Factorum ac dictorum memorabilium libri IX

Factorum ac dictorum memorabilium libri IX ("nine books of memorable deeds and sayings", also known as De factis dictisque memorabilibus or Facta et dicta memorabilia) by Valerius Maximus

Valerius Maximus

Valerius Maximus was a Latin writer and author of a collection of historical anecdotes. He worked during the reign of Tiberius .-Biography:...

(ca. 20 BCE – ca. CE

Common Era

Common Era ,abbreviated as CE, is an alternative designation for the calendar era originally introduced by Dionysius Exiguus in the 6th century, traditionally identified with Anno Domini .Dates before the year 1 CE are indicated by the usage of BCE, short for Before the Common Era Common Era...

50) was written around CE 30 or 31. It is a collection of approximately a thousand short stories that Valerius wrote during the reign of Tiberius

Tiberius

Tiberius , was Roman Emperor from 14 AD to 37 AD. Tiberius was by birth a Claudian, son of Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia Drusilla. His mother divorced Nero and married Augustus in 39 BC, making him a step-son of Octavian...

(42 BCE – CE 37). The stories are a variety of anecdotes illustrating how the ancient Romans

Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....

lived. While the majority of the stories are of Roman life, he does have some "foreign" stories at the end of some chapters. Most of these are of Greek life

Ancient Greece

Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...

and most of those are about Greek philosophers

Greek philosophy

Ancient Greek philosophy arose in the 6th century BCE and continued through the Hellenistic period, at which point Ancient Greece was incorporated in the Roman Empire...

or famous kings.

Several of the stories relate to moral subjects that parallel those in the Old Testament

Old Testament

The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...

and New Testament

New Testament

The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....

. Valerius refers to his moral stories as "examples" that were to be used as moral guidance. Valerius' work on the preservation of moral values of the Roman Republic

Roman Republic

The Roman Republic was the period of the ancient Roman civilization where the government operated as a republic. It began with the overthrow of the Roman monarchy, traditionally dated around 508 BC, and its replacement by a government headed by two consuls, elected annually by the citizens and...

of the past was widely popular through the Age of Enlightenment

Age of Enlightenment

The Age of Enlightenment was an elite cultural movement of intellectuals in 18th century Europe that sought to mobilize the power of reason in order to reform society and advance knowledge. It promoted intellectual interchange and opposed intolerance and abuses in church and state...

, a literary life-span of some 1,700 years. People read Valerius' work for practical guidance in their everyday tasks for living a moral life. This work was especially used as a reference by writers and professional orators

Oratory

Oratory is a type of public speaking.Oratory may also refer to:* Oratory , a power metal band* Oratory , a place of worship* a religious order such as** Oratory of Saint Philip Neri ** Oratory of Jesus...

.

It is estimated that Valerius's work on these nine books took over a decade. He obtained material from Cicero

Cicero

Marcus Tullius Cicero , was a Roman philosopher, statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and Roman constitutionalist. He came from a wealthy municipal family of the equestrian order, and is widely considered one of Rome's greatest orators and prose stylists.He introduced the Romans to the chief...

, and from Livy

Livy

Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...

, Sallust

Sallust

Gaius Sallustius Crispus, generally known simply as Sallust , a Roman historian, belonged to a well-known plebeian family, and was born at Amiternum in the country of the Sabines...

, Pompeius Trogus

Gnaeus Pompeius Trogus

Gnaeus Pompēius Trōgus, known as Pompeius Trogus, Pompey Trogue, or Trogue Pompey, was a 1st century BC Roman historian of the Celtic tribe of the Vocontii in Gallia Narbonensis, flourished during the age of Augustus, nearly contemporary with Livy.His grandfather served in the war against Sertorius...

, Marcus Terentius Varro

Marcus Terentius Varro

Marcus Terentius Varro was an ancient Roman scholar and writer. He is sometimes called Varro Reatinus to distinguish him from his younger contemporary Varro Atacinus.-Biography:...

and other ancient historians. Each of the nine books has several chapters. Each chapter is outlined and grouped thematically

Theme (literature)

A theme is a broad, message, or moral of a story. The message may be about life, society, or human nature. Themes often explore timeless and universal ideas and are almost always implied rather than stated explicitly. Along with plot, character,...

and contains several stories illustrating that theme. This work is the first use of a hierarchical organization

Hierarchical organization

A hierarchical organization is an organizational structure where every entity in the organization, except one, is subordinate to a single other entity. This arrangement is a form of a hierarchy. In an organization, the hierarchy usually consists of a singular/group of power at the top with...

system for topics of a book. There are a total of 91 chapters covering a wide variety of subjects drawn from Roman life. Valerius arranges his chapters focused on particular virtue

Virtue

Virtue is moral excellence. A virtue is a positive trait or quality subjectively deemed to be morally excellent and thus is valued as a foundation of principle and good moral being....

s, moral and immoral habits, religious practices, superstitions and ancient traditions. There is a thematic guide at the end of the work.

