(1) Neque multō post, cum Germāniciānī exercitūs ā Galliārum praesidiō tollerentur, cōnsēnsū mīlitum Iūliānus factus Augustus est, interiectōque annō, ad Īllyricum obtinendum profectus, Cōnstantiō Parthicīs proeliīs occupātō.
(2) Quī, rēbus cognitīs, ad bellum cīvīle conversus in itinere obiit inter Ciliciam Cappadociamque annō imperiī octāvō et trīcēsimō, aetātis quīntō et quadrāgēsimō; meruitque inter dīvōs referrī, vir ēgregiae tranquillitātis, placidus, nimium amīcīs et familiāribus crēdēns, mox etiam uxōribus dēditior, quī tamen prīmīs imperiī annīs ingentī sē modestiā ēgerit, familiārium etiam locuplētātor neque inhonōrēs sinēns, quōrum labōriōsa expertus fuisset officia, ad sevēritātem tum prōpēnsior, sī suspīciō imperiī movērētur, mītis aliās, et cuius in cīvīlibus magis quam in externīs bellīs sit laudanda fortūna.
notes
Julian becomes Augustus. The death and character of Constantius
(1) cōnsēnsū mīlitum: according to the Epitome de Caesaribus,
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Constantius took to himself with the rank of Caesar Claudius Julian, Gallus' brother, almost twenty-three years old. In the Argentoratensian Fields in Gallia, he, with a few troops, destroyed an innumerable army of enemies. The heaps were standing like mountains, the blood was flowing in the fashion of rivers; a king, noble Nodomarius, was captured; the entire aristocracy was routed; the frontier of Roman property was restored; and afterward, doing battle with the Alamanni, he captured their most powerful king, Badomarius. He was proclaimed Augustus by the Gallic troops. Through legations, Constantius urged him to return to his original status and title. Julian, in a rather mild, secret correspondence, replied that he would serve far more dutifully under the title of a lofty imperium (Epit. De. Caes. 42.12–16; translated by Thomas M. Banchich).
ad Īllyricum obtinendum: gerundive denoting purpose (AG 503)
profectus: supply est > proficiscor
(2) Quī: Cōnstantius
inter Ciliciam Cappadociamque: see Cilicia and Cappadocia
familiaribus: "companions," "associates" >familiaris
dēditior: "too devoted to," "excessively influenced by" (Bird)
sē ... ēgerit: 'handled himself," "acted" perfect subjunctive in a relative clause of characteristic.
quōrum labōriōsa expertus fuisset officia: "whom he had tested with onerous duties." The antecedent of quōrum is familiārium.
tum ... sī: "at that time... if," i.e. "in cases when"
suspīciō imperiī movērētur: unrest over his rule were aroused" (Bird), contrary-to-fact conditional (AG 514.C.1)
sit laudanda: passive periphrastic
vocabulary
Core Vocabulary | Numbers | Dates
Germāniciānus, a, um, adj. |
stationed or serving in Germany (late) |
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. |
cōnsēnsus, ūs [cōnsentiō], m. |
consent, assent, united opinion; ex commūnī cōnsēnsū, by common consent |
Iūliānus, ī, m. |
(Flavius Claudius) Iūliānus, Roman emperor 361–363 A.D. |
Augustus, ī, m. |
a title of honor given to Octavianus in 27 BC and after him to all the Roman emperors |
intericiō, icere, iēcī, iectus |
to throw or place between, interpose; intervene (in pass.) |
Īllyricum, ī, n. |
a country east of the Adriatic Sea |
obtineō, ēre, uī, tentus |
to hold, possess; rule, govern |
Cōnstantius, ī, m. |
Cōnstantius, third son of Constantine the Great. Roman emperor 337–361 A.D. |
Parthicus, a, um, adj. |
belonging to Parthia, cognomen of Septimius Sevērus |
cīvīlis, e [cīvis], adj. |
pertaining to a citizen; civil; polite, moderate 2 |
obeō, īre, īvī (iī), itus |
to go to meet; attend to, perform; die, perish |
Cilicia, ae, f. |
a division of Asia Minor, bordering on the Mediterranean Sea |
Cappadocia, ae, f. |
a province in Asia Minor. |
tranquillitās, ātis [tranquillus], f. |
calmness, stillness; Tranquillitās, ātis (as title of emperor), Serene Highness |
placidus, a, um [placō, to soothe], adj. |
calm, quiet, tranquil |
nimium, adv. |
excessively, inordinately |
familiāris, e [familia], adj. |
belonging to a family, private, intimate, friendly; as subst., an intimate friend; rēs familiārēs, property |
dēdō, dere, didī, ditus |
to give up, surrender; devote |
modestia, ae [modestus], f. |
moderation; shame, modesty; sense of honor, dignity |
locuplētātor, ōris [locuplētō, to enrich], m. |
an enricher |
inhonōris, e, adj. |
without honor, not respected or esteemed |
labōriōsus, a, um [labor], adj. |
full of labor, laborious, toilsome; wearisome, difficult |
sevēritās, ātis [sevērus], f. |
strictness, severity, sternness |
prōpēnsus, a, um, adj. |
hanging down; inclined, disposed, prone |
suspīciō, ōnis [suspiciō, to suspect], f. |
distrust, suspicion |
mītis, e, adj. |
mild, kind, placid |
aliās [alius], adv. |
at another time, under other circumstances |
externus, a, um [exter, outer], adj. |
external, foreign, strange |