Today and today only,
he bore the titles ultimately reserved for Caesar. Along with the crowds,
I read the embroidered titles and hailed him as the greatest of all kings and
greatest of lords. When I read them I thought of Caesar, for the
triumphator merely bears the title and the power in proxy. Though he is
the greatest of Rome’s generals, and though he has achieved an exalted
position, at any moment Caesar could demand him to turn over his army and he
would have no choice but to acquiesce. He will, however, get to keep the
crown, the robes, and the baton for the remainder of his life, though I’m sure
that if the Caesar asked him to return them for any reason, he would gladly do
so.
He’s a man of
humility, and that is part of the reason that he is being so celebrated.
His popular support is so great and his army so loyal that he could have, at
any time, easily marched on Rome and overthrown Caesar himself, but he has
chosen not to do this. It probably never even crossed his mind to grasp
at Caesar’s throne, which is yet another reason to hail him. Listen to me
going on and on. It’s almost like I’m worshiping him as if it were he that
was the son of god, rather than the Caesar himself.
As I continued to
watch, and as I continued to be enveloped in a sense of amazement at the sight
before me, I heard the voice of the heralds. They were traveling through
the crowds reminding all on-lookers that the celebration would not end at the
conclusion of the ‘triumph,’ but that the Caesar expected all the citizens of
Rome to carry the festivities into the night, doing so with joyous
feasting. The heralds walked the crowds, speaking of the great exploits
of the soldiers, of their service to Rome, and of their felicity to that which
was symbolized by the eagle emblazoned upon their banners, saying ‘Open your
homes to the fighting men of Rome! Invite them to your banquets!
Let them eat their fill! In service to Rome, they have taken their lives
in their hands to conquer generals and all manner of powerful people!
They faced down charging horses so that all, free men and slaves, might
continue to enjoy the benefits of all that Rome has to offer! You owe
them your hospitality and your very lives! Honor them!’ I certainly
hoped that I would have the honor of hosting one of these brave warriors.
Behind the
triumphator and his army came those that he had conquered. Foolishly,
they had attempted to do battle with Rome’s greatest general. Not
unexpectedly, they had failed; and now, they were going to suffer the end of
all that attempted to stand against the glorious Roman empire, its Caesar, and
its legions. I saw the king of the conquered peoples. I saw the
greatest of his generals. Poor fools. They did not realize the
futility in which they were engaged. They did not realize that their doom
had been sealed when Caesar sent out his armies under the command of this
particular triumphator. Examples were going to be made of these men, and
that example was going to be published far and wide as a warning against those
that might attempt the same. The king and his generals, so used to riding
at the front of their army in all of their regal splendor, had been forced to
come last in the procession, stripped of all semblances of power and bearing
the scorn and insults of the crowd. For them, shame was heaped upon
shame.
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