647;butinthePomaeriumofRome,andamileroundit,heprohibitedtheworshipoftheEgyptiangods,Dion,l。liii。p。
679;l。liv。p。735。Theyremained,however,veryfashionableunderhisreignOvid。deArt。Amand。l。i。andthatofhissuccessor,tillthejusticeofTiberiuswasprovokedtosomeactsofseverity。SeeTacit。Annal。ii。85。Joseph。Antiquit。l。
xviii。c。3。
Note:See,inthepicturesfromthewallsofPompeii,therepresentationofanIsiactempleandworship。VestigesofEgyptianworshiphavebeentracedinGaul,and,Iaminformed,recentlyinBritain,inexcavationsatYork。—M。]
[Footnote!:Gibbonhereblendsintoone,twoevents,distantahundredandsixty—sixyearsfromeachother。ItwasintheyearofRome535,thatthesenatehavingorderedthedestructionofthetemplesofIsisandSerapis,theworkmanwouldlendhishand;
andtheconsul,L。PaulushimselfValer。Max。1,3seizedtheaxe,togivethefirstblow。Gibbonattributethiscircumstancetotheseconddemolition,whichtookplaceintheyear701andwhichheconsidersasthefirst。—W。]
[Footnote16:TertullianinApologetic。c。6,p。74。Edit。
Havercamp。IaminclinedtoattributetheirestablishmenttothedevotionoftheFlavianfamily。]
[Footnote17:SeeLivy,l。xi。[Suppl。]andxxix。]
[Footnote18:Macrob。Saturnalia,l。iii。c。9。Hegivesusaformofevocation。]
[Footnote19:MinutiusFaelixinOctavio,p。54。Arnobius,l。
vi。p。115。]
II。Thenarrowpolicyofpreserving,withoutanyforeignmixture,thepurebloodoftheancientcitizens,hadcheckedthefortune,andhastenedtheruin,ofAthensandSparta。TheaspiringgeniusofRomesacrificedvanitytoambition,anddeemeditmoreprudent,aswellashonorable,toadoptvirtueandmeritforherownwheresoevertheywerefound,amongslavesorstrangers,enemiesorbarbarians。^20DuringthemostflourishingaeraoftheAtheniancommonwealth,thenumberofcitizensgraduallydecreasedfromaboutthirty^21totwenty—onethousand。
^22If,onthecontrary,westudythegrowthoftheRomanrepublic,wemaydiscover,that,notwithstandingtheincessantdemandsofwarsandcolonies,thecitizens,who,inthefirstcensusofServiusTullius,amountedtonomorethaneighty—threethousand,weremultiplied,beforethecommencementofthesocialwar,tothenumberoffourhundredandsixty—threethousandmen,abletobeararmsintheserviceoftheircountry。^23WhenthealliesofRomeclaimedanequalshareofhonorsandprivileges,thesenateindeedpreferredthechanceofarmstoanignominiousconcession。TheSamnitesandtheLucanianspaidtheseverepenaltyoftheirrashness;buttherestoftheItalianstates,astheysuccessivelyreturnedtotheirduty,wereadmittedintothebosomoftherepublic,^24andsooncontributedtotheruinofpublicfreedom。Underademocraticalgovernment,thecitizensexercisethepowersofsovereignty;andthosepowerswillbefirstabused,andafterwardslost,iftheyarecommittedtoanunwieldymultitude。Butwhenthepopularassemblieshadbeensuppressedbytheadministrationoftheemperors,theconquerorsweredistinguishedfromthevanquishednations,onlyasthefirstandmosthonorableorderofsubjects;andtheirincrease,howeverrapid,wasnolongerexposedtothesamedangers。Yetthewisestprinces,whoadoptedthemaximsofAugustus,guardedwiththestrictestcarethedignityoftheRomanname,anddiffusedthefreedomofthecitywithaprudentliberality。^25
[Footnote20:Tacit。Annal。xi。24。TheOrbisRomanusofthelearnedSpanheimisacompletehistoryoftheprogressiveadmissionofLatium,Italy,andtheprovinces,tothefreedomofRome。
