Authors, Latin -- Biography; Cicero, Marcus Tullius; Statesmen -- Rome -- Biography
Now young Octavius came upon the scene. He was the great-nephew of
Caesar, whose sister Julia had married one Marcus Atius. Their daughter
Atia had married Caius Octavius, and of that marriage Augustus was the
child. When Octavius, the father, died, Atia, the widow, married Marcius
Philippus, who was Consul B.C. 56. Caesar, having no nearer heir, took
charge of the boy, and had, for the last years of his life, treated him
as his son, though he had not adopted him. At this period the youth had
been sent to Apollonia, on the other side of the Adriatic, in Macedonia,
to study with Apollodorus, a Greek tutor, and was there when he heard of
Caesar's death. He was informed that Caesar had made him his heir and at
once crossed over into Italy with his friend Agrippa. On the way up to
Rome he met Cicero at one of his southern villas, and in the presence
of the great orator behaved himself with becoming respect. He was then
not twenty years old, but in the present difficulty of his position
conducted himself with a caution most unlike a boy. He had only come, he
said for what his great-uncle had left him; and when he found that
Antony had spent the money, does not appear to have expressed himself
immediately in anger. He went on to Rome, where he found that Antony and
Dolabella and Marcus Brutus and Decimus Brutus and Cassius were
scrambling for the provinces and the legions. Some of the soldiers came
to him, asking him to avenge his uncle's death; but he was too prudent
as yet to declare any purpose of revenge.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account