240 years before the christian era. He was the first who turned the
personal satires and fescennine verses, so long the admiration of the
Romans, into the form of a proper dialogue and regular play. Though
the character of a player, so valued and applauded in Greece, was
reckoned vile and despicable among the Romans, Andronicus acted a
part in his dramatic compositions and engaged the attention of his
audience, by repeating what he had laboriously formed after the
manner of the Greeks. Andronicus was the freedman of Marcus Livius
Salinator, whose children he educated. His poetry was grown obsolete
in the age of Cicero, whose nicety and judgment would not even
recommend the reading of it. Some few of his verses are preserved
in the _Corpus Poetarum_.――――Marcus Salinator, a Roman consul,
sent against the Illyrians. The success with which he finished the
campaign, and the victory which some years after he obtained over
Asdrubal, who was passing into Italy with a reinforcement for his
brother Annibal, show how deserving he was to be at the head of the
Roman armies. _Livy._――――Drusus, a tribune who joined the patricians
in opposing the ambitious views of Caius Gracchus. _Plutarch_,
_Tiberius Gracchus_.――――An uncle of Cato of Utica. _Plutarch.
_――――Titus, a native of Padua, celebrated for his writings. He
passed the greatest part of his life at Naples and Rome, but more
particularly at the court of Augustus, who liberally patronized the
learned, and encouraged the progress of literature. Few particulars
of his life are known, yet his fame was so universally spread even
in his lifetime, that an inhabitant of Gades traversed Spain, Gaul,
and Italy, merely to see the man whose writings had given him such
pleasure and satisfaction in the perusal. Livy died at Padua, in
his 67th year, and according to some, on that same day Rome was also
deprived of another of its brightest ornaments, by the death of the
poet Ovid, A.D. 17. It is said that Livia had appointed Livy to be
the preceptor to young Claudius the brother of Germanicus, but death
prevented the historian from enjoying an honour to which he was
particularly entitled by his learning and his universal knowledge.
The name of Livy is rendered immortal by his history of the Roman
empire. Besides this, he wrote some philosophical treatises and
dialogues, with a letter addressed to his son, on the merit of
authors, which ought to be read by young men. This letter is
greatly commended by Quintilian, who expatiates with great warmth
on the judgment and candour of the author. His Roman history was
comprehended in 140 books, of which only 35 are extant. It began with
the foundation of Rome, and was continued till the death of Drusus
in Germany. The merit of this history is well known, and the high
rank which Livy holds among historians will never be disputed. He is
always great; his style is clear and intelligible, laboured without
affectation, diffusive without tediousness, and argumentative without
pedantry. In his harangues he is bold and animated, and in his
narrations and descriptions he claims a decided superiority. He is
always elegant, and though many have branded his provincial words
with the name of _Patavinity_, yet the expressions, or rather the
orthography of words, which in Livy are supposed to distinguish a
native of a province of Italy from a native of Rome, are not loaded
with obscurity, and the perfect classic is as familiarly acquainted
with the one as with the other. Livy has been censured, and perhaps
with justice, for being too credulous, and burdening his history
with vulgar notions and superstitious tales. He may disgust when he
mentions that milk and blood were rained from heaven, or that an ox
spoke, or a woman changed her sex, yet he candidly confesses that
he recorded only what made an indelible impression upon the minds of
a credulous age. His candour has also been called in question, and
he has sometimes shown himself too partial to his countrymen, but
everywhere he is an indefatigable supporter of the cause of justice
and virtue. The works of Livy have been divided by some of the
moderns into 14 decades, each consisting of 10 books. The first
decade comprehends the history of 460 years. The second decade is
lost, and the third comprehends the history of the second Punic war,
which includes about 18 years. In the fourth decade, Livy treats of
the wars with Macedonia and Antiochus, which contain about 23 years.
For the first five books of the fifth decade, we are indebted to the
researches of the moderns. They were found at Worms, A.D. 1431. These
are the books that remain of Livy’s history, and the loss which the
celebrated work has sustained by the ravages of time, has in some
measure been compensated by the labours of Johann Freinshemius, who
with great attention and industry has made an epitome of the Roman
history, which is now incorporated with the remaining books of Livy.