Note:Democraticstates,observesDenina,delleRevoluz。d\'
Italia,l。ii。c。l。,aremostjealousofcommunicationtheprivilegesofcitizenship;monarchiesoroligarchieswillinglymultiplythenumbersoftheirfreesubjects。ThemostremarkableaccessionstothestrengthofRome,bytheaggregationofconqueredandforeignnations,tookplaceundertheregalandpatrician—wemayadd,theImperialgovernment。—M。]
[Footnote21:Herodotus,v。97。Itshouldseem,however,thathefollowedalargeandpopularestimation。]
[Footnote22:Athenaeus,Deipnosophist。l。vi。p。272。Edit。
Casaubon。MeursiusdeFortunaAttica,c。4。
Note:OnthenumberofcitizensinAthens,compareBoeckh,PublicEconomyofAthens,EnglishTr。,p。45,etseq。FynesClinton,EssayinFastiHellenici,vol。i。381。—M。]
[Footnote23:SeeaveryaccuratecollectionofthenumbersofeachLustruminM。deBeaufort,RepubliqueRomaine,l。iv。c。4。
Note:AllthesequestionsareplacedinanentirelynewpointofviewbyNicbuhr,RomischeGeschichte,vol。i。p。464。
HerejectsthecensusofServiusfulliusasunhistoric,vol。ii。
p。78,etseq。,andheestablishestheprinciplethatthecensuscomprehendedalltheconfederatecitieswhichhadtherightofIsopolity。—M。]
[Footnote24:Appian。deBell。Civil。l。i。VelleiusPaterculus,l。ii。c。15,16,17。]
[Footnote25:Maecenashadadvisedhimtodeclare,byoneedict,allhissubjectscitizens。ButwemayjustlysuspectthatthehistorianDionwastheauthorofacounselsomuchadaptedtothepracticeofhisownage,andsolittletothatofAugustus。]
ChapterII:TheInternalProsperityInTheAgeOfTheAntonines。
PartII。
TilltheprivilegesofRomanshadbeenprogressivelyextendedtoalltheinhabitantsoftheempire,animportantdistinctionwaspreservedbetweenItalyandtheprovinces。Theformerwasesteemedthecentreofpublicunity,andthefirmbasisoftheconstitution。Italyclaimedthebirth,oratleasttheresidence,oftheemperorsandthesenate。^26TheestatesoftheItalianswereexemptfromtaxes,theirpersonsfromthearbitraryjurisdictionofgovernors。Theirmunicipalcorporations,formedaftertheperfectmodelofthecapital,
wereintrusted,undertheimmediateeyeofthesupremepower,withtheexecutionofthelaws。FromthefootoftheAlpstotheextremityofCalabria,allthenativesofItalywereborncitizensofRome。Theirpartialdistinctionswereobliterated,andtheyinsensiblycoalescedintoonegreatnation,unitedbylanguage,manners,andcivilinstitutions,andequaltotheweightofapowerfulempire。Therepublicgloriedinhergenerouspolicy,andwasfrequentlyrewardedbythemeritandservicesofheradoptedsons。HadshealwaysconfinedthedistinctionofRomanstotheancientfamilieswithinthewallsofthecity,thatimmortalnamewouldhavebeendeprivedofsomeofitsnoblestornaments。VirgilwasanativeofMantua;HoracewasinclinedtodoubtwhetherheshouldcallhimselfanApulianoraLucanian;itwasinPaduathatanhistorianwasfoundworthytorecordthemajesticseriesofRomanvictories。ThepatriotfamilyoftheCatosemergedfromTusculum;andthelittletownofArpinumclaimedthedoublehonorofproducingMariusandCicero,theformerofwhomdeserved,afterRomulusandCamillus,tobestyledtheThirdFounderofRome;andthelatter,aftersavinghiscountryfromthedesignsofCatiline,enabledhertocontendwithAthensforthepalmofeloquence。^27
[Footnote26:ThesenatorswereobligedtohaveonethirdoftheirownlandedpropertyinItaly。SeePlin。l。vi。ep。19。
