ARGUMENT.
I. Lupicinus is sent as commander-in-chief into Britain with an
army to check the incursions of the Picts and Scots.--II.
Ursicinus, commander of the infantry, is attacked by calumnies, and
dismissed.--III. An eclipse of the sun--A discussion on the two
suns, and on the causes of solar and lunar eclipses, and the
various changes and shapes of the moon.--IV. The Cæsar Julian,
against his will, is saluted as emperor at Paris, where he was
wintering, by his Gallican soldiers, whom Constantius had ordered
to be taken from him, and sent to the East to act against the
Persians.--V. He harangues his soldiers.--VI. Singara is besieged
and taken by Sapor: the citizens, with the auxiliary cavalry and
two legions in garrison, are carried off to Persia--The town is
razed to the ground.--VII. Sapor storms the town of Bezabde, which
is defended by three legions; repairs it, and places in it a
garrison and magazines; he also attacks the fortress of Victa,
without success.--VIII. Julian writes to Constantius to inform him
of what had taken place at Paris.--IX. Constantius desires Julian
to be content with the title of Cæsar; but the Gallican legions
unanimously refuse to allow him to be so.--X. The Emperor Julian
unexpectedly attacks a Frank tribe, known as the Attuarii, on the
other side of the Rhine; slays some, takes others prisoners, and
grants peace to the rest, on their petition.--XI. Constantius
attacks Bezabde with his whole force, but fails--A discussion on
the rainbow.
I.
A.D. 360.
§ 1. These were the events which took place in Illyricum and in the
East. But the next year, that of Constantius's tenth and Julian's third
consulship, the affairs of Britain became troubled, in consequence of
the incursions of the savage nations of Picts and Scots, who breaking
the peace to which they had agreed, were plundering the districts on
their borders, and keeping in constant alarm the provinces exhausted by
former disasters, Cæsar, who was wintering at Paris, having his mind
divided by various cares, feared to go to the aid of his subjects across
the channel (as we have related Constans to have done), lest he should
leave the Gauls without a governor, while the Allemanni were still full
of fierce and warlike inclinations.
2. Therefore, to tranquillize these districts by reason or by force, it
was decided to send Lupicinus, who was at that time commander of the
forces; a man of talent in war, and especially skilful in all that
related to camps, but very haughty, and smelling, as one may say, of the
tragic buskin, while parts of his conduct made it a question which
predominated--his avarice or his cruelty.
3. Accordingly, an auxiliary force of light-armed troops, Heruli and
Batavi, with two legions from Moesia, were in the very depth of winter
put under the command of this general, with which he marched to
Boulogne, and having procured some vessels and embarked his soldiers on
them, he sailed with a fair wind, and reached Richborough on the
opposite coast, from which place he proceeded to London, that he might
there deliberate on the aspect of affairs, and take immediate measures
for his campaign.
II.
§ 1. In the mean time, after the fall of Amida, and after Ursicinus had
returned as commander of the infantry to the emperor's camp (for we have
already mentioned that he had been appointed to succeed Barbatio), he
was at once attacked by slanderers, who at first tried to whisper his
character away, but presently openly brought forward false charges
against him.
2. And the emperor, listening to them, since he commonly formed his
opinions on vain conjecture, and was always ready to yield his judgment
to crafty persons, appointed Arbetio and Florentius, the chief steward,
as judges to inquire how it was that the town was destroyed. They
rejected the plain and easily proved causes of the disaster, fearing
that Eusebius, at that time high chamberlain, would be offended if they
admitted proofs which showed undeniably that what had happened was owing
to the obstinate inactivity of Sabinianus; and so distorting the truth,
they examined only some points of no consequence, and having no bearing
on the transaction.
3. Ursicinus felt the iniquity of this proceeding; and said, "Although
the emperor despises me, still the importance of this affair is such
that it cannot be judged of and punished by any decision lower than that
of the emperor. Nevertheless, let him know what I venture to prophesy,
that while he is concerning himself about this disaster at Amida, of
which he has received a faithful account; and while he gives himself up
to the influence of the eunuchs, he will not in the ensuing spring,[109]
even if he himself should come with the entire strength of his army, be
able to prevent the dismemberment of Mesopotamia." This speech having
been related to the emperor with many additions, and a malignant
interpretation, Constantius became enraged beyond measure; and without
allowing the affair to be discussed, or those things to be explained to
him of which he was ignorant, he believed all the calumnies against
Ursicinus, and deposing him from his office, ordered him into
retirement; promoting Agilo, by a vast leap, to take his place, he
having been before only a tribune of a native troop of Scutarii.
III.
§ 1. At the same time one day the sky in the east was perceived to be
covered with a thick darkness, and from daybreak to noon the stars were
visible throughout; and, as an addition to these terrors, while the
light of heaven was thus withdrawn, and the world almost buried in
clouds, men, from the length of the eclipse, began to believe that the
sun had wholly disappeared. Presently, however, it was seen again like a
new moon, then like a half-moon, and at last it was restored entire.
2. A thing which on other occasions did not happen so visibly except
when after several unequal revolutions, the moon returns to exactly the
same point at fixed intervals; that is to say, when the moon is found in
the same sign of the zodiac, exactly opposite to the rays of the sun,
and stops there a few minutes, which in geometry are called parts of
parts.
3. And although the changes and motions of both sun and moon, as the
inquiries into intelligible causes have remarked, perpetually return to
the same conjunction at the end of each lunar month, still the sun is
not always eclipsed on these occasions, but only when the moon, as by a
kind of balance, is in the exact centre between the sun and our sight.
4. In short, the sun is eclipsed, and his brilliancy removed from our
sight, when he and the moon, which of all the constellations of heaven
is the lowest, proceeding with equal pace in their orbits, are placed in
conjunction in spite of the height which separates them (as Ptolemy
learnedly explains it), and afterwards return to the dimensions which
are called ascending or descending points of the ecliptic conjunctions:
or, as the Greeks call them, defective conjunctions. And if these great
lights find themselves in the neighbourhood of these points or knots,
the eclipse is small.
5. But if they are exactly in the knots which form the points of
intersection between the ascending and descending path of the moon, then
the sky will be covered with denser darkness, and the whole atmosphere
becomes so thick that we cannot see what is close to us.
6. Again, the sun is conceived to appear double when a cloud is raised
higher than usual, which from its proximity to the eternal fires, shines
in such a manner that it forms the brightness of a second orb as from a
purer mirror.
7. Now let us come to the moon. The moon sustains a clear and visible
eclipse when, being at the full, and exactly opposite to the sun, she is
distant from his orb one hundred and eighty degrees, that is, is in the
seventh sign; and although this happens at every full moon, still there
is not always one eclipse.
