A Dictionary of Greek and Roman biography and mythology. By various writers. Ed. by William Smith. Illustrated by numerous engravings on wood.

TIBERIUS. TIBERIUS. 1123
is always Dion's fashion. Suetonius (Tiber. c. 76) Tillemont, Histoire des Emnpereurs, vol. i.; De C.
says that he made a will two years before his death, Suetonii Tr-anquilli Fontibus et Auctoritate, Scripin which he instituted Caius and Tiberius Gemellus sit A. Krause, Berlin, 1831; OratorumRomzanoruom
his coheredes, with mutual substitution; and this F'avgnzenta, H. Meyer, 2d ed.) [G. L.]
will might be a disposition of the empire as well as TIBE'RIUS II., emperor of the East A.D. 578of his private property. Caius had for some time 582. His full name was ANICIIuS THR~AX, FLAVIUS
employed all his artifices to win the favour of the CONSTANTINUS. He was captain of the guards to
emperor, and also that of Macro, who was now all- the emperor Justinus II., who elevated him to the
powerful with the emperor. It seems that Tiberius rank of Caesar or Augustus, A. D. 574. He was a
certainly did not like Caius, and if he had lived native of Thrace, whence he has the addition of
longer, he would probably have put him to death, Thrax to his name. He assumed the name of Conand given the empire to his grandson. stantinus after he became emperor. The date of
On the sixteenth of March A. D. 37, Tiberius his birth is uncertain. He was brought up at the
had a fainting fit, and was supposed to be dead, court of Justinian, and employed by Justinus II.,
on which Caius came forth and was saluted as em- who succeeded Justinian A. D. 565. In A. D. 573
peror; but he was alarmed by the intelligence that Tiberius commanded the imperial troops against the
Tiberius had recovered and called for something to Avars, in the neighbourhood of the Save and the
eat. Caius was so frightened that he did not know Danube. He lost one battle against them, but he
what to do, and was every moment expecting to be soon recovered this failure, anti secured for the emput to death; but Macro, with more presence of pire the possession of Sirmium, near the junction of
mind, gave orders that a quantity of clothes should the Save and the Danube. Justinus, feeling himself
be thrown on Tiberius, and that he should be left incompetent for the labour of administration, assoalone. Thus Tiberius ended his life. Suetonius, ciated Tiberius with him, and it is said that the
quoting Seneca, gives a somewhat different account influence of his wife Sophia, who advmired the handof his death. Tiberius reigned twenty-two years, some captain, contributed to determine the emperor's
six months, and twenty-six days. His body was choice. The speech which the emperor addressed
taken to Rome, and his funeral ceremony was con- to Tiberius on this occasion is preserved by Theoducted with the usual pomp. His successor Cali- phylactus Simocatta, and has been translated by
gula pronounced the oration, but he spoke less of Gibbon: it contained wise advice, and Tiberius
Tiberius than of Augustus, Germanicus, and him- followed it. Justinus survived this ceremony four
self. Tiberius did not receive divine honours, like years, during which the weight of administration
Augustus. Tacitus (A4nn. vi. 51) has given, in a few fell on Tiberius alone.
words, his character, the true nature of which was The Longobards were now in Italy, but a war
not fully shown till he was released from all re- with Persia prevented Tiberius from directing all
straint. He was probably one of those men who, his attention to that quarter. Yet he maintained
in a private station, might have been as good as his authority in the exarchate of Ravenna, and in
most men are, for it is fortunate for mankind that other parts of Italy, and he saved Pelagius II., the
few have the opportunity and the temptation which pope of Rome, and the Roman citizens, from the
unlimited power gives. Longobards, by a timely supply of provisions, which
In the time of Tiberius lived Valerius Maximus, were forwarded by a fleet. To check the progress
Velleius Paterculus, Phaedrus, Fenestella, and of the Longobards in the north of Italy, he conStrabo; also the jurist Massurius Sabinus, M. Coc- cluded an alliance some years later with Chilperic
ceius Nerva, and others. the king of the Franks. The war with Chosroes,
Tiberius wrote a brief commentary of his own life king of Persia, demanded all the resources of Ti(Sueton. Tiber. c. 61), the only book that the em- berius. In A. D. 576. Justinian, who was in comperor Domitian studied: Suetonius made use of it mand of the armies of the Eastern Empire, crossed
for his life of Tiberius. Suetonius also made use the Bosporus with a force of 150,000 men, to relieve
of various letters of Tiberius to princes and others, Theodosiopolis in Armenia, which was defended by
and his Orationes to the senate. Tiberius made Theodorus, a Byzantine general. This force corn-
several public orations, such as that on his father, prehended a great number of Germans and Slavodelivered when he was nine years old, but this we nians. A battle was fought with Chosroes near
must assume to have been written by somebody Melitene in Armenia, in which the Persians were
else; the funeral oration of Augustus; that on defeated, and many of them perished in the EuMaroboduus, delivered before the senate A. D. 19, phrates. An immense booty, carried by twentywas extant when Tacitus wrote (Ann. ii. 63). four elephants, was brought to Constantinople. JusTiberius also wrote Greek poems, and a lyric poem tinian is said to have advanced into the very centre
on the Death of L. Caesar. of the Persian empire, and was about concluding
a treaty with Chosroes, but it was interrupted by
some advantage gained over Justinian by one of
the generals of Chosroes. Justinian was recalled,
X.2r;1 AtA and Mauricius, afterwards the successor of Tiberius,
was appointed to command in his place. Mauricius
secured himself against sudden attacks by adopting
goi the old Roman plan of never resting, except in an
entrenched camp. The winter (A. D. 577-578)
Mauricius spent in Mesopotamia.
Justinus died on the fifth of October A. D. 578,
COIN OF TIBERIUS. and Tiberius was now sole emperor. Sophia, it is
said, hoped to become the wife of Tiberius, but
(Vell. Pat. ii. 94; Tacitus, Anvales, i.-vi.; when the people in the Hippodrome called for the
Dion Cassius, lvii. lviii.; Suetonius, Tiberius new empress, Tiberius produced as his wife Ana4c 2