ThequalificationwasreducedbyMarcustoonefourth。SincethereignofTrajan,Italyhadsunknearertotheleveloftheprovinces。]
[Footnote*:ItmaybedoubtedwhetherthemunicipalgovernmentofthecitieswasnottheoldItalianconstitutionratherthanatranscriptfromthatofRome。Thefreegovernmentofthecities,observesSavigny,wastheleadingcharacteristicofItaly。
GeschichtedesRomischenRechts,i。p。G。—M。]
[Footnote27:ThefirstpartoftheVeronaIllustrataoftheMarquisMaffeigivestheclearestandmostcomprehensiveviewofthestateofItalyundertheCaesars。
Note:CompareDenina,Revol。d\'Italia,l。ii。c。6,p。100,4toedit。]
Theprovincesoftheempireastheyhavebeendescribedintheprecedingchapterweredestituteofanypublicforce,orconstitutionalfreedom。InEtruria,inGreece,^28andinGaul,^29itwasthefirstcareofthesenatetodissolvethosedangerousconfederacies,whichtaughtmankindthat,astheRomanarmsprevailedbydivision,theymightberesistedbyunion。
Thoseprinces,whomtheostentationofgratitudeorgenerositypermittedforawhiletoholdaprecarioussceptre,weredismissedfromtheirthrones,assoonastheyhadperformedtheirappointedtaskoffashioningtotheyokethevanquishednations。ThefreestatesandcitieswhichhadembracedthecauseofRomewererewardedwithanominalalliance,andinsensiblysunkintorealservitude。Thepublicauthoritywaseverywhereexercisedbytheministersofthesenateandoftheemperors,andthatauthoritywasabsolute,andwithoutcontrol。^!Butthesamesalutarymaximsofgovernment,whichhadsecuredthepeaceandobedienceofItalywereextendedtothemostdistantconquests。
AnationofRomanswasgraduallyformedintheprovinces,bythedoubleexpedientofintroducingcolonies,andofadmittingthemostfaithfulanddeservingoftheprovincialstothefreedomofRome。
[Footnote28:SeePausanias,l。vii。TheRomanscondescendedtorestorethenamesofthoseassemblies,whentheycouldnolongerbedangerous。]
[Footnote29:TheyarefrequentlymentionedbyCaesar。TheAbbeDubosattempts,withverylittlesuccess,toprovethattheassembliesofGaulwerecontinuedundertheemperors。Histoiredel\'EtablissementdelaMonarchieFrancoise,l。i。c。4。]
[Footnote!:Thisis,perhaps,ratheroverstated。Mostcitiesretainedthechoiceoftheirmunicipalofficers:someretainedvaluableprivileges;Athens,forinstance,informwasstillaconfederatecity。Tac。Ann。ii。53。Theseprivileges,indeed,dependedentirelyonthearbitrarywilloftheemperor,whorevokedorrestoredthemaccordingtohiscaprice。SeeWaltherGeschichtelesRomischenRechts,i。324—anadmirablesummaryoftheRomanconstitutionalhistory。—M。]
\"WheresoevertheRomanconquers,heinhabits,\"isaveryjustobservationofSeneca,^30confirmedbyhistoryandexperience。ThenativesofItaly,alluredbypleasureorbyinterest,hastenedtoenjoytheadvantagesofvictory;andwemayremark,that,aboutfortyyearsafterthereductionofAsia,eightythousandRomansweremassacredinoneday,bythecruelordersofMithridates。^31Thesevoluntaryexileswereengaged,forthemostpart,intheoccupationsofcommerce,agriculture,andthefarmoftherevenue。Butafterthelegionswererenderedpermanentbytheemperors,theprovinceswerepeopledbyaraceofsoldiers;andtheveterans,whethertheyreceivedtherewardoftheirserviceinlandorinmoney,usuallysettledwiththeirfamiliesinthecountry,wheretheyhadhonorablyspenttheiryouth。