8. But since she is always nearest to the earth as it revolves, and the
most distant from the rest of the other stars, and sometimes exposes
itself to the light which strikes it, and sometimes also is partially
obscured by the intervention of the shade of night, which comes over it
in the form of a cone; and then she is involved in thick darkness, when
the sun, being surrounded by the centre of the lowest sphere, cannot
illuminate her with his rays, because the mass of the earth is in the
way; for opinions agree that the moon has no light of her own.
9. And when she returns to the same sign of the zodiac which the sun
occupies, she is obscured (as has been said), her brightness being
wholly dimmed, and this is called a conjunction of the moon.
10. Again the moon is said to be new when she has the sun above her with
a slight variation from the perpendicular, and then she appears very
thin to mankind, even when leaving the sun she reaches the second sign.
Then, when she has advanced further, and shines brilliantly with a sort
of horned figure, she is said to be crescent shaped; but when she begins
to be a long way distant from the sun, and reaches the fourth sign, she
gets a greater light, the sun's rays being turned upon her, and then she
is of the shape of a semicircle.
11. As she goes on still further, and reaches the fifth sign, she
assumes a convex shape, a sort of hump appearing from each side. And
when she is exactly opposite the sun, she shines with a full light,
having arrived at the seventh sign; and even while she is there, having
advanced but a very little further, she begins to diminish, which we
call waning; and as she gets older, she resumes the same shapes that she
had while increasing. But it is established by unanimous consent that
she is never seen to be eclipsed except in the middle of her course.
12. But when we said that the sun moves sometimes in the ether,
sometimes in the lower-world, it must be understood that the starry
bodies, considered in relation to the universe, neither set nor rise;
but only appear to do so to our sight on earth, which is suspended by
the motion of some interior spirit, and compared with the immensity of
things is but a little point, which causes the stars in their eternal
order to appear sometimes fixed in heaven, and at others, from the
imperfection of human vision, moving from their places. Let us now
return to our original subject.
IV.
§ 1. Even while he was hastening to lead succours to the East, which, as
the concurrent testimony of both spies and deserters assured him, was on
the point of being invaded by the Persians, Constantius was greatly
disturbed by the virtues of Julian, which were now becoming renowned
among all nations, so highly did fame extol his great labours,
achievements, and victories, in having conquered several kingdoms of the
Allemanni, and recovered several towns in Gaul which had been plundered
and destroyed by the barbarians, and having compelled the barbarians
themselves to become subjects and tributaries of the empire.
2. Influenced by these considerations, and fearing lest Julian's
influence should become greater, at the instigation, as it is said, of
the prefect Florentius, he sent Decentius, the tribune and secretary, to
bring away at once the auxiliary troops of the Heruli and Batavi, and
the Celtæ, and the legion called Petulantes,[110] and three hundred
picked men from the other forces; enjoining him to make all speed on the
plea that their presence was required with the army which it was
intended to march at the beginning of spring against the Parthians.
3. Also, Lupicinus was directed to come as commander of these auxiliary
troops with the three hundred picked men and to lose no time, as it was
not known that he had crossed over to Britain; and Sintula, at that time
the superintendent of Julian's stables, was ordered to select the best
men of the Scutarii and Gentiles,[111] and to bring them also to join
the emperor.
4. Julian made no remonstrance, but obeyed these orders, yielding in all
respects to the will of the emperor. But on one point he could not
conceal his feelings nor keep silence: but entreated that those men
might be spared from this hardship who had left their homes on the other
side of the Rhine, and had joined his army on condition of never being
moved into any country beyond the Alps, urging that if this were known,
it might be feared that other volunteers of the barbarian nations, who
had often enlisted in our service on similar conditions, would be
prevented from doing so in future. But he argued in vain.
5. For the tribune, disregarding his complaints, carried out the
commands of the emperor, and having chosen out a band suited for forced
marches, of pre-eminent vigour and activity, set out with them full of
hope of promotion.
6. And as Julian, being in doubt what to do about the rest of the troops
whom he was ordered to send, and revolving all kinds of plans in his
mind, considered that the matter ought to be managed with great care, as
there was on one side the fierceness of the barbarians, and on the other
the authority of the orders he had received (his perplexity being
further increased by the absence of the commander of the cavalry), he
urged the prefect, who had gone some time before to Vienne under the
pretence of procuring corn, but in reality to escape from military
troubles, to return to him.
7. For the prefect bore in mind the substance of a report which he was
suspected to have sent some time before, and which recommended the
withdrawing from the defence of Gaul those troops so renowned for their
valour, and already objects of dread to the barbarians.
8. The prefect, as soon as he had received Julian's letters, informing
him of what had happened, and entreating him to come speedily to him to
aid the republic with his counsels, positively refused, being alarmed
because the letters expressly declared that in any crisis of danger the
prefect ought never to be absent from the general. And it was added that
if he declined to give his aid, Julian himself would, of his own accord,
renounce the emblems of authority, thinking it better to die, if so it
was fated, than to have the ruin of the provinces attributed to him. But
the obstinacy of the prefect prevailed, and he resolutely refused to
comply with the wishes thus reasonably expressed and enforced.
9. But during the delay which arose from the absence of Lupicinus and of
any military movement on the part of the alarmed prefect, Julian,
deprived of all assistance in the way of advice, and being greatly
perplexed, thought it best to hasten the departure of all his troops
from the stations in which they were passing the winter, and to let them
begin their march.
10. When this was known, some one privily threw down a bitter libel near
the standard of the Petulantes legion, which, among other things,
contained these words,--"We are being driven to the farthest parts of
the earth like condemned criminals, and our relations will become slaves
to the Allemanni after we have delivered them from that first captivity
by desperate battles."
11. When this writing was taken to head-quarters and read, Julian,
considering the reasonableness of the complaint, ordered that their
families should go to the East with them, and allowed them the use of
the public wagons for the purpose of moving them. And as it was for some
time doubted which road they should take, he decided, at the suggestion
of the secretary Decentius, that they should go by Paris, where he
himself still was, not having moved.
12. And so it was done. And when they arrived in the suburbs, the
prince, according to his custom, met them, praising those whom he
recognized, and reminding individuals of their gallant deeds, he
congratulated them with courteous words, encouraging them to go
cheerfully to join the emperor, as they would reap the most worthy
rewards of their exertions where power was the greatest and most
extensive.
13. And to do them the more honour, as they were going to a great
distance, he invited their chiefs to a supper, when he bade them ask
whatever they desired. And they, having been treated with such
liberality, departed, anxious and sorrowful on two accounts, because
cruel fortune was separating them at once from so kind a ruler and from
their native land. And with this sorrowful feeling they retired to their
camp.
14. But when night came on they broke out into open discontent, and
their minds being excited, as his own griefs pressed upon each
individual, they had recourse to force, and took up arms, and with a
great outcry thronged to the palace, and surrounding it so as to prevent
any one from escaping, they saluted Julian as emperor with loud
vociferations, insisting vehemently on his coming forth to them; and
though they were compelled to wait till daylight, still, as they would
not depart, at last he did come forth. And when he appeared, they
saluted him emperor with redoubled and unanimous cheers.
