16. (1) Tacitus post hunc suscēpit imperium, vir ēgregiē mōrātus et reī pūblicae gerendae idōneus. Nihil tamen clārum potuit ostendere intrā sextum mēnsem imperiī morte praeventus. Flōriānus, quī Tacitō successerat, duōbus mēnsibus et diēbus XX in imperiō fuit neque quicquam dīgnum memoriā ēgit.
17. (1) Post hunc Probus, vir inlūstris glōriā mīlitārī, ad administrātiōnem reī pūblicae accessit. Galliās ā barbarīs occupātās ingentī proeliōrum fēlīcitāte restituit. Quōsdam imperium ūsūrpāre cōnātōs, scīlicet Sāturnīnum in Oriente, Proculum et Bonōsum Agrippīnae, certāminibus oppressit.
(2) Vineās Gallōs et Pannoniōs habēre permīsit, opere mīlitārī Almam montem apud Sirmium et Aureum apud Moesiam superiōrem vīneīs cōnseruit et prōvinciālibus colendōs dedit.
(3) Hic cum bella innumera gessisset, pāce pārātā, dīxit brevī mīlitēs necessāriōs nōn futūrōs. Vir ācer, strēnuus, iūstus et quī Aurēliānum aequāret glōriā mīlitārī, mōrum autem cīvīlitāte superāret. Interfectus tamen est Sirmī tumultū mīlitārī in turrī ferrātā.
notes
Chapter 16: Tacitus Emperor, 275–276 CE
Tacitus: Tacitus ruled after Aurelian
reī pūblicae gerendae idōneus: dative gerundive form, as the adjective idōneus takes a dative object (AG 384, 507).
Flōriānus: M. Annius Florianus was Tacitus' praetorian prefect, not his brother. He was recognized only in the west and was killed at Tarsus probably early in September 276 CE (Victor Epit. 36.2; H.A. Tac. 9.6, 13.6, 14.1, 14.4, 17.4; H.A. Prob. 10.8, 11.3) (Bird).
Chapter 17: Probus Emperor, 276–282 CE
Post hunc: Tacitus
Probus: His full name was Marcus Aurelianus Probus. He was as just and virtuous as he was warlike, and is deservedly regarded as one of the greatest and best Roman emperors (Hazzard).
cōnātōs: < conor, deponent verb (AG 190)
Sāturnīnum in Oriente: Saturninus rebelled in 280 CE
Proculum et Bonōsum Agrippīnae: "Proculus and Bonosus at Cologne"
(2) Vineās: "Domitian had ordered that no new vineyards should be planted in Italy and half of those in the new provinces should be cut down in order to protect Italian viticulture and produce a more adequate grain supply. By Probus’ reign the edict had lapsed and Probus encouraged viticulture in Gaul and the Danube region" (Victor Epit. 37.3–4; H.A. Prob. 20.4–21.3) (Bird).
colendōs: "for cultivation" (LS colo I), gerundive denoting purpose (AG 500.4)
(3) pāce pārātā: ablative absolute using a perfect passive participle (AG 419)
quī Aurēliānum aequāret: His biographer laments, "Probus, an emperor whose rule restored to perfect safety the east, the west, the south, and the north, indeed all parts of the world, is now, by reason of a lack of writers, almost unknown to us" (HA Prob. 1.3, translated by David Magie).
Sirmī: "at Sirmium," locative (AG 427.3). Sirmium was his birthplace (Hazzard).
in turrī ferrātā: As his biographer writes, "At this the soldiers rebelled, and pursuing him as he fled to an iron-clad tower, which he himself had reared to a very great height to serve as a look-out, they slew him there in the fifth year of his reign <282 CE>" (HA Prob. 21.3, Translated by David Magie).
