The Rise of Rome (Penguin Classics)

by Plutarch

  10. See Derow in CAH viii, pp. 290–323.

  11. Jones, ‘Chronology’, pp. 108–9.

  12. On Aemilius Paullus’ Greek pairing, Timoleon, see below.

  13. Plutarch recurs to these ideas more than once. At Moralia 85a–b his readers are urged, before any action, to

  ask, ‘What would Plato have done in this situation, what would Epaminondas have said …?’, as though standing before a mirror,

  cf. Moralia 455e–456b. See Duff, Plutarch’s Lives, pp. 30–34; and Zadorojnyi in Humble, Plutarch’s Lives, pp. 169–96.

  14. Swain, Historia 38, pp. 314–34, and Tatum, Historia 59, pp. 448–61.

  15. Plutarch does not fail to register disapproval when the Romans sack seventy cities in Epirus, but he attributes responsibility for this to the senate and not to Aemilius, for whom it was ‘a duty … entirely contrary to his mild and just nature’ (ch. 30).

  16. Also reprised at Comparison Aemilius Paullus–Timoleon 2. Aemilius is praised for these qualities by Polybius (31.22.1–8) in his final commentary on his character.

  17. Aemilius’ inexplicable divorce of Papiria is not criticized but glossed by way of an anecdote about how often motives for divorce are legitimate but undetectable (ch. 5).

  18. See Hammond–Walbank, pp. 532–3.

  19. See J. Geiger in Scardigli, Essays, pp. 184–90.

  20. See R. J. A. Talbert, Timoleon and the Revival of Greek Sicily (1974); and H. D. Westlake in CAH vi (1994), pp. 693–722.

  21. See especially Swain, Historia 38, pp. 314–34.

  22. See General Introduction III.

  23. Timoleon’s distinction in this regard is discussed by Swain, H&E, pp. 154–5.

  24. In the biography of Timoleon by Cornelius Nepos, for instance, his good fortune is a matter of celebration: each of his greatest victories, according to Nepos (Timoleon 4–5; cf. Diodorus 16.66.1–5), occurred on his birthday, irrefutable evidence of his fortuna and felicitas.

  25. On Timaeus, see General Introduction V.

  26. See Tatum, Historia 59, pp. 448–61. At his Comparison Aemilius Paullus–Timoleon 2, however, Plutarch prefers Aemilius to Timoleon. For all Timoleon’s merits, the biographer explains, his character lacked greatness.

  27. FGrH 233.

  28. FGrH 169.

  Notes to the Life of Aemilius Paullus

  1. LIFE OF AEMILIUS PAULLUS: Aemilius Paullus and Timoleon are transmitted with the Roman Life preceding the Greek one, which is also true for Coriolanus–Alcibiades and Sertorius–Eumenes. Not every editor, however, is persuaded that this represents Plutarch’s intention and, as a consequence, some transpose this first chapter – the prologue to the entire pairing – to the beginning of Timoleon. Owing to the order of the Lives accepted here, the closing Comparison follows the Greek and not the Roman Life; consequently, it is included with the Life of Timoleon in Plutarch: The Age of Alexander.

  2. ‘his god-like aspect and magnificent size’: Priam admires Achilles in these terms, Iliad 24.630.

  3. ‘Ah! … can one obtain?’: From Sophocles’ lost play The Drummers (Tympanistae), fr. 636 in H. Lloyd-Jones, Sophocles: Fragments (2003).

  4. Democritus … unlucky: Democritus of Abdera, a fifth-century BC philosopher, best known as one of the founders of atomism. According to his physical system, sight results from the impact on the soul of eidola (or images: the word used by Plutarch here), thin atomic films shed from the surfaces of all objects, including people. These images endure as they break down, appearing as visions and dreams. The view cited here is also reported at Moralia 419a, and, employing nearly the same terminology, by Sextus Empiricus (Against Mathematicians 9.19 = DK B 166).

  5. you: Quintus Sosius Senecio, consul in AD 99 and 107, to whom Plutarch dedicated his Parallel Lives, as well as other works; see General Introduction I.

  6. Aemilius … son of … Pythagoras: See Numa 8.

  7. on account of … overall charm: Plutarch here cites a tradition that derived the name Aemilius (or Aimilius, as the name frequently appears in inscriptions) from Greek haimilios, which means wheedling (not always in a negative sense). At Numa 8, it is Numa’s own son who is named Mamercus (after the son of Pythagoras) and who evinces this charm. But there were various stories of the family’s origin: at Romulus 2 Plutarch mentions an Aemilia who was the daughter of Aeneas and the mother of Romulus.

