LI.
Pater ei Nero et utrimque origo gentis Claudiae, (pater ei Nero et utrimque origo gentis Claudiae: ‘he had Tiberius Claudius Nero for a father and the line of descent of the Claudian gens, …’; Claudius Nero, though a military man of note under Julius Caesar, is more famous for having been the first husband of Livia, until Augustus took her from him, and the father of Tiberius. During the civil war between Octavian (later Augustus) and Mark Antony he sided with the latter and his life was often in danger. ei is dative of possessor with erat or fuit understood.) quamquam mater in Liviam et mox Iuliam familiam adoptionibus transierit. (… quamquam mater in Liviam et mox Iuliam familiam adoptionibus transierit: ‘even though his mother had transferred into the Livian and later [by marriage to Augustus] into the Julian family’; for the adoption of Livia’s father into the Livian family, see Book 5, ch. 1. quamquam … transierit: for use of quamquam in Tacitus, see note for quamquam … advolveretur in ch. 49. The perfect transierit, after the implied erat or fuit main verb, is in place of transisset, an example of the Latin tendency to use the perfect subjunctive to represent the perfect indicative that would be used if the clause was independent. See note for omiserit receperitve in ch. 45.) casus prima ab infantia ancipites; (casus prima ab infantia ancipites: ‘misfortunes ready to strike since his early childhood.’) nam proscriptum patrem exul secutus, ubi domum Augusti privignus introiit, multis aemulis conflictatus est, dum Marcellus et Agrippa, mox Gaius Luciusque Caesares viguere; (proscriptum patrem exul secutus, ubi domum Augusti privignus introiit, multis aemulis conflictatus est, dum Marcellus et Agrippa, mox Gaius Luciusque Caesares viguere: ‘a displaced personhe had followed his proscribed father; when he entered Augustus’ house as a step-son, he was harassed by many rivals as long as Marcellus and Agrippa, later the Caesars Gaius and Lucius lived.’ Marcellus was the son of Octavia, Augustus’ sister, and of Gaius Claudius Marcellus, consul in 50 B.C and close friend of Cicero. Gaius, Lucius, and Agrippa Postumus, in order of age, were sons of Marcus Agrippa, Augustus’ friend and collaborator, and Augustus’ daughter Julia. See also Book 1, ch. 3 – 5, where these names appeared for the first time in the Annals. ubi … introit: when followed by perfect indicative, ubi denotes action immediately preceding the action of the main verb. introiit is from introeo.) etiam frater eius Drusus prosperiore civium amore erat. (etiam frater eius Drusus prosperiore civium amore erat: lit. ‘even his brother Drusus was in the more favorable love of the people.’ Drusus, Tiberius’ younger brother, gained fame for his exploits in Germany. He died in 9 B.C. of a fall from a horse.) sed maxime in lubrico egit accepta in matrimonium Iulia, impudicitiam uxoris tolerans aut declinans. (maxime in lubrico egit accepta in matrimonium Iulia, impudicitiam uxoris tolerans aut declinans: ‘he lived through the most humiliating trial of his life after his marriage with Julia, tolerating, or distancing himself from, the infidelities of his wife.’ He went into voluntary retirement in the island of Rhodes for seven years. in lubrico agere: ‘to have a difficult time’ accepta … Julia: abl. abs.) dein Rhodo regressus vacuos principis penatis duodecim annis, mox rei Romanae arbitrium tribus ferme et viginti obtinuit. (vacuos principis penatis duodecim annis, mox rei Romanae arbitrium tribus ferme et viginti obtinuit: ‘for twelve years he held sway over an imperial house devoid of heirs, and for almost twenty-three years over the Roman empire.’ vacuos principis penatis: the penates are the guardian spirits of the home, here taken as metonymy for the home or family itself; vacuos, ‘empty’, in the sense that all successors had died, except Tiberius. duodecim annis … tribus … et viginti: abl. of time within which, either with simple abl. or with in or intra + acc.) morum quoque tempora illi diversa: (morum quoque tempora illi diversa: ‘the stages (tempora) of his way of behaving [were] also dissimilar.’ illi is dat. of interest, ‘for him’, ‘in his case’) egregium vita famaque quoad privatus vel in imperiis sub Augusto fuit; (egregium vita famaque quoad privatus vel in imperiis sub Augusto fuit: ‘an excellent time was his life and reputation as long as he was a private citizen or in command of armies under Augustus.’ egregium agrees with an implied tempus to be derived from tempora in the previous line. quoad … fuit: when expressing a fact, quoad, meaning ‘as long as’, takes indicative, as does donec below.) occultum ac subdolum fingendis virtutibus donec Germanicus ac Drusus superfuere; (occultum ac subdolum fingendis virtutibus donec Germanicus ac Drusus superfuere: ‘secretive and devious in feigning virtue as long as Germanicus and Drusus were alive’; Germanicus and Drusus were his sons, the first adopted, the other natural. fingendis virtutibus: dative gerundive to express intent, ‘for virtues to be feigned’.) idem inter bona malaque mixtus incolumi matre; (idem inter bona malaque mixtus incolumi matre: ‘he was a cross between good and evil qualities also while his mother lived.’ idem, ‘the same’, i.e., Tiberius, has adverbial sense in translation, ‘equally’, ‘also’; matre incolumi is abl. abs.) intestabilis saevitia sed obtectis libidinibus dum Seianum dilexit timuitve: (intestabilis saevitia sed obtectis libidinibus dum Seianum dilexit timuitve: ‘[he was] abominable for his cruelty, but with his lustful tendencies concealed while he cherished or feared Sejanus.’ obtectis libidinibus: either abl. of attendant circumstance (cf. G. 390.) or abl. abs.) postremo in scelera simul ac dedecora prorupit postquam remoto pudore et metu suo tantum ingenio utebatur. (postremo in scelera simul ac dedecora prorupit postquam remoto pudore et metu suo tantum ingenio utebatur: ‘in the end, when shame and fear had been removed and he gave in to his own inclinations, he threw himself equally into crimes and forbidden pleasures.’ postquam remoto pudore et metu: an abl. abs. attended by a subordinating conjunction is rare in old and classical Latin, but common in Livy and Tacitus (cf. L. 1374). The view that Tiberius’ inherently evil nature became progressively evident, as social constraint were removed, contrasts significantly with the verdict proposed in ch. 49, namely that his nature, initially acceptable, was eroded by absolute power. The question is still the subject of debate today among historians and commentators.)