Vologeses had to make the best of a bad job and recognize Armenia as a state allied to Rome in the hope of keeping his brother away from Ecbatana. In the presence of the legions and the cavalry, Tiridates laid his diadem at Nero’s feet. For this purpose a statue of Nero had been erected on a senator’s stool. Tiridates promised on oath that he would personally come to Rome to confirm the alliance and receive the diadem back from Nero’s own hand.
But he was never seen in Rome. In reply to questions, he made a number of evasions and among other things maintained that for religious reasons he could not expose himself to the risks of a sea voyage. When he was asked to travel overland, he pleaded poverty. The rebuilding of Armenia was no doubt occupying all his resources.
Nero regally promised to bear the cost of the land journey for him and his escort on Roman land, but Tiridates still did not come. According to reliable sources, he was making unnecessarily close connections with the remaining Armenian noblemen, after the Romans and the Parthians had alternately competed at executing those who fell into their hands.
In the Senate committee for Eastern affairs we regarded Tiridates’ evasions as questionable. We knew only too well that Parthia’s secret agents had done their best to spread discontent in the Eastern states allied to Rome as well as in the provinces in an effort to put an end to the war. They bribed German tribes to move and thus hinder legion movements eastward, and as far away as in Britain they tried using generous promises to inveigle hostile tribes into rebellion so that we still had to keep four legions in Britain to maintain the peace. As his envoys, Vologeses used wandering Jewish merchants who knew many languages and were used to adapting themselves to new circumstances.
Fortunately I received the news of these intrigues in good time from old Petro in Lugundanum. I had considered that I owed it to Lugunda to name a town after her, because of my inheritance. The town was well chosen and holds a key position in Iceni country. Petro lives there and enjoys a well-earned old-age pension in gratitude for his loyalty, so that I should be able to keep my good connection with the Druids and keep myself informed of what went on in the tribes. Fortunately the Druids did not give their support to the rebellion because certain omens had convinced them that the Roman occupation of their island would not last. I am not superstitious when it comes to my property.
So I let it quietly increase in value in Britain and went on making new investments there.
Anyhow, through my connections with the Druids I heard about the Jewish merchants’ suspected journeys in Britain. On my advice, the Procurator had two of them crucified and the Druids themselves sacrificed two others in wicker baskets to their gods, because the Jews, in spite of their secret assignment, appeared much too self-assured in matters of faith. A legion could then be transferred to the East. I saw no reason for larger movements than that.
Gradually, with a great many security measures, ten legions had been gathered in the East. I shall not list them, for troops on the march had to change their numbers and eagles to lead the Parthian scouts astray. All the same, Vologeses was unnecessarily well informed of the movements and positions of our troops, and he even knew about the grazing land dispute by the Euphrates, which we had meant to put forward to the Senate and people of Rome as a formal reason for war. At a secret meeting of the committee we had granted Corbulo, who still retained his physical strength, the honor of throwing a spear across the Euphrates into the Parthian area, as a declaration of war. Corbulo said in a letter that he could do this, and promised to practice every day so that the spear would not land in the water but would reach as far as the disputed grazing land.
From a military point of view Nero’s long-planned journey to Greece presented an excellent screen for our plans. Not even the Parthians could doubt Nero’s genuine wish to win wreaths for singing at the ancient Greek games. On his journey he had good cause to take one of the Praetorian legions as his escort and leave the other behind to guard his throne.
Tigellinus promised to control Nero’s enemies while he was away, however bitterly he complained at not being allowed the honor of traveling with the Emperor. Naturally everyone who thought himself anything wanted to go with the Emperor to witness his victories in the competitions and generally keep themselves within his view, even those who still did not know of the coming war and the possibilities it offered for distinction. Had they known, perhaps they would have discovered some illness or some other genuine reason for not going.
News of the riots among the Jews in Jerusalem and Galilee, which were naturally encouraged by Parthia, had arrived in Rome. But none of us took them very seriously. There was always trouble in that part of the world, whether Felix or Festus was procurator. But King Herodes Agrippa seemed genuinely worried.
So in the Eastern committee we decided that an entire legion should be sent to Syria to put an end to these disturbances. The legion would at least get some field experience if not much glory, since the Jews, armed with clubs and catapults, would not be able to offer much resistance against an experienced legion.
So at last we left on the journey which Nero had long dreamed of and which was to crown his artistic career. To achieve his goal, he had ordered beforehand that all the Greek competitive games should be held one after another so that as soon as he had arrived he could take part in the competitions.
As far as I know, this is the only time the Olympic Games have had to be moved to an earlier date than the proper one. Everyone must realize the difficulties this caused, even in Greek chronology. Proud of their past, they still reckon their years in olympiads, beginning from the first games in Olympia, although they should be content with just reckoning from the foundation of the city in the Roman way. Then chronology would be standardized. But the Greeks always want to do things in an involved way.
At the last moment, just before their departure, Nero refused to allow Statilia Messalina to accompany him. As a reason, he said that he could not possibly guarantee her safety should war break out. The real reason came to light during the journey. Nero had at last found the person he had for so long been seeking, a person who in every feature resembled Poppaea. He was called Sporus and was unfortunately not a woman, but an indecently beautiful youth.
Nevertheless the boy said that in his heart he felt more like a girl than a boy, so at his request Nero had had a certain operation performed on him and had given him medicine which an Alexandrian physician had prescribed to stop the growth of hair on his chin, to enlarge his breasts and in general develop his aphrodisiac characteristics.
So that I do not have to return to this story again, for it roused much bad blood, I shall mention here that in Corinth, Nero was married to Sporus with all the usual ceremonies, and then treated him as his legal wife. Nero himself maintained that the marriage, with its dowry, veils and wedding procession, was a formality which certain mysteries demantled but which was not rightfully binding in any way. He considered himself bisexual, as are all the male gods. Alexander the Great had secured this view when he was acclaimed a god in Egypt, so Nero considered his leanings as a kind of additional evidence of his divinity.
He was so sure he was right that he put up with the coarsest jokes about Sporus. For fun he once asked a senator who was known as a Stoic what he thought of this marriage. The old man replied, “Everything would be better in the world of man if your father Domitius had had a similar wife.” Nero was not angry, but laughed appreciatively at this jibe.