Gaius Suetonius Tranquillus [Suetonius]
69-130 AD
Trans RMBullard
Latin (Imperial Era)
SVETONI TRANQVILII VITA GAI
[1] Germanicus, C. Caesaris pater, Drusi et minoris Antoniae filius, a Tiberio patruo adoptatus,
[Germanicus, Gaius Caesar's father, son of Drusus and Antonia the Younger, and adopted by his uncle Tiberius,]
quaesturam quinquennio ante quam per leges liceret
[he was allowed to gain the office of quaestor 5 years before legally possible]
et post eam consulatum statim gessit,
[and he immediately ran the consulship after that,]
missusque ad exercitum in Germaniam,
[and he was sent on an embassy to Germany,]
excessu Augusti nuntiato,
[at the time when Augustus' death was made public,]
legiones universas imperatorem Tiberium pertinacissime recusantis et sibi summam rei p. deferentis incertum pietate an constantia maiore compescuit atque hoste mox devicto triumphavit.
[He defeated all the legions that most violently refused to recognize Tiberius as emperor since they preferred a republic to himself, who was of questionable virtue and inconsistent morality, and later he celebrated a triumph after soon beating the enemy down.]
Consul deinde iterum creatus ac prius quam honorem iniret ad componendum Orientis statum expulsus,
[Then, he was elected consul again, and before he could enter the position, he was sent out to organize the situation of the East,]
cum Armeniae regem devicisset, Cappadociam in provinciae formam redegisset,
[after which he conquered the king of Armenia, and reduced Cappadocia to our province,]
annum agens aetatis quartum et tricensimum diuturno morbo Antiochiae obiit, non sine veneni suspicione.
[and reacher his 34th year of age, he died from a day-long plague in Antioch, not without suspicion of being poisoned.]
Nam praeter livores, qui toto corpore erant, et spumas, quae per os fluebant, cremati quoque cor inter ossa incorruptum repertum est, cuius ea natura existimatur, ut tinctum veneno igne confici nequeat.
[You see, besides the bruises, which were found all over his body, and the spit that dribbed over his face, it was discovered that the heart of his cremated body was intact between its bones, and its nature was observed to be impossible to cremate because it was tainted by poison.]
[2] Obiit autem, ut opinio fuit, fraude Tiberi, ministerio et opera Cn. Pisonis,
[In any event, he died, as the rumor went, on account of Tiberius' deception, and the aid and administration of Gnaeus Piso,]
qui sub idem tempus Syriae praepositus,
[a man who was placed at the time in a position over Syria,]
nec dissimulans offendendum sibi aut patrem aut filium,
[nor did you pretend that he could have caused offense to either his father or his son,]
quasi plane ita necesse esset,
[as if it were clearly so necessary,]
etiam aegrum Germanicum gravissimis verborum ac rerum acerbitatibus nullo adhibito modo adfecit;
[he even slandered the Germanicus, when he was ailing, with the least sympathetic aspect of words and deeds possible, holding back nothing.]
propter quae, ut Romam rediit, paene discerptus a populo, a senatu capitis damnatus est.
[But after these things, as soon as he returned to Rome, and barely before he could be torn apart by the people themselves, he was sentenced to death by the Senate.]
[3] Omnes Germanico corporis animique virtutes, et quantas nemini cuiquam, contigisse satis constat:
[All the virtues of mind and body is said to have been at Germanicus' disposal, and as much amount as every seen for anyone:]
formam et fortitudinem egregiam, ingenium in utroque eloquentiae doctrinaeque genere praecellens, benivolentiam singularem conciliandaeque hominum gratiae ac promerendi amoris mirum et efficax studium.
[he had renowned looks and strength, excelling in intelligence both in his grasp of eloquence and ideology, possessing a unique will to do good and a wonderful, effective ability to gather the good will of people and yearn their love.]
Formae minus congruebat gracilitas crurum,
[He was a somewhat less handsome in respect to his legs,]
sed ea quoque paulatim repleta assidua equi vectatione post cibum.
[but he worked these out too constantly through horse riding after dinner.]
Hostem comminus saepe percussit.
[He also struck down his foe in hand to hand combat.]
Oravit causas etiam triumphalis;
[He also gained the honor of triumphs;]
