The _ovation_ was a lesser triumph. The general entered the city on foot, and the ceremonies were of a much inferior cast.
CONSPIRACY OF CATILINE.--Meanwhile at Rome, the state had been endangered by the combination of democrats and anarchists in the conspiracy of _Catiline_. The well-contrived plot of this audacious and profligate man was detected and crushed by the vigilance and energy of the consul _Cicero_, whose four speeches on the subject, two to the Senate and two to the people, are among the most celebrated of all his orations. _Catiline_ was forced to fly from Rome; and several of his prominent accomplices were put to death by the advice of _Cato_ (the younger), the leader of the Senatorial party, and by the vote of the Senate. This was done without asking for the verdict of the people, and for this reason was not warranted by the law; but it was declared to be needful for the salvation of the state. The next year _Catiline_ was killed in battle, and his force dispersed by the army of the Senate. A turn of party feeling afterwards exiled _Cicero_ for departing from the law in the execution of the conspirators.
JULIUS CAESAR.--Another person strong enough to be the rival of _Pompeius_ was now on the stage of action. This was _Caius Julius Caesar_, who proved himself to be, on the whole, the foremost man of the ancient Roman world. Caesar"s talents were versatile, but in nothing was he weak or superficial. He was great as a general, a statesman, an orator, and an author. With as much power of personal command over men as _Hannibal_ had possessed, he was likewise an agreeable companion of men of letters and in general society. Every thing he did he appeared to do with ease. By his family connections he was naturally designated as the leader of the popular, Marian party. He was the nephew of _Marius_ and the son-in-law of _Cinna_. _Sulla_ had spared his life, although he had courageously refused to obey the dictator"s command to put away his wife; but he had been obliged to quit Rome. At the funeral of _Julia_, the widow of _Marius_, he had been bold enough to exhibit the bust of that hero,--an act that involved risk, but pleased the mult.i.tude. He was suspected of being privy to _Catiline"s_ plot, and in the Senate spoke against the execution of his confederates. In 65 he was elected _Aedile_, but his profuse expenditures in providing games plunged him heavily in debt; so that it was only by advances made to him by _Cra.s.sus_ that he was able, after being praetor, to go to _Spain_ (in 61), where, as propraetor, he first acquired military distinction. Prior to his sojourn in Spain, by his bold political conduct, in opposition to the Senate, and on the democratic side, he had made himself a favorite of the people.
THE FIRST TRIUMVIRATE.--Pompeius was distrusted and feared by the Senate; but, on seeing that he took no measures to seize on power at Rome, they proceeded to thwart his wishes, and denied the expected allotments of land to his troops. The circ.u.mstances led to the formation of the first _Triumvirate_, which was an informal alliance between _Pompeius_, _Caesar_, and _Cra.s.sus_, against the Senatorial oligarchy, and for the protection and furtherance of their own interests. _Caesar_ became consul in 59 B.C. He gave his daughter _Julia_ in marriage to _Pompeius_. Gaul, both Cisalpine, and Transalpine (_Gallia Narbonensis_), was given to _Caesar_ to govern for five years. _Cato_ was sent off to take possession of the kingdom of _Cyprus_. _Cicero_, who was midway between the two parties, was exiled on motion of the radical tribune, _Clodius_. But the independent and violent proceedings of this demagogue led _Pompeius_ to co-operate more with the Senate. _Cicero_ was recalled (57 B.C.). A jealousy, fomented by the Senate, sprang up between _Pompeius_ and _Cra.s.sus_. By _Caesar"s_ efforts, a better understanding was brought about between the triumvirs, and it was agreed that his own proconsulship should be prolonged for a second term of five years. _Pompeius_ received the _Spains_, and _Cra.s.sus_, who was avaricious, was made proconsul of _Syria_, and commander of the armies in the Oriental provinces. In an expedition against the _Parthians_ in 53, he perished.
CAESAR IN GAUL.--The campaigns of _Caesar_ in Gaul covered a period of eight years. An admirable narrative of them is presented by himself in his _Commentaries_.
THE GAULS.--The Gauls were _Celts_. The Celts were spread over the most of Gaul, over Britain and the north of Italy. In _Gaul_, there were three general divisions of people, each subdivided into tribes. These were the _Belgae_, the _Galli_, and the _Aquitani_, the last of whom, however, were not Celts, but, like the _Iberians_ in Spain, belonged to a _pre-Celtic_ race. The _Helvetii_ and _Vindelici_ were in Switzerland. The Celts of _Gaul_ had attained to a considerable degree of civilization. Their G.o.ds were the various objects of nature personified. Their divinities are described by Caesar as corresponding in their functions to the G.o.ds of Rome. Their priests were the _Druids_, a close corporation, but not hereditary. They not only conducted worship: they were the lawgivers, judges, and physicians of the people. They possessed a mysterious doctrine, which they taught to the initiated. They held a great yearly a.s.sembly for the trial of causes. The _Bards_ stood in connection with the Druidical order. In worship, human sacrifices were offered in large numbers, the victims being prisoners, slaves, criminals, etc. There were temples, but thick groves were the favorite seats of worship. _Caesar_ says that the Gauls were strongly addicted to religious observances. In their character they are described as brave and impetuous in an onset, but as lacking persistency.