Omens

One example of Valerius' balanced subject themes covered is where he writes stories about omen

Omen

An omen is a phenomenon that is believed to foretell the future, often signifying the advent of change...

s. He notes that the observations of omens had a connection to religion in ancient Rome

Religion in ancient Rome

Religion in ancient Rome encompassed the religious beliefs and cult practices regarded by the Romans as indigenous and central to their identity as a people, as well as the various and many cults imported from other peoples brought under Roman rule. Romans thus offered cult to innumerable deities...

since many people of that time believed that omens were from divine providence. Valerius records that omens had played an important role when Rome had been demolished by the Gauls

Gauls

The Gauls were a Celtic people living in Gaul, the region roughly corresponding to what is now France, Belgium, Switzerland and Northern Italy, from the Iron Age through the Roman period. They mostly spoke the Continental Celtic language called Gaulish....

in 390 BCE. The Senate

Roman Senate

The Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...

was debating whether they should then move Rome to Veii

Veii

Veii was, in ancient times, an important Etrurian city NNW of Rome, Italy; its site lies in Isola Farnese, a village of Municipio XX, an administrative subdivision of the comune of Rome in the Province of Rome...

or rebuild the city walls. While they were deciding some cohort

Cohort (military unit)

A cohort was the basic tactical unit of a Roman legion following the reforms of Gaius Marius in 107 BC.-Legionary cohort:...

s had just returned from guard duty. Their centurion

Centurion

A centurion was a professional officer of the Roman army .Centurion may also refer to:-Military:* Centurion tank, British battle tank* HMS Centurion, name of several ships and a shore base of the British Royal Navy...

then just happened to shout in the assembly place, "Standard-bearer, set up the standard; this is the best place for us to stay." The city was rebuilt in the same place then, since they interpreted these words as an omen.

Auspices

One of the subject themes that Valerius wrote about was the superstition

Superstition

Superstition is a belief in supernatural causality: that one event leads to the cause of another without any process in the physical world linking the two events....

of auspices in Book 1 Chapter 4. Auspices means "bird observations." It is from the Latin

Latin

Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...

words of avis (bird) and spicere (to sight or watch). Before doing anything of great importance, the Romans would "take the auspices" in order to determine what the gods

Roman mythology

Roman mythology is the body of traditional stories pertaining to ancient Rome's legendary origins and religious system, as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans...

approved. This was an examination of the behavior of birds in flight or eating. It was interpreted by an augur

Augur

The augur was a priest and official in the classical world, especially ancient Rome and Etruria. His main role was to interpret the will of the gods by studying the flight of birds: whether they are flying in groups/alone, what noises they make as they fly, direction of flight and what kind of...

as to the will of the gods from this behavior.

A Roman story that Valerius writes about is the founding of Rome by Romulus and Remus

Romulus and Remus

Romulus and Remus are Rome's twin founders in its traditional foundation myth, although the former is sometimes said to be the sole founder...

. He records that the founding of the city was based on the auspices. Remus was the first to "take the auspices" by seeing six vulture

Vulture

Vulture is the name given to two groups of convergently evolved scavenging birds, the New World Vultures including the well-known Californian and Andean Condors, and the Old World Vultures including the birds which are seen scavenging on carcasses of dead animals on African plains...

s. Romulus later however saw twelve vultures. Romulus claimed he had a stronger claim because he saw a larger quantity, even though Remus was the first to spot vultures.

Another "foreign" story Valerius writes on this theme for a comparison is on the founding of the city of Alexandria

Alexandria

Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...

in Egypt

Ancient Egypt

Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...

. It was founded by Alexander the Great in 331 BCE. The architect

Architect

An architect is a person trained in the planning, design and oversight of the construction of buildings. To practice architecture means to offer or render services in connection with the design and construction of a building, or group of buildings and the space within the site surrounding the...

was Deinocrates. He records that when Deinocrates was going to design a great city in Egypt, he had no chalk to use for writing. Instead he used a large quantity of barley

Barley

Barley is a major cereal grain, a member of the grass family. It serves as a major animal fodder, as a base malt for beer and certain distilled beverages, and as a component of various health foods...

, and drew out the plans on the ground. A group of birds then came from a nearby lake and ate the barley. The Egyptian augur interpreted this to mean that there would be plenty of food for a large city there.

Modesty

Valerius writes on the theme of modesty

Modesty

Standards of modesty are aspects of the culture of a country or people, at a given point in time, and is a measure against which an individual in society may be judged....

in Book 4 Chapter 5 about the fact that there was no separate seating for the Conscript Fathers (Roman Senators) at the theater. This was from the beginnings of Rome in the eight century BCE until the time of the consulship of Scipio Africanus

Scipio Africanus

Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus , also known as Scipio Africanus and Scipio the Elder, was a general in the Second Punic War and statesman of the Roman Republic...

and Tiberius Sempronius Longus

Tiberius Sempronius Longus (consul 194 BCE)

Tiberius Sempronius Longus was a Roman consul in 194 BC, and a contemporary of Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus. He was the son of the Tiberius Sempronius Longus who commanded Roman legions during the Second Punic War....

in 194 BCE. In spite of this no member of the plebs ever sat in front of the Conscript Fathers. Their respect for this tradition was also shown when one day Lucius Quinctius Flamininus

Lucius Quinctius Flamininus

Lucius Quinctius Flamininus, the brother of Titus Quinctius Flamininus, was a Roman Consul in 192 BC. In 184 BC he was deposed from the Senate by the Censor, Cato the Elder, for his bad conduct in his consulship. Flamininus' removal from the Senate was a part of a bigger struggle between the...

was to stand in the very back of the theater. He was placed there because he had been removed from the Roman Senate by Cato the Censor and Lucius Valerius Flaccus. Flamininus already held the office of consul

Consul

Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...

and was the brother of Titus Flamininus (consul 192 BCE), whom had defeated Philip V of Macedon

Philip V of Macedon

Philip V was King of Macedon from 221 BC to 179 BC. Philip's reign was principally marked by an unsuccessful struggle with the emerging power of Rome. Philip was attractive and charismatic as a young man...

in 197 BCE. In spite of this he still was forced to go to the back of the theater by Cato the Elder. Out of respect however, the entire audience moved Flamininus to the very front so that nobody was in front of him.