15. But he steadily resisted them individually and collectively, at one
time showing himself indignant, at another holding out his hands and
entreating and beseeching them not to sully their numerous victories
with anything unbecoming, and not to let unseasonable rashness and
precipitation awaken materials for discord. At last he appeased them,
and having addressed them mildly, he added--
16. "I beseech you let your anger depart for a while: without any
dissension or attempt at revolution what you wish will easily be
obtained. Since you are so strongly bound by love of your country, and
fear strange lands to which you are unaccustomed, return now to your
homes, certain that you shall not cross the Alps, since you dislike it.
And I will explain the matter to the full satisfaction of the emperor,
who is a man of great wisdom, and will listen to reason."
17. Nevertheless, after his speech was ended, the cries were repeated
with as much vigour and unanimity as ever; and so vehement was the
uproar and zeal, which did not even spare reproaches and threats, that
Julian was compelled to consent. And being lifted up on the shield of
an infantry soldier, and raised up in sight of all, he was saluted as
Augustus with one universal acclamation, and was ordered to produce a
diadem. And when he said that he had never had one, his wife's coronet
or necklace was demanded.
18. And when he protested that it was not fitting for him at his first
accession to be adorned with female ornaments, the frontlet of a horse
was sought for, so that being crowned therewith, he might have some
badge, however obscure, of supreme power. But when he insisted that that
also would be unbecoming, a man named Maurus, afterwards a count, the
same who was defeated in the defile of the Succi, but who was then only
one of the front-rank men of the Petulantes, tore a chain off his own
neck, which he wore in his quality of standard-bearer, and placed it
boldly on Julian's head, who, being thus brought under extreme
compulsion, and seeing that he could not escape the most imminent danger
to his life if he persisted in his resistance, consented to their
wishes, and promised a largesse of five pieces of gold and a pound of
silver to every man.
19. After this Julian felt more anxiety than ever; and, keenly alive to
the future consequences, neither wore his diadem or appeared in public,
nor would he even transact the serious business which pressed upon his
attention, but sought retirement, being full of consternation at the
strangeness of the recent events. This continued till one of the
decurions of the palace (which is an office of dignity) came in great
haste to the standards of the Petulantes and of the Celtic legion, and
in a violent manner exclaimed that it was a monstrous thing that he who
had the day before been by their will declared emperor should have been
privily assassinated.
20. When this was heard, the soldiers, as readily excited by what they
did not know as by what they did, began to brandish their javelins, and
draw their swords, and (as is usual at times of sudden tumult) to flock
from every quarter in haste and disorder to the palace. The sentinels
were alarmed at the uproar, as were the tribunes and the captain of the
guard, and suspecting some treachery from the fickle soldiery, they
fled, fearing sudden death to themselves.
21. When all before them seemed tranquil, the soldiers stood quietly
awhile; and on being asked what was the cause of their sudden and
precipitate movement, they at first hesitated, and then avowing their
alarm for the safety of the emperor, declared they would not retire till
they had been admitted into the council-chamber, and had seen him safe
in his imperial robes.
V.
§ 1. When the news of these events reached the troops, whom we have
spoken of as having already marched under the command of Sintula, they
returned with him quietly to Paris. And an order having been issued that
the next morning they should all assemble in the open space in front of
the camp, Julian advanced among them, and ascended a tribunal more
splendid than usual, surrounded with the eagles, standards, and banners,
and guarded by a strong band of armed soldiers.
2. And after a moment's quiet, while he looked down from his height on
the countenances of those before him, and saw them all full of joy and
alacrity, he kindled their loyalty with a few simple words, as with a
trumpet.
3. "The difficulty of my situation, O brave and faithful champions of
myself and of the republic, who have often with me exposed your lives
for the welfare of the provinces, requires that, since you have now by
your resolute decision raised me, your Cæsar, to the highest of all
dignities, I should briefly set before you the state of affairs, in
order that safe and prudent remedies for their new condition may be
devised.
4. "While little more than a youth, as you well know, I was for form's
sake invested with the purple, and by the decision of the emperor was
intrusted to your protection. Since that time I have never forgotten my
resolution of a virtuous life: I have been seen with you as the partner
of all your labours, when, in consequence of the diminution of the
confidence felt in us by the barbarians, terrible disasters fell upon
the empire, our cities being stormed, and countless thousands of men
being slain, and even the little that was left to us being in a very
tottering condition. I think it superfluous to recapitulate how often,
in the depth of winter, beneath a frozen sky, at a season when there is
usually a cessation from war both by land and sea, we have defeated with
heavy loss the Allemanni, previously unconquered.
5. "One circumstance may neither be passed over nor suppressed. On that
glorious day which we saw at Strasburg, which brought perpetual liberty
to Gaul, we together, I throwing myself among the thickly falling darts,
and you being invincible by your vigour and experience, repelled the
enemy who poured upon us like a torrent; slaying them as we did with the
sword, or driving them to be drowned in the river, with very little loss
of our own men, whose funerals we celebrated with glorious panegyrics
rather than with mourning.
6. "It is my belief that after such mighty achievements posterity will
not be silent respecting your services to the republic, in every
country, if you now, in case of any danger or misfortune, vigorously
support with your valour and resolution me whom you have raised to the
lofty dignity of emperor.
7. "But to maintain things in their due order, so as to preserve to
brave men their well-merited rewards and prevent underhand ambition from
forestalling your honours, I make this rule in the honourable presence
of your counsel. That no civil or military officer shall be promoted
from any other consideration than that of his own merits; and he shall
be disgraced who solicits promotion for any one on any other ground."
8. The lower class of soldiers, who had long been deprived of rank or
reward, were encouraged by this speech to entertain better hopes, and
now rising up with a great noise, and beating their shields with their
spears, they with unanimous shouts showed their approbation of his
language and purpose.
9. And that no opportunity, however brief, might be afforded to disturb
so wise an arrangement, the Petulantes and Celtic legion immediately
besought him, on behalf of their commissaries, to give them the
government of any provinces he pleased, and when he refused them, they
retired without being either offended or out of humour.
10. But the very night before the day on which he was thus proclaimed
emperor, Julian had mentioned to his most intimate friends that during
his slumbers some one had appeared to him in a dream, in the form and
habit of the genius of the empire, who uttered these words in a tone of
reproach: "For some time, Julian, have I been secretly watching the door
of thy palace, wishing to increase thy dignity, and I have often retired
as one rejected; but if I am not now admitted, when the opinion of the
many is unanimous, I shall retire discouraged and sorrowful. But lay
this up in the depth of thy heart, that I will dwell with thee no
longer."
VI.