  8. Lucius Paullus: Consul (for the second time) in 216, the year in which he fell at the battle of Cannae (Fabius Maximus 14–16). His colleague was Gaius Terentius Varro.

  9. Scipio: Publius Cornelius Scipio, who defeated Hannibal at the battle of Zama in 202 and was honoured with the surname Africanus (Fabius Maximus 25–7).

  10. He refused … no part in that: Aemilius’ unwillingness to court popularity by pleading in the courts or by glad-handing and charming the public is a recurring motif, also emphasized at ch. 38. This is exactly how Polybius (31.23.11) portrays Aemilius’ son, the young Scipio Aemilianus, and Plutarch’s depiction of the father is probably influenced by Polybius’ treatment of the son.

  11. curule magistracies … twelve competitors: Plutarch is our only source for the number and quality of Aemilius Paullus’ competitors. The curule magistracies were the curule aedileship, praetorship and consulship. The election took place in 193.

  12. augurs: The most important of the Romans’ priestly colleges. Augury was a crucial element in the Roman constitution: see Lintott, Constitution, pp. 185–6, Romulus 9 and Moralia 286a–c. We do not know when Aemilius became an augur.

  13. define religion … service to the gods: A familiar sentiment: see Plato, Euthyphro 14c–d, and the Pseudo-Platonic Definitions 413a.

  14. Antiochus the Great: On Antiochus III, see Philopoemen, note 100.

  15. fasces: Bundles of rods, capped with a two-headed axe, symbolizing a magistrate’s or promagistrate’s legal and military power (imperium); they were carried by lictors, who preceded magistrates during their public movements.

  16. praetor … level of a consul’s: Aemilius was elected praetor for 191 and assigned the province of Farther Spain (where military campaigning had persisted since the third century BC). In this period, governors in Spain were granted the military authority of a consul (and were denominated proconsuls): see T. C. Brennan, The Praetorship in the Roman Republic (2000), p. 163. Plutarch is mistaken in seeing this as a special honour for Aemilius. His command was extended through 189. In 190 he suffered defeat, but rebounded with victory in the following year, for which his troops hailed him as a victorious general (imperator) and Rome offered thanksgivings to the gods (Livy 37.58.5). The tradition that he was also awarded a triumph for this campaign (Velleius Paterculus 1.9.3) is probably false.

  17. restore his wife’s dowry … barely sufficed to do so: In Rome, although a husband had full financial control of his wife’s dowry during their marriage, it reverted to his wife upon divorce or death; see S. Treggiari, Roman Marriage (1991), pp. 323–64. Polybius (18.35, where he too relates the difficulty his heirs had in restoring his wife’s dowry) also praises Aemilius’ financial rectitude.

  18. Maso: Gaius Papirius Maso, a patrician who was consul in 231.

  19. Scipio … Fabius Maximus: The ‘famous Scipio’ is Publius Cornelius Scipio Aemilianus, consul in 147 and 134. He destroyed Carthage and Numantia and was much admired by later generations. Plutarch’s first pairing in his Parallel Lives probably included his biography (see General Introduction II). Quintus Fabius Maximus Aemilianus, his elder brother, was consul in 145. Each served under Aemilius in the campaign against Perseus (chs. 15 and 22).

  20. story about divorce … it blisters: Plutarch repeats this story at Moralia 141a.

  21. gave in adoption to … illustrious families: Adoptions along these lines were not uncommon among the Roman aristocracy, especially when they helped to preserve the name and fortune of a distinguished family: see H. Lindsay, Adoption in the Roman World (2009).

  22. adopted by Fabius Maximus: Aemilius’ oldest
son was in fact adopted by a son or grandson of this Fabius Maximus; see A. E. Astin, Scipio Aemilianus (1967), p. 13.

  23. son of Scipio Africanus: He suffered from poor health which excluded a public career; he was, however, an augur and a writer of some distinction (Cicero, Brutus 77; Velleius Paterculus 1.10.3).

  24. one married the son of Cato: See Elder Cato 20 (where this daughter is named Tertia). This Cato served under Aemilius in the campaign against Perseus (ch. 21).

  25. Aelius Tubero: Quintus Aelius Tubero, who served under Aemilius in the campaign against Perseus (ch. 28). His son became a distinguished philosopher and jurist.

  26. elected consul: Aemilius was consul for the first time in 182, rather late for a patrician elected praetor in 191. It is clear that he had been a frequent candidate before this success: see Livy 39.32.5, with Broughton, Candidates Defeated in Roman Elections, pp. 6–7. Both consuls of 182 campaigned against the Ligurians, peoples who dwelt in what is now southern France and extended themselves to the regions south of the River Po in Italy.

