Tag: Herodian

Τὸ δὲ μῖσος καὶ ἡ στάσις ηὔξετο. εἴτε γὰρ ἡγεμόνας ἢ ἄρχοντας ἔδει ποιεῖν, ἑκάτερος τὸν ἑαυτοῦ φίλον προάγειν ἤθελεν, εἴτε δικάζοιεν, τὰ ἐναντία ἐφρόνουν, ἐπ’ ὀλέθρῳ τῶν δικαζομένων ἔσθ’ ὅτε· πλέον γὰρ ἦν παῤ αὐτοῖς τοῦ δικαίου τὸ φιλόνεικον. ἔν τε θεάμασι περὶ τὰ ἐναντία ἐσπούδαζον. πάντα τε εἴδη ἐπιβουλῆς ἐξήρτυον, οἰνοχόους τε καὶ ὀψοποιοὺς ἀνέπειθον ἐμβαλεῖν δηλητήρια φάρμακα. οὐ ῥᾳδίως δὲ αὐτῶν οὐδετέρῳ προεχώρει, ἐπειδὴ μετὰ πολλῆς ἐπιμελείας καὶ φρουρᾶς διῃτῶντο. τέλος δὲ μὴ φέρων ὁ Ἀντωνῖνος, ἀλλ’ ὑπὸ τῆς περὶ τὴν μοναρχίαν ἐπιθυμίας ἐλαυνόμενος, διέγνω δρᾶσαί τι ἢ παθεῖν γενναῖον, διὰ ξίφους χωρήσας καὶ φόνου· μὴ προχωρούσης γὰρ τῆς λανθανούσης ἐπιβουλῆς ἀναγκαίαν ἡγήσατο τὴν κινδυνώδη τε καὶ ἀπεγνωσμένην  . . . τῆς μὲν διὰ στοργὴν τοῦ δὲ δἰ ἐπιβουλήν. Γέτας μὲν δὴ καιρίως τρωθείς, προσχέας τὸ αἷμα τοῖς τῆς μητρὸς στήθεσι, μετήλλαξε τὸν βίον· ὁ δ’ Ἀντωνῖνος κατεργασθέντος αὐτῷ τοῦ φόνου προπηδᾷ τοῦ δωματίου θέων, φερόμενός τε δι’ ὅλων τῶν βασιλείων ἐβόα μέγαν κίνδυνον ἐκπεφευγέναι μόλις τε σωθῆναι.

But the hatred and dissension between them continued to grow. If it became necessary to appoint a governor or a magistrate, each wished to select a friend for the post. If they sat as judges, they handed down dissenting opinions, often to the ruin of those on trial; for rivalry counted more than justice to these two. Even at the shows the brothers took opposite sides. They tried every sort of intrigue; each, for example, attempted to persuade the other’s cooks and cupbearers to administer some deadly poison. It was not easy for either one to succeed in these attempts, however: both were exceedingly careful and took many precautions. Finally, unable to endure the situation any longer and maddened by the desire for sole power, Caracalla decided to act and advance his cause by sword or slaughter or die in a manner befitting his birth. Since his plotting was unsuccessful, he thought he must try some desperate and dangerous scheme; [so he killed his brother in the arms of their mother, and by this act really killed them both]*, his mother dying of grief and his brother from treachery. Mortally wounded, Geta died, drenching his mother’s breast with his blood. Having succeeded in the murder, Caracalla ran from the room and rushed throughout the palace, shouting that he had escaped grave danger and had barely managed to save his life.

* There is a lacuna in the text.

(tr. Edward C. Echols)

Ἐπεὶ δὲ οἱ ὄχλοι ταῖς συστάδην μάχαις ἡττώμενοι, ἀναπηδῶντες ἐς τὰ δωμάτια τῷ τε κεράμῳ βάλλοντες αὐτοὺς καὶ λίθων βολαῖς τῶν τε ἄλλων ὀστράκων ἐλυμαίνοντο, ἐπαναβῆναι μὲν αὐτοῖς δι’ ἄγνοιαν τῶν οἰκήσεων οὐκ ἐτόλμησαν οἱ στρατιῶται, κεκλεισμένων δὲ τῶν οἰκιῶν καὶ τῶν ἐργαστηρίων ταῖς θύραις, καὶ εἴ τινες ἦσαν ξύλων ἐξοχαί (πολλαὶ δὲ αὗται κατὰ τὴν πόλιν), πῦρ προσετίθεσαν. ῥᾷστα δὲ διὰ πυκνότητα τῶν συνοικιῶν ξυλείας τε πλῆθος ἐπάλληλον μέγιστον μέρος τῆς πόλεως τὸ πῦρ ἐνεμήθη, ὡς πολλοὺς μὲν ἐκ πλουσίων ποιῆσαι πένητας, ἀποβαλόντας θαυμαστὰ καὶ ἀμφιλαφῆ κτήματα, ἔν τε προσόδοις πλουσίαις καὶ ἐν ποικίλῃ πολυτελείᾳ τίμια. πλῆθός τε ἀνθρώπων συγκατεφλέχθη, φυγεῖν μὴ δυνηθέντων διὰ τὸ τὰς ἐξόδους ὑπὸ τοῦ πυρὸς προκατειλῆφθαι. οὐσίαι τε ὅλαι πλουσίων ἀνδρῶν διηρπάγησαν, ἐγκαταμιξάντων ἑαυτοὺς τοῖς στρατιώταις πρὸς τὸ ἁρπάζειν κακούργων καὶ εὐτελῶν δημοτῶν. τοσοῦτον δὲ μέρος τῆς πόλεως τὸ πῦρ ἐλυμήνατο ὡς μηδεμίαν τῶν μεγίστων πόλεων ὁλόκληρον δύνασθαι τῷ μέρει ἐξισωθῆναι.
(Herodian, Hist. 7.12.5-7)

Bested in the hand-to-hand fighting, the people climbed to the housetops and rained down upon the praetorians tiles, stones, and clay pots. In this way they inflicted severe injuries upon the soldiers, who, being unfamiliar with the houses, did not dare to climb after them, and, of course, the doors of the shops and houses were barred. The soldiers did, however, set fire to houses that had wooden balconies (and there were many of this type in the city). Because a great number of houses were made chiefly of wood, the fire spread very rapidly and without a break throughout most of the city. Many men who lost their vast and magnificent properties, valuable for the large incomes they produced and for their expensive decorations, were reduced from wealth to poverty. A great many people died in the fire, unable to escape because the exits had been blocked by the flames. All the property of the wealthy was looted when the criminal and worthless elements in the city joined with the soldiers in plundering. And the part of Rome destroyed by fire was greater in extent than the largest intact city in the empire. (tr. Edward C. Echols)