Valerius illustrates another story of modesty when he writes of Gaius Terentius Varro

Gaius Terentius Varro

Gaius Terentius Varro was a Roman consul and commander. Along with his colleague, Lucius Aemilius Paullus, he commanded at the Battle of Cannae during the Second Punic War, in 216 BC, against the Carthaginian general Hannibal. The battle resulted in a decisive Roman defeat.Varro had been a praetor...

. Varro devastated the Roman Republic when he started the Battle of Cannae

Battle of Cannae

The Battle of Cannae was a major battle of the Second Punic War, which took place on August 2, 216 BC near the town of Cannae in Apulia in southeast Italy. The army of Carthage under Hannibal decisively defeated a numerically superior army of the Roman Republic under command of the consuls Lucius...

, one of the worst battles of recorded history. His sense of shame would not allow him to accept dictatorship, even though it was offered to him. The people of the Republic attributed the great loss to the anger of the gods. On the inscription under his death mask shows his good character which brought him more honor that most men receive from the dictatorship position itself.

Valerius records another story of modesty where king Hiero II of Syracuse

Hiero II of Syracuse

Hieron II , king of Syracuse from 270 to 215 BC, was the illegitimate son of a Syracusan noble, Hierocles, who claimed descent from Gelon. He was a former general of Pyrrhus of Epirus and an important figure of the First Punic War....

hears of the disastrous defeat of the Romans at the Battle of Lake Trasimene

Battle of Lake Trasimene

The Battle of Lake Trasimene was a Roman defeat in the Second Punic War between the Carthaginians under Hannibal and the Romans under the consul Gaius Flaminius...

. He immediately sends as a gift to Rome 70,000 bushels of wheat, 50,000 bushels of barley, and 240 pounds of gold. So that the gold was accepted and not returned he presented it in the form of a statue of victory. This was so the Roman people would accept it on religious grounds.

Parenting

Another example of Valerius' themes is where he writes stories about Roman parents and the affection they had toward their children. A story in Book 4 Chapter 4 on Poverty is about the Gracchus brothers, Gaius Gracchus

Gaius Gracchus

Gaius Sempronius Gracchus was a Roman Populari politician in the 2nd century BC and brother of the ill-fated reformer Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus...

and his younger brother Tiberius Gracchus

Tiberius Gracchus

Tiberius Sempronius Gracchus was a Roman Populares politician of the 2nd century BC and brother of Gaius Gracchus. As a plebeian tribune, his reforms of agrarian legislation caused political turmoil in the Republic. These reforms threatened the holdings of rich landowners in Italy...

. The story relates how one day Cornelia Africana

Cornelia Africana

Cornelia Scipionis Africana was the second daughter of Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus, the hero of the Second Punic War, and Aemilia Paulla. She is remembered as the perfect example of a virtuous Roman woman....

, their mother (daughter of Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus

Scipio Africanus

Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus , also known as Scipio Africanus and Scipio the Elder, was a general in the Second Punic War and statesman of the Roman Republic...

), was pestered by a lady guest that was showing off her elegant jewellery. Cornelia patiently endured this lady until her sons came home from school. Then, introducing them to this lady, she proclaimed proudly, "These are my jewels."

Another example in Book 8 Chapter 8 is about the philosopher Socrates

Socrates

Socrates was a classical Greek Athenian philosopher. Credited as one of the founders of Western philosophy, he is an enigmatic figure known chiefly through the accounts of later classical writers, especially the writings of his students Plato and Xenophon, and the plays of his contemporary ...

. He writes of him showing an intimate side which did not distract from his stature because, as Valerius puts it, no part of wisdom was hidden from him. He tells how Socrates one time made a hobbyhorse out of reed

Reed bed

Reed beds are natural habitats found in floodplains, waterlogged depressions andestuaries. Reed beds are part of a succession from young reed colonising open water or wet ground through a gradation of increasingly dry ground...

for his sons. He would then play with the hobbyhorse with them showing Socrates' personal parental side.

Valerius writes many stories of other Roman fathers which generally are contrary to the stereotypical image of being brutal and harsh. Some of these examples are in Book 5 Chapter 7 titled The Love and Indulgence of Parents towards Their Children. He writes that the real fathers are the ones that are benignly permissive and show indulgence. He reports with delight that this kind of father could be found in the streets of Rome and that these fathers were as gentle as fathers in a comedy. He does, however, describe in Book 5 Chapter 8 Fathers who were severe with their children some all-powerful Roman abusive fathers as being tyrannical patriarch

Patriarch

Originally a patriarch was a man who exercised autocratic authority as a pater familias over an extended family. The system of such rule of families by senior males is called patriarchy. This is a Greek word, a compound of πατριά , "lineage, descent", esp...

s killing and murdering others including of their own blood. He clearly reports these that are extremely strict and severe as no longer in the role of being a loving father.