The third decade seems to be superior to the others, yet the author
has not scrupled to copy from his contemporaries and predecessors,
and we find many passages taken word for word from Polybius, in which
the latter has shown himself more informed in military affairs, and
superior to his imitator. The best editions of Livy will be found to
be those of Maittaire, 6 vols., 12mo, London, 1722; of Drakenborch,
7 vols., 4to, Amsterdam, 1731; and of Ruddiman, 4 vols., 12mo,
Edinburgh, 1751.――――A governor of Tarentum, who delivered his trust
to Annibal, &c.――――A high priest who devoted Decius to the Dii
Manes.――――A commander of a Roman fleet sent against Antiochus in the
Hellespont.
=Lixus=, a river of Mauritania, with a city of the same name. Antæus
had a palace there, and according to some accounts it was in the
neighbourhood that Hercules conquered him. _Silius Italicus_, bk. 3,
li. 258.――_Mela_, bk. 3, ch. 10.――_Strabo_, bk. 2.――――A son of
Ægyptus. _Apollodorus._
=Lobon=, a native of Argos, who wrote a book concerning poets.
_Diogenes Laërtius._
=Lŏceus=, a man who conspired against Alexander with Dymnus, &c.
_Curtius_, bk. 6, ch. 7.
=Locha=, a large city of Africa, taken and plundered by Scipio’s
soldiers.
=Lochias=, a promontory and citadel of Egypt near Alexandria.
=Locri=, a town of Magna Græcia in Italy on the Adriatic, not far from
Rhegium. It was founded by a Grecian colony about 757 years before
the christian era, as some suppose. The inhabitants were called
_Locri_ or _Locrenses_. _Virgil_, _Æneid_, bk. 3, li. 399――_Strabo.
_――_Pliny._――_Livy_, bk. 22, ch. 6; bk. 23, ch. 30.――――A town of
Locris in ♦Greece.
♦ ‘Greeee’ replaced with ‘Greece’
=Locris=, a country of Greece, whose inhabitants are known by the name
of _Ozolæ_, _Epicnemidii_, and _Opuntii_. The country of the Ozolæ,
called also _Epizephyrii_ from their westerly situation, was at the
north of the bay of Corinth, and extended above 12 miles northward.
On the west it was separated from Ætolia by the Evenus, and it
had Phocis at the east. The chief city was called Naupactus. The
Epicnemidii were at the north of the Ozolæ, and had the bay of Malia
at the east, and Œta on the north. They received their name from the
situation of their residence, near a mountain called Cnemis. They
alone, of all the Locrians, had the privilege of sending members
to the council of the Amphictyons. The Opuntii, who received their
name from their chief city called Opus, were situated on the borders
of the Euripus, and near Phocis and Eubœa. _Pliny_, bk. 3, ch. 5.
――_Strabo_, bk. 6, &c.――_Ptolemy._――_Mela._――_Livy_, bk. 26, ch. 26;
bk. 28, ch. 6.――_Pausanias_, _Achaia_ & _Phocis_.
=Locusta=, a celebrated woman at Rome in the favour of Nero. She
poisoned Claudius and Britannicus, and at last attempted to destroy
Nero himself, for which she was executed. _Tacitus_, _Annals_, bk. 12,
ch. 66, &c.――_Suetonius_, _Nero_, ch. 33.
=Locutius.= _See:_ Aius.
=Lollia Paulīna=, a beautiful woman, daughter of Marcus Lollius, who
married Caius Memmius Regulus, and afterwards Caligula. She was
divorced and put to death by means of Agrippina. _Tacitus_, _Annals_,
bk. 12, ch. 1, &c.
=Lolliānus Spurius=, a general proclaimed emperor by his soldiers in
Gaul, and soon after murdered, &c.――――A consul, &c.
=Marcus Lollius=, a companion and tutor of Caius Cæsar the son-in-law
of Tiberius. He was consul, and offended Augustus by his rapacity in
the provinces. Horace has addressed two of his epistles to him, &c.
