Page images
PDF
EPUB

Year of again, and forbad the army to come within feven Rome hundred and fifty ftadia of the city. But Caefar 711. proceeded; and as foon as he came near the city,

the courage of those, who had spoken most highly
against him, began to fail; and fome of the Sena-
tors first, and afterwards many of the people went
over to him. Nay the very Praetors furrendered
themselves, and their foldiers to him: fo that Cae-
far got poffeffion of Rome, without striking a fingle
blow. Caefar was now chofen Conful by the pea-
ple, and Quintus Pedius was affigned him for his
collegue. He gave rewards to all his foldiers; and
was adopted into the family of Julius Caefar, ac-
cording to the forms of law, taking upon him the
name of Caius Julius Caefar Octavianus: for, ac-
cording to the Roman custom, the perfon adopted
affumed the entire name of him who adopted him,
and added one of the names which he had before,
with fome little alteration. Caefar, having now
bound the foldiers to him, and depreffed the Senate,
openly declared his intention of avenging his father's
murder. But in the first place, he diftributed, the f
great legacies, which he had bequeathed to the peo-
ple: which foftened their minds, and prevented
any tumults, which might otherwife have arifen.
This he took care to have done according to due
form and a law was made, whereby not only the
murderers of Julius Caefar, but feveral others alfo,
were condemned to banishment, and confifcation of
their goods. Anthony, after his defeat, was pur-
fued neither by Decimus Brutus, nor by Caefar.
The latter did not follow him, because the Senate
had ordered Decimus to continue the war and the
former had no inclination to ruin an enemy of Cae-
far. This gave him an opportunity to gather his
fcattered

[ocr errors]

711.

fcattered forces, and to join with Lepidus, who in- Year of tended to have marched into Italy; but was ordered Rome by the Senate to ftay where he was. Decimus, underftanding that he was declared a publick enemy at Rome, attempted to get into Macedonia, to Marcus Brutus: but falling into the hands of his ene→ mies, he chofe to kill himfelf. This common enemy being thus removed, Anthony and Lepidus determined to march into Italy, leaving Gaul to be governed by their lieutenants: Caefar met them at Bononia; where they all conferred together, and formed the fcheme of the famous Triumvirate that these three men should take the administration of affairs into their hands; and deftroy all their enemies. They agreed, that Caefar fhould have the government of all Africa, Sardinia, and Sicily; that Lepidus fhould have all Spain, and Gallia Narbonenfis; and that Anthony fhould have all the reft of Gaul, on both fides the Alps: whence we may obferve, that Virgil's country fell under the ment of Anthony. After this, Caefar marched to Rome, and was followed by Anthony and Lepidus, each with their refpective armies; when that horrid Profcription was begun, by which the lives of many Romans of the beft families and character were cruelly taken away.

govern

At the beginning of these troubles, the famous Caius Afinius Pollio (s) was at the head of two legions in Spain; whilft Lepidus had the command of three others, in the fame country, and Plancus had three more in the farther Gaul (t) Thefe three were all thought to favour the caufe of Anthony: but all the feveral factions were in hopes of gaining

(s) See the note on yer. 84. of the third Eclogue,

(t) Appian, de Bell. Civ. lib. 3.

them,

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

Year of them. As foon as the fiege of Mutina was raised, Rome and the Senate began to flight Caefar, having not farther occafion to depend upon him; they fent orders to these three Generals to fight against Anthony, whom it was their chief intention to deftroy. When Caefar, finding himself neglected by the Senate, and the war against Anthony committed to the management of Brutus, determined to make peace. with Anthony; he wrote alfo both to Pollio and Lepidus, fhewing them how neceffary it was for them all to unite; leaft Pompey's faction fhould destroy them one after another, as they plainly intended. When Caefar was chofen Conful, and Decimus, being declared a publick enemy, was purfued by Anthony, Pollio joined in the purfuit with his two legions, and brought over Plancus alfo, with the three which he commanded. We have feen already, that when Anthony and Lepidus marched to meet Caefar at Bononia, they left Gaul to be governed by their lieutenants; and that when they formed the Triumvirate, that province was affigned to Anthony. It is therefore highly probable, that when they marched to Rome, Pollio being a man of known abilities and integrity, was left by Anthony, to command in Gaul, as his lieutenant which feems to be confirmed by his holding the Venetian territory, of which Mantua was a part, about a year afterwards, for Anthony, with feven legions (u).