The Celts in _Britain_ were less civilized than their kinsfolk across the channel. But in their customs and religious beliefs and usages, they were similar to them. They probably came over from Gaul.
CONQUEST OF GAUL.--The first victory of Caesar was in conflict with the Helvetii, who had invaded Gaul, and whom he drove back to their homes in the Alps. The Gallic tribes applied to him for help against the _Germans_, who had been led over the Rhine by _Ariovistus_, chief of the _Suevi_. Him _Caesar_ forced to return to the other side of the river. The Gallic tribes, fearing the power of Caesar, stirred up the _Belgae_, the most warlike of all the Gauls. These Csesar subdued, and also, with less difficulty, conquered the other nations of Gaul. _Twice_, in conflict with the Germans, he crossed the Rhine near _Bonn_ and _Andernach_ (55 and 53 B.C.). _Twice_, also (55 and 54 B.C.), he landed in _Britain_. On the second expedition he crossed the _Thames_. In 52 there was a general insurrection of the Gauls under _Vercingetorix_, a brave chieftain, to conquer whom required all of Caesar"s strength and skill. The result of eight years of hard and successful warfare was the subjugation of all Gaul from the Rhine to the Pyrenees. The _Celts_ were subdued, and steps taken which resulted in their civilization. A barrier was placed in the way of the advance of the _Germans_, which availed for this end during several centuries. By his successes in Gaul, Csesar acquired a fame as a general, which partly eclipsed the glory previously gained by _Pompeius_ in the East. He became, also, the leader of veteran legions who were devoted to his interests.
CHAPTER III. POMPEIUS AND CAESAR: THE SECOND TRIUMVIRATE.
THE CIVIL WAR.--The rupture between _Pompeius_ and _Caesar_ brought on another civil war, and subverted the Roman republic. They were virtually regents. The triumvirs had arranged with one another for the part.i.tion of power. The death of _Cra.s.sus_ took away a link of connection which had united the two survivors. The death of _Julia_, the beautiful daughter of _Caesar_, in 54 B.C., had previously dissolved another tie. _Pompeius_ contrived to remain in Rome, and to govern Spain by legates. Each of the two rivals had his active and valiant partisans in the city. The spoils of Gaul were sent to be expended in the erection of costly buildings, and in providing entertainments for the populace. To _Pompey_, in turn, Rome owed the construction of the first stone theater, which was dedicated with unprecedented show and splendor. b.l.o.o.d.y conflicts between armed bands of adherents of the two leaders were of daily occurrence. _Clodius_, an adherent of Caesar and a reckless partisan, was slain by _Milo_, in a conflict on the Appian Way. The Senate and the republicans, of whom _Cato_ was the chief, in order to curb the populace, and out of enmity to Caesar, allied themselves with _Pompeius_. It was determined to prevent him from standing as a candidate for the consulship, unless he should lay down his command, and come to Rome. He offered to resign his military power if _Pompeius_ would do the same. This was refused. Finally he was directed to give up his command in Gaul before the expiration of the time which had been set for the termination of it. This order, if carried into effect, would have reduced him to the rank of a private citizen, and have left him at the mercy of his enemies. The tribunes, including his devoted supporter, _Marcus Antonius_, in vain interposed the veto, and fled from the city. _Caesar_ determined to disobey the order of the Senate. His legions--two had been withdrawn on the false pretext of needing them for the Parthian war--clung to him, with the exception of one able officer, _T. Labienus_. _Caesar_ acted with great prompt.i.tude. He crossed the _Rubicon_, the boundary of the Gallic Cisalpine province, before _Pompeius_--who had declared, that with a stamp of his foot he could call up armed men from the ground--had made adequate preparations to meet him. The strength of _Pompeius_ was mainly in the _East_, the scene of his former glory; and he was, perhaps, not unwilling to retire to that region, taking with him the throng of aristocratic leaders, who fled precipitately on learning of the approach of _Caesar_. _Pompeius_ sailed from Brundisium to _Epirus_. _Cicero_, who had ardently desired an accommodation between the rivals, was in an agony of doubt as to what course it was right and best for him to take, since he saw reason to dread the triumph of either side. Reluctantly he decided to cast in his lot with the Senate and its newly gained champion.
