General History for Colleges and High Schools Part 30

During this reign Virgil composed his immortal epic of the _aeneid_, and Horace his famous odes; while Livy wrote his inimitable history, and Ovid his _Metamorphoses_. Many who lamented the fall of the republic sought solace in the pursuit of letters; and in this they were encouraged by Augustus, as it gave occupation to many restless spirits that would otherwise have been engaged in political intrigues against his government.

Augustus was also a munificent patron of architecture and art. He adorned the capital with many splendid structures. Said he proudly, "I found Rome a city of brick; I left it a city of marble." The population of the city at this time was probably about one million.

Although the government of Augustus was disturbed by some troubles upon the frontiers, still never before, perhaps, did the world enjoy so long a period of general rest from the preparation and turmoil of war. Three times during this auspicious reign the gates of the Temple of Ja.n.u.s at Rome, which were open in time of war and closed in time of peace, were shut. Only twice before during the entire history of the city had they been closed, so constantly had the Roman people been engaged in war. It was in the midst of this happy reign, when profound peace prevailed throughout the civilized world, that Christ was born in Bethlehem of Judea. The event was unheralded at Rome; yet it was filled with profound significance, not only for the Roman empire, but for the world.

The latter years of the life of Augustus were clouded both by domestic bereavement and national disaster. His beloved nephew Marcellus, and his two grandsons Caius and Lucius, whom he purposed making his heirs, were all removed by death; and then, far away in the German forest, his general Varus, who had attempted to rule the freedom-loving Teutons as he had governed the abject Asiatics of the Eastern provinces, was surprised by the barbarians, led by their brave chief Hermanu,--Arminius, as called by the Romans,--and his army destroyed almost to a man (A.D. 9). Twenty thousand of the legionaries lay dead and unburied in the tangled woods and mora.s.ses of Germany.

The victory of Arminius over the Roman legions was an event of the greatest significance in the history of European civilization. Germany was almost overrun by the Roman army. The Teutonic tribes were on the point of being completely subjugated and Romanized, as had been the Celts of Gaul before them. Had this occurred, the entire history of Europe would have been changed; for the Germanic element is the one that has given shape and color to the important events of the last fifteen hundred years. Those barbarians, too, were our ancestors. Had Rome succeeded in exterminating or enslaving them, Britain, as Creasy says, would never have received the name of England, and the great English nation would never have had an existence.

In the year A.D. 14, Augustus died, having reached the seventy-sixth year of his age. It was believed that his soul ascended visibly amidst the flames of the funeral pyre. By decree of the Senate divine wors.h.i.+p was accorded to him, and temples were erected in his honor.

One of the most important of the acts of Augustus, in its influence upon following events, was the formation of the Praetorian Guard, which was designed for a sort of body-guard to the emperor. In the succeeding reign this body of soldiers, about ten thousand in number, was given a permanent camp alongside the city walls. It soon became a formidable power in the state, and made and unmade emperors at will.

REIGN OF TIBERIUS (A.D. 14-37).--Tiberius succeeded to an unlimited sovereignty. The Senate conferred upon him all the t.i.tles that had been worn by Augustus. One of the first acts of Tiberius gave the last blow to the ancient republican inst.i.tutions. He took away from the popular a.s.sembly the privilege of electing the consuls and praetors, and bestowed the same upon the Senate, which, however, must elect from candidates presented by the emperor. As the Senate was the creation of the emperor, who as censor made up the list of its members, he was now of course the source and fountain of all patronage. During the first years of his reign, Tiberius used his practically unrestrained authority with moderation and justice, but soon yielding to the promptings of a naturally cruel, suspicious, and jealous nature, he entered upon a course of the most high- handed tyranny. He enforced oppressively an old law, known as the _law of majestas_, which made it a capital offence for any one to speak a careless word, or even to entertain an unfriendly thought, respecting the emperor. "It was dangerous to speak, and equally dangerous to keep silent," says Leighton, "for silence even might be construed into discontent." Rewards were offered to informers, and hence sprang up a cla.s.s of persons called "delators," who acted as spies upon society. Often false charges were made, to gratify personal enmity; and many, especially of the wealthy cla.s.s, were accused and put to death that their property might be confiscated.