_Tacitus_, _Annals_, bk. 3.
=Londīnum=, the capital of Britain, founded, as some suppose, between
the age of Julius Cæsar and Nero. It has been severally called
_Londinium_, _Lundinum_, &c. Ammianus calls it _vetustum oppidum_.
It is represented as a considerable, opulent, and commercial town,
in the age of Nero. _Tacitus_, _Annals_, bk. 14, ch. 33.――_Ammianus._
=Longārēnus=, a man guilty of adultery with Fausta, Sylla’s daughter.
_Horace_, bk. 1, satire 2, li. 67.
=Longimănus=, a surname of Artaxerxes, from his having one hand longer
than the other. The Greeks called him _Macrochir_. _Cornelius Nepos_,
_Kings_.
=Longīnus Dionysius Cassius=, a celebrated Greek philosopher and critic
of Athens. He was preceptor of the Greek language, and afterwards
minister, to Zenobia the famous queen of Palmyra, and his ardent
zeal and spirited activity in her cause proved at last fatal to him.
When the emperor Aurelian entered victorious the gates of Palmyra,
Longinus was sacrificed to the fury of the Roman soldiers, A.D. 273.
At the moment of death he showed himself great and resolute, and with
a philosophical and unparalleled firmness of mind, he even repressed
the tears and sighs of the spectators who pitied his miserable end.
Longinus has rendered his name immortal by his critical remarks on
ancient authors. His treatise on the sublime gives the world reason
to lament the loss of his other valuable compositions. The best
editions of this author are that of Tollius, 4to, Traja. ad Rhen.
1694, and that of Toup, 8vo, Oxford, 1778.――――Cassius, a tribune
driven out of the senate for favouring the interest of Julius Cæsar.
He was made governor of Spain by Cæsar, &c.――――A governor of Judæa.
――――A proconsul.――――A lawyer whom, though blind and respected, Nero
ordered to be put to death, because he had in his possession a
picture of Cassius, one of Cæsar’s murderers. _Juvenal_, satire 10,
li. 6.
=Longobardi=, a nation of Germany. _Tacitus_, _Germania_.
=Longŭla=, a town of Latium on the borders of the Volsci. _Livy_, bk. 2,
chs. 33 & 39; bk. 9, ch. 39.
=Longuntĭca=, a maritime city of Spain Tarraconensis. _Livy_, bk. 22,
ch. 20.
=Longus=, a Roman consul, &c.――――A Greek author who wrote a novel
called the amours of Daphnis and Chloe. The age in which he lived is
not precisely known. The best editions of this pleasing writer are
that of Paris, 4to, 1754, and that of Villoison, 8vo, Paris, 1778.
=Lordi=, a people of Illyricum.
=Lory̆ma=, a town of Doris. _Livy_, bk. 37, ch. 17.
=Lotis=, or =Lotos=, a beautiful nymph, daughter of Neptune. Priapus
offered her violence, and to save herself from his importunities
she implored the gods, who changed her into a tree called _Lotus_,
consecrated to Venus and Apollo. _Ovid_, _Metamorphoses_, bk. 9,
li. 348.
=Lotŏphăgi=, a people on the coast of Africa near the Syrtes. They
received this name from their living upon the lotus. Ulysses visited
their country, at his return from the Trojan war. _Herodotus_, bk. 4,
ch. 177.――_Strabo_, bk. 17.――_Mela_, bk. 1, ch. 7.――_Pliny_, bk. 5,
ch. 7; bk. 13, ch. 17.
=Lōus=, or =Aous=, a river of Macedonia near Apollonia.
=Lua=, a goddess at Rome, who presided over things which were purified
by lustrations, whence the name (_à luendo_). She is supposed to be
the same as Ops or Rhea.
=Luca=, now _Lucca_, a city of Etruria on the river Arnus. _Livy_,
bk. 21, ch. 5; bk. 41, ch. 13.――_Cicero_, bk. 13, _Letters to his
Friends_, ltr. 13.
=Lucăgus=, one of the friends of Turnus, killed by Æneas. _Virgil_,
_Æneid_, bk. 10, li. 575.