PHARSALUS: THAPSUS: MUNDA.--Caesar gained the advantage of securing the state treasure which _Pompeius_ had unaccountably left behind him, and was able to establish his power in _Italy_. Before pursuing Pompeius, he marched through _Gaul_ into _Spain_ (49 B.C.), conquered the Pompeian forces at _Ilerda_, and secured his hold upon that country. He then crossed the Adriatic, He encountered Pompeius, who could not manage his imprudent officers, on the plain of _Pharsalus_ (48 B.C.), where the senatorial army was completely overthrown. _Pompeius_ sailed for Egypt; but, just as he was landing, he was treacherously a.s.sa.s.sinated. His head was sent to _Caesar_, who wept at the spectacle, and punished the murderers. _Caesar_ gained friends everywhere by the exercise of a judicious clemency, which accorded with his natural disposition. He next went to _Egypt_. There he was met by _Cleopatra_, whose dazzling beauty captivated him. She reigned in conjunction with her younger brother, who, according to the Egyptian usage, was nominally her husband. The Egyptians were roused against Caesar, and, on one occasion, he saved his life by swimming; but he finally defeated and destroyed the Egyptian army. At _Zela_, in _Pontus_, he met and vanquished _Pharnaces_, the revolted son of _Mithridates_, and sent the laconic message, "Veni, vidi, vici"
(I came, I saw, I conquered). Early in 46 he landed in _Africa_, and, at _Thapsus_, annihilated the republican forces in that region. A most powerful combination was made against him in _Spain_, including some of his old officers and legionaries, and the two sons of _Pompeius_. But in the hard-fought battle at _Munda_ (March, 45 B.C.), when Caesar was himself in great personal danger, he was, as usual, triumphant.
CAESAR AS A CIVILIAN.--Marvelous as the career of Caesar as a general was, his merit as a civilian outstrips even his distinction as a soldier. He saw that the world could no longer be governed by the Roman rabble, and that monarchy was the only alternative. He ruled under the forms of the old const.i.tution, taking the post of dictator and censor for life, and absorbing in himself the other princ.i.p.al republican offices. The whole tendency of his measures, which were mostly of a very wholesome character, was not only to remedy abuses of administration, but to found a system of orderly administration in which Rome should be not the sole _mistress_, but simply the _capital_, of the world-wide community which had been subjected to her authority.
THE GOVERNMENT OF CAESAR.--Caesar made the _Senate_ an advisory body. He increased the number of senators, bringing in provincials as well as Roman citizens. He gave full citizenship to all the _Transpadane Gauls_, and to numerous communities in _Transalpine Gaul_, in _Spain_, and elsewhere. He established a wide-spread colonization, thus planting his veterans in different places abroad, and lessening the number of proletarians in Italy. He rebuilt _Carthage_ and _Corinth_. He re-organized the army, and the civil administration in the provinces. In the s.p.a.ce of five years, while he was busy in important wars, he originated numerous governmental measures of the utmost value.
THE MOTIVES OF CAESAR.--The designs of Caesar and of his party are to be distinguished from what they actually accomplished. Caesar was not impelled by a desire to improve the government of the provinces, in taking up arms against the Senate. Nor did he owe his success to the support of provincials; although, in common with the rest of the democratic party at Rome, he was glad to have them for allies. The custom had grown up of virtually giving to eminent generals, absolute power for extended intervals. This was done, for example, in the case of _Marius_, on the occasion of the invasion of the _Cimbrians_ and _Teutones_. In such exigencies, it was found necessary to create what was equivalent to a military dictatorship. The idea of military rule became familiar. The revolution made by Caesar was achieved by military organization, and was a measure of personal self-defense on his part. Being raised to the supreme power, he sought to rule according to the wise and liberal ideas which were suggested by the actual condition of the world, and the undesirableness of a continued domination of a single city, with such a populace as that of Rome. Before he could carry out his large schemes, he was cut down.
a.s.sa.s.sINATION OF CAESAR.--Caesar was tired of staying in Rome, and was proposing to undertake an expedition against the Parthians. Neither his clemency nor the necessity and the merits of the government sustained by him, availed to shield him against the machinations of enemies. The aristocratic party detested his policy. He was suspected of aiming at the t.i.tle, as well as the power, of a king. A conspiracy made up of numerous senators who secretly hated him, of other individuals influenced by personal spite, and of republican visionaries like _Ca.s.sius_ and _Junius Brutus_, who gloried in what they considered tyrannicide, a.s.saulted him on the ides of March (March 15, 44 B.C.) in the hall of _Pompeius_, whither he had come to a session of the Senate. He received twenty-three wounds, one of which, at least, was fatal, and fell, uttering, a tradition said, a word of gentle reproach to Brutus, one who had been counted a special friend. _Cicero_ had acquiesced in the new government, and eulogized _Caesar_ and his administration. But even he expressed his satisfaction at the event which left the republic without a master. An amnesty to those who slew Caesar was advocated by him, and decreed by the Senate.
