danger; +acknowledged that their only hope of safety was in the clemency +of the Roman government; and most solemnly protested, that if the +gracious liberality of the emperor would permit them to cultivate +the waste lands of Thrace, they should ever hold themselves +bound, by the strongest obligations of duty and gratitude, to +obey the laws, and to guard the limits, of the republic. These +assurances were confirmed by the ambassadors of the Goths, * who +impatiently expected from the mouth of Valens an answer that must +finally determine the fate of their unhappy countrymen. The +emperor of the East was no longer guided by the wisdom and +authority of his elder brother, whose death happened towards the +end of the preceding year; and as the distressful situation of +the Goths required an instant and peremptory decision, he was +deprived of the favorite resources of feeble and timid minds, who +consider the use of dilatory and ambiguous measures as the most +admirable efforts of consummate prudence. As long as the same +passions and interests subsist among mankind, the questions of +war and peace, of justice and policy, which were debated in the +councils of antiquity, will frequently present themselves as the +subject of modern deliberation. But the most experienced +statesman of Europe has never been summoned to consider the +propriety, or the danger, of admitting, or rejecting, an +innumerable multitude of Barbarians, who are driven by despair +and hunger to solicit a settlement on the territories of a +civilized nation. When that important proposition, so essentially +connected with the public safety, was referred to the ministers +of Valens, they were perplexed and divided; but they soon +acquiesced in the flattering sentiment which seemed the most +favorable to the pride, the indolence, and the avarice of their +sovereign. The slaves, who were decorated with the titles of +præfects and generals, dissembled or disregarded the +terrors of this national emigration; so extremely different from +the partial and accidental colonies, which had been received on +the extreme limits of the empire. But they applauded the +liberality of fortune, which had conducted, from the most distant +countries of the globe, a numerous and invincible army of +strangers, to defend the throne of Valens; who might now add to +the royal treasures the immense sums of gold supplied by the +provincials to compensate their annual proportion of recruits. +The prayers of the Goths were granted, and their service was +accepted by the Imperial court: and orders were immediately +despatched to the civil and military governors of the Thracian +diocese, to make the necessary preparations for the passage and +subsistence of a great people, till a proper and sufficient +territory could be allotted for their future residence. The +liberality of the emperor was accompanied, however, with two +harsh and rigorous conditions, which prudence might justify on +the side of the Romans; but which distress alone could extort +from the indignant Goths. Before they passed the Danube, they +were required to deliver their arms: and it was insisted, that +their children should be taken from them, and dispersed through +the provinces of Asia; where they might be civilized by the arts +of education, and serve as hostages to secure the fidelity of +their parents.<br> +</p> + +<p>During the suspense of a doubtful and distant negotiation, the +impatient Goths made some rash attempts to pass the Danube, +without the permission of the government, whose protection they +had implored. Their motions were strictly observed by the +vigilance of the troops which were stationed along the river and +their foremost detachments were defeated with considerable +slaughter; yet such were the timid councils of the reign of +Valens, that the brave officers who had served their country in +the execution of their duty, were punished by the loss of their +employments, and narrowly escaped the loss of their heads. The +Imperial mandate was at length received for transporting over the +Danube the whole body of the Gothic nation; but the execution of +this order was a task of labor and difficulty. The stream of the +Danube, which in those parts is above a mile broad, had been +swelled by incessant rains; and in this tumultuous passage, many +were swept away, and drowned, by the rapid violence of the +current. A large fleet of vessels, of boats, and of canoes, was +provided; many days and nights they passed and repassed with +indefatigable toil; and the most strenuous diligence was exerted +by the officers of Valens, that not a single Barbarian, of those +who were reserved to subvert the foundations of Rome, should be +left on the opposite shore. It was thought expedient that an +accurate account should be taken of their numbers; but the +persons who were employed soon desisted, with amazement and +dismay, from the prosecution of the endless and impracticable +task: and the principal historian of the age most seriously +affirms, that the prodigious armies of Darius and Xerxes, which +had so long been considered as the fables of vain and credulous +antiquity, were now justified, in the eyes of mankind, by the +evidence of fact and experience. A probable testimony has fixed +the number of the Gothic warriors at two hundred thousand men: +and if we can venture to add the just proportion of women, of +children, and of slaves, the whole mass of people which composed +this formidable emigration, must have amounted to near a million +of persons, of both sexes, and of all ages. The children of the +Goths, those at least of a distinguished rank, were separated +from the multitude. They were conducted, without delay, to the +distant seats assigned for their residence and education; and as +the numerous train of hostages or captives passed through the +cities, their gay and splendid apparel, their robust and martial +figure, excited the surprise and envy of the Provincials. * But +the stipulation, the most offensive to the Goths, and the most +important to the Romans, was shamefully eluded. The Barbarians, +who considered their arms as the ensigns of honor and the pledges +of safety, were disposed to offer a price, which the lust or +avarice of the Imperial officers was easily tempted to accept. To +preserve their arms, the haughty warriors consented, with some +reluctance, to prostitute their wives or their daughters; the +charms of a beauteous maid, or a comely boy, secured the +connivance of the inspectors; who sometimes cast an eye of +covetousness on the fringed carpets and linen garments of their +new allies, or who sacrificed their duty to the mean +consideration of filling their farms with cattle, and their +houses with slaves. The Goths, with arms in their hands, were +permitted to enter the boats; and when their strength was +collected on the other side of the river, the immense camp which +was spread over the plains and the hills of the Lower +Mæsia, assumed a threatening and even hostile aspect. The +leaders of the Ostrogoths, Alatheus and Saphrax, the guardians of +their infant king, appeared soon afterwards on the Northern banks +of the Danube; and immediately despatched their ambassadors to +the court of Antioch, to solicit, with the same professions of +allegiance and gratitude, the same favor which had been granted +to the suppliant Visigoths. The absolute refusal of Valens +suspended their progress, and discovered the repentance, the +suspicions, and the fears, of the Imperial council.<br> +</p> + +<p>An undisciplined and unsettled nation of Barbarians required +the firmest temper, and the most dexterous management. The daily +subsistence of near a million of extraordinary subjects could be +supplied only by constant and skilful diligence, and might +continually be interrupted by mistake or accident. The insolence, +or the indignation, of the Goths, if they conceived themselves to +be the objects either of fear or of contempt, might urge them to +the most desperate extremities; and the fortune of the state +seemed to depend on the prudence, as well as the integrity, of +the generals of Valens. At this important crisis, the military +government of Thrace was exercised by Lupicinus and Maximus, in +whose venal minds the slightest hope of private emolument +outweighed every consideration of public advantage; and whose +guilt was only alleviated by their incapacity of discerning the +pernicious effects of their rash and criminal administration. +Instead of obeying the orders of their sovereign, and satisfying, +with decent liberality, the demands of the Goths, they levied an +ungenerous and oppressive tax on the wants of the hungry +Barbarians. The vilest food was sold at an extravagant price; +and, in the room of wholesome and substantial provisions, the +markets were filled with the flesh of dogs, and of unclean +animals, who had died of disease. To obtain the valuable +acquisition of a pound of bread, the Goths resigned the +possession of an expensive, though serviceable, slave; and a +small quantity of meat was greedily purchased with ten pounds of +a precious, but useless metal, when their property was exhausted, +they continued this necessary traffic by the sale of their sons +and daughters; and notwithstanding the love of freedom, which +animated every Gothic breast, they submitted to the humiliating +maxim, that it was better for their children to be maintained in +a servile condition, than to perish in a state of wretched and +helpless independence. The most lively resentment is excited by +the tyranny of pretended benefactors, who sternly exact the debt +of gratitude which they have cancelled by subsequent injuries: a +spirit of discontent insensibly arose in the camp of the +Barbarians, who pleaded, without success, the merit of their +patient and dutiful behavior; and loudly complained of the +inhospitable treatment which they had received from their new +allies. They beheld around them the wealth and plenty of a +fertile province, in the midst of which they suffered the +intolerable hardships of artificial famine. But the means of +relief, and even of revenge, were in their hands; since the +rapaciousness of their tyrants had left to an injured people the +possession and the use of arms. The clamors of a multitude, +untaught to disguise their sentiments, announced the first +symptoms of resistance, and alarmed the timid and guilty minds of +Lupicinus and Maximus. Those crafty ministers, who substituted +the cunning of temporary expedients to the wise and salutary +counsels of general policy, attempted to remove the Goths from +their dangerous station on the frontiers of the