vocabulary
Core Vocabulary | Numbers | Dates
|
Tacitus, ī, m. |
(M. Claudius) Tacitus, Roman emperor 275–276 A.D. 16. |
|
mōrātus, a, um [mōs], adj. |
mannered, of morals, constituted; characteristic |
|
idōneus, a, um, adj. |
suitable, fit; capable |
|
mēnsis, is, m. |
a month |
|
praeveniō, īre, vēnī, ventus |
to come before, get start of, anticipate, outstrip |
|
Flōriānus, ī, m. |
(M. Annius) Floriānus, the brother of the emperor Tacitus, upon whose death he was proclaimed emperor at Rome, 276 A.D. |
|
succēdō, ere, cessī, cessus |
to come up, advance; succeed, follow |
|
Probus, ī, m. |
(M. Aurēlius) Probus, Roman emperor 276–282 A.D. 17. |
|
illūstris, e, adj. |
clear, distinguished, glorious |
|
mīlitāris, e [mīles], adj. |
military; as subst., a soldier; rēs mīlitāris, the art of war, military operations |
|
administrātiō, ōnis [administrō], f. |
management, government |
|
Gallia, ae, f. |
the country of the Gauls; modern France and the territories on the west bank of the Rhine. The northern part of Italy was settled by Gauls, and was called Gallia Cisalpina; hence the pl. Galliae. |
|
fēlīcitās, ātis [fēlīx], f. |
good fortune, success |
|
restituō, ere, Ī, ūtus |
to set up again, replace, restore, reinstate; repair, remedy, save |
|
ūsūrpō, āre, āvī, ātus [ūsus + rapiō] |
to make use of, enjoy; usurp |
|
Sāturnīnus, ī, m. |
one of the Thirty Tyrants |
|
Oriēns, entis [orior], m. (sc. sōl) |
the rising sun, the East, the Orient |
|
Proculus, ī, m. |
a famous Roman jurist |
|
Bonōsus, ī, m. |
a Spaniard who usurped the imperial title in Gaul in the reign of Probus, 281 A.D. |
|
Agrippīna, ae, f. |
a city in Belgic Gaul |
|
certāmen, inis [certō, to fight], n. |
a struggle, battle, engagement |
|
opprimō, ere, pressī, pressus |
to crush utterly, overpower, overwhelm |
|
vīnea, ae, f. |
a plantation of vines, vineyard; vine 2 |
|
Gallus, a, um |
pertaining to Gaul. Gallī, ōrum, pl. m., the Gauls. Gallus, ī, m., a Roman cognomen: (1) C. (Cn.) Cornēlius Gallus, governor of Egypt under Augustus; (2) Gallus Hostīliānus, Roman emperor 251–253 A.D. |
|
Pannoniī, ōrum, pl. m. |
the inhabitants of Pannonia |
|
Alma, ae, f. |
a mountain in Pannonia |
|
Sirmium, ī, n. |
a city in Lower Pannonia |
|
Moesia, ae, f. |
the modern Bulgaria and Servia, divided into Moesia Superior and Inferior; hence the pl., Moesiae |
|
cōnserō, ere, uī, tus |
to join in battle; cōnserere manūs, to fight hand to hand |
|
prōvinciālis, is, m. |
a provincial |
|
innumerus, a, um [in + numerus], adj. |
countless 3 |
|
necessārius, a, um [necesse, necessary], adj. |
necessary, indispensable; as subst., an intimate friend, relative |
|
strēnuus, a, um, adj. |
brisk, active, vigorous |
|
iūstus, a, um [iūs], adj. |
just, fair; proper, fitting, regular |
|
Aureliānus, ī, m. |
Lucius Domitius Aureliānus, Roman emperor, 270–275 A.D. |
|
aequō, āre, āvī, ātus [aequus] |
to make even or equal, place on an equality |
|
cīvīlitās, ātis [cīvīlis], f. |
the art of government, politics; courteousness, politeness, affability |
|
Sirmium, ī, n. |
a city in Lower Pannonia |
|
tumultus, ūs, m. |
a disturbance, uproar; rebellion, riot |
|
turris, is, f. |
a tower |
|
ferrātus, a, um [ferrum], adj. |
furnished with iron, ironed; mīlitēs ferrātī, cuirassiers |