THE SECOND TRIUMVIRATE.--The Senate gave to the leading conspirators provinces; to _Decimus Brutus_, Cisalpine Gaul. But at Rome there was quickly a re-action of popular wrath against the enemies of Csesar, which was skillfully fomented by _Marcus Antonius_ in the address which he made to the people over his dead body, pierced with so many wounds. The people voted to give Cisalpine Gaul to _Antonius_, and he set out to take it from _Decimus Brutus_ by force of arms. _Cicero_ delivered a famous series of harangues against Antonius, called the _Philippics. Antonius,_ being defeated, fled to _Lepidus_, the governor of Transalpine Gaul. _Octavius_, the grand-nephew and adopted son of _Caesar_, a youth of eighteen, now became prominent, and at first was supported by the Senate in the hope of balancing the power of _Antonius_. But in October, 43, _Octavia.n.u.s_ (as he was henceforward called), _Antonius,_ and _Lepidus_ together formed a second triumvirate, which became legal, by the ratification of the people, for the period of five years. A proscription for the destruction of the enemies of the three contracting parties was a part of this alliance. A great number were put to death, among them _Cicero_, a sacrifice to the vengeance of Antonius. War against the republicans was the necessary consequence. At _Philippi_ in Thrace, in the year 42, _Antonius_ and _Octavia.n.u.s_ defeated _Brutus_ and _Ca.s.sius_, both of whom committed suicide. _Porcia_, the wife of _Brutus_, and the daughter of _Cato_, on hearing of her husband"s death, put an end to her own life. Many other adherents of the republic followed the example of their leaders. The victors divided the world between themselves, _Antonius_ taking the east, _Octavia.n.u.s_ the west, while to the weak and avaricious _Lepidus_, Africa was a.s.signed; but he was soon deprived of his share by _Octavia.n.u.s_.
CIVIL WAR: ACTIUM.--_Antonius_ was enamoured of _Cleopatra_, and, following her to Egypt, gave himself up to luxury and sensual gratification. Civil war between _Octavia.n.u.s_ and the followers of _Antonius_ in Italy (40, 41 B.C.) was followed by the marriage of _Octavia_, the sister of _Octavia.n.u.s_, to _Antonius_. But after a succession of disputes between the two regents, there was a final breach. _Antonius_ (35) went so far as to give Roman territories to the sons of _Cleopatra_, and to send to _Octavia_ papers of divorce. The Senate, at the instigation of _Octavia.n.u.s_, deprived his unworthy colleague of all his powers. War was declared against _Cleopatra_. East and West were arrayed in arms against one another. The conflict was determined by the naval victory of _Octavia.n.u.s_at _Actium_ (Sept. 2, 31 B.C.). Before the battle was decided, _Cleopatra_ fled, and was followed by _Antonius_. When the latter approached _Alexandria_, _Antonius_, deceived by the false report that _Cleopatra_ had destroyed herself, threw himself upon his sword and died. _Cleopatra_, finding herself unable to fascinate the conqueror, but believing that he meant that she should adorn his public triumph at Rome, poisoned herself (30). _Egypt_ was made into a Roman province. The month _s.e.xtilis_, on which _Octavia.n.u.s_returned to Rome, received in honor of him the name of "August," from "Augustus," the "venerated" or "ill.u.s.trious," the name given him in 27 B.C. by the Roman people and Senate. He celebrated three triumphs; and, for the third time since the city was founded, the Temple of Ja.n.u.s was closed.
PERIOD V. THE IMPERIAL MONARCHY: _TO THE MIGRATIONS OF THE TEUTONIC TRIBES (375 A.D.)._
CHAPTER I. THE REIGN OF AUGUSTUS.
AUGUSTUS AS A RULER.--The long-continued, sanguinary civil wars made peace welcome. _Augustus_ knew how to conceal his love of power under a mild exterior, and to organize the monarchy with a nominal adherence to republican forms. The controlling magistracies, except the censorship, were transferred to him. As _Imperator_, he had unlimited command over the military forces, and was at the head of a standing army of three hundred and forty thousand men. To him it belonged to decide on peace and war. The _Senate_ became the real legislative body, issuing _senatus-consulta_. There was also a sort of "cabinet council" chosen by him from its members. The authority of the _Tribunes_ belonged to him, and thus the popular a.s.semblies became more and more a nullity. "The Senate was made up of his creatures; the people were won by bread and games; the army was fettered to him by means of booty and gifts." While the forms of a free state remained, all the functions of authority were exercised by the ruler.