empire; and to +disperse them, in separate quarters of cantonment, through the +interior provinces. As they were conscious how ill they had +deserved the respect, or confidence, of the Barbarians, they +diligently collected, from every side, a military force, that +might urge the tardy and reluctant march of a people, who had not +yet renounced the title, or the duties, of Roman subjects. But +the generals of Valens, while their attention was solely directed +to the discontented Visigoths, imprudently disarmed the ships and +the fortifications which constituted the defence of the Danube. +The fatal oversight was observed, and improved, by Alatheus and +Saphrax, who anxiously watched the favorable moment of escaping +from the pursuit of the Huns. By the help of such rafts and +vessels as could be hastily procured, the leaders of the +Ostrogoths transported, without opposition, their king and their +army; and boldly fixed a hostile and independent camp on the +territories of the empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>Under the name of Judges, Alavivus and Fritigern were the +leaders of the Visigoths in peace and war; and the authority +which they derived from their birth was ratified by the free +consent of the nation. In a season of tranquility, their power +might have been equal, as well as their rank; but, as soon as +their countrymen were exasperated by hunger and oppression, the +superior abilities of Fritigern assumed the military command, +which he was qualified to exercise for the public welfare. He +restrained the impatient spirit of the Visigoths till the +injuries and the insults of their tyrants should justify their +resistance in the opinion of mankind: but he was not disposed to +sacrifice any solid advantages for the empty praise of justice +and moderation. Sensible of the benefits which would result from +the union of the Gothic powers under the same standard, he +secretly cultivated the friendship of the Ostrogoths; and while +he professed an implicit obedience to the orders of the Roman +generals, he proceeded by slow marches towards Marcianopolis, the +capital of the Lower Mæsia, about seventy miles from the +banks of the Danube. On that fatal spot, the flames of discord +and mutual hatred burst forth into a dreadful conflagration. +Lupicinus had invited the Gothic chiefs to a splendid +entertainment; and their martial train remained under arms at the +entrance of the palace. But the gates of the city were strictly +guarded, and the Barbarians were sternly excluded from the use of +a plentiful market, to which they asserted their equal claim of +subjects and allies. Their humble prayers were rejected with +insolence and derision; and as their patience was now exhausted, +the townsmen, the soldiers, and the Goths, were soon involved in +a conflict of passionate altercation and angry reproaches. A blow +was imprudently given; a sword was hastily drawn; and the first +blood that was spilt in this accidental quarrel, became the +signal of a long and destructive war. In the midst of noise and +brutal intemperance, Lupicinus was informed, by a secret +messenger, that many of his soldiers were slain, and despoiled of +their arms; and as he was already inflamed by wine, and oppressed +by sleep he issued a rash command, that their death should be +revenged by the massacre of the guards of Fritigern and Alavivus. +The clamorous shouts and dying groans apprised Fritigern of his +extreme danger; and, as he possessed the calm and intrepid spirit +of a hero, he saw that he was lost if he allowed a moment of +deliberation to the man who had so deeply injured him. "A +trifling dispute," said the Gothic leader, with a firm but gentle +tone of voice, "appears to have arisen between the two nations; +but it may be productive of the most dangerous consequences, +unless the tumult is immediately pacified by the assurance of our +safety, and the authority of our presence." At these words, +Fritigern and his companions drew their swords, opened their +passage through the unresisting crowd, which filled the palace, +the streets, and the gates, of Marcianopolis, and, mounting their +horses, hastily vanished from the eyes of the astonished Romans. +The generals of the Goths were saluted by the fierce and joyful +acclamations of the camp; war was instantly resolved, and the +resolution was executed without delay: the banners of the nation +were displayed according to the custom of their ancestors; and +the air resounded with the harsh and mournful music of the +Barbarian trumpet. The weak and guilty Lupicinus, who had dared +to provoke, who had neglected to destroy, and who still presumed +to despise, his formidable enemy, marched against the Goths, at +the head of such a military force as could be collected on this +sudden emergency. The Barbarians expected his approach about nine +miles from Marcianopolis; and on this occasion the talents of the +general were found to be of more prevailing efficacy than the +weapons and discipline of the troops. The valor of the Goths was +so ably directed by the genius of Fritigern, that they broke, by +a close and vigorous attack, the ranks of the Roman legions. +Lupicinus left his arms and standards, his tribunes and his +bravest soldiers, on the field of battle; and their useless +courage served only to protect the ignominious flight of their +leader. "That successful day put an end to the distress of the +Barbarians, and the security of the Romans: from that day, the +Goths, renouncing the precarious condition of strangers and +exiles, assumed the character of citizens and masters, claimed an +absolute dominion over the possessors of land, and held, in their +own right, the northern provinces of the empire, which are +bounded by the Danube." Such are the words of the Gothic +historian, who celebrates, with rude eloquence, the glory of his +countrymen. But the dominion of the Barbarians was exercised only +for the purposes of rapine and destruction. As they had been +deprived, by the ministers of the emperor, of the common benefits +of nature, and the fair intercourse of social life, they +retaliated the injustice on the subjects of the empire; and the +crimes of Lupicinus were expiated by the ruin of the peaceful +husbandmen of Thrace, the conflagration of their villages, and +the massacre, or captivity, of their innocent families. The +report of the Gothic victory was soon diffused over the adjacent +country; and while it filled the minds of the Romans with terror +and dismay, their own hasty imprudence contributed to increase +the forces of Fritigern, and the calamities of the province. Some +time before the great emigration, a numerous body of Goths, under +the command of Suerid and Colias, had been received into the +protection and service of the empire. They were encamped under +the walls of Hadrianople; but the ministers of Valens were +anxious to remove them beyond the Hellespont, at a distance from +the dangerous temptation which might so easily be communicated by +the neighborhood, and the success, of their countrymen. The +respectful submission with which they yielded to the order of +their march, might be considered as a proof of their fidelity; +and their moderate request of a sufficient allowance of +provisions, and of a delay of only two days was expressed in the +most dutiful terms. But the first magistrate of Hadrianople, +incensed by some disorders which had been committed at his +country-house, refused this indulgence; and arming against them +the inhabitants and manufacturers of a populous city, he urged, +with hostile threats, their instant departure. The Barbarians +stood silent and amazed, till they were exasperated by the +insulting clamors, and missile weapons, of the populace: but when +patience or contempt was fatigued, they crushed the undisciplined +multitude, inflicted many a shameful wound on the backs of their +flying enemies, and despoiled them of the splendid armor, which +they were unworthy to bear. The resemblance of their sufferings +and their actions soon united this victorious detachment to the +nation of the Visigoths; the troops of Colias and Suerid expected +the approach of the great Fritigern, ranged themselves under his +standard, and signalized their ardor in the siege of Hadrianople. +But the resistance of the garrison informed the Barbarians, that +in the attack of regular fortifications, the efforts of +unskillful courage are seldom effectual. Their general +acknowledged his error, raised the siege, declared that "he was +at peace with stone walls," and revenged his disappointment on +the adjacent country. He accepted, with pleasure, the useful +reenforcement of hardy workmen, who labored in the gold mines of +Thrace, for the emolument, and under the lash, of an unfeeling +master: and these new associates conducted the Barbarians, +through the secret paths, to the most sequestered places, which +had been chosen to secure the inhabitants, the cattle, and the +magazines of corn. With the assistance of such guides, nothing +could remain impervious or inaccessible; resistance was fatal; +flight was impracticable; and the patient submission of helpless +innocence seldom found mercy from the Barbarian conqueror. In the +course of these depredations, a great number of the children of +the Goths, who had been sold into captivity, were restored to the +embraces of their afflicted parents; but these tender interviews, +which might have revived and cherished in their minds some +sentiments of humanity, tended only to stimulate their native +fierceness by the desire of revenge. They listened, with eager +attention, to the complaints of their captive children, who had +suffered the most cruel indignities from the lustful or angry +passions of their masters, and the same cruelties, the same +indignities, were severely retaliated on the sons and daughters +of the Romans.