Valerius writes of Lucius Junius Brutus

Lucius Junius Brutus

Lucius Junius Brutus was the founder of the Roman Republic and traditionally one of the first consuls in 509 BC. He was claimed as an ancestor of the Roman gens Junia, including Marcus Junius Brutus, the most famous of Caesar's assassins.- Background :...

, who killed his sons for failing in their military duties, He left the role of a father so that he could play the part of a consul
Consul
Consul was the highest elected office of the Roman Republic and an appointive office under the Empire. The title was also used in other city states and also revived in modern states, notably in the First French Republic...

. Other examples of these role changes can be found in Book 6. In Chapter 1.5 where Valerius tells the story of Quintus Fabius Maximus Eburnus

Quintus Fabius Maximus Eburnus

Quintus Fabius Maximus Eburnus was a Roman statesman of the patrician gens Fabia. He was consul in 116 BC.-Family:Eburnus was the son of Quintus Fabius Maximus Servilianus, consul in 142 BC, himself adopted from the gens Servilia into the gens Fabia, allegedly by one of the two adoptive sons of...

, Eburnus had carried out the highest public offices with great splendor and finished off his career with much dignity; however, he had his son punished for a chastity that was dubious. In Chapter 1.6 Valerius writes about Publius Atilius Philiscus who was abused as a child. When he became an adult, Philiscus became a strict father on chastity. Learning of his daughter's premarital sex, he murdered her.

The role of women

Valerius writes of Roman women being generally in seclusion. He reports in Book 6 on Chastity the stereotypical woman as being well-behaved and who would rather face death than dishonor. One story is of Lucretia

Lucretia

Lucretia is a legendary figure in the history of the Roman Republic. According to the story, told mainly by the Roman historian Livy and the Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus , her rape by the king's son and consequent suicide were the immediate cause of the revolution that overthrew the...

in Book 6 Chapter 1.1. He writes that she was violently forced to have sex with Sextus Tarquinius

Sextus Tarquinius

Sextus Tarquinius was a Roman prince, the third and youngest son of the last king of Rome, Lucius Tarquinius Superbus . He is primarily known for his rape of Lucretia, daughter of Spurius Lucretius Tricipitinus, wife of Collatinus....

, the son of King Tarquin the Proud. Lucretia could not bear the disgrace and committed suicide

Suicide

Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Suicide is often committed out of despair or attributed to some underlying mental disorder, such as depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, alcoholism, or drug abuse...

. Another example is about Hippo, a Greek woman. She committed suicide rather than being raped by drunken sailors. Valerius even writes in Book 2, Chapter 6.14, of suttee being an admired practice model for all women to follow in his day.

Homosexuality

Valerius writes about homosexuality, which was an unusual category for that time period of writers. This aspect of private life was kept under wraps. The only relationship along these lines that was tolerated by law was that between a master and a slave. Valerius, however, does report on male homosexuality in the Roman army

Roman army

The Roman army is the generic term for the terrestrial armed forces deployed by the kingdom of Rome , the Roman Republic , the Roman Empire and its successor, the Byzantine empire...

and the upper class

Upper class

In social science, the "upper class" is the group of people at the top of a social hierarchy. Members of an upper class may have great power over the allocation of resources and governmental policy in their area.- Historical meaning :...

. He does not report on female homosexuality nor "gay women" as some writers did at the time.

Roman army

In the stories of the Roman army, Valerius always records high-ranking military personnel taking advantage of their position. In Book 6 Chapter 1.10 Valerius tells the story of Gaius Cornelius. He was rewarded four times by his superiors to be the senior centurion

Centurion

of his legion

Roman legion

A Roman legion normally indicates the basic ancient Roman army unit recruited specifically from Roman citizens. The organization of legions varied greatly over time but they were typically composed of perhaps 5,000 soldiers, divided into maniples and later into "cohorts"...

. However Gaius Pescennius, a triumvir capitalis (prison manager) in CE 149, had Cornelius thrown in jail and shackled in irons for having sexual relations with a young boy of free birth. Cornelius did not deny the charges and was prepared to make a sponsio (legal guarantee). In so doing, Cornelius was making a statement and putting down a sum of money as a guarantee of truth. If the guaranteed statement was found to be false, the young boy was to be paid this amount. His statement was to say that the boy openly and willingly sold his body for cash. The tribune

Tribune

Tribune was a title shared by elected officials in the Roman Republic. Tribunes had the power to convene the Plebeian Council and to act as its president, which also gave them the right to propose legislation before it. They were sacrosanct, in the sense that any assault on their person was...

s refused to allow this, since they thought soldiers of the Roman Republic should not make deals in which they could pay for pleasures at home by facing dangers overseas. Cornelius spent the rest of his life in prison.

In Book 6 Chapter 1.11 Valerius tells the story of Marcus Laetorius Mergus. Cominius and a tribune of the plebs summoned Mergus, a high-ranking military career person, before the people because of sexual relations with young men and women outside his marriage. He was prosecuted and sent to prison.