Tiberius appointed, as his chief minister and as commander of the praetorians, one Seja.n.u.s, a man of the lowest and most corrupt life. This officer actually persuaded Tiberius to retire to the little island of Capreae, in the Bay of Naples, and leave to him the management of affairs at Rome. The emperor built several villas in different parts of the beautiful islet, and, having gathered a band of congenial companions, pa.s.sed in this pleasant retreat the later years of his reign. Both Tacitus the historian and Suetonius the biographer tell many stories of the scandalous profligacy of the emperor's life on the island; but these tales, it should be added, are discredited by some.

Meanwhile, Seja.n.u.s was ruling at Rome very much according to his own will.

No man's life was safe. He even grew so bold as to plan the a.s.sa.s.sination of the emperor himself. His designs, however, became known to Tiberius; and the infamous and disloyal minister was arrested and put to death.

After the execution of his minister, Tiberius ruled more despotically than ever before. Mult.i.tudes sought refuge from his tyranny in suicide. Death at last relieved the world of the monster. His end was probably hastened by his attendants, who are believed to have smothered him in his bed, as he lay dying.

It was in the midst of the reign of Tiberius that, in a remote province of the Roman empire, the Saviour was crucified. Animated by an unparalleled missionary spirit, His followers traversed the length and breadth of the empire, preaching everywhere the "glad tidings." Men's loss of faith in the G.o.ds of the old mythologies, the softening and liberalizing influence of Greek culture, the unification of the whole civilized world under a single government, the widespread suffering and the inexpressible weariness of the oppressed and servile cla.s.ses,--all these things had prepared the soil for the seed of the new doctrines. In less than three centuries the Pagan empire had become Christian not only in name, but also very largely in fact. This conversion of Rome is one of the most important events in all history. A new element is here introduced into civilization, an element which we shall find giving color and character to very much of the story of the eighteen centuries that we have yet to study.

REIGN OF CALIGULA (A.D. 37-41).--Caius Caesar, better known as Caligula, was only twenty-five years of age when the death of Tiberius called him to the throne. His career was very similar to that of Tiberius. After a few months spent in arduous application to the affairs of the empire, during which time his many acts of kindness and piety won for him the affections of all cla.s.ses, the mind of the young emperor became unsettled, and he began to indulge in all sorts of insanities. The cruel sports of the amphitheatre possessed for him a strange fascination. When animals failed, he ordered spectators to be seized indiscriminately, and thrown to the beasts. He entered the lists himself, and fought as a gladiator upon the arena. In a sanguinary mood, he wished that "the people of Rome had but one neck." As an insult to his n.o.bles, he gave out that he proposed to make his favorite horse, Incitatus, consul. He declared himself divine, and removing the heads of Jupiter's statues, put on his own.

After four years the insane career of Caligula was brought to a close by some of the officers of the praetorian guard, whom he had wantonly insulted.

REIGN OF CLAUDIUS (A.D. 4l-54).--The reign of Claudius, Caligula's successor, was signalized by the conquest of Britain. Nearly a century had now pa.s.sed since the invasion of the island by Julius Caesar, who, as has been seen (see p. 292), simply made a reconnoissance of the island and then withdrew. Claudius conquered all the southern portion of the island, and founded many colonies, which in time became important centres of Roman trade and culture. The leader of the Britons was Caractacus. He was taken captive and carried to Rome. Gazing in astonishment upon the magnificence of the imperial city, he exclaimed, "How can a people possessed of such splendor at home envy Caractacus his humble cottage in Britain?"

Claudius distinguished his reign by the execution of many important works.