=Lūcāni=, a people of Italy, descended from the Samnites, or from the
Brutii.
=Lūcānia=, a country of Italy between the Tyrrhene and Sicilian seas,
and bounded by Pucetia, the Picentini, and the country of the Brutii.
The country was famous for its grapes. _Strabo_, bk. 6.――_Pliny_,
bk. 3, ch. 5.――_Mela_, bk. 2, ch. 4.――_Livy_, bk. 8, ch. 17; bk. 9,
ch. 2; bk. 10, ch. 11.――_Horace_, bk. 2, ltr. 2, li. 178.
=Quintus Lucanius=, a centurion in Cæsar’s army, &c. _Cæsar_, _Gallic
War_, bk. 5.
=Lūcānus Marcus Annæus=, a native of Corduba in Spain. He was early
removed to Rome, where his rising talents, and more particularly his
lavished praises and panegyrics, recommended him to the emperor Nero.
This intimacy was soon productive of honour, and Lucan was raised to
the dignity of an augur and questor before he had attained the proper
age. The poet had the imprudence to enter the lists against his
imperial patron; he chose for his subject Orpheus, and Nero took the
tragical story of Niobe. Lucan obtained an easy victory, but Nero
became jealous of his poetical reputation, and resolved upon revenge.
The insults to which Lucan was daily exposed, provoked at last his
resentment, and he joined Piso in a conspiracy against the emperor.
The whole was discovered, and the poet had nothing left but to choose
the manner of his execution. He had his veins opened in a warm bath,
and as he expired he pronounced with great energy the lines which,
in his Pharsalia, bk. 3, lis. 639‒642, he had put into the mouth of
a soldier, who died in the same manner as himself. Some have accused
him of pusillanimity at the moment of his death, and say that, to
free himself from the punishment which threatened him, he accused
his own mother, and involved her in the crime of which he was guilty.
This circumstance, which throws an indelible blot upon the character
of Lucan, is not mentioned by some writers, who observe that he
expired with all the firmness of a philosopher. He died in his 26th
year, A.D. 65. Of all his compositions none but his _Pharsalia_
remains. This poem, which is an account of the civil wars of Cæsar
and Pompey, is unfinished. Opinions are various as to the merit of
the poetry. It possesses neither the fire of Homer, nor the melodious
numbers of Virgil. If Lucan had lived to a greater age, his judgment
and genius would have matured, and he might have claimed a more
exalted rank among the poets of the Augustan age. His expressions,
however, are bold and animated, his poetry entertaining, though his
irregularities are numerous, and, to use the words of Quintilian, he
is more an orator than a poet. He wrote a poem upon the burning of
Rome, now lost. It is said that his wife Polla Argentaria not only
assisted him in the composition of his poem, but even corrected it
after his death. Scaliger says that Lucan rather barks than sings.
The best editions of Lucan are those of Oudendorp, 4to, Leiden, 1728;
of Bentley, 4to, printed at Strawberry-hill, 1760; and of Barbou,
12mo, Paris, 1767. _Quintilian_, bk. 10.――_Suetonius._――_Tacitus_,
_Annals_, bk. 15, &c.――_Martial_, bk. 7, ltr. 20.――――Ocellus, or
Ucellus, an ancient Pythagorean philosopher, whose age is unknown.
He wrote, in the Attic dialect, a book on the nature of the universe,
which he deemed eternal, and from it were drawn the systems adopted
by Aristotle, Plato, and Philo Judæus. This work was first translated
into Latin by Nogarola. Another book of Ocellus on laws, written
in the Doric dialect, was greatly esteemed by Archytas and Plato, a
fragment of which has been preserved by Stobæus, of which, however,
Ocellus is disputed to be the author. There is an edition of Ocellus,
with a learned commentary, by C. Emman. Vizzanius, Bononiæ, 1646, in
4to.
=Lŭcăria=, or =Lŭcĕria=, festivals at Rome, celebrated in a large grove
between the Via Salaria and the Tiber, where the Romans hid themselves
when besieged by the Gauls. _Tacitus_, _Annals_, bk. 1, ch. 77.
