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revolution threatened in Rome, Titus turned bach to consuit theoracle of Venus at Paphos, and there heard his own prospects of wearing the purple mentioned again. The prophecy grew much more credibie aster his fallier had been acclaimed Eniperor and lest him tocomplete the conquest of Judaea. In the final assauit on Jerusalem Titus managed to hill twelve of the garrison with successive arrows; and the city was captured on his daughter's blathday. Titus's promessinspired such deep admiration in the troops that they hassed him asEmperor and, on severat occasions, when he seemed on the potnt of relinquishing his command, begged him either to stay or to let them follow him: even threatening violence is he would not humour theirwishes. Such passionate devotion aroused a suspicion that he plamedio usurp liis sether's power in the Fast, especialty since he had worna diadem while attending the consecration of the Apis buli at Memphis on his way to Alexandria: but this was a gross stander on his conduci, whicli accorded with ancient ritual. Titus fassed for Italy at Once in a navat transpori, touching at Reggio and Puteoli. Hurryingon to Rome, he exploded ali the false rumours by greeting Vespasian, who had not been expecting him, with the simple words: 'Here I am, Father, here I anil' 6. He now became his sither's colleague, almost his guardian: sharing in the Judaean triumph, in the Censorship, in the eXercise of tribuniciat power, and in seven consul ships. He bore most of the burdens of goverriment and, as his Ather's secreta , dealt withoisciat correspondence, drasted edicis, and even took over thequaestor's task of reading the Imperiat speeches to the Senate. Titus also assumed command of the Guards, a post which had alwaysbes ore been entrusted to a linight, and in which he bellaved somewhathigh-handedly. Is anyone aroused his suspicion, Guards delachments would be sent into theatre or camp to demand the man's punishment in the name of every loyal citieten present: and he would then beexecuted on the spol. Titus disposed of Aulus Caecina, an eX-Consul, by invit g him to dmner and haring him stabbed on the wayout: yet here he could plead political necessi the manuscript ofa distoys speech whicli Caecina intended for the troops had fallen to his hands. Actions of this fori, although an insurance against the future, made Titus so deeply disiled at the time that per-
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T. He was belleved to be profligate as weli as cruei, because of theriolous parties which he kept going with his more extravagant friends far into the night: and morally unprincipied, too, because heowned a troop os inveris and eunuchs, and nursed a guilly passion forQueen Berenice, λ to whom he had allegedly promised marriage. Healso had a reputation for accepting bribes and not be g averse frontusing insuence to setile his father's cases in favour of the highest bidder. It was even prophesied qui te openly that he would prove tobe a second Nero. However, this pessimistic vlew stood him in good
bui an exceptionalty noble character, public opinion flem to the
His dinner parties, far stom being orgies, were very pleasant occasions, and clie friends he chose were retesned in ossice by his successorsas key men in Imperiai and national assairs. He seni Queen Berenice
enough to make a name for themselves on the stage, he never attendediheir public performances. No Emperor could have been less of a robber than Titus, whoshowed the greatest respect for private property, and would not evenaccepi the gilis sanctioned by Imperiat tradition. Nor had any of his predecessors ever displayed suci, generosity. At the dedication os ine Colosseum* and the Baths, which had been hastily bulli beside it, Titus provided a most lavisti gladiatorial show: he also staged a se fight on the old artificiat lake,δ and when the water had been let out, used the basin for further gladiatorial contests and a wild-beast hunt,3 ooo berata os disserent soris dying in a single day. 8. Titus was naturalty tand-hearled, and though no Emperor, sol lowing Tiberius's example, had ever consented to rati' individual concessions granted by his predecessor, uniess these sui ted his per-I. Born 28 Λ.D. , et dest daughter of Herod Agrippa, Mng of the Jews. She had two sons by a marriage to her uncte Herod, Mng of Calchis: then lived in incest with her brother, Κing Agrippa II, whose favour Paul courted at Caesarea see Acts xxv and xxvi): married Κing Polemon os Cilicia: deserted him and returned to her brother; did her best to prevent the Roman procurator Gessius Florus Dom massacring the Jews in 65 A.D.; joined the Romans justbefore the Revolt, and afterwards went with Vespasian to Rome. She was oversorty when Titus seli in love with her. a. See Vespasian 9. 3. See Augustus 43.