In Book 6 Chapter 1.12 Valerius tells the story of Chiomara. Chiomara was the wife of Ortiagon. During the Galatian War

Galatian War

The Galatian War was a war between the Galatian Gauls and the Roman Republic supported by their allies Pergamum in 189 BC. The war was fought in Galatia in central Asia Minor, in present day Turkey....

with Rome of 189 BC, Gnaeus Manlius Vulso

Gnaeus Manlius Vulso

Gnaeus Manlius Vulso was a Roman consul for the year 189 BC, together with Marcus Fulvius Nobilior. He led a victorius campaign against the Galatian Gauls of Asia Minor in 189 BC during the Galatian War. He may have been awarded a triumph in 187BCE...

was victorious in a campaign against the Galatian Gauls. One of his centurions was put in charge of a group of captives including Chiomara. The centurion made sexual advances towards her and she rejected him. Under violence and force he raped her. The centurion then offered, to assuage his shame, to ransom her back to her relatives. When he received his ransom and was counting the gold pieces, Chiomara secretly indicated to her relatives to murder him and cut off his head. She later presented the head of the centurion to her husband.

Political views

The political views of ordinary Romans basically were not written on by most ancient writers. Valerius, however, did write about the grassroots customs of Rome as a democratic society. He points out that the poorer Romans had goals as to where they wanted to ultimately be and in what direction they wanted to go.

One example of how political views were looked upon in his days is where he writes a story on Sextus Titus, who kept a picture in his residence of a murdered radical

Extremism

Extremism is any ideology or political act far outside the perceived political center of a society; or otherwise claimed to violate common moral standards...

called Lucius Appuleius Saturninus

Lucius Appuleius Saturninus

Lucius Appuleius Saturninus was a Roman popularist and tribune; he was a political ally of Gaius Marius, and his downfall caused a great deal of political embarrassment for Marius, who absented himself from public life until he returned to take up a command in the Social War of 91 to 88...

. Titus was popular with the people because of a new land reform law he proposed; however, he was prosecuted and punished just because of the picture and his political views. He writes that the Romans felt a personal loyalty to the memory of these reformers. The tribal assembly of plebeians felt that this memory could be led astray if there was an association to a radical.

Many times there were imposters that said they were sons of populist leaders like Tiberius

Tiberius

, Gaius Marius

Gaius Marius

Gaius Marius was a Roman general and statesman. He was elected consul an unprecedented seven times during his career. He was also noted for his dramatic reforms of Roman armies, authorizing recruitment of landless citizens, eliminating the manipular military formations, and reorganizing the...

, Gracchus, and Publius Clodius Pulcher

Publius Clodius Pulcher

Publius Clodius Pulcher was a Roman politician known for his popularist tactics...

. The people of Rome loved them. In fact, he records that one claimed to be the grandson of Gaius Marius and drew a crowd as what Caesar

Julius Caesar

Gaius Julius Caesar was a Roman general and statesman and a distinguished writer of Latin prose. He played a critical role in the gradual transformation of the Roman Republic into the Roman Empire....

himself would obtain.

Valerius records the attitudes of the aristocracy

Aristocracy

Aristocracy , is a form of government in which a few elite citizens rule. The term derives from the Greek aristokratia, meaning "rule of the best". In origin in Ancient Greece, it was conceived of as rule by the best qualified citizens, and contrasted with monarchy...

and the contempt to which the lower class was subjected by the Roman elite. He demonstrates this with a story about Scipio Aemilianus Africanus

Scipio Aemilianus Africanus

Publius Cornelius Scipio Aemilianus Africanus Numantinus , also known as Scipio Aemilianus or Scipio Africanus the Younger, was a leading general and politician of the ancient Roman Republic...

. Scipio one day preached to a group of plebs that basically they are nothing other than just a level above being slaves. He tells them they don't even deserve to call Italy their home. Valerius shows a similar concept with Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica Serapio

Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica Serapio

Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica Serapio , the son of Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica Corculum and his wife Cornelia Africana Major, was a member of the gens Cornelia and a politician of the ancient Roman Republic. He was consul in 138 BC.He was also a member of the gens Cornelia, a family of...

. The story goes that Nasica treated a poor man with ridicule and contempt because his hands were so rough from manual labor. Valerius writes of still another example where the aristocratic Claudia had hoped for more of the Roman common people to have been finished off in the First Punic War

First Punic War

The First Punic War was the first of three wars fought between Ancient Carthage and the Roman Republic. For 23 years, the two powers struggled for supremacy in the western Mediterranean Sea, primarily on the Mediterranean island of Sicily and its surrounding waters but also to a lesser extent in...

Generosity

Valerius gives examples of generosity in Book 5 Chapter 8. Valerius writes that generosity is given to those that are poor. The Latin word for generosity is liberalitas. The god of wine is Liber. The god Liber and the word liberalitas come from the word liber, meaning "free." Here he tells the story of how, after the Romans captured Asia from King Antiochus III the Great

Antiochus III the Great

Antiochus III the Great Seleucid Greek king who became the 6th ruler of the Seleucid Empire as a youth of about eighteen in 223 BC. Antiochus was an ambitious ruler who ruled over Greater Syria and western Asia towards the end of the 3rd century BC...

in 190 BCE, they gave a large portion of it to their ally King Eumenes II

Eumenes II

Eumenes II of Pergamon was king of Pergamon and a member of the Attalid dynasty. The son of king Attalus I and queen Apollonis, he followed in his father's footsteps and collaborated with the Romans to oppose first Macedonian, then Seleucid expansion towards the Aegean, leading to the defeat of...

of Pergamum free as a permanent gift.