<br> +</p> + +<p>The imprudence of Valens and his ministers had introduced into +the heart of the empire a nation of enemies; but the Visigoths +might even yet have been reconciled, by the manly confession of +past errors, and the sincere performance of former engagements. +These healing and temperate measures seemed to concur with the +timorous disposition of the sovereign of the East: but, on this +occasion alone, Valens was brave; and his unseasonable bravery +was fatal to himself and to his subjects. He declared his +intention of marching from Antioch to Constantinople, to subdue +this dangerous rebellion; and, as he was not ignorant of the +difficulties of the enterprise, he solicited the assistance of +his nephew, the emperor Gratian, who commanded all the forces of +the West. The veteran troops were hastily recalled from the +defence of Armenia; that important frontier was abandoned to the +discretion of Sapor; and the immediate conduct of the Gothic war +was intrusted, during the absence of Valens, to his lieutenants +Trajan and Profuturus, two generals who indulged themselves in a +very false and favorable opinion of their own abilities. On their +arrival in Thrace, they were joined by Richomer, count of the +domestics; and the auxiliaries of the West, that marched under +his banner, were composed of the Gallic legions, reduced indeed, +by a spirit of desertion, to the vain appearances of strength and +numbers. In a council of war, which was influenced by pride, +rather than by reason, it was resolved to seek, and to encounter, +the Barbarians, who lay encamped in the spacious and fertile +meadows, near the most southern of the six mouths of the Danube. +Their camp was surrounded by the usual fortification of wagons; +and the Barbarians, secure within the vast circle of the +enclosure, enjoyed the fruits of their valor, and the spoils of +the province. In the midst of riotous intemperance, the watchful +Fritigern observed the motions, and penetrated the designs, of +the Romans. He perceived, that the numbers of the enemy were +continually increasing: and, as he understood their intention of +attacking his rear, as soon as the scarcity of forage should +oblige him to remove his camp, he recalled to their standard his +predatory detachments, which covered the adjacent country. As +soon as they descried the flaming beacons, they obeyed, with +incredible speed, the signal of their leader: the camp was filled +with the martial crowd of Barbarians; their impatient clamors +demanded the battle, and their tumultuous zeal was approved and +animated by the spirit of their chiefs. The evening was already +far advanced; and the two armies prepared themselves for the +approaching combat, which was deferred only till the dawn of day. +While the trumpets sounded to arms, the undaunted courage of the +Goths was confirmed by the mutual obligation of a solemn oath; +and as they advanced to meet the enemy, the rude songs, which +celebrated the glory of their forefathers, were mingled with +their fierce and dissonant outcries, and opposed to the +artificial harmony of the Roman shout. Some military skill was +displayed by Fritigern to gain the advantage of a commanding +eminence; but the bloody conflict, which began and ended with the +light, was maintained on either side, by the personal and +obstinate efforts of strength, valor, and agility. The legions of +Armenia supported their fame in arms; but they were oppressed by +the irresistible weight of the hostile multitude the left wing of +the Romans was thrown into disorder and the field was strewed +with their mangled carcasses. This partial defeat was balanced, +however, by partial success; and when the two armies, at a late +hour of the evening, retreated to their respective camps, neither +of them could claim the honors, or the effects, of a decisive +victory. The real loss was more severely felt by the Romans, in +proportion to the smallness of their numbers; but the Goths were +so deeply confounded and dismayed by this vigorous, and perhaps +unexpected, resistance, that they remained seven days within the +circle of their fortifications. Such funeral rites, as the +circumstances of time and place would admit, were piously +discharged to some officers of distinguished rank; but the +indiscriminate vulgar was left unburied on the plain. Their flesh +was greedily devoured by the birds of prey, who in that age +enjoyed very frequent and delicious feasts; and several years +afterwards the white and naked bones, which covered the wide +extent of the fields, presented to the eyes of Ammianus a +dreadful monument of the battle of Salices.<br> +</p> + +<p>The progress of the Goths had been checked by the doubtful +event of that bloody day; and the Imperial generals, whose army +would have been consumed by the repetition of such a contest, +embraced the more rational plan of destroying the Barbarians by +the wants and pressure of their own multitudes. They prepared to +confine the Visigoths in the narrow angle of land between the +Danube, the desert of Scythia, and the mountains of Hæmus, +till their strength and spirit should be insensibly wasted by the +inevitable operation of famine. The design was prosecuted with +some conduct and success: the Barbarians had almost exhausted +their own magazines, and the harvests of the country; and the +diligence of Saturninus, the master-general of the cavalry, was +employed to improve the strength, and to contract the extent, of +the Roman fortifications. His labors were interrupted by the +alarming intelligence, that new swarms of Barbarians had passed +the unguarded Danube, either to support the cause, or to imitate +the example, of Fritigern. The just apprehension, that he himself +might be surrounded, and overwhelmed, by the arms of hostile and +unknown nations, compelled Saturninus to relinquish the siege of +the Gothic camp; and the indignant Visigoths, breaking from their +confinement, satiated their hunger and revenge by the repeated +devastation of the fruitful country, which extends above three +hundred miles from the banks of the Danube to the straits of the +Hellespont. The sagacious Fritigern had successfully appealed to +the passions, as well as to the interest, of his Barbarian +allies; and the love of rapine, and the hatred of Rome, seconded, +or even prevented, the eloquence of his ambassadors. He cemented +a strict and useful alliance with the great body of his +countrymen, who obeyed Alatheus and Saphrax as the guardians of +their infant king: the long animosity of rival tribes was +suspended by the sense of their common interest; the independent +part of the nation was associated under one standard; and the +chiefs of the Ostrogoths appear to have yielded to the superior +genius of the general of the Visigoths. He obtained the +formidable aid of the Taifalæ, * whose military renown was +disgraced and polluted by the public infamy of their domestic +manners. Every youth, on his entrance into the world, was united +by the ties of honorable friendship, and brutal love, to some +warrior of the tribe; nor could he hope to be released from this +unnatural connection, till he had approved his manhood by +slaying, in single combat, a huge bear, or a wild boar of the +forest. But the most powerful auxiliaries of the Goths were drawn +from the camp of those enemies who had expelled them from their +native seats. The loose subordination, and extensive possessions, +of the Huns and the Alani, delayed the conquests, and distracted +the councils, of that victorious people. Several of the hords +were allured by the liberal promises of Fritigern; and the rapid +cavalry of Scythia added weight and energy to the steady and +strenuous efforts of the Gothic infantry. The Sarmatians, who +could never forgive the successor of Valentinian, enjoyed and +increased the general confusion; and a seasonable irruption of +the Alemanni, into the provinces of Gaul, engaged the attention, +and diverted the forces, of the emperor of the West.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns. -- Part +IV.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>One of the most dangerous inconveniences of the introduction +of the Barbarians into the army and the palace, was sensibly felt +in their correspondence with their hostile countrymen; to whom +they imprudently, or maliciously, revealed the weakness of the +Roman empire. A soldier, of the lifeguards of Gratian, was of the +nation of the Alemanni, and of the tribe of the Lentienses, who +dwelt beyond the Lake of Constance. Some domestic business +obliged him to request a leave of absence. In a short visit to +his family and friends, he was exposed to their curious +inquiries: and the vanity of the loquacious soldier tempted him +to display his intimate acquaintance with the secrets of the +state, and the designs of his master. The intelligence, that +Gratian was preparing to lead the military force of Gaul, and of +the West, to the assistance of his uncle Valens, pointed out to +the restless spirit of the Alemanni the moment, and the mode, of +a successful invasion. The enterprise of some light detachments, +who, in the month of February, passed the Rhine upon the ice, was +the prelude of a more important war. The boldest hopes of rapine, +perhaps of conquest, outweighed the considerations of timid +prudence, or national faith. Every forest, and every village, +poured forth a band of hardy adventurers; and the great army of +the Alemanni, which, on their approach, was estimated at forty +thousand men by the fears of the people, was afterwards magnified +to the number of seventy thousand by the vain and credulous +flattery of the Imperial court. The legions, which had been +ordered to march into Pannonia, were immediately recalled, or +detained, for the defence of Gaul; the military command was +divided between Nanienus and Mellobaudes; and the youthful +emperor, though he respected the long experience and sober wisdom +of the former, was much more inclined to admire, and to follow, +the martial ardor of his colleague; who was allowed to unite the +incompatible characters of count of the domestics, and of king of +the Franks. His rival Priarius, king of the Alemanni, was guided, +or rather impelled, by the same headstrong valor; and as their +troops were animated by the spirit of their leaders, they met, +they saw, they encountered each other, near the town of +Argentaria, or Colmar, in the plains of Alsace. The glory of the +day was justly ascribed to the missile weapons, and +well-practised evolutions, of the Roman soldiers; the Alemanni, +who long maintained their ground, were slaughtered with +unrelenting fury; five thousand only of the Barbarians escaped to +the woods and mountains; and the glorious death of their king on +the field of battle saved him from the reproaches of the people, +who are always disposed to accuse the justice, or policy, of an +unsuccessful war. After this signal victory, which secured the +peace of Gaul, and asserted the honor of the Roman arms, the +emperor Gratian appeared to proceed without delay on his Eastern +expedition; but as he approached the confines of the Alemanni, he +suddenly inclined to the left, surprised them by his unexpected +passage of the Rhine, and boldly advanced into the heart of their +country. The Barbarians opposed to his progress the obstacles of +nature and of courage; and still continued to retreat, from one +hill to another, till they were satisfied, by repeated trials, of +the power and perseverance of their enemies. Their submission was +accepted as a proof, not indeed of their sincere repentance, but +of their actual distress; and a select number of their brave and +robust youth was exacted from the faithless nation, as the most +substantial pledge of their future moderation. The subjects of +the empire, who had so often experienced that the Alemanni could +neither be subdued by arms, nor restrained by treaties, might not +promise themselves any solid or lasting tranquillity: but they +discovered, in the virtues of their young sovereign, the prospect +of a long and auspicious reign. When the legions climbed the +mountains, and scaled the fortifications of the Barbarians, the +valor of Gratian was distinguished in the foremost ranks; and the +gilt and variegated armor of his guards was pierced and shattered +by the blows which they had received in their constant attachment +to the person of their sovereign. At the age of nineteen, the son +of Valentinian seemed to possess the talents of peace and war; +and his personal success against the Alemanni was interpreted as +a sure presage of his Gothic triumphs.