Prolicionycion [sic]

¶ Capitulum 41

CLeopatra the doughter of tholomeus denys kynge of egipte was Empryce of egypte two and twenty yere· two yere by fore Iulius cezar fyue yere vnder Iulius and fyften yere after octauianus augustus / A batayll Cyuyle bygan bytwene Iu∣lius and his wyues fader pompeius in this maner Giraldus / For Iulius whan that he had trauaylled ten yere and wonne Gallia germania and brytayne. He axed the worship that was dewe for soo grete vyctoryes and noble dedes / But Pompeius ca¦to and marcellus the consuls withseyden him and bade hym leue the hoos••· and come agayn to the cyte ¶ Eutropius libro sexto And by Auctoryte of marcellus the consul the grete Pompeius was sente with commandemēt to the Legyons that were at luce∣ria / and for that of puttynge Iulius cezar with his hooste ••••me ayenst the countrey ¶Suetoni{us} ¶Ther were many maner dyg∣nyt••es in Rome / Somme therof dured one yere. the chyef dygny¦te of alle was the dictatours dygnyte that dured fyue yere / But first was but one dictator but afterward the comente encreased And were made thre dictators in Rome / ffor yf there fylle ony discorde bytwene the tweyne / the thyrdde sholde redresse it· ¶It happed that thes thre were dictators to geder Pompeius Iulius and marcus crassus of the whiche pompeius / for he was an old man and of the chiualrye Emeryta lefte at home for to gouer∣ne the comonte Treuisa In xxv. chapitre of the fyrste booke / it is wryten that somtyme the knyghtes of rome after that they we¦re sixty yere old sholde not be compellyd to dedes of Armes / but they sholde be at home and haue certayn lyuelode· and than they were callyd knyghtes of the cheualrye Emeryta / that is putte out of dedes of armes· Than it foloweth in the story•• ¶ Crassus was sente to werre ayenst the Parches and was taken & lost by gyle and by trayson ¶Iulius was sente in to the west londes & dwellyd fyue yere to make the galles and the Allobrogues men of Burgoyne subget ¶Than he helde the dygnyte other fyue ye¦re / by his owne Auctory•••• / In the whiche fyue yere / he warryd

ayenst the brytons and efte ayenst the galles ¶ Than in his co¦myng to Rome ward whan he came to Alpes· he sente to pompe∣ius whos doughter he had wedded that he shold araye for him triumphum that is the worship that a vyctor of Rome shold ha¦ue in his comynge to Rome after the vyctorye But for Iuli∣us had holden the dygnyte by his owne auctoryte lenger than he shold Pompeius warned him the worship called tryumphus by assent of the Senatours Than Iulius was wroth and wēt to the cyte aienst pompeius ¶Eutropius libro sexto ¶ Than pom¦peius dradde with the Senatours and consuls and fledde in to grece and arayed there a bataylle ayenste Iulius cezar / Iulius entred in to the cyte of Rome as it were in to a cyte beynge voyde and brake the comon tresory ¶Orocius libro sexto ¶Iulius to∣ke four thousand poūde of gold and six score and ten of syluer He toke four thousande and ten thousand pounde and deled to his knyghtes ¶ Eutropius ¶And in lykenesse of pees he occu∣pyed the dygnytees euerychone and wente than in to spayne / and there he destroyed pompeius strengthe ••oostes and thre capy¦tains / than he come in to grece and faught with pompeius In the fyrste bataylle Iulius was ouercomen and chaced and whan nyght come pompeius wold not folowe and pursue the chace Therfore Iulius sayd that pompeius couth not take the vyctory and that only that day he myghte haue be ouercomen ¶ After that they faught in thessalia ther pompeius sheltron had fourty thousand fote men and six honderd horsmen in the lyfte wynge. and fyue honderd in the rygt wynge and alle the helpe of the est side with nobley of the Senatours pretoryes and consuls Ce∣sar had in his shiltron not fully thyrtty thousande horsmen / and atte laste in the bataylle pompeius hooste fledde. and his tentes were destroyed and he hym self fledde to the yonge ptholomeus kynge of egypte and axed helpe of him for he was ass••gned by the Senatours to be his tutor and wardeyn ¶Netheles the king folowed more hap and fortune than frendship and lette slee pom¦peius and sente to Iulius his heede and his ryng ¶ Whan Iulius sawe the heede and the rynge he wepte wel better teeris and went forthwith to Alexandria and tholomeus araied bus¦shementes Than cezar was ouersette with strengthe of his ene¦myes and went in to a boote that was soo heuy laden with men that folowed hym that it sank downe and was dreynte ¶ Than cesar swam thre honderde paas with one hand & helde chartres