Throughouttheempire,butmoreparticularlyinthewesternparts,themostfertiledistricts,andthemostconvenientsituations,werereservedfortheestablishmentofcolonies;someofwhichwereofacivil,andothersofamilitarynature。Intheirmannersandinternalpolicy,thecoloniesformedaperfectrepresentationoftheirgreatparent;andtheyweresoonendearedtothenativesbythetiesoffriendshipandalliance,theyeffectuallydiffusedareverencefortheRomanname,andadesire,whichwasseldomdisappointed,ofsharing,induetime,itshonorsandadvantages。^32Themunicipalcitiesinsensiblyequalledtherankandsplendorofthecolonies;andinthereignofHadrian,itwasdisputedwhichwasthepreferablecondition,ofthosesocietieswhichhadissuedfrom,orthosewhichhadbeenreceivedinto,thebosomofRome。^33TherightofLatium,asitwascalled,conferredonthecitiestowhichithadbeengranted,amorepartialfavor。Themagistratesonly,attheexpirationoftheiroffice,assumedthequalityofRomancitizens;butasthoseofficeswereannual,inafewyearstheycirculatedroundtheprincipalfamilies。^34Thoseoftheprovincialswhowerepermittedtobeararmsinthelegions;^35
thosewhoexercisedanycivilemployment;all,inaword,whoperformedanypublicservice,ordisplayedanypersonaltalents,wererewardedwithapresent,whosevaluewascontinuallydiminishedbytheincreasingliberalityoftheemperors。Yeteven,intheageoftheAntonines,whenthefreedomofthecityhadbeenbestowedonthegreaternumberoftheirsubjects,itwasstillaccompaniedwithverysolidadvantages。Thebulkofthepeopleacquired,withthattitle,thebenefitoftheRomanlaws,particularlyintheinterestingarticlesofmarriage,testaments,andinheritances;andtheroadoffortunewasopentothosewhosepretensionsweresecondedbyfavorormerit。ThegrandsonsoftheGauls,whohadbesiegedJuliusCaesarinAlcsia,commandedlegions,governedprovinces,andwereadmittedintothesenateofRome。^36Theirambition,insteadofdisturbingthetranquillityofthestate,wasintimatelyconnectedwithitssafetyandgreatness。
[Footnote30:SenecainConsolat。adHelviam,c。6。]
[Footnote31:MemnonapudPhotium,c。33,[c。224,p。231,edBekker。]Valer。Maxim。ix。2。PlutarchandDionCassiusswellthemassacreto150,000citizens;butIshouldesteemthesmallernumbertobemorethansufficient。]
[Footnote32:Twenty—fivecoloniesweresettledinSpain,seePlin。Hist。Nat。iii。3,4;iv。35;andnineinBritain,ofwhichLondon,Colchester,Lincoln,Chester,Gloucester,andBathstillremainconsiderablecities。SeeRichardofCirencester,p。
36,andWhittaker\'sHistoryofManchester,l。i。c。3。]
[Footnote33:Aul。Gel。NoctesAtticae,xvi13。TheEmperorHadrianexpressedhissurprise,thatthecitiesofUtica,Gades,andItalica,whichalreadyenjoyedtherightsofMunicipia,shouldsolicitthetitleofcolonies。Theirexample,however,becamefashionable,andtheempirewasfilledwithhonorarycolonies。SeeSpanheim,deUsuNumismatumDissertat。xiii。]
[Footnote*:TherightofLatiumconferredanexemptionfromthegovernmentoftheRomanpraefect。Strabostatesthisdistinctly,l。iv。p。295,edit。Caesar\'s。SeealsoWalther,p。233。—M]
[Footnote34:Spanheim,OrbisRoman。c。8,p。62。]
[Footnote35:Aristid。inRomaeEncomio。tom。i。p。218,edit。
Jebb。]
[Footnote36:Tacit。Annal。xi。23,24。Hist。iv。74。]