STATE OF THE EMPIRE.--(1) _Its Extent_. The Roman Empire extended from the Atlantic to the Euphrates, a distance of more than three thousand miles, and from the Danube and the English Channel--later, from the friths of Scotland--to the cataracts of the Nile and the African desert. Its population was somewhere from eighty millions to one hundred and twenty millions. It was composed of the _East_ and the _West_, a distinction that was not simply geographical, but included deeper characteristic differences. (2) _The Provinces_. The provinces were divided (27 B.C.) into the _proconsular_, ruled by the Senate, and the _imperial_, ruled by the legates of Augustus. His authority, however, was everywhere supreme. Over all the empire extended the system of Roman law, the rights and immunities of which belonged to Roman citizens everywhere. (3) _The Two Languages_. It was a _Romano-h.e.l.lenic_ monarchy. Local dialects remained; but the _Greek_ language was the language of commerce, and of polite intercourse in all places. The Greek tongue and h.e.l.lenic culture were the common property of the nations. The _Latin_ was prevalent west of the Adriatic. It was adopted in Africa, Spain, Gaul, and in other provinces. It was the language of courts and of the camp. (4) _Journeys and Trade_. The Roman territory was covered with a net-work of magnificent roads. Journeys for purposes of trade and from motives of curiosity were common. Religious pilgrimages to famous shrines were frequent. The safety and peace which followed upon the civil wars stimulated traffic and intercourse between the different regions united under the imperial government.
LITERATURE.--The Augustan period was the golden age of Roman literature. Literary works were topics of conversation in social circles. Libraries were collected by the rich. The shops of booksellers were places of resort for cultivated people. There were active and liberal patrons of poets and of other men of letters. Such patrons were _Maecenas_, _Horace"s_ friend, and _Augustus_ himself. Then favors were repaid by praises and flattery, as we see in the verses of _Horace_, _Virgil_, and especially of _Ovid_. The lectures of grammarians and rhetoricians, of philosophers and physicians, were largely attended. Literary societies were formed. Periodicals and bulletins were published, in which the proceedings of the Senate and of the courts were recorded. The business of _scribes_--copyists of ma.n.u.scripts--engaged a vast number of persons.
WRITINGS OF CICERO.--Cicero (106-43), in his philosophic writings, reproduces the thoughts and speculations of the Greek sages, in the manner of a cultivated and appreciative student. His speeches and his epistles, especially those to his friend, _Atticus_, lift the veil, as it were, and afford us most interesting glimpses of the civil and social life of the Romans of that day.
THE POETS.--One of the most original of the Latin poets is _Lucretius_ (95-51 B.C.), whose poem "On the Nature of Things" is an effort to dispel superst.i.tious fear by inculcating the Epicurean doctrine that the world is self-made through the movement and concussion of atoms, and that the G.o.ds leave it to care for itself. A contemporary of Lucretius, and a poet of equal merit, but in an altogether different vein, is _Catullus_. He is chiefly noted for his lyrics. _Virgil_ (70-19 B.C.), in the _Aeneid_, has produced a genuine Roman epic, although his dependence on Homer is obvious throughout, and in the _Bucolics_, and in particular in the _Georgics_, where he shows most originality, has made himself immortal as a pastoral poet. _Horace_ (65-8 B.C.), like most of the Roman authors, in many of his poems is inspired by his Greek models, but, in his _Satires_ and _Poetic Epistles_, expresses the character of his own genius. His "Odes," for their beauty and melody and the variety of their topics, rank among the best of all productions of their kind. _Ovid_ (43 B.C.-A.D. 18), in his chief work, the _Metamorphoses_, handled the mythical tales of the Greeks, and, in his poems on _Love_, likewise introduced many Grecian tales. He was much influenced by the Alexandrian poets.
THE HISTORIANS.--In historical composition, most of the Roman authors had Greek patterns before their eyes. Nevertheless, _Livy_ (59 B.C.-A.D. 17), thirty-five of the one hundred and forty-two books of whose "Annals" have been preserved, and _Sall.u.s.t_, to whom we are indebted for narratives of the conspiracy of Cataline and of the Jugurthine war, are far from being servile copyists. The simple and lucid but graceful style of the _Commentaries_ of _Caesar_ makes this work an example of the purest Latin prose.
LAW WRITERS.--In one department, that of jurisprudence, the Romans were eminently original. The writings of the great jurists were simple and severe, and free from the rhetorical traits which Roman authors in other departments borrowed from the Greeks.
OTHER AUTHORS.--Among other eminent authors of this period are the great Roman antiquary _Varro_ (116-27 B.C.); the elegiac poets, _Tibullus_ and _Propertius_; _Phaedrus_, the Roman Aesop; the historian, _Cornelius Nepos_; and the Greek historical writers of that day, _Diodore_ of Sicily and _Dionysius_ of Halicarna.s.sus; also _Strabo_, the Greek geographer (64 B.C.-A.D. 24).