with that other hande· aboue the water and come to a ship▪ The∣re he was comforted anone and drenched eyther toke all the kin¦ges nauey in batell on· the see easely ynow But the Alexan¦drynes prayd for her kynges lyf / and Iulius graunted and charged him that he sholde rather essay the frendship of the Ro∣maynes than dedes of Armes / Netheles anone as he was free· he yaue cesar a batayll. but he and his hoost were sone destroyed Cesar bytoke that kyngdome to a woman callyd Cleopatra and dwellyd with hir two yere in lecherye Hugo capitulo Ianus That tyme Iulius amended the kalender and fonde the cause of the leep yere R ¶The Romaynes as the Hebrewes bygan her yere in marche vnto numa pompilius tyme / And this numa put Ianuar and februar to the yere in an vncertayne manere / but the yere was not fully amended byfore Iulius tyme Quintilis the fyfth moneth after marche was afterward callid iulius in worship of iulius cesar for he was born in that moneth or in that moneth he dyde somme grete dede and vyctory· for suche a ma••er skyle sextilis the six ••he moneth after marche is cleped Augustus in worship of augustus cesar / Eut / Cesar remeoued from egypte and ouercome f••rnaces metridas sonne in bataylle and let••e slee hym for he had meyntened pompeius ayenst Iu∣lius / thennes he wente to Rome and made hym consul the thirdde tyme ¶ Than he went in to Affryca and ouercome in batayl the noble dukes Scipio and porcius cato and Iuba the kynge of mauritania and they slough hem self afterward ¶R Seneca epistola 26 & Pol libro septimo capitulo sexto Spe••en of this ca¦ton and seye that he dranke venym and smote hym self in to the brest•• with a swerde and soo he y••lde vp the gooste ffor he wold not see cesar regne while he were a lyue. also seneca secundo libro ad Seuerum Cato lyued not after fredome nowther fredome aft{er} cato ¶Also anoth••r story of Rome seyth that cato was not in the bataylle that was bytwene Iulius and pompeius / but he herd of pompeus deth and redde platoes bookes de inmortalite a∣nime and sawe in that booke that the sowle maye not dye and soo he wounded him self but his fre ndes counseylled him to lyue and a leche dide his cure to his woūdes but whan they were a••go he opened his wounde and soo he dyed This doynge is not excu••a¦ble in cato were he neuer so wele l••t••red & so gloryous / First for his frendes counseylled hym the c••ntrary that were wyse men & kynde ¶Also for that he counseylled his sonne not for to doo soo

but he counseylled hym rather to lyue vnder Iulius cesar the vic¦tor. The thyrd skyle for he slough hym self by enuye for he wold not suffre and see Iulius welth and his ioye / And so it semeth that cato slough hym self by vnstydfastnesse and folye / for he wold not suffre anguyssh and disease and not by honneste to voy¦de and escape foule maner of doynge Here take hede of many catons that were in Rome amonge the Romayns / one was cato questor / he brought ennius the poete oute of tarent in to Rome Another was mennius cato that fought wonderly ayēst the gre¦kes in paul emilins tyme. ¶ Another was marcus porcius cato that was called vtycensis for he slough him self at a Cyte callyd vtyca in Affryque / Of him we speke nowe at this tyme / and in caas this was tensorius cato / Of hym speketh ierom in epistola ad Nepocianum and sayth that him shamed not whan he was an olde man to lerne lettres of grue / nowther was put oute of ho¦pe and trust for to spede ¶ This was a philosopher of the secte that heet secta stoycorum· Treuisa Stoici had that name of a porche of Athene called stoa / ther were peynted dedes and doyng of wyse men and of stronge ¶ The fyrst philosopher of that secte. was named Zenon ¶Than it foloweth in the story ¶This cato made a grete science of vertues and of maners that is called ethi¦ca catonis / therof was that lytle book of metre drawen caton that childer lerne in scole Eutropius After an yere cesar wente efte to Rome and made him consul the fourth tyme and soone after went in to spayn wher pompeus sones had arayed right strōg bataylles in the laste bataylle there cesar was so nye ouercome / that his men fledde & he was in poynte to slee hym self lest in his elde he sholde falle in to childres hande after grete worshippe and ioy and grete dedes of cheualrye ¶Cesar was than six and fyf∣ty yere of age Atte last his men tourned ayene and ouercome his enemyes & efte he wente to Rome & made men callyd hym Emp••rour. he was callyd Emperour for a passynge lordship of one pryncipate / & was callyd cesar / for he was kytte oute of his moders wombe whan his moder was dede ¶ Cesus in latyn is cutt•• in englysshe Eutropius / ¶ Whan Iulius by his owne wylle sholde doo worship to the peple as the peple dyde hym byfo¦re· he wolde neyther arryse ayenste the Senators whan they come to hym & dyde many other tyrannyes & doynges ayenst the cus∣tommes of Rome Than lx horsmen & Senatours of Rome & specially tweyne Eyther was called Brutus conspyred ayenste

him / soo that on a day· whan the Senatours shold come to geder Iulius cam to the capitoyl and was stykked thurgh / and hadd•• thre and twenty woundes and dyed