§ 1. While these transactions were proceeding in Gaul, to the great
anxiety of many, the fierce king of Persia (the advice of Antoninus
being now seconded by the arrival of Craugasius), burning with eagerness
to obtain Mesopotamia, while Constantius with his army was at a
distance, crossed the Tigris in due form with a vast army, and laid
siege to Singara with a thoroughly equipped force, sufficient for the
siege of a town which, in the opinion of the chief commanders of those
regions, was abundantly fortified and supplied.
2. The garrison, as soon as they saw the enemy, while still at a
distance, at once closed their gates, and with great spirit thronged to
the towers and battlements, collecting on them stones and warlike
engines. And then, having made all their preparations, they stood
prepared to repel the advancing host if they should venture to approach
the walls.
3. Therefore the king, when he arrived and found that, though they would
admit some of his nobles near enough to confer with them, he could not,
by any conciliatory language, bend the garrison to his wishes, he gave
one entire day to rest, and then, at daybreak, on a signal made by the
raising of a scarlet flag, the whole city was surrounded by men carrying
ladders, while others began to raise engines; all being protected by
fences and penthouses while seeking a way to assail the foundation of
the walls.
4. Against these attempts the citizens, standing on the lofty
battlements, drove back with stones and every kind of missile the
assailants who were seeking with great ferocity to find an entrance.
5. For many days the struggle continued without any decided result, many
being wounded and killed on both sides. At last, the struggle growing
fiercer, one day on the approach of evening a very heavy battering-ram
was brought forward among other engines, which battered a round tower
with repeated blows, at a point where we mentioned that the city had
been laid open in a former siege.
6. The citizens at once repaired to this point, and a violent conflict
arose in this small space; torches and firebrands were brought from all
quarters to consume this formidable engine, while arrows and bullets
were showered down without cessation on the assailants. But the keenness
of the ram prevailed over every means of defence, digging through the
mortar of the recently cemented stones, which was still moist and
unsettled.
7. And while the contest was thus proceeding with fire and sword, the
tower fell, and a path was opened into the city, the place being
stripped of its defenders, whom the magnitude of the danger had
scattered. The Persian bands raised a wild shout, and without hindrance
filled every quarter of the city. A very few of the inhabitants were
slain, and all the rest, by command of Sapor, were taken alive and
transported to the most distant regions of Persia.
8. There had been assigned for the protection of this city two legions,
the first Flavian and the first Parthian, and a great body of native
troops, as well as a division of auxiliary cavalry which had been shut
up in it through the suddenness of the attack made upon it. All of
these, as I have said, were taken prisoners, without receiving any
assistance from our armies.
9. For the greater part of our army was in tents taking care of Nisibis,
which was at a considerable distance. But even if it had not been so, no
one even in ancient times could easily bring aid to Singara when in
danger, since the whole country around laboured under a scarcity of
water. And although a former generation had placed this fort very
advisedly, to check sudden movements of hostility, yet it was a great
burden to the state, having been several times taken, and always
involving the loss of its garrison.
VII.
§ 1. After Singara had fallen, Sapor prudently avoided Nisibis,
recollecting the losses which he had several times sustained before it,
and turned to the right by a circuitous path, hoping either to subdue by
force or to win by bribes the garrison of Bezabde, which its founders
also called Phoenice, and to make himself master of that town, which
is an exceedingly strong fortress, placed on a hill of moderate height,
and close to the banks of the Tigris, having a double wall, as many
places have which from their situation are thought to be especially
exposed. For its defence three legions had been assigned; the second
Flavian, the second Armenian, and the second Parthian, with a large body
of archers of the Zabdiceni, a tribe subject to us, in whose territory
this town was situated.
2. At the beginning of the siege, the king, with an escort of glittering
cuirassiers, himself taller than any of them, rode entirely round the
camp, coming up boldly to the very edge of the fosse, where he was at
once a mark for the unerring bullets of the balistæ, and arrows; but he
was so completely covered with thick scale-armour that he retired
unhurt.
3. Then laying aside his anger, he sent some heralds with all due
solemnity, courteously inviting the besieged to consult the safety of
their lives, and seeing the desperateness of their situation, to put an
end to the siege by a timely surrender; to open their gates and come
forth, presenting themselves as suppliants before the conqueror of
nations.
4. When these messengers approached the walls, the garrison spared them
because they had with them some men of noble birth, who had been made
prisoners at Singara, and were well known to the citizens; and out of
pity to them no one shot an arrow, though they would give no reply to
the proposal of peace.
5. Then a truce being made for a day and night, before dawn on the
second day the entire force of the Persians attacked the palisade with
ferocious threats and cries, coming up boldly to the walls, where a
fierce contest ensued, the citizens resisting with great vigour.
6. So that many of the Parthians[112] were wounded, because some of
them carrying ladders, and others wicker screens, advanced as it were
blindfold, and were not spared by our men. For the clouds of arrows flew
thickly, piercing the enemy packed in close order. At last, after sunset
the two sides separated, having suffered about equal loss: and the next
day before dawn the combat was renewed with greater vehemence than
before, the trumpets cheering the men on both sides, and again a
terrible slaughter of each took place, both armies struggling with the
most determined obstinacy.
7. But on the following day both armies by common consent rested from
their terrible exertions, the defenders of the walls and the Persians
being equally dismayed. When a Christian priest made sign by gestures
that he desired to go forth, and having received a promise that he
should be allowed to return in safety, he advanced to the king's tent.
8. When he was permitted to speak, he, with gentle language, urged the
Persians to depart to their own country, affirming that after the losses
each side had sustained they had reason perhaps to fear even greater
disasters in future. But these and other similar arguments were uttered
to no purpose. The fierce madness of the king robbing them of their
effect, as Sapor swore positively that he would never retire till he had
destroyed our camp.
9. Nevertheless a groundless suspicion was whispered against the bishop,
wholly false in my opinion, though supported by the assertions of many,
that he had secretly informed Sapor what part of the wall to attack, as
being internally slight and weak. Though the suspicion derived some
corroboration from the fact that afterwards the engines of the enemy
were carefully and with great exultation directed against the places
which were weakest, or most decayed, as if those who worked them were
acquainted with what parts were most easily penetrable.
10. And although the narrowness of the causeway made the approach to the
walls hard, and though the battering-rams when equipped were brought
forward with great difficulty, from fear of the stones and arrows hurled
upon the assailants by the besieged, still neither the balistæ nor the
scorpions rested a moment, the first shooting javelins, and the latter
hurling showers of stones, and baskets on fire, smeared with pitch and
tar; and as these were perpetually rolled down, the engines halted as if
rooted to the ground, and fiery darts and firebrands well-aimed set them
on fire.
11. Still while this was going on, and numbers were falling on both
sides, the besiegers were the more eager to destroy a town, strong both
by its natural situation and its powerful defences, before the arrival
of winter, thinking it impossible to appease the fury of their king if
they should fail. Therefore neither abundant bloodshed nor the sight of
numbers of their comrades pierced with deadly wounds could deter the
rest from similar audacity.