THE INTRODUCTION OF CHRISTIANITY.
THE JEWS AND THEIR DISPERSION.--There were three ancient peoples, each of which fulfilled an office of its own in history. The _Greeks_ were the intellectual people, the _Romans_ were founders in law and politics: from the _Hebrews_ the true religion was to spring. At the epoch of the birth of Jesus, the Hebrews, like the Greeks and Romans, were scattered abroad, and mingled with all other nations. Wherever they went they carried their pure monotheism, and built their synagogues for instruction in the law and for common worship. In the region of _Babylon_, a mult.i.tude of Jews had remained after the captivity. Two out of the five sections of _Alexandria_ were occupied by them. At _Antioch_ in Syria, the other great meeting-place of peoples of diverse origin and religion, they were very numerous. In the cities of Asia Minor, of Greece and Macedonia, in Illyric.u.m and in Rome, they were planted in large numbers. Jewish merchants went wherever there was room for profitable trade. Generally regarded with aversion on account of their religious exclusiveness, they nevertheless made so many proselytes that the Roman philosopher, _Seneca_, said of them, "The conquered have given laws to the conquerors." Prophecy had inspired the Jews with an abiding and fervent expectation of the ultimate conquest of heathenism, and prevalence of their faith. If the hope of a temporal Messiah to free them from the Roman yoke, and to lead them to an external victory and dominion, burned in the hearts of most, there were some of a more spiritual mind and of deeper aspirations, who looked for One who should minister to the soul, and bring in a reign of holiness and peace.
PREPARATION FOR CHRISTIANITY AMONG THE HEATHEN.--In the heathen world, there was not wanting a preparation for such a Deliverer. The union of all the nations in the Roman Empire had lessened the mutual antipathy of peoples, melted down barriers of feeling as well as of intercourse, and weakened the pride of race. An indistinct sense of a common humanity had entered the b.r.e.a.s.t.s of men. Writers, like _Cicero_, talked of a great community, a single society of G.o.ds and men. The _Stoic philosophy_ had made this idea familiar. Mankind, it was said, formed one city. Along with this conception, precepts were uttered in favor of forbearance and fraternal kindness between man and man. In religion, there was a drift towards monotheism. The old mythological religion was decaying, and traditional beliefs as to divine things were dissolving. Many minds were yearning for something to fill the void,--for a more substantial ground of rest and of hope. They longed for a goal on which their aspirations might center, and to which their exertions might tend. The burden of sin and of suffering that rested on the common ma.s.s excited at least a vague yearning for deliverance. The Roman Empire, with all its treasures and its glory, failed to satisfy the hearts of men. The dreams of philosophy could not be realized on the basis of ancient society, where the state was every thing, and where no higher, more comprehensive and more enduring kingdom could spring into being.
CHRIST AND THE APOSTLES.--Four years before the date a.s.signed for the beginning of the Christian era, _Jesus_ was born. _Herod_, a tyrannical king, servile in his att.i.tude toward the Romans, and subject to them, was then ruling over the Jews in Palestine. But, when Jesus began his public ministry, the kingship had been abolished, and Judaea was governed by the procurator, _Pontius Pilate_ (A.D. 26). Jesus announced himself as the _Messiah_, the founder of a kingdom "not of this world;" the members of which were to be brethren, having G.o.d for their Father. He taught in a tone of authority, yet with "a sweet reasonableness;" and his wonderful teaching was accompanied with marvelous works of power and mercy, as "he went about doing good." He attached to himself twelve disciples, among whom _Peter_, and the two brothers _James_ and _John_, were the men of most mark. These had listened to the preaching of _John_, the prophet of the wilderness, by whom Jesus had been recognized as the Christ who was to come. The ministry of the Christ produced a wide-spread excitement, and a deep impression upon humble and truth-loving souls. But his rebuke of the ruling cla.s.s, the _Pharisees_, for their formalism, pretended sanct.i.ty, self-seeking, and enslavement to tradition, excited in them rancorous enmity. His disappointment of the popular desire for a political Messiah chilled the enthusiasm of the mult.i.tude, many of whom had heard him gladly. After about three years, he was betrayed by one of his followers, _Judas Iscariot_; was accused of heterodoxy and blasphemy before the Jewish Sanhedrim; the consent of Pilate to his death was extorted by a charge of treason based on the t.i.tle of "king," which he had not refused; and he was crucified between two malefactors. Not many days elapsed before his disciples rallied from their despondency, and boldly and unitedly declared, before magistrates and people, that he had manifested himself to them in bodily form, in a series of interviews at definite places and times. They proclaimed his continued though invisible reign, his perpetual presence with them, and his future advent in power. In his name, and on the ground of his death, they preached the forgiveness of sins to all who should believe in him, and enter on a life of Christian obedience. In the year 33 or 34, the death of _Stephen_, the first martyr, at the hands of a Jewish mob, for a time dispersed the church at Jerusalem, and was one step towards the admission of the Gentiles to the privileges of the new faith. But the chief agent in effecting this result, and in thus giving to Christianity its universal character and mission, was the Apostle _Paul_, a converted Pharisee. _Antioch_ in Syria became the cradle of the Gentile branch of the church, and of the missions to the heathen, in which Paul was the leader; while _Peter_ was efficient in spreading the gospel among the Jews in Palestine and beyond its borders. By Paul numerous churches were founded in the course of three extended missionary journeys, which led him beyond Asia into Macedonia, Greece, and Illyric.u.m. By him the gospel was preached from Jerusalem to Rome, where he died as a martyr under _Nero_ in 67 or 68. Not far from the same time, according to a credible tradition, Peter, also, was put to death at Rome. The preachers of the Christian faith pursued their work with a fearless and untiring spirit, and met the malignant persecution of the Jews and the fanatical a.s.saults of the heathen with patient endurance and with prayer for the pardon and enlightenment of their persecutors.