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Titus's rei gn was marked by a series of catastrophes - an eruptionos Mount Vesuvius in Campania, a fire at Rome whicli burned sorthree days and nighis, and one of the worsi ovibreias of plague thathad ever been known. Throughout these frightsul disasters, he showediar more than an Emperor's concem: it resembled the deep love os anther sor his children, which he conveyed not oesy in a series of coniserting edicis but by hel ping the victims to the ulmost extentos his purse. He set up a board of ex-consuli, Chosen by tot, to rei leve distress in Campania, and devoted the proper of those who had died in the eruption and test no heirs to a fund sor rebullding the strichen cities. His only comment on the fre at Rome was: 'This has ruinedmel' He stripped his own hovies of their decorations, distributed these among the damaged temples and public bulldings, and appotn- ted a body of knighis to see that his orders were promptly carriedoui. Titus attempted to controi the plague by every imaginablemeans, human as weli as divine - resorting to ali foris of sacrifices and medicat remedies. One of the worsi statures of Roman life at the time was the licence long enjoyed by informers and thela managers. Whenever Titus
then taken to the Colosseum and paraded in the arena; where some
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ΤΗΕ ΤWELVE CAESAR Smere put up sor auction as flaves and the remainder deported todefert istands. In further discouragement of this erit, he allowed nobody to be tried for the fame offence under more than one lam,
and limited the period during whicli inquiries could be made into the status os dead people. 9. He had pro sed bes ore his accession to accepi the ossice of Chies Pontilf as a safeguard against committing any crime, and kept his ord. Thereaster he was never directly or indirectly responsiule for
s ore that he would raster die than take lise. Titus dismissed with a Caution two patricians convicted os aspiring to the Empire: he told them that since this was a gist os Destiny they would be weli advi sed
mother of one of the pair, who lived some distance away, that her sonwas fasse. Then he invited them to dine among his friends: and, thenen day, to sit close by him during the gladiatorial show, where heasked them to test the blades of the contestanis' swords brought tollim for inspection. Finalty, the story goes, he consulted the horoscopes of both men and warned them What dangers threatened stom
Titus's brother Domitian caused him endless trouble: took part in Conspiracies, stirred up disaffection in the armed forces almost openly,
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officiat eulogies were covched in the fame Veri.
I. Perhaps he repented his implous entry lato the sorbidden Holy of Holies at Jerusalem. It was a capital crime sor a Roman even to trespass in the Couri os Israel. The Jews, at any rate, ascribed his early death to this cause and Queen Berenice must have reproached him with the act. Perhaps, on the other hand, the story of his incest with Domitia may have been true see Domitian a).
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ON 24 October, II A.D. , a monili besore Vespasian, as Consutieleci, was due to tahe office, his son Domitian was bom in Pomegranate Street, whicli formed part of the sint, district of Rome. Later, he converted his birthplace into the Temple of the Flavians. Most peopte agree that Domitian spent a poveri strichen and rather degraded youth: without even any silver on the family table. At allevenis, it is an established faci that Claudius Pollio, an e praetor, and the larget os Nero's satire The One- ed Man, used to fhow his guesis a letter in Domitian's handwriting, which he happened to have hepi, offering him an assignation. It is also osten insisted that Domitian was e oyed by his eventuat successor, the Emperor Nerva. During Vespasian's war against Vitellius, Domitian with his uncte Sabinus and some members of the Couri, fled to the Capitol: butwhen the Vitellians set the temple on fire, Domitian concealed himself sl night in the caretaker's quarters and, at daybreah, disguised asa devotee of Isis, took refuge among the priesis of that rather questionabie order. Presently he managed to escape with a friend across
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the Tiber, where the mother of one of his fello studenis hid him socleuerly that she ou itted the agents who trached his to her houseand searched it Dom cellar to attic. Emerging after Vitellius's death, Domitian was hased as 'Caesar' and accepted an appotniment as Citypraetor with consular powers - but in name oesy, because he lest alijudicis decisions to a junior colleague. However, the lawlessness withwhich he exploited his position as the Emperor's son clearly showed what might be expected of him later. I shali not discuss this subject in any detest; suffice it to say that Domitian had affairs with severat married women, and finalty persuaded Domitia Longina to divorcelier husband Aelius Lamia for his siue: and that once, when he had distributed more than twenty appotniments at horne and abroad in thecourse of a single day, Vespasian murmured: 'Ι wonder he did notname o successor while he was about ili' a. To acquire a military reputation that would compare favo ablywith his brother Titus's, Domitian planned a quite Unnecessary e e