12. But for a long time, fighting with absolute desperation, they
exposed themselves to imminent danger; while those who worked the
battering-rams were prevented from advancing by the vast weight of
millstones, and all kinds of fiery missiles hurled against them.
13. One battering-ram was higher than the rest, and was covered with
bull's hides wetted, and being therefore safer from any accident of
fire, or from lighted javelins, it led the way in the attacks on the
wall with mighty blows, and with its terrible point it dug into the
joints of the stones till it overthrew the tower. The tower fell with a
mighty crash, and those in it were thrown down with a sudden jerk, and
breaking their limbs, or being buried beneath the ruins, perished by
various and unexpected kinds of death; then, a safer entrance having
been thus found, the multitude of the enemy poured in with their arms.
14. While the war-cry of the Persians sounded in the trembling ears of
the defeated garrison, a fierce battle within the narrower bounds raged
within the walls, while bands of our men and of the enemy fought hand to
hand, being jammed together, with swords drawn on both sides, and no
quarter given.
15. At last the besieged, after making head with mighty exertion against
the destruction which long seemed doubtful, were overwhelmed with the
weight of the countless host which pressed upon them. And the swords of
the furious foe cut down all they could find; children were torn from
their mother's bosom, and the mothers were slain, no one regarding what
he did. Among these mournful scenes the Persians, devoted to plunder,
loaded with every kind of booty, and driving before them a vast
multitude of prisoners, returned in triumph to their tents.
16. But the king, elated with insolence and triumph, having long been
desirous to obtain possession of Phoenice, as a most important
fortress, did not retire till he had repaired in the strongest manner
that portion of the walls which had been shaken, and till he had stocked
it with ample magazines of provisions, and placed in it a garrison of
men noble by birth and eminent for their skill in war. For he feared
(what indeed happened) that the Romans, being indignant at the loss of
this their grand camp, would exert themselves with all their might to
recover it.
17. Then, being full of exultation, and cherishing greater hopes than
ever of gaining whatever he desired, after taking a few forts of small
importance, he prepared to attack Victa, a very ancient fortress,
believed to have been founded by Alexander, the Macedonian, situated on
the most distant border of Mesopotamia, and surrounded with winding
walls full of projecting angles, and so well furnished at all points as
to be almost unassailable.
18. And when he had tried every expedient against it, at one time trying
to bribe the garrison with promises, at another to terrify them with
threats of torture, and employing all kinds of engines such as are used
in sieges, after sustaining more injury than he inflicted, he at last
retired from his unsuccessful enterprise.
VIII.
§ 1. These were the events of this year between the Tigris and the
Euphrates. And when frequent intelligence of them had reached
Constantius, who was in continual dread of Parthian expeditions, and was
passing the winter at Constantinople, he devoted greater care than ever
to strengthening his frontiers with every kind of warlike equipment. He
collected veterans, and enlisted recruits, and increased the legions
with reinforcements of vigorous youths, who had already repeatedly
signalized their valour in the battles of the eastern campaigns: and
beside these he collected auxiliary forces from among the Scythians by
urgent requests and promises of pay, in order to set out from Thrace in
the spring, and at once march to the disturbed provinces.
2. During the same time Julian, who was wintering at Paris, alarmed at
the prospect of the ultimate issue of the events in that district,
became full of anxiety, feeling sure, after deep consideration, that
Constantius would never give his consent to what had been done in his
case, since he had always disdained him as a person of no importance.
3. Therefore, after much reflection on the somewhat disturbed beginning
which the present novel state of affairs showed, he determined to send
envoys to him to relate all that had taken place; and he gave them
letters setting forth fully what had been done, and what ought to be
done next, supporting his recommendations by proofs.
4. Although in reality he believed that the emperor was already informed
of all, from the report of Decentius, who had returned to him some time
before; and of the chamberlains who had recently gone back from Gaul,
after having brought him some formal orders. And although he was not in
reality vexed at his promotion, still he avoided all arrogant language
in his letters, that he might not appear to have suddenly shaken off his
authority. Now the following was the purport of his letters.
5. "I have at all times been of the same mind, and have adhered to my
original intentions, not less by my conduct than by my promises, as far
as lay in my power, as has been abundantly plain from repeated actions
of mine.
6. "And up to this time, since you created me Cæsar, and exposed me to
the din of war, contented with the power you conferred on me, as a
faithful officer I have sent you continued intelligence of all your
affairs proceeding according to your wishes; never speaking of my own
dangers; though it can easily be proved, that, while the Germans have
been routed in every direction, I have always been the first in all
toils and the last to allow myself any rest.
7. "But allow me to say, that if any violent change has taken place, as
you think, the soldier who has been passing his life in many terrible
wars without reward, has only completed what he has long had under
consideration, being indignant and impatient at being only under a chief
of the second class, as knowing that from a Cæsar no adequate reward for
his continued exertions and frequent victories could possibly be
procured.
8. "And while angry at the feeling that he could neither expect
promotion nor annual pay, he had this sudden aggravation to his
discontent, that he, a man used to cold climates, was ordered to march
to the most remote districts of the East, to be separated from his wife
and children, and to be dragged away in want and nakedness. This made
him fiercer than usual; and so the troops one night collected and laid
siege to the palace, saluting with loud and incessant outcries Julian as
emperor.
9. "I shuddered at their boldness, I confess, and withdrew myself. And
retiring while I could, I sought safety in concealment and disguise--and
as they would not desist, armed, so to say, with the shield of my own
free heart, I came out before them all, thinking that the tumult might
be appeased by authority, or by conciliatory language.
10. "They became wonderfully excited, and proceeded to such lengths
that, when I endeavoured to overcome their pertinacity with my
entreaties, they came close up to me, threatening me with instant death.
At last I was overcome, and arguing with myself that if I were murdered
by them some one else would willingly accept the dignity of emperor, I
consented, hoping thus to pacify their armed violence.
11. "This is the plain account of what has been done; and I entreat you
to listen to it with mildness. Do not believe that anything else is the
truth; and do not listen to malignant men who deal in mischievous
whispers, always eager to seek their own gain by causing ill will
between princes. Banish flattery, which is the nurse of vice, and listen
to the voice of that most excellent of all virtues, justice. And receive
with good faith the equitable condition which I propose, considering in
your mind that such things are for the interest of the Roman state, and
of us also who are united by affection of blood, and by an equality of
superior fortune.
12. "And pardon me. These reasonable requests of mine I am not so
anxious to see carried out, as to see them approved by you as expedient
and proper; and I shall with eagerness follow all your instructions.