  27. Pillars of Heracles: See Aratus, note 66.

  28. achievements of … first consulship: Aemilius’ command was continued into 181, when he won a major victory over the Inguani, a Ligurian tribe, for which he was awarded a triumph.

  29. went so far as to announce his candidature: Plutarch is our sole source for this and he may in fact be thinking of Aemilius’ unsuccessful bids for the consulship before 182.

  30. Perseus: (212–c. 165) The last king of Macedon (reigned 179–168), against whom Rome waged the Third Macedonian War (see Introduction).

  31. the generals: Plutarch has in mind chiefly Publius Licinius Crassus (consul in 171), Aulus Hostilius Mancinus (consul 170) and Quintus Marcius Philippus (consul 169), although few of Rome’s commanders in the east distinguished themselves in the first years of the war (ch. 9).

  32. Antiochus … confined … to Syria: After he was defeated in 190, the Romans deprived Antiochus of his possessions north of the Taurus mountains, but he continued to rule over a vast empire that ranged from Syria and Palestine to southern Turkey and to Iran and central Asia.

  33. the Romans had defeated Philip: In the Second Macedonian War (200–197), the Romans defeated Philip V of Macedon (ch. 8 and Flamininus 7–8).

  34. crushed Hannibal: See Marcellus and Fabius Maximus for events of the Second Punic War (218–201).

  35. Antigonus: Antigonus ‘the One-Eyed’ (c. 382–301).

  36. Demetrius: Demetrius I, known as Poliorcetes (‘the Besieger of Cities’; 336–283), is the subject of Plutarch’s Demetrius.

  37. Antigonus surnamed Gonatas: Antigonus Gonatas (c. 320–239). The meaning of Gonatas is unknown. See, further, Introduction to Aratus.

  38. Philip: Philip V (238–179), the father of Perseus.

  39. Doson … promises that he failed to fulfil: Antigonus Doson (that is, Antigonus, The Man Who Will Give, though it is uncertain exactly why he was so called; c. 263–221). See, further, Introduction to Aratus.

  40. Scotussa: A town in Thessaly, west of modern Volos. The battle of Cynoscephalae was fought near there in spring 197 (Flamininus 8).

  41. Demetrius: (c. 207–180) He had gone to Rome as a hostage at the end of the Second Macedonian War (Flamininus 9), but owing to Philip’s loyalty in the war against Antiochus he was released in 190. Demetrius urged a pro-Roman policy in Macedon, which led eventually to his execution as a traitor in 180, although the veracity of the ancient tradition on this matter has been doubted by modern historians (e.g. Hammond–Walbank, p. 490). The episode is told at length and with dramatic flair by Livy (40.5–24); Polybius’ account (23.3.4–9, 23.7 and 23.10) is fragmentary.

  42. It is alleged … Gnathaenion: The same story is told in Aratus 54 (whereas at Livy 39.53.3 and 40.9.2, Perseus’ mother is a concubine of Philip). In reality, Perseus’ mother was Polycrateia, an Argive woman who had been married to the son of Aratus but was seduced by Philip V (Aratus 49).

  43. Publius Licinius: Publius Licinius Crassus, consul in 171.

  44. cavalry battle … prisoners: The battle of Callicinus was fought near the Thessalian town of Sycurium (the precise location of which remains uncertain but was somewhere near modern Sykourion), for which Livy (42.60.1) offers different casualty figures (at Moralia 197f, however, Plutarch reports the same figures as Livy).

  45. Oreus: A city, better known as Histiaea, on the northern coast of Euboea, where Lucius Hortensius, praetor in 170, was taken by surprise.

  46. Hostilius … Elimiae: Aulus Hostilius Mancinus (note 31) tried to enter Macedon from Thessaly by way of the Volustana Pass. Elimiae was a town on the Macedonian side of the pass. Plutarch’s is the only extant notice of this event.

  47. Dardanians: An Illyrian people inhabiting the southern Balkans who were long-standing enemies of the Macedonians.

  48. Basternae: A nomadic tribe shifting along the lower Danube and often employed by Philip V and Perseus against the Dardanians. Here (and elsewhere) they are thought of as Gauls, but this owes itself more than anything else to the Greeks’ and Romans’ lack of precision in ethnographic matters (Introduction to Camillus).

  49. Illyrians: A large group of related peoples inhabiting the western Balkans. On Genthius see ch. 13.

  50. come to the forum: Candidates for high office circulated in the forum, greeting voters and publicizing the depth of their support.

  51. Campus Martius: Consuls were elected by the centuriate assembly, which convened on the Campus Martius (Field of Mars), the area where today one finds (among other features) the Pantheon and the Piazza Navona.