=Lucius Lucceius=, a celebrated historian, asked by Cicero to write
a history of his consulship. He favoured the cause of Pompey, but
was afterwards pardoned by Julius Cæsar. _Cicero_, _Letters to his
Friends_, bk. 5, ltr. 12, &c.
=Lucceius Albīnus=, a governor of Mauritania after Galba’s death, &c.
_Tacitus_, _Histories_, bk. 2, ch. 58.
=Lucentum= (or ia), a town of Spain, now _Alicant_.
=Lŭcĕres=, a body of horse, composed of Roman knights, first established
by Romulus and Tatius. It received its name either from _Lucumo_, an
Etrurian who assisted the Romans against the Sabines, or from _lucus_,
a grove where Romulus had erected an asylum, or a place of refuge for
all fugitives, slaves, homicides, &c., that he might people his city.
The Luceres were some of these men, and they were incorporated with
the legions. _Propertius_, bk. 4, poem 1, li. 31.
=Lucĕria=, a town of Apulia, famous for wool. _Livy_, bk. 9, chs. 2
& 12; bk. 10, ch. 35.――_Horace_, bk. 3, ode 15, li. 14.――_Lucan_,
bk. 2, li. 473.
=Lucerius=, a surname of Jupiter, as the father of light.
=Lucetius=, a Rutulian killed by Ilioneus. _Virgil_, _Æneid_, bk. 9,
li. 570.
=Luciānus=, a celebrated writer of Samosata. His father was poor in
his circumstances, and Lucian was early bound to one of his uncles,
who was a sculptor. This employment highly displeased him; he made no
proficiency in the art, and resolved to seek his livelihood by better
means. A dream in which Learning seemed to draw him to her, and to
promise fame and immortality, confirmed his resolutions, and he began
to write. The artifices and unfair dealings of a lawyer, a life which
he had embraced, disgusted him, and he began to study philosophy and
eloquence. He visited different places, and Antioch, Ionia, Greece,
Italy, Gaul, and more particularly Athens, became successively
acquainted with the depth of his learning and the power of his
eloquence. The emperor Marcus Aurelius was sensible of his merit,
and appointed him registrar to the Roman governor of Egypt. He died
A.D. 180, in his 90th year, and some of the moderns have asserted
that he was torn to pieces by dogs for his impiety, particularly
for ridiculing the religion of Christ. The works of Lucian, which
are numerous, and written in the Attic dialect, consist partly of
dialogues, in which he introduces different characters with much
dramatic propriety. His style is easy, simple, elegant, and animated,
and he has stored his compositions with many lively sentiments, and
much of the true Attic wit. His frequent obscenities, and his manner
of exposing to ridicule, not only the religion of his country, but
also that of every nation, have deservedly drawn upon him the censure
of every age, and branded him with the appellation of atheist and
blasphemer. He also wrote the life of Sostrates, a philosopher of
Bœotia, as also that of the philosopher Demonax. Some have also
attributed to him, with great impropriety, the life of Apollonius
Thyaneus. The best editions of Lucian are that of Grævius, 2 vols.,
8vo, Amsterdam, 1687, and that of Reitzius, 4 vols., 4to, Amsterdam,
1743.
=Lūcĭfer=, the name of the planet Venus, or morning star. It is called
_Lucifer_, when appearing in the morning before the sun; but when
it follows it, and appears some time after its setting, it is called
_Hesperus_. According to some mythologists, Lucifer was son of
Jupiter and Aurora.――――A christian writer, whose work was edited by
the Coleti, folio, Venice, 1778.
=Lucifĕri fanum=, a town of Spain.