<br> +</p> + +<p>While Gratian deserved and enjoyed the applause of his +subjects, the emperor Valens, who, at length, had removed his +court and army from Antioch, was received by the people of +Constantinople as the author of the public calamity. Before he +had reposed himself ten days in the capital, he was urged by the +licentious clamors of the Hippodrome to march against the +Barbarians, whom he had invited into his dominions; and the +citizens, who are always brave at a distance from any real +danger, declared, with confidence, that, if they were supplied +with arms, <strong><em>they</em></strong> alone would undertake +to deliver the province from the ravages of an insulting foe. The +vain reproaches of an ignorant multitude hastened the downfall of +the Roman empire; they provoked the desperate rashness of Valens; +who did not find, either in his reputation or in his mind, any +motives to support with firmness the public contempt. He was soon +persuaded, by the successful achievements of his lieutenants, to +despise the power of the Goths, who, by the diligence of +Fritigern, were now collected in the neighborhood of Hadrianople. +The march of the Taifalæ had been intercepted by the +valiant Frigerid: the king of those licentious Barbarians was +slain in battle; and the suppliant captives were sent into +distant exile to cultivate the lands of Italy, which were +assigned for their settlement in the vacant territories of Modena +and Parma. The exploits of Sebastian, who was recently engaged in +the service of Valens, and promoted to the rank of master-general +of the infantry, were still more honorable to himself, and useful +to the republic. He obtained the permission of selecting three +hundred soldiers from each of the legions; and this separate +detachment soon acquired the spirit of discipline, and the +exercise of arms, which were almost forgotten under the reign of +Valens. By the vigor and conduct of Sebastian, a large body of +the Goths were surprised in their camp; and the immense spoil, +which was recovered from their hands, filled the city of +Hadrianople, and the adjacent plain. The splendid narratives, +which the general transmitted of his own exploits, alarmed the +Imperial court by the appearance of superior merit; and though he +cautiously insisted on the difficulties of the Gothic war, his +valor was praised, his advice was rejected; and Valens, who +listened with pride and pleasure to the flattering suggestions of +the eunuchs of the palace, was impatient to seize the glory of an +easy and assured conquest. His army was strengthened by a +numerous reenforcement of veterans; and his march from +Constantinople to Hadrianople was conducted with so much military +skill, that he prevented the activity of the Barbarians, who +designed to occupy the intermediate defiles, and to intercept +either the troops themselves, or their convoys of provisions. The +camp of Valens, which he pitched under the walls of Hadrianople, +was fortified, according to the practice of the Romans, with a +ditch and rampart; and a most important council was summoned, to +decide the fate of the emperor and of the empire. The party of +reason and of delay was strenuously maintained by Victor, who had +corrected, by the lessons of experience, the native fierceness of +the Sarmatian character; while Sebastian, with the flexible and +obsequious eloquence of a courtier, represented every precaution, +and every measure, that implied a doubt of immediate victory, as +unworthy of the courage and majesty of their invincible monarch. +The ruin of Valens was precipitated by the deceitful arts of +Fritigern, and the prudent admonitions of the emperor of the +West. The advantages of negotiating in the midst of war were +perfectly understood by the general of the Barbarians; and a +Christian ecclesiastic was despatched, as the holy minister of +peace, to penetrate, and to perplex, the councils of the enemy. +The misfortunes, as well as the provocations, of the Gothic +nation, were forcibly and truly described by their ambassador; +who protested, in the name of Fritigern, that he was still +disposed to lay down his arms, or to employ them only in the +defence of the empire; if he could secure for his wandering +countrymen a tranquil settlement on the waste lands of Thrace, +and a sufficient allowance of corn and cattle. But he added, in a +whisper of confidential friendship, that the exasperated +Barbarians were averse to these reasonable conditions; and that +Fritigern was doubtful whether he could accomplish the conclusion +of the treaty, unless he found himself supported by the presence +and terrors of an Imperial army. About the same time, Count +Richomer returned from the West to announce the defeat and +submission of the Alemanni, to inform Valens that his nephew +advanced by rapid marches at the head of the veteran and +victorious legions of Gaul, and to request, in the name of +Gratian and of the republic, that every dangerous and decisive +measure might be suspended, till the junction of the two emperors +should insure the success of the Gothic war. But the feeble +sovereign of the East was actuated only by the fatal illusions of +pride and jealousy. He disdained the importunate advice; he +rejected the humiliating aid; he secretly compared the +ignominious, at least the inglorious, period of his own reign, +with the fame of a beardless youth; and Valens rushed into the +field, to erect his imaginary trophy, before the diligence of his +colleague could usurp any share of the triumphs of the day.<br> +</p> + +<p>On the ninth of August, a day which has deserved to be marked +among the most inauspicious of the Roman Calendar, the emperor +Valens, leaving, under a strong guard, his baggage and military +treasure, marched from Hadrianople to attack the Goths, who were +encamped about twelve miles from the city. By some mistake of the +orders, or some ignorance of the ground, the right wing, or +column of cavalry arrived in sight of the enemy, whilst the left +was still at a considerable distance; the soldiers were +compelled, in the sultry heat of summer, to precipitate their +pace; and the line of battle was formed with tedious confusion +and irregular delay. The Gothic cavalry had been detached to +forage in the adjacent country; and Fritigern still continued to +practise his customary arts. He despatched messengers of peace, +made proposals, required hostages, and wasted the hours, till the +Romans, exposed without shelter to the burning rays of the sun, +were exhausted by thirst, hunger, and intolerable fatigue. The +emperor was persuaded to send an ambassador to the Gothic camp; +the zeal of Richomer, who alone had courage to accept the +dangerous commission, was applauded; and the count of the +domestics, adorned with the splendid ensigns of his dignity, had +proceeded some way in the space between the two armies, when he +was suddenly recalled by the alarm of battle. The hasty and +imprudent attack was made by Bacurius the Iberian, who commanded +a body of archers and targiteers; and as they advanced with +rashness, they retreated with loss and disgrace. In the same +moment, the flying squadrons of Alatheus and Saphrax, whose +return was anxiously expected by the general of the Goths, +descended like a whirlwind from the hills, swept across the +plain, and added new terrors to the tumultuous, but irresistible +charge of the Barbarian host. The event of the battle of +Hadrianople, so fatal to Valens and to the empire, may be +described in a few words: the Roman cavalry fled; the infantry +was abandoned, surrounded, and cut in pieces. The most skilful +evolutions, the firmest courage, are scarcely sufficient to +extricate a body of foot, encompassed, on an open plain, by +superior numbers of horse; but the troops of Valens, oppressed by +the weight of the enemy and their own fears, were crowded into a +narrow space, where it was impossible for them to extend their +ranks, or even to use, with effect, their swords and javelins. In +the midst of tumult, of slaughter, and of dismay, the emperor, +deserted by his guards and wounded, as it was supposed, with an +arrow, sought protection among the Lancearii and the Mattiarii, +who still maintained their ground with some appearance of order +and firmness. His faithful generals, Trajan and Victor, who +perceived his danger, loudly exclaimed that all was lost, unless +the person of the emperor could be saved. Some troops, animated +by their exhortation, advanced to his relief: they found only a +bloody spot, covered with a heap of broken arms and mangled +bodies, without being able to discover their unfortunate prince, +either among the living or the dead. Their search could not +indeed be successful, if there is any truth in the circumstances +with which some historians have related the death of the emperor. +By the care of his attendants, Valens was removed from the field +of battle to a neighboring cottage, where they attempted to dress +his wound, and to provide for his future safety. But this humble +retreat was instantly surrounded by the enemy: they tried to +force the door, they were provoked by a discharge of arrows from +the roof, till at length, impatient of delay, they set fire to a +pile of dry fagots, and consumed the cottage with the Roman +emperor and his train. Valens perished in the flames; and a +youth, who dropped from the window, alone escaped, to attest the +melancholy tale, and to inform the Goths of the inestimable prize +which they had lost by their own rashness. A great number of +brave and distinguished officers perished in the battle of +Hadrianople, which equalled in the actual loss, and far surpassed +in the fatal consequences, the misfortune which Rome had formerly +sustained in the fields of Cannæ. Two master-generals of +the cavalry and infantry, two great officers of the palace, and +thirty-five tribunes, were found among the slain; and the death +of Sebastian might satisfy the world, that he was the victim, as +well as the author, of the public calamity. Above two thirds of +the Roman army were destroyed: and the darkness of the night was +esteemed a very favorable circumstance, as it served to conceal +the flight of the multitude, and to protect the more orderly +retreat of Victor and Richomer, who alone, amidst the general +consternation, maintained the advantage of calm courage and +regular discipline.