Page:Dictionary of Greek and Roman Geography Volume II.djvu/764

 744 ROMA. under Alaric, Rome was captured and sacked on a third occasion in 410 (a. u. C. 1163) — the first time since the Gallic invasion that the city liad actually been in the hands of an enemy. But though it was plundered by the Goths, it does not appear to have sustained much damage at their hands. They evacuated it on the sixth day, and all the miseliief they seem to have done was the setting fire to some houses near the Salarian gate, by which they had entered, which unfortunately spread to and destroyed the neighbouring palace of Sallust (Procop. B. V. i. 2.) Nearly half a century later, in the reign of Maximus, Rome was again taken, and sacked by the Vandals, under Genseric, A. D. 455. This time the pillage lasted a fortnight; yet the principal damage inflicted on the monuments of the city was the carrying off by Genseric of the curious tiles of gilt bronze which covered the temple of the Capitoline Jupiter {lb. 5). That edifice, with the exception, perhaps, of the spoliation by Siilicho, appears to have remained in much the same state as after its last rebuilding by Domitian; and though paganism had been abolished in the interval, the venerable fane seems to have been respected by the Roman Christians. Yet, as may be perceived from an edict of the emperor Majorian, A. d. 457, the inhabitants of Rome had already commenced the disgraceful practice of destroying the monuments of their ancestors. The zeal of the Christians led them to deface some of the temples ; others, which had not been converted into Christian churches, were suffered to go to ruin, or were converted into quarries, from which building materials were extracted. Petitions for that purpose were readily granted by the magis- trates; till Majorian checked the practice by a severe edict, which reserved to the emperor and senate the cognisance of those cases in which the destruction of an ancient building might be allowed, imposed a fine of 50 lbs. of gold (2000Z. sterling) on any magis- Uate who granted a license for such dilapidations, and condemned all subordinate officers engaged in such transactions to be whipped, and to have their hands amputated {Not'. Major, tit. vi. p. 35 : " An- tiquarum aedium dissipatur speciosa constructio; et ut earum aliquid reparetur magna diruuntur," &c.) In the year 472, in the reign of Olybrius, Rome was for the third time taken and sacked by Ricimer ; but this calamity, like the two former ones, does not appear to have been productive of much damage to the public monuments. These relics of her former glory were the especial care of Theodoric, the Os- trogoth, when he became king of Italy, who, when he visited the capital in the year 500, had surveyed them with admiration. " The Gothic kings, so in- juriously accused of the ruin of antiquity, were anxious to preserve the monuments of the nation whom they had subdued. The royal edicts were framed to prevent the abuses, the neglect, or the depredations of the citizens themselves ; and a professed architect, the annual sum of 200 lbs. of gold, 25,000 tiles, and the receipt of customs' from the Lucrine port, were as- signed for the ordinary repairs of the walls and public edifices. A similar care was extended to the statues of metal or marble, of men or animals. The spirit of the horses, which have given a modern name to the Quirinal, was applauded by the bar- barians ; the brazen elephants of the Via Sacra were diligently restored; the famous heifer of Jlyron deceived the cattle as they were driven through the forum of Peace; and an olKcer was created to protect those works of art, which Theodoric considered as ROMA, the noblest ornament of his kingdom." (Gibboh, Decline and Fall, vol. v. p. 2 1, ed. Smith ; cf. Jix- cerpt. de Odoac. Tkeod. 67.) The letters of Cas- siodorus, the secretary of Theodoric, show that Rome had received little or no injury from its three cap- tures. The Circus Maximus was uninjured, and the Ludi Circenses were still exhibited there ( Vai'iar. iii. 51); the thermae and aqueducts were intact {lb. vii. 6); the Claudian aqueduct was still in play, and discharged itself on the top of the Aventine as if it were a valley (/&.). That the aqueducts were perfect also appears from Procopius {B. G. i. 19), who says that in the subsequent siege under Vitiges, the Goths broke them down, to deprive the inhabitants of their supply of water. The theatres had suffered only from the effects of time, and were repaired by Theodoric (Cassiod. ib. iv. 51.) In the year 536 the Gothic garrison, with the exception of their commander Leuderis, who pre- ferred captivity to flight, evacuated Rome on the approach of Belisarius, the lieutenant of Justinian. Belisarius entered by the Asinarian gate, and, after an alienation of sixty years, Rome was restored to the imperial dominion. But in a few months the city was beleaguered by the numerous host of Vitiges, the newly elected king of the Goths; and its de- fence demanded all the valour and ability of Beli- sarius. For this purpose he repaired the walls, which had again fallen into decay. Regular bastions were constructed ; a chain was drawn across the Tiber ; the arches of the aqueducts were fortified ; and the mole of Hadrian was converted into a cita- del. That part of the wall between the Flaminian and Pincian gates, called muro torto, was alone neglected (Procop. B. G. i. 14, sqq.), which is said to have been regarded both by Goths and Romans as under the peculiar protection of St. Peter. As we have before said, the Goths invested the city in six divisions, from the Porta Flaminia to the Porta Praenestina ; whilst a seventh encampment was formed near the Vatican, for the purpose of com- manding the Tiber and the Milvian bridge. In the general assault which followed, a feint was made at the Salarian gate, but the principal attacks were directed against the mole of Hadrian and the Porta Praenestina. It was on this occasion that at the former point the finest statues, the works of Praxi- teles and Lysippus, were converted into warlike missiles, and hurled down upon the besiegers. When the ditch of St. Angelo was cleansed in the pontifi- cate of Urban VIII., the Sleeping Faun of the Bar- berini Palace was discovered, but in a sadly mutilated state. (Winckelmann, Hist. de V Art,vo.. p.52,seq.) But the assault was not successful, and after a fruit- less siege, which lasted a year, the Goths were forced to retire. After the recall of Belisarius the Goths recovered strength and courage, and, under Totila, once more threatened the walls of Rome. In 544 Belisarius was again despatched into Italy, to retrieve the faults of the generals who had succeeded him; but on this occasion he was deserted by his usual for- tune, and, after a fruitless attempt to relieve the city, was compelled to retreat to Ostia. (Procop. B. G. iii. 19.) In December, 546, the Goths were admitted into the city by the treachery of some Isaurian sentinels posted at the Asinarian gate. Rome was again subjected to pillage, and appears to have suffered more than on any former occasion. A third part of the walls was destroyed in different places, and a great many houses were burnt.