13. "What requires to be done I will briefly explain. I will provide you
some Spanish draught horses, and some youths to mingle with the Gentiles
and Scutarii of the Letian tribe, a race of barbarians on the side of
the Rhine; or else of those people which have come over to our side. And
I promise till the end of my life to do all I can to assist you, not
only with gratitude, but with eagerness.
14. "Your clemency will appoint us prefects for our prætorium of known
equity and virtue: the appointment of the ordinary judges, and the
promotion of the military officers it is fair should be left to me; as
also the selection of my guard. For it would be unreasonable, when it is
possible to be guarded against, that those persons should be placed
about an emperor of whose manners and inclinations he is ignorant.
15. "These things I can further assure you of positively. The Gauls will
neither of their own accord, nor by any amount of compulsion, be brought
to send recruits to foreign and distant countries, since they have been
long harassed by protracted annoyances and heavy disasters, lest the
youth of the nation should be destroyed, and the whole people, while
recollecting their past sufferings, should abandon themselves to despair
for the future.
16. "Nor is it fit to seek from hence assistance against the Parthians,
when even now the attempts of the barbarians against this land are not
brought to an end, and while, if you will suffer me to tell the truth,
these provinces are still exposed to continual dangers on being deprived
of all foreign or adequate assistance.
17. "In speaking thus, I do think I have written to you in a manner
suited to the interests of the state, both in my demands and my
entreaties. For I well know, not to speak in a lofty tone, though such
might not misbecome an emperor, what wretched states of affairs, even
when utterly desperate and given up, have been before now retrieved and
re-established by the agreement of princes, each yielding reciprocally
to one another. While it is also plain from the example of our
ancestors, that rulers who acknowledge and act upon such principles do
somehow ever find the means of living prosperously and happily, and
leave behind them to the latest posterity an enviable fame."
18. To these letters he added others of a more secret purport, to be
given privily to Constantius, in which he blamed and reproached him;
though their exact tenor was not fit to be known, nor if known, fit to
be divulged to the public.
19. For the office of delivering these letters, men of great dignity
were chosen; namely, Pentadius, the master of the ceremonies, and
Eutherius, at that time the principal chamberlain; who were charged,
after they had delivered the letters, to relate what they had seen,
without suppressing anything; and to take their own measures boldly on
all future emergencies which might arise.
20. In the mean time the flight of Florentius, the prefect, aggravated
the envy with which these circumstances were regarded. For he, as if he
foresaw the commotion likely to arise, as might be gathered from general
conversation, from the act of sending for the troops, had departed for
Vienne (being also desirous to get out of the way of Julian, whom he had
often slandered), pretending to be compelled to this journey for the
sake of providing supplies for the army.
21. Afterwards, when he had heard of Julian's being raised to the
dignity of emperor, being greatly alarmed, and giving up almost all hope
of saving his life, he availed himself of his distance from Julian to
escape from the evils which he suspected; and leaving behind him all his
family, he proceeded by slow journeys to Constantius; and to prove his
own innocence he brought forward many charges of rebellion against
Julian.
22. And after his departure, Julian, adopting wise measures, and wishing
it to be known that, even if he had him in his power, he would have
spared him, allowed his relations to take with them all their property,
and even granted them the use of the public conveyances to retire with
safety to the East.
IX.
§ 1. The envoys whom I have mentioned took equal care to discharge their
orders; but while eager to pursue their journey they were unjustly
detained by some of the superior magistrates on their road; and having
been long and vexatiously delayed in Italy and Illyricum, they at last
passed the Bosphorus, and advancing by slow journeys, they found
Constantius still staying at Cæsarea in Cappadocia, a town formerly
known as Mazaca, admirably situated at the foot of Mount Argæus, and of
high reputation.
2. Being admitted to the presence, they received permission to present
their letters; but when they were read the emperor became immoderately
angry, and looking askance at them so as to make them fear for their
lives, he ordered them to be gone without asking them any questions or
permitting them to speak.
3. But in spite of his anger he was greatly perplexed to decide whether
to move those troops whom he could trust against the Persians, or
against Julian; and while he was hesitating, and long balancing between
the two plans, he yielded to the useful advice of some of his
counsellors, and ordered the army to march to the East.
4. Immediately also he dismissed the envoys, and ordered his quæstor
Leonas to go with all speed with letters from him to Julian; in which he
asserted that he himself would permit no innovators, and recommended
Julian, if he had any regard for his own safety or that of his
relations, to lay aside his arrogance, and resume the rank of Cæsar.
5. And, in order to alarm him by the magnitude of his preparations, as
if he really was possessed of great power, he appointed Nebridius, who
was at that time Julian's quæstor, to succeed Florentius as prefect of
the prætorium, and made Felix the secretary, master of the ceremonies,
with several other appointments. Gumoharius, the commander of the heavy
infantry, he had already appointed to succeed Lupicinus, before any of
these events were known.
6. Accordingly Leonas reached Paris, and was there received as an
honourable and discreet man; and the next day, when Julian had proceeded
into the plain in front of the camp with a great multitude of soldiers
and common people, which he had ordered to assemble on purpose, he
mounted a tribune, in order from that high position to be more
conspicuous, and desired Leonas to present his letters; and when he had
opened the edict which had been sent, and began to read it, as soon as
he arrived at the passage that Constantius disapproved of all that had
been done, and desired Julian to be content with the power of a Cæsar, a
terrible shout was raised on all sides,
7. "Julian emperor, as has been decreed by the authority of the
province, of the army, and of the republic; which is indeed
re-established, but which still dreads the renewed attacks of the
barbarians."
8. Leonas heard this, and, after receiving letters from Julian, stating
what had occurred, was dismissed in safety: the only one of the
emperor's appointments which was allowed to take effect was that of
Nebridius, which Julian in his letters had plainly said would be in
accordance with his wishes. For he himself had some time before
appointed Anatolius to be master of the ceremonies, having been formerly
his private secretary; and he had also made such other appointments as
seemed useful and safe.
9. And since, while matters were going on in this matter, Lupicinus, as
being a proud and arrogant man, was an object of fear, though absent and
still in Britain; and since there was a suspicion that if he heard of
these occurrences while on the other side of the channel, he might cause
disorders in the island, a secretary was sent to Boulogne to take care
that no one should be allowed to cross; and as that was contrived,
Lupicinus returned without hearing of any of these matters, and so had
no opportunity of giving trouble.
X.
§ 1. But Julian, being gratified at his increase of rank, and at the
confidence of the soldiers in him, not to let his good fortune cool, or
to give any colour for charging him with inactivity or indolence, after
he had sent his envoys to Constantius, marched to the frontier of the
province of lower Germany; and having with him all the force which the
business in hand demanded, he approached the town of Santon.[113]
2. Then crossing the Rhine, he suddenly entered the district belonging
to a Frank tribe, called the Attuarii, men of a turbulent character, who
at that very moment were licentiously plundering the districts of Gaul.