<br> +</p> + +<p>While the impressions of grief and terror were still recent in +the minds of men, the most celebrated rhetorician of the age +composed the funeral oration of a vanquished army, and of an +unpopular prince, whose throne was already occupied by a +stranger. "There are not wanting," says the candid Libanius, +"those who arraign the prudence of the emperor, or who impute the +public misfortune to the want of courage and discipline in the +troops. For my own part, I reverence the memory of their former +exploits: I reverence the glorious death, which they bravely +received, standing, and fighting in their ranks: I reverence the +field of battle, stained with their +<strong><em>blood</em></strong>, and the blood of the Barbarians. +Those honorable marks have been already washed away by the rains; +but the lofty monuments of their bones, the bones of generals, of +centurions, and of valiant warriors, claim a longer period of +duration. The king himself fought and fell in the foremost ranks +of the battle. His attendants presented him with the fleetest +horses of the Imperial stable, that would soon have carried him +beyond the pursuit of the enemy. They vainly pressed him to +reserve his important life for the future service of the +republic. He still declared that he was unworthy to survive so +many of the bravest and most faithful of his subjects; and the +monarch was nobly buried under a mountain of the slain. Let none, +therefore, presume to ascribe the victory of the Barbarians to +the fear, the weakness, or the imprudence, of the Roman troops. +The chiefs and the soldiers were animated by the virtue of their +ancestors, whom they equalled in discipline and the arts of war. +Their generous emulation was supported by the love of glory, +which prompted them to contend at the same time with heat and +thirst, with fire and the sword; and cheerfully to embrace an +honorable death, as their refuge against flight and infamy. The +indignation of the gods has been the only cause of the success of +our enemies." The truth of history may disclaim some parts of +this panegyric, which cannot strictly be reconciled with the +character of Valens, or the circumstances of the battle: but the +fairest commendation is due to the eloquence, and still more to +the generosity, of the sophist of Antioch.<br> +</p> + +<p>The pride of the Goths was elated by this memorable victory; +but their avarice was disappointed by the mortifying discovery, +that the richest part of the Imperial spoil had been within the +walls of Hadrianople. They hastened to possess the reward of +their valor; but they were encountered by the remains of a +vanquished army, with an intrepid resolution, which was the +effect of their despair, and the only hope of their safety. The +walls of the city, and the ramparts of the adjacent camp, were +lined with military engines, that threw stones of an enormous +weight; and astonished the ignorant Barbarians by the noise, and +velocity, still more than by the real effects, of the discharge. +The soldiers, the citizens, the provincials, the domestics of the +palace, were united in the danger, and in the defence: the +furious assault of the Goths was repulsed; their secret arts of +treachery and treason were discovered; and, after an obstinate +conflict of many hours, they retired to their tents; convinced, +by experience, that it would be far more advisable to observe the +treaty, which their sagacious leader had tacitly stipulated with +the fortifications of great and populous cities. After the hasty +and impolitic massacre of three hundred deserters, an act of +justice extremely useful to the discipline of the Roman armies, +the Goths indignantly raised the siege of Hadrianople. The scene +of war and tumult was instantly converted into a silent solitude: +the multitude suddenly disappeared; the secret paths of the woods +and mountains were marked with the footsteps of the trembling +fugitives, who sought a refuge in the distant cities of Illyricum +and Macedonia; and the faithful officers of the household, and +the treasury, cautiously proceeded in search of the emperor, of +whose death they were still ignorant. The tide of the Gothic +inundation rolled from the walls of Hadrianople to the suburbs of +Constantinople. The Barbarians were surprised with the splendid +appearance of the capital of the East, the height and extent of +the walls, the myriads of wealthy and affrighted citizens who +crowded the ramparts, and the various prospect of the sea and +land. While they gazed with hopeless desire on the inaccessible +beauties of Constantinople, a sally was made from one of the +gates by a party of Saracens, who had been fortunately engaged in +the service of Valens. The cavalry of Scythia was forced to yield +to the admirable swiftness and spirit of the Arabian horses: +their riders were skilled in the evolutions of irregular war; and +the Northern Barbarians were astonished and dismayed, by the +inhuman ferocity of the Barbarians of the South. A Gothic soldier +was slain by the dagger of an Arab; and the hairy, naked savage, +applying his lips to the wound, expressed a horrid delight, while +he sucked the blood of his vanquished enemy. The army of the +Goths, laden with the spoils of the wealthy suburbs and the +adjacent territory, slowly moved, from the Bosphorus, to the +mountains which form the western boundary of Thrace. The +important pass of Succi was betrayed by the fear, or the +misconduct, of Maurus; and the Barbarians, who no longer had any +resistance to apprehend from the scattered and vanquished troops +of the East, spread themselves over the face of a fertile and +cultivated country, as far as the confines of Italy and the +Hadriatic Sea.<br> +</p> + +<p>The Romans, who so coolly, and so concisely, mention the acts +of <strong><em>justice</em></strong> which were exercised by the +legions, reserve their compassion, and their eloquence, for their +own sufferings, when the provinces were invaded, and desolated, +by the arms of the successful Barbarians. The simple +circumstantial narrative (did such a narrative exist) of the ruin +of a single town, of the misfortunes of a single family, might +exhibit an interesting and instructive picture of human manners: +but the tedious repetition of vague and declamatory complaints +would fatigue the attention of the most patient reader. The same +censure may be applied, though not perhaps in an equal degree, to +the profane, and the ecclesiastical, writers of this unhappy +period; that their minds were inflamed by popular and religious +animosity; and that the true size and color of every object is +falsified by the exaggerations of their corrupt eloquence. The +vehement Jerom might justly deplore the calamities inflicted by +the Goths, and their barbarous allies, on his native country of +Pannonia, and the wide extent of the provinces, from the walls of +Constantinople to the foot of the Julian Alps; the rapes, the +massacres, the conflagrations; and, above all, the profanation of +the churches, that were turned into stables, and the contemptuous +treatment of the relics of holy martyrs. But the Saint is surely +transported beyond the limits of nature and history, when he +affirms, "that, in those desert countries, nothing was left +except the sky and the earth; that, after the destruction of the +cities, and the extirpation of the human race, the land was +overgrown with thick forests and inextricable brambles; and that +the universal desolation, announced by the prophet Zephaniah, was +accomplished, in the scarcity of the beasts, the birds, and even +of the fish." These complaints were pronounced about twenty years +after the death of Valens; and the Illyrian provinces, which were +constantly exposed to the invasion and passage of the Barbarians, +still continued, after a calamitous period of ten centuries, to +supply new materials for rapine and destruction. Could it even be +supposed, that a large tract of country had been left without +cultivation and without inhabitants, the consequences might not +have been so fatal to the inferior productions of animated +nature. The useful and feeble animals, which are nourished by the +hand of man, might suffer and perish, if they were deprived of +his protection; but the beasts of the forest, his enemies or his +victims, would multiply in the free and undisturbed possession of +their solitary domain. The various tribes that people the air, or +the waters, are still less connected with the fate of the human +species; and it is highly probable that the fish of the Danube +would have felt more terror and distress, from the approach of a +voracious pike, than from the hostile inroad of a Gothic +army.<br> +</p> + +<p><strong><em>Chapter XXVI: Progress of The Huns. -- Part +V.