Galba

Plutarch

Plutarch. Plutarch's Lives, Vol. XI. Perrin, Bernadotte, translator. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press; London: William Heinemann Ltd., 1926.

And after a little it was brought to him; for the young man had been wounded and tried to escape, and a certain Murcus ran him down and slew him at the temple of Vesta. Vinius also was slain, and he admitted himself a party to the conspiracy against Galba by crying out that he was put to death contrary to the wishes of Otho. However, they cut off his head, and Laco’s too, and brought them to Otho, of whom they demanded largess.

And as Archilochus says[*](Bergk, Lyr. Gr.. Frag. ii.4 p. 398.) that,

  1. Only seven lay dead on the ground, where we trod their bodies under foot. But we who slew are a thousand,
so in this case, many who had no part in the murder smeared their hands and swords with blood and showed them to Otho, as they presented him with written petitions for largess. At any rate, a hundred and twenty were afterwards discovered by means of these petitions, all of whom were sought out and put to death by Vitellius.

Marius Celsus also came into the camp. There many denounced him for trying to persuade the soldiers to defend Galba, and the majority clamoured for his death, but Otho did not wish it; however, since he was afraid to oppose them, he said he would not put Celsus to death so quickly, since there were matters about which he must first question him. He therefore ordered that he be fettered and kept under guard, and handed over to those in whom he put most trust.

A senate was at once convened. And as if they were now other men, or had other gods to swear by, they united in swearing an oath to support Otho—an oath which he himself had sworn in support of Galba, but had not kept. Moreover, they gave him the titles of Caesar and Augustus, while the dead bodies, all headless in their consular robes, were still strewn over the forum.

And as for the heads, when they had no further use for them, that of Vinius they sold to his daughter for twenty-five hundred drachmas; that of Piso was given to his wife Verania in answer to her prayers; and that of Galba was bestowed upon the servants of Patrobius.