dition into Gaul and Germany from whicli, by luch, his father's
friends managed to dissuade him. He earned a reprimand for tius and was made to seel a litile more conscious of his youth and unimport- ance by being put under Uespasian's tutelage. Whenever Vespasianand Titus now appeared seated in their curule chairs, he had to be
their Judaean triumph, rode on a wl te horse, the conventionalmount for young princes on such occasions. of the fix consulsi ipse oyed by Domitian before becoming Emperor, only One waS notan honorary appotntinent, and that came his way because Titus had resigned in his favour. Domitian pretended to be extremely modest, and though hedisplayed a sudden devotion to poetry, which he would read foudin public, his enthusiasm was malched by a later neglect of the art. It is to his credit, however, that he did everything possibi e to get sentagainst the Alanians when a request for auxiliary troops, commanded by one of Vespasian's fons, arrised stom Vologaesus, hing of the Parthians. And he subsequently tried by bribes and promises to coaxsimilar requesis from other Oriental hings.
At Vespasian's death Domitian toyed sor awhile with the idea ofossering his troops twice as large a bounty as Titus had given them: and stated bluntly that his sether's wis must have been tamperedwith, since it originalty assigned his a lial share in the Empire. He
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When Titus feli suddenly and digero ly sit, Domitian told theattendanis to presume his death by learing the sick-bed be re he had actually breathed his last: and afte ards granted his no recognitionat an, beyond approving his deification. In faci, he osten stighted
Titus's memory by the use of ambiguous terms in speeches and
tion that made his cruel. 4. Domitian presented many extravagant enterlatamenis in the Colosseum and the Circus. Besides the usual two-horse chariot races
orders close to the Tiber, surro ded with seais, and used for almostses scale navat batiles, which he walched even in heavy rain. He also held Saecular Games, fixing their date by Augustus's old rechoning, and ignoring Claudius's more recent celebration of them:
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and for ine Circus racing, whicli formed part of the festivities, reducedine number of laps from seven to five, so that IOo races a day could berun off. In honour of Capitoline Juppiter lie founded a festives of music, horsemanship, and gymnastics, to be held every five years, anda arded far more priges than is customary nowadays. The festius included Latin and Greek publi speiaing contests, competitions forchorai singing to the iure and for lyr playing sone, besides the usual solo sing g to lyre accompaniment; he even instituted ot races forgitis in the Stadium. When presiding at these functions he wore bustans, a purple Greek robe, and a gold crown engraved with theimages of Juppiter, Juno, and Minerva; and at his fide sat the Priest os Capitoline Juppiter and the Priest of the Dei sed Flavians, wearing the fame costume as he did, except for crowns decorated with his image. Domitian also celebrated the annual fiv day festival os Minerva at his Albin villa, and unded in her honour a college of priests, whose iask it was to supply officers, chosen by tot, for producing lavisti wildineast hunts and stage plays, and sponsoring competitions in rhetoric and poetry. On three occasions Domitian distributed a popular bounty of three gold pieces a head: and once, to celebrate the Ferat of the Seven Hilis,gave a splendid bariquet, picnic fashion, missi large hampers of odiar senators and knighis, and smasser ones for the commons; isting
to be scrambled sor, but since most of these feli in the seais occupied by the commons, had 3Oo tokens thrown into those reserved forsenators, and another 3OO into inose reserved for knighis.
5. He restored a good many gutted ruius, including the Capitol, which had burned down again in the year 8o A.D. but allowed no
origines bullder's. He also ressed a temple to Juppiter the Guardian onthe Capitoline Hili, the Forum os Nerva as it is now called), the Flavian Temple, a stadium, a concert hall, and the artificiat liue forsea batiles - iis stones later served to rebulld the two sides of the Great
6. Some of Domitian's campesgns, the Chattian one, for instance,
were quite injustifed by military necessiW; but not so that against the Sarmatians, who had massacred a legion and hised iis commander. And when the Dacians desealed first the e Consul Oppius