Thus we may reasonably conclude, that it was, when Mantua was under the government of this favourer of the Mufes, that Virgil wrote the Palaemon, in which Pollio, and he alone of all the great

(u) Vel. Paterc. lib. 2. cap. 76.

men

men then in being is celebrated, as a patron of the author, and a poet himself (w).

The Palaemon is a difpute between two fhepherds, who challenge each other to fing alternately: and is an imitation of the fourth and fifth Idyllia of Theocritus. But it is written with infinitely more delicacy than the originals: and though there is the only coarfe raillery between the two fhepherds, that is to be met with in any of the works of Virgil; yet their converfation may be thought polite, in comparison with thofe of Theocritus. He has alfo introduced the defcription of two cups, like that famous one in the upris: but the Greek poet's defcription is long, even to tedioufnefs; whereas thofe of Virgil are far more concife, and elegant.

[ocr errors]

The next year, when Plancus and Lepidus were created Confuls, is remarkable for the birth of the famous poet, Publius Ovidius Nafo, when Virgil was in his twenty-ninth year (x).

On the very first day of this year, the Triumvirs being refolved to begin with performing great honours to the memory of Julius Caefar, bound themselves by an oath to hold all his actions facred; ordered a temple to be built in the very place where his body had been burned; and commanded, that a ftatue of him fhould be carried about together with one of Venus at the races (y). They decreed alfo, that his birth-day fhould be celebrated with crowns of bay, and univerfal joy and that thofe

(w) Pollio amat noftram, quamvis eft ruftica, Mufam:
Pierides vitulam lectori pafcite veftro.

Pollio et ipfe facit nova carmina: pafcite taurum,
Jam cornu petat, et pedibus qui fpargat arenam.

Eclog. III. 84.

(x) Olymp. CLXXXIV. 3. Ovidius Nafo nafcitur in Pe

Year of

Rome

711

712.

lignis. Eufeb. Chron.

(y) Dio, lib. 47.

who

712.

Year of who omitted this celebration should be obnoxious to Rome the curfes of Jupiter and Julius Caefar: and if they were Senators, or the fons of Senators, a large fine was to be laid upon them. But, as Julius Caefar was born on the day of the Ludi Apollinares, on which day the Sibylline Oracles forbad any feast to be celebrated, to any other God than Apollo, they commanded his birth-day to be kept the day before that festival. They forbad any image of him to be carried about, at the funeral of any of his family, according to the ufual cuftom; becaufe he was not a mortal, but a real God. They alfo made his chapel a place of refuge, from which no one was to be taken, who had fled thither; an honour not given by the Romans to any God fince the time of Romulus. This deification of Julius Caefar feems to have been alluded to by Virgil in his Daphnis; which must therefore have been written near the beginning of this year, when thefe extraordinary honours were paid to the memory of that hero. Such a poem could not but be acceptable to his patròn, Pollio, who was a fteady friend to Julius Caefar; and was probably Lieutenant-Governor of the province, where Virgil lived. Nor could it be unacceptable to the Triumvirs themfelves, who were profeffedly of the fame party; and had decreed those honours to the memory of Julius Caefar. But though the Triumvirs reigned at Rome, and were abfolute mafters in Gaul, yet they were far from being in poffeffion of the whole Roman Empire. Marcus Brutus, one of the murderers of Caefar, had gotten all Greece and Macedon into his hands, put Caius Anthony to death, and was at the head of a good army. Caffius, another of the murder.ers, had at the fame time collected all the forces, that

« PreviousContinue »