THE VICTORY OF THE GERMANS.--Augustus avoided war when he could. His aim was to defend the frontiers of the empire rather than to extend them. The Parthians were prevailed on to return of their own accord the standards and prisoners taken from the army of _Cra.s.sus_. But in Germany, _Drusus_, the brave step-son of _Augustus_, made four campaigns on the east of the Rhine, as far as the Weser and the Elbe. On his way back from the Elbe, a fall from his horse terminated his life (9 B.C.). His brother, _Tiberius_, managed to establish the Roman power over a part of the Germanic tribes on the right bank of the river (4 B.C.) Long before (27 B.C.) the western sh.o.r.e of the river had been formed into two provinces, _Upper_ and _Lower Germany_. An incapable and incautious general, _Quintilius Varus_, excited the freedom-loving Germans to revolt under the brave chief of the _Cherusci_, _Arminius_ (or Hermann). Three Roman legions were annihilated in the _Teutoburg_ forest, Varus taking his own life. The civil and military chiefs who were taken captive, the Germans slew as a sacrifice to their G.o.ds. The rest of the prisoners were made slaves. "Many a Roman from an equestrian or a senatorial house grew old in the service of a German farmer, as a servant in the house, or in tending cattle without."
There in the forest of _Teutoburg_ the Germans practically won their independence. On hearing the bad news, Augustus, for several days, could only exclaim, "Varus! give me back my legions!" After the death of Augustus, in his seventy-sixth year, the n.o.ble son of Drusus, _Germanicus_, conducted three expeditions against _Arminius_ (A.D. 14-16), obtained a victory over him, and took his wife prisoner, who died in captivity; but the Romans permanently held only the left bank of the Rhine.
ROMAN LIFE.--Various particulars characteristic of Roman ways have been, or will be, incidentally referred to. A few special statements may be given in this place. The Romans, like the Greeks, built a town round a height (or capitol) where was a stronghold (_arx_), a place of refuge. Here temples were erected. The _forum_, or market-place, was near by, where the courts sat, and where the people came together to transact business. The dwellings were on the sides of the hill, or on the plain beneath. The streets were narrow. The exterior of the houses was plain. They were of brick, generally covered with stucco, and whitewashed. Gla.s.s was too costly to be much used: hence the openings in the walls were few. When the s.p.a.ce became valuable, as in Rome, the houses were built high. The chief room in the house was the _atrium_, which, in earlier times, was not only the common room but also the bedroom of the family. In the primitive dwellings it had been the only room. A pa.s.sage led from it through a door-way into the street. In front and on both sides were apartments, and in the rear a walled court, or garden. Large houses had several inclosed courts. Rich men and n.o.bles built magnificent palaces. The walls of Roman dwellings within were decorated with fresco-paintings, some of which at Pompeii are left in all their freshness. Round the dinner-table were couches, on which those who partook of the meal reclined. In other rooms chairs were plentifully supplied. Lamps were very numerous and of beautiful design, but the wick was so small that they gave but little light. There was little furniture in the _atrium_. Statues stood round the walls of this room, if the house were one of the better sort, and in open presses on the walls were the images or masks of the distinguished ancestors of the family. At a funeral of a member of the household they were worn in the procession by persons representing the deceased progenitors.