At the mouth of the Tiber he constructed a magnificent harbor, called the Portus Roma.n.u.s. The Claudian Aqueduct, which he completed, was a stupendous work, bringing water to the city from a distance of forty-five miles.

The delight of the people in gladiatorial shows had at this time become almost an insane frenzy. Claudius determined to give an entertainment that should render insignificant all similar efforts. Upon a large lake, whose sloping bank afforded seats for the vast mult.i.tudes of spectators, he exhibited a naval battle, in which two opposing fleets, bearing nineteen thousand gladiators, fought as though in real battle, till the water was filled with thousands of bodies, and covered with the fragments of the broken s.h.i.+ps.

Throughout his life Claudius was ruled by intriguing favorites and unworthy wives. For his fourth wife Claudius married the "wicked Agrippina," who secured his death by means of a dish of poisoned mushrooms, in order to make place for the succession of her son Nero.

REIGN OF NERO (A.D. 54-68).--Nero was fortunate in having for his preceptor the great philosopher and moralist Seneca; but never was teacher more unfortunate in his pupil. For five years Nero ruled with moderation and equity. He then broke away from the guidance of his tutor Seneca, and entered upon a career filled with crimes of almost incredible enormity.

The dagger and poison--the latter a means of murder the use of which at Rome had become a "fine art," and was in the hands of those who made it a regular profession--were employed almost unceasingly, to remove persons that had incurred his hatred, or who possessed wealth that he coveted.

It was in the tenth year of his reign that the so-called Great Fire laid more than half of Rome in ashes. It was rumored that Nero had ordered the conflagration to be lighted, and that from the roof of his palace he had enjoyed the spectacle, and amused himself by singing a poem which he had written, ent.i.tled the "Sack of Troy."

Nero did everything in his power to discredit the rumor. To turn attention from himself, he accused the Christians of having conspired to destroy the city, in order to help out their prophecies. The doctrine which was taught by some of the new sect respecting the second coming of Christ, and the destruction of the world by fire, lent color to the charge. The persecution that followed was one of the most cruel recorded in the history of the Church. Many victims were covered with pitch and burned at night, to serve as torches in the imperial gardens. Tradition preserves the names of the Apostles Peter and Paul as victims of this Neronian persecution.

As to Rome, the conflagration was a blessing in disguise. The city rose from its ashes as quickly as Athens from her ruins at the close of the Persian wars. The new buildings were made fireproof; and the narrow, crooked streets reappeared as broad and beautiful avenues. A considerable portion of the burnt region was appropriated by Nero for the buildings and grounds of an immense palace, called the "Golden House." It covered so much s.p.a.ce that the people "maliciously hinted" that Nero had fired the old city, in order to make room for it.

The emperor secured money for his enormous expenditures by new extortions, murders, and confiscations. No one of wealth knew but that his turn might come next. A conspiracy was formed among the n.o.bles to relieve the state of the monster. The plot was discovered, and again "the city was filled with funerals." Lucan the poet, and Seneca, the old preceptor of Nero, both fell victims to the tyrant's rage.

Nero now made a tour through the East, and there plunged deeper and deeper into every shame, sensuality, and crime. The tyranny and the disgrace were no longer endurable. Almost at the same moment the legions in several of the provinces revolted. The Senate decreed that Nero was a public enemy, and condemned him to a disgraceful death by scourging, to avoid which he instructed a slave how to give him a fatal thrust. His last words were, "What a loss my death will be to art!"

Nero was the sixth and last of the Julian line. The family of the Great Caesar was now extinct; but the name remained, and was adopted by all the succeeding emperors.

GALBA, OTHO, AND VITELLIUS (A.D. 68-69).--These three names are usually grouped together, as their reigns were all short and uneventful. The succession, upon the death of Nero and the extinction in him of the Julian line, was in dispute, and the legions in different quarters supported the claims of their favorite leaders. One after another the three aspirants named were killed in b.l.o.o.d.y struggles for the imperial purple. The last, Vitellius, was hurled from the throne by the soldiers of Flavius Vespasian, the old and beloved commander of the legions in Palestine, which were at this time engaged in a war with the Jews.