</em></strong><br> +</p> + +<p>Whatever may have been the just measure of the calamities of +Europe, there was reason to fear that the same calamities would +soon extend to the peaceful countries of Asia. The sons of the +Goths had been judiciously distributed through the cities of the +East; and the arts of education were employed to polish, and +subdue, the native fierceness of their temper. In the space of +about twelve years, their numbers had continually increased; and +the children, who, in the first emigration, were sent over the +Hellespont, had attained, with rapid growth, the strength and +spirit of perfect manhood. It was impossible to conceal from +their knowledge the events of the Gothic war; and, as those +daring youths had not studied the language of dissimulation, they +betrayed their wish, their desire, perhaps their intention, to +emulate the glorious example of their fathers The danger of the +times seemed to justify the jealous suspicions of the +provincials; and these suspicions were admitted as unquestionable +evidence, that the Goths of Asia had formed a secret and +dangerous conspiracy against the public safety. The death of +Valens had left the East without a sovereign; and Julius, who +filled the important station of master-general of the troops, +with a high reputation of diligence and ability, thought it his +duty to consult the senate of Constantinople; which he +considered, during the vacancy of the throne, as the +representative council of the nation. As soon as he had obtained +the discretionary power of acting as he should judge most +expedient for the good of the republic, he assembled the +principal officers, and privately concerted effectual measures +for the execution of his bloody design. An order was immediately +promulgated, that, on a stated day, the Gothic youth should +assemble in the capital cities of their respective provinces; +and, as a report was industriously circulated, that they were +summoned to receive a liberal gift of lands and money, the +pleasing hope allayed the fury of their resentment, and, perhaps, +suspended the motions of the conspiracy. On the appointed day, +the unarmed crowd of the Gothic youth was carefully collected in +the square or Forum; the streets and avenues were occupied by the +Roman troops, and the roofs of the houses were covered with +archers and slingers. At the same hour, in all the cities of the +East, the signal was given of indiscriminate slaughter; and the +provinces of Asia were delivered by the cruel prudence of Julius, +from a domestic enemy, who, in a few months, might have carried +fire and sword from the Hellespont to the Euphrates. The urgent +consideration of the public safety may undoubtedly authorize the +violation of every positive law. How far that, or any other, +consideration may operate to dissolve the natural obligations of +humanity and justice, is a doctrine of which I still desire to +remain ignorant.<br> +</p> + +<p>The emperor Gratian was far advanced on his march towards the +plains of Hadrianople, when he was informed, at first by the +confused voice of fame, and afterwards by the more accurate +reports of Victor and Richomer, that his impatient colleague had +been slain in battle, and that two thirds of the Roman army were +exterminated by the sword of the victorious Goths. Whatever +resentment the rash and jealous vanity of his uncle might +deserve, the resentment of a generous mind is easily subdued by +the softer emotions of grief and compassion; and even the sense +of pity was soon lost in the serious and alarming consideration +of the state of the republic. Gratian was too late to assist, he +was too weak to revenge, his unfortunate colleague; and the +valiant and modest youth felt himself unequal to the support of a +sinking world. A formidable tempest of the Barbarians of Germany +seemed ready to burst over the provinces of Gaul; and the mind of +Gratian was oppressed and distracted by the administration of the +Western empire. In this important crisis, the government of the +East, and the conduct of the Gothic war, required the undivided +attention of a hero and a statesman. A subject invested with such +ample command would not long have preserved his fidelity to a +distant benefactor; and the Imperial council embraced the wise +and manly resolution of conferring an obligation, rather than of +yielding to an insult. It was the wish of Gratian to bestow the +purple as the reward of virtue; but, at the age of nineteen, it +is not easy for a prince, educated in the supreme rank, to +understand the true characters of his ministers and generals. He +attempted to weigh, with an impartial hand, their various merits +and defects; and, whilst he checked the rash confidence of +ambition, he distrusted the cautious wisdom which despaired of +the republic. As each moment of delay diminished something of the +power and resources of the future sovereign of the East, the +situation of the times would not allow a tedious debate. The +choice of Gratian was soon declared in favor of an exile, whose +father, only three years before, had suffered, under the sanction +of <strong><em>his</em></strong> authority, an unjust and +ignominious death. The great Theodosius, a name celebrated in +history, and dear to the Catholic church, was summoned to the +Imperial court, which had gradually retreated from the confines +of Thrace to the more secure station of Sirmium. Five months +after the death of Valens, the emperor Gratian produced before +the assembled troops <strong><em>his</em></strong> colleague and +<strong><em>their</em></strong>master; who, after a modest, +perhaps a sincere, resistance, was compelled to accept, amidst +the general acclamations, the diadem, the purple, and the equal +title of Augustus. The provinces of Thrace, Asia, and Egypt, over +which Valens had reigned, were resigned to the administration of +the new emperor; but, as he was specially intrusted with the +conduct of the Gothic war, the Illyrian præfecture was +dismembered; and the two great dioceses of Dacia and Macedonia +were added to the dominions of the Eastern empire.<br> +</p> + +<p>The same province, and perhaps the same city, which had given +to the throne the virtues of Trajan, and the talents of Hadrian, +was the original seat of another family of Spaniards, who, in a +less fortunate age, possessed, near fourscore years, the +declining empire of Rome. They emerged from the obscurity of +municipal honors by the active spirit of the elder Theodosius, a +general whose exploits in Britain and Africa have formed one of +the most splendid parts of the annals of Valentinian. The son of +that general, who likewise bore the name of Theodosius, was +educated, by skilful preceptors, in the liberal studies of youth; +but he was instructed in the art of war by the tender care and +severe discipline of his father. Under the standard of such a +leader, young Theodosius sought glory and knowledge, in the most +distant scenes of military action; inured his constitution to the +difference of seasons and climates; distinguished his valor by +sea and land; and observed the various warfare of the Scots, the +Saxons, and the Moors. His own merit, and the recommendation of +the conqueror of Africa, soon raised him to a separate command; +and, in the station of Duke of Mæsia, he vanquished an army +of Sarmatians; saved the province; deserved the love of the +soldiers; and provoked the envy of the court. His rising fortunes +were soon blasted by the disgrace and execution of his +illustrious father; and Theodosius obtained, as a favor, the +permission of retiring to a private life in his native province +of Spain. He displayed a firm and temperate character in the ease +with which he adapted himself to this new situation. His time was +almost equally divided between the town and country; the spirit, +which had animated his public conduct, was shown in the active +and affectionate performance of every social duty; and the +diligence of the soldier was profitably converted to the +improvement of his ample patrimony, which lay between Valladolid +and Segovia, in the midst of a fruitful district, still famous +for a most exquisite breed of sheep. From the innocent, but +humble labors of his farm, Theodosius was transported, in less +than four months, to the throne of the Eastern empire; and the +whole period of the history of the world will not perhaps afford +a similar example, of an elevation at the same time so pure and +so honorable. The princes who peaceably inherit the sceptre of +their fathers, claim and enjoy a legal right, the more secure as +it is absolutely distinct from the merits of their personal +characters. The subjects, who, in a monarchy, or a popular state, +acquire the possession of supreme power, may have raised +themselves, by the superiority either of genius or virtue, above +the heads of their equals; but their virtue is seldom exempt from +ambition; and the cause of the successful candidate is frequently +stained by the guilt of conspiracy, or civil war. Even in those +governments which allow the reigning monarch to declare a +colleague or a successor, his partial choice, which may be +influenced by the blindest passions, is often directed to an +unworthy object But the most suspicious malignity cannot ascribe +to Theodosius, in his obscure solitude of Caucha, the arts, the +desires, or even the hopes, of an ambitious statesman; and the +name of the Exile would long since have been forgotten, if his +genuine and distinguished virtues had not left a deep impression +in the Imperial court. During the season of prosperity, he had +been neglected; but, in the public distress, his superior merit +was universally felt and acknowledged. What confidence must have +been reposed in his integrity, since Gratian could trust, that a +pious son would forgive, for the sake of the republic, the murder +of his father! What expectations must have been formed of his +abilities to encourage the hope, that a single man could save, +and restore, the empire of the East! Theodosius was invested with +the purple in the thirty-third year of his age. The vulgar gazed +with admiration on the manly beauty of his face, and the graceful +majesty of his person, which they were pleased to compare with +the pictures and medals of the emperor Trajan; whilst intelligent +observers discovered, in the qualities of his heart and +understanding, a more important resemblance to the best and +greatest of the Roman princes.