Res Gestae

There having laid aside the burden of other cares, Constantius began to consider, as his most difficult knot and stumbling-block, how to uproot the Caesar by a mighty effort. And as he deliberated with his closest friends, in secret conferences and by night, by what force or by what devices that might be done before the Caesar’s assurance should be more obstinately set upon throwing everything into disorder, it seemed best that Gallus should be summoned by courteous letters, under pretence of very urgent public business, to the end that, being deprived of support, he might be put to death without hindrance.

But this view was opposed by the groups of fickle flatterers, among whom was Arbitio, a man keen and eager in plotting treachery, and Eusebius, at that time grand chamberlain,[*](See Ch. 10, 5, and note 6.) who was sufficiently inclined to mischief, and it occurred to them to say that, if Caesar left the East, it would be dangerous to leave Ursicinus there, since he would

And this faction was supported by the other royal eunuchs, whose love of gain at that time was growing beyond mortal limits. These, while performing duties of an intimate nature, by secret whispers supplied fuel for false accusations. They overwhelmed that most gallant man with the weight of a grave suspicion, muttering that his sons, who were now grown up, were beginning to have imperial hopes, being popular because of their youth and their handsome persons and through their knowledge of many kinds of weapons, and bodily activity gained amidst daily army exercises, besides being known to be of sound judgment; that Gallus, while naturally savage, had been incited to deeds of cruelty by persons attached to his person, to the end that, when he had incurred the merited detestation of all classes, the emblems of empire might be transferred to the children of the master of the horse.

When these and similar charges were dinned into the emperor’s anxious ears, which were always attentive and open to such gossip, the turmoil of his mind suggesting many plans, he at last chose the following as the best. First, in the most complimentary terms he directed Ursicinus to come to him, under pretence that, because of the urgent condition of affairs at the time, they might consult together and decide what increase of forces was necessary in order to crush the attacks of the Parthian tribes, which were threatening war.

And that Ursicinus might not suspect any unfriendly action, in case he should come, Count Prosper was sent to be his substitute until his return. So, when the letter was

After this the next thing was to summon Caesar and induce him to make equal haste, and in order to remove suspicion, Constantius with many feigned endearments urged his sister, the Caesar’s wife, at last to satisfy his longing and visit him. And although she hesitated, through fear of her brother’s habitual cruelty, yet she set forth, hoping that, since he was her own brother, she might be able to pacify him. But after she had entered Bithynia, at the station called Caeni Gallicani, she was carried off by a sudden attack of fever. After her death the Caesar, considering that the support on which he thought he could rely had failed him, hesitated in anxious deliberation what to do.

For in the midst of his embarrassments and troubles his anxious mind dwelt on this one thought, that Constantius, who measured everything by the standard of his own opinion, was not one to accept any excuse or pardon mistakes; but, being especially inclined to the ruin of his kin, would secretly set a snare for him and punish him with death, if he caught him off his guard.

But in such a critical situation and anticipating the worst if he were not on the watch, he secretly aimed at the highest rank, if any chance should offer; but for a twofold reason he feared treachery on the part of those nearest to his person, both because they stood in dread of him as cruel and untrustworthy, and because they feared the fortune of Constantius which in civil discords usually had the upper hand.[*](Cf. ch. 10, 16, above.)

Amid this huge mass of anxieties he received constant letters from

To this he added an example of not so very great antiquity, that Diocletian and his colleague[*](Maximianus.) were obeyed by their Caesars as by attendants, who did not remain in one place but hastened about hither and thither, and that in Syria Galerius, clad in purple, walked for nearly a mile before the chariot of his Augustus[*](Diocletian.) when the latter was angry with him.

After many other messengers came Scudilo, tribune of the targeteers, a skilled artist in persuasion, under the cloak of a somewhat rough nature. He alone of all, by means of flattering words mingled with false oaths, succeeded in persuading Gallus to set out, constantly repeating with hypocritical expression that his cousin would ardently wish to see him, that being a mild and merciful prince he would overlook anything that was done through inadvertence; that he would make him a sharer in his rank, to be a partner also in the labours which the northern provinces, for a long time wearied, demanded.

And since, when the fates lay hands upon men, their senses are apt to be dulled and blunted, Gallus was roused by these blandishments to the hope of a better destiny, and leaving Antioch under the lead of an unpropitious power, he proceeded to go straight from the smoke into the fire, as the old proverb has

On learning this Constantius was enraged beyond all human bounds, and lest by any chance Gallus should become uncertain as to the future and should try in the course of his journey to take measures for his own safety, all the soldiers in the towns through which he would pass were purposely removed.

And at that time Taurus, who had been sent to Armenia as quaestor, boldly passed that way without addressing him or going to see him. Others, however, visited him by the emperor’s orders, under pretext of various matters of business, but really to take care that he should not be able to make any move or indulge in any secret enterprise; among these was Leontius, then quaestor and later prefect of the city, Lucillianus, as count commander of the household troops, and a tribune of the targeteers called Bainobaudes.

Thus, after covering long distances over level country, he had entered Hadrianopolis, a city in the region of Mt. Haemus, formerly called Uscudama, and for twelve days was recovering his strength, exhausted by his exertions. There he learned that certian Theban legions that were passing the winter in near-by towns had sent some of their comrades to encourage him by faithful and sure promises to remain there, since they were full of confidence in their strength and were posted in large numbers in neighbouring encampments; but owing to the watchful care of those about him, he could not steal an opportunity of seeing them or hearing the message that they brought.

Then, as

Yet all this time, whenever nature allowed him sleep, his senses were wounded by frightful spectres that shrieked about him, and throngs of those whom he had slain, led by Domitianus and Montius, would seize him and fling him to the claws of the Furies, as he imagined in his dreams.

For the mind, when freed from the bonds of the body, being always filled with tireless movement, from the underlying thoughts and worries which torment the minds of mortals, conjures up the nocturnal visions to which we[*](I.e. we Greeks.) give the name of phantasies.

And thus with the way opened by the sad decree of fate, by which it was ordained that he should be stripped of life and rank, he hurried by the most direct way and with relays of horses and came to Petobio, a town of Noricum. There all the secret plots were revealed and Count Barbatio suddenly made his appearance—he had commanded the household troops under Gallus—accompanied by Apodemius, of the secret service,[*](The agentes in rebus constituted the imperial secret service under the direction of the magister officiorum. These were the original frumentarii, who at first had charge of the grain supply of the troops, but towards the beginning of the second century A.D. became secret police agents. It was Diocletian who changed the name frumentarii to agentes in rebus. ) and at the head of soldiers whom Constantius had chosen because they were under obligation to him for favours and could

And now the affair was being carried on with no disguised intrigue, but where the palace stood without the walls Barbatio surrounded it with armed men. And entering when the light was now dim and removing the Caesar’s royal robes, he put upon him a tunic and an ordinary soldier’s cloak, assuring him with frequent oaths, as if by the emperor’s command, that he would suffer no further harm. Then he said to him: Get up at once, and having unexpectedly placed him in a private carriage, he took him to Histria, near the town of Pola, where in former times, as we are informed, Constantine’s son Crispus was killed.