  52. drawing of lots … command: In fact lots were drawn in the ordinary way and there is no indication that Aemilius was viewed by voters as the inevitable commander for the war against Perseus (Livy 44.17.7–10).

  53. Cicero … On Divination: See On Divination 1.103 and 2.83; cf. Valerius Maximus 1.5.3 and Plutarch, Moralia 197f–198a. Cicero and Valerius Maximus name the puppy Persa, which need not but can refer to Perseus. Plutarch eliminates the ambiguity.

  54. he had sought his first consulship … need for a general: Also found at Moralia 197f.

  55. Roman camp … safely: Mancinus (note 31) had installed the Romans at Heracleum, a fortified site at Platamona, between the base of Mt Olympus and the sea.

  56. the Maedi: A people living in northeastern Macedon, in the valley of the River Strymon. The Basternae (note 48) were encamped at Desudaba, the exact location of which is unknown.

  57. He refused to pay: After consulting his advisers, Perseus proposed employing 5,000 cavalrymen, an offer which the Basternae ultimately rejected (Livy 44.26–7).

  58. the Romans … had mustered 100,000 men: This (approximate) figure refers to the entirety of the Roman war effort, including Lucius Anicius’ campaign against the Illyrians (ch. 13) and the naval command of Gnaeus Octavius (ch. 26). Aemilius made a strong case for reinforcements before he set out for Macedon (Livy 44.18.1–5 and 44.20.2–7).

  59. some Lydian or Phoenician: This is unattractive ethnic stereotyping. Plutarch evokes the fabulous wealth of Lydia, and its monarch, Croesus, as well as the trade and commerce of the Phoenicians (ignoble even if profitable activities so far as Greek and Roman aristocrats were concerned).

  60. whose nobility he claimed to share: The Antigonids (falsely) claimed descent from Philip II and his son Alexander the Great.

  61. Philip’s gold: Philip was notorious for his use of bribery, e.g. Moralia 178b, 856b; Diodorus 16.3, 16.54; Cicero, Atticus 1.16.12; and Horace, Odes 3.16.3.

  62. Alexander … at the start of his expedition to India … bonds: Plutarch recounts this episode at Alexander 57.

  63. deprived … of his 300 talents: Perseus paid Genthius 10 talents but, after Genthius molested the Roman ambassadors, withheld the remainder (Livy 44.27.8–12).

  64. Lucius Anicius: Lucius Anicius Gallus, praetor in 169, defeated and captured Genthius, who, along with his family, was paraded in Anicius’ triumph.


  65. a secure position: Perseus’ camp, on the River Elpeus (modern Mavrolongos), was indeed well fortified and well supplied. At the same time, Perseus was aware of its vulnerabilities: he had to defend against a Roman landing to the north of his position and had to protect the pass at Petra (note 67), through which an army could make its way to his rear (the means by which Aemilius soon dislodged Perseus: chs. 15–16). At this point in the narrative, Aemilius had advanced from Heracleum through the Tempe Pass to the opposite side of the Elpeus (a movement not mentioned by Plutarch).

  66. There are some … who deny … stops: This outbreak of hydrological polemic is a bit surprising. Plutarch here criticizes the belief that subterranean waters are formed by the condensation of air in the cold depths of the earth (just as above the earth rain results from the condensation of cooled air), a view associated with Aristotle (Meteorology 349b20 and 349b23–350a14; and Seneca the Younger, Natural Questions 3.9). Instead, he prefers the theory that subterranean reservoirs account for these waters, an idea Plutarch apparently associates with Plato (Phaedrus 111c–113c, with Aristotle, Meteorology 355b34–356b2). Here, then, we have an outburst of Plutarch’s Platonism – there was nothing at all like this in his sources – in the midst of his historical narrative. Its purpose is probably to lend a whiff of Hellenic science to Aemilius’ actions.

  67. Perrhaebia … Petra: Perrhaebia is the region west of Mt Olympus. The pass at Petra, located between Olympus and Mt Titarios, could be reached by way of the Pythium, the site of a sanctuary to Apollo (near modern Hagioi Apostoli). Perseus had in fact anticipated Aemilius’ manoeuvre by garrisoning both the Pythium and the pass (Livy 44.32.9 and 44.35.11).

  68. Scipio, surnamed Nasica … in the senate: Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica Corculum was consul in 162 and again in 155, and, as Plutarch correctly notes, was a leading political figure (especially in the 140s BC). At Elder Cato 27 he opposes Cato’s insistence that Carthage be destroyed.

  69. Polybius reports …: This section of Polybius is lost, but according to Livy (44.35.11), who probably draws on Polybius, the force was composed of 5,000 men.