DRESS.--The princ.i.p.al material of a Roman"s dress was woolen cloth. The main article of wearing apparel for a man was the _toga_, thrown over the shoulders, and brought in folds round the waist in a way to leave the right arm free. Under it was a tunic. At the age of about seventeen, the boy publicly laid aside the _toga_ with a purple hem, and put on the white toga, the token of citizenship. Women wore a long tunic girded about the waist, with a tunic and a close-fitting vest beneath. Except on a journey or in an open theater, as a protection from the sun, neither men nor women wore any covering on the head. Women, when they walked abroad, wore veils which did not cover the face. The color and form of the shoes varied with the rank of the individual, and were significant of it. In the house, sandals were used.
ORDER OF OCCUPATIONS.--The interval from sunrise to sunset was divided into twelve hours. The seventh hour of the day began at noon. At the third hour, there was usually a light meal, which was followed by business, or visits of friendship. The wealthy Roman was followed about the city by a throng of clients, who called on him with their morning greeting before he rose, and received their gift of food or money. At noon came the _prandium_, or more substantial breakfast. This was followed by a short sleep, in the case of those who were at leisure to take it. Then came games and physical exercise of various sorts. A favorite recreation, both for young and old, was ball-games. Exercise was succeeded by the bath, for which the Romans from the later times of the republic had a remarkable fondness. In private houses the bathing conveniences were luxurious. The emperors built magnificent bath-houses, which included gymnasia, and sometimes libraries. What is now called the Turkish bath was very much in vogue. Dinner, or the _cena_, the princ.i.p.al meal, was about midway between noon and sunset. The fork was not used at the table, but only in carving; but spoons, and sometimes, it would appear, knives, were used by the host and his guests. The food was so carved that it was usually taken with the fingers. At the table, the toga was exchanged for a lighter garment, and sandals were laid aside. The beverage was wine mixed with water. At banquets of the rich, after the dessert of fruit and cakes had been taken, there was, in later times, the _convivium_, or social "drinking-bout." Under the empire, this became often a scene of indecent revelry. The Roman dinner-table was not so likely as a Greek repast to be enlivened by flashes of intellect and of wit, or by music furnished by the guests. Musicians were more commonly hired performers, as were also the dancers. The Romans enjoyed games of chance. Playing with dice, and gambling along with it, became common.
MARRIAGE AND THE HOUSEHOLD.--There were two kinds of marriage. By one the wife pa.s.sed entirely out of the hands (_ma.n.u.s_) of the father into the hands of the husband, or under his control. There was frequently a religious rite (_confarreatio_); but, when this did not take place, the other customary ceremonies were essentially the same. At the betrothal the prospective bride was frequently presented with a ring, and with some more valuable gift, by the man whom she was to marry. In the household, notwithstanding the supreme authority of the husband, the wife had an honored position and an active influence. The children were, in law, the property of the father. Their lives were at his disposal. The mother had charge of their early training. The father took the princ.i.p.al charge of the young boy, taught him athletic exercises, and took him to the forum with him. Schools began to exist in the early period. Boys and girls studied together. The _pedagogue_ was the servant who accompanied the child to school, and conducted him home. Greek was studied. The law of the Twelve Tables was committed to memory. Virgil and Horace became school-books, along with Cicero and earlier writers. In the later republican period, Greeks took the business of teaching largely into their hands. There were flourishing schools of rhetoric managed both by Greek and by Latin teachers. Young Romans who could afford to do so went to Athens and other cities in the East for their university training.
SLAVES.--Town-slaves were found in the richer families in great numbers (p. 152). They were not only employed in menial occupations: they were clerks, copyists, sculptors, architects, etc., as well as actors and singers. The work of the farm-slaves was harder. They were shut up in the night in large barracks, made partly under ground, into which was admitted but little light or air. They often worked in chains. In town and country both, the unlimited power of the master led to great severity and cruelty in the treatment of slaves. Women as well as men were often guilty of brutal harshness. Females as well as males were the sufferers. The town-slave, however, might be favored by his master: he might be allowed to save money of his own, and might, perhaps, buy his freedom, or receive it as a gift. During the holidays of the _Saturnalia_, slaves were allowed unusual privileges and pleasures. The _freedmen_ could become citizens, and were then eligible to any office.
MAGISTRATES.--A Roman who sought office went round soliciting votes.
This was called _ambitio_ (from _ambire_, to go round), whence is derived the English word _ambition_. He presented himself in public places in a toga specially whitened, and was hence called a _candidate_ (from _candida_, meaning _white_). He sought to get support by providing shows and games. The voting was by ballot. Magistrates had their seats of honor, which were made in a particular shape. In the different forms used in the trial of causes, there was one general practice,--the magistrate laid down the law, and referred the judgment as to the facts in the case to an umpire, either an individual or a special court.
THE JULIAN IMPERIAL HOUSE.
C. JULIUS CaeSAR, _m_. Aurelia.
| +--C. JULIUS CaeSAR.
| +--Julia, _m_. M. Atius Balbus.
| +--Atia, _m_. C. Octavius.