Another example of generosity which Valerius writes about occurs after the Romans had defeated Philip II of Macedonia. In 196 BCE, the Greeks had the Isthmian Games

Isthmian Games

The Isthmian Games or Isthmia were one of the Panhellenic Games of Ancient Greece, and were named after the isthmus of Corinth, where they were held...

. Here Titus Quinctius Flamininus

Titus Quinctius Flamininus

Titus Quinctius Flamininus was a Roman politician and general instrumental in the Roman conquest of Greece.Member of the gens Quinctia, and brother to Lucius Quinctius Flamininus, he served as a military tribune in the Second Punic war and in 205 BC he was appointed propraetor in Tarentum...

proclaimed the independence of the Greek states from Macedon

Macedon

Macedonia or Macedon was an ancient kingdom, centered in the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, bordered by Epirus to the west, Paeonia to the north, the region of Thrace to the east and Thessaly to the south....

ian rule. At the games, the stadium was full of people and Titus had the herald make the following proclamation: "The Roman people and Senate, and Titus Quinctius Flamininus, their general, having vanquished the Macedonians and Philip, their king, order that Greece shall be free from foreign garrisons, not subject to tribute, and shall live under her own customs and laws."

Kindness and compassion

The themes in Chapter 1 of Book 5 are kindness

Kindness

Kindness is the act or the state of being kind, being marked by good and charitable behaviour, pleasant disposition, and concern for others. It is known as a virtue, and recognized as a value in many cultures and religions ....

and compassion

Compassion

Compassion is a virtue — one in which the emotional capacities of empathy and sympathy are regarded as a part of love itself, and a cornerstone of greater social interconnection and humanism — foundational to the highest principles in philosophy, society, and personhood.There is an aspect of...

; Valerius gives several examples based on these concepts. He considered these lesser virtue

Virtue

Virtue is moral excellence. A virtue is a positive trait or quality subjectively deemed to be morally excellent and thus is valued as a foundation of principle and good moral being....

s than generosity

Generosity

Generosity is the habit of giving freely without expecting anything in return. It can involve offering time, assets or talents to aid someone in need...

, although companions of it. Valerius writes that kindness is shown to those that are in trouble and compassion is for those whose luck has turned against them. He considered generosity to be the one that derived its name from a god, and should receive the most approval of these three.

One Roman story is where Valerius gives an example of generosity, kindness and compassion. Here he explains that one day the Roman Senate

Roman Senate

was offered a large sum of ransom money for the release of 2,743 Carthaginian soldiers and refused it. The Senate released the soldiers to the representatives that had come to get them, and forgave the crimes. The representatives were astonished and even admitted that they themselves would not have been so kind and generous.

Another Roman story in which Valerius writes about kindness is where king Syphax

Syphax

Syphax was a king of the ancient Algerian tribe Masaesyli of western Numidia during the last quarter of the 3rd century BC. His story is told in Livy's Ab Urbe Condita .-Biography:...

of western Numidia died in prison in Tibur (modern day Tivoli, Italy

Tivoli, Italy

Tivoli , the classical Tibur, is an ancient Italian town in Lazio, about 30 km east-north-east of Rome, at the falls of the Aniene river where it issues from the Sabine hills...

) in 201 BCE. The Senate gave him a state funeral with a proper burial.

Another similar Roman story in which Valerius writes about compassion is where the Senate sent a quaestor

Quaestor

A Quaestor was a type of public official in the "Cursus honorum" system who supervised financial affairs. In the Roman Republic a quaestor was an elected official whereas, with the autocratic government of the Roman Empire, quaestors were simply appointed....

to Alba (in Latium

Latium

Lazio is one of the 20 administrative regions of Italy, situated in the central peninsular section of the country. With about 5.7 million residents and a GDP of more than 170 billion euros, Lazio is the third most populated and the second richest region of Italy...

) in 167 BCE. There King Perseus

Perseus

Perseus ,Perseos and Perseas are not used in English. the legendary founder of Mycenae and of the Perseid dynasty of Danaans there, was the first of the mythic heroes of Greek mythology whose exploits in defeating various archaic monsters provided the founding myths of the Twelve Olympians...

of Macedonia

Macedonia (region)

Macedonia is a geographical and historical region of the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. Its boundaries have changed considerably over time, but nowadays the region is considered to include parts of five Balkan countries: Greece, the Republic of Macedonia, Bulgaria, Albania, Serbia, as...

was banished to and had just died there. They wanted to give him honor and provided a state funeral for the king.

Gratitude

Valerius gives examples of gratitude in Book 5 Chapter 2 as the theme. One example is when Valerius writes about how Capua

Capua

Capua is a city and comune in the province of Caserta, Campania, southern Italy, situated 25 km north of Naples, on the northeastern edge of the Campanian plain. Ancient Capua was situated where Santa Maria Capua Vetere is now...

was being besieged by Quintus Fulvius Flaccus

Quintus Fulvius Flaccus

Quintus Fulvius Flaccus, son of Marcus Fulvius Flaccus , Quintus was consul in 237 BC, fighting the Gauls in northern Italy. He was censor in 231 BC, again consul in 224 BC, when he subdued the Boii...

at the first Battle of Capua; there were two Campanian women who had kind feelings for Rome. They devoted much of their time and property to its benefit. One was Vestia Oppia, a married woman with a family, who labored everyday for the Roman army. Another was Cluvia Facula, a prostitute, who supplied food to the Roman prisoners of war. When Capua was defeated, the Roman Senate gave back their freedom and property and rewarded them. These two momen were even praised at an important Senate meeting in 210 BCE.

