장음표시 사용
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hous door. Aelia Paetina bore hina Antonia, who was twice married: first to Gnaeus Pompey and then to Faustus Sulla, both yo g nobi men os distinction. Messalina's Children were Octavia, who wasbetrothed to Lucius Silanus bes ore marrying Claudius's step-son, thenotorious Nero; and Germanicus, afterwards called Britannicus, bomon the twenty-second day of his sether's rei gn, while he was also Consul for the second time. Claudius would osten pich litile Britannicus up and show him to the troops, or to the audience at the Games,
battalions and cavaby squadrons, and the Governorship of Judaea; this Felix married three queens. Then there was Harpocras, whoearned the privileges of riding through Rome in a litter and stagingpublic entertainments as though he were a knight. Claudius had aneven higher regard sor Polybius, his literary mentor, who osten walhed belween the two Consuls. But his firmest devotion was reserved for Narcissus, his secretary, and Pallas, his treasurer, whom he encouragedine Senate to honour with large gists of money and the insignia os quaestors and praetors as wess. They were able to acquire suci, riches, by legitimate and illegitimate means, that when one day Claudius complained how hille casti was test in the Prio Purse, someoneans ered neatly that he would have heaps of pocket money is onlyhis two Deedmen took him into parinership. 29. As I mention above, Claudius seli so deeply under the influence of these freedmen and wives that he seemed to be their servant ratherthan their emperor; and distributed tities, army commands, induugences or punishments according to their wishes, however capricious,
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os tesser importance: how he revoked granis, cancelled edicis, bragenly amended die texis of letters-patent he had issued, or at least substituted nem versions for the old. Suffice it to record that he executed his fallie in-law Appius Silanus: Julia, daughter of Tiberius's son Drusus: and Julia, daughter of his own brother Germanicus - si on supported charges and without the right to plead in selia defence. Gnaeus Pompey, who had married his daughter Antonia, was stabbed to death while in bed with a favourite calamite: and Lucius Silanus, whom Claudius had belrothed to his davgliter Octavia, tost his praetorship and ur days later, had orders to Commit sulcide; this was the very New Year's Day on whicli Claudius
married Agrippina. He executed thirty-five senators and 3Oo Romanknights, with so litile apparent concern that Once, When a centurion reported that So-and-so the e Consul was now duly despalched, and Claudius dented haring given any such command, his freedmen satisfied him that the soldiers had done right not to wait for instructions be re taking vengeance on a public enemy. It is very difficult, however, to belleve that they triched Claudius into signing the ma riage contraci belween Messalina and her lover Silius by an assurance that the marriage was a mere fiction: a transferetice of portendeddangers threatening 'Messalina's hvsband', from himself to someone
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to the debouchment of the Fucine Lahe on the Jay it was emptied: but the water came rushing out in a deluge and almost drowned him. His sons and daughters, lite those of other important ossicials, wereat ways expected to dine with him: sitiing in old-fashioned style at theends of the couches on whicli their parenis reclined. Once, when aguest was belleved to have pocheted a goiden bowl, Claudius invited. him again the neXt evening, this time setting a smali earthenware basin in front of him. Some say that he planned an edici to legitimigethe breaking of wrid at table, ei ther silently or noisily - after bearingabout a man who was so modest that he endangered his health by an attempt to restrari himself
tiony had been ordered at Tivoli and the criminals had been lied totheir stines, nobody could be found capable of car ing it oui: but Claudius summoned a specialist stom Rome and was so set Onwimessing the procedure that he waited untii dush for the man's arrius. At gladiatoris stlows, whether or not they were staged by himself, he ruled that ali combatanis who feli accidental ly should
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have their throais cut - above ali taetrighters, the death agony onwhose faces was not hidden by any helmeis. When a pair of gladiators mortally wounded each odier he sent for their swords and had poche knives made Dom them for his personal use. Claudius so greatlyenjoyed wild-beast shows and the fencing matches during the luncheon intervat that, after he had spent the whole morning in the ampliutheatre froni daybrea untii noon, he would dismiss the audience, keep his seat, and not only watch the regular combais but extemporigeothers belween the stage carpenters, and similar members of the theatre stas, as a punishment for the fassure of any mechanical deviceto work as it should. He even forced one of his pages to enter thearena and fght in his gown. 35. Claudius was so timid and suspici ous that, though mahing ashow of simplici in the early days of his reign, as Ι mention aboVe, he never attended a binquet inless with an escort of javelin-bearing Guards, and waited upon by soldiers. Besore intering a sic room hesways had it carefulty gone over: pillows and mattresses were prodded, and bedclothes sh ahen oui. Later, he even required allvisitors to be searched when they came to pay him a morning call, and excused no one. Indeed, it was not untii the end of his reign thathe reluctantly gave up the practice of having women, boys, and giris pawed about during these routine examinations, and of removing thestylus-case Dom every caller's attendant or secretary. Camillus therebel felt sure that Claudius could be frightened into abdication merelyby insolent threats, without the need os declaring war: and Claudius did in faci seriousty ask his prio coincit whether he should complywith Camillus's demands.