He attacked them unexpectedly while they were apprehensive of no hostile
measures, but were reposing in fancied security, relying on the
ruggedness and difficulty of the roads which led into their country, and
which no prince within their recollection had ever penetrated. He,
however, easily surmounted all difficulties, and having put many to the
sword and taken many prisoners, he granted the survivors peace at their
request, thinking such a course best for their neighbours.
3. Then with equal celerity he repassed the river, and examining
carefully the state of the garrisons on the frontier, and putting them
in a proper state, he marched towards Basle; and having recovered the
places which the barbarians had taken and still retained in their hands,
and having carefully strengthened them, he went to Vienne, passing
through Besançon, and there took up his winter quarters.
XI.
§ 1. These were the events which took place in Gaul, and while they were
thus conducted with prudence and good fortune, Constantius, having
summoned Arsaces, king of Armenia, and having received him with great
courtesy, advised and exhorted him to continue friendly and faithful to
us.
2. For he had heard that the king of Persia had often tried by deceits
and threats, and all kinds of stratagems, to induce him to forsake the
Roman alliance and join his party.
3. But he, vowing with many oaths that he would rather lose his life
than change his opinion, received ample rewards, and returned to his
kingdom with the retinue which he brought with him; and never ventured
at any subsequent time to break any of his promises, being bound by
many ties of gratitude to Constantius. The strongest tie of all being
that the emperor had given him for a wife, Olympias, the daughter of
Abladius, formerly prefect of the prætorium, who had once been betrothed
to his own brother Constans.
4. And when Arsaces had been dismissed, Constantius left Cappadocia, and
going by Melitina, a town of the lesser Armenia, and Lacotene, and
Samosata, he crossed the Euphrates and arrived at Edessa. Stopping some
time in each town, while waiting for divisions of soldiers who were
flocking in from all quarters, and for sufficient supplies of
provisions. And after the autumnal equinox, he proceeded onwards on his
way to Amida.
5. When he approached the walls of that town, and saw everything buried
in ashes, he groaned and wept, recollecting what sufferings the wretched
city had suffered. And Ursulus, the treasurer, who happened to be
present, was moved with indignation, and exclaimed, "Behold the courage
with which cities are defended by our soldiers; men for whose pay the
whole wealth of the empire is exhausted." This bitter speech the crowd
of soldiers afterwards recollected at Chalcedon, when they rose up and
destroyed him.
6. Then proceeding onward in close column, he reached Bezabde, and
having fixed his camp there, and fortified it with a rampart and a deep
fosse, as he took a long ride round the camp, he satisfied himself, by
the account which he received from several persons, that those places in
the walls which the carelessness of ancient times had allowed to become
decayed, had been repaired so as to be stronger than ever.
7. And, not to omit anything which was necessary to do before the heat
of the contest was renewed, he sent prudent men to the garrison to offer
them two conditions; either to withdraw to their own country, giving up
what did not belong to them, without causing bloodshed by resistance, or
else to become subjects of the Romans, in which case they should receive
rank and rewards. But when they, with native obstinacy, resisted the
demands as became men of noble birth, who had been hardened by dangers
and labours, everything was prepared for the siege.
8. Therefore the soldiers with alacrity, in dense order, and cheered by
the sound of trumpets, attacked every side of the town; and the legions,
being protected by various kinds of defences, advanced in safety,
endeavouring by slow degrees to overthrow the walls; and because all
kinds of missiles were poured down upon them, which disjoined the union
of their shields, they fell back, the signal for a retreat being given.
9. Then a truce was agreed upon for one day; but the day after, having
protected themselves more skilfully, they again raised their war-cry,
and tried on every side to scale the walls. And although the garrison,
having stretched cloths before them not to be distinguished, lay
concealed within the walls; still, as often as necessity required, they
boldly put out their arms and hurled down stones and javelins on their
assailants below.
10. And while the wicker penthouses were advanced boldly and brought
close to the walls, the besieged dropped upon them heavy casks and
millstones, and fragments of pillars, by the overpowering weight of
which the assailants were crushed, their defences torn to pieces, and
wide openings made in them, so that they incurred terrible dangers, and
were again forced to retreat.
11. Therefore, on the tenth day from the beginning of the siege, when
the confidence of our men began to fill the town with alarm, we
determined on bringing up a vast battering-ram, which, after having
destroyed Antioch with it sometime before, the Persians had left at
Carrhæ; and as soon as that appeared, and was begun to be skilfully set
up, it cowed the spirits of the besieged, so that they were almost on
the point of surrendering, when they again plucked up courage and
prepared means for resisting this engine.
12. From this time neither their courage nor their ingenuity failed; for
as the ram was old, and it had been taken to pieces for the facility of
transporting it, so while it was being put together again, it was
attacked with great exertions and vigour by the garrison, and defended
with equal valour and firmness by the besiegers; and engines hurling
showers of stones, and slings, and missiles of all sorts, slew numbers
on each side. Meantime, high mounds rose up with speedy growth; and the
siege grew fiercer and sterner daily; many of our men being slain
because, fighting as they were under the eye of the emperor, and eager
for reward, they took off their helmets in order to be the more easily
recognized, and so with bare heads, were an easy mark for the skilful
archers of the enemy.
13. The days and nights being alike spent in watching, made each side
the more careful; and the Persians, being alarmed at the vast height to
which the mounds were now carried, and at the enormous ram, which was
accompanied by others of smaller size, made great exertions to burn
them, and kept continually shooting firebrands and incendiary missiles
at them; but their labour was vain, because the chief part of them was
covered with wet skins and cloths, and some parts also had been steeped
in alum, so that the fire might fall harmless upon them.
14. But the Romans, driving these rams on with great courage, although
they had difficulty in defending themselves, disregarded danger, however
imminent, in the hope of making themselves masters of the town.
15. And on the other hand, when the enormous ram was brought against the
tower to which it was applied, as if it could at once throw it down, the
garrison, by a clever contrivance, entangled its projecting iron head,
which in shape was like that of a ram, with long cords on both sides, to
prevent its being drawn back and then driven forward with great force,
and to hinder it from making any serious impression on the walls by
repeated blows; and meanwhile they poured on it burning pitch, and for a
long time these engines were fixed at the point to which they had been
advanced, and exposed to all the stones and javelins which were hurled
from the walls.
16. By this time the mounds were raised to a considerable height, and
the garrison, thinking that unless they used extraordinary vigilance
their destruction must be at hand, resorted to extreme audacity; and
making an unexpected sally from the gates, they attacked our front rank,
and with all their might hurled firebrands and iron braziers loaded with
fire against the rams.
17. But after a fierce but undecided conflict, the bulk of them were
driven within the walls, without having succeeded in their attempt; and
presently the battlements were attacked from the mounds which the Romans
had raised, with arrows and slings and lighted javelins, which flew
over the roofs of the towers, but did no harm, means having been
prepared to extinguish any flames.