<br> +</p> + +<p>It is not without the most sincere regret, that I must now +take leave of an accurate and faithful guide, who has composed +the history of his own times, without indulging the prejudices +and passions, which usually affect the mind of a contemporary. +Ammianus Marcellinus, who terminates his useful work with the +defeat and death of Valens, recommends the more glorious subject +of the ensuing reign to the youthful vigor and eloquence of the +rising generation. The rising generation was not disposed to +accept his advice or to imitate his example; and, in the study of +the reign of Theodosius, we are reduced to illustrate the partial +narrative of Zosimus, by the obscure hints of fragments and +chronicles, by the figurative style of poetry or panegyric, and +by the precarious assistance of the ecclesiastical writers, who, +in the heat of religious faction, are apt to despise the profane +virtues of sincerity and moderation. Conscious of these +disadvantages, which will continue to involve a considerable +portion of the decline and fall of the Roman empire, I shall +proceed with doubtful and timorous steps. Yet I may boldly +pronounce, that the battle of Hadrianople was never revenged by +any signal or decisive victory of Theodosius over the Barbarians: +and the expressive silence of his venal orators may be confirmed +by the observation of the condition and circumstances of the +times. The fabric of a mighty state, which has been reared by the +labors of successive ages, could not be overturned by the +misfortune of a single day, if the fatal power of the imagination +did not exaggerate the real measure of the calamity. The loss of +forty thousand Romans, who fell in the plains of Hadrianople, +might have been soon recruited in the populous provinces of the +East, which contained so many millions of inhabitants. The +courage of a soldier is found to be the cheapest, and most +common, quality of human nature; and sufficient skill to +encounter an undisciplined foe might have been speedily taught by +the care of the surviving centurions. If the Barbarians were +mounted on the horses, and equipped with the armor, of their +vanquished enemies, the numerous studs of Cappadocia and Spain +would have supplied new squadrons of cavalry; the thirty-four +arsenals of the empire were plentifully stored with magazines of +offensive and defensive arms: and the wealth of Asia might still +have yielded an ample fund for the expenses of the war. But the +effects which were produced by the battle of Hadrianople on the +minds of the Barbarians and of the Romans, extended the victory +of the former, and the defeat of the latter, far beyond the +limits of a single day. A Gothic chief was heard to declare, with +insolent moderation, that, for his own part, he was fatigued with +slaughter: but that he was astonished how a people, who fled +before him like a flock of sheep, could still presume to dispute +the possession of their treasures and provinces. The same terrors +which the name of the Huns had spread among the Gothic tribes, +were inspired, by the formidable name of the Goths, among the +subjects and soldiers of the Roman empire. If Theodosius, hastily +collecting his scattered forces, had led them into the field to +encounter a victorious enemy, his army would have been vanquished +by their own fears; and his rashness could not have been excused +by the chance of success. But the <strong><em>great</em></strong> +Theodosius, an epithet which he honorably deserved on this +momentous occasion, conducted himself as the firm and faithful +guardian of the republic. He fixed his head-quarters at +Thessalonica, the capital of the Macedonian diocese; from whence +he could watch the irregular motions of the Barbarians, and +direct the operations of his lieutenants, from the gates of +Constantinople to the shores of the Hadriatic. The fortifications +and garrisons of the cities were strengthened; and the troops, +among whom a sense of order and discipline was revived, were +insensibly emboldened by the confidence of their own safety. From +these secure stations, they were encouraged to make frequent +sallies on the Barbarians, who infested the adjacent country; +and, as they were seldom allowed to engage, without some decisive +superiority, either of ground or of numbers, their enterprises +were, for the most part, successful; and they were soon +convinced, by their own experience, of the possibility of +vanquishing their <strong><em>invincible</em></strong> enemies. +The detachments of these separate garrisons were generally united +into small armies; the same cautious measures were pursued, +according to an extensive and well-concerted plan of operations; +the events of each day added strength and spirit to the Roman +arms; and the artful diligence of the emperor, who circulated the +most favorable reports of the success of the war, contributed to +subdue the pride of the Barbarians, and to animate the hopes and +courage of his subjects. If, instead of this faint and imperfect +outline, we could accurately represent the counsels and actions +of Theodosius, in four successive campaigns, there is reason to +believe, that his consummate skill would deserve the applause of +every military reader. The republic had formerly been saved by +the delays of Fabius; and, while the splendid trophies of Scipio, +in the field of Zama, attract the eyes of posterity, the camps +and marches of the dictator among the hills of the Campania, may +claim a juster proportion of the solid and independent fame, +which the general is not compelled to share, either with fortune +or with his troops. Such was likewise the merit of Theodosius; +and the infirmities of his body, which most unseasonably +languished under a long and dangerous disease, could not oppress +the vigor of his mind, or divert his attention from the public +service.<br> +</p> + +<p>The deliverance and peace of the Roman provinces was the work +of prudence, rather than of valor: the prudence of Theodosius was +seconded by fortune: and the emperor never failed to seize, and +to improve, every favorable circumstance. As long as the superior +genius of Fritigern preserved the union, and directed the motions +of the Barbarians, their power was not inadequate to the conquest +of a great empire. The death of that hero, the predecessor and +master of the renowned Alaric, relieved an impatient multitude +from the intolerable yoke of discipline and discretion. The +Barbarians, who had been restrained by his authority, abandoned +themselves to the dictates of their passions; and their passions +were seldom uniform or consistent. An army of conquerors was +broken into many disorderly bands of savage robbers; and their +blind and irregular fury was not less pernicious to themselves, +than to their enemies. Their mischievous disposition was shown in +the destruction of every object which they wanted strength to +remove, or taste to enjoy; and they often consumed, with +improvident rage, the harvests, or the granaries, which soon +afterwards became necessary for their own subsistence. A spirit +of discord arose among the independent tribes and nations, which +had been united only by the bands of a loose and voluntary +alliance. The troops of the Huns and the Alani would naturally +upbraid the flight of the Goths; who were not disposed to use +with moderation the advantages of their fortune; the ancient +jealousy of the Ostrogoths and the Visigoths could not long be +suspended; and the haughty chiefs still remembered the insults +and injuries, which they had reciprocally offered, or sustained, +while the nation was seated in the countries beyond the Danube. +The progress of domestic faction abated the more diffusive +sentiment of national animosity; and the officers of Theodosius +were instructed to purchase, with liberal gifts and promises, the +retreat or service of the discontented party. The acquisition of +Modar, a prince of the royal blood of the Amali, gave a bold and +faithful champion to the cause of Rome. The illustrious deserter +soon obtained the rank of master-general, with an important +command; surprised an army of his countrymen, who were immersed +in wine and sleep; and, after a cruel slaughter of the astonished +Goths, returned with an immense spoil, and four thousand wagons, +to the Imperial camp. In the hands of a skilful politician, the +most different means may be successfully applied to the same +ends; and the peace of the empire, which had been forwarded by +the divisions, was accomplished by the reunion, of the Gothic +nation. Athanaric, who had been a patient spectator of these +extraordinary events, was at length driven, by the chance of +arms, from the dark recesses of the woods of Caucaland. He no +longer hesitated to pass the Danube; and a very considerable part +of the subjects of Fritigern, who already felt the inconveniences +of anarchy, were easily persuaded to acknowledge for their king a +Gothic Judge, whose birth they respected, and whose abilities +they had frequently experienced. But age had chilled the daring +spirit of Athanaric; and, instead of leading his people to the +field of battle and victory, he wisely listened to the fair +proposal of an honorable and advantageous treaty. Theodosius, who +was acquainted with the merit and power of his new ally, +condescended to meet him at the distance of several miles from +Constantinople; and entertained him in the Imperial city, with +the confidence of a friend, and the magnificence of a monarch. +"The Barbarian prince observed, with curious attention, the +variety of objects which attracted his notice, and at last broke +out into a sincere and passionate exclamation of wonder. I now +behold (said he) what I never could believe, the glories of this +stupendous capital! And as he cast his eyes around, he viewed, +and he admired, the commanding situation of the city, the +strength and beauty of the walls and public edifices, the +capacious harbor, crowded with innumerable vessels, the perpetual +concourse of distant nations, and the arms and discipline of the +troops. Indeed, (continued Athanaric,) the emperor of the Romans +is a god upon earth; and the presumptuous man, who dares to lift +his hand against him, is guilty of his own blood." The Gothic +king did not long enjoy this splendid and honorable reception; +and, as temperance was not the virtue of his nation, it may +justly be suspected, that his mortal disease was contracted +amidst the pleasures of the Imperial banquets. But the policy of +Theodosius derived more solid benefit from the death, than he +could have expected from the most faithful services, of his ally. +The funeral of Athanaric was performed with solemn rites in the +capital of the East; a stately monument was erected to his +memory; and his whole army, won by the liberal courtesy, and +decent grief, of Theodosius, enlisted under the standard of the +Roman empire. The submission of so great a body of the Visigoths +was productive of the most salutary consequences; and the mixed +influence of force, of reason, and of corruption, became every +day more powerful, and more extensive. Each independent chieftain +hastened to obtain a separate treaty, from the apprehension that +an obstinate delay might expose <strong><em>him</em></strong>, +alone and unprotected, to the revenge, or justice, of the +conqueror. The general, or rather the final, capitulation of the +Goths, may be dated four years, one month, and twenty-five days, +after the defeat and death of the emperor Valens.