Valerius gives another example of gratitude when he writes of Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus (ca. 280 BC - 203 BC), called Cunctator (the Delayer). Fabius died in 203 BCE after being consul

Consul

for five terms. Many people of Rome generously gave money to his funeral in gratitude for his leadership. When he was still alive, to show gratitude of his outstanding service to the Roman people, a referendum

Referendum

A referendum is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. This may result in the adoption of a new constitution, a constitutional amendment, a law, the recall of an elected official or simply a specific government policy. It is a form of...

of the plebs gave equal power to his magister equitum Marcus Minucius Rufus

Marcus Minucius Rufus (consul 221 BC)

Marcus Minucius Rufus was a Roman consul in 221 BC. He was also Magister Equitum during dictatorship of Quintus Fabius Maximus Verrucosus known as Cunctator....

as co-dictator in 217 BCE.

Ingratitude

Valerius gives as the theme "ingratitude" in Book 4 Chapter 3. Valerius writes that Scipio Aemilianus, grandson of famous general Scipio Africanus

Scipio Africanus

Publius Cornelius Scipio Africanus , also known as Scipio Africanus and Scipio the Elder, was a general in the Second Punic War and statesman of the Roman Republic...

, had destroyed two major cities, Numantia

Numantia

Numantia is the name of an ancient Celtiberian settlement, whose remains are located 7 km north of the city of Soria, on a hill known as Cerro de la Muela in the municipality of Garray....

and Carthage

Carthage

Carthage , implying it was a 'new Tyre') is a major urban centre that has existed for nearly 3,000 years on the Gulf of Tunis, developing from a Phoenician colony of the 1st millennium BC...

, that were major threats to Rome. However, in Rome later, he met his death in mysterious circumstances in 129 BCE. There was never anyone in the Roman Forum

Roman Forum

The Roman Forum is a rectangular forum surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings at the center of the city of Rome. Citizens of the ancient city referred to this space, originally a marketplace, as the Forum Magnum, or simply the Forum...

that avenged his death.

Valerius writes of another example on ingratitude being the circumstances around Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica Serapio

Publius Cornelius Scipio Nasica Serapio

. Nasica had led a group of conservative senators of the Roman Senate to kill the populist tribune of the plebs Tiberius Gracchus

Tiberius Gracchus

in 133 BCE. He soon afterward had to withdraw from public life because the people of Rome had judged his merits unfairly. Nasica, a Pontifex Maximus

Pontifex Maximus

The Pontifex Maximus was the high priest of the College of Pontiffs in ancient Rome. This was the most important position in the ancient Roman religion, open only to patricians until 254 BC, when a plebeian first occupied this post...

, went to Pergamum ostensibly as an diplomat

Diplomat

A diplomat is a person appointed by a state to conduct diplomacy with another state or international organization. The main functions of diplomats revolve around the representation and protection of the interests and nationals of the sending state, as well as the promotion of information and...

and never returned. He died there, but never missed his country because the Roman people were so ungrateful for what he considered a great deed he had done for them.

Infamous crimes

On another theme, Valerius writes of several examples of infamous crimes in Book 8 Chapter 1 and how they related to jealousy

Jealousy

Jealousy is a second emotion and typically refers to the negative thoughts and feelings of insecurity, fear, and anxiety over an anticipated loss of something that the person values, particularly in reference to a human connection. Jealousy often consists of a combination of presenting emotions...

.

One example Valerius records of acquittal (absoluti) is where Marcus Horatius is found guilty by King Tullus Hostilius

Tullus Hostilius

Tullus Hostilius was the legendary third of the Kings of Rome. He succeeded Numa Pompilius, and was succeeded by Ancus Marcius...

of killing his sister. Horatius was acquitted of the crime when he appealed to the public. The brutal nature of the killing influenced King Tullus to convict him; however, the motive for which Horatius did it influenced the people. In a battle defending Rome Horatius defeated the Curiatius brothers and killed them. His sister was in love with one of these brothers and planned on marrying him. She wept over him, hearing of his death. Horatius murdered her then because of her premature love affair with the enemy. The people of Rome felt this was harsh punishment rather than an actual crime of the Roman Republic. Horatius received glory for not only killing the Curiatius brothers, the enemy, but for killing his sister. In this case the Roman people were acting as a strict guardian of chastity.

Another case Valerius records is where the Roman people were acting as an unfair, lax judge. In this case Servius Sulpicius Galba

Servius Sulpicius Galba (consul 144 BC)

Servius Sulpicius Galba was a consul of Rome in 144 BC.He served as tribune of the soldiers in the second legion in Macedonia, under Lucius Aemilius Paullus Macedonicus, to whom he was personally hostile...

was being harshly denounced at the rostra

Rostra

The Rōstra was a large platform built in the city of Rome that stood during the republican and imperial periods. Speakers would stand on the rostra and face the north side of the comitium towards the senate house and deliver orations to those assembled in between...

by Lucius Scribonius Libo

Lucius Scribonius Libo

Several men of plebeian status were named Lucius Scribonius Libo during the Roman Republic and Roman Empire; they were members of the gens Scribonia.-L. Scribonius Libo :...