SosensibleweretheRomansoftheinfluenceoflanguageovernationalmanners,thatitwastheirmostseriouscaretoextend,withtheprogressoftheirarms,theuseoftheLatintongue。^37TheancientdialectsofItaly,theSabine,theEtruscan,andtheVenetian,sunkintooblivion;butintheprovinces,theeastwaslessdocilethanthewesttothevoiceofitsvictoriouspreceptors。Thisobviousdifferencemarkedthetwoportionsoftheempirewithadistinctionofcolors,which,thoughitwasinsomedegreeconcealedduringthemeridiansplendorofprosperity,becamegraduallymorevisible,astheshadesofnightdescendedupontheRomanworld。Thewesterncountrieswerecivilizedbythesamehandswhichsubduedthem。
Assoonasthebarbarianswerereconciledtoobedience,theirmindswereopentoanynewimpressionsofknowledgeandpoliteness。ThelanguageofVirgilandCicero,thoughwithsomeinevitablemixtureofcorruption,wassouniversallyadoptedinAfrica,Spain,GaulBritain,andPannonia,^38thatthefainttracesofthePunicorCelticidiomswerepreservedonlyinthemountains,oramongthepeasants。^39EducationandstudyinsensiblyinspiredthenativesofthosecountrieswiththesentimentsofRomans;andItalygavefashions,aswellaslaws,toherLatinprovincials。Theysolicitedwithmoreardor,andobtainedwithmorefacility,thefreedomandhonorsofthestate;
supportedthenationaldignityinletters^40andinarms;andatlength,inthepersonofTrajan,producedanemperorwhomtheScipioswouldnothavedisownedfortheircountryman。ThesituationoftheGreekswasverydifferentfromthatofthebarbarians。Theformerhadbeenlongsincecivilizedandcorrupted。Theyhadtoomuchtastetorelinquishtheirlanguage,andtoomuchvanitytoadoptanyforeigninstitutions。Stillpreservingtheprejudices,aftertheyhadlostthevirtues,oftheirancestors,theyaffectedtodespisetheunpolishedmannersoftheRomanconquerors,whilsttheywerecompelledtorespecttheirsuperiorwisdomandpower。^41NorwastheinfluenceoftheGrecianlanguageandsentimentsconfinedtothenarrowlimitsofthatoncecelebratedcountry。Theirempire,bytheprogressofcoloniesandconquest,hadbeendiffusedfromtheAdriatictotheEuphratesandtheNile。AsiawascoveredwithGreekcities,andthelongreignoftheMacedoniankingshadintroducedasilentrevolutionintoSyriaandEgypt。Intheirpompouscourts,thoseprincesunitedtheeleganceofAthenswiththeluxuryoftheEast,andtheexampleofthecourtwasimitated,atanhumbledistance,bythehigherranksoftheirsubjects。SuchwasthegeneraldivisionoftheRomanempireintotheLatinandGreeklanguages。TothesewemayaddathirddistinctionforthebodyofthenativesinSyria,andespeciallyinEgypt,theuseoftheirancientdialects,bysecludingthemfromthecommerceofmankind,checkedtheimprovementsofthosebarbarians。^42Theslothfuleffeminacyoftheformerexposedthemtothecontempt,thesullenferociousnessofthelatterexcitedtheaversion,oftheconquerors。^43ThosenationshadsubmittedtotheRomanpower,buttheyseldomdesiredordeservedthefreedomofthecity:anditwasremarked,thatmorethantwohundredandthirtyyearselapsedaftertheruinofthePtolemies,beforeanEgyptianwasadmittedintothesenateofRome。^44
[Footnote37:SeePlin。Hist。Natur。iii。5。Augustin。deCivitateDei,xix7LipsiusdePronunciationeLinguaeLatinae,c。
3。]
[Footnote38:ApuleiusandAugustinwillanswerforAfrica;
StraboforSpainandGaul;Tacitus,inthelifeofAgricola,forBritain;andVelleiusPaterculus,forPannonia。TothemwemayaddthelanguageoftheInscriptions。
Note:Mr。HallamconteststhisassertionasregardsBritain。