St. Augustine, Of the citie of God vvith the learned comments of Io. Lod. Viues. Englished by I.H.

Of the subuersion of Ilium by Fimbria, a Captaine of Marius his faction. CHAP. 7.

IN the first (a) heate of the (b) ciuill wars, what hadde poore Ilium done that (c) Fimbria, they veriest villaine of all (d) Marius his sette, should raize it

downe with more fury and (e) cruelty then euer the Grecians had shewed vpon it before? For in their conquest, many escaped captiuity by flight, and many avoi∣ded death by captiuity: But Fimbria charged in an expresse edicte, that not a life should bee spared: and made one fire of the Citty and all the creatures within it. Thus was Ilium requited, not by the Greekes whom her wronges had prouoked, but by the Romaines whom her ruines had propagated: their gods in this case (a like adored of both sides) doing iust nothing; or rather beeing able to do iust nothing: what, were the gods gone from their shrines, that protected this towne since the repayring of it after the Grecian victory? If they were, shew me why? but still the better citizens I finde, the worse gods. They shut out Fim∣bria, to keepe all for Sylla; hee set the towne and them on fire, and burned them both into dust and ashes. And yet in meane-time (f) Sylla's side was stronger, and euen now was hee working out his powre by force of armes: his good be∣ginnings as yet felt no crosses. How then could the Ilians haue dealt more ho∣nestly * 1.1 or iustly? or more worthy of the protection of Rome? then to saue a cit∣ty of Romes, for better endes, and to keepe out a Parricide of his countries com∣mon good? But how they sped, let the defenders of these gods obserue. They for-sooke the Ilians beeing adulterers, and left their cittie to the fires of the Greekes: that from her ashes, Chaster Rome might arise: But why did they leaue her the second time, beeing Romes allied, not rebelling against her Noble daughter, but keeping her faith sincerely vnto Romes best parts and powers? why did they let her be demolished so vtterly, not by the valorous Grecians, but by a barbarous Romaine? Or, if the gods fauoured not Sylla's endeauours, for whom this cittie kept her selfe, why did they attend his fortunes with such happy suc∣cesse else-where? doth not this proue them rather flatterers of the fortunat, then fauorers of the wretched? And therfore they had not forsaken Illium vtterly whē it was vtterly destroied: no, no, the diuells will still keepe a watchfull eye for ad∣uantage to deceiue. For (g) when all the Images were burned together with the * 1.2 towne, onely Mineruàs was found vnder all the ruines of her Temple, as Liuy writeth, vntouched: not that it should bee sayd, You Patron gods that alwaies Troy protect: but that it should not be sayd. The gods were gone and left their altars bare: in their defence they were permitted to saue that Image, not that they might thereby proue themselues powrefull, but that we might thereby proue them to haue beene present.

L. VIVES.

IN the (a) first] Marius dying in his seauenth Consulship, Cinna ioyned Valerius Flaccus with him in office, committing Asia to his rule, (which Sylla then gouerned) and strengthning him with two legions. This Flaccus by his couetise (the souldiour-hated vice) and other crimes growing very odious, was killed by C. Fimbria, Embassador at Nicomedia: which Fim∣bria by the souldiors assent, entred vpon his place, and warred against Mithridates with good fortune: hauing almost taken him prisoner in the siege of Pergamus: leading his army into Phrygia, and hearing that the Ilians were of Sylla's faction, he entred the city cunningly (saith Appian) forcibly (saith Liuy) and killed all the Cittizens, man, woman, and child, without all mercy, sparing nothing neither hallowed nor prophane: after the Greekes had destroied it be∣fore M. L. yeares. (b) ciuill warres] After the first Marian warre, before Sylla came into Italy to the vtter subuersion of that faction, this fell out. (c) Fimbria] This was a most audatious and impudent fellow, most prompt vnto all villany. He killed Crassus, and in the funeral of Marius, made Q. Scaeuola a noble and honest man to bee sore hurt. But seeing that the wound was not * 1.3 mortall, he cited him to answere an accusation. The whole city wondring that the chiefe priest should accuse the most honest man of the whole state, and flocking to heare the crime: he sayd

he accused him for not taking the thrust of the weapon deepe inough into his body. This Tully relateth in his Oration for Roscius Amerinus. (d) Marius his] Rather Cynna's but all the facti∣on against Sylla was called Marian. (e) cruelty.] Appianus in Mithridato, saith that the daie after the burning of Ilium, Fimbria himself went all ouer the ruines, prying and searching whe∣ther ought was left standing, intending to raze that downe also, so that hee left no house, no temple, no nor no statue standing in all Ilium. (f) Sylla's side] Saluste. Sylla of late, being victor, when he commanded Damasippus and others that had patched vp their estate by the miseries of the weale-publike to be slaine who did not applaud him? euery man sayd that such wicked creatures as had kept the fires of sedition still burning in the common-wealth, were now well rewarded. But in∣deed this was the roote whence sprung a wood of miseries. Thus farre Saluste in his Catilines con∣spiracy: and a little before, Lucius Sylla hauing recouered the sway of the state by armes, beganne wel, but ended badly inough: Which saying, S. Augustine here toucheth. (g) when all the Images] Appian, and Iulius Obsequens also say that the Palladium remained still vnburnt. Seruius (in 2. * 1.4 Aeneid.) saith that Fimbria showed it, and brought it vnto Rome. Truly I wonder if that were the old Palladium that Aeneas (they say) brought from Troy into Italy, with the other Great Gods, which was placed by Hostilius in the Temple of Vesta after Alba was destroied: which Temple being fired, Metellus the Priest fetched the Palladium from forth the greatest flames, for which deede the Romaines assigned him ample honours: which fell out soone after the peace concluded betwixt Rome and Carthage, after the ende of the first African warre, be∣fore Fimbrias time, C. L. yeares. Some thinke that Aeneas leauing the Latine Kingdome to his fellowes, returned vnto Phrigia with the Palladium: but this wee haue else-where disal∣lowed of. The Lacaedemonians indeed beleeued that they had the Troyan Palladium, neere the temple of the Leucippidae: which one Temon stole from Ergiaeus a kinsman of Diomedes at Argos, and brought it to Lacedemon. Whose Cittizens beeing warned by oracle to keepe it, they erected it vnto Ulisses, one of the Heroes. But that is the Palladium which Ulisses and Di∣omedes bore away as wee said before in the Troyan warre. Seruius saith that Mamurrius the Smith made many figures of this Palladium, least the true one indeed should bee knowne. Wherein no doubt but Seruius forgot himselfe and tooke the Palladium for the Ancylia.

Notes

• * 1.1

  Sylla's side stronger then Marius his.
• * 1.2

  The deuills car•…•… to de∣ceiue.
• * 1.3

  C. Fimbria.
• * 1.4

  The Palla∣dium.