罗马帝国衰亡史—Chapter 1—The extent and military force of the Roman empire, in the age of the Antonines 第二部

Contrast of Hadrian and Antoninus Pius The martial and ambitious spirit of Trajan formed a very singular contrast with the moderation of his successor.

The restless activity of Hadrian was not less remarkable, when compared with the gentle repose of Antoninus Pius.

The life of the former was almost a perpetual journey; and as he possessed the various talents of the soldier, the statesman, and the scholar, he gratified his curiosity in the discharge of his duty.

Careless of the difference of seasons and of climates, he marched on foot, and bare-headed,

over the snows of Caledonia, and the sultry plains of the Upper Egypt;

nor was there a province of the empire which, in the course of his reign, was not honoured with the presence of the monarch.

But the tranquil life of Antoninus Pius was spent in the bosom of Italy; and, during the twenty-three years that he directed public administration, the longest journeys of that amiable prince extended no farther than from his palace in Rome to the retirement of his Lanuvian Villa.

Pacific system of Hadrian and the two Antonines Notwithstanding this difference in their personal conduct, the general system of Augustus was equally adopted and uniformly pursued by Hadrian and by the two Antonines.

They persisted in the design of maintaining the dignity of the empire, without attempting to enlarge its limits.

By every honourable expedient they invited the friendship of the barbarians; and endeavoured to convince mankind that the Roman power, raised above the temptation of conquest, was actuated only by the love of order and justice.

During a long period of forty-three years their virtuous labours were crowned with success; and if we except排除 a few slight hostilities that served to exercise the legions of the frontier以锻炼军队为目的的战争(hostilities)，见下面注释, the reigns of Hadrian and Antoninus Pius offer the fair prospect of universal peace.

We must, however, remember, that, in the time of Hadrian, a rebellion of the Jews raged with religious fury, though only in a single province: Pausanias (l. viii. c. 43) mentions two necessary and successful wars, conducted by the generals of Pius. 1st, Against, the wandering Moors, who were driven into the solitudes of Atlas. 2nd, Against the Brigantes of Britain, who had invaded the Roman province. Both these wars (with several other hostilities) are mentioned in the Augustan History, p. 19.

The Roman name was revered among the most remote nations of the earth. The fiercest barbarians frequently submitted their differences to the arbitration of the emperor;

and we are informed by a contemporary historian, that he had seen ambassadors who were refused the honour which they came to solicit索求, of being admitted into the rank of subjects臣民.

Appian of Alexandria, in the preface to his History of the Roman Wars.

Defensive wars of Marcus Antoninus The terror of the Roman arms added weight and dignity to the moderation of the emperors.

They preserved peace by a constant preparation for war;

and while justice regulated their conduct, they announced to the nations on their confines that they were as little disposed to endure as to offer an injury.

The military strength, which it had been sufficient for Hadrian and the elder Antoninus to display, was exerted against the Parthians and the Germans by the emperor Marcus奥勒留.

The hostilities of the barbarians provoked the resentment of that philosophic monarch, and, in the prosecution of a just defence, Marcus and his generals obtained many signal victories, both on the Euphrates and on the Danube.

The military establishment of the Roman empire, which thus assured either its tranquillity or success, will now become the proper and important object of our attention.

开始叙述罗马帝国的军队