=Caius Lūcīlius=, a Roman knight born at Aurunca, illustrious not only
for the respectability of his ancestors, but more deservedly for the
uprightness and the innocence of his own immaculate character. He
lived in the greatest intimacy with Scipio the first Africanus, and
even attended him in his war against Numantia. He is looked upon as
the founder of satire, and as the first great satirical writer among
the Romans. He was superior to his poetical predecessors at Rome;
and though he wrote with great roughness and inelegance, but with
much facility, he gained many admirers, whose praises have been often
lavished with too liberal a hand. Horace compares him to a river
which rolls upon its waters precious sand, accompanied with mire
and dirt. Of the 30 satires which he wrote, nothing but a few verses
remain. He died at Naples, in the 46th year of his age, B.C. 103. His
fragments have been collected and published with notes by Franciscus
Dousa, 4to, Leiden, 1597, and lastly by the Vulpii, 8vo, Patavium,
1735. _Quintilian_, bk. 10, ch. 1.――_Cicero_, _On Oratory_, bk. 2.
――_Horace._――――Lucilius, a famous Roman, who fled with Brutus after
the battle of Philippi. They were soon after overtaken by a party
of horse, and Lucilius suffered himself to be severely wounded by
the dart of the enemy, exclaiming that he was Brutus. He was taken
and carried to the conquerors, whose clemency spared his life.
_Plutarch._――――A tribune who attempted in vain to elect Pompey to
the dictatorship.――――A centurion, &c.――――A governor of Asia under
Tiberius.――――A friend of Tiberius.
=Lucilla=, a daughter of Marcus Aurelius, celebrated for the virtues
of her youth, her beauty, debaucheries, and misfortunes. At the age
of 16 her father sent her to Syria to marry the emperor Verus, who
was then employed in a war with the Parthians and ♦Armenians. The
conjugal virtues of Lucilla were great at first, but when she saw
Verus plunge himself into debauchery and dissipation, she followed
his example and prostituted herself. At her return to Rome she saw
the incestuous commerce of her husband with her mother, &c., and at
last poisoned him. She afterwards married an old but virtuous senator,
by order of her father, and was not ashamed soon to gratify the
criminal sensualities of her brother Commodus. The coldness and
indifference with which Commodus treated her afterwards determined
her on revenge, and she with many illustrious senators conspired
against his life A.D. 185. The plot was discovered, Lucilla was
banished, and soon after put to death by her brother, in the 38th
year of her age.
♦ ‘Arminians’ replaced with ‘Armenians’
=Lūcīna=, a goddess, daughter of Jupiter and Juno, or, according to
others, of Latona. As her mother brought her into the world without
pain, she became the goddess whom women in labour invoked, and she
presided over the birth of children. She receives this name either
from _lucus_, or from _lux_, as Ovid explains it:
_Gratia Lucinæ, dedit hæc tibi nomina lucus;
Aut quia principium tu, Dea, lucis habes._
Some suppose her to be the same as Diana and Juno, because these two
goddesses were also sometimes called Lucina, and presided over the
labours of women. She is called Ilythia by the Greeks. She had a
famous temple at Rome, raised A.U.C. 396. _Varro_, _de Lingua Latina_,
bk. 4.――_Cicero_, _de Natura Deorum_, bk. 2, ch. 27.――_Ovid_, _Fasti_,
bk. 2, li. 449.――_Horace_, _Carmen Sæculare_.
=Lucius=, a Roman soldier killed at the siege of Jerusalem, by saving
in his arms a man who jumped down from one of the walls. _Josephus._
――――A brother of Marcus Antony. _See:_ Lucius Antonius.――――A Roman
general, who defeated the Etrurians, &c.――――A relation of Julius
Cæsar. A Roman ambassador, murdered by the Illyrians.――――A consul,
&c.――――A writer, called by some Saturantius Apuleius. He was born in
Africa, on the borders of Numidia. He studied poetry, music, geometry,
&c., at Athens, and warmly embraced the tenets of the Platonists. He
cultivated magic, and some miracles are attributed to his knowledge
of enchantments. He wrote in Greek and Latin with great ease and
simplicity; his style, however, is sometimes affected, though his
eloquence was greatly celebrated in his age. Some fragments of his
compositions are still extant. He flourished in the reign of Marcus
Aurelius.――――A brother of Vitellius, &c.――――A son of Agrippa, adopted
by Augustus.――――A man put to death for his incontinence, &c.――――The
word Lucius is a prænomen common to many Romans, of whom an account
is given under their family names.