, tribune of the plebs in 149 BCE. Cato the Elder

Cato the Elder

Marcus Porcius Cato was a Roman statesman, commonly referred to as Censorius , Sapiens , Priscus , or Major, Cato the Elder, or Cato the Censor, to distinguish him from his great-grandson, Cato the Younger.He came of an ancient Plebeian family who all were noted for some...

supported the tribune's charges in a grand speech at a Roman assembly

Roman assemblies

The Legislative Assemblies of the Roman Republic were political institutions in the ancient Roman Republic. According to the contemporary historian Polybius, it was the people who had the final say regarding the election of magistrates, the enactment of new statutes, the carrying out of capital...

as is recorded in his Origins. Galba had committed an atrocious war crime

War crime

War crimes are serious violations of the laws applicable in armed conflict giving rise to individual criminal responsibility...

against the Lusitanians

Lusitanians

The Lusitanians were an Indo-European people living in the Western Iberian Peninsula long before it became the Roman province of Lusitania . They spoke the Lusitanian language which might have been Celtic. The modern Portuguese people see the Lusitanians as their ancestors...

. He had made a peace agreement with the Lusitanians, but then massacred 8,000 of them while he was governor of Spain

Hispania

Another theory holds that the name derives from Ezpanna, the Basque word for "border" or "edge", thus meaning the farthest area or place. Isidore of Sevilla considered Hispania derived from Hispalis....

in 150 BCE. Galba, being a great speaker in his own right, had no real defense for his crimes. Through bribery and bringing forth his children and the orphan child of a relative before the public in a speech for mercy, he procured his acquittal.

Another case where Valerius records ancient history crimes is about Gaius Cosconius, praetor

Praetor

Praetor was a title granted by the government of Ancient Rome to men acting in one of two official capacities: the commander of an army, usually in the field, or the named commander before mustering the army; and an elected magistratus assigned varied duties...

in 89 BCE and governor of Illyria

Illyria

In classical antiquity, Illyria was a region in the western part of the Balkan Peninsula inhabited by the Illyrians....

from 78 to 76 BCE. He was accused of misgovernment under the Servilian Law passed in 101 BCE. There was no doubt that he was guilty; however, he recited a poem about his accuser, Valerius Valentinus, and got an acquittal. The poem was about how Valerius seduced a young man in a striped toga

Toga

The toga, a distinctive garment of Ancient Rome, was a cloth of perhaps 20 ft in length which was wrapped around the body and was generally worn over a tunic. The toga was made of wool, and the tunic under it often was made of linen. After the 2nd century BC, the toga was a garment worn...

and a young freeborn woman. Valerius was then convicted by the acquittal of Cosconius.

Outrageous behavior

Valerius reports in Book 9 Chapter 5 under Foreign Stories that Alexander the Great had three stages of arrogance. One was that he looked down on his father Philip II of Macedon

Philip II of Macedon

Philip II of Macedon "friend" + ἵππος "horse" — transliterated ; 382 – 336 BC), was a king of Macedon from 359 BC until his assassination in 336 BC. He was the father of Alexander the Great and Philip III.-Biography:...

and claimed that Jupiter Hammon was his real father. Another was that he took up the ways of the Persian people

Persian people

The Persian people are part of the Iranian peoples who speak the modern Persian language and closely akin Iranian dialects and languages. The origin of the ethnic Iranian/Persian peoples are traced to the Ancient Iranian peoples, who were part of the ancient Indo-Iranians and themselves part of...

by dressing and behaving their way. Still another was that Alexander believed himself to be a god, not a human being.

Valerius writes another foreign story here of Xerxes I of Persia

Xerxes I of Persia

Xerxes I of Persia , Ḫšayāršā, ), also known as Xerxes the Great, was the fifth king of kings of the Achaemenid Empire.-Youth and rise to power:...

. To show his outrageous behavior and arrogance, he tells how Xerxes summoned all the leaders of Asia together. Just as he was about to declare war on Greece, he tells them, I did not want people to think that I was acting on my own initiative, so I brought you together here. But remember that it is your duty to obey me rather than persuade me. Valerius reports that in the invasion, Xerxes suffered such a defeat that one would wonder if his words were just arrogance or stupidity.

Valerius writes on still another foreign story of Hannibal and how arrogant he was after his success at the Battle of Cannae

Battle of Cannae

. He tells how Hannibal had delusions of grandeur

Delusions of Grandeur

Delusions of Grandeur is an album by Fleming and John that was released in 1995.-Track listing:# "I'm Not Afraid" — 3:13# "Break The Circles" — 3:01# "Delusions Of Grandeur" — 3:45# "Love Songs" — 4:33# "Letters In My Head" — 3:56...

and would not then receive any of his fellow citizens directly. He would only communicate through a go-between. He even insulted his cavalry commander Maharbal, who had said in front of his tent in a loud voice that he had planned things so that Hannibal would be dining on the Capitol in Roman within a few days.

Omens

Auspices

Modesty

Parenting

The role of women

Homosexuality

Roman army

Political views

Generosity

Kindness and compassion

Gratitude

Ingratitude

Infamous crimes

Outrageous behavior

Other topics

Primary sources

Secondary sources