36. Baseless rumours of conspiracies caused Claudius such sarminat he wished himself bach in private Ese. Aster the arrest of the manwith the dagger, he sent out to--criers to cali an immediate meetingos the Senate, at which he protested tearfully that no place was fas eser him any longer: and fassed to appear in public during the nexi se days. Nor did Messalina's insulting bellariour destroy the extravagant love he bore her, so much as terror that she planned to seat her lover Silius on the throne: and when the news of their marriage reached his he sed ignominiousty to the Guards' Camp. ashing again and againas he went: 'Am I stili Emperor γ' 37. At the stightest hint of danger he would take instant actionagainst his supposed enemy. Once a morning caper drew Claudius
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Instead of hecping quiet about liis stupidity, Claudius explained, ina few short speeches, that it had been a mere mash assumed sor thebenesit of Caligula, and that he owed both life and throne to it. Nobody, however, belleved him, and soon a book was published cntiti ed
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Once, en the men of Ostia made a public petition, he lost his temper and shouted stom the tribunal that he owed them no consuderation, and that surely he was Dee, is myone Wasi Every day, and almost at every hour and minute of the day, he would let fati suchremarks as: 'What 3 Do you tahe me ser a boobyρ' and 'Uery well,
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education, had devoted his whole life to liberat studies. 1. While stili a boy Claudius had started work on a Roman history, encouraged by the famous historian Livy, and assisted by Sulpicius Flavus. But when he gave his first public reading to a packed audience he found it dissiculi to hold their attention because at thevery begi ning of his performance a very fat man came in, sat down, and brohe a bench - whicli sent severat of his neighbours sprawling and excited considerable merriment. Even when silence had been
restored Claudius could not hel p recalling the sight and going offlato
volumes furvive; of the Second, sortPone. MoreoVer, he wrote eight Volumes of an autobiography whicli are
criticiZable for their lack of taste rather than any lack of style: as wellas A Desente of Cicero against the Aspersions of Asinius Gallus - quite alearned work. Claudius also added three new letters of liis own invention to the Latin alphabet- F to represent a vowel between u indi: γ sor ps: and E for consonantat v- maintaining that they were most necessa . He had written a book on the subject bes ore his accession,
and afterwards met with no obstacte in geliing the letters ossiciat lyadopted. They may stili be found in a number of books, in the ossiciat Gazette, and in public inscriptions. a. Claudius also studied Greek with great application, and tookeVery opportunity of prosessing his love sor this language, whicli hedeclared to be the finest os ali. Once, when a barbarian addressed him first in Latin and then in Greek, he replied: 'Since you come armedwith both our languages ...' Also, while eulogizing Greece to the Senate, he called it a province which had endeared itself to his by a
devotion to the sanae litera studies as he pursued himself: and ostenanswered Greek envoys with a caresully composed oration in theirown longue. Claudius used to quote Homer frona the tribunal and aster punishing a personat enemy or conspirator, made a habit of
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Etruscan history, and eight of Carthaginian. The City of Alexandria achnowledged these works by adding a new wing to the Museum called 'The Claudian' in his honour; and having the Etruscan historypublicly recited frona end to end once a year by relays of readers in the old wing: and the Carthaginian history, lihewise, in the new.43. In his last years Claudius made it pretiy plain that he repented of haring married Agrippina and adopted Nero. For eXample, When his freedman congratulated him on having found a certain Womanguilty of adulte , he remarked that he himself seemed fated to
'Grow up quicHy, my boy,' he said, 'and Ι wis then explain what mypolicy has been.' With that he quoted in Greeli from the tale os Telephus and Achilles:
The hand that wounded you fhas also heat, and declared his intention of letting Britannicus come of age becausealthough immature, he was tali enough to wear a gown; adding which will at last provide Rome with a true-born Caesar.' 44. Soon afte ards he composed his will and made ali the Citymagistrates put their seals to ii as witnesses; but Agrippina, betag nowaccused of many crimes by informers as weli as her Own conscience,
prevented him stom doing anything further on Britannicus's binals Most peopte flaink that Claudius was polsoned; but when, and by whom, is disputed. Some say that the eunuch Halotus, his ossicistaster, administered the drug while he was dining with the priesis of Juppiter in the Ciladel: others, that Agrippina did so herseis at a family binquet, polsoning a disti os mushrooms, his favourite seod. An equat discrepan erisis belween the accounts of what happenedneXt. Accor ing to many of my informanis, he lost his power of
da . A variant version is that he fel l into a coma but vomited up theentire contents of his stomach and was then polsoned a second time, either by a gruel - the excuse being that he needed food to revive him
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been completed to secure Nero's succession. As a result, peΟple madevows for his fasely as though he stili lived, and a troop of actors were Summoned, under the preterice that he had asked to be diverted by their antics. He died on 13 October 34 A. D. , during the consulfhipos Asinius Marcellus and Acilius Avola, in his siXty- urth year, and the fourteenth of his reign. He was given a princely funerat indossicialty deifed, an honout whicli Nero later neglected and thencancelled: but whicli Vespasian restored. 46. The main omens of Claudius's death included a comet, ligh ning that struch his father's tomb, and an unusual mortality among magistrates of ali ranks. There is also evidelice that he foresaw his endand made no secret os it: while choosing the Consuls he provided sorno appotniment aster the monili in which he died: and on his last visit to the House offered an earnest pica for harmony between Britannicus and Nero, begging the Senate to guide both of them with great care through the disiciat years of their youth. During a finalappearance on the tribunal he said more than once that he had reached lae close of his career: though everyone present cried: 'The Gods
shows pretiy conclusively that Claudius was polsoned by an edi ble boletus cooked in the fauce of a very similar pol sonous variety: that he then vomitedup the poison; that he was polsoned a second time with the juice of the Pales inian wild-gourd, or colocynth a Rings, iv. 4οὶ administered both orat ly and by enema: and that he was finalty smothered. Seneca seems to have been partyto the plot.