REIGN OF VESPASIAN (A.D. 69-79).--The accession of Flavius Vespasian marks the beginning of a period, embracing three reigns, known as the _Flavian Age_ (A.D. 69-96). Vespasian's reign was signalized both by important military achievements abroad and by stupendous public works undertaken at Rome.

[Ill.u.s.tration: COIN OF VESPASIAN.]

After one of the most hara.s.sing sieges recorded in history, Jerusalem was taken by t.i.tus, son of Vespasian. The Temple was destroyed, and more than a million of Jews that were crowded in the city are believed to have perished. Great mult.i.tudes suffered death by crucifixion. The miserable remnants of the nation were scattered everywhere over the world. Josephus, the great historian, accompanied the conqueror to Rome. In imitation of Nebuchadnezzar, t.i.tus robbed the Temple of its sacred utensils, and bore them away as trophies. Upon the triumphal arch at Rome that bears his name may be seen at the present day the sculptured representation of the golden candlestick, which was one of the memorials of the war.

In the opposite corner of the empire a dangerous revolt of the Gauls was suppressed, and in the island of Britain the Roman commander Agricola subdued or crowded back the native tribes until he had extended the frontiers of the empire into what is now Scotland. Then, as a protection against the incursions of the Caledonians, the ancestors of the Scottish Highlanders, he constructed a line of fortresses from the Frith of Forth to the Frith of Clyde.

Vespasian rebuilt the Capitoline temple, which had been burned during the struggle between his soldiers and the adherents of Vitellius; he constructed a new forum which bore his own name; and also began the erection of the celebrated Flavian amphitheatre, which was completed by his successor. After a most prosperous reign of ten years, Vespasian died A.D. 79, the first emperor after Augustus that did not meet with a violent death.

[Ill.u.s.tration: TRIUMPHAL PROCESSION FROM THE ARCH OF t.i.tUS: Showing the Seven-branched Candlestick and other Trophies from the Temple at Jerusalem.]

At the last moment he requested his attendants to raise him upon his feet that he might "die standing," as befitted a Roman emperor.

REIGN OF t.i.tUS (A.D. 79-81).--In a short reign of two years t.i.tus won the t.i.tle, the "Delight of Mankind." He was unwearied in acts of benevolence and in bestowal of favors. Having let a day slip by without some act of kindness performed, he is said to have exclaimed reproachfully, "I have lost a day."

t.i.tus completed and dedicated the great Flavian amphitheatre begun by his father, Vespasian. This vast structure, which accommodated more than eighty thousand spectators, is better known as the Colosseum--a name given it either because of its gigantic proportions, or on account of a colossal statue of Nero which happened to stand near it.

[Ill.u.s.tration: STREET IN POMPEII. (A Reconstruction.)]

The reign of t.i.tus, though so short, was signalized by two great disasters. The first was a conflagration at Rome, which was almost as calamitous as the Great Fire in the reign of Nero. The second was the destruction, by an eruption of Vesuvius, of the Campanian cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum. The cities were buried beneath showers of cinders, ashes, and streams of volcanic mud. Pliny the elder, the great naturalist, venturing too near the mountain to investigate the phenomenon, lost his life. [Footnote: In the year 1713, sixteen centuries after the destruction of the cities, the ruins were discovered by some persons engaged in digging a well, and since then extensive excavations have been made, which have uncovered a large part of Pompeii, and revealed to us the streets, homes, theatres, baths, shops, temples, and various monuments of the ancient city--all of which presents to us a very vivid picture of Roman life during the imperial period, eighteen hundred years ago.]

DOMITIAN--LAST OF THE TWELVE CaeSARS (A.D. 81-96).--Domitian, the brother of t.i.tus, was the last of the line of emperors known as "the Twelve Caesars." The t.i.tle, however, was a.s.sumed by, and is applied to, all succeeding emperors; the sole reason that the first twelve princes are grouped together is because the Roman biographer Suetonius completed the lives of that number only.

