‘A shabby way to treat our staunchest ally,’ said Titus, unable to conceal his disgust at the general’s cynicism. ‘Without the Visigoths we’d probably have lost.’
‘Not “probably” but certainly,’ conceded Aetius. ‘To spare my Roman troops who, being virtually irreplaceable, are too valuable to be squandered, I had to ensure that the Visigoths bore the brunt of the toughest fighting. Pitting barbarians against barbarians — that’s been a policy of all our generals regarding federate troops, in order to cut down on Roman casualties. I salute the Visigoths; they performed magnificently.’
‘But might that not have dangerous repercussions? They’re bound to feel exploited.’
‘Which is why I want them as far away as possible,’ observed Aetius, like a lecturer expounding an elementary point of logic. ‘At this moment, despite their losses, they’re elated by victory. Resentment will come later — against myself, against Rome. But that’s a price I’m prepared to pay for victory against Attila.’
‘I see,’ said Titus, both impressed and shocked by this revelation of the general’s calculating craftiness. He paused, then added gently, ‘But there was another reason, apart from keeping the federates on side, why you spared Attila, wasn’t there?’
Aetius shrugged, then gave a wistful smile. ‘True,’ he admitted; ‘the most important reason. He was my friend.’
1 ‘Cohort’ was a sub-division of the old legion. ‘Auxilium’ (a ‘regiment’) was the name for one of the new formations replacing the legion.
PART IV
FIFTY
And God breathed life into the dead and lifeless hand and she stretched out to take the tome
‘Chalcedon!’ screamed Valentinian, leaning forward in his throne to point an accusing sceptre at the sturdy old man in pontiff’s robes who stood before him. ‘A boatload of bishops to the Bosporus! Did you hear that, Heraclius?’ The emperor turned to the plump eunuch, his chief adviser, standing beside the throne. ‘He means to ruin us.’ To the pope he continued, ‘Do you have the least idea how much this expedition will cost in fares, in board and lodging, in expenses? And for what? A vast quantity of hot air expended in theological hair-splitting.’
Pope Leo controlled his temper. ‘With respect, Your Serenity, to determine the true nature of Christ can hardly be dismissed as hair-splitting,’ he countered, with some difficulty keeping his tone reasonable. Had he been dealing with Valentinian’s predecessors, Honorius, the Emperor’s pious and gentle uncle, or his grandfather, the great Theodosius, who had knelt in humble supplication before Ambrose, Bishop of Milan, this conversation would have been very different. With disapproval, Leo noted the colossal statues of pagan gods and emperors that lined the walls of the great audience chamber of Domitian’s palace in Rome — which city the Emperor increasingly favoured for his residence over Ravenna. It was said that Valentinian was a Christian in name only, that in secret he practised the black arts of sorcery and divination. But of course it was wise to keep knowledge of such rumours to oneself.
‘The matter is closed,’ snapped Valentinian. ‘The state cannot afford it. Tell him, Heraclius.’
‘I think, Your Serenity, the Treasury might just be able to find the funds,’ said the eunuch smoothly. ‘The defeat of Attila last month liberated monies which otherwise would have been earmarked for the war. Besides, the state’s contribution to the expenses of the trip need not be very great. The Church’s income from legacies and donations is considerable, and would help substantially to cover costs. And it would enhance your imperial prestige, Serenity, if for once Rome could be seen to be dictating terms to Constantinople.’
‘It would hardly be dictating,’ Leo protested; then he rumbled into silence as Heraclius shot him a warning glance. A tough and experienced negotiator, Leo knew enough about the ways of the world to understand the game Heraclius was playing. Vain, profligate and vicious, heading a corrupt and inefficient government, Valentinian was widely unpopular. To block a key papal delegation would cause enormous offence, not only to the bishops but to their flocks throughout the Western Empire. It would be disastrous for the Emperor’s already tarnished image. Bishops were powerful men, with strong influence on public opinion and increasingly involved in civic administration, as the decurions, overburdened by responsibilities, sought escape by flight, or by enrolling in the army or the civil administration. Heraclius was astute enough, Leo realized, to know that any crisis affecting Valentinian might affect his own position, possibly resulting in his being made a scapegoat.
‘I would of course be at pains, Your Serenity, to ensure my delegates made clear to the assembled Council that they came only with your consent,’ Leo said tactfully. ‘And with your blessing too, I trust.’
‘Oh very well then, go — go!’ cried the Emperor peevishly. ‘Empty our coffers, impoverish your sees — what do these things matter so long as Christ is served?’ He waved his sceptre dramatically in a gesture of dismissal, covering his eyes with his other hand. ‘See to the arrangements, Heraclius, and speed them on their way.’
‘What’s happening to the Roman world, old friend?’ Marcian asked Aspar, as the old Emperor and his Master of Soldiers strolled in the gardens of Constantinople’s main imperial palace. ‘People seem more concerned over what constitutes the exact Divinity of Christ than over repelling Huns or Germans. When I was a child, the first Theodosius was on the throne and the empire was still one. Theodosius may have been obsessed with enforcing Catholic orthodoxy, but his priority was always the security of the state. He died leaving the frontiers intact and strongly defended. God, how things have changed!’ He stared moodily downhill at the old Wall of Septimius Severus, which here formed part of the sea defences. ‘The West crumbling, the East preoccupied with theological minutiae — the legacy of Greek philosophy, I suppose. The people pay more heed to Daniel on his pillar than they do to any edict of mine. Meanwhile, the empire continues to drift apart, like a cracked ice-floe. To help stop the rot, I suppose I had to convene this wretched Council, but believe me it went against the grain. There are weightier matters claiming my attention — rebuilding the country after Attila’s ravages, for a start.’
‘As to the Council, you had no choice, sir,’ assured Aspar. (The long association between the two men had led to the dropping of the honorific ‘Your Serenity’.) ‘We simple soldiers may not like it, but this new world has to embrace religious obsessions — sorry, attitudes.’
‘Already, I’ve lost the thread of my reasons for convoking the assembly,’ groaned Marcian. He clapped Aspar on the shoulder. ‘Remind me, please, old friend. It was your idea in the first place.’
‘You may recall, sir, the case of one Eutyches who championed the monophysite doctrine that Christ has only one, wholly divine, nature. For this he was charged three years ago with heresy, and condemned by a small council at the instigation of Flavian, the Patriarch of Constantinople. Flavian received the backing of Pope Leo in the West, whose view — that Christ’s nature is both human and divine — of course directly contradicts monophysitism. A year later, however, the case came up for reconsideration at the Council of Ephesus. Dioscorus, the ultra-monophysite Patriarch of Alexandria was in the chair, and the council was packed with his episcopal supporters — staunchly monophysite Egyptians and fellow believers from Palestine.’