Res Gestae

Fearfully enraged because of this, he resolved to besiege the fortress, and its garrison was intent upon a vigorous resistance, trusting to their position, which was all but inaccessible, and believing that the king, who was rapidly advancing with an impressive force, would shortly make his appearance.

Already the mantlets and all the other equipment required for a siege were being made ready, when, as the night chanced to be clear and the bright moonlight clearly revealed everything to those who stood upon the battlements, near the end of the second watch a throng quickly gathered and burst from the suddenly opened gates, and falling unawares on one of our cohorts, killed a great number, including also a tribune who tried to avert the danger.

While this was going on, the Persians, in the same way as before, attacked a part of our men from the opposite side of the river, killed some, and took a few alive. And from fear, and at the same time because they thought that the enemy had gained greater numbers, our men for a time were held irresolute; but when they had recovered their courage, had armed themselves as well as they could in the confusion, and our army, aroused by the trumpets’ blast, was

The emperor, roused to bitter anger, reduced the surviving members of the cohort, who had shown no spirit[*](Cf. egere segnius, § 9, above.) in resisting the marauders’ attack, to the infantry service[*](cohors is commonly used of the infantry, but Ammi- anus probably refers to the horsemen mingled with the foot-soldiers, who may have been most to blame. Vegetius tells us that each cohort had its horsemen.) (which is more burdensome) with loss of rank.

This set him afire to destroy the fortress before which he had been so endangered,[*](Cf. § 6, above.) and he devoted his energies and thoughts to that end, never himself leaving the van, in order that by fighting among the foremost he might by his personal example rouse the soldiers to deeds of valour, as the witness and judge of their conduct. And so when he had exposed himself valiantly and long to extreme peril, after using every kind of attack[*](An unusual meaning of munitio, which commonly implies defence, but cf. xxi. 12, 12, where munitores, besiegers, is contrasted with prohibitores, besieged. ) and weapons, through the unanimous valour of the besiegers that same fortress was at last taken and destroyed by fire.

After this, in consideration of the difficult tasks already performed and those which impended, the army, exhausted by excessive toil, was given a rest and many kinds of provisions were distributed in abundance. However, after that time the palisade of the camp was more carefully constructed with a close array of stakes and a deep moat, since there was fear of sudden sallies and other secret attempts from Ctesiphon, which was now not far distant.

Then we came to an artificial river, by name Naarmalcha, meaning the kings’ river,[*](Cf. xxiii. 6, 25; xxiv. 2, 7; 6, 1.) which at that time was dried up. Here in days gone by Trajan, and after him Severus, had with immense effort caused the accumulated earth to be dug out, and had made a great canal, in order to let in the water from the Euphrates and give boats and ships access to the Tigris.[*](A canal from the Euphrates to the Tigris was made by the earliest Assyrian kings (Hdt. i. 193), and a branch of it was carried to Seleucia by Seleucus Nikator, the founder of that city. According to Cassius Dio., lxviii. 28, Trajan’s attempt was not successful because the bed of the Euphrates was then much higher.)

It seemed to Julian in all respects safest to clean out that same canal, which formerly the Persians, when in fear of a similar invasion, had blocked with a huge dam of stones. As soon as the canal was cleared, the dams were swept away by the great flow of water, and the fleet in safety covered thirty stadia and was carried into the channel of the Tigris. Thereupon bridges were at once made, and the army crossed and pushed on towards Coche.

Then, so that a timely rest might follow the wearisome toil, we encamped in a rich territory, abounding in orchards, vineyards, and green cypress groves. In its midst is a pleasant and shady dwelling, displaying in every part of the house, after the custom of that nation, paintings representing the king killing wild beasts in various kinds of hunting; for nothing in their country is painted or sculptured except slaughter in divers forms and scenes of war.

Since thus far everything had resulted as he desired, the Augustus now with greater confidence strode on to meet all dangers, hoping for so much from a fortune which had never failed him that he often dared many enterprises bordering upon rashness. He unloaded the stronger ships of those which carried provisions and artillery, and manned them each with eight hundred armed soldiers; then keeping by him the stronger part of the fleet, which he had formed into three divisions, in the first quiet of night he sent one part under Count Victor with orders speedily to cross the river and take possession of the enemy’s side of the stream.

His generals in great alarm with unanimous entreaties tried to prevent him from taking this step, but could not shake the emperor’s determination. The flag was raised according to his orders, and five ships immediately vanished from sight. But no sooner had they reached the opposite bank than they were assailed so persistently with firebrands and every kind of inflammable material, that ships and soldiers would have been consumed, had not the emperor, carried away by the keen vigour of his spirit, cried out that our soldiers had, as directed, raised the signal that they were already in possession of the shore, and ordered the entire fleet to hasten to the spot with all the speed of their oars.

The result was that the ships were saved uninjured, and the surviving soldiers, although assailed from above with stones and every kind of missiles, after a fierce struggle scaled the high, precipitous banks and held their position unyieldingly.

History acclaims Sertorius[*](See Plut. Sert. 3, 1.) for swimming across the Rhone with arms

The Persians opposed to us serried bands of mail-clad horsemen in such close order that the gleam of moving bodies covered with closely fitting plates of iron dazzled the eyes of those who looked upon them, while the whole throng of horses was protected by coverings of leather. The calvalry was backed up by companies of infantry, who, protected by oblong, curved shields covered with wickerwork and raw hides, advanced in very close order. Behind these were elephants, looking like walking hills, and, by the movements of their enormous bodies, they threatened destruction to all who came near them, dreaded as they were from past experience.

Hereupon the emperor, following Homeric tactics,[*](Iliad, iv. 297 ff.) filled the space between the lines with the weakest of the infantry, fearing that if they formed part of the van and shamefully gave way, they might carry off the rest with them; or if they were posted in the rear behind the centuries, they might run off at will with no one to check them. He himself with the light-armed auxiliaries hastened now to the front, and now to the rear.

So, when both sides were near enough to look each other in the face, the Romans, gleaming

And when the battle-cry was raised in the usual manner by both sides and the trumpets’ blare increased the ardour of the men, here and there they fought hand-to-hand with spears and drawn swords; and the soldiers were freer from the danger of the arrows the more quickly they forced their way into the enemy’s ranks. Meanwhile Julian was busily engaged in giving support to those who gave way and in spurring on the laggards, playing the part both of a valiant fellow-soldier and of a commander.

Finally, the first battle-line of the Persians began to waver, and at first slowly, then at quick step, turned back and made for the neighbouring city with their armour well heated up.[*](Or, in hot haste armiess metonymice pro armatis), T.L.L.) Our soldiers pursued them, wearied though they also were after fighting on the scorching plains from sunrise to the end of the day, and following close at their heels and hacking at their legs and backs, drove the whole force with Pigranes, the Surena, and Narseus, their most distinguished generals, in headlong flight to the very walls of Ctesiphon.

And they would have pressed in through the gates of the city, mingled with the throng of fugitives, had not the general called Victor, who had himself received a flesh-wound in the shoulder from an arrow, raising his hand and