18. And as the ranks on both sides became thinner, and the Persians were
now reduced to extremities unless some aid could be found, they prepared
with redoubled energy a fresh sally from the camp: accordingly, they
made a sudden sally, supported by increased numbers, and among the armed
men were many bearing torches, and iron baskets full of fire, and
faggots; and all kinds of things best adapted for setting fire to the
works of the besiegers were hurled against them.
19. And because the dense clouds of smoke obscured the sight, when the
trumpet gave the signal for battle, the legions came up with quick step;
and as the eagerness of the conflict grew hotter, after they had
engaged, suddenly all the engines, except the great ram, caught fire
from the flames which were hurled at them; but the ropes which held the
chief ram were broken asunder, and that the vigorous efforts of some
gallant men saved, when it was half burnt.
20. When the darkness of night terminated the combat, only a short time
was allowed to the soldiers for rest; but when they had been refreshed
by a little food and sleep, they were awakened by their captains, and
ordered to remove their works away from the walls of the town, and
prepare to fight at closer quarters from the lofty mounds which were
untouched by the flames, and now commanded the walls. And to drive the
defenders from the walls, on the summit of the mounds they stationed two
balistæ, in fear of which they thought that none of the enemy would
venture even to look out.
21. After having taken these efficacious measures, a triple line of our
men, having a more threatening aspect than usual from the nodding cones
of their helmets (many of them also bearing ladders), attempted about
twilight to scale the walls. Arms clashed and trumpets sounded, and both
sides fought with equal boldness and ardour. The Romans, extending their
lines more widely, when they saw the Persians hiding from fear of the
engines which had been stationed on the mounds, battered the wall with
their ram, and with spades, and axes, and levers, and ladders, pressed
fiercely on, while missiles from each side flew without ceasing.
22. But the Persians were especially pressed by the various missiles
shot from the balistæ, which, from the artificial mounds, came down upon
them in torrents; and having become desperate, they rushed on, fearless
of death, and distributing their force as if at the last extremity, they
left some to guard the walls, while the rest, secretly opening a postern
gate, rushed forth valiantly with drawn swords, followed by others who
carried concealed fire.
23. And while the Romans at one moment were pressing on those who
retreated, at another receiving the assault of those who attacked them,
those who carried the fire crept round by a circuitous path, and pushed
the burning coals in among the interstices of one of the mounds, which
was made up of branches of trees, and rushes, and bundles of reeds. This
soon caught fire and was utterly destroyed, the soldiers themselves
having great difficulty in escaping and saving their engines.
24. But when the approach of evening broke off the conflict, and the two
sides separated to snatch a brief repose, the emperor, after due
reflection, resolved to change his plans. Although many reasons of great
urgency pressed him to force on the destruction of Phoenice, as of a
fortress which would prove an impregnable barrier to the inroads of the
enemy, yet the lateness of the season was an objection to persevering
any longer. He determined, therefore, while he preserved his position,
to carry on the siege for the future by slight skirmishes, thinking that
the Persians would be forced to surrender from want of provisions,
which, however, turned out very different.
25. For while the conflict was proceeding sharply, the heavens became
moist, and watery clouds appeared with threatening darkness; and
presently the ground got so wet from continual rain, that the whole
country was changed into an adhesive mud (for the soil is naturally
rich), and every plan was thrown into confusion; meantime, thunder with
incessant crashes and ceaseless lightning filled men's minds with fear.
26. To these portents were added continual rainbows. A short explanation
will serve to show how these appearances are formed. The vapours of the
earth becoming warmer, and the watery particles gathering in clouds, and
thence being dispersed in spray, and made brilliant by the fusion of
rays, turn upwards towards the fiery orb of the sun and form a rainbow,
which sweeps round with a large curve because it is spread over our
world, which physical investigations place on the moiety of a sphere.
27. Its appearance, as far as mortal sight can discern, is, in the first
line yellow, in the second tawny, in the third scarlet, in the fourth
purple, and in the last a mixture of blue and green.
28. And it is so tempered with this mixed beauty, as mankind believe,
because its first portion is discerned in a thin diluted state, of the
same colour as the air which surrounds it; the next line is tawny, that
is a somewhat richer colour than yellow; the third is scarlet, because
it is opposite to the bright rays of the sun, and so pumps up and
appropriates, if one may so say, the most subtle portion of its beams;
the fourth is purple, because the density of the spray by which the
splendour of the sun's rays is quenched shines between, and so it
assumes a colour near that of flame; and as that colour is the more
diffused, it shades off into blue and green.
29. Others think that the rainbow is caused by the rays of the sun
becoming infused into some dense cloud, and pouring into it a liquid
light, which, as it can find no exit, falls back upon itself, and shines
the more brilliantly because of a kind of attrition; and receives those
hues which are most akin to white from the sun above; its green hues
from the cloud under which it lies, as often happens in the sea, where
the waters which beat upon the shore are white, and those farther from
the land, which, as being so, are more free from any admixture, are
blue.
30. And since it is an indication of a change in the atmosphere (as we
have already said), when in a clear sky sudden masses of clouds appear,
or on the other hand, when the sky changed from a gloomy look to a
joyful serenity, therefore we often read in the poets that Iris is sent
from heaven when a change is required in the condition of any present
affairs. There are various other opinions which it would be superfluous
now to enumerate, since my narration must hasten back to the point from
which it digressed.
31. By these and similar events the emperor was kept wavering between
hope and fear, as the severity of winter was increasing, and he
suspected ambuscades in the country, which was destitute of roads;
fearing also, among other things, the discontent of the exasperated
soldiers. And it further goaded his unquiet spirit to return balked of
his purpose, after, as it were, the door of the rich mansion was opened
to him.
32. However, giving up his enterprise as fruitless, he returned into the
unwelcome Syria, to winter at Antioch, after having suffered a
succession of melancholy disasters. For, as if some unfriendly
constellation so governed events, Constantius himself, while warring
with the Persians, was always attended by adverse fortune; on which
account he hoped at least to gain victories by means of his generals;
and this, as we remember, usually happened.
[109] "The minute interval which may be interposed between the _hyeme
adultâ_ and the _primo vere_ of Ammianus, instead of allowing a
sufficient space for a march of three thousand miles, would render the
orders of Constantius as extravagant as they were unjust; the troops of
Gaul could not have reached Syria till the end of autumn. The memory of
Ammianus must have been inaccurate, and his language
incorrect."--Gibbon, c. xxii.
[110] According to Erdfurt, this legion was so named from its
contumacious and mutinous disposition.
[111] The Gentiles were body-guards of the emperor, or of the Cæsar, of
barbarian extraction, whether Scythians, Goths, Franks, Germans, &c.
[112] It may be remarked that Ammianus continually uses the words
Persian and Parthian as synonymous.
[113] Santon is near Cleves.