<br> +</p> + +<p>The provinces of the Danube had been already relieved from the +oppressive weight of the Gruthungi, or Ostrogoths, by the +voluntary retreat of Alatheus and Saphrax, whose restless spirit +had prompted them to seek new scenes of rapine and glory. Their +destructive course was pointed towards the West; but we must be +satisfied with a very obscure and imperfect knowledge of their +various adventures. The Ostrogoths impelled several of the German +tribes on the provinces of Gaul; concluded, and soon violated, a +treaty with the emperor Gratian; advanced into the unknown +countries of the North; and, after an interval of more than four +years, returned, with accumulated force, to the banks of the +Lower Danube. Their troops were recruited with the fiercest +warriors of Germany and Scythia; and the soldiers, or at least +the historians, of the empire, no longer recognized the name and +countenances of their former enemies. The general who commanded +the military and naval powers of the Thracian frontier, soon +perceived that his superiority would be disadvantageous to the +public service; and that the Barbarians, awed by the presence of +his fleet and legions, would probably defer the passage of the +river till the approaching winter. The dexterity of the spies, +whom he sent into the Gothic camp, allured the Barbarians into a +fatal snare. They were persuaded that, by a bold attempt, they +might surprise, in the silence and darkness of the night, the +sleeping army of the Romans; and the whole multitude was hastily +embarked in a fleet of three thousand canoes. The bravest of the +Ostrogoths led the van; the main body consisted of the remainder +of their subjects and soldiers; and the women and children +securely followed in the rear. One of the nights without a moon +had been selected for the execution of their design; and they had +almost reached the southern bank of the Danube, in the firm +confidence that they should find an easy landing and an unguarded +camp. But the progress of the Barbarians was suddenly stopped by +an unexpected obstacle a triple line of vessels, strongly +connected with each other, and which formed an impenetrable chain +of two miles and a half along the river. While they struggled to +force their way in the unequal conflict, their right flank was +overwhelmed by the irresistible attack of a fleet of galleys, +which were urged down the stream by the united impulse of oars +and of the tide. The weight and velocity of those ships of war +broke, and sunk, and dispersed, the rude and feeble canoes of the +Barbarians; their valor was ineffectual; and Alatheus, the king, +or general, of the Ostrogoths, perished with his bravest troops, +either by the sword of the Romans, or in the waves of the Danube. +The last division of this unfortunate fleet might regain the +opposite shore; but the distress and disorder of the multitude +rendered them alike incapable, either of action or counsel; and +they soon implored the clemency of the victorious enemy. On this +occasion, as well as on many others, it is a difficult task to +reconcile the passions and prejudices of the writers of the age +of Theodosius. The partial and malignant historian, who +misrepresents every action of his reign, affirms, that the +emperor did not appear in the field of battle till the Barbarians +had been vanquished by the valor and conduct of his lieutenant +Promotus. The flattering poet, who celebrated, in the court of +Honorius, the glory of the father and of the son, ascribes the +victory to the personal prowess of Theodosius; and almost +insinuates, that the king of the Ostrogoths was slain by the hand +of the emperor. The truth of history might perhaps be found in a +just medium between these extreme and contradictory +assertions.<br> +</p> + +<p>The original treaty which fixed the settlement of the Goths, +ascertained their privileges, and stipulated their obligations, +would illustrate the history of Theodosius and his successors. +The series of their history has imperfectly preserved the spirit +and substance of this single agreement. The ravages of war and +tyranny had provided many large tracts of fertile but +uncultivated land for the use of those Barbarians who might not +disdain the practice of agriculture. A numerous colony of the +Visigoths was seated in Thrace; the remains of the Ostrogoths +were planted in Phrygia and Lydia; their immediate wants were +supplied by a distribution of corn and cattle; and their future +industry was encouraged by an exemption from tribute, during a +certain term of years. The Barbarians would have deserved to feel +the cruel and perfidious policy of the Imperial court, if they +had suffered themselves to be dispersed through the provinces. +They required, and they obtained, the sole possession of the +villages and districts assigned for their residence; they still +cherished and propagated their native manners and language; +asserted, in the bosom of despotism, the freedom of their +domestic government; and acknowledged the sovereignty of the +emperor, without submitting to the inferior jurisdiction of the +laws and magistrates of Rome. The hereditary chiefs of the tribes +and families were still permitted to command their followers in +peace and war; but the royal dignity was abolished; and the +generals of the Goths were appointed and removed at the pleasure +of the emperor. An army of forty thousand Goths was maintained +for the perpetual service of the empire of the East; and those +haughty troops, who assumed the title of Fderati, or allies, were +distinguished by their gold collars, liberal pay, and licentious +privileges. Their native courage was improved by the use of arms +and the knowledge of discipline; and, while the republic was +guarded, or threatened, by the doubtful sword of the Barbarians, +the last sparks of the military flame were finally extinguished +in the minds of the Romans. Theodosius had the address to +persuade his allies, that the conditions of peace, which had been +extorted from him by prudence and necessity, were the voluntary +expressions of his sincere friendship for the Gothic nation. A +different mode of vindication or apology was opposed to the +complaints of the people; who loudly censured these shameful and +dangerous concessions. The calamities of the war were painted in +the most lively colors; and the first symptoms of the return of +order, of plenty, and security, were diligently exaggerated. The +advocates of Theodosius could affirm, with some appearance of +truth and reason, that it was impossible to extirpate so many +warlike tribes, who were rendered desperate by the loss of their +native country; and that the exhausted provinces would be revived +by a fresh supply of soldiers and husbandmen. The Barbarians +still wore an angry and hostile aspect; but the experience of +past times might encourage the hope, that they would acquire the +habits of industry and obedience; that their manners would be +polished by time, education, and the influence of Christianity; +and that their posterity would insensibly blend with the great +body of the Roman people.<br> +</p> + +<p>Notwithstanding these specious arguments, and these sanguine +expectations, it was apparent to every discerning eye, that the +Goths would long remain the enemies, and might soon become the +conquerors of the Roman empire. Their rude and insolent behavior +expressed their contempt of the citizens and provincials, whom +they insulted with impunity. To the zeal and valor of the +Barbarians Theodosius was indebted for the success of his arms: +but their assistance was precarious; and they were sometimes +seduced, by a treacherous and inconstant disposition, to abandon +his standard, at the moment when their service was the most +essential. During the civil war against Maximus, a great number +of Gothic deserters retired into the morasses of Macedonia, +wasted the adjacent provinces, and obliged the intrepid monarch +to expose his person, and exert his power, to suppress the rising +flame of rebellion. The public apprehensions were fortified by +the strong suspicion, that these tumults were not the effect of +accidental passion, but the result of deep and premeditated +design. It was generally believed, that the Goths had signed the +treaty of peace with a hostile and insidious spirit; and that +their chiefs had previously bound themselves, by a solemn and +secret oath, never to keep faith with the Romans; to maintain the +fairest show of loyalty and friendship, and to watch the +favorable moment of rapine, of conquest, and of revenge. But as +the minds of the Barbarians were not insensible to the power of +gratitude, several of the Gothic leaders sincerely devoted +themselves to the service of the empire, or, at least, of the +emperor; the whole nation was insensibly divided into two +opposite factions, and much sophistry was employed in +conversation and dispute, to compare the obligations of their +first, and second, engagements. The Goths, who considered +themselves as the friends of peace, of justice, and of Rome, were +directed by the authority of Fravitta, a valiant and honorable +youth, distinguished above the rest of his countrymen by the +politeness of his manners, the liberality of his sentiments, and +the mild virtues of social life. But the more numerous faction +adhered to the fierce and faithless Priulf, * who inflamed the +passions, and asserted the independence, of his warlike +followers. On one of the solemn festivals, when the chiefs of +both parties were invited to the Imperial table, they were +insensibly heated by wine, till they forgot the usual restraints +of discretion and respect, and betrayed, in the presence of +Theodosius, the fatal secret of their domestic disputes. The +emperor, who had been the reluctant witness of this extraordinary +controversy, dissembled his fears and resentment, and soon +dismissed the tumultuous assembly. Fravitta, alarmed and +exasperated by the insolence of his rival, whose departure from +the palace might have been the signal of a civil war, boldly +followed him; and, drawing his sword, laid Priulf dead at his +feet. Their companions flew to arms; and the faithful champion of +Rome would have been oppressed by superior numbers, if he had not +been protected by the seasonable interposition of the Imperial +guards. Such were the scenes of Barbaric rage, which disgraced +the palace and table of the Roman emperor; and, as the impatient +Goths could only be restrained by the firm and temperate +character of Theodosius, the public safety seemed to depend on +the life and abilities of a single man.<br> +</p> + +<p>Vol. 2</p> +</body> +</html> + + diff --git a/old/dfre210.zip b/old/dfre210.zip Binary files differnew file mode 100644 index 0000000..d88250d --- /dev/null +++ b/old/dfre210.zip |