Domitian's reign was an exact contrast to that of his brother t.i.tus. It was one succession of extravagances, tyrannies, confiscations, and murders. Under this emperor took place what is known in Church history as "the second persecution of the Christians." This cla.s.s, as well as the Jews, were the special objects of Domitian's hatred, because they refused to wors.h.i.+p the statues of himself which he had set up (see p. 322).

The last of the Twelve Caesars perished in his own palace, and by the hands of members of his own household. The Senate ordered his infamous name to be erased from the public monuments, and to be blotted from the records of the Roman state.

THE FIVE GOOD EMPERORS: REIGN OF NERVA (A.D. 96-98).--The five emperors-- Nerva, Trajan, Hadrian, and the two Antonines--that succeeded Domitian were elected by the Senate, which during this period a.s.sumed something of its former weight and influence in the affairs of the empire. The wise and beneficent administration of the government by these rulers secured for them the enviable distinction of being called "the five good emperors."

Nerva died after a short reign of sixteen months, and the sceptre pa.s.sed into the stronger hands of the able commander Trajan, whom Nerva had previously made his a.s.sociate in the government.

[Ill.u.s.tration: TRAJAN.]

REIGN OF TRAJAN (A.D. 98-117).--Trajan was a native of Spain, and a soldier by profession and talent. His ambition to achieve military renown led him to undertake distant and important conquests. It was the policy of Augustus--a policy adopted by most of his successors--to make the Danube in Europe and the Euphrates in Asia the limits of the Roman empire in those respective quarters. But Trajan determined to push the frontiers of his dominions beyond both these rivers, scorning to permit Nature by these barriers to mark out the confines of Roman sovereignty.

He crossed the Danube by means of a bridge, the foundations of which may still be seen, and subjugated the bold and warlike Dacian tribes lying behind that stream--tribes that had often threatened the peace of the empire. After celebrating his victories in a magnificent triumph at Rome, Trajan turned to the East, led his legions across the Euphrates, reduced Armenia, and wrested from the Parthians most of the territory which anciently formed the heart of the a.s.syrian monarchy. To Trajan belongs the distinction of extending the boundaries of the empire to the most distant points to which Roman ambition and prowess were ever able to push them.

But Trajan was something besides a soldier. He had a taste for literature: Juvenal, Plutarch, and the younger Pliny wrote under his patronage; and, moreover, as is true of almost all great conquerors, he had a perfect pa.s.sion for building. Among the great works with which he embellished the capital was the Trajan Forum. Here he erected the celebrated marble shaft known as Trajan's column. It is one hundred and forty-seven feet high, and is wound from base to summit by a spiral band of sculptures, containing more than twenty-five thousand human figures. The column is nearly as perfect to-day as when reared eighteen centuries ago. It was intended to commemorate the Dacian conquests of Trajan; and its pictured sides are the best, and almost the only, record we now possess of those wars.

[Ill.u.s.tration: BESIEGING A DACIAN CITY. (From Trajan's Column.)]

Respecting the rapid spread of Christianity at this time, the character of the early professors of the new faith, and the light in which they were viewed by the rulers of the Roman world, we have very important evidence in a certain letter written by Pliny the Younger to the emperor in regard to the Christians of Pontus, in Asia Minor, of which remote province Pliny was governor. Pliny speaks of the new creed as a "contagious superst.i.tion, that had seized not cities only, but the lesser towns also, and the open country." Yet he could find no fault in the converts to the new doctrines.

Notwithstanding this, however, because the Christians steadily refused to sacrifice to the Roman G.o.ds, he ordered many to be put to death for their "inflexible obstinacy."

Trajan died A.D. 117, after a reign of nineteen years, one of the most prosperous and fortunate that had yet befallen the lot of the Roman people.